#kaidan and isla

[another-rogue-trevelyan]

Alright, I swear I haven’t abandoned my dragon age fic, it’s coming as soon as school ends I promise.

But in the meantime I’m on a mass effect kick so here’s a possible opening to what is most likely going to become and femshep x kaidan fic

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Earth, 2157

Whatever was happening, Kaidan was sure it wasn’t good.

Nobody had been able to get a clear reading all day, but something was overwhelming the systems. Had that not been argument enough, the summons from Anderson had made it clear as crystal. The Captain approached in his dress blues, a deep-set line of worry fixed in his stony expression.

This was bad.

“Anderson,” Kaidan greeted. “I- Shepard?”

At first, he was sure his eyes were playing tricks on him - long hours in fluorescent lighting, maybe the start of another migraine - but there she was, back in an Alliance issue uniform and shaking hands with James Vega, a hulk of a soldier steadily making his way up the ranks. She turned slowly, a question in her eyes and a brow slightly piqued.

“Kaidan.”

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I’ve been a little MIA with work (almost done!), but thank you so much to everyone who has tagged me! I’ll be back soon!

For WIP Wednesday tomorrow (or whenever) I’m tagging @kemvee @cartadwarfwithaheartofgold @hawkeish @emerald-amidst-gold @a-shakespearean-in-paris @wardenari @kunstpause @noire-pandora @charlatron @musetta3

[maxrev]

Last Line Meme

Tagged by @citadelsushi  Thanks so much! 

A bit more than a line because Isla spoke up and demanded to be heard and I’m all too happy to oblige ;)

Brown eyes, flecks of amber highlighted by the golden glow of the lights in her cabin, gazed into hers. His voice was low, husky, “You’re right. Now isn’t the time. I just…” he looked away, ran a hand over his hair and rubbed his neck. Taking a deep breath, he looked back at her intently, “I can’t lose you. I...I want to see if there’s something more, where it goes. You can be damn sure I’ll be waiting for you. Just, please, be careful...Isla.” Her mind got stuck on the fact he’d used her first name.

Then he’d turned to go and she called out after him, “I will, Kaidan. We’ll have time.”

Oh how wrong she’d been.

Because she’d died.

[another-rogue-trevelyan]

Last Line Monday

Thanks for the tag @kunstpause! I actually have something to share today! I’m cheating a little, but here’s the last paragraph I worked on!

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Shepard looked good. Too good, almost, as he recalled from their last encounter back on Horizon. The brow now raised in suspicion no longer held its scar, nor was her chin marked by its jagged mate. Souvenirs from Akuze, she had told him once - years ago on a day when everything went wrong, when he found her trying to drown herself in cheap beer to keep the guilt of command at bay. Now she looked as though she had been painted by an artist instead of carved by the calloused hands of war.

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Tagging @musetta3 @hawkeish @cartadwarfwithaheartofgold @wardenari @charlatron @kemvee @emerald-amidst-gold @a-shakespearean-in-paris and anyone else interested!

[another-rogue-trevelyan]

“You know you can count on me or any of the crew, Commander.”

[another-rogue-trevelyan]

Shepard is all of us

[another-rogue-trevelyan]

Thank you to everyone who has tagged me in the last month or so! I know I’ve been MIA, but your tags are appreciated and I’ve been holding on to them until I have something to share. The end of the school year is a busy time for me, but expect a lot more updates and tags once summer starts!

I still don’t have much to show, but here’s a little blurb that formed in my head while driving home today. As you can see, I’m deep in Mass Effect feels 😂 (New fic??? Maybe!)

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Commander Shepard was a private person. She offered almost nothing willingly, and so most of what Kaidan knew about her he had learned through observation in the last few months. He knew, for example, that she drank black coffee and cheap beer. She listened to jazz while she cleaned her guns. He couldn’t say what she did on her days off, as he was pretty damn sure he had never seen her take a day off, but he did know that, when passing by her through the tight quarters of the Normandy, she often smelled of ivory soap.

