Warning: This chapter will have mature content. Regular T rating will resume in the next chapter.
Renewal
He was the unseen, the silent blade. She was the protector, the shining lance.
Together, they will fight.
Right and wrong are more often shades of gray than black and white.
Can they change the fate of the galaxy?
Can they save each other?
Blackness surrounded him. The pure unadulterated dark that came only from being within a sealed metal box floating in the depths of space between stars. A faint shuffle felt through the soles of his boots reminded him that he needed to accustom himself to working in a team. He could feel the tension around him increase when the elevator shrilled open.
"Hello?" Her voiced echoed slightly, uncertain and worried.
Cold blue-white light shocked his eyes. It illuminated every corner of the room and picked out the details of her face. Her mouth was open in stunned shock; blood rushed to her face as she fell back against the synthetic wall.
"Surprise! Happy birthday, Commander!"
Shepard bore the congratulations with decent humor. She didn't like lavish displays any more than he did. But just as he needed to learn to reconnect with living people, she would need to learn to accept gratitude.
Kelly had even allowed her time to return to her cabin and change; when she returned she was wearing a deep blue triangular top with a partial collar that left her arms, back, and a strip of belly bare. Her pants were plain black with thin silver piping along the low waistline and seams. He wasn't sure when she had managed to assemble that particular outfit but he quite enjoyed the way it fit her.
However, the looks she sent his way indicated that she was not enjoying the view as much as he. He could face Reapers, husks and his son with equanimity but Shepard's rare ire was a thing to be feared.
"This was your idea, wasn't it?" Shepard glared at him with dangerous glints in her eyes. Thane had managed to somewhat avoid her by staying at the edge of the crowd of celebrants, but obviously she had navigated her way through the gauntlet. "I know you have something to do with this!"
He raised his hands and backed away at her advancing threat. "Not I, siha. Those who are your friends wished to celebrate the day of your birth. More than that, they want to remind themselves that they have a victory to enjoy. I merely offered suggestions on planning and secrecy. Let us all enjoy a night of revelry on your behalf." He stepped forward so that her upraised finger rested directly above the topmost zipper of his vest and set his hands about her waist. "And your skin is so very lovely when you are flushed. How could I resist?"
She stared at the finger resting on his chest as if she'd never seen it before and wasn't sure how it happened to be attached to her hand. Her wrist trembled and the tab of the zipper slid down a fraction of a centimeter.
"I've got the presents, gang," Kelly called, coming around the corner from the elevator. "Shepard, open them and see what we all got y-oh."
"Jeez, Kelly, your timing. I was just getting EDI to turn the surveillance cameras," muttered Joker.
"Sorry guys, I don't get paid enough for public shows. You'll have to settle for what you can see." Shepard called back over her shoulder. "We'll finish this later, Thane," she said before turning toward the gathered pile of gifts. He couldn't tell if that was meant to be a threat or a promise, and knowing her, he truthfully couldn't decide which one would be more enjoyable.
Kelly was nearly bouncing in excitement for Shepard to open her particular gift, but she generously offered first-of-place to Thane, who declined. "Later. I would prefer present my gift in private, if you will allow." He saw Shepard level a long glance in his direction, which he successfully ignored by stepping aside to let her old teammates crowd to the front.
Oblivious to the previous conversation, Joker and Tali eagerly held up their lumpy parcel. Shepard opened the plain paper to find that they had chipped in to get her a scale model of the Normandy SR1 that she had admired. It came complete with sliding hangar bay doors that opened to reveal a miniature MAKO. She tilted her head suddenly to squint at the front of the toy ship.
"Joker, is that you in there?"
Sure enough, when she turned the ship around, Thane saw that the plastic window at the front of the ship had been pried open then resealed slightly out of alignment; inside was the figure of a lightly bearded man sitting in the pilot's seat, wearing an SR1 cap.
"Hey, it's supposed to be an accurate representation, isn't it? That means it needs to include yours truly!" Shepard shook her head and chuckled in amusement until Garrus stepped forward.
Garrus handed her gaily colored envelope decorated with what appeared to be balloons twined around pistols. When Shepard opened the envelope, her expression caused Garrus to chortle loudly.
