Interlude

A/N: Hello again, everyone! It's been some time since my last posting, and in that time I've discovered the Mass Effect universe. This is my first (and definitely not last) foray into the world of Mass Effect, and I hope you all enjoy it!

Some background on my Shepard: Colonist, sole-surivor, soldier, paragon, and Liara-romancer from Therum to the end of the line.

This piece is set in the weeks following the end of Mass Effect and just before the opening of Mass Effect 2.

Many thanks to Uroborus75 for the beta work.

Disclaimer: All characters and other creations not my own belong to Bioware and their affiliated minions.

Shepard had been sleeping for a while, head nestled against the curve of Liara's shoulder as the thrum of the Normandy's engines pulsed through the hull. They'd just left the Batalla System of the Omega Nebula after clearing out another rogue Geth colony held under Saren's influence.

In the wake of Saren's death, the remaining Geth had been left scrambling for guidance. In the vacuum, they started creating their own respective cells, with a clear hierarchy and figurehead. This particular cell had a small contingent of Geth troopers and handful of snipers. The troopers had been easy enough to take out with her biotics and Shepard and Garrus's artillery, but Liara had briefly fallen into the red crosshairs of a Geth sniper before Garrus had taken them out, prompting Shepard to tackle Liara out of the line of fire. Liara had chastised herself following the incident; she should have been more careful. Shepard had told her to watch her back, because she couldn't do it all the time.

Shepard was correct, and Liara made a mental note to be more cautious the next time she found herself in the vicinity of a Geth base. Given the circumstances of their current mission, she suspected that similar scenarios would crop up soon, and she wasn't about to leave Shepard without one of her squad mates.

Shepard had retired to her quarters a few hours after returning to the Normandy, mostly at Liara's, Garrus's, Tali's and…well, everyone's insistence. Shepard had—quite literally—thrown her hands up in the air and conceded to get some rest before their next planetside mission.

Liara had gone to log a few analytic reports, specifically the linguistic analysis of some Prothean scripts they'd recovered a few weeks ago. She'd been working on deciphering them, which was made easy by the readily available cipher keys. She had been going through them in great detail for clues about Prothean culture and history, namely anything that could be of use against the Reapers. So far, her search had been unsuccessful, but there were still other samples that remained to be dissected.

A summons from a certain Commander had halted her work for the evening. Not that Liara was particularly bothered. She and Shepard had been in a relationship for a few weeks, though they did their best to be discrete. They worked in their own respective areas and maintained a professional relationship in front of the crew and when on duty. Their off-duty hours, however, were reserved for more clandestine encounters.

The first night that Shepard had offered for Liara to stay with her, she'd refused at first, unsure and uncertain, but Shepard had assured her that it was okay. She stayed that night, and for several more after that. Some nights they would sit in Shepard's quarters and talk for hours, recounting tales from their lives and revisiting old memories. Other nights they would fall into Shepard's bed, shedding their clothing along the way and remaining there for hours. Sometimes the evening would wane from passionate sex to intimate conversation between the bedsheets, their words all but whispered so that only the other could hear.

Liara ran her fingers through Shepard's red hair, careful not to wake her as she did so. Their clothes lay abandoned, forgotten trinkets of a duty that they could afford ignore for a few hours more. She tucked a piece of Shepard's hair behind her ear as the Commander released a muffled snore. Liara had to cover her mouth to prevent her chuckle from waking the Commander. The impulse passed, Liara curled her finger under Shepard's chin, resting her thumb along Shepard's jaw. Most of her injuries from their battle with Sovereign had healed, aside from a few deep scratches on her face. One in particular bisected a cheekbone that Liara of which had a good view. Nothing serious, as Shepard had reassured her.

The battle for the Citadel had taken its toll on them all, fraying nerves and testing strength to lengths Liara had never before seen. She had found herself in the fray of the final confrontation with Saren, after his resurrection as a powerful husk. In those moments, where her biotics served as her only shield between life and the sharp edge of Saren's fury, she had wondered if there would be an end to the conflict. Saren had nearly killed Shepard with an energy blast during the fight, only for Shepard to deliver a fatal shot a moment later. That deciding shot had allowed for the fleets outside the Citadel to destroy Sovereign, eliminating any chance for Reaper control of the station.

Liara tried to brush a stray hair from Shepard's forehead and was disappointed to find that it would not budge. She rolled her eyes and decided to ignore it. She dropped her hand to Shepard's cheek, the smooth skin gliding beneath her fingertips. Liara tentatively brushed a finger across one of Shepard's wounds, feeling the hard edges. The skin was still healing in a few places, causing the wounds to have a puckered look to them. Liara wondered if Shepard had been visiting Dr. Chakwas as frequently as she claimed.

