Disclaimer: I don't own ME, unfortunately


It was not a beautiful day. The sun was hidden behind a dark mass of clouds and the air smelled of the inevitable rain. The wind was blowing strongly and the sea water, mercilessly beating against the stone banks of the False Creek, was roaring so loudly you couldn't hear yourself think.

Not many people would choose this moment for a walk, they preferred to stay inside and entertain themselves in other ways of the twenty second century. Nonetheless there was this slowly walking couple, rambling through the streets of the large city, alone, deeply buried in their talk. None of them had a smile on their face. The theme of their discussion was far too serious for jokes or pleasantries.

"I've already told you the mission was unfeasible a thousand times before," the woman growled angrily, burying her cold hands deeper into her coat's pockets, the black fabric flapping behind her helplessly. "And I'm tired of repeating it all over again," she added and tossed her long, dark hair out of her face.

"Then why are you still staying? The boss is worried about your...preferences," the tall man responded. He narrowed his eyes and bent his head slightly to protect his face against the wind, but he kept on intently watching the Asian woman next to him. His hands, protected from the cold by fine leather gloves, were seemingly casually hanging by his side. In truth, they were ready to reach under his dark blue anorak for a pair of Harpy Pistols hidden under it if necessary. Not that he considered the woman by his side a threat, but he had his orders. She had never been important and her failure had made here even more...replaceable. If she hinted any signs of disloyalty or hesitation, he was to kill her. But she wasn't without a chance yet.

She stopped abruptly and turned her face to him. Her expression was furious. "I haven't forgotten my allegiances, Adam. But I can't just leave," she said with her teeth clenched and shot him an angry look.

The man's grey and blue eyes smiled for a moment, though his face remained unchanged. "But you can. I dare to say now is the best time. He's offered you the best excuse ever on a silver plate, but you're deliberately trying not to see it," he said in a calm voice.

As if to underline his arguments, the weather chose this moment to strike its first lightning. The zigzagging bolt of bright light illuminated his face for a second and casted a terrifying shadow over it.

Katherine flinched when the thunder rumbled not far from them, the sound piercing into her very being like a reminder of her boss's anger at her failure. Adam's eyes were looking at her mercilessly, painfully similar to the eyes, minus the implants. "That's not true," she said quietly.

Adam couldn't hear her over the wind and water's roaring, but he was good enough at reading lips to know what she said. "If not, than the reality is even more alarming than we thought. You weren't supposed to fall in love with him, Katherine. You were..."

"I can't leave, because despite not being able to finish my mission I'm still a valuable source of information," she didn't let him finish and she was slowly losing her temper with him.

Adam, however, was pleased by her hot-headed reaction. Maybe she wasn't lost after all. "We had enough information, we needed results. And as far as I know one of the most powerful human biotics still isn't on our pay roll. The boss is growing impatient, Katherine."

Her face twisted in her rage and Adam, once again, thoroughly enjoyed it. Emotions were a dangerous thing...and, if you knew how to work with them, very useful. "You think it's so easy?" she snapped at him, finally freeing her hands again to wave them angrily in the air. "It took me a year – a year! – to get closer to him. He's incredibly withdrawn and it's impossible to read in him. Hell! In those four years the first time I ever saw any emotion on his face was when he was with her!"

Adam straightened a little and looked at the woman in a completely new light. In slow pace he approached the bank and leaned against the wall, his eyes scanning the dark turbulent surface of the water. His mind was racing and a vicious smile was spreading across his face.

Another lightning split the sky and Adam patiently waited until the thunder had its say. "He...cares about her," he stated and lifted his hand, palm up, when he felt the first cold drop of rain hit his face. Another landed on his palm. And another. And another. The rainfall quickly started whispering around him.

"No, it's more like he feels guilty," she corrected him when she joined his side. "He spent more time with her than me during that week. He barely left her side whenever he wasn't at work. It's like he's trying to make up for the trauma she came through."

Adam nodded. He of course knew everything about the attack. No details escaped his boss's attention. And, Adam suspected, the attack had to make him furious. The precious Alliance, which so willingly rushed to cooperate with other races of the universe, was unable to protect its own people now. Despite everything humans were suffering from this so-called symbiotic union with the rest of the galaxy, not the other way around. But unlike other races, humanity had no support outside the Sol system. They were alone out there. Not completely alone, Adam thought. He was aware Katherine was still talking, something about the girl and a first day in her new school, but it held no importance now. He had his plan and that was all that mattered.

