A/N: Wow, this chapter took forever. I'll blame the delay partly on real-life busyness, partly on other fannish projects, and partly on the fact that Legion is really freaking hard to write.


Tali'Zorah vas Normandy

I am crouching behind a crate, my shotgun heavy in my hands, and warm—warm even through the gloves that always cover my fingers. Just ahead of me I hear Shepard barking orders, her voice processed through my helmet's auditory filters, and then a triumphant yell from Garrus as he overloads an enemy into smoking chunks of metal plating.

Then, behind me, suddenly—a chattering sound that instantly draws my focus. I whirl around and pump my shotgun, staring into the eyepiece of a geth that somehow managed to work its way around to the back of the room. I stare down the barrel and prepare to squeeze the trigger—

and then it speaks to me and I freeze, as though struck by a cryo round.

"Creator Tali'Zorah."

I can feel myself twitching, mind numbed with confusion. Something metallic prods my shoulder.

"Creator Tali'Zorah?"

I wake with a start, blinking rapidly, and in the darkness of the crew quarters I can see nothing but what Shepard refers to as a "flashlight head"—the round, glowing illumination of a geth staring down at me.

I gasp, adrenaline flooding my system, and throw myself backward even as I fumble to activate my omni-tool.

"Creator Tali'Zorah."

The disorientation begins to fade as the words pierce through what's left of the dream, and my eyes adjust enough to see the familiar stripe of human armor running down the geth's side.

"Oh." I let out a long breath. "Legion."

The plates on top of its head flare, and I get the irrational sense that it's laughing at me. "Yes."

Now I feel nothing but foolish. Well, foolish and a little angry.

"What are you doing here?" I demand. "You can't just sneak in here and wake me up like that. I could have killed you!"

The geth is quiet a moment before it answers. "Acknowledged."

Not exactly the response I was looking for, but what can you expect from a geth? "Did you want something?" I ask.

"This platform does not experience desire in the same way that organics do," it informs me. "We request information from you, Creator Tali'Zorah."

A dull pain begins to build behind my eyes, and I wish I could massage my temples. "Legion," I say, letting out a sigh, "if you woke me up in the middle of the night cycle to talk about improving relations between your people and mine, let me assure you I am not in the mood."

Another pause, as it stares at me—of course—unblinkingly. "We observe organics," it finally says. "We observe Shepard-Commander."

"You and a lot of others," I retort, my voice just a little dry.

"This unit was created for the purpose of locating Shepard-Commander," the geth continues. "We traced her path over more than a dozen worlds. We examined the wreckage she left behind. Our goal was to know what she knew, to comprehend what she comprehended. Without Shepard-Commander, the reason for our existence would be lesser."

I frown behind my mask, wondering why the ancestors didn't program the geth to come to the point a bit quicker. "I'm still not sure why you thought this was worth waking me up over."

"We do not understand Shepard-Commander's current behavior," Legion says. It extends its head-plates again, looking…perplexed, of all things. "We have observed Shepard-Commander performing organic courtship rituals with Garrus Vakarian. Garrus Vakarian is a turian. No rational impetus exists for such actions. We are unable to reach a consensus on this matter."

Silence falls in the crew quarters as I stare at Legion. It stares right back with a slightly unnerving air of expectation.

"So…" I finally say. "You're asking me to explain the Commander's love life?"

"Yes."

Oh…keelah. I can only guess at what my father would say if he could see me right now.

"Legion," I begin, after another few seconds of speechless staring, "why are you asking me this? I mean, Shepard would obviously be able to explain it to you much more thoroughly than I can."

"We went to Shepard-Commander's quarters for this very purpose," Legion says. "She was…unavailable." It pauses. "Garrus Vakarian was with her. Based on the frequency and intensity of the soundwaves being transmitted through the door to her cabin, cross-indexed with data gathered from our studies of organic cultural practices, we came to the consensus that they were engaged in se—"

"I understand, Legion!" I interject, my hands beating the air rather frantically.

It tilts its head a little, looking disturbingly like a researcher studying a fascinating specimen in a lab. "These observations cause you to—"

"We are not talking about me right now," I interrupt again. The last thing I want is all its hundreds of programs chattering to each other about 'Creator Tali'Zorah.' "We're talking about Shepard and Garrus."

"Acknowledged."

I suck in a deep breath. "Look, I don't know how extensive your…observations of organics have been, but you obviously know that most of us form, ah, intimate relationships at some point during our lives."

