Garrus,
Where do I even begin?
There's a saying back on Earth. "Family isn't always blood. It's the people in your life who want you in theirs. The ones who accept you for who you are. The ones who would do anything to see you smile, and who love you no matter what."
Garrus, you might be a turian and I might be a human. You might be a horrible shot with a sniper rifle and I might be exceptional. You might be ugly as hell and I might be the envy of men everywhere. You might have the voice of a cheese grater and I might have the voice of a sultry angel. But know this:
I have never been able to call anyone "Brother" as I name you.
Garrus, if I am to survive the final assault against the Reapers, if I were to live a hundred more years, if I were to fight with thousands more men and women at my side as we go through Hell itself, know that none shall ever be as close to me as I hold you. You are my brother. You are the one I want to follow me into Hell itself. You have been there since the beginning, you've seen me at my best and at my worst, you've laughed with me and cried with me, you've taken bullets for me and you've given them back, and through it all, you've never left my side. I'm not one for words, Garrus, but this far into it, we both know there's no need.
Inside that envelope, you'll find some shards of glass. Don't cut yourself, we both know how delicate your skin is. Take a guess at what those shards are…
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…
…
Be proud of those shards. That's the glass I couldn't hit, the glass that proved you were better than me at the sniper rifle. Say what you will, but that was the best day of my life, just shooting glasses with you up on the Presidium all day without worrying about a stupid war. I can't even remember half the conversations we had up there, but I'm sure we talked about everything from the color of Ashley's thong to Zaeed's snoring. Later that day, I went down to find the glass, because I wanted you to remember me in some way that didn't have to do with wars. Keep those shards. Throw them in a trophy case somewhere and put a plaque on it so that later in your life, when you're old and decrepit, you can look at those shards and remember that day.
Now, inside the box is another memento of mine: my custom sniper rifle. I doubt it's as good as yours, as I wasn't as dedicated at sniping as you were, but it's saved my hide almost as many times as you have. It was one of my dearest friends that I counted on when the goings got tough. I would like my other dearest friend to take care of it. I pray it never has to save your life, though knowing you, it won't be gathering dust for very long, if at all.
Garrus, it's been an awesome ride. We've been through many circles of Hell, and each time we came back dragging the Devil with us. If you're reading this, though, the Devil finally got me. Hopefully I made it hard for him, but if not, that's the breaks. It's been my honor to serve with you, Garrus Vakarian. Never have I ever held someone as high as I hold you.
I'll save you a seat at the bar.
