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Shepard has been dreading this conversation for months. At first she hoped they wouldn’t even gonna have to have it, that her house arrest would be lifted and she’d see Garrus again soon enough that they could just continue the relationship they started on the Normandy. But nothing ever turns out quite that easy for her and so they got separated for six whole months. Six months that now hang over Shepard like a cloud as she is standing in front of the door to the main battery. A lot can happen in six months.
It’s a bit silly that she’s standing here, playing with a loose string on her hoodie like a nervous teenager. She’s Commander Shepard god dammit. The woman who drove a Mako through a Mass Relay, came back from the dead and lead what should have been a suicide mission without any casualties. And yet…
Shepard takes a deep breath and walks into the battery. Garrus is in the back speaking with Victus over com. She waves at him and leans against the wall, waiting for him to finish his call before she speaks. “How are you?”
“Stressed. Worried. Very glad to be back on the Normandy.”, he gives the gun in front of him a loving pat. “What did you let the Alliance do to her, Shep?”
“I was under house arrest, take it out with Joker and EDI.”
“Ah yes, the happy couple...as far as that relationship can even work. Can it work? I am very confused about that.”
Shepard laughs. “You have been back on this ship for a few hours and you have already picked up on that. Good job.”
“Oh please it was inevitable.”
“Speaking...off.”, her hand is tugging the loose string again. “What about...us?”
Garrus suddenly seems nervous. “I...I don’t...has anything changed for you?”
“Not really”, Shepard replies. “Has...have you...changed?”
“Oh no, not at all”, Garrus responds hastily. “Still very much smitten with you.”
She grins and closes the distance between them before pulling him down into a kiss.
-
These days EDI pretty much permanently resides in Joker’s co pilot chair. She says it’s to get the crew used to her presence, but Shepard very much suspects different. Still, Shepard still often takes the seat for herself. Like Joker himself, the spot has been one of the few constants on every version of the Normandy and it’s nice to have things like that to rely on. Even if they are just a friend and a comfortable chair.
She is leaning back in that chair, half asleep when Joker asks her a question. “Sorry, what?”, Shepard sits up rubbing her eyes.
“I asked if you told your boyfriend to take the changes made to the Normandy out with me?”
“Oh yeah”, she stifles a yawn. She really needs to get some more sleep. “I think I did why?”
“Because he keeps making thinly veiled threats to my bones.”
Shepard lets out a snorting laugh. “Your poor poor bones.”
“They need protection. Also…”, he turns his chair towards her. “I just called Garrus your boyfriend and you didn’t even react to that.”
“I guess,” she shrugs. “I mean I love him.”
“Gross. You tell him that?”
“Regularly”
“VERY gross. Stop having an adorable relationship in the middle of this war.”
She laughs again. “Not a chance. And as if you get to have any high ground here. I see how you look at EDI.”
“If you don’t stop teasing me I will have you removed from my bridge.”
“If YOU don’t stop teasing ME, I will have you removed from my ship.”
“Wait let’s make a diplomatic compromise”, Joker says, trying his best to imitate her tone and failing miserably. “You don’t make fun of my hot robot lady and I don’t make fun of your bird like alien.”
“Hot bird like alien.”
“GROSS.”
-
She lets him win. Shepard can’t help but smile in pure love and adoration as Garrus declares this as his favourite spot on the Citadel, arms stretched out as if he wants to hug the whole station. In fact she is so busy smiling and staring that she has to do a double take when he asks her to marry him.
“Are you serious?”
“Yes absolutely”, Garrus takes her hand. “I love you and there is a very slim chance we will survive this war. I’d like to have some hope.”
Shepard squeezes his talons. “Okay, but let’s not get married right away. It shouldn’t be an act of desperation let’s...let’s say we get married when all this is over. Let’s have a goal. Something after all this to look forward to.”
“Sounds perfect.”, Garrus leans to down to kiss her and she meets him halfway wrapping her arms around his neck.
“We need rings”
“What?”