"You can't be serious, Garrus?"
"What? Elcor Hamlet is just about the best thing in the galaxy. "Mournfully: Alas, Horatio, I knew him well.' It would turn any blue-blooded turian green with envy!"
"Garrus, I worry about you sometimes..."
"'Reprovingly: There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Shepard, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.'"
Thane chuckled with the others when Shepard threw the crumpled envelope at Garrus's head to shut him up and it bounced just enough to get wedged between his cheek and visor.
While Garrus tried to dislodge the wrapping, Miranda's hand on Shepard's shoulder turned her around. "Shepard, I don't have much to give you. I realized most of the things I own were provided by Cerberus, and I wanted something that was just from me."
"Your trust and loyalty are more than enough, Miranda. You don't need to get me anything for a silly party."
"Nevertheless, I have. It's a little thing but I hope it reinforces where my loyalty lies." The XO leaned forward and lowered her voice even further, although it was still audible to him. "I've disabled all of the tracking and monitoring devices on the Normandy, including the ones the Illusive Man didn't know that I knew about. I have all of the recordings but I haven't watched them and I'll erase them at your word. Happy birthday, and take some time for yourself before you turn blue." Miranda squeezed Shepard's arm gently getting up and disappearing through the door to her quarters.
"That was unexpected," Shepard commented to him, staring at the closed doors.
"Traveling through death into life will form strong bonds between comrades. You in particular draw close loyalty, siha. Come. I believe your yeoman has something special in mind for you."
Kelly was grinning broadly over a bright pink paper bag that had fluttering ribbons tying it shut. The red haired woman bobbed eagerly on the balls of her feet as Shepard undid the ribbons and peered into the package.
"Ahh, I like this one."
Shepard reached into the beribboned bag marked 'From Kelly,' and drew out a small black scrap of material. It wasn't until she held it up that he realized it was an actual clothing item made out of finely spun black lace. His mistake could perhaps be forgiven as the confection appeared to be made more out of lack of coverage than actual material.
"Hey, this is my contribution to free love." Jack popped up next to Kelly and tossed a long leather whip at Shepard. It caught in the fabric of the crotchpiece and hung there, dangling forlornly.
Every male eye in the room was staring at the black scrap speculatively, but all female eyes were resting on him.
Not one to be discomfited so easily, he merely clasped his hands behind his back; tilting his head with a slight smirk, he asked of Shepard, "I like it too. What there is of it compliments your skin most attractively. But perhaps it is best saved for a more private setting?"
"Spoilsport."
He shook his head with a slight laugh. Her sense of humor made him laugh more often than anyone ever had before. A stunning image of Shepard wearing only a smile and Kelly's donation flashed into his mind; he knew where his intentions were with Shepard this evening and he was looking forward to seeing that side of her. Repeatedly. And soon.
Later, when most of the crew had returned to their duty shifts, he approached Shepard again. The items resting in his jacket were bright points of anticipation in his mind. He waited for a natural break in her conversation with Dr Chakwas to gain her attention.
"Siha, as the gathering appears to be winding down, may I see you to your cabin?" He knew that he sounded extremely formal; that was a result of holding deep emotion and rising anticipation in check. He extended his elbow gravely.
"I would welcome your escort, kind sir!" Shepard laughed gaily at him while she laid her hand on his arm. "There are so many perils that lie between here and my home; a strong, gallant man such as yourself would be simply too kind to guard my body...and virtue..."
His eyes gleamed down at her. "I would not say that your virtue is safe in my hands, siha, although your body always will be."
They continued on to the elevator like a couple in an ancient play, deliberately walking with pronounced, careful steps. Once in the elevator, Thane could not resist taking her into his arms.
Heartbeat loud in his mind. He looked down at her solemn face and shining eyes and he realized they were at last alone and unencumbered. "I have thought of nothing but this all night," he whispered, pressing his lips to her slender neck. He breathed in her scent-no other intoxication was needed for him. She responded by backing against the wall, pulling him tightly to her, her fingers busily undoing the snaps of his jacket and pushing it off his shoulders.
