Chapter 4

A peace offering

Garrus headed straight down to the washrooms after the fight. His nose and jaw were still stinging but it wasn't painful enough to require medigel. However, his side might require some before the bruises showed.

Physically, he was tired, but mentally his mind was still racing, and as he stripped down and stood under the jets of the hot shower he couldn't help thinking about Aelia. He'd been so angry with her, and had demonstrated this in the fight; he'd almost forgotten why they were fighting in the first place. Then there was that move in the final round, where she had run her tongue along the side of his face; the sensation had so surprised him that he dropped her, and consequently the round and the match ended up a draw. He didn't know what to think.

It was over now, and Captain Mikras had announced that they were going to be sending a strike team down to the planet in approximately 30 hrs. He'd been informed that the scouting detail was to head down early evening tomorrow and set up watch for the five hours prior, with all the scouts there this time, along with a half dozen recruits and himself – but thankfully, Garrus thought, Flavian would be in charge this time. He was hoping what had transpired down in the training room would alleviate some of the tension between him and Aelia. But he couldn't be sure. The sensation of her tongue still lingered.

After putting his ship suit on again he slipped back up to his quarters to put his training outfit into his laundry bag and headed down to the mess. This time though he had an appetite. It was now after midnight and there was no general crew about, only the mess cooks, including the senior officers' cooks. They were sitting around one of the tables, having finished their shifts for the evening. He noticed Burrus Silvan, and he raised his hand to him. Silvan beckoned him over.

"Hey Vakarian, I heard about your little match tonight, sounded interesting, pity I couldn't make it" the other three cooks around the table all nodded in agreement.

"I guess so, but now I'm famished, there's nothing hot left to eat is there?" He looked hopefully over at the meal counters.

"There's a few things, just been put away so we might be able to rustle something up for you. Nine rounds, sounds like you deserve it." And he disappeared into the kitchen before coming out a few minutes later with a traditional turian stew.

Garrus sat down and Silvan placed the stew in front of him, "Thanks". He gulped it down and listened to the cooks talking about their day.

As he stood up to leave Silvan spoke. "Hang on a minute." and disappeared back into the kitchen. When he came out he handed Garrus something wrapped in baking paper. "A bit of sweet for the road Vakarian." Tupo berry slice, something he had never seen on offer in the junior officer's mess.

Garrus said his goodbyes and headed back up to his quarters. He stood in front of his door with the slice in his hands, he still wasn't tired, and his mind still racing. He rubbed his face, stared at the door for a bit longer then turned on his heel and headed towards Aelia Goran's quarters.

Aelia's quarters were at the other end of the ship from his and when he arrived he stood there for a minute thinking. Is this a bad idea? She's probably asleep, or somewhere else… he looked down the corridor both ways. There was no-one about. He put his talon out to press the door buzzer but hesitated, and then he pressed it. Yes, she's probably asleep, he thought and turned to go back down the corridor, but before he could move the door opened, and Aelia was standing in front of him. She was in her plain grey ship suit, but her feet were bare and he caught the faint whiff of a fragrant scent.

"Vakarian?"

"Ah yeah, hi Goran. I couldn't sleep after all that …ah… physical… you know, and I thought you might be the same so I thought…but if you're busy or just about to hit the sack I'll go…um…okay?"

She smiled at him, this time it seemed warm and inviting, "Yeah, um, I'm definitely not tired, why don't you come in?" She motioned for him to enter.

Before Garrus stepped over the threshold they glanced both ways down the corridor. The door shut behind him and he looked around her cabin.

"Hey, your quarters look bigger than mine."

"Are they?"

"Yeah, definitely bigger, mine's only about 8x6 ft, this looks around 8x10 ft, it's positively a palace. I've got enough room for a bunk and a few minor things – hell, you've even got a table…" and he glanced over to it Aelia had lain something out on cloth on top of it, it looked like pieces of a small weapon.

"Well, this part of the ship has a bit of bulkhead – maybe that's why it's bigger."

