Author's Note: I've come to realise that it is immensely hard to write a fanfiction containing characters whose personalities are left up to the creator, the Courier for example. And I sometimes feel like it's a form of masturbation via story *looks around awkwardly*. So, in order to fuel my stress without annoying myself, which writing about characters I love does, I am going to try to write a slash fiction for the first time. I know that this genre can attract a few haters but I am prepared to battle off the shit storm if it means a few people enjoy it. :D

This is going to be a pre-Legion story about Joshua Graham X Caesar/Edward Sallow, if the topic makes bee's buzz in your bonnet then I suggest going elsewhere, otherwise ENJOY! As always I highly appreciate critique, though do try to be gentle about it since my self-esteem can only handle so much bruising and bashing. I'm also going to try and keep them in character and make the situations realistic, but since we don't know a whole lot about pre-Legion Graham and Edward it leaves a lot up to my imagination. *shuts up and raises the curtain*

"


He walked out in the grey light and stood and he saw for a brief moment the absolute truth of the world. The cold relentless circling of the intestate earth. Darkness implacable. The blind dogs of the sun in their running. The crushing black vacuum of the universe. And somewhere two hunted animals trembling like ground-foxes in their cover. Borrowed time and borrowed world and borrowed eyes with which to sorrow it." - The Road.

"If your enemy is hungry, feed him, if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good," the last lines of the scripture were sung from Graham's mouth like a soothing lullaby. All too often the man had to take solace in the words of God, they provided a warmth and comfort that transcended the capabilities of the mortal world and helped bring him faith and hope when faced with otherwise sombre situations. The Mormon knew a little too well that bad things happened to good people and that sometimes evil people prospered whilst the innocent perished, it was simply the way the world worked and a notion he had long since accepted. Have pity for all creatures, Graham would preach, for some suffer too much and others too little – but that's not to say he was always humble about it. Most evil people were seldom content to receive his generosity and pity, and it would have been extremely easy for the man to turn his nose up at such depravity, but that wasn't the Mormon's way nor was it the way he had been taught to behave. Even when in the presence of someone as petulant and harsh as a pissed off super mutant, he vowed to offer up a sympathetic word and a helpful hand. But by God, should he find the nerve to take the Lords name in vain, Edward sure knew how to pluck and twist at his beliefs.

The man was insufferable, to word things kindly, intolerably arrogant, egotistical, deplorable, and possibly a bit delusional. Barley 20 years old and already the young man's mind had been corrupted by the bleakness of life, his conscience already crippled to the ground and too world weary to hold faith in things such as God and forgiveness. Yes, if Graham had to count all of Edward's faults, of which there were many, and pin-point one as the most important, it would be his lack of forgiveness. While he was undoubtedly intelligent and tactical, traits which suited a good purpose in life, he seemed to lack any genuine joy or compassion. He'd only been travelling with the Follower's for a few days but already that truth had hit him. Often he'd watch Edward as they rested in camp and observe his mannerisms, never once did the man crack a smile or instigate conversation. It was as if the entire world was dead to him and only measurable truth was left of importance, something which would sooner destroy a man as it would enlighten him. Graham had tried to talk with him, he aimed to understand and connect with all people he met in his travels, especially those whom he ended up forming a group with, but the hostile man either ignored his words or took them as some sort of verbal challenge. Pointless conversation seems to irk Edward, and in his mind all conversations that lacked intellectual value were pointless. He had a remarkable habit of downplaying the worth of anything that disinterested him and an even more remarkable habit of turning such things into weaknesses. Of all the people Joshua Graham had met in his life, Edward Sallow was by far the most strange, albeit interesting.

"Overcoming evil with good," the man's petulant voice derailed Grahams train of thought and brought him back down to their current camp site, reminding him of his previous utterance from the book he still held firmly in his hands . "Shouldn't you have ditched such idle fantasies as a child?" Edward huffed and crossed his arms, narrowing his dark eyes in annoyance. "Feed your enemy, does your little group really believe that filth like Raiders and Fiends will be moved by such compassion, or better yet, extent the same courtesy?" It seemed the young man was on the war path and hunting for an argument, and argument his companion wasn't interested in being a part of. After a small moment of silence, Edward finally snapped. "Well?"

"Well what, Edward?" Finally succumbing to the man's prodding, Graham sighed and closed the book, placing it gently in his backpack before looking up to catch the other man's gaze. They were currently alone, though, Edward always seemed to be on his own – whether it was due to the man's general avoidance of others or their avoidance of him Graham would never know. Calhoun had been circling them earlier, trying to chat with Graham and get his advice on their current predicament, but had left quickly after draining whatever advice he could. It had become apparent that the Follower, who was equal parts curious as he was naïve, had no clue about the dangers of the outside world and was constantly second guessing his decisions. Hardly a fitting leader for the group but it wasn't Graham's place to judge. He figured it had been why the Follower's had been so eager to accept his help, having someone who knew the area well was better than stumbling blindly around in hopes of finding whatever it was they were looking for. It had taken a good hour to talk Edward into agreeing to it and even now he doubted the man was anything but frustrated by his presence, perhaps he felt intimidated by what he didn't understand, or simply put off by another person tagging along on an expedition he didn't want to be on in the first place. Both were likely in the Mormon's eyes and right now he sort of wished he hadn't offered to help them so extensively.

