Nikita was missing. The mission had ended, yet she was nowhere to be found. She hadn't appeared at the rendezvous point. No one could get her on coms. And her tracker had gone offline. She had found a way to disappear completely from Division's radar. Or, someone had forced her to disappear. The latter wasn't likely. The mission she had gone on wouldn't have left anyone alive to capture her. In fact, it was far more likely that she had died in the chaos of the raid. Yet Michael wouldn't believe that idea. She was stronger and smarter than that. Something must've happened to her- something bad.
While everyone else had given up on her, Michael searched high and low for where she could've gone. He wouldn't leave Nikita to suffer alone and cold in the Russian wilderness. He was going to find her, save her, and bring her back. He didn't care what the protocol was. He refused to leave Nikita. She couldn't die. He couldn't lose her.
A few days passed before Michael finally got a lead on where Nikita could've gone. Security footage captured a woman with her appearance stealing a whole bunch of food, clothes, and medical supplies. It wasn't the best footage; Birkhoff couldn't clear it up, and no clear features could actually be seen. There was a strong chance that the woman wasn't even Nikita. But Michael wouldn't let that lead slip past him. He rushed as fast as he could to the small Russian town the footage originated from and searched every street for a potential sign of her.
Michael eventually got that sign from a run-down motel. It was a cash only business that didn't seem to mind who the people were that rented the rooms. A few guests only paid for a night or two. But one room had been rented out for an entire week; the guest had also asked to be left alone the whole time. Since he was paid with more cash than the room was worth, the manager didn't question anything. He let the guest do whatever they wanted, not even bothering to go by the room.
The guest had to have been Nikita. Michael couldn't think why she'd need to crash in a motel for a week. If she needed to recuperate from her injuries, she could've found a way to contact Division and have them send her coordinates to the closest safehouse. There was no reason to lay low in such a decrepit place. But, if Michael found Nikita alive in the room, then he wouldn't question her motives. He'd just be so glad to see her.
He knocked on the door, but there was no response. Michael could see light shining under the door. However, when he knocked again, there was no movement or sound. Panic spiked in his chest. What if something had happened to Nikita. What if she was unconscious- or worse. He couldn't leave her alone in that motel room if his worst assumptions were correct. She needed him then more than ever.
Except, when Michael burst open the locked motel room door, he was met with a gun pointed right at his face, "Whoa, Nikita…"
"Don't make me do it, Michael," Nikita warned. She aimed her weapon at Michael's head, not even giving him a chance to survive the potential wound. She wouldn't hesitate to kill him. Her finger on the trigger and her angry, fearful expression told him that. Though, her stance was a little less sure. She hardly placed any weight on her right leg. Glancing at it, he noticed a thick bandage wrapped around her thigh. She was injured- bad. He could take her down easily with one swift kick to the wound. Maybe that was why she was so far away from the door. Nikita could pick anyone off before they got too close.
"Put the gun down, Nikita. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm just gonna to bring you back to Division," Gently, Michael assured Nikita. He fought the urge to draw his own weapon and slowly entered the room. Without taking his eyes off her or her gun, he closed the door behind him. The lock was busted, but that wasn't going to be much of an issue. Not if he could get Nikita to settle down and come home with him.
"I'm not going anywhere. Not yet," Shaking her head, Nikita tightened her grip on her weapon. She stopped Michael from moving further into the room, and from seeing anything past the bed. He had to leave. Before anyone got hurt, and before anything got worse, he had to leave.
Yet Michael wasn't getting that hint. He noticed Nikita attempting to block his eyesight to something on the other side of the bed, and he was instantly curious as to what that could've been. With their height difference, and her injured leg slowing her down, he was able to easily look around her. The first thing he managed to see was a pile of blankets. Then, he noticed something sleeping under them. Alarm rang through him. What exactly was Nikita doing in that motel, "What's that?"
