These quiet moments before his family wakes leads Garrus deep into those far off thoughts he usually keeps at bay with either the twin's or his wife's company. Tending to them in any way pushes aside the scars the war and Omega have left on his soul, silences the voice of guilt and washes away visions of the imagined deaths of his loved ones. He can't sleep because of them and his sleep cycles have long since adapted to the few - too few - hours he manages to get, but there is one benefit of it all. If not for his moments lying awake, listening to the soft breaths of his love at his side, he wouldn't be able to still Jane at the slightest signs of her nightmares and before her mind spirals too deep into that fog covered world she calls her living hell.
He thinks the saying for the stillness of this morning would be 'so far, so good' as he has yet to need to urge Jane awake or sing to her with his vocals in attempt to fight back her nightmares. He knows there's always the possibility of one right before she wakes, but it's not common, and she hasn't shown any of the signs that warn of an impending outburst. Still, he doesn't move himself to roll away from her side where he gently caresses the soft skin of her bare shoulder and upper chest.
Normally, he'd take a few selfish moments to tease her skin to see her body react to his touch, even in sleep, but the fact that they're currently sharing the small cabin of their transport with the twins throws any of those ideas out the window, as he's heard. Their soft little snuffles and snores remind him not only of their presence, but of the barely veiled stresses of what's to come when they reach their destination, his former homeworld of Palaven.
While he looks forward to seeing his father and sister and showing his children and wife his people's home since most of the destruction from the war has been repaired, he worries about his children who are now old enough to attract unwanted attention.
It won't be hard for any turian to recognize the family of the former Praetor who led the war effort alongside the Primarch. That kind of reputation doesn't lend well to the four of them staying out of the public's scrutiny.
He sighs, closing his eyes as another wave of stress washes over him. At least, he considers, his father and sister still live in the home the Hierarchy handed to Garrus at the end of the war. It's far enough from Cipritine to alleviate most of his worries, but there's still the concern of 'what ifs' surrounding all the plans he has of showing his family the sights of the capital. There's no idea when and if they will ever be able to return again.
A rustle of sheets at his side speak of his wife awakening and he purrs as he opens his eyes. Jane's eyes are still shut - clenched tight, even - and he huffs a soft chuckle as he caresses a knuckle over her forehead. His answer to his attentions are a grunt as she tugs the blankets over her shoulders and attempts to burrow her head underneath to stave away the morning.
She's absolutely adorable like this. Never would he have thought the savior of the galaxy would need to be pried out of bed like a thirty-nine year old child, and yet, here lies the conqueror of the Reapers, curled up under the warm blankets.
"Jane." A grunt is his only answer and he grins, reaching for the edge of the blanket to start peeling it away despite her grip in sleepy protest. "We're almost to Palaven." She mumbles something, but he knows her well enough to decipher the unintelligible sound. "Yes, you have to get up. Sol and dad will love seeing you."
He manages to pull the blankets over her head in the short moment of her incredulous snort and smiles at the green eyes that peek out as she tries to keep covered. "I'm sure they'd understand if I want to just sleep the whole visit."
Chuckling, he shakes he head and reveals more of her curled up form. "I doubt that. Besides, the twins won't want to leave without you." He tilts his head, humming in mock thought. "And I'm pretty sure Bassilus will want to take his ship as soon as his cargo is unloaded."
Bassilus Cavorn, Captain of the Wraith ship, Aevalina, happened to have Palaven on his route of shipments from and to Virmire. It took little thought for Garrus to ask the man for safe passage for his family in order to bypass public transport or flying in the Normandy. Both of those options, especially the Normandy, attracted far too much attention and, while Primarch Victus assured them that they weren't deemed criminals to the Hierarchy despite the Council, Garrus didn't want to run the risk of anything. At least, once on Palaven, his former rank of Praetor would earn him silence and some acceptance from wandering eyes.
If he really considers it, he still technically is a Praetor. Victus never relieved him of that duty.
Bassilus agreed to Garrus' request without hesitation, stating he owed the Wraiths his livelihood. Previously a very by-the-book shipping captain, he was transporting civilian goods under Hierarchy hire alongside his own side jobs of transporting the occasional passenger on nonclassified trips. It all came crashing down when he, unknowingly, provided transport to a small group of men transporting illegal drugs in interesting places. When the Aevalina was stopped, searched, and passengers found carrying contraband, Bassilus lost his contract with the Hierarchy, his shipping license forever tarnished with his arrest.
The Wraiths, not caring about his past, offered him a job when he was left to transport the more shady and dangerous of cargo. He gladly accepted, vowing to do anything they asked, and had been working to carry either men or exports and imports ever since. With his current shipment of weapons mods the Wraiths' weapons lab created or altered, he also had no problem giving Garrus and his family a ride and place to stay in one of the Aevalina's passenger cabins. All they needed to worry about was the return trip they'd be having with another Wraith transport that'll arrive to pick up some sand rovers they underhandedly bought from the manufacturer.
