Shared Tastes

A fill in progress for the Mass Effect Kink Meme, in response to http://masseffectkink.livejournal.com/6609.html?thread=29247185

* * *

Commander Alexandra Shepard ("Alex" to her friends) had been so lost in thought over what had happened earlier that day, she almost didn't hear it at first. But after the second time the visitor triggered the door chime, she finally snapped out of her thoughts. "Come in," she said, looking up from her desk and already relatively certain who would be on the other side of the door.



She wasn't disappointed. "Commander Shepard," said Liara T'Soni, the newest addition to the rather eclectic crew of the Normandy SR-1, as she walked into the captain's cabin. The asari archaeologist stared demurely at the floor as she entered, her hands clasped in front of her nervously.



"Glad to see you're feeling better," Shepard said, standing up at Liara's approach. "That whole 'merging of the minds' thing... that was pretty intense."



They had brought the shaken asari back from the dig site at Therum several hours ago. During the debriefing after they'd arrived back, Shepard had mentioned her exposure to the Prothean beacon to Liara, and it had seemed to re-energize the half-starved, exhausted asari archaeologist. Despite Shepard's concerns, Liara had insisted on performing some sort of asari technique to meld their minds into one consciousness. By doing this, Liara hoped to study first-hand the fragmented vision given to Shepard by the damaged beacon, and try to get a deeper understanding of its contents.



In the end, though, the melding hadn't done much good in decoding what pieces had remained of the Prothean message, and neither of them had learned anything new.



Anything new about the Prothean's final message, that is. Some of the other things Shepard had seen while she and Liara's minds had been one, however...



"Yes, the experience can be quite overwhelming at times," Liara was saying. "Especially when melding with a confident and strong-willed individual such as yourself," she shifted nervously in Shepard's presence. "Actually, that is why I came to see you. I have to make a confession. But... I'm afraid it might be a bit of a delicate subject."



Shepard gave the fidgeting asari a cocky smirk. "Don't worry, Liara. Nothing leaves this room."



"It's just that... I did my best to remain focused on the visions the Prothean beacon put into your mind. But the meld can sometimes be difficult to control," Liara averted her eyes from Shepard's, shame on her face. "Sometimes other memories might come up to the surface, without the other person even intending to see them." Her hands fidgeted some more as she added, "I've heard that this is especially likely if the memories are of a... intense nature. If strong emotions are involved – sadness, anger, or... passion – it can be difficult to avoid catching a glimpse of these memories."



"Hmm, I can think of quite a few of those types of memories in my past," Shepard said. "I'm afraid you're going to have to be a bit more specific about what you saw, Doctor. Some of my... youthful indiscretions on the SSV Einstein, perhaps?"



Shepard didn't know if asari blushed like humans did, but Liara's eyes widened and she brought a hand to her mouth in surprise at Shepard's bold response. "I'm so sorry, Shepard. I didn't mean to, but... yes, I might have seen some of the time you spent aboard that ship. And the... encounters you had with some of the crew when you came of age."



"'Encounters.' That's one way to put it," Shepard said, reaching up to brush back a stray lock of crimson hair. "Or you could say that I spent the four months before I left for the academy having sex with as many of the attractive women on the ship as I could, and left them begging for more when I shipped out." Shepard arched an eyebrow. "Does that about describe what you saw in my memories, Liara?"

"Yes, and I'm sorry," Liara said, nervously meeting Shepard's gaze. "I'm afraid I'm not that familiar with the sexual customs of your species, and... my curiosity got the better of me." She shuffled her feet a bit before speaking. "May I ask you something... if it isn't too personal?"



Shepard let out a light chuckle; "too personal" was putting their current conversation lightly. Regardless, she told Liara, "Go right ahead."



"While I don't claim to be an expert in humans, I was under the assumption that attraction to the same sex was relatively rare among your species," Liara said, her tone turning somewhat clinical. "But from the memories I saw, it seemed that you were able to initiate relations with quite a few of the members of the crew. I suppose part of the reason I was unable to resist intruding upon these memories was that I was surprised at how... successful you were."



Shepard gave this a shrug. "Well, it wasn't exactly a level playing field. Long time cooped up on a ship away from your loved ones, military regs keeping you from sleeping with your fellow soldiers... when an attractive 18-year-old comes around and offers to help you relieve some of your stress, no strings attached... hard to say 'no' to something like that, no matter what gender you are."



"But still... that gunnery officer you took behind the ammunition crates and..." Liara stammered, searching for the most delicate word to describe the memory.



"Yeah, Harbrook," Shepard said, a wistful smile on her face. "Had to clap a hand over her mouth to keep the whole ship from knowing what we were up to, she was so loud. Of course, with the stuff I was doing to her with my other hand, can't say I blame her."



