EPILOGUE:

KEELAH SE'LAI

Over a month later…

"Let the moon's shining light hide two lovers with its rays,

Though I know that the dawn will set us on course for separate ways,

I will hold this night in memory for all my living days,

Now unmasked, I feel your skin on mine…"

The echoes of Tali's singing one of her favourite songs from Fleet and Flotilla died away in the canyon. Living without a helmet was already a novelty in of itself, but singing was too. And she had even more cause to sing these days, even with the threat of the Reapers looming overhead.

The most immediate cause for her high spirits was the fact that she was on her homeworld, Rannoch. That would be a cause for joyful celebration for any Quarian. After all, their habitual greeting, Keelah se'lai, meant 'by the homeworld I hope to see one day'. And here she was, witnessing it with her own two eyes. She was smelling the air, hearing the sounds, feeling the arid ground beneath her boots.

Despite her happiness, she did have serious work to do. She was waiting for some automated soil probes to finish their work. True, the Geth would have provided the data they wanted willingly, but the Admiralty Board wanted data that they could trust, and trust for the Geth was fragile and tentative at best. Even Tali was still wary around them, and she had gotten more used to them thanks to Legion.

It had been a frantic few weeks prior to her return to the Migrant Fleet, though. Admiral Hackett had sent the Normandy on a number of missions to various worlds where Rachni or Heretic Geth had taken hold, the former smuggled out by Cerberus from Noveria. It culminated with a clash with Batarian terrorists on an asteroid above the Terra Nova colony. Jeanne was forced to let Balak go…long enough to defuse the bombs. It meant little when Harry used a discreet Tracking Charm on the Batarian leader…and the Normandy tracked him down days later, and sent him to Hell.

However, after that point, some of Jeanne's crew had decided to part ways with her. Wrex wanted to collect his family armour, and had decided to make the journey back to Tuchanka, hopefully able to begin turning the Krogan into something better. Tali and Harry also made the decision to head back to the Migrant Fleet, with Tali having managed to wrangle some interesting Geth data out of Jeanne after they found it on a mission. All three were dropped off on Noveria, though not without one last party.

Jeanne Shepard, Ashley Williams, Kaidan Alenko, Garrus Varkarian, Dr Chakwas, Chief Engineer Adams, Navigator Pressly, Joker…she would miss them, and she often sent emails when she had time. Apparently Williams was finally up for a promotion, after she was kept down for so long because of her family. Tali was glad for her.

Tali had spent a few days familiarising herself with the Scorpio, before she and Harry parted ways with Hermione, Jennifer, Legion, Edith (and wasn't that a shock, discovering that she was an AI…with a bad sense of humour to boot?) and Oriana. They soon rendezvoused with the Migrant Fleet, with Tali requesting that she be checked by Admiral Daro'Xen, to ensure the nanomachine treatment couldn't be claimed as influencing her mind. Then, they met with the Admiralty Board via hologram.

The meeting with the Admiralty Board had gone far better than she could have hoped for. Any accusations that she was a double agent for the Geth were minimal. The Admirals knew Tali: three of them were either family, or close enough as to make no odds. She also presented her arguments, and her doubts, in a manner that mitigated any possible accusations.

It also took them surprisingly long to vote, save for Daro'Xen, who was dismissive in her attitude towards the Geth. Han'Gerrel's vote against the offer wasn't surprising, but he laid out his reasons why: as much as the offer was tempting, and he dearly wished for peace, he simply could not bring himself to trust the Geth at all. Zaal'Koris' vote for the offer wasn't surprising either, but he had taken some time to consider the offer too.

Shala'Raan threw in her vote for the Geth offer, putting the lie to many considering her a fence-sitter who went along with whoever bore the most pressure on her. And so, the deciding vote went to her father. And what he said surprised her.

He laid out all his concerns about the offer, and about his distrust of the Geth. But he decided, after much consideration, to tentatively accept it, much to Tali and Harry's surprise. He did say that he expected Han'Gerrel and Daro'Xen to keep an eye out for any treachery, that was only rational.

Their talk then returned to the subject of the Reapers, and the Heretics' alliance with them. Both her father and Daro'Xen were fascinated and disturbed by the fact that the Geth Consensus was even capable of a schism. Of considerable concern was the Reapers themselves. While the Admirals were sceptical, and understandably so, the data she forwarded to them had them taking notice. She and Harry were questioned as to every aspect of what they had learned.

