Ever since Mass Effect 3 came out, there's been a little reaper buzzing around my head, giving me so many stories and scenarios. I can't seem to stop pouring out little stories. So, I've decided to make this thread my file folder. Or display case. Or something that just holds a lot of stuff. :lol: But anyways, I know that there'll be a lot of little Mass Effect stories in the near future, so I'm just going to put them up. Read, comment, critique, love, hate, whatever! Just give me some feedback. If anything good comes from this, it's practice. :)

#1 - A Salarian Scientist

WARNING: This is mainly suggestive sexiness, and there's no real danger, but I thought I'd add a warning just to be safe.

A/N: Been pining of loss love. Not spoiling, but just know what this was the result of the genophage quest in ME3. Too much crying.

Small, unnecessary missions like those were the things that kept Commander Tara Shepard from breaking down under the stress. Little trips to the Citadel to help settle a brawl, or maybe buy a trinket for a friend, was what kept her somewhat balanced. Without such menial tasks, she surely would never had gotten this far.

But they were still tough from time to time, and they often left her worn and tired by the end of the day. As Shepard finally made it to her cabin, she began quickly taking bits and pieces of armor off. Relieved when she got into her civvies, she plopped down on her bed and pulled out a story.

She always liked to wind down from a mission with a nice little bit of fantasy, where everything was always happily ever after and love wins all. She smiled, wondering how, of everything that had died out over the years; these kinds of stories were still widely known. Maybe it was the hope for children, or life lessons. Or maybe they were just... classics.

Over the course of the past couple of weeks, Shepard had devised a lengthy list of great sites with really good stories. She thumbed through the hundreds, trying to find a short, sweet little story to help her relax better.

Her eyes drifted over the names and summaries, but nothing seemed to stick out. Finally, she picked a story at random, completely giving up finding specifics. It was a short love story about a human and an alien. The description didn't tell much more.

As she began to get into the story, the plot was revealed to be about a young woman who had never left Earth before. She was joining a group of salarian scientists on a mission to create better living conditions for a desert colony. The plot was a bit shaky at first, but it soon started to come together. It was obvious that the young woman was falling in love with a completely oblivious salarian coworker. She was hiding her very obvious feelings, and the plot thickened more and more as the salarian's life was threatened.

Shepard couldn't take it anymore. As much as she was interested in the beautifully blossoming storyline, she wasn't able to keep the similarities out of her head. The thought of her own love's life being threatened was barely moving - she could handle protecting him, and he wasn't too bad on his own anyway. But the way the young scientist concealed her feelings towards the salarian was all too familiar.

Everyone could see it, unfortunately. It wasn't that she was being that obvious, it's just that she couldn't help but be enthralled by the good professor Mordin Solus.

The way his big alien eyes stared straight into her soul, the quirky twitches and strokes of brilliance; the uneven horns, and his almost-crazy hyperactive train of thought was strangely... endearing for the commander, and she couldn't help it.

She always felt as if the salarian scientist could tell that she was majorly in love with him, but he never showed obvious signs or even hinted of his suspicion. He was completely oblivious to the pounding heart of his friend.

Shepard sighed, trying to get her train of thought back on track. She sat the stories on the nightstand and walked out of the captain's quarters. A stroke of bravery had taken over her body when she'd read that story, and she was going to act on it before she chickened out. But as soon as she was in his lab, with his full attention of the once determined but now utterly nervous commander, the bravery completely depleted from her and she froze, trying to think of a logical reason for her to be there.

She had nothing.

After a short period of silence, Mordin returned to his work. "Shepard. Need something? Seemed determined. Now not so much."

Shepard gulped hard. Her mind raced for something, anything. Then a bit of the bravery came back. Clearing her throat nervously, she decided to be subtle, at least. "I need some advice, actually. It's kind of embarrassing, actually. But I need some help with this." She paused before going on. "I've met this guy on the Citadel about a month ago, and we've been keeping in touch for quite some time." Or you know, not subtly. Outright lying. Yeah, that never goes wrong. "And, well... We're going to be meeting tomorrow, and I think it could go farther than usual, if you know what I mean."

The salarian seemed to digest the information. "Ah. Sexual advice." He paused, looking at her curiously. "But you are already experienced. Has happened before. Why is this time different?"

Her cheeks grew bright red. "Well, Mordin... he's uh... not human," Shepard paused when Mordin nodded understandingly. "Actually, he's... salarian," she almost squeaked.

