THREE MONTHS LATER

Tali looked over the chart in her hand. It was the latest test results of Shepard's genetics. So far the only systems in his body that seemed to be turning dextro was his digestive, circulatory, respiratory, and his...endocrine systems? His nervous system also seems affected, but only the peripheral nervous system. It somehow translates to dextro? Is that even possible?

The rest of his body that still appeared more levo based was his integumentary, immune, skeletal, and muscular system. Because of this, latest advancements in Shepard's food required him to eat levo nutrients, that targeted those systems, masked by dextro food. It was more of an experiment really, it was unknown whether his blood would accept it or it would be flushed out as waste. If it failed, they would have to find other ways for those systems to accept nutrients.

Tali thought it must be exhausting for Shepard to keep changing his diet in correlation with his changing body. It couldn't be a fun ride, especially with just how Shepard is emotionally. How would I feel of I woke up and found out that I'm not even like my own species, anymore?

However, if Shepard seemed weighed down at all by the thought, he didn't seem to show it. He kept a warm tone and his eyes seem bright. She kept trying to read his body language, and so far she only gotten a few hints at the possibility of sadness or frustration. Other than that, he just seemed giddy with excitement, almost too much for her liking.

There's no way he is just more excited to see Rannoch than me. Her bondmate was turning more quarian with each passing day. He even began developing an accent and using quarian phrases, Tali was unsure if he was faking or not. Maybe he's worried that he won't fit in?

Her lover was becoming a puzzle, and she didn't like it. With everything going on, she couldn't help but be worried sick about him. She kept on wondering if anything was wrong. Am I just overreacting? The thoughts swirled until her stomach couldn't handle it. She shook her head and had newfound resolve. I'll just ask him! If I ever need something, I can always reach for him. I'm sure he'll understand, he always does.

Happy with her solution, she looked over the chart again.

This produced another unsettling thought. There's absolutely no way that this is not painful. His body not only has to adapt to the outside world, but it also had to adapt to itself. Tali imagined what it could possibly feel like, the closest she could imagine was getting her body wrung out. The fact that Shepard might be feeling this worried her more. She must talk to him.

She heard a knock at the door. To her surprise, it was Doctor Chakwas that appeared. "There you are, I thought that I would find you here."

Tali set down the chart on her chair, "No place I would rather be. What do you need to talk about?"

The older woman popped a knee and leaned on the doorway, unusual for someone with her personality. Yet there seemed to be comfort in the Doctor's relaxing stance. "Everything seems to be going as normal concerning Shepard." Tali nodded, thankful. "However, we can't leave him alone just yet," she added. "We know that Shepard plans on leaving Earth with you now that the Relay is fully repaired."

"Doesn't everyone," Tali breathed. The information regarding Shepard's departure somehow leaked to the public a week ago, and they have been keeping Shepard undercover from them as a result. Few people from other ends of the galaxy that managed to repair their Relays before them heard about it, too. Now the whole galaxy will know and the flames of fame are going erupt again. Just when it was dying, too. Keelah, the universe is going to blow up when they see his suit.

"Yes, well. We devised a plan to send me with you to monitor his condition. If he seems to check out well over time, then I will return to my other duties. That way he can enjoy himself without dying," Chakwas continued.

"Oh, Doctor Chakwas, we really appreciate you wanting to help. But you really don't have to. We know you are very busy and wouldn't want to distract you. Why not send Doctor Philanskis?"

Chakwas laughed, "Tali, dear. Doctor Philanskis is brilliant, no doubt. But this is way above what he is trained for. He can read charts and understand the situation, but he doesn't really know how to approach it if it all goes wrong. He doesn't know how to take the next step. Ever since we returned, I ended up becoming the backbone of all this. It makes sense for me to go with you."

"Well, Doctor, it would be lovely to have you along."

"Thank you. I believe this would also be a great opportunity to study quarians, it wasn't easy healing you after the war."

Tali nodded. The doctor did so much behind the scenes, and there was no way she couldn't hold back her gratitude for everything she did, nor did she want to. "Thank you Doctor Chakwas, really, I owe you more than I could repay."

The older woman just chuckled in response, "Just promise me you two will find happiness, it would be nice to see something pure in this galaxy again. Speaking of which, I also believe Shepard is waiting for you at the front desk, best not to keep him waiting."

