Lorik Qui'in's warning about the security guards proved to be helpful. Nearly as soon as Shepard and her squad stepped out of the elevator into the Synthetic Insights office, they were met with gunfire clipping their shields.
Liara thought fast and cast a barrier around them, while Tali and Shepard overloaded the nearby shooters' weapons. That bought them the time to duck under cover and prepare to fight back. Compared to the geth, a few hired mercenaries seemed like child's play. Shepard didn't like unnecessary bloodshed, but the guards had fired on them first. They had little choice but to fight back, as ruthlessly as necessary.
They took out three of the mercenaries quickly, then Garrus called for them to move to new cover, closer to the remaining thugs. Between the four of them, they made quick work of Anoleis' hired goons, and hurried up the stairs to Lorik Qui'in's office.
The Synthetic Insights office was as drab and cold as the rest of the building seemed to be. Despite the protection the concrete structure provided from the blizzard outside, it was still uncomfortably cold inside the building. As much as Shepard had ribbed Garrus for complaining about it, the cold was already beginning to get on her last nerve.
As Qui'in had promised, the evidence on Anoleis was stored in his terminal, and the OSD provided quick access.
"Not to jinx things," Garrus said, "But that was a lot faster than I anticipated."
"We aren't out of the woods yet," Shepard warned, pocketing the OSD with the data. "We've still got to get this back to Lorik Qui'in. And there's also still a chance that he won't follow through on his word."
She was apprehensive of any task that came easy, and this one had seemed easy enough. With the data gathered, she led the squad out of the office and toward the exit. She saw the security officers at the same time that Garrus drew his gun. The blonde who had accosted them at the docking bay was barring their exit, flanked by two guards with their weapons drawn.
"Commander Shepard," the gruff blonde guard spoke. "I don't think you're supposed to be here."
"Funny," Garrus said. "I could say the same of you. I wonder what Captain Matsuo would think if she knew her guards were taking bribes from Anoleis under the table."
"Good thing she's not going to find out," the blonde drew her gun.
Before anyone could fire, Liara had used her biotics to throw the two guards behind the blonde against the wall. Shepard dove at the blonde, knocking her into the ground and struggling to grab her weapon from her. She received a stiff punch in the eye, which she returned by slamming the guard's head into the concrete floor. This knocked the guard unconscious, which gave Shepard the time to use the guard's own handcuffs to secure her arms behind her back.
"She'll have a hard time getting anyone to believe her story when she wakes up," Shepard said, shoving the blonde in a corner and pushing herself to her feet.
Garrus shouldered his gun and walked over to her. He surprised her by grabbing her chin and examining her eye, which was rapidly swelling shut from the punch she'd received from the blonde. Medi-gel wouldn't help that, unfortunately. She would need to ice it, and it was going to affect her aim. She hadn't had a shiner since her days in the academy.
"She got you pretty good," Garrus said. "You need to get ice on that soon. Good thing this planet seems to have an abundance of it." He let go of her chin and approached the exit elevator. "Let's get out of here before anyone else shows up."
"Hey," Shepard complained. "I thought I was the one calling the shots."
"Thought being the operative word," Garrus replied.
"I feel sorry for whoever encounters this mess tomorrow," Tali said, observing the dead and unconscious bodies littering the office.
"I have a feeling this is nothing compared to what's in store," Liara sighed.
Qui'in's data successfully obtained, the group of them headed back up to the hotel bar, still full of drunken guests writhing on the dance floor. Lorik Qui'in hadn't moved from his spot at the table near the wall, and they crossed the room to meet him. Unfortunately for Shepard, they were intercepted along the way by Gianna Parasini.
"Commander, I think it's time I reintroduce myself," she greeted them.
"Excuse me?" Shepard folded her arms across her chest.
"Gianna Parasini, Noveria Internal Affairs. I've been working undercover for six months trying to gather enough evidence of Anoleis' corruption to put him behind bars. I know the data on Qui'in's OSD could do just that."
"Internal Affairs, huh? You had me fooled. What am I supposed to do about it? The data belongs to Qui'in. I'm not going to just hand it over to Anoleis' secretary on the off-chance that she's telling me the truth about being an undercover agent," Shepard said.
