Kasumi didn't really mind the heat of Rannoch. She'd heard one of the Alliance crew call it a "dry" heat, and it made some sense. From what she could tell, there was little humidity to make the heat completely oppressive. It wasn't ideal, but she could live with it.

She had left Garrus there, hand outstretched like an idiot. But she hadn't thought of that until after she'd gotten halfway through the city. Thankfully, she'd still been cloaked, so she hadn't caused a fuss with the locals. Which was a good thing, of course. One less thing to account for. She'd at least had the wherewithal to drop off the package that she'd been sent to the appropriate quarian hands, but now she was on her own.

Kasumi let out a rueful laugh. She was, once again, on the run. It was only in a manner of speaking, of course, but the required boxes were all checked just the same.

But now? No more running. She needed to stop. She needed to think. She'd been in a whirlwind since leaving the ship, and that was not going to do her any favors. She needed to talk to Tali and Shep, now that the package had been delivered. She knew that he and Garrus were best friends, but…the way that she and Shepard had talked while on Earth made her think that she should not fear bringing this to them. Besides, Shepard dealt in fairness, and as far as she could tell, Garrus had not.

She found a nearby, relatively remote corner and decloaked. Her hands were shaking slightly. Once again.

"I wonder when that'll go away." She shook her head in annoyance…well, more than annoyance.

She couldn't think of anywhere else to go, relative outsider as she was on this world.

"Okay. Tali…where the hell did you get moved to?"

She found the message from Tali, telling her where Zaal had set them up at. She sniffled and flicked a stray tear away from her face.

"Bastard."

Somewhere within her - a very quiet somewhere - she regretted the insult.

Was she being too…what? Childish? Needy? Unreasonable?

All she'd wanted was a place to finally call -

She shook her head dismissively, sending the thought back to the oblivion from whence it had come. No. What he had done was not fair, and she deserved at least a little fairness from him.

Finding the message, she turned the audio-nav on so she could be guided to her destination via her acoustic implant while still cloaked. Tugging lightly on her hood and activating the cloak, she slipped her way through the meandering crowd and made her way to her other friends.

And hopefully some answers.

When she arrived, she stood outside their doorway, suddenly uncertain. What was she going to tell them? That she didn't want Garrus to help his homeworld? That he should renege on his word to the primarch?

"Damn it."

It wasn't, she thought, that he had chosen to go back to Palaven. It was the way that he'd done it - with all the grace and balance of an elcor on ice. Well, that wasn't quite right. Garrus had done what he had with intent. He had chosen to leave without any input from her. She wasn't a fan of rejoining the galaxy at large and she was 99% sure that she would have told him "no", but to not even be asked? Or to have a real discussion about the whole thing?

That was the insult.

Still, a very quiet voice whispered, asking just how certain she really was about not wanting to join him anyway.

She pressed the doorchime.

Silence from the other side.

She pressed again, a little more forcefully.

"Tali, Shep? Are you…home?"

As the door slid open, Tali felt a hand on her back, rubbing rhythmically. A small groan of satisfaction came from deep within her. It didn't stop her from wringing her hands. Keelah, they'd been about to -

"I'm sorry to bother you guys. I'm sure you had a lot of very important things to do (her smirk did not go unnoticed), but I needed to talk to someone and…well, you guys are it."

All pretenses of joking disappeared from Shepard. "Kasumi," he began seriously, "what happened? Was it…was it something with Garrus?" His face, as usual, conveyed a deep caring. Whether it was for herself or for Garrus (or both) she could not tell. It didn't matter.

She slowly nodded.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. Then Tali squeezed his hand harder than she needed to, but it managed to convey her thankfulness to John that he was hers. Once that poignant moment passed however, Tali became all anger and energy. She essentially became Grunt.

Tali would realize later that it was just as much because Kasumi had been hurt as it was Garrus disappointing her.

"Garrus, that bosh'tet. That filthy, ugly det kazuat." Tali continued to growl incoherent angry mutterings as she tugged on Kasumi's hand, pulling her into the main room. As they went by, Kasumi shot a comically pleading glance to Shepard, mouthing "help me" as she was dragged to the adjoining room. He had to stifle a laugh so he didn't draw Tali's attention.

While they went into the main room, John headed toward the mess - that wasn't right. He limped into the kitchen.

