Starbuck held his breath as he made the final adjustments to the computer that would lock Apollo out of their shared quarters. Just on the off chance that the Captain decided to leave off work early, he would be unable to enter his home, at least until Starbuck rewired it back to normal. The computer would stubbornly insist that it had no record of him anywhere, and he would be unable to enter until he'd found a computer maintenance man to give the thing an attitude adjustment. Fortunately, this happened often enough not to cause suspicion in the ever-wary Captain.

There- that was the last connection. Starbuck grinned. No way, after all the trouble he'd gone to over this night, was he going to let Apollo spoil it by accident!

Apollo made his way to his quarters, steps dragging as he wove through the endless corridors. Today had been hell. Everything that could have possibly gone wrong had done so with a vengeance. Sick pilots, a Cylon ambush, equipment failure out the wazoo- and no sign of Starbuck anywhere, not since lunch break. All he wanted was to go home and have a nice long turbowash, then crawl into bed. Maybe Starbuck would be there, and willing to give him a backrub...

The lock on their quarters hesitated a long moment before releasing. Apollo swore at it. Last thing he needed was the damn thing deciding it didn't want to accept his code again. But it did open, and Apollo entered. He slung his jacket across a chair, then detected an unfamiliar aroma in the air. What the hell...?

The main living area of the quarters he shared with Starbuck had been utterly transformed. Candles burned cheerfully- in space-safe holders- around the room, giving a soft light. The table had been draped in deep burgundy cloth, and held an enticing array of covered dishes. A soothing hologram of a waterfall in the moonlight played on the wall, while a real tree- albeit a small one- stood in a pot, lending an illusion of reality to the image.

"What..."

"Happy anniversary, Apollo," Starbuck said, stepping out of the bedroom with a smile. He was wearing an elegant sapphire robe, one that shimmered in the candlelight and made him seem nearly as ethereal as the waterfall.

"Anniversary... oh, Lords! I had forgotten!" Apollo crossed the room to take his lover into his arms. "I'm sorry- can you forgive me?"

"There's nothing to forgive," Starbuck whispered into his ear, sending thrills racing down Apollo's spine. "I'm glad you forgot- because now I know I've managed to surprise you."

"You certainly have done that..." Apollo held Starbuck close for a moment longer, then released him to explore the contents of the table. "So what's all this?"

"I had the chef over at the Starlight Lounge make up a little something," Starbuck replied with a smile. He uncovered the dishes one by one, revealing steaming delicacies that had Apollo's stomach rumbling in a most insistent manner.

"Star, I can't believe you went to so much trouble-" Apollo's stunned glance took in the food, the decorations, his smiling lover...

"Anything for you, my love. Now sit down and eat, before this all gets cold."

"Gladly."

The chef had outdone himself. The meal was simply astounding, and Apollo felt the tensions of the day evaporate away as he ate and smiled at Starbuck. One full yahren ago, they had first become lovers... One full yahren. Amazing. And the man was as beautiful now as he had been then, and even more beloved.

"And now, I have a surprise for you!" Starbuck's eyes lit with excitement, as he cleared away the empty dishes. He waved aside Apollo's attempt to help with mock irritation.

"Another surprise?" Apollo's eyebrows rose.

"Yes, another surprise." Starbuck's grin widened and he reached into the pocket of his robe to withdraw a small box.

Apollo took it, feeling a faint tremor of anticipation through his nerves. Was this what he thought it was...? It was. The box opened to reveal a slender gold anniversary band, engraved on the inside with their names and the date they had gotten together. Apollo swallowed hard against the lump in his throat. "Starbuck..."

"I have one, too," Starbuck said, as excited as a little boy. "We may not be able to get sealed, but that doesn't mean we can't wear these as promise rings, to show that we're off limits..."

Apollo blinked away the happy tears. "Starbuck- this is wonderful! Thank you, thank you so much- you've made me so happy..."

"Hush now, and put my ring on me." Starbuck dropped a ring, identical to Apollo's, in his hand. Apollo swallowed again, then took Starbuck's hand and slipped the ring on his finger.

"Let this ring be a visible symbol of our love," he whispered, smiling through the haze of tears.

Starbuck took the other ring out of the box and slipped it on Apollo's finger. "Forever."

"Forever..." Apollo took Starbuck's face in both his hands and just gazed into those impossibly blue eyes for a long moment. Then he kissed his love softly on the lips.

"Are you ready for the rest of your surprise?"

"I don't know how much more I can handle," Apollo smiled.

"Then come with me, and find out..."

Starbuck drew his lover into the bedroom, where he proceeded to show Apollo in every way he could think of just how much the Captain meant to him.