Jane makes a noise with her tongue between her lips. "Bassilus will wait." She smirks. "I think he has a man crush on you."
"A what?"
"Man crush," she says, chuckling as she finally sits up with a yawn and stretching her arms over her head. Once done, she scratches her head through her tangled curls and smiles down to him. "Instead of fucking you, he wants to gaze longingly at how cool you are."
Garrus chuckles. "He's grateful for the work and home on Virmire. That doesn't mean he has a 'man crush', it means he's not an idiot." He can tell in the way Jane bites her lip and makes a choked sound that she wants to laugh, but can't with the kids still asleep. So he decides to tease her as he adds, "Anyone would be insane not to think I'm 'cool'."
Making another noise like the first, she lightly pushes his shoulder to force him back onto the bed as she collects herself. "You're so full of it I wonder why your eyes aren't brown." She yawns again, covering her mouth and talking half way through. "You wake the little bastards and I'll get my personable face on."
He chuckles as he watches her stumble out of bed, quietly calling out to her as she heads for the door to the bathroom connecting to the empty cabin neighboring their own. "Love you." She merely grumbles in response with a jerk of a gesture over her shoulder that should concern him about whether or not she shares the sentiment, but he knows her well enough to understand.
She loves him too, just not this early in the morning.
As soon as the door closes, Garrus sits up, pulls the blankets off, and climbs out of bed. The Aevalina happened to have cots enough for the twins to have a place to sleep without being left alone to cause all sorts of damage while not under their parents' watchful eyes. They may be seven, but they still have a knack for destroying anything not bolted down - and sometimes even then. After the favor Bassilus is doing for them, it seems only fair that Garrus and Jane sacrifice their privacy for a few nights on the trip to Palaven in order to keep control over the twin's destructiveness.
Walking to the lumps concealed under plush blankets, Garrus flicks his mandibles in amusement at their soft, subvocal snores. He can only hope they learn to close their mouths when they sleep or their eventual bed partners are going to be in for a long night. Although, he distantly remembers that Sol used to snore as a kid, so maybe it's just a turian child thing.
Focusing on the sound of the pitch to the sounds, he crouches down beside the cot where he's sure his daughter lays and gently starts to pull back the blankets. Rumbling, he whispers to her, "Cassia, it's time to wake up." Lifting up a flap of blanket, he sees her curled up in her sleep. "Wake up, princess." When she smacks her mouth and tries to duck her head closer to her cowl, he chuckles lightly. "You want to see grandpa and aunt Sol, don't you?" A single eye opens and he smiles, nodding. "We're close to docking on Palaven."
His daughter couldn't spring awake faster if she tried, seemingly shaking off her sleep in an instant. If Damocles didn't sleep heavy enough that not even a Reaper's boomin, synthetic roar from outside could wake him, he's sure Cassia would have scared him awake with her high pitched squeal. As it is, the little turian doesn't even flinch beneath his pile of blankets.
"We're going to see Pop-Pop?!" Cassia's mandibles flutter against her jaw as she bounces on the bed in her seated position. When Garrus nods, her vocals rise to an even higher pitch that he never would have guessed possible for any turian. "Can I wear my new dress?!"
"Of course you can. You don't have to ask, silly." Garrus chuckles and leans forward to nudge her forehead with his own before looking to his still covered and sleeping son. "You get dressed while I do whatever is in my power to wake your brother."
He hears her shuffling and hopping to the floor behind his back as he gently pries the blankets off of Damocles. Rumbling, he can't help the smile at his son's relaxed and carefree expression coupled with a rolling snore. A loud and unconscious snort is all the sleeping child does at the interruption to his slumber.
"Damocles. It's time to wake up." Garrus starts soft, gradually raising his voice as he continues to try and rouse his son. "You want to see grandpa and Sol, don't you?" He continues to get no response. "What about seeing where your dad grew up?" Still nothing, so he tries a new tactic. "We can try all sorts of good food. You wouldn't want to miss out on that."
He still gets no response, not even to his bribe of food that never once failed him before, and he starts to wonder if he should go get Jane out of the bathroom. For whatever reason, she always manages to get him up and heading downstairs for breakfast. His first breakfast, Garrus has to remind himself.
How he can stomach so much food, I'll never know. He even puts Jane's appetite to shame.
Before he can try a different tactic, Cassia does his work for him when she dives into the pile of blankets, and Damocles buried beneath them. Garrus has a split second of stunned silence, mouth hanging agape, before she bounces on her brother, chirping loudly. "Wake up, Damo! Wake up! We're gonna see Pop-Pop! And auntie Sol!"
With each hop on his bundled up body, Damocles grunts, gradually getting louder and more rough with an annoyed growl as he begins to stir. Garrus gently grabs Cassia's arm and urges her off her groaning brother, huffing a laugh at the complete shock he had in her actions. He should have been able to catch her before attacking her brother, but predicting that sort of thing isn't really something he learned in all his years before this morning. "Cassia, honey. Don't jump on your brother."
