Renala is the first one back from work today, and is watching the news idly from the couch; just more Collector news bringing no new data to the table. There's a low glass of something blank in her hand, though there is no bottle on the table. The asari looks tired more than anything else, which shouldn't come as a surprise as she's been up since 5 in the morning. Renala is wearing a white fleeze jacket
#SteveRenalaApartment – March 25, 2019
The Collectors are defeated, and Henrik is long gone, but that's not the end of their problems.
Steve's arrival is announced by the sound of the front door sliding open. After a few moments, he makes his way towards the living room, the clank of heavy armored boots firm on the ground. "Didn't expect you to be up." he says through a tired smile as he spots Renala. He makes detour to drop his helmet onto the kitchen counter and casts a brief glance to the television as he unholsters his sidearm and removes the thermal
clip. "They're still goin' at it?" he asks as he thumbs the safety on and sets the weapon beside his helmet. "All they been talkin' about all day. Crazy how much can change in twelve hours, huh?"
Renala looks up at Steve as he enters, taking her attention off the screen. Renala has seen this colonist interview ten times already in the last hour. "Yeah, and there's barely been any developments since the news broke," she says. "How's your day been? Anyone taken the celebrations a little too far?" She takes a sip of her drink, grimacing slightly at the taste.
Steve glances back towards the screen as the interview begins to replay. He, too, has seen non-stop coverage on the Respite screens all day. He gives a small snort and a shake of his head. "Nah. Crowd was a lil' rowdy, but nothin' got too outta hand." he says as he removes his gauntlets and sets them down beside the rest of his gear. "And fuckin' Cerberus? Didn't see that comin'..." he sighs, casting a brief look towards
the asari with a shake of his head before he moves to round the counter and head into the kitchen, sights set on the fridge. "Ain't exactly a good look for the Alliance. Prolly ain't too good for us, either, considerin' we ain't exactly on their Christmas card list... But-... shit. Gotta be runnin' a pretty fuckin' big operation to take down the Collectors, right?" As he reaches the fridge, he tugs the door open and
Renala nods to the offer of beer before letting out a long sigh. "Yeah, fucking terrorists saving the day," Renala says with a shake of her head. "Maybe I shouldn't have been too hard on that Children of Aite guy at the Respite." There's a hint of a joke in the otherwise sour tone in her voice. She downs the remainder of her drink with a wince and puts the glass on the table. "You do make a point,
though," she says. "They've either got a big operation, or this team of specialists are living legends. Bad news either way because I know they've got their claws into our systems at some point, and maybe still do."
Steve reaches in to collect a couple of beers as Renala speaks, her mention of the Children of Aite gets a humorless snort. "Eh. They're just a buncha dumb assholes lookin' for a fight that they ain't got no chance of winnin'. I don't think you got much to worry about from them." he comments. It's not until she mentions Cerberus potentially having control of their systems that he seems to give pause. He brings his free
hand up to rest atop the open fridge door, gaze resting ahead, brow pinched in concentration. "...You really think they might be watchin' us...?" he asks, a hint of actual concern in his voice as he looks back to the asari somewhat distantly.
Renala shrugs at his assessment of the Children, as she's under no illusion otherwise. "This apartment? No, I doubt it," she says. "The only things in here that has a camera... to my knowledge are our omni-tools. I meant the office. I say it's our system because I feel a sense of... ownership of the security system there, I guess." Renala pauses for a moment to glance at the screen. "Whether they watch
us, I don't know," she says. "I just know they've broken in at some point, and the chief wanted me to lock them out."
Steve furrows his brow, shaking his head at her first assessment as he certainly didn't mean the apartment, but the possibility only seems to further his concerns. He steps out of the way of the fridge door and pushes it shut before moving to hunt for the bottle opener in one of the drawers, that concerned look still etched into his features. "...You think you got 'em out...?" he asks with a brief flash of a look her way.
Renala looks over at the screen. "I've put a lot of effort into intrusion detection and analysis," she says. "Everything is profiled, every byte of activity logged and analyzed. I have the VI look at it, of course, I don't fucking want to know what any of them do in their downtime. While I was on vacation, I was testing out a solution for analysing security footage to flag suspicious behavior beyond the
obvious things, just in case one of our growing list of enemies has a double agent among us." Renala then looks at Steve, trying to make eye contact. "But the truth nobody wants to hear is that I don't fucking know if it's enough," she says. "These people went through Omega 4 and lived, they kicked the Collectors' ass. If they want to ruin our day, well, I don't have high hopes for our security
Steve keeps his head low as his hunt for the bottle opener proves successful. He always somehow manages to put it away in a different drawer. He listens to Renala as he pops the caps off of each of the beers. He gives a few small, distant nods to her words, briefly turning his head to meet her gaze, but the eye contact doesn't last. He scoops up each of the beers and makes his way back towards the living room, setting one
on the coffee table for the asari before backing up to the counter to lift himself onto his usual seating position atop the kitchen counter. "...Henrik was workin' with somebody. Julia." he says idly, brow furrowed as he sets his beer down beside him and leans down to remove his armored boots. Of course, Renala already knows that. She read through the messages. "...He wasn't givin' much away, but-..." he shakes his
head and trails off, a snort escaping him as he drops his boots to the floor. "Hell, I'm prolly just bein' paranoid. Been cooped up in this damn apartment too much lately..." he says with a snicker, finally looking back to the asari as if hoping to hear her thoughts on the matter. Hoping for reassurance.
