Unknown Location
The Year 2166
Miranda's heart was racing but you wouldn't know how nervous the young girl was just from looking at her. Lawson stood straight with her arms tucked behind her back and her chin lifted high. She stood on a circular pad on the floor of a small all white room. The two operatives had ensured she had no idea where they had taken her but Miranda knew she was no longer on Earth. In fact she had a pretty good idea that she wasn't on any planet.
The two agents had insisted she leave Oriana with them just outside the room. Miranda hated doing it but she didn't have any other options, she doubted this man would do business with her if she was holding an infant. She told herself to be firm, to be the confident and strong young woman she always had to be. She knew that Cerberus was the best chance she and Ori had at escaping her father's grasp. Now all she had to do was show her worth.
A wall of blue light rose from the circular pad on the floor and she heard an electronic whir as the wall of light slowly began to display a projected image. Soon Miranda could hardly believe she was in the same room, it was almost as if she had be teleported to another space entirely but she knew better. Her heart jumped when she saw a pair of glowing blue eyes before her, a man who she guessed was in his 40s sat in a chair a few feet away from her dressed in a fine suit. It was hard to focus on the intimidating man when he sat in front of a massive red sun.
Miranda squared her shoulders. "Illusive Man?"
The man stared at her for a moment and took a sip from a high ball glass he had resting on the arm of his chair. "Miranda Lawson." he said in a smooth voice that sent chills down Miranda's spine.
"You already know who I am?"
The Illusive Man took a drag from the cigarette her had pinched between his fingers and exhaled slowly. "Few details escape me Miss Lawson. Henry Lawson's daughter was never one of them. Forgive my curiosity but what brings you to contact me?"
"You received the data I sent?"
"I did. It's impressive work but not an answer to my question."
"It's hardly a sample of what I can offer your organization." Miranda boasted.
The man took another drag from his smoke. "Cerberus isn't looking for any child recruits."
"Good. Because I'm no child."
"What exactly are you offering?"
"My loyalty and skills in exchange for protection."
The Illusive Man sipped on his liquor. "Protection of what?"
"Myself and my sister. You do that and i'm yours."
"An interesting proposal. But I'm not convinced it's a deal worth the sacrifices that come with it. Your father is one of Cerberus largest private investors. And his work is unmatched. That's why I hired him."
"My father is a fool." Miranda said and opened her omni-tool. "I'm sending you the rest of his work. This is what you were paying for."
A holoscreen appeared in front of the Illusive Man and he studied Henry Lawson's work. "I'm familiar with what I was paying him to do."
"What you were paying for was child's play. Here's mine." Miranda said before sending over her improved work.
The man's glowing blue eyes narrowed and he took a long drag. "I'm impressed."
"You should be. Nobody has mastered cellular manipulation on that level. I would know. That took me three hours."
"Surely an exaggeration." He said.
"I don't exaggerate. Give me a proper lab and some time and the possibilities are endless. What do you have to lose besides my father's cooperation?"
The Illusive Man studied her in silence before he spoke. "Your sister..."
"Oriana."
"My agents tell me she's no more than a newborn."
"You want me you need to find her protection...and a family. Somewhere she can have a normal life."
"That can be arranged. You recognize for her protection you would have to remove yourself from her life completely?"
Miranda's head dipped. "That's the way it has to be."
"Cerberus isn't the Alliance. We represent humanity in a way they never could. Our job is rarely clean or easy. Sacrifices need to be made for the good of all humanity. Are you prepared for that?"
"I'm adaptable." Miranda answered.
"I don't doubt it." He took another puff from his cigarette and the smoke trailed out the corner of his mouth. "I expect great things from you, Miranda."
"People always do." Miranda said just before the Illusive Man hit a button on the arm of his chair and the exchange was ended.
She stood in the empty room by herself again. She allowed herself a sigh of relief just before the door behind her slid open with a hiss. "Old man Illusive says you're good to go, doll." The male operative said from the doorframe. He has black hair that he kept swept back and a trimmed beard. She guessed he was in his 20's.
