Author's Note: Just a random idea I had based on the coincidence of these two lovely ladies from Sci-Fi Video Game franchises sharing a name. Nothing more deep or complex than that. Nevertheless, I hope you all like it. And kudos to anyone who gets all of the many, many name-drops and Easter eggs I snuck into this one.
Miranda Keyes stood at attention impatiently, waiting for someone, anyone, to come by and talk to her. She had been sent by her superiors to the Lazarus Facility to assess their progress, but so far, no one had bothered to come and talk to her. All of the men and women in white uniforms or armor simply ignored her as though she wasn't even there. Truth be told, Miranda Keyes found that somewhat disrespectful, but perhaps she was just biased being raised by a man who valued class and showing proper respect to authority figures.
Finally though, a set of metal doors slid open, and a woman stepped out of them. Miranda Keyes took note of her slender and graceful figure, her incredibly (and icily), beautiful face, her long dark brown hair, and her hard gray-blue eyes that narrowed when she saw Miranda Keyes. Her outfit was a white catsuit with honeycomb pattern that was low-cut, though not to the point of exposing any cleavage. The belt and sleeves (but not the white fingers), were black, as were the knee-high high-heeled boots she wore. In all, she cut quite the figure, and Miranda Keyes could tell that she was dressed to get people's attention. Probably men's specifically, she suspected.
Well, I have to confess to being just a little jealous. Miranda Keyes thought, fighting hard to crack a smile as she did. Not sure I could fit into that tight number. Looks well-put together too. The honeycomb structure's a nice touch.
"Are you Commander Miranda Keyes?" The woman questioned, and her accent was unmistakably Australian, though Miranda Keyes had no way of knowing if she was native to that Earth-born country, or merely descended from such people. Nevertheless, she nodded and said: "Yes, I am."
The woman made a slight, bemused smirk. "I am Miranda Lawson. I am the head of the Lazarus Cell of Cerberus, and the one in charge of the Lazarus Project to restore SPARTAN-007.
"Miranda...Lawson?" Miranda Keyes asked.
"That's what I said." The other woman said humorlessly. "Please no jokes about how we seem to share the same first name, because I'm not in the mood for them. Now if you'll please accompany me..."
Miranda Keyes nodded and did so. Miranda Lawson led her down one of several sterile white hallways reinforced with durable safety-glass windows to give one a view of the facility's inner workings. As they walked, Miranda Keyes decided to get right to it: "We were led to believe that ONI's attempts to save Shepard-007's life have been successful. I was sent to evaluate that for myself and approve his being redeployed."
"Only the Lazarus Cell of ONI's sub-branch Cerberus had a hand in this." Miranda Lawson pointed out without mirth or malice. "And yes, the reports were correct; although Shepard-007's injuries sustained at Reach and at Alpha Halo were severe, we believe we have saved him successfully. Improved him too, actually."
"Really?" Miranda Keyes asked with a raised eyebrow. "How so?"
"Well, for one, it would seem that the good SPARTAN Commander had untapped Biotic abilities all along and never even realized it. We figured this out when we were...'rebuilding' him. Since then, we've also been testing his new Biotic powers and training him rigorously. I must say he's performed exceptionally well in all tests and trials, but then I don't think any of us are really surprised. He is a SPARTAN-II after all."
"Any other 'improvements' that you made?" Miranda Keyes asked. Miranda Lawson didn't miss the clear suspicion in her tone.
"Don't sound so hostile." Miranda Lawson said as though speaking to an unruly child before continuing: "And yes, we did. Although we tried to avoid cybernetic replacements for missing body parts, there were some instances where that was not an option. However we reasoned that, if we were going to put machinery into him, we'd make it the very best that we could. One of Shepard-007's eyes is now cybernetic, featuring multiple modes of vision, including infrared and limited ability to see the entire invisible light spectrum as well as visible. Likewise, his forearm now has built-in weapons, including a few modifications we made later at the Commander's request."
"What were those?"