"How does one of the smallest people on the ship get one of the largest quarters?"

She shrugged "Well, I would hope the Captain and senior officers have larger quarters than mine, and they probably have a portal."

"Ah, yes, I guess they would," He shifted nervously on his feet.

"What's that?" Aelia pointed to the cake in Garrus's hands.

"Oh yeah, ah, this is, ah…a peace offering" He handed it to her.

She opened the paper, her eyes lighting up, "Oh yum, there's never anything like this on the menu down in the mess, where'd you get it?"

"Yeah, one of the cooks I know gave it to me – he works mostly for the officers and occasionally passes me tidbits."

Aelia broke a piece off and put it in her mouth "mmm" closing her eyes in the process. She offered some to Garrus and he broke some off.

"Mmmm tupo berries, yes?" She asked.

"I think so."

"Wow, I haven't had them in such a long time."

They both stood awkwardly in silence munching the cake.

When Garrus finished he said "Well, I guess I'll go – you sort of look like you're in the middle of something."

She hurriedly replied "Oh no, don't go, you can stay and, um, talk to me while I…err" and she pointed towards the table.

Garrus nodded his head "oh, okay." Garrus thought the whole exchange with Aelia was awkward and weird, they had never conversed like this before, but he wanted to stay, even if they didn't say much to each other. He just felt the need to be near her.

Garrus leant against the wall near the table and Aelia turned her attention to the contents of the cloth.

"That looks like a pistol, but I don't think I've ever seen one like that before." The barrel appeared to have a metallic red sheen to it.

"It's my Grandfather's first ever military service revolver. He gave it to me when I joined."

"Looks almost like an antique."

"Well it is, almost 60 years old." She began slowly to rub the parts with a small cloth, placing each piece delicately back on the larger cloth when she finished.

"Wow that's pretty old, how long did your Grandfather serve?"

"About 56 years."

Garrus whistled, "Impressive. So, he's retired now?"

"No. Dead," Aelia's voice was expressionless.

"Oh, sorry." Garrus winced.

"Oh, it's okay, he died four years ago – he was still in service, never left."

"What about your father? Was he in the military as well?"

Garrus noted her visibly stiffen at the question and she paused before answering, "He was, but only for two years, then he moved to civilian service."

"Civilian service?"

"He's heavily involved in politics back on Taetrus."

"Well, I guess someone has to be involved in that side of things. What does he think of you being here? Following in the family footsteps and all."

Aelia's polishing became vigorous. "He hates that I'm here, that's why I'm never going into civilian service, never going back to Taetrus."

Garrus started to get a sense of where that chip on Aelia's shoulder originated.

She turned to him, a sad look in her eyes, "It's a topic I don't talk about much, Vakarian."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…." He replied.

"My father is a very upstanding turian, he's a good man, but he's a snob. According to him the military is not the right place for his daughter. He would never have said that while my Grandfather was alive but he said it after, and at his damn funeral, and that's why I haven't spoken to him in four years." Aelia stopped polishing and began putting the pistol back together slamming the pieces together roughly, and getting visibly frustrated in the process.

Garrus gently took the 2 pieces currently in her hand "Let me." He placed a drop of gun oil for lubricant and the pieces slid together without any need of force.

"Sometimes, Aelia" his voice was quiet, "A soft approach is needed. There's no point using a nuclear weapon to drive in a nail, even if you have an arsenal at your command." He handed the pieces back to her leaning back against the wall and folding his arms.

She turned and faced him, "I'm sorry for what I did on the scouting mission, you were right it was reckless and irresponsible." She blurted out.

"I'm also sorry for my attitude towards you on our missions together."

"I…I…" Aelia bowed her head, "I guess I saw you as sort of being like my father. All caught up in being seen to do the right thing in the typical 'turian' way Without actually knowing or caring if it is the right thing," she lifted her head to look him in the eyes, "But you're not like that at all, Vakarian. Yes, you're honourable, and very 'turian', but your decisions aren't about being seen to do the right thing, you really care. Even if you are a bit stiff at times, there's fierceness in your eyes."

