Daro quickly sized up her opponents as they circled her in the dark red half-light of the club. Five drunk miners, no matter how muscular, had little chance against her. She was the top of her class in hand to hand, a master of wielding and re-directing momentum. Their size and sluggish reflexes would work to her advantage. Her feet slid into a combative stance, the silver almonds of her eyes darting from enemy to enemy as though daring one of them to strike first. The miners surrounded her, Daro was ready to counter anything her adversaries hoped to throw at her. The law of conservation of energy was appropriate here. Anything they dished, she would gladly turn back onto them, herself neither creating or destroying the energy, only redirecting it.

'Go ahead, bosh'tets. Make a move.'

A voice picked up above the pounding bass of the club's music. She could make out another human strutting confidently towards Daro's group of would-be assailants. One on six, and the odds were still in her favor. She smiled inwardly. Child's play.

"You guys wouldn't be happening to be giving the lady a hard time, would ya? That ain't very proper," said the newcomer. Judging from his disheveled appearance, Daro had to wonder what exactly passed for this idiot's definition of proper. A smug grin crossed the human's face as he weaved between the circle of thugs, raising his hands in a peaceful gesture. Standing between Daro and the disgruntled group that was threatening her, he kept his voice cool and civil, seemingly trying to defuse the situation. That was a new one for the quarian pilgrim, having become unaccustomed to anyone standing up on her behalf during her travels. She felt a pang of sadness at the thought. She was seriously starting to miss Shen.

"Can't we all just get along?"

Daro glanced at the human as he stood by her side, dropping his arms as he chuckled at his latest quip, shrugging carelessly with a smile plastered all over his worn face. He was built strongly for one of his species, likely another miner. He looked like he had spent a great deal of time doing hard labor himself, his face stained and withered from Caleston's constant state of erosion. Glancing over his rugged attire, Daro's trained eyes caught sight of the pistol he wore under his jacket. Their eyes met at last, the human giving her a sly wink.

The turian that had been a constant source of harassment for her took a step forward, pointing one of his talons at the human newcomer. "Get out of our way, kid. We have a whole lot to thank the bucket-faced carpet-cleaner for," he snarled, exposing predator's teeth. "Lazy thing can't even keep our equipment runnin', boss took it out of our paychecks. She owes us hers." The human at her flank seemed visibly disturbed, either from the turian's remarks or from his alcohol laced breath. Daro wasn't sure which.

In a smooth flourish, the hooded woman brought up her leg and unsheathed her knife. It's weight was balanced, it's grip comfortable in her hand. It had belonged to her father. The blade was long and thin, designed to slip between ribs or vertebrae. A pure killing tool. If they wanted her hard earned credits, they were welcome to come and take them, provided they didn't die in the process.

"Step aside, human. I do not need your help," Daro said coldly. This human was strange. He stood up for her, someone he didn't know, a quarian of all things, for no real reason. Whether he was mad, drunk, or just plain stupid, Daro didn't care. It was one of only a handful of kindnesses she had been offered during her long journey. She was not going to repay it by watching this man lose his life. Better he turn around and go home. She would handle this.

The human outright laughed. Maybe he really was mad, or at the least severely intoxicated. Five men staring him down and he laughed? Of one thing, she was certain: this alien was a fool.

"You're worried about little old me? I'm flattered," he inquired curiously, almost as if asking a child. Daro arched an eyebrow. Was this guy serious?

The turian's mandibles flared as he approached the human, rage fueling him, his voice flanging dangerously, "I don't think you heard me ri-"

A sharp hiss was heard over the pounding bass as the capacitors of the human's pistol whined to life, aiming the weapon straight at the turian's withered face.

"No, I heard you just fine. Question is, will you hear this before it kills you?" The human pressed the barrel to the turian's head, all laughter gone from his voice. "I don't think you will."

