Night falls, and Liara is quickly learning what she appreciates of the elcor homeworld. They are finely tuned with nature, incorporating as much of it into their city's design as possible. It is a shame Jane and her cannot truly step outside, due to the dangers it would present to them with such high gravity manifesting on this planet; but the glass enclosure of their little 'balcony' is appreciated all the same for the lengths the elcor go to, to welcome and accommodate outsiders, despite their conservative nomadic ways.
Leaning on the railing beside her, Jane marvels the shadows rolling over the savanna. The silence between them has grown comfortable. Liara has steadily grown confident too, inching closer, shoulders brushing. She melts a little more when Jane leans over, pressing her lips to the back of the asari's knuckles. Her eyes flit up with timid hope. She clears her throat and straightens, suddenly, but aims her gaze out into the darkness.
"Did you want to plan your next step alone?" Jane murmurs, her shoulders slumping a little as a resignation grips her question. "Was I supposed to disappear with the frigate?"
"I... No. I did not want you to."
"So why did you fight so hard to hide it? You always looked so sad. You don't, now, anymore."
Liara sucks in the corner of her lip, nibbling away. She juts out her hips as she folds her arms on the railing, resting her chin on them. "I did not want to say goodbye. It hurt just to think about it."
"You assumed we would?"
"Yes," a small laugh bubbles out of her. "Because no one in their right mind would do what you do. You are crazy."
The confirmation sparks a proud grin.
"Am I?" Jane asks, mimicking the asari's position. She nudges a little closer for her lips to brush over an elbow. "I guess so. I don't know a thing about asari. I don't know a thing about you. I don't know a thing about where I am. I've only ever known humans. Only ever known me, only ever known starships. But I know how I feel. My gut has gotten me where I am today."
Clearly, with her impulsive decisions.
"I've cast myself out in the middle of bumfuck nowhere just to learn more about you, Doctor T'Soni. I hope that says a lot about who I am in return."
"Yes, it's been well established already." Liara teases, breathing incredulously. "Crazy."
"Ass," Jane chuckles.
There's a moment, a second, the second prayers have been answered for. They have this time now—because of Jane's insanity, and... And tenacity. Her sense of right and wrong is so unflinchingly unapologetic. It is both terrifying and admirable, honestly. This must be what it means to be a human. There is some truth to the rumors, their unwavering will, fearless in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds. Perhaps it has been that will that has contributed what successes they had against the superior military power the turians are well known and coveted for.
They stare at each other, eyes searching for something—Liara doesn't know what she's searching for, but she's content with studying all the various hues of greens swimming in those irises. The more she does, the more she affirms her own little nickname for them. They're exactly like the olivine mineral, an important rock-forming mineral group. They occur at high temperatures, a constituent in lunar basalts and meteorites. It has a high melting point, is resistant to chemical reagents, and is an important refractory material.
Goddess, but it sounds so foolish to gush all of this aloud, to tie in the analogies and correlations of a mineral and how Jane carries herself.
Who wants to be compared to a rock?
Embarrassed, Liara looks away. There's a stutter, a protest stammered in choked syllables and a shy question weakly stitched between them.
"N-no... Wait, can't you—? Why hide? Look back, please, would you?"
Does she want to unearth the mystery as to what foolish thoughts Jane is thinking of? Liara isn't quite feeling brave. She's squeamish just turning her head back, settling back in their speechless staring contest. Suddenly, the silence is very alien and awkward. The company beside her feels like a boiling kettle, a thumb over the tip to try to mute the whistling. She flushes when the marine moves with leaden feet, circling about and encouraging the asari to turn around to face her, if only to be pressed into the railing.
Hands cup her jaw. This is happening again.
Then she's released.
Jane steps back with a nervous chuckle, fixing her sweater even though it's been just fine. "I think I'm going to go downstairs, see if this hotel has a gym or know where one is that I don't need to sign up for. I could use a workout. Blow my stress off."
"You are stressed?" Liara asks in disbelief. She certainly has been fooled of that, then, with how nonchalant the human has been with this entire situation.
All she has for an answer is a sheepish grin, and a casual salute tailing after the woman who may as well be running away now.