Damn it, Garrus. What did you do? You know she's been through a lot. Hell, we all have. But she's not a soldier, and what she saw went beyond the pale. That's not shit I would've wished on anybody. I just hope you had a good reason - and it'd better a really good fucking reason.

He blew out a long breath, coughing a little after.

"Kasumi, Tali? Can I get you anything? I have water that doesn't need an induction port."

He thought he heard an annoyed "keelah". He chuckled to himself.

"No, Shep. Thanks."

"Tal? You need anything?"

"No thank you. Just get in here."

Tali heard him still shuffling around in the other room, and her patience was wearing thin.

"John! Hurry up! We're waiting!"

He was laughing as he entered. "Well, aren't you bossy, princess." He sat down next to her, glass of water in one hand.

He watched her softened eyes give away the frown beneath them. "John, I'm sorry. I didn't mean -"

He put a finger to her vocalizer, stopping her mid-sentence. "It's ok. I was joking."

The other person in the room couldn't help but giggle, even passing through her veil of sadness. "You know, you two are so cute. I love it."

Tali gripped his hand affectionately, before returning to the task at hand.

"Okay, Kasumi. Out with it!"

So she told them from the beginning.

CRAAAACK!

The shot rang out, booming against what was otherwise peaceful silence. 150 meters away, the slug found purchase in the fist-sized rock that he'd meticulously propped up just for this exercise. The flutter of wings accompanied the squawks of disapproval from flying creatures that he could not name. He grunted his approval before spitting into the dust.

"You've made your choice," Garrus muttered as he loaded another clip.

What choice, exactly, did he have? It seemed to him like he'd finally found purpose. Victus may not have needed a sharpshooter, but he needed someone who just got the job done. If there was one thing he could say about himself, it was that. His coordinated effort to keep the turians in the war, at least according to the Primarch, was the only reason they had been able to make a decisive push in the final battle at all.

How much he believed all that was still up for debate.

He heard footsteps from behind.

"Thought I might find you out here, Garrus."

He greeted him without turning around. "Hello, Shepard."

Shepard gestured to the ammo box and the rifle. "Practicing?"

"Well, you know how it is. I can't let my skills drop too much if I'm going to be better than your crippled ass."

They both chuckled a little, Garrus had clearly forced his. "Besides, I've got to be ready for this mission. Who knows what the hell we'll find out there." Finally he turned to face his human friend. "Which is what you should be doing, by the way."

Shepard sighed, rolling his eyes a little. "Look, I appreciate your concern, but Tali seems to think that I'll be in more of a support role for this one. And she's the boss around these parts, a boss with whom I happen to agree. I mean, I can still use the biotics, but the shoulder isn't perfect so -"

"So just why the hell are you going?" Garrus snapped at him, far more harshly than he'd intended. Quickly, he tried to walk it back.

"Shepard, look I'm -"

Shepard took two steps toward him, less than a foot from his face - he was clearly pissed. "Why am I going? You want to know why I'm going?" He pointed angrily at the turian. "Because this is my home now, Garrus. These are my…Tali needs me there. And that's a good enough reason for me." He scowled at him. "It's more than I can say for you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Shepard crossed his arms in indignation. "I think you know exactly what I mean."

The defensive anger drained from the sharpshooter.

"Kasumi." He sounded so defeated.

John's own flash of anger fled from him at the way he'd said her name. "Yes, Garrus. Kasumi. What the hell happened, man?"

The adversarial tone had completely disappeared from his voice; now Shepard just wanted to understand. He wanted to help if he could.

Garrus sagged to the ground, leaning against the large rock there. He looked exhausted. Shepard did not join him.

"Spirits, Shepard. I don't know." The admiral shot him a look. "I mean it. We talked about it - well, we tried to talk about it." He huffed. "No, that's not right either. She tried to talk about it. I pushed her away."

With a sigh, Shepard dropped next to him.

"How come?"

Garrus looked away from him.

"You know I was never a good turian, Shepard."

'Yeah, so you've said. In fact, you're the shittiest turian I know."

The remark at least drew a rueful chuckle.

"With everything as messed up as it is right now, I suppose I want to try to help. You know, since I can." He blew out an exhausted breath. "Well, I guess this is my chance to be the 'good turian'."

"So now you care about being a 'good turian'? Jesus Christ, Garrus. Your timing is absolute shit, you know that right?" He shook his head. "Did you at least ask Kasumi what she thought, or did you just announce it like some kind of goddamn ultimatum?" Shepard already knew the answer - well, at least Kasumi's half of the answer.