"A portable reserve of shuriken, if you can believe it." Miranda Lawson said, shaking her head. "The Commander seems to think he was a ninja in a past life. Nevertheless, we accommodated him. He can now summon shuriken from his forearm and launch them at targets. And I have to admit that as silly as they seem to me, he's quite a good shot with them."
Finally, the pair's walk ended in a large room with two chairs facing a large window.
"Have a seat please, Miss Keyes." Miranda Lawson said, and Miranda Keyes took her seat as instructed.
"Would you like me to have refreshments brought here?" Miranda Lawson offered, a gesture that took Miranda Keyes a bit off-guard. "Uh, no, no thank you." Miranda Keyes said, shaking her head. The two women each took a seat.
The large window offered a view of a large training room, complete with miniature obstacle courses, workout equipment, and even holographic and mechanical mock-ups of both Covenant aliens and insurrectionists like the infamous Terra Firma party. And in the center of it was a SPARTAN-II in a black variant of the Hayabusa armor with a red stripe running down one arm and also down the center of his helmet. In one hand he held a standard-issue SMG, while in his other hand he held what looked to Miranda Keyes' eyes an awful lot like...
"Katana." Miranda Lawson elaborated, finishing Miranda Keyes' thought for her. "The blade is a monomolecular blade, allowing it to go through even Covenant armor and energy shields. Much like with the shuriken I didn't see the point of it myself, but the Commander was quite insistent, and The Illusive Man told me to give Shepard-007 whatever he asked for within reason. So I did."
"The Illusive Man..." Miranda Keyes muttered, frowning. She'd heard of him. He was the leader of ONI's sub-branch Cerberus. He was widely renowned as a brilliant man who's tactics and prudence had saved the UNSC many a time. But he was also regarded by many as a dangerous radical and extremist, willing to do whatever it took to win, as most prominently demonstrated with the controversial SPARTAN-II program that had stolen children from their families. Miranda Keyes knew about that particular dirty little secret, and it never failed to arouse feelings of great disgust inside her.
And as if that wasn't enough, he also tended to have fairly..."controversial" opinions about the UNSC's alien allies the Citadel Races. In The Illusive Man's mind, the Covenant's genocide proved that non-humans in general couldn't be trusted, least of all multi-species alliances like them and the Citadel races. The Illusive Man further argued that those latter races were deliberately keeping secrets and resources and technology from humanity as a means of keeping them down because they feared and disdained humanity and what they could one day become.
Most dismissed the above arguments and others as the ravings of a man who'd spent too many years fighting bad aliens and could now no longer differentiate them from the good. But the Citadel races always took him seriously enough that they again and again argued for his removal from power. So far though, ONI had been reluctant to let him go.
Miranda Keyes returned her attentions to Shepard-007; the SPARTAN-II was expertly dodging plasma shots sent his way from all directions by the robotic duplicates of Covenant aliens, all of whom were armed with actual Covenant weapons taken from slain ones. Twirling his monomolecular katana in a blur this way and that, he easily deflected shot after shot, including needle rounds that he sliced in two before zipping from one robot dummy to the next, decapitating, bi-secting, or impaling each of them in turn. Really with his superhuman physicality plus the monomolecular katana, Shepard-007 seemed to hardly need a gun, but he still fired off the SMG often enough, though he also holstered it at one point to use a standard pistol instead, each shot from that he fired being a perfect headshot.
"Impressive." Miranda Keyes said with a nod of approval. "I have to admit I don't love you Cerberus people, but you did good bringing the commander back to top strength."
"Don't believe everything you hear about us." Miranda Lawson said simply. "Cerberus isn't as evil as most people believe. If I can do anything to relay your concerns about us while you're here, I'd be more than happy to."
"I'd...I'd actually rather talk more about you." Miranda Keyes said with a smile. Maybe it was just because they happened to share a first name, but Miranda Keyes felt a strange connection to this other woman, or perhaps to put it more accurately, she felt intrigued by her. She wanted to know more. To see just how much they had in common besides a name.
Miranda Lawson though, seemed reluctant to go for it. "I'm not looking for a friend, Miss Keyes." She said simply.
