#N7 would be a bit after she comes back

[astorythatwritesitself]

Mmmm... yeah, yeah no, Akuze fucked Adrian up a lot more than initially worked in the AMAs.

[fandomnerd9602]

Unexpected

Wanda Maximoff x Male Reader

Wanda was hyperventilating. Positive. They all read positive. Not one but three positive tests. Wanda didn’t know if she was on cloud nine or scared beyond all possibilities.

You were her neighbor and secret boyfriend. The boys had weekends with their father and Wanda’s ex husband. Luckily the boys were with him today.

Wanda fell for you after the kindness that you showed her and the boys as they were settling in. You loved the boys like they were your own. You played with them whatever they wanted to. You taught them everything that her ex wouldn't. You were more of a loving father for the first year than their birth father. Would that love change now that she was pregnant with your baby?

She had to tell you. It was your baby after all. Wanda's nerves were on edge. What if you didn't want to be a parent? What if you would abandon her? What if you were...all of these negative thoughts filled her mind as she walked out of her house and across the street of her humble little cul-de-sac to your humble abode.

She knocked on your door and gently pushed a couple stray hairs back into place. The familiar bark of a small terrier dog filled the air.

You opened the door and smiled, "hello neighbor"

"HI" she smiled at you, "we need to talk."

You lead her into your living room and began your little ritual you had every time she came over. You went to the kitchen and after a few minutes, you came back with favorite tea. Wanda kept the pregnancy test in her purse, her fingers lightly tapping the faint outline of it thru the fabric lining.

You came back in with a smile and two mugs of tea. "So..." you inquired with a smile, "the boys over at Vis'?"

"Yes" she answered matter of factly

"I-I know we're still learning about us and all" you tried to say, "And I love being with you and the boys. I know it hasn't been long but-"

"I need to tell you something," Wanda stated, she bit her lip. She didn't exactly mean for it to come across so demanding.

"Is everything alright, Wanda?" you set down your mug and gently take her hand.

"Please don't be mad at me" she whispered.

"Why would I-?" you tried to ask only for her to reach into her purse and pull out the positive pregnancy test.

"It's yours" she whispered, trying to hide her face. Maybe it was a bit of shame or maybe embarrassment. "I-I want to keep the baby"

You looked to her in shock. You could feel your eyes blurring from the tears.

"I just hope that you could still love me. and the boys...and our baby" Wanda looked to you, tears forming in her eyes.

"I love you. So much." you whispered before wrapping her in a hug and pulling her in as tight as you could. You could feel an overwhelming sense of joy building in you. "Oh Wanda! A baby?! I'm gonna be a Daddy?!"

Wanda couldn't help but laugh. This was better than any reaction she had thought of. "Yes." she nods passionately before hugging you tight again.

"I wanna be there for you. and our baby. and the boys of course. I know it wasn't planned or anything but I'm just so happy and..." you rambled on. Wanda was so relieved and finding another reason to love you even more.

She silenced you with a kiss. You gently kissed her back before leaning down and kissing her belly.

"Hey baby" you whispered to her still flat belly, "it's Daddy. And I'm already so in love with you"

Wanda gently ran her fingers through your hair. You were just perfect for her. The perfect lover. The perfect father for her third baby. The perfect Dad to her twin boys.

It was all unexpected. But sometimes the best things in life are.

Tags @lifespectator @aloneodi @holiday-house-of-m @family-house-of-m @iamnicodemus @russianredassassin @revanshand @supercorpdanbeau @scarletquake-n7

[felassan]

if you missed the live N7 Day 2023 cast reunion panel, the rewatch link is here.

here are some notes on trivia and other bits of particular interest from the panel, under a cut due to length –

An audition D.C. Douglas did for Legion can be listened to here. he said it's quite different to what you may expect. He also mentioned an audition for Legion where he was given a eulogy to read and the voice direction from BioWare was that they were looking for something like HAL 9000 but with a little more emotion.

D.C. said on Legion's death scene[s], "it's the innocent emotion coming through" "but with the intellectual understanding of the macro".

Alix Wilton Regan originally auditioned for EDI, didn't get it and then was called back for Sam. BioWare were like "[Sam]'s really London"; AWR was like "I'm from London, I got this, I can do London". months later she was recording for Sam, saw lines for EDI coming up and wondered "who was the woman that got the role of EDI?" when she heard EDI's voice, she was like "omg, she's so hot, yeah I totally get it, I had a real life crush on her in the booth playing Sam, who had a crush on her in the game. I was like 'ohh.. now I get it, I hear it, I see what went on in casting'".

some of the earliest stuff Mark Meer did in ME was a lot of demo stuff, like figuring out how various alien species would sound. BioWare brought him in very early on, during the concept art stages. this is what he was working on for BioWare and then they 'basically upgraded him'. He did a presentation for BioWare demoing how a typical salarian could sound, how a typical krogan would sound, etc, and during this presentation BW had him do some scratch dialogue as a salarian bartender. there was a scene where the bartender was talking to Shepard, who Mark was also voicing during the scene, so he was basically talking to himself. during this process BioWare said that they would like him to audition for the role of m Shepard. "After call backs etc, the rest is history". when BW told Mark, oh btw, f Shepard is played by Jennifer Hale, Mark was super thrilled. "It was like being told the other person in the dual role was Meryl Streep or something".

when Ali Hillis got the role of Liara, at that time she was with her first voiceover agent. Liara's voice in the games is pretty similar to the voice Ali first came up with for her for the audition. they also gave Liara a bit of a mid-Atlantic accent in the first game.

Ash Sroka auditioned for the roles of Liara, Tali and one other character. for the Tali read, she was given a long monologue about Tali's Pilgrimage. she left the booth thinking that if she didn't get the part it was okay, because she'd gotten to read this beautiful monologue and really feel that character. she felt an instant alignment with Tali.

for Grunt's audition, Steve Blum pitched his voice as deep as he could. BioWare said to him that they were going to be pitching Grunt's voice down in post-processing, so he didn't have to do that, but he couldn't help himself and did it anyway. he said that Grunt is a "half-ton child" and self-described as a half-ton child, so things worked out really well. he also mentioned that "it helped me personally, because I'm emotionally under-developed and Grunt is a baby so it was some nice free paid therapy for me, and the fact that people actually responded to it was a bonus, it's kind of amazing".

William Salyers didn't realize he was being brought in to take over the role of Mordin in ME3. he'd been sent audio references and knew that this was a species found throughout the game, and thought that the character he'd be doing was going to be like an assistant or something. the first day in the booth, BW asked him "do you think you can do the match [match the ME2 voice]?" and he was like "I don't know what you're talking about but yes". William was in ME2 as 'Incidental voices' and felt rly fortunate to 'graduate' to Mordin in ME3. when recording Mordin's death-redemption scene in ME3, he & the voice director were both in tears.

for the voice direction in ME1, BW wanted it to feel like an episode of 24 - they didn't want dialogue lines being like screamed or yelled out like they were in a lot of games from around that time. it was supposed to be much more realistic and human in feel.

when developing Kaidan's voice, BW asked Raphael Sbarge to speak to a stickie note on the wall, because they wanted it to feel like there's a sort of sense of the military, that cadence that comes from really speaking to someone else in a directed way.

Shepard and ME have a very special place in Jennifer Hale's heart

a submitted question from the community asked Mark and Jennifer how their perception of Shepard evolved throughout the trilogy. Mark said that the way it was explained to him by BW was that, as they went, they had a little more leeway in Shepard in showing the toll the war was taking on them. "We also got to watch Shepard develop these relationships with the characters in the games. These were their closest friends, their true companions through all of this." this made it possible to sort of humanize Shepard more and more as the series progressed. Shep starts out very by the books regardless of paragon/renegade etc, they're very military, an officer, they're used to giving orders and used to being under pressure. and especially by the time they got to ME3, it was now like, "now you can show a little bit more vulnerability, now you can show a crack in the shell a little bit, especially after the events of ME2 where Shepard literally dies and was resurrected, what does that do to a person?" Mark mentioned that he thinks this is common to all versions of Shepard. by the time you get to ME3 there's a real sense of getting "past the armor, emotionally and spiritually". Jennifer agreed and added that the way voice acting was done in video games also developed over the years from ME1-ME3. by ME3 it was more done in the way like how you would shoot a film, that kind of acting.

Jennifer mentioned that both she and Shep are really freakin stubborn

on Next Mass Effect:

a submitted comment from the community said "Hopefully we get to see or hear you again taking part in the continuation of the Mass Effect story in any way." Jennifer replied "yes, I vote yes to all that".

Ali talked about the moment she discovered Liara was going to be in the next ME. "I have a couple of friends who are close friends and really big ME fans. Usually they're the first ones to alert me of anything ME before I ever see it in the trades, online, on socials etc". she clicked on the link to the trailer she was sent "and I was like.. wait.. what? I think I was just looking at the link and then had to play it again, and then probably like a lot of you I tried to zoom in on it and look at it, like is that...?"

here D.C. said "Um, asking as the voice of an entire species [the geth], do you, you didn't know anything?" Ali said "No, I had no idea, do we ever? I think as we all know, seeing something like that is no guarantee of anything. I was like, is that Liara? Liara's daughter? Liara's mother? is that back in time, is that forward in time? I know as much as anyone, but it was really shocking. like when you were a kid on your birthday and there's a big wrapped present from your parents and you don't know what it is. I know as much as you guys, your guess is as good as mine."

