For Santa, who chatted with me about this whilst I boiled myself alive. Enjoy your Shakarian babbys XD
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Vakarian,
After studying the aftermath of an attack on the human colony XXXXX that left few survivors, a last will and Testament by a Ms. H. Shepard was recovered. In this document, it is Ms. H. Shepard's request that you, as the long-time friends of the aforementioned, become the new careers of the (now orphaned) Miss J. Shepard. Should you wish to fulfil Ms. H. Shepard's request and adopt the child, please respond to the appropriate address listed below. We understand the distress that the information of Ms H. Shepard's demise may cause, and we offer our deepest condolences.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Mariana?" a tall, dark male Turian with a mean-looking expression –Mr Vakarian- asked his smaller, pale and sickly-looking female companion –Mrs Vakarian-. They had been sat in the waiting room at one of Palaven's orphanages for over and hour, and he was starting to get restless. "The girl is a Human, after all."
"I'm sure." Mrs Vakarian answered with a fierce smile "Hannah was my best -and only- friend back when we travelled around together." Mrs Vakarian's smile faltered slightly "When she was alive she did anything for me. This is me repaying all those favours."
Mr Vakarian took his wife's hand and stroked it gently, letting a small smile cross his face as she purred quietly in response. He knew that even though that the birth of their two children and his wife's sickness had made it unable for her to travel and see her human friend in over seven years, the loss that his wife felt was immense.
Finally, the couple were called into a private room. Inside, they were met by a very tired and bedraggled-looking Turian with a small red-haired girl with a fiery look in her sea-green eyes. Few words were exchanged, and papers were signed quickly; it seemed that they wanted to get rid of the human girl as soon as possible.
"She's a feisty one." The Turian in charge of her muttered, passing her over to Mrs Vakarian "The humans have an old superstition that red-heads are trouble, but this one seems damn intent on proving it true."
"I'm not 'she' and I'm not 'the human', either." She girl said irritably, crossing her arms "My name is Jane."
"Jane!" the Turian exclaimed "Do not talk like that in front of your parents. Be nice."
Jane frowned, and turned to Mr and Mrs Vakarian.
"Nice to meet you." She forced out. Mrs Vakarian smiled.
"It's nice to meet you too, Jane." She replied, kneeling down to come face-to-face with the girl "Although the circumstances on which we are meeting are none-too-pleasant. However, your mother expressed her wishes to have you placed in our care. I'm sure you'll enjoy playing with my children."
"Your children?" Jane asked curiously "I'll have other people to play with?"
"Yep." Mrs Vakarian nodded a goodbye to the Turian and took Jane's hand, leading her out of the room "I have a son and a daughter."
The child had nothing to her name except the clothes on her back, a few personal items from home and some hygiene items the orphanage had given her. All of which were in a little cloth backpack that Jane had slung over her small shoulders.
"What are their names?" She asked as they left the building.
"My daughter is called Solana. She's 10 years old." Mrs Vakarian answered as they got into a taxi to take them back to the Vakarian house "And my son, Garrus. He's 6 years old, just like you."
"Are they nice?" Jane asked nervously.
Mrs Vakarian smiled at her and nodded "Yes, they are both very nice children. Garrus is a little shy, but I'm sure he'll enjoy having a friend to play with."
"Good morning, class." A stern-faced teacher addressed the room of about 15 young children, most Turians but also some Asari. Jane had already forgotten the teacher's name, and by the looks 14 of the 15 pairs of eyes gave her she wouldn't bother to learn any of their names. She flashed a smile at the owner of the 15th pair, belonging to a certain boy named Garrus Vakarian.
It had been a week since she had joined the Vakarian household, and Jane, Garrus and Solana had already become firm friends.
"-And if I hear that any of you have been picking on Miss Shepard here, you will have me to answer to. Is that clear?"
"Yes, sir." 15 voices replied, only one sincere. Jane rolled her eyes, and asked the teacher if she could sit next to Garrus. As soon as she sat down, a note dropped on her desk. Scooping it up, she read the scruffy writing: "The human loves Garrus!"
Grinning, Jane folded the paper neatly and pocketed it before anyone could see.
