The incessant beeping of the hospital monitor systems was driving Shepard insane. She had been confined to her room at Huerta Memorial Hospital on the Citadel for the past three days under constant supervision from a litany of doctors and nurses and all kinds of specialists she had never heard of. She knew the treatment was coming on the heels of her decision to ensure the Council's survival. The Councilor's themselves had only just arrived back on the Citadel that day, per the news report on the vid screen, but she was sure they'd had a hand in providing her the best care the Citadel had to offer.

The view outside her window was one of complete destruction. Those who had survived the battle against Sovereign unscathed were assisting in the cleanup efforts. Half of the Citadel had been blasted apart in the battle; some of the damage might take years to rebuild. Still, they had been successful, for the time being. It gave them a head start on the Reapers, if the Council would finally commit to assisting in the effort against them.

The hospital was full to bursting with injured civilians and soldiers. Though Shepard hadn't seen it herself, one of the nurses had told her that even the main lobby had been converted into a med clinic, with cots available for less serious injuries. Major triaging was being done to ensure the most severely wounded were treated first.

She had asked them thirty times or more about her squad, but they had not given her any definite answers. Reporters were apparently swamping the reception desk in an effort to speak to her, so the only saving grace of her confinement was that she didn't have to face any of them.

When the nurses brought lunch to her that third day, they left the room empty, and she momentarily considered tearing the electrodes off her skin and sneaking out to find out what had happened to her squad. She didn't think her injuries warranted the observation. The worst wound she had taken was the chunk of flesh Saren had ripped from her thigh, and they had already regenerated the muscle she'd lost from it. She did have a sizable scar across her thigh now, but no pain or bleeding.

Poking at the unappetizing food on her lunch tray, she wondered how Garrus was doing. He was badly injured when Anderson had found them; he'd taken the worst of Saren's attack. She wanted to see him, but all the nurses and doctors would say was that he was 'alive and stable'.

The door to her room opened and she placed her potatoes on her spoon, childishly flinging them toward what she thought was an incoming doctor. Instead, the mushy potatoes smacked Ambassador Udina square in the forehead. He winced, his lips pursing so tight she thought he might swallow them. She stifled a laugh with a fake cough.

"Shepard!" Udina barked. "What was the meaning of that?"

She cleared her throat. "Thought you were someone else, ambassador."

Anderson entered behind Udina, followed by the three Councilors, all of them looking haggard, but very much unscathed.

"Shepard," Anderson nodded. "Glad to see you're all right. We were worried about you when we pulled you from the rubble. Vakarian was so concerned I thought he was going to maul me when I tried to get you away from him."

"Garrus is my right-hand man," Shepard shrugged. "Maybe you can tell me what happened to my squad. No one here will say."

"Dr. T'soni and Lieutenant Alenko are assisting in the restoration efforts," Anderson said. "The krogan… has been calling my office every day asking where the hell Shepard is. The quarian, Tali, she's been going over some of the recovered Reaper tech with the Council. Vakarian is here in the hospital recovering."

Shepard slumped back against her pillows, relieved. "What about Joker?"

"Joker's in the lobby. He wanted to visit but they wouldn't let him. He's afraid to go back outside because the reporters found out he was the one piloting the Normandy and now they want to ask him a million questions," Anderson laughed. "No one is quite sure what to do with the newfound fame. You might be the most famous woman in the galaxy right now, Shepard."

She groaned. "I keep seeing my face on the vid screen."

"We came here with a purpose, Anderson," Udina interrupted.

Councilor Sparatus stepped forward. "Commander Shepard, we owe you a sincere apology."

That didn't quite cover it, but Shepard wasn't going to say as much. She was also no longer going to give them her stoic soldier routine. She'd given them plenty of her patience and the result was all around them. They could have a bit of her mean side for once.

"And?" Shepard asked.

"Your bravery and selflessness may have saved countless lives during the battle," Councilor Tevos said. "Given all that has occurred, we would like to offer a place for humanity alongside us on the council. Captain Anderson and Ambassador Udina both come with high commendations, and considering your first-hand experience with both of them, we felt we owed it to you to allow you to make the decision on who should join."