Mark: "As far as what I'm looking forward to, there are endless possibilities. Again as Ali said we, we know about as much as you know, so it could go anywhere. past, future, who can say? Are we gonna see, is this gonna be the First Contact War? is this gonna be far in the far future? where could we go? The Codex is very big as those who have spent ingame time reading it know and that's a very well thought out and fleshed out universe, so the possibilities are endless".

Jennifer: "Just to add to that, what I always tell everybody in the community is email [BioWare] and tell them what you want. they don't know if you don't tell them. telling us doesn't, we appreciate it so much but it actually won't get anything done."

Raphael: "If you feel strongly, we would encourage you to speak up [on that]".

a submitted question from the community asked the cast what they're most excited to see in the next game. AWR: "We're most excited to to see us in the next game, right [winking theatrically]". the cast were all like 'yeah' and nodding and AWR said "emails, emails, emails".

D.C: "The poster, the teaser poster that they put out for Mass Effect 5 shows what looks to be a crater and the outline of Legion and it looks like there's a little dead geth in that poster, so all I know is, and I am the voice of all geth, so."

[source]

[silverselfshippingchaos]

Pairing: Ash (self-insert)/Commander John Shepard

Word Count: About 1.2k

Warnings: A bit of swearing, lots of making out. Slightly steamy if you squint, but it's mostly fluff. Also Shepard needs a vacation.

Synopsis: Set in the midst of Mass Effect 3, Ash can't help but notice that Shepard hasn't been doing well. After all, he could he? With the Reaper War upon the galaxy, it was up to him to save all organic life. Still, Ash worries for him. Building model ships has always been a hobby of his, and Ash thinks that perhaps building one together could help his tired mind relax.

Knock.

Knock knock.

Knock knock knock.

Ash sighs, staring at the metal door in front of her blankly. She looks down at the cardboard box in her hand, a toy model ship waiting to be built and assembled.

He must be sleeping... She thinks to herself. Usually, as soon as she knocks on the door of Shepard's cabin, he's rushing to open the door, to pull her into his strong embrace, tilt her chin up and kiss her.

Shepard doesn't seem to register the knocking at all. He's just staring blankly at the wall, lost in thought. It had become a regular endeavor for him these past few weeks. Fuck, there was always too much happening. Every single second he spent here wasting time, another planet was being attacked. The constant feeling of unease had him growing thin, as was being pulled in what felt like every single direction of the galaxy.

"EDI, you mind opening Shepard's door for me?"

Ash asks, looking up at the ceiling. The Normandy's AI companion could hear her regardless of where she was looking, but it was a habit Ash couldn't seem to drop. The response comes almost immediately, as it often did when EDI was involved.

"Past data indicates that Shepard's dopamine levels increase when he hears your voice, so yes. Yes I can."

As the door opens with a woosh, Shepard seems to be snapped out of whatever trance he was in. He's still sitting on the edge of his bed in a pair of sweats and his favorite N7 hoodie, but he looks over at Ash.

"Hey, Ash. You need something?"

He's happy to see Ash, and his tone is plenty chipper, but Ash can tell just how exhausted he really is. Perhaps it was her magical girlfriend senses, or maybe it was that it was plain to see that Shepard was exhausted. Still, she smiles, just happy to see him. Not even an intergalactic war could stop the way he made her heart flutter.

"Nope. Didn't realize I needed an excuse to see my boyfriend now."

Ash's tone is sarcastic and light-hearted (as it often is), but John just shakes his head and sighs, rubbing at his temple with his hand,

"I'm sorry. There's so much to think about. The deal with the Salarian Dalatrass-"

"Can wait. It can wait."

Ash approaches the bed and pulls his head into her chest, giving her the best hug she can muster with one hand still holding the cardboard box (hidden very stealthily behind her back).Ash's voice is a whisper as she kisses the top of his head, the familiar prick of his buzzed hair on her lips.

"When's the last time you slept, John? Joker told me your stress levels haven't been this high since the Blitz. I'm worried, baby."

"... I'm not tired. At all. I'll be okay."

Ash sighs, letting go of him and rolling her eyes. Shepard raises an eyebrow,

"Hey, what are you hiding behind your back?"

Ash shows it to him. To be completely honest, model ships were much more his department than Ash's, but she still did her research, and this particular model took her nearly a month of hunting down.

Shepard's blue eyes go wide,

"This model is a hard one to find. You got this for me?"

"Yeah." Ash smiles, "I thought maybe it would help get your mind off things."

"Ash, I... Thank you. Thank you so much."

Shepard looks up at her, and his eyes are so earnest and sweet. When's the last time he took a break, did something for himself? Ash puts a hand on his cheek, feeling the small poke of his stubble against her palm. She leans in for a soft kiss, pressing her lips against his, and it's a gesture that Shepard is more than happy to reciprocate.

"Where would I be without you, honey?"

It's more of a rhetorical question anyway, but Ash kisses him again, this time on his forehead,

"Dunno. And we won't find out either, since I'm with you until the end."

"In that case..."

Shepard takes the box from her, looking at it front and back,

"Wanna build this with me?"

