(A/N): Because according to Salem, I have to post this. Possible spoilers if you squint a certain way.

Disclaimer: Disclaimed.

Side Effects

She was back on Akuze, desperately trying to keep her footing as the earth bucked and trembled beneath her. The sound of the thresher maw's roar rattled her teeth in her skull. She slammed into a wall, using it as a pivot to turn and unload her shotgun at the creature's head. It didn't seem to feel the blast. To her left, Fitzhugh and Toombs dove back inside the Mako. She heard the core firing up, but before it could move the maw slammed its claws down, ripping through the shields like they weren't even there and shearing the tank in half.

She saw Toombs thrown clear, rolling and skidding over the blood-spattered ground before he fetched up against a rock in a tangled heap of limbs. She pushed away from the wall, firing on the maw again as she ran for him. She'd covered half the distance when another one of the creatures erupted from the ground behind her, the shockwaves sending her stumbling to her knees. She rolled, gaining her feet only to be knocked back to the ground as another maw joined the battle. Abandoning her weapon, she crawled toward Toombs, half-blinded by the dust and grit in the air, straining to reach him before –

"Be still, Siha. You are safe."

The feel of his hand closing around hers was enough to propel her into full wakefulness in an instant, heart pounding as she tried to separate the dream sensations from the real. She was in her bed, lying on her side with one hand still outstretched toward phantoms. Thane lay behind her, one arm circled protectively around her waist as he murmured reassurances into her hair, his thumb rubbing gentle circles into her skin as he drew her hand back.

Shepard went limp as the last of the dream faded. "I'm all right," she muttered. "Just a bad dream." She sighed, tangling her fingers with his and scrubbing her free hand across her face. "Sorry if I woke you."

"I was not asleep."

"Even assassins have to sleep sometimes, Thane."

"I was watching you."

As always, the ease with which he said such things made something in her chest tremble. "Well, I must've been putting on quite a show," she said lightly, twisting in his embrace until she was lying on her back.

He moved with her, his hand settling briefly at her hip before he propped himself up on an elbow. "Perhaps." He smiled at her expression before he reached up to curl a strand of her hair around his finger. "How do you feel?"

She took a second to take stock of herself. Her mouth was dry and there was the threat of a headache lurking somewhere around her temples, but other than that… "Fantastic," she said, pressing a kiss to the underside of his jaw. "We definitely need to do that again."

She felt his chuckle all the way through her, but he only tucked her hair behind her ear. "And your skin?"

"You're not going to break me, Thane," she grumbled, pushing far enough away from him to fling the sheet back. "See?" she said, gesturing at her unblemished skin. "That stuff Mordin gave me is working just fine."

The frills at his neck fluttered with a low hum of pleasure as he reached for her. "So it would seem," he said, voice deep and reverberant and working hell on her nervous system as he skimmed a hand teasingly below her breasts. Shepard had to suppress a giggle when he strayed too close to a ticklish spot below her ribcage; Thane, of course, stroked his fingers deliberately across the same area again.

"Stop that," she half-gasped, swatting at his hand.

He only smiled and leaned in to kiss her, hand tracing down her side to knead at her hip. She hummed her approval as she slid her arms around him, one hand stroking the back of his neck while the other settled against his lower back, pulling him fully on top of her. For a few minutes all that existed was their intermingled breath, the pressure of his lips on hers, the taste of him and the gentle sweep of his tongue in her mouth.

She broke away when her lips began to tingle in a way she distinctly remembered. "Thane, hold on a minute," she whispered.

"Are you all right?" he asked, voice rough as he pressed his forehead to hers.

"Yeah," she said. "Just give me a minute." She let her eyes slide closed, holding him close and letting the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest anchor her until the worst of the dizziness passed. "Okay," she said when she felt centered again.

When she opened her eyes she found his dark gaze fixed on her face, features etched with concern. "Are you well, Siha?"