The gang of miners took a handful of precarious steps back, one wisely deciding to retreat. The turian's mandibles twitched, fear shining in his eyes. His little pack of mongrels was breaking. Daro felt a wave of disgust. Cowards. She hated cowards. People who were afraid to fight and work for their way in life were not worth the resources that kept them alive, and people who could not follow through with their convictions because of inherent danger were no better. She sighed under her visor. Pathetic.

"You ain't got the guts, kid," the turian said. His voice held no passion, no strength. Daro knew he didn't believe his own words. She secretly hoped the dust-laden human would simply pull the trigger and save her the agony of having to put up with her co-worker's snide remarks in the future. She certainly wouldn't miss it.

The human smirked at the enraged turian, cruel mirth glittering in his gaze, "Don't worry about my guts. Worry about yours. Unless you want them decorating the walls, I'd leave." Daro laughed at that, her voice not rising above the bass. This alien was amusing, if nothing else.

The turian turned to Xen, his black eyes glossy with hate as he pointed a talon at her, "we aren't done, bitch. See you at the office." Turians. They always had to have the last word.

The turian and his lackeys made their exit, the human grinning with smug satisfaction at their retreat. He twirled the pistol in his hand playfully before returning it to his side, turning back to her with what might have been concern in his eye.

"You okay?"

Daro's eyes narrowed. His efforts might have been genuine, but she did not believe his concern was. It had to be a trick, or there was a catch, some kind of loophole. Nobody was ever nice to her without having something to gain from it. Certainly not an alien.

"I didn't need your help." She made sure he knew she had no problem with taking on five armed men. She was not a damsel in distress. Anything to help mitigate a possible confrontation. Intimidation had been known to work invariably, though it was less effective without her rifle. The human shrugged, another lopsided grin worming it's way across his face. She had never seen someone smiling so much. It was unnerving.

"I don't like it when people mess with my good time. Simple as that. They friends of yours or something?"

Daro sighed under her helmet, "something. A group of racist idiots I am forced to scrape out a living working with."

The human chuckled, shaking his head as his smile widened across his lips.

"I hear that."

Daro heard a soft chime resonate from her omni-tool, her alarm reminding her that the shelter she had made her temporary home was closing soon. The human tilted his head curiously.

"Problem?"

"I need to get back to the shelter."

"Which one?"

Daro was momentarily taken back by his question. Why did he care? She was grateful for his actions, misplaced though they may have been, but it still made her nervous that he seemed so concerned. What was his angle?

"Kanek's? It's just past the markets."

The human waved his hand dismissively. "Seriously? That place is a dive. Lot of crime in that district anyway. You can stay at my place. Lay low for awhile, if you'd like. Those guys definitely didn't seem like the type to just let things be."

Daro raised a brow under her visor. Did he just suggest that she stay with him? He treated it so casually, like he was remarking about the weather. Something wasn't right.

"Why would you want to invite me into your home?" Daro was genuinely curious. "I'm a quarian." She shrugged, adding it almost as an afterthought.

The human shrugged, a smirk stretching across his face once more. "You'd be doing me a favor. I honestly wouldn't mind a bit of company. If you're not comfortable with it, that's cool, just thought I'd ask."

Daro's heart sank. She knew what this was about.

"I don't know what it is with people on this rock, but I'm a quarian, we're not just talking suits, we're actual people, hard as it may be for your limited minds to come to terms with it. I'm not some plaything you can take back with you. If you're feeling that lonely, talk to the asari down the street, I'm sure they'd be happy to oblige, even for someone as filthy as you." Daro was getting tired of humans and their obsession with her. From what she understood, quarians had a very attractive figure by human standards, but this was starting to get just plain irritating.

The human seemed to study her for a moment, sizing her up. 'Go ahead and look, bosh'tet', thought Xen, 'that's all you're going to be doing.'

After a moment, he shrugged absently, "I was just offering a place for you to crash. I wasn't lookin' for anything like that, just thought you could use a place to keep it low-key. Thought it might be nice to have someone to talk to. You don't have to do anything you don't want to."

