Fem Mass Effect Harem x Shy Male Reader

Ashley Flashback 1: Different Views

(Y/N)'s POV

We had just about finished up on a mission on Feros and it was technically my first assignment on the field. Commander Shepard and Chief Williams seem impressed with my performance there but...I sometimes cannot help that it feels wrong. It's just...I do not know how Garrus was even able to convince the commander to have me join when he knew my only experience is stopping thugs...fighting the Geth and whatever those creatures were...what were they called again? Oh yeah, Thorians! They were never like anything I faced while working with C-Sec and it does get pretty scary since it's a new threat I am unfamiliar with but honestly? I'm willing to fight to protect my family and everyone else.

I head over to my locker in the cargo hold and set all my equipment inside it as well as my armor. I close my locker and watch as the others that are the main crew for the commander's team do the same for their equipment, except the ones that aren't human kept their armors on. Not that mind it at all but it is something that you can't help but think about what they would be wearing besides armor. Turian, I've seen in a formal attire and Salarians...well, they do technically wear somewhat similar clothing as we do. But when it comes to other races like the Krogan, you just wonder...

As I was thinking about something this random, I get a tap on my right shoulder. I take a look and see that Chief Williams is standing to my right. "Hey there, rookie." She says. "O-Oh. H-Hello, Chief Williams." I say, giving her my full attention. She rolled her eyes and give a slight chuckle. "Come on, you don't need to be formal with me. We are a team and we should probably use our first names. Although, I do appreciate you being respectful." She says with a smile. I rub the back of my neck and look away from her. "S-Sorry...I-I'll do my best to get out of that habit around you." I softly say. She chuckles and gave a gentle shove. "Quit being so damn cute about it." She says, causing me to blush. "Now, I wanted to ask you if you wanted to hang out at the mess hall to get to know each other. I do want to know the crew, you being one of the few I had in mind first." I blinked and look back at her, my face still flustered. "W-Well I um...I'm not doing anything so...s-sure." I say, rubbing my arm. She sees my behavior and chuckles again. "Don't go shy on me. It's not like it's a date...not like the military will even allow that between crew members anyway." She says before walking over to the elevator. Just her saying it like kind of does imply it but oh well... She gets in and looks at me, who stills stands at the same spot. "Are you coming?" She asks. I snap out of my thoughts and quickly get in the elevator with her. Once I get in, she presses the button to get up a floor.

We get to the mess hall and notice that there aren't anyone around so it's just me and Ashley. "Hm...that's odd...wonder where everyone is." She says, taking a seat at a table. I shrug my shoulders and I take a seat across from her. "M-Maybe they're in another part of the ship?" I ask. Ashley shrugs and look around. "Who knows? But at least there won't be any distractions." She said before looking back at me with a small smile. "So, (Y/N), tell me about yourself. What's your family like?" She asks. I blinked my eyes since it wasn't a question I would expect as a conversation starter...at least it wasn't me starting it. "My family..." I rub my neck as I look down at the table to try to get my words together. "My family is nice. Both my parents work with each other on Earth while my older sister is still on the Citadel working as a mechanic. My uncle is actually part of Alliance Military but he's in another fleet." I say. Ashley gives a soft smile and lean forward a bit. "That's interesting. So its seems you have a military family as well." She tells me. I blinked my eyes and tilt my head. "R-Really? T-That's nice." She nods. "Yeah. It's pretty much a Williams family tradition...my father was in the Alliance Military, as well as my grandfather and my great-grandmother." She tells me, smiling. "W-Wow...t-that's a long line of Alliance soldiers in your family." I say. She chuckles softly. "Yeah...I hope one day when I have kids, they would want to keep the tradition going." She says.

I nod and rub my neck. "So, Ashley...how did you meet the commander?" I ask, curious to know how she ended up here. Ashley sighs softly. "We met on Eden Prime when the Geth showed up. Me and my team were trying to get to the beacon but the Geth got to us and took out my entire team...I'm grateful to be alive but...I can't help but feel like it's my fault they all died." She says, frowning a bit and look down at the table. I frown a bit as well and I get up from the chair to walking around the table to her then gently pat her shoulder. "I-I'm sorry that happened...no matter what you think, none of it was your fault and there was nothing you could've done that would change the outcome. W-What you could do now is honor their deaths." I say softly. She didn't look up at me as she still looks down at the table. Thinking it was because I touched her, I pull my hand away and look away. "S-Sorry...i-if y-you'd like me to leave you alone..." Before I could finish, Ashley quickly got up and shake her head at me. "N-No. It's fine. I really appreciate it...just something that I need to think over. But please...we should continue our conversation and try to keep away the bad thoughts." She says. I look at her and nod. "A-Agree." I then take a seat but this time, the next Ashley's seat as she sits back down.

"So..." Ashley started before clearing her throat. "I don't need to ask the same thing because I was there when you were recruited." She says, chuckling softly. I nod and let out a quiet chuckle. "Y-Yeah...but um...is there something about you that seems interesting?" I ask. She looks up for a second, thinking of a fact about her. "Well...if you don't me telling you this but...I really believe in a higher power." She says. "And truth be told, my time being in space made it stronger." To be honest, it is quite surprising to hear because you don't hear many people talk about religion, especially with all the technology and science around. "Huh...that's quite interesting, Ashley." I say. She looks at me a little oddly. "Sounds like it to me that you don't." She says, sounding serious. I gulp a bit and shake my head slowly. "I-I...I really don't..." I say as I nervously look at her as her face gets a bit angry-looking. "How can you look out at this galaxy and not believe in something?" She asks me. I blinked my eyes and rub my neck, looking away. "Uh...I-I don't want to start anything...I-I r-respect your beliefs b-but I-I d-do have the right to choose whether to believe in anything or not..." I say softly. Ashley scoffs and rolls her eyes. "Next thing you'll say is that aliens should be allowed to roam freely on a human ship." Now that...I did not expect that from her. Of course, I was not okay with that especially since I am friends with someone that is not a human. "A-Ashley...t-that's not nice to say. I r-really do think the commander made a good choice having others not human be around and serve a human vessel. If y-you don't aliens...t-that's your opinion but I think you should be more trustful..." I tell Ashley before I get up from my seat. "I'm gonna go." I then leave Ashley alone in the mess hall to wherever to get away from any further conflict.