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Chapter Text

The machines beeped and hummed as he took his seat. He’d done a lot of work from this chair next to Shepard’s bed. The coloring on her skin looked better today, though, that could be wishful thinking.

The war was won, the Citadel in a massive mess, and the relays still offline.

The keepers did their part with the labor still. After everything he learned from Shepard about the keepers, he expected them to die with them. He expected to die with them. Somehow, in all the chaos, the keepers still kept life support running. If it weren’t for that, they’d all be dead, including Shepard.

Her body had been recovered fairly quickly and she was rushed into surgery the second they had been able to get her burned armor off of her. Her underarmor protected the majority of her skin, thankfully, but some kind of explosion had littered her body in shrapnel.

With a tired sigh, Sparatus opened his omnitool and began to work. He didn’t sleep much, he hadn’t in months. Sometimes he fell asleep right here in the chair. He just didn’t want her waking up alone.

Ships were still scattered, and long-range comms were spotty at best.

Four months since the end of the war. Millions dead and missing. Food and medication were being rationed. Times were tense for every single dextro. There were no liveships here in the Sol System for dextro food. As it was, the greenhouses were barely functioning.

“Really wish you’d wake up, Shepard,” he told her gently. “We could use some new ideas, especially for the relays.”

He didn’t expect an answer, he never did. He expected her to wake up fighting since that was how she went down. So when her rough voice spoke, his body startled. “Can’t even get some sleep after winning a war,” she complained. “Shepard this. Shepard that.”

He crooned in relief, his body at her side in seconds as he took her in. “Shepard,” he breathed.

“Councilor,” she returned. “How long this time?”

“Four months,” he answered. She raised her brow, making him chuckle. “Ships are still scattered in other systems, relays are offline, food and medicine is being rationed, and people are very tense and stressed.”

“So you need a miracle and you come ask me?”

He purred, his mandible flickering out in humor. “Who else would I ask to defeat impossible odds?” That startled a chuckle from her that quickly turned to coughing. He pressed the nurses’ button before reaching for the water a nurse had left for him.

“Commander!” A heavily accented human voice came from behind him. “Lantea! Contact the Alliance, Commander Shepard is awake.”

“I gave her some water,” Sparatus told Doctor Michel. “She was coughing.”

“It’s quite alright,” the doctor told him quickly. “Commander, how are you feeling?”

“Stiff, hungry, and ready to defeat impossible odds from bed.”

Sparatus returned to his chair while the doctor did her exam. He did his best to ignore any skin that became exposed as well as his own curious wants. Relief… that was the extreme he was feeling right now. From fear to relief in the blink of an eye. Suddenly, he noticed just how tired he really was; How much his body ached.

Maybe with her awake, he’d be able to sleep.

But first, Admiral Hackett was calling him. It looked like it was going to be a long work night despite the joyous news.

Chapter Text

Several days later, Sparatus was barely standing. Hackett wanted to know absolutely everything that happened when Shepard fired the crucible. Sparatus understood, Shepard was still military, but he was really tired.

When he entered Shepard’s room, she was sitting up in bed working on her omnitool with an old skyball game playing on the vid-screen. Her brows were pinched, her bottom lip being gnawed on by her teeth as she concentrated hard. He hated interrupting.

“Sparatus, can you get me a turian, salarian, or asari math genius in here? I need them to make sure this is right.”

He should have known that she’d know he was here. He quickly typed a message and sent it to the three he knew that were living. “Messages sent,” he told her as he approached the bed. “How are you feeling?”

“Ready to break out of this joint,” she grumbled. Typical soldier, even turians complained. “I got a promotion,” she added, her mouth set in a straight line.

“Is that bad?”

“Hackett wants me to step in as humanities Councilor while leadership is restored. I don’t like politics and he expects me to lead all of humanity,” she told him. “I don’t know how many times I have to say that if I can’t put on my own armor and handle my own weapons then I’m retiring completely and disappearing.”

Sparatus growled playfully, “It’s not all meetings and datapads.” He laughed outright when she glared at him. “Okay, it mostly is. It’s a different kind of battlefield than you're used to.”

“Far less bloody than I’m used to.”

