"Hey, Esteban!" shouted James Vega from the front of the tattoo parlor, "I'm going to head home, unless of course you expect me to do something before I leave."

Even from the great distance between them, James could still hear Steve audibly sigh from the back office before he exited the room, a look of irritation quite evident on his face when he saw James standing by the door.

"Vega, have you cleaned the seats?" asked Steve, his arms crossed as he looked at James.

"Yep, with water and disinfectant," replied James happily as he reached for the doorknob.

"Did you write down which inks we have to purchase before the next delivery?" asked Steve, smirking at James' disappointed face.

"Yes," sighed James, he really wanted to get home and he knew Steve was just stalling the inevitable.

"Did you schedule the next appointments and the follow ups?" asked Steve, now slowly pacing, still watching James.

"Yes, the new appointments are in the red book and the follow ups are in the green one," sighed James, "just like you told me they should be."

"Good, very good, James," said Steve, nodding in approval.

"Is there anything else, Esteban?" groaned James as his hands twitched towards the door handle again.

"No, Vega, you're good to go," sighed Steve, smiling as he waved him off, "I'll finish lock up and see you tomorrow."

"Thanks, Esteban, you're the best," said James as he exited the tattoo parlor and got into his skycar. He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel in time with the song on the radio as he drove along the quite streets of Vancouver, he was halfway tempted to take a long detour to see Elissa Shepard but thought better of it when he saw the late hour on his dashboard clock. When he pulled into his driveway he sighed out of relief, it had been a long day at the shop, it seemed every kid that had survived the war was joining the Alliance and wanted a tattoo to show how much of a badass they had become. The day got even longer when the kids found out that he and Steve had worked with Commander Shepard and they sat for a good three hours telling war stories while the kids got their tattoos.

'Kids, damn, when did eighteen mean that?' wondered James as he got out of his car and walked into his house, suddenly aware of how quiet it was around him. Most nights he would go over to Elissa's and hang out with her and Kaidan until they kicked him out and he was usually too tired to even notice how quiet his house was.

"Man, maybe I should've stopped over there," said James miserably as he slung his jacket into the armchair in the living room and he went to kitchen to find something to eat, finding some leftover spare ribs from last night's dinner with Elissa and Kaidan he grabbed them and threw them in the microwave for about two minutes. Leaning against the counter he started to think about what he had to do tomorrow at the shop when his omni-tool beeped, activating it he saw a new message from an unknown address:

To: Lieutenant James Vega

From: LawBringerSR2

Subject: [No Subject]

James,

I just wanted to say, it was good seeing you at the ceremony, I heard about you and Cortez going into business for yourselves while you're on extended shore leave and I have to say it's a bold move. That being said, I think you and Cortez might be the only two stubborn enough and passionate enough to make it work. Anyway, just wanted to say 'Hi' and that's it.

James stared at the message wondering who in hell had sent it, there was no signature except the screen name and even that was still puzzling, but the message was too enticing to resist.

To: LawBringerSR2

From: Lieutenant James Vega

Subject: Who the hell is this?

LawBringerSR2,

You seem to have the advantage, you know me but I don't know you, do you think you could enlighten me to your identity?

Patiently waiting,

James Vega

He waited a few seconds, pulling his ribs out of the microwave when he heard the beep of his omni-tool again.

To: Lieutenant James Vega

From: Miranda Lawson

Subject: RE: Who the hell is this?

James,

Now you know.

Miranda

James' jaw dropped when he read the name, he had never expected to hear from Miranda, it had been weeks since the ceremony and even then they had barely spoken a hundred words over the course of that weekend. His curiosity was now piqued enough to reply again though with some trepidation, she had always intimidated him with her icy glares and know-it-all attitude, but now he felt somewhat safer since he could not see her clear blue eyes staring him down. The thought of her eyes roaming his body sent a pleasant chill down his spine as he typed his next message.

To: Miranda Lawson

From: Lieutenant James Vega

Subject: RE: Who the hell is this?

Miranda,

I hadn't expected to hear from you, what a pleasant surprise! How've you been? What have you been up to these last few weeks, Lola doesn't tell me too much, but she obviously tells you enough if you know about the tattoo parlor. How's your little sister, Oriana was it, is she still in school? Things have been crazy here lately, it's like every kid in Vancouver that can enlist has and now wants a tattoo to celebrate!

Sincerely,

James

James smiled as he sent the message, expecting a decent amount of time before her response, he grabbed his plateful of ribs, a beer, and some extra barbeque sauce then sat down at his kitchen table. Suddenly he heard his omni-tool sound off and he dropped his rib in surprise, wiping his hands on a napkin quickly before opening up the message, rather impressed with her speedy reply.

