Yay chapter 9 :D Few surprises, I hope you'll like them. Please leave review, please enjoy, please stay tuned :D Hurr!

As always, enormous thanks for Razzberry31 for correcting my horrible mistakes :*

Again, enjoy!

oOo

Solana was a good turian. She obeyed her parents, did everything to please them. They wanted to raise her and Garrus as turians they would be proud of. It didn't go well with her brother though. Sometimes she envied him. He could do literally anything. Of course there were things he did because his father said so. Like dropping his Specter training and enrolling in C-Sec just to please him. She knew the bullshit on the Citadel made Garrus crazy. He often called her and complained about never ending red tape. That's why he took the first chance he found to escape. With a Specter. Father was displeased, lightly speaking, when he got to know about it. He was even more displeased when he found out that Garrus was on a human ship with a human Specter. Human-turian ship. She corrected herself. Then he was furious when Garrus dropped his Specter training again and left C-Sec after this human Specter... Shepard was her name. Then she had died. Soon after the funeral he disappeared, for about one and half years or so, then he had made his last call. She had listened to it, wondering if she will see him again. Dad just gave up at trying to understand his son at that point. Anyway, Garrus was lucky, he was like an Askarot, an animal, feline-like for humans, roaming the Palaven woods and always winning against the odds. To her surprise he returned after, what he called, a 'suicide mission'. Solana was happy, he came back to them, Mother could see her son before her death. They didn't even have time to mourn her when the Reapers attacked Palaven. Turians were the military might of the galaxy, but against those sentient machines they were nothing. Her planet was burning and she could do nothing. It was sheer luck that, despite her injury, she and her Father had managed to escape. Solana later learned that Garrus survived again and joined his Specter. Her female sense whispered to her that there was something between her brother and that human. The way he talked about her, the way his eyes looked when he talked or thought about the woman. It was something beyond fighting buddies or friends. She knew it very well. That's why when she entered the apartment Primarch Victus had brought them to, she knew exactly why this woman smelled like her brother. She regarded the human, her red short hair, her strange glowing scars and glowing eyes. She was small compared to the average turian. Then with one glimpse she found the mark on her neck. A bondmark. But there was something more. She inhaled deeply. There was another turian in the room. Two to be precise, but one scent was fading. That turian, a male, was here a few days ago. Yet another one was here, next to the human. Then Solana's eyes travelled lower, to the Specter's stomach. It was covered protectively by her five-fingered hands, just like turian females would cover their abdomens while being with child. Realisation hit her hard. She is pregnant! Spirits! With a turian! Solana slowly turned to her father who was as shocked as her. Solana saw Akteon Vakarian regard the human woman with wide opened mandibles when seconds earlier they were glued to his face. She heard a giggle so she turned to its source. It was the Primarch laughing at their reaction. "I knew it would be like that! Your faces, all of you, Shepard included, are priceless. Miss Kasumi, please take a photo."

"Already did, sir." Kasumi also was smirking, having the time of her life. "I need to send it to our Shadow Broker. God, she will laugh so hard." Shepard snapped from her shock and frowned.

"Kasumi Goto, I forbid you to send anything to Liara. Or Tali. Or anyone else." Then she turned to the Vakarians to greet them properly. "I'm sorry. Ah… um… I'm Commander Jane Shepard, Alliance Navy, Council Specter. I'm honoured to finally meet you." She offered her hand to Akteon and shook it in the turian manner. Then she turned to Solona and both women did the same. "And this is one of my crewmembers, Kasumi Goto." She pointed at the other human.

"It's a pleasure." Solona greeted Kasumi and turned to the Commander again. "The honour is ours. You are the hero. I'm Officer Solona Vakarian, Engineer of the 45th Platoon, 3rd fleet. And this is my father, Akteon Vakarian." Garrus' sister pointed at her father who still hadn't said a thing. Only an echo of his shocked hum still reverberated in his chest. "Dad, please! Say something." Solona hit him lightly with her elbow. That worked and old Vakarian mustered to say something.

"Ah, yes. Akteon Vakarian. It's a pleasure to meet the Saviour of the Galaxy. We are in debt to you, Commander. What you did up there was splendid. The galaxy should have more heroes of your kind." He said, dipping his head in front of Shepard. The woman blushed at Vakarian's speech.

