Shepard Stories Chapter 13: Life After, a mass effect fanfic

Shepard Stories - Chapter 13: Life After

Main Characters: Miranda, Alex, Liara, and Shepard.

The year was 2188, all the mass relays have been repaired as well as the communication buoys. Several of the worlds were still in disarray but were functional and in the process of rebuilding. Milky Way life was beginning to get back on track as time continued to move forward.

Liara and Shepard bonded shortly after the war with the Reapers was over as well as the marriage of Miranda and Alexander. Liara and Shepard moved to her large family estate in Thessia while Miranda and Alexander stayed on Earth.

Miranda sat at her computer as she softly drummed her fingers on her desk as she stared at the medical documents before her. She ran her fingers through her hair as she let out a breath as stood then walked over to Alex with a disgruntled look then plopped down on the couch next to him.

He pinched his brows then wrapped an arm around her as he said, "What's wrong?"

"I know we discussed this before we got married and I know you're fine with or without children. I've just been thinking about this a lot. I… I don't want to adopt. I want my own children. I really don't want to grow one in a tube either." Tears gathered in her eyes as she continued," I just want to experience the whole thing as a mother should. I want... my own children... our children..."

Alex gently wiped the tears that were trickling down her face then said, "Then what can we do for you to have them?"

She shook her head "I don't know." Then tapped at her omni-tool as she said, "According to the letter, I received years ago from the Illium Medical Center they said they couldn't firmly attribute the cause of the benign neoplasms which are rendering me unable to conceive a child."

Alex arched a brow as he replied, "What the hell does that mean exactly?"

She shrugged, "I'm not sure, I didn't follow up on it. I'm assuming there's nothing wrong with my eggs and that it has everything to do with my uterus. Fibroids or scar tissue possibly. I have no idea, but I really want to carry this baby, but if I must, I'll put my feelings aside and grow one."

He nodded then said "Well, let's do some research and find the best doctor and see what they can do."

She hugged him then kissed him. "I love you."

Thessia Gynecology Dr. Glafinma D'ami

Miranda sat on a medical bed with just a thin paper gown covering her naked body as she waited patiently for a doctor to arrive. When the door opened a purple asari with a white coat entered as she tapped at her datapad. The doctor smiled as she walked over to Miranda with her hand extended "Hello Mrs. Shepard, I'm Dr. D'ami."

Miranda firmly clasped her hand as she said. "Hello Doctor, this is my husband, Alex Shepard."

The doctor nodded as she turned to him and shook his hand as well. She turned and rolled over a chair then sat in it as she said "So, tell me what brings you in here today?"

Miranda cleared her throat then said "Well, I had some testing done several years ago on the possibility of having children. Their response was that they couldn't firmly attribute the cause of the benign neoplasms which are rendering me unable to conceive a child. So, I figured I'd get another medical opinion."

The doctor nodded then she said "Hmmm interesting medical response. So, this medical facility didn't provide you with any further action on the neoplasms?"

She shook her head as she pinched her brows "No, that was it."

As the doctor turned, she said "I have a feeling I'm going to need to do a lot of typing. Give me just a moment." Then rolled over a small table and set her datapad on it, then reached into her pocket and pulled out a small keyboard. She placed the keyboard in front of the datapad then began typing away at it. When she was done, she pulled out another device from her pocket and set it down on the table "Alright, Mrs. Shepard I'm going to need a blood sample from your finger."

Miranda nodded as she turned her hand palm up. The doctor walked over to the wall and extracted a small object then snapped off the protective cover as she made her way back to Miranda. "You'll feel a tiny prick." She said as she poked her finger then squeezed it as blood bubbled to the surface. "That's a lovely dollop." She said as she then proceeded to pick up the small device. "Just drop that blood sample on here and we'll get those tests processing."

Miranda nodded as she squeezed her finger until the blood broke free and on to the device. "Ok."

"Great." Replied the doctor then dabbed a small dab of medigel on her finger. "Now as that's running let's go over your chart." She said as she tapped at her datapad to bring up her chart. "Ok, it says here that you were genetically grown, is that correct?"

She nodded as she replied "That's correct.

"Ok, that's not too uncommon. Well, for people that have anyway." She tapped at her datapad as she continued "Ok, and you're thirty-eight?"

