Summary: What if things worked out differently for Kolyat on the Citadel? As Kolyat is distracted by Commander Shepard, a drone suddenly appears and disarms him. When Kolyat's eyes see that the drone was sent by a human female, he is suddenly is plagued with thoughts of nothing but the young woman. While working at C-Sec for Captain Bailey, he finds that he is close with the woman. He then begins to seek out information despite Bailey's warnings that the woman is complicated. The further he digs for information, the deeper he falls for her, and the more disturbing that facts become. Ignoring advice to stop, he stumbles upon information that reveals that the woman had a relationship with his father in the past. How will this sudden revelation effect Kolyat?

Follows the story of Kolyat Krios from Citadel to the Reaper War if things happened a bit differently for him. Kolyat/OC. Faint hints at F!Shepard/Garrus

This was it. The defining moment that would change his life forever. Was he really sure he should do this? Could he even do this? Yes. The information he gained while on the Citadel opened his eyes. There was still anger, yes, but he decided to take a chance with the path that he was following. The same path his father took. The one that left their family to crack and fall apart.

"It's been wonderful talking with you all! Hope to see you on election day!"

Dark eyes shot up as he saw a barefaced turian walk away from a group of other aliens, a krogan stomping beside him. Blood Pack. Nice choice in bodyguards, he'd give him that. Dark eyes closed momentarily as he pressed his fingers to the sides of his head. Okay, he thought. It's now or never.

Emerging from the shadows, Kolyat began walking quickly towards his target. He managed to pull his gun out as he got closer and closer before he could fire. A human crossed his path suddenly and he shoved him out of the way. Apparently the human caught sight of his gun because he soon screamed in panic. There's the shot. He had the shot. All he had to do was-

"KOLYAT!"

The drell turned around, trying to find the source of the voice. No one knew him here. There was no reason for them to! He turned back to his target, seeing that the sudden outburst had caught the turian and krogan's attention. Everything felt as though it were moving in slow motion as the drell raised his gun.

ZZZAP!

Kolyat drew back his hand quickly, his gun falling to the floor. What just happened? Voices were raised as a woman in full body armor demanded the krogan to stand down. The drell looked and saw a bright light catch his eyes. A spherical drone floated before him, emitting a red glow from the light its body emitted. The drone floated closer to the drell, who drew back quickly. What the hell was going on?

"Target disarmed," came a feminine voice, a bit higher than he had expected.

The drone's color changed to a bright pink before it flew over Kolyat's head. The drell followed the drone closely and saw that it had floated to a woman hidden in the darkness. Kolyat tried with difficulty to see the woman's features, not bothering to listen to the chaos that was happening around him.

The light the drone emitted was enough for the young drell to see distinct features on the woman. She was human, that much was clear. Her clothing was more revealing than he was used to. A leather, sleeveless jacket hung from her shoulders along with a strip of clothing that covered her breasts and nothing more. Tattoos dawned on what he could see, though the drell could not make out what they were of.

When his eyes flew back up, wanting to see who had sent the drone to attack him, what he saw proved his suspicions. He certainly never met this human before. Surely he would have remembered her hair, cut extremely short with the sides shaved. The color mixed between a bright blue and pink, blended together perfectly with the style of her hair. Eyes shone a bright, lime green color, the color enhanced from the drone's light.

Kolyat was snapped from his thoughts as he saw the woman's eyes narrowed while she stared him down. Her hand was at her Omni-tool, making the drell wonder when she had brought it out. Her drone disappeared and she turned her back, putting a strap from a bag over her shoulders before walking away.

There was no time to call out to her, to demand that she stop and tell him why she interfered. The sound of his name behind called out by a deep voice that he immediately recognized.

The drell shook his head as he snapped it back up, looking behind him. A wave of emotions flooded over him: shock, anger, fear, hate. There in front of him stood his father, the man he had not seen in years. The man that abandoned his family, even after his son's mother was murdered. Flashing lights caught the younger drell's attention and he saw that C-Sec had just arrived to contain the situation.

"Kolyat."

The drell's eyes shot up to his father's, noticing the look on his face seemed to overflow with emotions.

