Chapter 9 – Another Think Coming

Being back in the apartment was a relief, but it was uncomfortably quiet for a late afternoon. Kaidan loved the constant chatter from Rorie that he could hear wherever she was, and it was glaringly absent, along with the thundering footsteps that made her sound like a rampaging elephant.

Traynor had arrived and headed straight for the kitchen. After Kaidan had finished calming down his parents and closed his omnitool, he gratefully accepted the coffee she now offered him, also taking the mug of tea for Terra who hadn't moved from Rorie's bedside since they settled her in bed an hour ago. He understood that need to keep her in sight. There was this nasty feeling inside of him; he'd failed to protect her from knowing about the monsters that lived in her galaxy.

Walking into Rorie's bedroom, he watched Terra reach forward from the plush chair beside Rorie's bed to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, settling her as she fussed in her sleep, then smoothing away the distress from her little face. It was a sign that the events were manifesting in her sub-conscious. His daughter was having nightmares.

Heavy-hearted, Kaidan carefully sat on the edge of the bed, mindful not to break Terra's eye-line to Rorie, and handed her the mug of tea. She met his eyes in order to convey her appreciation, her fingers running over his as she took it.

"Courtesy of Traynor," he informed her in a hushed tone. "She's ready for babysitting duty."

Terra said nothing to that, her eyes returning to their daughter. "Any word on Joker?"

"Not yet. Given his injuries, it'll be a while before we hear anything. But he's in the best hands." Kaidan looked at Rorie, her brow furrowing again. She needed Joker to pull through or the psychological damage to her would be irreparable…if it wasn't already.

"How could they have gotten so close to her, Kaidan? Did we get complacent?"

"We had too little information to work with. And we jumped to conclusions."

"What else have they got in motion?" When she turned her attention on him, her eyes glistened with unshed tears. "Kaidan, I have no idea what their next move could be. How are we supposed to stop this from happening again? We should have left her with your parents. Should we take her back to Earth? Somewhere else? I don't know what to do!"

Kaidan had never seen Terra so close to panic. Taking the mug from her, he placed it on the bedside table with his and grasped her trembling hands. "We start with finding out how they got in. If it's something we can fix, then she's safest here. And she'll need the stability and familiarity of home."

Terra stared back at him, finally inhaled, and then buried her face into his chest, needing the arms Kaidan placed around her. "They took some of her innocence, Kaidan. God, I feel so angry."

"I know." And he did. There was a special hatred inside him for the Leviathans.

"And I had to take someone's father away today."

"To save our little girl, Terra. If it had been me in that man's place, I'd want you to end it. I don't ever want to be used as a tool to murder a child." He held her away so he could see her face. "But he's not the only one you hold on your conscience, is he? You blame yourself for those others."

Her eyes dropped. "I should have destroyed the artifact when I first had the chance. Instead, I allowed the bastard creatures a voice and now those people are lying in Huerta, effectively dead."

"You aren't responsible for what the Leviathans did."

"But it wouldn't have happened if I'd just ignored them and pulled the damn trigger."

They heard the door open downstairs.

"That'll be your father."

Terra gave a frustrated sigh. "I don't want to go to another meeting and listen to them go over it all again just to conclude that nothing's changed. I don't want to leave Rorie. Not now."

"I get that, but Dr Michel said it's likely she'll sleep for a good while. She won't even miss us. Terra, we can't make it look like we're giving up, not now."

Resigned to her fate, Terra rose and kissed that tiny nose, giving one last look at Rorie as she left the room. Before following, Kaidan bent to kiss Rorie's soft forehead, wishing he could take away all the awful memories out of her head and return her to that pure untroubled child she'd been just hours earlier. But like so much else these days, it wasn't in his power. The Leviathans would pay for this.

oOo

Shutting down the vid-call, Oriana remembered how much she disliked the man who had been informing her of his arrival at Omega.

She'd approached him a few months back, after seeing him on a news report. He was slating Admiral Shepard over lies he said she'd told which had led to his dismissal from the Alliance. He was adamant that it had been a witch-hunt, helped along by the fact Admiral Hackett was her father. He'd sworn to the reporter that he was completely innocent - something Oriana doubted, as did the interviewer. It didn't matter, because he had a grudge which Chimera might in some way be able to use. She'd sought out information on him and discovered he had been thick enough with the admiral father of a close friend who'd died on Elysium that the man had pulled a lot of strings and done a lot of deals to keep Antella out of anything more serious than a dishonourable discharge. The admiral was now also deceased, but Oriana knew all about insider networks and how they worked. During his time in Internal Affairs, Caleb Antella would have high-level resources within the Alliance and likely had no scruples about using them, so Chimera needed him.

