Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Neo was nervous. 

It had been three months since the two of them had been freed, permanently, from the Matrix. 

The doctors loved them. 

They underwent test after test, from muscle strength to stomach capacity to oxygen intake. They all came back clean, including one that confirmed their delayed and slowed aging, even outside the Matrix. Whatever the Analyst had pumped into them applied to outside the pods, and they would live long lives on top of the 80 years they had already lived. 

They lived together in a small apartment overlooking Io. They entered the Matrix often, freeing souls. They spent hours undoing and relearning the love they held for each other. It was paradise.

But something was wrong with Trinity. 

It started with a cough, and then she got sick. She kept saying it was a cold, and that she was fine, but Neo couldn’t shake the feeling something was bigger. When she started throwing up at seemingly random intervals, for no reason, Neo’s suspicions were confirmed. After a few arguments, the last one interrupted because of her vomiting, Neo finally convinced Trinity to go to the doctor. 

She had been gone for an hour. 

Neo paced, his hands shaking. He tried to get rid of it by rubbing them together, but that just made them shake harder.

He had spent decades losing her over and over again, he had watched her die. He just got her back, and he couldn’t lose her. Not again. Never again. Some may say he was overprotective, but Trinity mirrored his thoughts and behaviors. They spent as much time as they possibly could together, just to make sure it was real. 

All the tests had come back clean, why was she sick? Was it something from the Matrix? Was it contagious? Was it serious? What did it mean? Was she okay? Was it going to get better? Worse?

The creaking of the metal door opening halted Neo’s spiral. 

Trinity stepped in, closing the door softly. She met Neo’s eyes with uncertainty. How was she going to tell him? How was he going to react?

“Wh-what did the doctor say?” Neo’s breath was shaking as he stood still. That look in her eyes…she looked scared. “Are you sick? Are you okay? Wha-”

“I’m not sick,” Trinity shrugged off her jacket, taking the moment of relief to hang it up to rip her gaze from Neo’s. She took a deep breath before turning to face him again. “I’m far from sick.”

Neo felt his body sag as his adrenaline crashed. He rubbed a hand to his growing stubble. “Thank god.” He crossed the space, pulling her into a hug. “That’s good,” Neo pressed a kiss to her hair. Trinity tentatively pressed back. Neo pulled away, smiling as he cupped her face, but she wasn’t smiling. She was shaking. “It’s not good?”

“I…” Trinity’s voice died in her throat. “It’s…I, Neo, it’s…”

“Hey,” Neo gazed into her eyes, locking her gaze. “You can tell me, Trin.”

Trinity looked to the floor, the lines in it blurring. When she raised her gaze, a tear slipped down her cheek. Neo instinctively wiped it away with his thumb. “Trinity, you’re scaring me, what’s wrong?”

Trinity slipped her hand over Neo’s wrist. She smiled, laughing softly and wetly. “I’m pregnant.”

Neo’s eyes widened. His jaw dropped. “You’re…wait, you’re pre…”

Trinity nodded. “You’re the father.”

“I would hope so!” Neo spluttered as he pulled away, spinning in a circle, placing a hand on his hip and one over his mouth. “You’re…you’re serious?”

“I’m serious.”

Neo nodded slowly, trying to process it. He stared at a pipe on the wall with a specific rust spot that looked like a strawberry. He stared at it when he couldn’t sleep, remembering his first real strawberry when he came to Io. He didn’t think that that was possible. They had to be rebuilt by the Analyst, and he kept functional reproductive organs? It must have messed something up if he kept them. They had been in those pods for over 60 years. They had aged slowly, but was this possible?

“I’m going to keep it.”

Neo’s head snapped up, staring at Trinity. She had a hand pressed to her stomach. Her eyes were pleading, her anxiety bubbling in her chest as she awaited the answer of the person she loved, disoriented and confused in front of her. 

Neo lowered his hands to his side. He understood why Trinity looked like she was about to cry. He felt the tears prick his eyes. Neo caught her eyes, smiling. “We’re gonna be parents?”

Trinity nodded, Neo’s smile infectious. “Yeah.”

“We’re gonna be parents,” Neo whispered, almost to himself. “We’re gonna be parents!”

Neo rushed her and encased her in a bear hug, picking her up and spinning her around. Trinity laughed, hugging back just as hard. 

Neo put her down but kept his hands on her waist. She snaked her hand up to the back of his head. “I love you,” Neo whispered. 

“I love you,” Trinity sealed the statement with a searing kiss. Neo whimpered into it, and Trinity felt herself smile. “We’re gonna have a baby.”

“We’re gonna have a baby,” Neo recited, brushing the hair out of her face. “I’m so glad you’re not sick!”

“I’m still going to vomit, Neo,” Trinity warned. Neo shrugged. He didn’t have a problem with it. Trinity pushed their foreheads together, feeling the instant connection. Neo sighed. He felt jittery and tired from the worry, but this was so much better. “Neo, you need to know, it’s not gonna be easy.”

Neo opened his eyes. “Okay.”

Trinity bit her lip. “They don’t know if I’ll be able to carry to term, and the chance of miscarriage or stillborn is higher than most and with my age…I’m so excited, but I am so scared.”

Neo nodded, listening. “I understand.” He pressed his hand to Trinity’s stomach. “But we didn’t even know this was possible, you know, so I think anything is possible. And this,” Neo ran his hand up Trinity’s arm. “This is our little miracle.”

