Sorry if this chapter is a little rough, guys. I wrote it in like an hour because I feel obligated to write every day. I don't want to lose a viewer base because I don't upload frequently enough.

I know this is stupid, but should I upload every single day no matter what? Idk...

xoxo

THR

Chapter 13

Your name was Joker Moreau and you could swear that you just shitted your pants.

"EDI?!" you called out in a frantic tone. It looked like you were talking to the empty space around you, which made others around you stare.

No response was given, and you knew that that AI had a surprise up her sleeve.

Either she had hired two pretty damn good impersonators while browsing the Extranet unsupervised or the two people that were close by were the weird thing. EDI was a trickster no matter how limited her powers were, but you didn't think she would stoop this low.

The first being that you had seen from across the thundering crowds was a face you knew and loathed. It was the Turian famous for having a stick up his ass; if and when he finally removed it, he'd go and smack someone with it.

Blue markings dotted his alien cheekbones. The way he conducted himself was rigid, but the female next to him was making him calmer than normal. His normal attire of a blue set of armor covered his avian like frame, and the only scales showing were on his face. To your surprise, he still had a gun holstered to his back. Now that you thought about it, it would have been bizarre for him to be without a firearm. His six foot something frame was towering above some of the others around him, which allowed him to move through the crowd with ease. You didn't think that he had seen you yet, much to your dismay. The two of you hadn't gotten off well until your third mission. At one point he had even visited the bridge to share a few Turian jokes with you and EDI. He had been a good man and one you had learned to respect.

His name was Garrus Vakarian, and you figured that you would never see him again.

You were wrong.

The woman next to him, however, was an even bigger surprise.

She stood next to him wearing her signature dress that always made you a tad bashful. What she lacked in height compared to Garrus was made up in determination. This was apparent in her stance; you knew that she wasn't confident, but she acted like she was anyway.

Her cherry cola hair was tied back into a bun like it used to be every single day. Not a hair was out of place, which was just how she had liked it before. There wasn't much else left to tell about her.

Her name would reveal enough.

Her name was Commander Liz Shepard, and she was making a beeline towards you.

The way you had spotted them in the crowd had been odd. They were standing at the entrance like two awkward teenagers on their first day of high school. The two of them had been in there before, but the feeling of being out of place overwhelmed them. Based on the way they were acting, you assumed that the both of them were still a couple. Their arms were hooked loosely together, indicating that some sort of spark was still there. Maybe it was just friendship, but knowing the two of them, you knew that this wasn't the case.

You grinned to yourself; they had always been good together. Although they had kept their relationship under wraps for the longest time, you were one of the first few to know about them. Hearing the gauche first sex story had always been entertaining. It was bad enough that Liz had told you about the juicy details while you were sharing a drink in the cockpit, but telling EDI had been one of the most hysterical things that you had ever done.

All of the memories you had that involved the two of them all came flooding back when she hugged you with unexpected force.

When Shepard was determined to do something, she was going to do it. She had pushed through crowds of people to get to you. Although this was nothing compared to what she used to do, you were well aware of how unstable she could possibly be.

When she took you into your arms, though, she had unfortunately ignored you obvious sling. You embraced her with your one free hand.

Her scent was different than before; instead of the occasional smell of cigarettes and soft Illium imported perfume, her smell had been sterilized. It was almost like she was a brand new doll that had just been taken out of her plastic packaging. She wasn't worn or played with.

She was just there.

You tried to ignore this and focus on the reunion that was playing out in front of you. She squeezed you with more strength and then pulled back to look at you. Her hand moved to your cheek and she gazed at you with an amount of emotion that you had never felt from her.

"Joker…" she murmured, her voice soft. She laughed for a second and then started to act like her old self. "What the hell have you been up to?"

You really didn't know how to respond to this. Telling her that you were trying to rebuild EDI sounded odd. Saying that you had also been in an apartment on the Citadel since you had been off duty would probably be frowned upon.

This woman was Shepard, though. Wasn't it?

She had conveyed to you on multiple occasions that it was okay for you to tell her anything. Most of these times had been in jest, though.

You took a deep breath and muttered a brief "fuck it" in your mind.

You were going to spill everything to this woman, which included your plans to take back the Normandy.

Your name was Liz Shepard and you had never been so elated to see your sarcastic helmsman since he had been under your command. Although you were no longer a commander and he was an off duty pilot, you spoke to him like nothing had changed. If you acted any different, he would be able to pick up on your questionable mental state. You couldn't help but feel guilty for putting up a façade; hell, this was Joker. You had told him things that you wouldn't dare utter to anyone else again. He was your most trusted helmsman and advisor in many situations that the two of you had encountered.

His expression faltered before he answered, but he responded nonetheless.

"Comma-, shit, I've gotta call you Shepard now, don't I?"

He was stalling.

You laughed him off and leaned against the bar. You could get a proper seat later.

"Whatever you want. I've been called a lot these days."

"It'll be Liz, then." He continued with a genuine smile on his face. "And you've gotta promise me that this won't sound stupid."

Your eyes rolled. What could he possibly not want to tell you? Hearing about his excessive porn collection way back when had made any sort of aloofness between the two of you disappear. If this was something worse than that, you wouldn't really give a damn. It wasn't like either of you had a reputation on the line anymore.

"Spill it, boy."

"You know I'm older than you!" Joker protested. With a reluctant sigh a few moments later, he began to tell his story.

"When you fired the Crucible, y'know, all the Reapers and other synthetics disappeared? EDI didn't make it."

You frowned and blinked slowly; that had all been your fault. If you hadn't shot the console, EDI would still be here and Joker would still be happy.

Once again, things had been your fault.

You had to help him.

You had to redeem yourself for what you did.

You didn't really listen to his entire speech. He had said something about living on the Citadel, which didn't seem relevant to the conversation the two of you were having.

Your hands were too busy drumming your fingers on the bar. The nails hitting the counter made a soothing sound that drowned out the sounds of the club. Joker's voice was dissolving, and the sudden clinking of your dog tags soon took over. You were thankful that they were still on your scarred neck.

Dog tags and nail tapping.

That was okay.

"Uh, Shepard?"

Your head jerked up to look at Joker and you realized that now was the time to be glib. He would see right through you, but you didn't care.

"The music is too damn loud!" you shouted.

He nodded his head and then started talking again. His voice bellowed and commanded attention this time, which was a rarity when it came to him.

"Long story short, I'm rebuilding EDI from backup files and I need help to get back to the Normandy. Are you in?"

Your name was Liz Shepard, and you had never answered yes to anything so fast in your life.