A/N: Unless you hadn't noticed it before, I like to place Liara into difficult and controversial situations, and generally be mean to her. Wasn't there some kind of saying about always hurting the ones we love or something? Poor Blue, I'll make it up to her eventually, that's a promise. :)
Also, with the Easter weekend coming up, I'm debating whether to bother and put up a new chapter on Saturday, or just delay it until Tuesday. If you're reviewing this, please let me know your preference. ;)
Chapter 136 - Home Surveillance Benefits
As the Normandy shuttle closes in on the quiet little Bradford suburb of Thornbury, Shepard is not at all surprised that their arrival is greeted by a tenacious downpour of rain. Cortez helps them carry their luggage out of the shuttle and she is unpleasantly surprised by how cold it is, harsh wind whipping her face and the raindrops chillingly cold against her skin.
"Damn it, I'm glad we brought extra set of clothes," she mutters at herself. "It's not supposed to be freezing like this in early November and on the Isles."
"Remember what Singh said about the nuclear winter effect and temperatures being lower across the globe," Liara speaks as they quickly dash across the small patch of green yard towards the entrance leading into the tidy looking house, fumbling with their bags as they squeeze in through the doors into a more welcoming atmosphere of friendly warmth.
"Ah, Shepard," the very familiar figure of Admiral Hackett greets them in the large and comfortable living room. "Glad you made it. Come, I'll show you around."
The next quarter of an hour is spent on Hackett giving them a small tour of the house. The first floor consists of a small foyer, bathroom, kitchen and the living room, while the upper floor has two relatively large bedrooms and something akin to a saloon with a snooker table that looks to have been dragged in just recently. There are still a lot of mementos of the house's previous owners scattered about, despite the Alliance cleaning crew having brought most of their personal belongings down to the basement.
"And you are absolutely certain that we can have this gorgeous house all to ourselves?" Shepard asks for the fifth time, having switched on one of the vid screens, flipping through the various news and entertainment channels available. Heh, no wonder they have restored those so quickly. Distracting the hungry masses with cheap entertainment and reruns of Vaenia, she thinks at herself.
"Yes, Shepard," Hackett sighs. "As I have been trying to tell you, the previous owners have been confirmed as deceased. They won't be returning to reclaim their property. In fact, most of the neighborhood is full with such empty houses awaiting someone to come and settle in."
"We keep hearing about the fighting, Admiral Hackett," Liara asks, a little concerned. "How safe is the surrounding area? Are there any Alliance operations being staged nearby?"
"This is probably the safest of the big cities in Britain, Dr. T'Soni," Hackett replies. "The mercenaries have established their bases more to the south of the island, closer to London, while Terra Firma and the resistance have failed to find support in the Bradford area, mostly because it has suffered the least from the invasion."
"You say that, Admiral, but we still saw mostly just piles of rubble when coming in to land," Shepard shrugs.
"True, but there are some districts near the city center that have miraculously avoided large scale destruction," Hackett explains. "People there are actually attempting to live normal lives. There are pubs, workshops, a small theater, an old museum and other establishments still operating. But I will allow you to discover everything on your own."
"What, you're not throwing me right into some super important mission for the Alliance, sir?" Shepard asks. "Frankly, I'm shocked!"
"We have better uses for a woman of your talents than to needlessly put you on the front lines, Shepard," Hackett shakes his head.
"Now he tells me that!" Shepard can't resist her quip, making Hackett sigh.
"Just take a few days off, Commander, explore your new surroundings. I'll get in touch with you in three days and then we'll have a lot to talk about, I'm sure," he says, about to leave, before remembering something and pulling out what looks like credit chits, but of slightly different color and shape. "You'll need these," he says, scanning and activating them with his omni-tool, passing two of them to Shepard and one to Liara. "As an officer of the Alliance, the regs entitle you to extra supplies, Shepard."
"What the... fuck is this?" Shepard demands, less than diplomatically.
"Commander, you won't be able to just waltz into a general store and buy everything your heart desires. The supply chains have not yet been restored and there's no telling how much time it will take," Hackett explains, looking rather unhappy. "This allows you to receive a week's worth of food supplies at the nearest designed Alliance warehouse. Nothing fancy, only some basic MRE's."
"So, I get two of these crappy chits and Liara just gets one?" Morgan asks, unable to keep her voice from turning edgy.
