Author's Note: Ok, so this next chapter is going to be tricky. Then again, so was the last one, but no one has even read that one yet. :P even though it's posted...at least as of now, as I'm typing this up. Anyway, I'm a big fan of music. As a singer myself (well, I have the talent, but not the stage presence or the right "look" as I've been told) I really think I'll love writing this one. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Fallout characters, nor the source material. The only character who came from my own imagination is the name and personality of the Courier, (and I don't own the "Courier" name, either). Oh, and I will probably make some references to Elvis Presley and his songs (and I don't own those either). Oh, and I have no ownership with the songs "Devil in Disguise" and "Dream a Little Dream of Me".

Chapter 10: Are You Sincere?

There was the King, up on the stage with a guitar, singing to the crowd who seemed to adore each twang of his instrument and every word that fell gracefully from his mouth. Raven sneaked in and shut the door before making her way to the bar. Carefully. However, she was surprised to learn that the King could not only sing, but he could sing very well. The girl was impressed. As she grabbed a stool to sit on, his voice echoed through her. She ordered a bottle of whiskey.

You look like an angel, walk like an angel,

Talk like an angel, but I got wise...

You're the Devil in disguise! Oh yes you are!

Devil in disguise!

Raven grasped the whiskey as she handed Francine Garrett some caps, before opening the cap and putting the opening to her mouth. She turned in her stool as the King started playing his guitar like a skilled madman. People were now dancing as he did, and Raven smiled a little. Swallowing a bit of her drink caused a burning hiss to follow. Raven shuddered a little. The first shot was always the worst, but it provided enough of a barrier to drown herself in one or two bottles. Each sip caressed itself down her throat like an aggressive lover who had been absent for years without release or satisfaction. It burned, but it was such a good burn. The courier hadn't realized how much she missed it. Her green eyes captured every face in the room one at a time, an old habit that only formed from years of exploration and travel. It was then that she spotted Pacer and Rex at a nearby table.

As the King switched to a new song, Raven turned her back to the room. While she was happy that Rex was more lively than she had first seen him, she scowled. The courier wanted to give the dog a good scratch behind the ears, but not while Pacer sat there to scrutinize her every move.. She considered the King's behavior earlier that afternoon as well. He had been a bit...cold to her. Granted, she had only met the man a few days ago so she truly didn't know the man. Still, her meeting with the King today felt sour to her. Perhaps it was wrong of her to assume that he would trust her enough to bring his loyal companion to a doctor. Why she even expected such, the courier didn't know. But today...today was just a bad day she wanted to erase from her memories. The outside world began to fade out as Raven took a few more swigs of her whiskey, not even noticing the man who was approaching her. However, the bitter smell of cheap cologne was all to familiar.

"Well well, if it isn't Miss Badass of the Week..." a low voice uttered in her ear before he sat down.

Raven didn't even have to look at the man. "Pacer..." she said in what was meant as a tensed but civil acknowledgment. She downed another mouthful of the amber liquid.

The buzzed woman could feel Pacer's eyes burning into the side of her head when he spoke again. "I was wondering if you and I could have a little chat."

Raven felt a wet nose poke her arm and she smirked a little, stroking Rex's neck. She turned her head to Pacer with venom and cockiness in her green eyes. "You want to chat with me, Pacer? That's not really your style," Raven focused her eyes back on her bottle. Only half empty. Shit.

"I'm serious."

Raven glanced at the King's right-hand man from the corner of his eye, spotting the grim expression on his face. Groaning inwardly, she turned her body to face him completely to give him her full attention. "I'm listening," she said.

Pacer looked as if he was deeply troubled...until he opened his mouth. "I'm...sorry about grabbing your ass."

Raven had to bite her tongue. Literally, in fact, to prevent herself from laughing. The girl could see this was obviously difficult for Pacer. Painful, even. "I...see..." she responded. "Well, I accept your apology. And I, for one, am very sorry for, uh..." she thought for a moment. "How can I say 'I'm sorry for breaking your face' delicately?"

