"You ever feel like a proud parent?"
Buzz smiled down at his teammate as the four Rangers waited in the launch bay. "I know what you mean, XR. Ah, it's going to be good to see Savy again."
"It's going to be good to finally meet her," said Mira, arms folded. "Since, y'know, you two did that whole Trade World mission without us."
"Mira, come on, it was three years ago—"
"I'm just saying."
"Oh, oh!" said Booster. "Here comes the shuttle!"
The transport shuttle descended to the pad, engine fumes swirling around it. Buzz gestured for his team to stand to attention, and a few moments later an excited mass of young people emerged, laughing, shouting, and racing each other down the walkway. The Ranger leading them tried to wrangle them into an orderly line and made them salute the team. "Captain Lightyear," she said, "presenting the newest recruits to the Space Ranger Academy."
Buzz returned the salute. "At ease, recruits. Welcome to Star Command. You're going to receive a full tour, plus your mandatory physicals, inoculations, mental evals, and a chance to show us what you've got on the Star Command training deck before shipping out tomorrow to the Academy. Who's excited?"
A cheer rose from the group, and Buzz scanned through the happy faces, trying not to be too obvious. Luckily her blue hair wasn't hard to spot, even if she'd tamed it into a more regulation style. Savy was near the front, and she broke into a grin when their eyes met. Buzz could only allow himself the faintest hint of a smile—a Ranger should never show favouritism—but he knew she'd catch it.
They then proceeded with the tour, Mira walking alongside him and helping to explain the inner workings of Star Command, while Booster and XR trailed at the back and made sure no one wandered off. There was a constant stream of chatter from the recruits, though Buzz noticed Savy kept quiet. Even if she'd been the type to ooh and ahh, it wasn't her first visit to the station.
The tour concluded at the cafeteria, where Buzz told the recruits they could grab something to eat before they headed to the med bay for their physicals. He and his team found a table for themselves, and he waited for Savy to break away from her new friends so he could wave her over.
"Man, she's smaller than I thought," said Mira, resting her chin in her hand as she watched the recruits mingling. "Did that kid really power down NOS-4-A2?"
"Well, naturally she had a little help from Star Command's finest," said XR, shrugging modestly.
Booster scratched his head. "I thought you were stuck in NOS-4-A2's coffin at the time?"
"Exactly! My cunning ploy to distract him worked perfectly."
"Savy's a tough kid," said Buzz. He remembered his horror when she'd taken him back to resuscitate XR, and he'd realised she was living off a mouldy mattress in the Trade World slums. He'd always known conditions were rough there—the Rangers got called out to Trade World all the time and tried to make a dent in the organised crime that pervaded the planet. But he'd felt powerless against the deeper rot at the world's heart, of which the rampant lawlessness was only a symptom. It was a place that had once boomed with possibilities, before there was a Galactic Alliance and a Capital Planet; a neutral ground for people from across the galaxy to meet and trade. Thousands had flocked to it seeking opportunity. But things moved on—its better days passed as Capital Planet's began, and those who didn't have the money to get out were stuck in a crumbling society that had lost its identity. The Rangers could arrest every crime boss, every dealer, every smuggler, but they couldn't fix that. And he'd made peace with it. After all, a good, honest citizen could always find their way in the universe if they tried hard enough, couldn't they? He'd done his bit, promoting charities and doing community outreach when he had the time. Savy wasn't even the first kid from Trade World he'd recruited to the Junior Rangers.
But when he saw the way she was living, something in him had flipped. An anger. She was a decent kid—smart too, and brave. But soyoung. He tended to associate evil with people, the Zurgs of the universe. That was simple. But watching her step between stagnant puddles on the weathered rooftop to get to her bed, he wondered if there was a deeper kind, one that had no face. How many others were living lives just like hers, or worse, while the rest of the galaxy shrugged their shoulders?
He knew he couldn't help them all, but he was determined to help her. After the LGMs revived her parents, he'd set them up with a new place on the better side of the city. Trade World wasn't all dirty alleys and trash heaps, after all. He'd pulled some strings to get a scholarship for her and made sure she kept busy with the Junior Rangers—the more time with them, the less time there was to get involved with any of the street gangs. He didn't see her very often, but sometimes they met on Junior Ranger field trips, and her parents would write to him about how she was doing at school. Every good report felt like a little victory.