There was one thing, however, that everyone aboard the Normandy knew about Commander Shepard, and that one thing currently had him gripping the mako for dear life - she couldn’t drive for shit.

“Dammit, Commander, slow down!” Kaidan cursed as she launched them into the air. The mako hit the ground hard, slamming them forcefully downward by the shoulder straps. Shepard was white knuckled at the wheel, pedal to the floor as they raced over rocky terrain.

“Do you talk to all of your superiors that way, Lieutenant, or am I just special?”

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Couldn’t waste an opportunity to shit on Shepard’s horrible driving 😂

Tagging back all those who have tagged me in recent weeks and a few more ☺️: @kemvee @charlatron @cartadwarfwithaheartofgold @noire-pandora @musetta3 @emerald-amidst-gold @kunstpause @a-shakespearean-in-paris @hawkeish @wardenari @modernagesomniari @nug-juggler

[another-rogue-trevelyan]

Iconic

[maxrev]

43 for the microfic prompts?

Thank you for the ask! I can’t believe I wrote something lol - follows the rules, I think of no more than 10 sentences. 

Undone

Isla stood just inside her empty cabin. It was a disaster; a day old uniform lay crumpled on the floor, an N7 hoodie and sweatpants tossed aside along with dirty glasses left on the table and datapads covering every available service. Even the bed was a mess, sheets twisted into a ball and the wool blend blanket hanging half off, the corner dragging on the floor. The state of the bed brought a dreamy smile to Isla’s face. Last night, Kaidan had come by, sliding the most recent datapad away from her riveted attention with a gentle smile on his face. Opening her mouth to protest, he’d quickly laid a calloused finger against her lips with a quiet “shhhh.” Commander Shepard…shushed by her Staff Lieutenant. With a wink, he’d turned and poured them both a tumblr of whiskey from her private stash, the bed sinking under his weight as he’d crawled up beside her to help savor the amber liquid. They’d spent the night talking, her head against his chest, his arm comfortable and warm around hers and their fingers intertwined. As far as she was concerned, her bed could remain undone forever just so she could continue to relive those memories. 

For the micro story prompts here. 

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1 and 8 for the OTP asks?

Ooooo, thank you so much! This is for Isla and Kaidan

1. What are things they both find funny? 

They love to binge watch Charlie Chaplin or the Three Stooges movies (Isla loves all kinds of classic movies anyway). They giggle like children and Isla loves to take it a step further and make it a silly pajama night complete with out of the ordinary junk food. Sometimes, she nails him with a pillow and then the fight is on! Kaidan’s just happy as long as she is ♥

8. What were their first impressions of each other?

Kaidan couldn’t get a read on her for the longest time. At first, he thought she didn’t take things seriously, then he thought that was wrong and she took them too seriously. He finally realized she just loved to laugh and have fun but a lot of it was because of her past tragedies and because of the pressure she’s under now. 

Isla thought he was a goodie two-shoes stick in the mud who played by the rules and didn’t know how to have fun. She realized he had a great deal of integrity and that was what made him who he was. There was a reason behind the way he lived his life. He was a good man; thoughtful, kind, honest...and a lot of fun but in a quite, dorky kind of way she came to love. 

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Hey Max! For the OTP asks: 2 and 22 for Isla; 11 and 25 for Knox; and 4 and 15 for Niall, if that's not too many?

Hello friend! So happy you asked and no, never too many  @laelior:)

OTP asks here

Isla: 

2. If they could each describe each other in one sentence, what would it be?

Isla about Kaidan: Kaidan is the calm center in the eye of a storm, very well-grounded and always thoughtful of others. 

Kaidan about Isla: Isla is energetic and loves life, living it to the fullest, always ready to reach out and pull others into her magic. 

22. If their lives were what was originally intended at birth, would they have still fallen in love?

For herself, she knows she would have never left the Canary Islands, happily living her life out there but likes to think somehow, someway, fate would have intervened to bring them together, regardless of how far apart they were or how different each of their lives would have been. 

