Chapter 1: Gunfire and Smoke
Chapter Text
“FireBird! Get down you idiot! Stay in cover!” Someone barked to his right, said Turian raising his head to glare back at his partner. The gray-plated turian a few yards back glared openly at him, blue colony marking dusted with ash alongside of his armor.
“I’m fine!” He snapped back, refocusing down the scope of his rifle. He spotted one of the asari-like creatures peek from cover and he quickly fired a kill shot. He heard the displeased rumble of subharmonics before he felt the other turian moving up behind him.
“I wouldn’t call this ‘fine’. We need to head back to where the others are before we get cornered. This is not the place to be right now.” The other stated, dual tone voice stern but also concerned. FireBird glanced up at him.
“If we back off we will lose this perch.” He argued, focusing down the scope as another one of the creatures moved forwards, their armor dark but not strong enough to take a direct hit.
“It doesn’t matter, we have a team moving in within the hour to take them out.” The other continued arguing, before nudging the other Turian’s thigh from his crouched position. FireBird finally met the other’s cerulean gaze. “Valence. Please. It’s not safe here without the team, and your armor is a dead giveaway.”
FireBird sighed, subvocals rumbling with displeasure. I don’t like this. He rumbled out, staring pointedly at the other.
You don’t have to . The other replied.
“Fine. Lead the way Garrus.” He relented, letting the other Turian lead the way at a quick bolt. He wasn’t wrong, bright orange-gold armor wasn’t the best thing in a war zone colored in ash and stone. Like a beacon saying ‘shoot here!’ He’d let Garrus have this one.
“Just keep moving. There shouldn’t be anything between them and us so long as we hurry.” Garrus was saying, his voice rumbling his nerves at the situation. He must have really wanted to back off earlier than they had.
“Is Baveti with them still?” FireBird asked, trying to focus on the positives.
“He should be, I don’t see why he wouldn’t be. But if he knows we aren’t back he’s going to try and find us. That kid is brave, but right now that could get him killed.” Garrus answered. Baveti was a 6 or so year old Albanistic Turian FireBird rescued a few weeks prior. His mother had been shot by her own family when they found out she was keeping him a secret, since most albino Turians didn’t survive past infancy. And of course where his beloved code name had come from since Valence had taken the child in and refused to let anyone tell him otherwise.
“I just worry about him. Sure he seemed like he didn’t know what had happened with his family, but he’s attached to me. I’d feel horrible if something happened to him.” FireBird admitted as they kept jogging onwards. The ruins around them were eerily quiet. Garrus also seemed to notice the silence as he immediately slowed down, visor running scans of the direct vicinity around them.
“Take this slow. Something isn’t-“ a loud gunshot cut him off, FireBird yelping with pained surprise when a bullet cut clear through the left flank of his armor. Garrus dived for cover, FireBird doing The same while quickly snapping on his Omni-tool to inject himself with medigel. Now was not the time to bleed out.
“Valence!?” Garrus barked, subtones concerned and nervous.
“Still alive so far!” He called back, growling low in his chest. He readied his weapon before scooting close enough to the edge of his cover that he could quickly peek and shoot. Garrus was across from him doing the same. Silver eyes met cerulean the second a sharp terrified screech cut through the air, FireBird’s entire body locking up with horror. Garrus’s subvocal plea to stay down went ignored as the younger moved out from cover in an instant with a feral snarl. A few of the creatures had captured the small white Turian child who was struggling and snapping at their fingers. He froze when he spotted FireBird, chirping out a terrified note for help. And Valence could do nothing but answer, even when two bullets lodged themselves in his chest and he stumbled to the ground with a cry of pain.
The creatures made noises that sounded like joy, letting Baveti free to run to the injured Turian’s side to bump foreheads and curl up with him for safety. Valence didn’t have the heart to tell him otherwise when the creatures started moving towards them, his vision starting to spot with darkness as pain took over his senses. He growled low when they started getting close, too weak to attack but still feeling protective of the child who was clinging to him in fear. He heard the distinct sound of metal hitting metal behind him before Garrus was thrown down next to him, looking roughed up himself. There were twelve of them total, laughing and pointing-he thought it was laughter, the sounds were too cheerful not to be- at the three of them. Garrus tilted his head to glance at him, eyes darkening with horror when he realized it wasn’t just them at risk.
“Don’t do this! There’s a child!” Garrus tried, a gun being aimed at his head the only response he got. They both knew there was no current way to communicate with this new species, it was just a matter of doing their best to stay alive.
Garrus . Valence called out silently, satisfied when the new species didn’t seem to hear his tones calling for the other. Garrus glanced at him again. Keep. Him. Safe . He growled out in his subtones before everything went dark. At least he’d die without pain.
***
“Commander, we have a special mission for you and your Sister.” Admiral Jenison was saying over the comms. Eliza glanced at her sister, who kept her expression neutral. She knew her sister was barely restraining from snapping at them. They had just gotten leave after fighting for months against the strange race of creatures that had started a war, and now they were being called in. Again.
“What kind of mission, sir?” Jane asked, hands held stiffly against her lower back. Eliza bit back an exasperated sigh.
“We…have some POWS that need to be interrogated. We’ve had them in custody for a few days and so far nothing has come of it. We know they can’t understand us, and all attempts to get our point across using aggressive methods are being deemed useless. They seem to almost shut down when captured. Perhaps if they aren’t as sentient as we thought, we can gain their trust and let them kill their own kind.” The admiral explained, continuing on by listing their coordinates to the colony on a small planet nicknamed ‘Starling’ thanks to its purely military start. That colony was small, but had become a shining beacon of military progress back on earth.
“Yes sir. We will head there immediately. We are already in flight so it shouldn’t be more than a few hours. Shepherd out.” Jane finished, waiting for the comms to disconnect before she let out an annoyed groan and flopped onto the couch next to Eliza.
“So….babysitting a hostile alien? I tuned the last part out. His voice makes me want to get shot.” Eliza huffed out, Jane snickering beside her, her red hair bright compared to Eliza’s black. Of course her sister also had long curly hair and Eliza kept hers in a neat pixie cut.
“Babysitting 2 hostile aliens, actually.” Her sister complained, sprawling out on the couch. This was a benefit to them having a shared ship, they got essentially their own apartment at the Commanders helm, two small bedrooms attached to a large middle room and kitchen.
“So what do they expect us to do? They probably tried beating them, which doesn’t help anything. Especially if they are starving or exhausted, which I’m sure they are at this point. Can they even eat what we do?” Eliza asked. Jane just shrugged before sighing.
“The reports I was sent stated that some of them had worse reactions to our food then others out of the 10 captured over the course of this war.” Jane listed, picking up her datapad from the coffee table to read back through them. “The two will actively refuse food, but when force fed have no outwards negative reactions to meats. So they either have a high tolerance for strange food types, or they just aren’t allergic like the rest.”
“Weird.” Eliza huffed, kicking her feet up. She blinked when a thought hit her. “Wait, how did they keep these two alive? The others found ways to kill themselves before anyone could interact with them.”
“They said they had something they were using as an incentive. Whatever that means can’t be good.” Jane admitted, scanning the digital papers for any hint of what the incentive could be. Whatever it was had to be extremely important if these two were willing to survive at all. It just made Eliza uncomfortable.
“30 minutes out commanders.” A voice called over the ship intercoms, their Pilot Joker giving them the time check. Jane sighed.
“Guess it’s time to get ready for work. Who knows what we are about to find down there.” She said quietly. Eliza agreed, both of them standing and moving to their respective rooms to gear up and prepare for anything they were about to see when they landed. Which was almost nothing. They would be going into this completely blind it seemed.
Chapter 2: Assignment Accepted.
Notes:
Nothing super fancy to note today, so enjoy a daily post because I couldn’t help myself 🤣
No set posting schedule, just whenever a chapter is done!
Enjoy!
Chapter Text
Eliza was the first to step off the ship- that was lovingly named “Skychaser”- into the compound built in dark stone and metal. The place clearly was meant to be a high security lockdown unit, and the air being breathable was just an added bonus. Which thankfully meant no helmets. Eliza closed her eyes and took a deep breath, opening them when she heard the echoes of footsteps thumping towards her on the platform. She opened her eyes and turned just as Jane got to her side, emerald eyes meeting blue.
“I don’t like this already. Someone named Kaiden is supposed to meet us by that gate, he’s going to give us the tour of where we will be sleeping, and then we are supposed to go meet the POWs.” Jane said, multi-tool lit up on her left wrist as she went over the information they had been given. Eliza opened her own when it chirped, Jane having sent over the files to her as well.
“Lieutenant Kaiden Alenko. Military born and raised, small military family..blah blah. So dealing with another know-it-all military kid. And he’s 26. Even better!” Eliza huffed sarcastically. Not that her and Jane were much older, they were both 28. But still. It was annoying.
“Eliza, be nice. We’ve not met him yet.” Jane scolded, smirking knowing at her despite her attempt to seem serious. Eliza just grinned back at her.
“You wait, he’s gonna be an asshole.” Eliza huffed at her, moving on down the ramp. Jane took the lead from there, preferring to make the first move even if their reputations were the same. Being twins helped it along, identical in the face except for a few different scars, but different in hair and eye color. That was the way most people identified them, if they were out of armor. Eliza had cyan and white camo armor, highlighted with mint green and navy lights. Jane favored simple black and red, too professional to color her armor but still playful enough to have a few neon green markings along her helmet amidst the black and red. Sure enough, a young dark haired soldier in navy and black armor came and opened the gate, offering them a star stuck smile. Eliza sighed, Jane quickly smacking her arm to be quiet.
“Commanders.” The young soldier stated, eyes wide with awe. Eliza wanted to gag. “Kaiden Alenko. Follow me, I’ll give you a tour of the place.”
Jane shot her sister a look, Eliza staring back with innocence. Kaiden allowed them to enter the compound, several soldiers saluting them respectfully as they passed, making way for the three of them.
“This to the right here leads to the crew housing. This is where you all will be staying. They have you both in a shared master dorm on the third floor of the building.” Kaiden said, motioning towards a series of large buildings off to the right. He continued talking but Eliza stopped listening to him to really look at their surroundings. The above ground was massive, buildings all setup with the intention to train and reinforce security, while keeping everything inside. This planet had a whole system and small city within a few hours travel, not quite as advanced as earth but still more than a simple colony. This place had been in the works for a few months now.
“Most of the important areas are below ground, but we do have an above ground enclosure complete with electrified bars and bulletproof glass.” Kaiden was saying as he led them into the crew building. He showed them exactly which room was theirs- Level C, room 7- before taking them back downstairs and into what looked like one of the main buildings. From there they were introduced to another Soldier named Ashley who led them to the massive elevator while filling them in on everything.
“This compound is one of the most secure I’ve worked at. Nothing gets out of here without one of us knowing about it, and they never make it out of the facility. First level is where most of the officers reside during their shifts, but third floor is where you two will be.” Ashley was saying, Kaiden glancing over Jane again. Eliza glared at him, his face turning red when he realized he’d been caught. Thankfully Alenko stayed back in the elevator.
Ashley led them down a few hallways, pointing out markers while also telling them she was going to meet them at the elevator each day regardless until they got used to the layout. Eliza was grateful for that, cause she was pretty sure if they had just left them down here she wouldn’t have been able to get out for a few hours at least.
“This…this is one of the two y’all will be working with. They seem to be similarly aged but we aren’t entirely sure of that. Non-compliant and mentally shutdown. It won’t take food unless you force it too, but be careful around it. It hasn’t bit anyone yet, just sits still and doesn’t respond to anything we do.” Ashley said, walking past a heavy iron door and into another a few yards down. The small observation room had a large floor to ceiling two-way glass panel. Jane froze when she walked in, Eliza barely keeping herself from gasping.
Across from the glass was one of the aliens, curled tight into a corner with its wrists shackled together and a heavy metal collar strapped around its neck. Eliza knew a shock collar when she saw one, but this one was intended to kill it at best. It had sharp cobalt markings across its nose and under its eyes, and lines across its mandibles on its face. Like Ashley had said, it was staring blankly at the glass, eyes glazed over and curled in a half sit half lean since its body shape didn’t allow it to sit comfortably. It was also completely naked, its body smooth gray plates and darker hide, lean and sharp edged and very foreign to them all.
“We have reason to believe it’s a male. The spikes on its head are what we have learned to be identifiers. Males have the long spikes while females have different shaped mandibles and no head spikes. Of course with no external uh…erm, parts, it’s hard to know for sure, but these guys are taller than the assumed female counterparts.” Ashley added, seeming uncomfortable. Eliza just stared at it in surprise. It truly was shut down, like a dog that had been kicked too many times to have any willpower to live. Eliza didn’t want to stay around him any more than she had to right now. Ashley led them a room down, the same setup but a very different scene.
“This one…is fighting us.” Ashely’s said. It was an understatement. This Alien had Sharp purple markings on his silver face, and what almost looked like orange smoke around his eyes and on his chin. His silver eyes were sharp, having fixated on the glass despite not being able to see them. He had stood up, silver plating and paler gray hide on full display except for a few roughly done bandages across its chest. Eliza noticed first how his collar seemed almost tighter than the first male’s, the hide around its neck rough and raw, matching its wrists where it had likely been fighting them the whole way. It also had a makeshift metal and leather muzzle strapped across its mouth, mandibles, and nose as a particularly damning piece of evidence regarding its aggressive personality.
“He’s been aggressive since he woke up from being wounded, and the muzzle became necessary after he nearly bit a scientist’s fingers off. We have to feed him when he’s half sedated, which is not an easy task. We have to use high quality tranquilizers, and it almost always makes him sick after he wakes up.” Ashley explained. Eliza herself was starting to feel sick.
“Can we have a moment alone here?” Jane requested, Ashley nodding and moving to shut the door behind her.
“Holy. Shit.” Eliza whispered, Jane running a hand through her hair. “What the hell do they want us to do? This one’s crazy, that one’s depressed, we aren’t going to get a damn thing from either of them.” Eliza snapped. Jane signed.
“I don’t know, but this…this is a lot. Our own POWs are treated better than this. But then again, we can communicate with our own species. These guys have nothing.” Jane said just as softly. The alien in front of them was agitated, a few new marks from direct hits scattered across its body in dark bruises. Eliza still didn’t feel great.
“So they want us to go in there with Him, and hope he doesn’t absolutely murder us. While he’s not only pissed off but also hurt and probably starving. Wait, have they even offered them water?” Eliza suddenly realized, Jane meeting her stare with mixed emotions. She moved for the door seconds later.
“Have they been offered water?” Jane demanded, Ashley looking startled before stuttering out that no, they hadn’t as they had only been here for a few days and their food mixture contained water. Eliza looked mildly horrified. “Get it for me. I’ll need it for tomorrow. I was informed you all had a way to keep them alive, and I want to know what that is first.”
“That…is why the one is agitated.” Ashley admitted leading them further down the hall. The door was still metal, but very different from the other two doors. Instead of going into a viewing room, Ashley led them directly into a softly padded room. Ashley made a sharp noise, and Eliza shoved past her when a scared sounding whimper echoed to them. Jane quickly shoved in behind her, neither of them spotting anything at first. Ashley made a frustrated noise, getting a glare from Eliza.
“It’s in the corner under the blanket.”
Eliza quickly looked over, scanning over several scattered blankets in the far corner of the room, before she spotted the two small pink-white eyes staring back at her from the shadows of a blanket. A second later a small head appeared, too curious to avoid them altogether but still scared of them. Eliza watched it glance at the two newcomers, small eyes flickering to Ashley before they widened and He ducked back into his blanket in fear.
“How the hell did they get ahold of a baby one!?” Jane snapped, getting right in Ashley’s face. Eliza was too distracted by how the baby watched their exchange with fear, but also curiosity, as it had poked its head out once again when it was behind someone else and the person it disliked was away from it.
“I don’t know! It’s how they caught the orange one! They cornered the other with him!” She tried, trying to get Jane to calm down. Eliza took a few cautious steps towards the baby. Amazed at how small it was compared to the adults. It looked like a 5or 6 year old human child. Pink eyes jolted to Eliza, it’s tiny mandibles fluttering before it let out a fearsome hiss. Well, it was probably supposed to be fierce. But it sounded more like an angry kitten than a dangerous predator. Eliza paused, Jane and Ashley having gone quiet at the noise.
“The orange one, he targets anyone who goes into his room after coming from this one. I assume their sense of smell is incredibly strong and that he recognized his scent. I don’t know if it’s a protective thing or if it’s his. We do know that it’s an albino version of the adults, but we’ve never seen an adult like it.” Ashley said softly. Jane scoffed and stepped out of the room, Ashley moving to follow. Eliza turned to watch them, glancing back at the baby who had half crawled out of the blankets to stare openly at her, head tilted. Eliza tilted her head back, the baby blinking its pink eyes before giving a soft trill. Eliza left the room a few moments later, unable to stand meeting its eyes for longer than she already had. Jane was waiting for her, Ashley talking through her comms and telling them that Jane had demanded some supplies and what those supplies were.
Neither of the twins could stand to stop and interact with the aliens again that day, having spent several hours exploring the compound with their guides. Ashley led them back to Alenko, who escorted them back to their dorm. Eliza slumped down on the couch with a sigh immediately after stripping off her armor. Jane came in the room dressed in sweatpants and a hoodie a few minutes later to sit down next to her sister.
“So, they want us to try and bond with them or something?” Eliza sighed. “And yet they are killing the two with dehydration, are beating the aggressive one, and have a baby separated from the adults because it’s their leverage to keep the adults alive.” She summarized. Jane sighed next to her and activated her tool.
“We are supposed to meet with the facility representatives tomorrow morning to discuss exactly what they want us to do. But the whole idea is to get them to trust us or see if we can get them to communicate and see if they will still attack the hand that feeds them.” She said quietly. “They are enemies in all aspects of the military but they are still their own people. We have to take this slow, get them back healthy before we can start trying to force a bond, it’s only right regardless of species. And we can’t do that when the one is shut down.”
“So focus on the blue marked one first?” Eliza asked, already thinking up her ideas on how to at least make the alien a little more comfortable. That went a long way in gaining trust and helping a terrified dog come back to itself so surely it would work for an alien too, right? She probably shouldn’t be comparing them to dogs but she didn’t exactly have anything better to reference them too.
“Yeah. Guess we are gonna have to name them too. At least temporarily.” Jane signed, leaning back into the couch and closing her eyes.
“Blue and Orange aren’t the best names ever.” Eliza chuckled, watching her sister.
“No, but it’s all we have to go off of right now. Let’s just keep it simple. Blue for the one, Orange for the other even tho it’s markings are actually purple.” Jane said without opening her eyes. Eliza huffed at her before standing up.
“Okay. I’m going to go shower and question all of my life choices and go to bed. If we start tomorrow, we have to let them both see us to know we are going to be their new companions, and visit the baby. Maybe get it in some toys and try and get the adults something instead of just barren rooms.” Eliza stated, running a hand through her short hair. Jane nodded in agreement but didn’t respond, so Eliza moved to do exactly what she had said. She really hoped the orange one would come around, especially knowing it attacked anyone who smelled like the baby. Maybe they could reverse that mentality? If they smelled like the baby then that was a good thing! Although she supposed smelling like a scared baby probably was what was setting him off. She sighed as she washed her hair, finishing quickly before stepping out to towel off.
This was going to be a LONG assignment.
Chapter 3: Hateful Adults and Hissy Babies
Notes:
I know, 3 days in a row!? I’ll admit, I’ve had these wrote for a few days. Don’t get too used to the daily updates, it all depends on how much writing I get done!
Thanks for reading, and to those who chose to leave Kudos: thank you so much!! It’s good to see people enjoying what I write for you all!
Chapter Text
Garrus was exhausted. He hadn’t slept more than a few hours in the past days since they had been captured and then brought to wherever they were. The lights gave him headaches and his wrists were cramped up in the heavy shackles he was stuck with. He didn’t even want to think about the collar that was a notch too tight around his neck, that was something to worry about when he wasn’t exhausted.
When he had been cornered, he had expected to be interrogated, wounded. But this? Being locked in a blank room with nothing other than himself and a two-way mirror? This was much, much worse. Was he being watched constantly? Why had they suddenly left them alone?. And he had to be force fed which was also highly unpleasant all around to experience. He had tried just zoning out, disregarding food completely with the intention of slowly starving even if that was a horrific way to go. But if he didn’t willingly eat they would come in with a syringe and force an awful tasting mush down his throat which he could barely swallow because of how tight the collar was.
And he was exhausted. And thirsty. Why these captors didn’t offer him water was another issue entirely. Maybe they just figured because they ate whatever the meat mush was with no issues they didn’t need the liquid part of the diet? Regardless, Garrus felt like absolute shit. Sleep deprived, dehydrated, and sore with a bonus of being cold. He really was starting to think death would be preferable. And even worse, he hadn’t seen Valence or Baveti since they had been shoved in dark metal cages and hauled off to be separated. He didn’t know what he would do if he found out the other turian was dead, he hadn’t been well off when they separated them on that planet however long that they had been captured. It was near impossible to tell how long he had been in here with no change in lighting or anything that showed the days were changing. At least, until his door opened next.
He expected white coats and mushed up meat products, but was surprised when he slowly turned his head and was greeted by a female human with bright red fringe. Or whatever it was on her head. He slowly blinked at her in surprise. He had never seen one of them with fringe that color, perhaps it was rare? He tried to adjust his seated position but could only wince when it either pulled on a sore joint or put tension on his wrists. The soft looking alien with red fringe and deep green eyes looked unhappy, and Garrus really hoped she wasn’t going to just kick him around. He was already sore enough. He was more surprised when a second female came in, startlingly similar to the red fringed only with short black fringe and blue eyes. Maybe twins? He huffed out a curious trill, his exhaustion really messing with his head about pretending to be barely alive and probably dying. Oh wait, he WAS.
Neither of them came anywhere close enough for him to feel the need to move, but he watched as the two of them put together something that looked like a cot he’d had back in the field. They kept glancing his way to find him watching them, his head tilted curiously as he examined them. When it was done, it did in fact turn out to be a cot of some kind, smaller than normal turian models of course. The one with red fringe smiled with teeth to the other when it was done and she was sitting upon it, both of them making happy and satisfied tones. Garrus really hoped they didn’t just put that together in front of him as new torture, he was already tired of being alive.
He once again was surprised when they started pushing it against the wall nearest to him, both of them freezing when he growled low in warning not to get close to him. Weak as he was, he’d still be able to lash out at short range.
Once they were satisfied with the position of the cot, they both moved to the far wall with the mirror and sat side by side in the floor to watch what he would do. Garrus glanced between the Aliens and the cot, before he fluttered his mandibles and growled low at them as he slowly-painfully- got to his feet. The dark fringed one stood up, and Garrus let out a sharp trill of distrust, keeping his back firmly to the wall. The female didn’t move but watched him carefully as he slowly inched towards the cot. Once he was close enough, and his legs were shaking bad enough he could hardly stand, he plopped down on it with a groan of appreciation that started both aliens in the room. He couldn’t find it in himself to care since this cot was the best thing he’d had in weeks and no way was he going to not take advantage of it. He blinked at them, eyes half closed in contentment when a familiar pop caught his attention. The dark fringed one had a bottle in her hand and was…drinking out of it. Garrus made a soft whimper before he realized he had, dark fringe pausing and looking around at the pile of tools. She eventually went to the door and yelled something in their strange flat language before a bowl was offered to her.
Garrus really hoped this was going where he thought it was.
Sure enough, red fringe stood to take the bowl, and opened her own bottle while staring at him pointedly, taking a swig of it and pouring most of the rest into the bowl. At this point Garrus didn’t care if it was or wasn’t poisoned as she slowly approached him. He growled low at her when she was a few yards away, body stuff and unsure as his eyes glanced between the bowl and the alien holding it out towards him with her weird hands outstretched. Damn it.
***
“Jane…” Eliza said softly, trying her hardest to stay still and not go to her sister’s side. Jane had taken the bowl Eliza had shouted for, filled it with water and was less than five feet away from a massive- Starving, weak, exhausted- alien who had just growled at her and yet was clearly having a war with himself over the fact that he really wanted the water and Jane was offering it.
“It’s okay.” Jane said just as softly. “I don’t think he wants to hurt me.”
“You don’t know that. He could be waiting to lunge.” Eliza argued, watching the alien’s blue eyes flick between them, then at the bowl, then to scan Jane. She was close enough to grab and they all knew it. But to her surprise, He slowly moved to sit up a bit, tucking both shackled hands under himself to close the distance between himself and the bowl. He gave a low growl before a long dark blue tongue dipped from his mouth to lap at the water not unlike a dog, a low groan noise coming from him. Eliza watched the way it’s body trembled with the effort to keep propped up, but how it wasn’t willing to let the water go away either. Jane stepped back only when the small bowl was completely empty and licked dry, blue eyes darting up to Jane’s, then back to the bowl. Eliza took a cautious step forwards.
Jane stayed completely still as Eliza approached, the alien growing more tense the closer she got before she uncapped her water bottle and reached over her sister’s shoulder to try and pour it into the bowl as well. Blue eyes locked onto it and quickly moved close again to lap at the newly offered water, eyes half closed even though there were two of them this close.
“He’s shivering.” Jane said softly, Scanning down the alien’s body. Eliza noticed the small trembles as well once they had been called attention too.
“We can’t be too quick. He has a bed, and he got water, when we come back tomorrow we can offer a blanket.” Eliza said, even if it bothered her to say it. If they were too kind too quick, it could be suspicious to the alien they had such a fragile moment with. They both watched as he laid back on the cot when he was done with the water, not having drank all of the rest, dark tongue sliding over his mouth plates as he glanced at both of them distrustfully with a hint of something that might have been curiosity. Eliza backed away first, Jane following when it was clear the alien wasn’t going to lunge the second she focused on something other than him. Eliza watched as his eyes started to drift closed, before quickly snapping back open to glare at the lights above them, rumbling a low growl of displeasure before he blinked slowly at the twins.
“Do they turn these lights off you think?” Jane asked, Meeting her sister’s eyes. “Cause I don’t think they do. How do they expect him to get any sleep when it’s a room with a mini sun in it?”
“There were light controls in the other room…” Eliza said slowly. Jane smirked at her, emerald eyes glittered as she made for the door. The alien was watching Eliza now, unsure, before jumping when the lights dulled considerably. She almost giggled at how the alien instantly relaxed and closed his eyes again. She did chuckle when she started towards the door and the only sign of life in the room was an almost-snore from him. Poor guy was out in an instant.
“So?” Jane asked as Eliza locked the door behind herself.
“Dead asleep in seconds. I kinda feel bad for him.” Eliza said, both of them moving towards the next room after snagging their bags from Ashley who was watching them with a mixed expression of alarm and disapproval. Neither of them cared. Jane paused at the door to the next adult, taking a deep breath.
“Don’t think this one will be as calm.” She admitted, glancing back at Ashley who had put a helmet on.
“No ma’am. You have to have an armed guard with you.” Ashley stated, motioning to her stun baton. Eliza wanted to smack her with it.
“Not necessary, you guys stay here. I’m not scared of him.” Eliza snapped, shoving open the door without hesitation. Which was a mistake since she hadn’t looked to see what was beside the door and slammed directly into the alien she allegedly wasn’t scared of with her pack still in her hand. Icy eyes met silver ones before they both leapt away from each other, Eliza glaring while the alien offered her a half growl since he still seemed startled. He immediately started pacing, scanning her with careful precision, only pausing when it dawned on him that the human in his cell wasn’t armed, and instead was just staring at him. His mandibles twitched under the muzzle with another growl. Eliza glared back at him.
“Yeah yeah, hateful ass.” She snarled, watching as he tilted his head slightly before snorting and resuming his pacing along the opposite wall. Eliza watched him before she shrugged and sat down, watching the alien once again freeze to give her a weird look. She stared back at him. He took a hesitant step and when she didn’t move off the floor, he cautiously went back to his corner and sat down himself. Alrighty then, Eliza thought. Guess they were just going to stare at each other today.
With caution, Eliza dug in her bag while ignoring the warning growl from across the room, digging out another water bottle and uncapping it to take a sip. The alien watched her, silver eyes flicking to it immediately. She knew it would be hard for him to drink with the muzzle on, but she also wasn’t about to just go up to him and take it off, so she dug out a second bowl, filled it with water, and sat it on the floor next to her. He glared at her.
“Well I don’t want to go to you and get clawed.” Eliza huffed, glaring back. After a moment he huffed and looked towards the glass, ignoring her. Eliza smirked with the win. She scooted closer with the bowl, waiting for his eyes to flick to her as she quickly froze and repeated the process until she was a few yards away. He finally turned his head back to her with a huffed sigh, eyes flicking to when she had first sat, to where she was now, then met her eyes again with a look she could clearly see said ‘do I look like an idiot?’ She smirked and scooted the bowl the last couple feet to him, waiting for him to acknowledge it before she abruptly got up and walked back to her original place without any bit of fear. He was staring after her with a startled expression.
“Well, you don’t like me, and I don’t want you to whack me.” She stated, watching him scrunch his face as she spoke before snagging the bowl with a shackled talon and dropping his whole body to the floor. He stared at her hatefully, snorting, before he unceremoniously shoved his whole face into the bowl in the only way he could to drink the water. Especially since their mouths didn’t close completely, he couldn’t drink like humans did. He got tired of fighting with the muzzle after a few minutes, glaring across the room at her. She shrugged, watching as he got up and resumed his anxious pacing while no longer acknowledging the other being in the room. Eliza took that as her call to leave.
“Well that…went.” Ashley stated, making sure the door was bolted back properly. “He didn’t lunge at you but I think that’s mostly because of the fact you startled him.”
“Just make sure the lights are dimmed. Give them both time to actually rest.” Jane said grumpily, digging through her pack for some of the last bits of things she had. Their last stop was the baby, which would likely be easier to gain the trust of. And now they had permission to bring it to their apartment for bonding if it would come with them willingly.
Jane had shot down one of their superior’s wishes to just shove it in a kennel. Eliza really wished she could punch them sometimes.
Eliza entered the room first, noticing that someone had stripped the room and only left one blanket in the corner. There was no sign of the baby, which meant it was in the blanket hiding from them. Jane jumped when her Tool beeped, both siblings glancing at it before Jane signed.
“Damnit. They are wanting one of us to come up and discuss more stuff. This morning was just about our accommodations, and now they want another debrief over this. Are you good to stay here and I’ll go?” Jane asked, glancing towards the blanket in the corner that still hadn’t moved.
“Well I don’t think the baby is gonna attack me and you are better at politics than me.” Eliza said with a smirk, Jane rolling her eyes and moving towards the door before she paused.
“Just be careful okay?” She asked softly. Eliza smiled back at her.
“I will. Go play peacemaker.” She said, her sister groaning before leaving. Which left Eliza alone in a room with nothing but a baby and a blanket. That wasn’t a pressure at all. Especially since she knew Ashley would be back as soon as she escorted Jane back up. A soft trill caught her attention, a small head having finally peeked out of its hiding spot. It stared at Eliza through sharp narrowed eyes, before he flared his mandibles and hissed again, ducking behind its blanket. Eliza chuckled softly.
“I know. Big vicious baby alien.” Eliza said softly, watching its head reappear at her voice curiously. “So adorably vicious.”
It just slowly blinked at her. But it wasn’t hiding!
“Okay. You guys have sharp teeth and talons, so you have to be predators.” Eliza observed, watching its head tilt. It wasn’t about to come out and acknowledge her otherwise so Eliza did the next best thing by sitting down away from the door and digging in her bag for her blank paper notepad. It was actually a mini sketchbook but she liked to write notes on the paper instead of regular notebooks so she kept this on hand.
The room was surprisingly quiet other than the soft sounds of a pencil on paper. She had completely forgotten she was in a huge military facility as she carefully sketched their alien charges, the adult with the cobalt markings, the other with the purple and orange. Not that the pencil could show the colors but she could see them as she sketched them in a shade darker. She wouldn’t say she was the best artist for a military woman, but she knew her artwork was good. Good enough that she could accurately sketch pictures of people just from blurry pictures for the military when they needed a visual representation of a target.
She nearly startled when she glanced up, only her training keeping her from jumping. The baby had fully come out of its nest to watch her, sitting with both its legs sprawled out in front of it, arms planted between them and staring at the notebook with his head tilted curiously. He was only two yards away from her. He didn’t seem to realize he was being watched so she continues sketching, casually glancing to be able to sketch its body as well, the curious wide eyes and barely grown spikes on it head in a very vague resemblance to the adults. She delicately sketched its three fingered hands, it’s two-toed feet similarly positioned as a dog’s in structure but also so dissimilar too. The little spikes on the back of its calves so small compared to the adults’ spurs they had. Everything about their bodies spoke aggression and combat and predator.
But as a baby, even one that was a few years old as this one was, it just looked so soft. Innocent really. It didn’t look mean or scary, pupils huge in curiosity and mandibles twitching as it tried to figure out things as it went. She watched its little nose twitch before it’s head jerked up to stare directly at her face. Eliza froze as it made a slightly louder sniff, cautiously crawling towards her. Something had caught itsattention, and she remembered what Ashley had said.
They had a very strong sense of smell. The orange one was aggressive to anyone who went into his room after having been with the baby. And she had physically bumped into the orange one!
Eliza carefully set her stuff down, the baby giving a low growl as she moved, before she very slowly slid her uniform jacket off and sat it in the floor over her feet that she slowly extended towards the baby. It jumped away from her with a hiss- once again it was less threatening and more adorable- before it sniffed again, and immediately came closer to sniff at the offered piece of clothing. He sniffed it before gently reaching out a tiny hand to touch it cautiously, flinching back before coming back again. Eliza was careful to stay completely still, even when it snatched up her jacket and ran a few feet away with it, hissing at her again.
“Okay, now you’re being rude.” She said softly, amused at it’s attempts to be scary. She felt sad when she watched it sniff the jacket before immediately rubbing its face on the spot where she assumed the scent was strongest, before curling up on the jacket and making a soft sad sounding cry with a few distressed chirps following it. She didn’t have the heart to go get her jacket back.
She left the room a few moments later when the baby went completely distant, gathering her stuff and moving down the hallway. She paused at Orange’s door, sighing before continuing on right as Ashley came up in front of her. Apparently she’d been down with the baby for almost 2 hours.
Jane looked up as her sister came in, setting her data pad aside to stand up.
“Eliza? Where is your jacket?” She immediately asked, to the point.
“In with the baby still. You know how I bumped Orange? Well, it smelled him on me. Got real close to me when I was sketching and so I offered my jacket to see if it wanted to smell and yeah. No jacket. I didn’t have the heart to chase it off when it curled up and started crying.” Eliza admitted, Jane moving over to offer a hug that her sister accepted.
“So it definitely recognizes his scent then.” Jane said softly. “The Admiral here said they are having to move them out to clean the rooms tomorrow, they normally take them out early in the morning to shower them and such. We could maybe see what happens if they are put together.”
“And if the adults kill each other?”
“Ashley and Kaiden both stated they were captured together. If they hated each other I don’t think they’d have been around each other to be captured.” Jane stated, moving back to her perch at the couch. Eliza followed after a moment.
“What do they want us to even do with them? They are people, we aren’t going to get them to do anything they don’t want to do.” Eliza huffed, plopping down with a groan.
“I don’t think they know either. They want to know what they are, what they want. Why they attacked. They’ve tried to analyze their stuff but they didn’t find anything we could read or use. Something similar to our Multi-Tools but more advanced than what we have. Couldn’t get them to work, and even if they did we couldn’t read it.” Jane sighed, setting aside the data pad. Eliza still thought it was dumb that the things were basically just more fancy and military grade tablets but who was she to complain when they used the thing daily.
“And what’s to stop them from sending out a distress call.” Elise huffed, before sitting up and grabbing her sketched to show it to Jane. “I took some notes too. They are predators, we know that. So I think if we get things that feed off of the baby’s instincts as a predator would get it to bond better. We also need to see about maybe getting their body suits from their armor if it’s separate pieces like ours. Might help keep down the cold.”
“I already put a request in for baby toys, some heavy duty stuff.” Jane admitted, eyes downcast. “I know they stripped the room it was in, the least we can do is try and make it happy. I mean it’s a baby and they still stripped it of everything for safety.”
“I get it but still. Might as well just throw them under at that point. At least the baby is given food and water since it’s young.”
“We can only do what we can. I’ll see about getting their body suits for sure. Would be easier than trying to get them clothes tailored to them.” Jane said, moving to stand up. Eliza huffed as her sister went to the kitchen and started digging around.
“I’m gonna shower, you making dinner?“ Eliza asked, getting a vague noise of confirmation than made her chuckle. Eliza was grateful that they at least had warm water here, it was definitely something she wouldn’t not take for granted. She stripped and jumped in the shower, only taking the necessary time to wash herself and her hair before getting out and slipping on some lighter clothing over her lace underclothes. It was a habit she had kept since in the military, you always made sure you were ready for an emergency, even if it wasn’t as effective as it could have been. A simple bra and underwear was better than just going without in an emergency. She’d probably be able to distract the enemy with her breasts flapping in the wind, if she didn’t knock herself out with them first.
So, better to be prepared.
She moved back into their living room by the time Jane had fixed up a quick easy meal from what they had available, settling in next to her on their couch to watch a movie on a saved drive like they always did when they both were tired but not ready to go to sleep. Luckily by tomorrow things would start to make progress on this whole shitstorm they got them working on.
Chapter 4: First (Aggressive) Contact
Notes:
Have a nice decently long chapter! Enjoy!
Chapter Text
“ELIZA!!”
Jane’s shout jerked her awake, and sent her scrambling out of bed. She flung the covers off of herself, snagged the nearest pair of pants to slip on, shoved her feet in her boots, and grabbed a Jacket as she moved quickly to the kitchen where Jane was doing something similar and was zipping up her N7 hoodie. She had a wild look in her eye, and her Multi-tool was flashing.
Then Eliza heard the alarms.
“What’s going on!?” Eliza asked as they left together, jogging down the hallways to find Kaiden or Ashley, whoever they encountered first. Several personnel looked up at them, offering concerned glances as they rushed to their own zones. Jane kept moving, raising her left arm to tap on her Tool.
“Something happened with our POWs. Not sure exactly but it was enough to send everyone into lockdown mode down below, that’s what these specific alarms mean.” Jane explained, Ashley having spotted them and came running to greet them.
“Report!” Eliza snapped, Jane not bothering to scold her for once since she wanted to know as much as her sister did. Ashley saluted before motioning for them to keep moving.
“Well, got them out and into their decontamination rooms, and the Orange one decided that trying to claw his captors was a good plan. Hit one good.” She explained as they went inside a new building and down the elevator. Eliza knew this elevator led to the same set of halls, just on a different side. Maybe closer to the decontamination rooms?
“Everyone alive?” Jane asked. Neither of them were sure what would happen if one of the adults actually killed someone, but it probably wouldn’t be good.
“Yes, no injuries either except for a concussion on one for being slammed into a wall. Alenko is down there now. I was also instructed to give this back to you.” Ashley stated in response, handing Eliza back her jacket she had left in with the baby. It now had a fine layer of dust on it.
“Where are they now? Still in their temporary rooms?” Eliza asked as she tied the jacket around her wait via the sleeves. Jane gave her a look of disapproval but didn’t say anything against it much to Eliza’s amusement.
“The blue one is in what we have deemed the recreation room. It’s got a fake grass floor, a pool, and some enemy safe things to climb or interact with like swings. Think like a city park deal but the walls are padded and they are constantly supervised for any strange activities. He was good and didn’t fuss so they rewarded him with free time where they took the shackles off. He’s been surprisingly compliant, but I think most of it is him trying to figure out our motives. We got orders not to interact with them except for this reason now that you two are here.” Ashley explained, stepping out of the elevator as the alarms finally shut off around them. Ashley glanced up before motioning for them to keep following in the opposite direction of the cells.
“And Orange? You said he attacked so did they separate him?” Jane finally asked. Eliza was worried when Ashley was quiet for several seconds.
“Sedated, mostly. They had to dart him but they missed his side where the dart sticks best so he may not have gotten the full dose. Enough that he’s loopy and sleepy but also not fully asleep. They want one of you two to give him another dose while he’s down. They will be bringing Blue back out soon so we hopefully will have him asleep by that point. The baby cleans itself so we don’t have to worry about it. We always clean up their rooms before you two go down to see them.”
Eliza sighed. Darting him would push back any progress they had already made. And since he didn’t have his shackles on if he struck out again nothing would stop him. Ashley typed in a code at a door with a keypad, and the area it led to was much bigger than it was expected to be. Same gray walls, but two rooms placed in the middle on the right wall with glass on the side with the door, glass windows on the far side leading to what Eliza assumed was the recreation area Ashley had talked about since it had grass inside. Several armed guards were standing around the doorway to one room, the silver and gray adult laying on the floor just outside of it. Eliza recognized Orange immediately.
The guards stepped back, saluting the two newcomers in the room as they got closer, Jane hesitantly bumping shoulders with Eliza. The guards started moving away, Alenko standing just inside the recreation area while they assumed he was watching in the direction their other alien friend was. Eliza glanced at her sister questioningly.
“I’m going to go watch Blue. You think you can handle him?” She asked, emerald eyes glittering as she glanced at the seemingly asleep form that had yet to even twitch by the door. Seeing him asleep, breathing steadily except for the soft noise the muzzle made with each breath, was strange. Eliza was curious about the markings, and what they meant in his language. Eliza nodded to her sister
“I’ll be fine, go play with your new friend.” She huffed, watching Ashley walk alongside Jane to open the door. Jane glanced back at her before turning to greet Alenko. Eliza sighed and moved cautiously towards her charge. She had definitely lied when she said she wasn’t scared of him, his talons looked crazy sharp and his whole demeanor was aggressive and distrustful. But…asleep he seemed calm. She wouldn’t necessarily say he looked innocent, not like how the baby did, but he looked a few degrees gentler than he did when his silver eyes were glaring at everyone and everything around him. It was strange.
She knelt down beside his head, a few feet away but still within range. She glanced around her to make sure no one was looking before she cautiously reached out to lightly brush her fingers along the spikes atop his head from his forehead to the tips. His plates were smooth with a slightly rough texture, and when she brushed along the longest one again with a more confident touch, she heard him rumble before he slowly moved to tuck his head towards his chest into the touch. She slowly traced the purple diamond shape on his forehead, and found it fascinating how the canter of the shape was orange. She expected the paint to smudge at her touch, but nothing changed with it. Was it a tattoo then? She knew he couldn’t bite her with the muzzle still on, so she traced along the line up his nose and back to the diamond before she realized he was staring up at her, Silver eyes wide with alarm.
She could do nothing but scream as he lunged onto her, talons clawing at her sides.
***
Garrus huffed when they let him into a new room that was nice and warm. They had given him his body suit back, which was strange but no doubt from the influence of the Twin females he had encountered the day before. He wasn’t sure how he felt about them, how they had just given him a bed and turned the lights off and hadn’t even started yelling. They were different from the rest of the compound, calmer and less prone to violence. He didn’t understand them.
He had a guard. He’d been watching the male watching him for a few seconds before he sighed, letting his feet touch the synthetic grass curiously. It had been a while since he’d seen it, fake or real, and it wasn’t long before boredom and curiosity got him wandering around to fill the time. There was a water pit off to one side, that he avoided at all costs. Turians did not like to swim or be in water anymore than bathing. Valence was the water creature who would willingly let his ankles cover over with water, but even then the other would never get deep enough to risk drowning. It just wasn’t something Turians liked, even if a warm shower was nice, like the one they had just let him do independently. Their captors at least gave them time to clean themselves up and use the bathroom twice daily, but he’d not seen any sign of Valence or Baveti for at least a week at this point if he had his days mentally plotted correctly.
He continued to explore, some kind of strange building-like shape he assumed was designed to be climbed as a perch, and a few feet away a large metal thing with two swaying seats hanging from the top bar.
He had no clue what that was for so he wasn’t going to go near it.
He did glance up when he heard the seals on the glass door open, the glass was a one way mirror so while he couldn’t see the room he had just come from, he did see who entered. He let out a sharp Trill of noise when he recognized the bright red fringe from across the room, said female glancing up at the noise and grinning with teeth. He was surprised at how genuinely pleased she seemed to be that he had acknowledged her, so he made his way back over while still keeping several yard’s distance. She tilted her head at him before she started speaking to his guard, then focused her attention back on him. She started moving around the room herself, curious, and he tailed her cautiously. She wasn’t even concerned by the fact that he wasn’t shackled, that at any moment he could choose to attack her with no warning.
He knew then he was a bad turian.
She believed that he wouldn’t attack her. And that made him agree that he had no intention to do so either. If just to not hurt her trust in him. She paused by the pool, giving it a look he could only describe as longing before she turned to face him. He stiffened. She tilted her head and rolled her eyes before pointing a strange 5 fingered hand towards the water. He tilted his head at her after seeing what she had pointed at. She made a soft huff of air and chattered something before pointing at him, then to the water and stared at him pointedly. Was she telling him to get in? Or was she asking if he wanted to go in? She sighed before crouching down- wow, their knees were weird- and stuck her hand directly into the water without any hesitation. He chirped at her in alarm, stepping back a step and growling softly at the water when she pulled her hand back out and shook the water off.
He realized she was laughing at him seconds later, smiling again before flicking some water from her hand in his direction. He flinched away with a half/hearted glare at her, huffing his displeasure at her playful antics. She made that distinct laughing noise again, wiping her hand off so there was no water left before she kept moving around. The seals on the door opened again right as they got to whatever the weird metal thing was before a sharp scream echoed through the room. Red fringe immediately jerked towards the door as both guards ran through. She looked horrified before she ran herself which meant Garrus was about to be left completely alone in a room.
He was a very bad turian.
He followed them cautiously, slipping through the door just before it closed to see what had happened. Several of the creatures were yelling, Red Fringe shouting back before she turned wide water-filled eyes in his direction like she knew he had followed. She shoved the male guard to the side with a desperate look in Garrus’s direction, and his eyes flicked to the scene she had revealed to him. He was moving before he realized it.
He leapt onto Valence, shoving him to the floor and forcing him to release the Dark fringed female from where he had her pinned, the other Turian snarling back at him before his eyes widened when he recognized Garrus. Garrus immediately glanced at the other female who was bloodied but was standing in the way of the guards with guns as she shouted, red Fringe next to her looking decidedly pissed. Garrus glared down at the other turian, then to the muzzle covering his mouth and mandibles. This wasn’t the first time the other had acted out.
“What the hell did you just do!?” Garrus hissed at him, Valence giving a soft noise back. His eyes narrowed slightly.
She was on me first, touching my fringe. Valence rumbled out finally, realizing that he couldn’t talk but could still communicate via subvocals.
“So you attacked her? They are trying to help us, you idiot!” Garrus snarled back, subvocals sharp and displeased. “They gave me a bed, got us our body suits back, and you attacked her? Did you not think about what they would have to do because of this?”
Valence growled back before wincing, casting his eyes away from the other turian. So no, he hadn’t thought about it. He glanced up again to see Red Fringe watching them, her sibling-he still believed they had to be twins- on the other side of the room with several of the guards with her. Her clothing was shredded on both sides, three long slices matching the bloody marks he could barely see beneath the tears. She was paler than he knew she should be, but she was still fighting with them for some reason he couldn’t understand.
Red Fringe approached them cautiously, and the second Valence started to rumble a growl, Garrus growled back at him to shut him up. The female approached slowly, no doubt going to grab his collar and take him back to his room, so he was surprised when she gently touched his shoulder to get him to back up. He stared at her, cerulean meeting emerald, her giving him a soft smile and a slight nod that he recognized it for what it was. A thank you.
Dark Fringe was finally escorted away by two guards, and Red Fringe glanced back at him when she started to walk away, the guards hovering nervously but not moving to force him. Garrus glared down at Valence, who rumbled back submissively, before he got up and took a step back, offering a hand to help the other up. Valence huffed but accepted, going back into his decontamination room to put on his body suit. Garrus rumbled a warning at him before he moved towards Red Fringe confidently. She showed no fear of him, and none of the guards moved to stop him from approaching. Valence started to growl again, and Garrus whipped back around to firmly but carefully yank the other’s fringe enough to make him wince.
He didn’t growl the whole way back to their original rooms.
They both were surprised that their rooms were right beside each other’s, having always been separated before and thus never realizing how close they truly were to each other. Valence went into his room without a fight, only glancing back at Garrus with a sad note to his subvocals. Garrus watched Red Fringe enter his own room, and he noticed he now had a blanket on his makeshift bed. The female glanced around the room after he stepped in, the door closing behind him. She looked sad glancing around his room. He trilled at her softly. She glanced over at him and offered a small smile.
“I wish I could understand you.” Garrus said softly, watching her scrunch her brow at him as she heard whatever his voice sounded like to her. She sighed before pointing to herself and making a noise with specific notes. He tilted his head at her until she repeated the same noises. It sounded like a ‘shh’ at the start with a weird syllable in the middle and end. He tried to repeat it, and she made a soft noise of amusement at his attempt.
“Shhurd..?” He tried, her laugh making him huff at her. She made a new noise, that sounded like a shortened version of the first thing. Again with the ‘shh’ sound but it had a sharp pop at the end. He tilted his head, and she repeated it.
“Shh…ep..?” He tried, and her face lighting up told him he was close. “Shhep”
She chuckled and nodded at him, repeating what he just said again but with less enunciation than his. Then added the second noise. He tried really hard to pay attention.
