The Salvador sliced through the Serpent Nebula towards the splayed cylindrical form of the Citadel. Its hull was scarred and pitted from actions during the Kepler Verge campaign. It soared past elements of the Citadel fleet and accepted transmitted accolades over its part in the battles of the Kepler Verge. Too large for the smaller docks inside the Presidium, it nestled in to one of the open bays on the outer ring by Kithoi Ward. While most of the crew left the ship through airlocks and docking tubes shuttles ferried command staff and other priority personnel to their destinations.

One such shuttle carried Susan and Elijah to the Huerta Memorial Hospital. Lisa rode with them, hauling their kitbags with her. On the flight over she asked them what they thought about the book she'd given them and laughed when Susan weakly tried to throw a pillow at her.

Huerta Memorial put Susan and Elijah in separate rooms despite Lisa's insistence to the staff that they preferred to be roomed together. They both told the staff to ignore the Infiltrator. In truth, Susan was more than a little disappointed after Lisa dropped her meager belongings off and headed out. She told herself it was just because she didn't want to be stuck alone in a room while healing.

Susan remained bedridden for the first day. The care at Huerta Memorial was indeed remarkable but she felt like she was losing her mind with nobody to talk to. Over the second day she managed to sit up on her own and even stand and take a few steps. One of the presiding physicians, a Doctor Michel, complimented her determination but encouraged her to relax.

By the third day Susan managed to walk under her own strength, if only barely. She took the opportunity to wander the hospital and before she knew it found herself at the door to Elijah's room. The door slid open as she approached it. Elijah sat on the side of his bed and was in the middle of putting his shirt on, his arms over his head and the shirt covering his face. Wow, Susan thought. He's even more ripped than in my dream. She shook the thought aside as Elijah tugged his shirt down and looked at her.

"Hi," he said.

"Um, hi."

He stood up with a grunt. "It's good to see you on your feet."

"You too," she said. "I've been going a little nuts cooped up in my room. I had to get out."

"I know exactly what you mean," Elijah said. He stepped towards the door. "I was about to go looking for you, actually."

"Oh?"

"Did you notice the view from the lobby?" he said. "It'd make a change from the room, and… views are best enjoyed with others."

Susan smiled. "That sounds like a great idea."

They hobbled over to the elevator, both breathing hard by the time they reached it. They made their way past the inpatient wing and labs on the first floor supporting each other. The door to the lobby opened and Doctor Michel walked through.

"What are you doing up?!" she said as she rushed over to them. "And out of your rooms?"

"Please, Doctor," Susan said. "We're both going a little crazy cooped up in our rooms."

"We're just going to sit in the lobby for a while," Elijah added.

Doctor Michel stepped back and frowned thoughtfully. "Very well," she said. "But not too long, please. You both need the rest. And call me if you need help. We can arrange for transportation here."

"Yes Doctor."

The doctor sighed and smiled. "Enjoy yourselves."

The two walking wounded stepped into the lobby. A reception desk and interior landscape dominated the center of the space while various chairs and seats were scattered around the edges. Patients and hospital staff of all kinds of species stood, sat, or walked around, some deep in conversation, some alone and quiet.

Elijah was right: the view from the lobby was wonderful. Two large windows running ceiling to floor showed off the elegant architecture and landscaping of the Presidium on both sides. Susan and Elijah gratefully sank down in a pair of padded chairs by one of the windows.

"It doesn't seem like there's a war on out there," Elijah said. "Even after Cerberus hit this place. It all looks so peaceful."

"From a distance, sure," said Susan. "You look at the Presidium from here and it's all pristine. But if you get close enough you see the bullet holes and the broken glass."

"True."

"It's a little like people," she said. "Everybody's got their scars. Some you don't see unless you get real close."

Elijah nodded as he looked out the window, and then gave Susan a sidelong glance. "Do you think a person's scars ever make them… too hard to get close to?"

"It can be difficult sometimes, yes." Susan was still looking out the window. "My brother described scars as the 'textures of life.' He always said they remind you that somebody is real," she said wistfully.

"You really miss him, don't you?" Elijah said. He was facing her now as she stared out the window.

"Yes."

"How did you… cope?"

Susan took a breath. "For a while I didn't. I just… didn't think about it. Didn't let myself feel anything."

"What changed?"

"There was this mission to Sanctum about a week after I got the news. We were clearing out these labs that Cerberus had been using for research. I thought at the time, 'here's my chance.' I could get revenge on the bastards who killed Sam."

