Shepard obediently followed Liara through the apartment, relishing the feel of the soft blue hand in her own. Outside of the generous kitchen area, the rest of the apartment was one, big open space. The external wall was almost entirely clad in glass, from floor to ceiling, and Shepard had a near perfect view across the cityscape.

"This place is incredible," she breathed, pulling Liara to a stop in the middle of the living area. "The view alone must make this place worth living in. Not to mention all of this space." She gestured a hand across the room. "It's bigger than the crew deck on the Normandy!"

"I certainly find it quite humbling to be able to stand here and watch the entire city go passed the window," Liara admitted. "I think with all the improvements we have made to FTL travel, and with the Mass Relays, people don't appreciate the vast scope of the galaxy any more. We have made it so easy to travel that no one stays still."

"I didn't have you down as the staying still sort," Shepard said. "With your research, I would imagine that the thrill of visiting a new planet or experiencing a new city would keep you happy."

"I suppose it did, at one point," Liara said. She tightened her hold on Shepard's fingers for just a second, a moment so brief that Shepard didn't know if she imagined it or not. "But in order to track down the Shadow Broker, I needed a permanent base of operations and to maintain a physical presence with my contacts."

"That makes sense."

"Illium does not have the best galactic reputation, but it was the best option I had," Liara explained. "After the Normandy blew up, we were rescued and taken to the Citadel. I visited several places before I ended up here, but travelling didn't evoke the same enthusiasm and joy in me that it used to. I suppose I had gotten used to being part of a team, and being around people whose company I enjoyed. I especially missed not being able to talk to Dr Chakwas. She was a wonderful companion during our adventures." She shrugged. "I guess that after every happened, I just...stopped."

Shepard pulled on their still-joined hands, and wrapped Liara into a heartfelt hug, squeezing hard to try and convey all of her emotions through touch. "I'm so sorry," she whispered again. "For everything that happened. I'm sorry it had to happen to you."

"You don't need to keep apologising," Liara said, returning the hug. "These circumstances were not within our control. And whilst the past two years have not been what I wanted for myself, or anyone else for that matter, they cannot be changed. "he events that we have taken part in may well bear fruit in the months to come."

"That's what I always liked about you, Liara," Shepard sighed, wrapping herself further around Liara's body. "The way you can be so philosophical about things."

Liara tittered. "Asari have been discussing philosophy and culture before your race mastered linguistics at all. It makes sense that we have developed a more phlegmatic approach to galactic events."

"And so modest too," Shepard teased.

Liara slapped her playfully on the shoulder. "Well, there isn't a lot of point in mourning over what has been, or what might have been. It is better to focus on the future, and to remember the happiness from the past."

Shepard remembered a conversation they had once shared, where Liara had said something similar in regard to asari forming bonds with short-lived races. They try to focus on the good times they share rather than obsess over their limited time together.

"I suppose being asari has taught you that as well?" she asked quietly.

"To an extent," Liara said. "But the remaining lifespan of the galaxy may well be only measured in years, and they certainly won't be relaxing ones. It makes sense to me that we shouldn't hold grudges, or feel guilt, about what happened in the past. We cannot change what happened. We may still bear the scars from them, but I think we have bigger concerns."

Shepard fiddled nervously with the neckline of her dress. "Does that mean I am forgiven for being dead for the past two years then?" she asked meekly. "You know that given the choice I wouldn't have left you alone like that, right?"

Liara placed a soothing hand over Shepard's, stopping the nervous motion. "I know," she said simply. "The only reason I was reticent when you arrived in my office was that I didn't know whether you were the same woman as before. It seemed fantastical that Cerberus would be able to rebuild you and keep your personality the same, but here we are." With her free hand she brushed a stray lock of hair out of Shepard's face. "It seems I was right when I said your mind must be remarkable to survive the Prothean Beacon. To be able to go through a trauma such as yours and come out of the other side seemingly unchanged. It is a true marvel."

"I guess I had something worth staying the same for," Shepard said throatily. She was acutely aware that Liara was still resting her hand on her chest, and she pushed forward just a little bit, feeling the solid pressure against her breast.

Liara dropped her gaze down, before flicking her eyes back up to meet Shepard's. With the faintest hint of a smirk, she removed her hand a second later than would have been appropriate.

"I guess so," Liara said. She inclined her head towards the living room. "Come on, you haven't seen what I have to show you yet." She walked over to a glass cabinet near the sofa.

Shepard followed slowly behind, taking in the rest of apartment. There were fantastic pieces of artwork covering the walls, and relics from Liara's previous digs, all beautifully presented.

But she couldn't help feeling like she was standing in a museum foyer, rather than someone's home. It just didn't suit the Liara that she knew.

Liara was standing in front of a cabinet, blocking the view slightly so Shepard didn't know what she was going to be shown.

"This is something that is very important to me," Liara explained. "Cerberus had no use for it when your body was recovered, and it would have only been melted down otherwise. I am sure they thought me a sentimental fool when I asked if I could keep it, but it made no difference to them, so I was allowed to have it."

She stepped to the side, and Shepard could see what had taken pride of place in Liara's living area.

It was her old N7 armour. The armour she had been given when she passed the training programme, and the armour she had worn on every active mission afterwards. The armour that had stopped bullets, and repelled biotic attacks, and the armour that saved her life time and time again.

She lifted a shaking hand towards the cabinet, hardly breathing, incredulous that Liara had managed to recover her breastplate. It was in bad condition, with most of the back and sides missing, and the rest of the surface scratched and burned. Despite that, Shepard could still make out the N7 logo above the right breast. It certainly wouldn't provide any protection any more, but it was still her armour, and she couldn't believe that she was seeing it again. Her new Cererbus armour was more than adequate for the job, and various modifications to it meant that her damage and protection stats had improved.

Nothing would be better than her first suit though.

"I didn't think I would see this again," Shepard said thickly. "I assumed it had been destroyed in the crash, or taken by scavengers. The idea that it had been treated in such a way made me angry." She shrugged self-consciously. "I know that sounds daft. After all, it is only a lump of shapen metal."

"I don't think it sounds daft at all," Liara reassured her. "I understand exactly what you mean, and it is the reason I made sure to recover it."

She stepped closer to Shepard and the cabinet.

"It was the first thing about you that I saw. That armour gliding towards me, turning up against the odds and rescuing me. Many people who thought that their lives were about to end will have seen themselves saved by that armour. I'm sure Tali will agree with that assessment, after you stopped Fist's thugs from killing her. This armour is the epitome of you, and everything you have done, and all of the good you have done in the galaxy. I had to save it."

Shepard shook her head in disbelief. "I still can't believe that you have my armour in your apartment," she said. "I knew what it meant to me, but I had no idea you felt the same way about it."

Liara smiled kindly at her, her eyes shining with affection.

"How could I not?" she replied simply.