#garrus: archangel au .

[aamusedly]

@omegalegacy has come for GARRUS .

The Salarian had assured him he was on the mend, but progress seemed to be subjective to what day it was. Yesterday was a bad one; he'd had to dose with enough painkillers to knock him out for most of the day. At least he'd done it off the respirator.

Today was a good one, enough that Garrus Vakarian could take a much-needed respite of a walk out of Mordin's nightmare of a clinic. He couldn't go far, no matter who thought he was dead; the thought alone made the Turian antsy.

But not as antsy as the feeling of being watched.

By the time he rounded his way back to Mordin's clinic, his talon was hovering close to a pistol holstered at his hip. Blue suns. Eclipse, maybe. Here to finish the job.

Garrus nearly stopped in his tracks when he made sight of who was waiting for him-- was that Aria Fucking T'Loak?

No, no. His vision was just blurry. It was the medication, or a very similar looking Asari. Get it together.

Fingers twitched by his gun. "Who are you," the Turian croaked. "The doctor doesn't keep office hours."

[aamusedly]

It was a more polite reaction than he'd anticipated, but that was a good thing. The last thing they needed was to make a scene here in the Afterlife; they were only tenuously accepted here to begin with.

At least Echo seemed to understand. Garrus' shoulders lowered as he held his glass close. "There's not much prep we can do until we have more information on just what is docking. All we know is that it's on its way, and it's most likely our targets."

"So... how do you want to play it? Hit them when they get in? Wait for them to scatter and relieve them of their cargo? Sabotage the ship?"

She's appreciative of the small talk dissolve. Although she's enjoyed her conversations with the Archangel, her mind is narrowed to one path and one path alone. She sips her alcohol without sting, too engrossed in two pieces of news.

A carrier ship. Organic cargo. She can't hide the hope in her eyes.

"You're serious," she asks without there ever really being a question. Of course he's serious. Her fingers twitch against her cool glass, so she drinks another healthy gulp. They're coming. Here. Just like she thought those bastards would.

But her attention flickers to his mandibles when he reveals the timeline. That hope dissolves to anger. "What?! That's too--"

Long, but she reigns in her temper.

"...bad, because then that means I have three more days to prepare," she corrects. "They'll be here for a while, at least. Omega's crawling with potential candidates. And the festival's coming up, if I looked at the calendar year right." She scrubs her face. "Shit."

[aimeelouart]

blease tell us about the mass effect au please

Don't mind if I do!

It came from me pondering dropping one Archangel on another, since 7c9s Cloud's propaganda nickname is Archangel and Garrus's vigilante name is Archangel. So that's exactly what I did :D

Honestly this is just an excuse for me to give Shepard and Garrus a feral soldier son. And let Cloud interact with everyone from Mass Effect. And save Garrus's merc group.

Here have a preview:

As Butler explained the injuries in detail, Shepard looked between the maybe ten-year-old kid and her old friend. “Garrus,” she said, “why is there a human kid in your merc base?” Garrus rubbed a hand over his fringe. “It’s a long story, but the kid is… one of us.” “A mercenary?” she clarified. “He was really more of a vigilante first. And he was like that when I found him, I swear,” he said, as if he was worried she’d accuse him of corrupting the kid. If anywhere would turn a kid barely chest-height to Garrus into a vigilante, Shepard supposed it was Omega. “How old is he?” “The scans can’t read him properly and he won’t say, but the humans in our group insist he’s ten or younger.” Ten. She looked at him. His face was burned and bloody. She thought that his hair might have been pale blond under all the dirt. Mordin was already at work, so focused he wasn’t even talking aloud. “He never wanted to tell us his name, either,” said Garrus. “Insisted we call him Arc. It took me a while to get it out of him, but his real name’s Cloud. He saved the entire squad, and he went down hard to do it.” “…right,” Shepard decided. “Tell me your plan. We’re getting the kid out of here.”

[innepttia]

@spookyvalentine has FOUR sets of “50 questions about Shepard” list and this is the third!!

Maeve Shepard

First 50 Questions | Second 50 Questions

TW: mentions of alcohol abuse & canon typical death

(Art by tumblr: @/milton-chamberlain)

1. How often does Shepard use the omni-blade?

Omni-blade, not a lot but it’s her favorite weapon to use (ok I know this is contradictory but just go with me). Omni-tool – ALL THE TIME.

2. What does the Virmire Survivor think of Shepard?

Ashley! I think she wishes they were closer, because they really would get along if they both gave it a shot. If Shepard didn’t die, they’d probably have become besties at some point and perhaps Shepard could have still soothed over some of that xenophobic nature of Ashley’s.

3. Top three comfort movies:

Howl’s Moving Castle

Princess Bride

Shallow Grave

4. How many languages can they speak (without the translator)?

Oh, I love that Spooky has asked this in the Mass Effect discord we’re in because I already know the answer now!!

English, ASL (which doesn’t really count for translator-use), and – in my own HC – spacers have a language similar to The Expanse’s Belter Creole.

5. Does Shepard keep a log/journal?

No. Which is a boring answer, but no.

6. What kind of driver is Shepard?

I like to HC that she actually would rather have others drive so she can tinker with something. So, instead of driver, she’s a passenger princess.

7. Shepard witnesses a petty crime. What is their response?

She ignores it! Maeve really cultivates an air of: “If this doesn’t affect me, then I don’t care.”

