#mass effect fanficiton

[nothisis-ridiculous]

WIP

I'm still alive? Probably for like the eightieth time.

Not super edited, and a draft but I wrote something.

"Don't leave me behind-," the biotic whined, barely able to pant out the short few words. Normally, she would mock such a derailment from his usual behavior, Alenko never begged, but this was not a normal time.

As if on cue, another blast ripped her attention away from the shuttle. They needed to get the fuck out of here. No more time for arguing. Shepard had dallied enough; this field was not a place for a tearful goodbye. Mary had already done the goodbyes, and her soldier mindset was beyond tears if the regular Mary allowed herself to cry in the first place. Her gaze swiveled back to the shuttle with a huff, why now Kaidan?

But there was one obvious answer. 

What was the harm in another moment's delay? A last glance over the faces of her crew. Steve's gentle frown as he stole a last glance in her direction, the pilot itched to return to the relative safety of the air and movement. James' hesitation to jump from the shuttle, to join his trainer in the glory of the final push. The Quarian's claws raked across the front of her suit, calling out her name gently. She had to ignore it. Doubling down on that effort when Edi and Liara joined in on the beckoning. Javik remained on duty, watching for anything his rifle could mow down. Garrus' mandibles vibrated as he yanked Kaidan upright and back into the shuttle's hull. 

Mary had never noticed before how many of her crew sported blue eyes.

The faded grin felt foreign as another blast shook her back into the moment, into the smokey battleground filled with the carcasses of organics and machines alike, husks illuminated by the blue light of the beam. Fuck, she needed to hurry.

"You're in no con-" another torrent of sound drowned out her words.

Kaidan's eyebrows drew further up, his latest attempt to lunge forward exposing the pain beneath his physical injuries. Mary reconsidered her words, the beats between the next screech of the laser beams that grew closer to eliminating the sitting duck. Fuck, this really was goodbye. There was no miracle getting her out of this. She had to get her team out of this deathtrap.

Just one thing left to be said, one less regret.

"No matter what happens," she stole a few steps toward the arms that held her just hours earlier, "know that I love you," her voice lowered, almost unheard over the clash of the battle around them. Uttering words she had meant to say for years, but never did it feel like the right time. Now, still, wasn't the right time, but in the twilight of their time together, they begged to slip free or be lost, "Always."

Her hand traced the line of his cheek and jaw, hoping it would leave something worthwhile to fade out on. A salve to push back against the guilt gnawing at her conscious, she was forcing him to break a promise. Hurtling down the path of betrayal as she spoke such pretty words.

His half-laugh rocked through her core, disbelief tied into the bittersweet humor and timing of her timid confession, but still he drank in her touch, burrowing as far as he could to seek the warmth hidden beneath her glove, "I love you, too."

This revelation was nothing new; Kaidan was braver than she deserved. Worlds more patient than he should have endured.  

Mary genuinely smiled despite herself and the thudding of her heart that filled with lead. The moment's elation gave her the strength to pull away from him, from the memory that would cause her to shirk the mission, or worse, allow him to join her. With a heart weighed with resolve, her gaze hardened on Garrus. This was a Commander's order, not the request of a friend, "go."

"Be careful," the voice all rasp and warmth as she fled.

It might seem brave to any outsider that she bolted toward her fate, full attention placed on the path to the beam. Instead it was fear that she did not turn to watch the shuttle depart and a selfish desire that she remembered Kaidan's face etched in gentleness. Not the horror as he realized she would go on without him once again, bringing words he had uttered mere hours ago to fruition. Probably for the last time.

#shenko #mass effect fanficiton #kaidan alenko #fshenko #female shepard #mary shepard #how tumblr?

[fairyreblogs]

every time markiplier says something like “ive seen star wars” “i’ve read fanfiction before” “i watched iron man” i feel like this. i dont know why, i know he’s a human being who can do human things like watch popular movies but something about us having something in common interest-wise leaves me shaking

#this reads like a hate vent post but its really not #i dont know what emotion is going on but like. i dunno. man i dunno #i love mark #he read mass effect 3 fanficiton btw. if anyone care

[rosebud1773]

MerWeek - Day 4 Prompt: Mass Effect + Andromeda AU

2186 - Post Destroy

“The quarian ark is the answer and you know it, Garrus. It’s the only way to save Shepard’s life.” Tali snapped at him as she paced Engineering.

“The Andromeda Initiative left a year ago, Tali. The arks are already gone.” Garrus rumbled quietly as he leaned on the railing staring up at the Normandy’s drive core.

“The quarian ark was delayed, not enough personnel. The Migrant Fleet just can’t spare the people. So, we asked for members of every species, who didn’t have their own ark, to make up the difference.” Tali informed him with a wave of her hand. “The ark will be ready to depart by the end of the week.”

Garrus turned to look at her as he leaned against the railing, bracing his elbows on it. “You know I’ll go with her.”

“No one would expect anything less from you, Garrus. The whole crew knew before we took down the Collector base that you were in love with her.” Tali practically snorted.

“Was it that obvious?” Garrus rumbled as his neck heated up just a fraction.

“Yes... and no. Kasumi was just that nosey.” Tali replied before stopping her pacing before him. She looked up at him then, her glowing eyes locking with his behind her face shield. “The point is, we all know this is goodbye to both of you... if Shepard goes.”

“When she fired the Crucible… it wiped out the Reaper tech… and most of the higher tech with it.” Garrus began thoughtfully. He knew exactly what it had taken to get the Normandy airborne again. It hadn’t been easy and it had taken all of them working together, pulling old led shielded circuitry from first gen eezo weapons to make it work.

“The arks were all outside the Crucible’s blast radius. The red wave never came close.” Tali reassured him.

“Outside the galactic rim?” he asked with a slight frown drawing his brow plates down.

“Right on the border.” Tali confirmed.

*

That conversation felt like a lifetime ago now. The ark’s Sam node said they’d been in stasis for six hundred plus years. They hadn’t reached the Nexus. Instead, the ship hit something Sam was calling the Scourge. The ship hung in it for a time and passive scanners showed signs of other ships passing by.

Eventually the damage to the hull forced the ark to crash land on a frozen world. Pieces of the ark were scattered for kilometers, but the bridge and Sam node remained intact. The same couldn’t be said for most of the sleeper bays. There were pods from one end of the wreckage to the other. Some were still active. Others hadn’t been so lucky.

Garrus trudged toward the frozen horizon hoping the next pod he scanned would be Shepard’s. Sam directed him via his visor interface toward the closest pod at the top of the hill.

I may continue with this idea later on. It definitely has my interest.

Tagging: @danypooh80, @crackinglamb, @crazymammoth, @a-cosmic-elf, @squigglysquidd, @bhell42, @dramaqueenharley, @ferusaurelius and anybody else who wants to read or participate in MERweek2021

#merweek2021 #mass effect trilogy #mass effect garrus #mass effect fanficiton

[ziskandra]

Fic: Shore Leave

Fandom: Mass Effect Trilogy

Title: Shore Leave

Relationship: Kaidan Alenko/Ashley Williams

Summary:

Two years after the destruction of the Normandy, Kaidan and Ashley's paths cross once more.

As it turns out, there's a lot that's been left unsaid between them.

Rating: T

Tags: Grief/Mourning, Alcohol, First Kiss, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Both Kaidan and Ashley survive Virmire

Words: 1505

Excerpt: It’s all this, the muddle of thoughts clouding his mind, that makes him think he’s seeing things when he glimpses a familiar face from across the Presidium that day. They turn, and Kaidan sees brown hair, pulled back into a tight bun. It couldn’t be… could it?

His mouth feels dry.

He almost doesn’t approach her, too scared that she might be an apparition, that this might just be his mind finally spiralling out of control. But the curiosity claws at his skin, tugs at his heartstrings, and it’s as though his feet are moving of their own volition when he makes his approach.

