I'm still working on Blood Runs Red, but I wrote this a short while ago and forgot to post it here.

It's a little rough around the edges, but I just couldn't resist.

Shepard frowned at her reflection in the mirror; no matter which way she looked at it, this was just wrong. The heels were too high for sprinting, the dress was too tight to permit swift movement and that necklace could easily be used as a lethal weapon in close-quarters combat. No, this wouldn't do.

"Kasumi, I'm not wearing this."

"Come on, you look great! You should really try wearing a dress more often, it does a lot to show off your figure." Kasumi smiled teasingly, "I bet Liara would like it."

Shepard looked at the dress with new eyes, considering her lover's potential reaction. No. Still wouldn't do; she loved Liara dearly but surely she would prefer her lover back in one piece.

"I can still dress nicely without… this. There are some pin-striped suits in the window. That should be enough to appease Hock's rigid aesthetics.

Kasumi pursed her lips, tapping a foot impatiently. "It's just this once. What do you have against dresses anyway? This is the cutting edge of fashion, Shepard." She sounded a little offended, but then Shepard had been trying on dresses for the past hour at least and her patience was wearing every bit as thin.

"This isn't a social call, if something goes wrong we can expect to see some action and I am not going to get caught in the cross-fire with this little scrap of material. These heels could double as knives I'll grant you, but they're just as likely to trip me up. No. We go with a suit. It's final."

"The dress-"

"Is beautiful. You should consider wearing it, but if I'm going to be "Allison Gunn" then I'm going to be Allison Gunn, and she doesn't wear dresses either."

Kasumi rolled her eyes. "Fine. I concede the point."

Shepard brightened until Kasumi's finger shot up in a halting motion, "On the condition that I choose your suit."

Shepard pondered for a moment, noting the increasingly vexed look on Kasumi's face; she wanted to choose her outfit herself, but then again she desperately wanted out of this shop and back aboard her ship. Giving in to Kasumi would be the fastest way to accomplish that ergo… "Fine. I reserve veto power, but as long as it's nothing too crazy you can choose."

Kasumi beamed, rushing from the changing room before she had the chance to reconsider. Shepard couldn't quite suppress her worried frown; Kasumi and she had vastly different ideas of what was practical, but she had to admit that the thief had excellent taste. Nothing for it but to trust her, Kasumi would know better than to go for something completely out of line, or so she hoped.

By the time Kasumi stepped back into the room, Shepard had resigned herself to a miserable evening in a stiff tux sipping lukewarm champagne without even the promise of a stolen kiss or two. Even those less than inspiring thoughts evaporated when she saw the offering Kasumi presented, "That's perfect."

"I thought you would approve."

Shepard hurriedly stripped out of the dress, uncaring of Kasumi's presence, only relieved to have it off. She slipped into the new suit as quickly as she could, fumbling with the buttons of her shirt in her haste; it felt suspiciously like silk against her calloused fingertips and Shepard grinned at the thought of what Liara would say if she could see her now. She would have to take this back to Illium, perhaps she could even find someplace to wear it there. Shepard tilted her head back as Kasumi's deft fingers slipped her tie into a Double Windsor and stepped back to admire her work.

They both took a moment to ogle the reflection in the mirror appreciatively; black was undoubtedly her color, emphasizing the paleness of her skin and darkening her eyes, her legs seemed a little longer and the waistcoat emphasized the curve of her breasts and hips. She wished even more that Liara had been here to see, indulged in a brief fantasy of snatching a kiss as she helped her to dress. Better even, helped her to undress.

Shepard shook her head to clear it of the image; that would just have to wait until she came back. Liara was a talented information broker, but Kasumi was a professional and even if Liara had somehow managed to track her movements she certainly couldn't afford to leave Illium right now.

Shepard grinned rakishly at her reflection, at least she had the satisfaction of knowing it would be a surprise.

