#mepolyweek

Yes. After Miranda Week (because if I don’t do that one @bioticfox might get grey hair because of me :D)

by potionsmaster with @bardofheartdive

Rating: M.  M/F, M/M, M/F/M pairings

A/N:  late entry for Mass Effect Poly Week! (it’s still 5/27 somewhere, right?  Yeah…)  A bit of explanation: my Renegade Shepard Mark is married to Bard’s Paragon Shepard Veerla, and they decided later to bring Kaidan in as their third.  Paging @daravakarian

Summary: Mark thinks about first kisses

The first time he kissed Veerla, he didn’t think anything of it.  A couple of beers in, nothing that would make him make bad decisions, because biotic metabolism and all, but it was just a fluke in the booth of a burger joint.  Pretty girl, prettier eyes, and a ridiculous story of how he got stitches on his hairline.  Nothing but a good laugh to be had with him and his friends.  Her lips were soft, he decided, like they were minutes before on his cheek (and presumably on his scalp, but he wouldn’t know that because it was still numb from getting goddamn sutures) and her jaw fit very nicely in the palm of his hand as he cupped her face.  A gentle press of their lips, letting her take the lead, and he pulled back with a little grin; she was so confident.  He tilted his head to hers again, interested to see how far she would take it, and she immediately opened for him, leaning into his hand.  He brushed his thumb lightly across her cheekbone and listened to her breath hitch in her chest.  When they broke apart a few minutes later, she looked eager and almost feverish, what with her eyes bright, lips flushed and slightly swollen.

 What he wasn’t expecting (and didn’t know not expecting things was going to be the norm with her), was after they stopped kissing and talked a bit longer, she actually agreed to come home with him.  Ok by him; it was a continuation of a bit of fun.  No strings attached.

Boy, did he never expect that last bit to be so very wrong.

~*~

The first time he kissed Kaidan, he wasn’t quite sure it was a kiss at all.  He was so exhausted, he thought he imagined it: just a tentative brush of lips against his, Kaidan’s palm on his cheek instead of his usual habit of his on his partner’s.  He had already notified Vee (per their rules) that he had found a companion for the night, and now that the moment had arrived, he was a bit shocked at how it all came about, if truth be told.  If anybody had told him a few years ago that his shy, straight-edge staff louie and best friend on the SR-1 would turn out to be a recently realized bisexual who wasn’t as opposed to breaking regs as previously thought (and who also happened to outrank him…Sir, yes sir…) and was going to have an agreed upon one-night stand with him, he would have laughed in their face and told them to get the fuck out.  He amended his thoughts quickly; that over-simplified things and it was a disservice to the man who had put his trust and faith in him time and again, on the battlefield, in personal revelations, and now in the bedroom.  It was significant, Kaidan’s trust.  All that they’d been through and were about to do, there was no question in his mind (if you asked the major. And he did.  Several times.  One could never be too careful.)  Hard earned, hard lost, hard fought to get back.

Kaidan swallowed and paused, uncertain.  It was almost cute, a word Mark didn’t use to describe much of anything.  Besides Veerla, of course.  Her positively swimming in one of his old t-shirts, the way she wrinkled her nose in disgust at certain things, how messy her braid got…yep.  Cute as a hellacious button, that was his adoring wife.  He didn’t know what deity or pantheon needed exaltation when she agreed to an open marriage with him, but they deserved every bit of it.

He smiled against the other man’s lips before gently pressing them together again, tip of his tongue lightly flicking against Kaidan’s mouth to ask for entrance.  Kaidan complied with a startled little gasp and Mark pushed the initiative (for lack of a better term in his head.  Damn, they’d been on tour too damn long if he couldn’t even separate work from pleasure while it was happening anymore…), putting his hands on Kaidan’s shoulders and leaning forward so their chests touched and Kaidan was forced backwards against the couch seat.  It was amusing, he surmised as their hips rolled against each other and they found a rhythm; at 6’4, he rarely was the one who straddled anybody else.  

It seemed Kaidan had a way of being unexpected, too.

~*~

The first time the three of them kissed, he half expected it to blow up in his face and that would be that.  He was happily proven wrong.  Kaidan was almost tucked under his left arm, Vee crawling into his lap and subsequently pushing the other man against his chest and him further into the corner of the couch.  Not that he minded; he didn’t like hearing the details secondhand about her ‘excursions’ without him, but he appreciated watching her pursue what she wanted before he got too heavily involved in it himself.  He kissed the nape of Kaidan’s neck and smiled to himself as he saw goosebumps sprinkle across his bare skin before licking a path up the graceful line and nibbling on his earlobe.  Feeling him arch against him while matching Veerla’s motion was intoxicating.

It was an unspoken agreement between himself and Veerla that Kaidan be between them for this, wanting to show him they both were invested in Kaidan and wanted to be with him, no questions.  Kaidan was nervous, understandably so, but taking it all in stride.  Ever the consummate soldier; put him in an unknown situation and he would find a way to come out on top.  Mark exhaled slowly as Vee pushed Kaidan back against his chest and practically lay in the other man’s lap, kissing him long and deep.  They broke the kiss off, slightly breathless and Kaidan looked at Mark.  He flicked his gaze briefly to Mark’s lips a moment, tongue briefly touched to his own upper lip to moisten it.  Mark couldn’t resist such an invitation as that.  