"Uh, Dr. T'Soni is actually not entitled to any supplies from the Alliance, she would have to receive hers from the asari enclave, but I'm just giving this to her as a small favor," Hackett looks very uncomfortable by now, facing a rather angry Shepard. "And your rank makes you eligible for an extra portion of the goods, that's just how it is, Shepard."
"Great. And the average Joe out on the street has to drag out his existence with bare minimum, I gather?"
"We must conserve food, Shepard," Hackett says. "The southern hemisphere is also experiencing catastrophic crop failure. We need those relays repaired almost as urgently as our dextro friends, so that we can ship in extra goods from the colonies. I understand that people are not happy about this, but they simply do not see the big picture of what would happen if we did not limit our resources as much as we can."
Morgan grumbles, finally relenting. "Maybe you're right. Still, I don't think that people should be expected to feel comfortable with the military simply swooping in and taking control over every aspect of their lives. Is the martial law still truly necessary after all this time?"
"If every place was as relatively peaceful as Bradford, I would not deem it necessary, no," Hackett sighs. "Sadly, that is not the case. Commander, I feel that you are still very much out of the loop with the true situation down here. I suggest that you use these three days to learn as much as you can. The Alliance News Network is as always a reliable source to lean on."
Alliance Propaganda Network more like. "Just... please, don't send any journalists our way, Admiral," Shepard warns. "We've brought all our weapons here with us, and if someone like that bint al-Jilani shows up, I'll just shoot her and invoke my Spectre immunity."
"I'll try to do what I can to keep the reporters away from you, at least for a while," Hackett smiles thinly. "Well, I should probably get out of your hair and let you two get accustomed with the place. We'll talk later, Shepard." With that he salutes and leaves, nodding to Cortez at the doors.
"Will you be needing anything from me, Commander?" Steve asks, stepping closer.
"I don't think so, Steve," Morgan shrugs. "Not sure how we're expected to get around though. Walk? I doubt I should just keep you here to provide taxi services for us."
"It's been taken care of, Shepard. There's a used skycar in the backyard, with your permission I'll go put some finishing touches on the repairs to make it both safe and flyable."
Shepard simply nods gratefully and Cortez disappears from her view to return to his tasks as she looks around the place, not sure what to think of the situation. Everything seems so incredibly surreal to her, suddenly having a place of their own with Liara, at least for the near future. Simply by looking outside the window and seeing the calm suburban setting of neat rows of houses, one could actually pretend that the Reaper invasion has never happened, the view not offering any evidence of it, and yet to Shepard everything about this peaceful scenery feels incredibly fake.
And what am I supposed to do here, anyway? Sit on the sofa and watch news vids or cheap action flicks, while chewing some old energy bars or slurping on nutrient paste? This can never be my life. This has to be some kind of a short transition phase. We need to rebuild quickly, need to find some new purpose for ourselves in this brave new world, she thinks, watching Liara walking around the living room with a puzzled expression on her face, hesitant to touch anything, also clearly feeling as if she did not belong here. Damn it, maybe we should have stayed on the Citadel or the Normandy instead of coming down here to this dreary pit just to be some kind of symbol for the Alliance... I still don't know what they intend to do with me, but I know one thing. I will not be used.
"Strange, isn't it?" she speaks to Liara quietly.
"Yes, I... I'm not quite sure what to do," her bondmate replies. "You know... back on the Citadel, I didn't lie to Tevos about that book. I have actually written a fair amount of content while you were recovering. I guess I can always crawl into some quiet corner and work more on it. Doing something familiar calms me."
"Wouldn't do much for me, though," Shepard smiles to her, Liara nodding acceptingly. "There are two bedrooms, upstairs. Maybe we should decide on which one we will claim as our own?"
"And how you do propose we do that?" Liara asks, the faintest of smiles on her indigo lips.
"Well, we christen the sheets in both bedrooms and see which one feels better," Morgan boldly suggests.
"I'm sorry, Shepard, but my translator suffered a glitch there."
"Ah, it's not important," Morgan smiles, taking her bondmate by the hand. "Come upstairs with me, and I'll show you exactly what I meant by that..."
"It's been three days since the last surprise inspection," a quarian soldier, standing in one of the many cargo bays of the liveship Rayya, tells his two fellows. They are standing in front of a stack of crates prepared for loading into the docked transport shuttle and then shipped down to the enclaves on the planet. "Yes, I reckon we should be safe."
"How many this time, five or ten?" one of the others, the sole female amongst the bunch, asks.
"Let's start with five and see how much noise those spiky bastards make," the first one replies, as they start to carry several of the supply crates prepared for the turians away and onto a smaller private shuttle. "Damn, this stuff is worth more than any amount of credits right now. A few catches like this and we'll be rich beyond our wildest dreams."
