[Book Three] Chapter 36: Coming together

Chapter 36: Coming together

 
The party has been going on for a while now and small groups have formed. The ambiance was calm and relaxed, something that Rick enjoyed very much though he knew that would last. As he walked to the bar he came across Jane who was going there too. They didn’t say anything but  listened to the conversation that was going on about Cerberus while unconsciously leaning against the counter, close to each other.

“I miss the days when Cerberus was hilariously incompetent. You know, when the two of you were in charge.” Joker said to his audience.
“Excuse me? I wasn’t incompetent, neither was Jacob.” protested Miranda.
“Yes, we did a pretty good job. Blew up the Collector base remember?”
‘Ah! That’s Jacob.’ Rick thought and turned his head to look at Jane who nodded, understanding what went through his mind.
“As for the only thing I was in charge of, it was the Lazarus project which as you can see is a resounding success.” the brunette said, pointing at Jane with her thumb.
“Debata…Ugh.” was all Rick could sass before his sister put a sharp elbow in his side.
“You were saying?” She asked ‘sweetly’.
“Debatable.”
“I’m amazed that you’re still alive with things like that.” Joker commented before “But yeah… Incompetent: ‘Hey, Commander! We were studying some rachnis/creepers/thresher maw/ biotics kids/ the guy we connected to the geths and they got loose and killed all our guys. Can you take care of it? Pretty please?’” he said in an inane voice making Rick snort.
“At least the body count was from their side.” Jane interjected.
“We knew there were some bad cells but we truly believed we were doing good work.” lamented Jacob.
“On paper you were. Studying the way rachnis communicate and their genetic memory? Rather important. The way it was done? Incompetent. With proper ethics and people, things wouldn’t have gone to shit all the time.”
“Not all the time.” protested again Miranda.
“All the time. Even the most successful project.” Rick countered.
“I mean, the Commander was under Cerberus' watch, got out of it and started killing all of their guys.”
“That’s not untrue… Good one ,Joker.”
“Then there is EDI, too.”
“You’re to blame for her being unshackled!”
“Doesn’t matter. Still the third best decision of my life.”
“I’m glad you did so. I’m enjoying my freedom very much… By killing all of their guys.” EDI joked which made Jane laugh along with Rick and Joker and even Miranda and Jacob snorted.
“I almost wish I had a turn. Getting captured, breaking out, killing all of them.”
“Of course you would, you’re insane.” Joker retorted, shaking his head in amusement.

The conversation went on and Rick slipped away, glass in hand. From the corner of his eyes he saw Samara looking at a painting of abstract art. Wondering how her life was going now, he approached her.

“Trying to understand the art?” he asked, looking at the painting by her side.
“Trying to understand how that could be considered art in the first place.” she replied matter-of-factly.
“...”
“...”
“Damn! You made a joke! About Art! Aren’t asari supposed to worship it or something?”
“Those that have too much money or no skills for anything else.” she replied with a smile and turned to face him.
“How are you doing? And the girls?”
“They are alright and motivated to rebuild the monastery. As for me, I’m doing… fine, considering. I followed the code for so long… To each situation it comes into my mind and taking a moment to not follow it is difficult. I never really realized that I was a slave to it. All justicars are.” she said with a small grimace. “But I understand why, and I don’t regret it. We couldn’t do what we have to do if we didn’t submit to it. It guides us, gives us strength, support and many more things.”
“You’re not really living though.”
“No, I was not.”
“I like to hear you use the past tense.” he smiled saying this.
“You were right. My reason for being a justicar is gone. I fulfilled my duty and while I will probably always follow the code if I see an injustice or crime in front of me, I will only be a mother from now on.”
“Good.”
“Rila and Falere are really happy with the decision. It pains me to have missed most of their lives, surprisingly they do not hold it against me.”
“Of course they don’t. They know and understand why you left. They’re happy that you made it out alive and back to them. You are their mother after all, they love you.”
“I don’t deserve them.” she replied sadly.
“Perhaps, perhaps not. Does it really matter?”
“Yes, because they deserve better.”
“Let this young twenty something year old man give you a bit of wisdom… Life is not about what you deserve, it’s about what you get and what you do with it. You feel unworthy to be their mother? Work hard to be worthy. It’s as simple as that. Play the cards that you’ve been served and try to earn better ones, don’t bother thinking about the cards you wish you or anyone else had because you’ll miss the whole game.”
“Always so insightful.” she smiled genuinely at him.
“Well I say that… but with your lifespan your game is rather long… still don’t take too much time to do things or you will have forgotten to do them when the time comes for you. There is a human saying: ‘Carpe Diem’. It’s from a dead language but the meaning is ‘enjoy the day’ which can be interpreted as ‘live your life as if each day was the last because you only live once’ .”
“That’s rather poetic, I like it.”
“You should speak with Ashley, despite her tough exterior and explosive and blunt temper she loves poetry. I’m sure she’ll be willing to talk about it with you. Perhaps Jennifer too now that I think about it.” he said pensively.
“Jennifer?”
“Jack’s real name.”
“Oh? She found out who she was?”
“Hmmhmm and you won’t believe it but she’s my sister in law.”
“No way!” Samara exclaimed with huge eyes. “Truly?”
“Yeah. It was a shock when I found out.”
“It’s impressive how despite the galaxy being so big it’s at the same time so small.” the asari said as she was looking at Jennifer standing in the living room talking with Jane.
“You have no idea.” Rick whispered looking at his sister. Of all the planets and all the human colonies there is, she ended up on Eden Prime when he was there.