She smiled gently and stroked his face. "I'm fine, Thane. Mordin warned me what to expect. And who knows – maybe someday repeated exposure will lessen the effects." Her smile turned impish as she pecked him on the lips. "Which is another reason we should get back to it. Besides, as I recall it helped…enhance certain sensations last night…"

He groaned softly when she rolled her hips up into his, hands tightening around her waist before he released her, pushing himself up and to the side. "You are a terrible temptation, Shepard," he said. "But until we know –"

"Killjoy," she interrupted, sitting up and sliding underneath his arm. She ducked her head into his shoulder when his only response was to blink at her. "I appreciate your concern, Thane," she said in a gentler tone of voice, stealing another quick kiss. "It's sweet." Then she sighed and shifted toward the edge of the bed. "I'm going to get a glass of water. Want anything?"

Before he could answer, her gaze fell on the fish tank.

"Oh. My. God." She scrambled out of the bed, almost stumbling over her discarded clothing in her haste. "What the hell happened?" she demanded of no one in particular as she surveyed the dead fish floating belly-up in the water. "I just replaced them, they were fine last night –" She broke off abruptly, turning to stare at Thane with a creeping sort of suspicion.

The drell didn't flinch from her gaze. "What do you remember about last night, Shepard?"

"I remember it was great," she shot back, cocking a hip and crossing her arms across her chest. "Why? What else should I remember?"

"Do you remember anything after the hallucinations began?"

"I did not hallucinate," Shepard said. "It was more like this incredibly euphoric rush – it just made everything more. I didn't freak out and start seeing things that weren't there."

"Not at the time, perhaps. Do you remember after?"

She blinked at him, brow wrinkling in a slight frown. "After?"

Now he looked guilty. "After. You had a…reaction, I suppose is the best word for it. You were enthralled by the tank, the fish. You claimed you could see every organ in their bodies, the blood flowing beneath their scales. You began to feed them. You were convinced you could see the food moving through their digestive tracts."

There was a long moment of silence. "How much did I feed them?" Shepard asked faintly. The look he gave her was answer enough. "Dammit Thane, why didn't you stop me?"

"You were laughing," he said softly.

The angry reprisal died unformed in her throat. "What?"

"You were laughing," he repeated, "transported, euphoric. It was –" His eyes flashed as the memory took him. "The room is bathed in pale blue light. She stands at the fish tank, palms pressed to the glass. My Siha. She laughs like a child as the fish dart back and forth before her. 'Thane,' she says, and her voice calls to my soul. 'Thane, it's beautiful.' She looks at me, and the wonder in her eyes steals the breath from my body. 'They're beautiful. I wish you could see it.'"

He bowed his head as he came back to himself. For a moment, neither of them spoke. "I'm sorry, Shepard," he said, lifting his gaze to meet hers again. "I didn't have the heart to stop you."

She held herself still for another second before she shook her head and moved to sit on the edge of the bed. "That's really not fair, you know," she said, reaching out to take his hand in hers, absently tracing the webbing between his fused fingers. "I'm trying to stay mad at you about my murdered fish and you go and say a thing like that."

"I should have stopped you," he said. "But know that I will treasure the memory of your face in that moment for the rest of my life." He didn't resist when she disentangled her hand from his, but his eyes widened slightly when she reached over to lay her palm against his chest. "Siha," he breathed, placing his hand tentatively over hers.

She closed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his.

Shepard couldn't hear Thane's reaction, but she felt the vibrations emanating from his chest as he raised his free hand to tangle in her hair, cradling her head with a desperate sort of tenderness as he kissed her back.

She cupped his cheek when at last they pulled apart. "Just…keep me away from the fish tank from now on," she said. She couldn't help a wry smile. "They deserve the chance to die of neglect like all the rest."

His smile warmed every part of her. "Of course, Shepard."

She sighed and leaned into him, resting her head against his shoulder as he continued to stroke her hair. "Oh, probably better keep me away from the hamster, too."

"Mm. A wise course of action."

"In fact, you might just wanna tie me up until I stop tripping."

His lips twitched upward. "That is…an intriguing proposition, Siha."

She snorted and poked a finger into his chest. "Don't push your luck, Krios."

"Of course not, Commander."

"God, just shut up and kiss me."

Smiling, he did.