Elissa stood in the corner of the crew's quarters, watching as Chakwas wrapped Joker's leg in a cast, a shot of guilt piercing her heart each time he winced at the pain in his leg. She bit her bottom lip, holding the skin taught with her teeth, as she thought about the night's events kicking herself for not having prepared for the confrontation. Every fiber in her being had told her something would happen, which was why she had told a few members of the crew to bring a concealable weapon, but the fact it had happened in the magnitude it had was what baffled her. Aria had always been organized, that much was evident through her painstaking attention to detail when it came to any of her business deals, but having thirty six trained guns on hand in a matter of hours was incredible even for her.

'Maybe there's a mole on the Normandy too,' mused Elissa, 'or maybe it's the same mole Hackett has and he just decided to spy on my for awhile.'

"Hold still, Jeff," commanded Chakwas, her voice bringing Elissa from her musings, "If you keep moving, I can't set the bone properly."

"Just cut it off, Doc, just cut it off!" said Joker dramatically, Chakwas and Elissa both rolled their eyes in exasperation as the doctor continued to unroll the bandage up Joker's shin.

"It's not as bad as it could've been," said Chakwas thoughtfully, "those supplements and exercises seem to be helping you a great deal, the fracture was only half as deep as it might have been previously."

"Great," snorted Joker as he propped himself up further on the cot, "my bones still break but not all of the way through, maybe I can dance a jig every now and then."

Elissa resisted the urge to sigh, "Thank you, Chakwas, what would we ever do without you?"

"Fortunately you'll never have to find out, Commander," said Chakwas as she packed up her bag, "Joker, you need to stay off of that leg for as long as possible, even if your bones are becoming stronger you still need to use your crutches to get around especially now."

"Rannoch's not exactly the place for crutches, Chakwas," said Joker as he eased himself into a better position, "Any chance I can get a hoverchair?"

Chakwas sighed, "I'll see what I can do, maybe one of them isn't damaged beyond repair, I'll talk to Daniels in engineering."

Elissa shook her head, "Daniels has enough on her plate, ask Donnelly or Tali, they've been slacking off a bit too much here lately."

Chakwas nodded, seeming to understand, "Alright, I'll ask Tali, she's always had a knack for those types of mechanics."

"Much appreciated, Doc, let me know if you need any help," said Elissa, smiling as Chakwas headed out, "Oh, do you know where my mother is?"

"I believe she's with Samara and Liara in the mess having a cup of tea," said Chakwas, "as a matter of fact, I was just about to join them, so if you'll excuse me."

"Thanks again, Doc!" called Joker to her back, getting a lazy wave in response, he chuckled and turned to Elissa, "You know, you can join me down here, I'm not going to break again."

Elissa sighed, and sat down on the edge of the cot, her face drawn with worry and upset, "I'm so sorry Jeff, I can't believe I let you get hurt."

"Ellie, I got hurt running, not because you slammed me to the floor," scoffed Joker, taking her hand in his, "Don't blame yourself for this, you've enough to deal with without adding this into the mix."

Elissa gave him a halfhearted smile, "I guess you're right, hon. I'm just glad it's not as bad as it could've been, hell, we all got away pretty damn lucky."

"Tell me about it," scoffed Joker, running his thumb over her knuckles, "at least we're on our way to Rannoch, give us a chance to relax."

At this Elissa laughed, "Relax? Us? Jeff, honey, did we not just survive a shoot out with Omega's self-proclaimed queen?"

"Point taken," chuckled Joker, bringing her hand up to his mouth, gently grazing his lips across her skin sending a chill down through her, "You know, despite how the night ended, I had a great time with you."

Elissa blushed slightly, "I did too, I especially enjoyed your surprise proposal, it was rather sweet even if you didn't mean it."

Joker swallowed hard, "What if I had been serious?"

Elissa looked up at him through her eyelashes, "Well, if you had been serious, would you just have blurted it out like you did on the dance floor?"

"Mmm maybe not like that," said Joker, shifting his position, "I would've built up to it, maybe some music and wine, then given you a long speech about your attributes and why I love you as much as I do."