Shepard reeled. She had not been expecting a Council seat for humanity at all when they had entered the room; she had only been expecting trite apologies. When she grasped the gravity of the situation, she had a moment of panic. Anderson was the natural choice in her eyes, an excellent representative for humanity, but he hated politics and she thought he would likely despise working alongside the councilors. Udina was made for this sort of thing, but he was also a vile little worm that didn't deserve any happiness.

"I…wow…" Shepard stared at them. "Well, Captain Anderson is the most outstanding leader I've ever served under." Udina's face soured as she said this. "But the ambassador has a lot more experience in politics…"

Anderson solved the problem for her. "Udina would be a better fit for this role. You can feel free to make your choice, but I wanted to air my opinion."

Shepard nodded. As loathe as she was to grant Udina any favors, it felt like doing Anderson a disservice to force him into a Council position. "Then I choose Udina."

"Thank you, Shepard," Udina said, coming the closest she'd ever seen him to smiling. She was also fairly sure he'd never said 'thank you' to her in his life.

"We'd like to award you and your squad with the Palladium Star for your service during the battle," Councilor Valern explained. "A ceremony is being planned, to be held next week, at the 3rd district hanging gardens. We'll be renaming the gardens the Citadel Battle Memorial Gardens and awarding several distinctions to the units who fought the geth and the Reaper."

"We would…appreciate your discretion, commander." Sparatus said. "We don't want to drum up fear in the populace after this monumental loss. The official explanation of the battle is that the geth, brought together by the rogue Spectre, Saren, attacked the Citadel. Talk of Reapers…it's too much…"

"So we're just going to keep lying?" Shepard growled.

"We don't want to create hysteria." Tevos shifted uncomfortably as she spoke. "This way, we can privately focus our resources on preparing for the eventual Reaper invasion. We are sorry for our failure to heed your warnings. We want to work to make this right. But a public venue expressing Reaper intent will only make things chaotic."

Shepard folded her arms over her chest. "I can't make your decisions for you." She wanted to tell them they could take their Palladium star and shove it where the sun didn't shine, but it was an honor far higher than the Star of Terra, one her squad deserved for their bravery.

"We'll send the details on the ceremony to your omni-tool. In the meantime, we'll instate ambassador Udina and continue to focus efforts on rebuilding. Your Spectre status remains intact. Please stop in and see us if you plan on leaving the Citadel."

The Council, and Udina, took their leave, but Anderson stayed behind.

"You made the right choice, Shepard. And the Council will always be that way, protecting their image above their duty. I think we can at least get them to commit some resources to this fight now. But you deserve some rest before we think about that. We've bought ourselves some time now. When they discharge you, watch yourself out there. The reporters are swarming." He walked over to her and shook her hand. "You have made me so proud, Shepard. I'll be here for you, next steps, whatever they might be."

She smiled. "Thanks, captain."

"Oh, and Shepard?"

"Hm?"

"You took down an army of geth and stopped a Reaper invasion…you really going to let some electrodes stop you from seeing your friends?" He winked and left the room.

Shepard realized he was right. She had most of her strength back. What could the doctors and nurses do if they caught her leaving? They couldn't keep her there against her will.

Standing, she tore the electrodes from her skin, ripped off her hospital gown and pulled her clothes from the cabinet by her bed. The nurses had washed them for her, but they were the clothes she had been wearing during the fight with Saren and they were stained red and blue, her own blood mingling with Garrus' in patches of purple. It didn't matter, though. She pulled the clothes on and marched out of the room without a glance back.

The monitors were, of course, beeping frantically as though she were dead, so she hurried down the hall before the doctors started piling into her room, moving quickly to avoid being seen.

"Commander Shepard!" A nurse yelled as she spotted her.

Shepard sprinted for the elevator, sliding in and slamming her fist on the door close button. The doors swung shut just as the salarian nurse was about to reach them, and the elevator shot up three floors.

Safely off of her own unit, Shepard brought up her comm link and dialed Joker.