Mordin's eyes shown confusion. "Shepard. Salarians not like humans. Barely any sex drive. Have amphibian decent. Definitely not like humans."

Shepard shrugged, barely caring anymore. All her bravery and nervousness had disappeared and she was more tired and disappointed than anything, for some reason. She hesitated before confessing. "Uh... never mind, Mordin. I lied. I was just curious."

Mordin looked even more confused, a look that was not fitting of his beautifully colored face. "Why not just ask then? Could have given answers anyway."

She shrugged again. "It doesn't really matter. I do like a salarian, but he's not more than a friend," she hinted, secretly willing him to take it.

He didn't seem to. "Really? Suppose you still want advice?" he asked friendly-like, completely unaware that it was him she was talking about.

Shepard shifted uncomfortably, a blush creeping into her cheeks. But she shrugged anyway. "I thought that you said they had no sex drive?"

Mordin shook his head quickly. "Said low sex drive, not none." He paused, seeming to hesitate. "Still would have erogenous zones even with no drive." He drew in a long, deep breath before continuing, which was strange, seeing as he always seemed to not breath when he talked. "Salarians have bent chests compared to humans. Indent," he said, pointing on his stomach where his chest started to curve inwards. "Protrude." He pointed to his chest at the base of his neck.

Shepard nodded slowly, trying to figure out why any of this information was helpful. She already knew that their bodies dipped oddly.

The scientist went on. Tracing from the bottom of his stomach to the halfway point of the protruding part of his chest, he tried to explain more. "When gently traced or rubbed, this can be a pleasant sensation." He brought his hands up to behind his head, right below his sexy, uneven horns, and traced his jaw downwards against his face. "Can also be pleasant." Again, he paused as if giving Shepard time to react. "Although pleasurable feelings can be made, most salarians still will not mate."

The eye Mordin was giving Shepard was making her a bit uneasy. If she allowed herself to exaggerate a bit, it looked almost as if he was... daring her to try all these tactics. Before she could stop herself, she smirked and took a step towards her favorite salarian. The sudden intrusion of space caught Mordin off guard, as if he hadn't really expected her to do it.

Her smirk faded and she felt suddenly humbled by his closeness. Without thinking, she leant in and placed a soft kiss on the corner of his wide mouth. She could hear Mordin hiss slightly, and wondered if he was turned on, despite of what he had said before.

Taking advantage of the surprise once again, she fully crashed her lips against his. After maybe three or so seconds of no response, she began to pull away, but the old salarian's lips quickly stretched out to meet hers and pull her back in.

Her arms instinctively wrapped around Mordin's waist, and his fingers gently ran through her hair. She giggled as he seemed disappointed when she pulled away. But instead of unlocking themselves, Shepard pressed the salarian closer to her body, running her hands up his bent chest and lightly nibbled on the place around his neck that he had pointed out earlier. A soft moan escaped Mordin's lips and Shepard smiled into his neck.

"A low sex drive, huh?"

#2 - Turian Fetish

A/N: Maya Shepard is basically me, hence the girlish-goofiness. Also, a turian fetish? Who doesn't have one? lol

The battle had been a quick, easy one, but the young Maya Shepard had gotten cocky in the last few shuffles. Giggling wildly, she shot up from cover and pulled the trigger on a merc. But the merc was a bit faster than she thought, and a bullet shot straight through her shields and landed in her shoulder. "Ouch!" she cried, and ducked back down again.

Garrus, her current companion, completely ignored the merc and looked right to Shepard. Seeing she wasn't badly wounded, really just pouting, he stood up and finished their opponent. Grinning, he sunk back down to look at Maya. Noticing his expression, she rolled her eyes and took a look at the injury.

It looked worse than it was. She pouted, her bottom lip protruding. "Aw, man! Look at this! Garrus, can you believe this?"

He chuckled. "What, that you got hit again? Yeah, I can believe that."

"No, my armor! Look at it!"

"What about it, Shepard?"

She stared at him, exasperated. "It was such a pretty purple! Now, it's just... bloody." The blood from the wound was leaking out of the hole in her suit, tarnishing the sleek purple-bluish color she adored. As you can see... Shepard wasn't as battle-hardened as most would like to believe of their wondrous hero of the galaxy. In fact, she was hardly better (in personality) than a sixteen-year-old Earth-born. Now, combat... That was where the good stuff came from.