"Good." Miranda answered and walked past him she found the second female agent leaning against the wall outside with Oriana in her arms. She had a head of short cut black hair and a pair of piercing green eyes.
"Try not to be too excited, sweetheart." the woman said.
Miranda took Oriana from her and didn't say a word. "You're real chatty." the man commented.
The woman crossed her arms. "Great. So we're gonna be stuck in daycare with this kid?"
"Go easy on her, Jill. The boss seems to think she's special."
Jill Woodcomb rolled her eyes. "Why is it every time the old man finds a new pet we're the one's stuck training them?"
Victor Reed grinned and kissed his lover. "Cause he knows we're the best, beautiful."
Miranda tried to ignore the strange couple as she cradled Oriana in her arms.
"So does miss personality have a name?" Jill asked. They hadn't conversed much at all since the two agents had picked up Miranda and Oriana in NewCastle.
"Miranda Lawson." she informed them.
"I'm Victor, she's Jill. And it looks like you're gonna be stuck with us until the boss decides your training wheels can come off."
Lawson shrugged. "Very well."
"Better say goodbye to the baby." Victor said softly. "She can't exactly stay with us. The Illusive Man will probably find a home for her by the end of the week. In the meantime we should get her somewhere safe, the boss wants you to start immediately. He's creepy but he knows how to get shit done. The baby will be safe, we'll make sure of it personally."
Jill smiled. "Yeah. We're your new best friends, Miranda."
"Don't mind her. It's not so bad once you get the hang of things." Victor assured the young girl. "And we'll look out for you. Won't we?" He looked to his lover.
Jill shrugged. "Whatever."
"I'm not concerned." Miranda said without taking her eyes off the infant in her arms.
"At least she's got confidence." Jill mused.
"I'd like a moment alone to say goodbye to my sister."
"Take as long as you need." Victor said.
Jill roped her arms around the tall man. "Come on, handsome." she said before dragging him away.
Miranda sat down on a nearby bench built into the curved wall of the facility. Ori kicked and squirmed in her arms but she thankfully didn't cry, she only sucked on her fingers and made a few nonsensical noises. "You'll be safe. These people will find you a family and you'll have a normal life." Miranda sighed, "This is ridiculous you don't even understand what i'm saying... You won't even know I exist. That doesn't matter, all that matters is that you'll be safe from him. So, I suppose this is goodbye." Miranda didn't know what else to say and she didn't bother thinking of more when she realized how frivolous the words would be. She didn't want to get any more attached than she already was so she lifted her sister up and walked down the hall to the two agents.
Victor crossed his arms. "Ready, Ace?"
Miranda nodded and handed the baby to Jill. "Take care of her."
"She'll be fine. Don't worry about it." Jill said.
Miranda dipped her head as the agents walked away down the long hallway together. But her attention was grabbed when Victor called back to her. "Oh and Miranda, welcome to Cerberus."
Illium 2188
Miranda ran through the questions Jack might ask when she walked through the door of their hotel room. She was quickly reaching her destination and so she cleared her head with a sigh and opened her room.
Jack was laying on her back on the large king sized bed. The convict jumped to her feet when her lover entered. "Miranda. Is everything good?"
Lawson nodded. "Everything is fine. Don't worry."
"What about the girl?"
"She'll be okay. I arranged for her to get treatment."
"And the asshole himself?"
"Taken care of." Miranda answered.
Jack didn't need to hear more so she instead leaned in and captured her lover's lips in a fierce and passionate kiss that caught Miranda off-guard. When their lips came apart the convict roped her inked arms around the raven haired woman and held her close while she buried her face in her chest. Lawson ran her fingers through Jack's brown hair and leaned down to plant a kiss on the top of her head. "Are you okay?" she asked.
"Okay?" Jack leaned back and met her eyes. "Cheerleader, i'm fucking great."
Miranda smiled and kissed her love on the cheek. "I'm glad."
"You really pulled through for me. You always do."
"There's nothing I wouldn't do for you."
"Still, That didn't go like I had planned."
"Do you regret letting him live?" Miranda asked.
