Providing Shelter (Sy Sy)

[Jason Rivers]

After Rana had accepted his offer, he led her into The Presidium. His apartment was located there. For awhile, he let the quarian take in the sights. Knowing the restrictions of where quarians could go, she probably hadn't seen much of the beauty that was The Presidium. People here and there had given them looks as they passed, but since Jason was accompanying her, they hadn't made much of a fuss.

When they came to a bridge, he stopped half-way across it, gesturing toward the lake with his hand. "This is the lake of The Presidium," he said, looking over at Rana. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Beautiful, to him, was a huge understatement for what he was trying to describe. There was something surreal about the lake, it could hold your attention for hours without knowing. He let his gaze shift back over the water. "You should see it during the night cycle. Absolutely breathtaking. One of these nights when you aren't too tired, we'll have to take a nightly stroll so I can show you what I mean."

That had been their only stop on the way to his apartment, the two now halted in front of a door. "This is it," he said as the door slid open and he entered. "Make yourself at home."

The Sergeant's apartment was decent sized, a kitchen area on the left side and the living area on the right, a couch nestled across from the TV. There was a bed near the balcony overlooking The Presidium lake. All in all, he'd rather have this apartment than the more expensive ones that were on the market today. He just hoped Rana liked it as well.

[Syri]

rana'venah nar qwib-qwib

Rana had no idea that Jason's house would be in The Presidium. She'd never even laid her eyes on the place, and had only heard whispers of what it was supposed to be like. Beautiful with plants, a lake, an artificial day/night cycle, clean streets with good people... she hadn't dared venture to the place. It was so high-class compared to most of the Wards, and high-class was very intimidating to a quarian who was barely tolerated in the worst slums in the Wards.

As she looked around, she suddenly realized that this was indeed the heart of galactic politics. When she'd arrived on the Citadel, she'd expected this... a beautiful, magnificent view of different species working at their jobs on an idyllic space station; not a filthy labyrinth of crime and corruption. Rana had been beginning to feel that she'd arrived on the Citadel based on a bunch of false pretenses, but apparently she'd just been looking in all the wrong places. The sight was pretty much breathtaking for a quarian who had spent all of her life on a ship. She'd never seen such a variety of flora, nor so pretty a lake or a sky, even if the latter was fake.

She hardly noticed that Jason had stopped to point out the view of the lake as they crossed the bridge in the Presidium. "Yes, it's... beautiful."

[/color] there was obvious awe in her voice. The only water she'd ever seen before was the water that she drank to live, nothing ever so glamorous as a whole lake, with the artificial sky reflecting off of its crystalline surface. "I'll have to do that sometime. It sounds nice."[/color] At the moment the quarian couldn't imagine anything more beautiful than the lake right in front of her eyes, but she didn't think Jason would lie to her.

When they reached Jason's apartment, the first thing Rana noticed was how much space it had. In the Migrant Fleet quarians were packed into cramped living conditions, but here, it appeared that he had the whole space entirely to himself. It also had a breathtaking view, which ships in the Flotilla lacked, and embellishments such as couches and a television screen, things she had never seen before. She spent several moments simply taking in the entire view before commenting, "Wow, your place... it's so spacious, and beautiful."[/color][/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[Jason Rivers]

"Indeed it is, sweetheart," he said, walking over to the kitchen counter and leaning on it. "Indeed it is." Jason wished he could see her expression now as she looked at her surroundings. He could just imagine the look of awe on her face behind her mask. Moments like that were priceless to The Sergeant. Simple reactions that spoke just as loudly as words could, if not louder. Body language was everything and he didn't need to be an expert to know what hers was saying. She was amazed.

He gestured a hand toward the couch. "I'll take the sofa while you're here. You probably haven't had a decent night's rest since you've arrived at The Citadel, so I'm lending you my bed." Then with a smile, he added, "Sergeant's orders."

Jason turned his head slightly. "As for food, I'm not exactly sure what your people eat. Can you eat human food? If not, I'll figure something out."

The Sergeant glanced at the TV. "If you're bored, browse through the channels. There will be at least one entertaining thing to watch. I'll show you how to operate the remote. It's easier than it looks, despite the many buttons, most of which I never use."

And that was the tour.

