~A Moment of Renewed Peace~

Danse and Leon had found a home. A home where they could live in peace. Or so they thought. They had just chosen to build a home in Sanctuary. They had a pretty nice sized house. It had two floors, four bedrooms*, three bathrooms, and one kitchen. With other rooms, as any house would have. It was perfect. Leon loved it and Danse had never had a house of his own before, so he was extremely happy with it.

Monsoon season was starting, and they both loved the rain. So the built a balcony, so that they could sit outside and feel the rain.

None of the settlers knew about their relationship, but Leon's companions, weren't your average Wastelander's. They were very perceptive about this kind of thing. But they kept quiet about it. They didn't know how everyone would react to it.

As they watched the sun start to set, the two inched closer and closer. They held each other's hands. It had been so long since they've had this kind of alone time. Time where, enemies, guards, other companions, and anyone else was present. It was a time that they both cherished. The other companions, were watching from a distance. They wanted them to have contact again, as Liberty Prime had just demolished the Institute. Everyone was exhausted.

So they all decided to go back to Sanctuary, and just rest for a while. Of course they still made trips to Diamond City and The Prydwen, along with other various locations. The companions made sure to take care of the settlers when Danse and Leon were gone.

As the rain started to come down a little more, the two were feeling so in sync. They hadn't had time like this in 6 months. Sure they had days where it was them alone, but they had to be ready to engage enemies at moments notice. This was pure bliss for them. They weren't about to let a moment like this be wasted.

Leon rested his head on Danse's shoulder. Danse returned the action by kissing Leon's head.

The sunset was a bright orange and red. The two were thinking about what they wanted to do after this. They might go inside and enjoy an Ice cold Nuka-Cola. Or they could just fall asleep out here, they had an awning covering the balcony, so they could use that to keep them dry.

Deacon, for one thing was bothering them by asking if they needed anything,

"You guys need any water?"

"No, but thanks."

"Any Nuka-Cola?"

"No thank you."

"I know what ya need, how about some more Ragnarok!? Everyone loves Ragnarok."

"Not interested Deacon."

"You two drive a hard bargain...Hmmm. Oh how about condoms?"

"DEACON!"

He set a box of condoms down on the table next to them

They both are very confused and Danse is very red. He has never had this sort of thing happen to him. After all, this is his first relationship.

Nothing too serious happened that night. They spent the rest of the night outside in the rain.

After they had fallen asleep, the other companions had snuck in and covered them up with blankets and given them pillows. Piper had left a little box on the table near Leon, for when he woke up.

While he was asleep, Danse must've wrapped his arms around Leon, and they had a wonderful night of sleep.

Once they woke up, they noticed they were covered in blankets, and had pillows with them. They didn't question it. Stranger things had happened, like the time they woke up and had notes and flowers surrounding their bed. Leon took notice of the box by his head and grabbed it. He flipped it over and all he saw was the picture that Piper drew of them sleeping. She was quite the artist. He gave a quiet laugh. He hid it behind him as they got up.

He understood what this meant. They had been traveling for over a year now. While their relationship status was a bit confusing, they both knew that, no matter what, they'd both be there for each other. Through the thick and thin. Like best friends who were thrown into a sea of darkness, but they managed to find the light they needed to make it through. They found the light that they needed to pierce the darkness, yet somehow the two never managed to get rid of the little bits of darkness they had in them.

It was only an hour after they had awoken and something felt off. Everyone felt fine, but something bad was going to happen. They couldn't place a finger on it. And then all at once it hit them. Quite literally in fact. The Institute had more synths to fight for them. The companions ushered away all the settlers, and they all went into a basement hidden in Sanctuary. It was called Sanctuarium. It was an underground safehaven. Strong, X6 and Codsworth stayed behind to tend to the wounded. Cait, Piper, Deacon, Maccready and Curie all went to help fight. Of course since Curie is a synth, they didn't target her, so she was able to attack them from behind. Maccready and Cait were a ferocious team. Never once did the latter let the other get hit. Deacon was working with Piper to create an electrical current to shock the Synths. They managed to get this to work, however, one of the Synths shot the water tower, it dumped the water on Piper, and since they were in the middle of a fight, they didn't have time to realize that water and electricity, don't mix. Deacon activated the electrical field, and in that moment he realized Piper was still soaking wet. He had no time to turn it off, the shock was instantaneous.

He saw her go rigid and scream out in terror and pain. He felt something inside of him die. He was mortified. He shot the generator and ran over to Piper's warm body. He didn't know if she was warm because of the shock, or if it was normal body temperature.

He screamed out in pure sorrow. Curie was closest to them, so she ran over and helped them. She noticed that Piper was not breathing. She had a faint pulse. They moved her over into the nearest house. They barricaded the doors and Curie had a health kit with her, so she tried to find something to help her get Piper breathing again. Deacon, was crying, and silently cursing. He would do anything to have her back. No one knew, but he had always been interested in Piper. They always made jokes, they always laughed at each other, and they just always got along.

