The door slid shut behind her, and Shepard examined her personal quarters for the first time since they had become hers. Hers, what an odd thought. Funnier still perhaps that having her own quarters was more overwhelming than having command of her own ship and being the first human ever given the honor of becoming a Spectre, but she'd never had a space all of her own before.

Living on the streets on Earth it was rare enough to just have a possession of your own for more than a few minutes, let alone a place to call your own, and even at the shelter she had shared a room with whichever girls had happened to be in residence as well. At the academy she'd always had at least one roommate and after that it was ship after ship with close quarters and beds traded with whoever was on duty at the time. Even as ship XO she hadn't been excused from sharing a bunk. So this…it almost seemed excessive, this much room just for one person.

Shepard took her time in examining the simple room. Desks, chairs, her own personal terminal. An honest-to-goodness bed. With blankets and pillows and everything. Though some might name it sparse, it was almost extravagant by her standards. Rank and titles were somewhat intangible things. This was an indication to her of how far she had come in life from the slums where she had begun. Her own ship with which to explore space…and this tiny, simple space of her own.

"Commander Shepard?" The door slid open again with a hiss. "I just thought I'd see how…" Ashley stopped abruptly before running into her commander who was still standing just within the doorway. "Um, Commander? Is everything alright?" the young gunnery chief asked as she stood awkwardly at the entrance to the room.

"Just fine, Williams," Shepard said, turning around to face the other woman. "I was inspecting my new quarters. What were you saying?"

"I just wanted to see how you were doing, being the first human Spectre and all that," Ashley said. "And after what they did to Captain Anderson…that was really rotten of them."

"It was," Shepard agreed. "But we'll make him proud when we catch that bastard Saren. It's the only way to make it worth it."

The younger woman nodded. "Yes ma'am." She hesitated a moment, then looked past Shepard to the room beyond. "Nice place, Commander. It's a little plain though, don't you think?"

"This is a military ship, Williams," Shepard replied. "We're not exactly on a pleasure cruise. It's not like I'll be spending much time here anyways." And it wasn't as though she had much in the way of personal knick-knacks with which to decorate it with either. No, she was content with her quarters just the way they were.

"Ah, yes ma'am," the young soldier answered. "I just thought, maybe, well here." She pressed something into Shepard's hands. "Think of it as a cabin-warming present. From L-T and me. Even if he doesn't know about it."

The holo flickered to life when she turned it over. "Wow," Shepard remarked with a laugh. "Alenko looks really awkward here."

Ashley grinned back. "He does, doesn't he? I think you scare him, Commander. He keeps tripping over his own tongue when he's around you." Shepard didn't know how to answer that, so she went back to examining the holo. It was the three of them, frozen in some candid moment in time from their recent foray at the Citadel. "Apparently some souvenir shop in the Wards takes these when people walk by," Ashley explained. "It's gimmicky, but it caught my eye when I walked past, so I thought I'd pick it up for you. I know it's a little against protocol but…"

"It's alright," Shepard reassured her. "I appreciate the thought, Ash."

"Glad to hear it, ma'am," Williams said with a smile. "Anyways, I'll be at my station if you need me." The door hissed shut with the gunnery chief's departure.

Shepard walked over to the desk and set the holo frame down next to her personal terminal. Looking at that holo, she decided to amend her previous thought. Being a Spectre, having the freedom to travel space, and space of her own, those were still marvelous things. But having friends to share it with? That was a greater triumph than she had ever expected.