Trinity covered Neo’s hand with her own. “I don’t know if I’ve ever been this excited before.”

“Not even when you met me?” Neo teased, smirking. Trinity scoffed and made to walk away, only to have Neo grab her from behind around the middle and press kisses to the back of her neck. Trinity laughed as he did, squirming. 

“Neo!”

“We already made a baby, it’s not like we can get pregnant again.”

“We?! I’m the one carrying the baby!”

Neo chuckled, nuzzling into her neck. “And I love you even more for it.”

Trinity leaned into his chest. “Our little miracle, huh?” She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply, the smell of Neo filling her senses. “I like the sound of that. We all need a few more miracles.”

Neo pressed another kiss to her neck, swaying slightly, moving the two of them in rhythm. “It’s all you.”

“You had a little something to do with it,” Trinity said. 

Neo smiled. “Nope. All you. Just amazing, strong, kick ass you.”

Trinity hummed, smiling as she closed her eyes as Neo held her close, ready for the next new thing to love. 

Chapter Text

Trinity groaned, shifting, trying to find a less painful position. Neo ran his hand up and down her arm softly as she leaned back into his chest again. They were sitting on their bed against the wall, embracing the calm before the storm. 

“I want her out,” Trinity sighed, closing her eyes. “I don’t want to be pregnant anymore.”

Neo stifled a chuckle, knowing that would only make her annoyed. “You’re at 36 weeks, she’ll be out soon.”

“Not soon enough,” Trinity grumbled, running a hand over her pregnant belly. “I want to meet you,” she said loudly. “Get out!” When she got no response she huffed, then winced, shifting again, Neo patiently waiting. 

The pregnancy, as they had predicted, had not been the easiest. Trinity’s symptoms were more severe, as they expected, but expecting didn’t prepare her for deep pelvic pain and heartburn and the jitters and low blood pressure that made her pass out. Every week seemed like a year, because every week meant one more week the baby could be lost. But every week they pulled through. The end of every week was a reason to celebrate.  

Once they reached the 30 week mark, they were able to let out a sigh of relief. If the baby had to be born prematurely, they knew she would live, even if she had to be attached to machines and stay in the hospital with the doctors. But as the weeks went by, all the doctors could give them good news, that both of them were healthy and Trinity could birth her baby vaginally. 

When they reached the 30 week mark, they went in for an appointment, and the doctor elevated their joy and relief that the baby was safe. 

***

“You did it, Trinity, you and your baby have made it to 30 weeks!” the doctor had praised, rubbing the ultrasound stick on Trinity’s stomach. Trinity had smiled softly and mumbled a thank you. 

The baby came into view. Neo felt his breath hitch. He couldn’t take his eyes away. There was his child. That was his next adventure. 

He found Trinity’s hand and squeezed. Trinity squeezed back, enamored with the screen just as much. She reached out, trailing the tips of her fingers across the screen. “Hey baby.”

“You’re both very lucky,” the doctor started to pull off her gloves. “She is a perfectly healthy baby.”

The air in the room froze.

“She?” Neo clutched Trinity’s hand. “It’s a girl?”

The doctor nodded. “You wanted to know the sex, didn’t you?”

“Uh huh,” Trinity’s voice shook. She swiveled her head to Neo, her eyes wet. “We’re gonna have a baby girl. We’re having a daughter!”

Neo leaned down and kissed Trinity’s forehead, replacing his lips with his forehead. He held their intertwined fingers to his chest. “It’s perfect.” 

***

When Trinity settled down again, a question pulled suddenly at the edge of her mind. “Neo.”

Neo hummed in confirmation. 

“Neo, we have a problem,” Neo sat up straight, his brow furrowed with panic. 

“What kind of problem? Hungry problem? Baby kicking ribs problem? Going into labor problem?” Trinity gave him a look. “There are a lot of possible problems!”

Trinity craned her head to look at him. “Our baby doesn’t have a name.”

Neo stared at Trinity in disbelief. He thumped his head against the wall. “Shit.”

Trinity hit him on the shoulder. “Don’t swear in front of her!”

“I don’t think she knows what we’re saying.”

“She recognizes our voices, that’s how she’ll know it’s us when she’s born!”

Neo kissed Trinity’s temple. “Alright, alright, I won’t swear. Now, names.”

Trinity smiled. “I’m not naming her after us or Morpheus or Niobe, too many parents do that.”

“I think it’s flattering,” Neo countered, a smile making its way onto his face. 

Trinity wrinkled her nose. “She’s our kid, I’m not subjecting her to more of that. ”

“Okay, fine,” Neo laughed. “What do you want to name her?”

“Something meaningful,” Trinity stared at the other wall, almost staring off into space. “Something unique, something her. ”

Neo scratched his beard. “How will we know if it’s her before we meet her?”

Trinity snorted. “Well, she and I are quite close, I’m growing her.”

“What if we name her after she’s born?” Neo rested a hand on the side of Trinity’s tummy.

“Mm,” Trinity rubbed her stomach. “We should at least have a couple ones we like.”

“Sarah.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Sabine.”

“Eh.”

“Sophia.”

“What is it with you and S names?”

Neo threw up his hands. “Okay, okay, so not a S name. What do you like?”

Trinity thought, for a moment too long Neo almost wondered if Trinity had heard him. He opened his mouth to ask again when - 

“Ow!”

Neo was up and alert. He twisted around Trinity, who was holding her stomach, breathing hard. “What’s wrong? What happened? Are you okay?”

