That turned out better than expected, Williams thought as she sat in the med-bay. Therum, too.

OoOoOoO

Therum had indeed been a success. The Prothean expert, Dr. Liara T'soni, had been successfully brought on board. Not that it wasn't exciting. Shepard's Mako driving skills could probably best be compared to those of a drunken toddler. But apparently in the commander's estimation, reaching the objective was the important thing - obstacles in the way were meant to be driven over, not necessarily around. On Therum, Williams learned that if one aims the Mako just so, applying just the right amount of power, it will actually pop up on the wheels on one side and slide vertically through a narrow opening between boulders. Who knew? Unfortunately, nobody inside really expected the maneuver, resulting in a very bruised left knee for Williams as she slammed into the downhill side of the Mako as it tipped up.

But the best part of the mission was watching Shepard square off against a Krogan Battlemaster. Williams had seen a few Krogan mercs here and there, but this was her first time seeing a Battlemaster up close and in combat. Shepard didn't hesitate even a moment. While Williams and Garrus (and, surprisingly, the Asari archaeologist) focused on the Geth, Shepard threw herself gleefully at the Krogan, shouting profane taunts, trading shotgun fire with him and dodging his charges while leading him away from T'Soni. Williams found herself leaving the last Geth Shock Trooper for Garrus to deal with while she stared in open admiration as Shepard tossed the Krogan up with a biotic lift then positioned herself perfectly to deliver one final shotgun blast to finish him off when he landed.

Ashley was still gawking at the commander as Shepard straightened up, rolled her shoulders and tucked her hair behind her ears. When she glanced over at Williams and gave her a lopsided grin and a wink, Ashley hoped that the flushing of her cheeks would be attributed to the heat of the just-concluded battle. The moment was over as soon as it began - the quaking in the mine intensified, sending them all scrambling to reach the surface and the safety of the Normandy as the ruins collapsed around them.

By the time Williams had shucked her armor and stowed her weapons, the adrenaline had long worn off, making her aware that she should probably have her banged-up knee checked out by medical right after the post-mission debrief.

The medical bay was bordering on crowded after the mission review. Dr. T'Soni had sought out Dr. Chakwas' aid for the dizziness she'd experienced in the comm room, and was just finishing up her discussion with the medical officer. Liara made her retreat to the relative solitude of the supply room behind the med-bay right as Ashley hopped up on an examination table.

Shepard occupied the examination table across the room from Williams. Dr. Chakwas was looking at the lump on Shepard's forehead - the one Williams had inadvertently caused the night before in the gym.

"Commander, I wish you'd wear your helmet out in the field more consistently. This contusion on your forehead could have easily been avoided."

Ashley ducked her head in embarrassment. She'd have to wear it around me if that were the case, just to be safe. To her surprise, Shepard didn't correct the doctor's assumption as to the cause of the injury, allowing Chakwas to gently chide her rather than tell her what really happened. "You know I hate wearing those things, Doc. Messes with my field sense. Besides, I know for a fact that I look pretty badass taking down a Krogan Battlemaster with my hair flying in the wind."

Williams' head jerked up at that last comment. Oh god. She knows I was watching her. Looking over at the commander, she found Shepard's eyes locked onto hers, a playful smile tugging at the corners of her lips. And she liked it! Ashley returned Shepard's grin with a coy half-smile of her own.

"I'm going to run a quick diagnostic, just to be sure, Commander. Make yourself comfortable - it should be done by the time I'm done with Chief Williams here." Turning to Ashley, Dr. Chakwas continued, "Let's take a look at that knee. What happened to it?"

Following the doctor's gestures, Williams dropped her fatigue trousers so that Chakwas could evaluate the damage. As a Marine, Ashley got over any sense of personal modesty long ago, yet she took a moment to feel a bit self-conscious with Shepard sitting not six feet away from her.

Her left knee was swollen, and several bruises had already begun to appear. Keeping in mind that Shepard didn't blame Ashley for the goose egg on her forehead, Williams wanted to return the favor. "Not sure, ma'am. There was a lot going on. Must have banged it against something during one of the skirmishes." The chief glanced over at Shepard, who had a thoughtful look on her face.

"The swelling and bruising should be easy enough to treat. I don't see any evidence of structural damage to the joint. A basic scan will let me know if there's anything to worry about. Hold tight for a moment."

After checking the results of Shepard's scan and finding nothing of concern, Chakwas excused herself to take a couple of energy bars to T'Soni, explaining that she wouldn't be gone more than 10 minutes. As the doors to the storage area hissed shut behind the doctor, Shepard hopped off her table and went over to Ashley.

Looking at the injured area, Shepard quietly asked, "Um, so that knee - was that from the Mako? Well, not just the Mako. From my aggressive driving of the Mako, I guess. Seemed like you weren't being forthright with the doc about what caused your injury."

With Shepard so close, Ashley was intensely aware of the scent of leather and musk that seemed to cling to the commander. She wanted to bury her face to Shepard's neck and inhale deeply. . . and then was suddenly very aware that she was sitting there in her underwear. Awkward. Forcing herself to focus on Shepard's face she replied, "Couldn't say, ma'am. There was a lot going on. I also notice you didn't correct the doctor about the lump on your noggin."