To: Lieutenant James Vega

From: Miranda Lawson

Subject: RE: Who the hell is this?

James,

I've been doing well, ever since the war ended and the relay's got back online, I've been doing some missionary work by helping colonies that were left devastated by the Reapers and even some of the colonies that the Collectors had hit. Right now actually I'm on Horizon supervising the rebuilding on their defense systems, it's rather exciting work actually watching the effect my work is having on these colonists. I know that sounds incredibly selfish but after having worked with Cerberus and seeing my work destroy millions of lives, it feels great to see it go towards a much better course of work. Yes, Lisa did tell me about your tattoo parlor and that you and Cortez are doing an amazing job and are never short on customers. I have noticed the young soldiers, some of them are stationed here as part of the guard unit just in case raiders or pirates show up. Oriana is doing very well, I talk with her just about every night before I go to bed, so far school is going fine though she is slacking a bit in her Early Earth History class I've spoken to her about that though so I'll expect better grades.

Other than the tattoo parlor, what have you been up to, Lisa only tells me so much? Is she still with Major Alenko? What about the rest of the crew?

Sincerely,

Miranda

James smirked as he started to type his reply, hoping to match her speed just to impress her more.

To: Miranda Lawson

From: Lieutenant James Vega

Subject: RE: Who the hell is this?

Miranda,

Sounds like you're doing a lot of incredible work, glad to hear those brains aren't going to waste, and no it's not selfish to take pride in the work you're doing. Anyway, glad to hear about Oriana, after what she went through I'm glad her life is back to normal she and you have both earned that chance. I've been so busy with the shop there's barely anytime for me to get a decent workout in, lucky for me Esteban doesn't care if I do some pull ups in my office as long as I don't neglect my work. Lola is still with Kaidan, they seem to be doing well except they're getting into a few more arguments than before, or maybe I'm just around more often so I hear what was probably happening in private. Joker and EDI have an apartment not too far from Lola's place, and the rest of the crew visits most days though they spend a lot of time off world doing their usual jobs.

Sincerely,

James

James went back to his food, hoping to get at least a few bites in before Miranda's next reply, wondering what had possessed her to message him out of the blue. He managed to finish half of his ribs and two beers before his omni-tool beeped again, he was rather shocked it had taken her so long to reply to a reasonably short message.

To: Lieutenant James Vega

From: Miranda Lawson

Subject: RE: Who the hell is this?

James,

Sorry it took so long to reply, a few of my workers came by asking about what the itinerary is for tomorrow, and it took longer than I thought it would. Anyway, I'm glad to hear that Lisa and Major Alenko and the rest of the old crew are doing well, I miss them a lot more than I thought I would especially given where our loyalties were. I have to go now, there's a lot to do tomorrow and as much as I have enjoyed talking with you, I have a duty to my crew to be at a hundred percent while working with eezo cores. I'll message you tomorrow hopefully.

Sincerely,

Miranda

James smiled to himself as he made ready for bed, it really had been an unexpected pleasure messaging Miranda that night, it had definitely made him feel less alone and he was able to catch up with her as if they were friends instead of allies. Laying in bed, his arms tucked underneath his head, he could not help but think of Miranda's piercing blue eyes and the dark wavy hair, not to mention her curves that seemed to never end. He moaned in pleasure as he felt his body react the only way it could, his member becoming erect as he continued to think about how easily her tight uniform would peel away from her milky white skin.

'Shit, Vega, stop now!' he commanded himself, trying to erase the images that just popped into his head of her luscious pink lips working their way down his body starting at his neck and traveling to places he had only dreamed of a woman kissing. He groaned, it was going to be a very long and painful night if he did not do something about it right now, gripping his throbbing manhood in his hands he started to slowly pump his hand. Thinking now only of Miranda and how it would feel to be taken in by her completely, the feel of her gripping his erection as he thrust deep inside, the primal moan that would escape her beautiful mouth and the pert breasts that would bounce in front of his face, he felt his release sooner than he would have liked. Using his discarded T-shirt to clean up, he felt himself shudder in pleasure, that had been the best personal time he had had in a very long time. Turning over, he wished that Miranda was laying in his arms, now he was hoping that sometime in the future that could happen.


A/N: This was just an idea I had while I was writing the more recent Beginning Anew chapter. I've been considering writing a Miranda/James story probably from the start of the ME3 events instead of after. Either way, let me know what you guys think!