#not in depth or anything just courtesy warning for the bonus question

[astorythatwritesitself]

Shepard AMA round 3

Thanks to @spookyvalentine for putting these together, this is a ton of fun!

1. How often does Shepard use the omni-blade? - Pretty often. Her fighting style is... weird. Either long distance sniping, or close in with a Charge and jab; especially if cloaked. Either way, it's a favorite!

2. What does the Virmire Survivor think of Shepard? - They were pretty good friends! They shared a spiritual streak, an appreciation for the wonders of space, being legacy recruits; Ash even helped Shepard get back into an appreciation for poetry. They were pretty damn close, and that's what made Horizon cut so deep- especially after Ashley had grown to respect Shepard's commitment to integrating with wider galactic society & soundly shutting down any ideas of 'humanity is special', seeing her with Cerberus was a slap to the face. (They did make up, though.)

3. Top three comfort movies: The Blasto series, a 4-hour documentary on Earth's ocean life, and The Princess Bride. (I'm convinced that one'll make it xD)

4. How many languages can they speak (without the translator)? - Adrian made it a point to understand and be mildly proficient in the most commonly used asari, salarian & turian dialects as she was growing up- not great, but she can make herself understood. Additionally, her upbringing & constant moving around has left her with a passing understanding of several other Citadel races' languages- can't speak half of them, but she can understand like, basic directions and the like. (As well as an enormous amount of profanity)

5. Does Shepard keep a log/journal? - She keeps a basic log of events, considering her role, but she also started keeping a personal little scrapbook when she was around ten or so. (Against all odds, it outlived her.)

6. What kind of driver is Shepard? - Adventurous. This is not a compliment, nor necessarily a criticism. (Tali actually wound up taking over a lot of the Mako driving when there was a more pressing mission, because at least she knew how to stay on task-)

7. Shepard witnesses a petty crime. What is their response? - Honestly? If it's something that's not actively hurting someone else, Adrian just... doesn't really give a shit. She might head the perpetrator off and give a lecture/help depending on the situation.

8. Revenge, or the high road? - 80% high road, 20% revenge is nice, actually.

9. What will always distract them? - Nature. Most ground missions are in fact 90% of Shepard actively reining herself in from wandering off because everything is so fucking pretty, yes even the smog-covered glorified asteroids. Virmire in particular was... interesting. It was so awful- but so beautiful.

10. Does Shepard ascribe to any sort of faith? - She was always vaguely religious, but never ascribed to any particular faith until meeting Thane. There's initially some awkwardness because, while drell polytheism isn't closed, converts- especially alien converts- are really fucking rare; they spent a lot of time with the priests and elders on the Citadel for a while. (Adrian finds herself most drawn to Kalahira, incidentally.)

11. Fondest childhood memory? - 👀 This may be getting a more in-depth write up. Short version for now: The first time she experienced a beach on Earth. (At about 16 years old.)

12. Most embarrassing adult memory? - Getting smashed on ryncol and waking up on the bathroom floor... a second time...

13. What does Shepard choose to do about Gavin Archer? - Never did that DLC.

14. Is Shepard the type to gossip? - She doesn't spread much, but she loves to hear what's going on; Mordin and Joker are her favorites when she needs to get some info.

15. How does Shepard react to Garrus’s Archangel reveal? - Disappointed but not surprised. I usually get Mordin before Garrus & I always imagined he had some info; either way, as soon as she heard rumors that Archangel was a turian, she just... knew. She very much hoped he would try to do something more peaceful, but alas.

16. What was the N7 program like for Shepard? - Grueling- but not as much as it could be for other candidates. She'd been preparing for this pretty much her entire life, and failure wasn't an option- not out of any sense of family pride though, but because like fuck was she going to have gone through all that and not reach N7.

17. Go-to karaoke song? - Birdhouse In Your Soul

18. What choice does Shepard make on Rannoch?  - The details here are fuzzy, all I remember is Legion died but the ultimate outcome was saving everyone possible.

19. Which kind of reaper do they think is the ugliest - ehh... Omen? Honestly, from a purely aesthetic standpoint, she finds the Reapers fascinating!

20. Can they dance? - Yes... in a partnered dance. Solo, she's godawful and thoroughly aware & uncaring of it.

21. What is Shepard’s relationship with Hackett? - Respectful. She appreciates his assistance and faith in her, but they never became particularly close.

22. What’s their alignment? Paragon, renegade, a mix… - Paragade. She strives to take the high road, but sometimes you've just got to sink low and get threatening. (Basically takes the paragon/charm route as often as possible, but will not back away from some impulse & intimidating options if they'll get the job done.)

23. Got any allergies? How bad? - Nothing in particular.

24. When’s their birthday, and how old are they? - Basic bitch who rolls with canon here; April 11th and 29-31 depending on point in the series.

25. Trash talk or potty mouth - Trash talk on the whole; Shepard swearing is usually a sign that things are going really south.

26. What’s their temper like? - A tsunami. A slow build and sneaks up on her, and nasty once it finally hits- on the whole she manages it well enough, though, but sometimes you get a lot of high stress things in a row and throw a merc out a window... (I'm sorry I can only weigh character more than over the top vindictive gamer moves so often xD)

27. What does Shepard think of Bakara? - Amazing, and a fantastic influence for Wrex. They became fast friends on the Normandy, but unfortunately, things got in the way and that's about it :(

28. A reoccurring nightmare: Akuze.

29. Which news correspondant/journalist does Shepard bring on the Normandy? What’s their relationship like? - ... ok I honestly don't remember this aspect well enough to answer xD

30. Who’s got the biggest crush on Shepard? - Barring her actual boyfriend/husband? For some reason I've always figured Miranda kind of has a Thing. (Garrus and Tali are both lightly smitten, but not quite so much.)