"That's correct." Replied Miranda.

"Alright, so plenty of time for babies."

"Well, I hope so." Miranda said with a faint smile.

The doctor stood then pulled the stirrups from the bed then tapped the edge of the bed "Ok, if you could slide all the way down for me and prop your feet in these stirrups."

Alex looked at Miranda with an arched brow then at the stirrups and said "I'm sorry… what's happening?"

The doctor chuckled softly then said "Her physical. I have to feel around in there."

His eyes widened as he replied, "Is that normal? Does like, your whole hand go in there? I'm slightly confused with what's about to happen."

Miranda smiled as she said "Yes, honey. It's something that is done yearly. It's fine."

The doctor smiled as she chuckled "Mr. Shepard. This is all very normal and no, my whole hand does not go in there. It's going to be fine." After the doctor finished physically examining Miranda's uterus, she removed her gloves then examined her breasts. "Ok, so, no unusual lumps in your breasts. All clear there. Now, I did detect several fibroids in your uterus. So definitely something going on down there." She said then tapped at her datapad from a moment then said "So, with your approval I would like to run a more extensive medical scan on your uterus to determine what the severity is of the fibroids."

Miranda nodded "Yes, that's fine. Whatever you need to do to figure this out."

"Ok, if you would slide up so I can begin the scan." She said as she walked over to the wall unit then pulled it out and hovered it over Miranda's stomach. "Ok, this shouldn't take too long." She said then tapped the button for it to begin.

The doctor walked back over to her datapad then tapped at the keyboard again then said "Alright, it looks like your DNA info is back." She paused as she looked over the info "Hmm…Interesting. You were genetically grown… but differently."

"Yes, I was genetically grown from my father's DNA."

Dr D'ami nodded as she replied "Yes, yes, I see that. It shouldn't be an issue as long as you have healthy eggs." She tapped at the datapad then said "I'm going to ask you a few more questions. You're here today because you're unable to conceive, correct?"

"That's correct."

"Do you have regular periods?"

"About as regular as they can be. Yes"

"Ok, and would you say they're light, regular, heavy, etc."

"I would say more on the heavier side most of the time."

Dr. D'ami nodded as she tapped at the keyboard "Pain rate?"

"They can be extremely painful at times." Replied Miranda

Alex quickly replied "Yea no kidding, it's like someone is stabbing her in her side!"

Dr. D'ami nodded as she tapped at her keyboard and quietly said Possible endometriosis." She looked up and over at Miranda, "And when was your last cycle?"

"Ummm about a week ago."

"Ok, have you had any type of major surgeries?"

"Well, yes. I've been in several battles such as the Reaper War. I have had severe injuries that required surgery, yes."

"mmhmm. How about stomach injuries where your uterus could have been damaged?" asked the doctor.

"Stomach area injury but I don't believe my uterus was injured. Well, not that I was told anyway."

The doctor tapped away at her keyboard as she nodded the said "mmhmm. Ok. How long have you been trying to conceive?"

Miranda shook her head slightly as she said "We haven't been trying per se. We've been having unprotected sex for the last few years, and nothing has ever happened."

"I see and how frequently would you say?"

"Several times a week. Except when I'm menstruating."

Alex smirked then said, "We're like rabbit's doctor."

Miranda rolled her eyes. "Alex…"

He looked at his wife and shrugged, "What? She asked."

Dr. D'ami chuckled slightly as she tapped at her keyboard then said "Ok, so extremely active. Last question, any irregular bleeding on non-menstrual days? Passing of blood clots?"

"No, Blood clots that I'm aware of. It's not like I really look. Irregular bleeding ughhh I don't believe so. Wait… Why?"

"Well, if you were bleeding on non-menstrual days accompanied with severe cramping and blood clotting. I would take into account possible miscarriages with the blood clotting. Irregular menstrual cycles can mean hormonal imbalance or other things." Replied Dr. D'ami.

Miranda's eyes widened at the thought of what the doctor just told her. "Wait… miscarriages?" Her brows pinched as she continued "Are you saying that I could have been pregnant at times and not known it?"

"Very possible, Mrs. Shepard. Most miscarriages happen in the earliest of stages, and the mother doesn't even know. They assume it's just their menstrual cycle."