"It was nothing, I did it for everyone. For myself as well. And Garrus." Shepard looked around, she spotted a couch and pointed at it nervously. "Let's sit, shall we?" When they were sitting, the Commander wanted to ask them something but instead smacked her forehead. "Shit! We don't have anything dextro to eat or drink." Solana wanted say they didn't need anything but the Primarch was first to talk.

"Miss Kasumi, let's go and buy something so the Commander and the Vakarians can talk a bit." The thief nodded and left them with Adrien. Goto leaving visibly panicked Shepard. Solana cleared her throat and stated bluntly.

"You and Garrus are bonded." Her dad coughed but remained silent. Shepard only nodded, her cheeks slightly red. Solana knew human facial expressions, she had worked with humans before. "From how my brother talked about you I know that you two are very close." Father coughed again. "And don't mind my father. He's just a bit... Please dad, don't."

"Are you feeling well, Mr. Vakarian? Is there anything I could do for you?" The commander asked with true concern. Solana felt she could even like the human female.

"No, it's fine. So, Spe... Commander. How long have you two been... um, bonded?" Shepard looked at the ceiling, clearly calculating. Suddenly her omni-tool pinged with an coming vid-comm. "Around 8 months. Please excuse me, my doctor is calling." She opened the vid-comm. Solana watched as a turian female appeared on the holo-screen. "Hello, doc. Something wrong?"

"I should be one asking that, Shepard. I just got pinged about your heart rate. Blood pressure is elevated! I told you it's bad for the baby! Your body had encountered too much trauma during the war, now you need to be extra cautious. Spirits, you are like a toddler. How many times do I need to repeat it? Maybe I'll just record myself to spare your time and mine." The human woman sent an ashamed gaze at Solana and Akteon.

"Umm, yeah. Vid would be great. But really, I'll calm down now. I can't talk, doc. I have important guests. We will speak later, okay?" The turian female growled quietly but nodded.

"Fine. But please, I beg you, try to calm down. Drink some water or... what was it called again... ah, tea! Yes, drink tea. Shakria out." The hologram vanished and Shepard looked at them again, apologetic this time.

"I... I'm sorry. I..." Shepard stuttered. Solana sat next to her and smiled, hoping that the woman knew anything about turian expressions. She did, gracing Solana with smile as well.

"Don't worry, Commander. Tell me about the baby. I can smell it and, what's most shocking, it's definitely turian." Shepard nodded again, slowly. For a moment she seemed to gather her thoughts.

"Well, to be honest it's around 70% turian. Other 30% it's human." Solana was sure she looked as dumbfounded as her father. Shepard saw it so she explained quickly how it happened. "But please, don't tell Garrus yet. I already get messages from my crew telling me that it's hard to deal with him. And... it's nearly 5th months. I'm scared about David, that's his name… that pregnancy, it's so unique and a first for me."

"As you wish, Commander." Akteon Vakarian spoke at last, he had warmed up a bit, Solana could tell. Thoughts of having a grandchild softened the old man quite fast. Solana had heard his nagging about getting a decent man and having a child for quite some time. To her surprise her Father hadn't even bothered to mention her Specter status. Maybe he sensed something in her. She must be different from other Specters he's met... or humans he met. Solana also felt that Shepard was different from the humans she knew. This woman was really something else. Maybe that's why Garrus' sister immediately trusted her.

"Please, call me Jane. Or Shepard, everybody calls me Shepard. Sometimes I think no one knows my real name, to be honest. Only Garrus uses Jane… sometimes." The Vakarians agreed, their subharmonics sang with approval. Akteon Vakarian smiled at the human and leaned into her.

"Can you show an old man his grandchild?" Jane smiled wide, her eyes shone with happiness. She quickly taped on her omni-tool and in a matter of seconds the hologram of the baby showed.

"It's a live-feed. Doctor Shakria got me an implant to monitor the baby. That's why I can also watch him. Because it's a 'him'." Vakarian hummed in pride. Solana accompanied with a happy hum of her own. She could wager all her credits that her dad was in awe, regarding his almost turian grandson. He dealt with it quite fast.

"So it's a male. I don't know what to say... I... I need to apologize, Jane. I wasn't really pleased about my son joining you. I was angry when he chose to fly across the galaxy on a human ship. Befriending and caring so much about a human woman. Mourning you so much when you, huh, died. But, it's not that I'm some raging xenophobe. No... As you probably know I worked for C-Sec, after the war with humanity. I tried to be fair to humans, believe me. I don't hate your species. I just... had other plans for Garrus. Yet he did what he desired to, in the end. Now I am happy he did so. My son bonded with a remarkable woman. I couldn't be prouder. You saved the galaxy after all." Jane turned a darker shade of red.

