Garrus stared at the door. Shepard had left and she had not been happy. Why had the praecipit convenire upset her? Could it mean that she liked him? That she had wanted to be with him tonight and he just blew his chances? He felt a short burst of intense joy, immediately followed by absolute despair. He keened loudly in a subvocal curse.

"Spirits, I'm an idiot."

"Why?" Nihlus asked behind him. Garrus hadn't even noticed him leaving the bedroom. "Where is Shepard?"

"She left, she said she'll call you later."

"What did you do?" Nihlus asked him, his subharmonics chiming an accusation.

"Why would you assume...? Nevermind." Garrus sighed and he let his confusing emotions sing out unhindered.

Nihlus stared at him. "And here I thought I was just helping along a little fling. You sound... serious. You like her. I never would have thought you would decide for such affectus."

Garrus groaned. "I feel like I wasn't really deciding anything, it just happened."

Nihlus had a faraway look on his face. "The humans call it falling. Falling in love. I always liked that expression." He grabbed Garrus by his shoulder and looked him in the eyes. "Are you sure that you want this?"

He didn't have to say what he meant, Garrus knew what a traditional turian would say to such a liaison. A traditional turian like his father. Spirits, the whole Vakarian clan would rather snap off a mandible than getting close to a human.

"I might have already lost my chance but I'm not sure why." Garrus said and fell back down on the couch.

Nihlus slowly sat down beside him, half turned to the side to look at him. "Garrus, my friend, I know her well and I'm sure that she likes you too. So why did she leave, what did you do?"

Garrus groaned again. "It was more my father, he called on a vid-call."

"Oh, did he see the filthy human and yell at you?" Nihlus seemed to be very amused by that idea.

"No, I told her to hide before I answered the call." Garrus said and saw Nihlus flinch at that. "That probably wasn't the nicest thing to ask of her, now that I think about it."

"I'm sure she understood that, it's not like you are in conveniri already." Nihlus said jokingly.

"About that, guess what my father was calling me about." He heard Nihlus trill out and nodded. "Yes, he has set me up with a praecipit convenirefor tonight. He picked Sapita Fedorian, daughter of Lartius Fedorian, who happens to be the brother of the Primarch of Spirits-be-damned Palaven to act as a ladder up the tiers of the Hierarchy. I am to meet her in a restaurant on the Presidium in - let me check -" he looked at his omni-tool, "in an hour. Spirits take him, how can he still do this to me?" He let his head fall back and sang out his frustration.

Nihlus made a sympathetic trill but then his tone changed to a harsh question. "So Shepard heard that your father had set you up with a praecipit convenire? What did you tell her then? Why did she leave?"

"She asked me if that was like an arranged rendezvous that my father had set up for me. And she wanted to know if there was a marriage to follow. She seemed to be bewildered that turians had arranged marriages. I told her that that was the traditional way."

Nihlus laid back his head and sighed. "Really Garrus? You tell the woman that you want to get closer to that you will meet with another woman to arrange a marriage like your family wants? And you wonder why she left?"

"I'll never go through with the praecipit collocatio. Like every turian child I just do the convenire and then I'm done with it. Hopefully my father will get the message and stop arranging these."

Nihlus snorted. "And how is she supposed to know that? Humans don't do arranged marriages, not anymore at least. They believe in romantic love like the asari. Shepard knows a lot about turians, especially from a military standpoint. But I'm fairly certain she's not familiar with the finer details of turian parenting and convenire."

Garrus slumped forward and put his face in his hands, his talons digging into his forehead.
"So I basically told the woman who I wanted to invite to a rendezvous that I'd rather go out with a marriage candidate."

"Yes, pretty much." Nihlus shook his head.

"Spirits take me." Garrus considered punching his fist through the table but decided against it. He didn't have time anyway, he had to get ready. He got up to change his clothes.

Nihlus eyed him with a critical look and spoke quietly, "Maybe it's better this way."

"What the futuo do you mean?" Garrus snarled angry down at him.

