"C'mon, ye daft bitch! If we don't head out to Zorya soon…" Zaeed began, cut off by a glare from the woman sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of him.

"Shut it, Massani. I know how badly you wanna go after Vido, but it'll have to wait. Before I go nest deep into a bunch of fucking Blue Suns mercs, I wanna make sure I've got more'n what I already have to take down those bastards. Garrus, no matter how much he says otherwise, ain't in any condition to go in there with us and Mordin would talk us both to death before we even got inside. I sure as hell don't want some Cerberus assholes at my back while I'm in there either. So we're gonna go and pick up that goddamned krogan and the biotic before we head out to take care of your little job, got it?"

"Yeah, yeah. Shit…" he grumbled, running his fingers through his short grey hair. He fixed his gaze over toward the surveillance monitor as there was something unsettling in her silver eyes as she looked at him, something that made his groin tighten quite uncomfortably.

"Besides, I'm waitin' on my new armor to be delivered. The crap Cerberus gave me to wear still looks too much like Alliance standard issue. Once it's on board, we're headin' off to the Citadel so I can get my fucking Spectre status reinstated, then it's off to grab the other two. I hope that biotic is all the dossier says because I don't wanna hafta bring Jacob or Miranda along when we take care of your job."

"New armor, eh? At least you're not wearin' that catsuit the cheerleader prefers. Doubt you'd make it off Zorya. Even if you're older than what he usually likes, I doubt Vido would let you out of his sight if you showed up in somethin' like that," Zaeed chuckled, returning his gaze to her face. He still couldn't figure out how someone with the reputation of the Butcher of Torfan happened to have such an angelic countenance. It sure as hell didn't fit with who he knew the woman to be.

Vali snorted in response, her eyes rolling as she looked up at the merc. Yanking her fingers through her long blue-black strands, she sighed and leaned back against the counter that held Zaeed's rifle, Jessie.

"You won't find me hangin' myself out to sway in the breeze, that's for sure," she smirked, clasping her hands against her knees as she pulled them up to her chest to keep from scratching at the itch beginning to form on her arms as the skin healed around her newly inked tattoos.

"By the way, whoever did the job on that ink ye got, damned good artist. Never woulda pegged an ex-Alliance bitch for sleeves though. Maybe a little one here 'n there that could be hidden easily by a uniform, but not the shit ye got there."

"I wasn't always Alliance. Just had them redo the shit I had before I got spaced. That kinda shit has a tendency to leave the ink really faded 'n I wanted it fixed."

"How'd you get away with that shit in the Alliance?" he asked.

"Omni-tool program 'n spray shit that was water 'n sweat resistant. Nobody knew of my tats other than a few who were there when I was first recruited."

"Bet the ink went over real well," he snickered.

"I didn't join by choice so the fuckers had t' deal as far as I was concerned. Told them no way in hell was I havin' them surgically removed so we found a compromise."

"So you're not an Alliance bitch because you wanted to be? You were forced to be?"

"Yeah, but that's a story for another day, Massani," Vali replied, stretching as she stood, her tank top raising enough to give him a glimpse of the hooded cobra tattoo entwined around her waist, the tail sliding down into interesting hidden territory.

"Hey, uh, Commander?" Joker's voice came in over the comm. system.

"Yeah, 'sup Joker?"

"Got some turian dude here saying he's got a delivery for you? Armor or some shit?"

"Comin' up. Been waitin' for that," she answered then turned to Massani. "Give me a week, two tops, and we'll head out to Zorya, all right?"

"Better not be fucking with me, Shepard," he replied, leaning back against the wall with his arms folded over his chest.

"I might be a psychotic bitch by some standards, but I don't fuck people over unless they deserve it and I sure as hell don't lie," she purred, turning her back to him as she exited the cargo hold. Zaeed shook his head as he watched her leave, his lips curved in a half smile.

"Damn, that bitch has got bigger quads than some krogans I know."

oOoOo

Vali made her way down the steps to the little hidey hole Jack had claimed for herself. Unlike some of the others on the ship, she could understand the woman's need to be away from basic foot traffic. Unfortunately, being the commander of Normandy, she didn't have the same fucking luxuries as the biotic they had picked up, but such was life.

"Shit, Shepard, what do you want?" the sweet sounds of Jack's bitchiness echoed throughout the small compartment.

"Need your help with a couple of things."

"Figured. Everybody always wants something. I saw the way your eyes were watching me earlier. Hoping to get fucked by the psychotic biotic?" she smirked.

"If I swung that way, maybe, but that's not what I'm down here for. One, the Illusive Man is forcing me to take a step off my schedule and head to this little human colony he thinks the Collectors are hitting. I need a top notch bitch to come with me and not a cheerleader watching my back."

"What else?"

"I need you to help me with a bit of a hair issue. I want the shit on the sides of my head buzzed off and it's hard as fuck to do it myself. Figured you were one of the few who wouldn't look at me sideways if I asked."

