A/N: First, for those of you who have continued to read during my unplanned hiatus, many thanks. I hit some major writer's block and real life interfered with my writing time. Thanks to my friend SilentStormSociety, I have been inspired to write once more. However, to pick up the story again, I realized I needed to flesh out my last chapter a bit. So I've pulled the original Chapter 47, and I'm replacing it with this. You'll see most of the previous Chapter 47 when I publish 48. So I apologize for the re-hash, but my hope is that the restructuring will invite my muse to return. Thanks to all my readers, both new and old.


Leaving Ashley to familiarize herself with the crew duty rosters, Shepard headed up to the CIC to check in with Traynor.

"Are you alright, Commander? How is the leg healing up?" Traynor's gaze dipped down, lingering for a moment on Shepard's chest before resting on her recently injured thigh.

"Um. Yeah. It's fine. Thanks for your concern." Shepard waited a moment for Traynor's eyes to return to her own. "Is there anything I should be aware of?"

Traynor considered the commander for a moment, a small smile tugging at one corner of her mouth. Apparently thinking better of whatever she was about to say, Traynor instead pulled out a datapad, consulting it as she addressed Shepard. "Actually, yes. I found something while scanning Alliance channels. Grissom Academy is requesting help. The Reaper invasion front will hit them soon."

"So what can we do?"

"According to the chatter, a Turian evac cruiser responded to the distress call."

"And?"

"So normally I'd say we don't need to do anything. However - " Traynor shifted around to stand next to Shepard, close enough for Traynor's shoulder to press against Shepard's arm. Shepard flinched, but held steady. "Something sounded off in the Turian signal." She indicated a display on the datapad. "I had EDI run an analysis. It's fake. She saw some similarities to the encryption protocols Cerberus had faked before."

Shepard raised an interested eyebrow, and gestured for Traynor to continue. She also took a half step away from the specialist. Traynor responded by merely looking pointedly at Shepard from beneath her thick eyelashes as she continued. "In any event, whoever faked the Turian signal wants us to think that the academy is being evacuated. But I believe they're still in danger."

"Nicely done, Specialist. Good catch." Without thinking, Shepard clapped Traynor on the shoulder. Catching Traynor's smile, Shepard quickly removed her hand, mumbling an apology was she excused herself and headed for the elevator.

OoOoO

After completing her duties for the morning, Shepard donned her dress blues in anticipation of the memorial service for Ash's brother-in-law. Honoring a soldier who gave his life in defense of Earth demanded no less. She was unsurprised to see Ashley similarly dressed when they met at the CIC. Shepard offered her XO what she hoped was a comforting smile before taking her hand and heading off the Normandy, finding herself apologizing to the marine for needing to meet with Miranda Lawson before meeting Ashley's sister on the cargo deck.

Shepard was unsure exactly where she was supposed to meet Miranda, but she was unconcerned. She knew the former Cerberus operative would find her.

She was not wrong. As she stepped out of the airlock with Ashley, she spotted Miranda, visible for just a moment at the corner of a hallway near the end of the viewing dock before she disappeared out of view. Shepard was fully aware that she only saw her because Miranda allowed her to. As they entered the hallway, Shepard noticed that Ashley dropped a step or two behind her, one hand straying near her sidearm.

"Shepard." Miranda was matter-of-fact, as always.

Shepard pulled her into a quick hug. "Miranda, it's good to see you alive and well."

"It's been far too long, Shepard." Stepping back, Miranda's shoulders relaxed for the briefest second before visibly tensing again, her eyes dropping to the floor. "I couldn't get anywhere near you when you were locked up." Her lip turned up wryly at one corner. "As a matter of fact, I couldn't even find where you were held."

Shepard's expression hardened. "Yeah, well, the Alliance did a great job of keeping me isolated."

Miranda's eyes flicked over Shepard's shoulder. "You brought Chief Williams with you?"

Shepard could feel the tension coming off of her lover and held a cautioning hand up. "Lieutenant Commander Williams has my implicit trust." Ashley and Miranda continued to eye each other for a moment before Miranda returned her focus to Shepard. "What brings you to the Citadel, Miranda? I'd have figured you'd be keeping a low profile these days. Cerberus is not terribly forgiving of those who leave the fold."

"I needed to talk to a few people, including you. This is a good place to do that."

"Is there anything in particular you needed to talk to people about?"

Miranda shifted her weight from one leg to the other, clearly contemplating her next words. With a final wary look at Ashley, she spoke quietly. "I haven't heard from Oriana for a while."

