Chapter Ten
Side by Side
"Oh we ain't got a barrel of money maybe we're ragged and funny
But we'll travel along singing a song side by side
Well don't know what's coming tomorrow maybe it's trouble and sorrow
But we'll travel the road sharing our load side by side
Oh honey through all kind of weather what if the sky should fall
Just as long as we're together it doesn't matter at all
When they've all had their quarrels and parted we'll be the same as we started
Just traveling along singing a song side by side"
Jude
It took Jude a moment to remember where he was when his eyes first fluttered open, staring up at a corrugated tin roof that wasn't the Megaton Common House. He looked to his right, and saw a small room with a rickety shelving unit, a single chair next to a table, where he'd discarded his leather armor before he'd crashed, but no indication of where he was. He sat up with a groan, and slowly memories started trickling back to him. Posey and him arriving in Megaton, Burke, and a splitting headache.
That bastard, thought Jude grumpily, should have shot him the minute I saw him.
He got to his feet, stretching and rubbing his eyes as his recollections suddenly came pouring back in and he remembered he was in Posey's house. Her house. She'd gotten a house. He shuffled out of the room, looking blearily around, trying to figure out what time it was. He guessed mid morning, by the pale light filtering in through the gaps in the walls and he walked over to the railing following along the edge of the second level, placed his folded arms on the edge and leaned down, looking for Posey, but the main room was empty. He pushed off the railing with a sigh and set off down the stairs, just in time to encounter Wadsworth, who had a dust rag in one of his many appendages.
"Oh, good morning sir!" He said cheerly, bobbing his camera almost as if he was bowing. "I trust you slept well?"
"Yeah." Said Jude with a frown, rubbing his eye. "Where's Posey?"
"Mistress Posey is out for the morning, sir. Shall I brew you some coffee? I'm afraid that's all I have to offer at the moment, as far as sustenance goes."
Jude's stomach growled and he looked down at it with a frown. He supposed coffee would be better than nothing, at least tell he got down to Jenny Stahl's bar.
"Yeah, sure. Thanks. Where did Posey go?"
"I'm afraid I don't know, sir." Said Wadsworth, who had floated away to the kitchen. "She left, an hour or two ago, after instructing me to keep an eye on you."
"What time is it?"
"10:36 A.M., sir."
"How long was I out?"
"I do believe you came in around five o'clock yesterday evening, sir. You've been asleep since then."
Jude let out a low whistle, and reached down to rummage through his pack, looking for his tee shirt and jeans, the only set of clothes he owned apart from his leather armor. By the time he was dressed, Wadsworth floated back to him, a steaming mug of coffee in his claw like hand.
"Here you are, sir. It's quite hot, just as a warning."
"Thanks." Said Jude, gingerly accepting the mug, which was hot to the touch. He looked around as Wadsworth floated away again, taking in Posey's duffel, situated next to the bank of lockers nearest to the door. Her Assault Rifle was leaning against the lockers, but he didn't see her pistol anywhere. He hoped she had enough sense to keep that on her. Megaton was relatively safe, but that was the trick. Relatively. He took a careful sip of his coffee and turned around, looking across at the bookshelf, on which Posey had placed both Duck and Cover, and another unfamiliar book, but whose spine read A Tale of Two Cities. A picture frame rested on top of the bookshelf, and Jude picked it up carefully, looking down at the happy faces behind the glass.
Jude assumed this was Posey and her father. Posey's father had his arm around her shoulders, and Posey was grinning ear to ear, despite a split lip. He could definitely see a family resemblance, something about the nose and the eyes, but it wasn't as vivid as Doctor Li had made it sound back in Rivet City. Or at least not to Jude anyway. Posey's dad was a good looking man, but his features weren't as fine as Posey's, who looked like a puff of wind could blow her over. But maybe that was just because he was a full grown man and Posey was a nineteen year old girl.
Jude set the picture down, careful to put it back in the exact position he'd found it, and downed the rest of his coffee before setting the mug down and heading for the door. Wadsworth immediately floated over and collected the dirty mug and said brightly, "Have a good day, sir!"
Jude gave him an acknowledging wave before opening the door and stepping out into Megaton.
He wandered down to Jenny's stall, keeping an eye out for Posey, but he didn't see even any indication that she was around.
"Morning, Colorado." Said Jenny as he took a seat at her bar, still glancing around the rusted metal shacks that made up Megaton
"Morning, Jenny." He said absently. Jenny paused, looking at Jude with wide eyes, before a small smile took residence on her face.
"Well, you seem in high spirits today." Said Jenny slowly, still grinning as Jude looked at her with knitted eyebrows.
"What?" He said, frowning.
"Nothing," Said Jenny, holding her hands up as if surrendering. "It's just, I think that's the first time in four years that you've said good morning to me."
"Oh." Said Jude, faltering slightly and reaching up and scrubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry, I guess."
"What can I get you?" She asked, still smiling and shaking her head in disbelief.
"Something quick, have you seen Posey, that girl from the Vault around this morning?"
Jenny raised an eyebrow as she pulled a plate out of the oven behind her, in which several 'Squirrels-On-A-Stick"'s seemed to be warming.
"I did, early this morning. She dropped by for some breakfast, haven't seen her since though."
Jude frowned as Jenny placed his food in front of him, and Jude handed over the five caps needed. He turned around on his stool, munching on his breakfast while scanning the small town for any sign of the Vaultie. There were the Children of Atom, still monotonously worshiping the now disarmed bomb, a few settlers roaming around, but no long blonde braid or Vault 101 jumpsuits.
"Thanks, Jenny." He said, pushing his plate towards her once he'd finished and setting off to Morairty's, thinking perhaps Posey had gone to talk to Gob.
"You're welcome, Colorado." Said Jenny sounding bemused, and she shook her head again smiling to herself.
Posey wasn't at the bar, and Gob hadn't seen her that morning. She wasn't at Craterside Supply, and Jude was starting to feel the beginnings of worry settle in his stomach, but overshadowed by that was irritation. Where the cuss was that girl?
He stepped out of Craterside Supply, and shaded his eyes against the afternoon sun. He heard a scuff of boot on metal and whirled around, and he thought he saw a flash of pale blonde on an upper level, running along near crazy old Nathan's house.
"Blondie?" He called, feeling a slight prickle of nerves as he jogged towards what he'd thought was her. Why was she running? What kind of trouble had she rustled up now?
By the time he reached the hollowed out bus turned house, she was gone again, and Jude was starting to feel truly anxious. He didn't know all of the settlers wandering about, but there had been that group who'd attempted to paw through her stuff when she first arrived, and not to mention Jericho was wandering around this place and Jude didn't trust him as far as he could spit. And he could spit pretty far.
"Blondie?" he called again, his voice strained as he turned on the spot.
There was a muffled noise, like someone had cut off a cry and Jude turned about again, looking left and right with narrowed eyes. "Hello?"
He saw a hint of blue Vault Suit, before it disappeared round a corner and Jude bounded after it. His heart pounding in his ears. "Blondie!"
He skidded round the corner, almost falling flat on his face before sprinting along the rusted walkway with a cacophony of rattling and shaking, he rounded another corner and flew straight into Posey, who let out a cry as he stumbled and gripped her upper arms to prevent the both of them crashing to the ground.
