Parallel story to "Dossiers." If you haven't read that one, you can read this one first, but they really go together.
As usual, if I have gotten something blatantly wrong, just bear with it and make a note in the comments. I can usually adapt and go with new information in later writings.
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Extranet History
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Tali made a few minor adjustments to the control flow values of the Normandy SR-2's drive core. It was a tribute to her engineering and technical prowess that she could do this without paying any real attention and not cause a horrible meltdown of said drive core. Instead of focusing on what she was doing, the young quarian's mind was pondering the state of things between her and her captain. Commander Shepard. Her commander, her captain, her lover. At least, that's what Tali hoped.
You see, during the hours before the team's supposed suicide mission on the Collector home base, Tali had given herself and her love to Shepard. Enthusiastically, one might say.
She did not regret the act in the least, Tali firmly insisted to herself as she pressed a few of the buttons on the console perhaps a bit too hard. The current cause of her dilemma was the time since the team had overcome the impossible odds and came through without a single casualty.
Since that night, Shepard had not brought up the topic of further… couplings between him and Tali, much to the latter's confusion and chagrin. Did she really have to approach him again, after she had been the one to insist on it the first time? For a moment, Tali was glad for her environment suit; it hid the blush that stained her face at the boldness of her own thoughts. She wanted to be with Shepard again. It was not just the… things he did to her that night. With his strong arms, easily capable of lifting the petite quarian into the air. With his five-fingered hands, two more than Tali had ever contemplated needing, but so very useful for… things, in retrospect.
Tali coughed quietly. No, definitely not just for those things.
You see, she had not given herself to Shepard as a last gamble to go to her grave deflowered, although one could be forgiven for thinking so. No, in reality, Tali'Zorah vas Normandy loved the captain of her home ship. She had for quite a long time; the feelings for him sprouting since the moment he had saved her on the Citadel and sprouting into bloom just weeks before his death at the hands of the Collector dreadnaught. Devastated, Tali had attempted to move on, but she could only have claimed middling success, which was banished at his return on Freedom's Progress.
She stopped typing at the drive core console, frustrated enough to stop her work lest she actually damage the ship. Her idle fingers began the devil's work, twisting together in her habitual gesture of anxiety and contemplation.
She did not regret the night they spent together. But what if he did? The thought brought a cold emptiness to the pit of her stomach, uncharacteristically causing her hands to stop their incessant motion. Even worse, what if that night had just been a fun night for Shepard? Savior of the Citadel, now rescuer of the human colonies, Shepard could realistically have almost any human female he wanted. Given the things he had done for the Citadel, on Virmire, and on Tuchanka, Shepard could probably have his pick of an asari, salarian, or even krogan lover, if he wanted. He had received mating requests during his time on Tuchanka! Tali realized with a sinking feeling that Shepard, in all reality, could probably have a harem without receiving much, if any, backlash.
Her hands renewed their twisting motions with greater ferocity. Turning quickly, the young quarian walked away from her console and through the engineering bay's doors towards the ship elevator. She needed someplace to think. Really, she needed someplace to panic and rant aloud. Her nervous tendency to ramble on did not restrict itself to when she had someone to ramble to.
After what seemed like a small eternity, the elevator door opened and Tali stepped out into the entryway to Shepard's room. She paused, uncertainty flicking through her for a moment. Shepard had since given permission for her to come up here whenever she wanted, but she had yet to take him up on the offer when he himself was not present.
Irrational fear over the threat of losing Shepard to a harem of sexy alien woman overrode her uncertainty as she opened the door to Shepard's room and quickly strode over to the neatly-made bed, sitting on the foot of it.
All of the questions and concerns that Tali had brought up during their short romance before that night bubbled up to the surface once again. She could only be with Shepard in a limited fashion. No random acts of close affection, no spontaneous nights of passion, not even the possibility of a child of their own to help them through difficult times. Only immuno-boosters, clean rooms, and suit rupture panics dotted any possible future they had together.
To top it all off, Tali felt, for sure, that a certain blue-skinned asari harbored feelings for Shepard. The man was likely oblivious, as he always was. Tali felt it made him even more endearing, in a fashion. But she didn't want to give him up to Liara. Even if the newly-dubbed Shadow Broker could provide Shepard with all the things Tali couldn't. Even children! … Well, asari daughters, anyway.
It definitely did not help that they were currently docked at Liara's personal ship-borne headquarters, with said oblivious captain visiting his old friend. He had assured everyone it was a quick stop for information before heading onward to deal with preparing the galaxy for the incoming invasion, but Tali couldn't help but think there was a bit more at hand, especially given the quiet state of affairs between Shepard and her, of late.
