A/N This is my first attempt at fan fiction. Please be kind, but read and review. I do appreciate constructive criticism! Thanks!

HERS

She walked down the ramp to the airlock. Another ship, another assignment, she thought. Thankfully, this time it was with her mentor, Captain Anderson. He had always been like a second father to her throughout her military career. Even with Anderson, Commander Rachel Shepard couldn't see anything being any different about this ship than the others she had been assigned to before.

She hefted her footlocker as the airlock doors opened allowing her to enter. Normandy. She had seen on the side of the ship. Most advanced ship in the Alliance, she was told. Sighing, Shepard looked around. It didn't seem much different than any other ship, but it certainly was busy. Crewmen and officers scurried about readying the ship for final departure.

"Shepard!" A shout jolted her out of her thoughts. It was Anderson. "You're late."

"I know," she said, lamely. "Would you believe I got caught in traffic?"

"I wouldn't."

"My dog ate my homework?" joked Shepard.

"Get your stuff down to the crew deck and get back up here to the CIC. This is no way for the XO of my ship to start our first mission," ordered Anderson.

Shepard mumbled an apologetic acknowledgment, and quickly walked toward the stairs to the crew deck. Her footlocker wasn't heavy, but it was awkward, and somehow she had to activate the sensor to open the door to the stairway. She didn't want to put it down, so she turned her body toward the green light to use her hip, but before she could, the door opened. A dark haired man stood at the threshold. "Good morning," he said before continuing ahead toward the cockpit.

"Uh, hi," stammered Shepard, nearly dropping her locker. She walked down the stairs, but turned to look back at the man. He was well-built, handsome with close cropped hair that would be a curly mass if left to grow. She could smell his cologne when he walked by, and it lingered in her nose.

No. Don't let that get started. He's probably like all the rest and not worth your time.

Shepard pushed the young man out of her mind and hurried to unload her stuff.

HIS

Kaidan Alenko woke early that morning. He was excited. A brand new ship, the Normandy, was being sent off and he was assigned to it. This was a privileged assignment and he knew it. It wasn't like he didn't deserve it. God, he'd been serving with distinction for 14 years. Had it really been that long? 18 + 14 = 32, he reasoned.

He was one of the first to arrive on deck. He always liked to claim a sleeping pod early because he liked the ones closest to the back. The hum of engine drowned out any other noises that might be going on and helped him sleep better. He went downstairs to the armory, unpacked into his locker, and went back upstairs.

The rest of morning proceeded uneventfully. He was just wrapping up some diagnostics on the console by the sleeping pods when he was summoned to the cockpit. "Hey, Alenko. Something's acting twitchy with the forward thrusters. Can you help me with them? I still have some other calculations to run before we take off. We're going through the Charon relay and I'm not in the mood to destroy the pride of the Alliance fleet. I think that might reflect badly on my performance review."

"Sure, Joker. I'll be right there," laughed Kaidan.

He walked up the stairway and activated the door sensor. He was suddenly face to face with a woman carrying a footlocker. He'd never seen her before. She was pretty, but not stunning. Brown hair pulled back in a messy ponytail, green eyes, a big scar under her right eye, he observed. She looked like she was running late. "Good morning," he said and walked ahead.

He thought he heard her say something in return, but he was in a hurry. It was nearly 1200 and they wanted the ship to be on its way by 1230.

I wonder if I should have helped her. No, she looked like she had it fine. Probably another one of those super self-reliant female soldiers. Chivalry is a dead language anyway to them.