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"A turian, Shepard? Really?"

Shepard looks up from her terminal. Kaiden is standing in the doorway of her private cabin, making it appear even smaller than it already is. Already slightly annoyed by his presence, she takes a moment to save her progress on the report she had been working on, not saying a word. When finished, she dims the screen and makes eye contact with Kaiden, raising an eyebrow. "That's Commander Shepard, Lieutenant. Try again."

He instantly looks ashamed and rubs his neck sheepishly. "I apologize, Commander. I forgot my place. It won't happen again."

"Thank you," she replies coolly. Leaning back in her chair, she crosses her arms and continues, "Now, you were questioning my decisions?"

Again, Kaiden looks embarrassed. "No, ma'am. Just curious, that's all. The crew isn't exactly comfortable right now and I was surprised you brought him on, especially with that display back there in the clinic."

"He's a good shot and motivated. A little reckless, yes, but overall a solid soldier."

"With all due respect, Commander—"

"I hate it when sentences start with that," she sighs, rubbing her temples to ward off the incoming headache. "It's just a polite way of telling me that you think I made a bad call."

"No, ma'am, that's not at all what I—"

"Just tell me what the problem is. I'd like to finish my reports."

Kaiden stares down at his feet, frowning as if he's waging an internal battle with his own thoughts. Finally, he looks up at her and confidently states, "We don't know a thing about him. I don't think it's smart to let a stranger on the Normandy, especially since she's an experimental ship."

Shepard nods, taking his reasons into account. He's right—she doesn't know a whole lot about Officer Vakarian—but Shepard certainly knows when her gut is telling her something. When she saw him shoot the guy holding Doctor Michel, it had been reckless. Stupid. Completely uncalled for, honestly. After she had finished yelling at him, though, her gut told her good things about that rule-breaking turian. She wasn't sure what that feeling meant exactly, but she will stand by her decision until proven wrong—whenever that may happen.

"You make a valid point," Shepard concedes. Kaiden looks relieved that his point got through to her, but his celebration doesn't last long. She meets his eyes with intensity. "However, until I have clear evidence that he doesn't belong on this ship, he's staying. If you're so worried about him, have a drink with the guy and get to know him. Then come back to me and complain some more."

"He's tinkering with the Mako, ma'am," Kaiden argues. "That's a classified prototype vehicle that he should have access to."

"It's a turian design, dumbass," Shepard snaps, fed up with this conversation. "He probably knows more about the damn thing than you do. Just go down there and strike up a conversation. You might even become best friends or something. Dismissed, Lieutenant."

"Yes, ma'am." He turns to leave, shoulder slumped in defeat. Before he can take a step, though, Shepard stops him.

"Kaiden?"

He turns back, a hopeful look smeared across his face. "Commander?"

She stares at him flatly, an unspoken threat behind her eyes. "Don't ever question my decisions again. Understood?"

"...understood, ma'am."

Kaiden leaves her office, clearly moping about getting chewed out. When the doors hisses shut behind him, Shepard breathes a sigh of relief and rubs her temples again. She sincerely hopes that taking that turian on board doesn't come back to bite her in the ass. Kaiden would never let her live it down.

Luckily, that never happens.