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9 July 2185 — Ariadne's Apartment, Presidium, the Citadel, Serpent Nebula

The last time Shepard was this happy was the day Corinthia first told him that she loved him. Now she had. "Properly", as she had put it. Other than that joke, she had been shockingly mature about their love making. She'd been shy and insecure, as she tended to be with the new and unusual, but Shepard ensured she overcame her hesitance quickly. Then again, he'd been even more nervous than she had. It had been her, not some girl he'd picked up at a bar. She'd been tactful enough to avoid asking in specific exactly how much experience he'd had with women and, honestly, he thought he would die of shame if he had to tell her in any other terms than "you're the only one I want and need now".

Next to him, the sleeping Corinthia sighed softly and snuggled closer to him. He brushed her hair off her face and kissed her forehead. As much as he liked the sophisticated version of her, he loved seeing her without makeup (and, of course, without clothes). He could even see the faded, light traces of her old scars, as well as some newer ones. If there was any benefit to her having Imreas around, it was that Corinthia didn't get hurt. She used to take a bullet almost every mission and, though she had this strange ability to shrug off and almost completely ignore the pain, Shepard hated it. Unfortunately, he needed her fighting beside him, maybe less so after his upgrades by Cerberus, but he still wanted her with him.

For the moment, he was just glad Imreas hadn't shown up. It not only meant that Corinthia wanted him, but also that she was learning to control her other side. Or perhaps absorbing it. During her first few years in the Alliance, she had fought like Imreas (though the silent alter-ego did not spout "that's what she said" after almost everything someone said). If they were lucky, Corinthia's mind would re-merge (or something like that) and not only would she be beautiful, but she also would be one of the best soldiers the Alliance had ever seen.

Corinthia's lips brushed against his throat. "Mm... John?"

He smiled. "Cassie."

She slowly opened her eyes. "Are we dreaming?"

He chuckled. "You said that yesterday."

"Alright, I guess not." She sat up, pulling the sheets with her. Her stomach plunged a little as her nerves set in again. "So..."

He guided her into a long, lazy kiss. "Don't you dare make it awkward," he warned her when he was through.

She swallowed a snicker. "You aren't making it easy, you know."

He rolled his eyes. "You know, just because I've seen you naked doesn't mean that everything else changes between us. You've woken up next to me before."

She flushed and smirked. "But yesterday we just kept going... Are we going to do that again?"

He caressed her side. "You're just a goddamn ball of energy, aren't you?"

"Mmhm, but you knew that from before." She ran her hand across his chest and up to the base of his skull. "So, how about that?"

"I've created a monster, haven't I?"

She shrugged. "No, not really. I'm just kicking myself for being so damned scared of you."

"Me?" he asked, surprised. "I thought you were just scared of sex."

"Well, not really. Knowing the technicalities of it does rather prepare you for it, but I was more scared that I'd disappoint you by under-performing or that I'd become a... a... a way to relax or unload or something other than being the girl you love."

"Woman," he corrected. "And an honest one, before you start joking about it."

"Geez, Shepard. You think I don't take this seriously? I do, really. I can see that I've gotten to you because you keep thinking of things that make me think, 'I should've thought of that'."

He blinked. "Seriously? No jokes? What the hell..."

"I was going to be sappy and mushy and gushy and all that kind of thing."

He rolled his eyes. "Sure you are... You're still being funny,."

"So it's my nature. Deal with it."

"I never said I didn't like it." He rolled her onto her back and pinned her down. "You really need to get it into your head that even if you annoy me sometimes, I love you more than I dislike your tendency to talk when you should be doing other things."

She grinned. "And that last category expanded quite a bit over the last couple days..."

"Actually, I was talking about your duties aboard the Normandy."

"As if I can think of that with you looming over me," she murmured, curling her foot around his calf and rubbing lightly.

He chuckled and kissed her gently. "You have no idea how much I'd like to stay here forever, but the galaxy's too fucked to save itself and you know it."

"Meaning you're exhausted," she muttered, pouting.

He stroked her cheek. "I'm not, but if we start again we aren't going to leave."

"So... you're not worried it's going to lose its luster?"

