This story was Beta'd by Groovymarlin and is a gift for Sakom75 on Tumblr.
Christine smiled to herself as she quietly pulled out a pan and heated the stove, thinking about her girlfriend who was still asleep in the bedroom.
'That's seems like such an understatement for that we are…' Christine wrinkled her face. 'Lovers? Partners? ...Soulmates? Bleh…too dramatic.'
But that last one did seem to be the best match, she had to admit. After everything that had happened—everything they had been through together and apart—Veronica and Christine had found their way back to each other despite it all. Somehow, they had even made a life together on the Strip in a comfy little apartment courtesy of their courier friend; she and Veronica both owed them so much, and yet they asked for nothing in return.
Mirelurk egg scrambled in the pan and she added leftover Brahmin steak bits to the mix with some of the savory smelling green stuff Veronica left to dry over the stove. Adding some salt, Christine wiggled her toes in happiness—it smelled so good! The carpet she stood on was warmed by the morning sunlight peeking through the window. Everything about their home was warm. Warm and bright, just like Veronica liked it. The carpet was soft under her toes; Veronica was so meticulous about keeping nice things like that clean too. Nothing like the Brotherhood Bunker.
At the thought of their old home, Christine stepped back from the crackle and pop of the pan, squeezing her eyes shut. They had family there, loved ones and friends.
'And they all turned on us.'
The world lost its focus around her, sounds muting and light dimming. Shaking her head, Christine pulled open the fridge door, chugging an entire bottle of water to try and clear her head. It left her gasping for air.
"No more, no more of that," she insisted to herself. All that was over, they were away from the Brotherhood and the lockdown's breeding program. Christine scraped the eggs onto two plates before the stuff burned, poured the wasteland equivalent to coffee into two matching mugs, and did just about anything to keep her mind busy. It wasn't so much coffee as it was tea if she thought about it, coyote tobacco brewed and sweetened with crushed honey mesquite pods for taste. But it sort of tasted like coffee, at least according to the pre-war ghoul who had recommended the stuff to Veronica.
Pre-war…pre-war tech…pre-war science…unchecked science…robot scorpions, cazadors, brains in pods, brain ripped open, chaos—
"Raul. Raul Tejada was his name." She whispered, the world coming back into focus around her.
Christine used to rub her head when she was frustrated, run her fingers along the smooth surface looking for any stubble that needed to be shaved off. But she couldn't anymore, not since what happened in the Big Empty. Now all of…that was what she was reminded of when she rubbed her head. Taking a deep breath, Christine turned to put away the mess she had made while cooking. Egg shells and dirty dishes were simple enough, but she just…stared at it. She knew it needed to be cleaned, and kind of how to…how the hell did she forget how to wash dishes? Hands shaking, Christine began to feel clammy as panic rose in the back of her throat.
Someone hummed behind her and Christine was enveloped in warmth as gentle hands slid down her arms to guide her movements. Together, Veronica and Christine put the mess away. Veronica giggled, stumbling slightly. She was shorter than Christine by only a little, but it made leading her from behind a little difficult.
"That smells so incredible!" she praised, stretching and settling into a chair when they finished cleaning.
"It was supposed to be breakfast in bed," Christine said sheepishly.
"Oh, that's so sweet! Let's do that then!" Veronica jumped up, putting all the food onto a tray.
"But you're already out of bed, I took too long," Christine insisted, frustrated at herself.
Ever since they had moved in together, it felt like Veronica was always taking care of her. Feeling guilty, Christine followed her back into the bedroom. Light streaming in through a now open window made the room pleasantly toasty and Christine calmed down some as she watched Veronica take her first bite with relish.
"You really like it?"
"Love it," she reassured Christine, popping more omelet into her mouth.
When she continued to look skeptical, Veronica leaned over, careful to avoid tipping the breakfast, and pressed her lips to Christine's.
Where her hands brought Christine back to reality, her kiss threw her into sweet nirvana. The world melted away again, but this time Christine didn't mind if it never reformed. To live in this limbo, where the chaos of her mind seemed to quiet down as their mouths moved in a dance everyone knew, but only true lovers mastered—Yes, this is where she wanted to be and nowhere else. The Think Tank scientists had done something to her head, and it would never be the same again, but here with Veronica, things felt a little more normal.
Veronica pulled back far too soon and before Christine could say anything, the brunette pushed a fork-full of egg into her mouth.
