Author's disclaimer: I don't own a thing belonging to "Mass Effect 2." No one.
Author's notes: The beginning of the chapter starts right up the night after Hagalaz, but the rest goes in time after the last chapter. I just felt like dropping the last chapter earlier is all :P Miranda's loyalty mission time!
"Attachments"
Chapter ten "Miranda's Errand"
After the Shadowbroker encounter:
Miranda tapped her fingers against the edge of her desk. The sun had risen on Hagalaz a few hours ago and the shuttle hadn't been called back to retrieve the Commander and Jack. She knew the Shadow Broker had been taken down, so the situation had to be safe. Who knows what Shepard was getting up to with the asari in that meantime….
And the last time Jack had sauntered into her office uninvited, she'd dropped off a glass of half-sipped wine, taunting her with that smile. She'd left the glass and despite herself, Miranda had taken a sip to taste the lipstick Jack had left on the rim. Uncouth brat.
The Illusive Man wanted an update. Miranda tapped perfectly manicured nails against the data pad where she'd began the report. She didn't know how to finish it and her plans of relocating her sister's family was taking top precedence in her mind.
Not to mention Shepard's stupid shenanigans. Miranda knew she couldn't include any attention to Shepard's little problem in this report. She didn't have any comms in the Shadow Broker's ship, but she imaged Shepard had fallen back into T'Soni's arms. They'd had the whole bloody night to do anything and everything.
Well, she couldn't help she was growing fond of Shepard even though she was causing her a lot of problems with her job. The Illusive Man's warnings couldn't stay in her mind when Shepard gave a smile or even a crisp command.
"I'll ask her. When she gets back…." Miranda turned off the data pad and leaned back in her chair. She always handled everything, every detail. Her attention to detail was perfect and she hadn't trusted anyone else to help her with anything.
But with her sister….. Miranda wasn't foolish to gamble with her life. She didn't care her ego may be bruised, but she knew Shepard would help.
Shepard always seemed to help.
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Miranda heard commotion on the ship comms, and tapped in. Orders for the shuttle to drop down into Hagalaz were given and she gave a nervous smile. She figured Shepard would help her, but you never knew until you asked. She was going to be a nervous wreck if she didn't keep her cool.
Miranda did a few breathing exercises but when the shuttle departed the Normandy toward their charges, her heartrate spiked.
Shepard poked into the cockpit to chat with Joker on her way back in. He kept winking non-subtly at her until she got annoyed and left. The other Cerberus operatives merely saluted her and kept at their work. Kelly had called out she had new messages, so she stopped to chat. Even though Shepard had a feeling Kelly had been hired for more than her psychiatric expertise and aide, she was warming to the bubbly yeoman. And Kelly seemed genuinely happy for her reunion with Liara.
"We'll be coming back to Hagalaz soon, right?" she'd winked. Shepard had nodded, blushing.
"See you later, Kelly," she said, heading for the lab. Mordin almost over-turned his teacup when she walked into his workspace but greeted her happily.
"Shepard! Get rested up, did you?"
Shepard smiled wryly. "You could say that."
"I guess so. Sexual release can make one relaxed. During this stressful mission, I do recommend it," Mordin said. Shepard laughed.
"Thanks, doctor."
After Mordin, she checked in briefly with Jacob on the second floor. He kept things brief, and she moved toward the elevator. Shepard tapped her fingers against the wall of the elevator as she waited for it to climb to her cabin. Stepping off, she was surprised to see she had a visitor.
Remembering the asari, uhm, maintenance worker, Shepard tensed on reflex, but relaxed when she turned the corner into her desk area and noted it was someone she knew, Miranda, waiting for her.
"Good morning, Shepard," she said in her pleasantly accented clip and Shepard smiled.
"Miranda," she nodded, walking past the aquarium. "I would have come to your cabin eventually. Quick on the drop today?"
She meant it as a dig, given her current good mood. But Miranda's face twisted into a guilty grimace. Shepard stopped in her tracks seeing it.
"You could say that. Commander, I find myself in the unpleasant area of asking for your help."
"A lot of people want my help," Shepard agreed. Zaeed kept hinting non subtly they needed to track down his task and soon.
"I told you about my father. Well, I'm not the only daughter he created. I have a sister. A twin. When I left, I got her out of there and now Father's gotten a good lead to where she is."
"A sister?" Shepard's head was reeling. Just as she was grappling with the idea of two Mirandas, the operative went on.
"Yes. I couldn't let what my father did happen to her so….I left. And ran with her. I gave her to an agent I trusted to adopt into a normal family. She's had….a normal life since she was young. And I intend to keep it that way!"
Shepard noted the uncertainty and fear in her operative's voice. Perfect, unruffled Miranda was very much ruffled where it concerned her only family member. She could understand. An image of Liara came to Shepard's mind and her heart pinged with warmth. "Okay. What do you need from me?" A promise was in her tone and Miranda looked up at her with real gratitude.
"Rescue her. I have an operative waiting for us in that bar on Ilium. We go meet her and stop the mercs…"
"And rescue the girl. I'm good at that," Shepard shrugged. She smiled when Miranda forced out a laugh.
"If we could take care of this soon, I'd be appreciative…."
"We'll go today," Shepard decided. "I'll plot the course from the CIC."
Miranda clasped her hands together. She reached out as if to brush her shoulder then took it back. Shepard watched her. Miranda was obviously moved somewhere beneath that icy exterior. There were depths to her she hadn't noticed. But when chasing her recently reconciled lover, Shepard hadn't had time to.
"Shepard….thank you. Truly…." Miranda's voice broke off. Shepard led her to the elevator and called the lift up.
"Don't worry about it. Another mission and we'll get it done," she declared. Miranda brightened.