"You really think your father will stop controlling your life? After everything he has done so far? What if you get together with Shepard, will she have to hide whenever he calls? You'll live a secret life with her? What's she supposed to do when the next praecipit convenire comes up?" Nihlus looked at him and Garrus stared back. His mind couldn't comprehend the picture Nihlus was painting. The red turian continued, "Shepard is my friend, I care for her. She may be complicated and annoying sometimes but she doesn't deserve to be someone's dirty secret."

Nihlus got up and grabbed Garrus hard on his upper arm, "Unless you break with your family and start deciding for your own life, you can never really be with her. So - leave her alone." His subharmonics underlined the order harshly.

Garrus turned away, when had things become so serious? So far he had just met a pleasant alien and he certainly was attracted to her. But Nihlus made it sound like they were about to be bondmates and that was taking things a bit too far. He growled in annoyance as he put on a fresh tunic and pants.

"You know nothing about my life. I've gotten as far away as possible from my family, that's why I live here on the Citadel. I'm in control of my life."

Nihlus stepped in his way. "Are you?" He sang a challenge to Garrus. "You know, I checked out your files. I had wondered why you ended up here in C-Sec and not in Spectre training like I recommended."

Garrus trilled a question and Nihlus smiled at that.
"Yes, I had recommended you, there was a mentor arranged for you, the messages were on the way. But your father made sure you never heard about that and got you this job at C-Sec instead."

"I'm good at my job." Garrus felt like he had to defend his life, prove that he lived on his own terms. "My father has made a good decision, it was his responsibility, that's how things are done." It sounded empty, even to himself.

"Take a step outside, Palaven boy." Nihlus put his hands on his shoulders. "I consider you my friend Garrus, and it pains me to see how you stop yourself. I saw how you looked at Shepard and I don't think that was just curiosity for sex with a human."

"I have had sex with human women before." Garrus groaned back to him.

"Have you now? Plural even?" Nihlus trilled in amusement. "Good, then you already know that it works and can be quite pleasant. So it's not just deviant curiosity that I saw, you do like her. Why are you on the way to your praecipit convenire then, instead of being with her now?"

Garrus trilled in defeat and annoyance. "I couldn't ... nevermind what I should have done. I already said that I would meet that woman, I'm sure you are not suggesting that I dishonour my whole family by not keeping my word."

Nihlus shook his head. "No, you have to go, I can see that. But think about your life, Garrus. Your father will not stop until you have a mate he agrees with and live basically the same life that he lives."

Garrus sighed, "The galaxy is changing, Frank always says that."

"Shepard says so too. It's probably very obvious for humans and a bit harder to see for us, the old council-races."

Garrus looked at Nihlus, wondering about his past. "Did your family approve of your choices?"

His friend turned away, his talons scratching against the side of his armor. "My father died when I was 16 and my mother sent me away to the military faster than a pyjack runs. My family is not from Palaven and low-tiered in the Hierarchy. So I guess it's easier for me to defy the old norms and rules of the turian way." He turned back to Garrus and put one hand back on his shoulder.
"You have potential, Garrus. Find out what you want, find your consilium, carve your own way in this galaxy."

They both stared at each other until Nihlus broke away with a laugh. "Listen to me, sounding like a philosophy teacher in the old temples." He shook his head. "The council is waiting for me, I have to be on my way." He held out his arm with his omni-tool and Garrus' omni-tool lit up, receiving data.

"I gave you my own contact and I gave you Shepard's as well. I trust you will use it well." He bowed his head in a farewell and Garrus did the same.

As the door closed behind Nihlus Garrus stared at the contact entry for Shepard on his omni-tool. He hovered over the entry to call her but opened a message instead.
He began typing: 'Hello Shepard, I'm sorry that ' He stopped. Sorry for what? What are you sorry for, Garrus?

He felt the urge to lie down but he was out of time. He had to get to the Presidium to the restaurant for the praecipit convenire. Snarling angrily he erased the last word and finished the message.

'Hello Shepard, I'm sorry for being an idiot. Garrus'

For a short time he hesitated, then he hit send.