"We don't have to become friends. I just want to get to know you a little better."
Miranda Lawson sighed. "Oh, very well, if you insist. What is it you want to know?"
"How long have you been with ONI and Cerberus?" Miranda Keyes asked with genuine curiosity.
"The whole second half of my life." Miranda Lawson said simply. "I first joined when I became 18 and never looked back."
Miranda Keyes could perceive that there was a deep pain that had prompted that, but she also knew better than to pry when their relationship such as it was remained so unfounded and on such shaky ground. Instead, she said: "So...you're head of the Lazarus Cell, huh? What did you do before that?"
"I've always been with this cell." Miranda Lawson admitted. "I just became it's leader a few years ago. But I've been climbing my way up years before that."
"Nothing wrong with wanting to succeed." Miranda Keyes said diplomatically. "What are your areas of expertise? I've always been a navy girl myself..."
"Well..." Miranda Lawson began hesitantly. She looked hard at Miranda Keyes: "You must understand, Miss Keyes...I...I'm not like ordinary people. I..." She sighed. "No, forget it. Let's just focus on your reason for coming here, Shepard. My life story's not important."
"I think it is." Miranda Keyes said impulsively. Miranda Lawson's eyes went from their previous coldness to unexpectedly warm and touched as Miranda Keyes said this, but the older woman quickly snuffed that out and suppressed whatever emotions she might have been feeling. "I'll send you a formal report, and you may take Shepard-007 back with you." Miranda said, forcing herself to return to her former cold professionalism.
"...thanks." Miranda Keyes said lamely.
About fifteen minutes of tedious paperwork and red tape later, and Shepard-007 was formally released into Miranda Keyes' command and custody. And coming with him were some other "presents".
"These two weapons were made by ONI's best armorers. So far there's only one of each in existence, and they're Shepard's. But we're expecting more of each to be finished and ready for other SPARTAN-IIs soon. And remember that if Shepard needs more ammo for either, it will take time for us to make it."
"I understand." Miranda Keyes said, as she did looking each of the two new guns over; one was a red machine gun called the "M-76 Revenant" and the other was a large, black and apparently ridiculously powerful sniper rifle known as the "M-98 Widow". The second one was such that a normal human wouldn't be able to use it without shattering their arm...hence why it was being given to the SPARTAN-II who had helped the Master Chief destroy Alpha Halo.
"Thanks for everything, Miranda." Miranda Keyes said with a smile before extending a hand for her to shake. "It was nice to meet you."
Miranda Lawson eyed the hand with a raised eyebrow for a moment before ultimately deciding to take it and shake it. "A pleasure to meet you too." Miranda Lawson said, though she was privately still unsure whether or not it really was. The younger woman seemed nice enough to be sure, and not unattractive either by Miranda Lawson's own estimations (she certainly filled out her tight-fitting unisex gray uniform rather well). There was a lightness to her, and a clear eagerness to please and be nice that was as transparent as glass to Miranda Lawson.
But, Miranda Lawson had also conditioned herself to assume the worst in most people. After being betrayed, used, lied to, and manipulated by so many over the years, including her own father most prominently, Miranda Lawson was not one for trusting easily. She had no time for incompetence, recklessness, or heroes. She got the job done because of others who helped her, or in spite of them. As for Miranda Keyes, Miranda Lawson still wasn't sure about her. Perhaps if they could actively work together and Miranda Lawson could see her in action, see how well she'd perform under pressure, then she might get a better sense of her.
But as it was, Miranda Lawson personally doubted that would happen. All told, she wouldn't be the least bit surprised if this would be the last time she ever saw Miranda Keyes...
Two months later
It was moments like this that made Miranda Keyes wish she had better energy shields to go with her uniform.
As projectiles of all types continued to fly every which-way, Miranda Keyes fired with her pilfered red plasma rifle in one hand, and a standard SMG in the other. The projectiles did manage to kill some Jackals as well as disintegrate their ever-annoying energy shields, but the Brutes and Elites were a different story. Brutes and Elites. Together. Why was her luck always so bad?