Samara didn’t miss what he said and at who he was looking at. “You and the Commander?”
“... It’s a long story and I’m not in the mood to talk about it.”
“I understand, perhaps one day.”
“On my deathbed, if I can’t help it. Otherwise I’m taking that story to the grave. Not that I don’t want people to know, I just don’t want to say it.”

Samara looked at him for a moment and nodded, then left to join the rather big group in the kitchen who began dancing as music had just begun  playing. He looked at everyone moving around in rhythm and took enjoyment from doing so. Dancing has never really been his thing or rather not the king of dancing for this kind of party music. Ballroom dancing was more his things as the elegance, grace, and closeness to your partner was much more appealing. The choreography, the multiple different steps and the somewhat resulting intimacy was something he liked as it allowed him to let his mind on auto-pilot and empty it. That was something he needed the most and that worked the best for him. He had tried fishing which was an activity famously known to empty your head, some research back from the late 20th century even proved that when fishing while sitting around a man’s brain was devoid of thought or rather devoid of activity. In other words they were brain dead for a short time. It had fascinated Rick to learn this when he was searching for a way to just turn his brain off and immediately tried despite the limited environment of Omega. He will always remember Aria laughing her ass off when she caught him trying to catch his clown fish, Nemo, from his aquarium. The memory put a small smile on his face and that caught the eye of Ashley who loudly called him out.

“Come on, Lover! Dance with us!”
“Tempting but no thank you.”
“Scared?” the brunette challenge.
“Don’t worry, Jane is dancing, you can’t do worse!” laughed Garrus to Jane’s protest which prompted the others around to laugh too.
“I am not scared, it’s just not my kind of dance.”
“And what is your kind of dance, Dickhead?” Rick heard from the side where he saw Jennifer moving her body sultrily on the dining table.
“Ballroom dance, like waltz or tango.”
“No shit?!”
“Yes, shit.”
“I bet Garrus is wrong and you’re worse than me!”

Rick turned his head to look at Jane who was moving atrociously her body around like a drunk. He knew she didn’t care about this, she just wanted to see him dance, to see him have some fun. Sighing, he joined the improvised dance floor and began to shake his body with the rhythm of the beat. His feet, well coordinated and the rest of his body moving flawlessly with it.

“Holy shit! You’re good!” Ashley exclaimed, not believing what she was seeing.
“Oh yeah! That bit about growing up around dancers and whores was true.” Jennifer said, dumbfounded.
“Of course it was.” replied Rick dancing the night away.

____________________________________________________________

It turned out that the night away was in fact, two hours. Fed up with moving around he went to the bar and saw the fighting nutcases there, drunk out of their asses and guns in hands. Not wanting to know what was happening and wanting to find a calm place with no people or a few as many around, he didn’t even bother to enter the area and went to pick up a drink at the second bar in the lounge area. There he saw Miranda and Jennifer sitting face to face, looking at each other in silence. Not caring one bit, he went behind the counter poured himself a drink and went to sit on the other side of the room on a comfy love seat in silence where he closed his eyes and let his mind wander.

