Paris shifted as he sat up, pulling the covers away from him in panic. He rubbed his eyes, quickly leaning over and grabbing the nearest syringe he could find, but his hands were shaking violently. He stared at his wavering hands and gripped the syringe tighter, placing the tip over the inside of his elbow, staring and attempting to concentrate. All these days had passed and he was not getting any better: this 'medicine' wasn't working. Eventually he injected it and groaned. Once all the liquid was gone, he threw it into the bin and got out of bed, making an attempt to look healthy.
Down in the mess-hall, Raegen was playing with a fork, spinning it around in her fingers as she stared at her half finished meal. Pursing her lips, the woman put her free hand nervously through her hair and glanced up at two crewmembers passing by. They shot her a fleeting look before whispering to themselves, and she looked back down at her tray, face contorting to one of anger. She threw the fork at the tray and picked it up harshly, walking over to the kitchen area and putting it on the island, only to have Gardner sent her a quick glare.
"Those things don't come cheap, missy!" he snapped, "Fix that tray, I ain't your maid!"
Raegen hesitated, slightly shocked that a man that seemed quite docile would snap like that, and quickly did as told. She was still trying to get used to this new environment, which involved following orders from superiors, and quickly put it with the rest of the neat pile of trays waiting to be washed. He smiled slightly, and Raegen let out a soft sigh.
"Something bothering you, missy?" he asked after a moment, and Raegen glanced at him and shrugged, crossing her arms over her stomach.
"What's it to you?" she asked, although she leaned on the counter and Gardner laughed, his smile widening.
"No one likes a long face, missy, not aboard this ship!" he claimed, "Why not try to act a little more grateful that Shepard let you board here? This is probably the best and safest god damn ship in the universe!"
"Tch." Raegen let out a small laugh, shaking her head and looking at her feet, "I believe that. But everyone is so happy. What's with that? This is a battle ship, isn't it?"
"You don't know Shepard very well, do ya, missy?" he challenged, and Raegen raised her eyebrows at him and he smirked, continuing, "Shepard may be one of the most bad ass there is, but he's also the kindest commander I've ever met. Usually you can't get that combination."
Raegen looked at him with a small smile and nodded.
"What's yer name, anyway?"
"Raegen." she answered and he nodded, smirking to himself before waving a hand idly at her, moving to pick up some of the trays.
"Well, I gotta get busy and do some work! See you 'round, missy." he stated, and Raegen sent him a glance at the use of this new nickname before walking towards the elevator, jumping a little as it opened and she came face to face with a tired looking Shepard.
"Oh, sorry, Rae." he said quietly, rubbing his eyes, "Excuse me, I have to go speak with Dr Chakwas."
She stepped to the side as he walked towards the doctor's office, and she hesitated and looked down before tutting and walking into the elevator, pressing the button for the hangar with a frown. As the elevator went down, Raegen cursed under her breath as it stopped, and she looked up. Stepping out, she put a hand through her hair and walked into the ship's core room, glancing at Miranda, whom seemed rather out of place in Raegen's opinion, then seeing two humans.
"Oh, you must be the new team member." the woman turned and smiled, "I'm Gabriella, and this is Kenneth."
"Alright?" he greeted, glancing at her, then looking back at his controls. Raegen waved a little hesitantly, looking at them, then over her shoulder, sighing a little.
"The elevator seems a bit out of it." she stated, "It won't go down to the hangar anymore."
"The elevator has been messing up for a while now. Kenneth said he would fix it." Gabriella stated pointedly, and the man turned to look at Raegen properly and smiled a little, rubbing the back of his head.
"I am a busy man! Being an Engineer for Shepard isn't just any old job, y'know." he excused knowingly, and Raegen made a small face.
"Shepard can't be all that he's hyped up to be." she stated, but before either of them could retort, Miranda stepped towards them, and Raegen could feel the anger radiating from the woman.
"Shepard is everything and more. He's loyal, generous, strong… You should be thankful he helped you out of your situation. He has better things to do." she said firmly, "This is not a game, Raegen. This is not a chance to gamble your life away. Shepard did not give you a chance to escape your past, he gave you a chance to help save the galaxy. I have read about your history, and it is not a clean one."
