Twin Fates
By Belle and Tobias
Automatic Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the Mass Effect or any other referenced copy righted material.
Toby's Note: …*the silence is real*
Belle's Note: Toby? Toby where did you go? You're supposed to start twenty-eight! I know you have writer's block do you need any help?
TN2: *still more silence*
BN2: *grumbles as the notes fade from notes to a scene* Belle is searching the studios for her missing co-author. Starting with his office she looks in room after room meanwhile getting more worried. She finally finds her co-author in the old arc 2 Normandy set which has been transformed by workers and fans into a club. She immediately face-palms at what she sees and understands what Toby has used to break his writer's block.
"I can't stop this feeling!" Toby's bad karaoke filling the bar to the cheers of the few fans willing to put up with it. "Deep inside of me! Girl, you just don't realize! What you do to me! When you hold me In your arms so tight You let me know Everything's all riiiight! I'm hooked on a feeling! I'm high on believing! That you're in love with meeeeeeeeeee!"
"This is painful." Belle mutters.
"Yeah baby! We're gonna do the entire soundtrack!" Toby cheers.
"Yeah this is the perfect way to start the arc 3," Belle snarks before turning the readers. "Here's arc 3. We hope you enjoy."
Chapter 28: Consequences
Earth Date: May 1st, 2186 CE
Location: Ilium, Nos Astra Dry Dock
"How bad?" John asked as he and Joker stood on a catwalk over the Normandy. They were watching people work, a mix of their crew and dock workers, as they repaired the damage done to the Normandy. John's eyes drifted to the underside of the Normandy and winced. The poor girl had really taken one hell of beating.
"At least a week to repair the armor and internals. EDI says the pulse did one hell of a number on them," Joker replied. John glanced at Joker noting that he seemed to be a lot friendlier to the AI on their ship.
"So everything is going okay between you two?" John inquired. Joker shot him a questioning look.
"Why wouldn't it be?" Joker asked. John just stared at the man for a moment before shaking his head. Jane had told him this morning she thought Joker had been flirting with EDI when she had headed for the cockpit this morning. John choose to do one thing about it, stay the hell out of their business. Besides how could anyone have a relationship with a program?
"Just checking," John said before his omni-tool began to beep. He checked it and found the alarm he had set for thirty minutes prior to the ground crew meeting was going off. "I gotta go Joker. Call me if you need anything."
"No problem boss, see you in a few hours," Joker said as John turned off the alarm and made his way out of the work area. He stretched as he walked feeling better than he had in days and was grateful not to be wearing his armor. The events of the past few weeks had really taken it out of him and he was looking forward to relaxing. He'd switched to a casual outfit and was wearing a leather jacket combo Jane had given him. Liara was due to arrive on Illium shortly after their meeting and he was going to meet her at her apartment for lunch. As he left the docks and took the elevator up he had an idea. He canceled his original floor selection and choose the shopping center. It was just below the conference room Jane had rented for this meeting. She wanted to talk to everyone about their plans now and John agreed it was a good idea. Now that the Collectors were dealt with they needed to figure out what to do next.
The door opened and John strolled onto the shopping center thinking about the future. As he looked for the stall he wanted he wondered what the others would do. He hoped Jack and Samara stuck around, they helped keep Jane in line with her focusing on helping Jack and talking so much with the Justicar. Tali was another he wanted to stay but she would more than likely leave with Legion. The Quarians were already settling Rannoch from the latest e-mail he'd gotten from them. Apparently Admiral Shala'Raan had barely been able to keep the conclave from forcing the Admiralty board to accept the Geth terms. The e-mail had been a polite decline to his offer to help mediate the terms and a subtle thank you for looking after Tali and wanting to know when she'd be back. Miranda and the Cerberus crew were still going on about their days like nothing had changed. Kasumi had disappeared shortly after they docked but her personal effects were still in her quarters, so he expected her to show up again more than likely at the meeting. Garrus was, well Garrus was with his sister so he expected him to be at her side. Though Jane had been giving him these odd looks so something was going on between them that he was worried about. Grunt was a no brainer he wanted to learn from his battle master and John knew the krogan would be right in the thick of it.
"Ah, there we go," John muttered to himself when he saw what he wanted. He moved towards the flower vendor and looked over their stock.
"Can I help you sir?" The salarian vendor asked.
"I was hoping you might have some red roses from Earth. And maybe some flowers from Thessia that symbolize love?" He inquired. The salarian hummed, thinking for a minute.
"I do have the roses and as for the Thessia flowers they use a white orchid with purple streaks in the center that I have in stock. Would you like a bouquet of each?" she asked and John shook his head.
"Could you do an arrangement of them together? Six roses, six orchids?" He inquired and she nodded.
"I can put that together in a few minutes. Any particular wrap or ribbon in mind?" she said as she started gathering the flowers together.
"Whatever wrap works best with it." John replied. The vendor nodded and hummed as she worked. John glanced about, looking at some of the stores and the stalls in the middle of the area. He stopped when he noticed a couple of people glaring at him, two humans, one a woman and a turian male. He eyed them for a minute but the way they stood and what they wore identified them as civilians. He looked them up and down and noted he couldn't see the telltale signs of concealed weapons. He dismissed them in his mind as no threat and turned back to the vendor. She was just finishing up the bouquet and John smiled, certain Liara would love it.
"Will this do sir?" she inquired and John nodded.
"I think she'll love it. What do I owe you?" he asked, turning on his omni-tool and accessing his wallet.
"Two hundred ten credits," she said. John tapped in two fifty and ran his hand over the scanner.
"I gave you a little extra for doing it so fast." He said as he took the offered bouquet.
"Thank you sir and have a good day!" she said happily.
"Same to you," he said heading away as he checked the time. He had about ten minutes to go and if he took the stairs he should reach the conference room in time. He was just leaving the crowd when something wet splattered on his back. He whirled around and noticed those civilians from before. The woman had thrown some sort of fruit at him and was quivering in rage. The other two were glaring at him but were doing nothing else.
"Get out of here, murderer!" she screamed at him. "You won't kill any of us!"
"Hey I have no idea what you're on about but you do shit like that!" John snapped at her.
"You killed a system, you won't kill this one!" she snarled reaching into the bag at her feet. "We don't let the Spectre Monster do what he wants on Illium!"
"What? I'm what?" John asked taken aback. There was crowd forming behind the first three and after she had shouted that there was angry muttering among a lot of them.
"Don't deny what you are!" A voice shouted from the crowd and John thought it sounded like a batarian. "You killed the entire Bahak system!" John flinched at that.
