A/N: Rated M for possible sexual content, probable violent content and definite swearing.
Title courtesy of 'Love for Long' by Jenny Owen Youngs
May 17th 2186 Mars Archives
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"Doctor T'Soni?"
Liara looked up from the datapad she was reading, and smiled at the young Alliance soldier. "Yes? Lieutenant Matthew Jones, isn't it?"
He gave her a toothy grin and a nod in response. "Yes Doctor."
"What was it you needed?" She asked; placing her pad down on the table in front of her.
"Doctor Coré asked me to give you this." Matthew said, and handed over a yet another data pad.
"Asked you?" Liara enquired suspiciously. Eva Coré had only been here at the Archives on Mars for a week, and she had made a name for herself as being an 'Uppity, bossy bitch' – As she had overheard the Alliance personnel describe the other Doctor as. And Liara had to agree with this description, although she would never put it quite so… bluntly.
The young man stood up straight, and schooled his features. "Yes Doctor."
She let out a quiet chuckle and patted him gently on the arm. She knew that look - she had seen that look on Shepard a number of times; mostly when the Commander was conversing with the Council. "Okay then. Thank you for bringing me the information."
"Not a problem Doctor."
Liara gave the young man a nod, and turned back to her makeshift desk, groaning at just how many files covered it. She hated not having her resources and Glyph to help her compile the necessary data, it would be quite a lot easier - and quicker if she had them. As she thought this it occurred to her just how reliant she had become on her Shadow Broker Intel. Three years ago, this was the only way she worked, and she actually enjoyed it. She shook her head, and opened up the file she was just given; she was so close to finding what she needed, and all she needed was patience, and perhaps a cup of coffee.
"Excuse me Doctor?"
She yelped in surprise and turned around to see the Alliance officer still there. "I though you had gone!" She laughed.
"I'm so sorry Doctor." Matthew flustered. "I didn't mean to startle you. I just wanted you to know, that, uh, we're all really happy you're here. When we found out that The Doctor T'Soni was coming, well, we damn near crapped a God-damned rainbow – If you pardon my French."
"Um, and that is a good thing, is it?"
"When are rainbows not a good thing Ma'am?"
She considered this for a moment. "I can't think of any time that they wouldn't be." She conceded.
"Damn straight!" He gave her a lopsided smile.
"Thank you Matthew, although I'm not sure that I deserve a 'The' before my name. I am just a scientist, just like you."
"I don't mean to be rude Doctor, but, no you aren't. Not only are you the leading expert on the Protheans – which is impressive enough – but it was you, Lieutenant Commander Williams and Commander Shepard that stopped Saren. That makes you a hero too."
"Maybe." She blushed. "But now the Reapers are here."
"Yes Ma'am, they are. And that is why you are here. You'll find what you need, and the Normany crew will be back together - kicking those bastards back into Dark Space, or knowing Commander Shepard – blowing them to smithereens so no one will ever see them again."
"That sounds very probable. But I doubt if I will be on the crew too."
"You will Doctor." Matthew said with a knowing smirk, and saluted at her. "If there's anything you need, just holler." Then he spun on his heel, and strode out the door.
Liara sighed. She wanted to be by Shepard's side; of course she did. But maybe too much time had passed. Maybe she was too different a person now. They hadn't seen each other since just before Kat went through the Omega 4 relay. She and Shepard had tried to treat it like any other time two lovers spent together; but they both knew it could be the last time they saw each other.
November 27th 2185 – Somewhere Over Hagalaz
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"Can you take a break for a while there, Shadow Broker?"
Liara turned from the wall of screens to see Kat Shepard holding a bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy, and a very dirty smile. "Depends." She answered; meeting the Commander halfway, and taking hold of her free hand. "What did you have in mind?"
"Oh, you know. I thought we could get hammered, and then sort through a fuck-ton of boring information, and see if your agents get the right things. Sound like fun to you?" The redhead winked.
"No. Not really."
"No? No. I suppose not. We might accidently send a mass extranet message to the Hanar homeworld, detailing the exact ingredients of Krogan Jell-O."
Liara leaned back and stared at her lover. "What are the exact ingredients of Krogan Jell-O?"
"I don't know. I'm just going to make it up."
"Sometimes I wonder why I'm so fond of you." Liara gently pushed Shepard away; ignoring the smirk on the other woman's face.
Kat grabbed hold of one of her armour straps, and pulled her back. "I wonder that myself." The Commander bent down and kissed her briefly on the neck; and Liara felt her breath catch in her throat. "I have to admit T'Soni, I worry one day you'll realize you could do better." It was said in such a flippant way, and it caused the Asari to frown.
Liara lifted up her hand and cupped Kat's cheek; brushing her thumb over one of the feint red scars that were scattered over the Commanders face. "I hope you don't really believe that."
