Mass Effect When the Hunter is Hunted

_Thane Krios and FemShep._

_The prompt by lochnesie on tumblr was:_

_"All of the Shrios "Hold my hand, Siha" and "Meet me across the sea" fluff is really fucking cute and all_  
_BUT_  
_Wheres all the fanfiction about PREDATOR Thane? He's an assassin. He kills for a living. He's a hunter._  
_I want him eyeing Shepard on missions like a wild animal. I want him tracking her from the shadows._  
_I need Predator Thane like air (pun intended)."_

_So this is what I came up with._

_Warnings: explicit sex, generous use of the words penis and vagina (cause that's how I roll), trigger warnings for stalking (obviously), light bondage and breathing problems._

* * *

Thane waited for the night shift to start for his exploration of the Normandy. Rationally he knew that this ship was safe for him, that he wasn't on enemy territory. Still, old habits died hard. Taking stock of his surroundings and mapping out the exits and hidden passageways was as nice a way of spending his sleepless nights as anything.

Sleep had long stopped being his friend. To sleep in careless bliss was a luxury of people who were not honed to be a hunter. He had never slept much but recently, the guilt over actions of his past life had turned sleep into battles with nightmares.

He chased the dark thoughts away as he found another entrance hatch, leading into the crawl space around the bulkhead. He had already explored most of this section on this level and was delighted to find a ladder to lead him down one deck into a new area. Sliding under stabilizing beams and cable trays, he found a ceiling hatch. He opened it carefully to orient himself and saw that he was above the table in the mess hall. He was about to close the hatch when a movement drew his attention.

Someone else was also up at this hour, maybe chasing the same kind of nightmares. It took him a moment to recognize the slender figure as Commander Shepard. He had never seen her without her armor or the Cerberus BDUs.

Right now, all she wore was a long, white shirt, loosely hanging from her shoulders until mid-thigh. Her strong legs showed cuts that glowed faintly red. The same kind of marks were visible on her arms and in the darkness of the mess hall he could even see some red glow on her cheeks. He had never noticed those red glowing lines during the day.

The Commander prepared something in the kitchen and bent over to search a lower cupboard. That offered him an enticing view of her perfectly round buttocks and like an old memory, a feeling he had long thought dead, rose up inside of him.

It had been a long time, such a very long time that he had felt this way by looking at a woman. Before he had met Irakah, sex had been a release he took whenever he chose. Sometimes it was even a pleasant way of fulfilling a contract. But Irakah had opened his soul, awoken him from his sleep and showed him true passion. After her death, he had never again given in to the desires of his body with another woman.

To atone for all the death he had brought into this world, he had joined the Commander in her fight, to do something good. To think about his own pleasure now seemed selfish. But, maybe, to find peace within himself, he also needed to let Irakah go. He would forever love her but her soul was with the goddess now.

Down below in the kitchen, Commander Shepard put powder from a satchel into a cup and added water. She pressed the lid down tight and shook it. Thane had more control than to let out a gasp but it was a close thing. The way her muscles played on her arms and the curvy bits of her body bounced with every shake was delightful. She looked around as if she wondered if anybody was watching her and he got to see a little smile play on her lips. On the Commander, that was a rare sight.

She took a few ration bars and her cup and padded back towards the elevator; her bare feet made almost no sound as she walked. Thane dropped the hatch silently back into the frame and moved backwards. He was about to make his way upwards, maybe trying to find a secret passageway to the Commanders quarters but he stopped himself.

How very unlikely of him, the methodical hunter, to follow a sudden desire like that. He had to chuckle at himself. Was he really going on a prowl like he was a young man again, crazed by emotions too powerful to understand for a young mind?

He shook his head and went back towards the unfamiliar sections of the ship to map it out.

* * *

It had become routine for him to watch the Commander getting her nightly snack. He actually looked forward to it. It was rare to see the woman so unguarded, so pure. She protected herself at all times, projecting a cold and efficient front. Whatever people got to see of her was always deliberate, calculated. Thane knew that seeing her in her nightshirt at night, standing on her bare tiptoes to get her satchel from the cupboard, was something that not many had ever seen.

She shook her drink again, her whole body vibrating along. Thane smiled, he had come to love this sight.

She walked back towards the elevator and this time he did follow her upwards. It took him a while; ladders and cramped spaces slowed him down as he made his way up to the top deck, as silent as possible. Finally, he could sense that he had reached the upper section of the hull, it was noticeably colder this close to the outer hull. The Commander's room was heavily insulated and soundproofed and he noticed a few alarm systems that he had to disarm. He wondered if Cerberus had installed these security systems or the Commander.

Finally, after long, agonizing minutes in an uncomfortable position hanging upside down from a structural beam to disarm an area alarm, he had finally access to a hatch in the ceiling. He lifted it carefully, making no sound. The room was softly lit by a pale glow and he could make out the woman on her bed, curled up in a blanket.

She seemed to be asleep but it was a restless sleep. She was shaking, her eyelids fluttering, her breath coming in gasps. Her mouth was open in a silent scream, her head thrashing around, deep rifts on her forehead showing the suffering she went through. She clenched her fists, curling up in herself until she finally awoke with a scream. She sat up, her arms wrapping around herself as a quiet sob left her.