Curie had noticed Deacon's condition, and she told him to grab some water, and paper towels. He quickly ran to the kitchen and came back. Curie thanked him. Deacon felt nauseous so he went outside to protect them incase any Synths were around. He took a few down, and that seemed to be it. The others were coming over to him, Leon had a look of pure anger and sorrow on his face. He must've seen what happened. He heard someone gasp, and he ran back inside, and he saw her breathing. She coughed up blood a few times, but in that moment, he was right by her side. Wiping the blood from her face. She had burns in numerous places, but he'd worry about that later. He gave Curie a gracious amount of gratitude, and she said that she wasn't going to let her die.

Leon came inside and saw that everything was ok. Deacon told him that they would talk later. He nodded and walked out.

Danse returned to their house and had gotten out of his power armor. He had some blood on his face, but nothing too grim. He was about to go take a shower when, he noticed a box on a table in their living room. He was going to grab it when Leon came in. He immediately went over to Danse and gave him a big hug. He returned it by squeezing him a little harder.

They went to go shower together, and afterwards, they went to go sit on their bed. Leon had something that he needed to share with Danse.

"Hey, Danse, there's something I need to discuss with you."

He wasted no time in getting straight to the point.

"Elder Maxson contacted me and asked me to help with a new mission of theirs. So, I'm going to help them. I want you to stay here and make sure everyone is safe. I'm really sorry that this is such short notice. After this mission, that'll be it for awhile. I promise."

"Don't be sorry. I completely understand. After all you are part of the Brotherhood. It's your duty to help with big missions. Just come back alive. I look forward to having more time with you, without any distractions." Danse said, with a hint of sadness in his voice.

"I will, don't worry. I love you Danse."

"I love you too, Leon."

After Leon left, Danse felt lonely, he wasn't used to feeling this way. So he went to go check on Piper. She was happy to see him. He was happy to see her… Happy. They talked for awhile and then she started getting tired, so he let her rest.

He went to Deacon's house, and the first thing he noticed was that there was no music. He knocked on the door and there was no answer. He knocked again, and finally he heard footsteps coming closer. What he saw when the door opened, made Danse realize that even people who come from military background have feelings that can change as quickly as now.

Deacon was a mess, his hair was sagging, it was hanging in his face. His sunglasses were all smudged. His clothes were dirty. Nothing was right about this picture. Deacon, just told him to come in. Not even a joke or a hello. Now, it wasn't surprising to Danse, when Deacon told him that he really, really enjoyed being around Piper. Even though Danse and Deacon didn't agree on everything, he couldn't stand seeing deacon like this. It made him think back to what happened only a month ago, with him and Leon. So he decided to take Deacon out for a day or two.

He told the other companions to look after the settlers, and that he'd be back in a day or two.

They went to his bunker, and the second they got down to Danse's floor, he turned around and opened up his arms and Deacon understood. He ran into his arms and gave Danse one of the biggest hugs he'd ever received. He started crying and explaining to Danse what had happened. Danse had no idea that this had happened, he knew Piper was hurt, but not this badly.

He fell asleep in his arms, so he picked him up and laid him down on his old mattress and put a blanket over him. He too soon fell asleep.

The next morning, everything was fine. Or so they thought. Danse walked outside and noticed that it was oddly cooler, than before. He checked the date. It was two weeks later. Something stirred behind him. When he turned around, fear began to rise within him. Fear, confusion, and heartbreak.

And how can I stand here with you and not be moved by you

There, now standing in front of him, was Leon. Holding a laser rifle, aimed right at Danse.

"So, Danse… When were you going to tell me you're a Synth?"

His stomach dropped. He had so many thoughts flowing through his head and he felt a whirlwind of emotion.

"I-I what?! This can't be!" exclaimed Danse.

"Well, Proctor Quinlam, wouldn't lie to me, or the Brotherhood."

Danse could see, and he could almost feel Leon's pain. His heartbreak, his fear and sorrow.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity of silence, Leon spoke up.

You know… Maxson ordered me to find and execute you. You know how much I hate the Institute, Danse" Leon said

Danse was on his knee, head in his hands. He knew what happened in these situations. All Synths were to be executed on the spot. But, Leon was hesitating. Was it because he loved him? Or was it because, if he killed Danse, he'd be alone? He'd never find out. Leon dropped his rifle. He walked over to Danse and put something on his neck. It shot into his neck and he could feel something prying around. Like it was trying to extract something.

He looked up and never, had he ever seen a face as full with sorrow and sheer pain, in his life.

They were both crying.

"Danse, you have no idea how much I'm hurt. I never wanted any of this to happen. I love you so, so goddamn much, you know that?" Leon struggled to say those last few words, it was hard to speak and almost be choking at the same time.

"Leon, I know you. I know how dedicated to the Brotherhood you are. You would never disobey a direct order from the Elder. I know you will make the right decision. Whatever you do, please know, that I'm so happy and lucky that we met. I'm so happy that we got to know each other. Thank you for standing by my side in my times of grief. I… I love you too.

Not even a kiss or hug good-bye.