“Shep…herd?” He tried, and she quickly nodded at him with a smile. Shepherd. Huh. He assumed it must have been her name since she pointed at herself and said it again. Shepherd. He couldn’t help but offer a slight grin back, careful to not show his own teeth. She headed towards the door, and flashed him a soft smile before closing the door. Seconds later the lights dimmed down, and he was left alone with his thoughts. He’d just learned an alien’s name. Huh.
***
Jane stood in the hallway for several minutes outside of Blue’s room before finally heading to the now familiar elevator where Ashley was waiting. She didn’t know what she expected to happen, but she learned so many new things about their alien captives in such a short time, she didn’t even register climbing into the elevator until it started moving. And Ashley was giving her a weird look.
First things first: they didn’t like water. Or…they didn’t like to get in water outside of getting clean. She supposed that was due to their mouths so they couldn’t swim due to the risk of drowning. Which made sense, they didn’t exactly look built to swim, and they preferred tropical temperatures on the warmer side with some humidity like in the recreational room. Although he may change his mind when she spends more time with him. He was curious about her, as she was to him.
Second: she knew he had no intention to attack her. Even Orange’s attack was accidental if Eliza’s yelling hadn’t been clear. She had been touching him and he woke up and was scared, lashing out for his own protection. And yet, Blue had followed her when he could have stayed, and when she glanced at him and let him see what was happening, he immediately separated the other alien from her sister. Why? And he had clearly spoken to the other, got it to realize what he had done was bad or something since Orange was more subdued than any of the other guards had even seen him be. Which meant the two of them clearly were either friends or family, since Orange listened to Blue when he was scolded. At least, that’s what their last interaction before they headed back had looked like.
And third: she had just taught Blue to say her name. Well, her last name. It had been purely impulsive, since he seemed to accept her thanks for keeping Orange from killing her sister, and that he had immediately stopped him. He seemed to understand that she was grateful for that. So when he watched and listened, then tried to repeat her, she had gotten excited. Then he caught on and fully said her name, she had wanted to spin at the huge breakthrough.
Only…she couldn’t tell anyone except Eliza. If the people here learned they could be taught their language, they would start interrogating them again, and possibly even pull her and Eliza from the program. And she didn’t dare risk that happening, not now when she had made such a huge step forwards. She genuinely felt like he was starting to trust her, as much as she trusted him at least. With some more work, she could even teach him to say a few other words as well, small things to start.
Ashley led her to the infirmary, where she could already hear Eliza’s complaints through the door. The infirmary was a separate building than the dorms and where the aliens were, and of course when the doors opened Eliza was sitting on a medical bench with her arms crossed and shirtless while an older lady was trying to treat the deep marks with a special healing goop that was new in the military market. Stuff acted like super glue but made some of the worse wounds heal up in a few days instead of a few months. She perked up when she saw Jane.
“Hey! Is he okay? They didn’t do anything to him did they?” She immediately asked much to Ashley’s shock.
“You got attacked by him and you’re asking is HE is okay?” Ashley questioned, giving Jane a look. She just sighed.
“Orange is fine, Blue got him chastised and he was fine the rest of the time. Didn’t even need guards to drug him to get him back to his room. Thanks for putting him a cot in, by the way.” Jane answered before turning to Ashley who just nodded at her. “So, what’s the damage?”
“She is lucky.” The doctor answered before Eliza could, her sister huffing with a glare. “He clawed her up good, but if he intended to kill her he wouldn’t have done it like this. These marks were purely reaction, as they weren’t near as deep as a true attack would have been. Compared to something with similar talon length, a Cougar would have done more damage, as these would be like a house cat in comparison.”
“If they are house cats I don’t think I want to see their Cougar version.” Ashley mumbled. Jane couldn’t hold back the snort of laughter. Something more vicious that what they were already capable of? Yeah, she could agree.
“Either way, her wounds will start to heal in a few hours, and hopefully be fine in a few days. No interactions with the aliens except for the baby, and no hard physical activity for at least a day. Come back here before you go see the adults so I can make sure nothing will be reopened.” The doctor demanded, and Eliza sighed with a nod.
“Not even with Blue? He’s calmer.”
“Neither of them. Baby only.” The doctor stated and Eliza relented to being stuck in their apartment for the next 24 hours at least. Jane knew she was already planning to go see the baby anyways, and she wouldn’t put it past her sister to sneak and see Orange anyways. Today was the one day they had planned to sleep in late and it ended up as the reverse. Eliza stood up with a wince as soon as she was bandaged up, slipping on a new hoodie the doctor offered her so that they could burn her ruined clothes. Ashley let them walk back to their dorm by themselves, and Jane was grateful for the slight bit of privacy.
As soon as they were inside and both changed into something more comfortable, Jane sighed before sitting on the couch with her head in her hands.
“Jane? You okay?” Eliza asked, moving to carefully sit down next to her. Jane laughed a big hysterically.
“You know, watched my sister get attacked by one alien and taught the other how to say my name. Sure, I’m okay.” She managed, and Eliza wrapped her arms around her.
“I’m okay, see! If Orange wanted to hurt me he could have done a lot worse. And…you taught Blue English?” Eliza said soothingly, curious about what Jane meant.
“It…it’s just kind of happened. He got Orange off of you and it was impulse that I try to teach him to say our last name. It took a few tries but he was able to say it. He wanted to learn it.” Jane said, leaning into her sister carefully. Eliza hummed back at her for a few moments.
“And we can’t tell anyone. We can’t risk them being taken from us…” Eliza observed, and Jane noises in relief. Eliza just tightened her grip. “Don’t worry. We can sneak them a few new words. Tomorrow you can go play with Blue, and I’m going to go play with the baby who we still haven’t named and maybe sneak him out to see Blue.”
“Eliza.” Jane scolded, sitting back up to glare at her.
“It’s just the baby! And if we let them interact then technically I’m just doing what I’m allowed to do while you do your job.” Eliza huffed back, Jane snickering at her.
“You are gonna get us in trouble.” Jane said back, moving to stand up. “Alright, now to file paperwork for a few hours and then go up to requisitions to get you need clothes since Orange decided to destroy yours. You okay here?”
Eliza just flailed her hand in the air at her, already caught up reading something from their datapad. Jane did indeed go to request new clothing for both of them, as well as some other basic supplies that they needed since they couldn’t use their ship at current, before she paused walking down the hallway that led to where they kept the Aliens’ things. Without hesitation, Jane snuck inside to glance around. When she spotted the two things she had been looking for, she snagged them up from the bottom of the discard bin and shoved them in her bra before sneaking back out and back to the apartments. She wasn’t going to tell Eliza yet, not till she could go with her to see Blue again. But she had an idea.
But would it work?
Chapter 5: Swing-sets and Causing Trouble
Notes:
Whew! This one took a while! As stated there is no set update schedule, as I’m working on 3 stories at the same time 😅
I like to torture myself clearly.
Anyways, Jane Shepherd, what the hell have you done!? Hope you enjoy and THANK YOU to everyone who had left a comment or Kudos, it makes me so happy to see people are enjoying what I write! Feel free to comment anything, it always makes my day to respond!
Chapter Text
Jane was up before her sister for once, since Eliza was in fact still wounded. As much as her twin liked to argue she was fine and fit for duty, her promptly passing out and sleeping for 14 hours straight was proof of how exhausted she truly was. And of course with the doctor’s orders to sleep and rest and not do a damn thing, it wasn’t like she was going anywhere that required her to be awake. It was probably the longest she had slept since they joined the alliance. They were lucky to get five hours sleep on a good day, now they had the free time to go see their charges anytime after 9am and didn’t have a specific time required with them.
Jane had a plan today with Blue, and she sent the message to Ashley to get the alien to the recreational room before she snagged a box of cereal they had brought from their ship, shook it in a bowl and then slunk back to her bedroom to find a decent looking bathing suit to put on. She ended up with just a dark once-piece, that she slid on over her usual undergarments and covered by sweatpants and her N7 Hoodie she was so fond of. She crunched absentmindedly on the dry cereal as he moved around, peeking back into Eliza’s room to leave her a glass of water on her nightstand before finally throwing on socks and her boots. She took a deep breath, snatched up the two things she had snagged from the holding room-once again stuffing them in her shirt only this time into a pocket sewn into the inside of her hoodie- before sliding out the door. Kaiden met her in the lobby, grinning and waving at her excitedly.
“Commander! Ashley wanted me to inform you that they got your request filled, and that the supplies you ordered should be delivered here in the lobby within the hour.” Kaiden chattered away, Jane mourning the fact she had forgotten to stick the rest of her cereal into a bag to bring with her to snack on. Instead, she snuck over to the dorm’s kitten area and snagged some bacon- actual bacon!! Sure it was frozen but bacon!!- before continuing on after the Lieutenant who was watching her with amusement. A girl had to eat!
“Good, does that include what I sent in yesterday as well? Or just the first round?” Jane asked, throwing away the paper her snack had been in as they entered into the main building. Kaiden checked his multi-tool at her question and tapped away on it for a few seconds.
“Looks like most of it is already here, the first few things that you requested. As for the clothes and such, they should be here within a few hours, but I’m not sure. Most of that stuff is delivered pretty quickly. I can drop it off at the apartment for you.” Kaiden offered, Jane nodding at him in agreement as she stepped into the elevator. She chuckled softly at the thought of Eliza opening the door only to see Alenko’s face holding their stuff. Her sister would probably kill her for it later.
Ashley wasn’t at the exit to the elevator, but she didn’t expect her to be since she already knew Blue was where she wanted him at. Sure enough she could see Ashley standing inside the glass window, Blue hovering a few feet away looking confused. He probably wasn’t brought here very often, and was trying to figure out why they had once again brought him. She smiled softly as she opened the door. The second he saw her he let out a sharp trill noise that she assumed either meant excitement or recognition. Ashley offered her a smile.
“I got it from here. Eliza should be down in a while to go visit with the baby.” Jane ordered casually, Ashley giving her a nod before stepping out. Blue gave another trill as he approached, cerulean eyes looking at the door then at her and back in what looked like concern. Surely not at the guard leaving? He huffed out a breath before pointing at her stomach, then to the door, eyeing her questioningly.
He was asking about her sister?”
“She’s okay.” Jane said softly, nodding with a smile to him that she hoped he could understand. He seemed to relax a bit, so she wondered if it was her face that gave him the answer or her soft voice. He seemed more relaxed, moving back around the room, her moving after him. He seemed to be avoiding the swing set, which made sense since she didn’t really think he could swing unless he was careful about it, but he paced near the climbing stand for several seconds before leaning against it to watch her. She snickered at him before moving to the swing set, ignoring his curious noise he made as he moved to follow. Without hesitation she sat down in one of the swings and stepped back to swing forwards, Blue jumping back a few inches in surprise before he tilted his head at her and watched her swing with a fascination that she only ever saw on a few people when dealing with particularly fancy rifles. He was military after all, maybe that fancy blue sniper in the hold was his? Not that she could ask him or bring it to him.
He seemed a lot more comfortable with the swings once he had thoroughly examined them, and she couldn’t help but wonder if they didn’t have anything like this for their children. Sure her and Eliza grew up with them but thinking about any child never having experienced a swing set made her kind of sad. Maybe they would have to bring the baby in here at some point, just to show it how fun they could be. Although knowing Eliza and her tendencies towards trouble it wouldn’t be long before she snuck the baby out anyways.
Blue watched her curiously, moving towards the other swing and nudging it with a three-fingered hand curiously, watching as Jane continued swinging while smiling at him.
“It’s safe, if you want to try.” She said softly, regardless of if he could understand her or not. She distinctly remembered what she had down her shirt seconds later, but was going to wait for now. Blue tilted his head, eyes flicking to hers curiously before he turned and very slowly sat down on the swing, using how she was positioned to try and mimic her. He gave a hesitant kick backwards and kept his feet up to swing gently, if awkwardly. He snorted when Jane laughed, giving her what she could describe as a playful glare. He swung a bit more bravely after that, huffing every few minutes. She wasn’t sure he enjoyed it necessarily but he kept doing it so he must not hate it either. Jane’s wrist beeped, catching his attention immediately as he watched her stop swinging to pull up the tiny screen to tap away on it in response to her sister complaining about Kaiden dropping things off, followed by her informing that she was going to play with the baby. He was still staring at it once she turned it off, once again with that expression only someone in the military would have when trying to plan something, before he looked to his own wrist and sighed in defeat. Jane took a deep breath. Here goes.
She cautiously reached into her shirt, watching his eyes open back up to give her a weird look, before his eyes widened when he realized what she was holding. He froze, eyes flicking from hers to her hand and the two devices she was holding out to him nervously. This could backfire on them, especially if he used it to call for help, but…she felt the risk necessary if just to try and get them to communicate.
“Shep-herd?” He said finally, rasping through the word nervously. She gave him a soft smile as he hesitantly reached out and took one, assuming that was the one that belonged to him. With another unsure look, he snapped it onto his wrist and turned it on, it wrapping around his hand and forearm, tapping away before hers chirped with an alert. She glanced at him before turning hers on, watching as it alerted to something trying to hack it. He didn’t move, waiting to see what her reaction was, and with a deep breath she disregarded the message- allowing him access to continue hacking into her own tool. It chirped with someone else, some kind of forced update program that absolutely looked illegal from her standards but probably normal to him. He offered her a sort of smile and a soft trill once the program loaded, nothing happening. She huffed at him.
“So…what did you do?” She asked him, head tilted as she checked her tool for anything weird, but nothing was messed with except for whatever program he had just installed. He tilted his head before he jumped, remembering something, and opened his tool to type on it for several moments, hers chirping back. She glanced down and was surprised to find a message. She couldn’t understand it, aside from a few letters before she realized what he had done. He had installed a translator! Which meant…
“You need me to talk!” She said with a smile, and he tilted his head until she pointed at her wrist then to her mouth at which he understood and nodded. She laughed softly. “I guess I can do that.”
***
Garrus hadn’t expected a lot of things to happen when the guards ushered him out of his cell and back into the weird fake grass room with the water and climbing thing and weird metal contraption he still wasn’t sure he knew what it was. But he wasn’t in there long before Red-Fringe- Shepherd, he reminded himself- walked in with the female guard from before. He trilled at her before he could stop himself, but by her smile he assumed she was glad he had made the noise. He made another lower trill as he approached once her guard was gone, leaving the two of them alone once again.
He still couldn’t believe that she was willing to be alone like this with him. He glanced at the door, then back at her questioningly, then tilted his head and motioned to her stomach. He watched the realization on her face, so much more expressive that he was used too. She gave him a soft smile, and said something that sounded calm so he relaxed a bit hoping that the other female was okay. He still couldn’t believe Valence had done that, accident or not. He stepped back to continue exploring the room, watching as she went straight to the metal thing he had been avoiding, leaning against the wooden climbing tower to watch as she walked up to it and bravely sat down on of the hanging parts and took a few steps back before hopping and letting her legs straighten as she swung forwards. Garrus couldn’t help but flinch slightly in surprise before slinking closer to watch her swing.
She seemed amused by his surprise, and he huffed at her as he watched how she moved her legs to keep the momentum up, gentle hops at the back of each swing. After a few minutes he approached the other one, her keeping an eye on him as he sat down on it carefully, adjusting until he was somewhat sure he wasn’t going to fall. She tried to mimic her movement, lifting his legs as he swung forwards, and managing to push off at each backswing. She laughed at him, him shooting her a playful glare back before he got the hang of the weird swinging contraption. Was this for fun? Did all of them have these? They had something similar for children but he’d never been on one as an adult, they just weren’t made for anyone over a few years old.
What did catch his attention was her omni-tool going off. It was smaller, much less advanced than his own but it served the same purpose it seemed, her typing away on it to whoever had messaged her or caused it to go off. She caught him looking even when it was powered off, and took what he assumed was a nervous breath. He froze his swinging to watch her reach into her clothes-why!? Why do these aliens hide things in their clothes like this!?- and pull out…no. His eyes widened when he realized she was holding his own and Valence’s Omni-tools. Did she know what they were?
“Shep-herd?” He tried, confused as to why she had them, why she was showing him she had them. She offered them both to him, and he hesitantly took his and slid it on his wrist and turned it on. For a brief moment he realized he could contact his people, he could send out a distress beacon….instead he brought up a hacking program and attached it to hers which made her own beep. He kept typing before pausing, waiting for her reaction. She glanced at him before bringing hers online, and he watched her bypass the alert that would have attempted to lock him out. He quickly kept typing, loading the translator program they used on the citadel and force installing it on her primitive tool. She watched her own screen and glanced at him repeatedly, clearly interested in what he was doing.
He’d probably have to explain that later. If this worked that is.
“Done.” He said softly, watching her glance at him as the program finished installing. She stared at him questioningly as he smiled as best he could at her without showing his teeth. His mandibles twitched with amusement when she said something back in her own language. He scanned through her tool in confusion before it hit him she wouldn’t have a clue what it was for, jumping slightly before he quickly sent her tool a message, it’s chirp seconds later. She glanced at him then at it, and he knew it would send in his language to her, but it was worth a try to see if she recognized the translator program herself. Which she did because she made an excited chirp herself that he tilted his head at trying to understand her tone of voice. She smiled back at him with teeth before pointing at her tool, then her mouth.
Me nodded at her expectantly.
The only way the translator would learn her language was for her to talk, and she did for several minutes as she walked around. He wished he knew what she was saying since she looked excited about it as she moved towards the water pool and said something about it. She continued to speak in her weird voice, talking about something he vaguely assumed was a weapon since she made aiming motions and shooting sounds, before pointing at her translator program on her wrist to a spot just behind her ear. He realized what it was almost immediately since Turians had them too. It made it easier for different dialects to understand each other, and for the other species to talk normally while still holding a conversation both sides understood. Which of course, he would be able to do with her once this loaded. And since he was the only one with her side adjusting, he’d be able to talk to her and understand her and be the only one to do so, while she would probably be able to understand all Turians.
He really hoped he wasn’t making a huge mistake with this, it was untellibg what both of their sides would do if they found out this information was traded.
…..and my dad was the one who really taught us to swim, but he taught us to shoot too, so it’s natural that we both became close with him after our mom died. I mean he’s gone too now, but he’d have been so impressed by all this. I wonder what your markings mean? Yours and Orange’s are different…” it took him a moment to realize that was HER voice he was hearing, and turned his head sharply to watch her. She jumped when he jerked towards her. “What?”
“You seriously are curious about our markings?” He asked cautiously, watching her expression fall into one of shock, mouth open and eyes wide. She blinked a few times before shaking herself enough to compose her expression into something a bit more nervous.
“Holy shit. I guess it uh, worked then. Woah… and uh, yeah. Why wouldn’t I be curious about your markings?” She asked, still sounding nervous and excited at the same time. It was weird to hear her voice in a way he could understand that was so different from another Turian’s.
“I just was expecting you to say almost anything else. But if you’re curious, they are clan markings. How we identify our direct family. Mine are different from Valence’s, and would be from any other Turian’s.” He answered, watching her eyes widen again as he talked. Huh. She seemed fascinated by his voice.
“That’s pretty neat, we don’t have anything like that. Wait, Valence? Is that Orange, er, the other…Turian? You said? You’re a turian?” She stated, seeming more and more relaxed the more they went on. He really should have been more caref about what he said, but talking about his markings would hardly matter in the scheme of things.
“Yea, we are Turians. What are you?” He asked back, circling her once. She chuckled at his own curiosity.
“We are humans. I’m Jane. Jane Shepherd.” She said, and he tilted his head as he heard that word for the first time as it was meant to be said. He was close he supposed, it was much easier to say now.
“Shepherd. Huh. Garrus. Garrus Vakarian.” He commented with a slight smile. “Okay I have to ask, why is your fringe red? Is that like, a mating thing? Or just a color pattern?”
She laughed softly, smiling back. She didn’t even seem scared of him!
“Oh, my hair! Well, red isn’t really common, and it’s more for appearance than anything. My mom was a dark ginger, and my dad had black hair, and genetics decided that I would get this bright red and my twin sister get black.”
“So…dark-fringe,er, hair, was your sister? I thought you looked alike.” He observed. She nodded at him.
“Yes. Twins at birth, but we have different appearances. We look the same in the face but some features vary. Do Turians have twins?” She asked, sitting down at the edge of the pool. He slowly mimicked her in a position that was comfortable. Well, it still wasn’t comfortable, but he didn’t want to stand while she sat
“Rarely. Normally our siblings are a few months apart. There have been some, but my family hasn’t had any. My sister is a year younger than me. Sometimes if you have the right genetics you can have twins but normally one doesn’t survive birth or it ends up with an abnormality.” He explained. She looked a bit sad.
“Yeah it’s the same for us. Humans don’t typically have twins. Our mom got very sick when we were born. She died when we were 5.” Jane stared at the floor as she admitted that, morning ti watch the water before she seemed to have an idea. Or a question.
He was very fascinated by the bits of gold in her emerald eyes.
“Do Turians like water?”
“Not usually.” He said back, suspicious as she stripped off her clothes into some kind of skin tight thing that covered her upper body but not her legs. She glanced over her body curiously, still finding it weird and smooth compared to most of the other races he had seen. He trilled in alarm when she took her boots off and stepped in the water and kept going deeper. He took a step after her worriedly. “Uh, what are you doing?”
“Swimming. I’ve not been able to swim in a few years since I was redeployed.” She said back as if that explained everything. It absolutely did not her wanted to shout.
“Wait, humans like water? Swimming? Why?” He asked nervously, pacing around the top of the pool as she went to the side that looked deeper. She smiled up at him, probably picking up the discomfort in his voice. They didn’t hear subvocals, he was grateful for that.
“It’s just an activity for us. If we are hurt it gives us an activity we can sometimes do to strengthen bones and muscle. It’s just for fun. Turians don’t do that?”
“Well, sure, but Turians and water don’t exactly mix.” He huffed, pointing at his mouth. Jane seemed to realize what he meant as she came to the edge of the pool and crossed her arms over the edge to sit there. He caught himself staring at her hair in surprise over the fact that it was darker when wet. It was very strange. Humans were strange.
“Sorry, I didn’t really think about that. Turians probably don’t swim cause it’s easy to drown…” she observed and he nodded. He was about to respond when the door opened to show that same female guard that always seemed to be around. She froze when she spotted him over top of her and her in the pool.
“Uh, Jane? You okay?”
“Yeah I’m fine, I was just swimming while he panicked over the fact I was in the water. I don’t think they like water that much at all.” Jane said, Garrus trying really hard not to thin about the fact that he could understand all humans. So it worked both ways. He could understand her people, and her his. But only the two of them could actually understand each other. He took off the Omni-tool as subtly as he could and dropped it on Jane’s clothes, pretending to nudge it with his food to cover it up. He didn’t want to know what the guts would do to either of them if she spotted it, and they didn’t need to to talk anyways.
“Well it’s been almost 2 hours, I wanted to check in before taking him back. They got some food later out for them both and are waiting for him to go back before they put his food in his room.” The guard said after a moment. Jane sighed before easily lifting herself out of the pool using just the edge and her own strength. Damn. He watched her, impressed, but was careful not to speak for fear or her reaction.
“Okay, I need to check in with Eliza anyways. She with the baby?” Jane asked. Garrus almost jumped when he heard her say that. So Baveti was okay!? He was here too? If Jane’s sister was with him then Garrus knew he was safe, but knowing for a fact the young turian was alive lifted a massive weight off his shoulders.”
“Yes. Any orders for tomorrow?”
“No, Eliza is taking the day off to go back to the doctor again. But if all gets cleared, I want Orange and Blue brought in here together next time I make plans and Eliza is with me.” Jane ordered, her voice straight military. Garrus tried really hard not to snap to attention at her tone. He knew it! They were also military! Damnit he was learning a lot!
“See it as done. You head back, I’ll take him back to his room.”
“Thanks Ash. Gimme a few, I’ll open the door when we’re ready.” Jane said, the guard-Ash? Was that her name?- stepping out as Jane slid on her dry clothes and tucked his Omni-tool safely into her jacket. She gave him a sad smile.
“Sorry. Don’t want to push our luck. Try not to get in trouble Garrus.” She said as she started to walk away. He took a few steps towards her quickly.
“Shepherd!” She paused and turned back to him, worried. He shrunk a bit in embarrassment. “Baveti. That’s the baby Turian.”
Her smile and nod made him feel much better about him giving her that last bit of information before she was forced to step out. Ash came back in and he moved to follow her orders. He despised the collar, but she didn’t cuff him so that was a small improvement at least. The guard clearly didn’t like him since she didn’t say a damn word the whole walk back. She opened his door, him obediently entering it and as expected she closed and locked it behind him.
“Better hope this doesn’t come back to bite you in the ass, Vakarian.” He mumbled to himself as he sat down on his cot, the lights dimming.
***
Eiza rolled over only to wince as the movement pull at her side. She gave a frustrated noise before cracking one eye open to peek at her clock. Oh. 1:15pm. Oops. Well she hasn’t intended to sleep that long but okay. She had just gotten up, when someone knocked on the door, so she threw on a robe and moved to the main door to open it.
And was greeted with Alenko’s dumb face. Ugh.
“Got your supplies. Three boxes for you and Jane.” He said, smiling at her and scanning over her in clear interest. Gross. No way in hell.
“Thanks, I got it from here.” She said in dismissal, taking the box from his hands and spinning on her heel immediately so as not to have to deal with him any longer than absolutely necessary. Thankfully he took the hint and left the other two boxes just inside the door for Eliza to move herself, and once all three were safely on the table, she closed the door and moved to her bathroom to shower after sending a message to Jane about Kaiden. She quickly washed her hair in her shampoo- she was so grateful they let her keep her vanilla stuff- and cleaned up before stepping out and toweling off and finding a clean pair of black pants and dark gray shirt. She threw on her hoodie as well as she brushed her hair and made for the boxes to see if they things Jane had ordered for the baby had come in.
Most of it had. Which meant she picked up her items into a backpack along with her own stuff and stepped out of their dorm excitedly. She had checked the scratches from Orange, finding the doctor’s work very effective and had left them as bright pink marks right now that only hurt when she turned funny or touched them. Hopefully in another day they would just be scars and she would be able to go in with Orange again. She wondered if the alien was thinking about if he had killed her or not, he had been pretty scared of her when it happened, which was her own fault for being so close to him with him half drugged.
And it probably didn’t help that her jacket smelled like the baby either, if he had even noticed with everything that had happened. The scent of blood often overruled everything in the room anyways. Ashley waved at her as she entered the elevator and clicked the button down to the correct floor, pausing to go into Orange’s observation room for a few moments long enough to see the alien curled into a corner on his cot fast asleep. She smirked slightly before she resumed her path to the baby’s room.
Immediately upon entering, she got hissed at by the baby as it bolted back to it safely blanket against the far wall, pinkish eyes focused on her for several moments before it sniffed the air, pupils widening with curiosity. Eliza chuckled softly as she dug out a pack of unseasoned jerky she had ordered in for herself, unsurprised that it could smell the opened pack. She sat down on the floor in her previous spot, watching the baby as it cautiously came up to her feet again and sat a few feet away from her. With a slow hand, she offered a piece of the treat to it, it’s eyes narrowing with a soft little grown before he came just close enough to reach for it with a tiny hand. He was surprisingly gentle as he took it, immediately sticking one end in his mouth to chew on it happily.
“Okay, baby likes beef jerky. Good to know I can bribe you with snacks.” Eliza said, watchin his eyes flick to her face curiously with a tilted head. He was still chewing on his treat when she dug out a bigger notebook of paper and a box of colored crayons. She wasn’t sure if his species was like hers in the fact they liked to draw and doodle on everything, but he had seemed curious about her drawing so she had chosen to give it a try. The baby was a little scared of it, growling lowly and scooting away before she took a crayon- pink, ugh- and started drawing random lines on the paper as it left the colored marks behind. Immediately the baby was interested and came up close to her to watch. After a few minutes and a few different colors, she sat the pad on the floor and let the crayons roll around on top of it. The baby immediately snatched up one of the wax crayons and sniffed it curiously before finding a way to hold it comfortably before trying to draw a line on the paper.
He chirped triumphantly when it did indeed leave a mark, trying again and again until the whol box of crayons was strewn across the floor. But the most interesting thing was how close he was to Eliza, just a few inches away and definitely close enough to grab or touch. Yet the baby didn’t seem concerned with that fact. His head popped up when she crinkled her jerky bag, staring at her expectantly. She chuckled and offered another piece, fully expecting him to grab it again, so she was surprised when he chose to snatch it with his mouth instead, turning to bump his tiny head against her leg before continuing to draw and enjoy his snack. Eliza took a few moments to recalibrate her brain after that, snagging her notepad and writing down notes.
Maybe babies ate directly from their parent’s hands? Or from those they trusted anyways. He seemed overly fascinated with the fact he could draw with colors, so maybe he hadn’t had them before? What did baby aliens like him play with then? And why did he bump his head against her leg now whenever she handed him a stray crayon or another treat? Was that how babies said ‘thank you?’
She really had no clue. The only ones that would were the two adults, and she couldn’t exactly ask them either. The baby suddenly stopped and yawned, tiny mandibles flexing beige his jaw snapped shut with a little head shake and a quick lick at his mouth plates. He turned his head to look at Eliza, clearly sleepy, before trilling softly at her. She tilted her head and got a tilt in response before he clambered over to his blanket and stared at her expectantly. When she didn’t move, he made a sad noise and stuck the blanket in his mouth and came back over to her, setting it down at her side where his crayons and notepad were and curling up with it so he was in a little cocoon. She once again wondered how the adults carried their young.
Very slowly she reached a hand towards the tiny head poking out of the blanket, little eyes watching her before a tiny thre-fingered hand moved to grab at it, and she let him hold onto her fingers as he looked at it in a sleepy fascination. He glanced at her face before casually bumping her hand with his forehead and letting her go again.
If she hadn’t been military she was pretty sure she would have just absolutely died at how damn cute that was. Maybe head bumping was an affection thing? That’s the only thing she could think of that made sense.
She had sat with the baby for a while before the door slowly opened, the baby trilling sharply in question as Jane’s face appeared and peeked in. Eliza stood up, the baby watching, as Jane came in, and without explaining Eliza gently bumped her forehead to her sisters and watched the baby for a reaction. Jane looked very confused but was patiently waiting with a raised eyebrow as the baby glanced between them before chirping and scrambling up with his blanket clunched in his hands. He cautiously approached them before Eliza reached out a hand to him hesitantly, the baby eyeing it once again before moving close enough to stand up a little bit more on his toes to brush the top of his head against the palm of her hand.
“So…the head bump was affection or something?” Jane asked quietly, letting the baby glance over her while still staying close to Eliza.
“Something like that. He just started randomly doing it when I gave him things.”
“Baveti.”
Eliza blinked at her sister, startled at the sudden interruption to the end of her sentence.
“Huh?”
“His name. It’s uh, Baveti.” Jane said nervously. Eliza gave her a weird look.
“And how would you know that?”
“I may have done something incredibly stupid that payed off in the end. And Blue? His name is Garrus. Orange is actually named Valence.” Jane said softly, unsure but also excited. Eliza stared at her like she was nuts.
“Okay wait, how do you know their actual names? It’s not like we can spe-“ Eliza suddenly cut off when Jane pulled the two tools that clearly weren’t theirs or any human’s out of her jacket. Had Jane actually taken those and gave them to one of them!? “Jane. What the hell did you do?”
“Blue is, er Garrus, he’s very polite and curious. He asked about you too before I gave him his multi-tool and instead of calling ir anything he installed a program on mine by hacking it. He didn’t mess with anything and obviously he let me have it back, but he gave me a translator Eliza. I can understand him and he can understand me. Which means I can understand his people and he can now understand mine, just anyone without the program can’t understand each other. Valence wouldn’t be able to understand me but I could him.”
“And blue can understand me but not him. Okay, are you running a fever or something?” Eliza asked, placing a hand on her sister’s forehead only to get it slapped away with a glare.
“Looks it’s crazy, it’s reckless, but holy shit the things I learned today. They are Turians, that’s what they’re called, he told me their names, he talked about his family. This is HUGE Eliza!”
“Jane….you can’t tell our higher ups this. If they find out…”
“I know.” Jane sighed, glancing at the baby who was watching them with interest. “I don’t want to tell them. They would take us off the program and probably kill them, and I don’t want that. They are more human than just appearances.”
“So what do we do now?” Eliza asked, digging in the almost empty jerky pack to offer a small piece to the baby, who once again snatched it with his mouth. Jane watched with a fond smile.
“Now, we do what you wanted. Blue- Garrus- is going back to the rec. room again tomorrow. And I want you to bring Baveti to meet him. We already have clearance to move him, I want to see what happens, what Garrus will say. And then maybe we can work with your boy once you get cleared by the doctor tomorrow morning.” Jane said confidently. Eliza watched the baby move away to start doodling again. A thirty minute nap must have been enough for an energy boost then.
“Okay.” Eliza said simply, packing up her stuff. The baby- Turian? Baveti?- watched her with a sad look on its face, chirping at her in distress before crouching down to see what was wrong. She startled when he ran up to gently thunk their foreheads together before he ran to the opposite corner to bundle up and watch them leave.
Jane didn’t say anything when Eliza had a tear run down her face as they walked down the hallway. She too felt that sorrow of their lost family, and said nothing when her sister wiped it away aggressively.
They had to be very careful from now on. The only bonus was that she could replace the tools back in the hold and not get caught with them since her and Garrus had the translator chips that automatically updated. Now to figure out what the hell they were going to do next.
Chapter 6: Breaking the Rules, Again
Notes:
Another chapter, woo! I really shouldn’t be writing 4 stories at once but oh well!
Thanks for reading and thanks for the kudos! Your support keeps me writing! Feel free to comment as well!
Enjoy!
Chapter Text
“I wonder if Baby Turians like to be held close to their parents?” Eliza wondered aloud, Jane peeking over the counter from where she had been digging around in the lower cabinets for a skillet. Jane stood up after a moment to lean on the counter, not saying anything yet but watching her sister scribble something down in her notebook she liked to keep. “Like, Baveti bundles himself up into a little cocoon with his blanket, so it would make sense that the adults would keep them very close in a similar way since it brings the baby comfort.”
“Why, are you wanting to take Baveti out of his room?” Jane finally asked, Eliza tilting her head back to look in her sister’s general direction.
“Maybe. I have to get cleared by the doctor first, but I think Baveti would let me pick him up. He learned to trust very quickly with me, probably cause babies are just more accepting of weird shit.” Eliza observed, glancing back down to her book. Jane could see that her sister had been drawing again as well, little sketches of Valence and Baveti both. It was still weird that they actually had names now, names they could actually say instead of just “blue” or “orange” or even just “baby”. Of Course they had to keep their names to themselves, as well as the fact they knew what their species was called. If even a little information slipped that they could communicate with them, then it would be dangerous to both parties. Jane would be discharged immediately as an endangerment to the military, Eliza would likely lose her rank by association, and it was Untelling what they would do to Garrus, who had never hurt them the whole time he had been captured.
For an alien species that was supposed to be aggressive, he really was an anomaly.
As if Ashley knew what she was thinking, her tool started that damned incessant chirping that signaled a call, Elise sitting up and spinning around to lean over the back of the couch to watch.
“Jane.” She answered absently, finally finding the pan she wanted and setting it on their stove.
“Commander. Just wanted to let you know that they got both the adults due to the Rec room within the hour if you both want to be there to spend some additional time with them. Orange was fighting a little bit but y’all’s theory about them being companions of a sort is showing true. Blue even growled at him this time” Ashley said, huffing slightly. “Annnd now Blue is giving me a dirty look. What did I do to you, asshole?”
Eliza slapped a hand over her mouth, and that almost sent Jane into laughter with her. Sure Ashley’s comment was amusing, but watching her sister who wasn’t supposed to be listening in basically slap herself to stay quiet absolutely was enough to crack her composure.
“Yeah, we were fixing to eat breakfast before we went to visit Dr. Morgan. Just leave them in the recreation room for us.” Jane answered finally, glaring playfully at Eliza who was just grinning at her knowingly.
“Alright, I’ll let them know.” Ashley said, and in the background she heard that strange dual toned voice clearly say her name, followed by Ashley’s scoff. “Why is he so damn chattery today?”
“Seen you soon, Ash.” Jane said, quickly ending the call before leaning against the counter. Eliza was watching her with concern.
“You heard him didn’t you? Him chattering?” Eliza asked softly, standing up when Jane could only nod back. Jane watched her sister approach, nudging her sister out of the way before digging out some frozen bacon-it was better than nothing- and some eggs from the little farm they had going here, turning the stove on and cracking them.
“Well, let’s rush through breakfast and get down there. I wanna know what Blue, er, Garrus has to say.”
And they did. Breakfast only took twenty odd min to be done and eaten, and a slightly rushed walk to the infirmary was their next goal. Dr. Morgan stared at them as they entered, Eliza stripping her dark navy uniform T-shirt over her head as she walked, leaving her in just a bra and her navy combat pants. Both of them had gone with their work uniforms, unintentionally at first before they chuckled and went with it.
“Everything looks clear, just may be a little sore for another day or so. Clear to be with the adults which I know was your plan already, Alenko made it known to me you’d be stopping by.”
“Course he did.” Eliza grumbled, ducking her head slightly at the doctor’s sharp look. The older lady may be small but she was damn scary when she glared like that.
“Anyways, you are good to go. Try not to get scratched again.” The doctor warned, Eliza giving her a nervous nod before hopping off the medical cot and putting her shirt back on. The two of them walked side by side to the elevator, Eliza humming thoughtfully.
“So…Garrus. He can understand humans?” Eliza asked, but it sounded like a statement so Jane waited patiently for her sister to continue. “And you. You can understand Turians.”
“Yes.” Jane said simply. Eliza chuckled at her when the elevator door opened.
“You’re still crazy.”
“Thanks for the support.” Jane huffed sarcastically. She knew her sister meant no offense, and she agreed. It WAS crazy. But this was important for them. Neither side would give anything away of course, but simply talking? Was that really such a crime? She was curious about them and Garrus seemed curious right back. All the others she had encountered had wanted to kill her, Valence included at first. And while she could upload the program to her sister, she felt protective. If her sister didn’t have the same ability then she could still be okay if they discovered what Jane had done.
Ashley saluted them, Eliza falling back and letting her sister lead the way past the shower. Jane saw the way her sister eyed the spot Valence had attacked her at before focusing on the door again. She didn’t notice how close Garrus was in the room, as if waiting, until she tapped in the command and entered the faux grass room and he trilled at her immediately.
Jane noticed two things at once: one, that Orange- Valence- was across the room looking very uncomfortable and nervous; Two being that Garrus was staring at Eliza with an expression she could only describe as shocked. His blue eyes flicked to hers a second later, taking a polite step back so the other new human in the room didn’t feel cornered. Jane saw his head tilt.
“Told you she was okay.” Jane said simply, Garrus’s head turning to her with a flutter of mandibles as they flexed in what she assumed was amusement or a smile. Eliza turned her head to her sister, then back to the Turian.
“You did.” He replied, Jane smirking at him when he shuffled. It was weird all around she knew. “Does she…?”
“Yeah. I told her. Did you tell him?” Jane asked right back, watching Valence’s dark silver eyes flicker between them. He seemed just as uncomfortable as Eliza did about the fact that they were actually talking and understanding each other. Garrus’s low chuckle was a very interesting sound.
“Unfortunately. I’m not exactly his favorite person right now, he thinks I was incredibly dumb to not call for help.” The Turian rumbled, Valence maxing a low rumble that caught Garrus’s attention. The two stared at each other with a silent conversation of their mandibles were any indication before Garrus gave a low growl.
“Jane?” Eliza asked softly, worried, Garrus immediately turning his head and cutting off the noise when he realized how nervous her sister was.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to make her nervous. Kind of hard to not be intimidating when you’re all sharp edges and teeth and talons.” He apologized quickly, and Jane waved off his apology as she turned to her sister.
“Stop being a nervous weirdo and say hello. Garrus, this is my sister Eliza.” Jane said, Eliza offering an unsure smile. It didn’t slip her attention that Valence had perked up.
“Pleasure to meet you, Eliza. Wish it was under different circumstances but, regardless.” Garrus said while dropping his head down politely. She seemed to be a bit braver and moved to stand beside Jane instead of behind, looking at her sister for translation, which she repeated.
“So he can… uh. Nice to meet you too, I guess. Sorry this is…really weird and unexpected, and Orange is either giving me heated eyes or he wants to kill me, I’m really not sure.” Eliza finally braved as the Orange and Purple marked Turian was slowly moving closer to them. He was much more skittish. Garrus chuckled again, glancing at the other Turian behind him who gave a soft trill of question. At least, it sounded like a question.
“Yes, she’s not hurt, and Jane can understand you if you’d actually talk instead of creeping around staring at her sister.” Garrus told him, prompting Jane to laugh at him while Eliza glanced at her.
“I’m not convinced she’s friendly. Yet.” Came a new voice, a bit higher toned and younger than Garrus’s low rumble, but with a similar dual tone to it. Jane immediately turned to the other Turian, who narrowed his eyes at her. Uncomfortable or just unsure?
“Considering you attacked my sister, accident or no, and you haven’t been muzzled again, I think that’s friendly enough.” Jane told him, watching those silver eyes widen in surprise as she was obviously speaking to him even if he didn’t know what she was saying. “Besides, I’d be the one to get punished if anyone found out I could talk to either of you.”
Garrus quickly must have repeated it to him silently, since he seemed to calm slightly by ducking his head. Was that a submissive gesture? Maybe it was them trying to seem less threatening?
“I just…well I figured you would be mad. At me.” Valence said, still cautious and distrustful. Jane didn’t blame him, knowing an alien could understand you but you could understand it? Yeah, that would be weird.
“She’s fine now, all healed. We know it was an accident.” Jane said softly, and Eliza nodded, pulling her shirt up just enough so that you could see the very faint scars left over that were a slightly different color than the rest of her skin. THAT got the younger turian to come closer to them, eyeing the scar as if confirming she was actually okay now.
“I…I’m okay now. Hurt like hell at first, yeah, and you kept me from coming to force my attention on you.” Eliza said, a slight smile on her face. Garrus snorted harshly, turning away with I mix of surprise and laughter, and seconds later Valence scoffed in response.
“Rude.” He huffed, sidestepping a few more steps away when Jane moved towards the swings again. Eliza straighten her shirt again, winked at the younger Turian, and ran after her sister to hop on the swings before Jane could.
“Push me, bitch!” Eliza shouted playfully, Jane immediately laughing at her and moving behind her to pull her swing back to let her go. Garrus was watching with his head tilted curiously, slowly moving to the swing next to them and gently swinging like Jane had shown him. Valence looked less impressed.
“What the hell are you doing?” The younger turian asked, giving Garrus a weird look. Jane smirked.
“Swinging.” Garrus said simply, Eliza giving a loud woop, just to startle the poor other turian who did in fact flinch.
“Swinging?” He asked after a moment, sounding disbelieving. “Why?”
“Honestly it’s kind of entertaining.” Garrus said simply. Jane couldn’t quite stop herself in time.
“Want me to push you, too?”
Jane felt the tension skyrocket, but she didn’t move, kept pushing Eliza who was watching nervously, and waited. Valence glanced at her then to Garrus, then back, not sure what she had said that caused the elder to stiffen and stare at her in surprise. Jane could feel how awkward things had turned, this uncertainty. She nearly jumped when he cleared his throat.
“Uh…if..if you want.” Garrus stuttered, Valence tilting his head more, like a dog at a weird sound. Or like a bird-raptor thing. They kind of did look like velociraptors after all. She gave Eliza another good push, before slowly moving towards Garrus, who watched her right back. Valence had stiffened in the side of her vision. ‘He won’t hurt me….I hope…’ Jane told herself. ‘This is a perfectly acceptable thing to do.’
Right, because offering to push an alien species on a swing set was normal. But she put up the stubborn mental block, gave him time to escape, and when he didn’t, she pulled the swing back slowly and let it go. He made a strange almost chirp noise when he swung higher than before, and she felt his flinch when she carefully pushed his lower back when he swung back towards her. His back was warm beneath the bodysuit, but she could also feel the hard plates beneath it just from the slightest touch.
Which was when her Multi-tool started ringing.
She would absolutely not ever admit to the startled noise she made, which in turn scared everyone else. Nope. Definitely did. Not. Happen.
“Jane.”
“Shepherd we need you up in control, now. Like, ten minutes ago now. I’m coming down to take the aliens back to their cells, Eliza can come with or stay doesn’t matter.” Ashley was saying in a hurry, sounding extremely concerned. Eliza drug her feet through the grass to slow to a stop, Garrus doing the same while watching and likely listening.
“Uh, yeah, be right up.” Jane answered, surprised when she didn’t get a response, just the hang up tone. “Looks like we’ve gotta cut this short, Eliza?”
“Right behind you. Bye Blu- uh Garrus. And Valence.” Eliza stuttered jogging after her sister who had already been moving. Ashley was at the door a few seconds before them, but Jane ignored her. She didn’t know what was so urgent that she had to leave right then. Eliza stayed right on her heels.
“I’m going to go to the baby, spend time with him.” Eliza said finally. “Be careful and update me as soon as you can.”
“I will.” Jane told her, smiled, then called the elevator while her sister went the opposite way.
***
Eliza chuckled when she got an excited chirp the second she came in the door, followed by the baby Turian who immediately ran up to her to gently paw at her leg. He chirped insistently at her, and she didn’t know what he wanted until she crouched down and two tiny three-fingered hands touched her face and pressed his forehead to hers with a soft noise.
“Are you purring?” She said softly, gently bumping him back just to see what reaction he’d give. The little happy trill spoke for itself. She wanted to do an experiment today, so she slid off her pack and pulled out the thick Kevlar scarf she had been given years ago, and tied a knot in the ends. She cautiously put it down and let the baby explore it, watching as he climbed into the little hammock and chirped at her. Slowly, she picked up the looped fabric and slid it over her head to sit across her chest, baby curled happily in the middle. Baveti made a questioning burr, little eyes widening when she stood up and he realized he was pressed against her chest and neck, quickly adjusting to get comfortable before starting up that happy little purr noise again.
So they did like to be held close. Not that this was by any means something long term, as the looped fabric barely wrapped from her left shoulder and under her right arm, the baby pressed firmly against her chest. He was making such a happy sound, even when she crinkled the jerky bag- yes she kept several packages on hand, it was tasty!- he only peeked open an eye to watch. When offered a piece, he trilled and nipped it from her hand, pale pink eyes wide and happy. Eliza snagged one of the other blankets and decided to do something incredibly stupid.
She was taking the baby outside. Which was absolutely insane but she had been given permission to do so! She wrapped the blanket over her backpack and shoulders, tying together two corners to make a cover that she quickly turned so that it almost was a mini poncho, the long side over her front to hide the baby from view of everyone but herself while not restricting her movements. She got a curious burr, a tiny hand peeking over the edge of the dark green poncho-blanket to peer up at her with wide curious eyes. She smiled down at him, slowly opening the door and stepping out of the holding room. As if he knew something was up, he curled his tiny hand back to himself and went still and quiet, likely picking up on her nerves. Permission or not, this was scary for her too! She got to the elevator before she noticed that the lights were dimmed, and not a moment later the alarms went off.
In her panic, she hit the button to the armory floor, Baveti chirping at her in alarm as the doors closed. She put a comforting hand over the baby turian and jogged down the hallway as armed guards rushed to the elevator with an urgency she had never seen before. Something was very wrong. She snatched her pistol and her weapon belts from her locker before jogging back to the elevator with the intention of heading back to the apartment. She had just gotten outside to the courtyard when she realized what was going on above the compound.
“Oh shit….”
Chapter 7: A War With 3 Angles
Notes:
I swear these chapters get longer every time I write them! The only thing I can say, is Poor Anderson, the shenanigans he has to deal with related to ONE shepherd, now he has two to babysit 😅
Hope you enjoy!
~as a reminder, bold text is subvocals!~
Chapter Text
Garrus jumped when several guards entered the faux grass room suddenly, all armed with guns and heavy equipment not normally seen on them. Valence growled low in his throat from behind him, his subvocals nervous and uncomfortable.
What’s going on? Valence rumbled from behind him, choosing to speak with his dual tones rather than out loud. One of the humans, a male, was doing the familiar motion for ‘let’s go’ at the doorway, so Garrus cautiously moved towards him.
I’m not sure. Garrus responded. None of the Humans were speaking, which was weirder than if they would have been. They aren’t giving me anything to work with. Whatever it is, it must be serious.
Cause what they needed was to be relocated, muzzled, and forced into cages, he thought sarcastically. Jane had seemed worried when she left, whatever was going on had to be serious, but he wasn’t sure what it could have been about. And he smelled the second she went from nervously content and curious to concerned.
He was actively choosing not to think about her small hands on his back when she had actually given him a tentative push on the swing. He couldn’t believe she had actually done it, she had seemed so unsure about him at first, like he would bite her hand if she got too close. But she had been nothing but kind to him and to Valence, and he didn’t smell any ulterior motives with her either. She was genuinely a kind person. Sure she was military, she was technically an enemy, but he had seen her willingness to work with him instead of attacking him like most of her people. It made her unique, an ally behind lines. But right now whatever was going on had been enough for them to pull her back, and I’d they chose to relocate the three of them, it was a good chance Jane and her sister wouldn’t be coming with them.