Elissa smiled, "As long as when you do it next time, it's for real. Anyway, I have a crew to check in with and a shower to take, see you later?"

Joker kissed the back of her hand before she stood, "Going to kiss me good night before going back to your nice comfy bed?"

She leaned down and kissed him deeply, "Not a chance, soldier, I'm getting a cot right next to yours."

"Aye, aye, Commander," said Joker in a husky voice, "Now go check on the family, I'll be right here waiting for that sexy ass of yours to saunter back in here."

"It saunters?" asked Elissa as she stood upright.

"Have you ever seen yourself walk?" asked Joker, his eyes lighting up as he spoke, "Damn, that ass of yours is hypnotic in the way it moves."

Elissa playfully punched his shoulder, "Don't fall into too much of a trance, I still need you to fly the ship later."

"Don't worry, babe, I only allow myself to be hypnotized when EDI's got control of the ship," replied Joker trying his best to cover up the grin forming on his lips.

"Alright then," said Elissa as she walked to the door, turning around at the last second before the doors closed, "Wait a minute, EDI's always in control of the ship."

"Exactly!" she heard Joker shout just as the doors sealed shut. She chuckled quietly as she shook her head, steering herself towards the main battery, needing to talk with Garrus about why Aria might have been able to scramble her forces as quickly as she did and why he did not mention sooner that he was not allowed on Omega in the first place.


Joker sat against the pillows, still gazing at the doors Elissa had just left through, their conversation about marriage still playing in his head. The proposal on the dance floor had been unexpected, then he had been able to play it off as a spur of the moment kind of thing, but now he was thinking that he might be ready to actually propose to her. He loved her a great deal, that much was clear, and he hated the idea of spending his life without her by his side. Suddenly it clicked, he was going to propose to her for real, and he was going to do it right starting with asking for Hannah's blessing.

"EDI," said Joker, "I need you to do me a favor."

"What is it, Jeff?" asked EDI from overhead.

"Can you call Hannah in here? I have a question for her," said Joker, suddenly feeling his stomach fluttering with a million butterflies as he thought about what he was about to do.

"Of course, Jeff," replied EDI, and then there was silence.

'Oh God, is this actually happening?' thought Joker as he fidgeted in his spot, his heart thundering in his chest, hands shaking with fear, a cold sweat breaking out on his brow, 'Shit, if I'm this nervous just asking for her mother's blessing, I'm going to need smelling salts when I actually go to propose to her.'

"Jeff, Hannah is on her way," said EDI interrupting his thoughts.

"Okay," breathed Joker shakily, "Thanks, EDI, just make sure we aren't interrupted."

"Yes, Jeff, as soon as she is inside the room I will engage privacy mode," said EDI.

"Thanks again," said Joker, trying to still his trembling hands as he waited anxiously for Hannah's impending arrival.

He did not have to wait long, soon Hannah was barreling through the door, a slightly manic look on her face as she walked over to Joker's cot.

"Joker, honey, is everything alright?" asked Hannah, sitting on the stool Chakwas had brought in earlier.

"Yeah," said Joker, his nerves nearly getting the better of him, "I, uh, had a question for you actually. It concerns Elissa."

"Oh?" said Hannah, raising an eyebrow, attempting poorly to keep the excitement out of her voice, "What kind of question?"

Joker cleared his throat, "As you're fully aware, Elissa and I have known each other for many years, and we've been dating for a few months now."

"Yes?" said Hannah slyly, getting the gist of where this conversation was heading.

"You must also know that I love your daughter more than life itself," continued Joker, the words coming easier now than before, "and I've come to the realization that I want her to always be by my side, and I thought it'd be right to ask for your permission to marry your daughter."

He looked up and saw tears in Hannah's eyes, at first he thought she might be upset but then she leaned forward and hugged him tightly, "Of course you have my permission, Jeff, gladly and freely."

Joker hugged her back, "There's one more thing, Hannah."

"What's that?" asked Hannah, retracting from the embrace slightly.

"I need a ring," said Joker bashfully, "I want to do this right, and it'd look bad if I didn't have a ring to give her."

