Series Title: After the Reapers
Pairing: Garrus/Shepard

Author: Knights-Honour
Disclaimer: Mass Effect universe © BioWare
Any character you haven't heard of © me

Author's Notes:

Thanks go to my Beta; Blueglaceon, who despite having little knowledge of the Mass Effect universe, agreed to edit the series anyway. Thanks, Blue!

This is set the night that Shepard and her crew return from the Omega-4 relay.

Affirmation of Life

"Officer Vakarian?"

Garrus' nimble fingers stilled on the consul. "Yes, EDI?"

"I apologise for interrupting your calibrations. However, I thought you'd like to know that the Commander's sleep pattern tonight has been unsettled and erratic. She seems to be greatly distressed by whatever it is she's dreaming about."

'She's having a night terror!' Garrus realised, and then mentally kicked himself in his nether-scales. He should have spent the night with her, but being back on Omega had him on edge. Though they were only staying long enough to make the Normandy flight worthy enough to make it through a Mass Relay safely before heading to the Citadel, even that short time was too long for him. So he'd opted to remain in the Main Battery and work on reconfiguring the Thanix Cannon.

And now, when she needed him the most, he wasn't there!

Growling at his own cowardice, he grabbed his tunic off of his cot, hastily pulling it on as he left the room.

~ o ~ o ~ o ~

The larvae's head snapped backward as Shepard delivered the final blow and the leviathan began to explode. Crumpling foreword, it collided heavily with the platform, causing Garrus to lose his footing, and as the Reaper began to slip off of the platform, the Turian followed suit. Not even stopping to think, Shepard dove after him, desperately trying to reach him in time before...

"GARRUS!" she screamed as he slipped off the edge and plummeted into the abyss below...

With a hoarse cry, Shepard bolted awake, eyes wild as she gulped for air.

It took a few moments for her to realise that she was on the Normandy, safe and sound, and that all members of her team had made it back from the nightmare that was the Collector base. Cradling her head in her trembling hands, she closed her eyes, taking in a few shuddering breaths as she sought to calm herself.

So wrapped up in herself, Shepard didn't hear the door open, nor did she see Garrus enter, his eyes immediately going to the double bed or hear the curse that he muttered under his breath when he saw her sweat soaked, trembling form, the sheets twisted tightly around her body. So when a tri-fingered hand gently touched her shoulder, she jumped a foot in the air, her eyes snapping open to locate the intruder.

"Easy," he purred softly as settled on the bed beside her.

"Garrus..." she breathed his name shakily before flinging herself into his waiting arms, clinging to him as if he'd disappear if she didn't. "...couldn't get to you in time... watched you slip over the edge of the platform..." she whispered brokenly.

He knew then what her night terror had been about; death. The same theme that had haunted his own dreams. He'd woken from his own night terror a few hours ago, shaking like a newborn colt. He'd already lost her once, and he had no desire to repeat the experience again if it could be helped. "Shhh..." he murmured, stroking her back. "It's alright," he soothed. "I'm here."

They remained that way for some time until she began to calm, loosening her grip on him and settling on his lap as she began to stroke the skin under his fringe. He purred in response to the caress, gripping her backside and pulling her flush against him, as he began to knead her flesh of her rump. Moaning, she pressed herself against him ardently, applying pressure to the back of his head. Understanding what she wanted, he lowered his head to hers. Tentatively, she pressed her lips to his muzzle, initiating their very first kiss. Garrus reacted immediately, bringing a hand up to cup the back of her head as he tilted his own as he did his best to respond. She didn't seem to mind that his lips weren't as pliable as hers, as his dextrous tongue to probe the crease of her lips, seeking admittance. With a throaty moan she opened her mouth to him as her own tongue came out to play, sweeping into his mouth to rub against his. They explored each other's mouths for a few minutes before parting.

With a tender rumble Garrus rested his forehead against hers as they caught their breath. "So that's what a kiss feels like," he murmured after a moment.

At his words, Shepard pulled back a little. "You were curious?"

Garrus tilted his head at that. "Kissing is one of the main ways that your kind use express affection. Why wouldn't I be?" he paused then as a thought occurred. "Is that why you didn't last night?"

Shepard grinned sheepishly. "I didn't know what you would think, how you would react. So I didn't do it."

