"If you want to get into the technical parts of it, really, we have no idea. Asari represent one extreme where a whole species is set on interbreeding with other races. The Batarians represent another where they flat out cut themselves off from the rest of the galaxy. All in all, if there is any physical compatibility, it at the very least should be within the consent of both parties. As for ethical, civic and theological discussions...well...there hasn't been any. This has been all relatively new and it takes a long time for studies, conventions, the Church, governments, minds and hearts to work together. Not to mention that there will always be minority parties, idiots and the like. At this point, it's up to the individuals." Lucas rambled.
"I think I have all the etiquette together, Lieutenant. It's the other part of what you said that I'm having trouble with." Garrus admitted.
"Why is that?"
"This is kind of going against the grain of what I was taught." Garrus mumbled. Lucas nodded sympathetically.
"You wouldn't be the first and it's not even unique to your culture. Even in human cultures males are expected to be confident and in control. This has led many men to believe that they're suppose to be non-emotional as well. However, this isn't always the most healthy path." Lucas explained.
"Well, I'm not about to start acting on every single emotional whim that comes to mind. If that were the case, Wrex and I would have beaten each other into a pulp a long time ago." Garrus informed.
"Acknowledging your emotions does not necessarily mean also acting on them. You must find your balance of acknowledging your emotions and releasing them in a constructive manner."
"I'm still not sure about this, Lieutenant."
"Well considering that you've told me that this has been a habit of yours for a long time, I'm not exactly expecting you to suddenly take up romantic poetry." Lucas stated. He discreetly put a hand to his mouth and chewed the heel of his hand. It was all he could do to keep from laughing at the mental image of Garrus being crossed with Shakespeare. "Ach, Garrus and Tali really do not make for Romeo and Juliet."
"So what are you suggesting?" the Turian asked.
"Go up to her in a proper time and place. Tell her there is something you really need to talk to her about. Be open, honest and let her know that she is free to act however she wishes. You just needed to tell her that to let it off your chest because it was bothering you so much. Make sure she feels safe and that you give her your complete attention." Lucas stated.
"Hmm...I just don't know, Lieutenant..." Garrus stated, scratching a head plume nervously with a talon.
"If anything, you should at least apologize. Even if you feel you don't need to, an apology would probably get her ear. You couldn't have possibly been completely innocent, no offense, Garrus." Lucas suggested.
"I suppose...but that means I have a lot of apologizing to do." Garrus muttered.
"Oh, don't over do it. Alle Sünden in eine münden." Lucas stated in his native German.
"...What did you say?" Garrus asked incredulously.
"An old saying we have at home. 'All sins flow into one.' Basically, just apologize once for all those times you were a jerk." Lucas suggested.
"I suppose that is logical."
"And remember, embrace your emotions."
"...That sounded extremely non-masculine." Garrus muttered.
"I know...but it isn't masculine to suddenly explode in a fury of pent up feelings either." Lucas conceded. Garrus thought for a moment.
"Lucas, I really could use your help through this." the Turian admitted.
"What do you mean?"
"Just give me a few pointers."
"I already did."
"No...as the conversation is happening."
"Garrus, you should be yourself." Lucas stated firmly.
"I will be, but I'd feel better if you gave tips as we went along...you know, keep me in line, make sure I'm listening, that sort of stuff. I wouldn't trust anyone else to do it. I mean, it's not like I can ask Wrex." Garrus shrugged. Lucas sighed as he thought it over.
"All right...lets try to find a way to work this out..."
"So you honestly believe this will work?" Tali asked nervously.
"Yes. You must be assertive and firm. All of the Williams women have been and when we speak, everyone listens." Ashley smirked.
"If being assertive is a surefire way, why didn't you do that outright with Shepard instead of beating around the issue until-"
"T-That was under different, human circumstances. Much more complicated. Yes, complicated." Ashley sputtered.
"Yes...you humans have a way of complicating things...no offense, Chief." Tali muttered.
"No taken and guilty as charged."
"...Ashley, I don't know if I can do this...It's one thing to go firing away at Geth and scum trying to ambush you. It's a completely different matter to call out a friend and fellow crew member." Tali said.