Renala reaches over to grab the bottle offered to her, taking a long swig of it. It took her a moment longer than she'd want to admit to remember her. She's managed to push the problems to the back of her mind while off to Thessia, but she has not forgotten. The mention of the Henrik problem does worsen her mood. "Julia abandoned Henrik, didn't she?" she asks. "It's a waste of resources to do that and
Steve gives a few small nods as he brings his legs back up onto the counter and sits back against the divider. It's pretty obvious that the whole ordeal is still weighing on him. "...Yeah." he says tentatively as he recollects his beer and brings it to his lips for a long swig. He gives a few more shallow nods, brows furrowing as a bit of confidence returns to him. "Yeah-... you're right." he says in agreement, "Just-...
all this talk of Cerberus and-..." he trails off, deciding not to encumber Renala with his own unfounded concerns. "How about you?" he asks, refocusing in an attempt at not dwelling too much on the issue. "How was your first day back?"
Renala looks away as she thinks about her day. "Where do I even start?" she says. "The thing I was testing over the vacation – it worked. It fucking worked, and I couldn't be less happy about it." She takes a big gulp from the bottle. "Redrock Agency is mess. I know that, you know that, but none of us need to know the extent of it." She looks at Steve. There's anger in her voice, and it might not be
hard to notice that she has stewed on this for a long time. "That's the worst part of my job, Steve," she says, looking at him. "I love finding ways to make programs misbehave in all the right ways, and applying it, but some of the things I learn?" She shakes her head. "I could do without that." Renala is probably not talking about Jason's browser history.
Steve cocks an eyebrow, perhaps not exactly following the extent of what she's talking about. "Alright..." he hums, shifting back against the room divider he's using as a backrest. "So-... do I even wanna ask what ya learned...?" he asks, hesitant snicker accompanying his question before he takes another swig of his beer. "People gettin' it on in the rec room?" he ventures a guess, curiosity seemingly piqued. His eyes
widen slightly as he runs through the possibilities and what could possibly have happened to make Renala angry. "On the table?" he decides, "That's just-... I eat there! Tell me people ain't bumpin' uglies on the rec room table, Ren!"
Renala gives a humorless chuckle. "You really don't want to know," she says, "but I assure you the rec room has seen no such activity. I can run a query on that tomorrow if you want to be sure, though." There is no humor to that offer. She lets out a sigh and sips her bottle. "Okay, I'll share one of the things I learned," she says. "A team of people went off on a secret mission this morning. No
documents, no roster, nothing hinting at the bosses even knowing about it. I'm losing faith in this organization almost every day." She looks down at the bottle. "That's fucking mild compared to the 'critical'-level issue I got while I was on Thessia, and to think that Jason tried to have Fergus read it to him in front of Uvena."
Steve furrows his brow at the offer, giving a dismissive wave of his hand. "Wha-... no!" he's quick to clarify. "If there's somethin' goin' on in the rec room when I ain't around, I don't wanna know about it." When Renala continues, he falls silent, her mention of a 'secret mission' is met only with a snort. Not like he has a whole lot of room to talk in that regard. He's had his own fair share of 'off the books' problems
since working for Redrock. Personal business is personal. Her follow-up statement about a critical issue gains a glance from him. "Well, Jason ain't exactly the brightest bulb in the lamp..." he mutters before drawing in a breath. "Critical-level issue..." he repeats, "...Sounds like a big deal. What happened?"
Renala doesn't meet his eyes while he talks, still looking down. "Nothing 'happened'," she says. "Well, something did, but that's not the problem being flagged, that just presented it to the security system – to me." She sips the bottle. "It's a big problem, but I give a damn about you, Steve.... so if it ever becomes our problem, you'll be the first to know, but... you should forget I ever brought it
up." She puts the almost empty bottle on the table and looks up at him. "I'm tired, sorry if I sound dramatic," Renala says, her composed tone sounding a bit forced. "I hate getting involved in others' problems I have no business getting into."
Steve's concern only seems to grow as Renala continues to speak. Concern, but there's a mutual respect that they've built. She's not the sort to play things up. Blunt and to the point is what he's come to expect from her. That's probably part of the reason they've gotten along so well. No games. No bullshit. So if this 'big problem' is enough to make her cagey, then he has no doubt it's cause for concern. But she's been
there when he needed her. No questions asked. As a matter of fact, there's probably nobody left alive out there that he'd trust more. It's a truth that has surprised even him. Best friends with an alien... not exactly how he envisioned things turning out. He draws in a breath through his nose, turning his focus towards his beer as he tips it back and takes a drink. He gives a few silent nods. "That goes both ways.