Hannah smiled, "I have just the ring."

"Thanks, Hannah, I really appreciate your help," said Joker, releasing her from their embrace, "Do you still have any of that incredibly sweet wine that we drank at the Horizon a few months ago?"

"No, sadly I don't, but Karin might have something in her secret wares," said Hannah, "I'll ask her when I go to get the ring."

"Just don't tell anyone about this," said Joker, "I want this secret to stay one for right now, you know how this ship is."

Hannah chuckled, "Yeah, fortunately though, there are some secrets on this ship that have remained secret."

Joker raised an eyebrow, "Really? What secrets might those be, Hannah?"

"I might tell you about them someday," said Hannah lightly, "or perhaps Elissa will tell you when she learns of them herself."

"Okay, you secretive old fox," said Joker wryly, "I'll get it out of you yet."

"You think so, don't you?" retorted Hannah, "Anyway, I'm off to get the ring and ask Karin about some alcohol. Should I ask Kasumi for some incense?"

"No need to go overboard," said Joker, waving a hand dismissively, then he thought about it for a few moments, "on second thought, yeah, that might be a good idea."

"Okay, flyboy," sighed Hannah, a huge smile on her face, "I'll see what miracles I can perform, is there a deadline for this momentous occasion?"

"Uh, can you have everything together before we get to Rannoch?" asked Joker, nervously.

"Of course," said Hannah, opening the door to leave, "I wish you hadn't sworn me to secrecy, I want to shout from the top of the Normandy that my daughter's getting married!"

"Unadvisable, considering we're in the vacuum of space," called Joker as she left.

He heard Hannah laugh as the doors closed and he settled down back against his pillows, his head spinning with various emotions as he thought about how quickly his life was about to change in the next few hours. His stomach was still in knots and he could feel his heart pounding in his ears, but he had a huge smile on his face, this moment had been years in the making and he could not possibly be any happier than he was right now.


Elissa entered the main battery, surprised to see that Garrus was already sitting on the crate instead of waiting for her at the canon, his head was hung and he seemed to have lost all sense of belonging and self-worth. She quietly sat down beside him, everything she had planned to say to him vanished from her mind, instead she tried to think of how to ask him what was wrong.

Garrus looked up at her, his voice quiet as he spoke, "I'm sorry, Shepard."

Elissa put her hand on his forearm, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Actually, Shepard, I didn't know about being banned from Omega," sighed Garrus, "When I was found out, I left that night, it wasn't even Aria who told me to leave it was one of Patriarch's men. I had no idea that she had declared me banished from her kingdom, and I am so sorry, Shepard, if I had known I would've never gone to Afterlife with you."

"Garrus, I don't think it would've mattered," sighed Elissa, "I think it was planned before hand and made to look like it was a spur of the moment ambush that was meant for you. This wasn't your fault, Garrus, if anything it was mine. I had a feeling Aria was being too complacent, it was only a matter of time before she snapped, I should've kept everyone on the ship."

"We'd have ended up killing each other," chuckled Garrus, "You did what you thought was best, Shepard, you weren't responsible for this either. And yes, I know you're blaming yourself too."

Elissa smirked, "Well, misery loves company."

"It does seem to," agreed Garrus, "at least you got to shoot something, how did it feel?"

"Like old times," laughed Elissa, Garrus laughing with her. They were silent for a few moments before Elissa spoke again, "Are you looking forward to seeing your father and sister again?"

At this, Garrus smiled, "You know, I actually am. I haven't seen them since the war ended."

"It's been that long?" asked Elissa, her eyes cast down at the floor, "Well, I'm not exactly daughter of the year, before my trial it had been years since I last saw my mother."

"Really?" asked Garrus, "I would've thought you'd have seen her long before then."

Elissa looked up at him with a guilty light in her eyes, "I didn't write her much while I was active duty, and when I was under house arrest I couldn't bring myself to ask her to visit me, I felt so ashamed. All of my hard work to protect the galaxy and I end up arrested, how do you tell your parent that?"

"You forget Shepard, I had to tell my father all we had learned during our missions," said Garrus, "and you admitted yourself that you wouldn't have believed the truth if you hadn't been the one to discover it all."