"Oh, back off!" Raegen snapped, "Not everyone has a perfect record, that doesn't mean we're no good on the team! I am not using Shepard just for protection!"
"Maybe you're using your friend Garrus then." Miranda narrowed her eyes, and Raegen clenched her fists, her hands glowing a vibrant pink, and Miranda slowly smirked. Gabriella glanced at them nervously, and quickly ran past them to the elevator.
"Say that again! I dare you!" Raegen challenged, and Miranda snorted, crossing her arms.
"See? You're far too emotional for this kind of thing. Paris made a mistake." she muttered, and Kenneth stepped forward and began to utter something, but Raegen was already speaking over him.
"Just because you were brought up to be perfect doesn't mean the rest of us need to live to your expectations! Get that stick out of your ass, Lawson, you're not as perfect and pretty as you think you are!" Raegen flexed her fingers, and Miranda readied herself for an attack.
"Don't you dare speak to your executive officer like that!" she demanded, raising her hand violently and sending Raegen into a wall. Her face smashed against a pipe and the cut on her lip burst, blood dribbling down her chin. Raegen snarled, charging at Miranda, but Kenneth stepped between them, grabbing Raegen's shoulder.
"Attempted assault and verbally abusing an Executive Officer is a large offence, Raegen." Miranda explained harshly, "This threatening behaviour may be common and whatever mercenary ships you've been aboard, but this is not one of those ships!"
"What's going on here?" the door opened and Paris stormed in, Gabriella following after. He seemed more energetic and in control than earlier on when Raegen remembered, and the woman slowly backed up and leaned on the wall, gritting her teeth. Paris looked at her and narrowed his eyes, then snapped his head at Miranda, waiting for an explanation.
"Raegen verbally abused me, and then tried to attack me. I retaliated." she explained, and Paris looked around.
"Where's Tali?"
"She left to get some rest." Kenneth explained quickly, and Raegen looked at the man for help, but he stayed quiet otherwise.
"Go get yourself cleaned up, Raegen. I'll talk to you in a minute." Paris ordered, and the woman stormed past Miranda, bashing her shoulder against the officer's as she did. Miranda glared after her, then turned back to face Paris, who was pacing.
Raegen walked towards Dr Chakwas office, glancing round to see Gardner speaking with Garrus. Gardner glanced at her, doing a double take when he spotted the blood and frowned almost disappointedly, and Garrus turned and narrowed his eyes. Raegen ignored them, instead looking at Chakwas as she turned on her chair.
"Oh, what happened to you?" she asked, "It's not often there's a fight on a Cerberus ship."
Raegen sat down on one of the beds and looked down at her hands, twiddling her thumbs as Chakwas took a look at her lip. She heard a tut come from the doctor and she glanced up.
"Who did this to you, anyway?" she asked with a small nostalgic smile, and Raegen paused.
"Miranda." she finally answered, making a face at the very mention of her. Saying her name felt like punching herself. Well, it seemed Miranda had already done that for her.
"Really? You must have said something really awful to piss her off." she stated, "But Miss Lawson is a very proud creature. I'm not all surprised; you both don't seem to have very… Cooperative personalities."
"You got that right." Raegen mumbled, but winced at the pain and Chakwas asked her to keep still.
"You'll definitely need stitches." Chakwas decided, and Raegen tried not to frown, remembering the doctor's orders of keep still. The door opened, and Chakwas glanced round, greeting Garrus with a friendly hello.
"What's the damage, doc?" he asked, and Chakwas smirked a little.
"Not as serious as your scarring, for now." she answered, and Garrus smirked before giving Raegen a look. Chakwas continued to work on Raegen's lip, forcing the patient to keep quiet, "Although you'll soon be matching if she keeps egging on any more crew members."
This added piece of information only furthered Garrus' stare, and Raegen avoided eye contact. Once Chakwas was finished, she glanced at Garrus and quickly left the room, claiming that she needed to find some supplies from Gardner. Garrus sighed, pacing in front of Raegen, who had went back to twiddling her fingers.