“...”
“...”
“...”
“The fuck you want?!” Jennifer shouted seeing her brother in law look at them. Or so she thought, since she couldn’t really tell with his helmet.
“...”
“...”
“I’m talking to you, Dickhead!”
“Hmm?”
“Why are you looking at us like that?!”
“What the hell are you talking about? I was resting with my eyes closed.”
“You think I’d believe that?!”
“I don’t give a shit if you do or not. Now leave me the fuck alone and go back to working out a frienship with Miranda or flirting or whatever you were doing here.” he replied and took a sip of his drink.
“Hell, no!”/ “You didn’t just say that.” Both brunettes protested.
“Ugh… Guess I won’t have my moment of peace… What is it?”
“Like hell I’m making friends with the cheerleader!”
“For once I agree with Jennifer.”
“You should, you have everything to be the best of friends or more.”
“How many glasses did you have?” Miranda inquired at the absurdity she was hearing.
“That’s my second.”
“No more for you, lightweight.” said Jennifer as she stood up from her barstool and went to rip the glass out of his hand.
“Hey! Give that back.”
“Not if you’re spouting bullshit.”
“I’m not! You have plenty of common ground but you are different enough to complete each other.”
“I must be dreaming.” Miranda replied bewildered.
“Look. You’re both badass biotic independent women, you’re sexy and gorgeous as hell. People depend on you and you’re very loyal to the people you care about. Best of all?  You loathe Cerberus. Now onto the difference, Jen, you’re chaotic and impulsive and a bit of an extroverted introvert. Miranda, you’re organized and thoughtful and an introverted extravert. It’s like the two of you are the different sides of the same coin. Honestly, the way I see it, you have nothing to lose and all to gain by being friends.”
“...”
“...”
“...”
“I knew you had some screws loose but  I thought it was only just a few, not all of them.” Jennifer commented.
“I don’t know… there is some truth in what he said.”
“What?! Did he fuck your ass so much that he fucked your brain out too?”
“Lovely…” Miranda replied in a flat tone. “We do have similarities and complementary differences, that doesn’t mean we’re going to be best friends forever however.”
“For a moment I thought you were going with his stupid idea.”
“Puh-lease. My idea has merit. If the two of you find a way to work together you’d only be better and greater for it. My advice? Go spend some time as a team in the arena.”
“So not going to happen.” Jennifer said drinking bottoms up Rick’s drink.
“Yes, I’m too busy anyway.”
“Busy? I didn’t give you any work yet. You should get some soon though.”
“I’m searching for Oriana. I haven't had any contact in months, I’m worried.”
“Cerberus?” Jennifer asked.
“Rather my father but Cerberus is on my list too.”
“... She’s… safe.” Rick said hesitantly.
“Safe?”
“You know something? Where is she?” Miranda asked promptly with urgency as she stood up from her seat.
“One of my bunkers. She was perfect for the Safeguard project.”

“Safeguard project?” Jennifer asked puzzled.
“It’s a plan I’ve been working on with the councilors since Sovereign's defeat three years ago. In case we lose against the Reapers, I had secret bunkers constructed all over the galaxy and filled it with people who are expert in their fields, the potential to be and who are open to interspecies cooperation, putting them all in a status that will last a couple centuries. If we lose in this cycle, we won’t lose in the next.”
“And you only tell me now?! I’ve been worried sick for months!” Miranda shouted in anger.
“I… forgot.” was the answer he gave but the wrong one. Even Jennifer was shocked at it.
“How the hell did you forget that, Dickhead!”
“One, because there are four million people involved in the project! Two… Well, since Oriana and her adoptive parents are safe I… kinda put it in the back of my mind. I had more important things to focus on. Now that I think about it, I should warn Joker about his sister, she’s in the project too! Her flying scores are off the charts.”

Standing up, he quickly exited the lounge to go see the Normandy’s helmsman, leaving behind the two women.