Once she'd carefully ascertained the level of his hate whilst plying him with alcohol, Oriana had broached the subject of retribution, and his eyes had lit up. With the mention of large sums of credits, Antella had been straight on board.

Chimera was on its way to being fully formed. Lawson Enterprises was the driving force and the brains, she already had Intel for the man who would be the sting in their tail, and Antella was the one riding their backs, effective only for his ability to do just that - leech. Separately, they weren't much of a threat, but together they would be a force to be reckoned with.

oOo

Only half of Terra's attention was on the words from those around the table. She decided she didn't like this room. Politics… She hated politics, but she knew it was a necessary evil. That said, the people who dabbled in it daily seemed to fall into its pit of constant procrastination. Being an advocate of action, it infuriated her. What aggravated her more was that they were now going over the same issues she'd stood through this morning.

"It is clear our course of action remains as it was."

Terra almost rolled her eyes at Tevos' declaration.

"Admiral Shepard and General Alenko will go to Rannoch-"

"You don't need to send two Spectres for that," interrupted Shepard, all eyes fixing on her.

"Admiral Shepard?" frowned Sparatus.

"Our daughter just went through a traumatic ordeal. One of us needs to be here for her."

"I agree," said Kaidan. It was a thought he'd had himself. "I'll go alone."

Startled, Terra turned to him. "I wasn't suggesting it be you-"

"I know." Kaidan knew she was too selfless to. "But you've not had shore-leave for over a month. You and Rorie need some time together."

Although Terra would miss the amazing man she'd married, she was immensely grateful to be staying with Rorie. The thought of leaving her baby behind again was one that left her raw.

"Seeing as the Normandy currently has no experienced pilot for a trip outside Citadel space, it's a sound choice," added Hackett. "I'll have a ship ready to take you, General."

"Thank you, Sir. I'd also request that Clay'Gerrel accompany me; I'd like to be fully briefed on his claims before we bring this to his father."

"Of course, General," nodded Koris.

"Very well," ended Valern, like it hadn't already been decided. "In the meantime, we will begin looking at candidates to replace Vakarian."

That got Terra's attention, and she suddenly realised that Garrus wasn't there. "Wait a minute! You fired him?"

"No. He resigned," Sparatus said disapprovingly.

That piece of information didn't surprise her. He was blaming himself. "Don't look for that replacement, Councillors. Executor Vakarian isn't quitting. He's just having a crisis of faith in himself."

"Maybe it's justified," Sparatus frowned.

'It's not." Terra speared him with her look. "How easy for you to criticise in hindsight, Councillor." Shepard didn't care that Sparatus bristled at her tone; no one was going to make Garrus a scapegoat. "Are we done?" She looked around at the faces - the Councillors and her father surprised by her attitude, Wrex and Aethyta clearly enjoying it. Terra was beyond caring. Only her family's well-being mattered, blood or not.

"Yes, I-" started Tevos.

"Great." Shepard walked straight out and didn't stop until she was outside, bracing herself on the railings overlooking the Presidium's lake, but for once the normally calming surroundings did nothing to placate the unrest inside her. The arms that went around her helped, and she leaned back into Kaidan's embrace. "I couldn't stand there anymore," Terra murmured, in some kind of excuse for her abrupt behaviour.

"Knocking the Councillor off his pedestal? ... I thought it was extremely sexy, Admiral."

Terra huffed as he broke through the strange mood she was wallowing in. "Thank you." She turned to face him, her eyes begging him to help sort through the mess that was her mind. "I don't know who I am, right now. I tried to be the soldier – respectful, logical, and diplomatic - then I just snapped. It's like I can't control myself. I feel so…defensive." Even now she felt the anger simmering beneath her skin brought on by that overwhelming protectiveness, her hands in tight fists as she continued. "Over Rorie and everyone important to me. We nearly lost so much. Rorie. Joker. Edi." She hated that she knew nothing about Joker's condition. "I should go to the hospital."

Kaidan stilled her with hands on her shoulders. "Chakwas will let you know the minute she has him stable. Terra, you're still you. This is simply…another challenge you have to step up to. It just feels like a harder fight when it's not a physical entity you can swing at."

"I should know that by now, shouldn't I?"

"It's different when it's personal."