"What happened?"

"The whole thing went sideways. The enemy was present in force, way more than we anticipated. I was the only one who made it out alive. On the shuttle flight back I just sat there thinking. I wondered why I was the one alive when I felt so empty. That was when I realized that being alive doesn't mean anything if you're not… well, alive. Getting all you can out of the time you have."

Elijah nodded as Susan turned away from the window towards him.

"We don't honor the fallen by turning ourselves into husks," she said. "We honor the fallen by living the most we can."

They sat in the lobby a while longer. Ostensibly they were enjoying the view, but both knew it was more about the company. Eventually they returned to their rooms after making plans to meet again the next day.


The next morning Susan climbed out of bed, encouraged that it was easier than before. She stretched experimentally but winced at the pain it caused. Definitely not a hundred percent, she thought. She tried again. She'd just gotten both arms extended over her head-

The room door opened and Elijah stood in the entrance, his mouth open and eyes wide. Susan remembered that she was only wearing her undershirt and lowered her arms quickly as he recovered.

"Sorry! I'll wait outside." He spun around and stepped away so the door closed. Susan dressed as quickly as she could and joined him in the hallway. He straightened from where he leaned against the wall and opened his mouth.

"Don't worry about it," she said, forestalling further apology. "I walked in on you getting dressed, remember?"

"It's different," he said. He looked at her expression. "Well it is for me."

Susan broke into a grin. "So you're old-fashioned that way?"

"I guess so."

"I like that." She stepped to his side and slipped her arm through his, relishing his look of discomfort. "So, what brought you to my room without a chaperone?"

"I think Marx is rubbing off on you."

"Maybe a little."

"Anyways, I was on my way to see if you'd be interested in breakfast. How long's it been since we had solid food?"

Susan's stomach growled loudly at the mention of food.

"Breakfast sounds wonderful," she said. "To the cafeteria?"

They found the hospital cafeteria and took their pick of the surprisingly wide array of dishes on offer. By agreement they each took some of as many items they could fit on their trays and sat down together at a table to sample them all. They agreed that despite being hospital food it really wasn't bad, and leagues ahead of Alliance field rations. As Susan put it, "There are actually textures other than 'sludge' in here."

After breakfast they headed to the lobby again. It was even busier than yesterday. Susan and Elijah had to wait for seats to clear up. They hadn't been there long before the elevator to the hospital opened and four krogan in a mix of armor entered. One of them had several coils of rope looped around his chest and another had a bag over his shoulder. Susan blinked. The krogan with the bag was Dagrob Lurg.

Lurg noticed her as well and walked over, the other krogan following in confusion. "Rizzi!" he said. "What are you doing here?"

"Healing," Susan replied. "It's good to see you, Lurg."

"You too," he said. "Why are you here?"

"I got a little shot up on Otte."

"You were on Otte? You really do get all the fun!"

"I'm in the hospital because of it, Lurg."

"That just means they couldn't successfully kill you!"

"If you say so." She frowned. "What are you doing here anyways?"

"We're here for the commander of Aralakh Company, Urdnot Grunt," Lurg said. "He may be tank bred, but he's got a real quad. Took out a thresher maw during his rite of passage!"

"He did have help from Shepard," said a krogan whose helmet covered his face.

"A thresher kill is a thresher kill," Lurg said. "Anyway, we're here to break him out-"

The krogan next to him slapped his shoulder with a backhand.

"I mean, we're here to, uh, pay our respects," Lurg said. "Yeah, that's it."

"Right," Susan said with a grin. "And just so we know where to stay away from in the immediate future, where is this commander of Aralakh Company?"

Lurg pulled a data pad from his bag. "Uh, floor three, room eleven," he said.

"Okay. You guys have fun."

Lurg stepped a little closer and looked around before saying, "Let me know if you want us to break you and your friend here out too."

Susan laughed. "I don't think either of us would survive a krogan breakout right now. I appreciate the thought though."

"Why would we break her out?" asked the helmeted krogan.

Lurg head butted him.

"Because she's Susan Rizzi, the 'Furious Graal!'" he said. The other krogan looked at her with renewed respect and grunts of approval. Susan felt the familiar blush creeping towards her cheeks.

"And," Lurg continued, "because she drinks ryncol with wounded krogan!"

The grunts of approval doubled in volume. Susan saw more and more heads in the hospital lobby turning their way.