"Commander?" Joker picked up before it had even begun to ring. "They finally let you make calls?"

"I busted out," she whispered, tucking herself into a corner and out of view, behind a shelf in the hall. "I'm trying to find Garrus' room."

"He's in 1493. They wouldn't let me up to see either of you."

"Joker. You're a famous pilot now. You blew up a Reaper. Are you going to let some hospital receptionist tell you where you can and cannot go?" Shepard asked, mimicking Anderson.

"Well, no, but the turian security guards can and will break my bones," he replied.

She sighed. "Good point. I'll come down to meet you after I visit Garrus."

"Roger that, commander."

Shepard popped back into the elevator and took it up to the fourteenth floor. When she stepped out, an alarm chimed and a voice sounded over the hospital intercom. "All units to floor seven. Codename Steel Cobra has escaped her unit. All floors going into lockdown. Only authorized units may access elevators until lockdown is lifted." The alarm shut off and the elevator behind her deactivated.

Shepard's timing couldn't have been better. She strolled casually down the hall of the fourteenth-floor unit until she found Garrus' room. The door was ajar and when she looked in, she was surprised to see another turian in the room. She could only see the back of him, standing before Garrus' bed, obstructing her view of him.

The unfamiliar turian's skin was a paler grey than Garrus', which she knew was sign of age in the species, not unlike the grey hair humans grew as they aged. From her vantage point, the only other thing she could piece apart about the turian was that he was wearing C-sec armor.

She tapped lightly on the door to alert the two turians of her presence.

The older turian turned around and moved slightly to the side, allowing a view of Garrus. His shoulder and back had large muscle regeneration units attached to them, glowing softly as they worked. The arm attached to his injured shoulder hung in a sling to keep him from moving it while it healed. Most jarring to Shepard was the absence of his clan markings. The durable paint had been washed off and his face was bare; it was unsettling.

He beamed when he saw her, his mandibles twitching, mouth moving into the turian equivalent of a smile. She only had eyes for him, almost forgetting the second turian's presence in the room. The night they had spent together had been on her mind since it happened, momentarily forgotten during the battle, but front and center as she lay worrying about him in her hospital room. She rushed to his bedside and was about to stroke his head affectionately when she remembered they were not alone. She stopped herself short and opted to grab his ungloved hand instead, his sharp talons pricking her skin. She didn't care.

"Garrus," she said. "I'm glad you're okay."

She could feel and see his own desire to embrace her. They hadn't had a serious discussion about the newfound nature of their relationship, pushing it off until the battle with Sovereign was over, but he was still her best friend regardless. She wished the other turian weren't there.

"Shepard," Garrus said, a sigh of relief issuing from his chest. "I thought you were dead when they pulled you from the rubble."

The turian at Garrus' side cleared his throat and they both turned to face him. Shepard was immediately struck by the older turian's resemblance to Garrus, though his clan markings were different, his eyes were the same piercing blue, his mandibles a similar shape, but longer and more pronounced.

"Commander Shepard, I presume," the older turian said, offering a gloved hand. "Castis Vakarian. Garrus has told me much about you."

Shepard shook his hand, opening and closing her mouth. Nothing came out. She was rarely at a loss for words, save when she was receiving compliments, but it was slowly dawning on her that this was Garrus' father: the by-the-book C-sec agent who disliked Spectres. She didn't know how he felt about humans, but she had a sinking feeling he wouldn't have cared for the idea of his son rolling around in the sheets with one, especially one that was a Spectre.

"Did you lose your tongue when you fought the Reaper?" Castis asked, a stern note underlying the flange in his voice.

"I'm uh. It's very nice to meet you," Shepard finally managed.

"Dad, could you give us a minute?" Garrus interrupted.

"I wouldn't mind having a conversation with the commander," Castis said. "But I suppose I can step out for a minute. I understand you saved my son's life during the battle. Thank you for that."

"Well," Shepard flushed red. "He's saved mine a few times."

Before he stepped from the room to give them a moment alone, Garrus' father made a sound with his subharmonics that Shepard couldn't interpret. She watched him go, bewildered.