Does Liara follow? Stay here? She has a feeling she'd be invited along if her presence was desired—honestly, thank the Goddess she hasn't been asked. She isn't inclined to be roped into some insane military workout herself. It's time allotted to help her settle her nerves, now, to plan her next step.
Their next step, rather.
One week. One more week, until Jane has to leave for reassignment. It's just an extended timeline for the inevitable goodbye, still, but this... This feels different. They both know, now. They both know to cherish their time. It's not going to be any less painful, certainly. It sparks the old war within Liara. Pro-friendship is at it again. She doesn't think such an audacious spirit is going to let her slip on by on that premise again, though, not with the risks taken, the first brave step outside the comfort zone.
Liara grabs her book as she hops and hits the bed, worming upwards to the pillows. She reads along as she brainstorms ideas, writing them down in her omni-tool over what things they can do on their last week off. She references a galaxy map to help calculate the time and distance of potential flights. The Athena Nebula is not far from the Silean Nebula, where they currently are. There may be direct flights from Dekunna to Thessia, with hopefully only a day or a max of two days chipped from their week for travel. And as for the marine's return for reassignment, then from the Athena Nebula, the Arcturus Station is... Where?
Her heart sinks upon a search on the extranet, referencing where the Arcturus Stream is on the star map. There are multiple clusters along the way. Depending what the flights are like, if the Alliance Headquarters even allows direct flights, then it may be another few days of travel. They'll be lucky if they get to be on Thessia for one whole day.
They would still be together, traveling, and their adventures on the frigate have not felt any less cherished than the time spent on homeworlds. It's an idea to pitch to the marine and see how she really feels about traveling, before they part ways. Liara is determined to see it through until the end, to board the final flight and travel to the Arcturus Station to say goodbye there—if aliens are allowed. She can figure things out on her own from there as to where to pick herself up, dust herself off, and continue her hunt for clues to decipher the prothean mystery.
There's still a disbelief surrounding it. 40 years, doing this. She's admittedly getting tired. Her passion is losing spark—drive. She's found herself in somewhat of an auto-pilot mentality. What else is she going to do, really? This is her life's work, her study. Other means of archaeology did not really interest her.
Well... Underwater archaeology may have proven to be the next enticing prospect.
It'll be something to look into again, to research other homeworlds that may potentially house prothean ruins in their waters. And less politics to make her life a living nightmare.
Back to her book, she focuses a little better. She doesn't have to re-read. She doesn't have a fog encapsulating her mind. Her heart feels lighter, free. She smiles at all the ideas racing through her, if they do get to return to Thessia. Even for a day. They've already done everything they could, really, here in this city of Dekunna. Well, they haven't left the station to go outside, but she's not brave enough to tempt the law of gravity even in the safety of vehicles.
Time loses meaning as she becomes absorbed in her book, an idle part of her mind thoroughly amused that an action-motivated marine has actually listened to her read all about minerals and soil compositions. She's always going to be perfecting her craft, learning any field that may be related and hide clues the protheans may have cleverly left behind.
Ragged breaths fill the small hotel space about an hour in, when Jane returns thoroughly sweaty and smelly. Her cardigan sweater is damp. Her slacks are hanging on her belt for dear life.
"By the Goddess," Liara pushes up on her elbow, her brow arched. "You worked out in those clothes?"
"Yeah," Jane gulps, tiredly plodding over to the bathroom. "Forgot to bring my credit chit to buy some. All good. Shower time."
Oh, no.
Liara pretends to bury her nose in her book, then, hiding her smile as she waits. She struggles to stifle her laughter at the exuberant groan reverberating in the bathroom.
"What the actual fuck, man... Is this tub for an elephant? It's basically the whole bathroom."
The asari raises her voice. "We are on an elcor homeworld," she helpfully supplies, cross-referencing what an elephant is on her omni-tool. She chortles, shaking her head at the human's rudeness.
The elcor are not that big.
"Yeah, but like, this hotel is made for tourists," Jane drawls boredly. "Is this their passive-aggressive way of telling us we're fuckin' fat as a planet?"
Liara rolls her eyes. "No."
A huff. "Load of shit."
"Will you hurry up with your bath, already? I have ideas for what we can do for the week but I want to run them by you."
Jane pokes her head out the bathroom with a grin, the sounds of water rushing in the background. "By the time this tub fills, it'll be a whole week."