“Ash?” His voice feels like it’s coming from somewhere far, far away.

The figure turns. A familiar brow creases in thought, her lips (why is he looking at her lips), forming a perfect round circle of surprise. “Kaidan?” He doesn’t know what to say in response and finds himself just staring numbly instead. Fortunately, Ashley’s always capable of filling any silences that might linger between them. “I thought I’d never see you again.” Read it here on AO3!

#mass effect #mass effect fanficiton #willenko #kaidan alenko #ashley williams #asha fic #written for rare pairs exchange 2021

[helila]

Lina clicked her nails against the case. She could back out now, simply wish him a good night and end the conversation. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. They would simply remain as they were, friends with tactical benefits.

Still, nothing strictly forbade the two of them from just hanging out, sans weapons. She had just the idea in mind for some laid-back quality time.

“How about” she tapped away “a couple of drinks with your favourite Commander? I know a place.”

Garrus replied faster than she expected.

“Is it a place with 200 yrs old human pop blaring from the speakers?”

“Maybe.”

He replied with a crying emoji.

“Sounds terrible.” Came the follow up. “Give me 1 hr.”

read more of this 100% self-indulgent fic on [Ao3]

#mass effect #shakarian #garrus vakarian #femshep #lina shepard #it is my brain and I pick the self-indulgent fic idea #this was really fun to write but i also cringed after reading it so idk #im making it everyone elses problem too #masseffectfanfic #mass effect fanficiton #ao3

[n0rmandysr1]

Shepard helps Legion with a problem; the ship suffers a devastating blow.

#my writing #mass effect #mass effect 2 #mass effect fanficiton #legion #geth

[angelwingsl3]

Stand Together

The sequel to Stand Alone, Mass Effect 3 and beyond. A focus on recovery and resolving emotional tension.

Stand Together

Summary:  At the end of the war, what was left was heartbreaking. Shepard's status unknown. The Normandy crashed on a garden world. Shepard's love injured in the final push. The Geth and EDI unmoving. The bulk of the galactic fleet and the Citadel in the Sol system. What happened in those ensuing days? Weeks and months?

Rating: E

Tags: Female Shepard/Garrus Vakarian, Solana Vakarian, Castis Vakarian, Post-ME3, recovery, eventual happy ending

#Garrus Vakarian #Commander Shepard #mass effect 3 #post mass effect 3 #mass effect fanficiton

[gefionne]

Upcoming Mass Effect fics!

I’m so, so hype about the Legendary Edition of Mass Effect, and to honor its rerelease, I’ve been working hard on two fics I started in 2012 when ME3 came out and never got the chance to finish. By May, when the remasters come out, the stories will be totally finished and ready for regular posting every weekend. I’m so excited to share them, but am sitting on them until nearer to the games’ release date, but I figured I’d share the summaries of each of them because I can’t push down my excitement completely and want to, like, maybe get one other person hype. XD

Worlds Collide - FemShep x Nihlus, First Contact War AU In the Battle of Shanxi during the First Contact War, Commander Shepard manages to broker a truce between her squad and a turian patrol led by Nihlus Kryik. After peace is made between the two species, Shepard is assigned to lead the security team for the human ambassador to the turian Hierarchy on Palaven. There, she encounters Nihlus again and they strike up an unlikely friendship. Over the next few weeks they grow closer, but any public bond between them has the potential to upset the delicate balance of diplomacy between their species.

Explicit, ~65-70,000 words

------

Valió La Pena (It Was Worth It) - FemShep x James Vega, canon-divergent ME3 A mission gone bad leaves James Vega bitter and angry. To keep the guilt and pain away, he spends two whiskey-steeped weeks playing cards in the bars of Omega. When he hears that Commander Shepard has been accused of terrorism and will be court martialed, he is furious at way the newscasters are so quick to demonize a hero. Little does he know that just outside the bar, a Spectre is waiting to escort him to Earth where he will be serving as head of security for Commander Shepard during the months of her incarceration.

Explicit, ~200,000 words

----

I’ll share more snippets from the stories closer to May! Hopefully these are up someone’s alley out there!

#mass effect #mass effect fanficiton #nihlus x shep #femshep x nihlus #james vega x shepard #james vega x femshep

[natsora]

The Cetus Arc - Chapter 78

Vault Alpha

AO3 | FFN

Jaal was antsy. He paced the shuttle. Nafav glared at him, his eyes tracking Jaal’s movements. “Ancestors, Jaal! Can you just sit down?” he growled. “We’re here providing escort to the scientists. It’s not a hot zone on the other end.”

“I know,” Jaal said, finally sitting down.

Falehe laughed. “You didn’t know, Nafav?” she asked, “Jaal must have pulled some strings with the Chief or Andraknor. There is no way these scientists required an escort to Merdian of all places.”

Nafav looked at him. Jaal sighed. “Fine, yes! I did pull strings.”

Falehe laughed. “I knew it. You’re angling to see Ryder!”

Jaal buried his face into his hands. "Is that so bad?"

It’d been weeks since her procedure. Scott said everything went well but Jaal wanted so much to be there for her. He’d had to be contented with sending her mail every day. This time though she replied to every single one, even if it was a short message of missing him. 

“Jaal,” Nafav called. “Why are you smiling? Are you thinking of the nasty things you’re going to do to your taoshay?”

Falehe’s peals of laughter chased Jaal as he escaped. 

Vault Alpha.

Ryder sighed. That was the catch for reinstating her. At least that’s what Ryder guessed the Moshae's plan was. T’vera and Addison, she wasn’t so sure. Still, she agreed the vault needed opening. Especially if there was an unknown signal being sent from within to who knew where. The circumstances were intriguing for sure. 

Ryder stepped off the ramp onto the grassy plains of Merdian. She still couldn’t understand how a whole world was sealed away within this Remnant built shelter. 

Maybe there are more like Meridian? Maybe we’ll find a vault that allows us to tweak the climate control. Then, voilà, instant golden planet.

"Ryder," SAM said in their private channel. 

"Yes?" Ryder replied, looking up at the vast grass field she was standing on. 

A warm breeze ran through her hair and caressed her scalp. It was technically her first day back on the job. It felt nice to be working again, with a purpose, a mission. Though she was sure there would be days she might regret coming back, this was where she was meant to be. 

"Liam requested you speak to him when you're back on the Tempest," SAM reported. 

"What's it regarding?"

"It's regarding the OSD retrieved on Ryder-01."

Ryder blinked, racking her brain. OSD? 

“Taoshay!” 

Ryder jerked her head in the direction of the voice. A grin stretched her lips. All thoughts of the OSD were forgotten. “Jaal!”

Her footsteps quickened. Ryder maintained a show of professionalism, but how she wished she could just run into his arms. Jaal wrapped his arms around her as she stood on her tip-toes to sneak a quick kiss in. He laughed. 

“It’s good to see you, Jaal,” Cora said as she caught up, shaking his hand. 

Ryder pushed away from Jaal’s embrace reluctantly. Her face lit up as she saw her fellow Heskaarl graduates walking over. 

“Ryder!” Falehe greeted, also engulfing her in a hug. 

“Falehe, Nafav, it’s good to see you!”

Ryder turned to Cora and Peebee, who were going with her to the vault. She made some quick introductions and finally asked, “So, where is this vault that needs cracking?”

Peebee and Cora took the lead since they knew the way. Falehe and Nafav guided the angara scientists while Jaal and Ryder took the rear. It afforded them a small semblance of privacy. 

Jaal eyed her while she snorted. “Like what you see?” she asked, cheekily. 

“Always,” he replied easily. His eyes scanned the scar along the side of her head. His hand brushed against her scalp lightly. “Does it hurt?”

Ryder leaned into his hand, savouring the contact for a moment. “No, it’s all healed up. Nothing they can do about the scar,” she said. “You don’t mind?”

“No. It’s a part of you,” he replied, his finger brushing over the tattoo where his initials were.