Tali nodded and hurried out the door and down the elevator. When she arrived to the front desk, she saw Shepard hoisting the small white machine to his back and hooking it up. He sighed but quickly changed to a happy mood once he saw her. Tali cocked her head in question. No better time.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

Shepard's smiling eyes faded and he shook his head in annoyance, "I thought I would be able to avoid everyone forever, but now everyone wants me to do some sort of press conference on the Citadel. Seriously, don't they have anything better to do?"

"It's not easy having celebrity status, huh?"

"Keelah, I never wanted it," he shrugged.

Tali noticed the phrase and paused, trying to figure out how to address it. How do I make this not sound insulting?

"Why do you keep saying that?" Wow, smooth Tali. You might as well call him a quarian knock-off. "I find your cosplay lacking, but thanks for being a fan." Ugh, Tali, you idiot.

Shepard paused, gathering his thoughts. "I don't know. I think the quarian-ness is rubbing off on me. Hell, I might as well be one," Shepard said as he looked at his gloved fingers. Tali curled the corner of her mouth in a shrug and closed the gap between them, holding his helmet in her own gloved hands.

"Not that I don't appreciate you trying to be like us. But you are first and foremost, a human. I fell in love with a human. Please, stay the way you are." Shepard looked down at her and gave a deep sigh, followed by a chuckle.

"No promises physical-wise, but don't you worry, I'll always be John Shepard."

Tali noticed his accent was gone with his last sentence. His original voice felt clear and refreshing as cool water to her ears. With most of her questions answered, she decided to ask him one more. "I'm sorry you have to go through all this. It breaks my heart to see you always pent up in this hospital. But I must ask, how does it feel? To have your body changing every moment?"

Shepard's speaker light shut off as he opened his mouth but before he could speak, Tali shook her finger at him and the light of her eyes bore into his.

"And don't you dare lie to me!"

Shepard paused a few moments and let out another sigh and his shoulders sagged, "Then I won't. I'll admit, it's not exactly painful, but it's not comfortable either. The more I change, the more I tense up in some places. I just hope it doesn't feel like that forever when it's done going through its phases."

Tali rested her head under his chin in mild sorrow, mentally trying her hardest to see if she could take his discomfort away. Keelah, I somewhat wish he hadn't told me.

Shepard stroked her back in return. "But hey! Let's not worry about that. Today is going to be a special day full of surprises."

Tali broke their embrace and looked up at him, relieved. "Okay, what kind of surprises? Do you have any more beautiful parks to walk through?"

Shepard scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, "Uh, something like that. But it wouldn't be much of a surprise if I told you." She raised an eyebrow. He's clearly unsure of something, doesn't he know I don't care what we do as long as I'm with him?

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it'll be fantastic and that I'll love it," she reassured as she skillfully intertwined her few fingers with his many.

Shepard still seemed somewhat awkward. "N-now why would I make a s-surprise that y-you didn't like?" She rolled her eyes and made a mental note to be happy no matter what he was unsure of.

"I don't know, I do know that you never will, and that question will remain unanswered for the rest of our lives."

Shepard's confidence reformed a little, and light returned to his eyes. A single moment later and they heard a foreign sigh coming from the front desk. They turned their heads to the sound and saw the woman there propping her chin up with both of her hands adoring the scene in front of her. When she realized that they were both staring at her, she flicked one hand towards them, "No, please! Keep going!"

Both Tali and Shepard laughed and walked out the front door. "I think we're too cute for own good," Tali said when they were out of ear-shot.

"Look who's talking, I'm pretty sure you're the one that turns heads."

"Me? Come on, you're the great Captain Shepard, you turned the whole galaxy's head."

Shepard shrugged, "I may be great, but you are, too. Plus, you have many other things like beauty and adorableness. I could never have that."

Tali shied away from his praise. In doing so, something hit her. Her wildest dream came true. Her bondmate was the great Captain Shepard. Never did she expect this to truly happen over three years ago. She remembered when all she wanted to do was to impress her Commander, dreaming of the near impossibility of catching his interest. Then he returned from the dead to save her from both death and exile. Then he finally did show interest, and through their relationship, she had felt more at home than ever. They helped each other mature in different ways, with Tali undertaking the responsibility of being and Admiral, and Shepard learning what it really meant to be alive, and she wouldn't change it for anything.