Trinity looked up, her face full of hope, despite her body shaking with her breath. “The baby’s coming.”

“Now?!” Neo jumped out of bed, running across the small space to grab the backpack they had packed. Trinity scooted to the edge of the bed, slipping on her shoes, taking a deep breath between standing up slowly. 

Neo grabbed her coat and started to wrap it around her. Trinity offered little help, pressing her face into Neo’s shirt as she breathed deeply. She leaned back for a second. “Fuck, contractions hurt.”

Neo cupped her face in his hands. Trinity wrapped her grasp around his wrists. “Thought there was no swearing.”

Trinity smiled. “Fuck. You.” The smile was almost immediately replaced with a grimace mixed with a wince. “Take me to the hospital!”

“Yep, yep, yep,” Neo held open the door, reaching for her hand. Trinity took, and Neo placed a hand on her back as they left their apartment, the door slamming behind them. 

***

Trinity knew she was going to love her child, but she never wanted to go through labor again. Specifically, this labor. This labor that had lasted for 36 hours.

“One more push, Trinity, just one more!” The doctor told her. She grit her teeth as Neo squeezed her hand, wiping the sweat on her forehead away. 

Neo, the only thing that had kept her sane. She knew the doctor was doing her job but goddammit hearing push over and over again was so fucking irritating. What else was she doing? Scuba diving? 

Trinity threw her head back, pinching her face. A cry of pain escaped her lips for what had to be the millionth time. She hadn’t been kidding back at the apartment. She wanted the baby out.

What felt like the last push she could possibly stomach because she was so exhausted the air broke into a perfect quietness as a baby’s cry cut through it.

Trinity felt the warm tears run down her cheek as the doctors pulled the baby away, wiping her off and swaddling her. Neo followed, watching with awe at the little squirming human who’s battle cry filled the room.

Suddenly, the little girl was thrust into his arms, startling him. He held her small body across the length of his forearm, cradling her head in his hand. He blinked away the tears as he shifted her closer to his chest.

Feeling the warmth, the baby looked up at him with big brown eyes and her crying stopped. The two of them gazed at one another in their own little bubble, the rest of the world tuned out. 

“Neo,” Trinity called quietly, unable to take her eyes off her baby. 

Neo crossed back to her bedside, sitting next to her. Trinity reached out, and Neo begrudgingly gave her the baby. He leaned over the side of her bed, rubbing her arm. 

“Hey, little one,” Neo smiled at his child. He turned to Trinity. “Our little miracle is here.”

“Our little miracle,” Trinity whispered. “That’s perfect.”

“She’s perfect.”

“She is, but I meant for her name.”

“Miracle?” Neo raised his eyebrows. “That’s a little on the dot, even for us.”

“No,” Trinity chuckled, pulling back the edge of the blanket from the baby’s face. “Mira.”

Neo nodded slowly. “Mira.”

Trinity’s heart melted as Mira, her daughter, reached out and grabbed her finger. “Welcome to the world, Mira.”

Neo reached over and gently rubbed the top of Mira’s head. She nestled into her mother’s chest, sighing, sleep fast approaching. “Sleep well, little one.”

Chapter Text

Trinity didn’t think she could be more protective. She loved Neo with her whole soul, her whole essence, her everything, and she was willing to go to the ends of the earth for him.

She would go even further for Mira.

Trinity knew that Neo felt the exact same way.

They played a little game. They had played a lot of little games over the years. They like to tease each other, small pinches and touches, just waiting for the other to break and slam the other into a wall with their lips. They played a game to see how many ways they could say I love you without actually saying it. They played a game to see who was the better fighter, in real life.

This game was not as fun. 

The two of them adored Mira, wanting to spend every moment with her possible. So they would secretly fight each other for who got to hold her.

That was part of it, anyway. 

Trinity wasn’t ready to admit just how terrified she was of losing that little girl. She was so anxious she would fuck her up, and she was convinced that leaving her would start that.

She trusted Neo, she really did.

Their apartment wasn’t really that big, anyway.

But she couldn’t quiet the pounding in her chest as the water fell upon her and slid down her body. A shower shouldn’t be this nerve wracking. It was a good thing. It was basic self care. It was like her doctor said when she was pregnant, “we can’t have Baby without Mom.”

Trinity forced herself to slow down, not to rush. Take your time. Take an actual shower, Trinity . Mira is fine. She’s with Neo on the other side of the wall. 

Trinity still took a faster shower than she should have. She turned off the water and scrubbed her hair with the towel before toweling down as fast as possible. She grabbed her sweater from the door hook and pulled it on haphazardly. She had already opened the door as she hopped into her pants.

Sweet little giggles greeted her ears. Neo was sitting on the ground, cross legged, with Mira in his lap. He pushed his hair out of his face and Mira pulled it back down again, giggling so hard she fell over. Neo grabbed her by the sides to keep her upright, placing her on the ground. Neo pushed his hair out of his face again, smiling up at Trinity. “We’re playing the mess-up-Daddy’s-hair game.”

Mira followed her father’s gaze, her face lighting up into a smile upon seeing her mother. “Mama!” She reached up her hands to be picked up. Trinity started towards her when Neo held up his hand.

“Wait, wait, stay there!” Neo smiled down at Mira, picking her up by her ribs. 

Trinity stopped, waiting, uneasy. “Um, okay.”

