Shepard was in the cargo bay. They would go down in the shuttle and be dropped off near Thoreau Mesa where her apartment was located. It was small, but it would serve their purposes. Shepard waited patiently for Thane. It did not take him long. He arrived in a cottony tunic similar to the one he wore for the wedding, only it had a square shaped neck. His chest was still quite exposed. Shepard caught the flashes of green at the hem of his pants. He was wearing some kind of sandal. She felt awkward in her cotton tank and shorts. She felt underdressed. As casual as Thane's outfit was, he still managed to look mysterious and dashing.

"I see you did you're homework." She said to him as he approached her.

"Yes. I did." He was smiling at her. "Thank you."

"For what? I said we'd go on vacation, right? You wanted to see a desert, I happen to have an apartment on a desert world... besides, you've 'thanked me' plenty already." She winked at him.

"As I plan to continue to do, Siha." His features were stern, but she could see the playful glint in his eyes.

"Ok, Garrus." Shepard spoke into her omni-tool. "We're heading down. Take care of the Normandy."

"Of corse, Commander." came the reply.

Thane's stare never left the window as the shuttle entered the atmosphere of the planet. Shepard sat beside him, her hand in his. When the planet's surface came into view he squeezed her hand. The capital city had several tall buildings, most of which where layers of business and housing. Shepard's apartment was located on one of the upper floors of one of the taller buildings. The strange pointed roofs jabbed at the sky like the points of knives.

Thane stepped out of the Kodiak and looked around at the expanse before him. The land was flat for miles around. Sparse bits of tangle weed rustled in the winds. The sun was setting so they headed to her apartment. Stars began to shine in the darkness above. There was no moon. Thane walked in silence, letting her lead him by the hand. Once they were in the flat, he went strait to the large window on the outter wall. Shepard watched him as he made himself comfortable on the ledge, leaning his back on the frame. He brought his knees up and rested one arm across them. Shepard stacked the gear and provisions in a corner and removed her shoes. The cool stone was a welcome relief from the heat. Deep orange light beamed between the buildings as the sun set beyond the horizon, illuminating his face. He seemed deep in thought. He hadn't spoken a word since their departure. Shepard approached the window and leaned against the ledge by his feet. She watched the sun set with him in silence. When the stars were in full domination of the sky she spoke without looking at him.

"You've been quiet, Mëha." She paused. "Is there something on your mind?" She glanced at him to see if he'd reacted at all to what she said. He was still staring at the sky. After a long moment he voice his thoughts in words barely above a whisper, as if it were a dream he would wake from if he spoke to loudly.

"I never thought I would live this long after being diagnosed with Keplar's Syndrome. I never thought I would see a dessert that I wasn't sent to under contract. I never thought I wold meet another Siha, or you." He looked at her on the last word.

Shepard didn't quite know what he meant by calling her 'another Siha' and then targeting her specificly. She didn't ask.

"Yet I have done all these things and more because of you." it was his turn to pause. "You have become my Arasiha. You cannot give us children," The words stung her in a way she did not expect. "but you have given so much more. All you have asked in return is my love, and you have earned that. How could I ever repay you?" He was blinking back the tears.

"Mëhana, you owe me nothing. You're love is all I desire, all I need. You are enough. You satisfy me beyond what my cup can hold. I do not regret a thing." She studied him a moment. "I decided the night I gave myself to you, the night you became my Mëha, that I would not regret it. That I wanted you to be that one, no mater what the future held. If one of us should return to the sea tomorrow, my heart would not lament the time we have already shared." She surprised herself with her poetry. He was rubbing off on her.

Thane sat forward and cupped her face in his hands. He kissed her, gently. Her lips parted and she found his tongue. The fire it ignited in her seeped to the surface as a biotic glow. He broke the kiss to gaze into her eyes.

"Your very kindness and love put me deeper in your debt every day. I am afraid it is impossible to repay."

"Didn't you know?" She asked "Kisses are worth as much as hugs, and a little more is worth twice the sum..." She was teasing, but she was also trying to allay his guilt.