Then he pointed at the Heskaarl insignia on her chest next to the Initiative logo on her armour. “How did you managed to get them to agree to that on your armour?”

“Well,” Ryder drawled. “I insisted.”

Jaal blinked. “That’s all?”

“Apparently.”

“And that’s all you insisted on?” Jaal asked raising an eyebrow at her. 

“Well,” Ryder laughed, “among other things.”

Jaal roared with laughter. “Tell me!”

"So Dex is cleared to enter the Nexus and I've set him up with a brand new school. There still aren't many kids or teenagers running around since most of them are still in cryo, but we're slowly bringing them out," Ryder said, her hands waving animatedly. "Kesh promised to look out for him."

Jaal nodded along, his attention half on what she was saying but mostly on the joy that shone from her eyes. Before Ryder could catch him up on everything, Vault Alpha loomed into view. Black, blue and angular. It was an anomaly on the grassy field, a blemish on the landscape. The soft grass gradually transitioned to the black mechanical material of the Remnant. 

Ryder’s eyes widened. 

It was an impressive structure, and it remained free from the encroachments of nature. It was a wonder they didn’t find the vault earlier. There was a pair of Nexus scientists stationed there monitoring the signal at all times. Their angara counterparts, along with Peebee, made a beeline towards them to confer. 

Eventually one of the scientist waved Ryder over. “We have to attach some leads to you to monitor your brain waves,” he said. 

Ryder frowned. “Why?” she asked. “I’m the glorified doorman if I can open it at all.”

“We found an increase in brain activity in the Pathfinders when activating the vault’s doors,” the scientist explained. “So we want to see if yours will behave the same way. Even if you can’t open the doors, this will be a valuable data point.”

“You do know that SAM is monitoring my vitals all the time right?” Ryder pointed out. 

“Yes but this will be…”

Ryder sighed, there was no point trying to talk her way out of this. It was easier for everyone if she just agreed. If they wanted the data, what harm could it do? Still her heart quickened as she agreed. “Fine.”

After Peebee stuck a couple of leads to her temples, she was ready. Cora saw her rolling her eyes and laughed. “The console is over there,” she said pointing at the familiar black and blue pedestal.

“Show time, SAM,” she muttered under her breath. 

“I’m ready, Ryder,” SAM spoke in her mind. 

Ryder stepped up onto the pedestal. The familiar console stood before her. It’s simple really, just press her palm against the console and SAM would do his magic. 

“SAM, why didn’t it work for any of the others?” she asked, stalling for time. 

“I’m not sure, but this console, and by extension this vault, is different from the others,” SAM said. 

Ryder nodded, turning to look at the others for a moment. Jaal gave her a slight nod. She smiled and turned to the scientists. One gave her a thumbs up. There was no reason to delay any longer. Her attention firmly back on the console, Ryder pressed her prosthesis against it.

It was strange. Normally, there was a tingling at the left side of her head where her implant was, like a mild itch which she couldn't get at. The only times there were any kind adverse effects was when she activated Remnant tech without SAM. Ryder remembered those times very clearly, but it was different this time. The familiar tingling started as haptic feedback on her stump, it travelled up her arm to her chest, up her neck and right into her head. It wasn’t the brain twisting pain from before, but it wasn’t a pain free experience either. 

A dull ache throbbed along the left side of her head. For a moment, Ryder wondered if it was a sudden onset of a headache. Then a lance of pain bisected her brain. Ryder winced as her grip tightened on the console. As quickly as the pain came, it went away. It left her reeling in its wake, wondering if she had imagined it all.

“What the fuck, SAM.”

Before SAM could answer, there was a sharp grinding sound of metal against metal. Ryder clapped her hands over her ears. 

“Goddess!” Peebee exclaimed. 

Ryder looked up to find the vault opening. “Fuck me, it worked,” Cora gasped.

The doors screeched. A gust of cold air hit her face. There was still lingering pain, but it was turning into a more manageable headache. The scientists were all rushing towards the opened vault while Nafav and Falehe were urging caution. 

Ryder walked back towards Peebee, who retrieved the leads from her temples. The asari frowned as she looked at Ryder. “Are you ok?”

Ryder grunted. “Just a headache.”

Peebee hummed and excitedly went to join the scientists. There was one who hung back looking at the monitor which displayed Ryder’s brainwaves. She didn't want to know what it showed. It was all beyond her understanding, anyway. She needed some fresh air. 

The unidentifiable light and heat source inside Meridian beat down on her face and it helped. Jaal approached her, placing a hand on small of her back. Concern was furrowing his brow. Ryder squeezed his hand in return. His warm fingers pressed against her temples, massaging it for a minute. She closed her eyes and sighed.

“Thank you,” Ryder whispered.

Jaal smiled and gave her a peck on her check before returning to his duties. Ryder watched he go. Once he was safely out of ear shot, she demanded, “SAM, what the fuck happened? This wasn’t how it usually goes.”

SAM was silent. Ryder frowned as a familiar fear seized her. “SAM?”

“I’m sorry Ryder,” SAM replied instantly this time. “I was merely processing the data I’ve got from the activation. You experienced pain because the pain barrier that I usually set up had been bypassed.”

“What do you mean bypassed?”

“I mean this console didn’t interface with the Pathfinder implant but directly with your brain,” SAM explained. 

“What the fuck does that mean?”

A/N:

And that’s the end of Cetus. But this isn’t the end of Ryder’s story. Like I’ve mentioned, I’ve started work on the prequel for Ryder’s story. It will be set after the events of Chasing the Daylight and before leaving for Andromeda. I can’t promise any timeline on that quite yet because I am trying to bank more chapters before releasing them, hopefully weekly.

That said, next Saturday will be the Dragon Age Inquisition one shot. If you like angst, hurt/comfort, this will be your thing. The week after that will be the sequel for The Persistence of Memory, it’s a one shot I’ve written for Naeviss’ OCs.

If you’re interested in more Ryder stories, you might want to subscribe to the Trials of Ryder series. If you’re interested in the others, the best bet is to subscribe to me as a user.

Going forward, I won’t be posting the full chapter on Tumblr. It will be a snippet and links to AO3 and FFN, where applicable.

Thank you @naeviss and @terriblush for all their hard work and help! The Cetus Arc would be been a shittier fic without the both of you.

Art for The Cetus Arc

Music Used in The Cetus Arc

#Mass Effect Fanfic #Mass Effect Fanficiton #Mass Effect Andromeda #Fanfic #Sara Ryder #FemRyder #SisRyder #The Cetus Arc #Trials of Ryder #My writing

[aliemah]

Okey, fic idea; Ashley stubbornly refusing to admit she’s got the absolute largest boner for Shep because she is independent and opinionated and a smidge too prideful to admit that she has fallen for Commander “i love blasto and eat ice cream for breakfast” Shepard. I headcannon that before she and Shep discuss their relationship Garrus and Tali take turns pointing out how they’re basically already a married couple

here we go: (sorry its late but like. PAX and I’m tired lmao)

“Tali, do you have a minute?”

“Sure, just let me finish this last line here.” the quarian practically chirped. Ashley always thought that, like turians, the quarians had an ave-like complex to them at times.With Tali it was admittedly very cute. The patterned fabric that Ashley had grown so used to was suddenly turning, the tinted visor now in its place. “What did you need?”

“I was just wondering if you could look over this report for me. I wanted to send it off, but seeing as I sort of got knocked unconscious, I thought it would be best to double check that my memory is still in tact.” she laughed.

“Oh, sure. No problem.” Tali reached to take the data pad, her hand not stretching very far to grasp it.

“You don’t have to if you don’t feel up to it, I can ask someone else-”

“You just usually ask Shepard, that’s all.” Tali shrugged. “I’m happy to read over it.”

“I don’t usually ask him. I’m usually the one filling out the reports for him.” Ashley scoffed, crossing her arms and waiting as Tali read. She was always a quick reader.

