Thessia
Normandy

Much as she wanted to stay with Liara and fussed over the baby, Shepard knew Liara needed her rest. She had no idea if her bondmate was tackling two things at the same time during the birth; physically and mentally. If so, it explained the deep fatigue she sensed in Liara as Effia and Hilia cleaned up the mess of the birthing process she hadn't noticed until they told her to move out of the way.

When she got to her feet, she realised the special carpet mat that was spread on her bed prevented fluids from seeping through. Anxiety made her blind to everything else but Liara. The birthing process was astonishingly fast, unlike human births which could take hours. Since Effia displayed no signs of worry, she guessed it was normal.

After a quick conversation with an ecstatic Aethyta, (who wouldn't be over the moon with a double dose of good news?) she changed out of her hardsuit into her uniform. She couldn't resist taking another look at the baby before Effia chased her out. With the crisis over down below, she only had to update the brass and wait for further orders. In the meantime, she ought to check on Shiala.

Down to the crew deck she went, feeling somewhat on top of the world. She had a word with Doctor Chester who gave the commandos a clean bill of health, relatively speaking. There was no sign of any TI inflicted injuries. The only concern he had was Shiala, still out for the count. The drug dosage was heavy for her vital signs were sluggish.

That didn't sit too well with Shepard although Chester assured her that Shiala would recover; she just need to sleep it off. How long? Perhaps for the rest of the day and the next. Shepard nodded and left the medbay. Outside in the mess hall, off duty crewmen sat at ease at the tables, talking animatedly as they ate and drink, no doubt discussing the success of the SHD operation. Her eyes fell on Hiaras, leaning against the middle sleep pod along the passage to main battery, eyes on her omni-tool. As she watched, the asari muttered something under her breath and shifted restlessly. There was an air of anxiety and frustration about her. Shepard thought she knew why and went over.

"You okay, Hiaras?" she asked softly once she reached her.

Hiaras looked up, startled. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine," Shepard said bluntly as she leaned against the opposite sleep pod. "Still no word from Sanar?" When Hiaras shook her head, she said slowly, "You know, as much as I appreciate having a sidekick, I think I'll get by for the rest of the mission without one."

Although she didn't understand what exactly was a sidekick, Hiaras grasped what Shepard was trying to say. "I appreciate the thought but no, Shepard, I cannot. Moreover, a pledge cannot be readily discarded in favour of personal obligations. That will put my honor in shadow. "

"I apologise. That was not my intention," Shepard said. "I'm chugging along fine so far, I thought you'd like a brief detour."

"As a novice in mental disciplines, you will have difficulty identifying the small signs of disruption."

That was too kind of her. Novice? She hardly knew anything about it!

"You don't happen to be rummaging in my mind every time you see me, do you?" Shepard eyed her suspiciously, not liking the idea at all. She didn't think the commando would but then her case was unusual.

Hiaras grinned nastily. "Every time."

"If I'd believed you for one minute, I'd sic the Justicars on your tail," Shepard drawled, an eyebrow twitching high in amusement at the exaggerated malicious smile. "One of their doctrines has a nasty thesis on data mining without permission."

"Indeed."

Hiaras was not surprised Shepard knew some of the Justicar doctrines. After what Shiala did, the human would want to know the implications of an illegal act. On that thought, she wondered what Shepard was going to do with Shiala. The question hovered on her tongue but she held it back. It wasn't her business.

"The ancestors were exacting on every criminal aspect and one punishment," she said instead and shrugged. "If you want to know, I feel your aura. It's something like a visual scan of familiar surroundings, looking for things that doesn't seem right."

"You make it sound easy," Shepard humphed. "I just dropped by medbay. Most of the commandos are back on their feet."

Hiaras nodded. "It is fortunate the assailants were not TI. Aethyta will be pleased but this brazen assault makes a return to the estate in doubt."

"Aethyta feels the same way. They will continue on to the Citadel as planned until the perpetrators are caught."

"You have some thoughts on this?" Hiaras eyed her keenly.

"Some but I don't have a definite target to hit yet. Much as I want to look further into it, I have other concerns."

"Aethyta will not rest until she has them in hand," Hiaras said confidently.

"What are the chances that they are elements of Aethyta's opposition?"

Somewhat taken aback, Hiaras considered the question carefully.