Shepard turned in her sleep, rolling away from Liara and tucking her arm against her chest. The Commander uttered something that resembled a groan, and then words started to fall from her lips.

"Mhmm… Reapers… Cita—Citadel."

She'd done the same thing the previous three nights. No doubt in part to being nearly crushed beneath the wreckage of Sovereign that had descended on the Council Chambers shortly after their victory. She'd been very lucky.

Liara reached out to Shepard and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's all right, Shepard," she whispered. "The Reapers are gone."

At least for now, she thought.

Liara drew her hand away from Shepard and let it rest on her own bare chest. Shepard appeared to settle back into a quiet slumber, her breathing returning to an even rhythm. Liara felt relieved, though she worried when Shepard had these dreams.

Liara settled back on the bed, stretching her arms above her head and closing her eyes, willing sleep to find her. She moved one arm on to her chest and used the other as a support for her head, settling her scalp crests just below her wrist. The room had settled aside from the thrum of the Normandy and Shepard's breathing.

Shepard stirred next to Liara. At first it was only a gentle shift that tugged at the sheets, which didn't bother Liara. Shepard typically hogged the blankets. Then Shepard rolled over, her hand thwacking Liara in the face in one swift motion.

Liara opened her eyes, startled. "Shepard…what, what are you—"

Shepard lay next to her, one leg bent at the knee and the other extended over the edge of the bed on her side. Her one arm was drawn close to her body, the other laid on Liara's shoulder. Both hands were closed into half-fists. The corners of her lips were downturned and her mouth pursed. Creases formed at the corners of her eyes, snaking along the edge of her brow. Liara could see Shepard's teeth clenched through the small gap between her lips.

"Reapers… no, no, no!"

Liara sat up and nudged her. "Shepard?" When she received no answer, she repeated herself and nudged Shepard again.

She opened her eyes.

Shepard blinked a few times before glancing around the room. She placed a hand on her forehead, face pinched in a baffled grimace.

"Liara? What is it?" Shepard rubbed a closed hand over her eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"You were talking in your sleep," she said calmly. "I am sorry I woke you but… it seemed like you were having a nightmare. I wanted to make sure that you were all right."

Shepard shook her head and ran her hand over her face. A sigh drifted from her lips like a single ocean wave, brief and dissipating quickly. The battle for the Citadel may have ended, but it seemed that it hadn't entirely left her, yet.

"It's alright," she said, finally. "I appreciate you looking out for me like that."

She looked up and met Liara's eyes. "I'd do the same for you."

Warmth rushed through Liara's veins, briefly igniting a blue biotic glow across her skin. She reached for Shepard's hand, but the Commander instead brought Liara's hand to her face and let it rest against her wounds.

"I'm glad we made it," Shepard added.

"As am I," she said. Liara moved closer to Shepard, who gently encouraged her to rest her head on her bare shoulder, letting Liara's hand fall to the curve of her clavicle. Once she'd settled, Shepard gentle stroked her crests and planted a kiss on her forehead.

Liara closed her eyes for a moment before snuggling closer to Shepard. "For a time, the situation seemed grim, but you were able to get us out of there. I am grateful that you managed to pull yourself out of it, too."

Shepard chuckled. "Takes a little more than a hunk of metal to beat me."

Liara smiled as she stroked Shepard's neck. "It would seem so. But… Shepard, I am worried about these dreams that you keep having. Are they remnants of Sovereign's attack or subliminal messages from the Protheans?"

Shepard looked down to her, her eyes meeting Liara's before gently pushing her hand away. "I don't think they're visions. If they are, they're not pleasant ones. I just figured they were nightmares. Everyone gets them, now and then."

Liara lifted her head from Shepard's shoulder, settling herself on her side with her head propped up by her arm. Shepard was quiet for a moment, and then sat up, leaning forward to balance her arms on her knees.

"Seems like mine are just sticking around a little longer than most," she added.

Liara pushed herself up into a sitting position, pulling a sheet around them both. She set a comforting hand on Shepard's shoulder, nuzzling into Shepard's neck before kissing a spot just below her jaw.

"Regardless of what they are," Liara said, "if you'd like to talk about them… I'm here to listen."

Shepard glanced over at her, eyes brimming with concern and confusion. The green in her eyes looked a little dimmer than usual, like a leaf losing its colour. Shepard looked away, and then let out a breath. It was like she was lowering her own personal shield.

"It was images of the Citadel. The Council Chambers, the Presidium, all in flames. Of all the places I've been to, I never thought the Citadel would be one to give me nightmares."

