Siame - "one who is all", a loved one cherished above all others (Thessian/Source: CDN)

T'Soni Estate, Thessia, Parnitha System – 1 Jan 2192

The new year started like any other – for the most part, anyway – but everyone in the house knew the upcoming year would be anything but routine. With a new six-month-old child in the house, in concert with the looming changes in Liara's career path, everyone was preparing to enter the next phase of Lady Liara's control of House T'Soni. Most believed the revisions would be for the better, particularly because it meant the long sojourns to Ilos – along with its high air pressure and oppressive humidity – would soon be a thing of the past. Liara would still need to occasionally travel out to the opposite side of the galaxy, but once this next trip was completed and new arrangements had been made, each subsequent trip would last only a week, instead of them having to live on the planet for several months at a time.

New Year's Day had dawned late for most of the house, with many having stayed up partying until the wee hours, feeling they had so many reasons to celebrate. Over the past year, there had been a number of union announcements, along with those prospective new members of the House moving to the Estate, as well as other additions such as Sal and Rix – Liara's archaeological team additions – and Kasumi Goto, entering the second phase of her own life as their newly added house security specialist. Then came Michael. His very unexpected appearance was the piece of the puzzle which had pushed them to make all the planned changes a few months sooner than originally anticipated.

With everything that was happening, Liara was feeling nervous about what was headed their way. She loved Samantha, and their happiness over Michael's arrival was beyond anything they could have imagined. The other consequence of that family addition was Liara's shift to becoming a full professor instead of just a quarterly lecturer. She had originally thought to ease her way into the position, only returning to Thessia to present topic lectures before retreating to the safety and seclusion of the dig. Becoming a professor now meant staying near the school, so she could go to work at least three days a week to teach a class and hold office hours. Fortunately, House T'Soni still had family holdings in Serrice, so they would have a choice of places to stay.

The downside of staying in the city is that they would be doing just that… staying in the city, in great contrast to their sheltered – and private – life at the Estate. Neither she nor Shepard ever wanted the fame and notoriety that had come with being who they were. Consequently, they would have fewer physical borders to protect their privacy while living in the T'Soni owned apartments in Serrice and traveling to the campus on a nearly daily basis. Liara dreaded all the attention… and all the potential interruptions they would experience in their soon-to-be much more public lives.

Even the university staff was a bit concerned about security, wondering how long it would take for the novelty to wear off. Dean Tevany had called to simply wish them a happy New Year, which lasted until Liara mentioned her concerns. Tevany then reluctantly spoke to Liara about 'lecture crashers' – people who would show up, even though not in any of Liara's classes – and the University's concern over how much disruption they could cause, since they would be there for personal reasons and not needing the actual lecture as part of a class they were taking. Many of the staff worried about how many disturbances would occur over the first few days, maybe the first few weeks… or Goddess forbid… the first few months of Liara's tenure as word got out, regarding her joining the teaching staff and moving about the campus.

The Dean then went a step too far when she actually addressed Shepard, who was standing in the background during their conversation, asking her to not enter the campus with Liara until things settled down. Shepard managed a relatively polite reply. "I'm sorry, Dean… but if you get Liara, you not only get me, but her First, Riana Iregos, and, very likely, her full protection team… at least initially, until we can gauge the reactions." She shrugged, somewhat apologetically, as she continued, "We beat the Reapers, then nearly lost Liara to ingrates and haters during our so-called victory tour. Grudges can last a long time, and I'm not willing to take that chance again. Not ever! Liara is the leader of a High House, and an open campus is not a risk we are willing to take without protection… and your Campus Security simply isn't enough to guarantee her safety."

Tevany had simply sighed in return and answered, "I tried to warn them that was going to be your response, but the College Board pressed me to ask you for it anyway. I don't suppose them issuing any type of edict would change your mind, either?"

Shepard smiled, noting that simply by the dean's tone, Tevany was on their side on this issue. "No… but it would change Liara's. You get all of us, or none. That's the Board's choice."

"I will be sure to forward them your feedback, Shepard." Tevany actually grinned. "I will also be certain to keep my best politically neutral face when they issue their response, as I'm sure it will be something about Liara having signed a contract, and that she can't back out without some sort of penalty. But I am also positive her contract said nothing about barring you from campus and, as you stated, security for leaders of Thessian High Houses is routine and expected. So that argument is likely a moot point, which I will not hesitate to point out to them should they decide to go in that direction."