Thane watched her, his heart aching to go to her and comfort her. She was such a strong woman, so undeniable powerful and deadly. To see her so vulnerable, suffering from nightmares just like him, drew him even stronger to her. He knew how it felt to fear sleep, to feel the darkness creeping up on the soul when it was least protected.

He watched her get up, presumably to get a glass of water or maybe she had given up on sleeping all together. Thane waited until she had closed the bathroom door behind her to set the hatch back into the frame. To his own surprise he noticed that his hands were shaking. This woman touched him more than he wanted to admit.

* * *

"Moving!" Commander Shepard called out, announcing her biotic charge. In the span of one moment, she zapped over the open field and slammed into a group of collectors, staggering them. They had no chance of getting up before a powerful Nova blast ripped them apart and threw them away.

Thane had to chuckle, this was Commander Shepard's favorite move and he could hear her laughter over the comm. The remaining collectors dropped one by one from precise headshots. Somewhere in the back, the turian had set up camp in a sniper perch. Since Garrus always was the designated sniper on Shepard's squad, Thane fought more frontal, using a submachine gun and knives. He liked this way of fighting, unlike other assassins he had always preferred a more close up approach.

The only problem he had with this way of fighting was that he noticed his illness more. Running after the enemy made him gasp for breath, his lungs unable to take in all the oxygen he needed. In a natural response, he felt panic rise up in him. He ducked behind a boulder for cover and used a breathing exercise to calm himself down.

Approaching steps made him tense until he recognized the strong but light steps of Commander Shepard. She sat down next to him, offering him a water bottle that he declined. Her armor was hiding her body but he knew how those curves looked underneath. It was easy to imagine how the beads of sweat on her neck would run down over her clavicle towards the centre of her chest. How they would collect on her bosom and form a trail of wetness down her sternum. How they would pool in the dip of her solar plexus if she lay in front of him.

Her voice pulled him out of his pleasant daydream. "Krios, I'm the grunt here, I do the running. That's not your job," she said, matter of factly.

Thane dipped his head towards her, he liked the way she always came straight to the point. "I know, Commander, but you hardly need two snipers."

She grinned at him. "Well, I have been known to try snipe with a machinegun but it's not very effective. I'm not asking you to be a sniper, I want you to watch the field, to watch my surroundings. I'm always pushing forward, always running and can sometimes lose the view. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I think I understand. You want me to watch your back and tell you what goes on outside your field of vision. That would mean that I would talk over the comm a lot."

"I can think of worse things than hearing your voice in my head," she said and actually winked at him. Thane had never seen her act so relaxed and friendly and it instantly intrigued him. Maybe she was warming up to him?

He dipped his head politely. "Very well, I will be your eyes in the field."

"Thank you, Thane." She smiled and it transformed the harsh face of the hardened soldier into a beautiful woman.

Thane let his eyes linger on hers, unblinking holding her gaze. He didn't look away until she did, a faint red blush spreading on her cheeks. She got up and put her helmet back on. Her strong frame fell back into the familiar soldier stance and she walked forward with determination. But she threw one more look over her shoulder and quickly looked away when she caught his look.

Only when she was a few steps away from him did he allow himself to take a shuddering breath. The way she had looked at him, the fire in her eyes, it had shaken him more than he wanted to admit. The power in her eyes was so alien and so familiar at the same time. Those eyes - he never would have thought that he would find them beautiful.

The continuing fight distracted him enough but when they were back on the Normandy, he felt himself being drawn to those fiery eyes. He was eagerly looking forward to his nightly watch.

At the usual time, he had taken his position behind the hatch over the mess hall, waiting for the Commander to get her nightly snack. He waited a long time but after about an hour, even his almost endless patience was used up. His leg had begun to cramp and he needed to change his position. He let the hatch fall closed and made his way back into the main crawl space.

When he had enough room, he stretched and massaged his cramping leg. He kneaded his muscles, a bit more firmly than necessary. There was an anger inside of him that he couldn't quite place. He stretched once more, as much as he could in the cramped space. An unusual sound travelling through the bowels of the ship made him perk up.

He slid down another hatch, following the noise. He could distinguish laughter and the sound of glasses clinking against each other. He crawled forward. He recognized this section, he had looked around here before. This was the Port Observatory, where the thief Kasumi lived. Thane had seen this room before, she had a well equipped bar.

He found a ceiling hatch on the far side of the room and lifted it carefully. Kasumi was an experienced thief, her instincts would be especially trained to listen for unusual noises. He was even more careful to not make any sounds.

It looked like he didn't have to worry about being heard - Kasumi and Shepard were lounging on the couch, laughing and giggling. Many empty glasses and bottles on the table and bar explained their jolly behaviour. They were telling each other stories of their past. Shepard had her hair loose and her cheeks were bright red. She laughed out at something Kasumi had said, loud and a bit vulgar.

Thane stared at Shepard, her face so open and unguarded. It warmed him deep inside to see her so happy.

Kasumi was gushing about Jacob and his body, turning the conversation to the bodily features of various crew members. Thane was pleased to hear that he was also mentioned in an appreciative way in this competition. He listened intently if Shepard alluded to a preference for someone but before she could say what she thought of him, Kasumi interrupted her. She asked Shepard about Garrus, hinting at him possibly being a interested in her romantically.