"It wasn't just me. My crew, my friends, other species. With great help from the Primarch and turians, with Urdnot Wrex and krogans. With the asari, salarians, quarians, hell, even the geth, batarians, volus, hanars, elcors. Infamous Aria, Queen of Omega, shared her troops and resources to stop the Reapers." Shepard leaned into them, whispering confidentially. "Not to mention the rachni and an ancient species that I found, the Leviathan. That was some weird shit, trust me." Solana regarded this tiny woman in disbelief. So it was all true. This one human gathered all that military strength, all the galaxy's resources, to fight the Reapers and won this war. "What motivated me the most was Palaven on fire. I came to Menae to find the Primarch... and my heart nearly stopped at the sight. I was this close from a mental breakdown." Her thumb and index fingers almost touched. "And then your son appeared... with a smug face he said he would find me the Primarch. God, seriously... I thought I would punch him. Without Garrus I wouldn't be here to be honest. He was my reason to fight." Both Vakarians listened to her in silence. When she had finished, Akteon stood up and approached her. He took her hand in his.

"Jane Shepard, I'd be honored to welcome you into our family. You and the little one in your belly. My late wife would be overjoyed. Pity she can't see him… Pity she can't meet you. Her death made me see things in a different way, my actions, how I treated my son." Shepard regarded him in silence. Tears slid down her cheeks. It was the first time that Solana had seen a crying human. Salty scents reached her nose. When the Commander calmed down they sat and talked about the baby. To Solana's surprise, her father hadn't said anything about the names Shepard had chosen. Soon the Primarch and the other human female came with dextro food and drinks. After a while Solana really could tell that her father had calmed down. He asked Shepard about the fight, what happened on the Citadel, what happened after. They compared the state of Earth and Palaven. Later Primarch Victus had to leave but before he did, he opened his omni-tool.

"Mr. Vakarian, we've checked the status of your house. It's uninhabitable at the moment. We have a spare apartment in this building."

"They can stay here, Adrien. There is a lot of space in the apartment. If you want of course." Akteon agreed to that plan.

"Splendid, and you will have time to get to know each other. I need to go now and meet with Hierarchy. Have a nice evening."

"Yes, Primarch sir." Akteon straightened his back and saluted the Primarch. Solana did the same. To her surprise both humans just waved him goodbye and he responded with the same gesture.

"You are really close with the Primarch." Solana wanted to know the story behind it. Shepard smiled.

"Yeah, well he was aboard the Normandy for at least 2… or was it 3 months? Then we had contacted each other when he was gathering turian forces. He was with me on Earth and we spent time on the Hashir during our travel to Palaven. He's a good man." Old Vakarian could only nod, yet a sad keen escaped his subharmonic. "I knew you were friends with the late Primarch. Primarch Fedorian, yes?"

"Yes. Such a good man, a great leader. I lost a lot of good friends because of this cursed war. I saw my planet burn, people decimated. Children and teenagers killed on the streets. Sometimes I feel terrible for being alive." The turian keened sadly. Solana was there, when her father watched people die around him. He was devastated.

"Please, don't say that. I know the feeling. I also saw children die, on Earth, everywhere. But we all fought to be free. We won. We need to move on and learn from it. I learned a lot. Especially how to kick the Councillors asses when they dismissed my... ah "Reapers" crap." Jane mimicked the turian councillor. "I should have punched Sparatus that time."

"You already hung up on them, Shep." Kasumi replied, patting the woman on the back.

"Good ol' times." Solana started to laugh. She couldn't imagine Jane hanging up on the Council. "And Tevos... God, that bitch. I'm waiting for their call, I really am."

"From what I know Councillor Sparatus and Councillor Tevos are heading toward the Citadel." Akteon said. "You still want to be a Specter after the birth?"

"Ehh, yes. I think I do. That's my job after all. A well paid one. And I need to pay my crew and for the Normandy's fuel and eezo." Jane sighed leaning on the backrest. "The Alliance gave me the Normandy. It's my ship. I need to earn for its needs, and crew and also for my son." Kasumi frowned at Shepard.