"Trying to be like me, Shepard?" Jack cackled.

"Fuck…" Vali chuckled. "Nahh, used to have my hair like that before I got roped into joinin' the Alliance. Easy enough to take care of once it's shaved, but startin' from square one is a bit difficult."

"Sit your ass down on the cot then. I'll see what I can do."

Vali plopped her butt down on the surprisingly comfortable mattress and hugged her knees to her chest, her eyes closing as she listened to the other woman rummaging through her belongings to grab an electric razor and comb.

"Y'know, Shepard, I thought you were gonna be some sort of stuck up bitch like that Miranda chick. Instead you seem to be as twisted 'n shit as I am. Nice surprise," Jack said as she kneeled behind Vali and began separating the woman's hair into three sections, twisting and securing the middle section on the top of her head.

"Yeah, it was a bit of a shock for the cheerleader and her little puppy dog, Jacob, when they realized I ain't some straight laced Alliance officer," she chuckled. "Burned them even more when they realized that I'm also not some pro-human shit that they expected from someone who let the old Council die a couple of years back."

"Fucking idiots. That's what they are. Say, nice tats. If you ever want any more, let me know. I got some skills in that area."

"Definitely," Vali let out a soft sigh of relief as she felt the long locks of hair being sheared off on each side of her head.

"Never would have pegged you for a Mohawk type, Shepard. By the way, we ever gonna get to see that new armor you had ordered a while back? Heard people talkin' about it but never seen you wear it," Jack commented.

"Been doin' some tweaking to it. Had to remove the catch-releases from the left arm since they included a second armored sleeve that I didn't need. At least the fuckers remembered the damned vambrace. Also messed with the other sleeve so I'd have a place to stash some extra clips if I needed 'em, which I usually do. Think it's ready now so I'll be usin' it for Horizon. I can already picture jaws droppin' when I wear it for the first time," Vali chuckled.

"You gonna need me to help you kick some ass from those who got a thing for the bad-girl type?" Jack grinned.

"With you at my back, nobody would fucking dare try 'n touch this. Shoot at it, maybe, but try 'n take it for a ride? Hell no. They'd know we'd rip 'em a new one."

Jack threw her head back and laughed. Tossing the razor down on the bed, she unclipped what was left of Vali's hair, letting the inky black curls fall down around the now bare sides, caressing the skin. Glancing around, Vali caught sight of a pair of scissors half under the cot and grabbed them up, then, taking a small section of her hair, proceeded to cut herself a set of bangs. She turned around and looked at Jack, grinning at the woman's wide eyed stare.

"So, bitch, what do ya think?"

"Damn, Shepard, if you were into girls, I'd so fuck you right now."

"One of these days, I might just let you," she shot back, earning yet another cackle from the biotic.

"Commander? ETA for Horizon is 15 minutes," Joker stated over the comm.

"Guess that's my cue to get armored up. Meet you down in the hold. Zaeed's coming with."

"That old bastard's got a thing for you. Damn if his eyes don't fucking pop out of his head when he gets a glimpse of the new you."

"This ought to be interesting, then. Especially since it seems my old lover is holed up on Horizon. He'll shit his pants when he sees this," Vali snickered, shooting off a wave to Jack as she jogged back up toward the elevator.

oOoOo

"Goddamn, Shepard! That the new armor?" Zaeed asked, both his and Jack's gazes glued to their Commander.

"You like?" Vali grinned at the two of them, doing a little twirl. Her armor fit like a second skin, the right arm covered by black metal plating that hooked onto the otherwise sleeveless vest of the same color. A vambrace covered her left arm from wrist to halfway up her forearm. Black leather pants hugged her muscular legs and a set of knee high steel-toe leather moccasin boots buckled up the side to complete the outfit.

"Fuck yeah! The hair goes perfectly with it too. Glad you had me touch it up for you," Jack replied, her mouth split wide in a grin.

"I'll be fucking lucky if I can keep my eye on our enemies," Zaeed muttered under his breath. Jack and Vali exchanged amused glances, though otherwise acted as if they hadn't heard the merc.

"Let's get the fuck outta here and get this shit over with. The sooner we're done, the quicker we can have Joker take us over to Zorya," Vali stated as she made herself comfortable inside the shuttle.

"You do realize that looking like you do, that jackass Vido will make things easy for me? His eyes will be focused on you instead of recognizing the threat standing in front of him," Zaeed grinned.

"Let's hope not. Sounds like it might be too easy of a kill then. Sometimes easy isn't as fun as doing things the hard way," Vali snickered.

"You like things hard, don't you, Shepard?" the merc asked.

"You have no idea, Massani," she purred in response, her silver eyes turning into molten pools of platinum as she looked at the scarred man sitting across from her.

"Damn, if you two are gonna fuck in here, can I watch?"

"Bitch has got a thing for some uptight Alliance dick. You won't catch us fucking, Jack," Massani retorted.

