6: Licking Wounds

Joker was always a skilled pilot. A skilled pilot with a knack for wanting to stir the pot, resting on his superior piloting skills (and occasionally his Vrolik's Syndrome) to really prevent any reprisal from his superiors. Yet on this particular day as the Normandy flew away from Bekenstein's orbit, he remained quiet and kept to the cockpit. Oh, he had planned to open his mouth and crack wise on the frigate's intercom as soon as Shepard and company arrived back aboard, yet a psychic premonition about Miranda's wrath made him think otherwise.

It was for the best.

When she arrived on the main deck, still in her nighttime shirt, completely ignoring her own standards for appearance and decorum, Joker didn't even turn around to see Miranda and Shepard at the airlock or dais. It wasn't even a booming voice that came from the slender woman's mouth as she pulled up EDI's information on Noveria's current corporation setup, it was how calm she was. The kind of calm that gave a sense that no matter how she had changed since being with Shepard and a part of this ship, she would gladly sacrifice everyone to get revenge. Maybe not everyone, but definitely Joker.

So Jeff Moreau decided to just stay put, shaking his head when he saw EDI's body look to travel to the back of her ship. "Just, EDI, just- let's just sit up here and wait for her to calm down like we are just normal Alliance stooges. Yes, nothing can hurt us up here," he said while hoping to believe the lie he kept saying.

"I am not detecting an elevated heart rate from either Miranda or Shepard."

"The Captain I'm not worried about. It's just another day for him. Miranda is freaking me out. And she's totally justified! Her little vacation home got destroyed by some asari idiots looking to pick a fight, but now we have to deal with it. And while I like my new legs, but I don't want any other part of me to become cybernetic just this instant."

"Still, Jeff, they seem to be processing this like any other mission or operation in the past two years. The red line Chakwas has repeatedly mentioned for Shepard's health has not been crossed. And Miranda is en route to the cockpit right now."

Shit!

Joker did his best to look like he was still piloting, but knew he was caught as a feminine voice cleared her throat.

"Mr. Moreau, how are fuel levels?"

The pilot knew the former XO had much on her plate, but he never expected to deliver the answer to her. It was the kind of information she would read the second she stepped back onto the ship, or have Ashley provide her upon returning. She's setting me up to yell at me!, Joker thought with a brief panic of heat across his face.

"We're looking at 85%. Drive core is discharged and only a 5% buildup. Where would the Captain like to go?"

"The Citadel. EDI, please contact Liara and set up a comm-link in two hours. Non-crew will be participating so make sure she stays 'shadowed.' "

Despite Miranda no longer being the XO and having no formal command for approving the ship's destination, EDI complied. Mainly because her memory banks recalled Shepard just nodding and muttering approval by proxy weeks ago after adhering to a more standard Alliance protocol. "Right away, Miranda. Commander Vega is currently on mess duty, would you care for breakfast?"

"No." Miranda said as she turned around, "I'll be in the hangar."

As the stewing woman walked away without a sound, a minute later her partner and Captain of the ship walked past her to the cockpit. He knew how she got and didn't even try to stop her, he could fix her mood in a bit after informing the crew of their current situation.

The Spectre softly spoke as he saw Miranda already at the elevator. "If Gianna and Oriana have already eaten, then just have James prepare one plate for Miranda, please."

EDI nodded while remaining silent, using her ship's mobile body to communicate the message below deck. Joker, meanwhile, turned his chair around with the usual nervous tussle of his cap. "Captain, um, is she...?"

"She's calm because she has no other way to process this. It's how she trained to maintain composure but that's bloodlust sitting under the surface."

"...bloodlust?" The pilot's voice cracked at the word while he thought the Spectre was joking. He wasn't.

EDI stood up with hands prepped to lecture, "Miranda was outsmarted. And it appears New Dawn has put your efforts to recover the encrypted information in a proverbial corner."

"It wasn't that she was outsmarted, it was just unplanned for."

"Miranda always has a plan. Even on vacation."

"Oriana did not check for a tracker." EDI's blunt response made everything clear for Joker. Shepard held up a hand of pointless defense.