He invited her into his mouth, feeling her tongue slick against his teeth. She tasted of air and life and freedom in the richness of her lips. He broke off the kiss just as the elevator arrived at the loft but only long enough to pull his left arm free of its enclosing sleeve. He used her momentary disorientation to spin his jacket around her waist, trapping her body against his. Recapturing her mouth, he slowly backed out of the elevator, forcing her eager form to accompany him.
"Would you consider us to be at leisure this evening?" he asked her in a heated murmur, brushing his lips across her cheek then over her ear. He felt her shiver as he slowly ran the leather of his jacket sleeves over her bare spine.
Her hands slid over his vest to press flat along his shoulder blades. "Oh..I think I might be able to clear my schedule if you had something in mind?"
"I have many plans, siha. Or at least, I have hopes, many of which involve you and I and the feel of your skin against my body." He deftly undid the knot that held her skimpy shirt up so that it fell to the floor in a blue puddle of fabric, leaving Shepard bare from the waist up.
Another step further and he dropped his jacket to the couch, freeing Shepard to do as she willed. Her immediate action was to make a grab for his pants, pushing them both toward the bed and pulling at zippers and buttons and seals until she was able to get them down off his feet.
Thane watched with some bemusement as her gyrations made her muscles flex in intriguing ways, though he did wonder why she didn't simply ask him to disrobe. Her fingers working on his hips had caused him some discomfort, however, so it was only fair that she be the one to relieve it...
Her pants were quite a bit easier to remove, for her. She simply slid the fabric over her glorious legs, taking the feminine extraneties with with it, and tossing it back over her shoulder to land near the stairway.
"So," she murmured now that their clothes lay in discarded piles that trailed all the way from the door to the bed, "They do go all the way down." The feel of her hands fluttering down his the sensitive stripes on his back sent increased desire coursing through his veins.
He paused to let her satisfy her curiosity about his physical attributes. From the brief conversation with Mordin, and the unpleasant demonstration vids that he'd watched when he realized what direction their relationship was going, he knew that he was somewhat different than human males. He was approximately the same general size but the scales of his body extended down and over this most delicate of parts. They were smaller, barely bigger than grains of sand, but they formed into flexive rib-like formations that she might not have expected.
He therefore started slowly. Taking the time to learn the intricacies of her body, he let her guide him to the areas that would pleasure her even as he showed her what would arouse him.
Soft sighs mingled together. He lifted her up and placed her on the bed, pressing her beneath him into the smooth sheets, his mouth never leaving hers. He worshipped every inch of her that he could reach, from her delicate toes to richness of her breasts. To the sweet curve of her lips and the scented darkness of her hair.
"Thane!"
"Siha.."
She was as heated as a living flame in his arms, glowing with an inner light. Her fingers roamed as freely as his, tracing the intricacies of his patterned scales.
Passioned groans rang through the cabin. He lapped at the ivory column of her throat, feeling her pulse against his cheek. His rough tongue rasped gently against her tender neck. He explored her nipples, experimenting with delicate bites, rolling the hard buds between his lips until she writhed under him. Her fingers and legs begged him for their fulfillment until he couldn't hold back any longer.
"I need you now..."
"And I, you..."
With a quick upward movement, he entered her for the first time, gasping at the heat that surrounded and possessed him. She wrapped her legs tightly around his waist, trapping him within her.
"Thane...oh gods...Thane!"
"Your body is wondrous, siha."
He fisted his hands into the pillows when she shuddered, clinging to his rapidly fleeing control. Her voice tugged at him but he refused to fall so easily. He moved faster now, feeling her muscles begin to tense around him again. She buried her lips against his neck and traced her tongue over each individual ridge and frill. He acutely felt her fingernails clench into his flesh or her teeth dig in to his shoulder.
Cries of pleasure. Her growing urgency mixed in with the surging in his blood to combine into an ecstatic whole. She tensed around him again and the feel of her tightness brought his senses crashing down around him. He felt himself swell and spill into her warmth with the singing of the oceans in his ears. A deep rumbling purled from his chest as he collapsed against her, whispering indecipherable endearments as their bodies rejoiced.
