As Kaidan power-walked toward the elevator, his mind was racing with thoughts. Who was causing problems? Why were they doing it? If their intention was to capture Shepard for some hidden purpose, or if it was the media who learned his location, they would have to go through him to do it. Shepard was recovering nicely, and he didn't want anyone to ruin that now with whatever their motives were. He called up the elevator and headed down.

When he reached the ground floor, he resumed his determined walk. As the front desk came into view, he breathed a sigh of relief. It was a krogan arguing with the receptionist, but it was one he knew, though he was still surprised to see him here.

"For the last time, sir," said the lady, mustering as much politeness as she could despite her irritation with this stubborn krogan. "You can't see the commander."

"I bring my people here to kick the Reapers off of Earth," reminded the krogan, "And this is how I'm treated? Like some common brute? I'm going to go up there whether you like it or not princess, and there ain't anything you can do to stop me."

"I'd suggest dropped the hostility, krogan." ordered the soldier to the krogan's right. "Or-"

"Or what?" taunted the krogan, "I got shot at by Reapers on Palaven. I nearly had an asari freak stick her filthy hands into me. You really think you're little pee shooter is gonna do anything, tough guy?"

"Wrex!" Kaidan called out. Wrex spun his head to see the voice calling his name.

"Kaidan! Finally!" he answered, unphased by Kaidan's presence. "Tell these pyjaks to stand aside and let an old friend see Shepard."

"You know him, sir?" asked the closest soldier to Kaidan.

"Yeah." Kaidan replied. "He helped Shepard and the rest of us stop Saren and the geth. Let him through."

"Yes sir." The soldiers didn't look too pleased to do so, but they had to follow the major's orders.

"What a shame." said Wrex, continuing to taunt the soldiers. "And here I was hoping to finally try human liver. Guess it'll have to wait." He focused his attention back at Kaidan. "Alright Kaidan, show me where Shepard is."

"Follow me." He and Wrex headed back toward the elevator and proceeded upward to Shepard's floor.

"Glad to see you again, Wrex." continued Kaidan. "Even if only was a short while ago. The party and all that."

"Same here." answered Wrex, cooling off. "You still got those vintage biotic amps in your head?" Kaidan replied yes. "Don't know why you hang on to those things. I thought they had better ones now."

"They do, but the procedure to replace them is near impossible to do flawlessly. Besides I don't suffer the more serious downsides about the L2's, so I don't really have a reason to switch."

"Yes you do. You still can't beat Shepard with those pieces of crap."

"Deja vu..." Kaidan murmured. "So how did you even know Shepard was here?"

Wrex did his familiar chuckle. "There's something to be said about personally knowing the Shadow Broker."

"Liara. Of course. I guess I can't blame her though. You are one of Shepard's oldest friends."

"Even if I wasn't, he cured the genophage. I owe him this much."

"I heard about that. Wish I was there to see it."

"I heard you got your head smashed in by that female robot I saw on the Normandy. Nearly died from it. What's the matter Kaidan? Can handle armies of robots with Shepard and the rest of us, but can't handle one on your own?"

"You didn't see how fast it was, Wrex. Have you ever had your head beaten against solid metal?"

"Helps to have armor plating for a skull."

"Yeah. Humans don't have that."

"And that's why you got beat up so badly. And that's why Shepard still wins." The elevator stopped and opened up. Many of the staff saw the krogan, and both of them could tell that Wrex's presence made the staff uneasy.

"You think they'd never seen a krogan before." Wrex said in disbelief.

"Up until recently, I don't think they have." answered Kaidan. He pointed in the direction of Shepard's room. "Shepard is down there at the end of the hall."

"Alright. Let's see how bad of shape Shepard's in." Wrex trotted down the hall and the door immediately opened as soon as he got close. He saw his human friend lying in bed with faded bruises and burns on his face and arms. He also noticed Tali sitting in front of Shepard as well, having only just returned to her man's side. Both were talking to each other and didn't hear the door open.

"You're not as bad as I thought you were." blurted Wrex. Shepard and Tali abruptly turned to see who made that comment, and saw their old krogan friend standing at the doorway.

"Wrex?!" said a surprised Shepard. "What are you doing here?!"

"I thought you'd be happy to see Uncle Urdnot again, Shepard." Wrex sounded sarcastically disappointed.