"Are you kidding me? You've been shocking me since we met and it has yet to get old. You may be new at this, but you're a fast learner and I... God, I can't even begin to describe what it was like..."

"I think you've already said it," she added snidely, "about every two minutes or something like that."

"You have a problem with me telling you I love you?" he asked darkly, leaning in to kiss her.

"No, not particularly," she added softly. She met his lips with hers, drinking him in and pulling him closer.

"Damn it, Ci-Ci," Shepard gasped an hour later.

She giggled and kissed his cheek playfully. "I love you, too, John."

Her omni-tool beeped again. It had been for the last twenty minutes, but she was too distracted to turn it off or stop the annoying sound. She sighed, crawled out of Shepard's arms, and donned the bracelet which held the tool. The hologram opened, displaying a long list of messages.

Shepard grabbed her waist and pulled her so that half of her back was leaning against his chest. "Can't you turn that thing off?"

"You were just cursing me for keeping you here," she answered testily.

"If I really cared, I would be out of bed by now."

She rolled her eyes. "And so the honeymoon phase ends..."

"Trust me, Cassie," he whispered, kissing her throat, "we haven't even gotten there yet."

She shivered. Her omni-tool beeped again. "Oh, for crying out loud," she muttered. She pulled her sheets over her body and opened the comm link. "What?" she demanded irately.

"Where the hell are you?" Miranda hissed.

"Busy," Corinthia answered, nudging Shepard in the ribs. He flicked her ear in retaliation and caught her free hand before she started a fight which would inevitably lead to them spending the entire day in bed (again).

"It's chaos over here," Miranda answered. "Joker's about to take EDI offline, Mordin and Grunt are arguing about the krogan, Kasumi stole my — er, she just stole some of my things — and Samara has been making the entire ship shake with her biotics."

"And this is my problem why?"

"Because I know you still have Shepard in your clutches."

Corinthia swallowed a snicker and a comment ("Yep. Literally"). "So maybe we're extending the shore leave inevitably."

"Indefinitely," Shepard corrected.

"Whatever."

Miranda remained silent for half a moment. "He's with you now?" she asked softly.

"Of course I am," Shepard growled. "You're supposed to be first mate. Tell the crew to sit tight and shut up until I get back."

"That was supposed to be twenty-one hours ago."

"Fuck it," Shepard answered. "We've been busy."

Miranda sighed. "I don't want the sordid details of your love lives, but please finish whatever you're doing and quickly. You might not have a Normandy to come back to."

"You'd think that you kids would be able to handle being a couple days on your own," Shepard muttered, pushing Corinthia off of him and swinging his legs out of bed. "I'm on my way, Miranda. Make sure that no one else's head gets bitten off, alright?"

"Understood, Commander."

Shepard stretched and went to shower. Corinthia stared at him dreamily.

Miranda coughed softly. "So..." she asked lewdly.

"So what?" Corinthia asked.

"Your omni-tool is set on video right now, you know."

Corinthia turned bright red. "Oh my God..."

"I won't tell the crew. Actually, they all already assume. No one believes that someone with your figure is a virgin."

"Was," Corinthia corrected, embarrassed.

"Do I have to hack into your security system for details or should I just assume that you were pleased with his performance?"

Corinthia blinked. "Uh... Why are you interested?"

"I made a few alterations to his physique, that's all."

"His muscles are more defined, sure, but I dunno about anything else... I mean, it's not like I'd seen it before."

"You're kidding me... You and Shepard couldn't keep your eyes or hands off of each other and you'd never...? My God, this was my competition?"

"Competition? What?"

"Nothing," Miranda said quickly. "Do you need a suggestion for birth control?"

"Nah. Been on it since I joined the Alliance to help control my hormones, you know? A sixteen year old girl on a squad full of deliciously physiqued soldiers is an orgy waiting to happen."

"That is far too much information..."

"And you were suggesting hacking my security for tapes! Besides, that's not how I do security."

"It was merely professional interest, Ci-Ci. I just wanted to make sure that he lived up to your expectations. After all, you knew him best. I'm glad to know my re-creation was satisfactory."

