Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Get up! You’re fightin’ today!”

Tommy’s rude awakening was the last thing that Cait wanted to her; but she’d heard it so many times before.

“I fought all fuckin’ day yesterday, Tommy” Cait groaned from the old mattress that she called a bed.

“You did, and you made a lot a’ caps. But those shitheads out there are expectin’ a show; and you make ‘em spend. So, get up and give ‘em a show, little bird.”

‘I told ya to stop fuckin’ callin’ me that!” Cait called out as Tommy left the room.

Tommy’s departure left Cait alone with her thoughts. Cait fell back on her bed and, for what seemed like an eternity, just stared at the chipped and rotten ceiling above her.

Eventually, Cait sat up and moved to the edge of the mattress and looked around at her world. Cait’s quarters were in an old dressing room from the days before the bombs. But, today, no famous and glamorous people worked here anymore; just psychos, junkies, and lunatics. Cait fitted all of those profiles.

“You little fuckin’ rat”, a low voice muttered inside Cait’s head. Cait put her head in her hands and began to rock back and forth. “Stop it! Stop it! Get out and leave me alone.” Cait mumbled through gritted teeth. As the voices got louder and louder, Cait realised that she needed to shoot up.

Cait quickly looked to the assortment of items next to her mattress and picked up a dark syringe and two canisters attached to it. Cait looked down at the syringe in her hand and made a face of utter disgust. Cait hated what she held in her hand, but she couldn’t live without it. Before she could talk herself out of it, however, Cait stuck the needle at the base of her forearm and allowed the liquid inside to course through her veins. 

Eventually, the voices inside Cait’s head began to subside as the liquid inside the syringe began to take effect. Before long, she was alone once again. Cait sighed heavily and closed her eyes. Why did she keep doing this? Why did she spend her life in this shithole excuse for a world to just get beaten up day after day?

Cait opened her eyes and fixed her attention on the one thing that had protected her in this miserable life. She reached across from the mattress and retrieved her shotgun from the floor and held it tightly in her hands. This object had been Cait’s protector ever since she became a free woman. It was the only thing that she could truly call a friend. It was littered with marks and stains, but Cait always made sure that the machinery inside was clean.

Cait adjusted the gun in her hands so that she was staring directly down the barrel. Maybe this was the day she would finally do it. After all the misery she had been through, maybe, she would finally say goodbye to the Commonwealth.

Cait took a deep breath, placed the end of the barrel under her chin, and squeezed the trigger.

But nothing happened. Cait couldn’t do it. Something in her head was stopping her, something that Cait couldn’t understand.

Cait eventually accepted her cowardice and screamed loudly as she violently threw her shotgun across the room. Cait then hugged her knees to her chest and let a single solitary tear fall down her cheek.

“Get your arse down here, Little Bird! The punters are expectin’ a show!!” Tommy shouted from the stage level.

‘I’m coming!!” Cait shouted indignantly.

In the silent and empty streets of downtown Boston, a lone raider crawled towards his weapon. As he dragged himself away, a steady stream of blood was left in his wake. Further down the street he spotted his salvation, a pipe pistol. If he didn’t get to it, he would be finished.

Just as he reached the gun, a heavy boot kicked the pistol away. That same heavy boot then rolled him onto his back. It was then that he caught a glimpse of his attacker; and what he saw shocked him. Standing over him was a young woman wearing, what looked like, an old and slightly tattered vault suit and a heavy overcoat.

“Please don’t shoot! I don’t wanna die!’ the raider begged.

“You shouldn’t have shot at me then.” the stranger said unfeelingly from behind a heavy pair of sunglasses.

“You fucking bitch- ” the raider exclaimed before a bullet plastered his brains all over the street.

As the echoes of the gunshot died away, the stranger took her boot off the fresh corpse and slipped her pistol back into a leather holster strapped to her leg. It was then that a cool breeze blew through the silent and empty streets. The stranger took a breath, savouring the taste of the fresh air. In the dry climate of the wasteland, a cool breeze was always a relief. 

As the cool breeze died down, the stranger’s attention was drawn to a recognisable, but unfamiliar, sound coming from the one of the buildings further down the street. It sounded like cheering.

The stranger began to walk, deeply intrigued by the sound. It seemed to be coming one of the abandoned buildings. At the next corner, the stranger turned left and came to a narrow street that lead to the entrance of, what looked like, a run-down theatre. Emblazoned above a large wooden double doors were the words “Combat Zone.”

The stranger raised her eyebrows in mild surprise, "So, this is where all the cheering was coming from. What sick form of entertainment are the raiders cheering for now”, the stranger thought to herself.

The stranger opened the door and stepped into an empty open foyer. At the far end of the room was another smaller set of double doors from which the already loud cheering came. Across to the right of the main entrance was a staircase that, presumably, led to upper tiers of seating. Two hundred years of debris and building damage had, however, made the passage impassable. To the stranger’s left, in what must have been the old box office, was what could only have been described as a cage. Behind a locked door, and a thick set of iron bars, were two people with their hands bound behind their backs. Directly in front of the cage lay a sign marked “rule breakers.” These raiders clearly took what they were cheering about seriously.

Upon noticing her arrival, one of the bound prisoners raised their head and looked directly into the stranger’s eyes. The stranger could see the despair in the prisoner’s face. She could tell that what awaited her behind those doors would not be pleasant. But the stranger had no time to exchange despairing glances with raiders; her main interest was what lay behind those double doors.

The stranger strolled across the empty foyer and tentatively pushed the double doors open.

Upon entering the main auditorium, the stranger was met by a large open stage. Leading toward it were eows of tiered theatre seating that had, probably, for multiple reasons, been ripped out to serve other purposes. On both sides of a long staircase there were what looked like market stalls. Each one was manned by the same type of miserable lowlife that littered what remained the Commonwealth. As usual, this entertainment was a business as well.

At the end of the long descending staircase was a large open area littered with various chairs and tables. Many of these chairs were occupied by the cheering patrons, with their attention firmly fixated on what was occurring on the stage.

The stage was also what drew most of the stranger’s attention. Upon the stage was an enormous metal cage with several large spotlights illuminating the centre. In the rafters above were several automatic turrets that seemed to be permanently aimed at the stage floor. Within the cage were two individuals who were clearly involved in a fight. It was now that it all made sense; this was a cage fighting ring.

As the stranger descended the stairs towards the stage, a great cheer erupted from the numerous patrons. The stranger looked up at the stage to see one the fighters deliver a killer strike against their opponent. The fighter’s opponent staggered for a few seconds before tumbling backwards to the ground. It was then that the stranger managed a quick look at the victorious fighter.

The stranger could not see much from the other side of the cage, but she could easily make out she was a young woman with fiery red hair. In her right hand was a wooden baseball bat; peppered with dark red stains from what were clearly the remains of previous fighters. As her opponent tumbled to the ground, she strolled around the stage with her arms outstretched, soaking up the rapturous reception her victory received from the cheering patrons.

The stranger raised her eyebrows slightly. This fighter was clearly good at what she did.

“And Cait is the final winner!!!! And who’s this? Looks like we got some fresh meat in the ring today.” A loud booming voice brought the stranger’s attention back to the individuals around her.

The stranger looked towards the origins of the booming voice and found a large man in a tattered old suit staring down at her from a podium situated to the right of the cage. His haggard face and lack of nose gave him all the unmistakable characteristics of a ghoul; although his thick Boston accent gave him a strange persona. “Yeah, you. Get over here, lady!" the ghoul commanded from his podium.

The stranger walked slowly towards the podium, highly conscious of the many eyes ogling her. The stranger was aware that her body did tend to draw attention. But she had learned to ignore it when possible.

“The name’s Tommy. Welcome to my humble establishment." the ghoul said as the stranger approached the podium.