All the intel says those two hate each-other! They almost never work together!
A blue plasma bolt nearly got her square in the head and Miranda Keyes ducked as some of her remaining men provided covering fire. As she did, she looked up at the sky.
Why me? You could have at least let me have some biotics as back-up in this. Hell, I'd even take a few ODSTs right about now. More UNSC Marines, even. Anything!
Another of her men fell backwards, a spike from the Brute's infamous Spiker weapon now lodged in his forehead, eyes wide open and staring at nothing. Miranda Keyes swore loudly. Grabbing the dead Marine, she pulled him towards her, took his frag grenades, and readied one for throwing.
She threw it just as the Elites and Brutes got closer. The blast took out the energy shields of one Elite Minor and Miranda Keyes seized her chance; she got out from behind cover and put SMG bullets into the Elite like there would be no tomorrow. He fell down dead, twitching and with purple blood coming out of him. A steady barrage of red plasma fire and she short-circuited the shields of another Elite Minor before finishing him with more SMG fire. Retreating behind cover, she grabbed another of the dead Marine's grenades and hurled it. This one injured one of the Brutes, and Miranda Keyes and her few remaining Marines unloaded gunfire on it, a shot to the head from a Marine's Battle Rifle finally killing it.
Unfortunately, no sooner did the second-to-last Brute fall down dead did the last one...change.
With a hideous, awful bellow of rage, the last surviving Brute charged forwards, screaming it's head off and bowling over hapless humans who stood in it's way. One particularly unlucky Marine ended up getting his neck snapped.
Miranda Keyes did what she could to stay out of the way, but then she was hit by a powerful (and painful), electric shock that consumed her whole body. Miranda Keyes gasped in pain and spasmed before being sent flying towards the source of the shock, pulled as if she were metal to a magnet, and into the waiting arm of another Brute, this one with a Gravity Hammer.
"Kill the rest!" The apparent leader bellowed, Miranda Keyes for her part feeling her vision going black as the Brute continued to hold her like she was a helpless damsel in an old movie. However, right before everything went black, she saw the trademark blue fire of biotics, and the Brute reinforcements let out roars of anger and surprise as something attacked them...
When Miranda Keyes woke up, she realized she was being carried. Looking up, she saw none other than a pretty face she hadn't ever expected to see again; Miranda Lawson, in the same white catsuit as before, now cradling Miranda Keyes in a bridal carry, the latter woman again feeling like the damsel-in-distress the moment it sunk in.
"M-m-Miranda?"
"Sssh." Miranda Lawson said. "You're still injured. Don't know what that Gravity Hammer was, but it's clearly more powerful than any other we've ever seen."
"What...what happened to that Brute leader? To my men?"
"To your first question, retreated. To your second, dead. The leader dropped you when we shot him enough times, but we couldn't save any of your men. I'm sorry."
"Don't be. It's not your fault." Miranda Keyes said, before managing a weak smile. "Thanks for saving my life."
"Think nothing of it." Miranda Lawson said.
"So...why is Cerberus all the way out here?"
"Why else? To stop Covenant atrocities. That's what Cerberus was formed to do; protect humanity and advance human interests. Well, for as long as this war continues, that means fighting Covenant aliens. Like those Brute monsters."
"Well, I can't believe I'm saying this, but...I'm glad you Cerberus people came." She smiled. "You especially, Miranda."
Miranda Lawson gave no indication that she was touched or flattered by Miranda Keyes singling her out, but the truth is she was, she just hid it well. She realized that she really, really liked being told that. It filled her heart with a kind of happiness she couldn't think of too many other things fulfilling. In fact come to think of it, except for the Illusive Man's approval and watching her beloved sister from afar, she couldn't think of anything else...
"That's...nice of you to say." Miranda Lawson said somewhat lamely. For a while more after, they said nothing, Miranda Lawson continuing to hold the still weak Miranda Keyes in a bridal carry while several Cerberus troops of different types marched with their leader.
"So..." Miranda Keyes began awkwardly, finally deciding to break the silence. "Are...are you a biotic?"