It hit her that her impossible dream became a reality, and a few tears of happiness escaped her, flowing down her cheeks.

"Tali?"

"You know what? We do make a great couple," Tali said, forever burning any potential fears of their relationship to the ground.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Shepard said with an unseen smile, and with that, her heart melted and her eyes watered freely.

"Come on, I have surprises waiting for you, and I intend to hit every single one of them before we go to the Citadel tomorrow," Shepard said as he took her hand into his and urged her away.

Then we go home, our home. She inhaled sharply to cease further tears and had the biggest smile on her face as she went on to face the day with her bondmate.

"So where are we headed?" Tali asked.

Before she received her answer, she took in the sight of the autumn scenery. It was just as Shepard described it. Warm colors and leaves falling from the trees, and the sky seemed to have a much more golden glow to it. She took another sharp intake of breath as they walked across the field.

"I decided to invite Garrus and Kasumi along, Wrex and your Auntie will be along as well, but not until later in the day." A day with her lover and her friends? It just keeps getting better and better! She had a little more kick of excitement to her step as they headed towards the Normandy. As it gradually came into view, they saw Joker sitting on a lawn chair with a familiar robot massaging his shoulders. For once, he didn't have a cap on and instead had a pair of sunglasses and a warm jacket. Once he saw them, he raised his hand and waved. He didn't speak until they got closer.

"Hey there, lovebirds! Beautiful day today isn't it?"

"Hey Joker, hey EDI. Enjoying yourselves?" Shepard asked.

EDI has finally gotten a new body, and it was very similar to her old one. Tali had to stop herself from laughing when she noticed that she also wore a jacket and some long pants. EDI continued massaging as she spoke. "I am. However, Jeff here has been struggling with inaction. He's been getting more and more tense when the day of departure gets closer and closer."

"Hey, I can't help it! The Normandy hasn't flown in over three months, Shepard. That's torture for a pilot when he belongs among the stars."

"Yeah, well, you won't have to wait much longer," Shepard said as he eyed EDI's getup.

"Yeah, I've been dying to see the progress of the Citadel. Speaking of which, how long is your little, 'press conference,' going to be?"

"Not long, although I have to ask, what is with EDI wearing clothes?"

"Jeff insisted that I should wear warm clothes as the cooler season approached. Even though I have both heating and cooling systems in this body."

Joker leaned down next to him a pulled up a glass of orange juice with a straw in it, "Hey, I'm not taking any chances! You can never know when a malfunction might happen."

"Jeff, with this new body and its cutting edge technology, the chances of a spontaneous malfunction occurring is a mere zero-point-two-zero-one-seven percent. I highly doubt anything wrong will happen."

Joker took a sip of his juice, "That's still a chance that I'm not taking, keep wearing your clothes."

EDI rolled her eyes, "Alright, but soon you humans will be begging on your knees for warmth if things like this keep going."

All three of them looked at her, slightly horrified. "That is a joke."

"Anyways," Shepard drew out, "Do you know where we can find Garrus and Kasumi?"

Joker set down his drink and stuck his thumb to the ship, "Kasumi has been trying to get Bug Brain out of bed for the past half hour, she really doesn't want to miss out on any of the...action."

Shepard let out a small growl, "Joker, if you reveal anything, you will have more than your bones to worry about."

"Easy Cap'n, I would never do anything like that to you...Ah, perfect timing! Here comes Thief Lady and Bug Brain themselves now!"

They both looked up to see Kasumi and Garrus in a slightly more relaxed attire coming down the ladder of the ship. Kasumi still wore her hood, but it was in a rich red color to match the season, and Garrus had lighter armor on rather than his normal bulky one. When Kasumi laid eyes on the lovers, she squealed in delight.

"I'm so excited!" She launched down to Tali and gave her a large hug, "Today is a very special day for you, we have so many surprises! Some better than others!"

"Easy Kasumi," Shepard warned.

"Of course, of course! Wouldn't want to spoil all the fun now, would we? I just can't wait, though!" Kasumi pivoted her head towards a groggy Garrus who was now only halfway down the steps, "Come on! We have no time to waste!"

Garrus simply rose a protesting hand. "I'm coming, I'm coming," he said as his feet touched the healing ground, "Have you talked to Wrex and Admiral Raan, yet?" He added with a yawn.

