A/N: there will be some serious content coming into this story soon too, as well as romantic fluff, so bear with me! Special thanks to ShadowBlazer for giving me some useful tips on character development. I now have a pretty good idea of who my Shepard is. Please feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think! Also, if you find any typos or grammatical errors, let me know.
[Normandy SR-2 - Med bay]
"And so that child essentially tells me I should be getting drunk instead of drinking coffee, so I figured I might as well invite you to my little party with the Serrice Ice Brandy bottle," Dr. Chakwas laughed, looking at the Commander merrily.
Shepard, having donned her N7 hoodie and plain black fatigue pants before coming down to the med bay, casually leaned against the wall. "I don't think that child is much younger than I am, good Doctor. Do you talk about me that way behind my back too?" Shepard's eyes lit up as she laughed along with Chakwas, temporarily forgetting all the things she had been worrying about earlier.
"No, I tend to call you teenage ruffian, though I could give you a downgrade if you so wish, Commander. Besides, that is not the point. The point is that apparently everyone on this ship is aware of my fondness of a good bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy. And it's gotten so bad that I can't even go get coffee for myself without practically being called a drunk," Dr. Chakwas joked. "If you share this bottle with me, at least we'll both be half drunk."
Shepard appeared slightly bemused by Dr. Chakwas' twisted logic but then decided not to call her out on it. "Challenge accepted, grandma," she teased, then added in a serious tone, "since we're talking about other crew members, how are you fitting in, Karin? Besides your obvious and out-of-control drinking problem, that is." Shepard treated herself and Dr. Chakwas to a refill and looked at the Doctor, a twinkle still entertaining her striking green eyes, so oddly flecked with blue.
"Can't complain. The Normandy crew is as nice as ever. And I'm still serving humanity by doing my duty," Chakwas replied. "How about you? Anyone in particular you're interested in... fitting in?" A mischievous grin accompanied Chakwas' insinuating tone.
The Commander arched an eyebrow and studied Dr. Chakwas. Suddenly lost in thought, she lowered her head and sighed. "No, not since Liara and I broke up. I haven't been able or willing to focus on any kind of romantic feelings since the Collector's base anyway. But enough of that, hit me with another round!" Shepard's smile was back, but it wasn't touching her eyes anymore.
[Normandy SR-2 - Women's bathroom]
Specialist Traynor was standing in front of the mirror in the women's bathroom, thinking. The downside of not having one's own quarters meant that it was hard to find a place where one could be alone for a while. The bridge and CIC were always full of people and so were the mess hall and sleeping quarters. There was usually someone on the observation decks looking out the port windows, not to mention all the crew members working on the engineering deck and in the shuttle bay. Though life support could sometimes offer perfect seclusion, in Traynor's experience it was most quiet in the women's bathrooms. At night at least.
Did Dr. Chakwas figure out I have a stupid girl crush on the Commander? She couldn't have, could she? We didn't even mention the Commander! Or am I seeing too much into this? Maybe I should just try to be formal with the Commander. I mean, not that I haven't tried before, but, maybe I should try harder. No gawking. When those eyes look at me...HA! Who am I kidding? I can't stop gawking at Shepard. I'm not dead...yet.
The Specialist didn't even notice the door moving and the silhouette staggering into the bathroom, when suddenly a movement behind her made her jump. Gasping for breath, she turned around and looked straight at the Commander who stood there smiling stupidly but sadly at her Comm Specialist.
"Whyyy are you heeeere in my wroom?" Shepard slurred, still smiling her sad smile.
For once, Traynor's mind did not take side-turns before coming to the point. "Commander, this is the women's bathroom on the third deck. Let me take you to your quarters," she stated, proud of her curt but friendly delivery.
Shepard shot a puzzled look at Traynor and looked around. Apparently deciding Samantha might be right, the Commander turned around and staggered back towards the door. Traynor's arm, quickly wrapped around the Commander's side, kept her from toppling over. The human Spectre emanated warmth, pleasant warmth. The Commander rested her head on Traynor's shoulder and let herself be herded out of the bathrooms.
"Come on, Commander, let's get you back to bed safely," Traynor reassured her superior officer. Of course I can talk properly when she's down. Great. What a useful find. What made her drink so much anyway? Was she just having a good time? That wouldn't be very responsible for a commanding officer. Maybe the Reaper war is weighing more heavily on her than she lets on...
As they were walking toward the elevator, Shepard looked at Traynor and then proceeded to start laughing hysterically, as if suddenly remembering something. Traynor immediately forgot her worried thoughts from just a second ago as she felt her cheeks redden in a failed attempt to understand the Commander's sudden outburst of ridiculously loud laughter. "Commander...you'll w-wake the crew...um...shhhh!...please?" Oh bloody hell. I'm insecure again. Hi, comfort zone!
The elevator door opened and Shepard disentangled herself from Traynor, effectively launching herself into the elevator. Somehow she managed to stay upright and punch the button that has "Captain's Cabin" written next to it.
"I'll get there, sssspecialist," she stammered, still laughing.
Traynor could only stand there and look baffled as the elevator door started to close. Before swinging fully shut, she heard Shepard chuckling to herself.
"A child, shhhe said, ehehehehe". Does she mean me? Why- great. This experience will surely have a positive influence on my talking skills in front of the Commander. On second thought, maybe I should quit my job. The Commander will probably hold this little encounter against me. If she even remembers anything at all. As Traynor headed toward the crew sleeping quarters, she weighed her options. No. I need to stay. If something is troubling her, I want to help.