Then, the question of Harry staying on the Fleet came about. Keelah, that was mortifying. Harry had brought along several months of supplies for himself, as well as dextro supplies, so the practical concerns weren't much of a concern. But questions were asked about how he could prove to be of use: aliens on the Migrant Fleet were rare. And then, Harry revealed that he had magic.

Ugh, that was messy. It didn't help that, after showing them a spell that would be impossible to do with biotics, Daro'Xen got an attitude that made Tali think she wanted to vivisect Harry. And that was without going into her father's rather stiff reaction to her revealing that Harry was her boyfriend. That had set the cat amongst the pigeons. However, the possibility that Harry could help repair mechanical devices easily, as well as acting as their agent when they needed to purchase things other species might screw them over for, helped.

For a couple of days, Tali and Harry stayed on the Moreh, tolerating Daro'Xen's tests on the human wizard. Meanwhile, Shala'Raan and her father contacted the Geth via the QEC Legion had delivered to them prior to leaving Noveria. The offer had been accepted, but her father had added a proviso: he wanted an expedition to be sent to Rannoch, nominally to check on the condition of their homeworld.

Miracle of miracles, the Geth accepted.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard a familiar voice call out. "You all right there, ma'am?"

Tali smiled, before turning to face the by-now approaching Kal'Reegar, the Quarian Marine looking surprisingly at ease on a world with Geth. "Yeah. How're you and the others holding up?"

"Surprisingly well, considering we're surrounded by Geth," Kal'Reegar said. His family were famous for producing some of the best fighters on the Migrant Fleet, and she had to admit, before she realised Harry was real, she did have something of a crush on him. It didn't hurt that, for all his fame as being one of the best of the Reegar family, he was a humble or at least plain-spoken man, warm and friendly. "It's surprising how…helpful they are. Even if we won't be resettling Rannoch for a few years, just being here now is…well, amazing."

"I'm glad you're here," Tali said, even as she returned to the equipment. "I'd hate to think what that bosh'tet Prazza would have done if he was here."

"Yes, well…we're here now, ma'am."

"Please stop calling me that, Reegar," Tali said, frowning. "I don't really have a rank in the military, and I'm not your superior."

"Tali…you helped Shepard stop Saren Arterius and Sovereign, not to mention those rogue Geth. Even if you don't think so, you're a damned hero, especially in my book. You certainly have my respect. So does Harry. Honestly, I've only met a few humans with such regard for us, even on my Pilgrimage."

"Maybe you got unlucky. I met more than a few who were decent towards me. Even some of the Normandy crew who looked askance at me came around, like Pressly. And the others on the crew who weren't human, like Wrex, Liara and Garrus, they all treated me well. But Wrex is on his way back to Tuchanka, while Garrus and Liara are helping Jeanne and the others look for more evidence for the Reapers."

"Yeah…I'll be honest, I saw the reports from the Citadel, even if they were claiming it was some Geth dreadnought. Scary stuff. How long do you think we have until the Reapers make another move?"

"I've no idea. It's been over a month since then. The Reapers sound patient, but Sovereign getting destroyed has to have gotten their attention. For all we know, they're accelerating their plans. We've gotten as much useful intelligence as we could out of Legion, but Sovereign did not reveal much to the Geth beyond pretending to be a god." Tali shook her head, running a hand through her hair, a character tic she had picked up ever since being able to remove her helmet. "It's no god. Maybe a devil, but we killed it. I hope Wotan's finding more about them. Or Jeanne."

Reegar nodded. "By the way, how many more samples are you taking?"

"We're just corroborating the data the Geth sent us," Tali said. "My father may have accepted the Geth's offer, but he wants verification of every bit of data the Geth send us. The Geth aren't quite capable of lying per se, but they are capable of subterfuge, in theory. I know that sounds contradictory, but given that their programs have been watching organic species via the Extranet covertly, they are capable of subterfuge, even if only out of self-preservation. I mean, I got talking to Legion, and they have university degrees via the Extranet, under pseudonyms, to say nothing of…well, they play online games. In at least one of them, they nearly got banned for using mods and VI assistance when it was simply their own AI being that good." Tali shook her head, chuckling. "Isn't that bizarre? One of the most feared species in the galaxy, if you can call them that, playing online games."

