Come into this arms again
And lay your body down
The rhythm of this trembling heart
Is beating like a drum

It beats for you, it bleeds for you
It knows not how it sounds
For it is the drum of drums
It is the song of songs...

From Love Song for a Vampire – Annie Lennox

Garrus found he couldn't take his eyes off Shepard. Her skin was given a pale glow by the weak light filtering down through the foliage. She sat curled up, an arm wrapped around her legs, chin resting on her knees. She looked so young, like a child almost, and his heart constricted with the need to protect her.

"Shepard", he said, making her turn her head and look at him. The flanging effect made the soft tones of his voice purr. "I know the future is just one big uncertainty. We might all be dead tomorrow. But what time I have, I want to spend with you. I..." His voice broke off and he had to take a breath and try again. "I love you."

"Garrus..."

"You don't have to love me back", he said quietly, quickly. "Just... just let me be by your side as your friend. I'll always have your back, Shepard-" He was cut off in mid-sentence when she closed the distance between them, pressing her mouth to his in a kiss.

Shepard pulled back a little so she could gaze into his eyes. She graced her fingers over the scars that marked his face as if they were a thing of beauty. "I love you too, Garrus. I think I always have." She pressed her forehead against his, her eyes closing as she breathed in his familiar scent. His arms came around her and he held her so very gently and leaned in for another kiss. Her lips were so soft against his much harder skin. He nipped gently on her lower lip, making her hiss against him. Heat rose within him and he pulled her close, possessively.

Shepard tensed, her breath hitching in her throat. Fear filled her mouth, bitter, metallic like blood. She tried to swallow it down.

"What's wrong?" The soft, purring sub-harmonics in his voice had became worried trills. Then he realised and it was as if someone had tipped a bucked of cold water over him.

"I'm sorry..." Shepard gasped, her eyes tightly shut against the tears threatening to fall. "I can't..."

"Don't apologise", Garrus said, gently touching her face, making her open her eyes again. "You've been through hell. You can't expect to just bounce back from that." She clung to him like someone drowning, gulping down air, struggling not to succumb to the panic.

"I hate feeling like this", Shepard managed, burying her face against his neck. "Like I'm tainted... ruined."

"Spirits, Shepard..." Garrus couldn't remember ever feeling so helpless. All he could do was to hold her, and hope that the love he felt for her would somehow help her heal.

She looked up at him and her eyes were fractured and veiled with tears. "Help me hunt them down and make sure that they don't hurt another being again. I want them dead, Garrus."

A part of him knew that this dark yearning for vengeance was hollow. Spirits, did he know. But how could he tell her no when she asked for the death of those who had raped and tortured her, when she had helped him take revenge on Sidonis? So he nodded. "We'll find them", he promised, his voice as dark as her eyes. "They'll pay for what they did to you. They'll pay in blood. I promise." She pressed her lips to his in a feverish kiss, fuelled by darker emotions than desire. Garrus kissed her back, moaning as she bit down hard on his exploring tongue, hard enough to draw blood. This was a need born out of a hunger for revenge, out of bloodthirst.

Shepard moved so she was straddling his lap, her thighs parting to give room for his hips. She pressed against him and the weight of her, the friction she created, was torture. He ground against her, growling, sub-harmonics reverberating in his chest.

Garrus cupped her breasts through the top. He could feel her nipples becoming hard under the tight fabric. Shepard arched into his touch and moaned when he ran his tongue along the graceful column of her throat.

A fine drizzle had begun to fall. The tiny raindrops glittered on Shepard's exposed skin and he licked them off greedily. The heavy armour he wore was starting to become more than uncomfortable. It was downright annoying not to be able to feel her bare skin against his.

Her slender fingers caressing the sensitive skin on his neck was torment, the raise and fall of her hips torture. This was hot, sweaty and frustrating as hell.

"Tell me we'll hunt them down..." She breathed into his mouth. "Tell me you'll help me kill them..."

"I will", he said, his dual-toned voice vibrating with need. "I promise..."