Knox: 

11. What causes them to fight? Knox putting himself in danger without telling Kaidan, without a thought as to how he’d feel. Kaidan being overprotective and concerned and always trying to rein Knox back from what he feels he needs to do to protect others (though Knox will deny any such sentiment until his last breath!). 

25. What moves do they know work on the other? heheheh...So, Knox knows Kaidan likes it when he uses his tongue to tease him - pretty much anywhere but there’s this one spot on his inner thigh, near the back of his right knee that just makes him squirm with pleasure. For Knox, when Kaidan touches the crease between thigh and torso, either side, which is very sensitive. He also has a sensitive spot on the left side of his ribs, about in the middle. Kaidan knows just how to use this knowledge to his advantage ;) 

Niall: 

4. What would be their ship name? ummm...Naidan? Kiall? Niadain? Kaidall? oooph, all of those sound really, really BAAAAAD lol

15. What are traits they dislike in one another?  Niall hates being smothered lol. The only reason he tolerates it is because he knows Kaidan has only the best intentions. Still, there are times he puts a stop to it! For Kaidan, Niall’s temper and ability to erupt over the stupidest things, even though he has a quick fuse and it burns out fast. 

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OTP Asks: 5,14, 20, and 31 for ALLLL the OCs. ;)

Thanks for the asks @mallaidhsomo! Love doing these :) 

OTP asks here

5. What activities do they enjoy together?

Knox - once he finally comes around to realizing how much Kaidan means to him, he enjoys just spending time doing simple things like just talking and learning each other. Just being around Kaidan is often enough for Knox. They share views on books they’ve read, work out together, often sparring for practice. 

Isla - She loves watching old black and white movies, particularly the ones where the couple dance (Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire) and sometimes they’ll dance along to the music while watching. They both love to cook and enjoy sharing their different styles/flavors/ethnic foods.

Niall - He’s a very outdoorsy person when he gets the chance. He’s also a photographer. So hiking, swimming, taking photos (esp when Kaidan is his model!). Niall also plays guitar so he plays, hums and sings and Kaidan will often join him in song. They also play video games and Niall is very competitive but mostly in a good way. He likes to bet Kaidan on who will win and loves to win because of the types of things he bets ;)

14. What would be a dealbreaker?

Haha, this was hard because the things they consider such, I can’t see Kaidan ever doing. But, here goes...

Knox - Never agreeing on anything, as in - where to live, things to do together, taking a vacation, eating, etc. Like never, ever. Complete and polar opposites. They’re already pretty opposite (Knox is Renegade - pretty hard core), so to have such differences in a relationship would be too exhausting for him to continue. 

Isla - A complete lack of interest in her or in their relationship as a whole. Never wanting to talk, engage, spend time together. She loves the idea of having a partner in all areas of her life and while important to have separate identities and interests, to even celebrate those and be interested enough to listen if not actually engage in them but overall to be a couple invested in each other. 

Niall - Honesty at all times. Sure, there might be times you keep something from someone to spare their feelings and he gets it but just...tell him and let him handle it. Also, kinda in the same vein, maybe, not addressing issues as they come up. Niall wants all the cards on the table so they can tackle issues as they arise head on with all information at hand for a more informed decision. 

20. What is a promise they have made to each other?

Knox - For him, trying to be more open about what’s going on in his head and for Kaidan, not to be so pushy and more patient while Knox works things out. A promise to meet in the middle regarding their huge differences. 

Isla - Not keep secrets from each other - no special passwords to keep the other one out of their omni-tool (or whatever device). Complete and absolute trust and honesty. 

Niall - To keep surprising each other -- after a long day, after an argument, just because and...after many years of marriage ♥

31. What do they love to do after sex?

Knox - Just hold Kaidan or be held by him, something he never expected to want or be able to do; sometimes a full body massage after a hot shower

Isla - a warm shower and then a long, relaxing bath with bubbles, candles and wine

Niall - snuggling, soft and comforting talks about the future, sleeping

[maxrev]

OC Interview

Thanks @pigeontheoneandonly​​!  I love these kinds of asks!