“Depends on the day,” he said. Her eyes lit up. “There’s no blood, Shepard. Should this obsession worry me?”

“No,” she replied with a sigh before leaning back against her pillow. “I’m good at killing things. I’m a weapon.”

“You will learn,” he told her. “Besides, all the work you did to unite the races in this galaxy is going to need to be overseen by you.”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“Who better to fulfill promises you made than doing it yourself. And it doesn’t have to be a career. You can step down at any time.”

“Fine, I’ll do it,” she said with a groan.

“Wonderful,” he replied, his mandibles flaring in a smile. “I’ll have your office prepared.”

“I’ve got someone cleaning my apartment. I don’t know why they’re keeping me here, I can walk just fine.”

“Because those four months you were asleep weighed heavily on us and Doctor Michel just wants to make sure you’re in perfect health before she releases you back out into the galaxy.”

Shepard nodded as she stared at the vidscreen. “How long until I get those math whizzes?”

“So impatient,” he teased as he checked his messages. “The salarian will be here first, haven’t heard back from the other two yet.”

“I just need one of them to make sure this is correct so they can implement it into the coding.”

He looked at the numbers and letters she had on her omnitool. It looked like another language. He had never been mathematically inclined but from what he was seeing, Shepard was. It was far beyond his knowledge. “How can you understand all of this?”

“I really don’t know,” she answered with a rare self-conscious smile. “I just know it. It’s in my brain and I can sit down and just solve expert math problems all day.” She smiled and shook her head. “My mind is kind of like a salarians. I never forget anything and if I do then you should worry.”

“So what’s with all the math? Fun?”

“No,” she answered, closing her omnitool. “It’s code for the relays so I need it double checked.”

“Do you think you can activate the relays?” Sparatus couldn’t help but look at her like she’d grown another head.

“Yes,” she answered, his neck darkening when she winked at him. “I’ve also spoken with Bailey and we’re getting C-Sec as close to normal as we can with the help of the new executor.”

“Anything else?” He asked her when he was at a loss.

“Green houses are now functioning properly after I corrected errors in the coding. Food is being grown in them and ten warehouses were recently procured to vat-grow meat substitute until animal numbers are back up.”

Spirits, this woman is amazing. He didn’t know what to say, all he could do was stare at her open-mouthed while she smirked at him. “I’m afraid to ask what else.”

Shepard laughed before whispering that she’d used her Spectre status to kick out an asari actress that was driving the hospital staff up the walls. After she learned that the asari was fine.

“Where did you find the time to do all of this?”

“Well,” she said, looking down at her fingers. “I was bored.”

“This is you bored?” He asked in awe. “Moving mountains?”

“I might as well be productive with my boredom,” she answered with a shrug. Like what she had done was nothing. Security handled, food growing, and writing code for relays. All while in bed. “We’re probably going to butt heads a lot at work,” she whispered.

“Of course we will,” he told her, only to see her shoulders slump. “But work is work, and personal is personal.”

“You mean we can still sit like this without the workday dampening the mood?”

He cleared his throat, his mouth suddenly dry. “Of course we can.” Her smile was bright. The worry that weighed him down for a moment was gone.

So was the moment between them when a salarian walked in. Soon enough, Sparatus was off to the side of a conversation he couldn’t understand. The two spoke quickly and excitedly, which he took as good news, while they spouted words he would have to look up a definition for.

“Will get on it straight away!” The salarian told her eagerly. “Will call and link data.”

Three days later they watched in awe as the relay lit up. According to Shepard, all that had to be done now was to have the relay update the others. That was all it took: A bored, bedridden Shepard and impossible things happened.

Next was the long-range comms and he figured that would be up in a day or two without issue.

For now, he gets to go home and sleep. There were no fears or worries, no nightmares lurking or unrest in the populace. There was nothing but dreamless sleep that he’d so desperately needed.

All thanks to a red-head in a hospital bed.

Chapter Text

It had been several weeks since Shepard had gone home from the hospital, and he was just now making it over to her place for their new tradition of a weekly dinner. With the woman’s ship and crew whole and on their way home, he couldn’t help but admire what she looked like without the burdens she’d once carried.

She smiled often, so often he sometimes forgot to breathe when it was aimed in his direction.

