Chimera: A Garrus/Shepard Romance

CHAPTER 12: CALIBRATIONS

'Bubble-head' the waiter finally brought the Jello shots to the table. He dropped the tray on the table in disdain and walked away before Joker could let another one of his scintillating wisecracks rip. If those shots weren't jello, most of them would have been dripping off the table. Each of them took a shot glass – except for Mordin, who by this point, was softly snoring on the table.

Garrus paused, "Wait…"

Karin looked over at the Turian, eyebrow raised.

"What kind of liquor is in this?" he asked, the Manhattan still fresh in his memory.

"Uhmmm," she thought for a moment, her mind a little hazy from the shots she already had before Garrus arrived. "I believe its tequila."

"Te – what?" he stumbled over the word.

"Te – key – la," she repeated, emphasizing the name phonetically.

He studied the small shot glass. It was cold to the touch, as he expected. He brought it to his nose and sniffed. It didn't really smell like anything, at least not that he could tell anyway, and he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. He shook the glass slightly and was surprised to see the contents jiggle. Vega, Liara and Karin were all watching him with amused stares, clearly enjoying his curiosity. Aware of their stares but unsure what to do, he eyeballed them back. Karin and Liara giggled, clinked their glasses, and brought them to their lips. With a quick jerk of the wrist, they tossed back the shot.  

He imitated them with his own shot. He anticipated the coldness of it but the texture of the jello caught him a little off guard: an odd mixture of solid and liquid, it was – bizarre and he liked it. The flavor was tart, slightly sour but sweet, dissolving quickly down his throat. He immediately noticed that it lacked the sharp edge of alcohol.

Puzzled, he looked at the women across from him, "This has alcohol in it??"

Liara nodded emphatically. "Oh, believe me, it does."

"Garrus," EDI explained, "the way in which the alcohol and gelatin are combined and then chilled does not necessarily allow one to immediately taste the alcohol. The body absorbs the alcohol slower in this form. Therefore, one can easily consume far more alcohol than one thinks. If you need examples, you may refer to either Jeff or to Mordin."

Satisfied with her explanation, Garrus picked up another shot glass and tossed it back with ease. The rest of them quickly followed suit and the remaining shots quickly disappeared. This time Garrus signaled the waiter for another round – without insult. By the fourth shot, Garrus was starting to feel decidedly odd. His vision began to swim and the bass of the club felt like it reverberated in his bones. He felt like the world was tilting and struggled to keep upright at the table, determined not to end up like Mordin. Liara watched him snickering.

"What'ssssofunny?" he looked at her quizzically and was unaware of his altered speech pattern.

Liara's snickering turned into giggling and Karin joined her. It was apparent that the two of them had done this before. It was either that or they held their liquor incredibly well.

"Nothing's funny," she replied still giggling a bit. "It's strange to see you … uhmmm… what did you call it Doctor?" she looked over at Karin to fill in the blank.

"Buzzed?" Karin filled in.

"Yes, buzzed," Liara said as she watched him waver back and forth.

"Okay, one – whatsssss 'buzzed'? an' two – why aren't you 'buzzed'?" he asked pointedly.

" 'Buzzed'," Karin explained, "in human terms, means that you aren't quite drunk but you're not sober either. It's somewhere in between, but you're definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol."

Liara continued, taking over, "I'm not buzzed for two reasons: Asari hold their liquor rather well. It takes a lot to get us drunk, and I've done this before while you were off calibrating Shepard – errr I mean with Shepard." Liara immediately regretted the words as soon as she said them.

Her words got his attention and his eyes narrowed on the Asari. If Garrus was buzzed, he wasn't anymore. The alcohol may not have made Liara drunk but it certainly loosened her tongue. They looked at each other, fully understanding the implication of her words. Garrus immediately got up from the table and motioned for Liara to follow.

They walked away from the table to a secluded spot where no one would overhear their conversation.

"What did you mean by that?" Garrus demanded.

She shifted uncomfortably, knowing that she'd been caught, "Nothing…it was just…"

"Just nothing," he said flatly, "you know don't you?"

"Yes. Alright, I know," Liara said just as flatly. She didn't see the point of evading him further.

"What, exactly, is it that you know?" He wasn't going to let her get away with this so easily.

She sighed, rolling her eyes – did he need her to draw a picture? "I know that you and Shepard slept together. Is that clear enough for you? Or do you need details?"

He stared at her, his blue eyes ice cold. "Did Shepard tell you or was that one of your Shadow Broker discoveries?" he spat.

She bristled, "Shepard told me. How dare you think that I would use my connections to spy on my friends."

"Fair enough. I apologize for the insinuation," he said, calmer knowing that such information wasn't floating around the extranet.

Nodding, she accepted his apology. "If you're wondering how much I know, it's not much. Shepard only told me that you spent the night together. She didn't tell me any details – not that I'd want to know because I'd rather not. She made me swear not to tell a single soul – not even you because she promised you that it would be between the two of you. She was so happy and so in love, she couldn't contain herself and wanted to share her happiness with someone. She chose to tell me – I didn't ask – just so we're clear."

"Crystal," he replied, "but I still don't understand her behavior, Liara. Do you?"

"No, I don't," Liara pondered, visibly concerned.

Now that they could be open about the situation, they both felt relieved that they could speak freely. Garrus could see Liara's mind working the problem like a child with a newfound toy. He wanted to ask if she would use her Broker contacts to find out any information that would help the situation but thought better of it. Her principles would probably forbid her from doing so. The thought, though noble, made him irritated and he snorted out an exasperated sigh. The sound caught Liara's attention and she raised an eyebrow at him questioning.

He looked back at her, unsure how to phrase the question.

Oh the hell with it.

"I was thinking that maybe you could, you know, use your contacts to… well…" he trailed off.

Liara looked down for second, and then back at him. "I was just thinking the same thing," she admitted.

He looked at her with mild surprise, "Really?"

"Yes," she said, exasperated as well. "I know what I told you before….but it would seem that there is no other alternative. I don't know what else we can do."

"Alright," he said grimly, "find out what you can – but, within reason. She's kept both of us in the dark for good reason and I think we should be very cautious how we proceed."

"Agreed," Liara said firmly. "I will let you know as soon as I find out something. I have to say, though, that I don't like doing this at all – and especially not to Shepard. She is last person who deserves to be spied on after everything she's done."

"I know, Liara, and I couldn't agree with you more. The truth is that we both know that this is something we cannot allow to continue. We all need to get our heads in game – especially her – if we're going to take on the Reapers."

"Yes, Garrus, that's exactly why I'm agreeing to do this."

"Okay," he said, gesturing toward the crew, "you better go keep an eye on them. I'm going to head back to the ship. I think I've had enough for one night."

Liara turned back toward the table and Garrus headed for the door. Now that he had Liara helping him, he knew it wouldn't be long before he could fix things with Sera. He felt the weight that had settled in his chest earlier that day begin to lift with the anticipation of finally finding out what was going on. He just hoped that he wasn't too late.