Pairing: Aria/Tevos, Liara T'Soni/FemShep
Warning: This is a work in progress, but knowing me, the usual warnings for D/s, strap-ons, etc. apply. There's also gonna be a conception scene, soooo... there's that.
AN: Hey all! You asked for it, so I've returned with a sequel to Conflict of Interest! But that's not all! It's also shameless advertising! My very first novel, All The Pretty Things, was published TODAY and is available now! I've published it along with my friend Sy Itha, who co-wrote the end of the novel with me when I had given up. Search 'All The Pretty Things + Rae D. Magdon' on amazon if you wanna check it out (you have to search my name too, something is weird with the search algorithms). There's also a link in my profile. Leave a review if you like it!
. . .
The Best Laid Plans
. . .
"How much longer until Shepard gets out of her meeting?" Tevos asked as Liara checked her Omnitool for the third time in as many minutes. They were currently seated at Apollo's café in the Presidium – not the fanciest restaurant the Citadel had to offer, but Liara retained a certain amount of nostalgia for the place, and had practically demanded they stop in for lunch. It had taken several minutes for them to pass through the autograph-seekers and well-wishers, but for the moment, the starstruck patrons of the café were allowing them to eat in peace.
Liara sighed, folding her arms over her swollen stomach. "Fifteen minutes. I hope you don't mind if I leave rather quickly once she calls. It's been... difficult to be apart from her."
"Apart from her? She was just with you this morning before she went to see Valern," Tevos said, looking up from her bowl. Her salad was mostly finished, although the grilled slices of fish on top had nearly made Liara sick when she first saw them. Fortunately, she had suppressed the reaction and adjusted quickly even as Tevos offered to box the meal and order something else.
"The last several months of my pregnancy have been difficult." Liara leaned back slightly in her seat, trying to get comfortable. "Even though I want to be around her nearly all the time, Shepard has become rather possessive."
Tevos had noticed. Aria was returning from Omega tomorrow after a two-week trip to check on her business assets, but during her absence, Tevos had spent a lot of time with her friends instead. Shepard had rarely been farther than arm's reach from her heavily pregnant bondmate. 'Hovering' was the only word to describe her behavior.
"Honestly, Shepard's constant worrying and the curious stares have been the least of my worries. Evading the reporters is the real problem. Every news station seems obsessed with when I'll go into labor. The new dress I wore three days ago sold out within an hour after the photos were posted at Westerlund. I panic whenever I remember that the entire world is watching me."
"I'm sorry it's gotten so bad," Tevos said. She had been in Liara's position a little less than a year ago, and knew how exhausting it was to be the target of constant speculation, fascination, and tasteless jokes. The past few months, however, had been almost peaceful for her, if a little overscheduled. The public had lost interest in her story for the moment, and Tevos's relationship with Aria had become less of a dangerous political scandal and more of an amusing curiosity.
The footage of Tevos's rescue, combined with several careful mentions of the resources Aria had contributed during the war and the alliance that the Council had formed with Omega, had done much to legitimize her in the public eye. Aria disliked the shift in her reputation on Thessia and the Citadel, but had tolerated it by murdering half of the Blood Pack over a disagreement about her cut of their profits. That had convinced the citizens of Omega, at least, that their Queen still had the asteroid under her leather-clad thumb.
"I don't suppose politely asking them to let me fade back in to obscurity would work, would it?" Liara asked wistfully. "So much has happened over the past several years, and I would not trade any of it, but sometimes I miss being an archaeologist. It was certainly much less stressful than being an unwilling celebrity." Her face faltered for a moment. "I just hope that all of this attention and stress won't harm my daughter." Liara's hand shifted, and she cradled her stomach protectively with one side of her arm.
"Have you decided on a name for her yet?" Tevos asked, hoping to distract Liara from her worries until Shepard arrived to comfort her.
Liara's face brightened, and her lips curved in a small but genuine smile. "Yes, we have. I'll tell you, on the condition that you don't let Tali know you know. Shepard and I love her so much, but..."
Tevos smirked. "Admiral Zorah is an insatiable gossip. I understand."