Garrus shook his head and chuckled softly as he began to stroke her back again. She'd been just as nervous about offending or upsetting him as he'd been about her during their first coupling.

"I should have known, though," she continued. "You have to give and take for a relationship to work." Garrus stilled at her words, his predatory blues snapping to her mossy greens. "Garrus?" she queried uneasily, had she said too much, too soon?

"Is that... Is that what you want?" He asked roughly, a part of him afraid of what her answer would be. "Us... together?"

"If that's what you want?" she returned, just as timid. After all, he'd said that he didn't have a fetish for humans.

"Yes," he purred as buried his face in her neck and began to lave the sensitive column of her throat with his tongue. "Kat..." he rumbled after a moment, as he continued to stroke her neck. The need to couple with her, to claim her, was rising in him with a fiery passion. But he needed to ask her before they could start. "Will you be my mate?" he questioned as he felt himself moisten in preparation.

"Yes," she moaned back as he slipped his fingers underneath the hem of her top and drew it up her body. She raised her arms above her head, allowing him to remove the spaghetti strapped top completely and toss it over his shoulder. Removing his gloves, he watched Shepard draw away from him and settle further back on the bed as he disrobed himself.

Stripped of his clothes, Garrus stalked towards her on his hands and knees, eagerly seeking her lips for another kiss. When he drew back he slipped his thumbs, being mindful of his sharp claws, in the waistband of her lavender pyjama bottoms and panties and drew them down her shapely legs. The heady scent of her arousal permeated the air as she spread her legs, revealing her glistening sex to his ardent gaze and his cock extended out of him in response. He kneeled between her open thighs, shifting her legs so that they rested, knees bent, over his waist as he settled himself at her entrance. Gently griping her hips, he rocked forward, the head of his throbbing shaft entering her tight channel, earning a mutual moan from them both. Garrus had to grit his teeth together as he continued to slowly fill her, giving her body time to adjust to his massive member, all the while fighting the instinct to slam into her and dominate their coupling from the get-go. Beneath him, Shepard closed her eyes as she began to thrash her head from side to side, because as he continued to push into her, the ridges on his cock stimulated her clit as they passed, sending shockwaves through her body.

He wasn't even fully sheathed inside of her yet and already she was close to climaxing!

"Kat...?" Garrus voice returned her to reality, and she opened her eyes to find Garrus looming over her. He was now buried to the hilt, and she could see the strain on his features from keeping himself in check and remain perfectly still within her, waiting for her permission to begin. Moaning at the desire in his eyes, she undulated against him in response. Permission granted, Garrus began to thrust into her, slowly at first, but with a little encouragement, he upped the ante as beneath him, Shepard began pant, her walls beginning to grip his cock tightly as she drew closer and closer to her climax.

He watched in fascination, as they continued to feverishly come together, as pinkish spots began to appear under her breasts, and then they began to spread, first over her breasts, then down her stomach and back up to her neck. From the information packets that Dr. Solus had given him, he remembered that this reaction was commonly called a "sex flush" by her species, and that it occurred during sexual stimulation as a sign of excitement. Vasocongestion, the scientific name of the reaction, was also responsible for a few other things, and he gazed down at where they were joined to spot them; her swollen clit was protruding out from its hood and the Turian groaned at the sight of the darked head peering up at him, his member throbbing in response.

"You can touch it," Shepard's husky voice reached his ears, and he averted his gaze as he stilled within her, suddenly shy.

"I... I don't think that's wise, Kat..." he stammered.

Shepard tenderly smiled, his reaction warming her heart as her own worries were put to bed. Garrus had been nothing but the perfect gentleman during their couplings so far, not a single hint of the aggressive, dominance fuelled side of the Turian males that she had seen in the vids that Mordin had given her. So perhaps it was now her turn to relieve some of his fears.

"Garrus, look at me," she whispered, tenderly cupping his cheek as he reluctantly met her gaze. "You do know that I trust you, explicitly, right?"

"On the battlefield, yes."

She ruefully shook her head. "This, here and now, is no diff-"

"It's plenty different!" he fired back. "I could tear you to ribbons!"

"And yet you haven't," she returned, in a clam tone of voice, "You've shown nothing but restraint during our couplings, both last night and now."