"Stop!" Nikita tried to stop Michael from approaching the bundle. But he kicked her injured leg, and she collapsed to the ground with a pain-filled groan. He ignored the heart wrenching sound and moved as quickly as he could to the blankets. Once he saw what was being hidden, however, he paused. He couldn't believe it.
Sleeping under the blankets and on top of a play-pad was a baby.
She couldn't have been more than a year old. Michael stammered at the sight of her. How was that even possible. Nikita had only been on a Division mission, where had the baby even come from. What kind of trouble had she gotten herself into, "Nikita, why do you have a baby? Did you kidnap her?"
"What else was I supposed to do? It was the only way to save her," Gritting her teeth, Nikita got to her feet and retrained her gun on Michael. The last thing she wanted to do was shoot him. But if he touched the baby, she'd have no other choice. She couldn't let anything happen to the little girl. They hadn't gotten that far for things to end badly then. Nikita was going to finish saving the baby, even if it was the last thing she did.
"By taking her from her family?" Livid, Michael rounded on Nikita. He knew he shouldn't wake the baby, yet he couldn't stop the rise in his voice. What the hell had she been thinking. She couldn't take away a baby from its parents. Even if the parents were terrible, there were better options for the baby to go than with Nikita. She couldn't raise a child. Division would kill her and the baby before she could even carve out a life.
"Yes!" Nikita shouted. That was the last sharp sound the baby could take. She woke and instantly began to cry. Nikita abandoned her weapon on the bedside table and picked the little girl up. She was so gentle as she soothed her. She lightly bounced the baby in her arms, softly rubbed her back, and sweetly whispered calming Russian words into her ear. Michael stared, absolutely dumbfounded. Especially as the baby soon began to quiet and nestled into the comfort of Nikita's arms. Just what the hell was going on.
Once the baby had settled, Nikita finally explained it to Michael; though it didn't answer his question, "She's Alexandra Udinov."
For the thousandth time that night, Michael's thoughts failed him. How. How was that baby Alexandra Udinov. Although Michael hadn't been a part of the mission- he couldn't be involved with something like that- he knew about Operation Pale Fire. He knew that Division had been hired to kill Nikolai Udinov, his wife Katya, and his daughter Alexandra. But Alexandra was supposed to be a teenager. She wasn't a baby. The intel had said she was a lot older, "What? No… she's… she's supposed to be thirteen."
"The intel was wrong. She's thirteen months old, not thirteen years old," Nikita held Alexandra tightly. She had thought it was odd that there had been no pictures of Alexandra in the briefing packets; shouldn't they know what the target looked like. But Percy had commented that Nikolai, Alexandra's father, didn't like pictures being taken of his daughter. There were none for Division to use. Nikita would just have to find the girl's bedroom and act from there. And that was exactly what she had done. Just not to Division's specifications.
Seeing the baby awake, alert, and staring at him with big, blue eyes, Michael snapped himself out of his shock. He disarmed Nikita's weapon on the nightstand and his own in his holster, and he moved them out of the baby's possible reach. Nikita and Alexandra watched him carefully the whole time. But he didn't make another attempt to approach them. He kept his distance. He wouldn't hurt either of them. All he wanted from then on was answers, "How'd you get her out of the house?"
"When I realized the mistake, I couldn't just leave her. So I grabbed her and a couple stuff from the nursery and just ran," Nikita somewhat explained. She knew she had to tell Michael more than that, but her attention was stolen by Alexandra. Though sleepily cuddled against her chest, the baby wouldn't fall back asleep. Nikita tried rocking her, but there was no use. Alexandra was awake, and she'd want to start exploring soon. So Nikita caved and gave her a sippy-cup full of milk from the mini-fridge. The baby excitedly took it.
"I gathered that. But how'd you slip past everybody?" Michael continued to ask. Just like Alexandra had been, there were tons of baby supplies out of sight from the door. There were blankets, toys, books, diapers, food, and a play-pad. Michael was certain there were also tons of things in the bathroom and mini-fridge just for the baby. Nikita had her well taken care of. But how had she gotten a baby past several Division agents and all the way to a motel in the middle of town without being noticed. Surely, Alexandra would've cried, tipping people off. Unless Nikita had planned the escape.