Garrus's eyes turned from the button-cute face of his commander to the hole in her suit. A lingering worry shown in his tiny eyes that Shepard caught. She glanced down at the wound again, and noticed that it had gotten even bloodier. She started to feel a bit light-headed. "Maybe it's a bit worse than you thought, Shepard." Garrus took her hand gently and raised her. "We're done here. Let's get you back to the ship so Chakwas can take a look at you."

Garrus guided Shepard to the Kodiak. It wasn't that difficult for her to walk, but her mind was drifting off with pain. She huffed. "Garrus," she began randomly. "How's your face doing?"

Garrus looked at her, confused. "Um... my face?"

Maya huffed again. "Your scar, idiot. The big ol' blast you got for being Archangel? Remember?"

"Ah," Garrus mumbled, now understanding. "It's... better, thanks. Doesn't hurt as much anymore. Still can't feel parts of my jaw, though." He paused. "Why?"

Shepard shrugged, her eyes heavy and her mind not quite in it. "I was just wondering if I'll ever get to see your face... like it used to... be." Her voice started to drift off. She was losing a lot more blood than Garrus would have thought capable for such a small wound to her shoulder. Maybe she was hurt elsewhere as well.

But her words had caught him off guard. She wanted to see his face like before? Hadn't she specifically stated when he first woke up that he had always been ugly? Ha ha, maybe she was just feeling sentimental. "Shepard, it's never going to be the same. Even when I get this... thing... off, there'll be some major scarring."

Shepard sighed, and it almost sounded... disappointed? "That's a pity... Garry."

Garrus laughed out loud. Never once had she called him Garry. "Where the hell'd that come from, Shepard?" he managed between laughs.

Maya smiled broadly. "Just thought it up. Suits you." She paused, grinning wildly. "It's better than Prettyboy, isn't it?"

Garrus laughed again, shaking Shepard with the way he was holding her. She was enjoying the feeling. Almost too much for her tastes. Her mind wandered, wondering where these feelings of comfort were coming from. Probably because he's my best friend, she thought. But Garrus interrupted her train. "Oh, now I'm pretty, is that it?"

Shepard openly giggled at that. She formulated a smart retort, and without thinking, fired it. "Ah, Garrus, you know I have a serious Turian fetish. How could I say no to someone as gorgeous as you?" As soon as she said it, a lump formed in her throat. What the hell? Why'd she say that?!

Garrus seemed to take it weirdly too. Playful - subtle - flirting here and there was always fun, but that was... outright... OUT there. Shepard could hear Garrus gulp in their closeness, and suddenly regretted thinking about the proximity again. Garrus's laughter had died down, and both stopped talking. Then, finally, Garrus spoke up again. "We, uh... we're getting close to the shuttle. Should be back on the Normandy in no time."

The ride back to the ship was quiet, especially for Shepard's standards. She'd usually talk her follower's ears off and have them running for their normal positions before she offered to hang out more. But this time was different. There was some serious tension in the air. No one wanted to talk about what had been said. When they'd gotten back on the Kodiak, Garrus treated Shepard's wound with a spare first-aid, and she had thanked him. But other than that, it was completely silent.

--+--

"Shepard. I have noticed the increased distance between you and Garrus recently. I believe it may have originated from the wipe-out mission a week ago," EDI, apparently, didn't have anything to do but to annoy the already on-edge commander. "Whatever the cause, a captain must always keep a steady relation with the crew members, and this decreased interaction is obviously taking a toll on both subjects. I advise you to talk your problems out, Commander. It could get worse."

"EDI! This is some serious personal poop here. Leave me alone."

Maya could have sworn she heard the AI sigh. "Very well. Shepard. Whether or not you let this get worse is up to you. But know, I warned you."

Stupid AI. She was right. Grumbling, Shepard stalked out of her cabin. Was she really going to talk to Garrus? The whole deal was much simpler than they were both making it out to be, but subconscious emotions weren't helping. When Shepard finally reached the main battery door, she almost didn't want to open it. She sighed. EDI was right; if she didn't do this now, it was only going to get worse.

Shepard walked in, but Garrus was so enthralled in his calibrations, he almost didn't notice until she stepped in, stomping on the ground to make her presence known. Garrus turned around quickly, but as soon as he noticed it was Maya, he hesitated. "Shepard."

