Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

2818

She would never see her again.

Suvi watched the girl’s eyes close, as gas filled the chamber. Hand against the chamber, eyes meeting hers. Her own smile fixed in what she hoped was comfort. The last gift she could give, as the last piece of her heart sealed itself away in ice. To sleep, perhaps forever.

She leaned her head against the pod, fighting the tears forming at the corners of her eyes, hands where the girl’s would be. One last moment, before time tore them apart.

Before she was truly alone.

2849

They’d moved the cryo facility, of course. With the last of the Meridian sleepers woken up over two decades ago, most of this space had been converted into laboratory spaces, or offices. One room remained for the long-term cases; those who, whether for their own safety, or that of others, could not be woken.

The girl at the desk looked up as she pushed the door aside, nearly scattering a stack of papers off the desk.

“Oh! Hello, yes, erm… welcome! Are you here to visit someone today, or…?”

Suvi shook her head, brushing a few silver strands behind her ear.

“I’m here for an awakening. I understand that’s today?”

The message had come out of the blue. Suvi had walked away from the cryo pod thirty years ago, praying that one day its sleeper could be woken. Sending her into the future, as once her family had sent her, living her life as she lay in her pod.

The girl met her eyes, nodding.

‘Yes, that’s.. let me see…”

She ran one finger down a list, tapping it with a thud as her finger stopped.

“Room Seven. Through the double doors. You can’t miss it.”

The medic, a tall man with graying temples, caught her eyes as she edged into the room with an apologetic smile.

“Professor Anwar-Ryder? Just in time. Thanks for coming.”

She took his hand, gripping it with a well-practiced motion.

“Call me Suvi. And thank you for getting in touch.”

He motioned at two technicians, tapping at a monitor, sharing glances.

“We’ve been administering the drug twice daily for the last three weeks. Started the first decryo cycle two days ago. The final cycle should end in the next few minutes.”

He paused, listening as the machinery hissed around him.

“Most of the long-timers here… they wake up alone. Nobody deserves that. I understand that it’s been a long time. She may not recognise you. You may not recognise her. But… thank you for coming.”

Suvi nodded.

“She would have done the same for me. In another life.”

They’d woken up on the Nexus three decades ago, bright sparks in a dark galaxy. Banding together, weaving together, new families, tying roots together and hoping that whatever grew could weather the storm. And when that storm came, she’d grown, blossomed. Loved, and believed love lost. And loved again, harder, and more fiercely than she’d ever thought possible. All while her new sister lay sleeping.

She took the chair offered by the technician in green, laying one hand on the side of the pod as the last latches slid away, and the assistants in red gently lifted away the case.

Same blonde hair, dark eyelashes. Frozen in time, preserved in her glass coffin. So young, younger than she’d remembered. For a moment, the world lay still. Until the girl gasped, drawing in a heavy, ragged breath. Hearing the panic, Suvi grabbed her hand. Fingers in the centre, tapping her wrist.

“Suvi? That’s you, isn’t it? It’s really you. Here.”

Suvi wrapped her arms around her, drawing her in.

“It’s me. It’s really me.”

She could feel her sobbing now, hot tears against her shirt. Placing one hand in the back of her shirt, she drew her closer.

“You’re safe, now. Welcome home, Nikola.”

“I read the information pack last night. Really doesn’t do it justice, huh…”

The medics had kept Nikola in observation for three days now. Final blood checks, breath tests. Finally, she’d been allowed to take her first steps out into Meridian itself.

They’d had some calls to make, first. A clothing store, for one. Real food, enough that Suvi hoped would wash the memory of the Nexus’ dehydrated rations from Nik’s mind. And finally, a bench at the nearest park, to watch the lights glitter off the Hyperion memorial as they sipped takeaway coffees from vivid red glasses.

For a moment, Nik slipped her shoes off, curling her knees up to her chest. Suvi could see the memorial glinting, reflected in his eyes.

“Johan would have loved this. He always was one for art.”

Suvi slipped her arm around her, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

“I know. I remember his slide decks. That man loved his monuments…”

Nikola met her eyes, a sad smile spreading.

“I would have married him in a moment. If he’d asked. I would have followed him anywhere.”

She sighed, eyes closed, head against Suvi’s shoulder.

“Hey, Suve? Can I ask you something?”

Her voice was grave, suddenly. She lifted her head to meet Suvi’s eyes.

“I read the pack. Stories of Scott Ryder, and the other pathfinders. He sounds great, but… you’re Anwar-Ryder, yeah? Is that why?”

She motioned at the gold band, glinting across Suvi’s left hand. Instinctively, Suvi laid her hand across it, feeling the familiar metal slide against her hand. She supposed she would have hesitated at the answer, once.

“His sister, actually. Sara.”

Nikola exhaled, a broad smile across her face, hand on her chest.