"It was a traumatic incident for all of us," Liara replied. "You shouldn't blame yourself for what you're experiencing. Your mind is trying to process all the things that it has experienced. That would be a lot for anyone."

Shepard nodded. "Yeah. I just wish they'd process a little faster."

Liara caressed Shepard's shoulder before wrapping her arms around Shepard's waist. She brought her legs against Shepard's thigh, inching closer to try and comfort her. Settling her chin on Shepard's shoulder, she whispered, "No matter how long it takes, I'll be here."

Shepard gave a weak smile. "You stay by me all the time and you'll never get any of your research done."

Liara chuckled. "I doubt those Prothean artifacts we recovered will be going anywhere. I have time."

A sly eyebrow slinked up Shepard's forehead, crinkling the skin there. "What about the Prothean horse we found?"

Liara scoffed. "I would hardly call it a horse. Besides, zooarchaeology was never my specialty."

"Not one for horsing around, hmm?"

Liara rolled her eyes with a soft laugh. "You know that joke is never going to get any better, don't you?"

"I can always hope."

Shepard started chuckling, and then that chuckle grew into a laugh that caused her to lean forward completely against her legs.

Liara was confused. "What's so funny?"

Shepard looked up, her cheeks faintly pink. "Oh, I was just imagining what a horse with six legs would look like if it tried to walk."

Liara smirked. The image itself was certainly peculiar, and it did raise certain questions about the efficiency of its skeletal structure. She removed one of her arms from Shepard's shoulders, nestling it under her chin. Perhaps that could explain the lack of…

Liara then noticed Shepard's bemused look.

"What?"

"You were doing it again."

A tinge of embarrassment streaked across her skin, flushing her blue skin a deep cerulean.

"Doing what?"

"Analyzing."

"Oh Goddess, I didn't even realize… I suppose I learned to focus on my ideas many years ago. It can be quite useful."

"And damn impressive," Shepard added, planting a kiss on Liara's cheek. "Do you think you can store that idea away until morning?"

Liara smiled. "I certainly hope so."

Shepard shifted back toward the head of the bed, nudging Liara to join her. Shepard laid back and stretched her arms over her head, allowing Liara to press her crests against Shepard's collar bone. Liara felt the slow rise of Shepard's chest beneath her cheek, her breathing steady. A touch on her back signaled Shepard's arm wrapping around her shoulders, encouraging Liara to move closer.

Shepard sighed. "I hate this. Chasing faint signals when there's a bigger threat to think about."

Liara lifted her head from Shepard's shoulder, sensing her frustration. "The new Council listened to your story, didn't they? They may simply be trying to clear up the remainder of Saren's forces so that one problem does not become many when the Reapers arrive."

Shepard shrugged. "Maybe so. Just feels like we're idling with a bullseye on our backs. The Council needs to realize that. They need to listen."

"They'll listen to you," Liara replied.

Shepard glanced over at Liara, faintly smiling before reaching up to stroke her cheek with her thumb. Liara leaned into her touch, pressing her lips to Shepard's palm and softly kissing the skin. After a moment, she looked back up at Shepard, and the other woman grinned at her.

"I hope they will," she answered.

"If they don't, you'll just have to show them that they're wrong," Liara added.

Shepard smirked, leaning back on the bed. "Well, I can be rather persuasive when I want to be."

Liara cupped Shepard's jaw with her fingers. "I've noticed," she said.

For a moment she said nothing. A litany of questions came to mind, some of which had been gnawing at her thoughts since the Citadel. They pushed against her silence, finally breaching in a hesitant phrase: "Shepard… I know that things are relatively peaceful for now, but when the Reapers finally arrive… What will we do?"

Shepard wrapped her other arm around Liara, drawing her close enough so that their foreheads touched. The warmth of Shepard's skin against her own was soothing.

"We'll fight them with everything we have. If the Reapers are coming, we'll stop them."

Liara brushed her nose against Shepard's and let out a quiet sigh. "They couldn't have asked for a better leader."

Shepard lifted her forehead away and chuckled. "Well, I hope I make them proud."

Liara stroked Shepard's cheek. "You will. You stopped Saren and Sovereign from taking the Citadel. I know you'll find a way."

Shepard frowned, her arm growing lax against Liara's shoulder blades. "But I lost the Council. I know there were a few people that weren't too happy about that."

Liara dropped her hand to Shepard's chest. She tried to meet Shepard's eyes, searching for the spark of light they normally held. "The loss of the Council was unfortunate, but if you had chosen to save the Destiny Ascension, how many more lives would have been lost? There's no way you could have saved all of them."