"Typical," Edward grunted, rolling his eyes and turning towards the camp fire in a deliberate attempt to show just how much more interesting it was than Graham.

"Do you have a problem, if so you should talk about it, emotional baggage is bad for the soul?" Graham couldn't stop smirking as he watched the man's face go from a look of boredom to a look of rage in what he counted as 2 seconds. It seemed he'd hit a sore spot, something worthy of noting.

"Emotional baggage, don't consider me so easily weighted down, I'm not some weak-willed pissant from some god awful back-water tribe," Edward's voice raised a few decibels as he began to defend himself. "I was merely acknowledging the fact that for being such a holier than thou preacher you hardly defend yourself or your beliefs."

"I do not preach the words of God, let alone to those who has made it blindingly clear they do not wish to hear them," Graham would have to congratulate Edward on genuinely offending him. "And I do not have to defend my beliefs, unlike you I am satisfied with knowing only of my own thoughts and principles, your lack of faith and adversity towards it does not make me uncomfortable." The tension that followed after his final statement could have been cut with a knife, and not even a particularly sharp one. Edward had gone a little red in the face and seemed to be battling with whatever words currently rolled around in his brain, he began to grind his teeth, another perk worthy of noting. Realising he was taking pride in getting under the man's skin, Graham quickly offered up an apology in hopes of not furthering the bleakness of their relationship, even if he'd only given the man the argument upon semantics that he desired. "My apologies, I did not mean to judge you so harshly."

"As if you're the first," Edward barked before Graham could even get his last word out, the man then kicked off of the ground and stormed over his tent with all the flare and drama of a scorned woman. Graham hated to admit it, but he'd been a little taken back by the words Edward had used. They were reminiscent of someone who had often fallen far from people's favour and thus not only become accustomed to it but content with settling for it. Intrigued, Graham turned to Calhoun who had begun to approach him the instant he spotted Edward heading off to bed.

"Joshua," Calhoun used his first name respectfully and thrust some maps of Arizona into his hands. "I was thinking we should take this path tomorrow, do you," he paused, "do you think it's a good choice?" His brown eyes widened in hope of the Mormon's approval, as if awaiting a well done and a pat on the head. Graham offered up no such response and simply nodded in agreement, though that apathetic action alone was enough to make Calhoun smile like a child who'd just been praised. "Great, I'll just tell Patrick-"

"You've known Edward for a long time haven't you?" Graham cut Calhoun off, his gentle voice making an otherwise rude gesture seem candid and acceptable. Running a hand through his dark hair, he didn't budge as the man sat down beside him, folding up the maps he had taken back a few moments ago and tossing them to the floor. "What I mean is," he realised he'd worded the question a little oddly. "You must know him well, being that you are both from the Followers of the Apocalypse in the same area?" Graham didn't know much of how the group operated other than that they tended to occupy large areas and consisted of people from very different backgrounds.

"Well, sort of." Calhoun was unsure as to why their newest companion was suddenly so interested in possibly their most unlikeable member, but didn't avoid the question. "We grew up together though we were never friends, if you can believe it," his cheap attempt at a joke left an awkward silence that he quickly moved on from. "In fact, I don't think I ever spoke more than five words to him before we left for this expedition." Calhoun raised a finger to his mouth as he began to ponder it, tilting his head from side to side. "Some of the other kids used to pick on him when we were younger because he was sort of strange," the head tilting appeared to not be helping with Calhoun's memory. "I remember this one time they graffitied his text book with," he stopped, it dawning on him that Graham probably wouldn't appreciate the cruel pranks of children. "Erm…"

"Family?" Realising that Calhoun would only continue to recall random information, Graham opted to start questioning him instead.

"Oh, I think his Dad died before he came to the Followers but his Mum was around for a while," Calhoun's tone drifted off a little as he shimmied closer to the fire and let it warm his hands. You'd never think the temperature could drop slow low given how hot it was during the day. "His Mum died about 7 years ago from illness, something in her head I think." Being a child himself at the time, it was reasonable that he wouldn't remember much.