"This, this is a joke. Now? Now you show up?!"

Kolyat found it hard to concentrate on those speaking towards him. His mind felt as though the woman's image was burned into his brain. There was another problem that was bothering him: why did the human interfere? Never before had he seen the woman. Drell memory was practically perfect. Also the way she looked and dressed probably would have caught his eye. There was no way he would have forgotten someone like her.

"Kolyat, I've taken many bad things out of the world," he heard his father say. "You're the only good thing I ever added to it."

There was a sudden feel of moisture on his cheek. He hadn't even realized the tears formed, never less were falling from his eyes. Concentrating on his father, he faintly heard voices and faint mentions of C-Sec headquarters. His body was then led off, noticing that his father was the one guiding him. Kolyat's dark eyes looked up, noticing the uniforms of the officers.

A woman was talking to the captain, clearly not an officer. With her armor and multiple weapons hooked on her back, she easily stood out. Her red hair reminded the young drell of a dark fire. He could have sworn someone addressed her as "Shepard," a name that he had heard before.

No. This woman wasn't important at the moment. The fact was that he and his father were going to be given privacy to talk. There was a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach at the thought. This was not how he expected this all to happen.

Minutes previously….

It would have been a lie if she told herself that allowing the anti-human turian to be shot and killed. It would be easy to just walk away and let things take their course. However, she knew that preventing it was the best course of action. Elias would no doubt find out of her interference, but she honestly didn't give a fuck. It was easy to handle Kelham. Well, it was easy for her anyway.

Could this drell be any more obvious, she thought as her eyes remained entirely focused on her target. The worst part was that he was painfully obvious in that he didn't know what he was doing. That was one of the reasons she was here to stop him. Stupid kid had no idea what he was getting himself into, had no idea how to go about it, and just had no idea whatsoever on how to do something dangerous like this. Stupid, stupid drell. To think that he was related to-

"Ms. Lynn."

The woman returned from the privacy of her thoughts, her Omni-tool flashing. Delicate, quick fingers flew across the keyboard as a screen pulled up.

"Yes, Xeena?" the woman replied, trying as best as she could to keep her voice down. It was imperative that she was not noticed. Hiding in the shadows wasn't the greatest spot to hide, especially since her drone's light flashed on her Omni-tool.

"I have managed to access Citadel Security cameras as you have requested," came the response. "Your calculations were correct. The person that you inquired I specifically look for has been captured on surveillance. Shall I pull the footage so that you may verify?"

"Yes. I want to see for myself. I need to know if Mouse was right."

Multiple pieces of security footage appeared on her Omni-tool, lime green eyes darting through them quickly. Her hand moved over and selected the first footage that immediately caught her eyes. The footage was of the security checkpoint where she saw three people, though only one of them was whom she sought. A drell, a human, and a turian were waiting for the checkpoint officer to let them through. Surprised he's working with a group, her thoughts rang in her head.

"Xeena," Lynn said as she watched them, eyeing the drell keenly. "Can you give me audio? I want to know what took them so long to get through."

"No, Ms. Lynn, I am unable to access audio at this time. I am able to access the officer's report, if you would like to see it," the drone said softly.

"Do it."

It took a few seconds until the drone brought the report on screen. "It seems as though the human is Commander Jane Shepard. Scanning informed the officer at hand she was dead. The Commander mentioned being MIA instead."

Lynn's focus returned as she watched another footage, seeing the drell speak. The sound of her heart beating could be heard in her ears as she watched him through the data. The group had left Bailey and, as she suspected, went to Mouse. From what she could see, Mouse was surprised to see the drell. So was I, Mouse, she thought, so was I.

The next time they appeared on surveillance was at C-Sec headquarters, talking to the Captain once more. It took a few minutes until Lynn saw Elias Kelham being dragged in. The woman couldn't help the smirk that spread across her face. Serves you right, was the first thought that came into her mind. The woman skipped through the footage until Xeena suddenly began flashing and beeping.

"Now pulling up live feed footage of subjects."

