Returning home was not easy. Tatum didn't have any weapons, in fact, she didn't have anything except the clothes on her back. Her first goal was to locate a gun. Second, she needed to get some food and a convenient way to carry it. Her first several days through the Commonwealth went how she expected it; slowly. She hid most of the time from anything and anyone that passed her.

The one lesson she had learned from the Brotherhood is that you couldn't trust anyone, no matter how attracted to them you are. Elder Maxson's face continued to haunt her dreams. She wanted to believe that he was a good man, but he wasn't. Anyone that could give up on family like he did, was scum in her book.

It took over a week for her to make her stealthy retreat back to her home. Her home where Derrell and Rachelle's bodies had been picked over by the creatures of the Commonwealth. The garden she had worked on day after day had been ransacked and what was left of the crops laid on the ground, crushed. The smell that permeated the air was nauseating. Tatum carefully entered her home, hoping that some animal hadn't taken up residence.

The house had been thoroughly looted, not even the bobby pins on her dresser remained. So much for my stuff. She thought pitifully. She turned from her dresser towards her bedroll, except that it had been taken as well. Nothing remained in this house for her, nothing but her memories and thinking about her life before the Brotherhood was still too painful.

Blinking the tears from her eyes she set out back in to the wastes. This is no longer my home. She had abandoned several "homes" before but this time was different. She didn't feel sadness, not even regret. She felt a sense of tranquil relief. Her heart ached for her family but she knew that her heart no longer belonged here.

Diamond City. It was a name that everyone knew. The jewel of the Commonwealth, and hopefully Tatum's new home. She looked to the stars and found her way towards Diamond City, to the southwest. Derrell had taught her how to read them. As she walked she remembered that night vividly.

Tatum had woken from a nightmare, as she did many nights. She had gotten out of bed to get a drink from the water pump and had run in to Derrell outside of the house.

"What's wrong?" She had asked him, his cheeks glistening with tears. He just turned his head and gave her a sad smile.

"Let me tell you a story." He held his hand out and she gently took it. He led her behind the house where the sky was wide open and the stars and moon shone brightly. "Do you see those stars?" He sat on the ground and pointed towards a cluster. Tatum sat next to him, her head raised towards the moon.

"Yes."

"That one is called Perseus. Do you know his story?" Derrell looked to the girl who shook her head, eyes still transfixed on the stars. "He was a brave man. But he needed to be stronger than anyone else because, from birth, he was always in trouble."

"What do you mean?" Tatum tucked her hair behind her ear and looked at the old ghoul, he gave her a smile and turned his eyes to the sky.

"The God of the Heavens, Zeus, raped his mother. When her father found out that she had birthed a child, her son Perseus, her father locked her and her newborn baby in a crate and pushed them out to the ocean. He was fearful of little Perseus because the oracle of Delphi had told him that one day his grandson would kill him."

"That's awful." She said as she watched the ghoul, his eyes still taking in the moonlight.

"Luckily, they survived their journey at sea. But their troubles didn't end there. Perseus' mother was very beautiful, enough so that she had attracted the attention of a God, which was usually never a good thing. Men with power are easily corrupted. They lose track of what's really important..." He paused, deep in thought. "Many men wanted her hand in marriage." He continued. "But as Perseus grew, he protected her from those men. Men that only wanted her for her beauty."

"That's good." She laid on the ground, arms behind her head.

"It was good of him to protect his mother, but it caused lots of trouble for him in the long run." Derrell laid back as well. "I don't think he regretted it though, he was a good man with a good heart. That's not to say he didn't make some bad choices here and there, but everyone does." Derrell closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the cool night air. "He fought many monsters and overcame great hardships, that's why he's immortalized in the stars. I think it was the love of his mother that allowed him the strength and courage to do so."

"That and he was the son of a God." Tatum chuckled and the old ghoul laughed along with her.

The two had laid on the lawn for quite a long time, Derrell telling her about different constellations and how to always find her way home. Tatum smiled at the memory, her eyes lifting to the night sky, a tear sliding down her cheek.

The journey to Diamond City took longer than she had expected, the area was surrounded by supermutants, raiders, and feral ghouls. She quietly hid from them, waiting to see if they would leave but they had set up bases and weren't going anywhere. Several times Tatum had to find a way around, knowing that she was no match against any of them.