"I know, but remember, its only going to be between the two of you. Don't do it in public with everyone listening otherwise you won't be any better than he is. Once you have his attention, pull him aside and lay down the law and make sure he understands you. Be strong and firm. Got it, Tali?" Ashley prepped.
"Got it, Chief." Tali nodded.
"All right, go get em, girl." Ashley encouraged.
"Uh...one last thing, Ashley." Tali reported.
"What is it?"
"Could you just stick around and...listen in and give me a few pointers...make sure I'm doing it right?" Tali asked.
"Hmmmm...I think that can be arranged..."
Garrus wrung his talons nervously. The lieutenant had gone ahead of him and was weaving his way through the crowds, keeping an eye out for the Quarian in question. The plan was that once he discreetly spotted her, he would warn Garrus to stay put before analyzing the situation. Upon deciding on the optimal positions, Lucas would then find a secluded spot to both monitor the situation and walk Garrus through the discussion. Lucas would never have to be in sight as the two tech savvy individuals had linked up a wireless system. The lieutenant would feed Garrus' electronic eye scanner silently through an omni-tool. Garrus read a message flash on his scanner.
"Hold position. Visual on target twenty feet ahead at walkway intersection. Target is stationary. Working optimal positions now." Garrus immediately sighed after reading that, trying to steady his nerves. He hoped the lieutenant would take his time.
Tali clasped her paws together to keep them from trembling with anxiety. Chief Williams was a master at setting up an ambush. This particular intersection was chosen because it was a major route on the Citadel and one that Garrus would most certainly have to take if he wanted to return to the Normandy. All they had to do was wait. In the meantime, Ashley, otherwise unnoticeable in her civilian clothes, was a decent distance from the Quarian. She was across from Tali, so the Quarian could watch for visual clues on what to do and how to conduct herself. Unknown to them, they were not as closely connected as their counterparts, but Ashley was there more for emotional support. She was confident Tali could otherwise handle herself.
"Why can't this be as simple as hacking into a synthetic?" Tali whined quietly.
Garrus was suddenly alerted by another message flashing across his scanner. It was Lucas' instructions.
"Proceed forward. Caution: target appears to be waiting." Garrus read the message, pulled in a deep breath and let it out slow. The Turian walked forward with predetermined, calculated steps. He found it bizarre that he could run into a battle but plod miserably into a straight talk with Tali.
The Turian saw Lucas before he saw the Quarian. The counselor incognito was looking down from an overhead walkway, casually working on his omni-tool, or at least, from what it might have looked like from others. That's when he spotted Tali, the Quarian was standing off to the side of the walkway intersection. Tali was standing rubbing his paws together in what seemed to be a nervous manner. Garrus hoped he didn't further distress her.
"I'm distressed enough personally as it is..."
Tali noticed the Turian walking toward her. She immediately glanced off to the side where Ashley was waiting at a wall and out of sight. The Alliance marine immediately motioned for her to stand up straighter and take a firmer stance. Tali mentally kicked herself. She immediately squared her shoulders and placed her paws at her hips to stare with confidence (or bravado) at the approaching Turian. Tali couldn't quite place the look on Garrus' face, but she hoped he wasn't sick or anything.
"I'm about ready to hurl, myself...not that that would be advisable in this suit..."
Lucas watched the spectacle unfold from his perch overhead. Garrus was now in a comfortable talking distance between the two, and from what he picked up from the audio mic from Garrus' scanner, neither had said anything. Okay, now was the moment of truth. Lucas immediately started typing into his omni-tool to tell Garrus to calmly apologize. He never got to finish the message. He didn't notice that below him, Ashley had made a decisive gesture of a clenched fist, letting Tali know to let Garrus have it.
"Garrus, we need to talk." Tali stated sternly. The Quarian glanced nervously at Ashley who was nodding approvingly. Garrus meanwhile was taken off guard.
"Yes, this is true. I would like to say-"
"No Garrus, I want you to listen to me." Tali interrupted. Garrus was flabbergasted. He glanced up nervously at Lucas. Lucas held up a cautionary hand letting the Turian know to stay calm.
"You were most rude to me this morning and I did not appreciate it." Tali informed.
