This is actually just a section of a larger fic I have been working on that focuses on the days before Normandy’s shakedown. I was trying to get it done over the weekend, but you know how it is, lol. Tara and Kaidan’s first meeting, from Kaidan’s POV. Hope you enjoy!!
The door slid open and Captain Anderson strolled in. Kaidan jumped to attention with everyone else in the room. Anderson was flanked by a tall, serious-looking young woman with bright red hair and an immaculate uniform. Like the captain, she exuded total confidence and authority. Kaidan straightened taller as her gaze swept over the room, pausing as she looked his way. It was almost as if she was looking for something—although what Kaidan couldn't even guess. Whatever it was, though, the assembled crew seemed to meet her approval. She nodded to herself, and looked at the captain expectantly.
"At ease," Anderson called, waiting until everyone had settled again. "Good morning, everyone. This shouldn't take very long, so don't get too comfortable. We're going to be doing a couple of milk runs before our shakedown cruise on Wednesday. Today we'll be heading to Luna to test out our weapons systems and the IES. We'll be leaving at 0800, so we should get there about 1400 this afternoon. I hand-picked this crew because you all are the best the Alliance has to offer. I expect you all to take this seriously. Do I make myself clear?" He paused, looking around at them all as they replied in the affirmative. "Good. Go to your duty stations and prepare for takeoff. Shepard, Alenko, wait. I need to speak with you both.
Kaidan watched as the rest of the crew filed off dutifully. Nevertheless, their curious eyes lingered on Kaidan standing there awkwardly, Being asked to stay back with the captain and XO almost felt like being called to the principal's office as a kid. Even when you weren't in trouble, you couldn't help but wonder if you'd done something wrong.
"Lieutenant," Anderson said, clapping Kaidan on the shoulder in a friendly manner, dispelling his concerns. "You've already met the rest of the officers. I apologize for waiting until the last minute, but Commander Shepard only got back from an N7 assignment last night." Kaidan glanced over at her, and she flashed him a tentative, awkward half-smile.
Anderson pushed on, seemingly unaware of her reaction. "Commander, this is Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko from the Cairo. He'll head up our marine detail aboard Normandy. Alenko, you'll report directly to Shepard about any issues we have with our marines, got it?"
"Yes, sir," Kaidan said, saluting. As Anderson headed up to the bridge, he offered his hand to Shepard "It's good to finally meet you, Commander."
"Likewise, Lieutenant. I look forward to working together." She clasped his hand in a firm grip, and Kaidan met her gaze. An unbidden thought crossed his mind: Shepard is really pretty. Up close, the posters and vids didn't do her justice. Kaidan quashed that line of thought down as quickly as it cropped up. Getting a crush on his commanding officer was definitely a complication he didn't need on the first day of a new assignment.
"Yeah, me too," Kaidan replied. Shepard smiled at him again, more relaxed this time, and Kaidan's stomach swooped like someone had turned the artificial gravity off. Shit. "The Normandy is nice. I don't think I've ever served on a brand-new ship before." He coughed, feeling his face grow warm. One smile from a good-looking woman and he felt like an awkward seventeen-year-old. Luckily, Shepard didn't seem to notice.
He really hoped she hadn't noticed.
As soon as Shepard opened her mouth to respond, the pilot's voice echoed over the intercom and cut her off with impeccable timing.
"All right, everyone. Final preparations for takeoff are complete. As soon as Arcturus clears us, we'll be leaving the barn on a course for Luna. Everyone strap in."
"We should go," she said. "There'll be time for us to talk more later, Lieutenant."
"Of course, ma'am. I look forward to it." He watched her head towards the CIC; she quickened her pace when the engines kicked in, giving the deck a subliminal vibration. He checked the time—0800 exactly—as he made his way to his station and strapped in for takeoff.
Jenkins gave him a funny look as he settled in his seat and leaned his head against the back of his chair. "Seems like you've cheered up a bit, sir."
Kaidan looked over at his friend and couldn't help but let a grin steal across his face. "It's nothing, Jenkins. You're right; I'm excited. I think this assignment is going to be fantastic."
🛸 Incoming Transmission from the Normandy’s Comms Room...
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This took me 3 hours, thanks to the patience of my eldest daughter who can create absolute masterpieces with Ibis Paint. I have managed to do this.
Inspired by a scene from my main series:
Kaidan sat down beside her, holding the bracelet out to her, his fingers lightly brushing against hers as he placed it in her hand. "I wanted to give you something you could actually wear,” he continued. “I know fancy jewellery isn't really your style, and I thought this would be something... simpler. Something more you."
She looked down at the bracelet in her hand, her thumb brushing over the soft, braided rope. The delicate infinity symbol glinted in the light, and she felt a surge of emotion rise up within her.