Elissa snorted, "At least it gained you some respect, all it got me were some strange looks and a nice room. Are you going to tell your dad about Tali once we get to Rannoch?"

Garrus gulped, looking as if another rocket was flying straight at him, "Oh spirits, can you help me with that? I'm not sure what to say or do, I've never been in this situation before."

"Garrus," laughed Elissa, "it's not that hard, all you do is walk to him with Tali and say, 'Father, I'd like you to meet Admiral Tali'Zorah vas Normandy, the woman I love.' It's that simple, don't sweat it too much."

"You certainly know more about this type of thing than I do," sighed Garrus, "What about her aunt? I've only heard about her second hand from Tali and a few of the other admirals, what if she doesn't approve of me? What if she thinks Tali should be with Kal'Reegar? How do I deal with that kind of criticism?"

Elissa raised an eyebrow, resisting the urge to laugh, "Garrus, are you actually afraid? I don't think I've ever seen you this scared before."

"This is uncharted territory for me," sighed Garrus, "What should I do to impress her aunt? What are you going to do impress Hilary?"

Elissa sat back against the wall, "I'm not really sure, I hadn't given any thought to that myself actually."

"With soldiers, it's easy to impress them," groaned Garrus, "A few rounds in a simulator, a couple of drinking games, and some good natured hand to hand combat."

"Yeah, tell me about it," sighed Elissa, twisting a piece of loose hair around her finger, "I don't know what I'll say to Hilary, all I know about her is she wants to be a pilot and that she grew up on a farm. I grew up on several Naval posts and wanted to be an officer, not a lot of common ground so far."

"At least you're the same species," said Garrus, wringing his hands nervously, "I don't know how approving of interspecies relationships Quarians are, I know how Turians feel about it, my father won't exactly be thrilled but Tali can charm her way into his heart I know that much. Damn it, why am I over thinking this?"

"It's because you love her that you're over thinking this situation," said Elissa kindly, "You shouldn't worry, Garrus, just be yourself and everything should turn out just fine."

"I guess you're right, Shepard," said Garrus, giving her a small smile, "Why don't you take a leaf out of your own book and not fret about meeting Hilary?"

"You think so?" chuckled Elissa, "I might just do that, but what am I going to say when she notices Joker's broken leg?"

"Tell her it was a casualty from a night of avid and passionate love making," teased Garrus, laughing when he saw her cheeks turning red.

"If I tell her that, Joker might break my leg to match," groaned Elissa, burying her head in her hands as Garrus's laughter filled the room.


"Shepard!" called Jacob from the mess as she exited the main battery, and she walked over to his table, noticing an array of what appeared to be small toys on the tabletop.

"Hey, Jacob," said Elissa, sitting across from him, "What's up?"

"I'm trying to pick out a few toys for Nick," said Jacob, picking up a rattle and shaking it, "I'm not sure what he likes anymore, which would you pick? The rattle or the stuffed Elcor?"

"A stuffed animal's always a safe bet," reasoned Elissa, "What are you getting Brynn?"

Jacob gave her a sly look, "Something better than perfume and chocolate."

"Ah, understood," said Elissa, thinking of something to change the subject, "How is little Nicky? Is he crawling yet?"

"Brynn said he's started to but hasn't really found his balance yet," sighed Jacob, turning the stuffed Elcor over in his hands, "I feel like a lousy father, I've missed out on so much. Am I a bad father?"

Elissa saw the sad and worried look on Jacob's face, knowing immediately that he was thinking of his own father and how he had walked out on Jacob and his mother when he was just a small child. She reached out and put her hand on his, smiling gently as he looked her in the eye, "You're nothing like your father, Jacob, you're a great father to Nick. Not to mention you're an excellent partner to Brynn, and right now you're racing across the galaxy to be with them, something Ronald didn't do for you and your mom."

Jacob gave her the barest of smiles, "I know you're right, Shepard, it's just hard not to compare myself to him, I see so many similarities between us that it's hard to ignore."