"No...I'm glad I did. If it wasn't for you Cardo's blood would have been redecorating his shit hole apartment by now. But you've made me more than that." Jack sat down on the bed. "Let me ask you something."
Miranda laid down beside her and the convict rolled over to wrap her arms around the woman. "What's on your mind?" Miranda asked as they cuddled.
"When this started. You know us. When did this become about more than fucking for you?"
"You mean when did I know I had fallen for you?" Jack nodded. "You remember that night you called me asking to come over after that board meeting?"
The convict smirked. "Of shit yeah I do. I was so fucking horny after listening to those old assholes ramble on for hours. But when I came over you were all sick right?"
Miranda nodded. "And instead of leaving you came inside and stayed with me. You took care of me. Nobody had ever done that for me. It was the first night in my life that I stopped feeling alone."
"I was sick for a week after that." Jack reminisced.
"I knew that night that I cared about you." Miranda stroked Jack's hair. "That I loved you."
Jack rolled over on top of Miranda and kissed her as she unzipped the side of Lawson's white catsuit and began to peel her out of it. "Then let's get the fuck off this planet. Forget all about this shit and get married. Cause I don't want to ever wake up without you, cheerleader."
Vancouver Gardens- A few months later...
"What the fuck?!"
"Jack, didn't you try this thing on before tonight?" Kaidan Alenko asked his mostly naked friend.
"Miranda picked it out. She didn't say it was fucking impossible to put on!" Jack huffed as she held out the ridiculous white dress in front of her. "Get off your ass and help me."
Alenko couldn't help but chuckle. "What the hell am I gonna do? Believe it or not I've never put a dress on."
"Don't lie to me, eyebrows." Jack joked.
Her best man rolled his eyes. "Okay, we can figure this out." Kaidan took the heavy dress from his friend and found the hole in the bottom. "Maybe I could just pull it over your head?"
There was a knock on the door and Jack shouted "Come in." without giving it much thought as Kaidan tried to lower the dress down over her head.
"What the hell?!" A familiar voice shouted in amusement.
Jack peeked up from the folds of white cloth and smiled when she found Commander Shepard standing in the doorframe with her muscular arms crossed. She wore a blue dress of her own that stopped a couple of inches above her knees. Her pretty, freckled and scared face was made up wonderfully and Jane began to laugh at the sight of Kaidan trying to stuff Jack into her wedding dress. "Commander, I think we could use a hand." Kaidan said.
"Duh." Shepard chuckled. "Give it a rest, Alenko. This is a girl's job."
Kaidan stepped back as Shepard took the dress off his hands. "No argument here."
"And how is a the blushing bride to be?" Shepard asked.
"Bite me, Shepard." Jack snapped when she heard the teasing nature in her old friend's voice.
"Some things never change." Shepard said as she laid the dress down on the ground and formed a hole in the center. "Step inside." Jack did as ordered and Shepard lifted the dress up and helped her into it. "Never thought i'd see the day."
"You and me both." Kaidan added.
"Yeah yeah." Jack smiled. "For the record the dress was the cheerleader's idea."
As Shepard finished tying up the back she turned her friend to the mirror. "But look at how beautiful you are."
"Wow..." Kaidan sat stunned when he eyed the reflection along with them.
Jack eyed her reflection. "I guess it looks okay..." She was struggling hard to suppress that deeply hidden feminine side of herself that wanted to admit that she looked completely gorgeous.
"Oh come on." Shepard elbowed her playfully. "You look amazing. Doesn't she, Kaidan?"
Alenko nodded. "Yes Ma'm."
"Don't get used to it." Jack said as she failed to hide the blush on her cheeks.
Shepard walked over and roped her arm around Kaidan's shoulders. "I tell you Alenko, it was only yesterday I was walking into Miranda's office to stop these two from 'smearing the walls' with each other."
Alenko chuckled and offered his hand to Jack. "Guess we better get you out there."