Garrus was taken aback at Aelia's frankness, he wasn't quite sure if this was Aelia Goran he was speaking to. "Fierceness?" he gave her a puzzled look.

"What I mean is - when I faced you in the ring tonight, you were wild and intense. It was scary. I was scared. You were fighting for a principle. I can't say that my father has principles and I can't say that I was ever scared of him."

"You didn't look scared. Plus, you held your own against me, that has to count for something," he tried to sound conciliatory.

"I'm not fierce; I think the Captain used the word tenacious, that's definitely appropriate for me." She bowed her head again, "You would have won, you know. In that last round that is. You had me in that tight grip, it was like a vice. There was no way I could get a foothold and try to bring you down. If I…if I hadn't done what I did…I would have lost for sure."

Garrus unfolded his arms, "If you're referring to that little move with your tongue, it was certainly unexpected. I can't say that I haven't thought about it though." He gave her a tense sideways glance. She looked up at him with this comment and he continued, a slight nervousness creeping into his voice, "Yes, um, it was a surprising move, er… um pleasantly surprising. Something I might expect in a more intimate setting like…like…"

"Like here?"

"Yes like here." he replied.

Aelia reached up with her hand, gently pulling his face close to hers and began to trace a sensuous line along his jaw with her tongue. Her face remained close to his when she had finished and she whispered "I've wanted to do that again since I left the training room earlier tonight. I like the way you taste."

He leaned back eyeing her carefully; he could feel the tension in the air, this time definitely sexual.

He decided a bold move was needed and moved forward encircling his long arms around her waist and kissing her hard, pushing his tongue deep into her welcoming mouth and feeling the edge of her sharp teeth. She placed both arms around his neck and jumped on him, wrapping her legs tight about his waist, resting them upon the bony protrusions of his hips.

He moved forward till her back hit the cabin wall. She grunted with the force of the collision, their mouths briefly breaking from the kiss, but her legs remaining firmly in position. His arms moved down to support her buttocks and he began to stroke her thighs with his talons.

She reached up to pull on his fringe and he rumbled at her touch. The kiss previously broken was now reconnected, allowing their tongues to entwine in battle. She let her legs slip from his waist and placed her hands on his chest, pushing him away from her as she did so.

"Take your boots off, Vakarian." Her voice was breathless and purposeful.

Garrus obeyed and removed his boots, tossing them by the cabin door. He moved forward, eager to press against her, but she grabbed him by the shirt, moving and shoving him so that it was his back now against the cabin wall. He raised his hand to stroke her face and she leaned into it, kissing the palm and each talon.

Her hands were still gripping his shirt but she slid them to the front of his pants, slowly undoing the fastenings and pulling them over his hips, moving them down his legs as she descended to her knees. Garrus lifted each leg so she could remove them fully.

She then turned her attention to his underwear, the shape of his growing erection visible underneath. Through the thin cloth she rubbed a single talon along the outside of his shaft. He shuddered at the touch, then she quickly tugged the material downward so they dropped, catching on his spurs; she delicately untangled them and he lifted each foot again so she could remove them.

He was now naked from the waist down and he looked down at her with a hunger in his eyes. Aelia placed her palm over his erection, gently encircled the shaft with her delicate talons and began squeezing. She looked up at him, satisfied that his eyes were now shut tight and his breathing shallow, then began to move her tongue along its smooth surface and over the sensitive head, careful not to raze her teeth along its edge, fellatio for turians was a dangerous game.

Garrus let out a long moan, opening his eyes to look down at her, and he reached out for her fringe, gently pulling on the ends as she continued to suck and lick him. Any pain or tiredness that had been encroaching on Garrus was now completely replaced with pleasurable bliss, but he was reaching achingly close to climax too quickly and he wanted to prolong, not end the sensation.