“I can’t believe that man!” Miranda threw her arms in the hair in frustration.
“Eh! He is what he is but yeah I agree. Fucking idiot always forgetting important stuff like that.”
“I swear one moment he’s… Nevermind… I need to hit something.”
“Hit something? The cheerleader Ice Queen wants to hit something to vent her frustration?” questioned Jennifer as she looked at Miranda with surprise.
“Do you have a problem with that?!”
“Heck no! You’re finally interesting but that’s something I would do!”
“... Perhaps we do influence each other for the better.”
“Forget I said anything.” Jennifer replied unamused.
“I’m going to the arena murder some Cerberus’ fakeout for a bit, you’re free to join.” Miranda said as she exited the lounge.

Jennifer looked at her go, especially Miranda’s bubbly ass. Thinking for a moment, she agreed that killing some Cerberus guys would make her feel good and pass the time until the party picked up again. Serving herself one last glass of alcohol, she followed Miranda out of the apartment. What did she have to lose anyway? It wasn’t the weirdest shit she has ever done.

____________________________________________________________

Jane woke up alone in her bed. She felt cold and reached for the warm body that she had spent her nights with all weeks. Unfortunately there was none, no matter how she explored the bed with her arm. In consequence she opened her eyes with a frown, not linking one bit that Rick wasn’t with her. She remembered why, everyone had slept there instead of going home and her brother had moved in into the guest room especially for the occasion. Raising herself from the comfy bed, she stretched and cracked her back. Feeling better she put some relaxing clothes on and exited her bedroom, her nose guiding her towards the kitchen where she found James cooking some eggs, a special recipe from his grandfather for mornings with hangovers. As a biotic, she didn’t have that problem but it was nice of him to cook for everyone. Looking around to see if anyone else was awake, she saw Kaidan and Steve sleeping in each other’s embrace on her couch. The sight put a smile on her face that didn’t go away when she saw EDI sitting on the second couch with Joker sleeping with his head on her lap.

“Are we the only one awake, James?”
“Nah. All of the biotics are up exercising in the guestroom on the first floor with the exception of you and the Major. I’m surprised you’re not there with them and slept in.”
“I’ve been waking up at 4:45 every morning for training since we left Mars. I think I earned sleeping in a bit until…8am.” she replied looking at the time on her omnitool.”
“Damn! 4:45?!”
“Yeah. Some biotics to train, some light exercise to stay in shape then some sword fighting. All before I have to take my post.”
“I’m glad I’m not you Lola.”
“Aww… And here I wanted to trade places.” she joked, making the man laugh.

They heard the door to the apartment open and turned their head to have a look only to see Rick entering with breakfast for everyone.

“That smells good.” the helmeted man said as he began to take different pastries from the big bag he put on the counter.
“My abuela’s recipe.”
“Is she a chief?”
“Yeah, for forty years. This is one of her best.”
“Might pay her a visit one of his days.”
“It’s 8-ish, where have you been?” Jane asked.
“Doesn’t the bag of food give you an idea?”
“I know you, you were up before 5.” she said accusingly and got a shrug in response.
“I did a match at the arena as a warm up exercise, then went to the ship.”
“We’re on shore leave! You shouldn’t be working!”
“Lola’s right, you’d burn yourself out.”
“First off, I enjoy thinking so it’s not technically working. Second, I wasn’t even doing that, I was relaxing by playing music.”
“You play?”/”Really?”
“Hmmhmm.” Rick replied as he ate a pastry.
“What instruments?” James asked.
“With my own hands? Piano and drums. With a terminal? Pretty much everything, though some instruments are better played for real. Anything with strings like violin, guitar, cello…”
“Maybe we should do something on our downtime on the Normandy, I play the guitar.” James ventured.
“Nice! What kind?”
“All kinds. I started playing with my abuelo’s acoustic, then a friend of mine lended me his electric one.”
“Hmmmm. If you have the time I may need your help for a piece I’m composing.”
“You compose too?!” exclaimed Jane, surprised at the new things she was learning about her brother.
“When the mood takes me.”
“Sure, no problem. Don’t have an instrument though.”
“Meh, don’t worry, I’ll get you everything you need.”
“Thanks but I don’t want you to pay for it.”
“I’m not. Told you, credit is not the only currency. Some people owe me, so don’t worry about it.”
“How good are you?” inquired Jane.
“At what?”
“Piano!”
“I’m… alright.”
“Show us.” shesaid pointed to the piano at the corner of the living room.
“Eh, I haven’t played since I was sixteen so no.”
“Oh, come on!”
“It’s 8 am, Red. you could at least wait until noon to annoy me.”
“Nope. Now go play something before I annoy you more.” She ordered, making James snort.
“People are sleeping.”
“Then play something nice and it’s past 8. They should all be up by now.”