"I-"
"GET HIM!"
~*TF*~
Jane sat down at the cafe and stretched her leg.
"Still sore?" Garrus asked and she nodded as he took the seat next to her. His hand stroked her neck and she sighed slightly. A flash of the empty crib and then the little girl in the pod ran through her mind and she stiffened. Garrus looked at her. "You okay?" She shook her head.
"I keep thinking about the little girl on the Collector base," Jane said. He looked at her.
"That...that is not something easily forgotten," he said.
"It's haunting me," Jane responded. "Did I tell you I was one of the Alliance responders who investigated the missing colonies?" She looked across the plaza to see an Asari family. The mother was watching over the child while the turian father was looking at her. Garrus waited for Jane to process what she was thinking.
"What's haunting you?" Garrus asked.
"The cribs," Jane said, her eyes on the child. Garrus stared at Jane as she looked at the child. There was something motherly about her as she followed the child's movements and Garrus wondered how Jane would behave as a mother. He looked away as he pictured this warrior woman raising her children, she would be like a large predator. There was something sexy about that.
"That's...terrible..." Garrus said, he didn't want to think what he knew Jane was thinking about.
"Those babies...their last moments must have been terrifying," she said as a single tear slipped from her eye down her cheek. "I couldn't save her...I couldn't save them."
"It's over now," Garrus said and Jane looked at him, it was a dark look.
"It's not and we both know it," Jane said and Garrus started to speak and realized she was right. The Collectors were stopped. Their Reaper factory was destroyed, but the Reapers were still coming. Sooner rather than later. "That monster...it was made up of those babies..." Garrus winced. Yep, he had recommended keeping the base and the remains of the Human Reaper.
"I...I didn't think of it that way..." Garrus said.
"Your order," the cafe employee stated as he delivered their drinks and snacks. Garrus was thankful to have something other than his foot to shove in his mouth. Jane collected the drink, holding it close as if she were too cold and the heat of the drink could chase her chill away.
"I'm sorry, Garrus, I just...I keep seeing those cribs and I think of that monster, I'm a mess," Jane said and Garrus looked at her.
"I understand," he said and she looked at him. She reached out and stroked the side of his face. She loved Garrus, but those cribs were haunting her.
"Don't take this the wrong way...but I'm...I don't know...haunted is the best word, but I think it's just shaken," she confessed.
"I care about you, Jane," Garrus said and Jane looked at him.
"I know...I care about you," she said and they shared a look. Yes, affection, love, but...she looked away.
"We are both going to be very busy," Jane said and Garrus nodded.
"Who contacted you?" Garrus asked and Jane sighed.
"Council, Anderson wants to meet with me ASAP, made a weird comment to trust Sparatus, don't like that," Jane sighed. "Alliance brass contacted me, I'm the official liaison for a Top Secret Mission that I'm hoping the Shadowbroker won't hear about for a little while longer. Not to mention more than a few Spectre buddies who are sending me messages that range from fan mail to hate mail over our achievements through the Omega 4 Relay. Oh and about seventeen Prothean experts demanding my evidence on the Collector Prothean connection. What about you?"
"My...uh...my dad," Garrus said and Jane looked at him.
"Whoa..." she said and he nodded.
"My mom's doing better. I sent some Cerberus tech home...looks like it's helping. We didn't think she would make it," he said giving Jane a look. She returned it.
"You should visit your mother," Jane asked and he chuckled.
"My mother I want to visit, my father not so much...however, I would need to head to Palaven," he said and Jane blinked.
"Oh..." Jane realized.
"So...this is awkward..." Garrus said and Jane nodded as she looked at him. "I can stay..."
"Garrus...take it from someone who lost their parents...you need to go home," Jane said and he stared at her.
"I care about you," he said and Jane smiled.
"I care about you, but the real world is not the Normandy right now," Jane said and he nodded.
"Yeah..." he said and the two looked at the Asari family.
"We are still working out what we are," Jane said and she looked at Garrus. "Is it okay with you if we make due with long distance...for now?" Garrus smiled as tucked some stray hairs behind her ear.
"Yeah, for something as real as I think we could be, I can deal with the long distance. There is no Shepard without Vakarian," he said and they shared a moment. They ate and drank in silence, gentle strokes of hands here and there before they got up. Jane still slightly limping as they headed out to the conference room Jane reserved.
They smiled more and joked as they made sure there were seats and refreshments as the crew began trickling in. People were getting settle when John staggered into the room. For a moment Jane's heart was in her throat. The entire side of his face was red, dripping and wet as if someone had hit him hard in the face. He was covered in what appeared to be...filth. Jane recognized an Asari fruit splattered on his shoulder and suddenly realized John wasn't bleeding his face was covered in a sauce of some kind. He had a ruined flower bouquet clutch in one hand and he looked dazed.
"Jesus! What the hell happened to you?" Jane cried as she approached. John smelled like a mixture of fruit and trash. It was not appealing.
"A mob?" John stated in bewilderment.
"A mob?" Jane repeated, her brain confused as John began to explain.
~*TF*~
"I'm okay I was more worried about hurting them," John assured Jane as Chakwas looked him over, his shirt off. Now that the filth and whatever else was cleaned off John he didn't look that hurt. He had forming bruises on his back and arms, even couple on his chest and stomach but the red sauce on his face was gone.
"What happened?" Miranda asked and John glanced at her.
"Apparently word of the Bahak system is spreading pretty fast. They've even taken to calling me the Monster Spectre," John noted grumbled. Jane jerked in surprise and John looked at her. He focused on her expression, it was like when they were younger and she had been cau-
"You knew?" he asked gruffly and Jane wince confirming what John suspected.
"They've been calling you that since Kres'gath hunted you on Zorya and killed Jacob," Jane explained. "The Hegemony has been trying to salvage the mess and they've been smearing you every way they can. It picked up a lot of traction and no one was able to find the people behind it. The Council thought it was best you didn't know."
"Fuck the Council!" John shouted. He tried to get up but Garrus firmly placed a hand on his bare shoulder. "You should have told me! They were screaming that they were going to tear me down like my memorial! What memorial?"
"That statue grave one on Mindoir." Jane muttered and John stared at her.
"The colonist on our home planet tore down a statue of me and you didn't tell me?" John started slowly before getting angrier as he spoke. Jane shook her head.
"No, we suspect it was just some passing mercs," Jane explained and John scowled.
"Oh, that makes it so much better," John bit out. The door to the room opened and Kasumi came back in with a shopping bag.
