It wasn't often that the Normandy was grounded but it did happen from time to time, especially when bad weather was involved.
Like this time, for example.
They'd landed on the planet to do some surveying and had ended up caught in the middle of a pretty terrible storm, something which not even Joker could completely handle. It had been decided that they would wait it out--a break wasn't a horrible thing, even if they couldn't leave the ship--so everyone was taking advantage of the downtime.
Though, if Garrus had to guess, there was one individual that wasn't.
Which was why he was standing outside of Shepard's quarters, knocking lightly on the door as his mandibles twitched a bit.
If someone was going to come knocking, it was usually Garrus. Shepard hollered a vague response as she was elbow deep in her tank in an attempt to fish out yet another dead fish. The sound of a thrown boot to trigger the door release was a thump that ended in the door obligingly opening.
"Oh come on," Shepard growled, balancing the chair forward on two legs as the dead fish, as if mocking her, rolled further away. "That's it, I don't care if it bankrupts me, I'm buying that tank VI."
"...This is probably one of the more amusing things I've ever come across walking in here, Shepard," Garrus mused, having stepped inside and stopped to watch what the other was doing. His mandibles twitched into a grin as he crossed his arms, amusement all over his face as he tilted his head slightly.
She would have given Garrus a look, but she was still flailing with the net in an attempt to corral the dead fish. How could the damned thing be difficult even in death?
"Must have looked at them wrong again. I swear I've been feeding them," she said dryly. "It's that or the screaming Husk alarm is pitched at a fish killing frequency."
Garrus can't help but chuckle, finally making his way over to where the commander is and reaching up to steady her a bit.
"Might be. I'm not sure why you took that thing anyway, it's kind of--" He glanced back at her desk, eyeing the thing almost warily. "--...terrifying in a way. Wasn't James the one that wanted it anyway?"
Gaze settling on Shepard again, Garrus slid his arm around her waist slightly--though the angle was odd--leaning his shoulder against the tank.
"You should hide it in his quarters. Make him squirm some."
"You know, I gave it to him initially," she said with a laugh, quietly appreciative of the support, considering this damned fish was totally getting the last laugh. "He said it kept trying to bite him. All I get is a scream when someone's at the door...or when it spots the damn hamster. I've had to position it so it' not withing line of sight to the cage. Oh--got it!"
Dead fish mission a success.
...except that right when she was lifting it out, one of the larger eels swooped in and ate the damned thing. Shepard froze, glowering at it. Really?
"I give up. I don't get to the fish, they die. I get to the fish, they die. And then I try to clean them up...and they get eaten."
"Maybe it just found James to be particularly appetizing. I suppose even Husks can have preferences," Garrus mused in a mock thoughtful sort of manner, grinning a bit before he glanced into the tank as Shepard announced that she'd grabbed the fish.
"Congra--"
He's cut off mid sentence as the eel swoops in to snack on the dead creature, staring for a long moment even as Shepard starts to rant a bit..
Shepard pilled her hand out, hung the net up, and leaned her forehead against the cool glass before she, too, started to laugh. The eels hadn't ever really given a shit about dead fish before, so she was almost certain the tank's occupants were mocking her.
Eventually, she eased herself down the stool, still laughing enough that she had to lean into Garrus.
Joker could usually figure out anything when it came to the Normandy. And if he couldn't, EDI could. But something was keeping EDI from being able to access the system properly and that left it to Joker to figure out.
And, well, that was easier said than done.
Scooting carefully out from under the console he'd been checking on, the pilot winced a bit as he propped himself up, tossing a broken piece down on the ground before scrubbing his face a bit.
Figures that the one time they skimp on a routine check, they miss something like this.
"I take it we're essentially dry docked for awhile, then."
Staring down at him from just far enough away, Shepard had her arms crossed and her eyebrows arched. Her voice was amused, but not particularly upset. Inconvenienced, sure, but even the word 'sleep' or 'rest' was as much an inconvenience.
"Yeah, we are. Sorry, Commander," Joker said through a sigh as he let his hand drop. He was glad she wasn't mad--though he'd expected it all things considered--and took her hand when it was offered. "It's going to take me some time to get this all worked out. May have to recruit Tali to help me out. She'll probably be able to get it fixed faster than me anyway."
"High-tailing it out of here, probably wasn't the best course of action, anyway. That was my call." Her eyes flicked to the window for a second. "Just got a line from flight control that a heavy cluster of storms is headed our way on more a few fronts. Ion storms space-side--higher than normal interference--and it's stirring up some pretty severe weather planet-side. Torrential rain, severe thunderstorms, possibly ice storms as well depending on how low the temperature gets."
Her lips pursed slightly and she squinted a little as she refocused.
"Repairs might have to wait for awhile," she murmured, not pulling him to his feet, but rather assisting. Too much pressure and she knew she'd be bound to snap something, so, her grip slid slightly so she supported his forearm as well. "Doctor Gilliham says it might be best to declare shore leave and evac The Normandy until conditions improve."
Edited (lol because awks phrasing) 2013-04-25 00:35 (UTC)
"Evac the--" Yeah it was clear just how much Joker didn't want to leave the ship--his ship--but if Shepard said they had to, then he would. He just wouldn't be happy about it, especially since he did have a lot of work he needed to do to get her ship shape again, so to speak.
Once he was on his feet and steady, Joker slowly let go of her arm, sighing as he reached up to adjust his hat a bit.
"Sounds like it's going to be pretty shitty out there. You know, we all always joke about shore leave but I really hate when it's this kind of shore leave, you know?"
"I know, Joker," she murmured. "Standard operating procedure in this sector for these storms is everyone off ships and into the nearest terrestrial shelter. I guess it's a good thing we're done investigating that survey probe. We'd have to evac to one of the natural caves."
