Author's Note: Ok, so...sorry it's been awhile since I updated. My two week vacation from college is over so I don't have a lot of spare time to write these days. I will try to update as much as I can. Anyway...I guess the last chapter was...blah, to one of you. I'd like to understand why it seems like the King is OOC sometimes when we never see him in interacting with the courier romantically in the game, as far as I know. So...if someone could explain that one to me, I'd appreciate it.

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).

Chapter 18: Down By the Riverside

Raven walked up the hill with the King, deciding that she was not going to ruin the 'family reunion' that Lizzy obviously set up. The courier didn't blame the major, but Elizabeth had only some knowledge of the circumstances leading to Raven's departure at the tender age of 14. She most certainly wasn't going to make a fool out herself in front of the King again. As they neared the picnic table, Boone gave the courier a questioning look. Raven held her hand up, signaling that she was fine. The King leaned over and whispered something into her ear.

"I think I'm going to mingle for a bit. Talk with you later?" he asked.

"Sure," replied the courier.

The King walked away and Raven gazed after him, grateful that he didn't push the previous discussion about her father being not only a soldier in the NCR, but that the two had some bad history. The kids and Boone followed the King down the hill, and she chuckled to herself. Raven figured the King would ask about her estranged dad eventually. Right now, she just wanted to focus on making some food. Raven stared down at the bag of mirelurk meat and sighed. Elizabeth walked up to her and elbowed the younger woman in the ribs.

"So, is there something going on with you two or what?" she teased.

"What!" Raven exclaimed. "What are you talking about?" she asked as she opened the bag and started putting the pieces of meat on a stick.

"Don't be shy. C'mon, just between us girls."

Raven smirked. It sure had been awhile since she had a chance for some girl talk. "There's...something going on, yes. By the way," she nudged Lizzy with a shoulder, "thanks for inviting him."

"No problem," Lizzy replied as she started cutting up some banana yucca. "Are you upset about your dad being here?"

Raven placed another piece of meat on a skewer. "Yes, but I'll try not to start a fight."

"In other words," Lizzy commented, "you're going to avoid him as much as possible?"

"That's the plan."

Elizabeth started filling a pot with mac and cheese noodles. "Ok, because he's coming over here now."

Raven looked up and saw Hanlon walking over. "...Doesn't mean I have to speak to him."

They both went back to grinding up various items of food to stick in the pot before Raven's father reached the table. "Raven," he said. "I think we should talk, don't you?"

Raven ignored his words and continued on preparing the food and Lizzy shifted uncomfortably. "Chief, perhaps this isn't a good time."

"Then when will be a good time?" he snapped. "I haven't seen my daughter in six years." He eyeballed the courier. "I deserve to know where she's been."

Raven lifted her head and glared angrily at the old man. She hated when things never went according to plan. "Go to hell, Hanlon."

The man glared with just as much fire. "I'm your father. Don't you talk to me that way!"

"I'm not a child anymore. You have no god damn right," Raven pointed at him to emphasis her point, "to tell me what to do. The only thing you deserve from me is a swift kick in the ass."

Their voices were rising in volume. "Oh, you think you can take me? Little girl, I will hit you so hard your head will be spinning for weeks."

That man sure had not changed at all. In a heartbeat, Raven's 10mm pistol was aimed for her father's forehead. "Just try it, old man."

Elizabeth slammed her hand on the table. "Stop it! Both of you!" she yelled. "Raven, he's your father! Put the damn gun down!"

Raven growled before holstering her gun. As she began walking away, her father spoke up again.
"Let's settle this thing with a bet, girl. A challenge. You game?"

The courier slowed her pace to a completely stop, forcing herself to not smirk at the offer. "You're a bastard." if her father knew anything about Raven, it was that she couldn't refuse a challenge. "I'll bite. What do you suggest?"

As Raven turned around, Hanlon stood up from the table. "Do you really need to ask me that?" She said nothing so he continued. "If you win, you never have to see me again. If I win, we talk. And we go fishing out on Lake Mead."

She crossed her arms and shifted her hip, raising a brow at him. "Just what makes you think I still like to fish?"

Chief Hanlon chuckled and mirrored his daughter's pose. "Call it a hunch. Do we have a deal?"

Footsteps crunched on the ground as Raven neared her father, and Elizabeth shook her head with a sigh when her sister-in-law shook the man's hand. "Deal."

The King watched as Nora and Jason Jr. played on the sandy beach with various toys and things. Boone was settled in the sand not too far away and had his sniper rifle settled neatly in his arms. Presuming that Boone was on watch for any nearby Lakelurks, the King made sure his own gun was loaded and ready in case he spotted anything. The children laughed and cheered as they began making a sand castle with the buckets they were using. The King was bored but, like Boone, he was willing to protect the children. He began thinking about things, like how he really felt about Raven Wagner. Now that his emotions were in check, the King wondered if he spoke too much to her earlier before truly registering what he was saying. It'd been a long time since he had any interest in a woman beyond anything sexual, and the last time it happened, well...

The King suddenly heard shouting over the hill. Slowly he got up and started walking up the hill to see what all the fuss was about. Halfway up he saw Elizabeth at the top and she charged down toward him with an exasperated look.

"Major, what's going on?" he asked.

She grunted and pressed a palm to her forehead. "Raven and the chief are so pig-headed! They're having a fight right now and I don't want to watch them kill each other."

The King chuckled. "Maybe yelling will do them some good."

