I do not own Mass Effect or any of the associated contact. Jagher Shepard is my Shepard and Fayelle Shepard is my friend's Shepard. This is a collection of moments set throughout the games. They're rated for language and violence mostly.
Mass Effect: Moments.
A Moment About What Could Be.
The Normandy hurtled towards Virmire in answer to a Salarian distress c all. Shepard was sitting in the mess hall, her hand wrapped around a cup of whatever the alcohol was that had been lying around, and a rather distant look on her face. Her thoughts were somewhere out there in space, pondering what they were going to find when they landed on Virmire, what dangers they would have to face, how many geth would be waiting... She sighed and leaned her head back, closing her eyes and concentrating on the noises of the ship working around her and the feel of the top of the chair digging into the back of her neck.
"Shepard?"
She opened her eyes and looked up at Garrus, the turian towering above her. "Don't mind me, just dreading the future," she said as her friend settled into the chair beside her. "I've got a bad feeling about Virmire."
"I think everyone does." He gestured to the bottle of booze in front of her. "May I?"
"If it's not going to negatively affect your turian biology, I don't see why not."
Jagher flashed Garrus a grin and he poured himself a glass from the stack of cups Shepard had brought out in case anyone else decided to join her. Sure enough, in the span of about fifteen minutes, the rest of the crew did show up, all taking a glass and filling it with the bluish liquor.
"Do you think we'll ever get the chance to do this again?" Ashley asked.
Jagher shrugged with one shoulder as she stole a glance at Kaidan over the rim of her glass.
"I hope so," the staff lieutenant answered.
A brief second of silence passed, the others picking up on the change of mood between the senior Alliance officers. Wisely, no one said anything, just enjoyed their drinks as Jagher and Kaidan continued trying to be sneaky about stealing glances across the table. The crew, a group of relative strangers who had come together through unforeseen circumstances, had grown close and it wasn't long before they dissolved into energetic chatter around the tension. Garrus was the only one to spare them a second thought, gently nudging the back of Jagher's head with one of his elbows as he passed her on his way to the other end of the table, effectively leaving Jagher and Kaidan in a bubble of privacy.
"Do you think we can end this on Virmire?" Shepard asked, gently swirling her nearly empty glass in her hand.
"Do you want the truth or the lies that'll make you feel better?"
She levelled bright green eyes on Kaidan, her lips pulled up in one corner. "I would say lie to me, but then I'll just be disappointed, so give me the truth."
"Then, no, I don't think this will end on Virmire."
"Damn."
Kaidan raised his glass. "You said it."
Jagher clinked her glass against his and then drained the remainder of the liquid. She slid the glass away and placed her forehead on the table with a heavy sigh. Before Kaidan could ask, she said, "I'm tired."
"There's time to get some sleep before we reach Virmire."
She looked up, shook her head and rubbed her hands over her eyes. "One more drink, then I'll hit the hay."
Kaidan gave her a warm and very welcome smile and they moved down the table to rejoin the conversation, drinking and merriment before the impending battle on Virmire.
Author's Note.
Drinking fun times, woo!
Next Moment: A Moment About What Will Never Be.