"My Goddess," Liara chuckles exasperatedly. "You would make an excellent theater actress with the ease of such exaggerations coming to you."
Devious laughter dances in the bathroom. The marine is clearly enjoying spending her every second still being ever so wicked. At least it appears that she's blown her stress away successfully, and thoroughly. There are splashes and Liara is inwardly hailing apologies to the future cleaners. She does not think this hotel room will be left safe from one's penchant to make her mark wherever she goes.
An amusing image of a varren marking territory surfaces in her mind, and laughter claws out her throat before she can stop it. The splashing in the bathroom stills.
"Just something I found funny in my book," Liara calls out.
There's a mutter she doesn't quite catch, but she already has a very strong idea: load of shit.
It enables and satisfies her own little wicked urges. The asari smirks away as she listens to the splashing, her mischief sparking when it turns into thrashing.
"Are you drowning in there, Jane? Does the best marine in the galaxy need to be saved, as usual?"
More devious laughter. "Ass! One day, you'll see!"
Liara smiles. She melts in her pillows, slouching. She glances over and toes off her shoes, then socks, eyeing her luggage as she wonders what to change into for pajamas. She doesn't dare sleep the way she usually does around a varren. She needs to decide and change fast—and she really needs to learn to be multiple steps ahead, panic ensuing when she hears water draining. She immediately hides her face in her book when Jane steps out the bathroom in a towel, sauntering over to her bags as she picks out another set of clothes.
Daring to peek just a sliver over the top of the book—because it's important to have eye contact for conversations, of course—Liara clears her throat to speak. "So how was your workout? You look like you're feeling better."
"Oh, yeah. No doubt. Definitely been hurting for it. The elcors design really cool gyms. I worked out my legs just by standing. Standing! They've got these, like, massive cubicles—well massive for me, looked so tiny for that one poor elcor—anyways so they have gravity settings so the elcor can get an actual workout too, and I got curious, so I played with the switches. Look at my legs now?" There's a tiny grunt escaping her just to lean down a little as she turns, and she hisses when she pats her bare quivering thighs, laughing it all off. "They're shaking like crazy. There's no way I'll be able to take any stairs tomorrow."
Goddess. It is truly a miracle she has not walked in here with crutches.
Jane's head snaps up with that raring-to-go grin. "Felt like I had lightning in my veins, and I was kicking ass in style." Instead of doing the sensible thing and dress up, she marches back over to the balcony's glass enclosure, clutching tightly on the railing as she lifts herself up to hover those precious few inches. Her grin grows as wide as her eyes, lit up by the stars. "They have their whole ceiling in glass, so I could see exactly this the entire time. Made me feel like I was on a starship again, training with dad." She tosses a sheepish smile over her shoulder, then, her bare feet slapping as she slams back down on the ground. "I know it sounds lame, but my dad is one of my biggest inspirations. He always told me I've got power, deep inside." She taps her head. "I'll never forget it. Never saw him much growing up, so every little moment came to mean the world to me. Will with us too."
"I do not think that sounds 'lame' at all," Liara blurts, sitting up a little straighter, enthralled by the topic already. "It is... Good to hear you have had your father in your life. What of your mother?"
"Yeah, she's there, too," Jane shrugs indifferently. Her mischief seems to be enabled by it though. "Ahhh meh, mom is mom." She sniggers. "She'd be losing her shit right now, if she heard me. What do you mean ahh meh?! I taught you better than that! Where are your manners? Now give me 100 push ups, soldier!" The marine whirls about as she flexes one her arms. "I didn't get these guns by playing nice, doc."
"No wonder you are so fit, then," Liara teases back, laughing when a pillow is torn away from behind her, only to be tossed at her.
There's a thoughtful reminiscence captivating those olivine eyes again, when the pillow is thrown aside on the bed. Jane has a soft smile, and then there's pain in her eyes. Her spirit lacks fire, her walk back to the balcony dejected. "I miss them. It's so hard to organize calls with them, because of all of our schedules. At least mom was able to get her shore leave approved so she could be there for my graduation. Mom's serving on a warship, dad's always off doing missions. Then there's me in the middle, praying to god I'll make them proud someday, and live up to all this hype I'm force-feeding to everybody. If I feed myself enough lies to keep from hanging from the edge, then someday it's bound to come true, right?"