"Blondie!" He said breathlessly, as she looked up at him with wide eyes, her chest heaving and hair messy. "Blondie, you alright?"
She didn't say anything for a moment and Jude tightened his hands on her arms unconsciously, and said, almost frantically. "Posey!"
Suddenly, Posey grinned and let out a laugh before crying: "You're it!"
"Wait, what?" Said Jude in disbelief as Posey slipped out of his grasp and ran up the catwalk. Jude heard two new laughs behind him and two small bodies rushed past him and he saw Maggie Creel and Harden Simms, the town's only children, follow after Posey, all three of them laughing to their hearts content.
"What the hell?" Said Jude, dumbfounded.
"Language!" Chided Posey, turning to face him and grinning widely. Her hair was out of its braid, and fell in waves to her waist, and was partially held back with a red bandana, the two ends pointing right up from the top of her head like rabbit ears. Her Vault suit's sleeves were tied around her waist, leaving Posey's shoulders and the barest hint of midriff exposed in her ribbed white tank top. Jude blinked and shook his head, trying to make sense of the bizarre situation before him.
"What's going on here?" He asked and Maggie stifled a giggle behind her hand, while Harden elbowed her, looking at Jude with apprehension.
"Tag." Said Posey, as if it were obvious. "And you're it Colorado so you better pick up the pace."
"Come on, Blondie." Said Jude impatiently, scowling as his anxiety slowly faded away. "What are you doing? We're wasting time."
"What, afraid you can't catch us? Is that it?" She asked with a smile, and Jude huffed irritably.
"Of course that's not it." He said crossly.
"Prove it." challenged Posey. "You tag me, game over. I just don't think you can catch me."
"Of course I can catch you."
Posey raised an eyebrow, a wicked little smirk curling her lips.
"Prove it."
Jude flew forward before he really had a grip on what he was doing, and both Posey and the children let out a squeal of delight before taking off.
"Run children!" Cried Posey gallantly, "Save yourself!"
The children laughed gleefully and split off, one going right and the other left, but Jude kept his eyes trained on Posey.
She really was quicker than he thought she'd be, and light on her feet. She ducked around Lucas Simms easily enough with a whoop and Jude had to skid to a halt in front of the man, who looked with wide eyes from Posey, to a panting Jude.
"Colorado, what the hell is-"
"Mornin' Sheriff." Said Jude, before stepping past him and taking off after Posey, had run past Moriarty's Saloon and Jude felt himself grin, as Posey ran down towards the middle of town. She might be faster, but Jude knew Megaton better than she did.
He turned around and sped back the way he came, leaping down of the catwalk onto the roof of a shack. He crouched there and waited until Posey slowed down, looking around where he'd been with a frown, panting heavily and turning on the spot, trying to see where he'd gone. He waited until her back was to his shack and jumped down, landing silently in a crouch, and creeping forward, keeping low to the ground.
"Posey behind you!" Shouted Maggie, hanging on the railing above them with a laughing Harden.
Posey whirled around, her eyes wide and she let out a yelp and tried to leap away as Jude dove forward, a little too forcefully as he collided with her, wrapping his arms around her to prevent them both from tumbling to the ground.
They were both laughing, Jude could feel Posey reverberating with it before he drew back, panting.
"You only caught me," said Posey, gasping for air, "because you cheated."
"Don't be a sore loser," He said, straightening up and placing his hands on his hips. "Knowing the area doesn't count as cheating."
"Well, looks like I'm it again." Said Posey, blowing a stray lock of hair out of her face.
Jude widened his eyes and said hurriedly, "No tag backs, Blondie." before whirling around and sprinting away. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Posey standing looking after him with shock mingled with disbelief before a grin spread across her face and she let out a loud, clear laugh, before tearing after him.
"Okay," Said Jude, falling back against the wall of Craterside Supply, "I forfeit. It's too damn hot for this."
"I agree." Panted Posey, collapsing next to him. "I surrender." Maggie and Harden cheered in their defeat of the grown ups.
"Seriously Blondie, we've got to get our stuff and sell it to Moria and get going to Vault 112, to go after your dad."
Posey's smile dissolved and she pushed off the wall, "Right." She said.
She turned to Maggie and Harden and saluted them. "It's been an honor, soldiers. You were a worthy adversary."
"Good game." Said Maggie, saluting and giving her a smile as well.
"Good luck finding your dad." Said Harden.
Posey stared down at him in a moment, surprised before giving him a wide smile and a quick kiss on the cheek,
"Thanks Harden," She said, straightening up and ruffling his hair, or attempting to, his hair was very closely cropped to his scalp. Harden grinned almost dazedly and Maggie rolled her eyes dragging Harden away while Posey stifled a laugh. "Well," Said Posey turning to Jude with her hands on her hips, "shall we?"
"No time like the present, Blondie. Let's get a move on."
"Oh you're back!" Cried Moria brightly, once she saw Posey stepping into Craterside Supply, "I can't tell you how happy I am to see you! Did you find your daddy yet? Are you ready to start some research?"
"Oh, um." Posey looked guiltily back at Jude who shrugged.
"I fiddled with that spare suit you gave me and I managed to get it armored too!" continued Moria, grinning widely and handing over the modified Vault 101 suit. "Looks like the one you're wearing got a little run down. Want me to fix it? I'd love to! Here let me see it, you change into this one."
Posey looked a little overwhelmed at the sudden burst of chatter, but accepted the offered Vault suit gladly enough.
"I'm sorry, dear, I didn't even give you a chance to answer me! Silly me! Did you find your dad?" Asked Moria with a grin.
"No, Moria, I didn't." Said Posey regretfully. Moria's face fell so quickly it was almost comical, and Jude had to hold back a snort.
"Oh," Said Moria despondently, "That's okay, I guess my research will have to wait a little longer."
Posey bit her lip and looked back at Jude. He could almost see the gears turning in her mind and he shook his head, saying warningly, "Blondie..."
"Do you have something easy I can do for you? A quick little segment for your book?" Said Posey, ignoring him and turning to Moria with a smile.
Moria perked up instantly, her wide, manic smile back in place and she said, "Yeah of course! Tell me about the Vault life and how do you feel about radiation?"
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Radiation! I need you to contract some serious radiation poisoning, so I can test my treatment! I'm sure it works. I've tried it out on myself but I want to make sure it works for everyone!"
Jude groaned and Posey suddenly looked a little pale.
"You want me," She said slowly, "to get radiation sickness."
"200 hundred rads, minimum." chirped Moria. "Idealy 600. That would really test my cures capacity!"
"600 hundred rads?!" Said Posey, definitely going a few shades whiter.
"Don't worry! You'll be fine! My cure works wonders, I'm sure of it!"
"Blondie," Said Jude shortly, "this is ridiculous. This is ridiculous!" He said, addressing Moria this time. "600 rads? Do you know what that'll do to a person?!"
"Everybody knows what Radiation sickness does, Colorado." Said Moria impatiently. "But we'll nip it in the bud with my cure! Not to worry."
"What's the quickest way to get that amount of rads?" Asked Posey.
"Blondie, are you joking! What about finding your dad!"
"We will find my dad." Said Posey, "We'll leave right after this, you don't think it'll take long, do you Moria?"