Liara smiled as she said, "Thank you, Dean. I truly do appreciate your support on this… but neither do I want you to risk your position. I will be more than happy to make the argument directly to the Board, in person, should it become necessary… with my Personal Guard at my side."

"Think nothing of it, Liara. I would prefer dealing with that issue, over the potential of you getting injured on university property. That is something for which I would never forgive myself." She scowled and shook her head. "Besides… I think having you both on campus could play rather favorably, should the Board stop to truly consider their options. I think they are ignoring many of the promotional opportunities they have here." She glanced between them as she asked, "Would the two of you consider doing a joint lecture of any type, perhaps regarding your initial run through Ilos while you were chasing Saren? What you saw there, particularly in the catacombs? What you regretted leaving behind while you focused on serving the greater purpose of warding off the Reapers?" She grinned as she added, "I think it would be a wonderful, eye-opening presentation!"

Liara glanced at Shepard – who didn't know what to say regarding such a possibility and simply shrugged in silent response – before eventually replying to the dean. "We would have to think about that… but it certainly isn't off the table. We just need to consider if there is enough to make it a meaningful and purposeful presentation… one which both the Council and the School Board would approve – something that would not end up in censure of any kind."

Tevany's eyes opened a bit wider at the comment, prompting her to ask, "So… there are political sensitivities there I am unaware of?"

"Seriously, you have no idea?" Shepard chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Think about it. Liara and I knew the Reapers were coming… but how did the Council explain Sovereign? Were there any indications of there being a looming threat in our semi-immediate future?" She scoffed. "Instead, they wanted us out of the way, so sent us to hunt Geth, of all things, and buried every Reaper rumor that popped up. I can only thank the Gods it took the Reapers so long to contact the Collectors and round up the data they needed to make their decision to attack us! Fortunately for everyone, it took most of the two years it took me to actually come out of my coma and return to the world of the living."

"Very true." Tevany nodded quickly in agreement. "You were gone so long, most everyone thought you died with the Normandy! That you returned to us was a blessing from the Goddess."

Shepard shook her head and glanced at her bondmate. "If Liara hadn't kept researching, Garrus Vakarian hadn't gotten his task force together, the Salarian STG hadn't collected more data on unusual ship sightings…and Wrex hadn't united the Krogan? If we had left it to the leaders and militaries of the individual races, we'd all be dead and wouldn't be having this conversation."

"And now," Tevany's expression displayed her shock and disbelief as she continued, "I see why you need to get clearance from the Council… if that is the information they fear you will mention during the presentation! By the Goddess… I never realized they expressed such deliberate neglect regarding the threat!"

"Do you even know it was a Collector ship that destroyed the original Normandy?" Liara asked. "They nearly destroyed any chance we had of victory in that singular preemptive strike." She reached over and took Samantha's hand as she continued, "It was Cerberus, of all the entities in the galaxy, who located Shepard and nursed her back to health. Cerberus… not the Alliance!"

Even after all this time, Liara's face still turned angry over the topic, and she spat out her final sentence. "They wouldn't even look for her, nor the crash site of the Normandy, until they found out that Shepard was actually alive… and then, after two whole years of her being missing, the Council displayed the gall and ignorance by actually banning her from Citadel space, all because she dared return to them on a Cerberus frigate!"

The Dean stared at Liara in surprised, mute silence for several long moments before finally responding in a quiet voice. "Goddess. It is no wonder your attitudes toward the Alliance and the Council were so poor. I had absolutely no idea. I am so sorry, Shepard. Perhaps a presentation isn't such a good idea, after all."

"Yeah. The concept has the potential to go very badly." Surprising them both, Shepard actually chuckled quietly. "But… if we stick to the topic of Ilos, keep the politics out of it, and maybe do a comparison between our initial assessments of the planet and what we see there now, with the Protheans moving back to their homeworld?" She glanced at Liara, whose eyes had brightened with the idea, as she continued, "I think that could make for one hell of a lecture… especially if we could bring in a couple of guest speakers. And, by that, I mean someone from the Prothean leadership, along with their first attaché… who just happens to be a Batarian."

"A Prothean? Here? And, they honestly have a Batarian attaché?" Tevany leaned forward in excitement. "That would be positively fabulous!"

Liara looked at her siame in astonishment as she added, "I agree! What a wonderful idea, Samantha! I don't see anyone having an issue with those as our main discussion points."

"Then it sounds like we have the start of a potential plan." Shepard smiled. "We'll talk to those in question after we return to Ilos at the end of the week."