[Syri]

rana'venah nar qwib-qwib

Rana looked over at the couch as he gestured toward it. She hadn't been completely sure what it was used for. It looked sort of like the beds they had in the Migrant Fleet but with a little more padding. "Oh, no, I could take the, err, sofa. It's nice. Kind of like what we used to sleep on in the Migrant Fleet but it looks a little more comfortable."

[/color] As usual she really didn't want to take advantage of his hospitality, and she was completely fine with sleeping on this "sofa"... she was short enough to fit comfortably on the couch.

"Quarians can't eat human food. Dextro-amino acids and all... but it's okay, I have my own supply that should last a couple of months."[/color] Every quarian was given plenty of nutrient paste to take with them on pilgrimage. After all, the Flotilla couldn't afford to turn the pilgrimage into a game of survival where the young quarian had to supply themselves with everything... too many of them would die. Sure, the nutrient paste didn't taste all that good but it wasn't like they had fine cuisines in the Migrant Fleet. A nutritious meal was valued more than a tasty one any day.

She then turned her head to the TV screen, "So it's for entertainment?"[/color] she asked, still not completely sure what the vid screen was used for. The only entertainment they had back in the Flotilla was story-telling. The idea that people outside had whole vid screens that they used just to watch amusing things was... well, new. Then again, they didn't really have to worry about survival here on the Citadel. Jason's whole apartment was filled with new, exciting things that she'd never seen before. It was then that it struck her there were probably plenty of other things she wasn't yet acquainted with... wow, she really had to explore a little more. All of this was so fascinating.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[Jason Rivers]

Jason felt like insisting when Rana said she'd take the sofa instead of the bed, but what he knew of her so far was when she had her mind on something, there was no dissuading the quarian. He heaved a sigh. Well, at least he gave it a shot and that was all that mattered. "If that's what you want," he said kindly with a nod, "I won't stop you."

The Sergeant smiled at the mention that she had her own food supply and that it would last her awhile, hopefully until she was able to find what she needed and return to the Migrant Fleet. There was no way to be certain, though. Until then, he'd take care of her the best of his ability and however much she'd let him. He was willing to give kindness, but only if the other was willing to accept it and so far, Rana was willing to accept some of it and that was enough for him. "That's one thing to check off the list."

Jason smirked at her surprise toward the TV. He'd have to explain that one a bit more. Shifting off the kitchen counter, he wandered over past the couch and picked up the remote from the coffee table, turning the the TV on with one click. Within seconds, the screen came to life and there was a ANN reporter talking about The Citadel's economy, which was fine in his opinion. "If you want the latest news," he said, looking over his shoulder at Rana and pointing at the screen. "This is where to find it. Alliance News Network or ANN for short."

He then brought up the menu and scrolled until he found a suitable channel for an example of entertainment. It was an asari rock band playing some concert in a nearby system. Not exactly his taste in music, but it was still an example. "This is one type of entertainment, categorized under music. Not for everyone, but it has their fans." Jason turned off the TV and placed the remote back in its place, facing Rana again. "Word of warning, though," he said with a smile. Don't get too addicted or you'll become what us humans call a...couch potato."

[Syri]

rana'venah nar qwib-qwib

"Yes, the sofa will do. Trust me."

[/color] She said insistently after Jason said he wouldn't stop her from choosing it over the bed if she wanted to. Thankfully Jason wasn't the type to force her to accept his offers; as far as she was concerned he'd already given her more than enough. Besides, she had no idea how he'd ever be able to sleep comfortably on the couch, since he was so much taller than she was. So in the end it pretty much all worked out.

"Even if I run out I can always buy turian food and have it purified so I won't get sick. I'm completely covered when it comes to the food, don't worry."[/color] She had a few credits of her own, and if she ever needed anything she could go and buy it for herself. There was no way she was going to accept his credits on top of him allowing her into his home. That would just be too much to ask, or receive from him. Now that they were done going over the living arrangements, Jason decided to show her exactly what went on on the vid screen.

All of a sudden the thing came to life with a glow and a picture of a human woman popped up. She was talking about Citadel economy or some such... Rana couldn't really understand the details. There was no such thing as an economy on the Migrant Fleet, you just shared with other quarians or traded with other material goods. Still, despite the fact she couldn't understand half of what was going on, she stared at the screen with awe. Quarians could communicate via comms, and that was about it. Seeing this woman go on about the news and knowing that everyone else who owned a TV set could watch it was quite a fascinating thought.