"For overreacting?" he seemed to guess at her dilemma.

"That's one way of looking at it," she replied.

Pacer snorted. "That's my way of looking at it."

Raven shrugged. "True, but you get brownie points for apologizing, even though you don't really feel sorry about it."

Pacer smirked at her. "Oh really? And what makes you think I'm not sincere?" Raven could tell he was quite curious about her observation.

She placed her half empty bottle down, an inner representation of her underlying mood. "Because of your loyalty to the King," she explained. Her eyes drifted to Pacer, noting the change in his face. "You're a proud man...proud enough to never admit when you're wrong, but not too proud to refuse a good friend when asked to do something you hate doing. The brownie points are because of your reasons for apologizing, not for the apology itself."

The look on Pacer's face was a true camera moment. Seriously, where was a camera when she needed one? "You talk as if you have personal experience," he offered as one of his own observations.

Raven nodded. "That's a fair assumption," she said. With this particular topic, she wasn't going to be anything but obscure.

Pacer paused, as if waiting for the woman to elaborate. When she didn't, he seemed to get the picture. "So I heard you offered to take Rex here to some doctor in Jacobstown. Any reason why?"

Raven caressed under Rex's chin with her fingernails as she pondered for words. "I have a soft spot for dogs," she settled on saying. She turned her head toward the King who was now taking a smoke break from his singing. "I had no idea the King could sing. Maybe I'll ask him to perform a duet with me one day." It sputtered out of Raven's mouth before she could stop herself.

"He doesn't do performances much anymore, and duets are a big no-no for him. There's only one person that he's ever done duets with."

Raven looked back at Pacer. There was a tenderness in Pacer's eyes that she hadn't seen before; a longing that implied a painful memory. She didn't dare ask about it, so she turned back to her whiskey. "That's...well, I wouldn't want to impose on that, then. Forget I mentioned it."

"Can you even sing?" asked Pacer.

Raven now realized the mess she had just gotten herself into. "So I've been told..." she offered.

Before she knew it, Pacer ran off to the stage. Oh great. Raven quickly took one last sip of her whiskey before giving Rex one last scratch and attempted to run toward the door. However, the alcohol had more sway with her than she thought. Panic seized her body as her name was called by the King. She froze as eyes turned toward her.

"Miss Wagner, would you please come to the stage?" the King repeated.

"I," she thought, "am going to kill Pacer." Yep, the man was right back on her shit list.

Cheeks burning from more than just her drink of choice, Raven slowly walked toward the King and Pacer with Rex padding excitedly at her heels. She smiled to herself at the canine's encouragement. Raven glared daggers at Pacer, the man carrying a smug expression as if he just won a trip to the Strip's casinos. This was his way at getting back at her, no doubt. Raven climbed the stairs slowly and her feet felt heavy. It was true, though. Raven Wagner was one hell of a singer and she damn well knew it; however, she had a horrible case of stage fright. Having all those eyes on her at once without the intention of killing her made her uneasy. Leave it to Raven to get unnerved by something like that instead of people watching her because they planned on shooting the woman. As she ascended the last step, the King approached her.

"Pacer here tells me you've been told you can sing," he stated. "Do you also know how to play a guitar?"

"...A bit, yeah," Raven replied sheepishly.

The King leaned in closer and whispered, "You think you could entertain the crowd while I rest my voice and get a drink?"

Now Raven knew her cheeks were red with embarrassment instead of alcohol consumption. Slowly she nodded and the King smiled at her. The King of Kings took the guitar strap from his shoulders and gently placed Bessie into the girl's arms. Raven chewed on her lower lip with uncertainty before placing the strap over her shoulder. The King handed her the pick before walking back to the microphone to announce his need for a drink, and that Miss Wagner would play in his stead once he was finished. As the King jumped from the stage, the very shy woman stared down at herself, wishing she had something better to wear than her leather armor. If she was going to do this, she wanted to at least look presentable. It was then she had the idea to let her hair down. Making her way to the stool and swallowing the lump in her throat, Raven pulled out the band that held the makeshift bun. The ebony hair fell and cascaded down her back and along her shoulders as she sat down.