For a moment Kaidan looked immensely sad, caught in a time when she'd not been there to comfort him, and Terra cupped his handsome face and gave him a lingering kiss. She could fight this because she had Kaidan standing beside her – her rock – and she would be his.

O

Liara was going to speak to Shepard face to face; to apologise for being too distracted with her own problems to have missed some clue that might have stopped this attack… but she'd hesitated at the sight of the intimate moment between her friends. She wouldn't interrupt them. Instead, she walked past and continued on to a quiet spot surrounded by Thessia's native flowers. There she opened her omnitool and typed a message.

Shepard,

My apologies for not speaking with you directly, but I have much to do.

I am arranging transport for Feron to retrieve the beacons and black-box. Forgive me, but there is something I must see to – a personal issue. I assure you I will not be out of touch for long. Javik will be remaining on the Citadel to watch over you all. This is something I need to do alone.

I promise to explain when I have some answers of my own.

Take care, and send my love to my Little Star.

Liara.

She didn't send it straight away, deciding to delay it until she was back on her ship. Not that she was heading off yet. Her journey would have to wait until the morning.

oOo

Garrus sat at his desk. No, not his desk, not anymore. Today had proven, despite the title of Executor, he could still mess it up just as completely as when he was Archangel. Only this time he'd gotten 82 of his men killed, and the final sacrifice was very nearly Rorie instead of himself.

That moment played out in his head constantly: Rorie in his scope, hugging the unresponsive Joker and unaware of the hostile aiming at her, and he'd gotten that man in his cross-hairs, his finger tightening on his trigger just seconds slower than Shepard. … Would his shot have been in time? Was he slower because he'd been too long dealing with diplomats and not enough in real combat?

He buried his head into his hands. No indoctrinated should have even made it past the damned bays.

A shadow fell across his desk and he looked up at a stern-looking Shepard.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Vakarian?"

Garrus sagged back into his chair. "They rolled the damn artifacts right through the fields, Shepard. It was as easy as that. I defended us against any indoctrinated passing through. Not once did I think about them using the artifacts themselves to bypass it all and bring down the power."

"None of us did."

"But it wasn't your job to protect this place, it was mine. Now 82 men and women are dead and a lot more wounded because I failed."

"So now you're wallowing?"

"I'm not wallowing," he refuted.

"Looks like wallowing to me. I should know, I've been a champion at it for the last few hours, myself."

"You're allowed... You almost lost Rorie today."

"Yes, I did," she whispered back, her now-watery eyes falling to her feet, and Garrus saw the second she drew it all back in, squared her shoulders and met his gaze again. "Almost. But we didn't lose her, and we won't, because we will keep going until the Leviathans are no longer a threat to her or anyone else. What alternative is there? Give up and let it happen?"

Her words resonated. What would he be doing? Staying close to Rorie, yes, but as a soldier he knew you didn't wait until the enemy was knocking at your door. You kept them at a distance for as long as you could, while you found a way to sneak up behind them and gave them no option but to take your bullet.

Garrus studied his dearest friend, who had, in no uncertain terms, just given him a kick up the backside. "I've made a rash decision, haven't I?"

Shepard shrugged nonchalantly back at him. "You're Garrus Vakarian. It's what you do. Hence why I'm here, pulling your ass out of another bad mistake."

Garrus could only chuckle at that. "I blame you, of course. This is what happens when you leave me by myself for months on end."

"To be fair, it was only one month."

"And a half, but who's counting?"

Her smile slowly turned into a serious line. "There's no-one they could place in that seat who could protect Rorie better than you, Garrus."

"You're right," he conceded, not because he thought he was superior; he simply had a personal attachment to that little human which meant he'd go to the ends of the galaxy to keep her from harm. "The Leviathans aren't getting back in here again. I'll make sure of that."

"I know you will. Now make that call to the Council and take back that resignation. Something tells me they won't be surprised."

One brow plate rose in amusement. "You told them already, huh?"

"Absolutely. If you decide to give all this up it will be because you're ready to move on to something new, not because you think you failed at it. You're no quitter."

"Hm. My father might disagree with you. Thinks I'd have been sitting in this seat a lot sooner had I stuck it out in C-Sec at the beginning and fallen into line."

"He must be crazy!" she teased. "Look at all the great stuff you'd have missed out on along the way! Racing through hordes of geth to launch into a relay in nothing but a Mako; being stranded on a platform above a chasm while Collectors rain down; and let's not forget dodging a Reaper to bring forth the mother of all thresher maws."

