[ Shepard smiles at him, small and fond and just that smallest bit amused. ]

Hey, you could be busy. Catching the latest gossip on the city's newspaper.

[ Which isn't a bad idea, now she's said it. Crew-made magazines are common enough on ships and isolated research stations: why not here? Something to suggest later.

She sits down on the coach and her expressions turns sombre. ]

I need to ask. About the Reapers, and what happened before you got here.