"Yes. You seek out others for socialization and reproduction. Many organics form semi-permanent bonds with their chosen companions, often accompanied by official ceremonies or rituals. Wife. Husband. Partner. Bondmate. These unions are intended to create family units for the purposes of producing offspring in a stable environment."

"That's the general idea," I say.

"However," it goes on, "interspecies unions are uncommon, with the exception of the asari, whose physiology allows them to procreate with members of any species."

It stops talking and makes an odd shuffling movement. If I didn't know better, I might say it was fidgeting.

"Organics are hardwired with the need to transmit their programming on to the next generation," it continues. "We had come to the consensus that Shepard-Commander was the premier example of an organic, but we cannot account for this new data. Is Shepard-Commander's programming…incomplete?"

No doubt I'm projecting emotions onto it, seeing things that aren't really there, but it just seems so forlorn at the prospect that I can't help but burst out laughing.

"Don't worry, Legion," I manage between giggles. "There's nothing wrong with the Commander's…programming."

"Your response indicates amusement," it observes.

"Yes, well." I clear my throat in a belated attempt to force my sense of humor back under control. "I was just thinking it's probably just as well that you didn't go to Shepard with this. I doubt she would be thrilled to have her 'programming' called into question."

Legion gazes at me, its fingers twitching by its sides. "Clarify."

"Well…" How best to explain this to a geth, of all things? "Probably the most important thing you can learn about us organics is that we're all different from each other. We don't operate by consensus like you do—even if the majority of a group of organics do reach a consensus, it doesn't necessarily mean it's the right one."

"Yet this is the method by which most sentient organic societies choose their leaders," Legion points out.

"True, but even that isn't exactly an infallible process," I say. "Look at the Council, for example—the three individuals in the whole galaxy considered by their people to be the best leaders available, and yet they still refuse to even contemplate the possibility that the Reaper threat might be real."

"A foolhardy and dangerous oversight."

"Exactly. So see, that's what makes Shepard who she is. She isn't afraid to go against the consensus, so to speak, whether she's saving the galaxy or linking suits with a turian."

Legion shifts its weight from side to side. "Shepard-Commander—"

"I know, I know." I cut it off with a wave of my hand. "She doesn't actually have a suit. It's a metaphor."

"Indeed."

It stands and watches me a moment longer, and I'm about to ask if it has any more pressing questions when it speaks up again. "Based on your explanation, we judge that you approve of the relationship between Shepard-Commander and Garrus Vakarian."

A geth asking for my opinion on my ship captain's personal life. Once again I'm struck by how utterly bizarre the situation is, but I guess the best thing to do is just—how do the humans put it?—'go with the flow.'

"Do I approve? Sure." I smile behind my helmet. "I think it's cute."

"Cute."

"I mean, Garrus isn't my best friend in the galaxy or anything," I go on, "but he is my crewmate, and Shepard really likes him, and they've both been through a lot. They deserve to be happy."

"Garrus Vakarian pleases Shepard-Commander?"

"Definitely." My grin widens, not that the geth can see it. "They think they're good at staying professional when they're around other people, but trust me, you don't spend your entire life stuck behind a helmet without becoming very adept at reading body language."

"That is logical." Legion's head-plates constrict as though it's in deep concentration, and it takes a step backward. "We appreciate your assistance in this matter, Creator Tali'Zorah. We will now depart to build a consensus."

"All right then," I reply, shifting back onto my bunk and pulling up the covers. "See you later."

The door closes behind it, and I eventually drift back into sleep.

• - • - •

I'm sitting in the mess hall the next day when Shepard strides by, slowing as she catches sight of me.

"We're on approach to Daratar," she informs me. "Head to the armory and gear up. I want you and Garrus with me on this one."

"Understood, Shepard." I push back from the table, tucking my datapad under my arm. The Commander continues on towards the elevator before turning back, looking at me over her shoulder.

"By the way," she says, amusement leaking into her voice, "I don't suppose you might know where Legion learned the word 'cute'?"

"Cute?" I echo.

Damn it. I think my voice just squeaked.

"Yep," Shepard says. "Particularly with regard to me and Garrus."

"I have no idea, Commander," I reply, maybe a little too quickly. "Probably on the extranet somewhere?"

"Mmhmm." Her eyes twinkle just for a moment, and then she's all business again. "See you at the shuttle bay in five."

Note to self, I think as I start toward the armory. Make sure all future conversations with Legion stay between you and Legion.

Then again, what can you expect from a geth?