"Fuck yeah, let's do it."

~~~~~~

It takes nearly an hour of long work, gluing and linking together wooden and plastic pieces to make what seemingly resembled a small figurine of a warship, but seeing John's smile made all the hard work more than worth it to Ash. Shepard yawns, settling the ship down.

Ash grins,

"Finally tired now?"

"Yeah. Think I'll take a nap, then shower."

Ash runs a hand down his arm,

"Hm... Mind if I join?"

She doesn't miss the smirk on Shepard's face, and she fucking loves it.

"The nap or the shower?"

"Heh, both. Looking forward to the shower, though."

Ash can feel the smile on his lips as he pulls her into his lap where he sat on the ground, wrapping his arms and kissing her deeply. His breath is soft on her lips as he pulls away just enough to speak.

"'Course you are."

It takes much more kissing, but Shepard eventually, Shepard picks her up with ease and lays her down in bed. He took his N7 hoodie off while they were building, so he takes his shirt of before laying next to her. Admittedly, Ash is soaking in the sight of his bare chest, her eyes drifting down to his muscles... There were scars, both from the Blitz and his miraculous coming back from the dead, but to Ash, there was nothing more attractive.

Shepard wraps his arms around her, and Ash giggles. His arms always felt so perfect. Ash was so soft, and she smelled so sweet too. She was Shepard's happy place. Ash laughs as he buries his face in her neck, soaking in the scent of her cologne barely clinging to her skin after a long day, and starts peppering her with kisses there.

"Shep! Your beard! It tickles!"

But he doesn't stop. He has a massive grin on his face. He loves hearing her laugh so much.

Still, it doesn't take long before Shepard is ready to drift off to sleep, the exhaustion of a day of meeting with aliens and humans alike kicking in.

Shepard squeezes Ash, holds her tight in a big ol' hug. Honestly, his grip is a little too strong, but Ash doesn't mind. He was showing her affection, and she was glad he didn't have to hide parts of himself around her. Whenever they sat around and built figurines together, it was so easy to pretend that they were just the run-of-the-mill couple, and not a supersoldier back from the dead and a decorated Alliance soldier.

"I love you, Ash."

He loosens his grip and lets her snuggle into his chest like how she always loves to.

"I love you too, honey. Let's get some sleep. I'm sure Garrus will wake us up if anything happens."

"I could stay with you forever."

Ash smiles,

"When it's all over, you will."

Shepard, already half-asleep by his point, grabs gentle hold of Ash's left hand and runs his thumb over her ring finger, right where a wedding ring would rest.

"Yeah, I will."

The next thing Ash knows, Shepard is out like a light, his breathing being enough to lull her to bed too.

[berryshiara]

N7 Month 2024 Day 1 Poetry (Little Fen)

Poetry… Adonia smiled as her girls laughter filled the air. Zena swung Foínix around throwing her up into the sky, pushing her little by little up and up with her biotics, catching her again when she came down. The two of them giggled again as Fen returned safely to her fathers arms.

“Again!” It was not the poetry of an epic ballad, but it was something beautiful still. Something about home, and warmth, and love. She sat there digging toes into the sand enjoying their play as she let herself unwind.

“Again!” “Maybe mama would like to play?” Zena asked as she rolled Foínix up under her arm, toting her like a skyball, caught at the hip. Their daughter laughed again, gangly arms reaching for her. “Mama!” It was really lovely to be home again. To watch her family let go of the fear and strain of the days cast in Omega’s shaddows. Even Zena seemed to be lighter today than she had in days past. Her strong body exposed to Maris-Tia’s morning sun. “My love, come play with us before we are driven inside from the day’s heat! It is too beautiful a morning to spend it all in reflection! Are we not on vacation?!” Another squeal was let loose as Fen went back up into the air. Punted from the hip this time, in a great arc. Instinctively she curled her limbs in and then on decent let them fly once more. Not for once fearing that her father would miss the catch. It made her heart flutter faster on Foínix’s return to Zena’s arms. “Maybe not so high?” She asked. The chuckle was soft, and warm, and the look that passed between them intimate. “Maybe you could come show me how high?” Again Fen found herself dangling from Zena’s hip.

Adonia loved the way her stong partner offered a hand, and beckoned her to come play. It was irresistible, and the time they had left in Fen’s youth was quickly fleeting. She allowed herself to be drawn into their game. After all, what was vacation with out a bit of fun?!

@n7month

[ramblinganthropologist]

Fictober 2024 3 "I know you better"

Summary: So... how the fuck did Alistair Shepard get himself into this one? Oh, right... he has a thing about people calling him short. Maybe he should work on that later, after he manages to survive 183 pull ups.

---

Every part of his body was fucking throbbing, but his dead mother hadn’t birthed a quitter and his shitty father hadn’t neglected to raise one either.

Sweat poured down Alistair’s face as he pulled himself up and over the bar. It had stuck his t-shirt to his back, and had he been able to look down he would’ve been amazed to see that there wasn’t a puddle below him. But none of that mattered in the moment as he lowered himself just enough to prepare to pull up again.

165.

“Loco, you’re looking a little red in the face.” James wasn’t too far off, watching as he continued to pull himself up. “He’s not going to pass out, is he?”

Alistair would’ve said something about that, but talking was hard in the moment as he conserved all his energy towards his pull ups. He knew better, though – it came from being a medic. He might have been red faced, but part of that came from being a fair skinned redhead – no matter what he did, whatever training and hell he put himself through, he turned red in the face. It wasn’t great for a marine, but he had long accepted he was the furthest thing from a shining example of the Alliance’s best.

Well, technically he kind of was because of the whole N7 thing… but that didn’t matter in the moment. He had pull ups to handle.

“It’s the curse of being a ginger.” Bo was as flat toned as always as she turned to him. “Come on, Al, you’ve only got 18 left. Get your ass above the bar already, it’s been almost 15 minutes.”

No doubt his sister would’ve been able to pull this off easily – she was made of muscle and wrestled krogan for fun. James wasn’t far behind either – he no doubt pulled off 182 in a much better state. But he wasn’t either of them, and it showed in his screaming muscles as he pulled up once again.

Honestly, he was still kicking himself for how he had wound up in this position. It was supposed to be a normal shore leave. Then again… was anything normal with him?

All in all, Anderson’s apartment was probably the nicest place he had ever stayed in.

Alistair’s body still ached from his battle with his clone as he finished dressing. The bruises on his neck from where John – it was weird calling him that, but it was easier than just continually referring to the man as a clone – had tried to strangle him. With his luck, they would be replaced by new ones within a month. War was fun that way – he was constantly being surprised by the ways he could die on a daily basis.

Getting choked out by his clone was a new one, though. He definitely hadn’t seen that one coming when he had gone back on the Normandy after Vancouver.

“Think you can go a round with me, Monster?”

“Last I checked Al needs you in one piece, Vega.”

Two deep voices sounded from the floor below, and the sound of it made him want to groan. He picked up the pace as he descended the stairs, making his way to one of the rooms. Unsurprisingly, he wasn’t alone there.

James was standing by the punching bag – from the fact it was still swinging, he had definitely used it a bit. Nearby was Bo, arms crossed over her chest and looking less than impressed with the most recent human member of the Normandy crew.

And somehow, he was going to wind up in the middle of it. Such was the fate of being a commanding officer…

“I would advise against sparring in here, guys. I really don’t want to talk to the cops right now.”

Normally, he would’ve told them to handle it in the Normandy cargo bay, but the ship was currently being serviced after John’s joyride over the Citadel. With any luck it would be back in service soon, patched up and ready for another round against the Reapers. Until then, they were on shore leave. And now that his clone was dead, he was finally going to relax a little.

Bo and James turned to face him, both blank faced. Well, not totally – his sister was definitely glad to see him in one piece, minus the bruises. The room’s other male occupant was still a little uncomfortable. It was only natural – someone with his face had tried to kill him and take control of the ship.

But damn if it didn’t hurt almost as much as the bruises.

“Damn, your neck’s all purple, Loco. That’s gotta hurt like hell.”

Alistair shrugged – it was a mistake as dull pain shot through his shoulder and towards his amp. “I bruise easily, it’s not as bad as it looks.”

That was a lie, of course. It hurt like hell, but he had survived worse in the last few months alone. He might not have been the ideal marine, but he could at least take a few bruises without complaining too much in front of his subordinates.

When they were gone, though? Garrus was getting an earful. At least his carapace was somewhat soothing thanks to the fact it was cool to the touch when not in the heat of battle. Who knew turians could double as ice packs if they were in a cool enough room?

“It’s better than what happened to the other guy.” Bo was clearly going with the story that John had died falling from the Normandy, rather than the truth of his… possible? Passing in the hospital days later. Honestly, Alistair wouldn’t have been surprised if the man wasn’t actually dead. After all, he was also technically Alistair Shepard – and he had it on authority that he was a pain in the ass to kill.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t want to drop from the Normandy. Didn’t look like a fun way to die.” James’ eyes suddenly focused on a part of the room, and a grin split his features. “Hey, Monster, check it out. The bag’s not the only thing we can use.”

He pointed towards the closet door, and it took Alistair a second to realize what he was talking about. Had he not barely survived basic training, he would’ve thought it was just a clothes hanger someone had positioned a little too close to the door. Much to the shock of the drill sergeant, however, he had survived basic training, so he knew better.

Apparently, Anderson liked pull ups.

Bo shot the bar a blank look. “I’m 6’9, Vega, it’s not exactly a challenge for me to get my head above that.”

“Hey, I’m not Loco sized and I get plenty out of it.” Briefly, James shot him a somewhat sympathetic glance. “No offense, Loco, but you’re not exactly a big guy. I don’t even think you could reach the bar without jumping.”

Offense… taken honestly, but he wasn’t going to do anything about it. He had long since accepted he was short and nothing was going to change it, not even second puberty once he finally got on T. Besides, it made him a smaller target and he had an easier time finding armor that fit him.