"Enough lies...?" Liara mumbles, observing the human's back as she digests the words. She sets her book aside on the night stand as she pushes off the bed, coming up to join the marine at the railing, looking at the breathtaking seascape of stars. She hums, smiling. "Fooled me. I have never thought anything you have promised is remotely a lie. I believed every word. You made me believe in those words for me too." She glances over with a smirk. "I expect to see news and read articles, Ensign Shepard. I have many people I need to tell I used to work with her, I knew she could do it. And then call you to say I told you so."
That toothy grin bursts into life, but what's evermore endearing is the way those eyes light up. Then the nose is struck with a deep blush, a sheepish kiss pecked on the cheek, before bare feet slap away in the race for the couch. The rustling of bags and clothes keeps Liara's gaze firmly fixed on the stars. She tenses a little when arms sneak around her waist a minute later.
"You've been reminding me what it means to be a dreamer, Liara. To chase the sun." Soft lips press to the nape, above the shirt's neckline. "Thank you."
Yes. Wonderful. Endearing news.
She needs to get off.
Paralyzed, every cell in Liara's body is screaming. She's struggling to stay still, to stay contained. The marine unknowingly kisses the sensitive bundle of nerves stemming from the fringe, every skin fold paid bold and affectionate attention.
"Let's live for danger," Jane murmurs. "Let's stay up every night. Get wild, come alive. I want to keep living like this, hanging on nothing but a prayer."
Another kiss threatens restraint to shatter.
"Jane, no," Liara abruptly rips away, whirling around as she presses herself firmly to the railing. She falters at the confusion and concern. The marine doesn't know. "Do not kiss there, please."
"What? Why? Sorry, by the way. But why?"
"Just no." Heat flushes and throbs at her nose, her blurt coming out as a racy husky promise. "Or you will be mistaken to be asari for another week."
Bewilderment strikes, a puzzle furiously being deducted. Liara prays to the Goddess she does not have to spell it out. Her prayer is answered once Jane's face darkens, her mouth hanging in a silent oh. She smiles apologetically as she decides the safest course of action is to step back. Thank the Goddess that someone still has some measure of discipline. One of them needs it and she doesn't feel like it's going to be her right now.
"S-sorry, doc... I didn't know."
"I know," Liara hisses it tersely, the tension buzzing hard inside of her. It's her turn to blow all this stress and energy out of her system.
"So how about those plans, then?" Jane takes long strides to the bed, and it's the absolute worst place with all the tainted thoughts coursing through the scientist now.
Fire burns in Liara's throat as she groans—whines—growls somewhere in the mix of it all. She grabs the marine's hands and she knows she's supposed to be pulling away, but she's pulling them onto her instead. She frames Jane's jaw, fingers slipping up to bury in the damp auburn tresses, sloppily crashing their mouths together as their teeth bump like they're at war.
Somewhere along the way, the marine's sweater is tugged off her and her bra is her only modesty left. Hands slip up Liara's spine and search for the back zipper of her shirt, her back bare and brushed by the chill of the air as it's undone. She groans in the kiss when nails lightly rake down to the small of her back where another sensitive bundle of nerves resides, and she pushes against Jane until they topple on the bed, climbing on top. She reaches behind her to snatch the wrists when hands wander over to her back again, pinning them down by the marine's hips as she struggles to reign composure back in.
"No," it comes out as a meager whimper. "Please do not touch there either."
Jane's chest heaves raggedly, her torso still slightly sheen—how has she not dried from her towel? Is that water? There are other droplets slithering down her throat to challenge the nature of it, but the hair is damp, darkening the blanket beneath her head. Liara tears away from staring at the throat and groans as she forces her gaze up to the ceiling, sitting back on the marine's thighs as she drills her palms in her eyes.
"Goddess, Jane. I do not have much experience with this. You are likely already marked again—and it will not surprise me if you will be mistaken for the rest of your life."
"Th-those areas are that sensitive?" Jane shyly chuckles. "Erm, so, is it like... A bad time to ask if the rumors about asari are true?"
Oh, no. Liara most definitely isn't looking forward to this. She peers down hesitantly. "I have heard many things about my species. Which rumors have you heard?"