Thane sucked in a harsh breath. Lucky for him, the sound was drowned out by the conversation and laughter between the women. He closed the hatch and robbed away, back into the main crawlspace. He made his way back to his room in the life support section. He hurried, he was almost too noisy. By the time he reached his room and dropped down on the floor, he was out of breath and slightly dizzy.

He grabbed the edge of the table for support, calling on his training to calm his breathing. He was furious, angry, and he wasn't even sure why. It took him a while of quiet self-reflection to realize that the idea of her being with the turian infuriated him.

He wanted to be with her. Shepard should be his.

Thane let his head fall forward. It was about time that he admitted to himself that he was seriously infatuated with Commander Shepard.

* * *

It was the night shift on the Normandy again. Thane waited in the shadows for Commander Shepard.

He had changed tactics in the last few days. Instead of hiding in the bowels of the ship, he now prowled the hallways. It was harder to hide but there were enough shadows for him to disappear in. It gave him a special thrill to watch her, even smell her, as she walked past him, unaware of his presence.

He had not watched her through the hatch in her room again. It was tempting and he revisited that memory often. But now that he had admitted to himself how much he liked her, watching her in her room felt wrong. He was a hunter, not a stalker.

Light footsteps of bare feet announced her arrival and Thane retreated deeper into the shadow. The shadow was no coincidence, it had taken him some inventive work up in the wires to turn off the lights on this corner in a way that would not look suspicious.

Commander Shepard came around the corner and stopped when she noticed the lack of light. She walked towards the broken lamp, straining her neck to look up. She switched her omni-tool on, the orange glow lighting up her face and scanned the ceiling. Thane cursed inwardly, of course Shepard would try to find the reason for the problem, it was so typical of her. All he had wanted was a whiff of the fragrance from her hair as she walked past. Now he was stuck in this dark corner, uncomfortably pressing his back against a nook in the wall.

He breathed in slowly, the constant hum of the ship hiding the noise. The Commander was studying the readout of her omni-tool with a frown. The orange glow bathed her face in light. Thane studied her features, mapping the angle of her cheekbones, the soft fullness of her lips, the curve of her eyelashes to his mind. The sharpness of her frown, the tight tension around her mouth could not distract him from her mesmerizing beauty.

Commander Shepard was not a conventional beauty by human standards, that much Thane knew. The Butcher of Torfan was known and feared for her ruthlessness, not the beauty of her smile. But Thane had seen that unguarded smile, the way the tension left her face and her lips curved up, soft and trembling. It was almost too much to handle for him, now that he had opened his heart to these feelings after so many years of being cold inside.

She suddenly looked up, staring into the shadows that felt like inadequate cover now. Had she sensed his watching? Thane knew that feeling, the prickling down the spine when someone was watching him. He held his breath and wondered if she sensed him. A bead of sweat was trickling down his frills as she kept looking into the darkness. It was unlikely that a brutal fighter like her had much practise in infiltration, in training the senses to those tiny tells hidden in the darkness. But not much was known about Commander Shepard's abilities. She got the job done no matter the cost, that was the only certain constant about her.

Just as the lack of air began to make his chest burn, the Commander shut off the tool and walked towards the kitchen. Thane took a relieved breath when she was out of earshot. Her scent still filled the hallway, lingering in his nostrils as he calmed his breathing. It was a fruity note, not too sweet with a sharp twinge of a human spice. Underneath the artificial smell of her soap and shampoo he could smell her. He had trained himself on her unique scent, using his superior sense of smell like he used to do as an assassin working in complete darkness. What used to be part of his tools, was now his favorite connection to her.

Following her scent through the halls of the ship had become his favorite pastime. He knew where she was or where she had been and he could just follow her trail and watch her from afar. He was tempted to let his own pheromones flair out whenever she was close but he resisted. It would have felt like cheating to entice her that way.

He didn't hide from her during the day shift, it was impossible with how busy the ship usually was. He just stayed in the background, inconspicuously standing on corners, watching other crew members work, occasionally helping out. Whenever she noticed him, he just smiled at her with his frills deep red. At first she had looked slightly annoyed, probably wondering why she ran into him so much. But after a while she smiled back, even blushing sometimes. He loved being the cause of that.

The sound of a shaking drink brought Thane out of his dreamlike state and he chuckled silently at himself. He felt incredibly young again, despite the burning in his lungs.

Noiselessly, he moved out of the shadow and disappeared into the hallway. Admiring her from afar had enlightened his heart but he decided that it was time to take things a step further. He might have felt like a young, shy romantic lover again but that wasn't truly who he was.

He was a man and he wanted her.

* * *

Thane made it his mission to get close to her every day. He waited for her to turn up in the kitchen, to casually walk past her. He crossed her path on her rounds, seemingly accidentally brushing his hand against hers as he met her. Knowing when she usually did her workout routine, he waited for her in the gym area of the cargo hold, practising his fighting stances. The way her eyes got wide when she saw him made his frills shine. She was definitely not averse to him.

He had to be careful not to overdo those seemingly innocent meetings and touches. Garrus and Jacob were already giving him weird looks and he was even more secretive when they were around. Garrus especially was eyeing him critically and it was kind of amusing to see that he seemed to be more aware of Thane's advances than Shepard was.