His sister didn’t look convinced, however. He knew why, of course. When it came to strength training, Bo really wasn’t one for that kind of thing. Her muscles came from lifting weights and beating the shit out of krogan.

Did that count as functional muscle? You think as a medic he would know that, but he wasn’t exactly one for extensive strength training himself.

“If you wanna pull yourself up until you hit your head on the door, be my guest.” Bo moved away. “Not my thing.”

Vega’s smirk widened ever so slightly. “What, you don’t think you can beat my record? I did 182.”

182? Alistair’s arms hurt at the mere sound of it.

“I said I’m good, Vega.” There was an edge to Bo’s voice, one that suggested she wasn’t in the mood. It was weird for her to turn down a challenge, but maybe she was still feeling out of it from the clone fight. Or maybe she was just being stubborn. James was a nice guy, but he had been their prison guard for the six months they had been locked away. Those feelings didn’t exactly go away overnight.

Which… meant if he kept it up he’d probably get punched. Again, Alistair really didn’t want to deal with the cops. It was one of those times he could taste the tension in the room.

And honestly… the knock about his height was eating at him. Maybe it was some of the annoyance carrying over from dealing with his clone – the fucker was a quarter inch taller even if nobody else saw it – but he couldn’t let that one go.

So, he stepped into the room and made his way towards the bar.

James’ smirk changed to a look of confusion. “Shepard, the hell-“

But then he was grabbing the bar and pulling himself up for the first pull up.

“I thought you would’ve known by now not to bring up his height.” Bo sounded amused as she turned to watch him as he readied himself for what was no doubt going to be a mistake. “Well, at least you proved you don’t have to jump up.”

No he didn’t… but 182 was a long way away. Had he any sense in his head, he would’ve dropped to the ground and taken his licks. After all, he wasn’t known for this sort of thing. Fixing people, fixing tech – that was his wheelhouse. Feats of strength, that was more Bo’s are than his.

But… they weren’t fighting. And honestly, he was still mad about the short thing. So he was going to do the only thing a little guy could do and prove the big guy was an idiot in the dumbest way possible.

---

“Come on, Al, that’s 180! You’re almost there!”

His lungs were burning, and his arms felt like rubber, but Alistair grunted as he pulled himself above the bar again. Down on the ground, Bo was cheering him on while James looked rather impressed. He was only steps away from his record – just 3 more.

Saint Sebastian, guide his stupid noodle body over that fucking bar 3 more times.

The sweat was dripping off his face as Alistair pulled up for 181. For a second, he thought he might drop completely. However, he managed to hold on at the last second, even as his palms sweat profusely. After all, to have gotten this far and not break the record was almost a shame.

 And… well, he could only imagine the look on James’ face when he pulled it off. It would almost be worth the muscle aches he’d be feeling later.

With all the strength left in him, he began his attempt at 182. It felt like a lifetime, but he pulled himself up inch by inch until he was over the bar. For a second, he contemplated just tying the record and allowing himself to drop to the ground in a sweaty heap.

However… sometimes, a marine has to do what a marine has to do.

183 came with a final burst of strength as Alistair’s muscles screamed in protest. But after another lifetime, he pulled himself to the top of the bar. Down below, James’ jaw practically hit the ground at the same time he did as Bo let out a hearty “fuck yeah” in response.

He… just lay there on the ground. It hurt to move.

“Holy hell, Loco, you did it!” James came into his field of view, reaching out to pull him back onto his feet – oww. Fucking hell, that hurt. “How are you feeling?”

Like death? Right then, Alistair would’ve traded Saint Sebastian agony for agony. Getting shot with arrows couldn’t have hurt more than being shot with bullets, though he wouldn’t have had his shields… or clothes for that matter. But despite that, a vague sense of accomplishment filled his tired body.

“Like I just got a very good reminder of why I’m a medic and not a shock trooper.” No doubt his face was as red as his hair. It was a miracle he wasn’t drowning in a lake of his own sweat, but he was definitely going to need a shower once he got some time to himself. Drowned rat wasn’t exactly a good look for meeting his boyfriend later, even if Garrus was used to seeing him red in the face during battle.

But… he had pulled it off. Literally.

“I knew you were holding out on me, Loco. There was muscle under that hoodie after all.” James chuckled as he slapped him on the back, practically launching him forward. “Alright, I learned my lesson with this one: don’t mess with either Shepard.”

Yeah… and all it took was watching someone make an idiot out of themselves 183 times in a row. How fortunate.

Alistair shook his head as he left the room behind, followed by the steady beep of his CGM. Unsurprisingly, all his physical activity had taken a toll on his body and was now making it cry out for sugar. He wasn’t feeling light headed or goofy yet, but his tongue and lips had definitely gone numb in the span of falling to the ground and where he stood.

So… probably in the 50’s.

He found himself in the kitchen, reaching for a can of soda in the fridge. After popping the top, he took a long sip, feeling the bubbles as they popped and fizzed. Even lifting the can to his mouth hurt, but it didn’t matter as he sat down at the table with his drink.

Too bad his drill sergeant was probably dead… he might’ve actually admitted that he wasn’t a complete failure of a marine.

“You better not die on me after that, Al.”

Bo’s voice followed her into the kitchen as she sought her bag of dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets. Soon it was in the microwave, spinning around in preparation for the carnage that was to follow. Her tone was light – she was amused.

“Remind me next time that I am not exactly a paragon of working out.” He took another sip – the whole numb lip thing made it difficult, but he managed it without dribbling any liquid down his still reddened cheeks. “How you guys enjoy that is beyond me.”

“Something, something, feel good chemicals.” She shrugged. “You’re the medic, not me.”

Yes, he was. So he should’ve known better. Still, there was no arguing with himself then as he felt the ache in his arms. It had been a dumb ego thing, he could see that clearly. Now he was paying for it.

“I’m surprised you didn’t try to stop me, though.” Alistair put his can down for the moment to give the sugar time to take effect. That usually took a few minutes, so it gave him time to watch Bo as she retrieved her bag of nuggets and joined him at the table.

For a moment, she didn’t say anything. Instead, she just popped a breaded brachiosaur into her mouth whole and spent her time chewing. In the end, she shrugged her shoulders and reached for another nugget from her bag.

“There was no way you’d stop if I told you to.” Briefly, she smirked. “I know you better. You play the nice guy, but I can smell your Napoleon complex from a mile away.”

If not for the fact he was still red faced, Alistair would’ve turned pink. “I don’t have a Napoleon complex!”

“You hate working out. Don’t even try to deny it, I’ve heard you say it plenty of times. Only the spite of a short guy would’ve gotten you to actually exercise for once.” Bo let out a bark of laughter as she tossed back another nugget. “We should get you his dumb hat or something as a reward for pulling it off.”

All Alistair could do was scowl and take another sip of his soda. While he very much did not have a Napoleon complex – which historically wasn’t even true, the guy was like 5’7” – it would be hard to argue with his sister when she was so damn smug. So he just sat there, still sweaty, red as a tomato, and let her take the point.

Bo smirked as she put her nuggets aside for a second. “And hey, you being short makes it more impressive. You gotta go further off the ground than me or Vega. Gravity’s a bitch.”

“I should get a bonus multiplier for that then.” Alistair’s voice came out somewhat dry as he stared down at the can and tried to do the math. His brain was starting to work a little better now that the sugar was kicking in, so he was feeling more like himself. A few more moments, and he would probably be able to feel his lips again.

Just what he needed when he was going to see Garrus in a bit.

His remark caused his sister to snort as she reached over to shove him playfully – which meant he only launched a few inches instead of a full foot. “Take it up with Vega, not me. It’s his dumb record.”

There was a pause, and then, “Also, your form was fucking shit now that I’m thinking about it. Who taught you to do pull ups like that?”

All Alistair could do was groan and find the table with his forehead. “ I wasn’t exactly paying attention in basic, ok? All that matters is that I got above the fucking bar.”

“Yeah, say that when you pull something later. Some medic you are, I thought you nerds knew about the body.”

He did… but that didn’t exactly make him the master of pull ups. But he wasn’t about to admit to anything, because that would only lead to more teasing from his sister. Instead, he just stayed there with his forehead pressed against the table, body aching and CGM no longer beeping for more sugar.

Next time, he was just going to be the bigger man and let the jokes roll off his back. If it meant avoiding physical exertion, he’d take any crack about his height with a smile on his face like a grown man should.

…

Oh, who was he kidding. No he wouldn’t. Maybe Bo was right about that whole Napoleon complex thing.

 Fuck. Maybe he should’ve just let John kill him after all.

[bioticbooty]

Have a little Crosshairs-the-rewrite snippet preview because the next three days are gonna suck so hard at work, so I'm gonna spread a little joy before I do my work thing and get lost in the weeds of negotiations for the rest of the week. Tumbleweeds are about to blow through my blog till Saturday.

Pre-Eden Prime Normandy scene.

-----

Kaidan’s brow is positively dripping with sweat — he hasn’t trained this hard since basic. Poor Jenkins is still flopped on the floor after the end of the session, staring at the ceiling and catching his breath.

Kaidan’s not sure what’s worse — the fact that they have not one, but two N7s in the gym at the same time, or that Shepard doesn’t appear to have even broken a sweat. The XO seems to pull energy from another realm, just sucking it straight through as fuel. She’s relentless. Kaidan had considered himself to be in shape, but it seems to be Shepard’s personal mission to prove none of them were.

Except for her.

And maybe Anderson. The Captain surreptitiously wipes his brow when he thinks no one is looking, but he’s caught by Shepard. She slaps him bracingly across the shoulder and calls him ‘old man.’

Kaidan wipes his own brow. He’s got nothing to prove the way the Captain does. Jenkins is still on the floor, so Kaidan moves to stand above him. “You alright there, kid?”

Jenkins refocuses his eyes on Kaidan. His breath is still coming fast and quick. The kid had tried to keep pace with Shepard for the first half of the session, unaware of the time that had passed and how much longer they still had to go. That bit him in the ass in the second half when they switched to endurance.

“Think I’d rather you toss me across the gym again,” Jenkins says.