"But he was sleeping," she responds with an incredulous look. "I woke him up."
"Yeah. But not like that." Releasing his daughter so she can finish getting dressed - only wearing the short tights that'll go beneath her dress - Garrus crouches down beside the cot and nudges away the blankets from where he assumes is Damocles' head. When he finds his son's irritated face, eyes clenched shut and mandibles pulled tight as if he can force himself back to sleep, Garrus rumbles. "You okay?"
Damocles grunts and his mandibles twitch once, clicking against his jaw. "No," he answers, a pout written all over his face and echoing in his vocals.
Garrus chuckles and caresses his knuckle up his son's nose and soothing the tension at the junction of Damocles' brow and forehead plates. "You have to get up now. We're almost to Palaven and grandpa is waiting for us." He smiles as Damocles' eyes open slowly, as if using every ounce of willpower to pry them open. "I'm sure he's going to take us all for breakfast."
That gets the child's attention as his eyes widen to full awareness. "Really?"
"Only if you get up and get dressed."
Damocles' petulant sigh sounds so much like his mother that Garrus has to fight back a bark of laughter. Instead, he manages to hide his amused rumbling with a smile and stands. He watches as Damocles throws the blankets off in a childish frustration before sitting up and yawning. Just as he stands up with a sway in his step, the bathroom door opens with Jane brushing her teeth, her hair already pulled back.
She mumbles something Garrus assumes relates to his success with the waking the twins. Following her to the trunk of their own clothes, Garrus waits for her to grab her own clothes before he pulls his own out. He goes for a simple, short sleeved vest and loose pants while she prepares her own, much more elaborate outfit.
In order to protect herself from the harsh sun, Jane's planned to wear some pants she calls 'jeans' and a long sleeved, but thin, shirt with buttons down the center. He's seen her in such an outfit before on Virmire, but still worries about its effectiveness. Last thing he wants is to let her get hurt, but he also doesn't want her to overheat.
Have to remind her to use some of that higher grade sunscreen even under her clothes. Just in case…
Leaving the kids to finish getting dressed in their clothes - and put on their single, wide toed shoes to hide their toes - Garrus joins his wife in the small bathroom. Soon, the twins will be at an age where they will no longer be able to do things like this - dress in each other's company without anyone protesting - and Garrus can't help but realize that means one thing, that they're growing up.
And I'm getting old.
He chuckles and shakes his head as he closes the door to the bathroom behind him, thinking about just how soon it'll be before their groin plates finally separate. That will be the true sign of just how much time has passed. While he's not completely distraught over his children coming into their own, he does feel a bit like years have flown by while he back was turned. It feels like just yesterday he was approaching an mysterious human woman because protocol stated he had to look into the concerns of citizens.
Jane must have heard his amusement as her voice soon pulls him out of his reminiscing. "I feel left out on whatever joke you're laughing at."
Vocals rumbling, he smiles at her. "We're getting old."
As she tosses her sleeping shirt away, she snorts. "Speak for yourself. I'm technically two years younger thanks to Cerberus."
She smirks at him, hooking her bra closed in that backwards way she always does, and he huffs a laugh. "Anything to feel younger?"
"You know it." He rumbles in amusement as he shakes his head in response and she stops midway through pulling up her pants. "You still haven't told me just what brought that line of thinking on."
He takes a moment to pull on his own light pants before responding. He's pretty sure he's read somewhere that humans - especially females - don't like hearing about age. It's something about being raised to think aging equates to being old, as if that's simple, natural thing is a bad thing. He's even found stories of females getting angry and offended by it. Surely Jane wouldn't react the same, as she's already so different for the other females of her species, but he still wonders about crossing those little interspecies lines. Even if he doesn't intend to upset her, he'd much rather not run that risk in the first place.
When he feels her stare draw on long enough, he flickers his mandibles with a hum in his vocals. "I don't know whether or not I want to continue this conversation."
Jane snorts as she finally pulls on her shirt and begins to button it closed. "Don't tell me turians are afraid of being reminded of 'getting old'."
"I was thinking more about humans." He glances up from snapping his vest closed to see her raise a brow and clears his throat. "I heard… human females…"
That's all she seems to hear as she starts laughing, struggling to control herself so she can speak. Grumbling, Garrus lets her have her entertainment as he finishes dressing and turns to the sink to grab his coarse brush to clean his teeth. At least, he thinks, she's not still grumpy from being woken up, even if at his expense.
"Wow," she says, shuffling behind his back. "You really think I'm like other human women?" He merely shrugs in answer, pouring abrasive oil onto his brush. "Garrus, you're an idiot."
"So you keep saying," he says flatly in mock offense before starting to scour his teeth clean.
He feels her hand on his back as she leans over against his side and kisses his arm. "I don't care about being told we're getting old so long as you don't say it like it's some kind of plague." She huffs a short laugh. "If you treat me like I'm contagious or should be ashamed, well, then I'm going to be pissed, but I'm not in denial. I know people get older, but like hell will I let that stop me." He glances over to see her through the mirror and sees her grin before adding, "Hell, you and I can beat people with our canes if it gets to that point."