Shepard still looked at him surprised when ever his finger slid against her hand or he brushed against her shoulder. He had come to love the blush that spread up her neck and how flustered she became. It made him seek her out even more, stepping into her personal space, speaking to her from behind so that his breath was blowing over her neck. He was close enough to see her shiver and that delightful blush spread on her skin again.

To his own surprise, she herself began seeking him out. She included his room on her daily rounds and he took great care to always be there when she came. Noiselessly dropping out of the ceiling hatch with a hot cup of tea to be right on time had been difficult sometimes. He had practised the pose of sitting as if he was deep in thought in a prayer, even though his heart was racing and his lungs burned in desperate need for air.

It was wonderful to speak to her. Underneath that harsh exterior and the impenetrable walls she had built around her personality, there was a caring and loving person. He found himself in deep, philosophical discussions with her, about religion, family, and guilt. There was an unexpected connection here in how they both tried to live and grow through things they had done in the past.

He came to look forward to those talks and cherished the connection they built. She didn't shy away from any topic, even if he was brushing her off at first. But after a while, he found relief in they way she looked at him when he spoke of his revenge after Irakah's murder. There was no judgement there, just deep understanding and compassion. Thoughts and feelings that he thought he had buried long ago came back to the surface and to his own wonderment he wanted to talk about them with her. She listened.

Listening was Commander Shepard's secret power, a quiet, non-judgemental way of hearing what other people said. It was not something one would expect in the Butcher of Torfan, it took most people by surprise. Thane was no exception. He was falling into those hard eyes that seemed to soften just for him, and he came to talk about things that he had wanted to forget a long time ago. But as he spoke with her, it made him feel better, calmer.

It was more difficult to get her to open up to him in the same way. She avoided talking about her own dark secrets, evading the questions whenever the conversation turned to her. But Thane did not falter, he kept asking and waited quietly until the silence forced her to answer.

Slowly, very slowly she let her walls crumble in front of him, giving him hints of her true self. Her secrets and her guilt were just as dark and crushing as his own and he ached to comfort her. But he did not touch her, their relationship was not physical like that yet. For touching her, he still had to resort to those accidental brushes with his hands when he crossed her path.

She still blushed when he initiated those 'accidental' touches but she also gave him a smile sometimes. She was expecting his little moves now and sometimes he even teased her by deliberately not touching her, not letting his fingers brush against hers. The raised eyebrow she aimed at him at that endeared him even more.

He still hunted her. It was his secret pleasure to watch her as much as he could. He kept away when she spoke to other crew members though, it felt unethical to listen to other peoples secrets. Just like him, everybody was opening up to her, telling her everything that weighed on their mind. But when she was alone, when she sat quietly at a table in the messhall, working through datapads, he secretly watched her.

Sometimes, when she felt that nobody was watching her, unaware of the drell's eyes always resting on her, she let her guard down. Her face softened then, showing the person he had seen on pictures in her recruitment files. Carefree, adventurous, a young woman ready to take on the world. She looked even more beautiful then. He usually picked that moment to step into her vision, revelling in the openness that lingered on her face.

There was a calming routine to this little game he played and he wasn't sure if he wanted to change it. He strongly felt drawn to her beautiful soul and he wasn't denying the physical attraction either. But he was a dying man, he should not lay this burden on her. There were others, more suitable to give her what she needed.

His hands cramped around his cup as he worked those thoughts over in the quiet of his room. Denying himself to love her was the right thing to do.

Thinking of her with someone else made anger burn inside of him like a cruel sun over a dying planet.

* * *

Thane was hunting for Shepard again. He just couldn't stop. He had not seen her all day and he missed her. He had to shake his head at himself, how ridiculous to miss her after just a few hours of not seeing her. Soon, he would have to make a decision if he wanted to go further or retreat. Waiting in the limbo of unfulfilled love could not continue.

After having looked everywhere on the ship, first by sliding through the ductwork and later by searching through the halls for her scent, he stopped in the messhall. He was slightly dumbfounded, it should not be possible for her to hide from him like that. Short of asking someone, he could not even guess where she was.

Asking the acting CO Miranda Lawson would have been the logical step on a normal military vessel but Thane knew better. He made his way over to the forward battery and had the ship's AI ask Garrus Vakarian for permission to enter his refuge.

The door opened for him and he saw the turian hunched over his glowing console, typing. "Just a second, Krios, I need to finish this calibration."

"Of course."

Patience was a trained virtue for Thane, it had not come naturally to his nature. He was about to lose it when Garrus finally shut off the input field with a beep and turned towards him. Thane opened his mouth to ask him about Commander Shepard but Garrus spoke first.

"Did you see the planet underneath us?" he asked, his subharmonics transmitting an unusual worry.

Thane nodded, slightly irritated at being derailed like that. He had seen the white ball of ice when he had looked for Shepard in the starboard observatory. He had assumed that they were orbiting it to extract resources from it.

"That's where she is," Garrus stated.

Thane needed a second to digest that information. "I don't understand," he said to appear inconspicuous.

Garrus leaned back against his console and looked him in the eyes. "Don't think I didn't notice your interest in her, Krios! I bet, you've been crawling all over the ship looking for her today."

Thane hid a smile by turning his head away. "I cannot deny that."

