.

Loyalty and Limerence

Part 3

Chapter 12

The Normandy SR2

It was the ache in his back, the stiffness in his joints, and the dryness of his eyes that told him how late it was. Garrus blinked as he looked down at his omni-tool, and the time blinked back up at him. It was late enough to be early.

With a groan, he pushed back from where he was crouching and slowly pulled himself to standing. Either the war was dragging on him, or he was getting older. Possibly both, but his knees were complaining, regardless.

It had been about two weeks since he and Jane had met back up with Shepard and the Normandy crew, and in that time, he'd been kept so busy that he'd barely had a chance to think. The upside, though, was that it had successfully distracted him from his many failed attempts to get ahold of his dad or Solana.

Yawning, he turned and made his way toward the barracks. Some sleep would be better than no sleep, and calibrations would go much better in the morning if he wasn't seeing double. The lights were already dimmed for the night cycle, and they were even darker in the barracks as he quietly picked his way between the bunk beds. Silently, he pulled out his sleeping clothes, but paused at the light jingling of metal as he pulled off his shirt.

Looking down, he caught the faint shimmer of Jane's dog tags from where they dangled around his neck. Garrus couldn't help the soft smile on his face as he reached up to grab them. Running his fingers across the human letters, he turned to take a quiet peek in her direction. His smile quickly melted into a confused frown as he noted her empty bed. The sheets looked rumpled as though she'd tossed and turned, and he sighed disheartedly.

Garrus pulled on his sleep clothes and turned to leave. He knew where she'd be.

"Trouble sleeping again?" He asked as he stepped into the starboard observation deck. Jane turned from where she was standing before the giant observation window, wreathed in the light of a multitude of stars beyond. She smiled, but it was strained and clearly exhausted.

"Hey, Big Guy." She murmured, and Garrus paused as he took her in. They'd spent countless hours together on one or the other of the observation decks, they were some of her favorite spaces on the Normandy. But there was something about her haunted expression and posture that immediately brought to mind one night in particular. One where he'd clutched her, broken and sobbing angrily as she struggled to process the events surrounding their mission against Morinth.

"What's wrong?" He asked carefully, and her forced smile slowly disappeared.

"It's nothing." Jane stated without any sort of conviction, and he raised a brow plate in disbelief. "Seriously, I'm okay." She sighed before jamming her hands into her hoodie's pockets. Not for the first time, he wondered what happened to her old N7 hoodie. Burning on Earth, he supposed, along with everything else.

"Are you sure?" Garrus asked as he stepped up next to her, and she nodded.

"Yeah. I was just thinking about everything that happened at the mining facility on Mahavid yesterday."

Ah. Suddenly, her disquiet made sense. Everyone who had been a part of the ground team had been left feeling uncomfortable and uneasy after the mission to find the researcher, Dr. Garneau.

"It's their eyes." Jane continued as she looked back out into the depths of space. "I keep seeing them whenever I try to sleep. Their blank, empty expressions. At first when I looked into their eyes, it seemed like there was just no one home. But then, it began to feel more like I was staring out into the empty void of deep space." She paused, then shook her head. "Sorry, I don't know what I'm saying. None of it makes any sense. Not any of it."

Garrus knew she was speaking about more than her attempts to describe the miner's eyes. She was referring to the entire mystery behind the so-called 'Leviathan'. The artifact, Bryson's death, and all the bread crumbs leading them onwards. Jane had been forced to clue Shepard in after everything that had happened, and he, too, seemed just as confused and baffled.

"Sleeping has never been particularly easy, but something about this mission just has me feeling uneasy. Indoctrination…" Jane trailed off as her arms wrapped around herself in a tight hug that mirrored the tension in her face. Stepping closer, Garrus put an arm around her shoulders, and she leaned into him.

"I know you're worried about Shepard. We'll keep an eye on him, but the only thing I've noticed about him is that he's stressed and not sleeping well. I think, given the circumstances, both are fairly expected. You're also having trouble sleeping, should I be worried about you?" His mandibles flicked as he smiled dryly at her, and she rolled her eyes as she smiled back.

"Point taken. I don't know what more I can do to help him, though. I feel like I'm failing him, like I should be shouldering more of this. No one man should have the fate of the galaxy as fixed upon their shoulders as he does. The decisions he has to make, they're enough to make anyone crack."

