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Chapter 9 – Play Nice, Part 2


"Wrex."

"Williams. Why are you wearing the pilot's hat?"

"I felt like pissing him off and I knew he wouldn't be able to hunt me down for it."

"Ha! Human can stand to be brought down a few pegs. Keeps calling me Godzilla or something."

"Yup. But anyways, back to why I'm here. Take a look at this."

"Hmmmmm. This is a nice piece of craftsmanship. What do you call it?"

"We call 'em Bowie Knives, after David Bowie, the guy who invented them a few centuries ago."

"I think I would have liked to meet this David Bowie. Anyone who can think up a blade like this is Krogan enough for me."

"I thought you'd like it. You can go ahead and keep that, if you want."

"Really? What's the catch?"

"No catch, I've still got another one at my workbench. Besides, I felt bad about the bayonet you had to sell."

"I don't need your pity. But… thanks. You're alright, Williams. For a human."

"Happy to help out. See you around, Wrex."

"Williams."

"Garrus?"

"Yes, Tali?"

"What did we just watch?"

"I think we witnessed a human and a Krogan bonding."

"Oh. I feel… weird."

"I'm just gonna go back to… working on the Mako. Yeah, that's what I should do."

"Yeah."


An Improved Sighting mod in hand, Ashley walked into Engineering in search of Tali Zorah. The Quarian tended to favor her shotgun in most situations, and Ash wanted to make sure she could hit some targets at least medium range. Walking in, Ash found the engineers to be in more of a flurry than normal. Spying Zorah in her normal spot, Ash made her way to the young woman.

"Hey Zorah," she greeted when she was close enough.

The Quarian spared a quick glance over her shoulder. "Oh, hello Chief Williams. I don't mean to be rude, but you could come back later? We're a little busy here."

"Well I can certainly see that. What happened?"

"Uh, we had something of a power surge and it messed with some of the systems. Right now I'm trying to get a few conductors to line up properly." Her three-fingered hands danced across the holographic display, but stopped when the interface flashed an angry red. "Oh, you little Bosh'tet!" Tali cursed and slammed her hand down on the terminal.

Feeling the need to assist, Ash stepped forward. "Hey, anything I can do help out?"

"No, it's nothing I can't…" Tali trailed off and looked at Ashley, seemingly examining the human woman with her bright violet eyes. Ash was keenly aware of how little she could tell about Quarian emotions what with their faces being hidden behind their masks. "Actually, there is something you can do for me."

She made a 'come-hither' motion with her hand as she walked away, and Ash followed close behind. Tali stopped at an open hatch and turned back to Ash, speaking at a fast pace. "Down through here is circuit board with a series of conductor rods. They have to be set up in the proper sequence in order for power to flow properly throughout the system. I kept having to crawl back down and coming back up in order to test each sequence, but now that you're here I can tell you each new sequence through the comm."

"Sounds easy enough," Ash replied. Putting the mod in her back pocket for later, Ash crouched and started descending down the ladder into the Normandy's inner workings.

"So the ship isn't in danger of blowing up or anything, right?" Ash asked as she moved down.

"No!" Tali responded as she walked back to her terminal. "At least, I don't think so. Probably not."

"That's not very reassuring, Tali," Ash said pointedly.

Reaching the bottom, Ash turned around to examine the room. It was dark, the ceiling was low, and the corridor was barely wide enough for one person to walk normally. Various pipes and wires hung in odd places.

Tali's digitized voice filtered in through Ash's ear piece. "The circuit board you're looking for should already be open."

Sure enough, Ash found a panel hanging away from the wall on its hinges, and a flashlight placed on a nearby shelf illuminated its contents. Ash found bunches of lights and wires she couldn't make heads or tails of. Off to one side were five cylinders hooked up to ports on either side of each them. They looked simple enough to detach and replace.

"The original conductors fried during the power surge," Tali explained. "I forgot how humans color coded their equipment, so I've been trying random sequences. I know for a fact the orange striped one is in the right place."

"Alright." Ash looked over the cylinders, seeing they were currently lined up as red, green, yellow, blue, and orange. "You'd think they would order them according to the color spectrum."

"I would have thought that too, but apparently not. Alright, rotate each of the cylinders besides the orange one to the right."

Ashley began unscrewing the ports connecting the blue tube. The silence stretched on over the comm. as Ash moved from cylinder to cylinder, moving them in place. Normally she might have tried idle chatter, but she didn't know if she and Zorah had anything in common. Besides giving orders and relaying info during missions, the two of them had never taken the time to just talk and get to know each other.

Eventually Ash finished her work. Now the tubes lined up blue, red, green, yellow, and orange. Ash was about to give Zorah the go ahead when she felt something tickling her hand. She looked up at the hand bracing her against the bulkhead to find a Huntsman Spider starting to crawl over it.

"Oh yuck!" She quickly shook her hand, flinging the arachnid away from her toward the access hatch. Ash had a half a mind to go after it and squash it, but the spider scurried out of sight.

"What's wrong?" Tali asked, her voice wavering slightly in panic.

"It's nothing." Ash flicked her hand a few more times, as if to banish the feeling of the bug crawling on her. "I found a little spider is all."

"A… spider? Sorry, I don't have a translation for that."

"It's an eight legged bug from Earth, no bigger than the palm of your hand. I guess the sanitation crews weren't as thorough as we thought. Whatever, it's gone now. I've got the cylinders set up, so try it now."