"I sent that jacket to a cleaner we can trust," Kasumi said softly. "There's a new shirt in the bag." John thanked her and pulled the shirt from the bag to slip it on.
"You and I will settle this later," John growled. Jane winced but nodded. He stood and moved towards the conference table. "I'm sorry for the delay this has caused. Let's get started."
~*TF*~
"The Normandy is currently a Cerberus vessel, Cerberus is a terrorist organization, and I don't want to be connected with terrorism," John stated and Jane kept her mouth shut. "I want to offer all of you the choice. I am going to work as a Spectre alone with no one to report to but the Council and I'm taking the Normandy with me. However, I don't want to force anyone so you need to decide in the next few days what you want to do. I want to offer you all a chance to go on your way." Attention slowly turned to Jane and she sighed.
"I'm off duty until I report back officially to the Alliance. I work for the Council and my mission is to watch John Shepard," Jane stated. Several of the crew looked at John.
"What I am saying and my sister is confirming is, those of you who wish to remove yourselves from the last leg of this mission you are free to head out from Illium while the Normandy is being repaired," John said. "We could not have defeated the Collectors without you, so I don't want to see you arrested when we make port somewhere because of your past Cerberus ties. If you stay with me I will be making a few investments to get a pay situation sorted out. I won't be a gun for hire however I'm sure some people will be gunning for me or Jane. Maybe even people you used to work with."
"Because, let's face it, we kind of destroyed the Collector base and stole the Normandy from the Illusive Man," Jane commented with a smirk.
"True, we're not likely to be on any list of people he would be pleased to see reporting back," Miranda sighed.
"We will let you talk this over without us, but please remember what may happen if you go directly back to Cerberus. Even if you're not punished for what happened you may be sent to try and stop me. I don't want to hurt any of you but I doubt you want to hurt me or my crew either." John said. "Let's go Jane." It was a growl and Jane felt the relief of the truth being out, but the rage about the smear campaign was still coloring John's tone of voice. They headed into a small office across the hall.
"Why the hell did you keep this campaign against me quiet?" Jane looked at her brother.
"I already told you, but I'll clarify that. Both Admiral Hackett and the Council themselves ordered me to keep you in the dark," Jane said and John fisted his hands and swore slightly.
"Come on, Jane!" he barked and Jane looked at him.
"If you think I enjoyed keeping this from you, you are wrong, but if you think I disagreed with the importance of you not going into the Collector fight with this...well I didn't," Jane said and John glared. "John...you and I both know this would have gotten into your head."
"How didn't it get into your head?!" John snapped and Jane's biotics flickered over her skin.
"I used it while fighting. The rage, the helpless rage of people saying such slander about you...you who gave of yourself more than anyone I know...I was choking on it," Jane said and gave him a look. It was tired and exhausted. "I am relieved you know, I hated having to block you from the truth and it made me feel sick, but I knew how important it was to keep your head on the mission. Besides...if it was a one way trip...I wanted you unconcerned about the opinions of morons who believe the Hegemony's propaganda." John looked frustrated before running his hands down his face and looking at his sister.
"I'm not happy with you," he stated and Jane nodded.
"I know and I am sorry, John, but I would do it again and I would expect you to do the same for me," Jane said and he blinked at her. "I'm an emotional monster myself." She headed out.
~*TF*~
Earth Date: May 2nd, 2186 CE
Location: Ilium, Liara T'Soni's Apartment
"How bad?" Liara asked in concern. John sighed and closed his omni-tool.
"Bad. Admiral Hackett says that there are demands that I surrender myself to Hegemony for sentencing." John muttered. Liara eyed him in concern and gently placed a hand on his arm.
"Sentencing?" she asked softly and John nodded.
"Apparently, they had a show trial which barely took an hour. They tried me in absentia and declared me guilty of genocide. I'm supposed to surrender myself and be sentenced. I'd be put to death more than likely." John grumbled and Liara sucked in a breath. John felt her hand tighten on his arm. He turned to her and saw an expression of pure fire and anger on her face.
"Never. I refuse to let you do this," she declared, and John took her hand from his arm and held her hand after giving it a light squeeze.
"I'm not. We don't have an extradition treaty with the Hegemony but this is more than likely an excuse to send hit squads after me. Since they left the Citadel and they have no embassy there my status as a Spectre doesn't protect me form retaliation." John noted and Liara nodded.
"That makes a twisted kind of sense," She noted. She seemed to think for a minute before letting go of John's hand. She turned on her omni-tool and began to type away. "I'll see what I can do with my contacts. The former Broker had quite a few contacts in the Hegemony."
"Thank you but I think I need to go off grid a bit," John noted. "Start paying with credit chits, if I go out in public I do it armored from now on and not alone."
"I'm going to sell this apartment," Liara said as she continued to work. "I only needed it for working on Illium and everyone knows we're involved."
"After the Normandy is repaired we'll leave via the stealth systems," John decided. "Are you going back to your base?"
"That seems best. Give a girl a lift?" she asked, teasing. John smiled at her.
"Always."
~*TF*~
Earth Date: May 4th, 2186 CE
Location: Ilium, Normandy Dock
Jane stayed near the CDC and watched as crewmembers collected their things and began to filter out slowly.
"Hey She-Shep," Kasumi said and Jane smiled at the thief.
"Heading out?" Jane asked. "Because I will ask EDI to do various scans for you before we leave dock." Kasumi grinned.
"For now, I need to cover my tracks...I may even help a few of our crewmates get settled," she stated and Jane nodded.
"It was a pleasure to work with you, if you ever need my help, don't hesitate to contact me...maybe not in the shower or during a training scenario," Jane suggested, picturing Kasumi popping up while Jane was using live ammo made the Spectre shutter at the hypothetical disaster that would cause.
"I'll hold you to that," Kasumi grinned. "It was fun." She fluttered out of the visible light spectrum and Jane smiled. She would miss the thief, there was something joyous about Kasumi, even with her sorrow. The elevator opened and Thane was heading out with his rucksack. Jane nodded at the assassin. He returned the gesture.
"I can never thank you or your brother enough for your help with my son," Thane stated and Jane smiled as she held out her hand. Thane shook it.
"I assume I will probably see you on the Citadel the next time I stop by," Jane said and Thane smiled slightly.
"Warm eyes, carrying, flashing between anger and worry. Watching over us. Keeping us safe," Thane said and Jane wondered who he was talking about. "Yes. I will be spending what time I have left with Kolyat." Jane nodded.
"If you ever need anything, you know how to reach me," Jane said and Thane smiled more.
"I will be fine, I am now able to officially retire," he said and Jane nodded.