Neo placed Mira on her feet. Her face shifted to one of intense concentration. She glanced back at her father, who gave her a small nod. 

Trinity knelt down to Mira’s level. Was she about to…?

Neo let go of Mira, grinning so widely his mouth took up half his face. 

Mira, sticking out her bottom lip, lifted her left leg and took a shaky, but very real, step.

Trinity felt her heart lift and she couldn’t keep the smile off her face. She held out her arms. “Come here, Mira.”

Mira took another step and another, each threatening to send her tumbling to the ground, but she managed to keep her balance. Her final step did send her to the ground, but she was right in front of Trinity.

Trinity caught her and held her up high. “Mira, you’re walking!” She held her close in a hug, Mira laughing into her neck. “Great job!”

Neo laughed, rocking back and forth. “She did it right after you got in the shower.”

Trinity couldn’t get words out in response. She was too happy. 

Mira squirmed in her arms. Trinity put her down, facing Neo. “Go to Daddy, Mira.”

Mira nodded and started toward him. Neo mirrored Trinity’s stance from moments before. “Hey, Little One.”

Mira made a small babble, tottering towards Neo. “Dada!”

She didn’t make it to Neo all the way, but Trinity and Neo still clapped. Mira laughed and clapped her hands, not completely understanding what all the excitement was about, but she liked it. She threw up her hands with a happy gurgle, and Neo threw his arms up too.

Neo scooted over to the baby girl, placing a hand on her stomach and back and shaking her slightly. “You did it!”

Mira smiled and babbled, using his knee to push herself up and smashed her forehead into his chest. Neo laughed, scooping her up and rocking her. Mira nestled into his neck, closing her eyes and sighing contently.

Neo flicked his eyes to Trinity. He could see her heart melting too, with a small touch of jealousy.

As Mira had gotten older, she tended to fall asleep on her father more than her mother. Trinity still got plenty of cuddle time, but Neo had a certain connection with her that Trinity just couldn’t crack. 

Neo watched the thought travel through Trinity, her posture slumping.

Neo stood, taking Mira with him. Trinity didn’t register his footsteps but watched his feet enter her vision. Neo reached down and pressed two fingers to the bottom of her chin. He lifted it while cradling Mira. He let go, holding her gaze, offering his hand. Trinity took it, letting him pull her up.

Neo led her to the bed and gently pushed her onto it. She took the hint and laid down. Neo sat on the edge, holding Mira’s head as he took her off his chest.

Trinity did a poor job of containing her smile as Neo put Mira down on her chest. Mira yawned and cuddled into Trinity. Trinity rubbed her hand over her 11 month old’s soft locks, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. Mira made a small noise, that if she had been more awake would have sounded like ‘loh’, her word for love.

Neo laid down next to his girls, resting his head on Trinity’s shoulder and wrapping an arm around her waist.

The family drifted off to sleep as one as their breathing slowed and synced, three heartbeats strong and content.

Chapter Text

The sky was filled with perfect yellows and oranges and blues, soft and pastel. 

Trinity closed her eyes, soaking in the warmth, however fake it was. It was still nice.

A small whoosh of air ruffles through her hair as Neo touched down on the roof behind her. 

Neo lowered himself to the ground next to her, letting his legs dangle over the edge of the skyscraper. 

“I wish I could show this to Mira,” Trinity opened her eyes. “She would like it.”

“She likes most things we show her,” Neo teased. Trinity’s pupils slid towards him. Neo cast his gaze down. “She would. Not sure about the height, though.”

Trinity chuckled. “That’s you projecting.”

“Maybe,” Neo reached out, slipping his hand against Trinity’s, squeezing her hand. “She didn’t have it programmed into her head that the height looked far worse than it was.”

“Yes, because gravity exists, and she’ll actually fall,” Trinity pointed out. She leaned her head against Neo’s shoulder. Neo shifted, changing hands and wrapping his arm around her waist. “Still, you don’t get these colors in the real world.”

“So maybe we should show her,” Neo rubbed his thumb over Trinity’s. 

“We can’t,” Trinity scrunched up her nose. “She doesn’t have a plug.” Thank god . Trinity couldn’t live with the idea of her child with that horrible metal implant protruding from the back of her skull. “The colors are nice, but I don’t want her here. Ever.”

“I think we should try and show her.”

Trinity lifted her head, turning to look at him. “What? How? Why? Neo...”

“I know,” Neo shifted, pulling his left leg up and resting it on the ledge. Trinity mirrored him, their knees bumping into one another. “But…” Neo bit the inside of his cheek, trying to figure out the right words. “We spend a lot of time here. A lot of time away from her. What if she hates us for it? For something she doesn’t know?”

“She knows what the Matrix is,” Trinity’s chest tightened as she looked into Neo’s eyes.

“Does she? Really?” Neo took a shaky breath, glancing down. “She knows we come here a lot. But she doesn’t really know what this place is.”

“She doesn’t need to know!” Trinity leaned away from him. How could he suggest something like this? Bringing Mira here? “This place is a prison, and she is free. And she needs to stay free. Away from this!”

“That should be her choice, not ours!” Neo threw his hand out towards the sky. 

“She’s five! What choice could we possibly even show her?” Trinity stood, taking steps back from him. She hated this. She hated this idea. Mira was pure. She needed to stay untainted by this traumatizing place. This destructive, horrible place.

“Take her with us,” Neo pushed himself to his feet, stumbling. “Just on the ship, for a little bit! Not even to broadcast level!”