Shepard looked away from Liara, shaking her head. "Yeah, we're taught that casualties are sometimes part of the job. One of the unfortunate parts. You always hope that it'll never happen to you… and then it does."

Liara paused. In Shepard's service record there was an extensive report on a mission to a colony called Akuze. Her marine unit had been attacked by Thresher Maws during the night, killing all but one of them.

Liara flattened her palm against Shepard's chest, trying to soothe her. Shepard's brow was tense, her lips taut. She brought a hand up to her forehead, pressing her palm against her brow and exhaling loudly. She looked out into the darkness of the room, as if she was searching for something in its depths.

Shepard relaxed after a moment, allowing Liara to press two gentle fingers to her cheek and turn Shepard's face to her.

"Just because you lost people doesn't make you a bad soldier. Look at the lives you've saved and the people you've helped. Enough of the galaxy owes you their lives that they could silence the ones questioning you."

Shepard smirked, a muffled chuckle rumbling beneath her lips. "You make me sound like damn war hero."

"I do my best."

"You know," Shepard added, "when all this is over, I'd like to find someplace to rest. Somewhere out of the way."

"Oh?" Liara asked, propping herself up on her elbow. "Is that so?"

Shepard dropped her arms so that they draped across her torso and turned her face to Liara. "Yeah, build a little house, get a dog, have my own shooting range…"

"Shooting range?" Liara exclaimed.

"What?" Shepard asked with a shrug. "I've got to have some fun now and then. You never know, there may be some Prothean ruins around just waiting to be discovered."

"You'll want to call in an expert on Prothean culture if you find some," Liara added.

A soft smile graced Shepard's face. "Oh, I think I know just the person for the job. But I was hoping she'd come with me to this planet… if she'd want to, that is."

Liara's entire body froze. The idea of going away somewhere with Shepard was tempting, but her thoughts fell on what she would leave behind. There were still digs to be done, papers to write. Her mind briefly drifted to Thessia. It had been decades since she had left, but she had always expected that she would return at some point.

"Shepard… I…"

Shepard's expression dropped, the corners of her lips sagging slightly. Her green eyes flared with concern.

"Sorry, if it's too soon or—"

Liara shook her head.

"No, it's just that I wasn't expecting… this. I wasn't sure if things would still be the same after the Citadel. And given that there is still so much ahead of us, I don't know if I can give you an answer right now."

Shepard rolled onto her side and propped herself up on an elbow. Her red hair fell messily across her brow, tickling at the edges of her eyes. Liara met her eyes, anxiously waiting for Shepard's answer.

"It's okay," Shepard replied. "There's no rush. It's more of an idea than anything else."

Liara ducked her head briefly. She was almost embarrassed by saying no to Shepard, but a part of her knew better than to commit to something like this without absolute certainty.

"I know, and I do like the idea, but I don't want to make a promise that I can't keep."

Shepard moved toward Liara, the soft light in her quarters wandering across her pale skin, and wrapped her arms around Liara's waist. She let out a short breath before pressing her face into Liara's neck.

"Don't worry about it, right now. We've got time to figure it out."

Liara curled her arms around Shepard, her embrace tightening after a moment. She placed a firm but gentle grip on Shepard's shoulders, holding her close. Shepard lightly ran her fingers across Liara's shoulder blades and nuzzled her neck.

"About the Citadel," Shepard whispered, "it doesn't change anything, Liara. I'm with you now, and I'll be with you as we go forward."

"That's what I was hoping you'd say."

Liara wrapped her arms around Shepard, pressing their bodies together as she reached a hand into Shepard's crimson hair. Her heart pounded beneath her skin, causing the slightest tremble in her fingers. Liara tilted her head as Shepard leaned closer, their lips finally touching. Shepard caught Liara's bottom lip between hers and tugged gently, eliciting a small gasp from her. Liara pushed against Shepard's lips, parting them so her tongue could sweep across them. Shepard's tongue met hers equally, wrestling together beneath their lips. Shepard pulled Liara on top of her, hands skimming along Liara's back as they continued to kiss.

When Liara broke the kiss to catch her breath, the reprieve was brief. She moved to kiss Shepard's jaw, then traveled down her neck in a series of light kisses. As she reached Shepard's collar bone her kisses became firmer, hungrier. When she sucked at the skin there, Shepard gasped.

"I can be quite persuasive as well," Liara whispered before planting another kiss on Shepard's neck.

"Is that so?" Shepard asked.

Liara replied by kissing a path across Shepard's chest and down between her breasts. Her fingers continued on, wandering lower.

"Let me show you."

Fin