He hopped off the ledge of the window and faced her. His features were serious, but not furrowed. His long, adept fingers found the hem of his tunic and pulled it off over his head, revealing the freckled and striped musculature beneath. He took a confidant step toward Shepard.

Shepard looked up at him, then stood to face him. His body was only inches from her. His flesh moved seductively with each steady, soundless breath. Her and was drawn to him as if by it's own will. She let her fingers ghost over the smooth scales and small plates that covered his torso. She stopped when she felt his heart beat, splaying her fingers over his chest. The rhythm was constant and strong.

He let her hand rest over his heart, letting her feel his heart beat. He watched her as she allowed herself to be fascinated with the rise and fall of his chest and the way his scales felt beneath her fingers as they rippled atop the motion. Slowly he took her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing the base of her palm.

When Thane released her hand from his kiss, Shepard used it to remove her own shirt. She had not worn a bra. It was too hot and her breast were not so large that she required one at all times. She also unfastened her shorts and let them fall to the floor with her panties in tow. Then she did the same to his. His drell-hood erected to it's full potential soon after. His buttocks pressed against the cool stone of the widow ledge, his head rolled back, his hands on either side of him griping the sill. Shepard was praising him without words, though it did involve her mouth. She used her tank to soak up any lubrication his body produced. She wanted to be fully aware of the groans and gasps and shutters of his body. When he came for her, she drank all of him, leaving him dry save a small bit of moisture from her saliva.

"Siha," he breathed as he looked down at her. "It is I who was to worship you. I have been undone." With that he took her around the waist and hoisted her up onto the window sill. His hand was in her hair as his lips were on hers. His other hand guided her knees apart for his access. Her excitement darkend the stone. His proficient fingers worked her body. He tenderly caressed and fondled her breasts, teasing her hardened pink nipples. Occasionally breaking the kiss to lick or nip at them. His finger tips ghosted over the skin of her abdomen, his desire building when her muscles tensed under his touch. She shuttered in anticipation when his digits grazed the delicate skin of her femininity. His webbed fingers gently lifted her hood, exposing the reddening button of her arousal. He moistened his thumb on the edges of her entry before applying pressure and movement to her bud.

It forced her to break the kiss when she gasped and arched her back. Her fingers gripped the sill, her legs involuntarily closing around the spot that was causing her body such painful pleasure. His hand slid from her hair to her back to support her as he teased her nipples with is teeth and tongue, as he forced her legs open wide and returned his hand to her want.

It never occurred to her that anyone could have looked out their own window to see her naked form writhing against the cooling glass. Any thoughts not of what he was doing to her had a place in her mind. Thoughts quickly became flashes of light and waves of emotion when those knowing webbed fingers straddled her nub and began stroking her as she might stroke him. His thumb pressed against the silken skin between that and her entry, slowly sliding into her. Her hands flew to the smooth surface behind her, her lips parted in moans. The flame of lust for his body burned in her loins.

His hand left her back to assist him mouth with her breasts. The sweet taste of the skin there was almost as addicting as her kiss or the flavor of her satisfaction. He rolled his thumb around the outter edges of her, listening intently to the soft sighs she made. He could smell her desire as it dripped onto the stone like water. It was becoming increasingly difficult to hold himself back. He felt her entry spasm. She was getting close. He replaced his fingers with his tongue, eagerly probing her, suckling her, using his hands on her knees to keep her from closing her legs when she spasmed. Her cries were growing louder, her breathing was frantic.

Shepard was sure she was going to loose her mind, this time. It was a constant threat whenever he pleasured her. The texture of his tongue manipulating her body, the pressing of his lips on her, his urgency to drink her... it sent her over the edge in a blinding light of euphoria. Her chest was heaving, her body still quivering when he lifted her from the sill and pushed himself inside her. He carried her to the bed that way. His hot need in her, rubbing against the swollen gland with the exotic sway of his hips as he walked. She came again before he was within a few feet of the bed. He nearly dropped to his knees in a groan of pleasure when her inner walls clamped down around him.