"Take care of yourself, Thane, "she replied and he too headed towards the hatch.
"Where's Jack?" Garrus asked as he exited the weapons room. Jane smiled as Tali followed him.
"I referred our dear psychotic biotic to Grissom, I told her she could see what the Alliance does to train young biotics," Jane said and the two aliens stared at her. "Samara taught her some meditation techniques and there's no guarantee she'll freak out."
"When the Alliance fires you, you should come and visit Rannoch," Tali stated and Jane laughed.
"Go home...for the first time," Jane said and Tali chuckled. "John's on the deck making his goodbyes. I actually had some nice words for Miranda as she headed out."
"I don't believe that," Tali teased and the three chuckled.
"No seriously, I was civil, she's not with Cerberus anymore and she brought John back. I now have my home back too, so hurry up, I know the Fleet needs you and Legion to help with Rannoch," Jane commented and Tali nodded.
"You will always be welcomed in my home, Jane Shepard," Tali said and Jane and the two women hugged tightly.
"You should see how Kal'Reegar is doing," Jane suggested and Tali made a noise. "He likes you and have you seen his butt?"
"Jane!" Tali and Garrus both cried and Tali marched off swearing in Quarian.
"Rude," Garrus stated and Jane smiled.
"Don't worry, quarians are way too high maintenance," Jane teased as they looked at each other in the awkwardness. "I hope you have a nice visit with your family." He stared at her, gently tucking some stray hairs behind her ear.
"I'll call when I can," he said and Jane blushed as she looked into his raptor eyes.
"Garrus, we both know, you'll call and hopefully I'll be able to answer based on my job," Jane sighed and he nodded.
"True," he said.
"We can message," Jane said. "Those will definitely be easier." They held hands and gently brought their foreheads together in a slight turian kiss. "Be safe and no more rockets."
"I don't know...without you, I might not have a choice," Garrus said as he headed out. Jane watched him walk down the dock and turn off. She wondered when she would see the turian in the flesh again. She turned to head onto the Normandy. Samara wanted to train one last time before returning to Asari space.
~*TF*~
"Good luck Mordin," John said and Mordin shook the man's hand.
"Pleasure to have worked with you Shepard and same to you." Mordin said hurriedly. "Will let you know how STG reacts to Reaper information." John watched the salarian move away with a shake of his head, always impressed by the energy the man had. He recognized the footstpes of the person approaching him and turned to see Miranda.
"Are you sure I can't convince you to stay?" John asked and Miranda shook her head.
"I need to go. Its better if I put distance between us. Makes us less of a tempting target," Miranda noted and John sighed.
"I agree with that." John said and stuck out his hand. He was surprised when Miranda stepped past it to hug him.
"Thank you, John," Miranda said after a quiet moment. "Ori is safe because of you and you've shown me just what kind of good I can do."
"Thank you for showing me not everyone who works for Cerberus is like the Illusive Man." John said gratefully. Miranda smiled and headed off, not even a rucksack in her hand as she left her belongings behind. John felt that she'd be just fine and she planned to travel light anyways.
"You always did have a way with women," Tali said as she came up. John turned to her with a teasing smile.
"You included," John teased taking a chance. His smile widened when Tali laughed.
"Well you do set the bar pretty high. Though your sister keeps trying to shove me and Kal'Reegar together," Tali huffed.
"He's a good man, a good soldier. You can make up your own mind," John said and Tali laughed.
"That's a ringing endorsement from you," Tali noted and John just continued to smile at her. "Legion has a shuttle ready for me. Thank you for contacts on Mindoir."
"Damn you were supposed to get that message tomorrow," John grumped a bit disappointed. "Still I'm sure some people among you could use some farming equipment. The Clarks have been doing well and they can help you get some."
"Thank you for everything you're doing for my people." Tali said and John hugged her.
"It's the least I can do," John said to her quietly. Tali hugged him back fiercely.
"You'll always be welcome in my home, John Shepard," Tali said softly. After they separated Tali said her goodbye and hurried off, her bag clutched in one hand.
"No hug from me, John." Garrus snarked and John laughed. He turned to his friend and saw some of the Cerberus crew hurrying away, far more than John would have liked.
"You get enough of that from one Shepard you won't get it from me," John retorted. Instead of smiling Garrus winced. "Everything okay?"
"Jane and I, we decided, I mean I want to…" Garrus trailed off. "Shit this isn't easy to say to you."
"Did you break up?" John asked quietly and Garrus shook his head.
"No! ...but we honestly don't know what we are. We're going to message when we can but I need to go home. See the family." Garrus hesitated. "I need to talk to my father. Tell him everything."
"I get that, I really do." John noted staring at the turian intensely. To his satisfaction Garrus didn't look away but met his eyes. "Garrus, whatever happens with Jane, you're my friend. Hell, I think of you like a brother."
"You do?" Garrus said in surprise and John nodded.
"Garrus, besides Jane, you are one of the very few people I can trust to do the right thing. You try and you fail sometimes but you do what you think is right. Even if you don't get with my sister permanently you're still family." John said. He slowly grinned and extended his arm. Garrus returned it and clasped his forearm.
"There's no Shepard without Vakarian," Garrus stated and John laughed.
"Damn right."
~*TF*~
Earth Date: May 5th, 2186 CE
Location: Mid-Transit, SR-2 Normandy
"It feels lonely here," Jane noted to John. He nodded in agreement. It was just as he suspected, most of the ground team had left. Ken and Gabby were the only ones left in the engine room and Joker was the only one on the main floor besides them. Chakwas was in the med-bay finishing up her own work. Liara was in his quarters working but that was it, they were all gone. He hadn't even seen Kasumi leave she'd just disappeared like he suspected she would. Jack hadn't said much to him other than that she'd see him around. Samara had informed him of the finishing and had spoken to him at length about Jane before she had taken her leave. Grunt had informed him Wrex had recalled him to Tuchanka and John had informed him he always had a spot on his squad if he wanted it. The others had said their goodbyes the day before.
"I understand why they all left, even Garrus." He said and glanced at Jane who stiffened a bit. "Are you going to tell me why you two looked like you were arguing?"
"We weren't arguing," Jane said, looking slightly away. She did not want to talk but John wasn't going to let her hide in her own head.
"What was causing the awkwardness of the last few days?" John asked and Jane sighed.
"Mostly me," she sighed and he blinked. "I'm still mad about him considering keeping that nightmare of a base. But we also recognize that we are literally going to be forced apart by, mostly, my job."
"Do you have your orders?" John asked and Jane nodded. "Can I ask?" Jane nodded.
