***Three Weeks Earlier***
Try as he might, Garrus couldn't figure out how he was going to avoid becoming a gibbering idiot when at last it came time to "blow off steam." He was quite afraid that it was going to become the shortest performance of his life. There was a silver lining though; at least she wouldn't know any better. For all she knew, all turians were just naturally premature.
Garrus lowered his head into his hands in a sudden rush of embarrassment; only the beeping of the weapon calibration system tore him out of it.
And gods, he wished he'd never watched the documentaries. His curiosity'd gotten the better of him. He'd suffered through three turian/human fetish vids before he got disgusted with the lack of understanding. For fuck's sake, Shepard wasn't a hooker fresh from Afterlife. Although he hoped fervently that after it was all said and done, she'd want to continue the relationship, and hoped more fervently that they could explore and play, that kind of thing wasn't the style he wanted for the first time. 'Course, it would all be a moot point if he kept having these mini-nervous breakdowns. He'd die from a heart attack on her doorstep.
So he'd gotten some documentaries on humans from Mordin. God, what a mistake that had been. If Shepard ever wondered how Mordin knew that she and Garrus were becoming….friendly…well, there it was. She either didn't think to ask, or didn't really care. For his part, Garrus was bewildered. The human reproductive system wasn't really gross; in fact, he could see a certain appeal in warm, wet caverns that felt like silk and gripped like a vice. He was, however, concerned about erogenous zones. What if he had a hard time finding that little organ on her body? What if she didn't like him caressing her chest? He couldn't kiss her. The fact of the matter was that he needed something that was neither clinical, nor pornographic. Those venues were failing him.
He was so deep in thought that he didn't hear the door open behind him. The rush of cool air did bring him around. He spun, and stared at her. It took him a second to remember to speak.
"Shepard. Need me for something?"
"Have you got a minute?" She looked….a little awkward to Garrus's eye. Was she nervous too?
He glanced around. The last thing he needed was word getting out to the rest of the crew. It was embarrassing enough knowing that Mordin had spoken with Shepard. His talons found the button on the battery console that would seal the door behind her. He clicked it, and then watched as she became extremely amused.
"Yeah. I've been thinking about what we've talked about. Blowing off steam, easing tension."
She looked highly interested, and not a little tickled. His visor picked up her vital signs. Wait….was that right? Her heartbeat was elevating. Was that normal?
"I've never considered cross-species intercourse before. And damn, saying it that way doesn't help. Now I feel dirty and clinical." Also supremely embarrassed. And mortified. And feeling a bit crushed, actually. There was no way she was hitting on him out of anything but desperation. So he had to be fair…
"Are we crazy to even be thinking about this? I'm not….Look, Shepard, I know you can find something a little closer to home." He paced, talons brushing over his head self-consciously. He really, really didn't want to do this, but he didn't want to even think that she was giving him a pity fuck.
At last she spoke.
"I don't want something closer to home. I want you." As she spoke, she stepped toward him. Garrus's heart began to pound. Godamn, but he had to fight the urge to take her right here and now. "I want someone I can trust." She finished it with a beaming grin. It made Garrus's stomach feel warm. Somewhere further below, he felt…..enthusiasm.
"I can do that." He chirped, nodding his head to emphasize that he was definitely okay with that. "I'll find some music…and do some research to figure out how this thing should work."
His mind was positively flying now. All the vids he'd watched, but it wasn't what he would call research. He knew the mechanics of it, but he wanted to be sure he turned in a stellar performance. Just like demonstration sparring for an inspection by turian commanders. Garrus knew he didn't know it all, and that disquieted him.
"It'll either be a night to treasure, or a horrible inter-species awkwardness thing." He paused, considering the implications. In his mind, Shepard ran screaming from the cabin. Or she laughed at him, or she stared at him with disdain. The worst possibility…he might hurt her. No. He didn't want to think about that. He snapped back to the present where this appealing little human stood smirking at him, arms crossed over her breasts.
