Before Priority: Cerberus Headquarters
It was time. Once the attack on the Illusive Man's base began, the Reapers would soon become aware of the Crucible and one way or another, the war would end. There was always more that could be done, but in her gut, Melanie Shepard knew they were as ready as they were going to be. Any additional resources she could gather now would only be off-set by the damage the Reapers would do while she was assembling them. Already, the turians had had to withdraw from Palaven to keep what ships they had left intact for the final push. The galaxy had burned while she had prepared this armada and now that the Crucible had been completed, it was time to make those sacrifices worthwhile.
Once she'd given their course heading to Joker, there was nothing to do but wait. In the dim light of her cabin, she sat silently examining her helmet; she thought it might have been damaged in their last battle, rescuing Jacob and the defecting Cerberus scientists. Melanie was glad the ex-Cerberus operative had found a little happiness with Dr. Cole; he had always seemed lonely to her.
Lost in thought, she didn't notice the sound of the door opening until the person walking through it was almost in front her. She was unsurprised but certainly pleased to see that it was Liara T'Soni; there was no one Melanie would rather have take her mind off of the upcoming assault on Cronos Station.
After bantering about the helmet, Liara gets to the real purpose of her visit: she's concerned about Shepard. The feeling is mutual; since the fall of Thessia, Liara's hopes have been hanging by a thread and when Shepard asks her about it, the scientist admits she hopes the war ends while there's enough of the galaxy left to save. Melanie sympathizes; even though she feels prepared, the coming battles are weighing heavy on her tonight.
Reassuring Shepard that the galaxy has the leader it needs, Liara joins her on the bed, entwining her gloved hand with Melanie's tan one. For a few quiet moments, they just lie together, looking out at the stars going by and the asari jokes wistfully that they could lose themselves out there, finding some uncharted world where Melanie could be happy. Shepard kisses her cheek, and tells her, "Right now, there's no place I'd rather be."
"Neither would I," Liara replies, leaning in for a tender kiss.
Liara's blue eyes mirror the starlight as she says softly, "I never thought I'd be with you like this. It means a lot to me."
Melanie can hear happiness in her voice, but it's mixed with old sadness, and she realizes how much her rejection of Liara must have hurt her. She wishes that she could go back, that she could've said "yes" from the beginning, but what they have is now.
"Then let's make this night special."
"That's the plan," the asari purrs and she kisses Melanie again, pulling her down onto the mattress. Her kisses have grown more confidant since they've been together, and as the asari's tongue eagerly seeks out her own, Shepard senses not just affection but passion, hunger even.
"Are you sure?"
"I am. We have waited long enough and I cannot imagine wanting this to be with anyone else."
Until now, Shepard had always held back slightly with Liara, trying not to show her just how much she wants her, not wanting to put pressure on her girlfriend, but now, she lets her passion come to the surface, pulling Liara tight against her. With her left hand, she strokes the scientist's crest, the feeling of strong fingers along the ridges causing the asari to moan softly. Her skin feels slightly different than that of a human, smoother due to the absence of any hairs and with patterns of scales that create small variations in texture in some places.
As Shepard explores her girlfriend's skin, Liara slips off her gloves before moving her hands to the commander's body, her fingers running over the fabric of Melanie's uniform. Looking into her the scientist's bright blue eyes, Shepard can barely believe how much she feels. She's dreamed of this moment for so long, and now that's its here, she's overcome.
"I love you, Liara T'Soni," she breathes, and her heart thrills when she hears the scientist's soft, seductive voice reply, "And I love you, Melanie Shepard" before planting a gentle kiss on her lips.
As their mouths separate, the commander begins to trace Liara's breasts through her jacket, the unfamiliarity of the sensation eliciting a sharp reaction despite the lightness of her touch. The asari slides her hands underneath Shepard's uniform, feeling her warmth, before pulling the shirt over her head, revealing Melanie's tan skin and well-formed chest, still clad in a black bra. As Liara drinks in the beautiful sight of Shepard next to her, she barely notices the Specter's hands skillfully unbuttoning her long coat, slipping it off to reveal a thin white tank-top that highlights her soft curves.
Liara begins drifting down Melanie's body, admiring its texture, breathing in its earthy scent, planting small kisses everywhere she goes. When she gets to Shepard's waist, the scientist unfastens her pants and slides them off the commander's strong legs along with her socks, leaving her in only her plain black underwear before running her hands back up those same calves.