"She wouldn't be able to keep the news to herself. She and Garrus are almost as proud of this baby as we are, especially since we asked them to be 'godparents'. It's an Earth tradition," she explained upon seeing Tevos's confused look. "They act as guides and loving forces in the child's life."
"If Shepard's former crew is anything to judge by, your daughter will be surrounded by loving, supportive guardians."
Liara's smile faded for a moment, returning to its former seriousness. "Actually, that reminds me... There is something I need to ask you. Something important."
Tevos did not let her expression betray her curiosity. "Oh?" she said, watching as Liara's hand began moving in slow circles. Briefly, she wondered if the motion was deliberate, or an unconscious reflex.
"Even though the war is over and the two of us have tried to retreat from public life, Shepard and I cannot escape the legends people have constructed around us. There are many people in the galaxy who would like to see one or both of us dead." Liara paused, sucking nervously at her lower lip for a moment. "Shepard and I have discussed it at great length. If something should happen to us, our daughter will need a guardian. We have come to trust you and Aria a great deal..."
This time, Tevos could not conceal her surprise. Her eyes shot open. "I'm honored that you would ask," she said, feeling her chest constrict slightly with a strange mixture of feelings she could not quite sort out. Strangely, the word 'yes' already hovered on the tip of her tongue. "But are you sure that's a wise decision?" she forced herself to ask instead.
"As much as we love Garrus and Tali, both of them have relatively short lifespans compared with ours. If something happened to us, they would only be able to raise our daughter to the adolescence, if they were lucky. Our other crewmates, Ashley Williams and Miranda Lawson and the rest, all have similarly short lives, as well as dangerous professions. We considered Wrex briefly, but even though we expect all of our future children to undergo the Rite on Tuchanka and join Clan Urdnot, we aren't sure we want them to live there permanently."
Tevos opened her mouth to speak, but Liara continued instead, her urgency displayed clearly in her eyes. "We would not ask if we did not think you would be the most loving, compassionate mother that we could hope for, Thea. And despite her faults –" Liara's voice trailed off for a moment, "– her numerous, glaring faults... Aria is very protective of those she cares about. I'm confident our daughter will be near the top of that incredibly short list." Liara removed her hands from her stomach, sitting forward in her chair. "Please, Thea. It would mean so much to both of us."
Even though several more objections were already swirling around in her head, Tevos deliberately silenced them. Instead, she examined her emotions. They told her that there was only one answer she could give. "Of course we will."
Liara's face immediately brightened. "Goddess, thank you. I'll send you both copies of the paperwork to sign as soon as it's ready."
Tevos smiled, hoping that the shaking in her hands did not show. She was struck by the enormity of what she had just agreed to. During her centuries of life, she had imagined having daughters of her own with some regularity, but mostly in the abstract. Seeing Liara nearly bursting with new life and the possibility, however remote, of being responsible for a child herself had tapped a wellspring of emotions. "I'll sign it," she said, hoping her voice remained steady.
"Her name is Athena," Liara said, surprising Tevos with the non sequitur. "I nearly forgot to tell you. We wanted to give her a human name, but Shepard insisted that it needed to 'sound asari', whatever that means. Something about vowels... Anyway, she was worried that our daughter would be teased on Thessia if her name was too alien. The poor thing will have a hard enough time fitting in with the two of us as her parents."
"The people betting on her name will be disappointed. That one didn't even make the list."
"It isn't particularly common," Liara admitted. "However, considering she is named after an ancient human goddess of wisdom, we thought it would be a proper fit. Also, I'm hoping it will discourage her from becoming a Commando or joining the military like her father," she added in a whisper.
"What about our kid's father?" a familiar voice drawled beside them, startling both Liara and Tevos.
Liara's face melted into a look of pure bliss when she saw Shepard, and she stood up, ignoring the way Shepard tried to pull out her chair for her and throwing her arms around her bondmate. "Goddess, I missed you," she said, burying her face in Shepard's neck.
"I was only gone for about four hours," Shepard said, but she indulged Liara's desire for touch, pulling her close even when the swell of her stomach shoved uncomfortably below her ribs. "So, did you spill the beans?" she asked, running her hand up and down Liara's back.