As her slender fingers traced along the neck of the black guitar, Raven felt herself relax a little. She took a deep breath and shut her eyes. There were many songs she knew, but the one she had in mind was a personal favorite of hers. It reminded her of the the good times her brother and she shared. Even though it was a love song meant for two lovebirds, that never mattered to Jason and her. They loved each other like two siblings would and as children, they often gazed at the stars at night on the roof of their broken down shack. They would give each light in the sky a name. It was a never ending game for brother and sister to keep their minds off the cruel world they had been born in. How ironic that they had dreamed of chasing the stars in their own dreams, and Raven had helped Jason reach them in a rocket ship. Maybe one day she'd join him. Maybe Jackson was waiting for the both of them. Before the tears could creep into her eyes, the pick in Raven's hand began plucking away. A set of fingers tapped carefully along the fretboard in unison, and she inhaled deeply in preparation for the first few verses.

Stars shining bright above you,

Night breezes seem to whisper, "I love you".

Raven's voice trembled at first, but before she knew it the familiar calm settled upon her throat and very soon she began singing without a care in the world. In doing so, she hadn't noticed how quiet the crowd had gotten. She remembered to breath.

Birds singing in the sycamore tree,

Dream a little dream of me...

Her eyes opened slowly as her fingers swept and played, her gentle hands caressing the instrument as if it were a baby. Raven's voice began rising in volume from her confidence returning, the vibrations in her throat echoing throughout the bar.

Say 'nightie night' and kiss me,

Just hold me tight and tell me you miss me,

While I'm alone, and blue as can be,

Dream a little dream of me...

As she neared the first chorus, her green eyes gazed upon the crowd. Raven flashed her white teeth in a grand smile. Her voice intensified and the guitar strings called out with just as much enthusiasm.

Stars fading, but I linger on, dear

Still craving your kiss

I'm longing to linger 'til dawn, dear

Just saying this...

And Raven shut her eyes again, bobbing her head to the beat and lowering her voice ever so slightly. She lost herself in the emotions of the music and all her negativity; all the bad feelings Raven Wagner harbored from that day dissolved into nothingness as she continued the ballad.

Sweet dreams 'til sunbeams find you

Sweet dreams that leave all worries behind you

But in your dreams, whatever they be

Dream a little dream of me

And as she began the guitar solo, Raven's eyes full of memories and release once again descended among the crowd. While the singer wasn't looking at anyone specifically, she did catch a glimpse at Pacer. His jaw was practically glued to the floor. Raven repeated the chorus as green eyes scanned the crowd, this time accentuating and putting more emphasis into the vibrato of her vocal chords. Her chest resonated with the words and or the life of her, Raven couldn't remove the bright smile from her face. It had been so long sing she sang and it was more than just a hobby that she missed. Singing had once been a huge part of Raven's life. Hell, it was more of a comfort than any sort of drug or alcohol in the world. As the song neared the last verse, Raven now felt like a revived woman and her eyes closed once more. And on she sang...

Dream a little dream of,

Dream a little dream...of...me...

The fingertips of Raven's musically gifted hands brought the song into the final chords, and as a beautiful touch, she slowed down the very last bit into a soft, but powerful tone. Soon, the remnants of the music died down. Raven felt her heart jump into her throat as she heard an enormous amount of applause and whistling. Her eyelids lifted cautiously and she saw the crowd was on their feet, clapping in appreciation. Raven slowly stood and gave a little bow.

And at the very edge of the bar, the King sat in stunned silence. This woman was just full of surprises.

Holy crap, that felt good to write. Now...I think I need to take a break from writing for now and concentrate on the rest of my finals. I already did two, and I only have three left to complete! :D but afterward. I will surely have updates and chapters going up like crazy!