Pairing: Liara T'soni/FemShepard

Spoilers: Mass Effect 2

AN: A follow up to Ilos Can Wait. I don't name Shepard so you lovely readers can play insert-your-own... that sounded kinda dirty.

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Hagalaz Can Wait

...

"I have to have something special to come back to."

"I'm... open to suggestions," Liara said breathlessly, her fingers weaving instinctively through Shepard's hair. She felt herself trembling, unable to find the courage to pull her lost lover's lips towards her neck, but also unable to let go.

The Commander was not so uncertain. "How about this?" she purred, sliding her hands around Liara's waist and gripping her backside through the silky material of her dress, causing the asari to gasp. With her chin tucked over Shepard's shoulder, a smile spread across Liara's face. It was one of the first she had experienced in a long time. The past two years alone had been dark and miserable. She had become something, someone, much more serious than the innocent, slightly awkward archaeologist she had once been. But in Shepard's arms, perhaps she could reclaim that part of herself.

"Are you sure this is what you want, Liara?"

This time, Liara did put pressure on the back of Shepard's head where her fingers were tangled in soft, thick hair and brought their lips close. She had always been fascinated by the human's hair, its texture and color, particularly since asari did not possess it. "I have never been more sure of anything in my life."

The echo of those words was a powerful reminder of their past, a past that they both secretly hoped would lead to a brighter future. 'Maybe even one with all those little blue children,' Liara thought, slightly relieved that Shepard had not joined minds with her yet and heard the stray idea. If they joined again, she might not be able to hold back her desires during the meld. Truthfully, part of her didn't want to.

"Shepard, before I – before we... you have to know..." Liara wasn't sure how to put all of her thoughts and feelings into words. How Shepard's "death" had nearly destroyed her. How she had not been with anyone since, or even thought about it. How her heart had become colder than the far reaches of dark space. "There was only you. Within my body, my mind, and my heart. I did not always believe we would be together again, but I hoped. It was all I had to cling to."

"You have me now, Liara. I know it doesn't mean much, since I spent the better part of two years being "rebuilt", but there was no one else for me either."

The asari shook her head and cupped Shepard's cheek. "It does mean something. It means a lot that you remained... faithful, if I may use that word, even though I had no claim over you."

"You do now. I want you to consider me yours," Shepard said as she reached around the back of Liara's neck, searching for the zipper of her dress. The doctor shivered, but not from the cold as Shepard peeled the garment apart in back, revealing bare skin that her hands hungrily explored. "And I want to consider you mine..."

Liara's trembling increased at the possessive words. She had only been with Shepard a handful of times before the human's death had cut their romance short, but the memories were incredibly vivid. She wanted to experience their union again, to rediscover what she had lost. "I am yours, Shepard. Always."

Even though it pained her to be any farther from Shepard than absolutely necessary, the asari stepped back a pace and let her already unzipped dress fall to the floor in a pool around her feet. She smiled as Shepard's eyes were immediately drawn to her breasts, and then began making a very thorough trail downward that Liara swore she could feel just as intensely as warm hands against her skin.

Seeing Liara naked was Shepard's undoing. With a low growl, she scooped the surprised doctor up in her arms and carried her over to the bed. Liara wrapped her legs around the human's waist to try and help, but found herself tossed onto the mattress as Shepard climbed over her with a dark, burning hunger in her eyes. "You know, we were cheated out of two years together," she whispered against her asari's lips. "There are a lot of things – sexual things – we never had the chance to explore."

"Such as?" When she did not receive an immediate reply, Liara asked the question Shepard had been waiting and hoping for. "Would you like to show me?" Shepard looked into the asari's eyes again, and with a slow nod of her head, gave her permission. In the future, she hoped that this pause wouldn't be necessary, that Liara would feel comfortable enough to enter her mind without being granted explicit consent every time. She wanted them to be that close.

Liara's eyes flashed black for a brief moment as she reached out to touch Shepard's mind, sifting through the top layer. She didn't even have to search for what she was looking for. The image was so powerful that Shepard's desire for it must have been intense. She saw herself writhing on the same bed they were lying on, one hand fisting the sheets as the other clutched the back of Shepard's head, which was buried between her thighs.

When the moment faded, Liara looked up into Shepard's face and blushed. "You have... interesting ideas," she murmured. "As you know, no one has ever... done that for me before. You will need to be gentle and patient."