With their first official, in office, workday tomorrow since the war ended, they both agreed to an earlier dinner, so they’d have time to get everything ready for work tomorrow. As it was, Shepard was going to have a ton of work.

The batarians were asking for Shepard’s leadership and re-assimilation into the galaxy. The krogan were sending an ambassador that would reside on the Citadel. The salarians had a change in their leadership though Valern assured Sparatus that it would be better than the last. The asari would have to face penalties for withholding prothean tech. The volus and elcor were already prepared. The quarians would be sending an ambassador and will be under Shepard’s guidance as they reacclimate to living within the galaxy as opposed to on the fringes.

The second Shepard’s acceptance as the temporary Councilor hit the news networks, messages started pouring in from leadership all over the galaxy. And with long-range comms back up to full strength, Shepard received numerous QEC calls daily. Thank the spirits he thought to have a QEC set up in her apartment before she arrived home.

“What happened to your mistress?” Shepard asked, causing him to choke on the water he’d been drinking.

“Spirits, Shepard,” he complained roughly. “At least let me finish my drink before you ask something like that.”

“Are you finished?”

“Yes,” he grumbled, wiping water from his shirt. “I never had a mistress.”

“Shadow Broker said otherwise,” she said, her arms crossed under her breasts. He’d seen this pose enough to know she didn’t believe him.

“The Shadow Broker should’ve dug deeper,” he told her. “I never had a mistress.”

“Then who was the woman you set up in a mansion?”

Sparatus groaned. “That was Fedoran’s mistress.”

She pointed at him, “Just so you know, having a mate and a mistress is tacky as fuck.”

“I agree.”

“Good,” she stated before digging into her food.

Why must humans be so confusing? What was the point of that conversation?

“The krogan will have a seat on the Council,” Tevos stated diplomatically.

The krogan should have had an embassy years ago. But he’d been outvoted after Saren. Perhaps it had been the right call then, but now, things were much different because of Shepard.

Treaties were immediately drawn up and handed off to the krogan Ambassador. Negotiations would last a while, but they’d have their seat. Finally.

The quarians were quickly added to the embassies and would be guided by Admiral Shepard until said woman agrees that the quarians have reintegrated to Council law. The same with the batarians.

What surprised Sparatus most was Shepard’s denial vote for the volus.

“Why?” The volus ambassador asked.

“Because I don’t trust you to keep the peace I worked so hard for,” Shepard told him. “Tell your people to choose someone else and we’ll vote again after a thorough background check.”

That was something he’d ask her about when they retreated to their shared conference room.

The elcor was voted in as a council member.

All-in-all, a very productive day in front of the populace. Now it was off to the conference room where they’d be spending the majority of their time until negotiations on the treaties were accepted.

In the conference room, he learned that the volus ambassador had been helping Cerberus. Sparatus understood why she didn’t want that particular volus in a higher position of power. Shepard also put forth several human names for the Spectre program once it was up and running again.

With it being in her capable hands, he gave it a Citadel month at most before they were assigning these people over to mentors to see if they are knowledgeable enough to fulfill the role of Spectre.

Sparatus just couldn’t get over how much work they’d managed to get done in one day. There was no chit-chat, just business and because Shepard spent the majority of her free time out and about, she had the most insight into regular people's lives. Having a soldier as a politician was crucial, as he’d learned with Anderson all that time ago. It seems like lifetimes instead of a couple of years.

With repairs well underway, many businesses were opening as soon as they had stock on their shelves. Job opportunities blossomed nearly overnight, credits began to slowly start moving again, and people were smiling.

On his way home from work, instead of burying his face in a datapad and taking a transport, he chose to walk so he could take in everything and try to see it through Shepard’s eyes. He leaned against the railing and watched the water fountain. It was nice to see the water moving again instead of sitting perfectly still.

“But what does it mean?” He heard a human male ask.

Sparatus turned his head to take in the human male and female before looking back out to the rippling water.

“She asked about your girlfriend, dumbass, what do you think it means,” the woman replied.

“I don’t know, women confuse me!” The male was clearly frustrated.

The woman sighed. “She asked just so she would know if you were single or not.”