"Those in the Assembly who have suffered an ill turn when their deeds were uncovered are the ones who will hold the most bitterness. Long had they held power and to lose it-," she trailed off uncertainly when she recalled the rumors of the backlash among the clans. "They will desire to strike back but-," she frowned, "for them to go this far. The people are used to political wranglings among assembly members but this act is too malevolent. To risk disavowal among their own is foolishness."

"Weren't they skating rather close to that when they allowed the TI to secretly slip in and out of the cities?" Shepard rubbed the side of her nose thoughtfully and crossed her arms, shifting restlessly. "The latest offensive is going to highlight that particular infraction when news that the TI knew precisely where to hit breaks out."

Hiaras gnawed her lip unhappily at that reminder. "I know. It puts them on the same level as Shairio."

"It could be possible they couldn't pass up the opportunity to get back at Aethyta. There is a chance the attempt is directed at me."

"You?"

Hiaras straightened in surprise. Such a premise did not occur to her. She knew there were humans who did not approve of Shepard marrying an asari but would they attempt to carry out a kidnap attempt? Persuade a former assembly member to do such a thing? If they succeeded, what did they plan to do with the hostages?

"Why is that?" she asked sharply.

Shepard glanced at the shut door of the main battery room and then the mess hall. There was no one close enough to hear but she knew ears were stretched to catch the tiniest bits of the conversation. Following the direction of her glances, Hiaras understood her reluctance to discuss it. Words spread too easily around a ship this size. She met Shepard's eyes and exchanged an empathetic glance. Perhaps they could speak of it later in a more secure surrounding.

"I look forward to hear more of this later," she said and changed the subject. "Now that you have a little one, are you going back on a regular pay grade after this mission?"

"I'm not sure," Shepard said slowly. "It depends on what I would find at the end of this pursuit."

Hiaras understood what she meant. It was all very well to make plans in the middle of a campaign but the present was a flowing river that turned and twist at will. Only when the end of the path was reached would the beginnings of other paths begin to show. The Systems Alliance was prudent to give Shepard six years of furlough. Away from the public eye and the heavy pressure of conflict, the past year was a slow easing back into the role she was most capable of. It was hard to see her as anything else. That was what she was born for. It was in her blood. Could she turn away from it?

"You have other alternatives?" she asked carefully.

Shepard shrugged. "Nothing definitive. It's more of redefining some objectives." I hope.

A beep from Hiaras's omni-tool interrupted what she was about to say. Tapping on it eagerly, she saw that it was an incoming email. With a silent prayer, she opened it.

"Sanar?" Shepard asked when a smile bloomed on Hiaras's face, somewhat amazed that the oft stoic face was so expressive.

"She's all right." Hiaras sighed with relief. "She didn't say much but she knows just by sending this, it's good enough."

"So when are you going to make her an honest asari?" Shepard grinned at Hiaras's blank look. "Bondmate," she said helpfully.

"Oh." Comprehension flashed across Hiaras's face. "We were planning summer this year, thinking the situation on Thessia would have stabilised but now.." Disappointment flashed across her face at the dismal prospect of a bonding ceremony.

"There're a few more months to go, don't lose hope yet. Who knows the-," Shepard stopped short when the beep of her own omni-tool cut across her words.

"The thing never rests does it?" Hiaras observed humorously.

Shepard threw her a wry look and tapped on the com key. "Yes?"

"Admiral Langdon is on the line, sir," Araki said.

"I'll be right there." Closing off the comm, Shepard straightened. "He's going to get the ball rolling again. You might want to alert Effia and the rest to start packing up."

"I'll get on it. The sooner we finished Cerberus, the faster we can come back to clean up Thessia."

"Let's hope the dogs are cooperative."

Shepard headed towards the lift, took it up to deck two and went straight to the QEC room. Much to her surprise, instead of the expected directive to assemble the allied force for an assault on the galactic core, Langdon told her to proceed to Hades Nexus to pick up the third segment in the Sheol System.

"Sir, wasn't the Ain Jalut supposed to acquire the final piece of the code?"

"The Ain Jalut was diverted to another system to investigate a disturbance," Langdon said. "The data supplied by Mr Verner and the file on Capek made up the first and second string in the code sequence. The one at the Sheol System has to be the last."

What was the crisis that they had to send the Ain Jalut? She listened as Langdon continued. "Given the critical development on Thessia, it is imperative the third segment is retrieved."

