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Chapter 2
Pork'N''Beans and the conversations they bring
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Boone watched with interest as Kyrie whistled cheerfully as they walked down the long stretch of highway. Looking back, he saw the silouette of that damn dinosaur disapear over the horizon until it was gone, and he felt an odd sense of relief.
Novac was no longer his home.
"I wonder what Boulder city is gonna be like?" Kyrie spoke up, scratching at her short black hair. "I've been too a few places near there but never there itself. This should be interesting!"
He didn;t reply. He knew what Boulder City was like. A pile of rubble and memories that he wished to forget. But he wasn't going to tell her that, for some reason, her cheerful attitude made it seem impossible.
Checking her pip-boy, she smiled cheerfully at the screen. "According to this map, we should be there in a few hours time."
"What's a few hours time?" He asked, feeling his eye twitch. This girl was way too cheerful for the wastes.
"Uhh...what were we talking about?" She asked, her green eyes showing confusion behind her goggles.
"Never mind." He grumbled.
Shrugging, she picked up a small pebble from the torn tarmac and tossed it at a lone street sign, laughing as it bounced off the worn metal with a loud clang.
"Cut that shit out!" He snapped, snatching her wrist before she could do it again. 'Someone could hear us!'
"Get the fuck off of me!" She snapped, wrenching her small wrist free. What the hell? What a mood change. He quickly released her small wrist and she withdrew it to her chest.
"Sorry." He muttered.
Shaking her head, she looked down, slightly ashamed. "It's okay, sorry for snapping."
"It's fine."
"I just don't like people grabbing me." She muttered, kicking the pebbles by this point. "Bring's back some pretty nasty memories."
"Ah." He said, understanding. "Trouble on the homefront?"
"You really wanna know about it?"
"Not really, but I'm sure that won't stop you." He said, shelding his eyes against the blinding sun.
Kyrie smirked. "Well, I can always tell you all about it later. My past isn't the happiest." She continuned kicking various pebbles. "And I sure as hell don't want to bring down the mood." She grinned cheekily at the Ex-soldier.
She then swept her short bangs back to reveal that little round scar on her forehead.
"You can tell me about that, though." He spoke up, pointing to her scar.
"What?" She asked in confusion. "That?" She waved her hand like it was no big deal. "That's nothing too exciting."
"That sort of looks like a gun shot wound." He observed.
Kyrie rose her eyebrow at him. "Well, aren't we observant?" She replied somewhat snidely. "Well, my friend, that is because it is...dur." He rose his own eyebrow at her speech. Did she always talk like that?
"I was just on what I thought was a normal delivery job when I was ambushed. All I remember is someone hitting me in the head with a shovel, waking up to see a man in a checkered suit holding the chip I was carrying, then him pulling out a 9mm pistol and shooting me in the head, so the rest is blurry." She talked about it like it was a normal thing. "So that is why I am on a mission, find him and get him to talk."
Boone rose an eyebrow. This girl had spunk, no doubt about that. She was young, eager, and willing to face her problems head on. Someone like that was rare out here in the wastes.
A loud grumbling noise reached his ears, causing him to get his rifle ready. He turned to look at his companion when he noticed her blushing and placing a hand on her small stomach.
"Hah..I'm hungry."
Kneeling down, she swung her bag from over her shoulder, set it on the pavement, and dug through it. Boone snuck a glance at the contents and once again felt his eyebrows raise. This girl was loaded. Ammo, bobby pins, another outfit, water, bottles of whiskey and vodka, magazines, a .44 magnum pistol, pre-war books, and various kinds of food.
Pulling out a bottle of purified water she got from Goodsprings and a can of pork'n'beans, she closed her bag, swung it over her shoulder, and went over to the side of road, making herself comfortable on a rock.
"We should keep moving." He said, not really feeling comfortable.
"Why? Boulder City's not going anywhere." She said, prying the can open with her combact knife and digging in. "You know, for being two hundred years old, this stuff ain't half bad." She took a giant spoonful and chewed on it contently. "And I found out something pretty amazing. If you master your way past the gag reflex, all kinds of food possibilities open up."
"Huh." He muttered, feeling sort of hungry himself. "Where did you learn that?"
'You learn alot while wandering for four years.' She shrugged. She then handed him a slightly bent spoon. 'Wanna share? I promise I don't have cooties.'
Taking the spoon in his large hand (her hand seemed so small compared to his), he scooped out a spoonful and tried to swallow it without gagging. 'Heh, maybe I should learn that.'
'Well, also this stuff is kind of...' She paused, trying to think of a good word. 'Slimy.' She took another bite. 'Want some water?'
"Sure." He took the canteen in his from her and took a big gulp. The water felt good against his dry throat and in his stomach. "Thanks."
"You're welcome!" She chirped, finishing off the can. Boone didn't want anymore and she wasn't about to let the beans go to waste. Finishing the can, she tossed it behind her and threw the spoon she used way off in the distance. 'I'll just find a new one.' She said to the confused sniper. "Well, come on!" she grinned cheekily. "Let's amskray."
Boone stood, stretching slightly. "How old are you anyway?"
She gave him a quizzical look. "Nineteen...why do you ask?"
"You seem to know how to live out here." He gestured to the vast desert. "Does it come from wandering?"
'Of course, things are learned best when experienced." She shrugged, now looking around the ground, adjusting her dirty goggles. "Living on your own for four years can really shape you up."
"You've been on your own since you were fifteen?" He asked, sounding amazed.
'That is correct." She said. "Ran away from home, made it to Primm, got a job...and so on and so forth."
Boone nodded. To say he was impressed with her survival capabilities would be an under statement. Even experienced soldiers had no clue how to live off the land in case of a dire need.
'What else did you learn?' He asked.
"I learned the weak point on a Radscorpion is it's tail, how to stay calm in situations that look they are gonna end in blood shed, and pretty much how to talk my way out of shitty conversations." She smirked up at him.
'Impressive."
Kyrie's eyes suddenly lit up. "Look!" She pointed to a prickly cactus, bearing ripe friut on it's branches. Running over to the plant, Kyrie carefully began to pick the prickly pear fruits, checking the ripeness by giving them a slight squeeze before placing them in her bag.
"Now if only we had a bloatfly." She pondered, scratching her chin, deep in thought.
"Why a bloatfly?" He asked, feeling slightly horrified.
"Then I can make us some bloatfly sliders. Which are way more delicious then they sound, believe me." She then took her combact knife out and stabbed the plant, holding her canteen over the large slit as water poured from it. "That should be enough until we get to Boulder City."
As they continued on their way, Boone couldn;t help but get lost in thought.
Where in the Sam hell did she learn that a prickly pear and a bloatfly would make a decent meal?
'Rolling, rolling, rolling...just keep on rolling...C'mon Boone! Join me!' She laughed as she sang a song.
Oh this is gonna be a long walk. He felt his head start to ache.
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So far, so good hopefully!
Aww...they bonded...sort of.
Goodbye Novac...Hello Boulder City!
Review!