"She didn't know. I should have checked."

Joker just looked at his Captain with a quiet stare, before slowly turning his head back to his screens and feigning busywork.

"On the plus side, Jeff," Shepard said with fake irritation, "you get to have our happy faces around a few weeks earlier."

"I am happy. I am always happy around my Captain." Joker said in a robotic, mundane tone. Everyone let awkward silence fall upon them. Shepard looked to EDI expecting some kind of joke. Instead, the robot turned her face into a smile. Somehow she was able to make sure it maintained a decidedly human level of smug to it.

"I should go," Shepard said without any realization he defaulted to his standard phrase.

"Ummm, Captain?" The pilot's question seemed to draw on his often hidden sincerity as the two made eye contact, "could you please have Miranda put on some pants?"

The Normandy hangar was with a skeleton crew as many were above deck procuring breakfast, yet Miranda stood in front of Vega's punching bag. Many had taken the hint that the former XO wanted to be left alone and had no idea what to expect, having never seen the oft-composed partner to their Captain in such a state. Many had never been a part of the crew during the Collector mission and the Reaper War, and simply followed the actions of those who had, notably engineers Daniels and Donnelly.

Physical exercise was Shepard's usual reaction to setbacks, or simple isolation in his cabin following hours on the front line. Yet he knew how to keep his composure when dealing with others, if only for the morale of the crew. With Miranda, the fear and rumors of her demeanor as a former Cerberus Operative gave her a wide berth in her actions.

Steve Cortez was one of the few still in the hangar, busy cleaning and checking the Mattock rifle Shepard had clung to since he returned. In his own little area of the hangar he continued to ignore Miranda, glancing up occasionally when he heard her biotic assisted fist hit the punching bag so hard that it tipped over, eliciting a quick-yet-loud curse and a repeat of the whole situation minutes later.

The elevator doors opened to reveal Shepard. Making eye contact with the other man on the floor Cortez simply pointed to her location, eliciting a thanks, but not before the Lieutenant motioned with his hands at how much he liked the new rifle. A kiss to the heavens and the human gesture of "ok" were met with two thumbs up by Shepard as he continued forward. He had to make sure he would come back down to continue their weaponry talk once he diffused Miranda's attitude.

The Spectre watched Miranda's form, in one part for pleasure but primarily to gauge her mindset. She wasn't moving her feet, relying too much on her biotics. He realized it wasn't so much her punching, but rather keeping the bag in motion on its descending swing. If she were to miss her timing she would reap a heavy bag hitting her frame as some form of punishment. And much to Shepard's dismay it was just about to happen before his eyes. At least until on instinct he scooped her from behind and safely to the side.

For a second Miranda tried to pull herself free until she realized the only person who would do so was Shepard. "I'm not hungry," she said flatly with a constant exhale through her nose.

"You need to eat."

"I need to shoot that bitch of an asari in the face." Miranda again pulled away but only after Shepard acquiesced did she get a few more punches on the bag.

"Can you at least put on some pants?" Far be it for her lover to oppose the attire she had worn since the morning on Bekenstein, it was against even the Normandy's lax regulations.

"Only if I can shoot that bitch of an asari in the face," Miranda repeated. Knowing she wasn't going to get rid of him, she stopped punching and removed her gloves. Throwing the protectors to the ground she turned with a sweaty face and arms crossed. Shepard tried to stay serious yet she knew the man found the look absolutely appealing. Still, she tried to hide a teasing smile, even as she knew the man could, and would, gladly help ease her stress.

"We've got two hours before talking with Liara, and you need to go change and calm down. And at least tell your sister it's not her fault. I was up there myself getting a meal, she's only taken a bite."

Before Miranda could object or make an argument, Shepard stopped her. "Miri, just talk to her. Tell her you are mad at her, I don't care, but the ship can't operate with this aura you're putting out. You know it, too."

The man never tried to be revelatory with her, knowing she knew herself better than anyone else, but she always admired when he pinned down her demeanor. She placed a hand on his cheek while kissing the other, lingering as he softly rubbed her sore knuckles. "She's not getting away with this."

"I know."

