Shepard sat and stared at her console wondering if she should tell EDI. EDI had suggested that it could be hours before the Normandy was ready to go through the Omega Four Mass Relay and had indicated that Shepard bring the ground team with her the next time they went on shore. A rather stupid thing to do, according to Shepard. First of all, cramping into a shutter with twelve other people was never a good idea. If the shutter was built for that many people, why the heck would they insist on only having three ground team each mission? So, they were to bring both the shutters. Another terrible suggestion. Taking away the only other shutter which could serve as an emergency vehicle for the rest of the ship? Six in one and seven in another? That still was totally debunking all her training to bringing only two crew a time. And if she was bringing all of her ground team the next trip, why the hell couldn't she take them all and get the mission done in under five minutes instead of taking only two while the rest waited in the shutter?

"EDI," Shepard said. "With all due respect, that was the stupidest of all stupid suggestions I have ever gotten. I thought better of you."

"It is a protocol as given by Ceberbus, Shepard," EDI said.

"Tell me you think that was a good suggestion?" Shepard asked.

"My program does not require me to think if it is a good suggestion or not," EDI answered. "I merely need to inform you of the usual protocol."

"I didn't ask about your programming," Shepard said. "I asked what do YOU think. Come on EDI, I've known you long enough to know you are not just any A.I.."

"I am not suppose to have a personal view on any of the Cerberus protocols or ideals. My job is to monitor the ship and its crew."

"I know, I know," Shepard brush her words away. "Whatever. Just tell me what you really think."

"I think it is a stupid, obsolete, ill-advised and senseless protocol," EDI said.

"Bingo!" Shepard smiled. "Who the hell came up with such protocols anyway?"

"The Illusive man did," EDI answered.

"What an idiot then," Shepard said. "Great example of the good old fashion micro-management. So can we skip that and do things our usual way?"

"I'm afraid not, Shepard," EDI said. "However, I can suggest you take the ground team to Omega's Afterlife for your next mission. Since it is a mission, all expanses will be paid by Cerberus."

"Great idea," Shepard said. "While we are at it, can you secure an apartment for... oh I don't know... maybe a decade or so with Cerberus money, in the Citadel? Preferably somewhere in the Presidium overlooking waters?"

"I am afraid I cannot misappropriate Cerberus' fund to secure an apartment in the Citadel," EDI said.

"Was worth a try," Shepard said.

"However, I can secure an apartment in Palaven because it has no Cerberus presence there and the routing of funds is harder to trace," EDI said. "Should I proceed to buy one in the better part of the city closest to Garrus' hometown and overlooking a river now?"

"Have I told you I love you, EDI?" Shepard smiled grew wider.

"You have not," EDI replied.

"Well then, I love you, EDI."

"You are welcome, Shepard," EDI said. "Now, I will have to remind you, you have unfinished business to attend to."

"I hate you, EDI," Shepard said. "But I still prefer you telling me what I have to do than Kelly Chambers."

"You are welcome, Shepard."

Shepard sat and stared at her console again. This time, she was not wondering. She was furious. It happened the first time she read the letter, it was happening again the second time she read it.

She started typing her answer:

Alenko,

Are you seriously dumb? Did you just wrote to me and tell me "oh you died so I dated another woman, but now you're back, I am ditching her while I think about it"?

What kind of man are you?! Wait, are you still a man?

That was the most irresponsible and childish thing anyone had ever said! Are you even of age?!

Shepard pressed the "back" key and watched her words deleted away.

She did not want to sound like she was angry. She thought for a bit, than started writing again:

Dear Alenko,

I understand your confusion. I understand it had been hard for you the past two years...

Shepard deleted those words. Fuck it. Who was she kidding? She did not understand Alenko's confusion because he did not seemed to be confused. Stubborn, yes. Angry, yes. Ignorant, yes. Confused? No.

"EDI," Shepard said. "Do you understand men?"

"Humans are from the family Hominidae, also known as Homo sapiens..."

"I don't mean humans," Shepard said. "I mean men. I don't think I ever understood men. Or ever will."

"I do not understand," EDI said.

"Me either," Shepard said. "You think Legion is going to grow up like a man?"

"Legion is technically a "grown" Geth," EDI said.

"He is still a boy though," Shepard said. "Young and innocent... Geth mode. He plays video games, you know?"

