#M!Shep/Garrus

[thedenofcaseywolfe]

Rec Request

Anyone got some recs for Mass Effect fics that are HFN/HEA featuring:

M!Shep/Garrus

M!Shep/James

Thanks in advance!

[saltysalmonella]

M!Shep and Garrus, set between ME1 and ME2.

[knightundead]

No Shepard without Vakarian!!! Something something gay people

[x3no9]

I have been busy! Sketching and writing MORE chapters of Killing Aria, a mass effect fanfic featuring MANY m/m couples. Mostly rare pairs. Right now fixated on General Oleg Petrovsky with Isaac Shepard and Jack Harper. Did some sketches of Oleg and Jack. Jack has a type. 😏😏

Full versions in the link!

[maltdrawings]

Hi everyone, I hope you’re fine !

Here is my @masseffectholidaycheer gift for @weatheredlaw  :D it was a real pleasure to draw Garrus and Shepard and I hope you’ll enjoy it !

Have a very nice day :D

[gothamcityneedsme]

'My turn to watch you sleep'

'I never watched you sleep'

'Liar'

'Got me'

I LOVE THIS

[emrisemrisemris]

You know how sometimes you get bitten by an Age of Sail horror AU in the middle of the night and have to write something down before it'll let you sleep

Shepard/Garrus, ME3, right before the Leviathan mission

---

Shepard lit another candle in the heavy-bottomed lantern, and by its light the two men looked at one another over the table. Normandy's timbers creaked and strained around them; things shifted and groaned in the ballast below, and outside and beneath and from every direction came the thudding, throbbing rhythm of the ice-choked sea.

Garrus was drawn and grey in the dim light, the blue tattoos bruise-dark. The leaping shadows made the silvered scars on his cheek and jaw freshly deep and heavy. Shepard's own old scars had started to open again, which meant scurvy, or would have done, but that Doctor Chakwas had found no other trace of it. 

Perhaps simply strain, she'd said.

Strain might tear a new-knit wound, but a year-old one? he'd retorted.

Neither you nor I know exactly what they did to you, Chakwas had said, and of the two people who might tell us, one is the Illusive Man and the other is dead.

Now, in the present, Garrus laced blue-inked, sharp-knuckled fingers through his captain's and said "Don't go down there."

Garrus' people were of the high peaks and did not sail, mistrusting salt water as the domain of death. Following a lowlander captain to sea had lost Garrus his old honours and the regard of his family, and the horrors of the deep had come to their silver mountains anyway. 

"They came from down there," Shepard said. They'd had this conversation three times, four, already, as the wounded ship crawled through the icy waters following Kenson's scrawled map. "There's something. You heard it, we all did. We have to go down." He looked into the eyes of the man who'd thrown over home and family for a sea he still feared, and said "I have to go down."

With T'Soni who did not need to swim, or the automaton who did not need to breathe, or with Alenko who knew the great cold depths from childhood. He would not ask Garrus. If he asked his lover to come down with him into the Leviathan's pit, Garrus would say yes, and that was why Shepard could not ask.

Garrus said bleakly "And if you don't come back?" 

"Normandy passes to Alenko and you carry on," Shepard said, because he had been waiting for the question, had lain awake with it while Garrus slept beside him; was relieved, if anything, that it was a question to which mundane law and custom provided a plain answer. "Find the Cerberus; protect the Crucible."

"Without you, though?"

Normandy had been built for another captain, and her crew had served with distinction through the years he'd been thought dead. They could do without him, and yet insisted superstitiously that everything rested on his shoulders, as if his unwished-for, unnatural second life could be shared between them all. Could they not bear to let him rest?

"I'm one man," Shepard said, with a bitterness that surprised him. "Normandy's got one figurehead already. She doesn't need another."

Garrus had no answer to that, or none he was prepared to say out loud, but looked away. His hand tightened in Shepard's, and they sat while the candle guttered down and the ship bore on through the freezing ocean into the unknown dark.