Shepard's hand went distractedly to her forehead. "Yeah, well - no reason to implicate you on that one. It was a freak accident. It gets treated the same, no matter the story behind it. And I really am sorry that my impressive driving skills banged up your knee." She gave Ashley a cocky half-smile at that last comment. Shepard finished with "Take it easy tonight, Chief," and went to take her leave.

As she was nearly to the med-bay door, Ashley called out, "Hey, Commander. If you find yourself wandering the ship with a bottle in the middle of the night again any time soon, do a Marine a favor and bring an extra glass." Damn, I'm ballsy sitting here in my white cotton military briefs.

Shepard paused at the door as it opened and turned back to face the chief. "That I can do, Marine. That I can do." And then she left, letting the doors hiss shut behind her.


That turned out better than expected, Shepard thought as she left the med-bay. Therum, too.

OoOoOoO

After spending the first couple of weeks as commander of the Normandy running various low-level ops, Shepard was looking forward to the mission on Therum. Initial recon showed Geth presence on the planet. It had been too long since she'd had a good challenge, and she was eagerly anticipating the rush of battle.

Therum did not disappoint, courtesy in part of some great terrain that allowed Shepard to push the Mako to its limits (she wasn't sure she really was going to be able to get the Mako vertical enough to squeeze through those rocks, so she was relieved when the vehicle managed to hold itself up on the wheels on just one side). But the best part was the welcome appearance of a Krogan Battlemaster. Okay, so "welcome" might be pushing it. Whatever it was, Shepard hadn't had that much fun in a fight in a long time.

She probably didn't need to spend so long hurling obscenities at the Krogan, but she enjoyed getting him mad while she kept her cool. She purposely drew him away from the Asari scientist, prolonging the combat just long enough to allow the rest of her crew to ensure T'Soni's safety. She was pleasantly surprised to see the archaeologist holding her own against the Geth, using some fairly impressive biotics.

None of that stopped her from noticing Williams' attention on her as she closed in on the Krogan for the final kill shot. She could see the chief watching her as she lifted the Krogan with her biotics, and it's entirely possible that Shepard added an extra flourish to her final shotgun blast as the Krogan crashed to the ground. Sure enough, when it was over, she glanced over to see Williams unabashedly admiring her performance. Flush with adrenaline, Shepard gave the chief what she knew was a very charming grin along with a flirty wink, and then enjoyed the way Williams' face reddened in response. Ah - this might end up going somewhere after all, she thought.

The moment was interrupted by the collapse of the ruins around them, and all efforts turned to reaching the surface as quickly as possible.

After the mission debrief, Shepard dutifully reported to the med-bay for her usual post-mission check. T'Soni was just finishing up with Chakwas, and Williams was on her way in. Shepard hadn't realized that Ashley had been injured on the surface. As she was examined by the doctor, Shepard suddenly remembered that she probably still had a fairly sizable knot on her forehead from that unfortunate encounter with the barbell the night before.

Luckily, Chakwas assumed that the injury was from the day's fighting and Shepard was happy to let her think so. With Ashley sitting right there, she didn't want to make the chief feel uncomfortable about it again. The downside of that was the reproval she received from the doctor about her resistance to wearing a helmet. The upside was that she was able to use that to make a cheeky comment to let Williams know that Shepard had noticed (and appreciated) her earlier attentions.

The quick look Shepard got from the Marine let her know that she'd hit her target.

While she waited for the doctor's tests to complete, Shepard sat back and watched Chakwas treat Williams. As the chief dropped her pants, Shepard suddenly felt very self-conscious that she was staring, and looked away for a moment. When she looked back, she could see the injury to Williams' knee. Ashley professed to be uncertain as to what caused the damage, but Shepard had a sinking suspicion it was related to the maneuvers in the Mako, making her directly responsible. And yet Williams passed up the easy pot-shot she could have taken at Shepard's driving (which everyone else seemed to enjoy), claiming ignorance as to the cause. That was unexpected.

After Chakwas cleared Shepard and left the room for a few moments, Shepard hopped down from the exam table and went over to Williams, to get a better look at the knee. Instead, she found herself intoxicatingly close to the Marine, who was sitting there in her skivvies. Awkward.

Williams still refused to allow the commander to accept blame for the damage to her knee, instead pointing out that Shepard had not mentioned how Williams was involved with the lump on her forehead. Nonetheless, Shepard apologized for the injury, even if she did take the opportunity to make a smartass comment and deliver another charming smile while she did so.

Realizing that Chakwas would return any minute to finish up with Williams, Shepard figured it was time to go. She would have rather stayed and sat with Ashley a while longer, but it didn't seem to be a good time. Not yet.

She was nearly to the med-bay door, and was considering stopping to ask Ashley to join her later (for what, she didn't quite know). But before she could think of anything to say, she heard, "Hey, Commander. If you find yourself wandering the ship with a bottle in the middle of the night again any time soon, do a Marine a favor and bring an extra glass."

Before turning back, Shepard suppressed the wide smile that broke out across her face. "That I can do, Marine. That I can do." Not being able to sleep suddenly didn't sound that bad anymore.