#tbms:wre

It’s time for a SNIPPET... WEDNESDAY because I missed WIP Weekend and... I already typed this out before I realised WIP WEDNESDAY alliterates and everyone knows the delete key is for cowards

Anyways here we go, this little bit is from Chapter Seven of TBMS:WRE which is my long-ass #Shoker fic that I never shut the fuck up about. You can find it on Ao3 or FFnet but Ao3 has better formatting. :

Was the hallway here always this long? Shepard wondered, a little out of breath on the way up to the helm. She paused for a moment, making a point of looking at one of the displays. As she drew closer, she could see the familiar bill of Joker’s cap peek out from the chair. She came to a stop just behind the cockpit’s threshold and cleared her throat. “Sorry I’m late for my post-mission visit.”

“Commander, hey,” he answered, turning the chair to face her. She saw his eyes flick to the crutches, then the cast, then back up. “So, EDI and I were discussing the finer points of what makes a good movie,” he said. “See, I think budget and box office stuff is kinda irrelevant, but EDI insists it’s about metrics and correlation. Wanna weigh in?”

“Hmm,” she thought aloud. “I guess it depends on your definition of what a good film is. If you’re there for the art, then you’re right. How much money it made doesn’t matter. But if you’re judging how good they are as money-making ventures, then statistics are all that matters.”

“Trust you to be all diplomatic about it. Come on, pick a side! Where’s your passion for the arts?” He lifted his hands in feigned offense. She laughed. It felt good to talk about something that didn’t matter, for a change.

“Some of my favourites are box office bombs,” she said, and leaned heavily on one crutch, shifting how she was holding her injured leg.

“Yeah? You’ll have to tell me about them, sometime.”

“I would right now, but as it is, I just came up to say hello. It’s likely I’ll be resting up until right before we get to Tarith, and I wanted to see you first.” She watched him fidget with his cap, looking at a monitor off to his side.

“Yeah, Tarith. What a lovely little ball of rock that looks to be. Why aren’t any of these assignments ever on gorgeous sunny planets with white sand and beaches?” he lamented. “You know, somewhere you could land and go blow stuff up, and I could go drink something blue with a… space lemon in it, or something.”

“Some of them are on worlds like that. But you’d never set foot off this ship unless you were dragged off,” she said with a smirk and a sideways glance.

“Yeah, well, I could be convinced you know.” He shrugged.

“Tell you what, next time we’re orbiting some place with a decent surface temperature and an atmosphere not made up of methane, I’ll give us all a day’s shore leave and you can go live it up.”

“You, ah, you’re planning on going to the Citadel at some point to speak with Anderson again, aren’t you?” he asked, glancing off to his left. Shepard blinked with mild surprise.

“I’d put that on the back-burner some time ago,” she admitted, following his gaze out the window. “I do have some things to discuss with him, and I imagine the Council would love nothing more than to blow some hot air in my face about something.”

“Yeah, their favourite thing seems to be wasting your time. Well, I was thinking. When you take care of your business there, you wanna go someplace?” he asked. Shepard turned away from the stars and focused on him, noticing his fingers drumming on the armrest. “You know, for dinner or something? Nothing fancy. In fact, the less fancy the better.”

“I’d really enjoy that,” she said, giving him a warm smile. “And who knows… Maybe the Council will have good news for me this time.”

“Wow, you said that whole thing with a straight face. Nice job. So… Serpent Nebula? Or am I staying on course?”

“I think it’s about time. Give this a chance to patch up. Serpent Nebula.”

Thanks for tagging me, @rpgwrites! This time, on Everybody Loves RayGrunt, Bailie has a chat with her favourite scaly son. This is of course, as ever, an excerpt from TBMS.

“What was all that about?” Shepard asked, looking up over her hand of cards towards Grunt, still standing up. “It is an old custom. All settled.” Grunt said, and nodded as he returned to his cards. “I want a two,” he added. “Go fish,” she replied. “An old custom? You’re a lot more observant of krogan traditions, lately.” “Yes. I am pure krogan, I should embody the spirit of my people,” he said with an emphatic nod before his shoulders drooped, deflating a little. “This is not as fun as poker.” “Oh, I don’t know about that,” she said, watching him pick another card from the pile. “Gimme a ten?” “Find a fish,” he said. “When can you hit things again?” “About a week or two after the doctor puts a brace on.” “You know,” he said, focusing with one eye down at her leg, “if you were a krogan, I would break the other one and take the ship.” “You’re welcome to try, krogan or not,” she said as she met his eye. “Five?” She asked. He grinned and passed her a card. “Ask again.” “Three?” “Find a fish,” he said. “I want to go to the Citadel, too,” he said, with his gaze on her cast again. “I should go with you when we dock.” “I’m sure I’ll be fine,” she said and smiled at him. “I’m going to go and speak to the Council. It’s nothing I haven’t done before.” Grunt shifted in discomfort and scratched at a plate on his head. “Mm, yes. You are most fearsome, and I am proud to call you my Battlemaster,” he said, flaring his nostrils as he let out a deep breath. “But?” She asked and collected the cards together in a pile, having sensed the game was over. He pointed toward her leg. “You are weak. You are urgaha; a leader in a state of healing. You can’t look after yourself. This will be better soon, but it is not better yet. When you go out this time, you have to look after two people. I don’t think you can.”