"Have you thought of any plans to reclaim your honor, Spectre?"

Shepard shrugged as he wiped some sweat off her brow, "I've learned to let these small things go. The priority should be halting that virus and I'm waiting for Kasumi and Liara's opinions."

"Your lover has an opinion, you know," Miranda said with a slight hint of resentment.

Shepard adeptly moved to place himself between her and the punching bag, directing her to go speak to Oriana, "the most beautiful and intelligent woman I know is currently letting a nasty imperfection of hers cloud her judgment."

"You obnoxious but accurate ass."

Still, Miranda stopped and put her hands on her hips while she looked down at the floor, breathing slowly as the two stood there in silence. "...let me change and I'll get something to eat. Go back to running your ship until the meeting." As Shepard leaned in to kiss her cheek she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Love you."

"Adore you," he responded. A single laugh of hers echoed as Shepard started walking with her arms still around his neck, taking her to the elevator and thus fully halting her exercise and the chilling aura in the hangar bay.

Oriana moved her bacon substitute and powdered eggs around her plate while Gianna was finishing her own meal. What small talk Vega offered wasn't met with a positive response so he retreated to the stove to take care of the other crew members. In the corner of the mess hall Major Coates looked their direction trying to figure out just what happened. While Oriana looked identical to her sister, she didn't carry herself the same way, especially in such a dejected state, throwing off his perception of the older sister in the process and just how the Normandy operated. And Gianna's sheepish attitude following what could best be described as a solid defeat made the borrowed Alliance off duty attire seem three sizes too big.

Despite the sulking Oriana stopped moving her food around when she heard the familiar steps of black heeled boots that belonged to only one woman on the ship. "Thank you, James," the older sister said before her presence was felt right behind the younger sister.

The tray Miranda carried was dropped onto the table from a small distance as she bear hugged a sitting Oriana in a surprise outpouring of emotion for the crew to see. "This isn't your fault, kiddo," she said as her chest rested on the back of her sister's head in a near motherly embrace.

Oriana said nothing. Gianna smiled and a silent nod took Miranda's nonverbal consolation. As Miranda moved to sit across her sister Oriana let a light laugh appear. "Nice of you to finally put on some pants."

"No fashion statement today," Miranda said as black yoga pants disappeared behind the table as their owner poked at her own eggs. After a bite she tapped her sister's plate with her own fork.

"Eat up, Ori, or you're going to regret it."

"I'm good."

"I'm speaking with the Shadow Broker's contact soon about this whole situation, if you don't eat you can't be a part of the conversation."

"But-"

"The growling stomach of my kin would be unbecoming of me and John."

The sisters looked at each other, one confident, the other annoyed. "Everything just fell apart, no time for jokes."

Miranda let a smirk appear, wondering if it started to take the shape of Shepard's often plastered look. "We're all ok, there was nothing that couldn't be replaced."

"A tracker is Spy 101! The way that...that bitch was hanging on him in front of me, well, you, I should have seen it coming. Especially two ex Commandos lingering around. I mean, what else would they really think when you two show up on Bekenstein like that?"

Gianna wanted to say something, her own guilt at dragging everyone into this becoming apparent, though Miranda held her hand up softly to stop her. "This is good, Ori. Run through what you're thinking, the mistakes made. Just remember it for the future. But the plan made sense and you did your job as well as could be done."

"You're probably used to being the center of attention at those kinds of events, 'Randa." Ori said as she actually ate a small bite of her food, "that Alliance soldier who started the fight, Montero, I was expecting a hug from him that lingered too long or more cracks about being ex-Cerberus."

"Yes, something about that man, from what you and John said, seems...off."

"A set-up?" Gianna questioned, "an event to establish some trust with Kelsia intervening so quickly?"

Miranda scoffed at how simple it all seemed a day removed from the event. "Absolutely. It was a common tactic to use with Cerberus targets. Even when John woke up on Lazarus Station he was suspicious, believing Jacob and me were originally setting up the hijacking of the base to elicit a good cop/bad cop routine."

Gianna just stared, wondering if Miranda herself was being truthful. The black haired beauty could read her mind. "No, it was not part of any plan. That damn bastard Wilson..."