It didn’t surprise him one but when one of the guards reached for him, and he didn’t fight when they slid the uncomfortable muzzle over his nose and mandibles. Valence growled the whole time, but allowed it to happen as well. He mentally clocked out until he realized that they were going to the elevator, and they definitely weren’t heading back to their rooms.
Where are we going? Valence rumbled, voice a bit distorted but easily translated due to their time together.
It looks like the surface maybe. Garrus told him, eyes flicking to the other turian nervously. I don’t like this. If we were being relocated we would’ve been put in the cages.
Agreed. I wonder what- do you hear that!? Valence’s trill of alarm caught everyone’s attention, silver eyes flicking to the ceiling as if he could see what he heard. Garrus did hear that, the sounds of rapid gunfire and compound sirens going off. Garrus didn’t even register them clipping what was essentially a leash to his collar, only moving when they jerked him forwards roughly. He knew those ship noises, he knew one set of that gunfire. Those were Turian flighters, but he couldn’t understand how they got here or how they had found them.
“Get down! Got two different forces fighting overhead! Get those two onboard the Normandy, now!” Some soldier shouted as the doors opened, a burst of gunfire behind him that he spun to address.
What the hell is the Turian fleet doing here? Valence growled, stumbling behind the woman who had a hand on him. Sleek white ships zipped across the sky alongside Turian pilot ships, and while there weren’t any Turians on the ground yet, there were plenty of the white and gold armored humans.
More importantly, why the hell are humans fighting their own? Garrus questioned, a small pack of Turians slinking in when they had the opportunity. Their leader immediately spotted Garrus when he trilled a warning. He didn’t recognize any of them due to their helmets, but they would recognize him and Valence both since they weren’t covered. The guards around them started to panic when they opened fire, Valence lashing out at his handler with a carefully aimed kick. Garrus was proud that he hadn’t wounded her, just broke free to bolt. At least, until they heard a familiar scream nearby.
Garrus jerked free, their guards too busy surviving than focusing on them. He bolted after Valence, following the screaming of threats and violence that belonged to none other than Eliza Shepherd. She was pinned in a corner, blanket covering her chest, a wild look in her eyes as she brandished a pistol at a ground of the white armored humans.
“Back off, fuckers!” She shouted, not spotting the Turians yet. Garrus nearly slammed into Valence’s back when he froze, sniffing the air, so Garrus did the same. Watching Valence’s posture change from concern to aggression just from a smell was enough to confirm what Garrus himself was smelling.
Baveti’s scent was strong, but not from a ‘she just came from there’ way. No, Baveti was here with Eliza, and the human was viciously protecting him. Valence snarled low, throwing himself forwards with a vicious punch to the back of a helmeted head, pouncing into the fight as soon as he had a gun. Garrus went to her side, Eliza’s posture relaxing slightly when she recognized him. He didn’t flinch when she reached up and Unclipped the muzzle from his face, he was too busy watching the terrified baby turian peek out at him and trill excitedly when he recovered Garrus.
“Garrus…we have to get out of here. I can’t understand you but I need you to trust me, okay? If your people catch us, they will kill us, if Cerberus catches you, they will kill you. We have to leave!” Eliza told him, eyes wide and sincere. He didn’t even realize he was nodding until she gave him a shy smile, and undid the latch on the collar and let it drop to the ground with a thump. He could run, she had nothing to prevent him from doing so. But instead, he caught the gun Valence tossed to him, glared at the younger male while he stared at Eliza with an unreadable expression, and took point.
Valence trailed behind them, Eliza slowly reaching to undo his muzzle and collar, his subvocals giving crazy mixed signals when he trilled softly back at Baveti, who had poked his head out and reached for the other turian. Garrus could see the pain on his face when he instructed the baby to stay hidden with Eliza and to stay quiet. His subvocals didn’t once hint that he wanted to leave with the other Turians, not even when a female with white and red marking slunk around them, eyeing Eliza with dark eyes. One snarl from Valence caught her attention, brown eyes widening with confusion before she seemed to sniff the air and lock her attention on Eliza again. The other turian watched when a Cerberus agent got too close to Eliza, and Valence proceeded to lash out with violence when he tried to grab at the blanket.
The female tailed them, but didn’t interfere. Garrus wondered what she was thinking, seeing both of them having been captives, protecting a human who had a baby turian and was defending it like her own. Several other Turians watched them as they moved, unsure of what they were witnessing, but moved to protect their back. The first time since this damned war started that the Turians and this colony of humans were working together instead of killing each other. He even spotted their female companion dive after a Cerberus agent that had targeted their guard Ash, watching the dark haired woman hit the ground in surprise, turian and human staring each other down but not attacking each other.
“Ashley! Let’s go!” Eliza shouted, both the turian and the guard turning at the shout before separating. Ashley ran to her side, nervously eyeing the two Turians accompanying her as well as the female who kept tailing them.
“Why the hell are they free?” Ashley asked, sounding nervous but also frustrated.
“Because they are on our side and we all want to live. Ask questions later!” Eliza snapped, breaking into a run when she spotted a male guard waving for them at the gate. Garrus gave a sharp trill when he spotted familiar red hair beside the male guard, her green eyes meeting his with relief.
“C’mon, everyone make a run for it.” Jane ordered, Garrus instinctively falling into step with her. It had been a long time since he had naturally fallen into step like this, actually acknowledging chain of command, and even their female tail seemed to realize it. Jane had noticed her, but all she did was look to Garrus for an answer. They were focusing on getting where the ship he assumed they were going too was docked, so he fell out of step to confront her.
“General Vakarian.” She said, Jane pausing just within hearing range. The female turian didn’t need to know she was listening in. “Glad to see you in one piece, sir. We’ve been trying to track you down since you went missing. We finally got a ping when your Omni-Tool came online. We figured you would send out a beacon if it had been you who activated it. Didn’t intend to fight whatever the hell those other aliens are. Or to see you protecting one.”
Jane shuffled her feet, the female’s dark eyes locking on her instantly. Jane gave a hesitant smile to her.
“Despite common belief, they aren’t all bad. This one and her little pack have done nothing but treat us well. A lot better than we had been up to them being called in.” Garrus tried, the female casting a low growl at Jane. Garrus rumbled a warning back, stepping between the two women.
“Right, because one of them that’s friendly means they all are. They have been killing our people!” She growled again, eyes narrowing at him.
“The Turians attacked us first. We still don’t know why, we were protecting ourselves.” Jane said softly, knowing Only Garrus would hear her. He tilted his head slightly to acknowledge her, but otherwise didn’t make any motion to respond. He knew what she said was true.
“They aren’t all bad. You know Turians attacked first, for all we know it’s self defense.”
“You know what I think?” She snarled, mandibles flicking in irritation. “That you’ve ended up becoming their pet.”
“No. I’ve just learned that Humans can communicate, and not all of them are bad. This ship is under my protection, as well as the humans on board. If we want this war to stop, we start with her.” Garrus snapped, control slipping just long enough to point at Jane. “Jane is the only human who was willing to try with us, her sister protecting a Turian child like her own. I’d like to stay alive at the end of this, so I’m doing what I have to do to find a solution.”
Jane watched him stomp past her, emerald eyes wide as she watched her go. She hesitantly turned back to the other woman, meeting surprised dark eyes with her own.
“Human? Communicate? What the hell is he- you can understand us, can’t you.” She finally asked, and Jane hesitantly nodded to her. “But I can’t understand you.” Jane shook her head again. Garrus didn’t go far, still watching and listening despite being more than done with their companion.
“But he can. I hope you realize what this will mean for him. And I’m sure for you.” She said, voice passive and not hostile, before turning on her heel and retreating. Jane watched he go before moving after Garrus, jogging alongside him.
“Well, let’s hope both our peoples don’t kill us first.” He sighed, slowing his pace to match her.
“Agreed.” She said back. “But I don’t regret it one bit. Let’s get out of here.”
***
Eliza knew she was being followed and watched, but she wouldn’t give the Turian who was following her any attention. It was Valence who was trailing after her, sniffing just loud enough for her to hear on occasion. Several of the crew on the ship watched in discomfort when she passed by with her deadly follower, and she didn’t blame them since he wasn’t muzzled or shackled. Baveti chirped at her, pale head finally poking over the edge of the blanket to peer around. She wasn’t surprised when Valence let out a trill in response, catching the baby’s attention. Eliza kept moving, going straight to one of the lounges before she undid her blanket poncho and bent down for Baveti to escape and explore.
She smiled when the baby chose to lean up and bump foreheads with her before he ran to one of the couches curiously. When she turned, Valence was watching, seemingly surprised from his spot leaning in the doorway. He let out a soft burr, Baveti’s head shooting up and over the back of the couch to whine, both tiny hands reaching for him before he realized he could just climb back down and go to the adult Turian who was already stepping forwards. Watching the adult bend down just to bump foreheads with the baby was the most adorable thing she had seen in her life, especially when they nuzzled for a few seconds as if scenting each other. Baveti made a noise, pulling away and moving back to where Eliza had sat on her knees, bumping foreheads again and rubbing one side of his face against hers in the same nuzzling manner that she had to Valence.
The other Turian once again had a confused look on his face, even when Baveti hissed at him when he said something to the baby. She really wished she had the translator program right now, she wanted to know what he was saying to Baveti to inspire the baby to growl low and hiss in what he probably thought was threatening but really wasn’t. She wanted to know what was on his mind as his head tilted, obviously trying to reason with the baby and hesitantly reaching for the young male, who whined.
“It’s okay, he’s your family right?” Eliza said softly, catching both of their attention, silver and pink focusing on her suddenly. “You need to go to him, he can take care of you.”
The little confused head tilt made her heart hurt a little. Baveti seemed to understand that something was different, he had to. Eliza and the Turian she assumed was his father or caretaker, were very different in a lot of ways. When the little albinistic baby finally went back to Valence, the turian stood again and left the room, only glancing back at her once.
She eventually went up to their cabin, Jane already in the living room and, much to her surprise, so was Garrus.
“There you are! Where’s Baveti?” Jane asked immediately, Garrus watching her with a strange look in his eyes. They must have been discussing something important that she interrupted while they had been waiting for her.
“He’s with Valence. Pretty sure Val doesn’t like me, but Baveti tried to convince him otherwise with head bumps.” Eliza shrugged, walking past the blue marked Turian who was listening to them. Her multi-tool pinged seconds later, and she immediately pulled up the program. “What’s that?”
“The translator. Install it.” Jane said sternly, Eliza huffing at her before letting the program install.
“Okay? Now what?”
“Now, you can understand Valence.” The new low voice made her pause, Jane smiling when she turned around in surprise. Garrus chuckled. “Yeah, it takes some getting used too.”
“Woah. Wait, does this mean Valence is going to get his updated too?”
“Yes, that was my next stop. Jane was telling me some ground rules. A lot of the crew are uncomfortable with us, so we will stay down in the cargo bay for now until Jane finds out of your government are going to blow up her ship.” Garrus said bluntly, Jane flashing him a glare that he ignored. Eliza didn’t know what their dynamic was, but she wanted to know what she had inturrupted. “Regardless, I should probably go find him. Thanks, again, Jane.”
“Of course.” Her sister said, both women watching him leave. Jane sat down with a sigh. “Well. We have three Turians on our ship, the crew are losing their shit, and we can talk with aliens. Not to mention their people know something is going on. What the hell are we going to do?”
“Deal with it.” Eliza said simply, Jane looking up from where she had buried her face in her hands. “Not the first time Anderson has had to help us out, he knows the shit we get into. But this also means these translators are going to have to be spread ship wide at some point, and since we are the only ones who have managed this far, I guess it’s on us to stop the war before both sides end up dead.”
“I don’t like these odds.” Jane said with a sigh. “Ashley and Kaiden have already voiced their discomfort with them unshackled and unmuzzled. I don’t want to tell them we can talk to them. If they tell the alliance before we can discuss it to Anderson, we will have trouble he can’t fix.”
“So, call Anderson. That is something we can do.” Eliza said, sitting down beside her sister, who leaned against her shoulder with a deep breath. “Let’s start there, get him the translator first, and let him meet Garrus. I wouldn’t say we are the best of friends with them, but we are mutually sided in wanting the fighting to stop. That counts for something.”
“Anderson first. Okay, go change. Let’s get this done now so I can inform the crew what’s going to happen here.” Jane ordered, moving towards her room. They had a comm system in their helm, and after her sister had sent a message out, it was just waiting. In that time, Jane admitted to her that Kaiden had gathered all the Turians’ belongings and had stored them in the armory for now, aside from their guns which would stay in Jane’s personal vault in her room. In good faith, Jane had told Garrus where to find their armor, and Eliza hoped they weren’t making a huge mistake by allowing them to be free on board. Especially Valence, that Turian didn’t seem to like them at all.
The comm beeping scared them both.
“Commanders?” Anderson asked in concern, blue holoprojection appearing over her screen.
“Anderson, we have a…delicate situation. It’s extremely classified…” Jane started, Anderson’s deep exasperated sigh cutting through the speakers.
“We just got word that the facility on Starling was attacked by alien forces and Cerberus. And I’m assuming you chose to bring whatever they had there with you.” He observed, Eliza sharing a glance with Jane.
“It’s…more than that sir. We got information we were too hesitant to release to the Aliiance for our safety and theirs.” Jane continued, sending the program out once again. Anderson paused when he saw it, glancing at her before accepting the download.
“What the hell did you two do.”
“Uh…Trusted a Turian?” Eliza offered, Jane swiftly smacking her hard enough to echo. “Ouch! Ass!”
“Ladies!” Anderson inturrupted. “Turian? A Turian? Explain.”
“I got close with the alien Codenamed ‘Blue’, and after starting a strong relationship I trusted him with his multi-tool. Instead of contacting help, he sent me a translator that allowed me to understand his people, and had been modified so he could understand mine. Originally this was kept between us two. It was shared today with Eliza, and Blue’s companion codenamed ‘Orange’. We traded non-classified information, simple things like race, gender, names. These Aliens are called ‘Turians’, and both adults we have on board are male. For safety reasons, I’m not going to disclose their names.” Jane reported, Eliza watching as Anderson slowly sunk into his chair as she spoke.
“Dammit Shepherd, this is hard to deal with. So you can communicate and the program you sent me allows me to understand them as well? I have to report this, you know that, and I can’t guarantee they will let you keep your ship. Not without-“ Eliza jerked around when their door opened, a loud chirping catching her attention before a pale baby turian suddenly shot into the room trilling in distress. He had his own little onesie on now, and rushed straight to Eliza to claw his way into her lap and bump his head to her chin while she was stiff from surprise. Of course, Valence came stomping in seconds later with Garrus’s chuckling behind him.
“He’s your problem, he’s been crying for the last hour and making sad eyes at the elevator.” Valence huffed. “So you can babysit since Baveti decided you’re his adopted parent now too.”
“Jane.” Anderson’s voice caught everyone’s attention, his eyes wide even on the projector. “There are two, no, Three…Turians…in your cabin.”
“Yes sir.” Both women answered.
“And I can understand them.”
“Yes…” Jane said hesitantly. Garrus seemed to realize what was going on, stepping forwards enough to be polite while Valence stayed where he was and glared at Eliza who glared right back.
“Sir. General Vakarian. I’d be more than happy to answer any questions I’m able to disclose.” He tried, Jane taking a breath while Anderson remained quiet.
“I can’t believe this. You know command will want information you can’t give us. I’ll do what I can, pass along information carefully. We already knew they were on board with you, but this changes everything. I’ll do what I can, let’s just hope they hear reason.” Anderson sighed before disconnecting. Garrus shuffled nervously.
“I’ll take that as a, we’re all fucked.” Valence said casually, Eliza snorting in laughter while their respective parties sighed. Baveti was more than happy to just stay curled up with her. She was not about to address the other statement he had made.
“Not quite. Just…it’s going to take some getting used too. Anderson will have something for us in 24 hours. In the meantime, we will have to stop for extra supplies at another human colony, and just hope for the best. I hate to say this, but we are stuck together. And I think you need to contact your people too. Might as well have all our people aiming for my ship.” Jane ordered, Garrus nodding to her, holding her gaze before silently saying something to Valence that got the other to nod.
“When he gets fussy again, just bring him back. He’s gonna sleep for a few hours. Turian hatchlings like to sleep on whatever adult is warmest in their pack.” Valence explained before following after Garrus who was waiting.
“Hey, Valence!” Eliza called, the orange and purple Turian pausing and turning his head slightly. “Thanks. For, ya know. Trusting me with him. I don’t know if he’s yours or…well. Thank you.” Eliza tried, Garrus’s mandibles flicking in an emotion she thought was amusement when Valence ducked his head and nodded. The door closed behind them, Eliza sharing a look with Jane again.
“Definitely fucked.” Eliza stated.
“Oh, no doubt.” Jane agreed. “And I, am going to take a nap and rethink my decision to join the military.”
“Want a baby?”
“Nope! He’s your child, Remember? You accuse adopted a baby turian whose dad is kind of an ass and distrustful but ya never know, maybe this will help when it gets passed around. Babies are cute across races right?”
“Don’t remind me. I’m trying not to think about it. Go nap, I’m going to make sure he’s fed and probably do the same.”
Eliza never expected to end up with a baby in her bed, cuddled up to her side bundled in blanket. She definitely didn’t expect said baby to be an alien race she had accidentally adopted. But, well, he was cute, and he was purring. Like a weird Raptor-bird-cat-thing. She sighed, shoving her face into her pillow. And now, she had child support she had to deal with. It could be worse. Maybe. This was definitely strange. But, if anyone could mark this happen, it was them right?
Baveti’s purring really was adorable. Maybe she wouldn’t mind having him around more often after all
Chapter 8: Attempting to Make Nice
Notes:
I have no excuse other than I’m distracted by my own overly creative mind. (Aka: I decided writing 4 fics, one not even posted and a fourth I haven’t started because I must finish part 2 first, was a great idea 😅)
So I apologize this one took forever to post! I’m not sure exactly how many chapters this story will end up with, but I’m currently estimating at least 4-7 more minimum, and possibly more depending on what else I decide to add! I won’t abandon this AU!! Please forgive, and accept this chapter as tribute!
*offers new chapter and runs away flailing*
Chapter Text
Jane sighed, watching her monitor screen for any blinking light signaling she got a message, arms crossed over the desk. They had been in the air for a little over two days to get to the nearest Human-owned fuel station, and they still had a ways to go. The crew avoided their cargo like the plague, no one quite sure what to do about the two Turians on board. She had been waiting for a response from Command, but their silence was burning time. She had to inform her crew what was going on and what they needed to do, seeing them glaring uncomfortably at the Turians was pressing her nerves. And if Ashley and Kaiden asked her one more time why they weren’t chained up she swore she was going to chain them up. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“Wow, that sigh sounded painful.” A low voice said behind her, a distinct dual-tone getting her to smile a little from where she had finally rested her head on her arms. She finally turned to find Garrus leaning against the wall next to her desk, arms crossed and looking more than comfortable having invaded her space without warning. He was wearing his armor too, a black and silver and blue set that made each sharp angle a little more pronounced but also protected. He flicked a mandible at her when she didn’t reply immediately.
“Look at you all armored up and ready for war.” She huffed back, leaning back in her chair a bit.
“Being prepared never hurts.” He told her confidently, shifting to stand up straight and peer over her shoulder. “Still no word?”
“Nothing yet.” She sighed, not bothering to look at the screen. “It’s not like Anderson to take this long. Either something has happened and I’m fixing to be in deep shit, or they are letting me make the calls on this”
“Neither of those options sounds fun either.” He agreed, tilting his head just so and staying within a polite distance away so as not to be too close. “The Turian Heirarchy is pissed, but they’ve agreed to not shoot your ship down. Not a big improvement and definitely not approval, but I tried.”
“Better than what I’ve got. We still have a few hours till the fuel station, are you and Valence needing anything?” She asked, knowing they needed rations actually made for them and not just random meats they had discovered Turians could eat.
“Not really, we’ve made due with what we have. Valence is more than happy to just eat anything to see if it makes him sick, and so far he’s had fairly good luck.” Garrus said with a soft chuckle watching her carefully. “But, anything you can find and bring back would be appreciated until we can get some actual supplies. A contact named Nadia Arkadem is supposed to contact me after we leave the fuel station to arrange a shipment to us.”
“This situation isn’t pretty but it’s going surprisingly well.” Jane sighed, catching him shrug.
“I try not to take things for granted. Sure, things started out like crap but now I’ve been entrusted to try and work something out with Humans to stop a war that’s killing thousands of both our kinds.” He stated, as if it was so simple. It never ceases to amaze her just how intelligent Turians were. Just a few weeks ago they had just been put in charge of this mission, a few months before that and they had happily been drifting in space and enjoying their break. Now she was committing treason by contacting an enemy, learning to speak to them, and finding herself enjoying their company.
“Pretty sure they think I’m insane.” Garrus finished, mumbling with his mandibles pinned to his face. Jane couldn’t help but chuckle at that, catching his attention.
“Both our peoples think we are insane.” She agreed, finally hauling to her feet and stretching her arms above her head while Garrus tilted his head and watched. “But what I can do, is tell the crew what’s going to happen and get this program spread around so I don’t have to threaten Ashley’s or Kaiden’s lives anymore.”
Garrus quickly moved to follow her when she marched into the hallway to the elevator. He had that look on his face that she thought meant he was amused. He stepped in with her and stood by her side, leaning against the nearest wall.
“They definitely figured out we can understand them, and I think it freaks them out. Neither of those two guards seem particularly friendly to us.”
“Well Ashley was meant to keep you locked up, and Kaiden was meant to protect Ashley so it makes sense.” Jane continued, meeting his eyes for a brief second. “They both still view you as an alien threat, which is what I intend to stop.”
“I don’t think it’s going to be that easy.” Garrus sighed, watching the door as it opened. Jane gave him a half smirk as she led the way out.
“Is anything ever easy?” She said with an exhausted chuckle, looking towards the nearest speaker. “Joker? Call a ship wide meeting in the mess hall. You can listen in but I want everyone down here who can be, and the rest to be stuck listening.”
“Yes ma’am, sending out messages now. Anything else for you my highness?” Joker responded with a smile to his voice. For all his insubordination, she was fond of the pilot.
“Dinner date maybe?” She teased, a running joke between them and Eliza that the Pilot hated whenever they brought up. The poor guy had taken them to dinner once to be nice, and ended up getting laughed at because he had immediately spilled his drink all over himself and had to leave. He was always good spirited about it, however, as that first meeting was one of their fondest moments.
“Yeah yeah. Hey, why don’t you ask your alien buddy to take you? There are two, you and Eliza don’t even have to fight over them!” Joker huffed at her, a few people trickling into the mess hall as they playfully argued. Several of them watched Garrus with unease, but the Turian was more than focused on the speakers and what Joker was saying.
“Pretty sure they don’t like humans that much Joker, unless you’re telling me you’re jealous and want one yourself.” Jane teased, Garrus huffing a laugh.
“Nah, too many pointy edges and looked like hard scales. I already got fragile bones, Shep, you trying to kill me? But I am curious about their browser searches…”
“And that’s where I’m dropping that conversation.” She laughed, Garrus making a soft almost-purr next to her that she took as amusement since he was giving that Turian expression that was supposed to be a smile. Eliza was naturally the last one in the room, Valence trailing cautiously behind her sister while Baveti was nowhere to be seen. Odd. It was likely the baby was bundled up somewhere safe while the adults were away. As much as Valence glared and growled and postured around Eliza, he also seemed to want to be close to her, since he didn’t sit when she didn’t and just leaned a few feet away on the same wall. Jane took a steadying breath before glancing at Garrus, a very subtle nod and flick of a mandible urging her on as she turned back to her crew and pulled up her Multi-tool.
“Alright, first order of things before I address anything this for all crew to update their multi-tools with this program. Do not ask questions, I’ll explain it in a moment.” Jane ordered, sending the program over their shipwide channel. Each crew member one-by-one installed the program, Ashley and Kaiden sharing a look that Jane did not like.
“Williams. Alenko. Is there a problem?” Jane snapped out, both of them jumping as they quickly became center of attention. Good, let them squirm a little.
“N-no ma’am!” Alenko finally managed, looking much more uncomfortable than Ashley did. She didn’t respond but nodded for Jane to continue. Now for the hard part.
“First things first. We are about…2 hours from the nearest fuel station. If you have any supply requests, send them to me or Eliza within the hour. That being said, anything who chooses to exit the Normandy are not to speak about, hint to, or privately discuss the two beings we have on board.” Jane ordered. Valence shifted his wait, glaring at Kaiden when the movement caught the Leuitenant’s attention. It seemed like everyone had put their Multi-tools away finally, so she looked back towards Garrus again. He awkwardly flicked a mandible at her when he caught her gaze, dipping his head slightly.
“I’m General Garrus Vakarian, Turian Military. I know we’ve had a…well, crappy introduction until now, and that most of you are uncomfortable around Valence and me. We have no intentions of causing harm, especially under Jane’s authority over the ship.” He tried, Jane glaring at her sister when she tried to hide a laugh at the varying degrees of shock on the crew’s faces. It was pretty amusing after all, especially at the absolute alarm adoring both Alenko’s and Williams’s faces.
“And on that note, I have contacted Admiral Anderson at command about the situation, as Vakarian has informed his people. As of right now, we are the only Turian-Human allied ship in existence.” Jane started, letting that statement hang for a moment before she crossed her arms. “Humans are killing just as many Turians as they are Humans. If this war doesn’t stop, both sides are going to be destroyed. If you don’t want any pet of this alliance going forwards- With or without Command’s permission- then I suggest you pack your stuff and disband at the colony.”
“Commander, respectfully, I’m not leaving. This is the most action we’ve had in months! Besides, don’t you want to see the news about this!? ‘Human Ship Normandy Allies with Turians and stops the war.’ How cool would that be!” Joker butted in, getting a few staff members to chuckle and nod agreeingly. Jane had to give it to him, he was good at breaking tension.
“Shepherd, don’t you think this is a little crazy? Why can’t we just drop them off on one of their colonies and go home?” Alenko tried, looking more and more uncomfortable the longer Valence continued to stare at him. Jane was starting to like that cranky Turian.
“I’ll admit, this wasn’t what we came her to do in the beginning. But we have the chance to end a war and save both our species from continuing to kill each other.” Jane said, meeting Garrus’s eyes as he offered a Turian smile. “I think that’s more important than going home and knowing we could have done something.”
“Besides, once we go home, there is nothing stopping command from tearing us all apart if we don’t come home with a big accomplishment on our heads. ‘Allied with Turians’ is very different from ‘Having stopped the Relay War.’” Eliza finally added in, that glitter in her eyes that Jane immediately knew was her strategizing. “If we go home with a big heroic over us, if they attacked us or threw us to the wolves, any Allies he made would revolt and they won’t be willing to risk that.”
“Safety in numbers. The bigger the accomplishment, the less likely you will be punished because of the publicity.” Garrus muttered next to her. “Smart tactic.”
“Also dangerous.” Jane reminded them both, turning back to the crew. “Joker, how long to the colony?”
“Roughly an hour, Ma’am.”
“Good. One last thing: if I catch anyone on board this ship treating our Turian guests like anything other than a guest, you will be forcibly removed from my ship with no warning. Everyone Understand?” A chorus of quick ‘yes ma’am’s echoed around the hall. “Dismissed.”
The crew quickly filed out, Valence rumbling something that got Eliza to chuckle as they did, and Jane waited until it was just the four of them again.
“The only one we might have issues with is Alenko, he’s pretty against trusting these guys.” Eliza immediately huffed out, blue eyes bright. Valence was still nearby, watching but not joining in.
“He just found out he can talk to Aliens.” Garrus chuckled, tilting his head slightly. “Ashley on the other hand looked displeased, but I got the impression she will follow orders before her own judgement.”
“She will.” Jane agreed. “She won’t pretend to like you, but she won’t break her orders because of it. Eliza, you staying on the ship during restock or no?”
“I should probably stay, just in case anyone tries to start anything. I think most of the crew will continue to leave you guys alone, unless you was us to take Williams and Alenko with us to avoid any confrontations.” Eliza responded after a few moments of consideration.
“Then that’s the plan. Let’s go gear up. Joker? Let Ashley and Kaiden know they are on ground team at the colony please. You two think you can manage?” Jane asked softly, watching Eliza step out towards the elevator.
“I think so, I doubt anyone is going to want to mess with us after what happened at the colony before.” Garrus nodded, glancing at Valence when he growled softly. “Besides, we can contact you if something comes up.”
“It’s a plan then.” Jane stated, starting to move away before pausing and turning back to them. “Garrus? I do have a job for you while we are ashore.”
“And what’s that?”
“Come up to my quarters when we leave and watch the terminal in case Anderson comms. He knows you, so you can pass along information to me or just inform him I’m off ship in restock.”
“Of course. Consider it done.” Garrus responded, and Jane gave him a smile before going up the elevator to their cabin.
***
Eliza closed her eyes. This was pure torture, why in the hell would she agree to go anywhere that Kaiden was involved? She wasn’t joking when she had said Alenko and Williams would be the trouble children if left on board, but she was regretting coming with them now. Baveti had been very confused as to why he had been given back to Valence early, she could only hope the baby didn’t stir up trouble which she was gone.
Restock was normally fast and simple, just communicate to the head of the colony, get the credits sent over, and load up. Only, apparently their ship had been flagged and the colony leader refused to accept any money from the Alliance. Between the two of them, Eliza knew they had enough credits to get their absolute necessities- Fuel, a few weeks rations, and water tanks refilled- but anything else would not fall under the pay they had to offer. Jane was inside the office talking to the Director, which left Eliza to babysit the two children as they talked softly in between Alenko’s nervous pacing. She really wanted to know how he managed a security job if something as simple as waiting made him nervous.
“Alenko, if you don’t sit down and quit pacing I am going to taze you.” Eliza snapped without looking at him, keeping her attention firmly on the muffled voices inside the room. Alenko did sit, so at least it worked.
“I just don’t see why they would make us wait this long! This should have been a simple in and out restock. And what did he mean by our ship was flagged? Was it by the alliance?” Ashley said softly, Eliza agreeing silently before she finally turned her attention from the door to the other two on their squad.
“I’m not sure. For whatever reason it seems like our Alliance funds have been cut at minimum. What that means, I don’t know.” Eliza told them, jumping when the door flung open and Jane came stomping out looking pissed.
“Back to the ship, now. We’re leaving.” Jane snapped, all three of them jumping up so as not to be left behind by their very frustrated Commander. Sure Eliza was the same rank, but everything knew Jane was the leader.
“What’s going on?” Eliza asked, jogging to keep up, glancing to make sure Ashley and Kaiden were following.
“The alliance stripped our fund access, and labeled us as a rogue ship. This colony basically listed us as terrorists and won’t deal with us at all unless it’s out of pocket. I got our ship refueled, but other than that we can’t do anything else here.” Jane growled out, turning a corner and keeping up the swift pace. “They also know about the Turians on board and want to take them into custody for questioning.”
“Like hell they will!” Eliza snapped back.
“Guys? What are we going to do about the rations then? We can’t just starve out here.” Ashley commented, sounding out of breath.
“We figure that out once we are out of range of their aircraft guns.” Jane responded, ending their conversation. From there it was a rush on board the ship to get it in the air and out of orbit before the colony decided to open fire. Once they were safely back on board the ship, Garrus approached them nervously when they got to their quarters.
Anderson had called.
“He wanted you to contact him as soon as you got on board. It’s thanks to him the Normandy was ready to fly the second you stepped on the bridge. He tried to give us warning.” Garrus explained, Jane face down at her desk looking miserable. Eliza glanced at Valence, who he joined them to bring Baveti up to see her again. The albino baby was happily asleep laying against Eliza’s chest, purring softly. Eliza was sure if it wasn’t for the baby, there would have been some raised voices happening.
“They cut off our funding Garrus.” Jane said softly when she sat up, the Turian stiffening as he met her eyes. He looked unhappy.
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. Me and Eliza, and the entire crew are no longer being paid by the Alliance Military. Basically we’ve been court marshaled.” Jane said, Valence looking to her for confirmation. Eliza could only nod at him. The Alliance must have a good reason for this, right?
“Why don’t we contact Anderson, see what he has to say. Maybe he will explain what’s going on.” Eliza tried, everyone staying silent while Jane typed in the commands. They all watched the light blink as it tried to connect, before it turned green and Anderson’s face appeared.
“Jane. Thank god you’re alright. When Vakarian told me you weren’t on board I thought it was too late.”
“Will all due respect sir, what the hell is happening?” Jane asked, all of them listening as Anderson sighed and took a moment.
“Command is not willing to accept this tentative alliance. They have deemed you and Eliza both as unfit for duty and a danger to Alliance standards. They wanted me to bring you in.” Anderson admitted, voice low and unhappy. “They cut all funding for your ship and Crew, as I’m sure you found out, and most human colonies aren’t willing to assist you any further until you come back to Earth and participate in a mental evaluation and therapy. I’m sorry Jane. The best I could do is have you listed as a rogue Commander and shut you pay off to prevent them from hunting you down and blowing your ship to hell.”
“So if we are seen in any Aliiance colony’s, we are going to be shot down.” Jane said quietly, Eliza mourning with her. Their careers, their friends back home…they just lost everything. Garrus shifted and put a hand on Jane’s shoulder comfortingly, and Anderson’s sad smile showed he felt the same as they did.
“Unfortunately- if it’s the wrong colony- I’m afraid it is a risk.” Anderson confirmed. Valence stepped up to her when she sniffed, gray eyes wide and concerned. Oh…Turians didn’t know Humans could cry. This was probably scary for him, strange and foreign. “Jane. Eliza. I fully support you in this. This war has gone on long enough to damage both Human and Turian peoples, and right now you four are the only documented companions on record. I know how you both work, and I have some private missions I can send over to make you some extra credits if you need them. I’m relying on you two to get this done”
“Yes sir.” Eliza echoed with Jane, both of them heartbroken. Anderson saluted them before disconnecting the comms, that slow blinking blue light a reminder of the bombshell that just occurred.
***
Garrus . Valence rumbled at the older turian who rumbled a questioning noise. He was trying his best to console Jane as she just buried her head in her arms on the desk. Would the Hierarchy fund the ship?
I don’t know, why? Garrus responded, finally tilting his head so he could meet eyes. Eliza glanced between them, seeming to know they were having a conversation she couldn’t hear.
If the Hierarchy can be convinced that the Normandy is an ally, and subtlety informed that it’s no longer under Human authority, they may be convince to fund the ship. Valence tried, mandibles flicking in irritation. Or at least allow them to get fuel because of us being on board.
It’s not a bad idea. Garrus rumbled, stepping back when Jane made to stand.
“I’ve got to tell the crew. Whoever wants to leave can be dropped off with the shuttle.” Jane said softly, moving out of the room to the elevator while Joker called a mandatory meeting. Eliza glanced between them again.
“You two have an idea, don’t you?” She asked quietly, Baveti chirping in his sleep.
“I don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up.” Valence said slowly, keeping his eyes trained on Garrus’s face. “But maybe.”
“Maybe is better than nothing.” Eliza huffed, stroking a finger from Baveti’s forehead and over the top of his head to the tips of his fringe. Valence watched the movement with interest, curious how that would feel himself. Not that he’d ever let her, with her strange five-fingered hands that were surprisingly useful.
“I’ll see what I can do. I can’t promise anything will come of it, especially since the Primarch is an Elder. Victus was meant to take charge under him if he became unable to hold his rank, and we’ve been out of the loop for months.” Garrus relented with a sigh, dropping his chin down slightly. “I’ll see about setting up something, I can only do so much before they call in a spectre.”
“A spectre?” Eliza asked, icy eyes wide. “What’s that?”
“It’s one of the Citadel Coucil’s lapdogs. They are above the law and work where the Council can’t. They don’t follow any orders other than their own.” Valence explained with a low growl. He despised Spectres, but he had to admit it would be useful.
“Okay wait. Citadel? Council? You’ve lost me here.” She huffed, Garrus sighing again.
“Let’s wait for Jane, and we can tell you everything.” Garrus stated, before stepping out of the room to likely Comm home.
Within two hours, Garrus had secured a trade line with a few Turian colonies with leaders he knew and pulled favors from. Jane seemed to take that information well, as the bright glint in her eyes had returned with purpose. From there Valence explained the Citadel and it’s council, as well as a few other races of beings that lived there and were part of the Citadel’s population. Garrus added in more information regarding Spectre’s, and how if they could meet up with one and get approval, it might even benefit them in the long run for Jane to be escorted to the Council in an attempt to solidify Humans into a documented Citadel Species.
Which is when Garrus got the call that Adrien Victus had indeed become Primarch due to the previous holder having fallen ill. With some prompting, Valence pointed out that Garrus was good friends with the Victus family and with any luck could get the Normandy set on their allied roster. Plans were changed, their contact to supply rations for himself and Garrus became an armed escort to a Turian colony, where Valence was able to secure Dextro and Levo based rations thanks to the asari people. On a gesture of good faith, Jane and Eliza both accompanied Garrus and himself to meet the colony leader. The amount of odd looks from other Turians, as well as the few asari on world was enough for anyone to feel uncomfortable, and yet Jane and Eliza both kept their heads up and voices calm and unconcerned. Their first meeting with a young Asari also went well, Eliza fumbling over how to compliment the lilac skinned woman who looked just as embarrassed to be complimented by a new species. They also med a Salarian who just blinked at them, informed them they were very interesting, and went about his day.
Valence nearly choked at Eliza’s mumbled ‘asshole’ as the Salarian walked away. This Human was trouble.
“Well, we’ve not been attacked or shot at, so I think they are okay with us.” Jane commented when they had sat down to wait while their ship was loaded. Ashley had surprisingly taken the initiative and was willing to work with Turians and a few Asari to load and unpack items they were able to secure thanks to Garrus’s friendships and authority.
“Most of them are just curious about the two of you, especially since you can unde them and they can’t with you.” Garrus chuckled, eyes flicking to the few bystanders who were openly staring. They seemed to catch themselves quickly after that. “But no, they won’t cause any harm. Odega won’t stand for it, not while you both have been friendly and open, even he sees the value in this alliance. It’s a shame your own people can’t see it.”
“Humans are scared of things they don’t understand.” Eliza grumbled. “Just like they won’t believe what they can’t see.”
“Humans are also weird.” Valence huffed, Eliza turning to smack his shoulder lightly.
“Says you. Turians are weird to us. All spikes and tall, and growly.”
“Did you just describe us as ‘Growly’? How old are you, a teenager?”
“Guys. Really?” Jane interrupted, Eliza jumping in shame and Valence just blinking slowly at the redhead, feigning innocence. “Real professional you two.”
“You brought me along. I could have been getting baby snuggles but nooo you made me come with and Valence gets the snuggles.” Eliza argued softly. He did indeed get baby snuggles as she called it, as Baveti was happily curled up in a custom sling across his chest. The young Turian much preferred being carried and hidden over struggling to keep up. Valence huffed before he undid the sling-Baveti hissing at him in displeasure- before he swiftly tied it around Eliza before she could object. The woman seemed surprised before she accepted the offering and immediately glared at him. He flicked a mandible at her cheekily.
“Better, thank you.” Eliza grumbled, sneaking the baby a snack when Valence acted like he wasn’t looking. Garrus was watching them with a fond and knowing look that prompted him to glare at the other male. Sure he found the human women interesting, their lack of fear around new situations was something all Turians longed to have, not to mention the blind trust they both put in himself and Garrus. Both women were confident that neither of the two Turians in their company would harm them, or let anything close enough to harm them. It was dangerous, and reckless considering the short amount of time the four of them really knew each other. Valence himself admitted willingly that he’d rather be silent and hide than get involved in something new, the only catch was he didn’t exactly have a choice here in the matter. Humans were too delicate and easy to wound, even with the advances in their medical progress.
Valence. You’re doing that thing you do when you’re thinking too hard. Garrus warned, Valence flicking his eyes to the older male with displeasure.
I just don’t understand Humans. These two are willing to stop a war their own people won’t try to stop. What makes these two stand separately? Valence challenged, Garrus seeming a bit taken back. Both Twins were currently having their own conversation, and weren’t paying any attention to the two of them.
They are willing to try. Garrus rumbled simply. Jane has a strong mind and a good heart. Eliza has a fierce temperament and the skills to prove it. The two of them are a force to reckon with on a bad day, on a good day I have no doubt they would dominate the battlefield better than any Turian army.
So? You sound like you have an idea too. Valence stated bluntly, watching him take a deep breath and run a hand over his fringe. So he was just as stressed as they all were, this calm and confident persona was mostly for show.
Victus wants to contact the Council. They will want to send a Turian Spectre in to observe them both, the ship, and the humans on board. Garrus rumbled slowly, valence couldn’t help but stiffen.
They want them to be cleared to come on the citadel? Valence asked, all confidence gone.
In short? Yes. Long term, it’s a damn good start to getting humans approved on Citadel records. Garrus sighed after that, letting his eyes close. Jane looked over at them, before pointing to a nearby water fountain and urging her sister to come with. It didn’t miss Valence’s notice it was out of hearing. Smart woman.
“So, Victus gets a Spectre sent, the Spectre determines if Humans are safe, and we go to the Citadel and hope they don’t shoot them both outright.” Valence growled, huffing. “And is it really smart? That’s a lot of new faces at once on their part, and a whole new species to confirm to everyone else. Sure Human’s have made the news as the Turian’s first contact with an enemy species with no name, but this soon?”
“That may be the only way to end the war.” Garrus mumbled, mandibles tight to his face while Valence’s own twitched in dislike.
“I hate when you are right.”
“That happens a lot. I mean look at them, Valence. The Turians here are distrustful but curious, especially when they happily respond to cautious waves.” Garrus observed, both of them focusing on the two Humans who were admiring various things around them. Humans really were easily entertained.
“Call Victus.” Valence suddenly decided, voice soft but sure. “Let him draw the Council in. And let hope they send a good Spectre who is open minded.”
“So, Nihlus.” Garrus teased, getting a warning growl in response. “You know he’s the only Turian willing to give this a shot. Victus knows it too.”
“And what happens if this doesn’t work?”
“It has too. There isn’t another option. But right now, we can do what we can to secure Jane and Eliza’s safety under the heirarchy at minimum. Get them gun clearance on colonies in case of emergencies, and buy a new sniper for me cause it’s still missing. It’s one of the few guns I had from home.”
“Maybe you could ask Jane about it? I know my rifle isn’t locked in the gun safe in the armory.”
“I will, when we get back. Now come on, they are up to something and they don’t need to be left alone.” Garrus chuckled, quickly standing to take chase of the two women who had apparently decided to walk off. Valence growled and tapped his forehead onto the table they had been sitting at before standing and trailing after them.
Trouble indeed.
Chapter 9: A Little Peace, A New Bond
Notes:
Alrighty! Once again, another chapter! All mistakes are my own as I don’t have a beta!
You may have noticed there is now an official chapter count! I’ve been working on the last several chapter to outline and prep everything so updates will hopefully come sooner in between my other fics since this one is my break.
Did you want drama? Action? Have some fluff and bonding
Hope you enjoy and thanks so much for reading, commenting, or leaving kudos!
Chapter Text
Jane sighed, tapping away on her datapad she had kept stored in her room from her spot on the bed. Aimlessly drifting in space had its advantages, and while the situation wasn’t ideal, the ability to rest for just a moment was nice. No officials expected her to run from colony to colony in a few weeks just to acquire materials for the Alliance, no one telling her she couldn’t take a day off in between runs. And of course, the issue of how close she was becoming with her Turian partner. Eliza also seemed to be bonding with Valence despite how the two pretended that they hated each other, and Jane couldn’t imagine someone with a more perfect personality for her wild sister.
Was she crazy for actually considering this? They were a completely different species, and while she liked to think they could be close friends, she didn’t think they could be more than that. Her eyes drifted to the gun case on the wall, the just barely-visible tint of a cobalt blue sniper beneath the tinted glass. Garrus’s rifle. Jane had fought against Turians for a while, she knew their weaponry was advanced and had seen the wounds they caused when struck by them. She knows what armed Turians can do and what they are capable of.
She tapped out a new message, this one on her multi-tool. Eliza was likely in the hangar with Valence and Baveti-her sister enjoyed harassing the younger Turian with her presence, although she had her suspicions the purple and orange Turian secretly enjoyed it- so she knew she had the quarters to herself. It wasn’t long before there was a cautious knock on the wall outside her door frame.
“Come in, I don’t bite.” Jane called, a slight smile hinting on her face as she sat up and flung her legs over the side of the bed just as Garrus’s head tilted around the corner of the door curiously. She huffed at his caution when he slowly moved into the room, those cerulean eyes flicking around with interest. He had never been in her actual bedroom before, so it made sense he was a little awkward.
“Jane. You, uh, said you needed to see me?” He fumbled out, mandibles twitching in discomfort. She just chuckled at him.
“I did. You don’t have to act like I’m going to murder you in my bedroom.” She teased, watching his head tilt at her with an amused glint in his eyes.
“Well Turians typically don’t enter others’ sleeping rooms unless they are family or close friends.” He grumbled at her, feigning confidence as he fully stepped in at catching sight of her pistol on the desk.
“I’d like to think we are friends.” Jane said cautiously, watching for any indication that he was uncomfortable. Instead, he seemed surprised and almost hurt.
“At this point I think we skipped the friend stage considering everything that’s happened.” He rumbled out, turning a full circle before finally settling with facing her again. She stood up slowly. “Unless…you don’t agree? Sure we could have met on better terms but I’d like to think we are friends at minimum at this point.”
“Your mandibles twitch when you're uncomfortable.” Jane teased, said mandibles snapping to his face as he ducked his chin down. “I don’t think I would have brought you to my ship if I didn’t trust you, Garrus. I’m not saying we don’t have a bond like friendship, although I feel as if I owe you an apology for what other humans have done.”
“You’ve more than made up for it.” Garrus argued weakly, still flustered. Jane hated that she found it endearing. “Although stopping this war would be nice.”
“Well, if we are going to be partners in ending this war, then we have to be armed.” Jane started, watching his eyes flick to her in confusion. She tapped in the code to the gun case, keeping the sniper carefully hidden from his sight. “So, consider this my apology, and my offer to join my team, legitimately. Even if, well, I’m not technically getting paid anymore.”
And with that, she turned and held the gun across her palms in offering, his eyes snapping to the gun that had long since been cleaned and maintained in her care. She had ensured the thing was in pristine condition, and if by the way his eyes roamed across his gun, he approved. He slowly stepped towards her, reaching a hand towards his gun to slowly run a talon down the body of it, surprised and something else flickering on his face.
“You cleaned it?” He asked softly, slowly taking the gun from her like she would snatch it back. “It’s not looked like this since before the war started.”
“I figured it was yours, same color and all.” She pointed to her face, acknowledging the markings on his. “And I take care of my guns. If I’m going to hold someone else’s I’m going to give her a good clean down. It’s an amazing rifle.”
“It is. I’ve had it since I joined the military, went through bootcamp with me. I’ve modified it here and there, sure, but it’s always the same. I wasn’t sure if it had been left behind or not, didn’t want to ask.” He admitted, checking the scope with his left eye, aiming at her headboard to her left. She offered a smile.
“Well, all good snipers need their visors, right?” She asked, holding out the visor she had also kept in the locker with the rifle. She knew what visors did, and while it wasn’t necessarily a danger for him to have had, she had forgotten it was there. He laughed when he saw it, happily snagging it and slipping it on.
If she was a weaker woman, she might have swooned. Seeing the Turian- Her Turian she might argue- with his sniper and visor, aiming down the scope just to match up the details, it made her feel something. She told herself it was just an unwarranted fondness for his clear confidence with his weapons, but she also knew she was fooling herself. Best to ignore it and pretend it wasn’t so.
“I may have forgotten I kept the visor.” She admitted, his head tilting at her. Yeah, definitely looked more natural with the visor on.
“Well I’m grateful to have it back. It wasn’t cheap.” He teased, clicking a button on the gun somewhere that made it retract into something small enough to sit on the magnet on the back of his armor. Huh. She didn’t know it could do that.
“Here to assist. I didn’t mess with any setting or anything, it should be as it was when we got it unless the facility messed with it.” She offered, watching him pull his multi-took up to scan it, then type in a few commands.
“Just out of date a bit, easy to fix with a few minor calibrations. Otherwise, it’s good as new.” He rumbled out to her, content. “Thank you. You could have never returned these to me, so I very much appreciate you doing so.”
“Well, friends don’t let friends not stay armed.” She shrugged, watching a mandible flick. Ah, embarrassment. “And besides, you look damn good with a sniper. How about we go planetside and test it out?”
“Hell yes.” He agreed with a smile of his own, all flustered-embarrassment leaving at the prospect of going out just to shoot for fun. Eliza and Valence would likely join them, as her sister was going to relent and give the other Turian his weapons back as well.
They unfortunately didn’t get the chance to actually go planetside, as Garrus’s comms pinged. She already knew who was calling by Garrus’s unsure expression and deep breath before he answered.
***
Valence tried to ignore her. He did. Only, Baveti was making it near impossible to actually ignore either of them when his instincts were constantly freaking out about each small noise the child made. None of the noises were distressed in any way, so you’d think he could just purge Eliza’s existence in the hangar from his mind.
If only it was so easy.
Valence huffed out a low growl, Baveti chirping questioningly in a way he knew was directed at him. The baby turian seemed to know Valence was going to ignore the noise since he came over and pawed at his side for attention not even a minute afterwards.