“And what if squids attack?!” Trinity threw at him, her anger boiling in her stomach. She was shaking with it, her fist curling. 

“She’s grown up around synthients, Trin! She understands them!”

Trinity spun on her heel, stalking the length of the building. She took deep breaths, forcing herself to slow down, trying to get that horrible sinking feeling under control. 

Neo waited. 

Trinity tilted her head, making part of her face visible to Neo. “Neo, I…”She shook her head, her vision blurry. She wiped at them aggressively, biting her lip. “I raised my kids. I have those memories, that love, I remember so fucking well. ” Trinity’s breath shook. “And they were just fucking pawns. Pieces on a chess board to be manipulated and put down to keep me in check.”

She looked over her shoulder, taking a step back with her right foot, angling herself against the sunset’s light. “Do you know that I still wake up and panic because I didn’t make Donnie’s lunch? Or I forgot that Chad took the day off and I had to deal with him all day? Or that Brandon needed to go to the doctor and I overslept and we were late?” She shook her head. “It’s all so real. It was so real.”

“Trin, I get it,” Neo took a step towards her, reaching out his hand.

“No, you don’t, Neo!” Trinity caught his eyes, her face snapping towards his, the shimmering reflection of a tear trailing down her cheek. “I loved my children. And the Matrix took them from me. But Mira gave me that back. She gave me actual motherhood and she’s everything.” Trinity looked out towards the sun, sniffing. “I won’t lose another child to this goddamn mind game. I can’t.”

Neo followed her gaze. “I’m scared too. But I’m more scared of her resenting us because we spent more time with society than we did her.”

Trinity ran a hand through her hair, slosing her eyes, focusing on slowing down her breathing. “So what do we do?”

“Just,” Neo clicked his teeth. “Take her on the ship. Just to show her the code. Show her what it really is. At least then, she can actually know what it is. And then…”

“She makes her decision,” Trinity finished for him, opening her eyes. She glanced at Neo. “I don’t want her to resent us.”

“She won’t,” Neo closed the distance between them, grabbing Trinity’s hand, squeezing it gently. “If we do this right, she won’t.”

“This doesn’t feel right, Neo,” Trinity pressed.

Neo sighed. “No, but everything else seems more wrong.” The corner of Neo’s mouth twitched. “Besides, her mother is too stubborn to be a bad parent.”

Trinity scoffed, hitting Neo on the chest softly. He groaned, faking pain, placing a hand over his sternum. “A deadly hit.”

“Shut up,” Trinity muttered, leaning into him. Neo wrapped his arms around her, resting his cheek against her head. “I’m supposed to be the one who makes the rational decisions.”

“I know,” Neo kissed the top of her head gently. “I’m kinda out of my lane here, any tips?”

Trinity laughed into his chest. “I think you did okay.” Trinity pressed her hands to his chest, pulling her head away. “Home?”

Neo nodded, grasping her hands with his. “Home.”

***

Lexy glanced up as the door pounded three times. She smiled at the little girl sitting leaned against her, staring at the book they were reading. “It’s open!” 

The hinges of the door creaked horribly as the light from the hallway flooded in, two distinct silhouettes blocking its light. 

“Mommy!” Mira scrambled to her feet. “Daddy!” She ran towards them, Neo scooping her up. He placed a hand on her back and one under her butt, swinging her downwards. She giggled as he pulled them upward, balancing out from the momentum. 

Neo put her down, and Mira collided with Trinity’s leg. Trinity beamed at her daughter, brushing the hair out of her face. “Hold on,” Trinity knelt down and gently grabbed Mira’s chin. “You have a hole in your smile.”

Mira giggled. “The tooth came out!”

Trinity dropped her jaw. “That’s been wiggling all week!” 

“Hold on, let me see,” Neo put his knee on the ground. Mira smiled big at him. “Look at that! That’s a hole alright. Very good hole. Well done!” Neo held out his hand, and Mira grabbed it, shaking it. Neo smiled, the silly gesture a new update in Mira’s physical vocabulary.

“Thank you, Lexy,” Trinity stood up. 

Lexy nodded. “You need to stop thanking me. It’s the least I can do.” Lexy grabbed the edge of the countertop next to her, pressing a hand down on her knee as she pulled herself up slowly.

“How’s the leg?” Trinity walked closer, just in case.

Lexy shrugged, looking down at her new prosthetic leg. “I’m still getting used to it.” Lexy rubbed at her upper thigh, where the prosthetic attached to her skin. “But I think I’ll be cleared to be back soon.”

“They’ll be excited to see you,” Trinity assured her. Lexy smiled tightly, her jaw tense. “They didn’t save your life for you to not come back.”

“You saved my life,” Lexy turned towards the countertop. “If you hadn’t kept me alive in the Matrix I would have flatlined. Thank you .”

Trinity smiled sadly, glancing back at Mira, who was telling Neo an animated story. “We protect our crew.”

“We do,” Lexy turned around, leaning against the countertop with a wince. 

“She loves you, you know,” Trinity gazed at her little family. “She couldn’t stop talking about how excited she was to see Auntie Lexy today.”

Lexy shook her head and looked down, trying to hide her smile. “Here’s her tooth.” Lexy held out a small clear bag with a little white tooth in it. Trinity took it gently, holding the top of it, resting it on her palm. It was so small, yet gave her a pang of pride and sadness. Mira was growing up so fast.