"Tali, I was not trying to be-" Garrus was interrupted again by a message from Lucas.
"Hold. Turn the other cheek." Garrus furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. Shrugging, Garrus broke eye contact and turned his head to the side.
"No Garrus, you will let me finish and you will look at me, got it?" Tali asked, still holding a stern voice. Garrus was at a lost with what to do. What was the point of turning the other cheek anyway? Fortunately, another message was received.
"Not literally. Be forgiving. Let her say her piece and vent. You stay silent and listen. No matter what."
"Ahhh...stupid human idioms..."
"I just want you to know, Garrus, that I don't appreciate you always giving me a hard time and treating me like I can't do anything. I wanted to help you with that crate, but you wouldn't let me. That really hurt and you were insensitive." Tali hammered.
"Gosh, I hope I'm not being too assertive. What if I hurt his feelings?" Tali thought nervously. However, Ashley was still nodding so she must be doing all right. Garrus meanwhile was staring at her grim as death.
"So Garrus, I will not tolerate this behavior from you anymore. I want you to know this the next time we work together. You will let me help you...because I want to help you..." Tali finished a bit weakly. She really wanted to keep that last part in but it kind of dropped out. She suddenly felt spineless again. Unknown to her, Garrus saw a single word flash across his screen again.
"Apologize."
"Okay...Tali, I want to tell you that-"
"Gently."
"That...you see I...well, all those things that happened...well, about what I did, and all that other stuff..." Garrus kept sputtering.
"This is hard...I want it to sound proper...what was it that the Lieutenant said...ah yes!"
"Tali, it's as the humans say..."
"Well...?" Tali asked, regaining her stern tone.
"Alle Sünden in eine münden." Garrus blathered mindlessly.
Up on his perch, Lucas went through a mental spasm of nearly falling over and breaking out in hysterics. Unbelievably, Garrus had just spoken perfect German. However, he also realized that this wasn't exactly the best development and immediately started sending another message.
Tali again glanced nervously at Ashley, not quite sure what the heck Garrus just said. He did say it was a human expression, though it must've using human words she wasn't all that familiar with. Ashley was also confused and could only shrug.
"...What did you say, Garrus?" Tali asked.
"What I meant to say is that-" Garrus nearly sputtered in horror at the single word on his screen.
"KISS."
"...Oh...oh my...does that human knows what he's doing?...Well...all right..." Taking the leap of faith, Garrus shifted nervously. He placed both his talons gently on Tali's shoulders and leaned down.
"Garrus, what are you doing?" Tali asked weakly. Garrus was literally five inches from the visor when another message came in. He watched as each letter spread out, each standing for a word.
"KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID."
Garrus sighed with this recent turn of events. He was also still just five inches from Tali's visor. This was suddenly very awkward. He sighed and glanced up nervously again at the lieutenant who was looking very concerned.
"Garrus...are you all right?" Tali inquired softly. He realized his talons were starting to tremble. He suddenly remembered what the lieutenant said about those darn things called emotions.
Tali yelped as she suddenly felt herself squashed next to Garrus as the Turian gathered her up in a heartfelt hug. For the last time she glanced at Ashley. Unfortunately, the marine was too dumbfounded to do anything except gawk. With a small shrug but a smile, Tali returned the hug too. That was only when she realized her legs were dangling. After all, Garrus was taller than her. Garrus meanwhile didn't notice one last message flash across his screen since his eyes were closed.
"Mission Accomplished! Thank God."
Meanwhile, Ashley continued to stare at the bizarre sight. She wasn't the only one. Nearby pedestrians slowed down a bit but continued walking nonetheless. Ashley almost didn't notice Wrex walk up next to her.
"...By his left nut...what are they doing?"
"I think it's called a hug, Wrex."
"But...they were just at each others' throats this morning!" Wrex cried.
"I don't get it either..."
Only several feet away, Garrus still had Tali in an embrace, also not quite aware that he had lifted her off her feet. He suddenly remembered about his apology.
"Tali, I'm sorry about all those times I gave you a hard time. Perhaps we haven't really been seeing eye to eye. Let's talk it over from now on...I...I just want to be your friend."
"I want to be your friend too, Garrus."