"Why does everyone at school call you Shepard?" Garrus asked as he and Jane –Shepard- ambled home from school.
"It's so much more badass than Jane." She responded with a gappy smile. No-one had told Garrus that humans lost their baby teeth, and he was still struggling to get used to the sight of Shepard with gaps in her smile.
"But I like your name." Garrus looked away from her mouth "And if you say 'badass' mother will be angry."
"Well, I'm very flattered you like my name, but I don't and anyway, no-one at school calls me anything other than 'the human' so I really don't see a problem with it." Shepard kicked a rock down the road.
"If I hear them, I'll hit them!" Garrus announced, punching his fists out. Shepard laughed.
"You do that."
Shepard sat on a bench outside, waiting for Garrus. It was lunchtime at school, and he always met her here before they went to the lunch hall.
"Oh, look. It's that little human girl." A cruel voice cut through the silence. Shepard looked up, seeing two older boys come towards her for a second before behind shoved off the bench, and onto the floor.
"Ow!" Shepard cried, but the older boy laughed. Shepard knew him, his name was Saren and he was one of the older boys. Everyone knew he was a bully.
"Why are you here, wimp? You should go home to Earth, back where you belong with all the other wimpy little humans. If they don't want you, why the hell did you think we would? Both your parents are dead, and you know what that means? It means that they were weak. You have the combined genes of two weak people. And since you're stupid, I'll tell you what that means too. It means that you're DOUBLY stupid. I bet your new family hate you, after all, who would want a stupid, weak, idiotic human like you lying around?"
"Shepard, where are you?" Garrus called. He had come to the bench, but found no-one here. Where had Shepard gone?
He searched all over, finally finding the girl crouched behind the bins, sniffing. When she saw him, she stood up and launched herself at him.
"You don't hate me, do you?" She cried "I'm not stupid, or weak, or idiotic right? I know I'm extra work for your mother because I can't eat the same food, or brush my teeth with the same toothpaste, but please don't send me away! I like being here, I like you, and I like our family! Please, don't send me away!"
"Shepard, calm down!" Garrus said "What is wrong?"
Shepard told him what had happened. Garrus's face got darker and darker.
"Come with me." He finally said, grabbing Shepard's hand. He dragged her to the part of the playground where the older kids hung out, and marched right up to Saren.
"Can I help you, squirt?" He asked, bored. He saw Shepard, and grinned "Oh, it's the human. Back for round two?"
"YOU STUPID PYJACK!" Garrus yelled, and with all his might he punched forwards, hitting Saren in the groin, right where it hurts.
"You stupid little shit!" Saren choked out, tears streaming down his face. He pushed Garrus roughly. Shepard was not having any more of this, and head butted Saren in the stomach. This took him off-guard, and he fell to the ground.
"You leave my siblings alone!" Solana said, making an entrance. She and Saren exchanged heated words, before finally a teacher –Gotten by Nihlus, Saren's friend- came over to sort them out.
"Food fight!" one of the children cried. Within seconds of the supervisor leaving, the lunch hall full of children became a messy skirmish of flying dextro food. Garrus quickly pulled Shepard under the table where they sat in cover, the young red-head still chewing her (not dextro) sandwich that Garrus's mother (and her mother, she supposed) had carefully made her that morning. She swallowed, and turned to Garrus who was peering around nervously.
"Are they always like this?" she asked. Garrus looked back at her and nodded solemnly.
"There's not much fun to be had here in school." He told her sadly "We're still children. They've got to have fun somehow to cool off."
"Oooh, look!" A Turian girl with an Asari at her side laughed "That nerd Garrus is under the table with the human girl! I bet you they're doing dirty things!"
"But Herminia," the Asari girl said smartly "They can't be doing dirty things. You told me yourself, you read in one of your mother's magazines that it's impossible for it to happen without an allergic reaction."
"Shut up, Kayla." Herminia shot back, but then a twisted smile formed across her face. "You know, I've never seen a human have an allergic reaction to our food before. Do you think we should see what happens, you know, in the name of science?"
Before Kayla the Asari could say anything, Herminia the Turian had scooped up a spoonful of dextro mashed potato and was making a beeline for where Shepard was crouched with her sandwich.