“That’s true. I’m always watching you two exchange doing work for each other. It’s really cute sometimes.”

“Me? Cute?” Ashley snorted. “Not two words I would ever put together.”

“Not just you. You and Shepard.” Tali looked up, handing the data pad back. “Everything looks good to me. But seriously, you two do things without realizing it.”

“The report is all I came for, Tali.” Ashley smiled as she backed up. “But if you’re still up for it, I guess we can talk more over dinner.” Tali shook her head and muttered something playfully that the translator couldn’t pick up on. Ashley shrugged and went back to her usual spot up in the lounge. 

The new Normandy was massive, but it still felt like a home - everything was laid out more or less the same, at least. And even with the smell of the paint still lingering, and all the loose wires, it was a beautiful ship. She only wished she’d have gotten to see it before some of the rooms had been removed. John was always talking to her about how nice it was to be able to wander around the ship between relays, and just admire the ship.

Ashley sometimes regretted that she didn’t join him all that time ago. But she’d stuck to her guns, and he’d turned out okay. They were mostly over that whole period between them anyway, so there wasn’t any reason to think on it. There were more important things anyway, like what to do to prepare for the next mission, where they would go, what business she could wrap up on the Citadel next time. It was a lot for her mind to process. And with the worst of her concussion behind her, thinking was at least a little clearer. Though she still felt slow at times.

“Whoa,” a voice called her from her thoughts sooner than the sensation of bumping into someone, warm hands on her shoulders that she only now realized were freezing.

“Lost in thought,” she sighed, not even bothering to look up.The hands lingered and kept her from going further.

“Ashley, slow down.” he laughed. “What’s got you in such a hurry?”

“A lot on my mind.” she said, finally looking back. She almost let her shoulders fall, her mouth smile, those feelings bubbling dangerously at the surface… But now wasn’t the time. “I still have some reports to do. Maybe later?” she turned back around before he could reply, slipping away yet again.

Was she avoiding talking to him? Mostly. Was it for a good reason? Not at all. Or entirely. It depended on the view.

She was sitting happily in the relative silence of the lounge when the door chimed and it opened, alerting her softly to someone’s presence. She turned and smiled when she saw Garrus.

“What’s up?” she asked. No one came in here unless they needed to speak with her. At least at this hour. It was nice.

“Just wanted to check in on you, and ask you a small favor.” he shrugged, pulling out a small weapon mod from his pocket and tossing it to her as he walked around the couch to sit. “Found that down in the shuttle bay, James said it was yours.” Ashley took a moment to look over the scope, smiling when she saw the paint chipped off of it.

“That it is. Scope for my pistol. Glad you got it to me before I needed to use it. What was the favor?”

“It’s uh... A little personal.” he laughed, looking to the side. “What um... What does Tali like to do with her time off?”

“An odd question.” Ashley smirked, leaning back a bit. “She usually spends her time off talking with her friends, from what I hear. That or she programs her little drone.”

“Good to know.” he nodded, avoiding looking over at her.

“Are you trying to ask her on a date or something?” Ashley laughed. “Because if so, you should just do it. It’s easier than trying to be subtle. And I think Tali would appreciate you being forward with her. She’s been through enough.”“That’s true.” he nodded again, then looking over, the smirk evident in his eyes and tone. “It’s a shame you and Shepard can’t seem to follow that same advice. It’s driving the rest of us insane.”

“Oh god, not you too.” she rolled her eyes, standing up. “John and I are just friends. Okay? There’s.... Nothing there.”

“So you say.”

“So there is, Garrus. Besides, it’s...” she paused and laughed, “it’s really ridiculous. He is the biggest Blasto nerd I’ve ever met, and I swear that if it weren’t for me and to some extent Chakwas he’d be eating ice cream for every meal.”

“That’s the sweet frozen treat?” Garrus asked. Ashley nodded, and then he laughed loudly. “You take care of him, and in case you forgot, every time we went to the Citadel while you were in Huerta, he went and visited you first thing, for at least two hours each time. I think you don’t want to admit how much you mean to him and how much he means to you, Ash. You two take care of each other and you can’t sit there and tell me that isn’t based off something.”

“You came in here to ask about Tali, not to lecture me on a non-existent relationship that will never happen.”

“I wouldn’t say never.” He stood up. “You two need to talk soon, anyway. You both have a lot to say to one another, whether it be the missions or your personal lives. But listen to me: we may not have a lot of time left. Now isn’t the time to live with maybes. If you think there’s a chance, better find out now than regret it when your time comes.”

They were both silent as they looked at one another. She smiled and nodded slowly as her head lowered.

“You have a point. But I’m telling you, there isn’t anything there between us but a solid friendship.”

“Better than nothing.” he shrugged as he walked out, leaving her in peace with her now scrambled thoughts.

A long time ago, she did feel something very real for John. She’d given herself up to him, trusted him completely, and then he was torn from her before she could even begin to imagine a forever with him. Now here she was about two and a half years later, faced with nearly-certain death every day, and she wasn’t sure if she could open herself up to him again. Or anyone else. But she did still... Feel something. She wasn’t too sure what it was.

But if she was going to give advice, shouldn’t she follow it, as well? Ashley needed to ask John and talk to him about this before the chance slipped away. So she pulled out her omni-tool and sent him a quick message.

Hey,

I know we haven’t talked for a while, but I’ve had a lot on my mind. Maybe when we get to the Citadel, you and I could have a little chat? You know, personal stuff.

Believe it or not, sometimes I get worried you’re working yourself too hard. You could use a break.

Let me know when and where you want to meet, and I’ll be there.

- Ash

There was a tiny fluttering in her stomach that she chalked up to the empty glass in her hand. And the fact that John was running at least fifteen minutes late. She hated not knowing what was going on, and she’d checked her messages at least six times over, making sure she had the right time, day and place. She’d even messaged him letting her know that she was waiting with a table.

Though not a moment later she heard footsteps, and turned, nearly spitting out her drink as she giggled.

“What the hell are you wearing?” she asked as he sat down.

“Best damn shirt in the galaxy.” he beamed, lounging happily in the empty seat next to her. “Took the last one.”

“It’s a Blasto shirt- I can’t believe you, John.” she snorted, setting the glass down as she laughed. It wasn’t that he looked silly in it, it was just that he was so... obsessed with those movies.

“Don’t act like it doesn’t look good on me.”

“I’m not saying it doesn’t,” she got out in the middle of her laughing, “I just can’t believe you sometimes. You act like a child.”

“That’s me.” he laughed, shrugging. “Anyway, this is why I was late, sorry.”

“You know what,” she sighed, “I can’t be mad at you. Of course you would stop to buy a ‘This one will see you in the afterlife’ shirt. What movie was that from again?”

“The fourth one. The best one.”

“Right.” she snorted, aware of how much she was laughing, and likely how dumb she looked and sounded.

“I haven’t seen you this happy for a long time.” he said softly, leaning over. “Maybe I should wear this around the Normandy. It would be worth it if it made you feel better.”

“No, I think that would be too much.” she grinned, “Though, you could bother to stop by more often. It gets pretty lonely in the lounge by myself.”

“I didn’t know if that would be too much.” he suddenly seemed to frown, the creases on his face returning, aging him quickly. “You... Well...” he stammered for a moment before sighing. “I didn’t know if it was too much. Things haven’t been all that clear so far as where I stand with you.”

“Look, John,” she sighed, deciding to get it over with, “A lot has happened since we were last together. And I don’t regret any of it. But we’re different people now, and we have a lot more riding on us coming out of this alive.” She paused and looked up with a smile. “I’m not saying I wouldn’t like to pick things up where we left them, but I just don’t think that’s going to work. So... I guess what I am trying to say is that maybe we can start over and get to know each other again. I miss staying up late at night when we can’t sleep just talking, and spending time together. I miss having a best friend who I can also fall asleep with at night and feel loved.”