Leon, struggling to stand, let alone even breathe, picked up his weapon, and aimed it straight for where Danse would have a heart. Danse took off his Holotags and tossed them over to Leon. Leon looked down and a tear rolled down his cheek. He put his finger on the trigger and he recalled all the moments he and Danse spent together. He shook his head and gave one last look at this Danse. The first Danse he'd met. But not the last. He'd make sure of that.

He aimed. He took a deep breath. And he pulled the trigger. Danse made no noise. He just slumped to the ground. Leon bent down and picked up the Holotags. He threw his weapon as far away as possible. He ran over to Danse's body. And retrieved the little device he put on his neck.

Little did Danse know, it took a full body scan of him. It took everything. His personality, his thoughts, his feelings even. He'd have to find another Synth to implant this in.

When he put the device in his pocket, he picked his body up, and pulled him over to the wall of his bunker. He wrapped his arms around Danse and hugged him so tightly. Tears streaming down his face. He had just killed the best thing that had happened to him since Nora. He let out silent moans and sobs of frustration of grief and agony. He had become his own worst enemy. He found Deacon asleep inside and woke him up and told him to get to Sanctuary, as quickly as he could.

He pulled Danse's lifeless, motionless body to his mattress. He pulled up a chair and put a cover over Danse. With just his head showing.

The only thing he remembered when he woke up was, having his cheeks stained by his tears, and him having the worst headache and heartache.

And then he turned around. And it all came back to him. He quickly stood up and backed away, subsequently hit a shelf, causing it to hit him in the back. The device he had in his pocket flew out, and landed within his reach, he saw a shadow become more profound and looked up. He saw a bucket of paint start to fall. He was not about to screw everything up. So he put his hand over the device, and the paint can hit it. With such force, it resulted in a broken hand, but he wasn't worried about his hand. Only the device. It wasn't broken. But then he looked in the doorway. His whole world turned upside down, as if it hadn't flipped its axis enough times.

There standing in the doorway was none other than, Arthur Maxson.

"So, Knight. You've lied to me before about not having any sexual or non sexual relationships with anything non human. And what do I find here."

"S-sir, please, hear me out. You have no idea what he meant to-"

"Paladin Danse, is not a 'he', it's a machine. A machine is incapable of showing love!"

"Listen to me! I've spilled blood for the Brotherhood numerous times. I think you owe me this." Leon was pleading.

"Very well, I'm listening, Knight."

"I'm sorry that I lied. But, being with Danse made me so happy. You saw me when I first came on board the Prydwen. I was a complete mess. He helped me with that. He helped me change. Please, believe that." Leon had come out with the truth.

So, I'm led to believe that, a machine, helped you change who you are?" Maxson had a questionable tone in his voice.

After a moment, he said that he would believe him on one condition.

Leon perked up at hearing this

"I will believe everything you've said here, so long as you give me that, device."

And just as soon as relief came over Leon it faded away, into pure sorrow

"No, no, no… Please, Elder. Anything but that. I'm begging you." At this point, he was in tears, he could not afford to lose this.

He felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. He realized that Maxson was directly in front of him.

"I'm sorry, Leon. But it's for the best if you always comply with Brotherhood orders. You were such a good soldier. But your time is up." Maxson said in a deep monotone voice.

Leon started to realize what just happened. He'd been stabbed. By his leader. He had lost everything. He lost the one thing he cared for, Danse. He saw Maxson take the device, and drop it on the ground. He lifted up one foot, and he let it fall. He let one tear fall. And then he let the darkness claim him.

Piper looked out her window. She saw a drop of water on it. Followed by more and more. She started crying. Deacon, was on his way back and he felt the rain, he too started to cry. Preston and Cait, both felt something inside them, and they understood. Dogmeat, went over to Piper, and laid his head in her lap.

She got up and started limping out the door. Cait and Preston saw her, they were going to try and stop her, but they felt their comrades anger and despair, so they joined her, and helped her walk, after about passing three houses, Codsworth, Strong and X6, saw them and understood what was happening. They, too, joined in. Curie and Dogmeat both ran to their companions sides. Hancock and Macready grabbed some weapons and stimpacks. Nick was already on the move looking for Deacon

We have someone to save" said Piper. They all ran out out of Sanctuary and made their way to Listening Post Bravo.

As they ran, they fought many mutants, ferals, Synths, Deathclaws even, you name were nearing the Post when they picked up a signal. Piper, Nick and Macready all fell down, and started crying, Nick, cursed under his breath. It was Nora's holotape for Leon. it had just ended, and it was set to replay. All of the companions heard it. After a few seconds, they saw Maxson, leave, and he walked up to his Vertibird, and flew to the Prydwen. They all rushed into the elevator, some running down the stairs. They all saw the same sight at the same time. They split up and went after the two, now motionless bodies. Deacon saw blood coming out from Leons stomach, and he was about to use a stimpack on himself, but he stabbed it into Leon's leg. The wound started healing up. Nick, Curie and X6 looked terrified, and sad. They couldn't get Danse to move. That's when Leon let out the most heartbreaking scream ever. He was rendered blind from all the trauma, so he couldn't see them. He screamed out Danse's name again. He passed out. They had to find a way to get them back to Sanctuary.