Kaidan barks a laugh, then offers the Corporal his hand and pulls him to his feet.

Throwing Jenkins across the room after being goaded by the Corporal — and Shepard — was hilarious. Kaidan thought for sure he’d overdone it, but then Jenkins popped right up off the mat, shouting, ‘that was awesome!’ and looking for a second round. Kaidan had not obliged him.

“You’re young, Jenkins,” Kaidan says as he guides Jenkins towards the water station, arm around his shoulders, “and if I might give you some advice?”

Jenkins nods fervently.

Kaidan leans in close and says, low, “Don’t try to keep pace with Shepard. She’ll knock you on your ass every time.”

Jenkins jerks his head back in surprise, and Kaidan laughs again.

Oh yeah, he’d seen the way the XO’s eyes had flashed deviously when she realized Jenkins was matching her pace for pace. Ramped up her pace slow enough that Jenkins never realized he was caught dead in her crosshairs.

“Did you keep pace?” Jenkins asks.

Kaidan shakes his head before the question is even finished. “I’m not really one for that kind of masochism.”

“Come now, Alenko,” Shepard appears in front of them and hands Jenkins a towel, “Don’t sell yourself short. You could probably give me a run for my money.”

Jenkins accepts the towel in awe.

Even in PT clothes, lounging against the water cooler, Shepard radiates intensity. Like she’s studying the room without even looking at it. Her eyes pierce everyone she looks at, and right now that gaze is laser focused on Kaidan. He feels naked.

He doesn’t want her to see that. “See, you’re just greasing me up so I’ll take the bait.”

Shepard tilts her head to the side in the lazy manner of a predator examining their prey. “Never said you’d win, Lieutenant.”

Despite himself, Kaidan stands straighter. “The bait’s looking a little shinier now, Commander.”

Shepard grins, fills her bottle with water, and saunters away.

After a moment, Jenkins taps his shoulder. “LT, I thought you said you weren’t a masochist?”

“Shepard more than implied she’d mop the floor with me,” Kaidan says by way of explanation.

“She said you’d give her a run for her money.”

“With the inevitable outcome that she’d win.”

“Wouldn’t she?”

Absolutely she would, he thinks. He’d have no chance in hell of coming out on top, despite his biotics. Before Jenkins had entered the gym, Shepard surprised Kaidan by standing in front of him and started the first move in the biotic-and-non-biotic warm up routine. It was the first time he’d not had to teach that one in all his years of service. It was a warm up meant to engender trust and familiarity, so the squad wouldn’t be caught by surprise. Biotic fields rippled outwards, no matter how refined the manipulation of energy. If the squad was caught by surprise by the static electricity and the minor shifts of gravity, it could blow an entire operation.

Shepard had executed every maneuver perfectly, responding to the subtle shifts in the well he created in a way no other marine he’d ever worked with had done. Even those aboard the Adelaide.

“That’s besides the point.”

Kaidan drains the last of his water.

Jenkins studies him for a moment. “I think you might be a little bit of a masochist, LT.”

Kaidan refills his water bottle and heads towards the showers. “Comes with the commission.”

[clericofshadows]

having regis shepard thoughts™ especially ones about some fluffy, hilarious, and early ME3 moments regarding the triad.

this all kind of started because Regis and Kaidan would not be subtle about their relationship before mars, but after mars...? not many people know about Zaeed...and when he's back on board and Kaidan isn't yet, and Regis is also a little affectionate with Zaeed (but not as overt)... idk if this will make it into canon but like, it's a fun little thing I was thinking of :) sometimes you just gotta think about fun little scenarios with your favorite characters even if it may not be part of their canon.

one of the things I'm struggling with is how I handle Mars because like, realistically, Kaidan and Regis would have blasted EVA to oblivion with their biotics (and Wren :)) but at the same time, angst is really good, bridal carries are really good, and very furious, violent, and angry regis is very good so...

something to think about at the very least.

of course, the crew that was around for ME2 know about Regis and Zaeed, and to some degree about the triad (like Joker, EDI, and Chakwas), but still most of the crew are so shocked when Regis brings Zaeed on the ship immediately post-mars (who was on the citadel gathering information and jumped at the chance to be on board after visiting Kaidan) and is holding hands with this old merc like??? who is this guy? we all saw and heard about his reunion with Alenko and his reaction to Alenko getting hurt so what is going on? gossip goes crazy with theories.

all Regis does is introduce Zaeed to the crew and never elaborates. because he's a bit of a troll and also not in the mood to get into the details about their triad with a new crew while kaidan is still injured. for once he lets scuttlebutt take over. zaeed's cool with it because like regis, he's not familiar with the new crew.

Ashley also joins the crew post-mars as she was also on the citadel, newly an N7 and about to coordinate efforts to evacuate the remaining soldiers on Rio. Regis's family OCs (his uncle Adrian who is a pilot and engineer and his uncle Vikram, an asari matriach who is partners with Adrian) also join whilst on the Citadel (yeah, I know real convenient but it's just more fun that way).

Steve finds out pretty quickly and same with Vega and they join in on the bet as Zaeed and Regis aren't subtle about battlefield flirting and post-mission rituals, so it's mostly the general ship crew that is trying to figure out what's going on with their commander and is the normandy always this weird (yes, it is).

she gets bombarded with questions about regis and zaeed. she's in on the bit and shrugs. some of the braver crew ask Vik and Adrian, who also feign ignorance. no one's really willing to ask Wren "totally not the Shadow Broker" Clarkson.

Ash is also betting with EDI, Vik, Wren, Joker, Chakwas, and Adrian about when Regis and Zaeed will say fuck it and make out publicly or something.

finally, after menae and Kaidan is awake, a stray crewmember catches the three of them holding hands with Kaidan and hovering over them and is like, oh shit--and then Zaeed kisses Kaidan's forehead and Regis kisses his hand and it's a whole thing.

finally once Kaidan is back on board post-coup and is wondering why some of the crewmembers are giving him weird looks--is it the whole thing with EDI's body? is it the coup stuff where some people thought that he and Regis weren't in contact and working together?

no one believes that poor crewmember.

it all comes to a head while lounging in the observation area and having drinks together not long after he's back onboard, Regis and Zaeed sitting apart from each other and conversing with the crew. Kaidan sits between them, puts his arms around them both, kisses both of their cheeks, and takes a pull from his beer like nothing's wrong.

and Regis and Zaeed realize that they never let Kaidan in on the bit. they let everyone else in, even Wrex and Mordin, but not Kaidan.

Ashley wins the bet since she figured that they would be idiots and just forget to tell Kaidan about it.

and the crew goes crazy with the revelation. only a few correctly guessed what was going on and hope that shepard never finds out about the scuttlebutt. he knows and doesn't care and found the whole thing hilarious, actually. anything to help lighten up the ship, honestly, even if he's still mostly portraying the ruthless butcher for the majority of ME3.

[sparatus]

Late to the party but whoops, for the dragon asks: Ice and/or Breath!!

well now im even later cause im answering this like a month and a half late oops

dragon asks

putting under a cut for length

Ice: share a snippet where a character is taking a risk.

hmm lots of good options but let's do this bit from broken mirror ch55:

--

“Here.” Viktoriya tossed Shepard the bag, and they caught it automatically, brows popping up in surprise. “The big box is a complete clone of Hislop’s terminal. Everything he knew about or had a hand in. Do not let it connect to the extranet. Cerberus codes all their high-ups’ stuff with bio-keys that run a self-deletion protocol if anything happens to them. As soon as those files get the signal he’s dead, you’re right back to where you started. There’s an OSD in the front pocket with a virus to scrub the keys off it, just put them together in an isolated server and let the virus do its work. Don’t let it touch your stuff.”

Shepard and Nihlus shared a look, and Shepard hastily started patting the bag down to check for anything else. After a moment, they pulled a small data drive out of a mesh pouch on the side, and Viktoriya pursed her lips. “That’s the formula for the antidote to the poison in that knife,” she said, gesturing to the hilt still sticking out of Saren’s knee. “I wanted to steal some of the actual stuff, but that’s a bit harder to swipe than some data.”

Shepard’s eyes nearly bugged out of their head. “It’s poisoned?” they yelped, practically choking on their tongue from the sound of it.

“Ricin mixed with something from Tuchanka,” Viktoriya confirmed. “I don’t know all the details, but it’s slow-acting. They like their subtle, slow methods so they can get away before you realize what they’ve done. Fucking cowards. You have a week, ten days if you’re lucky. I’d send that ahead if I were you.” She looked between them, and there must have been doubt somewhere in the picture, because she scowled. “For fuck’s sake, I’m not going to booby-trap an antidote, no matter what you think of me. Scan it for viruses if you want, I don’t care. It’s a terrible fucking way to die.”

Shepard swallowed and stuffed the drive back into the pouch. “Thank you,” they said, slinging the bag over one shoulder. “Really.”

Viktoriya snorted and rolled her shoulders. “You want to thank me? You’ve only taken out one of three. Eva Coré and Jack Harper are the other two. Find them and put them down like the fucking dogs they’ve stylized themselves as. I’ll take care of the rest.” She jammed her helmet back onto her head and adjusted it until she was comfortable, then shook herself and nodded to Saren’s body in Nihlus’s arms. “Get him home. I don’t know what the beef is with his brother, and frankly, I don’t give a shit, but nobody deserves to die like that.”

Nihlus had, quite honestly, been starting to wonder if anyone was going to remember Saren’s desperate need for medical help, and didn’t need to be told twice to gather the bundle of albino twigs close as he rose to his feet. “Come on, Saren,” he urged, running one hand over his crest. “Come on, we’re going home.”

He chose to take the faint pressure against his palm as a good sign.

Shepard adjusted the bag and made to follow, only to pause and look back at Viktoriya. “What about you?”

To Nihlus’s surprise, she actually gave a frustrated groan. “Oh, for fuck’s sake, would you go already? I can take care of myself. I have to remove all traces of me being here, or I’ll be in a hell of a lot more danger than you are.”

“But-”

“Look, I appreciate how many fucks you give about me, but I don’t need a knight in shining N7 armor, got it? The only hero in my story is me.” She barked a short laugh. “Hell, maybe I’ll make the carnage worse, hammer in why nobody came out to help. Don’t feel bad about making Earl’s cat an orphan, he stole the poor thing from his ex anyway. Being headless is a fucking improvement, you should’ve seen the stupid fucking mullet they made him shave off.” She shook her head, apparently realizing she’d gotten onto a tangent, and flapped her hands at them. “I can handle myself. Now, go!”