"They won't arrive until the grand surprise," Shepard replied, to which an excited Kasumi gave another squeal.

"You guys better go before little Kasumi here blows her hood," Joker said over another sip of orange juice. Tali shook her head in amusement. I might too if these talks of surprises continue.

"See you guys later, EDI, keep an eye on him," Shepard said.

"Always have been, Shepard," EDI responded, "Please, enjoy yourselves."

So the four friends walked off, passing Liara pestering Javik on the way, who was actually outside for once. "Liara, the answer, ninety percent of the time, is, 'the same as you.' We weren't mystical, 'others.'"

Liara looked up from her datapad at the Prothean, "But what about all that stuff about us being, 'primitives?'"

"That is the other ten percent."

Tali stifled a laugh as they continued into the city where everyone was. Now that the Mass Relay was fixed, many species have came to maximize rebuilding efforts nearly tenfold, for both Earth and the Citadel. Even shops were starting to reopen and people were getting a taste for human culture. Garrus seemed to read her mind because he spoke about something similar.

"It's hard to believe that not long ago, you humans originated from this one singular planet, and even so, you guys are so different from each other, having many cultures, customs, and accents. You keep surprising me."

"Yeah, well, we humans tend to be unpredictable," Kasumi replied, "Like my people used to be at war with Shepard's in World War Two, but we ended up becoming best of friends culture-wise a little over a generation later. Although in fairly odd ways."

"World War Two? That sounds frightening!" Tali exclaimed. "I should read up on human history," she added as she pulled up her omni-tool, to which Shepard promptly lowered her arm. Confused, she looked up at him.

"Where we're going, you won't need that." They walked around a corner and saw a pair of doors with little room behind it, it was more of a hole-in-the-wall kind of establishment. "I know you like to write, so I'm going to introduce you to a human bookstore."

They walked through the doors and, despite its small space, saw rows and rows of books made with paper and ink. Wow, it's incredible! A ring of a bell was sounded and a small man popped from behind a dark, glossy, wooden counter. "Ah! How are you-" The man paused when he realized just who were the people standing in his establishment. "Captain Shepard? The Captain Shepard? What brings the Savior of the Galaxy to my small shop?"

Shepard chuckled, "My girlfriend would like to see if she could find any books to read? Perhaps any on human history? She's feeling a little curious today."

The small man was very jittery but somehow managed to keep talking without stuttering, "Yes! I have all kinds of books! There are some over there if you're interested," he said as he pointed to a corner, "I'm a huge fan of you, by the way. You know, it's nice to see that some people haven't given up on the old ways, especially a war hero. Nothing beats an actual book in hand."

"I can stand behind that," Kasumi said. "What brings you to open up a bookshop here of all places?"

"Ah, well, I was having it rough on another colony, with the war and all. Once I heard about what happened, I figured that there would be plenty of visitors in the near future, so I figured that I should pack up and move here. It's also nice to see where us humans originated from." Tali smiled as she walked over to the history section, picking up a rather large book.

"Nothing beats a homeworld," she whispered.

Kasumi was browsing near her and she cried out in excitement when she found a book in a rich red color with golden symbols on front. "I couldn't find this one anywhere! How did you manage to get this?"

The man walked up next to her and looked at what she was holding, "You have a good eye. I managed to peel this one off of another book collector. Crazy man, he was."

"Hey Tali, I found some stories over here if you want," Shepard said from the opposite end of the store. Tali picked up a few textbooks and walked over to him. "Fictional stories, as I recall, you like it when the imagination is used. So if you want any relaxing reading after some hard nonfiction, here is the way to go." She picked up a few colorful covers and inspected those she might be interested in. Satisfied, she looked up at him, arms full of books.

"Is this too much?"

Shepard chuckled, "I would've thought that it's not enough. Are you sure that is all you want?"

Tali raised an eyebrow at him, "I can't possibly carry anymore. I think this is good enough."

"Alright. Kasumi, do you have all the books you want?"

The hooded woman picked up her share and walked towards the counter, "You don't have to pay for me Shep."

He gave a small laugh and replied to the Master Thief, "We wouldn't want to break your streak of not buying anything. Besides, it's a special day today, I'm buying everything."

Kasumi reluctantly agreed and saw Garrus messing with a small book.

"I still don't get why you would want this. It's all flimsy and fragile, and it smells funny."