Garrus laughed. "Ah…good times. Thanks for introducing me to the true meaning of chaos, Shepard. It prepared me for any situation, that's for sure."

"You're welcome." With her grin firmly fixed in place, she headed for the door. "See you for breakfast tomorrow?"

"Breakfast? You're not heading for Rannoch?"

"Dad's arranging a ship to take Kaidan," was all she said, only turning when she got to the exit.

"Right. Of course. Joker. Any word?"

"Not yet."

"He'll make it, Shepard. The guy survived the SR-1 exploding, the SR-2 crashing twice - no way would that man allow himself to depart this life without being firmly sat in the leather seat of his favourite ship."

"I hope you're right."

With a small wave she stepped out of the room and he was alone. Alone but with a purpose. He placed a call, but not to the Council - they could wait.

"Garrus. Everything alright? I heard the news."

"As well as it can be, father." Garrus took a second to brace himself to do something he'd never done before. "I need your help."

oOo

Kaidan was cooking dinner when Terra returned, determined to make the evening a pleasant one before he departed, the plan being to travel overnight to reach Rannoch by morning. It meant these were his last hours with his family. He'd made sure to purchase Rorie some ice-cream just to see the joy on her face, wanting to leave with that happier image of her than the traumatised one he currently had.

"Smells wonderful," Terra purred as she slid her hands around his waist and rested her cheek on his shoulder.

Before he could respond the door chimed, and they sighed in unison. Terra left to answer the door, leaving a cold emptiness around him.

"Karin…" he heard Terra say, and Kaidan moved to where he could see the front door, Terra retreating to let the doctor inside. "Is it Joker?" Kaidan heard the tremble in her voice and left the kitchen to join her.

"Jeff is stable," Chakwas said, instantly putting them at ease, and Kaidan felt Terra sag with relief. "The gunshot just missed his heart so he was extremely fortunate. It was the fall that did the most damage. Broken ribs punctured his lungs, and he has a lot of other breaks and fractures, but he'll heal."

"Thank God," Terra whispered.

"Is Uncle Joker fixed now?"

They all turned to the little voice. Rorie sat halfway down the stairs, peering through at them.

"Hey, honey," smiled Kaidan, going to pick her up. "How are you feeling?"

"Hungry."

"Hh! Then it's a good thing dinner is nearly ready…and probably about to burn." He quickly passed her over to Terra. "But I have your favourite dessert," he added, enjoying her pleased grin before retreating back to the kitchen.

"Uncle Joker will be sad if his bones hurt," Rorie said to Chakwas as she snuggled into her mother. "You should give him ice-cream. That will make him smile. He can have mine."

"That's very kind, Aurora."

"Can we go see him?"

"He's still heavily sedated, darling, and I doubt he'll regain consciousness until the morning," informed Chakwas. Then she laughed at the confused frown from Rorie. "I'm sorry. Sometimes I forget who I'm speaking to. Uncle Joker's sleeping. You can go tomorrow when he's had time to rest."

"Oh. Okay."

Then dinner was ready, Hackett arrived to check on his grand-daughter, and Chakwas was included in the family meal as though she truly belonged there.

oOo

The shuttle glided across the clear night sky above the beautiful jungle-like surroundings of this part of Sur'Kesh. Its destination was the salarians' most top-level laboratory which sat in total isolation.

Major Kirrahe hadn't been back here since Cerberus' attack over the krogan female. His presence there years ago had been an insult placed upon him by Dalatrass Linron for daring to speak out in favour of the then Commander Shepard and her insistence on the existence of the Reapers. Even though he hadn't seen the hologram that had appeared on Virmire, Kirrahe knew an honest and sound-minded soldier when he saw one. For his vocal support of the human Commander in a bid to get his people to act on the threat, he was punished with a security detail. He'd been given a higher rank to make it look like Linron was rewarding him for his work on Virmire when instead he was placed him in a post he was over-trained for no matter how important, secret and high-level the work carried out here was.

However, that move had also worked against the Dalatrass. When Cerberus attacked, Kirrahe was placed back in his element again, and with the much needed help from Shepard and her crew they stopped Cerberus from killing the last krogan female – something he was sure Linron would have preferred had not been the case with the subsequent emergence of the genophage cure. The blame for that intelligence leak to the krogan leader had also been laid squarely at his feet. After the Reapers had been destroyed, Linron had ensured he was stuck groundside in a training facility. Not that he minded passing on his experience to new recruits, but when there was important work out there, it seemed a massive waste of the resource that he knew he was.