"Montero, the soldier, he...he mentioned losing someone on Virmire. An asari. Doesn't excuse what he did but I can understand it," Ori said while continuing to eat, looking up in shock at her sister's empty plate, "bloody hell, 'Randa."

Putting down her fork on the plate and wiping her mouth elegantly with the napkin, Miranda cautioned her sister. "Ori, if you think like that everyone is justified. There comes a limit to empathy."

"Would you have done the same?"

"Depends," Miranda knew the answer was yes, but could see in Ori's struggle to process what happened she was veering close into moral discussions about a past Miranda would rather have ignored, especially given everything she did to stop her father. "The man could have also been telling a tale to keep you off guard," Miranda uttered as she crossed her arms and legs while waiting for her sister to finish eating.

"So he was lying?"

"Perhaps, but I have the ship's computer looking into Alliance records for our upcoming QEC conference."

"Meld Madness," Gianna piped in, seeing the two sisters look to her with differing expressions of consideration and confusion. Helping Oriana understand the NDC investigator tapped her temple. "Asari's can meld their minds with others, and memories and experiences are shared. A seemingly limitless moment in time where two can become one. But it's been reported some of the more experienced asari can use that ability to do whatever they wish in the meld, a state of lucid dreaming. Like letting a grieving person see his lost lover again. It becomes a drug, an addiction."

"That's creepy..." Ori said, "and not as romantic as they make it out to be."

"Don't. Meld. Ever." Miranda said to her sister with her most paternal warning she could, even as her mind returned to the times Shepard experienced the ability in the past five years.

Gianna continued, "It's always been said this is one of the hidden weapons of Asari, notably their Commandos; you catch more flies with honey than with a rifle round."

"Sexy eternity or scary reality."

"Bingo."

"Don't. Meld. Ever."

"Ugh. Yes, Mom."

"Good," Miranda got up and adjusted her clean t-shirt, kissing her sister on the forehead. "Shit, shave, shower. EDI will let you two know when the meeting starts."

Inside the War Room, a deep muffled masculine voice uttered behind a big block avatar of red, "She can't be arrested because there's no evidence."

Gianna was flabbergasted after having spent nearly an hour establishing the situation she had been in for the last few days. "We have a copy of everything she was planning!"

"And they would respond that you broke into their building. And are helping a rival company. The optics are exactly what you don't want, a Spectre abusing his authority to cripple a rival company." The voice, muffled and deep was the common trait of speaking to the Shadow Broker, who everyone but Gianna knew as Liara T'Soni.

"This was inter-planetary theft!"

"By your own admission, it was you who did the theft to make it a systems wide crime. The situation was originally relegated to Noveria and NDC's established rules."

The deep voice delivered the truth, and it made Parasini slightly sick to hear. Licking her verbal wounds, she quietly rested against a nearby railing.

"I understand this isn't what you want to hear, Ms. Parasini, but this is the situation as it stands. Good intentions and doing your job sometimes leads to the least desired results."

"But I don't have stake in any rival company. I don't really own anything," Shepard said sitting down as he felt Miranda's hands softly massage his shoulders as she stood behind him, appreciating her gesture.

"You had a nice house on Bekenstein!" a chirpy high pitched but masked voice was heard on a connected channel. Shepard smirked and Miranda rolled her eyes at the happy digital bunny avatar that hid Kasumi's face. Miranda's black hair tussled in its ponytail as she turned to the screen with sharp finger point, "have you looked at the rough outline of how this virus can spread?"

The pixel bunny turned into a heart, "yes, ma'am! It's very clever, hijacking a targeting software, almost like it plays a game with VI programs over time."

Liara tried to maintain her neutral persona to keep the conversation formal, "Lawson, make sure to have the drive delivered to my contact on the Citadel, and my engineers will look to create a solution."

"I'm new to this, but is assassination not on the table? Or political assassination at least?" Parasini said bluntly, not really knowing how these conversations work. Her investigative work was done face to face and often with fewer than two people involved at any given time, not with the galaxy's premier information broker dealing with such a situation.