Daro felt her cheeks unwillingly flush under her mask. This was unusual. No doubt he had some ulterior motive. He had to. Nobody she had ever known was kind to quarians just for the hell of it. Still, if he really wanted to try something, he could have just collected whatever was left of her after the other miners had had their way. Daro shook her head. She would just need to keep an eye on him. It wasn't like she had a better chance of survival at the shelter.

"Daro'Xen nar Khalos," she said by way of introduction, tilting her head and nodding politely. Quarians often greeted each other by way of exchanging names. It allowed them to identify each other despite their suits.

The human smiled, bowing his head slightly as he spoke, "Name's Jason. Jason Dray. Friends call me Jay, or at least they would if I had any friends."

Jason's eyes widened, a smirk slowly forming as he chuckled.

"I think you're going to need to write yours down for me, though. How about I just call you Dee until then? That way my tongue doesn't fall off every time I try to say your name."

Xen crossed her arms imperiously. "My name is Daro. Think you can handle that much? Or should I have it changed to something with fewer syllables?" Her voice was dripping with sarcasm.

Jason shrugged as he started walking out of the club. "Right. You're the boss. Come on. Your shelter is on the way. You need to grab anything from there before we head out?" Nodding, Daro followed him out the door.

The duo exited out into the sand-blasted streets, thick clouds of dust making the night even more obscure. Daro pulled her shawl tighter around her body. Jason didn't seem to mind, flipping the collar of his jacket up and pulling a pair of tinted goggles over his eyes. Life on Caleston must have made sandstorms and choking dust clouds insignificant to him. Tonight was worse than usual, the gale sending enough sand onto Daro's visor to make a deafeningly loud scratching inside her helmet. A particular powerful gust caused her to stop in her tracks, her shawl billowing violently out behind her. Jason turned back to her, holding out his hand to help her along.

Daro's hand reached out, stopping hesitantly before her three fingers gripped at his five. Her training told her that this was a vulnerable position. Low visibility. Hostile environment. Dominating stance for the opponent who was also armed. She doubted he would lure her out into a sandstorm after defending her against a pack of barbarians just to take advantage of her. Still, if he did, he would be in for the fight of his life; she hadn't sheathed her knife. They walked hand-in-hand as they made their way through the ferocious sandstorm, Daro making out the vague outline of the shelter's entrance not far in the distance. Jason reached the entrance, slamming the green light of the access panel to open the door. Drifting gusts of sand heralded their arrival to the vocal discontent of the turians who were packed in the cramped space.

Jason raised his hands in a peaceful gesture, addressing everyone present in a dramatic fashion as Daro made her way over to the small corner she had claimed for her own.

"Relax, relax. A little sand. Won't hurt you. Much. The lady just needs to pick up some..."

Daro hefted the Lancer over her shoulder, the magnetic clasps of her suit securing the weapon to her back as she let her shawl fall over it. The quarian quickly made her way back towards the entrance, eager to be away from the hateful glares of the turians. Jason followed her every movement in surprised silence. Apparently, he hadn't expected her to pull out a military grade assault rifle from under her cot.

"... things? Huh... Anyway... Thank you for your patience ladies and gentlemen. We'll be on our way."

The doors of the shelter opened once again, sending a gale of sand and dust into the turians behind them. Jason waved their complaints away dismissively as he stepped into the storm at Daro's side, her hands resting on her hips. He leaned in to speak into the audio enhancers of her helmet over the howling winds of the sandstorm, his hand finding hers once more.

"Follow me. Stay close."

Daro braved the ferocity of the sandstorm with Jason leading her by his hand, trusting the human's ability to navigate the blinding cloud of ash. Thankfully, there was no vehicular activity in a storm this fierce. The quarian did not enjoy the prospect of being blindly led into oncoming traffic. Daro silently thanked whatever genius had designed her envirosuit to weather the extremes of the galaxy. Yet another proud product of quarian engineering. The sand and dust was uncomfortable enough without the prospect of the howling winds tearing at her sensitive skin.