"Will do." Zorah was silent for a moment, obviously engrossed in her work. "Ah, it's no good. But from here it looks like the green cylinder is in the right spot. Try cycling the red, blue, and yellow ones."

Ash began to do so, and the pair fell back into companionable silence. Ash was willing to let them work like that, until Zorah made a non-committal noise through the comm.

"Something you wanna say, Zorah?" she asked, perhaps a bit too sternly.

"What? Oh, no! It's… nothing." From what she could hear, Ash guessed she had taken the Quarian off guard by talking first.

Changing tactics, she softened her voice. "Look, I didn't mean it like that. If there's something you want to talk about, I'm all ears."

"Well, um," Tali hesitated, trying to think of the best way to approach this. "I was talking with Shepard the other day, and he told about what happened on… Eden Prime."

The mention of that name was like a blow to Ashley's gut. Not a painful one, but significant enough to make her pause in her work for a second. "Why are you telling me this?" she asked quietly.

Tali answered in an equally quiet voice. "I guess I just wanted to say… sorry, I think. I'm sorry about the deaths of your men. I wish there was something I could have done to help prevent it from happening."

Ashley sighed, slumping in the small confines of the maintenance hatch. But not from her own grief. Ashley had made some serious strides in coping with the deaths of her men. But she didn't want another person wallowing on her behalf.

She connected the last coupling for the yellow cylinder and spoke over the comm. again. "I'm set up down here. Try it again."

"Okay," Zorah replied meekly. Another moment's pause, "Still nothing. I think the next sequence should do it."

Squaring her shoulders, Ash resumed her work of replacing the cylinders. This time, however, she spoke over the comm. in a firm voice. "Listen, Zorah, were you the one who built those Geth?"

"Uhh, well yes, my people did build the-"

"That's not what I'm asking. I mean did you specifically build the Geth that killed my men?"

Ash could practically feel the Quarian frown in consternation. "No."

"Alright. Were you the one who programmed them?"

"No," she said, a bit more firmly this time.

"But were you the one ordering the Geth to attack the colony?"

Tali seemed to have run out of patience. "No!"

With a huff, Ash secured the last coupling in place. "Then I don't know what you're apologizing for, Tali. I blame the deaths of my men on Saren and the Geth, not some Quarian girl we found dodging assassins. As far as I'm concerned, you and I are square, so you don't have to feel guilty over something you weren't part of."

"We're squares?"

"Oh, uh, human expression. It means we're good."

Ashley heard Tali sigh in relief over the comm. "That wasn't the reaction I was expecting, but thank you, Chief. For understanding."

"Don't sweat it." Ash briefly wondered if Quarians could actually sweat. "Alright, Tali, the conductors are in place. Cross your fingers and let's hope this works."

"Another human idiom I'm sure," Tali said with a bit of humor in her voice. She was quiet for a moment before saying, "Yes! That did it. I have power across the board and systems are looking optimal."

"Sweet!" Ash exulted, closing up the circuit board and locking it up. "You need anything else done while I'm down here?"

"No, that should be it. Thank you, Williams, I really appre-"

All Ash received in warning was a sharp intake of breath over the comm. An instant later Ash's head was ringing with a scream that was so high pitched it actually made the communication device in her ear short circuit, making Ash wince in pain. Still hearing Tali scream from all the way down in the hatch, Ash scrambled to make her way back out.

Upon emerging back into the engineering bay, Ash was greeted with the sight of Tali flailing her limbs, jumping about, and screaming, "GETITOFFGETITOFFGETITOFF!"

Engineer Adams stood nearby, looking just as worried as Ash felt, with a data pad in hand. "Just hold still for a second, Tali!" he pleaded. Suddenly, his hand lashed out in a sweeping motion, and Ash saw the data pad connect with something on Tali's suit and sent it flying off.

The thing landed close to where Ash was standing, and now she could see it was the spider she had encountered earlier in the hatch. Before the little bugger could right itself and scurry away, Ash brought her boot down on it with a satisfying crunch, even pivoting her heel into it for good measure.

Adams moved to Tali's said and place a comforting hand on her shoulder. The girl was now visibly shuddering, wiping her gloves along her arms as if to brush away the presence of the spider. "Gah! What in the world was that disgusting monstrosity?"

"I'm thinking that was the spider I found down below," Ash supplied as she moved toward the pair. "Sorry your first encounter with an Earth native didn't go smoothly."

Tali shook her head. "Ugh! That thing crawled onto my hand and looked at me with those beady little eyes. It was hideous."

"If it means anything, not a lot of humans like spiders either," Adams said with a chuckle. "Listen Tali, the Normandy's running at tip top shape again. Why don't you take a break and go get something to eat?"

Tali stood straight and took a deep breath, regaining her composure. "No. No, I'm fine. It was just some stupid bug. I'll be fine working until my break."

"Tali, your break ended over forty minutes ago," Adams informed her with a pointed stare. He turned to Ashley. "Chief, how about you show Tali up to the mess hall? Make sure she gets some grub."

Ashley proffered a casual salute. "Can do, I could go for a snack anyway. You coming, Zorah?"

Tali looked nervously between the two humans, but she relented, following Ashley as they made their way to the elevator. As the lift began to ascend, Ash noticed Tali was still dry washing her hands.

"I take it Quarians don't take kindly to bugs on their ships?" Ash prompted.

