A/N: New chapter! Thanks for reading!
I don't own Fallout: New Vegas and any of its characters.
Her bed was even softer than she remembered, Charlie thought as she pressed herself underneath the green satin covers. Rex was already asleep near her feet, his legs twitching every few minutes, probably running though someplace much more comfortable than the Mojave in his dream. Charlie smiled and fluffed her pillows. Normally, she hated to sleep, considered it a waste of time, but today, with nothing else better to do, she was almost excited to shut her eyes and drift away. She could never remember her dreams, only the hazy feelings when she awoke. Perhaps this would be different.
The illusion of a healthy doze vanished when a heavy fist hit her door. It was Boone, Charlie had no doubts about that, and cursed aloud as she pulled an old Pre-War terry robe over her nightdress to answer the knocking.
"One second," She called; stumbling over the dust-ridden shoes she'd left on the floor.
"Charlotte." He greeted with his usual flatness, his eyes hidden behind those aviators despite their being indoors.
"Boone." She replied, ushering him inside.
He'd been calling her Charlotte since they'd first met and she'd made the mistake of telling him her whole first name, or what she vaguely remembered it being. It could've been completely wrong for all she knew. Charlie couldn't completely recall her last name, only knew a few syllables, but that was the least of her memory loss. Her family, her friends, her real home, it was all gone. Maybe it was a blessing, but Charlie never could really fool herself into believing it.
He looked around her room, the act making her nervous. Boone was judging her based upon a place that she hardly ever used, a bedroom wasn't even her own, a place she'd stolen from Mr. House. How long it'd been since anybody had used it, she didn't know. The space didn't represent Charlie in any way. She didn't know how to say that without sounding like a complete lunatic.
"The dog sleeps. I have never seen him do that." Boone pointed, and Rex perked his ears for a brief moment.
"He'll only sleep when he feels safe. This place is armed to the teeth. Yes-Man has us covered."
"I do not trust the computer."
Another thing to add to the ever-growing list, Charlie thought. "What brings you up here? Checking out the defenses?"
"Charlotte, where did you go?"
"Hidden Valley."
Boone seemed almost frustrated. "So you didn't take the monorail back to Camp McCarran for a few days."
"Not a bit."
"The old bunkers at Hidden Valley, that's where you found them then? Alone?"
"Yeah, this idiot found them all by herself. What a fucking miracle, huh? It just came to me, like in a daydream. It didn't involve carefully watching the whole compound from a ridge to the east and spotting a power suit through a sandstorm. Nope. Sheer dumb luck." She didn't mean it to sound so juvenile.
"I didn't say anything like that. Calm down." He gave her a reproachful glance. "When I was conscripted into your service, you said that it was because snipers work in teams. To fight Caesar, we needed to fight together. You said that."
"I did."
"Just to earn my favor or because you genuinely meant it?"
"I did mean it, Boone. I didn't think you'd approve of the Brotherhood. Moore just wanted me to blow them up. I couldn't do it. How could I just annihilate a group of people I know next to nothing about? That makes us just as bad as Caesar. Worse."
"You think before you act, mostly. Talk before you shoot. I understand that. I do not understand your compulsion to elude me with you every action. You promised that we'd destroy the Legion together, and I realize there are many roads we must pass before we march towards Caesar's death. The NCR's old enemies are our allies. We need anyone who will to fight the Legion. Great Kahns, Powder Gangers, fuck, even some willing Fiends will do. If they pledge allegiance to you, to the NCR, who am I to judge? Is there any way to convince you of that, Charlie?"
She'd never heard her name like that, the careful way that he pronounced it, the gentle tone of his voice. Charlie thought for a second that it was the first time the seven letters felt like they truly belonged to her. It was also the first time that Boone had said anything beyond a sentence to her, words with inflection and meaning. She wasn't quite sure how to interpret all of it. A strange feeling pinned itself between her shoulder blades, impossible to move but not altogether uncomfortable.
"You never talk to me," Charlie started, looking up at him but then retracting her gaze, "I don't know how to respond to that. I have no idea what you're thinking. Damn it, Rex is more communicative than you, Boone."
"This is all you need to know: I have your back. I said it when we left Novac and I still mean it."
"Thank you."
He nodded, turning to leave, but stopped. Charlie wasn't sure whether to escort him out or just stand there, her dirty shirt sticking to the sweat that was collecting on her chest. She'd have to ask Yes-Man to adjust the air conditioning.
"Where are your weapons? Normally you leave them within ten feet of the front door. Nothing's there."
"My power fist is in pieces in Arcade's tent at Old Mormon Fort. My combat knife is stuck in some Cazador outside Freeside. I didn't have the time or state of mind to take it back. I didn't bring a gun."
"Charlotte." He growled her whole name, shaking his head.
