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Recommended Listening: I Will Follow You Into the Dark- Death Cab for Cutie

Quote- Evans Blue

(Went back through and edited this after catching a few errors. Whoops. :)

Fire exploded from the planet, searing heat spilling out into the blackness of space. Her skin was freezing in the darkness. Blue blood was spilling through her fingers. Headstones. Graves. Funerals. A cloaked figure wielding a wickedly sharp scythe. Reaper.

Shepard jerked awake, gasping for air and cold sweat trickling down her back. The stars shone above her, far too close. She tossed the covers back and scrambled out of the bed, striding to the fish tank. She leaned against the glass, fogging it over as she took several deep breaths. Her heart was beating painfully fast. Shepard ran a hand through her hair, closing her eyes in thought.

'It's far too late,' a nagging voice reminded her.

Another voice chimed in snidely, 'Don't be an idiot. He's always up late.'

The first voice snorted in indignation. 'Well, it's not appropriate. What happened to being a professional?'

'Oh, please. He's your friend, Shepard,' The second voice said dismissively. 'I thought you said you didn't want to leave things unsaid. You know. Since you died and all.'

"Shut up, both of you."

Shepard steeled her jaw and rifled through her closet, throwing on a standard Cerberus issue uniform. She paused as she slipped it on and muttered,

"Now I'm talking to myself. At least make an effort at not being crazy, Shepard."

Shaking her head, she crossed the room, shuffling up the steps and out the door. She stepped into the elevator, pushing the button a bit harder than was really necessary. Shepard leaned back against the railing, closing her eyes once again.

'You're sure you want to do this?'

Her eyes popped open, and she slammed the elevator button again, growling,

"Why the hell are these things so slow?"

No one answered. Shepard was rather grateful for that. She kept her eyes trained on the polished floor for the rest of the ride, steadfastly thinking of numerous ways to dismember the Council. It was much more fun than second-guessing herself. A happy ding interrupted her right as she got to the bit involving several chain links and a butter knife. The elevator doors slid smoothly open. Shepard exited, doing her best not to glance around for people. It was already fishy looking enough to be down here when everyone else was sleeping. Kelly would no doubt love to speculate, if she ever got wind of Shepard's late-night trip.

Shepard hurriedly walked through the mess hall, coming to a stop at Garrus's red-lit door. She could hear a quiet tapping from inside.

'He's awake then. Probably calibrating.'

The turian's ability to run calibrations so often was stunning. Shepard would probably end up shooting someone if forced to do that. But she had a fifty-fifty chance of being forced to shoot someone on a trip for groceries, so she doubted that her opinion really counted for much.

'You're stalling, Shepard.'

She squared her shoulders and rapped on the door. The quiet tapping stopped suddenly. Shepard could almost hear the turian's puzzled expression. Booted feet clanked to the door, and the red light turned green. The door slid open.

'Yep, there's the puzzled look. Say something.'

Garrus's blue eyes met her own. He tilted his head slightly, the dim light reflecting off his cybernetic plate.

"Shepard? Do you need something?"

Shepard cleared her throat, peering past him.

"Yeah, right. Sure. Listen, do you mind if I come inside for a minute?"

He stepped aside, staring at her as she entered. Shepard hopped up onto a crate, folding her hands in front of her. Garrus turned back to his work station, watching her. Her eyes had dark circles underneath them, highlighted by the orange glow of her cybernetics. She sat still for several moments, seemingly at a loss for words. He didn't often see this side of Shepard. Only after Virmire and the subsequent grounding of the Normandy. Frankly, it scared him. It made him remember that she wasn't as entirely invincible as she liked to appear; something he hadn't been able to forget after they put her empty coffin in the ground.

"You should be sleeping."

Shepard slipped off the crate, crossing her arms in front of her. She shook her head; laughing quietly.

"And you shouldn't be? I wasn't the one that took a rocket to the face."

"No, you were the one that got spaced."

She held her hands up and said defensively,

"Hey, I spent the last two years getting my beauty sleep."

Garrus exhaled, turning to face her fully.

"I know you didn't come here to discuss naptime, Shepard."

The grin slipped off her face and she nodded, leaning back against the closed door.

"No. I didn't."

The turian stood passively in front of her, waiting for her to continue. He didn't know what he was expecting, but it wasn't for her to suddenly move forward, her hand gently touching the scarred side of his face. His mandibles flared in surprise, but he didn't step back. Shepard gazed at him with an unreadable expression and whispered,

"You're alive, Garrus. I just like to see you. It reminds me that I didn't leave you. It reminds me that you aren't dead in a pool of blood, staring up at the ceiling of some battered apartment in Omega. Sometimes...sometimes I forget that. I have to remember the truth."

In one swift move, she embraced him. His cowl made the position of her arms awkward and his armor was cold against her face, but it was enough to push away that haunting image of a slain Archangel, with blank blue eyes and unspent vengeance.

Shepard released him after a moment, face burning. Garrus's mandibles were slack with shock, his arms hanging limply at his sides. Shepard jabbed her thumb back at the door, taking several steps toward it.

"I-I should definitely go now. Sorry."

She turned to leave, but a gloved hand caught her wrist, pulling her back. Shepard stood close to Garrus, his hand intertwining with her own.

"You died. I spent two years forcing myself to remember that. I caught myself looking up every time a door opened, certain that you would walk in, pissed off that I'd gone and left you. And you did. But sometimes I forget that. I like to remind myself that you're alive too, Shepard. I have to."

The silence was almost tangible. Garrus inclined his head to meet Shepard's, her warm skin meeting his a welcome proof that neither of them had left.

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