"I... I just don't want to hurt you..." he whispered, his aggression fading. "You're the only thing that's going right in my life right now, Kat... I don't want to lose that... to lose you... again..."

"Oh, Garrus..." she murmured softly as she sat up, her own eyes pricking with tears as she wrapped him up in her embrace, "I'm not going anywhere."

"But you're not infallible! The Collectors proved that two years ago!"

"The Collectors caught us off guard. The Reapers won't get that chance, believe me." Her words seemed to soothe him, for he relaxed against her, burying his head in her shoulder.

"I still don't want to hurt you, though," her murmured as he raised his head to look her in the eyes, as he began to caress her skin.

She laughed throatily, one hand sliding under his fringe, as the other took a meandering path towards his waist, teasing the sensitive skin in between his plates as she went. "You don't give yourself enough credit."

Garrus groaned as her fingers began to simultaneously caress his waist and his fringe. "Will... will you... s-show-" he broke off with a long drawn out moan as she began to suck and nibble on his uninjured mandible. "...S-spirits Above..." he groaned again, flaring his mandibles wide as her tongue came into play, stroking and teasing the appendages' sensitive inner membrane. The stimulation of his species' three primary erogenous zones soon overwhelmed him, and Shepard paused her ministrations on his body, moaning as she felt his cock swell inside of hers. "As much as I love what you're doing, Kat," he purred against her throat as he eased them back onto the bed and then drew back to hover over her. "I want to return the favour."

She tenderly smiled up at him. "Trust me," she murmured as she took one of his hands in hers. Covering the tip of one of his claws with the flesh pad of her own, she settled their hands between her thighs and guided him to the sensitive little organ and using the rough pad of his digit, they began to stroke her clit. Alternating between stroking and circling the aroused nub, they quickly brought her to the brink. "Oh, God... Garrus... I'm close... please..." she moaned, as she began to thrash her head from side to side. With a groan of his own at her rippling channel, he began to move within her, the occasional brushing of their joined fingers against his cock only furthering his pleasure. Panting as the swirling sensations surged through her, she raised her remaining hand to one of her breasts and began to frantically tease and pinch her nipple. The sight of Shepard stimulating herself was the final straw for Garrus and he thrust into her, burying himself deep, roaring as he reached his peak. The sensation of their bodies locking together sent her over the edge as well and she screamed as she followed her mate into oblivion.

Exhausted, Shepard closed her eyes as she nestled back into the warmth of the bed. Garrus watched her as she came down from her high, purring in satisfaction when the overflow of his seed began trickling out of her, running down his thighs and dripping onto the pristine white sheets below, staining them blue. He'd filled her to the brim!

Opening her eyes after a time, she held her arms out to Garrus in invitation. Smiling, he bent down and gently scooped her up against him and carefully got to his knees before settling back on the bed, snagging the sheets and blankets as he went.

"Spirits," she murmured as she began to trace patterns on his abdominal plates with her fingers. "I hope I never get used to being joined with you..."

Garrus stilled at her words, unsure of how to take them.

"Garrus?" Shepard raised her head from his chest to look at him.

"What... What do you mean by that?" he asked, his mandibles fluttering nervously.

She smiled at him ruefully. "C'mere," she murmured to him, slipping a hand behind his neck, bringing his head down to hers, before she kissed him soundly. "You need to stop over analysing everything I say," she chided him gently when she drew back.

"I know... it's just... all of this is new to me and I don't want to stuff it up," he murmured as he began to stroke her back.

"You won't. Trust me," she murmured back a she sought his muzzle for another kiss. "I just meant that I hope that I never get used to the sensations you cause in my body when we lock together," she told him when she drew back, her channel tightening around his shaft in response to her thoughts. "You've no idea how just how erotic it feels."

He groaned in response to her aroused reaction as he settled back on the bed, her following suit and cuddling up against his chest, content with all that had transpired that night.

"Think the night terrors will come back?" he questioned softly after a while.

"I'm pretty sure you've chased them all away," she murmured back sleepily. "But it probably would hurt to put a dreamcatcher up."

"A dreamcatcher?" he questioned, but she was already fast asleep.

Making a mental note to do some research on the Extranet sometime tomorrow, Garrus continued to hold Shepard until he, too, drifted off.

Fin.