“Thank you. Again. Have a good night, Lexi. We’re right next door if you need anything,” Trinity nodded to her, spinning on her heel. “I think it’s time we get out of Auntie Lexy's hair.”

Mira made a small pouting face, but Trinity wiped it off her face by picking her up and kissing her face all over. Mira leaned over in a fit of laughter, pushing her mother’s face away.

Mira settled back in once Trinity stopped, nestling into her mother’s neck, yawning and rubbing her eyes with the back of her knuckles.

Trinity handed Neo the tooth and he held it close to his face, grinning. Trinity reached out with her foot and tapped his leg. Neo looked up, waiting for her to say something. She pointed her chin towards the door. Neo startled, grabbing the handle and pulling. Trinity gave Lexy one last wave and Mira gave a halfhearted wave as sleep started to creep up on her.

Mira was asleep in Trinity’s arm before they stepped into the apartment just a few feet away. Trinity noticed, setting her down on her bed gently, cradling her head. She brushed back her hair and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Neo came up behind her and pulled up her blanket, kissing her in the same place Trinity had. “Good night, Little One.”

He put the bag with the tooth on the counter. Trinity stood on her toes, wrapping her arms around his chest, resting her chin on his shoulder. Neo laughed softly, moving his arm to go over her shoulders, bringing her forward.

“I can’t believe she lost a tooth,” Neo stared at it. “I remember when she didn’t have teeth.”

Trinity exhaled. “I was thinking the same thing.” She looked over at Mira, watching the rise and fall of her chest as she dreamed. Her hair was splayed across the pillow, and already it was in her face again. “She needs a haircut.”

“No,” Neo fake whined. “I need a long hair buddy.”

Trinity rolled her eyes. “She hates it in her eyes, she’s always pushing it out of her face.”

“She doesn’t really care.”

“She told me she wanted hair like me yesterday.”

Neo’s jaw dropped. “Really?” Trinity nodded, a small smile on her lips. Neo kissed Trinity’s temple. “Well, if I have to lose my long hair buddy, I want it to be you.”

Trinity glanced over at Mira again. “Tomorrow.”

Neo followed her gaze. “We’re giving her a haircut tomorrow? I thought we were broadcasting again.”

“Tomorrow we bring her with us,” Trinity crossed her arms, Neo’s arm tightening around her. “I already asked Bugs, she said yes.”

“Okay,” Neo agreed. “Tomorrow she comes with us.”

Trinity smiled, exhaustion hitting her. She watched as Neo stifled a yawn. “Come on,” Trinity pulled at his hand. “We need sleep too.”

***

“Alright, sweetheart, you remember the rules?” Trinity asked as she pulled Mira’s hair up. Mira nodded. 

“Listen to the crew, and don’t touch something if I don’t know what it is,” Mira listed on her fingers. “But I can ask what something is?”

“Of course,” Trinity smiled as she twisted Mira’s hair into a bun. “We’ll answer every question you have.”

“So,” Mira twisted her lips as Trinity stood up and grabbed their sweaters. “The Matrix…It’s a computer program?”

“Kind of,” Trinity handed Mira her sweater, and she put it on immediately out of habit. “Come on, we need to meet Daddy and the crew.” 

Mira grabbed her mother’s hand as Trinity opened the door. “Well, then what is it?”

Trinity bit the inside of her lip, taking a deep breath as they walked into the lift, trying to figure out how to explain it to a five-year-old. “It’s a computer that most people are plugged into.” She saw Mira scrunch up her face in confusion. “Their mind lives there, while their body lives in the real world. In this world. And the world their mind is in looks like what the world used to look like, so they think it’s the real world.”

“They don’t know that it’s not real?” Mira craned her head to catch Trinity’s eyes. Trinity shook her head. “What if they don’t want to be there?”

“They don’t really have a choice to leave,” Trinity sighed. She knelt down to Mira’s eye level. “That’s what people like me and Daddy are for. We get to go in,” she ghosted her fingertips over the plug at the back of her head. “So the people who want to leave can. We unplug them and take them to Io, where they live in the real world.”

Mira looked down at her feet. “Who made it?”

“The Sentinals,” Trinity answered honestly. “They use humans, so they put most of them in there.”

“But I thought they were our friends,” Mira scrunched up her nose. 

“Synthients are our friends,” Trinity put a hand on Mira’s shoulder. “Morpheus is our friend, and so is Cybebe, Octacles, and Lumin8.They were supposed to be Sentinals, but they chose to be with us, and that makes them synthients.”

“Okay,” Mira said slowly. The lift doors opened with a hiss. Trinity glanced out to the loading dock, where the Mnemosyne was waiting. 

“I know it’s a lot to take in,” Trinity turned to her daughter. “It might be confusing. But it’s okay to be confused. I don’t know everything, and sometimes Ellster or Berg will try and teach it to me, and I get confused too.” Trinity stood up and held out her hand. Mira took it. “But we’ll be confused together. Okay?”

Mira nodded. “Okay.”

The pair walked onto the dock. Neo and Bugs were waiting on the ramp. Mira saw them and gasped, pulling out of her mother’s grasp and running towards them.

Bugs squatted down as Mira approached them. “How are we today, Miss Mira?”

“I’m excited!” Mira jumped. “I get to go on your ship!”

“You do!” Bugs smiled. “Are we gonna have fun?”

“Yeah!” Mira clapped. 

