They had two floors to transverse to get to the intended docking bay. One heavily damaged, and the other which both of them had previously skipped due to being full of mechs, with the dock itself.

"At least any remaining mercs haven't found my ship yet," he pointed out when Shepard groused about the situation.

"If you hadn't blown up our intended escape route, it would have been half the time. Maybe a quarter," she retorted waspishly. The damaged hall really slowed their progress. It got on her nerves. "Plus, you're out of ammo, I'm down to my last two clips, and we have a room of mechs to bypass. Somehow."

"So we get inventive. You always liked inventive."

Shepard snorted, ducking under a group of exposed wiring. "Maybe I've changed. Maybe I like simple now. In and out, no fuss, no muss."

Laughter drifted back to her. "You? Our first mission you blew up half the moon!"

"Lies! It wasn't even a fourth. And besides, Eden Prime was our first mission and I didn't blow anything up."

"That's because there was nothing to blow up on Eden Prime, it was a simple recovery mission. And it was not our first assignment. It was a test for you to see if I really wanted be your mentor."

"You never told me that," she said, scrambling over a piece of fallen wall. A hand waited for her on the other side, but she ignored it, dropping to the ground. The hand disappeared with a sigh.

"Never came up. Despite your penchant for being noisy, I typically enjoy my privacy and give the same to others."

"So what did I dazzle you with that made you decide to take me?" she asked quietly. "I wouldn't have thought a simple pick up job like Eden Prime did much to demonstrate my skills."

"It wasn't you skills I was looking at – it was you," he answered. They came up on a locked door and Shepard began to decode it, saying nothing and hoping he would go on. He did.

"You were going to be a Spectre candidate, I just had first rights for you potential teacher. And, as you know, mentorship takes a long time. Field training is intense and stress inducing. I had to make sure we wouldn't clash fatally."

"So you liked me from the beginning?"

"Not that way I didn't." The statement came out low and close to Shepard's ear. It took a wealth of self-control for her not to shiver and focus on her task. She knew there was no way to actually feel the heat of his body through their armor, but it somehow ghosted there anyway, a warm presence on her back. He kept talking. "But I knew you would do the work and not cause problems. Well, not personal problems anyway. I didn't know about your love of explosions and damage then."

She almost had the door. "You were so stiff and formal. The epitome of a calm, collected, know-it-all teacher. I blew stuff up to damage your calm. I wanted to see you crack."

"I figured that out," he said dryly.

"And yet, I still managed to draw out that rebellious snark you like to pretend doesn't exist."

The door clicked, signaling the bypass finishing and Shepard made to move. A three-fingered hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned slightly to look at the blackened visor of his helmet.

"I don't pretend it doesn't exist," he said in that low, two-toned voice that she had so missed. "I just don't show it to very many people."

Her fingers itched to unclasp his helmet. To let her see his face. To trace those white marking. To feel his skin and plates. She swallowed.

"You know, I'm sure others wouldn't mind seeing it. You creeped the hell out of my crew with your piercing gaze and silence. They could have done with a post-it about you being friendly."

"Is that what you think I'm doing? Being friendly?" he rumbled.

"I think you're trying to seduce me," she answered softly. "In the middle of the mission, surrounded by debris and flickering lights."

"Hmm, sounds mood killing," he admitted, but did not move. "So tell me, is it working?"

In response, she leaned foreword, pushing her helmet against his. He growled, pushing back, pushing her back until she hit resistance.

"This really isn't a good idea," she murmured.

"I checked the scanner. No hostiles." His hands hovered over the clasps to her suit. "Tell me to stop and I will."

"We – "

"Attention intruders. We have your ship. There is no way off the station for you. Surrender now, give us the code to your ship, and we will not vent the station."

The pair froze and shared a combined sigh. They should have shut down the station's open comm. while they were in the security center.

"Well," Shepard muttered, "that certainly killed the mood. Sounds like you missed some on your way in."

"I won't miss them on the way out," he growled. He unholstered his rifle and opened the door.

"You sound angry," she commented following him. "Like you are carrying some stress."

"Keep that up and I'm going to leave you when I go."

"My, my. And they say women are the ones with the mood swings."

"I don't think this is a very good idea, Shepard."

"It's a fantastic idea," Shepard retorted, eyes narrowed in focus. "Inventive. Didn't you say I was inventive?"

"It's going to let all the mercs at the docks know we're coming," he pointed out dryly.

"You're just jealous you didn't think of it first."

He snorted. "If I had suggested this, you would have threatened to shoot me."

Probably true, considering the current plan had Shepard halfway across the room, upside down, and hanging from the ceiling. She lowered her rigged grenade onto the third heavy mech, moving at elcor speed in hopes of not setting off its sensors.

"One more," she said, straining to fold back up. Her abs screamed in protest at the motion. She resumed her upside-down crawl towards the last mech.

"And then I get to run really fast across the room, hoping I don't get hit by a missile or an exploding mech. I'm starting to think you got the easy half of this plan."

"You know, shooting them would have alerted the mercs too," she pointed out. "And possibly been suicide."

"At least I would have died with a missile to my face and not to my back," came the grumbling reply.

"I happen to like your face," she said, positioning herself over the last mech and beginning the excruciating process over again. "Just the right mount of sharp edges and smooth lines. And what lovely eyes too."

"Commander Shepard, are you trying to flirt with me?"

"Well, since I figure you might die in the next five minutes, I thought you could use one last thrill."

"How thoughtful," he commented dryly.

Shepard neglected to respond, instead pulling up rapidly, swinging once, twice with all her might and landing on the platform in front of the doors. The mech had started to move.

"Run!" she yelled unnecessarily, as he must have taken off as soon as she starting swinging.

A missile fired at her location. She rolled, hitting the detonator in her hand. The mech farthest from her location exploded, then the next, and the next. An armored body slid into cover next to her just as the last one went.

"I think that went well," she commented. Laughter greeted her ears.

"Spirits, Shepard, how is it that one person can create so much destruction?"

"It's a talent."

"And you wonder why you give the Council headaches. The paperwork that must follow you now that I'm not around to curb your tendencies."

Shepard snorted. "I remember a certain turian giving me a lessen in how to rig a helium refinery to nuke a fleet of refueling pirates. Boy, did that make the Alliance Joining Day firework display look like a kid with a match."

"So how you planning to get through the door now that the mercs have locked it?" he asked as a hissing noise started filling the room. "They've started venting the room."

"You come up with something – I'm not your student anymore, I don't have to dance to your tune."

"Shepard, you can do many things, but dancing is not one of them."

Shepard whacked him lightly on the shoulder. "Bad turian. You promised not to mention that."

"Venting room, Shepard."

Shepard sighed and pulled out her pistol, waving it in his face.

"Where did you get that?" he asked. Who the fuck let you have one? was what his voice said. Shepard chuckled.

"I nicked it of a STG member about a month back. Sweet little thing isn't she? I call her Boo."

"Only you would name a pistol that fires grenades after a surprise."

Shepard sniffed. "They're proximity mines."

"Well, you going to use it or not?"

Shepard fired two rounds into the door and watched with satisfaction as they blew, smoke filling the wrecked frame.

She hefted Boo, and gestured gallantly at the door. "After you."

"Ladies first."

They disappeared into the haze.