He'd been rather surprised by this sudden and immediate order to take over the security again, and he wondered what the motive was behind it. Was the Dalatrass worried about a new threat? Leaks weren't a concern; there was no longer any external communication enabled, asides from one direct link to the Dalatrass' office. No-one would be able to divulge any of the work going on there without Linron knowing about it. But yet, here he was… Could she be expecting an attack?

Kirrahe was surprised when his radar showed he was on approach. He'd made this journey in the dark many times and he'd always seen the lights off in the distance. A new security feature perhaps? But there was no response when he called to announce his arrival, and no landing pad lit for him to land. With his gut telling him this was something more, he carefully landed the shuttle in a small clearing outside the facility, and readied his gun.

oOo

The remainder of their evening had indeed been a wonderful one. Dinner was full of conversation about anything except the day's events, Kolyat and his family had turned up (rather cautiously at first – worried about Rorie and not wanting to impose) and were instantly ushered inside, where little Thian was subjected to a face full of Rorie as she revelled in her role as 'big girl' and took over the tiny drell's choice of where to look and which of her carefully selected toys he could touch.

Most important of all to Terra and Kaidan was that Rorie was smiling and vibrant again. Chakwas had given Rorie something to help her sleep soundly before she'd left for the night, followed soon after by Hackett, and Kaidan had only managed to get half-way through her requested story of Ali Baba when she'd fallen asleep. He'd lingered a little longer, soaking in the sweet slumbering face he was going to miss.

He and Terra had then retired to their bedroom where they enjoyed each other, making the most of the little time that remained before he had to depart for Rannoch.

Terra was laying within her husband's arms, her cheek pressed against his chest, and her left hand tracing lazy patterns down his side, grinning whenever she glided over that sweet spot that always made his muscles ripple as he fought the flutter of pleasure. In return, his hand was caressing her back and she felt truly relaxed by it.

The evening had been a surprise - far better than she was hoping - and she marvelled at her child's resilience. Her thoughts turned to Kolyat's son. He'd grown so much in the space of six weeks. It struck home just how long ago Rorie had been just as tiny, and an unexpected longing ignited. She looked up at Kaidan. She caught his own far-away look, and he must have known she could read it because he gave a slow smile and brought his head forward to kiss her.

When he pulled away, she immediately wanted the taste of him back. She loved this man so completely it scared her. Terra ran her fingers down his lips. "What's going on in that handsome head of yours?"

Kaidan loved that unique gesture she had and it always sent a wave of love and a delightful tingling sensation through him. "Just wondering…" He mulled over the words to use. "When this is all over…" Would she agree? "What would you think about extending our family?" He prepared himself for a no. "It's okay if you don't. I know it's a lot to ask when it has such an impact on you working and everything."

"Kaidan-"

"I guess I just kind of blurted it out without thinking." He knew he was rambling, but it suddenly hit him how much he wanted it, and he didn't want her to feel pressured by it. "Forget I said anything. We should just be grateful for Rorie. I don't mean to be selfish-"

"Kaidan!" Terra laughed, her fingers silently shushing him.

Kaidan was struck by her beautiful smile, as though it was from her very core, her eyes soft and warm. He waited for her response but he already knew the answer and it made him very happy.

"I can't deny it's crossed my mind. It would be nice to do it on our terms, our choice."

"Yeah. Nothing hanging over our heads. Just a baby to look forward to." The words sounded great as he spoke them.

"Of course, you realise there's no escaping if you end up being even more outnumbered by girls."

"I think I can hold my own well enough. Bring it on, Mrs Alenko."

"Then it's a date," she grinned. "As soon as we stop the Leviathans. Gives us an added incentive."

"It certainly does." Their kiss was long and languid.

"Probably best not to tell Joker though," warned Terra over his lips. "He'll likely try to castrate you beforehand."

"Ouch! Huh! Yeah, I'm, uh, all for keeping that to myself."

Then his omnitool told him he needed to get ready before his ride arrived to take him to his ship, and they both sighed in disappointment.

Fifteen minutes later and Kaidan was about to leave with a strange mixture of feelings: protectiveness and guilt over Rorie, melancholy at being apart from his family, but a contentment running through it all at how life was moving on and healing begun, even in such a short amount of time, with a hopeful note for the future. They just had to get past the Leviathans first.

Opening the door, Kaidan came face to face with James.

"Surprise!" the big man grinned.