"I am." Miranda Lawson said, before adding: "Can use them to crush a mech or Covenant alien. Or I can just blow their head off from a hundred yards." She made a grimace. "Take your pick."
"Were you trained by the same people who trained the UNSC's Biotic division? The one currently commanded by Kaidan Alenko?"
Miranda Lawson shook her head. "No. I wasn't affiliated with the Alliance at all before joining Cerberus, and I've had these powers from the start. My..." Miranda Lawson hesitated before continuing: "...father..." Miranda Keyes didn't miss the sheer venom with which she used the word. "...ensured that I would have the best biotic powers a human could have that money could buy." She scoffed in clear disgust before continuing: "And the best education, and the best combat training, and the best everything."
"Wow..." Miranda Keyes said. "...sounds like your father really wanted the best for you."
The second Miranda Keyes said those words, she wished she hadn't; the look on Miranda Lawson's face turned into one of pure, unrestrained fury. A murderous hatred came into her usually cold gray-blue eyes, and for a moment, Miranda Keyes was afraid Miranda Lawson would not only drop her but straight up kill her. And indeed, she snarled: "How dare you say that, you..." But, as quickly as it had come, Miranda Lawson's anger faded, and was replaced with clear embarrassment.
"I...forgive me, I forgot for a moment that you don't know..."
"Don't know what? Did something happen with you and your father?"
"A lot of things happened." Miranda Lawson noted bitterly, before explaining more calmly: "I didn't tell you the last time we met because, to be honest, I was too ashamed. But the truth is, I...I wasn't 'born', exactly. I was...made."
"What?"
"I was...genetically engineered. My father used his DNA and then combined it with the DNA of various...'desired' female sources. From there, the usual gestation process happened...but in a vat instead of a woman's womb."
"Wow...I...I had no idea..."
"That's because it's supposed to be illegal. But my father did it with me. Mind you, I'm glad to be alive...mostly. But I confess that whenever I think to how I was...'made', I'm left with great feelings of inadequacy. My father designed me to be perfect, but I'm not. I'm still human, Miss Keyes, no matter what people might say or think. And I make mistakes like everyone else, and when I do, the consequences are severe." She scoffed. "And to think, people still say I'm arrogant."
"They do?"
Miranda Lawson nodded. "The stupid ones, yes. In any case, other people are good at what they do because they worked for it. I'm good at what I do because my intelligence, my looks, my biotics, everything...is something my father paid for. This is part of why I joined Cerberus. With them I feel like I'm doing something worthwhile, making a difference."
"Wow..." Miranda Keyes breathed, doing what she could to take all of that in. She was struck by the sheer self-loathing and insecurity Miranda Lawson clearly had, and the bitterness she had where her father and his actions were concerned. And she didn't need to ask if the two of them still loved each-other or not, because Miranda Lawson's brief flash of rage earlier told Miranda Keyes everything she needed to know; her fellow Miranda would love a Jackal or an Elite before she loved her father. Miranda Keyes knew that now, beyond any doubt.
"...I'm sorry." Miranda Keyes said finally. "I...I didn't know."
"It's not your fault." Miranda Lawson said with a sigh, as she did pausing as the Cerberus squad set up camp for the night and Miranda Lawson finally set Miranda Keyes down. Only in that moment did Miranda Keyes realize that she actually didn't mind the older Miranda holding her as she had. As Miranda Keyes took to setting Miranda Keyes up so that she'd be comfortable as she recovered from her lingering injuries, Miranda Keyes said: "Miranda...the way you talk about yourself...you act as though you're just a tool to be used; by your father, by Cerberus..."
Miranda Lawson shrugged. "Maybe. I just like knowing where I fit into the world. I like having a clear purpose."
"You are who you are, Miranda. You don't need to make excuses for it."
Miranda Lawson chuckled. She lifted Miranda Keyes' chin to get a better look at her. "We were both meant for greatness, Miss Keyes. But you earned your accomplishments and your position. You were great without your father's influence...I'm great because of it."
