On Thin Ice
Chapter 1: Memories and Mistakes
Things weren't what Ruby had expected out of her life. Then again who could really plan for nuclear war to happen, your husband to be shot in front of your eyes and your son stolen. Everything that ever was, that could ever be, was taken from Ruby. Yet when she woke from that Vault, stumbling out into the new world like a newborn. That 32 year old, former lawyer had to learn quick to defend herself. Initially her saving grace in the harsh world had been her old butler robot, Codsworth. He was what held Ruby together during the trying times, and what had held her from wanting to jump off the deep end of going crazy. The innocent mind from which Ruby had emerged slowly developed into a hard edged fighter. Her eyes grew darker, deep gashes trailed down her face that would soon develop into scars. She even went as far as to cut her hair to the base of her nape. Everything that her dead husband would of probably cried over. Yet this was no longer the past, this was the future and this hard edged fighter needed to look forward.
That 32 year old former lawyer found herself sitting at the very bar called The Third Rail. Her hands slowly snaked into her hair, those dark hues closed. She had been sleep deprived, everything still was a learning curve for her. She once wouldn't even dare graced these type of places. Looking up the woman's hues gazed over at Magnolia, a curvy woman donning a red dress that sparkled just perfectly when the light hit it. It reminded Ruby of the very shoes that were worn in the classic movie 'The Wizard of Oz'. Funny story, Ruby always wondered if her mother's love for that movie had influenced her name. She would never know. Magnolia's voice had a sweet velvety tone to it, the type to cause the tensest person to relax. Sitting up in her stool, Ruby's hues darted back over to the Mr. Handy floating effortlessly in front of her. His eye lenses constricting.
"Charlie, I'll have another." Ruby motioned for a beer.
"Still tastes like crap." The Handy responded.
Cracking open the beer and pulling off the cap, Ruby slipped it into her pocket. Her hues noticed a form settling down beside her, her vision was beginning to grow fuzzy from the excess alcohol she had been drowning herself in.
"Are you going to be ok in this condition?"
It was Nick.
The woman had seemingly formed a habit of picking up companions. She was alright if nobody wanted to travel along with her, she had Codsworth after all. First it was the stray dog, then it was Piper and now Nick. They stuck to her side like a magnet. Everyone was so eager to learn about her and teach her the world as she was eager to learn about it. Nobody was missing out on anything.
"I.. should probably sleep it off before we continue on.." Ruby tipped her head, those dark hues gazing over Nick's fuzzy form.
She could tell the Synth was judging her.
Simply melding minds with Nick so they could access what was in Kellogg's memory had caused the woman to want to escape from reality, even for a few hours. She didn't care to see her husband shot to death and her kid stolen from her once again. Once was enough to live through. She hoped Nick would understand this.
"Nick, I'll be fine. I'll meet you up at the Hotel in a few hours." Ruby smiled weakly, her dark hues glazed over. She could see the hesitation in the Synth's face.
Patting her on the shoulder, Nick stood up from his stool and nodded.
"I'll hold you to it."
"Yeah." She whispered.
Ruby watched Nick's worn down form leave the club and disappear from sight. Turning her head back towards the bar, the woman dazed off, watching the small flames from Charlie's engine erupt, keeping his body afloat. The Mr. Handy buzzed behind the bar, his clamps spinning around as he washed out the cups. The woman could feel her mind wondering as to how Codsworth was doing. She left him back at Sanctuary, yet he didn't put up much of a tiff when she said she was going to venture off with Nick. He seemed quite supportive of her other companion. She knew he would most likely scold her out if he saw her in this state, saying she needed to straighten herself up so she could search for her son. The thought of Codsworth being angry with her brought a weak smile to her face, he always cared for her and the family. Even if it was programmed in, the longer she spent with him the more she figured it was genuine. Time had a funny way of changing things.
Ruby took another deep swig of her beer when she caught glimpse of a red frock moving past her and sitting down. Her brown glazed hues darted over to the form, her cheeks red from the alcohol, fitting for her name.
"Hey there sister, looks like you've acquainted yourself with Charlie already." The hoarse voice called out to her in her fuzzy state. Closing her eyes and sighing inwardly she waved her free hand.
"Couldn't resist." she mumbled.
"You look like you could use some work. Whenever you feel like it, meet me at the Statehouse. I'll hook you up." The voice grew smooth.
"Thanks."
"Sure thing."
The woman gazed over her shoulder, watching the Ghoul walk away from her. She appreciated the thought. Needing all the caps she could get her hands on, she accepted whatever work she could get. So long she wasn't out killing anyone innocent. Drumming her fingers on the bar, Magnolia's music began to play once more, taking the edge off of her nerves.