"Just hope that bitch and her lackeys won't come and ruin all our grand schemes," the third soldier pipes up, sounding angry. "But I heard that she's been saying that she expects no more trouble with the shipments, so I'm guessing we're in the clear."
"By the way, I'm not doing this to get rich," the female says, looking reproachfully at her two partners in crime. "Some idiots on my sister's ship stole from the supplies that were meant for the whole crew, and now everyone there are starving. Well, except the thieves, but they pretend to be starving too not to give themselves away."
"That's rough," one of the men replies. "Damn, if a certain admiral wouldn't care so much that the turians get their full share, none of our own would have to starve. Screw that bitch."
"Yeah, damned turian lover," the other male soldier agrees. "We call her Tali'Zorah vas Palaven now."
"You two, stop chattering there and help with this last crate!" the female calls out to them hurriedly, then together with the others quickly loading the last of the supplies onboard the private shuttle. "Alright, take her away!" she calls out to the shuttle pilot, but nothing happens. "What's the matter, don't you-"
She is cut off mid-speech as the shuttle doors slowly open and a lithe figure of a female quarian steps out, displaying her activated omni-tool. "Shit! That's not our pilot!" one of the soldiers exclaims worriedly.
"The pair of tits kind of gives it away, genius!" the other man berates his more nervous colleague. "Who the hell are you and what are you doing here?" he growls at the stranger.
"My name is Admiral Tali'Zorah vas Palaven," Tali replies mockingly, enjoying the way the three culprits jump from surprise. "Everything you have said during the past five minutes has been recorded with my omni-tool."
"Ah, hell... I had a bad feeling about this," the female soldier groans, hanging her head in shame.
"Wait... if she's here alone..." one of the men boldly suggests, the others looking at him in shock.
"Are you crazy? She's on the Admiralty Board! What are you saying?" the female exclaims.
"Just let him speak," Tali says encouragingly.
"I don't want to be exiled or incarcerated back on Rannoch, so he has a point... if we could get away with making her disappear..." the other male appears ponderous.
"No! No, I did not agree to something like this, I won't let you shoot-" the woman protests loudly, watching one of the soldiers going for his pistol, but then a harsh voice coming from behind interrupts them all.
"There will be no shooting of anyone here today!" Admiral Kar'Danna vas Rayya announces loudly, arriving on the scene of crime with a dozen of quarian marines. "Men, seize those three miscreants and throw them in the brig! I will not allow desperate times turn our people into animals willing to stoop to theft and murder!"
"Just a moment, Admiral Kar'Danna," Tali speaks up before the marines have managed to escort the stunned thieves away. She walks up to the sobbing female soldier and looks upon her. "What is the name of your sister's ship?"
"...the Zak'hiri," comes a strangled sob.
"I will make sure that they receive additional supplies to compensate for what was stolen," Tali promises. "You will still answer for your actions here, but I am sure that the evidence I will supply should provide you with extenuating circumstances."
"Keelah... thank you... thank you, Admiral Zorah... I'm so sorry..." the woman cries desperately as the marines take her and her two fellow conspirators away, leaving the two admirals standing side by side in the cargo bay.
"That couldn't have been easy for you, Tali," Admiral Kar'Danna says. "I'm sorry you had to hear some of those insults."
"It's alright, Admiral," she lies convincingly in return, trying to hide the hurt in her voice. "But we still need those relays fixed... and we need them fixed soon..."
"Hmm... everything seems to be in order," one of the turian marines grumbles, holding a datapad in his hand, having finished going over the delivered supply stash from the quarian enclave. "Heard there was some trouble on the Rayya again, apparently they caught some of those suit-rats stealing before they could get away with the supplies," he tells his fellow soldiers.
"It's just undignified that we, proud turians, should be forced to even do something like this," the other soldier snarls, appearing deeply unhappy. "Those useless louts only stepped into this war when it was almost over, and now we're forced to depend on their generosity? Damn insulting, that's what it is."
"Yeah, but what do you expect with leaders like ours? Fedorian wouldn't have stood for any of this nonsense. He'd have sent a black ops squad to raid the quarian warehouses, grab all the supplies, wipe all evidence and then issue fervent denials. Damn, I miss that sly old bastard. He had everyone fooled about how noble and heroic he was, but it's just what we need right now."