"And I'm telling you that she is down there. Alone."

Thane's head snapped back. "Why would she go alone?"

Garrus turned and pulled up information about the icy planet on his console. "This is Alchera, the first Normandy went down here. This is where she..."

Thane didn't need him to finish that sentence. She had died here, or at least came as close to dying as a person could get. She had been spaced over this planet, her hardsuit leaking the air she needed, her lungs burning, her vision fading; hopefully she had lost consciousness when she had entered the atmosphere of the ice planet.

The turian took a deep breath and switched the display to the Normandy's outer cameras. He zoomed in on the planet. With the knowledge of what he was supposed to be looking for, Thane could make out the rugged edges of a broken spaceship poking out of the ground, covered in ice and snow.

Garrus spoke, looking at the display with his mandibles clamped tight to his face. "The Alliance asked her to retrieve the personal insignias of the crew members that died in the crash. I don't know why she still does things for the Alliance, they dropped her like a rotten linga berry when she came to them but she feels it's her duty."

"She still shouldn't have gone alone," Thane snarled, worry and anger making his voice sound rough. He remembered perfectly when she had told him that most of her nightmares made her relive this very moment of her tumble towards this planet, desperately breathing in, dying again and again.

"There's nothing down there, so she didn't take a team. But," Garrus let out a trill full of worry, "I agree, she shouldn't have gone alone. But you know how she is with people telling her to take care of herself." He turned towards him. "Maybe it would be good if you tried to be there for her when she returns. She will lock it all up and appear to be fine, you know how she is..."

Thane nodded at that. He was obviously not the only one who paid attention to Shepard's quirks and tells.

"EDI?"

"Yes, Sere Krios?"

"Please alert me of Commander Shepard's return as soon as the shuttle comes back to the Normandy."

"Of course," the AI answered. There was a noticeable pause, something EDI did a lot. It made her appear more like a person. "I could also provide readout data from the health monitoring systems of her hardsuit."

Thane nodded, even though the gesture was probably lost on the AI. "Yes, that would be -"

"- only necessary when the readouts show a danger to her well being," Garrus interrupted with a pointed look towards Thane.

He felt embarrassment creep up in a hot flash up his neck. Garrus was right, he was overdoing it with his need to watch her. Having her personal health data transmitted to him all the time was going much too far. He was already more of a stalker than a hunter if he was honest to himself.

"How long has she been down there?" he asked no one in particular.

"About three hours," Garrus and EDI answered at the same time.

"That's a long time. Has she been in contact?" he asked the AI by looking up to the ceiling.

"I have received automatic reports from her systems and she has contacted me three times with status reports," EDI answered.

There was no immediate concern, so all he could do was wait, Thane realized. Wandering the ship, knowing that she wasn't even there, had no appeal to him. He would return to his room and meditate until the AI contacted him. He turned around, dipping his head towards Garrus but the turian stopped him from leaving.

"You can wait here if you want, Krios."

Not to wait alone had a certain appeal, so Thane nodded and settled down on a storage box, closing his eyes. He took a few breaths, ignoring the raspy rattle in his chest.

"Krios?" The rumbling voice of the turian made him open his eyes again.

"Yes?"

Garrus sighed and turned towards him. "She needs someone. Someone who can give her more than me."

"Why can't you give her what she needs?" Thane had wondered about that before.

"There's a difference between friendship and sex or even love. I can provide the first but not the latter."

Thane took a deep breath that was still not enough for his weak lungs. "You already know that I'm interested and so does she. We played this game for a while now. But I'm a dying man -"

"- and you may not have much time," Garrus interrupted. "Neither does she. Her life revolves around death and no one knows how long she can escape it." He fixed him with a hard stare. "This is about her and if you can give her the love she deserve, how much time you spend together is not important. Just be there for her as long as you can."

Thane bowed his head. He felt strangely relieved for having the turians blessings, not that he would have given up his hunt without it. "If she accepts me, I will be there for her as long as she still wants me."

"That's all I ask. And Krios," Garrus took a step towards him, looming over him, a threatening growl rising from his chest, "if you hurt her in any way, I'll kill you."

"Of course." Thane had no doubt that the turian would make true on that promise, despite all he knew about evading and hiding. No one escapes a determined sniper for long.

* * *

"Sere Krios, the shuttle is about to return to the docking bay. Commander Shepard's health is within normal parameters."

EDI's voice woke Thane with a start. He must have dozed off while he meditated. A low chuckle came from Garrus at his console.

"I always knew that 'meditation' was just a fancy word for nap."

Thane stretched his legs and smiled at the turian. "I would disagree if I could make a convincing argument just now. Let me assure you that my trainers would not have been pleased had I dozed off during the meditations."

"I can imagine."

Garrus walked towards the door and waited for Thane to join him. Together they made their way down to the shuttle bay in comfortable silence. When they exited the elevator, Shepard was jumping out of the shuttle.

Her armor was dripping wet, probably from all the snow and ice that had melted off during the shuttle ride. Her shoulders were stiff, her whole posture hunched like she carried a terrible weight. It broke him inside to see her suffer like that.

In her hands she held metal chains with little metal plates on them that clinked together in a disharmonic chime. Miranda held out her hand to take the chains but she shook her head and walked away from her.

