Chapter 1

Tali hit the button for the buzzer on the makeshift home of Admiral Raan, her sort of aunt and the closest thing to living family she had at the moment. The home was small and really just a cargo shuttle converted into a home,like pretty much every other home on Rannoch at that moment. The Quarians and Geth were having to rebuild a planet from scratch so until they finished building real houses old ships and shuttles were having to do. There were the beginnings of a vegetable garden scattered all around the shuttle/house,again like every home on Rannoch the Quarians were having to be farmers and each person had to grow his or her own food,it was the only way they were going to be able to feed everyone for a while. The mix of this with the advanced tech from their ships and suits made life on the planet a strange mix of the most advanced and primitive in the galaxy,still it was what the Quarians had been dreaming of for the past three hundred years so Tali was not going to complain even if she was not much of a farmer. At last the door opened and Tali was face to face with the woman she called Aunty Raan,even through the mask Tali could tell the older woman was smiling.

"It's about time you came to visit me,I hear you and Shepard have been down on the planet for more then two weeks!" Raan said taking tali in a hug which Tali returned.

"Sorry,we have just been extremely busy." Tali replied as Raan motioned for her to enter the house and she did so.

"That's alright I was only teasing child,to tell the truth I have been busy too. I think everyone on Rannoch is busy." The older woman said taking a seat in the makeshift living room of the house/shuttle.

"Yeah I get that feeling every time I turn around,everyone seems busy building and planting,I never thought I would live to see the day." Tali said as she took the seat opposite Raan.

"The pace of it all worries me sometimes. I get the feeling we are racing so fast to build something that we don't care what it is we are building here." Raan confessed in low tone. It was as if she was afraid someone would overhear her,as if admitting that something were not to her liking was some sort of sin for which she could never be forgiven so she tried her best not to be heard confessing to it.

"What do you mean?" Tali asked shocked. She had never heard her aunt openly question the actions of their people before and in truth since the Quarians saw themselves as "One big family" questioning the actions of the "family" was about the worst thing a Quarian could do.

"It's just that we are spreading out so quickly and our government is breaking down but we aren't replacing it with anything. You must have noticed some of this in the reports on the extra net. Can't you see what is happening,child?" Raan said trying to explain. She didn't like being on the defensive but at that moment she felt the need to justify her feelings about what was happening to her people and she hoped Tali would agree with her so she would know that she had at least one ally who felt the same way she did.

"To tell the truth I haven't seen much of the extra net let alone the news since we go here." Tali confessed,she was ashamed to admit it but she really was out of touch with what was going on there on her people's newly won back home world but after hearing what her aunt had to say she wondered if that was a mistake.

"Well I suppose you have had enough on your mind these past few months without thinking about everything that has been going on here." Raan conceded. "Still you haven't noticed anything that troubles you since you arrived on Rannoch?" She asked she was reaching still hoping to find someone to share here fears with.

"Sorry but John and I have mostly had the extra net switched off,there is just so much to do." Tali explained but there was something about her tone that told Raan who had known Tali her whole life that there was more to the story then she was saying,Raan decided to press and find out what it was.

"There is another reason besides being busy isn't there,what is it?,you can tell me." Raan said in a comforting tone of voice.

"We really are busy I mean we have to plant two gardens so that both of us can eat,keep two sets of animals,and then we are also planning the house. We really are busy right now." Tali insisted.

"Alright I can understand that,still it surprises me that you are not taking more of an interest in recent events." Raan said deciding to leave the matter along for the moment.

"So what is going on that has you so worried?" Tali asked not sure if she wanted to know the answer. Part of her had hoped that once the Reapers were gone everyone would just put aside their past differences and work to fix the galaxy's problems,or course in her head she knew things were never that easy still that didn't stop her from hoping that would be the case and now she had the feeling those hopes were about to be shattered.

"It's more like what shouldn't we be worrying about." Raan said beginning to explain. "Our people are spreading out all other the planet without any form of formal government. The only reason land disputes have not broken out is because there are so few of us. In some of the small makeshift cities the admiral are keeping control but now that we are no longer under marshal law they have no legal right to any kind of power."

"Well at least they are keeping chaos from breaking out in the streets." Tali pointed out.

"For now but how long will that last?" Raan asked. "Each admiral has there own ideas about how the planet should be run and how we should handle the Geth,it is only a matter of time before some sort of conflict breaks out."

"Do you really think it could come to civil war?" Tali asked shocked,suck a thing was unheard of for the Quarrians.

"I hope not but if there isn't any kind of check on the power of the admirals I am afraid it could come to that. I pray I am wrong child." Raan and her voice dipped into an almost hushed whisper on the last part.

"I hope you are too." Tali said after a moment and she had started to fidget in her chair the way she did any time she became nervous. "Isn't there any way we can get the admirals to give up their power and start a new government?" Tali asked hopefully.

"The trouble is our people seem to busy to care about starting a new government,we can only put pressure on the admirals to give up power to the new government if there is a new government to give up the power to." Raan pointed out.

"Yeah I guess that is true and I suppose the average person will not see our lack of government as a problem until there is bloodshed." Tali replied sadly as she looked down at the floor.

"It's enough to make me almost wish we hadn't gotten this planet back,maybe we were better off with the fleet." Raan said bitterly.

This shocked Tali,reclaiming Rannoch was the Quarrian dream and she never thought in a million years that she would hear any Quarrian let alone her own aunt describe it as a mistake.