"Don't call him that," Corinthia whispered. "He's Shepard. The same one. Just... fixed and upgraded."

"Of course. But still... Anything else you want to add?"

Corinthia narrowed her eyes. "Is Kasumi in there?"

"Yes."

"Goodbye." Corinthia cut off the transmission right as Kasumi's laughter echoed statically through the omni-tool's speakers.

"What the hell was that about?" Shepard asked, coming out of the shower and holding a towel about his waist.

"Miranda was just curious where we went to eat on our date," Corinthia answered, smiling. She crawled out of bed, pulling the sheet with her. It didn't quite come out from under the mattress, so she tugged and, ultimately, leaned against it with all her weight. It came free and she fell to the ground with a loud thud.

Shepard tried not to laugh. "You alright?"

"Fine," she muttered, getting to her feet. She kicked the sheet angrily, only to get it wrapped around her legs and make her fall again. "So much for modesty..." She got to her feet and left the offending cloth where it lay.

"So long as it's only me who gets to see you in your full glory, I don't care." Shepard grinned, kissing the top of her head. He slapped her rump playfully and watched as she went into the bathroom. A few seconds after the door closed, he heard her squeak and another thud. "Ci-Ci?"

"I'm fine!" she called painfully. "Why the hell didn't you put the bathmat down?"

"How was I supposed to know?" he asked innocently.

"And the toilet seat, too? Ugh. Men..."


SSV Normandy SR-2, Zakera Ward, the Citadel

Shepard and Corinthia waited patiently through decontamination. They kept exchanging glances like teenagers who couldn't believe that the other had accepted the request to start dating. Then again, neither of them was really convinced that the last two days of their lives had been real.

"Welcome back, Commanders," EDI greeted. "I hope you enjoyed your shore leave."

"At least someone could. I never left," Joker muttered mutinously. "Couldn't someone else watch the ship?"

Shepard rubbed his eyes. "EDI's the best guard we've got. You could've gone, Joker."

"And leave it alone with my baby? Yeah, right." Joker shifted in his seat to try and find a more comfortable position. "So, what did you two do?"

Corinthia pressed her lips together in a desperate attempt not to giggle.

Shepard shrugged. "Got Thane back in touch with his kid, relaxed a little, tried to forget how many things I had to do in order to save the galaxy's ass again..."

"You? Relax?" Joker laughed. "Like that'd ever happen. You're the most uptight person I know."

"Because he bottles up all his emotions," Corinthia said, poking Shepard's ribs, "and doesn't really get the chance to let them out otherwise."

Shepard grabbed her wrist and pulled her against him. "Didn't," he corrected.

She turned crimson. "Alright, didn't. We're going to blame me on both counts."

Joker looked them up and down. "So... What, exactly, were you two up to?" he asked lewdly, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Fuck off, Joker," Shepard ordered, escorting Corinthia alright.

"Alright. Fucking off," Joker answered, turning back to his controls. He looked over at EDI. "Think you can be useful and find out what happened?"

"I am not a source of gossip, Mr. Moreau."

"Damn it..."

Shepard and Corinthia stepped into the elevator. "So..." she started. "How long do you think it's going to take for the entire crew to know?"

"Embarrassed?" he murmured, kissing her neck.

"Petrified. It's one thing for me to go telling 'that's what she said' jokes, but the fact is that now I've said things, too..."

"They were adorable."

"I asked you how I was! I mean, how much more insecure could I be?"

Shepard laughed. "And I'd never made love to anyone! Sex? Yes, but not since before we shipped out on the first Normandy."

She shifted uneasily. "Oh... So... it was just another—"

"Don't you DARE say that," he hissed, taking her face in his hands. "We've been over this already. I love you. It could never, ever be just another night or morning or whatever. They weren't, and every single thing after this won't be, either. I was probably even more nervous than you were. You're the most amazing creature in this galaxy and anything you do is just as amazing. Hell, you've been mind-fucking me ever since I met you, and I have to say it's the second most pleasurable thing I've experienced, save our last couple days together."

She tried not to laugh, but failed and fell into his arms in fits of hysterics. "Alright, I feel a little better, now." She blinked. "I'm hungry."