Shepard took a deep breath. "Garrus. I... " She let it out. "I'm sorry for what I said last week. I was way out of line. I know you're not interested. I know I didn't think I was, but..." She gasped. Had she really just confessed her feelings? Like that? Garrus seemed to notice too, because his tiny eyes widened even more and the shocked look in them was unmistakable. "Oh, God..."

"Spirits, Shepard," Garrus breathed. "I hadn't known you felt that way, if I had..."

"You would have let me down sooner?" she provided.

Garrus ignored her. "I would have confessed sooner." Shepard's eyes widened in shock. "Shep- Maya. I've felt... close to you since you helped me with Dr. Saleon. You helped me see things in a different light; I don't know what I would have been like without your guidance. And when you saved me from killing Sidonis... I could have ripped your throat out. But it paid in the long run. Maya. Shepard. You're amazing. I don't know what I would have done without you..."

Before he could go on, Maya leant into the tall Turian, burying her face into his neck. Surprised by this, Garrus stiffed. He could feel her breath in his sent deeply, content. He relaxed into the embrace, wrapping his arms around his commander's back and leaning in slightly.

They stood like that for a long while, basking in the feel of each other around them. There was nothing like it in the world.

"Hey, Garry?" Shepard said weakly.

Garrus smiled. "Yeah?"

A pause. "I was so not kidding about the Turian fetish."

A/N - I haven't done much with this one yet, but I think it's coming fairly okay. I really wanted to do a mixture of two different species as best friends - and what better to do it with than a cocky female drell and an awkward turian? Nothing. That's what's better. Nothing. lol

"Ugh..."

The boring evening sky bordered on sleep-worthy for the young drell. She sighed, bringing the wooly pad across her blade one more time before gently sheething it. She rolled her head backwards and caught sight of dark purple markings. She smiled then, twisting aorund with a huge grin on her face. "You're back!" She lept up from her stool near the window and hopped giddily towards her turian partner-in-crime. Well, not crime, but she liked to say that.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and rubbed against the side of his face. Her arch almost caught his mandible, but she moved away before that could happen, as it had happened many times before. Her actions were merely a greeting, and though dissapointing, her turian was willing to except he'd been friend-zoned.

The turian flashed a turian-type smile and growled playfully. "Of course. Wouldn't want to keep the beautiful Kai waiting too long." His smirk turned awkward quick when she gave him an odd eye.

She giggled at his awkwardness. Sighing, she said, "Nor I, you, brave Korik." She punched him in the arm playfully and nodded towards her blade. "Just finished polishing her. Would you like a fight?"

Korik sighed painfully and his eyes shown regret. "Sorry, sis, I can't. We've, uh, how should I say this...?" He looked sadly at his partner, and her black eyes grew saddened by the tone of his voice. She started to take a few steps back and hang her head when he spoke up. "We've got a job."

Her head flew up and she very nearly pounced on him in excitement. Her arms were flung around his neck again and she kissed his forehead. She squeeled giddily and finally let go, leaving Korik a bit sad but still thrilled to see her so excited. She calmed down a bit after dancing around in a circle for a while, and asked, "Who for?"

Korik gave a small chuckle at her eagerness. "Some human waiting for an old friend to show up. We've got to guard something for him." He smirked devilishly. "We get to kill anyone who gets close."

Kai let out a low chuckle, which would scare anyone but Korik, and grew a smirk of her own. "I wonder how many bastards will die before the night's up?"

------

Although their demeanor was like ignorant, foolish children, they sure knew what they were doing. They were trained mercs, but flew solo - sort of. Besides themselves, that is.

Kai was... well, let's just say she's feisty. The young drell was twenty-one, and quite a young age for such a skilled warrior. Her beliefs leave her at a somewhat disadvantage when it came to ranged combat. She was trained in stealth and her strengths lie with an ancient weapon, called a blade. She uses her abilities to slink around and slash her victims throats or stab them through the back. But if she does find herself in a position where stealth is not an option, she has some talent with biotics and sheilding.

As for Korik, he was more of a gun guy. He especially liked his modded shotguns, but was also good with sniping. If a turian had nothing, he had sniping. It was a stereotype lived up to. But other than guns, Korik was basically... a nervous guy with an awkward attitude. He was, by all rights, completely oppostie of Kai.

A/N - Added a little more to the previous one.

And yet, the two were insepretable. They were stuck to each other like glue, and anyone with eyes could see it. Best friends and feirce partners, Korik and Kai were like brother and sister. Despite their cultural and, sometimes, biological differences, the two street fighters were almost made for each other. Two entirely different pieces from two entirely different puzzles, yet the fit together.

