Just a short bit of fluff to see you through your day.
There was a portion of the city which had been cleared of debris, at least partially. The streets were cleared and passable. The buildings that could be salvaged had been and were restored enough to be functional once again. Those that were damaged beyond repair had been knocked down, and new structures were taking form in their place. There were a few that were completed, but dozens more stood in various states of completion from empty foundations to bare frames to nearly finished.
The sidewalks were mostly clear, and Shepard knocked any stray bits of concrete or metal from her path with her cane. Not all massive piles of debris and rubble had been trucked away. Some of it remained on the side of the street in great heaps. With a rebuilding effort so massive, it would take years for everything to appear normal again.
The streets were mostly empty. Occasionally a military vehicle would rumble past or, more rarely, a civilian car. There were people out, but most of them were workers either clearing more wreckage away or constructing the new buildings, repairing the old. They passed one family on their walk, a young mother and a small child. Shepard tried not to wonder how many of their family had not survived the war.
It was one blessing of the Reapers. Those caught in the beam were incinerated. There were few bodies to clear away once it was all over, except those killed as buildings collapsed around them or by Reaper ground troops. As it was, there were still bodies trapped in the concrete tombs of destroyed buildings. Thankfully, enough time had passed that the bodies were long decomposed and any lingering smell of death was stifled by the unseasonably cool weather.
"Are you alright, Shepard?" Liara asked, her arm looped through Shepard's.
The commander nodded. The sedative from the previous night still lingered in her system, making her feel slow and sluggish. Her limbs felt heavier, leaden. She remembered feeling like this when she first awoke on the Alliance Fleet vessel, although then it had been much worse. Then she hadn't been able to lift her head without assistance. "Mmm. I don't see why we have to go get more medicine. I have a million bottles of the stuff at home."
"You didn't have to come. I told you I could get it, or Miranda offered as well."
"We're leaving tomorrow. The meds are 'as needed.' I think I could have toughed it out for a day."
"You were the one who packed three separate sex toys but not enough medicine." Liara dropped her voice, even though there was no one near enough to hear them, and Shepard grinned and shrugged helplessly. "You are shameless."
As if emphasizing Liara's point, she dropped her free hand to the asari's rear and pinched. "You knew that when we met, and I corrupted your pure, innocent asari maidenhood."
"Oh, hush." Liara nudged her playfully with her shoulder. "We should be almost there, Miranda said it was—"
Shepard abruptly held her hand out in a gesture that Liara immediately recognized from their many missions together and fell silent, hand instinctively reaching inside her lab coat. The sound that had drawn her attention was faint, a barely audible scratching from the alley beside them. Out of habit, she pushed Liara behind her and advanced into the darkened alley. Stone crunched under her feet, and she cursed mentally. She did not realize how naked she felt without armor, unarmed as she reached over her shoulder for a weapon and grasped futilely at nothing.
"Shepard!" Liara whispered harshly as the commander continued her advance, turning to cover back, eyes darting left and right, scanning for hostiles. The small pistol she kept secreted under her lab coat felt odd in her hands, the slick metal cool against her palms. The action felt natural to her body; she had fought alongside Shepard for years. But that seemed so long ago, and the thrill-fear of combat tasted differently now, less of acceptance and more of fear.
Her lover was in no condition to fight. And the past year had bred complacency in them both, Liara realized. Without fighting, without constant threat, Liara felt safe and assured. Not so long ago, the two of them would not have dreamed of walking down any street without armor and weapons.
There was no movement on the street, nothing to denote any danger of any kind. But Liara knew to trust the commander's instincts. If she called for silence, there was a reason for it. She whirled at the wholly uncharacteristic sound that escaped her lover, a half-squeal, half-coo. Shepard was on her knees, cane on the ground beside her, hunched over. Liara felt bile rise up in her throat and advanced quickly, her pistol seeking out the nearest target.
But Shepard turned on her knees, her face split by a broad grin instead a grimace of pain. "Look!"
Liara did, and what she saw was not altogether reassuring. She had watched the nature vids showcasing the native wildlife of Earth. "Goddess, Shepard! Put it down!" She did not lower her weapon. The lethal predator that Shepard cradled in her arms was an infant, smaller than Liara would have expected one to be, but that could only mean its parent was close by. And she had seen how a fully-grown tiger could easily take down another animal twice its size.
Shepard quirked a brow, bewildered by her lover's distress. "It isn't going to hurt me, Liara. It's a kitten. Lower your weapon." As if to affirm the commander's words, the little ball of orange fur mewed.