The doors opened to Shepard's cabin. He scratched his head and pressed the button for the crew deck. "I told you that we should've gotten something before we came back."

"We were busy, weren't we?"

Shepard groaned. "What have I done?"

"Just turn me into the best kind of mind-fucking monster," she whispered hotly, licking his ear. "The kind that fucks you, too."

He shivered. "Damn it, Cassie, don't do that to me again..."

She patted his cheek. "You have perfectly marvelous self-control. I think you'll manage."

He gritted his teeth. "I really, really don't like you right now."

"But that's why you love me," she said airily. She stepped onto the crew deck. "Rupert! Did you get the new rations?"

The cook grinned. "That I did. You're a saint, Ci-Ci."

"Well, if you ever need more, don't worry. I'll gladly put my own money into having edible food."

"Hey! I was actually a chef!"

"I know!" she said, leaning at his bar.

"Just make her a sandwich or something," Shepard muttered. "We still have to plan our next course of action."

Corinthia rolled her eyes. "Back to work already?"

"I'd love to get distracted again, but the galaxy won't save itself."

"No, but I do think we need to take more breaths between missions. It's been non-stop!"

"What else were you expecting? We don't have to file reports, take orders..."

"Yes, but we have to be as prepared as possible. Rushing into anything is not the way to go."

"As you are the queen of."

She flushed crimson. "Oi, don't go pointing fingers at me. I like being patient."

He smirked. "Only sometimes."

She turned even redder. "You're horrible, you know that?"

Rupert raised hie eyebrows. "Should I leave you two alone?"

"Don't worry about it, Rupert," Corinthia said dismissively. "We had our 'us' time."

"Not enough of it, if you ask me," Shepard growled.

"Do you want to extend shore leave for another few days?"

"Think everyone would let me?"

"I think Jack might tear a hole in the hull out of sheer boredom and Joker might find a way to short circuit EDI, but other than that I'm not sure anyone will mind."

"Oh, yeah... I should probably give him a leave, shouldn't I?"

"Definitely. He'll like the idea of having it and just not go anywhere."

"Probably... That's his own business, though. I don't care what anyone does with their spare time. Except you. Then again, are aren't 'anyone'."

"That's sweet of you, John, but you already know that you're my hobby."

Rupert gagged. "You two keep talking like that and this food's going to suck worse than anything else you've ever tasted."

"I thought it'd be sweeter," Corinthia said with a frown.

"One comment a day and it'd do that, maybe, you're both making me sick."

"This is the part where I'm glad Shepard isn't the sort to rub it in," Corinthia mused.

Shepard snorted. "Only because I don't want anyone else to have the pleasure," he answered darkly.

"As sexy as your girl is, I think you've scared everyone else off," Rupert grumbled.

"Say that again and I take of an ear," Shepard hissed.

Corinthia wedged her way between Shepard and the cook. "Easy there, Shepard. You know every woman on this damn ship thinks you're hotter than the sun and the only reason they haven't said it to your face yet is because you would've bitten their heads off two months ago and you've been too busy with me since."

"'Hotter than the sun'?" he repeated. "Which one?"

"Uhm... the hottest one out there? God, Shepard, you know what I think of your looks, so just assume that everyone else agrees."

"Actually, I don't."

Rupert jerked a thumb towards the crew quarters. "I'm going to just... yeah," he said, slipping away.

Corinthia smiled softly. "You've set the standard for handsomeness since the first day I met you. I'm going to blame it on your eyes, but I STILL want long hair and a beard while we still can."

"Uh... I hope you're talking about me, because you've got the long hair, but I see you've gotten rid of your facial hair."

She blushed deeply. "You noticed that? I mean, Ariadne couldn't be all Italian bushly and that kind of thing."

"Again, I don't care. I think you're beautiful when you're missing half of your face."

"Eesh, you don't need to get gory. You're starting to sound kinky."

"Only if you want me to be."

"Right. Next shore leave I'm buying sexy underwear."

Shepard glanced around. "It's not over yet, is it?"

She punched his shoulder playfully. "As if it matters. I've already got cute stuff here. Completely impractical for fighting, but perfect for dresses."

