#and my brother is a Hancock fucker and he is so right about it

[lordofthemushrooms]

No amount of “just play New Vegas” comments can stop me because New Vegas doesn’t have them

[nukacoola]

Companions react to Danse stepping out of power armor for the first time!

Cait: 

She would look Danse up and down very obviously and grin which would make him extremely uncomfortable. 

“Ya’outgha get out of that thing more often Dansey. Who knew there were cookies in that tin can of yours.”

She obviously isn’t actually interested in Danse. Way too boring. But she’s not one to toss out eye candy just cause it isn’t her favorite flavor. She wouldn’t actively follow him but for fun and also to get on his nerves she would definitely cat-call him everytime he was in hearing range. Deacon and Hancock might join in for a few comments if they don’t have anything better to do.

She would not stop unless sole made a convincing plea or reason for why she should and maybe not even then.

Danse would not respond or look at Cait but he would be very red and never get out of his suit in front of her again.

Codsworth: 

“Why Paladin Danse I dare say you’ve been keeping up your workout routine! Cheers to your excellent health whether in or out of your power armor!” Codsworth is reassured that his owner is traveling with someone so equipped for the struggles of the wasteland.

“Uh, thank you, Codsworth.” Danse would feel a bit awkward but he would appreciate the compliment. 

“Might I polish that for you while you're otherwise engaged? It seems to be in a just dreadful state and I would like nothing more than for you to be looking your best in your wasteland escapades!” Though he is reassured by Danse’s physical state and abilities, he is mortified by the state his armor is in. All the scratches, dings, and dirt? It’s just horrible. Codsworth has always wanted an opportunity to fix that suit up and is pretty happy that the day has finally arrived.

“I- If you’d like to you can.”

“Oh good! I do so love a difficult task!” With that Codsworth would zoom away to procure the necessary supplies to return Danse’s armor to it’s original state. Danse didn’t really know whether or not he should be offended at the robot’s comments but he decided to just continue about his business and not think about it too much. 

Curie:

“Oh Monsieur Danse, you are quite zee lovely specimen! I would be eager to do a physical examination if you would allow me to.” Ever since leaving the vault, Curie has been astounded at how many different sorts of humans there are. Danse is particularly interesting to her because of the amazing athletic feats he does so regularly. She is also interested in studying the effects of constant power armor usage on the human body. When she sees him step out of his suit for the first time and sees his overly muscular physique, it just tacks on another reason she wants to study him. 

Before Blind Betrayal:

“The only specimen that needs examining is you, synth. Don’t talk to me unless you’re submitting yourself to the Brotherhood.” The only reason Curie isn’t already on the Prydwen is because Sole thinks it’s their friend. It bothers Danse immensely that Sole hasn’t destroyed or used this inhuman thing already.

(Don’t get mad at me he literally says this in game.)

Curie is very hurt, she expected this reaction but it still hurt. She was still getting used to feelings such as the pained ones she felt in moments like these.

After Blind Betrayal:

“No. Thank you.” Danse’s words were strained. Being around Curie was pretty awful for him. He had treated her so terribly before and he still had strong feelings of disgust towards her despite what he knows now. Everytime he sees her and has those feelings of hate and disgust, he remembers that he and Curie are the same. He’s still struggling to overcome the years of propaganda that were drilled into him. 

Curie is disappointed. Did Danse not see they are the same? If he didn’t believe in her humanity then he would have to not believe in his own. It is very confusing for Curie. She hopes that he will eventually go back on his denial of her offer. He would be a very interesting specimen.

Deacon:

He would be surprised that Danse would be able to wear that clunky thing so much in the first place. He wouldn’t be surprised at how muscular he is under the suit though. It takes a lot of strength to operate those suits. He’d read that before they were fully developed, a lot of trial runs had resulted in really terrible accidents. The kind of accidents that crush all of your bones at once or remove your top half from your bottom.

Deacon would definitely make a few jokes. “Hey the sardine’s outta the can!” “Isn’t getting out of that bulldozer against Brotherhood policy or something?” “And I thought it was glued on! Learn something new everyday.”

Danse would scowl at his comments but say nothing. He did not like Deacon one bit. That man’s hiding something and if it turns out what he’s hiding will harm Sole or the Brotherhood’s mission, there was gonna be hell to pay. Danse could’ve sworn he’d seen him on the Prydwen a few times but whenever he looked back again to check, he was gone. Danse didn’t much like the idea of leaving his power armor alone with Deacon around but Sole assured him he’s harmless. We’ll see...

Whenever Danse returned to his suit Deacon would stand suspiciously close to it and act like he was trying to play cool after almost being caught doing something nefarious. He would never get tired of watching Danse carefully inspect every part of the armor before apprehensively getting in. Man that guy’s fun to mess with.

Dogmeat: 

He was so surprised! He thought this human was just made of metal! But now Dogmeat can play and jump and lick! Yes!!

Danse has no idea how to deal with a dog he wasn’t allowed to kick so he would just try to awkwardly push the pup off until Sole took care of it.

Hancock: 

Oh HELL YES! Hancock has wanted to punch this fucker since he first laid eyes on him. “HEY SOLDIER BOY, TIME TO SEE WHAT YOU CAN DO OUT OF YOUR DAMN COWARD COFFIN!” He would make a beeline towards the paladin and the paladin would speed walk towards the ghoul as well. Sole barely let him insult the damn freak but this was a direct attack of which he was most definitely gonna defend himself from.

Sole would freak out a bit and try to get in between the two. They would both try to get Sole out of the way so they could pummel each other. A brief alliance in order to facilitate their battle. This was too sweet of an opportunity to miss. 

“Sorry Sunshine, this is happening.”

“Sole, it has directly started an altercation with me and I intend to see it through.”

If they both had a great relationship with Sole after a bit of panicked begging to both parties, the men would begrudgingly back off. They would, however, insult each other viciously despite Sole’s protests. 

“You have no fucking idea how lucky you are meathead. I swear to god if they weren’t here…”

“You call me a meathead but you’re the one who’s rotting, ghoul.”

They would continue to jab each other until Sole dragged Danse off to do what he got out of his suit to do in the first place. 

If one or both of them didn’t have a close relationship with Sole, well, it wouldn’t be pretty. They would forcibly move Sole out of the way and fight for a while. Though Danse is much bigger than Hancock, Hancock is quicker and better at hand to hand. Danse, being unused to fighting outside of his armor, was ultimately unable to beat the ghoul. Hancock landed one final blow to his face, knocking Danse flat. When he stayed down Hancock laughed loudly and spit at him.

“Done in by the best, lucky you.” It would be a huge blow to Danse’s ego and he’d resent Hancock even more now. Hancock would gloat constantly when Danse was around. “Heyyy, there’s my favorite punching bag!” “Come on over Dansey I won’t bite!” He wouldn’t out of shame, but if Danse ever did try to retort, Hancock would just taunt him. Saying something like “Oh yeah? Ya know my favorite way to settle conflicts is by beating the other asshole into the dirt. Hop outta that suit and we can go for round two.”

MacCready:

Mac’s always thought of Danse as an annoying asshole. He still thinks of him this way but when he stepped out of that armor for the first time. Ho lee sh-crap. MacCready might have to look into joining the Brotherhood if the rest of those guys looked the same as Danse. He had expected him to be strong cause of the whole carrying 500 pounds of steel everywhere but his body was something Mac was not expecting and something he could look at for a while. 

If Danse came near the merc he would probably clam up and blush a bit. If Danse caught him staring, he would annoyedly ask, “Is there a problem, civilian?”

“I- uh no.” any other day he would’ve fired back some snide remark but he couldn’t quite seem to think of one right now. 

Nick:

Nick really couldn’t give less of a damn. He hated Danse, Danse hated him, and the two did their best to ignore each other. 

Piper: Piper didn’t really care either. Sure he was muscular but she was very turned off by the everything else about him. All she really payed attention to was the possibility of an exclusive interview or an inside look at the Brotherhood’s workings. Danse would never agree to either of those though. Preston: Preston didn’t care. He already knew you had to be strong to wear power armor especially if you wore them as much as Brotherhood Paladins did. He didn’t like the Brotherhood and by extension, he didn’t trust Danse. Preston was mannerly of course, for Sole, but he knows Danse thinks very little of the Minutemen so he didn’t try too hard to be kind. Strong: Strong thinks this is good time to smash strong human. He has killed many brothers but he wears metal suit. He is weak without metal suit. Human friend tells Strong that if Strong smash, Strong will not find milk of human kindness. Strong angry, Strong want to smash, but Strong not smash.

Danse would never get out of his suit near Strong unless he absolutely had to. Sole insisted that the abomination wasn’t going to be a problem but he didn’t believe it for a second. It took all of his willpower to not open fire on the thing whenever he saw it. Sole has poor taste in companions...

X6:

X6 wouldn’t care. He would consider taking this opportunity to get rid of the high ranking Brotherhood soldier, but it would make Sole upset and would do relatively little to the Brotherhood as a whole. 

Ask and ye shall recieve! I decide the winner on Hancock’s one by their special stats. How the hell does Hancock have such good stats and he’s still terrible in a fight??

[anubislover]

Not So Easily Replaced

(Ikkaku is pissed at how idiotic her crew has been while on Amazon Lily, so she does what she's always done - vents about it to Law to let off some steam. Unfortunately, when an argument breaks out between them, she's left to wonder if she's really appreciated by her nakama)

“Ugh!” Ikkaku growled, stomping into Law’s office with his second afternoon coffee and a selection of onigiri on a tray. Normally lunch delivery wasn’t her job, but since all the men had been “too busy” fawning over the women of Amazon Lily outside, the menial task had fallen to her; otherwise their workaholic captain wouldn’t eat. “I swear, Boss, if we don’t set sail soon, I’m going to strangle every guy on board!”

“Hmmm,” Law grunted absently as he poured over his notes. Ikkaku didn’t hold his monosyllabic response against him—he’d spent the past few days fixing up that Straw Hat kid and the Fishman. On top of that, the extensive treatments had basically depleted their medical supplies, Straw Hat’s freak-out upon waking up had wrecked more than half the operatory, and the Kuja had been pretty stingy with letting them replenish their food and water from the island, so she was sure he had plenty on his mind. The dark bags under his eyes attested to that.

That didn’t mean she wasn’t going to vent, though. Honestly, if she didn’t, she’d probably snap and end up going on a killing spree or something. Only Bepo and Law would be spared; the Mink had no interest in human women and thus hadn’t been an obnoxious Neanderthal, and Law had been too focused on keeping his patients and crew alive to drool over Boa Hancock.

Hell, when her captain was like this, Ikkaku could literally say anything and he wouldn’t even register it. It took a lot to snap Law out of his thoughts, and he’d never really seemed to mind when she ranted at him to let off steam. Mainly because once she was done, she was usually calm enough to take care of the situation herself, leaving Law in peace and with a non-murdered crew. A happy engineer made for a happy submarine, after all.

Setting the coffee and onigiri down onto the desk, Ikkaku continued, “They act like they’ve never seen a hot chick in their lives. I mean, what am I, chopped liver? They should be thanking the gods that they get to look at my gorgeous face every damn day!” The statement was accompanied by a dramatic toss of her curly hair. When Ikkaku felt strongly about something, she tended to gesticulate a lot, and this was no exception.

“Uh huh.”

She leaned against the edge of Law’s desk, hands waving about as she ranted. “Not that I want them to start lusting after me, but it hurts a girl’s pride, ya know? They could at least acknowledge what a hot piece of ass I am instead of acting like I’m some ugly hag.” She clenched her fist as she recalled how, just that morning, Shachi and Clione had basically given a lecture to the whole crew over breakfast about the superior physique the Kuja displayed compared to the average woman. There had been charts and everything, and to her dismay the silhouette for the “average” woman looked suspiciously like her.

“And that’s not the end of it!” she rambled on, smacking her hand against the desk for emphasis. “When I’m not ignored or insulted, they try to convince me to go out into the jungle to talk to the Kuja for them! I mean, I’m probably the one least likely to be killed outright, but it’s not guaranteed! They might fill me with arrows just for being affiliated with men! Are they really willing to risk my life like that?”

Her question didn’t get an answer—not because Law wasn’t paying attention, but because at that moment, her emotive gesticulating accidentally smacked her wrist into his coffee mug, knocking it over.

“Mother fucker!” Law shouted, scalding coffee spilling all over his crotch and papers.

“Oh my god, Law, I’m so sorry—”

“Will you shut up?!” he snapped, grabbing his nearby lab coat to frantically soak up the scalding coffee that had spilled across his crotch. “Don’t just stand there—get some towels!”

Nodding mutely, she ran to the en-suite bathroom and snatched up every towel she could find in the cupboard. “Here,” she said, trying to hand them to him so he could clean himself up.

“My desk, damn it! Save my notes!”

Immediately she swept the pile furthest from the spill to the floor and began patting down the desk, but she knew it was already too late; the coffee had completely soaked through several of the papers that had been strewn across the stainless steel surface.

“Law, really, I’m so sorry!” she apologized hoarsely, flinching as he turned the full force of his sleep-deprived glare upon her.

“Maybe if you’d fucking been watching what you were doing instead of ranting on and on, none of this would have happened!” he shouted, well and truly pissed. Not that she blamed him—a week’s worth of important medical and inventory notes was now a brown, sopping mess. On top of that, first-degree crotch burns would sour anyone’s mood, especially when they were only running on an average of three hours of sleep.

“It’ll be ok,” she assured, assessing the damage. To an average person, the mess was a disaster, but while the charts and notes that had been in the immediate spill zone were soaked through and ruined, many of the others could be salvaged thanks to Law’s powers. “Just Room the coffee out of the papers—”

“Do you have any idea how much time and effort you just flushed down the toilet?” he snapped, even as the familiar blue bubble filled the office. Drops of coffee were pulled from the sheets of paper like magic, but to Ikkaku’s dismay, much of the ink left behind was still smudged beyond recognition. “You’re lucky that wasn’t Mugiwara-ya’s medical file you just destroyed!”

“Law, really, I’m sorry,” she said, trying to calm him down. Her usually chill captain was far more volatile when stressed and sleep-deprived. “It was a stupid accident on my part. I’ll help you rewrite all of this.”

“Hell no,” he growled, gold eyes narrowing furiously, the tendons in his thin neck tightening as he ground his teeth together. “The last thing I need is you going on another stupid rant and ruining my notes again. Get the fuck out—I’ve got more important things to do than listen to you bitch and moan about how the guys aren’t paying attention to you.”

“Tha—that’s not what I’m angry about at all!” she snapped.

“Then what is your fucking problem?!”

“My problem is that the guys were being jackasses and I’m not appreciated around here!”

“Well if you don’t like it, leave!”

Ikkaku’s back stiffened, each syllable cutting into her heart like Law’s sharpest scalpel. Those words…it was the exact same thing her old boss would say whenever she complained about her asshole coworkers’ creepy leers or “accidental” groping. The greasy old mechanic was a sexist pig, but still the only one in that shit port that had been willing to take her on as an apprentice. It had always been an unspoken threat—if she left, no one else would hire her, so she could kiss her dreams of becoming a world-class engineer good-bye.

Trafalgar Law had changed that with his offer to join the Heart Pirates.

And now he was telling her to leave, too. To give up her dream, her nakama, and her home because she wasn’t willing to put up with a little sexism.

As if he could replace her in a heartbeat.

The thought hurt more than expected. She’d worked her ass off aboard the Polar Tang. For five years she’d toiled in the heart of the engine room, maintaining every little piece. She kept the gears turning, the motors humming, and the propellers running. Just from sound and the slightest vibrations through the ship, she knew exactly what was wrong with the engine at any given time.

Ikkaku had never asked for praise or recognition for her hard work—it was just her job. But she was as knowledgeable about the mechanisms of the submarine as Law was of the human body. She had always assumed he’d quietly acknowledged this fact and respected her for it.

Clearly, she’d been wrong.

She nearly screamed all this at him, but before she could open her mouth, the blue light of Law’s Room encased her, and in a blink, she was out in the hall, the cabin door slamming shut in her face.

Knowing better than to try and force her way back into his quarters, Ikkaku instead stormed down the steel hallway, fists clenched and muttering furiously to herself. Maybe she would leave. March right up to Boa Hancock and ask to join the Kuja. That would show them! She didn’t need Law, or the Tang, or men at all! She’d get along just fine without those jerks! Sure, Amazon Lily didn’t have any of the high-tech machinery she was used to, and working for a shichibukai wasn’t exactly something she was thrilled about, but at least they’d appreciate her, right? She had other skills—she was a hell of a tattoo artist, and was a damn fine shot, and could kickbox, and…

Her pace slowed as her heart forced her brain to accept the truth—she didn’t want to leave. She’d go crazy without machines and engines to work on. And sure, she was no slouch in a fight, but the Kuja were warrior women trained from birth. Ikkaku would look like a total weakling next to them.

And no matter how much the crew pissed her off, she wouldn’t trade her nakama for anything. Sure, they could be thoughtless jerks sometimes, but they could also be really sweet. Bepo may not have been much for girl talk, but he was always willing to lend an ear if she needed companionship. Her fellow engineers, Malamute and Skua, were dependable and shared her love of machines. Shachi was always down to help her pull a prank, and when he wasn’t drooling over the Kuja, Penguin could be counted on to talk her through her problems.

As for Law…by this point, he was more like her big brother than her actual brothers had been. They shared a similar devious sense of humor, was discreet about any feminine issues she might have that, as the ship’s doctor, he was forced to deal with, and he’d even played wingman for her a few times at the taverns they’d stopped in.

Had she just ruined all of that? Was Law just angry, or had this been coming for a long time? Law had threatened to fire her plenty of times in the past, usually in response to her back sassing him, but he’d never been serious about it. This time had been different—he’d been legitimately pissed at her. Maybe those teasing threats hadn’t been jokes, but subtle warnings, and her ruining all those papers had simply been the straw to break the camel’s back?

Ikkaku was deep in thought, mentally going over every encounter she’d had with Law with a fine-toothed comb, searching for any clue whether he seriously thought she should leave, when she quite literally bumped into Bepo.

The Mink took in her flushed, angry expression and asked, “Are you ok, Ikkaku?”