8. Revenge, or the high road?

REVENGE, BABEEYYYYY – but only in her head because she’s a busy lady and doesn’t have time to really properly act out her revenge.

9. What will always distract them?

Thane, Thane, Thane, Thane, alcohol, Thane, Thane, Joker, Thane, Thane, Thane, etc.

10. Does Shepard ascribe to any sort of faith?

No, but she becomes interested in Thanes.

11. Fondest childhood memory?

By ME2, she isn’t sure her childhood memories are really hers, so she tries to forget them.

12. Most embarrassing adult memory?

In ME2, before Thane’s romance was locked in, she got so drunk one day and drunk-messaged Ashley trying to flirt with her. Then when that was completely rejected, she went straight to Zaeed to try and flirt with him, but she became so distracted in the garbage compactor that she missed her one chance with that old merc. Joker was 100% watching the vid feeds and EDI was monitoring her messages to Ashley.

13. What does Shepard choose to do about Gavin Archer?

THIS mothafuckin guy THIS GUY ohhhhh my god. I think canon choice was “your brother is going to Grissom Academy and you can fuck right off” but the unhinged, more correct choice is: iron pressed against his temple and ending it all then and there for Gavin.

14. Is Shepard the type to gossip?

If it’s gossip with Kasumi, yes, because Kasumi has the best tea and tells the best story. Anyone else, probably not.

15. How does Shepard react to Garrus’s Archangel reveal?

I’m just going to go with the canon-neutral reaction.

16. What was the N7 program like for Shepard?

This was when she was A Good Soldier and A Good Person (pre-ME1), so it went pretty well, all things considered. She was focused and driven and wanted to be the best she could be.

17. Go-to karaoke song?

ANOTHER ONE I CAN ANSWER BECAUSE OF DISCORD thank god. This song because it’s mostly shouting instead of singing:

Fire Woman – The Cult

18. What choice does Shepard make on Rannoch?

Okay so, this one might get me a lot of hate BUT I’ve always accidentally (I’m so serious about this) picked the option here Tali throws herself off the cliff. Like, I’m not joking. It doesn’t matter how many years are between play throughs, or if I’m like, OKAY THIS TIME…!!! I always manage to pick that option. In an AU, I’d really like for the Geth and the Quarians to make peace and build the planet together and I’m just inept at making Good Choices.

19. Which kind of reaper do they think is the ugliest?

That stupid Human-Reaper from ME2.

20. Can they dance?

She can sway to music really well.

21. What is Shepard’s relationship with Hackett?

Mostly annoyed at him. In her eyes, Hackett is up there with TIM.

22. What’s their alignment? Paragon, renegade, a mix…

Renegade all the way. Light up her face with scars.

23. Got any allergies? How bad?

No, because I honestly just won’t remember she has them.

24. When’s their birthday, and how old are they?

Canon birthday and canon age!

25. Trash talk or potty mouth

BOTH!

26. What’s their temper like?

Flares hot, but then it dies down pretty quickly because she’s either smothering it with alcohol or she’s already moved on to the next crisis.

27. What does Shepard think of Bakara?

EVEEEE and not my clone named Eve!!!!! She adores her and will do anything for her.

28. A reoccurring nightmare:

Indoctrination. She can’t shake the feeling that, even after everything, she’s indoctrinated.

And Moon’s Haunted fic.

29. Which news correspondent/journalist does Shepard bring on the Normandy? What’s their relationship like?

Diana Allers and it’s a relationship of: Maeve forgets she’s there until Diana reminds her.

30. Who’s got the biggest crush on Shepard?

Ummm ME!!! Hmm definitely Joker in all 3 games, Garrus in 1 and 2, (and finally a HC) the Geth (and OC) she messages all throughout ME3.

31. What kind of relationship do they have with Dr. Chakwas? Which doctor do they bring her on board for 3, and why?

Good! They’re drinking buddies, except Dr. Chakwas is obviously less unhinged about it.

32. Who has Shepard’s grudging respect?

Javik & Zaeed.

33. Reaction to the window over their sr-2 bed

Kill Bill sirens.

34. Does Shepard want children?

Not just no, but hell no.

35. What does Shepard consider their greatest mistake?

Joining the Alliance.

36. Did Shepard enjoy the heists with Kasumi?

Yes, this was her favorite mission. I think I mentioned this in one of the previous 50 questions, but she was excited for the heist. She was excited to dress up and to have even the slightest potential to not kill anyone.

37. Does Shepard ever play matchmaker?

Ngl, I like Liara and Javik together so I’d like to imagine she helped with that somehow.

38. A silly daydream:

While she was on house arrest after ME2 and before ME3, she daydreamed that Joker would come visit her and they’d rekindle whatever they had before.

Or, she’d imagine Thane would come rescue her like a damsel in distress.

(god these aren’t really “silly” are they?!)

39. What kind of media do they consume the most?

Tech news, but she’s pretty off mainstream media content. She prefers to spend time with her crew in person.

40. Favorite ice cream flavor

Cookies and cream.

41. If Shepard has a LI, what would they say are a couple of Shepard’s flaws? And strengths?

I think we all like to imagine our LI’s being over the moon about our Sheps, and my HCs are no different.

Thane sees her as the spitting image of one of his goddesses. She’s strong, relentless, ruthless, and determined, which are all qualities he admires. In private, she’s soft and a puddle of mush most of the time. I like to think he enjoys taking care of her (e.g. blanket over the shoulders, a good cuddle session, sharing food).