"I didn't realize I'd be meeting your father when I snuck up here," she said, turning on Garrus.

"Well, he came to make sure I was all right."

"Were you that intimidating when we met?" She asked. "I can't remember."

"No. Pretty much everyone is scared of him," Garrus laughed. "Commander Shepard: hero of the Citadel, scared of Garrus' dad."

She clasped his hand again. "Seriously, Garrus. Are you all right?"

"I've had worse."

"No, you haven't."

"All right, I haven't. But I'm fine, Shepard. They're patching me up. They said I'll be ready for discharge in three more days. And they've given me a bunch of meds so I don't feel the pain at all," He told her.

"Garrus, now that we're alive and…we have a minute to breathe…do you think we should talk about that night, before Ilos…"

His subharmonics purred and he brushed her cheek with his hand. Just as quickly, his hand fell away and an unhappy look came across his face. "Wrex knows about our little interspecies liaison."

"Excuse me?" Shepard demanded. "Why does Wrex know?"

"He saw the bite marks on your shoulder. And he was already suspicious to begin with. He told me when the battle was over he wanted to take us out for drinks and hear the details," Garrus sighed. "Also, you're right. We should talk about it."

Shepard stared at her feet. She hated discussing emotional matters, even with someone like Garrus, with whom she was so close. She started the conversation anyway. "Garrus, you're my best friend. And I had an amazing time with you. It…it was more than just a one night stand to me. But we have no clue what the future has in store…and I don't like putting labels on things. It can get complicated so fast. I just…I don't know…could we maybe just…see where things go and not…not complicate it with labels and…"

"Shepard," Garrus said, stroking her hand. "I understand. I agree. It was more than just…casual sex, but…who knows what happens next? We should just keep this to ourselves. No need to call it anything. We're just two friends who happen to know how to have fun outside the shooting range."

Shepard felt a wave of relief wash over her. "Yeah. Just two friends."

"If you think about it, a good friend wants their friend to feel good, right? We're just being good friends to each other."

"Right. What's an orgasm between friends?" She laughed. A serious expression quickly replaced her smile. "We need to make sure Wrex doesn't tell anyone else. This is just between you and me, and the krogan apparently. Enough people hear about this and with the way things are right now, we're going to have our faces plastered on every news channel with obscene stories about it."

"Once I'm discharged, we can talk to Wrex," He assured her.

"Oh, speaking of. They want to award us a Palladium Star."

She began to fill him in on everything that had happened with the Council. When she finished her story, he clenched his fist, mandibles twitching with anger.

"So, they're just going to tell everyone it was the geth? So that they don't have to face the hysteria? Better for people to go crazy now, when it's already chaotic than to wait until the Reapers are here when we'll need order to defeat them!"

"You're preaching to the choir, Garrus. Still, they said they'll start discussing ways to prepare for it. It's better than nothing," Shepard sighed.

There was a tap on the door and Shepard turned around. Garrus' father was standing in the doorway.

"Have I given you adequate time to speak privately?" he asked.

"Yeah, dad. You can come in," Garrus told him.

Castis crossed the room and sat in a chair near the end of Garrus' bed. Shepard realized she was still holding Garrus' hand. She dropped it and sat down in the chair next to the head of his bed.

"So…" Shepard said, suddenly immensely uncomfortable. "Garrus tells me you've spent your entire career with C-sec?"

"Most of it," Castis nodded. "I was extremely disappointed when Garrus decided to leave to join a Spectre on a wild goose chase," there was a notable bite to the way he said 'Spectre'. "But I suppose it wasn't such a fool's errand after all."

"Shepard said they're awarding us the Palladium Star," Garrus told his father.

The look on Castis' face was incomprehensible to Shepard. Spending as much time as she had with Garrus, she had begun to learn how to read turians' facial expressions, so different than humans'. She couldn't piece this look apart though.

When Castis spoke, his voice caught in his throat for a moment. "That's a great honor, son. You should be very proud. It's well deserved."