"I am! It's just... I didn't think you'd show up."
"I thought John's location was a secret." added Tali. "Unless... Liara told you didn't she?"

"Yep." confirmed Wrex. "Told me about this place last night, and got here as soon as I could, only to be stopped by those soldier pyjaks downstairs. Good thing Kaidan showed up, or there might have been a bit of a mess." Wrex ended the sentence with a sinister chuckle.

"Don't cause them so much trouble Wrex. They were shooting at Reapers a couple months ago. I'm sure they're still a bit on edge."

"Eh, I'll cut'em some slack this time. Also nice to see you again Tali. Why weren't you on the Normandy when I was? You missed Shepard giving quite a show with the genophage cure. My favorite quarian wouldn't give me the cold shoulder, would she?"

"Heh, no I wouldn't Wrex. I heard about it though, and I wish I could've seen it, but I had my own problems."

"Think you mentioned that at Shepard's place. An admiral huh?"

"It was just a formality." Tali modestly admitted. "I needed the power to try and stop the Board from going to war with the geth. A lot of good that did though."

"Heard about your little war." Wrex informed. "Sounds crazy to me that your both playing nice now."

"I could say the same thing about the krogan getting along with the turians."

Wrex let out a loud laugh. "That's why I like you Tali. You got my kind of humor."

"Thanks Wrex... I think. Well I should let you two have some privacy." Tali hugged Shepard before she got up and walked out. Wrex's eyes trailed her as she did, then directed his attention back at Shepard. Wrex came to his side and stood over him, knowing that the dinky chair next to him couldn't handle all that krogan.

"So you and Tali huh?"

"Was it that obvious?" asked Shepard.

"You seemed all too eager to bring her to that casino party." answered Wrex.

"I don't get to take her to too many nice places. Hopefully now that'll change."

"At least she doesn't have you mating with every female you see." Wrex grumbled.

"Bakara still telling you to do that?"

"Yes... I never once thought I would have so much I'd get sick of it." Shepard let out a laugh. "Good thing this is hospital. I'm sure there's no shortage of ice packs here."

"I'm sure they'll help you out." reassured Shepard. "So what's been happening with you Wrex?"

"Still banging heads with the Council." answered Wrex. "I didn't envy you when you had to do that. The pyjaks are doin' everything they can to drag it out. Shooting Reapers here on Earth was a nice break from that."

"Well good luck with the Council. It only took me three years before they finally started listening."

"And it only took the Reapers being at their doorstep before they were begging you to help them. Wonder what kind of apocalypse I need in order to get them to give us some room to expand."

"Hopefully it won't come to that. How are things with the turians?"
"That Primarch of theirs is alright. A lot better than most politicians I've run across, like your Udina for example." Shepard barely shook his head. He never did like Udina. The guy was too concerned about rising up then he was with real problems. He felt good when he was the one who put the bullet into his chest, and not Kaidan.

"The turian and I agree that we should just bury the past." continued Wrex. "A lot of krogan won't be happy about playing nice with them, but too bad for them. Bakara and I are the ones in charge."

"And I hope that'll stay like that for a long time." wished Shepard. "I can't imagine what would happen if someone like your brother were in charge."

"I'll tell ya what would happen: everything I worked for will be thrown out the window like varren dung, and Tuchanka will always look like a pile of rubble."

"Lucky for you that so many clans like what you do."

"Can't argue with that. My turn to ask now. What's next for you Shepard? Gonna go stare down more giant lasers?"

Shepard grinned and shook his head. "Not in this lifetime. I'm retiring as soon as I get out of here."

"You? Retired?" Wrex burst with laughter. After a few seconds Wrex saw that Shepard's face didn't change. "Wait, you're serious?" Shepard nodded. "Why?"

"I'm spent, Wrex." admitted Shepard. "I've been fighting all my life. It's time I took a break."

"You're not gonna get one now that you've saved everyone's sorry asses. With my help of course."

"If I recall I was the one getting shot at by a Reaper."
"And I was giving you the spiritual support to keep going."

Shepard looked unimpressed. "Uh huh..."

Wrex chuckled, then stretched. "Well I should probably get going."
Shepard was a bit surprised. "So soon?"

"You aren't running the show for humans. I gotta make sure things don't get out of hand back home. And..." he chuckled again. "I do enjoy watching the Council squirm."

"You know I'm kinda surprised you didn't bring Grunt with you."

