Lillian Parker had the nightmare again. The sirens blaring. Running up the hill to the vault. People shouting and crying. The enormous nuclear blast. Her husband shouting. A gunshot and blood. Her baby crying then fading away. And she couldn't do a thing about it.

She rolled over to reach for Nate for comfort, but there was no one. She opened her eyes and saw the worn walls and the makeshift curtains over the windows. The bedding smelled musty and the air was bitter. It wasn't a nightmare after all. Her husband really was dead and her baby really had been taken away.

It had been three days since she left Vault 111. Everyone else was dead. She was angry at herself for believing Vault-Tec would take care of them when the bombs dropped. Of course they were up to something, otherwise they would've had to pay for their spot like some of the others. But it was due to Nate's military service and her significant, albeit short, career as a professional ballet dancer that gained them automatic entry. All they had to do was confirm things with the Vault-Tec representative who showed up on their doorstep that morning. Did he know what was going to happen to them? He had the nerve to look her straight in the face and tell her they would all be safe. Did he mean that they would be safe while Vault-Tec decided to experiment on them? What did the terminal say, something about the effects of cryogenic suspension on unknowing human subjects. Assholes.

Lillian angrily wiped away the tears on her face and sat up. Where the big, comfortable bed she had once shared with Nate was now just a sleeping bag and a straw pillow on a homemade wooden cot. Far less comfortable, but better than nothing. The neighbourhood was in ruins but some houses, including hers, remained standing. Very few of their belongings remained, having been picked over by scavengers over the years.

She was still in shock that it had been over 200 years since they ran to the vault. Their Mr. Handy, Codsworth, was surprisingly still around. They had to leave him behind when the sirens were blaring, but he dutifully stuck around to try to keep the house tidy. She supposed he gave up after so long since it was a mess by the time she got here. It was Codsworth who told her she'd been gone for 210 years. She almost didn't believe it, but then she remembered the gigantic roaches she had to kill in the vault. Those don't just mutate overnight. Then they had to kill gigantic flies lurking in some of the houses. Luckily Codsworth took care of those. She was too frightened to take care of them herself.

There was no one else in Sanctuary, only a few skeletons. Codsworth said a few people stayed, but eventually moved on. "Can't handle a friendly face, I'd say!" he chortled. Clearly a couple hundred years on his own had taken its toll.

She got up and changed out of the old dress she was using as a nightgown into the jeans and leather jacket she had found. Her only item of clothing when she left the vault was that awful vault suit and she wanted to get out of it as soon as possible.

"What shall you do with the vault suit, mum?" Codsworth had asked.

"Burn it." Lillian didn't want a reminder of Vault 111, though she had no choice but to remember. The body of her husband was still down there in his cryopod. The bodies of all the other vault residents, some of them her own friends and neighbours, were still down there too. All dead. According to the terminals, the life support for all the pods were deactivated. All of them, except for hers and Nate's.

"Are you sure about this, hon?" she asked as they looked through the pamphlets spread across the table.

"It's peace of mind, right?" Nate said, "Besides, there's a good chance we'll never actually have to go."

"And you're sure they said we didn't need to pay?"

"The letter says it's due to my, hold on, what did it say... Ah. Due to my 'exemplary military service', so good thing you married me."

"It also says it's because of my own dance career and 'contribution to culture'." She smiled, then sighed. "You really think we'll have time to raise Shaun before we need to go to the vault? I'd hate for him to grow up without being outside."

"There's nothing to worry about," he reassured her, "Besides, by the time we need to go down to the vault, I'm sure we'll have at least four more children to bring with us."

"Four?!"

"Or five? I feel like we should have an even number."

"At least those ones will be planned," she laughed.

Nate had been shot when two people, one in an odd hazmat suit, had opened the pod and took their 5-month-old son, Shaun. Nate tried to keep the hazmat suit from taking their baby, but the bald, rough-looking man shot him. Lillian could only watch from her pod across from them, which was still locked. A few moments later everything had gone black.

When she woke again, the pod was opened but there was no one else. Everyone was dead. Skeletons were littered throughout the vault, the result of an apparent uprising of the vault guards when the overseer refused to open the door when their supplies were running low. She had read all this on the overseer's terminal before leaving the vault. She wanted answers. That's when she discovered it was all an experiment. A fucking experiment on not only Lillian, Nate, and their friends and neighbours, but also their baby.