When they said she was considering signing up for the Academy, his heart had leaped and he immediately offered to sponsor her application. To his annoyance, XR had already beaten him to the punch. He could understand why she'd gone to him first—Savy wasn't the type to ask for special treatment or draw attention to herself, and XR was the more low-key option. It had been a proud moment for the robot, sponsoring his first cadet. Buzz wouldn't have wanted to take that away from him.
But, craters, he still wished it could've been him instead.
He'd sponsored plenty of recruits over the years, and he was proud of all of them, but none of them had been living on that damp, rat-infested rooftop. None of them had come as far as she had.
"Buzz! XR!" Savy's voice broke through his thoughts as she hurried to their table. "It's been awhile, huh?"
"Sure has! Congrats, kid!" XR held up a hand and she high-fived it. "Soon you'll be calling us both sir!"
"It's good to see you again, Savy." Buzz rose and held out his arms, and after a moment of cringing as if she were too cool, Savy threw herself at him in a hug.
"Guess who's gonna be the first Star Command cadet who knows how to jack the official senate broadcast frequency?" she grinned.
"The first and last, I hope. I'm still trying to explain that one to the commander."
He and Savy sat down, Mira and Booster introduced themselves, and soon they were all reminiscing about their own days in the Academy, about NOS-4-A2, and about everything that had happened since they last saw each other.
When the lunch hour was finally over, the Academy guide came to escort them all to the med bay, and Buzz promised Savy they would catch up some more before it was time for her to leave. He and the team weren't on patrol duty that day, so he was looking forward to a quiet afternoon in the filing office, typing up overdue reports.
"Man, that kid sure is something, isn't she?" said XR, as they took their places at their desks. "Let's not forget, I was the one who found her on Trade World, you know!"
"She found you while you were flatlining from an energy vampire attack," said Buzz.
"Eh, tomato, tomato. Still me, and that's what counts!"
Buzz chuckled and searched for the incident report form to write up a traffic violation he'd dealt with the previous day. Not every part of his job was as glamorous as people thought, but it was all essential to the orderly functioning of society. Or so he liked to tell himself when he was forced to settle parking disputes instead of blasting Hornets.
"So what do you say, Buzz?" Mira and the other two had been debating something, and she'd turned to him. "Dinner at Cosmo's after work, or we order in some Pizza Planet?"
Buzz signed his name at the bottom of the report and yawned. "I don't know about you three, but I'm gonna bunk on the station tonight so I can see the new recruits off in the morning. Pizza would suit me just fine."
"Sure, maybe we can hang out in the rec lounge and catch a movie," Mira suggested.
"Oh, yeah, they're showing Sinister Sirens of Shragarak on Channel—"
"I believe it's Booster's turn to pick, XR," Buzz cut in quickly. "All right, team, it's a plan." He'd been thinking about turning in early, but he could always catch a few winks on the sofa during the movie. He could tell the others wanted him there.
It would've been easy to assume that after long days stuck together in a cramped cockpit, his team would be the last people he'd want to hang around in his free time. He'd known Rangers like that, who only acknowledged their partners on duty. But to him, they were more than just colleagues. More than friends.
He thought of his own first day at the Academy, and how much it had felt like coming home. His upbringing had been... difficult, to say the least. Non-typical, he always described it blandly when people asked. Nana had done her best, but after her passing, every last sense of belonging he'd felt had gone with her.
And then he'd joined the Rangers.
There'd been other friends outside the Corps, of course, even people he'd loved, but it was different. When you were in a cruiser together all day, when you held each other's lives in your hands, you saw parts of one another that no one else did. It was a bond that couldn't be broken. Not without tearing out a piece of yourself, anyway.
Sometimes he let others in—there was a picture on his desk, a woman with short auburn hair smiling one of her rare but breathtaking smiles against a backdrop of dense jungle—and sometimes he wondered how wise it was. It had gotten in the way too many times before. Buzz was many things, but first and foremost he was a Ranger. Without that, nothing else made sense. His team understood that, but people on the outside... not so much.
But then again, he thought, a few of them they did. A few like Savy. Maybe it was worth it for that.
"Buzz Lightyear," Commander Nebula's gruff voice came over the intercom. "Report to the med bay immediately. Repeat, Buzz Lightyear to the med bay."
Buzz sighed. "Wonder what that's about. Hope it's not a recruit making trouble—there's always one in every batch."
"I'm sure Savy'll keep them in line," said XR.