Finally, she had almost reached her destination when she heard the echoing howl of a mutant hound. She turned quickly to see the beast charging at her. Steadily she raised her gun and fired. An eruption of bullets whizzed past her and in to the monster. She turned to see several Diamond City Guards racing towards her and the oncoming supermutant attack.

Leave it to the professionals! She told herself as she ducked out of their way. She sprinted past the guards and to the closed gate of Diamond City. She pounded on it and desperately cried out.

"Please! Let me in!" She pounded several more times before noticing a speaker to her left. She walked over to it and pressed the button. "Hello?" She asked in to the static.

"Hello?" A man's voice replied.

"Can you let me in? Please." Tatum asked.

"I'm sorry but the gates are closed for the safety of the City. Once the supermutant threat has been dealt with, I'll open the gates back up."

"But that's why I need in!" She pleaded.

"I'm sorry, I just can't." He did sound genuinely apologetic but it didn't make Tatum feel any better. She checked her bullets, three left. All she had found was a 10mm pistol that barely worked. She had spent several nights trying to repair it, thinking back to all the times she had watched Derrell mess with his guns.

Another mutant hound cried out and Tatum spun around. Relax, they have turrets. She tried to calm her rapidly beating heart. You're OK, just wait a little longer. She crouched down and tried to make herself as small as possible, hoping that nothing that wanted to eat her would see her. She hugged her knees, gun at the ready, and waited.

Half an hour later, several guards returned to the gate. Two guards carried their wounded comrade between their shoulders. He was bleeding in several spots. Tatum got to her feet and pressed the red button on the speaker.

"They're back and they have wounded." She told the man through the com.

"Sullivan, it's us!" One of the guards called over Tatum's shoulder. The gate began to move, gears cranking. Tatum covertly assessed the wounded guard's injuries. He had several bullet holes and a large bite in his side. The blood was pouring from him and his head hung limply.

"Put him down." Tatum said as she stood in front of the guards. "You're causing more damage by dragging him around like that." She tried her best to sound like a figure of authority.

"Move it kid, we gotta get him to a doctor." One guard said impatiently.

"You're not listening!" Tatum said, reasserting herself. "You are making his condition worse." She pointed to the pool of blood beneath him and then pointed to the trail they had left behind. "Lay him down here, I can help." She pulled the bag that held her belongings from her back and knelt.

"What's going on?" The guard, Sullivan, that had spoken to her over the speaker rushed to his friends' sides.

"She wants us to lay him down here." One of them explained.

"He isn't going to make it much further." She only glanced up at them for a moment before looking back down at the medical kit she had thrown together from all the supplies she had found. "He needs those wounds closed. I've dealt with his kind of injuries before." She threaded the suture needle and gave them an impatient look. "Or let him bleed out." She said with a shrug.

The guards shared a glance at each other before laying him down in front of Tatum. She immediately got to work, removing his armor and clothes. Her hands worked faster than her brain. She had seen Knight Captain Cade perform this kind of operation hundreds of times, even assisted him with several, but this was the first time she was doing it alone.

The guards watched nervously as she injected a stimpak in to the unconscious man. She sewed the deep gashes on his side closed, then extracted the bullets from him with a pair of forceps. She stitched those holes closed too.

A smear of blood was left behind on her forehead when she wiped away the sweat that had collected at her brow. When all the big wounds were closed tight she attached another stim to his body and wrapped bandage around it to hold it in place. She let out her breath, satisfied with her work.

"There." She said as she packed her tools. "He should be alright now. He'll need plenty of rest." She looked at Sullivan when she said this. He nodded firmly.

"Who are you?" He asked. "And where did you learn to do all that?" His eyes were wide with astonishment.

"Tatum, and I…" She hesitated. How did they feel about the Brotherhood of Steel? "I studied under a doctor for a while." She decided that she wouldn't reveal more than necessary. Danny Sullivan seemed satisfied enough with her answer.

"Thank you." He said as she got to her feet.

"It was my pleasure." She smiled. "May I enter the City now?"

"Yeah, of course!" He turned to the side and put his hands out like he was ushering her inside. "Hell, I'll even buy you a meal."

"Thank you! That would be wonderful." She gave him a big smile and they entered the City together.