Oddly enough, it was that simple, gentle question that shattered her composure like a bullet through a bone, and without even thinking she buried her face in his soft fur and just broke down crying. “He told me to leave, Bepo,” she sobbed, scared and hurt and frustrated. For all the grief her crewmates had given her and all the dangerous positions being a pirate had put her in, Ikkaku loved being a Heart. Where would she go? She’d never find another ship like the Polar Tang. Another crew like the Heart Pirates. Another captain like Trafalgar Law.

Bepo, though shocked that the normally fiery and confident engineer was using his fur as a tissue, didn’t say anything—he just carefully rubbed her back and hoped that letting her treat him like a massive teddy bear would calm her down enough to explain what had happened.

XXX

“Ok, real talk—has anyone noticed anything…different about Ikkaku lately?” Penguin asked as he sat down to lunch.

“You’d have to actually see her to notice something,” Shachi replied, brow furrowing. He glanced over at Uni, raising an eyebrow behind his sunglasses. “You been giving her stealth lessons or something?”

Uni frowned behind his bandana. “No, but she’s definitely avoiding us. It’s been a week since we left Amazon Lily, and I can count the number of times I’ve seen her on one hand.”

“Same,” Ermine said as they finished molding Law’s onigiri into the perfect triangles the captain liked. “I actually thought we left her behind for a minute—nearly asked Jean Bart to turn the ship around to get her.”

Malamute rubbed his chin, mouth twisting in concern. “Nah, she’s here, but she’s mad at us about something—barely leaves the engine room most days, and she basically refuses to talk to me and Skua.”

His fellow engineer nodded. “We thought it might just be her time of the month, but that ended over a week ago according to the calendar.”

“You guys keep track of her menstrual cycles?” Clione asked, weirded out. The rest of the crew wore similar expressions of disbelief and disapproval.

“Out of self-preservation!” Skua shouted defensively. “We’re in a hot, confined space where she has easy access to heavy tools—of course we wanna know when we should have emergency placating chocolate on-hand!”

“We tried the chocolate anyway, though,” Malamute added. “She just…waved it away and kept working.”

The cook’s frown deepened at that bit of information. “Ikkaku never turns down chocolate,” Ermine said, “and she hasn’t shown up to lunch, dinner, or breakfast all week.”

“She’s been eating, though, right?” Penguin asked, concerned. He didn’t care how mad she was; it was no excuse to skip out on meals. It was bad enough Law was an insomniac that got most of his nutrients through coffee and onigiri. It would be a cold day in hell before he would stand for an anorexic engineer.

A large, white paw shyly raised in the air as Bepo interjected, “I’ve been bringing her meals so she doesn’t have to come by the galley. She’s…wanted some time to herself.” He dropped his head gloomily. “Sorry.”

“But she’s talked to you?”

“Ummm, a little bit,” he muttered, twiddling his claws. After she’d stopped crying, Ikkaku had spilled her guts about everything—her issues with the crew, her argument with Law, and why his words had affected her so badly. Though sympathetic, Bepo was certain Law hadn’t meant his thoughtless words—underneath his casual persona, he cared deeply about his crew and would never let any of them go for such a silly reason.

At first, Bepo’d tried to get her to go back and talk to the captain, but she’d shot that down quickly—with the mood Law had been in, it would do nothing but start another argument. The Mink had hoped that, now that they were sailing away from Amazon Lily and Law wouldn’t have to worry about Straw Hat’s injuries anymore, they’d both cool down and the whole thing would blow over.

Unfortunately, the past week had proven otherwise. Ikkaku had taken to hiding deep in the bowels of the ship, and Law had been so focused on redoing all those notes and charts that he hadn’t left his quarters in days. Bepo wasn’t a Mink who liked confrontation, and he certainly didn’t want to choose sides between his oldest friend and his favorite engineer, so he’d relegated himself to supplying food to both parties, hoping one of them would finally get tired of the oppressive silence and breach the topic.

As the crew frantically gathered around him, hoping to finally have an answer to the Mystery of the Missing Engineer, Bepo began to wonder if he should have just locked both humans in an empty room and made them talk it out.

Not that such a plan would have been very effective with Law’s powers, but it was better than nothing.

“Talk, Bepo,” Shachi growled, pulling a flashlight out of his pocket and shining it directly into the bear’s black eyes like he was in an interrogation room. “What’s up with Ikkaku?”

“Why’s she hiding from us?” Clione interjected.

“Why are you the only one she’s talking to?” added Jude.

“Is she pregnant and going through weird mood swings or something?” Skua asked loudly.

Bepo blanched at that last one. “No, she…she’s just kind of upset about…how you all acted on Amazon Lily.”

Exasperated, Ermine rolled their eyes. “What, was she jealous about all the attention we gave Hancock’s crew?”

“No, but…you guys were really insensitive. Like, that presentation—”

“It was a joke!” Shachi defended, though a guilty blush rose to his cheeks.

“And asking her to venture into the jungle to talk to the women for you—”

“Hey, she was the only one who they wouldn’t kill on-sight!” Jude sulked.

“And then she had to bring Law his lunch because you were all too busy staring at the Kuja.”

“Wow. Having to do that one menial task must have been such an inconvenience,” Malamute scoffed.

At the back of the grumbling crowd, Jean Bart awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. He hadn’t been on the crew long, so he didn’t really think it was his place to get involved, but he had the feeling Ikkaku had taken whatever had been said and done a little more personally than they thought. “Look, regardless of how we feel, we should all apologize to her. I mean, I don’t know her great, but does she usually give the silent treatment for this long?”

“Well, no,” Clione stated, looking a bit nervous. “Typically, she yells at us and smacks us around a bit, or maybe pulls some embarrassing prank, but she’s never quiet.”

“So, what’s this mean?”

“It means this is serious.” Penguin frowned at Bepo, who was looking around anxiously as if hoping to escape. “Ok, spill. You’re the only one she’s talked to, and you clearly have a better idea of what’s going on than we do. What’s Ikkaku really upset about?”

The Mink hung his head sorrowfully. “Sorry.”

“Damn it, don’t apologize! Just tell us!”

“It’s just…”

“Are you guys bullying Bepo again?” came a voice from the doorway. The crew turned to find Law strolling into the galley, looking thinner and more exhausted than usual, but he was at least out of his room and among the living.

Still shining his flashlight in Bepo’s face, Shachi yelled, “Captain! You gotta help us—Ikkaku’s basically been AWOL all week and won’t talk to anyone, and Bepo won’t tell us why!”

Law plopped into his chair and grabbed an onigiri, scoffing as he took a large bite. “She bitched at me for a while about how you all were being sexist pigs. Figured she would have gotten over it by now.”

“She complained to you about it?” Jean Bart asked, tilting his head.

“Yeah, and then she managed to spill hot coffee on my crotch and ruin the inventory list for the infirmary that I’d spent hours compiling.”

The crew unanimously gave a sympathy wince.

Taking another large bite of his lunch, Law continued, “We’ll be making port in a few days—she’ll come to her senses once she’s spent some time off the ship.”

“You…you want her to leave the ship?” Bepo asked, voice raising an octave in disbelief.

“Time apart will do us some good,” he replied with a shrug, activating his Room for a moment to remove the flashlight from Shachi’s hand.

“How…how much time?”

“Well, we’re not making port any longer than necessary. If she hasn’t gotten her shit together by then, that’s her problem.”

Bepo’s heart dropped into his stomach. What did Law mean “get her shit together”? Was he talking about packing her things? Was he really kicking her out over a silly argument over spilled coffee and ruined paperwork?

“Law!” the Mink shouted, jerking to his feet so quickly his knees knocked the table. “Please reconsider!”

Dark blue eyebrows rose at the normally soft-spoken navigator’s outburst. “There’s nothing to reconsider. Ikkaku’s a big girl—I agree that the sexism she faced was unacceptable, but she’s never had a problem handling that kind of shit herself.” His face twisted into a scowl. “And considering how I only just finished redoing all the work she destroyed, my tolerance for temper tantrums is at an all-time low.”

“She offered to help you rewrite it!” Bepo argued, slapping his paws down on the table. “Is some soggy paperwork worth losing your best engineer over?” Pausing, he glanced at Malamute and Skua. “Uh, no offense. Sorry.”

“None taken,” the duo said in unison, though their jaws dropped a second later as they registered the Mink’s words. “Wait, what?!”

“What do you mean ‘losing’ Ikkaku?” Penguin snapped, grabbing him by the orange collar of his boiler suit.

Shachi grabbed the flashlight again and climbed onto the table to shine it into Bepo’s face. “Talk, bear! Is Ikkaku quitting or something?”

“Because we won’t let her!” several of the crew shouted.

“Everybody calm down!” Law snapped, his deep voice silencing the rambunctious crew. “You all acted like idiots around the Kuja—I don’t blame her for being annoyed at you. But if your petty acts of sexism could drive her off that easily, she wouldn’t have lasted ten minutes at her old job. You’re blowing everything out of proportion.”

“You’re the one who told her to leave over a spilled cup of coffee!” Bepo angrily stated, only to immediately shrink back when he realized just who he’d yelled at. “Sorry.”

“Whoa, wait, Law, did you fire her?” Penguin asked, genuinely horrified as he numbly released Bepo’s collar. Of all the things that could have been bothering Ikkaku, that hadn’t even made his list. Sure, she could be tempestuous, but that had never bothered Law before—on the contrary, Penguin had always assumed his old friend liked trading snarky barbs with.

“I didn’t—why would I—I was just pissed because she spilled hot coffee all over crotch!” Law defended, even as he inwardly cringed at the way his entire crew had turned to glare at him judgmentally. Shachi had even turned the flashlight’s intense beam on him.

“But was that worth actually firing her over?”

“I didn’t fire her! Yeah, we argued, but I never said she was fired. At most, I told her to get the fuck out of my office.”

“That’s not all you said,” Bepo mumbled, crossing his arms stubbornly.

Flinty gold eyes narrowed at the sulking Mink. It was extremely out of character for Bepo to snap at or sass anyone—least of all Law. His brow furrowed as he thought back to his fight with Ikkaku—the memory was a bit hazy due to the lack of sleep he’d gotten. “Then what exactly did I say to her? What could have possibly been so bad that it could make her think I’m firing her?”

“You said…she told me…” Bepo took a deep breath. He hated scolding his captain, but he hated the idea of Ikkaku leaving even more, especially if this really was just a big misunderstanding. “You said to her ‘if you don’t like it, leave’.”

A sour taste worse than umeboshi filled his mouth as Law realized the full implications of what he’d said and done. He clearly remembered her old boss, a scowling, greasy man who’d shouted at her when she’d argued that she deserved to be respected as the talented engineer she was and not just seen as eye-candy.

If you don’t like it, leave, he’d sneered through crooked teeth as the other mechanics sniggered. Good luck finding anyone else willing to hire an inexperienced chick, though. Law could distinctly remember the hot surge of outrage he’d felt on the woman’s behalf; in less than ten minutes, she’d managed to identify what was wrong with the Tang’s engine and exactly how to fix it. Yet because she was the sole female in the shop—because she was a little bit different—she was overlooked and scorned, with her boss refusing to check for himself.

It had reminded Law a little too much of how quickly he’d been rejected from every hospital Cora-san had taken him to, the so-called “expert” doctors refusing to believe that Amber Lead was not contagious, or even examine the white patches across his skin.

And maybe—just maybe—the way her curly hair fanned out around her shoulders and down her back reminded him just a tiny bit of a certain black, feathered jacket.

Law hadn’t even bothered to consider whether or not the woman might want to become a pirate before he’d activated his Room and cut her boss to pieces. He’d then turned to Ikkaku, whose dark eyes had been wide with shock but not fear, and told her that if she could fix his engine as easily as she claimed, she was welcome to join his crew.

Now he stood to lose her due to his own sleep-deprived stupidity.

“…fuck.”

XXX

Down in the engine room, Ikkaku lay on her back underneath the ship’s engine, tightening the bolts that secured the freshly-cleaned cooling pipes. Since her argument with Law she’d basically spent every waking hour disassembling, repairing, and reassembling every piece she could. She trusted Skua and Malamute to take good care of the sub after she was gone, but the Polar Tang deserved nothing less than a thorough inspection and tune-up as thanks for carrying her so far.

She’d give the crew their own goodbye once they reached port. She hoped they were still too blinded by the hearts in their eyes to notice she’d been avoiding them. It wasn’t out of anger anymore; instead, she was scared she’d start blubbering. Admitting that Law had decided to toss her out on her ass was humiliating and heartbreaking, and she honestly wasn’t sure how the others would react. They could just as easily stage a mutiny as shrug it off as her overreacting.

Perhaps she was freaking out over nothing—Law hadn’t even left his room since their fight. Surely if he really wanted her gone, he could have marooned her back on Amazon Lily. Then again, he was a sadistic bastard; luring her into a false sense of security, then dumping her and her belongings onto the next port they landed on wouldn’t be entirely out of character. Or maybe her years of service had earned her enough mercy that he was willing to wait until they were at an island where Ikkaku could potentially find work instead of stranding her in the Calm Belt.

Whatever it was, she had every intention of confronting him about it after dinner. If this was all just a big misunderstanding, she planned to give him a good smack upside the head. If she was really fired, she wanted at least enough time to pack her things and say her proper goodbyes.

Until then, all she could do was stay busy to pass the time and hope that the knot of anxiety that twisted in her stomach would loosen up by the time she talked to him.

She didn’t want to leave, but if Law decided she was really that expendable, there wasn’t much she could do but try to hold onto at least a shred of dignity.

Reaching over to her tool kit, Ikkaku fished out her screwdriver, silently lamenting over the sad state of her tools. She’d planned on picking up some new ones back on Sabaody, but with all the chaos that had taken place, she’d missed her chance, and she wasn’t sure she could justify the cost now that her job was in jeopardy.

The sharp click clack of heeled boots against the metal floor startled her out of her thoughts. Glancing towards the sound, she immediately knew from the spotted jeans that filled her vision that, for better or for worse, the mystery of her termination was about to be solved.

She watched as Law turned around, and she knew from the barely-audible creek of the pipes that he had chosen to lean against them. Ikkaku had yelled at him for doing that more than a few times in the past, but this time she kept her mouth shut. Most likely he’d done it to provoke such a reaction out of her, but why? To break the viscous tension that filled the room by establishing a sense of normalcy, or so he’d have another cause to fire her?

Whatever his reason, Ikkaku refused to be the first to speak. Whether he wanted to kick her out or extend the olive branch, he’d have to make the first move.

After a few minutes of silence where Law merely stood there and Ikkaku continued to tighten the bolts, he finally sighed. “Penguin tells me that you haven’t been eating dinner with the crew,” Law’s low, nonchalant voice rumbled through the pipes.

If Penguin had to tell you, that says that you haven’t been eating with them, either, she thought sourly, though opted to stay quiet. She didn’t want to turn this into an argument if he intended to apologize. And if he planned to fire her…well, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of riling her up.

Noting her unusual silence, he continued, “I understand their behavior has been…upsetting as of late. They were acting like idiots, but that’s no reason to isolate yourself.”

“Haven’t been isolating myself,” she lied, fiddling with a bolt she’d tightened ten minutes ago. “I’ve just had work to do. The Tang needed some maintenance, so I thought I’d get it done now that we weren’t being chased by Marines.”

“Sure. And the fact that Bepo’s been bringing you your meals this past week?”

“Going to the galley would have wasted time. Eating in here was more efficient, and Bepo offered.”

“Why didn’t you ask Skua and Malamute to help?”

“You doubtin’ my abilities as an engineer, Trafalgar?” she asked in a clipped tone, growing sick of tiptoeing around the point. “Whether you like it or not, I know how this ship works better than anyone. If you don’t trust me, tell them to get their asses in here and do it instead!”

There was a deep sigh from above her, and Ikkaku could easily picture the wrinkle between his eyebrows that formed when he was tired and frustrated. “Bepo told me you’re thinking of leaving.”

Ah. The moment of truth. Heart in her throat, she forced her herself to take a deep breath, ready for whatever judgement he saw fit to pass. “You’re the one who said I should if I didn’t like how I was being treated.”

“Are you?”

“Leaving or enjoying how I’m treated?”

“Leaving.”

“…I don’t want to.”

“Good.” It was subtle, but there was an unspoken “I wouldn’t have let you if you’d tried” in his tone. There was another long moment of silence before he continued, “Engineers as skilled as you are hard to come by—finding a replacement would have been a bitch. Plus, the crew would have been upset; they were practically interrogating poor Bepo about why you were avoiding them.”

“And of course you stepped in and played hero, rescuing the helpless Mink from an angry mob?” she snipped, tightening another screw. It didn’t sound like she was getting fired, so it was a little easier to let her natural sass creep back into her voice.

Law let out a faint tch above her. “I wouldn’t say ‘helpless’ considering how he then yelled at me about allegedly firing you. After that, the mob was on his side.”

A proud grin curled the corner of Ikkaku’s mouth. Who would have thought that Bepo would yell at his best friend for little old her? She’d have to come up with a nice thank you gift for her favorite shipmate. With luck, Law might actually apologize for his behavior if even Bepo was calling him out.

Of course, that might take a while, so it was best to keep busy. Reaching out her hand, Ikkaku felt around blindly for her socket wrench. She jerked slightly in surprise when she felt long fingers wrap around her hand before the tool in question was placed firmly in her palm. She pulled her arm back, only to stare wordlessly at the brand-new wrench that practically gleamed in the light.

Clumsily she slid out from under the pipes, jaw dropping as she found Law crouching beside a new, expensive, top-of-the-line tool kit. “I was saving this for your birthday but given the chance that you wouldn’t be around to receive it…” he trailed off, adjusting his hat so the brim cast a shadow over his face.

The corners of her eyes crinkled as she smiled, immediately recognizing the gift for the chrome apology that it was. Plus, it was hard to stay mad at Law when he was like this—honestly, it was so dang cute how awkward he was when forced to display actual human emotions like caring and guilt. “You bribing me to stay, Boss?”

“If that’s what it takes.”

She laughed, grabbing him by the shoulder and pulling him in for a hug. “Then I accept, along with a twenty-percent bonus on my next paycheck.”

He grumbled slightly but didn’t refuse, nor did he pull away from her embrace, even if he stubbornly refused to return it. It didn’t matter that he hadn’t technically said “sorry”. Actions spoke a hell of a lot louder than words with him, anyway, and Law was practically groveling for her to stay.

