Interlogue 1, Soldier:
This is why I did it, for times like these. These are the times we'll cherish, always.
Shepard would remember this day, her wedding day, as the happiest in her life. Perhaps slightly behind the day her daughter was born. As it stood now, she remembered her wedding as a blurred series of events flashing past her consciousness with a speed that didn't allow for as much cherishing as she would like.
She remembered spending the weeks preceding the wedding speaking with Liara and Kelly about her dreams. She remembered Liara offering to postpone everything until she was ready. She remembered saying, "Hell if I'm going to let some emotional baggage keep me from getting on with my life." Liara benefitted from the sessions as well. She had seen her fair share of trauma during the war.
A flash of Liara meeting her father for the first time and her face lighting up like she'd never seen it before. An image of their first embrace. The memory of Liara walking the grounds for a full day with Matriarch Aethyta, 108 years' worth of catch-up can take a while. Shepard remembered a lovely dinner with her beloved and her father the night before the wedding. She remembered Aethyta telling the story of how she met Liara's mother, the Lady Benezia. She remembered Liara crying, she remembered crying herself.
She remembered Ashley Williams coming to her before the ceremony. They stood before a full length mirror looking resplendent in uniform. Ashley gave her a specially made set of ribbons for her 'dress blues'. The first ribbon was for being a Spectre, she and Ash were the only humans authorized to wear one. For a die-hard xenophobe, Ashley had certainly taken to being a Spectre with pride and zeal. She seemed to carry herself even more proudly with the simple green award on her breast. There was a ribbon for the Star of Terra with a specially made repeat pip. Victoria was the only person to ever receive the Alliance's highest honor twice. Two ribbons represented the special awards she'd received from the Council; the Nova Cluster and the Silver Dagger. She was the only living human authorized to wear them. The thought of Alenko made Shepard's heart ache. You certainly fought hard and died well, Kiadan. Shepard and Ash, like the rest of the crew of the Normandy, also wore a ribbon for the Galactic Unit Citation along with a ribbon, with repeat pips, for the Palladium Star. They also both wore simple purple ribbons, holdovers from an old Earth army, for wounds received in battle.
Such experiences as these boiled down to little pieces of fabric, Shepard had shaken her head.
"It's a compendium of English idioms and colloquialisms, since you're always asking what the hell we're talking about." Joker had said. "And for you skipper, a copy of Vaenia, for, you know, later," he'd winked. Shepard remembered trying to say something edgewise when Joker had leaned over to Liara and said, "Look up 'cunning linguist'." She'd nearly broken a rib elbowing him. Fragile bones or not, you can be a total dick sometimes, Shepard had thought to herself.
A pair of thunderclaps, SSV Normandy SR-2 thundered overhead. The charcoal grey spacecraft, Shepard had gotten rid of the gaudy Cerberus paint job almost before she took the ship away from the Illusive Man, contrasted beautifully against the haze free azure sky. Strong contrails formed at the tips of her fins as Normandy performed a lazy victory roll, pitched up, and rapidly gained altitude. The engines had shaken Shepard to her core. She felt her lungs rattle within her chest. Councilor Anderson explained that EDI wanted to make an appearance. Apparently, one of the benefits of being humanity's voice on the Citadel Council was that you could indulge the whims of ships' AIs. Seeing her old ship, experiencing her in such a visceral way, had brought a tear to her eye.
Shepard remembered the ceremony itself, held in a small clearing in Benezia's gardens. It was beautiful in its simplicity. She'd faced Liara, they'd held both hands. She looked amazing, that Volus dressmaker really knew his shit, and Shepard always looked good in her uniform. They were encircled by their friends, their family. There was a laying of hands. It had felt like the whole universe was touching her, urging her to happiness. They wept.
She remembered the party. She remembered watching an inebriated Lieutenant Williams trying to dance with an equally inebriated Joker. He barely made it out of there with his shins un-fractured. She remembered catching a glimpse of Kelly Chambers walking off, arms linked and leaning close, with Aethyta. Way to go Kelly! She'd thought. She remembered Mordin Solus calling her 'one tough cloaca'. She remembered watching Anderson and Chakwas going shot for shot for way longer than she thought humanly possible. She remembered Detective Anaya dancing the night away.
She remembered the wedding night. That dress had certainly come off more easily than her uniform. She'd ended up with her skirt hiked around her waist for a while, a concession to expediency. She remembered Liara's face between her thighs breathing heavy with moist breath. She remembered crying out, she'd never felt such pleasure in her life. Holy shit, Liara really took that 'cunning linguist' thing to heart! Coming from her beloved made the experience that much sweeter. She remembered finishing, skin covered in sweat, heart racing, chest heaving. Her hips ached. I may never leave this bedroom, she thought to herself. This is heaven.
She remembered joining with her wife, her wife! She didn't hold back this time. She didn't hide the fear, nor the pain, nor the sadness. She let Liara dive deeper than she'd ever gone before. She could feel her inside of her! Shepard could feel her own emotions as they reflected off her beloved. She felt Liara feeling her pain, accepting it unto herself. No, this isn't right! She could feel Liara's response, yes, it is!
She remembered holding her in her arms after they were done. Truly, this was one of the happiest moments of her life.
Hours later Victoria bolted upright screaming. Liara tumbled awake, confused and disoriented. Shepard cried. She'd just watched Tali die.