Tatum remained a welcome guest in Diamond City for several days. She had even begun studying under the resident doctor, Dr. Sun. He often asked her who had taught her but she never gave him a straight answer. In fact, she never talked about her past to anyone. The local newspaper's reporter, Piper, was always sniffing around her but she never gave the woman the time of day. Her life was her own and not for the general public.

Things were going well for Tatum, for a while. She even met a synth. He turned out to be a friendly enough guy, but very busy and tended to keep to himself. She wasn't surprised, everyone was so terrified that the Institute would steal someone they knew and replace them with a synth. A man was even murdered for holding a gun to his brother's head, accusing him of being an impostor.

It was all madness to Tatum, she didn't fear synths. What she feared was people. It was regular people that killed one another, not synths. It seemed to her that synths just wanted to live their lives, like anyone else. Paladin Danse had given his entire life to the Brotherhood and Detective Nick Valentine devoted his life to helping others. Regular people were the ones to be feared.

Her fear came to fruition one day after a resident of the City had gone missing. She was sitting at the medical stand that Dr. Sun operated, when suddenly a man ran over to her. He pointed his dirt covered finger in her face and screamed for the guards.

"Look! Guards! There's the evidence right here!" He yelled out, immediately causing a scene. Everyone in the marketplace abandoned their stands and gathered around. Dr. Sun came to Tatum's aid.

"What is the meaning of this?" He questioned as guards infiltrated his stand. Tatum looked at Dr. Sun, clueless.

"There! There it is." The man continued to point at Tatum. Finally she reached to her neck and delicately lifted the necklace that Doc Crocker had given her as a reward for cleaning his operating room. The crowd gasped when the sun shined off the necklace. Dr. Sun still looked just as confused as Tatum.

"What is going on?" He demanded again.

"You're under arrest for the disappearance of Susan Timble." The guard said as he grabbed Tatum's arm. She roughly pulled away from him.

"Get off of me!" She jerked away from his grabbing hands. "I didn't do anything!" She confessed her innocence but it fell on deaf ears.

"She's wearing her necklace!" The man kept shouting, the crowd getting riled up.

"What?!" Tatum removed the necklace from her neck, while still dodging the guard's grabbing hands. She threw it at the shouting man. "Take it! I didn't know it belonged to someone. It was given to me!" Her voice was drowned out by the angry shouts of the people.

"Synth! Murderer!" The crowd called to her. More guards approached the area and with a desperate look in Dr. Sun's direction, she knew she was alone. He had stepped away from her, his eyes to the ground and his head lowered. It was clear that he wasn't going to take the fall with her.

A pair of arms swung out around her and she dropped to the ground to avoid them. In the blink of an eye she rolled to the side and pushed past a thin spot in the crowd. Her legs ran as fast as they could towards the gate. Please be open! She prayed as a bullet grazed her shoulder. She cried out in pain, the bullet burning hot, but didn't stop running.

She jumped down the stairs towards the outer gate, landing on her ankle. It twisted underneath her but she pushed through the pain. The gate was open and she barreled through, tears blurring her vision as her ankle throbbed. Keep going. She encouraged herself.

By sheer willpower alone she had made it out of the City and in to the ruins of the Commonwealth. When the pain in her ankle spread through her thigh, she finally stopped running, crashing to the ground. She lay there sobbing and cursing. Her ankle was purple and swollen, she knew the moment she had landed on it that it was broken.

The bag of her belongings was still at Dr. Sun's medical stand. She had lost yet another home and all her belongings again. She cursed loudly at the sky, feeling utterly worthless.

The guards could be looking for her, she doubted it but figured it's better to be safe than sorry. Gingerly she got to her feet, hopping towards the nearest ruined building. She used the wall to help support her weight as she hid inside. Her heart thumped wildly and her entire body ached. She would stay there, hidden in a wardrobe, until tomorrow when she would have to set out to find another home. She hugged herself tightly and hummed the tune that Rachelle had hummed to her on the nights when her dreams were full of terrors. It didn't help with the pain she felt but it did help soothe the anxiety she felt at having lost another home.

Tomorrow, she thought as she rested her head against the wood. Tomorrow I'll find my forever home. A place where everyone is welcome. She closed her eyes and hoped that Good Neighbor wasn't actually as dangerous as every said it was.

The following morning Tatum crawled out of the wardrobe, her neck and back sore from sitting all night. Her ankle looked worse than it had before and the pain was excruciating. She knew she had seriously messed up her foot, she had had a broken bone before but it didn't hurt nearly as much as her ankle did now.