And if there was one thing they did best, it was protection.

So, as you can imagine, they believed there would be no problem tonight.

"Argh," Kai grumbled, uncomfotably shifing in her leather suit. Her and Korik had been standing in the same position for almost three hours. "I thought you said the group was supposed to come tonight..."

Korik mumbled something Kai couldn't hear before replying, "They were. You have to be patient, Kai. You should know this more than anyone, Miss Sneaky-Pants."

Kai huffed but smiled all the same. "It's not the pants that make me sneaky, silly. It's the jacket," she joked.

Korik couldn't help but laugh. "Ah. I see."

"I bet you do, hot stuff." Kai smirked and glanced in his direction to see a horrified and embarrased expression. She laughed out loud, then ran her fingers around the edge or her arch - an act of nerves or uneasiness. She sighed, dropping her hand from her face and looked towards the door. "But seriously, Korik. I've got a bad feeling about this..."

Suddenly, gunfire could be heard from the room before. Screaming and shouting of military-like orders could be heard. Was this C-Sec? Why the hell would they be here?

But it wasn't C-Sec. After a moment or two, a small group of three barged into the room, and Kai and Korik drew their weapons in a split second, ready to fight the intruders. But their hesitance was evidant - these people were not the kind of mercs the human had described. He said large groups with yellow, blue, white outfits... Not three people with... Allience?

Kai was the first to speak up. "Who are you? You aren't mercs. Explain yourselves." Her voice was loud and commanding, full of authority. Anyone else and they would have shrunken away and obeyed immediatly. But this... woman... she didn't even finch.

Her voice was also full of authority and power. "Stand down. We didn't come to fight, we came to recruit."

What? This time it was Korik who spoke up. "Recruit? Who? For what?"

The human - the woman - tilted her head up respectfully, and bright red lights beneith her brown skin flickered into sight. Cybernetics? "I'm Commander Shepard, the savior of the Citadel and the first human spectre. I'm on a dangerous mission to stop the collectors, and I need the best people for the team I'm building. My boss gave me a list. You two are on it."

The whole lot of information took the pair aback. "We're the best? Nobody even knows of us."

Shepard smiled at that, and it was as sinister as a homicidal turian. "We did."

A/N - Here's a tiny non-romantic little story of a Shepard in need of assurance.

Looking out to the vast city beneath, Shepard leaned over the railing and let out a long sigh. So much had happened recently and there was so much to do. It seemed impossible that she would ever be able to so any of the tasks expected of her, but she trudged on like a good soldier, keeping her feet solidly on the ground and shooting the brains out of her opponents.

Everyone was so worried about Reapers. The war was raging as wild as ever - Earth, Thessia, Palaven... They were all fighting with all their hearts. They would never give up hope for their homeworlds, not even for a second. Being the soldier she was, Shepard was not too fond of being the diplomat to bring the species together, but she knew it had to be done and no other could do it.

But as she looked out onto the peaceful city below, she almost forgot it all. She wished she could just stay there, where it was calm and the constant threat of death wasn't breathing down her neck. She could hear the whirring sounds of cars going by and she wondered what the occupants were thinking. Were they worried about the Reapers, or their next paycheck? Shepard honestly didn't even care anymore. She knew that it was up to her to fight for these people; whether they knew about it or not.

Looking over her shoulder, she could see the many people whom she'd come to care for. Joker, Tali, Kaidan, James, EDI, Liara, and Samantha. They were her crew, her team. She cared for them a great deal, and they respected her so much... The thought of letting them down broke her heart. But she wasn't sure she would be able to do this. This... This 'saving the galaxy' thing was hard.

Closing her eyes slowly, Shepard tried to relax and listen to the cars going by. Soon, she heard heavy footsteps coming towards her. The sound of the familiar weighted thump of blue and black armor hitting the floor washed over the commander like a welcoming, warm shower.

Smiling, Shepard let the turian walk up beside her and lean against the railing with her. No words were said for the longest time, and Shepard could practically feel the hesitant concern coming from the turian. She sighed, turning towards him.

"Garrus," she started hesitantly. He didn't make any sudden movements, but she could see his head turn slightly out of the corner of her eye. "I... Have you ever thought about..." she hesitated again. "Giving up?"