Miranda opened her mouth then closed it then said "I never thought about that."

"Most don't Mrs. Shepard." She said then tapped at her keyboard then stood and removed the scanner back over to the wall. "Alright. Let's take a look at your scan." She walked over to a large datapad wall unit then tapped at it then said "Ok, here's your scan." Then pointed to several of the fibroid tumors in her uterus "Here are your fibroids and as you can see you have multiples." She slid her finger to another area of her uterus then said "You also have some scare tissue here, here and here."

Dr. D'ami turned to Miranda and continued "Your eggs look to be very healthy. So, no issues there. From what I can tell from this scan, your fertilized eggs are having extreme difficulty attaching and or staying attached to your uterine wall due to these issues. So, it is very very possible that you were pregnant numerous times and due to these issues had miscarriages without you even realizing."

Miranda scrunched her face then said "So, I'll never have children because of this?"

The doctor shook her head as she said "No, I didn't say that. I understand why the medical facility sent you that letter. Most people could never afford the procedures that need to be done in order to attempt to fix this. The fact that they didn't give you the option was faulty on their end."

Miranda smiled slightly "So, there's a possibility?"

"Oh, yes and here's what I suggest. We surgically remove the fibroids and repair any damage then allow your uterus to heal. Then with a follow up we go in and smooth out any scar tissue the best we can and essentially improving your chances of becoming and staying pregnant to full term. Once both surgeries are complete, a full recovery should be anywhere from three to six months, possibly longer, depending on your body. If this doesn't work, we can look into trying other methods."

Tears were trickling down Miranda's face as she smiled. "That's fantastic news! I was expecting to hear something else when I walked in here today. When can I get the procedure done?"

Dr. D'ami tapped at her data pad the said "Looks like I have an opening in about three months. If an opening comes up sooner, we'll call you."

"Thank you, Doctor."

Eighteen months later Miranda and Alex were landing at Shepard and Liara's estate in Armali, Thessia.

Miranda smiled as she walked up to Liara's door then rang the doorbell. She waited eagerly for Liara to answer just to see the look on her face.

Liara yelled out "Jon, that has to be them. I'll get it." Liara unlocked the front door then swung it open. She smiled when she saw her friend then said. "Hey..." Her eyes widened as her mouth dropped open then excitedly said "By the goddess Miri! You're pregnant! Why didn't you tell us?" then quickly waved her in "Come in. Come in."

Miranda smiled broadly then walked over and hugged her as she laughed "Lia, I've been dying to tell you, but we wanted it to be a surprise."

Alex walked through the door and said, "Surprise..."

Liara and Miranda walked over to the living room and sat on the couch. Liara looked at Miranda with a large smile as she said, "Soooo tell me, how far along are you?" She paused as she gazed down at her belly then said "Pardon me for saying this but your belly is huge! Is it everything you thought it would be?"

Miranda rubbed her belly as she chuckled then said, "I know, that's because there's two. Not quite what I expected, but it has its pros and cons. About twenty-six weeks."

Liara's eyes flashed and her brow markings jumped up as she replied "Really? Wow that's wonderful!" She looked down at Mirand's belly as she wrung her hands together then said "May I?"

"Yes, of course, go ahead."

Liara nervously placed her on Miranda's stomach. Patiently waited for movement then she felt back-to-back kicks and her eyes lit up. "Oh, goddess! That's amazing." She continued to feel kicks and with a broad smile on her face she asked. "What are they doing in there?"

Miranda laughed as she shrugged. "No idea but they bounce around, and then they tire each other out. It's exhausting actually."

"Do you know the gender? Are they identical or fraternal?"

"We do! Identical boys and I already know they're going to be a handful."

"Does Hannah know? Katie?"

"Hannah knows and she's absolutely ecstatic about it. Katie, we have yet to tell, but we're supposed to see her in the next week or so. That's if Hannah hadn't told her already. I'm assuming she hasn't, or we probably would have heard. I mean, she didn't tell you two." Miranda paused for a moment as she gently chewed on her lip then said, "Liara we've been meaning to ask you something."

Liara looked at her as she replied "Ok, what's that?"

"Can we stay with you for well….? six months maybe more?"

Liara's eyebrow markings shot up "Six months? Why? I mean, yes not a problem but why? Is something wrong?"

