AN: Here you are, another chapter so certain reviewers won't explode with anticipation! ;) Haha you guys make updating so much fun c: Anyway, this chapter is a little different in that it's more serious than the others. Hopefully you will still enjoy it though!

Chapter Ten: Birthday

Thane's meditations were not going well. Between trying to regulate his ragged breaths, slipping into too many bad memories, and now, daydreaming about impossible and inappropriate things, Thane felt completely off-center.

Suddenly there was that now familiar buzzing of the door, allowing him to completely abandon all hope of meditation for the evening. When he answered the door he was pleasantly surprised to see Shepard once again, holding something behind her back and smiling brightly. "Hello, siha," he smiled back softly. Her smile seemed to be contagious. "Have you found more coloring books for us?"

Shaking her head, the commander attempted to look serious for a moment but Thane could still see a mischievous twinkle in her mysterious eyes. "I was looking through your record, Krios," she started in a professional tone, "and I noticed something very disturbing."

Thane looked at her quizzically, although his lips still formed a smile. It was good to see the commander show her sense of humor, although he could only wonder what all this was about. His nostrils detected a sweet smell wafting from her and his curiosity only increased.

Shepard broke out into a radiant smile once again and produced a tray of small cakes. "Yesterday was your birthday and we didn't celebrate it!" she announced, as if it was completely unheard of.

"Thank you, siha." He smiled at her kindness and then looked at the small round cakes. "What are these exactly?"

"Cupcakes!" Karina smiled in a slightly bashful manner. "Mess Sergeant Gardner was using all the large pans so I had to improvise. You like sprinkles, right?"

"I've never had them," he admitted.

The commander's jaw dropped. "Never?" The drell shook his head, highly amused at her astonishment. "Good thing I made these then," she chuckled as she handed him a "cupcake".

Thane examined the food then carefully took a bite. It tasted wonderful, with just the right amount of sweetness. "You made these yourself?" He was touched that she had thought of him.

"Mhmm," she replied, slightly distracted with the task of selecting a cupcake for herself. Only when she had chosen her victim did she speak again. "I hope it's alright; I haven't cooked since I had my apartment on the Citadel." Thane thought he saw a shadow pass over her face, as if she had just brought up a memory she'd rather forget. I understand the feeling, siha.

"It's delicious," he told her truthfully as he moved to take another bite.

Suddenly, he heard her giggle. Startled by this childish sound coming from the commander, Thane looked at her in surprise. "What is it?"

Her cheeks were pink with laughter and her smile was playful as she stepped closer to him. Their faces were impossibly close; he marveled at her beautiful, silvery eyes.

But her eyes were not locked onto his. She was focused on his lips and for a moment, Thane was convinced that this was it; any moment now, their lips would touch. Then her finger slowly and carefully ran across his bottom lip, removing a small dollop of icing and sprinkles.

He watched in utter shock as Karina sucked the sweet confection off her finger. "You shouldn't waste sprinkles," she grinned when she saw his expression. She didn't move away, however. Thane noticed another flicker pass over her face, this one lasting much longer.

Karina swayed slightly and his arms shot out to steady her. "Shepard? Are you alright?" He'd never seen her so unsteady, even after an injury.

Her hands leaned tentatively against his chest. "Sorry, I just…remembered something." Was she moving closer or was that his imagination? Her eyes were half-lidded and still focused on his lips. "It was so vivid…" He could feel her breath now, warm and smelling of vanilla.

His breath quickened as she slowly licked her lips to enjoy the last bit of frosting. Suddenly her eyes shot wide open and she stumbled back, like she was being jerked awake. Looking from the cupcake she still held and back to his mouth as if she had no idea why she was there, Karina slowly backed away. "I… I'm sorry," she managed finally, her voice trembling. "I…I have to go, Kai—Thane." Her face reddened and he thought he saw her eyes grow even mistier as they glimmered with tears. "Thane," she repeated in a half whisper, as if she was confirming his name.

"Do you need help getting back to your quarters―?"

"No," she interrupted quickly. Then, realizing her rudeness, she added softly, "I'm fine. Really."

The assassin nodded slowly. "Thank you for the cupcakes, siha. It was very thoughtful of you."

"Sure," she croaked, her face now pale. "H-happy birthday, Thane."

And with that, the Commander left the room as quickly as she could without running.

Thane touched a finger to his lips and wondered what sort of memories could plague such a strong woman.

AN: I'm really surprised more people don't write about the whole hallucinating upon oral contact thing. I think it's pretty interesting. But maybe Mordin really was yanking Shep around. Either way, it makes for interesting fic material! :D There will be an update tomorrow to resolve this little conflict our lovebirds have gotten themselves into.

To make up for all the seriousness, here's another ME anecdote: So I play French horn in band and in this one song we use a mute. My mute is terrible. It's this nasty orangey-tan color and has some grimy string attached to it for some reason and it claims to be able to adjust the pitch (but it really doesn't). Anyway, one day I looked on the bottom of it and saw that it says "omni-mute". I hate it a lot less now :P