"Shep, your a friggin' millionaire. You can fly the ship for 100 years with what you looted." Akteon turned to Solana, puzzled. They both let out a confused hum to each other.

"Don't forget the money we took from Cerberus, Kas. It's not only my looting skill. You were the one who hacked their accounts." Jane heard the turians confusion and explained that she has this hobby of looting mercs and slavers. They had talked for hours when doorbell rang again. Shepard checked on her omni-tool as to who it was and let him in. "Kas, food has arrived. Yay!" Solana could sense the other turian who was in the apartment few days ago. Then he entered.

"Hello. Where are my favourite hungry humans?" Mackrix came in and froze at the sight of the other turians. He hummed to say he wasn't a threat, so did Solana and Akteon. "Pardon my manners, Lieutenant Liosos Mackrix, also a cook for several platoons of the 2nd fleet." Both Vakarians greeted him. Soon everyone sat by the table and ate dinner. After that Shepard went to her room to catch some shut-eye. Solana and her father went to their rooms and unpacked. Later her father came to her room to make a call.

oOo

Garrus couldn't concentrate on anything. He had been waiting for any news from Shepard or his family. He checked his omni-tool for messages or to know what the time on Palaven was at the moment. The turian had waited long but at last he got pinged with an upcoming vid-comm. It was late evening on Palaven. Garrus opened the call to see his father and sister. "Father, Sol. Good to see you. How are you? Are you on Palaven?"

"Yes, idiot. We are. We are in your bondmate's apartment to be precise." Solana barked at him. "I can't figure any smart reason you haven't told us about your bonding."

"It was really awkward, son. We entered the apartment only to sense you inside. That was so embarrassing... why you may ask... Because my son forgot to tell us such an important thing!" Akteon growled at Garrus. The latter dipped his head in shame, humming his apologies. "Luckily for you, son, she's a remarkable woman. So I'll spare you the talk this time."

"I'm sorry."

"Spirits watches over you, Garrus. If you were here I wouldn't be that nice to you. I thought that me and your mother taught you something… anything! Now it turns out all our teachings were futile. Well, at least you helped Jane during the fight." Akteon folded his arms, his gaze strict. Garrus felt like a kid again, when he did something bad. "At least your sister is more decent and we somehow managed to clear all this mess."

"Yeah, Garrus. But I'm still pissed. Really pissed. Jane is such a nice person."

"She was… nice?" Garrus asked, dumbfounded. Spirits, she was nervous and panicked. If she was normal Shepard it would all go in a different direction. Thank you, Spirits, thank you. He thought to himself. She would go all Shepard on them… that would be bad… really, really bad.

"What? Shouldn't she be?" Solana growled. "Not everyone are asseholes like you, brother." Garrus' father turned to his daughter and rose a hand to silence her.

"Solana, please. Now's not the time." His head moved to the camera again. "When will you arrive on Palaven?"

"In three weeks."

"Good. I hope our house will have been rebuilt by then. Now we're staying here, with Jane and Miss Kasumi." Garrus almost let out a panicked keen. That is bad. If only she will behave normally…

"Where is she?"

"She's sleeping. Her doctor called because she had high blood pressure."

"Again? Spirits." Garrus shook his head. Feeling something was wrong again struck his mind.

"Nothing major. But her doctor was angry. I think it wasn't the first time... Anyway, let's finish for now. I'm tired. We'll talk tomorrow." Young Vakarian nodded and rose his hand in a turian good-bye gesture.

"As you wish, dad. Garrus out." He closed the connection, still looking at the place where his father and sister faces were seconds ago. It's not that he was ashamed of Shepard's behaviour. Far from it. There were times she was just… an insensitive bitch. Frankly speaking. He could just hope she would try to be a decent person. He didn't mind her quirks, they were one of the many reasons he loved her so much. It's just that his father would find them… repulsive. He was strict, a good turian after all. Obeying laws and orders. Garrus thought it was strange his father didn't mention her Specter status at all. Pinging from his omni-tool snapped him from his thoughts. Shepard was calling him. Quickly he opened the connection. "Yes?"

"You know it was embarrassing, right?" She said without any greeting, anger obvious in her voice. Garrus nodded, he was already told so not long ago.

"I'm sorry, Jane. I should've told them sooner." The woman only shook her head, displeased.