“Beat me to the punch.” he murmured, his smile larger than when she’d started speaking. “But we’re on the same page, at least. That’s a pretty good start, I think.”

“And maybe we can skip over a few things and head back to the Normandy after lunch?” she smirked, aware that her mouth was moving faster than her thoughts. John barked out with laughter and then reached over to push her glass away from her.

“Let’s see how we feel after we’re done eating, first.”

#mass effect #fanficiton #fanfic #ashley williams #commander shepard #mshep #john shepard #ashley x mshep #fluff #tali zora vas normandy #garrus vakarian #cute #prompt #vykwarus #aliemah-0 #queue me up scotty

[nothisis-ridiculous]

Proxy Cosmos

(An alternate reality where Alec Ryder lived, and both twins were awake during the events of Andromeda.)

Chapter Three:

For what must have been the billionth time, El considered picking up the perfectly placed clump of dirt and chucking it at Scott. At least starting a fight with him would give Elsee a target her father would not eliminate just as she had aimed. Plus it would give her something to do even for a short while, as the second abandoned site proved to be of little entertainment value. Even as a fiend tore through the base, her father was hardly phased taking the monster down with a speed that was almost irritating. Worse than that, her father threw it a compliment on her skill of using incinerate on the plated beast. Elsee honestly felt it made little difference; the compliment twisted through her mind and gut uncomfortably. Scott’s finger made contact with her elbow, drawing her out of that loop. Alec hacked violently against the side of the Nomad, splatters of blood coloring the orange-yellow ground with red. Call her a horrible daughter, but she debated on calling him out on it. Lexi (after finding her halfway through the atrium) had lamented that the Ryders were all being stubborn, and something about rounding them up was like herding chickens. Alec, to her knowledge, had yet to see the doctor after habitat seven. Elsee had died, so how was her father still standing? Maybe he hadn’t breathed in as much of the toxic air, but it was obviously affecting him. Mentioning it would start a fight. Add masochism to her list of ever growing kinks. “That’s not healthy.” “What?” Alec reeled as the Nomad spun into forward.

El was a master of this sort of timing. With the Nomad in motion, and just comfortably out of the safe zones, her father was trapped into having this conversation. Scott gave her the death glare but decided to wait on arguing with her methods just yet. He was curious as to what she had to say but knew that it wasn’t going to be a fun conversation. Especially not stuck in the Nomad between the two hot heads. Please kill him already. Or at least a coma would be nice. “Coughing blood,” Elsee chirped lightly, “it’s the tropiest sign that something is horribly wrong.”

“Are you showing concern about your old man again?” Alec tried to turn it against Elsee. “Or about the driver catapulting us to our deaths because he can’t control the vehicle and his cough at the same time,” Elsee drew in a deep breath, “sir.” Alec tapped against the wheel, his eyes suddenly focusing on the terrain before them. “Dad?” Scott urged. “On a mission, it is ‘sir’ to you!” He didn’t mean a word he said, anger was just easier than admitting a problem, his only apology the softening of his voice, “the mission comes first.” “Before or after the Pathfinder dies in the field?” she wasn’t so easily pushed from the fight, “you need to get it checked out before it becomes a real problem. What happens when you give out in a firefight?” “I have you tw-” “No, no you don’t. We are hardly reliable as soldiers compared to your expertise. Besides, even if we make it through that battle what is the Nexus going to do without the only person who knows what the fuck they are doing?” “They’ve survived this long with Tann running the show,” only Scott chuckled, Elsee wasn’t in on the joke, “relax, I’m not going anywhere.” ====== She playfully shoved her brother aside, his retaliation a hip bump. “Even if I have bad aim at least I don’t make this constipated face everytime an enemy doesn’t go down.” “I do not look constipated,” he argued. Her lips turned downward, and her bottom lip puffed out, furrowing her brow artfully to attain perfect replication of his previous expression, “all I need to do now is constantly flex my fingers, but you know a gun makes that difficult.” “Is this another because you are older than me joke? Or do I need to repeat myself a little louder?” Scott murmured, ignoring the immature tongue poked in his direction. “Oh, let me rephrase that in a way you can understand,” one sibling (Elsee) leaped at the other, attempting to wrangle his head so that she could give him the noogie of a lifetime. “Enough!” Their fun never did seem to last long, as Father’s voice boomed from the doorway. The twins both straightened up in record time. Backs straight and arms folded behind them as nothing had happened. “Scott, good work. Just work on where you hit the enemies, find a weak spot and they won’t take more than one shot to down,” his finger pointed at his daughter, “you must take this more seriously. I didn’t teach you to miss targets.” “Take. This. Seriously?” Elsee balked. “Because you need to be shot at in person to take combat seriously?” Alec returned. “Oh, no. I get it. Get shot, pow dead,” Alec’s forced expression was losing foothold with each word, “but putting Dalek’s in the simulation? I didn’t think you had a sense of humor; I dared to hope but…” “Daleks?” “You know,” Elsee straightened both arms, waving them up and down opposite of each other, “EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!” Scott tried his hardest to hide his chuckle, but he knew his father caught it. Elsee held a good poker face and didn’t relent under Alec’s harshening scrutiny. “Hey, Scott, did you see that one ramming against the bottom step? That was classic, their greatest enemy is not the Doctor- but the stairs,” she was misreading the situation, or most obviously ignoring it, “that would be a great episode.” “Right after the battle of the slight incline,” announced the voice with a British accent over the intercom. Of course, her response was to enact it with the appropriate noises, “Rrrrrrttt~ Rrrrrrrrrt, rrrrrrrrtttt~.” Alec’s face went from exasperation to complete rage, shortly. He turned toward the black window overlooking the arena, “to the idiot with the enlightening commentary, you will be lucky to leave here with pay, and you,” he whirled, finger dangerously in Elsee’s face, “you must take this more seriously! The Initiative doesn’t need a deadbeat who can’t take her job seriously!” “Why would I? Before today I wasn’t even sure this was for real. I only showed up because I was worried you got Scott sucked into something,” she scoffed, an eyebrow held high, she was breaking, “ now that I see that this deluded fantasy is happening, I’m not sure I want to be here.” “You would break up the family?” “Elsee, Dad,” Scott’s plea fell on deaf ears. “This?” her arms motioned to the male Ryders, “this a family? Just to name the most recent family trauma: you left me to deal with Mom’s funeral by myself. Awkward speeches, and terrible excuses for why you both weren’t there… that was fun.” “So you’d risk never seeing us again to a grudge?” Alec’s words playing with a fire he couldn’t handle, he wouldn’t have behaved any differently than his daughter under the same circumstances. “A grudge? A grudge? Seriously?!” By now she had already pivoted herself away from both of them, staring down the door that reached within a very reasonable distance. She dearly loved them both, but moving to another galaxy with a family that she barely felt comfortable around? That was a long stretch. Scott would be the greatest loss of the two, but just following them seemed like suicide. For a galaxy, they might never arrive at? And at best one that had undergone six hundred and some years of change before they arrived. It was insane, stupid, tempting. Her father’s silence was hardly surprising, “Here, let me do something you will understand.” Elsee marched out of the room. ====== “Hey, look, the source of that mysterious signal,” Alec taunted with sudden enthusiasm. She decided to be silent, and Scott could finally breathe comfortably again. The fighting would stop for a few precious minutes. Now would be an excellent time to simultaneously beg and thank some deity. If he had one, oh well. Being the quietest Ryder was difficult. Elsee hung behind the group, moping in her own way by being completely useless. Well, useless as she could be, already her wheels were turning, her head craned at the device atop one of the spires. He followed her path, noting that two devices scanned something atop the small towers. Alec went to the more obvious console at the center of the ruin, SAM interfacing with the device to discover its secrets. “Building connection. I apologize for any discomfort. The systems seems unstable.” SAM commenting on the strange tech. “Is this what happened when we tried doing this on Habitat Seven?” Alec asked of the AI. Elsee began climbing the tower, at the corner of Scott’s perception. “Your daughter interfaced directly with the atmosphere processor. That proved extremely hazardous.” At least the AI seemed to have a handle on speaking sense in Alec, “These structures could reveal its control sensor. System remains unstable. Doubling our power input might accelerate the process.” “I’ll give it a shot,” placing his hand over the console. “Wait!” called a blue and purple blur. The blur rushed into the senior Ryder, pushing him into the ground. The thud of his head unpleasantly accompanying the clash of armor plating. The coy look the Asari must have usually worn turned to horror as the man beneath her sputtered, a trickle of blood leaking from the side of his mouth. His cough violently resurfacing at the sudden fall to the ground. SAM within moments warned of unusual vitals coming from the Pathfinder. Elsee interrupted from her scanning was already calling the Tempest to pick up her father. Scott pushed the Asari aside, swooping in to pick Alec up from his back. The Asari scattered backward on her hands and feet, “Don’t rush the glyphs, bad things happen. Also remnant, they shoot people.” Neither of them felt the need to chase after the Asari who scurried away. “No, Scott, I’m fine,” Alec huffed, coughing up an entire glob of blood, “it just caught me off guard.” “No, you aren’t Dad!” “Scott,” the name unrecognizable in the hacking and heaving mess Alec was making on the cool blue ground. “ETA, three minutes,” Elsee called from her perch. Her scanner returning to the spot the machines scanned. With nothing more to do than wait, Scott supported Alec’s weight not allowing him to hold his own footing. The man couldn’t find the strength to fight him off, resigned to the task of keeping dignity in whatever small way he could. For now, that was not peppering his son with blood. With was the second time Elsee’s jetpack ignited that Scott paid any attention to her, watching as she curiously regarded the console. “With Elsee’s scanned glyphs, I was able to stabilize the system. I’m establishing a connection,” SAM drolled as the tallest towers connected with a beam of blue energy. Alec looked in her general direction, sporting a look that held pride in his daughter. But she was too busy looking over Scott’s shoulder to notice it. “Shit!” Elsee’s gun fired over his shoulder, taking down a strange bot that clunked loudly behind him. The sound of several other machines whirred to life behind him. Scott forced himself and Alec behind the console, pulling out his gun to assist Elsee. After a few fired shots, his usefulness in helping had been overturned The shuttle from the Tempest arriving with covering fire from Cora and Liam. The few enemies left went down quickly. Cora’s first goal was to support the curmudgeonly old man who still tried to insist he did not need help. Liam more preoccupied with checking on the robots with Elsee at his side. Elsee pretended to not sneak a look in her father’s direction, but Alec did not fail to catch her attention in a moment of clarity. “Keep going, daughter,” Alec started coughing again, “you’ve got this figured out. I’ll be back in no time.”