Unless she's the troublemaker, thought Buzz, though he didn't really believe it. She hadn't lost any of her attitude over the years—he was glad, it was one of her strengths—but she was too smart to rock the boat on her first day. She'd save the shenanigans for later. "I'm sure I'll get whatever this is wrapped up quickly," he said to Mira, "but if I don't, I'll meet you in the rec room later. You know how I like my pizza."
"You got it, Buzz."
The med bay was only one deck below, and Buzz had never been one to walk when he could stride, so he arrived within minutes of the commander's message. To his surprise, it was already empty of recruits, and instead he saw Nebula kneeling amidst a group of whitecoated LGMs. They were speaking in hushed tones.
"Ah." The commander stood up as soon as Buzz entered. "Come in, son."
Buzz saluted. "Was there a problem, sir?"
The look that the commander exchanged with the LGMs wasn't promising. "Uh, why don't you take a seat, Buzz?"
He glanced about the room. They were in the med bay. The only possible seating was the examination bed. "What exactly is the situation, Commander?"
Nebula's moustache fluttered as he exhaled a long breath. "Look, fellas, why don't you go do some, uh, science things? Over there."
"But—" the LGMs began in unison.
"Scatter!"
There was a speedy pattering of feet as they obeyed.
"Now, son," said the commander quietly, "I think we need to talk."
"What's going on here? Where are the recruits?"
"Training deck. They've already completed all their physicals."
Buzz frowned. "Then what did you call me down for?"
"The LGMs... picked something up on one of the tests."
Something in the commander's voice set his senses off like crazy. Occasionally the physicals detected underlying health issues—there'd been a few recruits they'd had to turn away, and some that needed treatment before they could enter the Academy—but that fell under the commander's purview, not his. The only reason Nebula would bring him in to discuss it was if it represented a stationwide threat, like a case of the Nalthusian pox, or—
"There's something wrong with Savy, isn't there?" he blurted out.
Nebula blinked. "Uh, well..."
"Craters," he slapped his palm against a bulkhead. "What is it? Is she okay?"
"Lightyear, relax, there's nothing wrong with her."
"But it is about her, isn't it?" Buzz insisted.
"Son, I really think you should sit down."
"Don't tell me she failed the drug screening! I can't believe—"
"Buzz!" The commander pressed a hand to his shoulder. "Would you let me get a word in?"
He sighed. "Uh, yes, sir."
"Now, you're right, it is about Cadet SL2," Nebula said. "The LGMs just got the results back from her blood test. Nothing out of the ordinary—she's in good shape, especially for a Trade World kid. And her drug screening was clean too, so quit worrying. But there was something else."
"Yes?"
"The computer picked up a genetic match in the system."
"A genetic—?" Buzz furrowed his brow. "You mean she's related to one of our Rangers?"
"That's what the computer says, and the LGMs double checked it. I wouldn't have called you down if they weren't sure."
Something clicked. "You... called me down. I'm the match, aren't I?"
The commander nodded.
"Huh." Buzz had never given much thought to Savy's biological family. He'd asked her once if she knew them, and she said she didn't, just that the adoption agency had told her parents she was an orphan. That was nothing unusual on Trade World. "How close is the match? What are we, cousins?" It had to be on his father's side—he knew about as much there as Savy did about her own biological parents. The few remaining members of the Lightyear side were all still on Morph, last he heard. Though, he thought, Savy could pass for a Morphian with her blue hair and dark eyes.
"Son," Nebula sighed, "she's not your cousin. According to the LGMs... she's your daughter."
For a long moment, Buzz stared at him. Finally, he laughed. "Good one, Commander. You know, for a moment there—"
"It's not a joke, Buzz."
His chuckle died. "Then it's a mistake."
"No mistake. I made sure they were a hundred percent on this."
"Sir," said Buzz, "I don't have a daughter. I think I would know."
"She's eighteen years old. Think back, Buzz. Is there any possible way—"
"No!" He threw his hands up. "Commander, there are lots of things in the universe I'm not sure of, but this isn't one of them. I— I mean, eighteen, nineteen years ago, I wasn't even— that was around the time Kala and I ended things. It was years before I even dated again after that!"
"Kala." Nebula rubbed his chin. "And there was no one else?"
He almost laughed. "Of course not! She was the one seeing other people, not me."
The commander was quiet. After enough years serving together, Buzz could tell that he was churning something over in his mind. He looked at Buzz curiously. "Kala was the one I met at the Space Ranger charity ball—the one you were going to marry?"
He nodded. She wasn't a memory he liked to revisit very often.