"I knew you'd probably break the promise about gambling, Rae, but I didn't even think about you getting into fights." he stated, and Raegen glanced at him. She attempted a smile.
"Someone has to try and put her in her place. Come on, Garrus, you have to admit. She's a bitch."
Garrus stared at her, letting a low laugh escape him for a moment, but then he frowned and looked away out the window at the mess-hall, watching some members of the crew gather for their meal.
"Rae. I don't want to lecture you. You were better than this back at C-Sec. What happened to you?"
"People change. Obviously I've changed for the worse throughout the years." Rae mumbled, eyeing him. All she wanted was Garrus to look at her while she spoke, but she continued anyway, "I was - hell, I am a criminal, Garrus. I fight, I gamble, I do what I want."
"This isn't some mercenary ship, Raegen, we have rules. And besides, if you go around messing with the wrong people on this ship, who knows what will happen to you." he sighed, crossing his arms. Raegen glared, slowly raising her eyebrows.
"You're acting like this is all a big problem. It's not." she huffed, then hesitated, "Garrus, did you bring me on this ship just to keep an eye on me?"
"What?" he hesitated, looking at her for once, "I just-"
"Are you so scared I'm going to kill myself you need to appoint yourself my babysitter?" she snapped, and Garrus put his hands in front of him defensively.
"Rae, you're looking at this all the wrong way! You're putting things out of proportion and-"
"No, you're just babying me! Jesus Christ Garrus, I am not a child!"
"I know that, what I'm just doing is… Is…"
"You're trying to protect me from the big bad world, huh?" she snapped, getting to her feet, and Garrus narrowed his eyes.
"No! That's not it at all!" he glared, and Raegen moved to push past him, but he grabbed her shoulders, "It's just you're the last one!"
"What?" Raegen asked in confusion, still glaring at him. He sighed heavily, slowly letting go of her and looking away, trying to find the correct words. Raegen crossed her arms, waiting.
"You're… My last friend. I haven't spoken to anyone else from C-Sec, from anywhere." he started softly, "The only true friends I have left are my team. And now you, and I don't want to lose you. You're brash, selfish… But you're important to me, Rae. I just need you to know that."
As he spoke, Raegen looked away, attempting not to show emotion. She was always weak willed when it came to large emotional speeches and confessions. Whether Garrus was using this to his advantage or not, Raegen didn't know. She hardly did with this turian.
"Garrus, stop getting so emotional." she mumbled, attempting to nip her elbow to stop her voice from wavering, "Okay. I'll behave myself, if it means you'll stop being so… Unlike yourself."
"Heh." Garrus smirked, and Raegen shot him a glare, "I had to get through to you somehow. You're keeping your promise about gambling, aren't you?"
"Hopefully." Raegen shrugged, sitting back on the edge of the bed, and she looked round as the door opened. Paris walked in, stopping and clasping his hands behind his back professionally, and Raegen glanced at Garrus.
"Garrus, could you give us a minute?" Paris requested, and Garrus nodded and quickly stepped out of the room. Once the door closed, Paris looked Raegen in the eye, and the woman looked back, straightening her back gradually to appear more confident. Paris sighed.
"Raegen…"
"I know, I know. Not a mercenary ship, you all have rules, I can't go about trying to attack Executive Officers." she interrupted, and he let her continue, crossing his arms casually, "Miranda already barked this at me, Garrus has already lectured me. All you gotta do now is slap my wrist and I'll be on my way."
"Usually I should give harsher punishments for this sort of thing." he said calmly when he was sure Raegen was finished, "But I don't give punishments. You know you don't just start fights. You know Miranda is not someone to be reckoned with. She's already not happy with me taking you on board…"
"Commander, hate to interrupt." Joker spoke through the intercom, and Raegen felt a childish successful smile come across her face, "But the Illusive Man wants to talk to you straight away."
"This better not be about you." he sighed, but sent Raegen a hopeful little smile, "I'm giving you a warning, alright?"