"We can go as soon as you're done making eyes at yourself, Shepard." She could hear the suppressed laughter in Kasumi's voice and snapped out of her reverie quickly.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go."

When Shepard exited her quarters a few hours later she was surprised to find Miranda and Kasumi both lurking outside; Garrus seemed to have just joined the party, leaning back against the wall nonchalantly as he watched the two women talking. Shepard paused, "Is there something I should know?"

She barely caught the smile that flitted across Miranda's features, "No, Commander. Kasumi warned me you were playing dress- up tonight; since I can't be there to see you in action I thought I might drop by to see for myself."

"She means you look sharp, Shepard." Garrus chirped, "Nice emphasis on the waist."

Shepard laughed outright, "You should've seen the slinky black number Kasumi tried prodding me into. Would have done Miranda proud."

"Is there any particular significance to that statement, Shepard?" Miranda's voice had dropped to that register that always preceded a tantrum, not that Miranda would ever admit to anything so undignified as a tantrum. "Cutting edge fashion; you would have been proud to wear it. I think the monkey-suit is more my speed." Shepard winked teasingly and Miranda relaxed as her arms fell back to her sides; the danger had passed.

Garrus cut in quickly, "Joker wants you to drop by the cockpit so he can see; I wouldn't, you'll end up on the extranet with your cover blown."

"Duly noted. We need to get a move on anyway or we're going to be late."

Kasumi shook her head, "Philistines, it is always best to be fashionably late. Besides, I'm not sure Allison Gunn would care one way or the other."

"I do. We need to be there early enough to scout out the terrain."

Miranda and Kasumi both laughed while Shepard and Garrus looked on in confusion. "Everything is a battle-field, right?" Kasumi snickered.

Shepard scowled, "It's a valid concern. Donovan Hock doesn't take chances. We have no way of knowing if this is going to come off without a hitch, but my money is on No. Nothing is ever this easy and this man is in charge of a criminal empire. If he were stupid, he'd be dead."

Kasumi sobered instantly, "Point taken. We should go, I'll brief you on your background en route."

Shepard bowed playfully, offering an arm to Kasumi. "Very nice, Shepard. Be careful though, Liara's bound to be jealous."

Shepard chuckled, "What she doesn't know won't kill me, right?"

"Assuming there's anything she doesn't know. Information broker, remember?"

"I know. She'll forgive me." Shepard's smile was wistful; as much as she enjoyed Kasumi's company she would far rather it were Liara on her arm now. Then again they could be walking straight into hell; Shepard offered up thanks that she was far away instead, there was no way she would have agreed to sit out otherwise.

Shepard made her way to the pod, Kasumi hanging on her arm, jokingly cooing sweet nothings to the air. Shepard was too busy basking in the attention she drew to do more than chuckle perfunctorily. Jacob whistled as she walked into the CIC, "You wear that better than I could, Commander."

"Damn straight, Taylor; uniform suits you better." Shepard giggled at the unintended pun and stifled it quickly lest Kasumi should hear. Damn, she was practically drunk already and she wasn't even off the ship.

Kelly stepped forward swiftly, a mischievous smirk on her features; "Commander, as your assistant I feel it is my duty to inform you that your tie is crooked." Shepard glanced down sheepishly, maybe she should have let Kasumi dress her again, even if it did make her feel a little like a child. Kelly straightened her tie professionally and then smoothed her hands down her shirtfront to ensure no creases were left.

Kasumi batted her hand away playfully, "Paws off. She's all mine for the evening."

"Speaking of, I think we officially count for 'fashionably late', now we're verging into insultingly absent." Shepard muttered.

Kasumi sighed in mock exasperation. "Alright, Alright. We can go. I was just showing off a little, but I want to make it clear that suit or no suit, I drive."

Shepard huffed, "Anything you want if we can just go and get this over with. Much as I'm enjoying the attention this is getting a little warm."

Shepard allowed Kelly to turn her around and push her forward, "Then stop flirting and go."