Garrus noticed her before Shepard did, and immediately jumped up to deter the girl, but Herminia was quicker and shoved him out of the way. Usually Garrus wouldn't have fallen, but the floor was slick with the discarded remains of whatever dish the lunch was supposed to be and so he slipped and down he went.
Shepard immediately snapped to attention. In a split second, she registered that this girl in front of her had just hurt her friend. She nimbly jumped out from under the table, and neatly hurled her sandwich at Herminia's face.
Unfortunately, at the exact same moment that the sandwich left Shepard's hand, the supervisor came back. The old Turian yelled for everyone to calm, and Herminia turned away, out of the sandwich's line of fire. It was as if time slowed down, and everyone in the room paused. The sandwich continued to fly through the air, landing most perfectly right in the middle of one of the older student's faces.
The sandwich slowly and comically slid down his face, and dropped onto his lap. He looked down slowly at the offending item before looking back and slamming face-down onto the table.
"Did you hear? The boy that that first-year Shepard hit with a sandwich didn't come back to school."
"Shepard? You mean the little human girl?"
"Yeah, she hit that seventh-year Nihlus in the face with a sandwich last week."
"And he hasn't come back?!"
"No! Do you... do you think it killed him? It was human food after all!"
"So we're walking the corridors with a murderer?"
"We could be!"
"Aren't you scared?"
"Scared? Of Shepard? No way! I'm more scared that with Nihlus gone, Saren will become even worse than he already is."
"Yeah... last week he pushed a fifth year down the stairs, and Nihlus went and helped the poor kid up and then told Saren off. I don't know why they hang out together."
"It is weird, isn't it? I mean, Saren is so mean and a big bully but then Nihlus is so kind and great at calming him down... I wonder why they're friends as well.
"Saren never really does anything that might hurt Nihlus though. Have you noticed that?"
"Shepard." Solana said, walking into the room where the younger girl was. Shepard looked up from the book on Turian politics she was pretending to read and grinned to herself. She definitely liked being called Shepard much more than being called Jane, and she was happy that her adoptive family were okay with that fact.
"Hey Solana." She beamed "What's wrong?"
A sly smile crept over the Turian girl's face. She looked behind her, and then walked up close to Shepard.
"You know Dad works at C-Sec, right?" She asked. Shepard nodded "Well, he's always away at the Citadel, but he has this secret room... I managed to get in there finally, and guess what I found!"
"What did you find?" Shepard asked excitedly, the book long forgotten. Solana took Shepard's hands in her own and pulled.
"Come, I'll show you!"
Solana pulled her sister down the hallways of the Vakarian household, to a door that had always been locked. She looked around again, and opened the door.
"Look at all this!" Solana exclaimed proudly. Shepard stepped in, and looked around. Hanging off the walls were an array of guns, shotguns and snipers and pistols and the like from all sorts of places in the galaxy.
"Woah." Shepard exclaimed, her eyes a big as saucers "This is so cool!"
"And do you want to know the best bit?" Solana asked her, a glint in her eyes "these ones here-" she picked up a gun to her right "-Are made for target practice. They fire little pellets, not bullets. They make them so that when we start military training we don't hurt each other."
"I'm pretty sure I'm catching your drift here." Shepard smiled back, a matching glint in her eye "I'll go and get Garrus."
"I can't believe you shot him in the butt." Garrus said shaking his head with disbelief "I can't believe you actually shot him in the butt."
"It wasn't my fault! I was shooting whatever fruit is was off the tree behind him, it's totally not my fault that his butt was so big. It got in the way. And it's hard to miss something THAT big when it gets in the way."
"Young lady!" their mother scolded, coming into the dining room where the three of them –Shepard, Garrus and Solana- were sat in disgrace "Do not talk about poor Mr. Balbus that way!"
"It was my fault, Mother." Solana said sadly, solemnly staring at the ceiling "I broke into the room and showed it to Shepard."
"But I agreed to borrow the gun with you" Shepard immediately added in.
"And I didn't try to stop them." Garrus finished.
Mariana sighed, and put her hand up to her face.
