To Each Their Clone Pt. 02

"Of course I would have!" Jane said as if insulted.

"Really?" Miranda asked, narrowing her eyes and looking at Shepard sideways.

"Absolutely," Jane responded. "Because you probably have this place bugged, and would kick my ass until the next Reaper cycle if you'd found out."

"That the only reason, huh?"

"Of course," Jane said flippantly with a wink. "Oriana's friggin cute."

"Yes she is. She's my sister after all," Miranda laid down. "And she's off limits to you. So keep your eyes off of her."

"Hey, this is your fault because you didn't tell her about us, remember?" Jane said jokingly. "I think you owe her for this, and the least you could do is give her what she wanted in the first place."

Shepard made a suggestive pose and winked at Miranda, and despite being shocked at first, Miranda couldn't help but laugh.

"What, so you're saying that I should give her to you for a night or something?" Miranda said sarcastically. "Give her her 'Shepard Fix' so to speak, huh?"

"Exactly!" Jane said with false pride. "Not for me of course. Not at all. Just for Oriana." She leaned in and winked. "I'll take one for the team for you two."

"You're a perverted moron," Miranda said, smacking Jane in the face with one of the pillows from the bed. She laughed a little, then spoke again. "Thanks."

"For what?"

"Helping lighten the mood and make me feel better," Miranda said, and she let that sit a little before cutting the treacle. "You perverted moron."

The two laughed for a moment before Miranda put her hand on Shepard's.

"Look, you're right that I don't really feel like, y'know.... doing anything tonight," Miranda said seriously. "But I would like to come back here after talking with Ori. Just to be with you and have you here with me tonight."

"I understand," Jane said with a solemn nod. "I'll always be here for you." Her gaze shifted towards the door for an instant and she looked back to Miranda. "I think she just left the bathroom."

"I heard," Miranda said, taking in a deep breath and slowly exhaling. "Here goes."

"Good luck," Jane said as Miranda made her way towards the door. Miranda returned a silent and nervous grin before leaving the room, her next destination: Oriana's bedroom.

Taking another deep breath as soon as she arrived at the door, Miranda carefully pressed the intercom button on the door's control panel.

"Ori? It's me," Miranda said nervously. "Can I come in?"

There was nothing but silence from beyond for a good ten seconds, so Miranda spoke again.

"I know you're in there, Ori. And I know you don't want to talk to me right now, but.... we can't just ignore this. As uncomfortable as it makes you feel, we need to discuss what happened."

Just more silence. Miranda sighed, her forehead bumping against the doorframe above the panel.

"Damn it, Ori," she said desperately. "Don't shut me out like this. Please."

Miranda was about to give up when the holographic panel on the door switched from red to green. Steeling herself, she opened the door and stepped inside. She found Oriana lying on her bed, facing away from her. Miranda's sister didn't move as she approached, even when Miranda sat down on the edge of the bed. Not until Miranda reached out to touch her arm, and she pulled away as if the contact burned her.

"Don't touch me," Oriana said with disgust. "Whatever platitudes you've come to deliver, please just say them now and then leave me alone."

"Please don't push me away," Miranda said sadly. "I love you, and it hurts me when you treat me like this."

"Love me?" Oriana said in disbelief. "I don't even know how you can stand to look at me right now, let alone sit there and speak to me about loving me!"

"It's not your fault, Ori," Miranda said. "It was my fault. I didn't tell you about my relationship with Shepard, and I should have."

Oriana didn't say anything to that for a few moments, then shifted slightly and turned her head just enough to see Miranda out the corner of her eye.

"So.... you weren't just doing the same as what I was doing?" she asked. "You and Shepard were already together?"

"Yes, Ori. We are. We have been since, well.... I suppose not long after Shepard helped me rescue you from our father the first time."

"Wh-why didn't you say anything?" Oriana asked, her voice creaking towards the end.

"We were trying to keep it a secret," Miranda said. "For both of our sakes. Just until this whole Reaper stuff had died down a little and things got back to normal."

"Didn't you trust me?" Oriana asked. Miranda sighed.

"It wasn't that, it was just...." Miranda began, and she made a noise of discomfort. "I was just taking precautions in case you accidentally let it slip. Shepard was the same, she didn't tell her mother either for example. On top of that, I wasn't sure how you'd take the news. I wanted to make sure you would accept me for who I am."

Oriana finally shifted on her bed fully, turning onto her back to look up at her older sister. "What do you mean?" she asked, looking genuinely confused.

"Well, you were.... you were always asking me about boys. I wasn't sure your older sister and mentor in the arts of love and romance being into women more than men was going to go down well," Miranda admitted. "On top of that, I had.... I had only just got to know you recently."

Miranda carefully placed a hand upon Oriana's and looked into her sister's eyes with genuine love.

"I didn't want you to think that somebody else was competing for your attention or affection," Miranda said warmly. "I'd worked so hard to save you from our father and keep you from him, I didn't want to lose you again. You've become so special to me, Ori. I love you more than anything else in this universe and would do anything for you."

