Shepard rolled her shoulders, aware that her uniform fit with more slack than it ever had before. She still ached all over, but she could stand, she could walk, she could move around if she was careful. She had to scrupulously pace herself, but it was definitely a step up.

She could handle a little camera time.

Dr. Chakwas didn't like it, but understood the necessity. Hackett said it was necessary that Shepard assure the galaxy that she was alive and the war was over. The galaxy knew, because she hadn't immediately shown up to praise their efforts, that she was hurt. That it had been some weeks since the day of victory had many thinking she was dead.

He'd waited until she was more recovered, but it was time to do a little PR song and dance—she'd done it before with injuries.

"Come on, Captain," Allers grinned, "We've got your cue cards in case you have one of those moments." The crew had been exceptionally patient with her 'vague moments,' brushing them aside as 'just one of those recovery issues.' "The sooner we get started, the sooner we're done and you can go back to bed."

"Do I look that tired?" Shepard asked, shifting uncomfortably.

"Yeah, you do," Allers responded.

Shepard had already half-heartedly accused Miranda and Dr. Chakwas of slipping her mickeys to make her sleep so much. She'd been met with amusement, and the assurance of 'that's recovery.' She noticed they didn't deny slipping her sedatives…and wasn't sure whether they really would or not.

She adjusted the hang of her tunic. "Alright, let's do this."

Vega held up the cue card in his hands.

"This is Captain Shepard to the allied galaxy, pleased to announce that we've won. Though I seem to be a little behind the times in that respect."

Several weeks behind. Part of her didn't regret a nap that long, even if she resented the continuing need for them. She was ready to be done with recovery, though Dr. Chakwas and Miranda had been clear: she might be done with surgeries and reconstructions, but she had therapy to look forward to. Lots of it.

"It's thanks to our united efforts that we made it here. Thanks to allies, conventional and unconventional, thanks to efforts concerted and independent. We're entering a new period in history: the year after the Reapers' Harvest, but all the old species are still here. We're reduced, diminished, left to grieve for our losses. But we can rebuild, and we can do it without fear of another Reaper War. We're entering an unprecedented period for civilization: a period where we can more easily put aside old grudges and grievances, where we can retain alliances that otherwise might not have been made. We were all in it together, and together we triumphed. Now, we have to carry that attitude forward."

Shepard paused, swallowing in a throat uncomfortably dry. She checked her cue card—she was up to Liara. "Now is the time when most alliances fall apart. We forget what we learned as allies and return to infighting that is familiar. We bring up old things rather than leaving the past in the past so we can enjoy a brighter future. Let's not forget the good we've learned of our allies. Let's choose not to remember who didn't do what at what time. If we aren't moving forward, we're floundering in stagnation. And that would be such a waste."

"I'll cut this bit out," Allers assured her as Alenko passed Shepard a cup of water.

"Thanks," Shepard said before draining the glass and handing it back. "Where was I?"

"Such a waste," Garrus said, jiggling his cue card.

Shepard blinked, worked through one of her vague moments. "We've all been in this together. So let's stay in it together and see what we can do. Thank you for your time. This is Captain Shepard, signing off."

"That's it!" Allers announced. "I'll cut it and send it to Hackett. He can run it in a couple hours."

Shepard took another deep breath. "May I have another glass of water?"

Alenko filled it and handed it back to her. Shepard sipped it as the crowd in the Loft slowly filtered out. "How are you feeling?" he asked, once it was him, Jia, and Bakara.

"Not too bad," Shepard answered. "Getting a little tired of the dry throat, though." She glanced around the Loft, which was like home now, wishing she could get rid of Jia and Bakara for a little while. It had been ages since she had Alenko all to herself. She felt well enough to miss those stolen moments.

One or both women seemed to pick up on her desire for less companionship in the silence that followed, for Bakara asked Jia about something, to which Jia agreed, and both women withdrew with the assurance they would come back around lunchtime.

"Thanks," Shepard and Alenko responded together…more for their families' discretion than for anything about lunch.

Alenko moved from the couch to the bed, wrapping an arm around Shepard's shoulders. Shepard leaned into him, closing her eyes, enjoying the opportunity to sag against his warm bulk.

"I love you, Kaidan," Shepard said, her lips strangely stupid as if she was falling asleep.

"I love you too, Jalissa."

They were alive. Alive with no Reapers—although she frequently woke up expecting to find that this idyllic-by-comparison present was actually some rose-tinted dream, that she was still caught in the Reaper War. She wasn't sure that sense of waiting for the other shoe to drop would ever go away.

"It's good to be home," she said, indicating the Loft.

"Yeah. You can get a real shower this evening."

Shepard chuckled; that was one of the things she'd missed while being in the medbay: the bathroom in her quarters. "I might not make it back on my own."

Alenko kissed her temple. "That's what the buddy system is for."

"…I could live with that."

-J-

Author's Note: That's it for Newton's Third Law! I'm having a little trouble believing we're finally here at the end...

…if you feel I copped out on the epilogue portion of this story, if you feel I haven't answered so many burning questions about Shepard's post-Reapers future, you'd be entitled to feel that way. Fortunately, while we have reached the end of Newton's Third Law, I have one more entry planned for the Newton series: Newton's Cradle will be 100 chapters dealing with life after the Reapers, kind of like a bookend with Cause and Effect. So, if you're like me and enjoy upbeat-ever-after endings (or bittersweet ones), then I hope you'll enjoy Newton's Cradle… once I finish it. I don't know when I'll begin publication, as I'm still in the process of writing it, but I'm hoping to release the final segment of this series in Fall 2021. I've got about a quarter of it written, about half of it planned, and plenty of room to cover what all happened to whom over the years. I hope it will be the perfect epilogue to this monster of a series!

I'd like to thank all my readers and reviewers, my lurkers and those who have taken the time to drop me private messages, for supporting this story! It's been such a long journey, and we're finally at the end of another segment.

I'd like to particularly shout out to my guest reviewers and those who have disabled PM replies: I usually answer my reviews, but I can't answer yours. So let me say now what I always say when answering someone who has generously taken the time to drop me a line: thank you for reading and reviewing!

Even though I know they would prefer to remain anonymous, I'd like to thank those of my acquaintance, family or friends, who served/are serving in the armed forces. Often without knowing it, they have acted as my technical advisors and as generous sources for the various minutia about military culture that has made Shepard and the Alliance—and therefore this story—what they are.

All that being said, I'll see you in the next project!

~Raven Studios