"I knew already they could smell your scent on me. When your father and sister entered the apartment, they just froze. God, Garrus. I didn't know whether to hide, run or just stand there like an idiot." A heavy sigh escaped her mouth. "I chose to stand there like an idiot by the way… but later it was nice. Your father isn't that bad. I like him. And Solana too. She's nice… Hello, EDI."

"Shepard." EDI's voice rang from the speakers.

"ETA?"

"Two weeks, six days and 17 hours, Shepard." Jane cocked her head and nodded.

"Good. We will party hard, tell that to Joker." After a few seconds EDI replied.

"Jeff said: "I'm so excited I almost broke my leg." Shepard snorted and relaxed.

"Heh. So, Gar-bear, you got me any souvenirs from Cyone?"

"Beside a large stock of eezo and dextro/levo food?" She raised her brow at his reply. "Nope."

"Aww, it hurts me so much. You will have to double your efforts to please me when you arrive." Garrus grinned at her. That was his Shepard.

"I'll think of something. How are you?" He asked, regarding her face for signs of anything wrong. "I've heard... that... your doctor got a bit angry."

"I just got too nervous and doc called me. God, she's as strict as Chakwas." Jane winced, folding her arms. "I don't like that."

"You will, Shepard. Or I'll tell Chakwas your disobeying your doctor. You know damn well what Karin will do, don't you?" Shepard's eyes widened, then she frowned.

"I'm done. I won't talk to you for a century. That's it, Vakarian." She said with feigned fury. He just waved in reply, dismissing her.

"I don't care what you do to me or how long you won't talk to me. I care about your health, love. That's important to me. So now you will be a good girl and will try to watch over yourself, is that clear?" Shepard agreed. Spirits, she won't ever change.

oOo

Two weeks and six days later Shepard laid on the bed. Doctor Shakria was so tired with her insubordination that she had had enough, ordering her to bed rest, which Kasumi and Solana were supervising. Shepard literally could go only to the bathroom and back. Her heart rate and blood pressure were elevated because of the Normandy's impending arrival. Doctor Ionnas Solus had to create a special medicine for Shepard to strengthen her exhausted heart. For those past days since she had met the Vakarians, she had gotten close to them. They were really good people and easy to like. They didn't even bat an eye about her occasional swearing or strange behaviour, which she felt good about. Maybe the reason behind them being nice was her pregnancy, but she hoped they were just like that. She prefered honesty over false friendship. There was only one hour until the Normandy would dock at the Palaven docking bay. Shepard tried to calm down but her efforts were futile. Solana came to her room, a nervous hum told Jane that she already knew. "Doctor Shakria called me. She will be here in 15."

"God, why?" Shepard raised her hands in defeat.

"You know why, Jane. I told you to calm down, to rest. Why can't you obey your doctor?" Solana came closer and sat next to Jane's bed. The turian female raised her hand, pill in the center. "Here, take this."

"Eh. It's hard for me to stick to doctor's orders. Doctor Chakwas can tell you something about it." Memories of Doctor Chakwas dragging her to the med-bay after every mission, crossed her mind, Jane smiled. She took the pill and swallowed it. "Besides, the medicine that Doc Solus made for me stabilized me already." Solana just shook her head, feeling that Shepard was just a lost cause in the matter. Soon Jane was asleep and stayed that way till she heard pinging. Primarch Victus called. "Adrien, what's up?"

"Your ship is in sight, Shepard. You happy?" The Primarch grinned to her. She felt it was strange that the Primarch of Palaven could actually grin like that. He's a good friend, and a strange turian. "I got a message from Shakria that you're on a bed rest order and I can bring you only one person. That would be who, exactly?" Jane snorted.

"Bring me my pilot, Joker. We will party." She joked. Primarch Victus flicked his mandibles in amusement. "Heh, no. Bring me Garrus Vakarian, of course. And please apologize that I can't be there. Tell them I'll come to the Normandy tomorrow."

"As you wish, Hero. Primarch out." Just seconds after the connection closed, Arteria Shakria came to the room. Jane smiled apologetically at her.

"I know, doc. I know."

"Good. I told the Primarch that you can see only one person. One, that will make you calm." The turian hand raised with one finger stretched to emphasise her words. "If you're good, I'll let you meet with the rest of the crew tomorrow."

"Yessir!" Shepard saluted. "I will, sir! But can I go to the living room? I can lay on the couch and..."