“So, I take it that this is some kind of fighting arena?” the stranger asked rhetorically.

“Ha! Well, aren’t you a regular Einstein." Tommy laughed.

The stranger looked around at the arena and let out a visible shrug. “This place is a dump.”

“Oh, this bozo thinks she’s too good for us!” Tommy shouted into the microphone protruding from his podium. Some of the numerous patrons let out loud boos at the ghoul’s remark.

The ghoul looked back at the stranger, “So, before you insult my establishment any further, why don’t we throw you in the ring and you can show us what you’re made of.”

“Wait, I didn’t sign up for a fight. I’m not staying.” the stranger frowned at his suggestion.

“Oh, it don’t work like that, missy. You can’t just walk in and look around. I got to get somethin’ in return. Either you go into the ring, or I can let all these guys have some fun with you.” Tommy gestured his hand to the raiders standing behind the stranger.

The stranger gritted her teeth and shrugged in defeat. Like everywhere in this wasteland, she was going to have to fight her way out. Normally, she would have gone for her pistol, but the automatic turrets didn’t leave her chances very high. “Fine. Who will I be fighting?”

“Cait, the little bird in the cage over there. She’s one of my best. And she won’t kill if I ask her nicely.” Tommy turned his head towards the fighter in the ring. “Ain’t that right, little bird?”

“I wouldn’t be too sure of that!” the fighter called from behind the bars.

“Ah, don’t mind her. She’ll do as she’s told.” Tommy reassured the stranger as he turned back to her. “So, what do ya’ say? You gonna show us what ya made of?”

Given that she was essentially surrounded, the ghoul’s question didn’t leave much in the way of negotiation. “Fine. I’ll do it." the stranger shrugged.

“Excellent!” Tommy smiled. “There’s a trap door under the stage. Go down the stairs to my right and up the lift. And no guns or power armour. Just fists, knives, and bats, got it?"

“Got it.” the stranger said unenthusiastically.

Tommy seemed to acknowledge the stranger’s response but chose to ignore her. “We have new fighter ladies and gentlemen." he loudly announced to the waiting crowd. He then turned back to the redheaded fighter in the ring, “Go easy on her, alright. No flourishin’ finishes, capiche?”

“Yeah yeah! Quit stallin’ and get ‘um up here already!” the redheaded fighter called back from inside the cage.

"Charming." the stranger thought to herself.

The stranger descended the stairs to the right of the stage and soon found herself in a large open area with several doors leading to, what must have been, former dressing rooms. She spotted some of the other fighters, both male and female, look her over in a mixture of slight interest and primal lust. The stranger ignored their prying eyes and began to search for a place to store her gear before the fight. If anyone was going to steal her stuff, it would be one of these lowlifes.

“You can use the trunk there to put your gear.” a fighter standing between the two platforms leading to the stage floor called to the stranger, gesturing to a large chest to the stranger’s left.

“Thanks.” the stranger acknowledged.

The stranger opened the empty chest and began to remove her gear. She first removed her rucksack and unceremoniously slung it into the box. Once it was inside the box, she opened it and fished out a pair of gloves. The stranger placed the gloves under her arm and tightly fastened the buckles of her rucksack again, conscious that those around her were not at all trustworthy. After fastening her bag, the stranger slipped the gloves over her hands and clenched her fists to gage the feel of them. As most of her gear was prohibited in the ring, this pair of studded gloves might add some power to her punches. She then removed the pair of sunglasses she wore and slipped them into a deep pocket of her long, dark grey, overcoat. The same overcoat soon joined her rucksack as she roughly folded it up and threw it in the chest.

Now standing in just her vault suit, the stranger was now very conscious of the many eyes ogling her. She turned her head to the side and glanced behind her, examining the many fighters looking her up and down, possibly waiting for an opportunity to have their own go at her.

The stranger ignored their ogling and set about unfastening her most prized piece of gear. She began by unbuckling the gun holster strapped to her leg and then unbuckled the belt it was attached to. Before throwing it in with her other gear, she examined it for a few moments. She reminisced about how she acquired it at Fort Hagen after killing Kellogg; the man who had taken everything from her. She closed her eyes and clutched the firearm tightly in her hands, thinking of all the evil acts this pistol had committed; and how, when she found those who had wronged her, she would use one of their own weapons against them.

The stranger soon opened her eyes again and threw the pistol in with her other gear and closed the lid on the chest. As she turned, she could see the various fighters carefully eying the chest behind her. “Don’t even think about it!” the stranger commanded.

“Don’t worry, lady, I’ll keep an eye on ‘em.” the fighter standing between the stage lifts reassured.

The stranger nodded her acknowledgment and stepped up onto the stage lift to the right of the fighter standing between them. Once inside, the fighter closed a wire mesh gate behind her and placed her hand over a large panel of buttons.

“Ready?” the fighter asked.

The stranger nodded, clenching her gloved fists again in anticipation.

The push of a large button engaged a loud ringing alarm bell - signalling that the stage mechanics had been engaged - and the platform began to rise. As the platform reached the stage, the stranger took a deep breath, preparing herself for what came next.

The stranger’s entrance onto the stage was met by a wave of inaudible shouts and howls from the rapturous crowd. Despite the powerful spotlights initially restricting her vision, the stranger soon adjusted to the surroundings. It was then that she finally got a good look at her opponent.

Standing before her was a gruff and dirty, but relatively, young looking woman. She wore, what looked like, a tightly fitted leather corset and a pair of patched and torn beige trousers. Whether or not it was her intention, but it seemed that the fighter’s clothes flaunted every curve she had. However, it was her eyes and hair that drew all of the stranger’s attention. Acting like the crown of a flaming torch, the fighter’s head was covered in a mop of unkept fiery red hair. Similarly, her eyes were a piercing and fiery green. In her hands was a bloodied wooden baseball bat which she held in a strong defensive grip. She looked to be a formidable opponent.

However, as the stranger looked her over, she noticed several features that betrayed her opponent. Whilst her pose seemed to be formidable, the stranger noticed several pink pop marks dotted across her arms. Similarly, the whites around her piercing green eyes were vividly blood shot with red marks. The stranger could also see a pained look of exhaustion on her opponent’s face. It was almost as if her opponent didn’t actually want to be here. All these features and characteristics lead the stranger to believe that her opponent must be an addict of one drug or another. Perhaps she could use these observations to her advantage.  

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” Tommy’s commanding voice at his microphone reverberated throughout the arena, “I present to you… Cait! And introducing the new blood!” Tommy’s announcement was met by wave a loud cheers and applause from the audience.

Tommy then turned back to the cage. “Listen up you two. I want blood in this fight. But no deaths. I just want to size up the new girl. On the count of three.” Tommy turned back to the crowd, “You know how this part goes! One! Two! Three! Fight!”

The redheaded fighter immediately ran forward and swung her baseball bat down at the stranger’s head. The stranger quickly swerved to her left and the baseball bat smashed into the old floorboards of the stage. The redhead whirled around and made another swing the fighter. The stranger was quick to stagger backwards to avoid the redhead’s second strike. In frustration the redhead screamed loudly and threw a third swing. This time, however, her strike caught the stranger off guard and struck the top of her right arm.

The stranger groaned as she quickly backed away, nursing her right arm with her hand. It was now that she evaluated her opponent’s fighting style. She looked across to her opponent and found that she was panting heavily. Clearly, while her attacks were powerful, they were sloppy and she used up a lot of her energy in doing them. Maybe the stranger could use superior agility to defeat her. Armed with this new knowledge, the stranger readjusted her position and prepared for the next stage.