While this world was new to her, and had been presented with some tough challenges, Ruby accepted everything with open arms. Nick was a Synth, she never judged him for one moment about it. Ruby was an open minded person, it's what made her a good lawyer. Despite everyone's growing outcries about Synths infiltrating everywhere, the Commonwealth probably needed someone with a fresh pair of eyes. Ghouls were no different to the woman. She was initially shocked to find them wondering around. Ruby never did once judge them for it and had learned quickly they where no really different then any other human. Just lived longer and had a fantastic resistance to radiation. Ruby probably fit into Goodneighbor just a bit to well.
#
Ruby stumbled into the hotel room, softly closing the door behind her, her blurry gaze caught the glimpse of two glowing eyes in the dark corner of the room. Feeling an itch to grab her rifle, she immediately stopped herself, it was Nick.
"It's four in the morning, isn't that usually a time you should reserve for sleeping?" The Synth asked.
"I got caught up.." Ruby shrugged off her leather jacket, laying it over the back of one of the many chairs that adored the room. Turning herself, the woman slowly sank down into the bed, letting out a comforting groan. Pulling the strap to her rifle back around her shoulder, she gently set it down along side the floor, next to the bed. Ruby never ventured far from it.
"Mmm." The woman could hear the disapproval in Nick's voice. He had been trying to get her to sleep more for the sake of her own health. Not because he was trying to be controlling of her life.
Leaning back against the wall, she kicked her boots off and stretched out on the bed, those glazed dark eyes appearing off into the distance.
"Hancock offered me some work. I could use the caps." Ruby looked over at Nick, a brow raising.
"Well, he isn't exactly the type I'd like getting involved with, but he does keep his word. At least he's honest." Nick sighed, pulling out a cigarette from his pocket.
Ruby watched Nick light it up, the embers cascading gentle glows over his face. The woman could feel the pull of sleep the longer she remained relaxed.
"Mmm." Nick mumbled once more.
"Thoughts?" Ruby perked up.
"You need to sleep… get some proper sleep. I will be out in the lobby if you need me." Nick stood up, taking a long drag of his cigarette and softly blowing it out.
"Alright." Ruby mumbled, her eyes already closing before Nick could shut the door closed.
#
Traitor…
Bobbie No Nose had led her right into a trap. The dumb woman kept everyone in the dark, breaking into one of the very warehouses owned by the Mayor. Fahrenheit had met the group, looking like she was about ready to gun everyone down. This wasn't something Ruby was wanting on her record. Gathering allies was what she needed, not enemies. Nick had warned her about this kind of crap. Yet the woman was still learning about who was who. If it hadn't of been for her quick wit, she managed to get Bobbie to run off and Fahrenheit to stand down long enough to hear her out. Despite Fahrenheit being hard around the edges, Ruby had not expected to walk out of this encounter with a Mini gun. Her ass sure had been on the line.
Now sitting back in her hotel room, the Ash-Maker sitting next to the bed, the woman's dark hues darted from the unsure gaze from Nick. She was sure she wasn't getting in anyones good graces if she continued down this path. She had felt like she was making one mistake after another. Hell the whole journey so far had been a mistake. Ruby knew her cryo pod malfunctioned, a mistake that saved her life while everyone else died. It was a mistake she ran into Piper, which lead her to Valentine. Now her latest mistake landed her in hot water with the Mayor and a killer looking gun, which she could hardly carry around as it was.
"I should of listened to you Nick, I knew better then to trust some random woman offering me a job. Specially if I didn't know the circumstances of it." Ruby sighed, her dark hues gazing up at her partner.
"You just need to be a bit more careful is all. You can't go around trusting everyone." Nick tipped his head.
Standing up from the bed, Ruby ran her finger's through her dark brunette tresses. Dropping her hands back to her sides, she looked over at Nick sighing inwardly.
"Well I suppose I better go check in with the Mayor. Im sure he won't be happy with this mess." Ruby shook her head.
The woman left the hotel, leaving Nick behind. This was her own mistake and she wanted to handle it on her own. Walking over to the Old State house, she hesitated once reaching the door, taking a deep breath before walking in.
Authors Note:
There we have it, I just jumped right in. I've never really been good when it came to my starting out chapters. If you've read any of my other stories you know I seem to have a theme going on with people who wake up from the freezer to only face the future with uncertainty. Don't worry I have not abandoned any of my other stories, just needed to get into writing something a bit more fresh. I hope you enjoy!