--

like. she's literally giving away vital information on her ruthless employers who've already been shown to remove body parts and enforce obedience so aggressively she's basically only a step or two above being classed as a slave, but she wants to be free and see her family again so badly she's willing to trust shepard despite knowing what will happen if she's caught, and we see in the post-script she is caught and we're gonna find out pretty soon in itlog what the consequences are but god that show of desperation and wanting to believe in something is just :justright:

Breath: share a snippet that makes you laugh.

well last time i shared the ol' "saren gets lifted bodily off the ground because nihlus fears neither god nor death" from rabbit so let's revisit this bad boy from itlog ch12 shall we:

--

“Agent Kryik, if this is some elaborate ruse to announce your intent to retire, I'm not amused.”

Shepard suppressed a snort. Nihlus hadn't even particularly wanted to tell the councilor what they were about to do, and had only reluctantly made the call so Sparatus could let Saren know if things went belly-up. They'd put it off to the last possible minute – they were currently loitering in the system maybe half an hour's flight from Purgatory, and were waiting on the ship to confirm permission to dock.

Nihlus at least had the courtesy to fight his mandibles back down his face before his smirk was too obvious on camera. "Ierian, believe me, when I retire, I'll tell you so from the comfort of my own bed, already holding Saren like a stuffed toy. There's no Saren in this picture, so I'm afraid I'm entirely serious."

Sparatus took a moment to stare into his hovering camera. Shepard couldn't decide if the look in his eyes was annoyance or resignation, but either way, there was definitely a healthy dose of I can't wait until you aren't my problem anymore. Then he looked down again, back to rubbing his face with a washcloth. Nihlus had texted them an explanation that it was soaked in an oil that kept his scars from getting too stiff and was applied every night; they had apparently caught him just before bed. 

There was something surreal about it, even moreso than talking to him in his own living room the week or so before. That had at least still had a level of separation to it; everyone was clothed and prepared to talk business, takeout boxes aside. That version of Ierian Sparatus had still felt like Shepard's boss, a dignified old prosecutor grouchy about being disturbed but willing to do his job. On the other hand, there was something... intimate about seeing the old man at such a simple point in time. He wasn't even wearing a shirt, the sprawling cultural tattoos across his arms and torso (xepoa'väch, Nihlus explained in another text, very Tiirti and very closed to outsiders) on full display. His vincorit glittered cheerfully in the light as it clinked around his old-man-bony wrist. He'd set his camera against the mirror so he could have his hands free, and Aediteia occasionally wandered past behind him as she went about her own routine. Peaceful and domestic, quiet and normal. No pressing matters except whether or not he'd taken the meds waiting for him on the counter. There was no councilor here, only an elderly turian getting ready for bed.

And then there was Nihlus, feet kicked up on the dash and grinning like the hoodlum Sparatus almost definitely thought he was. Shepard actually pitied the old man.

Sparatus grumbled as he pulled the washcloth from his face. "I'm going to impose a moratorium on calling me outside office hours. Call Valern. I have to be up early for a doctor's appointment, you know."

"Valern would just tell us to call you, and you know it." Nihlus uncrossed and recrossed his legs. "Besides, would you rather know ahead of time so you can give extra orders, or find out afterwards and complain about what we didn't think to do while we were there?"

"I have so few pleasures in my day-to-day, Nihlus, you would really take complaining away from me?" Sparatus tossed the cloth off to the side and picked up his toothbrush from its holder. "I suppose you have a very good reason for this very bad idea?"

--

rabbit/exdiff nihlus is really just. a menace. i love him so much

[theoriginalladya]

Shepard asks: 4, 22, 39 for Caleb?

Ahhhh, my boy!!! Thank you for asking about him! <3

Questions are from this list

4. Is your Shepard any good at poker?

Hmmm. Excellent question! I don't think Caleb's bad at poker, necessarily, but I don't think it's really his thing. When he sees a deck of cards, he's not thinking of the games he could play with it but is wondering if he should be doing a card reading for himself (or someone else nearby) instead. :D That said, he is good enough to beat Donnelly in ME2. Maybe with a bit of assistance from Gabby. ;) (shh, it's a secret between them! lol)

22. What’s the last thing Shepard ate before the final reaper showdown?

Honestly? He forgets to eat. He's so damned busy trying to make sure everything's ready, etc. he doesn't even think about eating. Kaidan, of course, has him figured out by this point and gives him a protein bar on the way down to the shuttle bay before they land on Earth and will NOT let him off the lift until he's eaten it. Caleb (still getting used to the requirements for biotics) doesn't argue and eats it.

39. Do they keep around any sentimental items?

What kind of Irishman would he be if he didn't have anything sentimental? LOL He has several things, actually.

a) the St. Senan's medal he wears with his dog tags that Athair gives him as he's leaving Ireland when he's 18. It gets lost in the shuffle somewhere after Alchera and he goes all of ME2 without it, but Athair (thanks to a little finagling from Anderson) comes to see Caleb when he's incarcerated and gives him a new one.

b) the deck of cards that Saoirse gives him back during his Reds days when she teaches him how to read them. These are also lost over Alchera. When Abby figures that out (probably because of something Tali or Garrus or Joker says), she gets him a new deck of cards to use.

c) A small book of Irish poetry he and Ashley find on the Citadel together during ME1. He'd bought it for her after their talk about poetry, but when she's lost on Virmire, he holds onto it. He gives it to Abby just after the Battle of the Citadel (they meet on Earth). She has it when she comes on board the SR2 in ME2 and leaves it with him.

d) I suppose you could say his N7 tattoo on his right arm is sentimental, in a way. He doesn't get it just because he's made N7, but because he and Coats go out to celebrate, get slightly sloshed and when a waitress gets the two of them confused (they look enough alike to cause confusion with a quick glance), they decide to get tattoos to tell them apart. Coats suggests the N7 design, Caleb adds the Celtic braid. (in reverse: Caleb arranges for Coats to get one on his ass with a shamrock that says "kiss me I'm Irish" around it)

e) after the war, when he and Kaidan and the kids are back at the Alenko orchard, there are others. Their wedding rings (claddagh rings) are definitely sentimental to the both of them. The moose things that Abby sends them because apparently the moose becomes a 'thing'. The piano that Kaidan gets Caleb their first Christmas together. etc.

Thank you so much for such wonderful questions about Caleb!!!

[leavemealone12345678910]

(Note this take place after ma 3 control ending just Shepherd just instead of what happened he got fused with machine)

Chapter 1

Shepherd stoof infront of the council as they dicided one what to do with them sense the commander is now technically the leader of the reapers they needed to figure out if they will be a threat or a ally to the alliance "We can't just let them walk they could easily kill all of us all" the turian councilor would say "Yes but they could also be of assistances the reaper invasion has left the alliance and terminus systems in shambles" the Salarian councilor would reply as the two talked the Asari councilor one of the two members of the councilor the commander like the other being the former admiral Anderson soon Anderson and Asari councilor would speak up "I agree with Valern commander Shepard can be of use for rebuilding" The Asari councilor would say as Anderson nodded in agreement "Commander Shepard can help us" Anderson would say after awhile the four would come to a decision "The council has come to a decision Commander Shepard as the new leader of the reapers and saviour of the galaxy we'll let you live as long as you keep the reapers from killing us all" Anderson would say looking at the human reaper hybrid "Thank you council I will make sure what happened long ago will not happen again" the commander said soon being dismissed they would walk out of the tower heading to the Normandy.

The crew of the Normandy would talk as Edi checked the fire wall for any breaches as joker talked to her "So I didn't see much but when shore party was bringing in the commander it looked like they had a few synetic parts any idea on what happened" Joker would ask as Edi in her robotic body turned her head "Base off of the medical reports taken from citadel hospital and Dr.Chakwas the commander is now 46% machine but by all meaning of the word commander Shepard is human" she would say as the commander walk in Joker would look at the commander a reaper like left arm a left eye similar to the rouge spectre they fought years ago still with their black hair with medium hair with a bun at the back joker would smile "Ha you look good commander never thought you would look good with reaper tech on you" He would say as he looked at the commander "Eh thanks though it will take some time to get use to it" he would say gripping his left hand alittle "Anyways I should go" they would say walking away heading to their room as everyone says hi keeping quiet as they do reaching his room they would get a change of clothes sense he's been wearing the same one sense the activation of the crucible as they walked into the they would grab a white shirt blue jeans and boots with a N7 jacket with some knocking on the door "Who is it" they would say as walked to the door opening it "Oh hey Tali" they would say as the quarians looked at him "Hey Shepherd" she would say shepherd let her in as they started to talk to her as the commander enjoyed talking "So hows Rannoch" he would ask looking at her as he sat there "It's good at frist there was tension between the geth and my people it didn't help that Han'Gerrel was invoking people to fight them" she would say shaking her head alittle "But things gotten better we had Han'Gerrel demoted" she said smiling through the mask "Yeah that goods if you need help rebuilding I got can send a few newly good reaper out there to help the repairs" they would say "No need with the help of the geth we already got the old capital up and it took 2 weeks" she would say as they talked after a bit she would get up saying bye as she walked to her part of the ship

[angstyastro]

hi, i'd love to know more about your shepard! like what class is she, what's her background, etc. any details about her would be cool :]

Hiya!! I’m so happy you asked about my gorl 🥺 I have many thoughts and headcanons about her 💕 I am working on an official ref sheet of her but it isn’t ready yet :’) so I’ll summarize on here for a bit but here’s a quick doodle of her ♥️

Her name is Isani Shepard!