Nikita continued to keep her attention solely on Alexandra. There was no point hiding anything from Michael. He knew the most shocking thing she had done. However, she couldn't bring herself to admit that she had planned to go rogue from the beginning of the operation. She could never follow her orders. She didn't care if that got her killed, just as long as it saved the girl, "I've been planning to rescue Alexandra since I was assigned the op. I already had an escape route planned for her."
Her plan, however, had hinged on the fact that Alexandra was supposed to be thirteen. Since Nikita discovered the truth, she couldn't think of a new plan. She had panicked. And now she was certain that she and the baby were worse off than they had been before, "But… but that was when she was thirteen… when she could fight and defend for herself. I mean… I had survived on my own at that age. She could too… but now… now, she can barely walk. She can't survive on her own. I had to take her. I had to… I had to do something."
Slowly, Michael finally approached Nikita and Alexandra. He absolutely agreed that she had to do something to save the baby, and he loved that she had always planned to go against Division's horrific orders. However, Nikita's tight hold and strained voice caused Alexandra to fuss in her arms. She had to let the baby go. Gently, Michael held out his hands to take the baby from her, "Here. You're freaking her out. Let me hold her."
Instinctively, Nikita pulled Alexandra away from Michael. That didn't help the baby's fussiness. She whined and squirmed in her arms, yet Nikita wouldn't let her go. Michael had to try again, much more gentle and soft, "Nikita, I'm not gonna hurt her. Just trust me."
Hesitatingly, Nikita passed Alexandra to Michael. He took hold of her easily, and the baby quickly settled in his arms. Nikita relaxed as well. Of course she could trust Michael. He wouldn't hurt her, which meant he would never hurt a baby. He would never be a threat. Unlike the other problems Nikita had run into since escaping with Alexandra, "I was able to grab some food and diapers before crashing here. But I don't know how long it'll last."
Bouncing Alexandra lightly on his hip and smiling brightly, Michael got the baby to smile and rest against his shoulder. She must've been used to being passed off to different caregivers. She was comfortable with whoever held her gently and cared for her. And whoever gave her food. She had lost interest in drinking her milk, so Nikita took the sippy-cup from her and gave Michael a pouch of applesauce to feed her instead. Alexandra perked up at the sight of it and babbled excitedly. Michael chuckled softly as he helped her eat it.
While the baby ate, he began to wonder what other foods Nikita had been feeding her. He didn't doubt that Alexandra was well-fed. However, he didn't see a single bottle lying around. The baby probably had been drinking any formula since she had been rescued (she definitely wasn't drinking breast milk). Was that okay for Alexandra, though. Was she already used to that diet, or had that drastically changed for her too, "Is she off the bottle?"
Nikita hadn't thought about that. She had mostly been relying on her knowledge of baby care from when she had posed as a nanny years ago and on what she could read on the internet. She had absolutely no idea what she was doing otherwise. Hopefully, she wasn't harming Alexandra, "I don't know. I didn't see any bottles in her room or formula or… I don't know…"
"Hey. It's okay. They're usually weaned off at this age. Has she been eating the food and milk you got just fine?" Michael instantly calmed Nikita. He had seen Alexandra easily drink her milk and eat her applesauce. So even if she was still being bottle fed, her parents must've been weaning her off it. Alexandra should be okay with what Nikita had managed to grab. Nikita nodded in confirmation, and Michael smiled reassuringly, "Then she's okay."
Directing his attention back to Alexandra, Michael repeated that she was okay in light Russian. The baby babbled and tried to squeeze the applesauce pouch with chubby, greedy hands. Michael chuckled and helped her eat the rest of it. He couldn't help but sway her in his arms as he did. Nikita watched him curiously. He seemed so comfortable with a baby in his arms. He also seemed to know a lot more than she did. He must've had more experience than she had ever had. Yet she couldn't think of how, "Have you done this before?"
