A/N: Third installment. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Bioware owns MY calibrations! ;)
After their conversation that morning, the crew had started to wake up to the smell of the coffee maker. There was some left, but Rupert had first dibs as he was the first to reach the kitchen. He was delighted, but had no clue as to who made it because by then, half the crew was already awake and in mess hall. Shepard made a face at Joker as he was about to give her away, so he shut up when he was asked.
"Iunno." He said, shrugging and turning back to his cup.
The crew looked tired and worn, but relieved. They were all infinitely thankful to her but also, infinitely loyal. However, there was still work to be done and words to be said… their families were in danger from Cerberus now, and if there was something they knew about the Illusive Man is that he would spare no quarter to get what he wanted. He wanted his investment back.
Shepard waited until it was breakfast and everyone was in the mess before she stood on a chair and the chatter immediately went silent.
"I don't need to tell you the consequences of my actions, because you already know. You signed up for this mission, being fully aware of the risks you had to take. You knew it was possible to lose your lives and your companions… but I'm certain no one here considered the possibility that your own employer would now be your biggest threat." She cleared her throat, insecure about her next words. "I know it's too much to ask to serve with me one more time against the forces that threaten us. I know it's overwhelming and I won't keep you here against your will, so if anyone here wants out, just say so, I will understand. I promise you right now you will not be judged in any way."
Silence reigned. She scanned the room, searching for reactions. Rupert broke the silence.
"Hell you're stuck with us Shepard so you might as well face it." He said with a smirk then saluted. "Mess Sergeant Rupert Gardner, ready for duty Commander!"
Soon after, Gabby stood up and saluted as well. "Engineer Gabrielle Daniels, ready for duty Commander!"
And little by little, the whole crew fell in, announcing their ranks and names, stating they were ready for duty. Shepard felt a knot in her throat at the sight, tears threatening to fall in front of her crew, but they didn't.
After a moment of silence, Joker was the last to stand and salute.
"Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau, ready for duty Commander Shepard!" He smiled at her in a way that Miranda knew very well, even from her far viewpoint in front of med bay.
She shifted her weight to her good leg and laid her body against the door, looking at him intently. The look in his eyes, the smile on his lips… and she had never been one for the supernatural, but she could swear she saw some sort of aura around him…
Well, well, well… what do you know? Her head then turned to Shepard, who was preparing to continue her speech.
"Well, if there are no objections… let's continue to the debriefing. We will be docking in Ilium in a few hours. As soon as we get there, you will all have a 72-hour shore leave to get your affairs in order and your families to safety. If any one of you needs assistance with this task please let Officer Lawson know. I'm putting her in charge of this because I know she knows you better than I do and I know she's more than capable of this and more." Shepard turned to Miranda and the woman nodded.
"Of course Commander."
"Tali, you, Mordin and Legion will be tasked to supervise the ship repairs on Ilium. Tali, you and Mordin will make sure they don't touch anything they're not supposed to, and Legion, protect EDI at all costs. Try not to kill each other in the process though."
Tali turned to look at Legion and frowned under her mask, but nodded nonetheless. "Alright Shepard." She said.
Legion ignored her. "Yes Shepard-Commander."
"Jacob, you will take Grunt, Samara and Thane. The four of you will be charged with security detail. There are many eyes on us out there and I need you to make sure the ship and the crew are safe. Thane, Samara, you are going to be my eyes and ears out there. You will be reporting any irregularities to Jacob."
Jacob saluted. "Yes ma'am."
Grunt thumped his fists together in excitement and Thane nodded.
"Garrus, Jack, you're going groundside with me." She pointed at the turian.
He chuckled throatily and looked at the tattooed biotic next to him. "So much for shore leave."
Jack scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Tell me about it."
"Hey I heard that!" Shepard exclaimed.
"Alright Shepard, ready when you are." He said smoothly.
"Alright people, the rest of you are dismissed! Once we get to Ilium, if you have time, I suggest you try as best you can to enjoy yourselves at least. You sure as hell earned it." They cheered as she climbed off the chair and started walking toward the elevator. The crew soon started dispersing.
Joker was in the way and she stopped to talk to him, her demeanor softening and loosening up. The commander role fit her perfectly. She was an amazing leader, but she felt she didn't need to be 'Commander Shepard' around Joker anymore, and he was perfectly comfortable with that.
He waited for her to reach him before they started walking to the elevator together, smiling and talking about something unintelligible, at least from Miranda's point of view. She still stood near med bay with a small smirk on her face, watching as they walked away.
She must have looked more distracted than she thought… "Miranda? You alright?" Jacob stood next to her.
"Oh. Yes I'm fine, I was just…" she shook her head. "Surprised."
He lifted an eyebrow in disbelief. "Surprised? About what?"
"Oh I doubt you want to know. Come on, we have work to do." She backslapped his chest softly and started walking away, with an ever so slight limp. He held back the laughter at the sight.
"20 minutes to Ilium Commander." Joker announced to the woman standing next to him.
"Good, I'm gonna go suit up." She said, patting his shoulder. "…shore party, report to CIC." He heard her say into her earpiece before her voice faded down the hall.
He couldn't believe it. Shepard was still trying to save the world, even when she, out of all people, had earned her downtime. That would never change, he knew that, but it didn't change the fact that he could tell she was worn from the struggling. He'd be there for her when she needed him, that was for sure, but he still felt useless to her. All he could do was… this. Staring at his hands, his head was swimming in his thoughts as Ilium came into plain sight.
"Ilium traffic control, this is Normandy requesting permission to land." He spoke into his earpiece.
"Stand by, Normandy." A male voice responded. "Permission granted. Proceed to dock 24."
The thud of the Normandy docking on Ilium was followed by the slow stop of the whir of the engines. The usual shore party composed of Garrus, Jack and Shepard was already standing at the airlock, ready to exit.
Relieved to be on land, Joker turned his chair to see Shepard staring intently at the airlock, then turning her head to look at her shore party.
"How 'bout we tear up Eternity when we're done here tonight?" She asked them.
"Hell yes!" Jack exclaimed. "I could use a drink or twenty!"
"It would be nice to sit back and relax for a bit. Hell I think the whole team could use a break." Garrus added.
"Good idea. I'll let them know later." She then turned to Joker. "How 'bout you Joker, you coming?"
"Sure. You still do owe me a dance." Joker said, sneering evilly.
"The commander? Dancing? Impressive." Garrus said from behind her.
"Yeah Shepard, is there something about you we should know?" Jack crossed her arms.
"What!" She blushed furiously, but her face was hidden behind her partially open helmet.
They all laughed at her expense.
"Oh grow up people!" She then smirked, pointing at Joker menacingly. "You're lucky I like you or you'd be dead." The airlock opened and she stepped out, Jack and Garrus following quickly.
"Yeah, likewise! Don't act like I haven't saved your ass more times than you care to count!" He yelled after her.
She broke into a jog as soon as she stepped out, heading toward the market district, seemingly ignoring him. He turned his seat around to look out the window into the corridor she was on. He burst out laughing as Shepard ran by, sticking her middle finger to the ship, knowing he was watching.
He then spoke into his earpiece. "Oh yeah that's real mature Shepard, real mature."
A/N: First "date" next chapter… ;) tee hee!