Time to take control, he thought, and give little Aelia Goran what she seemed to be longing for, and what he longed to give, a long hard fuck. Garrus leaned down, and grabbed Aelia underneath the arms pulling her to a standing position; she was so light it was like lifting a child.

He speedily removed his top and singlet and then removed Aelia's; he ran his hand over her chest and waist and she closed her eyes and sighed at the touch. Turian females didn't have breasts as such, however their torso finely tapered to give that very illusion, and although both male and female turians had sensitive underbellies, turian female torsos were particularly sensitive when aroused.

Garrus moved close to her and they kissed, their tongues once again dancing and fighting. He moved around behind her, running his hands down her torso and towards her waist, she spooned into him and he reached his long arms down to the front of her pants, undoing the button and zip. He removed both her pants and underwear at the same time and she carefully stepped out of them.

His hand slid down between her legs, she was warm and slippery and his talons easily parted the folds of her sex. Aelia started to softly moan as Garrus's talon moved slowly in and out. He moved her slightly forward so that she was lightly pressed face first against the cabin wall and went to lift her right leg, she gave a small painful cry as he did so and he muttered an apology and lifted her left instead.

Her diminutive height compared to his meant that he had to crouch slightly so that he could enter her from behind, but she was flexible enough for him to lift her leg reasonably high. Although she was well lubricated he encountered a slight resistance, and she groaned as he finally managed to enter her. He moved slowly, thinking how tight she was around him, it felt like her muscles were constricting around him and he suddenly panicked at the thought that he might actually be hurting her.

"Aelia," he whispered into her ear, "You're not a… not a…."

"Not a what?" she asked, her voice hoarse, and then she suddenly let out a breathless laugh, "You don't seriously think that…."

"Well…you're so… so… tight." He said – he was still moving slowly inside her.

Her response was throaty, "Vakarian, don't flatter yourself, I haven't been saving myself, certainly not for you. Don't you think that perhaps because I'm smaller and you're larger that maybe that has…." But before she could continue he thrust deeply into her and she gave a surprised gasp.

He movements changed to deep thrusts now and he whispered in her ear, "Well, if that's the case then you won't care if I spoil you for the next turian who comes along."

Her moans were now becoming louder and she was having difficulty catching her breath between thrusts. She tried to speak, "Vakar…" Garrus thrust, "Vakar…" and he thrust again.

He moved his hand up to her throat and stroked it gently before purring in her ear, "I do have a first name you know, I'd like to hear you say it." he nuzzled the back of her neck as he continued his forceful thrusts into her.

Finally she relented and cried out his name "Garrus!" He wanted to rip his name from her again but slowed his pace and her loud moans changed to a soft whimpering. She reached her arm back over his head roughly caressing his fringe.

Garrus slipped out of Aelia and turned her around to face him. She put her arms around his neck and jumped on him, skewering her self back on him in the process. She placed her feet on his bony hip protrusions, allowing her more flexible movements. They kissed again, their tongues continuing their oh-so-exquisite sparring.

She moved on him in frenzy till he felt her climax, he was still not finished so began to thrust deeper into her again; she moved her feet and wrapped her thighs tightly around him, his movements became turbulent until finally he let out a long and loud roar, releasing himself into her.

He held her tightly against him and moved over to the bunk and sat down with her still intimately attached, both were still breathing heavily. He moved to lie down and she rolled off him, settling for a niche between his arm and torso with her head on his shoulder.

"I guess we could consider that a tiebreaker." She said softly.

He glanced down at her, "Yeah, but who won?"

"Shut up and go to sleep, Vakarian."

And he closed his eyes.

Garrus woke to find his morning erection being lovingly tended to by Aelia's delicate hands.

"Well, that's certainly not a strict military wake up call." He stated matter of factly.

She tilted her head and smiled, saying nothing in reply; he reached over and placed his hand gently on her face. He lay back down, closing his eyes, simply taking in the sensation of Aelia's dainty tongue moving along his length. The room was permeated with the smell of their previous night's lovemaking and he breathed in deeply, making his mandibles flare.