Lynn watched as Commander Shepard spoke with the drell, both looking around. It seemed as though they were formulating a plan. After she saw the Commander leave, her eyes returned to focus on the drell. She saw him clasp his hands together, knowing instantly that he would be praying. Even without reading his lips she knew what he was saying.

"Amonkira. Lord of Hunters. Grant that my hands be steady, my aim be true, and my feet swift. And should the worst come to pass, grant me forgiveness," she said flawlessly, watching him right until he managed to vanish before her. "It really is you. I knew I was right."

C-Sec Headquarters

"…I think offering him to work for you would benefit, Bailey," Shepard said with a smile towards the captain. "He seems to want to make a difference. I think he'll be great help."

Bailey nodded his head as he rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly had nothing to say as Lynn walked over.

"Lynn?" Bailey asked as he stood up, patting the blue and pink haired woman's shoulder. "What are you- Wait. Shepard, you said a drone forced the boy to drop his weapon, right?"

Shepard raised a brow as she nodded her head, her arms crossed firmly over her N7 chest plate.

"Yeah, I did. After calling out to Kolyat, I managed to see a drone, what, zap him? Shock him? Whatever it did, I guess it scared him enough to drop his gun."

Bailey looked back to Lynn, the woman giving him a blank look before raising an eyebrow.

"That was you, wasn't it?" Bailey asked, though it was clearly a statement rather than a question.

Lynn nodded her head slowly as she glanced to Shepard before looking off towards the back a split second later. Shepard noticed this and wondered what exactly she was looking for. Better yet, why did this woman stop Kolyat in the first place? It was possible it was just some random act of kindness. Still, thing that bothered the Commander was that this woman seemed to know where to be and when. How exactly did she acquire that information?

"Why?" Bailey asked, rubbing the back of his head as he stared at the girl. "I mean, you never really care about C-Sec matters. Was this another one of your exceptions?"

The Captain was unable to get a response; though he knew it was highly unlikely Lynn would even tell him. The sound of doors opening and closing distracted the three as Thane walked out, moving towards Shepard. Lynn stared at him intently, hearing him speak but had no interest in what he was saying to the Captain.

"Well, since he didn't necessarily shot anyone, I can feel a bit better on making an exception for the kid," Bailey said before jabbing a thumb over to Lynn. "Should thank this one too. She's the one who actually disarmed your son."

Thane looked over to Lynn and the way his eyes widened made her assume that he already recognized her. Even though she had changed drastically over the last 10 years, she knew he realized who she was. Bailey's first thought that the drell was surprised that such a young human managed such an action. She was full of surprises after all, even after all these years.

"Lynn?"

Lynn nodded her head slowly as she stared blankly at the drell, eyes hiding the emotions that swam around her mind. There was just so much going through her head. Was she happy to see him or was she furious with him? Did she thank the gods that she was able to see him one more time or did she curse them for bringing back such a wretched part of her life?

"It has been quite a long time, Thane," she said, surprised she was able to find her voice. "I hope you appreciate the favor I did for you."

Thane stared at her and she could see the conflicting emotions on his face as well, which was certainly not what he would have done a decade ago. What could be running through his mind right now? The way he abandoned her? The way he used her? She had no idea.

"Thane, you know this woman?" Shepard's voice cut in after several moments of silence.

The drell's mouth felt dry and he feared he could not give his commander a proper answer. So, he nodded his head instead.

"When I was active on the Citadel all those years ago," Thane said, licking his dry lips so he could properly speak. His eyes suddenly went wide and began to dart around quickly. " "Please, Krios!" she begs. "Please take me with you!" I look and see her face stained with tears, eyes mixed with fear and sadness. I tell her no and begin to walk off. I don't get far when I feel her small hands on my arm, pulling me back with such desperation. "Krios, please!" The desperation gets worse in her voice. "Don't leave me! Don't leave me here alone!" I say nothing, the silence allowing me to hear her choking on her sobs. "You're all that I have! Don't leave me behind!" I manage to pull away and walk off. I know she does not follow me, though I hear her cries and pleas until I can no more."

Lynn stared at Thane as though she expected something like this to happen. Though she did not have the memory of a drell, she would never forget that day. Seeing him now, it was hard to determine what she should feel towards him. Perhaps forgiveness was in order. After all, things got a bit better after he left. Sort of.