The turian restaurant had a high ceiling and was decorated in traditional turian design. The walls were colored in dark red and green with blue ornaments. Comfortable chairs with high backrests were arranged around circular tables covered with dark red table cloth. On every table sat a little vase with white flowers, real calilia from Palaven. Garrus had to hand it to his father, he had picked the perfect location for a praecipit convenire, or any kind of rendezvous.

He looked around the restaurant and he stopped on a beautiful turian woman sitting in front of the window. He recognized her from the picture his father had sent him along with the coordinates. The picture did not do her beauty justice. Her plates had a purple color, glimmering in the light. The tips of her short fringe wore a silver shine and she had painted the tips of her mandibles with red make-up. Her white markings made an elegant curve from her face down to her shoulders. The silver dress left her shoulders bare, it flowed loosely down from her neck to her waist where it was scrunched up by a belt, accentuating her narrow waist. Her long legs and her thin spurs were visible under the dress, shining purple. She was breathtaking.

It had been a long time since he had been with a turian woman. He imagined what she would look like without the dress, how her plates would shine. Her waist and her hips sharp and angular, perfectly fitting against his. How she would feel against him in a tight embrace, her talons scratching the skin between his plates. He would rub her spurs, making her squirm against him and she would massage him under his fringe, driving him crazy. Her hips would snap to his and her spurs would dig into his back. He would feel her vagina slide with delicious friction over him and grab him in a perfect fit.

'The Spirits sure have a sense of humour' Garrus thought to himself and the growl that left his throat had the turians close to him turn their heads. Only three days prior he would have looked forward to an evening with this beautiful woman. He waited for the instinctual response of his body towards her but nothing happened. She was the most attractive person in this restaurant but he was discreetly checking his omni-tool.

Shepard had not answered yet.

He closed the interface with a sigh and made his way over to the beautiful woman. A few looks of envy followed him as she waved towards him.

"Garrus Vakarian?" she asked, her voice high like the sound of tiny bells.

He bowed his head to her. "You must be Sapita Fedorian. I am honoured to meet you." Best stick with the traditions.

Garrus sat down opposite of her and looked at her. "My father should have prepared me that he found the most beautiful woman on all of Palaven to meet me here." Compliments? Check.

She smiled back at him and trilled joyfully. "Thank you. I am also pleasantly surprised by you, my father has praised you and your abilities but he didn't mention how handsome you are."

Garrus trilled his embarrassment and said "I ... thank you, although I don't quite believe your assessment." A subject change was very necessary. "Have you already ordered? I'm sorry if you had to wait, my day was very eventful and I lost track of time." Apologized? Check.

She trilled reassuringly with her beautiful voice. "I have arrived shortly before you, I only ordered wine from Oma Ker for us. Shall we order our food?"

He nodded at that and looked at the menu on the datapad. The selection was extensive and exquisite, but he settled on a simple Palaven dish that he had not had since he left home. She ordered an asari-inspired dish, in the dextro version of course. An unusual choice, Garrus wondered what that meant.

As they waited for their food to arrive he checked his omni-tool again. Still no answer from Shepard. He realized that he had to try to start a conversation. "My father has neglected to mention anything about you. So what do you do and what brings you to the Citadel?" Small talk? Check.

"I'm a surgeon, I worked on military hospital ships since I left the fighting squads of basic. But I have accepted a position at Huerta Hospital here on the Citadel, starting in two weeks. I plan on staying here on the Citadel with..." She stopped and looked at him, trilling a tone of reservation.

Garrus trilled back his confusion and for a few seconds they just stared at each other. He stretched his throat and decided to come clear with her. "Sapita, we both are here because our parents have made a praecipit convenire for us. Personally I don't see any obligation to pretend like we are here out of common interest. You are beautiful and probably intelligent, and on any other day in the past I might even have courted you. But I don't plan to enter collocatio with you, and I don't think you do either, right?"

Sapita growled dismay and Garrus panicked. It sounded like she had taken the arrangement seriously. He saw her stretching her throat and mentally prepared himself for the attack for his dishonourable behaviour.