Oriana managed a smile, and shifted her other hand to place it atop Miranda's.

"I feel the same way about you, Randa," she responded with tears in her eyes. "I thought you knew that."

"I do," Miranda said. But Oriana shook her head.

"Then you should have known that I'd accept you for who you are no matter who or what type of person you're interested in," Oriana told her. "And you should have known that I wouldn't have wanted you to give up your happiness or somebody else for the sake of my own interests. And on top of it all, you should have known that I'd never consider for a moment that you'd abandon me and that any other person would replace what we have together. You being involved with Shepard doesn't mean there isn't room for me in there too, does it?"

Miranda felt tears streaming down her cheeks and she smiled lovingly at her little sister.

"Of course it doesn't," she said, her voice shaking. "You're right, I should have known all those things. I should have.... Oh God, I really screwed it up, didn't I?"

"Maybe," Oriana admitted, placing a hand upon Miranda's shoulder as her older sister turned away. "But it's nothing we can't fix." She paused and managed a put on weak smile and a little bit of hope in her next words. "We're Lawsons after all. We can do anything."

Miranda choked out a sobbing laugh, reaching up to rest her hand gently upon Oriana's one on her shoulder.

"I suppose we will," she answered. "I just wish there was some way I could make it up to you."

"I guess time will heal the wounds," Oriana said plainly. "I should have known you'd have nabbed Shepard first already. Or, at least worked out that you were interested."

"How?" Miranda asked.

"Because we're so much alike," Oriana stated. "The fact that I was interested should have been enough indication alone to point to you being interested in her too."

"I seriously didn't know you were too until a couple of days ago," Miranda defended. "Like I said, until then I thought you were into boys."

"When I slipped up there at breakfast," Oriana admitted with a blush. "I figured that was a giveaway. As for my sexual preferences, I was into boys for a while there. But Shepard had this.... this irresistible pull on me. She fascinated me for a start, before I'd even met her. But when our father actually got to me, and you two both came and rescued me, and I got to come face to face with her.... that was something else. It was like there was no doubt about my attraction to her, it just hit me like a runaway train."

"It was almost the same thing for me," Miranda admitted. "Not as fast mind you, but.... at first I tried to deny it, and then when she helped me with getting you back, and then she encouraged me to get involved with you on a personal level and not just walk away. She helped me find myself in finding you, and that was a part of myself I'd pushed down so deeply after working for so many years for Cerberus. In opening my true self up, she opened up my heart."

"See what I mean?" Oriana said, giving Miranda a gentle shake. "We're so much alike."

Miranda smiled down at Oriana, but then her younger sister's expression darkened and she looked away slightly.

"I just wish I'd.... got there first," Oriana admitted. "Or that.... that things were different somehow."

She looked back at Miranda, apology and sadness in her eyes along with the disappointment.

"I don't want to take her away from you, I just want.... I just want her myself somehow," Oriana said. "I know it's selfish, but.... but I can't help it."

"I'm so sorry, Ori," Miranda said. "I wish there was something I could do."

"I know, I just...." Oriana began and she let out a long sigh, as if the matter was settled, even though it clearly wasn't. "Just be happy for me, Miranda. The two of you. If you're happy, then I'm happy. I'll get over this. I should probably learn to deal with not being able to have things I want."

"Ori, I...." Miranda began, but she didn't know where to go from there.

"I think I need some time alone again, Randa," Oriana said, giving her sister a hopeful glance. "I'll be fine. I just need some time to myself, to think about things. I'll be okay. And our talk helped a lot. It really did."

"I'll always be here for me if you need me and need to talk, okay?" Miranda told her sister.

"I know. And I'll call you if I need you," Oriana said. "I just need some time to think. To go over things."

"Okay," Miranda said and she got to her feet and made her way towards the door. Just as she raised her hand to open it, she paused and turned back towards her sister.

"Just before I go, I just want to tell you that I'm sure that you'll make somebody very happy one day," Miranda said sincerely. "Anybody would be very lucky to have you as their other half."

Oriana didn't say anything, so Miranda felt the need to add something else. Something more upbeat to lighten the mood. Miranda wasn't really sure why she ended up adding the next part, and probably didn't think long enough about it first, but it seemed the natural thing to say somehow. "And if it makes you feel any better about it all, you can work magic with your mouth where it counts on a girl."

Oriana's eyes widened considerably at this, her cheeks coloring up a moment later. Miranda herself couldn't believe she ended up actually saying that to Oriana, but then just like her sister, Oriana ended up saying something just as weird when she responded.

"Thanks," Oriana said, and she felt the need to return her sister a compliment. Like Miranda, she ended up saying the first thing that popped into her head without thinking too much first. "And if it makes you feel better, you tasted really good."

Both Lawsons went to maximum blush and bug-eyes at Oriana's words, just standing there for a moment with their jaws open silently.