Jason led her father and further into the city, whatever landmarks there might have been completely obscured by the storm. Part of her was concerned that this foolhardy human had gotten them lost, but his steps spoke confidence. He seemed to know where he was going. How he did was beyond her. He must have grown up here to know the city well enough to walk through it blindly. If anything, she could trust his own survival instincts. Something that basic was always dependable.

Daro could make out the looming shadow of an approaching structure, a ramshackle storefront with an apartment built above it that looked as though it had been abandoned long ago. He lived here? Drawing closer to the entrance, she saw that shutters had been installed on the windows, likely after it was abandoned and Jason moved in. Very resourceful. Daro could respect that, even if it was little better than a slum. Jason reached out at the doors, pulling one of them to the side to let her inside. Cool air rushed to meet her as she entered the storefront, reconfigured into a living room and a kitchen. The base of the structure must have been a restaurant or something similar, worn ovens and grills left behind half of a demolished counter. Jason slid the doors shut using hastily welded metal handles, the door shutting with a pneumatic hiss.

"Feel free to make yourself comfortable. Plenty of room on the second floor. Uh... third floor is out. No stairs up. There's a shower, too... If you need one... Uh..." It was obvious his knowledge of quarians was severely limited.

Daro was hardly comfortable, trapped by her own will in a slum with a strange human after she had nearly worked herself into an early coffin. Jason pulled the goggles off, leaving circles of grime around his eyes as he tossed his jacket onto a nearby table. A grin crossed his face as he made his way to a set of stairs around the corner of the kitchen.

"Speaking of which, I could use one. There's room for two, if you're interested," he said playfully. Daro couldn't tell if the human was joking, or if he was just plain insensitive. Probably both.

"Standing that close to you would likely cover me in even more filth, shower or not."

Jason let out a hearty laugh before walking up the stairs, the groaning sound of piping echoing through the building as the shower turned on. Daro took this opportunity to take inventory of her surroundings. It reminded her of the Flotilla, ironically. Everything was very minimalist. Although this was likely due to poverty rather than efficiency. It would at least be better than the shelter, provided her "host" didn't attempt anything. She had no illusions about it, this was only temporary. Likely tonight and tomorrow. It would be unwise to be out with those miners looking for her. Best to give them some time to cool off. Still, it was best to be prepared should anything untoward occur. Maybe there were a few aliens out there with the quarian spirit, the desire to help others that came naturally, but she wasn't taking any chances. Unfolding her rifle, Daro cradled it. Better safe than dead.

Daro's training took over, measuring every angle and surface of the living room and kitchen for tactical advantage. Plenty of space. Furniture carries plenty of inherent uses. Kitchen utensils would make fine improvised weapons for both combatants. She didn't notice as Jason made his decent from the second floor, running a ragged towel through his short hair. He stopped at the sight of her rifle.

"Seriously?"

Daro's head snapped up. She considered him for a moment, then folded it back up, but did not slide it back onto her suit. "Fair enough?"

Jason's brow quirked up. "I guess. So… you, uh,… you like the place?"

Looking around the room, Daro decided to stick to the truth.

"It's... quaint."

Well, close enough anyway.

Jason smirked as he tossed the towel onto the back of a nearby chair, stretching his arms up over his head.

"Plenty of room upstairs, like I said. Empty for the most part. One or two beds..."

Daro's eyes narrowed under her visor. Jason raised his hands defensively.

"... That aren't mine! Relax."

Daro's arms crossed over her chest as she leaned back on one leg, disapproval evident in her tone. "I think I would prefer the couch."

Yes, the couch. Closer to the door. Far away from him. She wasn't comfortable sleeping in the same room as a stranger. Her nights at the shelter had been sleepless ones, despite her desperate need of rest.

"You sure? I get why you might be a little shaky about this, but I promise I'm not going to try anything. I'd have already done something by now if that was the case."