She leaned forward and looked him in the eyes. "I don't expect any affectus from you, we are here because of an arrangement. I assume this isn't you first praecipit convenire?" Garrus trilled agreement and waited for her to continue. "It isn't the first for me either and until I decide to go through with a collocatio my parents will continue to set me up with these. I'm tired of it." She leaned back and hummed harshly. "I have a bondmate but ..." she paused and sang quietly in what Garrus could only interpret as love.

He hummed his confusion and asked: "Why don't you enter collocatio with your bondmate then?" Discreetly he checked his omni-tool again. Still no answer from Shepard.

Sapita growled again and the people on the next table turned to look at them. She quieted her voice a little and leaned forward. "My bondmate is unacceptable for my parents. She... she is asari. My parents would never accept her or the child our bond could give us one day." A happy little smile had entered her face. "Love is just a silly asari thing for traditional turians. They would never understand it and our child ...", a painful trill left her, "our child would be hated."

Garrus hummed in empathy. He was surprised by that, he really felt compassion for her. But he didn't understand why she wanted go through with the collocatio then. "So what do you want to do?"

She trilled with determination. "I want you and I to have the collocatio. We are a good match, I think we will get along well. Our families will be united, rise up the tiers of the Hierarchy, just like they want. We will take my bondmate and whoever you are checking your omni-tool for as part of our family to us. I might even have your child if our bondmates agree to that. That's the traditional turian way, it has been done before."

"Traditional?" Garrus snorted in ager. "Taking your and my bondmate as pacalla, as mistresses, is your solution? I don't care if that is a tradition, it's dishonourable!"

Sapita keened quietly and Garrus immediately felt sorry for her. She laid her head back against the backrest and closed her eyes. Her voice was almost a whisper, "I just want to be left alone, I want to live with Jinala and not worry about my parents. I don't want to go on another praecipit convenire ever again." She pressed her talons into her forehead. "I'm just so tired of all this. I see Jinala smiling at me every morning and I know I can't give her what she deserves. Spirits, she chose this dress for me so that I look nice for my praecipit convenire!" Her sad keen got so loud that almost all turians stared at Garrus aggressively, assuming that her distress was his fault.

"Spirits." Garrus didn't know what else to say and was saved by the arrival of their food. Sapita had her subvocals under control again and they both ate quietly. Garrus checked his omni-tool once more. He opened up another message, 'Shepard, please answer me.' He hit send before he could change his mind.

His food was delicious and it reminded him of his mother in an almost painful way. He wondered what she would say to a human bondmate. She had always been more open minded, less traditional than his father. Would she accept Shepard? Aren't you getting ahead of yourself here, Garrus?

He noticed that Sapita looked at him. She trilled questioningly, "So who are you constantly checking your omni-tool for?"

Garrus hummed in embarrassment. "I'm sorry. I find myself in a situation not unlike yours and it's... unusual for me. I don't even know if she's interested in me that way but I can guarantee that my father would not approve."

"Assuming she is interested, what are you going to do?" It was clear that she was genuinely curious, looking for some kind of guidance.

Garrus sighed and took a sip of wine. "I have had the most eventful day today and that would still be true without any 'falling in love' as the humans apparently call it. I have met this woman and she - I don't know how it happened but I find myself thinking about her all the time. And in under an hour I managed to get to know her, find affectus and scare her away. That must be a new record." He groaned. "Sitting here with a beautiful woman is probably not helping my case."

"So, she is human then?"

"Yes, she is. You know, they call me an expert in humans at C-Sec but Spirits know I don't know what the futuo I'm doing."

"If she is human she probably wouldn't think of me as beautiful so you might be safe there." Sapita said thoughtfully.

"Huh?" he trilled out confused. It had never even occurred to Garrus that turians might look unattractive to humans. Had he been kidding himself? Was that the reason she had left?

Sapita hummed thoughtfully. "So what is your plan? You are sitting here, with me, because your father has made it his decretum. But you still don't want to follow the tradition? I know that feeling, believe me, but if you are telling me about honour and love then why are you even here?"