“Yeah!” Bugs clapped too. “Come inside with me!” Bugs gestured with her head, and Mira bounded up the ramp after her, giggling as Bugs chased her up the ramp. 

Neo smiled. “You ready, Trin?” 

Trinity shrugged as she made her way up the ramp. “Are you?”

Neo opened his mouth to answer but no sound came out.

“Yeah,” Trinity hit his chest twice. “Me too.” She continued up the ramp, Neo at her heels. The ramp closed behind them, and the engines roared in their chests in the hold as the ship took off.

They made their way to the main chamber, voices floating out towards them. 

“This is where we plug in,” Ellster explained. 

“That’s why you have those things at the back of your head,” Mira said. As Trinity and Neo entered the room, they saw Mira looking at the chair. “But how?”

Ellster glanced up at Trinity. She nodded. Ellster got up and grabbed the plug. It’s needle seemed longer than normal. “With this.”

Mira cocked her head, studying it. “That looks owey.”

“It’s not too bad,” Ellster shrugged. “You get used to it.”

“I can’t go to the Matrix,” Mira looked around at the adults. “So what do people like me do?”

Seq smiled, picking her up. “Let me show you.”

He sat down at the counsel, putting Mira on his lap. Lumin8 scrambled up onto the top of it, peering down at them. The green code reflected off her irises, her pupils flicking across all the monitors. “We learn how to read this code, it’s what the Matrix looks like to us. And when we do, we can help them out, see what’s happening even if we can’t be there the way they can.”

“Huh,” Mira squinted.

Seq pointed to the screen. “See this? This is a person. It’s what they look like in code. They have black hair, brown eyes and are a man.” He pointed to a different string. “This is a building. Looks like it’s concrete.”

Mira watched the screens. The cavern got quiet, so quiet it didn’t sound like anyone was breathing. “There’s the guy again,” She pointed to the second screen next to the first. “He just walked past the concrete building.”

“Y-yeah, that’s right, good job!” Seq glanced at Neo and Trinity, who were sharing their own look. They had never shown Mira any Matrix code before. She was good at puzzles, and was a quick learner, but still.

“What’s that?” Mira pointed to the monitor on the top left. “That person’s code just changed. They were one thing, and now they’re another.”

“That’s…an agent,” Seq leaned forward, careful of the child on his lap. “How did you notice that, those changes happen in milliseconds!”

“What’s an agent?” Mira looked up at Seq, who looked at her blankly. 

“An agent is someone who works for the Sentinals,” Trinity stepped in. “They try and stop us.”

“Oh,” Mira looked back at the monitor. She squinted again. “There’s another agent.” She pointed to a line of code that appeared as quickly as it disappeared. “What’s this?”

“That’s a hole in the code,” Seq shifted in his seat, typing a few keys, trying to follow the agent. “We call them backdoors. You can’t see people when they go into backdoors.”

“Backdoors,” Mira whispered. Her eyes flicked across the screens, tracking separate pieces of code. “There’s a backdoor.” Seq nodded, watching her closely. “That agent person just went through it.”

Neo stepped closer to Trinity, sliding his hand down her forearm to interlock their fingers. A hint of a smile sat on her lips. “Guess she’s in,” he whispered. 

“We would be fools to say no,” Trinity’s pride started to rise in her chest. “I knew she was smart, but…”

“Yeah,” Neo agreed. “Yeah.”

Bugs looked over Seq and Mira at Neo and Trinity, their eyes on Mira, who was pointing at the screen. She knew both of them were tentative when it came to the Matrix and their daughter, but she didn’t see fear in their eyes. Just love and excitement. The child of the One’s is already a coder at age five. Figures. Bugs turned her attention back to the little girl, listening as Seq showed her a key sequence. He let her press enter, and her eyes lit up as she saw the code change on the screens. Welcome to the crew, Mira.

Chapter Text

“You got three more agents running your way,” Trinity grimaced as the voice crackled in her ear. “Scratch that, seven. They just went into a backdoor.”

Trinity ducked as Neo jumped over her back to hit an agent with a dented car door. She spun on her heel, her matching guns raised and firing. 

“We need an exit!” Neo yelled, slamming the door into the agent’s chest. 

“Agents out of the backdoor!” Bugs slid behind the upturned car they had flipped less than five minutes earlier. She pulled a new Glock out of her waistband, not waiting to empty her clip at the advancing agents. 

Trinity and Neo vaulted over the edge of the car, Bugs giving them cover. “They’re getting stronger!”

“I’m really done with this shit,” Trinity threw away her glasses, which were cracked and basically falling off of her face. “How you holding up, kid?”

The college student they had come for looked at her with wide eyes, huddled behind the car, their knees pulled tightly to their chest. Their clothes were rumpled and bunched, their hair in their face and blood running down their cheek. They made a small nose, high pitched and scared. 

“That’s more than seven!” Bugs ducked, the bullet just barely missing her. “Get us out!”

Neo handed Bugs a new gun, holding out his arm, bringing the incoming bullets to the stop. 

“I wanna try something.”

Bugs’s face contorted into shock and annoyance. “Give us a door! That is an order!”

“Any door I give you will just force you to put yourself in the way of those agents, they’re boxing you in by freezing up the code in the block. But if I can find it’s weak hinge…”

“Mira, this is not the time for you to try some crazy code shit!” Bugs yelled. 

“Done!”

Neo looked out at the agents, the bullets having ceased. Those in the air clattered to the ground. The agents were looking around, tense, waiting, their guns lowering. They had stopped.