---

also with other microfics on AO3

[skreehaw]

if only mass effect was playable. id play the shit out of it 💔

[my-hot-awkward-turian-boyfriend]

Official Shakarian & Mass Effect Fanfics Master Post

all of my shakarian and mass effects fics in one post, divided into categories: one shots, chapter fics, series, gifts/giveaways

ONE SHOTS:

some things you just can't speak about

4.4k words, rated T, updated May 14th, 2024, "three short shakarian scenes: after the battle of the citadel, before the suicide mission, and after they've been reunited six months later" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/33066811

First Choice

6.8k words, rated T, "a series of moments from the first, second, and third games showcasing the growth of Garrus and Shepard's friendship and relationship" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/33245413

and for the first time i had something to lose

2.2k words, rated T, "Garrus moving through the motions of life after the war, always imagining Shepard is still there with him" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/37477735

prove that i'm me, prove that i'm yours

2k words, rated T, "Garrus questions Shepard's identity after being dead for two years, but after the events of his rescue on Omega, she promises to prove herself to him (and maybe realises she has deeper feelings)" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/38504269

we always find our way back to each other

6k words, rated T, "Shep doesn't recruit Garrus for the Saren mission, but every time she returns to the Citadel, they just so happen to bump into each other, and he's always there when she needs someone" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/38989122

tell me it's okay not to be all right

7.4k words, rated T, "Garrus dealing with losing Shep multiple times in multiple ways but never giving up on her and always being willing to follow her lead" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/40121526

the first rule of f*** club is: you do not talk about f*** club

1.2k words, rated M, the title honestly says it all; there's just no good way to summarize this fic ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/41340453

Needs Satisfied

2.5k words, rated E, "Shep takes Garrus' offer of *needing* him quite literally and they hook up in the main battery because waiting until the end of me2 is just silly when there's already so much sexual tension in the air" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/47238556

In Good Company

3.6k words, rated E, "Aria tells Shep to find someone to hookup with, and Shep decides that that probably wouldn't be such a bad idea. She wants Garrus but is under the impression Garrus doesn't want her. Until, that is, he comes across her flirting with another turian in the club. It's all uphill from there." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/49033144

caught between a rock and a hard turian

6k words, rated E, "Garrus gets hit by cloud of sex pollen and Shep is the one who needs to help with his release to get the reaction out of his system. They both think the sex is strictly situational until Shep approaches Garrus to talk with him about it after the fact. That's when they finally realise they've both been harbouring feelings for each other." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/49741477

here in the shadow of bittersweet memories

2.3k words, rated T, no dialogue, the development of Garrus' relationship with Shepard throughout the trilogy, ambiguous/open ending, inspired by the song "She Always Takes It Black" by Benjamin Francis Leftwich ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/55607125

CHAPTER FICS:

torment me, challenge me, make me bleed

68.7k words, 10 chapters, rated E, "If Garrus had followed through with actually reapplying for spectre status. Still follows the events of me2 and me3 rather closely but with some variations. Additional/missing scenes. Altered scenes. Rearranged dialogue." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/36648406/chapters/91415290

When Planets Align

63.2k words, 11 chapters, rated E, "Shepard is brought back by Cerberus and her first mission is to track down Omega's infamous Archangel. Of course, nothing ever goes as planned. Nor can anything ever be simple." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/36485758/chapters/90981499

a memory is nothing more than a stepping stone

39.3k words, 6 chapters, rated E, "Post-me3 Shep has just woken up in a hospital to the sound of gunfire. She doesn't remember how she got there--or the turian who shows up to help her escape the men trying to track her down. Turns out she doesn't remember anything from the last nearly four years of her life..." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/41401683/chapters/103823640

A Rose By Any Other Name

40.5k words, 3 chapters, rated E, Beauty & the Beast AU, "A universe where Shep works for the Shadow Broker and is assigned a mission to look into who Archangel is and discovers far more than she ever could've imagined (or dreamed of) both about Archangel and herself" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/40879761/chapters/102442695

the path reveals itself with each step taken forward

15.8k words, 3 chapters, rated E, "A timeline of the events from a memory is nothing more than a stepping stone but from Garrus' POV instead... Experience Garrus' side and feelings from dealing with Shep having no memory of him or their relationship." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/42647103/chapters/107126943