"That... That you..." Her nose competes with the red of her hair. "You fuck minds. And you can kill because of that, during sex. Is that true? I-I mean, I trust you, I don't think you'd kill me. As long as I don't push buttons to tease and annoy you, anyways."
"By the Goddess," Liara blows incredulously, her arms falling to her sides like dead weight as she gapes in disbelief. This is as bad as she expected it to be.
"Uh, so judging by your face, I'm guessing... Not true? So I won't die if we have sex? Can we, then? I get I'm... Well I'm sure I'm a hell of a lot younger than you, if you said you've been searching for answers for the protheans for 40 years. But I don't care if you're older, if you don't care that I'm younger. Do you care? I just want my first time to be with you. I trust you. It's okay if you did your marking thing too." Her sheepish grin grows. "I think that's pretty hot."
Liara stares.
This has to be a dream, by the way, right?
She doesn't know where to start, which question to pick, which one to help her even thaw from this state of shock. She can start with the Ardat-Yakshi and say she isn't one. That's somewhat of a start.
"I trust you," Jane reiterates, finally actually looking serious, for once. "But do you trust me?"
Despite the warnings, a bold hand slides over, fingertips ghosting feather-light circles around the small of the back. Maddening. They traverse upwards as Jane works to sit up, experimentally touching the folds of the asari's fringe. Liara squeezes her eyes shut, struggling, holding on, cursing this human for picking apart her composure so brazenly. Jane doesn't know what she's signing herself up for this time and she's diving in anyways.
"It's okay if it feels so strong that it makes you feel like you wanna be rough, if that's what's holding you back. I still trust you. I can take it. I'm a tough marine, takes a lot to try to make me break."
"Jane, please." Liara sucks in a shaky gasp. The sounds of the bed creaking alarm her, the thighs—her seat—beneath her disappearing. She groans when lips tentatively press on the side of her neck, trailing kisses to reach the corner of her nape.
"It's okay to lose control. I know I don't inspire a whole lot of confidence after fessing up that I've never done this before, but... I'll do whatever I need to to make sure you feel safe to, with me."
Another brush of her lower back. She falls apart with the tender words whispered into her aural.
"Mark me all you want, Liara."
"Off." Liara is telling herself that more so, coaching against her instincts. "Off, off." She slides away, certain that the marine has absolutely no clue what she is asking for.
Their emotions—it's all still muddled. Nothing is clear. They need to return to their senses. This hotel room is too small, their confessions of attraction too recent. It's a recipe for disaster. That's it. Disaster. She has to remember that. She's going to ruin this between them, if she loses control. But she doesn't get far away. She slides a little bit and just sits there, staring, struggling, coaching, enlisting the logic of pro-friendship. She's terrified, to be honest, not just of what she's like, but of what Jane's like too.
Are humans like what the rumors say they are?
Watchful eyes comb over her. That demure smile is only adding to the chaos; she wants to kiss it off. There's a small measure of sense returning, and she blushes over realizing how she's lost control earlier, sinking and crawling backwards to hug a pillow, her bare back shivering from the chill of the headboard. Her mouth opens. Closes. Opens. Closes. She doesn't know what she even wants to try to say. She brings the pillow up to hide her burning face.
Rustling beckons curiosity, and she angles her head just enough to steal a peek with one eye. Jane is pulling her sweater back on. Liara hides when the marine turns for her again, a timid chuckle dancing in the air. Footsteps approach. A tentative hand squeezes her shoulder.
"Sorry... Uh... I don't really know what to say. I shouldn't have gotten pushy though, so I'm sorry for getting carried away like that. Are you mad? Is that why you're hiding? I can leave if you need space."
Once, that would've been such a lovely notion; but her presence has come to mean something, has become a comfortable constant.
Liara shakes her head. "I am not upset," she muffles into her pillow.
"What was that? I didn't quite catch that."
She angles her head to free the corner of her mouth, mumbling again. "I am not upset." She brings the pillow up higher to shield her face from view, feeling absolutely foolish for speaking behind it. "I do not want you to leave. I am just... I am still feeling so many things that I cannot make sense of. It is overwhelming—I am overwhelmed. All of this is... It is very intense. You confess things so readily, ask so easily. I wish I could be bold like you."