"No not at all!" Said Moria, beaming at Posey. "It'll be a jif! All you gotta do, is drink some of that water by the bomb! It's so irradiated you won't have to worry about bacteria! That'll dose you up good! Your Pip-Boy can regulate how many rads you're getting and you'll be right within walking distance of my place. Here," Moria reached beneath her counter and pulled out a chipped, pint sized beer mug and handed it to her. "take this, and fill 'er up."
"This is insane!" Said Jude, but Posey accepted the mug and gave Moria a forced smile, and turned and left. "Blondie!" said Jude angrily, after shooting Moria a glare, and he followed her out.
"Blondie, you're gonna die." Called Jude, stomping after her and scowling ferociously.
"Moria says she has a cure." She replied, walking up to the bomb and looking down at the puddle uneasily.
"Moria is insane! Don't-"
But Posey had already stooped down and downed a mug full of murky green water.
"Gah!" spluttered Posey, gagging. "Oh my- Bleh! That's disgusting!"
"What are you doing!" cried Jude, but Posey had already chugged another mug's worth. He could hear her Pip-Boy's gieger counter from where he stood, steadily ticking away.
"This is by far the dumbest thing you've ever done!" Pronounced Jude, folding his arms across his chest and shaking his head.
"Yeah well," Said Posey, grimacing down at her fourth draught. "It's still early."
"Why are you doing this?" Demanded Jude, "Do you have a death wish? How many times have I had to ask you that?"
"She gave me my suit!" Said Posey, her words slurring together slightly, "I'd be dead for sure if it weren't fer her." She blinked and shook her head, wincing. "Why is the world so spinny?"
"Blondie,"
But Posey simply downed another cup, and another, and another.
"You're insane." Said Jude as she went to fill her eighth cup.
"I know what 'm doin', Carolina." She said, raising the mug to her lips,
"No you- Shit!" Jude leapt forward as she stumbled catching her before she fell face first into the muddied puddle. "Blondie! Blondie, hey! Hey, look at me!" Posey's head lolled and her blue eyes seemed glazed over.
"Blondie!" Her Pip-Boy chirped and a flashing warning appeared on the screen.
You have contracted 800 rads, immediate medical attention required.
"Son of a bitch," growled Jude. He brought one arm under her knees and lifted her clumsily up into his arms, Moria's mug falling from her limp hand.
"You..." Said Posey groggily, struggling to keep Jude in focus. "Curse a lot, Jude. You know who else cursed a lot? Butch. You don't wanna be like Butch, Jude!"
Jude hurried up the ramp towards Craterside Supply, feeling his heart pound in his throat.
"Moria!" He roared, kicking on the door, "This damn cure of yours better work or I swear to God!"
"Settle down Mr. Colorado!" Said Moria with a little frown as she opened the door, "Of course it'll, oh dear," Moria's eyes widened as she saw Posey's limp form in Jude's arms, and Jude's stormy expression. "she doesn't look good. Better take her into the back."
"I don't look good?It's the damn apocalypse," Mumbled Posey with a frown. "I thought I looked pretty good considering the circumstance." Already her cheeks were beginning to flush with fever and when Jude set her carefully down in the back, she stumbled and almost fell, unable to support herself on her sluggish limbs. "Whoops." She giggled as Jude caught her again. "Thanks Jude, hey this is kinda like we're dancin'. Are we dancin'?"
"Sure, blondie, we're dancing. Moria!" Snapped Jude, half supporting half dragging Posey to a cot set up in Moria's back room workshop, while she flitted around, getting her cure together. "Make it snappy!"
"I'm trying to, Mr. Colorado!" Said Moria, a note of strain in her voice
"You're a very good dancer, Jude." Said Posey, as Jude lifted her up onto the cot. "Better than Freddy Gomez, even! Waaaaaaaaay better than Butch."
"Am I?" He asked distractedly, "Moria!"
"Mmmmm Hmmmm!" She said cheerfully, patting his cheek. "And you're so handsome! Did you know how handsome you are? You're way better looking than Butch. And you're so much nicer, even when you're grumpy."
Jude looked down at her, and found despite her dire situation, a smile tugging on his lips.
"Oh yeah?" He asked, "I'm nice, huh?"
"Real nice." Said Posey, blinking slowly, and her eyes actually got a little misty. "You're real nice, Jude." She sniffed, clumsily wiping her eyes. "You don't have to help me find my dad, or teach me how to make good deals and shoot things, but you do anyway, you're so so nice!" She patted Jude's arm awkwardly, her movements slow and ungainly.
"Got it!" Said Moria, rushing over and holding a tall glass full of a glutinous greyish liquid. "Here you go, dear. Drink up."
"No way!" Said Posey, wrinkling her nose. "That looks disgusting!"
"Drink it, Blondie." Said Jude, "Come on, be a good girl and drink it."
"You want me to drink that?" She said, looking at him with a frown.
"It's good." Lied Jude, "Moria made it for you."
"Is it a milkshake?" Asked Posey hopefully, "We had those down in the Vault you know. Powdered milk and ice cream of course but they were still real good."
"Yeah, it's a milkshake." Said Jude, taking the glass from Moria and taking Posey's hand in his free one, making sure she wrapped her hand around it. He helped her hold it up to her mouth as she slowly drained the entire glass.
Both Moria and Jude leaned in as she finished it and wiped her hand on the back of her mouth, looking up at them with a dazed smile.
"Well?" Said Moria, her eyes wide.
"That," Said Posey, giving a slight hiccup. "was horrendous."
Her eyes rolled back and she went limp, the glass shattering as it fell from her hand.
"Posey?" Said Jude, shaking her shoulder. "Posey!" She didn't stir and Jude looked towards Moria eyes wide, and suddenly furious. "You killed her! Damnit it Moria-"
"I did not!" Said Moria, frowning at him. "She's breathing fine! She'll wake up tomorrow and be right as rain! Bring her by tomorrow morning, and I'll give her a little check up just to be sure!"
Jude looked back at Posey and placed two fingers on her neck, and relaxed minimally when he felt her steady pulse.
"If she doesn't pull through this," Said Jude warningly, "or if she gets some, third arm or something."
"She'll be fine." Said Moria impatiently. "I'm sure of it! Bring her in tomorrow, and I'll give her a check up maybe another dose of the cure, and she can tell me how she feels."
Jude glowered at her, but said, gruffly. "Fine. But I've got some stuff to sell to you before I leave, and you better give me a hell of a good price."
Jude brought Posey back to the house and laid her carefully down in the 'master bedroom' instructing Wadsworth to keep a very very close watch on her, and set to preparing for their trek to Vault 112. He'd bought some supplies from Moria, and he laid them out on the floor down in the main room. Plenty of ammo, some food for the trek, and some med supplies, although he'd get Stimpacks and Med-X from Gob, who gave him a discount.
Having done that, Jude looked around the room, biting his lip and drumming his fingers against his thigh. There was nothing really else for him to do. Who knew how long Posey was going to be out for. He mulled over his options. He didn't really want to leave just Wadsworth with her. How could he come get Jude if she woke up or if something bad happened?
"Wadsowrth!" He called, "I'm going out! I'll be right back though, keep your eye on Posey!"
"Yes of course, sir!" Called Wadsworth brightly. "It will not waver, sir!"
"It better not, or I'll break it off." Growled Jude, before heading over to the door and wrenching it open.
He headed straight for Moriarty's, glancing around the poorly lit place before he found just the person he was looking for.