Doubled Edged Lockdown

15.5k words, 8 chapters, rated E, "AU where Shep is sent to assassinate Archangel but everything about her plan backfires when the station goes into a lockdown and they end up being stuck together for an undisclosed amount of time" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/43114659/chapters/108350778

magnificently cursed (the fatal flaw)

40.5k words, 8 chapters, rated E, "The first contact war has just ended, and the humans and turians have agreed upon an alliance through marriage. Novella Shepard is the human volunteer, which she has no qualms about...until she meets Garrus Vakarian, whom she has a brief yet passionate affair with. Except he is not the turian volunteer.... In the end, will the alliance come to fruition, or will it turn into another disaster?" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/47581291/chapters/119918797

Mixing Work With Pleasure

17.1k words, 4 chapters, rated E, "AU where Garrus and Shep are set up on a blind date and end up really hitting it off. Turns out they're also working in the same profession, although that's not discussed until the day they realise they work for the same company. How they find out is not necessarily planned, but they're not complaining about the new experience" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/49205854/chapters/124157668

the fate of the stars

4.7k words, 22 chapters, rated T, "A collection of drabbles using tarot and appointing each major arcana to certain moments/sequences from throughout the trilogy..." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/50110447/chapters/126546565

once upon a time, the planets and the fates and all the stars aligned (checkmate)

73.1k words, 6 chapters, rated E, "A minor retelling of the series based on if Shepard and Garrus had met years before the Saren mission and how their relationship progresses over time" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/54178876/chapters/137183806

SERIES:

it'd be an awfully empty galaxy without you

22.6k words, rated E, complete, "shakarian smut after significant moments throughout the trilogy" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/series/2550892

love in the dark

10.3k words, rated E, complete, "AU canon divergence of moments Shep and Garrus get together without realising they're about to be with each other again" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/series/3031101

roleplay

6.2k words, rated E, ongoing, "Shep and Garrus in different roleplay scenarios" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/series/3548890

and then there were three...

23.1k words, rated E, complete, "Shep and Garrus inviting Adrien Victus into their sex life (and eventually relationship)" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/series/3574465

Tantalising Turians

44.2k words, rated E, complete, "Novella Shepard hooking up with just about every named turian throughout the trilogy (porn with plot)" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/series/3823585

GIFTS/GIVEAWAYS:

fake it till we make it

13.3k words, rated T, "Shep and Garrus never got together during the actual trilogy timeline and after the war they start pretending to date for Garrus' sake but Shep quickly realises that she may not be able to pretend for long" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/40845417

Ruthless Calculus of the Heart

19.2k words, rated T, "Garrus figuring out how to become reacquainted with this new Shep, who used to be so hardcore before she died, and is now the complete opposite.... Meanwhile, Shep is trying to un-teach everything she had taught Garrus during their first mission together. Easier said than done...." ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/42488880

The Ballad of a Turian

4.9k words, rated G, an origin story for a friend's turian OC ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/43900503

my one and only (i don't want you like a best friend)

14.2k words, rated M, "Shepard and Garrus start hooking up long before the aftermath of Garrus' loyalty mission (or the suicide mission, for that matter), but they still try to be discreet and keep their newfound relationship a secret from the rest of the crew" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/44735905

Cover It Up With A Kiss

3.5k words, part 1/2 of the Never Better series, rated E, "Garrus and Shep hook up during an undercover mission, which ends up leading to more than either of them ever could've anticipated (or hoped for)" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/45003325

Uncover It With A Look

3.1k words, part 2/2 of the Never Better series, rated E, "Shep and Garrus have reunion sex in the main battery after Garrus reboards the Normandy after the Menae mission in me3 (six months is a lot of time to make up for)" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/45204919

Legacy

3.1k words, rated T, "Shep and Garrus simply living a normal life and enjoying retirement after the reaper invasion" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/45427156

The Dark Side of the Moon

8.6k words, rated M, "Garrus dealing with the grief of losing Shepard (again) and not knowing how to handle it properly until getting the idea to return to the colony she's from to help them rebuild and help him feel connected to her, but never does he expect the people he'll run into there" ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/45744922

[carnalapples]

specreqs 2024 fic recs

I was so happy to participate in this year's @spectre-requisitions-exchange, and I have a round of recs to share!!

what I received:

Going Up by Kahika, G, Ashley/Garrus

A wonderful story showing Ashley and Garrus’s developing relationship. I love how the similarities between them are pulled out, and this is just so lovely and romantic. I am such a fan of Ashley is written here, she is strong and she cares so much. I can't say enough about this gift!!

what I wrote:

follow me into the dark, M, F!Shep/Tali

“So are you,” she says. She’s trying to buy time. She does the same thing, every day. Tali doesn’t bite. “I trust him,” Shepard finally adds. They watch the water lap at the rocks, the way it has for millennia, the way it will for even more. Shaping the world wave by wave. Unless they lose. “Him,” Tali says slowly. It’s bitter in her mouth. Shepard and Tali, after Rannoch.

factors of safety, T, Tali/Adams

Tali gets crushes. On people who are suave and charming and would fit right in on the screen of a net drama. And if she's being honest, Engineer Adams is none of these things. He is human, he is older than her, and he's an engineer. Lights, camera, action.

(I love my little engineers)

some amazing fics

One Night in Nos Astra by goodnightxgoodbye, T, Kaidan/Liara

I absolutely loved the sense of nostalgia with this fic!! There is a real sense of comfort between Kaidan and Liara, and the details here are just beautiful.

The Crack in Everything by FerindenCadash, T, F!Shep/Ashley

Again, I love how Ashley is depicted as she's struggling with her faith following Shepard's return from the dead. The tone of this piece is just wonderful, and the dynamic between Shepard and Ashley is so perfect to read.

Reception by Vidra_on_the_Rocks, G, Human Refugee Teen & Turian Citadel Guard

This piece is written in the style of a magazine article, and it is so creative! The tone is perfect, and the family formed between these two is just so heartwarming.

Seeing a Salarian About a Ship by SaintMidnight, T, Kaidan/Coats

This fic has the perfect sense of domesticity for these two, starting a new life after the war and settling into things. It's such a hopeful fic, and there's an amazing "we're buying a home together" sense throughout the whole thing. Absolutely loved it!!

I'll probably have many more recs as I work through the amazing collection, but I am so excited to keep reading! And it was an absolute blast participating; can't wait for next year :)

[otemporanerys]

Spectre Requisitions ‘23 - The Rec Post!!

It’s that time of year again! I took part in the Spectre Requisitions Rare Pair Exchange @spectre-requisitions-exchange (link to the collection here) and man. SO MUCH good shit.

I can’t reveal what I wrote (yet) but I have been reading through the collection and here’s a few incredible works that I really enjoyed! Remember to kudos and comment if you find anything you like 💖

(NB: I focused on fic, but honestly every bit of fanart I’ve seen for it is also incredible, please go check it out)

Gifts for Me

I was SO lucky this year - loyal friends will know that I’ve been suffering from a massive dose of Lawkarian brainrot, and I got not one, but TWO long-ass Garrus/Miranda fics!!!! honestly still can’t get over it, incredible

Between the Devil and the Deep, Garrus/Miranda, 20K, E

Set pre-ME2, Miranda recruits Archangel for a job, fucks him to keep him sweet.

This is just. Pure filth, and I love it. Aliases, power plays, both Garrus and Miranda being amoral little weirdos. What more can you ask for?

The Woman in White, Garrus/Miranda, 16.9K, E

Set pre-ME2, Miranda recruits Archangel for a job, doesn’t really do ANYTHING to keep him sweet (but they fuck anyway).

:chinhands: This is just. GORGEOUSLY written, and the begrudging way in which they start to like each other (but not too much) is incredible. Top-notch Garrus POV

Gen

loose ends, Maelon & Mordin, 9.9K, T

Set during and after ME3, canon-divergent AU. Maelon finds Mordin in the wreckage after Tuchanka and nurses him back to health.

I love their relationship in this - Mordin’s so aware of Maelon’s weaknesses (or what he perceives to be his weakness) but there’s still so much caring, despite the huge gulf between them. Also the easiest way to make me a teary mess is a Urdnot Mordin cameo 😭

The Stories We Tell, Joker & Tali, 3.1K, T

Set during ME1. Tali forces Joker to be her friend.