Garrus stepped in her way. "Are you alright, Shepard?" he asked.

Shepard gave him a half smile and the frown on her forehead softened. "I'm fine, big guy, you don't have to worry about me."

Garrus spread his mandibles in a smile. "I was not the only one who worried about you." He stepped to the side and Thane found himself under the scrutinizing look of Commander Shepard. He tried to smile but it felt completely wrong.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Is that so? Well, then you both should remember that I can take care of myself." She turned and walked off without a further word and Thane had the distinct feeling that he had missed his chance. He knew it was not easy to comfort a woman like Shepard but now it seemed to be downright impossible.

The elevator doors closed behind her and Thane looked to Garrus for help. "Should I go after her?"

"You're on your own here, I have no idea," Garrus said. "I usually wait for her to cool off, until she comes out and wants a drink with me." His eyes rested on the elevator doors, as if he wished them to open and see her stepping out again. He shrugged and turned to the shuttle, leaving Thane to his thoughts.

Her eyes and the way she had looked at him had told him that she was not well. All the fire had left her eyes, like the ice planet had killed her inside. He wanted to chase that coldness away, to see her fire again. He was aching to be with her, to give her his strength to get through the terrible memories.

He made a formal enquiry through the ship's AI to visit Shepard in her quarters but was denied. He hadn't expected anything different. It had taken him such a long time talking to her to get her to tell him of the things that had happened in her past. A fresh trauma, like literally walking on her own grave, would be something she would hide away deep inside for a long time.

Despite the negative answer through the AI, he went up to her quarters and asked for entry at the door. EDI informed him that the Commander wished to be left alone and that he should remove his ass from her door before she shot him.

Thane sighed. This was obviously not the way he could get to her. But he would not give up so easily.

He went back into the elevator and went down one level. As he exited, he inconspicuously walked through the hall, only to disappear into the shadows when nobody watched him. He recalled the mental map of this level and found an access door into the side panelling. Discarding his coat, he slid into the crawl space, noiselessly gliding along. A vertical tunnel brought him upwards and the coldness told him again that he had reached the upper bulkhead.

He finally reached the section over Shepard's cabin and was pleased to see that the area alarm was still disarmed. He made his way over to the ceiling hatch and stopped to listen for any noises coming from the cabin. He couldn't hear anything, so he crawled closer to the hatch to peek inside the room. Shepard was sitting on her couch, all he could see were her shoulders and the back of her head. She was writing something on a datapad, maybe letters for the families who would get the insignias of their dead send to them.

He carefully moved forward, to get a better view of her, and raised the ceiling hatch out of its frame. With a start, he felt the electric prickle of mass effect fields grabbing and pulling him and he plummeted forward into the room. Blue glowing ropes that emitted control fields, were wrapped around his legs and arms. His hands were pulled together behind his back and his feet were tied together and pulled upwards behind him. He floated mid air, his body held upside down by a mass effect field. A short struggle convinced him that he could not escape.

Shepard rose slowly from her seat and walked over to him. Hanging upside down, he could only see her legs walking towards him. She wore a flimsy robe, the fabric so thin, he could see almost everything. It was tied around her waist by a thin rope with a little bow in front. Thane would have loved to pull on that bow and have the fabric fall open but he was undeniably trapped.

She stepped right in front of him, her scent enveloping him. "Well, look who's here," she said, her voice low and husky. She lowered herself down into a crouch to bring her face close to his. "I was wondering when you would come to that hatch again, Thane Krios. I've had this trap set up for weeks."

She had noticed him? Thane felt his frills turn even redder, blood pooling in his head anyway from his position. He never would have thought that she had noticed him hunting her, unless he deliberately stepped into her vision. How could he possibly have slipped like that?

"That surprised you, didn't it?" She chuckled lightly. "You are an experienced hunter, you were very careful. But you had forgotten something."

She came even closer, her breath ghosting over his frills. He wasn't sure if he was meant to speak but the question was eating him up. "What have I forgotten?" She was so close that his lips almost touched her cheek.

"That I am a hunter too."

* * *

Thane almost had to laugh at his naivety. He had underestimated her - underestimated Commander Shepard! Like a rookie he had considered himself a hunter while the spider had laid his net for him and waited until he stepped into her trap.

And trapped he was. The mass effect reinforced ropes had wrapped themselves tightly around his ankles, wrists and around his midriff to hold him in this rather embarrassing position. The blood rushing to his head - partly due to his position, partly out of shame - was beginning to make him dizzy.

While he felt sufficiently embarrassed for getting himself trapped like that, he could also not deny the erotic implications of this position. He was at her mercy and she was still very close, smelling divine and wearing almost nothing. Despite hanging upside down, blood was not only rushing towards his head.

He cleared his throat. "This was not what I had in mind when I came here."

"Oh, yes, I know," she said right next to his frills. Her breath felt like a soft touch on them. "You probably wanted me to talk about Alchera and my feelings or some shit. But that's not my thing." She faced him and tilted her head so that she could look into his eyes better. "I'm a marine, I know death. I have my own way of dealing with it. And right now," she came closer so that he could feel her lips moving over his cheek, "I like where this could be going. If you would like..."

She stopped and looked at him in question. He had no doubt that she would let him go if he denied her advance but it would have been a lie. He very much liked where this could be going too.

