Comment by paradoxius on Epilogue: Atonement (8/8) · 2013-07-16T04:55:15.202Z · LW · GW

"Mental bonding" is a close approximation. In science fiction, similar systems are referred to as "mind-melding" in Star Trek, although this interaction is not sexual in nature, albeit platonically intimate, and simply "the bond" in Mass Effect, which is a much closer analogue, since the beings who use it do use it for reproduction.