Really great dialogue for everyone - it’s very cute and fun until suddenly it’s not!!! which is rude!!! but still very good, A+++

Care and Maintenance, Kaidan & Tali, 2.2K, T

Set during ME1. Kaidan and Tali bond over dads, tech and Shepard’s reckless driving.

This one was just nice! And also who doesn’t love a bit of Shepard driving slander

F/F

swear, this one you’ll save, Nyreen/Solana, 1.5K, G

Pre-canon: five times Solana has a secret about Nyreen.

I’m only slightly obsessed with these two, and this fic was so perfect. Childhood friends to lovers is a god-tier trope, and it’s so deliciously bittersweet

Real, Beautiful, f!Shali, 0.7K, G

Post-ME3, A morning on Rannoch.

The post-war fluff we deserve, imo!

A Knife in Starlight, Morinth/f!Shepard, 1K, M

Set during ME2. Character study with a side of smut.

I think Morinth is incredibly interesting as a character, but the real standout of this fic is the Shepard - Ruthless, stone butch, wonderfully jagged.

M/M

Collide, m!Shakarian, 4.1K, M

Set during ME2. Friends-to-lovers and mutual pining.

I love m!Shakarian anyway, but mutual pining?? Sexually charged pining?? LOVE CONFESSIONS?? Good shit

M/F

Change of Command, Garrus/Miranda, 3.6K, M

Set during ME2. Epistolary fic, a series of comms transcripts between Garrus and Miranda.

Yes, someone else wanted Lawkarian!! The (verbal) sparring is so much fun, and the format is perfect.

Beauty Like a Raging Flame, f!Shaeed, 6.2K, E

Set during ME2. Shepard gets into a fight in Afterlife, and Zaeed has to go pick her up.

There’s a lot of Shaeed this year! But this one is my favourite. The Zaeed voice is great (appropriately crusty, not too soppy, just the way I like it) and it’s nice seeing him paired off with a Paragon Shep. Plus, Zaeed’s turned on by violence. Smutty perfection

only echoes in the melody now, Kasumi/Keiji’s Greybox, 3.4K, E

Post-ME3. Bittersweet porn with feelings.

God, this one really blew me away. The prose is incredible, and there’s so many little bits that really land how fucked up the greybox concept really is. The ending is great, too. Can’t recommend this enough.

Longing Makes a Thief, Kasumi/Rolan Quarn, 17.7K, E

Kasumi and Rolan run into each other during a job, and realise they’ve met before - sort of.

This was so much fun - bubbly like a glass of champagne. The banter’s great, the smut is great, it’s all so good. Run, don’t walk!

Poly

An Unfortunately Sexy Man, Addison/Kandros/Kesh/Tann, 6.6K, M

MEA. Addison, Kandros and Kesh all have one thing in common: a devastating, inexplicable crush on Director Tann.

I’m not really one for crack, but this is definitely an exception. Genuinely funny, and the Tann voice in particular is incredibly on-point.

[craftylittlenerd]

Mass Effect Questionaire fun

I was tagged by @withercat22

1: Favorite Squad Mates for ME 1) Garrus, Tali, and Wrex 2: Favorite Squad Mates for ME 2) Garrus, Tali, Grunt, Legion and Mordin 3: Favorite Squad Mates from ME 3) Garrus, Ashley, Tali, and Legion 4: Favorite Weapon from ME 2) Toss Between the M-97 Viper and the M-98 Widow 5: Favorite Weapon from ME 3) N7 Valiant, but the Viper and Widow do come in handy in a pinch. 6: Favorite class) For ME 1 and ME 3, it's Engineer, and for ME 2, it's Soldier. I have this head cannon that, with Shep being gone for 2 years, they needed to update their credentials and relearn a lot of techniques. 7: Favorite Planet) The one where FemShep and Garrus get to retire to, and it's warm and tropical. But no Virmire. 8: Favorite Mission ME 1) Ilos: Find the Conduit; the music for Vigil is what sold me on that. 9: Favorite Mission ME 2) Dossier: Archangel. What? I get to find my space, hubby, don't judge, lol. 10: Favorite Mission ME 3) Priority Tuchanka, give the Krogans hope for the future, say good-bye to Mordin, watch Wrex get all mushy over Eve, what's not to cry over... uh, I mean love about this one.