"See?" Veronica smiled playfully, "Delicious."
The food was good, but Christine already missed the taste of Veronica's lips. Warmer than the desert, sweeter than agave; it could make her forget their time apart.
They stayed in bed for a little longer after breakfast. Christine made a little too much food, but they had finished it all anyway and were suffering the consequences.
"We should do something today," Veronica mused as Christine spooned her from behind, pressing gentle kisses to her neck and shoulders.
"We are doing something today; we have jobs, remember?"
"Guarding the Fort hardly counts since Six took over. They only really want us there because we have knowledge on Brotherhood tech and they don't want to rely too much on the Securetrons for safety. But it's so boring! I mean something fun that doesn't involve protecting anything."
She was right, Christine conceded. It was boring. The days were starting to melt together since the second battle of Hoover Dam. Peace was always a good thing—a wonderful thing. But when you were defending against nothing and your life wasn't in constant danger of ending, the daily routine became comparatively dull.
Christine coughed, Mohave dust getting in her throat and the sun in her eyes. She missed recon armor; at least that was breathable. Leather was the worst, and she had no idea why it was in such fashion in the wasteland. Christine noticed Veronica in the distance, talking to some Freesiders who looked to be suffering severe hangovers. She was also in leather.
'Oh…that's why.' Christine blushed.
Now she really needed to cool off. Surely Julie would have some paperwork in need of filing. Wasn't exactly bodyguard work, but she had air-conditioning in her quarters.
It was like a wall of cool air hit her across the face entering Julie's office. Christine was surprised more people didn't find some excuse to spend their whole day in here. Then again, most wastelanders weren't former Brotherhood members. Most wastelanders, especially from the Mojave, were used to the heat, and hadn't lived in cold underground bunkers for the majority of their lives.
"Thank goodness you're here!"
Christine was met with a huge stack of envelopes thrust into her arms.
"I'm sorry to send you out so fast, but could you pass out the mail? The courier came in today."
Most of the Followers hailed from NCR territory and as far as Christine was concerned, they were the best things to come out of those annoying colonizers' ranks. Handing out mail seemed like an even more boring way to pass her shift, but at least drunk gamblers wouldn't harass her.
Christine made the rounds in relative peace. Most people were excited to get letters from family or friends that still lived in New California. The NCR had only lifted its ban on cross territorial communication, so the letters were flooding in. Her heart sank when she got to the bottom of the pile. It was addressed to Veronica, and the paper looked like it had been used and re-used several times over. Just the sort of thing a group would do if they had been under a strict lock-down command for quite some time.
Christine scoffed in disgust, a strong urge to crumble up the letter and light it with her laser rifle filling her. She probably would have too, if she didn't feel a warm hand on her shoulder.
"Watcha' got there?" Veronica asked, leaning in to peek.
Christine closed her eyes in frustration, seething as she muttered, "It's for you…it's from the Brotherhood."
"Well I don't want it. Hell, burn it with fire."
"You don't even want to look at it?"
"Would you?" Veronica asked incredulously. "I tried reasoning with them a long time ago. The Brotherhood is blind. I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them, not that I can throw them very far with all that power armor."
"I don't know, you're pretty strong," Christine laughed, relieved at Veronica's reaction to the letter. It wasn't like she was worried Veronica would want to go back, but that the letter itself would upset her. Veronica was always the ball of sunshine in their relationship. She burned so bright that everyone felt warmed from her presence, and some even managed to feel better just by a smile from her. It was one of the thousands of things Christine loved about her.
"Aww, you're so sweet, love!" Veronica beamed, kissing her on the cheek. "You always know what to say to cheer me up," she added fondly.
She needed cheering up? Did the letter actually upset her? Christine was confused, but remembered what Veronica had said earlier. She wanted to do something fun, but that was pretty vague since most anything Veronica put her mind to would end up being fun.
Once she had made a game of cleaning the entire house by adding a whole bunch of elaborate rules. Things like the floor being lava for five minutes every half hour— "But if you stop cleaning, you have to do the dishes until the floor cools down!"—or every odd hour, they had to clean with their backs "stuck" together. Christine's favorite rule was having to declare war on each mess with elaborate speeches. Inevitably it would end with the two of them falling to the floor in exhaustion, giggling and cheering at "conquering the mess."
Veronica loved doing silly things like that; once the house was spotless she would immediately go to change into her nicer dresses and heels. She loved to feel fancy.