Tali shook her head emphatically. "Any organisms not deemed beneficial to ship life are labeled as an infestation, and we would stamp them out as quickly as possible. Even before Quarians took to living with the Flotilla, Rannoch was devoid of any insect life as other species would recognize them. My people had never dealt with bugs until we traveled to new worlds."

"You mean to tell me there are no mosquitoes or cockroaches on Rannoch? Shit, sign me up for a full time home there."

"I'd help build that house were it not for the probable Geth fleet stationed there waiting to blow anything that enters through the relay." The elevator stopped and opened up to the mess hall. Tali and Ashley walked over to the kitchen area, the human selecting a simple ration bar and the Quarian taking out a tube of nutrient paste. As they sat down at one of the tables, Tali asked, "So are there lots of… spiders on Earth?"

Ash began unwrapping the bar. "Well, other insects outnumber humans like a million to one on Earth, and there are enough spiders that make a living out of hunting them. Usually."

"Usually?"

"Well, some spiders to get pretty big. Like, big enough to hunt small birds."

Tali shook her head as she shuddered again. "No offense, Williams, but I don't think I ever want to go to Earth."

Ashley smirked. "If we ever have a movie night, remind me to bring in some really cheesy sci fi movies where the spiders are as big as trucks."

Tali looked at her with narrowed eyes, in what she assumed was the Quarian equivalent of a glare. "You humans are very strange."

"Says the girl who spends all her time in a super high tech suit."

"Touché."

The pair were quiet for a moment as they dug into their food. Ash watched in fascination as Tali hooked up one end of the tube to a port on her mask.

"So is that stuff… good?" Ash asked warily.

Tali paused to detach the tube and swallow what was currently in her mouth. "Well, I'd certainly agree it's good for you. But it doesn't really have a taste, and you have to be careful when cooking it in order to get the consistency right."

"No taste at all?" Tali nodded her head in affirmation. "You know I'm pretty sure Shepard would gladly buy you some better rations if you asked."

To her surprise, Tali actually chuckled. "These are the better rations. Better to have no taste than having to choke down sludge with the same taste and feel as mud. To be honest I can't believe you eat those rations bars. They look like bricks."

Ash glanced down at the partially unwrapped bar in her hand. "Hey, I'll have you know ration bars are a staple of a marine's diet." To emphasize her point, Ash bit off a piece. Or, at least attempted to. The piece broke away with an audible crack, and Ash tried to mask just how much effort it took to actually chew it.

She actually despised rations bars, and judging from the eye roll behind Tali's mask, she wasn't doing a good job of hiding that fact.

"Whatever you say, Chief. I still choose tasteless sludge over slabs of rock."

Ash couldn't help laughing, at both Tali's remark and her own flummoxed state. It must have proved infectious, as she could hear Tali chuckling behind her mask as well.

The pair chatted for a bit, swapping details human and Quarian cultures. Tali told her about the Pilgrimage, and Ash recounted what it was like constantly moving from home to home during her childhood. In some respects, Tali was a lot like Liara. Somewhat shy, unassuming, soft spoken. But like with Liara, say the right words and you could get Tali to come out of her metaphorical shell. She was funny, kind, and endearing in a little sister kind of way.

Tali was describing her life aboard the Rayya with her mother and father when Ash flashed back to a few days prior. To when Tali had accidentally noticed Ash and Shepard were acting as more than comrades in arms. Shepard said he'd spoken to Zorah, and the next day there hadn't been any awkwardness during their mission together. Tali hadn't mentioned anything about it yet, but Ash was well known for being a glutton for punishment, so she decided to test the waters.

"Hey, Tali, can I ask you something a bit more personal?"

The girl crossed her arms on the table and leaned forward, cocking her head to one side. "Sure. Is it something about Quarian lifestyle?"

"No, nothing like that. I was wondering if we could talk about what you saw the other day. Between Shepard and I."

Tali sat straight up again. "Oh, right. I guess I should apologize for interrupting what I assume was a personal moment. Shepard found me later and explained you two are together, so that cleared a lot of things up. Um, it's really not my place, but you should consider keeping that kind of stuff confined to personal quarters. You know, to avoid making people like me feeling like a third cog."

"A third cog?"

"Oh! A Quarian idiom, literally meaning having a third cog in an engine where only two are needed."

"Ah, I see what you mean. Only humans call it a third wheel, you know, because bikes only need two wheels."

Tali canted her head, the Quarian way of showing confusion. "What's a bike?"

Ashley chuckled at her friend's naivety. "I tell you another time." Turning serious again, she said, "So you're okay with the Commander being involved with a soldier under his command?"

She only shrugged her shoulders indifferently. "Of course, why wouldn't I be? It happened all the time back on the Flotilla."

The implications of what Tali meant dawned meant dawned on Ashley. "You mean you don't have regulations against fraternization?"

Tali's bright eyes widened as she realized what Ashley was trying to say. "Oh! I keep forgetting human ships aren't held to the same standard as Quarian ships. So you're saying dating among crew members is prohibited?"

Ash leaned back in her chair. "Well, not entirely, but if it's found out two crew member in the same chain of command are in a relationship, the punishment can be pretty severe."

"That's so strange to me. On Quarian ships almost every relationship happens between ship mates. Mostly because after our Pilgrimage we have so few chances to actually spend time away from the ships we choose to devote our lives to. I should have known it wouldn't be the same for humans, seeing as how your culture doesn't revolve around ships like ours does."

Tali leaned forward and grasped one of Ashley's hands in her own before the human could react. "Look, I haven't known either of you for very long, but I get the feeling you and Shepard care about each other a great deal. So for what it's worth, your secret is safe with me. I promise not to tell anyone else."