"Yes. Sir." Raegen added after a pause, and Paris nodded before heading out and for the elevator. Raegen sighed gently and quickly walked out, glancing at the mess hall. She wasn't sure if it was her mind playing tricks on her, but she felt like all eyes were on her as she walked towards the table, and she sat down nervously just as two people left. One woman was left behind to finish her meal alone, and she offered Raegen a smile, but nothing more. Raegen looked round as Gardner walked over, holding an ice pack.
"You getting yourself involved with all the wrong people, missy." he tutted, throwing an ice pack at her. She caught it quickly, glaring and he chuckled.
"You being nice to someone? That's a first, Rupert." the nameless woman teased, and Gardner glared at her, letting out a loud yet embarrassed 'aah' before heading back to the kitchen. Raegen snickered, putting the ice pack on her lip gently.
"Shepard, I really think you should read the message-" Kelly started, but Paris waved her off, walking through to the Armoury.
"Sorry Kelly, later." he stated before the door shut behind him, and he greeted Jacob quickly before heading through to the Communications Room. He sighed heavily, seeing Miranda already speaking with the Illusive Man. Stepping into the hologram.
"Shepard. Good to see you." the Illusive Man glared, tipping some ash, "I'm glad you're keeping me up to date with your team, I appreciate it."
"Look, it happened quickly-"
"I don't care how fast it happened, Shepard. Hell, I don't care if you want to add more, but if you add on a woman that has publicly gone against Cerberus, or even the Alliance, and has had a public record of jail time, I am not happy. It doesn't give Cerberus a good look, let alone you."
"And don't forget the substances he's been taking." Miranda reminded him, and Paris sent the woman a short look before looking back at the Illusive Man, attempting to change the subject.
"She's a powerful adept, she's highly capable of helping us on our fight. We need as many powerful allies as possible-"
"Shepard, she can go against you any minute. Do you know what sort of scum she dealt with on Omega?" Miranda interrupted, "She's dangerous!"
"We're all dangerous, Miranda." Paris countered, then looked back at the Illusive Man, "I trust her, sir. And so does Garrus Valkarian."
"That doesn't give me reason to trust her, Shepard. I've never even heard of her until Miranda sent me the files Jacob found on her."
"We all have bad pasts, sir, hers is just a bit more outright." Shepard glared, "Jack is much worse than Raegen!"
"But I found Jack, Shepard. There's a difference." the Illusive Man stated firmly, "But back to this… Substance abuse."
"It's medication!"
"It has illegal drugs in it. If this gets out, how will it look for you?" the Illusive Man said suavely, taking in a breath of his cigarette. Paris clenched his fists by his sides.
"With all due respect, sir, I believe you're only thinking about your own rep here." Paris said through clenched teeth, and the Illusive Man narrowed his eyes.
"Shepard, I don't like this attitude. We brought you back from the dead with everything we had, and this is how you repay me?" he questioned, "I'm just concerned about this new crew member. Jack never openly attacked Miranda, but Raegen did."
"You owe the Illusive Man everything, Shepard." Miranda interjected, "If you're having problems, you should have told him. You should have told me."
"Neither of you are doctors, so neither of you could have helped."
"Did you tell Dr Chakwas?" the Illusive Man questioned, and Paris nodded, "If she couldn't figure it out, perhaps I should find a more suitable Chief Medical Officer… I'm sure I'll find some-"
"No! You will not change my crew." Paris snapped, and both the Illusive Man and Miranda looked at him. He looked at either of them before continuing, "I don't know why you want rid of Raegen, but she's not leaving this team. The medication I take will not get out to the public, and your image won't be soiled. End of discussion."
He turned on his heel and marched out of the Communications Room, Miranda watching him go until the door closed.
"Sir, with all due respect, you're losing your influence over Shepard." Miranda stated, looking back at the Illusive Man. He hesitated, looking her in the eye and frowned.
"No matter what he thinks, he's still loyal to the people that saved him. He'll put his emotions aside for us." he said confidently, and Miranda nodded before closing the channel.
Paris rubbed his eyes as he walked into the mess hall, finding Garrus talking quietly with Raegen, but before he could approach, Doctor Chakwas took him by the arm gently and moved them to a quieter area.
"Shepard, I was thinking about the symptoms you told me. I couldn't find anything, but then I thought… What if it's not shaking, but vigorous twitching?"