"No, I don't." Shepard said; resting her forehead on Liara's. "There's an equality with you that I have never felt before. But wouldn't you rather be with someone who wasn't being shot at most of the time?"
"Well, I would rather you were shot at less, as opposed to having someone else. What's going on Shepard?" When strong arms wrapped themselves around her tightly, she knew it was time. "Kat." She said the name softly; carefully. "How long do we have?"
"A little over an hour." Shepard answered; holding onto her even tighter. "Liara… I don't know-"
The Asari kissed the other woman before she could finish her sentence. She couldn't take a goodbye, because she knew Kat, and she knew it would be as hard to say it, as it would be to hear it. She pulled away and moved her hand from Shepard's cheek; lifting her chin. Bright green eyes gleamed as evidence that the Commander was holding back tears, and she was sure that her own mirrored the other woman's. "We have an hour. Perhaps we should put in some practice for making all those blue babies you promised me." Kat exploded with laughter and it was the reaction Liara had hoped for.
When Shepard had finished laughing, she straightened herself up, and rested her arms on the other woman's shoulders. "You always make things seem like it'll be alright." She said with a smile. "But, you know I haven't even proposed yet. I'm a traditionalist; Marriage first, then babies."
"Are you proposing now?" Liara asked with a raised brow.
"No. I don't want to ask you just because I might be dead by tomorrow, I don't want it to seem like some sort of hollow sentiment. I love you, and when I get back, I will be asking you to marry me. So you'd better say yes."
"I wouldn't dare say anything else." Liara teased. "And I love you too."
"So is there a bedroom on this gigantic ship?"
"Yes. Follow me." She said hooking her finger under Commander Shepard's top, and dragging her willingly towards the nearest bed.
May 17th 2186 – Mars Archives
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The loud alarm made her drop the datapad she was holding, and she looked out of the window of her office to see all of the Alliance officers running to the weapons lockers.
"Doctor T'Soni. We have to get you out of here." The young soldier she had spoken to earlier held out a pistol.
"What's happening?" She asked; taking the gun that was offered.
"Cerberus is attacking."
"Goddess, they're here for the blueprints. How did they know?"
"I don't know Ma'am, but we have to get out. Now."
"Yes, of course." She followed the Lieutenant through several rooms and corridors until they reached a security station.
"I don't suppose you studied the ventilation system here did you Doctor?" Matthew asked with the kind of hope he suspected was going to be dashed.
"Actually I did. Why?"
"Would you know how to get to the entrance from here?"
"From the shafts?" Liara stared at him blankly. "Have you ever crawled through ventilation shafts Lieutenant? Because I have, many times. They are not as safe as they look."
"Doctor." The young man clasped his hands together; as if pleading. "It is our job to make sure you are safe. You are the one that needs to get out of here. Not that I want to put pressure on you or anything, but the thing that you know, is the thing that is going to save the galaxy."
"Yes, that has eased my mind no end. Thank you Matthew."
The Lieutenant held back a smile, and pointed up. "There's an entrance, so, I'm going to give you a lift up." He said as he cupped his hands together and bent down. "Ready?"
She nodded and put her foot in his hands, and he lifted her up. She managed to enter the vent on her first attempt, and once she was inside she called out her thanks to Lieutenant Jones, but her voice was silenced by gunfire and screaming. She froze in place and waited for it to stop. When it did, she made out the shouts of 'Clear' from the Cerberus soldiers down below, and someone calling for her to be found.
The sound of footsteps getting farther away made her move as quietly as she could towards the entrance. 'Clear' could've only meant one thing. Everyone was dead. That young soldier who had been so happy that she was here - was now gone because of her.
This shouldn't be happening. Why would Cerberus be killing Alliance? They could only be after one thing, but what possible use for it could they have for the weapon, that the whole galaxy wouldn't want?
Halfway through her journey she heard a creak, and cursed when a part of the vent fell down behind her, and heard the soldiers calling out her location. At that point she decided that slow and steady was not the way to go, and opted for – as quickly as her body would allow. It didn't take long for a couple of Cerberus operatives to climb up and to start shooting at her. Luckily, they didn't seem particularly bright, because if they were, then maybe they wouldn't have sent up anyone wearing heavy armour. She took advantage of this and was able to avoid their shots until she reached the end of the shaft. She kicked the grate off the vent easily and jumped out; readying her Singularity, and when they exited she let her biotics go. There were times when she felt a perverse pleasure at seeing someone caught up in a Singularity flail about.
But only the ones that had tried to kill her.
She let off a couple of shots, and when they fell to the ground, she made sure they were definitely finished. For the moment, this was the only way she could think of avenging all of the people that died.
"Liara."
She turned around, and she knew immediately that everything was going to be alright. "Shepard."
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