"I got him back on Tuchanka being a bodyguard for Bakara. She isn't me, but she shares power, and not too many krogan are pleased with that."

"She handled herself pretty well on Sur'kesh." reminded Shepard.
"Those were just Cerberus soldiers. A bunch of armed, angry krogan is a lot worse than that." Shepard shrugged, having to admit that that was true. "I was told that Hyde was here too. Where'd he go off to then? Heard I was coming and decided to hide from me again?" Wrex chuckled at his pun.

"He's probably in the sun room. That's where he usually goes."

"Eh, too much effort. I'll just send him a card or something. Take it easy Shepard."

"You too, Wrex." Wrex made his way to the door before stopping to look back at him.

"Oh, and don't forget to invite me to the wedding." He snickered, then left. Shepard flinched in his bed. He hadn't thought of marriage yet, but it was something he had to think about now. If he was going to spend the rest of his life with Tali, they might as well make it official. The two of them would have to discuss it of course, and for now he would keep it in the back of his head. Now was not the time, but it was something to look forward to.

The shuttle landed perfectly back on the landing pad. Liara and Hyde kissed each other goodbye as she had to get back to her business. As soon as he rolled out, the door closed and it flew back out to the Normandy. Hyde proceeded to the elevator and went down to the ground floor. He had heard the sounds of the soldiers and workers playing soccer, and it would be a nice deviation from his usual hospital day. He made his way outside, and saw that Kaidan and James were participating as well. He also noticed Garrus was near him, observing the humans playing. Hyde went up next to him and spectated with him.

"It's called soccer." Hyde pointed out. Garrus didn't flinch when he was told.

"And this what humans do for sports?" he asked, puzzled. "Kick a ball around and get it into a net?"

"Well, it's the only sport that every human knows how to play. There are other sports that we do, but some of them are usually played within a continent."

"Do they all involve balls?" He sounded bored when he asked.

"Some of them. I take it this isn't something turians would do for sport?"

"We don't actually have a lot of sports. Military-focused race and all. The sports we do have are a bit more... physical then this." He stated that as one of the players did a slide tackle for the ball.

"We have our share of physical sports too. Wrestling, boxing, American football. I'm sure those might tickle your fancy."

"I know what the first two are, but what is American football?"

"I'll link ya' a vid." As they both looked on at the match taking place, a thought had crossed Hyde's mind. "I wonder..."

"What?"

"I was just thinking. We live in a galaxy filled with different races, each having their own variety of sports. I was wondering if it would be possible to have a sort of galactic Olympics."

Garrus looked at him with a raised brow. "What are the Olympics?"

"A competition that involves a series of different sports and physical activities that happens every two years, with one taking place in the winter and the other in summer. Almost every country, and now it's almost every colony beyond Earth, is represented by their various athletes, who train for a long time in order to have a shot at being considered the best in their field."

"I don't know if that would work though." Garrus answered skeptically. "There would be events that some races that could just not participate in."

"True. I can't imagine a krogan doing a pole vault, or a turian doing swimming relays. Still, wouldn't it be nice to further expand on galactic unity by having a friendly competition to see who's the best athlete in the galaxy?"

"I suppose so, though I don't think this peace will go away soon. It finally happened thanks to Shepard, and no one wants to see it end." Hyde nodded his head in agreement. They watched James score a goal and his team celebrated it before resetting themselves for the next bout. "So... would your Olympics be happening this year."

"Yep, and it would have been the winter Olympics, but they probably aren't gonna take place this year on account of the invasion." Hyde answered in disappointment.

"I take it you like watching them?"

"Definitely. It's the most entertaining thing to watch when it comes around. You should watch it with me sometime when 2188 rolls around."

"I'll keep it in mind." The opposing team was putting up a good fight. They had tried twice to score, but Kaidan proved to be an excellent goalie. "So have you asked Dr. Michel out on a date yet?"

That question startled Garrus. "Well I... uh... no."

"Why not? You know she has a crush on you, and you have been catching up with her right?"

"Yeah, but... I dunno I just think it's too soon right now."

"Garrus, its been three years since the two of you met, and she's liked you ever since that time. If you don't hop on it now, someone else might sweep her up."

Garrus sighed. "Yeah maybe you're right."

They heard a laugh from the door. "Even Hyde's making you squirm Garrus. Next thing you know Liara's gonna make you do it too." They both turned to see their old pal Wrex.