Shepard was only half joking.
"The Normandy will weather this fine and they're putting up some extra shielding -- I made them promise. On the plus side, Gilliham says the storms are pretty amazing. It's quite the light show thanks to the way lightning storms react with the atmosphere."
Joker stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out how serious she was being. Because if a cave was their only option for shelter, screw that he was just going to stay on the Normandy and no one was going to make him leave.
Well..okay, so they could make him leave but he'd put up a fight goddammit!
"Yeah, I guess that sounds cool," he muttered, interested but he was throwing a minor fit at the moment so everything has to be played off as lame.
"I'm not particularly thrilled about spending time in the outpost, either," she said, 'and you know me. If I thought we could make it off the planet with chewing gum and rainbows for repairs, we'd have been gone and docked at the Citadel. Hell, I just ordered new plating."
And a mountain of upgrades.
"Thirty minutes until their security gets in her and starts throwing people over their shoulders. Their main shield will activate about fifteen after that." She offered him a lopsided smile and flicked the brim of his hat.
"Actually, the system of shielded caves they have network into some pretty nice rooms. In case things get too intense on the surface, it serves as their back up." She gestured minutely, "It's got everything from gravity control to running water, so...don't knock the outpost. Gilliham neglected to mention the high tech basement, but I did some digging. Being under ground though, it's a little...disconcerting to me, though. I'd rather be able to see the sky."
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no subject
Like this time, for example.
They'd landed on the planet to do some surveying and had ended up caught in the middle of a pretty terrible storm, something which not even Joker could completely handle. It had been decided that they would wait it out--a break wasn't a horrible thing, even if they couldn't leave the ship--so everyone was taking advantage of the downtime.
Though, if Garrus had to guess, there was one individual that wasn't.
Which was why he was standing outside of Shepard's quarters, knocking lightly on the door as his mandibles twitched a bit.
If anyone needed a break, it was Shepard.
no subject
"Oh come on," Shepard growled, balancing the chair forward on two legs as the dead fish, as if mocking her, rolled further away. "That's it, I don't care if it bankrupts me, I'm buying that tank VI."
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"Having some troubles with the fish again?"
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"Must have looked at them wrong again. I swear I've been feeding them," she said dryly. "It's that or the screaming Husk alarm is pitched at a fish killing frequency."
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"Might be. I'm not sure why you took that thing anyway, it's kind of--" He glanced back at her desk, eyeing the thing almost warily. "--...terrifying in a way. Wasn't James the one that wanted it anyway?"
Gaze settling on Shepard again, Garrus slid his arm around her waist slightly--though the angle was odd--leaning his shoulder against the tank.
"You should hide it in his quarters. Make him squirm some."
no subject
Dead fish mission a success.
...except that right when she was lifting it out, one of the larger eels swooped in and ate the damned thing. Shepard froze, glowering at it. Really?
"I give up. I don't get to the fish, they die. I get to the fish, they die. And then I try to clean them up...and they get eaten."
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"Congra--"
He's cut off mid sentence as the eel swoops in to snack on the dead creature, staring for a long moment even as Shepard starts to rant a bit..
And then comes the laughter.
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Eventually, she eased herself down the stool, still laughing enough that she had to lean into Garrus.
"Rude eels," she finally got out.
no subject
Joker could usually figure out anything when it came to the Normandy. And if he couldn't, EDI could. But something was keeping EDI from being able to access the system properly and that left it to Joker to figure out.
And, well, that was easier said than done.
Scooting carefully out from under the console he'd been checking on, the pilot winced a bit as he propped himself up, tossing a broken piece down on the ground before scrubbing his face a bit.
Figures that the one time they skimp on a routine check, they miss something like this.
no subject
Staring down at him from just far enough away, Shepard had her arms crossed and her eyebrows arched. Her voice was amused, but not particularly upset. Inconvenienced, sure, but even the word 'sleep' or 'rest' was as much an inconvenience.
She offered a hand.
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Her lips pursed slightly and she squinted a little as she refocused.
"Repairs might have to wait for awhile," she murmured, not pulling him to his feet, but rather assisting. Too much pressure and she knew she'd be bound to snap something, so, her grip slid slightly so she supported his forearm as well. "Doctor Gilliham says it might be best to declare shore leave and evac The Normandy until conditions improve."
no subject
Once he was on his feet and steady, Joker slowly let go of her arm, sighing as he reached up to adjust his hat a bit.
"Sounds like it's going to be pretty shitty out there. You know, we all always joke about shore leave but I really hate when it's this kind of shore leave, you know?"
no subject
Shepard was only half joking.
"The Normandy will weather this fine and they're putting up some extra shielding -- I made them promise. On the plus side, Gilliham says the storms are pretty amazing. It's quite the light show thanks to the way lightning storms react with the atmosphere."
no subject
Joker stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out how serious she was being. Because if a cave was their only option for shelter, screw that he was just going to stay on the Normandy and no one was going to make him leave.
Well..okay, so they could make him leave but he'd put up a fight goddammit!
"Yeah, I guess that sounds cool," he muttered, interested but he was throwing a minor fit at the moment so everything has to be played off as lame.
no subject
And a mountain of upgrades.
"Thirty minutes until their security gets in her and starts throwing people over their shoulders. Their main shield will activate about fifteen after that." She offered him a lopsided smile and flicked the brim of his hat.
"Actually, the system of shielded caves they have network into some pretty nice rooms. In case things get too intense on the surface, it serves as their back up." She gestured minutely, "It's got everything from gravity control to running water, so...don't knock the outpost. Gilliham neglected to mention the high tech basement, but I did some digging. Being under ground though, it's a little...disconcerting to me, though. I'd rather be able to see the sky."