Prompt: Why is there no mom Miranda fics save for one which I found (and was excellent). I would love to see the "Cerberus Cheerleader" in a mom role. Significant other is up to you, but I won't lie, I kinda prefer M!Shepard as Miranda's love interest. Just leave it to me to always love rarepairs :P
As much as it killed her, Miranda Lawson was not able to be with her husband and only daughter on the first day of Emily's kindergarten. Unfortunately, her flight out to Rannoch, where Oriana was working with the growing colonies, had been delayed, and she was stuck in the spaceport, waiting for the name of her shuttle to be called.
Still, while she wasn't able to present in person, the former Cerberus second-in-command had plenty of methods of observing the event. The nanites she'd placed in her husband's and daughter's clothes were alert and functional, giving her a clear view of just what was happening back on Earth.
Miranda clicked one of the buttons on her omnitool, and found herself greeted by the sight of a heavily-muscled man, nearly stooped over as he held the hand of a little girl. Said child was pale, as her mother was, with her father's sharp green eyes, and raven hair that could have come from either parent.
But to Miranda's surprise…her daughter looked nothing short of anxious as they stepped toward the little school building, looking down at the ground, and tugging at the front of her shirt…a habit inherited from the Lawson side of the family, and an obvious nervous gesture.
It had been different with their sons. Her oldest, Cain, had raced right out of the car, and shoved more than a few kids out of the way in his pursuit of the toy dinosaurs and ships. Her second, Neilsen, had kept any worries at bay with his boundless optimism, easily chatting with his schoolmates, and making friends with his natural charm (A habit inherited from his aunt, the famous commander, no doubt). Troy, their third, had caught sight of the first pretty girl, and headed right toward her, beginning a string of interactions that would soon have both his parents in the principal's office, discussing just why their son had been caught with said girl playing a game of, "I'll show you mine if you show me yours".
None of the boys had been anxious, but Emily, her first little girl, appeared stricken, and came to a sudden halt on the sidewalk.
"Daddy…" She began slowly, swallowing hard as she searched for the question lodged in her throat. "What did you put in my lunch?"
"Sandwich. Pear. Trail mix. And two cookies."
Miranda scowled. She and Dick had agreed that Emily should only have one cookie in her lunch, for nutritional purposes.
"Okay. And is there activated charcoal, as well?"
"What?"
Emily bit down on her lip. "Well…Cain told me that when he was in kindergarten, one of the other kids ate some weird glue, and he started throwing up everywhere, and fell on the floor, and started seizing, and had to go to the hospital to get his stomach pumped. But before he got there…his…his tongue fell out, and started rolling around on the ground like a worm. I mean, I would never do something like that, but what if one of the other kids eats some weird glue? Activated charcoal could slow the process, and keep any poison from entering the bloodstream, if someone gets poisoned. Unless the substance is a petroleum product, or acid, or alkali, because that's contraindicated-"
"Sweetheart," Dick gently interrupted, trying valiantly to hide the utter confusion on his face at words like 'alkali' or 'contraindicated'. "Your brother says a lot of things. I promise you, that never happened when he was in kindergarten. And I'm going to have a talk with him when he gets home from school about fibbing, alright?"
With luck, Miranda would be home in time to join in.
"Really? You promise?"
"Yeah. I mean, truth is, you'll probably see a kid eat some paste at somepoint, but its not toxic. They wouldn't have it in your class if it was."
"You're sure?"
"Sure as I can be." Dick offered her a crooked grin. "Anything else bothering you?"
Emily frowned for a moment, before declaring, "Cain is the terriblest boy that ever was."
"Most big brothers are, sweetheart."
"You don't say things like that to Aunt Jess."
"I used to, when we were little." The mercenary chuckled. "You know, I once convinced her that guacamole was smushed frog. And another time, I told her that all the worms in the garden outside our grandma's house were gummi worms. She ate six before she realized I was messing with her."
"Well, Aunt Jess is pretty gullible." Emily declared, her tone matter-of-fact. "The last time I saw Ms. Jack, she told me that you told Aunt Jess that Mommy was a thirty-five year old virgin before she met you, and that she believed you. She said that Aunt Jess kept trying to give Mommy pills and patches every time she went into her office, and had Mr. Mordin send Mommy some pamphlets."
Miranda nearly spit out the coffee she'd been drinking at that mention, and cursed violently at the now burning sensation behind her teeth and gums. She would kill Jack the next time she saw her!
"Daddy, what's a virgin?"
"That's a conversation that you need to have with your mother." Dick hastily replied, muttering under his breath, "I've already had the damn conversation three times with our sons, it's her turn already."
Miranda made a face at the remark. She had been well prepared to discuss the matter with Cain, Neil, and Troy. She had assembled diagrams, a powerpoint presentation, and a full binder of information about the 'birds and the bees', as their father called it, and had been more than willing to sit down and discuss the matter with their sons. In fact, she had been finishing up two interviews—one with an expert in the field of child psychology, and another with an exceptionally qualified sex therapist from Illium—when Dick had caught sight of her assembling bananas and condoms, and convinced her to let him speak to their sons first, before she met with them.
In retrospect, it had been for the best. Cain had used his biotics to destroy all her cue cards ten seconds into the presentation, Neil had turned bright red and locked himself in his room to get away from her, and Troy had merely smirked, and informed his mother that he already knew everything she was trying to tell him.
Still…Dick had no right to complain about the awkward necessity of the conversation. No doubt Emily would appreciate the comprehensive slideshow and the thirty-eight updated pamplets once she came of age.
"What conversation?" Emily asked, her keen hearing quickly picking up her father's mumblings.