“Ya got a problem there?” Eliza called out, that annoying teasing tone to her voice made him huff in frustration. The truth was, he didn’t know why he was trying so hard to ignore her, and it was frustrating the living hell out of him. Sure they were an alright team, but they hadn’t even been in a live fire situation. For all he knew, the black haired human could be the worst shot he had ever seen in his life. Baveti burred at him.
Valence closed his eyes and took a deep breath, setting down the datapad he had been tapping on before opening them again to face Eliza. She was waiting patiently, arms crossed and curious.
“Just, thinking over some things.” He told her, not entirely a lie after all. He was thinking over stuff, like how he couldn’t decide if he wanted to bite or befriend the human in front of him. A few months ago he’d have shot her down without a second thought, and now…well he didn’t want to classify her as a friend, they barely knew each other after all, but an associate maybe. Companion didn’t sound right, neither did calling her his partner. Squad-mate would suffice, he supposed, since that’s practically what they were at the end of the day, by force or coincidence, it didn’t really matter. She probably wouldn’t shoot him, and he probably wouldn’t shoot her. Not lethally anyways.
“Well I can hear and see your mind running a mile a minute.” She told him; he really didn’t understand human phrases sometimes. “Your mandibles twitch when you're thinking too hard.”
He snapped his mandibles to his jaw, as if scolding them for being so free with his emotions. Sure Turians weren’t near as expressive as humans seemed to be, but there were tells even humans learned quickly. Humans likely had to learn expressions quickly considering the wide variety of emotions they openly display on a daily basis. He’d seen a wide variety of expressions on Eliza’s face in regards to Baveti, some similar but meaning completely different things.
Except for the one of pure happiness when Baveti demanded a forehead touch. That was one look he would recognize immediately at this point, from glances stolen when the woman wasn’t looking. His best efforts to ignore her were overruled by curiosity.
“Turians aren’t as expressive as humans, but I can tell something is bothering you or confusing you one.” Eliza said, voice a bit gentler when she sat down on the floor next to his crate he was using as a chair. A mandible flicked with interest, that he immediately ignored by snapping it back to his face. Her voice was genuine, actually concerned about what he was worried about, and he had the feeling everything he thought about her was wrong at that moment. Could humans really be that interested in another’s concerns?
“Maybe it’s both.” He argued weakly, forcing himself not to mimic her when she tilted her head to the side slightly in encouragement. “I just…don’t understand you.”
“…okay?” She mumbled, seeming a bit confused herself. He could only growl under his breath in frustration.
“It’s not that I don’t understand humans, I don’t think I could in the short time our species have been in contact, even if I tried.” He rumbled out, lookin go back towards the datapad he had sat down beside himself before back to her. Cautious blue eyes met gray. “I don’t understand you. We hiss at each other and mock fight like bondmates, but something about you catches my interest like a new rifle. As much as I try to ignore the fact that you’re here, I keep catching myself wanting to learn more.”
She was silent for a few moments, Baveti trilling out soft noises of confusion before Eliza finally snatched the baby up into her lap where he settled a bit. She seemed lost for words, as must as he felt lost in general. He watched her eyes drop to meet Baveti’s, the baby gently smacking her nose with a taloned hand, forcing a huff of surprise out of her. She seemed to be thinking over everything he had said carefully, to the point he was starting to feel uncomfortable. It was completely natural to feel curious about another species right? Even if you technically were supposed to have been killing them? Yeah he felt guilty about clawing her the one time, especially when Garrus had scolded him after, but the others had shot him with some kind of sedative and he wasn’t fully awake when he reacted. But there was something else too, just a feeling of pure distress when he had clawed her and watched her leap away. Now she was sitting beside him like they had known each other for years instead of months!
So he was genuinely confused by her. By how distrustful he was to start but now finding the two of them more similar than expected. He wanted to place the blame on Baveti, for winning over her and choosing the human as his adopted mother, and he was stuck with a baby that constantly smelled like human and Eliza.
It wasn’t necessarily a bad scent, but it left him feeling very strange.
“Well, I think that’s normal. That’s how most people make friends. If you’d have been a human or me a Turian, we would have probably gotten along instantly.” She finally spoke, drawing him out of his thoughts to glance at her. If she would have been a turian, a lot of things would probably have been different.
“You already have the personality of one.” He huffed back, ignoring the jolt of some kind of feeling when she smiled at him, teeth just barely showing.
“I’ll take that as a compliment then.” She teased gently, before resting a hand on his arm. He had to fight back a flinch that was instinct, but was able to relax into it easily. “I’m curious about you too, I was from the day they introduced us and I slammed into you by accident. You act all big and tough and mean, but I know you’re secretly a gun nerd.”
“Wha- you don’t know that.” He growled half-heartedly at her, watching her smile go from soft to an amused smirk.
“So you don’t just read over weapon patterns in your free time while working to see what you can modify to make it better?” She teased, motioning at the datapad that’s screen was still on. It did, in fact, have the pattern for an auto rifle on it, that she would have been able to see from across the room at the angle she had been at. His frustrated sigh got her chuckling at him, and he offered her a weak flick of a mandible. “It’s charming, really.”
“I’ve never had anyone claim my weapon fascination to be ‘charming’” He scoffed, her moving to stand up while his eyes flicked to the datapad. He immediately spotted the exact issue with the pattern he’d been modifying, quickly tapping at it to fix it while he’d spotted it. He glanced up to find Eliza standing leaned on one hip with her arms crossed and a knowing look on her face. “Fine. I like to modify and work on guns.”
“But specifically yours, I know. I recognize that one from the compound. Jane figured the sniper was Garrus’s due to the coloring of the metal, but you seem more like a stealth and warfare specialist who deals with multiple ranges and needs a more multi-purpose gun.” Eliza explained, and he found himself pausing. Had she seriously gotten all that from a weapon pattern and his gun choice? Why did he find that knowledge so interesting? She was much more interesting to him now, based on that alone.
“I’ve had that gun for a long time. Could never afford an upgrade really, but it lasted me long enough I’m attached to it.” He tried, glancing back at the screen as he examined the statistics. The rate of fire was just slightly under what he preferred but considering he’d added a stabilizing mod it was also expected. Eliza was giving him a knowing look, watching the screen update before she reached her hand out for the datapad. He reluctantly handed it over, watching as she tapped at a few things.
“There. Now you won’t sacrifice your fire rate for stability. Change the order of some of the mods, put the stabilizer on before the other perk and you won’t have nearly as drastic effects.” She advised handing it back with a smile. He glanced over the screen with a slight tilt to his head before blinking up at her. “You’re not the only gun freak.”
“Huh.” He managed, Eliza turning on her heel and walking towards the elevator. Valence had to convince himself following her was not a good idea, Baveti however had no such qualms about chasing with tiny chirps. The woman picked up the baby turian and took him with her, leaving Valence alone. He sighed, standing up from his spot and moving over to the cots in the corner of the hangar where him and Garrus kept their stuff. He sighed as he sat down again, glancing over the datapad curiously. So Eliza did know her stuff after all.
***
Eliza watched as Valence startled awake at a second kick to the leg of his cot, eyes snapping open and immediately meeting amused icy blue ones from where she was standing beside him.
“I leave you for fifteen minutes and you fall asleep on me?” Eliza teased, chuckling. He growled at her, shifting to get comfortable again on his side and closing his eyes stubbornly. “Now you’re gonna ignore me? Rude.”
He just rumbled out another sleepy growl. She snickered, pulling the rifle from behind her back and clicking the chamber once. He made a soft noise but otherwise had already started to drift off again. He seemed so content, expression relaxed and mandible flicking every now and then. She didn’t realize she was gently trailing a finger over the plates on his forehead and back along his fringe until she saw him stiffen. She froze, before gently repeating the motion again, less confidently but at the same speed and pressure. He tumbled out a strange noise, and she knew he wasn’t sleeping anymore. She took a careful breath, trailing down his fringe with most of her hand instead of just one finger, like she would with Baveti. The baby turian was watching them both, silent but observing. She’d give anything to know what the child was thinking. Valence took a deep breath, Eliza freezing again.
“If you’re trying to wake me up, it’s doing the opposite.” Valence rasped, a low purr to his voice she had never heard before. She pulled her hand back.
“Sorry.” She whispered. “I should have asked.”
“I could have moved.” Valence argued, finally cracking open his eyes again, instantly spotting his rifle. He stared at it, waking up instantly as he slowly sat up. “Is that…?”
“Yeah. I kept it as clean as I could, I can respect someone else’s weapons as well as my own.” She said softly, holding the rifle out to him. He stared at it for a moment before taking it from her, aiming it across the hangar to check the sights before humming softly to himself. She couldn’t help but smile at him, watching his mandibles flick with focus.
“Thank you.” He finally said, dropping the gun and laying it beside himself on the bed. They both knew it wasn’t loaded. “I wondered what had happened to it.”
“Me and Jane took in yours and Garrus’s weapons when we had to run. I know now that you aren’t going to shoot me-I hope anyways- so I felt it was time I returned it.” Eliza explained quietly, shuffling nervously and hoping the turian didn’t detect it on her. “Plus, we all need to be prepared, and if we are going to work together to stop this war, we have to give you guys your guns back.”
Valence nodded, glancing over the gun again. Eliza took that moment to escape, nodding politely before moving away.
“Hey, Eliza.” She paused and glanced back at him, meeting his gray eyes with her own. “Don’t be so nervous next time. I only bite if you’d like me too.”
She sped out of the hangar after that, face red and mildly mortified. It wasn’t like she tried to be sappy, and she realized that touching his fringe was probably inappropriate and unprofessional. She kinda wanted to do it again, just to hear that little pleased noise he had made while half asleep. He was right, if he didn’t like it, he could have moved away.
So why didn’t he?
Eliza didn’t get the chance to think about it long, nearly slamming into her sister in the hall, Garrus right behind her. Both of them looked worried and frantic in a barely restrained sort of way, she didn’t even have time to really think about the visor on his face nor the gun on his back before She took a deep breath and turned to follow them back to the hangar. Whatever was about to happen was big, she could sense it.
Good thing she’d returned the gun.
Chapter 10: Meeting the Family
Notes:
So sorry this took so long to get out! I’ve been sucked into the world of Supernatural thanks to a coworker and forgot that I had a chapter to finish!
As an apology for not posting in a month+, have a 5.2k chapter!All mistakes are mine, I have no beta! Enjoy, and thanks so much to everyone who has left Kudos, comments, and bookmarked! They feed my desire to write knowing you all enjoy!
Chapter Text
“Woah, Woah, Wait. Who is coming on board?” Kaiden interrupted, Eliza shooting him a sharp glare that Jane had been on the receiving end of many times since their childhood.
“His name is Spectre Nihlus, a turian representative of the military sorts.”Jane repeated, a note of annoyance sneaking into her voice. The lieutenant had gotten on her absolute nerves in the last half hour while she explained what was about to happen to the crew. Eliza and Valence had been the first informed, naturally, and it was clear that Valence too had his reservations about their future member. “He’s here on behalf of the Council, likely to decent wether we are allies like we claim to be, or if we are a threat.”
“Ourselves included.” Garrus rasped out, mandibles right to his face. Jane was fairly positive he was anxious or worried. Hell, she was too! “Nihlus is a highly trained combat and firearms specialist. He wouldn’t be a council spectre otherwise. He’s older than us, but I’ve been friends with his family and platoon since I joined up, and I’d like to think that me being here is why he was sent instead of another spectre.”
“The biggest issue is, he wants to bring a partner of his own: Saren. He’s an asshole.” Valence growled out, Eliza once again flicking that warning glare around, this time to her companion who just flicked a mandible at her.
“A very powerful one.” Garrus growled back, a warning of his own in his voice. Jane put a hand on Garrus’s arm, his head tilting to refocus on her, cerulean eyes blinking slowly in apology. At least he showed some respect.
“Regardless, we have to make a good impression here. We are the only humans to ever attempt this, and while we have a small standing with a few turian colonies, we need this alliance to go through with stopping this war. Otherwise, a lot of humans are going to die.” Jane sighed, running a hand through her hair.
“So, all due respect, ma’am, but we are going to have two highly trained turian agents on board the ship?” Ashley asked, glancing between Jane and Garrus nervously. Jane understood where she was coming from, Jane would be lying if she said she wasn’t a little nervous herself.
“Technically we already have two.” Eliza huffed, shuffling in her spot. The crew glanced to each other uncomfortably, Not approving of the idea to add two more Turians of potentially higher skill level than the two on board already to their mix.
“Nihlus is a friend. Saren was his mentor. And with luck, Saren will leave faster than he will stay; he despises humans but he knows better than to challenge anyone here.” Garrus promised, wide eyes pleading with Jane to trust him when they met eyes. She nodded subtly, the Turian’s shoulda drooping slightly with relief.
“Just be calm, try not to cause issues. That’s all I ask. Do you trust me? Do you trust us?” Jane asked, pointing at herself, then to her sister and the two Turians already present. There were several hesitant nodded and ‘yesses’ that echoed around the dining hall, and Jane dismissed the quickly after. Nihlus was supposed to meet them in their current airspace at any time, and the crew needed to be in their positions. Ashley paused, seeming to wait for Jane to come speak to her, so Jane gently rapped her knuckles against Garrus’s chestplate before stepping up to the lieutenant.
“Commander. I trust you, and I’m going to trust you know what you’re doing here.” Ashley said hesitantly, glancing to where Jane knew the Turians and Eliza were talking quietly to themselves. “You tell me to jump? I’ll ask how high. Ask me to kiss a turian…” Ashley trailed off with a slightly awkward half smile. “Well. At least make sure they are good looking in their standards first.”
“Of course.” Jane chuckled, getting a salute that she mimicked before Ashley departed. She took a deep breath before turning around, seeing Garrus with his Multi-tool out typing away. “Everything good?”
“Yeah, just got word from Nihlus that they are dropping from speed now and will be ready to board from their shuttle in five.” Garrus responded, meeting her eyes. “They will come on armed, but just allowing us to be unrestricted and with our own weapons will let them see the level of trust we have here. Nihlus won’t let Saren go overboard with his criticism.”
“We hope.” Valence growled softly, tempered only by the baby turian he now had strapped across his chest since Eliza had apparently went to retrieve him. Jane wasn’t confident it was a good idea to have Baveti out when Nihlus and Saren arrived, but at the same time, maybe it was the best idea. Valence and Eliza wouldn’t put the baby at risk knowingly, so if Valence and Garrus seemed comfortable, Jane was going to trust them.
“Jane? Ship just arrived and requested to board. Spectre clearance. Docking bay is clear and ready.” Joker called over intercoms, disturbing Jane’s trail of thought.
“Now or never kids.” Eliza mumbled, taking Baveti from Valence while the purple and orange turian flared his mandibles once with a look to Garrus, who just blinked slowly back with a low rumble.
“Let’s not keep them waiting.” Jane called, turning on her heel.
***
“Good First impressions, don’t get shot, and don’t get the ship blown out of space. No pressure.” Eliza mumbled quietly to herself, Valence chuckling at the same volume next to her, having been the only one to hear. “Cause ya know, it’s not scary at all to have two spec-ops level soldiers boarding for an assessment of us. Could probably kill us with a word.”
“Calm down.” Valence advised, Baveti chirping at their feet where he played absently with a stuffed animal Eliza had gotten him at their last colony. It was of some sort of alien dog thing named Urz that was apparently a well known legend to Krogan people.
Not that Eliza had ever seen a Krogan, but the pictures were intimidating themselves. And now Baveti had a red and gray plush that was modeled after one, big black eyes and all. It was kind of cute.
“I can’t help it. If we screw this up, not only are we all dead, but so are a lot of our people on both sides.” Eliza whispered, finally meeting his silver eyes with her blue. He tilted his head at her.
“If there is one thing I’ve learned about you and Jane, it’s that Shepherds are more than anyone bargained for. I like to talk trash about Nihlus, but he really is a good turian, he just was picked by the wrong teacher on how to handle some situations. He likely changed now that he’s no longer training.” Valence reassured, Eliza smiling softly up at him. On impulse, she reached up her left hand to trail a finger from his forehead to the tip of his fringe, watching him tilt his head down to allow it.
“Thanks. Let’s just hope they do feel that way.” Eliza told him, watching him stare for a moment as if searching for something in her eyes before stepping up alongside Jane and Garrus a few steps ahead. The shuttle had landed but no one had exited yet, likely preparing themselves for a confrontation.
Baveti chirped at her curiously, wide pink tinted eyes worried about why Eliza was worried. She just stroked his fringe too, hearing the gentle purr the baby let out in response before the shuttle door hissed open. Eliza didn’t hold her breath, she did, however, stiffen her spine the second Jane and their Turians did. Good first impressions; obviously they weren’t nervous at all.
Definitely not.
At all.
Eliza could only watch from a few yards back from her sister as a dark brown plated Turian stepped out of the shuttle, face markings Chalk white and armor a deep gunmetal and stone gray with red highlights. Green eyes flicked up as he stepped down out of the shuttle, immediately locking in Garrus.
“Vakarian! Damn it’s been a while!” The turian barked out, rushing forwards at the same moment Garrus took a few much slower steps to greet the other turian. “It seems you aren’t too beat up, that’s a good sign.”
“Nihlus, it’s been too long!” Garrus rumbled back, allowing the other turian- Nihlus, huh. Not what Eliza expected- to circle him before shaking hands and motioning onwards. “Come, I have someone I’d like you to meet. This is Commander Jane Shepherd, and her Twin Sister Eliza.”
Eliza offered a nod, just like Jane when those green eyes flicked to them both respectively. It didn’t miss Eliza’s attention that his eyes drifted down at Baveti too, the baby turian peeking around her left thigh from where he had hidden behind her. If Nihlus was impressed by how she kept his gaze, he didn’t make any indication of it, just a slight tilt to his head in what she assumed was curiosity.
“Commanders.” Nihilism stated to them, dipping his head in greeting as he approached Jane before offering a hand to shake that she immediately accepted. “I’ve been told good things thus far, I have good expectations about you both. Garrus has been keeping me informed.”
“We try our best.” Jane agreed politely, a slight smirk on her face. “Though I’m sure Garrus here exaggerated some things.”
“Oh I’m sure.” Nihlus huffed in pleased amusement, while Garrus just huffed out a “hey!” behind him. “I think we will get along well, the two of us.”
“I agree, if that isn’t too forward for a first encounter. Shall I give you the tour?” Jane offered with a much more relaxed posture, seeming satisfied everything was well. Nihlus however seemed to falter.
“I should probably introduce Saren first, he’s taking his sweet time coming out. Not the best fan of humans, I’m sure you understand.” Nihlus said, Tilting his head in apology. “He won’t stay long, just to see how your ship fares against a turian model.”
“Good.” Valence grumbled out softly, Eliza kicking the back of his leg- calf? Lower that where the spike thing on his leg was anyways- scoldingly. She saw him adjust his posture to hide the blow, but the way his head turned slightly to the side so that he could flick a mandible almost made her crack a smirk in victory. Nihlus didn’t seem to have paid attention to the short interaction, something that she was grateful for since he had turned to face the shuttle again.
Where a very strange looking Turian stepped out, head spikes longer on the cheeks with small chips and scars on the plating that betrayed his age. Eliza wasn’t sure what color his eyes were, but the almost seemed to glow blue from the angle, he head turning as he examined the hangar with distaste. Eliza assumed this was Saren.
He looked like an asshole. Juding by the low rumble Valence let out, he probably agreed with her silent sentiment.
“I want to see your ship plans. Nihlus can do the socializing.” The elder silver Turian growled out in Jane’s general direction, silver and black armor aged like the rest of him as he stepped closer. His creepy blue eyes met Eliza’s for a second, then flicked to Baveti as a low humm of anger echoed from him. Eliza could feel her hackles raises, her whole body tensing in response to the threat of danger directed at her. Saren stepped towards her rapidly, Nihlus seeming alarmed as Valence stiffened himself at the posturing, even Garrus seemed displeased at the eldest’s behavior as he moved towards her.
She bared her teeth in the best snarl she could manifest with no sharp teeth and no claws, keeping Baveti firmly behind her while holding her ground. Eliza doubted she was much of a true threat, and she was sure it wasn’t her display of challenge that made Saren pause.
It was the deep, low warning growl that echoed way too loudly as Valence stepped in front of her and Baveti, mandibles flared to the sides slightly and his own teeth bared. A true Turian threat.
“Enough!” Jane snapped, voice full of authority that even Nihlus jumped to attention, Saren’s dark eyes slowly drifting to her. “You want ship blueprints? Here.” Jane offered a tablet to Nihlus. “But this? That’s enough. I won’t have a fight break out on my ship because of a stranger who doesn’t even want to try to understand what we are doing to keep the peace between our species. So, with all due respect, either play nice, or get the hell off my ship!”
The silence was near deafening, Garrus standing beside Jane protectively, Nihlus glancing between the two before shooting a look at Saren who begrudingly stepped back from Valence. Eliza refused to let herself tremble, refused to let the adrenaline crash hit her just yet, not until she was sure Baveti was safe. Saren seemed to understand he was outnumbered with this, snarling as he turned to get in Nihlus’s face.
“Sent me the patterns. This is your problem.” Saren snarled as he stomped back to the shuttle and slammed the door closed as hard as it would on motorized seals. Jane’s shoulders relaxed slightly, leaning ever so much on Garrus’s arm that he had hesitantly put on her shoulder in support. Nihlus glared after the elder, but Eliza was focusing on Valence when he turned to face her, gray eyes wide with concern as he glanced over her and Baveti in turn. Nothing had happened, but she supposed someone moving at your adopted child aggressively was just as much a threat in Turian language as it was in human. Baveti gave a nervous chatter at the situation, one where Eliza immediately snatching him up into her arms and turned away.
“Perhaps we should do that tour now, give them some time.” Nihlus suggested softly, Jane nodding and moving towards the door with her Turian companions. Eliza waited for them to go before she forced herself to move, Valence trailing behind like an overprotective puppy straight to her floor and to her room.
“Eliza?” Valence finally rasped out, watching her. Watching wasn’t even the correct term, more like studied. She wondered what he saw in her posture, in her expression; in the slight tremors she couldn’t quite suppress. She didn’t feel scared really, more like she was being charged in the middle of a battlefield that was in her own home, her body tense and ready to fight for her life fearlessly. Sure that was the mind of a soldier, she’d battled hundreds of Turians in her military history, but not like that. Not so close she could have physically touched the attacker and knew she couldn’t win.
Maybe she should have paid attention in rehab about combat trauma after she got her first good wounds. She could feel the way Valence’s talons had torn through her skin, and that was an accident! She couldn’t imagine what would happen if she was unarmored and weaponless like she had been.
“…Eliza!”
She jerked, eyes meeting silver seconds later. He must have been calling to her for the past few minutes, if the concern in his normally distrustful eyes said anything about the state she was in. Baveti was playing in the corner, blessedly ignorant to Eliza’s meltdown. Valence seemed to see she was back, as he shuffled closer to her slowly with his hands raised passively. He paused when he was right in front of her, crouched down to meet her level from where she had at some point sat on her bed.
“I’m….I’m okay.” Eliza said weakly, unable to stop shaking slightly. He was so close, but she was hesitant to reach out. What had her life become when she- Military commander, a trained soldier and professional- had a turian trying to comfort her from whatever had just happened to her? She’s been through war for years, so why was one scary turian charging her what freaked her out?
“You don’t look okay.” Valence rumbled, head tilting slightly, eyes observant but also…soft. “I don’t know much about humans, but your skin is more pale than it normally is.”
“Yeah, that happens when we get sick or hurt.” She explained quietly, glancing towards Baveti playing a few feet away. Valence growled softly, not a threatening sound, but a worried one like he was thinking.
“You weren’t responding to me, like you were in a trance. Do humans have combat trauma too? A lot of Elder Turians get flashbacks or can suddenly act out of character if they remember some part of battle too vividly.” Valence asked, voice low and gentle, the most quiet Eliza had ever heard him.
“Yeah, humans do too.” She responded, offering a weak smile. “How do Turians cope?”
“Well, uh…” Valence chuckled, seeming nervous before he adjusted so he was sitting next to her on the bed. “I know humans touch and embrace, and Turians do sometimes but it’s the same as petting our fringe. It’s soothing to someone who is stressed. Which, you’re not a turian but…”
Eliza was leaning against his side before he could finish his uncomfortable fumbling, and she could help the smile when he stiffened at the first touch. His armor was cool against her face, resting against the armor around his neck and shoulders, and it only took a few seconds for him to reach his left arm around her side hesitantly. Eliza focused on her breathing, absolutely refusing to cry from stupid overwhelming emotions, especially not in front of Valence who was trying his best to help. She let her eyes fall closed when he cautiously trailed gloved talons through her hair, no doubt watching to see if he crossed a line.
She didn’t know what this was, or why she was so okay with it, but she didn’t want him to stop.
***
“Okay, wait, so this ship was modeled by humans, with inspiration of Turian looks?”
“Pretty much.”
Garrus huffed, watching Nihlus and Jane with amusement as they discussed the design plans for the Normandy with Joker. The pilot hadn’t been overly enthusiastic at all the questions Nihlus was rapid firing at first, until he seemed to realize the dark plated turian was actually knowledgeable about ships and designs. From there it had become more technological talk than actual discussions, and Jane seemed amused even if she also wasn’t contributing. Garrus gave her a playful nudge when he noticed her eyes glossing over when a question was directed at her.
“Nihlus, we should probably get you settled down in a spot to sleep at, make sure you’re comfortable and accommodated.” Garrus interjected, causing both the elder turian and pilot to pause in their conversation sheepishly. Nihilism begrudgingly stepped away from his perch next to Joker.
“Probably a good idea, I’ve taken up more time than I intended too in distracting the Pilot.” Nihlus huffed, not exactly apologetic in the least. Jane, on the other hand, looked relieved.
“I doubt you want to sleep in the crew quarters, but we can bunk you up with Garrus in the hangar or shut down one of the rec rooms to make more space. Unfortunately the one is kinda reserved for Baveti’s playroom at the moment but the crew won’t be too upset to shut it down while you’re here if needed.” Jane offered, Nihlus glancing at Garrus who just tilted his head in response.
Is she always this accommodating? Nihlus rumbled softly, No longer facing him but still directing the question pointedly.
She is not like most humans. Garrus tried, huffing himself. She knows you’re no danger here, so she has no reason not to trust or be polite. Even when we were nothing but prisoners she still treated us like living beings.
It’s….strange. Nihlus rumbled softly, watching Jane as they fell into step behind her in the elevator. Here we thought that Humans were nothing but overly violent, aggressive creatures. How wrong we were.
Some humans still are. Two of the crew actually were guards that hated us prior to being under Jane’s authority. Now, we tolerate each other fairly well if I dare to say. Garrus chuckled, Jane turning to give him a strange look before rolling her eyes with a soft smile.
“Are you two doing that secret conversation thing that apparently Turians can do?” Jane said, facing towards the door and not either of the Turians who had snapped to attention at the comment. “Thought so.”
Sass too? Bonus deal! Garrus couldn’t hold back the snort of laughter at Nihlus’s comment, especially when the other Turian was grinning at him. Jane did turn to look at them then, emerald eyes flicking between Cerulean and dark Jade and the expressions on each of their faces. Garrus was sure his own was a mix of embarrassment and amusement, and it was clear Nihlus had no qualms about being openly amused.
Turns out, Nihlus had a plan to take them planetside, to a small turian colony that was being attacked by a group of humans called Cerberus. Jane didn’t seem to take the briefing well, and had to explain how Cerberus was the human band that attacked the original holding facility, and was a Human elitist group only interested in killing other species for their own gain, including any human who stood in their way.
“Some of the things we’ve been told they do to not only Turians, but to humans too, I’ll have no issues blowing up their facilities.” Eliza huffed, clicking on her last piece or armor and settling her gun on her back. “I know the facility you guys were sent to wasn’t the nicest, but Cerberus tortures their POWs, not just interrogates them.”
“We assumed they were like an elite death squad when our groups first encountered them. We had no clue they were completely separated from other human groups.” Garrus responded, Nihlus leaning against the shuttle next to him. The dark plated Turian was watching Eliza with interest as she checked her guns, Valence mimicking her unintentionally with his own auto rifle. Garrus huffed.
“Yeah, until you really get informed, you wouldn’t know they want us dead just as much as they want everyone else dead. We got wind of them early on, but we were too busy watching the Turian lines to be able to fight back against Cerberus too.” Eliza rambled on, clicking a clip into her rifle at the same moment Valence did, the orange and purple Turian glancing up at her in surprise. Garrus could have snorted if he wasn’t trying to make a good impression, but he didn’t have too since Nihlus did it for him. Eliza glanced up.
“What’s funny?”
“Oh, nothing. Just you two checking your guns in the exact same way and at the same time.” Nihlus teased happily, Valence narrowing his eyes in a half glare while Eliza just smirked. Garrus sighed, grateful when Jane walked in from the elevator holding a data-pad and typing away on it. She met Garrus’s eyes first with a smile, green eyes glittering.
He wouldn’t admit how happy it made him that she sought his eyes out first, some weird inner instinct practically preening at it. He did turn to glare at Nihlus who had also seemed to catch the little exchange and was giving Garrus a look that was more suggestive than Garrus wanted to deal with.
“Alright so, we are gonna land about a mile back, we should be able to go the rest of the way on foot. Radar has twenty-to-thirty targets in this facility, all Cerberus registered. We won’t know if they have any hostages or prisoners until we get boots on the ground and find a console to hack into for records or shipping manifestos.” Jane said, all the practical efficiency of a honed combat operative bundled into one highly deadly woman.
Even Nihlus seemed impressed.
“We have reason to believe there are at least two Turian prisoners, a lieutenant and a civilian, both picked up from the same colony. Primarch Victus has been tracking them for weeks, but we have no evidence that either are still alive.” Nihlus rumbled, finally stepping away from the shuttle to see what plans Jane was looking at when she freely offered the data-pad to him to observe for himself. This was her mission, but it was also his test for her.
Garrus took a deep breath. This mission had to go well, they didn’t have an alternative. Sure, Nihlus didn’t seem bothered by the twins nor their ship or willingness to work with Turians. He even gave back the respect that he got himself, and would tease back with them just for the fun of it. He was settled and comfortable around them, and that was not something anyone would just do out of instinct, Garrus had watched the elder Turian’s body language slowly relax the longer he was on board. Even if they didn’t find the prisoners, at least they would be able to take down another enemy facility.
“Seems like a plan. Is it just going to be the five of us?” Nihlus asked, motioning towards the group with a tilt to his head.
“Yeah, any larger and we would be too easy to detect on sensors. Five already is too much, but we can make it work. Eliza and Valence can be a ground team, myself and Garrus are gonna run scout and long distance.” Jane ordered, each respective member nodding in agreement. Nihlus nodded in agreement.
“I’ll run point then, trail alongside Valence and Eliza as ground support, if that’s alright.”
“Course. Just don’t steal my shots.” Eliza snarked with a grin, smacking the back of her hand gently against Valence’s shoulder before climbing onto the shuttle with Nihlus and him following her. Jane took a deep breath before rapping her knuckles on Garrus’s chestpiece.
“Ready, Blue?” She teased, a soft smile on her face. Garrus rolled his eyes at her with a growl, that stupid nickname still haunting him apparently.
“After you, Shep.”
Garrus had never been to this colony before, but whatever it once was, now it was barely a shell of what it could have been. The landscape was still full of life, green and colorful and healthy, while the debris of the colony was scattered around a main building at the center that once was a research facility only a few months ago. Valence seemed to be sharing the sentiment if the sad glaze to his eyes was any indication.
As soon as the shuttle landed, Eliza led Valence and Nihlus off one path, while Jane motioned for him to follow, pulling a long barreled gun off her shoulder. It took Garrus a moment to realize that was a sniper as well, just less advanced. It was a newer human model, he was sure, all sleek black metal. Why she had chosen to use that rifle over the more modern ones he wouldn’t understand, especially when she had been gifted turian issued weapons and even had a mantis on her back. He shrugged the thoughts off when they found a perch up a hill from an entrance to the facility.
Down below, Eliza and Valence were slowly pushing forwards with guns at the ready, right when an alarm went off. Jane gasped to his right when the two of them were practically surrounded in a firefight immediately, her gun raising for barely a heartbeat before she clicked the trigger and fired. He had to clench his jaw to keep it from falling open when he watched her shot take out two soldiers with the same bullet: a Clean headshot through two helmets.
Okay, maybe the gun was more modern than it looked. He raised his own gun seconds later, taking his own carefully lined shots, refusing to miss when Jane herself wasn’t missing a shot. He made a mental note to check what gun she was using, the thing seemed to patch a punch, and the longer he admired it, the less it looked human and more something he had seen before. He didn’t get to ponder it too long since Jane was suddenly jolting into action to slide down the hill, trading her sniper for a pistol when Nihlus appeared and launched into the fray as well. Garrus held his spot, keeping Jane’s red hair in his sights, sniping a Cerberus operative that got too close for her to defend against. The fight seemed to pause when she glanced up to his perch, staring directly into his scope with a knowing smile and excited glint to her eyes, before she closed one eye swiftly in a wink before immediately firing a shot into the helmet of an attacker.
Nihlus would tease him later about missing his next shot because he was so startled by the moment, a weird mix of emotions swirling around in his body.
The rest of the work was easy, pulling up paperwork, clearing the building-no sign of life but records of shipment documentation- and heading back to the shuttle with grins and laughter of a job well done. Nihlus pulled up a comm to Victus on the ride back to the Normandy, detailing the mission with clarity and pride, while the other four waited with anxious breath to see how the Primarch responded. If anything, Garrus knew the four of them were a damn near perfect team, none of them had even been wounded! Dirty and exhausted sure, but not a scratch between them.
“Well, Commander. It seems you’ve gained a new ally.” Victus rumbled, Eliza letting out a silent shout of victory from where she threw a fist up before knocking it against Valence’s armor, the younger turian flashing an awkward grin at the black haired woman and gently shoving her away from himself to avoid her enthusiasm. He snagged her back when he realized she was trying to crawl over him to grab Jane. “You’ve shown more than a willingness to work Alongside Turians, and Nihlus has had nothing but good words for your ship. I’ve already spoken to the Council about this mission, it was actually their ideas as a test. Congratulations; You’re heading to the Citadel.”
“Thank you, sir.” Jane replied as the comms ended, a huge grin appearing on her face before she let out a woop and immediately lunged into a hug from Garrus. He stiffened, surprised before cautiously embracing her back, and she was gone to hug her sister a few heartbeats later. Nihlus met his eyes over them, calm and confident, but also…pleased.
Maybe we do have a chance to stop this war. Garrus rumbled out, Valence and Nihlus both fixing him with looks.
With Jane and Eliza leading the way? Valence responded, an excited spark in his gray eyes. Definitely.
Couldn’t agree more. Nihlus added softly, nodding. Garrus grinned, mandibles flicking with pride and hope.
So long as Jane and Eliza ran the show, Garrus was also going to follow them, and he was sure Valence agreed, if the happy little rumble he was trying to hide said anything. Garrus couldn’t help his own pleased rumble with Jane’s Emerald eyes met his, bright and watery with relief.
Chapter 11: Council of New Beginnings
Notes:
I have no excuse other than I totally just dropped off the face of the earth with mass effect again! When I started this story I had just finished my 5th or so play through and started Andromeda for the first time and got addicted to a TV show so I’m so sorry for the wait!!
I don’t promise I’ll get them out quicker, but I’ve gotten back into this story again so I’m gonna write as much as I can physically force myself to do so!
~ thanks so much to everyone who has stuck around, left comments or kudos, you guys are awesome!
~and of course: all mistakes are my own. I hate editing, I’ll admit it. 🤣
Enjoy!
Chapter Text
Jane stared out the window in Baveti’s temporary room, at the massive station they were drifting outside of. Nihlus was still on board, Likely discussing with Garrus a few calibrations the ship could use, especially since she had told them she’d happily allow the blue marked turian to play around if he could get them better numbers. Baveti was in the hangar with her sister and Valence, so she had the room to herself for the time being, giving her time to just sit and watch out the window.
Green eyes flicked up when a Turian ship drifted slightly into view, likely belonging to Nihlus’s crew if she had to guess. She smiled softly when the door slid open behind her with a soft noise of hydraulics, and very distinctive steps approached around to her side before sitting beside her. She only hesitated for a moment before leaning against Garrus’s flank.
“Nervous?” He asked quietly, probably not wanting to disturb the quiet calm in the room. Jane chuckled.
“Definitely.” She tilted her head back to meet Garrus’s eyes. “But also excited. I mean, it’s intimidating to look at from here, knowing I’m going to be one of the first humans to step foot on the Citadel. But this is huge, Garrus. This could truly be the first official step to ending our war.”
Garrus made a soft rumbling noise that Jane felt as much as she heard. She smiled a bit when he tilted the side of his jaw against the top of her head after she had turned to face the window again.
“You should feel honored to be the first human. If anyone deserves it, it’s you and Eliza.” Garrus stated, tone confident with no room to argue. Jane was begrudgingly inclined to agree with him, as they had put in the effort to get here and stop a war no one else would. She got demoted by her own authorities because of her choice to make friends. “The biggest deal will be the hoards of curious bystanders. By now the council has likely announced that there will be a new species visiting the station, and I’m sure everyone will be curious.”
“Great. Paparazzi.” Jane huffed, amused. “Cause we need our pictures posted everywhere on day one. So much for keeping a low profile.”
“Well we have to sign in at customs first, so you’ll have some time to avoid popularity.” Garrus teased, Jane moving to smack at his armor fondly.
“Have you been here before? I don’t remember if you told me.” Jane asked, hearing the distant footsteps of a few crew members as they walked outside the door.
“A few times, not enough to really know the layout. We came up here for some extra training, those of us with the best firearm numbers.” Garrus hummed quietly, before letting out a deep chuckle. “I shoved Valence into one of the small fountains. It was shallow, barely even made a splash, but it was highly entertaining.”
Jane snickered, knowing how Turians felt about water, she could imagine the other Turian’s squawk of outrage at getting wet.
“I bet he loved that.”
“Oh, I got my ass handed to me by my commanding officer at the time. It was worth the extra drills.”
“Should have recorded it!”
“If I would have been able to, I definitely would have. I got in enough trouble just for doing it; they almost threw me out. Only my skill with a rifle saved me.” Garrus admitted with a rasp, mandibles twitching before he moved to sit up. Jane stood as well, not wanting to be bumped into the floor by accident, and shared a smile with him.
“I don’t know that I’m ready for this.” She admitted softly, watching the glint of concern flicker in Cerulean eyes before they hardened with excitement. “But I am ready to try.”
“That’s the Jane I know.” He growled out proudly, moving to walk beside her and hesitantly placing a hand around her back. She took a deep breath, the soft noises of a shuttle passing by the window behind them as they left the room echoing after them.
***
“Wait wait, Garrus flung you into a fountain!?” Eliza laughed, Baveti chirping at her in worry since she was on the floor laughing her ass off. Ashley- who was across the hangar messing with her own gear- was even trying to hide a laugh of her own it seemed. She had asked Valence about his time at the Citadel, since he had offhandedly chosen to say he’d been there several times during training, mostly with Garrus but a few times after before they got paired back up as a team again.
“Yes! He did! I mean the water really wasn’t that deep, but still! Our officer scolded him for days about it, I was sure he was going to get kicked back to Paladin for it there for a while, but he got lucky. Our platoon leader was friends with Garrus’s father since he worked in the citadel security system, and he managed to convince our commander that Garrus’s skill with a sniper was more important than a harmless prank against his partner.” Valence explained, silver eyes glittering with amusement. Eliza could only imagine how betrayed Valence must have looked in that moment, knowing her experiences with her own sister when they were younger.
“And here I thought you were some big bad turian who was scared of nothing.” Eliza teased, watching as Valence’s eyes narrowed in challenge before he lunged at her. Eliza shrieked, startling Baveti into leaping away, as she found herself wrestling with a being who was several hundred pounds heavier than her while in full armor. She caught a glance of Ashley watching them with a smile, but Eliza was too busy trying to save her pride at the moment to sass the lieutenant.
“Give up yet?” Valence challenged when Eliza shifted just enough that he’d think she was pinned down well enough to give in. She probably should have felt more intimidated by the fact a turian almost had her pinned for real, but all she could think about was how shockingly trusting she actually felt. If someone would have told her this was where she would be a year ago, she probably would have shot them. She flashed Valence a smile.
In the next moment she had her legs crossed around that narrow waist of his and used his weight and hold against him to fling him to the side, and then onto his back. She didn’t pin him down, she knew Turians couldn’t lay comfortably on their backs after all and didn’t want to hurt him, but instead stayed hovering over his waist with a triumphant grin. It faltered when she say how dark his eyes were.
“Uh….oops?” She tried, slowly standing up to offer a hand to help him to his feet. He squinted at her before he huffed and accepted the offer.
“I forget how flexible humans are, of course a regular pin wouldn’t work on you.” He huffed, voice rougher than normal but clearly amused as well. It took her a moment to realize why he was suddenly acting so standoffish, and shot him a smirk.
“Oh I see, Turians fight as foreplay don’t they.” She asked innocently, watching his mandibles jerk once before he pinned them to his jaw. She chuckled at him. “That’s actually not as surprising as you’d think considering you’re literally made to survive claws.”
“It’s…I don’t like this topic.” He growled out, shifting in discomfort. Eliza found it entertaining, and kind of cute. “I just wouldn’t try that move with another Turian. There are reasons our armor has more padding in the waist than typical armor, it’s a delicate area.”
Eliza knew what he meant, and chose not to press the issue since he looked absolutely miserable talking about it. Of course the bad boy with weapon fascinations was embarrassed by talking about anatomy.
“Ya know, when we were little, I put blue dye and water into a squirt gun and shot Jane with it. Our parents weren’t around much so we got up to some shenanigans whenever we weren’t likely to get caught. I didn’t know it would dye her hair purple for a few weeks. Our protectors were not happy about it but neither of us got in trouble.” Eliza brought up, smiling softly at the memory. They had been around 8 at the time, so she truly didn't know what would happen. They both still laughed about it every now and then.
“I can’t even imagine Jane with purple hair, it just seems oddly unprofessional for her.” Valence rasped back, having packed away his weapons finally. Eliza made to do the same.
“For her? Yeah, she hated it until it finally washed out. But unnatural colored hair is fairly common for humans. People dye their hair all sorts of colors, and I’ve seen a few other soldiers with neon pink or green.” She told him, sliding her last clip into her pistol. “Not exactly practical for some missions though.”
“I’d say not. Why do you think pale colored Turians always have dark armor on? Or if they have bright markings, they always wear helmets? It’s more practical to hide when you don’t have a target on you.”
“Right cause your armor isn’t a beacon on its own.” She sassed back, hearing him snort when she pointed at his orange and black armor. He growled playfully at her. She was about to say something else when his multi-tool blinked to life, indicating a message. He blinked slowly and met her eyes.
“C’mon, time for the action to start. Nihlus is going to meet us at the dockyard, but Garrus and Jane want us upstairs before landing.” Valence said, mood having turned more somber and anxious. Eliza had tried not to think about this step, but she trusted her sister, and between them and their turian companions, she hoped they stood a chance. Baveti seemed to know he wasn’t coming along, and went to sit beside Ashley, who had surprisingly offered to babysit until they returned.
“Let’s get this done.” Eliza said to no one in particular. Valence gave her a sharp nod, while Ashley saluted in her direction.
“Good luck commander. Tell Jane the same goes for her.”
“We are definitely going to need it.” Valence rumbled out quietly, heading for the elevator. Eliza paused to take a few breaths before grabbing her gear and jogging after him.
***
“Don’t worry, we have security in place to ensure that you and your crew stays protected, as well as to escort us safely to the council immediately.” Nihlus explained, Joker piloting after the escort shuttle from his own ship to show where the Normandy was to dock at. Garrus could tell Jane was nervous, but other than the subtle tells of stress in her scent-which were well hidden, he doubted he could tell if she hadn’t chosen to sit beside him- she was completely calm and professional on the outside. The perfect soldier and diplomat.
How things are going to change in the system now. Not only are humans finally traveling to the Citadel to be officially recognized as a species, but the attempt at stopping the Human-Turian war would soon be underway. Jane definitely wasn’t the only one a little nervous, Valence kept shifting in his seat across from him, shuffling a boot or flicking a mandible in annoyance. Eliza seemed to catch on to him after a few minutes, giving the other turian a slight smile in reassurance. Nihlus was the only one still standing on the shuttle, watching the nearest screen and typing on it as he needed too.
“So, we will have to go through C-Sec to get both of you verified into the system before we can actually enter, the Council has already made accommodations to make sure the two of you are registered as humans while here. Security will take us from the scanners to the council hall, so we can avoid the vast majority of onlookers who might be more interested than they should.” Nihlus stated, eyes still on the screen. “We can’t prevent everyone from seeing you, however, as there will be civilians in the hall before the meeting with the council officially starts. Just stay with Garrus and Valence and no one will approach. Hopefully.”
“‘Hopefully’ he says.” Eliza grumbled softly, Garrus flicking a mandible in amusement before tilting his head.
“Most of the species you will encounter would be Asari and Salarians. Krogen aren’t exactly popular on the Citadel according to my last visit here.” Garrus continued, having Caught Jane’s concerned look. This was going to be as new to her as it would for everyone they pass. That made it his job-and Valence’s for Eliza- to protect the two humans from any bad intending paparazzi. Of which there could become some very quickly.
“Well, I’m as ready as I’m going to be I think.” Jane said quietly, taking a steadying breath before sitting up straight. The shuttle had already started to drift into a huge docking bay, their small shuttle nothing like the ones Nihlus used or the ones around them. Citadel shuttles were blockier, not like the sleek lines the humans used that were great for storage and restock but bad for travel. Garrus tapped a knuckle against Jane’s shoulder, prompting her to look at him.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be right behind you.”
“I know.” She said softly, both of them choosing to ignore the other occupants and they watched in amusement.
Nihlus stepped off first, loudly greeting the guards at the bay they were settled in, the rumble of the Normandy just above them but hidden from sight. Thankfully their ship wouldn’t be far. Garrus started a bit, since when did he start seeing that ship as his as well, like he had always been part of it? Jane stepping up pulled him from his thoughts, drawn to observe the green eyes that widened and flicked around nervously, taking in all of the details around them. This bay was more hidden, kept well away from the public eye while keeping close distance to the council for emergencies, a smart place to land. Jane was still hesitant, not quite stepping from out of the sliding door, looking as uncomfortable as the two Turian guards did.
Garrus fixed them with a sharp glare, both dark brown plated Turian’s jerking to attention, white and tan markings different but similar to those from the Citadel areas. Probably citadel born if he had to guess. He didn’t fixate on them long, cautiously wrapping an arm around Jane’s back to encourage her forwards, and she did, trusting him completely with her safety. She was nervous and uncomfortable, it was clear even if she was only partially hiding it from the mix of awe and concern in her expression, but she did nod politely to the guards, dipping her head in a clearly Turian move that she had to of learned from him.
Well, at least she was observant. The guards shared a look then motioned them onwards to where Nihlus was waiting patiently. Valence and Elise shuffled slowly behind them, Eliza likely having a similar experience as her sister. Garrus ignored the knowing look Nihlus was giving him.
“The guards are uncomfortable, but everyone here can understand humans since the Omni-tool upgrade has already been adjusted. Just place your hand on this screen here and it will scan you into the system. Officer Larita there- behind the glass, she’s the one who runs this sector- will prompt you what to do next.” Nihlus explained as they walked, pausing at a locked door while motioning to a screen that was the size of a small TV. Jane approached first, offering an acknowledging nod to the lavender skinned Asari who nodded back. Jane waited, glanced back at Garrus for reassurance before placing her hand on the screen, waiting for it to chirp softly and change displays. They all watched the Asari officer tap a few things on a handheld tablet before activating a microphone.
“Alright, since you’re new here, you will have to sign a few documents and transfer some paperwork. Spectre Nihlus gave us the bare minimum to allow you in, but records of health and status would be greatly appreciated to speed up the process. I was already informed that your meeting is to be underway as quickly as able.” Larita stated in a calm but efficient voice. She seemed interested in them, but also professional enough to accept the newcomers. Jane did as asked, using her own multi-tool to send in her records, then sighed the screen as it came up. A slot beneath the screen deposited a data chip linked to her records, including all the files, laws, and violation codes they needed to be on the citadel. Eliza quickly repeated the process, having pulled up her own records, and Garrus huffed at Valence as they both scanned in with just a handprint.
“Not so bad so far.” Jane whispered to him as they followed yet another guard to their shuttle to meet the council. Garrus ducked his head down a bit, Nihlus chattering away in front of them, Eliza and Valence whispering behind them.
“That was just C-Sec. Now you get to talk politics with the council.” He teased, Jane flicking an emerald glare at him.
“Don’t tell me that, I’m already trying to look professional while not totally freaking out.” Jane huffed back, a glitter of appreciation in her eyes.
“You’re doing fine, trust me. This is a big step for everyone, and you’re making it look easy, Shep. The council is a bunch of hard-asses, but I trust you’ll be able to work your magic.” Garrus told her, watching that faint red tint appear on her face. Odd.