"My only regret is that I never got the chance before the first Normandy crashed... I'm amazed I never suggested it. I remember thinking about it a lot, even before Ilos."

Liara's blush deepened. "Really?" she asked, slightly breathless with anticipation as Shepard's hands began running along her arms and shoulders.

"A mistake I intend to correct right now."

For all her eagerness, eagerness that her lover could sense, Shepard did not rush as she placed a string of kisses along Liara's jaw, her hands finally cupping the asari's neglected breasts. Liara arched into both touches, lifting her chin to give Shepard more access to her tender throat and pushing her breasts into the hands covering them. "Why do you still have all your clothes on?" she asked, tugging at Shepard's dress shirt and urging her to remove it. She wanted to feel her lover's skin directly on hers again, chest to chest, stomach to stomach, legs and arms tangling together.

With a little help from Liara, Shepard managed to struggle out of her clothes, first her uniform shirt, then her pants and underwear. They caught at her shoes, which she had completely forgotten about, and she kicked those off too, enjoying the freedom to feel Liara beneath her without any barriers. The sensations were exquisite, and she tried to savor them, but it wasn't nearly enough. "I need to feel you within again," she said. "I want you to know, to feel how much I want this. Want you."

"Embrace eternity..." Liara stroked Shepard's cheek, drawing the human in for a soft but deep kiss. As their lips gave and took, sliding together, Liara slipped smoothly back inside of Shepard's mind, opening herself up to her lover as well. In a gesture of complete willingness and submission, she let her thighs fall apart, sighing with pleasure as Shepard's pelvis settled between them.

'So good to feel this... us... together.'

'I missed you. Missed us. I want...'

'Show me.'

The bonds that kept Liara and Shepard within themselves loosened, allowing them to float freely through each other's minds, running and bleeding together like a blurry but beautiful watercolor. Inspired by the fantasy Shepard had shared a few moments ago, they began trading images, glimpses of the two of them joining in ways that made their bodies hum.

Shepard, kissing her way up along Liara's inner thigh, gently urging her knees apart...

Liara, eyes flaring black, chin tilted back, lips parted in a scream, the muscles of her abdomen twitching and flexing as she held tight to the back of Shepard's head.

Knowing they couldn't possibly have time for them all tonight, flashing through several different positions just for imagination's sake.

Liara riding Shepard's hand. Shepard bracing herself on her elbows above Liara and driving into her relentlessly. Even a very interesting variation that had Shepard kneeling over her lover's face, rocking against her warm, welcoming mouth.

After receiving particularly vivid image of herself on her hands and knees as Shepard took her from behind, a position she had never imagined herself in but that her body responded to immediately, Liara began to grow impatient. The part of her that was still self-aware and not completely wrapped up within Shepard managed to break free for a moment. "You can have all of that now. You don't have to wait."

As Shepard began kissing her way down Liara's body, she didn't just feel the asari's reaction, she experienced it. She felt the shadow of her own lips and Liara's reaction to them, and both of them shuddered with pleasure when she took the hard tip of a breast between her lips and sucked. She felt everything Liara felt, because Liara was inside her, and she sensed the asari's impatience as well as her pleasure.

Not wanting to make either of them wait, Shepard let her mouth trail over Liara's abdomen, nipping the soft skin beside her navel – apparently a trait that humans and asari shared – and leaving a bluish-purple mark on her already blue skin. She felt the sting herself as well as the throb of pleasure it brought, and knew the action was welcome. When she used her mouth lower, however, her plan was to keep it gentle.

Liara looked down as Shepard's hands gripped her knees, pulling them apart and coaxing her to reveal herself. She wanted this, wanted it badly, but the newness of the experience was also daunting. 'A little nervous...' she admitted, knowing Shepard could sense it as well. Warm lips and a soft tongue began exploring her right thigh. Without realizing what she was doing, Liara began retreating from Shepard's mind, frightened by the incredibly personal connection.

'Stay, love. Trust me.'

Opening her mind and her heart again, Liara re-shored the connection, becoming one with her lover and letting go of her doubts. She felt Shepard within her, offering waves of comfort and reassurance, an invisible embrace of love. The last of her reservations melted away, and she opened her body just as she had opened her mind, sliding her knee over Shepard's shoulder and letting her other leg fall to the side.