"Heh, she told you about that? Yeah, I was not as 'diplomatic' about it as you tend to be. I guess…I think I wanted her reaction, Shepard." He looked at him with tired eyes. "I didn't want the burden of just…leaving outright, you know? This way, I told her I was going, and she could decide to go…or not go. And I knew what her reaction would be."

Shepard rubbed at his forehead. "That's fucking low, Garrus. So you pushed the responsibility onto her? Come on, man. You're better than that."

Now with eyes locked firmly to the ground he asked him, "Am I?"

"Damn it, Garrus. Yes. You are." He clapped him on the shoulder. "You know I heard about your conversation with Tali. You care, damn it. I know that you fucking care. So why do all this? Why the game?"

You're right, I do care. That's why I was so worried about her. But she's safe now. I can…let this go."

The former Spectre heard it for what it was: an excuse.

"Can you? Can you let her go?"

"I have to, Shepard."

"You didn't answer the question."

"That is my answer."

"You're lying to yourself. You know that, right?" His friend's expression remained unchanged. "Garrus, you're the best damn man I know. I just wish you'd acted like it with her."

Garrus sighed. "I don't know how to fix this, Shepard. I'm not even sure that I want to fix it. I am going back though, regardless. There's too much riding on it and…"

"And what?"

"My family is still missing. My father. And Solana."

Shepard clamped his eyes shut. "Fuck."

"Yeah, Shepard. Fuck." He rubbed at his forehead.

"Damn it, Garrus. Why didn't you tell her that? Or me? Or any of us, man?"

Garrus cracked a rueful smile. "Everyone has enough going on without my own…personal problems to add to it." He looked his human friend in the eye. "As for Sumi? Please, I felt guilty enough just being an asshole. I refuse to use this as a -"

"That's bullshit and you know it." He paused, considering his next words. "And what if she'd said yes?"

"No, Shepard. It would have felt hollow. Using that as a…I wasn't going to guilt her into coming with me. I know she doesn't want to."

"Ya know, Garrus? That's some of the dumbest shit I've ever heard in my life. Because what if she'd wanted to? Not out of a sense of guilt, but because she cared. What then? You still tell her no?"

"I…I don't know. And it doesn't matter anyway. Not anymore." Garrus regarded him with an expression that was both earnest and desperate. "You'll take care of her, right? Get her to wherever she wants to go? I know you don't have a ship, but Tali does, so I thought that -"

The former Spectre shook his head, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Yes, Garrus. If it comes to that, you know we'll take care of her, all right?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I know."

"Tali'Zorah, welcome."

"Good afternoon, Shala. Admirals. Conclave"

Tali had taken Kasumi to stay with Liara while John tried to sort out whatever bug had crawled back up Garrus's ass (perhaps as a stick replacement, she'd mused). The asari was happy enough, in that oddly detached way that she had, to take her in and then had asked Tali if he might not need to "feel a biotic warp up his ass" for good measure. Tali had felt badly enough - she didn't want to treat Kasumi like some kind of child or invalid who couldn't take care of herself. But she had assured her friend that it was okay, she'd just needed a place to stay and Liara didn't mind the extra company.

Which was well enough, since Tali presently had her pre-mission briefing with the board and the civilian Conclave.

It was somewhat surreal, Tali thought as she looked around the Fen'tal trying to memorize its features. Her breath caught in her throat a little as she took in the mural-like art on the walls, the uncovered quarians gathered around her. The encircling seats reminded her that the representatives here would speak for, but be beholden to, those witnessing their actions. And here she was, an admiral of the fleet, standing in the quarian ancestral seat of government. Her father would have been -

Proud? Would he though? Or was there something more he would have wanted to coax from me? Would it have been enough that I helped the man I love end the greatest threat in galactic history for good? Or would he have been disappointed that a human - my human - had finished the job outright?

Somewhere within her, despite her feelings about the title, Tali was proud. She was sick of it, but her pride and her fatigue were not bound to one another. And John was proud of her. He was so proud of how far she'd come, how much she'd grown since her pilgrim days.

The others nodded in greeting.

Raan began proceedings, not wanting to waste time. "The Conclave is here simply to witness the proceedings. The briefing is for us, so let's just get started since Tali has quite a lot to do."