“Thanks, Garrus.” She whispered, having relaxed at knowing he supported her. She leaned into his side briefly as they walked, following their new Asari guard to another shuttle and sitting down first with him right behind her. He barely listened as Nihlus explained how the meeting would work, where to stand, when to speak. Garrus didn’t really care about all that.
He stayed right at her side the whole walk to the council room, a wide open space with stairs leading to the platform suspended by glass. Already, the council were discussing something amongst themselves, and Garrus rumbled out a soft noise of displeasure. Jane tapped his arm, giving him a sharp nod and a nervous smile before walking up beside Nihlus, Eliza close behind. Valence was rumbling a low note of discomfort, refusing to catch Garrus’s eye.
Here we go. Garrus rumbled quietly, Nihlus pausing to glance at them. He was close enough to hear them, but it didn’t seem like he wanted to intervene. The council seemed to have noticed them now, turning to their podiums and adjusting their screens while waiting for Nihlus to speak up. Valence huffed back.
This is our one chance at this, you know. Valence chittered back softly, mandibles trembling slightly. Let’s hope it’s worth it.
Don’t worry. I think they will do just fine. Nihlus growled at them, a lopsided grin on his face before he turned and leaned against the front bannister.
“Councilors.”
“Ah, Spectre Nihlus. Introduce us please, formally. A new species has made their way to our home, and we shall address them accordingly.” The Salarian councilwoman said, seeming formal but also bored. The Asari seemed much more invested, as did the Turian councilman.
“I introduce the Human Commanders Jane Shepherd, and her twin sister Eliza Shepherd. This is councilor Sparatus, councilor Tevos, and Councilor Valern. I also introduce General Garrus Vakarian and Valence Silverine.” Nihlus spoke calmly, Eliza shifting to glance at Valence who let out a very soft growl.
“I assume Jane is the one who is the primary leader for this reckless mission?” The dark colored Turian huffed, seeming unimpressed while the Asari just nodded.
“Yes sir.” Jane spoke, stepping forwards a bit. “My sister and I were transferred to the facility to work with Vakarian and Silverine, things happened and I chose to get them to safety rather than let them be killed with a majority of the compound when we were attacked by another human-based society.”
“Can I ask why? Of all the humans and Turians engaged in war right this second, and of the past months this war has been raging; why you?” The Asari spoke up, both turian and Salarian councilors turning to watch her response as well. Jane took a moment, before she turned her head to fix Garrus with a confident look. He trilled quietly at her.
“I learned that Turians aren’t that much different from humans. Sure we look different, and the way we met wasn’t ideal at all. Just because you can’t communicate doesn’t mean you can’t still treat someone like a living being. Garrus was a prisoner, one who was just as curious as I was, and in the end, I feel like I’ve gained a very good companion and partner.” Jane said firmly, eyes never wavering from Garrus’s.
“We are done fighting.” Eliza spoke up, stepping alongside her sister. Valence was rumbling an excited growl, one Garrus was struggling to hold back. “Someone has to make the first step in putting this war to a stop, and no one has. We left our own military under penalty to come here and speak, to save the two Turians we were supposed to torture and get information out of. Our crew learned just how human Turians can be, how Asari can be. No one else has to die.”
“I have friends who were killed on the field. I’m sure Garrus and Valence did too. I’m not afraid to take a stand, because I know if we are brave enough to take the first step, others are too.” Jane snapped, emerald eyes blazing. Garrus purred softly, unknowing until he caught Nihlus watching him, a look he couldn’t quite decipher on his face. The councilors were quiet, glancing at each other for several moments.
“Nihlus, give our human visitors accommodations while we convene. We will inform you when the time comes.” Valen said slowly, before quickly moving away out of the range to be heard. The other councilors followed quickly, animatedly chattering as they went. Valence let out a soft chirp of victory, one Eliza and Jane immediately echoed and were smiling and lighthearted in hope. Garrus let them go ahead down the stairs, pausing when a hand gripped his shoulder. Nihlus.
“So. Soulmate?” The turian asked, eyes glittering fondly, teasing but also deadly serious. He had known Nihlus for a long time.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Garrus huffed, pulling away only for Nihlus to grasp him tighter.
“Hear me, Vakarian. That woman is one of a kind. I can see your interest, your fondness for her. Maybe it’s not ideal, not…conventional. But someone like her? If you have any, and I mean any intentions to come clean about that purr I heard you make-don’t deny it, I have ears- then you make it clear, and do it fast. Before someone else takes her out from under you.” Nihlus growled threateningly, before stepping away and hurried down the stairs before he could respond.
Garrus felt a headache starting. Soulmates weren’t real, as much as Turians claimed they were. Especially not between a human and a turian who had barely been around each other for not even a year. He shook himself. It didn’t matter because he just trusted Jane, liked her skill and her hair and the way she treated her crew like family. Liked how deadly she could be while so soft seeming, a predator if pushed. Not to mention how expressive her eyes could be when she was happy…
“Garrus! Come on!”
Jane’s shout startled him out of his thoughts, and stuttered the purr out of his throat he hadn’t realized he was making. Damnit Nihlus. He did however move quickly after them, not wanting to be left behind, or to leave Jane on her own.
Not that she needed protection, mind. Just a partner who had very good aim.
Chapter 12: Home Away From Home
Notes:
Another one down! Just some cute fluff for today!
Hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading!
Chapter Text
The strangest thing about being in a totally foreign space station while trying to stop a galactic war oddly wasn’t the amount of new species Jane had seen or met in the past week. It was actually the apartment her and Eliza had been given. It was massive, plenty of space with a desk and full living room and bar, and then an upstairs that held four separate bedrooms designed for Asari. Thankfully Asari were close enough to human that it wasn’t hard to settle into, and since their turian companions had chosen to stay with them-Garrus hadn’t agreed when Valence claimed immediately that it was so they could protect their humans- each turian had their own room as well. It was nice actually, a sort of vacation away from home and war. Just sitting around, laughing and watching odd Citadel shows on the screen that looked like a Television on earth but also not at all, to just cooking their own meals each day. Garrus had even learned how to properly fix a Levo-amino steak, just to impress her she was sure.
It was a nice change of pace. Not always calm, but it was a good sort of disturbance that came with having a young child in the home. Jane smirked at the not-so-subtle Yelp and crash of a toy getting kicked from the other downstairs guest room they had turned into a nursery, and she took a breath before opening her eyes and tilting her head from her spot on the couch.
“Oh! Mother-! Baveti!!” Eliza shouted, fond yet annoyed, and Jane saw why when the small albino turian came bolting into the room and onto the couch to hide beside Jane, wide eyes staring at her pleadingly. Garrus, who had been leaning on the railing over the kitchen and watching the living room snorted in amusement, and Jane shot him a look while she playfully bundled Baveti into a blanket. Eliza stormed in a few moments later, bare feet and long hoodie and shorts her choice of attire.
“Where is he? He left a toy in the middle of the hallway and I just kicked that bitch.” Eliza complained, already smiling while pretending to be mad when she noticed the giggling blanket next to Jane.
“No idea. I’ve not seen him.” Jane teased, patting the blanket. A soft chirp was muffled, but not well enough, and Eliza winked at Jane before sneaking around the couch.
“Oh? You sure you’re not hiding him? In this….blanket!?” Eliza said as she scooped up the blanket suddenly, Baveti squawking in surprise as he was bundled up with all but his head covered. He relaxed when he saw Eliza was smiling, offering a purr that Jane watched her sister roll her eyes at. “Yeah you’re cute, little troublemaker.”
“You love him.” Jane snickered Eliza shamelessly nodding her head in agreement, booping the baby on his nose. His tiny mandibles twitched in displeasure.
“So, Valence said he should be back here soon, and considering Garrus is all armored up, I think he’s got plans.” Eliza noted, plopping down on the couch to free the young Turian. Baveti just sat down on the floor to hold the blanket happily. Jane glanced up at Garrus, meeting blue eyes that were still watching them with interest. He seemed almost lost in thought about something, the way he wasn’t blinking or moving much.
“Huh. I’ll go see what he’s up too. You okay with Baveti here alone?” Jane asked, gently punching her sister’s arm. “Can you survive without a turian guarding you?”
“Oh shut up! We both know he’s full of shit.” Eliza complained, blue eyes glittering with mirth. “Go flirt or shoot or whatever you two get up to alone.”
Jane laughed but did as advised, clambering up the stairs to lean against the railing beside Garrus. It took her nudging his booted foot with her own for him to twitch a mandible at her and finally turn to face her, expression sheepish.
“Big tough Turian sniper, didn’t even hear a poor weak human approaching him.” She chuckled, watching him roll his eyes at her. She knew he thought it was funny.
“Weak my ass. I’ve seen the way you shoot, Shep, and it definitely is not classified that way.” He huffed back, playful. She grinned at him, leaning into his side that he easily adjusted his weight to accommodate for.
“Oh, so you’re saying I’m a better sniper that you? Damn Garrus, that’s a high compliment.”
His indignant huff was worth it just to see that challenging spark in his blue eyes.
“Hey now, I didn’t say that!” He growled, acting like he was going to grab her as she scooted out of range. “I was being nice and you’re being an asshole.”
“Yeah but you like that about me. At least I’m fun.” She said as she came back close, taking a calming breath. “So, what big thoughts are you having in that head of yours to keep you so distracted?”
“You can be.” He relented, before turning away to stare back towards Eliza and Baveti for a few moments. He shuffled nervously, something Jane very rarely saw him be. “What would you say, if I asked if you would want to take a shuttle tour? With me?”
Jane smiled at him, knowing he was uncomfortable because he was asking her to go out exploring with him. She found the cheeky expression adorable, not that she’d tell him that.
“I would say, let’s got while I have a bra on.” She replied, tapping his armor before moving down the stairs. She heard his started bark of laughter-she absolutely hated how she had to explain what a bra was yesterday, since they had been stuck here for a week now. Damn torture devices- so she knew exactly what he was laughing at. She could hear him following her though, so all was fine.
“We’re going out! Comm us if you need us!” Jane said in Eliza’s direction as she passed, getting a wave in reply. Jane figured her N7 hoodie and black jeans was fine to wander around in, so she slid on her boots and waited at the door for Garrus to lead the way. She probably couldn’t even drive one of the shuttles anyways seeing as how she wasn’t exactly a citizen, just a visitor. She was still surprised when a deep blue shuttle floated down to them after a few moments, just enough seats for four people. She climbed into the passenger seat with a smile she couldn’t get rid of.
“So….where too?” She asked, getting a grin and playful look.
“Well, I thought first we could go to a gun shop whose owner I’m friends with, maybe do some shooting at the range there. And if you’re amiable, then perhaps some sightseeing and getting something to eat at one of the restaurants me and Valence favored during training.” Garrus rumbled out, a hint of hopefulness and excitement in his voice. She chuckled at him.
“If you wanted to go on a date, Garrus, you could have said so.” She stated, watching him stiffen and look away quickly. He typed into the console as the top shut and the vehicle started moving. He glanced back at her.
“Would you be okay if this was a date?” He asked quietly, nervous. She smiled softly back at him, his shoulders relaxing.
“Definitely. If you’re okay with it, then I am. I know we’re closer than we should be, but I like being around you. So, who cares if it’s a new discovery that humans and Turians can get along. You’re my best friend and my partner. So…if you want to give us a try then…yeah.” She told him, hearing the soft purr he was trying to muffle. She really hoped this wasn’t a mistake. It could be too soon, too different. But she was serious when she said she’d rather him be here than anyone else. Especially a good sharpshooter like him.
Their first stop was above the multitude of waterfalls somewhere in the main plaza, and Jane stared out the windows in awe. She’d never seen something like this, not even while touring colonies and being in large cities on earth. Seeing different species around them and all the sights and shuttles was a huge change from what she had been doing the last several years. She was pretty sure what he was doing was illegal, taking them down onto one of the roofs of the walkways with a gentle thump.
“Is this where you kill me?” Jane teased at the hatch opened, Garrus huffing in amusement behind her.
“Not quite. I’m pretty sure if I wanted to kill you I could have done it by now.” He teased back, moving to her side.
“Maybe you just like my charm. I made friends with you after all.”
“You offered me a bowl of water.”
“Which you drank!”
“Fair.” He chuckled. She couldn’t help but smile at him, glad they could joke about their first meeting. “Speaking of that, it’s not fair you saw me naked when I’ve never seen you naked.”
“In your dreams Vakarian!” She snarked, catching his sly mandible twitch of amusement. “So, why are we up here?”
“For this.” He rumbled, motioning to the other side of the shuttle where there was a conviently placed blanket for them to sit on. “The view up here is one of the best on the citadel without getting arrested on the spot. They don’t exactly like me being up here but they won’t arrest us.”
“It is nice.” She agreed, moving over to settle in. The shuttles flying overhead made her a little nervous, but the view around them, if the rest of the citadel, and of space was definitely something to remember.
They talked for a while, discussing small things and weapon upgrades, how they thought the council was reacting. Eventually Garrus urged to pack up and go to a shooting range where they could challenge each other. The singular Krogan-damn, they were bigger than she imagined, not that she’d ever show it on her face- in the shooting range barely looked up at them until she had blown Garrus’s score out of the water and was celebrating with a happy shout before gently punching the Turian’s chestplate. He rolled his eyes but accepted the loss, even the Krogan chuckling in the corner.
Wasn’t everyday a human could beat a turian.
Turned out Garrus had even planned the reservation to a levo-dextro mutual restaurant, and while there were more than a few odd and curious looks on the way, most of the actual people in the place barely glanced their way, too interesting in their own lives to worry about a singular human who was with a turian. The waiter was a very pretty light blue Asari, who was polite and curious about her. Jane happily answered questions about herself, her hair, if she was actually a human. The dinner itself turned out very enjoyable, an Asari style dinner she couldn’t pronounce but was very good. She stood next to Garrus at the railing by a few gift shops, admiring the view and the content silence. One of the shops they had visited was owned by an older Asari, and the dark purple Asari was overjoyed to meet her first human and dragged her through the gift shop with Garrus chuckling after her. Jane was embarrassed by the attention, especially when the other shop workers came over to add input to what the shop owner was saying about Jane’s first gift. So that’s how she ended up with a silver and cerulean necklace, matching Garrus’s eyes almost perfectly. They hadn’t let her pay for it, saying it was her ‘welcome gift’ but she loved it no matter.
“Thanks Garrus. This was fun.” She said softly, leaning against his side happily. He was making a soft purr-like noise. If this was what being here was like, she could handle that.
***
So this was a first, Eliza mused. A whole ass apartment to herself-and a baby turian- with no one to judge her. Bavetti was playing with his toys beneather her feet, and with Jane and Garrus gone, the place was suddenly quiet and empty. Such a large apartment, with only one adult occupant felt very strange. She stood up after a moment and moved into the kitchen to dig out a bag of one of the few human snacks they had left from the ship. She would never admit to having snuck a pack of Oreos onto the ship if it wasn’t for the fact that Baveti apparently could smell them from a mile away and was addicted to the cream in them. As if summoned, tiny hands gripped her pants, pink tinted eyes staring up at her pleadingly.
Litte beggar.
“If Valence finds out I’m giving these to you he’s gonna yell at me.” She told the child fondly, not actually afraid of the turian in question. She’d eventually get him to eat one someday. “Fine, you get one you little menace.”
His happy chirp said all the things she didn’t need to hear, gently taking the treat from her and running back to the living room with it. She followed after a moment, choosing to take the whole pack with her. She watched the little turian sniff at his treat, then watch her as she broke the cooking in half. Eliza would admit she was weird, pulling the cookie apart to eat the blank piece first before eating the side with the cream on it. Oddly enough, Baveti seemed to feel the same, having learned to mimic her eating habits much to Valence’s annoyed amusement. She was just glad that Baveti shared the same Levo-amino tolerance than Garrus and Valence shared. She was distracted enough watching the small turian happily mimicking her that she didn’t hear the door open until she heard the heavy steps of metal boots.
“Really? You get left alone and are spoiling him?” Valence huffed, tilting his head and making a noise when Baveti gave a little growl of challenge, which resulted in the rest of his cooking getting shoved into his mouth.
“Actually I’m spoiling myself thank you, he’s just too cute for his own good.” Eliza commented, staring at him as she cracked another cookie, offering Baveti the plain piece which he happily accepted. Valence watched the exchange curiously. “Ya know, is the mimicking something all Turians do as children? I’ve been meaning to ask.”
“To a degree, yes.” Valence rumbled, coming over the last few steps to sit down next to her, Baveti coming over to offer his yet uneaten piece to the other turian. Valence sighed, taking the offered cookie begrudgingly just to make the baby chirp in excitement and happiness. Eliza had to hold back his laugh as he stared at the offending bit of cooking before putting it in his mouth and crunching it. “That he learned from you.”
“What? The sharing? Do Turians not?”
“Not as children. Most times the mother gives them food and the children take it off to eat away from other siblings until they learn to speak and get taught how to behave. I’d been roughhoused by my elder brother enough as a kid over food I had to learn to eat quickly and be defensive. Not all families are like that I assume, just the ones with low ranking.” He explained, Eliza pretending to not see him snatch another cookie. Hah! She knew he’d like them, the bastard.
“Me and Eliza shared everything. I mean we had our own stuff that we kept to ourselves, but we would share with each other a lot. Since our parents were always busy, we kept kept to each other for friendship.” Eliza said back, crunching on her own cookie in thought. “Yeah we would fight and bicker but it was never anything serious that we couldn’t get over. We just have always worked as a team.”
“I suppose that’s why you both lead the same ship without any authority conflicts.” He mused, turning to face her. She chuckled.
“Jane handles most of the crew and navigation while I handle weaponry and ammunition. We both communicate with strategic management. It’s just our system. We are so comfortable with protecting each other it’s just second nature.”
He thought it over, mandibles twitching slightly as he watch Baveti go back to his toys, one a model of a turian ship. Where Garrus had gotten that from was beyond her.
“I think I owe you an explanation.” Valence said softly, catching her immediate attention. He wasn’t facing her anymore, instead was staring at his boots. “I know you’ve questioned it, and I never have an answer or explained previously. Baveti was adopted by me.”
“I never wanted to assume.” She said softly, waiting for him to continue. He took a slow breath.
“I’d found him trapped. Albino or melanistic Turians aren’t exactly loved. It’s considered a huge flaw in genetics, and most are too weak to survive their first year of life. Even carrying the genes to produce one can put you in a very poor life situation. Baveti was lucky. He was on a colony we were protecting when we heard the gunshot. His mother had kept him hidden for six years, and her family had found out and killed her. Of course they were immediately taken back to Paladin, and I just…I couldn’t leave him to be abandoned. So I adopted him. The troops weren’t happy, I was frowned at, but truthfully I didn’t care. Considering I carry the genetic myself.” He finished, not meeting her eyes. She felt like crying, torn between hugging Valence or hugging Baveti.
“He doesn’t know?” She asked quietly, watching Valence sigh.
“I don’t know. I think he heard the gunshot but didn’t see her actually go. We got in their house as the dragged him out and when I picked him up he clung to me. It wasn’t even a decision for me then. It’s actually how I got my code name Firebird. Because I protect him like one.”
“Maybe it’s better that way. I mean he always comes to me when he’s upset, so when you said he chose me, do you think it’s literal for him? That he chose me as his parent?” He chuckled a bit at that, finally looking up at her.
“All his behaviors say yes. Does that bother you? Being seen as a Turian’s adopted mother?” He questioned, silver eyes meeting her own blue.
“Not at all.” She said firmly. “I feel honored really. He’s a great child even if I can’t really talk to him yet.”
“Well, he’s been talking to you.” He teased, catching her surprise. “That chirp he does? Whenever he sees you? That’s a greeting to a parent. I can’t exactly translate the noise but that’s what I means. He can speak small words and phrases, but until he gets a translator you won’t be able to understand him.” As if he knew, Baveti came over and made a soft chittering noise, glancing between them. Valence rumbled in response, and the child seemed pleased at whatever he said. “He asked why we looked sad.”
“Aww, sorry buddy.” Eliza said, smiling at Baveti who chirped back in happiness.
“And that one was that he was happy we weren’t truly upset.”
She chuckled at that, watching the child play for a few moment before her smile slowly faded. He seemed to notice since glanced at her worriedly.
“What’s wrong?” Valence asked softly. She met his eyes for a second.
“You said you had albino genetics.” She stated, watching him flinch slightly. “How did your family treat you?”
“As well as you’d expect.” He mumbled. “I was thrown out pretty much immediately. Garrus’s family took me in and we went to basic together.”
“Well, I won’t throw you out.” She said sharply, leaning against his side. He tensed for a moment before relaxing a bit. “I think you’re awesome.”
“Of course I am.” He huffed, but she could hear the relief in his tone. And in the way he tilted his head to rest his jaw on her hair with a very soft, almost inaudible purr.
Chapter 13: A War To Save
Notes:
So sorry! I won’t lie, I fell out of this fandom and then totally forgot to work on it. It’s even worse that it’s been in progress for months and I just never finished it 😅
So, please forgive me with this 8k+ update! Thanks for being patient and hope you enjoy!
Chapter Text
Garrus huffed in annoyance at the loud chiming coming from downstairs, having been disturbed from his sleep. Jane stirs slightly in the room next to him, mumbling in her half awake human ways. They hadn’t originally planned to pretty much share a room together, seeing as there were four rooms in the apartment- two rooms per floor sharing a wall as well as a rest area and bathroom, even a workout room!-but Baveti definitely needed his own room to use as a playroom. Valence had immediately chosen to bunk with the young turian so Eliza could have her own bed, but he was pretty sure they swapped rooms every other night. He waited a few moments, the chiming pausing before starting up again, Jane making no motion to actually be awake enough to deal with it. With a groan of displeasure, Garrus climbed out of his bed, and padded down the stairs into a makeshift office, Eliza peeking her head in seconds after he got there. He hesitated, letting her interact with the screen and headset before yawning a greeting to whoever was demanding their attention this early in the morning. It wasn’t even light out yet!
“What? Wait, slow down, what do you mean? Why would Turians attack that colony?” Eliza was saying when he tuned back in, seeing how nervous she was. With a quick glance at Garrus, she told him to be quiet before putting the audio on speaker so he could listen in as well.
“Yeah, that’s the only thing that makes sense Liz, I mean why else would a whole encampment suddenly show up and touch down in a matter of hours? I mean yeah this colony ain’t big but we got a lot of resources up here. Command told us to deal with it, but I’d heard you and Red were working with a few Turians and might help before shit goes down.” A male voice was saying urgently, seeming both hopeful and nervous. He sighed after a moment. “I know I’m not supposed to even communicate with y’all, but look. I’m tired of this damn war. I saw a child a few weeks ago, caught in the crossfire, and I’m telling you if I ever get forced to gun down a child like that I don’t think I could do it.”
“Vega, it’s okay. We are gonna be a few hours out if we leave now, gotta wake up Jane first but we’ll be on our way soon. Garrus? Go wake Valence and get armored up, plan to leave in ten regardless of whether the Citadel wants us to or not.” Eliza growled out, likely distressed over the talk about a child knowing she had her own turian child she was protecting now. “Vega? I’ll shoot you a message when we take flight. Just hold on if you can.”
“Yes ma’am. Be careful.”
Garrus watched as the light on the monitor flickered off with the click of the comms shutting down connection. Eliza groaned and dug her hands into her short hair for a moment before turning to him.
“Apparently some Turians have set up shop on one of our mining colonies. If we want to try and keep there from being a lot of casualties, we gotta go try and stop it.” Eliza sighed, standing up from the seat and closing her eyes for a moment. Garrus could imagine how stressed she felt, especially when the clock on the wall barely passed 3am.
“All we can do is try.” He offered softly, getting a shaking nod in response before they both rushed out to wake the others. By the time Valence and Garrus were both armored up, Jane was talking animatedly on her Omni-tool and Eliza had Baveti held up on one hip while she casually was eating with the other. Humans were so strange sometimes, but he had to admit they were efficient. Jane glanced up from the call to smile at him, a jolt of…something making him straighten up to attention. Valence cast him a weird look, but seemed to realize what it was once he followed his eyeline to see Jane once again on her comms.
You are so stuck on her it’s awful to look at, let alone be next to you while you do so . Valence rumbled out, his tone more joking than his words. Garrus growled softly at him, the other Turian huffing a laugh.
Right, because you aren’t the least attracted to her sister. He teased right back, watching as Valence tensed up and his eyes sharpened to a glare. “Don’t get distracted by a pretty face, FireBird.” Garrus purred out softly, mandibles flicking. Eliza looked up at hearing his voice, eyeing them both with a curious expression. Valence just growls at him in response.
“Who are we getting distracted by?” Eliza asked innocently as she butted in between them from behind, both of them jumping a bit in surprise. He hadn’t even seen her move! Valence seemed more concerned that Garrus felt, and he knew it was because the other turian was embarrassed.
“Nothing.” Valence rumbled out unhappily, shuffling slightly in place. Eliza grinned at him mischievously.
“Was it about me? You guys! Why are you talking about me and then getting shy when I confront you about it?” She pouts, blue eyes glittering. Garrus knew she was trying to rile them up, but Valence seemed to value his pride more.
“I’m not shy!” He huffed, realizing then she had baited him. “Oh you think you’re clever.”
“I do actually, and Baveti agrees.” She smiled back, the baby turian chirping at his name but ignoring everything else in favor of touching Eliza’s hair in fascination.
“Okay, Normandy is ready to go, got clearance set up to depart and talked to an operator about getting a shuttle straight to the docking bay so we can avoid customs.” Jane said as she approached, taking a deep breath but still as calm and collected as she always seemed to be. “Let’s head out. I got everything set up for us to go, made sure everything was stocked and filled.”
“After you, shep.” Garrus rumbled out, meeting emerald eyes long enough to give her a reassuring nod. She smiled back, moving towards the doorway.
***
“Any updates, Vee?” Jane asked, having immediately fought to get contact with their ground forces. Hearing there could be a potential attack was enough to wake her up to full alertness, especially now that she was en route to the colony to try and prevent this. The Council hadn’t seemed in any hurry to decide whether they wanted to get involved, so if they wouldn’t, she would keep trying. Vega was a friend, and if she had the ability to talk down a fight, they had to make an attempt at least.
“So far, nothing. They seem like they are waiting for something so we’ve just stayed low and kept up our guard. I’ve seen a few scouts roaming about, but no direct gunfire yet. A lot of these guys have heard what’s been going on in your side of the galaxy, and I’ve got them on hold for as long as we can. We won’t open fire but if they take shots, we will have to shoot back, Red.”
“I know, hopefully we can get there first. Just keep doing what you can.” Jane sighed, digging. Her fingers through her hair a few times. “Do you have any pictures or markings you could send over of any of their higher-ups? Garrus might be able to identify them, get us an idea of our chances.”
“I think I have an audio recording actually, a scout sent it to me. It’s a lot different now being able to understand what we are fighting against, I mean we didn’t even have a name for these guys before.” Vega said, making Jane tense.
“Wait, what? How can you-?”
“Oh, yeah they told all military forces to update their translators once you sent over the code so we could hear their plans and react accordingly. I’m pretty sure they did the same since they have been yelling stuff at us all day. Nothing threatening, more like just amused mocking.” Vega explained, an amused tone to his voice. Jane closed her eyes for a moment, now wasn’t the time to get upset about the government using her tools after throwing her out.
“Hopefully it stays that way. Send over the recording, I’ll play it for Garrus and see what we can get out of it. Hopefully we can gain some control here and prevent any live fire.” She stated, glancing over to the Turian who had perked up at his name from his spot on her bed. She knew he had been listening but not really paying attention.
“Yes ma’am. Get here soon, I’ll keep you updated.”
“Thanks Vee. Be safe.”
“You too, Red.”
Jane signed as the comms closed, a soft ping coming after a few moments. Garrus was still watching her, blue eyes totally focused and yet also soft in a weird way. It was almost like he was willing her to speak her mind, which she did.
“Okay, got the recording. Let’s see who we are working with here. This could be a big step in stopping this war. Or at least a milestone to be remembered.” She grumbled as she made her way to her Turian’s side. At his nod, she played the recording. The voice was clearly male, someone of authority but also didn’t seem to be exactly liked among his peers. He was referred to as their general but the grumbles of the soldiers in the background clearly meant he wasn’t their first choice of command. Maybe didn’t have their respect or experience to back his position. Garrus had his head tilted, staring at her multi-tool intently. His eyes glittered with recognition.
“That’s one of Victus’s sons, I’d recognize his voice.” Garrus stated after a moment, nodding. “If he’s there, especially as a general, this wasn’t a planned hit.”
“Victus? As in your Primarch?” She asked, fitting a few pieces together in her head. The Primarch’s son, and a Primarch who wouldn’t have allowed them to attack a human colony if he knew of the relationship between the inhabitants and Jane’s group.
“One and the same. Victus hasn’t scheduled any new drops, he’s actually called off attacking new colonies altogether unless they are targeted first. Then it’s defense only. If they landed there on purpose, they would all lose their ranks in the field and get sent home with a hefty slap and extra bootcamp. Tarquin has a lot on his shoulders being the only son of the Primarch, this could be really bad.” Garrus growled out, frustrated.
“He’s not respected, is he? Because of his family?”
“Something like that. He has the skill and the strategic mind but he’s young and inexperienced. He’s only been in a battle once before ranking up to general because of his family namesake. A small slip up can cost his career and his life, same for his platoon.” Garrus agreed, finally facing her. She traced blue markings with her eyes before meeting his. “I don’t think he’d attack unprompted unless something is up. For him to land and set up in a few hours, something is amiss. He prefers staying in the background, which means his platoon is more likely to open fire or rebel against his authority just to get action.”
“And if they do. He’s gonna end up in deep trouble regardless.” Jane realized. This Tarquin could have seriously screwed his career if he landed with intention and out of character from his routine actions.
“Exactly. Best plan is to get there and see what’s going on first before someone gets shot.” Garrus rumbled, leaning just slightly against her shoulder. Jane tried to hide her smile, mostly successful.
It was decided just minutes from landing that they would split into two teams, Garrus would go with Jane to meet up with Tarquin, while Eliza and Valence would go to Vega. Both teams knew it was risky to bring the other species into contact but it was their only chance right now to ensure an alliance was made before violence broke out. They were just in time, too.
It looked like two turian scouts were placed ready to open fire, a few human guards eyeing them nervously. The first shot that rang out would start a bloodbath for both sides. Garrus took off at a run, Jane motioning for Eliza to go before taking chase. She caught up just as a turian swung at Garrus, who of course dodged the hit and kicked the slightly smaller turian to the ground easily. He snarled something but Jane was too far away to hear it. The darker turian relented quickly, motioning to his friend who was watching the scuffle anxiously. Neither of them looked particularly violent, but both were on edge.
“Hey, Garrus, back off.” Jane huffed out, her turian glancing at her before listening. She knew he wouldn’t take offense, blue eyes watching her curiously. If these two wanted a fight, they would have fired already. “What’s going on? What has you two so spooked?”
Both dark Turians looked at each other, the one on the ground dark brown scaled with red markings, the other similar but with the red markings in a different configuration. Garrus chuffed at them, two sets of orange eyes flicking around nervously.
“Tarquin has a rival. There has been infighting for the past few weeks on the ship, and we got stranded here.” The one above them on the rocky terrain started cautiously, dropping down to join them. This whole planet was mostly rocks, but it had oxygen so none of them needed helmets at least. “We didn’t want to get involved with the fighting, we just wanted to go back home at the end of the day. So we came to scout to avoid the worst of it.”
“That would explain the laying camp so quickly.” Garrus rumbled, head tilting slightly. “Are there others trying to avoid this spat? You’re both dangerously close to the human camp.”
“We thought, maybe, if we stayed long enough we could try and talk to someone since we can communicate now. But thanks to another group, they are just scared of us, get antsy when we get close. We don’t have enough rations for everyone here anymore, it’s going to get bloody soon.” The deeper voice stated, this time the original that Garrus had put on the ground. This was a good start at least.
“Come on, then. We can get you in, try and figure out where to go from here. You both look exhausted.” Jane observed, watching both of the newcomers slump a bit at the comment. If they were telling the truth-and she was absolutely confident since Turians were horrible liars- who knew how long the two had been up here hoping for a friendly face.
“This could be a good thing.” Garrus said softly as they walked, their two friends trailing a few feet behind them. “This means they don’t actually intend to be here on an assault. If this is the result of infighting, we could have an opportunity to split the resources.”
“Exactly.” Jane agreed easily. This small planet was plenty big for both species. Earth probably wouldn’t see it like that, but she didn’t give a shit. The guards were worried but on seeing Jane’s clearance they quickly opened the gate to allow the group in, Valence rushing to greet them with Eliza and Vega following.
“Red! Damn good to see you!” Vega chuckled, looking as tired as the Turians. “It’s been….stressful.”
“You have no idea.” One of the Turians said quietly behind them, to which Vega grinned.
“Hey! I know you two! You guys have been creeping around the South Gate, keeping those creepy rock spider things away from camp!” Vega huffed, grinning. James Vega, tattooed and cocky, but also one of the nicest people Jane knew. Both Turians startled, stammering out agreements like they hadn’t expected to be called out. “Look man, I ain’t got no issues with you guys. Y’all are cool in my book. Shep is one of my friends, if she trusts you, so do I. The rest of the camp doesn’t care regardless so long as our kids are safe.”
“Oh. We…didn’t want to freak you out. We’ve been waiting for someone to talk to. As we told her, our crew had some infighting and our rations were low. We’re exhausted.” One of them said, and Jane realized they were leaning heavily on each other, as if desperate for some support. Vega seemed to notice as well.
“Hey, come in this tent here. You guys can get some rest.” The soldier said with a grin, neither turian rejecting the offer. Jane would have found it funny how quickly they both fell asleep but it honestly horrified her. Garrus was growling low in his throat, clearly disturbed as well.
“If it’s that bad…” she said softly, looking up to her turian. He took a deep breath before bumping his hip to hers gently.
“This is good. If the humans aren’t scared of them, and Vega is this willing to partner up, we might could stop whatever infighting is happening. Unless we end up with a power struggle, then someone will get killed.” Garrus stated back, leaning his head to bump hers gently. She smiled at the gesture, amused at how sweet the turian was being. She quickly tapped him on the nose- he abruptly jerked away with an extremely insulted snort- and smiled innocently at his wounded glare as she quickly ran out the tent. Vega was waiting nearby.
“If the rest are like those two, I think we can get along fine.” The man chuckled, his humor shadowing how stressed he really was. Jane could see it.
“Me and Garrus are going to try to figure out what we can do. Maybe we can send some more refugees this way? We have no way to know how many are trying to avoid whatever conflict is happening, but this definitely wasn’t an attack attempt.”
“Damn. Poor bastards. Send any you can my way, so long as they stay cool, so will we.” Vega nodded sharply. “I’ve seen how you work, Shep, and if you can trust that turian of yours, I know they can’t all be bad. Your two seem nice enough, and knowing you and your sister, if you trust them then so can I.”
“You’ve not seen my rifle yet.” Garrus purred from behind her, and she quickly smacked at his chestplate while he snickered and scampered over to where Valence and Eliza were talking. Vega was grinning, clearly amused by the whole thing. Jane missed having him along on small missions, he was a great soldier and a better friend.
“I like him.” He commented idly.
“Me too.” She admitted, catching those cerulean eyes from a distance for just a moment. They had a lot of work to do, especially on little sleep, but the faster they found Tarquin and found out who was causing the infighting the better. Garrus seemed to agree, as he started back her way, Valence and Jane following after a moment.
“I filled them in, Eliza and Valence are going to scout around for any other outcast groups, try and pull any friendlies they can here where it’s safe so long as that’s alright with your people.” Garrus explained, Addressing Vega. The man grinned and nodded, happy to do whatever he could. Valence made a soft chuff, Eliza glancing at him.
“I don’t know that every turian we cross will be friendly. If we can avoid killing anymore that would be ideal but I’m not an optimist. There will likely be some casualties.” Valence growled, uncomfortable. Eliza was watching him. Seemed like Jane wasn’t the only one smitten after all.
“Just do what we can, that's all we can do. We have to try at least.” Jane advised, gray eyes glittering with acceptance. Valence would protect her sister easily, he wouldn’t let anyone hurt her even if it meant putting a bullet in someone else that attacked her. “Good luck. Be careful.”
“Yes ma’am!” Eliza chirped happily, grinning as he unshouldered her gun and moved off with her turian close behind after a heat tilt. She focused back on Garrus.
“Guess we have work as well.” She sighed, acting put-upon. “Vega always gives me hard work.”
“Oh yeah. Always you, Shep! Gotta get the best!” He huffed, swatting at her. Jane laughed, grinning at Garrus who moved to follow her. He stayed unusually silent for a while until they were outside camp.
“So, you and Vega seem close.” The turian burred, failing at being nonchalant. She could tell he was bothered by how friendly they were so she stopped dead in her tracks to face him.
“We trained together, and were teamed up for a while. Yeah, we are friends, close ones. I’d love to have him on board the Normandy. But that’s all we are, playful flirting aside.” She explained, watching those blue eyes, visor blocking her view of one. She stepped up to him and motioned for him to lean down. He did after a moment of hesitation. “You’re who I want, Garrus. Trust me. I have friends, but I only have one partner. Besides my sister, obviously.”
She told him softly, before leaning up to press a quick kiss to the side of his face, on the bone of the nearest mandible. He tensed in surprise before a low purr stuttered into existence. She chuckled at that, knowing that sound was good, so she let them lean close and share the same space for a few moments before backing up. They had work to do still.
“C’mon big guy, let’s get this done.”
Finding the main camp was easy, but identifying the state of it was harder. Clearly the ship was damaged, the way it was crashed but intact rendering it usable but not able to traverse space anymore. Likely a result of the internal conflict. The camp was clearly divided into two sides, and several Turians seemed to be snapping at each other even at the distance Jane was at. It didn’t look good, but she trusted Garrus to keep her secure.
“Lead the way.” She said softly, meeting blue eyes for a moment before he did as instructed. Instantly, guards were on high alert at spotting her, a few hissing insults her way immediately. It was clear she wasn’t welcomed to actually enter camp, but Garrus’s sharp growl shut them up quickly. His rank probably afforded him a lot of command, especially since the guards left her alone to trail after her turian quickly. Judging eyes followed her, a few growled as she passed, but no one openly attacked or threatened her well-being. It seemed like while they weren’t happy, the Primarch got the message across.
“Vakarian!” A voice called, familiar. It took Jane a moment to recognize it as the voice from the recording. A younger turian approached them quickly, eyes lit up with excitement. He and Garrus both seemed to perk up, mandibles flicking curiously. “Damn, are you a sight! Never would have expected to see you of all people. And who is this? A friend I assume?”
“Shepherd, this is Tarquin Victus, son of the Primarch.” Garrus introduced, seemingly at ease around the other Turians. A few others were openly curious about them, which she hoped was a good thing.
“Jane shepherd. I’ve heard a little about you.” She started with a soft smile, watching Tarquin huff and roll his eyes.
“Knowing Garrus, probably all bad things, right?” He chuckled, tilting his head. “I’m guessing the human camp contacted you two? It wasn’t our intention to stir things up, but we had an emergency.”
“Yeah, James Vega is one of the ones in control here. He’s a friend of mine and knew we’d been kicked out of the alliance, but wanted to avoid conflict if that’s what was happening. We stepped in just in case.” Jane explained with a chuckle. She didn’t want to pressure the other Turian, but it was clear he didn’t want to explain what was going on. Luckily Garrus also seemed to pick up on it.
“I heard there were issues, what’s going on?” Garrus asked quietly, Tarquin glancing around before motioning them both into what looked like a modified shipping container.
“Long story? Atticus, one of the higher ranks on board, decided he didn’t like how I ran the ship. Not many of the crew had issues until he started vocalizing it, and now it’s put a split in the crew. We had to make an emergency landing when a few members started fighting for real instead of just to relieve stress. Minor wounds in combat practice are expected, not life threatening ones. Unfortunately one of the engines got sabotaged by something on the way down and we landed a bit harder than expected.” Tarquin grumbled an explanation, clearly under stress. Jane knew any authority challenges could be disastrous for the entire crew, especially for a species known for aggression. “Unfortunately the ship is taking forever to repair since I’m down half my crew that know how to fix it. Atticus has convinced half the group to target the human camp while the rest of us are just trying to survive and get home. They took a majority of the rations and refused to share, so tension is high.”
“My crew and Vega’s are willing to take in everyone who needs it, we have rations we can spare as well. Send them to the human camp and tell them Shepherd sent them, they will be under my protection. I’m assuming any who are against that won’t go.” Jane told him, watching him relax a bit knowing they did have some Allies after all.
“I contacted Paladin to explain the situation. They are supposed to send a crew here to deal with Atticus and his team, but right now it’s just keeping those that are loyal alive and healthy to fix the ship. I won’t deny help, especially since the Primarch explained how you were an ally.” Tarquin sighed, seeming grateful. “This wasn’t what I expected when I took this path, but I wouldn’t change it for anything. Not if it means stopping a war I didn’t believe in.”
“Amen.” Jane smiled, nudging Garrus. He chuckled, before his head turned quickly, alert. Seconds later a light brown colored turian with blue markings and deep green eyes came in, panting.
“It’s Atticus, he’s attacking the humans!”
Jane’s heart dropped. Eliza and Valence were there. Garrus met her wide eyes with his own before they both bolted out of the container and towards the edge of the camp. There was already gunfire in the distance, and it seemed like even the leftover Turians from the split looked uncomfortable, approaching Tarquin nervously when he addressed them. They didn’t want to fight, but Atticus threatened them if they didn’t side with him. Garrus growled low, a dangerous sound that sent a Jolt through Jane. She shoved the feeling down, drawing her gun. They had a camp to protect, and Tarquin clearly was willing to help. Jane shared a respectful nod with the crew commander, Garrus flanking her without hesitation.
***
“You’re way too agile for that much armor.” Eliza’s voice called to him as he easily lept from one small rock platform to another a few feet above her head. He tilted his head towards her, rumbling out a soft noise. Blue eyes stared back up at him, a smile on her face.
“Actually the armor is light.” Valence snorted, booping easily to the next platform. He could just walk down by her, but he wanted to be higher up so he could keep an eye around them as they patrolled. They’ve found a few turian scouts who readily accepted the escort to the human camp, if just to rest over everything else. They were cautious, but a few of them commented about Tarquin being relieved that humans weren’t a target anymore. Most seemed uncaring of the war, preferring to just keep to their normal tasks over getting into gunfights. Clearly they respected the Primarch’s wish, which was advised.
“Says you. My armor weighs a ton.” Eliza complained, finally clambering up to join him in hopping from flat space. She wasn’t quite as graceful, but he approved of her attempts. He chirped at her when she almost stumbled, blue eyes glittering with amusement. “Awww were you worried I was gonna fall?”
“Nope. I was ready to laugh at you.” He huffed, turning away. He flicked his mandibles in amusement at her laughter.
“You definitely were worri-“ she was cut off by a gunshot ringing out, the sound of armor shields breaking loudly behind him. He jerked around just in time to catch Eliza as she stumbled Into him, dazed. He shielded her, sharp eyes glancing around for the culprit. A startled, pale brown colored turian with purple markings was staring at them before turning and bolting, clearly running to tell someone something. Valence snarled, made sure Eliza was secure before he bolted after the attacker. Valence clearly had more experience in rough terrain than the other did, because he caught up quick enough to tackle him to the ground. They wrestled for a moment, dodging hits and wincing at a few that connected before Valence finally got the other pinned down. The other growled a warning that Valence echoed, both of them glaring at each other for a moment before Valence finally allowed the other up.
“What’s your problem!?” The other snapped, mandibles flicking in irritation.
“You are. You shot at my partner!” Valence snapped back, a low growl rumbling in his chest. The other Turian winced a little at the noice, gold eyes sharp and angry. Valence was so tempted to throw a fist just because. He could have killed Eliza!
“Look man, I didn’t know she was with you! I’m supposed to shoot any human scouts while the others get to the camp!” Valence froze, his expression must have scared the other since the turian seemed to realize something. “He lied. About the humans. Primarch didn’t tell us to kill them, did he? Oh no…”
“Damnit!” Valence snapped, turning on his heel and bolting. Eliza was still sitting on the ground, watching him run past her. He felt a path of guilt, but she’d understand when she realized what was happening. He’d deal with that other turian later, right now he was putting every bit of his natural agility to the test just to place his feet properly so he could run without tripping up. He dropped down a small ledge just outside the camp, the human guards jumping in alarm at his aggression. Vega was right inside, seeming alarmed.
“Vega! Extra Guards on posts, now!” He panted, Vega blinking once before issuing the order. The human camp immediately rallied, people running and the few sheltered Turians looking around in confusion since they had been disturbed. At least they didn’t have to worry about staying here for weeks.
“Valence? You okay, man? You’re breathing hard.” Vega asked, stepping up to the heaving turian. Valence didn’t feel okay, his chest hurt a lot more than it should.
“There’s…there is a planned attack. I’m not sure if it’s the whole camp or not. But there definitely was a group that the instigator lied too. It’s going to be a lot of unwarranted death if we don’t catch them early.” Valence managed, glancing around. “I left Eliza, she got shot but she wasn’t hurt. I gotta..”
“Dude, take a breath before you pass out. Do Turians get panic attacks?” Vega asked, Valence only able to huff. It took some convincing for him to agree to sitting down to catch his breath, but his eyes stayed locked on where he’d run in from. She was okay, she’s coming soon. And then he could stop feeling so guilty. One of the other Turians burred questioningly at him. Mandibles flicking when he finally looked at him.
“She’s your mate.” It wasn't a question. It definitely wasn’t phrased like one. But Valence knew the implication, that it was clear he cared for Eliza more than just a friend or combat partner. How he let himself be so obvious about it he didn’t know, but it was clear that everyone around him could sense his worry.
“Not…officially.” Valence corrected after a few moments, getting an accepting nod in answer. Turians typically believed in battle prowess over species-aside from Krogan- so it wasn’t a surprise that a turian was interested in a human, even if it wasn’t expected or endorsed, they had been at war and held their own. Not to mention Eliza was technically a woman of power and rank, both sought after in a military partner. He was lost in thought, long enough that a shrill cry caught his attention. He stiffened, a dark feeling grabbing his chest as a low snarl ripped out of him unannounced. All the Turians around him flinched away at the sound as he leapt up. Valence had one target, and it belonged to the woman who was cursing up a storm outside. She was being held by a turian, nearly black in a color so dark of brown but with bright gold markings on his face. He was smug, and Valence wanted to shred him.
Vega glanced at him, but the hard look in the man’s eyes made it clear he wouldn’t stop him. Valence decided then that he liked this male human. He endorsed welcome violence when it was a valid thing.
“Let me the fuck go!”
***
Eliza groaned, dazed. Damn, whatever that gun was, the thing kicked like a horse when it made an impact. Luckily she had armor shields, and it only hit her flank. Valence’s strong arms caught her on the downfall, carefully setting her down and checking her over. She managed a small smile, a bit sore but unharmed, before something caught his attention and he rushed off. Likely their attacker, if she had to guess. Damn turian was protective as hell when he wanted to be. She was shaking a little, light tremors of shock preventing her from getting up right away, so she just took a few deep breaths to steady herself. She would probably be bruised later, and hella sore.
She fought to her knees from her sitting position, wincing at the sparks of pain it caused up her right side and arm. She could hear some kind of scuffle happening, before heavy footsteps caught her attention. She looked up just in time to see Valence sprinting towards her, and then passed with only a half glance at her. She felt a flash of hurt, before she realized something had to be wrong. He’d had an almost panicked look in his eyes, he was tense and was running full out. Something definitely was wrong for the Turian to be acting that way, he’d never leave her behind unless there was a valid reason.
Which quickly became obvious when she could hear raised voices rapidly approaching her. Eliza scrambled gracelessly behind a nearly chunk of rock, wincing at the pain in her side. The voices were soon echoing heavy footsteps, rumbling voices telling her that these were not humans who were approaching. Valence wouldn’t have run from a group of Turians, things just weren’t adding up!
“They won’t know what hit them if we attack fast enough.” A low voice growled, raspy and deep and clearly malicious. “Serves them right. We need what they have, and unlike our allegedly general, we aren’t going to ask the enemy for help!”
Wait! Oh….oh no.
“I’m sure that new ship is already at camp, likely talking to Tarquin now. That leaves the human camp without turian lookouts.” Another voice added, a higher tone with smoother sounds.
“And the ones that decided to take refuge?” That one sounded younger, more unsure and cautious.
“Take them down. They are by all purposes, traitors.” There was that first voice again! The footsteps started up again, and Eliza held her breath as they got close. She turned slightly to try and peer around her left shoulder, hoping for a glimpse. She got a glimpse all right, as a press of cold steel touched the side of her neck. She slowly turned her head to look up, meeting dark brown eyes and off-white markings on cream scales.
“Well, not all of them are at camp.” He said, eyes glittering at her while she tried not to move. Seconds later, two others appeared beside her, the one sneering with a low growl. He was very dark brown, like dark chocolate, golden markings reflecting equally gold eyes. Eliza knew instantly that he was this group’s leader.
“Maybe, we have an alternative. Trade her life for their supplies. If they deny it, we can still kill them all, starting with her.” The dark one said, crouching down next to her. Eliza gave a soft growl at him, trying her hardest to stay emotionless and harness her inner turian. All it did was make him amused. “Don’t worry, I won’t rough you up too much. Not yet anyways.”