The redhead, once again, ran towards the stranger and violently swung her baseball bat to strike her right side. However, before she could even react, the stranger had ducked and landed two powerful punches into her opponent’s stomach. The redhead let out a loud grunt of frustration and pain as she the threw another upwards diagonal swing to the stranger’s left side. This time, the stranger scurried forward and dispensed a sharp elbow jab to the redhead’s face. The stranger then swung round and delivered a powerful punch to the left side of the redhead’s jaw.

The stranger quickly backed away and examined the state of her opponent. The redhead was panting even heavier than before and had a look of utter frustration and exhaustion on her face. The redhead then looked directly into the stranger’s eyes and spat out a large mouthful of blood and sputum. “Now you’re startin’ to piss me off!” the redhead snarled as she, once again, lunged at the stranger.

The stranger was shocked at her opponent’s resolve and stubbornness. This redhead was clearly not going to give up. The stranger needed to end this fight as quickly. When the redhead inevitably attacked again, she was going to end this fight once and for all.

The redhead, for a third time, launched herself at the stranger with a powerful downward strike. This was the stranger’s chance. In an instant, she darted backwards and allowed the baseball bat to, once again, crash into the stage floor. With her opponent’s weapon firmly embedded in the stage floor, the stranger quickly kicked the bat out of her hands. With her weapon now rolling towards the cage wall, the redhead was now helpless.

This was the stranger’s chance. In an instant, she delivered a powerful kick to the redhead’s stomach, and a finishing right hook to the redhead’s face. With that final punch, the redhead’s legs buckled, and she tumbled backwards to the ground.

As the redhead hit the ground, the crowd erupted with an almost deafening wave a cheers and howls. “What’s this?” Tommy voiced boomed through the microphone, “The new blood has bested our fair Cait!”

Despite winning the fight, the stranger’s attention was not on the crowd, but her opponent. The stranger looked down and found the redhead sitting limply on the floor. She was panting heavily, clearly exhausted from attempting to deliver such heavy attacks. However, her exhaustion also left a look of complete and utter sadness and despair plastered across her face. She looked as if her defeat now made her life irrelevant.

“Quit standin’ there and finish it already.” the redhead said through heavy breaths. “The hell are you waitin’ for?”

The stranger could almost pity the redhead at her despair, but she needed to stay calm. “The rule was no deaths. I’m not gonna break that.” she said unapologetically.

“Well aren’t you a fuckin’ gentleman.” the redhead grumbled as she got to her feet again. She then slowly retrieved her baseball bat from the other side of the cage.

“All right you two, fights over. Come on out now.” Tommy said as he opened the cage door.

“Fine. Let’s go, hero.” the redhead sighed as she walked towards the exit of the cage, dragging her baseball bat along the floor as she exited.

The stranger exited the cage and was met with Tommy. “Heh, heh, heh. Nice work! Please, follow me.” Tommy said through a terrifyingly ghoulish smile. “You too, little bird.” he said, walking towards a small room to the left of the stage.

“I told you to quit fuckin’ callin’ me that!" the redhead grumbled from behind the stranger.

The stranger followed Tommy into a sparcely decorated room which was decked out as an office. Littered around the walls were various battered filing cabinets and boxes. In the centre of the room was a large desk which Tommy slowly sat behind. The redhead then slipped in behind the stranger and stood next to Tommy, her arms crossed in frustration.

“So, new blood, what do you think of that?” Tommy asked, leaning back in his chair.

“Well, I don’t know, you tell me. You’re the one who wanted a show.” the stranger answered curtly.

The redhead chuckled, “Yeah, Tommy. Did we do good for you? I know you get off on it.”

Tommy’s expression hardened as he turned his head to face the redhead. “You can’t say nothin’. I had expected more of a fight from you. You’re strung out and gettin’ sloppy. The new blood ran rings around you, darlin'.”

“Shut up, and don’t call me darlin’." the redhead growled as she clenched her fists.

Tommy turned back to the stranger and gave a coy smile. “She hates losing. But you weren’t half bad out there. You wanna make this a regular thing?”

The stranger thought for a moment. Whilst she did win the fight, she was forced into it. “Not really. You did kind of force me into it.”

“Ha, so I did.” Tommy chuckled. “Well, either way, take this. It’s the winnings from the fight you just won. You earned it.”

“Thanks.” the stranger said as she took a small rusted tin from Tommy’s skeletal hand. She then opened the lid and found, what looked like, about one hundred bottlecaps.

“There’s plenty more where that came from if you change your mind.” Tommy said as the stranger closed the tin.

“Don’t hold your breath.” the stranger smiled coquettishly.

“Well, if you’re not planning on callin’ this place home, perhaps you could do me one last favour?” Tommy once again leaned in his chair, “My dear Cait here needs urrr, shall we say, a change of scenery. If you take her with you – go on whatever, urrrr, adventures and shenanigans you wanna do – I’d really appreciate it.”

The redhead’s face turned to a vicious scowl. “Now, wait a minute- “

Tommy was quick to interrupt the redhead before things turned nasty. “So, what do you say? Would you help an old man by taking care of his pet?”

“Damn it, Tommy!” the redhead shouted, her face was palpable with anger. “I’m not man’s pet!”

The stranger thought carefully about what the ghoul was proposing. Would this fiery redhead, who she just beat in a fight, be the best companion? It was then that she remembered the look on her face after she defeated her. It was of, not just frustration, but also pure despair. Maybe she did need a change of scenery. She certainly didn’t look happy here. “Why would you want her to go with me?” the stranger asked apprehensively, trying to remain neutral on the subject.

“Yeah, Tommy!” the redhead shouted in agreement, “Why the hell are you tryin’ to get of me?”

Tommy then turned back to the redhead, “Look, all that junk in your system has been making you carless. And I don’t wanna be the one doing colour commentary when you finally hit the floor.” Tommy’s tone was forceful and unapologetic, but the stranger could sense a slight hint of concern in his voice.

The redhead, however, did not take kindly to this. “Fuck you, Tommy! You know what? I’m done!” She then leaned forward and pointed an accusing finger at Tommy. “I give you a week before you start missin’ my sweet arse!” The redhead then stormed off. As she walked away, she turned her head towards the stranger and let off a low snarl, “I’ll see you outside.”

The stranger instinctively leaned away from the redhead’s snarl. She also scrunched her nose in mild repulsion. The redhead’s breath absolutely stank of booze.

Once the redhead had left the room, the stranger raised her eyebrows in moderate surprise. “Well, I guess my decision has been made for me.” Whilst she remained emotionless, she probably would have accepted Tommy’s offer anyway.

“Thanks, lady. You’re doing me a real solid here.” Tommy said happily. A ghoulish smile spread across his lips before his face before it hardened again. “But let me make one thing clear. Should any harm come to her – and I don’t care if you ain’t got ‘em – I’ll gut you from testicles to eyeballs. You hear me?”

Slightly offended, the stranger scoffed. “Is that a threat?”

“Oh, that ain’t no threat. That’s a promise.” Tommy said commandingly. “Now go to the bar and get yourself a drink before you head out.”

Cait loudly paced up and down her room, her mind awash with angry thoughts on the conversations that had just taken place. How could Tommy do this to her? She loses one fight and he just decides to throw her out? Cait clenched and unclenched her fists in frustration, wanting, so desperately, to find a way to dissipate her anger. It was then that she eyed the vial of psycho lying next the old mattress that she called a bed.

Cait knelt down and swiped the vial off the ground and leaned back against a wall; unceremoniously jabbing the needle into her arm. There was no hesitation in her actions, this was a quick fix to release the frustration built up inside her.

An almost instant high coursed into her system and Cait groaned loudly. Cait then turned around and began relentlessly hitting the wall with her fists, determined that she would punch the frustration out of her system. Cait grunted painfully as, with each hit, the pain and embarrassment of what had happened that day slowly ebbed from her system.