Shala and Tali caught each other's eyes and shared a knowing smile.

"Yes, thank you. So, I've spoken with Veetor, and he has orders to brush up on his weapons training, updating his hacking analogs, and I've reminded him to leave his research with Tella'Xiala so that she can distribute his tasks among the other staff."

"Thank you, Tali. I was…concerned about that."

She nodded in Xen's direction. Keelah it was so strange hearing Xen still being courteous.

It had occurred to Tali that the eccentric (and tech-centric) admiral had been far more pleasant in their dealings recently. This was certainly evident after she had returned from Earth with the Geth data cache. Was it really as simple as her being bored? She didn't think so. Maybe it was because the data was from the Geth themselves? Or perhaps it was because it was due to the looming journey to the Kholas Array. After all, Xen was the one who knew what it was right from the off.

And Veetor had even told Tali how good Xen had been to him.

"My squadma…my friends are preparing as they normally would, and Shepard has been regaining his former biotic strength, which is quite formidable."

"Tali," Han began, "are you sure it is wise to bring him? Has he sufficiently recovered?"

Her initial reaction was anger - as it had become second-nature to her when dealing with Han'Gerrel, or anyone for that matter, that questioned her on nearly any matter when it came to John. But she held it in, more than a little surprised by just how genuine his concern sounded. Although, the more she thought about it, the more she suspected that it was probably little more than concern over the mission.

Whatever.

"Yes, Han. He is well enough. His tactical know-how and his biotics will be an asset, even if his…physical abilities (you wanted it) are not what he is accustomed to. In any case…I will need him with me."

She looked around and had to stifle a laugh as Tali caught both Shala and Zaal staring daggers at him. It was a not-so-subtle hint that it would be best if he did not poke this particular zastrah.

"Very good. Now about your transportation…"

"Yes, Shala. I wanted to bring that up. Thank you, to all of you, for the vessel. I am honored that it has been given to me." Tali had resolved to remain as cordial as she could with the admirals. John had told her that "being adversarial" would only make the whole thing a bigger pain in the ass. "It is a fine ship, and more than I deserve." Good job, Tali. Stay 'humble' in front of them. John had said once that I should 'pick my battles'. "It is not yet spaceworthy in my opinion, though. I will have to run tests on every system, fine tune many of the power flow conduits, there appears to be a slight misalignment in the kinetic barrier emitter and…I'm rambling." She let out a little chuckle. "Furthermore, there are a few things I'd like to consider upgrading first, and then there's a matter of selecting a crew."

"Of course, Tali. We thought that you might want to do that first." Zaal had finally spoken. "Which is why we've taken certain liberties regarding your transport, especially since we've no idea what you'll find."

Tali cocked her head in confusion. "Certain…liberties?"

"Yes. Han will provide for you a fully weaponized vessel - the Solara - as well as senior officers. You should find that you are most familiar with them, since they were all 'vas Neema' while you served aboard that vessel." At that, Han gestured toward the side entrance, and in walked 3 more quarians, whom Tali recognized almost immediately from her time on the Neema. Her face brightened into a huge grin.

"You! Keelah, Piara! Hulli! Aril!" She bounced on her toes, excited to see her old friends. She didn't care that she undoubtedly looked a little silly and almost certainly unprofessional. "All of you…Hi!" She let out a stunted giggle.

Not knowing who to run to first, she simply stumbled in their general direction.

"I am sure you remember them," came Shala's dry comment from behind her.

"Keelah, of course I do!"

Tali started with the blue-suited quarian at her left. She was a little taller than the admiral, and was clearly smiling at her. Tali took a few steps toward her.

"Hi, Tali," she said a little sheepishly.

A flash of memory -

"Tali, I am so sorry. I did not even know that it was possible. I never thought that…"

Tali held her hands in her lap. The tears still ran freely. "Neither did I, Piara. But keelah, he was so good to me. He treated me with respect, with kindness. We were equals, and…and I think he was going to tell me how much he cared for me, too."

Her friend's hand gripped her shoulder.

"He was my neyha, and he didn't even know it."

Tali shrugged off the unhappy memory, instead thankful that she had had such a friend in her time of need.