#rydam #alec ryder #ryder twins #mass effect andromeda #au #fanficiton #procos

[peachy-blinderss]

One of Us: A Tommy Shelby Fanficiton 

Trigger Warnings: Mentions of death, Suicidal Ideation. 

1624 words. Hello Peaky Peaches,  please go easy on me as this is my first Peaky Blinders fanfiction. It is more of an angsty set up then anything because I am an angsty person. If the mood strikes I may write a few parts of this, but who knows what will happen. The formatting of this is probably going to look weird, so I’m very sorry about that. I am not a techy person so if you know why it is being weird let me know. Please give it a read, and let me know what you think. Should I write more? Do you want to read more? Drop a comment. 

Love Lexi

Looking back, everything made sense. You let out a sardonic laugh as you thought back to your past. Were you always so dead inside? You didn’t think so, but it had been so long since you felt anything in your heart besides bitterness, regret, and pain. You imagined if you cut your chest open there would be nothing but a black mass where you heart used to beat furiously.    

It took a lot to get your dead heart beating these days. You had been different since the war, that’s what everyone always said anyway. Your smiles were forced, laughter rarely meeting your eyes. Your eyes were cold, and dead. There had been no emotions inside them for years.

You paraded around as a shell of your former self praying day after day to be released from this fleshy hell. Pain never scared you, nothing ever scared you, so the thought of death was soothing as it caressed your cheeks most nights. You thought of death as an old friend, something so familiar that you did not fear it. Death whispered sweet nothings into your ear as you went through your days, tempting you to join him. He was a persuasive bastard, and he had almost bested you many times before. But live on you did, even when most days you didn’t want to.

The only thing that kept you tethered to your miserable life was your brother. He needed you, and you needed him. Like you, the war changed him. He came back with many visible scars, but those weren't the ones that scared you most. You knew the scars you couldn’t see were the deadliest of all. A cut you can bandage, a mind you cannot. The will to live for him got you out of bed each day. He was all you had left since the war took your two other brothers, and pestilence took your parents. War was unforgiving, and you were reminded of it each day when you looked at him. Your brother was never the same. He was such a charming boy before he left, dimples for miles, and a laugh that would give anyone a stitch in their side. He came back a broken man. Now all he loved was the drink. You put him to bed more times then you could count, and cleaned up his vomit way more than you should have. His spent most of his days with his ass in a bar stool, and a whiskey in his hand. You didn't hate him for it, but your life would’ve been so much different if he chose to spend his time elsewhere.

So you were left to provide. Since the war you had been through many odd jobs, but you never turned to prostitution despite many propositions, and much desperation. Instead you were a maid, a nanny, and as of late a barmaid at the Garrison. You didn’t mind your job. It was a distraction from your demons, and it kept you busy. Your brother’s constant patronage to the Garrison is actually what got you your job. You see, the Garrison was his pub of choice. He claimed they had the best whiskey in all of Birmingham but you knew his love of it was due to the closeness to your house, as well as his relationships with the owners. He had been best friends with Arthur Shelby since boyhood. They did everything together. They shared their first smoke together, first beer, and even saw their first killing together during the war. Your other brothers also used to run with the Shelby boys as children. Even so, you also knew his presence at the Garrison had to do with the two little razors you’d sewn into his cap a few months back.

You’d spent many nights there trying to corral your brother into going home. Many nights you helped carry his drunk body home with the help of Arthur. Arthur was always good to you. He was like another brother to you, and he became even more important in your life after the death of your other two brothers. He was always quick with a smile, and a joke. After all those years, he still also had the habit of pulling on your braids to get a rise out of you. Things never change, especially not older brothers. Their worry never changes either.

After some time, Arthur began to notice the squalor you and your brother were living in. It broke his heart to see you barely managing. His solution was a simple one he said, come work for him at the Garrison. At first you refused, not wanting to be a burden. Despite this, you were a smart woman and knew you couldn’t subsist much longer on the low wages your side jobs were bringing in. Within days you were tending bar at the Garrison. All of your nights were spent there effectively tiring you out. This new routine offered a nice escape from the nightmares that awaited you when you weren’t exhausted enough. To quiet the voices, your threw yourself into work, picking up as many extra shifts as possible. You can’t feel anything when you work yourself to the bone.

In this time, you began to rekindle your friendships with the other two Shelby brothers. They had always been around you, but you always preferred Ada over them and they preferred your brothers over you. The funny thing about war and death is that it makes everyone kin once it’s done wrecking it’s havoc. Since you spent most of your days working at the Garrison, you spent most of your days in the company of the Shelby boys. They were crass, they drank too much, they swore too much, and they definitely fucked too much, but they were one of the only things that brought the tiniest amount of warmth into your heart. You especially liked that they didn’t treat you like most other men did. They didn’t tip toe around you, or treat you like a porcelain doll. They knew what you had gone through, and respected you immensely for it. They treated you like one of them, so you were often exposed to the dirtier sides of their lives. They cursed in front of you, and talked about their many conquests without sparring any details. You quite liked their crude jokes. Being one of the boys brought some normalcy back into your life. It reminded you of growing up in a house full of brothers. They made you laugh your real laugh, not the one you used around everyone else. You also liked to make them laugh, and you looked forward to the nights when it was just you and the Shelby boys in the bar.