"In which case, fighting the Collectors will be a welcome distraction, so…you know…a win either way."
Shepard's hand snaked out and began to stroke his shoulder. Garrus's breath caught in his throat.
"You know, Garrus, if you're not comfortable with this, it's okay. I'm not trying to pressure you." She said. She sounded…regretfully. As if she didn't want to offer this, but wanted to be fair.
"You're about the only friend I've got left in this screwed-up galaxy" He wanted to use a different word than 'friend' but he dare not be presumptuous. "I'm not going to pretend I've got a fetish for humans."
Not yet, anyway.
"But this isn't about that. It's about us. You don't ever have to worry about making me uncomfortable. Nervous, yes..but never uncomfortable."
He wanted to turn and bump his head against her hand. There was a shiver deep inside Garrus's chest. He was a bit disappointed when Shepard stepped back and crossed her arms back over her chest. Was he imagining it, or did she have a teasing look on her face?
"So, when should I book the room?" She asked. Definitely teasing now.
"I'd wait if you're okay with it. Disrupt the crew as little as possible, and take that last chance to find some calm just before the storm." Not ready, definitely not ready. He wasn't sure if he'd ever be ready. "You know me. I always like to savour the last shot just before popping the heat sink."
He'd tried to make a joke, an analogy, but the look on Shepard's face brought him up short. Oh, dammit…what had he just said? She was struggling not to laugh.
"Wait…that metaphor just went somewhere horrible." Now he was well and truly embarrassed.
"I'll let you get back to work." She said, a smile on her face and a laugh in her voice. She began backing away, out the door. Was he imagining it, or was she drinking in this moment?
"Right." He said more to himself than to her. He didn't want her to go. Now he was all frustrated. Damned little tease. "'Cause I'm in a great place to optimize firing algorithms right now."
He watched as she back out and the door closed in front of her. With a sigh, he sagged against the control console. They were…going to have to do this thing soon. It was hard enough to have conversations like that with her and not be able to relieve the tension.
It was all very familiar, when Shepard started to come to. The shuddering, the shaky breaths in, the blur of white. It started to fade into meaningful shapes and colours, but she had to blink, the light was so bright. Her vision blurred, and against she struggled to focus. Sounds began to come to her, muffled at first, and then with more clarity. There was an unpleasant ringing in her ears. She tried to turn her head, and heard that the ringing wasn't ringing after all, but the beep of a machine.
Suddenly, there was a great deal of motion in the room. She had trouble tracking it. There was also a whole lot of pain. She cried out.
Words. She couldn't understand them. She was suddenly scared. It terrified her to be this out of control. She couldn't move; tried to kick her legs. Felt hands on her arms, her ankles.
"No! No!" She tried to say. Her own voice frightened her. A grunt.
Garrus! Where was Garrus? He'd been with her before…..where…? Where had he been with her? She couldn't remember. Just knew that he had been. She wanted him. Scared.
"Garrus!" That came out right. She felt a small bit of foolish pride. Again, she tried to shout it. "Garrus! I want Garrus!"
"….Vakarian?.." She heard that. Started to struggle more.
"…..get him…." Again, the cool hands holding her down. There was a familiar smell. Why wouldn't her eyes work? The scent of perfumed asari filled her senses.
"He's coming, Shepard. Just rest. He'll be here when you wake up." She knew that voice. Gentle, scholarly. It echoed in her muddled head and made sense. Ezmay's heart felt obscenely grateful. He was coming. He would be here. She let herself be borne away by a blue sea and then into darkness once more.
Chasing down a rat in the tunnels. Garrus snarled to himself, focusing on the display. The small thermal signature had been eluding them for days, but now….now he had them.
And you're going to pay, whoever you are. I'm going to drag your employer out of you, and after that…..
"EDI, I think we've got it. Can you seal the duct down where it is?"
"Yes. Shutting duct section seals now."