"I can't go into full details, but I have a top secret joint Alliance-Council job that will keep me away for a long time...I honestly don't know. I can message and call, but I won't be free to stop by Omega or Palavan," Jane sighed and John nodded. "We recognize that we won't be able to bond like 'normal' couples, plus his mother is recovering from some sort of illness and he wants to try and reconnect with his father."
"So why can't you make it work?" John asked and Jane gave him a look.
"He wanted to keep the Human-Reaper...I'm not okay with that, but I don't know how to address that without sounding like a crazy woman," Jane stated and John decided to back up.
"It's okay," John said and Jane looked at him in surprise. John rolled his eyes at her. "Jane, I understand. Yes, I like him a hell of a lot more than Kaidan but I know Garrus. If you don't work this out with him I'll be disappointed but he'll still stand by us. Remember, there is no Shepard-"
"-without Vakarian." She finished softly. Garrus must have had said it to John too. "You're not angry?"
"I can't force you to choose someone," John said, "and Garrus is my brother in all but blood. He's been with us since the beginning and I think he's the best thing to happen to you but it's your life. I still think you two will work it out. I have faith in you both and all couples have differing opinions. The best part of a relationship is finding out how you best fit together."
"You're not upset that he wanted to save the base?" she asked and John shook his head.
"I can see the reason behind it." He said and Jane stared at him before he clarified. "To give those deaths meaning I just thought the risk was too great. Garrus didn't but it was my choice to make and I did."
"Call coming in from Admiral Hackett," Joker spoke up over the comms and John turned his attention to the pilot.
"Just patch it in the open, Joker, no reason to hide it now." John noted. A moment later the map was replaced by a projected screen of Admiral Hackett.
"Shepard," He greeted and noticed Jane beside him. "Shepard."
"Admiral," They said in unison and Hackett shook his head in amusement as they shared a look.
"I was hoping I could talk to you in private, John," Hackett noted and John chuckled just a bitterly.
"This is sir," John noted. "The Cerberus crew are all gone. Beside Jane and Joker the deck is empty."
"Very well then," Hackett said before gathering himself. "I'm afraid it isn't good news."
"When is it ever, sir?" Jane noted.
"True, I do seem to be the bearer of bad news these days." The admiral noted. "The Dramye have an embassy on the Citadel and the specific language in the basic trade and relations package all governments sign before being granted on the Citadel notes not the government's name but the government for the Batarians. Whoever in the Hegemony is leading this is damn well getting their money's worth. All governments on the Citadel signed the agreement with the Dramye, which includes extradition for convicted criminals. It's a damn big loophole but a legal one. They're also arguing that John is a citizen and not a military officer so we have no jurisdiction over him."
"That's bullshit!" Jane exclaimed and John just sighed.
"Maybe but legal bullshit," Hackett noted. "I haven't even gotten to the worst of it yet. The Council has released their final judgment about John's action in Bahak as a Spectre."
"Bad?" John asked softly and the Admiral made a so-so gesture with his hand.
"It was a split decision. They acknowledge you tried to save as many lives as you could because you felt the entire system was danger and the transmission does state that you acted as a Spectre. However as to the decision to hand you over to the Hegemony or exonerate you the council is deadlocked. Councilor Tevos and Valern voted to turn you over to the Hegemony and Councilors Sparatus and Anderson voted to exonerate you." Hackett explained. "Therefore your actions are listed as 'accepted but not approved'."
"That's outrageous!" Jane exploded. "He stopped the Reapers from swarming the galaxy!"
"Which they do not believe." Admiral Hackett countered. "Admiral Anderson is the only one who believes such. He raised such a stink they're asking for a new human Councilor. He said if he resigns willingly he wants the decision on John to be locked so the new councilor can't change his opinion. They agreed if he resigned immediately. He did and Udina was nominated the following day."
"Oh this keeps getting better and better," John grumbled.
"But we have an out," Hackett said and John looked at him. "Since your actions were not ruled as approved as a Council Spectre it means you acted as a civilian. If you surrender yourself to the Alliance for protection from an alien species we can act on your behalf."
"That's an old colonist law," Jane noted and Hackett nodded.
"Since he wasn't reinstated into the Alliance he is technically a colonist. You never changed that status when you joined the Alliance, John. We can use the Admirals railroading you out to our advantage."
"Doesn't that involve a series of hearings between the Alliance and the government of the alien species to determine if I fall under their laws?" John asked.
"True, it's not a perfect fix but we can draw this out. You have a month to get your own attorney, and the Alliance has a month from that day to set the hearings. Depending on how slow we go we can drag this out for months. I hate to say this but you need to remain in custody until the Reapers do act. When they do it will prove you acted in defense of the rest of the system. The courts then can issue a ruling that you did not act to commit genocide but rather to prevent it. However, you will have to stay in Alliance custody the entire time." Hackett noted. John shared a looked with Jane who still looked upset. She nodded in agreement after a minutes.
"I'll surrender myself in about a week." John noted.
"Be sure to bring the Normandy as well," Admiral warned. "Technically, it's a civilian vessel but we can impound it to protect it."
"Yes sir and thank you," John replied and the Admiral smiled grimly.
"I'm sorry I couldn't do more," He said before hanging up. John sighed deeply and headed for the elevator. Time to break the news to Liara.
~*TF*~
Jane was working out in her quarters, using Samara's training to hover over the ground when her eyes snapped open.
"That could work," she huffed as she ran to her tablet. She quickly began looking things over. She looked up Delta Squad and swore as she saw the report on Fehl Prime. She began to search the data, there it was. She put in the requests and returned to working out. She was barely an hour in when the response came. Hackett was not one to hesitate when he saw a plan. Permission granted, by the time Jane returned to the Okinawa, she would have a new member of her ground team. More importantly she had a location.
"Joker, are we at the relay yet?" she asked.
"No, why, you got something more important to do?" he asked and Jane smirked.
"I have someone to pick up. We need to swing by Omega before we go home," Jane said.
"Uh...that's the opposite direction we want to go," Joker said.
"Jane...what did you do? I just got a request for an Alliance pick up on Omega," John's voice came over the comms.
"Just stacking the deck, dearest brother," Jane purred and both men realized they were not going to get the whole story yet.
~*TF*~
Earth Date: May 8th, 2186 CE
Location: Omega Nebula, Sahrabarik, Omega Station
"So should I bother?" John asked and Jane looked at her brother with a smile.
"Let me get this particular recruit," Jane said in a way that John found far too suspicious.
"What are you up to?" he chided and she smirked more.