"Infant animals are often accompanied by their parents. Goddess, Shepard. You grew up on this planet; you've seen what an adult tiger can do, and you have one of its young in your arms!" Liara warily glimpsed down the alley way, searching for any sign of the baby tiger's parent. Shepard could be reckless at times, but this was far even for her.
Understanding bled through confusion, and Shepard laughed. "It isn't a tiger, Liara. It's a cat. The adult version of this is no bigger than…" Her brow knitted together as she tried to find a comparison that Liara would understand. "A baby varren." She held up the little creature for her to see more closely. "See?"
The animal was painfully small. Tiny enough to fit in a single hand. Upon closer examination, Liara realized that its coloring and markings were different from those she had seen on the vids. It was marbled orange, with stripes of a paler orange instead of black. Its little canines were only fierce in the sense they were adorable, and did not seem capable of ripping apart a wad of tissue, let alone another animal. It twitched its nose and whiskers at the asari, as if sniffing her, and then mewed again.
"Here, take him." Shepard thrust the kitten into her hands, and Liara fumbled with her sidearm before managing to get it back in its holster so she could cradle the animal like she had seen Shepard do. It was surprisingly soft, its hair an even softer texture than that on Shepard's head. The fur also gave the illusion that the already tiny animal was bigger than it was, but holding it, she could feel how slight and fragile its body was.
Dusting off her trousers, Shepard straightened and adjusted her cane before offering to take the kitten back. She bent her free arm so the animal settled comfortably against her; it rumbled like something mechanical and began kneading into Shepard's jacket with its forefeet, sucking at the stiff fabric. The expression on her lover's face was one of tenderness, her smile oddly affectionate. It was the same expression she wore whenever speaking to children: infinitely patient, gentle. The sight of it caused Liara's heart to swell with adoration even though she thought it strange that Shepard would look at an animal that way.
"What do we do with it?" Liara asked as they stepped out of the shaded alley onto the sidewalk again.
"We keep it."
"What? Keep a wild animal? Why would we do such a thing?"
"It isn't a wild animal, Liara." Shepard began walking in the direction of the Alliance supply depot. "It's a cat; they're domesticated. Pets."
The notion of a "pet" wasn't a purely human one. Plenty of species kept animals for a variety of reasons, but the concept was still somewhat puzzling to Liara. A pet did not serve a function, to her knowledge. It was not utilitarian. But, so far there were a dozen things that she still did not completely understand about humans, and she had learned to accept them until she could find an adequate explanation for them. She supposed this might be one of those things. "We're keeping it?"
"Think about it, Liara. Somehow, this kitten's parents managed to survive the Reaper war in this city when most people didn't. Then, he managed to be born and survive amidst all this…" Shepard did not finish her sentence; instead, she jerked her head in the direction of a heap of wreckage that had yet to be collected off the street. "And besides it is cute."
"As you wish, Commander." Liara replied, still uncertain.
Leaning over, Shepard kissed Liara's temple. "I know asari are monogendered so the concept of "lesbian" is totally alien to you, Liara, but it is how I think of myself. Think of it like… a long lost civilization you are unearthing and learning about."
Liara smiled at the ghost of lips against her skin and moved closer to her lover, wrapping her fingers under her upper arm and pulling her close. Shepard had attempted to explain concepts of human sexuality to her before. Humans mysteriously divided themselves on who they were attracted to, what practices they enjoyed, and the various states of sexual development. Though the word meant nothing to Liara, Shepard identified herself as a "lesbian," or exclusively attracted to other women. "I don't see how that is relevant to… anything at all, Shepard."
"Of course it's relevant!" The kitten had fallen asleep, nuzzled into Shepard's armpit. "Because it's part of our culture. Ask any lesbian, and they'll agree. We are certain to love two things. Plaid flannel. And cats." The asari had absolutely no intention on asking any other lesbian whether or not this was true, but she didn't say so. Shepard tilted her head to the side, her brow deeply furrowed as the thought. "And seafood. So three things, really."
I have more plaid flannel in my closet than any one person should. Where did we eat dinner tonight? The sushi restaurant where they know us by first name. And then I came home and cuddled with my cat.
Shepard is really gay. Not in part by the fact they just used the same animations for both ManShep and FemShep, which makes her outgay most lesbians. Besides, after everything poor Shep has been through, she deserves a kitten.