11: Favorite Romance) I am proud Shakarian trash - Garrus and FemShep forever! 12: Romance I wish was in-game) Joker, that would have been a cute one to see. 13: Mako or Hammerhead) Hands down, the Mako. 14: Most Overrated character) That's a tough one, but I would probably say Udina. 15: Most Underrated character) Javick, he had so much potential and it was botched to where he was just some DLC, yet his story was supposed to be so much more than that. 16 and 17 do not apply, as I never got into the multiplayer aspect of ME 3. I am more of a story-driven gamer than anything else. 18: SR-1 or SR-2)

19: Destroy, Control, or Synthesis) Destroy, hands down, every time. I didn't max out all my resources for nothing. 20: Paragon or Renagade) Paragrade leaning more towards Paragon. Tagging @luciferbecons @thefloatingstone and @westernlarch hope you three have fun with this.

[saltysalmonella]

[Part One] [Part Two (you're here!)]

OK, last batch of this set!

[mass-effect-anonymous]

CONFESSION:

As someone who is getting into the lore of Mass effect as well as the characters.. I’m disappointed by the lack a gay options for M!Shep. I feel as which m/f players get lucky in this regard, while female and gay males get shifted out. Like.. I just want better romances while role playing as someone important. Like Garrus.

[sky-kiss]

G, M and U ❤️

G - Have you ever had an OTP? If so, do you remember your first one? Who was in it?

I have been around. I’ve been around. I have many OTP’s. All cursed. I think…what was my original OTP…

Cloud/Aerith? Or Link/Zelda? I would have been like 7. If we’re picking more recent OTP’s that don’t involve OC’s or anything, I’d go with like…oh god. What do I like? All the thoughts have left my brain. Raphael/Haarlep in a wretched and twisted way. Geralt/Yennefer. GERALT/YENNEFER. 

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

Many. Find me a loyal gremlin and you will find someone I’d like to befriend. Dante from DMC, Garrus and Miri from ME, Jaheira, uh…many.

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

Also asked by @inaconstantstateofchange and @flamemittens. 

Yennefer: my baby girl. Yennefer is perfect. God. I love her. She starts off as seemingly cold and mean, but she’s really just stressed about her daughter. I love, love, love, seemingly frosty characters who are hiding their insecurities behind their power, self-possession, and aloofness. Yennefer is so deeply feeling. She’s unflinchingly loyal. When push comes to shove, Yennefer would fight god, the world, and the natural order to protect the people she loves. When you’ve earned her trust, she’s support you. She’s perfect. (She’s also a dark-haired, mean sorceress and like…that’s my catnip. I collect them like Pokemon).

Garrus from Mass Effect. My beloved boy. He’s perfect. The growth this character goes on. It’s so rare in franchises that we get a character who would be the protagonist if the main character was absent. Garrus could be the MC, but Shep is just that good. Garrus is loyal, determined, dedicated, passionate, playful. His romance is probably the closest to perfect for a M x F ship in games, to me. The progression from intimate friends to lovers? /chefs kiss. He goes out of his way to make you laugh. He’s the one person Shep knows will always be there. There’s no Shep without Vakarian. And god, I love him. 

Raphael. I feel like I’m obligated on this one, haha. He’s fascinating to me? Like. Setting the looks and the voice aside, he has so much potential. His capacity for darkness and humanity, his conflicting nature, his relationships in the Hells…it all has so much room for growth. We had so little of him in game, but he made such an impression. Incredible character.

[emrisemrisemris]

1022 words Rated: G A previous Shepard, younger and less scarred, would have cursed. As it was, he'd run out of stomach for curses months ago. He leaned on the back of Joker’s chair, took a breath - conscious he'd been breathing shallowly and tensely for too long - and let it out again, and tried not to think about that sparkling crust of ice. "Hey," Garrus said softly from somewhere nearby, and a moment later a hand took his elbow, arresting an unsteadiness he hadn't fully realised was there. The turian nudged up next to him, unsubtly positioning himself to be in catch range if Shepard fainted again, and only then let go of the elbow. "When did you last eat?"