"Nova!" He said, striding over to her. "I need to hire you."
Nova, and Gob who was fiddling with the radio, both looked surprised.
"Sure thing, sugar." Said Nova, her voice as usual, husky and seductive. "Must say, I'm a little surprised, thought-"
"No no no no," Said Jude shaking his head. "I'm not gonna sleep with you."
"Shame," Said Nova dryly, although she did look a bit disappointed. "What do you mean hire me, then?"
"I'll pay your fee or whatever, but I need you to go to Posey's house and watch her for me while I do some work for Walter."
Nova raised an eyebrow, "You want me to babysit your girlfriend while you go to work?" She said in disbelief.
"She's sick." Said Jude with a frown. "Real sick. Like an idiot, she agreed to help Moria out with some psychotic research and Moria about killed her with Radiation Poisoning. Moria gave her a cure, and it seemed to have worked but she's out like a light and I just want to make sure she doesn't, I dunno, choke on her own vomit or sprout an extra head or something."
"What am I supposed to do if she does sprout an extra head?" Asked Nova,
"Come get me, at the water treatment plant and I'll figure something out. And she's not my girlfriend." Added Jude, as an afterthought.
Nova smirked, "You're sure goin' through a lot of through a lot of trouble if she ain't."
Jude scowled and handed over a hundred and twenty caps.
"Here, she's in the house above the Brass Lantern, there's a robot named Wadsworth watching over her right now. Tell him I sent you."
"Sure thing, handsome." Said Nova, getting to her feet. "This'll be the easiest money I've made in a while. You sure you're not just asking for a threesome? Cuz those cost extra, hon."
"Would you just get going." Said Jude witheringly, and Nova smirked again before making her way out of the bar.
"Hey, where ya sendin' my whore?" Demanded Moriarty, glowering over at Jude.
"I paid her agreed price, Moriarty, calm down." Said Jude with a scowl. "She's just gonna go watch over something for me for a couple of hours."
"Oh yeah, and what would that somethin' be?" asked Moriarty, folding his arms across his chest and raising an eyebrow.
"Posey's sick, and I need someone to make sure she's alright while I take care of some things."
Moriarty smirked, "So, you and the Vaultie huh? Tell me, she any good to tumble with?"
Jude glowered, "Ain't like that, Moriarty. She's payin' me to help her find her dad."
"Liar." Said Moriarty, his dark eyes glittering. "That girl didn't have two caps to rub together when she was here last, and you're no merc."
"Simms paid her for disarming that bomb. Besides, you don't know what I am."
"But I know what you aren't, and that's a good liar."
"Go heckle someone else," Said Jude sourly, and Moriarty laughed before moving on down the bar.
"So she's sick, huh?" Asked Gob once Moriarty was out of earshot. "She gonna be alright?"
"Moria seemed to think so." Said Jude wearily, setting himself down on a stool. "She seems alright. Pulse is fine, breathing is fine. Hope she wakes up alright. She was a little, out of it, before she crashed."
"Well, I hope she pulls through. She's a real nice kid. Good kid."
"Yeah..." Said Jude thoughtfully, drawing his hand over his face, suddenly feeling exhausted. "Yeah, she's a good kid. Too good, sometimes."
"How do ya mean?" Asked Gob, looking questioningly down at Jude.
"I dunno, it's just... She doesn't care what happens to her, so long as she's doing is 'what's right'. She'd tear out her own heart if she thought it'd help some poor bastard. She has no idea what the words 'self preservation' means...Actually," Amended Jude "she probably does, 'cause she's an egghead."
"You sure she's not your girl?" Asked Gob, his lipless mouth twisting into a smirk.
Jude gave him a half-hearted glare. Gob laughed, which sounded like he was hacking up a lung.
"Just sayin' Colorado, you're sure puttin' in a lotta time for this girl. Specially since I know she ain't payin' you." He said, picking up a bottle of whiskey and pouring him a glass. "Here, you look like you need this."
"It's really not like that," Insisted Jude. "She's not my girl. I've never even kissed her."
"Yeah but do ya want to? That's the trick." Said Gob with a smirk.
Jude scowled and Gob laughed again,
"Easy there, man if looks could kill... I'll stop ribbin' ya, she's a great gal. You're a lucky man."
"Did you listen to any of the words that I just said?" Demanded Jude, setting his whiskey down. "You know what, whatever, I came here for some Stimpacks. Give me six, and two Med-X. Add it to my tab."
He downed his drink as Gob got what he asked, grimacing as the burn slid over his tongue and down his throat. He handed over the caps as Gob passed him the meds.
"Thanks Gob, I'll see ya around."
"You be good to her, Colorado." Said Gob with a smile and Jude rolled his eyes before stepping out of the bar.
It was early evening, the sun just starting to set as Jude headed up to the Water Treatment plant, his pack stuffed full of the scrap metal he and Posey had collected while they were out in the Wastes.
"Walter, brought you some scrap." He called, once he opened the door.
"Haven't you got better things to do than bring me junk?" Demanded the old man, "I hear your girl's sick with radiation."
"Oh my-" Growled Jude, throwing his pack down with a clattering crash. "Not you too! This whole damn town is filled with gossips!"
"Not much else to do." Chuckled Walter, picking up his pack and whistling appreciatively at all the scrap metal inside. "Besides, that girl's the talk of the town. She saved it after all. Disarmed the bomb, and sent Mister Burke packing. You know he was planning to blow this place up?"
"She sent Burke packing!" Said Jude indignantly.
"Yep, high tailed it outta here with his tail between his legs."
"Oh, did he now." Said Jude grumpily.
"So they say. She must be quite the lady."
"Oh she's something alright." Said Jude under his breath. "You got any work for me, Walter?"
"Sure do, get out of that armor of yours, I need out to crawl under the pump and tighten a few valves for me. Not mention I got a few more leaks sprung up. I better to put you to work while I gotcha here. If I had a doll like that waitin' for me, I wouldn't be-"
"Give me that wrench," Said Jude, pointing to his work table. "And Walter?"
"Yeah, boy?"
"Shut up."
Posey
"Come along, Posey. You've got to keep up!"
Posey blinked in surprise, looking at her father who was walking briskly up a starkly familiar hallway.
"Dad?" She croaked, taking a step forward, but James' pace didn't falter. "Dad, where are we?"
"Why, we're in the Vault. Where else would we be?" He said, turning and raising his eyebrows at her, gesturing around for her to see the rounded steel walls and fluorescent lights that made up her childhood home. "Now come on, we're going to be late."
"For what?" She tried to ask but he'd taken off, up the hall and down a corridor. Posey jogged after him but suddenly felt rooted to the spot as she heard a distinctive yowl and a feral ghoul came skulking round the corner. It saw her and let out a savage guttural cry, spittle flying from its decaying lips as it threw itself at her, talon like hands outstretched and menacing. "Dad!" She shouted, raising an arm that would be a pointless shield against its onslaught but she felt nothing. When she opened her eyes, she was out in the blistering hot Wasteland, the sun beating down on her head and soaking into her skin. She stumbled, falling into the cracked dirt, causing a plume of dust to billow around her, settling in her lungs. She felt as if her tongue were made of sandpaper and her throat felt blistered as she inhaled the scorching air. A shadow fell over her, and she looked up into the face of Jude, who was giving her a look tantamount to loathing.