"You know, we could pull off an op like that, if we wanted to. I'm just saying," one of the marines says thoughtfully. "Wonder what our current leaders would say about that!"
"Hah, Sparatus just keeps walking into walls, too busy staring at the asari councilor's tits to notice anything else," the other marine chuckles. "Victus has gone all soft with this diplomacy shit, going from one tea party to another and not caring about starving grunts like us. And Vakarian..."
"Well, he's fucking a quarian admiral. That says it all. Pretty clear where his loyalties lay... between the legs of some quarian wench."
The other one laughs aloud. "Our own women not good enough for that one, I guess. Usually a sign when a man can't be trusted."
"You know, I'm thinking maybe we should swipe some of these crates and then claim the quarians tried to double-cross us again. Make them sweat a bit, mess with Vakarian and his quarian squeeze, might be fun?"
"That would be an exceedingly bad idea."
"What, why?" the first marine turns towards his comrade. "It's quite devious, I thought you'd like it."
"...wasn't me who said that," his companion replies, as they both swirl around to face an extremely irate turian wearing a deep blue heavy armor, bearing down on them. "Oh... shit!" he exclaims, watching Garrus Vakarian take a heavy swing and with one blow knocking his fellow marine unconscious, the body limply falling to the floor.
"Uh... Vakarian, sir, I can explain!" the other marine pleads weakly.
"Don't bother," Garrus snarls. Another punch and a thud of a collapsing body follows. "What a pair of fucking disgraces..." he sighs, stepping over the prone bodies and walking away. "We really need those relays fixed... and we need them fixed fast..."
The permanently bleak daylight outside of the window is slowly winking away, giving place to an all encompassing darkness, that fortunately also hides the depressive and grey landscape surrounding Villa Shepard. Lt. Cortez has returned to the Normandy some time ago, having fixed their skycar, but Liara feels no desire to get out of the bed and talk Shepard into taking them out for a brief trip. Lounging on the comfy double bed in the bedroom they have selected as theirs after extensive 'testing', Liara is lazily browsing through some extranet news sites on her omni-tool, hearing sounds of skycar chase and weapons fire from downstairs as Morgan appears busy watching some human director's weak attempts to copy the popular Blasto series and cash in on the fame of the hanar Spectre.
Liara powers down her omni-tool and climbs out of the bed, about to descend downstairs and join Morgan for some mindless entertainment neither of them cares about, but then she stops midway on the stairs as she hears the familiar and cute sounds of Shepard's light snoring. Shaking her head and smiling, she turns around and walks back up to their bedroom, unwilling to disturb the rest of her beloved, knowing that Morgan needs to recuperate as much as she can before the Alliance once again thrust her into running errands for the greater good of all humankind.
The young asari scientist closes the bedroom doors behind her as she steps inside, an idea suddenly forming in her mind, Morgan's nap providing an opportunity for her to do something that she is rather unwilling to even consider, but with a deep sigh, Liara is forced to admit that she has ran out of other options. She switches the omni back on and quickly types a message to someone, placing a request to open an audio channel.
"T'Soni, what a pleasant surprise," she hears Aria's voice moments later, pleasantly surprised that the Pirate Queen does not try to show off her authority and force her to wait a few minutes. "Have you two settled in there?"
'Yes, thank you, Aria," Liara replies quickly. "It is... well, the house is nice, I suppose."
"Nothing like the T'Soni Estate on Armali, I bet."
"But better than some archeological digs I went to, at least," Liara smiles as she says those words.
"Well, I'll make sure to drop by one day to check it out," Aria replies. There is a small pause in the conversation, as Liara tries hard to think just how to bring the topic up with Aria, but the Pirate Queen loses her patience first. "Why don't you just cut to the chase, T'Soni?" she asks sharply. "Neither of us are fond of this kind of ridiculous small-talk."
"I... very well," Liara hesitates, feeling her heart starting to beat more rapidly. "I have... something to ask of you, Aria. I guess you could call it a favor..."
"My favors come with a price, you know that, don't you?"
"I... know, and I am willing to pay any price," Liara breathes out her reply. "You... are undoubtedly aware of my... condition?"
"Of course. Third or fourth month, I think-"
"Fourth."
"Yes, as I thought. And I know people do all sort of stupid and desperate things during the war, T'Soni, but this just might trump everything," Liara sighs, hearing the exasperation in Aria's voice. "You are aware of the dangers of giving birth at your age, I trust."