Her flaws come through pretty starkly in all these sets of 50 questions: she can make REALLY poor choices, she can get tunnel vision on certain missions, she can be too brash.

42. Are they quick to laugh, or slow to smile?

Okay, I’m probably going to be annoying with this but I’m going to say both to this one too (like the potty mouth or trash talking one). I think she’s quick to laugh, but it isn’t always genuine. She’ll laugh when she feels like there’s a social cue she needs to meet. She’s slow to smile because those would be her true, genuine feelings.

43. What does it take to earn Shepard’s trust?

Most people have her trust from the beginning. She doesn’t feel like she has time to be untrusting, so her initial trust is easy to get. As long as that isn’t broken, then all’s golden. If the initiate trust is broken then it’s near impossible to get it back.

44. Top three people Shepard thinks are hotties:

Samara

Nyreen

Zaeed

+Thane because he’s her Li so that’s a given

45. What’s the easiest way to gross them out?

Throw up. THAT’S ALL hahahaha but fr gross.

46. What are some of their favorite combo moves with team members out on the field?

Oooohh this is embarrassing for her and me. I always forget team members and Shepard can do combo moves together, so I never do it. So lets go with: she’s a lone wolf who likes to do her own tech combos herself.

47. Can they forgive easily, or are they the type to hold a grudge?

Neither! She’d rather just forget.

48. Does Shepard have a good sense of direction?

She relies solely on her HUD that she doesn’t know anymore!

49. Did they enjoy their party on the Citadel?

Yes, it was nice getting everyone together, but she really missed Thane.

50. What is Shepard’s ending?

Maeve, beloved, goes full destroy ending, which includes destroying herself. I’ve talked about this a lot in the server so I’m not going to get too much in the weeds but… she’s very content with this choice.

+1 …got any kinks?

*looks back at question 33* yes – a choking kink whoops

[misseffect]

7 snippets, 7 mutuals

Thanks for the tag @otemporanerys!

Tagging a lot of people who have already been tagged: @diaphanouso @helila @dispatchwithlove @kalliesa @angry-jager @dwarrowdams @serendipitys-teapot

All of these are from my Mass Effect F1 AU: Flashpoints

+++

Singapore Shower

One moment Garrus is holding her by the arms, water rolling over his shoulders – there's a knotted look on his face; his mouth is moving but no sound is coming out, which is weird – and the next she's lying on her back on the shower room floor.

"Shepard? Hey – c'mon."

Garrus is kneeling beside her, pinching her arm gently, holding her legs in the air with his shoulder. She feels heavy, like her bones are full of syrup, and the thumping behind her eyes is keeping time with the fuzz crowding her vision.

"Shit."

"It's alright." He sounds further away than he should, and so does the water still beating down on his back. "You passed out for a second, that's all."

+++

Shepard Does An AMA

probinguranus6969 - Would you rather fight 20 duck-sized Jokers or 1 Joker-sized duck?

janeshepard54 - I know your reddit handle joker

probinguranus6969 - damn it

+++

FaceTime Antics

She fishes another biscuit out of the packet while Garrus props his phone up on the side and heaves his suitcase onto the bed. It’s a nice enough room from what little she can see: old-fashioned, like the rest of the place, but in a plush, cared-for sort of way.

“Oh, by the way–” Crunch. “–you don’t happen to know how the dark web works, do you?”

He unzips the case and flips the lid. “Not really. Why?”

“I got called up for drug testing at Paul Ricard and my sample went missing,” she says, chewing glumly. “Joker’s winding me up about it; thinks someone’s selling vials of my piss on the black market.”

+++

Normal Thoughts To Have About Your Bestie's Car

The second he starts to ask the car for more, everything changes. 

It feels familiar – in fundamentals, sure, in throttle and steering output – but there’s something else, too. It’s more pliable than the Hierarchy car, more predictable than anything Omega or Archangel could give him; it's unlike anything he’s even driven, but somehow he knows it. Like catching a familiar smell in a place you've never visited.

And then it hits him.

It's not the car. It's her.

He knows Shepard's driving style almost as well as his own – reactive and twitchy, nose-heavy, late-braking, all faith and guts – and this thing lives and breathes it. It takes everything he's got to give, the good and the bad, and amplifies it tenfold. It grins and says c’mon, I dare you.

It’s not just a car designed with her in mind. It’s like wearing her clothes.

+++

Not To Be Dramatic But I Would Die For Mr Blobby

Shepard rounds the corner into the kitchen to find Mr Blobby loitering by the back door like a pair of cow-coloured slippers.

“He’s in a time-out," Hannah calls through the open window, paintbrush in hand.

“Aww, Blob.”

Mr Blobby makes a mournful rrrr sound. There’s a dab of brown paint on the end of his tail.

+++

Shepard Has PTSD Probably

It's not a nightmare really. Sure, it wakes her up every few hours, sweaty and unrested, and when she closes her eyes again, it drops her right back where she left off, but it's not scary. She's not being hunted or chased. She's not standing at the front of class with no clothes on. Nobody's dying.

Shepard's driving a road car on suburban streets - shifting, nebulous streets; faintly European but also faintly not - and somewhere in the distance, there's a fire.

There's a fire and she has to reach it.

She can see a column of black smoke in the distance, catch the odd lick of orange between buildings, but every turn she takes feels wrong and by the time she doubles back, the smoke isn't where she thought it was. It's in her rearview mirror, or out to her left when it was on her right. Sometimes a fire engine blasts past her in the opposite direction, the wailing siren fading before she can follow.

