Disclaimer: The characters belong to Bioware. Some air-quoting involved. You have been warned.

Author note: A really short piece that insisted on buzzing around in my head, refusing to leave. I don't hate Miranda, but the fact that she is engineered to be so perfect is practically fly-paper for this fly of a fic. And it stuck. Hope you like it! :D

Summary: When Shepard walks into hell or out of it, Garrus goes, "Right behind you!"

Spinach

Garrus was sure it was not something that should be there; green and obvious, distractingly so. He couldn't decide on what to do about it, couldn't find it in him to interrupt seeing how Miranda was intensely going over the layout of the base they were infiltrating. The base was large and heavily defended, not just by security drones and turrets, but squads of armed mercenaries as well. They could not afford a full out assault, careful as they ought to be after denying the Illusive Man his candy.

He knew the plan, was familiar with it in fact, seeing how he had a hand in engineering the infiltration. After the various teams had planted the bombs on the fueling stations, the armoury, and main vehicle depot, he and Shepard were to set themselves up at a vantage point near the main communications building where their target, one of the Blue Suns merc leaders, was going to be. Between them, Shepard agreed to be his spotter while he served as main sniper. Another sniper team, consisting of Thane and Zaeed, were to take up position on the opposite side of the communications building, displacing from time to time to feed them intel on enemy movement. A support team comprising of Miranda and Jacob would be in position due west of them to provide cover fire if necessary.

An important delivery that the boss had to see to himself was scheduled to arrive, giving them the perfect opportunity to strike. It should draw him out long enough for Garrus to take the shot. Kasumi was to be in position to shut down the base's security systems and communication links just before the assassination was to take place. The bombs were to be detonated once Garrus took the shot and they would use the ensuing chaos to escape back to the shuttle before the mercs had time to recoup.

Clean and surgical, just the way he liked it.

He wondered how it was that no one else seemed to see what he saw. He took a furtive scan of the fighting crew gathered around the conference table. He thought Kasumi would have noticed, after all she noticed how "radiant" he looked one morning after he'd left Shepard's quarters, feeling all smug because he thought no one saw him. However, the master thief was busy noting something down on a datapad. Thane stood perfectly still beside her, eyes closed, fingers curled thoughtfully at his chin, as if he was posing for a picture. Zaeed was leaned against a far wall, his arms crossed over his chest in that distinct "waxing goddamn nostalgic" pose. Jacob paid attention like the perfect soldier. To think Garrus had been banking on the ex-Cerberus operative to at least point out to Miranda that she had something...green on her front teeth.

He hated being in one of those situations where he'd noticed something embarrassing and, not wanting to be the one to point it out, hoped someone else would lack the tact enough to do it for him.

He turned to his commander standing beside him, fully-geared, her jury-rigged Widow on hand. She must have noticed. The two of them were, after all, standing closest to Miranda.

As if sensing his gaze, Shepard turned to return it.

Using the moment when Miranda worked on the console to call up another diagram of the base, Garrus bent his head down to his commander and, careful to keep his voice low, asked, "Should we tell her, Shepard?"

Shepard did not reply, only curled a corner of her lips up in a knowing smirk. The smirk and the glint in her violet eyes was all the answer he needed.

"Really, Commander?"

At the sound of Miranda's voice, Garrus all but jolted back. He had only realised how close their faces were and how it must have looked to the others. Their relationship that had blossomed from friends with benefits to something more was probably the worse kept secret on the Normandy. (His money was on Yeoman Kelly Chambers.)

The two them—Garrus and Shepard—turned to face a very peeved Miranda, who stood watching them disapprovingly with a hand on her hip and a weight on one foot. That was part of the reason why they were always careful to not...what was the charming term that Shepard used, the term similar to the abbreviation for personal data pads... ah, yes. They were careful not to pull out the PDA when they were around other crew members. He knew Miranda frankly found the relationship a distraction but as long as he and Shepard did what they do best and do it well, she saw no reason to complain. And by "do", Miranda was referring to galaxy-saving and enemy-killing...not whatever else they did best...

"That's the end of the briefing," Miranda said, knifing brisk and business into his thoughts. "Is there anything you need to know, Commander?"

"That will be all, Miranda," Shepard replied, taking up her Widow. Turning to the rest of the team, she said, "You've all got your assignments. Gear up and be at the shuttle in five. Dismissed!"

The team filed out rapidly, all eyes suspiciously downcast and lips pursed so hard they could well bleed. Ah... Garrus thought. They saw.

Shepard stayed behind and Garrus took a step back.

"By the way," Shepard began, keeping her tone light and casual. She finger-circled a general area around her own mouth as she finished, "There's something on your teeth."

Garrus kept his mandibles tightly pressed to the sides of his mouth, trying to suppress the chuckles that threatened to rumble out of him. Laughing at Miranda was never good for business.

Miranda's hand shot up to shield her mouth from them. Garrus could see her other hand moving behind it, probably probing the teeth with a finger. Miranda only glanced at the object at the tip of her finger before exclaiming, "Oh my god! Shepard! You could have told me! How long—"

Shepard holstered her rifle behind her and backed out of the briefing room, splayed fingers held out in front of her even as the telling glint never left her eyes.

"I could you kill for that! Both of you! Garrus, you knew! The entire time... oh my god! I can't believe—"

They could still hear her after the door slid close behind them and even in the tech lab, where Mordin seemed to be waiting for them to enter, the salarian equivalent of "questioning" in the general wash of his expression.

"Back to work, Mordin," Shepard told him, a playful lilt in her voice as she exited the lab.

Feeling suddenly concerned, he asked, "Should we let Miranda lead the support team, Shepard?"

"She's a good soldier, Garrus, and as good a team leader as you are," Shepard replied easily, making her way to the elevator, him close behind. With another characteristic smirk, she added, "She'll get over herself. She already had to when I came on board."

Garrus chuckled, turning his face away as he started to think about every attribute of Shepard's he admired. There were plenty: strong thighs, supportive waist, and a wicked sense of humour being a few of his favourites...

"You coming, Garrus? When I said be at the shuttle in five, I meant you, too."

He whipped his head up to see Shepard holding the elevator door open for him, the expression on her face reminding him of who's in charge and of another quality he found massively (and...kinky-ly, he learnt the word from Jack) attractive in his commander.

He nodded.

"Right behind you, Shepard."

Finis