"Only too well," Liara says, shaking her head sadly. "That is why I am turning to you. With my father back on Thessia... I don't have anyone else to turn to. Aria... you're a mother, you've given birth to Liselle. I don't ask this favor for myself, but for my child... if there is anything you can do to help us, anything at all..."
"Are you sure you want my advice and not that of a qualified doctor?" Aria asks, sounding a little surprised now.
"I have an obstetrician on the Citadel, Aria," Liara replies. "She's been helpful and informative... but I believe I require a more... practical aid."
"Such as?" Aria's voice instantly shifts from surprised to intrigued.
"She said that for the child to have any chance at developing properly, I must establish a mental connection with the baby as soon as possible," Liara quickly explains. "I... should have been able to do that by now, I think... but somehow, I'm not sure why, I haven't managed to reach the consciousness of my child."
"Yes, fourth month, you should have built a solid bond by now. This is troubling, T'Soni."
"Then you understand the amount of my desperation, Aria," Liara admits ruefully. "I suspect that it is because Shepard is the only one I have ever melded with, aside my mother. And with her being human, I just... don't have enough experience in melding with my own people. I am so very stressed and worried about it all, meditation is not helping in the slightest, and-"
"Fine, I'll help you, T'Soni," Aria swiftly cuts her off, Liara breathing out a massive sigh of relief. "You know what it means, though? I would have to help you build this connection with your child, and for that I would need to meld with you. Are you willing to trust me with that?"
"I most certainly do not trust you, Aria T'Loak, but I still must do it for my child," Liara quickly replies. "And I know that if something should happen to me, Shepard will kill you. You know that as well, don't you?"
"Yes, I believe that she would make the attempt," Aria says. There is a brief pause in the conversation again as they both consider their positions. "So, will you come meet me on the Citadel, or do you want me to visit you down on Earth?" Aria asks eventually.
"Perhaps the next time I visit the Citadel. I... still have not decided just how to explain this all to Shepard," she confesses. "I would... very much appreciate if you could keep this to yourself, until I've told her the whole truth about the situation."
"Fair enough. What chances did the doctors give you?"
"...you don't want to know, Aria."
"Under fifty percent?"
"...yes... considerably under fifty percent..." Liara feels her chest constricting painfully as she speaks those words.
"Fuck, that is not good," even the aloof and uncaring Aria T'Loak sounds a little moved by that. "And you want to make Shepard aware of it, given all the shit she's going through? Damn, in her place, I wouldn't want to know. Wallowing in uncertainty for eight months, that's... cruel."
"You... think I shouldn't tell her?" Liara gasps. Damn it, I just lied to her about the pregnancy itself, and that was more than I could bear... I can't lie to her again, I just can't!
"If your foolish conscience demands you speak the truth, just tell her that the pregnancy at your age is a little more complicated. You don't have to give her the exact odds, do you?"
"Well... I'll think about it," Liara replies, still uncertain. It is true that she's been so depressed about everything... Hannah, David, EDI, Joker, the situation here on Earth... the thought of having a child is something that now gives her the strength to fight. If I... take that away from her, she might collapse. I can't get into the pattern where lying to my bondmate becomes a habit I slip into easily, I won't let that happen, but... perhaps in this instance Aria is right and a little white lie is acceptable...
"As for my price," Aria suddenly speaks, startling Liara a little, the maiden having slipped deep into her thoughts. "I think I already cashed in a little favor from you last night, T'Soni. I must admit, you completely surprised me, I didn't expect you to be so bold.'
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Aria," Liara replies defiantly, feeling a blush creeping into her cheeks.
"Shepard's little comment at the breakfast table made me curious and I decided to check the home surveillance feeds from last night. You worked as an intel broker on Ilium, correct? And it never occurred to you to make a sweep for something like... hidden cameras? I really need to thank you and Shepard for the spectacle you provided me with."
"...Aria T'Loak, you are a horrible, awful asari and you should feel very ashamed if this is true and you are not simply messing with me... again!" Liara rants aloud, forgetting to keep her voice down.
"'Don't worry so much, T'Soni, I have no plans to leak it onto the extranet, or anything like that. It's just for my... private collection," Aria replies smugly. "I think I will enjoy watching it again and again together with Tevos... she likes that kind of kinky stuff."
"How could you invite us into your home as your guests and then betray our trust like that? Oh, I was so right to say that I can't trust you one bit, Aria T'Loak!" Liara seethes in anger. "I should have known from the way you acted so nice, letting us stay overnight... if Shepard knew about this, she would be so mad with you!"