She yelped when he grabbed her and yanked her up, instinctively fighting the hold until the cream turian stepped in and snapped her wrists together and tied them together with a strange looking rope. In a fit of spite, she kicked out at the cream turian, who snapped his teeth and punched her in the chest. She stumbled back to the ground coughing, accidentally meeting eyes with a pale brown turian who wore light blue markings. Dark, gold-flecked, Green eyes looked conflicted, clearly insecure about what was happening. Eliza didn’t exactly have time to think about it much before she was dragged up again, held tightly by the leader.
“Do you really think using her as a bargain will work, Atticus?” The younger asked, eyeing her. She could just see him hovering nearby, anxious and uncomfortable. Atticus? Was that the gold eyes one who was bruising her arm?
“It doesn’t matter. We will eliminate the camp regardless. It just may take longer than expected.” The turian responded, definitely the one holding her then. Atticus.
“I don’t know why you think they want me.” Eliza tried, voice surprisingly steady. All three jumped a bit at her voice. “Atticus, right? Fancy name there, must have been adopted.”
“Enough. Don’t speak.” Atticus snapped, shaking her roughly, gold eyes darkening. Okay maybe riling him up wasn’t smart, but at least she could gather information this way. Pretend she was terrified out of her damn mind. No way could she overpower one turian physically, let alone two and one that likely wouldn’t jump in. Not an acceptable risk.
“Oh, too stuck on your own monologue? I haven't heard your grand plan yet, it must be shit.” She tried, smiling. Green eyes looked more nervous as they moved on, and she quickly saw why when they rounded a wall of stone and revealed another thirty or so Turians armed to the teeth. Atticus grinned in that turian way, mandibles flicking as if he was pleased at her startled reaction. He brought his head close to the left side of her face, a low, rumbling growl coming from him.
“Oh, don’t worry about my plans. You won’t be alive to see them anyways. Don’t worry, you’ll be first to go down.” He purred, before barking a laugh. “Humans! Really such soft creatures, with an equally soft name. Although I admire your species! You’ve put up a good fight. Tarquin is too much of a coward to test your defenses, too stuck on Daddy’s law.”
“Primarch Victus halted turian combat with humans!” Eliza snapped back, suddenly defensive. She didn’t know who Tarquin was, but clearly he was meant to be in charge instead of Atticus.
“Oh, he did? Too bad we didn’t get the message until after this camp was destroyed. A shame really.” Atticus challenged, rumbling out a laugh. The other Turians had noticed them, eyesing her nervously. These Turians didn’t look confident, not like Atticus seemed to be. They seemed uncomfortable, flighty. They all watched her in discomfort as she was handed off to another brown turian. “Drag her. Let’s move!”
“Psst! Hey!” Eliza tried softly, staring down the anxious young turian who was walking nearby. Her guard stiffened too, but didn’t shush her. Green eyes met hers awkwardly. “You guys don’t seriously like this plan do you? What has he done, threatened you all? Some leader he is, asshole.”
“It’s this or he shoots us.” Her captor mumbled, and she glanced ahead to see a few others glancing back at them before giving slight nods. She thought quickly, thinking of a plan. Half of these Turians looked uncomfortable, and that was dangerous. They would all get killed.
“Okay. Uh…you guys know General Vakarian, right? Tarquin’s friend Garrus?” She asked, lots of startled nods and wide eyes. “He’s with my sister, Jane Shepherd. We came here to stop this, so you know he’s working with humans. We are trying to stop this war, Primarch Victus sent us! If you guys attack the human camp now, it’s going to cause issues with us stopping this fight and getting the citadel to agree. Let Atticus take the fall, but don’t fall with him.”
Green eyes glanced around before he gave her a soft nod, quietly sliding what she hoped was a knife to cut at the rope, fraying it enough she could break it free in a second before slipping round to the back of the group. She couldn’t see him, but she somehow knew he was doing the right thing. Her guard loosened his grip on her so she wasn’t struggling to keep up while battling the ache in her side, and she gave him a grateful glance. This was good, she could see whispers traveling, a few growled replies and huffs of disagreement. Eliza can admit she was distracted, enough that she yelped when a taloned hand grabbed her by the back of the neck and dragged her forwards. She fought the hold, recognizing how close they were to the camp, squirming despite the pain and discomfort. She let out a few colorful words, not feeling a bit bad, especially when she was shoved to her knees.
“Let me the fuck go!” She snapped, squirming hard enough to loosen the grip. A second of freedom, and she took it, shoving herself forwards and yanking the rope apart from her wrists. She felt the stock of a gun hit her back, throwing her off balance but missing her head. She froze at the priming of a rifle, staring at Atticus and his stupid grin.
“Oh, don’t worry. You won’t see the rest of this spat.” Atticus snarled, chuckling as she squirmed on the ground to get away from him. She glanced at the Tyrian’s behind him for help, catching a few sad looks, a few pleased. But the ones that stood out were the few sneaking away in the background, ones Eliza knew wanted no fight, and weren’t about to be drawn into it. She knew the difference between cowardice and smarts, and the way they glanced back in concern proved it. She understood, and she hoped that maybe they would all make it out of this.
“Bite me.” Eliza snapped back, giving her own attempt at a low growl. Atticus seemed a bit startled at the sound before his gun clicked. Okay, now she was panicking. This was bad, like, really bad. Luckily she didn’t have to take the shot, a single bullet ringing in the frozen silence that spurred her to action, rolling sharply to the left and curling up at the reactive gunfire that shattered around her. She curled into a ball, arms covering her head in a weak attempt at protection, but she peeked through her arms to watch her surroundings as best she could. She needed to move, but with the open gunfire, standing would be near suicide.
Which was when she spotted her familiar turian, dropping down from the barrier wall, gun raised and moving with a lethal grace only turian’s held. Silver scales glittered in the light, gray eyes sharp and dangerous, rifle barking out shots. Eliza realized then why he had left her there, the scout he had grabbed must have admitted what was happening, and he likely saved the humans from being flanked without warning. She felt a tug of affection in her chest, before she scrambled to her feet at the break of gunfire. Valence spotted her again through the chaos, Multiple other turians firing back at the hostile group from the human camp, strips of cloth tied around their guns to identify them. She slid to his side, ducking into cover while he crouched down pressed to her side in the small space.
“Are you hurt?” Valence growled, a cold tone to his voice Eliza had never heard before. His eyes were sharp with anger, face tense. She cautiously pressed her right hand to the side of his face, catching the slight flinch before he allowed his head to tilt into her touch. He had been scared for her, but had chosen to help the majority like he knew she would want.
“I’m okay.” She said softly, smiling. This really wasn’t the moment, but her heart was pounding, she was lost in the glitter of gray eyes flecked with just the smallest bit of gold. She leaned forward to press a quick kiss to the front of his mouth, breaking away with a smile when she heard a stuttered purr rumble deep in his chest before he seemed to refocus, jerking his head up and growling low at something nearby. She flinched when Valence shot from their hiding spot, tacking someone to the ground with a mix of growls and hisses. She peeked around, watching as her turian squared off with Atticus, who had likely come after her.
“Back off!” Valence snapped, mandibles flaring in threat. Atticus seemed to grin, eyes lit with way too much excitement to be sane.
“Oh, protective of your pet, are we? Don’t worry, I’ll kill you after I get her!” Atticus snapped, jumping forwards. Eliza had never seen two turians actually facing off in hand-to-hand combat, but she noticed two things right away. One, turians were freakishly agile, which she knew but at the same time, this was a completely different situation to see the agility at use. And two, that Turians were not afraid to try to use those wickedly sharp talons they had to claw as well as punch and kick. She knew Valence wore gloves around humans, but now, around other turians, Valence was in his element without his protective gloves.
“You won’t live long enough to touch her again.” Valence purred out, head tilting with a dangerous leer. Valence was a professional, but the other turian had age on his side, experience. It was clear pretty quickly that Valence didn’t have quite the experience, but he was giving as good as he got. Eliza was pretty sure she’d be traumatized by the sound of nails sliding through scales and thick skin for the rest of her life. Another reason to end this damn war for good.
A shrill whistle caught her attention for a heartbeat, Spotting her sister and Garrus coming towards them. Things slowed down after that, as Atticus got the upper hand and threw Valence onto his back with a brutal swipe of talons across the left side of his face, as Eliza shouted for her, Atticus grinning in victory. Eliza didn’t even recognize the cool steel of the turian gun in her hands, Valence’s gun, until she brought it up and fired, the knockback aching in her right shoulder but the aim steady. Golden-Amber eyes widened, dulling as the turian looked down to the hole in his chest before he crumpled to the ground. Valence groaned as he rolled over to stare back at her in concern.
Gunfire faded pretty quickly after that, but Eliza was too focused on keeping her turian on the ground. She ended up sitting with his head in her lap, gently trailing her fingers over his fringe while he rumbled out a tired purr. His face was bleeding with the dark scratches, armor splattered with his own and Atticus’s blood, a bit dented and torn but mostly intact. His side was cut open, and he was rasping a bit, but otherwise he was just settled where he was comfortable until someone could help. Jane was by her side after a few minutes, with a strange Turian at her side.
“Eliza, this is Tarquin. Tarquin, my sister Eliza. And this is Valence.” Jane said, eyes glancing over the wounded Turian who just rumbled something Eliza felt more than heard. Tarquin made a similar sound, so she guessed it was whatever Turian specific talk they had.
It took some time and a lot of grumbling on Valence’s part before he was in a tent in the human camp with a mix of Turian and human medics seeing to him. Eliza stayed by his side, content to let Eliza handle the politics. Her Turian snapped at anyone who tried to tend to his face, so Eliza stepped in, taking a clean cloth and sitting in front of him on a stool. Gray eyes met hers, glancing between her eyes and the cloth she held up in offering. It was up to him. She smiled when he relented, tipping forward just enough to rest his forehead against hers with a tired purr, and he didn’t make another noise when she cleaned up the scratches and a medic patched him the rest of the way up. She let the Turian lean against her, forehead on her unharmed shoulder, as they worked, and a quiet rustle pulled her eyes to the entrance, where Jane and Garrus stood. Jane met her eyes and smiled, giving a gentle nod.
Another success. The council couldn’t ignore them much longer, not after seeing how united humans and turians could be when paired together. Just watching the medics talk and compare notes was enough to prove how similar their species’ was. Jane let out a breath, chuckling at the response of a sleepy rumble from her hurt turian. Once he was patched up, she’d made sure he got some rest on their way back to the citadel. For now, she was gonna stay right here where she was needed most.
Chapter 14: The End…and A Beginning
Notes:
👀
Okay so, I fell out of this fandom back in early 23 (blame Supernatural!) only for my friend to send me a picture of none other…then that handsome bastard Garrus Vakarian. And I wrote the next 5k words of the started chapter in 2 days because that fucker has caught my eye AGAIN, like how could I FORGET!? So I’m
Right back into this fandom with a VENGEANCE.Never intended to abandon these babies for a year, and now it will RESUME. Otherwise I’m so sorry for leaving everyone wanting!! Hope you enjoy this long overdo chapter, and I apologize for any typos or changes in writing style as I’ve adapted!
Enjoy!
Chapter Text
Eliza collapsed down onto the couch with a huff. Sure she was grateful that she didn’t have to deal with the council, or really any political sides of the deal, but back to back escort missions and battle intervention wore someone out. Especially when she only had Alenko and Ashley as her teammates. She’d had enough of those two for a while. She didn’t mind Ashley, the woman was quite fun once she felt comfortable, but Alenko was always trying to stick his nose where it didn’t belong, especially since he clearly had a huge crush on Jane.
“Rough mission?” A ragged voice asked, still getting used to speaking again. She looked up, staring into sharp gray eyes as Valence settled down next to her. Poor guy was still limping a bit, flinched when touched, and definitely more nervous on the side with the wounds, but he was alive and healing. The claw marks down the left side of his face still sent a pang in her chest, a mix of shame and guilt and gratitude. He has them free of their bandage currently, and Eliza was grateful the scratches hadn’t hit his eye or his mandible on that side, just deep scratches down the cheek. He caught her looking, a low purr rumbling from his chest before he leaned towards her slightly In question. She smiled and leaned the rest of the way to bump foreheads , something he had seemed to start doing daily, if not in passing. She wasn’t entirely sure what it meant, but Garrus had seemed surprised and then amused when he’d seen it happen so it couldn’t be bad.
“Still not your fault.” He rumbled softly, gray eyes closed in contentment. She sighed, shifting slightly to lean against the turian a bit more, allowing him to hold her close. He’s been right at her side, regardless of his injuries, any time she was back on the citadel, trailing after her, agitated and guarding when in public. She’s never seen him behave this way before, since he was also being sweeter than normal in private. The only one he didn’t growl at was Garrus, but still would playfully challenge the older turian.
“I know.” She whispered, closing her eyes at the memory, claws through scales and skin, the cry of pain. She forced it away with a deep breath. “And I'm still grateful you protected me.”
“Of course. You protected me too, I’ll keep reminding you.” Valence chuckled, jostling her slightly. She had definitely pulled something in her right shoulder, the damn thing still ached after firing the turian gun. Weapons like that were not designed for human use.
“Your gun hurts.” She huffed, amused. “Anyways, yeah, stopped another small spat, got chased around for a few hours by some rogue human ship that we unfortunately had to shoot down, picked up a few wounded turians and got them back here safe. The usual fun I’ve been doing all week.”
“You could trade with Jane. Then Alenko could piss off Garrus.” Her turian offered, startling a laugh out of her.
“Yeah, no. I’d rather deal with Alenko than talk politics with the council. That side is boring as hell, plus I'm pretty sure Garrus would eat the guy.” Eliza snorted, grinning. Valence tensed again as she shifted, but settled back a second later. Baveti trotted into the room after a moment, pink eyes curious and a stuffed Varren in his hands. The poor baby turian had been just as distressed as Eliza for a few days, and even now she could watch Baveti’s face and know he was unhappy that Valence was hurt. “I do miss my partner though. It’s not the same without you.”
“I think Garrus could handle him.” Valence grumbled, tilting his head so he could very gently rest his jaw on her head. “It’s boring here alone, even with Baveti it’s just not the same.”
“How long till you can shoot again?”
“Too long.” Valence growled, Baveti chirping at him in question. Valence rumbled something back almost noiselessly, the young turian burring back. “They don’t even know if I can go back in the field yet. It just depends on if my leg and side heals properly. I’m so damn bored with all this rest, I’d rather try my luck.”
“If you get crippled I can’t pick you up.” Eliza teased, before she changed to a more serious demeanor. “Even if you can’t, I’ll still be here with you.”
“You love being out there.” Valence stated, which she knew was true. She loved her duty, she loved exploring and traveling space and helping people. But she also likes this turian who was mostly an asshole with a gentle heart once he warmed up. He’d come a long way from that muzzled captive she’d first been introduced to.
“I do.” She agreed, honestly. “But I like you too.”
His eyes widened with surprise, mouth opening to reply before they both heard the door slide open with a familiar sight following it. Jane walked in, Garrus trailing after her seconds later looking curious. Eliza caught the look on Jane’s face quickly, knowing something was up.
“Hey, what’s going on?” Eliza asked nervously, glancing at Valence. Jane sighed, but smiled.
“The council called me.” She said quietly, eyes glittering. “They want to discuss a treaty. Something about the Relay 314 treaty. I’m assuming that’s their name for the Earth Relay that we use.”
“Wait, they are doing it!?” Eliza shouted, making Valence and Baveti both flinch and stare at her. “Sorry.”
“Apparently the council has had enough reports of our insistence to prevent fighting that they decided to take action before our popularity ends up getting out of control if we get shot down.” Garrus rumbled, leaning against a wall corner by the kitchen, legs crossed slightly. “The more popular we are, the larger the chances of infighting if something happens to us on one of the sides. Humans don’t really support us, but we’ve assisted enough human colonies that Turians are reporting in alliances and trades and such.”
“Great, so now we are famous?” Valence growled, looking less than pleased at that info.
“Essentially, yes.” Jane sighed, smiling at Garrus as she stood beside him. “If we get killed by humans, some Turians will want revenge. If Turians kill us, the colonies will rebel. Which means a second war that’s more betrayal than anything. It would be a lot more damaging than it already is with Cerberus running loose and attacking both sides.”
“Great odds there.” Eliza grumbled, leaning against Valence’s side. He tensed again, but leaned just slightly back into her. “And the Council? They are going to try to implement a treaty?”
“That’s what they explained to us, yeah. They wanted contact with the human command, and I sent them to Anderson. If anyone can help, it’s him. It’s just a waiting game now to see if he can get the council in.” Jane sighed, moving around the kitchen and discovering the half empty pack of Oreos Eliza had hidden. Oops. Her sister raised an eyebrow before rolling her eyes with a fond laugh. Eliza grinned innocently back. Baveti chirped, which caught her attention. She would leave the politics to her sister, and spend time with her turian.
Valence really was like an angry cat sometimes, gray eyes sharp and narrowed as he quickly dodged her attempts to put some kind of sludge on his side. He growled at her, and she growled back, watching those narrowed eyes darken just a bit with interest. Oh, and did she mention that the guy was naked as well? Which was a lot less weird than she expected, all things considered, but he was not making it easy for her.
“Dude it’s not that bad!” She griped, swiping at him again, seeing the damn Turian flinch out of her reach again. “Valence!”
“Nope! That shit smells awful, and feels like slime!” He complained, glaring at her hand. Okay, the stuff did have a slime consistency which was off-putting, but it didn’t really smell like anything to her. Turians did have sharper noses though.
“You’re being a baby.” She huffed, surrendering for a moment. Even wounded he was quick on his feet, and she couldn’t help but look over the injuries with guilt. His side was by far the worst, but it was healing slowly, sewn together and no longer an open wound. The slime seemed to be speeding up the healing as it looked scarred over, but they had been told to use all the container held for his wounds, with very clear explanation and demonstration on how to use it. Aside from his flank being slashed, his right thigh was still scabbed, as was the ankle on that side, scraped up but not badly enough to need whatever the slime was. And no way was he letting her put this shit on his face either so that was out.
“Right, cause you’d tolerate it better.” He complained, growling when she stepped towards him. She grinned back.
“I’d let you do it whether I liked it or not.” She stated confidently, gray eyes squinting at her challengingly. She kept the slimed hand at her side, waiting for him to relax. “I’ll make it worth your time!”
“Oh?” He perked up, head tilting to the left as he stared her down distrustfully. She smiled and stepped closer, internally celebrating when he didn’t move. “And how will you do that?”
“I can think of a few things.” She tried, putting as much meaning behind her words so that he had no mistaking what she was meaning. He seemed a bit taken aback, pupils widening just slightly with interest. He allowed her to slowly slip into his space, chests almost touching, her mouth close to his own. His nose twitched in that way she knew was him scenting her, a weird thing she’d read that Turians did since they were much more sensitive to smells then most other species. It also meant he could probably smell her actual interest, but she had a goal here and that was not it.
“And what might those be?” He purred back, voice a low rumble of teasing intent. She leaned just that bit further so she was almost kissing his mouth.
“Guess you will have to see.” She stated, grinning sharply as she struck, sliding her slimed hand across his right flank over the wound. The turian yelped and jerked away, squeaking indignantly at her and giving her a frustrated look that was mixed with a lower heat. She grinned triumphantly. “Now can I finish since it’s already on?”
“I hate you.” He grumbled, relenting finally to her torture by laying on his side at the end of the bed. He twitched at each gentle graze of her fingers on his side, breath stuttering. She knew this was probably uncomfortable for him in more ways than having some healing goop on him, as Turians were sensitive at the waist, but he needed it to heal. He stuttered out a low purr, almost silent in the room, but she could just barely hear it. He seemed to be relaxing slowly, allowing her to touch and bandage up his side without further complaints. He was dozing when she finished, gray eyes hazed and content from his spot propped on a spare pillow he had snagged at one point.
“You awake there?” she teased, watching him huff at her before closing his eyes. “Might wanna get more comfortable first, unless you want to wrap your leg later.”
He made a low growl, before pulling his leg slightly towards her, nudging her with a taloned foot. She knew immediately what he was allowing and smiled softly. Okay, so he was just allowing her to do all the work this time. She used the last of the slime on her hand to lightly coat the scratched skin, gently wrapping the majority of his leg with gauze and a protective wrap. He’d never let her touch him this long, but she knew he was just as fond of her as she was of him. Not for the first time she considered how turians and humans would be as partners, as she was confident that Jane and Garrus were experiencing something similar.
Valence absolutely was dozing off by the time she was done, so she snuck her way into gently dabbing some gel on his face. He cracked open an eye to glare, but instead of rolling over he just closed his eye and tolerated it.
“You gonna lay around without clothes on then? Just, ass out?” She teased, getting a low rumble from him before he shoved himself up to sitting. Eliza moved to grab his bodysuit, helping him work his legs into it slowly, trying to avoid feeling that pang of hurt at every flinch. It had only been a week and a half, but the wounds might as well have been fresh in her mind.
“It’s really not that weird for Turians.” Valence gruffed, flicking his mandibles at her. “Not having clothes on. It’s all hidden anyways.”
“Yeah, by your standards I guess it wouldn’t really be weird. But humans are a little different. Can’t exactly walk around without clothes cause it hangs out. Like Asari.” She chuckled, getting a responding snort. She paused at the top of his suit, setting it on the bed instead of encouraging him to put it on. It always pulled at his side and made him hiss, and she didn’t really have the heart to hear it so soon.
“Which is why humans are still weird.” He confirmed, relaxing once he saw she wasn’t forcing his top. He rumbled at her, not quite the low purr he occasionally sported, but similar. A careful hand brushed her shoulder, where her shirt had dropped a bit on the right side. She flinched a little, before taking his hand in hers. His grey eyes were locked on her, or rather, on the bruising. He has seen it a few times, the bruising left behind from his gun, but she tried to keep it hidden from him. The hurt look in his eyes made her sigh, sliding her shirt off so she was just in her bra and tank, the full evidence open. She had a mottled mark from her collarbone to her arm about halfway up from her elbow to shoulder. It wasn’t pretty, and was slowly darkening where she kept using it instead of resting like she should be.
She also hadn’t told a medic about it. She didn’t want to admit that there was a pretty good chance she had a fractured collarbone.
“Eliza.” He rumbled out, eyes calculating. “That’s…tell me you’ve seen a medic. Or are taking something for that to heal.”
“Do you count?” She tried, her own joke falling flat. His gray eyes bore into hers once they raised from the bruising. “I’ve been busy. I’ve got Turians and humans to protect.”
“Not at your expense.” He growled, grabbing his top and sliding his arms in roughly. She rushed to help as he flinched in pain, a low growl of frustration taking the place of his usual hiss. He stood up on wobbly legs, intent. “We’re going to a medic. Now. No fighting me.”
“What about Baveti? He’s still asleep, and you know we can’t leave him here by himself.” She argued weakly, already relenting. She knew he was right, and she knew the injury was worse that she wanted to admit. Even worse, Jane didn’t realize how bad she was either. She’d been keeping it locked down from everyone. Valence shot her a look, pulling up his Omni-Tool.
“I’m calling Ashley to babysit. He likes her and she’s good at it. You’re lucky Jane is in a meeting or I’d call her too.” He huffed, glaring at his boots once he’d sent a message to Ashley. He didn’t have his usual armor, and she could tell that fact bothered him as he put on what more or less was just formalwear. It was weird to see honestly, since he normally wore armor or just pants.
She was worried, Valence could hardly walk long distances, let alone escort her as well. Even just walking through the apartment, his limp worsened, and he was growling when Ashley showed up, Eliza having replaced her shirt. The woman looked at them both, the strained look on Valence’s face and Eliza’s concern, neither of them bothering to hide it. Ashley was tired too, but she didn’t mind staying with Baveti.
“Go on. Do whatever you two are stressing over. Call me if I’m needed.” Ashely told them, moving towards Baveti’s room to check on him as Eliza led the way out. Valence only made it down the hall before he had to stop, shaking as he leaned on a wall.
“Hey, look, it’s not-“
“If you say, that it’s not that bad,” Valence growled out, eyes sharp. “I will call your sister, meeting or not.” He threatened, glaring. She sighed and moved to his flank, offering to take some weight. He accepted, softening when she wouldn’t meet his eyes.
“I was gonna say that it’s not worth it for you to be in more pain.” She said softly. He growled loudly, echoing in the hall, but she knew it wasn’t targeted at her. It wasn’t easy for him either, to be confined. He sighed, tilting so he could bump his head to hers, resting together.
“You realize that’s the same damn thing I’m thinking, right. At least I’ve been to a medic, you haven’t. You’ve been helping me and making yourself worse.” He stated, finally raising his head and shifting his stance. “But…I don’t think I’m going to be able to escort you. I know you don’t need my protection, but I won’t let you go alone. I can’t.”
“Then let me help. We can go slow.” She said softly, tucking herself to his side and helping bear his weight, while he limped at a slower pace. She was sure they were quite the show leaving the elevator, a human and a turian both wincing and hobbling their way. She did appreciate the stray C-Sec officer coming over to escort them, especially with how much Valence seemed to relax with someone on guard. The officer even got their shuttle to the nearest medbay, promising to wait for them to escort them back, the Turian a pale blonde color with faded gray markings.
The Asari doctor, and her two assistants, were very distressed as the two came in, likely recognizing Eliza. They fretted over Valence of course, forcing him to lay on a cot instead of standing by her side, and he relented only because they were right and she was still in his sight. The pain shot they gave him also probably helped, but not once did his eyes waver on his focus, even as Eliza was forced to strip to her bra so they could take scans of her. The citadel had some crazy advanced treatments, so it wasn’t long before the Asari had an answer for her, much to her defeat.
“I’m sorry, you do have a pretty bad fracture. Do you know what caused this?” She asked, her assistant gently wiping a cooling gel over the dark bruising. It felt better already, not that Eliza would admit it.
“Uh, I shot a turian rifle?” She said with an awkward grin. The doctor sighed, glancing at Valence who huffed, before the Asari cracked a smile.
“The things we do for our partners.” The Asari teased gently, setting down her data pad. “It’s starting to heal but I can tell it’s being aggravated. That’s why it’s bruising like this. I hate to bear the news but you’re going to be discharged from duty for a week, minimum, until this gets on its way to healed. I’m not sure how fast humans heal, but this gel will speed that along. Much like what I’m assuming your friend is using, just meant for Asari body types.”
“Jane isn’t gonna like that.” Eliza grumbled, Valence huffing again at her. She shot him a look, and he just flicked a mandible at her, cheeky despite being tired. He looked a bit loopy too, that shot must really be kicking in.
“I’m more concerned with the two of you making it back to your apartment without assistance. No offence to him but he's in rough shape and clearly exhausted.” The Asari said softly, gentle blue eyes meeting Eliza’s. “I don’t know if he can stay awake long enough to walk back.”
“I know. I knew I was injured but he didn’t want me to come alone.” Eliza admitted, glancing over at a soft purr coming from Valence, who had finally given in to the call for sleep. Reclining in a cot made specifically for a turian also helped that along as well.
“You both can stay here for a time, of course. I can do some gentle tests on him as well to check his healing if you have his records.” She offered, which Eliza gratefully accepted. The few scans the Asari took of the sleeping Turian were for both their benefits, and he was a much more cooperative patient when sleeping. His healing was well on its way, and the Asari even agreed that he could get back to very light duty in just a few days, likely around the time Eliza would be getting progress as well.
The Asari left them after that, so Eliza chatted with her assistants when they came to check on them, happily answering questions about human body weirdness for their notes and comparing them to Asari standards. The Asari people did tend to be the closest to humans, especially women. Informing Jane of this little issue was less fun, and while her sister was fondly annoyed, she promised her and Garrus would come by soon to retrieve them.
Valence begrudgingly accepted an antibiotic shot before they left, snickering when Eliza had to get one as well. Jane scolded them both, and Garrus must have said something silently, but they were both ready to just collapse for a nap by the time they got back to relieve Ashley. Valence collapsed into the bed, and before she could think better, Eliza did the same next to him, her back only inches from his.
***
“I’d like you to know, this might be the craziest thing you’ve ever had me do.” Anderson chuckled over comms, Jane smiling back at him. “I’m surprised command even agreed to it, although I’m not sure your council gave them much of a choice in the matter.”
“Well, it’s a lot of species against one, so.” Jane chuckled, shifting to glance at Garrus who was across the room from her. He’d sat down to do some kind of paperwork at the desk across from her, but the Turian had been awake most of the night referring to emergency calls from a few outposts so it was no surprise that the gray Turian’s chin had dipped to his chest. Anderson seemed to have caught her expression.
“I will be looking forward to meeting your Turian. He seems very much like you, and tries to keep you out of trouble.” Anderson said softly, and she couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Yeah, he tries. We’ve been running our asses off up here to get this done. It’s been a lot of work, sir.” She admitted. “Not always successful, sometimes we are too late, but with the truce finally being out…we may have done it.”
“Who knew it only took four to stop an entire turf war in under a year.” Anderson agreed, smiling. “I’ll be there in a few hours, and you better be there to escort me Shepherd. I won’t know where a damn thing is.”
“You know I will be.” Jane smiled, ending the call before standing up. She moved over to where her Turian was still asleep, hating to wake him but she just knew he’d be feeling that position if she left him. She ran a hand over his fringe, getting a twitch as he woke before tilting into her chest with a stuttering purr. He’d been doing that a lot lately, and she wasn’t sure what it meant.
“Wake up, at least move to a bed. Sleeping at a desk like that can’t be comfortable.” She said softly, meeting tired cerulean eyes as he straightened up with a groan.
“Agreed. But damn, I’m exhausted.” He grumbled, fighting to his feet. “Someone has to do the legwork, unfortunately.”
“Yeah, and you did your time. Now go to sleep before you hit the floor. Anderson will be here in a few hours and I need my best guard to be alert.” She teased, walking with him to gently shove him to his designated room as she went to hers. She fully intended to nap as well, she just wasn’t going to tell him that.
Waiting at the docks to see one of her oldest friends, the one man closest to a father she had, to come to the Citadel for the first time was one of the most daunting things Jane felt she had ever done. Not setting a Turian free or teaching them to understand humans, not experiencing new alien species. This was bigger. Anderson was going to be one of the first few humans on the citadel, and the first true political figure. In a shocking show of support, Nihlus had been assigned to retrieve him and act as his guard, and the turian had been messaging Garrus non-stop in excitement.
Apparently the two got along great. Anderson always was more open minded than the rest of the human council. With Jane and Eliza’s reputation having hit Earth thanks to the citadel demanding peace or a war force to shut it down, Anderson had told her the amount of support even on earth was overwhelming. And while the Alliance still claimed the Normandy, its blacklisted Commanders could no longer be ignored.
Jane shifted in place, nerves getting to her until familiar hands settled on her waist, steadying, even if she knew Turians also found it arousing. She’s been doing her research too, Mr. Vakarian.
“This is crazy.” She said softly, turning her head to look at Garrus, who was close but not pressed against her. A guard nearby glanced at them in interest before looking away out of respect. A lot of Turians have been doing that lately, and she wasn’t sure if it was actually respect, or because Garrus tended to purr every time she allowed him to touch her or be close. “Like, the fact that we are standing here right now, making this happen…”
“You worked for this.” Garrus agreed, finally pulling back when a shuttle came floating in, stepping in front of her to observe protectively. “If you ask me, you’ve done more for your species than they ever did for you.”
“Comes with being a soldier, doesn’t it?” She said softly, catching his eye when he tilted his head in agreement to her. She smiled when the shuttle door opened, Nihlus stepping out while clearly having been talking animatedly. Garrus trilled out a greeting, and the brown turian perked up once again, striding towards them with long steps.
“Vakarian! And Shepherd, naturally. Glad to see you both again. Excited?” Nihlus asked, grinning at them with playful eyes. Garrus growled at him good-naturedly, gently shoving the Spectre when he trailed close behind her teasingly.
“Ugh, something like that. Kind of horrified, kind of honored. Feels a lot like I’m going to throw up.” Jane answered with a chuckle, Garrus shooting her a look in alarm, both turians stepping back from her teasingly. “Oh, thanks guys. Really supportive.”
“Shepherd?” A familiar voice called, catching her attention as her gaze left the two Turians and focused on Anderson, who was approaching slowly. He looked just as awed as she had the first time, hell, the way she still looked sometimes. “Quite the damn place. Huge.”
“Yeah, it’s a lot.” She grinned, stepping forward and pausing before laughing as he instantly pulled her into a hug instead of standing in formalities. She wasn’t exactly employed by them any longer anyways. “Welcome to the Citadel.”
“Happy to be here, surprisingly. Honored, for sure. Nihlus has been filling me in about how things work here.” Anderson answered with a smile of his own. “Truth told, I didn’t understand half of it.”
“It’s okay, neither do I.” She teased, turning at Garrus’s soft trill. Cerulean eyes flicked to hers nervously as he stepped up. “Anderson, this is Garrus.”
“General Vakarian, sir. Jane has spoken quite fondly of you.” Garrus rumbled, offering a hand to shake, which Anderson did. Nihlus cocked his head at her, glancing between her and Garrus suggestively with a raised brow plate. Jane stared back at the Spectre scoldingly.
“Pleasure to meet you, Vakarian. About time Jane found someone who could keep her out of trouble. Or at least drag someone else capable into it with her.” He offered, getting a huff of laughter out of her turian.
“Not sure if anyone can really keep either of them out of trouble, if I’m honest, but it's an attempt I’m willing to make.” Garrus agreed, flicking a mandible at her playfully, allowing her to shoulder check him gently as she passed. Naughty Turian. Nicky’s wasn’t at all much better, a low rumble from him that seemed to catch Garrus’s attention. She rolled her eyes and let them have their privacy.
“Never thought I’d ever be here. On an ancient ship like this or somehow solving a galactic war. Why did you recommend me again?” He teased, getting a soft laugh out of her.
“Like anyone else would have handled it better. You’re the perfect person for this, Anderson. A lot more open minded than most of the politicians back home.”
“Damn right. Imagine if the Alliance had given Mackey the opportunity.” Anderson shuttered, Hane laughing in equal horror. Mackey was an okay soldier, a decent strategist, but one of the most closed book people on earth, not to mention damn close to sexist and racist. Picturing Mackey around alien species was horrifying on its own.
“I’d let Garrus eat him. If Nihlus hadn’t shot him on the way here.” She grumbled, smiling when she got the Admiral to laugh.
“I really feel like I don’t want to know.” Garrus chimed in, getting close to them as they walked. “Why am I being chosen to eat someone?”
“You mean turians DON'T eat humans!?” Jane gasped in mock shock, Nihlus snorting a laugh while Garrus just rolled his eyes. She tapped her knuckles to his chest plate, grinning.
“I don’t think anyone has actually tried, Shep. Even if it was a thing. Wait, do humans tell their kids that like some kind of horrifying night story?” Garrus asked, head tilting, pacing up to her left to walk alongside her and Anderson. Nihlus strode ahead to the guard station, likely pulling up forms.
“Wait, you don’t?”
“Not about eating people!” Garrus yelped, voice a whole pitch higher. Even Nihlus looked back at them. Jane laughed, bumping against her Turian playfully. “You humans tell children that!? Sure yeah maybe, ‘oh, better go to bed or the humans are gonna catch you’ but not that they are gonna get eaten!”
“I think I’ve found a way to break the Turian race.” Jane offered to no one, chuckling at the offended glare she got from Garrus.
“Seriously? I’m really starting to question my loyalties here. Clearly humans are more violent than I was led to believe.” He huffed, and Jane shared a fond look with Anderson while Garrus just chuckled and flicked a mandible at her. She grinned back at him, shoving him away playfully as they got close to Nihlus, who explained the process to get labeled in once more with Jane assisting. From there, C-Sec had them surrounded by guards on an escort straight to the council room, bypassing all the usually walking routes. Most likely it was to avoid any paparazzi or encounters, since aside from the Normandy crew-who really hadn’t stepped off the ship aside from a few of them briefly- he was one of the first humans to be seen actively escorted around.
The council wasn’t exactly ready to go when they showed up, But Valence and Eliza were. The two of them had made their way up to the platform, her sister grinning while Valence leaned carefully against a railing, both hiding their injuries well.
“Ah! Shepherd!” A voice called, and it took a moment for her to realize it was a Turian she…didn’t recognize? He clearly recognized her, and Garrus perking up and striding over to greet with a happy rumble meant he recognized him. “Forgive me, I guess we haven’t exactly met in person yet, thanks to due time. Primary Victis. Tarquin’s father.”
And that damn turian offered a hand to shake, which she had never seen but happily accepted. Garrus flicked his mandibles at her, and she shit her a warning look.
“Garrus has spoken about you quite a bit! It’s an honor to actually meet.” Jane stated softly, watching as the Primarch dipped his head slightly.
“Yes, and in good faith. Without you, this meeting could have been very different. The council is preparing, and I was summoned to speak on your behalf as well.” He explained, Garrus tilting his head. “I do believe the Council intends to broadcast this meeting as well.”
“Paparazzi so soon?” Garrus hummed, glaring somewhere behind her for a moment before shaking his head. “Then again, we already have targets so that’s not new.”
“This truly is the beginning of the end, Vakarian. Don’t belittle your own role in this.” Victus told him, and Jane could have laughed at how awkward her turian became at the praise, unsure how to handle it. She tapped her knuckles on his armor, getting a quick glance and a tilt to his head. “I do believe we are making history today.”
“Please, settle.” Councilor Valern stated, the first to appear. “In accordance with Citadel laws, and following Galactic laws, we have also requested the newest Species to join in this meeting as well via communications. We are Addressing the Relay 3-1-4 Battle between the Turian peoples, and the newly labeled Human species.”
“Here we go.” Garrus rumbled softly, the two parting from the primarch to rejoin the others. Eliza shared a look, anxious but excited, and Garrus said something softly to Valence in their strange rumble. Jane closed her eyes as the council began to speak on the war, things she didn’t even know about. Listing the losses, hearing Anderson explain their own side and loss. And when the human embassy joined in, discussing the first open fire, the origin of the hostility, and then…them. Jane and Eliza Shepherd, twins in everything, and their growing popularity. Of their task, which brought them to Garrus and Valence, of their betrayal. The primarch stepped in, discussing the ways Jane and Eliza had fought to make a hesitant truce, how somehow she managed to gain the trust of a species known for their aggression. For their war force, and strategies, and trained soldiers.
And yet…through all of this, her eyes kept meeting Cerulean. That proud little shine, a hint of playfulness, and how he caught her many times before adjusting so she could lean against him as an equal. Not a human and turian.
“In agreement, the Alliance has Elected to reinstate Commanders Jane and Eliza Shepherd to their previous rank, title, and status among the alliance, as well as Interspecies Ambassadors for the human race. In good faith we believe Anderson will make a great councilman to your Citadel. As of today, the Human side of the war relinquishes their hostility, and will halt all assault effective immediately. The order to stand down is being sent now” Hackett stated, a soft smile on his face from his hologram. Jane always did like the man, the one in charge.
“And on behalf of the Turian side, all targeting has also been declared to halt immediately under Palavin’s demand. We look forwards to expanding this hesitant bond with the humans, as well as welcoming Them to the citadel as a registered species.” Victus amended, all professionalism. The council looked between each other, before seeming to agree on something in the silence.
“Jane and Eliza Shepherd. Your wish for the war to end…has been granted. Congratulations.” The turian councilor stated, followed immediately by Eliza’s joyful shriek as she launched at Jane in front of the whole galaxy.
She wasn’t even mad. Especially knowing Valence got the exact same treatment a second later on live screen. If Jane shared a relieved, fond look with Garrus, well. They deserved it. They were fucking heros.
***
In two weeks, Humans had established a full embassy on the Citadel, and took their Rightful place on the council stand. It wasn’t easy, there was plenty of tension and animosity, fear and uncertainty. But Anderson kept them in check. Allowing a few hesitant human ships to add to their security, to introduce human trades to other species through merchandise, to add human food into the lifestyle of the Citadel, made a slow difference. Jane had even begun spotting the first of the brave humans who came to visit and document and explore their new world and alliances. And with how quickly Victus and Anderson had become friends, it was no surprise that the Turians and Human embassies were nearby each other despite how weeks prior they were at each other’s throats.
The change was subtle, but no less immense.
“I can hear you thinking.” Garrus rumbled, pressing up against her from behind, a steady brace or armor where she was leaning over the railing on the presidium, staring into a fountain as Skycars rushed overhead. “Hopefully good thoughts?”
“Yeah, course.” She said softly, leaning her weight trustingly. A few asari glanced at them curiously, open about their stares. Jane didn’t really care. “I mean…we did it Garrus. We actually did it.”
“Our work isn’t done, unfortunately.” He chuckled, resting his chin on her head happily, his arms around her a bit, enough to be affectionate without inappropriate. “And, we never celebrated. Which is why you and I have a reservation at a fancy Levo-Dextro restaurant.”
“Oh, do we now?” She teased, chuckling when he allowed her to turn to face him. He eyed the railing carefully, but deemed it sturdy enough to hold her weight and his as he stepped further into her space and placed his hands on either side of her.
“Are you saying you don’t want to go?” He rumbled, playful. She smirked at him, quickly glancing to see if anyone was looking before retaliating, sliding her hands around his waist over his armor. He tensed under her touch.
“I didn’t say that. Any time with you is important to me. But I’m not gonna hold the bowl for you.” His eyes had softened at her admission, before he broke into a laugh. She grinned, pleased, as he dropped his head to her shoulder for a second.
“Do we have to keep going back to that? I was practically dying, you know.”
“Not anymore. It’s okay, Garrus, if you can’t hold the bowl yourself I can help you.”
“I think I hate you.”
“No, you don’t.” She chuckled, waiting for him to stand back up before moving to bump foreheads with him. He nuzzled a bit, polite but affectionate, and she snuck a quick kiss to the side of his mandible. He flicked it, eyes flitting away in embarrassment, but didn’t pull back.
“Okay, you have me there.” He rumbled, ducking his head. “But, truly, you deserve to have something nice for once. Let me treat you.”
“You already do just by being here. But I’ll go if you want. I’d be honored.” She said softly, tapping his armor as she had such a habit of doing. It was practically routine at this point, safety in the familiar motion. A low purr was coming from the Turian, one she had heard a lot now but never asked. He was being much too sweet to ask now, big tough sniper being all nervous and shy.
“Then it’s a date.” He rumbled, stepping back and offering her a hand. You’d think that between them, it wouldn’t be comfortable, but she twined her hand with his happily, content.
The restaurant was nice, she’d even went as far as to wear a sleek dark blue dress she’d found at an Asari shop, the color matching her Turian very suspiciously, but the Asari woman had been correct when she said that Turians tended to like their colors on their mates, something about being ‘possessive bastards’ which also rang true. Garrus had appreciated it, preening in his formal clothes despite being utterly uncomfortable without his armor. They laughed and joked their way through the whole meal, smiles and snickering and a few dirty glances from other patrons. She didn’t really care what they thought about seeing a human and Turian out together, laughing and enjoying themselves.
After, they walked around the marketplace idly, no intention in mind besides just being close. Without his armor, she could feel the temperature difference in his warmth as she pressed to his side in a shop, pointing out that she should put a Turian model ship in her cabin, since she already had a few others she had collected. He only was being a pain because he knew she’d rope him into helping, which he really didn’t mind as much as he complained. A few Asari and Salarians cast strange looks on them, confused at their companionship, and a very pale blue Asari at one point shyly said they made a cute couple.
Garrus had preened, if also nervously ran a hand along his fringe. Jane enjoyed his torture a lot. She also suspected that the same Asari had told him some women liked gifts, since he nervously offered her a single flower she didn’t know the name of that looked like a cross between a Rose and a Tiger Lily. Apparently it was a flower native to Palavin, and while no human had been exposed to one and thankfully Shepherd wasn’t allergic, it was the thought that counted, the flower held tightly in her hands in its personal vase while sitting in her bed. He wasn’t even a room away, likely sleeping, and she already couldn’t wait to spend more time exploring this new thing.
Her dreams were less forgiving.
She startled awake with a soft cry, panting hard and heart racing. She didn’t even really remember what she was dreaming of, but she felt that strong instinct to run, to find someone, to feel safe. So, she went exactly where she should. Garrus had stirred, likely from her cry, and was sat up when she slowly made her way in, hesitant.
“Shep?” He said softly, tilting his head. She sniffed quietly, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders, and that seemed to be enough of an answer. He opened an arm for her, which she accepted immediately, leaning into his space where he wrapped around her. That familiar purr started up in his chest, and she let him guide her into the center of the Turian style bed. “I’ve got you.”
“I know.” She whispered, settling into the warmth as he curled up face to face, adjusting so her head was bracketed on his bare chest and listening to his rumbling purr that deepened. She was completely surrounded by him, and while this wasn’t how she imagined this happening but, well, she didn’t exactly mind either. This was nice. And with the deep purr rumbling around her, she knew she would be able to sleep without any other issues.
And it was worth it.
Chapter 15: A Place Called Home
Notes:
Another chapter!! Woo!
I thing our Turians are starting to make some commitments! I do apologize for a lack of baby hissy Turians in this one! 🤣
Hope you enjoy, comments and Kudos feed my writing 😁
✨ don’t forget to take breaks, walk around, and drink water! Or at least do so while reading! ✨
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Garrus huffed softly, amused. Humans were so…strange. Not that he didn’t appreciate that strangeness, certainly around a certain human Commander who was currently completely naked and staring at him, hands on her waist. He’s seen her in various states of undress at this point, most military species lost all bodily shame after enough missions, but this was only the second time he’d actually seen her completely nude. Humans were so…soft. Their skin was easy to slice through, Garrus knew that from both seeing it and experiencing it, but that didn’t make humans weak at all. Their soft skin made them dangerous. It made you underestimate them.
“Seriously? Nothing?” She asked, chuckling with amusement he didn’t exactly feel. He tilted his head at her.
“What? I’m missing something.” He stated back to her, flicking a mandible at her laugh. He enjoyed that sound, made her seem happier. He liked that his confusion and embarrassment was apparently the cause a bit less but, faced with her? He didn’t really mind.
“Turians really don’t like…get all wound up seeing their naked mates?” She questioned, tilting her head back at him mockingly. He blinked slowly at her. That was another thing she had started recently, apparently having looked up some Turian courting terms and deemed them as mates. Which, while not incorrect, made him falter a bit every time he heard it out of surprise.
“I mean we do but, it’s not exactly polite to just…ya know. Assume the intentions and er, act on them.” He argued, running a hand over his fringe. He paused, narrowing his eyes at her with a low rumble. “Wait, human males do?”
“Pretty much instantly. Then again all their stuff hangs out, unlike turians. So it’s pretty obvious when a guy is interested.”
“Not saying I’m not,” Garrus huffed, finally standing from his bed. The bathroom they shared was attached to his room after all. “I just wouldn’t want to pressure you. I respect you too much to damage your trust in me.”
“Well, all I asked was if you wanted to shower with me, and that’s about as touchy as you can get without, uh, sex.” She told him, a faint red hue- a blush!- appeared on her face. Good. She deserved to be embarrassed too. “It’s just something couples do, and I knew you were planning to after me anyways.” She chuckled, green eyes flicking over him as he divested himself of his pants.
In human standards he was sure he was probably the least attractive build. To Jane Shepherd? That was different. But she wasn’t exactly wrong, he had intended to shower after her, thus why he had been sitting here in only his sleep pants. Not like she hadn’t seen pretty much everything before, or since then. She often had come down to shower in the crew quarters when Eliza had chosen to take an overly long session in their cabin. He sighed, stepping into her space slowly, and she happily welcomed him by grinning as he cautiously rested his hands on her waist at the same moment she leaned into him. He rumbled out a soft purr.
“You do that a lot now.” She said quietly, his rumbling stopping. “No, don’t stop! I just…I like it. I don’t know what it means but I know you’re always calm when you do it. The purring.”
He paused before the purring started up again, a bit forced. She pulled away, eyebrows scrunched.
“That was forced.”
“Why are you so knowledgeable about my sounds?” Garrus huffed, mock annoyed as he stepped away from her and towards the bathroom, cheekily flicking his mandibles at her. She grinned back at him before following, like them being in a state of undress together was an every day oddity.
“Because I know you?” She chuckled, and he turned back at her insistence, backing up when her hand pressed against his chest until his carapace tapped against the tile wall. He watched her, nervously, a bit out of his depth. “Don’t fake sounds just to make me happy.”
“I wasn’t.” He told her, huffing at her raised eyebrow. “It was more a test, to see if uh, that was what you meant. Really.”
“Fine. I’ll believe you.” She rolled her eyes, gently sliding her hands up his chest and along the fine grooves of his plated skin. This was new, and he wasn’t against it, but he was also starting to freak out a bit. “Garrus? Hey, what’s wrong?”
“N-nothing! Nothing, just…not sure how to act here. Uncharted, and heh, unarmed.” She just stared at him. “Fine, I’m nervous.”
“My brave turian.” She teased. Moving her hands to bracket his jaw and mandibles, at the right spot for him to rest the weight of his head lightly in her hands, trusting. “Is it…okay? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
“I didn’t say that. Just nervous. Unsure.” He rumbled, careful not to move his face. She smiled softly at him, giving him time to catch himself before she snuck her hand under his chin. “Hey, what- oh.”
And the second her knuckles started brushing the hide of his chin in a gentle scratch, his purr rumbled right back to life, leaning into her and all thoughts lost. Her chuckle caught his attention, and he pulled back, alarmed. Damn human had been doing research again.