"Of course."
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"Aw come on, don't want me to help, Princess?" Jack crowed from the mess as Shepard strolled through, Garrus on her heels. It was usually up to Shepard to select her crew for each mission and Jack had just come. It was just process of selection.
But Shepard noted a blush darting across Miranda's cheeks as she waited for them at the lift.
"I could take Jack if you want," Shepard offered. Miranda tossed her hair over her shoulder.
"Vakarian is more than sufficient. My sister will be safe with him," she said shortly. Shepard opened the lift and all three of them piled on.
"Princess, not cheerleader?" Garrus drawled. Miranda crossed her arms and looked to the side. But she didn't continue on the subject of Jack as they made their way to the shuttle.
"Alright, let's meet Miranda's operative. Goal objective and we're out," Shepard ordered. Garrus shouldered his sniper rifle, nodding.
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Miranda paused at the trade floor, busy workers flitting about their party. Garrus and Shepard stood behind her, ready to go or stay. And here she was faltering.
"She's there. She's safe!" Miranda murmured. Shepard followed her gaze. A tall young woman with short cropped black hair stood with an older couple, obviously the parents in question. When she turned, Shepard was startled to see how similar to Miranda she looked.
"She is. Don't you want to meet her?" Shepard urged. Miranda's blue eyes flashed to her, and there was a deep unsettled look in them that was shocking.
"What, no, I can't! And it's not about what I want, it's what's good for her!" Miranda protested. Shepard got it, truly. But she knew a lonely face when she saw it and Miranda's heart was bleeding for her sole family member.
"Go ahead. You'll beat yourself up if you don't," Shepard urged. Miranda gave her a shy, scared smile and picked her way through the throngs of people. The young woman met her gaze and started in surprise. Miranda's lips parted, but Shepard couldn't hear what she was saying across the way.
Shepard leaned against the nearest news kiosk, waiting. Garrus stood beside her.
"Poor girl. She really didn't know about Miranda, did she?" Garrus wondered. Shepard nodded to him.
"It's not every day you discover a new sibling. Miranda needed this," Shepard decided.
Garrus shifted beside her. "You're too good to us, Shepard."
His words were striking, and Shepard was picking through them silently when Miranda came back to them. Tears were in her eyes as she followed them onto the nearby lift for the landing pad for the shuttle.
"Thanks….Shepard, thanks," was all Miranda could say. Shepard gave her a perfunctory nod but made a mental note to check on her later.
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Shepard finished chatting up Garrus and Dr. Chakwas at their respective stations. She sidled past the Cerberus crewmates lining up for a snack at Gardner's counter, and towards Miranda's office.
The door was unlocked, so she went in without announcement as usual. Miranda had been looking over something on her monitor but put it aside as the door closed. "Thanks again, Shepard. Taking the time to help me with my sister…" She looked down at the desk, collecting herself. Shepard waited patiently. "I couldn't have reached Oriana in time without your help."
She stood and moved back further into her cabin. Shepard followed, warily. The way Miranda's hips moved in that clinging catsuit made her mind jump through hoops she would best like to stay away from. The lure of Cerberus's friendly face was very real, and she was trying to travel the line unscathed.
"I'm glad Niket tried to redeem himself…for what good it did. Thank you for stopping me, Commander," Miranda went on. She sat in a chair by the un-shuttered port window, showing the inky expanse of space. Shepard stood beside her, then took a seat on the small couch beside the chair. Within comfort and out of real danger, she hoped.
"Sounds like you had a soft spot for Niket after all," Shepard said smoothly. She was relieved to see a small smile on Miranda's still face form.
"I didn't have many friends. Niket was one of them. He never wanted anything from me. He was…safe. Comfortable. A reminder of a more innocent time, I suppose."
Shepard leaned forward, hands between her knees. "Are you happy about your sister's relocation?"
"She has what I wanted her to have; a normal life, and the freedom to choose her own path. And she knows she has an older sister. A friend."
That word weighed on Shepard. Her fingers twisted together. "Are you going to talk to her again?" Miranda needed that. She knew it.
"I honestly don't know," Miranda shifted her legs and crossed them. "For once, I haven't planned that far ahead. I'll deal with it after our mission. I have to stay focused, and she needs time to adjust to her new home."
Shepard smiled softly. "Let me know if I can do anything else."
"Shepard…." Miranda turned to face her, and Shepard was shocked to see a look of uncertainty on the beautiful officer's face. She looked to be weighing several decisions and finally took one of her hands between her own. Warmth flooded through Shepard at the contact. "I don't know what to say…honestly. You take every thought out of my head."
Shepard could see she had clear feelings for her. Not just for helping with Oriana but…all of it. She knew Miranda had been instrumental in forming her body from the bones up. Who knew what lingering feelings the Cerberus cheerleader had really formed for her? But Liara…it was simply too late.
Still, Shepard squeezed her fingers gently and withdrew her hand gently after a few long moments. Her hand touched the top of Miranda's warmly, and she leaned away. "I've been told I'm distracting. Sorry about that."
Miranda laughed in response and Shepard was glad to see the mood lightened. "Your asari came through for you. For all of us. She's… lucky."
"She is," Shepard agreed, thinking of Liara. She stood and laid a hand on Miranda's shoulder. "You gonna be okay? You know where I am."
"I will be. Thank you, Commander," Miranda smiled, then her professional face slid back into place. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"Not right now, Miranda. Carry on," Shepard suggested. Miranda slid behind her desk.
"Of course."
Shepard walked out of her office, feeling like a true friend had been made through it all.
End for now
End notes: Oh, cheerleader, hurt me some more :P Drop a review if you liked.
Sincerely, pen 4/23/2022