"Wrex?!" they both replied in shock.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" asked Hyde.

"Take a wild guess." answered Wrex.

"Well obviously." answered Hyde. "But how did you even... no wait another wild guess. Liara told you, didn't she?"

"At least you're good at something." Wrex teased. "Can't even get good injuries. Only your legs got banged up huh?"

"Sor-ry for not being as much of a badass as Shepard is." Now it was Hyde's turn to tease. "But by the looks of it I'm more of a badass than you in this case. I actually got injuries while you look right as rain." Wrex laughed.

"Never thought I'd be hearing you brag about it, Hyde." commented Garrus.

"Ah let him have his moment." Wrex encouraged. "Speaking of injuries, I've been meaning to ask Garrus, what happened to your face?"

"Took a missile to it back on Omega." he replied. "Luckily Shepard was there to cart me back to the Normandy to get it patched up."

"You should try and keep those scars." advised Wrex. "You'll be a hit with the krogan ladies."

"Assuming they have time for me. I imagine that after you helped Shepard cure the genophage every krogan female wants to be with you."

Wrex uttered a grunt. "You have no idea. I've had to put ice on my quad from all the mating."

Hyde's eyes widened. "And Eve's alright with this?"

"She encouraged me to do it, actually." Both Garrus and Hyde laughed.

"So are you heading out, Wrex?" asked Hyde after he had caught his breath.

"Yeah. I gotta get the Council back on their toes again. They're a pain in the ass to deal with, but you wouldn't believe how satisfying it is to watch them squirm." Wrex did his usual chuckle.

"I bet. Take care of yourself, Wrex."

"See you chumps later." And with that Wrex disappeared from sight as he walked back to where his "borrowed" transport was. Hyde and Garrus returned their attention to the game.

"Makes sense that Wrex would be here." uttered Garrus. "He's known Shepard as long as the rest of us."

"Yeah." replied Hyde. "I kinda wish he would've stayed with us even after Shepard got the genophage cure taken care of."

"He's too busy ruling over the krogan to stay for a long period of time, but I agree." Garrus just realized something. "If Wrex was here to see Shepard, then that means it's James' turn to see him."

"Huh?" Hyde looked puzzled. "Why would it be his 'turn'?"

"Before we came here today, all of us decided on an order on when we would see Shepard. James was after Kaidan, but since Wrex was here I guess he had to wait. I better let him know." By this time the other team had score, and they were resetting the ball. "James!" Garrus called out. James turned to his turian buddy.

"What's up, Garrus?" he called back.

"You're up!" It took a second for James to realize what Garrus meant, and he jogged over to the door.

"Thanks for the FYI, Scars." he said as he passed by. Hyde stretched his arms.

"Well, I'm gonna head back inside and get something to eat." He turned to leave, but looked back at Garrus. "I believe you have something to do now to, right?"

"Right." Garrus knew what he meant. Both of them headed inside to do their tasks, with Garrus going up to the receptionist and asking where Dr. Michel was.

"Currently checking in on the commander, sir." she answered pleasantly.

"Thank you." He went to the elevator and back up to Shepard's floor. The door slid open, and saw her just as James was entering. She went down the hallway, and they met halfway.

"Garrus!" she said, a little surprised. "Umm... what can I do for you?"

Come on Vakarian. You can do this. "I was wondering, doctor-"

"Please Garrus, call me Chloe."

"Alright, Chloe. I was wondering if... uh..." he was getting nervous with a warm, sweaty feeling coming over him. "I was wondering if it'd be alright if I were to take you out to dinner sometime." For a moment she couldn't answer. "Ah, you're probably too busy right now. Forget I asked." He turned to leave, but the good doctor stopped him.

"Wait!" He turned his head back to her. "I would be happy to go on a date with you Garrus."

"Really?"

"Yes. I was actually hoping you would ask me for some time now."

"Oh! Um... sorry about that. It's just that... this isn't something I'm used to."

"It's alright. Later is better than never."

He shrugged. "I guess. So, uh... when would be the best time for you? Since, you know, you have your patients to deal with."

"I'm free tonight. Meet me down in the lobby at around 8, okay? I know the best place to go around here."

"Alright, I'll meet you there." Dr. Michel smiled and went back to attend to her duties. As soon as he was sure that she was gone, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Hyde, I'm gonna kill you for putting me through that. But then I'm gonna buy you a round if this goes well.