Elissa released a small sigh, "Look, Jacob, no matter how hard we try we'll always compare ourselves to our parents. I know I do it at least four times a day, just comparing myself to my mother, and that's a good day."

Jacob gave a throaty chuckle, "You have a point, Elissa, maybe I should try not to read too much into it unless I'm doing something I know is destructive to my role of being a father."

"That's a good way to look at it," agreed Elissa, "So are you going to propose to Brynn any time soon?"

She watched Jacob squirm nervously, this was obviously something he had been wrestling with, "Actually, Elissa, I haven't decided just yet. I know Brynn's been expecting it, we've been together for a while now, but I don't know when the right time would be."

"Maybe you should just ask her one night over dinner," suggested Elissa, "Just make sure she's in a good mood when you do ask her, but I'm sure you have that all planned out."

Jacob smirked, "You got me there, Elissa, I have planned at least that much."

"Okay, yeah, I'm not touching that subject," laughed Elissa as she picked up a toy Mako from the table, driving it across the table top.

"You'd best not let her play with that toy for too long, Jacob," said Tali as she approached, "She spectacularly wrecked the real thing several times in its short life."

Elissa stuck her tongue out at Tali playfully, "Glad to see my driving will always be a source of enjoyment for you, Tali, like my dancing used to."

"That's still in a state of purgatory right now," said Tali, helping Jacob pack the toys away.

"Okay, I have a few preparations to make before we land on Rannoch tomorrow," said Jacob, standing up from the table, "I'll leave you two to talk. Thanks for all of the help, Elissa."

"Anytime, Jacob," called Elissa as he walked back to his quarters, and she then turned her attention to Tali, "Excited about going home?"

"Is it that obvious?" asked Tali excitedly, "My house should just about be complete, and I'll get to meet Garrus's father and sister, and he'll get to meet Auntie Raan and I'm so scared."

Elissa wrapped her arm around her friend's trembling form, "Why are you scared?"

"What if his father doesn't like me? What if Auntie Raan hates me for being with a Turian?" asked Tali, her words spilling out rapidly, "Quarians aren't ordinarily allowed to date outside of the Fleet, I guess it would have been worse if I were with a Batarian, but—"

"Tali," interrupted Elissa, halting the ramblings, "you need to calm down, you're not going to be exiled for falling in love with a Turian and I think you'll find both families to be more than reasonable when it comes to accepting you two together. You need to have a little faith, Tali, everything will turn out the way it should."

Tali let out an audible sigh, this problem had obviously weighed heavily on her mind, "Thanks, Lisa, you always know what to say. Do you think Garrus is as worried about this as much as I am?"

Elissa stifled the laugh in her throat, passing it off as a bad cough, "You know Tali, I think you and he should probably talk this over with each other, it's a big step after all, meeting your man's family."

"Right," agreed Tali, "What are you going to do when you meet Hilary?"

Elissa tried not to roll her eyes, grimacing slightly again at the question, "I'm probably going to hug her and then talk with her, you know, the usual kind of thing. I'm not going to put on fake airs just to impress someone, hell, we both know that wouldn't last very long."

Tali laughed, "You have a point there, Lisa, it doesn't seem like you could fake being someone else very well or for very long. Oh before I forget, is Joker doing alright? Chakwas told me I have to repair a hoverchair for him before we arrive on Rannoch."

Elissa nodded, "Yeah, he broke his leg and has to take it easy for a little while but he'll be fine, according to Chakwas it could've been much worse than it was. Is there any chance you can repair one of the chairs?"

"I've looked at the ones we salvaged from the wreckage of the medbay and there's potential for one to be fully operational in a few hours actually," said Tali knowingly, "I've been tinkering with it some tonight and by the time we arrive it should be functioning properly."

"Thanks so much for this, Tali," said Elissa, rubbing her shoulder affectionately, "You're such a great friend, we're really lucky to have you."

"Lisa, you'll make me blush," laughed Tali, "Anyway, I should probably go and find Garrus, make sure we both know what to expect with our respective families."

"You go do that," chuckled Elissa as Tali left to the main battery only to have her spot filled by Jack with James, Gabby and Kasumi sitting across from them both.

