Desert

Pt. 2

"Shepard!"

Shepard jerked awake as her name was called out. She sat up and reached for the gun that was resting on the nightstand next to her. Her brain started running through the various emergencies that could cause someone to yell out her name. A fire? Pirates? No, no, she wasn't on the Normandy. Burglar? No, there was no one in the room. If there was, she would have heard or seen them now.

Thane, she thought, her eyes widening. Was he ill? Had something happened?

She looked over to her left and released the gun. It fell back to where it had been for the last four days. There was no need for it.

Next to her, she saw Thane's figure. She could hear him breathing, so that was a good sign. But his breaths seemed to be... Shaky. His eyes were open, she could see the faint light that came in through the curtains being reflected in them.

"You okay?" She asked and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I-" Thane cleared his throat. "Yes. I'm sorry for waking you."

"It's fine." She laid back down and cuddled up next to him. "Bad dream?"

"Yes." He wrapped a strong arm around Shepard and held her close.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

He shook his head. There was no reason for Shepard to push it. They had a silent agreement when it came to their relationship. You told the other about things that bothered you when you were ready. They both had scars, of various kinds.

"I slide. Glossy metal beneath me. My scrambling hands find nowhere to grab. Panic rises in my chest. I see her reach for me, her eyes wide and fearful. For a moment, our hands connect. A jerk tears her away from me. My gut drops as I slide over the edge. A strong hand grabs mine, forest eyes looking into mine."

Thane cleared his throat and swallowed. Shepard didn't need context to know exactly what he was talking about. It was something she had seen in her dreams as well. Thane sliding down the tumbling platform, almost falling into the depths of the base. Just thinking about it made her shiver.

"It's okay." She mumbled and kissed his shoulder. "I have nightmares about that place as well. Especially when you were about to fall..."

They lay there in silence and just held each other. Shepard listened to his heartbeat and stroke over his stomach. While his chest had a similar shade of green as his face, the closer you got to his hips, the lighter the colour was. The skin just above his waistline was almost white and extremely soft. Shepard trailed her finger from his bellybutton down towards his groin. As she did this, the assassin flinched.

Shepard raised an eyebrow and looked up at him. Was he... Ticklish?

"Thane, darling?" Shepard said with an amused tone in her voice and did it again, only to have him flinch in the same way. "Are you ticklish?"

His face softened and Shepard could feel him relax a bit. Good. That was what she was going for. It seemed like more and more of her time was spent just trying to make Thane smile. It didn't bother her, though. His smile was worth it.

"A good assassin never reveals his weaknesses." Thane remarked, doing his best to keep his stoic tone, but Shepard saw the corners of his mouth twitch.

"That is definitely a yes." She grinned and raked her fingernails over the soft skin.

After letting out a low hiss, Thane's hand grabbed hers. He brought it away from his lower stomach and intertwined their fingers as he did so. Their joined hands came to rest on his chest and Shepard could feel the slow, steady beat of his heart.

"I love you." She whispered. "Go back to sleep."


Thane read over the message for Kolyat he had worked the last hour on composing. He found it difficult to speak with his son, whether it be via messages or through vid conversations. Kolyat was almost an adult now and he had been through more than he should have at his young age.

Kolyat;

The message started. So far so good.

I hope this message finds you well. How are you? How is Bailey treating you?

In your last message, you mentioned an asari. I am interested to hear more about her. How did it go? Did you ask her out?

If you need advice, it would be better if you turned to Shepard. I can't say I'm particularly good at wooing women.

Though I've said it in all of my previous messages, I must say it again. I'm proud of you. I can see that you are serious about changing the direction of your life.

As for me, our mission was successful and Shepard and I have taken a week to visit Earth. It's quite beautiful here. I wish you could have joined us.

Perhaps it was a bad idea to mention Shepard? The younger drell didn't know about his father's new relationship. Thane had read up on how to behave when you'd lost a spouse and then entered a new relationship. The children might see it as a betrayal, as if the remaining parents is attempting to replace the lost one. That was not the case. Shepard wasn't there to replace Irikah. It would be foolish to even think as much. But Kolyat had a temper. Thane still wasn't entirely sure of what topics to avoid to keep him from becoming upset.

He erased the line about Shepard.

