Kaidan stood at the threshold of the Geth Dreadnought, Tali nervously wringing her hands together while they waited for the docking bay door to disengage. It was good to see her again but the circumstances as usual were less than ideal. Also as usual Shepard had grabbed the bull by the horns and said she would go in first and the "docking team" he and Tali would wait.
That was 10 minutes ago and the radio silence was beginning to make him nervous. He did not want to make Tali more on edge, he knew she had more than enough riding on this mission but the stillness was not comforting him in the slightest.
He was aware of his own breathing echoing back in his helmet, but something about it seemed off, ragged and hollow. It took him a moment to realize it was not his own breathing he was listening to but over the radio a transmission of someone closeby.
Shepard. His mind knew without a doubt.
"Shepard. Are you okay?" His voice betraying his concern.
"Kaidan….I …I can't" She radios in on local transmission. She sounded on the edge of a panic attack. Magnetic boots or not the idea of getting spaced a second time had unnerved her.
"The platform fell away. I can't get back." Kaidan's heart ached. She was so close but they both knew he could not get to her or even help her.
"Joker cut the feed. Local chatter only." He ordered the pilot.
"Shepard Tali and I are right here. It's ok. Everyone is fine this is not Alchera."
"The fighters are so close. I can see them engaging the Liveships… "A sound like a whine came over the radio but Kadian kept his voice calm. Tali was about to say something but he shook his head silencing the girl. Shepard always put other people ahead of herself. The last thing any of them needed was her acting out of panic in zero g.
"Yeah I bet it is one hell of a view. But the Quarrians are not out of this yet. We just need to give them a better chance. You need to give them that chance, Shep."
A long silence followed and Kaidan was just about to call out again when he heard the blessed sound of light scrapping and a thunk. The sound of magboots engaging on an uneven surface. The next few minutes crawl by, only punctuated by the sound of the slow uneven gait of Shepard on the other side of doorway, so close but might as well been on the other side of a relay.
Abruptly the radio cuts in with Joker ""Hey, take your time, Commander. We're fine until they, you know, look out a window."
Before Kaidan has a chance to rip Monroe a new one he hears a blessed sound in his ear, a low chuckle.
""Geth don't use windows, remember? Structural weakness."
"Like the geth are just sitting there saying, 'Those organics would never try the no-windows thing twice!'"
" Well they might have to reconsider. They have one heck of a skylight now. " A breath "Hold on, last jump."
The sound of magboots engaging and another piece falling away before Kaidan and Tali hear the doorways engage. Kaidan releases a breath he didn't know he had been holding. Seeing Shepard at the console looking down on them like some sort of overseer.
"Are you okay Commander?" He tries to keep his voice neutral.
"Better now."
She smiles and extends her arms down to him. With a chuckle he catches her, wrapping his hands around her slender waist helping her back down to ground level. She wraps her arms around his neck and near the earpiece of his helmet she whispers "Thanks" She meant of course the pep talk not the aid he had just offered but his heart surged regardless.
The smell of fresh grass surrounds him. Even in the middle of a battle zone, in a geth dreadnought Kaidan is reminded how lucky he is to have found her again. But how in a zero atmo ship could he be smelling Shepard's scent? Both their armors were self-contained.
Kaidan woke with a start. Apparently questioning the validity of a dream was a surefire way to end it. One of the side effects of his migraine medication was the need to be catatonic for a good six hours and occasionally vivid dreams like the one he had just experienced. Shepard had called it right after all, when she ordered him back to the ship after meeting with Aria.
Rolling over he noticed he had migrated from his side of the bed and the side where he had originally passed out in was tucked back under, a sign of Shepard's having come and gone.
When did it become "your" side of the bed?
Still a bit groggy Kaidan stretches out in the bed and is disappointed but not exactly surprised to see the rest of the room vacant. The clothes he had left discarded on the floor folded on the desk and placed besides them a mug of cooling coffee the only other signs of Shepard's apparent check-in.