"Hey...I know this smile," she reflected.

Adam tilted his head and turned slightly to look at her. "You're right, Katherine. You are a valuable source of information," he nodded few times.

"Of course I am," she growled, still oblivious to the whole situation.

"Do you still have your...contacts?" he asked.

Katherine shifted her weight. "I do," she said in confusion. "It's not easy to give up on red sand once you start. Why?"

"Let's say we need someone to help us smuggle a container off Earth and to Omega. And since there aren't many ships travelling from here directly to the station, it needs to be done via the Citadel."

That seemed to bemuse the woman even more. "I don't follow you. What container? I thought we were talking about John."

Adam nodded again and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, leading her away from the waterfront. "Although I don't know them, our boss has his reasons why he wants John Shepard on our side, dear Katherine. And when he wants something, he usually gets it."

"I've told you..."

"...that John is far too loyal to the Alliance, yes, I've heard you those thousand times before," he reassured her. "But what if we helped him in a seemingly desperate situation his precious Alliance wouldn't be able to solve?"

"What situation?"

This time Adam shook his head. "The fewer you know the better for you, Katherine. But let's say: we finally found John Shepard's weakness. Now, your task..."

...

It was raining when she got out of her brother's speeder. Without looking back she mumbled something similar to: "See you later," and walked away, slowly heading towards the large door. She wasn't in a hurry like other kids, quickly running to their school to hide before the falling drops. She didn't mind a little storm. Mindoir was a very hot and dry place and so the rain was always welcomed.

If only it wasn't so cold here, she thought and shivered, bringing her arms up to hug herself to gain some warmth. She wore long trousers, a sweatshirt and a warm anorak, which made her look strangely with other kids wearing just their T-shirts, but she couldn't help. This part of Earth was cold for her. And it was only a beginning of autumn. It made her fear what the winter would be like.

The school was nothing like the one back on Mindoir. The building, shaped into a crescent, seemed brand-new and terribly expensive to Maya. Her former school was much more moderate and – in comparison to this one – rather bland. And instead of beautiful garden with trees and flowers in front of it, this school's surroundings were just a concrete and more buildings. It was all sad and grey. And cold, Maya shivered once again before finally reaching to the door.

The large, wide corridor she found herself in was brightly lit to compensate the lack of sunlight from the outside. It stretched both to her left and right, but she couldn't see neither of the ends since the corridor was curved to match the shape of the building. Along the walls were countless lockers with digital locks for students, vending machines and extranet terminals.

There had been no public extranet terminals on Mindoir, except for the one in the library.

In front of her were three elevators made of stainless steel, indicating that this school had five levels. Maya had no idea why the building was so large, but again – this was not Mindoir.

She looked at the closest locker. There was a display showing a number and a name of a student it belonged to. This one was number sixty two. She lifted her omnitool and activated it, searching her e-mails. She'd received an email from school with all the information she would need, including the number of her locker. "Two hundred ninety seven," she whispered and in a slow pace begun looking for this number.

She found it on the second level of the building, almost at the end of a corridor to her right. She left there everything she thought she wouldn't need at the moment – her new datapad, her snack, her wet anorak. For a moment she considered taking the datapad with her, but she didn't feel like making notes today. Tobias had never been making any notes and though he did fail a test or two, his grades were more or less above-average. Yeah, but only because he always borrowed my notes, she reminded herself. The datapad, however, remained inside when she closed the locker again and, with a heavy sigh, she mingled into the crowd of students, this time heading to her new classroom.

She was walking with her head bent down, reading the instructing email. According to it, her classroom was on the last level, number twenty eight. Everything is numbered here, she thought grimly, I bet I'm just a number to them as well...a number of credits John's going to send them for teaching me.

She felt a touch on her left shoulder and that startled her. She flinched; the swift jerky motion sent a wave of pain up and down her leg. She bit down on her tongue trying not to groan when her muscles tightened under the wound and she lifted her left hand, activating her omnitool once again, ready to defend herself.

"Hey, chill out, chicken," a girl's voice said with a hint of mockery. "Geez! You react as if I wanted to kill you," the tall girl in front of her laughed. She had deep voice and dark eyes, but her hair was gaudily violet.