31. What kind of relationship do they have with Dr. Chakwas? Which doctor do they bring her on board for 3, and why? - Overall, very close- Chakwas is up there with Anderson in people to turn to when Shepard has an 'I need an adult' moment. She's good for talking over a problem and getting advice, and the two have commiserated over coming from backgrounds that essentially funneled them into their current lives, and how inescapable it can feel. Chakwas 100% came back because it just isn't the Normandy without her.

32. Who has Shepard’s grudging respect? - For a very brief while, The Illusive Man - guy's a dick of massive proportions, but at least he was doing something about the Collectors. And then he proved to be even more of a dick who could fuck all the way off.

33. Reaction to the window over their sr-2 bed - Startled, but liked it in the end. She's not fond of being completely boxed up, and it can be nice when they're docked planetside.

34. Does Shepard want children? - Not particularly, and she recognizes a lot of it comes down to selfishness- most of her life has felt like putting others first. She doesn't want to keep that up, if she ever somehow leaves the Alliance. That said- she named Kolyat her primary beneficiary after her death (and had she lived, with or without Thane, she would have looked out for him if he was receptive). She also does jokingly call Grunt her son, but they've got a more sibling vibe going on.

35. What does Shepard consider their greatest mistake? - Akuze.

There's a reason she stands and fights every thresher maw she encounters- Akuze was a rare time where she directly disobeyed orders, and ran instead of staying to fight.

Logically, she knows she wasn't going to turn the tide when there were multiple maws attacking, trying to fight was a suicide mission; it was an extraordinary circumstance and deemed an acceptable choice. Still- she broke rank and ran, they stayed and fought. They died, she gets commendations and condolences.

37. Does Shepard ever play matchmaker? - Not intentionally- but she is kind of responsible for Tali & Garrus hooking up, as well as Gabby and Ken.

38. A silly daydream: Leaving the Alliance. Building a home near the beach. Maybe switch to becoming a diplomat or negotiator; something where she can still travel the galaxy and do good, but less violent.

39. What kind of media do they consume the most? - Music. Sometimes audio books, movies are a rare treat because it's difficult to get her to sit down for that long.

40. Favorite ice cream flavor - Dark chocolate with cookie crumbles- but there's also a sorbet from some fruit on Kajhe, she will drop damn near everything to get ahold of it when it's in season.

41. If Shepard has a LI, what would they say are a couple of Shepard’s flaws? And strengths? - Thane would say that they're roughly the same things. She's remarkably determined, and works herself to the bone to resolve conflict and unite everyone possible. But she's treading a fine line between hero and martyr, and there's been some heated words where her desire to save everyone clashes with the reality that not everyone can be saved.

42. Are they quick to laugh, or slow to smile? - Very quick to laugh and smile through ME1. Post-Virmire, and especially ME2, she's still quick but they're significantly shallower and fleeting. Joker amps up the wisecracking because for a long while, he's the only one who recognizes just how fucking bad that was.

43. What does it take to earn Shepard’s trust? - Honesty. Hell, even if you're a chronic backstabber jackass, she'll offer you some trust so long as you're upfront about being a jackass.

44. Top three people shepard thinks are hotties: Thane, Aria, Garrus. (Honorable mention to Matriarch Aethyta.)

45. What’s the easiest way to gross them out? - That's a question the galaxy has yet to answer, and may never get.

46. What are some of their favorite combo moves with team members out on the field? - Tali sending out a drone while Shepard Charges in like a freight train! Other fun options involve the other snipers laying some suppressing fire while she cloaks and gets in close.

47. Can they forgive easily, or are they the type to hold a grudge? - 'Forgive' is a strong word. Overall, she tends to let things go once they're done, unless there's repeated bullshit (see: Council).

48. Does Shepard have a good sense of direction - In the wild? Yes. In stations and urban zones? Just dump her in the Backrooms she's never getting out of there.

49. Did they enjoy their party on the Citadel? - Never got that DLC so it never happened :'D

50. What is Shepard’s ending? - Synthesis.

A lifetime spent in service, to the point where even her death comes by giving up her entire being in the hopes that it will save as many as possible- there's no ethical choice here, she hates it but at least it means minimal death or fucking over of free will. (That & I have some light Synthesis headcanons that make it less altering the galaxy's living and more of a trigger command- that the galaxy achieved a point of creating the Crucible & that they have achieved a balanced cyborg situation... it's very rough draft but i'm the weirdo who actually likes the gist of that ending & also wants their Shepard decidedly dead.)

It's also... very motivated by selfishness. She will be gone. No one and nothing can put her back together for another mission, she can be well and truly done.

(But also- ok so weirdly I'm not big on making  'everyone lives' AUs here, but.

I kind of like to imagine Mordin wound up being at least a little right.

That a couple decades down the line, in a galaxy at peace and finally growing instead of just healing, there's a human and a drell who meet in passing. They get to talking about something, and for a moment- just a second- there's something like the echo of a memory in the way one talks, a gesture they make. They're not high profile, either of them, but if a Normandy survivor saw them... well, it might give them pause.)

+1 …got any kinks? ... definitely, but I've never fleshed it out beyond 'oh she's into something' xD Putting some actual thought into it, I do think a certain sort of praise/worship thing would ping something for her. She's deeply uncomfortable about being singled out in public; but in private, with the right person? Might be a different story...

Ok coming back to this as I've been shaking off the rust and familiarizing myself with everything, I'm not sure how they'd pick up on it but: yeah very praise focused sub.