"Yeah…" Michael's smile dropped as he sighed. He gently wiped applesauce off Alexandra's cheek, then set her down on the floor. She excitedly crawled around, picking up and tossing aside toys. Whereas Michael watched her, Nikita's imploring brown eyes were trained on him. She wasn't going to let his answer go. She needed an explanation as to how he had taken care of a baby before. However, Michael wasn't in the mood to delve deeply into that then. Besides, there were more important things he and Nikita needed to discuss than his past, "Nikita, what are you planning on doing? This can't be long term."
"I know. I know. It's just… I can't figure it out," Nikita admitted in defeat. She had struggled to take care of and hide Alexandra for just a few days. There was no way she could keep that up forever. But what exactly was she supposed to do with her. It wasn't as though she had found the baby abandoned on the street. She had saved Alexandra from mercenaries- mercenaries that would hunt her down if they knew she was still alive.
Beginning to pace the small motel room, Nikita began to panic. What was she supposed to do with Alexandra Udinov. How could she keep her safe forever, "If I drop her off at some orphanage here, someone will figure out who she is. And if I bring her to the States, Division will find her. Also, I can't just dump her in some random country. She can understand Russian, and she's already starting to babble. If she's brought somewhere that doesn't speak Russian, she's gonna fall behind and that language barrier might hurt her. And that's not even considering the system she's gonna be thrown into."
It was obvious that Nikita had been thinking about what to do for a while. As she had taken care of Alexandra and had hardly taken care of herself (Michael noticed the low amount of supplies that were meant for Nikita) she had been contemplating what to do. Unfortunately, there was no clear answer. Michael couldn't think about what to do either. The only thing he did know was that they couldn't hold onto her. Alexandra needed to get as far away from Division and from her own name as possible, "We might just have to take a risk with an orphanage in Russia. Far from Moscow, but…"
"But what? Leave her to a broken system that's not gonna care about her? Have her get tossed aside and shat on? Have her get hurt over and over and over again by people who only view her as an object?" Frantically, Nikita snapped. She knew her tense voice caught Alexandra's attention, yet she didn't care. She had to get Michael to understand that foster care could not be an option. Alexandra wouldn't have been safe there. She'd suffer her entire life in the system, always hurt and never happy.
"Nikita, you don't know that's gonna happen," Softly, Michael tried to change Nikita's mind. He had read her file. He knew she had gone through hell and back in the foster system. But there was no way of knowing that the same thing would happen to Alexandra. She could be well taken care of at the orphanage. She'd at least have a much better life than her current situation of being stuck in a run-down motel room.
"Why not? It happened to me," Nikita huffed and collapsed on the floor next to Alexandra. Dishearteningly, she gained the baby's attention with a stuffed animal. She made the bunny dance, making Alexandra smile and steal it from her. She roughly attempted to copy Nikita's movements and babbled. A slight smile somehow found its way on Nikita's lips.
"So what? You're gonna keep her and run from Division?" Although Michael doubted that Nikita would actually run away from Division with Alexandra, he had to ensure she knew that was a ridiculous idea. A baby would not be able to survive a life on the run, no matter who was looking out for her. Alexandra needed a much safer environment than that if she was ever going to grow and thrive.
"I could protect her," Barely above a whisper, Nikita muttered. She tucked a strand of Alexandra's wild, curly blonde hair behind her ear and played with the ends that fell on her back. Yet she only did it for a moment. She soon pulled away and shook her head, "But, no. I can't be a mother. And she needs something stable and safe. A life on the run won't provide that."
What had Nikita actually been thinking by saving Alexandra. Even if she was thirteen years old instead of thirteen months old, she still would've had a horrible life ahead of her after being saved. There was no guarantee of safety or happiness. Sure, she was alive, but she wouldn't be living. Maybe Nikita shouldn't have even bothered trying to save her. Not if she was always going to suffer, "God, I fucked up so bad."