"Yes, Shepard," EDI said. "I know. Although he does not play every game he bought or downloaded. He bought Geth Attack: Eden Prime Fundraising Edition with the Ultra Platinum donation three months before you woke up, same time the game's edition was released."

"Oh?" Shepard said.

"He never played it," EDI said. "I asked him why. He told me he bought the edition as a donation to the victims in the attack."

"The most expansive edition, huh? as a donation? See EDI, that is what I call having a heart. Alenko might be human but his heart can only accommodate one person- himself. Legion sounds like a better choice to date that Alenko, that's for sure."

She looked down and started typing again:

Look Alenko,

I have Reapers to destroy and Collectors to kill. My plates are full. I really do not have the time to play "read between Alenko lines". You are a solider. You are supposed to know straight forward! Even Legion is a better man than you are, you selfish prick! And Legion is not even a man!

Delete.

"EDI," Shepard called out. "Where the hell is Garrus? I am hungry."

"Garrus is currently in the mass hall," EDI replied.

"Oh great," Shepard said. "That means he'll be up with dinner soon."

She started tying again, this time in better mood.

Dear Kaiden,

I would appreciate it a lot if you tell me when you are being serious and when you are dancing around a topic.

Delete ...

Writing this was harder than what Shepard had thought. She had no idea how to do it at all. It was not about thinking if the letter would hurt Kaiden Alenko's feelings. She did not care. If he thought that by telling her about his dates was his way of being honest and just wanting to let her know how hard he was having it the two years she was gone, he did not understand what Freudian Slip was at all. This had gone beyond always leaving a way out. Even if he enunciated every word he had written with the deepest emotions he could master, his letter was more about hoarding than it was about loving. Or rather, hoarding and keeping her on the side just in case he decided that she was good enough once again for him. And he was not just doing it to her but to the doctor, whom he was seeing, and who was "nothing serious". Shepard found that repulsive. She did not like the hidden motivations in the letter. In one letter, he had basically told her he was shelving two women for future use, just in case. That defined a jerk. And on top of that, she did not like that he had written it so self righteously to the point he thought he was being honest and forthright.

"At least I was honest enough to say I didn't remember sleeping with him," Shepard said to herself. "Kind of..."

She leaned forward and started writing again:

Dear Alenko,

Can you just forget about me and really move on already? I am ok. I would actually like that. We were never meant to be. Even our personalities do not really match. We would never get along. I might end up constricting your windpipe with your Calvin Klein underwear, choking and suffocating the life out of you. God knows I really want to sometimes. Come to think of it, see, you wear branded undies. I wear cotton standard issues. Even our undies do not get along.

Well, that totally sucked. Shepard deleted that as well. She tried to concentrate on writing but her mind started to drift away. Did Garrus wear underwear? She never actually saw a Turian underwear store in the Citadel. She wondered if he did and what kind he wore if he really did. Did Turian women wear anything remotely looking like a bra? Shepard pulled the front of her shirt's neckline away from her and glanced down. Would Garrus know how to take that thing between her flesh and her shirt apart?

Shepard stared at her bra for a while longer before moving her eyes back to the screen.

And she still came up with nothing.

She minimized the mail box and looked into her chat mail instead. Someone she enjoyed talking to was online. She tabbed connect and waited for the person on the other end to pick up. When he did, the first thing she saw was his usual smirk looking back at her image on the screen.

"Wrex!" Shepard greeted.

"Shepard," Wrex said.

"Wrex!" Shepard smiled.

"Shepard," Wrex said, smirking still.

"Help me!" Shepard begged. "Answer this letter for me!"

She attached the file "About Horizon" to the vid call.

Wrex downloaded the copy and started skimming through it.

"Wrex," Shepard said.

"Shepard," Wrex said without looking up from his reading.

"Wrex," Shepard said again. "Is that Krogan reading glasses you're wearing?"

Indeed, the Battlemaster was spotting a pair of large, round eye rim shaped glasses with the lugs being double wide and the split centre joints curved into a C-shape to accommodate his large nose bridge.

"Shut up, Shepard, I'm reading."

"I never knew Krogans have glasses," Shepard said. "You look wise. You look like the Krogan version of an eighteen century English gentleman. All you're missing now is a top hat."

"I said shut up, Shepard," Wrex said.

"I don't know how to answer this letter," Shepard said. "It bugs the hell out of me to not answer yet I could never write it the way I wanted to say it."