“Oh,” the male said, his face pale. He’d seen that look before: Wake-Up Call.

“Which means she’s probably romantically interested in you, numb-nuts,” the woman continued. “So call her or message her or something before she gets her eyes checked.”

“Wow, you’re the best sister ever,” the man replied sarcastically. His voice fading as he aggravated his sibling.

Did that mean Shepard was interested in him romantically? Or had she just been curious about the mistress thing? Shepard normally just said it like it was and never ‘beat around the bush’ as humans say. She was blunt but honest. He decided just to send her a message.

Galvisix Sparatus: How are you feeling after your first day?

Jane Shepard: Pretty good. Tired but a good kind of tired. Deciding on what to eat for dinner. What about you? Get some normalcy back?

GS: There hasn’t been a normal since you popped into my life.

JS: Oh, haha!

GS: I’ll bring dinner. That is, if you don’t mind. I know we just had our weekly dinner last night.

JS: That sounds nice.

GS: Anything in particular that you’re wanting?

JS: Just whatever isn’t another MRE. I’ve got some dextro wine here: Attachment In case you like wine with dinner.

GS: That sounds relaxing. Find us a vid to watch?

JS: Sir, yes, sir.

GS: I’ll be there soon.

Spirits he felt like a teenager again. Food, wine, and a vid. He should probably grab dessert.

An hour later Sparatus walked in with a few bags of food. He hadn’t even rung the door buzzer now that he was thinking about it. That in itself made him feel giddy.

“What did you get us?” Shepard asked as she walked into the kitchen and dug into the bag Sparatus gave her. “Yum, spaghetti and garlic bread.”

“Keep digging,” he teased as he pulled his own out of the bag.

“Chocolate cake and apple pie! How did you get this?”

“I have my ways.” In all honesty, it was rather easy with food chains strengthening again. But she didn’t need to know that just yet. “What’re we going to watch?”

Shepard groaned, “I don’t know. What do you like?”

“I rarely have time for vids,” he answered. “What do you like?”

“I don’t have time for them either,” she answered with a chuckle. “It’s just usually background noise so I can sleep or think.”

“We can watch the new Blasto movie. I heard that a certain Spectre and her Prothean teammate were special guests.”

“Hell no.” They grabbed their food, and he followed her upstairs. He hadn’t been in this part of her apartment before. Her scent was stronger up here. “I was going to set up downstairs, but the couches aren’t that comfy for relaxing and there is no vid screen up here in the reading area. So, we’re going to eat on my bed and watch spirits know what and drink our wines.”

“You should have told me so I could drop by my apartment and grab a change of clothes in case I fall asleep.”

Shepard made a weird sound with her mouth that normally he saw with children. “Just wake up a little earlier, no biggy.”

The following morning, he woke up with red hair in his face and weight across his body. He had fallen asleep. He wondered which one of them had dozed off first.

“Shepard,” he called softly. “Time to wake up.”

“I don’t want to,” she complained.

“I smell that human beverage you’re so fond of.”

The warm weight moved off of him. Shepard’s sleepy smile came into view, her hair sticking out everywhere. Yet she still stole his breath away.

“Coffee,” she whispered lovingly.

Sparatus checked the time before sitting up and grabbing his shoes. “I’ve got to run home and change but I’ll see you tonight.”

“Galvisix,” His body stiffened before relaxing. He doesn’t hear his own name often and he was nervous since he’d just made plans to come back over after spending the night. Without asking permission. “You will see me at work first.”

His mandible flickered out in a small, relieved smile while he was putting his shoes on. “I will but we are two different people when it's time to work.” He stood and approached her. “You will see this part of me after work. I’ll bring dinner.”

“O-Okay,” she stuttered when he ran his mandible over her cheek. “See you tonight then.”

Chapter Text

Shepard didn’t say a word to the clothing he’d left in her closet and the bathing necessities in her bathroom. It was easier than running home every day. Today was a day off for them, but he still awakened early, his body wrapped around Shepard in ways he never knew were possible.

Flicking her coffee on, he set the kettle on the stove for his tea. The drell, Thane, that had fought with Shepard in the past had been fond of tea. Shepard had told him that she’d been unable to part with it even though she doesn’t drink tea herself. She seemed relieved to see it being used.