"I understand not trusting me. Qui'in won't trust me either. That's why I need you to convince him to testify against Anoleis in court."
"Now we're running errands for half of Noveria," Garrus muttered.
"We may be here for other purposes, but rooting out the cause of the problems here certainly couldn't hurt anything. We already have the data, after all," Liara offered.
Shepard knew Liara was right, but she was annoyed at being strung up in the middle of this corruption scandal just so she could get a garage pass to get out to the research station.
"I need Lorik Qui'in's garage pass," Shepard told Parasini. "If you can offer me a pass, then I'll try to convince him to talk."
Parasini laughed. "A garage pass is no problem. I'll even throw in a free room at the hotel. Even with a pass, you can't go out in this blizzard. There are no guard rails on the roads out to Peak 15. You don't look like you can do much shooting with that eye either. Stay the night and head out in the morning when the blizzard has subsided somewhat. But only if Qui'in talks."
"She's right Shepard, you can't fight with that black eye," Tali said.
"All right, I'll try to get him to talk." She shook Parasini's hand.
"Oh good," Garrus groaned. "An extra day on this frozen garbage heap."
Shepard rolled her eyes and led the squad away from Parasini, who waited patiently by the bar for any word on Qui'in.
The turian watched them approach, sipping his drink silently.
"Commander, you're looking a little worse for the wear," he greeted them.
Shepard's eye had fully swollen shut by this point and it was absolutely throbbing. But she wasn't going to let anyone know that. She had certainly suffered through worse wounds, the countless scars decorating her body were evidence of that.
She pulled the OSD from her pocket and held onto it. "We got the data."
Qui'in held out his hand. "I hope it wasn't too much trouble."
Shepard withdrew the OSD and held her hand under the table. "I'm afraid I can't give it to you just yet. I met with an Internal Affairs agent who wants you to testify against Anoleis. This evidence could put him away and the agent wants you to help."
The turian sneered. "Blackmail? I should have gotten the evidence myself. I'm not interested in a public spectacle."
"Just interested in blackmailing Anoleis yourself?" Garrus asked.
"You would be compensated for your time," Shepard said. "And it would take care of some of the issues you've been having if Anoleis were removed from his role."
Qui'in seemed to mull it over as he stared at his drink. "I suppose I won't be getting my data back otherwise. And I'm not interested in trying to fight a Spectre and her trained pets to try and take it by force. Very well, I'll testify. Tell me what needs to be done."
Another task that seemed too easy to Shepard. She would take any wins she could get though. They would likely be facing off with an asari Matriarch before their stay on Noveria was through, so she needed the ego boost. She was beginning to realize what kind of weight Spectre status carried now. A turian with years of experience on her might have chanced a brawl with some unknown Alliance officer, but a Council Spectre was a whole different beast.
"Someone from Internal Affairs will be in touch. I'll be passing the OSD along to them in the meantime. Thanks for cooperating," Shepard nodded and stood up from the table.
"As though I had a choice."
They left the turian to nurse his drink and found Parasini tucked away in the shadows at the side of the bar. They delivered the news, somewhat to her surprise it seemed, and she followed up on her end of the bargain, providing them with a garage access pass and a hotel room key.
They parted ways there and Shepard turned to the squad.
"The less of us these people see the better. We already stick out like sore thumbs. Let's head up to the room and see what kind of room service options this place has got."
"I assume you're buying," Tali said.
"I'll charge it to the Council," Shepard grinned in response.
The entrance to the hotel was up a set of stairs behind the bar and up yet another elevator to the next level of the port. The elevator opened into a lobby filled with modern art that matched the brutalist style of the building's architecture. Two ice sculptures of asari stood on either side of the concierge desk.
"Now they're just flaunting the temperature," Garrus growled, mandibles flaring.
Shepard checked them in and they were sent up three more levels, where the elevator opened out into a long hallway filled with doors. They had to walk all the way to the end to find their room, but it was well worth the walk, and worth the short talk with Qui'in that had earned them the stay.