"No. You will stay here. That's punishment for insubordination. Now get some rest." Shepard pouted, watching Shakria leave. Great. I got what I deserved. Soon she dozed off again, a light military sleep. The Primarch's voice woke her up. He greeted everyone. Seconds later she could hear the voice she loved so much. Garrus. Her hands clutched on the blanket. Should I get up? Doc will get furious… but I need to see him now. Her internal debate ended with the decision to leave bed and go to Garrus. The meds she took made her a bit dizzy, she leaned on the wall. In the same moment Doctor Shakria came in, Garrus after her. Shepard looked into his eyes, trying to believe it's not a dream, that he really was there with her. She was so focused on him that the nagging of Doctor Shakria flew somewhere, not reaching her at all.

"Jane…" His voice was telling of his relief, just like his subharmonics. Garrus' eyes regarded her whole, stopping at her belly. "Jane…? What is… When? You are… Who…?" She could tell he was getting angry and suspicious with each word he stuttered. Before she could get angry and get another nagging from the Doc she stopped him with one gesture of her hand.

"Before you ask something impossibly stupid and unleash my anger, when I can't get nervous and shit because of my condition. I'll show you. Come here and shut up." Garrus closed his mandibles tight. She could tell he was still angry, but didn't say a thing. He came closer slowly, she opened her omni-tool and showed him their son.

"Garrus Vakarian, meet your son - David Mordin Vakarian." The program connected to the implant in her womb started and the hologram of their baby appeared in front of Garrus. He was quiet for a long moment. Staring at the hologram, not moving. His eyes wide.

"He is… turian." He said in the end.

"Doctor Shakria estimated that around he's 70% turian. Only 30%, he's human. His appearance at least." Shepard looked around to see if the turian doctor was present, but she left and closed the doors behind her so they could have a moment of privacy. Shepard closed her omni-tool and came closer to him. "I'm sorry, Garrus. I should've told you long ago…" She was interrupted by his hand enclosing her in a hug. He nuzzled her hair, then the right side of her head, travelling down to her neck.

"You will tell me everything later, Jane. Give me a moment, I desperately need this." Shepard hugged him, her hands circling his waist. She could hear his subharmonics growl and purr.

"I'm home." She said to his chest.

"Me too." His low voice was all she needed at the moment. Their eyes met and in a matter of seconds they were kissing passionately. The room so hot all of sudden. Garrus broke the kiss and touched his forehead to hers. "You're shaking, Shepard. Lay down." He laid her on the bed, on her side then lay next to her. Face to face. "Now tell me everything. I don't like this Shepard. You never lied to me, you never kept secrets from me." Jane sighed, her hand reached his scarred mandible and stroked it lightly. She locked her gaze with him, trying to collect her thoughts. She said everything from the beginning: her request of having a baby with Garrus, Mordin's success, the moment she started the therapy. She explained why she did it and Garrus listened to her. "I just don't understand why you haven't told me that you were pregnant."

"I didn't plan it at all… I thought it would go sideways. Then I woke up, alive and pregnant. I was scared, love. I… I still am. What if we lose him, Garrus? My body was devastated after the war… yet he survived in my womb. That's a fucking miracle. I didn't want to tell you… because if something happened to him, if I'd miscarried… I wanted to spare you all this crap. You weren't yourself while away. If you knew about David... You would go crazy."

"And what about you, huh? Who would support you if not me, silly? Besides... You give me far too less credit about that. You assumed it and that's all. You said you trust me yet you keep your pregnancy a secret, Shepard." Jane trembled, she hadn't heard Garrus talk like that to her ever. Accusation, anger. He huffed with his nose to calm down. "But I'll forgive you only this one time. Pregnant women are moody, so I've heard." She snuggled to his chest.

"Thank you. I know it's hard to deal with me. I know that it will be even worse now. I'll never lie to you again. Or keep secrets. I promise." Garrus nuzzled her ear. She could feel the tip of his tongue brushing her earlobe. His purr made her happy beyond understanding. Having him near again, she felt whole.

"I know, Jane. I know. So tell me, why David Mordin exactly?"

"I haven't told anybody about it. It's for you only. Listen." Shepard told Garrus what she saw when she was dead for a minute. "I don't know if it was real or just made up by my sick mind. I know that because of those two we can sit here and talk. With our son in my belly." Garrus' head turned down. His hand rested on her curved abdomen.

"Is everything fine with him?"