Miranda twirled her hair around her fingers as she replied "Nothing is wrong; it's just my doctor is here on Thessia. Dr. D'ami. I'm eventually going to get consumed to a bed, then the pregnancy, then we'll have to see how the birth goes, after birth. I really hate to ask you."

"Miri it's fine! Do you see how many people live here? We would love it if you stayed. You can stay here in the main house or in one of the guesthouses. Oh, goddess, I'll need to buy cribs, toys, clothes…"

As the ladies talk in the living room, Jon and Alex talk in the kitchen, "So, Alex, are you ready for this?" asked Shepard.

Alex grunted as he rubbed his eyes, "No, I'm not! Not one bit!"

Shepard chuckled as he playfully bumped his brother "Twins, bro!"

Alex groaned "ughh don't remind me… Actually, just shoot me now! Please…."

Shepard let out a hardy laugh then slapped his brother on the back "I've seen the things you've done. I'm sure you can handle this. Easy peasy…"

"No no no…. killing people is easy… not raising kids and wiping asses. Not to mention a hormonal wife! Ughhh…my god Jon, her mood swings are damn near killing me! Fuuuuck man!"

Shepard let out another hardy laugh.

"Noooo no no no you think it's funny, but it's not! Have you ever seen a hormonal biotic get mad?"

Shepard nodded then said, "Yes, I have." Then walked over to his liquor cabinet and poured two whiskeys on the rocks then walked back. When get got back he said "Yes, I have."

Alex took a sip of his drink "NO you haven't, not like this! I'm not one to be scared of things, but SHE scares me. Ok, bro, I'm talking like…. fully lit up biotic aura and she's screaming… right…and she has this vein..." He said as two fingers began motioning up and down the side of his neck "right here in her neck… and it pulsates as she is fucking yelling at me because I ate the last piece of caramel fucking chocolate. Not to mention there are five more fucking bars in there, but I ate the last piece of THIS bar. She wanted THIS bar." He said as he pointed to the non-existent piece of chocolate on the bar.

Shepard pinched his eyebrows together as he replied, "Does it matter?"

"Oooh but it does because THIS bar was cooling in the fridge a whole day longer. Then she's grabbing shit and flinging it at me. AND that's not even all of it. I mean shit, just the other day I bought a new body wash…right and she's all…" he paused as he started loudly sniffing the air. "…sniffing around like some goddamn hound dog," He changed his tone as he mocked his wife "Bloody hell what the fuck is that smell?" He rolled his eyes as he continued "All revolted and what not. She's gagging and shit." Then he started sniffing at his brother then he mocks his wife again "OH my god, it's you! What did you wash with, scent of wet dog ass?" He makes a face with his hands turned up then said, "And I'm looking at her like what do you want me to do peel my skin off?"

Shepard laughed as he clutched his side, "Wow…"

"I'm telling ya, man. Just wait when it's your turn, and Liara's all like blaaaayeaaaa" he said as he waved his hands around. He paused for a moment when he felt as if someone was looking at him then he turned to see Liara and Miranda looking at him.

Miranda arched her brow and said harshly, "Alexander, I can hear you!"

He grunted as he scratched the back of his neck "Uuuhhhh right." He grabbed his drink as he made his way to the sliding door that led to the back patio "We were just going to go outside."

Miranda glared at her husband then said. "Yea, you better run."

Alex mumbled, "Pfffffttt…I'm not running."

"What was that?" asked Miranda.

"Huh? I didn't say anything." replied Alex as he walked through the door and on to the patio with his brother.

Miranda turned to Liara as they started laughing at them retreating to the patio.

The year was 2191 and five years had passed since the Reaper war. Liara was pacing the room as she said "Jon, it's been five years since the Reaper war, and we still have no blue babies."

"I understand that Liara and we try for them all the time." Replied Shepard

She grunted "For goddess sake, Will and Jimmie are almost two now. Your sister is getting married, and she'll probably have kids before we do. HELL, Aria of all people had a kid. Who is four mind you. Which means she got pregnant during the war."She said as she narrowed her eyes at him then placed her hands on her hips.