“Don’t be ashamed of it, it’s cute.”
“I don’t think anyone thinks that I’m cute.” He huffed, retaliating by flicking the shower head on. It was a mistake, honestly, as he’d intended to douse her with cold water and ended up dousing them both. They both leapt away from the ice water with different toned yelps, before locking eyes and laughing. Once the water warmed up, Jane got back under the spray with a sigh, before glancing back at him until he joined her, tipping his head so none of the water ended up in his mouth. She settled back against him happily, letting her hair grow dark with saturation before stepping aside so he had full access for a moment. He let the water run over him for a few seconds, enjoying the warmth, before finding his own bottle of soap.
They washed themselves, occasionally bumping each other teasingly, flicking soap at each other like children, and she even stuck her tongue out at him. He of course did the same, watching her blink in surprise at how much longer his tongue was than hers, before she gave him a look that he knew needed no translator for. He shivered, avoiding her eyes after that, even when she rubbed her hands along his spine and waist where he couldn’t reach well. The touch obviously was setting him off, but he ignored it, just enjoying the moment until she was done. He stepped back to watch her do her hair- three products just for hair? No wonder it stayed so soft- before she leaned back into his space and he wrapped his arms around her, just sharing time under the warmth. Unlimited hot water did wonders, really.
This was still new. Ever since that night she’d claimed his space for comfort, smelling of fear and distress so strongly he had awoken before her aborted cry, She just seemed to gravitate closer. Like she was a moon orbiting him, pulled into him when she couldn’t drift on her own. He closed his eyes, resting his chin on her damp hair, mandibles flared so as not to poke her, a low and pleased purr rumbling through him. Although if he was her planet, then he supposed she was more of a comet, fiery and quick and capable of great damage when colliding with whatever was in her way. Who knew this small woman was as strong as she was, he sure as hell hadn’t. One of his first thoughts of her was how quickly he could overpower her, even if she wasn’t much shorter than himself.
Now, he knew damn well she’d hand him his ass if he tried.
“Hey Garrus!” Shepherd shouted from the office, and he quickly grabbed what he had come to the kitchen for. “Someone named ... .is that translating to Solstice? Solstice is calling you!”
His head shot up, mandibles flaring in surprise. He dropped what he was doing on the nearest counter and practically sprinted to the library. Jane’s eyes widened in alarm, worried, as he tapped at the console hurriedly. Seconds later a turian face appeared, jaw curled slightly and deep blue markings striped up her face. She was grinning, even while her subvocals cried out with relief.
“Arche!” The female trilled, Jane’s face going from concerned, to confused, to curious. “Why the hell do you never call me!? You realize the last time I heard from you was before you got captured right? I had to hear from DAD that you were fine!”
“Sorry, Sol, I’ve been busy. Not an excuse, I know.” He rumbled, eyes flicking to Jane. He huffed a laugh. “Sol, this is Jane. Jane, this is my little sister, Solana.”
Jane stepped forwards into view, Sol’s head tilting curiously while Jane waved awkwardly. Shepherd smiled before turning on Garrus, eyes sharp.
“You didn’t tell me you had a sister.” She said pointedly, hiding a grin scarily well if he knew any mannerisms from humans. “Now I can find out all your embarrassing secrets, Vakarian.”
“Don’t get her started, please.” He huffed, Solana’s laughter cutting through the feed.
“Oh, I’ll send whatever vids ya want, I got tons from Ma.” His sister grinned, a bit of her accent cutting through. He groaned, finally sitting in his chair, and taking advantage to drop his head to the desk. Jane laughed behind him, leaning against the chair based on how it shifted, before he felt her poking at the tips of his fringe.
“Don’t worry Garrus, you know I’d only show them to Eliza and Valence.”
“That’s why I’m concerned.” He grumbled, raising his head with a flick, shooting the human a playful glare at her outstretched finger that had been targeting him. His eyes flicked from her hand to her eyes before he quickly licked her finger.
Jane shepherd, one of the beings capable and responsible for stopping a cross species war, screeched. Solana wasn’t much better, having been on the receiving end of that multiple times herself, and he just sat there pleased with himself, a low purr rumbling in his chest.
“I like her already!” Solana trilled, grinning. Jane smiled back, calmed after wiping her hand off on his clothes.
“I’ll give you guys some privacy, okay? Maybe go do the dishes none of us wanted to do.” She chuckled, swiping a finger from his forehead to the tip of his fringe affectionately-which he leaned into just a bit- before waving a farewell and stepping out of the office. She even closed the door behind her.
“Okay, V. Spill.”
“How long you got?”
“Long enough.” She growled, licking her jaws in a predatory way. He signed. Damnit.
Solana Vakarian, younger sister by two years, a tactical genius and excellent navigator. Not to mention his best friend, aside from Jane and Valence. Explaining what had happened, his capture, the holding cell, meeting Jane and their goal to stop the war after, it wasn’t pleasant in the least. Solana reserved her judgement, like a good tactician, gathering everything she could before she started questioning him. He even told her about the Admiral, about the citadel agreeing the war needed to end and just waiting to pass the paperwork, about Jane’s twin sister and how the two ran together despite everything thrown at them. Hell, even their own people had turned against them for a while.
“They didn’t really harm either of us, aside from our capture, but…they were different. I don’t know why, but they were.” He started after a pause, dropping his chin to his closed fist braced on the desk. Solana hummed softly. “I wasn’t wrong. They proved every step of the way that they were different.”
“Compassionate.” She corrected. “Jane cared more about life and being fair than about orders. Not unlike someone we know.” She teased, head tilted.
“I’ve never gone so far as to talk to a hostage.” He chuckled, voice growing somber. “Sol….she's my soulbond. I know she is. Maybe I knew it from the start and that’s why I trusted her so quickly. Spirits knows I’ve never trusted anyone else that fast.”
“You’re purring.” Solana observed, a soft smile on her face. “Not only, did my big brother allow someone other than his family to touch his fringe, but you actually purr when you think about her.”
“Which is a lot.” Garrus rumbled, amused. “Unfortunately for me.”
“Nihlus notice?”
“And about every other C-Sec guard who is a Turian.” He chuckled, that low purr settling deep in his chest. “I don’t…dislike the fact others know something is up. First Human-Turian mated pair, just happens to be the ones who stopped the war? Hell of a Vid.”
“I think it’s sweet. Then again, Humans do tend towards judgement first unlike Turians. Our people don’t freak out the same way, you know most look at practicality.”
“Most Turians don’t fall in love with a human who had essentially captured them.” Garrus huffed, before stiffening. Solana straightened, eyes locking on him. “Fuck.”
“I know how that would look, but you also realize every Turian can take a look at the two of you and see your relationship didn’t start with fear. You and her compliment each other, her strengths cover your weaknesses. And the way you two act, it’s practically impossible for any outsider to misinterpret anything. You two are mates, and she loves you just as much as I can hear how you love her. Be happy, Garrus. A soulbond is hard to find.”
“I don’t want anyone to alienate her.” He whispered, mandibles tight to his face as he looked towards the door, where she had disappeared. “I mean she’s a hell of a soldier, I think Turians can see that. Might even overlook her species because of her status. But humans? They aren’t like turians.”
“No, which is why she needs you to be there for her. Go get your mate, Arche. She’s probably waiting for you.”
“Don’t tell mom, or Dad. Especially dad. I’ll…I’ll tell mom once the dust settles, maybe dad.”
“You know me better than that.” Solana teased, smiling at him. “Keep in touch! No year long absences! Don’t make me fly to the citadel, I’ll kick your ass!”
“You can try.” He huffed, grinning as she ended the connection. Damn, they had been talking for an hour? Which, it takes a while to cover a whole year of events. Solana’s statement got him up, doing exactly as she advised: finding his mate.
“Where did Arche come from? If you don’t mind. Solstice kinda makes sense, the first letters are the same.” Jane observed, leaned against his side on the couch. He had sat down to read some reports, and she of course had joined him not long after making herself something to eat. He sat down the data pad, chuckling.
“To be simplified, Solana and I were obsessed with space as kids. Our mom thought it was endearing, and explained how a Solstice is the event where a planet tilts towards its planet as it orbits. Like it’s following its direction. Solana always was orbiting me, watching everything I did, and wanting to be like me. My little Solstice.” He explained, chuckling. “Arche means a source of action or purpose. Guidance essentially, a new beginning. I’ve always been who she follows, so it just stuck. Why are you looking at me like that?”
She didn’t respond, but she did climb into his lap, her knees bracketing against his thighs, and wrapped her arms around his neck. She wasn’t crying but her eyes were watery as she pressed her forehead to his. He tried to push safety and love, a low purr rumbling in his chest. She didn’t smell sad, so he figured he’d just hit a sensitive nerve that all siblings had. He nuzzled his nose against her neck, just soaking in the comfort. She couldn’t be comfortable, but she just slumped against him for several minutes.
“You and her remind me of Eliza and I.” She said softly, finally pulling back a bit to settle back to sitting pressed to his side. He liked this, barely a breath of space between them and able to wrap a hesitant arm around her back. “We were inseparable, even without the fact we were twins. Our parents were military, so we pretty much flew with them wherever we went, but when we docked somewhere on earth for a few months every year, we always got into some trouble. She dyed my hair, I scribbled on her face with a marker, we fought and wrestled and always made up. Never could stay mad at each other long. As we got older, yeah we had to mature, but we always found time just to be us. Made everything a game. Who could run longer, who could do more pushups, who could make a better shot. We were always compatible. They found out pretty quickly that we were a damn near unstoppable team.”
“I’m surprised they let you stay together. I’d assume it’s frowned upon.”
“Definitely. Mom and dad? They were one thing, he was a completely different department. Mom was a tactical soldier, Dad was a scout and mechanic. Me and Liza? Two soldiers from birth, went through every rank together. Never stayed separate long. Direct family like that was a huge problem, same as if one of us worked with our parents, but we always were able to work independently while at each other’s side. Any other team they set us up with, failed. Almost always. But me and her? Green flags every time. Eventually they realized we just were best together regardless and started treating us like individuals instead of siblings.”
“With convenient matching last names.” He teased, getting a chuckle.
“Yeah. But it worked out. We were in the right place to meet you and Valence. I wouldn’t trade it for anything, although I could have done without you getting treated as a POW.”
“Ya know, they really didn’t treat us badly, considering how our own treat prisoners.” Garrus huffed. “It doesn’t make it better, I know. But me and Valence, we were a dead team waiting to happen out there. The platoon had been split up, Valence had Baveti on his mind, and it was just a matter of time till one of us ended up dead. If that group hadn’t been the one to tag him, corner me, then it could have ended very differently. Could have been a whole other Turian, could have never even got to this point.”
“You’ve never talked about it before.” She whispered, green eyes sad as she looked up at him. He tilted his head. “About your capture.”
“Not much to say. We got split up from the group, Valence was being a dumbass and taking risks, and Baveti came after us because he got scared. The humans caught Baveti, and Valence got shot because he panicked. Didn’t realize they had surrounded us until they caught me and shoved me down. From there it was pretty much what you saw from the beginning, trying to figure out what was safe for us to eat, see how communication worked. I didn’t bother, it just didn’t seem worth it if the goal was to be killed. Until you came along. And your bowl of water.”
“Oh, shut up! I didn’t know what to do! And you didn’t like me either mister, so you were just as freaked out.”
“I was, yeah, I wanted to know what was going on. But, it was the Best damn water I’d ever had. It led me to you.”
Her eyes widened, her face morphing in surprise before she punched his shoulder gently, smiling at him with that soft expression she gave when she was fond of something. Humans and their multitude of expressions, although this one while paired with that flushed tiny to her face, he knew was embarrassment mixed with affection as she hid her eyes. Spirits, he really was gone for a human wasn’t he?
***
“I can’t believe it’s finally happening. Only took two freaking weeks.” Eliza huffed, bouncing on her toes a bit. Jane shot her a look, scolding but also amused from her spot to her right.
“Could have been two months.” Garrus rumbled from Jane’s other side, dual tone voice amused. “Be glad the council actually decided to do this quickly. Could have taken a lot longer.”
“I think they considered it.” Jane mumbled, a slight smile on her sister’s face. “I mean it took a week for them to accept Anderson in, and now that he’s actually an Ambassador, they pushed a lot of the paperwork a lot faster than they could have.”
“That’s why everyone chose him, because Anderson gets shit done.” Eliza chuckled, smiling. “I mean, Hackett does too, don’t get me wrong, but we all know who really prioritizes the small but important shit.”
“Not me, that’s for damn sure.” A new voice spoke up, Nihlus trotting his happy ass around them. The Spectre was for once without armor, just like everyone else, and while not exactly at ease, he did seem a bit more playful and energetic than his usual professional-with-a-touch-of-humor. “Well, that’s kind of a lie, considering it’s half my job.”
“Look at you, slumming it with the rest of us.” Valence rumbled, amused. Nihlus cocked his head, once again giving off that playful personality the Turian hid so well.
“Not by choice, Council wanted an armed Spectre on guard, and since I already knew you crazy bastards I volunteered. Figured Garrus might eat Saren if he had to deal with him again.”
“Pretty sure he’d have to fight Valence.” Jane argued, full smiling. Garrus was also hiding amusement, if the way his mandibles flicked were an indicator. Valence shifted, mirroring the more playful demeanor once he had relaxed. He was skittish around other Turians, so she definitely needed to ask about that at some point, so she didn’t make him uncomfortable. She figured it either had to do with Baveti, or with his genetic faults. She’d done some research into Turian genetics, found out why Albanistic turians were so alienated, and why even carriers were deemed as outcasts. Turns out even having the genetic predisposition-which was deemed a carrier in Turian medical bullshit- was disapproved of but they couldn’t do anything about it.
The only difference based on what she’s read and could tell, was that it was based on their skin and plate colorations. Darker shades were dominant, gray and silver were less so, and the light Ashen shade was considered unhealthy. So Valence, with his pale silver and matching eyes, was a pretty damning color combination. She’d not seen a single turian in his colors yet, and they had seen plenty of other turians daily.
“Fair, Saren is pretty old school. I’d help you win.” Nihlus grinned, meeting Valence’s eyes with his mandibles flared. That got a chuff of laughter from him, and Eliza snickered as well. “You’re not wrong about the council lighting fires under asses, they haven’t worked this quickly to get established in years. Then again, both of your faces have become quite the conversation starter across the galaxies, so it’s no surprise the council is trying to settle things quickly.”
“Too much publicity can become a safety hazard.” Garrus rumbled out, Jane nodding. “And if something happened, the council would get blamed.”
“Pretty much. Although I’ve been spending time with Anderson as well, he’s definitely a no-nonsense man when he’s in the mood.” Nihlus huffed, still amused. Eliza laughed at that, along with Jane’s knowing chuckle. Yep, that sounded like him, for sure.
“Good! Nihlus is here. We can get started if you are done chattering.” The Turian councilor huffed, although Eliza was pretty sure the Turian was also amused at their antics. The Salarian and Asari councilors were next to show up into the large room, not their usual chamber. This was much smaller, and had a lot of projectors and screens to use for meetings if she had to guess. Anderson shot them a wink as he came in, nodding his greetings to the others present, including a few guards that came in. It was odd, seeing everyone in dress blues instead of armor, but such was the style of this meeting. Relaxed and professional, but also cautious and flashy.
“Greetings, Admiral Hackett. I do believe we have spoken prior, if briefly.” Sparatus stated as a screen came to life, Hackett’s face appearing. The man nodded sharply.
“We have, it’s a pleasure. Assuming all is well and this meeting is still green lit, I can inform the Alliance.” Hackett spoke, Jane straightening instinctively, as did Eliza. Hackett didn’t seem to have noticed them quite yet. Valence rumbled out a soft noise of discomfort, which Garrus echoed with a deeper, almost-growl. Jane shot him a look.
“That it is. I believe we have come to an agreement, all that is left is the official statements.”
“Good. Message sent, they should join us in a moment.”
Sure enough, several screens lit up, different people Eliza didn’t recognize but knew controlled some serious shit. She suddenly felt very uncomfortable, surrounded by all this possible scrutiny, especially knowing what they had done.
“Greetings, all. This meeting marks an important change to history, and as such requires us to bring in not only our own private representatives, but also broadcast this meeting to the species living here on the Citafel. If that is acceptable, then we may link them in and begin.” Valern jumped in, all serious and ready. The humans looked uncomfortable, likely due to seeing aliens in person and under peaceful intent, but it was a unanimous agreement. A screen lit up in the corner, showing off each monitor, as well as Eliza and her companions. She felt the tension in them, and did her best to keep her expression even.
“Today marks a very important change in the citadel. As such we have decided that this matter is to be broadcast live. Today we address the Turian warfare against a newly discovered species known as Humans, and their addition to council space.” Sparatus chuffed, glancing around the room and to the now floating drone set by a guard to record. “We have the honor of being joined by the elite control of the Alliance, the military group who is fronting their side of the war. In addition, we are joined by the four beings who took it upon themselves to ally with each other. Jane Shepherd, Step forwards please.”
Jane did as prompted, stepping up onto a slightly raised platform. She was calm, seemingly at ease, but it was obvious to Eliza that she was just as freaked out as everyone else.
“Thank you council.” Jane said softly, looking up as Tevos stepped forwards.
“Today, you speak your reasoning for all to hear Shepherd. You were assigned to the Alliance compound responsible for capturing two Turians, and a Turian child. Why.” Tevos asked, barely a question. Eliza swallowed nervously, Valence shifting just slightly so his leg brushed hers.
“Me and my Sister, Eliza, were on break when we got the call. The mission assignment was to gain their trust, learn what we could, and go from there. Up to that point, myself included, humans assumed Turians were just a violent race of semi-intelligence. Obviously a species capable of great battle tactics and weaponry, was not taken lightly.”
“And you were assigned to the Turians in question?”
“Yes. At the time, we were introduced to the two POWs with the intention of gaining knowledge. What I discovered there was…appalling. While the two Turians were not injured unnecessarily, it was clear humans could not provide the necessities they needed to thrive. The Turian codenamed “Blue” became my charge, as at the time he was less hostile and more shut down, unresponsive. On the offhand, “Orange” was aggressive and required an armed guard to accompany us. Obviously that didn’t fly well with us if we were to gain their trust.”
“And how did you get from that assignment of zero knowledge and understanding, to allowing two hostile aliens onto your ship without your Aliance’s permission?” Tevos questioned, eyes sharp but also…something else. Proud?
“I offered Blue water.” Jane said with a soft chuckle. “I realized pretty quickly that Turians weren’t just another animal like humans were used too. We realized some things that hadn’t even come to the facility’s minds. And so, water seemed the safest option. At that point, Blue was pretty docile, but more due to malnutrition rather than weakness. I had zero doubt he could have killed me even while unhealthy, so once I drank some water, I offered the rest to him, and while I did receive a very warning growl-which was a very clear message- he accepted. I still don’t know why, he’d never allowed anyone that close to him according to the guards. My Sister had a similar, if more hostile, encounter with Orange, and while he wouldn’t allow her anywhere close, he did eventually give in to survive.”
“I see. And how did you begin to communicate then? Obviously a code was sent to update our tools so we can now communicate seamlessly, but that was not the case then.”
“It was not. That was…a mixed effort. It started with me answering a message from my sister, where Blue seemed to recognize what I was using. I assumed they must have something similar, and upon investigation, we found them in storage with their equipment. By then, Blue had accepted that I didn’t intend to cause harm, and was allowed to interact one-on-one. Barring an injury with my sister from an incident where Orange had mistakenly attacked her, I was the only one at the time able to perform.” Jane started, taking a deep breath. She didn’t meet anyone’s eyes. “I chose to steal their tools from lockup without anyone knowing. During a recreational time with Blue, I made the choice to offer them to him, and he took his. I wouldn’t have blamed him for calling for help, for escaping. But…for some reason he didn’t. I learned very quickly that Garrus Vakarian was not just a soldier, but an excellent technology user. He hacked into my tool, allowing me the opportunity to reject it, and since he trusted me, I trusted him.”
“What did he install?” Sparatus asked, a low rumble to his tone. Displeasure.
“A translator program that was designed to adapt to a user’s speech. We had learned a few basic signals together, and so I did as instructed: I talked. The program ran, it adjusted, and I learned about the turian race in the way two soldiers would explain. He was a turian, I was a human, I found out his name, and he learned who I was. It was just us, at first. I feared what command would do to us both. But I knew I had to involve my sister for this to work. She thought I was crazy, but we are a team. We did the same thing to her tool, and later Valence’s.”
“That was a huge breach on both sides.” Valern stated, neutral. “What caused them to board your ship?”
“That’s easy. A human force known as Cerberus had been targeting Alliance ships for months. It seemed that Cerberus had chosen to attack the facility we were placed at, nearly at the same time Garrus’ platoon tracked his tool upon its activation. No signals had ever been sent out by either of us. I knew by then that Turians truly weren’t that different from Humans, and they got their armor back and were given fair access like the crew. From there…well. We got along. Became friends even, worked together as a team.”
“I have one last question for you, Jane. We know your commander status was revoked, your ship considered AWOL. Why did you continue trying to stop the war?” Tevos asked. Jane stayed silent for a moment before raising her chin, defiant. Eliza was so, so proud.
“Why wouldn’t I? Turians deserved the same respect humans did, and the whole war was founded on a misunderstanding. I don’t know who fired first, I didn’t care. All I cared about was that the things I’d been informed about Turians we wrong, and that we both were losing friends faster than either of our species could afford. We would destroy each other. I couldn’t just stand by and watch my race kill another, or vice versa. I gave turians respect, I worked for it, and I did the leg work. I’d do it all again, Alliance behind me or not, with all due respect.”
“Thank you Jane, that is all.” Sparatus spoke, nodding. Jane stepped back to Eliza’s side “Vakarian, step forwards.”
Garrus did as instructed, taking his place on the podium. For once, Eliza hadn’t heard a purr, a growl, anything from the older. Or from Valence. It was scary.
“My questions for you are similar. You broke heavy codes of honor among Turians, and according to Palavin law, you should be exiled. Explain why you chose to break your oath to hack into a communication module, to begin conversing with the enemy.” Eliza heard Jane take a breath. They didn’t realize how damaging what Garrus had done had been. What he had really risked. The turian didn’t even waver, voice calm and controlled.
“When me and Valence were captured, I was unharmed. Valence had taken a direct hit but didn’t result in severe wounds. Once captured and transferred, no human even raised a hand to me. They did their best to keep me fed, and while the cell wasn’t exactly homely, it was to be expected. Their intentions were beyond clear: capture, contain, learn. They were unsure and tense. Jane and Eliza were different. Confident but also critical, she saw something the others didn’t, took measures for my comfort and health no one had attempted. When she offered me my Omni-Tool, I knew what that gesture meant, and I realized I was wrong. Turians were wrong. We had majorly misjudged and misunderstood this species. So, I installed a program with the hopes it would work, and when it did…it changed things. Humans may not have dual tone subharmonics, but I knew she was different. She wasn’t there to do harm. So I trusted her as she had trusted me. And when the time came to escape, I chose to go with her.”
“Bold statements. You know the risk to your rank this will cause. Yet you still advocate for the war’s end?” Valern added, sounding..off. Eliza couldn’t figure it out.
“I know the laws, councillor. I accept what that means for me, absolutely. But I will not regret making the choice to try to save the lives of my family, or my platoon or friends. Of my species. We didn’t understand why the humans wouldn’t give up, but it’s because they were more resilient than anyone knew. Jane proved that, going against her orders just to learn more. I knew what that meant for us both. Might as well be damned together. I’ll accept the stripping of my title, the eviction from my family clan and being banned from Palavin. But I will not accept standing idle and watching our species wipe each other out of existence.”
Eliza was shaking, terrified. Garrus had sounded so heartbroken, and yet determined to do the right thing. Valence hummed a low noise, which he quickly cut off. Sparatus locked his eyes on him instantly.
“Valence. Something to say?”
“Yeah, actually.” Valence snarled, stepping forwards besides Garrus. “I almost killed Eliza. I attached her, in front of an entire group of guards. I felt my talons cut her open.”
A gasp went around the room, eyes flicking to Eliza. She raised her chin.
“The humans wanted to shoot me, but Eliza stood up, and snarled. I didn’t understand a damn thing of what she was saying, but I saw her, bloody and pale, snapping at her own kind to keep them away from me, protecting me, until Garrus and Jane intervened. I had never wanted to trust a human. But that? That wasn’t normal. That was strength, and authority, and a whole hell of a lot of bravery. She stood up for something that wasn’t her fault, because I had slipped up and made a mistake. Jane and Eliza were forgiving where no one else was. So hell yeah, she earned my trust that day, and I have no intention of stepping away. You got nothing I wouldn’t allow you to strip from me, and I’m happy where I am. Ban me, I don’t care. I’m home.”
Valence stepped away, Garrus staring after him in surprise. Even the councilors seemed surprised, as did their representatives. It was a tense silence, no one asked Eliza to step up, it was clear where her loyalties lie. None of them were quite prepared for a startled screech of a young Turian, before the small form latched around Eliza’s legs. Not Valance or Garrus who were back in position, hers. And she knew that didn’t go unnoticed.
“Council? If I may?” An Asari spoke up, hesitantly. The council motioned for her to continue. “Their working together, their impact on several small facilities, has become a joint force stronger than it was before. Without those breaches, without that trust, several communities and colonies would no longer be alive. If humans and turians can get along as well as Jane and Garrus and their team…I give a vote now for yes. I see conflict in the future, as we still conflict with each other as well, but this alliance between Citadel, humans, and turians promotes peace.”
“I agree.” Anderson spoke up. “I’ve know those women since childhood. They do what they think is best for everyone, sacrificing themselves in the process. Their devastation at losing rank was clear, yet that didn’t stop them. The kept going, stepping in where no one else dared.”
“I also agree. My vote is cast. Firm yes.” Another asari stepped in. A few salarians nodded as well, and the Primarch stepped in.
“Palaven issued a ceasefire weeks ago.” He admitted, to everyone’s surprise. “The humans respected that in a way we didn’t expect. We left each other alone, and for a solid week, no deaths were reported. A week, Council. I agree that there will always be conflict, but this war is not the answer we ever wanted. Palavin stands behind Jane Shepherd and company, absolute.”
“We also stand with them and Palavin.” The Turians representatives agreed, nodding to each other. Having the Turian homeworld step up like that…the impact was massive. And a clear threat.
“If the council and all parties are willing…” a human voice spoke up, each of them glancing at each other. “Then we will honor the ceasefire, agree to communications to combine efforts on colony sites. We accept the terms to end this war with your consent.”
“Then the council has reached a decision.” Valern stated, glancing around the room. “From today, Humans will be allowed to inhabit council space, unharmed, allowed to get residency on the citadel, and become part of the official registry. But one thing remains. What punishments do we place on the four in front of us, for breaking laws on all sides knowingly and unknowingly!”
The relief and excitement tanked instantly. They did it!! But…at what cost? What were they about to lose?
Hackett cleared his throat.
“The Alliance has already chosen to reinstate the Commanders, and add them to a role to represent humans. In tandem with the others, we already agreed that despite the risks, the breaking of oath and treason, this was a just cause to do so. No punishments will be given for this now, nor should they be with this accomplishment. Frankly I am ashamed we didn’t address this war with more respect.” Hackett reminded, the alliance members nodding in unity. Eliza and Jane would suffer no penalties? “In addition, Anderson and the Turian Primarch have been in discussions, tentatively. If it is so deemed that Garrus and Valence are to be stripped of title, the Alliance will accept them into our own ranks, with no change. Effectively adopting two Turians into our own species.”
“Which, while a great honor, is unnecessary.” Victus chuckled, grinning in that Turian way. “I agree with the Humans. While rules were broken, treason and reason for the punishment valid, I find no authority to do so. Garrus and Valance stepped up to save Palavin, to save Turians, and in benefit, save humans. No other of our kind chose to do this, or even try. To strip those titles, to disown two of our arguably best soldiers at this point…would be a dishonor to them and to Palavin. No punishment will be deemed upon them either.”
“Holy shit.” Garrus whispered, shocked. The council said something, before Tevos smiled.
“So, that is that. The Relay 314 war has declared a total ceasefire. The council will see to it that proper documentation and such be recorded and dealt with of course. Congratulations to you four.”
Eliza couldn’t help it. She shrieked, scooping up Baveti with a relieved laugh, the turian child trilling in confusion but clearly enjoying her excitement. Valence was right there, bumping for heads with them both, his own rasp of a purr low but strong, relieved. Jane and Garrus were also locked together in a hug, before her sister turned to squeeze her as well, laughing and practically crying with relief. Garrus just stood back, purring, those cerulean eyes so damn fond. Eliza knew he cared for Jane, and this meant the world to them both. No one would judge them for celebrating, that was for damn sure.
***
Valence stood off to the side, leaned against a far corner wall, observing. Anderson had suggested a celebration for the crew, and with the council’s assistance, they had rented out an entire bar for the Normandy crew to celebrate at. The bar wasn’t closed to Citadel public, in fact, it was probably the busiest it had ever been. Asari and Turians were the most present, but there were a handful of Salarians slinking about and likely documenting everything. Their security detail was guarding what was quickly designated the “human corner” which took up nearly a third of the bar. He was honestly surprised by how noisy the crew was, he wasn’t sure he’d ever heard them this rowdy. Drunk humans must be a whole situation back home for them.
“You’re supposed to be enjoying yourself, not guarding your clan like a mother Varren.” Nihlus stated as he approached, now in armor proper, save as Valence. The Spectre leaned beside him, humming quietly as they watched for a few seconds.
“Can I not enjoy protecting what is important to me?” Valence huffed, tilting to look at the elder turian who chuckled.
“So, a typical turian.” Nihlus chuckled, but his subharmonics said something else. What are you guarding them from? Paparazzi?
I don’t know. Valence rumbled back. I just need to guard. Keep them safe.
“A turian guarding humans. Your adopted child is one thing, without you he definitely would not be alive now. But you care about these humans more than you try to let on.” Nihlus observed, eyes flicking to the crowd. Valence let his eyes refocus as well, targeting each guard before relaxing. She keeps looking for you.
Who? Valence asked, glancing at the spectre before rapidly looking around. He caught Eliza’s icy eyes across the room, her face lighting up when she realized he was directly looking at her. He flicked his mandibles at her, ignoring the slight twinge to his face. All the standing had aggravated his mostly healed injuries, but it still bothered him even while waiting for clearance for duty.
He wasn’t actually supposed to be in armor yet. Oops.
“She keeps glancing for you, looking for her partner. Garrus seems perfectly happy where he is.” The spectre observes, and Valence could only nod. Garrus was settled in at Jane’s side, clearly quipping back and forth with the gathered humans closest to himself and the women. Eliza had yet to come to him, so he knew when she looked away she was satisfied. Humans are so…loud. They weren’t like this when I was on board. Drink?
Yeah, this is…different. Valence rumbled, before nodding and standing up. “I’d be willing to drink. Lead the way Spectre.”
Nihlus flicked a mandible at him, cocking his head playfully and leading the way to the bartop just outside of the human corner. He sat on a stool next to the Spectre, watching as the Asari bartender immediately poured a glass for the dark turian. Ah, so Nihlus was a regular. The Asari shit him a grin, leaving a second glass for him of the same before moving on.
“Seems she has your number.” Valence rumbled, sipping at the glass. Oh, high end! Definitely going to limit this to one glass. Nihlus grinned, almost feral.
It was not just one. Truthfully he didn’t know exactly how many he’d downed already, just that Nihlus had convinced him to challenge him to see who could get drunk on self-appointed duty first. Valence had never liked Spectres, or Nihlus, but he quickly decided the other Turian wasn’t half bad. Probably the alcohol content in his drink.
Someone has an admirer. Nihlus whined out in a drunk sing-song voice. Valence turned, curious, expecting icy eyes and dark fringe, maybe an amused smirk on her overly soft face. He was not prepared for piercing amber, reddish plates and tan skin, pale yellow clan marks. She was pretty, for Turian standards, and upon locking eyes with him, she took that as permission to approach. Nihlus gave a drunken giggle, amused as she approached. Valence stiffened, eyes not leaving her as she circled him appraisingly, confirming she was interested. Turian females tended to be…bold and confident. Valence tended to be stubborn.
“Not mated.” She purred, tilting her head up in a submissive gesture. Valence wanted to snarl at her, but somewhere in his drunken brain he also knew that wouldn’t be a good thing with all the publicity. “I know the look of a soldier who has seen action recently. Likely needs to let off some steam as well, being a soldier is stressful.”
“Not, uh…not interested.” Valence huffed, watching her grin and step closer to him. Valence took a half step back, uncomfortable. She followed, rumbling in what he assumed was supposed to be alluring. Why is it that suddenly females of his own species were a total turnoff?
“Honey, everyone is interested. I know you will be.” Fuck he was pushed against a rail. He visibly fought a flinch when she dragged a talon down the front of his armor. He wasn’t in danger, this wasn’t a fight. But damn it all if he wanted to snap at her neck as she leaned in uncomfortably close. “I don’t care for genetic faults.”
“I’m not interested.” He snapped, freaking out. He felt that hair-trigger of instinct dueling with his drunken mind, this wasn’t a firefight, this wasn’t combat, but FUCK he was in danger. She laughed, actually laughed, at his weak attempts to deny her, and he didn’t know what to do, what was acceptable. He flinched away when she leaned in again. “I got… uh… I have a partner. She’s…”
“I don’t care.” The female growled, and he flinched again. He let out a low warning growl, which she echoed, thinking it was acceptance, when an oh so familiar scent hit his nose.
“I think he told you he wasn’t interested. So I suggest you step away.” Eliza’s firm tone had him open his eyes- shit, had he actually closed them?- her icy eyes harsh as she stared the female down. The turian grinned.
“Look, human. This is a turian thing.”
“No, it’s a you being a total bitch thing.” Eliza snapped, grinning in a wild way. “And taking advantage of someone clearly intoxicated, not to mention having rejected you, is not fucking okay.”
“The hell is your problem?” The female snapped, and Valence finally moved, taking the two bold steps to Eliza, grasping her by the waist and pulling her in to press the plates of his mouth against hers, before moving to stand behind her, flaring his mandibles threateningly. He was done being polite when it came to his mate, her scent a smooth balm and sobering in its intensity.
“I told you. I have a mate, and I’m not fucking interested.” Valence snarled, the female finally getting the hint. She ducked her head, suddenly embarrassed by the eyes on her, before fleeing quickly. Valence was still growling low when a hand gently pressed against the scarred side of his face. His eyes met icy blue.
“Calm down, it’s okay. Nihlus came and got me before he passed out, something about being drunk and you getting assaulted. Are you okay?” She asked worriedly, her eyes scanning over him. He leaned into her touch, drunk enough he didn’t feel inclined to hide the affectionate nuzzle to her wrist, or the low rumble in his chest. She gave him a weird look before her eyes widened. “Okay, you really are drunk. Why didn’t you shove her away?”
“Didn’t want to ruin your publicity.” He answered honestly. He didn’t give a damn of his own reputation, but he’d never slander hers. “And I’m taken, she just didn’t want to respect it.”
“Oh? And who are you taken by?” She asked, teasing. She was smiling at him playfully, but he couldn’t help but answer truthfully.
“You. If you’d want me, anyways. I’ve no rank or benefit to offer, just me as I am. Genetic faults and all.”
“I’m gonna fucking kill her.” Eliza growled. Oh, she must have heard that bit. He quickly grabbed her as she went to stalk off.
“Stay. Not worth it. Spar with me instead.” He offered. She relaxed in his arms, peering up at him.
“Valence, you’re drunk.”
“And I’m a combat veteran. Scared?”
She grinned, that spark in her eye for a good reason. Because of him. Fuck, could he even actually fight like this? Did he really care if she won? He’d let her, if that meant she’d stick around to tease him.
“You’re on, hot stuff. I’m gonna wipe the floor with your drunk ass!”
“You can try.”
He didn’t have a clue where they ended up, too busy scenting after her like a Varren trying to get lucky, and eventually he has stripped out of his armor to make it more even. They didn’t hold back, Valence was too drunk to think about it, and Eliza seemed just as excited to have a legit grapple partner, trading hits and kicks, a few careful scrapes of Talons against her flank when she left herself unguarded. . He’d had her pinned a few times, he’d thought, forgetting that she knew about Turian waists. He was taken completely off guard when her hands slid from his waist, up his chest and to his neck over his bodysuit, and he rumbled out a low purr, tilting into it and nuzzling into her hand. Eliza was smiling, sweating but laughing, eyes bright and fond. They were both a bit battered from over enthusiasm, and while Valence technically had her pinned and she wasn’t actually losing, he was completely happy to say she won, even when she nudged him to keep wrestling. He rumbled at her, happy, amused by her antics even as he followed her wishes. I think I love you, Eliza Shepherd
They were both laying on their backs, breathing hard and laughing uncontrollably by the time C-Sec showed up.
Notes:
For some reason, Copy/Paste from Google Docs doesn’t carry over Bold or italic text! If you notice any spots that seem like they should have been and aren’t, feel free to yell at me so I can fix it! I HATE editing and don’t have a beta, so we just go with it!
Chapter 16: Finding Home
Notes:
Whew! This one racked up the word count! Should I apologize? 🤣 if you see any mistakes: no you don’t! But they ARE my own, so oops!
Hope you enjoy! Only one chapter left, the Epilogue!🥺
Chapter Text
“Hey, uh…Jane? You might want to take this one.”
Jane glanced up from her Datapad, having been reading up on some of the political laws and such on the citadel to forward to Anderson since the first of the human ships was already set to arrive in a few weeks time. Garrus calling her wasn’t unusual, but the way she could hear the way he was fighting off laughter was not a good sign. She huffed as she stood up from the bed, moving into the office where he was standing beside her desk. Oh. Oh no. It wasn’t even 9am, what could actually be going on here?
“What is it…” she asked hesitantly, coming around to see what he wanted. He motioned to her headset. She gave him a face, putting it on. “Shepherd.”
“Hello Shepherd, I’m Officer Numos of C-Sec. I spoke to Mr. Vakarian a bit, but he insisted I inform you personally.” A smooth Turian voice. An officer? She eyed Garrus, who had his head down and was leaning against his hands on her desk. Poor guy looked like he was losing his shit. “I believe Eliza Shepherd and Valence Silverine are part of your crew, yes?”
Mother- “Yes, they are. What is this about, officer?”
“Well, uh…a team of mine picked them up last night, brought them down to the station. We’d like for you to come down to discuss their terms of release, if you had time.” Officer Dunos rumbled, sounding completely out of his depth.
“They were arrested last night?” Jane clarified, glaring at Garrus as he shot up, head tilted back and breathing hard, like he was trying to control himself. She kept that dirty glare on him, even if he didn’t see it.
“Y-yes ma'am. Although at this time their charges are uh…pending.”
“I’m gonna kill them both.” She sighed, knowing Dunos heard since the officer gave a soft chuckle. “I’ll be down in an hour with Vakarian. Hopefully we can keep this quiet for now.”
“Of course, Maam. See you soon.”
“Thanks officer. Garrus, I'm gonna cut your fringe off one by one!” Jane threatened, lunging at him and grappling as he finally broke out into laughter. She wouldn’t actually hurt him or course, but she did give a few playful tugs to his fringe and swatted at him with playful intent. He yelped, flicking his mandibles at her in amusement before finally calming. Sort of.
“They got arrested.” Garrus giggled-actually fucking giggled the bastard. “Oh man, I gotta know what their charges are, it may actually kill me.”
“Well, considering the condition Nihlus is in, and what he was saying last night-albeit Slurred and definitely missing context- I’d assume at least public intoxication.” She sighed, glancing into the living room since they were close to the door. Nihlus was sprawled out across their couch, still snoring, and half undressed. She wasn’t even really sure how the undressed part happened, like one minute they were dragging his drunk, armored ass in the door, next thing he’d stripped everything off except for his bodysuit pants. Garrus hadn’t seen particularly enthused by that, but Jane figured it was just a turian thing that Nihlus was too drunk to think about at the time.
“He did say something about Eliza going to ‘assault a bitch’ whatever that means. Spirits, I hope they didn’t kill someone, I really doubt they would but then again this is your sister.” Garrus huffed, grinning at her. She gave him a look, then rolled her eyes at him. Jerk. Not wrong though, unfortunately.
“Even drunk, Valence can handle himself. Unless you want to admit that Turians are bad drunks and that humans hold their liquor better.” She challenged, following him to the kitchen. He too glanced over at the unconscious and likely hungover Spectre before continuing on.
“Some are better than others.” He relented, chuckling. “I never really saw the point of getting blackout drunk. A few drinks, sure, just to feel the buzz kick in, but nothing past that.”
“Oh so you’re the responsible one of the family, got it.”
“Says the one who didn’t drink anything.”
“Designated driver.” He raised a brow plate at her. “It’s a human thing. Can’t drive when drunk so you make sure you have one person there to take you home.”
“That’s… oddly specific and also makes perfect sense. I’m making breakfast, do you want to make your own? Or I can make the Asari version of bacon, we do have some of that left.” Garrus chuckled, turning to snag Jane up by the waist to put her on the counter. She flailed a little, at first, before shuffling to get comfortable. On the counter, she was the same height as him, which means it was easier to look at while talking. He also handed her the data pad she had left in the office, not even realizing she had left it in there.
“I’m fine with whatever.” She agreed watching him walk around to gather supplies. She perked up when he sat a tray next to her, little red balls that looked like sea urchins packed neatly inside. She had specifically requested Anderson to sneak her some Rambutans, little weird shelled grapes with pits she had tried on her last break on earth and fallen in love with. Sure she liked other fruits too, but these things were sweet and different, not like usual. Garrus actually liked them as well she had discovered, having been watching her crack one in disgusted horror before eating the inside and hesitantly trying it himself. Apparently weird urchin creatures were poisonous on Palavin unless you fried them, which was some kind of delicacy since improper handling would literally kill a turian within minutes.
She’d stick with her angry grapes.
She expertly cracked one open, popping it in her mouth to chew on it, spitting the pit out in her hand a few seconds later. Garrus huffed at her, a few yards away and fiddling with the stovetop she had no clue how to use properly. She really just messed with buttons until it worked, so maybe once humans were established more she could get a human stove brought in? She cracked another rambutan before offering one to Garrus. He side eyed it, as he always did, before stepping over towards her. Instead of taking it, he just leant over and snagged it in his mouth, using his sharp teeth to crack it since his hands were busy. She watched, fascinated, as he spit the shell out with a disgusted look, then the pit, before actually chewing on the fruit flesh. Turians were super weird to watch eat, but she had to admit that his method was a lot faster than her having to crack the damn thing on the counter like an egg.
A low groan echoed in from the living room, Garrus having finished about half the Asari bacon stuff, and she leaned forwards to peer around Garrus. He shifted closer to her, eyeing her precarious spot on the counter before deeming her stable enough to not intervene. Jane watched as Nihlus sat up slowly, adjusting to lean his head and arms over the armrest of the couch with another groan of complaint.
“You alive, Nihlus?” She called, watching the Spectre flinch and grumble something. Garrus chuckled.
“He said that your, uh, ‘sarcastic commentary’ is unnecessary for his hangover recovery.” Garrus huffed at her, air quotes and everything.
“Awww poor baby Spectre can’t handle his alcohol!” She teased, finally dropping down from her perch. She waited for Garrus to glance at her before she snagged another of their rambutan snacks, smirking at him. She watched his eyes widen before he nodded sharply, quick to catch on to her plan. Nihlus was grumbling something, rolling over to sink down onto the couch on his back when she got close enough. She tossed the spindly fruit underhand, hearing it thump onto his chest a second before he screeched it horror.
Who knew hungover turians could move that fast? She laughed at his horrified expression, glaring at the couch in disgust.
“What. Is. That.” Nihlus growled at her, eyes not leaving the harmless fruit just sitting on the couch cushion a few feet away from them both, innocent. She flopped onto the couch, snagging the clearly murderous grape and smacking it on the stone table, popping it in her mouth and leaving the shell on the table, then the pit, while watching Nihlus’s expressions change from horror to disgust to horror again.
Ah, turians. She chuckled, standing back up to actually throw away the shell.
“Garrus, your mate is a total freak.” Nihlus grumbled, following her to see what the hell it actually was most likely. She offered him a whole one and the Spectre practically leapt away from her. She held her hand out flat, offering it to Garrus instead, who once again snagged it in his mouth. Nihlus actually flinched that time, eyes wide and mouth open as it cracked in his mouth, even when he watched Jane prod him into spitting the shell and pit in her hand since she was throwing the other away anyways. “Why are you eating it!?”
“Because it’s actually kind of sweet tasting? It’s not bad actually, once you get over the way it looks. Although maybe let Jane crack it for you, feels damn weird in my mouth.”
“Heh.” Jane snickered, winking while Garrus snarled at her playfully. She did crack one, and dug the pit out before offering it to Nihlus again, much less harmless now.
“Is that even safe to eat for Turians?” He asked, taking it between two talons and examining it.
“Yeah, I had our medic friend check it, Jane couldn’t convince me it wasn’t toxic until we did. It’s actually one of the few human fruits that give nutrition.” Garrus explained. Nihlus glanced at them both, distrustful, before sticking it in his mouth. He still looked hesitant as he ate it before huffing in surprise. “Told you.”
“Weird, hairy fruit thing.” Nihlus grumbled, sniffing. Jane took that as permission to offer the Spectre a plate to get some of the breakfast Garrus had made, as she got her own. Her Turian knew to leave the dishes, he cooked so she cleaned, that was her rule even if he thought she was weird. Baveti was safe with Ashley on the ship for another few hours, having messaged during breakfast that the young Turian was being well behaved even if he kept looking for Eliza or Valence, so Jane knew it was time they actually got down to C-Sec to figure out what the hell had happened last night.
Numos was a cream colored Turian, lime markings adorning just the sides of his face unlike the majority of Turians Jane had met. Garrus rumbled out a greeting, and Jane offered a smile when the officer looked up and chuckled at them.
“You two look like the disappointed parents coming to collect their teenager.” The officer explained, Jane was chuckling as well. He wasn’t wrong, it felt likely the same if she had to guess, and she’d been in enough trouble with her sister that their parents had probably experienced just that
“Definitely feel like it.” Garrus huffed, shaking his head. “So what exactly are we looking at here?”
“Here, come in and have a seat.” Numos offered, unlocking the main door to let them in, them both moving to his office. “Good thing is, no charges have been pressed. We got an anonymous report about a Turian and a human fighting in an alley, when we turned up, it was pretty clear it wasn’t actually a brawl like we suspected. Just a case of drunken shenanigans by my guess. No one was hurt, no indecency involved aside from the Turian having stripped his armor off at some point but nothing worrisome. The only charge we may be facing is public intoxication, and even then, no one was legitimately injured or fighting.”
“All good signs at least. I expected worse.” Garrus teased, nudging her. She rolled her eyes.
“Still not good to get arrested, Garrus.”
“It’s a hold, not an arrest.” He clarified with a nod from Numos.
“Their status and publicity also makes them well known. Makes charges a lot harder to stick. Honestly, if you want to take them and scold them, I’ll drop the papers in the shredder and pretend I never saw them.” Numos chuckled, tilting his head at them in amusement. “I’d much rather deal with calls like that than the alternatives. Humans and Turians need to get along, and brawls happen. Especially when they are both drunk and on the same ship.”
“I’m up for that if you are, although we could stress them out a bit. Garrus? You good at playing a bad cop?” Jane asked, watching the cerulean eyes glitter and darken.
“Oh yeah.”
“This is gonna be fun to watch.” Numos rumbled out, grinning.
***
“Garrus!”
Eliza looked up at Valence’s voice, the turian sitting across from her but close enough to touch feet. The officers had at least let them share a cell, so while it had been uncomfortable, at least she wasn’t alone. Sure enough, Garrus came strolling up to the bars, and her excited grin faded. The older Turian looked pissed, not at all glad to see them. Valence also shrunk back, rumbling softly but not getting a response.
“You two do realize that now humans are going to have a charge not even a week from being deemed citizens, right? Do you realize what that can mean?” Garrus snapped. Eliza frowned. His voice sounded off, carefully controlled. Where was Jane?
“It wasn’t intentional. Well, the sparring was, but not in an alleyway. Had a bit too much to drink.” Valence admitted, standing up. Garrus growled lowly on the other side of the bars.
“Yeah, thus the ‘public intoxication charge, which the council passed. You both are facing lockup, and Jane is likely going to get in deep shit now.” He huffed, Valence dipping his head. Eliza squinted at Garrus, not believing it. The older Turian was good, a damn good actor, but the way he kept his subvocals quiet meant he was hiding something. And he didn’t have the posture of someone who was pissed.
“You’re fucking with us.” Eliza called his bluff, watching Garrus’s hostile expression soften to amusement. He held up a key.
“I am. C-Sec didn’t want to deal with that light of a charge. C’mon, Jane is waiting for us.” Garrus chuckled, getting a growl of annoyance from valence that he ignored. He stopped them after opening the door, expression a bit more serious. “Really though, this was lucky. If the wrong person had seen or said the wrong thing, it really could damage alliances here.”
“I know.” Valence chuffed, head still tilted down a bit, unsure. “I drank too much, got hit on, Eliza was defending me, and it just got out of hand. Besides, this hangover is enough punishment.”