"Oh that reminds me," Lurg said. He reached into his bag again and pulled out a bottle before handing it to Susan. "I owe you a bottle of ryncol. Don't worry, I have lots more here. This is the good stuff, my own brew! You'll be wondering what you did after a glass of this stuff for days!"

"Thanks. You guys should probably get going before you make too big a scene," Susan said with a nod at the bystanders.

"Oh, right." Lurg looked around and nodded conspiratorially to her. "Come! We pay our respects to Aralakh Company!" He and the other krogan marched purposefully towards the hospital interior. People in their path scrambled aside.

Susan watched their progress with a wide smile on her face. Elijah's eyes flicked between her and the departing krogan. His face showed a mix of amusement and apprehension.

"Should we call security?" he asked Susan.

"And have them do what? Subdue a team of krogan?"

"Oh. When you put it that way…"

"Let them have their fun with… what'd they call him? Grunt? What's the worst that could happen?"

Wu shrugged. "A bunch of krogan with ryncol? I can think of quite a few things."

"Oh come on, it's not like they'll have to call in Commander Shepard."

"Yeah, you're probably right." He sat in silence for a moment before turning to Susan with curiosity in his eyes. "So why did that krogan call you the 'Furious Graal?' What was that all about?"

"Oh no." Susan brought a palm to her face.

"Oh, there's a story there." Elijah grinned and sat back. "Excellent."

Susan groaned.

One shamefaced explanation later, Elijah was laughing at Susan's story. She realized it was also the first time she'd heard him laugh, and felt a warm flutter in her chest at the thought that her story had drawn him out this way.

"I'll have to keep some of those threats in mind the next time I talk to a procurement officer," he said. "They keep authorizing me for prototype sniper rifle piercing mods and I keep telling them-"

The sound of shattering glass from somewhere above them interrupted him. They both turned to the window as a flailing, screaming form tumbled past them outside.

"Was that… a krogan?" Susan said. They stood up and stepped closer to the window, looking down. An open-topped skycar filled with cheering krogan soared down past the window in pursuit of the one who fell. "Yes. Yes that was."

"It looks like the breakout was a success," Elijah said. "Sort of."

"I hope he's okay," Susan said. "That was quite a fall."

"The Presidium does have much lower gravity," Elijah reminded her. "And he is a krogan."

Below them the occupants of the car fished their companion out of the lake he'd fallen into. He stood astride the hood pumping his arms into the air as the others cheered him. The car soon zipped off, the band of krogan undoubtedly up to more mischief.

"I guess he's fine."

Susan and Elijah looked at each other and then burst out laughing. The laughter hurt, but neither of them regretted it, both glad to be alive in that moment.


Their hospital stay lasted for another week. They settled into routines of physical therapy, follow-up exams, and talking away the long hours. Doctor Michel expressed her satisfaction at both of their recoveries.

"Does this mean we're free to go?" Susan asked her.

"Well, yes and no," she said. "While I can release you from having to stay at the hospital, I want you to continue your PT sessions. Ideally you would stay here until the PT finished, but the way this war is going…" She trailed off. It didn't need elaborating; Susan could see just from how busy the hospital was.

"I appreciate everything you've done, Doctor Michel," Susan said. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," replied Doctor Michel. "Do you have somewhere to stay?"

Susan paused. "That's a good question," she said.

As it turned out they did. Susan contacted Captain Banafsheh who informed her that the Council had kindly provided lodging for soldiers on the Citadel. Entire apartment complexes were devoted to housing those involved in the war effort. Special Ops teams were housed in Kithoi Ward near the Silversun Strip. Banafsheh gave them the addresses assigned to them.

Susan and Elijah collected their kitbags and caught a shuttle ride to the apartment complex. It was a broad, squat rectangular tower overshadowed by taller and fancier skyscrapers. The exterior wasn't much to look at: slate gray walls and blunt vacuum sealing. Susan hauled her kitbag up the stairs leading to the lobby. Two guards from C-Sec, a human and a turian, stood guard outside.

"Identification, please." The turian held a scanner over Susan's arm as she activated her omni-tool and transmitted the data. "You're clear. Go ahead."

Susan moved through the double airlock design of the doors. To her pleasant surprise the interior was considerably nicer than the outside had led her to expect. Soothing curves and clean lines dominated the interior design. Pale green and blue colors evoked feelings of being under the sea. The individual apartments, she saw, were arranged as a square around an open central space. A long spiraling staircase ran up through the center of the building.

"This is a lot nicer than where they usually stick us," Elijah said behind her.

"It really is," Susan said. "What apartment are you in?"