Ash narrowed her eyes. "Anyone else? Who have you told already?"

She saw Tali's eyes glance sideways. "No one," she said innocently.

"Tali," she warned.

"Oh fine! I told Garrus, alright?"

"Vakarian? Why would you tell him?"

"He's the only other Dextro on board. Who am I supposed to talk to?"

"Well, yeah, I guess that's fair. So how did he take it?"

Tali shrugged. "He didn't really seem affected by it. Fraternization among Turians isn't a big deal for them, I suppose."

Ash was quiet for a moment, tapping along the table while she thought. "I can live with that. Shepard and I know we probably can't keep our relationship a secret forever. We're just trying to make sure it doesn't get out too fast."

"You shouldn't have any problem with that," Tali said helpfully. "I talk with Adams and the other engineers a lot too, and none of them seem to be catching on to you and Shepard."

Ashley flashed her a grateful smile. "Thanks, Tali."

Tali nodded her head, and Ash could see her eyes dancing with delight. She looked to be about to say something, but at that moment the pair looked up to the ceiling as the lights dimmed before coming back on again.

"Oh dear," Tali said while standing up. "I'd better head back down and make sure they're not about to the break the ship."

"That might be best. Oh! Before you go." As she stood, Ash reached into her back pocket and produced the mod, tossing it to Tali. "An Improved Sighting Mod. I figured you could use it on your shotgun, so you can make you shots land more often."

Tali took a moment to examine the small piece of tech before looking up to Ashley, and she could almost see the smile behind the Quarian's mask. "Thank you, Ashley. You're a very good friend."

With that, Tali walked back into the elevator, while Ash took care of her trash with a smile on her face.


Later that day, Ashley returned to her work bench to continue cleaning her gear. She idly scratched her head where the rim of Joker's hat had chaffed somewhat. She had finally given it back a few hours ago, after Shepard came to her practically begging.

"Ash, just give Joker his hat back. That man has called me sixteen separate times today to complain about it. So please, please, just give him the hat back. For the sake of my sanity."

Ashley was cleaning her sniper rifle when she heard footsteps coming her way. She turned, expecting to see Shepard, but was surprised to see Officer Vakarian coming toward her, holding one of the Haliat 3 assault rifles they'd picked up a few days ago.

"Hey Vakarian," she greeted warily. They might have been on amicable terms, but Vakarian was different from the other aliens on the Normandy. The Williams name hadn't been slandered by the Quarians, Krogan, or Asari. It was nothing personal, but Ash couldn't see herself opening up to him like the others. "Something you need?"

"Yes, it would appear I'm in need of assistance for once," he joked in his odd dual toned voice. He held up the rifle for Ash to inspect. "The Haliat is a great line of rifles, but as it turns out, Turian cleaning equipment isn't as compatible with a human engineering as one would hope. Do you have an extra cleaning kit?"

"Sure." She pointed to one of the shelving units she had installed since claiming the work bench as her own. "I keep my tools in there. You should have everything you need."

"Thanks, Chief." Ash moved herself and her rifle components off to one side so Vakarian could work next to her. He placed his rifle on the bench, but seemed to hesitate as he turned to her. "It's alright if I work here?"

She shrugged. "Yeah. Nothing against you, but I'm protective of my gear, so I just wanna make sure you put all the stuff back where it belongs."

Ash heard the Turian chuckle as he rifles through the draw, pulling out tools he would need. "Damn. And here I thought I'd get some privacy to install all those listening devices and trackers into your guns."

She couldn't help the small upward quirks at the corners of her mouth. "Well, I was planning sabotaging the hydraulic system for the crane on the Mako while you worked, but Shepard waved me off. Said something about wanting to play nice to the other races."

"Ah yes, I can see it now." Vakarian made a grand sweeping gesture in front them as he pretended to read a head line. "Human squishes Turian with lumbering tank. Sparks off Second Contact War."

The two shared a laugh at that idea, then fell into silence as they focused on their respective tasks. Ash watched on as Vakarian carefully dissected his rifle, laying out the various components in a precise order, making sure to clean them with absolute precision. She admired the way he took care of his equipment, how he made positively sure everything he used was in top condition. On the battlefield he was a soldier who favored precision and perfect timing over sheer fire power and overwhelming force. Obviously that translated over into his personal affairs as well.

Vakarian was a good man. The only thing stopping Ash from inviting him out for beers was the fact he was Turian. She was certain the wariness was mutual. Vakarian was a popular name in Turian society. She wouldn't be surprised if he had lost some kind of family during the First Contact War. Although it did speak volumes that they were willing to joke about the possibility of a second.

"So have you kept in touch with Dr. Michel?" Ash asked, drawing a blank on anything else to talk about. Vakarian turned to her, with what she assumed was a confused look for Turians. "It just seems like you two knew each other."

Vakarian nodded his head as he resumed his work. "The doctor and I have shared a few messages ever since I left the Citadel, but nothing substantial. We've known each other for a few years now. I paid special attention to making sure the area around her clinic stayed safe, and in return Michel would assist whenever C-Sec officers brought in victims or perps in bad condition."

Ash noted just how stiffly he spoke and stood. Vakarian was usually the one making jokes and remaining relaxed during missions. Something seemed… off.

"You know, Shepard told me he was going to put in a good word for Dr. Michel," Ash tried. "Maybe get her position in a more main stream place, like Huerta Memorial."