"I know. It's a sign of how desperate everyone is that they've given him so much responsibility. We'll keep doing what we can for him. Maybe we can convince EDI to help us lock him in his room until he sleeps or something." That got a chuckle out of her. "Look, everyone's feeling a little shaken after what happened on Mahavid. But we're going to figure this whole thing out, and then we're going to kick the Reapers' ass. I have faith in Shepard, and I have faith in you." Jane's smile softened at that, and he could feel her relax slightly.

"Thanks, Garrus." She reached an arm around his waist and pulled him closer. "Don't know what I'd do without you."

"You'd probably have a higher kill count. I've been picking them all off a little too quickly for you lately." Garrus stated, his voice lofty with bravado, causing her to laugh.

"That's bullshit and we both know it. If only I hadn't left my visor in my hotel room with the rest of my crap that got left behind when we left Earth, I'd rub it in your sharp, pointy face. I should get a new one next time we're on the Citadel, but they're expensive!"

They shared a laugh as they leaned into each other. Garrus' mandible brushed against the top of her head, and he nuzzled her as he breathed in the comforting smell of her. They stood there for a long moment, he wasn't sure how long, until she quietly broke the silence.

"Hear anything from your family?" Jane asked, and Garrus felt himself sag as he released his breath in a sigh. He couldn't bring himself to respond, and he shut his eyes as he fought off the upswell of anxiety and dread at the thought of them. He felt her shift and then the cool softness of her fingers brushed against his mandible. "You will." She stated firmly, no doubt in her voice.

Garrus opened his eyes and looked down to see her earnest gaze looking up at him. Spirits, if he had a credit for every time he felt like he could drown in those eyes, he'd be a very rich man. He had no words, his throat too constricted, but after a moment and a few deep breaths, he managed to change the topic to Palaven in general. They discussed the war for a few more minutes before falling into another easy silence.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you." Jane stated, her voice upbeat as she grinned. "John got a message from Admiral Hackett not long ago. Guess who he heard from?"

"Who?" Thoughts and guesses ran through Garrus' mind, each more unlikely than the last.

"The Migrant Fleet."

"Huh! No joke?"

"Yeah, sounds like he thinks we can convince them to help with the Crucible project."

"Well, that's good news. Their technical expertise will be invaluable. Any news on why they've kept silent so long? I'm surprised no one's heard from Tali yet, not even Shepard."

"No, the message was pretty thin on details. But sounds like John's set course to rendezvous with their Admiralty Board, so hopefully we'll find out-" Jane cut off as she fought back a yawn, "-soon.'

Garrus grinned at her, "Finally ready to try sleeping again?" His grin grew wider as his hand drifted down to rest on her hip. "Or do you need a little help relaxing?" He asked, letting subvocals betray the suggestion. She turned to smile at him, a single eyebrow arched in challenge until his fingers dipped under the edge of her hoodie to rest upon her bare skin.

Jane froze, her smile melting as she stiffened. She jerked away, and Garrus frowned in confusion as he struggled with a sudden stab of hurt. She looked away, a hand coming up to grab her other arm with white knuckled tautness.

"Jane, what's wrong?" He asked as he shifted to look at her face, but she stepped away as anxiety rolled off her in waves.

"It's nothing." She bit out tersely, the sudden 360 in her attitude from moments before giving him whiplash. Garrus brought his hand up to her shoulder lightly.

"Jane. Seriously, what's wrong?" He asked again, his voice firm but gentle. Her eyes flashed angrily as they focused on him.

"Drop it, Garrus." She muttered through gritted teeth, clearly trying to keep a grip on her temper as she jerked her face from his grasp. "It's fine." He could see her jaw clench, the tension traveling down her neck. The new, light scars there caught his eye, just barely visible under the neck line of her hoodie. His breath caught as a suspicion wriggled into his brain.

They hadn't been intimate since she'd gotten out of the hospital. They'd hugged and kissed and done other intimate gestures, of course, but there hadn't been time or privacy for anything more than a little cuddling. That in and of itself wasn't odd given the nature of their somewhat communal lifestyle aboard the Normandy and lack of personal space, but he suddenly found himself connecting dots he hadn't been paying much attention to until just now.