Garrus's head snapped towards his commander with a hardness in his eyes. "Shepard," he started coldly, but then took in her expression. It was not of cowardice, as he suspected, but of exhausted defeat. His expression softened, and he let his hand rest gently on her shoulder. "Nolari," he said her first name softly. "I know things are tough right now, but we can't just give up."

Shepard sighed once again, not of content this time, but of hearing the unwanted truth. "I know, I... It's just so hard, Garrus. The entire galaxy's counting on me to save them, but... I don't know if I can do it. I'm just one soldier with poor social skills. How am I supposed to unite all the major species in the galaxy for war?"

Garrus was silent for a long time, and with each passing second, Shepard lost more confidence in herself. Finally, he spoke up. "Shepard. Look over there," he pointed to the group of laughing crewmembers, relaxing and enjoying the rare peace. "You are not alone, Nol. We, each and every one of your crew, has your back. We will never let you fail." Shepard looked up at Garrus and he tried to do his best human-like smile. Which was quite scary, really, but it's the thought that counts. "I won't let you down, Commander."

Shepard smiled back up at her friend, enjoying the feeling of comfort he brought her. "Thank you, Garrus." She punched his arm playfully. "I really needed that."

WARNING - Another slightly smut-y one. Not really much, but you may not want to read it! You've been warned.

A/N - I always thought that some of the stories written about Mordin were a little too... convenient for Shepard (or whoever else), so I wrote this to explain my own theory.

War. Death. Fighting. Commander Shepard knew that was all there was for her. She knew, deep down, that the only thing she was good at was being a soldier. She fought and killed many, and she was the best, she knew. She only wished there would someday be more than death staring her in the face.

Commander Zaisha Shepard always wanted to be a soldier. She knew from a young age that she wanted to grow up and protect her people. She wanted to be the best protector there ever was, maybe even a leader of protectors. Though she knew now that what was required of a soldier wasn't protection, but was strength. Strength to keep going after everything that had happened, everything that was happening, and everything she knew would eventually happen.

There had been some terrible things recently. Very, very bad things. Things that Shepard couldn't even admit had happened. Things like the realization that humanity was threatened, then the entire galaxy. Realization that there was probably nothing she could do to keep the inevitable from happening. Things like the Reapers, and the Geth, and the possibilities of war. She needed to do so much, so much in such a small amount of time; she knew she wouldn't be able to save everything.

She had always known it, too. But the thought had never occurred to her that she wouldn't be able to save the things dear to her - people who she knew she would never be able to live without. People she loved.

She remembered. Oh, yes, she remembered so very clearly. The day she met Professor Mordin Solus.

Her and her squad, made of her wonderful old friend Garrus Vakarian, and a new-found teammate, Jack, put their weapons away as they entered the medical clinic. The stern face of Commander Shepard softened fractionally as she noticed right away the victims of the terrible plague. There were aliens strewn about the rooms, coughing and moaning, lying wherever there was room.

Shepard grimaced as she awkwardly tried to step around the poor patients in an attempt to get to the back room, where she was told was The Professor, a potential teammate from a dossier provided by The Illusive Man.

Shepard and her team made it to the back rooms, where the salarian and his assistant were hard at work. She remembered her first sight of him, noticing a strange feeling build in her throat as she took in his appearance. He wasn't much different than any other salarians she knew, so she wondered why he had had that particular effect on her. Maybe it was the way his uneven horns and scars made him look more... rugged, or at least less slimy.

The conversations, as she remembered, had been particularly boring and not unusual in any way. Though she noticed his strange speech pattern quickly, she never mentioned how frantic it made him sound. She and her squad slowly made its way through the waves of gang members and delivered the cure to the environmental systems, effectively getting rid of the plague. The professor said his thanks, the Commander explained her intentions, and they planned to meet back in the ship.

Shepard never really knew how it had all happened. She had always felt that strange feeling when she saw the professor, but it had slowly grown stronger, surprising the woman when she finally admitted to herself that the thing she was feeling was a strong attraction. She would never admit that it was love, but she knew that there was no way of ignoring the feelings completely. She had to at least address them, if not act on them.

But Shepard was a practical woman to the bone, and the thought of just waltzing up to an alien and telling him that she was 'crushing' on him felt completely unacceptable. She had to do this tactfully and with as little humiliation as possible.