"I honestly don't know what to do you with you all." She said with a faint smile "Luckily Mr. Balbus is not pressing charges, but you three still need to go and apologize to him. And also, your father is expecting a vid-call from you all, so you'll need to apologize to him as well."
"Yes, Mother." Her two Turian and one human child replied.
"And also, Shepard?" Mariana added as the three started to get up.
"Yes, mother?"
"Amazing shot. Well done."
"Garrus!" Solana cried, her voice panicked "Go and find mother, quickly!"
"What, why?" Garrus replied nervously "What's wrong?"
"It's Shepard!" She said, pointing to the 8-year-old who was sat on the ground staring at he knee "She fell over, and red stuff is coming out of her leg!"
"Red stuff?" Garrus replied "Shit!"
"Garrus what does red stuff mean?" Solana's voice went up a few pitches "And don't say that word!"
"It's fine, I always bleed like this." Shepard said, but neither of her Turian siblings seemed to hear.
"Garrus go and get mum, quick!"
Garrus turned quickly and ran back to the house screaming for their mother, whilst Solana stood and swore at the sky.
"Don't you dare repeat any of this!" Solana told Shepard, who was still trying to tell her older sister that this was normal.
"You know..." Shepard said quietly "all humans bleed red. All the people on the colony bled red. My real mother bled red."
Solana stopped pacing back and forth, and looked at Shepard. She barely ever spoke about her real mother, let alone the colony. She moved quickly over to her sister, and dropped down next to her, grabbing her into a hug.
When Garrus (Tears now stopped but voice still high and panicked) came back with their mother, they found Solana and Shepard (Cut knee completely forgotten) sat next to each other in silence.
"She mentioned her real mother." Solana told her mother later that night. Mariana put down her dishcloth and turned to her daughter.
"What did she say?" her mother asked. Solana was glad that her mother replied, as earlier on she had told Solana and Garrus that she would not speak to children who screamed and said such profanities.
"She said that her mother and the other colonists bled red." Solana replied "She's going to remember what happened, isn't she?"
"Most likely." Her mother said with a sigh.
"Shepard! What are you doing?" Garrus mumbled sleepily. It was 2am, and Shepard had crawled into his bed.
"Shh." Shepard hushed him before laying down next to him and pulling her blanket up around herself "I can't sleep."
"You can't sleep?" Garrus echoed, sitting up slightly "Why?"
"Sit down, you idiot." Shepard grumbled "I just can't sleep, okay?"
There was a few seconds of silence, and then Garrus fell back onto his pillow.
"I was thinking about my mother." Shepard finally said into the darkness "I remember her. She had red hair like me, but instead of it being short she always had it long, hanging down her back in a plait. She liked gardening. I remember going outside and seeing her working hard to grow plants. I remember-" Shepard paused "I remember her dying."
Even though it was pitch-black so he couldn't see, Garrus could hear soft snuffly-hiccup sounds coming from Shepard's direction. It took him a second to realize she was crying.
"It's okay." Garrus said, reaching out to touch Shepard. His hand found her hair, and he stroked it gently, not knowing what else to do.
"Solana, for the last time, it is not your fault PLEASE stop feeling guilty!"
Solana had been moping around the house for the past week since Shepard had remembered about her mother, and it was really starting to bother Shepard who just wanted some normality.
"It is my fault." Solana replied "It is so my fault. I'm an idiot; I should've known that humans bleed red. I am fourteen, after all."
"You are not an idiot and it's not your fault. I didn't know Turians bleed blue until that time I accidentally elbowed Garrus in the face and he got a nose bleed. You might be a shoddy medic, but you are not an idiot."
"I am a shoddy medic, aren't I?" Solana said with a small grin.
"Hey, you know what will make us both feel better?" Shepard grinned at Solana.
"What?"
"We both know that Garrus has a secret stash of chocolate. Want to go and pilfer it?"
"But you can't eat it."
"It's not for me."
"But these are human chocolates!" Shepard said with confusion. They had upturned Garrus's mattress to get to the chocolate stash underneath his bed, but upon finding it they found not one pile but two.
"Garrus?" Shepard called. Solana looked at her and put her finger to her lips but it was too late. Garrus came in.