Jane had been exhibiting odd behavior that he'd vaguely noted, but now seemed obviously telling. She'd never been ashamed of walking through the Normandy in little more than scraps of clothing in the past – sports bras and shorts were often her workout gear of choice. But now that he actually thought about it, he couldn't remember her wearing anything recently that exposed any amount of skin beyond her hands and head. She'd been changing in the privacy of the bathroom and even seemed to be showering at odd hours. And just now, she'd jerked away the moment he'd touched her side, and that hadn't even been the first time she'd done something like that recently.

"Jane…" Garrus swallowed before going all in. "Can I see your new acid scars?"

Her eyes snapped to his, wide with disbelief, and… Yes, he was almost positive he detected panic. She opened her mouth to respond, but after half a heartbeat, shut it again, saying nothing.

"I-" Jane finally spoke after a moment, swallowing as she struggled for words. "Garrus," her voice was hoarse as she looked away, "They look awful. You don't want to see them." She was quiet, and if she'd been turian, he was positive her subvocals would be reverberating with shame.

"Do you honestly think I'd think any less of you because of some scars?" Garrus asked skeptically. He gestured to the damaged part of his own face and neck, "Have you seen me? I'm not exactly the poster child for smooth and unblemished plates."

Jane's frown lessened a hair, but her focus still remained somewhere around his elbow, so he continued. "Jane, look at me." He said gently, and he smiled as, after a deep breath, her eyes finally met his. "I love you. You're the most beautiful person in the world to me. Every scar on your body tells a story, the story of the most amazing woman I've ever met."

She was staring at him intently now, drinking in every word like she was a withering plant and he was a life giving rainfall. "Turians aren't ashamed of their scars." He continued, "They're proof that we survived, proof of battles fought and battles won. You got your scars defending one of the only hopes for the krogan people. I'm not going to tell you how you should feel about your scars or your body, but I'm proud of them. I'm proud of you."

Jane continued to stare at him for another moment until the corner of her lips quirked upwards in a small smile, a break in the clouds that bathed the world in precious warmth. Her eyes softened, and then she reached her arms up around his neck, pulling him in close.

"How do you do that?" She asked quietly as she pressed herself closer as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Do what?" Garrus breathed her in, savoring the familiar smell of her. He could feel her smile against his neck.

"You always know what I need to hear. You always know what to say."

Garrus couldn't help the bubble of laughter. "I really don't, though."

They were both silent after that as they clung to each other. Beyond them, through the large window looking out into the heavens, the stars of a hundred burning worlds twinkled back at them. But in that moment, none of it mattered, as it so often didn't at times like these.

Garrus finally pulled away enough to reach up to her hoodie's zipper. Looking up, he waited for her permission. Jane tensed, but after a pause, she slowly nodded. Inch by inch, he pulled it down until it came free, and he ran his hands lightly up her sides until they reached her shoulders. Gently, he let his hands push the sleeves down her arms. Her breathing hitched as his hands left the safety of her tee shirt, and he froze.

"Is this okay?" Garrus whispered, and she nodded. His hands continued their journey until the hoodie finally fell to the floor. One arm was untouched, the skin as unmarred and unmarked as he remembered. The other, however, was criss crossed by a network of fresh scars all the way down to her hand.

He lightly ran his fingers down that arm until he reached her hand. Grasping it, he brought it up to his mouth plates, leaving the approximation of a human kiss upon it before flipping it over to press another kiss to the inside of her wrist.

Garrus looked up to see her watching him intently. Slowly, he leaned down as he shifted her arm to press another kiss to her forearm, right in the middle of the worst of the scarring. He could hear her deep intake of breath.

"You're beautiful." He murmured before releasing her arm reaching for the hem of her loose tee shirt. He waited until he saw her nod, and then carefully began pulling it upwards. She lifted her arms up over her head, and it slipped off, revealing the stretch of bareskin beneath.

Garrus worked to school his features as she watched for his reaction, but it was hard to remain impassive. One entire side of her torso was covered in twisted, glossy, red ridges and puckered, pockmarked blotches. It extended down until it disappeared under the waistband of her pants, and the pure size and scope of her new scarring was shocking. He could understand why she was struggling with the sudden and extreme change to her body.

He met her eyes again before taking both her hands and guiding her to one of the nearby couches. Using gentle pressure, he forced her to sit before lowering himself to kneel between her parted knees. With extreme care, being still unsure of her level of sensitivity even though they were completely healed, he raised a finger to gently trace the bumps and swirls across her skin. Leaning in, he pressed one last kiss to her stomach atop the point where her new scars met her original unmarred flesh.

