A/N: Thanks again everyone! Love you all!
Enjoy!
"I...I remember my mother being pregnant," Meredith said, and Maggie swore her heart stopped. She didn't know what to say, so she waited.
"I remember moving to Boston," Meredith continued, avoiding eye contact. She scrunched the scrubcap in her hands. "I remember the two of us basically hiding out in an apartment. And I remember she cried a lot, and her belly got big... and I wasn't supposed to make any noise... and then her water broke on the kitchen floor and that scared me because-" she stopped and looked up, eyes watery. "It scared me. And we went to the hospital, I was there, and I heard a baby cry, and I heard my mother cry," Meredith's voice broke slightly, and she put a hand to her abdomen, causing Maggie to flinch as she remembered the photo she'd found earlier.
"Meredith..." she said softly.
"And then we went home, and her belly wasn't big anymore, and I just started first grade. She was Dr. Ellis Grey and I was just a kid in school." Meredith finished. "So..." she sniffed,"You're my sister."
You're my sister.
Maggie released the breath she'd been holding. "Why... why didn't you tell me earlier?" she asked.
Meredith's eyes narrowed, "I honestly didn't remember, Pierce. Not until today... Something happened before you were born... and I blocked it out."
Something happened. Patient admitted with wrist lacerations... Maggie recalled. She blinked, cleared her throat and stepped closer to Meredith. "Listen..." she started, but Meredith kept talking.
"I'm sorry I acted so harsh with you, and... I'm sorry I barfed on you. I just- It's a lot to process... and sisters? I'm historically bad with sisters, just ask Lexie. But you came here to find out about your mother, and you should... so please don't let me scare you away." She moved over and patted beside her, inviting Maggie to sit down on the bed. From her labcoat pocket, she pulled out a thin black book. "She wrote in these journals, obsessively," she said, flipping through the pages. "Usually at night, with a glass of wine. But here-" she pointed to a page, "I think this was after she found out she was pregnant, because the wine stains stop- and she wrote down what she ate. She wanted you be okay, she wanted to be healthy." Maggie felt the worn leather under her fingertips as she flipped through a few of the pages. "It's surgical notes, ideas mostly. She... wasn't so warm. But even after she died, reading these made me focus... made me become a better surgeon... I'm still finding things out about her."
"So... I can keep this?" Maggie asked. She read a line, Our lives are built on our mistakes, as much as our successes, and could only imagine what more could possibly be revealed in those pages.
"As long as you like." Meredith said, she smiled a little. "I have more too."
Maggie looked into Meredith's eyes, and saw... something in there, a spark... a glow. Something was different about her. "Thank you," she said sincerely. She flipped through the journal again. It was nice... to finally know where she came from.
xxx
Jo sat on the couch, idly twisting a strand of hair as she stared down Amber, trying to figure her out. Since she'd arrived here a few hours ago, she hadn't said anything much. Just that she was in a 'little' trouble and needed help. For her part, Amber had ignored her, flipping between reality shows on the television. "So," Jo said, "Who's Fred Martin?"
"None of your business," Amber replied in a way that sounded too much like Alex already.
"But it is my business. He's my boyfriend, my friend, and we've been through a lot together, and I know you're going to hurt him-"
"It's not your business, he's my brother, and I'm sure he can decide for himself what he can handle."
"Just tell me- what are you running from?"
"I'm not telling you anything- you don't know me."
"I know what it's like to jump from home to home... to never feel like you belong- to make stupid mistakes that follow you around-"
"Listen, unless you're a Karev," Amber shook her head, "You don't know anything."
God, she was a vault. "Whatever," Jo said, but she continued to give Amber the evil eye.
xxx
Alex ran home as soon as possible. Jo had texted him that Amber was there. His heart was racing, what could possibly happen in Iowa that made her come all the way here? He pulled up in the driveway, gratefull it seemed that no one else was home. But now his anxiety was sky high. He was sure this wasn't a social call. This had to do with that Fred Martin dude...
He gripped the knob, taking a moment to prepare himself before opening the door. And then he entered.
Jo was on the couch, she nodded toward the kitchen, "She's in there," she said. He nodded, took two steps toward the kitchen, and then he stopped and turned back to Jo. He bent and kissed her, drawing whatever strength he could from her.
She rubbed his chest, "I love you," she said, and he felt it all the way through his bones.