He loved her hair, he decided. He loved every part of her, but her hair in particular fascinated him. It lay fanned in a dark pool about her head. When he stirred them with a finger, the individual strands caught the light of the single lamp like spun silk. She lay on her back next to him with her eyes closed. He could hear her steady breaths but he could tell they lacked the deepness of true sleep.
"A jewel for your thoughts, my siha?"
Her mouth curved into a smile before she looked at him with eyes half lidded from contentment. "I was thinking that I was the luckiest woman in the galaxy. And about how much I care about you."
"Lucky," he echoed. "Lucky indeed to be singled out by the fates to be our guide in the dark. You seem to have a strange concept of fortune," he teased her, knowing what her answer would be but wanting to hear her speak the words.
Her eyes opened fully to stare into his own. "Fortunate to be alive and here with you, Thane. I don't ask for anything else. Except more of the same every day for the rest of our lives."
Thane was smiling when he reached down to the side of the bed where his jacket had fallen, retrieving the item he had hidden there earlier. "We've shared our bodies and you've given me your thoughts. Here, then, is my contribution to the day of your birth." He sat back up on the bed and lifted her to straddle his lap before showing her the box he had picked up.
"You know, talking isn't what people generally do in this position, Thane."
He smirked down at her. "I would like to see you open my gift. The greatest beauty lies in the perfection of both form and function," Thane let his gaze follow the lines of her body then looked back into her eyes. "When the soul matches form and function, then beauty transcends into something even greater." He breathed deeply and opened the box. "This does not match your soul but it's perhaps a small compliment to your form."
Her hand was warm on his when she took the box from him. Opening the hinged lid, she gasped in surprise. Nestled in black velvet was an intensely blue stone nearly two centimeters across and cut in a flat pentagonal shape. Smaller translucent black stones-three on either side of the center-gradiated to end in a thin strong titanium-silver chain. He saw her hands shaking as she lifted the gems from their resting place.
"Thane..." she whispered, seeming for once at a loss for words.
He carefully took the jewels from her stunned grasp. She seemed hypnotized by the sultry glow from the gems and he teased her by sliding it up her body to her face. The heavy faceted jewels left faint red trails as they slipped over her pale skin. He wove the glittering chains through her hair and fastened the clasps to hold it in place.
Thane sat back to admire the effect. The blue of the center stone perfectly matched her eyes and sat at the exact center of her forehead like the five sided mark in the middle of his own brow. The black opals emphasized the darkness of her hair. The titanium chain was not as bright as the glimmer of her eyes.
Her mouth opened and closed several times until she was able to whisper, "I love you."
He gathered her to him, pressing their faces together so that the stone pressed precisely between their foreheads. "I love you too, my siha. You are so very beautiful." His hands drifted down past her shoulder to cup her soft breasts. They were another point of interest to him. The way the centers hardened and brought heat rising to color her cheeks and part her lips. He rubbed the nipples and asked her softly, "Are you rested, lovely siha?"
Her chest rose and fell with her luxuriating sigh; he could feel himself stirring again from where her thigh was pressed against him. "Why yes, indeed I am. Why do you ask?"
He brought his head up to kiss her throat. "Only and simply this," he replied. He lifted her body to fit her against him and to both of their enjoyment, he started their loving all over again.
A/N: I generally dislike having notes at the beginning of a chapter, as I feel that they disrupt the story, but I felt that this chapter needed some sort of warning. It's still just within PG-13, I hope, but the warning is there to be safe. Regularly scheduled non-lemony-goodness will continue in the next section. I've had this chapter planned, outlined and detailed for about six weeks, so it is VERY sad that it took so long.
I apologize for taking longer than usual to update this little fic these days. I believe that the summer heat is making many of us feel lethargic, but nevertheless, I shall putter on! Please expect updates once every week or so.
Thank you forever and ever to kiwibliss for reading and catching the extra insanities that I miss. Really everyone should read her Fornax, it's the best thing ever. NSAS I will always love you to death. Every dirty dirty dirty one of you.
Enjoy!