"Yes, I would like it," he said, a thrum of desire underlining his voice, "but I would prefer to be upright."

"I thought you liked this position, you had to be hanging like that for quite a long time when you disabled my area alarm." She had a smug smile on her face, obviously very pleased with herself.

"The situation was different, very different in more ways than one," he said, smiling back. There was no shame in getting bested by her.

She issued a few commands on her omni-tool and the blue glowing ropes pulled on him until he was upright. His knees were still bend backwards with his ankles tied and his hands were tied behind his back. But he was finally able to really look at her. The thin flowing nothing of a robe, the scent of a recent shower and the subtle effect of make up she put on, told him that she had not only waited for him - she had prepared herself for seducing him. This huntress had a goal and he was more than willing to play along with her.

"Is that more comfortable?" she asked, one hand lightly stroking down his naked arm towards the binding rope. While the mass effect fields held him tight, they also prevented the ropes from cutting into his skin. Being trapped like this was an unusual feeling for him but he did not feel uncomfortable.

"Yes, this is good," he answered and let his eyes travel over the curves of her body. "I also very much prefer the view like this. You look incredible, Shepard."

A smile lit up her face, she probably did not receive many compliments on her looks on normal days. He decided to make that smile even stronger and said, "You always look beautiful but now -" he breathed in, savouring her scent, "- you look like a manifested dream."

If she had smiled before, she now lit up the room with her smile. A pink blush crawled up her neck towards her cheeks. "Thank you, Thane, I... thanks." She even lowered her eyes in a very unusual display of shyness and Thane wished his hand were free to take her chin and lift up her face. He was aching to kiss her, to take her in his arms and tell her how beautiful she was for the next hour.

She must have noticed how hands straining against the bonds because her smile transformed into a slightly wicked grin. "Oh, no, compliments will not get you out of that so fast."

"That was not my intention."

"Well, I'm not done with you yet but before we continue this little game, we need a safeword."

Thane felt a hot flash rush up his neck, making his frills shine red. He liked where this was going.

"Sershendil," he said after thinking for a short time.

"Sterchendill?" she asked, trying to pronounce the foreign syllables.

"Sershendil," he repeated, overemphasising the soft S at the beginning. "It is a fruit that used to be common on Rakhana and is now just a thing of legend. It had some mythical stories around it that I will tell you some other time."

She smiled when he said 'other time' and that made him happy as well. There would be other times: he was not going to give her up soon.

She stepped closer to him, his face right on her level. She tilted her head and carefully kissed his frills. With the tip of her tongue, she slid along the groove of a frill. He shuddered at the touch and his arousal made his pants feel unbearable tight.

She leaned back and he saw her eyes losing focus. "Oh, this is nice," she whispered, her eyes darting over him. "Mordin said there would be a hallucinogenic effect from your skin."

"But you are not allergic?"

"No, it's just a light rush." She stared at him, her eyes wide and her pupils dilated. "Colours are a bit brighter and you are glowing!" She took a deep breath. "And you smell nice."

He realized that his arousal had caused him to release his pheromones and she could actually smell them. He fought against his bonds but they stayed firm. "Let me touch you, please," he whispered hoarsely.

"Not yet, you are my catch and I'm not done with you," she whispered, a tiny giggle following. She went back to his frills and kissed down his neck. She stroked his chest, lightly kneading his quivering muscles under his shirt as he tried to get closer to her. He hated the distance she put between them, she was so close but only her lips and her fingertips were touching him.

With a jerk he turned his head and caught her lips with his. She held still for a second, apparently caught by surprise but then she leaned into the kiss. Her lips parted, softly sucking on his and the tip of her tongue licked over his upper lip. He thrust his own tongue forward, relishing in the feeling of being able to do something at last.

But she moved back, making him pull on the ropes to lean forward, trying to keep the contact as long as he could. He was growing annoyed at being tied like this, that he could not touch her, could not worship her body like he wanted to. No matter how hard he pulled, he could not move out of his bonds. The loss of contact with her lips almost made him whimper in despair.

She took a step back, smiling at him and he thrashed against his bonds.

"Please, let me touch you!"

She laughed out, a sound like sunshine turned to waves. "Not yet, it's not your turn yet." Her eyes went over his tense body, an appreciative smile on her lips. "You look wonderful, Thane. I'm sure you know what an effect you have on women and I'm certainly not immune to it but right now -" she sucked in her lower lip with a hum, "you look positively delicious." Her eyes went down towards the bulge in his pants. "And I think something needs to be done there."

She knelt down in front of him and stroked the tight leather over his thighs. Her hands came up to his hard penis fighting against his pants. She placed her hands over it and pressed firmly. Thane gasped, the touch was so intense and still not enough, his arousal growing even more. If he had been of a clear mind he would have been embarrassed by the whine that left him but he had stopped thinking rationally when she had knelt down. All he wanted from her was that she freed him of his pants and gave him the touch he was craving.

But of course, this wicked queen knew what he needed and gleefully denied him. Her hands firmly stroked him but always above that layer of fabric and leather that he was beginning to hate. He was about to start begging when he finally felt her loosen his belt and open his pants so that they fell open. His penis sprang free and the relieve almost made him sob.