He kissed her again, breathing in her sweet floral scent, "I love you too." He took off his jacket and entered the kitchen, ready as ever for whatever bomb Amber was going to drop on him.
Amber was sitting at the kitchen table, gripping a coffee mug while resting her chin in her palm. She'd grown up so much, she didn't look like a teenager anymore. Even though it'd been a long time since she'd been a teenager. It'd been a long time since he'd seen her... and she was beautiful. "Amber..." he said, causing her to look up.
"Alex," she said, trying to smile but failing.
Something was wrong, definitely wrong. "Are you okay? What's wrong? Amber?" He walked up to her and pulled her into his arms.
"Please don't hate me..." she said.
Alex shook his head. "You're my sister, I can't hate you." He said. "I might not always like you... but- just tell me what's wrong. You're a Karev. We don't do secrets."
Amber sniffed and nodded, "Right," she said. She fiddled with the mug in her hands. "Your girlfriend said she texted you about Fred..."
Alex nodded, "Yeah, who's Fred?"
Amber sighed and held her head in her hands... "Oh God," she said.
"It's okay, just tell me."
"He's a private investigator. He's looking for me... because I saw something... when I was in foster care, one of the- anyway, they want me to testify in court, and... I'm scared."
Sudden concern and anger coursed through him. What the hell happened to her? How come he didn't know... "Did somebody hurt you?" he growled.
Amber shook her head and leaned into him. "It's really complicated, and- I just don't know what to do..."
xxx
"So... you said you have a sister," Amelia said to Owen as they sat in the truck outside of Meredith's house. It was something that nagged at her the more she thought about it. Did Cristina, his ex wife know he had a sister? Did Meredith know? It only bothered her because, well, Derek always made a point to mention his annoying sisters, so why didn't Owen? Although it wasn't like he was hiding it from her, more like... Don't ask don't tell, right? Or something like that...
Owen sighed... "Yeah, I don't talk about her much," he said.
"Why not?" Amelia asked. "I mean, if Derek had the chance to mention his bothersome sisters, he usually brought it up, with his usual scathing sarcasm, of course." She smiled to try and lighten the mood.
"Well, I'm not Derek," Owen said, a little harshly.
Amelia stopped the sarcastic 'ookay...' that was about to erupt from her lips. She nodded instead.
"Sorry, that- I didn't mean to say it like that." Owen quickly apologized. He shifted in the truck so he could face her. He gave her a slow careful look, like he was evaluating her. Can I trust you? he seemed to be asking without words. Amelia offered her best sympathetic trusting look in return, dipping her head slightly, but meeting his gaze. She took his hand in hers and rubbed his knuckles. "Megan's in the middle east," Owen said, "she's a trauma surgeon, like me... she followed in my footsteps. Every one of them." He smiled. "I just... I don't talk about her because then I have to talk about the middle east, and the nineteen people that died when I was over there last and, well that's over There. And I'm not over There anymore, I'm Here. So I don't talk about it. Or her." He sighed and looked down at his hand.
Amelia kept rubbing his hand. The familiar calloused fingers of a surgeon, the careful hand of a doctor, a healer. She felt the need to say something, reveal a bit of herself, even the score so-to-speak, "I don't like to talk about... Derek, sometimes, because... he was shot... and... my dad was-" she tried to hold back the frown that was forcing itself on her lips, the well of grief at the back of her throat. "Shot too... for a watch. Derek was there... I didn't see what happened, but- I couldn't move... I think, I think Derek was protecting me..." she sniffed. "So... yeah... it's okay, you know, to not talk about talking about things."
When she looked up, Owen was so close to her, his eyes full of... trust, and feeling... and- The kiss was sudden and explosive as Owen's lips tugged and teased, invading and probing, And Amelia, lost in it all, returned the feeling. It felt so right.
xxx
"Is Meredith right?" Arizona asked Callie as they sat in the cafeteria.
"Look, Zola is not going to be a new piece of furniture in our house okay? Of course we can love her, and take care of her just like we do with Sofia. I mean... if you still want to adopt her..."
"If I still want to adopt her?" Arizona said, immediately regretting her tone. She was picking a fight now... great, just what she needed. "What about you? You're the one who wanted another baby..."
"And you said that you wanted a dozen kids with me, after the shooting, remember?"