"I see," Graham crossed his arms and leaned backwards, processing what he had just learnt. "A sad story, though not entirely uncommon these days," there was a little sympathy in his voice though he did well to hide it. "I myself-," Graham quickly stopped and collected himself, unwilling to divulge the information that had almost slipped from his mouth. "Never mind, thank you for talking to me Bill, it's good to know things about the people you travel." He stood up from the floor and paced past the fire Calhoun was still warming himself by, patting the man on the shoulder in a kind gesture as he did so. "I feel I must retire for the night however, less I not live up to you expectations as a guide tomorrow." They both chuckled and regarded each other with a slow nod before parting ways, Calhoun wandering back over to his friends while Graham went towards the tents. He paused beside Edward's tent, glancing at it nervously as he weighed out the odds of interrupting the volatile man. "Edward?" Deciding to take a gamble, Graham went to pull the tent flap back though was shocked backwards as the thing ripped back on what seemed to be its own accord. Edward's ashen face greeted him in not an overly welcoming manner, his clenched hand holding the material of the flap tightly.

"What is it, Mormon?" The disdain in the usage of his title was palpable though Graham let it slide, not wanting to give Edward more reason to dislike him even if the reasoning was unfair.

"You enjoy reading, yes?" Many a time Graham has spotted the man flicking through a book during their rare moments of rest in the day and then reading intently at night while the others conversed. It was possibly the only thing the two could relate on and a common trait he intended to abuse. "Well, I have some books you might find interesting." Bringing his bag to rest on his knee, Graham began to rummage around for said books, hoping that Edward did indeed find the items at least minimally interesting. "Ah, here we go," he spoke as he brandished one of the books, the red cover of the thing appearing black in the darkness of the night. He watched intently as Edward took it and observed it with interest, his expression otherwise unreadable for a short while.

"The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," Edward spoke the title quickly and then looked to Graham for an explanation. Little knowledge was left over of the Roman Empire and few people cared to learn about it, even Edward considered it a rather boring and primitive civilisation – but then he only knew the dregs of what was there. But reading material was reading material and a welcome way to pass the time; hence Graham was a bit warmed by the rare smile Edward offered to him, a good sign he'd taken the olive branch which had been presented. "What do you want for it?" The smile was gone in an instant and Edward was back on the defence.

Graham held his hands up, letting his bag fall back down to his side as he did so. "I don't want anything, I just noticed that you enjoyed books and thought you might appreciate a new one," he thought for a second. "Think of it as a gift." The reaction of the man now clutching the book and inching back into the tent suggested he wasn't used to such notions. "I can't remember where I picked it up and haven't actually had the time to read it myself, so maybe you can read it and tell me about it." Graham swallowed hard and smiled awkwardly, he'd never found it so hard to be on good terms with someone.

Edward had backed up enough into the tent that he currently had to strain to hold the flap open, he finally responded after dropping the book onto the bedroll beneath his bare feet. "I'll read it, even if it's shit," his terse voice was comfort enough for the Mormon who hadn't really expected any other form of thanks. The man then turned his back on Graham and went to let go of the tent door, a good sign he was ready to crawl back off into his little world. "Thanks," he suddenly retorted, apparently finding it easier to be thankful when not looking at the person.

"You are welcome," Graham managed to respond without stuttering; a little shocked at receiving a thank you from the likes of Edward. "Sleep well." The man then swiftly left, leaving the curious scene behind and travelling towards his own tent.

As Graham walked away he felt as if he'd just climbed the first step towards understanding the atypical Follower of the Apocalypse and was, to say the least, greatly happy about it. Reaching unreachable people and showing them the goodness of God's generosity was in his nature after all and at that moment it seemed as if he'd managed to break through some of the amour Edward put up. A small ray of light, he liked to think, and in the glee of the moment he really had no idea of the rock-slide he had just instigated. Drawing back the material of the door and entering his tent, Graham sat down on his own bedroll and took out one of the scriptures he had been reading previously. He hummed lightly as he traced a delicate finger along a certain line, muttering it without acknowledgment, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad," Graham struggled to read the last line in the current blackness. "So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace," he paused to contemplate the words. "In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Graham finished reading and closed the book, leaning back onto the rather uncomfortable bed. Sleep slowly took over him however thanks to the strenuous day, his body apparently losing its pickiness over what was considering suitable to sleep on and ignoring the stabbing of ricks which pricked his back. 'In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth', the line played over in his head, spinning webs between his thoughts as he drifted off slowly.

terra firma.


Ending Note: *hangs head in shame* I'm sorry that was so short and…well, yeah. I'm trying to get the characters into my head so I can portray them how I think they would have behaved post-Legion-OMGAWD-KILL-EVERYONE! I always pegged Calhoun as a bit meek, especially around the headstrong Edward who I reckon was a bit of an unpredictable dick head xD. Graham on the other hand I saw like an optimistic and wise young man who was all too forgiving of others and willing to accept their faults. I also liked the idea of Graham actually being the one to introduce Edward to the concept of the Roman Empire, I think it would have just added to his guilt later on, knowing he could be considered the cause of everything. Yeah, I don't really have anything else to say other than *takes breath*I PROMISE I'LL GET BETTER. I know I'm not exactly the best writer but I really do try and hopefully you don't hate me now and will leave a review. :D Reviews make me happy!