"It smells great, you mean," Kasumi retorted. Tali laid out her own books down on the counter, in which Kasumi whispered to her, "Which is something you will definitely enjoy when you start living outside of your suit. The smell is close to being the best part." I'm looking forward to it.

Shepard made his purchase and the man's eyes widened and mouth dropped as he looked at the payment. Shepard gave a small chuckle, "Oops! Nevermind, keep the change, and I wish you good fortune." Shepard quickly scooped up everything into a large bag and threw it over his shoulder. The small man said nothing as the four friends hurriedly walked out of the store.

"What did you do?" Tali asked. "I gave him a little extra, book selling isn't easy when we have datapads and omni-tools."

"Well, Shep, it looks like you gave him a little more than just, 'extra.' It says it all over his face," Kasumi said as she did a little skip. "So where are we going now?"

Shepard gave a shrug, "We're actually going to your idea next."

The thief clapped her hands once, "You mean they actually reopened a clothing store?"

"Clothing store?" Tali asked.

"Well yes!" Kasumi exclaimed excitedly. "You don't expect to live in a suit your whole life now that you got Rannoch back, do you?"

Tali thought for a moment, she never really thought about it. She talked about it with Shepard once, but she was talking about quarian children, and not herself. She spent so long inside her suit and only got out of it a few times with Shepard, she'd never expect to be out of it for long periods of time, especially on a daily basis. Things are changing so fast.

"No, I guess not."

"Then let's go!"

Shepard laughed and stopped the excited Master Thief, "It's further into the city, let's rent a transport first."

A little over an hour later, Shepard had rented a really nice skycar and had made their way to not just a clothing store, but a mall. It took so long to get there due to the repair work and traffic, and also from trying to avoid public eyes. Most of the stores in the mall were closed down, for obvious reasons, but nonetheless, a fancy clothing shop was open. The story behind it was very similar to the bookstore's. It also was setting up for visitors that the city was for sure going to have once it was fully repaired, it even had a few customers already shopping inside, mainly asari.

Tali noticed that the store was not really for men, so she glanced to him with a question, in which he read her mind. "I figured this could be a more girl thing, you and Kasumi go have fun while I and Garrus wait out here."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive, go buy whatever you want, Kasumi has my credit chit."

She left him and Garrus to talk and followed her friend into the store. She noticed that most of the clothing in there seemed...immodest. There were mannequins displaying some of the clothes and Tali didn't feel exactly comfortable. Can anyone blame me? I haven't exactly done this before. Sure, she dreamed of wearing something other than her suit, but this seemed like a big step in an awkward direction. Kasumi, however, seemed totally comfortable with everything, and was even going through different things that might look nice on Tali.

Tali noticed a section of the store that seemed a little out of place. It was for darker colors and as she neared it, it came clear to her that the clothing was all N7 styled. There were still women's clothes, but because of the N7 logos, she was naturally attracted to it. Kasumi followed up behind her with different things already picked out, but before she said anything, her hand darted to a pair of N7 underwear and held it up.

Tali looked to the small thing and back to Kasumi, and back to the thing. "No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"Kasumi!"

"You are getting it and that's final."

"Can't I just get normal clothes like a regular person?"

"Why would you want that? Besides, I'm sure Shep would love this," Kasumi teased as she innocently raised the underwear.

"Kasumi!"

"What? I'm having fun!"

"By your very strange standards," Tali groaned.

"Funny, I recall Shep saying the same thing once."

"Can't we just hurry up and get out of here? I don't want to be seen buying this stuff," Tali motioned to the clothes held in the Master Thief's arms.

"You need to grow up girl! Let loose a little," Kasumi replied as she dragged her off to other sections of the store.

A half hour and a mountain of all kinds of clothes, shoes, and some jewelry later, they went to the counter to buy the clothes from a beautiful human woman around their age. "Hey girls! I know there are plenty of quarians around, but I never thought I'd see one show up here! Might I ask the reason for this extensive purchase?" Tali noticed her tone was more curious than venomous, and Kasumi replied with a little wink as she paid for the clothes.

"Well, since her boyfriend saved both her homeworld and the galaxy, we figured that it was time to get her a wardrobe."

"I thought Captain Shepard saved the galaxy?"

"That's the one!"