This woman was not a child. She knew how to handle these matters, but for some reason she couldn't muster the courage to confront her feelings. She knew she was being childish, but it didn't stop the feelings of unease when she thought of telling her friend of her attraction.

The commander finally found herself pacing the lab in which you could usually find the professor. But he wasn't there. Anger and unease threatened to burst from Shepard, but she kept pacing and counting, hoping he would soon show up so this terrible nightmare of childishness could end.

She found herself clutching at her arms in attempt to keep her anxiety in check. She needed to do something - anything - to keep her from tearing at the walls. She thought about what would happen, what the salarian would say - how exactly he would put her down. That's when the idea occurred to her - he might not reject her!

The mixed emotions that came with that thought crashed down on her head and she nearly whimpered at the weight of the idea. That she and Mordin would be together - the thoughts nearly created themselves. Just as one idea led to a particularly intimate one, the door drew open and in walked the professor, fumbling with his omnitool and mumbling half-made sentences to himself.

The commander froze, the intimate idea intensifying as a visual representation was provided. She imagined three-fingered hands sliding down her sides, uneven horns pressing against her stomach, half-choked moans of appreciation -

"Shepard. What are you doing here?" Damn. The dream bubble popped as the commander realized she had just been standing there mumbling to herself.

Shepard fumbled for words to say, but the usually eloquent soldier had nothing. "I, uh... Hm."

Mordin slowly eyed up the commander suspiciously. "You would not snoop in my lab, hm Shepard?"

Shepard straightened up and looked the salarian in the eyes. "Of course not, Professor. If I needed something in here, I would certainly ask you."

"Well. Then you need something?" The professor quipped.

The commander felt once again dumbstruck, her mind glancing back longingly at the abandoned intimate idea of her and the salarian. "Well, I, uh... I'm having trouble... I need to tell you... Important for you to know..." Her mouth seemed to be jumbling out chunks of sentences without permission from her brain, simply letting all her ideas be conjured, tested, and cast off in a jumbled mess.

"People say I don't phrase well," the professor mumbled quietly.

This angered Shepard. If only he knew the trouble she was going through for this. Finally, she blurted out, "I'm attracted you quite strongly and I cannot stand the inappropriate thoughts flitting around in my head, Professor. They're like these annoying little moths in my stomach and my brain, whispering dirty images and making me feel like a fool. I need to know if this is only me, because I just can't stand the pressure anymore, Mordin!" She'd cracked, she knew it. But at least it was out there and she no longer had to fumble for the correct words.

The professor seemed to take a moment to think it through, and Shepard could almost see the scientific gears in his overactive mind working hyperspeed. Well, more than usual anyway. "Shepard... Had no idea. Must know, salarians don't have sex drives as your species. Would not mate... cannot reproduce."

As much as she had prepared for the rejection, it had hurt anyway. She hadn't realized, however, how deep her feelings were until she could feel her eyes start to burn with held tears. Mordin noticed this, and fumbled awkwardly for a moment on what to say. "If intended to try human, would try you," he said quietly, stepping towards the commander hoping to figure out a way to stop her sadness.

The commander shook her head slowly in defeat. "No, it's... It's fine Mordin. I knew you would never be attracted to me, it's just hearing it has me in more turmoil than I had imagined." She sniffed softly, determined to not let a tear leave her eye. But she blinked, and a singular drop ran down her cheek. She swiftly wiped it away, trying to hide her face from him.

Mordin stood there awkwardly beside her for a few moments, trying to think of what to do to console his friend. He suddenly remembered that humans like to be embraced when in need of comfort. The professor thought over the outcomes of preforming such an action, then decided that it might be necessary in this situation, to keep their friendship.

Shepard was surprised to feel Mordin's meek arms stretching around her in a wiry hug. She stood still in shock as she felt the professor settle against her comfortingly. After a moment's hesitation, the commander slowly wound her own arms around his back.

She couldn't help it - she involuntarily drew a deep breath of his sent, getting lost in the feel of him. Having the man she cared so much for... this close to her... she couldn't help but think about her previous intimate thoughts. Was it so wrong to dream about such fantasies, knowing you couldn't have them, really?

That stopped her dead in her tracks. An angry thought popped up: Why couldn't she have them? He owed it to her to at least try it... If only a little. Why should she just let him make snap decisions without even thinking about them? Maybe he would like her company; he just didn't know it...