When she finally let him go, Law stood up and cleared his throat before nonchalantly strolling towards the door. “Well then, since you’re not leaving, unless the engine room is actively on fire and no one but you can put it out, you’re eating with the crew tonight. They’ll formally apologize for their behavior, and they’re all going out of their way to show you how much you’re appreciated. Ermine’s preparing your favorite meal. Clione and Shachi have put together a presentation detailing exactly how stupid they’ve been while Penguin has one extolling your virtues. Malamute and Skua have volunteered to take on your cleaning duties for the next two weeks.”

“What are you going to do?” Ikkaku teased, though he could have said “nothing” and she’d be fine—she knew he’d never make the mistake of discarding her again.

Law stopped at the door and threw his trademark cocky smirk over his shoulder. “Isn’t it obvious? I’ll be standing by your side all night to make sure you can’t run off when you realize just how obnoxiously sentimental those idiots can be.”

Ikkaku’s grin fell a bit as she realized he was right—the Hearts were an infamous band of pirates led by a fiendishly dangerous captain, but when it came to their nakama, they could get downright sappy in extreme circumstances. Jude was probably preparing some hippy-dippy song. Cousteau would inevitably name some weird sea creature after her. Seiuchi would probably find a way to scatter confetti all over the galley and she’d be picking it out of her hair for days…

Getting up, she chased after her devious captain. “I don’t suppose there’s still time for me to quit and join the Kuja, is there?”

Gold eyes glinted sadistically at her as Law replied, “Nope. Welcome to Appreciation Hell. Population: you. Don’t try to run, either—I’ll Shambles your ass into the galley if I have to.”

Ikkaku punched his arm in retaliation, though she was careful not to hit him too hard—if she annoyed him too much, he’d go out of his way to rile the guys up even more. God, he’d probably propose they all get tattoos of her face or something just to make her suffer.

“You’re an absolute bastard,” she said, affection creeping into her voice despite her best efforts.

“Yes, but a bastard that appreciates his engineer,” Law replied, and out of the corner of her eye, Ikkaku could have sworn she saw the barest hint of a genuine smile flicker across his face.

Despite the knowledge that she’d be stuck with a crew of idiots and a captain who had the emotional range of a teaspoon and a truly frightening sense of humor, Ikkaku felt happier than she had in weeks as she playfully knocked her shoulder into his. “I guess that’s not so bad, then.”

The End

[deathclawforcuties]

OC Interview!

So, got tagged by @robobrainmurdermysterytheatre to do my OC from Fallout 4.

I'm supposed to tag five other people, but sadly I don't know anyone else to tag who hasn't already been tagged by others, soooo here goes.

1. What is your name?

"The Names Celestine O'Kelly-Hancock, but everyone just calls me Celeste for short. Nice to meet you, dude."

2. Do you know why are you named that?

"Which part are you asking about?"

3. Are you single or taken?

"Very much taken. Remarried, actually. My hubby is the Mayor of Goodneighbor. Maybe you've heard of him?"

4. Have any abilities or powers?

"I've a natural affinity for swimming, and growing some of the best damn rad-weed this side of....uh....what were we talking about again? Oh yeah! I can out-snipe anyone."

*somewhere off in the distance you can hear Robert screaming out "I CALL SHENANIGANS!"*

5. Stop being a Mary Sue.

"Huh? Dude, are you smoking the same shit I am? Who's Mary Sue? Pretty sure you mean Mary Jane."

6. What’s your eye color?

"My eye color? John tells me they're 'Nuka Quantum blue', but I'm pretty sure he's stoned when he says that. I think they're deep, almost grey-blue, to be honest."

7. How about your hair color?

"Currently it's purple, because SOMEBODY likes to play pranks and fuck with my soap. Deacon, I'm looking at you!"

*A maniacal cackle can be heard around the corner*

8. Have any family members?

"Well, sure I do. There's my hubby John, there's Robert who is like my little brother. I've got my fur-baby, Dogmeat, and my adopted dad, Wiseman..."

9. Oh? How about pets?

"Dogmeat, he's a dog, obviously. Then I adopted a ginger tabby I named Deacon."

*Deacon pokes his head into the picture*

"Awwww!"

"Because he, too, is an asshole."

*Human Deacon blows raspberries before slinking off*

10. That’s cool, I guess. Now tell me something you don’t like?

"Something I don't like? I can't stand bigotry of any kind; you picking on a ghoul in front of me is a great way to get shot. By me. Because fuck you, that's why. I also don't like it when someone tries to fuck with my crops. Wait until it's done growing. Fucking weed-nappers."

11. Do you have any activities/hobbies that you like to do?

“I smoke pot, I crochet stuff, and hunt raiders. Oh, and I like to bake."

*Hancock wolf whistles off from the side*

"You mean get baked!"

"Oh, ha ha babe!"

12. Have you ever hurt anyone in any way before?

"Damn, that's uh...that's kinda heavy. Yeah...um...not something I really want to talk about."

13. Ever… killed anyone before?

"Dude, this is the Commonwealth we're talking about. Everyone out this way has killed at least once in their life. I might have a higher kill count than most, I mean, I do actively hunt raiders and shit...so....yes."

14. What kind of animal are you?

“A house cat. Yeah, happy, lazy fucker that naps in the sun, sleeps a lot..."

15. Name your worst habits?

"My worst habits? I sometimes sleep too much, and I may, or may not, steal the covers."

*Hancock sticks his head in the room*

"She totally steals the blankets."

"BABE!"

16. Do you look up to anyone at all?

"My adopted Dad, Wiseman. No matter what hell comes his way, he faces it with a calm and compassionate heart leading the rest of my ghoul family through it all with grace. And John. He saved my life both literally, and figuratively. And my mom...I miss her."

17. Are you gay, straight or bisexual?

"Does...does it really matter?"

18. Do you go to school?

"The school of Hard Knocks count?"

19. Ever want to marry and have kids one day?

"Well, I remarried, so yes to that part. As far as kids go, John and I have thought about adopting, but I'm....not quite ready yet..."

20. Do you have any fangirls/fanboys?

"I don't have any strains by those names. Got some OG Kush growing right now...Just hit a blunt made from it, actually. Smoooth po-ta-to."

21. What are you most afraid of?

"Fucking rad roaches, man! I'll take a deathclaw on any day, but put me in a room full of giant bugs and I will nope the biggest nope that ever noped."

22. What do you usually wear?

*Hancock butts in*

"She usually wears my face on her lady bits! Yeah booooy!"

"OMG BABE! NO BAD!"

23. What’s one food that tempts you?

“When I get the munchies, I crave Dandy Boy apples, and gum drops. I can't get enough of them."

24. Am I annoying to you?

"Even if you were, I'm waaaay too baked to care right now."

25. Well, it’s still not over!

"Huh? What's not over? Did I just miss a whole conversation?"

26. What class are you (low/middle/high)?

"If I'm stoned, I'm HIGH class!"

*Giggling intensifies*

27. How many friends do you have?

"Tons. You looking to add to my list?"

28. What are your thoughts on pie?

"I could totally go for a slice right about now. Why? You offering?"

29. Favorite drink?

“Vim classic. Good shit."

30. What’s your favorite place?

"I've got two places I love: The Slog, and Goodneighbor. They're the only places I feel truly at home in."

31. Are you interested in anyone?

*Hancock butts in again*

"She's married to me. I don't share."

"You heard the Mayor: He doesn't share. Hey! I made a rhyme!"

32. That was a stupid question…

"Waaaaait.....did I think that out loud?"

33. Would you rather swim in a lake or the ocean?

“Both. I fear no body of water, and nothing ever bothers me when I swim, at least. Might have to do with all the Vim I drink..."

34. What’s your type?

“My type? Gotta be intelligent; if you can't carry on an intelligent conversation, you can quit right now. I like a partner whose heart is in everything they do, and who isn't judgmental, as well."

35. Any fetishes?

"I uh....um...*cough* I like role playing..."

36. Camping or outdoors?

"I adore outdoors. Being out in my garden is like a balm to my soul. Camping is meh, but sometimes when I'm on a job, it's a necessary evil."

[petite-neko]

Stability - 3

Fanfiction: Stability Story Summary: It wasn’t because he was self-conscious or ashamed. No, it was because he was afraid. His greatest fear was being alone after all. Characters: Luffy, Zoro, Chopper, Nami, Ace, Sabo, Law Pairing: Eventual LawLu Rating: T Warnings: Swearing, AU/UA, canon-typical violence, angst A/N: OTLOh my god. This.... this is a fucking monster. 17 pages guys. 17 mother fucking pages. Here's the lawlu portion of this! (I still can't believe how long this is. Like wtf!)

.xxx. = Time/scene skip

.+++. = PoV change

Read on Ao3

Part 1 || Part 2 || Part 3

“S-Sabo?!”

Sabo looked at the young man sobbing in front of him. His brother. His brother.. He nodded.

And he got a face full of Luffy’s chest.

(To be honest, he was really glad not only for Luffy that Iva fixed him up right now.)

Sabo laughed and patted Luffy’s back.

“Thank you Luffy. For living. For helping Ace to live…”

Luffy nodded furiously.

“And I’m glad for you too. That you met Iva… does it feel better?”

More furious nodding. And a hilarious story of asking another Super Nova how to take a leak. The Super Nova who was apparently allied with him…

(And the one who had saved both of his brothers’ lives.)

.+++.

To be honest, Trafalgar Law had no idea just what he had gotten himself into…

It was just supposed to be an alliance not this… this… thing it had turned into.

First the idiot insists that they were nakama, then he fucking saves his life against his wishes, bonds with his crew, and now?

Now that mother fucker just kissed him!

“…Have you been drinking Mugiwara-ya?”

(Law remember the last time a foreign substance had influenced Luffy’s behaviour. Seriously. The idiot forgot how to take a fucking piss!)

Luffy was pouting at him. “No!”

Law only rolled his eyes. “Of course not,” he drolled out, “you’re completely in full control of all of your capacities.” The sarcasm was practically dripping from his voice. “Because it’s completely normal to want to kiss me.” He rolled his eyes again, pushing Luffy away when he tried to press closer. “Just like it’s completely normal to forget how to piss.” And since Luffy obviously wasn’t taking the hint, Law just decided to stand up, letting Luffy just fall unceremoniously off of him.

“But Toraoo~”

Law sighed at the whining and rubbed at the bridge of his nose. Not even he was free from some slight intoxication. He was nowhere near drunk, mind you, but still inebriated. Probably was why he was saying the things he was saying, in all honesty. “We’ll discuss this when we’re both sober.” He said with some irritation before walking away.

Seriously… just what had he gotten himself into?

.xxx.

Law had settled against Bepo as he mulled on what just happened.

Luffy had kissed him. Had just clambered onto his lap, purred out his nickname, leaning in a bit before just pulling Law down by the cheeks and pushed their lips together. It was sloppy, awkward, and just… well… shocking. Of all of the things that Law had ever expected Luffy to do, this was probably one of the last things on that list. If it even made the list that is. (Not to mention that list was quite long...)

And what if? What if Luffy had truly wanted to do that? Somewhere inside of him. Alcohol was something that tended to loosen up any inhibitions people had. Certainly, yes, it made people do things that were uncharacteristic of them, even made them do things that they would never think of doing otherwise…

But, what if?

Law groaned.

Sure, the Strawhat was pleasant enough, even if irksome to no end. Sure, Law had gotten used to his presence, but mostly because he had to. Sure, they got along fine enough, even though some days Law regretted pulling that idiot and his brother out of the war.

But this?

Gods…

Whatever… Luffy acted all sorts of odd when inebriated by drugs – medically or otherwise. That, at least, he consoled himself with.

.xxx.

“Torao~”

To say he wanted to wake up with Luffy’s face far too close for comfort was a lie in of itself. Law groaned, pushing Luffy’s face away, and sat up.

“Morning, Mugiwara-ya.”

Well, at the very least, he didn’t have a hangover.

Luffy was laughing and on his heels as they walked, spewing out random things that, quite frankly, Law couldn’t give a damn about.

“Can this wait until I get my daily dosage of caffeine Mugi-”

(Apparently the mention of any sort of drug had prompted memories of other drugs to come flooding back, namely, alcohol. Even if that mention was a self-deprecating attempt at a joke.)

…Fuck, that really happened, didn’t it?

Never was Law so grateful to have a mug shoved in his hands. (He knew, with the expression he was currently wearing, he looked worse than he actually was. Because it wasn’t dehydration that paled him, no, it was mortification.) It also seemed that the chef had sufficiently distracted a rambunctious captain with food.

God. That’s what Sanji was right now. Gifting Law with everything he wanted before he even realised it.

He was already starting to feel better after his first cup, but he held it up for another. Not only would it keep Luffy at bay for awhile longer, Law felt that he was going to need it for today.

If Luffy asked him about last night, just what was he supposed to say? Fuck…

(Fuck indeed.)

No thank you, peanut gallery. He didn’t need his sardonic humour right now. Couldn’t it take a skip day or something?

Law sighed and stared into the black depths of his coffee.

Luffy, huh?

Well, the usual first two excuses he used couldn’t apply to the Strawhat, Law knew that much. As begrudgingly as he was to admit it… Luffy was his friend. And, foremost, a man he trusted. This was a man he was willing to die together with.

But that didn’t necessarily mean…

Certainly, yes, Mugiwara no Luffy was far from unattractive. Powerful and caring to boot. And it wasn’t as if Law only played for one team…

But this was Mugiwara no Luffy. The man who refused Boa Hancock of all people. The supposed most sought after woman in the world.

And this was him. Trafalgar Law. Whose personality and traits, in his own opinion, had to be the most unappealing in the world. Insomnia. Paranoia. Anxiety. An over-seasoned dosage of PTSD and abandonment issues. His humour bordered on insanity and insulting – both to himself and others. And, don’t forget that healthy dusting of suicidal, self-destructive tendencies. All in all, such a perfect and appealing candidate for a partner, wouldn’t you agree?

(Yeah, Luffy had to be intoxicated last night to even begin to think kissing him was a remotely good idea…)

Luffy wasn’t the problem here, it was him. He had never entertained the ideas of a relationship for too long. And, always, Law made a point to find a problem in them as well. Mostly to convince himself to not even see if they were willing to take on his shit load of problems.

He’d find something in Luffy. Eventually.

.xxx.

Despite all of his efforts, however, Trafalgar Law could not find a single, game changing fault in Mugiwara no Luffy. Anything and everything that he could find in the other Super Nova was either something he had already become accustomed to, or something so minor that it, in all realities, wouldn't have bothered him.

Weeks. It had been weeks since the incident, and, thankfully, Luffy had not brought it up.

But, by now, Law almost wanted the idiot to approach him and bring up the topic. There were things that Law wanted to know, things that Law had wanted to ask Luffy. And maybe, just maybe with answers to those questions, he could finally find something in Luffy that would turn him away.

Quite honestly, it was driving him insane. He had lost sleep on the issue. Had become paranoid and skittish around Luffy. And his anxiety was through the roof because, because...

He was afraid he wouldn't find anything.

All of this over a fucking hypothetical scenario that, in all probability, wasn't even going to happen.

Because if Luffy was going to ask, well he would have already done so by now. It's not like Luffy to put something that he wanted to do off for such a long period of time after all.

(Why? Why did that bastard kiss him damn it!)

.xxx.

In the end, it was him that caved. After the god-knows-what-numbered timed of losing sleep over some stupid drunken kiss Law decided to drag the other captain from his bunk.

"We need to talk."

(One of the bad side effects of brewing on this for as long as he did was the idea was starting to become appealing. This. This was why he never thought on these scenarios for so long. That's why he always tried to convince himself that the person in question wasn't suitable for him. He didn't do relationships. Even if there was that small sliver inside of him that craved it and wondered just what it would be like.)

...And he'd be damned. Fucking Monkey D. Luffy looked adorable right now, with a yawn on his lips, a fist rubbing sleepily at his eye and...

"Torao?"

Law sighed, before the most pathetic line of his life slipped out of his lips.

"Well, we're both sober..."

And the look on Luffy's face...

Well, he looked like a dying machine that was slowly being brought back to life. The way that the light slowly flickered to life on his face... the realisation...

"We can talk about it now?"

(...Did that idiot...)

...Never mind, he didn't want to know... Nor was he going to ask.

"...Yeah." He admitted awkwardly, glancing off to the side.

"Yay!" And the light that was slowly being ignited was now a fire. "I mean, I didn't know what you meant by sober and… I wasn't drinking and..."

"Wait a minute!" Law interjected - and now that he actually thought about it, wasn't Luffy a horrendous liar? "You didn't..." Oh God... Oh God... Shit. Fuck. This wasn't good. No. This wasn't what he had been anticipating at all and - Fuck!

"You - you just..."

His head was spinning and going a mile a minute and...

"I just what Torao?"

And god damn Mugiwara no Luffy was acting as if this was not a big fucking deal.

That somebody had actually...

"That I just kissed you?"

"Give me a moment..."

(He was not panicking. He was not panicking. Fuck. He was panicking. Over a fucking kiss that wasn't actually a drunken kiss and that somebody had actually...)

"...Yeah, I kissed you because I like you, duh. I mean, why wouldn't I..."

(See? Perfect partner material right here. Number one. VIP. Soon he'd have everybody flaunting themselves at his feet and--)

"...Seriously, why did you think I was drinking?" There was a pause in Luffy's babbling that Law wasn't really paying too much attention to right now. "Torao? Torao?"

"I said give me a moment Mugiwara-ya!"

Law had all but yelled and just squatted down, holding his head, closing his eyes.

He didn't get it. He didn't understand any of it. Why? How?

"...Torao?"

(See? Look. Luffy was worried about him now. Lovely, just lovely.)

Law inhaled deeply a few times, trying to calm himself enough not to lash out again. Trying to calm the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

"...Why?"

That word was croaked out - a barest whisper.

He felt Luffy's gaze on him.

"...How?" Law felt his body trembling again. "How can you like me?"

His stomach felt like lead. His head hurt. His heart racing. How can you..." And his lips wouldn't stop moving. Rambling, he was rambling. Listing off all of the god damned things that were wrong with him and...

"...full of problems and paranoid and everybody always leaves me anyway and-"

"Torao!"

At the mention of his name Law felt himself jolt. It wasn't that the voice was laced with Haki, but it held power regardless.

"You're not any of that - and even if you were I don't care. You're Torao, the man that I care for."

