Shepard watched from the port window as they made their final descent onto Noveria; she hadn't thought to see this planet again. If she were honest, and Shepard prided herself on her honesty, she had rather hoped she wouldn't have to see this chunk of ice again. Her memories were… unpleasant to say the least. Shepard swallowed hard, imagining she could feel the sting of bile in her throat. The last time she was here she had been forced to kill Liara's mother, and that was a fact she thought would always weigh heavily on her shoulders, especially given her initial distrust of the asari maiden.
"You alright?" Garrus' rumbling voice was subdued, but she took comfort in his presence. He knew the number of her sins and it never seemed to repel him.
"I'm fine. Memories, you know?"
She felt more than saw Garrus nod, a gesture he had only recently picked up; she smiled fondly, they were more in-tune than most conventional couples, regardless of cross-species differences. He had made a fair number of concessions to her humanity; she felt guilty now for knowing a little less of turians. Shepard made a mental note to garner a little more information from the extra-net; Garrus would appreciate the effort, she knew.
"Where are we meeting Lorik?"
Down to business, that was precisely what she needed. "The hotel bar, for remembrance's sake."
Garrus stiffened and Shepard turned to him in confusion, laying a hand on his arm. "Is everything alright with you? You seem a little off."
"Meeting at the bar for remembrance's sake? Anything else you're intending to do for remembrance's sake?" She couldn't fail to hear the insinuation beneath his words, but cursed if she could find the cause of it. Honesty. Honesty between them was the only thing that would make this work. Unfortunately, when she spoke her words sounded far more confrontational than merely questioning.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean, Vakarian?"
"It means Lorik Qui'in is widely considered handsome by turian standards; you've shown a preference for turians-"
"I've shown a preference for you." Shepard's brows winged up in surprise. " Do you think I'm going to run off with the next turian I meet because I prefer his face-paint or something?"
"Do you prefer his face-paint?"
Shepard threw her hands in the air, sighing dramatically. "This is ridiculous. You were there; you know full well there was nothing going on there. Not even a hint. I can't believe you just up and accused me of that, Garrus."
They lowered onto the docking bay and Shepard turned from him, prepared to make a grand exit complete with blistering and righteously indignant invective.
"Shepard," Garrus caught her arm, pulling her closer. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'm just a little put out that we're going to waste a honeymoon chasing down thugs for some business-minded turian we only met for a few minutes a few years ago."
"He isn't any happier about this, believe me. The last time we were here we managed to totally destroy a research facility and rack up a death toll that would leave the most bloodthirsty Krogan envious. We'll get this done and get out. Promise. Besides, I seem to recall having to explain the concept of a "honeymoon" to you, now suddenly you're on board with the idea?"
"There are a few human practices worth adopting." Garrus' mandibles flickered in amusement; he released her arm and stepped back. "I suppose you had better prepare to leave, Commander."
Shepard wrinkled her nose, an action Garrus had always found particularly confounding. How did they manage to contort their faces into such expressions and how was he supposed to interpret it?
"I'll meet you at the airlock in ten; I'm not sure if we're heading off to catch this bastard directly or if we'll be there awhile so make sure you come armed."
Garrus snorted softly and Shepard grinned, "One more thing, you don't have to call me Commander all the time. I won't report you."
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Shepard hurried off to find her other crew-mates, leaving Garrus to his contemplation. Odd, that she should feel the need to tell him not to address her according to rank. She was the Commander whether she was his wife or not. In a turian marriage, rank would always be a factor, even if it wasn't directly addressed. This bore thinking on. Was she upset that he hadn't been more forceful? What with her being his superior and all he had thought she would naturally prefer to take charge. He certainly had no problem becoming the proverbial head of the household if that was what bothered her; he just hadn't thought humans had the same household power dynamics as turians. Yet another thing he had failed to find in his research; he would have to be more thorough in his studies.
Garrus turned back to the window, still troubled despite himself. He knew full well there was nothing between Lorik and Shepard, not even the chance of it. That didn't prevent him from feeling a little put-out though. It seemed they hadn't truly had a moment alone in months; there was always some old friend in need of help, always something the Alliance needed done, always something the council felt should be left to a spectre of Shepard's caliber.
It had begun to wear on him, Shepard's insistence on taking every job that came their way; he didn't expect her to consult with him per se, she was still the Commander after all, but a little consideration would have been nice. Then again, she had said that he needn't consider her the "Commander" all the time. Maybe it was time he asserted his right to authority; if she was not willing to assert the full measure of command he would be more than willing to take that duty on his own shoulders.