When she had no more strength left in her arms, Cait looked down at her clenched fists an found specks of blood oozing from her knuckles. Cait then looked up to see several cracks from where she continuously punched the wall. Cait gritted her teeth and gave one last strike before turning back to her bed. “Fuckin’ piece of shit!” Cait said to herself. She wasn’t entirely sure whether she was talking about the wall, or herself.

As Cait’s breath settled back down to a regular rhythm, Cait set about packing what little she had. Amongst the assorted items next to her bed was an old brown rucksack; its edges covered with stitches and other botched repair jobs. It lay on the ground, partially open, with many items, including bullets, sweets, caps, and vials strewn across the floor. Cait quickly swiped the items back into the bag and slung it onto her shoulders. She then looked around to find her shotgun lying in the same place she left it that morning. Not wanting to remember that moment of weakness, Cait quickly retrieved the firearm and threw it over her shoulder. After collecting her baseball bat from beside the doorway, Cait turned to have one last look at the place she had called home for the past three years. “Good riddance” Cait whispered as she exited the room for the last time.

When Cait re-entered the main arena, she looked around for her new companion and found her propped up against a post near one of the bars. Despite only just having fought her, Cait couldn’t remember what this stranger looked like. It, however, did not help that most of her face and body were covered by the dark sunglasses and grey overcoat she wore. With all this in mind, Cait had to admit that she looked pretty striking in her outfit.

When Cait approached, the stranger turned to face her. It was here that Cait got a better view of her new companion. Her new companion wore, what looked like, an old vault suit that was littered with scuffs and stains. Cait’s attention, however, was not the outfit itself, but how it fitted around her companion’s body. This new companion was clearly a curvy woman and the vault suit really showed that off.

“So, are you ready to go?” the stranger asked, shocking Cait back to the real world.

“Urrrrr, yeah, I suppose.” Cait huffed in response.

The stranger nodded, her face emotionless behind her sunglasses. “Look,” she said after taking a deep breath, “I know you’ve packed whatever stuff you have, but do you actually want to travel with me?”

Cait shrugged, “Can’t be any worse than here.”

The stranger gave an understanding smile. “Okay then. Well, if we’re going to travel together, I think we should make introductions. I have heard your name many times so far today, but I think it would be nice to meet you properly.”

Cait was taken aback by her companion’s manner. This woman had just beaten the shit out of her and now she wanted to get to know her? She also had a strange accent that Cait found difficult to place. It wasn't exactly the same, or as ostentatiously cartoonish, but it didn't sound that dissimilar from Mr Handy butler robots that floated around the Commonwealth. Until she figured out her game, she needed to play this cool. “Cait. And yours?”

“Eloise. But please- “

“What kind of name is that?” Cait interrupted.

Eloise shrugged at the interruption, “Well, for one thing, it’s my name. But please call me El. And it’s nice to meet you, Cait. Now, if you’re going to travel with me, I have one rule: I watch your back, so you watch mine. Understood?”

“Fine.” Cait said, not entirely happy at having to commit to new rules.

“Great!” El smiled. “Now let’s get out of here.”

The sight of daylight was like greeting a long-lost friend as El and Cait exited the Combat Zone. “Urrgghh, it feels good to get out of there.” El said taking a deep breath as they stepped into the street.

Cait remained silent. What was so good about the air outside? Everything was shit here.

“Ok, it’s getting a bit late. Let’s go and find a place to stay tonight.” El said as she adjusted her sunglasses.

“Got a place in mind?” Cait asked, conscious that she was now, technically, homeless.

“I know somewhere. Just follow me.” El said, beginning to walk towards the main street.

They had just made it onto the main street when they heard a gruff voice from behind. They turned their heads to find a drunk lone raider stagger out of the Combat Zone. “Hey! You’re just gonna leave me like that? Come on babe, show me what you got under that tight little vault suit.”  

Cait gripped her baseball bat, getting ready to beat him to a pulp.

“Oh, I’m so sorry.” El said coquettishly, “Let me give you a show.”

Before Cait knew what was going on, El pulled a huge revolver from a holster on her leg and fired a bullet directly into the raider’s head. The raider flew backwards and fell limply on the ground.

El let out a loud and heavy sigh through her nostril as she put the gun back in its holster. “C’mon, let’s go. Before anymore show up.”

As El strode off down the street, Cait stood firmly in place, her mouth slightly agape. “What the fuck just happened?” Cait thought to herself.   

Chapter Text

The dwindling sunlight, and the illuminating stadium spotlights, brought a light haze over the streets of Diamond City. At times like this, you could almost get used to the smell of mud, sewage, and body odour.

Cait followed El down the long causeway into the old stadium, looking slightly in awe of her surroundings. She had been to Diamond City before, but she had not had many opportunities to leave the Combat Zone. However, she couldn’t give any of this away. The last thing she wanted her companion to see was her gawping like an idiot.

When El had reached street level she immediately veered off to her left and began walking towards a young girl standing on a wooden box outside a house.

“Extra, extra! The new edition of Publick Occurrences! Read all about it!” the girl exclaimed from her podium.

“Hey Nat,” El greeted, “How’s business today?”

The girl turned her head towards El’s voice and smiled gleefully. “Blue. Where have you been? It’s been ages. New edition of Publick Occurrences?” The little girl held out a folded series of crumpled papers.

“Sure.” El said taking the papers and placing them in her coat pocket. She then flicked a bottlecap into the girl’s hand. “Is your sister about?”

“Yeah, she’s just typing up a new story. I’ll go get her.” The girl hopped off her podium and disappeared behind a closed door. After a few minutes, the door opened and a tall dark-haired woman in a red leather coat and hat exited the building. She was followed closely by the little girl who immediately reclaimed her place on the podium.

“Blue! It’s been too long!” the dark-haired woman exclaimed as she greeted and embraced El. El then gestured towards Cait, “Cait, meet Piper and Nat. Guys, this is Cait. She’s with me.”

“Good to know you, Cait.” Piper said, giving Cait a friendly nod.

Cait raised the corners of her lips ever so slightly in acknowledgment but remained silent. She was never good with strangers.

Piper then turned back to face El, “Thought you would have turned into a ghoul in the Glowing Sea?”

El laughed at the woman’s sarcastic humour. “Oh, you can’t get rid of me that easily.”

The woman’s face quickly turned serious, “But did you get what you wanted?”

“I did.” El said. “I got the plans from the Institute scientist and the teleporter is under construction. It’s just taking so long.”

Piper’s eyes widened in amazement. “Oh, I’ve got so many more stories to write about you.” She mischievously rubbed her gloved hands together.

As Piper and El chattered about stuff she didn’t care about, Cait stood still, trying not to fidget too much. “What the fuck were they talking about? Ghouls? The Glowing Sea? Teleporter? The Institute? What the fuck does this woman do? And why the fuck does she know these people?” Cait thought to herself.

Cait’s attention was suddenly drawn to Nat holding one of her papers in front of her. “Wanna get one of the new papers, ma’am?” Nat asked, holding the paper up to Cait’s chest.

“No, fuck off, Brat! I don’t want your fuckin’ toilet paper.” Cait huffed indignantly.

“Cait!” El shouted through gritted teeth, immediately turning to face her, “don’t be so rude!”

Cait simply shrugged indifferently at El’s reprimand and began meandering towards the main Diamond City plaza.

El kept her eyes on Cait for a good while until she was out of earshot. She then turned back to Piper and Nat to apologise. “I’m sorry guys,” she said sincerely. “Cait is a bit gruff. It’s a bit of a long story-”

Piper simply held up her hands to stop El. “It’s okay, Blue. We work in journalism. Everyone hates us in one way or another."

“Thanks,” El smiled, happy that she had not just lost two friends. “Look guys, I just need to know. Is Valentine in? Apparently, he had a message for me.”