T'Soni Estate, Thessia, Parnitha System – 2 Jan 2192

It was late in the day when Shepard finally tracked down the new contact information for her adopted aunt and managed to place a call to her, now aboard the SSV Orizaba in her new position as the Fifth Fleet Medical Commander. "We already miss you, Aunt Karin. So, how goes your first day on the new job?"

"Absolutely crazy." Realizing who it was on the other end of the call, Karin had plopped down into a chair, the room in the background looking to be in complete disarray. Indicating the mess over her shoulder, she sighed tiredly. "I haven't even begun to get organized in my quarters. I barely got moved into my office!" She smirked as she asked, "Do you have any idea how many medical people are in a fleet?"

"Well, I know the Fifth has two hospital ships… but, after that… how many units are dispersed within the Fleet? I have absolutely no idea," Shepard replied, an answering grin on her face.

"Well, bother… because neither do I, and I was hoping you could tell me!" Karin chuckled. "All I know is I met maybe a dozen or so medical commanders today. I would like to think the fleet medical is divided into groups… and those twelve-plus people are the only ones I need to know… but I realize that there has to be a medical corps on each of the ships… which, I believe, the current count is 53?" She released a quiet, tired sigh.

"I'm actually a bit surprised you don't already know how the upper echelons are structured, Aunt Karin… you've spent most of your career aboard warships!"

"Because I never cared!" Karin laughed. "I was there to take care of my charges and wanted nothing to do with all the politics of leadership. Now, obviously, I can no longer ignore it."

"I have every confidence you'll figure it out." Shepard smiled softly. "Besides, every one of those ships fall into a Group… so, I imagine you're spot-on when you think those twelve-plus are the only ones you'll need to have any direct contact with… at least on any kind of routine basis." Shepard paused, then asked, "Have you had your sit-down with Ines, yet? I'm sure she'll be happy to tell you where the problems are that she expects you to focus on."

Karin chuckled. "Oh, yes. She's giving me the week but has already mentioned she wants to have a private dinner on Saturday, in her quarters… then, I'll meet the rest of the main staff at my first Admiral's Dinner, in the Mess, on Sunday."

"Oh, boy." Shepard smiled softly. "I don't envy you that one… having to wear whites, and all that brass in one place?" She shook her head, adding, "Nothing in the galaxy made me happier to be a Spectre than not having to deal with all of the internal politics of the Alliance military."

"Agreed! And absolutely nothing made me happier than to be on an Alliance leave of absence while I served aboard the SR-2! I remember a couple of unpleasant conversations with Steven Hackett that made me wonder if I would even be accepted back into the Alliance, once the war was over… assuming we managed to not only win it… but actually survive it."

"You?" Shepard scoffed. "If they made a hero of me, they certainly wouldn't punish you!" She suddenly grinned. "Besides… I might have been happier if they didn't take you back… because you'd always have a job on one of our ships, Aunt Karin! If the Alliance didn't want you, you wouldn't have had to choose between them or me."

"Wait. You mean I don't have to be here, in the middle of this mess? That I could be sitting in the sunroom facing the beach on Thessia, as the sitting doctor for House T'Soni?" Karin looked at her image and locked onto Shepard's eyes. "Where's Liara?"

"What?" Shepard paused, caught completely off guard by the questions. "Wait… are you serious?"

"By the Gods, the look on your face!" Unable to stand it any longer, Karin broke into laughter. "Of course, I'm not serious. Though, I will admit that Liara and I did speak of it… and, when the time comes, I will likely retire at the Estate."

"How do I not know this?"

With the shock quakes rumbling through the link, Liara had quickly made her way to the communications center, the door sliding open as Samantha finished her question. The Asari quickly responded, "Because you were chatting with your mother, and I was chatting with Karin, so neither of us paid any attention to the other… and then, it simply never came up."

"And you didn't think to tell me?"

"Honestly?" Liara smiled. "No… because it wasn't important. A lot of things can change in the next… what?... 50 or 60 years? It's a very tentative plan… hardly worth mentioning so early in Karin's career." Her gaze shifted as she said, "And… hello, Karin. I hope all is well."

"It is, thank you." Karin gave her a broad smile. "I'm simply enjoying teasing my niece. Hope you don't mind."

"Not at all, though my saying so may offend her." Liara had kept moving as she spoke, stepping up to Samantha's back and wrapping her arms lovingly around her siame. "But I am equally confident that I can earn her forgiveness, seeing as we have a number of years before your retirement."