For Isla Shepard:

name ➔ Ilsa Aoiffe Shepard, Aoiffe was my aunt’s, my father’s younger sister who died young and Isla because I was born in the Canary Islands. 

are you single ➔ It’s complicated. If you really must know, I was not, then I was again and now I’m not really sure. So see...complicated. 

are you happy ➔ Mostly. I have my days but I try to dwell on the positive and not get sucked into the pit of doubt and fear.  

are you angry ➔ I am but I like to think I’ve gotten phenomenally good at burying it where no one can see it. Have a mastered it? I don’t know. Go ask my crew. 

are your parents still married ➔ I honestly think they would be, if they were still alive. 

NINE FACTS

birthplace ➔ In my grandparent’s house in Tenerife in the Canary Islands. 

hair color ➔ Dark brown, almost black but with auburn highlights in the sun. 

eye color ➔ Dark brown. 

birthday ➔ April 11, 2154.

mood ➔ Now? Uh...i don’t know. Okay, I guess. I mean, I’m not sad or angry or frustrated. 

gender ➔ Female

summer or winter ➔ Summer all the way. I mean, you can be outside all the time, doing things like camping, hiking, swimming, snorkeling, sky diving, parasailing, lying on the beach, searching for sea shells, having a bonfire and a picnic, or...oh. Sorry. Got carried away. 

morning or afternoon ➔ If I have plans, I’m up and ready to go. If not, I’ll hit the snooze until it almost is afternoon. 

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

are you in love ➔ Yes. It’s a long story and I’m not in the mood for details. 

do you believe in love at first sight ➔ No. There can be a certain...attraction, which a person can build on. For me, I need time to figure out my feelings, explore a deeper connection. 

who ended your last relationship ➔ Never had a serious relationship before this. 

have you ever broken someone’s heart ➔ Probably. Usually, the parting was mutual as I never had anything long term. There might have been at least one a little less willing to part ways. 

are you afraid of commitments ➔ Wow, would you look at the time. We almost done yet? I have things to do. 

have you hugged someone within the last week? ➔ Of course, more than half my crew. They’re my friends...my family. I do have to be a bit careful with Joker, plus he’s so damn prickly about feelings, you know? 

have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ If I did, how the hell am I supposed to know who it was? 

have you ever broken your own heart? ➔ It really is getting late, isn’t it? 

SIX CHOICES

love or lust ➔ Love. Lust just leads to misery. 

lemonade or iced tea ➔ How about hot tea? Water? Maybe some whiskey? 

cats or dogs ➔ *whispers sadly* Dogs

a few best friends or many regular friends ➔ A few. Nothing can compare to having a few really good people who have your back, who you can just...lay it all out on the line with. The ones who won’t walk away when the shit hits the fan...or stinks worse than any backed up sewer. 

wild night out or romantic night in ➔ Romance is a dying art. Give it to me. 

day or night ➔ Night. Fewer people around and it’s so quiet. I’m actually able to breathe finally and just relax. 

FIVE HAVE YOU EVERS

been caught sneaking out ➔ Do I have some stories... 

fallen down/up the stairs ➔ Don’t you know we have elevators now? Fine. Up. 

wanted something/someone so badly it hurt? ➔ Who hasn’t? 

wanted to disappear ➔ I tried perfecting my magic tricks as a kid. First, to make my little brother disappear. It was just training for what I really wanted, though. Just let it be said, I really did love my mom and dad...and little brother, John.  

FOUR PREFERENCES

smile or eyes ➔ Eyes. “The windows to the soul” 

shorter or taller ➔ I think just about everyone is taller than me anyway. 

intelligence or attraction ➔ So, you’re saying intelligence can’t be part of attraction? You need to rethink your line of questioning. 

hook-up or relationship ➔ I’ve done hook-ups. Highly overrated. Relationships can be tricky and hard to navigate but if it feels right? Well, yeah...