"I know, I know. Arc already gave me the whole 'stop being such a giant fuck-up' speech already. When I left, I didn't think a pistol was worth it. I can't shoot worth a shit anyhow. The only place I ever manage to put bullets is the dirt. And my head, although I didn't do that, actually."
Benny's suit was hung over the arm of the couch, the checkered coat almost touching the floor. She wasn't sure why she took it, but it was there afterwards, still crumpled on the floor where Benny stripped and crawled into his bed. Charlie had already unclothed, wearing just her underwear, feeling nauseous. It had been the easiest way to get what she wanted, the best way to get him someplace isolated. Christ, her mouth had frozen when they met in the hallway, the black and white of his jacket making her eyes spin. Charlie imagined confronting the man that shot her dozens of times, dreamt of clasping her hands around his neck until he no longer lived, hitting him so hard that his brains scrambled, even Boone's rifle placing a single bullet hole between his eyes. But no, all she could think to do was lead with her weakest foot, her sexuality, and Benny had actually accepted. She asked Boone to wait in the lobby, and she followed Benny to the presidential suite on the thirteenth floor.
It was when Benny kissed her that Charlie knew she couldn't go through with it. The man tried to kill her and she was going to fuck him to get what she needed. No, she wouldn't do it. Couldn't. Her every muscle locked, the painful tension blooming into fury. Benny's dry lips scraping her skin, kissing her shoulders and traveling ever lower, she asked to freshen up in the bathroom for a moment, picking up her bag on the way. In the mirror, she couldn't recognize herself, the disheveled hair and gaunt cheekbones. Charlie shivered, her skin too bare for where she was. There were only two ways out of the room, and she wasn't sure which was the right one. Fuck him or kill him. Maybe a third, a combination, fuck him and then kill him. Trying not to dry heave, Charlie pulled the silenced .22 from her canvas backpack, which Boone had pressed into her hands as soon as they first stood outside the Tops.
"Take it. Hide it inside your jacket. They're going to take our guns when we enter, but hide it and they won't know." Boone commanded, his mouth tugged into a serious line.
"I don't know that I'll need it. Maybe Benny will just give the platinum chip back."
"He meant to murder you to obtain it, so I don't think he will have any doubts in trying a second time."
Boone was right. Benny tried to place a bullet in her brain but didn't succeed. This was his casino, he had weapons everywhere, Benny nearly brandished the engraved silver pistol when Charlie entered the room. It was a warning. I'll put you in your grave again, the gun said without words, and this time I'll make sure you stay. She couldn't reason with Benny, and she certainly couldn't bring herself to sleep with him. It was the only way. It was all she could do. Tears welled in her eyes, the emotion completely irrational, and Charlie exited the bathroom, hiding the gun behind her pack.
Four shots. One embedded itself in the wall, one caught his shoulder, and two stuck themselves in his chest. Benny fell, not dead yet, but close. He wouldn't survive, Charlie was sure of that. Blood pooled at her bare feet as she stood above his body, angry with herself for being so soft, for nearly failing to pull the trigger. Charlie wasn't weeping for Benny, no; she cried for the girl that he had killed in Goodsprings, the one that she couldn't remember. Tears running down her cheeks, Charlie bent down to pry the chip from his fingers.
"You stupid bitch. I should've dug that grave a little deeper. I should've shot you a little harder. You should be the one lying on the ground bleeding to death, Courier. This should be you." He sputtered, blood running down the corner of his mouth, breathing becoming raspy.
"But you didn't. I'm still here. The fucking Courier that you tried to execute, she killed you. Let me ask you one thing; was it worth it, Benny? Was it worth it? Maybe I'll kill Mr. House; maybe I'll work with him. But you'll never know. You'll be dead. You'll rot in this room and nobody will ever know what really happened to you."
"You stupid bitch," He repeated so very slowly, and Charlie knew that the effort to try to wound her finally killed him. His chest stopped rising.
She collected her clothes, making sure to smooth her hair and wipe her eyes. Platinum chip safe, Charlie looked across the room, Benny's gun and his suit catching her eye. The gun, which had the name Maria etched on the barrel, got thrown into her bag. Balling up his clothing, she added it to her items and left the room, locking the door behind her and snapping her cardkey in half. After tossing it into the garbage, she took the elevator back downstairs, collecting Boone on her way out.
It seemed so long ago now, the ensemble just collecting dust in her room. She'd never touch it again, Charlie thought, and noticed Boone following her stare. He didn't know what happened in the Tops, and never asked. Maybe he did have an idea, and it was the one time Charlie was relieved by his silence.
"Once Gannon gives you the okay, I'll teach you to hit your target."
She was ready to protest, but something reminded to her agree. "Fine. I'll do it."
Boone didn't say anything else as he left her. Charlie felt something shift between them. Maybe life would be easier. Maybe it wouldn't, but she tried not to believe that.