They spend the next few minutes just kissing and caressing each other, Shepard letting Liara get comfortable, before the young asari notes coyly, "I appear to be over-dressed." Slipping loose from Shepard's embrace, she gets to her feet, motioning for Melanie to stay on the bed.
In one fluid motion, she lifts her shirt over her head, baring pert breasts topped by dark blue nipples. Shepard is mesmerized as Liara moves on to her pants, unbuttoning them and sliding them over her hips, leaving them and her socks piled on the floor. Melanie feels the heat building between her legs; she's seen more practiced strip-teases, but none that had aroused her more. When the scientist slips off her small, white panties, exposing every inch of her blue skin, it's all the Specter can do not to leap off the bed and grab her, but for now she wants to let Liara set the pace. She didn't have to wait long; the naked asari moves seductively back towards her, desire creating flickers of biotic energy that illuminate the darkened cabin.
"You are so beautiful, Liara," Melanie breathes as her new lover eases into her arms. She shimmies beneath the asari, nuzzling her breasts, her tongue teasing her erect nipples. Liara arches her body, pressing herself into Shepard's mouth, writhing with pleasure and wanting more.
Wriggling free, her hands unfasten the commander's bra, slipping it over her shoulders while placing kisses all over the human's tan skin. She copies what gave her pleasure, licking Shepard's dark nipples, and is rewarded by a series of very enjoyable sighs.
"Please. More," Liara whispers against Melanie's body, and that's all the encouragement Shepard needs, sliding off her own underwear and moving her leg in-between her partner's thighs, feeling the asari's wetness slick against her.
Rolling her onto her back, Shepard's eyes hungrily study her lover's naked skin, the pale blue of her thighs contrasting with the darker shades between them. Asari anatomy is similar to that of human women, but there are small differences apart from the obvious ones that previous encounters had shown her. Their nether lips are less prominent, similar to raised, delicate scales, their clitorises more easily visible, but the same basic sexual principles apply.
Liara's skin is soft as Melanie slides her hand up her leg, softer still as the Specter's fingers trace lightly around her opening. The archeologist draws in her breath in anticipation, releasing it with a sharp "Goddess!" when Melanie's digits press against her bud. Shepard feels a throbbing between her legs at the sound, making her want everything now, but she forces herself to take her time, keeping her strokes slow, feeling the building arousal in Liara's body.
She's so wet when Melanie slips two fingers inside, and she just lets them rest there for a moment, enjoying the feel of her lover's tight heat around her. Liara pushes her hips against her though, and Shepard obliges her desire, thrusting with her hand while her thumb resumes the pressure on the asari's clitoris.
Liara's breathing ragged, Melanie feels her thoughts reach out to her. They've joined before, during the hunt for Saren, but not like this, and Shepard wants it too, relaxing her mind as the asari's eyes go dark and she whispers "Embrace eternity."
"Shepard." As everything else drops away, Melanie hears the asari's voice in her mind, love and desire radiating from her.
"I'm here, love."
"This is incredible. I can feel myself around your fingers."
"God, Liara, you make me want you so badly."
"Then let me help you with that."
Her slim blue hand slides down the Specter's stomach, the electric touch of her fingers on bare skin reflecting back to Liara, telling her where Shepard needs to be touched. Though she has never done this for anyone but herself, she feels when she's found the right spot, her hand going to Shepard's clit as the commander's fingers start to move within her again.
Gasping with pleasure, Melanie pulls Liara to her, craving as much of the asari's skin on her as she can get. Their bodies feel like they're flowing together, the sensation of their hands on each other merging into a feedback loop of pleasure. Her lover's fingers slide inside Shepard, stretching her wonderfully, and they moan together, their desire echoing through their bond.
"More, yes, so full, so close, need this, need you, love you, Liara, Shepard, yes…"
Some of the thoughts are Melanie's, some her lover's, but in that moment it hardly matters which is which. As her thumb slides firmly along the asari's clit, the added pressure is too much, driving Liara over the edge and taking Shepard with her as she feels her lover's pleasure, her inner walls contracting around her, her fingers curling within her. As they peak, the surge of their passion causes Liara's biotics to flare, casting a pale light over lovers too enraptured to notice.