Jane hums. The bed dips. A shy hand rolls over to squeeze the asari's knee. "I don't really think I am those things either, and it's hard to ask some things because I feel like I'm Major Idiot instead of Commander Cool. Even if I ask or do dumb shit, which clearly I did earlier, you don't berate me. You're always... I don't know how to explain it, I'm not used to really thinking about what I'm feeling. But you've always been approachable," a devious chuckle. "Even when you're so clearly screaming you don't want to be, with your damn books and corner tables. But... I think I can do whatever I do because I know I'm safe with you."
"I do not really know what I am doing either," Liara confesses with a small laugh. "I am so used to others thinking so lowly of me, that it is an alien feeling to meet someone who thinks so highly of me. I do not know what to do with it, how to treat it. Your trust in me is..." She lowers the pillow a little, smirking behind it. "You are crazy." She hides again with her fluffy shield. "Are all humans like this? You move so quickly. This has grown in the matter of days, and somehow I... I do not know what I am trying to say. Asari philosophy has wisdom, but sometimes it is conflicting. We encourage relationships to flow in and out naturally, to allow it its due time—but we are to also cherish what little time we have when we bond with other species, especially ones that have a short lifespan. So does this flow naturally, taking its time, or do I cherish it to the fullest now?"
"Who cares about philosophy, or what others say? What do you feel like you want to do? If you want to take your time, we can totally do that. I know I haven't been good at it, recently, been real greedy instead... I'm just gonna be shameless and blame it that I'm young and dumb. But I can take a step back. Sounds to me you want to be friends before lovers and that's more than okay. I just want to be with you, however that means, for the time we have left. These moments—you know, like dad—I've learned how to make the most of them when I know they are or going to be few and far in between. So... I guess the philosophy is a mix. Give its due time and also cherish it where its currently at, to the fullest, now. Can you look now, or is it still scary?"
Liara hugs her pillow to her head, blushing over the foolishness. The hand on her knee pats and squeezes. The bed rises a little, and bare feet pad away. Lights shut off, with only the starlight illuminating their room. She steals a quick look and sees that Jane is pulling a chair over to the end of the couch, before she falls on it. She stretches her arms above before she folds her hands underneath her head, propping her one foot on the lone chair while her leg hangs over the arm rest.
That looks so uncomfortable.
"I'll always be here however you need me," Jane yawns. "I know I'm not ideal. I get someone worldly and mature like you would rather a mature partner too, maybe one that can even travel with you since your archaeology will take you all around the galaxy. I know I'm not that, not by a long shot. Who knows where my career will go and will take me? But I promise you I'll always do my best to make the most of your time—now, and hopefully in the future too."
Mature? Liara does not really feel as though she is mature either. She's still just barely an adult in asari years, something she's learned she has in common with the human. She has so much to learn, so much to understand, so much wisdom to figure out how she means to grasp it.
"I get dating a marine is tough," Jane murmurs. "Maybe that's what's so scary to you too, I don't know since I'm just throwing all my guesses at this; but there have been rocky moments in my parents' relationship and they're both marines, so they both understand the life and the obligations. I don't dare to ask you to sign up for that kind of life. I can't boast that I'm so good, it negates all that shit, that it'll be easy when I know it's not. I know asari live for a millenia. You have a lot of life to live, and I'm living mine. If it happens to work for both of us where we both get to live it up together for a bit, then that's great. We'll make it awesome, I'm certain of that. I'll make sure I'll give my best. But I'm not as obnoxious to think to tie you up and I don't have any intention to hold you down. I don't mind the thought of you holding me down."
"Wh-what?" Liara blushes fiercely, her pillow dropping along with her jaw.
"What?" Jane's head turns. It's hard to get a good clear look at each other, but it seems like the human's face is darkening too. "N-not hold down like that, I-I mean... I mean like an anchor, or-or... Like dating, uh, where I date only you, but it's cool if you... You know... Anyway, I'm fine with the distance. Our calls are my favorite." She laughs nervously, and rolls in to face the couch. "I mean, I wouldn't mind being held down like that either."
"Not helping."
Demure chuckles dance in the air. Then a silence nestles in. Liara watches the human's ribs expand and fall as she breathes, curled on her side. This maelstrom inside of her has only picked up speed, as if Jane has tossed dynamite into the hurricane. These moments have been packed with so much, it's been overwhelming to process. But she's fighting to make the most of it. She knows, too, she's evidently put in all the thinking too of what's awaiting them, a week from now.