"Absolutely beautiful." He whispered against her skin before looking up into her wide and shining eyes, unshed tears just visible before she pulled his face to hers. Her lips pressed against his mouth plates with a desperation and need that made his breath hitch. When she pulled back and leaned her forehead against his, she was breathing raggedly.

"I love you, Garrus." Jane whispered, "Thank you." She took a deep inhale, holding it for a heartbeat before releasing it slowly. "Thank you."

"I love you, too. Every part of you. Always." Words weren't necessary after that as she leaned in for another kiss, her hands reaching to pull him closer. Garrus knew she'd need more time to adjust to the changes to her body, but he was determined that by the end of the night, she'd be damn sure that he considered her as beautiful as the day he'd first laid eyes on her.

Or even, perhaps, considerably more.

Jane wasn't the only one aboard the Normandy who had been struggling to sleep recently. A few days later, it was Garrus' turn to quietly peel himself from his tangled sheets and carefully excuse himself from the barracks. The starboard observation deck was empty this time, and he found a comfortable spot to lounge as he considered the stars beyond.

The meeting with the quarian admirals had not gone exactly as they had hoped, and that was putting it mildly. So, instead of acquiring more assistance for constructing the Crucible, they suddenly found themselves speeding off toward an entirely different war, one that seemed terribly ill timed. Garrus shook his head and decided not to dwell on it. They would be arriving in a few hours, and there were better things to think about in the meanwhile.

In particular, he really wanted to do something nice for Jane, but he wasn't quite sure what yet. He wanted to take her mind off everything, but he was drawing a blank. Some sort of date, or gift, or something. He wasn't sure when their next shore leave would be, but he wanted to plan something.

Pulling up his omni-tool, Garrus began scanning through human relationship advice columns. He'd finally learned better than to rely on Joker's 'advice' about women, especially after witnessing the other man's halting attempts to woo EDI the past few weeks. It was sweet to watch, but also filled him with a bit of second hand embarrassment. .

The suggestions he was seeing online just didn't really seem to fit the bill for what he was looking for. It seemed like gifts of jewelry were pretty common across species, but as usual, that just didn't feel quite right, so he kept reading.

Garrus shut down his omni-tool and leaned back with a sigh. There had to be something. Something special, something that would take her mind off things, something that would make her smile. He racked his brain for ideas as he went through her various interests and favorites. Perhaps some sort of special activity they could do together. What was something they both enjoyed doing? Or something they'd regret not having the chance to do if they died tomorrow?

Blinking, a memory from his early days working in C-Sec popped into his head. Now, that would be something…

The door snapped open, and Garrus looked up as a figure hurried into the room. Tali stopped just before the large observation window as she placed her hands on the railing before her.

"Keelah…" She hissed in a low voice before bringing a hand up to adjust the fabric draped over her envirosuit's helmet.

"Everything okay?" Garrus asked quietly, and she startled violently, crying out in surprise. Whipping around, Tali turned to face him, her bright eyes wide as her hand came up to her chest.

"Garrus! What are you doing here?" Her voice was high pitched, and he couldn't help but laugh.

"Here, on the observation deck? Or aboard the Normandy in general? Because I do live here, you know." He drawled as he stood and shrugged. Tali's eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms in evident frustration.

"That's not what I-!" She threw her hands up as she rolled her eyes. "Bosh'tet." There was a smile in her voice, "It's good to see you, Garrus."

"You, too, Tali. Are you staying, or just visiting?"

"I'm not sure yet. It depends on how everything goes with the geth, I suppose."

"Well, regardless, it's good to have you back. Maybe with another dextro aboard, they'll get better turian food." He couldn't help himself as he grinned and added, "Shepard has better incentive, now."

He couldn't tell if she was blushing, but the stiffness of her back and her incoherent stuttering gave her embarrassment away, so he decided to offer an olive branch.

"Doctor Michele did get me some dextro-amino chocolates." Garrus thought back to the weird, random gift she'd given him during their meeting on the Citadel weeks before. "You're welcome to them, if you want."

Tali blinked, her head cocked to the side in evident shock, "She got you turian chocolates?"

Garrus shrugged, suddenly unsettled by how surprised she was. "Yeah, why? Am I missing something?" She stared at him for a moment and he shifted uncomfortably.

"Does Jane know about this?"