"Don't you think..." Nebula's voice was gentle. "Don't you think Savy kind of has her face?"
The question stopped him dead. He never would've seen it, not on his own, but the image of the woman he had once loved flashed through his mind. The thick lips, the short chin, the sparkle in her eye...
"It can't—" He stared at the commander. "She can't be—"
"When was the last time you and Kala spoke?"
That at least was easy to answer. "When she gave the ring back."
"And you heard nothing from her after that?"
"Not from her, though I know things didn't last long with the guy she left me for. I think she married some ambassador and moved to Ceta II."
"Uh-huh." The commander tilted his head. "And, hypothetically speaking, is there any way, timeline-wise, that you and her could possibly be—?"
"Savy's parents?" It was absurd. Savy's parents were dead. And Kala... Kala would've told him, even after the breakup. She'd have had to, wouldn't she?
Nebula was looking at him, waiting for an answer.
"I... I guess..." His shoulders sagged. "It's not impossible."
"We'll run one more test," said Nebula. "Just to be safe. But if it's a match, son, I think maybe you should try to get hold of her."
He barely registered the words. It couldn't be true—none of it. Maybe it was all a trick. Maybe Savy was actually some child genetically engineered by Zurg. Yes, that made sense—Zurg had stolen his DNA before, when he grew those clones. That had to be it.
But she was no clone.
"Have you told Savy yet?" he whispered.
The commander rubbed his moustache. "I thought maybe you'd like to be the one to do that."
"Well, I think we have to face facts," XR announced. "Buzz isn't coming. Dibs on his seat!"
"He'll be here," Booster insisted. "He said he would."
Mira nodded. "He probably just got tied up with that business in the med bay." She wished the commander had called in the rest of the team too—it always rubbed her the wrong way when they were left out of the action, whatever the action happened to be in this case.
"I vote we start the movie," said XR. "The pizza's getting cold."
"You won't be eating any."
"I'm thinking of you! Sheesh, a guy tries to be considerate..."
There was a swoosh behind them. "Buzz, about time— oh." Mira blinked. "Hi, Savy."
"Hey." Hands shoved awkwardly in her pockets, the girl shrugged. "Mind if I chill with you guys?"
"Join the party!" XR gestured to one of the sofas. "We've got an extra pizza. Do you like olives?"
Mira glared at him. "Buzz is going to be here, XR. You can share with me, Savy."
"It's okay," she said. "I'm not hungry."
"You guys just finished your session on the training deck, right?" The girl nodded. "Then you must be starving. Come on," Mira insisted, waving away the flurry of steam as she tore open the cardboard lid, "take a bite. We're gonna watch a movie when Buzz gets here."
After a moment's hesitation, she helped herself to a slice. "Sorry, I hope I'm not getting in your way."
"Not at all." Mira studied her. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah," she said, too quickly.
"You sure?"
Savy sighed. "It's just... you know, it's gonna take awhile to fit in, that's all."
"You mean with the other cadets?"
She mumbled something and shoved the rest of the slice into her mouth.
"Are you having problems with them?"
Savy shook her head. "Not really," she said, swallowing. "Just, well... I think they have problems with me."
"How come?" Booster asked.
"'Cause they saw me with you guys at lunch. Now they're going around saying... well, that I'm acting like I'm too good for them because I've got Ranger friends." She suddenly looked angry. "I mean, me, too good for them? I'm the Trade World street rat, for crying out loud!"
Something in Mira's chest ached for the girl. "Hey, don't worry about them," she said. "Just keep being you. People said the same stuff about me when I first joined—that I only got in 'cause I was a princess, that I'd never be any good on the field. But look at me now." She smiled. "Besides, once you get to the Academy, they'll forget all about it."
"You think so?"
"Absolutely. There'll be way too much else going on. It's not a big deal, I promise."
The girl's stiff posture eased slightly. "I guess you're right."
"And hey," Mira added, "if you can take on an energy vampire, you can handle a few cadets, right?"
Savy grinned.
As Mira reached for a slice of pizza, the door opened again. "Sorry, Rangers," said Buzz. "I don't think I'm going to be able to— uh." He paused. "Savy. You're here."
"Sorry for crashing your party," she said. "You don't mind, right?"
Mira was surprised by the look on Buzz's face. It was the look of a man who very much did mind. "Everything all right?" she asked.
He was still staring at Savy. "Yeah, uh, some... some things came up. I'm gonna have to miss the movie."
"Aww." Booster's ears drooped. "But it's a good one, Buzz!"