“Oh, thank god!”

“You knew? How?”

Nikola grinned at her.

“Suvi, we all knew. To be honest, we all assumed you were still figuring things out for yourself. I just worried that… you know. Maybe you’d settled, or something.”

She swung her feet, bouncing toes against her shoe.

“So, what’s she like? Your wife?”

Suvi paused, wondering how to condense it down. Three decades of snatched kisses, of hands held when no one was looking, and then when everyone was. Of laughter, song, bickering and making up. Of a family growing, of watching what they created take on its own life, and discover what it could become.

“She’s… incredible. Smart. Funny. Always has a comeback. Tougher than anyone. She could stand in the path of a raging bull and make it turn its tail. And when I’m with her…”

She paused, letting the thought wrap around herself.

“It’s like there’s no one else around. Just me, and her. And the boys, when they came along. And nothing else matters. Just us.”

“Wow.”

Nikola was watching her, a knowing smile across her face.

“She sounds pretty perfect.”

Suvi laughed.

“She’s also the worst singer I’ve ever heard. Doesn’t stop her, though.”

She drained the last drops of coffee from the glass, tucking it away in her bag.

“Come stay with us, Nik. It’s going to be a week or so until your new place is ready. Plus, it’s an Angaran festival coming up. Might as well spend some time with your new family.”

[S RYDER] Just landed
[S RYDER] queue’s a nightmare at baggage claim, bring a book

[S ANWAR] just boarding shuttle now
[S ANWAR] Aya’s the usual?

[S RYDER] usual political BS. Got the funding for the dig on Havarl though
[S RYDER] with the usual 30 caveats
[S RYDER] Jaal sends his love
[S RYDER] can’t wait to get home ;)

[S ANWAR] that’s our tickets called
[S ANWAR] be there soon Sare Bear <3

A familiar flash of red hair met them at the arrivals gate. She reached up, wrapping her arms around the young man.

“Hey, Mam!”

He gripped back, before looking up, catching her guest’s eye, a slight flush spreading across his freckles.

“Nikola, meet my son. Finn, meet Nik.”

He reached out a hand, gripping it firmly, before gesturing at Nikola’s Initiative-assigned grey case.

“May I?”

He’d parked the 4-wheeler just around the corner. As they turned out of the city, neat buildings turned to rugged plant life, smooth roads shifting to rough track.

Soon enough, the ranch came into view. She caught Nikola’s eyes, pointing out the buildings coming over the horizon.

“Ceud Mìle Fàilte Ranch. Welcome home.”

In the front seat, Finn chuckled slightly.

“Or Welcome Welcome Farm, as Aunt Vetra calls it. Apparently it doesn’t play nice with the Turian translator implants.”

She opened the door, letting the early evening air wash across her, tickling through her hair. Finn nodded at them, gripping the handle to storage, the redness in his cheeks fading slightly.

“I’ve got these!”

Suvi turned, as Nikola bit down hard on her bottom lip.

“Ready to meet the family?”

Chapter Text

The noise hit Suvi first. Laughter, a tangle of voices, and chairs scraping across the floor. She slipped her shoes off, tossing them into the small heap growing between the hall cupboard and Sara’s canes, as her wife’s voice rang through from the kitchen.

“Potatoes?”

“Check!”

Scott called back. She could imagine him snapping to attention, perhaps mocking a salute.

“Turkey?”

“Check!”

“Pigs in blankets? Or… you know, that thing?”

“Levo’s ready, dextro needs five…”

She’d never met a team quite like the twins. Six decades as a unit had given them two gifts: an uncanny ability to anticipate each other’s every move, and an unbreakable drive to win. They’d moved mountains in Heleus, but she pitied the poor unfortunate who’d managed to smuggle a Monopoly board into the Institute.

Behind her, she could hear the familiar crashing of Finn dragging cases through the door. She turned, nodding Nikola through.

‘Nik, meet Scott Ryder. Pathfinder, ambassador…’

‘And overall galactic hero. You betcha.’

Scott turned, slipping his hand into Nikola’s with a wink.

‘Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ms…?’

She’d always marvelled at Scott’s ability to become the showman at a moment’s notice. No wonder he’d taken on the Human ambassador role, once the Initiative wound itself down.

Her arms found her wife, drawing her close. The smell of baking still clung to her hair, as she leaned in, finding her cheek.

‘Missed you.’

Sara laughed, turning her face to meet her lips.

‘Welcome home, love.’

They’d walked into a shell, nearly three decades before. Walls hastily thrown together, and a roof bolted on hours before the first storms came.

On that first night, they’d eaten cold soup straight from the can, watching the grass ripple outside from the mattress on the floor. Around them, only white walls and air.