"Hey, Shepard," said Jack, "Helluva party earlier, thanks for letting me help you kick ass, it brought back a lot of memories."

"I don't see you as the sentimental type, Jack," teased Elissa, "But I have to agree, it was fun to kick ass with you again."

"Yeah, Lola," said James happily, until he thought about how the night had ended, "what a great night, except for the part where Aria's brains got blown out on the floor of her own party."

"Yeah, that put a damper on things," agreed Gabby, as she sipped on some warm coffee, "I did have fun nonetheless, it was kind of sweet to see Ken get jealous when those men checked me out."

"I'm just glad we were able to get off this ship for a while, no matter how it ended," said Kasumi thoughtfully as she played with her hood, having gotten dressed in her normal attire after arriving back on the ship.

"It was a fun night," agreed Elissa, "I'm hoping this next shore leave will yield less violence and more relaxing. Are you looking forward to seeing your families again, Gabby, James?"

"You bet, Lola," sighed James contentedly, "I can't wait to see mi Tio Emilio and primos Gabriella, Patrice, Sebastian and Caleb. It'll be wonderful to be around the familia again, and they'll love Miranda, I know it."

"Hope the Cheerleader doesn't freeze the little kiddies with her icy heart," mumbled Jack so only Elissa could hear.

"Oh yes," said Gabby, smiling brightly, "Ken's ecstatic about it too, he's looking forward to his mother making authentic haggis, I'm hoping the Quarians don't have any of the ingredients."

"Hasn't Ken asked you to make it for him?" asked James, nudging her with his elbow.

"Unfortunately," groaned Gabby, "You want to know the worst part? I actually did it right."

"And he still expects his mother to make him haggis when his wife can do it just the same? Strange," said Kasumi with a smirk.

"I know," scoffed Gabby, "He said something about his mother's cooking and how I could stand to learn more from her, I guess haggis was just the stepping stone. Speaking of my wonderfully strange husband, I should go find him, we need to get some sleep before we arrive tomorrow morning."

"Morning's in a couple of hours," commented Elissa, checking the time on her omni-tool, "I think we should all go turn in, for what a few hours sleep will do for us."

"I agree," yawned James as he stretched, "Miranda's already in bed, I think I'll go join her, see you all in the morning."

"Night, James," called Elissa as James went into Miranda's quarters, "Are you headed back to engineering, Jack?"

"Yep, got a hammock set up down there and everything," said Jack, "I have some reports to finish, just last minute stuff I forgot to do before the kids were sent off to Earth."

"How many reports do you have left? I thought the kids were sent away weeks ago," said Elissa puzzled.

"Yeah, well, I've never been very good at filing those damn things anyway," said Jack as she stood, "See you whenever, Shepard."

"Night, Jack," chuckled Elissa.

"I better go find Ken," huffed Gabby, "EDI, any idea where my husband is?"

"I believe he's asleep at his work station, Gabby," said EDI's disembodied voice from above their heads.

Gabby rolled her eyes but Elissa saw the small smile, "At least it saves me the trip of having to go from wherever he might've been to engineering, night all."

"Night, Gabby," said Elissa as the engineer left, leaving only herself and Kasumi.

"Are you going to bed too, Shep?" asked Kasumi, glancing at her best friend from underneath her hood.

"Yeah," said Elissa as she stopped a yawn, "I still need to find a cot and set it up beside Joker's. You headed to bed as well?"

"Probably, or sneak in and watch Jacob do some crunches," giggled Kasumi, activating her cloaking device, "See you later, Shep."

"Don't ever change, Kasumi," said Elissa, smiling as she walked back towards the crew's quarters.

"No plans on it," came Kasumi's voice from somewhere.


Elissa opened the door, trying not to disturb the sleeping crew members as she moved to the separated off section where she knew Joker was sleeping, on her way there she picked up a cot from the wall as well as a blanket and pillow. When she arrived at the curtain she carefully opened it and to her surprise saw that Joker's cot was empty and his crutches were missing, she set her cot down and quietly left the room, wondering where Joker could possible be at this hour. She looked around the mess when she left the room, it was empty, even Rupert was no where in sight which was strange since he was usually up late trying out new recipes for the crew's menu.