The room was one massive chamber, rounded into a half circle, with floor-to-ceiling windows allowing a view of the white-out conditions outside. In the center of the room was a large bed with downy pillows and a thick, fluffy comforter to provide warmth. A sectional sofa sat to the left of the bed, around a 3D vid projector, a fully stocked minibar at the end of the sofa. A fireplace was built into the wall opposite the bed, already burning bright. Finally, to their immediate right upon entering, a private bathroom housed a tub large enough to fit two krogan next to a shower that was equally accommodating.
"I guess being a Spectre has its perks," Garrus noted, pulling his guns from his back and setting them by the sofa.
Tali rushed to the window and stood with her mask pressed against it. "It's amazing. I've never seen it in person before."
"Snow?" Shepard asked.
"Yes, it's beautiful. It was harder to see down in the main chamber, but up close…"
"Beautiful?" Garrus snorted in derision. "Cold. And dangerous. Avalanches can destroy whole settlements. To say nothing of how ice degrades buildings and vehicles."
"Let her enjoy it, Garrus," Shepard chided him. She tried to be understanding, the turian's physiology wasn't built to withstand this kind of cold and it was making him irritable, but he didn't need to take it out on the squad.
Liara sat down on the sofa and began reading from her omni-tool. Shepard walked over to her and leaned against the back of the sofa next to her.
"Are you sure you're all right, Liara? We might run into your mother tomorrow."
The asari looked up at her, deep blue eyes shimmering. For a moment, Shepard wondered if she might cry, but she only smiled. "I'm sure, Shepard. I do appreciate your concern. It's nice to have…someone who cares. I'm afraid I don't have many friends. I've spent so much of my life studying that I…I have neglected my personal life."
"We haven't known each other long, but we'll be your friends, Liara," Shepard assured her. "If you need to step out of the battle, any of them, just do it. Call out and one of us will cover you. I don't want you to get yourself hurt because of emotions."
"Thank you, Shepard. I think I'll be okay, but if I need to take you up on that offer I will. I'm going to read up a bit on this research facility before we go to sleep. I don't mind sleeping on the couch. It seems there are blankets and other bedding supplies in the chest by the minibar."
"Let me know if you find anything worth noting." Shepard left her to read, realizing she probably wanted some time to be alone with her thoughts. She couldn't imagine having to face her own mother in battle. But she also didn't really know Liara's history with her mother.
When Shepard turned back toward the bed, it was to find Garrus bundled up under the many layers of blankets and the thick down-filled comforter. He had the blankets pulled up to his chin, glaring moodily out at the snow that Tali found so enrapturing.
"I hope you don't think you're staying there all night," Shepard folded her arms.
"What? Do you think you deserve this entire bed to yourself? I'm afraid I'm casting aside any politeness, Shepard. It's too damn cold to forfeit the bed to the commander."
"Maybe Tali wanted to sleep there," Shepard tried.
"My suit regulates my temperature," Tali replied, still glued to the window. "I'm fine to sleep on the sofa. There's plenty of room for Liara and me. You and Garrus are the tallest, you should share the bed."
"I suppose I can make room for you," Garrus said, "But you have to promise to keep your hands to yourself. As much as I know you might want it, we can't give in to our base desires with Tali and Liara in the same room."
Shepard rolled her eyes. "I'll try to control myself."
She began to pull off her armor, setting it in a pile next to Garrus' at the end of the bed.
"You should be glad you're sharing the bed with me, Shepard," the turian told her.
"Why's that?"
"Turians are excellent bed mates. You won't be cold at all the way my body puts off heat."
"If I have to spend all night listening to you complain about the cold, I'm kicking you out of bed," she warned.
"All right, all right," he grumbled.
Shepard grabbed some ice from the minibar and a washcloth from the bathroom and used it to sooth her aching eye while she examined the room service menu. She read some of the options out loud to the squad; the menu was almost too long to make a decision, with both dextro and levo options, so they ordered a bit of everything and had it sent up. Shepard didn't even have to charge it to the Council. It seemed Parasini had taken care of everything.
After they had gorged themselves on the food they'd ordered, Shepard even risking food poisoning to try a bit of dextro-chocolate, their fatigue seemed to hit them all at once. Liara remarked that she hadn't had such a good meal in ages, often relegated to eating whatever slim options were available at remote dig-sites. Tali, too, was used to the limited options aboard the flotilla. She had eaten more than any of them, though where she was able to put all of it was beyond Shepard.