"And?"
"I found results." she frowned, and Paris felt his heart sink, "The nightmares, the twitching, light headedness. Does your body sometimes not react the way you want it to?"
"I can't say I've noticed. Maybe." Paris hesitated, trying to think, but Chakwas nodded and moved on.
"There is a genetic disease that runs through humans called Serbolisis Syndrome. I can't find out much about it, it's incredibly rare, but also recently discovered. Do you know if any of your family members had this illness?"
"I've never heard of it before." he mumbled, "My father and mother were perfectly healthy."
"I'll keep looking into it. It might not be, you never know." Chakwas nodded, "I just thought I'd inform you."
"Thanks." he nodded, walking back towards Garrus and Raegen. Raegen smiled a little, glancing up at Paris and gave him a quick nod before getting up and walking towards the elevator, and Paris took her place. Garrus nodded a greeting to him.
"I'd like to go out to Illium at some point to meet up with Liara." Shepard stated out of the blue, and Garrus didn't respond. Paris raised an eyebrow, leaning forward a little and Garrus snapped his head round, coming out of a day dream, "Are you worried about Raegen and Miranda? Don't be, they'll probably avoid each other."
"I hope so." Garrus sighed and Paris smirked, telling EDI to tell Joker to head to Illium.
"Don't worry. Come on, we'll head to Illium and once I speak with Liara, we'll look around. It's been a while since we just walked around and relaxed, isn't it?"
"Mhm." Garrus nodded, and Paris smirked a little.
"Will I invite Raegen along for you?" he offered, and Garrus looked up at him curiously. Paris laughed, raising his eyebrows suggestively and Garrus caught on to the childish implication.
"Uh, no. She can handle herself here. Well, uhm." he paused, thinking about it, "I might give her and Miranda a chance to cool off, actually. Keep them as far away from each other as possible for now."
"That sounds like the best plan, to be honest." Paris nodded, and got up off his chair to get ready for Illium.
As he stood in his armour, he looked at the tank of betta fish swimming freely, pressing a button that sent some food into their aquarium. Admiring his fish in silence, Paris smiled, but was interrupted when Joker spoke through intercom, informing him that they were now on Illium. He returned to the bridge, where Raegen and Garrus were waiting patiently and he said good bye to Joker as they exited the Normandy.
As they walked out into the sunlight, Raegen smirked a little, commenting.
"Oh, Illium. I love this place. Prettier than the Citadel, but just as dangerous as Omega. I'd live here if I had the funds."
"That's because just about everything here is made legal." Garrus commented, and Paris chuckled, "It's a bit ridiculous, but certainly is safe."
"Only what you'd expect from the asari." Paris added, and Garrus nodded in agreement. As they walked along, Paris moving quickly for Liara's office, someone stepped in their way suddenly, and Paris stared, eyes widening. A tall turian, their face red with decorative white markings. Their armour seemed state of the art, coloured ice blue and, in some places, hot pink. They bore an outstanding resemblance to…
"Nihlus?" Paris breathed, and the turian shook their head, letting out a low but feminine laugh. This was the first time Raegen had ever seen a female turian. Her face was thinner and her armour, perhaps made this way, was sleeker and all round less complicated in comparison to Garrus'.
"Nihlus was my brother. I am Rorikya Kryik, his younger sister." she introduced herself, straightening her back.
"Oh… My apologies, and condolences."
"Thank you, but you got my revenge for me by killing Saren." she said quietly, but her professional demeanour quickly returned, "You got my message, yes?"
"Ah…" Paris blurted, staring. Was this the very message he kept avoiding? The one Kelly continuously asked him to read? He hesitated, "No. Something must have went wrong when sending it. Sorry."
"Hm, typical." she snorted, then nodded, "I work for Jahidi N'Bushe, the politician. He's holding a large party and wants you and your team to attend as guests, as well as body guards. He's a vital part to humanity - or so he says - and he wants, and I quote, 'the best' to protect him. There are many politicians that would use this as an opportunity to take him down, but he needs this to remind everyone he's still in business."