"Yeah?" He asked before seeing his bed. His look of curiosity turned to a look of confusion, and then to one of embarrassment.
"Why do you have human chocolate?" Shepard asked, completely shameless. Solana looked at Garrus, and grinned.
"I'll leave you two to it." She said, patting Garrus on the shoulder before leaving the room. Garrus shot her a 'you traitor!' look as she went.
"So?" Shepard repeated, grinning "Why? If I had known, I would've upturned your mattress much sooner."
Garrus stood looking down at the chocolate trying to figure out what to say. A few years back, he had found out about a human celebration called 'Valentine's day'. With help from Solana (Who had been sworn to secrecy) he had managed to get a hold of chocolate Shepard could eat so he could give it to her. He had always chicken out, of course, but it didn't stop him getting more chocolate for her with the intent of him actually giving it to her.
"I- I- I have a crush on a human girl at school." Garrus said quickly, not meeting Shepard's gaze "It's not you, do don't eat that chocolate! I read up about Valentine 's Day and wanted to give her some chocolate, but..."
Shepard burst out laughing. Garrus shuffled nervously.
"You have a crush?" She managed to get out "Who on? There's not other humans in our year- Oh my gosh, is it that girl in the year above? The one with the blonde hair?"
"Wha- No!" Garrus marched over to his mattress and put it back on his bed "No. The girl I have a crush on has a much prettier hair colour."
"Did you hear? There's a fight going on in the courtyard! Ninth-year Varuis and fifth-year Garrus!"
"Really? Let's go! What are they fighting about?"
"Apparently Garrus has a crush on a human girl! I wonder if it's that little red-head he's always with. She is kind-of cute."
"But isn't she his sister? Gross!"
"She's not really his sister, idiot. I heard my mother tell your mother that she was left at C-Sec on the Citadel by a prostitute and that Garrus's father took pity and brought her home."
"Really?"
"Yep!"
"Ew! How can you be friends with someone like that? Haven't any of them heard that saying that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree?"
"Ow! Ow! Please, be gentle Solana!"
Solana sighed, throwing down the blue-stained cloth she was mopping up Garrus's shredded elbows with.
"I am being gentle! And I wouldn't have to do this if you didn't get into fights!"
"I didn't start it!" Garrus complained as Solana put a plaster on each of Garrus's elbows.
"What was it about, anyway?" Solana asked, moving to examine her brother's split lip.
"Shepard." Garrus mumbled "He said it's just not right for a Turian to have a crush on a human. He also called her a filthy, weak little orphan scrounging food from our mother."
"Was that when you hit him?"
"Yeah."
"Good." Solana rung out her cloth again "Speaking of Shepard, where is she?"
"I'm sorry!" the older Turian cried, laying on the floor protecting his face "I'm sorry! I won't go near Garrus again, I promise!"
"You better not!" Shepard spat. When she had heard that an older boy was beating up Garrus, she had rushed to the scene to find the bully Varius gone and Garrus lying on the concrete, bruised and beaten and trying not to cry. She had then found Varius, and given him a taste of his own medicine.
"He's got a crush on you, you know." Varius shouted as Shepard walked away "And that's gross, you're brother and sister!"
"We're not related!" Shepard shouted back, not wanting to give this bully any more of her time.
"Shepard, you have a boyfriend?" Garrus asked. Shepard grinned.
"Yes I do. We started dating last night. He's nice, as hot as you can get when you're a Turian, and also he's older."
"Older?" Solana asked "How much older?"
"Year above."
"That's not too bad, I suppose." Garrus grumbled.
"Anyway, I said I would meet him outside about now, so I should go." Shepard grabbed her scarf "I'll see you later!"
Solana rolled her eyes. When Shepard was out of earshot, Garrus turned to his older sister.
"Sol, I need you to start a cult." He said. Solana turned to him and frowned.
"A cult? Why?"
"Because I swear to God I am going to kill a man, and I need you to do something worse so mother won't be too mad at me."
Garrus sighed as he lay out on the roof of the Vakarian house, looking up at the stars. Shepard had gone out with her boyfriend again, and Solana was getting ready to start her mandatory year of military training. He was bored and alone.