“Yeah, he’s about.” Piper replied.

“Awesome.” El said, turning her head back to spot Cait. “Look, I’ve got to go. But we’ll catch up again some other time.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” Piper said as El began to walk towards to plaza.

“Oh, I know you will.” Ell called back.

El found Cait perched on a bar stool at the Takahashi noodle bar in the middle of the Diamond City market. Her back was turned to her. She was hunched over the bar, staring intently at nothing.

El approached Cait and placed a hand on the bar, her face emotionless to convey her mood. “That was really rude, Cait. Nat didn’t mean you any harm.”

Cait didn’t turn her head, although, El did notice her eyes glance momentarily over to her. Cait clearly heard what El had said, but stubbornly chose to ignore it.

El, however, wasn’t going to let this go. “Well, Cait? Anything to say?” Ell asked attentively, not willing to stop until she got a reply.

This time Cait turned her head, a menacing scowl on her face. “What do you want me to say, sorry? You’re not my fuckin’ mother.”

“Well, someone has to be.” El chastised under her breath as she sat down on the stool next to Cait. El was keenly aware of the devilish stare she was receiving from Cait. What El had said clearly touched a nerve. She, however, just ignored it and removed her sunglasses and gloves.

Before long, a large robot wearing a chef’s hat, peppered with rust marks, mechanically pottered over to the two ladies’ position. As Cait had arrived at the bar first, it swivelled his balboas head to face her. “Nan-ni shimasho-ka?” it asked in its monotone robotic voice.

“A beer.” Cait answered curtly, immediately not taking kindly to the robot.

The robot remained still. “Nan-ni shimasho-ka?” it asked again.

“A beer! I want a beer!” Cait answered back louder.

The robot, yet again, remained still. “Nan-ni shimasho-ka?”

Cait was becoming more and more aggravated. “Urrgh, stupid robot!” she huffed in frustration.

“Yeah, two please.” El cut in, saving the situation, and, most likely, both the robot and the peace of Diamond City.

The robot withdrew to a large cooking pot behind the counter and the two women were left in silence; Cait bowing her head slightly to hide her embarrassment. Cait, however, couldn’t help but glance over at El from the corner of eye. What was this woman’s game?

“What do I owe you then?” Cait eventually asked as two bowls of hot steaming noodles were placed in front of them.

El simply waved her hand and picked up her chopsticks. “Don’t worry about it.”

Cait looked at El suspiciously. If life had taught her anything, it was that nothing was free in the Commonwealth. “C’mon, don’t bullshit me. How much you want?” Cait pressed harder.

“Cait, it’s just some noodles.” El said, raising her hand. “Just eat.”

Cait sheepishly did as she was told and tucked into her free noodles. Her suspicion had not died down, however, and she now had a new problem; she couldn’t work out the chopsticks.

El glanced over and saw Cait’s ham-fisted attempts at operating chopsticks and laughed lightly through her nostrils. “Here, look, like this.” El then showed Cait the correct way of holding chopsticks and demonstrated the technique on her bowl of noodles.

“Thanks.” Cait muttered as she successfully began to eat her noodles. She was grateful but couldn’t possibly show it.

The noodles were, however, delicious. After years of, literally, having to fight for what the Combat Zone considered food, it was good to finally have a freshly cooked meal. With every mouthful, Cait closed her eyes and unconscientiously smiled in contention.

Before long the two bowls of noodles were empty and El leaned back on her stool, stretching. She then dismounted and retrieved her gloves and sunglasses. “C’mon, we need to be somewhere.” El said, tapping Cait on the shoulder.

Cait reluctantly dismounted and slung her rucksack and shotgun over her shoulders. “Where we goin’ now?” she asked, sounding almost whingy as she said it.

El simply collected Cait’s baseball bat and handed it to her. “See an old friend. And to check a couple of things.”

El then strode off down towards the back alleys of Diamond City with Cait shuffling along close behind.

El and Cait’s meandering through the thoroughfares of Diamond City eventually brought them to doorway of a hardly prepossessing property leading off an alleyway behind the market. The only feature that set it apart from its neighbours was a bright neon sign jutting out into the street. Emblazoned on the sign were the words ‘Valentine Detective Agency.’

“This place looks like a junkie den.” Cait said as they descended the back alley towards the door.

“Just like every other building in this place then, I suppose.” El replied as she opened the door.

Cait walked through the doorway into a dark and dusty room with a single solitary light to illuminate her surroundings. The walls were piled high with rusty filing cabinets and old boxes of paper. The chamber's contents brought a strong musky smell to the surroundings and made the atmosphere of the room very heavy.

Cait looked at the two individuals who were inside the property when they entered. The first was a young, dark haired, woman wearing a black sleeveless leather jacket over a pink knee-length dress. She glanced up at Cait but did not maintain eye contact for long. She seemed to be quite shy and rather intimidated by the fearsome redhead who just entered.

The other individual was a different story to Cait. This other individual looked like a man, but just wasn’t. His skin was a lifeless grey hew and conveyed absolutely no emotion. His eyes, on the other hand, were a bright piercing yellow and seemed to penetrate everything they laid sight upon. He wore an old and tattered grey overcoat over a raggedy shirt and tie, and a similarly frayed fedora hat on his head. Cait interpreted that he must be a synth.

Cait had heard stories of synths, but they were never good. They were normally stories of people being snatched away in the night and being replaced by a synthetic copy of themselves. Stories of how anyone you knew could be synth secretly working for the Institute. Was this guy an Institute stooge? Was this El’s game all along? What if El had brought Cait here to be dragged away to the Institute? Although, what would the Institute want with a lowlife like Cait anyway?

Cait looked around for El and found her kneeling on the floor vigorously stroking the fur of a large dog who looked overjoyed to see her. “Hey boy,” El gleefully greeted the dog, “you been a good boy for Nick and Ellie?” The dog sniffled, clearly not understanding what El had said, and began licking El’s cheek. El laughed and immediately stood up, keeping on hand the dog’s head to ruffle his ears.

“He’s been good as gold, ma’am.” The young dark-haired girl said.

Cait had never been fond of dogs. They were either irradiated mutants or the hungry enforcers of raider scum. Why should this one be any different?

El then greeted the synth. “Nick! How have you been? Haven’t got yourself trapped in anymore vaults?” El asked humorously.

 “Oh, is this how you treat your friends?” the synth chuckled, pulling what Cait interpreted as his attempt at a smirk.

“Yeah wouldn’t have me any other way.” El joked, clapping a hand on shoulder. “I got word that Preston has a message for me.”

The synth crossed his arms in thought. “Yeah. Said something about cashing in a favour. You can use the radio behind if you wanna chat.” He gestured his thumb to an old ham radio on a desk behind him.

“Thanks Nick. Let’s see what he wants.” El said as she sat down and tuned into the radio.

It was at this point that Cait decided that she would stay out of all this and stand silently by the door. “How many friends did this woman have?” Cait thought to herself. First it was some hack selling toilet paper; now it was a synth and a mutt. Who else was she friends with?

“I assume you’re travelling with El then. The name’s Nick Valentine.” Cait heard a gruff voice coming from in front of her. She looked up and, to her shock, found the synth standing in front of her with his hand extended.

Cait just stood there gormlessly, not knowing what to do. She just couldn’t take her eyes off the thing standing in front of her. His bright yellow eyes seemed to bore directly into her soul. His face, similarly, had an unnatural lifelessness to it that deeply unnerved Cait. What shocked Cait most, however, was his outstretched hand. Unlike his face, his hand had no skin covering it; leaving just exposed robotics. This lack of skin gave the hand an almost claw like look to it. If Cait had to choose, she would rather shake hands with a feral ghoul than this synth. At least a ghoul was more lifelike.  