Rick sighed and went to the piano in the corner of the living room, mumbling some words about his bossy sister. When he sat down, he cracked his fingers then let them roam on the keys without pressing any of them, while thinking about what to play. For a moment he had the thought of playing something fast and hard that would annoy everyone but he reletended. Anything he knew that would have that effect was complicated and he was too rusty to play something like that right off the bat after ten years. He chose instead something slow, nice and not very loud. He was so focused on the piece he was playing that he didn’t notice Jane sitting silently next to him to watch him.

“Hmmm. That’s nice.” said a voice from behind them, a bit groggy.

Turning her head, the redhead saw Steve awake, still a bit in the fog, but awake, getting out from Kaidan’s arms. He wasn’t the only one. Joker, who had drank more than usual the day before to celebrate the fact that his family was safe, groaned as he raised himself from EDI’s lap.

“I think I’m going to be sick.”
“Don’t listen to him, Rick. It’s beautiful.” Kaidan commented as the music woke him up too though thanks to his biotic implant he was as fresh as can be.
“I wasn’t talking about the song.” Joker said as he stretched himself carefully to not break a bone. “I need some aspirin.”
“It’s really soothing and somewhat caring.” described Steve.
“And peaceful… Like home.” Liara said as she came down the stairs with Samara. “You never told me you knew how to play.”
“Apparently no one did.” Jane added her two credits.

Rick kept silent and went through the whole piece without making any mistake and without caring about the people around him. Once done, he raised from the seat but was put back down by Jane.

“Nuh-huh. Keep playing.”
“No.”
“I wouldn’t mind hearing you play more, god knows we don’t have much music on the ship and certainly not like that as a wake up.” supported Steve.
“Fine. What do you want to listen to?”
“Something a bit more energetic? And a bit loud so the one upstairs would wake.” Jane proposed.
“You’re dealing with Ashley and Dorothea then.”
“Deal!”


Immediately Rick’s hands and fingers began to move fast on the keys, playing a really fast and catchy melody.

“Ohhh!” Jane exclaimed.
“That’s energetic for sure.” Steve commented, tapping his foot on the ground.
“Makes you want to swing.” added Kaidan.

The piece was short but Rick was now in the mood and played another one without delay, then another and then another.

“I swear I’m gonna kill the one who’s playing!” Yelled a voice from upstairs.
“I second that!”

Hearing Ashley and Tali respectively shout make everyone laugh. To Rick's surprise, Dorothea just came down the first floor without saying anything and more importantly doing anything. He didn’t know her to be a morning person after all. The music attracted the biotics at the back of the apartment and when Rick stopped playing everyone went to the kitchen for breakfast. James eggs were a hit but since it was late no one asked for second. As everyone was leaving, Rick noticed Miranda and Jennifer leaving together, talking. They clearly weren’t close but at least they talked and it was much more than what he saw the previous night in the lounge. He knew that Jen had no problem with being with a woman and he hoped that Miranda didn’t either. He had been serious when he had said that they would fit well together. And if Miranda was just straight, a very close friendship will do them good.

Now that only Rick and Jane were in the apartment, she didn’t miss the opportunity to sit in his lap on the couch and melt into him.

“I missed you, last night.”
“You missed me for sixteen years, what’s a night more?”
“Too much for me to handle.”
“You’ll have to, I can’t always sleep in your cabin.”
“I’m the captain of the ship, what I say goes.” she replied with a frown.
“Jane…”
“I know! I’m just…”
“I know.”
“...”
“...”
“Let’s go on a date.”
“Okay.”
“I mean a real date.”
“Meaning?”
“Dinner at a nice restaurant, nice clothes and everything that a woman gets from her man.”
“... You know… I find you… more girly than usual?”
“Well… I wasn’t much of a girly girl back then and the military didn’t make things better. But I do want to be treated like a woman. Being taken out at a nice place, sometimes having a nice dress, a nice haircut. I mean, sure it’s not my thing but I really want to feel like a woman from time to time. Not like a soldier or a commanding officer. I want to enjoy being a woman, sex aside.”
“Pretty sure, it’s because you want to wear that dress again.”
“Of course! It’s gorgeous!”
“And you don’t even bother denying it. I feel so used.”
“Riiiight.” she replied not convinced in the least by his tone.
“Alright I’m pulling all stops for tonight but on one condition.”
“Which is?”
“I’m teaching you how to dance.” he answered and stood up while holding her. “And I’m not talking about dancing like a dancer at the Afterlife. I mean real dancing.” he added, putting her on her feet.
“What? No! No, no, no, no, no!” she protested but Rick ignored it.