"As far as I know, till now everything is fine. From a medical point of view he's also good. No signs of dextro/levo allergy. He's growing fine. The rest you saw with your own eyes." She opened the hologram again. "Look here, those will be spurs like yours." She pointed at the fetus' legs. Then she turned the hologram. "Look, carapace and cowl. And mandibles. Here, the beginning of his fringe."

"Spirits, I can't believe it. It's real, yes? Jane, I beg you, swear to me it's not some shitty joke."

"No, it's not. He's real. We're going to be parents, big guy." Vakarian moved his gaze to Shepard. Smiling. "What?"

"You're such a damn liar, Jane. 'Biology may not cooperate' my scaly ass." She smiled at him innocently, turning off the omni-tool.

"I didn't know if it would work, you know. It wasn't a lie back there." She moved closer to him, her body flushed his. "But at least we know how a turian-human baby looks." The woman started to kiss Garrus' neck when a loud rubble escaped her stomach. "Time to eat. Let's down go to everyone. I want to hear how your sister and father are scolding you. That will be fun." Garrus stopped her from moving.

"Wait. I have something for you." He took a small box from his pocket. Then reached for her left hand. "It waited patiently but now is the time to wear it again, don't you think?" Shepard nodded eagerly. The turian put the ring on her finger. She regarded it and started to cry.

"God, Garrus, you need to stop being so damn sweet. I'll get diabetes." Without any more words she pulled him closer and kissed him like her life was depending on it. "Hey you." She said after.

"Hey."

"I missed you, space dinosaur. Let's go I'm starving." Garrus bent to her stomach, nuzzling it with care. "What?"

"I want to say hi to my son. Mind your own business." His gloved hand stroked her belly. "My son. That sounds damn good." He purred to her stomach. To their surprise, something moved in there. "Huh?!"

"He moved! He moved when you purred to him!" A few seconds later Shakria came into the room in a rush.

"What is going on here? I thought I made myself clear, Shepard." The doc folded her arms, watching them with an angry frown. She growled at Garrus, so he replied with an apologetic hum of his subharmonics.

"Doc, David moved! He really moved!" Jane was excited. As it was her first pregnancy, she didn't know a lot of things. A few times she promised herself to read about it, but everytime she tried to, she dropped it because of her irrational fear. She was afraid of what she could read.

"Oh. It's normal for this period of pregnancy. I should have informed you. I'll send you some materials." Shakria opened her omni-tool. Garrus stood up and approached the turian doctor while she was searching for documents.

"Doctor, please send them to me. She won't bother to read anything."

"Hey! I read Mordin's materials... and..." Jane shut up when Garrus sent her an angry gaze. "Whatever. Do what you want, I'm not talking to you anymore." Vakarian only rolled his eyes. He exchanged addresses with Shakria and soon his omni-tool pinged with uploading files. "Doc, can I go eat something with everyone?"

"Yes. Lieutenant Mackrix came to cook some, ah, goodies." With a loud 'yay' Shepard almost jumped out of the bed. Garrus had to catch her. "Spirits, please be careful. You are my worst patient so far. I think I need to contact the Normandy's doctor."

"God, please don't."

"Please do." Both Shepard and Garrus said that at the same time. Shakria snorted and left the room. They went to the rest, had a nice dinner with the Vakarians, Kasumi and Mackrix, Shakria had to leave to go to the hospital. Later the Primarch and turian cook also left them and Kasumi Goto packed her things. She had decided to move to the Normandy, letting Shepard and Garrus spend time with his family.

"You two look good." Solana smiled at Garrus and Shepard. Jane was nestled at Garrus' side, embraced by his arm and half lying on the couch. Both Solana and her father sat comfortably on the armchairs. All four sipping hot beverages, enjoying family talk.

"So I've heard, multiple times." Jane nodded, her face oozing with happiness that her bondmate was next to her again. She turned to look at him. "I couldn't do shit without him. And I mean it."

"Wrong. You would..."

"But not as stylish, yeah I know that Mr. Too-handsome-to-be-taken-seriously." Solana started to laugh so hard, she couldn't control it.

"I deliberately took a rocket to the face to gain some credibility. I remember when I came to Palaven with half my face patched up. Mother wasn't pleased that her beautiful son went to the wrong neighborhood and got his face disfigured." Garrus said, half-joking. Akteon sighed.