-Sentinel

-Mindor background

-Sole Survivor

Isani is Mexican and she grew up in Mindor up until she was around 4-5 years old. My headcanons are that the attack on the colony happened way earlier for her than what canon gives us and she lost her entire family during that attack. She is almost taken into slavery but is saved by Anderson who eventually adopts her like his own (look he’s a real dad ok)

My Shepard was initially plotted to become one of the alliance’s assassins (there is more lore to this concept such as she met Kai leng much earlier than canon too but that’s for another day) and she is trained as an assassin but the one flaw she has is that she relies way too much on her brute strength and biotics and she is TERRIBLE at trying to sneak or be stealthy which of course is a staple as an assassin and because that’s just something that she cannot change she instead goes through the n7 training and goes through the whole sole survivor incident which leads to her becoming commander of the Normandy eventually.

During ME1 Isani used to sport full body jumpsuit/under suit almost at all times because she suffered ALOT of scarring from the thresher maw attack. She’s not really self conscious about it but she knows that others get judgemental and doesn’t want anyone to try to pity her so she just covers them up.

Isani is very Paragrade but usually is Renegade with missions and how things are supposed to get done vs with her crew/friends she’s very paragon. Of course she isn’t entirely easy to get along with though because I headcanon she has a lot of issues with how certain people have gone through life. Example: Thane.

Isani is my canon for my Shakarios trio but the dynamic between her and Thane/Garrus is very different than what the game gives us lol. Like Thane/Isani are almost on a Rivalromance because Isani doesn’t take Thane’s choice to leave Kolyat/his family too well. She UNDERSTANDS why Thane felt the need to leave but it doesn’t mean she accepts it. Thane and Isani have a rocky start but Thane also sees right through her when it comes to how she ends up handling the fact she was brought back against her will.

Her relationship with Thane/Garrus comes also very differently than in game so that whole reach and flexibility talk doesn’t really happen or Shep telling thane “I want you” after that lore dump of his wife 💀 but the details of them coming together is for another time

Isani deflects serious conversations with jokes and flirting so for a long time no one actually takes her seriously on her flirting/etc and only some crew mates are able to have a serious conversation with her for a while (Joker, Liara, Samara, Chakwas)

I have a lot of thoughts about Isani but these are a few things about her! Thankie sm for letting me ramble kahdjshd

[aricazorel]

Rebecca Shepard prompts

#12 ‘Why are you smiling at me like that?’

#15 ‘I like it when you say my name.’

from this prompt list

Becca Shepard x Kaidan Alenko, ME3 (Act 1), 1249 words

Rebecca Shepard was almost grateful when her crew conspired behind her back to boot her off the Normandy for a few hours. Somehow, without her knowledge, they managed to arrange for her to be left alone during a stop at the Citadel for resupply. After a quick update to the Council on their progress thus far, she was effectively banned from the SR-2 for the rest of the day. Normally such actions would warrant a stern lecture from the N7 but currently she just didn’t have it in her. With so much on the line she instead found herself secretly relieved that someone had engineered a reason for her to have some down time.

And that was how she had come to Huerta Memorial Hospital. She suspected that had been her crew’s intention all along—to get her to visit Major Kaidan Alenko. She’d been able to do so twice since the incident on Mars—once right after he had been admitted and unconscious and a second time right after he’d finally woken up. Since then, it had been mostly emails and a few video messages. Their schedules never seemed to line up for vid chats. But it was a huge relief to simply know he was both alive and conscious. It made doing what she had to do to win the war a little bit easier. Knowing she still had something—someone to hold onto.

Or at least she hoped. Things between them were still fragile but hope was all she had somedays.

As she looked out the Major’s large window to the view of the Presidium below, Shepard heard the L2 groan behind her. She glanced over her shoulder to see another med tech enter his room. The N7 grinned in amusement as Alenko complained, “Really? Again? I can only produce so much blood you know. I need some of it to stay in me instead of a test tube.”

The younger woman nodded. “Of course, Major. And you know full well you will still have enough blood after this one test. All you need to do let us do our job while you rest and continue to heal.”

“I don’t have much choice, now do I?” he sighed as Shepard turned around to look at him.

The med tech continued with her assigned task more or less ignoring the complaints. Something told the Commander this was part of the routine for anyone who dealt with the Major. Apparently even though he knew complying with the doctor’s orders was in his best interests, he would still complain. Shepard doubted he would ever do anything to truly interfere with the tech’s duties, but she could see he was agitated at being cooped up in the hospital room.

“I’m pretty sure at this point you guys are just seeing who can get me to complain the most,” he said, almost sounding as if he were taunting the tech.

“Major Alenko,” the N7 called over to him in a warning tone. She knew being tied to a bed because of medical red tape could be frustrating but taunting the person trying to help you get better wasn’t the way to go.

Whiskey brown eyes darted over to her as his face held an expression of guilt. He nodded slightly as he turned back to stare at the wall directly opposite his bed. He remained silent during the remainder of the tech’s work. Finally with her task completed, the woman wished them both a pleasant afternoon as she left the room.

Shepard let the doors shut behind the tech before she said anything. It had been a pleasant visit before the interruption, mostly small talk but she wanted more. She wanted a shoulder to lean on, but she wasn’t sure if Kaidan was up to that just yet. He had his own issues and concerns to worry about. Did he really need her piled on top of that? Slowly she walked over towards his bed as she asked, “So I guess you really want out of here if your reaction a few minutes ago was any indication.”

Alenko sighed. “I feel useless here. I need to be doing something.”

“And you are,” she said despite his skeptical expression. “You’re getting better.”

“But I need to do more,” he insisted shifting in the bed to sit up more, his hands balling into fists.

“And you will,” she assured him, keeping her tone even and soothing. She needed him to get better not be through back onto the frontlines half-healed. “But you need to heal first.”

“But right now, I—”

“You are doing something, Kaidan,” Shepard interrupted as she placed a hand on his fist. “You’re getting better so you can come back.”

The Major tilted his head. Apparently, he’d caught on that she’d kept herself from adding more. “Come back where?”

She hesitated, seeing a plea in his whiskey brown eyes for the truth. Never able to deny that look, she replied quietly, “Back to me.”

“You want that? I mean you still want an us?” he asked in hopeful surprise.

The Commander nodded. “Yes, Kaidan. I want that very much.”

She felt him turn his hand over, opening it palm up as he squeezed hers. He said quietly, “I’m glad to hear that. I was wondering if we could try again. If that was even an option after what happened…”

“Kaidan,” she murmured as she laced her fingers with his.

The Major grinned broadly as he held her hand tightly in return. She began blushing and feeling self-conscious as he continued to stare happily at her. “W—Why are you smiling at me like that?”

“I like it when you say my name. I always have,” he replied honestly as he eyes drifted to their intertwined hands. “And for a while there, I thought I would never hear it again.”

“Kaidan, I…” she began but didn’t know how to say she was sorry for leaving him alone for 2 years. But how did one apologize for dying in the line of duty only to be resurrected 2 years later by an enemy force who was actually trying to protect humanity when no one else was? Of course, that ignored the part where Cerberus had manipulated her from the very start and used Kaidan as bait for the Collectors on Horizon.

“Hey, Becca?” Kaidan’s voice called her back to the present. She glanced down at him as he asked with concern, “Where’d you go? You looked…far away.”

“I was,” she admitted suddenly feeling like an unannounced visitor in the Major life.

He tugged on her hand as he smiled at her. “Well, why don’t you stay here for a while instead? That’s why you came here, isn’t it? To see me?”

His smile was contagious and exactly what she needed. Shepard nodded as she allowed herself to be pulled down to the bed and tucked into the Major’s side. As he queued up a Star Wars mini-marathon to play on the room’s vid screen, Rebecca Shepard realized this was what she was fighting for—her own personal reason to fight the good fight. A chance with Kaidan. That’s what she wanted.

As the familiar fanfare of Star Wars filled the room and the yellow opening crawl of ‘A New Hope�� played on the screen, she promised herself no one would take that from her—from them. But more importantly, she would always make sure he had a reason to smile. Always.

[queercraftingchonk]

Polyamorous Negotiation between Shepard, Garrus, and Tali~

(a Shakarian to Shalibrations excerpt)

"Okay. Now that we're all here," Shepard began, "it's time we actually talked to one another--openly and honestly. Nothing we say here leaves this apartment. And I'm formally employing a 'no judgement zone' for good measure." The commander took a calm, measured breath and briefly fiddled with her N7 dog tags. "Garrus told me what he overheard you say, Tali, but I want you to talk to us."

Green and blue sets of eyes honed in on the quarian. Her heart continued its gymnastics, but she knew Shepard was right--they needed to talk, all three of them. Tali took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I guess that I, ah...I may like you and Garrus as more than friends. I don't know what to do with these feelings. I never want to ruin our friendships, nevermind sabotaging your relationship with each other."

"How long have you felt that way?" Shepard asked.

Tali opened her eyes but kept her focus on the floor. "I...don't know. I had a bit of a crush on Garrus by the time we had the shore leave party," Tali said; her averted gaze missed the flicker of the turian's mandibles. She continued, "Not that I'd ever act on it. I adore seeing you two together. I never imagined you two together back on the SR-1, but after the Collector Base, I...I couldn't see Shepard being with anyone else. You looked happy in a way you never did before, even when you were with Liara."

It was Shepard's turn to blush. "Tali, if I may ask...you said some things implying interest in not just Garrus, but me. I thought you were straight?"

"I also thought that," Tali gave a breathy laugh. "Until you, Shepard."

The human's blush cranked up to just a few shades lighter than her crimson hair. "Wow, uh...I think that's the greatest compliment I've ever received."