He heard his bedroom window open, and briefly looked up to see a small red-headed girl climb out through it and carefully make her way across the roof to where he lay. She sat down next to him.
"How did your date go?" Garrus asked. Shepard frowned into the darkness.
"It's over." She sad sadly, "We're too young. It was never going to work anyway."
"That's a shame." Garrus replied, meaning it. He reached his hand out to Shepard, who took it.
"The stars are nice tonight." she mumbled, rubbing her eyes with her free hand before laying her arm over her eyes "The stars are very nice tonight."
"Congrats on finishing your first year of military training, Solana." Their father said over a vid-chat "I'm sorry I can't be at home to see you come back."
"That's okay, father." Solana forced a smile "I'll just look forward to seeing you the next time."
"I promise I will be back soon. How is your mother doing?"
"She's... fine. She went into hospital a few days ago, but they couldn't find anything wrong and they discharged her."
"I see... I'll should be able to get some leave in two weeks. Stay strong, Solana."
"I'll try."
"Hey... Mother?" Shepard asked, carefully picking her way into the kitchen.
"Yes my dear?" Mariana asked, looking up.
"I read that book you gave me... you know, the one about humans and puberty?"
"That's good." Mariana nodded. Shepard blushed a bit, trying to pick her words.
"And you know there's a bit about... you know... when girls start to bleed 'down there'? And they're supposed to wear those pad things?"
"They're up in the bathroom, cupboard under the sink. Your father sent them from the Citadel."
"Thank you."
Shepard gently knocked on her sister's bedroom door, and then let herself in.
"Sol?" She asked. Solana sat up.
"Yeah?"
"I wanted to as you something." Shepard said "Because you're seventeen now and I'm thirteen and you know all these things... But how do humans... you know... do... that?"
"That?" Solana echoed confused.
"Yeah, that. You know, with a mummy and a daddy?"
"Oh!" Solana replied, getting it "That! Didn't mother give you a book?"
"She- she did, but it didn't really have anything on that. I was wondering if you knew anything."
"Well... How do I explain? When a mummy and a daddy love each other very much, they do a special hug."
"And that's all there is to it?"
Solana paused.
"Yeah." She lied, grinning "That's all there is too it."
"Are you sure you're sure?" Shepard eyes her suspiciously "I have the extranet so I will look it up if you are lying to me."
"I'm 100% sure it's just hugging." She laughed "So you better stop hugging Garrus!"
"And just what is that meant to mean?" Shepard blushed before making a hasty exit.
"Solana, you lied!" Shepard cried indignantly, bursting into Garrus's room where he and Solana were sat talking "That is NOT like a special hug, it's more like a ship going into port!"
"What looks like a ship going into port?" Garrus asked, curious.
"Garrus, DO NOT look at that!" Solana said, trying to grab Shepard, but it was too late. Shepard showed Garrus the date pad she was holding, and he looked at it briefly before pulling a shocked face and pushing it away.
"Humans look that THAT?" He cried "That's so gross! Oh my god!"
"Well, what did you THINK we looked like?" Shepard shot back "I told you we look like Asari!"
"But Asari are blue!" Garrus said at the same time Solana said "You know what Asari look like without clothes?!"
Solana looked up from her book on human biology and grinned at Garrus.
"Are you still thinking about those human vids?" She asked. Shepard groaned, and then groaned louder when Garrus nodded his head.
"Yes and no." He replied, blushing when Solana started to laugh "I just can't stop thinking about them! What is up with those lumps on the female's chests? They're weird!"
"I agree with you there." Solana pulled a face at Shepard "They have them to feed their young, though."
"What?" Garrus was shocked "THAT'S how they feed their young?"
"You got a problem with it?" Shepard grumbled, crossing her arms over her own 'blossoming' chest "How do you feed your young? But shoving worms down their necks?"
"That is racist towards birds and I won't stand for it!" Solana shouted with mock-anger.
"Why would we stuff birds down their necks?" Garrus asked, missing the point "And what are worms? Though if you were curious, we use blenders on the squishy prey. Excluding Hanar, of course."
"Ew, gross." Shepard replied, covering her ears "I actually did not want to hear that. That's so gross."