"Piara! How are you?" Tali had no inhibitions for her former crew mate, as she leaned in for a hug. "It's been too long." She looked away, momentarily ashamed. "I'm…I'm sorry I didn't keep in touch as much as -"

"Tali, stop it. You were busy saving the galaxy, and then our asses!" Laughing loudly, she brought her visor close to Tali's. "And then getting bonded to the human. Shepard! Shepard of all people! Keelah, Tali!" More quietly she stated a far more obvious truth. "Tali, I was so worried when I heard that you were missing, and then that you were staying on Earth because you found him? Those were the most joyful tears I have ever cried. But," her voice was far more playful now, "how is he? You know. Is he…you know?" She even nudged Tali's side with her elbow for emphasis.

She slapped her on the shoulder. "Stop it, you bosh'tet!" Then, far more quietly: "For the record, he is amazing. In every way," she added with a wink. The undertone in her voice made certain that Piara was well-aware in which ways she meant.

Her eyes widened. "Well, good. Tali, you deserve it. After what those bosh'tets did to you," she gestured toward the other admirals, who were seemingly oblivious, "I'm glad you're happy. Now go meet the others!" She cupped a hand to the side of her vocalizer, feigning secrecy. "We'll talk later!"

Tali muttered a humored "Keelah" as she shook her head. It would seem that Piara still had a thing for gossip.

Tali chuckled quietly. She should meet Kasumi.

Hulli was next in line, his auburn realk draped behind him in a far less ornate way (as the quarian males tended to do) than Tali's was.

"Tali, I don't understand this game."

"What do you mean, Hulli? Its pretty simple, really." She pushed a few chips in. She had been overcome with excitement when a deck of human playing cards and poker chips had somehow found their way onto the trading deck aboard the Neema.

"I have to lie to you to win?"

She smiled, looking down at her cards. "Not always, but Captain Shepard taught me that it helps."

Hulli averted his eyes at the mention of her dead friend and captain. "He seemed like a wise man. I bet he was great at this game."

"Who - Shepard?" The pain was still there whenever she thought of him, like always. But she had found, however fleeting, that a very small part of her had managed to be able to remember him with fondness in its purest form without the attached strings of crippling emotional agony. "Keelah, he was terrible at poker. He knew what was needed to win at it, he just wasn't very good at actually doing it."

"Hmm. Still, it is impressive enough to understand the tactics." Hulli glanced at his cards once more. "And in honor of your friend and master tactician, I…fold? Is that the right word?"

"But you didn't even place a bet!"

"See? Master tactician."

He greeted Tali with a tight hug, before stepping back, as if in appraisal.

"Tali'Zorah vas Normandy. Admiral of the quarian fleet, galactic heroine, from what I hear bondmate to Admiral Shepard, and my friend." He clapped her shoulders in an oddly human gesture. "Which title do you think brings me the most satisfaction?"

"Hi, Hulli. I missed you too."

He brought her in for one more hug. "I am honored to serve with you again, Tali. If your Shepard joins us, perhaps he would play -"

Tali snorted a laugh, then tried to mute it as she realized how ridiculous the noise was. "No. Hulli, no. It would not be fair, and I wouldn't want to see him lose all of his retirement credits to you!"

He snickered. "So you've heard?"

"Keelah, have I heard! Admiral Raan told me about how she had to assign an extra clean room appointment to you!"

"Ah yes, that was the most fulfilling hour of my life."

Tali hugged him again. "Hulli, it was wonderful to see you. Now, I should see about this other bosh'tet before she just turns around and leaves."

Hulli snorted his own laugh. "Well, please be nice to my own bondmate. I have to live with her, you know." He patted her once more on the shoulder. "See you soon, Tali."

Standing sheepishly in her more feminine auburn realk, Aril slowly opened her arms to embrace the admiral.

To Tali's surprise, she thought she heard a few choked off sobs. She definitely felt the shaking of her body. Aril sniffled.

"Ancestors, Tali! I thought you were dead. Then when I heard that you weren't…well, I wasn't sure if you'd even come back."

"Why? What do you mean?"

Tali stood outside Aril's room, nervous, excited, and confused in equal measure.

"Aril, c-can I come in?"

Tali thought she heard some shuffling from behind the door.

"Of course, Tali. It's unlocked."

When she stepped inside, she saw that there was already a chair set up for her.

"I-I heard about, that is, on Freedom's Progress…keelah, Tali? Was it really him? With Cerberus?"

She collapsed into the chair, holding her head in her hands. She shook from the sobs.

Tali felt three fingers rub gently into her back. She shook harder.