Kal'Reegar chuckled as well. "I suppose it's one of life's perverse ironies, huh? So, we're basically verifying, doing fact-checking?"

"Yes. Speaking of which, I think the Admiralty Board are still going to ask to check on the systems around Dholen. That star is dying quicker than it should have. Something's interfering with it. The Geth have forwarded data, but knowing my father and the others, it probably won't be enough. They'll want to mount an expedition to Haestrom, gather data directly from the instruments left there."

"Sounds insane. I'm not exactly a scientist, but all that hard radiation from Dholen, from what I know, could mess up shields or comms, or both."

Tali nodded absently, even as the probes she set up beeped as they emerged from the ground. Checking the readings on her Omni-Tool, she nodded again. "Looking good. Just a few more weeks of doing this."

"We'll make the most of it, Tali," Harry said, coming over with Legion, or at least their current platform. They had two platforms, which Harry jokingly claimed they commuted between, with one staying with Hermione. "Incidentally, I just got word from Wotan, courtesy of Legion. Apparently they've got some disturbing news."

"Keelah…that's all we need. What is it?"

"Wotan has found reports that Collector activity has increased in the wake of Nazara's demise," Legion intoned.

"And you don't need to be a genius to think that the Collectors and the Reapers have a possible link from that alone," Reegar remarked after a moment's pause.

"Seems like Sovereign's death has stirred up a hornets' nest," Harry said, before noticing the blank looks on the Quarian's faces…well, on Tali's face. She vaguely knew of hornets, bees and the like from Harry, but it took her a while to grasp the human saying. Kal'Reegar's bemused expression was partly hidden by his visor.

"We have sent relevant data to the Migrant Fleet," Legion grated. "We will begin our own investigation into the Collectors. If they are indeed connected to the Old Machines, the Reapers, then they threaten the future, of the Geth, of the Creators, of all sentient life, organic or synthetic. We have advised the Creators, especially those on Pilgrimage, to remain vigilant. Your Admiralty Board will agree on that much at least."

"Hopefully," Tali said.

In many regards, Harry was glad Tali kept wearing that environmental suit, even if she often had the helmet off. Oh, she kept the veil, even if it was pooled at her neck like a hood, but it was part of her cultural heritage, like her suit. The suit itself was very flattering, to say the least. She kept calling him a perverted bosh'tet, albeit not without reason…and never without affection.

Still, he had to stop his gaze from straying too much as they walked back to one of the habitats the Quarians had set up. They didn't trust the Geth enough to stay in one of the buildings they had preserved. Instead, he looked around the landscape, a beautiful desert landscape, with spiky grasses and other strange plants. Like a more exotic version of some Wild West landscape, or somewhere in the Australian Outback, or something.

Despite it being a serious scientific expedition into what the Migrant Fleet still considered enemy territory, there was something…if not relaxed about it, then jovial and excited, in spite of the tension. In between tests, many of the Quarians, scientists and soldiers, were taking photographs, ostensibly for intel reasons, but really, they were more like tourists. He'd heard a couple even arguing over real estate claims.

The excitement was understandable. No living Quarian had seen their homeworld, save for the few books and data that they had managed to get off Rannoch during the Morning War. Now, there was hope, albeit marred by the fear that this was a Geth trap, that they could come back inside their lifetime, even within a scant couple of years.

Harry knew that the Quarians needed this hope. Their population was only barely stable, kept on their spaceships, with strict population control measures only lifted if they felt like the population was decreasing too much. The 50 thousand ships, all containing something over 17 million Quarians, were mostly decrepit, repaired over and over again. Resources were almost always in short supply. The Migrant Fleet was technically under perpetual martial law, though in practise, it was still under some semblance of democracy. But there was a quiet undertone of despair underpinning the Migrant Fleet. Something was needed to rekindle their hope.

This was why the Admiralty Board were even going along with this. It would take a hell of a lot for the Quarians to accept the Geth as allies, not their robot servants gone rogue, but Rannoch and their colonies were worth it. The Quarians had been struggling to survive as they were.