Garrus felt his mandibles clamp against his face. "I have to admit, this is a new development for me. Before today I never really questioned the old traditions. Maybe I thought that leaving Palaven would be enough to get away from the old turian way. But today has shown me that plain distance in lightyears is not enough. Not only that, a friend has challenged me to find my own way in life and now you are asking me the same questions. It's like the Spirits are trying to tell me something."

"So you think I should break with my family and be with my bondmate? Without family, without the guidance of the elders?" She looked scared.

Garrus trilled loudly, it wasn't like he had all the answers! "All I know is that we cannot live the same lives that our parents are living. Maybe they cannot guide us anymore. The galaxy is changing, just ask the humans. We have to change too. The first step for that could be leaving the old traditions by the wayside and finding our own path."

She stared at him and her subvocals were singing all over the scale. "Garrus Vakarian, this is certainly not what I had expected from this evening." She took a sip from her wine and her subharmonics were chiming in excitement. "I also never would have thought that a turian would listen to humans."

"Yes, I get that a lot lately." He had to hold down his grumble of annoyance. "Humans are very adaptable. It may be their biggest advantage. They can bring new perspectives and they question everything." Garrus said. "I don't know how they deal with family issues though, they may have the same problems as we have. But knowing how adaptable they are maybe they break those bonds easier than us."

She looked at him thoughtfully, tilting her head to the side. "I'm not sure if that is a good thing. Turians have defined themselves by the families and colonies they come from for thousands of years."

Garrus sang agreement. "True. To be honest, I'm not sure about it myself. So far I have neither broken with my family nor made advancements on that human woman I keep thinking about. So I'm just floating like a hanar here."

His omni-tool gave a small chime at that moment. Shepard had answered his messages. He didn't even bother to excuse himself before looking at it.

'Hello Garrus, sorry, I was busy. Why are you an idiot?'

He typed as fast as he could. 'I let you go without explaining this whole situation. I'm sorry if I upset you.'

He stared at the interface, waiting for her answer. Sapita trilled at him in empathy. He was about to start another message when her answer appeared.
'Aren't you supposed to be having a rendezvous with your future wife right now?'

He could hardly answer fast enough. 'She is not my future wife, I'm not interested in her.'

Her response came equally fast, 'I hope you have told that to the beautiful lady sitting there with you, she might be very disappointed otherwise!'

His head snapped up and he stared out the window. The Presidium had gotten darker, simulating evening and many people were ambling around. At first he couldn't make her out but then he saw her. She was sitting sideways on a bench facing the lake. She wore dark armor and had a bottle of something next to her. Her face was turned towards the restaurant and illuminated in gold by the glow of her omni-tool.

Sapita looked confused and was trying to see what had him so interested outside the window.
He pointed towards the bench.
"She is sitting right there."
"Her?"
"Yes, her."

Sapita stared at the person and then smiled and raised her glass to her in greeting. Shepard raised her bottle and dipped her head. She turned back to him, "How did you know she was there?"

Garrus couldn't stop grinning with a trill. "She called you a beautiful lady."

He was about to type another message to Shepard when suddenly Sapita stuck her talons painfully in his hand and hissed at him. "Garrus, if this is the woman you want, you better get your ass out there right now!"

He hesitated for a second. Then he grinned, "Yes, ma'am!".
Throwing a credit chit on the table he almost ran out of the door.

()()()

Translations for the latin words I'm happily mangling:

a praecipit convenire = a prearranged rendezvous / date
a praecipit collocatio = a prearranged bonding / marriage.
stercus = shit, bullshit
consilium = purpose
affectus = love, passion
pacalla = concubine
decretum = ruling, decision
futuo = fuck

Someone got Jane-Austen-romantic-sparkles all over my fanfiction again! I can promise more action and drama in the next chapter.

I never explained that "stretching his throat" for turians is the equivalent to "clearing his throat" for humans. So it's what a turian would do if he/she is embarrassed.

Thanks to Credete for not completely losing his mind editing this chapter.