"You didn't fuck up," Michael responded sternly. Although the situation was a mess, Nikita had not fucked up by saving Alexandra Udinov. She had done the right thing. Never in a million years could that ever be seen as bad.
"What happened?" Nikita blurted. She couldn't ignore the fact that Michael had some personal story involving a baby and loss anymore. He had to explain himself. Though, her blurted question wouldn't get her an immediate response. Michael only glanced at her in confusion. Gently, Nikita clarified, and tried to garner a real answer, "You said you've done this before. What happened?"
Expelling a long breath, Michael sat next to Nikita and Alexandra. He added another stuffed animal to her collection, and she absconded the one in her hand for that one. Despite the pang in his heart, he smiled at her. He wasn't certain if the baby's presence helped him open up to Nikita or not. However, he did know he couldn't stay silent anymore. He had to talk about Hayley and Elizabeth. The fact that he was sharing them with Nikita at least made it a little easier, "I had a daughter. And a wife."
"You did?" Nikita gaped at Michael. She knew he was different than most agents in Division, but she could've never guessed that he was that different. Though, honestly, a part of her wasn't surprised. How he protected her and recruits and how he had cared for Alexandra showed how he was used to being kind, caring, and fatherly. He was a family man. Which meant that some kind of tragedy had turned him into a Division man.
"I did," Quietly, Michael replied. Nikita stared at him with her imploring brown eyes again, but he couldn't bring himself to look at her. Instead, he kept himself buoyed by playing with Alexandra. He couldn't laugh and smile with the baby. But he could fight for the words that brought him back to the worst moment of his life, "They're gone. They were killed in a car bomb… March 21st, 2001."
"I'm sorry. I didn't know," Squeezing Michael's hand, Nikita tried to comfort him. However she had no idea what she was supposed to say to such horrific news like that. Her touch seemed to be enough, though. Michael squeezed her hand in return.
"Nobody knows… Only Percy and Amanda… And now you…" Finally, Michael looked at Nikita. She scooted as close to him as her wounded leg would allow and caressed his stubbled cheek with her free hand. He canted into her touch. But just for a second. Soon, the rage of what had happened to Hayley and Elizabeth overwhelmed him and he seethed, "And Kasim."
"As in Kasim Tariq?" Nikita pulled away in shock. She hadn't meant to, but she couldn't help it. She had heard about Kasim Tariq while studying different terrorist groups in one of her recruit training sessions. But how and why had a known terrorist killed Michael's family. Did it have anything to do with the Navy connections she knew Michael had. If so, then what was the full story. How had Michael lost his family in such a horrific way to such a horrific person.
"Before 2001, Kasim wasn't a famous terrorist. He was a low-level snitch. Then all that changed when he betrayed me. After he killed my family, he became a hero in the ranks of Al-Qaeda," Michael managed to choke out. Nikita knew better than to ask him for more than that at the moment. Maybe later he would tell her the full story. Then, though, she'd squeeze his hand again and help him get through the terrible pain. He squeezed back and continued darkly, "That's the reason why I joined Division in the first place… To find him. And kill him."
Nikita was going to promise Michael that she would help him get revenge for his family. But he suddenly looked at her with such intense green eyes that the words got trapped in her throat. He pulled her even closer to him by their clasped hands and made her listen to his every word, "So, no, Nikita. You did not fuck up by saving Alexandra. You did the greatest thing in the whole entire world."
Unable to stop herself, Nikita's eyes landed on Michael's lips. Some part of her wanted to close the small distance between them. And she could've sworn he felt the same as he stayed so close to her. But then Alexandra babbled loudly, and the two pulled away.