Vakarian hummed in acknowledgement. "He told me that too. I hope everything works out for her. Chloe… deserves something better."

First name basis, huh? That was definitely strange, considering how formal Vakarian treated others. And Ash was pretty sure the last sentence had a double meaning. She just couldn't tell what, yet.

Ash turned to face him fully and leaned her hip on the bench. "Jeeze, Vakarian, you talk about her like the two of you had a bad break up or something."

Vakarian abruptly paused in his work, and he stalled long enough to let Ash know she had said something right. "I don't know what you mean," he said shiftily, refusing to look at her.

Ashley's eyes widened and jaw fell open of their own accord as realization dawned. "Shut up."

With a sigh, Vakarian put his tools down and gripped the table in front of him, but refused to comment further and affirm her suspicions.

Completely undeterred, Ash barreled on. "You and Dr. Michel were a thing?"

Letting out an exasperated noise, Vakarian relented and said, "Yes, a Turian dating a human is very strange. Can we just leave it at that?"

Ash huffed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. Deny me the juiciest piece of gossip I've heard since joining this ship. I guarantee Joker will eventually find out somehow, though."

Vakarian lifted his head to the sky and growled in the back of his throat. "Damn that insufferable human! No offense," he quickly added to Ash.

He turned to Ashley with an expression she knew he reserved for criminals when he didn't want to give anything away. He stayed quiet for a moment, seeming to be gauging Ashley with his electric blue eyes. To her credit, Ash stood dauntless under his scrutiny, a placid expression on her face as they weighed each other out.

After a moment, Vakarian turn to face her fully and said, "Alright, I'll tell you about Michel and I. But first, you have to give me something to ponder over too."

Ash crossed her arms in an authoritative stance. "And what would that be?"

"I want to know what's going on between you and the Commander."

If Vakarian had been expecting a reaction, he didn't get it. Ashley remained stoic and unreadable. He narrowed his eyes at her. "You already knew I know about you two?"

"Zorah said she'd told you," Ash said with a casual shrug.

"You and Tali are on speaking terms now?"

"Yup. I was there during the spider incident. Then we had a bite to eat and we talked. Nice girl."

Vakarian hummed thoughtfully. "I wasn't expecting that from you. Shepard said you weren't the quickest to trust aliens."

"And that's still true. But since we're on a small ship and working together, it seems kinda stupid not to at least try and talk to you all."

"I guess that's fair. But back to my point, are you going to tell me about you and Shepard?"

Ash pushed herself off the table and stepped closer, getting into Vakarian's personal space. "And just why exactly do you care?" she challenged.

To his credit, Vakarian neither flinched nor backed down, having dealt with hundreds of interrogations before. "I've read through your Alliance regulations, and I know it specifically wards against fraternization like this. I have no intentions of trying to stop whatever it is you two have, but I want to make certain it won't disrupt the Commander from doing his job. Bringing Saren down is the top priority, and nothing can distract the Commander from that."

The two of them stared each other down for moment. Ash wanted to make sure she got the message across that Vakarian couldn't push her around to get information. Tersely, she said, "Two years ago Shepard got called onto Arcturus to be debriefed about a mission. He requested another marine detail for backup, and my unit happened to be on shore leave at the time. I'm not at liberty to give details, but suffice to say the mission was a complete success."

"Naturally," Vakarian added.

Ash paused a moment, thinking of how best to explain what came next. "While my men and I were celebrating our first real mission being a win, Shepard stopped by. We talked, shared some beers, and before I knew it he and I were spending the night together in my apartment."

She looked away and her voice took on a softer quality. "We spent the next couple of days together before we had to ship out again, and in that time John and I realized we care about each other."

"John?"

"Yes, his first name. Anyway, he and I agreed to keep in touch, and hopefully years from then we'd both have the opportunity to settle down and figure out just what it is we are."

"Judging from recent events, I'm guessing that's not how it turned out."

"Wow, with perception powers like that you must be cop or something," she said sarcastically. Ash smirked at his playful glare, but sobered as she continued. "After Eden Prime I was the only one left of my unit. Anderson assigned me to the Normandy because he didn't want my skills to go to waste, but I get the feeling he also did it because he knew about Shepard and I. Anderson thinks having me under Shepard's command will actually help keep him focused on the mission."

Garrus crossed his arms as he mulled over what Ash had told him. "So you two are serious then? This isn't some fling born out of convenience?"

"No, this isn't just about sex. I'm here because I want to make Saren pay for what he's done. And I know Shepard's going to be the one to take him down."

By the end of Ash's story, Vakarian had loosened his stance, dropping the imposing demeanor. "I'm sorry if I overstepped any bounds. I thought what you and Shepard have was something more casual. I wasn't trying to imply you didn't care about each other."

Ashley relaxed herself and took a step away. "I do get where you're coming from. If word got out Shepard was dating a soldier under his command, it could set both of our careers back. Maybe damage our reputations beyond repair."

Vakarian leaned his hip on the table causally. "Fraternization regs are similar for Hierarchy Ships. Only punishments are much more severe for the superior officer, and less so for the subordinate. That's why I was so worried about you and the Commander. Shepard's been good to me, and I don't want to see him dragged down by backroom politics."

He paused, and Ash remained silent as she waited for him to continue. "If what you're saying is true, and you and Shepard really do care about each other…" Vakarian shrugged lamely. "In the end I just want what's best for you both, so I guess your secret is safe with me."