"I was groped by my employer today after working a back breaking eighteen hour shift in a miserable pit, only to then be harassed by a group of diseased pyjaks that think I'm some kind of talking object. You'll excuse me if I am less than trusting." Daro's tone was perhaps slightly more harsh than was necessary. Still, she was exhausted, and the day's events had taken a toll on her. She just wanted a single night of good sleep.

A frown crossed the human's face, the first one she had seen from him.

"I... uh... I'm sorry. To be fair though, you do have very nice hips, I can see why he'd be interested." Daro was severely unimpressed.

"Right, sorry. I'm going to head up... There's food in the fridge... If you can eat it... You're certainly welcome to anything you're capable of digesting. 'Night."

Daro could visibly see his shoulder hunch over as he walked away. A sigh escaped her voice modulator.

"Wait..."

Jason turned as he came to the foot of the stairwell.

"There aren't very many people who would defend... someone like me and then offer them a place to stay… I…" Daro had never been good at this sort of thing. "Thank you. I guess."

The human smirked again, an expression he seemed to take to regularly.

"No problem. Besides... You're easy on the eyes. 'Night, Dee."

"My name is Daro'Xen!" She said it with a slightly playful tone, despite herself. The human chuckled as he made his way up the stairs, leaving the weary nomad unwittingly blushing under her mask. Easy on the eyes? She shook the thought from her head. She was acting absurd. He was vulgar and shallow and... kind. He had invited her into his home without a second thought. Daro still could not fully believe it. She actually sat in one place without a sneering look or a hateful remark. It was so foreign to her. Part of her actually felt safer here. She felt like she could finally rest at ease. She hadn't felt that since her parents had died. It was strange. He didn't turn his nose up at her. He didn't shun her.

He was a very weird human. Daro smirked under her helmet. She liked weird.

The pain in her muscles suddenly came to the forefront, every fiber of her body aching to be laid to rest. The intense work day combined with the heat and the storms had taken their toll on the quarian, Daro gingerly lowered her body onto the couch. It was less than ideal, but it was something. At least the interior lining of her suit was soft enough to ignore the various lumps and tears in the furniture. She didn't care. She was so tired that solid concrete would seem preferable than staying on her feet a moment longer. Daro's silver eyes grew heavy as her thoughts drifted to the human who had so kindly shared his home with her. Her dreams were filled with longing that she had finally found a person she could trust on this awful world. She knew it was a foolish thing to do. There had to be a catch somewhere.

Still, it felt good to hope.

Daro was suddenly aware that she was awake. Her eyes were open in a flash. Sunlight leaked through the cracks in the shutters. It was morning. She couldn't even recall having fallen asleep. She felt around, her fingers tracing themselves over her folded up rifle that she had slept with under her pillow. Good, the human hadn't tried anything.

The cloaked quarian did a double take. The human hadn't done anything. That was something, wasn't it? Daro took a moment to consider that, lazily blinking the sleep from her eyes as her heart slowed down. Reclining into the musty old couch, She let her sore muscles stretch out. Everything ached, but at least she was well rested. Pulling out a small tube from a pouch on one of her belts, Daro connected it to one of feeding tubes under her chin, disengaging it with a soft his before attaching it to what passed as her breakfast. Sucking gingerly on the tube, trying to draw out the taste as long as she could, the refreshed quarian sat deep in thought, her mind already fully alert, even if her body was being sluggish.

Quarian goes on Pilgrimage. Quarian gets in trouble. Dashing person steps in and helps Quarian. Person accepts quarian into home. Person is nice to quarian. Daro had heard this train of thought before, and it always led to one of two outcomes. It was either something that was heard in fairytales or outlandish Pilgrimage stories, neither of which she put much purchase into, or it was part of a warning issued to pre-pilgrim recruits, divulging to them the dangers of a galaxy that had a long and dirty history of taking advantage of her people and their naiveté. Growing up isolated from the galaxy and it's dangers made Pilgrimage inherently dangerous, as most were unaccustomed to the blatant racism and the concept of taking advantage of another being; everyone on the Flotilla was raised to share and work together, judging based only on character.