Shepard paused, allowing herself a moment to examine the treasure before her. Liara's lips were full, swollen with excitement, and seemed to be opening for her, inviting her touch. The wetness that coated them was different than hers, finer and slicker, almost like olive oil, but incredibly light and sweet smelling. Gently, she used her thumbs to spread Liara even further, brushing just over the hard ridge above her entrance. The shape was a little different, almost curved, but the size and sensitivity seemed to be the same. A hood of incredibly thin, sensitive skin protected the tip, and Shepard used the pad of her thumb to pull it back. With everything she wanted exposed and ready for her, she covered every inch of Liara that she could with a slow, broad sweep of her tongue, groaning against wet flesh.

Liara started slightly as she felt the first touch of Shepard's mouth, her heel flexing against the human's back, but after the first few sparks faded, she felt a deep, pulsing heat begin to spread beneath her skin. She was also aware of Shepard's experience – the wonder and curiosity as she finally got the chance to examine Liara up close, and the brief, wordless mental exclamation of surprise and pleasure as the asari's taste hit her tongue.

As she felt Shepard's enjoyment, shared the thrill of new discovery and excitement, Liara's fears faded. If sharing her lover's emotions wasn't enough proof, the long, low moan that vibrated against her as Shepard gazed up into her eyes did the trick. Shepard's eyes weren't glowing black like hers, but she could see evidence of the meld swirling in her irises. When she felt her lover's lips wrap around her in a slow, swirling suck, she thought she would melt into the mattress.

Shepard's thoughts floated through her head, almost as though they were her own. 'Mmm, so warm – so wet for me... and sweet... the soft little sounds you make when I take –you in – like... this...' Another gentle pull, and Liara's hips rose completely off the bed. She didn't care if it was forward or needy, she only wanted more of the wonderful sensations.

Further down on the bed, Shepard's thigh muscles twitched in response. Her previous sexual partners had all been humans, and being with an asari was a completely different experience. She still wasn't used to feeling the echo of her own touch on her body as she made love to Liara. Shepard felt everything Liara felt, experienced what she experienced, and that included the ghost of a gentle tongue between her legs, which made it difficult to concentrate. The most distracting part of all, though, was the waves of love and desire Liara kept sending her. They crashed over her, bearing her higher and higher until she felt like she could touch the stars with her fingertips.

Somehow, despite all the sensations competing for her attention, she managed to keep pressure on the hard bundle of nerves between her lips, swirling the tip of her tongue in quick little circles. Liara was similarly overwhelmed, and Shepard tried to ground them both by stroking the asari's thigh with her hand, moving slowly up and down from knee to hip. The leg over her shoulder tightened for a moment, then relaxed.

'This is...'

'Wonderful -'

'- perfect...'

'... love you...'

Liara's first orgasm took both of them by surprise. She had been so deeply involved, basking in the warmth and love she felt, that she wasn't expecting it. Shepard's inner muscles twitched in sympathy as she felt Liara release for her, because of her, and it was enough to send her over the edge, her hips shifting forward instinctively. So far, she couldn't name one time when the two of them hadn't come together. She wasn't sure if that was always part of mating with an asari, or whether their bodies were just that attuned to each other.

Shepard did not give Liara a chance to recover. Now that she finally had her lover back, she intended to make the most of it. She pressed her tongue against Liara's opening, thrusting it inside as far as she could. Just as they had in her mental image, Liara's fingers clutched the back of Shepard's head, pulling slightly at her hair. Another advantage to having an asari lover – when Liara felt the brief flash of discomfort, she relaxed her grip. There was no such thing as going too far when both of them felt the same things.

'That didn't mean I wanted you to stop!' the part of Liara that was still her own thought, sending a wave of encouragement along as well.

'Would do this forever... if you'd let me...' Liara's face, which already felt like it was burning, grew even warmer as she blushed. She could sense the truth behind Shepard's words, and was incredibly flattered as well as aroused by the comment. Then, both of them forgot their words as the human's tongue began to move in and out of her at a teasing, torturously slow pace.

Liara was struck by the very intimate and very human desire to have something inside of her, to be stretched, filled, to experience the security and vulnerability that came with having Shepard inside her body as well as her mind. She wondered if she was receiving some of those feelings from Shepard, or if they had originated within her, but she didn't care. Asari joinings did not require any kind of penetration – they didn't technically require physical contact at all – but it was certainly an option. Two years ago, the last time they had made love, and the all too few times before that, Liara and Shepard had shared that intimate connection, but not like this, with the human's mouth driving her to distraction at the same time.