"It's been two years. Kaidan has probably moved on," she replied, propping her feet up on the seat across from her, a foot on either side of the merc's legs.

"Quit teasing, bitch, or you might end up with more than you can handle," Zaeed growled.

"I don't tease. If I want something, I fucking take it. Besides, if anything, it'll be you who can't handle me," Vali smirked.

"Hey, you think the pilot's got any popcorn? I think I want some with this interesting in-flight show," Jack piped up.

"Just you wait until we're finished on Zorya, Shepard. Just you wait…"

Vali grinned at Zaeed, flipping him off, then settled back into the seat as the Kodiak made its final preparations before landing just outside of the colony.

oOoOo

"Shepard. I know that name. Some sort of big Alliance hero? You sure don't look like one," the mechanic they had met earlier stated as he stared at the three people in front of him.

"Vali Shepard, Commander of the Normandy, first human Spectre, and savior of the Citadel. You're in the presence of a legend, Delan, and a ghost," Kaidan stated as he approached the group.

"Shit. Figures all the good ones get taken and you're the one who gets left behind. I'm done with you Alliance types," Delan muttered, stomping away from the group. Kaidan sighed at the mechanic then finally looked over in the direction of Vali and the others, his jaw dropping as he took in the new look of his old lover. Snapping his mouth shut, he walked forward and pulled her into his embrace.

"I thought you were dead, Vali. We all did," he whispered in her ear. She tightened her hold on him for a moment then stepped back to take a good, long look at Alenko.

"Kaidan. Good to see you again. Congrats on the promotion, by the way," she grinned.

"Wait a minute. That's all you have to say? You've been gone for two years and all I get is a 'good to see you again, Kaidan'? Why the hell haven't you contacted me? Do you have any idea what I've been through the past couple of years, thinking you dead? I thought we had something special, Shepard! I… I loved you! Do you even remember that night before Ilos?" he raved.

"Holy shit…" she sighed, running her fingers over the soft stubble on her head before sinking them into the soft curls of her long haired Mohawk. "You've got to be fucking kidding me! I was dead, Kaidan! Two years of my life fucking gone until I woke up on a table in the middle of a goddamned Cerberus facility to find out that they had rebuilt me. You think it's easy knowing that I lost those years?"

"You're… you're with Cerberus now?" he asked, his eyes wide and voice incredulous. "How could you? You've gone against everything the Alliance has stood for, everything we believed in!" he growled, his eyes narrowed as he stalked toward her. Zaeed stepped up behind Vali and slid his arms around her waist, hooking his thumbs into the waistband of her pants as he glared at Alenko. Jack brought up her pistol and aimed it at the man, her eyes narrowed.

"Watch it, jackass," Massani snarled.

"You're with him, now, too?" Kaidan's voice was filled with disgust.

"I wasn't before now, but thanks to this little exchange, I just might see what he's got hidden under that armor of his," she snapped.

"I had dreamed that you might be alive, but this… this is just too much. We had reports that you were with Cerberus but I never believed… hell, I was stationed out here to see if it was them behind the abducted colonists."

"Well you can see that it ain't them. Besides, I'm not with Cerberus, we just happen to have the same goals at the moment. By the way, did you recognize that fucking ship? Same kind that blew apart the Normandy, sweetheart. It's the Collectors I'm after, not snatching people up from their fucking homes."

"You've changed, Vali," he said softly as he began to back away from them.

"Nope, ain't changed a lick. Still the same bitch I was when I commanded the Normandy, just not hiding it anymore. Can't go through half the shit I have and come out of it completely sane, and I ain't."

"The hair, the piercings, the tattoos… hell, Cerberus? That's not the Vali I knew and loved. You've turned into a total bitch."

With a startling quickness, Vali unholstered her pistol, took aim, and fired. The resulting yell of pain as the bullet ripped through Kaidan's thigh was enough to curl her lips into a tight smile.

"There are only two people who are allowed to call me a bitch without retaliation and they're the ones you see here. You're lucky I didn't aim higher. As far as the piercings, hair, and tattoos? This is who I was before the Alliance got their grubby little hands on me."

"Holy shit!" he cried out, gripping his thigh as he watched her and the others head toward the Kodiak that landed nearby.

"By the way, Kaidan, that was a fuck you and the white steed you think you rode in on," she called out before closing the hatch. He watched with pain-filled eyes as they lifted off, tears coursing down his cheeks.

"Goddamn, Shepard, remind me never to piss you off," Zaeed muttered as they sped toward the Normandy.

"Same. Fucker deserved it though," Jack chimed in.

"Mmhmm," Vali replied as she stared out of the window at the stars flying past. "Once we're on board, get some rest. Next stop, Zorya."

Author's Note: Just so y'all know, I actually have mad love for Kaidan though it might not show here. Please don't hate me too much for what Vali did - that's just her personality.