Maybe it was Vault-Tec who took Shaun. Maybe they knew the life supports wouldn't last and they decided to take the baby for whatever reason. But why did she survive? Why was she the only one left alive? The bald man had come right up to her pod, looked at her and called her the back-up. What did that mean?

It doesn't matter now. All that matters now is she needs to find Shaun. But she doesn't know where to start. Where would they have taken a baby? Another vault? Some sort of laboratory? Codsworth unfortunately hadn't noticed anything strange happening up near the vault entrance. He said that people have come and gone over the years, but no one with a baby and he would have certainly recognized Shaun.

At least she knew people were still around. Codsworth had mentioned going to Concord to look for help, though the people there had shot at him a few times. Lillian was unsure about it. Everything just felt overwhelming. She opted to stay in Sanctuary for a short while and try to get used to this new world.

For the past few days, she and Codsworth had been tidying up the old house, repairing what they could. They had been able to scrap a fair bit from the neighbour's houses to shore up holes in walls and the roof. They were even able to make a water purifier. It wasn't quite perfect, but it was better than nothing and certainly better than drinking the irradiated water from the stream. Old cans of beans were her main source of food until Codsworth insisted on cooking up the giant roaches and flies. She was very hesitant on trying them, but they turned out not too bad. Just could used some spices.

"Did you get your present?" Nate asked through the video caller.

"Why on earth do we need a Mr. Handy?" she asked.

"You need to rest, what with that parasite infection," he grinned.

"I'm pregnant, you prick, with YOUR parasite," she rolled her eyes. "Besides, my mother and granddad are here, and your parents and sister are planning on coming too. At this rate, you'll have to sleep with the dog when you come home."

"But after they leave, that robot can help out with chores and stuff. Clifford says he and his wife barely got any sleep when they had their kids."

"They had triplets, so it's understandable. We're having just one baby."

"You sure? You are looking pretty big there. Sometimes I'm not sure if I'm talking to my pregnant wife or to an airship."

"You are so lucky I can't wallop you right now," she laughed. "Granddad's setting up the Mr. Handy now. Should it have a name?"

"I've always liked Junky McJefferson. Oh wait, I wanted that name for our child."

"Shut up. The manual had a list of names we could use. Do you want to choose one?"

"Nah, I'll trust your judgment." He paused. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too."

She could hear Codsworth humming 'La Marseillaise', returning from his regular rounds around the neighbourhood and getting rid of any new bloatflies that come in. She headed down the hallway and greeted him as he came in through the front door.

"Good morning, mum!" he said cheerfully. "I'm afraid once again your morning coffee will not be served, but perhaps some nice, cold water will hit the spot!"

"Thanks Codsworth," she said as she took the bottle of water from him. She sat down at the table and took a sip.

"Already done with your morning exercise?" he asked.

"No, no point any more," she replied.

"Tut tut, Miss Lillian, 'physical activity preserves the good condition of every human being'."

Lillian sighed, then smiled a bit. "Alright then."

"Excellent! I shall prepare breakfast." He zipped out the door to the campfire they had made. They hadn't yet been able to produce electricity to get the stove working. Lillian stripped down to her underwear, not having been able to find any proper exercise clothing yet, and stood next to the island counter. She closed her eyes and imagined music playing as she ran through her usual warmups. She didn't have a proper barre any more, but the counter would do for now.

"What is that for?" Nate asked as Lillian carried a long wooden pole into the house.

"I told you last night I was going to set up a barre in the house," she replied, setting it down.

"Did you?" Nate stood from the couch and looked down at the barre.

"Yes, dummy," she smiled at him, "Pay attention."

"I was paying attention," he grinned back.

"I know you were, just not to anything I was saying."

"Didn't even realise you were speaking," he said and received a light smack on the back of the head in response. "So you said you wanted this in the spare room?" He picked up the barre.

"Yep, and once that's in there I can move in the holotape player."

"Hey, that's supposed to be for both of us, remember?" Nate carried the barre into the spare room with Lillian following.

"Why are you trying to hinder my exercising? Do you want me to get fat?" she feigned shock.

"At least if you get fat, you can't run away," he dropped the barre then grabbed her by the waist. She shrieked with laughter as he tickled her. He grunted as he picked her up, acting as if she was ten times heavier than she actually was.

"Look at that, looks like all your lazing about hasn't turned you weak," she giggled.

"Well maybe we should work out together," he kissed her and carried her into the bedroom.

