pluggedintheoverlord

[No matter how pissed he was-- mostly at himself-- he would always pick up for his Commander. Never knew when she would be calling him to pull her ass out of the fire, after all. And he didn't blame her for wanting to punch him after that; he'd crossed a line, and he knew it.]

Yeah, Commander?

[There was a short pause before she spoke up.]

Hey, are you currently busy?

Not with anything important.

[Just up to his arms in the Normandy's circuitry, replacing a few shorts. Getting his hands dirty distracted him a little from the constant litany of You're such a tool, Jeff that was going through his head.]

[Not that he didn't always have that, but normally it was a little less irritating.]

All right.

[Shepard was stalling again and she didn't know exactly how to say it. She could've given him more credit- he was the one who always stuck by her side from the start and dealt with everything she had to do across the galaxy.

Hell and back, plus more. Shepard exhales a breath she didn't know she was holding.]

Look, I'm calling to apologize. I said some nasty stuff earlier and I didn't mean it. I was angry and I should have had a better grip on my emotions.

[Sighing softly, her eyes closed.]

I'm sorry, Jeff.

[Man, it sounded weird calling him by his first name in such a long time, but Shepard was sincere.]

Nothing to forgive, Commander.

[It would take a lot more than a few strong words to change his loyalty to her-- besides, she'd had every right to be pissed. He was the one at fault here; he should have known better than to act as he did.]

I crossed a line, and what I did was stupid and unacceptable. You could've really gotten hurt, and, well... as far as jokes go, it was pretty shitty anyway. Not my finest moment.

[This whole sincerity and not being a tool thing was hard.] So... I'm sorry. And I mean it when I say it won't happen again.

Thank you, I really do appreciate you apologizing.

[Not to mention half of her crew was angry at Joker and wanted to give him a tongue lashing of their own. Lucky for Shepard she could put them in their place and stop that from even happening. Well, until she was out of earshot distance.

It's not like she wouldn't hear about it one way or another, though.]

So, do you want to get a drink?

[Nothing like settling a dispute with alcohol.]

[Pissing people off was one of Joker's many talents. He could handle the crew yelling at him, so long as it didn't get physical.]

[But if Shepard wanted to drink with him, then he knew that she wasn't pissed anymore. And that's all that really mattered to him.]

Yeah, sure. Just have to clean up down here.

I can be at the Normandy in about a half hour.

[There's a pause before she speaks again,]

And Joker? Make sure to bring out the good stuff.

You got it, Commander.

[He'll be ready with Chakwas' stash of real Earth booze when she arrives.]

[~~It's like a tradition now.~~]

[Annnnd she arrives when she said she would. Aww yis.]

[~~Chakwas would kill him if she knew that he'd turned stealing her liquor into a tradition.~~]

[He was leaning against an off-line console in the CIC when Shepard boarded. He had a bottle in one hand and a pair of glasses in the other.]

Hey, Commander.

[~~She'd make Shepard go buy her booze. Not like Shepard already doesn't do that anyways, though.~~]

[Shepard makes her way over to Joker, a faint smile present.]

Hey, Joker.

[Her mood definitely improved.]

[To his credit, his eyes didn't go any lower than her collarbone.]

Your quarters?

[Because god knew it was more comfortable up there than the mess and inviting her to his was kind of out of the question.]

[~~HOW SCANDALOUS~~]

Sure.

Want me to take the bottle?

Can't even wait until we get up there?

[He's handing it over anyway. Make sure you don't drink it all on the way up, Shepard.]

I might leave some for you.

[~~You'll be lucky if you get a drop of it, Joker.~~]

C'mon, let's go.

Right behind you.

[~~Commandeeeeeeeeer~~]

[~~Keep that up, I dare you.~~]

How're the repairs on the Normandy coming?

[~~...no, ma'am.~~]

They'd be going faster if I had the right parts, but we know how well that went.

[He gestured towards the black-and-blue side of his face.]

[~~That's what I thought. Good pilot.~~]

At least it's healing.

[She could go on about how much worse it could have been, but doesn't.]

I could go back and try to find something, but I don't think they like me all that much.

Yeah.

[He knew it could've been a hell of a lot worse than just an annoyance.]

You and me both. Tali said she'd come down with me, but I'm not too sure if that still stands.

What do you mean?

She seemed kinda pissed at me earlier.

[You know, about the breasts thing and his part in it.]

[Oh. Right. That.]

I think she's cooled down since then. I could always talk to her if you want me to, though.

[If anyone can calm down her crew, it's Shepard.]

Nah, I can handle it.

[It's not like Tali was going to break him in half or anything, like possibly certain turians that will remain unnamed.]

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