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SHEPARD POV
‘You just can’t help making trouble. No one has killed a Maw since my turn in the Rite. Next you’ll tell me he’s a quint and craps dark matter.” Wrex’s deep voice echoed softly in the ruins he called his throne room. She couldn’t stop the smirk from dancing across her lips momentarily at the snide remark. If it wasn’t for the fact she knew Wrex so damn well, she’d have thought him insulting her instead of the teasing joke he had actually meant it to be.
“Guess that’s what it takes to replace me.” He continued, shrugging and leaning back in his chair, his eyes glinting in amusement at her.
Grunt stepped forward, his footsteps surprisingly silent, considering his size. He nodded slightly in respect, or perhaps as a challenge to Wrex, she wasn’t actually sure which.
Krogan rituals were honestly the most confounding poppycock in the universe.
The silence stretched on. Both Krogan staring each other down for longer than necessary.
She fought the urge to roll her eyes at the two men.
Wrex finally huffed before sitting back in his self appointed throne and waved his hand at his newest clan member.
“You are Urdnot Grunt. Welcome.” He finally spoke, declaring the matter like it was to forever be written in stone. In terms of Krogans culture, this was the equivalent to Wrex adopting him like a son and declaring him family to the entire world.
She turned and nodded to Grunt herself, knowing that it was the ultimate form of respect amongst Krogans and it felt more appropriate than the pat on the back she would give any other soldier, before turning back to her old squadmate.
“Good to see you, Wrex. Sure you can’t come with us?” She asked again, hoping this time he might cave to her request and join her crew like he had done before.
“Wish I could, but I need to keep these shortsighted fools in line. Hunt well, Shepard.” Wrex turned her down again, nodding towards the exit and making it clear his path was to remain here, for now at least.
She turned towards her team, Grunt looking somewhat proud of his new title and Thane, looking around dutifully like the trained assassin he was.
“Time to go.” She said, jutting her chin towards the literal hole in the ground that led to where she had parked their shuttle. The destroyed tunnels of Tuchanka reminded her of just how much work Wrex still had left to do here.
His home world deserved better treatment than it had received, not a place left on it that had any plant life left, the desert stretched across the entire world now. Their once beautiful proud cities are nothing but twisted steel and crumbling walls. Like it was being slowly swallowed by the desert itself, destroying any trace it once existed at all.
EDI’s voice cut through her thoughts, silencing them as she walked through the musty ruins towards the shuttle.
“Clan Urdnot has increased in strength after the destruction of Clan Weyrloc.” EDI said over her headset, her voice devoid of emotion as the AI continued her report, “In addition, killing the Thresher Maw has produced several breeding requests for Grunt… and one for Shepard.” EDI finished, the quiet click sounding at the end of her message told her the radio was once again quiet.
“HA!” Grunt yelled in delight at the news, his loud outburst echoing off the walls.
Thane said nothing in response and she barely controlled the roll of her own eyes as they continued walking, she thought if Thane had the ability to roll his own eyes he would have.
Rounding the corner she heard the familiar humm of her shuttle's engines in standby as it sat atop the platform, awaiting her like a dog waiting for its owner.
Barely taking a step onto the ramp that lead towards it and her Omni-tool pinged, alerting her to an incoming message.
She stopped, her feet kicking up dust as she did before raising her arm to read the screen as it flickered to life.
‘Shepard. Figured you’d want to know, Clan Urdnot is having a gathering tonight to toast the death of Clan Weyrloc and the Thresher Maw. Only you and Grunt are invited. Wrex.’
She never really said no to a party.
But more than that, she was curious who put in a breeding request for her.
Humans and Krogans didn’t mix.
That was basic biology.
She typed back a quick reply, letting Wrex know they were coming before lowering her arm before boarding the Shuttle with the others.
Looks like they had a few hours to kill before the party tonight.
WREX POV
He hadn’t cared much for crowds, but he knew his people needed a reason to celebrate something right now. They didn’t have much to celebrate as of late, so small victories counted right now. As Shepard had always reminded him. ‘A step in the right direction, no matter how small, is still a step forward.’ He could practically hear her say it in his head.
She was an enigma.
Not because she was mysterious in the slightest.
He just didn’t know a human female could get so far under his plates.
He could smell the adrenaline on her skin after every mission when he was aboard her ship, the blood of her enemies mixed with it was an aphrodisiac, a word he had only recently learned and fit her perfectly.
Hell after she had killed the Thresher Maw and invited her to join him again it took all his strength to say no, only after she walked away did he excuse himself to wank so hard he thought his cock might fall off.
Now she just sat there across the fire from him, her legs spread out as she leaned back in her seat and attempted to match drinking pace with Grunt. Might’ve just been the sexiest thing he saw a human ever do.
