A/N: Whew! That last chapter was . . . sort of not planned. It just kind of happened. And it will probably happen again soon. XD I can't help it. These two are just too fun to write about! :D

Chapter 10

Shepard hovered around a corner of the Apollo Cafe, hiding from view of the asari behind the counter. She knew it was ridiculous to feel as nervous as she did. She could launch into a battle surrounded by five hundred charging krogan and face down an entire reaper ship by herself, and yet she was nervous about talking to Aethyta. She'd talked to her dozens of times before and she'd never been nervous. Then again, she had never gone into a previous conversation with the intention she did this time. Aethyta was unpredictable, at best. At worst . . . Shepard didn't want to think about it. The knots in her stomach were unbearable. Which was also ridiculous, all things considered. Setting her jaw, she collected her theortical balls and made her way to the counter. She did her best not too lean heavily on her cane as she stepped up to the matriarch.

"Hey, Aethyta," Shepard said in greeting. Okay, good. Keep it casual. Act casual. This is just another conversation with Aethyta.

"Shit, kid, you look like hell," came the reply.

"Thanks," Shepard said flatly.

"If you came out of the war without a scratch, it would undermine everything you did. So think of it as a good thing that you look like shit. What can I do for you, Ambassador?"

"Ambassador . . .? How did you . . .?" Shepard stammered.

"I hear things. Lots of things."

Shepard straightened shook her head. Aethyta was a matriarch, after all. "I have something I'd like to ask you. Concerning your daughter."

This seemed to peak the matriarch's interest. "Don't know if there's much I can tell you that you don't already know."

"Well it's more of a question for you . . . about her . . . involving the three of us . . .," Shepard faltered then forced herself to shut up and center herself.

Aethyta raised an eyebrow. "What's got you so worked up, Kid? The savior of the galaxy scared to ask an asari matriarch a simple question?"

Shepard set her jaw. "I came to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage."

That elicited an interesting look from the asari matriarch. "If you gotta ask, you're not worthy of her."

"I'm asking out of courtesy," Shepard snapped, her competitive fire returning all of a sudden. "And because it's an old, romantic tradition back on Earth to ask the father for the woman's hand in marriage. I've done nothing but respect the ways of every race in this damn galaxy, Aethyta, including yours. Don't you dare disrespect mine."

Aethyta actually laughed. "That's better. You got balls, Kid. I just had to make sure you still knew where they were. So basically you're telling me, not asking me, that you're going to marry my daughter. So, why bother presenting it as a question?"

"Because I don't intend to leave until you say yes. So, in a sense, I am asking. I just won't take no for an answer."

Aethyta continued to smile, albeit a bit sarcastically. "Well this just got interesting. Give me one good reason why I should say yes. I mean, look at you, Ambassador. You can barely walk, your face looks like it's been put in a blender, and you have a habit of dying. Why say yes to someone who will probably just go off and leave my daughter alone again? Give me one good reason I should trust you to be there for Liara."

Shepard felt the burn of anger flowing through her blood. If there was one thing Matriarch Aethyta was good at, it was pulling dark emotions from people. Or maybe she just liked playing with Shepard's head. That was very probably the case, but she wasn't about to put up with the blatant insults targeting her. She knew Aethyta was goading her, trying to make Shepard put her in her place. She decided not to disappoint.

"Listen, Aethyta," Shepard said, leaning forward threateningly. "I didn't save this damn galaxy just to stand here and take shit from you. I earned these scars defeating Saren, Sovereign, Harbinger, the Collectors, and the reapers! I rose from the dead, I've had to learn how to walk again, and I've endured more pain than you can possibly fathom. And I did it all for Liara, for you, for this damn galaxy! I'm leaving the Alliance for Liara. I'm moving to Thessia for Liara. I'm leaving everything behind to give Liara and our unborn child the best life I can possibly give them. So don't you dare stand in front of me and try and say I'm unworthy of your daughter. If you were any other woman, you'd already be on the ground for your insults. But out of respect for Liara, I won't publicly humiliate you."

An incredibly pleased smile spread over the matriarch's lips. "Yes, Ambassador Shepard. You may marry my daughter. And I can think of no one in the galaxy I'd rather have as the father of my daughter's children."

And just like that, the knots in Shepard's stomach disappeared and she released a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "Good," she said firmly to cover up the feeling of relief. "I have one more request. I want to give Liara a traditional asari bonding ceremony, and I'd like you to be the matriarch who Biotically Seals us. I know it would mean the world to Liara."

"Well I'll be damned. A human who actually took the time to understand asari ways. Most humans I've ever met would sooner take an asari to bed then understand our ways."

"I'm not 'most humans,'" Shepard retorted. She was still feeling a bit defensive.

"Ain't that the truth," Aethyta chuckled. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you understand us. My Liara wouldn't choose just anyone to be her bondmate. Of course she'd choose the best in the damn galaxy. Hell, if I were a few centuries younger, I'd choose you."

Shepard stared for several seconds then coughed politely. "Considering you're the grandfather of my future child . . . I'm just going to change the subject now. I'll let you know when we plan the ceremony. Assuming Liara says yes."