+++

Everybody Hates Conrad

Mathematically Shepard could win the Championship as early as Japan, five races before the end of the season, and it shows. Media seems to come naturally to her in a way it never has to him, but still; he’s never seen her so relaxed this early in the year. Al’Jilani can’t draw her in with pointed questions about Anderson giving her an easy ride and she doesn’t even bother taking a bite out of Conrad Verner.

“Any comment on rekindling your relationship with Thane Krios?” he asks, his big square face expectant.

Shepard scratches under her chin. “Why am I always the last person to find out who I’m dating?”

There’s a ripple of laughter. Emily is checking her watch and people are starting to shuffle their belongings around.

“Are you going to answer the question?” Conrad calls, but by then there’s enough ambient noise for everyone to plausibly ignore him.

[otemporanerys]

Spectre Requisitions ‘23 - The Rec Post!!

It’s that time of year again! I took part in the Spectre Requisitions Rare Pair Exchange @spectre-requisitions-exchange (link to the collection here) and man. SO MUCH good shit.

I can’t reveal what I wrote (yet) but I have been reading through the collection and here’s a few incredible works that I really enjoyed! Remember to kudos and comment if you find anything you like 💖

(NB: I focused on fic, but honestly every bit of fanart I’ve seen for it is also incredible, please go check it out)

Gifts for Me

I was SO lucky this year - loyal friends will know that I’ve been suffering from a massive dose of Lawkarian brainrot, and I got not one, but TWO long-ass Garrus/Miranda fics!!!! honestly still can’t get over it, incredible

Between the Devil and the Deep, Garrus/Miranda, 20K, E

Set pre-ME2, Miranda recruits Archangel for a job, fucks him to keep him sweet.

This is just. Pure filth, and I love it. Aliases, power plays, both Garrus and Miranda being amoral little weirdos. What more can you ask for?

The Woman in White, Garrus/Miranda, 16.9K, E

Set pre-ME2, Miranda recruits Archangel for a job, doesn’t really do ANYTHING to keep him sweet (but they fuck anyway).

:chinhands: This is just. GORGEOUSLY written, and the begrudging way in which they start to like each other (but not too much) is incredible. Top-notch Garrus POV

Gen

loose ends, Maelon & Mordin, 9.9K, T

Set during and after ME3, canon-divergent AU. Maelon finds Mordin in the wreckage after Tuchanka and nurses him back to health.

I love their relationship in this - Mordin’s so aware of Maelon’s weaknesses (or what he perceives to be his weakness) but there’s still so much caring, despite the huge gulf between them. Also the easiest way to make me a teary mess is a Urdnot Mordin cameo 😭

The Stories We Tell, Joker & Tali, 3.1K, T

Set during ME1. Tali forces Joker to be her friend.

Really great dialogue for everyone - it’s very cute and fun until suddenly it’s not!!! which is rude!!! but still very good, A+++

Care and Maintenance, Kaidan & Tali, 2.2K, T

Set during ME1. Kaidan and Tali bond over dads, tech and Shepard’s reckless driving.

This one was just nice! And also who doesn’t love a bit of Shepard driving slander

F/F

swear, this one you’ll save, Nyreen/Solana, 1.5K, G

Pre-canon: five times Solana has a secret about Nyreen.

I’m only slightly obsessed with these two, and this fic was so perfect. Childhood friends to lovers is a god-tier trope, and it’s so deliciously bittersweet

Real, Beautiful, f!Shali, 0.7K, G

Post-ME3, A morning on Rannoch.

The post-war fluff we deserve, imo!

A Knife in Starlight, Morinth/f!Shepard, 1K, M

Set during ME2. Character study with a side of smut.

I think Morinth is incredibly interesting as a character, but the real standout of this fic is the Shepard - Ruthless, stone butch, wonderfully jagged.

M/M

Collide, m!Shakarian, 4.1K, M

Set during ME2. Friends-to-lovers and mutual pining.

I love m!Shakarian anyway, but mutual pining?? Sexually charged pining?? LOVE CONFESSIONS?? Good shit

M/F

Change of Command, Garrus/Miranda, 3.6K, M

Set during ME2. Epistolary fic, a series of comms transcripts between Garrus and Miranda.

Yes, someone else wanted Lawkarian!! The (verbal) sparring is so much fun, and the format is perfect.

Beauty Like a Raging Flame, f!Shaeed, 6.2K, E

Set during ME2. Shepard gets into a fight in Afterlife, and Zaeed has to go pick her up.

There’s a lot of Shaeed this year! But this one is my favourite. The Zaeed voice is great (appropriately crusty, not too soppy, just the way I like it) and it’s nice seeing him paired off with a Paragon Shep. Plus, Zaeed’s turned on by violence. Smutty perfection

only echoes in the melody now, Kasumi/Keiji’s Greybox, 3.4K, E

Post-ME3. Bittersweet porn with feelings.

God, this one really blew me away. The prose is incredible, and there’s so many little bits that really land how fucked up the greybox concept really is. The ending is great, too. Can’t recommend this enough.

Longing Makes a Thief, Kasumi/Rolan Quarn, 17.7K, E

Kasumi and Rolan run into each other during a job, and realise they’ve met before - sort of.

This was so much fun - bubbly like a glass of champagne. The banter’s great, the smut is great, it’s all so good. Run, don’t walk!

