#kaidan who doesn't know if you're the same man he fought with before

[tommykinard217]

I'm playing mass effect (idk what made my brain wanna do it but why not ya know) and I'm planning on doing a whole series playthrough where my Shepard doesnt romance anyone until me3, where he'll romance Kaidan.

Because yes

[bloodiedbiotic]

Hearing Ashley's laugh allowed Blair to loosen up her posture just a tad more. It had been so long since she heard that laugh that she didn't even realize she missed it. "I mean, I've already had someone attempt to poison me on Omega," she recounts, allowing her arms to drop to her sides and close some of the distance between her and the other woman searching for glasses. "Let's just say, it didn't end well for him." Once Ashley found the glasses, Shepard finally brought herself to the counter's edge and rested her forearms atop the surface, watching as her companion began to pour.

Well, at least it wasn't green.

Of course Ashley was upset. The only people from her former crew who didn't seem to be hurt in some way regarding her revival and Cerberus ties were the non-human members— well, Tali was a bit peeved, but it was hard not to be when dealing with the shitstorm that had occurred on Freedom's Progress. Seeing as she didn't hesitate to down her drink, Blair mirrored her. Tipping her head back, letting it rush down her throat with a satisfying burn before slamming the glass back down on the counter.

"Ashley, I have barely any access to Alliance databases. The most I get is whatever Hackett sends me, and it's usually because I've discovered something myself while out here." Just as quickly as the Operations Chief refilled her glass, Blair was on her heels with the same motions. "Not to mention, I've been getting stonewalled by both Anderson and the Illusive Man." The former had refused to give Blair an inkling of information whilst the latter claimed he couldn't get through the classified files. "I get that you and Kaidan are upset that I haven't been able to get into contact, but it's not like I haven't tried."

Something about her wording was off, though. The kind of whereabouts you'd find through Alliance channels? Well, maybe it did make a bit of sense. The Alliance had no jurisdiction in the Terminus Systems, so seeing not one but two soldiers out in the lawless sector of the galaxy was definitely obscure. Taking her time with her second drink as well, Blair watched her facial expression with curiosity. This was leading somewhere.

Ah, so that was it.

"You're a Spectre?" Shepard didn't even bother trying to hide her surprise. It made sense now; why Ashley's files were so classified when she wasn't even high enough in the ranks to do any work worthy of classification. Brows knitting together, the cogs were beginning to turn in the Commander's head. "I'm not trying to say that you're not worthy of it, because I know you are, but— what made the Council decide to induct you?" Humanity had fought tooth and nail to get their first Spectre and it took the murder of one and incrimination of another for Blair to join the ranks.

"Hold on... your Spectre status — this meeting... it doesn't have anything to do with my resurfacing with Cerberus now, does it?"

Swapped thinking was... right, in some ways. Shepard's death had forced Ashley to be more rational, while Kaidan had become... a little wilder by comparison. Ashley could still be emotional and wild, but she was learning to tame herself, learning to temper her passion and spitfire personality, and use it when it was needed. She still had the passion and sass, but it was careful, guided in a way.

Shepard didn't need to know that what she was doing right now was exactly that, though. Sure, she had orders--but those orders weren't the real reason she'd come. More specifically, they were a convenient excuse, a way for her to do what she wanted while playing within the boundaries of the Alliance, pretending to be the perfect soldier. Right now, she didn't have to pretend. She had... an odd sense of freedom that she'd been granted.

At the mention of drugging her, Ashley snorted and laughed, shaking her head. "Seriously? Drugging you? Come on. If I was going to drug you, I'd at least buy you dinner first." Ashley scrounged around for a couple of glasses, grumbling as she didn't quite know where they were; she'd only rented the damn apartment for a day or two, just for the purposes of their meeting. Finding two suitable glasses, she set them down on the counter, pouring notably from the same bottle of alcohol and not even looking at which glass she picked up. She didn't care; it wasn't drugged, anyway.

"I think my reasons for being upset are a little... different than Kaidan's. I'm not going to hide it and say that I'm not mad. No actually, mad or pissed isn't the right word." Ashley downed her drink, pouring another without so much as blinking. If Blair didn't trust her enough to drink--even though Ashley was downing them without a care in the world--then she'd damn well drink alone. She wanted the conversation more than the drinking, anyway.

"I'm hurt you didn't at least try a little to find me... though, admittedly, my whereabouts are pretty classified these days. Not the kind of whereabouts you'd find through Alliance channels, anyway." It'd only been recent, but the idea was to pretend it hadn't been; her Spectre status was simply 'kept quiet' for a while to see how she'd do. She sipped her drink, leaning forward on the bar as she swirled her glass a little.

"The Alliance doesn't want much to do with me, to absolutely no one's surprise, but the Council decided otherwise. Still technically listed as Operations Chief, but more officially on sabbatical... sort of. At least the Alliance has enough spine to recognize that Spectre status is more important than any work they'll give an NCO. Especially not one they want to give an officer's degree to." She wasn't exactly sure if the news had reached Shepard yet, but if it hadn't, at least she knew now.