Feeling a little bit embarrassed Maya let her hand fall to her sides as she collected herself. "What do you want?" she asked.

"Where did you get the hair?"

"What?"

"The colour? What brand is it?"

"Brand?"

"..of the dye? You know, I could use a colour like that next Halloween."

"It's natural."

"Yeah...sure, natural. You know what? If you didn't want to tell me, you could tell me to sod off. Cow..." she muttered and turned around, disappearing into the crowd again and all Maya could do was staring after her with her mouth hanging open. "Well...great start," she mumbled after the shock wore off and with even worse mood she headed to the elevators.

The bell was ringing when she stepped inside the class room. It was a small room with five rows of school desks, most of them already occupied. There was a whiteboard and a teacher's desk with a laptop and a projector. As soon as Maya appeared in the room, everyone turned to look at her and their confusion was plainly written on their faces.

"You must be in a wrong class, honey," one of her new schoolmates stated, giving her a self-confident smile. The boy could be as tall as she was with brown eyes and hair. He was sitting on his desk, but suddenly his eyes widened and he quickly slid down right onto the chair. It was then when Maya realized someone was standing behind her.

"How come you aren't behind your desk yet?" a stern voice said close to her right ear. Maybe the woman behind her was talking loudly, but thanks to the explosion on Mindoir everything coming from the right sounded much quieter to Maya, though Julie had assured her the damage wasn't permanent. Anyway, Maya couldn't help but doubt it.

"Oh, wait. You must be the new student!" the tone of the voice changed completely and Maya only managed to turn her head before a hand caught her elbow and shoved her into the classroom. Maya's face twisted in pain because of the sudden movement, but she managed to stay on her feet, for which she was glad. The teacher, short brunet with thin lips that were now forming a kind smile on her face, placed her in front of the whiteboard and stepped next to her. "Class," she started importantly, "I'd like to introduce you a new student. So," she looked at Maya, "how about telling your new friends your name?" she bid her with a smile so sweet it could make your teeth rot.

And all Maya could do was, once again, to stare. How could she grin like that? There was nothing funny or amusing. The day was dark and dreadfully cold, her colony was destroyed, her parents dead and her best friend gone.

In a very slow motion she turned her head to look at the other kids in the room. Most of them seemed amused by the scene, some bored and one girl almost in the back of the room was filing her nail, completely uninterested.

The teacher seemed to grow a little bit impatient and the emotion was clear in her voice. "Come on, we don't have all day. How do your parents call you?"

Maya's head snapped back to the woman next to her. "They don't now," she said weakly. They are dead.

"Alright..." the teacher gave her another smile, this time it was painfully strained. "This is Maya Shepard and she's just moved in the city. Well, I hope you'll blend in just nicely. Go take your place over there." She patted Maya on her back to get her moving.

As if in a dream she walked down the aisle between her new classmates, feeling a little lightheaded. The pain in her leg was pulsing with every step, but she decided to ignore it once again. Just as she ignored all the heads turning after her when she passed them by. She approached an empty desk beside the window and set her schoolbag on the floor, sitting down carefully. Stretching her leg she turned to stare out of the window, somehow partly expecting to see the well-known trees swaying softly, singing their whispery songs in unison with the soft, autumn wind. Instead a speeder raced behind the window and all she could see was the steely grey sky, occasionally lit by a lightning.

"Not our Mindoir," she heard herself whisper in the quietest of voices, watching the rain pouring outside, beating against the window pane, begging to be let in. It seemed ironic to Maya. Why would it want to go to a place such as this? It seemed so in rush, busy and distastefully crowded. And mean, she remembered the girl from the corridor. It wasn't like people on Mindoir were always polite, they could be rude just as anybody, but they would never call you any names because of such a pettiness.

She turned her head to the other side and wanted nothing more than to see Tobias grinning at her and to hear him ask her what she was going to do in the afternoon. And that – whatever her plan was – they could do it together.

Now when she was thinking about it, it was painfully obvious. Of course Tobias loved her. All the time the hints were there, but she was blind to them. She regarded him as a friend, as a kindred spirit, as a brother she'd lost...but nothing more.

Would she see him differently back then, knowing he had feelings for her? She couldn't stop thinking about it. What if...what if...what if it would have worked out?