"Yeah, she laughed and stole one when I unwrapped them. Why?"

"Oh, no reason." She replied in a complete deadpan that only made Garrus more confused. Maybe it wasn't humans that were confusing. Maybe it was just women in general.

He changed the topic, "Too bad you weren't here earlier. You just missed Wrex." By a few weeks, he supposed, but time was flashing by so quickly, it felt like yesterday. "We came awfully close to having a full reunion of Shepard's original team."

"I heard." Tali turned an interested gaze toward him, her voice amazed as she continued, "I can't believe the genophage is really cured."

"Shepard's on a roll." Garrus wondered if he sounded as proud of his friend as he felt. Thinking back, it was amazing how much they'd accomplished. But they still had so much left to do before this was all over and done with. "I figure if we can pull that off, we've got a shot at sorting the geth out."

"I don't know." Tali crossed her arms and seemed to curl in on herself, her doubt and fear seeping out through her voice. She turned back to look out the window again. "The genophage didn't carry rifles and fight back." Garrus followed her gaze and leaned forward onto the railing as he grinned.

"No, but there was a scary bit with the mother of all thresher maws."

"The what?" Tali gasped, her tone waring between disbelief and astonishment as her head snapped back toward him.

"Long story." His grin widened as he shrugged, "Nobody will believe it anyway."

"With you, Garrus, I'd believe just about anything."

"Oh?" He chuckled as he pushed back off the railing, "We should play poker sometime."

"What do you mean? What does any of this have to do with human card games?"

"Oh, no reason." He laughed as he thought back to their last game night. He'd done fairly well, all things considered. He hadn't started losing until Jane had started playing dirty. He'd never known the lover's game of foostie could be so damn distracting. He shouldn't be surprised she'd sink to such tactics, she had always been a little too competitive.

"Anyway, it's good you're back," Garrus reiterated, all levity vanishing from his voice, "The war… It's been rough. For Shepard more than anyone. He'd been worried about you." He thought about Jane's worries and fears, and the shadows that never seemed to leave Shepard's eyes recently.

"I wanted to send a message, but the Admirals forbid any outgoing messages after the Reapers attacked the other species in hopes of not drawing attention to the Fleet." She paused, what little he could see of her expression wilting. "I'm so sorry about Palaven." She murmured, and Garrus looked away as he nodded in acknowledgement. He tried not to think about it.

"When I first came aboard and saw Shepard," Tali continued a moment later, "I was so surprised. He looks awful." She froze, seeming to process what she'd just said before her eyes widened and she raised her hands, "That's not-! I mean, of course he looks as handsome-" She coughed, her embarrassment overcoming her as she struggled for words, "I just mean that he looks so tired, so worn out. I don't think he's been sleeping well."

"No, he hasn't." Garrus confirmed, and Tali shook her head sadly.

"I need to rejoin the other admirals soon, but I convinced him to lay down and sleep for a little while I was up in his room with him just now." Garrus blinked and couldn't help the flick of his mandibles as a crooked smile crept onto his face. Tali looked up at him before seeming to hear herself, her eyes widening. "I mean-! We didn't-! That's not what I-! We only-!"

Garrus burst out laughing as the quarian continued to babble, wringing her hands frantically. He didn't know if quarians could blush like some of the other species, but he imagined she must be absolutely glowing at this point.

"I'm not judging!" He chuckled as she crossed her arms and looked away. "You're both adults, what you do on your own time is your own business." She turned to flash a glare at him, which only made his smile wider. His voice softened as he continued, "I'm just glad you're back. We've all been worried about him, but I think he listens to you better than anyone else when it comes to self care."

"Maybe." Tali sighed, her voice weary and suddenly exhausted. "I wish I could do more for him. I hate that we've gotten sucked into this stupid war with the geth when we should be saving our strength for the Reapers."

"I know. But we're going to get through this, one way or another, and then we're going to kick the Reapers back into whatever black hole they crawled out of." Garrus stated firmly, and Tali stared at him for a moment before stepping forward and wrapping her arms around him, pulling him in for a hug.

"Thanks, Garrus. I needed to hear that." She pulled away before playfully punching him in the arm.

"Hey! What was that for?" He grumbled as he rubbed the spot, and she laughed.

"Since when are you such an optimist? I think you've been spending too much time with Shepard." Tali laughed, and Garrus thought back to the very similar pep talk he'd given Jane in this very room not that long ago.