"Seriously, Cassie, you need to stop being suggestive." He grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to him. "I can act on it now, you know, and I absolutely intend to."

"Alright, alright: not suggestions unless I'm willing to have a tryst in a corridor or corner or something."

"Or, if you push it enough, in front of everyone." He nuzzled her ear. "You know how I am when my blood gets boiling."

She smirked. "You know it. Oh, hello, Miranda."

Shepard didn't move. "What is it now?" he asked irately.

"I actually have a request," Miranda answered, her eyes locked on Corinthia.

"That's a new one," Shepard muttered. "Usually it's an order."

Corinthia extracted herself from Shepard's grip. "Oi, watch it," she growled, flicking his ear. "What is it, Randy?"

Miranda had, in all honesty, gotten used to Corinthia using that nickname. It still irked the Cerberus agent, but not nearly as much as it used to. "It's Jacob."

Corinthia nodded in understanding. Miranda trusted few people. Jacob was, and almost always had been, one of them. Miranda had even confessed that she and the soldier had almost become intimate, but he cut it off because he wasn't sure he was right for her. "So, I guess he's got an errand, too?"

"We all do. He can focus, but he still doesn't trust Shepard."

"I've noticed a pattern," Shepard grumbled. "'Do this for me and I'll follow you into Hell'," he mimicked airily. "It's a fucking nightmare..."

"Hey, it's gotta be done," Corinthia scolded. "You want everyone prepared and focused, don't you?"

"I just want to know when you're going to ask a favor."

She shook her head. "You've already done it, back with that whole Cerberus fiasco with Kohaku. It's... Remember how they were threatening to court martial us? That was why. It wasn't that we were together, but that you went out of your way to slaughter everyone we crossed paths with instead of focusing on recovering Kohaku alive."

"Fuck..."

"I'm not about to ask you to do anything else. I can't, just in case they... But it's done." Corinthia sighed. "Want me to talk to Jacob?"

"No, I'll do it. Kasumi will probably tell you, anyway. Speaking of which..." He pulled Corinthia to him and whispered, "Are you still going to keep a room in her place, or... I mean... Do you want to... you know..."

She bit her lip and kissed his cheek. "Do you want me to move up with you?"

He nodded immediately.

"Everyone'll know."

"Like they don't already."

"I'll get my stuff."

He grinned lopsidedly and kissed her, a messy thing that made Miranda grimace (even though she could tell it was probably one of their better kisses). Corinthia giggled and slipped away.

"Oh. My. God," Miranda said, disgusted.

"What?" Shepard asked innocently. "Not like you wouldn't if you had me."

"Not in front of the crew."

"Since when have I given a fuck?"

"For her sake, I'd keep it to yourselves. The sex can't have been that good."

"I've had more than I'd ever admit to her, but she's the only one that ever — Why the hell am I discussing this with you? I'm going to find Jacob and get this over with."

13 July 2185 — 2175 Aeia, Rosetta Nebula, Alpha Draconis System

Jacob shook his head. "I don't like this. Not one bit."

Corinthia patted his shoulder. "You'll be alright, you know? At least you might be able to make peace with your father."

Jacob snorted. "Yeah, right."

"It means more than you think. Mine estranged me... or maybe I did him, I don't know anymore, but he died before I could ever apologize or anything."

"At least he was good to you."

"He wasn't. That's the thing. He was horrible, but if he hadn't been how he was, I'd never be here. And I'm happy here."

Shepard knew she was going to need a hug shortly. She avoided talking about her family, as she always had, and she couldn't do it without becoming emotional.

Jacob sighed. "I'm willing to forgive him, but I want to know why the hell he's waited so long to even try and contact me... or anyone."

Corinthia shrugged. "There could be plenty of reasons. Just don't go into this with a bad view. The rest of it is going to be, then, too."

"I guess you're right..." Jacob took a deep breath. "Let's get this over with, then."

Shepard pulled Corinthia a little behind. "You alright?"

"Fine," she answered airily.

"You just don't usually talk about your family, that's all."

"I'm fine, Shepard. Dad died nine years ago. I also have you. Still."