There was a slight breeze in the air that ruffled the pedals of the flowers beds that flanked a large white gazebo under the stars. The wedding party stood in their positions and as Jack stood in her white dress the reality finally sunk in. After today her entire life would be shared with Miranda. When she was a little girl on Pragia she never could have pictured this. Hell, she could hardly picture a life outside of the Teltin facility let alone that one day after all the shit she's been through she'd find happiness.
It's still feels surreal that she's turned into this person. That the crazy biotic bitch who had killed more people that she could remember would be settling down into some sort of normal life. No more killing, no more pain, no more anger. Was such a thing even possible?
Jack was dragged from her thoughts when a hand was placed on her shoulder. She turned and found Kaidan smiling at her. Her best man looked handsome in his tux the gay woman had to admit. "Nervous, Jack?" he asked.
"Fuck no." Jack lied, aware at how strange she must look in her girly white wedding dress. But her words seemed to convince the man and he chuckled.
"I still can't believe my girls are really getting married." Kaidan said with a big grin.
All the smiles were making Jack uneasy. "It's not that big of a deal."
"Hell yeah it is!" Shepard protested from behind her.
"We're all just honored to be here." A breathy soft voice called from behind Shepard and the human moved out of the way to reveal Liara T'Soni with a small asari baby in her arms.
"Not like the cheerleader and I had any other friends to invite." Jack said as her eyes found the other silent members in attendance. Jacob Taylor, and Rahna Berk stood a respectful distance away but Miranda had insisted they both come. She had been quick to point out that Jacob had saved her life long before she ever met Jack and despite his rather boring personality he was a good man.
Jack stared down the aisle. As her eyes were fixed on the end she realized she was nervous as she waited for Miranda to walk down the aisle.
"Oh my gosh..." Oriana's eyes widened when her sister stepped out from behind the partition.
Miranda Lawson smiled and twirled her long flowing white wedding dress for her little sister. "How do I look?" she asked already knowing the answer.
"Holy crap, Miri! You look gorgeous!"
"Thank you, Ori."
"Jack is gonna fall in love all over again when she sees you in that, sis."
The older Lawson chuckled. "I'm glad you could make it."
"Are you kidding me?! Miranda, you're getting married! Of course your little sister is gonna be there to walk you down the aisle." Oriana hugged her sister tightly.
Miranda held her close. "It means more to me than I could ever say that you're here to do that."
"Not like our father was going to." Ori joked. "But you were there for me long before I even knew you existed. What kind of sister would I be if I wasn't here for you now?
Miranda smirked and turned to the mirror again. "The dress really looks okay?"
"Miri, you're beautiful. Plus it's nice to see you in something that's not a catsuit for once in your life. Seriously sis, how do you not get wedgies like all the time?"
Lawson chuckled. "They're comfortable!" Miranda watched her little sister as she laughed and her eyes found the scars on her face. "How are you feeling?"
"Better." Ori said. "Thanks to you."
"Please don't thank me. That was entirely my fault."
"You still saved me, Miranda. Just like you always have."
"And always will." Miranda said.
"Whatever happened to that nut job? He disappeared from the university after that."
"No idea." Miranda lied and turned to inspect her reflection in the mirror. She really did look beautiful, her face had been made up wonderfully as had her raven black hair. And the dress was the remarkable. But her sister is what really tied her heart in knots. Oriana was in a pretty frilly white dress as her maid of honor. Her hair was cut above her shoulders leaving the new scars Cardo had left on her face visible. She thought of watching Victor and Jill take her sister away all those years ago. How she never thought she'd see her again, and yet here she was by her side at her own wedding.
"Well we better get out there, Miri. Don't wanna keep your bride to be waiting." Miranda extended a hand to her little sister and Oriana took it. "Let's go get you married."
Notes- Okay so this was meant to be one chapter originally but I ended up writing over 5,000 words! So instead I decided to split it into two making the next chapter the real final one. Plus as an added bonus I can add even more on to the next chapter that I originally couldn't give it's large word count. You can expect that final chapter very soon as it's mostly already written :)
I hope you enjoyed part 1 of the wedding and the final flashback. Please tell me what you thought in the reviews.