Sparatus knew loss was hard, especially as a soldier. Yet, he couldn’t imagine just how intense it had been for her while she’d been fighting a galactic war none of them had ever seen. Did she have time to mourn them then? There were times on their shared days off that he’d catch her gazing off into the distance. He knew she was remembering; he just didn’t dare ask what she was remembering in case that was the question that broke her.

An hour later, Shepard came stumbling down the stairs in search of the drink that likely awakened her. Sparatus still didn’t have the nerve to outright ask her how she felt about him. Instead, he just enjoyed what she gave him the best that he could. The more days that went by, the harder it was to speak up.

“Morning, Shepard,” he told her as he began to make their breakfast. She grunted in acknowledgement but didn’t pause in her efforts to pour coffee into her cup. “Feel like shopping today?”

“I hate shopping,” she told him, her nose wrinkling in distaste. “You can just call me Jane.”

“I’ll try but I doubt I’ll be able to all the time,” he confessed. She just nodded in understanding. “Hungry?”

Green eyes disappeared, eyebrows pinching when they opened to take in her surroundings. “When did you learn to cook human food?”

“This week,” he told her. “The shopkeeper and the vid said it was an easy breakfast meal to make. I suppose I should’ve asked if you even like eggs.”

“Love them,” she answered before taking another long drink of her coffee. “But you know you don’t have to cook for me.”

“Why wouldn’t I?”

Warmth entered her eyes. Sparatus looked back down at the pan so as not to burn her breakfast when he felt the wet pressure against his mandible. “Thank you, Gal.”

“You’re welcome,” he told her softly. “Jane.”

As time went on, they worked at work, and relaxed at Shepard’s home. He wasn’t sure exactly what was happening, but he was enjoying the intimacy of everyday life with her.

They picked up groceries together, shopped for clothing, and even had a day at a multipecies spa.

Outside of him rubbing his mandible along her cheek, and her occasional kiss to his mandible, there was no physical intimacy. He craved it, naturally, but he didn’t have enough experience or knowledge of human relationships to even begin how to approach it.

In some of the vids they watched, kissing seemed to hold great importance for humans. When he’d asked her about it, she told him it was intimate, between lovers, and unconsciously done to expose the woman to germs in case of pregnancy. It gave the infant immunities from the mother.

He found that highly interesting.

Humans touched, held hands, often. Turians weren’t really a touchy-feely species. Would he leave her unsatisfied? Was she already unsatisfied? Outside of sleep, they rarely touched.

Spirits he wasn’t going to get anywhere with those thoughts. Instead, he planned to observe and try to understand better.

Nights were his favorite. He got to return to Shepard’s side and be surrounded by her scent.

Chapter Text

Over the next few months, he spent the majority of his time with Shepard in their off hours. The majority of his clothing now filled the empty spaces in her closet, his weapons and armor next to her spare set in the closet.

Yet, he was left unfulfilled. Nothing had changed or grown much, nor did he know how to begin. They hadn’t said they were ‘dating’ nor had they had sex. And Sparatus didn’t know how the hell to move forward. The whole weight of it just seemed to get heavier and heavier.

Their workdays were great. Professional. They accomplished a lot in the time since Shepard had taken her posting. Her crew had returned and were still on their own well-deserved leave. The ship was in dry dock getting repairs and Sparatus was worried that Shepard would return to her previous posting and not look back.

It terrified him.

“What’s got you so distracted lately?” Shepard asked as they lay in bed watching a human military documentary. It was really interesting, but he just wasn’t feeling it tonight with so much on his mind. He’d tried to bury the darker thoughts the best he could, but they always surfaced, and they would until he dealt with it.

“What’s my role?” He asked her.

“What do you mean?”

Sparatus looked at her to see her eyebrows doing that squishy thing that meant confusion. “What are we doing and what’s my role?” He asked her, his finger pointing between the two of them. Her eyebrows shot up. She opened her mouth only to close it again. “Most of my clothing is in your closet, as well as my armor and weapons. I come home with you every night and we lay here and watch vids until we fall asleep.”