"EDI, do you know where Joker is?" asked Elissa, looking up at the ceiling.

"Yes, Elissa," said EDI, "He's in the port side observation deck."

"Thanks," said Elissa as she charged to the room, mentally reminding herself yet again to ask EDI why she was now calling her by her first name.

When she opened the door, she was floored. Joker was standing with his crutches under his arm in the middle of the floor, the window behind him opened all of the way to reveal the beautiful stars, a small table was set up beside him with two wine glasses and a bottle of wine between them, there was also a small chocolate cake sitting on the table and a bunch of large pillows were made up in a nice bed. The room smelled of oranges and sandalwood roses and she could not believe he had gone through all of this trouble.

"Jeff," said Elissa quietly, still stunned at her surroundings, "what's all this for?"

Joker smiled and ushered her to join him, and she did though her steps were heavy as she tried to register what was going on, when she was close enough Joker put down his crutches and wrapped his arms snugly around her waist. With one hand he deftly undid her bun, watching as her curls rolled down her shoulders like waves on an ocean, sucking in a deep breath to control his desires.

"This is for you, Elissa," said Joker, blushing slightly as he spoke, "I thought we needed something special, just for us."

"Jeff, this is so incredibly sweet," gushed Elissa, her arms snaking around his neck, she planted a light kiss on his lips.

"It's about to get even better," said Joker, and he looked up at the ceiling, "EDI, cue the music."

Suddenly the room was filled with soft string music, and Joker started swaying in time with the melody, indicating to Elissa to do the same and she eagerly obliged smiling as they continued their little dance in the center of the room.

"I'm sorry this isn't better," whispered Joker as they danced in a circle, "If my leg hadn't snapped, I'd—"

Elissa cut him off with another small kiss, "This is wonderful, Jeff, absolutely perfect."

"I'm glad you think so," said Joker nervously, "Could I tempt you with some wine and chocolate cake?"

"You know me so well," giggled Elissa as they stopped dancing and he helped her into one of the chairs he had set up earlier and then he hobbled over to his own chair, sitting down across from her. With a smile he opened the bottle of wine and poured the sweet white nectar into the glasses, his hands shaking as he did so, extremely nervous for what was about to come. His hand still trembled as he handed her a nearly full glass of wine and then took his own, sipping it nervously as he watched her intently from across the table, taking in her beauty from almost every angle he could get while sitting down.

"How do you like the wine?" asked Joker swirling the wine in his glass.

"It's fabulous," breathed Elissa as she took another sip, moaning softly as she felt the wine wash over her tongue, the taste too incredible to describe.

"I'm glad you like it," said Joker, reaching over and cutting a slice of cake for her, sliding the plate to her carefully, "Try the cake, I had Rupert make it especially for you."

"Thanks," said Elissa, surprised, "When did you have time to get this planned in just a couple of hours?"

"Your mom was a great help," admitted Joker bashfully, as she took a bite of the cake, moaning loudly in pleasure, "I take it this cake and the wine get the Shepard Seal of Approval?"

Elissa gave him a look before nodding enthusiastically, eliciting a laugh from Joker, and she laughed as soon as she finished her bite of cake.

"Why'd you do all of this, Jeff?" asked Elissa as she cut another bite, "It's not my birthday or our anniversary, so what's up?"

Joker took a deep breath as he reached into his pocket, pulling a hard circle into his hand, praying that the sweat forming on his palm did not make it slide out.

He cleared his throat before he spoke, "Elissa, we've known each other for several years now, been best friends from the start and although we haven't dated for very long I've been in love with you from the day we started serving together. I know I didn't say anything until it was almost too late, but I didn't think I was the man you deserved, and I realize how stupid that sounds but it's true. You Elissa are beautiful, intelligent, kind, witty, and the best woman I have ever had the pleasure of knowing in my entire life and I can't imagine being without you again in any way." He paused briefly to regain his composure before continuing, "Elissa Jacqueline Shepard, love of my life and soul of the Normandy, will you marry me?"