She raised her brow at him. "You know you don't have to do that. If Alliance officials start making inquiries you don't have to cover for us if it puts you in a difficult position."

"Yes, I suppose any good Turian would report any illegal fraternization he witnessed," Vakarian said with a nod. His mandibles splayed out in what she had determined to be a grin for their species. "But as it turns out I've never been a very good Turian."

Ash felt herself smiling too at the positive change in tempo of their conversation. "Please tell me that's not the line you used to pick up Michel," she teased. "I bet Garrus Vakarian is so suave he has all the ladies trailing on his heels."

Vakarian chuckled bashfully and ducked his head. "I do well enough for myself. Though I certainly wouldn't say I have 'A lover in every port.'" He looked away, becoming hesitant once more.

"It was the voice, if you must know," he admitted. "I'd never heard a human with a French accent before, and then add in the flaming red hair and the green eyes as big as dinner plates, she was so exotic and I couldn't help being drawn in. I was getting off a string of bad relationships with Turian women, so I was looking for something different. Something with more stability, I guess."

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I think better stability would be had if you dated your own species, not a new one."

"Then you obviously don't know Turian women very well. Unless their looking for a man to settle down with, most of the women of my species approach relationships casually. For them it's a means to let off steam with only the bare minimum of attachment. For younger Turian guys like me, there aren't a lot of opportunities find a girl who's interested in a more invested relationship."

Vakarian looked away as memories came back to him, and Ash saw his features soften, as best they could for a Turian. "I met Chloe about a year after starting C-Sec, when I was posted to a new beat that overlooked her clinic. We warmed up to each other pretty quick, seeing as how we both sort of outliers for our species. In that time I got to learn about Chloe Michel, not the Doctor who worked in the Wards. I realized she's kind, caring, but steadfast to her belief in helping others, and stubborn enough not to let anyone get in her way.

"I spent three months working up the courage to ask her out on a date. I thought for sure she'd turn me down, but instead her eyes took on a sparkle I'd only rarely ever seen before and she agreed with almost no hesitation. Chloe later told me she'd been harboring feelings for me too, but until I asked she never knew how to approach the subject.

"This might sound cliché, but the first couple of years we spent together were some of the happiest I've ever had," he said with a warm chuckle. "Dating a different species was new for both of us, and as a result there wasn't any real pressure to live up to. It was weird, exhilarating, and downright awkward at time. But things were just so easy between us. It felt like there wasn't anything holding us back from who we really were. It was easy to let go of my worries around Chloe and just enjoy the time I could spend with her."

Ash listened with rapt attention. This was a side of Vakarian she never imagined she'd be seeing. The Turian was so cocksure of himself all the time, leaving a near-visible trail of self-assurance wherever he went. Seeing this more emotional side was a bit jarring. And it was because of how caring his words for Dr. Michel were that made her uneasy about what came next.

"I get the feeling things didn't stay that way," she said solemnly.

The small smile on Vakarian's face slipped away, replaced with a stoic expression. "No. No it didn't."

He sighed and dragged a hand backward over his fringe. "It was easier for us to be together while I was still a new cop to the force. More time to myself and less work to keep me at the office. But I wanted to do more, help more people, so I started rising in rank. It came with more leeway to conduct myself how I wanted, but it also came with more responsibilities and more red tape I'd have to adhere to.

"Before I realized what was happening, Chloe and I were spending less and less time together. And even when we could see each other we'd spend more time arguing about our careers than actually acting like a couple." Vakarian was speaking with venom in his voice now, but Ash had the feeling he was directing the anger at himself. "I was too blind to see I was driving a wedge between us with my work. I was working bigger and more dangerous cases, and that would only make her worry about my safety and become distracted at the clinic. And I…"

Vakarian cut himself off, closing his eyes and clenching his fists. Very quietly, he said, "I started getting paranoid. I was so afraid I'd come home one day and find her in bed with another man. If that happened I… I don't know what I would have done."

Hearing all this, it made Ash feel shocked, sad about what happened with Vakarian, and more than a little hypocritical. She and Shepard had been in a relationship for two years now, most of which they spent with light years of distance in between them, and they were still going strong. And here was Vakarian, a good man who probably spent a good chunk of his life with a woman he likely loved, only to have it come crumbling down around him in the end.

And it struck her how amazingly human that was. Ash had grown up thinking Turians were this strange, unknowable race that placed themselves above humanity. She never had reason to think humans and Turians could be similar in any way. And yet here was Garrus Vakarian, a Turian who dated a woman and had his heart crushed like any other human Ash had known. He wasn't an alien with problems Ashley couldn't understand. She realized Garrus was just another man, one who had desires and things that could hurt him, just like Ash. It was a sobering revelation. It finally clicked with her how easy it was for Shepard to trust aliens like they were any other human. How if you could look past the skin and the race, it turns out different species aren't all that different.

"Shit, I'm sorry Garrus," she consoled. "It sounds like you both really cared for each other. I really don't know what to say, but… I'm sorry."

"I appreciate it, Ash," he said with a nod. "But I'm a big boy. You don't have to go all sappy on me."

She was glad to hear some of the humor return to his voice. "But why would you tell me all that?" she asked, genuinely curious. "It's not like we're exactly the best of friends."

He answered with a shrug. "Live through stuff like that and you can keep it bottled up for only so long before unloading on somebody. The past two weeks I've been able to put it behind me with my work and focus on the mission, but we started talking about you and Shepard and I guess it just came back up."