No, it would never work out, she knew. Not because of her or him, but because of them. Now she wouldn't be missing only her home, her parents and her friend...but someone much closer to her heart as well. No, things were better that way.

...

John was lost. At first when he received the message he was glad. They had informed him the new L3 implants for him were ready and he was expected to arrive to the Citadel and undertake the surgery. It would finally put an end to the endless suffering the old L2 generation was causing and two days ago he wouldn't have hesitated. But now the situation was different.

"I don't understand you, John," Katherine shook her head and took her glass of water to have a sip before continuing: "It's just three days. I'm sure she can manage to stay that long on her own. She's not a kid, John. Trust her a little bit."

"I..." John started saying, but she didn't let him. "You've suffered long enough, John. And I'm afraid for you too," she said quietly and reached out to cover his hand with hers. When John had so suddenly invited her for a lunch she didn't know what to expect. But when he told her about the surgery, she knew it was Adam's work. A perfect way to get him off-world and buy some time to get on with his plan, whatever it was.

And she'd contacted her clients and promised to deliver next few doses of red sand for free if they help her get a certain container undetected from the Citadel to Omega...and they agreed. Everything was ready and planned out. The only thing remaining was John. And Katherine knew she couldn't afford to fail again. "Love, I don't want to have to visit you in a hospital like a year ago. I was so terrified you wouldn't wake up. I...understand you're worried, but she's going to be fine. Please, John..."

And she knew she wouldn't fail. She didn't care about his sister, but John's well-being was really important to her. She didn't have to pretend the worry in her voice, the fear in her eyes and the way her hand clutched his. She didn't have to lie to him about being afraid for him, because she was sincere.

Again, when John took a breath to speak, she was faster: "We can supply her with as much food as our fridge can contain. She wouldn't have to leave the flat at all, except for journeys to school. She'll be save, John. And maybe she actually needs to be alone for awhile. You know, to sort out the thoughts. Maybe once we'll back she'll realize that she missed us and finally would start talking again and laugh and…Please, think about it. I know you're a strong man and few pains can't kill you, but collapsing on a battlefield might. Besides..." she lowered her voice and sheepishly dropped her eyes, "since Mindoir was attacked we didn't really have time for one another. This last week…well…I miss you John."

...

Maybe I'll get used to it all after all...eventually, Maya thought while she was slowly eating her apple. It wasn't all that bad, actually she liked the taste, thought she had been a little afraid of it at first. She knew the typical Earth's fruit, but they didn't grow them on Mindoir. But it was good, a little bit sour, but she liked it.

Although the day passed slowly, and it seemed it took a week instead of a few hours, the school was finally over. She was sitting on the pavement outside the building, chewing slowly, enjoying the first moment of peace after so long. The air smelled of rain and was much fresher thanks to the storm.

For the first time in eight days she felt a ghost of a smile appear on her lips when she leaned backwards, putting her free hand behind for a support, and lifted her head to look up. As if it was the most interesting thing in the world, she watched the dark, moving chain of shuttles and speeders high above her. Although her mood was much better now, little things like all the ships, the noise and the crowds were still making her feel like a complete stranger.

However, she had always wanted to leave Mindoir. It was her dream, her desire, her craving. The colony had felt just too small and boring, and she often envisioned herself aboard a star ship, exploring remote systems, getting to know new species and cultures. She had had moments when she felt her destiny was elsewhere, and the only thing keeping her grounded were her duties.

But in my mind's eye I always had a place to return to, she thought, though not as bitterly as she would have a week ago, and brought her left hand up to take another bite of the apple. She chewed a few times, than sucked the juice from the unfortunate fruit, then went on chewing slowly.

Mindoir was gone, but she was still there. Here and now. Mindoir was gone and nothing would bring it back, or the people who'd died there. She felt empty, it still hurt like nothing she'd ever felt before, but she knew she had to go on. And Tobias believed she'd be strong enough to go on. And she simply couldn't disappoint him.

"I've seen the pictures on the extranet yesterday. They had finally published them. It was...terrible. There was nothing left of the colony!" a girl was saying loudly, a circle of schoolmates formed around her, as Maya walked into the school canteen.

"Yeah, Tai, I've seen them too. Can you imagine the massacre there? I still see the blood on all the containers..." another student added his voice.

