First Impressions

Lieutenant Commander Kathryn Shepard arrived at the docking bay, Private Rankin trailing behind her, guiding the transport that carried her foot locker. She had made a point of reading personnel reports before departing for the Normandy, and cast a glance around the platform until she spotted someone she recognized. Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko stood at the boarding ramp for the Normandy, reading the contents of a file folder, his brow furrowed with concentration. She approached him quietly enough to not draw his attention, speaking only when she was directly in front of him.

"Lieutenant Alenko?"

He looked up sharply, almost losing the contents of the file folder, and tried to shuffle the papers back into it before closing it. Shoving the folder under his arm, sheets of paper sticking out at odd angles, he snapped to attention and saluted her.

"Yes, ma'am, Commander Shepard." His eyes met hers and he was startled by how green they were. She was a beautiful woman; her ident photo didn't do her justice at all. Mentally, he kicked himself. She's a commander and there are regs against fraternization.

"At ease, Lieutenant." She extended her arm and they shook hands. Kathryn had always believed a person could tell a lot about someone from their handshake. Alenko's was firm, professional. His hand was also incredibly warm. She let go of his hand and gave her jacket a slight tug at the waist. Alenko was still looking at her, seemingly lost in thought.

"Lieutenant? We should get moving. I understand Captain Anderson wants to leave for Eden Prime asap."

She wasn't sure, he moved too quickly for a second look, but she thought he blushed. Before she knew it, he had taken control of her foot locker, dismissed Private Rankin, and was gesturing for her to board the Normandy, while keeping a firm grip on his file folder.

"Captain Anderson sends his regrets that he couldn't meet you in person, ma'am, but something came up at the last minute." He stopped walking and turned to give her a questioning look. "We have a Spectre on board."

That was interesting. "A Spectre? That seems...odd for a shakedown run, don't you think?"

Alenko smiled and Kathryn couldn't help but notice how his eyes twinkled. "I was thinking the same thing, ma'am, but..." He shrugged. "No one's telling us anything."

Shepard made a noise in her throat and stared at the floor for a moment. "Need to know, then."

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

"Hmm? Oh. 'Need to know.' I guess we don't need to know."

He looked embarrassed, blushing again before he continued moving toward the elevator. She was certain she'd seen it this time, and was surprised to feel a nervous flutter in her belly. What am I, a hormonal teenager? Jesus, just what I need, a run in with the fraternization regs. And yet her eyes wandered from Alenko's short-cropped hair down his back to linger at his ass. He appeared to be lean and muscular under the Alliance uniform. He certainly filled it out nicely. She closed her eyes and sighed. No. He's a frog. She opened her eyes again. No, no he really isn't.

"Everything all right, Commander?" Alenko asked, catching the frown on her face as they stepped into the elevator. He punched the crew's quarters button and the doors slid shut.

Now she could smell him, clean and masculine, and even though he was on the other side of the elevator, it felt too close. I've been with the same crew for too long, that's it. The first new, good looking, sexy...Just answer the man's question, Kate.

"Yes, Lieutenant. I'm fine." The tone of her voice gave her pause. She didn't want to sound too friendly and informal, but she was being far too curt now. She smiled to soften the edge. "Just a little tired. Thank you for asking."

The elevator opened and they proceeded to the officers' quarters. "And here you are," Alenko announced, stopping at an unmarked door. "Signage should be brought up later today. Your Alliance ident card will get you inside. The rest of us are down this side of the hall, I'm next door." He paused, wishing he hadn't mentioned that, since it was completely irrelevant. "The Captain's quarters are on the crew deck, one floor up, port side. He asked me to let you know that he'd like to see you as soon as you're settled. Doctor Chakwas will want to meet you, too. She's in the med bay on starboard."

Shepard fished her identification card out and waved it in front of the scanner, peering inside as the door opened. Standard issue desk and office chair, computer equipment, shelves, table and chairs, bed, closet.

"Head and rain locker?" she asked, stepping into the room.

"Right there," Alenko replied, pointing to a door opposite the closet.

They stood staring at each other for several seconds before Shepard cleared her throat. "Well, I should get cleaned up and go find Captain Anderson."

"Right, Commander. I'm sorry. Ah...I'll just leave you to it and see you on deck." He backed out of the room, nearly walking into a passing crew member.

Alenko leaned against the wall once he was out of sight of the Commander's quarters. He wasn't a womanizer by any stretch of the imagination, and was prone to shyness, but he wasn't usually quite so awkward around women. Shepard was something of a legend, though, and he chalked it up to that. Shaking his head, he returned to the main deck to report to the Captain.

Kathryn Shepard stood where he'd left her, staring at the door. For years now, she had avoided romantic entanglements...she stopped herself short, surprised her brain had gone in that direction. "You just met the man, and he's your subordinate, Kate," she mumbled out loud. "Stick to the rules. No fraternization."

A/N: Funny story...My husband could not get me to touch this game until ME3 came out (thank you, Bioware!), and now I'm all over it. Actually, it's their fault, since I got hooked on this type of RPG with Dragon Age Origins. If you're interested, I have a few stories based on that series, and hope to update the current one shortly. I also have a Skyrim story that I add to every now and then. Shameless self-promotion aside, I have been off the writing track for a bit due to a cancer scare (it's all good in the hood, but understandably, I was a bit freaked out for a while there). These drabbles are practice! Please read and review. Feedback is always welcome. Cheers!