Despite all the good that came from your job, you knew what the Shelby boys did. You also knew what your brother did with them. It didn’t bother you in the slightest as there had been blood on your own hands for years.

The Shelby boys and the other blinders were often brought to the Garrison to be mended by you when fights had gotten out of hand. You plucked bullets out of flesh with ease, and had the ability to stitch quickly and effectively, skills that wouldn’t go away no matter how much you wanted them to. Through these almost nightly clean ups, you became invaluable to the boys and the blinders.

After a particularly nasty fight, Tommy was brought to you just as you were about to lock the doors of the Garrison. He was carried in by John, Arthur, and your brother. Blood never scared you, but the sight of him made your dead heart flinch for a split second. He looked bad. He had a deep gash running along the left side of his face. Stitches would be needed no doubt. He also was bleeding heavily from his right side, and his face was covered in bruises. Never one to cower away you immediately began directing the boys to lay Tommy on the nearest table. Pulling a switchblade out of your garter, you began to cut his shirt off of him, immediately realizing what had happened. There was a small bullet hole on his right side.

“John, grab me a bottle of whiskey, and my kit now,” you yelled quickly.

You weren’t one to be disobeyed in situations like this. When he came back you began taking out the metal pliers you would need to pull the bullet from Tommy’s side. You also cut off a piece of your slip so Tommy could have something to bite into as you had no pain killers to give the man. You began to extract the bullet from his side. Luckily for him the bullet hadn’t fragmented too terribly, so you only had to do minimal digging to get it out. He certainly didn’t feel that way as he howled in pain.

As quickly as the boys stormed in you had Tommy all patched up. He now sported a few stitches on his head, and white bandages wrapped around his side. You offered him a drink which he gladly accepted.

“You haven’t lost your touch, eh?” He said with a mirthless smile. You nodded briefly at him.

“I almost wish I had. It brings back too many bad memories,” you say as you down your whiskey in one go. The fire burning your throat was something you quite liked. The pain of the burn made you feel almost human again.

You looked over at Tommy, catching his eyes. They were such a beautiful blue. They always used to be windows into his soul, now they were cold and dead just like yours.

#tommy shelby #tommy shelby imagine #tommy shelby fanfiction #tommy shelby fluff #tommy shelby smut #peaky blinders #peaky blinder imagine #peak blinders fanfiction #arthur shelby #arthur shelby smut #john shelby #john shelby smut #john shelby fanficiton #please read #tommy shelby angst

[rosebud1773]

Chapters: 7/? Fandom: Mass Effect Trilogy, Mass Effect - All Media Types Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Relationships: Female Shepard/Garrus Vakarian Tension, Heartbreak, Love Confessions, Friends to Lovers, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence Summary:

Shepard has been gone six months. For Garrus, it feels like a lifetime. Struggling with grief and bureaucratic red tape, he reaches a breaking point.

#mass effect #mass effect trilogy #mass effect fanficiton #femshep x garrus #mass effect garrus #shepard x garrus #garrus romance

[shaken-veil]

R.I.P mass effect??? finally i guess?

seriously.

i couldnt care less about a shitty ass novel. i will just stick to fanficiton, because the writers at least care for the game. 

im so mad, disappointed and sad.. once again -.-** 

#Jule's Ranting #fuck this seriously

[maliciouslycreative]

created for @spnpolybingo Title: Player Three Is Now Connected Ship: Dean/Castiel/Michael Square: Retail Workers Rating: T Word Count: 2063 AO3 link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/11242086 Tags: Alternate Universe: Retail, Video Games, Mass Effect, Polyamory, Humour, Awkwardness

------

Dean would be the first to admit that working at Final Encounter Gaming wasn’t how he’d planned to spent the last 5 years of his life. He’d certainly never intended to stay this long because honestly the pay was kinda shit and retail had a tendency to suck the life right out of you. Not to mention his boss, Zachariah, knew nothing about gaming except that there was a lot of money in it. So here Dean was, working a shit job for shit pay just because at this point Zachariah let him have pretty much free reign of the store.

So when Zachariah waltzed in on Tuesday morning Dean knew something was up. Zachariah never came in this early on a Tuesday. “Good morning, Dean-o!” Zachariah practically sung.

Dean plastered the biggest fake smile on his face that he could muster. “Good morning, boss.”

“So, I know you’re pretty good for staff right now but my nephew needed a job so he’s going to be starting this Friday. He only needs a couple shifts a week, so I’m sure you’ll have no issue working him into the schedule.

“That sounds great,” Dean lied through his teeth.

“Good to hear!” Zachariah clapped Dean on the shoulder then started heading to his office in the back. “I told him to come in while you were here Friday so you can show him the ropes.”

“Sounds great...” Dean made a disgusted face after Zachariah was out of view. This was a disaster. Every one of Zachariah’s family members that he’d given a job to were a nightmare to work with.

First had been Bartholomew. The guy had walked in like he owned the place and had expected Dean to do everything he asked. He’d known virtually nothing about video games and had been endlessly condescending to customers and employees alike. Dean had been ecstatic when Bartholomew had gotten into law school across the country.

Next had been Hael. She’d seemed OK at first but had quickly descended into an unholy terror. She’d hated how sexist and vulgar so many games were and wasn’t afraid to express her opinion on them. Dean totally agreed but he also really wanted to keep his job and scaring any and all of the customers away wasn’t the way to do it. She also had this super intense look in her eyes that screamed murder. He endured nearly six months of her murder glares and watching teenage boys leave the store in tears before she got a job with the IRA as a tax auditor.

Lastly there was Samadriel. Samandriel wasn’t a bad employee and really Dena liked the guy. He was smart and funny and, unlike Zachariah’s last two relatives, really loved video games. He was however extremely shy and horribly clumsy. Yah Dean was prone to doing awkward things when he got nervous but Samandriel had it down to an art form. He’d even managed to give Dean second hand embarrassment a couple of times. On at least three occasions Dena had to coax a sobbing Samandriel out of the bathroom with a chocolate bar. After four months he’d gotten a job at a software design company where he never had to deal with the public again.

So wen Friday rolled around Dean had his bar set pretty low for whoever this Castiel guy was. All Zachariah had told Dean was that Castiel was a good Catholic boy who was going to school to get a business degree. Honestly Dean was expecting a younger version of Zachariah himself.

“Umm, excuse me.” Someone said from the other side of the counter.

Dean jumped a little. He’d been so deep in thought that he hadn’t even heard anyone enter the store. Putting on his best retail smile Dean turned around and locked eyes with a drop dead gorgeous guy. He did a quick once over (dark sex hair, blue eyes, and holy shit was that a tattoo peeking out from under his left t-shirt sleeve?).

“Hi! How can I you to be helped. I mean I can help you. No. Fuck. Shit I mean...” Dean took a deep breath. “Welcome to Final Encounter, how may I help you today?”

The gorgeous guy chuckled and stuck out his hand. “Hi, I’m Castiel and I’m looking for...” he squinted at Dean’s name tag, “you apparently.”

Dean wanted to die. “I’m so sorry.” Dean took Castiel’s hand and shook it. “I’m not usually this much of a disaster. You’re not really what I was expecting.”

“Oh?” Castiel quirked an eyebrow.

“Yeah. You don’t seem like an asshole and you’ve got a tatty and you’re like super hot.” Dean’s eyes widened as he realised what he’d said.

This however caused Castiel to throw back his head and let out a full bodied laugh. After he finished laughing he shot Dean a gummy smile. “I think we’re going to be to get along great, Dean.”