Shepard nodded. "Yes, sir. We'll proceed to the Hades Nexus immediately."

After Langdon signed off, she contemplated the empty QEC platform for a moment, wondering what was it that the admiral was not saying. She headed back to CIC to pass on the order to Araki. With all SHDs expended, the empty missile launchers had to be recaliberated. They also need to resupply from the Alliance depot at Sha Station. All of which would take a few hours. Time enough to spend with Liara and Delenn before they transferred over to the Tilvar. Who knew how long this mission would take and what else might crop up? She checked her personal console to see what's queued for her attention and found there was nothing that couldn't wait an hour or two. After a glance around CIC, she went up to the loft.

Citadel

The chronometer read seven in the morning. To Tessie, it might as well be five. After the long meeting called in by Melik that went on for hours and hours during the night, rack time was but a snatch. Barely sufficient to restoke her energies. Her mood was not made any better that the team was to run hull inspections on Tayseri ward that day. She pulled on her skin suit grumpily and checked the seals. Sitting down on the bench before her locker, she fished out her boots and began to put them on.

"I can't believe the first thing they do is dump the entire asari population over here," she muttered. "Shouldn't they get the business districts up first?"

"Sleeping at the meeting last night?" Malon looked over to her from a adjacent bench, all suited up, fingers poised over his portable console.

His bright perkiness soured her mood further. She scowled at him. "The damn station is still locked down even after the asari arrive which means they don't think it's safe yet. Does that make sense to you?"

"Between being turned into a raging monster on Thessia and facing sudden vacuum, which would you rather have?" Malon turned back to his console. "They didn't turn up anything to prove the station is unsafe either."

"Gods, what're they waiting for?" Tessie secured her boots angrily. "I'm so going on prolong leave once they get their butts up and running. I'm going to get some real food and real sack time!" The sound of footsteps coming into the locker room turned her about. "Well shit West, took you long enough. Did you-," she said, voice raising and stopped to stare when she registered who it was standing at the entrance. Malon paused in his tapping. Challa straightened to look.

A dark hair man stood there, all suited up, his helmet in his hands. "Hi, name's Tavish. Uh..Drake asked me to take over the driver's seat." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Your pilot?" he supplied helpfully when they looked at one another. "Your usual jockey went on furlough."

"What?!" Tessie stared at him in disbelief. "He took leave? What for?" She turned on Malon. "You know about this?"

"I don't," he said in bewilderment. "He never said anything last night."

"How is that fair when Drake turned me down three times?!" she raged. "Three fucking times! No way, no way, I'm going to..."

"Might it be sick leave?" Malon raised his voice, cutting short her tirade. "He could be having some problems from that surgery."

"How could he be having problems when he was making the rounds for the last few days? This is ridiculous. We're working our butts off and he chose this time to slack off when the load just got heavier."

"That's not like him," Challa interjected.

"You're so damn right," she snarled. "That's not like him, not when he needs the beer money to drown himself in his favourite past time. Not when he-," she stopped short suddenly when something occurred to her.

"What?" Malon wondered what she was thinking of. He blinked when she walked over and thrust her face near his.

"You guys don't happen to strike gold on that pet project of his, do you?" she said in a low voice. "The duct rats," she added when he only blinked rapidly, as if he didn't understand her question.

He shook his head. "No, we were not successful. If I'm not mistaken, he was taking the long route through Foundations for the last few days to try to make contact. That's why he didn't show up during breaks."

"I don't believe it," she muttered.

"What?" Tavish cocked his head, having caught some of the whispered conversation. "Duct rats?" He watched with interest when the dark hair woman glowered at him over her shoulder. Was it his fault if she spoke a little too loudly?

"We can pay him a visit after our shift," Challa suggested.

"As if he would be squirreled away in his digs," Tessie snorted. She marched back to her locker to grab her helmet. "Screw him. He wants to play his game, let him. I've a job to do. Once they get this crazy tin can operating officially again, Drake better give me the leave I want or I'm quitting." Without a look at the others, she disappeared through the exit.

"Is she always like this?" Tavish said bemusedly, staring after her.

"Not really," Malon closed his portable console, stowed it in his locker and picked up his helmet. "She can be a really nice person," he said as he passed Tavish and through the exit.

Tavish turned his gaze on Challa who came up to him, expecting some comment but the batarian simply moved past him. Shrugging, he turned and trailed after them. What a weird group. Why would they particularly want to fuss around with duct rats?