Still, here she was, unharmed. It was strange to her. She wasn't used to anyone going out of their way for her, not even on the flotilla. Again, Daro let her mind drift back to Shen. They had met shortly after gaining their own suits as small children. She had been taking a particularly harsh verbal beating that day from one of the other children after finding out she had cut up a small, stuffed varren. She hadn't meant to destroy the small toy, at least, that wasn't her intention. She was just curious. Her parents were biologists, they did that sort of thing all the time, and she was simply trying to imitate them. She hadn't thought that anyone would care if she "experimented" on the ragged old thing, nobody played with it. The other boy had likely simply used it as an excuse to pick on her. The other children were always picking on her. Not that day. While she had sat there sniffling at the remarks, "freak" and "creepy" chief among them, clinging to the mutilated doll, another boy in a tattered red suit had come over and told the bully to leave her alone. He had ended up pushing the other boy to the ground, earning the ire of their day-watcher. After a thorough scolding, he had approached Daro and introduced himself. They were inseparable ever since. She had never forgotten the experience.

A muffled shuffling could be heard from above. A moment later, Jason was walking down the stairs, wearing a tattered old pair of work pants and a white undershirt. Catching Daro's eye, he flashed his characteristic smirk at her.

"Glad to see you're up." For a moment the two stared at one another, an awkward silence settling in the room. "So, uh, you slept well, I hope?"

Daro relaxed a little bit. She still felt out of her element trusting someone outside of the flotilla. Not that she had trusted many inside the flotilla, but at least she had faith in her people, even if they didn't always have faith in her.

"I slept well enough. Again, you have my thanks." It was more than most ever got.

Dray nodded by way of acknowledgement, then suddenly froze, staring at Daro for a moment with his eyebrow arched inquisitively.

"Did you actually sleep in that helmet and armor?"

Tilting her head to the side, Daro crossed her arms defensively. "Your ignorance is astounding. Do you make it a habit of inviting people from species you know nothing about into your home? What if one of them had the nasty habit of eating brains as a midnight snack?" Xen didn't mean to sound rude, but it annoyed her that even someone who took the time to help her knew nothing about her people.

Jason's face was neutral for once. "Do quarians eat people's brains?"

Daro's eyes narrowed. "No."

Jason's face lit back up. "Good. I was worried there for a second." Working his way over to what passed as a kitchen, he lit the burners and began making himself breakfast. Looking over his shoulder, he asked "so, what exactly is it with the suit? Don't get me wrong, you make it look totally hot, I'm just curious. Are quarians like volus or something?"

Rising to her feet, Daro unfolded her arms, choosing to instead interlace her fingers behind her back. It was an open stance, one she rarely took to. "Not at all. Quarians have weak immune systems from living so long aboard starships. We can't take them off outside the flotilla without getting some kind of sickness." Daro was a scientist. Talking to her about the weather or who won last week's game of claw ball did nothing for her. Getting her started on a topic she was interested in, however, invariably led to her rambling almost obsessively. "If we really wanted to, we could take them off, but it would require a great deal of anti-biotics to stay out for extended periods of time. My people don't have the resources for such luxuries. We eat, sleep, and die in these suits." Dray could detect a small trace of sadness in Xen's words, but kept silent, letting her continue. "Volus wear their suits because they can't breathe oxygen. Irune, their home world, also has abnormally high atmospheric pressure. Suit removal in environments with Caleston's level of pressure would result in muscular expansion and dermal laceration."

Daro stopped talking for a moment. Jason was chuckling.

"What's so funny?" she inquired. Had she done something wrong? Was he going to laugh at her and mock her? It certainly wouldn't surprise her. She was used to it. What was one more insult?