Shepard's brow furrowed. "Was she on Earth when the Reapers hit?"

"No. She was safe during the initial attack." Miranda paused again. "It could be nothing, but I don't think so. Somehow I just know my father is involved."

Ashley stepped forward, now standing shoulder to shoulder with Shepard, clearly interested in what Miranda was saying. "What happened?"

Miranda shot a glance at Ashley, but after seeing Shepard nod once to indicate that she should proceed, she answered Ashley's question, shoulders sagging as she admitted, "I don't know." Turning her attention back to Shepard, she continued. "All the systems and fail-safes I had in place to make sure that she was safe went dark, and that's all I know right now."

Shepard chewed her lip as she considered the implications. "What can I do to help?"

With a grateful half smile, Miranda shook her head. "I appreciate the offer, Shepard, but you've certainly got your hands full at the moment. If it turns out I need a door kicked down or a bone broken, I'll let you know. For now, I'm still trying to figure this out. I'll be fine."

Shepard nodded her head in understanding. "Stay safe out there, Miranda. I might need you down the road."

"Thanks, Shepard. You do the same."

With one more quick hug, Miranda strode off.

Ashley tilted her head to the side, contemplating what she'd just seen. "Shepard, why would she come all this way to see you, and then not ask for your help?"

Shepard chuckled. "The thing is, she just did." Seeing the confusion on Ashley's face, Shepard explained further. "Miranda was never one to show weakness of any sort. What you saw just now was her version of practically begging for my help. I'll find out exactly what she needs from me soon, I'm sure."

Ashley could only shake her head in amused disbelief as Shepard once more took her hand, leading the way to the lift to the cargo deck, and the memorial wall.

OoOoO

Stepping off the elevator and passing through dock security, Ashley noticed that Sarah was already at the wall. By the looks of things, she had been there for some time. Ashley couldn't help but smile at the panicked way Shepard checked the time on her omni-tool, followed immediately by her obvious relief when she realized that they weren't late.

Ashley stopped them well short of the memorial wall, squeezing Shepard's hand tightly. Seeing her sister there, mourning the husband she'd lost, brought long-buried feelings of her own dangerously close to the surface. Despite her best efforts to suppress the memory, Ashley remembered all too clearly sitting with Captain Shepard at a larger, more impersonal memorial service some years before. She found herself struggling to keep her breath steady.

"Are you going to be okay, Ash?" Shepard's voice near her ear was low, husky. Ashley was grateful that Shepard instinctively understood her apprehension.

"This is tougher than I thought, Sloane."

"You can do this, Ash. For Sarah."

Ashley inhaled deeply, steeling herself. Letting go of Shepard's hand, she stood for a moment at attention. She didn't need to glance to her side to know that Shepard was doing the same.

Two more calming breaths, and Ashley set out to greet her sister. Shepard stayed a step behind, close enough that Ashley could still draw on her strength but far enough to allow Ashley to approach Sarah on her own.

Ashley joined Sarah, and the two exchanged quiet words. Sarah turned and gestured for Shepard to join them, and the three began their small memorial service.

Putting an arm around Sarah's shoulders, Ashley paused for a moment, suddenly struck by a verse of an old Earth poem. Quietly she began to recite, "This be the verse you grave for me; Here he lies where he longed to be, Home is the sailor, home from sea, And the hunter home from the hill."

The remainder of the intimate service was subdued, yet comforting. Ashley was grateful more than once that Shepard was there to support her so that she could in turn support her sister. Despite that, she was not-so-secretly relieved when Sarah asked to be alone, allowing her to leave behind the painful reminders of losing one's beloved.

OoOoO

Some time later, Shepard sat on the couch in her quarters, bourbon in hand, looking at the available data on Grissom Academy. Hours passed as she reviewed every bit of information she could find, strategizing on how to approach the facility. She pulled both Ashley and Liara in to discuss various tactical issues, finally getting a plan in place late in the night.

The next morning, Shepard's first order of business was to convince Dr. Chakwas to clear her to return to full duty. The medical officer was a bit skeptical, but relented after realizing that the commander planned to camp out in the med bay until she agreed. The promised two bottles of Serrice ice brandy may have also helped tip the scales in Shepard's favor.

The last issue keeping Shepard on the Citadel was the unresolved Council business. Figuring it was better to ask for forgiveness than to wait for permission, Shepard asked Traynor to send out a short communication to the Turian and Asari councillors, simply explaining that the Normandy was required elsewhere. Shepard would deal with the fallout later.

With that, she ordered Joker to set a direct course to the Petra Nebula, home of the academy.