Shepard moved against him with a demanding fervour that left him breathless. Her hands, her mouth, her hair sweeping across his face like a curtain of night. Her passion was driven by her need to overcome what had been done to her, fuelled by her hunger for vengeance. A gasping cry escaped her as he pushed up against the core of her.

The soft hazy rainfall adorned them both and turned them into jewelled creatures. Water drops hung from Shepard's eyelashes and mingled with her tears as her body arched, her hips moving in a hurried rhythm. Garrus could feel the gathering explosion building up between them. His arms came up to encircle her, to hold her as she rocked against him. The friction assailed his nerves and he pushed up against her, all thoughts falling from his mind as she flung her head back, her lips parting in a silent cry, pleasure overwhelming her and she fell into a whirlpool of ecstasy.

Burying his face against her full breast, breathing in that mysterious female scent that was her, Garrus spilled himself in his armour, his breath coming in short bursts, his heart racing.

They remained locked in an embrace for a few sweet moments, letting their pulses get back to normal. Then Shepard climbed off him and rose. Garrus couldn't hold back a sigh when he felt the sticky sensation of semen inside his armour. Not that he regretted what had happened. His mandibles twitched in a grin as he took the hand Shepard offered him and she pulled him to his feet.

"So..." He said, looking into her eyes. "This was...?"

"What I wanted", she finished his sentence, leaning her head against his chest as his arms settled around her. "What I needed."

Garrus nodded and brushed a tender kiss on her brow. "Just making sure." He held her for a moment longer, simply enjoying the sensation of having her in his arms. It was Shepard who broke the embrace.

"We better get back to the camp before Kaidan and James starts to worry."

Garrus nodded. He took her hand and entwined their fingers, making Shepard glance at him and give him a small smile. Together they returned to the darkness underground. Garrus switched his visor to Night Vision, leading her past the small stream of water and back to the chamber.

Both James and Kaidan looked up when they approached.

Kaidan took in Shepard's still flushed cheeks and hers and Garrus' entwined hands. He said nothing, simply handed her a cup of hot decaf coffee as she sat down by the fire.

"So..." James finally drawled, grinning. "You where gone for quite some time. Did you have a good... eh, talk?" He wiggled his eyebrows at them, making Shepard roll her eyes at him.

Garrus was stirring some dextro-based powder into a cup of hot water. "That's a nasty bug bite you have on your neck, Vega." His voice was casual but there was glint in his eyes that made the young marine duck his head, something suspiciously close to a a blush colouring his cheeks. "Care to tell us how you got it?"

James put his hand over the blemish. "I... Uh... Point taken", he muttered, concentrating on his own cup of coffee.

"You okay?" Kaidan asked quietly, watching Shepard carefully sip the hot coffee laced with sugar and powdered milk. It tasted like ambrosia.

She nodded. "You?"

"Yeah. Garrus got me good a couple of times", he replied. "But I can respect why he did it. You and him, are you...?"

"Yeah." A small smile played on her lips. "He loves me."

"Do you love him?" Kaidan asked.

Shepard looked up from the Styrofoam cup. "Yes."

Kaidan nodded. "Good. I'm glad. You and Garrus belong together. I'm fine", he added when he saw the look in her eyes. "Honestly, Shepard, you don't have to worry about me." He gave her a reassuring smile. "Drink your coffee and then get some rest."

Having finished their hot drinks they settled in for the night. Even though Shepard felt like her eyes were filled with gravel she convinced the others that she was more than capable of being on stag while they got a few hours of much needed sleep.

The small camp, tucked away behind large blocks of stones grew quiet as they settled down. There was nothing to do except to keep one eye on the fire and one on the entrance. Every 20 minutes Shepard tried to contact the Normandy and Cortez, but all she got was static.

Putting another piece of wood on the fire, Shepard watched as the flickering light played over the lines carved into the ancient walls that surrounded them. There was something peaceful about this place, as if the ghosts had been laid to rest. Shepard made a mental not to talk to Jarvik about what happened here, about the sphere and the stored memories it had contained. Leaning back against the stone behind her, she stifled a yawn and started to recite song-lyrics to keep her mind busy as she kept watch over her sleeping team mates.

I couldn't resist having Garrus tease James. :)