He shrugged apologetically. "Another time."
"Guess you get his pizza after all," XR told Savy.
"Uh, actually, Savy, I'd like to talk to you."
Her face fell when she looked up at him. She seemed to be picking up on the same vibe Mira was getting, though Mira wasn't sure quite what that vibe was yet. "I'm in trouble, aren't I?" the girl said quietly.
"No, no. Not at all."
"Don't BS me, Space Ranger," she snapped. "Nobody ever looks at me that way unless they're about to deliver bad news. What is it? Did that one kid squeal on me for punching him on the training deck?"
"No." Buzz frowned. "Though you shouldn't be punching your fellow cadets."
"He had it coming, the creep."
"Look, can we talk about this in private?"
Mira winced. Whatever he was going to tell her, it had to be bad if he couldn't even do it in front of the three of them.
"No," said Savy. "I don't want to be dragged away for some lame little talking-to. Let's save everyone some time. What did I do wrong and what's the punishment?"
"Booster, XR," whispered Mira, "maybe we should step out for a minute, huh?"
Buzz sighed. "No. You might as well hear this too." He moved over to Savy. She'd gotten to her feet, but he still towered above the short teen, and he had to stoop to get to eye level. "Savy," he said, "when they ran your tests, the computer was able to pick up a close genetic match. One of your biological parents."
Whatever she'd been expecting him to say, that clearly wasn't it. "Huh? My parents are dead."
"It seems that... may not be the case."
"What are you talking about? If you're screwing with me—"
"Savy, I have never been more serious." He placed his hand gently on her shoulder. "The match was me. I'm your father."
For a long, long moment, there was perfect silence. Mira felt frozen in place, unable to even think. What he was saying made absolutely no sense.
"We're still... looking into the situation," said Buzz. "But we've definitively confirmed the computer's results. Biologically, you're my daughter."
Savy stared at him. "Bullshit!" she yelled, shoving his hand away.
"Savy—"
"My parents are the SL2s, and anyone else is long dead, so shut up!" She stormed out the room.
"Savy, wait!" He was about to go after her, but Mira grabbed his wrist.
"Buzz," she said softly, "is it true?"
Booster and XR were looking at him expectantly as well.
He sank into the chair, defeated. "Yes."
Despite the many questions she wanted to ask, Mira knew the last thing he needed was an interrogation. "Wow," she said.
"But... but..." Booster began. "How can she—"
Mira raised a finger to her lips, and he trailed off.
"Wait a second here," XR scrolled around the room, his arms folded. "Are you saying that all this time, you, the great Buzz Lightyear, have had a secret kid living on Trade World? Oh, boy. Note to self, contact tabloids. I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" he added, withering beneath Mira's glare. "Just trying to lighten the mood!"
"How are you handling this?" Mira asked, leaning closer to her captain. She'd rarely seen him so at a loss. It was frightening.
"I don't know. It... doesn't seem real." He looked at them all. "It goes without saying that we keep this between ourselves, at least for now."
"Of course, Buzz."
"Commander Nebula's going to contact the SL2s and apprise them of the situation. He'll see what info he can get about the adoption agency. I need to, uh, follow up my own lead."
"You mean... find her mother?"
He nodded. Mira bit her tongue to keep from asking anything else. If he wanted to tell them, he would when he was ready.
"If there's anything you need, you know you can count on us, right?" she whispered.
"Always, Mira."
"Are you going to tell Ozma?" Booster asked. It was the sort of innocent thing he would say, and Mira wanted to put her face in her palms.
Buzz simply sighed.
The trouble with a space station was there wasn't anywhere to go. Back on Trade World, Savy had known all the best spots when she didn't want to be found. Here, she couldn't even go to her room, because all the recruits had been crammed together into the Star Command barracks.
In the end, she wandered into the storage bay (technically she didn't have clearance, but it was an easy hack) and paced amongst the supply crates. Her green recruit jacket reflected off the polished floor, and she tore it off. Suddenly the sight of anything Star Command made her want to punch a wall.
It couldn't be true. But if it wasn't then Buzz was lying to her. But he wouldn't lie about that, unless she'd misjudged him so badly that she'd never be able to trust on her instincts again. But if he was telling the truth...
But he couldn't be.