[Normandy SR-2 - Bridge]
A massive headache had been plaguing the Commander ever since she got up early this morning. She had had a drunken and troubled sleep, which usually combines into a bad mood the next day. Her auburn hair was completely dishevelled when she woke up and she was still wearing the hoodie and fatigue pants she had worn when going to see Dr. Chakwas. She had taken a quick shower to get the stink of alcohol off her and put on her formal N7 attire she usually wore when on duty. Worst of all, she had no idea what had happened after she had left Dr. Chakwas' office. This had not happened to her ever since she took over command of the Normandy.
Walking slowly onto the bridge as to not get dizzy, she encountered Joker and EDI as they were in the middle of one of their arguments about the appropriate air temperature on the ship.
"How can you judge what's appropriate, EDI? Your silver body, however sexy, doesn't even feel the temperature!" Jeff exclaimed.
When EDI was about to open her mouth for a retort that was probably of pilot-crushing quality, Shepard cleared her throat noisily.
"Oh, hi Commander," Jeff said in his usual slightly sheepish tone.
"Good morning, Commander," EDI began, "or rather, bad morning if my reading of your facial expression and body language is correct".
Shepard grunted and nodded in acknowledgement of EDI's observation. "EDI, can you track my movements of yesterday evening after I left Dr. Chakwas' office?" she said, her tone clearly tired and forced. "As you wish, Commander," came EDI's swift reply. "You went to the women's bathroom and then came out thirty seconds later with Specialist Traynor. She had one arm wrapped around your side and walked you to the elevator, at which point you wriggled loose of her grip and went up to your cabin alone and, as you humans would put it, crashed on the bed."
Shepard grimaced as she shook her head in disbelief. "Can you play the records of my conversation with the Specialist, please?" she asked while squinting her eyes-not in the least to protect them from too much light falling in. The Commander was not looking forward to the results, but she needed to know whether she had done or said anything to undermine her position with her crew.
"Certainly, Commander," EDI replied. "Playing the records now."
"Whyyy are you heeeere in my wroom?
...
Commander, this is the women's bathroom on the third deck. Let me take you to your quarters.
...
Come on, Commander, let's get you back to bed safely.
...
[hysterical laughter]
...
Commander...you'll w-wake the crew...um...shhhh!...please?
...
[laughter] I'll get there, sssspecialist.
...
[chuckle] A child, shhhe said, ehehehehe!
...
Hi bed!
...
[loud snoring]"
The Commander's expression had gone from bad to worse at each uttered sound or sentence. Jeff just outright started laughing at the very first sentence and hadn't stopped since.
"Why, Commander, I didn't know you had a lisp!" he said teasingly while shielding his head with his hands from Shepard's half-hearted attack.
The Commander grunted and massaged her temples. "I should probably go talk to Traynor..." she said as she walked away. She could still hear Jeff laughing and EDI asking him why he finds this situation so funny before stating that she has some interesting recordings of him too.
[Normandy SR-2 - CIC]
Traynor looked up from her monitor as she saw the Commander approaching her. Shepard's eyes looked tired but determined and her hips swayed gracefully with every step she took. Mesmerized by the beauty of Shepard's delicate curves and well-defined muscles, she thought back to last night. After she had gone to bed her thoughts had run rampant through her head. Even though it was public knowledge that the human Spectre had been born and raised on Mindoir and had survived a brutal Batarian slaver attack while witnessing all of her family and friends being slaughtered, Samantha did not know what kind of impact that event had left on the Commander. As a girl of merely 16 years old Shepard had been rescued by a passing Alliance patrol and had enlisted with the military not so long after. Samantha was no psychologist but she knew such a horrible event could make someone emotionally crippled and more likely to start drinking heavily. On the other hand, news reports had never mentioned Shepard even drinking a drop of alcohol, so she could definitely not be an alcoholic or she wouldn't be able to command the Normandy. Even though the Commander could just have been partying with Dr. Chakwas, that sad smile lingered in Traynor's mind. It had to be something more and Samantha was determined to find out what was troubling Shepard. She finally fell asleep wondering if Shepard could ever love her.
The Specialist came back to reality as she noticed the Commander eyeing her cautiously. An immediate feeling of discomfort crept up as Traynor swallowed twice and uttered a shy "Commander..." Shepard seemed to relax and flashed her an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry for my pathetic behaviour yesterday evening, Specialist Traynor. I just had a little too much to drink. I hope I haven't embarrassed you." She then shifted her stance and looked sternly at her comm specialist. "I do however ask you to keep this quiet," she finished in the tone she used when issuing commands on the battlefield.
Traynor swallowed again as she looked into Shepard's commanding eyes. The apology was gone from them, replaced by a clear warning. The slight emphasis the Commander put on the word 'ask' immediately made it clear that it is actually an order. Samantha was hurt that Shepard felt the need to 'ask' her to keep quiet; she would never gossip about such a thing. They did however hardly know each other so Shepard had good reasons for her mistrust, but that is not how feelings work. "Of course, Commander...a-and it takes a lot more to embarrass me," Traynor tried to end her reply airily but her awkward delivery mostly made her sound cute.
The smile returned to the Commander's face as she resumed studying the dark skinned woman before her. "You know what, Specialist, I think we'll get along just fine. And trust me, I'm definitely going to find something to embarrass you with so be prepared to duck that pretty face of yours in shame." With a playful wink at Traynor the Commander turned around and walked away.
Traynor watched Shepard leave as she felt a familiar but pleasant knot forming in her stomach. She thinks I'm pretty.