"Oh she'll say yes. I've seen the way she undresses you with her eyes every time you're around. She's her father's daughter; don't be fooled by that shy exterior," Aethyta said with a smirk. "Nice 'hickie' by the way. Nice to see you finally wearing my daughter loudly and proudly, instead of always acting like damn children and pretending in public like you aren't rolling around in the sheets every chance you get."

Shepard blushed and rubbed her neck self-consciously.

"And it's nice to see you two aren't doing it all civilized," Aethyta continued without the least bit of embarrassment in her voice. "Liara had me worried for a while."

Shepard's blush deepened. There certainly wasn't anything "civilized" about the way she and Liara did it, but she'd just about rather die than say that aloud to Liara's father. "So listen," she said and her voice actually pitched. She coughed. "I have some other things I need to take care of . . . so I'll see you later."

"I'm sure you do," Aethyta said with a suggestive drawl.

Shepard hustled away as quickly as would be allowed with a damn cane. Which was surprisingly fast.

Liara knew something was up. She didn't know what, but she was determined to find out. She also knew her bondmate was going to great lengths to hide whatever it was she was brewing. And it was driving Liara absolutely crazy. It was in her nature to be a snoop, to dig for answers, to need to know every tiny little detail. She was beginning to think Shepard wasn't actually doing anything besides torturing her. The one downside to telling Shepard about how the Shadow Broker's system worked was, Shepard knew her way around it. Unlike most people who's eyes tended to glaze over whenever she talked about research of any kind, Shepard listened with interest to the things Liara talked about. When she first met her, she thought Shepard only pretended to listen to her, but experience had taught her otherwise. Shepard had an incredible memory for details, rivaled only by her own.

Liara sighed happily. Sometimes it just made her heart ache, how happy Shepard made her. She glanced around the apartment's office that used to be Shepard's, but Liara had since taken over. She had turned it into her "command center" since moving off the Normandy, and her computers took up most of the office. It looked like a very organized mess. Truth be told, though, she was already weary of it all. She didn't actually want to be the new Shadow Broker, she had only taken on the job to help Shepard. But now that the war was over, she didn't want it anymore. And she knew her bondmate didn't want her to continue being the Broker, though Shepard would never say it aloud. She knew how hard Shepard worked to not being controlling. She did appreciate it to an extent, but she also knew how much Shepard held her tongue when she wished Shepard would just be straight with her. She filed it away in her memory banks to remember to discuss it with Shepard sometime soon.

Then she took a moment to remember their pleasant early-morning activities. She had a feeling it wouldn't be the last time she'd be waking Shepard in the middle of the night. But watching how tired poor Shepard was when they woke up later that morning almost made her want to take pity on her bondmate. Almost. But not quite.

Then she remembered how Shepard had tortured her and immediately began plotting revenge. She already had several ideas in mind, and all of them were making it incredibly difficult to concentrate on the task at hand.

She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, willing her mind to concentrate. She just wanted to be done with her project. She'd been working tirelessly on it since Shepard fell into her coma. She knew how much it was bothering Shepard that she wasn't telling her what it was all about, but considering it was all for Shepard, she had to keep up the guise. She hated keeping secrets from Shepard, but this was important.

The display on her omni-tool suddenly lit up, startling her out of her thoughts. She flipped it on and Garrus's face appeared.

"Garrus," she greeted him quickly. "Come in. The door isn't locked. I'm in the office."

He nodded and a minute later he appeared in the doorway.

"All right, T'Soni. What's this all about? I got your message, it seemed pretty important," he said, concern showing in his blue eyes.

She stood up and looked the formidable turian up and down. "How would you feel working for the most powerful information broker in the galaxy, having the inside scoop on all the worst criminals in the galaxy, and have the power and knowledge to stop them without all the political red-tape?"

"Are you offering me a job?" he asked, surprised.

"I'm asking how you would feel about it. Think of it as resurrecting your old Archangel title, only with much better intel."

"I'm . . . uh . . . is there a catch? Does Shepard know about this . . .?" he asked cautiously.

"Shepard doesn't know yet, I want this to be a surprise," Liara brushed off his concern. "I want to hand the position over to someone else, and right now, you're my top candidate. But I know how much you hate desk work, so I'm thinking about having the new Shadow Broker be a team, rather than an individual. I guess what I'm asking is, would you like to be apart of that team? The galaxy would be a better place with information like this in your capable talons."

"Damn, T'Soni. You make it hard for a guy to say no. Who are the other candidates?"

"Well I was thinking of asking Miss Lawson because she is almost as patient as I am, and she is very thorough. She would be good at digging up the tiny, important details. Grunt would make an excellent mercenary, Edi and Tali could help you hack anything, and I'm sure Joker would be happy to fly you anywhere. But I want you to be the leader. The team choices would ultimately be up to you. And that's assuming, of course, that it won't interfere with your plans with Tali."

Garrus chuckled. "Tali and I aren't exactly the 'settle down in one place' types. Our hearts both lie in space, on a ship. I'm honored that you'd even consider me to be your successor."

"Is that a yes I hear, Garrus?" Liara asked with a small grin.

"That was a 'let me ask the Mrs. and I'll get back to you, but it's probably a yes.' Did that make any sense?"

Liara beamed. "Indeed it did. I look forward to teaching you the ropes."