And boy did they get along. Castiel quickly became Dean’s favourite coworker. Sure Castiel’s video game knowledge was pretty limited since he’d only been able to play them since he moved away for college. He’d however listen with rapt attention whenever Dean would talk about various games. The two had even taken to getting together at least once a week for a few hours to play games together to help fill in the gaps of Castiel’s knowledge.

The only downside was the ever mounting sexual tension. For one Dean made a point of never fooling around with coworkers. It never ended well. For two Castiel wasn’t out to his family. He was very unashamedly gay but he didn’t want to make a fuss with his family until after he had graduated since his college was being paid for by his parents. So the two of them had settled on shamelessly flirting with each other. Though it had taken nearly all of Dean’s self control not to ravage him when Castiel had pulled up his shirt sleeve to reveal an N7 tattoo.

That had been nearly three weeks ago and it was still driving Dean wild. It probably didn’t help that Castiel had just casually slapped his ass while walking by. Fuck, Dean was going to have to go out to find a lay because his right hand and mshenko fanficiton weren’t cutting it any more. Thank god they were like 10 minutes from closing.

The door swung open and someone entered the store. Dean had to swallow a sigh. He sure as shit didn’t want to deal with any last minute customers. Dean put on his best retail smile and turned around. “Hi, how can I help you tonight?” He felt so lucky that he didn’t look into those gorgeous green eyes until he was done saying his spiel because he definitely would have fucked it up. His hair was perfectly styled and, so help him, the guy was wearing a black wasitcoat over a dark grey dress shirt. This was not helping Dean’s boner situation.

“Hi, I was wondering if you could give me a game suggestion?” He shot Dean a million dollar smile and then very obviously looked Dean up and down.

“Uhh, sure,” Dean said, gripping the counter tightly.

“You see...” the guy leaned in closer and Dean got a whiff of his cologne. He smelled fucking divine. “I just love Mass effect. The story’s fantastic and I just love the characters. Especially Kaidan, you know? I just want a piece of that sexy Canadian beefcake.”

“Yeah,” Dean swallowed hard and tried to not look at the guy’s lips. Of course instead he made the mistake of locking eyes with the guy and holy shit he was giving him bedroom eyes. Fuck Dean was so weak. He was going to ask this guy out. He was so done with being professional. “Yah, Kaidan’s my favourite too. So how about we-”

“Michael?” Castiel was now standing next to Dean, hands on his hips, glaring at the guy across the counter. “What are you doing?”

“Well, you said Dean was absolutely adorable when he got flustered so I just had to come see for myself.”

Castiel let out an exasperated sigh. “You’re terrible.”

“But you love me.” Michael said.

Castiel’s face softened and he smiled. “I do.”

“What?” Dean croaked.

“Dean, this is my fiance, Michael.” Castiel gestured at Michael.

“What?!” Dean’s mouth fell open and he glanced between Michael and Castiel nervously. Shit fuck goddamn fucking shit how had he missed the fact that Castiel was engaged. ‘I should uhh...” Dean started inching towards the back room. “Just let you two do your thing or whatever. I’ll be back in a few!” Dean all but sprinted to the back.

When he got to the stock room he practically slammed the door shut. Goddamn he was so stupid. Of course a guy like Castiel had a fucking fiance!

Dean grabbed the broom near the door and began aggressively sweeping the floor because he needed something to do. He was on his second pass of the floor when the door swung open and Castiel entered. Dean froze like a raccoon that had just been caught digging through your trash at 3AM.

“Dean,” Castiel tried to being but Dean just waved him off.

“No, it’s cool. You got a fiance. It just surprised me is all. I’m so fucking sorry that I was so goddamn unprofessional and was always flirting. That was really uncool of me and-”

“Dean,” Castiel gently laid a hand on dean’s shoulder, “I’m the one who should be apologising”

“No man, really you-”

“No, Dean, listen-”

“Cas, it’s cool, we’re cool-”

“Dean! Just shut up and let me explain!” Castiel’s grip tightened slightly on Dean’s shoulder then he let out a little sigh, released Dean and stepped back.

Dean’s mouth snapped shut and he stared at Castiel in surprise. He’d never seen Castiel yell before.

“I didn’t tell you because… well I liked you, Dean. And I wanted to see if this could go somewhere.”

“So what, I was just gonna be your booty call? Your man on the side? And then you were gonna go home every night to Michael” Dean was practically yelling by the end, the pitch of his voice steadily rising with the volume.

Castiel sighed. “Of course not, that wouldn’t be fair to either of you. Look, Michael and I have been together on and off since we were 16. We love each other very deeply and we’re extremely honest with each other. I would never cheat on him. However we’re not entirely what most people would call a conventional couple. We have somehwat of an open relationship and we’re both polyamorous.”

Most of the anger Drained out of Dean as the information sank in. “And let me guess, most guys who find this out only want a quick threesome then they split.”

“Yah,” Castiel nodded.

“So you thought I wouldn’t be interested if I knew about Michael.”

“Essentially.” Castiel scrubbed a hand over his face. “Though now I see I handled this poorly.”

“We both kinda did...”

They stood in awkward silence for a moment until Dean let out a small sigh. “I would uhh… i’d stick around. You know. For like more than a threesome. I’ve been going nuts because I liked you so damn much but I didn’t want to get mixed up with a coworker. So I’ve been masturbating so fucking much...” Dean’s eyes widened at the realisation of what he just said.

Castiel smirked. “well, I think Michael and I have a solution to your masturbation problem. But first,” Castiel took the broom out of dean’s hands and set it against the wall. “We should finish closing up the store. Then Michael and I would like to take you out for dinner. Well OK I guess midnight Denny’s because I have no idea what else is even open that isn’t a bar or fast food.”

“I happen to really like Denny’s.” Dean grinned.

“Well then, it’s a date.” Castiel grinned back, took Dean by the hand, and led him towards the front of the store.

It was official, Castiel was the best coworker Dean had ever had. And, as he found out later that night, one of the two the best lovers. And, even later on, one of the two best boyfriends Dean could ever hope for.

#spnpolybingo #spn #dean/castiel/michael #castiel/michael #destiel #dean winchester #michael #castiel #fanfic #stacey writes #hey look this was the thing i was writing by hand the other day #i actually finished a thing #i am so fucking behind on my poly bingo #but this is a start

[baldore-of-the-boros]

Things I do

Alrighty, so I thought I’d write a little summary of all the content that shows up here, made by me or other wise.

Magic: The Gathering.

My main thing, hence the name. Most of my content will fall under this fandom. Liiiiike:

Art: Doodles from each story update each week (Usually, sometimes stuff happens). Also, fannart of my Fanwalkers and characters (Kheve, Ithora, Sana*, and Ridil, namely) Plus anything else that pops into my head, like proxies or tokens.

Fanficitons: I write a story following the story of Kheve Ghildeer on a completely spontaneous basis. Story updates range from 1000-3000 words. (First arc, Kheve’s Ignition, just ended) Possibly other one shots or short stories if it strikes me.

Commissions: Basically of anything listed I can do. :P

Memes: Lots of reflagging and very rarely, an original one by yours truly.

Reblogging of Magic art or fannart or cool cards.

Dungeons and Dragons/Fate

I sometimes post stories or advice for the game(s) and enjoy talking about it. Hit me up any time on any questions concerning either or just for some stories or chatting!

Mass Effect/Star Wars/Cute animals/Reallly important PSAs/Positive messages

I blog/reblog lots of this stuff.

Coolio blogs to check out (Advertising for some cool people)

@markrosewater, @actualborossoldier, @obi-one-drop, @pandoraeve, @hirfael, @magicjudge, @commandollar, @inudono @elvish-memesmith, @phyrexian-without-a-cause, @the-foxwolf, @flavoracle, @voiceofallmtg, @gatheringmagicalanswers, @artofryanyee, @verumlumen, @askkrenko,

#Baldore #Baldore MTG #MTG #fan art #mtg fannart #mass effect #dnd #fate #Kheve #Ithora #Magic #ME #Stuff to expect