While her ballet abilities wouldn't be very useful in this new world, Codsworth was right about staying active. Besides, she was already starting to feel like the day would be incomplete without her barre exercise. She had never missed a day, even when she was pregnant with Shaun. She had recovered easily after she gave birth and the nurses thought she was insane for still doing them in the hospital (though perhaps not as flexible so soon after pushing a baby out). But she had hoped that she would be able to dance in the Boston Ballet again.

When the Massachusetts government had shut down the Opera House and other theatres, she and the other dancers were forced to find other jobs. Many had gone to join the army, not knowing what else to do. Lillian went to law school, her backup plan in case ballet didn't work out. She didn't think she'd ever go to law school, having initially planned to stay with the ballet company in case an injury had forced an early retirement, but the entire company was shut down. It motivated her to work hard so she could use her new law degree to help get the ballet company and theatre back. She was one week from starting her first job at a law office in Concord when the bombs fell.

She wished their holotape player still worked so she could have actual music. There was a faint radio signal on the Pip-boy she took from the vault, but it was more static than anything else. She'd do anything to hear her favourite Tchaikovsky pieces again.

"Breakfast is served!" her thoughts were interrupted by Codsworth entering with a plate of cooked pieces of meat.

"More flies?" she asked, wrinkling her nose slightly as she took the plate.

"A nutritious way to start the day!" Codsworth said cheerfully. Lillian smiled, sat at the table and ate in silence. When she finished she placed the plate in the sink, even though there was no running water. She still hoped to figure out something. She dressed again and headed out. Codsworth was humming and trimming what little was left of the hedges in front of the house.

"Miss Lillian, if I may, but perhaps you might consider going to Concord soon for assistance in finding young Shaun."

"I think I'll head out tomorrow morning," she said. "Will you come with me?"

"But what about the house, mum? There will be no one here to keep the bugs out."

"Well, let's get some of these other houses prepared. In case other people need a place to stay. Surely there are still friendly people out there."

They spent the rest of the day making basic beds and covering up the larger holes in the walls and roofs of some of the houses still standing. By the time evening rolled in, Lillian realized there wasn't enough time to make any blankets. Codsworth reassured her that the weather was still warm enough and not to worry. It was like he knew she was going to try to put off heading out on her own.

That evening she packed her backpack, simultaneously worried and curious on what's to come. She would be able to defend herself with the pistol she took from the vault, but she wished Codsworth would come with her. But he was right that someone had to stay in Sanctuary. She needed somewhere to call home and Codsworth had kept it safe all these years. She didn't want to come back to find someone else living in her house and sleeping in her bed. And she certainly didn't want some stranger messing up Shaun's room. She had carefully repaired the crib to the best of her abilities and decorated the room with some toys she had found around the neighbourhood.

"Are you sure you don't want any help?" Granddad asked as he leaned on the doorjamb.

"I need to do this myself," Lillian didn't look up from frowning at the instructions to set up the crib. She silently pointed at every piece, making sure they were all there, then set the paper down. She looked around and sighed.

"Forget something?" Granddad smiled.

"I need a screwdriver," Lillian grumbled.

"Got one right here, Lilli-pad," he handed her a screwdriver from his pocket. "Did Nate say when he was coming home?"

"No, he said he's asked for leave numerous times, but hasn't received a reply yet," she said. "I just hope he gets here before the baby does. I can't do this alone."

"You won't be alone," he crouched down and took her hands in his, "You've got all of us here. You'll be okay. Nate will make it home."

Lillian smiled. "Thanks. Want to help me for a bit? I think I'm stuck down here." She patted her round belly.

"Of course, sweetheart, anything for my favourite granddaughter and soon-to-be favourite great-grandchild."

"I'm your only granddaughter," Lillian laughed.

She picked up the small photo album Codsworth had managed to save. Most of the pictures were from a short vacation in Vermont they had taken at the beginning of September with Nate's parents, shortly after Nate's return from being stationed out west. Photo after photo of happy faces, oblivious of what's to come. She removed the photo of the three of them taken after the last dinner of the vacation. Nate was so handsome in his suit and she was wearing her favourite green dress. Shaun was happy and adorable in the tiny shirt and pants Nate's parents gave him.

She packed the rest of the album then lay down on her bed with the photo. She inserted a holotape into the Pipboy and pressed play. She ran her fingers across the picture as she listened to Nate's voice. Codsworth had surprised her with the holotape Nate had made for her on the morning the bombs dropped. She replayed the tape until she finally fell asleep.