"I told you, Blondie." He said, crouching down in front of her, picking up a handful of the powdery dirt and letting the dust flow between his fingers. "Flowers don't grow in the Wasteland." His green eyes were boring into her and she felt like she was withering away, the sun too hot, burning her eyelids. Her arms quivered beneath her and suddenly gave out, and she slumped forward, but when she hit the ground, she felt cold metal under her cheek.
She opened her eyes, sitting up and looking around at the walls of Vault 101. But this was drastically different than the place she'd grown up. Mangled bodies hung from meat hooks, bodies Posey recognized as Vault residents she'd known all her life. She recoiled, fighting the urge to vomit. The usual pristine metal walls were corroded and spattered with blood. There was a cry of pain further ahead and Posey ran towards it. She saw Raiders, the ones from the metro, and the ones she'd fought and killed on her way to Megaton, but they were either dead or dying, shrinking back when they saw her face, begging and pleading, "Don't! Please don't hurt me!"
"I-" Posey stuttered, "I'm not-"
"Posey!" Came an anguished cry and she whirled around, suddenly finding herself at the Vault's door. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw her father, battered and bloodied, standing just outside the Vault.
"Dad!" She cried, stepping forward, hand outstretched and she jerked to a stop, looking down in horror at her hands. Thick, dark red blood, sliding down her pale fingers. Smeared across her scarred palms, it still warm and Posey looked up at her father, her breath catching in her throat. James stepped back, eyes wide and the door started to grind shut.
"Posey," He said brokenly, "what have you done?"
"Dad! Dad, wait!" But the door was closing and she was running too slow and the door closing too fast, the screech of metal on metal loud in her ears. Someone grabbed her shoulder and shook her. The Raiderss faces were inches from hers, rotted teeth bared,
"You killed us! You killed us all!"
"Blondie! Blondie wake up!"
Posey sat up with a strangled gasp, her heart stuttering and chest heaving. Slowly, an unfamiliar room came into focus as did Jude's face, looking down at her with a slight frown.
"You're gonna wake the whole Wasteland, shouting like that."
"I-I-I'm s-s-sorry." Stuttered Posey, suddenly feeling weak and dizzy. She drew her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms tight around them. She'd never had a dream that vivid before, never. Her father told her that when she was a child she'd had night terrors, but eventually she'd outgrown them. Maybe they were coming back.
"Yeah, you better be, It's not often I can sleep without worrying about some skeeze trying to paw through my stuff," Said Jude, letting go of her shoulder and sitting back so he was leaning against the wall at the end of her bed. He was dressed, or rather not dressed, in what she was coming to realize as his pajamas, that was to say his boxers and a dingy white tee shirt, still with a blood stain on the shoulder. Posey stared at the rusted stain until it burned green into her retinas.
He continued. "or a raider trying to paint the walls with my guts."
At the mention of Raiders, Posey flinched, screwing her eyes tight shut and attempting to push the images of the twisted remains back in the metro out of her mind.
"I'm joking, Blondie. You're fine." Said Jude, almost gently. "Well, I hope you're fine. How are you feeling?"
Clammy, traumatized and sick to my stomach.
"Fine." She said, looking around, "Where are we?"
"Your house in Megaton," Said Jude with a frown. "You sure you're alright? What's the last thing you remember?"
"Um," Posey frowned, thinking hard. "drinking that really gross puddle water." She grimaced; her mouth tasted even worse now. "Everything after that's a little fuzzy." She mumbled, shaking her head.
"You don't remember anything after that?" Asked Jude, and for some reason, a smile hovered on the edge of his mouth. "Nothing at all? Nothing you said?"
"No..." Said Posey slowly, "Why, should I?"
"No, I suppose not." Said Jude sitting back with a smile. "You sure you're all right? You don't remember how you felt when you got 800 rads packed into your system?"
"800!" Croaked Posey, feeling sick all over again. "How am I alive?!"
"Moria's cure." Said Jude with a shrug. "She'll be disappointed you don't remember much."
"Well, it might come back to me later." Said Posey.
"Let's hope so." Said Jude with a grin, getting to his feet. Posey raised an eyebrow and followed suit, her head spinning as she stood.
"You're certainly chipper this morning." She said warily, stretching her arms above her head, closing her eyes as her muscles pulled uncomfortably.
"What can I say," Said Jude with a shrug, "I had a good night's sleep, and your robot makes good coffee."
"What time is it, anyway?" asked Posey, grabbing her Pip-Boy off the nearby desk and fastening it to her wrist.
"Little after eight," Answered Jude, "perfect timing. We'll grab our gear, grab some grub and go."
"I've got to go tell Moria that her cure worked and everything."
"Oh yeah," Said Jude, frowning slightly. "fine, we'll go see Moria. But no more research!"
"No more research." Agreed Posey wearily.
The pair of them now suited up, Jude in his leather armor, Posey in her new armored Vault suit and Tunnel Snakes jacket on her shoulders, they made their way to Craterside Supply.
"Morning Moria." Said Posey, as they entered. Moria looked up from a rather dangerous looking contraption contrived out of a lunchbox and a couple of batteries and grinned widely when she saw them.
"See Colorado I told you she'd be fine!" She said brightly, abandoning her project and coming around the counter with her wide, manic grin firmly in place. "Tell me, how do you feel? How did you feel yesterday?"
"I feel fine now," Said Posey honestly, "a bit of a headache, but really, I'm fine. I don't remember much from yesterday, I'm afraid. It's a little fuzzy. I remember feeling really tired, and it was hard to focus. If I remeber anything else, I'll record it and bring you back the notes."
"Will you?" Said Moria gleefully, "Oh, thanks a bunch! Oh, and um." Moria looked a little sheepish, "Yesterday, while I was fixing you up, I noticed a teeny, tiny, um, mutation."
"What!" Demanded both Posey and Jude, Posey felt suddenly woozy all over again.
"You certainly failed to share that little tidbit yesterday!" Said Jude, glowering at Moria.
"It's nothing serious!" Said Moria hurriedly, "You have a much higher rads resistance now! So that's good, right? And, and!" She continued as Jude looked almost murderous at this point. "You now have Rad Regeneration! When under the effects of Advanced Radiation Poisoning any crippled limbs will automatically regenerate!"
"What?" Said Posey in disbelief, and Jude looked stunned.
"How the hell is that even possible?" Asked Jude, frowning.
"Who knows!" Said Moria with a shrug, her manic smile slowly crawling back up on her face. "Radiation is very unpredictable. But exciting, right! This is all definitely going in the book! Especially once you remember your entire experience!"
"Oh, yeah, definitely put that in there." Said Jude with a grin. Posey shot him a questioning look over her shoulder before turning back to Moria, who was chattering away, oblivious to Jude.
"Come back once you've found your daddy and we can move onto the other sections!" She said brightly,
"Oh," Said Posey, feeling a little sinking feeling, "I don't know, I'm-"
"Buh-bye now!" Said Moria, pushing Posey towards the door.
"Moria!"
But the woman was stronger than she looked and soon enough she found herself outside of Craterside Supply, and Moria was waving wildly before slamming the door shut.
"That woman." Said Jude once the door was closed, "Is insane. Do you know who else is insane? You, because you listened to her."
"I promised her I would help!" Said Posey, "How was I to know that help would involve nearly killing myself!