Earth
Antarctica Base

Pale faded eyes. There was a time when they were a deeper blue but now the colour was washed out. However, his eyes retained their clarity. He could see, count if he wanted, how many wrinkles he had. If his hair was darker, the beard bristles would have stood out starkly against his pale skin. With him going silvery, they were hardly noticeable. Reaching down to the water in the washbasin, he splashed some water on his face. It chased away the lingering dregs of sleep but not the weariness etched deep inside. Opening the bottom of the cabinet, he reached for the bottle of vitamin supplements. His eyes fell on another bottle next to it. He reached for it, hesitated before picking it up.

It was four years already, passed the date of expiry. The stims should have been thrown away but he kept them. As a reminder of how nearly he had done himself in during and after the war. Those desperate times when he forced himself to keep on going by force of will. When that failed, he turned to the stims and almost grew reliant on them. Memories assailed him. His hand tightened on the bottle. The sound of the door chime startled him out of his reminiscence. Reaching for the intercom on the wall, he said, "Yes?"

"Admiral Langdon to see you sir."

"Send him in." Hackett looked at the bottle again, tossed it into the recycle bin before grabbing a towel to mop his face dry. Grabbing a vitamin pill and his jacket off the hook on the wall, he pulled it on before he walked into the office.

Langdon braced to attention. "Apologies, sir, I know it's early," he said, looking as if he hadn't a wink of sleep in the last twenty-four hours.

Hackett waved the younger man to take a seat before the desk. He crossed over to the hot and cold service galley. "Coffee?"

"No, thank you, sir," Langdon declined.

Hackett poured himself a cup of juice. "You look like you're sitting on something hard," he said and swallowed the pill. The juice was tart and sweet, washing it down easily.

"As we surmised, sir, the Asteria taskforce was hit by Cerberus," Langdon said tightly. "The Madrid is lost."

Nothing like starting the day with bad news but to hear that the Madrid was gone was cutting. The second cruiser to bear that name. It was also Admiral Shepard's flagship. "What about the crew, Shepard and her staff?"

"A combined geth and quarian taskforce found the surviving Asteria fleet near the fuel depot and sent SAR teams to pick up lifepods. There's difficulty in locating several of them as the beacons are not functioning, including the one assigned to Admiral Shepard's. Presumably, they were damaged during the battle."

Worse and worse news. "Is it confirm she made it to the pod?" Hackett said edgily.

"The Madrid's DR (data recorders) were retrieved. The logs confirmed the admiral's lifepod was launched. The geth are throwing wide their search parameters. The latest update confirmed the recovery of some of the lifepods but Admiral Shepard and her staff are still missing."

With considerable effort, Hackett finished the juice and nodded to Langdon. "Alright, lay it on from the top."

"The mission exercise was to split the Asteria taskforce into two opposing groups. Admiral Shepard's group, designated Arrow, was the offensive unit. Sensor drones were deployed near the mass relay. They took up position several klicks from it. The defensive designated Shield, commanded by Captain Marino, took position at Asteria. Two hours into the operation, a relay translation was detected by Arrow which was by then heading towards Asteria, conducting a pincer maneuver."

"Arrow was split up."

"Yes, sir. The second attack force was designated Talon. When no beacon transponder was detected from the newcomers, Admiral Shepard ordered exercise termination and signalled Shield to proceed to Arrow's position. A signal was also sent to Talon, to investigate at a tangent. However, no response was received from either fleet element. Every comm buoy in the system was already destroyed."

That caught Hackett's attention. "All of them? Within the same time frame?" When Langdon nodded, he frowned, not liking the implications. "Sabotage."

"It's confirmed, sir," Langdon said grimly. "Comprehensive medical checks on everyone on the colony and the fleet revealed no sign of a control chip. It has to be a Terra Firma mole within our ranks. Examination of comm logs registered a transmission from the Madrid prior to the lost of all comm buoys. The operations officer on duty at that time was a lieutenant Dvorkin."

"Was?" Hackett said sharply.

A grim look flashed across Langdon's face. "He's listed as KIA."

"Convenient," Hackett muttered. "Go on."

"When Admiral Shepard realised she lost FTL comm, she ordered a detachment of frigates to recaliberate and deploy their probes for communication and investigate the intruders. She attempted to move Arrow to Talon's last known position but the Cerberus fleet was too close."

