Nick Valentine, personal journals

by ladywyntre

I wrote this because Bethesda won't let me romance Nick Valentine in Fallout 4. Here is Nick's personal journal talking about his new partner and, yes, love. SPOILERS abound about the main plot. POV is Nick's, and he isn't always correct in his speculations. UPDATING. Now in process: a sequel based on the Far Harbor expansion.

7. Chapter 6A

January 22, 2293

"Maybe she just put on a StealthBoy and walked away," Deacon suggested, leaning back against one of the pillars in the Railroad HQ.

I looked at him. "Number one, Sheila isn't you and wouldn't do that for the fun of it. Number two, she's far too sensible to waste a resource like that. Number three, she's too smart to go anywhere alone."

"But maybe she—"

I held up a finger. "Most importantly, number four, I could see her activating it if she were; I was looking right at her. She fiddled with her PipBoy, not with a stealther. Do you think I'm an idiot, Deacon? Don't answer that. I've reviewed the memory, and there was no StealthBoy. She also wasn't wearing any armor—she was wearing a dress."

Deacon and Desdemona looked at each other and frowned.

"Not a Stealth Boy, then," Desdemona said decisively. "Probably she returned to the Institute."

I nodded. "But did she do it of her own free will, or was she taken?"

"You said she touched her PipBoy. The Institute has given her the means to transport there, and they linked it to her PipBoy. Signs point to her deliberately going there."

I nodded, not even sure if this was good news or bad. "Okay. That much I hadn't known. Thanks."

"We didn't give her a current mission there," Des continued, exchanging another glance with Deacon. "If Preston and Danse both don't know what she's doing—"

"Still could be a Brotherhood request," I said. "Danse isn't exactly on the inside with them anymore."

"Could be," Deacon said, "but it's just as likely a Sheila thing. She's got her own agenda, after all. Wait her out. If you trust her, you trust her. And here, we trust her."

I couldn't argue, so I didn't. I went back to the Castle.

Preston and Danse accosted me immediately.

"Did you find out anything useful?" Preston asked.

"Yeah. We already knew the Institute has given Sheila a way to teleport there. What we hadn't known is that it was through her PipBoy. So when she touched it after telling me she would be back… she probably teleported there by her own free will. But the Railroad didn't assign her to do anything there, and obviously the Minutemen haven't asked for anything from the Institute. It could be the Brotherhood, but… it may not be. Deacon thinks she's got personal business up there, and… well, given what we know, that seems likely. He suggests we wait her out."

"Which is what we've been doing," Preston agreed. "Good. Thank you for looking into this, and when she gets back, we'll have some words about her checking in and not going anywhere without someone else. Our General needs to have a care for her life and recognize that she's got responsibilities to others now."

"You tell her that, because I won't," I said.

"Yes, she needs someone who won't tell her, Valentine, but she also needs someone who will. I'll be the one who reminds her of the responsibilities she accepted." Preston is sometimes wiser than I give him credit for.

Danse frowned, perhaps because he knows he will never be the one who doesn't remind her of responsibilities.

I walked off to collect my thoughts and update my journal. Funny to think I'm keeping a terminal here at the Castle now.

Author's note: BenRG had a legitimate criticism, but here's my answer… Also, I anticipate only 4-5 more chapters before this fic is finished. I never thought other people might be interested in reading it.