Spinning her around so they could be face to face, he took her right hand in his left and with his right put her left on his right shoulder. Afterwards his right hand found itself on the middle of her back, passing under her left arm.

“First thing to understand about dancing is that it’s a rhythm. Like 1, 2, 3. 1, 2, 3. 1, 2, 3. Okay?”
“So far so good.” she replied getting into it, knowing that she couldn’t get out of this which she realized was fine because they were very close.
“The second thing to understand is that your partner is like a bad mirror.”
“A bad mirror? What do you mean?”
“If I put forward my right leg.” he said as he did so. “I’m going to hit your left leg. To avoid that you pull your left leg back. So you see in a way we’re like a mirror, I move a limb, you move the same one though in the same direction.”
“I see.” Jane replied with her left leg back.
“That is what makes dancing with a partner easy as you can adapt to what they’re doing easily.” he explained further and demonstrated by moving his left left forward this time making Jane pull back her right leg immediately.
“Congratulations, you got the basics of dancing down.”
“Wait! That’s it? That’s all I need to know? You’re kidding, right?”
“No. That's the basics of dancing but you need to learn the steps. Each dance has its proper steps to follow. Generally it goes along the rhythm and the sequence is pretty short. Let’s start with the Waltz, it’s a six steps dance. Two sets of three actually.”
“Like the rhythm.”
“Yes. See, you already understand how it works. Now let’s see the steps. One, I put my left foot forward.” he began slowly and Jane pulled her right foot back. “You got the distance right, good. Two, the other foot is moved forward too but laterally to create distance between your feet. Like this.”  Rick continued with his demonstration. “What do you notice in this position?”
“Our feet are too wide apart. We can’t really dance like this unless I bring back my right feet.”
“Correct. Let’s do it.” he instructed and did as such.
“And now?”
“Now, we begin the second set but this time you’re the one moving forward, it’s the same steps.”

Jane nodded and moved her right foot only to bump his left.
“Sorry.”
“It’s alright.”
“Why didn’t you move your foot?”
“Because we’re doing the same set and I moved my left foot first for my set. Left foot first, then right, then left then repeat.”
“Okay, got it.”

She moved her left foot first and Rick moved in accordance, then her right then her left.

“Good. Now, two pieces of advice. One, be light footed, do not raise your feet to high when you move them, they must barely leave the floor. Two, when you bring your feet back, it must be as if you were actually sliding it.”
“Alright.”
“Now we’ll go along the rhythm. If you make a mistake, it’s alright, don’t stop, keep going.” he said and Jane nodded.

He began counting up to three and paused between each set so Jane could take her marks. At least at first, once they had completed five turns, the pause was of the usual length of time. She had stumbled a bit at first but quickly got the hang of it.

“Good. What you just learned is what is called the box step.”
“Because we’re moving in a square pattern.”
“Yes. Now as the name waltz implies, we need to turn, or rather revolve. A waltz is always danced counterclockwise, always. As for turning…”
“It’s on the second step. We just move our feet farther back or front while pivoting our body in its direction.”
“Exactly. I guess you don’t suck as much as you let people believe.” he joked and Jane stomped her foot on his for the comment but he didn’t react. “The new distance is roughly half a foot by the way.”

Jane simply nodded and Rick began counting again. This time she succeeded in her first try and the couple began to waltz in the living room. To spice things a bit, Rick took some bigger steps and bigger turns so they would move beyond the circle they were revolving in. After a few minutes, they stopped and Jane had a proud smile on her face.

“Now, it’s only practice.”
“That was easy.”
“The waltz is one of the easiest dances to learn, at least the basic version. Turning around can also be done on the first step by simply pivoting your foot just as you make the second step. In that case you’re a bit more free to move around as a unit in the direction you want. You can also alternate to dance in a more or less straight line before making a turn.”

