Title: N7
Pairing: None
Warnings: None
Summary: Shepard calls James to her cabin before the final push to defeat the Reapers.
Word Count: 350
James suddenly felt nervous as he exited the lift and approached the door to Shepard's cabin. Her message had been vague: Please some to my quarters once you're off duty. We need to talk. In his experience that was never a good sign, especially on the eve of a major battle. As he approached the door, it automatically opened.
Shepard was standing at her desk, a dozen or so datapads stacked haphazardly atop it in an endless stream of data. She was reading the one in hand, her other holding a steaming cup of tea. Despite the straightness of her spine or her squared shoulders, he could see she was exhausted. He waited quietly, knowing she was aware of his presence. After a moment, she set the datapad and mug down.
"James, thank you for coming." She gestured for him to sit on the couch. "I received a message earlier today with some good news."
"Oh yeah? The Reapers surrender or something?" He joked.
"Ha, I wish." She replied lightly, handing him a datapad and returning to her desk.
He read and reread the notice, hardly believing what it said. It had been a dream since enlisting and he knew both from stories and experience it came through trial and hardship. Despite the work he put in under Shepard's tutelage he never thought he'd see those words before the war ended.
"How did you..."
"Wartime protocols." She answered, handing him a glass of clear liquor. "With the Villa was destroyed in the invasion, proper training is impossible right now but they need N7s. You've been working your ass off and more than proven yourself in the field. I submitted training documents and my recommendations with Hackett last week. He and Anderson approved it yesterday. It's a contingent promotion, so there will be further review once this is all over, but your earned it James. As of today, you're an N7."
Shepard held up her glass, which he clinked against hers, still in a disbelieving daze. After the downed the smooth tequila, it finally set in.
He was an N7.
A/N: I know a lot people dismiss James as another dude-bro jar head but I really liked him, especially the flirty, but professional rapport he had with FemShep (ignoring the gross party "romance" which I never played). For N7 day, I wanted to give him something to celebrate. It's cool if you don't agree. To me, he earned the rank.