#mshepley

Cyrus & Ashley enjoying their apartment after the wedding and the war

Apartment Additions

Ashley Consistency Project

Morning's Hairstyles for MaleShep (LE3)

Morning's Wedding Store for Femshep (Ashley usage personal use)

when your future wife is such a cutie patootie.

Slow dancing is cool, because you don’t have to be a good dancer to pull it off.

I’ve never written any Shepley, but a challenge is always good!  I’ve always liked Ash, but the videos I watched to get a sense of this relationship gave me a new appreciation for her character.  So thanks for the prompt @stressedzeus!  (I may have bent the rules a little on the specifics…)

5. hands on the other person’s back, fingertips pressing under their top, drawing gentle circles against that small strip of bare skin that make them break the kiss with a gasp

The closest life aboard the Normandy got to a lazy Sunday afternoon was deep in interstellar space, a few days out from their last stop, and a few days more to reach their next destination.  Shepard spent it propped up on his elbows, lying on his bed and reading reports off his datapad.  Because in the middle of a war like this, work never really ended.  It just quieted down from time to time.

Try telling that to Ash.  She lounged on her side, tucked in against him, fidgeting with her very favorite toy.  Shepard nudged her.  "Stop that.  I’m trying to concentrate.“

She snickered to herself, dragging her fingertip along the indent of his spine, from nape to lower back, stopping just shy of somewhere truly interesting.  "Is that an order, sir?”

Shepard did his level best to ignore the way she dropped into a sultry whisper.  Being with Ash had required him to strengthen his resolve in more ways than one.  "You said you wanted a quiet spot to write some emails back home.“

“Abby can wait.”  She sighed. “Truth is, she’s having a thing with mom right now, and I’d just as soon not get in the middle of it.”

“Well, Hackett’s going to have my ass if I don’t respond to this threat assessment today.”

“He’ll have to stand in line.”  She reached lower and squeezed, hard.  Shepard jumped.  "Because this ass is all mine.“

He let out a chuckle despite himself, and gave her a peck on the cheek.  "The sooner I finish reading, the sooner I’ll be off-duty, and then you can assert ownership over whatever parts me you like.”

She went back to playing with his shirt.  "We’re running out of daylight to get it all squared away, skipper.“

They’d been friends for four years, shipmates for two, and lovers for most of that, and he couldn’t recall a single time she’d called him John.  It was Commander in public, Shepard informally, and skipper when she was teasing him.  Captain if she was really laying it on.

He wasn’t sure he minded.  "What you’re planning is more of a night op.”  

Ash plucked and pulled the cloth, feeling the muscle beneath.  Leaned into his neck and planted a series of sloppy kisses between her words.  "They teach you this kind of strategy at Villa Militar?“

"Sure.”  He kept his eyes on the datapad, but he’d lost this battle the moment her lips touched his skin.  "Night maneuvers, special tactics, the works.“

"Mmm.  You’ll have to teach me sometime.  Seems like skills a spectre should have.”  She continued brushing her hand down his back.  "Oh, it looks like your shirt came untucked.“

"I can’t imagine how that happened.”

“You really ought to be more circumspect.  It won’t do for the crew to see their C.O. dressed out of regulation.”  Her fingers stroked the exposed small of his back, an unexpected flare of heat.

Shepard abandoned the datapad and flipped her over, pressing his mouth to hers in one fluid gesture.  Kissing her just shy of bruising.  Just how she liked it.  And she confirmed it by grabbing him with both hands, kneading into his flesh in circles.

Ash slipped her fingertips under his waistband, just barely.  Shepard broke off the kiss with a gasp.  He brushed the hair off her face.  "You are going pay for the tongue-lashing Alliance command’s going to give me in the morning.“

!!!! Thank you!!!!!!! I know this was from forever ago but I hope you still enjoy it!

He wasn’t listening to a thing she was saying - he’d probably regret it later. But right now, all he could think about was kissing her. It was inappropriate to be having such thoughts, watching her across the room as she gave her briefing of the battle on the Citadel just a few weeks prior.

Ashley looked amazing. She always did, but right now was no exception. If anyone could make the terribly designed dress uniforms look good while still being functional and badass - she was the woman to pull it off. And she knew it. He knew she knew it. He knew she knew he knew she knew it.

And once she was finished, they all stood to leave the room. Well. John and Ashley lingered behind the crowd to chat - they hadn’t really had a chance once she’d come back with the rest of the Normandy crew. They began talking, until they knew they were alone. Then their tongues became occupied with something different until they were breathless, blushing, and entirely ready to be wrapped up in each other again.

“I’ve missed you.” she started, tears in her eyes with her teeth showing in a smile, hands on his cheeks while she pressed her forehead to his. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look so beautiful, and confident.” he murmured to her.

Shepard and Ashley have their cut conversation about afterlife, and Shepard expresses some of his doubts.