The baby only shouted as best she could because she wanted Michael and Nikita to play with her. Chuckling, of course the two did. They tossed Alexandra toys, and responded to her attempts at speech with silly Russian phrases and goofy expressions. Eventually, she crawled into Michael's lap and held her arms up. He instinctively scooped her up and threw her into the air. Her squeal of laughter caused the two adults to beam. He tossed her up again and again as many times as she demanded- the three laughing the entire time.
At some point, however, Nikita stopped laughing. The happy moment wasn't enough to keep the dire situation from her mind. She and Michael still had to figure out what they were supposed to do with Alexandra. If they didn't figure it out soon, Division or whoever had hired the strike team could find them. The fact that two highly trained agents were looking after the baby didn't matter. She still had a target on her back. Just a year old, and evil men wanted her dead. Nikita couldn't understand it. She wanted to scream, "Division condoned a child's murder… God, what are we gonna do?"
Slowly, Michael dropped Alexandra to his lap. She threw her arms up to be tossed up again. But when she received no response, she realized the game was over, and she crawled back to her toys. The baby was hardly paid attention to. Michael and Nikita were lost in thought again, contemplating what to do.
After another moment of thought, Michael believed he had a solution. It was going to take time to pull it off. Yet it'd be worth all the effort. A little girl would get to live, after all. He and Nikita had to do everything they could to make that possible, "We do what Division does best- fake people's deaths and hide them right under people's noses."
"You want to bring her to Division?" Nikita glanced at Michael warily. She doubted that was actually what he was referring to. All three of them would be killed if they returned to Division together. Yet she was interested in what his thought process was. How could they hide Alexandra Udinov so efficiently and so permanently.
"No. I'm saying we can fake paperwork- good, official paperwork- and bring her to an orphanage far from Moscow," Michael clarified. With their combined skills, he and Nikita could bring Alexandra somewhere safe without any questions or connections to her parents. Although that was the only safe option they had, Nikita continued to want to refuse it. Michael could see the protest all over her face. But before she could say anything, he grabbed hold of her hand, "I know. I know foster care was hell for you. But this is our only chance to save Alexandra."
Nikita fought the protest on her lips. Although she would always hate the idea, there was no use fighting it. Alexandra would be safest at an orphanage, especially if she and Michael could create fake paperwork for her.
But where would Nikita be safest. After she and Michael helped Alexandra, where was she supposed to go. She had disobeyed orders and had run away from Division. Returning would get her canceled. Not even Michael could protect her from that. She had doomed herself as soon as she had saved Alexandra. It was worth it, though, "And then what's gonna happen to me?"
There was a chance that Michael and Nikita could come up with an elaborate lie that'd let her return to Division without the risk of cancellation. But, honestly, why should they even bother. There was nothing in Division worth returning for. There was no honor; there was no duty. Not in a place that sent agents to kill a baby. Nikita was better off dead than risking her life fighting to return to that hell. And maybe Michael was too- if he didn't have a mission to complete, "You got shot during the raid. I found your body."
"You're letting me go?" Bewildered, Nikita questioned. She had destroyed her com and had cut out and destroyed her tracker, but that had been for Alexandra's sake, not her own. She hadn't actually thought about escaping Division. Though, if she had the chance, she would absolutely take it. She never wanted to return to the hellhole. She'd much rather run around the world forever than be trapped in those fucking walls.
"I wouldn't be lying," Michael indicated the bandaged wound on Nikita's thigh. He had assumed it was a bullet wound after her reaction when he had kicked her. That shout had been pretty consistent with the pain caused by one. Also, she had been wearing shorts around the motel- probably so she could have easy access to her bandage. He could see a round pool of blood start to form as the wound reopened. Michael wondered how much time Nikita had devoted to caring for it while she also cared for Alexandra. He suspected that it wasn't a lot. But that was okay, because he could take care of her then.
As Michael grabbed the medical supplies from the bathroom, Nikita lined up books, toys, and blankets to block Alexandra's path from her bloody leg. The baby hardly noticed what was going on. She kept playing and trying to get Nikita's and Michael's attention. They paid her what they could with bright smiles and soft Russian. But when Michael finally removed the soiled bandage and saw how bad the barely treated wound was, he gasped. Nikita sighed, "A gift from Nikolai Udinov. He caught me while I was surprised."
