Midnight-Blackened

Shepard, trailed by Garrus, reached the upper floor of the venue. She made her way through the busy floor and approached the bar that was closest to the stairs. It seemed slightly more private than the second bar located immediately across on the opposite side. She spoke to the bartender while sitting on a bar stool. "My good man. I need something strong enough to make me ignore this pathetic racket, so-called music you got playing. Garrus snorted and the bartender offered her a sympathetic look that conveyed the years of auditory torture he'd endured. "But not strong enough to make me forget my date's name. Same for him." Garrus corrected her, saying to the bartender, "Make mine much milder. There's not an awful lot that I'd like to ignore or forget. Not tonight." He sat on the stool next to Shepard while removing his gloves. As he noticed her observing him, he felt the need to explain himself. "Wrong size. Too tight. They're cutting my circulation," he said, rubbing his

The crew was gathered in the front lounge engaged in a lively conversation, when they heard two sets of footsteps coming down the stairs and Liara's voice in the distance saying… "People! Be supportive or I swear to goddess!" Moments later, Liara emerged around the corner while grabbing Shepard by the forearms from behind, practically pushing her forward. Shepard was looking down, trying to hide her face in embarrassment. She was wearing a gauzy long column, boat neckline sleeveless gown - and on Shepard's insistence - in the most understated color she could get away with: beige. Even black had seemed unacceptably 'showy' for her. Tali had somehow managed to convince Shepard to get both the pantsuit and the gown as a backup. Later, she'd also tricked her into trying on the gown first. The results of her efforts spoke for themselves, at least for the time being. The men in the lounge saw Shepard's entrance and, as if simultaneously affected by some collective male hive-mind, they

They all arrived safely to Shepard's apartment, and continued their discussion without pause. Shepard asked, "Does anybody have a plan of action? Should we contact Commander Bailey?" Brooks said, "Sorry to butt in, Commander. But if your comms are getting intercepted …wouldn't that just make whoever you contact a target too?" Garrus came to the woman's rescue. "She's right, Shepard. Until we figure this out, it's a big risk." The moment he spoke, it instantly calmed her down. "Ah, Garrus, my voice of reason in this outfit." She got closer to him before saying, "You mentioned we can get a lead by tracking the pistol model. But how are we gonna do that without C-Sec?" He was about to answer when T'Soni walked in the room. "I might be able to help." "Liara," Shepard said, wondering how the asari invited herself to her apartment. She then narrowed her eyes at Joker. "You just couldn't get Traynor, could you?" Joker looked down, putting his hands behind his back. "Nice to see you