Then there was even a navigation menu! So many different genres to choose from, and then even more options for what you wanted to watch. With just a click of the button Jason got some asari band to play music on the screen. She liked what she heard, but then again, she liked most music she heard, since there wasn't much music or other form of entertainment on the Flotilla. After a few more moments Jason shut off the television and noted that he had to warn Rana about something. She was expecting something serious like it could explode in her face if she chose a bad option or sometimes it broke down or something. When he simply warned her about the dangers of becoming a couch potato, she was confused. There wasn't really any translation for 'cough' or 'potato' into quarian terms... so at that moment he kind of lost her.

Rana soon realized he was smiling and it was more of a joke. She laughed for a few seconds, and then, very seriously, asked, "What is a 'couch potato'?"[/color][/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[Jason Rivers]

Her confusion toward the phrase was understandable. Inter-species understanding of words and phrases often got lost somewhere in translation. In simple terms, it wasn't that hard to explain. With a smile and chuckle, he leaned against the back of the couch. "A couch potato is a person that sits around and watches TV all day. They only take breaks to go to the bathroom. So in a way, it becomes an addiction. It 'eats away at your brain' some experts say, though they've been saying that since before I was born."

Jason then nodded his head toward the balcony overlooking The Presidium. "But if you're like me, you'd rather explore, see new things. I've been living on The Citadel for years and I still haven't seen all there is to see. That's why I take walks every day to see where I end up. Today, we happened to meet, so some good came out of that walk." The Sergeant felt iffy when it came to the subject of fate, but he was open to the possibility that they were brought together for a reason. As for the reason itself, he had no clue. He'd leave philosophy to the philosophers and he'd take things a day at a time just like he always had.

[Syri]

rana'venah nar qwib-qwib

"Ohh..."

[/color] Rana said after Jason explained what the meaning of 'couch potato' was. They just sat on a sofa all day long and watched the screen, only taking breaks to go to the bathroom? That sure didn't sound very healthy. Actually, it kind of made her think of what the admirals did all day long... stare at screens to coordinate flotilla movements with each other, probably only taking breaks to go to the bathroom or eat or drink. The thought made her smirk: Koris probably wouldn't like being called a couch potato... Gerrel, Xen, Raan, or Zorah either. Yes, she'd just keep the idea of them being couch potatos to herself.

She then looked over at the balcony with a nice view of the Presidium. She nodded after Jason was done speaking, "I do like exploring and seeing new things. This is my one chance to do that, and I definitely don't want to waste it."[/color] Before, when she was on the Qwib-Qwib, she hadn't thought there was much more to the world than the life she had been leading. But once she'd even spotted the Citadel she had realized there was so much more. So many different lifestyles and places, and there were plenty of fascinating experiences just waiting to be had. However, once she completed her pilgrimage and returned to the fleet, there was no going back. So in a sense, this was not only her rite of passage, but her one and only chance to explore what lie outside the quarian flotilla.[/blockquote][/blockquote][/size]

[Jason Rivers]

Her reaction toward his definition of couch potato was more or less what Jason had expected from Rana. There would be things that the quarian didn't understand about his race, just like he wouldn't understand some things about hers. That's when communication between species came in handy, so people could learn from one another. Sadly, racism had been a part of human nature since before man had first landed on the moon, at least from what he had read of Earth history. Apparently, the same could be said of some of the other races. They too, at times, judged someone based on their race. Such a thing never got people anywhere, all it did was divide up the galaxy. Racism was wool over the eyes, preventing the beholder from seeing the bigger picture, what could be. Jason then smiled. As long as there were people like him out there, there was still hope. "If there's ever a human word or phrase you come across that you don't know," he said, "Ask me and I'll tell you what it means."

The Sergeant nodded as she told him she felt the same way about exploring. He briefly thought about the stop they had made on the way to his apartment, letting Rana get a glimpse of The Presidium's lake. He had told her how beautiful it was at night. Jason figured there was no harm in pushing it up the time table. "I can take you out to see the lake when the night cycle starts," he offered. "How does that sound?"

(I felt like I rambled for a bit. Sorry xD)