"If Arrow was maneuvering to move in on Shield, they wouldn't be within range of anything that translate through the relay," Hacket objected and then realisation struck. "Unless.."

"Yes, sir." Langdon wished he didn't have to confirm the Old Man's suspicion. "The sensor drones were all gone as well. Dvorkin also compromised the tactical network and programmed false data readings. No one realised Arrow was not where they were supposed to be or that their backs were exposed."

When Hackett said nothing, he continued. "Captain Huxley in command of Talon realised something was wrong when he couldn't contact Arrow or Shield. The time lag in communications between elements of Talon confirmed his suspicion. Accordingly, he ordered Talon to backtrack to the approximate position of where Arrow would be. By the time they arrived, they found the remnants of Arrow swamped by Cerberus fighters and oculi."

"What about Shield?"

"Shield left orbit, carrying out the tactical plan Marino had in mind. When no contact was established, Shield similarly headed towards Arrow. By then Cerberus had picked half of Talon apart."

Like lambs to the slaughter. Hackett sighed. Kicking junior officers up the ranks was going to boomerang, he knew that. He wished either captains had chosen to send scouts to investigate and re-established communications instead with recalibrated sensor drones. That they didn't only emphasized their lack of experience and ability to react resourcefully under pressure. He made a mental note to set up the intensive ATC as soon as possible for aspiring and newly promoted officers. Incumbents who were moved up due to necessity would have to do the same. That was, if they could just have the damn time for a breather.

"What's the damage?"

"We lost a lot of interceptors, half the carriers and frigates. Most of the hulls are badly damaged. Some of them might have to be scuttled depending on final inspections. We're still collating data on those KIA. On a positive note-," Langdon shifted in his seat, thinking he ought to sound encouraging but he was too tired to ramp up the energy for it. "As far as we can ascertain at this time, the Cerberus fleet is completely destroyed."

At a cost. Hackett crossed his arms and pinched the bridge of his nose, wishing the price wasn't so steep. "One that we know," he corrected. "Madrid is the only cruiser casualty?"

"Yes, sir. Madrid received the maximum barrage from enemy ships."

"Meaning they knew it was the flagship with the most experienced officers onboard. What about Asari casualties?"

"They were hammered but it seemed our own ships got the most attention."

"And Asteria?"

"Cerberus timed it perfectly, sir. They knew the grain is due to be shipped out. While ground control was trying to establish a link with the Asteria fleet, ten of the freighters loaded with grain took off. Short of shooting down their own ships and people, the colonists had to let the ships leave. It was only later that they discovered the crew of those ships locked up in one of the warehouses, drugged and unconscious."

"Was there any crew at all on those freighters?"

"A total of ten families are missing from the colony," Langdon said tiredly. "All human."

"Naturally. They have to be Greenacres's cohort." Hackett closed his eyes for a moment. "Is there anything special about the grain?"

"Those ten freighters were loaded with the best strain of grain, sir," Langdon said, unhappy to confirm what the Old Man suspected. "One in particular had a few containers of a stronger new strain that could boost nutritional value by as much as fifteen percent. They were meant for the gene technology facility here to see if they would take to the lesser degraded soil in the northern hemisphere."

"So Greenacres sacrificed an entire Cerberus fleet to get the grain." Hackett opened his eyes. "Where is he going to bring them?"

"A new base, a new colony?" Langdon frowned. "I wish we know where."

"Throwing away an entire Cerberus fleet and taking the grain. He intends to begin anew, without the Cerberus taint. The next important information we need to have is just how much teeth Cerberus have left."

"I gave Shepard the ticket to Hades Nexus earlier. If she is right, we'll be hitting the galactic core soon."

"What's the status on our allies?"

"They're waiting for the signal to gather at Omega. Sir, should I notify Shepard regards the admiral once she has acquired the third segment?" Langdon wondered if Hackett would tell Shepard that her mother was MIA (missing in action). If the lifepod held a full complement, there were thirty-six hours to go before the air ran out. If it held only a few, the air would last longer. But how long?

"No. Until there is definite news, she must remain in the dark." Hackett pinned a hard look on Langdon who acquiescence reluctantly. "Send recovery teams to get our hulls back here. All of them. Consult the asari on what they want to do with their own ships. Send one of the squadrons to take up the slack at Asteria."

