Chapter 20

Garrus
April 13th, 2191

I walked into the house, panting from my morning run, an excited Bailey running in behind me. Ever since we'd adopted the dog, I'd taken her on my morning runs, with Amelia tagging along most of the time.

Moving into the pantry, I grabbed a treat and motioned for Bailey to sit. "Good girl… Now don't tell your mother. She'll kill me." Content with the bone, Bailey sprawled out on the cool tile floor. "Okay. Shower." I walked up the stairs, heading towards the bathroom when my omnitool pinged. A message from Ame wasn't a bad way to start the morning.

I opened the message and saw an attached image with the caption 'Aren't they just adorable?'. In the picture, Gaius and Octavia were lying next to each other on the king-sized bed they shared with their mother, still asleep, each taking up about as much space as their tiny bodies could. Gaius's tongue hung out of his open mouth, and Octavia's hand rested across his chest.

I quickly typed out a reply, 'Yes, and I'm adding it to the frame on my desk. What are you doing up so early?'

Her reply came back equally as fast, 'What do you mean? I'm usually up this time. I only sleep in when you turn off my alarm….' Followed by another, 'And Gaius kicked me about three-hundred times.'

'Kick him back. Establish dominance.'

'GARRUS!' I chuckled to myself, pleased with the joke. Another message came through a few seconds later. 'I gotta go, though. I'm going to wake them up so we can get breakfast. Love you ❤.'

'Love you too, Amatra. Call me when you get to Earth.'

Amelia
April 14, 2191

"Aunt Kahlee?" I asked the older woman wearing Alliance Dress Blues, waiting at the dock for them.

"Hey, Ames," Kahlee smiled at me, just as radiant as I remembered, still using my teenage nickname.

"I didn't know… When did you move back to Earth?"

"Not too long after you left for Palaven. David wanted to rebuild London when the war ended, so I came to do it for him, but the city reminded me of him too much, so I moved to Vancouver."

Behind her smile, I could see the sadness in her surrogate mother's eyes. Moving forward, I wrapped my arms around her fiercely. "I miss him, too." I released the embrace, "Kids, come meet your grandmother."

Octavia and Gaius, who were previously hiding behind my leg, not knowing what to make of all the hustle and bustle in the spaceport, emerged. Kahlee bent over and scooped them up in a big hug, "Oh, I've wanted to meet you two for a long time!" She assaulted the twins with kisses, "C'mon, Ame."

-0-

It took a while for the kids to emerge from their shells, but once they did, their shrieks and laughs filled Kahlee's house with their sound as they ran around. Kahlee and I settled into chairs in the living room. "So, what brings you back to Earth, my dear?"

"Wait…?" I asked, confused, "You knew I was coming, but you don't know why?"

"Honey, you are the most high-profile human outside of Earth. If you pick up a pen, it's on the six-o'-clock news. Tabloids have headlines reading 'Betrayed by the Primarch!' and are saying you left Palaven because Garrus cheated on you."

I rolled my eyes, "Great…. Well, I came because two of my crewmates are getting married on Saturday in San Diego, and I decided to make it a mini-vacation for the kids and me."

Kahlee sipped from her cup, "Oh, that's nice. So, is everything between you and Garrus okay?"

"What? Yea, it's more than okay. It's perfect, actually. What makes you ask that?" I laughed.

"Well, you're here. He isn't," Kahlee trailed off with a shrug.

"Oh, no! He's just busy, and the kids have only been here once before. I'm actually having lunch with my doctor while we're here. We decided to have more kids." I couldn't keep the beaming smile off my face.

Kahlee's face softened, and her smile returned, "I'm glad. You deserve some peace." She took a sip of her tea, "I see you decided to grow your hair out."

I reached up, brushing the unruly mop that my hair had become, "Not too many hair salons on Palaven yet; I need to get it done before the wedding…," I trailed off, tapping my chin in thought, "Although, Garrus seems to like it longer."

"I always thought you looked better with long hair. I think you just get it trimmed. Tell you what, I can watch the kids while you get it done. I can call my hairdresser and get you a slot today."

"Are you sure? I don't want to trouble you…."

"Ames, those are my grandchildren, or close enough anyway. It's no trouble at all to corral them for an afternoon. Go. Take care of yourself."

-0-

I looked out over the gorgeous view of English Bay from the rooftop restaurant. Tiny white dots of sailboats were scattered across the massive body of water. People milled around on the surrounding beaches, simply enjoying the beautiful, albeit cold, weather. It was a far sight from five years prior, when Harbinger stood in the center of the bay, destroying the Kilimanjaro.

A gust blew through the patio, chilling me to the bone, even though I wore three layers. Shivering, I rubbed my hands on my arms, falling deeper into thought. This is so beautiful. I wish Garrus were here. He could enjoy this view with me while he held me, warm me up.… Fuck, when did I turn into a desperate teenager? I've been gone for three days….

Lost in my reverie, I didn't hear the soft footfalls approach from behind me. "Amelia?"

I jumped a little at the question. Damn, I must be losing my touch. I thought. Turning towards the singsong soft British voice, I happily hugged the woman, "Karin!"

"How have you been, dear?"

"I've been great. How have you been?"

"I'm glad to hear it. I've been doing well, busy, but nothing compared to working on the Normandy." The doctor laughed, "You kept me very busy."

I cracked a smile, "More fun that way."

We kept up the small talk until Karin asked, "So, what did you want to ask me?"

"I didn't want to ask you at the wedding, 'cause it's James's and Ash's day, but… Garrus and I want to have more kids."

The rest of my request went unspoken, but Chakwas knew based on her nodding. The older doctor finished her bite of food before speaking, "I'd be happy to help, and you'll be happy to hear the process has gotten a lot less… difficult."

"What do you mean?" I wanted to hear details before getting too excited. I wanted more kids, but the process… I wasn't looking forward to it.

"Well, the Solus hybridization template has been refined through other human-turian couples using it. Since you, there have been over five hundred others throughout the galaxy. Firstly, the immunosuppressant will be much less severe. You still shouldn't leave Palaven, but you won't have to be stuck at home. Secondly, you won't need a live-in doctor. I can do the procedure and then give the charts to another doctor of your choice. Finally, there is no delay before the implant. The procedure can be done once we verify the egg is fertilized and the embryo is stable."

I allowed my excitement to shine through now, "Wow…. That would be amazing. You have put a lot of work into this."

"Me? No. It was mostly Padok. That man is a bloody genius…," Chakwas laughed, stifling it with another bite.