"Great, now I'll have to work three times as hard on any future compliments," Garrus quipped. Tali and Shepard gave light chuckles in response. Hearing him jest as usual helped the women relax. "Are, um, congrats in order, when someone comes out?"

"Oh, we'll have a proper celebration for Tali when--or if--she decides to come out as...bi? Pan?" Shepard asked.

"Bisexual, I think," Tali said meekly.

"Fuck yeah," Shepard grinned. Tali laughed and finally looked up at her companions. The commander continued, "For now, though, that's not really what this conversation is about. Tali, what would be your ideal scenario to deal with your feelings?"

"Shepard, I have no idea what you're getting at. I refuse to ruin the love you and Garrus have just because I'm a hopeless romantic."

"No one's said anything about ruining love," the commander replied. She rubbed her dog tags again before shifting down the couch closer to her partner. Shepard looked meaningfully at Garrus. "How are you feeling, big guy?"

Garrus scratched his scarred mandible. "I...don't know, Shepard. I'm still processing everything. I suppose I'm flattered. I certainly understand how Tali could fall for you. But I don't know what to actually do about that."

"Do you like Tali?" Shepard asked.

"Shepard, I'm your bondmate."

"I know. That doesn't change if you also like Tali."

Garrus fussed with the hem of his pants and looked at his quarian friend. She willed the strength to meet his gaze unflinchingly. "I...might." Tali's white eyes blew wide beneath her amethyst-tinted faceplate.

"And I certainly 'might', too," Shepard said.

"What?!" Tali and Garrus gasped in tandem surprise.

Shepard emitted a short snort of laughter. She composed herself and spoke again, far more seriously: "Garrus, we've been together for a little while now--albeit a chunk of that I was asleep for...and I absolutely meant it when I said I was ready to be a one turian kind of woman. But what I want to know is...what do you think of polyamory?"

Keelah, is this...is this happening?! Tali thought. She felt as though she might vibrate right through her suit with the sheer speed of her quickening heart.

"Turians don't usually bond with more than one partner," Garrus explained. "Not that it's unheard of. The Hierarchy only registers a primary bondmate. But...well, I've never been a very good turian."

Shepard nodded. She shifted closer to Garrus until she could reach across and clasp his taloned hand in hers. He gladly accepted and squeezed her five fingers once. Shepard looked at Tali and said, "I don't have any personal experience with polyamory, but I've known folks in various polycules. I'll admit that I can have a bit of a jealous side...but honestly, with you, Tali, I've never felt that. I trust you. I admire you. If anyone else admitted to having a crush on Garrus, I might be reacting, ah, differently...so, I think that--maybe--there's something we three can explore, together?"

Meaningful glances were exchanged between the three. Tali was in disbelief, while Garrus's mind continued to struggle processing exactly what all this meant emotionally. He answered first: "If we can figure out how to make it work...then, yeah. Definitely."

"Wait. Wait, wait, wait," Tali said. She stood up and began pacing. "Did you two just...did you--"

"Tali, there's absolutely no pressure," Shepard said. "If...if you want to try a relationship with us and see what that looks like...the offer is there. You're not ruining anything. No force in the galaxy could stop me from loving Garrus," the turian squeezed his girlfriend's hand lovingly once more, "and I think that we're all mature enough to see where this goes."

"Keelah..." Tali muttered.

--Excerpt from How to Love a Biotic God(dess)

Chapter 17: Diplomacy of a Different Kind

[pigeontheoneandonly]

OC Profile

Tagged by the ever-lovely @ghostxofxartemis.  Thank you!!!

Tagging: @dr-ladybird, @swaps55, @rpgwrites, @pushingsian, @dafan7711​, @awhellstothejoe​, @pip-n-flinx​, and anyone else who would like to share.

I haven’t done any Nathaly shit in a loooong time so let’s go!

My favorite art of her ever, by the insanely talented @kauriart​.  Seriously I still stare at this thing an embarrassing amount of time.

I’ve responded to all of these prompts as of her current statuses in Labyrinth (my ME2 novelization).

General-

Name: Nathaly Zelena Shepard

Alias(es): Zey-Zey by her dad’s family, Nath by people who refuse to acknowledge her hatred of nicknames, Bo by her N7 peers, Nathabee by her ex-fiance Todd (and I can feel the murder rising in her disclosing that to you all)

Gender: Female

Age: 31, currently

Birthdate: April 11, 2154

Place of birth: An Alliance Kodiak en-route to Arcturus Station.  Her mother was reportedly Very Surprised.  The unfortunate private caught on the same transport was reportedly in therapy for years.

Hometown: None, but Phoenix back in UNAS on Earth, or Hellas Naval Base on Mars, probably come closest

Spoken language(s): English, Spanish, and Prothean (thanks Cipher) natively; Dherak, Hessarin, and Vinassi fluently; can get by or communicate a bit in a bunch more.  She did well enough in her basic language primer while training in spec ops to get recommended for additional training at ALI, and she kept taking lessons remotely up until her death, more-or-less for fun.  As she puts it, languages are “her sole academic talent”.

Sexual preference: Bisexual

Occupation: Currently mercenary.  She hates it.

Appearance-

Eye color: Blue

Hair color: Red

Height: 6’4”

Scars: Cybernetic and surgical scars from her resurrection.  The damage to her body mostly obliterated earlier scarring.

Favorite-

Color: Changes by the week

Hair color: She likes her natural color well enough, but as a teenager dyed it all kinds of unnatural shades

Song: [I haven’t developed nearly enough headcanon around music in ME to begin to answer this]

Food: Tamales, the way her abuela made them

Drink: Scotch, cold with ice. No, she doesn’t care how it’s supposed to be served.

Have They-

Passed university: She has a degree in philosophy from New Stellar University, an online school, which she earned during her first few years serving as a marine

Had sex: yes

Had sex in public: …yes, technically, though she believes/hopes nobody saw them.  Not her finest moment.

Gotten pregnant: yes

Kissed a boy: yes

Kissed a girl: yes

Gotten tattoos: yes (sadly, also lost, though strangely not thanks to her death)

Gotten piercings: yes, though currently only her ears are pierced, the others closed up

Been in love: yes, more than once

Stayed up for more than 24 hours: yes

Are They-

A virgin: no

A cuddler: Not really.  Sometimes when she really needs it, but she’d never admit it

A kisser: Absolutely

Scared easily: lol no

Jealous easily: Not… really

Dominant: no

Submissive: no [sidenote: that one fic is a very particular dynamic in a specific context, and I wouldn’t overall characterize her as a sub]

In love: yes

Single: Hell if she knows

Random Questions (tw for self harm/suicide mention)-

Have they harmed themselves: Not intentionally

Thought of suicide: No

Attempted suicide: No.  She’s occasionally wondered if there’s something wrong with her that she hasn’t ever considered it, given some of the shit she’s been through. (What can I say, her issues run deep but occasionally have stranger manifestations.)

Wanted to kill someone: The better question is how many times she’s wanted to kill someone and acted on it.  The answer is not zero.

Have / had a job: She flipped “burgers” at a fast food joint at the Hellas Spaceport as a teenager (Phytoburger, “Home of the best beef that’s never lived!”).  She then enlisted as an Alliance marine at age eighteen, and served until her death at age twenty-nine.  Right now, she will firmly insist she’s not employed rather than make any claim of working for Cerberus.

Have any fears: Lots, most unadmitted to herself. But a big one is a fear of leaving people behind

Family

Sibling(s): None

Parent(s): Hannah and Paul Shepard.  Hannah still serves in the Alliance, while Paul was medically discharged after an accident when Nathaly was fifteen, and currently lives on Mars

Children: That’s a fascinating question! And oddly not especially related to the one about pregnancy further up.

Significant other: Kaidan(?) Shit’s complicated

Pet(s): Several fish, her favorite of which is a VERY grumpy walking catfish

[dispatchwithlove]

Confirmation

A reunion set after The Boy, part of The Cases of Shepard and Vakarian AU 

Stepping off the ship, Jane expected to first see Garrus’s face, hopefully elated and waiting for her amongst a sea of unfamiliar faces. Her eyes searched for his, and before she had a moment to feel disappointed that his face wasn’t there, a talon slipped over her back, and then as she stopped a hand slid across her hip and rested where his teasing talon had tickled her.

She turned to face him, to rest her eyes on him and see if his face showed any hint of the elation she hoped that it would. She wasn’t disappointed when she finally laid eyes on him. He was lit up from within, mandibles hinting at a smile that begged to grow wider, chin tucked and crest bowed towards her. And his eyes — she’d never seen such adoration, such happiness, and relief in them.  

So, he had missed her too. It wasn’t just in her mind. These feelings didn’t exist only in her. 

“Come here,” he said, voice low and tickling her senses. “Let me breathe you in.” He took her in his arms then slid his hand along her wrist to bring it to his nose so he could drink in her scent, his nose ridges scrunching. His body surrounded hers, took her in, and enveloped her. All the hunger she felt for him, the longing that made her heart and mind ache, she felt in his touch. It was strong, familiar, and tender.  

After a deep inhale that seemed to feed him, she said with a smile. “Thought you said being away from each other for two weeks wouldn’t be so bad.”

His nose traveled up her wrist, circled at the base of her palm, then brushed downwards to repeat the motion once more. “It was torture. I’m never letting you leave my side again.”

She laughed softly. “Hm, how romantic, captivity.” 

His eyes opened and met hers. He opened his mouth to say something, but Jane placed her finger over his lips to quiet him. “Shh, kiss me,” she said. 

A slow, deep kiss, his smooth lips dragging against her plump ones, drew out for just a moment before he brushed his nose along hers then pressed his crest to her brow. A soft hum she could hear and feel settled in his chest. With his eyes closed, he said, “I was going to say, that once I take you home and do what I’ve been planning,” he opened his eyes, heat flashing in them, “I won’t need any leather straps to keep you captive.”

The curiosity of what he planned sent a wave of heat through her. She pressed herself against him to feel the satisfying pressure of his body against hers. “Well what the fuck are we still doing standing here? ”With a glance over her shoulder to make sure no one was within hearing distance, she said, “And the leather straps might not be necessary, but maybe we should pick some up anyhow.”

A deep growl came from her mate. Her beautiful, adoring, mate. And she was back in his arms, right where she belonged.

______________

tagging @blueboxness because a fun chat with her reminded me of this little bit of nonsense i wrote quite a while back. thanks for having such fun conversations with me! hope you all enjoyed this, and happy n7!!

i hope to post a sequel to The Boy someday (including what happens once they get home after this 😏) but if you’d like to read the series and haven’t had the chance, the link is below. 

https://archiveofourown.org/series/1661467