"Ah… and that is where you are mistaken, Liara." Karin smiled softly. "I plan on doing my total of 50 and getting out… so I am actually looking at retirement in 2211… just under 20 years away. And, if I fail to get promoted again, it could be sooner than that."

"Oh!" Liara gave Shepard a squeeze. "Then I do apologize, Siame! She could be here in less than half the time I was anticipating!"

"Even twenty years is still a pretty long time by normal Human standards." Shepard chuckled. "And, of course I'm not going to forgive you… but, as you have said to me in the past… only because there is nothing to forgive. It's just good news that I wish you had shared, even if it does change and she and Mom decide to go to Rio instead."

"Oh, Rio!" Karin's eyes brightened at the prospect. "Now, there's a place that would be awfully nice, too!"

"Hey! I was kidding!" Shepard exclaimed. "I would love for you and Mom to retire with us here! You can save Rio for the vacations… or come to S'Vatyne, with us."

Karin smiled. "Don't fret, Sam. You know I'll always love you like my own… and I can think of no place better to bring my heart than there, with the two of you two… and all of House T'Soni. And, just so you know, your mother has said the same." She glanced at her chrono and sighed. "And now, I need to get going or I'll never be ready for tomorrow. Love to you both!"

Almost in harmony, the two on Thessia responded together, "Love you too, Aunt Karin!" waving goodbye as the screen went black.

Oasia, Ilos, Refuge – 6 Feb 2192

With the holidays over and having everything they needed to bring young Michael with them to Ilos, Liara and Samantha decided to leave two days earlier than planned, to give themselves the weekend to get resettled. When they arrived on Friday afternoon, they found they had a new place to live. The SILC, under the direction of Aelia Dethan, had built them a new 'family' house, with a nursery attached to the master bedroom. Liara looked at Aelia in disbelief. "But, after these next two months, we won't be here nearly as much, with Sal taking over the dig site. Even then, we'll just be here a few days, and can simply stay aboard Aletheia. That housing could be much better utilized by one of the younger Batarian families."

Aelia simply looked at her and scoffed, replying, "The house can easily be reallocated to such a family as soon as you are truly done with your full-time here and return to Thessia to teach. Until then, I will not have young Michael living in such a small, barren, child-unfriendly location. He is going to need room to explore!"

"Explore?" The very thought made chills run down Liara's back.

Shepard chuckled and gripped her hand, answering before a surprised Aelia had time to formulate a response. "Of course, he'll explore. He'll be standing soon… and we'll be taking him for walks! He needs to learn how to walk on stuff other than a perfectly smooth ship deck, so he can learn balance."

"Exactly!" answered Aelia, a huge smile on her face.

Liara simply stared at her bondmate in wonder. "And just how in the galaxy did you come up with that response? This is our first child!"

"Hey!" Shepard smiled and shrugged, continuing, "I had to do something while you had all those chats with Dean Tevany… so I used it to do some child-rearing timeline investigations! By seven months, he should be recognizing his name, tracking more distant objects with his eyes, picking stuff up one-handed, and standing with support." Her voice got quiet as she added, "I want him to see the world we're building here. I know he likely won't remember, but there will be pictures… around which we can tell him stories of his wonderful father's accomplishments."

"His father?" Liara asked and then blushed and laughed at herself. "Oh… Goddess. That's me!" With only the briefest pause, she continued, "And I will be sure to tell him all about his heroic mother, and how she led the war to save the entire galaxy!"

"Ha!" Shepard shook her head. "He'll think they're all fairy tales!"

Aelia looked at her and replied, "That is likely very true… until the day he hears about it in history class and learns you weren't just telling stories…" She met Shepard's eyes, then did the same with Liara. "Just make sure you are prepared to answer all the questions he has when that time comes."

'Yeah." Shepard gave Liara a knowing glance as she continued, "We've already been warned about that, and coached a bit on how we need to approach it when the time comes."

"Yes," Aelia agreed. "We have had the same troubles with our children since the awakening. Expectations are incredibly high. We, as the adults in the equation, need to make sure we do not place such responsibilities and expectations on their young shoulders. Somehow, we must teach them this… but it will be difficult, for all of us. Truth can be a hard teacher, but truthful we must be, regarding all things we have experienced in our lives… both our victories and our defeats."