Valentine retracted his hand, clearly understanding Cait’s apprehension. “Not the handshaker type then.” Valentine said perceptively.

“Cait.” Cait blurted out, not wanting to be considered a mute.

“Huh. Well, nice to meet you, Cait.” Valentine nodded before turning back towards where El was sitting.

Cait similarly turned to watch and listen to what El was doing. El was sitting hunched over Valentine’s desk, using one hand to tune the radio and the other to hold its microphone.

“Preston. Are you receiving me?” El asked into the microphone.

After a few moments of blank static, a faint voice came through on the radio. “General! It’s good to hear your voice.”

“Likewise.” El responded, not wanting to waste time. “One of the minutemen patrols I passed while on the road said something about a message.”

“Yes General,” the voice answered, “We’ve finally reached the strength needed to launch an attack on the Castle. We could really use your help in retaking it.”

El thought for a moment before replying. “So, I assume this is you cashing in the favour?” she enquired.

“Correct. It was agreed that the Minutemen would help you build your teleporter in return for a favour.” The voice added.

El stroked her chin for several seconds, clearly thinking about this proposition. “Alright. I’ll do it. I’ll meet near the Castle tomorrow morning, if that suits. Have you had any word on the teleporter’s progress lately?”

“Thank you, General.” The voice said thankfully. “We’re camped in an abandoned diner near the Castle entrance. We’ll meet you there. I had word from Sanctuary a couple of days ago. Sturges and our workmen have successfully gathered the required materials. It may, however, take quite some time to construct and operate effectively, I’m afraid.”

El sighed, seeming somewhat disheartened by this news. “Alright. Thanks for letting me know. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Look forward to seeing you, general. Preston out.” The voice concluded before turning once again to static.

El got up from the table and turned to Valentine, her face betraying a look of slight dismay. “Well Nick, looks like I’m off to the Castle tomorrow.”

Valentine’s face matched the look on El’s. “The Castle, really? Last I heard, things got a bit ‘crabby’ there.”

“I heard that too.” El said, scrunching her mouth slightly in thought. “But I do owe Preston a favour.” She sighed in acquiescence.

El then opened her rucksack and pulled out, what looked like, a small plastic square with a small green screen. The square was covered with several dials which El turned to adjust various items on the screen. Before long, El placed the square back in her bag and slung it over her shoulders.

“Alright. Coordinates to the Castle are on my Pip-Pad. At least that way, I can’t get lost. Look Nick, I’d love to stay longer, but I need to get some stuff together.”

Valentine simply held his hands up in understanding. “Hey. Don’t worry about it. You got places to be.”

El, once again, clapped her hand on Valentine’s shoulder. “We’ll have a proper catch up soon.”

“Sure.” Valentine smirked. “Stay safe out there. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t.”

“Ha,” El laughed, “will do.”

El then collected her sunglasses and gloves and began to make her way to the door.

“Take care out there, ma’am.” Ellie called as El passed her.

El nodded. “See you around, Ellie. C’mon boy.” El patted her leg and Dogmeat attentively followed his master.  

When El reached the door, she found Cait standing quietly against the wall, her arms crossed in a defensive posture. She was desperately trying to seem oblivious to the situation, but El could tell there was something on her mind. Even in the short time she had known her, El had noticed that Cait tended to fidget when she had something on her mind. El chose to ignore Cait’s expression; if Cait wanted to say something, she could tell her herself.

“Come on,” El said to Cait, putting on her gloves and sunglasses, “Let’s go.”

As they both exited Valentine’s agency, and entered street level, Cait felt that she would explode with questions. Why did El know so many people? First, she meets a hack with a bratty sister, then a fucking synth with some stupid girl shacking up with him, then she ends up talking to some random Minutemen guy over a radio. To add insult to injury, El just agrees to help this guy out because of what, a favour? What favours was he giving her? And, anyway, what the fuck did favours matter in the Commonwealth?

“How do you know all those people then?” Cait suddenly blurted out, unable to control herself any longer.

El turned back to look at Cait. Judging by her fidgeting, El had half-expected these questions were coming. “They helped me out of a bad situation when I first came here.” She said cryptically. “They agreed to help me out in return for a favour. So, we’re going to the Castle to repay that favour.”

El’s response left Cait with even more questions than answers. Her main concern, however, was that El was currently looking her up and down. Cait was used to people staring at her, but she had simply learned to accept it. “I see the way you’re lookin’ at me, not sayin’ I don’t like it, just thought I’d clear the air.” Cait said, extenuating her hips and chest slightly.

El looked almost shocked at Cait’s suggestion. El had never met someone who would think in that way, but she just about managed to control herself. She had chastised Cait once already today, and it had not been well received. Instead, El simply rolled her eyes, “Cait, what I was going to say is that, what you’re wearing is not going to be suitable for where we’re going.”

Cait looked down at her tightly fitting corset and trousers in complete bemusement. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?" Cait asked, feeling somewhat insulted.

El gritted her teeth slightly. She had to admit at Cait did look impressive in her outfit, but it certainly was not practical. “What I’m saying, Cait, is that, where we’re going tomorrow, that is not going to protect you. Come on, I’m getting you some new clothes and gear.” El commanded, adjusting her rucksack slightly as she began to walk back to the market.

“But-,” Cait began, hopelessly attempting to challenge El’s decision.

El just held a gloved hand up, quashing any hint of protest. “No questions.” she said, marching down the street with Dogmeat following close behind.

Against Cait’s protests, both women now found themselves in Fallon’s Basement picking out clothes. Dogmeat sat obediently by the door while El and Cait entred the interior of the store. Cait felt like she had landed on an alien planet. Why did El suddenly care about what Cait wore?

Eventually, El picked out a selection of different items of clothing: a shirt, a pair of trousers, and what looked like a set of underwear. El then turned to Cait and held the pile of clothes in front of her. “Try them on.” El ordered.

Cait looked at the pile of clothes and glowered. “What? No, I’m not tryin’ on stuff for you.”

El, however, was not going to be intimidated, “Cait, we’re not leaving until you try them on.”

El and Cait just stared at each other, both individuals anxious of who would give up first. Eventually, however, Cait scowled and snatched the clothes from El’s hands. “Fine! I’ll do your fuckin’ pimp show.”  

After being gone for a worryingly long amount of time, Cait finally appeared in the clothes that El had handed to her. She was wearing a maroon coloured buttoned up shirt overlapped with both vertical and horizontal white pinstripes. Below the shirt, Cait wore a pair of dark blue jeans which, in another world, would have made her look like some kind of cowgirl. El was quite impressed by what she saw. For once, Cait actually looked relatively personable, and the maroon shirt really brought out the colour of her hair and eyes.

El walked forward so she was standing face to face with Cait. Cait’s face was unmoving, but she was deeply suspicious of what El would do next. El then took the ends of Cait’s sleeves and rolled them to just above her elbows and undid the shirt’s top button. She then stood back and raised her eyebrows in expectation. “Well, Cait, what do you think?” El asked expectantly.

Cait just stood there, slouching in silence, her face looking like that of a grumpy child being dragged around by their mother.

El exhaled heavily through her nostrils. “Walk around. How do they feel when you move?”

Cait began to slowly walk around the open area of the store, her shoulders slumping in complete uninterest. Deep down, however, Cait had to admit that the clothes did feel comfortable. It was nice to wear something that wasn’t normally fitted so tightly around her waist that she almost couldn’t breathe properly. But she wasn’t going to give El the satisfaction of this. Cait then started feeling an uncomfortable chafing sensation on her chest and shoulders and began slipping her hand into the shirt to relieve the feeling.

“What’s wrong, Cait?” El asked.

“This is why I don’t wear bras. They’re uncomfortable and make me sore.” Cait replied, trying to adjust the bra from under her shirt.