With a deep breath she crawled out of the building and followed the road out of the ruins. She used all her strength to break a branch off of a tree and use it as a walking stick. She also grabbed two small sticks and tore along the bottom of her shirt to make bandages. She wrapped the sticks around her ankle in order to stabilize it. By the time she was finished she was out of breath again.

The bark of the tree rubbed roughly on her back when she sat against it. Sweat dripped from her hairline and down her face; she quickly rubbed it away and closed her eyes. Five minutes and then I have to keep moving. She told herself as she rested.

"Ah, there you are." Nick Valentine's voice came from the left of the tree. Tatum nearly jumped out of her skin. She couldn't believe how quiet he was. "It's alright." He reassured her holding up his hands. "I'm not here to hurt you."

"Then why are you here? I'm not going back. I didn't do anything." She firmly grasped her walking stick, ready to defend herself.

"I know you didn't." He didn't move any closer to her, sensing that she was already tense. "And I'm not here to take you back." He wiggled the bag he was holding and Tatum noticed it for the first time. It was hers.

"My stuff?" She looked at him questioningly.

"I thought you might need it." He gently tossed it to her and she caught it.

"Thank you." She stared at him with wide eyes. "But, why? Why are you helping me?"

"Because I know you didn't have anything to do with Susan's disappearance. And I know what it's like to be run out of your home. Diamond City isn't exactly the most welcoming…"

Tatum chuckled without humor. "And I'm not even a synth."

"Right." Nick said, adjusting his hat as he noticed the girl's condition. "What happened to your leg?" It didn't look like she had been shot.

"I twisted it while I was running away." She felt her face get hot out of embarrassment. "It's broke pretty bad." She frowned.

"Well I put a couple of stims in your bag for you. Figured you could use it."

"Thank you. That couldn't have been cheap." She was astounded by the generosity of this robot.

"It wasn't any trouble. I had a couple around the office, and it's not like I use them." He pulled a cigarette box from his pocket and tapped one out. She watched as he stuck it in his mouth and flipped open a golden lighter, lighting the end of the cigarette before inhaling.

"So…" She watched him as he took a couple of puffs, smoke escaping from the sides of his face where the fake skin had started to decay. "You're really a synth." She stated and he chuckled.

"What gave me away?" He smiled at the girl and she smiled back. Finally she opened her bag and retrieved a stimpak and some bandages. She took a deep breath and grimaced as she plunged the needle in to her leg. She sat perfectly still, eyes shut tight as she tried to remain calm.

Nick watched the girl, her face pale and sweaty and her shirt torn and used for bandage. She was a tough one, but still, she was just a little girl. He finished his cigarette and dropped it to the ground before stepping on it to smother out the last few embers.

"Where ya headed?" He asked and she opened her eyes to look at him. She hesitated for a moment, pondering whether or not to tell him.

"Good Neighbor." He had been kind to her so far, she figured she could trust him.

"Really? You ever been there before?" He questioned with a look of concern.

"No." She admitted as she carefully wrapped the stimpak in place. "But I heard that everyone is welcome in Good Neighbor."

"That's not entirely true…" He said as he watched her wrap her leg. "Synths aren't. Except for me. I know the mayor." Nick stepped closer to her and she didn't make any movements that showed she was afraid. He walked over to her and knelt beside her. "But it's not the synths you have to worry about." He looked her in the eyes as he held out his hand to her.

"What do you mean?" She asked as she placed her hand in his. He helped her to her feet and bent over to pick up her walking stick and bag.

"It's the neighbors in Good Neighbor that you ought to be wary of." He handed her her things and she slung the bag over her shoulder and firmly held the stick. "The town is crawling with filth; drug dealers, con artists, rapists, murderers."

"Where else am I going to go?" She asked desperately. Nick thought for a moment, his hand cupping his chin in a very human manner.

"You could try to find a settlement to stay at. Ever heard of the Minutemen?"

"Yes, I've heard of them." But the name was all she knew. That and the fact that their leader walked around in power armor.

"I think they would be your best bet. Of course the farms do get attacked by raiders and mutants quite often…" He went quiet again as he thought.

"I won't be run out of my home again. I've had enough raiders and supermutants to last a life time. I'm going to Good Neighbor." She looked him determinedly in the eyes and all he could do was nod with a deep sigh.