"Sir, we're-," Langdon began to object. Taking away one of the squadrons would leave a gap in their defensive line.

"Cerberus' ability to field another fleet might be blunted at this point but-," Hackett raised a finger to quell Langdon's intention to interrupt, "I'm not assuming they don't have more waiting in the wings. However, Asteria is too important. The flow of grain must be ensured at this time or most of the people will be subsisting on paste. That is going to brew even more discontent. Parliament is going to get really bend out of shape."

Which in turn would put pressure on the Alliance and the one getting the brunt of it would be Hackett. Langdon didn't envy him his job. Still, he didn't like it. He would have to get Pekos in and see if he didn't have any brilliant idea to fill the defensive gap.

"Yes, sir, I'll get on it."

Thessia
Normandy

Ten little fingers. Ten tiny perfectly formed fingernails. Seated on the floor beside the bed, Shepard marveled at the small hands she held, wriggling and grasping as she played with them. Thankfully, Delenn was contented to explore her hand quietly or she would have woken a sleeping Liara, turned away from them on the bed. She was surprised she could sense the baby's thoughts. Simple curiosity and pleased recognition. The meld earlier had clearly formed a link. She grinned foolishly as she thought at the baby.

These are your fingers. These are your toes. Fingers. Toes.

Lightly, she touched the head and thought of the word for it. Before she knew it, she began to name every part of the body she gently touched with a finger.

"You are still making that sound."

Startled, Shepard looked up to meet Liara's eyes. "I can't help it," she chuckled. "It's like an automatic cooing, to soothe the child." She smiled at her bondmate. "How're you feeling?"

"Tired. I feel I can sleep for days," Liara admitted.

"I'm not disturbing you, am I?" Shepard said half guiltily.

"No." Liara smiled when her bondmate leaned over to kiss her. "She is a lovely baby." She looked down at the precious bundle beside her. "I find it hard to believe she is ours."

"Yeah, me too." Resting her chin on her hands, Shepard followed her gaze. "I wonder what she'll be when she grows up."

"Barely a day old and you are already dressing her up," Liara chided.

"But that's the fun of it," said Shepard.

"Should you not wait till she has learned to speak? Right now, her desires are simple," Liara said as she sat up.

"I guess," Shepard cocked her head as Liara scooped up the baby and began to nurse her. "Um..you'll be pleased to know the commandos are mostly up on their feet."

"That is a relief. What about Shiala?'

"She's still unconscious. She's all right," Shepard said quickly when Liara straightened in alarm. Delenn gave a jerk and a sound, sensing her mother's anxiety. Liara quickly shielded her thoughts. The baby settled down to nursing. "One of the projectiles got her in the leg," Shepard continued softly. "Dr Chester diagnosed the foreign substance in her system as a tranquilizer. She'll be up after a day or two."

"Tranquilizer. We were meant to be hostages," Liara said in dismay.

"Which is why you're all going to the Citadel as planned. The evacuation is still going through. With entire blocks of asari clans at the strip, it'll be harder to reach you."

Liara nodded. "When do we leave?"

"You're all going over to the Tilvar in about an hour. Aethyta can't wait to hold her grandkid."

"You are returning to the chase," Liara said solemnly.

Pulling herself to her feet, Shepard sat down next to Liara.

"We're getting close. I'm hoping the Cerberus question is settled before summer hits Thessia. The TI survivors would hide for a while in their lairs and I'd like to know if the little presents the geth dropped while their backs were turned are working."

"I really hope so. I want her to grow up on Thessia, not on a space station," said Liara.

"Don't worry, Liara." Shepard smiled down at Delenn. "She will be."

"Have you told your mother about Delenn?"

Taken aback at the question, Shepard stared at her. "Uh..I didn't. She probably wouldn't care." Why would Hannah bother when Delenn wasn't a human baby?

"Shepard, why do you always assume the worse of her?"

"I.."

"At least send her a message. She may surprise you."

Yeah, when the sun goes supernova. Shepard didn't say it aloud but suspected Liara knew what she was thinking anyway.

"Fine, I'll send a message. Maybe she'll unbend to see her unusual grandkid."

"Shepard.."

"Let's not get into a twist over my mom." Shepard planted a kiss on Liara's cheek. "Right now, I want to spend the next hour with you and our child."

That reminder still Liara's protest. She looked down at Delenn. Yes, better to savor the time when they were all together.