She's fine with the distance. She seems to think that Liara's anxious of the commitment because of it, absolving the notion but at the same time adhering to it for herself.
What is that contradictory logic?
Liara wonders if the confession earlier—of that 'hype'—is a glimpse into the inner workings where this human thinks lowly of herself instead, hiding it with boasts. She seems to be feeling pressure of living up to her family's traditions. She wants to make her parents proud. She seems to want to cater to the scientist in such a way, too. Such a peculiar woman...
Slipping out of bed, Liara plods over. She feels the tension in muscles when she cups the marine's shoulder. "Come to bed," she whispers, trying to ignore the heat in her face. "This couch cannot be comfortable."
"It's actually better than the barracks," Jane laughs anxiously. "Those things are stone slabs in disguise, I swear-"
"Jane... Just come to bed." Liara nudges and tugs the shoulder. "I am not ready to do anything intimate, but I would like to hug, if you are okay with that."
"If I'm o-?" Jane whirls around with an endearing confused look, for all but a single second. Then she's rolling off, grunting and joints popping, but she's dragging the laughing scientist over and settles in right behind as if all is right with the galaxy—that this is exactly where she belongs. She hugs so hard that elbows need to be tapped again for her to ease up. Her lips almost throw them into another dastardly loop when they brush the corner of Liara's fringe, and she tenses. She eases with relief when the mouth is firmly pressed to the back of her shoulder, doing her best to ignore the fingers that snap the zipper of her shirt up to clothe her back again.
Silence comfortably settles in, but there's a fire that sparks and shows it right back out.
"So what kinds of plans do you have? I was thinking we could take a shuttle and head to Dekuuna's other city. Did you know the elcor still migrate, even if their technology has made it obsolete? But that's why they have two capitals. We're in the dry season one. Don't get me wrong, the savannas here are so cool-"
"Savannas are the result of hot climatic conditions."
"Yeah, anyway I wanna see what the wet season is like—do you think they have rainforests or something? If they do then their tree trunks must be like fucking Yggdrasil size to withstand the gravity, or something."
No idea what Yggdrasil is, and it does not seem there will be any enlightenment any time soon. Liara smiles away and closes her eyes, throwing her plans aside as she commits to what the marine is clearly eager to explore instead. It'll be frightening, the thought of traveling outside this station, and she hopes the vehicles truly are able to withstand the pressures of high gravity. If the human is willing to dive in and take those risks, though, then maybe it isn't all that bad and scary. Liara enables her own inner mischief as she helpfully supplies tidbits that earn her ticklish pinches to her sides, challenging more contradictory idioms.
Until teeth nip the side of her throat, far too close to her nape.
"Listen here, smartass..."
"Jane," Liara whines. She's just settled down. She laughs when a groan starts and somehow ends with a raspberry blowing into her spine, the arms around her tightening bruisingly again. She has to glance over when she feels the back of her shirt growing damp, and she tries to see if the marine has burst into tears in a dramatic melancholy of sorts. It is just as believable as the fact that it is just the damp hair brushing against her.
Dreams are renewed. The enthusiasm always makes her chest swell so much it hurts, enraptured by the fire burning behind her. She isn't quite sure why Jane is moving about so much, though, until there's mutters about how hot it is—mutters she ignores because they're not even beneath the blanket, and she absolutely refuses to entertain the notion of stripping down. She doesn't dare look behind her when the marine takes a moment to shed her sweater, throwing it forward as if Liara can be witness to the impending doom. A damning glance down at the arm that slithers back over her waist confirms that bare skin is pressing into her, hoping that the marine's bra will stay on at the very least. She prays with every fiber of her being that the Goddess is listening to the screaming inside of her and will save her from it.
Now the heat is emanating from her face. The knowledge of what's pressed to her back is fuel to the flames. The dreams are slowing in their barrage, some sentences finishing, some not getting to finish, some new ones igniting in their place, sometimes halfway through. The breaths draw out longer each time. Liara melts when the human slackens, smiling at the sleepy mumbling pressed to her shoulder.
"If this is a dream, I'm praying I'll never wake up from it."