"Calling Omega the wrong neighborhood is a huge understatement, son. I don't really understand why you went there in the first place. And we haven't really talked about it." Garrus regarded his father, mandibles shut tight. Memories of Shepard's death and his mental state after that wasn't his most favourite topics. Also remembering about her panic attacks, when she thought she was spaced again, all were terrible.

"He wasn't himself that time." Jane said quietly. "And it's entirely my fault."

"Jane..." Garrus wanted to protest. He wanted to assure her she wasn't at fault. She didn't choose to die. It just happened.

"No, it is, Gar-bear." The woman patted his hand resting on her hip. She turned to Akteon. "Since Garrus joined me on the Normandy... we became really close. Like we knew each other for centuries. I took him on every mission. He was there when..." Shepard's voice cracked. "When..."

"Jane?" Solana asked, her subharmonics sang with concern.

"It's about Saren..." Garrus explained but their family was even more puzzled, judging their confused hum. "Eh... he was indoctrinated. He was... no one saw it, before it was too late. After he died it turned out he had found a Reaper artifact that led him to Sovereign. He was exposed so much that it was hard to reach him. Spirits, I don't know how Shepard did it, but at the end she managed to talk to real the Saren. But it was too late, Sovereign manipulated not only his mind but also his body. It turned out that almost the whole of him was synthetic. Anyway... he wasn't a villain in the end, he was some poor bastard that got unlucky... and brainwashed."

"We couldn't save him... I couldn't do anything... and it got worse. God, so many lost their lives..." Garrus hummed to her in a soothing tone, one that always could make Jane calm. "Sorry."

"No need to apologize. Having the safety of the whole galaxy on your shoulders is quite a burden. We heard rumors about Saren, about you. Hearing about it from someone who saw everything is completely different." The older Vakarian turned to his daughter. "We were here on Palaven, getting only scraps of information. Garrus wasn't talkative either." His son huffed, exasperated, trying to explain. "Spare me the 'that was classified' crap, Garrus. Of course he told me about everything when he was here on Palaven. If he wasn't my son I would send him to hospital for mentally disabled turians. Pity the Council was blind almost to the end."

"Well, without Sparatus' intel it would have got shittier." Shepard said, mulling her own words. "Hmm. If I put it that way, thanks to him I got Garrus from Menae."

"Dragging me into hell again."

"Complaining?"

"Wouldn't even dare. That was a helluva ride. I'll get bored of that soon, that's all I can say." The older Vakarian started to laugh. Shepard and his children regarded the older turian, not understanding his merriment. "Um, dad?"

"He he. Do not worry about boredom son, soon you will be extra busy." His eyes landed meaningfully on Jane's belly. "By the way... you need to plan a lot of things now. Plan and prepare yourself. Your life will change, that I can assure you." Both Garrus and Shepard looked at each other. Realisation hit them hard. A lot of questions were unanswered. Where would the baby be born? Where would they live? What would they do after? And other important things concerning their future. The Vakarians changed the topic of conversation to talk about their rebuilt house. Meanwhile Shepard was deep in thought. They spent the time together until everybody was too tired.

"You are awfully quiet." Garrus said. He laid himself carefully next to Shepard. "Tired?"

"A bit, yes. But also... we need to think about lots of things. Especially those concerning our son." Garrus watched her with his blue eyes, thinking about what she just said. His warm hand slipped under her tank top, lifting it almost to her breast, therefore exposing her curved stomach. He put his hand on it, sending a warm, pleasant feeling. She loved his hands. Even though they were taloned, he could be so delicate. Of course there were times she wanted them to be rough, to claw into her skin. But now he was carefull. Jane gave him time to think.

"Our son... love, it's still so new to me. We will think everything through, but now... let me just be happy to be with you again. When we parted. When you sent that message. I thought it was over. My world stopped." The look in his eyes caused her pain. Her whole chest hurt. Like that time, when she saw him at her funeral. But just second later they were bright again. His happy hum made her at ease. "You are here, Jane. Alive. I love you."

"Me too, Garrus. I love you too." He purred in content. She nestled her head on his arm. His hum flew through her like lullaby, his hand still warming her belly. She drifted to sleep sooner than she had thought.

oOo

Too much fluff or no? ;) I hope you liked Solana POV, when I wrote first version of this chapter, POV was Shepard's but then I though: "Why not Solana's? Why the hell not?" Ta-dam! Here it is.