Shepard stalked his way towards the elevator, his pace surprisingly quick for a man with a cane. Admittedly he winced with each step, his teeth grinding against one another. He hadn't realised how much the man had gotten under his skin. He had overreacted, been unprofessional. With the "Council", he had been making a point. With Jin, he wasn't sure what he had been aiming to do. He didn't break stride as he spoke to the air beside him.
"Kasumi. I am fine. You don't need to keep following me."
The Japanese thief shimmered into visibility next to him, keeping pace. Her frown, coupled with an arched eyebrow said she disagreed, "You look like to you want to smash someone into the deck plating. Haven't seen you like this since the Migrant Fleet…"
He stopped so abruptly she had to spin to face him. The Admiral exhaled slowly through his nose and nodded slowly, "I think you should go spend the afternoon with your husband. I need… some time to think. Please.
She gave him a searching look, then nodded slowly, "Alright Shep. But we'll be back this evening. You don't get rid of us that easily. Can't believe you tried a coma to shake us off."
She winked at him, did a little flourish and was gone. Chuckling ruefully, Shepard entered the elevator and descended the tower. He leaned back against the wall and took a few breaths to clear his head; the thoughts kept boiling away, as he analysed the reality of the situation:
A Quarian with an even bigger terror of dirt that normal? An engineer and farmer - well, farm ship engineer - at that! A hoarder? A contradiction? An authoritarian? A perfectionist with severe territoriality issues?
And it came back to the same question: why?
What made a man like that appealing to her? Someone who took joy in simple things, who was fascinated by intricacy? Who questioned and chased and revelled in all things new? What was it about a slow moving stoic conservative that made her go "Let's get married"? It had sounded political, but Jin had seemed protective. Of what? The ceremony or Tali?
Well, she was going to be here in three days - always best to go to the source in these things.
The doors slid open and he walked out, teeth still grinding as he walked purposefully to the skycars. First things first.
Time to get stupidly drunk.
L - What do you mean you left him alone?
KV - Exactly that. He's a big boy Liara.
L - In a bad place, Mrs Vakarian.
G - Still liking the sound of that.
L - Focus
G - I know Liara. But he isn't made of glass. He won't do anything stupid
Kaidan Alenko has joined the conversation
K - So, where is he?
L - We do not know. Kasumi decided to let him wander off.
K - You haven't got a tracker on him?
L - I wouldn't do that.
K - You've got one on me.
G - Busted Liara.
KV - HA!
L - Not the point.
James Vega has joined the conversation
J - Guys, someone might want to head to Midnight
L - Vega, what's up? Why the club? Impromptu dance off?
YOU ARE READING
Mass Effect - Fragments
FanfictionThe galaxy is recovering in the wake of the Reaper war - nearly a year has passed and Commander Shepard awakens to a universe changed and teetering on the brink of uncertainty. Old friends have drifted and alliances are being redrawn. Can he find ho...
