He heard her quick, staccato steps long before she marched into the cockpit.

"Don't take this the wrong way, Joker," she warned as she crouched down next to him before he had a chance to spin his chair round, "But I want to get under your legs,"

Joker blinked at her. "Uh… Commander? I know seeing Alenko again must've been weird but-"

"Shut up!" Shepard whispered, glancing over her shoulder. Her pale face paled some more and she promptly dived under Joker's legs. "I'm not here. Not a word from you either EDI!" she added in a warning hiss.

"Affirmative Commander," EDI's synthetic voice rang out.

"Shut up!" came the Commander's strangled voice from somewhere around Joker's crotch.

A moment later the chipper Yeoman Kelly Chambers danced in. "Good afternoon Joker. Hello EDI,"

"Yeoman Chambers," EDI responded.

"Hey,"

"Have you seen the Commander?" Chambers asked.

Joker felt a warning poke in his calf. "No, sorry," he replied, trying to sound casual.

"I thought I saw her coming this way," the Yeoman persisted mercilessly. Joker fought the urge to gulp and glanced down to where the Commander cowered, glaring up at him.

"She is hiding at Mr Monroe's feet," EDI chimed.

Chambers blinked three times in quick succession. "I didn't know you could joke, EDI,"

"Actually-"

"I've been teaching it," Joker cut across at the Commander's second warning poke.

Chambers raked him with a piercing gaze. "We should talk sometime Jeff,"

Joker sighed as the Yeoman retreated. The Commander poked her head out round Joker's legs, and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, well, the great Commander Shepard hiding from little Yeoman Kelly," Joker teased as the Commander extracted herself.

The Commander's look was deadly. "You avoid the Psyche Squad just as much, Joker," she accused.

Joker shrugged, still smiling. There was no shame in him hiding under a chair, he was just a pilot, but Shepard was the scourge of the Reapers, Saviour of the Citadel. Sometimes he saw what other people saw, but most of the time he just saw her as she was now; relaxed, chilled, dressed in some slacks and a tank top, leaning casually against the console. The Commander was staring out the windows, clearly lost in thought.

"It was difficult to see Kaiden again," she mused quietly. "It's been two years for him; I was dead for god sakes. For me, it was last month. Last week even," she shrugged, nonchalant. "But he's changed. I guess I've probably changed too. Whatever we had… It's over,"

"You seem to be taking it well Commander," Joker observed.

"There's no use pining for something that's gone," she shrugged again, and Joker perceived she was a great deal sadder than she was letting on. No wonder she was avoiding the Yeoman.

"You've still got me and Gaurus, Ma'am," he said with a smile. "It's not like I can go anywhere even if I wanted,"

Shepard laughed. "Still the same Joker,"