A/N: So, I hope I don't lose my audience here, but I couldn't see this going any other way. Let me know what you think, and definitely check out the cute song (Impossible). I think it should Shepard's frickin theme song (if her theme song was a cute, child-like song, instead of something more kick-ass)! This will also give new meaning to the last chapter title "Potency." Hopefully you will enjoy this short chapter (let me know). No smutty goodness here, but there will be more to come.

Impossible

But The World Is Full Of Zanies And Fools,
Who Don't Believe In Sensible Rules,
And Who Won't Believe What Sensible People Say.
And Because These Daft And Dewy-Eyed Dopes
Keep Building Up Impossible Hopes,
Impossible...Things Are Happening Every Day

(song lyrics from "Impossible" in the move Cinderella, 1957, not the animated version)

Shepard quickly followed Garrus out of the main Battery. He wasn't really going to kill Thane simply for kissing her, right? I mean, she heard turian jealousy was nothing to play with, but this was kind of over-the-top. She saw Jacob having lunch and gestured for him to follow them. Could use another pair of hands to deal with this situation, and it never hurt to have another biotic. Sonja picked up her steps to catch up with Garrus who was just about to enter the room that housed Life Support—and Thane.

"Garrus," Shepard tried again, "I really need the assassin for the trip through the Omega 4 Relay. It's not like he forced himself on me. God, he even apologized."

She saw something flick across Garrus' face as he digested her words, but she saw him set his jaw in a decidedly mulish fashion and he entered Thane's room.

"Ah, Commander Shepard. Officer Vakarian," Thane said as they entered the room, not yet turning to look at them, "What can I do for you?"

"You touched what was mine, Krios," Garrus growled, approaching him quickly.

It seemed Thane realized the sitch, and quickly got up and looked at Garrus, gun conspicuously drawn. There was no way Thane could match Garrus' physical strength, but even Shepard had to admit that Thane was a fucking master with a gun. While the presence of a firearm should have slowed Garrus, it seemed to enrage him further. Garrus swiped at Thane, and the assassin easily dodged him with feline-like grace.

"What made you think Shepard would want anything to do with you? Do you normally touch unwilling females?" Garrus snarled.

"She touched me," Thane answered simply.

This caused Garrus to pause and look toward Shepard, "What does he mean?"

Sonja thought back to their encounter and was at a loss, "I only touched his arm to console him about his son."

"Ah. Yes, this was the confusion, then." Thane replied. "In drell society we do not touch casually. Any touch is seen as…an intense moment. But when I realized that you were producing a turian scent, I had assumed I had misinterpreted your intentions. Again, my apologies."

Shepard looked to Garrus and saw that he was puzzled as well, so she asked the question they were both thinking, "What do you mean, producing a turian scent?"

"Well," Thane finally said, lowering his gun as his face turned more pensive, "It's only partially turian, but the scent is quite strong. You carry a turian child, Shepard. Or at least half-turian. I assumed it had to be Garrus', since he was the only turian aboard. Since he is now willing to kill me for touching you, I imagine I was correct?"

Silence reigned after Krios' proclamation. It was Shepard that finally spoke, "That's not possible. Turians and humans can't procreate."

Thane shook his head, "No one has really tried. And I imagine you've gotten some Cerberus upgrades that make it extremely possible."

Shepard was stunned and could not think of any retort or really feel anything. She was numb. What did this mean? How was she supposed to continue this mission pregnant? Could she even bear the thought of ending the pregnancy? What's more, how was Garrus reacting to this?

Thane suddenly let out a small chuckle, "It seems that you have done another thing that most would consider 'impossible.' You make quite a habit of it, actually."

Sonja turned toward the exit, and said tonelessly, "Garrus, don't kill Thane. Jacob, make sure Garrus doesn't kill Thane. I need to…I need to go."

She marched straight to Dr. Chakwas' office.

Sonja stared at the monitor in Med Bay. Right in front of her was a round sack that indicated her pregnancy. According to Chakwas, the baby was completely healthy. A mix of turian and human genes. When she asked how this was possible, given their different, well, building blocks, Chakwas at a loss. But, the child seemed to have the necessary adaptations to sustain life. It seemed that Mother Nature had chosen specific qualities from each species and melded them together perfectly. Intelligent design or Cerberus? Shepard knew of one Cerberus bitch she could ask.

At that very moment Miranda walked in, "Shepard, you wanted to see me?"

Shepard was a bit ashamed of the tears that streamed down her face, but she didn't even try to hide them from Lawson, whose eyes widened considerably at the commander's state. "What the fuck did you do to me and why?"

"What do you mean?" Lawson answered, moving to the monitor. "What is this?"

"You tell me," Shepard replied, crossing her arms.

Miranda looked over the scans, and a small gasp emanated from her. "Shepard. You're pregnant!"

"Yeah, I got that part. With a turian-human hybrid. Why would Cerberus want to do such a thing? What are they planning?"

"Not Cerberus," Miranda said softly, glancing at the commander, "Me. I knew you, studied you Shepard, and I knew you would want…options. You would want choices, choices that I don't have."

Shepard stared quizzically at her XO, "What's going on here? What don't you have?"

Miranda sighed and looked up, pain clearly screaming across her face. Old pain. "You know I was genetically engineered, correct?"

"Yes," Shepard replied, still wondering how that translated into Shepard becoming a baby factory.

"Well," Miranda said, voice cracking, "One of the side-effects is that I cannot have children. I made sure you would have that choice. And with your penchant for working with aliens, I made sure you had many choices."

"So you gave me…what? A super-uterus?" Shepard asked incredulously.

Miranda laughed at the description, "It's really a simple genetic modification that allows you breed with alien species that are similar to humans. The obvious exceptions are asari and salarians. But turians, quarians, drell and even krogan are similar enough that this genetic mod would work to produce hybrids."

Shepard was still skeptical, "Then why don't I see hybrids running around?"

"Well, it would only work if the mother was a genetically modified human. Our genetic structure is more varied, as Mordin pointed out on the Collector Ship, and can be incorporated into other species quite easily. What makes humans so enticing to Reapers is exactly what got you pregnant, Shepard. It's not a widely used mod, because it is one of my own developments. But, give it a few years. You'll be seeing hybrids everywhere when the Illusive Man lets me sell it to the Sirta Foundation."

"I thought you said Cerberus didn't have any interest in hybrids," Shepard countered quickly.

"Well, not at first. But, can you imagine a galaxy in which human DNA was everywhere? The clout that could the human race would be impressive. Everyone would have genetic ties to us."

Sonja's eyes narrowed, "So that's how you sold it to the Illusive Man?"

Miranda gave her a lopsided smile, "I was hoping it would lead to a cure to my own infertility. It didn't. But, at least I was able to give you something I can never have. Choices that were never given to me."

"Miranda," Shepard started, exasperated, "How in the world am I supposed to stop the Collector's while being pregnant?"

"I think I have an answer to that one," Dr. Chakwas piped up, a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

A/N: Yep, I did it. I knocked up femShep. This is going places, and I hope you're along for the ride! Let me know what you think (ahem…review, please). Also, I was always intrigued by the info found on Miranda Lawson in Shadow Broker, and I liked the idea of expanding on it. I really hated her as a character, but she has started to grow on me. Perhaps redemption? Mayhap.