Kaidan watched her closely, his eyes filled with a quiet intensity. “The strands of the bracelet alone are weak, Shepard. But woven together, they’re strong—strong enough to withstand just about anything.”
Shepard looked up at him, her eyes searching his as he spoke. Kaidan continued, “I wanted you to have this—something you could wear every day, something to remind you of us. If you ever start to feel like you’re slipping, like you’re lost… All you need to do is look down or feel the bracelet. Remember that we’re stronger together. That you’re not alone, and that my love for you is infinite.”
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. She felt the sincerity in his words, the depth of his feelings, and it touched her in a way she hadn’t expected. In a universe filled with uncertainty, he was her one constant, the one thing she could always rely on.
“It’s perfect,” Shepard whispered. She lifted her trembling left hand, handing the bracelet back to him with a small smile. “Help me put it on?”
Kaidan returned her smile, a look of tenderness crossing his face as he took the bracelet and carefully secured it around her wrist. He tied it with gentle precision, his fingers lingering for a moment on her skin as if to reinforce the strength of their bond. Once he was satisfied that the bracelet was fastened securely, he tugged on it lightly to make sure it was snug but comfortable. Then, in a soft, affectionate gesture, he leaned down and pressed a kiss against the inside of her wrist, his lips warm against her skin. The simple touch sent a comforting shiver through her, a spark that ran up her arm and settled within her chest.
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Come take a look–you’ll find something to keep you up past bedtime.
“You ever think about the future?” he asks as everything burns around them but they stubbornly make steak sandwiches and bring them along with a bottle of wine to the couch because they are still alive.
She nods. “It’s known to happen, yeah.”
“Yeah? Am I in it?”
“Kaidan.” Her grin is toothy and wide, completely irresistible in that way she’s always been to him. “Come on, all I see when I think about the future is an indefinitely extended shore leave with you. You know that.”
“Mmmh?” He does know that and it’s a warmth at the center of his chest; he’ll never tire of hearing her say it and he will indulge. “I need details.”
“Details, huh?” She’s leaning closer, straddling him where he sits and gives him a slow kiss. Way back when he still hadn’t kissed her, hadn’t even touched her but thought of little else, he used to think she’d kiss like she fights - like a punch or an oncoming storm - but she’s slow and soft and sensual and she looks at him like he’s never seen her look at anyone else. “Well, how about the two of us alone like this. Lots of really nice food - I’m never having ration bars again if I survive this. You could grow a beard, I could grow an ass.”
Kaidan chuckles, running a hand over her back, all the hard planes of her soldier body. “I like the sound of that.”
Sometimes, the mere image of it is too much, even for a fantasy. Shepard, untouched by war for the first time since they met, walking beside him at a beach somewhere. Her face marked by the outdoors, her sharp lines dissolved, the violence in their bodies finally coming to rest.
“You know-” she begins, but pauses herself; he can see a glint of pain in her gaze though she smiles through it, pushing hard against those shadows. That’s how they speak these days, in half-sentences and a lot of spaces between words. That's what extinction does to your language but he doesn’t want to think about that right now, doesn’t want to parse through broken syntax or unfinished forevers.
“I know,” he says, simply; there is nothing more to say.
((I cannot with how soft she looks here. Soft babies.))
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 15/?
Fandom: Mass Effect Trilogy, Mass Effect - All Media Types
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Relationships: Thane Krios/Female Shepard, Background Tali'Zorah nar Rayya/Miranda Lawson
Characters: Female Shepard (Mass Effect), Thane Krios, Irikah Krios, Garrus Vakarian, Miranda Lawson, Mordin Solus, Tali'Zorah nar Rayya, Jeff "Joker" Moreau
Additional Tags: Slow Burn, Thane Krios Lives, Thane Lives
Summary:
"Mordin is the most celebrated geneticist and doctor in the galaxy, and Miranda brought me back to life from scraps. What makes you think there's any good reason that you have to die?"
"Celebrated? Perhaps. Krogan would argue notorious," Mordin interjects. Miranda crosses her arms, looking Thane dead in the eye.
When they put it like that, it's difficult to argue.
-
thane doesn't have to die, so shepard doesn't let him.
Following the @wickedwitchofthewilds Kinktober Prompts! But out of order, because I enjoy innocent acts of rebellion.
Rating: Explicit
Fandom: Mass Effect Andromeda
Pairing: Evfra de Tershaav / Sara Ryder
Today’s kink: Eating out!
Summary:
There’s something uniquely exciting about sitting on surfaces you are not supposed to sit on. The meeting room’s table, the top of the Nomad while Gil curses, the stacks of crates on the cargo bay, kitchen counters.