Nothing happened for a second and when he looked down, he saw Shepard staring at his penis in wonderment. She had a smile on her face like a child that had just received a new toy. He wanted to remark on that cute smile but then she leaned forward and took a long, slow lick along his length and he almost fainted. He threw his head back, desperately breathing in. He was tight like a spring and if she did this again, he might just have come from that lick alone.

Fortunately but also disappointingly, she stood up and attacked his lips again. This time, she pressed against him, wrapping her arms around him and her left knee pressing against his hip. This way, her wet centre pressed against his penis and she slowly undulated her hips to rub against him. He gasped at the touch, craving her and her body, desperate to feel more of her. He hardly noticed that she changed some settings on the ropes, so that he could stand and move his hip. But his ankles were still tied together and his hands still bound behind his back.

He sucked on her earlobe, kissed along her neck, anywhere he could reach with his lips as he was desperately grinding against her labia lips. With a pull on his shoulders and a certain way of alignment, she positioned her entrance against his tip. He froze, not daring to move, fearing that she would take this wonderful contact away from him. She smiled and slowly sank down on him.

The both threw their heads back, overwhelmed from the feeling. The rope around his stomach held him tight, allowing him only small movements with his hip. She thrust against him, taking his penis deep inside her. He could feel her vagina contracting and she was panting against his frills. He tried to move faster, rushing towards his climax, hoping that she was close too.

Something tightened around his throat, cutting off what little air he managed to pull in. Deathly panic rose in him, lack of air was his daily burden and he could not afford any less of it. He desperately tried to free himself when he realized that it was Shepard's hand, choking him. He panicked, Shepard was a killer just like him, was this her revenge for his stalking? Choking him to death?

The pressure on his throat decreased and he saw her looking at him confused. Some rational part of his brain reminded him that he had a safeword and he uttered "Sershendil" as he coughed. Instantly Shepard let go of his throat and removed herself from his body. Despite his coughing, he was already missing the contact.

She typed on her omni-tool and Thane felt the ropes release him. Shepard caught him before he could fall down. She supported his weight by placing his arm over her shoulder and led him over to the bed. He gratefully sat down on the mattress, taking deep breaths to silence the panic.

Shepard softly put her hand on his arm. "I'm sorry, what happened?"

He took a long breath, his lungs finally filling again. "Breathing," he rasped between breaths, "is not always easy for me and when you choked me..."

"Oh shit, I'm so sorry, how stupid of me." She looked at him with tears in her eyes, her hand over her mouth. "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have assumed..."

He took her hand away from her mouth and pulled her over to him. "It's fine now. Please, don't let this scare you away." He trailed his finger along her cheek.

"You want to continue?"

He pointed towards his still very attentive penis. "I sincerely hope you will not leave me like that."

Shepard chuckled, "Well, if you insist..." She turned her body towards him and kissed him.

He was immensely grateful that his hands were free now, he could finally pull on the bow and have her robe fall open. He let his hands slide over her side and up her back, relishing in the softness of her skin. She made him move up the bed and climbed on top of him, straddling him.

He was so engrossed in feeling her skin and the way the scent of her pheromones was mixing with his own, that he didn't even notice how she aligned her vagina to his penis again. With a sudden thrust she took him in. They both moaned loudly as she began pumping her hips.

They were clinging to each other, their fingers digging into each others skin. The friction became almost unbearable, he could feel her breath coming faster as it blew over the frills on his neck. She was whimpering, changing the angle of her hips to rub herself differently on his soft scales around his penis. He sensed that she needed something more to push her over the edge.

He remembered what she had said after choking him, how she shouldn't have assumed. He pulled back so that she looked at him and when her eyes met his, he closed his hand around her throat. Her eyes got wide and he saw her pupils dilate. Thane had killed enough people by choking to know how far he could go, giving her a breath when she needed it and closing his grip again when she had gulped in air. She didn't fight him: she trusted him completely.

He tightened his hand once more and with a choked scream she fell into her orgasm. He released her throat, pulling her as close as possible. He could feel her tunnel contract and after another thrust his own orgasm rushed through him like a thundering wave. He could only hold on as his mind filled with pleasure.

When his senses returned, they were wrapped in each others arms, her face pressed into his neck. She chuckled softly, her whole body vibrating. "That was incredible," she whispered.

"Yes it was, Siha," he murmured into her hair.

"I hope...," she hesitated a little, giving him a shy smile, "I don't want to be alone tonight, could you stay with me?"

"I would love to stay, Siha, as long as you like." He pulled her up, slowly slipping out of her and kissed her. "I know you don't want to talk now about what is bothering you but will you talk to me when you're ready?"

She pulled a blanket over them and settled into his side. "Let me work things over in my own head first and then I will talk to you, I promise."

"That is enough for me, Siha." He wrapped his arms around her and let his eyes fall close. He felt her breathing slow down and let the calmness settle over him.

He was almost asleep when she stirred and spoke, "Thane?"

"Yes?"

"What were you calling me?"

"Siha, my Siha," he whispered into her neck, his voice singing with emotions he thought he had buried a long time ago.

"What does that mean?"

"I will tell you one day, Siha."

"Promise?"

He chuckled and pulled her closer to him. "I promise, Siha."

* * *

_And done! 9500 words later, geez! Unable to fill a short prompt in a short way, my special power._


End file.