"Vega! What are you doing here?"

"Heard you were leaving a gorgeous woman alone for a few days-"

"Yeah, yeah. You know one of these days that mouth is going to talk you into a whole lot of trouble, Vega."

Terra had come over at the sound of voices. "James, I thought you weren't coming back to the Citadel until tomorrow. What are you doing back so early?"

"What he's doing is getting in my way," came another familiar voice from behind James. "Move your ass, jarhead."

"Jack!" exclaimed Terra, as she and Kaidan moved aside to let their two guests in.

"Why didn't you call me, Shepard? I had to find out from a frickin' news-vid!" scowled Jack.

"Same here," added James, seriously. "Caught the reports and hauled ass out here. Spoke to Coats. He said they were targeting Rorie. That it was the Leviathans."

"Fuck!" The blue aura of barely contained energy began swirling around Jack. "Then I'm definitely staying. 'Bout time I had some time-off from the kids, anyhow."

"By spending time with another kid?" James had to point it out.

"Shut up, smart-ass."

"Ho now! That's the second time you've referred to my ass, Bella. Something you want to tell me?"

"Yeah. You're not going to last the night," Jack glowered.

"Okay. Time out," intervened Terra.

"I'm off," announced Kaidan, sending his wife a look of pity. In truth, he was pleased she wouldn't be alone. Between them, James and Jack were perfect distractions for Rorie and Terra.

"I'm being punished, aren't I?" she joked.

Grinning, Kaidan stepped into her space and lowered his mouth to her ear. "I can vouch you've been very naughty," he murmured deliberately, knowing the effect it had on her. Then he gave her one last loving kiss before leaving, their entwined hands the last to let go.

With the door closing behind Kaidan's retreating back, Terra suddenly felt swamped with weariness. "I'm off to bed. No, James," she added quickly, raising her finger up in warning, causing James' mouth to freeze open in mid-breath before it twisted into a cheeky grin. "What about you two?"

"I'm game," James aimed at Jack.

"Only if you're the target, meat-head." Jack skewered him with a look that would have had anyone else staggering backwards in fear for their life. Much to her annoyance, Vega just chuckled back at her, completely unfazed, so she ignored him. "I'll take the spare room, Shepard."

At Shepard's questioning look, James shook his head. "Now that I've declared my services, I'm going to surprise Niree. I didn't tell her I was coming. Can't wait to see the look on her face. Hey, anyone know where I can pick up some asari poetry?"

"At this time of night?"

"Actually, there's a little place called Menagerie not far from here." Jack sent him the co-ordinates. "It's a bar but they dabble in all sorts of shit. What?" she then said, defensively, at the surprised looks.

"Nothing," came a joint reply.

"I'm not completely uncultured, you know," Jack added in irritation, to which Shepard just put her hands up in surrender.

"Well, cheers, Bella."

"Quit calling me that," snapped Jack, getting a surrender from James, too.

"See you bright and early, Lola."

"Night James."

When Vega had departed, Jack turned her full attention to Shepard. "You look like shit."

"Thanks, Jack," she half-laughed. "I'm tired. It's been a long and emotional day."

Jack could suddenly see every single emotion on Shepard's face as she replayed the day through her head, and it didn't sit well with Jack. "She okay, Shepard? Did they hurt her?"

"Physically? No." Terra felt worry return. "But psychologically? I have no idea how this will affect her, Jack. She saw Edi knocked off-line, then Joker get shot and fall. She cried over his unconscious body, Jack. Then she got so scared for Steve when he got hurt that she ran right out into a gunfight to protect him with a barrier."

"Damn, Shepard! Sounds like something one of us would do! She's one brave kid." Jack looked at her feet for a few seconds. "You don't need to worry about her, Shepard. She'll be just fine… because she has you. You sorted out the fucked up person I used to be…well, mostly. In your hands, Rorie can't fail to thrive."

Suddenly self-conscious with the whole 'feely' moment, Jack sauntered off to the guest room with a casual "Night," leaving Shepard staring after her.

Terra doubted the young biotic had any idea just how much her words had impacted. She'd been feeling useless in the face of the hidden damage to Rorie, but maybe she wasn't as powerless to help her little girl after all. With a lighter heart, she ascended the stairs, but she didn't head to her bedroom; she'd had enough of sleeping alone. Instead, she climbed in beside Rorie who seemed to gravitate towards her even in sleep, and Terra drifted off enjoying the comforting warmth of her daughter.

oOo