"I didn't eat beans today, Shepard," Liara said, backing away slightly and gesturing at her empty plate. "I ordered a sandwich, and I certainly did not spill it."
"Not exactly what I meant, but close enough," Shepard muttered. "Anyway, did you tell Tevos our daughter's name like you said you were going to?"
Tevos smiled and nodded, standing up from her chair as well. "She did. I think it's a lovely choice."
"I also spoke to her about taking guardianship of Athena if anything happened to us," Liara said, giving Tevos a radiant smile. "She agreed."
"Liara and I are going to do everything in our power to not die violent, premature deaths, by the way," Shepard added. Even though she had been uncomfortable with Liara practically draped over her before, she could not resist reaching out to cup the swell of her bondmate's stomach. "But thank you for saying yes. It's a relief to know the kid will have someone if the unthinkable happens."
Suddenly, identical smiles spread across Shepard and Liara's faces, and both of them looked at each other. "She just kicked," Liara explained, turning back to Tevos. The councilor was suddenly glad that Aria was not arriving home until tomorrow morning. She surely would have made some dry comment about their insipid sappiness in order to ruin the moment.
"May I...?" she found herself asking before she even realized what was happening.
"Of course." Liara removed Shepard's hand and stepped forward, taking Tevos's instead and pressing it over her abdomen. "You don't have to ask, considering everything else of mine you've touched."
Tevos laughed. "I suppose you're right." Liara was warm even beneath the fabric of her dress, and Tevos felt the heat sear her palm. Her lips spread in a smile that was just as wide as Liara's when she felt small, rhythmic taps against her hand. For a moment, her heart felt indescribably light, and she blinked her eyes to ease the sting that had started in them. "Goddess, she's beautiful, and I haven't even met her yet," she said, hoping the slight strain in her voice was not obvious.
Shepard grinned. "Just like her mother," she said. Her hand had found new purchase on Liara's backside, and she gave it an affectionate squeeze, making Liara yelp softly in surprise. The kicking against Tevos's hand sped up, and she instinctively began making soothing circles to try and quiet the baby's flurry of activity.
When she refocused her attention on Liara's face, she caught the maiden gazing at her with a thoughtful look. "Thea? Are you all right? Something about you seems... off... today."
"I'm fine," Tevos said, instinctively trying to hide the confused emotions that were rapidly bubbling up to the surface behind a mask of calm. "I'm just a little overwhelmed. All good feelings, I promise."
"All right," Shepard said, although she did not look convinced. "Do you want us to stick around for a little longer? We can be late to meet Aethyta, she won't mind –"
Tevos shook her head, retracting her hand somewhat reluctantly. "I wouldn't dream of keeping Matriarch Aethyta waiting."
The three of them paid the bill, leaving an extra large tip to make up for the commotion they had caused, and said their goodbyes, exchanging embraces and kisses. Then, Liara and Shepard exited the café, trying their best to be discreet in case anyone else decided they wanted an autograph or a holo. Tevos watched them go, noticing the way Shepard's arm was wrapped around the back of Liara's waist in support.
With a flash of clarity, she realized why her happiness for them was so bittersweet. A sinking feeling began in her chest, dropping to the pit of her stomach. She wanted what Shepard and Liara had. She had thought about having daughters before, but Tevos had deliberately chosen to wait, focusing on her career instead. None of her relationships had ever been serious enough to consider adding a child, and although single parenthood was hardly uncommon for her species, it did not appeal to her.
But now...
Now, she had Aria. Unfortunately, Aria's thoughts on children swung back and forth between vehement denials and casual, almost joking mentions of their future daughters that Tevos could not begin to interpret. Aria knew that Tevos wanted children with her, but also that she did not expect them. Tevos had bonded with her knowing that it was not a likely possibility, but the course of their relationship had taken her so completely by surprise that she had not cared. Suddenly, she found herself reconsidering.
"Things will be better when Aria gets home," she said to herself, checking to make sure that she had her credit chit and her Omni-tool strapped to her wrist before leaving the café. "And the rest will go away after Liara has the baby." But Tevos did not believe her own words. Now that the seed had been planted in her head, she doubted that it could be uprooted.