Liara looked embarrassed by the frank discussion, but was still eager to learn more. "Before your encounter began, Harbrook said that she'd never been with another woman before. From what I saw in your memories, several of the other crew members made similar remarks. I guess I'm just curious if human sexuality is always that... malleable."



"Not always," Shepard said. "But with humans, women especially, it's not that uncommon for them to... experiment with it once or twice. Your average woman might spend 99% of their lives in relationships with men, and be absolutely fine with that. But you ask them, and chances are there's always that one night, when the mood was just right," Shepard smirked, "or they just got drunk enough, and they threw caution to the wind and tried something different."



"Yes, like that night on Elysium with you and that woman from..." Liara started to say, before gasping in shock. "Oh, Goddess, that just slipped out!"



Shepard enjoyed watching her squirm. "So, Liara... sounds like you saw more than just some wild nights on the Einstein, then."



Liara looked ashamed. "Yes, I'm afraid I did. Shepard, I... what I did was wrong. It was a violation of your privacy, and I wouldn't blame you if you wanted me off the ship when we arrived at the Citadel."



"Liara, I'm not going to kick you off the ship," Shepard stated. "Don't worry about it, okay?"



"Really?" Liara brightened, starting to babble a little in excitement. "Thank you, Shepard. I'll try to be more careful if we need to meld again. I wouldn't want you to think that I'm... some sort of voyeur. Or that I enjoyed watching you seduce those women. I mean, not that it was unpleasant to..."



"Liara, could you do something for me?" Shepard cut Liara's rapid stream of consciousness off.



"Of course, Shepard. Whatever you need."



Sitting down on the edge of her desk, Shepard crossed her arms under her chest and fixed Liara with an amused stare. "I have to admit, it's been fun watching you put on this little act. But seriously... just cut the crap."



"Shepard, what are you..." Liara started to say, but seeing the look in Shepard's eyes made her pause. Letting out a long sigh, Liara shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose the game is up, then."

With those words, Liara seemed to undergo a complete transformation. Her posture loosened up, and she unclenched her hands in order to lightly rest one against a cocked hip. Her face relaxed, the wide-eyed, innocent stare vanishing. Quickly replaced by a seductive, half-lidded gaze, and a light closed-mouth smile. She stopped averting her eyes from Shepard's and stared boldly at her.



"It was worth a try," Liara said, all the nervousness and meekness gone from her voice. "I guess I wasn't the only one who saw a few tawdry episodes from the past while we were melded."



Shepard nodded. "I gotta give you credit: you've got a good hustle going, T'Soni. The nervous, sheltered virgin. So vulnerable, so innocent in the ways of the world. Just waiting for the right woman to come along and sweep her off her feet, show her the ways of love. Honestly? If I hadn't already seen all the times you'd used this act before, I might have even fallen for it myself."



Liara laughed saucily. "I'm quite positive you would have. You certainly wouldn't have been the first woman to be completely convinced up until the end that they were seducing me, and not the other way around."



"Oh, I definitely saw quite a bit of that when we melded. Of course, once you got them into bed, all bets were off," Shepard said.



"Indeed," Liara replied. "I don't know if you saw my encounter with Matriarch Tilena while you were poking around in my mind?"



"Which one was that? Was that the one you tied up and started spanking with the..."



Liara interrupted with a bawdy laugh. "That was Tyrena. And while that was a stimulating encounter, Tilena was the one I met at the party. The one in the green dress."



"Right. The one you tore off of her. Looked expensive."



"Very. But I'm sure that Tilena would agree that what came afterward was worth every penny. Especially when I pulled out that strap-on to use on her. The look on her face when she realized that this supposedly naïve little maiden, barely past the age of maturity, was about to give her the best fuck she'd ever had in 800 years of life... that's one memory I have no problem sharing at all."



"That's the wonderful part about it, isn't it?" Shepard said, leaning back on her hands on the desk. "In the end, it's not just about your pleasure."



"It's about their pleasure, too," Liara finished Shepard's sentence. "And to be honest, I often find I get more enjoyment out of the hunt itself, rather than the... catch."



Shepard stood up, moving towards Liara slowly. "I totally agree. Each one of them is like a unique puzzle. A challenge for you to tame. They all have desires, needs that are unfulfilled."



Liara watched Shepard approach with a lazy smile. "And with your every word, your every action," Liara continued for Shepard, "you send them the subtle message that you are the answer. The one person who can satisfy every single one of their cravings. All they need to do is just let go of their inhibitions, forget every reason why they shouldn't and focus only on why they should do it..."



"Why they need to do it," Shepard was standing inches away from Liara now, fixing the asari with a seductive stare. "Need it more than food, more than air. And when that moment comes when they surrender, when they're naked and begging for your touch..."