Oasia, Ilos, Refuge – 7 Feb 2192

Waking early as usual, Shepard made her way to the fitness area for her normal morning workout. She was surprised when she heard the voice, "Shepard! You're back!" just before strong arms wrapped around her from behind.

Recognizing Sal's voice, she chuckled and relaxed into the welcoming hug. "Yup. Just got in yesterday… but I'm sure you knew that."

"We heard… and expected to see you at dinner, but you never showed. You must have been pretty busy with the Ambassador and getting caught up on everything here."

"Yeah… and they gave us new lodging, so we had to relocate. And… however necessary, it wasn't a whole lot of fun… and took pretty much the entire day. Then we needed to return to the ship to eat…"

"All because you and Liara have a new son! Congratulations, by the way. I think it's awesome! Though, you should have called us. We would have been glad to help." Sal suddenly realized she was still hugging the captain, and released her so Shepard could turn around and face her. "I mean… wow! When Liara sent the missive to let us know your return would be delayed, the whole team exploded with joy. So, when do we get to meet him?" She blushed slightly as she added, "And you have to tell us the story of how this all happened! I mean… neither of you said anything before you left about adopting a child over the holiday. Rix and I both believe we know you well enough to know adding a new family member wasn't exactly in your Christmas plans…" Her voice faded as she saw the cloud form over Shepard's face. "I am sorry if that is none of my business and I have crossed a line I should not have…"

"No… it's fine. Michael definitely happened, there's no denying that… and we absolutely love him. As for him not being in our plans, you would be 100 percent correct." Shepard's expression shifted to something of an angry frown. "The kid was dumped at an orphanage with instructions he be brought to me, specifically, at the T'Soni Estate. I mean… who would do that, especially at Christmas time!?"

She couldn't stay upset over how they got Michael. Instead, she found herself chuckling at the look of incredulity that suddenly appeared on Sal's face. "Yeah… I know. Weird, but that's how it happened. We thought maybe he was sick, and his family couldn't afford to take care of him… or something like that. So, as a precaution, Liara and I had him checked out medically, just to be sure, but there was absolutely nothing wrong with him. We talked about it, along with all the family present for the holiday, and… well, as you already know, we adopted him." She smiled softly and continued, "He most certainly wasn't in our plans… but we're happy to have him and call him our own. He is now officially David Michael Shepard of House T'Soni!"

Shepard hadn't realized that as they spoke, many of those in the gym had stopped what they were doing to listen. As she concluded, a number of them cheered, and most came over to offer their personal congratulations. For the Protheans, adding a child to the family was the most wonderful gift that could possibly be bestowed upon them. After thanking them all and answering what questions she could, they all either returned to what they had been doing or broke off to attend to whatever duties they had been assigned for the day.

Shepard took a deep breath and looked at Sal, shrugged a bit sheepishly and said, "Sorry about that. Good way to waste our workout time."

"Don't be silly! Speaking of Michael's arrival in your lives is not a waste of time! It truly is wonderful news! I am happy for the both of you."

"And yet, your voice tells a different story. You speak of being happy, yet sound sad." Shepard looked at the Asari, but Sal wouldn't meet her eyes. "What's up, Sal? What's going through your head? Talk to me."

"It's nothing, Shepard." She glanced up, hoping to do so somewhat surreptitiously, but Shepard was still watching and caught her eyes.

"Uh huh." Shepard reached out and gently clasped her bicep. "Come on. Let's go grab a bite of breakfast, sit down, and talk."

"No… seriously." Sal shook her head. "I'm not ready to talk about it." She looked more directly into Shepard's amazingly green eyes and put a smile on her lips. "I promise we'll talk… just not yet… not today. But if you have time for a sit-down, do we still have time for a sword work out? That would be more therapeutic than anything. You have no idea how much I've missed my practice partner!"

Shepard chuckled and glanced at the bag she had tossed on the floor when she arrived at the gym. "I have something to show you first."

"Oh? Do tell, Cap…" Sal followed the woman's eyes and asked, "What's in the bag?"

Shepard walked over and opened it, revealing the new fencing gear Kasumi had provided. "I have a confession to make. I've been taking lessons over the holiday…" Shepard had a sly grin on her face as she continued, "… and I think you'll find me a significantly more difficult opponent than when I left."

"Oh, nice!" Sal started pulling stuff out, looking at the items. "This is some sweet gear… only thing I can't believe is you taking lessons from someone else! You're cheating on me, Shepard!"