"It's.... it's been too weird a night," Miranda managed to finally get out.

"Agreed," Oriana said quickly.

"Good night, Ori," Miranda said, backing out the door quickly.

"Night, Randa," Oriana responded just before the door whisked shut. Outside of Oriana's room, Miranda shook her head quickly and drew a palm up to her forehead.

"I need a stiff drink and a good night's sleep," she told herself. Her head still rocking side to side, she made her way to the bar before heading to Shepard's room to tell her redheaded lover all about it, and head to sleep.

Sleep came quickly and easily to Miranda, but she woke up early in the morning with thoughts running through her head. Things that Oriana had said and Shepard has said mingled together, and her own ideas and thoughts formed around them. When Jane woke up at around 9am, it was because Miranda had said something aloud that had brought her around. She turned over to see Miranda staring at the ceiling, blinkless and contemplative. Jane knew Miranda had said something that roused her, but she hadn't caught what it was.

"What was that, honey?" Jane asked, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

"I said 'I've got it!'" Miranda announced. She sounded adamant, but there was a hint of doubt in her voice, along with a great does of seriousness.

"Got what?" Jane asked after a yawn.

"An idea to help Ori," she said. "Actually, it was your idea. I can't believe I'm considering it, let alone deciding that it's the best course of action. But I think it could work."

"What could work?" Jane asked, now sounding a little frustrated at the lack of specific information. "What are you talking about? What idea of mine?"

"Last night, when you said I needed to make things up to Oriana and joked about you giving her what she needs," Miranda explained. "You're absolutely right."

Shepard perked up suddenly, then squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head a little. "Wait a minute, you can't be talking about what I think you are?"

"I most certainly am," Miranda said adamantly. "I've thought long and hard about it, and it's the only option."

"You're seriously going to let me have sex with Oriana?" Shepard asked, a laugh in the middle of it. "With your sister? And her with me?"

"Yes," Miranda said, no hint of humor in her voice.

"You're crazy!" Shepard said.

"What's the matter?" Miranda said with a smirk. "I thought you wanted to."

"Oh, I'm not falling for that trick!" Shepard said, both hands waving in defense between the two of them.

"This is no trick, Shepard," Miranda threw down. "I'm quite serious. You're allowed to have Oriana for one night. Or, should I say, she's allowed to have you for one night. That way she gets what she wants at least once, and we make it up to her for what happened."

"Don't I have a say in this?" Shepard asked.

"Sure. But I'll ignore it," Miranda smirked. "Besides, you said that you'd help us both in any way that you could."

"Typical," Shepard snorted. Miranda laughed, then gave Shepard a devious and hungry look as she shifted closer.

"Be realistic, Shepard," Miranda purred. "You'd just looooove to have my sister." Shepard felt a hand on her stomach under the sheets. "You'd love to pull her naked body to yours," Miranda added as the hand traveled lower. "To kiss her soft throat. Rub her firm, perky breasts." Shepard gasped as Miranda's fingers snaked over her folds. "Taste her sweet pussy."

Miranda let that hang for a while as she rubbed Shepard between the legs, then pulled her hand away just as it was really starting to feel good.

"And you get a free pass to do it," Miranda added. "From me. For one night only."

Miranda threw one leg over Shepard's hip to straddle her, then leaned down over her lover until their lips were a breath away. "Are you honestly telling me you're going to turn down this once in a lifetime deal?" Miranda asked, then she brought her lips down upon Shepard's. When the kiss ended almost half a minute later, Shepard was breathless and dumbfounded.

"Well.... when you put it like that," Shepard answered. "After all, she basically is a younger version of you. How could I resist the chance to have another perfect woman, even if it is just a one-off."

"Exactly," Miranda said. "Just so long as she knows it's a one time deal herself of course. And we'll make sure she does."

"So.... where are you in all of this?" Shepard asked nervously, not sure whether to go there. Especially after the previous night.

"I'll be there, purely as an observer," Miranda revealed. "To make sure things happen properly."

"So you'll be watching us?" Shepard asked, cocking one eyebrow.

"Not in the way you're thinking" Miranda said, shaking her head. "Like I said, I'll just be an observer. I'll be making sure that you treat her right and do nothing to make her feel uncomfortable or give her any ideas that this is anything more than it is. And I'll be there to make sure that she feels comfortable and knows for certain that this is okay with me and that you two have my full consent on this. It's as simple as that."

"Fair enough," Shepard said. "How do you think she'll react to this.... idea of yours?"

"You mean idea of yours," Miranda corrected as she tapped Jane's nose with an index finger. Shepard rolled her eyes.

"Yes, well.... in either case, how do you think it'll go down?"

"We'll find out in a few minutes I suppose," Miranda said. "When we both go and tell her."

"And what if she isn't up for it?" Shepard asked. Miranda laughed loudly.

"Oh trust me, Shepard," Miranda said confidently when her mirth ceased. "She'll be up for it."