Law didn't know what to call the look in Luffy's eyes right now. It wasn't love, it wasn't empathy (he knew that from Cora-san) and it wasn't even forgiveness. But, whatever it was, it drew him in, and they remained there in silence for a few moments. Eventually, Law felt control returning to him.

"Feeling better Torao?"

Despite everything, Luffy smiled at him.

"...Yeah."

.xxx.

It wasn't long after that conversation that Law had agreed to try. To try a relationship.

He didn't make any promises - and Luffy seemed fine with that.

He couldn't find any reasons to decline Luffy after all.

(And the idea was appealing in its own sense. That he appreciated Luffy's company, perhaps more than just an ally or friend should. In different ways...)

The secrecy lasted a month.

(To be honest, really, Law was surprised Luffy had lasted that long. Given the guy's tendency with secrets and all...)

But, at least by then Law knew that, yes, this was something that he wanted.

.xxx.

Thankfully, they lasted a bit longer until Luffy's brothers found out.

Apparently Ace and Sabo had bumped into one another and had decided to jointly come to visit their little brother.

When the two brothers had boarded the ship, Law had been greeted warmly before they quickly bombarded Luffy with updates about his life. Inquiring about certain events that had happened in the news and such.

In the meanwhile, Law had just decided to wander off while Luffy caught up with his brothers.

His peace didn't last all too long however.

"What?!"

Both of the brothers had said that simultaneously. He didn't quite like the sounds of that. And low and behold, he had both of them at his side.

It was his turn to be bombarded with questions.

All about the topic of their relationship. Great. And a few about his sexuality and preferences and past history...

Needless to say, Law avoided answering the more personal questions.

"Relax Torao~ They just want to know more about you~" Luffy sang once he catapulted himself over, and hugged him.

"What we do by ourselves is of no business to anybody but us Luffy-ya."

(He received some scandalous sounds from the brothers.)

Law suppressed a blush. "Sh-Shut up! whatever it is that we do or do not do is none of your business!"

They were all laughing at him.

(He was just going to ignore the suggestions and scenarios that the brothers were laying out for him. Yup.)

Finally, it seemed that the teasing was mostly done. (For now, oh Law knew he wasn't escaping that easily.)

"So, I guess I should tell Dragon not to expect being a grandfather anytime soon~" He said with a teasing wink.

Ace had rolled his eyes. "They could always adopt, ya know Sabo. Just pick up some stray child in a war ravaged zone - you never know."

Law just ignored the two brothers in favour of looking down at Luffy who had tangled up on top of him.

"Shishishi." He was laughing.

Yeah, that's what really mattered here.

Luffy.

.xxx.

...Those god damned brothers of his...

If they hadn't gone and opened their mouths and...

"Torao? Did you ever want to have a kid?"

Damn those brothers for putting that idea in Luffy's head. Damn them.

"...This is because your brothers mentioned it, isn't it?" He sighed.

And Luffy only nodded enthusiastically.

Of course, Law went into the explanation that adopting a kid, really, would only be due to the scenario that Ace had given. Of course no orphanage would let pirates adopt children. Nor would they be able to pick up a child who was known by villagers, or other people. That the only children they would able to 'adopt' in a sense were those without homes or family or people to care for or remember them.

Most of which went over Luffy's head, but at least he understood that adopting a child wouldn't be as easy as it sounded.

But then Law went into the schematics about biological children, and then shit just... hit the fan.

"Statistically speaking, the chances of us being able to father a child together are nigh impossible. We're both guys after all." Law's voice was very matter-o-fact right now, as it tended to be when he was explaining. "Unless there's a devil fruit to change one's sex and keep their DNA intact..."

"Oh! Iva-san can do that! We could always just ask Sabo-"

"Well," Law paused, not at all expecting that response, "I suppose that would leave us with a few questions... First off, would we even want to have a child? Would I be able to even have a child considering my past? When would we do so, considering it would be a year of inactivity? And lastly, who would willing become female to carry the child to term?"

Luffy started acting... well... strange after that.

Law hadn't noticed it, however. No, not until Luffy had lashed out at him.

They had been exploring the questions - all hypothetical of course - and when they had gotten to the last comment, and Law had been listing out the pros and cons of Luffy carrying the child (after his own study of himself) Luffy had just...

Flipped.

Protesting about how he would never even consider carrying the child. That he was a guy and would never change into a girl.

Then went off on some incoherent rant that not even Law understood - but it seemed that Luffy had taken great offense to him even suggesting Luffy turning into a woman. That he was faulting him for something.

He let Nami take over from there.

And now? Well he was wandering the Sunny, just avoiding Luffy. And right now he had ended up in the men's quarters.

It was quiet down here. Empty too.

To be honest, Law never spent much time down here. He mostly slept in the infirmary or on the deck when he was aboard the Strawhats' ship. Occasionally Luffy would drag him to his bunk, if he wanted to sleep next to him.

(That being said, mostly when he was visiting nowadays, he would have his own submarine nearby and chose to sleep in his own bed.)

He sighed before sitting down on some furniture.

He glanced around, making a face at the apparent lack of tidiness of the room. There were clothes everywhere.

...Well not everywhere but more so than he would have liked.

(And were those Franky's speedos hanging off a nail in the wall? He fucking hoped they were clean. He wasn't going near them in any case...)

Law sighed and shook his head before leaning back, his head falling behind the couch he was seated on.

He stared at the room, which was now upside down.

There were a few other things he noticed. One of which was a dresser off to the corner. And a half-walled off area right beside it.

The dresser had accumulated a lot of dust. As if it hadn't been used in months. Years maybe.

Why was that, he wondered?

(He was curious, yes. Why there was an area that, in all appearances, looked like a changing room with a dresser nearby? And if that dresser was unused, well maybe he could use it as a storage for some of his clothes? He was on the ship often enough...)

Curiosity got the better of him, and he wandered over there.

When he was about to touch the dresser, he thought the better of it and just used his scan instead.

...Huh, so there were clothes in there.

But what were they doing unused?

As he focused in a bit more at the clothes, he began to recognise the style.

Luffy's?

He found himself glancing back to the dresser he had often seen Luffy rush to.

What the hell?

By now, Law knew that probably - probably he should just dismiss this. It probably was nothing. And Luffy tended to wear a lot of the same clothes over anyway... so it was probably just extra clothes that his ally never got to wearing yet.

(But the half wall was bothering him now. Why was Luffy's clothes over here? By the design, the thing looked to be a sort of changing room. Luffy was always flaunting his chest and he doubted the boy had any shame when it came to other body parts and strangers...)

Really. He should just walk away and go read a book or some shit. Luffy was already mad enough at him as it were. For god knows what reason. He didn't need to worsen it.

He was staring at the bubble his Scan had revealed.

Plenty of jean shorts. Hell, even a few boxers... and a plethora of shirts...

Bandages? And - wait a minute, that isn't a...

"Shambles."

Law was staring at the garment in question in his hands.

If he was honest in his opinion - really - this looked like, well...

A bra. The kind that women wore if they were smart about regular physical activity. (And the ones that were, quite frankly, a bitch to get off. At least, in his experience.)

But, no. The fabric under his hands didn't have much give. And with a brief tug, he confirmed his suspicions that, yes, it hardly had any stretch at all. Enough to fit over the head, be still be comfortable but...

It would do a whole lot of compressing.

... Was that why there were no button up shirts in Luffy's wardrobe? And those bandages...

Law groaned and just threw the... binder behind himself (with a quick, last minute correction to shamble it back into the dresser) before slumping onto the couch.

He was such a fucking idiot.

.+++.

"Luffy, Luffy. Calm down. He didn't know."

Luffy sighed and hugged his legs. He knew it wasn't fair to lash out at Torao like that. Torao didn't know. Of course he didn't.

Sure, they met before Iva fixed him up - but unless somebody saw him without a shirt on, they never suspected...

Well, maybe Torao could have - he was a doctor after all...

But by the time Torao had to really fix him up... well...

Apparently that was more than enough for Law to not suspect.

(Not to mention...)

Luffy sighed, frustrated. He needed to find Torao and apologise to him. Torao didn't know. He didn't mean anything by it. He just thought Luffy was normal like everybody else, and that's why he said those things. Torao didn't know and Luffy couldn't fault him for that.

Soon he found Torao, who was sitting by the tree like he always did.

He felt bad...

But Luffy swallowed and took a few steps forward.

"Torao!"

...The look in those yellow eyes hurt. They hurt a lot. He looked sad and angry and...

"I'm sorry Luffy-ya."

"I - no - it's okay Torao! It's my fault! I shouldn't have-"

Why was Torao apologising?

"I fucked up."

"...Torao?" What was Torao saying? He didn't know... he shouldn't...

"I was stupid. So fucking stupid!"

"Torao!"

(This time, his yelling did nothing…)

"I can't believe..."

Torao was holding his head again. Like before. Like when they talked about the kiss.

"Torao!" Damn it! What was he supposed to do here?! He grabbed the other captain's shoulders tightly, shaking him a little. "Torao!"

"I'm sorry - I - I can't... I didn't know... Fuck..."

Luffy froze at that.

...What... what did he mean by that?

"I'm such a fucking idiot... I just thought that you were..."

(Fear. Fear. That's what was lumping up in his throat right now. His arms trembled. His entire body did. No... No... It was like when he argued with Nami's doctor... when Nami came into the room... His arms went limp, he took a step back…)

"...If only I had know... I would have never..."

(The next thing he heard was the sound of flesh hitting flesh.)

.+++.

"You would have never what Law?"

Law had looked up at the woman who had smacked him: her hands now balled up and on her hips - but ready to attack him again. Her expression was angry.

(He could still hear the whispers though, in the back of his mind: God, how could he have been so stupid! How! He fucked up. Royally fucked up. Royally screwed up. Big time. Stupid. Insensitive. An asshole. That's what he was.)

And he glanced over to Luffy - only feeling that guilt hit him even more. Scared. Afraid… That's how Luffy was looking at him right now.

He had really fucked up big time, hadn't he?

"Well?"

...Nami had asked him a question, hadn't she?

(God, it was hard to concentrate...)

Law avoided her gaze, and Luffy's. "I would have never said what I said." He found himself biting his lip, trying to let the pain distract him from the deafening chaos inside of his mind. To let it ground him to the here and now. Nami's slap had knocked him back to his senses, and was he ever grateful for that. "It was insensitive... I'm sorry Luffy... I'm sorry that I suggested..."

(He reached his hand across his body and grabbed his elbow, fingers digging into the flesh there.)

"I fucked up and made you uncomfortable and angry and it wasn't right for me to do that and-"

"Y-You're not angry?"

Law looked up immediately at the tone of Luffy's voice. Why? Why was it so terrified and sad and pleading and -- oh gods he fucked up again didn't he?

(What did he do this time?)

He dug his nails in deeper. Luffy. He had to answer Luffy.

"No." He shook his head. "At least, not at you. The only person I'm angry at is myself. I was such a damn idiot and apparently I just fucked up again and don't know just how or why or-"

Nami slapped him again.

...That woman had a really fucking strong hand.

"Well, at least that shuts you up."

He felt Luffy prying his hand away from his arm.

"Y-You're okay with... with this?" Luffy squeezed his hand, gently but desperately.

...Wait. Wait. What?!

Law just stared at Luffy in astonishment. "I- of course I am Luffy-ya!" To emphasise the point he took his other hand to clasp Luffy's. Why did Luffy even think...?

"But I'm not-"

...Ah. Fuck. Law sighed and placed his forehead on top of Luffy's head.

"I couldn't give a damn about that Luffy-ya."

"B-But what If Iva couldn't-"

But Law could already guess what Luffy was getting at. "Then I would. Devil fruits are not the only way to fix that problem. Sure, it might not be as effective, but it still does a damn good job. Of course... only if you wanted me to."

Luffy moved and grabbed Law's face with his free hand so that their gazes matched. "...And what if I didn't want you to? What if I turn back or what if-"

Law leaned in and lightly kissed Luffy on the lips to shut him up for a moment, since his hands were otherwise preoccupied. "It wouldn't matter. We would do what you wanted. It's not like female bodies aren't appealing to me either."

(Law vaguely could hear Nami scoffing something about sappy or too much information before she stormed off in her heels.)

"...And if I want kids?"

Law chuckled softly. "If I agree, I suppose I'd have to carry them, wouldn't I?"

Luffy pulled him down for a kiss.

When they parted, Luffy was laughing.

"...Oh, Torao... how did you find out anyway... since I'm a guy now..."

Law groaned and placed his head in his hands.

...Ah well, it was bound to come out one day..

[hazelmae]

19 February 2017

there`s really not much for me to say, but this week has been one of the weirdest weeks. lol, we went from not talking for almost an entire week to spending time with each other almost every day this week. which is cool bcus last week, i was super busy with shit. and you were busy with shit. and you had the wedding. and my cousin, stephanie, flew in from california. so, it was all gucci. but i`ve actually appreciated all the time that we have spent together this week. 

first off, the fucking weekend that stephanie was here was a fucking blassssssssst. it was definitely something that i needed to keep me busy and my mind off of shit. like, it was literally from start to finish busy af. and it was seriously some of the most funn i`ve had in a long ass time. i worked a 16hr shift on friday, feb 10, and picked up stephanie at the airport right after. we went to bangers and lace evanston for 1 drink and ended up going home at 2am. haha we watched grey`s anatomy bcus we both didn`t see the latest episode and knocked the fuck out at 4am. mark and ericson came to the house at 8am so that we could go to the water tower place to pick up their yeezys. shit was hilarious bcus once i let them into the house, i went right back to sleep. lmao. didn`t end up going to the water tower place until around 10am. which was cool bcus we ended up waiting in line until noon. LOLOLOL fucking dry af. and then we went home, the boys went home, stephanie and i went to eat at portillos/barnellis. we came home, showered, got ready and then headed to ate esther`s house for the final prayer for uncle roland`s one year anniversary. chilled over there for quite some time and then ended up going to the city and meeting up with cherry ann and her friends at bottled blonde. got pretty fucked up. LOL got home. don`t know how tf we got home. ahahah and then we knocked out. woke up. showered. got ready. and got brunch with ingrid at cupitol in evanston. afterwards, we went to tower rd. beach for a bit. just to do it for the snap. lol brandon and the yungs were gonna come to the city with us, but they snoozed. so it was just me and stephanie. which was cool bcus it was so much easier to do shit. we drove to the city and did the chicago 360 at the john hancock tower. always a good fucking time looking at the city from above. and then we walked our happy asses to millennium park. took pictures. all that good shit. haha and then we went to molly`s cupcakes. and picked some up. afterwards, we went to eat at honey butter fried chicken. and that shit was HOT FIRE. holy. so good. omgosh. lmfao. and then we went home. and the yungs came by to work on homework bcus my ass had a fucking speech due monday morning at 8am. HAHAHAHA so, monday, i went to school. came back, got ready. and headed to the city for some more sight seeing before steph had to leave. we went to the skyline, but it was poppin` bcus the shedd was free that day. so we went to montrose beach instead. went to firecakes donuts to grab some donuts and then ate a piece of pizza in my car. went to lou malnati`s on the way home to pick up frozen pizza for steph and then went home. i napped and steph got ready to go. after i left for class, thomas brought stephanie to the airport. 

tuesday was valentine`s day. and i spent it at work. lol

wednesday, i had class all day but he ended up spending the night and going straight to work from my house thursday morning. so cute bcus i didn`t realize he was going straight to work and he had brought his scrubs and his toothbrush! LOL <3 

was off all day thursday, but didn`t do much besides laundry and go to the gym after he went to work. and theeeeeeeen friday came. friday, i went to work as per usual after getting coffee with cherry ann. and met up with shrimp boy in chinatown. HAHA. so cute. we got dim sum and then ended up at chi cafe bcus the nigga was craving shit. lmao he came back to my house but my dad told me he needed go home and so he left. i ended up going over to his house and spending the night over there. had breakfast/coffee with him and his little brother before getting ready and going home to get ready for work. worked saturday night, and then met up with him and his friends at the owl in logan square. haha that was a good fucking time. bcus all his friends were like “OH, you`re HAZEL?!” haha. cute bcus this mother fucker has been talking about me to his friends. :) and then we all ended up going to parson’s to eat. spent some time over there. afterwards, dropped off his friends back to the owl and then back to his house. ended up spending the night at his house but leaving early af bcus his mom had asked who was home saturday morning. lolll. pretty  sure my dad called his mom to let her know. lmfao. kidding. but yaeh, so got up pretty frikking early this morning to get back home. which was cool. bcus i enjoy sleeping next to him. and it`s the cutest thing when i had to get up early but he grabbed me and pulled me closer to cuddle for just a little bit longer. <3 and then work was good today. :) 

all around, it`s been a good week. aaaaaaaand i hope this continues. going back to the gym tomorrow bcus i snoozed all fucking weekend. fak. ~_~ 

[boarix]

Wraith in the Ruins: A Fallout 4 Story Part XVII

Personality Conflict

Trigger warnings: Canon language/violence/gun, drug and alcohol use. Drug addiction/intervention.

Game spoilers

Please enjoy!

 “I should have known better when you wouldn’t charge me for your services. After all, you get what you pay for.”

“Our services are for Atom’s benefit, Sister Marie. Not yours.”

She folded her arms and glared at the ghoul, “You wouldn’t have even known of Wraith’s existence were it not for me! I would say the destruction of a false profit and her network of infidels is to Atom’s…”

Infamy’s high, psychotic laughter cut her short, “You have strayed from Atom’s path and you lust for her ruin for your own satisfaction, yes? He he he!”

“SHE IS AN ENEMY OF ALL OF ATOMS CHILDREN!” She spat her words and threw her arms wide, “I have given you all the information you should have needed! I see no results.”

“No?” The glowing one moved uncomfortably close to look directly into her eyes, “Then you are blind. We have seen her people scurry and scramble in desperate confusion; like mole rats when their queen’s gone rabid. We struck low one of her most powerful fighters. We have better information now. We know how her network functions. How quickly they come to each other’s aid and the total weight of her fist.” Looking self-satisfied they leaned away and ran their eyes from her toes to her crown, “We’ve a clear picture of you as well; still wandering The Fog, looking for visions with eyes firmly shut…”

Fury colored her face scarlet, “You… how DARE YOU!”

