Chapter 21: Who Owns My Heart?

Jane Shepard had been wondering the past few days why she was so at ease when around John Riley. He was charming and funny, sure, but so were other squad-mates that she had been teamed up with and she wasn't as comfortable around them. Of course he was capable and self-sufficient, but it was the fact that he stood by her that had made her trust him completely.

Trust that was forged in blood and fire, fighting side by side for days on end. The two of them had a bond that would forever keep one in the other's mind. It was the knowledge that without them standing beside one another at Elysium's gates, the entire planet, along with both of them, would be under control of pirates and mercenaries.

Trust that John Riley had earned a place at Jane Shepard's side, and that she had earned a place beside him. Their demeanors towards one another had changed. He was much more cordial and less brazen around her than before, and she seemed much more casual, not as professionally distant than before the Skyllian Blitz.

"Are you ready for this, Lieutenant Shepard?" Riley's voice pulled Shepard out of her thoughts. Her bright green irises met his steely gaze, and surprisingly she felt better about the entire ordeal they were about to go through.

They were at the ceremony hall, in the biggest presidium on Elysium. It had been decorated with Alliance's colors, and soon after they entered, all eyes would be on them. Once the procession started, they would both be public promoted, and receive recognition as Heroes of the Skyllian Blitz.

"As ready as I'll ever be," She responded. Jane looked down at her gown, nervously running her left hand over the fabric, her right hand still holding onto Riley's arm.

"Do I look okay?" Shepard glanced up, waiting for his response.

Riley lifted his hand to brush a strand of auburn behind her ear and spoke softly, "You look perfect,"

Shepard beamed, "Then let's get this show on the road, Captain,"

The ceremony went off without a hitch. There were hundreds of people in attendance in the large hall. The beginning was slightly awkward, the Alliance had decided to show some clips from the Blitz to introduce Shepard and Riley, but then it was smooth sailing. Shepard didn't stumble once in her heels, and she managed to not look too awestruck at the Star of Terra when it was handed to her by none other than Admiral Hackett. Riley also received several marine honors, and Riley was publicly announced as the rank of Captain, and Shepard was given the rank of Lieutenant, no longer Junior-Grade.

The cameras had been trained on her and Riley most of the time, but when it came time for her speech, Shepard remembered to mention her squad-mates from the SSV Agincourt. In Shepard's mind, they were as much heroes as she was. Without their help, the Alliance probably wouldn't have come to the rescue for many more days and Shepard, along with Riley, would be dead.

Shortly after the awards were given out, Admiral Hackett along with General Stalinski gave parting speeches. They highlighted the bravery of the pair of soldiers that had fought against the perils of pirates, and concluded the evening by inviting everyone to the reception being held on the same floor.

Asari, Salarian, Human, Turian and even some Volus were herded into the larger adjacent room. It was decorated elaborately, with buffet tables lining the walls, dining tables littering the room, the center open and empty. A dance floor. Oh God.

"I think I'm going to turn in early," Shepard muttered, backing up and heading towards the exit. A strong, warm hand caught her wrist before she could get any further.

"Sunshine, if you leave now, the reporters are going to think something is wrong, they'll be on you like a Krogan needing fresh thermal clips," Riley's mouth had somehow gotten extremely close to her ear, his breath warming her cheek.

Moving her face far enough away to look at him, she glanced at the exit. The reporters were being held back by security, but they were still able to take pictures. I can't believe I'm thinking this… but Riley is right, if I leave now, it'll be a mad house trying to get away.

Sighing, Shepard nodded. "Fine, I'll stay- For Now. I am not dancing though," She eyed the dance floor warily, before turning to head towards the nearest buffet.

"Come on Sunshine, lighten up," Riley followed her, and they both began adding generous amounts of food to the plates they were given. "Don't tell me you can't dance,"

"I can dance! This just isn't the type of music that I normally… Okay, so maybe I can't dance," Jane admitted.

Riley chuckled, and they headed to a table nearby. They talked for a few minutes until none other than Captain Anderson sat down beside Shepard with a plate of his own.

"That was a great speech, Shepard. You did the Alliance proud by remembering everyone involved in the Blitz," He spoke incredibly elegantly for someone who'd been in the service for so long.

"Thank you, sir. I was only expressing how I felt when I talked about everyone doing their part. Our military has made huge strides since entering citadel space," Shepard managed to get out between bites.

"Have either of you decided whether or not you'll be joining us at the Villa this spring?" Anderson was referring to the N-school.

"I need a little more time to think it over, but you'll have your answer soon, sir," Jane responded.