El nodded, completely understanding Cait’s predicament. As a curvy woman herself, El knew exactly what Cait was on about. “I know what you mean, Cait.” Whilst Cait was skinnier than her, she was also, definitely, curvy and would suffer without adequate support. “But you can’t really go commando in those clothes. You need some support.”  

Cait looked down at the clothes she wore and sighed heavily. She did like how the bra pushed her boobs up. It also made her feel taller than she was. And, anyway, it wasn’t like her corset was any more comfortable than this. Eventually, Cait submitted to El’s nagging and nodded in acceptance.

El smiled appreciatively, “Awesome! Alright, go get changed.”

Cait sheepishly disappeared behind the store’s dividers and quietly got changed back into her corset. Before long, she reappeared holding the new clothes roughly folded in her hands.

“So, do you like them? I have to say, they do suit you.” El asked, taking the clothes from Cait.

Cait shrugged and bowed her head, trying to hide the faint hint of a blush. “I suppose.” She was keenly aware that she had nowhere near enough caps to pay for them.

“Alright then,” El said, “You wait by the door and I’ll buy these.”

Cait looked as if El had just slapped her. El was going to buy the clothes for her. Why would she do that? Cait barely knew her. First it was a bowl of noodles, now it was a whole new outfit.

Cait must have been deep in thought for a long while because she soon found El standing in front of her holding the pile of clothes. El handed the clothes to Cait, “Come on, pack these away. We’re not finished yet.”

Cait quickly threw the folded clothes in her rucksack and slung it back onto her shoulders. She then followed El out of the store with Dogmeat. “Where else are we going?” Cait thought to herself as they reached street level again.

A short walk across Diamond City market brought El and Cait to Commonwealth Weaponry, and the owner gave El an oddly familiar greeting. “Ah, if it isn’t the lady in the vault suit. What can I do you for, weapons, ammo, modifications?”

“Hey Arturo, no weapons today, body armour and a sleeping bag, if you have it.” El answered, taking her gloves off and placing them in her jacket pocket.

“I got a few pieces. Pre-war quality. Very strong.” Arturo propositioned.

El raised her eyebrows, “Pre-war, huh? Can I take a look?”

“Sure thing.” Arturo said as he turned to the series of shelves behind him. He soon turned back holding a piece of green chest body armour and two similarly coloured shoulder pads. El was in no doubt that it was pre-war, given that the chest piece was emblazoned with a large white star. He also brought out a similarly coloured sleeping bag, securely rolled up with a thin leather belt.  

El picked up the armour pieces and examined them carefully. They looked pretty good quality and still had some reinforcement to it. This would do nicely. El turned to Cait and held the chest piece in front of her.

Cait quickly eyed the armour and looked up at El, immediately understanding what El was meaning. “No!” Cait said, vigorously shaking her head.

Once again, El wasn’t going to be intimidated by Cait’s protests. “Cait, shut up and try it on.”

Cait huffed indignantly at El and took off her rucksack. El then began attempting to fit the chest piece.

“Get the fuck off me!” Cait shouted, pushing El away and taking a step back.

El shrugged in frustration, trying to remain calm. “Cait, I need to see if it fits right. Just stay still. I won’t touch anything if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Cait scrunched her face in a deep scowl at El’s prompting but relaxed her shoulders in submission. El then slipped the chest piece over Cait’s shoulders and began adjusting the straps to fit it comfortably to Cait’s body. El then took Cait’s arms and strapped the respective pads to them. Once fitted, El stepped away and examined Cait; the pieces seemed to fit well enough. They didn’t fit perfectly to Cait’s body, but that was to be expected from mass produced armour pieces.

“How do they feel, Cait?” El asked expectantly.

Cait frowned at El, “I feel like a fuckin’ fridge!” Cait swung her arms backwards and forwards, “How am I supposed to move in this stuff?” she asked, exacerbated.

“It’s not about trying to move fast. It’s about protection. What you normally wear just isn’t enough.” El attempted to reassure Cait.

Cait stood in silence for a few moments, contemplating how this was going to go. Eventually, however, Cait knew that she couldn’t win against El. “Fine.” she huffed.

“Great,” El smiled happily, “take them off and I’ll sort this out.”

“W-what do you mean?” Cait asked, dumbfounded.

“Take the armour off and I’ll pay for them.” El answered, holding her hand out to take the removed pieces.

Cait removed the armour pieces and handed them back to El, feeling both anger and embarrassment at this entire situation. Cait had been forced to try on clothes that she didn’t think she wanted, and her companion was just going to pay for them. El was certainly going to want something in return, but what?

Cait watched El haggle with Arturo over the price until she got the pieces for a pricey sixty caps. Sixty caps was way more than Cait had on her. How was she going to pay El back when she inevitably asked? What was she going to do? This was way more than a bowl of noodles.   

“Here.” El’s voice shocked Cait back to reality. El was in front of Cait holding the armour pieces out to her.

“Thanks.” Cait mumbled, sheepishly taking the armour out of El’s hands.

El then looked up at the sky and frowned. “It’s getting late, and we have a long journey tomorrow. I think we better settle down for the night.”

“Where are we gonna sleep then?” Cait asked, anxious that, for the first time in three years, she had nowhere to sleep.

El smirked, “I have a place. Follow me, it’s not far at all.”

The quick turn of a key unhooked a heavy padlock attached to a red metal door, held shut by a large bolt lock. Once removed, and the bolt retracted, El switched to another key which slipped easily into the door’s main lock. El then turned the handle and pushed the door open. “Come on in.” she said to Cait as she entered the premises.

Cait walked into a dark room and was immediately shocked by the temperature. The place was freezing. Cait let out a loud shiver as she entered the room.

The clunk of a heavy switch behind her ignited several ceiling lights and the room was soon illuminated in light. It was now that Cait could examine her surroundings. Cait found herself in a small, scarcely decorated open area with several heavy wires hooked along the interior walls. There was little furniture in this area save for a large cooking stove and rather cluttered workbench. Wedged in a corner, between the workbench and the stove, was a wash basin with several old clinical bottles and dishes littered around its edges. Along the entrance’s interior wall was a wooden staircase that lead up to the second level. Cait could just see the top of a bedframe and another staircase leading up to a ladder. Cait interpreted, from what she saw, that El did not live her that often.  

El walked past her and removed her gloves and sunglasses. “Go on through to the living area and take a load off, it’s just around the corner. Mi casa es tu casa.” She said casually.

Cait frowned in confusion at what El had just said. “What?”

“Never mind.” El sighed, shaking her head as she turned back to look at Cait.

Cait walked through into the living area and found a far different setup than earlier. Dominating the area were several sizable items of furniture, including a large red couch and two rather ornate wingback chairs. In the middle of this array of furniture was an old wooden coffee table that was peppered with numerous scuffs and stains.  In the corner of the room was a small wood burner fireplace which had a long stovepipe chimney leading up through the roof. Next to the wood burner was a pile of wooden planks, branches, and other miscellaneous items that could easily be burned. The walls were similarly as bare as the kitchen area, save for two large chests of drawers, a tall wardrobe, and a similarly tall wood and glass cabinet. The glass had clearly been broken and removed, but that didn’t detract from their aesthetic. Finally, as Cait’s eyes scanned the room, she spotted a ham radio and another peculiar device sitting on a small coffee table next to the large red sofa. Next to the device was a pile of holotapes which, upon closer inspection, looked to be music tapes. Cait concluded that it must be a holotape player. The place looked, generally, very homely in Cait’s opinion. It was certainly better than anything she had ever known.

Cait removed her baggage and slumped down on the sofa, completely exhausted from the day’s activates. A few moments later, Dogmeat plodded through the living area and curled himself up in a small carpeted alcove in a corner of the room. Soon afterwards, El strolled through, removed her coat and belt, and hung them up on one of a series of coat hooks dotted along the wall. She then walked to the wood burner and began throwing in various pieces of wood and paper. Once fully stoked, El retrieved a zippo lighter from on top of the burner and set it alight.