When Wrex did not look up from his data pad, Shepard went on,

"Why are you wearing glasses? When did you become shortsighted? Were you shortsighted before?"

There was still no answer and his face was still turned down.

"Did you wear lens? Why didn't you just go get your sight fixed? It's a simple enough procedure, you know? What do you think? Answer the letter for me? And oh, I know about your glue prank. You masterminded the hair gel switch saga."

Shepard watched Wrex read for another minute.

"Garrus is supposed to be up with our dinner. I am hungry. And Alenko, he was nuts on Horizon. I kind of played a prank on him that day. Wonder why he never mentioned it. You know, you should come with..."

"Shepard!" Wrex finally looked up. "Shut up! Now I've to read this nonsense all over again!"

"Sorry," Shepard said. "I'm hungry."

And kept quiet, twiddling her thumbs.

"How's the Turian?" Wrex finally said. "You two at it yet? An item yet?"

"An item, yes. At it, no. Turian..., I think he is trying to ditch my Yeoman without success. I ditched her easy. Just fed her some fiber optics thingy and she never looked at me that flirtatious way again. Now her hands are all over Garrus, I think... It's ok, Wrex. Don't look like you want to stick a knife into him. He runs faster than lighting when he sees her coming."

"Not much of a competition then?" Wrex laughed.

"Not remotely much," Shepard answered. "I'll let him get rid of her himself."

"You know I can just get a couple of my guys and beat the crap out of him, right?" Wrex asked, lifting up his data pad to indicate he had changed the subject.

"You know he is L2 biotic, don't you?" Shepard asked back.

"I know about a dozen Krogan I have who can handle ten of him," Wrex answered. "But you won't let me because you aren't badass enough. That is why you're even trying to answer this nonsense."

"What do you suggest then?" Shepard questioned.

"Just tell him you and the Turian are doing the nasty and you're happy," Wrex said.

"That's not how it works, Wrex," Shepard said. "I'll never go around telling other people that."

"Not the first time I heard humans telling stories of their breeding conquests."

"Not the same," Shepard said. "They talked about conquests. Serious relationships, those never leave the bedroom."

"So," Wrex smirked again. "The Turian, he is a special one, huh?"

"You tell me," Shepard lifted her brow. "You taught him a lot lately."

Wrex laughed and took off his glasses.

"I've never seen you wear those," Shepard pointed.

"Those are reading glasses, Shepard."

"Never seen them before."

"Never read on the Normandy before, Shepard."

"Oh, right," Shepard said. "Now I know why it was so hard to get you to read or write reports."

"I must be an idiot to help you write them," Wrex said. "Only your special Turian would do such a dumb thing to impress you. Anyway, answer is no."

"No?" Shepard asked.

"No," Wrex said. "Not helping you write the letter. Although I would love to postscript it. Like make a promise I would cut his kidney out and fry it in front of him before feeding it to a varren."

"Suggestions?" Shepard asked. "Come on Wrex, you're the wise, experienced Krogan who had seen it all and done it all. Please?"

"You really don't give up, do you?" Wrex shook his head. Shepard smiled and nodded hers. "I don't know, get someone who is free enough, straight enough, naive enough, yet smart enough to do it. Let that person give him everything and yet nothing."

Shepard half closed her eyes in contemplation. After a while, she suddenly sat up straighter and said,

"Wrex!"

"Shepard."

"Wrex!" Shepard said again, "you are a genius!"

"Not the first time someone told me that," he said.

"Great!" Shepard said. "Now I know the perfect person to answer this letter for me! I can totally free myself from this burden! And I am starved!"

Just as she finished speaking, the door to her cabin opened and a Turian with two trays in hand and some napkins dangling in his mouth appeared at the other end.

"Shepard," Garrus muffled his greeting from under the napkins as he came entering the room with his and her dinner. "Got dinner."

"Oh god!" Shepard jumped onto his back. "You've no idea how glad I'm to see you!"

"Watch the dinners," Garrus almost stumbled. "Watch the dinners."

They could heard Wrex's laughter before he cut off the feed and allowed the two some private time together.

Have not been editing my chapters so expect grammar mistakes. God knows I am good in making them... Won't be editing the chapters till my busy period is over. My busy period and that asthmatic cough that came after the viral flu died. Sigh... And oh, for the reply to Alenko's letter, it's in Horizon, The Confrontation and Beyond.