They turned their back to her and walked away, unconcerned for her wrath, “We do not see Atom’s Plan lay before us like a smoothly-paved road, but we will walk the trail that’s there for those who dare to look for it.”

   “Looking rough, man. You sick?”

“Say something?” MacCready’s mumbled query took form around an enormous yawn. He had been taking the third watch so that he could have dinner with his son and put him to bed, get him up and have breakfast, have playtime, have lunch and then put him down for nap. Shaun, Marcy or Carol Peabody would watch Duncan in the afternoon so Mac could either teach lessons or attended to various projects. Ultimately he was getting precious few hours of sleep and despite his youth, his fatigue was starting to show. Happy to see the sun rise, he was fantasizing about grabbing a nap before his child woke up, and fought the urge to pretend he didn’t hear the other man.

“I said you look like shit.” Lloyd smiled blithely, “Your beard is out of control and your bags are so big, your eyes look pregnant. Don’t sleep well when the General or Mayor ain’t here to snuggle you? Cause the lack of beauty rest is glaring.”

“Well, we all can’t be as beautiful as you, Mr. Lloyd.”

“Mr. Garvey, actually.”

“Garvey? Like Preston Garvey?”

“I knew it! Fucker! Don’t even know my last name… Bossy owes me twenty caps.” He made a great show of turning his back to MacCready while flourishing his binoculars, “Just cause you all use your last names like they’re titles…”

“Wait, wait, wait… you’re related to Preston? How… how, did I not know that?!”

“I’m his older cousin… or maybe once removed on his mother’s side… I’m his aunt’s kid with her second husband, but she kept the last name and ditched… you know what? Doesn’t matter. Point is, I am Lieutenant Lloyd Harvest Jeremiah Garvey and you can take that to the bank!”

MacCready tried to look as unimpressed as possible, “Since when are you a Lieutenant? Wraith handing out pity promotions again?”

“Fuck you too!” His laugher softened his harsh words, “No, she recognizes my impeccable aim and stalwart reliability.” Humor fled from his face, “I would fall on a grenade for her, although I know she’d never ask me too.”

“Naw, she eats ‘em for breakfast.”

“Ha, true! She’s the most bad-assed… you don’t need me telling you the kind of loyalty she inspires!”

“Actually, have you heard anything from any of the ghoul Minutemen?” MacCready felt bad for even asking, “This whole Infamy sh… fiasco has me paranoid.”

There had been reports of missing settlers as well as feral ghoul horde attacks on provisioner caravans. The frequency and precision seemed to indicate there was an insider informant. Wraith had been on the road with Preston and Dogmeat for the better part of a month and with Hancock back in Goodneighbor, MacCready’s irritation and loneliness had reached its peak. He just wanted it to be over.

“I know everybody and if they aren’t ready to die for her cause they love her, than they are too terrified of her to even try stabbing her in the back.”

He stuck out his lower lip, “Their scared of her? I don’t think half of them have ever even seen her fight. She’s not really frightening when she’s just… walkin’ around, is she?”

“Oh man… wait, wait, hold up! You’re askin’ me to tell you about your lady?” Lloyd shook his head violently enough his neck made popping sounds, “No, no you’re asking me to talk about my General? Cause all you’re getting from me is ‘she’s great’ and ‘fuck you sideways’.”

MacCready blew an exceptionally loud raspberry.

“I see you tryin’ to get me fired, man. I thought we were close.”

Turning his back with finality, MacCready waved over his head as he went down the stairs, “I’m close enough to smell you. I’ll see you in a few hours. Do me a favor and have a really boring day, okay?”

“You got it, MacBeardy. Why don’t you go trim that shit? Looking like that, it’s a wonder anybody wants to kiss you.”

Too tired to fight back, he was grateful for gravity’s help down the stairs. Once his feet were back on the ground he stopped to let his eyes adjust to the dim light before sweeping them along the street and in-between the nearest homes.

Yawning aggressively, he clicked his teeth, “…really should have a patrol going inside the walls too… don’t know who might be creepin’ around…”

As if on cue, a small, shadowy figure left the clinic and made its way toward Wraith’s house.

Tiredness forgotten, MacCready raised his rifle, “HEY! STOP RIGHT THERE!”

“Don’t shoot! It’s me!” Shaun all but fell to the ground, “I’m sorry!”

“Did you spend the night in the clinic?!” Torn between sympathy and anger, he opened and shut his mouth wordlessly; fighting with his impulse to tear into the child.

“I’m sorry! Yes, but…”

“Shaun, I… understand that you’re worried about Danse, but I… I trust you to help me with Duncan…”

“I know! That’s why…”

“DON’T INTTERUPT ME, MAN!” Instantly regretting raising his voice, he took a deep breath, “He shouldn’t be in the house by himself.”

Shaun squared his shoulders and set his jaw. Thrusting his right hand into the air, his voice was filled with righteous indignation as he shook an item at the heavens, “BABY MONITOR!”

“WELL, I DIDN’T KNOW THAT AND I’M SORRY! DID YOU MAKE THAT YOURSELF?!”

“NO! I JUST FIXED IT AND BOOSTED ITS RANGE!”

“WOW THAT’S REALLY COOL!”

“OKAY, BUT WHY ARE WE STILL YELLING?!”

“I DON’T KNOW YOU STARTED IT!”

“NOOOOOOO WAY, RJ!”

A settler opened a nearby window and stuck her head out, “Boys, it is too early in the morning for you to be yelling like that!”

Laughing now, Shaun apologized while the other flipped her off by pretending to itch his eye. MacCready patted the kid’s shoulder as they crossed the yard to their door. Just as he touched the doorknob, Lloyd’s voice crackled over the walkie-talkie.

“MacCready, I got a new face at the gate.”

He ushered Shaun through the door and walked back to the street before responding, “I thought we agreed you were going to have a boring day. Besides, there are Minutemen at the gate checking on newbies. What’s the big deal?”

“He’s a big deal; six feet plus. Dark hair and light eyes… looks like you and Capt’n Danse had a baby… oh, shit. Sorry, man. That was a stupid…”

“It’s fine…” MacCready pinched the bridge of his nose, “That could literally be anybody…”

“He’s probably not Infamy, right? They’re all ghouls?”

“I don’t think we know who they all are...” He really just wanted to go and sleep for two seconds, “Lloyd, I am really tired…”

“MacCready, I know everybody, remember? I don’t know this guy!”

A chill ran down his back and the hairs on his nape stood up. He jogged down the street toward the gate, “Where are they exactly?”

“He’s standing behind Carla’s brahmin… hold on… shit!”

“Lloyd?!”

“I lost him! I’m going to the open channel!”

Swallowing hard and fighting the urge to sprint to the gate, MacCready turned back toward the house he shared with his new family. It was obvious that Shaun would be a primary target to anyone looking to damage Wraith. Switching his walkie to the open channel, he listened to the Minutemen as they searched for this mysterious stranger.

I’ll take the boys through the river to the Rocket. Ain’t no way Strong will let anything happen to his little brothers. Then I’ll go hunt this bastard down.

“Robert Joseph MacCready?”

The disembodied voice came from a shadow just to his right. Preoccupied with the safety of the children; he cursed himself internally for allowing the threat to get so close.

His rifle seemed to materialize in his hands as he spun away. As fast as he was, it was a surprise when his intended target had already breached his circle of defense; placing a hand on the weapon and forcing it skyward. An immediate tug of war began as both men tried to secure the gun.

Despite the difference in overall size, MacCready was well able to hold his own. In a last-ditch effort to dislodge his large foe, he deliberately fell backward, hooking a boot into his opponent’s midsection and flipping them over his head. Vaulting to his feet he quickly turned, once again making an attempt to pin the other man with the barrel of his gun.

The enemy activated a Stealth-boy and vanished before his eyes.

   Croup Manor was all but lost. The horde of ferals, shepherd by Infamy, washed over the settlement like a tidal wave. Wraith, Dogmeat, Preston and their small troop of Minutemen were hard pressed waiting for Dragoon reinforcements.

“WRAITH!” Knocked to the ground by an enormous bloated glowing one, Preston’s cry reverberated through the ruins.

“Shit! Shit, shit, shit!” She had gathered what soldiers she could find in an attempt to preserve what was left of their group, and had guided them to the platform that surrounded the remains of the roundabout’s fountain, “Keep the high ground! Dogmeat stay here.” Wraith popped a Buffout and leaped into the mass of gyrating ghouls. Keeping her weapons holstered, she punched, ducked and dodged as she tried her best to not get hung up with one opponent for any longer than it was necessary to move them out of her way.

Out of her peripheral, she could see that the one feral that had turned friendly was pacing her. They had a tattered, red-plaid shirt and like her seemed to be heading toward Preston’s voice.

That’s lucky!

The ally feral reached Preston first and threw itself bodily at the bloated ghoul. The green-glowing monster seemed taken aback and the look of betrayal on its twisted face was almost comical. Recovering quickly, it back-handed its smaller, plaid-clad attacker, sending it flying.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Wraith hefted Preston into a fireman’s carry and zigzagged her way back to the rally point.

“Preston, are you alive?”

“Uhhhhh.”

“Oh, good.” She laid him down gently, “Medic, I need RadAway right away! Ha-ha!” She patted Preston on the shoulder, “Hang in there Colonel.” Turning away she adopted her General’s voice and addressed her frightened soldiers, “The Calvary will be here very soon! They know I’ve an appointment in Diamond city, and I cannot be late! Stay calm and pick you’re targets. Aim for the legs! And don’t hit me or I’ll be extremely vexed!” So saying she unsheathed her Shem Drowne sword and unholstered her revolver, and took a swan dive right back into the sea of feral ghouls.

  “Philippa Lynn Keita-Johnson, kindly get off of my case!”

“Val…”

“I am fine. I am recovered. I am well.”

“I know you say that but…”

“I am… I need backup…” Turning his head slightly, Nick Valentine called over his shoulder, “Ellie, please tell Wraith to leave me be!”

Laughing, Mrs. Valentine came into the living room brandishing a file folder, “I will do no such thing! You tell me I should take it easy, well, same goes for you. It hasn’t been that long since you were moo-lightening as squirrel-on-a-stick… what’s so funny, Wraith?”

Giggling, she made the mistake of making eye-contact with Valentine and then fell to laughing so hard she stopped making any sounds at all.

He smiled indulgently at his wife, “I think you meant ‘moonlighting’, my dear.”

“Oh… Wraith… Honey, you must be really tired; it wasn’t that funny.”

“Mooooo! Hahahaha!”

“At any rate; I am more than well enough to go with you to Sanctuary,” Valentine was becoming increasingly irritated at being handled like glass, “and for anything else, for that matter. I will not miss this just because of a minor intestinal perforation!”

“You’re absolutely sure?”

“For the last time, my guts are one hundred percent fully healed and operational.”

“Prove it.”

“Alas, to my great shame, I cannot break wind on cue.”

   “ALLY, ALLY, ALLY! FRIENDLY!”

MacCready struck a dramatic figure; rifle at the ready and backlit by the dawn, tracking an invisible enemy by sound alone, “Show me some raised and empty hands, then we can talk about being friendly.”

“I’ve no guarantee that you won’t shoot as soon as you get a glimpse. No offence meant, but I’d prefer to remain alive.”

“Have we met? You seem vaguely familiar...”

A low whistle to his left was all the warning he got before some unknown liquid came flying through the air. Able to step out of its path, MacCready watched in confused fascination as his opponent was momentarily outlined before the Stealth-Boy compensated and they once again shimmered out of existence.

“That was motor oil and kerosene.” Shaun was outwardly calm as he flicked the sparkwheel on the lighter in his hand, “Don’t worry RJ, Duncan is with Strong…” His smile was almost pitying as he addressed the air, “I’m sure I hit you with enough to ignite. I wonder if the Stealth-Boy will hide you as you burn.”

“OKAY! Okay, I’ll show myself. Please believe me when I say that I’m a friend to Nyx Morningstar and an ally to General Wraith in her fight against Infamy.”

MacCready moved close to Shaun and whispered harshly in his ear, “Not your name.”

Phasing into view, the large man held his hands aloft, palms forward as he favored Shaun with a raised brow, “You are a terrifying young man.”

“HEY! You don’t get to talk to Peter! You talk to me. Got it?”

“Yes… MacCready. Or do you prefer RJ?”

“Might as well call me the Grim Reaper.” Stepping close, he held his weapon level with the other man’s eyes, “Name.”

“We’ve actually met…”

“If you know me then you know of my short, short fuse.” His voice was steel.

“Harkness! My name is Harkness and Nyx told me that if you give me too much trouble… to… to call you ‘Buttface’?”

Lowering his rifle, MacCready cocked his head to the side, “I do know you. Huh.”

“May I put my arms down now?”

“Nope. Keep ‘em high and walk back to the gate.” He turned to Shaun, “Squirrel, you have a sidearm?” He knew the answer, but the question was more for Harkness’ benefit.

“Uh… yeah. Yes!”

“Good. If he makes a run for it shoot his left knee. We are heading to the storage shed next to Bear’s place.” He motioned Harkness forward with his rifle, “Nice and easy. Just a lovely, morning stroll.”

As they walked, Shaun whispered out of the side of his mouth, “I thought my name was ‘Peter’.”

“Same kid.”

  Some few days later Wraith returned to Sanctuary with the Valentines in tow. Notified at the Rocket of the captured intruder, she called a meeting and had Harkness brought to her office under heavy guard. MacCready, Sofie, Lloyd and Cait arranged themselves on Wraith’s furniture and collectively glared at him.

“I would prefer to speak with you privately, if that’s alright with you, General Wraith.”

“No. That is not alright with me.” Weary and road dirty, she hoped that she at least looked impressive and authoritative, “Nyx has never mentioned a ‘Harkness’ to me, nor has she written an introductory letter on your behalf.” Arms folded she let some iron creep into her voice, “With all that has happened I think you might forgive me if I keep you under as many eyes as possible.”

“Do you have a Geiger counter?”

MacCready popped to his feet and clapped his hands before opening the door to the street, “Okay, everybody out!” He stuck his head out the door and gave a shrill whistle, “Dogmeat!” He favored Wraith with a forced smile, “His eyes are as good as anyone’s, right?”

As the grumbling group filed out, every single one of them gave the canine a pat as he trotted inside. The last to leave, MacCready gave a small cry of surprise as Panther dashed between his legs just as he was shutting the door.

Dogmeat immediately came to greet Harkness; tail wagging and tongue lolling leisurely. Taking their cue from their canine friend, Panther hopped atop Wraith’s desk and sat next to her. Whiskers extended toward the stranger, they made the chuffing sounds that were the great cat’s purr.

“I can’t believe it!” He patted the dog as best he could with bound hands, “I’m convinced, now more than ever, that you’re an immortal!”

“If he vouches for you, then I suppose I have no choice…” Unlocking his cuffs she offered him water and then flopped into her chair. There she sat, eyes trained at the ceiling and completely silent for several seconds.

“Do you have…?”

“I’m retired.”

“Hardly.” He leaned forward, left brow raised over an ice-blue eye.

“I can’t believe you are still using that pass phrase…”

“Do you have…?”

“Fucking sake! Mine’s in the motherfuckin’ shop!” She slapped her palm onto the tabletop, “I am officially retired and if you are still using that, you probably should fucking stop. MacCready never even…”

“We don’t. Harley told me it’s the one you’d recognize though.” He made note of the flash of pain that crossed her face, “He also told me that you and MacCready would give me the most hassle and that you were both, ‘monstrously terrifying’.” Giving Dogmeat another pat he matched Wraith’s glare with a smug smirk, “If he vouches for you, then I suppose I have no choice.”

“Cute. Why does the Railroad care about Infamy in Boston?”

Making a show of taking a long, slow drink, Harkness stalled; trying to find a delicate selection of words to hide the truth, “The Railroad cares deeply for all liberated synths. The loss of Danse is distressing, not just for the Minutemen and…”

Wraith rocketed to her feet and grabbed him by the collar. Easily lifting Harkness, she slammed him into the wall, “ENOUGH! I DON’T WANT TO HEAR DE… HARLEY’S LIES FROM YOU!” Letting him drop she backed away. Her voice turned terrifyingly emotionless but her eyes promised death, “I want the truth. Otherwise, I’ll go with my first instinct; consider you my enemy and rip you in half.”

He glared at her from the floor, “We have highly valued agents who could be compromised or killed if your struggle with Infamy goes to shit!”

Wraith’s expression softened, “Ah. People I know. People I’d miss if they were to suddenly relocate. People I wouldn’t stop looking for if they were to suddenly disappear.”

That was not tactful at all. I just… I almost killed him. Deacon and Morningstar sent him and I almost took him through the wall! What the hell is wrong with me?!

“May I stand, or will that get me bifurcated too?” Failing to hide his anger, he couldn’t help but take a jab at her, “I can see where Shaun gets it…”

That was a mistake.

Lost in a flash of rage, she aimed a punch at Harkness’ face.

Dogmeat saved his life: his sharp bark cut through Wraith’s wrath-filled haze and at the last second she altered her aim and slammed her fist through the wall.

Both breathing heavily, the two stared into each other’s eyes. Her regret showed clearly and a sudden revelation filled his blue orbs with understanding.

“You… you have lost so much. Father and the Institute were just the tip of the iceberg. You understand what it’s like to have your past and future manipulated by an uncaring puppet master. You know what it’s like… to not feel real…”

“I… I’m…” Slowly removing her hand, she backed away, eyes fixed on his, “I think that I can’t properly apologies to you for what just happened… but I am sorry.”

“I know you’ll find this hard to believe but I trust you more now.”

“You can’t trust…”

“…everybody. I know. I know.” He laid a hand gently over-top her blooded fist, pushing it down toward the floor, “Both Nyx and Harley are very important to me. They say you are one of the greatest allies the Railroad has ever known. So whatever just happened, let’s chalk it up to, you’re over-taxed and I’m an asshole.”

Motioning to him to take a more comfortable seat on her couch, Wraith went to her office first aid kit. Resuming her seat next to Panther, she began a deep breathing exercise while treated her injuries with a dermo-fuse.

Gotta calm. In, two, three. Calm. Out, two, three.

“So, you have all the intel on me from Harley. You know Shaun, you know… everything?”

