Benezia looked at the doctor's face and could immediately tell the human knew something at least. Aside from the tone of her voice that heavily implied something without outright saying it, she had an almost suspicious and somewhat judgmental expression on her face. The smell of sanitary chemicals was stronger than usual too, suggesting that if nothing else Chakwas had done her best to eliminate or disguise what was probably a rather strong aroma of sweat and passion in the med-bay. Despite every sign that the doctor at least knew the basic nature of what went on, Benezia decided to try to ignore it. "Yes. Thank you, doctor," came her simple answer.
"Good," Chakwas said, her face stone as she turned to a bedside machine. "You'll probably notice you are unrestrained. According to all our readings there are no signs of indoctrination in you at all." Chakwas turned to her with a smile. "Liara's little experiment last night worked." The smile went away, along with an awkward pause. "Whatever it was."
Benezia simply nodded, her eyes probably a bit wider than usual. She opened her mouth to speak, but Chakwas interrupted her. "Before you say anything, I'd just like to add that we humans have a thing called 'Doctor Patient-Confidentiality' by the way. Not that it really applies here, since I wasn't present for what went on. Whatever it was." A pause. "Just letting you know. I'm not sure if you asari have something similar or not."
"Thank you, doctor," Benezia said with a smile. "Is Liara-"
"Your daughter is in the bay next door, as usual. There's a dressing gown on a hook just over there."
Benezia slipped out of the sheets and into the gown, then pressed the door panel that led to Liara's chosen place of study. There was a long period of silence before Benezia heard the words "come in" from the other side. Her daughter's voice sounded emotionless. She entered to find Liara standing at one of the desks, using a computer, and dressed once more in her usual green and white doctor's coat. Liara's back was to her, and once the door closed behind Benezia her daughter spoke again, her voice once more rather cold and direct. "I'd love to chat, mother, but I have some last minute work to do before we reach Ilos."
"Okay," Benezia said. "I just wanted to thank you for helping me. Thanks to you, Saren is free from my mind."
"I know. Dr. Chakwas and I analyzed your results a few hours ago while you were sleeping. I'm glad I could help."
Liara still sounded far away and emotionally dead, and it didn't take much observation for Benezia to realize her daughter was making herself look busy and didn't appear to really be doing any research or work at all. Benezia took a few steps closer to Liara.
"Liara. We- we need to talk," she said.
"Mother, please," Liara said, stopping her attempted facade as she tensed up. She let out a sigh. "It's not- It wasn't- It should not have happened."
"But you saved my life, Liara. If it hadn't happened, I'd have either been dead or forever in Saren's claws."
"I'm happy for you, but we took it too far. It was wrong."
"Wrong? Who says it was wrong?"
"Everybody would!" Liara said, turning to face her mother for the first time since she had entered. "Our society, and our culture would. Almost every other civilized culture would agree."
"Our culture and society think it's wrong for two asari to mate now, despite that not being the case before."
"It's different and you know it is. We're mother and daughter. I wanted to help you, not seduce you. I'm glad it worked, but we got too caught up in the passion and lost control. We shouldn't have given in so easily. Especially me."
Liara seemed to go almost limp with shame, and there was a period of long silence between them. Benezia took a couple of steps forward, taking Liara's cheek in one hand and turning her face until Liara's large blue eyes met her own. "I meant everything I said to you last night, Liara. All of it. Every word I said, and thought I sent. And we were one. I read your mind too. And I know you weren't lying and meant every word and thought of yours too."
"N-n-no I didn't," Liara tried to defend. "I was caught up in the sensations. I lost control. My body was dominating my mind and better judgment."
"True to a degree, but not as much as you claim. Come, Liara. Be honest with yourself. You can't lie to me. I felt your love. Not just your lust and passion, but your love."
"E-even if what you said was true, there's no way anybody would accept it. Other asari would exile us if they could."
"The same asari that already treat you as an outcast for being a pureblood? I know you, Liara. You already fight to prove them wrong about that. Imagine you sticking it to them by not only being a pureblood, but your own mother's lover too."
"W-w-well what about Shepard?" Liara said next. "I love her, and she loves me. I want to have a relationship with her. I couldn't do this to her, even if I wanted to."
"Shepard was there with us last night, Liara," Benezia said dryly. "She was part of it, and she seemed to be having a great time. I'm sure she'd be more than willing to make it a regular occurrence. Stop making excuses why this can't work."
"I'm not making excuses, mother!" Liara snapped. "I'm bringing up genuine reasons!" She paused and her expression softened. "And you debunked all of them. You pushed them all aside with arguments why they aren't issues at all." Liara stepped closer, a flush coming to her cheeks and a slight smile on her lips. "Just like I hoped you would."
"Oh, Liara," Benezia said, embracing her daughter. "I love you so much."
"I love you too, mother," Liara said, tears coming to her eyes as she returned the hug. "More than anything."
The two stood in each other s arms for what seemed like an eternity before pulling back, then staring at each other from arm's length away. They stared into each other s eyes for a while, and then their faces seemed to draw closer. A flush game to Liara's cheeks and her breathing began to quicken as her mother's face filled her vision. Their heads danced a little, with one's head turning to the left and the other's the right, and then alternating as they drew closer and their noses switched places. The med-bay extension seemed silent to them, so much so they could hear the soft smack as their mouths opened and their tongues protruded, ever so slightly. Like two cobras in combat their faces seemed to waver, Liara pressing forward with open mouth as her mother glided away teasingly, and then Benezia's mouth making chase as Liara retreated playfully. Contact was made when Benezia's tongue finally stretched out, connecting with the tip of Liara's and seeming to stick as if it belonged to a frog. Liara seemed to then use hers to haul her mother's lips around her own, and both mother and daughter moaned into each other's mouths as if getting into a perfectly warm bath at the end of a week spent on Noveria.
The bay soon rang with the low moans and crisp slurps of Liara and Benezia making-out, and the pace quickened as time ticked away. Benezia reached around Liara's waist and hauled her up, Liara responding by wrapping her legs around her mother as their lips and tongues continued to tangle. Benezia moved forwards, taking her daughter to the bench with the least amount of items on it, which were swept to the floor before she placed Liara's comely rear end upon it. Their lips parted with a strand of saliva still joining them for a moment afterwards, and Liara's called for her Goddess as her mother's mouth sucked onto her throat. She felt one of Benezia's palms stroke her stomach and begin to head down, and just as it was about to make it to her swiftly warming nexus, a voice over the intercom stopped them both in their tracks.
"Five minutes to the Mu Relay, Commander."
Listening to Joker's words, Liara looked at her mother and sighed with disappointment. She could see it was mutual.
"I had better go, duty calls," the younger asari said, fixing the collar her mother had unfastened. "Shepard and the others will probably be on the way to Joker now."
"Of course. Good luck, Liara. Come back to me alive"
"I will," Liara smiled, already heading for the door. "I'll stop Saren if only so we can continue where we left off when I get back."
She pressed the green door panel, allowing it to open, but stopped midway through her first step out to turn back to her mother. "Before I go, whatever happens, I just wanted to say, 'thank you.' For everything."
THE END