Well, to be fair, Tali would have to admit that Shepard had not treated her any differently since that night together. The team had jumped straight into the suicide mission only a few hours afterwards. After their miraculous escape, there had been little time even for a short celebration. The Normandy had taken heavy damage despite their luck and had required immediate repairs. Once the ship had been jury-rigged into working order, a fear that had largely depended on, and stretched the reaches of, Tali's skill, they had taken the quickest route back to the Citadel for full repairs. Shepard had been in talks with the Council and various important officials from among all of the Council races for the duration of the repairs, which had taken all of Tali's attention. Really, since that night, the two of them had only short, stolen moments of conversation and rushed hugs.
It was only recently that things had slowed down enough to let her dwell on what was lacking. Tali had experienced a taste of Shepard and wanted more.
Tali blushed fiercely at the way her mind had phrased that thought. She only blushed all the more at the realization that it was not all that inaccurate.
Oh my.
Her train of thought was derailed suddenly at a beeping tone from her previously idle omni-tool. Tali jumped slightly, startled, before activating the device. She had a new message. From Liara. Tali felt cold as she opened the message and began to read.
Tali,
(Tali narrowed her eyes at the familiarity)
Shepard has just departed my offices and is heading back to, I presume, the Normandy. While he was here, it is likely that he stumbled upon certain information about you that may cause some amount of embarrassment.
In order to even the odds, I have attached some embarrassing information about Shepard himself.
Don't be upset at him, please. I don't believe he knew what he was getting into when he read the Shadow Broker's dossiers.
-Liara T'soni
Tali blinked a moment. That certainly wasn't anything like what she had expected. And "embarrassing information" about Shepard? This she would have to see. Excitedly nervous, and worries temporarily forgotten, Tali opened the attached dossier for one Commander John Shepard, Spectre.
Most of the entries in the dossier had titles that seemed rather bland, if informative. "Military Service," "Biological Information," "Medical History," "Personal History," etc. Tali made a note to herself to read that last entry at some point later on; Shepard had never been very forthcoming about his own history, and Tali didn't see the man opening up anytime soon on the subject. However, it was another entry title that caught her attention: "Extranet Browsing History." Stomach nervous at what she would discover, but unwilling to leave such a tantalizing tidbit alone, she opened the entry and began reading.
Most of it was rather benign, the results of boredom or simple curiosity. Tali paused as she saw a time span consisting almost entirely of search results on various races, her own included. Checking the timestamp on some of the dates, she found it was during their first mission, on the first Normandy. Tali allowed herself to reminisce about that time for a short while. She had been crushing hard on the newly-minted Spectre, but had refrained from telling the man. There had been more important things to do, and, well, she was a quarian, confined to her suit for all her days.
Shaking her head to derail that depressing chain of thought, she continued reading the entry. The next couple entries were a bit more… interesting, to say the least. Apparently being a single human male on a ship in deep space with no companionship lead to some rather personal nights. Tali, blushing at the thought of Shepard alone, as such, quickly scrolled past a few key extranet searches, though the their contents remained burned into her mind. And not in an altogether wrong way, so much as in an embarrassed, and perhaps interesting, fashion.
Safely past those bits of information, Tali continued reading Shepard's search history. The entries cut off sharply around the time of the Normandy SR-1's destruction, with no entries for the next two years. That was to be expected, of course, Tali noted as she doused the resurgence of those dead feelings she had experienced for those two long years. It was with some subconscious relief that she continued reading the entries after Shepard's miraculous resurrection.
It was, again, all rather mundane. Then, a few entries caught her attention and fueled a warm feeling inside her. Searches for things like 'quarian courtship,' 'levo/dextro advice,' and various other helpful topics revealed that Shepard had put some serious effort into their talks. Tali looked at the associated timestamps and noted that several of the searches were made before she had admitted her feelings to the man. She let a small, happily dopey smile to cross her face.
Which disappeared, to be replaced by a slight gape and a horrible blush as her earlier embarrassment at Shepard's less public-friendly searches was blasted out the metaphorical airlock. Tali gulped slightly as she read over search terms like 'fornax,' 'nude quarians,' and 'human quarian positions.' Apparently these searches had been done after Tali had expressed… explicit interest in sharing herself with Shepard. She still got a pleasantly queasy feeling in her gut at how bold she had been. "Her skin against his," indeed. For a moment, her mind wandered, wondering what sort of potentially "helpful" advice Shepard had found with his searches. And when he would use them on her.
Tali quickly closed out the dossier and turned off her omni-tool.
Once she had fought down her blush, not that anyone could see it, she remembered Liara's message. Tali felt slightly anxious at what Shepard had found about her that warranted the asari sending her that sort of information about him.
Her reverie was cut off as the door to Shepard's room opened and in stepped the man himself. Tali blinked owlishly behind her mask and said the first thing that came to her mind, trying to sound flippant. "'Fornax'? 'Quarians under their suits'?" She paused a moment. "'Quarian/Human mating'?"
Oh, she was going to get it. And, in a way, she was really looking forward to it.
After all, she enjoyed it when he yelled.
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Mmm, I thought I was going to go on more with this one, but I think this is a good spot to cut this one off. Of course, this basically guarantees a third in the set to join the two perspectives.
So, what do you think? Advice and information is always welcome.