Greetings All. Happy Turkey if you celebrate. I'm actually still around just dealing with a friend's illness and helping her poor distracted husband out. Anyway, managed to get this chapter done. It's kind of quiet for this particular story but without the quiet you don't notice the insanity. Yes, I still intend to drive all of C-Sec to drink. Mwahahahahahahahahahahaha. I do love typing that. As always thank you for putting up with my long delays and possibly rambling story segments. You people make it all worthwhile. Please let me know if I've made any mistakes. Cheers.

The Next Step

Garrus

"What now? Naked Batarians?" Teskal teased.

"No, actually just a dispute between two of the photographer's assistants over where to put a reflector." Garrus told him, suppressing a shudder at the idea of seeing a naked Batarian. Naked humans and naked Krogans were bad enough.

"What? No naked humans, cannon balling Krogans, or bobbing Volus?" Teskal teased him.

"No." Garrus grumbled. Sometimes Teskal carried his teasing just a bit too far.

Actually, the rest of the shoot went off surprisingly quietly. Within two hours they'd gotten whatever shots Garr felt he needed and they shut down and cleared away. Though he didn't have to, Garrus politely helped everyone put things away and get them on the transports. In his head he could hear both Pallin and his father going on about furthering cooperation between the races.

While in part he was thinking of that, part was that a lot of Garr's people, the ones still standing, were battered and beginning to hurt seriously from earlier. It seemed only right to help out. The other officers followed his lead and in a very short time, humans seemed to take forever to do things, everything was packed away in the transports.

Fortunately, still sore from being half drowned, Garr kept his thanks to a minimum. T'Harna politely accepted his gratitude and then C-Sec got out of there as fast as they could without looking like they were running away. Which they, in truth, were but didn't want anyone to know, it might get back to Pallin; and then they'd hear about it..for hours.

Garrus and Chellick had taken one car with Timmons and Johnson. T'Harna and her partner and the Salarians took the second air car.

"I could use a drink or two about now." Johnson sighed tiredly as he slumped in the back seat.

"I'm up for that." Timmons exclaimed. Chellick and Garrus agreed whole-heartedly but they all knew they had to report back to the conference room as per Pallin's orders.

Headquarters looked relatively quiet when they pulled into the parking garage. Or as quiet as it ever would or could look.

The group slowly made their way down to the conference room. They had to go through the C-Sec lobby, and to anyone watching they must have looked peculiar. When the elevator hit the lobby, T'Harna cautiously peered out to see what might be going on.

The lobby was busy but it seemed to be the normal kind of busy. They didn't notice any naked beings of any species – at first. Then they spotted a single naked, survival blanket wrapped, human male – sulking in a far corner. His arresting officers – an Asari and a Turian were filling out paperwork and studiously ignoring their captive.

Very slowly and unobtrusively they began to make their way across the lobby to another bank of elevators that would take them down to the conference room. Everyone was trying to appear casual but intent upon going somewhere. Like they had orders. No one wanted to look anyone in the eyes – that was a good way to get pulled aside for some sort of duty.

Garrus and Chellick had it easiest – they just looked straight ahead. While not the tallest of the C-Sec Turians – they were tall enough to avoid locking eyes with any of the officers present. Timmons and Johnson kept their eyes on the floor, following on Chellick and Garrus's heels closely enough so that they didn't wander off.

The two Asari pretended to be engaged in a spirited conversation and the Salarians were going over a data-pad. If you didn't know any better, they all looked like they were involved in important C-Sec business.

"Important. I'm sure." Teskal muttered.

Just as they got into the larger elevator and hit the down button, someone yelled T'Harna's name.

She ignored whoever it was and hit the door close button again.

"T'Harna?" That was Timmons, who hadn't quite learned to not acknowledge things or volunteer.

"If they really need me they can track me down to the conference room." The Asari grumbled as the elevator took its infuriatingly slow time to close. The Asari were damn near dancing in frustration at its tardiness. The Salarians were still totally engrossed in their data pad.

"Salarian porn?"

"If it was, I didn't look too close. Some things you just don't want to see." Garrus replied and took a sip of his drink. It didn't seem as harsh as it had been the beginning of the evening. He wondered if that was because he was, no doubt, well and truly drunk or because the bar tender was thinning the drinks out. Though he was fairly sure the man wouldn't do it on his own, he didn't know how well Teskal was acquainted with him and if they had a series of non-verbal signs between them.

The doors of the elevator finally closed and T'Harna slumped back against the wall in relief.

"A million credits to whoever can figure out how to speed these things up." She looked at the others. There were nods and clicks of agreement. The slowness of the elevators being a running complaint with just about everyone – except the slow moving Elcor – who actually thought the elevators were a bit too swift in nature.

When the elevator stopped on the right floor, T'Harna again peered out cautiously. Seeing that the corridor was empty, they vacated the elevator in mass and headed for the conference room.

To their pleasure, and relief, the room was empty. The food service was gone, of course, but there was actually still a hot beverage set up. Everyone got the drink of their choice and collapsed into a chair at the table.

For several long minutes the only sounds in the room were the faint creaking of the chairs and the sounds of someone, or several someones, blowing on their drinks to cool them off.

That was one thing Garrus had to admit that the human's flexible mouths were good for.

"They're good for so much more than that." Teskal smirked.

Garrus wondered what he was talking about but decided he wasn't going to play the older man's game by asking him what he meant.

Most everyone had halfway finished their drinks when Pallin stalked in the door. Garrus was secretly glad that his father wasn't with the Executor.

They all came to their feet when the older man entered.

"Relax." Pallin told them and they settled back down.

"Are you done?" He immediately asked T'Harna.

"Unless Designer Garr has more pictures in mind – we're done Executor." She told Pallin.

"Any more problems?" Though he didn't say it out loud, they all knew he was thinking of the Krogans and their impromptu diving exhibit.

"No sir." That was Jannz, one of the Salarians.

"Thank the Spirits." It was barely above a whisper but they all heard it very clearly.

"All right, you're off shift. Go get some rest. Tomorrow we have to provide security for a parade."

"A parade of what or who sir?" That was Timmons who asked what they all were thinking.

"A parade of ANIU members, led by none other than Mr. Leary." Pallin said coldly.

As one they all groaned at that.