“Human custom. Matching rings for engaged and married couples.”, she pulls back and rips the loose string from her hoodie, all the fiddling has almost completely pulled it out already.
Shepard takes back Garrus’ talons and ties the string around one of them. “There you go.”
Garrus laughs. “You were always a fantastic improviser.”
-
She is leaning against his shoulder, once again half asleep as the party rages on around them. Who would have thought that combining the mixture of soldiers and outlaws Shepard calls her friends with alcohol would lead to the pure chaos unfurling around her right now. From her place on the sofa, cuddled into Garrus side she can see Vega trying to explain why muscles trump over biotics and being promptly lifted into the air by Liara. Kaidan and Jack are standing next to them, looking like they are about the start a game of biotic catch with poor James as the ball. Shepard mentally chalks it down on her list of top ten funniest things she has ever seen.
“Hey”, Garrus moves his shoulder earning a displeased grunt from Shepard. “I got something for you.”
He pulls a box out of his pocket and hands it to her, inside is a ring with a white stone on it.
“Holy shit”, Shepard declares suddenly awake. “Wow, it’s….wow...I don’t know what to...thank you. I love you.”
Garrus laughs. “I love you too.”
Shepard kneels on the couch so she can pull Garrus in and kiss him. They are interrupted by a scream from the balcony. Shepard looks up, fully expecting some terrible accident caused by Liara throwing Vega around but instead Jack’s view is fixed on them. “Did Garrus just propose to Shepard? Is that really happening?”
Shepard grins. “We’ve actually been engaged for a few weeks already”. Garrus raises his arms to point at the piece of string still wrapped around one of his talons.
They are surrounded by all of their friends in an instant. Miranda snatches the ring from Shepard’s hand. “Hey!”, she tries to complain but Miranda is already inspecting the stone.
“Tali, I’m going to need you to scan this.”
Tali basically punches Cortez out of the way to get to Miranda and take the ring, ignoring Shepard’s continued protests. A quick scan later she is laughing so hard she can barely stand. Shepard can’t decide if Tali is really that amused or if she is just very drunk. Once she catches herself she hands the ring back to Shepard, much to the rest of their friend’s dismay. Tali then turns towards Garrus. “That, Vakarian, is not a real earth diamond.”
Garrus slumps. “It isn’t?”
“Nope, it’s fake as can be”, Tali declares still giggling.
Shepard shrugs, finally putting the ring on her finger. “You know guys. I really couldn’t give less of a fuck.”
-
Shepard’s body feels like it has been crushed to bits. It probably has. She vaguely remembers the Citadel collapsing on top of her. Everything hurts but if it hurts it means she’s alive.
Other sensations start filtering in through the pain. Voices. A hand holding hers. The feeling of someone, Garrus, kissing her forehead. Shepard has no idea how long it takes between her regaining consciousness and opening her eyes, but when she does Garrus is there. She tries to smile at him but the muscles of her face don’t yet cooperate.
“Hey there”, Garrus walks over and kisses her on the cheek. “I was starting to miss your eyes.”
It takes her a bit longer than she’d like to but soon enough she can sit up in her bed and talk. The doctors are impressed at best and suspicious at worst, but Shepard has had her Cerberus augmentations long enough to know she isn’t really comparable to the standard human any more. Garrus seems to pretty much live in her hospital room.
They are having dinner one evening when she looks down at her hand and finally notices something. “Garrus, I think I lost the ring.”
“Huh”, Garrus looks at her hand, then raises his talon. “I didn’t”
The piece of string is still there where she tied it all those months ago and Shepard is once again overwhelmed by love. “Good job, Vakarian. How the hell did you manage that.”
“Gloves, love, frequently replacing it.”
Shepard laughs even though it hurts her ribs. “Have you been pulling more threads out of my hoodie?!”
Garrus shrugs. “You keep fiddling with them.”
-
They finally get married one year after the battle of London. One year of rebuilding and physical therapy and pain that will never quite fade.
But as Shepard stands there, with Garrus slipping a ring onto her finger surrounded by her friends and their deafening cheers, she knows she would do it all again if it meant ending back here.