Aelia positioned himself on top of him, and slid onto his now very firm erection; he could still feel how tight she was but she was hot and wet and as she leaned forward to place her hands on his face, tenderly kissing him, he let out a velvety moan.

She ran her tongue along the side of his face and he laughed, bringing his hand to the back of her neck and moving up to tug on her fringe. He looked into her eyes; this was not quite what he was expecting from little, feisty, Aelia Goran.

She sighed and he moved his hands to stroke her belly and thighs. She moaned softly as she moved; at the sight of her so enjoying herself Garrus began to slightly increase his thrusts, whilst still enjoying the gentle pace at which they were moving.

Aelia moved forward placing her hands on his shoulders and looked into his eyes, "Vakarian, you are a very good turian. A very…very good turian." Although the bed was narrow, there was enough room for him to turn her over and she once again wrapped her flexible thighs around him.

He started to move deeper into her before speaking. "I told you I have a first name, and I want to hear you say it."

"Make me," she said teasingly.

Garrus increased his tempo, moving faster and driving into her harder, and she whimpered with each thrust he made. She was coming close to orgasm, Garrus could feel her insides tightening around him, he roughly pushed into her and as she began to moan his name, saying "Garrus!" over and over, he smiled and gave in to his own climax. I've definitely won this round, he thought.

Garrus rolled off Aelia and sat at the edge of the bed; she sat up and kissed his back and his shoulder.

He turned to her and spoke, "I guess I should go get changed, the next couple of days are going to be intense."

She nodded her head in agreement. They both dressed, coyly looking at each other, giving each other occasional smirks. He moved to the door.

"Aelia, I'm glad we sorted this out."

"I'm glad we did too, Vak… Garrus."

Garrus opened the cabin door and stepped out into the corridor. It was now about 9 am. He and the scouts were due to go on duty about 3 pm, and supposedly heading down to the planet at 6 pm, giving him plenty of time for preparations, having something to eat, perhaps a shower, although he liked having Aelia's scent on him and he didn't want to remove it just yet.

When he got within view of his own cabin, he could see Flavian and Terentius loitering nearby.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Where have you been, Vakarian? I've been trying to raise you for the last hour. Terentius and I have just been speaking with Captain Mikras…." Flavian stopped talking and sniffed the air. "Terentius, can you smell what I smell?"

Terentius moved his head slightly, a grin slowly emerging on his face. "Sure can, Flavian, sure can."

Garrus looked at both of them, he knew where the conversation was headed but conceded nothing to either of them until breaking out into a sly grin; Flavian and Terentius began bellowing with laughter.

"Okay, you two have had your fun; what was the Captain saying, Flavian?" Garrus asked.

"Well, first, I'd like to say that I'm glad things are "sorted" between you and Goran, Vakarian, because there's been a development down on the planet."

"What's happened?"

"It looks like that little data pad that was retrieved had some interesting information on it."

Garrus asked, "They managed to decrypt it?"

"Yes, well, most of it and it looks like we've got more than just batarians to worry about."

"Who?"

"Eclipse mercenaries."

Shit, biotics. "Why the hell are the Eclipse sisters getting involved with batarians? Mercenaries aren't usually interested in purchasing slaves, and batarians have their own muscle, they don't trust the asari normally."

"Well that's what's got Mikras worried, and to add to the confusion there's been some chatter on the comm channels. Looks like they might be getting geared up to move out. He wants us to head down to the planet within the next hour. Scouting duty has just been bumped up, so if you don't mind, go fetch your little sparring partner – and I'll see you both down in the docking bay in half an hour."

Garrus turned back down the corridor to Aelia's quarters.

"Oh, and Vakarian," Garrus turned back to hear Flavian say, "Don't bother showering; when I shove my rifle up a batarian's ass I want you around so he can remember what being fucked by a turian smells like."

The two scouts turned, their laughter echoing down the hallway.