FAMILY

do you and your family get along ➔ (Far away look) Yeah...we did. 

would you say you have a “messed up life” ➔ Depends on your definition. My life isn’t perfect...but it’s mine, which includes all the good and bad along the way. 

have you ever ran away from home ➔ I was eight. Tried to fly across to the house next door and broke my arm. My mom grounded me for a week, my dad snuck me ice cream until she found out. I got bored and tired of being stuck in the house so I tried to run away. I sat on the beach all night and watched the stars, wishing I could be up there, flying through them. I was grounded again when I tried to sneak back in the next morning because I was hungry. Lesson #1, if you run away, pack food. 

have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ My dad’s parents weren’t really happy to have me, so I joined the Navy. Not exactly kicked out but they weren’t sad to see me go. 

FRIENDS

do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔ There are a couple I guess I don’t get along with as well as some. I don’t hate them. We just have differences of opinion. I don’t see a problem with it. We agree to disagree on certain things and enjoy what we do have in common. Sure, we had to work at it. Now, if only the rest of the universe could be more like that. 

do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ I have a couple of really close friends who I would tell every deep, dark secret, share my fears and doubts, love them until it hurt. I don’t fell the same for all of my friends, no. 

who is your best friend ➔ Kaidan. He is so refreshingly...honest. He accepts me for who I am, loves me in spite of myself sometimes. We don’t always agree but what he offers no one else does, is the ability to be able to talk things through. We get...heated...sometimes but it’s natural to need a cooling down period. Once we both have, we can sit and discuss things like the adults we are...or try to be in most cases. I’ve never met anyone like him and I value his views and insights even if I don’t always agree with them. 

who knows everything about you ➔ (laughs) Kaidan. He sees things I don’t necessarily want anyone to see and always try to be just as transparent with me as well. We have an equal give and take even when there are times I don’t want to share my past or what I’m feeling. He shares his to show me it’s okay to open up. 

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About the Muse

I was tagged by @bardofheartdive​ - thank you! Tagging @soldiermom1973​, @pigeontheoneandonly​ and @citadelsushi​

― your muse’s name: Isla Aoiffe Shepard

― one favorite picture / faceclaim of your muse:

― two headcanons you have for your muse:

She has a younger brother, John, who died during the Batarian raid on Mindoir, though his body was never found.    

In boot camp, she received the nickname ‘training wheels’ because she couldn’t get the hang of using her biotics. There were a lot of bruises in that class...to herself and other biotics.

― three things that your muse likes doing in their free time:

When on earth, she goes swimming, snorkeling, diving or paragliding

Watching old movies

Tae Kwon Do

― seven people your muse loves/likes:

Her parents and brother. She thinks about them all the time. 

Kaidan

Thane

David Anderson

Ashley Williams

Tali

Joker

― a phobia your muse has: Claustrophobic due to Batarian raid from hiding in a storm drain near the farm. It was a dark, tight place, cold and wet.

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#8, #9, and #18, please? For the OC Physical Traits Asks.

8: Who is the most physically affectionate?

I went with the LI but also included personal tastes. This got long…sorry!

Fallout:

Alice (Danse) –  Alice absolutely. Danse doesn’t do well with more personal aspects of a relationship. However, considering Alice is very shy herself, it takes a while for them to…well, actually get to that point! Alice herself isn’t adverse to being physically affectionate with friends or lovers (though only two of those!) - just takes time to get to know someone. She loves hugs, high fives, physical teasing like a light punch to the arm or tickling. 

Boone (Nora) – With wife Nora, I’d say it was pretty much equal. They’re the kind of couple where it’s tooth rotting sweetness. With @gaeadene‘s Nora, definitely more on her part. So, Boone himself isn’t really a touch kind of person unless he has a really strong relationship with someone. It’s simply not in his nature to do so and he makes sure other people know that about him right away. 