Poly

An Unfortunately Sexy Man, Addison/Kandros/Kesh/Tann, 6.6K, M

MEA. Addison, Kandros and Kesh all have one thing in common: a devastating, inexplicable crush on Director Tann.

I’m not really one for crack, but this is definitely an exception. Genuinely funny, and the Tann voice in particular is incredibly on-point.

[stormikins]

1, 11, 21, 31, 41 and +1 for Jenn from the fifty shep questions!

Thanks!!

Why did Shepard enlist? Any regrets?

Jenn enlists because it was a way out of the gang on Earth. It was either that, or jail. Clearly she chose the military. She doesn’t quite have regrets (she doesn’t let herself) about joining as she thinks there’s nothing else for her to do. She’s already a killer, the Alliance just turns her into a soldier. (she didn't let herself be anything else)

11. What order does Shepard pick up companions in ME2?

Goes to Omega to pick up Mordin but goes to get Archangel after learning about the predicament he’s in. Jack and then Grunt. Tali because that’s her best friend. On Illium decides that Samara can wait, she needs to make sure her assassin doesn’t die.

21. Do you have any AUs for your Shepard?

Oh boy do I. I have three major ones. The Kal project where Kal’Reegar joins the Normandy post Haestrom and is a part of the team for the rest of canon. Joins back up during the Rannoch arc. It’s canon compliant apart from Kal being there.

The second one is called Sour Apple Baby (Cinematic Universe) or SABCU. A retelling/novelization of the Mass Effect trilogy that heavily diverges from canon. Nihlus survives, Kal survives, many people survive but the tag line of the series is "the series in which i make everything worse, and i personally have a great time" LOL The third one is what I call the Cerberus starter, where Shepard figures out the Cerberus plot line before the events of me1 and Nihlus shows up because of the Cerberus rachni experiments. Somewhat of a Winter Soldier AU ;)

31. Who can always make them laugh?

Kal. Always. Joker and Garrus’ dry humor gets her too.

41. How is Shepard with a gun? What about hand to hand?

She’s fantastic with both. After all, she graduated top of her class at N school. Normally uses a pistol or assault rifle. Can and will use a shotgun. Doesn’t prefer a sniper rifle because she’s a close-range fighter as she’s a tank/insertion specialist, but she’s good with it. Not necessarily as good as Garrus, Ashley, or Thane but that’s because they’ve had more specific training and experience with it.

(+1: what does Shepard smell like?)

Pine and cinnamon!

(i have answered all 250 of your questions here ;)

[dispatchwithlove]

Make Me Write!

Thanks for the tag @otemporanerys!

Rules: Make a 24-hour poll with the names of your WIPs and then for whichever wins, write one sentence for every vote it gets.

I'll tag @kalliesa @serendipitys-teapot @kirschewine @dulcidyne @westernlarch @dwarrowdams @literarypeachtea @diaphanouso

[sparatus]

2, 14, 24 for microfic!

micro story prompts

oh i can make this shit hurted, thank u :3 second two are under a cut i went off a lil

2. This Was A Mistake - Tasora Rennis, Garrus Vakarian (Garrus/Citadel DLC Turian, post-Archangel, ExDiff canon)

She shouldn't have agreed to this. How could she be so naive? She should have stopped this ages ago, just cut her losses, had her cry, and moved on. She'd known she should, and how many people had told her to? She was a grown adult, an ambassador even, not some twitterpated child.

Yet here she was anyway, sitting in the hospital, letting the stupid idiot she'd given chance after chance after chance try to beg for just one more.

And the worst part was, she wanted to.

She pushed herself back, away from the bed, away from Garrus, away from her own stupid fucking feelings. "I'm sorry, Garrus," fell from her tongue, her subvocals pulsing the sorrowful honesty of it. "I- I just- I can't, I'm not doing this again. I- I shouldn't have come, I'm so-"

Claws grazed across her wrist, but slid clumsily off, the painkillers too much for even a desperate brain to overcome. "Tas-"

Her heart lurched into her throat at the pathetic whimper that one syllable made it out as, but she didn't dare turn around. It was- it was just too much, how was she supposed to deal with it? Some half-cocked idea to go out and "clean up" fucking Omega, chased by Spectres, Cerberus agents, a big damn shootout, a betrayal that maybe wasn't, taking a rocket to the face - and all that, and he couldn't manage one good fucking reason he hadn't called, hadn't texted, hadn't given any reason to believe he was even alive, much less still cared about her? And throughout the whole thing, he... he didn't even have the decency to sound like he wouldn't disappear again.

She swallowed, forcing her lungs to fill again. "This was a mistake," she pushed out. "I- I knew it was a mistake, and I still-"

Another high, desperate whine, and this time she was stupid enough to look back. His single unbandaged eye caught hers, glazed over with the drugs and pain but still shining with understanding, with something darker and sadder and much, much more painful than any half-destroyed face could inflict. "Tas," he slurred again, and this time it sounded more like a lost child's cry. "I'm- I'm sorry. I don't... I just..."

He swallowed, and she couldn't help but notice the wince as his throat moved. "I just want to go home."

And as the sob cracked through his subvocals with a painful-sounding gasp, she felt one more chance pick a hole in the ice around her heart.

14. Overgrown - Saren Arterius (post-canon, mentioned Kryterius, no-Reapers AU)

Nobody has tended the yard in quite some time.