"You'll see, besides, I already messaged Aria and she's fine with me, but she...recommends that you stay on the ship," Jane stated and John's jaw tightened as he nodded.
"What about Ken or..." he stopped as he looked at Jane's expression. She whistled and Blasto ran to her side happily. "Yeah...he's probably the best choice on the ship currently."
"Be back shortly. EDI, did you locate the target?" Jane asked.
"The recruit is located in one of the lesser bars, location saved to your omnitool," EDI stated and Jane nodded.
"Shouldn't take more than two hours," Jane stated.
"Two hours?" John asked.
"Twenty minutes to get there and back. He'll probably need some alcohol," Jane explained and John stared.
"Are you planning to shanghai this guy?" he asked and Jane thought about it.
"Probably not, he's kind of a fan," Jane replied as she headed off.
"If she comes back with Conrad Verner, I'm leaving the ship," Joker stated.
~*TF*~
Jane entered the bar in time to see the muscle bound Alliance soldier rip the screen from the wall.
"Take it out of my winnings," Vega commented to the bartender as he moved to sit back at the table. Whatever card game they were playing, Jane could tell it was over.
"You must be a filthy Shepard Lover!" one of the batarians cried before they drew. Jane pulled her pistol and began firing around James. He blinked as the Batarians fell to the ground, all alive.
"The Terror of the Hegemony!" one of them cried and Jane stomped down on his wounded leg.
"You have a problem with me?" she growled as Blasto approached, snarling.
"No...no! Where the Terror is, the Monster is sure to lurk as well!" one of them cried as he tried to get up only for Jane to kick him hard in the chest. The Batarian dropped and Jane placed her foot on his throat.
"Hegemony lies, John Shepard is an angel compared to me...remember that," she snarled and the batarians struggled to stagger away. Jane looked at Vega and he stared at her for a moment in shock.
"Be careful, James, you'll make a woman think she left you breathless with just a little bar fight," Jane teased and Vega shook his head.
"Lola...you're really here?" he asked and Jane nodded. "You did it." He gave her a deep look. Jane approached the bar and bought two glasses of good brandy before sitting at the table. She placed a glass down at the seat across from her, pushing it towards Vega. He stared before he took the seat.
"To Captain Toni," Jane said, raising her glass. Vega raised his and they clipped the glasses together. They sipped. "To Essex." Again. "To Kamille." Again. "To Mason." Again. "To Nicky." Again. "To all that were lost on Fehl Prime." They finished the brandy. He went to open his mouth. "I'm sorry you had to go through all that James." He closed his mouth. His hands wrapped around the glass.
"I failed them," he said.
"You made the right call, even if in hindsight you see things differently," Jane said and he stared at her longer.
"Why are you here?" he asked and Jane gave him a look.
"I'm here to collect you," Jane said and Vega huffed.
"I'm not going back, Lola," he stated. "I don't care if I get court-martialed."
"I need your help, James," Jane said, looking at her glass. He paused, he stared at her.
"What was that? That's not like you," he said and Jane looked at the blood on the floor.
"What do you think it was?" she asked and he stared at her.
"What kind of help do you need?" he replied instead of answering. Jane smiled.
"I don't care what the universe thinks of me. I can be the Terror of the Hegemony, I can be the Savior of the Citadel. The only things I care about are being able to look at myself in the mirror in the morning, and the safety of the people I love," Jane explained, she placed the glass down and looked at James. "Like it or not, you are a minor celebrity for your courage against the Collectors. I need a hero." Vega stared at Jane. "Will you help me protect the only family I have left in this universe? Will you help me to protect my brother?" Vega stared at her for a moment before he smirked.
"So...Lola...you want me to be your hero?" he purred and Jane smirked at him.
"Yes, Lieutenant James Vega, I am asking you to be my personal hero," Jane got up. Blasto was at her side looking up at the massive Marine.
"I suppose I could do that for the Saviors of the Citadel," he said and Jane grinned.
"Thank you, James," Jane said and Vega made a show of offering his arm. Jane smirked at the smart ass move. She took his arm and his face went red. "Don't tease a lady if you don't mean it."
"Sorry, ma'am," Vega stated but Jane didn't let go of his arm as they exited the bar. She waited until the first bead of sweat began to move down his temple before letting his arm go.
"And, James?" Jane stated as they headed towards the dock.
"Yeah, Lola?" he asked.
"Never play chicken with me," she commented and Vega chuckled.
"Yeah...I'll remember that," he said.
~*TF*~
James set his rucksack on the ground and turned to ask Lola where he was bunking. Instead of the female Spectre he found her brother. He was staring at him intently, plainly assessing him and what kind of threat he was., James knew he was bigger than the other man, more well built but that look. It was like he was being dissected do to the inch and it scared the shit out of him. And then the moment was over and John rolled his eyes before turning to look at his sister. As James looked them over he could see the resemblance between the two. Besides the obvious blue eyes there was the color of their skin and the similar mannerisms they had. He even thought they had similar expressions.
"Who the hell is he and why are we picking him up?" John asked and Jane rolled her eyes at him.
"John, this is Lieutenant James Vega meet Spectre John Shepard," Jane introduced. "John you shouldn't be so rude to your bodyguard."
"Really, Jane," John demanded. "I'm going to be locked up in Alliance headquarters and you enlisted someone just to be a bodyguard for a civilian."
"Uh, you're a civilian?" James said feeling like he had stepped right into something.
"It's for my piece of mind," Jane retorted as both Shepards ignored the confused marine. "Who knows what will happen while I'm on mission."
"Oh like I'm a helpless little baby! I'm your older brother! I can look after myself!"
"Only by fourteen minutes!"
"Don't worry you get used to it!" The pilot chimed in from the cockpit.
~*TF*~
Earth Date: May 12th, 2186 CE
Location: Sol System, Earth, Vancouver Docking Pad
"Are you sure you four want to do this?" John asked as Joker finished landing the Normandy. "We can still find a way to get you off ship."
"Stop asking us, John," Chakwas chided him. "We're going to stand with you.
"For everything you've done for us the least we can do is this," Ken agreed as Gabby nodded. John sighed and turned to Jane as the Normandy finished landing. Joker got up and walked to them, grimacing as his limp seemed a bit stronger.
"She's all set, John," Joker informed them and John gestured to Jane as Vega moved up beside her.
"Go ahead." He said and Jane bit her lip.
"Are you sure you want me to do this? Wouldn't you rather have the officers on the pad do it?" Jane asked, fiddling with the cuffs in her hands. John shook his hands.
