𝑨 𝑩𝑹𝑰𝑬𝑭 𝑮𝑹𝑰𝑴𝑨𝑪𝑬 contours usually placid features, nose scrunching with a quick shake of her head. “yeah, i’d actually love it if you didn’t do that at all, so it looks like we’re on the same page.” as much as shepard loves her position, loves her crew and the entirety of this ship, the idea of becoming one of the people she’d so loathed all those years ago sits uncomfortably in her stomach. power corrupts people; she’d rather have respect. another shadow clouds her face and she’s reminded of the disdain, the disappointment in ashley’s gaze before she’d turned and walked away. it’s reflected in jack’s bright, cunning eyes and, for a brief moment, shepard resists the urge to look away. “not my friend,” she finally replies, a thin sheen of ice to her words, “but cerberus and the illusive man have to wait for now. there’s more going on here, things larger at play than all of us.”
unkillable. not quite right, she thinks, she’d died and the vast, dark emptiness had been the only thing she’d known for two years. then there’d been chaos and fire, not warm light or gentle reassurance like in all those stories. monstrous, the word whispers in her mind, perhaps monstrous instead. “well, for right now cerberus seems content to think i’m on their team, and their team has the credits we need for this.” arms fold over her chest and it’s a lazy answer, pathetic but all she can manage right now. “later down the line, maybe then i’ll become a problem.” a pause, a brief hint of a smile. “like you. my favorite people all tend to be problems, i’ve found.”
she puzzles. what kind of fuckin’ ship was shepard running? a circus frigate, if jack’s presence was any indication. freaks have a way of finding one another, she supposes. it remained to be seen, if their current ringmaster was up to the task of containing them. a tall order, where jack was concerned: their headlining act. she gauges the commander’s response, dissecting her with a critical gaze --- old habits die hard. a wild animal doesn’t forget the cold. ❛ 𝚂𝙴𝙴𝙼𝚂 𝙿𝚁𝙴𝚃𝚃𝚈 𝙵𝚁𝙸𝙴𝙽𝙳𝙻𝚈 𝚃𝙾 𝙼𝙴. ❜ she challenges, raising her chin and taunting confrontation. silly little words like ‘reapers’ and ‘collectors’ didn’t mean much to her. maybe all this bullshit was worth making deals with hades dog, but jack will bite the hand that feeds her rather than shake it --- every single time. ❛ 𝚁𝙸𝙶𝙷𝚃! 𝙼𝙰𝚂𝚂 𝙳𝙴𝚂𝚃𝚁𝚄𝙲𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽, 𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙰𝙻𝙻 𝚃𝙷𝙰𝚃 𝙱𝚄𝙻𝙻𝚂𝙷𝙸𝚃. 𝙰𝙱𝙾𝚅𝙴 𝙼𝚈 𝙿𝙰𝚈 𝙶𝚁𝙰𝙳𝙴. ❜ which was precisely dick, by the way.
a problem? now that was a more enticing thought. jack looks her up and down. she wasn’t shaped like a problem. ❛ 𝙿𝙸𝙽𝙺𝚈 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝙼𝙸𝚂𝙴? ❜ her tone borders on patronising, but there’s hope lingering somewhere under there. maybe shepard would surprise her. jack cocks a brow, a wordless: is that so? ❛ 𝙲𝙰𝚁𝙴𝙵𝚄𝙻, 𝚂𝙷𝙴𝙿𝙰𝚁𝙳. 𝚈𝙾𝚄'𝚁𝙴 𝙶𝙾𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝚃𝙾 𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙴 𝙼𝙴 𝙱𝙻𝚄𝚂𝙷. ❜ the flattery is well-aimed, appealing to her most base desire: to cause trouble. she would extend that service free of charge.