Our mission was successful and we've taken a week to gather our strength before continuing with our work.

The next time I come by the Citadel, I thought we could share a meal. If you are interested and have the time, of course.

Reply when possible and

"Thane?"

Thane looked up from his datapad towards the source of the sound. Shepard stood in the kitchen, leaning against the kitchen bench. Her green eyes were focused on him and Thane felt blood rush to his face as the red sections of his face and throat changed into a deeper shade of scarlet.

Though Shepard had assured him that he didn't have to be ashamed about what had happened during the night, he couldn't stop himself from feeling just that. He wasn't a stranger to nightmares, but it was unusual that they woke him. And made him scream.

"Yes?" He eventually said, without getting up from where he sat at the dinner table.

"Do you want me to wash any of your clothes so that they can dry before we have to pack?"

It was a relief that she didn't bring up what had happened. Thane smiled and recalled the first conversation they had after returning to the Normandy after finding Kolyat.

She looks at him, her eyes warm and welcoming.

"I never explained- " He starts unsure of how to continue. "I suppose the story of my wife's death took you by surprise."

"I figured you'd explain to me when you were ready." She replies, her voice soft as her eyes.

Those words set the theme for their relationship. They both were injured and had bagage. Eventually, it would all come out, Thane assumed. At least from him. In preparation for his death, he had started composing messages and letters. He wanted her to have something to remember him by.

"No, I believe I'm all set." He replied, smiling a bit. "But thank you for offering."

"It's laundry. It's not rocket science." She walked over and kissed the top of his head. They seemed slightly warmer than usual.

"Are you alright?" Thane frowned and looked up at her. "Your lips are warmer than they usually are."

Much to Thane's surprise, a short, genuine laugh came from his beautiful siha. Her laugh was like music to his ears. It was when she laughed that he realised how seldom she did it. Despite the threat of the collectors had been eliminated, she still had the weight of the galaxy on her shoulders. And no one would listen. She carried a great burden, yet she was so brave.

"It's over 40 degrees outside. I'm boiling." She ran her fingers over his head ridge.

"Ah. I see." He took her hand and brought it to his lips to kiss it.

Her formerly alabaster skin had darkened into a light golden-brown colour. Though she was still beautiful, he prefered her pale skin. It made her eyes, her most striking feature, stand out more. The large, almond shapes windows to her soul that were surrounded by thick, dark lashes. When she was, as she refered to it, tanned, they seemed less striking.

An overwhelming urge washed over the drell and he stood up, his large hands snaking their way under the loose shirt she was currently dressed it. There was a faint expression of shock on her face as he did this. It was rare that an intimate moment started like this. It was usually a slow build.

"What's gotten into you?" She raised an eyebrow and gave him a loop sided smile. "Not that I'm complaining."


It had been a wonderful vacation. The faint swimming in her head and the angry rash that was appearing on her torso didn't matter. She had been close to Thane for a whole week. No interruptions. No missions, no constant issues that needed to be fixed. Just, she and Thane.

The familiar Cerberus shuttle landed in front of the house and they picked up their bags. Shepard didn't want to get back on that shuttle. She just wanted to stay here forever. To forget about the reapers and Kepral's Syndrome.

"Thank you again, siha." Thane said as they sat down next to each other. "For the memories of this vacation."

"Lucky sod. You can remember this perfectly." She said and took his hand in hers. "And here I am with my human memory, and I can't even remember what we had for dinner yesterday."

"You should go and see Dr Chakwas when we come back." Thane said with a frown on his face. "Problems with short-term memory can be attributed to several illnesses affecting the brain. None of them are pleasant, but if treated-"

Shepard silenced him with a kiss and a chuckle. Though he was so intelligent, he sometimes had issues with picking up on sarcasm and similar things. A side effect of being alone so much.

"It was a joke." She informed.

They sat in silence until there was the familiar thump as the shuttle landed in the cargo bay. Back to work...

"Welcome aboard, Commander." Joker quipped over the comm. "Did you and Thane have a good sexcation? Or, wait, was it a vacation? I forget."

Thane quirked an eyebrow at Shepard, who just shook her head. It was good for Joker that he was the crippled arse he was. If he hadn't had his disability and he wasn't such a fantastic helmsman, she'd make him clean out the ship as a punishment for all his stupid jokes.