With that devious idea, Shepard uncharacteristically murmured something incomprehensively sweet, letting her lips gently caress Mordin's neck. She felt the salarian freeze as she did so. Grinning slowly, she trailed her lips along his neck, up, up, up... and kissed the base of his jawline.

That was it. Mordin pushed the commander back in dismay and distanced himself from her. "Shepard! What are you doing?" The sentence came out surprisingly un-chopped-sounding, almost normal. Shepard giggled at the thought of Mordin being normal. As if!

The commander smiled at Mordin, and she almost looked intoxicated. Smiling devilishly, she said: "I want you to know what you're turning down before you come to any rash decisions." She reached out quickly, too quickly for the professor to react, and grabbed ahold of the handle-like piece of his clothing, dragging him closer. She kissed his neck again, sliding up to his jaw and to his lips. There was no reaction at first, but after a moment, Mordin, strangely enough, returned the kiss.

It was strange kissing a salarian, Shepard remembered, but it was easily better than a krogan. Not that she'd kissed a krogan, of course.

As soon as Shepard knew Mordin would play along, she cut off the kiss. She could hear a slight breath come from Mordin's lips as if in a disappointed sigh. She smiled, holding him closer and whispered in his ear, "I'm just giving you a little company is all, Mordin." As she said his name, she could feel him shudder slightly against her. She laughed, "I thought you said salarians have low sex drives?"

Shepard could hear Mordin take in a shaky breath to reply. "It seems you have aroused what little of it I possess, Zaisha." And the sound of her own name, she made a quiet "Mmm" sound and rested her head on his shoulder again.

The two stood there like that for a little while. For a minute, the professor almost thought that was the end of the whole predicament, but soon he could feel the commander's hands sliding over his chest and down his stomach then back up again, circling a very sensitive area. A small moan escaped the salarian's lips and he could feel Shepard giggle against him.

She pulled back from his embrace and started to awkwardly fumble with all the latches and clasps on his suit. The professor didn't seem to agree completely with what was going through the commander's head, but he helped her get his suit off. It tangled off of the salarian, hanging at his waist, revealing his chest and bare arms.

Shepard gently stroked her partner's arms, sliding her delicate fingers up and down. She leaned forward and started to gently brush her lips against the professor's stomach, lightly placing kisses along the natural designs and patterns of his skin. A soft moan escaped Mordin's lips as she teased him, a shudder running down his spine.

Shepard smiled and licked a line going up the side of his chest, gaining and even louder moan. She could feel the professor's three fingers grasp her tightly before he pulled her up to meet his eyes. He leaned forward and kissed her this time, getting used to the feel of her small human lips against his. It was strange. They were so soft, yet so tiny...

That was when Shepard's tongue darted into his lips, playfully tangling with his own. The salarian had not expected such eagerness, but soon adjusted to the pace.

After a while in this state of playfulness, Mordin could feel Shepard's fingers digging at the rest of his suit that had yet to come off. The professor had almost forgotten the nature of her intentions, and was surprised to find that she was looking for far more than kissing.

Almost regretfully, Mordin gently put his hands on her wrists and pulled her away from his suit. She looked up at him in confusion. "I... I thought you were enjoying this."

The professor gulped. "Was," he chopped out, looking away from her for a moment in uncharacteristic bashfulness. "Salarians lack... proper organs for what you look for."

The commander's face turned bright red, and she needed to clear her throat before speaking. "But... Aren't you humanoid? Don't all humanoid species... have, uh... you know... stuff?"

Mordin gulped at discussing this particular subject with his friend, in this situation no less. "Humanoid, yes. Are not mammals, however. Amphibians, even. Like..." the professor searched for the correct animal on Earth he knew salarians were most like. "Frogs."

Shepard couldn't help but make a face at that thought, but quickly wiped it away for fear of hurting Mordin's feelings. After a moment's thought, she looked back up into his eyes and smiled a regretful smile. A sad smile. "I don't suppose you would just want to be my boyfriend then?"

The professor's lips twitched in amusement. "An old man, Shepard. Not romantically interested." He lightly set a hand on Shepard's shoulder to try and comfort her. She looked so sad, but happy at the same time.

"Well," she said. "I guess I'll just have to settle for best friend."

And they'd stayed friends. Always watching out for one another, always chatting up about the newest invention or play. The professor knew Shepard loved him, and he loved her. Even if it was a different kind of love, they never left each other's side.

But as the Kodiak flew from the burning facility on Tuchanka, a "friend" was just one of the things Shepard lost.