"I'm not having this conversation with you right now." Said Jude, shaking his head. "Come on, let's get a move on, unless there's anyone else you want to see while we're here."
Posey looked up at the saloon, frowning as she read 'Moriarty's' across the building.
"Yeah," She said, looking back at Jude. "There actually is one more person that I'd like to see."
"Hey, Gob." Called Posey with a grin, taking a seat at the bar and completely breezing past Moriarty without sparing him so much as a glance. Gob grinned back widely, setting down the bottle he'd been holding and saying:
"Hey, Smoothskin! Glad to see you up and around! Heard you were a bit under the weather."
"A bit," Said Posey ruefully, as Jude took a seat beside her, resting his combat shotgun between his knees.
"Well you look right as rain now, glad to see that witch's brew of Moria's actually worked. What can I get for ya? A beer? Scotch? Whiskey? What's your posion, Vaultie?"
"Never tried any of them, actually." Said Posey with a shrug. "I think I'll stick to Nuka-Cola for the time being, if you've got one."
Gob chuckled dryly and reached under the counter, pulling out a very dusty bottle of Nuka-Cola.
"We've got exactly one, two caps please."
Posey passed over the money and watched as Gob pulled a bottle opener from his back pocket and cracked open her soda for her, passing it and the now bent cap over to her, shooting her a conspiratorial wink as Posey pocketed the cap.
"Hey Gob," She repeated running her finger along the rim of her soda and unable to keep a smile from her face. "I've got a proposition for you."
Jude gave her a curious look and Gob paused in his act of placing her caps in the till.
"Sims gave me a house," She said feeling her smile widen, she couldn't wait to see his face. "It's pretty nice. Two rooms, a Mr. Handy Robot called Wadsworth, and a fridge even. But, I'm gonna be outta town for a while, and I don't know when I'm gonna be back. Even when I do get back, I don't know how long I'm gonna stay, and I don't really need two rooms. Ju-" She caught herself as she felt Jude stiffen next to her and she quickly corrected it "Colorado, I mean might stay over a few times, but, what I'm saying is, Gob you can stay there. At my house. You don't have to live here, and have Moriarty charge you room and board. Stay at my place, while you pay off your debt to Moriarty."
Gob stared at her, open mouthed and Jude looked from the ghoul to her and back again, a small smile playing on his lips.
"Ya... Ya mean it, Smoothskin?" Said Gob, his voice sounding even rougher than usual.
"Yeah, I do. I really mean it." Said Posey with a smile. "Be my housesitter, watch over the place for me. No rent, no charge."
Gob's milky eyes looked overbright and he cleared his throat, dropping his gaze to the till in front of him as he dropped her caps in and slid the drawer shut.
"Posey, I can't, I-I-"
"Why not Gob!" She leaned forward over the bar, eyes pleading, "I'm hardly ever gonna be there, maybe a night or two here or there but other than that the place'll be empty! Go ahead, Gob. Here." she reached across the bar and pressed her spare house key into Gob's hand. His skin felt chapped and paper thin, but it was warm as she brought her other hand up to close his skeletal fingers over it.
"Take it." She said, smiling up at him.
Gob stared down at her, jaw clenched and eyes wide. He swallowed, the muscles visible in his face and neck clenching, but Posey didn't flinch.
"Posey," He croaked, "I...I dunno what to say."
"So don't say anything." Said Posey with a shrug, sitting back on her stool. "Except that you'll stay. You can eat at Jenny's stall. You don't have to eat here. Don't give Moriarty any more money than you have to."
Gob continued to stare down at her, and Posey thought his eyes might have been full of tears, though it was difficult to tell with his milky lenses.
"I really oughtta up your discount, Vaultie." He said at last with a shaky smile. Posey merely grinned and took a swig of her Nuka-Cola.
"Ah, The Hero of Megaton graces us with her presence."
Posey turned and saw Moriarty standing over her, his dark eyes glittering and smirk firmly in place.
"Watcha doin' here, lassie. Aren't ya supposed to be lookin' for your daddy?"
"I'm on my way to go after a lead right now." Said Posey. "I'm just hiring Gob here to house sit for me while I'm away."
Moriarty looked over her shoulder at Gob, who ducked his head and shrunk back from the bar.
"Is that so?" Drawled Moriarty. "Well Gob, as you can see, is already employed."
"He'll just sleep over there, keep an eye on things for me. He won't need to stay here, any more, Moriarty. You can rent out his room now." Said Posey, turning around completely on her stool and getting to her feet. Moriarty had a quite a few inches on her, but Posey didn't balk at his glare.
"How generous of you." Said Moriarty, narrowing his eyes.
"Beneficial to us all." Said Posey with a shrug.
Moriarty snorted, "So you're shacking up with the zombie now, huh? What, Colorado over there ain't enough for you? Thought you had taste, lassie."
Jude made to get to his feet but Posey gave him a hard look, though she felt she was blushing.
"I'm not shacking up with anyone," Said Posey, glaring up at Moriarty. "Gob is my friend and I need someone to watch my place."
Moriarty glowered down at her and Posey returned his stare, balling her fists in her Tunnel Snake jacket pockets.
"Looks like you've got a new place then, Gob." Said Moriarty at last, looking back at him and Posey felt her muscles relax slightly, leaning back against her stool.
"I expect to you to have your shit out of here by tonight, and scrub that room clean. No one with an ounce of self respect will want to take that room if it's still got your foul stench all over it."
"Yes, sir." Said Gob, coming round the counter and picking up a rag and a box of Abraxo cleaner. As he passed them, Moriarty grabbed his upper arm tight and said, low and fast
"But you listen to me, you still owe me. You're still in it up to your eyeballs and you work for me. Don't you forget it, ya rotting piece of filth."
He released Gob as though burned by him and wiped his hand down the front of his shirt with a look of disgust as Gob scurried away and Posey felt a simmering rage bubble under her skin, flushing her cheeks even more.
"He's aware of that, Moriarty." Said Posey coldly, "You'll get your debt paid."
"Oh," Moriarty smirked causing Posey's scowl to deepen. "I know I will."
He walked away and Posey glowered at his retreating back as Jude got to his feet, also keeping his eyes on Moriarty, who disappeared into his back room.
"Let's get the hell out of her, Blondie." He mumbled, and Posey nodded once, giving Gob one last wave before making a beeline for the door.
"Well that was real decent of you, Blondie." Said Jude as the two of them exited the gates of Megaton and headed directly West, almost along the same path that Posey had traversed her first time out of Vault 101. Posey kicked a stray pebble out of their path, watching it send up a plume of dust in its wake.
"You think?" She asked with a slight frown.
"Yeah, I do. Not that I'm surprised at all."
"What's that suppose to mean?" Asked Posey, looking up at him with a frown.
"Nothing, I guess. Just you always seem to do the decent thing."
"Well, yeah." Said Posey, looking back at the Wasteland around them, taking in the scrubby brush and burned out trees with a scowl. "You say that almost like it's a bad thing."
"Sometimes it is." Said Jude, looking down at her with knitted eyebrows. "Moriarty does a lot more than just get Megaton drunk you know."
"Are you saying I shouldn't have helped Gob?" Demanded Posey, jumping atop a rather large boulder impeding their route.
