Author's Note: This is a slightly AU, expanded version of the quest an Earthborn origin Shepard gets at some point on the Citadel.

Disclaimer: As usual, Mass Effect and all associated characters and places belong to Bioware. No infringement offered or intended.

The Citadel

Zakera Ward, Market

"Commander Shepard! Hey, Commander Shepard, it's me!" Over at his habitual spot by the wall next to Expat's shop, the pale-haired man in the black shirt waved his arm frantically at them. "Remember me? Conrad Verner?"

"Just smile and move, Commander." Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko murmured. "We got this." He put a hand on Shepard's shoulder to nudge her down the stairs to the lower market. "Chief, initiate the Verner Protocol."

"On it, LT." A determined smile on her face, Ashley flanked their commanding officer, cutting off Verner's view of her as they descended. "Sorry, Mister Verner. In a rush. Spectre business. You know how it is. We'll try and catch up later."

Too surprised to resist, Shepard followed orders. Once they were down the second flight of stairs and out of sight of the man, she stopped and blew a breath out from pursed lips. "I cannot believe he's still there," she muttered, carefully watching the stairs as if she expected Verner to come down them at any second.

Kaidan gave one of his dry chuckles. "You know, I don't think he's moved from the last time we saw him."

His observation brought the Commander's attention squarely on him. "Why in the Maker's name were you two treating me like a diplomat in a hostile situation? 'Just keep moving, ma'am'? Verner Protocol? And you, Williams, flanking to catch stray fire? Seriously?"

"Just obeying orders, ma'am." Ashley went to attention, but there was a distinctly amused gleam in her eye. "You told the LT and me to never allow anyone to ask you for your autograph again."

Shepard rubbed the back of her neck. "I did, didn't I?" She laughed, giving them a high-voltage grin that made a passing asari blink. "In that case, good job, you two. Excellent work. I'm especially impressed that you had a code name all set to go."

"Hey, the code name was my idea." A lopsided grin lifted one corner of Ashley's full mouth. "Does that mean I can have a new rifle when we get to Morlan's shop?"

Shepard had to laugh again; there had been a slightly plaintive tone in the gunnery chief's voice. "We'll see what he has. Just as long as we don't go out of the market the same way we came in. I am not in the mood to play 'evacuate the dignitary' twice in one day."

The enterprising salarian merchant had a few things in stock that Shepard liked and were distinct upgrades from their current gear. While she handled the details of delivery to the Normandy, her squadmates were surveying the area. "Hey, check it, Commander. Back door." Ashley was grinning and pointing to a door in the back of the market that they hadn't bothered to explore before. "No running the fan gauntlet for us."

"Wonder where it leads." Kaidan pulled up a Citadel map on his omnitool and frowned thoughtfully over it. "Chora's Den looks like it's just around the corner."

The dark-haired gunnery chief put one hand on her hip, one eyebrow raised sardonically. "Angling for some shore leave, LT?"

"In that place? Nah." He shook his head. "Too much noise. I've been riding a good wave of no migraines last couple of days, and I don't want to fall off just yet."

Ashley smirked, clearly disbelieving. "Sure you don't want to risk it for that view?"

Fascinated, Shepard watched a dull flush creep up Alenko's neck for a few seconds before she took pity on him. How anyone that straightlaced had managed to survive as long as he had in the military was a mystery to her. "Chief... Give it a rest."

"Yes, ma'am. Giving it a rest." Ashley deflated slightly, pouting. "You never let me have any fun."

As soon as they entered the corridor beyond the market and outside Chora's Den, the hair on the back of Shepard's neck started to prickle. The area was empty except for one human male leaning against the wall across from the Citadel transit kiosk. She scanned him with the ease of habit and the speed of someone who knew her life usually relied on an accurate threat assessment. Approximately six feet tall, no visible weapons, couldn't see if he was amped, so biotics remained a possibility; possible late twenties to early thirties, medium brown hair slightly too long to indicate military service, shirtsleeves rolled up to expose arms ropy with muscle. What she could see of his left hand showed knobbed knuckles and rough patches. He worked with his hands. Dressed in nondescript dark clothing, no logos or patches to indicate a job or company affiliation.