Satisfied that he had at last puzzled out the meaning of her words, Garrus hurried off to the airlock in a considerably brighter mood.
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Noveria hadn't changed much since their last visit; new administration, same corruption she would wager. Security seemed to have been increased, not surprising really. Her team was waved through with a minimum of hassle, not even asked to justify their weapons. Evidently Lorik hadn't been exaggerating when he said he could clear the way. She smiled at Garrus reassuringly, noting his unaccustomed aggressive stance. Garrus had little to no tolerance for bureaucratic red tape, and Noveria had a surplus of it. He hadn't liked it last time, and it seemed he was no keener on the place now.
It might have been better to leave him behind, given his sentiments on corruption, but they hadn't been working much together these past few weeks and she missed having him at her back. Shepard's false smile turned to a scowl when she noticed Garrus hadn't even taken a moment to appreciate her frail efforts, he was glaring at the path ahead of him as though it had done him a personal injury.
"Garrus, you going to be alright there?"
"I'm fine, Shepard."
The words were short and clipped; was this really still about helping Lorik? He had said that everything was fine, and he was usually the first to inform her if anything was awry, but this brooding silence was decidedly out of character. She had expected at least a few cutting remarks about the station, or the lack of effort on behalf of security, maybe a pithy observation about the tycoons that frequented a planet like this. Something. Anything.
Shepard dismissed her thoughts with a shake of her head. They could take this up again when they were back safe aboard the Normandy, for now she just had to find Lorik; she hoped the elevator to the bar wouldn't be too awkward.
Shepard glanced back at a muffled snicker from Tali, frowning thunderously; it would be a miracle if any of them got off this planet in one piece. Garrus was fit to be tied, Tali was clearly soaking up the drama and if Shepard heard so much as a snort from that direction again she was going to do something drastic.
The doors hissed open and Shepard cast a cautious look back to Garrus before exiting the elevator. The look he gave her was nothing short of a challenge and Shepard bridled slightly at the accusation in his eyes. She glowered at him warningly; it was one thing if he wanted to continue this conversation back aboard the Normandy, but out here she was in command and he needed to remember that.
"Garrus. Don't."
"Don't what, Shepard?" That tone was entirely too pleasant for her peace of mind, and was it just her imagination or was he showing more teeth than usual?
"Don't make something of this."
"What's 'this', Shepard. I thought you said there was nothing there to worry about? I couldn't make something from nothing could I? It violates the most basic rules of-"
"You've been spending too much time with Joker." She grated out, "Just let me do the talking-"
"Why?"
Shepard spun, "I took this commission. I am in charge. Clear?"
She blinked at the flash of surprise that lit his face before he nodded once, seemingly acquiescing. He was a terrible liar- there was nothing sincere in that face.
"Vakarian, if you-"
"Shepard."
Shepard nearly jumped out of her skin, one hand flying to the holster of her weapon as another extended to hold her partner back. The soft rumble of turian laughter and Lorik's familiar face eased her tension.
"Easy, Commander. You're among friends."
Garrus cut her off before she could speak, growling at the newcomer threateningly. "You're sure, Qui'in? Nothing too fri-"
"Enough!" She barked, "Lorik, I'm sorry. Garrus is a little out of sorts. He didn't get much sleep last night. Otherwise occupied."
There. That should keep him quiet; Garrus was a little shy… she glanced back in surprise when he stepped forward and pulled her close, still eyeing Lorik like the proverbial fly in the lotion.
Though he spoke to her, Lorik locked eyes with Garrus; some message seemed to pass between them, leaving her all manner of peeved. How dare they have some unspoken means of communication? They hadn't known each other half as long as she'd known Garrus. It had to be a turian thing; was there some cultural cue she was missing out on?
She really had to get around to that extra-curricular research soon or this was going to be hell.
Shepard could swear she heard Tali snickering again, but that damn helmet hid her face too well, and by the time she glanced back Tali was perfectly still and silent. What the hell did everyone here know that she didn't? She had the uncomfortable feeling she was going to find out, and probably not in the most pleasant of ways.
With this being the final month of classes, real life is kind of kicking me in the teeth. That having been said, I will try to update regularly but chapter length will be a little reduced.
Sorry!