Scrambling his eggs enthusiastically, Jason turned to look at her. "Nothing. It's just that every other sentence I've gotten out of you has either been an insult or three words long. I ask you about suits, and suddenly you're babbling." He smiled, laughter on his voice, "It's nice to see you in a more agreeable mood, you know?"

Daro hadn't been expecting that. She felt her cheeks reddening under her mask. He actually liked talking to her? That was… she didn't know what that was.

"I…" She could feel herself stumbling.

Dray just smiled, "Don't worry about it, you're not good at that sort of thing, it's cool."

Xen's mouth dropped. He actually listened too? Definitely something she wasn't used to.

"So… how do quarians eat anyway? Do you want me to make you breakfast, or what?" Jason was trying to be courteous.

Daro sighed under her helmet, but smiled happily none the less; the first time in months. "That won't be necessary. Quarians can't eat levo-amino acid based food. Even if we could, our immune systems prevent…"

Daro and her newfound companion spent the rest of the day talking about everything ranging from quarian immunology and life on the flotilla, to what she was doing on pilgrimage. While her unkempt human host had a boisterous attitude, he was also a good listener, something Xen hadn't had since leaving the fleet. It hadn't helped that her life had gotten considerably more complicated since leaving, and she was lacking in a way to properly vent. It felt wonderful having someone who just let her talk. She hadn't even realized how much weight she was carrying around on her shoulders until later that evening, when she finally realized she had talked the day away.

"I appreciate your hospitality," she said, getting up from the small couch, clamping her assault rifle back into it's proper place. "But, I should be leaving. The shelter will be closing soon. I'm sure my co-workers will have had ample time to get over last night's events. If not, I can handle myself."

It surprised her when Jason looked taken aback. "The shelter? You want to go back? You're welcome to stay here you know." He looked around the ramshackle apartment. "I know it's not much, but if you want to crash here, that's totally cool with me."

Daro was again surprised. He was offering her his home? He was willing to share with her? He was an odd human indeed.

"What about other people? Are you not concerned what others will think of you for harboring a quarian? Miners look down on us like the plague." Daro sighed. It was true.

Dray was silent for a few minutes, sitting on the couch with this hands laced together in a prayer like posture, seemingly considering something. After a moment, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small back filled with a reddish-orange substance. "Do you know what this is?" he asked.

Daro's eyes narrowed, studying the powder-like material. After a moment, she shook her head.

Jason sighed. "Red sand."

Daro folded her arms and tilted her head. "That's illegal, even out here. It's also highly addictive." Her voice was condescending. She got the impression it was a speech he had heard more than once.

"Yeah… I know." He slid the small bag back into his pocket. He looked up into veiled eyes. "It's not something I'm proud of. I started using when I was a teenager, right after my parents died. I've tried quitting. I can't." Jason buried his head in his hands, rubbing his eyes. Daro felt a sudden pang of pity. He wasn't so different from her. People around here probably weren't fond of their resident junkie. She had never been a fan of substance abuse, of course, it was a very rare thing where she was from. They didn't have the resources for that kind of thing. He was alone, like she was. Suddenly it clicked into place. That's why he wanted her to come back with him. He just wanted some company, even if it was in the form of an anti-social quarian. He looked back up at her. "It's alright if you want to leave. I understand. I'm not the best person to be hanging around anyway." He finally cracked his trademark smile. "I'm glad we met, at least. You're an interesting gal, Daro." They stared at each other for the longest time.

Finally, Xen worked up the courage to speak first. "I'll stay another night."

Dray's face nearly split in half with his smile. "You're sure?"

Daro sat down beside him, resting her elbows on her thighs. "What you do is your business. I don't really care. I'm not going to judge you." She smiled under her visor. "Make fun of you, definitely. Not judge you."

Jason was beaming. "You're weird, Dee." Xen crossed her arms playfully.

"I like that."

"My name is Daro," she mock-scolded.

He tilted his head, still smiling at her. "You're seriously going to have to write the full thing down some time."