You know that, right?" he asks, focus remaining on the drink in his hand. He doesn't await confirmation, realizing the lack of context probably doesn't help. "The-... uhh-... I just mean I give a damn about you, too." he offers her words back to her with a small smirk as he glances her way. "So... you say 'forget it'? I say, 'forget what?' " His smirk widens slightly, but only briefly before falling away. "But-...
but if this is trouble? Whatever this is-... If you do find yourself 'gettin' involved in others' problems'? You just say the word, alright darlin'?" he says, an implied offer for help that hopefully goes without saying at this point.
Renala doesn't move or look away while he talks, listening attentively. There's a chuckle coming from her at his compliance, and the ghost of a smile to go along with it. "Alright," she says. "I am involved in a lot of problems outside of this. The car, for example. And yours, don't forget that." She leans back in her seat and casts a brief glance at the screen. Still nothing new there to take this
conversation. "If there was a sensible extent in my mind, Steve, I would have stayed on Thessia," she says, and a smile – a real one – shows up, "but I keep coming back."
Steve glances away at the mention of the problems they've found themselves at the center of. His problems. And probably not the last of them, either. Henrik was but one name on a long list of names of people he's found himself on the wrong side of. Names and faces to go along with nightmares and deeds. How long before the next one came looking for him? Will it ever end? You can only run from your past for so long... Her
final statement causes a smile to tug at the corner of his mouth, pushing those worries aside for the moment. His attention turns to the television. To the continued around-the-clock coverage of the Collector's defeat. At least that's one less enemy to come knocking on their door. He leans his head back to rest against the makeshift backrest, rolling against it to glance Renala's way. "Then I guess I'm glad you ain't
the sensible type, Ren." he teases. Though there's a certain honesty in his words. A comfort in coming home to an apartment that isn't dark and empty aside from his own demons.
Renala doesn't give much more of an answer than a nod initially, and she reaches out for the bottle. She turnes it over in her hand, looking at the label idly but her mind is elsewhere. "You know who isn't?" she asks. "Aeyna." She doesn't look up as she continues, "I got a message telling me that she attacked her best friend. I dropped her off with them because Nalena was away on.... It doesn't matter."
She drinks the remainder of her bottle. "There are no sensible choices for me," she says. "I keep making Aeyna unhappy, Uvena might merge me with the wall when she finds out, and... any time I leave you might mean...." She trails off. Henrik's attack was owed to luck, had she been five minutes later Steve may not have gotten her warning and things could have gone very differently.
Steve's smile slips away, a somber look replacing it as he listens. He gives a small shake of his head. "Don't you worry 'bout me, Ren." he says, not wanting to find himself on that laundry list of concerns she seems to have. She's not wrong, of course. He probably owes his freedom- perhaps even his life- to her intervention. But she doesn't need that weighing on her. "And Uvena ain't gonna find nothin' out. That's all done
and over with. So you just worry 'bout makin' things right with the lil' one. Hell, might even be worth settin' a date for your next trip to visit her. Maybe in a few months or somethin'?" he suggests with a shrug, "Could give her somethin' to look forward to? Somethin' concrete? And, like I said before, Redrock needs you, that much is clear, so you've got the job security to take some personal time every now and
Renala puts the bottle back on the table, and looks at him. "Too late, Steve, you've not getting rid of me that easily," she says with a weak chuckle. "Uvena will find out sooner or later too. Jason knows about it,... and so does Va'ynna. I'm surprised it's still a secret." Renala sighs. "But you make a point about reserving time for her," she says. "I have a feeling I'm not off the hook for abandoning
Steve gives a small chuckle at Renala's initial statement. He doesn't find her following statement quite as humorous, causing him to fall silent until she finishes. He draws in a deep breath, rubbing at his forehead with the back of his hand as he slinks against his makeshift seat a bit. "Yeah..." he sighs, "She seems like the 'insistant' type..." he mutters. He's probably not using the word 'insistant' as a synonym for
'friendly likable understanding individual'. He glances her way apologetically, giving a small tilt of his head. "Look, don't you worry 'bout any of that tonight, darlin'. You're back home. You got good company-..." he extends his arms out a little to indicate himself, forcing a slightly strained smirk into place. "...Good drink." He gives his mostly-empty bottle a small shake by the neck. His smile begins to peel
back as he glances towards the television. "...And a reason to celebrate. Don't let that go to waste. The rest? It'll all figure itself out. Always does."
Renala nods and leans back in her seat, a smirk showing up. "I guess we do," she says. "I haven't the slightest clue how I would have kept Collectors out of our stuff, so it's a good problem to not have." She pauses to stifle a yawn. "I have a different problem, though. Should I go for another beer, or go to bed? It's been a fucking long day, and I don't sleep well on ships."
Steve leans forward at hearing Renala's dilemma, raising a finger for her to slow down on any decision-making. "Well, lemme make that a whole lot easier for ya." he offers, a small grunt escaping him as he swivels to swing his legs off the counter on the kitchen side and hop down. His smirk makes a return, "I'll set us up for another round." he says, swigging back the small remainder of beer and dumping the empty bottle in
the trash before moving towards the fridge. It's been a deafeningly quiet stretch of time in the apartment without Renala. Despite all of the issues surrounding them, he seems legitimately pleased that she's back. Always good to have another pair of eyes watching your back. "We can sleep when we're dead."