Aril enclosed her in her arms. "It was, wasn't it." It was not a question.

Tali nodded her head softly.

"Aril, it was him. It was him! And he was right th-there. And he hugged me. He told me that he had missed me!" More quietly, she added: "He asked me to come with him, because he needed me. He trusted me! And…I told him n-no…"

"But Tali, he wanted you. He trusts you! And -"

She finally looked to Aril's eyes. "I put in my transfer request, as soon as we finish the Haestrom mission."

Her hand shot to her vocalizer. "It really is him, then." She considered this. "Well, as I understand it, Kal'Reegar is leading the squad going with you. You will be fine, and then you will return to your neyha. Tali, you have a second chance. Do not waste it."

Aril leaned into the hug. "We were told very little. Just that you were missing. I didn't hear anything about you for two weeks after the Pulse. And when I heard that you were on Earth with him…I never imagined that you would ever come home. I thought that you would stay there with him."

"Aril, he never wanted to stay there. He…we are going to build our own home here."

She felt her friend's embrace again.

"He really is your saera, then," Aril murmured with more than a touch of wonder. "Tali, welcome home."

"I'm glad to be home - I'm also glad to be on Rannoch."

Aril tilted her head in confusion.

"Keelah, he is my home. Wherever he was, that's where I would be." Tali shrugged. "He's what my soul needs, and I, his."

Her friend couldn't help but smile - it was a full, genuine one.

"It is time I left you, Tali. We will talk later."

As Tali watched the last of her friends leave, she finally noticed the tears - of happiness - that were trickling down her face. She sniffled and swallowed the emotion back before addressing the other admirals.

"Thank you, all of you, for putting a crew - that crew - together for me. I was trying to sort out who I might need, if they're even available, or…you know what? I'll just stop talking." She facepalmed her visor. "Keelah."

Would you like to embarrass yourself further, Tali'Zorah? It's like you've set foot on the Normandy again. Maybe when this mission is over I can add them to the crew rotation for my ship.

Hmmm…my ship.

"…assigned one of my men to act as extra security. I'm sure you understand -"

She shook her thoughts from her head. "I'm sorry, Han. Could you repeat that?"

Tali knew that he'd rolled his eyes at her request. Which, to be honest, she thought was totally fair.

"Yes, Tali. I'd said that I was assigning one of my men to join you as well. Nat'Veral vas Neema, and he is one of my best. Now, you cannot keep him, but he will serve you well for this."

Tali felt a flush to her cheeks. Han seemed to be…well, maybe he was turning a corner? "That's…thank you, Han. I have met him, and he has always seemed to be a competent soldier. I appreciate all the help I can get. With luck, he will just be a bored passenger for this one."

Zaal cleared his throat - he hadn't said much, which was surprising. "There is one announcement that I would like to make before we adjourn, so Tali can get back to what is really important." He was smiling.

Again, Tali's face flushed. Even the admirals were having fun at her expense. Oh well.

Better than the alternative.

Once he saw that all eyes were on him, Zaal continued.

"Pomii will be resetting the networks in 2 to 3 days' time. She wants to run more tests -"

"Keelah, Zaal. How many damn tests must she run?"

Tali almost let out a loud laugh. There was the Daro'Xen that they all knew and loved.

Zaal did not flinch nor back down.

"She will run enough of them to ensure that the transition is successful, Daro, and not a second before. I apologize that you are 'inconvenienced', but we all have been. And I would prefer that it is done once and done correctly. As would she."

She grumbled some sort of reply that no one could understand.

He ignored the bosh'tet.

"As I was saying. She says that if all goes well, we will be down for no more than an hour. However, she has warned me that it will likely be a bit longer than that, and that you should back up any data that is not saved locally. Just in case." He shot a look to Daro, knowing that a snide remark would have likely been coming his way. "Which is precisely why she is doing a few more rounds of tests."

There was a pause when it seemed like Daro was debating if she should unleash some snappy comeback, but the silence indicated that she'd decided against it. After all, at the heart of it, Pomii was right, and it appeared that Daro knew it. She could wait a little longer if that's what it would take.

They extended their farewells to each other and to the Conclave, and that was that.

With the meeting now adjourned, Tali turned her full attention to what lay ahead of her.

"I'll join you soon, Tali," Shala informed her as she exited the building.

It was going to be a full day.

After all, the ceremony was tomorrow.