“Actually, the dossier came from Nyx. So, I probably don’t know as much as you might fear.” Tenting his fingers, he briefly touched their tips to his lips before leaning toward her, “I would really like it if we could start over. Hello, I’m Harkness. I’m a Railroad heavy from the Capital Wasteland. I’ve known Nyx for over ten years. I was sent by our new leadership to protect our interests in the Commonwealth by offering you informational aid in your conflict with the organization known as Infamy.”

She offered him a wan smile, “Well, why didn’t you say so in the first place?

Laughing, he shook his head, “I tried. No, really! MacCready and Shaun just about turned me inside-out!”

“Do you know Mac too?”

“I only met him a couple of times. He didn’t recognize me and I hardly even recognize him; he’s way healthier looking now.”

She frowned, thinking that he actually looked a little haggard, “He eats better these days. Speaking of which, have they offered you food recently?”

“I could eat.”

Radioing Codsworth, she put in a request. Having finished repairing the lacerations on her hand, she returned the knitter to the first aid kit and once again flopped into her chair. Not sure how to begin, or if she should even start, an awkward silence hung in the air.

Harkness was watching Panther groom itself with a child-like fascination. When the cat jumped down and came over to rub on his legs his face beamed with joy. “She’s a synth, isn’t she? Incredible!”

“Technically speaking, Panther isn’t a ‘she’ or ‘he’. Although Danse…” She swallowed hard and looked at her hands in her lap.

Pretty sure my finger’s dislocated… ouch. Why am I having such a hard time? I used to be really good with people! Part of the reason I became a lawyer…

Harkness misunderstood her reaction, “I am very sorry that Danse was killed. I… met… him. He definitely wouldn’t have remembered me though.”

“How did you find out?”

“Nyx told me when she asked if I would come up here.”

“Asked, huh? Okay, how did Morningstar find out?”

A flicker of realization crossed his face, “We have a network of tourists… but you’d know that… he’s still alive, isn’t he?”

Wraith rose at Codsworth’s polite knock, “Food’s here.” She patted one of the robots eye stalks, “Thanks, sweetheart.”

“No trouble at all, mum!” He made happy whistling noises as he left.

While chewing his first, enormous bite, Harkness offered a morsel to Panther. His face broadcasting his delight when the cat oh-so-delicately accepted it. His smile became that much broader when Dogmeat also partook of his charity. When Wraith cleared her throat to bring him back to their conversation his cheeks momentarily reddened with guilt.

“Ah-hem, that’s interesting. Our information has him being killed outright. A sniper shot to the head.”

“He’s in a coma and has been for some time. He’ll have another scar on his brow… when he wakes up.” Stirring her vegetables distractedly, she stared at the wall in the direction of the clinic. “I have almost no information on Infamy. Mac and Hancock told me that they were a mercenary faction of the Children of Atom and that Morningstar had some dealings with them, but that’s about it. Islode had only so much more to add.” Setting her now completely forgotten meal on her desk, she stood up and began to pace, “I need to find them. I need to wrap this up. I can’t have another war of attrition, like with the Gunners!”

“I’m not familiar enough with this area to pinpoint them for you, but they would probably take up residence in the Glowing Sea, or similar sites that would be considered holy to Atom worshippers.”

“I’m not going to send the Dragoons into the Sea to wander around aimlessly. I did send my radioactive-resistant Hound pair to get a sitrep on Quincy Quarries. There’s a empty Vault-Tec installation there…”

“And what will you do when you find them?”

That gave Wraith pause: her first response was for a very percussive, terminal encounter.

You told Islode that you weren’t a conqueror. And that the Children were your neighbors. They are being fed false information from Marie. She is the real enemy.

“I don’t suppose they’d listen to reason, would they?”

“Are you suggesting you can be reasonable?” He waved his hands and laughed at the face she made, “I’m sorry! I’m joking!”

“Lay it out for me, Harkness! I’m obviously struggling. Normally I would attempt diplomacy immediately, but they never even gave me an ultimatum. I can’t bargain with a group who wants nothing I have!”

“Sister Marie wants some things though; your status as a profit discredited. Then your happiness. And then your life.”

Bringing her right hand up she began running it back and forth across her close-cropped hair, “I never once claimed to be a profit! If they want me to stand in front of the entire Atom nation and declare myself…”

“It wouldn’t be enough for Marie, but it might be enough for Infamy,” Harkness set his plate on the floor and leaned toward her, “and she is powerless without their backing.”

“Who are they?”

“When Nyx declined to detonate the warhead at Megaton, it shattered the hopes of the Children who lived and worshipped there. Denied their ‘Day of Division’, some of the members endeavored to become closer to Atom by taking a rare chem, that would either transform them into ghouls or…”

“Or kill them.”

He nodded, “Infamy developed soon after Nyx helped the BOS destroy the Enclave. My guess is that the glowing one that acts as the leader is the former Brother Gerard, from that Megaton sect.”

“And how would I use this information to begin peace talks?”

“One of our agents has suggested that you have some small control over feral ghouls, perhaps…”

“You can just say ‘Hancock’.” She made a dismissive gesture at his attempt at mock confusion, “I suppose you stopped in Goodneighbor before you came here. He has seen that ferals will… become docile around me… occasionally. It happened in front of him again, just a short while ago, so it would be fresh in his mind.”

“He told you he was an agent.”

She dropped her shoulders and rolled her eyes, “Yes, of course. We are very much intertwined in each other’s lives. And with me being a former agent; he can trust me with sensitive information. So please, let it go.”

“Very well.” He leaned back on the couch and smiled as Panther draped its self across his lap, “What is it like? Are you able to direct the actions of these ferals?”

“Nope.”

A flicker of irritation crossed his face, “Have you tried?”

She felt her face heat, “No! I would never! They have suffered enough. I wouldn’t presume to make them my puppets.”

“If you were able to command feral ghouls, or even pull some away from Infamy’s hoard, your clout as a profit in good standing would be beyond repute.”

“You’re asking me to win them over by masquerading as one of their most important religious figures.”

“No, I’m asking you to prove to them that you are the Mother’s Favored One.”

“But, Harkness that would be lying. And as you know, falsehoods make a poor foundation on which to build peace.”

He held his hands out and looked to the ceiling, appealing to some higher power for strength, “Why are you so adamant that it’s a lie?”

Wraith sputtered and scoffed, “… I wouldn’t… I’m not, I’m… well, okay maybe I’m not normal but…”

He knew he had her on the ropes and began tallying off his bullet points on his hands, “One, you are highly resistant to radiation, much like the Children’s Gift. This combined with pre-war experimentation has turned you into what could be described as a smooth-skin ghoul. Two, you have experienced visions in which the Mother appeared and seemed to guide you. Three, you have a charming effect on feral ghouls to the point that they will come to your aid, and apparently, follow you around like puppy dogs!”

Wraith quickly crossed the room, “Okay, how the fuck… There should only be three people, aside from myself who know I’m ghoulish…” She struck her forehead with the heel of her palm, “Oh, I’m so dumb! Of course he would know. And what he knows, you do. That asshole.”

Who I miss terribly and would really like to talk to…

“I’m guessing that even though Nyx handed me your information, it might have been from Harley after all… Sorry.” Harkness at least had the decency to look abashed.

“Okay, if I were to explore this, how would I even begin?”

“I brought someone with me. His name is Sun of Atom, and he’s a glowing one who’s also a member of the Megaton sect. I left him in Goodneighbor in the off chance that I was met with… let’s say, extreme resistance, to my idea.” He gave her a mocking smile.

“So, what? This Sun is going to teach me to…”

“Fine tune your obvious ability to command feral ghouls.”

She was running her hand over her hair again, “If I hadn’t just recently fought a super villain, possessed by alien technology, who was able to manipulate objects with her mind, I’d really think this was crazy…”

Then again, all I could think of at Croup was ‘gotta help Preston’ and that plaid shirt feral went right to him…

“I can go pick up Sun and be back here…”

“Oh, no; I’m not bringing ferals here. I would never do that to MacCready. How about you meet me at Wicked Shipping in a week.”

“It won’t take me a week…”

“Okay, look, I just got back. I would like to visit with my people, my kids and my beloved, feisty boyfriend as well as be there for the Valentine’s first ultrasound, before I fuck-off again to do whoever-the-fuck-knows!”

He held up his hands, “Okay, okay. That’s fair.”

“I’ll send you with an escort.”

“No thank you. That won’t be necessary…”

“That wasn’t a question.”

“Wraith,” He held his hands out pleadingly, “I’ve already garnered way more attention than is healthy! Please just, trust in my abilities. Harley wouldn’t have sent me if he didn’t think I could get it done.”

   Wraith met with Sofie and then joined the Valentines for their ultrasound before returning to her house. She could tell MacCready had been napping as one side of his now ample beard and his hair were pressed flat to the side of his head. They held each other tightly in a hug that was almost desperate. When she felt the tears start, she buried her face into his shoulder. It had the potential to carry on through the evening, so Shaun cleared his throat and that made Duncan giggle. Doing her best to ignore the subtle protests of her pre-teen grandson, she laughed at Mac’s hair and gave her lover a huge kiss.

“I don’t know how you can stand to kiss all that hair…”

She reached out and scratched the former merc’s chin, not unlike how she would for Dogmeat, “I don’t know, Shaun; I kinda dig it.”

MacCready lifted his chin and cocked his head to the side, apparently appreciating the sensation, “Thanks, knockout.”

“Gross.”

“Daddy’s beard is not gross!” Duncan shook a finger at his adopted brother, “It’s purdy! It’s got nice red in it; jus like Miss. Cait’s nice hair. And it tickles fun.”

Scooping his son from the floor, Mac kissed his cheek and Duncan squealed with laughter. Favoring Shaun with a superior look, he batted his eyelashes at him, “See? Dunk says it’s purdy.”

“Yeah, it’s purdy gross.”

Wraith watched MacCready chase the boys around the couch, trying to allow their joy to erase all of her recent worry and grief.

 Later that evening, Shaun and Wraith were playing Go Fish while MacCready gave his son his bath. She could tell he was trying to work up the nerve to ask her something, but didn’t want to put him off by asking outright.

“Hey, grandma?”

“Hmm?”

“Have you… umm… been to the clinic?”

“I went with the Valentines today.”

“Did you talk to Danse?”

Wraith very slowly lowered her cards, “He’s awake?!”

He waved his hands, “No! No, but that doesn’t mean he can’t hear you. Dr. Curie says that coma patients respond to their loved one’s voices.” He dropped his eyes to the tabletop, “I know you haven’t been to see him. You should go talk to him. I think… you might need to.”

It was true. She hadn’t been able to bring herself to go. Something about standing at Danse’s bedside, and seeing him in that condition, reminded her too much of her one-sided conversations with Nate at the gravesite.

“I think you’re right.” She stood and came around to hug him, “I’ll go right now.”

 Wraith started to cry when Curie hugged her.

“Oh! Oh, madame! What is the matter?”

“I’m sorry…”

“Do not apologies! Please tell me how I can help you.”

Wraith sniffled and dropped into a chair, “I know I’ve never been a pillar of emotional stability, but lately… I’m as bad as I think I’ve ever been.”

“What do you mean?”

Wraith laughed humorlessly, “I can’t hug anyone without bawling all over them. I keep giggling like a drunkard over stupid crap and I almost just killed our visitor over a mild insult.”

“Buffout.”

“Wha…”

“You take it quite a bit, no?”

“I… guess…”

“It is quite unnecessary regardless.” Curie pulled her desk chair around so she could sit facing her. Reaching forward, she took Wraith’s hands in hers, “I have been meaning to speak to you on this matter for some time, but it has been difficult for me. I think you have been upping your usage lately; taking some before every possible confrontation. Of which there seems to be a never-ending supply.” She patted her hands as Wraith’s face turned red, “Monsieur Hancock has expressed his concern to you on this, oui? He came to me only because you have dismissed his warnings. You are already shockingly strong Madame, in spirit as well as muscle. It’s possible the Buffout lost its effectiveness long ago; you use it now as a habit rather than a tool.”

It was like getting slapped in the face by a deathclaw gauntlet.

I took some just before the meeting today… Hancock’s been telling me to take it easy? Damn, I don’t even remember…

“I… I think I’m going to cry some more…” She slid out of her chair and onto the floor.

“I will cry too.”

Wraith held out her arms and the two held each other for a time. When the sniffling began to subside, Curie got up to go and get them some water.

“I must apologies for my poor bedside manner; I had wanted to be much more delicate with this and possibly have messieurs Hancock and MacCready here with you.” She sat next to Wraith on the floor and offered her an Addictol inhaler as well, “You didn’t come in here to be ambushed by me. No doubt you’ve come to see mon amour, oui?”

“You’re not ambushing me, Baby Bird. I’m sorry I made you worry.” She nodded toward the ICU room, “How has he been?”

It took a while before she could answer. Her face transitioned from extreme grief to a hopeful smile and back again. “He is… alive. His heartbeat remains strong.” She suddenly stood, “I will leave you two your privacy. Monsieur Sturges has invited me to play cards to ‘get me out of the house’.”

Wraith sat on the floor for several minutes, trying to do breathing exercises, staring at the door to Danse’s room. She had wanted Curie to stay with her but couldn’t find the words to stop her from leaving. Working up the nerve to simply walk to the door and reach out for the knob, took a herculean effort.

He’s not dead, just sleeping. Not dead. He’s sleeping.

He was not sleeping.

Shockingly thin, his breath coming in shallow pants, Danse stood next to his bed, tangled in a mass of IV lines. He was covered in blood and worse from having ripped out as many of the said lines and tubes as he could reach.

He attempted to take a step toward her but stumbled and nearly fell. Holding his arms wrist-up at her, he shook them side to side before gesturing around the room, “Where is this?! Who are you! What...” Momentarily overcome by a coughing fit he lost the energy to stand and collapsed heavily onto the bed, “What happened to me?”

Wraith opened and shut her mouth like a dying fish. She felt the tears streaming down her face as well as a stab of guilt when Danse shot her a look of concern.

He’s reacting to my crying when he doesn’t even… wait…

“You don’t know me?” She grabbed a towel and some gauze, “Please stop pulling out your IVs!”

He studied her face, “You… your eyes… Please tell me…”

“Wraith. I’m Wraith. I’m your friend.” She figured she’d start small. “We have known each other for a couple of years now.”

“Are you a knight?” His voice was weak, gravely and slightly slurred.

“I was. You recruited me. Technically I was a paladin.” She rolled her eyes.

“Was? Why aren’t we in the infirmary on the Prydwen?” He moved the arm she was attempting to bandage out of her reach and attempted, without success, to stand, “Did we lose the police station? You aren’t Brotherhood?”

“No Danse…”

“Paladin Danse.”

“Actually it’s ‘captain’ now.” She wasn’t sure how far she could push it, “You are no longer with the BOS either.”

“Utter nonsense!” This time, his attempt to gain his feet landed him on his backside on the floor, “I demand you return my armor to me immediately!” Overcome yet again by a racking cough, he tried without much success to crawl under the bed.

“Stop hurting yourself!” She was starting to panic, “Look at your arms! Aren’t you feeling that?!”

There was a brief, flickering of recognition in his eyes, “Pain… is inconsequential…” He stared hard into her eyes, “It’s not real… just a damage prevention signal.”

Wraith remembered, “That’s what pain is, you fucking asshole.”

“Wraith!” He held his arms out to her like a small, scared child asking to be picked up.

Easily lifting him back onto the bed, she went to pull away but Danse’s grip around her shoulders tightened. She returned the embrace despite the mess; lying herself next to him. His body shook slightly as his memories returned and the tears fell down his cheeks.

“I’m so glad you’re awake!”

“I feel so foggy…”

“That’d be the meds. And possibly the fact you suffered acute neurotrauma due to a gunshot wound.”

“… explains the headache…”

“Look on the bright side, not many people can brag about having a cranioplasty.”

He chuckled, “Great, even more metal in my head. MacCready’s going to be insufferable.” He squeezed her tighter, his voice soft, “I can always count on you to guide me back to who I truly am. You… you are my sister, Wraith and I love you.”

“I love you too, tin can.”

Thank you so much for reading! Like what you’ve read? Looking for more? Please see my Wraith in the Ruins master link in my tags. As always, if you have any questions/comments/concerns my ask is open. Anon too! I will try to answer promptly and would love to hear from you. More to come. =^..^=

[boarix]

Fallout OC Interview!

Thank you so much for creating this and tagging me @robobrainmurdermysterytheatre you are a peach!

Rules:

1) Choose an OC

2) Answer questions as that OC

3) Tag 5 people to do the same

I’ll tag @nuclearmu5hroom @pistachiozombie @red-flare-art @free-hugs-for-ghouls @juliannahandart no obligation, only if ya wanna

1)      What is your name? Well, most everyone calls me Wraith… or I guess I should say I have everyone call me Wraith. My parents named me after my dad, Philip and my mom’s middle name Lynn, so Philippa Lynn Wolf. When I married Nate, I changed my last name to his; Keita-Johnson. So all together; Philippa Lynn Keita-Johnson. First fuck-nut who calls me Pippa will wish they’re dead.  

2)      How old are you? *sighs* Creeping up on two hundred forty…  

3)      What do you look like? You know what a brown kiwi bird is?

4)      Where are you from? Where do you live now? My parents were from the Midwest Commonwealth. The mitten. *laughs* We moved around a lot… spent a few years in the Columbia ‘wealth… Now I live just north of Boston, in a Minutemen settlement called Sanctuary.

5)      What was your childhood like? It wasn’t bad, honestly. I had a really good relationship with both my parents and my… adopted? Yeah, let’s say adopted, brother named Bartholomew.

6)      What groups are you friendly with? Are you allied with any factions? I’m the general of the Minutemen and a former Heavy Agent with the Railroad.

7)      Tell me about your best friend. *sucks in air over teeth* Welp… is it possible to be best friends with someone when you don’t know their real name? …I…we… next question, please.

8)      Do you have a family? Tell me about them! I have a habit of picking up strays so yeah, my family is pretty big. *laughs* I’ve got like, a dozen brothers and sisters from other mothers and misters, a grandson, a bunch of four-legged kids… BIG family!