Eliza chuckled, grinning as Jane waved at them. Valence really had been suffering, he’d woken up around 4am, groaning, which was as sad as it was amusing. Serves him right. Then again, even she was at fault too, she had encouraged the sparring last night. Garrus stepped back from the door, allowing them out.
“Nihlus- drunk off his ass as he was- told us a little about what happened, before you both disappeared. Some turian made an attempt at you, then?”
“Yeah, and the bitch wouldn’t let off, either. He’d already refused her and she kept on, saying some mean shit.” Eliza huffed, catching blue eyes for a moment. Garrus rumbled softly, seeming to realize what she meant.
“Females Turians have a tendency to be overly bold, especially with uh, unmated males.” Vakarian grumbled, looking genuinely annoyed. “Still doesn’t explain her actions, most at least have respect to take a refusal.”
“The refusal part was bad, but she brought up genetics into it as I came to step in. I about assaulted someone for real.” She admitted, Valence chuckling along with Garrus, even if the older tried to be disapproving.
“Well, at least you were sober enough to assault Valence instead. Saved you a jail charge.” Jane stated when they got close enough, swatting at Eliza’s arm scoldingly. “Numos was kind enough to let you both go and drop everything.”
“I think the overnight and the scolding you two can manage is more than enough in this case. Here, I have hangover tablets.” The officer next to them chuckled, Eliza turning back to see Valence barely had his eyes open in the bright room, looking miserable. He accepted the tablet and stuck it in his mouth, before bending to drop his forehead against the back of her shoulder, defeated.
“Yeah, Someone is gonna be miserable for a few hours.” Garrus huffed, flicking a mandible at her, then Jane, Valence not bothering to move at the moment.
“Sorry you had to come get us, not our intention to cause an issue.” Eliza said after a moment, to the officer. The elder Turian chuckled at her with a nod.
“As I told them, a friendly sparring match is definitely preferable to alternatives I’ve seen. I wouldn’t recommend a repeat performance, but an easy night is always welcome. Hopefully you won.” Numos teased, heading back to his desk as she laughed, Valence growling out something that sounded playfully annoyed and had Garrus snickering. Probably something dirty, then.
“Still, we appreciate your help.” Jane added in, smiling. “Hopefully you won’t have to deal with them again.”
The officer waved her off with a grin, pleased, and while Garrus apparently left the officer a donation, she was just hopeful for a damn shower. She did feel a bit bad, they could have really gotten others in trouble, so she would have to make it up to her sister somehow. Valence trying to walk and seem fine with a hangover was distracting enough on the walk back to the sky ship port, Garrus navigating them back easily while they all teased the orange marked Turian. To be fair, Nihlus hadn’t been better, and she wasn’t even sure where the Spectre had ended up.
“So, where did Nihlus crash? Last I saw him he was wasted.” She asked, Valence perking up slightly as well.
“Well, he barged into our apartment at some point, we had to drag him in cause he was so intoxicated he couldn’t really do much other than laugh and pass out.” Garrus huffed, Jane swatting at him scoldingly, but smiling. “Didn’t really appreciate him stripping off in my house.”
“He wasn’t naked, for clarification.” Jane huffed, holding back a laugh. “Just mostly naked.”
“In our house!” Garrus argued, less annoyed now and more amused.
“Is that like, Turian indecency?” She had to ask, Jane waving her hands like she’d also been asking that. Garrus rumbled out something, seeming awkward. Valence snorted.
“Basically it’s rude.” Valence answered tiredly. “Entering a house where mated pairs or pairs attempting to mate are, and getting undressed down to plates is just rude. I guess like if two of you humans were together and your best friend came in and got undressed in front of them both.”
“Yeah, wouldn’t really be that weird but definitely frowned upon.” Jane chuckled. “I did scare the shit out of him though.”
“Angy grapes.” Eliza stated, confidently. Jane shot her a sly look back, both of them bursting into laughter at the second of eye contact. Even Garrus rumbled out a laugh.
“Those things are so damn weird.” Valence growled, tired eyes watching them all. He seemed less hungover and more tired at least, it was a start. “And that’s a fruit humans just…eat. Who would have even thought to try that?”
“Probably the same people who saw a turian and said ‘ya know what, imma be friends with that.’” Jane teased, and Valence did chuckle at that since she wasn’t exactly wrong. If you put your mind to it, weird shit could happen.
Sure enough, Nihlus was still in their apartment when they got back, only, he was on the floor this time, snoring. They all kind of stared at him in concern before Valence gave him a gentle kick to the flank. Eliza shot him a glare, Nihlus growling out something rude sounding and ignoring them all. She met her sister’s eyes, amused.
“So, I know we adopted three Turians, are we just gonna adopt a fourth, or?”
“Well, I don’t think he’s actually capable of moving at the moment.” Valence commented, bending to attempt to drag Nihlus out of the way. Garrus watched, amused, and refusing to help just because he could. Jane grinned.
“I mean, he did kinda just show up like a lost puppy. And we fed him, so he probably won’t leave now.”
“Jane! You know not to feed strays! Now we have another turian we have to babysit!”
“I’d take offense to that any other time.” Nihlus slurred, patiently allowing Valence to help him up finally.
“I think that was meant towards all of us, and I’m not sure if it’s a bad thing or not yet.” Garrus chuckled. Valence for his part waggled his mandibles at her playfully, which she rolled her eyes at and moved around the Turian chaos area and to the kitchen after leftover breakfast she could smell. Jane eventually had to convince Nihlus to leave, which he only did because the council called him away about the time she went to rouse him from sleep again from the spare room, which had both of their Turians relaxing. Nihlus was a friend, but even a friend wasn’t always welcome in their nest apparently. They still had a lot to learn about Turians it seemed.
Baveti was playing quietly on the floor, Jane and Eliza having went out to get groceries since they had demolished their breakfast supplies already. Valence was starting to doze at her side, and she watched from the corner of her eye as his chin started to dip, bobbed back up, dipped again with a soft rumble of sleep, then bobbed again. Poor hungover Turian, she almost scoffed. Baveti tapped her knee, catching her full attention, his wide pink eyes flicking between them with worry, a soft trill leaving him. Valence rumbled some sort of reply attempt, but it only got a head tilt from the child so it must not have been understandable. She sighed, setting her book down finally to the side and snagging a small pillow from her right side.
She winked at the child before she very slowly moved so Valence would lean more and more towards her as he stayed in that almost-asleep doze, finally blinking at her in confusion when he started to topple. She jerked him down before he could fight, and he plopped down with his head in her lap, fringe close to poking her chest. He huffed at her, sighing in disbelief before sitting up a little to roll the opposite way, with his back to the room and his face to her stomach. He rumbled at first, not quite settling, as if unsure why she had moved him but he hadn’t spoken yet so she didn’t either, very hesitantly moving a hand to brush along the length of his fringe. He blinked at her slowly before taking a deep breath, finally fucking relaxing. His first stone was coupled with a low purring, one even Baveti grinned at, bouncing on his feet quietly.
A lap full of Turian was now how she expected to spend her evening but honestly, she didn’t mind that much. They would have to talk about this eventually, especially with how fondly he had stared at her, how he had nuzzled and scented her while drunk. She’d seen a few other Turians doing it to their partners, so she knew exactly what it meant, but neither of them had yet to actually claim it. She didn’t want to admit she liked him, and he was trying to be standoffish and lone wolf-like, but she was ready to admit they both were just playing the same cards to a losing game. They liked each other, they got along, and maybe it was time they admitted it. But she was more worried about how he’d react. Would he accept it? Or would he panic and run, a new battlefield he’d never been on before becoming too much pressure? Maybe she’d have to talk to Garrus first…
It was a few days later Eliza got the ping.
Baveti was dozing away in her lap, Garrus and Valence gone doing something with the council and human embassy, when Jane came in the living room, frowning.
“Did you read that message yet?”
“No? Kinda have my arms full with a Tiny velociraptor.”
“What? Oh, Bav.” Jane chuckled. Lately they had taken to the nickname ‘Bav’ for the smallest member of their little nest, and the turian didn’t seem to mind it at all. “Well, it’s from Anderson and the council. Since humans are getting set up here on the citadel, trade ships coming in and offering new merchandise and such, The council announced today that they wanted to send turian ambassadors to earth.”
“Oh. Why would they tell us that though? They want us to be their guards? Sorry, but, we’ve only been on earth for like, a third of our lives at most?” Eliza huffed softly, Jane still frowning into her multi-tool. She was about to snark more when she watched the color drain from her sister’s face, alarmed green eyes flicking up to hers.
“They want us to go on emergency leave effective immediately. They are sending Garrus and Valence as ambassadors to earth.”
“Holy shit.”
This was madness, Eliza couldn’t help but think. The whole crew of the Normandy had been packed up, everyone rushing to the port to figure out what the sudden rush was. Jane and Eliza had barely had time to get their own belongings packed up and onto the skycar before an officer had picked them up and drove them to the docking bay. She wasn’t sure where Garrus or Valence were, no one would tell them, but the whole situation screamed red flags. This wasn’t normal, they rarely requested leave, let alone in the middle of an event like this. The citadel had only posted the alliance two weeks ago, about thirty-two hours after the meeting itself, so things were moving quickly she guessed to get everything settled in.
She’d never really seen this part of government work, and she was definitely not a fan of it.
A low chuff caught her attention, glancing over her shoulder to be greeted by Garrus, decked out in shiny new armor with his guns strapped to his back. She felt a bit underdressed in a hoodie and jeans, with a backpack slung over one shoulder and a suitcase at her feet.
“So, this is apparently a thing now.” He chuckled, stepping up beside her at the railing to watch. She wasn’t sure where Jane was yet, so she had been observing the final refueling and cargo loading before the crew were officially let on board. “Never would have suspected this a while back. I mean a Turian going to earth? Impossible.”
“And they stuck it with us, instead of their own government. Why not send Nihlus? Or someone in the Turian Hierarchy?”
“Well, that’s the thing. They were debating who to send, me and Valence participating in a kind of background check for the chosen Turians, like advisors, and…the Primarch suggested us. The Turian council all were in agreement that even if we did have a tendency towards a bias, that we were reputable enough to be honest and go against you and Jane if needed. The council agreed.”
“Kinda sounds suspicious.”
“It does, and it is.” He agreed with a huff, turning to face her with his head tilted. “To be honest, I think it’s less about us actually making a show of turians going to earth and more to force us all to ground so we can’t cause a stir as things settle here.”
“We do have a tendency to stir up shit.” She grinned, watching his mandibles flick in a smile of his own.
“Me and Jane weren’t the ones who got arrested.”
“I wasn’t the one that caught making out by a C-Sec guard in the gardens.”
“Wha-how did you?” She laughed at his alarmed expression. She only knew because Valence had been nearby and heard the officers laughing about it. That was her secret to keep forever. They stood in silence, Garrus leaning on his forearms on the railing.
“Ya know? You’re good for my sister.” She said softly, his head shifting so he could look at her. “You guys match really well, same skill set. You protect each other. I’m glad she has a good partner.”
“Thank you.” He said softly, shifting a little. “I’ll be honest, I don’t have a damn clue what I’m doing. Then again, that’s part of the whole thing, isn’t it.”
“I think so, at least.” She admitted. “Also makes it a challenge.”
“I hope I live up to her standards.” He confessed quietly, chin tilting down as he faced back forwards. “And yours. It’s a…difficult spot to fill. You’re her twin, and I don’t have any intention to replace you, but I’d like to be the one at her back when she needs me.”
“You already are Vakarian.” She said with a smile, hip-checking him gently to get a chuff. He tilted his head at the ship, thoughtful.
“I think you’re good for Valence too. His temper is steadier now, less reckless and more consistent.”
“I noticed that too.”
“It’s because of you. He hides it well, I know I’m horrible at hiding my feelings towards Jane. But i do have eyes, and I can see how you two compliment each other as well.” She chuckled at him, he was right about being terrible at hiding the purrs.
“Kinda feel like he’s out of my league.” She chuckled self-deprecatingly. Garrus turned to his side, staring her down. She wilted a little under those predatory eyes.
“Pretty sure that’s how he feels in regards to YOU.” Garrus huffed, still staring her down. “He’s never acted playful in his life, always harsh and defensive. He’s had to be, since I’ve known him. Turians are harsh with our own kind, I mean you know what would have happened to Baveti. The only reason the kid survived this long is because Valence isn’t direct family and he’s got a rank high enough to cause issues if he’s targeted. On palaven, Bav would be killed in a day, Eliza. A day.”
She frowned, staring at the floor to avoid his eyes boring into hers. He rumbled softly, as if annoyed but she knew it wasn’t at her.
“You took to Baveti faster than anyone else ever has. He may not be Bav’s sire, but that kid is the one good thing he feels he’s ever done, gave him something to really fight for. Now, he has you to protect, because by Turian standards, you adopted Baveti the day you chose to protect him, and he’s untouchable not because of Valence. But because of you. A human.”
“I didn’t really think it was that big of a deal…” she whispered, meeting blue eyes nervously. “I was just doing what was right.”
“Something no one else ever has fought for.” Garrus pointed out. “I can’t speak for him, but I know him better than he thinks I do. He cares about you a lot, and you keep his kid safe. No one would dare touch Bav because you’re around.”
“He purrs in his sleep when I’m nearby.” She confessed with a soft grin. Garrus chuckled.
“He purrs a lot when you don’t notice it. He thinks he’s sly about it.” Garrus grinned at her playfully, standing upright and moving to walk past her, pausing to lean in close to her ear. “He’s really not.”
She laughed, hearing Garrus’s heavy steps saunter away, replaced by lighter ones she recognized just by the slight limp. Cleared for duty or not, Valence had been wearing armor before he was supposed too and they all knew it. Now she just knew why he did. Protective bastard.
“What’s got you so cheerful?” Valence rumbled, not unkindly, just genuinely curious as he settled in on her right, opposite of Garrus’s spot. He was pressed against her side, where the blue marked Turian had left he could plenty of space.
“You, mostly.” She teased, gray eyes scrunching as his head tilted, confused but curious still.
“Me? The hell does that mean?”
“Well, it’s the truth.” She huffed, grinning. She spotted Jane down on the walkway inside the docks, Garrus at her side. Her sister was grinning, happy, motioning to the new armor it looked like. Eliza turned to examine her own turian, his gray eyes staring at her as she looked him over. “I like the paint, a bit more metallic than the maat orange.”
“They asked what I preferred, apparently it’s a human color.”
“Monarch orange.” She chuckled, nodding. “Definitely suits you.”
“I thought you might approve.”
She didn’t respond at first, just staring until pale eyes met hers again.
“Eliza? What?”
“Nothing just…well it’s something.” She lied, correcting herself and shuffling. “Can I ask you something serious and you not shy away from me, for once?”
“Depends.” He said slowly, but she noticed he didn’t turn or pull away, staying grounded right where he was at her side.
“Jane and Garrus. They are mated by all definitions except on paper, right?”
“Yeah, more or less. Courting I think you humans call it. He’s already determined she’s his mate, and she seems like she’s more than fine with that, why? What are you actually asking me?”
“Are you…we…ugh I sound stupid.”
“Eliza.” She flitted her eyes to his. He was leaning closer to her, right? Was she imagining that? “Are you asking me if I want to be YOUR mate?”
“Do you?”
She stared up at him, watching his eyes widen with surprise. Eliza Shepherd had never felt shy in her entire fucking life, until right now, right here. Staring down someone who would have been an enemy last year, someone she’s actually fond of despite equally being annoyed by him. Garrus was right, and she’d already come to the same conclusions, just not as bluntly as Vakarian had said it.
“You’re…you’re serious?” Valence asked, voice breathy and awed, and she nodded her head once, nervous. She was about to open her mouth, apologize, promise to never acknowledge it again when she felt firm hands on her waist, gentle but confident as they tugged her against an armored chest. Valence growled low in his chest, no, purred, and he stared down at her, mandibles flared in playful excitement. “Fuck yes.”
She’d seen her sister and Garrus kiss, knew that with Turians it was more the human doing the kissing, but she instantly saw the appeal of tough Turian lips pressed to her mouth, that low rumble of happiness the loudest she’d ever heard it from him, and she curled her finger around the cowl of his chest unknowingly until he pulled back from her, eyes bright.
“I knew I wanted you for a while. Just…didn’t think you really did. Being drunk, getting hit on, fuck I wanted to snap at her neck to warn her off so bad. Wanted to nip at your neck to prove you were mine. Baveti adores you, you’re a total badass, of course I want you as my mate. Let me have you, please?” He rumbled against her neck, just the barest nuzzle of his plated nose, a scenting motion she had seen before. All that cocky swagger was back, no fear of being rejected, and she couldn’t help but laugh, a hand sliding over the opposite side of his face, over scars and down to the tips of fringe as he growled softly against her neck.
“You already do, dumbass.” She grinned, getting a playful snarl and a gentle nip before he picked her up. She laughed, crossing her legs at the ankles around his waist as he settled her on the railing. She wouldn’t fall, he wouldn’t let her. She was pretty sure a guard was watching them, unsure if they shouldn’t intervene, so she grabbed his face in her hands, watching him lean into the touch before pressing their foreheads together, a stupid smile on her face. “Raise a kid with me?”
“Actually, I think he was my kid first.”
“Nope, Bav is mine now. I clearly birthed him.” An eyebrow plate raised slightly.
“Eliza, if you birthed a Turian I’d be extremely worried about your species.”
She laughed way too loudly, he was definitely way too close to her for public eyes, and she didn’t give a shit. She was right where she wanted to be.
“Let’s go to earth, dumbass.”
“After you, commander.”
***
“It’s been ten years since we’ve been here.” Jane sighed, her black backpack slung over her shoulder. They were under a forced leave for twelve days, so they had brought their personal items only. Eliza chuckled softly beside her, her own blue Galaxy backpack over her shoulders and clipped on the front. They both were wearing jeans and T-shirts with alliance detailing, basic off duty wear which practically felt unusual for them. Below the glass window was a wide parking lot, nearly full of maintenance vehicles and cars, a few private skycars from the citadel like their own they would be using for security reasons. It was familiar but also so foreign.
“Think Uncle Tyler will even remember what we look like?” Eliza teased, shoving her lightly. “Alicia better, although it’s gonna be a little weird.”
“What? Oh hey, cousins and uncles and others, we have turian boyfriends we wanted to bring home?” Jane smirked at her, pointedly looking down at Baveti, who was clinging to Eliza’s legs and staring around the dock in wide-eyed alarm. Eliza grinned playfully, before scooping the turian up and balancing him on her hip. He trilled happily, bunting his head on her shoulder and cuddling up to her, keeping a wary eye around them.
“I mean it’s been so long since we actually stayed here overnight. Our last visit was just for refueling and a quick rations trip. And they expect us to fly back home and spend almost two weeks back on the ranch?” Eliza stated, nervous.
“Do Turians and horses mix?”
“Guess we’re gonna find out!”
Eliza and Her were military born, their parents had been in the field as long as they could remember and long before they were born and knew of. Their cousins hadn’t had quite the same experience, but Jane knew a few had pursued earthbound military tasks, or just stayed in a reserve program. With both their daughters safely born, Jennifer and Michael Shepherd had returned back to their family owned ranch business just before their mom died. Jane didn’t really remember much of their mom other than her hair, a whisper of her voice, pictures she’s seen and one she had kept, having fallen deathly Ill during her pregnancy and only survived to see her daughters turn five. Of course, their uncle Tyler also lived on the property, their mother’s sibling, along with six cousins- yeah, she was glad she just had one sister- but it made the property run smoothly from what little she was able to talk to her remaining family. Their father had been here when he passed as well, six years ago. Tyler had taken them under his wing afterwards, refusing to let them go without family ties, and while they had spent a lot of time with their father and a woman they had grown up with as their stand-in mother aboard his ships, their absence now was deafening.
If anything, the one who would benefit the most from all this would be Baveti, seeing new things, testing new foods. Valence- as Garrus had mentioned months ago- was not a picky eater, and often would eat anything once to try it. He’d gotten sick a few times on them, nothing major since he seemed to have a high tolerance to Levo-based foods. Garrus had been thankfully similar, more hesitant, often requesting a test be done first, but it was found pretty much any meat was fine and only a few things would be unsafe. Oreos, for example she knew, were safe but not really nutritional, while a chocolate bar could make Garrus pretty sick. She could eat one and be near him and kiss him, but he couldn’t eat one himself. Something about the processed sugars not sitting well with Turian stomachs.
So, food and rations wouldn’t be an issue. One thing she’d have never expected if she was honest. One of their biggest fears had been that eating each other’s foods would make them sick, and while she wasn’t necessarily inclined to try Turian cuisine, at least they could survive off of earth foods if needed or in an emergency. She wondered if Turians had anything like horses, animals they could either farm or ride on. Garrus had never said anything but she didn’t talk much about horses either, even if she knew she had a picture in her cabin somewhere of her with her first Mare.
“Ya know, it’s weird being here, but kind of nice. I hope the family doesn’t alienate Garrus and Valence though, that’s what I’m most worried about.” Eliza said softly, booping Baveti on the nose so he would scrunch and cheep at her. He really was getting too big to hold, but he was lighter than expected so her sister could still lift and hold him easily.
“If they do, I’ll call Hackett and have us set up somewhere else.” Jane stated, firm. “But I don’t think that will be a problem. Tyler has always been open minded, and you know Alicia will feed anybody she can. I doubt any of our cousins would be too offended, but I don’t expect them to be friendly either.”
“Well don’t you two look odd.” Valence rumbled from behind them, Eliza turning to hand off the child to him. Said child giggled and chirped as he was briefly dangled upside down playfully, talons digging into thick cloth, since their Turians had also been forced into casuals. “This feels about as wrong as it looks, for all of us.”
“Agreed. I’d rather have my armor or at least my basics. Kinda feel like I’m naked here.” Eliza chuckled, watching as Baveti dropped very gently to the floor, still giggling even now that he was free. He jumped up whenever Garrus appeared, circling the older Turian a few times with excited chirps that he humored happily. Jane couldn’t help but find it adorable how they interacted, Garrus had such a soft soul behind an armored hide, and she had a suspicion that was part of why she liked him so much. And he was a decent shot, of course, couldn’t let him get too brave now. The young Turian trilled, coming back to Valence and repeating a few of the same noises, pointing down below them into the parking lot.
“I think he’s fascinated by all the colors.” Garrus rumbled, stepping up to Jane’s side and eyeing her backpack questioningly. He had his own duffle in hand, and she smiled at him appreciatively, but chose to carry it herself. He tilted his head down, accepting, but she could see his offer to carry it was still there. She rapped her knuckles on his chest, getting a playful growl in response. A few bystanders walking by flinched at the sound, staring openly before hurrying away.
Eliza thought she was sneaking a quick kiss in, Baveti beaming at them, but her sister was not sly at all. She had told Jane pretty much right away that she and Valence had decided to get together, which was no surprise to her, or to Garrus when he was told by her later. Valence had clearly been smitten, but Garrus had told her the other Turian had always been cautious and hesitant, carefully guarded. Eliza would be good for him, they already saw his more playful side coming out. She quickly bopped Garrus on the nose- he instantly scrunched his face, mandibles flaring out in indignant displeasure- before clipping her chest buckle and adjusting her backpack.
“Everyone ready?” She asked, Eliza nodding and scooping up Baveti once more. Valence nodded, one bag slung over his shoulder and a duffle in hand, likely his own and Baveti’s stuff. For such an outcast and socially avoidant Turian, he really was a great father figure.
“So, how often are we going to need to dodge awkward questions, avoid getting assaulted, or ignore horrified screams at our appearance?” Valence rumbled out, shooting Garrus a look. “Well, scream at Garrus’s appearance anyways.”
Garrus’s growl at him got an eye roll from Eliza, but she grinned at Jane. Children, both of them.
“Be nice, both of you. I can’t promise complete acceptance, but you guys have us. We don’t care what anyone else thinks, you two are welcome here regardless. And Eliza can set them straight if needed.” Jane teased, getting a predatory smile from her sister as she turned to lead the way. Eliza was in step behind her, Garrus at her side in a few strides, eyes flitting around the walls and out the windows around them. Jane didn’t miss how he scoped out sniper perches, flicking between high up spots and exits with trained precision. To anyone else, he was observant, but Jane saw the soldier in him. He was uncomfortable. She stepped slightly closer, bumping her hip against his, meeting cerulean eyes with a knowing look. He huffed at her, caught.
“It’s okay. I already told Eliza if something went wrong, I’d have us out and relocated within the hour.” She said softly, noticing Eliza and Valence had fallen a little behind. Her sister was pointing out something to both Valence and Baveti.
“It’s not that, I know you won’t let anyone freak out too badly. New territory and all, have to make good impressions. They put a lot of responsibility on us by sending us here so soon, and while Valence can settle anywhere, me, not so much.” Garrus admitted softly, glancing at a group of people walking the opposite way. A young girl in her mid twenties, hair shaved close to her head, waved shyly at them, which Jane smiled and waved back at. The girl had a tattoo on her neck, one she recognized that a lot of new recruits got their first year in basic.
“Any way I can help?” She asked back, keeping her voice low. He chuckled at her.
“Give me a gun?” He teased, bumping her with a flick of his mandible. “I think once we get out of the public eye it’ll be fine. Never really been one for crowds or publicity. Thought I was going to lose it when I was made a general, but being in the field was much better than being stuck in a building on comms.”
“Well I don’t have a gun on me at the moment, but I might have one at home.” She grinned. He flinched next to her at a long clang outside, from where workers were building onto the airport lobby across the way from the sky port. Same general area, different facilities but all attached by long halls and runways. They had already been flown in on a private shuttle from where the Normandy was parked at a military command station in space. She settled her hand on his arm, giving him a moment to calm down from where he had instinctively turned towards the noise. Eliza was staring at her, Valence having put himself between her and the window now, also examining the source of the noise even if he played it off as curious instead of cautious. Two unsure Turians on a whole new planet, what could go wrong?
Valence did not like planes on earth’s gravity, they found out pretty quickly. The whole flight in the skycar to the smaller airport, the poor guy had his forehead pressed to Eliza’s shoulder to fight off the flight sickness. Garrus, while faring much better, didn’t even tease him for once, more concerned at every groan as the turbulence shifted around them randomly.
Hackett had at least secured them transportation as well, an officer waving them down from the gate and into an escorted patrol unit. They had to ride separately, Garrus with her and Valence and Eliza in the second vehicle, but they didn’t mind. Jane had to open the door and close it behind Garrus, who climbed into the large van looking mildly disturbed. The driver at least was polite and understanding, making the comment about how he was glad Garrus got his introduction to cars from him and not someone else. That seemed to help some, and she made a mental note to ask him later if it was just a him thing to not like small spaces, or if Turians in general were claustrophobic.
She was nervous, the city roads transitioning to backwoods and fences, open spaces lined with crops and thick forests in between like natural property lines. Their ranch was only a few miles from the nearest city, but their neighbors had a lot of flatland, so it looked a lot more open than normal. The officers slowed to a stop, guarding the start of the gravel road leading back to a large gray house, two stories tall with a large barn behind it and several smaller cabin houses scattered around nearby as the family grew and expanded into a sort of compound living. It was comfortable, not quite living on top of each other, and while their own cabin went unused, she just knew it was in perfect shape as they had left it from their last return home. Their driver took them up to the door practically, followed by Eliza’s driver. Jane gave Garrus a nervous look, taking a deep breath before opening the door.
“Jane! Oh honey!” A loving voice called, a woman with dark hair and brown eyes coming running down from the porch to immediately wrap her in a hug. Alicia was a few inches shorter than her, with streaks of gray in her hair, but she had taken up the role as their mother without missing a beat. “Ugh, I’m so glad to see you! Eliza, Darling, you get over here too young lady!”
Jane laughed at Eliza’s startled face, before her sister came over and accepted her fate happily. Tyler was standing at the top of the stairs, smiling, so she shot him a wave before turning at the sound of the hatch closing. Garrus, who had been seated on the left and out of sight, came around behind the van shyly, Holding his own duffle and her backpack. Alicia’s eyes widened in surprise, glanced at Eliza’s excited face and Jane’s sheepish one, before she smacked a hand on both of their arms hard enough they both yelped.
“Jane Shepherd, you didn’t tell me you brought friends!” Alicia scolded her, grinning. Garrus perked up a little, cautiously curious as he came closer. “And don’t think I don’t recognize that look, you girls both keep too many secrets! So, who is going to introduce this handsome gentleman to me?”
“Alicia, this is Garrus Vakarian. Garrus, this is my Aunt Alicia. She raised us pretty much. Garrus is my partner, as well as my best friend.” Jane introduced, watching him accept a nervous handshake and dipping his head respectfully. He was uncomfortable, but her easy acceptance seemed to calm him, especially when she smiled and turned back to her.
“You didn’t tell me that either! It’s about time you settled down with someone, and I guarantee he can treat you better than half the men around here.” She scoffed, Garrus blinking in surprise as Jane’s face warmed. “He better be as good a shot as you, or I’d be disappointed.”
“She’s better, but not by much. I make her work for it.” Garrus chuckled, Alicia blinking slowly but never faltering in her excitement. Hearing a turian voice in person was always a bit odd the first time.
“Bout damn time someone did. She needs a good Battle mate in the field to make sure she doesn’t do something crazy.” Tyler commented as he approached, a bit more wary of the turian but offering a hand without hesitation. “Scout and recon?”
“A sniper, yeah.” Garrus admitted, head dipped a bit once more out of respect.
“Good man. Why did I always suspect you’d find one of your own.” He teased, Winking at her so she would smile once more. “Tyler Shepherd. Garrus right?”
“Yessir. Sorry we didn’t have more time to warn you, it was uh…spur of the moment.” Garrus rumbled out, Eliza peeking up suddenly. A second later, an alarmed trill came from the car as Baveti clambered out, staring at the ground before whining and running to Eliza, scared. Her sister scooped him up, bumping foreheads with him so he’d be a little calmer, even if he tried to hide his face and only peer at the new humans with one eye. Alicia immediately cooed over him, as expected.
“Aww, and who is this little sweetheart? Hi honey! Your shy, I know, it’s scary seeing new people!” Alpaca said softly, getting Baveti to giggle softly, even if he was a bit scared.
“This is Baveti, he was adopted in the field, he’s not exactly favored by Turians as a species so Valence and Garrus kept him safe. I’ve kinda adopted him accidently.” Eliza explained, pausing as the other trunk shut, Valence coming around looking bothered but calm as he carried his bag and Baveti’s, Eliza’s galaxy backpack hung over one arm as he had the plush Varren in his mouth. Garrus snickered at him, moving to take Eliza’s backpack and the stuffed animal, which Baveti quickly snatched back once close enough. “This is Valence, Valence, this is Tyler and Alicia. He’s my partner.”
“Well, all three of you are welcome to wander around as you see fit! Anyone who makes sure these two stay out of trouble is welcome here. Not sure the boys will accept it as fast, being military bred, but they won’t say anything rude.” Tyler told them, getting a handshake from valence, who dipped his head out of polite acceptance, the introvert. Alicia grinned, playfully poking at Baveti, who was giggling at swatting at her gently, seeming to understand they were friendly.
“Right! You all have been moving all day, so dinner first! It’s already on the table, just got done a few minutes ago and waiting in the oven for the pork chops, so go put your bags up and I’ll get it ready! Are you all okay with that, is that something you two can eat?” Alice asked, quickly looking to Jane for confirmation, seeming relieved when she was nodded at.
“Don’t worry, we made sure everything would be fine.” Eliza chuckled, Glancing back at Valence who seemed so awkwardly uncomfortable. Garrus refused to give her bag back, so she relented in allowing him to carry it for her, which Tyler seemed to approve of since he’d watched the silent exchange. The turian was very proud of himself, shooting her playful looks as she led the way across the lot to their own little cabin. She didn’t remember exactly how this whole setup started, just that when their mom died and their dad went back to the field, he left everything to his brother-in-law and his family. They kept a specific singlewide for their family even if they weren’t home often, and Jane and Eliza had gotten theirs as well as the cousins and their families. Thanks to the military income, the property technically belonged to Jane herself, but she’d signed away that ownership years ago. All they legally owned was their own little home, someplace to come back too one day, or for things like this.
And Alicia made sure it was always aired out and dusted, which was sweet. It was a simple three-bedroom and two bath home, the two main rooms at either end and a spare used for hobbies next to Eliza’s bathroom. The interior was a light gray with dark oak trim, matching cabinets and gray vinyl floors. It was sparsely decorated, just some marble prints hung up, simple orange and gold curtains to match, but it was theirs. Her room was more simple than Eliza’s, just gray with dark decors and some splashes of color mixed in. She preferred things to be easy to clean since they wouldn’t be here much. She knew her sister had a more galaxy theme to her room, which was ironic since they traveled space more often than they were planetside. Already she could feel a migraine starting, as it always did when she was on the ground instead of in space. She assumed it was a gravity thing, since she hadn’t experienced it on the Citadel or on any of the moons or planets they had visited.
Garrus trailed in after her, looking around curiously, sniffing softly now and then. She flopped down on her bed, a full according to earth sizes, groaning softly. The turian gently dropped her bags to the floor nearby, leaning over her and flicking a mandible in amusement. She swatted at him playfully, sitting back up with a sigh and looking around. This place just didn’t feel the same, but it was better with him at her side. She could hear Baveti chirping excitedly from across the house, Eliza laughing at something, but her room stayed quiet. Calm. Garrus hesitantly sat on the mattress beside her, looking a bit worried if the frame would hold him, before wrapping his left arm around her so she could lean into his side.
“You okay?” He rumbled softly, brushing his cheek and mandible against her head where she rested it against his cowl, eyes closed. She blinked back up at him, chuckling when he gave her the look she knew meant ‘you thought about lying’.
“Yeah. Truly. Being on earth makes me a little sick now, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.” She admitted softly, watching his eyes close a bit in worry. “I was fine on the citadel, on the ship. It’s just here. Happened last time as well, it’ll go away after a day or so.”
“Is that why you both avoid here?”
“I wouldn’t say avoid.” She chastised teasingly, closing her eyes again to ease the slight nausea. “This place just doesn’t feel like home anymore. Especially now.”
“What changed? I mean, I understand, Palaven definitely doesn’t feel right to me. I’d rather be on a ship or at the citadel, something mine.”
“I think that’s me, I just don’t feel like I belong here. Back then I wanted away from everything, both of us did. Now, I feel more secure in the military and space than grounded like this. And…well.” She paused, chuckling before shifting so she could wrap and arm around him too. “Now I have you to consider as well. I know my family is here, and I should be with them more, but I’d rather be at the citadel with you. That’s my home.”
A low purr rumbled to life, and she smiled into the weight of his jaw as he rested his head on hers, silent, but she knew what he wasn’t saying. This was all weird, especially to him, and she was sure it would be exactly the same for her on Palaven. But, he was here, more than happy to be her partner both on the field and in the downtime.
Her cousins, miraculously, all managed to show up for once. She was pretty sure that was because Alicia had told them they had guests, but of the six of them, the four men were married while the two girls were happily single. Five of them were military, or military adjacent, which was what worried her. The youngest of the six was the friendliest, not even batting an eye at the newcomers and- after a brief introduction- scooped up Baveti and was swaying gently as she hummed along to a soft song while he giggled in delight at a new friend. The older sister was a bit more surprised, giving Jane a few teasing glances since she was practically in Garrus’s lap on the couch but minding her own business and even made conversation, especially since Eliza and Valence took up the other end of the small couch as had been decided pretty quickly.
The youngest of the men, who had two boys roughly nine and eleven, was a bit more hesitant. Baveti seemed to be interested in the younger children pretty fast, and Eliza knew he wanted to play, but their father kept them away at first, cautious along with his wife who was polite and shy, but didn’t seem bothered by the Turians. It took the oldest brother coming in, taking one look at the couch, blinking, then literally smacking his youngest brother upside the head for the two kids to be given free reign with a possible new friend. Eliza kept a close watch of their play on the floor.
The two middle aged men of the group were not as friendly. Their wives, while polite, clearly avoided them, and their husbands did much the same, greeting but then making it clear they had no intention of playing family. That was just fine by Jane, who was already overwhelmed with the sheer amount of people, a majority in the dining room attached to the living area. Alicia did her whole speach about family, introductions and such, but Jane would admit she barely listened. The throbbing in her head had worsened, and it was all she could do just to keep her eyes open. Even the pain meds she had taken didn’t seem to be helping this time, and while Eliza kept shooting her glances, she wasn’t going to give in that quickly.
Her sister ended up getting her and Valence’s plates, while Jane observed the three boys as they chased each other, giggling, in a game sort of like tag if she had understood right. Baveti had looked to Valence for translation, and then was happy to play with them so long as they all communicated carefully. Much like their own new truce with Turians as a species. She smiled despite the ache in her head, shifting to stand since her sister was back. She knew instantly something was wrong, feeling a cold numbness wash over her once she was up, a hand quickly reaching for Garrus as he vision spotted. She did hear a few startled gasps, but her knees had barely buckled before a steady presence had her sitting right back down on the couch, worried hands brushing her face and a low voice calling her name.
It took a few seconds for her to be able to open her eyes again, noticing right away she was leaning forwards a bit but held securely in Garrus’s hands. The Turian himself was propped on one knee in front of her, blue eyes wide with worry. Oh, he’d been the one saying her name then. She raised her head a bit, still feeling dizzy, as Alicia came over to her side, brushing her hair from her face and offering an ice pack. All eyes were on them, she quickly noticed, so she sought out the safety of deep blue instead.
“I’m…I’m okay. I got really dizzy.” She said softly, his mandibles unclenching a bit as he looked to her Aunt.
“Honey, Garrus said you had a migraine?” Alicia asked, holding the ice pack steady while Jane checked her grip, hands shaky. The cool ice felt amazing on her forehead, which she leaned down to rest against Garrus’s cowl since he was pressed so close to her. He’d probably complain about the cold later but she knew his clothes were thermal protected.
“Yeah, I get them when I’m on earth. Never uh..blacked out like that before from one. I’m okay, I promise. Just a bit dizzy.”
“Let me get you a plate, I know what you like anyways. And I know Garrus has you. Didn’t even know a Turian could move that fast, thought he was going to pass out just watching you.” Alicia teased softly, standing up, which was Jane’s incentive to lean up to reassure she was fine. Garrus’s expression though, she did balk a bit at that, keeping her ice pack in her hands now that the pain had receded a bit. He hadn’t shifted, cautious, ready to take her weight if she needed him too, still and unmoving like the sniper he was. She offered him a small smile, and he shifted a bit, sliding his hands from her shoulders to her hands, glancing over her with a soft nod. Alicia was standing nearby, smiling softly.
“Stay. I’ll bring you your plate, Eliza knows not to let you up.” He rumbled out, voice sounding a bit off before she realized he wasn’t purring that low note to his voice. His second tone was being held in check, and Valence seemed just as nervous, saying something to the other, likely in concern. Eliza did in face scoot closer, worried, while Garrus stood up and followed Alicia to the other room, occasionally glancing back up at her while hesitant conversations started back up.
“I knew they were bad, but never like that.” Eliza whispered, Jane slowly turning to her sister.
“They normally aren’t. I think it’s something with gravity maybe? Atmosphere pressure? I always did better in high speeds than you did, and got sick on light ones.”
“Like being seasick but from space?” Eliza teased, smiling when Jane laughed softly.
“Something like that. Who knows what weird shit goes on in our bodies. Doesn’t feel great though, I’m hoping food will help.”
“I’ve not seen Garrus move like that in a bit. Thought a few of your family were about to shit themselves.” Valence huffed softly, gray eyes cautious and alert. Yeah, she’d probably triggered both of their combat instincts.
“Sorry. Didn’t really expect that either.” She apologized, getting a flick of a mandible from the younger Turian. Apology accepted and unnecessary, she could practically read on his face. Garrus stepped back in the room, pausing at the bundle of giggling children that ran by, looking amused and concerned, before offering her plate. She frowned, making to shift again but he beat her too it by shifting to sit on the floor with his back to the couch, content. She frowned at him, wanting to argue, but relented this time. Not a battle worth fighting at the moment.
The food did help some, leaving behind exhaustion more than pain. Her spot did give her leverage to stroke very gently down Garrus’s fringe, which had the low purr starting back up in acknowledgment, leaning against her legs a bit. No one was hurt, shot, or yelled at, so she supposed this counted as a successful family meeting, even if she started to doze off against Eliza’s shoulder. She stirred when someone very gently picked her up, careful not to jostle her too hard.
“She okay?” A woman asked, likely one of the cousins.
“I think so. She’s just tired from what I can tell. I’ll make sure she gets in bed, sleep off whatever is going on.” The person holding her rumbled softly. Well, Turian. She knew instinctively who that was, even with her eyes closed and half asleep.
“I’ll walk you over Garrus.” Alicia said softly, a door creaking, very careful swaying motions rocking her almost back into the depths. Soft crunching of shoes, cool air of the night brushing her face as they went. Plus, Garrus ran incredibly warm which was really nice right now, warding off the almost-too-cold air.
“You really care about her.”
“I do.”
“Good. She needs someone she can trust. Her and Eliza, they have been through a lot. I’m glad she has you to lean on, especially now. She needs someone who can take care of her instead of her always taking care of them.”
“I definitely want to earn it, anyways. If she will let me, she’s pretty stubborn.”
“Oh I know. Have a good night Garrus. Take care of your girl.” A door creaked open softly, and she bounced a few times as if going up steps.
“Yes maam.”
She lost time after that, only stirring when she had been laid down on something soft, and was being gently prodded. She smiled a bit, and got a soft chuckle in response to the gently playful pokes, which she weakly wanted at.
“I seriously doubt you want to sleep in your current clothes, Shep.” Garrus chuckled, grinning at her when she finally looked at him and sat up with a huff. He was right, she did not want to sleep in jeans if she could help it. He left the room while she changed, coming back in after having changed himself to softer sleep clothes, and only once she had settled into bed, looking a bit awkward himself. She chuckled tiredly, flipping the blanket over.
“You’ll have to cuddle, but we can make that work.” She teased as he turned off the light, getting a huff from him. He eased onto the bed, still a bit weirded out by it, before settling in facing her. She poked his nose, him retaliating by nipping at her, before she curled in close, happy with his arm over her waist over the blanket.
“Sleep. I’ll wake you up in the morning.” He purred softly, and she smiled even as her body willingly complied. She thought at some point she heard him speaking softly to someone, but she didn’t wake enough to understand any of it.
It took two days for the migraine to ease off, which was about the same amount of time the two Turians could handle being idle. While the horses absolutely avoided them, It turned out that having Turians help out around the ranch made quite a difference. They were able to carry heavier items, and while Jane was still not allowed to help, She could appreciate watching Garrus haul bales of straw into the back of Tyler’s truck to move to the actual stable for the horses. Apparently they had pretty much asked for something to do, so as not to just sit around, and it was so much like them to offer their help even in a new place. Garrus never had felt right just sitting by when he could earn his keep, even if they knew it was necessary here.
The cousins were still hesitant, but Baveti was spending more time with the human kids while Jane babysat, chasing each other around in the grass, getting covered in mud and climbing the fences. Just enjoying life, not even hardly noticing the difference in species. Jane even spent part one night outside with the three children and Garrus, pointing out constellations, explaining stars and planets and cool things they had seen that were child appropriate. Garrus somehow got designated to send them a rock from palaven, which he chuckled at but agreed too, amused. Eliza was often playfully complaining about having to do extra training when back on the citadel, as Alicia’s cooking definitely had spoiled them all.
It was also Eliza’s idea to introduce the Turians to various human deserts-with a quick message to their medical team just in case- and it turned out that while ice cream was not Valence’s favorite thing in the world, he did begrudgingly admit to liking cookies. Garrus made a face at ice cream, but ultimately admitted he did like Jane’s butter pecan container. Lucky for him, Eliza hated it, so more for them! Chocolate cake was also a huge hit, and Garrus reluctantly informed them that Dextro chocolate was often a courting gift.
Human foods either went down well, or not at all, as apparently broccoli was too weird to even be tried, but anything meat related was a hit. Garrus particularly enjoyed Salmon, which was similar to one of his favorite Turian dishes. Valence just watched him in disgust. They also didn’t really seem to be interested in any kind of pasta, which was probably a good thing since they had been warned it could make them sick. Pasta wasn’t really good for anyone, so it made sense.
Tyler took his chance a little over a week in, setting out his rifle collection and challenging them all to a marksman context, while Alicia had Baveti. Garrus had grinned so excitedly, Jane still couldn’t help but tease him over it. Their uncle was good, and with a sniper, he could outdo Eliza and Valence pretty fast since they had different specialties. Eventually he admitted defeat, and they all cheered her and Garrus on while Eliza tossed the bottles or cans into the air. Jane knew she could beat him, but....she let her aim dip just the slightest bit, missing the bottle in its arch before it hit the ground. Garrus immediately celebrated, teasing them all about his skills, while Tyler met her gaze and winked, amused and proud.
Garrus did call her out on it later, but she still got snuggled anyway by an amused and affectionate Turian so it was still a win in her book. Garrus deserved to win occasionally.
Their last three days turned out much different than initially expected. Garrus and Valence had both watched in horrified concern when their humans saddled up and mounted horses, Jane leading the way in a trot down an old familiar trail. It had changed, their horses were different, they were different. But the ride was calm and gentle, just a bit of one-on-one time for them both. They didn’t have to share words besides brief warnings of low branches or holes to avoid, and they were confident in their Turians’ safety back home. When they returned, it was to find both Turians sitting safely up in the truck bed, while a medium sized long haired dog panted up at them with its paws on the tailgate.
Turians were startled by dogs. Or, puppies rather, as Tyler and Alicia had decided to add two furry family members in the form of a black and white border collie, and a red heeler that adored Baveti. They apparently had been dumped on the road a few miles from town, and they had decided to bring them home. Jane got to name the Collie, its gentle temperament and green-tinted blue eyes earned her the name Cosmo, while the Heeler was named by Baveti, after some translation. He’d apparently picked the Turian equivalent to a small but often energetic creature on Palaven, which was similar to the earthly Badger. Valence did not appreciate Badger’s enthusiasm and hyper demeanor, but it was clear he was amused by their playing, Especially when Cosmo snuck a few licks directly into Garrus’s mouth. She felt bad for laughing, she did, but his look of complete horror and the immediate sputtering and outburst of disgust had them all laughing.
It was nice. Even as they packed their stuff for the next morning, having put in requests for items to be restocked to the Normandy prior to their return, Jane was glad this whole thing had been positive for them all. She sat on the steps leading to the door, Eliza and Valence already in bed, and she had snuck out just to look up at the stars. Garrus didn’t say anything when he joined her, looking half asleep, but she cuddled into his side and just shared the peaceful night staring up with him. He knew exactly how she was feeling, she just knew it. They had settled in so well, but Jane had caught their aborted reaching to adjust armor or glancing at exits and occasionally looking up towards space. They could live here. But…this wasn’t home.
She let her eyes fall closed for a moment, leaning her head into Garrus’s shoulder while he purred. Yeah, she was ready to go home.
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Mary (Guest) on Chapter 1 Sat 17 Sep 2022 01:00AM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 1 Sat 17 Sep 2022 08:08AM UTC
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Mary (Guest) on Chapter 2 Sat 17 Sep 2022 08:13PM UTC
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Zireael07 on Chapter 4 Wed 21 Sep 2022 01:56PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 4 Wed 21 Sep 2022 04:11PM UTC
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JayPL (Guest) on Chapter 4 Fri 23 Sep 2022 12:18PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 4 Fri 23 Sep 2022 05:03PM UTC
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CelticBlackKelpie (Guest) on Chapter 5 Wed 05 Oct 2022 11:14AM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 5 Wed 05 Oct 2022 10:05PM UTC
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Zireael07 on Chapter 5 Tue 18 Oct 2022 02:55PM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 6 Mon 17 Oct 2022 09:53PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 6 Tue 18 Oct 2022 01:04AM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 7 Sat 29 Oct 2022 12:04PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 7 Sat 29 Oct 2022 04:44PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 7 Sat 29 Oct 2022 04:45PM UTC
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JayPL (Guest) on Chapter 7 Mon 21 Nov 2022 03:01PM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 7 Tue 13 Dec 2022 12:32AM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 7 Tue 13 Dec 2022 01:52AM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 8 Thu 15 Dec 2022 11:01AM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 8 Thu 15 Dec 2022 07:48PM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 9 Wed 25 Jan 2023 10:16PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 9 Thu 26 Jan 2023 12:28AM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 10 Thu 09 Mar 2023 02:42PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 10 Fri 10 Mar 2023 02:26AM UTC
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monochrome_dream_eater (Guest) on Chapter 11 Mon 19 Jun 2023 02:59PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 11 Mon 19 Jun 2023 11:43PM UTC
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Attyan (Guest) on Chapter 11 Mon 19 Jun 2023 09:46PM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 11 Mon 19 Jun 2023 11:42PM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 11 Tue 20 Jun 2023 03:07AM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 11 Tue 20 Jun 2023 03:21AM UTC
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RandomLuckyGuy (Guest) on Chapter 12 Wed 13 Sep 2023 03:37PM UTC
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mimitz on Chapter 14 Wed 02 Apr 2025 09:53PM UTC
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SaltyNoodles06 on Chapter 14 Fri 11 Apr 2025 12:18AM UTC
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ArcticWolferStormy on Chapter 14 Fri 11 Apr 2025 08:14AM UTC
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