The woman narrowed her eyes in suspicion. To which Kasumi followed up her claim with evidence, "He's even outside right now! Look!" The woman followed Kasumi's line of sight to the outside window where Shepard looked to be waiting impatiently, his own, now famous, quarian suit up for display. Her eyes widened in disbelief and she looked to the girls in front of her.

"I can't believe it, I have to see this for myself! Is it okay if I go see him?"

The fact that the woman asked that question told Tali that she was already half convinced. She didn't find any unkindness in her, so she nodded her head in response. She ended up following the excited cashier outside to meet her bondmate.

Shepard seemed happy to sign an autograph for her and prove to her that Tali was, indeed, his girlfriend. Tali was surprised when the woman turned to her and asked for her autograph as well as Garrus's and Kasumi's. I don't think anyone ever asked a quarian to sign something for them before.

The cashier looked like she was about to burst as she took a photo with the four of them, "This is definitely going on the extranet! Thank you guys, so, so much!"

They waved their goodbyes and headed out for lunch. Tali was skeptical that they would find a place that served dextro. Kasumi already managed to buy herself a meal without having to walk far. But Garrus reassured her and drove the skycar to a turian worksite. To Tali's surprise, he managed to get some food for himself, her, and Shepard from some turians. He still called them his, "fans."

After that, Garrus surprised her with a visit to all things tech and weaponry in a makeshift armory store that all the species pooled together to make. Tali practically skipped around looking at all sorts of mods and upgrades from designs of all species. I'm going to have fun with this! She picked up some plans for a useful upgrade that could be used for Chatika, and another upgrade that looked like could make her shotgun overpowered. She seemed very unsure about the costs though.

She hummed thoughtfully when Shepard came up behind her, "Go ahead, get all that you want."

"John, are you sure? How can we afford all this?"

Shepard's eyes smiled, "Well, at first I was getting donations to help pay for my condition. After the Mass Relays were fixed, however, the whole galaxy jumped on. Since I pretty much was the only patient in the hospital left, it was enough to pay all my doctors and my treatments. Let's just say there was also a little extra credits left. Those extra credits are all going to you for today."

"But John-"

"I already set enough aside for our house and vacation. The rest are going to the crew or getting donated to those in need."

"But John, don't you think it's a little much?"

He looked lovingly into her eyes and answered her slowly. "Tal, I know it's difficult for you to think about yourself. You're not selfish one bit. But for now, I want you to be selfish all you want, if only just for today."

Not wanting to break the affection he was showing, Tali agreed. "Fine, but only just for today!"

They spent several hours in the makeshift armory, looking at anything and everything they could get their hands on. All four of them were like kids in a candy store. Garrus bought himself some items for his sniper rifle, Kasumi got some extra gadgets for her cloaking, and Tali got those upgrades for Chatika and her shotgun. Shepard, however, only bought a cheap pistol.

Garrus looked at him in confusion, "Why would you want that?"

"I haven't had a weapon on me for awhile, and I think this is good enough to get me by."

By the time they left the store, the sun was already beginning to edge closer to later afternoon hours. Figuring the day was over, Tali sighed in delight. "That was so much fun! Thank you for all the surprises!"

Shepard opened the skycar and urged everyone in, "We're not done, yet. We have dinner with Wrex and your Auntie." Oh! I almost completely forgot about them!

Shepard drove them down to a park, where Tali saw her Auntie Raan and Wrex holding dinner. She jumped out of the car and hugged them both. "Wrex! Auntie Raan!"

"Little Tali, seems like you had a fun day!" Wrex said as he returned her hug.

"Yes, John bought me a whole bunch of things! He's too kind."

"Well, you're very lucky to have him," Rann said as she received her hug.

Shepard, Garrus, and Kasumi followed behind her and greeted their friends. "Hello again, Shepard. You seem to be getting better each day," Raan greeted, balancing some food tubes in the bend of her elbow.

"Yes, Admiral. No better day to get better on," Shepard replied as he relieved her of some of them. Tali noticed her Auntie replying with a peculiar look. "Come on, let's eat."

They sat and ate and talked for awhile, with topics changing from old adventures, the Citadel, and returning home. The sun began to rest over the city skyline and Tali noticed the group became more excited. Is there another surprise?

Shepard spoke after their meal was finished, "We're not done quite yet, come on." Kasumi gave an excited squeak as they all picked up their trash and threw it in a nearby dumpster filled with old debris. They all walked towards a large river, Thames it was called.