Sparatus swallowed thickly when she didn’t answer right away. “Are you romantically attracted to me, Jane? Am I too far from your comfort zone? Spirits, I don’t even know how to talk about this,” he muttered to himself.

“Oh,” she answered dumbly, her exhale seeming loud to him. Then she gave him a little smirk that could mean many, many different things. “I hadn’t even noticed that you’d moved in.” That didn’t make him feel any better. “That should tell you how much I trust you. But,” she paused with a smirk on her beautiful plump lips. “Since you have moved in and we share basically everything here, including the bed, I would say you’re my domestic partner.”

His heart beat wildly inside his chest, he was sure she could hear it as she moved closer to him. “Domestic partner?” He asked quietly.

“Do you have a thing for humans?” She asked suddenly, her eyes searching his own.

“Just one,” he answered easily.

“Then what else would you call our relationship?”

“I don’t know,” he told her honestly. He felt a little struck dumb at the change in her voice. Lower. Seductive.

“Boyfriend?”

Sparatus scoffed as she straddled his thighs, “Too immature.” He certainly hoped she would ‘keep’ him, but he didn’t expect it. He should’ve done this months ago.

“I’m not exactly the most mature person in this apartment, Galvisix,” she teased, her eyes sparkling as the black widened. “Consort?”

“That is horribly tacky, Jane.”

Her eyes met his, her face so very close. “What are you going to do about it?”

Sparatus growled, his hands gripping her hips to him as her lips grazed his mouth plates.

He ended up doing a lot about it, actually. So much so that they were both late for work the following morning. Tevos merely smiled knowingly before they jumped back in to move mountains.

EPILOGUE

It had been over three years since the war was won. Three short years it seemed like.

Spectre Williams came around now that she and Jane had mended their differences. Sparatus was glad to see it. All of Shepard’s former crewmates visited often.

The quarians, batarians, and volus had been brought in as Councilors though many times, the batarians would look to Shepard for understanding and guidance. There were no longer food or medicine shortages. In fact, everything was about as normal as it could get.

And Jane Shepard…

Well, she was currently sleeping.

Many nights, Sparatus would lay awake with her body molded to his and simply enjoy the comfort. Tonight was not one of those nights. He’d been awakened by movement against his waist as he and Jane faced each other.

Sparatus slid his hand over the ‘baby bump’ and began to sing a turian lullaby in hopes that their daughter would calm down so her mother could continue to sleep. There wasn’t much time left for a full night's sleep, and he wanted to make sure Jane got as much as she could handle.

“Happy Anniversary,” came a whisper that interrupted his humming. Two years ago, they became a bonded pair.

Sparatus smiled at the memory. Her first time back at the arena, scoreboard maxed out, fans screaming… And his Jane asking him to be hers for life and beyond. It had been in the news for weeks.

“Happy Anniversary, Jane,” he told her before pressing his forehead to hers. “Rest.”

“I’m trying to, but she keeps doing cartwheels in there.”

“I think she only does it so I’ll sing to her,” Sparatus commented as the baby’s movements slowed. “Already spoiled. Just like her mother.”

Jane laughed quietly, “You’re the one doing the spoiling.”

“I can’t help it,” he confessed. “I love you both so much.”

“We love you, too,” Jane told him, her deep, relaxed sigh seeming to ground him further.

In moments, she was asleep. Both of his girls were.

He’d asked her once, what her wake-up call was for their relationship. She’d just smiled and told him she’d always known but with so many enemies on her heels, she was too scared to do anything about it. Instead, she pushed on in hopes that he still held affection for her when she could safely return it.

Then later, she’d just been selfish. Trying to soak up as much of him as he’d give her until the night he’d finally just asked where they stood.

Galvisix Sparatus thanked the spirits daily for the treasures they’d given to him. He’d spent so many years alone wondering when he’d finally meet the woman that none other would compare to in his heart, he just never expected it to be that annoying, blunt, human that Nihlus had been mentoring.

Thinking back on it, he thought perhaps he’d always known too but was just too jaded to see it. And prideful, he’d definitely been that.

In a few short months, their wake-up calls were going to be an angry baby demanding food.

With one last look at his sleeping mate, Sparatus closed his eyes and let Shepard’s even breathing lull him to sleep.