Grudgingly getting up and making his way to the bathroom, he notices Shepard's boots still tucked neatly away under her desk. Clear indicator that she was still onboard even if she didn't bother to wake him from his deep sleep.
Hitting the bathroom and getting dressed he looks at the time and is surprised to see it is still only 0800. He chuckles to himself; apparently sleeping in a bed that had the smell of Shepard was a good way to kick the residuals of both a migraine and the meds from his system. If only the same would work for Shepard herself.
Lacing his boots and holding the cup of coffee in his mouth Kaidan attempts a balancing act in the elevator as he checks out the Crew Deck. With the ship still in dry dock there was little reason for Shepard to be on the bridge unless she was in CIC talking to one of the Admirals.
More likely she was either getting herself some breakfast or she was seeing to those who had returned in the night. He knew Samara had been there and he doubted Javik would have spent any more time with the "primitives" then he had to. The Alliance crew members knew well enough to take advantage of their impromptu shore leave and Shepard had even arranged for a few rooms in the wards set aside for them to crash.
Kaidan turned the corner around the elevator and was greeted with a silent mess hall. Surprisingly not even the smell of coffee lingered here, let alone dirty dishes or other tell-tale signs of recent use. Well that narrowed down his options (not that he hadn't had a gut feeling he wanted to ignore where Shepard was in her sleepless hours.)
Heading to the Observation Deck he was almost expecting the door lock to be engaged but what he was not expecting to see was the two inhabitants apparently trying to murder each other before breakfast. The door wishes open and before Kaidan has a chance to react several of the books from nearby shelves hit the wall besides him with considerable force.
Acting on years of biotic instinct he has his barrier up as he sees the Justicar throw one of the long couches toward Shepard as if it weighed the same as the books at Kaidan's feet. Almost as surprising was Shepard darting out of the way, ducking under the tumbling table and managing to sweep out the booted feet of Samara.
Samara went down but her own biotic aura protected her as she rolled and regained her feet. Trying to regain her stance to launch another throw she is met with a high kick ending just millimeters from her throat and Shepard balancing there without actually striking the Asari. With a small smile she tilts her head back exposing her windpipe, Kaidan thought that would probably be the closest she would come to saying she yielded.
"Good. I am glad to see you are not entirely out of practice from your time incarcerated." Samara g
"Well MY code didn't allow for me to break out after one day."
Shepard puts her leg behind her with a grin. Both women were breathing heavy but the room looked like a dust devil had made its way across it several times over. Kaidan bends down to pick up the books at his feet. Surprisingly they seemed to be mostly intact as did the furniture.
"So you two mind telling me why you couldn't do this in the cargo bay? Or you know the embassy? " Kaidan enters the room with an armful of projectile books.
"Oh hey." Shepard grins. "Didn't think you would be up so soon. How you feeling?" She absently wipes the sweat off her forehead with the sleeve of her sweatshirt.
"Better than the couch does." He chuckles and bends down to slide it back into place. He puts the books down on the table in the corner and wraps an arm around Shep's waist.
"Major the Commander and I have spent many hours sparring in this room. Granted at the time it did have much less furnishing."
"In the Alliance we call it a "terrain advantage" and it worked in your favor Samara. I honestly just wanted to see how many you could juggle at a time." Shepard gave a mischievous giggle.
"Well if you two are quite done why don't you actually catch up like normal people and let me make you breakfast. On one condition." He points to Shepard with a knowing grin but Samara answers for the both.
"And that would be?"
"No oatmeal." He points an accusing finger at Shep.
"I have experienced this oatmeal while in human space. It was not pleasant." Samara admitted.
Laughing the three head to the mess.
Sorry for the long delays between chapters but things will be moving along storywise soon I promise :)
I am still trying to fill in dialogue for Samara since she is going to have a larger role in this story. Let me know if you did her "justice" XD
-Raven