Not that they were going in with blind acceptance. Even Zaal'Koris, as much as he favoured the Geth, was savvy enough to keep an eye out for daggers poised for the back. He was open-minded, not stupid. You couldn't be stupid and be elected the Admiral in charge of the Civilian Fleet of the Quarians. Harry couldn't blame them. The Heretics proved that the Geth were capable of splitting into factions. Who was to say that some part of the Geth Consensus wouldn't view the Quarians as perpetual enemies?

Harry didn't know it, but their time spent on Rannoch would be relatively uneventful. The most eventful thing that would happen would be a few weeks from now, when they got news of the Normandy being destroyed, and Jeanne going down with it. So too would the events that would soon unfold on the Idenna, when some human fugitives would be pursued by Cerberus. But that was in the future.

Of course, there were still interesting things to do. Exploring a world that had been barren of organic sentient life for the past few centuries, chatting with the Quarians that had accompanied him and Tali…and then there was the pair of them fumbling their way through their relationship, feeling their way into greater intimacy by small steps.

It still ate at him sometimes, the fact that he was stranded far away in the future, and the only other remnant of that time was Hermione. That he had failed miserably in his task to save his friends and family who had perished thanks to Voldemort and his twisted ideology. That he had left his other friends behind, especially after distancing himself from them.

But he was here now in the future. And it wasn't like he was alone, or bereft of friends or purpose. He had new friends, and a new purpose. His saving people thing, as Hermione once told him in exasperation nearly two centuries ago, was still in full force.

The scale of what he needed to do was even more than before. Back in the 20th Century, it was mostly confined to Britain. Now, it was a galaxy populated by many, many people, and not just humans, or the sentient magical creatures of Earth. And they were all under threat.

Harry had many regrets, too many. But in the end, he was here. There was only one place for him in this future time, he thought as Tali turned to him with that gorgeous smile: by Tali's side. No matter what the future held for either of them, it would be faced together.

THE END

EPILOGUE ANNOTATIONS:

So, there you have it. A nice little ending.

Okay, this story was admittedly rushed, but it's a good note to go out on.

I had to rewrite the original ending. There was a whole chapter devoted to Tali and Harry's departure from Noveria and their arrival back at the Migrant Fleet, and while I did intend to halt the fic just as their meeting with the Admirals began, the thought of Tali and a small group of Quarians on Rannoch turned out to be too appealing to ignore. This bit takes place about a few weeks prior to Shepard being killed at the beginning of the second game.

The Admiralty Board's decision was one I had to work out logically, as mentioned before. I knew that Daro'Xen and Zaal'Koris were on complete opposite ends of the spectrum of the Geth, it was working out what the other Admirals would do. Shala'Raan might choose that time to make a stand, for a change, so I put her on the accepting the offer.

Han'Gerrel was interesting. I despise the character in the games, particularly the third game (I went for the Renegade Interrupt that had Shepard punching him in the guts, but honestly, I wanted a summary execution for what he pulled: namely trying to deliberately murder his own best ally in the Alliance, plus the daughter of his late friend and colleague, and I think there's more going on than just opportunism towards a disabled Geth ship), but for my fic, he's basically the Mad-Eye Moody. He's paranoid about the Geth, but he's tempted by the offer. He refuses it mostly as a Devil's Advocate thing: if he's outvoted, then he'll be the one keeping an eye on the Geth, just in case. However, if the Geth do prove themselves to be allies, then, while vigilant and cautious, he'll accept it, albeit warily.

As pointed out, Rael'Zorah was the deciding vote, and as pointed out by jgkitarel, it's actually reasonable for him to accept, if only because it may mean getting Rannoch back without firing a shot. He'd be wary and sceptical, but he'd be willing to give it a shot, as long as he knew his bases were covered.

I also thought it nice to have Tali sing a bit from Fleet and Flotilla. I didn't realise there was an actual song from the film until later, or at least that there was a musical version.

Now, I can't promise a sequel. Things have been pushed off the rails somewhat leading up to the second game. I have to figure out some particulars, and how Harry's cults figures into things, and how Harry and Tali would get involved with the revived Shepard's crusade against the Collectors.

But hopefully, you guys enjoyed this romp. Keelah se'lai.

No numbered annotations this time.