Ash could relate, remembering the breakdown she had on the Citadel two weeks ago...

Wait, two weeks? That would put the date at…

Ash's eyes widened as realization dawned. "You broke up with Michel the day we met you?"

Garrus nodded solemnly. "Her being held hostage made us reach our boiling point. Chloe was always worried I might run afoul of some crime boss I wouldn't be able to put away, and then they'd come after us out of revenge. That wasn't exactly how it happened with Fist's thugs, but it was close enough that it left her unnerved.

"She wasn't too happy to hear I planned on leaving the Citadel when I went to check on her later," he said with a nervous chuckle. "We both knew what we had couldn't survive with me being so far away, and we realized it wasn't working anymore. That our relationship was going to fail anyway, so why prolong it? We ended it on good terms, I think." Garrus shook his, closing his eyes. Morosely, he said, "Sometimes I think about what I did wrong. If there was anything I could have done differently. Maybe I could have-"

"Garrus," Ash cut in pointedly. He opened his eyes and turned to her with a weary gaze. "You and I both know you'll only torture yourself following that line of thought. Believe me; I've been there too ever since what happened with the 212. Nothing good comes of it."

He turned to face her fully. "Well you seem to be getting along just fine," he said with a gesture of his hand. "And my sob story pales in comparison to what you had to go through. What's your secret?"

Ash pursed her lips and thought a moment. "Just do what Shepard told me. Don't focus on how it ended badly and try to remember all the good times you had together."

Garrus hummed thoughtfully, and he stood up straight again, regaining some of his self-confidence. "You're right. I won't do myself any favors wallowing. It's about time I actually act like I'm moving on."

At that moment they both saw a subdued flash, and Garrus brought up his wrist to see his Omni Tool was buzzing with an incoming message. Ash couldn't see the contact, but Garrus's demeanor immediately brightened upon seeing who it was. He pressed a command an initiated an audio connection.

"What can I do you for, Tali?" he asked, the lightheartedness Garrus usually spoke with returning in full.

"Hey Garrus. I was tinkering with the Normandy's weapon outputs, and I think I found something that can boost the Mako's damage with the cannon. Come by and have a look?"

"I'll only be a moment," he said with a smile. Garrus closed his tool and glanced down at his partially disassembled rifle before turning back to Ash. "You mind finishing this up for me? That girl doesn't like it when you keep her waiting."

"Are you sure you're comfortable leaving your gun with a human?" she teased. "I might rig the trigger to activate an injection with a specially made Turian poison."

"Oh, I wouldn't do that if I were you," he returned smugly. "I installed a demolitions pack into your armor with a dead man's switch. You'll be blown sky high before you can say 'Suck it lizard face!'"

Ash laughed as she moved to work on his rifle. "I'll take care of this, Garrus, don't worry. You and Tali go do your tech thing."

"Thanks, Chief." With that Garrus turned and made his way to engineering. Ash was about to start putting the rifle back together when she heard him call her.

She turned back to see Garrus standing a little ways away, giving her a serious look. "Shepard told me about what happened on Eden Prime. I am sorry about what happened to your unit, but I'm glad you made it out. The galaxy could use more people like you."

People, not just humans, she noted. "Thanks, Garrus," Ash said with a genuine smile. Giving each other one last nod, they turned back to their respective tasks. For a moment, Ash thought she had just witnessed something important, and not the bonding moment she and Garrus had just had. She pondered for a few seconds, but it didn't come back to her, so Ash shrugged it off.


12:10

Come on, Williams, just twenty more minutes and you can head to chow time.

The rumbling coming from her stomach promised not to make that waiting easy on her.

Ashley stood at her workbench, going through the repetitions of cleaning various weapons. She'd finished with her own gear some time ago, and Vakarian's assault rifle not long after that. Now she was making sure the various spare weaponry they currently had on hand were properly maintained and cleaned. Top condition guns went for a better price on the Citadel than weapons sold straight from the battlefield they were found on. Ash would move on to the spare sets of armor after her lunch break.

She wanted to do the same for all of the mods they had, but Shepard had sequestered those for himself, seeing as how he was in charge of allocating who got what equipment for groundside missions. As was his right as the commanding officer of the Normandy.

Ash was finishing putting a Raikou pistol back together when her comm. started going off. She hit the connect button and Joker's voice filled her ear.

"Hey Chief, Shepard wants to talk to you. Said to meet him up in his cabin."

"Why does Shepard want to talk to me?" she asked already starting to put her things away before leaving her station. "And why didn't he just come down here to talk?"

"I dunno, he wouldn't say. Maybe he wants to have a chat about respecting other crew member's personal effects."

Ash couldn't stop the smirk from growing on her face. "Aww, is someone still mad about having their hat taken away for a bit?"

Joker answered by abruptly closing the comm. with a burst of static. Laughing it off, Ash made her way to the elevator and rode it up to the crew deck. She unfortunately had to pass by the kitchen area, and the tempting aromas coming from the cooking food made her mouth water. But, Shepard had asked to see her, and that took priority over food, no matter how much her stomach argued otherwise.

Ash stopped in front of his door and knocked politely, palming the door control when she heard him say, "Come in."

She walked in and was immediately greeted to the sight of Shepard standing up from his desk, a large smile on his face as he put a data pad down. "Joker said you wanted to see me," Ash prompted.