After a moment of silence, Miranda spoke first, being the one person in the meeting who took part in such actions in her previous career. "I would love for Kelsia and Taara to meet their end soon, but Commandos this high up the asari ladder have connections and failsafes in case they became deceased. Not to mention they likely recorded their interactions in getting the hard drive back as fail-safes, if D'Anto is the tech genius she's made out to be."

"Recorder lenses seem obvious for these two," Kasumi's chirped voice corroborated the idea."

"My files show nothing out of the ordinary with the business holdings. Or rather, nothing lawyers for NDC companies would worry about. Swimming with sharks, I believe that is the correct human idiom." Shepard wanted to amend that saying, but let it slide. Instead he rolled his neck to make it pop and found Miranda's soft cool hands help his situation.

"Another round of bad PR probably won't be ignored from me this time. And saving the galaxy isn't really an excuse for this situation."

"That reminds me, Captain, Citadel News met with Councilor Hackett yesterday, where during a press conference he expressed his approval for your recent dining escapade on Bekenstein."

Really, Liara? Shepard thought to himself in embarrassment. He looked to change the subject but Ashley, who sat in on the meeting simply by being the XO of the ship, spoke first. "Joker, what's our ETA to the Citadel?"

"Twoooo and a half hours, Captain," Moreau said as his drawl looked for a more accurate statement, perhaps looking to hide the fact he and EDI were also listening in.

"So basically we talked for an hour and got nothing done?" Oriana's frustration finally appeared after being relatively shy during the meeting. It seemed she expected some clever reveal from her sister or Liara to help make the whole ordeal not as humbling as it was.

"That's not true, things got done," Shepard said kind of halfheartedly, "we've got information set up, at least a temporary patch being set-up, and..." the man stopped when he realized he didn't have a real response. Two tugs on his shoulders provided some comfort to his unusual loss for words.

Knowing there was nothing more to discuss right now, Liara's muffled voice looked to end the meeting, "if there's nothing more, I shall prepare my contact on the Citadel. you shall receive location soon. Shepard. Lawson."

"It's not that bad, everybody! Bye!" Kasumi also disconnected as her avatar turned into a hand waving before disappearing.

Shepard looked at Oriana's attitude. It seemed the sour cloud that hung over Miranda earlier simply drifted to the left and now resided over her sister. Turning his chair he looked up to Miranda, eyes making a point that she should do something about that familial temper. The woman nodded softly and then nodded to Williams.

"Ok," Ashley said with a clap, "Everyone's dismissed. Gianna, remain on deck three for the time being, Portside Observation is all yours. Ori-"

"Ori, come with me and Ashley to the hangar. We're going to show you how to keep that temper in check," Miranda said as she let a hand run her fingers on the back of Shepard's shorn head before leaving the room.

Shepard sat there, leaning back in his seat as the War Room emptied, the skeleton crew returning to their positions in turn. She didn't need to say anything but Miranda's mannerisms made it clear she would go with his choice of action, but he needed to make a decision before they arrived at the Citadel.

The Loft's bathroom door opened and the steam exited along with the female figure of its inhabitant, wringing her wet hair in the nude as Shepard looked up from perusing his datapad on their bed, now dressed in his jeans and shirt he would use for non-Alliance meetings aboard the Citadel.

Strolling to her drawers Miranda pretended like she didn't know she was being watched. Taking her time to choose her underwear, she chose a pastel blue combination as a cough from Shepard got her attention. He was holding a t-shirt in a ball, the sheet moved from the bed showing it had been there all along.

Miranda held out her hand as the crumpled shirt arrived with a toss.

"It should have been in the soiled clothes for laundry."

"You know I don't touch your stuff," Shepard said as he finished typing and placed the datapad on the nearby stand. In return he saw the N7 shirt of his fall over his partner and cling where she had not fully dried off. While she would change for their arrival to the Citadel in under two hours, she took the momentary freedom inside their little oasis.

"Ashley's making sure Ori learns some punching bag basics, if only to tire her out."

"I'm surprised you didn't join in and destroy the bag with a purple fist."