Trinity felt why. The air was shaking. It was suffocating, shaking closer and closer to the ground. The skyscrapers around them started to shake, their cracks rumbling down into the ground. The cement started to rock and wave. 

The college student whimpered, shaking their head while pressing their palms into their temples. 

Trinity glanced back out at the agents, just in time to see a massive block of concrete fell down on their heads.

The air stilled, the shaking coming to a gradual stop. 

“I told you it would work!” Mira’s exclamation startled them. 

“How did you…” Neo muttered, studying the sky.

“Your door is right behind you, the window in the coffee shop with the display,” Mira’s satisfaction seeped into her voice. 

Bugs rolled her eyes as she holstered her gun, making towards the window. Trinity offered a hand to the college student, lifting them up and sending them scampering after Bugs. Neo glanced at Trinity, nudging his head towards the direction of the window. Trinity gave him a small smile before running and leaping into the glass.

***

Trinity opened her eyes with a deep breath, Mira’s smile flitting in and out of her vision in an instant. She sat up slowly, Neo doing the same in her peripheral.

“How is our college kid?” Trinity rubbed the back of her neck. 

“Already with Ellster and Berg,” Morpheus answered from behind them. “Progressing well, vitals stable.”

Bugs’s feet hit the floor. “Mira, what did you do?”

Mira spun around in her chair, her black pants rolled up at the cuffs, a small peak of skin showing between it and her boots, her dark blue tank top complementing the accent paint Mira had put on her boots. “I hacked the Matrix! And not the normal way, a new crazy awesome way!”

“How did you do that?” Neo leaned back, sighing as his back popped. “I thought you were working on accessing the back doors.”

“I was, but then I found this super cool loophole,” Mira talked quick and with her hands, pointing wildly to the screen. “Nothing’s perfect, not even the Matrix. I still can’t access the back doors, but by looking for the doors I found a code susceptible to outside manipulation! With a little fine tuning, it’ll be more precise and less of a giant wall, but if you catch it you can use it as a backdoor into the foundation of the Matrix! It’s like what you guys do, just from here!”

Bugs rubbed her eyes. “Well, I’m glad you did it. But next time,” She pointed directly at Mira. “Experiment when we’re not in danger.” She raised her eyebrows. “Got it?”

Mira nodded. “Yes, Captain.” She turned back to Trinity. “And Morpheus said I couldn’t do it!”

“I thought it improbable to work,” Morpheus’s beaded form leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. “And I was more concerned about the extraction process.”

“I had it under control!” Mira slipped off her seat. “And it worked! It really worked!” Mira grabbed her mother’s hand. “Seq is gonna freak!”

Trinity smiled at Mira, reveling in her excitement. “I’m glad it worked and you got us out safely.”

Neo reached out and ruffled Mira’s spiky short hair, rubbing his hand over her undercut. She laughed, pushing his hand away gently. “You can tell Seq when we get back. I’m sure his twins would be happy to see their cousin.”

“And they could use the babysitter,” Bugs teased, relaxing from her strict captain persona. Mira rolled her eyes. “Don’t give me that teenage attitude!”

“I’m sixteen, it’s my birthright,” Mira shot back, leaning back into her chair. “Besides, I got to live up to Seq’s reputation as the sass master. He’d be disappointed if his successor couldn’t do that.”

“Not the reputation of a coder?” Neo quirked his eyebrow, the corner of his mouth upturned.

“He taught me how to code,” Mira crossed her arms. “But every coder’s different.”

“That’s literally not how code works,” Trinity ran a hand up her arm, catching her sleeve in her fingertips and raking it up. “There is precision and an order to things or else it doesn’t work.”

Mira cocked her head. “Seq was your first operator, and there’s never going to be someone to replace that,” Mira smiled over her shoulder at Lumin8 as they dropped down to the top of her chair. “But…he wouldn’t have advised me to do what I just did.”

“He trusted you to take his place,” Morpheus floated past the chairs. “We trust you too.”

Mira’s cheek had a dusting of pink as she looked down, trying to hide her grin. “You know I don’t know how to accept compliments.”

“Ah, yes, the teenage angst,” Neo sidled up next to her and threw an arm over her shoulder. “So fragile.”

“This is not teenage angst, this is lack of social skills,” Mira told him pointedly. “Growing up training to be an operator does that to you.”

“You have social skills!” Trinity countered. “You go to school, you have friends.”

“I have one friend,” Mira turned her attention to her mother. 

“You don’t need a lot of friends, just a few good ones to be happy,” Neo assured her. 

Mira tilted her head as Neo pressed a kiss to her temple, nudging her headset in the process. “Yeah, Jordien’s a keeper.”

“Why, ‘cause you have a crush on them and can’t flirt for shit?” Bugs leaned forward, teasing. 

Mira pressed her lips together, her eyes wide. “Thank you, for that.”

“It’s my job as your cool gay aunt to call you out, my baby gay.”

“I’ve been out since I was 9!”

“Doesn’t change the fact you don’t have the nerve to ask them out,” Bugs smiled mischievously. Mira opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Everyone in the room started laughing. Mira buried her head in her hands. 

Lumin8 jumped onto Mira’s shoulders, chirping. Mira’s voice was muffled as she groaned. “Not you too…”

“As fun as this is, I think it’s time we pack up shop,” Bugs smiled. “Set a course for Io.”

“Aye, aye, captain!”