"No," Said Jude patiently, sidestepping the boulder and looking back at her, squinting against the sun. "I'm just saying you need to watch who's toes you step on. Moriarty is nothing compared to Burke, but you need to be careful, blondie. As I've said multiple times."
Posey hopped down off her perch with a sigh, "I know. And I'm trying, honestly I am. I just..." She shook her head and walked forward to catch up with him, "I hate Moriarty!" She burst out at last. "I hate him! I hate his stupid accent, and his stupid goatee and I hate the way he talks to Gob! I hate the way he talks to anyone! He reminds me of The Overseer back in Vault 101. He thinks he's better than everyone else because he has a modicum of power and I hate it!"
"Easy, Blondie." Said Jude with a little smirk, "Tell me how you really feel."
Posey allowed herself a laugh and shook her head, pulling her borrowed cap down more snuggly on her head.
"Sorry, I just... He gets under my skin." She muttered, shoving her hands back into her pockets. "In a way that I've never encountered apart from Butch Deloria."
"Who is this Butch?" Asked Jude, propping his gun on his shoulder and looking down at her, and again he had an odd smile playing about his lips. "You sure mention him a lot."
"I do?" Asked Posey with a frown. "I didn't think so."
"Yesterday you had a lot to say about him, and a Freddy Gomez, I believe."
Posey blushed and looked up at him, aghast. "How do you know about Freddy?"
"Like I said, you were certainly talkative yesterday." His grin widened and he looked very pleased with himself as he shifted his shotgun and carried on up the lane.
"When?" Demanded Posey, jogging to keep up with his long strides. "I don't..." Her eyes widened as she had a hazy recollection of Moria's back room and feeling very tired and feverish, and when she got feverish...Well, her father had said it was rather comparable to what happened when people had a bit too much to drink. "Oh no." She breathed, feeling her cheeks grow, if it were even possible, even pinker. "Oh noooo, what did I say!" She wailed, placing her hands over her cheeks and wishing the ground would open and swallow her up.
"I'm not gonna tell you," Said Jude with a laugh, "You just gotta remember, Blondie. So, who's Butch? Your boyfriend?"
Posey gagged in response and Jude chuckled again. "Okay," He said, shifting his gun onto his other shoulder and looking out over the Wasteland. "so not him. Was it Freddy? Was Freddy your boyfriend?"
"No," Said Posey primly, "not that it's any of your business."
"Did you want him to be your boyfriend?" Teased Jude, "Tell me, Blondie. Was he a good dancer?"
"How could you possibly know about that!" Cried Posey, wishing she could stop blushing. "And no, I didn't want him to be my boyfriend. Not really, anyway. Well, I mean we had a date planned but I thought that must have been some kind of prank, I mean he-" She cut off, wondering if the heat in her cheeks could get any warmer or if she was just getting a sunburn again. Jude was grinning widely as they crossed the cracked asphalt baking in the Wasteland sun, that made up the road that Posey recognized as the one just below the entrance to the Vault. She glanced up the winding path, feeling her heart pinch at their proximity to Vault 101. An image from her dream flashed before her eyes and Posey flinched in spite of herself, shaking her head to disperse the memory of blood splattered walls and mangled corpses.
"You miss it?" Asked Jude, and Posey looked back at him, brows furrowed and a frown tugging on her lips.
"The Vault?" She inquired, and Jude nodded. She looked out ahead of their path, taking in the sunbaked dirt and skeletal trees thrusting up towards the surprisingly clear blue sky. She could feel the sun soaking into her skin, yet it wasn't uncomfortable, even with her Tunnel Snakes jacket on. The air was crisp and peculiarly cool, and there was a breeze lifting her hair from her face, and chasing a few wisps of cloud across the horizon. "No," She said thoughtfully. "not really. Sometimes, I suppose. I'm glad I left when I did. Staying there without my dad would have been awful. There are some things I miss though."
"Like milkshakes?" Asked Jude with a grin.
"Yeah, like-" She glared up at him. "How do you know about milkshakes?! What are you hiding, Colorado?"
"I'm not hiding anything. It's you who's repressing it."
Posey glared at him, and vowed to remain silent for the rest of their trek.
"Oh come on, Blondie." Said Jude bracingly after a minute or two passed in silence. "Tell me about life down in the Vault. I won't even sell our interview to Moria for her book. It can be between us."
Posey's lips twitched in smile before she fixed them firmly in a scowl. "Why don't we talk about your childhood."
"Nothing to talk about." Said Jude, "Typical Wasteland upbringing, shitty and emotionally scarring."
"I doubt that."
"Oh really," Said Jude raising an eyebrow. "you don't think my childhood was emotionally scarring?" Jude snorted, "You don't wanna know, Blondie. And I'm not talking about it, it was a long time ago."
"So?" She protested, "My childhood was a long time ago!"
Jude scoffed. "Your childhood technically ended two years ago." He said looking down at her. "You're still practically a kid, Blondie."
"I'm nineteen, that's not a kid. You're not that much older than me."
"I'm six years older than you, Blondie."
"So?"
He shook his head, "We're not going there, Blondie. We're just not."
Posey scowled, but remembered how Jude had looked at her back at the Jefferson Memorial, the way they'd seemed, fragile, almost. Fractured, in a way, and too close to breaking. What would it have been like, growing up in the Wasteland?
Probably shitty and emotionally scarring. She thought glumly. At least this time, Jude hadn't gotten as defensive as he had before when she'd tried to pry into his past, that was definitely an improvement. Though glancing up at him, she could see a muscle jumping in his jaw as he had it clenched, his knuckles white on the shaft of his shotgun and his shoulders were tense. He looked like a coiled spring, and Posey didn't want to be the one to cause him to snap.
"I miss my friends mostly, from the Vault." She said, looking back down at the ground in front of her. "I only really had two, but I miss them."
"Freddy one of your friends?"
She glanced back up at Jude and was glad to see that he had relaxed somewhat, the muscle stopped jumping, his jaw relaxed a little though he still remained wary, and he didn't look down at her as they walked.
"Sort of. It was...complicated. There was a gang, down in the Vault. A bunch of wannabe bad asses, called themselves the Tunnel Snakes."
Jude snorted and Posey smiled. "Yeah, I know. They had matching jackets and everything. Their 'Leader' was Butch Deloria. For some reason, I never could figure out why, Butch hated me growing up, and basically up until I left the Vault."
"What was Butch's life like?" Asked Jude, "What were his parents like?"
"Well, I'm not sure what happened to his dad. I think he died when Butch and I were really young, and his mom...well she was a piece of work. Alcoholic, I think."
"Well no wonder he hated you." Said Jude, shifting his pack on his shoulders as they started up a slight incline. "From what I'm guessing, you and your dad were pretty close."
"Yeah, really close." Said Posey with a frown.
"And he was good to you."
"The best."
"Well, look what Butch had. A missing father and an alcoholic mother. Your dad loved you, and you loved him, and he wanted that but knew he'd never get it so it turned him bitter. Classic bully material, you find it all over the Wastes."
Posey stared up at Jude, mouth agape. "Did...Did you just make me feel, sympathy for my childhood bully?"
"I dunno, did I?" He asked, looking down at her with raised eyebrows.
"Yeah, I think you did." Said Posey in disbelief.
"Hmm, didn't necessarily mean to. But alright. So, let me guess, good ol' Freddy was a Tunnel Snake."