"You can bet your ass I'll be there, Anderson. I wouldn't miss this for the world," Riley answered. Shepard glared at him until he ended his words with, "Sir,"

Anderson just laughed. They talked about different subjects until the three of them were finished eating, Shepard had taken longer to eat because of the massive amount of food she'd piled on her plate.

"I have to eat a lot okay? I'm a biotic," Shepard said defensively as Riley eyed the several empty plates surrounding her.

"Whatever you say, Sunshine. I've been in the marines for over five years, and I've never seen someone put away that much food,"

Anderson chuckled and said his good-byes to the pair as he made his way towards where Admiral Hackett and General Stalinski were in deep conversation. Shepard took a deep breath, perhaps I did eat a little more than normal…

People began to stop by their table and sit and chat with the Heroes of Elysium, asking them the same questions that they had answered on television.

Yes, it was overwhelming having to fight that many pirates and mercenaries by ourselves.

No, we were not afraid to die. There were too many lives at stake to worry about ourselves.

Yes, I was tired after fighting four days on end.

No, we are not together.

That last question always made Shepard think. Why did everyone assume that she and John were together? Sure, they were close, but it was the closeness of camaraderie. It was a platonic companionship, couldn't everyone see that?

Glancing over at John, she noticed that he was 'taking account' of a rather beautiful woman dressed in a strapless, floor-length gown. It was a sapphire blue, the same color as her eyes. Her hair was darker than Riley's, if that was possible, and it curled lightly around her pale shoulders. Of course he would pick the most gorgeous woman in the room to look at, Shepard thought darkly.

"Why don't you go talk to her?" Shepard asked with her head tilted towards the blue-eyed woman.

"Talk to who, Sunshine? Oh, her? I don't want to talk to her," Riley shook his head, his eyes focusing back on Jane.

A red eyebrow rose in disbelief, "Really? Then why were you staring her down that she was a fresh piece of meat?"

"..Nevermind… Do you want to dance?" His question made Shepard's jaw drop. Without waiting for an answer, Riley stood up and deftly pulled her to her feet.

"Would I get out of dancing if I said No?"

Riley smirked, "No,"

"Then I guess I don't have a choice," Shepard said, exasperated.

"I guess you don't," Riley led her to the center of the room, stopping at the edge where the plush carpet ended and the dance floor began.

He stepped out onto the floor, and turned to Shepard, hand outstretched. A few people had taken notice, and were making space on the floor for them to join in. Jane breathed deeply, and took John's open hand. The music was classical Ars nova, completely instrumental and slow, perfect for a cross-species high-class event.

John kept his left hand intertwined with Jane's, and his right hand settled on the middle of her back. Heat shot up Jane's spine where John's hand sat, but she ignored it, focusing on conversation instead.

"So, we aren't going to talk about the hottie that you were eyeing earlier?"

"I wasn't eyeing her, Sunshine," Riley whispered with disdain.

"Oh, then you were just inspecting her outfit to make sure the fashion police wouldn't arrest her for too much cleavage, is that it?" Shepard asked spitefully.

"I know her," He finally conceded.

"An old friend?" Jane asked, her curiosity piqued.

"More like old enemy, I think she's with the organization Cerberus. At least, I think it's her. I ran into her when my ground team went on a few raids of underground laboratories that were doing illegal genetic experiments," His words were hushed; Riley had leaned closer to Shepard.

She had to fight hard to keep from blushing as his cheek slid against hers. It had been far too long since she'd seen Tiberus. Focus on the conversation.

"What do you think she's doing here?"

"Word has it that Cerberus has funding from the Alliance. I can't do anything about her being here, but we should just stay alert in case something goes down. Cerberus is a human-first organization, could be that bitch has an anti-alien terrorism strike planned," As Riley spoke; it was hard for Shepard to concentrate on his words as his mouth brushed against her ear.

"Right, be careful," Oh God, her voice had gone husky.

They danced in silence for a few more minutes. Finally, after a third song had ended, Shepard stepped back. She needed to get home. She chastised herself for enjoying John's company a little too much.

"I need to leave. I have to get home," Shepard left the dance floor, heading towards one of the far off exits. It was only when she reached the door and entered an empty hallway that she realized John had followed her.

"Jane…" Riley reached out to her, but Shepard stepped back.

"John… I have someone," Jane spoke, taking a deep breath.

He took a step towards her, "Then why isn't he here, now?"

"It's not that simple," Her brow furrowed as she looked down.

"Sure it is. Who would leave such a strong, beautiful woman without a date on a night in which she's being honored?" Riley took another step, and he was back in her breathing space.