Liara leaned in close to Shepard, her mouth next to Shepard's ear as she lightly breathed out her words. "You give it to them. And when you get to watch them cum for you, see the pure gratitude in their eyes as their muscles clench and their juices drip onto the sheets... that's better than any orgasm I could imagine."



For a short time, neither of them spoke, both of them breathing heavily as they recalled memories – their own and those of the other woman in the room – of slow seductions and long nights of passion.



Finally, Shepard spoke up. "So, Liara. Guess the real question we've got now is... which one of us is doing the seducing here tonight, and which one of us is being seduced?"



Reaching up, Liara put a hand to Shepard's cheek, turning her head to face Liara's. Licking her lips, Liara drew her face close to Shepard's. Shepard closed her eyes, readying herself for the kiss.

"Sorry, not interested," Liara said tauntingly, before pulling back and stepping away from Shepard.



Shepard opened her eyes, surprised as Liara drew back from her. "What do you mean, you're not interested?"



"I just told you, Shepard," Liara said, crossing her arms under her chest. "I'm in this for the thrill of the hunt. And right now, you're like a baby varren tied to a post. Not really much of a challenge."



Shepard was taken aback. "You're kidding me."



"To be honest, I've already set my sights on another member of your crew," Liara casually stated. "I just came here tonight to find out how much of my memories you experienced when we melded." She gave Shepard a sympathetic look. "Shame you saw so much, or we might have ended tonight in your bed after all. But since you already know how I operate, I just need to make sure you're not going to go around warning the crew about me, and ruining all my fun."



Shepard tried her best to hide her disappointment. "I wouldn't dream of it. But if you don't mind me asking, who are you going after? Couldn't be Tali. As persuasive as you are, I don't imagine you could convince her to risk a fatal infection just for a few hours of casual sex."



"No, not Tali," Liara said. Shepard waited for her to say more, but she simply stood and smiled. Obviously wanting Shepard to guess.



"Not sure who else it could be," Shepard said, running through the crew manifest in her mind. "Monica Negulesco, the weapons tech?" Liara shook her head at Shepard's guess. "One of the Draven sisters?" Liara indicated no, and a dirty idea came to Shepard's mind. "Both of the Draven sisters? Damn, if you pulled that one off, I'd make you the new commander of the Normandy out of respect."



Liara gave a taunting laugh. "Not even close, Shepard."



Shepard racked her brain. "Who else is there? I mean, I know it can't be Ashley, so..." Seeing the smirk that came to Liara's face, Shepard's jaw dropped. "You've got to be kidding me? You're going to try to seduce Ashley Williams?"



"Like I said, Shepard," Liara casually remarked. "I like a challenge."



Shepard raised a hand. "Hold on. There's 'a challenge,' and then there's 'never gonna happen in a million years.' And you managing to get Ash into bed is definitely the latter."



"Because of her religion?" Liara asked. "Shepard, I once had a priestess of Athame down between my legs, while I was sitting in one of the pews of a temple dedicated to Athame. Trust me; religion isn't going to be a problem."



"I'm not even talking about her religion," Shepard said. "I'm talking about the fact that Ashley's military career has been constantly hampered by her grandfather being the only human to surrender to aliens. Do you hear what I'm saying to you? She can barely even stand working with aliens. You think you're going to be able to convince her to sleep with one?" Shepard shook her head. "No way. Trust me on this, Liara: set your sights on somebody else, and leave Ashley to me."



"Oh?" Liara said, her tone intrigued. "So you've already managed to bed the lovely Chief Williams?"



"Not yet, no," Shepard admitted. "But I'm working on it. Been chatting with her since she got on board the ship, and I think it's about time to start dropping some hints."



Understanding dawned on Liara's face. "So, this isn't about you thinking I can't do it. You're just worried I'll get to her before you do!"



"Not a chance," Shepard said. And as she stared down the cocky, beautiful asari seductress in front of her, an idea started to form. "But if you're so sure you're that good, how about a little wager?"

"Seriously, Shepard?" Liara asked. "First one into Ashley Williams's panties wins, is that really what you're proposing?"



Shepard shrugged and looked away. "Of course, if you want to concede defeat right now, that's fine I suppose."



"Alright, then," Liara said. "You have a bet. So, what are the stakes of this contest?"



"You mean besides getting to make that hot little marine squeal?" Shepard asked. Walking to the other side of the room, Shepard opened her personal storage hatch on the wall, and grabbed one of the objects inside to toss onto the bed.



"Winner gets to use that," Shepard pointed at the strap-on resting on the mattress, "on the loser."



Liara walked over and stared down at the sex toy with arched eyebrows. "Mmm. Not sure that's much of a disincentive for losing, but all the same... you've got yourself a bet, Commander Shepard."



They shook hands, both of them already formulating their seduction strategies.