The Renegade Adored

Disloyalty: "Darkness behind me, but light on my way" (Fairy Tales, Traditional)

"Uh, you're Hayden Shepard, right? From Earth?"
Hayden looked at the man, but not at his face. She was looking at his clothes. "You have a message for me?"
The gangs of Earth were very old-fashioned in some ways. All gang members wore uniforms, for example. Most gangs had their own slang, and they all had their own secret symbols. And all gangs recognized a person bearing the traditional white badge as a 'herald,' inviolate and trustworthy - so long as they were delivering a message. This man, nervous despite his size and bulk, had his badge as an earring on the left ear, and telltale streaks of red on the right leg of his pants. To anyone else, it would have looked like cheap jewelry and paint stains.
The man nodded, and handed Hayden a slightly crumpled package, wrapped in plain brown paper.
Hayden carefully ripped off the first layer, to reveal a small box covered in another layer of brightly patterned paper, with the word 'Sparks' scrawled on it in an sprawling, untidy hand. She handed back the outer wrapping, and he folded it neatly. "You should get out of here," Hayden suggested.
The herald nodded and slipped away, back into the bustle of Zakera Ward.
"What was all that about?" asked Garrus curiously.
"Nothing." Hayden put the box into her armor without opening it. "Let's finish our shopping."
Garrus realized that this was probably something that needed privacy, and followed Hayden until they went back to the ship. He could see by the set of her shoulders that she didn't want to talk, so he sat down in her cabin and watched her open the package without speaking. The only thing inside the box was a torn scrap of blue cloth, faded and old, a cheap material that felt nice but clearly ripped easily. "Sparks?"
"It's my gang name." Hayden stared down at the bit of cloth in her hands, didn't look up.
He waited, but she didn't say anything. "Is it a warning of some kind?"
Hayden grinned at him. "You're pretty good at this, aren't you?" She looked down at the piece of cloth again. "Yeah, it's a warning." She sighed, put the cloth back into the box and tossed it on the table. "I'll deal with it later."
Garrus shook his head, and decided not to bother asking any more since Hayden clearly didn't want to talk. Hayden wasn't in the mood to snuggle, so Garrus went to his room, got a few things ready, stopped by the mess hall, and then went down to the shuttle bay and waited. He grinned at the surprise on her face when she saw him, sitting calmly in the shuttle with all his bags, ready to go. "What?"
"Garrus, there is no way - "
"There is no way I'm letting you go alone."
"You don't even know where I'm going!"
"You're going to Earth, and it will be dangerous. You need someone to watch your back, Hayden."
She was strangely silent at that, and jumped in the shuttle, tossing her bags next to his. "Fine, let's just go. But you can't wear that armor."