"What do you want me to do Liara? It's not like my sperm is a factor here. This has everything to do with you, not me. Don't even go there with Aria. She kissed me and I sure as shit didn't have sex her." He paused for a moment then said "She had sex with… I mean… ugghhh …besides you can see inside my mind. You know everything, have you ever once seen me cheat on you? No, so don't go there."

"That hurt! Jon. Oh and no no no... I see what you tried to do there. Speaking of minds, you have that tiny black speck in your head that I can't see. Yea you thought I didn't notice, huh? Your secret. What happened?"

"Uuuuuuggggggghhh?…What are we talking about?" he said very quickly.

She glared at him as she said, "Jonathan… you better tell me, or you'll be sleeping in the guest house until I say otherwise."

He looked around then shrugged as she replied "Well... it's not so bad out there."

Her mouth dropped open at the fact that he just blew her threat off "Oh, you want to play that game. Alright, then I'm going to assume that you cheated on me and slept with Aria. As of right now, your new home is the guest house. You see this?" she said as she waved her hand down her body "You'll be lucky to see it naked or have it, any time soon."

"Yea well…. it goes both ways there baby…" he said as he took his shirt off then flexed his muscles "Look at this… I know you want it. I see how you look at me. Oh, and heaven forbid if a woman looks at me like that woman on our honeymoon. Remember her, huh? Fourth partner on team human. She gave me that nice little pat on my firm butt every time we scored during volleyball. Huh... you remember that? You didn't like that at all, did you… another woman groping on your husband."

Liara huffed as she looked at him then said "Oh, we're going back there... Tell me, Jon, what happened to touchy-feely Lisa after numerous times of me telling her to keep her hands off my bondmate? She wasn't just team patting your ass either; she was groping it in front of me! There's a difference!"

Shepard laughed slightly then laughed more as he talked. "You… youstasislaunched her…into the ocean." He said as started clapping his hands as he laughed "That was so… fucking hilarious. Oh, my god…the look… on everyone's faces…. was priceless." He grabbed his side as he laughed then said "Oh, man… I can't breathe."

Liara let out a small laugh then quickly contained herself as she tried to stay mad "Exactly! So, we'll see who wins. May I remind you that I went for several decades without it!"

Shepard's laughed tapered off as he wiped away his tears of laughter "Ok ok… geez. You have to promise you won't repeat it." He let out a breath as he looked off to the side "Uggh but I promised Alex I wouldn't say anything. Great, I'm on a double-edged sword."

"Ok, I promise. Yea but I'm your wife, and you'll live with me every day, for hundreds of years. That's the difference."

"So true. Ok, Pinky promise!"

She sat back down on the couch and linked her pink with Shepard's and said "Ughhh fine, I pinky promise."

"Ok, so, remember when Alex and I did that Omega?"

Liara nodded "Yea."

"Ok, this next part, you may know, or maybe you don't but you will. Alex and Aria have had sex off and on for years. She pretty much expects it every time he shows up on Omega. She finds a way to get it out of him. For example, when he told me about having to prevent her from killing you. Shit like that. That's why he HATES to go to Omega. Have you ever noticed that every job you give him, that has to do with Omega, he hands it off to Miranda or someone else? He's good as long as he doesn't show up on his ship."

"I always wondered why he did that."

"So, after she kissed us both. She wanted her payment from him even though we helped her, but that's beside the point. I guess she imprinted on him that day and now she has a four-year-old that's very highly possible his but not for sure."

"Does Miranda know?" asked Liara.

"NO… I don't know, but we're NOT telling her! I know you two talk, but you better not. It's not our place."

"What if the conversation comes up? Do you want me to lie to her?"

He grunted then said "See, this is exactly why I didn't want to tell you, and you pinky swore!"

"What does that even mean anyway? If she asks me about it, I'm not going to lie to her. I don't want my relationship with her to diminish because Alex screwed around on her."

Shepard mouth dropped open as he quickly blinked his eyes "What does it mean? … A pinky swear is the promise of all promises." He said as he linked his pinkies together then tugged at them. He looked at her then just shook his head "Forget it… Anyway, back to our baby situation, maybe your body just isn't ready, or you're not doing it right. You should talk to your father about it."

She huffed as she placed her hands on her hips, "I'm doing it right!" She said then squinted her eyes as she looked away then back at him "I think… Ok, maybe I should call her." then tapped at her omni tool to call her dad.