Using her good leg, Shepard lunged forward, catching Grunt off guard as her braced elbow pressed against his throat. “I still have a few tricks up my sleeve,” she said, leaning her body weight forward until he let out a noise. He tapped the floor with the heel of his palm as a signal for her to let up. “You see?” She asked, with a reassuring smile. He didn’t look appeased though, and Shepard looked down to see Grunt’s claws clamped around her cast. He mimed crushing it, and his broad face wore a frown. His big slitted blue eyes blinked in a gesture of deference and Shepard had to mask how much his concern touched her. His worry was simpler somehow. It didn’t come from an actual loss of confidence in her, nor from any real desire to take over himself, nor arrogance and thinking he knew better. It only came out of what Grunt could see and understand.

Stolen from @vampirepunx I’m just gonna answer these straight up because fack it Sol System - What is your Shepard’s class, background, military history?

Bailie Shepard is an Infiltrator, she is Earthborn, and a Sole Survivor.

Earth - Where was your Shepard born?

She was born in Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island, BC, Canada.

Milky Way - What is your Shepard’s full name? Do they have a nickname?

Bailie Eileen Shepard: during her stint in groundschool she obtained the callsign “Dealer’s Choice” after winning 6 games in a row of Blackjack.

Constellation - Does your Shepard have a family? Are they alive?

She is the only child of a dead family. She doesn’t know much about them, as her parents died when she was around 9. As a troubled girl, she spent a lot of time being passed from pillar to post in terms of foster families and never really had a concrete sense of safety or belonging.

Nebula - Who is your Shepard’s best friend?

Garrus, and in a certain sense, Joker is as well.

Stars - Who is your Shepard’s LI?

She always had a thing for Joker right from the word go, but figured he just didn’t feel the same. When Kaidan showed interest, she found herself reciprocating.  Bailie had her heart completely broken by Kaidan on Horizon and couldn’t get past the feeling of abandonment. (She then goes on to get with Joker! But if you’re only talking strictly in-game canon... She stays on her own, just holding that torch for him.)

Moon - Did your Shepard have any dreams as a child? (dream job, plans for future etc)

Bailie wanted to be a pilot, and attended Alliance ground school before applying for N7 candidacy.

Sun - Was there a person in your Shepard’s life that changed their view on life/the world?

Two, Bailie’s therapist as a teenager, and her flight instructor (for a few different reasons...)

Dark nebula - Is there something they’d change about their past?

She’s very understanding that the choices she made are what got her where she is today, but she probably would’ve avoided the whole flight instructor Incident if she could have, and Akuze wasn’t very fun.

Dwarf star - When was your Shepard’s first kiss?

She was fifteen. It was some boy she had a fancy for. They hit teeth and it was embarrassing.

Dark energy - Are they a biotic? If yes, how old were they when their powers started to show?

Bailie is not a biotic.

Ion - Does your Shepard have any tech skills? (engineering, hacking etc)

As an Infiltrator, she has the standard skills with that, but is more geared towards stealth than anything else and can be a little inept with hacking. She’s a very tactile person.

Meteor - Does your Shepard have any quirks, strange mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics?

Bailie lines her food up on the plate before she eats it. She leaves the radio or signals broadcasts on when she sleeps because the voices help her feel at ease.

Stardust - What kind of clothes do they usually wear off-duty? (sporty, elegant or specific clothes like sweatpants, jeans etc)Comet - What is your Shepard’s sexuality?

Bailie is a bit of a tomboy, she likes sporty clothing, and comfortable fits that hang a little loose but still show off what she has. She’s bisexual with a relationship preference for men.

Supernova - When did your Shepard decide to join the Alliance? Was there a breaking point in their life that made them to become a soldier?

She was 18 when she enlisted. She went for N7 training a year or two after, when an embarrassing and heartbreaking incident of looking for love in all the wrong places as a troubled teen led to her squadmates changing her callsign from “Dealer’s Choice” to “Teacher’s Choice.” Bailie couldn’t stay, but she wasn’t a quitter - the only way she was going to quit was to quit up.

Black hole - What is your Shepard’s greatest fear?

Drowning/asphyxia

Star cluster - Does your Shepard have any mental illnesses and if yes, do they visit a therapist or talk to someone about it?

PTSD and a fear of abandonment. She has a need to please through working. She doesn’t see anyone currently. (ME2 era)

Galaxy - Under what circumstances do they find killing to be acceptable or unacceptable?