"Sap."

"Push-over."

"Squealer."

"Growler."

Jacob coughed. "Uh, guys? Do you mind?"

"Shepard, no more missions together," Corinthia told him.

"Yeah... I can see this becoming an issue," the Commander said sheepishly.

"Look, I'm all for you guys being in love and all," Jacob added, holding up his hands, "but you just gotta focus. It was an issue before, too, but now it's worse. A lot worse. Honestly, it was nice working with imreas."

Corinthia shrugged. "I can see that, but apparently we're not really in danger right now. But, you never know what'll happen."

"Just remember why we're here."

"Don't worry, Jacob. I won't."

Kodiak Shuttle, en route to the SSV Normandy SR-2, orbiting Aeia

Jacob stared blankly out the window. His father had... How could he? How was it possible for anyone to betray their crew like that? To be so selfish? To use people like that? It didn't matter if the food on the planet had... changed them. 'Indoctrinated', as Corinthia had put it. It was news to Jacob (other than what he'd heard about the Reapers) that anything could do that, but Shepard and Corinthia said that they'd seen it before with something called a thorian, another plant able to take over people's minds.

Admittedly, the outcome could have been much worse. Jacob hadn't been out on a mission with Shepard since Garrus and Mordin had been recruited — not that Jacob minded, since Shepard had been a ruthless bastard at the time — but Shepard had changed (obviously, from the way he was all over Corinthia). The second a fight hit, they were all professional, but the right kind of professional. The stranded survivors from the wreck were spared and treated like humans, not fodder. The kills were merciful. Imreas never showed up, which was a good thing because Jacob had seen Imreas once and he did NOT like it.

Corinthia put her arm around his shoulders. "You know, you did the better thing. It's not easy to forgive, especially when we feel so betrayed."

"I wanted to leave him to the fate of his crew..." Jacob breathed.

"And now he'll be at the fate of the Alliance. Listen, now you know. You said that it was an old scar that had healed, but something I've learned is that scars can still smart every once in a while."

Jacob put his head in his hands. "I still don't know if we should've gone there at all..."

"We just rescued a lot of people from a terrible fate," Corinthia answered cheerfully. "That's good, isn't it? They'll recover, you know? The poison will get out of their systems and they'll move on, have a great life. They'll have you to thank. You're more of a hero than I think you want to admit. You saved the Council, too, remember?"

Jacob sighed. "You know, Ci-Ci, you can't let anyone feel sorry for themself, can you?"

"Nope. I have a song that's my motto."

Shepard groaned. "Here we go..."

"Always look on the bright side of life!" She whistled cheerfully. "Always look on the bright side of life! Life's a piece of shit, when you look at it, so when you're feeling sad and blue—"

Jacob winced. "I get it! You're off key."

Corinthia reddened. "Sorry. No more singing."

"If you make my omni-tool play that song one more time..."

Corinthia grinned deviously. "You mean that sexy saxophone?"

"Yes! God, it's terrible! Every time Kasumi comes around, it goes off!"

Corinthia burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Jacob demanded.

"Don't you know?" Corinthia gasped. "She thinks you're gorgeous!"

"So the music is supposed to get us to hook up or something? I don't do that, Ci-Ci."

"No, no. It's supposed to prevent it so that you two will actually talk. Believe it or not, she's pretty shy."

Jacob rubbed his eyes and looked at Shepard. "How the hell do you put up with her?"

Shepard shrugged. "Ear plugs, patience, and knowing how to shut her up."

"Which is?"

Shepard smirked. "Kissing."

"You'd have my head if I tried that."

"If you want my advice, just laugh at her, even if it isn't funny. It will be, eventually, and she'll fall over laughing."

"Like she is now?"

Jacob and Shepard both winced as the saxophone music started playing.

"Whoever wrote that song needs to die..." Shepard growled.

Corinthia cut the music off. "Sorry. It was stuck in my head. So, now, on to something better..." She wiggled her fingers and started flicking through her omni-tool interface for her list of music.

Shepard and Jacob exchanged looks.

"Ci-Ci?" Shepard said sternly.

"Yes, dear?" she answered absently.

"No."