She realized that the look he was expressing was pride, possibly mixed with a reluctance to express it. Garrus looked away from his father and coughed. It was evident that the Vakarians didn't discuss emotional topics frequently.

After a moment, Castis spoke again. "I should tell your sister. When's the ceremony? She could be here in a few days."

"It's next week," Shepard said.

"Don't bother Solana," Garrus insisted. "She can watch it on the news."

"Her brother is being decorated with one of the highest awards the Council can give and you think she should stay home and watch it on the news? Nonsense. We should see how your mother's feeling too, she might be up to it…"

"Dad…" Garrus sighed.

Shepard felt caught in the middle of something.

Castis shrugged. "We'll discuss it later," he said.

They sat for a few more minutes in awkward, uncomfortable silence. Shepard had never felt so intimidated by anyone. She'd stood up to higher ranking officials than Castis Vakarian without batting an eyelid, but there was something about his stern voice and gruff demeanor that made her feel like a child being scolded.

"What will you do now that you've succeeded in your mission, commander?" He asked. "Does the Council have new work for you?"

"I don't know," She said honestly. "If they don't, then I'll go back to whatever the Alliance wants me to do."

"How old are you, commander?"

"Uh…twenty-nine," She said hesitantly.

"Hm," Castis tapped his fingers on the chair's armrest. "Quite young to have been awarded a Star of Terra and a Palladium Star."

Shepard was unsure how to respond and unsure whether his tone was judgmental or impressed. Next to her, Garrus' eyelids were fluttering shut. He struggled to keep them open, the sheer quantity of his pain medication finally hitting him.

Castis looked at his son and then back to Shepard. "I believe that Garrus intends to follow you, whatever your next task might be."

Shepard's heart fluttered. Among the many worries in the back of her mind since she'd woken up in the hospital, one had been what would become of her squad now that the mission was over, and of all of them, she'd hoped Garrus might stay most of all.

"Oh?" was all she managed to say, trying not to reveal her excitement.

"Yes. I've received several long-winded messages about your prowess as a soldier and commander. It's evident that Garrus has a great degree of respect for you."

Shepard could sense that there was more coming. After a pause, Castis said,

"The executor wants to offer him a higher-ranking position in C-sec if he's willing to return. It would be my hope that Garrus would accept the offer, but based on the discussions I've had with him, it seems unlikely that he'd be willing to leave your side to return to a job where he's bound by rules and regulations."

"Sir, your son is a valuable asset on board my ship. He's one of the most skilled snipers I've ever seen. He saved our squad countless times on the mission to find Saren. With all due respect, and understanding your opinion on Spectres, I would prefer that Garrus stay on as part of the Normandy's crew," Shepard said, mustering up all her courage just to say it.

Castis said nothing in response. He looked back and forth between Shepard and Garrus and waited nearly an entire minute before he spoke again.

"Commander Shepard, what exactly is the nature of your relationship with my son?"

Shepard felt like she'd been punched in the stomach.

"What do you m…?"

"Please, don't play coy," Castis interrupted. "Even if you hadn't been shooting off pheromones like a lovesick teenager, your feelings were evident in the way you looked at him when you walked in. It's my understanding that Alliance policy prevents fraternization amongst troops. Turians have no such policy in our military, but we do have policies against fraternizing with subordinates."

Shepard felt warm and clammy. Garrus slept soundly in his bed, not hearing any of the conversation. Castis' decision to bring up the topic once Garrus had fallen asleep was completely strategic; very turian.

"Garrus isn't my subordinate," Shepard finally said. "He's not a member of the Alliance. We work as equals on the battlefield. Garrus is my friend. My best friend. I think that's all you really need to know about it."

Castis was stone-faced, not betraying any hint of emotion. He stood up and walked over to Shepard. Her heart was pounding in her ears, terror seizing her.

"He's my only son," Castis said. "You aren't a turian and he's not a human. Don't forget that, commander."

He exited the room without another word. Shepard slumped in her chair and wiped some sweat from her forehead. She had the fleeting thought that she'd rather face a Reaper than have to talk to Castis Vakarian again.