"It's not that simple," Shepard repeated.

Jane Shepard looked up from her feet and came face to face with a pair of piercing grey eyes. Again, John took Jane by surprise, and simply bent down and kissed her cheek. A swirl of emotions surrounded the gesture that ended in a click. Riley then backed away slowly, a very devil-may-care smirk on his face.

"See you later, Sunshine,"

He disappeared back behind the door moments later, Shepard still standing in the hallway.

To say that Shepard was excited to see her favorite Turian would be the understatement of the year. Jane was excited to see his bright blue eyes, feel his strong, corded muscles, smell that scent of smoked pine that was uniquely Tiberus, and see if he still tasted the same after she was brushed by death. She couldn't wait to be with him and tell him about everything that happened. Shepard was even excited to talk with Eliza and see how she was faring.

She brushed her midnight gown nervously as she sat in the cabin of the high-class Turian Cruiser. An extremely grateful Volus had offered a ride to Taetrus, a thank you for saving his flourishing business on Elysium. He hadn't even asked why she would be visiting a planet that was over 90% Turian. Shepard had decided she would try and save more planets like this if she continued to get this kind of treatment. They had offered her a change of clothes, but seeing that Shepard hadn't really gotten anything dirty, she declined. She'd much rather surprise Tiberus in her evening dress in any case.

Jane had been able to buy a new Omni-tool at the docking bay, her old one still with her armor that had been sent to the SSV Agincourt. She had also been given over three months of shore leave. That was an unusually large amount, but then again, Shepard did save an entire planet.

With the new Omni-tool, Jane had been able to send an encrypted message to Tiberus, letting him know that she would be home in less than 12 hours. He should be on shore leave, but if he wasn't, he'd still get the message if he was in range of the extranet's reach.

Shepard had finally taken a nap to make the time go by. Her sleep did make time fly, and by the time she had woken up, they were nearly to the docking station.

Jane had packed light, and only needed to put a Datapad and the new Omni-tool back in the small pack she'd gotten. She was the first one off the cruiser, and immediately called for a rapid transport to take her to their apartment. Jane couldn't bear to hold her excitement in any longer.

Standing at the door of the apartment, she didn't even attempt to greet Eliza before opening the door. The entrance swished open soundlessly, and she stepped inside. It was night time this side of the planet, the room was pitch-black. Jane flipped the lights on using a nearby Holo-pad, only illuminating the room for her to easily navigate to the bedroom. Tiberus was probably asleep, it was nearly 3AM.

The lights revealed a startling discovery.

The living room was exactly how she remembered it, the very first time she'd ever entered the apartment. Ancient Turian weapon replicas were sitting on shelves, but her human novels were absent. The blanket that was normally draped across the back of the couch was missing, the hologram of the pair of them was missing from the wall.

That was when she noticed the boxes. They were square, medium-sized, and on the side of each of them scrawled – clearly in Turian hand – was 'Jane'. Her throat closed up. Did he think I died?

Jane slipped off her shoes and set her bag down, a quiet thud against the ground. She opened the top one gingerly; it held her girly soaps and perfumes, along with the softer, human-version of his towels.

After a few moments, Jane collected herself. There had to be an explanation. Perhaps he had simply thought that she died, that Taetrus hadn't yet heard that there were no casualties on Elysium. Perhaps they hadn't been one of the planets to transmit the Alliance's celebratory event through their planetary extranet. Still, Tiberus would've searched for any news of her once he had found out.

She was afraid of the alternative reason her things were packed.

Jane put the towel back in the box, closing it up. There was one way to find out.

Standing up, Jane moved towards the hallway, but before she could even pass the kitchen, the bedroom door swished open. The towering dark figure in the hallway took her breath away.

"Tiberus?" Jane wished that her voice sounded surer.

"Jane…" Somehow hearing his voice, absent of any warm emotion just confirmed her fears. The usually comforting flanging was tinged with a hard coldness.

He stepped towards her, and she fought to stay rooted. She wouldn't run scared; she would face whatever was going on. His face was set in stone, his mandibles immobile as he breathed. He was trying to intimidate her into backing down.

"Tiberus, what's wrong?" Jane whispered, reaching out for him. He kept just out of reach, and those few inches of distance seemed like light years.

"Jane, you need to leave,"

Her heart cracked under the weight of those words.

So you remember how I said there wasn't a cliffhanger last time? Here it is, my sweet things.

We won't see Riley for a little while, but don't worry, he'll be back! It's awesome that we get to see Tiberus again...Right guys?

...Right?