a/n: Hey guys, large storms over here tonight and tomorrow. I'm saving often as the lights are flickering. But a promise was a promise, a chapter a day.

-brittsis

Rae sat with Coach as he stared at something that wasn't there. He hadn't recognized her when she visit and was no ignoring it. The man that had once been large and proud was nothing but a shadow that couldn't even feed himself. It was hard to see the man now and know what he once had been. Rae stood from her chair and gave the man a hug, tears in her eyes. She owed the man so much and there was nothing she could do. "I'm sorry Coach," Rae whispered into his ear before letting him go and leaving the room.

She wandered the streets, unsure what to do with her day. Bodie was working his summer job at the docks, saving money for his future. The only family she had left was dieing the in the room she had left and her blood wouldn't want anything to do with her. Just when despair was about to clench her heart she had an idea and changed course. It took but a few minutes to reach the graveyard and a few more to locate his grave.

"Brandon Lazar Shepard. 2146-2168, Beloved Son and Brother. May his bravery live on."

Rae knelt in front of her brother's grave and traced the words with her finger. The pain of his death had dulled to a throb in her heart. It had taken months but Rae finally knew she wasn't at fault for her brother's death. Brandon would never have wanted her to blame herself. He would have wanted her to live and make something of herself.

"I am sorry Brandon." Rae spoke softly and bowed her heard. "I am sorry for not coming sooner. I left the colony and joined the Alliance. I will make the Shepard name mean something. I will make it become a beacon of hope that you wanted it to be. I love you brother."

"And he loved you." Raegan jumped and turned to find Ayden standing a few feet away. Getting to her feet, Rae nodded and backed from the stone. Ayden knelt before it and placed his hand softly on top, whispering a few words. There was a few moments of silence before he spoke out loud again. "So you've returned?"

"For a few weeks, then I go back to class."

Ayden nodded and got to his feet. "Rae…" He turned toward her and grabbed her hand. Before she could react, he pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry. Could you ever forgive me?"

Rae clenched her eyes tight and held onto her brother. She'd been craving this since she woke up in the hospital two years ago. She nodded against his chest, afraid to speak.

They sat in Coach's old office, now Ayden's, speaking of old times. They laughed and cried in intervals as each story was retold. There was times that it was as if nothing had happened and others where time ached between them like an old wound. It would be a long process but the two were becoming sister and brother again.

"So you're the new coach?" Rae asked as she sipped her tea.

"The colony offered me the job when Charles got sick a couple months ago. It was time I settled down, start thinking about family." Ayden grinned as he thought about the girl from the flower shop down the street. "It won't be long before you call yourself Aunt sister."

"Getting a little hasty aren't you? Does this girl even return your feelings? Want me to go ask like you did when I was ten?" Rae laughed at her brother's expense and quickly vacated the chair as she lunged at her. "Getting slow in your old age brother."

Ayden laughed and settle back in his chair. "And what of you and Bodie? Do I need to speak with the lad?"

Rae shook her head and glanced out the window, toward the port. "Not just yet. I still have two years at the academy before any decisions can be made."

"Do you love the boy?" Ayden asked, becoming sober quickly. "He loves you dearly. Anyone with eyes could see that."

Raegan's throat tightened at Ayden's words. She suspected Bodie's feelings for a long time but to have them so bleatingly shown to her caused her heart to stop. "I know he does. But I have a duty to follow and promises to keep."

Ayden noticed that she didn't answer his question but choose not to push it for now.

Rae straightened her uniform for the tenth time and glance at the clock. Bodie was going to meet her in the lobby in five minutes. They were going to go on their first official date tonight and she was a mess of nerves. She had argued with herself for several hours whether to wear her uniform or civilian clothing, changing back and forth repeatedly. She had finally decided on her uniform because her only civilian clothing consisted on boots, jeans, and a t-shirt. Deciding that her collar wasn't going to get any straighter, Rae left her room and headed for the lobby.

She stepped out of the elevator as Bodie stepped through the front door. He was wearing a cotton button up shirt, black slacks, and black cowboy boots. They spotted each other across the lobby and both smiled. Rae's fingers went through his hair as their lips met. It was a long kiss, different from any they had shared before. Rae nipped at his lips as Bodie tasted her. They parted, out of breath and warmer from the exchange. "Did I ever tell you that women in uniforms are hot?"

Rae chuckled and kissed him again before stepping out of his embrace. "We're going to miss our movie,"

"I could think of other ways to spend our night." The comment got him a punch to the gut as she walked past him.

"Grow up Bodie."

"That's exactly what I'm doing." He grumbled and followed behind her.

The movie had been a slasher flick. They had watched a master villain cut through the scores of people only to be stopped by the heroin to stupid to take off her heels. Rae never understood how the ditzy girls survived the horror running from the bad guy in four inch death traps. She had never worn heals and never planned to.

"Every one knows not to take a shower in the abandoned camp ground. It's common knowledge that the psycho is going to find you in the only running water source within fifty miles." Rae complained as they walked away from the theater.

Bodie grinned, "Yes but they how else would the director had reason to show some tits?"

Rae's eyes narrowed, "By not showing them at all."

"Then it wouldn't be any fun." Bodie laughed and danced from her. "Oh come on Raegan, you didn't appreciate those fine globes of beauty? They were so firm and perky."

At the word perky, Rae launched herself and tackled him into the grass. Bodie laughed as the two wrestled in the grass, rolling around trying to gain the upper hand. Bodie gave up as Rae shoved his shoulders into the ground and she straddled his waist.

"You were saying?" Rae growled, the smile on her face betraying her true feelings.

"That there's no one better than you." He pulled her down and kissed her softly. "Rae, I've wanted to say this for a while. I lo…."

He was interrupted by a blood curdling scream. Rae jumped to her feet, pulled a knife from her boots, and ran toward the sound all in one movement. Bodie cursed and rolled to his feet. They both turned the corner to find two figures standing over a woman kneeling on the ground. Rae could just faintly make out the rifles in their hands as she ran toward them. She grabbed one around the neck and kicked the other in the knee, causing him to fall to the ground. Her knife plunged into her captors heart as Bodie punched the other in the jaw. Both bodies fell to the ground and Rae got a good look at them.

"Hey you okay?" Bodie asked, going over to the woman that had begun to scramble away from them, face contorted in fear.

Gun fire and screams filled the air and Rae picked the rifles up. She strapped one on her back while checking the other. "Bodie get her to safety. I have a score to settle."

"Wait…" He called out, but she was already over a fence and heading toward the noise. He looked back at the two figures and swallowed. "Batarians." He cursed.