"Huh. I suppose you're right. Guess I had to grow up at some point."

Tali laughed again, "I'm glad to be back on the Normandy." Garrus couldn't see her smile, but he could sense it in the loosening of her shoulders and warmth in her voice. "You guys are my true family."

The geth fighter's door opened, and there was a flurry of activity as Garrus helped Shepard climb down into the Normandy's shuttle bay. Bright red blood ran down his side from a gash in his hard suit and he winced as Garrus lowered him to sit on a nearby crate.

"Vega, Alenko, get John up to the med bay, ASAP." Jane barked as her feet hit the ground, her shoulders squared and her face a stoney mask of barely contained fury as she took control of the situation. "Tali, you can accompany him, but I want you cleaned up and in the war room in one hour for debriefing. You, too, Legion."

"Affirmative." The geth murmured with a bob of its head. Tali merely nodded as she hurried to Shepard's side, her omni-tool out as she applied yet another dose of medi-gel.

"I'm fine. Really, I'm okay." Shepard announced, his voice shaky and laden with pain. "I can walk on my own." He stood, wobbled, and promptly sat down again as James and Kaidan both moved to steady him.

"John, shut up and let them haul your ass to the med bay." Jane snapped angrily as she turned toward the armory and began devesting herself of her equipment. She'd already determined that her brother was not in danger of dying from his injuries, which clearly allowed her to focus on her building wrath following the quarian's decision to begin shooting down the geth dreadnought before they'd even escaped.

"Jane," Garrus followed after, widening his stride to catch up, "I know you're angry, we all are," he stated in what he hoped was a soothing voice, "but you need to calm down a little before you face the admirals, or else you're going to do something we're all going to regret."

"I know." She snapped as she threw her gauntlets down onto a bench before moving to the clasps on her chest piece. "I'm going to report to Hackett in John's stead while he recovers, and then I'll talk to the admirals about what happened. I'm sure I'll be calm by then." She sneered as she unzipped the top of her undersuit, revealing the sweat dampened shirt beneath. "Calm enough to discuss what the fuck just happened, at least."

Garrus sighed as he, too, began peeling off his armor piece by piece. They finished removing their equipment in silence before heading up to the crew deck to shower and dress. The entire ground team was sweaty, bloody, and tired, but that didn't stop Jane from pacing the elevator like a feral cat as it slowly inched its way upwards toward the CIC.

Despite his exhaustion and the ache that had settled deep in his bones, Garrus followed after Jane as she made her way to the comm room. She shot a hard look at the admirals as she passed them, and they exchanged glances before returning to their furious, whispered conversation.

Garrus stood by the door as he waited, only snippets of her report drifting through to him. His attention became more and more drawn to the admirals as their debate became less and less quiet. By the time Jane stepped back through the door into the war room, the quarians were all but yelling at each other.

"Your unilateral strike endangered us all! I should charge you with treason." Admiral Shala'Raan exclaimed as she took a step toward Admiral Han'Gerrel.

"I was within my authority as admiral of the Heavy Fleet!" He retorted with a flippant toss of his hand that only seemed to anger her further. Jane paused beside Garrus to listen, her face set and her eyes steely.

"And what of Shepard and his team? And Tali'Zorah?" Raan gestured toward Garrus and Jane, and Gerrel shrugged before crossing his arms.

"They escaped unharmed!" He turned to nod toward Jane, "Spectre Shepard, the mission parameters changed. You used to be military. You understand that."

"I understand that you ignored the plan-" Jane descended the steps quickly, her voice rising in intensity as she came to stand before the admiral, "-and changed it without thinking!" She leaned in uncomfortably close as she glared at him, her fist clenching as she attempted to contain her anger.

Gerrel uncrossed his arms and he stood taller, meeting her challenge, "The dreadnought was a perfect target!"

Jane's control snapped, her fist whipping up to catch Gerrel hard in the gut. The older man gasped and wheezed as he doubled over, his arms coming up to grip his stomach.

"Admiral," Jane sneered down at him, spitting the word mockingly, "you jeopardized your mission and your people!" Gerrel uncurled himself to stand after a moment, and Jane leaned in as she hissed, "Get the hell off this ship!"

"You can't do that! You're not the captain, you don't have the authority to-" Gerrel protested, but the smile that graced Jane's face was anything but friendly.