He let them fall to the mattress together. It forced him deeper into her. They both cried out. She moved to push him under her, but he recovered more quickly, not giving her the chance to dominate him.

"Later..." he growled.

He removed himself from her body to reposition her more comfortably on the bed. The seconds he was not within her fanned the fire in his loins. He only wanted her more. He took her harder and more carnally than he had in the past. Her screams of ecstacy and flood of climatic fluid matching his own.

He woke beside her with the morning light lazily shifting through the air and dust, casting a hazy yellow glow into the room. She lay on her side next to him, still sleeping. She smelled of his sex. His arm was draped over her form. He tightened his hold, bringing himself closer to her. He nuzzled her hair and the back of her neck. His hand found it's way to her nipples. He kneaded them a moment then let his fingers wanter to the heat between her thighs. She was still moist. He positioned himself to enter behind her, holding on to her hip as he pushed his way slowly in enjoying the sensation of her skin sliding over his, the slight resistance of her tightness. After a few strokes her body responded on it's own, becoming wetter with his thrusts. He lifted her leg and lay it back over his own so he could hold her hips against him and fondle her bud, occasionally slipping his fingers to where he penetrated her to feel himself sliding in and out of her with the sensitive tips. He panted heavily against her neck.

Shepard woke when Thane hugged his body to hers. She let out soft moans and sighs when he began to love her body. It was difficult to keep quiet. When he lay her thigh over his and began to fondle her as he pumped her, the waves of pleasure were too much. She caught him off guard when she suddenly turned on him and took the reigns. The shock on his face made her laugh.

"My turn." she smiled. He laughed and then moaned when she pushed him inside her. She let him thrust against her while she rolled her hips. The familiar touch of his hands on her hips and thighs heightened the emotional bliss of making love to him.

His body had little left to give after the first climax of the morning. He had exhausted himself. Shepard gave plenty, but less than the night before. They had both pushed the limits of their bodies. When she relented to her body's screams for abstinence she lay beside him, tenderly kissing his neck and licking his folds. He held her close allowing her desires, purring softly.

"We should head out soon if we're going to go to the desert today." She whispered. Her fingers traced the definition of his chest and stomach muscles. "We should shower first, though." She smiled when he gave her an uncertain look.

"Drell do not cleanse themselves in such a way."

"Try it with me. Just once." She placed a hand on the cheek farthest from her and turned his face to hers. She looked into his deep black eyes. How she loved to drown in them.

"If you wish." He replied. He always had difficulty denying her when she stared into him with eyes like the sea.

The water was warm and refreshing. The steam was minimal, and didn't seem to bother found he rather enjoyed the feeling of it flowing over his body, loosening any dirt or uncleanliness from him. He found he enjoyed the sight of the water beading up and trailing over Shepard's creamy skin much more. She lathered some soap on a sponge like puff and smoothed it over his arms and chest. She was careful to avoid any area's that might not respond well to the cleanser, mainly the folds of his throat. She used the soap on her hands to later his more sensitive area. She smiled at his amused expressions. Then she relathered the sponge and handed it to Thane.

"Now, you wash me. I'll show you."

She guided his hand over her shoulders and over her breasts. She watched his eyes, intently on her, admiring how the suds drifted over her skin in clusters. She let go of his hands as he squeezed the sponge with confidence. He used his fingers to cleanse her tender parts. It evoked a soft moan from her, the ever present desire tickling her loins. She could see that he felt it too.

Under the soft pelt of water they sat on the floor of the shower, her legs wrapped around his waist, his folded under her in the meditation position. She licked his folds and kissed his lips. He purred and groaned his pleasure. She rocked her hips with him inside her, softly moaning. It wasn't sex for pleasure. It was an inability to not be as intimate as they could be. They didn't reach a climax with floods of fluid or screams of passion. They just enjoyed the each other. Enjoyed the heat with in their own bodies. Lost themselves in the other's eyes. The ripple of blue flames surrounded them, unharmed by the water.

Thane took her face in his hands and kissed her tenderly. "I love you."