"No, it's beyond yelling now," Elizabeth growled in frustration. "They're trying to beat the crap out of each other and betting to see who wins."

"They're what?" he exclaimed.

"I tried to stop them but once Raven sets her mind on something, there's no talking her out of it," explained Elizabeth. "She gets that from her father."

The King started running up the hill, leaving Elizabeth to her agitation. When he got to the top he spied the two family members in a heated hand-to-hand battle with each other.

Raven took a swing at Hanlon's face and connected her fist to his cheek. His head swung back a little and he almost stumbled, but the chief grabbed her fist and pulled the girl to him. In doing so, his knee came up and collided into her stomach. Raven felt herself almost heave but she crashed into the ground when her father elbowed the courier in the back. She rolled out of the path of his foot and quickly got up. Raven steadied herself and twisted her body to the side as Hanlon attempted to punch her face, only managing to hit air. The dark-haired woman hit the man in the ribs and he grunted in pain before feeling Raven's leg sweep him off his feet. The chief's back hit the ground but his body reacted quickly when the girl's foot came toward his face. He blocked the kick with both his arms and Raven almost howled when he elbowed the side of her shin. This rewarded her father's actions with a swift kick to his midsection and he rolled over with a cough before recovering and getting himself up. In doing so he watched as her leg came up to kick his face but he grabbed her ankle.

It took Raven a moment to readjust but she pushed off her other foot and, with a kick, into her father's chest before he could make another move. The kick caused him to let go of her ankle and he went sprawling backwards. Raven ran toward her father and went to backhand his face but he ducked and gave her a hard uppercut to the jaw. He jabbed her face with his other fist but she gave him a cold hard punch to the nose. This caused blood to flow from his nose but he ignored it by returning a punch to her face. Blood spilled from her mouth as Raven stumbled away from him. The girl recovered hastily but not fast enough to block or dodge the next punch he gave her. This only pissed her off more and when he attempted another punch, his fist only hit the palm of her hand. She tightened her grip and began twisting it, causing her father's throat to rumble in discomfort. Raven suddenly took in a deep breath and as she let go of his fist, her hands opened into palms. She brought her arms back and she struck Hanlon's chest as she let the air out. He went flying into the picnic table and broke the seat when he landed. They both gasped for air as they stared each other down.

"W-Where the hell did you learn that move?" her father asked.

Raven wiped some blood from her lips. "Some retired NCR Ranger over in Novac," she replied. "Looks like I win the bet, old man."

The chief chuckled and slowly stood. "Not a chance in hell, kid. I kicked your ass before and I can damn well do it again."

"Oh please. You're washed up. A has been," exclaimed Raven. "I got shot in the head, practically at point-blank range, and survived. You think I'm going to get my ass beat so easily by you? Like when I was a child?" the bitterness was thick in her throat, and she pointed a finger at her father. "Like when you beat my mother?"

"Raven Wagner!" he barked angrily. "You shut the hell up right now! I loved your mother."

Raven spit in the chief's direction. "You sure had a cruel way of showing it. I saw the bruises and cuts she tried to hide, the blood she desperately tried to clean up."

Hanlon sighed and shook his head. "You're a foolish child," he said. "Yeah, you saw all that. Did you ever actually see me abuse her?"

Raven scoffed. "Only once, but that was enough for me to know what was going on."

Her father ran a hand through his gray hair and huffed. "I slapped her. Once."

"Oh really?" she mocked, crossing her arms over her chest. "Well, who else could have possibly done that?"

Hanlon looked at Raven with an awkwardness she found to be unnerving. "Your mother had problems...serious problems."

The young woman glared viciously. "Is that why you killed her?"

Turning his back to his daughter, the Chief grunted. "I didn't kill her, though I'm sure my attitude towards her 'quirks' didn't help any. Your mother...she..." Raven heard his voice choke. "Your brother was old enough to know what was going on. I guess you weren't. I should have told you this instead of...hurting you like I did."

"What the fuck are you talking about?"

There was a long pause before the Chief spoke up. "Your mother was hurting herself, Raven. Physically. The bruises, the cuts, the blood...that was all her. As well as her death. She committed suicide."

Raven couldn't believe what she was hearing. She just couldn't. "You're a god damn liar. Momma never would have done that!" she walked to her father and pulled him around to face her. "There's just no way!"

"She was a self-destructive woman," the Chief said, staring at his daughter sadly. "Your mother taught both you and Jason a lot of good things, but she was very ill. Jason was old enough to know about this, but not you. Why else would I choose to teach you how to hunt and survive, and not your brother?"

"What makes you think I'll believe anything you say?"

"Ask Lizzy. She knew about it too."

VERY IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!: I've decided to disable anonymous reviews because there's someone who keeps putting reviews on my chapters at how horrible I'm doing. It's pissing me off, in all honesty. I'm all for constructive criticism but this person isn't putting up much of it. It's just bad criticism and saying, "I'm sorry but this story isn't as good as it was" isn't going to cut it for me. If you have actual tips on how I can improve my writing, fine. Otherwise, shut up. If you don't like how it's going, then stop reading it. Or man the hell up and stop leaving me reviews that have no name. I don't have the luxury of having someone read my chapters before I publish them or editing out the bad crap that I put into them. I'm almost on the brink of just deleting the story completely because you're being an ass. This was supposed to be my outlet, not something else to add stress to my life. Thank you very much.