Shepard and Haku went home, finding that Michael and Isabella had not came back yet.
"That's either good," Haku said, "or bad."
"Isabella seemed to like Michael after she woke up." Shepard said, sitting down on the couch. Haku sat beside him, putting her head on his shoulder, surprising him.
"Maybe you knocked some sense into her." Haku said. "Did you really mean everything you said?"
"Yes." Shepard said. This wasn't strictly the truth, however; if he were to lose himself once more, he would reject every connection he had to Michael and Haku. 'I'll have to keep myself in check.' Shepard realized. 'I won't lose myself to revenge.'
Haku smiled. "Thanks. Did you ever do anything romantic after divorcing she-who-shall-not-be-named?"
Shepard shook his head. "I spent a long time fighting off the press and legal troubles, and, after that..." Shepard trailed off. "I forget a lot of it. Everything I do remember is violent, illegal, and makes me hate myself."
"Don't be so dramatic, big guy," Haku said, elbowing the Commander. "You're a great man. So, want to do anything?"
Shepard shook his head. "No. I'm not ready." Shepard thought about it. "Yet," he added.
Haku winked at him. "I'll be ready when you are. On that note, I'm going to go get some stuff for my room."
Shepard handed her his credit chit.
"Ooh." Haku smiled deviously, tapping the chit against her chin. "Just how rich are you, Shep?"
"Rich enough to afford what you want." Shepard said, leaning back. Haku smiled, leaned forward, and kissed him on the cheek.
"See ya', Shep." Haku said, then "You should let some gray show through."
"Thinking of my hair again?" Shepard wondered.
"I'm always thinking about a lot of things, Shepard. I'm a smart girl." Haku said, and left, grabbing her jacket.
Shepard stood, his soldier senses going off. On a hunch, he walked to the extranet terminal, searching up Haku's profile on C-Sec computers. He skipped over any details, not caring about her gender anymore, and found her husband's profile. A picture that was many years old showed him as a white human with blue eyes, blonde hair, and black eyebrows.
'Of course. Blondes are exceedingly rare.' Shepard thought, then saw a warning.
'Violent,' it read. 'Alleged murderer, hitman, and drug seller. Extreme anger towards Haku Pilgrim. Possibly has contacts in both Citadel and Omega.'
Shepard immediately shut down the terminal, running out of the door without bothering with his jacket. Words like 'possibly' and 'alleged' were words Shepard had learned to know meant 'we couldn't find evidence.' And the name, Bernard Cooper, was a name Shepard had came to attach with 'expert hitman with a bad temper' after a grisly shootout in a hole-in-the-wall bar.
Haku sat down in a car, smiling. Shepard was a fantastic man, if a bit rough around the edges.
'Hey, just because he was bad doesn't mean he can't get better.' Haku thought, grabbing the door to the transportation shuttle when, suddenly, a man grabbed it.
"Hey, honey." Bernard said. He had a shaved head, and his arms were covered with tattoos. "Long time, no see."
Haku whimpered a moment before Bernard hit her over the head with his pistol.
Shepard nearly knocked over Michael and Isabella who were walking into the apartment building, holding hands.
"What the hell, Shep?" Michael asked.
"Michael, get in that damn apartment." Shepard said.
"Wait, Shep!" Michael said, and ran up to the apartment.
"I don't have time for this." Shepard growled.
"You do." Michael said, tossing Shepard's pistol and a holster to him. "If you like it, keep it. I bought it so the pistol wouldn't be visible under your usual suit."
Shepard nodded thanks and hit the door running, putting the shoulder holster on himself.
"God help whoever gets in Shep's way." Isabella said.
"If they're anything less than a god, like the Reapers were," Michael said, "they are S-C-R-E-W-E-D."