She didn't even need to send her thoughts in Shepard's direction. Her lover picked up on them immediately and moved her mouth back up to the asari's neglected bundle of nerves, replacing her tongue with two skilled fingers. They both sighed, exhaling on the same breath. Their heartbeats tripped forward together, skipping a beat as Liara's inner muscles clutched at the fingers buried within her. Her own fingers tingled in response.

'Please...' Liara found herself begging – or maybe Shepard was begging to be allowed to keep touching her, she couldn't separate their thoughts anymore – and then 'yes...' as Shepard's warm mouth closed around her, pulling with just the right amount of pressure as her fingers curled forward to scrape against the sensitive spot inside of her. Careful not to grip too hard this time, the doctor curled her fingers in Shepard's hair, holding her close and trying to ride out the waves that crashed over her.

Both of them drew closer in the physical world, hating the fact that their bodies could not become completely one like their souls. But they could come close. Shepard's hand continued to work between Liara's legs, seeking out every sensitive spot and feeling the result whenever she found one. As much as she was enjoying her lover's tongue, Liara wanted to feel Shepard's weight on top of her, to hold her, touch her, to be inside of her at the same time. She knew that Shepard could feel everything she felt, and had even come with her the first time, but it wasn't enough. Using the hand that was still gripping the back of Shepard's head, Liara gently pulled the human up along her body even as her hips shifted forward, seeking the mouth that was no longer there. The movement did cause her to impale herself even more deeply on her lover's fingers, and she shuddered at the extra push.

"Liara!" Shepard called out her lover's name in surprise as she felt a hand cup between her legs. The exclamation was so strong that it came out in the physical realm instead of just echoing across their joined minds.

Liara forced herself to form words, which was difficult since her consciousness was so deeply melded with Shepard's. "Together," she pleaded. "I want to feel you... us... together..." The wetness coating her hand was thick, warm and heavy like honey, and made it all too easy for Liara to copy what her lover was doing and slide her fingertips past two slick lips and into tight, clinging heat.

The physical and mental connection was so intense that it couldn't be sustained for long. Completely wrapped up in each other, the two lovers began a rhythm that their bodies remembered instinctively. The years apart did not matter. The future did not matter, as long as they could share it somehow.

When they released, it was together and for each other.

'I love you...' both of them thought as their free hands groped for each other, holding tight. But the words were nothing compared with the pure, raw emotion that flowed back and forth through their bond. It held promises of forever.

As they lay gasping in the afterglow, still experiencing occasional aftershocks and not bothering to break their physical or mental joining, Liara and Shepard took several minutes to re-learn each other, exploring the familiar landscapes of each other's souls, finding new hurts and soothing them with all the love they could. Emotionally, both of them were worse for wear after the two years Shepard had spent 'dead'. Shepard flinched as she tapped into the pain that Liara had felt upon seeing what remained of her body, and the overwhelming guilt she still carried for giving that body to Cerberus, knowing there would be strings attached if they were successful in bringing her back.

"I'm here," she whispered against Liara's lips. "I'm alive. See?" Gently, she removed the asari's hand from inside of her, bringing the fingertips to her lips and kissing them. After spending a few moments cleaning them with her tongue, which made Liara's inner muscles twitch at the memory of what that tongue had done to her earlier, Shepard placed her lover's hand over her heart. Liara's lips softened into a smile as she felt the human's strong heartbeat. "I told you. I got better."

"I have to stay on Hagalaz, you know," Liara said regretfully, shivering slightly as Shepard's fingers withdrew from inside of her. Tendrils of their mental link remained, although they sent emotions rather than words, content to use their voices again. "I can't come with you... not yet."

"Then you'll just have to wait for me to come back. You'll have to have faith that I will come back."

Liara slid her hands beneath Shepard's arms, wrapping them around the human's back and holding her close, enjoying her lover's weight. "Is what I've just given you special enough to come back to? You did ask for me to make you an offer..."

Shepard pressed a kiss to the center of Liara's forehead. "Always, Liara. I promise. I will always come back to you."

And when their lips met in another kiss, Liara believed her.