That's it!
Christine nearly tackled Veronica, who had long since walked away to get back to work.
"I know what we can do tonight!" She squealed uncharacteristically.
"Whoa, hey, keep our love life private, babe!" Veronica laughed, more than a little startled.
"Oh, let them look," Christine smiled kissing Veronica's neck as she held her tighter before running off to find Julie again.
It was a little early to take her break, but Christine needed to make some arrangements.
Christine adjusted her tie nervously, trying to straighten her clothes in the mirror. Everything she was wearing was being worn for the first time since a thorough wash. All she had told Veronica was that both of them needed a bath and she would need to get dressed in her nicest dress. The bath was plenty fun; Christine blushed just thinking about it. They had opened a bottle of wine, taking turns sipping from it and soaking in the nice warm water.
Christine was the cleanest she had ever felt since leaving the Brotherhood.
'Forced out, more like,' she thought, her lip curling in disgust. She had just been a pawn in their eyes. All she ever was, was a pawn. Memories of the cloud filled her mind. That thick rusted poison; it had been weeks before she truly scrubbed it all out from her skin and hair. It stuck to the body that way. It burned her throat, the mere memory. The cloud choking her while her neck was sliced open and her voice was replaced by a stranger's.
"Until I got her back," Christine insisted under her breath, bringing herself back to the present. "I was always a pawn…until I got her back." Things would never go back to how they were.
"Ever."
"Did you say something?"
"Uh no, I—" Christine's words trailed off when she saw Veronica standing in the doorway.
She was wearing a soft pink full length dress that hung elegantly off one shoulder. Veronica had taken up a sewing hobby so she could repair whatever dresses she could find. Eventually she got so good that Veronica could confidently strip the seams of a few unsalvageables to create something completely new.
New and perfect, like the woman that wore them. She had curled her hair especially for the occasion, rather than the tight bun she stuck to most days. Veronica had even borrowed a little make-up from the Courier—didn't need to by any means, but she liked how it felt; couldn't stop looking in the mirror when she had the chance to wear some and Christine couldn't blame her. It only enhanced the beauty that was already there.
"What do you think?" Veronica smirked, stepping forward and giving her a twirl. She knew exactly what Christine thought, but readily accepted the urgent kiss as an answer.
"Gorgeous…" Christine gasped, caught up in the moment. Veronica beamed.
"Are you sure you want to go out to have fun?" she teased.
"Definitely. Trust me, you'll love it," Christine assured her, still flushed from the kiss.
"So? What kind of fun are we having if we aren't staying in?"
"I was thinking…Dinner at the Ultra Luxe…dancing at the Ultra Luxe…oh, and some gambling at the Ultra Luxe."
Veronica let out a low whistle, but she couldn't help the smile that spread on her face.
"That sounds…pretty steep; it might take hours to get a table at the restaurant, much less the casino tables."
Veronica knew what Christine would say, but wanted to hear it anyway. "Should I cancel? The reservation, I mean?" she smiled giddily at having planned something so perfect and completely Veronica.
Veronica was practically skipping on their way to the Casino. She liked to go to the Tops a few times with Cass or the rest of "the gang," but Christine usually stayed at home. Christine liked quieter places, but tonight was for Veronica.
She gasped when they entered the most expensive casino in the strip. Silver lighting glinted off polished, if slightly cracked marble. Well-kept plastic ferns and artificial roses were sprinkled elegantly about the casino. It was really quite stunning; not too empty, not too crowded—Veronica and Christine only got in immediately because of Christine's reservation, which had Veronica clinging to her arm in pure excitement and joy. She was smiling so hard it must have hurt. The place was lavish and extravagant, but certainly not gaudy. Even the masked employees had a certain haunting charm. At least, that's what Christine insisted to herself, avoiding what little eye contact was possible with them while she and her girlfriend ate a dinner that was just as delicious and beautiful as it was expensive.
"Do you think they get sweaty under those? The masks, I mean," Veronica mused, smirking slightly as she eyed the host from afar. "I mean it's not warm in here, but it's not chilly. I bet they wear those masks to hide the pimples."
"It's probably to hide their sharpened teeth and blood stained lips," Christine muttered under her breath.
"Oh, come on, Six took care of that, remember?" Veronica laughed at her dry humor.
"And yet here we are, eating everything but meat."
Veronica took another bite, smiling at her. "You got me there. Better safe than sorry, right?"