"Did you kill him?" Michael asked. Since Nikita had been shot by Nikolai, he wouldn't put it past her to shoot him back in retaliation. Not out of malice, but out of instinct to protect herself from further harm.
Nikita shook her head, however. She had almost shot Nikolai, but then she thought of asking him for his help with the baby. She had ripped off her mask and urgently told him that she was there to save Alexandra. She figured that he had seen the pure intentions on her face, and that was why he had decided to help her. Or maybe he had just been so desperate to save his daughter, he had to trust her. Nikita didn't want to think too much about it. She simply went over the basic facts with Michael, "I told him I wanted to save Alexandra, and he helped me pack the bag, then let me go. I'm sure he's dead now, though."
"He is. But it'll make it easier to hide Alexandra from Division. And whoever had hired the strike team," Michael informed Nikita. Both Nikolai and Katya Udinov had died during the raid. Alexandra had no family left. Although that was a horrible fact, it did make it easier to hide her in the system. No one would be looking for her. And everyone in the entire world would believe she was dead. Alexandra could actually be saved. No one could hurt her ever again.
"And if you run, you can check in on her from time to time," Michael added as he finished patching her up. Obviously, Nikita wouldn't be able to stay in one place for long, and she wouldn't be able to stay near Alexandra. But she could check on the baby. She could watch over her as she grew up, make sure she stayed safe and sound. It'd be like she was her fairy godmother. Nikita would always be there to protect Alexandra.
And maybe Michael could join her one day. After he killed Kasim and avenged his family, he could join Nikita. There was no reason for Michael to stay in Division besides using them to get revenge. He couldn't be a part of an organization that condoned killing children and babies. That wasn't what the black ops unit of the government was supposed to do. They were supposed to help people when others couldn't. They had lost their way when Percy started accepting missions for hire. Once his mission was complete, Michael vowed to get far away from that corruption before it corrupted him too.
"You think she's gonna be okay?" Quietly, Nikita asked. A part of her believed that Alexandra wouldn't be. She was going to be alone. She was going to grow up without knowing where she came from, who she was, or who her parents were. She was going to be consistently lied to. She was going to be consistently bounced around until she was adopted- if she ever was. She was going to grow up just like Nikita, and probably end up just like her too. Alexandra would never be okay. Sure, Nikita had saved her, but what kind of life was she giving her.
Abandoning her toys, Alexandra babbled excitedly and crawled over to Nikita. She scooped the baby up in her arms and held her tightly. Chubby little fingers reached to play with her hair and pat her cheek. Nikita couldn't help but chuckle at the sweet girl's silliness. She pressed her forehead against Alexandra's and made a goofy face. The baby burst into laughter. She squished Nikita's face to make her do more silly expressions. She complied to the baby's demands, even bouncing her on her good leg to draw out more joyous laughter.
"I think you gave her a chance," Michael replied softly, watching Nikita play with Alexandra. A smile pulled at his lips that he didn't think he could ever wipe away. It was going to be rough, especially when Alexandra was old enough to ask questions and wonder, but he believed she would grow up happy and healthy. She'd be safe and sound, and she'd never know of the terrible men who had murdered her family and had tried to murder her.
And if Alexandra did grow up to be like Nikita, then that wouldn't be so bad. She'd be a strong, remarkable, awesome woman, who led with her heart and tried to do the right thing no matter what. Despite the hard choices the consequences of Nikita's actions forced them to make, her heroics were worth it. Especially since it gave Alexandra a chance to live, to be happy, and to become a hero just like her savior.
Yes, this does come from my one shot collection Homecoming chapter 96. But I decided to explore the few days that Michael and Nikita would be raising baby Alexandra together in a short multi-chapter. The next chapter will be up soon. I hope you enjoy!