Dr. Chakwas arrived at the party the morning after, to find the whole range of sapient conditions, from Grunt watching Vega cook with a greedy hopeful expression; to Miranda who was apparently serving as Vega's coquettish—for Miranda, be it understood—taste-tester; to Liara sipping tea and Kasumi looking out of sorts as they chatted. Joker gave the impression of refusing to get into something with Wrex, backed up by the faithful EDI.
All in all, exactly what she expected to see upon leaving this particular group of people unsupervised for any duration of time, with alcohol.
"Is it ready?" Grunt demanded, watching the movement of Vega's spatula.
"You can't rush good food."
"Good, bad, who cares? As long as there's a lot of it," Grunt announced loudly.
"There's extra pizza in the fridge; it's not bad cold," Shepard announced. "Or you can heat it up. It'll be faster and kill the hunger pang until Vega's done." She turned to Vega. "Did you know you'd be catering to a krogan?"
Vega looked shifty, his glance straying over to Miranda, who was flicking through what was probably her morning feed with an expression alternating between amusement at the conversation going on around her and the content she was absorbing. "…not exactly. We might need some more eggs, though."
"Pizza's good," Grunt announced before getting off his stool and heading over to root around in the fridge. It didn't look like there was much room in there; if Dr. Chakwas was any judge, there were a lot of leftovers, but it wasn't because no one had been hungry.
"Maybe not," Miranda said, getting to her feet. "Shepard, I'd love to stay a little longer, but something's just come up."
Shepard, soldier that she was, didn't ask for details of whatever it was. "Nothing too out of control?"
"Nothing too out of control. Just something I'd rather jump on than not." Miranda smiled that self-confident, smug smile of a woman who knew she was going to win at something. "You'll be hearing all about it in a few hours, I'm sure."
"In that case, Hackett has your name and knows you'll be offering aid where possible. Don't worry; he knows when to let people have free reign," Shepard assured her.
After a noticeable pause, the two women exchanged a hug which, while awkward, didn't look like a first. "See you around," Shepard said stoically.
"Keep your head down. Moving targets are hard to hit. Oriana! We've got to go!" Miranda called.
Vega, although he looked disappointed, cast about, found a disposable plate, and filled it. "Can't save the galaxy on an empty stomach," he said, offering the plate to Miranda.
Miranda opened her mouth, then closed it and smiled. "You're really sweet, James."
That was all she said, and all the attention she paid him in favor of getting herself and her sister wherever they needed to be, but Vega went back to his cooking with the smile of a man who had achieved something notable.
Dr. Chakwas didn't miss Miranda's surreptitious forkful, and the surprised expression that crossed the other biotic's mouth. Nor that Miranda continued shoveling away eggs with an ill-disguised enthusiasm until she passed the last trash can on her way out. At that point, she pressed Oriana to try the eggs.
It wasn't only men, the way to whose hearts lay through their stomachs, apparently.
Still, Miranda and Vega? It wasn't a match she'd ever considered, not the least because she didn't consider matches among her fellow crewmen.
Weighing one thing and another, Dr. Chakwas found the idea less surprising than she thought she would. Vega was a nice, down to earth type, loyal and generally good-natured, much softer in some ways than Miranda.
Miranda was a lot like Shepard, demanding of herself, exacting in her standards, who liked a challenge let it cost what it might. Like Shepard, Dr. Chakwas thought, glancing at Shepard and Alenko, who were talking with Jacob—Dr. Chakwas thought they might be looking at baby pictures—Miranda needed a partner who was a soft place to land, someone she didn't have to be invincible around, someone she felt safe enough around to not need to be the Miranda Lawson. Vega…might be able to be that.
Especially if he could cook more than eggs. Biotics ate like horses, after all, and he seemed aware of this, if the portion he'd given her on her way out was any indication at all.
Dr. Chakwas dismissed the notion as she poured herself a cup of tea and politely declined a serving of eggs for herself, preferring to watch Grunt scarfing down pizza as if he hadn't eaten in a year.
The amount of leftovers she'd spied in the fridge made sense; Shepard expected a big boy like Grunt to need a big breakfast, and for Grunt's age group, cold pizza was not only a good option, it was a tasty option.
"Glad you could make it, Doc," Shepard grinned once she finally reached where Dr. Chakwas had settled down.
"As am I. I see no one sustained any injuries." It didn't surprise her, per se, but if there had been injuries, she wouldn't have been surprised. This bunch had the potential to be pretty rowdy, especially if they were all having a good time.
"Yeah, there was enough adult supervision to keep us from PLF-ing off the balcony," Shepard answered pertly…which told Dr. Chakwas there were other damages, hidden pending correction. Well, with Wrex and Grunt here, why wouldn't there be?
"Thank goodness," Dr. Chakwas chuckled.
Shepard only grinned.
"So, what all did I miss?" Dr. Chakwas asked, settling more comfortably on the couch with her tea.
Shepard settled at an angle from her and began to recap the previous evening, clearly enjoying the memories while they were still so fresh.
It was a good last hurrah, Dr. Chakwas thought fondly. Soon, they'd be taking the final plunge that would decide the fate of this Cycle.