9)      What about a partner or partners? MacCready and Hancock are my boyfriends. It didn’t seem right to make them pick each other or me, ya know? *attempts to waggle eyebrows suggestively*

10)   Who are your enemies, and why? Anyone who would hurt innocent people. ‘People’ includes ghouls and synths, by the way. You know what? People are anyone who is just trying to live their lives! *stands up and starts gesticulating excitedly* So, if you’re a super mutant, or a, I don’t fucking know, an intelligent deathclaw and you’re just trying to make it in this ridiculously dangerous… oh… sorry. Umm… I don’t like shitty, mean mother-fuckers. So, yeah…  

11)   Have you ever heard of The Brotherhood of Steel? What do you think about them? I love Danse. I kinda stole-adopted him. *laughs* The rest… They have the capacity to do great good for folks. They… ultimately fail to see that people are what they should be saving technology for not from. Their definition of ‘people’ needs work too.

12)   What about The Enclave? Maybe Mac mentioned them but I really don’t know…

13)   How do feel about Super Mutants? I love Strong! He’s my big green monster! As for the others… I feel sorry for them. Honestly. That being said I cannot allow them to hurt anyone.

14)   What’s the craziest fight you’ve ever been in? Oh damn… that’s hard to say. I have this bad habit of going full berserker when I fight… I don’t remember stuff and will start throwing shit… and people… and pieces of people… Just recently I fought a woman who was possessed by an alien artifact. She had telekinetic powers and was floating and had a bunch of crap flying all around her like a shield, ya know? Anyway, I threw some beds at her. It was unreal. Sad too.

15)   Have you ever fought a Deathclaw? *rolls eyes* Who hasn’t, amiright? I don’t really like to though; they are just animals after all.

16)   Do you like fighting? I like Judo and Jiu Jitsu. I like practicing the martial arts. I like target shooting with Mac. I don’t ever like to hurt anyone or anything but I’m not so naïve as to believe that I can save others without hurting others. Does that make sense?

17)   What’s your weapon of choice? Judo chop! Knives are fun too. I’ve never been great with guns but Mac has helped me a lot.

18)   How do you survive? Your wits, your charm, your skills, brute force, some combination? (a.k.a. what’s your S.P.E.C.I.A.L?) My strength is… well let’s just say it’s higher than… it’s high. Outside of that, when I took the test to enter the Marines my base S.P.E.C.I.A.L, starting at Perception,  was four, four, three, six, seven and my luck was one *groans*. Having low luck and charisma kinda bites but I can usually think my way out of stuff. If that doesn’t work I’ll just lose my shit and start throwing furniture. *sighs*

19)   Have you ever been in a vault? What do you think about them? I’m the sole survivor of vault one eleven. Vault-Tec is madness. Pure and simple.

20)   How do you beat all the radiation around here? Has it affected you? I had run-ins with Vault-Tec even before the War. I think they had their evil eye on me as soon as I joined the military. After the car accident that killed my parents, they ‘helped’ with my hospital stay. I’m also pretty fucking sure they messed around with my genes. My augmented strength and rad resistance, not to mention my longevity, are the results of their mad-scientist bullshit. I’m ghoulish. I can withstand quite a bit more rads than the average human and I even heal a small amount from them.  

21)   What’s your favorite wasteland critter? I wish mole rats weren’t so interested in biting my face off… they’re kinda cute, ya know?

22)   What’s your least favorite wasteland critter? Bloodworms. Gross.

23)   How do you feel about robots? You know I love Codsworth! KL-E-O, P.A.M and Ada are good friends. Well, as much as P.A.M is anyone’s friend. Robots are people too.  

24)   How many caps do you have on you right now? Zero. They make too much noise and slow me down. Mac always carries them for me. I trust him.

25)   Nuka Cola or Sunset Sarsaparilla? Nuka Cola! Quantums up!

26)   Do you do chems? Not recreationally. I don’t have a problem with recreational use, so long as it doesn’t interfere with whatever it is I’m trying to accomplish, you feel me? *tries to mimic Hancock’s voice: fails miserably*

27)   Do you ever think about the Pre-War world? Not as much as I used to. I’ve made so many friends, reconnected with some old and fallen in love… I’m trying to live in the present as much as possible. Gotta keep moving forward.

28)   What’s your deepest regret? What would you do differently? Father and Maxson. I…  I couldn’t get through to them… *sniffles* next question, please.

29)   What’s your biggest achievement? Or what do you hope to achieve? I’m proud of the Minutemen settlements. I’m happy to have been a part of their comeback story. I hope to expand and make safe trade routes and farming possible for as far as we can safely and efficiently reach. For those who would have us of course; not interested in any tyrannical bullshit.

30)   What do you want for the future? For yourself? Your friends? The world? I want what anyone wants. Peace and love, friends and neighbors. Peace and love.

[boarix]

Wraith in the Ruins: A Fallout 4 Story Part XIII

Let Me Go

Trigger warnings: canon language/violence/gun, drug and alcohol use. Suggestive/mature content

Bloody mess warning!

Game spoilers!

Please enjoy

 “My dad’s old Highwayman would’ve come in handy right about now. Are we sure we’re still on ninety-five? I figured there would be a little more asphalt than this. ”

A week out from Sanctuary, Wraith’s caravan had been traveling in almost nonstop rain and the road was thick with mud.

“Was that a truck? I’d think we’d need some big tires for this slop, ya feel me?”

“Nothing can stop a Highwayman!” Wraith did her best impression of the spokesperson but then frowned to herself when she realized she was the only person to have actually ever heard the original commercial.

“I’d rather have a vertibird… fly above all… nngh… stupid… wet… CRAP!” Falling over sideways, MacCready lay defeated and motionless as the ever helpful Dogmeat licked his face.

Deacon fished him out, smiling at the cork-like pop, “No thank you, I’d rather not.”

“How long, in a car would this trip have taken anyway?” Hancock crouched slightly, “You want me to give you a piggyback ride, MacCready?”

“Naw man, I’m all gross and… oh… very funny.”

Laughing at them, Wraith snapped her fingers, “I don’t even have the heart to tell you. A Blitz would have gotten us there like that.” She smiled as she reminisced, “Plus they had those really cool gull-wing doors!”

“What kinda doors?”

Raising her arms out to either side, Wraith bent her elbows and spread her fingers like pinions on a wing, “Like this.”

“I know what it means, sunshine. Wanted to see if you’d make a silly pose.”

“I’m not silly! I’m a majestic shorebird.”

A small smile twitched at the corner of his mouth as Deacon enjoyed listening to and occasionally joining the trio’s banter. However, while maintaining the Harley character he had to be careful about breaking into his establish Deacon-the-funny-guy routine; laughing too loud or too frequently. Successfully gaining enough muscle mass to almost completely change his physicality, along with a full, red beard and without his glasses, he was completely unrecognizable even since Valentine’s wedding. Hancock, MacCready and Wraith had been consistent with calling him by his alter ego and he along with the five synth refugees all remained safely anonymous.

“Yes general, this is the highway. Behold your tax dollars at work.”

“Well… I’m gonna write my congressman…” Wraith slowed to walk next to Deacon, letting Hancock and MacCready move ahead. “Are we going to be able to stop in Baltimore? Or… whatever it’s called now. Or do we have to skip it like Philly?”

“There’s not a whole lot to see if we do stop; there’s some small trading stations that pop up in the summer but we might be early yet.” Deacon’s smile broadened as Hancock, noticing Dogmeat struggling in the mud, hefted the pup and carried him against his chest like a child, “We might have left too early in general… General. I haven’t seen spring rain like this in ten years.”

“Are we… talking about the weather like old people?”

“The weather will do more than… dampen our spirits. Time is a concern.”

“We wouldn’t want to get sick… being under the weather would slow us down.”

“If L&L sent a party after us… their rain of terror would…”

“Ugh, no! That’s stretching.” Wraith play-punched his arm.

“Oh? Couldn’t think of another one? I guess I won that round.”

Careful! Harley wouldn’t be this familiar. Tune it back…

Making note of the sudden shift in Deacon’s body language and tucking her chin, Wraith whispered her concern from the corner of her mouth, “L&L, huh? I thought you found the last two…”

“Later.”

 MacCready had found a small rise that was relatively dry and despite the fact that it was still a good two hours until sunset, the caravan stopped for the night. After making sure the brahmin were sound, everyone was being fed and watch shifts were selected, Wraith broke away to meet with Deacon.

“Hey, that’s my trick!”

Wraith doubted that she had actually been able to sneak up on him. “You’re being kind.” Folding her slender legs under her, she propped her back against a wretched-looking tree, “How much will you tell me?”

Seating himself on the opposite side of the trunk, Deacon’s voice was low, “My contact in Underworld is Tulip. Captain Sally and The Bruiser are still at large.”

“I thought Hancock’s network had found them.”

“Shit happens.”

Not for the first time, Wraith berated herself for leaving the Railroad, “I should have stayed. Should have finished…”

“Not everything that happened or will happen is your fault, Pippa. Fuck’s sake!” Genuinely annoyed, Deacon leaned around the oak to glare at her, “Dial down your ego for two seconds and you’ll realize the Earth doesn’t fucking revolve around you!”

“Holy shit! What the fuck was that for?!”

With Wraith’s angry frown inches from his own, Deacon had an impulse to kiss her. Letting the image carry him away for far longer than was healthy, he felt heat on his face.

Shit! FUCK! SHITFUCKDAMN!

“…are you?” Clearing her throat, Wraith sat back on her heels, “What was that? Please, tell me what…”

“No, Wraith.” In one fluid motion, Deacon rose to his feet, turned and melted away into the evening shadows.

 The insects were becoming a problem. The rains had finally let up but the further south the caravan progressed the warmer it got and the swarms of bugs were insufferable. Ranging in size from annoying to lethal there was a growing concern over the amount of ammunition being spent.

“Goddamn bugs!” Hancock seemed especially agitated and would routinely spend his daily allotment of shells, “Someone take my gun from me; I can’t help myself!”

“You could always just stab them…”

“Hey, that’s right!” Brandishing his beloved combat knife, the ghoul licked the blade with a mad light in his eyes.

“Or, or you could take some Day-tripper and we could strap you to a brahimn for the rest of the trip.”

Hancock made a show of being torn between ending all bug life at the end of his knife, or enjoying a nice high, “Gee, Harley how will I ever choose?”

Surprised that he would play along, Deacon’s confusion mounted when the lanky mayor draped an arm across his shoulders, “What’s got you so… friendly?”

“Wraith’s been lower than brahmin udders since she snuck away to chat at ya.” Hancock pulled the other man close to whisper in his ear, “And you’ve been even lower, brother. You kids feuding or what?”

Alarmed to know that his mood was affecting his body language, he straightened his back. Feeling uncomfortable under the ghoul’s arm, mostly because he enjoyed the contact, Deacon shrugged and was able to side-step away. He chuckled, “Damn, you are just as dangerous as she is.” Still feeling the weight of Hancock’s touch and angry that he had liked it, he rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. “I told her about the L&L setbacks; the false intel… more or less.”

“You tell her ‘bout the mole? About how I killed that fucker?”

“No Mr. Mayor, I didn’t. Because she’s not supposed to have to know about the Railroad and where I’m at or about whatever it is that I’m doing. I’m trying to give her one less fight and one less worry.”

“Well, you’re doing it wrong. Lyin’ has never worked with her.”

Annoyed, Deacon talked through his teeth, “Well, how exactly would you go about it?”

“Fuck if I know.” Folding his arms behind his head, Hancock walked away while whistling Keep a Knockin’.

 Hancock was whimpering. It wasn’t unusual for him to battle his demons in his sleep but it still made Wraith’s heart hurt. She pulled him closer to her and his eyes opened briefly. He smiled, thankful to be rescued and he laid his head against her chest.

“Fighting ninjas again?”

“Heh. Not this time, sunshine.” He yawned and nuzzled her breasts through her shirt, “MacCready and Dogmeat still on watch?”

“Yeah. I’ve gotta get up soon. We’ll do a swap-out so you won’t be alone for long.”

“Stay with me for a couple more minutes.” His voice carried a surprisingly high level of anxiety.

She kissed his head, “A bad one, huh? I can stay a little longer.”

“I’ve told you I love you, right?” His voice wavered, almost as if he had been crying.

“Yes, of course!” She squeezed him tightly, “And I love you. What was it?”

“Don’t wanna trouble you with it.”

“It’s no trouble. It was just a dream, right?”

“I… MacCready didn’t want to leave th’ Capital and you decided to stay with him. I… I lost you both.”

  “That you, Wraith?” MacCready was staring intently through his night scope, “You picking up anything on your fancy wristwatch?”

“No. Why?”

“I… my neck hairs are up… I don’t see anything but…”

“You feel.”

Lowering his scope, MacCready’s shoulders slumped, “That’s from that book again, isn’t it? You enormous nerd.”

Wraith gave Dogmeat a pat, “Puppy here seems to be relaxed.” She stuck her hand in MacCready’s back pocket to give his butt a squeeze, “Now, now. We have been through this; if you know what I’m talking about then you’re just as big a nerd.”

Returning the scope to his eye, he pretended not to notice her hand, “Darn it! I feel like I’m being stalked. Harley isn’t out there being a… messing around, right?”

“He’s out and about but he’s taking this all very seriously.” She checked her Pip-boy again, “I still don’t see anything. You sure it’s not just a case of the jitters? Tell you what; I’ll go do a quick sweep. The bad vibes are coming from the east, right? Hang tight.”

Moving silently through the scrub, Wraith calmed her mind for peak focus. Stopping every few yards, she strained her ears to listen for any minute change in the night sounds around her. Crisscrossing back and forth, she moved east until she reached a swamp and ran out of solid ground. Slowly standing in the moon-cast shadow of a large bolder, she held her breath and closed her eyes.

You never thought that maybe Mac would want to stay. You never thought that up until a couple of years ago his whole life had been in the Capital Wasteland and maybe he prefers it. What if Duncan refuses to leave and Mac doesn’t want to traumatize him by forcing him? What if Carol and Greta convince him not to take his son? What if he had been in love with Morningstar and when he sees her he’ll realize that you’re not as good? What if…

Dangerously close to hyperventilating, Wraith was able to snap herself back… just as the deathclaw hit her.

 “Light, GET SOME GODDAMN LIGHT OUT THERE!”

“How?! We don’t have a generator with us, Mayor Hancock!”

As soon as he heard the deathclaw’s roar, MacCready had raised the alarm and he and the dog sprinted off into the night. Now, Hancock was left to organize the pursuit and was terrified that his nightmare was coming true.

“Lanterns! Torches! Fucking sake! Let’s GO!” When Deacon made as if to follow, Hancock stabbed his finger at him, “Not you! Stay and protect the camp.”

His jaw clenched as he ground his teeth but he complied.

 Get up! Getupgetupgetup!

Able to gather her legs beneath her despite her lungs being devoid of air, Wraith ducked and dodged as the monster did its best to bifurcate her. She felt hot blood streaming down her face and she realized she had forgotten her armored hood back at camp.

I am such a shitshow!

The moon was full and so afforded her enough light to evade the monster’s swinging talons. Injured as she was, Wraith knew that she would tire quickly and needed to get on the offense. She expected that her companions would hear the beast’s bellow and attempt to come to her aid but she had traveled fairly far from camp. Even with the moon’s light it would take time to find her. Options seemed to be limited…

I need to slow it down. I don’t know how deep the swamp is but if I can get it stuck in the mud…

Weaving through a small copse of trees, she gained enough distance to grab a syringe of med-X and the bottle of Buffout from her pack. Bolstered by the chems, she unsheathed Kremvh’s Tooth and sprinted straight at the creature. Diving between its legs, she slashed its Achilles tendon as she passed and rolled to her feet behind it. Ducking under its tail as it spun around to pursue her, she sprinted for the water.

Leaping to a fallen tree, Wraith ran along its length and turned to mark the deathclaw’s progress. It seemed oblivious to the fact that its left foot hung by a strip of hide and she watched in horror as it gathered itself to jump to her log.

I’m drowning here! The only way this could be worse is if there were two…

A second deathclaw bellowed from her left.

Oh. Swell.

 Trying to keep up with Dogmeat, MacCready paid no mind to the branches whipping across his face. He was terribly worried that he hadn’t heard gun shots and he was attempting to convince himself that it was because she preferred melee weapons and not because she had been killed.

Has she lost her mind? Didn’t she learn anything from the last time?!

Man and dog rounded the bolder just in time to see the second deathclaw rear back and bellow its challenge. They then both watched in horror as the injured deathclaw leaped to Wraith’s log. She was catapulted through to air to land with an enormous splash, where she sank like a stone into the swamp’s dark waters.

Snarling as viciously as Dogmeat, MacCready quickly doubled back and climbed the bolder. Rifle in hand he sent shot after shot to the second deathclaw’s right knee as Dogmeat led it in circles around the rock’s base. The sniper cut through the beast’s leg like a lumberjack felling a tree and it collapsed heavily to its side. Dogmeat continued to worry it, preventing it from getting up and MacCready changed his target to the monster’s left knee. As soon as it was destroyed, the former merc whistled the canine away and tossed a grenade; finishing it off.

 Although her flight had been ungainly, Wraith had seen the deathclaw coming and so had been able to steel herself before being launched into the water. Unable to see through the silt, she swam to the bottom and headed back toward the shore, hoping to flank her foe.

The deathclaw had somehow tracked her progress and so dragged itself through the muddy water after her. Wraith surfaced right next to it and it lunged at her with its mouth open. Pulling her .44, she unloaded a full clip into its gaping maw. Her angle was bad however and so even though the wounds she inflicted would prove to be mortal, the monster wasn’t dead yet.

Frantically doing the backstroke, she was able to find footing enough to leap at the deathclaw with her blade leading the way. Landing heavily on its head she pushed the dagger through its upper jaw and pinned its mouth closed, roaring defiantly into its face.

The deathclaw plunged and shook; crow-hopping to try and dislodge her. With one hand on her weapon and the other on one of its horns, Wraith held on for dear life as the monster thrashed. Her substantial strength still augmented by the Buffout, it should have come to no great shock when the creatures horn came away in her hand. Losing her grip on her weapon’s blood-splattered hilt, she was once again flung into the water.

Moonlight reflected through the great spray of blood, clearly defining its crimson hue. The deathclaw stood with its head raised and arms spread wide, almost as if it was appealing to the moon for mercy. Then with a deep, mortal groan it fell dead.

MacCready stood motionless in complete shock. When Wraith surfaced, sputtering and cursing he realized he had been holding his breath, “Are… ARE YOU OKAY?!”