Miranda Keyes would have no truck with this. "That's not true. I think you're giving your father too much credit. Yeah, sure, he gave you gifts maybe..." Miranda Keyes smiled. "...but you can be proud of what you've done with them."
"Oh...uh...thank you..." Miranda Lawson said somewhat awkwardly. If Miranda Keyes squinted, she was certain she could see the older woman blushing a little.
"Why don't you just get some rest now? You still need to heal, and we may be safe right now, but that could easily change later. This is still a contested planet, Miss Keyes. Leave nothing to chance."
Miranda Keyes nodded. "Alright. But...just remember what I said, Miranda."
"I will, Miss Keyes." Then, more softly after Miranda Keyes gave into her body's demand for more rest and she fell asleep. "I will..."
Another two months later
The struggle for that particular planet had ended in UNSC and Citadel victory over the Covenant, and Miranda Keyes made a full recovery. Afterwards she surprised Miranda Lawson by requesting to accompany her on whatever her next mission was. At first as a UNSC naval consultant, but after the mission went so well and the two Mirandas found they worked so well together, Miranda Keyes put in a formal request to be transferred to Miranda Lawson's Lazarus Cell, intending to work with them in full indefinitely. Miranda Lawson for her part had been shocked by these developments, but also strangely touched by them. From there, the two would go on to lead operations against Covenant outposts everywhere from Virmire to Tuchunka to even the lush colony world of Arcadia. Sadly with that last one they were not able to save the planet from being glassed, but they did take an entire Covenant capital ship, killing hundreds if not thousands of Covenant and ensuring that the genocidal aliens would pay a high price for their war crime.
And so on it went; alone or with additional Cerberus and naval forces, in open combat or in reconnaissance, "the two Mirandas" as they became known seemed unstoppable. And all the while Miranda Lawson found that she rather enjoyed the younger Miranda's presence. Really enjoyed it, actually.
The door to her office opened, and in stepped Miranda Keyes. Miranda Lawson looked up to see her; she now wore a variant of the same catsuit Miranda wore, only with the black sleeves, belt, and high-heeled boots gray for her to reference her UNSC navy uniform. She'd taken to using some of the same cosmetics Miranda Lawson used to, after she had suggested it to her. She was only a year older now, but Miranda Keyes looked more like a woman than ever, and the more that fact sunk in the more Miranda Lawson realized that she liked it. A lot, actually.
"Hello, Miss Keyes, what can I do for you?"
Miranda Keyes smiled. "Miranda, we've known each-other a while now. I think you can just call me 'Miranda'."
"Too confusing." Miranda Lawson said with a groan. "We can't both be just 'Miranda'."
"Alright, then how about I just call you 'Miranda L' from now on, and you can call me 'Miranda K'. How does that sound?" She asked with a smile. Miranda Lawson returned the smile, but said: "I still think I prefer 'Miss Keyes', but...alright, 'Miranda K'."
Miranda Keyes smiled before saying: "Do you have a minute, Miranda L?"
"Yes, of course. I...I've been meaning to speak with you, in fact..."
Miranda Lawson motioned for Miranda Keyes to sit down next to her on the couches in the back of Miranda Lawson's office. As the two women sat down next to each-other, Miranda Lawson said: "I...I've been thinking a lot, lately...about us. And the more I do the more I realize how...confused, I am at the moment."
Miranda Keyes raised an eyebrow. "Confused?"
Miranda Lawson nodded. "Yes, confused. I...I feel differently around you, now. And when I think about you, even. Which, by the way, I'm doing so much more often now." She sighed in frustration. "I don't understand what this is..."
Miranda Keyes smiled warmly at her friend and said with gentle humor in her tone: "I think you do, Miranda L." She took her hands in her own. "I feel the same way."
Miranda Lawson blinked. "You...you do?"
Miranda Keyes nodded. "I do. I mean, to tell you the truth, I've felt this way for, oh, a few weeks now. Maybe longer." Her smile widened. "I mean, it's part of why I've fought alongside you for so long; you're talented, you're brave, you're smart, you're incredibly beautiful and you look really hot in the low-cut catsuit..."