He slid his fingers along Kaidan’s jaw and into the soft, dark hair as they kissed, gentle and almost chaste at first before it grew into something more.  He slid a hand up Veerla’s arm while she kissed along Kaidan’s pulse.  The man in his lap shivered and arched against him, letting out a soft moan.   Veerla grabbed Mark’s hand and squeezed, moving off Kaidan for a moment and nuzzling her husband’s cheek.   

No doubt about it.  The life they had was definitely one Mark had not expected at all.

if your ship did group halloween costumes, what would they be?I still don't know!

do they have any shared hobbies?I replied here :) 

have you created anything for your ship? fic, fanart, fanmixes, etc.I created a sort of ship manifesto for different combinaisons of the ot3 (Miranda/Garrus especially needed some work, it’s here) and I discussed how the ot3 would work (actually I did that for last year’s Poly Week) but I haven't written a fic yet. It's not for lack of trying, I'm working on it. I definitely need to do a fanmix for them as well :)

poly week 20 questions

2. what is your favorite andromeda poly ship?

I don’t have many ME poly ships rn, but I definitely love the one my main Ryder, Julian, is in. He’s in an open relationship with Gil, Reyes, and Jaal, and I adore it. uwu

14. if your ship did group halloween costumes, what would they be?

They’d probably just do group costumes for Julian and thus pick something science or history related. Maybe dress up as the crew of the Normandy. ;D (Jules is a Shepard fanboy)

18. what are date nights like for your ship?

Usually separate. It’s an open relationship, rather than all four of them dating each other. Gil, Reyes, and Jaal are all dating Julian, and if they ever met someone else, they could start a relationship with that person too (the relationship is open on all ends, not just Julian’s). Sometimes when Julian’s been having bad days, to cheer him up, they’ll have a move night together or eat dinner together. It makes Julian happy to be able to spend time with all three of them at the same time rather than always separately. And aside from Gil and Jaal not fully trusting Reyes (due to some spoilers for the game that won’t be mentioned), the three of them get along alright - Gil and Jaal are good friends.

For the Poly Week ask meme, thanks love!

2: favorite Andromeda Poly ship

Gosh, um…I dunno!  I honestly haven’t played Andromeda, but I think Scott/Liam/Reyes would be nice.  Or Sara/Peebee/Vetra.  

heh.  I kinda have a weird head canon about Alec/Cora/SAM and inadvertently Scott…

14: group Halloween costumes:

 Soooo…my Shepard Mark is married to @bardofheartdive‘s Shepard Veerla, and they brought Kaidan in as their third.  Thing is, Mark hates to dress up in anything other than his dress blues.  (real stickler).  So VEERLA pulled a trick.  She sent Mark out to the store for something and told him she already had his clothes laid out for the party.  He came back and found her in a ball gown, Kaidan in a tux with a cape and a mask, and his tux/cape/mask out for him on the bed.  He got dressed under protest as either Raoul or the Phantom (he has some pretty awful scars on his face from Torfan); he didn’t care which.  But he complained so much, Vee let him off the hook and he wore his N7 hoodie, hehe.  (Kaidan stayed dressed up with her)

1. What is your favourite original trilogy poly ship?o Willshenko is the obvious favorite of mine~ (Some others that I've considered are John/Jack/Kaidan - read a couple nice fics for it - and maybe some John/Garrus/Tali. )

18. What are date nights like for your ship?o Their public dates are but cherished. They didn't go out together much in the earlier stages of their relationship, since John and his temper wouldn't brush off a snide comment or sideways look like Kaidan and Ashley could, but after a while they grow to care less what strangers thing and enjoy any night out that they can, whether it's going out to dinner or just spending an evening at the Silversun Strip. Their nights in are a little more common, with them turning off all their communications except for emergency channels and having dinner together, and afterwards they'd either watch some vids or just lounge around together on the couch or their bed.

do you have any au/crossover ideas for your ship?

I ALWAYS HAVE AU IDEAS I'm very into fantasy stories lately, with magic and castles and queens. More "Once Upon A Time" than Dragon Age. IDK, I just want to picture Miranda as a queen who is trying to find her sister so she hires John and Garrus to track her.I also have this soulmate AU ideas where they all have two soulmates names written on their wirst (so Miranda will have John&Garrus, Garrus will have John&Miranda, John will have Miranda&Garrus) but once they meet they REALLY are terrible at getting along. Knowing that two people are made for you doesn't mean it's all going to be perfect, so they have to work on that. I also have an AU where Garrus & Miranda are partners in the police, a bit like Mulder & Scully and John is their boss.I could go on and on.

what is your ship like in combat? how do they interact with each other in a battle situation?

Very focused on the job, trusting everyone is competent and doesn't need help unless asked. John likes to stay in the back to snipe. Miranda and Garrus are happy destroying everyone who come their way.

if your ship did group halloween costumes, what would they be?

what is your favourite andromeda poly ship?

Sloane/Kaetus/Ryder :)

if your ship did group halloween costumes, what would they be?