Maya bit her tongue sharply. She hoped the acute physical pain would beat her inner torture, that it would make her ignore the emptiness, but the sudden stab of sorrow was still too strong. She swallowed heavily when turned to the cold buffet, clutching an empty plate in her hands.

"I hope they'll catch the slavers and execute them for what they've done. You know, I've heard seventeen colonists survived. Seventeen! The population was over three hundred."

"We should have nuked Khar'shan a long ago."
"James, don't talk like that. There are human pirates and terrorists too, and no one threatens to nuke Earth because of it."

As strangely as it seemed to her at the moment, Maya found herself agreeing with the last sentence. Batarians were rather disreputable and paranoid, but it was just a handful of them that were so bloodthirsty. And as far as her memory reached, batarian government didn't even allowed its citizens to leave batarian space.

"My point is we should have some retribution. The Alliance has to show them they can't push us around without punishment. Just like Turians had to pay us the reparations after the First Contact War."

"That was the Council's decision," Maya suddenly herd her own voice. For a second, it surprised her. With hesitation she turned around. The whole group was now looking at her. "A-after the Rachni Wars the Council forbid activating the Relay 314, but our ships coming through the Charon Relay on our side, reactivated exactly this relay. Turians simply saw it as a breaking of a Council law and decided to open fire. Fortunately for us, the Council itself later evaluated their...approach...as a bad one, and ordered the Turian government to firstly stop the war and secondly to pay the reparations," she said quickly, remembering all the details from the history lessons.
"She's right, you know, James? Attack on Mindoir had no political subtext. Besides, the Alliance knew the risks when they started founding the colonies. It was their responsibility to protect Mindoir, not the Council's."

"I'm not saying the Council should order the slavers to stop."

"Yeah, because they wouldn't stop anyway. You know, they are pirates. They don't care."

"You mean cowards...only cowards would attack a helpless colony."

"Mindoir wasn't helpless," Maya interfered again. "It had its own military base. But they knew it and destroyed it first...and stripped the colony of its only protection," she said. She was speaking loudly, as if she was trying to talk above the explosion that suddenly started ringing in her ears. She took a slow breath and was surprised the air didn't feel hot in her lungs. She shivered at the memory and closed her eyes tightly for a moment. "And doomed it. There was an Alliance war ship coming to Mindoir at the same time, and I'm sure if the slavers hadn't destroyed the base, the marines would have managed to hold them back until the Einstein's arrival."

"How can you know it all? They haven't made any public interviews about the attack yet."

She resisted shifting her weight. "I have a brother in the Alliance, who's a good friend with the ship's captain. I've overheard them talking about it," she lied. She didn't feel like telling them the truth. And as a punishment, she started hearing ringing in her right ear. Like a reminder, she thought while she was turning back to the food, I still can't hear properly on that ear.

That was how the apple found its way into her palm. After everything, she had wanted to get out of the canteen as quickly as possible, so she grabbed the closest thing she could; the apple.

"I don't think I've ever seen someone enjoy eating an apple like that before," a merry voice disturbed her. Before she could turn around, the boy from her class, the one that "greeted" her sat down on the pavement beside her, and lifted his head as well. "So…you like history, don't you?" he asked with a smile on his face, watching the traffic so intently as if he wanted to find some secret meaning in the way the speeders moved.

She swallowed and looked at the boy next to her. "What?" she mumbled and shifted slightly; suddenly she was aware of the cold, wet ground under her and it started bothering her. She felt a goose bumps prickle all over body and suddenly she wanted to get up, get her schoolbag and…simply get lost.

"I've heard you in the canteen. That was impressive. Your history teacher should be proud."

"I'm sure he would be," she mumbled. "Why are you here?" she added in louder voice.

He took a slow breath, buying himself some time, before he started speaking. "Well, I was interested in our new schoolmate. Taylor's jealous of you….your hair to be more specific…and that means you must be okay," he added.

"Who's Taylor?" Maya asked, ignoring the cheap flattery, and took another bite of the apple.

"That Barbie who keeps polishing or filing her nails," he replied and chuckled, apparently he considered his remark funny.

Maya looked at him with a blank expression. "So what? I don't care."

"My…aren't you a grumpy one, huh?"

"Why are you really here, David?" Maya asked again and looked at the half-eaten apple in her hand. Suddenly she wanted to throw it away as far as she could.