"I guess you've made up your mind then."

"Yes, I have." She nodded firmly at him.

"Guess I'll just have to show you the way." She looked at him suspiciously. "What kind of man would I be if I let a pretty young girl like you walk in to Good Neighbor alone?" She chewed on her lip as she contemplated whether he was truly trustworthy. "I'll talk to Mayor Hancock, maybe I can get him to watch out for you."

"I don't need him to watch me, I just need a place to stay." She told him.

"Fine, fine. But living ain't free. You'll need to find yourself a job. I know a woman that might let you stay with her if you cleaned around her place."

Tatum frowned, it wasn't that she minded working for a living, she just wasn't sure why Nick was helping her.

"Why are you really helping me?" She watched as his eyes narrowed.

"You're not the trusting sort, are you?" He asked as he flexed his metal hand, the one without the artificial skin on it. "Is it really so hard for you to believe that I'm just a nice guy that wants to help?"

"Yeah, kind of." She answered bluntly and he frowned.

"You've had it rough, haven't you?" His yellow glowing eyes stared in to hers as if he could see in to her soul, but she wasn't about to look away.

"I just don't see why you'd help. I have nothing to offer you."

"Maybe it's just in my programming." He smirked. "I like helping people and I'm pretty good at it. Why do you think I'm a detective?"

"Because you can probably see through walls or something." She said seriously and Nick laughed.

"That would be handy. But, no. Unfortunately I can't do anything like that." He adjusted his hat again and looked her squarely in the eyes. "So are you going to let an old synth help you, or not?"

She thought about it for several moments. He had helped when no one else would. He also did seem like a genuinely nice guy. Also, if he had connections in Good Neighbor, that could seriously help her. She sighed and nodded.

"Alright, let's go." She took a step forward and stopped. "So, uh… which way is it?"

"You don't know?" He laughed. "You really do need my help." He pointed in the correct direction and started walking. She followed slowly behind, each step hurting worse than the last. Nick kept a steady but slow pace as her pace became slower and slower. Eventually Nick stopped and looked back at her.

"I'm coming." She said slightly annoyed.

"I see." He said as he watched her limp forward. He stood patiently until she was standing next to him, panting like a dog. "Now don't get the wrong idea," he said as he put his arm around her. "I can't even do stuff like that." He lifted the girl in to his arms and she flailed helplessly. "Hold still, I don't want to drop you." He ordered but she continued to wiggle in his arms. Her struggle was pathetic, she was completely exhausted.

"Put me down! I can walk myself!" She thumped on his hard chest but he ignored her.

"I'll put you down when that stimpak runs out." Tatum's head swam as she thought about the needle that was still in her leg. Suddenly she was grateful that he was holding her, she felt light headed.

"Aren't I heavy?" She asked, no longer squirming in his arms.

"Not at all." He replied but she couldn't tell whether he was lying or not. It didn't look like it was difficult for him to carry her, no sweat dripped or heavy breathing. Wait… Tatum thought. Can he even do that? She watched his face closely, there wasn't any sign of moisture.

Nick's yellow eyes turned to look at her. "Something on my face?"

"No." She answered quickly. "I was just thinking and I accidentally stared. Sorry." She looked away from him. "So what happens when we get attacked?"

"You any good with a gun?" He asked and she shook her head miserably.

"Not really, no."

"Oh." He pondered for a moment. "Then I suppose I'll just have to set you down and deal with it myself." He gave her a sideways smile and she found herself smiling back. How can synths really be the enemy? Nick was so nice, and Danse was so loyal. She inwardly sighed as she thought about Maxson and his backwards ideals.

"Mr. Valentine?" Tatum said shyly.

"I'm holding you in my arms, I think it'd be alright if you called me Nick. I appreciate the formality though." He smiled at her.

"OK, Nick… um…" She tried to get her thoughts together. "Can I tell you something that I haven't told anyone else?"

"As long as you're not confessing to murder, I suppose you could." He joked and she smiled.

"No, not murder." She laughed. "But…" Her face fell and Nick watched with concern. "I was living with the Brotherhood of Steel for a few weeks. That's where I learned everything I know about medicine."

"Oh. Them." Nick obviously wasn't a fan. "So what happened?"

"It's a long story." She looked to her new found friend and he nodded.

"We've got time."