It makes sense, Saren supposes, settling down on the back step and cracking open whatever fizzy energy drink Nihlus handed him. The little house in Ifura has sat empty for seventy long, lonely years. He and Desolas and some of their friends have all taken turns swinging by from time to time to keep an eye on it, make sure nothing is stolen or broken down, fix whatever needs fixing, but there's no point in cleaning up tallgrass prairie that's just going to die and crumple and be buried in snow the following winter. Even the handful of times he and his friends had holed up here to lie low until their targets forgot about them, they'd deliberately not done any maintenance beyond what they needed to make the house livable for a couple months, and left the yard to its own devices.

A dark brown drake in long, flowing, clay-spattered clothes settles beside him out of the corner of his eye, calling to a downy chick poking an insect with a stick. Saren takes a drink. The autumn breeze sighs as it crosses the long-forsaken yard and swirls through the empty space beside him, melancholy and pensive.

The grove he fled into stands taller now, has crept closer to the house with nobody to remove the growing saplings it's laid down. It's somehow all the gloomier. Electric blue eyeshine glints at him from the shadows, just for a moment, and dark red stains the grass as it drips from glistening teeth. He takes another drink, and when his hand goes down, the eyes are gone.

He hums to himself, watching the kolakoe tree sway in the breeze. It hasn't gotten that much bigger since he was small, but there's a split where a storm carved off a large branch, and there's knotholes where he doesn't remember them. Granted, his vision isn't what it used to be, he can admit that now. A lot of him isn't what it used to be, really. His prosthetic doesn't like the growing cold, either. Crawling into bed under the heavy covers and pressing up against Nihlus's bulk in an hour or two will feel all but divine.

The wind tickles his cowl again, and this time it sings a lullaby with his mother's soft coo. Maybe it's time for bed.

He doesn't stand just yet, watching the unkempt prairie grass undulate in the breeze. Desolas doesn't like coming back here, too many memories, but Saren finds comfort in it. The house missed him, he thinks, and will welcome its son returning after all these years, now with a husband of his own. At some point, he and Nihlus will have been there long enough the dead won't be lonely, the yard will no longer be overgrown, and his brother can come home again.

24. Tender - Desolas Arterius, Valis Abrudas (Desabrudas)

They call him a Titan.

That's the only thing he could be, they all seem to think, something greater than a man who strides across the stars with power and charisma enough to make lesser beings pine for his favor. Countless separatists and rebels and enemy aliens fall before him, command coming almost effortlessly, like the tactics and leadership elder generals spend decades honing are written into his soul. His men adore him. His superiors envy him. He is the Titan of War, come down among mortals to remind them of what makes them turian.

To Valis, though, there is no Titan, no almighty higher power sharing his strength with the army for his own ineffable reasons. There's only Desolas, her friend, her lover, her own personal pest she stopped trying to get rid of ages ago. And Desolas is only a man.

But, she supposes as she sinks down between his knees and lets him hold her face so very gently in his long, ragged talons as she takes him between her jaws, maybe the man is worthy of such devotion, too.

The hastatim honed him into a weapon, something violent and hard and sharp, but he's nothing but soft with her, cupping her face in his hands and pressing the most delicate of kisses to her head, and that's its own form of grace, she thinks. This great, dangerous Titan, crafted solely for war, ignores all the praise and worship from his men, his superiors, his public, and instead has eyes only for her, and holds her in an embrace that yearns for peace.

Sometimes, when he's asleep in her arms and the glorious divinity has left him to lie as only a man once more, she thinks about the future, what the universe might hold for a man their people think a god. Is it selfish of her, she wonders, to want to take him away from his adoring worshippers, to hide him away in some peaceful home where he can hang up the mantle of godhood for good? To scrape away the clinging dark of war, to make him into something for her and her alone? They've discussed kids before, late at night in the quiet spaces where they can be Desolas and Valis again instead of Colonel Arterius and Major Abrudas, and she wonders what kind of sacrilege it might be to want to bear the chicks of such a man, or if it would instead be simply the highest form of devotion she could show.

If he is a Titan, she decides, then let her be his paladin, his priest, his most devoted of followers, and let the unholy things they do when nobody else is looking be the most beautiful and sacred acts of all.

[aamusedly]

@cheatdeaths continued from HERE.

The sound of heavy metal feet hitting the floor was nearly deafening the closer it got. Garrus was ready to make a leap for further cover when he saw the flash on his visor and heard a hum of servos losing power.

There was his shot.

Garrus' first move was to deposit a grenade under the feet of the YMIR-- if it did come back online, this would cripple it-- and the shrapnel would hopefully keep the LOKI mechs distracted for him to break for better cover.

Sniper rifle down, combat rifle out. The Turian bolted and shot, a few well aimed rounds taking off one of the machine's heads and another to the next's firing arm. The firefight was short but brutal, just the way Garrus liked it.

He looked down to smoking impacts in his armor-- none pierced fully, but he was likely bleeding a bit underneath. Worth it, because his path was clear to the alleged hostage room. Still Garrus didn't bolt for it, instead he went to his visor and eyed his path backwards. "I'm heading back to cover you."

[lilmissnatcat24]

Turn Left Ch 22- (don't be suspicious, don't be suspicious)

Shepard and Garrus dive into the OSDs of Fist and Barla Von to create a new plan of action. Archangel just can't help himself.