"I've told you."

"A lie. You've told me a lie."

He let out a long breath. "Okay, you got me. We were told to be nice to you," he admitted casually. "And since I pulled the shortest match it was up to me to find out why. Are you a crazy psychotic who kills anyone who angers her or what?" he tried to joke about the whole situation.

Unfortunately, Maya didn't find it funny at all. "I only kill when I must," she said in a deadly serious voice that made David visibly flinch. "As long as you don't shove a Terminator Assault Rifle into my face, you're completely safe," she added and had to close her eyes and shake her head to get rid of the image of the barrel in front of her eyes. She still could vividly remember the assault rifle; after all, she could see it every night in her dreams.

"So not only history, but weapons as well? Hm…Terminator…isn't it batarian line of rifles?" David asked, but Maya didn't answer him this time. She stood up finally, ignoring the way her left leg protested against her idea, and swung her schoolbag over one shoulder. Without saying goodbye she headed away, and was glad he didn't decide to follow her.

...

So far the day had enfolded very well for Katherine. When Adam sent her a message to meet in person, she knew the situation was not in her favour. But then the table turned and she was in a very good mood. She'd managed to persuade John to leave Earth tonight and, as a bonus, after they returned home they had the best sex ever. She didn't enjoy making him feel so guilty for neglecting her for the passed week, but it was totally worth it. Totally.

And now, the only task left was telling her.

She heard the door open and expected the girl to wordlessly sneak inside the flat like always, but when she heard her calling: "John! Katherine! I'm home!" she couldn't believe her ears. It was unnecessary, because a second later she walked into the living room, but she did it anyway. For the first time in those eight days she started speaking without being asked first.

Katherine quickly looked at John to find him staring at his sister. His face was, as usually, emotionless, but his widened eyes betrayed his surprise. She forced herself to smile when she turned to Maya again. "It seems your first day in school went well."

"Better than I thought," she agreed and hid her schoolbag behind her "bed".

"That's…fantastic," John commented as well. "Have you…eh…"

"I've tasted an apple," Maya said and sat down on the sofa. "For the first time ever," she added and shrugged.

"Did you like it?" Katherine asked. She never ate apples. When she was a little girl she almost choked to death on one of them.

"It was…quite good. I…yeah…I liked it."

"Well," Katherine smiled, "it's good to know your mood has improved a lot, isn't it John?" she turned to her partner and gave him a meaningful look.

"Is…something wrong?" Maya asked slowly, her eyebrows drawn together.

"No, not wrong, just…" John started saying and crossed the living room. In slow motion he sat down beside his sister. "I've been summoned to the Citadel for a…neural surgery…no, don't worry, I'm alright," he hurried to add when Maya's expression changed from worried to terrified. "It's just that I have the old version of biotic implants – L2. And they are…a little bit problematic. The surgery will give me the new L3 generation."

"Neural surgery? But that's…it sounds…"

"It's completely safe," he lied quickly. "Don't worry. The thing is, I'm going…we're going to be gone for three days."

John's attempt to calm Maya down turned out to be in vain. Her face was still full of so much fear Katherine would have considered it excessive if she hadn't known about Mindoir. She must be really afraid for him…she thought. And it was the only thing they both agreed on.

"Do you mean it?" the girl asked silently. "Is it safe? Are you going to be alright?" she went on asking her questions. Katherine suddenly felt like the two of them needed a moment alone, so she walked by the couple, heading to her and John's bedroom. She could still hear their voices, muffled by the door that had closed behind her and the rustling of her clothes as she was putting them into her sport bag, but she couldn't make out any words.

She realized she was smiling while she was packing her things. She was happy. She had three days only with John ahead of her – alright, only two, since the first day he would spend in the clinic – and she couldn't wait. She was looking forward to it so much…

But somewhere deep inside she was afraid as well. She had no idea what Adam was planning, but she was, technically, his partner in crime. And she dreaded the thought of John blaming her for whatever was going to happen if something, anything, went wrong.


To be continued, uff, I was much faster than I thought I would be with this chapter, heh, but that's a good news. Anyway, thank you so much for reading this chapter and if you feel like it, let me know what you think about it. I mean it, and don't be afraid to point out any mistakes, it helps me learn and get better :) Have a nice day.