The lurking man smirked at her as the marines approached; the gesture made her gun hand itch. Shepard could see the dull gleam of his teeth even in the low, ruddy light. "They told me it was you, but I didn't believe it." Amusement laced his nasal voice; the emotion didn't make him any more pleasant to listen to. "Little Shepard grew up and turned into a soldier."

Shepard's dark eyes narrowed. "Do I know you?"

"Name's Finch. You probably don't remember me, but we have a little in common." He rolled up his sleeve to display the red X tattooed on his bicep.

She'd had a similar one lasered off her shoulder when she joined the Alliance. Shepard swallowed the sour taste of bile that rose, accompanied by a wave of old memories that had nothing to do with him and everything to do with that red X. "Finch, I guarantee we have nothing in common."

"Really?" Finch's smile was not nice. "Maybe you don't remember, running in a gang. Maybe someone should do an interview, talking about Commander Shepard's dirty little history in the Tenth Street Reds."

In his usual spot at the commander's right elbow, Kaidan clenched a fist, feeling the vague prickle of biotic static form around it like a warning. Beside him, Ashley glanced over. The dim light of the corridor wasn't really conducive to communication, but he could read the look in her eyes. She was ready to back whatever play he made. They exchanged almost infinitesimally small nods. Nobody fucked with the Commander.

"We don't want to cause you trouble, Shepard," Finch was saying. "We just want a favor. For old time's sake."

"And what favor would that be, Finch?" Shepard crossed her arms over her chest, watching Finch with an expression that could by turns be described as predatory and patient.

"A Red named Curt Weisman got picked up by the turians. We want you to go into the bar there and talk to the turian guard. Get him out of his little dilemma."

"What the hell was this Weisman doing in turian space?"

"Shipping." His greasy grin flashed again. "We do a lot of shipping. Cargo. He might have got caught with a little red sand. You know how the turians are. Sticks up their asses. You do this for us, and you never have to see me again." Finch's eyes glittered. "You don't and... well... You might not run with the Reds any more, Shepard, but you really don't want us as your enemies."

"Maybe it's escaped your notice, Finch, but of the two of us, I'm the one with the gun." She leaned closer, ignoring the twisting of her stomach. "Maybe you want to be a little more careful about who you're tossing threats at."

"Hey, who's threatening?" Finch held up his hands. "I'm just saying life is dangerous, Shepard. Why add to your troubles?" He grinned crookedly, stained teeth gleaming in the ruddy light from the overhead fixtures. "Think about it, is all." He winked at her. "Catch you around, Shepard."

Shepard watched Finch saunter away. "Arrogant prick," she muttered.

"Commander?" Ash was the one who spoke first, picking up the slack and stepping into the uncomfortable silence. "No one who knows you is going to hang you over something you did as a kid. I've read your bio. Everyone has. It's common knowledge, old news. Not like you fell into the Reds on purpose."

"Actually, I did."" Shepard shrugged lightly. "It was that or starve or become an eight year old whore."

The other woman blanched. "Sorry, ma'am, I didn't..."

"Ash." Shepard held up one hand. "It's okay. I only said it because it was true, and it's old news. Besides, I have nothing to hide from you two. I trust you both." A small smile broke through the shadows in her dark eyes when she looked at Kaidan. "You gonna put that away, Alenko?"

Kaidan realized his fist was still glowing... and trembling faintly. With an effort, he banked his anger and pulled the dark matter back. The eezo nodules in his chest flared with fire, and his nerves hummed as if in protest. Not a good sign. He was supposed to be the steady one, the methodical one, the one who always remembered to leave himself a way out. Problem was, leaving a way out was becoming increasingly hard to do where the commander was concerned. "Sorry, commander. Didn't realize you noticed."

"Hard not to notice when a ball of biotic static is a foot away from your back." Shepard rolled her shoulders to shake the tension from them. It didn't work. "Come on. Let's get this done." She strode into the branching corridor.

"Where are we going, ma'am?" Ashley wanted to know.

"Looks like we're going to Chora's Den after all."

O o O