Shepard blushed slightly at the Asari's phrasing and chuckled. "Yeah… well… it turns out a certain member of our House is very much into fencing. When she heard I was interested in the Asari sword, she took me to task. She ordered all the protective gear, from Earth, and started giving me lessons. Not nearly as kind about it as you. My poor shoulder took the brunt of it, making a point of abusing my known weaknesses until I learned to cover myself better and not be so obvious on my lead ins. I have also begun to learn to fight with either hand, so I can change lead as necessary."

Sal's eyes opened a bit in surprise. "That is a good technique to learn… which I was going to show you, once I felt you were ready." Her eyes narrowed and she grinned. "This is going to be fun! Let's see what you learned, Shepard!"

"Ah, shit. I'm tired!" Sal stepped back and lifted her face shield to eyeball the captain, who also appeared more than ready to quit for the morning.

Shepard nodded. "Agreed. I think we're ready to call it a day. That was some workout!"

"You have definitely stepped up your skills a notch… or two! You improved a lot over the time you spent at home. Maybe we need to get Kasumi out here as an instructor. If she's taught you this much, I wonder what she still has that she has not yet revealed to you."

Shepard laughed breathlessly, still not having quite caught her breath from the last match. "I very much doubt she has any interest in coming here and dealing with the high pressure. She's not the type to run around in a pressure suit all day."

"But she wouldn't need to in the gym… it's not as bad in here as it is outside." Sal smiled. "I have to admit, the Protheans are very gracious, setting interior pressures so low compared to what it is outside."

"Ahhh." Shepard smiled. "But you need to remember the Protheans were scattered all over the galaxy… so the pressure here is rather high even when compared to what they are used to. Take Eden Prime, for example… almost identical to the pressure on the Salarian homeworld, a little higher than that of the Turians…and only slightly higher than the Sol standard. Walking on Eden Prime is like swimming around in five meters of water on Sol. Something people do every day without even thinking about it. That's what this group is used to… so the accommodations they make for the set pressure inside the buildings is as much for their comfort as ours. But I also know their pressure suit technology far exceeds ours and, I do believe, it is going to be one of the first things on the trade market. It is certainly something that would sell."

"Oh, I bet it will!" Sal's smile spread to a grin. "Imagine being able to walk around and have your suit automatically adjust to keep the same interior pressure as you move between zones." She shrugged. "I mean, our suits do it now, but our light suits are limited to about a 5-atmo cycle… so we have to trudge around in the heavies. Having an equivalent to one of their suits which adjusts by the 11-plus we have here? That would be awesome!"

"Yes, it would be," Shepard replied. "I think their current tech has a 20-atmo range. Pretty sweet!"

"So… time for a hot tub?" Sal asked. "I never knew they existed… and the concept sounded so odd to me until Liara told me I needed to try it. After a workout like that one, I'm jumping in."

Shepard hesitated before answering, "I don't have a suit with me."

"Why do you need a suit to get in the hot tub?" Sal asked in earnest. "The room is pressurized…"

"Ahhh…" As if she wasn't hot enough from the exertion of their last match, Shepard felt the heat on her collar. "We… uhm… yeah." She let out a sigh. "This Human doesn't generally do nude in public."

"Oh, by the Goddess why not?" Sal chuckled at Shepard's obvious discomfort. "You have to be a nearly perfect example of the Human body! Why would you be ashamed to show it off?

"It's not that…" Shepard shrugged. "We Humans just have a different standard of modesty."

"You mean Humans in general are a bunch of prudes with an inability to define the difference between sex and sexuality. Come on, Shepard!"

Shepard stared at Sal for a moment – completely unable to come up with a response – before she 'heard' Liara laughing. {Well, you did make a comment about becoming more Asari, Samantha… this would be a good first step.}

{Wait. Are you actually encouraging me to jump naked into the hot tub with one of your students?}

{Yes… and even though she is a student, she is my student, not yours, and she's older than both of us combined… besides which, I trust you completely, so you can do whatever you want. And… as Sal has pointed out, that is a Human 'hang-up,' not an Asari one.} Liara was still chuckling as she said goodbye with a final comment. {I'll leave you to it, as it is your decision to make. I will not be upset with either choice… but I can feel your ache. It would be good for you, and it's not like we have a private tub in our rooms here.}

Shepard groaned; out of excuses, she looked at Sal and confessed Liara's position on the matter.

"It's settled, then. Let's get our stuff cleaned and put away… then hit the tub!"