"Careful now, T'Soni... remember that you have asked me for a considerable favor," Aria reminds her, instantly deflating Liara's anger. "Just calm down and think about it rationally. Perhaps providing me with a little bit of innocent and harmless entertainment isn't such a horrible price to pay if it gives your baby and yourself a better chance to survive the childbirth."
"I... I..." Liara takes a few deep breaths, slowly starting to calm down from the anger, trying to swallow her shame and embarrassment. "I... suppose you are right, Aria. Just please... no more games," she adds, already knowing that she can't expect that of someone such as Aria T'Loak.
"I am not going to promise that, T'Soni," Aria sounds smug in her reply. "Besides, you should feel flattered that the Queen of Omega herself finds you and Shepard intriguing and attractive."
"I... uh... think this is a good place to end this conversation, I will let you know when I'm coming to the Citadel," Liara rambles quickly, then switching off the omni-tool as she feels a slight wave of warmth spreading through her body and then she immediately becomes angry at herself when she realizes that some part of her does find the mere thought of such vid existing just a little titillating. Ugh, I don't really want to think about that. Must distract myself with something that absolutely does not remind me of Aria. Because I hate her now. A lot. Yes.
The only thing that Liara knows to be capable of distracting her effectively enough is the company of her bondmate, and so she proceeds back downstairs into the living room. Thankfully, Morgan is no longer snoring softly, the human has curled up in one corner of the sofa, watching the vid, but not appearing terribly interested in it. For a while, Liara simply stands on the last step of the stairs, wondering whether her bondmate has overheard her shouting at Aria upstairs, but the sounds of skycar chases and gunfire appear to be loud enough to have prevented that. It's amazing how completely different she looks wearing these civilian clothes, Liara ponders as she watches Shepard, quiet in thought at the sight as she takes in Morgan's baggy trousers and simple grey sweater. She looks... so small, even. I don't think anyone would recognize her as the woman who saved the galaxy, unless they knew...
And she still looks so very young. I guess those pigtails I keep on insisting she wears have that effect, Liara smiles at herself, thinking how Shepard has stopped even trying to discourage her from fixing her hair the way Liara loves it. And that pointy, slightly upturned nose... she looks like a human... uh, maiden? No, that's probably not the right word. I think it was 'teenager'. Yes, if she wanted to, she could make herself look almost like a teenager.. as long as nobody looked deep into her eyes and saw all the pain, the deaths, the heartache...
Finally, she breaks out of her thoughts and approaches Shepard, slipping onto the sofa and resting against her bondmate's side. "Hey, mind if I join you?" she asks, feeling content in the way Morgan's arms wrap around her, not interested in the vid in the slightest, just feeling the compulsive need to be close, while still remaining deep in her own thoughts.
"Anytime," Morgan replies softly, then proceeding to lazily explain to Liara the overly simplistic plot of the movie, but stopping as soon as she realizes that the asari is not truly interested in the action vid.
This is so very enjoyable, Liara tells herself, as always finding the much sought comfort in her bondmate's arms. But... can I live down here if the only thing I can enjoy is her touch? She wonders how serious Morgan is about staying on Earth, knowing that even if the relays are currently not operational, their talk about the future cannot be put off for too long. Can I be happy here? I... just don't know. I'm tempted to say that I'd be happy anywhere with her, but... is that really the case, or am I making a sacrifice I shouldn't be making?
Perhaps we both need more time to get used to the conditions here, even if the first impressions are... a little depressing. Maybe I could learn to love this place, but it is just so dark, wet and dreary, not vibrant, colorful and glowing with traces of eezo like Thessia. And... and our child, wouldn't it make more sense for her to grow up on an asari world, what would she do on this barren rubble-covered rock, faced with xenophobia that many of these Terra Firma supporters still display openly, what education could we provide for her? No, no, for the sake of our child, I must persuade Shepard to move to Thessia, as soon as we can...
...then again, maybe it's a bit premature to plan for the child, Liara thinks, remembering the conversation with Aria. But I need to tell Morgan something. Aria is right, she doesn't need to know the depressing odds, after all they are just that, merely odds. What were our odds to defeat the Reapers? Thousand times worse than what our child faces. And I think the longer I delay this conversation, the more stressed I will become, and that is not good for the baby, either... might as well just get it over with, she firmly decides.
"Morgan?" Liara finally dares to speak up softly, as the credits of the vid roll and her bondmate's attention is returned solely towards her.
"What is it, love?"
"I need to tell you something," the asari says quietly. "There are things about my pregnancy that... you should be aware of..."