Her feet wobbled beneath her and she dropped to the floor, her back pressed against a cold metal crate. She was an orphan. She'd known that since childhood. It was one of those things that didn't seem to matter much when she was a kid, because she had parents, parents she loved, and she'd been too young to remember the dead ones. When she got older, she'd wondered about them sometimes. She'd asked her mother if she had any pictures, any names, anything connected to her past, but apparently it was agency policy not to divulge details like that. And though she continued to wonder, Savy could live with it. There were always more important things to worry about on Trade World.
The idea that either of her parents might still be alive had never crossed her mind.
She realised her face was hot and her eyes were getting wet, so she scrunched them closed to force back the tears. This was stupid. What was she crying over? Some lousy mix-up the Star Command computer had made?
But Buzz had said they'd confirmed the results. He'd sounded so certain.
What did that mean, anyway? What was she, the product of some one-night stand or something? Had Star Command's poster boy visited the Trade World red light district for more than just official business?
Savy had always liked to think her biological parents were just two regular people. People who'd loved her. It wasn't their fault they couldn't be around to watch her grow up, and she'd never felt abandoned. She didn't like being an orphan, but it wasn't something she dwelt on. It was just... what it was.
Except now she knew that it wasn't. Savy dug her nails into the palms of her curled fists. Why had she decided to join the Rangers? Why couldn't she have just stayed on Trade World? She had skills. She could get by. It would've been so easy to go the rest of her life without ever knowing shit she didn't want to know.
What was she supposed to do now? The shuttle was leaving in the morning for the Academy. What, did they expect her to just act like nothing had happened? To show up for her first day and pretend her entire world hadn't been knocked upside down?
How could she possibly sit in those classes memorising rules he'd written, reading about famous missions he'd led, learning manoeuvres he'd invented? She already knew from the conversations she'd overheard on the shuttle that half her fellow recruits had signed up because of him—because he'd saved their planet or they'd heard all the stories and thought he was the coolest guy in the galaxy. His name was constantly plastered across news screens, on magazines, even freaking candy bars. How could you escape that?
"Do you think I should go to her?" Buzz gratefully accepted the cup of coffee Mira had made for him. Booster and XR had offered, with surprising tact, to take away the empty pizza boxes, so they were alone.
"Not yet." Mira blew on her own mug as she sat beside him. "I think you both need time to process this. I mean, like, I— I can't even imagine what's going through your head right now."
He wasn't sure he had any idea either. "Mira," he said, "you grew up absolutely certain of where you came from. I know you and your father, uh, haven't always seen eye to eye, and I know you lost your mother, but you've always been a Nova. A Tangean royal. You never had to question that."
"Well, yeah."
"I didn't have that. Oh, there was my mother, what little I remember of her, and of course there was Nana. But that was it. Even my home is just a blur, I was so young when I left. I know I'm from Morph, but that's just a name. Something to fill in on forms. I've only been back a couple of times since I left, and I never found... whatever I was looking for, I guess." He took a sip of the coffee. "So I know what it must have been like for Savy, to only have fragments of her past. And now I've taken that away too."
"But now she has the truth. That's gotta mean something, right?"
Buzz tapped a thumb against the white ceramic. "The truth isn't always better."
She frowned. "That doesn't sound like you, Buzz."
"Did I ever tell you that Zurg once claimed to be my father?" From the way her eyes widened, clearly he hadn't. "It was a bluff, of course. But it hit me almost as hard as the left hook he followed it up with. What if it had been true? How could I have gone on being who I am if it was? I still think about it. Sometimes I almost wonder... But then I tell myself it was a lie, because I don't ever want to know any different."
"Buzz..."
"Was I selfish?" he suddenly asked. "Do you think I shouldn't told her?"
Mira paused. "I think she had a right to know," she said carefully.
"Maybe."
"Just like you did."
"Yeah," he sighed. "I suppose I did." The LGMs had said they were going to try to track down Kala's contact information. Part of him hoped they wouldn't. There was no way that conversation would go well.
Mira set down her mug. "I think the best thing for you to do now is get some sleep, Buzz. You're probably going to need it."
That was an understatement. "Thanks, Mira," he said. "For being here."
"You'd do the same for any of us."
He was almost able to laugh. "Well, I trust the three of you don't have any long lost children."
She grinned. "You never know. Especially Booster. The quiet ones are the worst."
A/N: This is very much a "what if" fic as opposed to something I personally consider canon, but the idea came from writing Shatterpoint, where Savy and Evilyear kind of had a twisted father-daughter relationship, and that plus their blue hair made me think, "Imagine if Savy actually was Buzz's daughter..." and the idea spiraled out of control from there.