"Better than letting them take nutrients from our own bodies!" Garrus fired back.
"But they are good for other things too!" Shepard replied with a smirk. Solana groaned and hid behind her book.
"Like what?" Garrus asked, his tone disbelieving.
"You can store things in your bra." Shepard explained. Garrus nodded.
"That's true." He said.
"And you can use them as a table." She added.
"What?" Garrus said, slightly shocked "There's no way you can use them as a table."
"Can to! Let me show you."
"Please do not show him!" Solana grumbled. Shepard grinned deviously, and reached over and grabbed her older sister's book.
"Ah!" Solana protested, trying to keep her grip on the book. Shepard easily procured the book, and balanced it on her chest.
Garrus clapped whilst Solana rolled her eyes.
"A party?" Shepard asked leaning in "Why are we having a party?"
"Because it's our 15th birthday." Garrus muttered "And 15 is supposed to be a big birthday, remember?"
"Because Turians start their military training." Shepard rolled her eyes "But I'm not Turian, so I don't see why I have to make a big fuss over my birthday. They already decided that I'm not going to be allowed to train with you guys."
"It's stupid." Garrus crossed his arms "I mean, you have been raised Turian for all your life basically. Just because you were born human doesn't mean you're not capable of going to military school with Turians."
"And not just that." Shepard frowned, going silent for a few seconds "They want me to go back to Earth. So I can go to military school with others 'my kind'."
"What?" Garrus sat up and stared at her "You're kidding!"
"Nope." Shepard grimaced "I was told the other day. I was wondering when the best time to tell you would be."
"And you're going to let them take you?"
"I don't have a choice, Garrus." Shepard's frown deepened "I have to do what they say."
"When do you leave?" Garrus put his hand on her shoulder.
"The day after you." She replied "Because I'm not used to human ways they want me to go to school there beforehand, learn some human mannerisms."
"Fair enough." Garrus sighed.
"Anyway, about this party..."
"Are you enjoying this?" Garrus all but yelled over the music. When Solana said she could put them together a party, he didn't think she meant like this.
"Not really!" Shepard yelled back, jumping towards Garrus as someone –very drunk- pushed past her. The lights were too low for her to see him blush.
"Do you, um, want to go somewhere quieter?" He called back. Shepard nodded, putting her drink down on a table. Garrus took her hand, and led her outside.
Shepard took a deep breath, and stretched. "Phew!" She exhaled, laughing "It's so nice to be able to hear myself think. I don't think my ears are going to stop ringing any time soon, though."
"Tell me about it." Garrus agreed, his eyes darting towards a group of part-goers who had flocked together around the back of the house. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what they were doing.
"I don't think I'm much of a party person." Shepard admitted "I mean, I told Solana to invite as many people as she could to make it worth-while, but this-" she motioned with her hands towards the house "-I think it was a bit too much."
"I agree." Garrus nodded. The two of them stood in silence, looking up at the sky.
"My legs hurt." Shepard groaned "I've been stood up for so long it's ridiculous. Let's find somewhere to sit."
"There's a hammock at the end of the garden." Garrus answered.
"We have a hammock?" Shepard peered at him "How long have we had a hammock?"
"For ages." Garrus laughed as they walked down the garden "You just never come down here anymore. You're always hiding in your room or typing away on a data-pad."
They reached the hammock, and Shepard squinted at it in the darkness.
"I can't see." She stated "How is it that we always end up in the dark?"
"I don't know." Garrus laughed "But here, I'll help."
He scooped her up, and she squealed. He located the hammock (Turian eyesight is much better than human eyesight, of course) and plonked Shepard down on it. He then climbed in next to her.
"Hey, watch it!" Shepard warned playfully "You're really spiky! And there's not much room here."
"That's okay." Garrus replied "You can lay on me, I don't mind."
Shepard took him up on his offer, and they stayed there in silence, looking up at the stars. All Shepard could hear was the muffled beat of the music coming from the house, the occasional shriek of laughter, and the sound of Garrus Vakarian's heart beat, fast and light like a little bird.
