The Times They Are A-Changin'.

14th November 2270

It was so different now, Lionel reflected, Paradise Falls wasn't just a base of slavers, it was the base of slavers. The population of the Capital Wasteland spoke of it rarely and when they did it was in hushed tones, as though they feared that Eulogy and his lackeys would swoop out of thin air to punish them for their insolence. The bigger the place grew the more work Lionel and Cutter had to do and the more work they did, the more Lionel regretted ever settling here in the first place. Even worse was the fact that John had begun to view their continuing habitation here as assisting the practice of slavery and had become moody and sullen, even more so than was usual for a boy of his age. 16 years old. It had crept up on Lionel so gradually that it seemed like he had blinked and missed his own son's maturation, he'd turned into a fine young man... outspoken, witty and intelligent, he couldn't have been prouder. But John was so angry and bitter over living in Paradise Falls that Lionel wondered whether they should just leave. He shook his head at his own line of thought, they couldn't. John had made the same enquiry, multiple times but he was living in his own idealised world, it was dangerous out there and morals wouldn't save them from Radscorpions or Raiders or Deathclaws or, indeed, slavers. A ruckus outside disrupted his reflection and he heard raised voices before the door of his clinic crashed open.

"Fuck you, you fuckin' assholes, I'll kill you!" Rather predictably, it was John, being dragged away from the target of his ire by Sarah. His swept, blonde hair was wild and hung haphazardly across his face, blood was pouring freely from a cut on his bottom lip and he looked as though he'd been dragged through a bush not just backwards but side-to-side and back-to-front , Sarah, as usual, looked absolutely flawless and was regarding the furious, struggling John with a hint of... respect? What on earth had his son done...?

Lionel's eyes raked over the bizarre scene before him and opened his mouth to address Sarah, "What happened? What's John done?"

John didn't allow his captor the opportunity to speak as he turned livid eyes upon his father. "What I've done is give some fuckers the ass-kicking they deserved." Lionel lips moved wordlessly before he once again turned his head towards Sarah and raised his eyebrows. Sarah gave a small smile before replying, Lionel got the impression that she had mellowed a lot since her arrival, making him think that perhaps her decision to join had been fuelled by rage over an indignity suffered in her recent past or maybe having John buzzing around her for four years had endeared him to her.

"That's a pretty accurate description of what happened, Doc. Jotun and some of the slavers' sons said something to John over by the slave pens, I was too far away to hear what it was but he went berserk and took two of them down before I could drag him away. As you can see, Jotun also got in a fair old whack." Lionel instantly fixed his son with his hardest glare.

"What did they say that got you so riled up? You're better than this." Rather than shrinking away or giving a sheepish grin like Lionel expected him to, the anger in John's eyes increased tenfold.

"I was talking to some of the slaves when Jotun and his dickhead buddies came over, they asked why I was talking to the cattle and that they were only good for selling and fucking. I told that they were all sick fucks and they said..." John's voice faltered before returning with even more venom, "They said that my old man patches them up when they get fucked so it doesn't matter, they still get sold." Lionel's heart sank and he wished with all his heart that he could've been a better father and a better man for this sole beacon of decency in a slaver's hellhole. John fixed his father with an incensed glower.

"Still think I'm better than this? Or were they right? Are you just here to repair the slavers' fucktoys? I mean, it doesn't matter right? They're only slaves!" He then snatched himself out of Sarah's grasp and pointed an accusing finger at her, "and I didn't need your goddamn help!" Sarah stood coolly and implacably prior to her rebuke.

"Who says I was helping you? You were about ready to kill those boys for being ignorant, not enough ammo in the world to kill everyone who's ignorant." Lionel thought that 'ignorant' was perhaps a touch light but he conceded her point, Jotun was probably just recounting something he'd heard his father, Ymir, say. John threw his hands in the air in an expression of exasperation,

"Oh, surprise, the slavers cover each other's backs, god forbid we should remember that there are real people being treated like fucking cattle!" He turned to his father with an expression so pitiful and distraught that Lionel felt his heart breaking, "why are we still here? Why aren't we on the road to anywhere else? Rivet City, Megaton, Arefu, I don't care! Just anywhere where we aren't playing best friends with slavers and letting all this shit happen!" Lionel felt his son's pain, he really did, and had had the same thought more times than he could count but he had to attend to reality.

"I'm sorry, John but..."

"I know, I know, it's too dangerous. Not like living in the lap of fucking monsters, fucking definition of safety there. Fine, but don't expect anyone to save our asses when they turn on us and decide we're worth more inside the pen than out." John sighed before his face contorted in rage and he pointed an accusing finger at his father, "fuck it all and fuck you! All the corpses in the pens, all the rape victims, all the orphans, they're as much your fault as the slavers. I'll get out of here someday even if you're too much of a coward to!"

And with that John stormed out of the clinic, knocking Sarah out of the way as he left, muttering foul curses under his breath. Lionel let out a deep, shuddering sigh and ran his hands down his face before giving a small, sad smile to Sarah. "Thanks for stepping in Sarah; I'm sorry you had to see that." Sarah gave a nod and turned to leave, something stopped her before she left.

"You've raised a fine son, Doc. And he's growing into a stand up fella, don't worry about it. He's just blowing off steam; someday he'll understand why you're doing what you're doing and he'll thank you for it. This place is much more bearable for the slaves with you here than it would be otherwise, I know that probably won't mean much but it's true." Lionel nodded his thanks, too overcome with conflicting emotions to trust himself to speak. "Now I'm going to find your boy and make sure he hasn't waded straight back into the fight with Jotun and his cronies. You have a nice day, Doc."

"You too, Sarah." With that she was gone and Lionel was alone in his office, too many thoughts flying through his head to focus on just one at once. I've failed him. ...just here to repair the slavers' fucktoys. ...as much your fault as the slavers'. Coward. Someday he'll understand. The pressure finally got to Lionel and he broke down and wept, for the first time since that fateful day his wife had died. He felt like he'd cried forever before he finally managed to halt the flow of tears. He had no doubt that Sarah was right, someday John would understand why he had made the decisions he had but he got the distinct feeling that by the time his headstrong son had come to that conclusion, he would be long gone. In the meantime, he would have to accept his son's fury and pray everyday for 'someday' to arrive.