He must have been staring at her too long though, because she rose from her seat and walked around the fire and right up to him, making his plates shift uncomfortable when he got a whiff of her arousal. It was subtle, but it was definitely there, just under the surface.
“Wrex.”
“Shepard.” He grunted back, ignoring how her breasts pushed out as she folded her arms under them and rocked back on her hips slightly.
“Can we talk?” She asked, nudging her head towards his self appointed throne room, temporarily abandoned as they had all moved outside to be in the warm night air around fire pits.
He just grunted as he stood, leading the way back to the room and waving off the guards posted inside, giving them some privacy.
Whether out of habit or simply because he wanted to sit down he didn’t know, he moved automatically to sit in his throne as Shepard stood in front of him, cocking her one eyebrow and looking between him and his seat.
“Habit.” He explained it away, he didn’t think much of it and just waited for her to start.
There was a moment of silence where she seemed to be thinking about how to say her thoughts before practically blurting them out.
“Who put in the breeding request for me?” She said, the confusion clear in her voice, even through a translator and straight to the point as always.
“I did.” He stated truthfully.
No point dancing around the truth as she would have found out eventually.
What he hadn’t expected was her to laugh.
A real genuine laugh like he had told the best joke of his life.
She bent over, hand clutching at her stomach as she did and he couldn’t help but be pissed about it. The red that flooded her face was as bright as his plates.
He was the leader of his entire race, much like she was, he didn’t have to sit here and be disrespected.
Standing he moved to leave, choosing to walk away from Shepard before he killed her for the dishonour and sparing her life. Other Krogans would see him as weak if they knew it but Shepard had been his friend for years and that alone was what was restraining him right now.
“Wait… Wrex? Where are you going?” She called out after him, her laughing subsiding as she must have watched him leave, but he had no intention of stopping. He didn’t have to beg a human to love him back.
“Wrex!” She yelled after him again but he still ignored her, going towards his hut set up for the night outside.
He’d separated himself from the group slightly, wanting more privacy than he usually did and now he was glad for it. Now no other Krogan would see him returning to his tent alone instead of bedding a female like the rest of them would be.
He moved faster than Shepard, surprising for his size, but he was no longer in the mood to socialise.
That didn’t seem to stop her though.
He heard her footsteps before he saw her in the almost pitch black of the night, metres from his tent, her hand connected with his shoulder. Not strong enough to knock him over, but enough to push him slightly forward and get his attention.
Twisting violently, he rounded on her, closing the distance and lowering his face to hers.
“Get. Lost. Shepard.” He growled out, warningly.
But that stubborn little redhead had other ideas.
She didn’t even flinch at his outburst, just folding her arms again and staring right back at him defiantly. If she was a Krogan female, he’d have accepted that challenge and thrown her over his shoulder to bed her right now.
But she wasn’t.
She was human.
A human that laughed at him.
“Wrex, I–”
“I should be disemboweling you for that disrespect, Shepard.”
Her eyes widened slightly, but that was the only tell she showed her realisation.
“Wrex, I didn–”
He cut her off again.
“I should have known better. No way a human could want a Krogan.” He practically spat the words out at her before spinning around and shoving through the fabric doorway of his tent, wishing he’d never submitted the stupid request in the first place.
Shepard was never really one for backing down though, just like him, too damn stubborn.
She followed him in, grabbing at his arm and pulling him to turn around this time instead of punching him, but he shrugged her off. Refusing to look at her.
“Wrex, would you just look at me please?” She said, her voice softer than usual. The same tone he once heard her use on a scared Pyjack. It was infuriating. Thinking he needed her pity.
“If you won’t look at me then at least listen. I thought you were joking, not because you really did want me like,” She paused, letting out a loud breath before continuing, “Like I wanted you.”
He felt his breath hitch in his chest, adamant he was finally crazy and hearing things.
“Wrex, you have saved me countless times, been the voice of reason in the hardest of situations. Hell, you even spent hours on end talking to me on the Normandy about anything and everything. I have learned more from you than any other person. I idolised you before I really understood that it was more than that.” Her voice continued, his heart feeling like it had stopped in his chest.
“Please look at me.” She said, cutting through the tension in the air.
Slowly he did.
Turning around to look at her face and see she was telling the truth, his heart racing like it had finally realised it had stopped.
So this was what humans wrote about.
“I don’t want one night with you, Wrex. I want whatever time we have left until the Reapers arrive to take it.” She said as she held out her hand, softly putting it on his chest.
“I don’t know how to do that, Shepard. If we cure the genophage for my people, then it will be my duty to restart my race.” He said, the fears he’s been overthinking since he met her, finally being voiced out loud.
“Let’s cross that bridge when we come to it.” She smiled softly, letting her hand fall from his chest.
“So what do you say, Wrex? Want to figure this all out together?” She asked, smirking at him as he saw her eyes sparkle.
“Anything you say, Shepard.”