Chapter 7

"Called it," Anya muttered, walking into the bar. Tali and Jack were already drinking.

"Seriously, Shepard, what the hell?" The other biotic sounded irritated.

"Hey, all three of us were pretty sure we were walking into a ridiculous situation, and that it was going to be Cerberus at fault. I'm blaming the Illusive Jackass for this one." Anya deftly grabbed a glass and the nearest bottle of whiskey. She poured herself a generous amount and quickly drained the glass, grimacing before pouring another.

The other women looked at her, and she noticed surprise on Jack's features. "Damn, Shep."

"Whiskey is a 'currently rethinking my life choices' drink for me." She began drinking this glass, albeit more slowly. "Normally it's just a glass or two of wine."

"Fair enough."

It was then that the door opened again. Garrus came in, looking agitated, and Anya felt her heart skip a beat.

"Anya." She felt that little thrill again when he said her name.

"Hey, Garrus." She was proud of how even her voice sounded.

"Can I talk to you?"

"Absolutely." She offered the glass to Jack, and the other woman snagged the glass with a grin. Anya turned to follow the turian, wondering what he was going to say. He led her back to the main battery, and he turned to face her.

"Are you okay? And, just to clarify, I mean actual okay, not 'I'm going to have nightmares about this later, but I'm not willing to talk about it' okay."

"I am not, but I will be. It was...I don't know where to start. My nerves are shot, and I am just...drained."

"How can I help you?"

"No, it's fine, you have your own stuff-"

"My stuff is handled, your stuff is not."

"My stuff is literally just sleeping it off and getting together with Dr. Chakwas about something for the dreams. It'll be fine."

"If she recommends pills, you aren't going to take them. You have to start taking better care of yourself."

"I will when you do."

The turian swore softly. "I'm serious, Anya. There are a lot of people who aren't up for losing you again, and I'm one of them. Please just...be more careful? For your best friend's sake?"

She felt a lump forming in her throat, so she just nodded, looking down. She wasn't expecting it when he pulled her in and embraced her tightly.

"Garrus?"

"'Pre-cry face' is almost always immediately followed by you needing a hug. Try and tell me I'm wrong."

She hugged back with a half-sob, half-laugh, and he squeezed a little. "Thank you, Garrus. I mean that."

"It's not a big deal. I just...I want you to stay as safe as you can stand being."

"Hey, don't make it sound like I go looking for danger. It just kind of...follows me."

"So you didn't just go through with a mission that almost got you killed? And you had no idea that the information was bad?"

"I...I didn't say that…" She felt lost as he pulled back, and she had to remind herself not to pout.

"Then you kind of made my point for me, Shep." His voice now held a trace of amusement.

She rolled her eyes and smiled. "I'm fine with handling the danger aspect, it's just...I don't know. Maybe we need some shore leave."

"Shore leave is a very inefficient way to try to deal with stress. What happens when we're far from port and you're keyed up?"

"I don't know. I'll think on it."

"Alright. Well, I'm going to turn in, now that I can see for myself that you're mostly okay. You going to try to get some sleep?"

"In a bit. I may go make sure Jack and Tali are okay."

"Fair enough. Good night, Anya."

"Good night, Garrus."

She left the battery feeling better than when she entered, and she bee-lined for the bar. Jack and Tali were still there, and she took a breath to steady herself.

"Why do you look like we're about to get back on the fucking Collector ship?" Jack was quick to quip.

"I need advice."

"What?"

"Is it about Garrus?" Tali asked.

"Yeah, how do I make it clear that I'm interested? He is painfully oblivious and I am so exhausted and frustrated and…" She gestured vaguely.

"Wait, you want to hop on a turian? Ballsy!"

"Not the important part!" Anya waved away the comment, agitated.

"So now that you two are talking again you're going to tell him?" Tali queried.

"I...maybe. I want to, I just don't know how, or when."

"You're going about this all wrong, Shepard. Being patient and subtle with Garrus is going to get you nowhere. Next time you see him, be obvious."

"Well, I don't-"

"No, no bullshit excuses. It doesn't matter what line you drop, or how god awful it is, but as long as his ears are functional, he needs to understand. If he even remotely wants to take you to pound town, he will take you up on it."

"And if he doesn't?"

Jack grinned. "Then the worse the line, the better. You can pretend it was a joke, because who would actually use a line that bad? Think about it!"