The skinny frame curled into Shepard's chest as she didn't respond. His warm hand ran down her arm in a soothing manner, "Thank you for being cordial with Liara. I noticed there's been some awkwardness between you two."

Miranda couldn't argue the point so she just ran her towel over her hair to finish drying it off. Ever since Virmire, even with the actions of Henry Lawson, there was still a block between the two women, putting the relationship back to the level it was when the two met on Ilium to initiate Project Lazarus.

The lack of response let Shepard know he wouldn't be getting far with that conversation. Before he could change the subject Miranda did it for him. "Thank you for bearing with me today, John. This entire situation was new to me."

The touch of warm, rough hands on her shoulders made her shudder with a rising smile. Shepard whispered in her ear, "It's new to me too. And I get it. It's one thing to think on the fly for an assignment, not when you just woke up in your home in the middle of nowhere."

"Believe it or not, there was a time I was able to do both. Perhaps old age is catching up to me."

Shepard laughed at that as his thumbs pushed deep into her back behind her shoulder blades, making her stop her own actions with a hitched breath. "Self depreciation doesn't look good on you. Neither does constant anger."

Steeling her breath so as to not quiver from the touch, she remained strong. "Is that so? Then what does look good on me, Mr. Spectre?"

"Ego. And that curled smirk you have that actually means you're embarrassed," he knew it was on her face the second he gave his answer despite not seeing her face, "It made me a fan."

"A company is on the verge of releasing a virus into competing programs, your house was destroyed, and all you're thinking about right now is the next thirty minutes."

"Let's try for an hour then. And I'm a soldier, I compartmentalize. And I've been through worse."

Miranda leaned back with a sigh as her damp hair rested on Shepard's shirt while he copied her motions. The two rested like they always did by looking out the cabin skylight.

Both kissed the other as minutes passed, each quietly putting together options for their own thoughts. Miranda broke the silence.

"Kasumi and Tali have substantial knowledge of the geth and chain programs. We have EDI. There's easily a workaround they can do for a meager VI system. But it would be a constant defensive measure, and across the galaxy they can always adapt it. Though I still have no problem blowing up her own residence."

Shepard lightly slapped Miranda's rear at the not-completely-joking option, likely because he knew she would consider it just to retaliate.

"Speaking of, I'm sure you have plenty of capital to replace our home."

"Yes, dear."

"Might be better to just buy a colony like we joked about a few months ago."

Miranda stopped playing with the sleeve of Shepard's shirt as he said the words. After a few seconds she started tapping only her index finger to his chest in an ever changing pattern. With such little information at hand he assumed it was a symphony Miranda was recalling. Shepard let the attempt at hearing the music in his head soothe him into closing his eyes for a nap before docking.

Too bad the slap on his chest opened his eyes as Miranda pushed herself up off his chest. She smirked and bit her lip as she sat on her knees.

"Kelsia's got the technology. I have the money. You have that war hero charm and me..."

Shepard closed his eyes again waiting for the grand plan to be uttered as he pushed himself up.

"We can buy the company out. Force their hand."

The marine's eyes opened to find Miranda's face right in front of him as she now straddled the man, a small smile of self appreciation as her eyes fixated on his. The constant blue was hidden behind the large black pupils that showed a hint for something else.

Tapping his head to hers, Shepard quietly responded as her arms went over his shoulders. "You know an asari commando who just bested me won't put up with having her company taken from her."

"Oh, I know. That's what I'm expecting."

"Make her draw her gun first."

"In more ways than one. Either that, or she plays along and you become the proud owner of New Dawn Distributors and help feed the galaxy."

"I'm not a businessman." Shepard said while still realizing how random their new plan was created.

Miranda's mischievous look carried on as she took off her shirt, then telling him to do the same. Still straddling him she made sure to purr with her whisper while helping get the shirt off, "Well then, let me get you up to speed on mergers and acquisitions."

Don't worry, still here! I know I was going to try and get a chapter out every month but things got in the way, I'm hoping for a more consistent release in the new year. Have a happy new year and hopefully I'll have another chapter soon. As always, thanks for reading and I appreciate your support.