"I'd rather not be cuffed in front of the cameras. This will be bad enough plus it helps your reputation with the Alliance." John noted. Jane sighed but moved to cuff John. After she was done Chakwas, Gabby, Joker, and Ken each offered their wrists to be cuffed. Jane cuffed them each in turn.
"Open the bay doors when we get there EDI," John said as they began to walk away. "And please be careful."
"Acknowledged, John. It was a pleasure to work with you." EDI said. The group was quiet as they headed for the cargo bay. As they reached the big doors they slid open. Jane stood between John and Joker, her hand only touching John's elbow, while she was helping to support Joker. Vega towered between Ken and Gabby. John walked down the ramp and kept his head high despite the watching crowd and cameras. He walked promptly to Admiral Hackett who was waiting with several JAG officers and MPs.
"Admiral, I and my fellow crew members have surrendered ourselves to Jane Shepard, an officer of the Alliance Navy." John stated loudly for the cameras. Admiral Hackett had a flicker of surprise flit over his face before nodding in understanding.
"I transfer my prisoners to Alliance custody," Jane stated formerly tapping on her omni-tool. The JAG officer to Hackett's left checked his omni-tool and nodded.
"Transfer received." He said stiffly.
"MPs please escort them to a holding cell. Per Alliance protocols we are also impounding this ship." Admiral Hackett said.
"Understood," John said and followed the MPs who led them away followed by the news reporters. Jane and the admiral watched them go.
"Hell of a mess, Captain." The Admiral noted and Jane sighed in agreement. "The Okinawa is waiting for you and you are expected to head out to Operation Gauntlet as soon as possible." Jane saluted.
"I'll head to the Okinawa directly," she said watching James walk beside her brother before she headed out. "Thank you for setting up Lt. Vega as his protection detail."
"It was a smart move," Hackett chuckled to himself as he looked up at the Normandy. "Let's hope we can keep making them in the coming days."
~*TF*~
Toby AN: Hope you all enjoyed. Belle and I have been curious to what we could do with the time between. I think this works out nicely. Enjoy the next chapter.
Belle AN: So our dear readers, have you caught all the hints we have dropped so far? Do you think you know how we are going to change things? I hope we surprise you. I can't wait for you all to see what we are going to do.
OMAKE 1
Belle and Toby writing the scripts for the true beginning of the ME3 arch.
"Did you hear?!" Intern A cries as they run into the room. The two authors blink before slowly approaching the television. Their eyes grow wide and they both begin to scream in joy.
"What's going on?" John asks as he enters the room.
"Hallelujah!" Belle sings operatically breaking out into Latin to thank God.
"I've waited for this moment for 84 years..." Toby whispers, wiping manly tears from his eyes.
"Explain this?" Jane demands and John chuckles as he points to the N-7 Announcement of Mass Effect: Legendary Edition. "Well shit...I hope they get the boob physics right."
"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Miranda states as she sashays by.
"And the ass physics," Jane mutters.
OMAKE 2
"Toby does the cast look different to you?" Belle asked. Tobias looked up from the chair where was checking over the script for the meeting room scene. He glanced at the cast and looked them over. They all seemed fine to him, better actually.
"Not really, in fact they look a bit better. Not as ragged, or sharp around the edges. They must be getting some more sleep." Toby noted turning back to his script. "Though I think they all got another job. I'm just glad our fanfic contract is so iron clad. Their new story is supposed to be released in the spring." Belle huffed and turned her attention back to the cast.
"And then they called me for the reshoots!" Miranda was exclaiming. "Oh it's so much better! My outfit hugs me just right!"
"I personally can't wait till the romance scene reshoots!" Tali gushed. "Oh I bet John will just love me when I take off my mask this time!"
"I can't wait to show up that Peebee woman during mine," Liara sniffed. "I was the reason people fell in love with my species in the first place."
"What the hell is so different?" Belle muttered.
OMAKE 3
Kaidan looks at Garrus. Garrus looks at Kaidan.
"Alenko," Garrus states.
"Vakarian," Kaidan replied.
"Hey, what's up guys?" James states as he enters the room and the two look at each other.
"Don't worry about it," Kaidan huffs as he glared at Garrus.
"Hey James, what are you doing here?" Jane asks as she leans in the door in a skintight pair of pants and a tank top.
"I just want to get some water from the cooler to rehydrate," James says as he grabs a large bottle of water. "I'm ready to take you on, Lola."
"You better put your money where your mouth is, Vega," Jane taunted.
"Oh you know it," he purred.
"I look forward to pinning you down," Jane replies as James follows her. Both Kaidan and Garrus' jaws drop. As they rush to the door it closes and they jam it in their rush to get through. Five minutes later they gain their freedom and search the ship. They finally head to the cargo bay where they can hear the grunts of James and Jane in a horrible rhythm.
"What's going on here?!" Kaidan cries as he pulls back the curtain to see Jane doing pull ups on a bar while James is doing pushups.
"We're working out," Jane huffs as she drops to the floor. "Did you guys want to join us?"
"Nah...we're good..." Garrus said sheepishly as the two headed back towards the elevator. James peered out through the curtain.
"And we're good, nice timing Lola," he purred as Jane began to remove her ayu89v
"OW!" Belle cries as she rubs the back of her head.
"No..." Toby warns.
"I can do what I want," she huffs.
"Do you think the fans will tolerate you going to VEGA after that mushy Shakarian you wrote?" Toby asked and Belle grinned.
"Do you doubt the power of the Shega fandom?" Belle chuckles as she pulls her hood up and giggles. "We are many..."
"You are going to make so many fans mad," Toby sighs as he throws up his hands in defeat.
"The power of the Shega fandom will not be denied," she cackles as she writes Shega smut.
OMAKE 4
The Twin Fates studios were quiet. The early morning sun was just breaking over the grounds, a song bird was shaking itself off as it woke to the early morning being the early bird. The inside of the studio was quiet, the halls echoing with the sounds of snoring ringing out in the-wait what?
In his office Tobias Fiften was leaning back in his office chair, snoring away. Creating the first chapter of the next arc was time consuming and given his earlier writer's block he was behind on everything. Now that the chapter itself was published he had stayed up late catching up on the bane of life.
Paperwork.
He'd completed it late last night and after he'd finished he'd leaned back to close and rub at his eyes. He'd barely closed them before he drifted off and he was going to pay for sleeping in his office chair, head leaning over the back.
"Sir!" A guard cried, throwing open the author's office door. Tobias's eyes flew open and he let out a startled shout as he fell to the floor. The Turian guard who'd startled him awake winced as his boss disappeared behind his desk with a loud crash. A tense silence filled the air.