"He really wanted to be. Most of the boys in our grade were. There was only three of them, so it wasn't that big of a deal, I guess. Butch, Paul Hannon Jr., and Wally Mack. Wally was the worst, he was the only one who I really felt could be dangerous. The rest of them were just rustling up trouble, but Wally," Posey shuddered, "Wally liked pain. I remember once, when I was going down to practice with my BB gun, I found him down on the reactor level, pulling apart a Radroach. Only time in my life I felt bad for a roach. Poor thing was trembling and shuddering, while Wally pulled each of its legs off, then laughed." She shook herself again, "Man, I forgot about that. He was messed up. All of the Macks' were. His sister Suzie was a witch. She didn't notice me much, which suited me just fine. I can hardly blame her for being the way she was with Wally as a brother, she probably had to learn how to be mean early on."
Jude didn't say anything for a while, mulling over the details before saying at last,
"Ya know, it doesn't sound so different from up here, actually. I mean it was probably cleaner, and you had purified water so at least radiation wasn't making you crazy. Just each other."
"I guess not." Said Posey, "People are still people, whether their Vaulties or Wastelanders."
"How poetic." Said Jude, smirking down at her. "You still haven't told me about your friends yet."
"Oh, right. Well like I said, I only had two. Amata and Jonas. Amata was The Overseer's daughter, but the two of us were best friends from the time we could walk, practically. Amata's mom had died when she was little too, so that was what brought us together. She could actually remember hers though, just barely. Jonas was my dad's lab assistant and Medical Technician. He was about eight years older than me, kind of like an older brother. He teased me a lot, but he taught me how to hack computers and pick locks, and he helped my dad fix up my BB gun for my birthday."
She swallowed hard. The memory of his death still stung, and what was worse was that Posey forgot, sometimes, that he had died.
"So I guess what I miss from The Vault is that things were easier then." Said Posey quietly, watching the ground ahead of her, "I didn't have half the worries that I do now. Things can never really go back to the way they were, even if...when," She corrected herself, "I find my dad."
"Would you want to go back, once you find him?" Asked Jude, looking down at her with an unreadable expression.
"Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to. The Overseer would not look kindly on me or my dad trying to go back. He never liked my dad, and the feeling was mutual. Plus," she looked back up at the sky, pausing for a moment to take it in, the vast, limitless depths staring back at her. "there's some perks, being topside." She looked back at him, and said with a wry smile. "The company ain't half bad."
"Yeah?" He said, stopping as well and looking down at her with a smile tugging on the corner of his mouth.
"Yeah. Gob's really a great guy, and that was a killer game of tag Maggie and Harden set up."
Jude rolled his eyes and started walking again but Posey caught the smile on his lips and grinned back.
"Come on, Blondie, we've-"
Crack
Something warm and wet splattered across Posey's arm and Jude crumpled.
"Jude!" She shrieked, her heart immediately leaping into her throat but there were more gunshots and bullets scattered around them, sending up miniature mushroom clouds of dust each time they struck the ground and Posey raised her Assault Rifle and started firing, the automatic action jarring her shoulder as the group of three Raiders came rushing down the steep incline, while two stayed behind at the craggy outcropping of rock they'd no doubt been hiding behind.
She felt a hand close tight around her upper arm and start to drag her back as Jude shouted,
"Take this, you scummy bastards!"
He hurled something towards them and turned, running further up the path as there was a deafening boom and a plume of dirt rocketed into the air followed by cries of pain.
"Get down!" Growled Jude, yanking her down behind a rock with him and scowling as he readied another grenade.
"Are you-"
"Later!" He hissed. His eyes were hard, and his lips curled in a snarl, it almost made Posey shrink back but she turned and swapped her Assault Rifle to her Hunting one, strapped to her back. She picked off the two stragglers from Jude's initial assault and looked up to outcropping, but no one was coming down. Not that she could blame them. She thought she saw a flash of an arm and saw something arc towards them and Jude shouted
"Shit! MOVE!"
They split off, Posey diving to the right and Jude to the left as the Frag Grenade landed where they'd been crouching and exploded, sending a shower of dirt raining down on her as she skidded across the Wasteland gravel. She scrambled to her feet and saw Jude running up to the outcropping and quickly followed suit, her heart pounding and ears ringing. Jude's left arm, the one exposed by his leather armor, was slick with blood and her jacket, from where he'd gripped her arm, was tacky with it as well.
He reached the outcropping first and without hesitation, blasted the nearest raider, who crumpled without a sound. Another came around the rock but Posey raised her rifle and with a sharp crack, she fell as well, sliding down the embankment, eyes glassy and body twitching.
Jude spat on the ground, still scowling at the now fallen raiders. Posey looked up at him, feeling sick and dizzy and wishing they were back in Megaton, wishing they were laughing together with Gob instead of this. Anything but this. She almost prefered the Metro or the D.C ruins, surrounded by feral ghouls and Super Mutants.
"Jude," She said, her voice quaking. "Let me see your arm."
"No, let's see what these scumbags had first." Said Jude disdainfully, hauling himself up behind the rocks and Posey followed, her stomach churning. She could feel her pulse in her neck and where her ear had been grazed.
Jude was crouched behind the boulder the raiders had been skulking behind, pawing through ammo boxes and a rusted metal tool box when Posey saw him.
"Jude!" She shouted as the last Raider leapt from his hiding place, a wickedly long knife in his filthy hand. Posey didn't pause to think. She grabbed Jude's shoulder and hauled him back as the Raider sailed towards them. His knife clashed against the rock where Jude had been crouching and Posey lept forward, grinding her foot into his hand, pinning it and the knife to the rocks below and held her rifle's trembling barrel up to his forehead.
A pair of large hazel eyes stared up at her, widened even more in fear and Posey stared down at the Raider before her. Her heart thudded, and a drop of sweat slid down her spine and she could feel her own lips pulled back in a snarl not unlike Jude's had been. Every impulse in her screamed to pull the trigger, to end it. Her finger twitched.
He was young. Perhaps younger than her, even. His scrawny body clad in a ragged shirt that was slipping off his shoulder, and Posey could see his clavicle, painfully prominent, as well as his ribs, his dusty skin taught against them. He was staring up at her, blinking rapidly. Tears streamed down his face, cutting tracks in the grime. Greenish grey irises that faded to brown towards the pupil. He had a dusting of freckles across his nose...
Posey's stomach lurched and she took a hasty step back, feeling a sob build at the back of her throat. The boy looked back up at her, and...smiled. He had a gap between his two front teeth.
He was on top of her faster than blinking, her head cracking against the rocks below, his hands around her throat. His emaciated fingers dug into her neck, cracking the scabs on her scrape from the Metro car. She felt his weight suddenly vanish and there was the thunderous crack of Jude's shotgun. Posey sat up slowly, gasping for air and head spinning. Jude cocked his shotgun again. The boy Raider was on his knees, a cavernous wound in his torso, the threadbare grey of his shirt soaked in shining scarlet. His lips were flecked with blood. He was choking on it. Drowning in the middle of a dessert.
Crack
He crumpled. Jude kicked him aside, before turning back to her.
"I thought I told you. You see a Raider, " He said numbly. His face was pale. She could see each of his freckles, standing out vividly against his ashen face. Every golden brown fleck.
"You kill it."