Chapter 155: Normal is a Setting on the Washing Machine

=== Summary ===
Mini-Arc: “Secrets’ Fallout” Continues
Shepard’s anger is no longer strong enough to fend off her self-loathing as she stares into her undrunk coffee, nursing a massive headache. Fighting a spiral into the darkest depths of depression, Shepard reaches out to her mother for help. Recognizing her daughter is in crisis, Hannah walks her though some breathing exercises to help ground her. Shepard opens up to her mother about the issues she and Garrus have been having, the broken trust, and the mind control, and finally that she is afraid that she is a monster and will never be anything else. Hannah reminds her daughter that healing is not straightforward, and prods a little more. Shepard admits that the information she retrieved on Kahje gives her reason to believe that the Reapers are not as dead as believed, and that she is the key to bring them back. Hannah redirects Shepard back towards the practicality of how to repair her and Garrus’ relationship; she recommends couple’s counseling for the two of them, then tells Shepard to take a few minutes to decide what she wants and needs and then clearly communicate that in specifics to Garrus before disconnecting and doing some self-care. Hannah reminds her daughter that she and her fiance are infiltrators and work best with data they can act on.
Shepard takes her mother’s advice and by 5am the next morning, Garrus returns to their shared home with groceries and renewed hope in hand, having taken the previous night to do his own self-care. With his father’s advice firmly in mind, he cooks a surprise breakfast for the three of them, as a show of love. 
Though there is a lot of hurt and other issues to unpack, the two of them enjoy breakfast together, quietly recommitting to work on their relationship- together.
=== Title Meaning ===
"Normal is a Setting on the Washing Machine" is an idoiom that Hannah Shepard uses to startle her daughter out of her depressive spiral when Shepard tells her mom that Garrus deserves someone normal.
=== Easter Eggs ===
==== Discord Highlights ====
istie's incredible deflection skills, the preponderance of trust issues amongst the Normandy crew (and the members of the EOTA server), and The Story So Far.