"Five-twenty-three. You?"

"Seven-oh-four."

Elijah eyed the long staircase with trepidation. "I don't think I'm up to climbing that many stairs right now," he said. Susan knew exactly how he felt.

"Agreed. Let's find the elevator."

The lift was one of the slowest elevators she'd ever ridden in. "I thought they replaced all of these," Elijah said as it crawled upwards.

"Maybe in the Presidium," Susan said. "The Wards probably don't get the same attention."

The doors finally slid open on the fifth floor and Elijah took a step out. He turned back to her. "I… guess I'll see you at the next PT session?"

She nodded. "I guess so." The doors slid shut and Susan fought back the rising sense of… what? Disappointment? Kill that mindset, Rizzi, she told herself. Focus on your recovery and the war.

The elevator door finally opened on the seventh floor and she walked to her door. It was already synched to her omni-tool authorization and opened with a wave of her hand. The lights were on and she walked in with a tired sigh. A short entry hall led to a living room furnished with two simple couches adorned with throw pillows. Two adjacent bedroom doors stood along the far wall and the living room led to a small kitchen on the left. Susan gave an appreciative nod. It wasn't the fanciest apartment on the Citadel by a long shot, but it was practically a palace compared to the single bunk she was accustomed to aboard warships. A shirt and a pair of pants lay draped over one of the couches. A pair of shoes littered the floor like discarded thermal clips after a firefight.

The left bedroom door opened and Maiena K'Thane walked out, without shirt, pants, or shoes. She saw Susan standing in the living room and paused, then wordlessly started gathering the clothes strewn around.

"Sorry," Susan said. "I didn't know there was somebody else here."

"How did you get in?" Maiena asked.

"I'm assigned to this apartment." Susan held up her omni-tool. "It looks like we're housemates."

Maiena gave her a half-smile. "We're not housemates," she said as she lithely slid into her pants.

"What?"

The door to Susan's right slid open and Lisa Marx stepped out, a towel wrapped around her body and one around her head. She stopped.

"Ah," she said. "Awkward."

Maiena's half-smile grew into a full one. "She's your housemate," she said to Susan. The asari slipped her shirt on and adjusted the fit before putting on her shoes. "I'll leave you to settle in." She stepped past Susan and left the apartment without another word.

"So… welcome home?" Lisa said with a grin.

Susan opened and closed her mouth twice before words emerged.

"I thought you didn't get along with her."

Lisa grew pensive and she sat down on the near couch, slipping the towel off her head as she did so. "I'm still not sure I do," she shrugged.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… I'm not sure what we're doing. This just sort of… happened. We ran into each other at Purgatory and had some drinks. I think we both needed to unwind after Otte. I hadn't even realized how on edge I was about some things."

Susan moved a pillow out of the way and sat down on the other couch.

"So we had some drinks," Lisa continued. "Got into an argument about… what was it? Close quarters and long range."

"Why would you argue about that?"

"I don't know! It's what we do! We argue!" The Infiltrator grinned lopsidedly. "And have angry sex, evidently." She gave a wistful sigh. "Really, really good angry sex."

"Too much information."

Lisa smirked at her before continuing. "Anyways, after they kicked us out of Purgatory we kept arguing on the shuttle ride all the way back here."

"Why did they kick you out of Purgatory?" Susan asked. She paused. "Never mind, I don't want to know."

Lisa shrugged. "We argued about different ways of dealing with Reaper troops all the way up the staircase. One of the other N7's coming down yelled at us to get a room. I thought she meant we were too loud. So we brought it here. Had a few more drinks." She waved towards the kitchen and Susan's eyes widened at the array of empty bottles. "Next thing I know, she's kissing me while I'm taking her shirt off."

"Are you… okay?"

"Yeah! I'm… well I don't regret anything. I'm a little confused. Okay, I'm very confused. Like I said, I don't regret it, but I don't know what this means for… well, us."

"Who says you have to know right now?" Susan said. "Like you said, maybe you both just needed to unwind after Otte. Take it slow, see what happens next. If it goes somewhere, okay. If not…"

"If not," Lisa grinned, "at least it was a night to remember. And most of a day."

Susan gave her a mock glare. "You realize this means you don't get to tease me about Elijah anymore."

"Oh it's Elijah now, is it?"

"Marx…"

"That was quite a hospital stay," Lisa said. She chuckled. "Did he give you some… thorough exams?"

She wasn't quite fast enough to dodge Susan's thrown pillow.