Mass Effect –

Pirate John (Kaidan) – John. Without a doubt. They have history but Kaidan is definitely more reserved especially after John ‘comes back from the dead.’ As for in general, either or. Not necessarily adverse to it with close friends but…well, just close friends. Otherwise, you might be looking at the pointed end of a dagger. 

Jon (Kaidan) STTW ‘verse – Kaidan. Jon has a lot of scars, physically and emotionally and if it wasn’t for Kaidan’s endless patience, they’d have never gotten anywhere. Jon is very conscious of his scars and therefore, it took him a long time to allow Kaidan to touch him, let alone think Kaidan would even want to. 

Knox (Kaidan) – Again, Kaidan. Knox doesn’t like physical touch and certainly not in front of anyone else. PDA is out of the question. But over time, Knox allows it - behind closed doors.

Isla (Kaidan) – They’re about equal. Isla craves physical touch, having grown up with it in her early life. She’s a Paragade and…well, unlike many of my other OCs. Despite her tragic past, she’s very affectionate, loves to laugh and have fun. Just…don’t get on her bad side. She prefers affection - snuggling, holding hands, massages, watching movies or talking to more passionate endeavors ;)

There is certainly a theme here for the LI   O.o

9: Who is the most adverse to being physically touched?

Just going to go with characters this time. 

Fallout:

Alice – From strangers but not friends. 

Boone – Just about anyone, unless he has a really strong bond with them or there’s instant attraction. 

Mass Effect –

Pirate John – Depends but beware lol

Jon – Don’t touch him. 

Knox – Same as Jon. 

Isla – Not particularly okay with being touched but she doesn’t freak out about it. 

18: What positions does your OC(s) sleep in?

Fallout:

Alice – On her stomach, wrapped around pillows and under blankets. She’s a cocoon lol

Boone – On his side, with one hand curled around his gun. 

Mass Effect –

Pirate John – His back to the wall in the cabin of his ship. 

Jon – He never really sleeps deeply, too many nightmares. No specific position. 

Knox – Same as Jon but for different reasons. If he does happen to really sleep, he’s sprawled across the bed on his stomach. 

Isla – On her right side, one leg straight, the other cocked at a 90 degree angle, one arm wrapped around an old feather pillow that’s been with her forever. 

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WIP Wednesday

Tagged by @citadelsushi Thanks so much!

Tagging @ whoever reads this ;)

I was attempting to write a prompt for October...and failing miserably but this was part of what I had - Isla x Kaidan

“There’s a method to finding the right pumpkin.” He pronounced, clearly feeling like an authority with an extensive knowledge. 

During their ride, he’d shared with Isla his childhood memories of carving pumpkins and placing them throughout the orchard. It was a tradition started with his great grandparents, their children carving pumpkins, placing them amongst the apple trees, getting dressed up in costume and having to perform a trick to get a treat. 

The tradition had long since died out due to hectic schedules and life interfering. Isla thought it sounded amazing and wonderful. Not for the first time, she thought of Kaidan’s childhood here in the orchard. Maybe his whole childhood hadn’t been the stuff of dreams but this part was. 

And so, she found herself arguing with him about the ‘perfect’ pumpkin. Unsurprising, the major even had a method to finding the perfect pumpkin for carving. Isla deferred, thinking he certainly had more experience. 

An hour later, she wasn’t so sure. “What do you mean this one’s not right?” 

“You have to have a round pumpkin - just the right width and height. That one simply won’t work.” 

She held the one she had at arm’s length; It wasn’t round, it was tall and narrow. It was the perfect height for what she wanted to do. 

 “But, I want this one.” She was nothing if not stubborn. 

[maxrev]

OTP songs

Isla Shepard and Kaidan Alenko

Hurts 2B Human  P!nk and Khalid

Will you make it sound so pretty even when it's not? Didn't choose but it's the only one we've got And sometimes I get so tired Of getting tied up in my thoughts  You're the only one that often makes it stop

God, it hurts to be human Without you I'd be losing And someday we'll face the music God, it hurts to be human

But I've got you, you, you, you, you, you, hey And you've got me, me, me, me, too