CW: alcoholism

Relationship: Femshep/Garrus Vakarian

Archive Warnings in author's note

Additional tags: enemies to friends to lovers, slow burn, slow build, alternate universe- canon divergence, detective noir, sex club, anonymous sex, canon temporary character death, murder mystery, drug use, dom garrus vakarian, whump, smut, heavy angst, alien sex, dual pov, an overly sexual elcor named candy, earthborn, ruthless, fake/pretend relationship, dead dove: do not eat, identity porn, minor character death

Detective AU mixed with identity porn mixed with so much whump my fingers are bleeding

(or, start from the beginning here)

lil text blurb:

“I hate these fucking things,” Garrus muttered under his breath, toying with the cowl of his suit. He wasn’t used to formal wear. He could count on his fingers the times he had to dress up so ostentatiously-- and mind you, he only had six. His cape kept getting caught between his legs, the flowing fabric around his carapace was itchy, the tight squeeze around his waist made him feel like he was being ogled by just about every turian he passed. 

“Nah, you don’t,” Chellick snorted next to him, already three drinks deep before the event even began. Garrus wished he could join him-- he normally spent these stupid public galas either so drunk he couldn’t remember it the next morning, or in some storage closet with a turian woman bent over and his hands covering her mouth from yelling out too loud. “You’re preening for your girl, don’t deny it.” 

“I am not preening ,” Garrus snapped. He wasn’t a teenager anymore, he hadn’t preened his neck at a woman in years. 

“Then care to explain why you’re dislocating your neck every five seconds waiting for that Shepard woman to show up?” 

Garrus just grumbled at that. He was busy scanning the crowds because he was waiting for any sign of Benezia or her daughter Liara. They devised a plan a week ago that they would take the gala as the best opportunity to strike on the doctor. It was perfect; she couldn’t run away, there was so much going on that no one would even notice two C-Sec officers talking to a pretty, young asari, and her mother would likely be so busy with all of the politicians and dignitaries and who-the-fuck-else was even there that she wouldn’t be able to keep her eyes on her. 

“Why didn’t you two show up together, anyways? Trouble in paradise?” Chellick asked with an obnoxious shove of his elbow into Garrus’s side. 

“No,” Garrus said testily. The truth was that Shepard offered for Garrus to come over to her apartment while she got ready, but Garrus declined. Something about knowing that Shepard would be naked in just the room over, putting the paint on her face and tossling her fringe, made Garrus have the distinct fear that he would hardly be able to control himself. It was hard enough keeping his plates in place while they sat on the couch in Wrex’s safehouse, but being cramped in one tiny studio with her clothes strewn about the floor and her scent overwhelming his senses? “She wanted to get ready with Elyria.” 

“Does your girlfriend know you’re still fucking that human at the sex club, or is that actually Shepard I’m smelling on you?” 

“Chellick, I wish you didn’t say the things you say.” 

[diaphanouso]

📓

Unwritten fic plot ideas:

I'll go ahead and talk about the It's a Wonderful Life idea bc 1) I write a fluff xmas fic every year and maybe this year I'll finally do this one, who knows and 2) the description in my ideas spreadsheet makes me laugh:

[Image text: WIPS Fluffy Holiday Fic Exchange

AU It's a Wonderful Life, Shepard gets a glimpse of what the galaxy would be like without her in it (spoiler: bad), Conrad Verner is the guy]

Something something every time a merc drops dead, an Archangel gets his wings idk

I wrote the premise like, two years ago and looking at it now, I had no clue what the Conrad thing was supposed to mean 😂 But! Thanks to @dwarrowdams' deductions, I now realize I meant for Conrad to be the analog of Clarence, the angel who shows the protagonist the alternate reality without him.

But buried in my Google docs, there's a more fun, crack version of this idea:

EDI runs simulations of what the galaxy would look like if each member of the crew had never been born and then hands them VR goggles/visors. Shepard's like, "Ok wow, pretty morbid, EDI. Besides, we already know what things are like without me" <pointed but loving look at Garrus>

EDI's like, "Yes, but sometimes organics better appreciate their current circumstances when they see the alternative, the 'what could have been'."

Joker goes, "By 'sometimes' do you mean in those old movies" and then he's like, "How much do you want to bet that Shepard just sees a black screen bc the galaxy would be just a void if not for her"

Anyway, they all put on the goggles and then it's a series of vignettes showing what each crew member's seeing. The scenarios are all very silly and fun since EDI decided to show them the most entertaining simulation outputs.

At some point she tells Shepard that in 90% of her crew's simulations, Shepard failed or otherwise didn't make it, implying that even if the galaxy breaks without Shepard, she can't save it without her crew 🥹

That's all I've got for that one at the moment!

[dulcidyne]

Rating: M/Explicit (NSFW) Fandom: Mass Effect, Femshep x Garrus Additional Tags: Mature, Strangers to Lovers, Pre-ME2 AU Summary:

Omega: a hulking carrion bird of rock and vice picking at the bones of the foolish and the desperate. Feared throughout the Terminus Systems, Shepard is neither, but with colonists disappearing at an increasing rate across the forgotten fringe of the galaxy, she is forced to return.

Reuniting with Archangel, together they infiltrate Omega’s most exclusive casino and burlesque nightclub to investigate the ominous new connections between the slaver Kron Harga and the mysterious Collectors. But can their tenuous partnership, burgeoning feelings, and Shepard’s humanity withstand Omega’s ruthless ultimatums?