Shepard poked Tali on the shoulder and guided her eyes, "Look." She looked and saw a large repaired wheel with little rooms attached to it.

"That's called the London Eye. We're going to it." Again Tali noticed her friends faces were becoming more happy that she could of sworn their smiles might fly off. Tali was excited, too. But she couldn't figure how it could be that exciting.

The wheel grew bigger as they walked closer towards it, and several people were seen managing it. She could see that there were no visitors to ride the wheel, most likely because they were working on reconstruction. It felt like that they were the only people in the city having fun.

When the edged closer, one man looked up and saw the group. "Ah, hello there. Good to meet you Captain Shepard."

"Good to meet you, too."

"We had a lot of help since you requested for the fix, so we managed to get it up and running before now. I'm glad you did, I think people could use a little joy in their lives after what happened. But now I must ask..." The worker leaned in and whispered quietly into Shepard's audio receiver. Shepard's eyes smiled as he looked to Tali. "Her?" The worker gave a surprised look and replied to Shepard, "I can't wait to see what the news is going to be like." Shepard only laughed. What is going on?

"Well hop on in, the sun is going to set soon." Tali thought she found out what the grand surprise was. She loves to see the sun set over a planet, she rarely sees them if any at all because of the time she spent in space, and if she did, she never got to enjoy it because she was doing something important. Even now I never really enjoy them because I sit in the hospital every day. The only time I actually sat down to watch one was with John on Rannoch.

She eagerly hopped on and Shepard followed her. She turned her head to her friends and urged them on. "Come on!"

However, her friends stayed put and Kasumi answered for them, "I think we'll catch the next one, you two go ahead."

Alone with my bondmate.

The hatch closed and the two lovers were raised slightly around the wheel. Their friends got on the one behind them and both compartments were slowly raised high into the sky, above the buildings of the city that glowed orange in the sun's light. Tali saw a large castle-like building across the river and a clocktower being repaired. Once the compartment was in the highest position of the wheel, it stopped.

Tali's breath was taken away as she took in the full sight. The sun sat just upon the horizon, and despite all the repair work that could be seen going on in the city, it was still beautiful. She sat down on the compartment's floor and Shepard followed. "It's really pretty," she said.

"You like it?"

"I love it."

They sat there in silence as the sun continued sinking. "I never expected to ever do this, watch the human star set over a human city with my human boyfriend."

Shepard gave a small chuckle, "I never expected to watch the sun set over earth with my quarian girlfriend."

Tali laughed a little.

"Although I think it's time we changed that last part."

"Hm?"

Shepard reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a small little wooden box. "You know, after my mom died, the Alliance saved her wedding ring, she was planning on giving it to me for when I meet the girl of my dreams, since she had no use for it since my dad died."

Wait, I read about human bonding customs, is he..?!

"Anderson gave it to me. I think he knew that I was in a relationship."

Is he..?!

"Well, I had to do some reshaping on it, and I think I have use for it now because of it, and I shouldn't disappoint Anderson and my parents." Shepard opened the box to a small ring that belonged to his family. It was beautifully crafted gold with a small diamond perched on top.

Tali held her breath. There's no way!

Tali couldn't tell if she was hearing things once Shepard began speaking Khelish, her native tongue, flawlessly. But the words were crystal clear that could only come from practice, maybe months of practice. It was undeniable. After he finished, he returned to his own native tongue.

Her heart stopped when it hit her as his next words were spoken.

"Tali...Will you be my lifemate?"

Time slowed. She could hardly breathe. If Tali could live forever in this moment, she would. This was above her impossible dream, it was pure happiness that she could not even fathom. Her whole heart, mind, life and soul thanked the Ancestors and the Earth for bringing them two together. For bringing her a lifemate. Something pure did come to the galaxy once again, and it was full of love and peace.

"YES!"

Tali tackled her new lifemate to the ground and did all she could to get closer to him. Squeezing him until they both ran out of air and Tali shedding tears of joy.

"Yes! I love you so much!" She gasped.

Shepard replied with a chuckle as they cuddled there on the floor, "I love you, too."

And they laid there together until the wheel lit up with blue lights in the night sky along with the other bright lights of the city, defeating and mocking the Reapers that tried to take everything from them.

Authors Note: Fluff, that's all I need to say.