Their shared orgasm lasts for what seems like an eternity, the waves of their reflected pleasure only slowly ebbing. As the world returns, they just lie there, sated for the moment but not totally spent, gently caressing each other. Shepard looks at the beautiful creature in her bed, and for the life of her, she can't remember why she ever didn't want this. The mental link has receded but unlike with the other asari, its ending doesn't leave her empty. She feels loved and whole, and she doesn't want the night to be over yet.
From the sounds Liara makes as Shepard starts kissing her way down her stomach, she doesn't want it to end either. Melanie's in no hurry now, savoring every inch of Liara's beautiful body, slowly making her way between her legs. She begins running her tongue along Liara's inner things, stopping just short of her center and then switching to her other side, making the scientist gasp with frustrated desire. Shepard rewards the asari's patience with a single swipe of her tongue over her engorged clitoris, but when she jumps, Melanie moves back out again, only gradually making her way back to Liara's bud.
Melanie relishes the archeologist's clean, warm taste, sweeter and wetter than a human's, to say nothing of the way Liara writhes in response to her tongue, but when she feels the asari reach out with her mind, she stops her gently.
"Not yet. I want this to be just for you."
Shepard had been surprised to learn that asari could orgasm without the joining, much to the amusement of the huntress she'd discovered it with.
"I thought the bond was way asari reproduced," she'd asked.
"Sure. And you need to fuck a human male to have kids, right? So, is that the only way you can come?"
Liara relaxes, and Shepard resumes work with her tongue and then her fingers as well, slipping two of them inside her lover. Establishing a rhythm, she uses the other hand to caress Liara's body, the co-ordination developed during a lifetime of combat being put to a more enjoyable use. The archeologist is still sensitive from her last orgasm, and as her back begins to arch, Shepard flutters her tongue over her clit, feeling her lover's thighs clench around her short, black hair as she climaxes.
As Liara slowly comes down, Shepard crawls alongside her, and her partner wastes no time pulling her in for a kiss, not seeming to mind tasting herself on Melanie's lips. Looking at Shepard with a happy smile, she asks mischievously, "Do I get a turn now?"
"How can I refuse an offer like that? But I want us to do it together."
Liara doesn't immediately realize what she has in mind, so Shepard directs her lover to turn around, the asari lying on top of Melanie with her head resting between her legs and Liara's own spread legs in front of the Specter.
"Let me get started first. I am a novice, after all."
Shepard is all too happy to accede to her lover's request; Liara's second climax has left Melanie incredibly hot and she's aching for the asari to touch her again. Liara starts by running a finger through the small patch of dark hair at the juncture of Shepard's legs; asari don't have any, and she seems to find it intriguing. "Once a scientist," Shepard thinks with a laugh before Liara starts to make thinking difficult.
Her first strokes with her tongue are tentative, but she experiments, trial and error letting her find the spots that send shocks of pleasure through the human's body. Shepard's moans encourage her, and soon she seems more comfortable, her tongue moving over Melanie's clit and dipping inside to taste her.
"Join with me now," Shepard asks, her voice thick with arousal. The asari wastes no time complying, and as their connection is reestablished, Shepard marvels at how natural it already feels. Liara's desire for her tongue on her, her feelings for Shepard, her love, all rush through Melanie and she reciprocates, telling the scientist without speech how much she means to her.
Her hands run over Liara's cute butt, her tongue exploring her while the asari's mouth goes back to Shepard's core. The rhythm comes almost automatically to them, Shepard's tongue darting inside Liara, her hand underneath her, rubbing her, the asari's tongue on her center, all of the sensations merging together. An overwhelming sense of warmth and pleasure fills them, pushing their already aroused bodies towards another climax as their thoughts flow together.
"Please, more, goddess, your mouth, your tongue, yes, deeper…"
No sooner do they form their desires than they're acknowledged, and when Liara takes Shepard's clit in her mouth and sucks on it while Melanie slides her tongue as deeply as she can inside the asari, it sends them over the edge again, gripping each other tightly as their pleasure washes over them.
When they've come down a little, Liara crawls back up next to Melanie, nestling herself in the commander's arms.
"Is it always like that?" Liara asks, still enfolded in bliss.
Shepard smiles down at her, lightly stroking her crest, and answers, "No. That was… perfect."
The asari looks up and just whispers "I love you."
"I love you too," Shepard replies, and she means it with all her heart. Right now at least, that's all that matters. The war, Cerberus, the Reapers, they're all a galaxy away and there's just her and the woman she's wanted for so long, the woman she finally has.