Her tone had revulsion written all over it, probably resentful that she wasn't enough to keep Jahidi's mind at ease.
"And, of course, his daughter wants you to go, too." she added with a long sigh, "Nadra? The asari singer. It's the party of the century, everyone that matters is going."
"Oh, well. I don't know, I don't really…"
"Let me put it this way, Shepard." Rorikya interrupted, glaring down at the commander, "I am not asking you. I'm telling you. Nadra N'Bushe is daddy's little girl, and she was the one that proposed the idea. She adores you. And, more importantly, she always gets what she wants."
"Of course, anything to help a citizen in need, and a fan." Shepard nodded. Rorikya sighed once more and nodded, glancing at Garrus and Raegen.
"The more crew you bring, the happier Jahidi will be, to be honest." she decided with a small nod, "Especially Lawson. He's seen her and is, well, very interested in getting to know her. I'll send the coordinates and times to your ship."
"Who are you to Jahidi, anyway? Some kind of social secretary?" Garrus asked curiously, and Rorikya sent him a glare, but it softened in realisation and she frowned.
"I'm Nadra's bodyguard, of all things. She sends me on stupid errands like this when Jahidi's real social secretary could do this sort of thing with his hands tied behind his back." she explained bitterly, "I need a better job than this."
"We'll see you at the party, then." Paris said, and Rorikya glared before walking past them. Raegen watched her go, then turned to look back at Paris and Garrus, raising an eyebrow.
"Do you get invited to parties often?"
"Surprisingly, that's a new one." Shepard shrugged, "But now I need a suit."
"I'm pretty sure we all need a new outfit." Raegen countered, referring to the rest of the team. Shepard nodded.
"Liara can wait for now." he decided as he turned and made his way towards the nearest help kiosk, wondering where they could go to get formal wear.
Returning to the Normandy and informing everyone of the party was an odd task. Paris wasn't used to inviting people to formal gatherings, and it occurred to him that he had never actually been to one, apart from Kasumi's… And that wasn't for the right reasons. When he informed them of their jobs and of the party, most took it well, especially Jacob and Miranda, as both seemed eager to get off the Normandy for a good few hours. All but a few.
"You have to what?" Tali demanded, and Paris looked away, rubbing the side of his head.
"I'm just going to a party, more for the Illusive Man's sake than mine." he explained, "And the daughter wants me to be her, ah, date apparently. According to the message."
"Does she know about your relationship with me?" Tali asked, pacing his room. Paris watched her move, walking after her, quickly fixing a ship model that slanted, and he looked back at her, clearing his throat.
"I'm sure she does, but it's just one night. It's not like I'll be with her the whole night. Please, Tali. For the mission." he asked, and he quickly took her hand and brought her close, "I still only have eyes for you. You know that."
"Keelah…" she muttered, putting a hand on his arm and nodded, "Of course. I just get nervous."
"I understand that." Paris chuckled, resting his forehead on her helmet gently, and he smiled hopefully at her, "We have time to prepare… But apparently Nadra is a 'get what she wants' kind of girl."
"Not surprised. Only father? That is just asking for a Daddy's Girl title." she laughed lightly, and Paris smiled, glad Tali was able to overlook this. He was actually quite nervous about appearing with Nadra, especially in the suit he had bought. He would certainly show the suit to Tali first, it only felt right.
Below, right down in the hangar, Raegen sighed heavily as she fiddled with the pad in her hands. She continued to look through the online catalogue at anything she found interesting, feet up on the table in front of her. She had an outfit ready for the party, but even thinking about it made her stomach turn. A sigh escaped her, but when she heard the elevator door open she blinked and, out of instinct, immediately got rid of everything she was looking at.
"Raegen! I thought I'd find you here." a Scottish voice rang, and she turned on the chair to see Kenneth approaching, "I heard you were quite the gambler. Feel like joinin' Kasumi, Gabs and me for a wee game?"
She paused, staring, her promise to Garrus immediately coming to mind. He'd never find out! She smiled and got to her feet, walking towards him confidently.
"I warn you, I'm very good at this." she stated, and Kenneth chuckled as he pressed the button for the third deck.
"We'll see about that."