"Don't have the authority? Would you like a demonstration of my authority?" With that, Jane pulled up her comm. "Westmoreland. Campbell." She barked, "Get your asses in here and escort Admiral Han'Gerrel off the Normandy. Now."

"Yes, ma'am!" Two voices echoed through the comm before Jane returned her glare to Gerrel, whose eyes had gone wide. They stared each other down for a heartbeat, neither seeming to give ground until the war room door swooshed open to reveal the two privates standing at the ready.

"Fine! I'm leaving." Garrel muttered as he turned and winced before heading toward the door. He took the steps up toward the door and shrugged off Westmoreland's attempt to assist him.

"Spectre Shepard, I know you're angry-" Raan stated, her voice placating and anxious, but Jane waved her off as she narrowed her eyes.

"If we didn't need your fleet…" Jane began, low and threatening, but cut off as Admiral Daro'Xen chuckled from where she stood behind Raan.

"Han only respects brute force." She said as she smiled at Jane approvingly. "He doesn't hold you humans in much regard, but maybe he'll rethink his stance after this."

Raan turned to shoot a glare at Xen before diving into the debrief. They began discussing what occurred surrounding the destruction of the dreadnought, including the crash landing of Admiral Koris' ship on Rannoch's surface.

Jane then successfully navigated the shitstorm that was Legion's arrival in the war room, the tension of which was only slightly alleviated by the arrival of Tali soon after. Jane excused herself to check on her brother as soon as they had the semblance of a plan in place, or at least as much of one as they could have without Shepard's presence.

Garrus followed after her, keeping right at her elbow as she strode through the ship. He couldn't help but chuckle as he noticed a few of the crew saluting her as she passed. She might not want to admit it, but she'd gained a certain air of command these past few months. She'd always exuded confidence, but there was something different about it now. Weightier, perhaps. If he hadn't known better, if he'd been a simple spectator along for the ride, he might have guessed this was her ship and her crew.

"You coming? Or are you just going to stand there staring at me like a goggle-eyed recruit?" Garrus blinked, registering Jane's crooked smile rife with amusement. She was in the elevator waiting to push the button as he stood there, staring at her like an idiot.

Huffing a laugh, he stepped in and stood beside her as the door closed.

"You're really something, you know that?" He murmured, causing her to quirk an eyebrow up at him. He didn't elaborate, but he didn't need to as her smile widened.

By dinner, Shepard was back on his feet, and Chakwas even let him eat the meal with the rest of the crew in the mess hall. He sat, albeit somewhat stiffly with all his bandages, at the table beside Tali as they ate, surrounded by interested crew members peppering the quarian with questions in the way they did after warming up to newcomers.

Most of the ground team was there as well, getting to know or reacquainting themselves with Tali. A little more strained were the introductions with Legion.

"Nice to, er…" Ashley coughed, her voice strained, before holding a hand out to the geth unit across the table from her, "Nice to meet you." It looked down at her hand for only second before taking it in a firm grip. It seemed Legion was becoming more accustomed to organic greetings, Garrus mused as he remembered their awkward first meeting.

Tali and Legion seemed to get along fairly well, given the circumstances and the war between their people. Then again, the quarian's attention seemed almost entirely focused on the Commander, much to Garrus' amusement. He wasn't surprised, though. Had he behaved similarly with Jane once he'd rejoined the Normandy after Menae? He couldn't remember.

Garrus liked to think that he and Jane were more subtle about it. Or at least a little, somewhat. James still hadn't caught on, at least, which still made Jane laugh. He might be the only person aboard who didn't know about them, though. Regardless, he and Jane kept things mostly professional while around the rest of the crew, except perhaps when the alcohol started flowing. Shepard and Tali, however-

"So, what do you think about the Normandy's retrofits?" Shepard asked as he leaned forward onto his elbows, his attention on the smaller quarian beside him. Tali's eyes brightened at the question.

"It seems like there were some good upgrades, though I haven't had much time yet to get my hands dirty down in engineering." Shepard grinned at that before leaning toward her just a hair.

"There will be plenty of chances to get your hands dirty." He said, and Jane snorted as she attempted to keep herself from coughing up the sip of water she'd just taken. Shepard and Tali, however, seemed to have forgotten about the rest of them.

"I'll keep that in mind." Tali stated, her voice husky. "I might need a tour, I noticed that some of the layout has changed."