He laughs as best he can with the brush in his mouth and rumbles, smiling if not for the fact that he'd only make a mess by moving his mandibles with the oil still in his mouth. He mumbles something that's meant to mean 'looking forward to it', but he's pretty sure she doesn't have a clue what he's saying. Instead of responding to his intelligible response, she kisses as high as she can reach on his arm again before grabbing the tube of sun protectant and heading back out of the bathroom.
He hears her saying something about the twins getting their teeth brushed and barely manages to rinse his brush off before the two barge their way in. The obvious distaste for having to clean up is plain on their faces and it makes him bite back his laugh as he nods in agreement with his wife's orders. They scoff and pout, but grab their brushes with an extravagant show of effort.
"It's just brushing your teeth," he tells them, handing first his much more agreeable daughter the oil with Damocles next. "It won't kill you."
"How come we have to brush our teeth? They always fall out!" Damocles growls in frustration before finally shoving his brush in his mouth.
Garrus huffs and sighs. "Yes, our teeth can regrow, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't keep the current ones clean." When he gets an incredulous look from his son, he gives a pointed one right back. "And it makes your breath smell if you don't, so spend the few minutes it takes to brush them."
His son grumbles, but does as he's told. Assured that they won't just stop as soon as he turns his back, Garrus heads into the room to get his shoes. Jane's already coating her face in the cream using the small mirror she brought from Virmire - for her 'makeup' she had said - and turns to smile at him over her shoulder before continuing her work.
"Do you have a pocket to put this stuff in?" she asks, not turning back to him as she rubs the white cream over her skin to the point that it's no longer visible.
Garrus nods and joins her, offering a hand for some of the cream. When she squeezes some in his palm, he rubs it on the back of her neck and back that peeks out from the back of her shoulder when she leans over. "I can make it fit. How long does this last?"
"A few hours." He nods, taking note to put a timer on his visor once he puts it on. "You're going to time it, aren't you?"
"I am." Taking the bottle when she finishes her face, he slips it into one of the large pockets on his pants and walks over to grab his visor from the bedside table and leaves her to put on her face paint. "We shouldn't be out in the sun too much, but I don't want to run the risk."
She merely hums in answer and he slips the visor on, its interface coming to life. He runs through the diagnostic information out of a habit he's had for as long as he's been wearing it and, assured that nothing is amiss, sets a timer for three hours from now.
He heads over to the footlocker with his and Jane's things and pulls out his lighter boots with a hidden blade sheath and a pistol holster. They may have come to Palaven to relax with his family, but he's definitely not going out without any kind of insurance should trouble break out. While Jane has her biotics, Garrus wants to be sure he's equipped with more than his Omni-Tool.
Time to see if I'm still a Praetor, or I'll be left to figure out another way to get my weapons past dock security.
Slipping a blade into his sheath and standing to buckle his holster beneath his vest, he hears the soft chime of the door's interface. He looks to Jane to see if she's too busy to check on their visitor and sees her eyes in the mirror, a silent request to check it out for her. On his way to the door, he slides his pistol into the holster before hitting the door's interface to open the comm. "Yes?"
"Sir." Garrus hums at the sound of Bassilus' second in command's voice as the woman continues, "We're docking with South Cipritine Station. The Captain wanted me to let you know."
He nods and hits the open command, rumbling at the female's stiff posture. "At ease, Straeca," he assures the tall woman with swirling, purple markings. "Let the Captain know we are ready." He glances over his shoulder to see Jane pulling on her shoes as the kids throw things into their open footlockers. "We'll finish packing up our supplies for transfer to the shipping crate." Returning his eyes to the XO, he sees her look up from seemingly counting the pieces of storage needing to be taken to his father's home outside of the city. "Bassilus still has an arrange for transport, correct?"
"Yes, sir." She gives a curt nod. "They will be waiting for your things as soon as we dock."
"Very well. Thank you." He hums a goodbye and holds back his correction when she salutes before leaving. Watching her go, he gives his head a soft shake before stepping back into the room to help his family pack up their things. "I will never understand why our men continue to salute us. We aren't military."
"No," Jane says as she snaps one of the larger crates closed. "But we run similar to one, so it's only right by them to salute you." She shrugs, tossing some dirty clothes in another. "I think it shows more respect than them not doing it, but it doesn't mean I'm going to make them do it. It's more their preference, I guess."
Rumbling, he bends over and hands Cassia her favorite doll to put in with her things. "I suppose you're right." He huffs a laugh. "Still not used to people saluting me."
"Garrus. It's been years."
"That doesn't mean anything," he corrects with a chuckle. "I still remember the days of being in C-Sec where the only people calling me 'sir' were in handcuffs and trying to, what's the phrase, sweet talk me out of an arrest?"
She snorts and slams the final chest closed. "Don't lie. You like it."