"Aunty Raan,don't say things like that!" Tali scolded. "There may be problems but our people have always remembered that we are a family in the past and I am sure we will again."

"Maybe I am just a depressed old woman but when I see some of our people wanting to be free,others wanting to continue marshal law,some wanting to work with the Geth,and others wanting to destroy them,and everyone calling everyone else traitors for their views it makes me with we were still united as a fleet." Raan explained sadly.

"Oh Aunty you are not old." Tali replied. "I'll admit I have not been paying attention to the news and some of this sounds very worrying but if being with Shepard has taught me nothing else it's that people can over come any problem that is in front of them. I am sure we will get through these problems and then you will see things will be better then ever."

"Well I hope you are right,sorry to spring all this on you child but it has been a long time since I had someone to talk to." Raan said pulling herself together.

"Oh it's fine,I think I am going to start paying some attention to the news. I think some sort of action is going to have to be taken but I am sure it will turn out alright in the end." Tali said thoughtfully.

"Well enough about politics,how are you doing?" Raan asked cheerfully changing the subject.

"Things are going good,we are starting up the farm while drawing up plans for the house." Tali began excitedly glad to have something less depressing to talk about and then added. "By the way thanks for securing that piece of land,it means a lot to both of us."

"Don't mention it,after everything you two have been through you deserve a quiet place of your own." Rann replied. "I imagine switching over to farming is a challenge for both of you." Raan observed.

"Yeah even for Shepard it has been almost twenty years since he was on a farm and that was a human farm and not Rannoch." Tali explained. "I am learning a lot about human farming too. For instance I learned that a cow and a pig are not the same animal,it seems a cow is much larger. I bought what a human told me was a cow on Earth but Shepard informed me it was in fact a pig." Tali raised her hand to her face mask on that last part.

"Can't they be used for the same thing?" Raan asked.

"Not even close it seems for some reason Humans will drink and cook with the milk that comes from a cow but not the milk that comes from a pig." Tali explained to the older woman.

"Milk is milk,that is just silly." Raan stated.

"That is what I said but Shepard ordered a cow to be shipped here from earth. Fortunately money isn't a problem between his pension and selling his life story to a film studio we are pretty well off. Still the pig was not a total loss,Shepard says that when the pig is big enough we can turn it into something called bay kan." Tali said.

"I see didn't anyone on the ship tell you that you had a pig instead of a cow?" Raan asked puzzled.

"Well I didn't tell anyone that I thought it was a cow so I guess they just thought I wanted a pig." Tali explained. "We are also having to import some sort of insects called bees from earth so that the plants Shepard can eat will be able to breed but other then that things seem to be going well." Tali said happily.

"Well your farm is coming along fine but how are the two of you?" Raan asked.

"We are fine." Tali answered in a tone that seemed to indicate there was more to the story and then a second later she added. "For the most part."

"What is wrong child,you sounded so happy the last time you called me?" Raan asked concerned.

"Oh don't get me wrong I am happy and most of the time Shepard is too,in fact I have never seen him so happy but there are problems." Tali explained carefully.

"Like what?" Raan asked.

"Well I think he has been having nightmares,I find him up at odd hours and he sometimes seems lost and worried. To tell the truth I think that is why he doesn't watch the news,I don't think he wants to be reminded of the war." Tali explained quietly.

"Well I think everyone has nightmares." Raan noted. "Have you talked to him about this?"

"I don't know how." Tali admitted suddenly feeling awful about it. "He saw so much more then everyone else and he got closer to the Reapers,I don't know what I could do that would make it better."

"You would be surprised,just knowing you are there and listening could be a big help." Raan said in a motherly tone and she took one of Tali's hands in her own. "Next time you find him up just letting him know you are there."

"Okay I will try,thanks. I haven't had anyone to talk to about this either." Tali said and behind her mask she let out a weak smile. She and Raan then moved on to happier topics like the up coming wedding that Tali explained would be happening once the house was built and the fact that Tali had decided that she wanted to let the Geth into her suit so she would be able to live without it by the time of the wedding but all too soon for Tali's tastes it got late and it was time to go home. Tali hugged her aunt and promised to call more often then she had in the past.

As Tali left her aunt's home she looked up into the sky she admiring the stars,she was sure that she would never get tired of looking up at the stairs of her home world. Still there were troubled waters ahead and Tali had to think about that fact,she decided that she couldn't stand on the sidelines while the fate of her people was decided. She didn't know how but she had to act in some way that would help set up a stable government that would not try to exploit the Geth,she didn't just owe that to her people but to Legion as well. She didn't have a plan and she wasn't sure Shepard would be up to standing beside her,he was still damaged from the war and she didn't want to put any more stress him but she was going to act. She came to this decision and like all others in her life once she had come to it there was no going back. She laughed to herself a little as she climbed into her car,she sure knew how to pick her tasks. She had a lot of work ahead of her.

Well I hope you like this first chapter. Please leave a review as even the negative ones are a huge help. For anyone wondering what happened to Building a better Galaxy new chapters are coming now that I have my computer up and running but I need to get my head back to where it was a few months ago so to that end I will be editing and fixing mistakes in the past chapters before posting new ones there but I will be writing this story while I do that. Thanks for reading and thanks for your support. Feel free to leave reviews or PM me with any thoughts you have about this story or building a better galaxy.

Thanks for reading and see you in the next chapter.