She reached her hand over the table, taking Christine's hand. "That was delicious!"
Christine beamed despite herself, pulling Veronica onto the dance floor to join the rest of the couples as the band struck up a tune. The first few songs were just as uptight as the casino itself, but that only let the two sway intimately together, giggling as they gazed into each other's eyes, occasionally exchanging kisses at the disapproval of some of the other guests. But they didn't care; the two were lost in their own little world.
"This is already so perfect, I love today," Veronica sighed, leaning against Christine's shoulder.
"It's about to get a whole lot better," Christine said, signaling to the band's front woman as the last song ended. She was the only one whose mask didn't cover her mouth.
The singer nodded to the band, who struck up a rendition of 'My Guy'…but with a slight twist:
"Nothing you could say could tear me away from my girl,"
Veronica gasped at Christine excitedly, "You didn't?!"
"Of course, I did!" She tried to stay matter of fact, but Veronica's smile was infectious. "My girl, our song."
She blushed, hugging Christine closer.
After an hour or so of dancing, they were both ready to sit down again.
"So, Black Jack?"
"Yeah, just let me fix my makeup and I'll join you. Can you get us a table near the bar?"
"Of course."
Veronica kissed her on the cheek before leaving for the bathrooms. Christine swayed slightly as she made her way to the gambling tables. She didn't usually drink this much. She was past the giddy buzz and sinking into a slower daze. The noise and hubbub of the casino was not so welcome now. She stood at the top of the short stairs. It was a sea of masks below her. Alone, with no one to bring her back, Christine couldn't deny the uncanny resemblance.
Shambling, gasping, no longer alive but certainly not dead. Compelled like a puppet by their own caskets to kill and consume what wasn't them. Christine grew dizzy and the atmosphere got thicker. She took shaky steps down the stairs, shoulders tensing when each masked face turned her way. Skin growing clammy, she tried to compose herself, tried to center herself, but the noise, the chatter, the whispers, the lights and shadows saturating to something right out of her nightmares—She nearly jumped three feet in the air when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Excuse me, ma'am? Do you need help?"
She turned. There he was. Silver hair and beard, old and wrinkled with sunspots littering his face.
Elijah?
"No!"
The room went quiet and all faces, mask or not, turned to Christine at her outburst.
This was even worse. Without thinking she bolted for the door. She needed air. Next thing she knew, she was sitting on the rim of the fountain with her head in her hands.
Why? Why did it have to happen now? When could she do this without…freaking out?
She felt another hand on her shoulder, but this time she didn't jump. This time she knew exactly who it was.
"I'm sorry…I ruined everything…"
"Oh, babe…" Veronica slid next to her, rubbing her back gently. "Are you all right? What happened?"
"I just wanted to do something nice for you. Take you out so we could be fancy and have fun and forget all the messed-up shit that we've been put through," Christine said, frustration bringing tears to her eyes. "Because all you ever do is help me. Because even doing the dishes gives me flashbacks; how—why do you put up with me?"
Veronica let her vent, listening quietly.
"When I look in the mirror, I don't recognize who's staring back. Even my voice was stolen from me. How can you like me when I'm not even the me from before?"
"Christine…" She chose her words carefully. "When you left the Brotherhood, it took a full week to realize how stupid I was for not leaving with you. And that realization grew with each passing day. By the time I joined the Followers, words couldn't describe my regret for not leaving with you. And even though now I know the real reason you left, that doesn't change all the missed time. Everyone changes over time and you've probably changed more than anyone. But do you know who I see when I look at you?"
"I…" Christine didn't know what to say, she was so lost and Veronica was the anchor she didn't feel she deserved.
"I see some of the woman I first fell head over heels for, but I also see the survivor she's become. If you need help surviving sometimes, then I will always be there for you because I'm not about to make the mistake of letting you out of my sight again. Chrissy...How could I not absolutely love everything about you?"
Veronica took a deep breath after her little speech. Christine didn't know what to say, but she felt a little better about clinging to her anchor.
"Tonight was the best night I've had in a long time, and you planned everything perfectly!" Veronica smiled, hugging Christine closer and kissing her cheek. "But can we please go home now so I can take these damn heels off?"
The moon was high in the sky, but sunlight filled Christine. It was so intense she felt like she would explode. But she followed her sunlight home.
I hope you liked that! Seems like I can't seem to write fluff without dusting a little angst in there ^^;