The vids from Liam had arrived first. A stack of discs, reaching up to Suvi’s knee, each with a note written in ALL CAPS. FOR EMPHASIS. Then the posters from Peebee. Plant cuttings from Cora, that Sara had barely managed to nurse back to health after getting lost in transit. A stack of cards and poker chips from Gil, ‘to keep you in training, love.’

And then their family grew. Rabbit had arrived first, full of a puppy’s boundless energy. They’d had to learn to tuck cables behind chairs, and Sara’s new collection of vases far out of the way. And then the boys. First Xander, then Finn. Suddenly, their home seemed full of noise, scattered toys, and a jumble of comings and goings.

And then Kallo, at the end. They’d added an extra room at the back for his bed and medical equipment, and laid a track for his wheelchair to get through the house. The boys had wondered about the elderly salarian, but within hours they’d been huddled around his chair, wide eyed, as he told them long, clearly exaggerated tales of the Milky Way between sips of the whiskey his nurse had always forbidden. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but ever since his last summer, the flowers around his bench in the garden had always outshone the rest.

Each year, piece by piece, they’d watched their family grow. She’d thought this year would be quieter than most; Xander and his wife hadn’t wanted to travel, not with the little one on the way. (She still had to catch herself each time that thought bubbled up, fizzing through her blood like sunshine distilled. Our grandchild.)

And yet, she thought, laying out an extra plate along the table, life brings its surprises.

Jaal’s gift had been the last to arrive. The small box had arrived during their third summer, the book inside wrapped in thin layers of fine paper and fabric.

An old custom, shared: Readings and recipes for Reunion Day

Below the title, the inscription, in Jaal’s typical unruly scrawl, barely picked up by her translator implant.

“For Sara and Suvi, my sisters from afar. I recommend the bun on page 47. You will understand later….”

She passed the plate to Nikola, shaking the spices three times over.

“The angara call these a Lover’s Knot. The hard shell symbolises the strength of a family united. The cake inside, that’s the softer parts of ourselves. And the sweet filling -“

She took one from the plate, tearing it in her hands, letting the stewed fruits run between her fingers.

“That’s the surprise of love. The sudden sweetness, cutting through it all.”

Sara’s laugh filled the room, as their fingers found each other’s across the table.

“Unless there’s something else in there, of course…”

Suvi gripped back, a familiar squeeze. Feeling Sara’s ring against her own hand, cold metal and familiar stone.

Perhaps she should have warned her, all those years ago. Stuffing the ring into a bun had seemed like a grand gesture at the time; a token of love, hidden beneath a hard shell. Certainly, Jaal had seemed enthusiastic about the idea, through the hasty messages they’d exchanged in the hours before.

It wasn’t until Sara had nearly swallowed it that she’d wondered if perhaps simply asking would have been a better choice.

For the first few years, she’d been so worried about doing Reunion Day right. Trying to honour the Angaran traditions, cooking the foods just so between half-built furniture and crates of the boys’ toys.

That was until the year Jaal came, his new wife beaming on his arm. She’d posed the question over dishes, while Sara pored through the family albums with Tana, laughing through the stories of the Tempest’s misadventures.

“Have I done this right, Jaal? Is this what Reunion Day should be?”

He’d smiled, his usual wide grin, and gestured back, as Finn clambered onto Tana’s lap, waving his arms with glee.

“Are these the people you’d share it with, my friend? If so, then I believe you have your answer.”

This year, she watched Sara and Nik with their heads together, fast words flowing like sisters long separated. Scott and Vetra sharing knowing smiles and unspoken words, while their daughter and Finn chattered, gesturing wildly between mouthfuls. Perhaps she was imagining the way Finn snuck glances at Nikola after cracking his best jokes, checking to see if she’d noticed. Knowing her son, she doubted that.

She hadn’t needed to answer Jaal, all those years ago. That man could be so frustratingly right sometimes.

Soon enough, night had fallen. Beds were pulled out and unrolled from behind sofas and out of cupboards, and brought with them a sense of stillness in the air. All that was left was their nightly ritual. Hot water, two teabags, and the bench by the rose bush.

“To another Reunion Day, Sare-Bear.”

She clinked her mug against Sara’s, before sipping.

“And to many happy reunions to come.”

Her wife smiled, settling the mug down on the arm of the bench. Before them, the setting sun threw a warm amber across the garden.

“Must be hard for Nikola. Waking up after so long! I mean…”

Sara bit her lip, hands tracing across the wood.

“We lived that thirty years. Built lives, built this place. But for her?”

Her hand found Suvi’s, fingers lacing together.

“What must it be like to see the people you love have moved on?”

“I know… but she’s here now. It’s her time to start writing her story.”

She raised her arm, looping across Sara’s shoulder as the last of the rays slipped below the horizon.

“How about our story, my love? Anything you would have changed?”

Sara laughed, cuddling into Suvi’s arms.

“And miss out on this? Not for the world. Not for any world.”