“GrrrrrrrAWWRRR!” Splashing and growling, Wraith kicked at the beast’s head before retrieving her dagger. Then, suddenly spent, she flopped onto her back in the mud, “Ugh. I think so.”

Dogmeat ran to her and setting his nose to her head wound, whiffled unhappily.

Wraith sheathed her weapon and reached up to run her fingers through the dog’s neck ruff, “I’m okay buddy. I… I think.”

“NO! YOU ARE NOT! YOU ARE BLEEDING!” MacCready had his med kit out in a flash.

“You have a flare gun, right? Do that first, okay?”

 The relief Hancock felt when he saw the flare was dashed when he saw MacCready hovering over Wraith as she lay on the ground. Unconsciously gripping his chest over his heart, he walked with slow, heavy steps to stand next to Dogmeat. “MacCready…”

Taken aback by Hancock’s stricken look, the young man waved his hands, “She’s alive! She’s a crazy monster but she’s alive.”

“Who’s a monster?!”

“Have you ever seen yourself fight?” MacCready bent to kiss her, his slight shiver evidence of his fear, “My knock-out, monster woman…”

Hancock kneeled in the mud and placed a hand on Wraith’s blood-caked forehead, “Did you pick a fight with two deathclaws all by yer lonesome?”

“No… I’m ashamed to admit they got the drop on me.”

“I distracted you. Got in yer head. Shouldn’t have told you ‘bout that dream.”

“It’s not your fault! Don’t… just don’t, please.” Wraith caught MacCready’s hand, “Don’t bother stitching me up; I have a couple of derma-fuses at the camp.” She sat up as the young man bound her head. “It’s a shame Bear isn’t with us; I’d have him skin these two… deathclaw armor would be super cool.”

“The one I got was an albino too. That’s pretty rare.”

“What am I, chopped liver?” Hancock turned to one of the Minutemen escorts, “How ‘bout it Lloyd, you wanna help me set yer general up with some swanky new threads?”

“Do you have the right kind of knives for that?”

Placing his hand on his chest as if she had given him the greatest of insults, Hancock raised his voice to a falsetto, “Do I have the right kind of knives? ME?! You’re asking ME?!”

 It was the last night before the caravan reached the designated rendezvous at relay tower Kx-B8-11. MacCready and Wraith lay together in her bedroll and a nervous Wraith had not slept at all. Her mind was tormenting her with Hancock’s dream and she couldn’t shake the image of MacCready’s back moving further and further away from them.

“Wraith, you keep sighing…”

“Oops, sorry!”

Gathering her gently into his arms, MacCready kissed her temple, “What’s the matter?”

“What’s Morningstar like? Fahrenheit calls her a ‘beautiful giant’ but I don’t think it’s a complement.”

“No, probably not.” MacCready laughed, “It’s accurate though. She’s about as tall as Hancock but like two of him across. Maybe three…”

“Were the two of you friends?”

“No...” The pregnant pause suggested otherwise and it was his turn to sigh, “Maybe… It’s kinda complicated.”

“Tell me a story, Mac.”

“Sure, fine. It’s not like I’m gonna get any sleep anyway.”

“Yay.”

“Nyx is a nosy, goody two-shoes. She’s a busybody who can’t seem to leave sh… stuff alone.” He rolled away from her onto his back and stuck an arm behind his head. “She came to Little Lamplight so she could get into a vault. I helped her out and then I couldn’t get rid of her. She said that she owed us. I told her to… leave us alone.”

“You told her to fuck off?” She could see him smile in the dark.

“Verbatim.” His smile grew larger, “She didn’t listen, of course. She would bring supplies; food and clothes and stuff. When I turned sixteen and left she offered me a job but I was… stupid and told her ‘no thank you’.”

“Fuck off, part two?”

“Yeah. I thought I could make more money, faster with the Gunners. Looking back… I acted like such a idiot kid.”

“Mac, you were sixteen! That is a kid.”

“Not in the wasteland.” His smile gone, he looked sadly backward in time, “Then I found out that she had cleared Lamplight out and set up an orphanage in Megaton. I was so angry… but I don’t know why. Honestly, it was pretty amazing what she did for those kids. She gave them a chance to be... well… kids. That didn’t stop me though. I went and told her exactly what she should do with herself.”

“The return of fuck off, part three the sequel?”

“After Duncan was born, Lucy…” MacCready swallowed, hard, “Lucy said I needed to make peace with her. I… refused.” A rim of moisture gathered at the corner of his eye, “I was still being…” Unable to continue, a large tear traveled down his cheek.

“I’m sorry. You don’t have to keep going.”

He sniffled and reached out to pull Wraith to his chest, “No, it’s okay. After I lost Lucy, I got… dark. I would drop Duncan off at Underworld and take missions that… I don’t think Charon would’ve done.”

“Charon is Morningstar’s… bodyguard? Actually I’m not sure what their relationship is.”

“Complicated. I think at one point she owned him. They might be a couple but I honestly don’t know.”

“Owned?! Like… not like a slave?!”

“Like I said, complicated.”

“Oh… no.”

“After Duncan got sick I promised him that if he could hold out until I got a cure, that I would be a better person. I finally went to Nyx. She never even hesitated, just came to help me as if we were best pals. I took it completely wrong, like she was using this as another opportunity to show how much better she is. Ugh, I was such a bastard!”

“Stop being so hard on yourself.”

“You don’t understand. If you knew all the things I’ve done…”

“Hancock says that too. You both know perfectly well all the horrible stuff I’ve done.”

MacCready shifted himself and sat up, taking Wraith by the shoulders and looking in her eyes, “You two are different. You guys did that stuff to help other people. You both made sacrifices and hard decisions so that they could be saved. I did terrible things because I hated everything. I was joking when I called you a monster. I’m the monster.”

Matching his stare, Wraith cupped his cheek with her hand, “I don’t know if you’d ever want to tell me everything but I want you to know that I would listen. I love you. I always will.” She kissed him and gently set her forehead against his.

They sat that way, quietly for a few seconds until MacCready pulled slightly back. He stared, smiling into her eyes. His look morphed from adoration to lasciviousness and he ran his hands from her shoulders down her back.  Setting his lips against hers in a needful kiss, he tucked a hand in the waistband of her jeans to squeeze her butt.

“Mmmm, Mac… We have to… stop…” As her lover’s hands and mouth traveled across her body, Wraith barely had the presence of mind to protest.

“Think so? I can be quiet. I can be good and quiet.”

“Huugh… It’s even… more fun… oh mmmm… when you’re loud…”

 “Beacon has been activated… Harley.” Wraith was genuinely regretful at not being able to make a rhyme.

“Acknowledged, general. The Morningstar escort should arrive in less than twenty-four hours. Was there anything else?”

“No. Thank you soldier, you are dismissed.”

Wraith frowned as she watched him walk away. She had made several attempts, during the last days of travel, to engage with Deacon. She understood the need for his alter ego but was disappointed that he was no longer allowing himself to be friendly.

I make jokes and laugh with all my people. Probably more than what’s appropriate but… This is so different than any other mission. He’s so different… even from when we left Diamond City.

 “General, Morningstar has been spotted. She should be here in about twenty minutes.”

“Thank you, Lloyd.”

The sun had barely risen the following morning but Wraith had been up all night. Both Hancock and MacCready had tried to calm her but her anxiety had turned Nyx Morningstar into some sort of boyfriend-eating gorgon.

And then she was come.

At well over six feet, she was perhaps the tallest woman Wraith would ever see. Morningstar wore heavy combat gear with a custom, lion-like helmet that was heavily inspired by gladiatorial armor. Lifting an arm, she waved as her group crested the hill. When she removed her helm her impressive mane of blue-black hair poured forth like liquid night. Her large, gold eyes smiled in a truly friendly manner as they surveyed Wraith’s group.

“Hey there, butt face.”  

MacCready stood, flanked by Hancock on his left and Wraith on his right, “Hey mungo.” Swaggering up, he stuck out a hand. Nyx clasped it firmly, then to his shock, pulled him to her and swept him off his feet to spin around in a whirling bear hug, “AAAAAAHHHH! PUT ME DOWN, YOU BEHEMOTH!”

After a couple more revolutions, she set him back on his feet, “I’m sorry R.J. It’s just so good to see you!” She turned her sun-beam smile onto Hancock and offered him her hand. “John Hancock, you old raisin! How are you?!”

Shaking her hand firmly he smiled, “Still sweet and wrinkly! You’re impressive as always, Morningstar. Speaking of impressive, may I have the pleasure of introducing Wraith, General of the Minutemen?”

Wraith lifted her chin and secured her face into her best I-need-to-win-over-this-jury smile, “I’m honored to meet you, Morningstar.”

“The honor is mine. And please, call me Nyx.”

“Only if you will call me Wraith.” Wraith turned her attention to the silent, tall sentinel standing slightly behind Nyx, “And you must be Charon. It’s a pleasure to meet you as well.” The entire hill top seemed to freeze as Wraith extended her hand to the mountainous ghoul.

To everyone’s shock he took her hand and offered her the tiniest of quarter grins, “The pleasure is mine.” Charon then turned slightly to Nyx with a slightly larger, tiny grin and a wink.

When Nyx saw Dogmeat her eyes widened and she took a knee, “Hello old man.”

The German shepherd sat and placed his paws on her leg. The two stayed in silent communion for several seconds before woman and dog rose to their feet.

Turning back to Wraith, Nyx was all business, “We should move soon. It would only be natural for my group to assist yours breaking camp. Lots of moving bodies can be confusing to those who may be watching.”

It suddenly occurred to Wraith that six of Nyx’s group very closely resembled Deacon and his five synth refugees. Nodding, she joined the throng of people and brahmin. Then, completely imperceptible to an outside observer, the two groups swapped costumes, as if by magic.

As the large caravan headed south, Nyx and Wraith walked together. Wraith’s mind was a whirl of questions but afraid that she’d be a pest, wasn’t sure where to start.

“Danse isn’t with you.”

Wraith jumped slightly, startled by the broken silence “No. I did ask him if he would like to come but I think he feels this chapter of his life is closed. Did you know him?”

“I know everyone.” Nyx’s smile somehow softened the egotistical declaration, “Not well, but I did meet him before Maxson whisked him away. I have a letter for him from former scribe Haylen.”

“Ah. She did end up quitting then.” Wraith somehow felt even more awkward, “You might find this a strange question but, is she… okay?”

“Wraith, to be clear; I am connected to the BOS but I myself am not an active member. I have an understanding with the elder. To be blunt, they owe me. A lot. As such, they understand that certain towns, settlements and people, are under my protection. Places like Underworld. People like the ghouls living in and around the Capital Wasteland. People like my super mutant friend, Fawkes. People like Haylen.”

The large women had unconsciously picked up her pace and Wraith had to practically jog to keep up with her, “Did they threaten her?!”

“Not at all. That whole… debacle, was a huge embarrassment and setback for the Brotherhood. You remain public enemy number one but Haylen will be fine. I have her doing medical research for me and she seems to be happy.”

“Speaking of medical research, I have a gift for you.” Wraith, eager to change the subject, passed her a derma-fuse, “It’s Institute tech designed to close lacerations.”

Nyx’s eyes took on a greedy gleam as she accepted the device, “Fascinating! How does it work?”

“I don’t actually know how it works but what it does is localized cellular regeneration. Dermis only, hence the name. I actually brought you two; one to use…”

“And one to ruin, trying to figure out how to make more?” The two women shared a laugh.

“Well, glad to see you are getting along.” Returning to the group after scouting ahead, MacCready flashed them a roguish grin.

“What of it, R.J? Why wouldn’t we? I happen to be a super-fun person!”

He rolled his eyes, “Yeah, right. What were you two talking about?”

“About how you’re a huge dork.”

“Oh, I’m huge alright. In all the right places!”

“Does that explain your enormous head?”

“Big brain.”

“I think you mean big ego.”

Despite the harsh volley of words, MacCready seemed to be enjoying himself, “Well, you would be the expert on gigantism and egos.”

Wraith, feeling out of place, dropped back to her more normal walking pace. Suddenly finding herself side by side with Charon, her feeling of awkwardness intensified to new heights.

“So, I assume this is normal? For them, I mean.”

“Yes.”

“Not to say it isn’t funny.”

“Sure.”

“Well. I um… guess I’ll go check on… brahmin stuff.”

 Wraith’s passage through the Capital Wasteland left her feeling nostalgic and sad. The ruins of The Mall were particularly emotional. Her nerves frayed by the journey and the imminent face-to-face with Duncan, she held Hancock’s arm as they walked.

“You’re gonna be fine, sunshine.” The ghoul kissed the back of her hand, “We’ll be back, all together in Sanctuary before you know it. One big, happy family; lots of weird aunts and uncles for the kids.”

MacCready sought them out just before passing through Underworld’s doors. “Whew! Here we go.”

The caravan members distributed themselves between The Chop Shop and Underworld Outfitters as MacCready, Hancock, Dogmeat and Wraith climbed the stairs to Carol’s.  Just beyond the door, flanked by his ghoulette aunts stood Duncan.

“Daddy!” Giggling, the small boy threw himself into his father’s open arms. “Daddy I’m a big boy! I poop in the potty and can come with you now! Auty Carol says so! Daddy… are you ‘kay? Daddy?”

MacCready had tried his best to hold back his tears, afraid that his crying might confuse or scare his son. Caught somewhere between sobbing and laughing he was making strange noises in his throat, almost as if he was being strangled.

“It’s ‘kay, daddy. Crying is ‘kay too.” Duncan had pulled back slightly and was now patting his father’s tear streaked cheek, “Daddy, does your tummy hurt?”

“He’s just very happy to see you, honey.” Tears ran down Carol’s face as well, “I’m Carol, you must be Wraith and Hancock. This is my wife Greta. Welcome to Underworld.” The ghoulette did a double-take, “Is that… that can’t possibly… Dogmeat?!”

“Look, Daddy! There’s a doggy! It’s a good puppy?”

“He’s… yeah buddy. He’s the best puppy.”

  Deacon sat at a barstool waiting for Tulip. After their tearful reunion, MacCready and company had settled down for the night and he had separated himself to wait for his contact to close her store.

“Do you have a Geiger counter?”

“Mine’s in the shop.”

“Harley, everything is all set. The packages will be distributed by Morningstar’s courier service starting tomorrow.”

“Well, all things considered that went remarkably smooth. Kinda waiting on the other shoe…”

“It’s funny you should say that. I need your help.” Tulip lowered her voice and set her hand suggestively on Deacon’s thy. “Follow me back to the shop.”

Maintaining character, Deacon slung his arm around the ghoulette’s shoulders and leaned into her as if too drunk to walk straight, “Ohboy, I thought you’d never ashk me!”

Morningstar’s imposing presence seemed to fill the store and she leaned toward Deacon with a predatory look that reminded him of a hunting lioness, “The L&L gang is here! They’ve killed Watts.”

“Victoria…” Deacon’s mind whirled, “Who’s running the show?”

“I want you to.”

It made perfect sense. He hated it. His mind reeled back from it, “Why can’t you…”

“Don’t do that. You know why!” Nyx folded her powerful arms, “I’m way too high profile. It wouldn’t have to be permanent. We need you to whip us in to shape like you did for the Commonwealth branch. Tulip has her hands full and,” She cast an apologetic glance to the ghoulette, “she has no leadership experience. It’s you. Take a protégé if you want. Train them… but it’s you.”

“You… you got me over a barrel.”

“I promised General Wraith that I would make sure Duncan MacCready makes it safely back to Sanctuary. I will not go back on my word. I will go… you will stay.” Her eyes softened at the pain in Deacon’s pale blue eyes, “I know you and Watts went way back. I’m sorry to throw this at you now but it just happened a couple of days ago.”

“Hancock’s network had been closing in. We knew they left but we had been misdirected north. Goddamn it…”

“You’ll do a lot of good for us here. I will make sure you’re provided all necessary resources.”

“Of that I have no doubt.” Squaring his shoulders, Deacon turned to leave, “No time like the present. I’ll be off to…”

“Headquarters are still at the late, great Manya Vargas’s. Let me know when you change location… cause I know you will.”

“You’re not going to say goodbye.” All three flinched as Wraith stepped out of the shadows.

Nyx turned and took a menacing step, hands raised and ready to attack, “Bad move, General…”

“Wait! Wraith is Railroad! Or… she was…” Deacon placed himself between them, “Whisper! Wraith was Whisper!”

Nyx calmed immediately. Looking back and forth between them, she seemed to have an epiphany, “Let’s go back to the bar for a bit, Tulip.”

“Fine. If you two fight, don’t go wreaking up my shop!”

The silence was heavy, like the pressure before a thunderstorm.

Don’t… Wraith, don’t…

“Am I a child to you? Do you honestly believe you can protect me from… why wouldn’t you have told me? Hell, lie to me about the reason but fucking tell me that you’re leaving!” Wraith still had her fists clenched.

“You’re giving me permission to lie?”

Don’t… I can’t…

“I...” She seemed to deflate before his eyes, “I guess you’ve always come and go as you please.”

“You told me to leave. You told me once…”

“That was a mistake! I fucked up. Had I known better what I was doing…”

“No! You were right! You did everything and more for the Railroad… for me. You were done. Turning your focus to the Minutemen was the best decision you could have made. Just look at everything you’ve accomplished!”

Wraith shook her head, “Look at all the lives I’ve ended…”

“STOP FUCKING DOING THAT!” Deacon’s eyes flashed fire and he took an unconscious step toward her, “STOP! Don’t belittle yourself. You are the single greatest thing that’s happened to the Commonwealth… and to me.”

“You… you have no intention of coming back. Do you?” Tears streamed down her face.

“You don’t need me, Wraith. You have to let me go.”

“You’re like my brother! We… you’re my family.”

“The time has come for us to part ways.”

She lifted her arms as if to embrace him but he backed away.

Don’t hug me Wraith. I’ll… I’ll shatter. I’ll break if you hold me.

“You… you’re my friend. I love you, Deacon.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“You don’t know me, Philippa. My name is not Deacon.” His face empty of emotion, the nameless man turned his back, opened the door and walked away.

Lie. Lie. Lie.

  Thank you so much for reading! Like what you read? Looking for more? Please search my Wraith in the Ruins tag in my bio. There is a link-tree master post with all of the chapters. Questions/comments/concerns, my ask is open (anon too). I appreciate any feedback. =^..^=