His left arm below the elbow was done for. Sidonis knew it… and the way Red was looking at him, she knew it too.

“Just get it over with,” he grunted.

In Council space, they’d grow him a new one in months, but this was Omega and the clinic doctors didn’t have vats of protein slurries, acellular grafts, and stem cells. So it wasn’t just done for, it was done for—for good. 

He tried to tell himself he didn’t mind. Wasn’t his dominant hand, even.

Red hesitated, not moving her hands from the strips of fabric she’d twisted around his elbow into a makeshift tourniquet. She had to keep it cinched tight, but her fingers kept slipping. Too much blood. 

“They might save it if we get you to a clinic.”

Sidonis clenched his teeth, thumping the side of his fringe against the fake leather of the skycar’s backseat. Maybe. But that would take time they didn’t have. He shook his head. 

“Not worth the risk. There’s barely–” a rasping cough shook through him and by the time it subsided, his breath was in blood-smeared tatters. “Barely… anything left to save.”

Read on Ao3

[dwarrowdams]

First Fic Lines

Rules: post the first sentence of your last ten fics. If you haven’t written ten fics, share as many first-sentences as you have.

Was tagged by the wonderful @dulcidyne; I'm tagging @camelliagwerm, @diaphanouso, and anyone else who wishes to play!

Measurements (Shakarian AU where Shep is a fashion designer)

Liv pulled a face as she heard her comm device ping.

2. Bathed in Starlight (ME2, part of canon series)

Liv had never been particularly fond of planning dates, but doing so when your partner was from a completely different species made the whole process more exciting. 

3. Stimulate (ME2, part of canon series, somewhat canon divergent)

Garrus had just returned to his quarters when his comm device pinged with a message from Liv. 

4. Dirty and Clinical (ME2, part of canon series, expansion on canon scene, somewhat canon divergent)

Liv walked towards the main battery room, careful to keep a neutral expression on her face.

5. Re-Ignite (ME2, part of canon series, expansion on canon scene)

Liv had worried that dying would’ve fucked with her sex drive, but the more time she spent with Garrus, the more time she realized that everything was in working order.

6. (you're) everything that feels like home to me (early-ish ME2, part of canon series)

Liv walked into the main battery room, tablet tucked firmly under her arm.

7. Under Your Scars (ME2, post-Archangel mission, part of canon series)

Liv had been waiting in the comm room since her return to the ship.

8. i'm coming home (to breathe again) (ME2, Archangel mission, part of canon series)

Liv still couldn’t believe that Garrus was actually here.

9. Suggestion (post-ME1, part of canon series, canon divergent)

Liv was done waiting around.

10. Caress (ME1, part of canon series)

Garrus was sorting out his ammo when he heard the elevator ding.

[misseffect]

66%. If your character had to choose one friend they've valued over all others, who would it be?

hi!!!!! thank you for the ask 💕

F1 AU Shep and Garrus would absolutely pick each other, and it's such an obvious choice that it feels like cheating so:

Shep

Ash. She's like the sister Shepard never had and Shepard is an honorary member of the Williams clan.

Ash is honest, capable, and cares so much about the people close to her, which I think Shepard really values. She's a great sounding board and an excellent person to have in your camp in a cutthroat sport.

I've got a throwaway line about Shepard anonymously paying off the Williams sisters' tuition every time one of them graduates, which I can't wait to find a use for.

Garrus

Tricky one - it's a toss-up between Tali and Sidonis.

His relationship with Tali is based on a strong foundation of incomprehensible arguments about engineering, and I think they get along for a lot of the same reasons Shep and Ash do: honesty, loyalty, and mutual competence.

Garrus and Sidonis were teammates in Formula 2 and Garrus gets him a drive at Archangel. I haven't thought much about the specifics yet, but I like Sidonis as this chronically serious dude who has to be goaded into loosening up (by Garrus of all people).

After Garrus's season-ending crash, Sidonis hands over info that incriminates the rest of the team in the mechanical failure that made the accident so serious, and I think that's the betrayal-equivalent for this AU. They patch up their relationship a few years later, though.

Send me phone battery asks!

[kalliesa]

I'm intrigued by 'Regarding Red!"

Thank you so much for the ask! 😊

"Regarding Red" is my first fanfic. Why I decided to do a really long one first is beyond me.

An AU about Shepard being taken from Cerberus by Aria before she was done healing; amnesia ensues. She works for Aria under the name "Red," and has run ins with various Omega citizens including Archangel and his team. Garrus is deep in grief and in denial that he's in love with Shepard, and now has feelings for Red as well, who is not very 'Shepard-like'. It's a love triangle with 3 people 😅

“They call her Red,” Vortash broke the silence and Garrus almost jumped, worried that he’d spoken his thoughts out loud, “A human. No one knows where she came from, but Aria values her. Everyone agrees she is more than what she seems. Efficient, dependable, and deadly. Military special forces, most likely.”

“What does that mean?” Grundan asked.

Weaver opened her mouth to answer but Garrus beat her to it, “Alliance special forces. Graduates of their Interplanetary Combatives Training program. Candidates spend seven grueling years and graduate as N7 Operatives, one of the most coveted titles in the Alliance Military. In twenty years, there have only been 150 N7s. Most fail out, some die.”

His crew stared at him as if he had rachni coming out of his aural canals.

Huge shout-out to @miceenscene who so graciously allowed me to expand on a gorgeous one shot she wrote that inspired me. 💜