He flicks a mandible in exasperation as he helps Damocles put the last of his things away and stands to take in the room for any last missing items. Looking and finding nothing, he rumbles and nods to himself. "Looks like that's everything." He smiles down to his children. "You two ready?"
"Uh-huh," Cassia shouts with a grin as Damocles purrs and nods rapidly.
"Will we get to eat breakfast?" the little boy asks and Garrus chuckles, nodding.
"Yeah, we'll get to eat with grandpa and aunt Sol." Motioning out towards the hall, he glances up to Jane and tilts his head in question. When she nods, he smiles and lays a hand on each child's back. "Alright, you two. Let's go see if we can watch the docking procedures in hopes that they'll hurry up."
They cheer as Jane says something under her breath about 'being left behind to do the hard work'. Garrus chuckles and takes Cassia's hand when she reaches up, laying his other hand on Damocles' back to lead him out and towards where he saw something similar to an observation room for the occasional guests located at the starboard end of this deck. When he caught a glance at it, it looked like it had two small windows, but they seemed big enough for the twins to at least get a look at Palaven outside.
If docking procedures had taken any longer, Garrus is sure the twins would have dug out pathways in the hull from their impatient running between the two viewports. He wasn't sure what their goal was, or if they believed they could rush the dock workers any faster by the power of their wills, but it felt like their frustrations spreading as he soon heard Jane's foot tapping and occasional irritated huff. It all was getting his own blood hot and he frequently found himself unconsciously rubbing his temple fringes to stave off a headache.
Impatience seems hereditary, now that he thinks about it.
When the docking procedures finally end and Bassilus approaches them to say goodbye, the twins literally drag Jane to towards the ramp off the ship and leaves Garrus to pleasantries. The older man chuckles as the two run by with their mother in tow in a blur, he rumbles and offers a hand to Garrus. Garrus takes it willingly, gripping the man's forearm and having his own grasped in turn.
"It's been a pleasure, sir," Bassilus says, his plates cracked with age shifting as he smiles softly. "I hope the ride wasn't too uncomfortable sharing a single room."
Garrus huffs a laugh, shaking his head. "That was our fault. Couldn't really trust the twins alone in a room, even if they were connected by a bathroom." The man nods in understanding, and Garrus almost wonders if Bassilus has had his own experiences with children. He decides that maybe there are reasons for both that experienced and silence concerning any real confirmation of it.
"Thank you, again," Garrus says, interrupting his thoughts and flicks a half smile with his mandible. "I don't know how we would've made it here without you."
"I'm sure another captain would have agreed."
"Not as quickly as you had." When the man chuckles, Garrus turns to leave.
"If you ever need anything, I will gladly be of service," Bassilus calls after him and Garrus waves a hand over his shoulder in acceptance of the offer. He may very well need to follow up on it if he ever wanted to take his family off Virmire without exposing themselves to legitimate transportation always under observation.
He makes it in time to get in line with his wife and children, offering to take Cassia's other hand in hopes of hiding her multiple fingers. With their summer clothes on, there is a high possibility that wearing gloves would attract attention, so the twins are left with the task of hiding their hands any chance they got in order to discourage curious eyes. Luckily, Damocles understands Garrus' intent by taking Cassia's hand not held by Jane and shoves his free hand into his shorts, the move easily blending into his bored demeanor for having to wait even longer before getting to see his grandfather and aunt. That, or Damocles is just impatient for breakfast now that his parents assured him that he'd have a chance to eat.
It turns out that Garrus, in fact, still carries the rank and authority of Praetor. When he leads his family from the front of the line to a security checkpoint, the attendant stops them before passing through the sensors. "Praetor Vakarian, sir?" Humming in suspicion, hoping that the Hierarchy hasn't changed its position on keeping from turning in one of their war heroes to the Council, he nods and the female clicks her mandibles with a wide-eyed look. "Spirits. It's you!" Chittering, she waves him to take his family around the sensors. "You don't need to be checked, sir."
Figuring he might as well be blunt, he nods and walks to her. "I'm carrying weapons."
She nods and taps a command into her terminal. "Very well, sir. I've left a note for any other dock personnel." Rumbling, she smiles at his twins. "You're father is a hero here on Palaven."
Damocles merely turns his head away, fluttering his mandibles in shyness, but Cassia grins, purring as she says, "I know. He's a hero everywhere."
Garrus grunts in surprise and looks to the security attendant, not comfortable with so much praise. Jane sounds like she's holding back chuckles at his side and the woman slowly grins. Clearing his throat, he squeezes his daughter's hand in hopes that she won't say anything more to put him in an ever more uncomfortable position in the spotlight.
He forgets that the woman can hear his embarrassed vocals and she chirps in light hearted amusement. "You're children are adorable." When he nods in thanks, she looks between him and his family. "I hope you all enjoy your visit to Palaven."
"Thank you," Jane says, smiling and offering a hand, which the attendant takes in an obvious gesture she's learned working on the docks.
The answers vocals of awe echo off the woman - seemingly at shaking hands with Jane - but she saves the fanfare with an agreeable nod as the handshake ends. "Have a nice day, ma'am."