"That was..." That was impulsive and not really thought out and she said that because she was never more grateful to be alive with the person that she loved the most in the world and she never wanted to lose Callie over an argument over a kid. "Spur of the moment," she said. "When people get shot and die and you see your own mortality in front of you, you say things... and I didn't want to lose you, so of course I said that stuff."
Callie frowned and stabbed her salad. "So you didn't mean it," she said. "You know, I should just face the fact that you never wanted kids. Face it, Arizona, you don't want kids."
"I... want you. And I will always love Sofia... and I want us to be happy." Arizona said, "I thought that... I could be happy if I made you happy, but apparently that's not working..." she muttered before taking a sip of her coffee. "What's wrong with us? It's like... I- I'm obsessed, Callie, with trying to make up for my mistake... and you... I-"
"What? You still mad at me for cutting off your leg?" Callie said, raising an eyebrow, "Breaking a promise? Mad at me for trying to fix you?"
Why did Callie have to push her buttons? she wanted to move past that. She thought they could... but then moments like this happened... and it all went to crap. Her pager beeped. "Zola's awake, I have to go." She stood up and picked up her tray.
"Arizona-" Callie called, and she stopped and turned. "I'm obsessed too..." Callie said with a faltering smile. "With trying to make you happy." She stood up and took a few steps closer, "Let's stop jumping into things... Grey was right about one thing, it should be enough to wake up in bed next to you. Because I love you... and it should be enough. I want that again, Arizona..."
She nodded, and parted her lips a little, "So do I," she said softly before she headed to the door.
xxx
Maggie didn't know how she ended up in paeds, she must've gotten turned around somewhere, but she didn't mind because she wasn't on duty and she liked being in paeds, it was a cheerful place. She stopped and looked at the babies... so cute. Then she noticed a familiar figure staring through the window of a private room.
Considering all the progress they'd made that day, she hesitantly wandered over. "Hey," she said to her newly found sister.
"Hey," Meredith said, still staring at the little girl in the big hospital bed that Arizona was checking over.
"Patient of yours?" she asked.
"I... umm yeah... I put a shunt in her this morning."
"Oh, I didn't know you did neuro too..." she said.
"I know some, and I was the only one available at the time."
"That's good." Maggie said. But she wondered why Meredith standing outside the room and not inside.
"She's from Africa..." Meredith blurted, "An orphan from Africa, and it sounds like they're going to send her back there again, to the orphanage, because certain people can't get their act together-" she stopped suddenly. "Sorry, I'm rambling."
"It's okay." Maggie said, looking at the little girl, who was staring at Meredith curiously. "Wait, you said again? She was here before?"
Meredith's grey eyes met hers, and they looked sad. "Yeah, once. But... I don't know if anyone wants her now so..."
Maggie was very confused. This was not the Meredith she knew. The Meredith she knew was a rock. Hard and cold and standoffish and... not like this. Not on the verge of tears. Again, the picture of a happy smiling pregnant Meredith flashed through her mind... There was more to Meredith than what was on the surface, Maggie realized. "Did... you ever want kids?" She asked tactfully.
"I..."
Maggie could see the flight response initiating so she just continued talking... "I mean... Ellis loved me enough to give me to a loving family. My silly goofy parents who hardly understand me at all sometimes... but they love me... so much. And I don't begrudge her for a minute that she gave me up because I have that love and I was wanted."
Meredith put her hand on the glass and rested her forehead against it too. "I... want to... I want- to love someone," She said, her breath fogging up the glass. "I'm not Medusa, Maggie, I know you think I'm like, some kind of bitch or something, but... I'm not."
"You've just been hurt." Maggie said with understanding. There was a reason Meredith didn't have a child with her now.
"Yeah..." came the whispered reply.
Slowly, Maggie reached out and put her hand on Meredith's shoulder. She flinched.
"Do you love her?" Maggie asked, nodding toward the child in the bed. From inside the room, Arizona regarded Meredith carefully.
"Her?" She asked, surprised. "I..."
"Wanna know a secret?" Maggie said, gazing into the African child's eyes. Meredith and this girl, they were kindred spirits, she could tell. "Love hurts, but it also heals." Underneath her hand Meredith trembled. Maggie took the chance, "Why don't you go inside and say hi..." she said.
xxx
A/N: Thanks! Please Review! Oh, and Please note, I'm not entirely sure when Megan was 'lost...' in the current greys timeline. So here, she's not lost... but who knows what will happen?