Garrus's eyes lingered on the emergency fire systems. It was….really tempting to fill that section of the ductwork with halon. But if he did, he'd never find out who it was, and what was behind bombing the Normandy…and Shepard. He watched, a grim pleasure settling over him, as EDI sealed off the section of ductwork where their stowaway was.
Suddenly, EDI beamed up in the usual blue-silver orb and blinked at him.
"Officer Vakarian, there is a problem."
"What?" He turned his head away from the display.
"The stowaway is human. He tried to escape before I brought the seals down. He is pinned beneath the seal door closest to the starboard side."
Garrus swore. "Is he dead?"
"No, but I am monitoring his vital signs. There is blood loss. Should I release the seal?"
If she released the seal, he'd more than likely bleed out. Garrus wouldn't risk it.
"No. Keep him there." A backwards glance over his shoulder found most of the crew clustered around him. They'd all been entranced by the display, watching this little heat signature that had brought them all so much trouble. Above, they could hear the sounds of the asari technicians clearing out and working to repair what was left of the Commander's cabin. The viewing window above the Commander's bed had been blown out in the blast. If EDI had not thrown up a protective field, he and Shepard would have been sucked out into space with much of the debris. Anger bloomed inside him again.
"I'm going into the tunnels. He's near Jack's living space. We'll cut through and drag this bastard out." There were scattered nods. He didn't wait to see who followed him.
Once they reached the small area under engineering, it was easy to hear the pained moans and howls through the bulkhead. Garrus wasted no time in firing up the welding instrument on his omni-tool. He began to cut through with a single-minded focus.
Yeah, he was good and fired up now. Once he got this rat out, he was going to work him over. Have Mordin keep him alive, and try out some of the more creative interrogation techniques. Couldn't have Chakwas stabilize him. No. Had to have Mordin. The salarian was special tactics. Chakwas might object, might want to actually save his life. Garrus was surprised to find he was gnashing his teeth. He only cut enough of the bulkhead to create an inverted U shape, then he backed up and gestured at Jack.
"Pull it open."
"You sure, turian? The tattooed girl stepped forward, biotics already flaring around her body. She seemed half-amused.
"Do it!" He snarled.
"Here we go!" She seemed happy to show off. She lit up then, like a Christmas tree. A biotic field burned around the flap of metal and began to bend outwards towards the group as she pulled back her fist. Jack gritted her teeth, and yanked.
The metal flap broke off with a scream and a groan, as if the Normandy herself was protesting this rough surgery. The steel gave, and Jack tossed it up and back, narrowly avoiding Miranda.
"A little more precision, please!" The clipped accent barked.
"Who said I was lacking in precision?" Jack smirked, the biotic flare already dying.
Garrus heard none of this. He was already tearing into the small space, beaming light form his omni-tool up and down the section of ductwork. He found his prize two feet from the hole. A bloody, sweating human male, groaning as he tried to pull his leg from underneath the heavy, airtight seal. The man turned his face towards the light, and Garrus felt surprise bloom in his chest.
"Ilardi?" He was confused, but rage was already replacing it. He barely registered EDI's voice and Miranda's reply. He was already moving down the seal to seize a handful of sweaty human hair.
"Garrus!" Miranda's voice echoed in the small space. She poked her head in, leaning hands against the edge of the metal. Garrus could feel her breath on his shoulder. "Shepard came conscious. She wants you."
Garrus paused, torn. Gods, he really wanted to rip this worm's head from his trunk. But Shepard….
"They moved her to the neurological ward of the Illium medical center." Miranda's voice was so gentle. It was tugging at him. "They think she's going to be okay. Traumatic brain injury, but she's already healing."
Garrus turned glowering blue eyes to her. "She's asking for me?"
Miranda's eyes went sad and soft. Her voice was even more so.
"We'll handle him. Put him in isolation. Mordin will get him ready for you to question. Go on."
In one swift motion, Garrus let go of the human. What the fuck was Ilardi doing here? No time. Nevermind. Had to go to Shepard. She wanted him there. Had to go.
He skittered out of the small space under engineering and was already on his way out of the Normandy.