Making their way towards the commercial area of the docks where vendors often set up small kiosks to appeal to passing travelers or ship workers. Last he heard from his communications with his father and sister, that is where they would be waiting. As they walk, the children can't seem to manage to see everything as their heads swivel every direction, but he still feels eyes boring into the side of his face.
Glancing over to his mate, he finds her smirking. "What?"
"She was cute," she says, grinning now and flicking her eyebrows up and down.
He isn't quite sure how to respond to that, knowing how possessive she can get. Flicking his mandibles, he looks forward. "I guess?"
At his discomfort, she starts to laugh and releases Cassia's hand just long enough to playfully push at him. "Wow. I got you on that one, didn't I?" She smirks and chuckles, her laughter softer. "You know, you can still look at turian women. I look at turian men."
He snorts at her subtle joke and rumbles. "That's just you." Smiling, he purrs softly. "I mean it when I always say it's just you."
She wrinkles her nose and makes a groaning sound. "You're such a sap." Her expression softens and he swears he can see a slight blush on her cheeks. "And I may joke, but you're always the one I want in my bed. In my life."
He knows she's said it before, countless times, but he always feels a deep vibration in his chest and a heavy thumping to his heart every time she assures him. He knows he'd never be able to flirt and tease other women like she does men, but that's just how he grew up. He always watched his mother deny flirtations from males whenever she was alone while his father was on the Citadel working and it just seems to have rubbed off on him. He's always felt uncomfortable accepting sexual praise when in a relationship - of which he's only had two - even when he openly accepts it while single, so maybe it's just him.
He knows that Jane never shows her true self to anyone but him and that's proof enough that she is his, and he hers. He doesn't mind when she teases friends because her goal is usually to entertain herself and others, but he's noticed how she has the occasional flirt outside of their circle of friends in attempt to get him wound up. Her goal is always to make him suffer long enough to turn it back on her in their intimate moments, ever in control, and he won't deny that, sometimes, he likes when she plays with his possessive streak.
Wanting to play her own game, he finally hums in mock thought. "You know, now that I think about it, she did have the best waist…"
She snorts. "Of course you'd go right for the waist. Perv."
"Mom," Damocles speaks up from her side, apparently catching some of the conversation, "what's a 'perv'?"
"It's what your dad is."
"Don't teach them-"
"Pop-pop!" Cassia grins and runs down the clear path between the two, inward facing rows of vendor stalls. Damocles quickly forgets his question and chases after her straight to Garrus' father just meters away in the parting crowd.
His father crouches down and the twins wrap their arms around his neck, surprising him at a human show of affection he's still learning thanks to the too few times they can all be together. After a moment, his expression softens and he lays a hand on each child's back and ghosts a mandible over theirs. Garrus and Jane meet them just as he looks up and smiles softly at Garrus, and the younger male actually smiles back.
"Hey! Where's my hug?!" Sol kneels down just as the two children practically fly into her arms. She's much more used to hugging and doesn't hesitate to squeeze them in the circle of her arms, making them laugh and squirm.
Jane chuckles as Garrus helps his father up. "They've missed you guys."
"Pop-pop. Daddy is a perv," Damocles says and Garrus' mandibles drop in shock as his father does much the same in response, eyes widening as his mouth gapes. Jane merely laughs and rubs the boy's head.
Garrus' father gives him an expectant look and, still feeling like a child, shrugs in innocence. "I don't know what he's talking about. He must have heard it somewhere." He gets an unbelieving rumble in response, but, thankfully, Damocles saves him from the very situation he just got them all into.
"Can we eat?"
Sol nods and takes his and Cassia's hand in each of hers, grinning down at them. "Let's go. We'll get something on the way there."
"'There'?" Garrus rumbles in question, looking to his father. "Where's 'there'?"
His father hums and gives a mere, "Someplace that wasn't completely destroyed in the war" as an answer.
Despite the blistering heat that felt like walking on the surface of the fucking sun, Jane found breakfast to be quite pleasant and, dare she say it, good for a planet where their amino acids weren't even the stuff her food was made out of. It was technically mid morning on Palaven, but brunch was just as good as nothing, especially where the kids were concerned.
She could have described her meal as something close to an open-faced sandwich, with a kind of bread-that-wasn't-bread topped with a sort of loaf of purplish meat and a side of oddly colored - what she guessed - vegetables. The waiter promised it was an asari fusion dish that had been ordered plenty of times during reconstruction by levo customers, so Jane figured it was worth trying food apparently every color of the rainbow.
The kids loved their… whatever it was. Despite Garrus' own order of nothing but chunks of a dark meat that supposedly could only be ordered on Palaven due it being unable to transport, the twins got something much like breaded strips and a slimy-looking gravy. It definitely didn't look appetizing, but Jane took note of trying to see if she could learn to cook it back home. She might even get bonus points for figuring out that side dish that looked like gelatin with chunks throughout.