"Indeed I did. Come have a look." Shepard moved past her and further into his quarters, beckoning for Ash to follow. She followed him to his bed, and before her one track mind made any assumptions, she noticed the two covered silver platters resting on the sheets.

"What's all this?"

"This," he said, gesturing to the whole ensemble, "is the best idea I had for a date. Complete with a private locale, fitting music," at this he picked up a remote and hit a button, causing low, smooth jazz music to start playing throughout the cabin, "and the finest cuisine the Normandy has to offer."

He removed the coverings on the platters with a grand flourish, revealing their meals. For both of them to eat he selected grilled chicken salad, mashed potatoes with gravy, and bread rolls with synthetic butter.

"This is the exact same gruel we'd be eating in the mess today," Ash said with a laugh.

"Yes, but does the mess hall come with mood lighting?" Here he pressed another button and the lights in the cabin dimmed to a more romantic setting. John then reached into a personal cooler and pulled out a bottle of brown liquid. "Or delicious beverages of Greenore Single Grain 8 Year whiskey?"

Ashley's brow rose, impressed but not fully satisfied. "You realize we're not allowed to drink while on duty."

"I'm a Spectre. I hereby declare that rule dumb and null and void."

Ash only shook her head in amusement and crossed her arms as she stepped closer, giving him a deprecating smile.

She could see some of John's enthusiasm falter, but his smile remained intact, and he looked down at the bottle in his hands bashfully. "It feels like I wasn't paying a lot of attention to you the last few days, and I was starting to feel like a shitty boyfriend. So I figured I'd set up something nice to show how much you mean to me." He coughed nervously into his fist. "I understand this might seem a bit forward. I just wanted to do some-"

Ash closed the distance between them and looped her hands around his neck to pull him into a quick but passionate kiss. She felt his free hand instinctively settle on the curve of her waist. Ash pulled away and looked into his deep blue eyes, a mere inch between their lips, and said, "I think it's perfect."

John smiled and rested his forehead against hers. "You're perfect."

She chuckled and swatted his shoulder playfully. "I'm sorry, but you are so cliché."

"I try."

Reluctantly, Ash pulled away, taking the bottle of whiskey with her to inspect. "This is a good brand," she commented as she sat down on the bed.

John sat down across from her, pulling out two sets of silverware and two glasses, passing one each to her. "Truthfully I don't know much about whiskey. I was talking with an old buddy of mine and that's what he recommended."

"Well I think your friend has good taste." Ash opened the bottle and poured a small glass for herself, doing the same for Shepard. Setting the bottle aside, they raised their glasses and chinked them together in toast.

"To the Normandy," John said proudly, "the best crew I've ever worked with."

"To you, Shepard," Ash said warmly, "the best commander I've ever worked with."

With large smiles, they downed their glasses. Ash poured them another round and they dug into their meals.

John swallowed a bite of lettuce. "So I've been hearing some pretty strange rumors," he started casually.

"Oh, and what would those be?" Ash asked, feigning ignorance.

"Well, some crew members have been saying they've been seeing you chatting with the aliens on the Normandy. And I thought, 'That's just preposterous! Ash is way too thick headed to mess around with a bunch of aliens.'"

She gave him a mild glare as she ate spoonful of mashed potatoes. "I'd choose your next words very wisely, Shepard," she warned.

John only chuckled. "I didn't expect you to warm up to them so quickly is all. And it sounds like you're really getting along. Liara actually came out of her hidey hole yesterday, and some of the crew members can talk to Wrex without shitting their pants. I'm proud of you."

Ash flushed at his praised and looked down at her meal. "They're really not so bad when you get to know them. And I get what you mean now, how they're people like you and me. Especially Vakarian. He might act like he's full of himself, but he has relationship problems just like any human."

John sputtered on his food. "Relationship problems?"

"That's something you should probably ask him about yourself. It's not my place to tell."

He grinned knowingly. "I honestly thought I'd never see you two getting along. I'm happy you proved me wrong."

John dug back into his food, but made a sound in the back of his throat and gestured with is fork for Ashley to wait. He leaned back and reached under his bed, pulling out a decently sized box and placing it on the sheets between them. "There was one serious thing I wanted to talk about. I also heard you've been helping the guys out in regards to their gear."

Ash hummed thoughtfully. "Yeah, I guess."

"It's not a guess, you have. And it made me realize the perfect job for you!" He pushed the box toward her. Ash put her fork down and opened it to find all of the weapon and armor mods they had picked up since starting their mission.

She looked back to John, who was beaming. "I am officially appointing you as the arms master of the ground team. From here I give you the duty of deciding which weapons, mods, and armor are best suited for everyone cleared to go on missions."

Ashley gawked at him. "But that's your job! You're the commanding officer."

"That I am, but as a Spectre and the leader of the ground missions, I've found I'm a bit stretched for time on a day to day basis. And since you're in need of an official job and this is already something you're good at, I decided you would be able to take this duty off my hands."

"So you're just being lazy and passing the buck," she said with a good natured grin.

John titled his head and pondered her statement. "Yeah, that too probably. But you deserve it. There's no one else I'd entrust with this."

Ash glowed at his praise. "Thank you, commander."

He nudged her knee with his foot. "No ranks on date night. This is just you and me."

"Date night. Is this going to be a regular thing?"

"Well, it can be if you want it to."

She flashed him a dazzling smile. "I'd like that, John."


Author's Note: I have absolutely no clue as to what engineering on a spaceship entails. I just picked a situation that fit the dialogue I wanted to get across and was simple enough to follow.