Lynn turned her attention to Bailey, who seemed stunned by the older drell's sudden outburst. She didn't care if he found out. Bailey knew so much about her, more than her parents did. Knowing a little more didn't bother her in the slightest.

"I'm heading back to my dad's shop. Come by the Drunken Varren tomorrow night during my shift and I'll get you some drinks. On the house."

"Lynn, wait."

Now it was her turn to hear the desperation in the drell's voice. She was surprised, honestly. She hadn't expected him to sound like that. The drell she remembered didn't let much emotion seep through his voice. There was a painful ache in her chest, knowing that if she continued to stay she would break. Instead of turning around, she clasped her hands together and closed her eyes.

"Kalahira, Mistress of Inscrutable Depths, I ask forgiveness. Kalahira, wash away the sins of my wrath and envy that have troubled this soul for so long. Guide me to forgiveness, Kalahira, so that I may be at peace once more. Guide me so that I may be set on the shores of the infinite spirit. Guide me, Kalahira, so that I may remember the love I have been bestowed."

Two weeks later….

On Shepard's advice, Bailey decided to allow Kolyat to work for him. The Captain tasked the drell with answering calls, organizing information, process arrests/releases, and other jobs around that area. It required much organizing with none of the danger of becoming an officer. Not that the drell wouldn't mind it, but he had to remember to take it slow. This was a blessing compared to being put on trial.

As he became accustomed to his new job over the passing weeks, there was something that he couldn't get out of his mind: the human that stopped him, the one with pink and blue hair. Any free time the drell had, he found himself drifting off to the only memory he had of her. That moment he saw her, barely illuminated from her drone's light, was the only time he crossed her path. The memory was beginning to consume him in a way that worried the drell. He had only caught a glimpse of her. Nothing that left much of a mark on him. So why was he being consumed by it?

The slower the workdays, the more he found himself drifting off. Unfortunately, this was one of those days. The drell tried to busy himself with imputing information on all that had been brought in and released along with their crimes. Merely trying to keep himself distracted, the only sound he heard was of civilians walking by.

"Krios!"

Kolyat jumped at the sudden call of his name, looking around to see Captain Bailey returning to his desk.

"Just got word that my newer recruit is bringing in a tagger. Not much paperwork, but thought you'd like to get a heads up on the work."

Kolyat nodded his head as he began pulling out paperwork. Bailey had explained to him that a tagger was someone who spray-painted pictures on buildings or wherever they saw a canvas. To be arrested for something so idiotic was beyond the drell.

It took a couple minutes, but a turian officer was pulling in a woman. Her hands were behind her back, obviously cuffed.

"Of for Christ's sake! Lynn?! Again?! Damn it. Just sit her down over there. I'll deal with this."

Kolyat looked to see whom the repeat offender that Bailey seemed to know so well. His eyes widened slightly as the familiar colors of blue and pink flowed through a tuft of hair. The officer led her to the wall, where he instructed her to sit. She made a sound that seemed to make the officer angry. However, Bailey was hovering over her moments later, dismissing the officer.

"Lynn, seriously?" Bailey asked, anger strong in his voice. The woman simply smiled and that was his answer. With a heavy sigh, the Captain rubbed his temples. "What was it of this time?"

"Councilors handing off humans to Collectors," the woman said casually. "I figured since they ain't doin' a damn thing to help them, I could send them a message of their generosity."

Kolyat heard Bailey sigh again as the drell managed to look around to see the woman. It was definitely her. Now that he got a better look at her, he looked her over. She had multiple earrings on each ear, one on an eyebrow, tattoos on the sides of her arms, and even one across her chest, things he remember faintly seeing before. He looked at her lower half, seeing shorts covering what needed be with boots going up to her knees. Seemed she dressed for herself. Kolyat's eyes trailed back up and noticed the tattoo on her chest again. When he managed to read it, he was surprised. Not from what the tattoo itself said, but the fact that it was written in drell. Set this one on the shore of the infinite spirit. Why in the world would this human have something from drell religion marked on her? Hardly any drells worshipped the old ways nowadays; why in the world would a human?