"You know." Shepard sighed "It's been an honour being your sister. When your parents came and got me that first day, it was the mention of you and Solana that made me go silently."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I guess I was just scared, but I had no intention of leaving that orphanage that day. I had already been uprooted from everything I knew once, I didn't want it to happen again. Though I'm glad I did let it happen."
"I'm glad you're my sister." Garrus agreed before pausing for a few moments "Though sometimes, I wish you weren't."
"You do?" Shepard asked, her heart fluttering uneasily in her chest.
"I do. No that I don't like you or anything, I just sometimes... wonder what it would've been like to get to know you as someone not in the family. Would you have still liked me? Would we still have become friends?" he paused again "Would we have become more than 'just friends'?"
"More than 'just friends'?" Shepard echoed "You mean like, lovers?"
"Yeah."
"Oh." Shepard closed her eyes. She felt Garrus shuffle nervously beside her.
"Shepard, there's something I need to tell you." He said, his tone almost apologetic.
"Yeah?" she breathed, already knowing what he was going say. In her mind, she knew this was going to happen sooner or later. She had noticed the looks, the sighs, the comments dropped in their chats. His awkwardness and the way he sometimes avoided her.
"Even though... even though you are my sister, do you think... that anything could ever happen between us?"
"Garrus..." Shepard sighed. She felt him stiffen beside her.
"It was a stupid thing to say." He quickly amended "I mean, we might not be related but we're still brother and sister. And a human and a Turian? It just couldn't happen. It's silly, and I'm silly for thinking it. And after all, you're so beautiful and wonderful and fearless and you could never love anyone like me, I'm sorry-"
Shepard cut him off the only way she felt appropriate: By leaning up and kissing him, right on the plates that made up his lips. It felt awkward, but oh so right.
"Shepard." He muttered when she pulled back "I- I think I love you. I think I've loved you all this time, since you hit Nihlus in the face with that sandwich. Is that okay? It's not weird or anything, right"
She laughed, the cool night air catching the sound.
"Of course." She said. "I think I might have been in love with you all this time too, ever since you kicked Saren where it hurts."
"You're really leaving." Shepard whispered to Garrus, clutching her hands into fists so tight her nails dug into her palms. The past two weeks since the party and his confession had been a whirl-wind of secret stolen kisses and moments savoured, whilst keeping it secret from their mother and Solana. Though they technically weren't doing anything wrong, they were slightly wary of announcing it to everyone.
Now they were stood at the taxi port, Garrus with his bag of belongings and Shepard wearing one of his hoodies that didn't even begin to fit her slender frame.
"I'm really going to miss you." Garrus said "And I don't even get to wave you off when you leave for Earth."
"Tommorow." Shepard grimaced "Don't even remind me."
"You'll be fine. I have every faith in you. Just don't fall for some handsome good looking human." He teased "Especially not one with biotics. If you do, I might have to blow him up and steal you back."
"Don't be silly." Shepard laughed "That could never happen. I'm more worried about all the beautiful Turian women you'll be subjected to. You have told me how much you love spurs and fringes!"
"Garrus, the shuttle is here!" Solana called, cutting off any response Garrus was about to give her. Shepard looked over, and smiled when she saw Solana, their mother and their father walking towards them. She was glad their father had been able to make it; it meant so much to Garrus to have his father be proud of him.
Garrus started to say his goodbyes. Shepard held her head high, and tried not to cry. She was really going to miss him.
He turned to walk away, but paused. Turning back, he ran back to Shepard, and to their family's surprise he gently touched his forehead to hers.
"I'll see you soon, I promise." He said, before pulling back, smiling and walking off to get in the taxi shuttle.
"I knew it!" Solana laughed as Shepard covered her bright red face.
Shepard sat and watched the rest of her crew party. They had just gotten back from a rather demanding mission, and were taking a well-earned break on the Citadel.
"Come on, Shepard!" One of them called in her ear "You're twenty, live a little! Come and dance, have a drink, loosen up!"
Shepard politely declined. She had other, more important plans for tonight. Something caught her eye across the dance floor, and she smiled.
She watched with a smile as the person who had caught her eye moved closer. He stopped in front of the table she was sat at, and grinned.
'Five years.' She thought 'Absence does make the heart grow fonder.'
"You come here often?" He chuckled.