Titus was mysteriously quiet through the meal, with Sol taking up most of the conversation with her constant questions and need for stories from Virmire. Garrus would often ask his father of the plans for today, but they all only got vague answers for their troubles. Whether or not Sol knew where they were going was difficult to determine but, either way, it was obvious she wouldn't tell. While it did seem odd, Titus didn't really seem upset, but mostly lost in his thoughts in the way he would flick his mandibles occasionally out of time with the conversation.
When it was finally time to pile into a transport big enough for all of them, the older man seemed to cool down some. He would often look between the twins or the viewport as they rode the automated vehicle, fluttering small smiles or nodding at questions they threw his way. Hell, he even gave responses at time as he slowly withdrew from whatever daydream he was in. It certainly seemed to calm Garrus down when Jane felt his tense body at her side relax some.
The closer the got to their destination, the more Garrus seemed to be putting together where they were going. Still as great a detective as before all this shit in their lives, he would often narrow his eyes at each passed building or turn in their route. Eventually, he glanced at his father and, getting some answer he was looking for, relaxed in his seat and joined in on whatever trivial questions they were all engrossed in. As the transport finally slowed and lowered, Jane finally leaned over to check the window - not that she'd know what she was seeing.
"I can't believe this place survived," Garrus says as he lifts open the door on his side of the transport and steps out.
Jane nudges Cassia out of the vehicle ahead of her and Garrus takes her little hand to support her when she takes the step down. On the other side of the vehicle, Damocles merely jumps out and runs around to join the two just as Garrus offers Jane a hand.
Finally stepping out into the light and looking around, she sees a large, marbled building with turian script carved over the arched doorway. It definitely seemed to have taken some damage in the war by the sections of wall that obviously looked newer that the seemingly hundreds of years old stones. Still, it was better than many of the pictures she had seen of Palaven directly after the Reapers even when she imagined what it looked like before the repairs. She could only guess what remained of what lay inside.
Walking hand in hand with Garrus, the twins with Sol and Titus slightly in the lead, Jane's eyes remained on the script above the doors. It was old script, looking much like the older, mostly forgotten Palaveni language Garrus was still trying to teach her and the kids. As she tries to figure out what the hell the lines intersecting each other mean, she stumbles a bit on a step and nearly falls on her face if not for Garrus' grip tightening and holding her up.
Looking down at her as she straightens, Garrus chuckles. "Do I need to start worrying that they slipped you something in your drink back there?"
"Ha," she says flatly, gesturing to the script as the rest of the family stops at the doorway to wait for them, looking back in question. "I was trying to figure that one out."
He rumbles and looks up, dropping his eyes back to her with a smile. "'Bellum omnium contra omnes.'"
"Oh, wow. Thank you for telling me something that still doesn't make a hell of a lot of sense." She sighs and starts to walk towards the others, not feeding his tendency to tease her about not catching onto the turian languages as fast as he did english.
He chuckles behind her and widens his step to catch up to her side. "Why didn't you ask what it meant, then?" She swats at him, making the twins giggle and Sol grin at her brother getting the brunt of frustration. "Fine, fine. It means-"
"The war of all against all," his father says with a deep thrum to his voice. "This is the Museum of the Unified People."
As the twins groan at being taken to a museum that they obviously find boring, Garrus nods to Jane and smiles. "It's the only museum to the Unification War that still exists." He hums and adds, "It lost some artifacts, but they brought what little survived from others."
Jane tilts her head in interest and nods. "Cool. You'll translate for me, right?" She narrows her eyes as he moves to open his mouth. "And actually say what's on the plaque and not bullshit me?"
Titus merely turns away to lead the way as Garrus chuckles and nods. "I'll hold back, this time."
Jane can hear Titus begin to point out and explain weapons used in the war thousands of years ago. Much like humanity, they started with really shitty guns, it seems, as she looks up at a turian dummy with what could barely be called armor holding the clunkiest looking weapon she's ever seen. Looking over the dummy, she can see numerous faults in its armor, and even places where it seems the actual wearer took hits. Draped over it were numerous, heavy looking, straps of munitions.
Looking at the plaque, she tries - and fails - to read the text mostly obscured by soot and damage from the war. "Little help?"
"It's an infantryman," he says without even looking to the inscription. "They had the bottom line weapons and armor." He hums and tilts his head, pointing to a hole in the chest of the armor. "That's a killing shot. Poor bastard probably bled out on the field."
"Damn." She looks over to him. "How did the more equipped soldiers do?"
"Well, if you're talking Hierarchy, really well. The colony armies had no chance." He waves a hand in 'follow me' and leads her to a dummy that clearly looked more agile. Its weapon looked lighter and able to hold more than one fucking bullet like the other clunker. "This is the best armor and weaponry colonies would have. And soldiers usually didn't have both weapons and armor at once. It was all usually a trade off."
"Damn… It's really shocking to see that turians don't have top of the line shit."
He chuckles and shrugs. "To them, this was top of the line."