"-yat. Kolyat!"

The drell returned to reality as Bailey yelled out his name. The woman, whom he hard Bailey call Lynn, was already un-cuffed and standing beside the captain. Her eyes were on locked onto Kolyat's, giving him a knowing smile. It made his mind go blank as he tried to concentrate on what Bailey was telling him, though he found it was more difficult than he could have imagined.

"Now that I've got your attention," Bailey said with a slight narrow of his eyes, though Kolyat knew he wasn't truly mad at him. "Don't worry about doing Ms. Davidson's paperwork. I'll handle that personally."

Kolyat nodded his head slowly, curiosity flowing through his mind. Bailey really never did paperwork personally. The man hated it beyond reason. Always tried some way to squirm himself out of such a chore. There was probably a reason for it.

"Lynn, I really don't want to see you here again," he heard Bailey say. "At least not for a couple weeks. Can you at least do that for me?"

"Whatever. Listen, Bailey, I gotta go," Lynn said as she jabbed her thumb out of the headquarters. "Gal wants me to cover a shift for a coworker. Dude called in sick and he needs me to fill in."

Bailey pinched his eyes together before he began waving her off, clearly frustrated with her attitude.

"Go, just go. You owe me several drinks though!"

The woman seemed to ignore Bailey, her eyes falling onto Kolyat's once more. Perhaps she could feel his eyes had been watching her. He wondered if she was going to say something to him. Probably to stop staring at her like some sort of pervert. Instead, he was confused when the woman blew a kiss to him, winking and then walking out of his sight.

Kolyat just sat there at his desk, watching her retreating form until she was no longer within his sight. It felt as though his heart would burst from his chest at any moment with how hard it was beating. What the hell was going on?

A long whistle returned Kolyat back to reality and to Bailey, whom was smirking from the comfort of his desk. Oh gods. Bailey just saw him. No doubt that he would tease him relentlessly about it.

"Looks like someone's been bitten by the love bug," Bailey said, obviously holding back a laugh. When Kolyat gave him a confused look, he waved it off. "Better watch out for that one, boy. I've known her since she was a spit-fired kid stealing food. She's a feisty one, I'll tell you. Wouldn't hesitate to smash a bottle against your head if you provoke her."

Kolyat stared blankly at Bailey, trying to get a handle on the emotions that were swimming through him. The amount that he felt clashing and mixing together began making him angry.

"She was the one that distracted me." Kolyat had been silent for several minutes and that's what he broke the silence with.

Realization suddenly smacked Bailey across the face. Kolyat knew the person that distracted him from his shot. He was sure he didn't tell the young drell and after his father's reaction to Lynn, it was highly unlikely he informed his son of her.

"I don't know what's wrong with me. I can't get her out of my head. Gods, I've only seen her twice now and it's driving me crazy. Every time I have a moment free to think, I find myself thinking of her. Why the hell is this happening? I don't even know her! Gods, we're not even the same species! I'm some kind of sick pervert with a human fetish!"

Bailey was surprised by this sudden outburst. Sure Kolyat had a temper, but he never heard him speak with such emotion before. It certainly took him by shock, leaving him speechless. By the sound of it, it seemed like the drell was a infatuated with Lynn. Probably just a little crush, surely nothing that would last long for him. Maybe he was confusing it with appreciative to Lynn for preventing the drell from ruining his life. No clue how he'd react to Lynn when he got to know her on a more personal level.

Bailey thought about the two of them as Kolyat continued muttering to himself on how he was going insane. Honestly, he liked the kid. Sure they met on this most awful of terms, but once Kolyat began working for him, he found himself watching over him more and more. It reminded Bailey when he began caring for Lynn in the same way. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to at least try to help the drell. Worst that could happen was Lynn would reject him. Actually, that wasn't the worst scenario that popped into the captain's head, but he pushed aside the worst options from his mind.

"Hey," Bailey called out, gaining Kolyat's attention. "I know Lynn as if she were my own. Maybe I can give you a bit of help. She'll probably knock some sense into you anyway. Could do you both some good."