"Ruturnon?" Toby's voice came from behind his desk.
"Sir?" The now named guard asked.
"If this isn't important you're fired," Toby growled as he stood up, glaring at the now nervous guard.
"I know it is, sir," he assured his boss. "We have camps outside!"
"…camps?"
~*TF*~
Toby rubbed his temples as he fought off the headache trying to press in. There were indeed camps outside of the studio. The open field to the east of the studio was filled with various camps. He winced as he saw the signs by each and spiked wooden barriers being built. He knew exactly who was at fault for this but until she showed up for work he couldn't do anything about it.
"I want you to call in all the current guards who aren't on the grounds," He told Ruturnon. "I'm authorizing overtime until I hire extra staff to act as guards and peace keepers. I think we're going to have to deal with this till arc 3 is over. Any fights break out yet?"
"Not yet sir but there is some tensions between the Shegas and Shekarians right now." Ruturnon said before heading inside. Toby sighed.
"Of course there is," he muttered to himself. He watched the camps in resignation as he noticed some new arrivals were dressed in medieval armor. At least they had agreed to rules of engagement that wouldn't include gun fire, explosives and possible weapons of mass destruction.
"Oh who am I kidding," Toby growled. "They can still use trebuchets."
"Toby what's going on?" A familiar voice asked. Tobias turned around and scowled at the cause of this fiasco. Belle was strolling around the building, twirling her car keys on one finger, showing she had just arrived this morning. "Where did these people come from? You also look like shit, did you go home last night?"
"You." Tobias said in a tone of voice so dark Belle stopped, startled. "This is your fault!"
"How is this my fault? What is this and who are these people?" Belle demanded.
"You had to declare your Shega love and after everything you did last arc for the Shekarians of course they were going to get upset! You've started a shipping war, right outside the studio!" Toby said gesturing wildly at the camps. "Do you know how hard I try to stay out of shipping wars? RWBY wars are blood baths and you started a Mass Effect war on our doorstep!"
"Oh it's not going to be that bad!" Belle said, waving a hand airily at Toby. As if to prove Toby's point the sound of people marching in armor began to sound around the corner. The authors turned to see a group of people in armor heading for the Shekarian camp, waving a flag with Jane & Garrus kissing on it. As they passed the authors Toby was sure he recognized a few fans there.
"Well what about people who love multiple different pairings like me?" Belle demanded trying to defend herself. Toby growled and gestured past the Shenko camp at one of the harem camps. Given they hand a large flag with Jane on it with lots of silhouettes below her it explained who they represented.
"All you have to do is look and there's a camp for anything! I think I saw Shexes!" Toby shouted at her. Belle just waved him off as she looked it over.
"Oh what can they do?" Belle mused.
"Mistress!" A bellowing voice cried. They turned to see a squad stomping up to Belle. "We demand you tell the Shakarians to surrender! The Shegas will win this day! We want our beefcake!"
"Mistress, do not give in to the heretics!" Another group approached Belle. "We have waited and watched you carefully construct our Shekarian romance! Tell them they are deluded by your jokes!"
"Blasphemy! Jane Shepard loves all and will take her stable of boytoys!" Another voice bellowed.
"Oh for fuck's sake," Toby muttered pinching the bridge of his nose. "It's too early in the morning for this shit. I haven't even had coffee yet."
"Um, well, you see I have plans I don't want to spoil for arc three so I can't say…" Belle demurred, realizing she was surrounded by heavily armed fans.
"Belle I have a question about the Mars scene we're recording today…oh." A familiar voice began. Everyone turned to see Jane Shepard approaching from around the building a chapter twenty-nine script in her hand. She was staring wide eyed at the scene before her.
"IT'S THE SHEPARD! Take her to her throne in our camp!"
"NO! SHE BELONGS TO OUR FACTION!"
"HOW DARE YOU! DIE!"
Tobias snatched Belle out of the way and dragged her out of the way as a fight broke out.
"God. Damn. It." Toby snarled at Belle as they hurried inside and Jane fled ahead of them in panic.
"Okay I may have stirred up trouble." Belle allowed.
"Gee you think?" Toby muttered as the sounds of combat echoed behind them.
OMAKE 5
"Hell of a mess, Captain." The Admiral noted and Jane sighed in agreement. "The Okinawa is waiting for you and you are expected to head out to Operation Gauntlet as soon as possible." Jane saluted.
"I'll head to the Okinawa directly," she said watching James walk beside her brother before she headed out. "Thank you for setting up Lt. Vega as his protection detail."
"It was a smart move," Hackett chuckled to himself as he looked up at the Normandy. "Let's hope we can keep making them in the coming days."
"Well that's fucking ominous!" A reader said from the theater.
"I know right!"
OMAKE 6
"I just don't get this," Belle lamented as she drank at the bar. "What's so wrong about liking well written romances?"
"Loyalists can be funny," her drinking companion stated.
"But seriously, Kaidan has some great moments, but Garrus has that really innocent sweetness, and Thane...that siha line was freaking gold," Belle whined as he patted her back and passed her another drink.
"Yeah, that Vega kid certainly has some talent, that DLC really didn't give him enough time to shine," her other companion grinned, not so innocently.
"Tell me about it!" Belle huffed as the door opened.
"There you are!" a voice cried and Belle threw herself over the bar.
"Oh God, he found me!" she shrieked as Toby marched up to the bar and glared at the two men smirking at him.
"You two are up to something with her," he stated, giving both Varric and The Iron Bull a look. The two continued to look pleased with themselves.
"Hey, I'm just giving her good advice on writing powerful romances. Have you seen my Tale of the Champion?" Varric asked and Toby rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah, I know, stop putting ideas in her head and you," he turned to The Iron Bull. "I don't get your angle." The Iron Bull chuckled.
"I'm just stirring up the pot, Boss, no need to get worried about the Little Lady," he replied.
"Oh, I know what you're doing, I just don't know why. I don't have time for this today, we're facing a giant shipping war!" Toby stated as he reached over the bar to drag Belle out.
"There's nothing wrong with liking them all!" Belle cried as she struggled.
"What about Jacob?" Toby asked and she stopped struggling.
"...it's okay to like that one...even if I don't..." she huffed as she was dragged out of the bar. Varric and The Iron Bull grinned at each other.
"I love a good love triangle...or square...maybe even a pentagon," Varric chuckled before taking a drink. "So why are you pushing her?"
"Oh, there's just something about that Vega kid I like," The Iron Bull commented as they continued drinking.