"I can probably make a little time for you." Shepard replied as he leaned toward her just a little more.

"How kind of you." Tali practically purred, and one of the younger crew members stifled a giggle from where she sat on the quarian's other side.

"Well, I care deeply about the quarian people." Shepard stated stoically, and Garrus tried and failed not to roll his eyes as he smiled. It was cute and sweet. It was also a little nauseating, and he was going to give Shepard no end of shit about it later.

"It's good to be back on the Normandy." Tali murmured, the smile evident in her voice as she looked around the mess hall, and Shepard grinned wider than Garrus had seen in ages.

"Let me know if it's too quiet for you to sleep, and I'll find you someplace louder."

"Well then." There was the screech of metal on metal as Jane pushed her chair back abruptly and stood, picking up her tray. Without another word, she excused herself to the kitchen as she mimed gagging. The happy couple continued to gaze at each other, oblivious to the amused and exasperated looks they received from the crew around them.

"Okay," James started hesitantly, finally breaking the silence that followed Jane's departure from the table, "What am I missing?"

"Shepard and Tali became physically intimate during the fight against the Collectors." EDI chimed in cheerily as though she were reporting the weather, and the smile instantly evaporated off Shepard's face. There was a clatter from the kitchenette, and Garrus turned to see Jane leaning against the counter, her fist in her mouth as she struggled not to burst into laughter.

"Too much information." James muttered as he averted his eyes, his brows shooting toward his hairline. Shepard's face was already flushing red as he turned an irritated glare toward the pleased looking AI sitting across from him.

"Thank you, EDI." He stated dryly as embarrassment rolled off him like heat waves. The entire mess hall finally broke into laughter, and Garrus savored the sound. It felt like the further into the war they dredged, the more joy was sucked from the world. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Shepard so relaxed and happy, and the sight of him smiling had become a rare thing of late.

Garrus stood with his own tray and brought it back to the kitchenette to join Jane as she finished with her own dishes. She was grinning like an idiot, her eyes flicking up to watch Shepard laughing at something Kaidan was saying. He could tell her thoughts were in a similar place, some of her anxieties about her brother finally being eased somewhat.

She turned to look at Garrus, her eyes sparkling with laughter, and he felt something swoop in his stomach. Lifting his hand, he brought a finger up brush through her hair softly, and she leaned into the touch. Spirits, he wished he could just hit pause on this moment. Perhaps take a picture.

"Okay, everyone." The bubble popped, and reality seeped in as Shepard stood and glanced around the room, his voice suddenly serious. "We'll meet to discuss the mission tomorrow morning, but I wanted to give you a quick heads up now before you all hit the sack."

The room instantly sobered as everyone turned their attention toward the Commander. "We have two important targets. Admiral Koris and his crew have crash landed on the surface and require rescue. There are also reports of geth fighter squadrons harassing the liveships, and Legion believes he knows how to stop them. We'll be breaking into two groups in order to tackle both objectives. Some of you will be accompanying me to track down Koris, and some of you will be assisting Jane in discovering and disabling the fighter squadrons' server."

There was quiet murmuring throughout the room, but everyone looked determined. Garrus glanced back at Jane, who met his eyes with a tight nod.

"Go get some rest." Shepard continued, "Tomorrow, we hit them with everything we've got." A cheer went up across the mess hall, and as soon as it became apparent that Shepard was done, conversation broke out as they discussed the upcoming missions. Quickly the room became a bee hive of chatter, some voices excited, some anxious, but the energy quickly lent the air a hum of anticipation.

Unnoticed by nearly all, Shepard silently offered his hand to Tali, who took it and quickly stood to follow him toward the elevators. Garrus smiled as he watched them go. Turning to Jane, he offered her his own hand, which she readily took before dragging him off to find their own slice of calm before the storm.

(Note: At the time of posting this chapter, over at AO3 this fic is 2 away from reaching 500 kudos! If you've been reading it here and enjoying it, please consider jumping over to AO3 for a moment to leave a kudos, I really appreciate the feedback and support. To celebrate, I've commissioned an artist to draw my favorite scene from this fic, and will be commissioning a few more over the next few weeks. If you'd like to check out the art when it's been completed, please come follow me on tumblr, serendipitys-teapot! Thank you, everyone!

Additionally, if you have an idea for which scene you think would make a good drawing, please let me know in a review!)