Miranda Lawson blushed a little at that last one, and Miranda Keyes got red with embarrassment as she realized what she'd just said. "Uh...heh, forget I said that last one..."
"No, no, it's fine..." Miranda Lawson said, her white gloved fingers reaching for Miranda Keyes' chin and taking it. She stroked it lovingly but also teasingly. "...perhaps I wouldn't mind if you admired my body."
"Never stopped." Miranda Keyes said, before adding almost as an afterthought: "Hell, when I got badly injured that time against the Brute and Batarian gang on Omega, I had to be in a med-bay for almost a week. You never left my side that whole time..." She grinned. "...and I was wearing less than you are now."
"You've certainly made a full recovery." Miranda Lawson said with a gentle smile.
"I sure did..."
It was at this point that the mutual sexual tension and desire and amorous feelings between the two women called Miranda finally reached a level that neither one could stand to suppress any longer; Miranda Lawson gripped Miranda Keyes' chin fiercely and kissed her just as fiercely. From there they went at each-other without quarter, kissing and caressing one another furiously. Miranda Lawson closed the door to her office remotely so that they could have all the privacy they could need, and from there what happened between them was for them and them alone.
"Mmmm...that was good." The now stripped-down-to-undergarments Miranda Keyes admitted as the equally stripped down Miranda Lawson held her close to her. She had her arms wrapped around her lovingly, but also protectively. Because that was how Miranda Lawson had come to see herself; she was fully a decade older than her lover, and she saw Miranda Keyes as younger not only in years but in spirit; even after everything she'd seen and done and experienced, there was a kindness to her; a gentle idealism and a purity to her that Miranda Lawson knew she no longer had. She was too hardened by her horrific childhood and her years of being used and abused by so many. She'd never have what Miranda Keyes had.
But she could still keep it safe.
"Yes, it was." Miranda Lawson agreed with a nod. She kissed Miranda Keyes gently on the forehead. "I'm glad we found each-other."
"So am I. And some day, this war with the Covenant will end and we can do something else with our lives. Together."
"I hope so." Miranda Lawson said. "I hope so..."
Two more months later
Miranda Keyes smiled and waved at everyone present as she and Miranda Lawson left the wedding altar together, each wearing a white satin bridal gown and matching opera gloves of the same material. More than a few faces had shown up; there was Lord Hood, her superior, pseudo-mentor, and after her father's death at Alpha Halo the closest thing she had to a father. There was the Arbiter Thel 'Vadam, who along with several of his people plus many Grunts and Hunters, had come to recognize the Covenant's evil and joined forces with the UNSC against them. And of course, Shepard-007 was there, standing next to (and, Miranda Keyes noted, holding hands with), fellow SPARTAN-II Kelly-087. Departing from the usual SPARTAN tradition, their helmets were off, showing Shepard's smiling lightly tan-skinned face and dark brown hair and eyes, and Kelly's paler skin with red lips and blue hair. Sadly, Miranda Keyes' mother was not present, but given who she was and the two's strained relationship, that was perhaps just as well in the end.
"A fine day for you both, my friends." The Arbiter said, bowing his head respectfully. Miranda Lawson for her part was always struck by how he always seemed to sound so much like the UNSC Admiral David Anderson, who was also among the guests.
"Thank you, Arbiter." Miranda Lawson said politely before continuing to walk down the aisle with her new bride. They got into a hovercar waiting for them, and snuggled up to one another as it flew away.
"Told you we'd make this work." Miranda Keyes said with a laugh and a smile.
"You were always the optimist of us." Miranda Lawson said. Miranda Keyes just brushed it off though.
"An optimist is what a pessimist calls a realist, Miranda L."
"I always thought it was...uh, never mind." Miranda Lawson said, smiling and shaking her head.
"Your younger sister seems really nice." Miranda Keyes noted. "Beautiful girl too."
"Yes, she is. Inside and out."
"Nice boy she's with too."