Exhausted and full, the lights in the room were shut off, leaving only the crackling fireplace as they all laid down to get some rest. Shepard climbed under the covers next to Garrus and immediately realized what he'd meant about his body heat. He seemed to be made of fire. It made the bed cozy and comfortable, only adding to her drowsiness.
Military life necessitated sharing bunks with fellow officers sometimes; she had slept between Kaidan and Jenkins in their ratty old tent countless nights out on missions. She'd never slept next to a turian before though, and while she wasn't uncomfortable with the situation, there was something odd about it, beyond the obvious, that she couldn't place.
Shepard slept fitfully, on and off, until around midnight, when she awoke and couldn't force herself back to sleep. She lay on her side, watching the snow beat down intensely against the windows for a while, the thick barrier of glass didn't seem like much standing between her and a torrential blizzard.
Garrus was shivering next to her, the blankets bunched up tightly around him. She felt bad for him, especially because she was enjoying the warmth his body was losing so rapidly. In the field, at night on a cold planet, body heat was sometimes the only way to stay warm. She could recall at least one night, huddled against Jenkins in their underwear, two blankets their only protection against the cold. Alliance navy funds didn't quite cover the steep price of mass purchased thermo-suits for every single soldier. Would it be inappropriate of Shepard to offer Garrus some warmth from her body? She couldn't decide. There was something that made her hesitate.
"Garrus," she whispered softly.
His eyes fluttered open, bright and icy blue in the darkness of the room.
"Shepard? What is it?" he yawned.
"You're shivering."
"That's because I'm freezing."
"What do turians do on cold planets during military missions?" she ventured to ask him about it.
"We huddle up. It's the only way to stay warm."
"We do the same in the Alliance," she said.
They were silent for a moment, Garrus still visibly shivering, then Shepard decided there was no sense in overthinking something any military officer would do in such a situation. She sidled closer to Garrus beneath the sheets and pressed her body against his. His skin was incredibly warm against hers, even with his thick sweater between them.
"You don't have to," he said softly, the contented pitch of his subharmonics suggesting the opposite.
"I don't mind, if it helps."
He was still shaking a little, but not as badly as he had been. She pressed herself tightly against him and the shivering subsided entirely. Their faces were very close now, pressed together as they were. She could feel his hot breath against her neck.
"Shepard?" he asked.
"Hm?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"Can you promise to never, ever take me back to this place ever again once we leave?"
She laughed. "I'll try not to."
They were silent for a while and Shepard wondered if Garrus had fallen back asleep, but then he spoke.
"Shepard?"
"Yes, Garrus?"
"Can I touch your hair again?"
She was surprised by the request. "What?"
"It's soft," he sounded almost childlike as he gave his explanation. "I wanted to get a better feel of it before but Wrex woke up and thought we were being weird."
"I guess if you really want to," she shrugged. She understood his curiosity. His cowl had been so intriguing, after all. And there were plenty of other turian parts, and parts of other species, that she'd always been intensely curious about; the first time she'd felt an asari's scalp ridges had been its own unique experience. And she still wondered what turian mandibles felt like. Or what quarians looked like behind their masks.
Garrus' hands snaked up between them and reached for the short red hair atop her head. His gloves were removed, to her surprise. She would have thought he would keep them on because of the cold. He continued to surprise her with how deftly and gently he minded his talons to keep them from scraping her skin. She found herself closing her eyes as his talons delicately combed through her hair. She'd always enjoyed the feeling of someone massaging her scalp.
"It's so unusual," Garrus remarked. "Is all human hair this soft?"
"No. Everyone's is different," she replied, eyes still closed. His hands roved over her head in fascination. "Babies have the softest hair."
"Odd."
He kept talking, and she responded with little affirmative noises, hardly paying attention, slowly drifting to sleep enveloped in his warmth with his hands running through her hair. She had the fleeting thought that their embrace, with his talons stroking her head, was much more like two lovers than two fellow officers, but the thought was muddled in her drowsy mind, and she forgot it before she fell asleep.
A/N: More fluff! I might post a chapter a day for a few days here, just because. Hope everyone is enjoying it!