Jane nodded in understanding. Out of the blue, she reached for his helmet and removed it, Rick letting her. Putting the headgear on the kitchen counter, she grabbed Rick by the hand to practice, following his advice. This time however she could look at his bright blue eyes and felt the dance way more intimate. She doesn’t know how long they dance in silence but by the time they stopped she felt like it hadn't been long enough.

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Jane had worn the dress back on. She really felt like the most beautiful woman in the world in it despite the scars accumulated after years of service and one resurrection. Her muscles were well defined but not big, meaning she didn’t feel like a bodybuilder put on a dress. The dress wasn’t the only thing she wore again. The earrings, the cross, the shoes and even the gloves. Everything was the same. To avoid a potential scandal Rick did the same. Though she didn’t care one bit if people knew she was dating a member of her team, she still wanted to be just them in the know, Ashley aside. That was why Rick had ditched the helmet for his venetian mask. They had already been seen together like that at the casino earlier in the week, people wouldn’t be surprised. They would wonder who was the tall blond man she had a date with, however. She was fine with that. The only difference for her was the ponytail that she had dropped. Instead she sported a fringe that went to her left. It was simple and she liked it that way.

They had dinner and a very luxurious restaurant on the Presidium, the kind that didn’t have the price on the menu. At least they weren’t on hers. She noticed once again that people were looking at her and could even hear the less than subtle talking about either her, her dress, or Rick. The food was the best she ever had and so far the date was going well. When they left the establishment they just walked aimlessly on the bank of the Presidium in silence. Her arm in his and their hands intertwined. As it was night time, the Citadel lights adapted and the clear blue sky was replaced by a black starry one. Much like any intimate moment since they got together, she wished it would never end. That the reapers would just go back from where they can from and leave everyone alone. That wasn’t going to happen, it was wishful thinking and she knew it. That’s why she cherished this loving moment even more. To make it even better, she led him to a rather deserted part of the Presidium where some couples were enjoying their time together too. Once there, she moved from his side to face him. She felt like dancing to make everything more perfect and Rick obliged her. They never broke eye contact and never noticed the people around, discreetly watching them. Some began to dance with their partner too while others simply took pictures of the siblings, recognizing Jane. When she had enough moving her feet, she couldn’t help herself and kissed him. It was a simple kiss but very meaningful for her and for him. When they separated she had stars in her eyes. Full of happiness and full of love. Complaining that she was cold, Rick put his jacket on her shoulder and embraced her from behind, Jane melting in his arms and they simply looked at the water just below them for a moment. Finally she asked to be brought home and they left hand in hand for the apartment. As soon as they went through the door, she was all over him.

“This night has been perfect so far. You better make it perfect the whole night because who knows when will be the next time if there is a next time.”
“Jane… you better be talking about one of us dying in the latter case.”
“Of course I do!”
“I didn’t go through my trauma and my fear so you could abandon me again.”
“I wouldn’t! I won’t!”
“Good because I will not let you go, Jane. Never. I can’t go through that again.”
“You’ll never have to.” she said as she gently grabbed his collar and pulled him down for a kiss but stopped when their nose touched. “I’m all yours.”
“All mine?”
“Hmm. Mind, heart, body and soul.”
“You won’t mind, if I tattoo you saying that you belong to me then?”
“I’m still an alliance officer, so I can’t have a visible tattoo but I won’t mind. You can do whatever you want to my body.”
“Whatever I want? Are you sure? I don’t think you realize what you’re saying.”
“What. Ever.”
“If I want to put a collar on you?”
“Like Miranda? I don’t mind, it’s hot. It's proof that I belong to you. I won’t be able to wear it in public if there is something written on it, like hers, though.”
“What if I want to… Hmmm… Have your nipples pierced?”
“I’ll just ask you if you prefer rings or barbells.”
“You’re crazy, I hope you know that.”
“I’m kinky, not the same thing. And I’m blaming you and Ashley for that. And mom. We got that kinkiness from her.”
“Ugh.. Please do not talk about…”
“Sorry, it slipped. I won’t do it again.”
“Maybe I should just plug your mouth just to be sure.”
“If you don’t bring me to our bedroom and make me choke on your cock in the next fifteen seconds, I’m bringing her up again.”

Rick had never been that fast in his entire life.

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