"I've fought alongside his father." Miranda Lawson said, which was true; Thane Krios was among the many Drell employed by the Hanar as assassins against the Covenant. Thane for his part had personally killed the Prophet of Mercy, which along with Master Chief's killing of the Prophet of Regret on Delta Halo and Shepard's killing of the Prophet of Sovereignty, had reduced the vile Prophet council down to its first-among-equals, the Prophet of Truth.
Miranda Lawson sighed as she thought about these things. Even on their wedding day, the specter of the ongoing war hung over them all. Sensing this, Miranda Keyes kissed her on the lips. "Don't worry, Miranda L; we'll win this war eventually. With the Covenant now without their Elites and half their Grunts and Hunters, they're weaker than ever. It's only a matter of time before they finally fold entirely."
Miranda Lawson nodded. "I hope so. I'm sick of it all, to tell you the truth. And it's tainted the newer members of Cerberus too; too many join us out of simple xenophobia." She shook her head. "That's not what I want. I didn't join Cerberus to hate aliens, I joined to help humanity. We need more people joining for that reason."
"Once we win, things will cool down. Besides, more alien species than ever now are on our side. The Illusive Man can be a dinosaur about this for as long as he wants, but eventually Cerberus will change for the better." She smiled and took Miranda Lawson's gloved hands in her own. "Especially with you in it."
Miranda Lawson took Miranda Keyes' chin her hand and kissed her again. "Like I said; you're always the optimist, Miranda K."
Two years later
Miranda Keyes was proven right; the Human-Citadel-Covenant War did at last come to an end with the Prophet of Truth's death by the Arbiter's hands, and in the two years that followed, Cerberus did undergo a change. Of course it no doubt helped that the Illusive Man had died under circumstances that were still highly classified, but even so, Cerberus had changed for the better under the new leadership of a man named Paul Grayson. Much of the xenophobic and survivalist rhetoric was jettisoned, and some of the group's more unsavory members like the ruthless Oleg Petrovsky and the heinous Kai Leng were quietly forced out. Miranda Lawson for her part was rewarded for her years of hard work and never losing sight of Cerberus' ideals with the position of second-in-command, while one of Miranda Lawson's subordinates and friends Jacob Taylor and his wife Brynn Cole became the new leaders of the Lazarus Cell. And that wasn't the only good thing to happen...
"And how's Jacob Jr.?" Miranda Lawson asked to her wife of two years over the holo-message.
"Doing well." Miranda Keyes said. "Eager to see his other mommy again."
"Well, work is a demanding monster. But I'll try and make some more time for him soon. I promise."
Jacob Keyes II was the result of Miranda Lawson and Miranda Keyes conceiving a child via sperm-donor. Using sperm provided by Shepard-007 (who had since had a child of his own with Kelly), Miranda Keyes had given birth to a son who she'd named after her late father. Her mother had been (to put it generously), furious that she'd used the DNA of one of "her" SPARTAN-IIs, but Shepard had made it clear to the not-so-good doctor that her opinions were a very distant second to the happiness of two women who he respected and also owed his life to. And that was that.
"I miss you too, you know." Miranda Keyes said. "It's lonely here on my new ship without you."
"I know, but like I said, work is a demanding monster. Just be thankful we're still at peace."
"Yeah, that's true. I still miss you though."
"I miss you too, my love." Miranda Lawson said. "But I'll be back soon. I promise."
On her new ship, The Wind of Winter (named in reference to her father's ship The Pillar of Autumn), Miranda Keyes smiled as the transmission ended. Her wife was still as much of a workaholic as ever, but she wouldn't have been the Miranda Lawson she fell in love with otherwise.
Miranda Keyes and Miranda Lawson... She thought. ...who'd have thought. She looked out into the void of space, and thought to how somewhere out there was that other Miranda, just waiting for her to come to her.
See you soon, Miranda L. See you soon...
Author's Notes: Well that came out a lot more mushy/romantic than I had initially planned, but what can I say? I'm a sucker for a good romance, and just a bit sentimental at heart. And it was fun to pair Miranda Lawson off with someone other than Male Shepard for once (though I still love that couple the best). Again, props to anyone who caught every Easter egg I snuck in.