"Don't worry about it. Not today. Today is gonna be fun." Dick grinned, and pushed a stray lock of their little girl's hair behind her ear.
"I know, it's just…I'm scared." Tears stung the corners of Emily's eyes, and began to drip down her face. "I-I'm sorry. I…I c-can't help it. I know it's stupid, but I just…"
Miranda's heart nearly dropped out of her chest, and not for the first time that day, she cursed her delayed flight. She should have been there, should have been able to sweep her daughter into her arms, and say something comforting. Oftentimes, she didn't know the words. Didn't know what magical, calming phrase was needed when her children were upset. Her father had certainly never tried to comfort her when she wept, had never cared if she was unhappy, had scorned her when she was vulnerable. But she…she had not done such things to her children, despite her constant worry that she would be no better than her father. Her boys, her little girl, they came to her when they were sad, when they cried, and seemed to want little more than a hug and Kleenex, for her to listen, and to tell them not to worry, and that things would be alright. Despite all that she had seen in this world, she still marveled every time she saw how quickly her children could bounce back, with such simple comforts.
It killed her that she couldn't be there at this moment.
"Sweetheart." Dick dropped to his knees, and drew their baby girl against his big chest, hugging her tightly. "It's not stupid at all. It's a big change, and it can be scary, but it can also be fun."
He smiled down at Emily. "I was scared my first day too."
"You were?" Emily looked puzzled, finding it difficult to comprehend that her tall, strong father could be afraid of anything. "What were you afraid of?"
"I don't know. It was all just so new, and I didn't know what to expect. I didn't like knowing what to expect." He chuckled. "Plus, you know, this was a long time ago, back when your grandparents were with the Alliance. Grandpa was on tour, and Nana was pregnant with Aunt Jess, so she brought me to my first day. And I started crying. I missed my dad, I was scared, and I was in a new place. Not only was it a new school, it was a new country. We'd gone from the UNAS to Singapore only a month before. I thought I would be the only kid that spoke English, and that something bad would happen, and that no one would be able to understand me."
That smile turned to a grin. "You know what happened?"
"What?" Emily's green eyes were wide, rapt with attention.
"It was fine. Nana hugged me, big belly and all, and told me that it would all be okay. That she would come and get me at the end of the day. And I went inside, and everything was okay. I played, I made friends, some of whom understood me, some of whom didn't. It all worked out, because I was big and fast, and everyone wanted me on their kickball team."
"I'm not very big, but I am fast." Emily pondered. "You think I can make friends at recess?"
"I think these kids would be crazy not to want you as a friend, anytime today." Dick grinned, and kissed her forehead. "Sweetheart, you're smart, you're kind, you're brave, and you're wonderful. And other people will see that. Don't ever think differently, alright?"
"You're sure?"
"Yeah. I am." Dick chuckled. "And even on the off chance that things are weird today, you can always try again tomorrow."
"That would mean I failed. I hate failing." Emily admitted, casting the ground a petulant expression.
"Well, you come by that honestly." Dick chuckled. "But hey, at least you tried. Remember a few years back, when you first learning to swim, and you were scared to get in the water?"
"Yeah, but I did anyway." Emily pointed out.
"That's right. And now you're as fast as any of your brothers."
"Even stupid Cain." The little girl announced proudly.
"Yeah, even him." Dick laughed, despite himself. "Think you can give this a chance too?"
"I can." Emily sighed. "I wish Mommy was here though."
Emily couldn't have hurt her more if she'd driven a nail right through Miranda's heart.
"Your mom will be home tonight. And knowing her, I'm sure she's already found some way to watch this. Or, she's gonna hit up Ms. Liara for the footage."
Emily made a face. "That's creepy."
Miranda made a face as well.
"In any case, she'll want to hear all about your first day. And I will too, once I come to get you. Who knows? Maybe she'll get back in time to come get you too."
"I hope so." Emily smiled as they approached the door, and briefly met with the teacher.
As soon as they were done, she stood up, and hugged her father around his neck. "Bye, Daddy."
"Bye, sweetheart."
Emily paused for a moment, then smiled to the open air. "Bye, Mommy!"
"Goodbye, sweetheart." Miranda whispered softly, even though she knew her daughter could not hear her.
She warm blossomed in her heart as she watched her little girl head toward some of the other children in the class, while Dick exchanged a few extra words with the teacher.
Her own father had never sent her to a kindergarten, never would have paused to speak with her, to reassure her that all would be alright. And yet, her husband did it like it was nothing, easily finding the words that she couldn't quite grasp, bestowing the comfort she feared that she did not possess. And making sure that everything was alright in her absence. And had she been present, she knew that he would have slipped an arm around her waist, and told her, without her even needing to express her own worries, that Emily was happy, and that she was a wonderful mother. It was what he had done with their sons, it was what he would have done with their daughter, it was what he would do, time and again, once she was back with their family.
She watched as Dick soon stepped into the car, taking a gun out of the glove compartment and placing it on the dash, just in case he had to shoot anyone who witnessed his next display. And once it was comfortably settled, and no one was in sight, his face scrunched up, and the big man broke into tears, as he did every time he watched one of his children take their first steps into a new school.
A salarian janitor cocked his head at the sight of the man in the aircar, crying his eyes out, but Dick soon stopped, and wiped away his tears, pointing toward the carniflex on the dash, and mouthing, "You didn't see shit, motherfucker."
Wisely, the salarian scampered away after that.
A pleasant, feminine voice rang over the intercom, announcing the Flight 3529 was now boarding.
Miranda smiled as she shut down her omnitool, and collected her baggage. She'd be home just in time to see Emily walk out of the classroom on her first day of school.