"Daddy, look!" Damocles bounces further down the room, pointing to another dummy. "I wanna be this guy!"
Jane lifts a brow and looks to Garrus before her mate chuckles and takes her hand. "I bet I know which one he's talking about." Approaching the model, it's clear this soldier was massive. Or, at least, his armor made him so. Apparently right in his guess, Garrus rumbles with a smile as he glances down to their son. "Has grandpa told you who these soldiers are?"
"Nuh-uh."
Cassia uses the plaque to lever herself up and over to read the inscription. "Sal… solar…" Garrus lets her try a few times before she huffs and looks to him expectantly. "Daddy…"
"Salararius," he supplies, rumbling as he smiles, and his father picks up the description.
"These men and women were mercenaries, Damocles. That means they have no allegiances, but to themselves and credits."
Garrus sighs at his father's pointed jab at Jane and his chosen career - the only one that let's them choose their own battles instead of being a glorified attack dogs- and Jane squeezes his hand to calm his irritation. It takes a bit, but he eventually relaxes and shakes his head. "Do you have to say it that way?"
"Is it not true?"
"You know damn well we aren't like other mercenaries-"
"Oh-kay," Sol interrupts, taking the twin's hands and motioning Jane to come with her. When they are out of earshot of the two arguing men, she sighs, her mandibles fluttering. "I don't know why they always manage to find something to fight about."
"They're men?" Jane teases and Sol finally smiles, rumbling in amusement.
"Maybe you're right." She looks down to Damocles. "Don't you be like them." Jane's son grins and nods. Purring, she releases his hand to point to a large diorama of a large battle. "Why don't we check that out? It's like little toys fighting."
Both children grin and almost drag their aunt off her feet and Jane has to hurry to catch up, chuckling. At their arrival to the large - at least two meter by two meter - display, the kids put their hands up against the glass surrounding it on all sides, giving a three hundred and sixty degree view, and press their faces to stare inside. They start to call out ideas of what they think is happening to each other as Sol and Jane take a seat at a visitor's bench that overlooks the exhibit.
Sol hums and flicks her mandibles, looking out at the diorama. "So…"
Lifting a brow, Jane turn to her. "So?"
"Any chance we could talk? Girl to girl?"
Jane chuckles and shrugs. "Don't know if I qualify as a 'girl' anymore, but sure. What's on your mind?"
"Not what, who?" She flutters her mandibles shyly and finally looks to Jane. "I may have been talking with one of your former crew."
"James?"
Sol's eyes widen. "What? How did you-"
Jane snorts and smirks. "Please. I see these things." She chuckles and relaxes on the bench. "Plus, I always see how you make googly eyes at each other when you're around. Plus, James sorta asked me about turian tips awhile back. Honestly? I'm stunned you haven't done anything sooner."
Her sister-in-law frowns slightly. "He's always dealing with the Alliance and, whenever he has shore leave, it's either in human territory or too short to travel and meet up." She huffs and half smiles just like her brother does. "We just barely started something."
"Took you two long enough."
"Yeah, yeah," Sol retorts with a wave of her hand. "Not everyone can just jump right in. And James was a bit worried about Garrus' reaction. Apparently humans get overly protective of siblings?"
Jane shrugs. "Usually for sisters, yeah. It's like a 'you're not good enough' sort of thing." She snorts and lifts a brow. "I thought turians don't give a shit?"
"Well, no, we don't, but you think I could convince him?" She rumbles in amusement and she leans back on the bench as Jane looks back to the kids playing. "It took some time, but I think he's still wary. I'm pretty sure Garrus would give him a hard time either way-"
"But he wouldn't outright tell you two not to get together." Jane chuckles and leans her elbows on her knees. "You're dad, though…"
"What's the saying? 'Screw him'?" When Jane looks over her shoulder, she catches Sol's smirk. "What? You're rubbing off."
Laughing, Jane sits up and butts her shoulder against Sol's. "Tell you what, I'll see if I can finagle a way to get you two together on the Citadel or something. Does ask the Alliance because they'd deny it, but the Wraiths have a bit of an underhanded deal with them to supply weapons mods for cheap." She smirks at the thought of what she says next, "They don't know we practically sell to everyone with this same secret arrangement, but the point is that I can request Vega to do the inspection and handoff."
She hears a trilling gasp beside her and the sound of clothing shuffling as Sol sits up. "You can?"
"Sure. Why not?" Jane sees Garrus and Titus approaching over Sol's shoulder and nods to assure her sister-in-law once more. "I'll give him the plan. But we'll keep this from Garrus for now," she says, frowning slightly at the pissed look on her husband's face. "He doesn't look like he's in the mood for teasing."
Sol sighs in exasperation and stands up. "Figures." Smiling, she chirps and walks towards the twins. "You two ready to go see the big trucks we used to drive?"
"Yeah!" Both say as they rush to take her hand and she and Titus continue on deeper into the museum, Jane and her pissed husband in tow. She's sure he'll cool off before they get out, but, for now, she'll let him brood in the back of the group with her.