With the fire lit, El walked back towards the kitchen area and set about sorting the assortment of pots and pans that littered her stove. Cait could see El open and empty two cans into a saucepan and set to the moderate heat on one of the hobs. El then disappeared upstairs, out of Cait’s sight.

Cait set about unlacing her boots. After walking and fighting in them all day, her feet was really starting to ache. Once her boots were on the floor, she propped her feet up on the couch and carefully nursed them with her hands. Cait closed her eyes and hummed contently as she gently massaged the aches away.

Cait was suddenly brought back to the real world by the sound of approaching footsteps. She opened her eyes and turned her head to see El approaching with two bottles and a deep metal dish in her hands. She placed the dish down in font of Dogmeat, who began to eagerly slurp up its contents, and then turned back to the couch. El’s appearance had changed slightly. Her boots were off - making her an inch or two shorter than before – and the top half of her vault suit was tied up around her waist, leaving a light grey vest underneath. Cait couldn’t help but notice that, even without the vault suit, El was very curvy.

“Drink?” El asked Cait, holding out a bottle of rum to her.

Cait sat up and examined the bottle in El’s hand, “Got any whiskey?”

El shook her head, “No whiskey, I’m afraid. I like whiskey, whiskey doesn’t like me.”

Cait took the rum, unscrewed the top and took a large gulp straight from the bottle. Cait closed her eyes as the sweet liquid slipped down her throat and she sighed contently. It felt great to finally drink something after such a long day.   

El sat herself on one of the wingback chairs opposite the couch and popped open a bottle of Nuka Cola with a bottle opener that was sitting on the coffee table. Similarly, she sat back in the chair and took a deep gulp from her bottle.

“You’re not drinkin’?’ Cait asked between gulps.

El shook her head. “Not tonight. Don’t really feel like it.”

As Cait sat back and drink from her rum bottle, she suddenly realised that this was the first time she had been able to get a proper look at her new companion. Despite seeing El without her sunglasses on multiple occasions throughout the day, Cait had always been thinking about something else. Cait, therefore, began to look El over, trying not to seem obvious in doing it.

Cait guessed that El must have been in her early thirties. She certainly looked young, but a few years older than Cait. She had thick and wavy brown hair which fell to just above her shoulders. Her eyes were a deep and piercing hazel colour and they seemed to glint slightly if turned to face a certain light. They were quite mesmerising in Cait’s opinion, especially if they glinted in the light. El’s smile also seemed to draw Cait in. El processed a set of full and unchapped lips which, when parted, revealed a set of perfect and almost luminous teeth. Despite being a cage fighter, and not having the best diet, Cait’s teeth were not that bad. She, however, could not understand how someone from the Commonwealth could have teeth as perfect as El’s. Cait’s attention was also drawn to two scars that marked El’s face. The first, and oldest looking scar, was a narrow gash that ran up the right side of her face, only stopping around the area of her eye socket. The other looked more recent and it consisted of two parts. The first part ran up from the left side of El’s lips, while the second part ran up the top of her left eyebrow. Her face was certainly attractive in Cait's opinion. But there was also a maturity to her features; as if she was comfortable in her own body. It was difficult for Cait to not feel slightly intimidated by a woman who displayed such confidence.

For all of El’s facial features, however, Cait’s attention was primarily drawn to El’s body. The area of El’s body that pulled most of Cait’s attention was her chest. Cait was more than aware that El was curvy, but her chest was on another level. While her own breasts were also big, and they did sometimes get in the way when she fought, Cait wondered acutely how El managed. Furthermore, El tended to wear her vault suit slightly unzipped, which exposed a deep cleavage which seemed to draw all surrounding attention. As Cait looked, she could also make out that El’s nipples were somewhat ostentatiously poking through the rather tightly fitting vest that she wore. At sight of this, Cait covertly bit her bottom lip.

In order to distract herself from ogling El too much, Cait decided she needed to make conversation. “So, what was all that stuff about, today?” Cait asked nonchalantly, asking more to strike up conversation than genuine interest.

El considered Cait’s question for a moment, or two, and adjusted herself in her chair. “Those people you met today all helped me out in some way when I first came here. Piper and Valentine all helped me find my footing.”

“What about that guy on the radio? What did he do for you?” Cait asked bluntly.

“He was actually one of the first people I met when I came here. He’s a commander in the Minutemen. I helped him out, he helped me out, and so on.” El cupped the right side of her head in her hand. “Eventually, he agreed that some of his men would help me build a teleporter in return for a favour. As you heard earlier, that favour is helping the Minutemen retake the Castle.”

“What’s a teleporter? Cait bemusedly asked. El might well have been speaking in code for all she knew.

El thought for a few minutes, wondering how she was going to phrase this. “A teleporter is a machine that can transport you from one place to another. Let’s just leave it at that.”

El’s answers only seemed to bring more questions. “What do you need it for?” she asked, more curious this time.

El closed her eyes and sighed. “Cait, I’d love to tell you why, but we’ll be here forever.”

Cait bowed her head slightly and took another gulp of her rum.   

El soon got up from her chair and started back towards the kitchen; placing her Nuka Cola down the coffee table and unintentionally giving Cait an unimpeded view of her cleavage. Cait looked away and took a long swig of her rum, trying not to seem like she was, effectively, staring directly at El’s boobs. However, as El walked towards the kitchen, Cait turned her head back again to catch a glimpse of her from behind.

As she walked, El’s hourglass figure noticeably extenuated her arse. Especially in her tightly fitting vault suit, El pocessed an almost perfectly cemeterial behind which swayed gently from side to side as she walked. Her cemeterial behind then lead seamlessly into two slim, but visibly muscly legs that seemed to glide gracefully across the floor. This sheer myriad of features lead Cait to one conclusion: El was an incredibly attractive woman. Now she understood why El appeared to find it so easy to haggle with store venders.     

El returned to the living area holding two small bowls in her hands and another metal dish in her hands. When she reached Cait she handed one of the bowls to her. Cait looked inside and saw that it was a portion of Pork ‘n Beans. Remembering the generous helping of noodles that she’d had earlier that day, Cait wasn’t feeling particularly hungry.

“I’m not hungry,” Cait said brusquely, “I ate all those noodles.”

El remained still, “I know. But you’ve downed a good third of that bottle since we got in. If you don’t eat anything, it will go straight to your head. We have a long journey ahead of us and I don’t want you groggy in the morning. So, eat up.” El commanded.

Cait wasn’t happy at being told what to do, but she took the bowl from El’s hand and the spoon that she also gave her. After placing the metal dish in front of Dogmeat, El then returned to her chair and both tucked into their meal.

They ate in silence, both too preoccupied with the task at hand. Cait actually underestimated how hungry she was because her meal disappeared a lot quicker than she had anticipated. Once finished, Cait placed the bowl on the table and took one last swig of rum. She then screwed the cap back on the bottle and placed it next to the bowl. Subconsciously, she appeared to be following El’s advice.   

El’s bowl soon joined Cait’s and she retrieved her Nuka Cola to resume drinking.

As silence descended once again on the living area, Cait felt that she had to say something. Questions and feelings had been building up inside her all day. If she didn’t say something, she felt she would explode.

“Why did you buy me that stuff today?” Cait asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.

“We're going to a dangerous place. You need some protection.” El answered curtly.

Cait, however, was not satisfied with that answer. “I get that bit. But, Why? It’s just that-,” Cait growled at herself and took a deep breath before continuing. “Look, after Tommy stuck me with you, I was expectin’ to hate your guts. Not only cause you just beat the shit out of me, but because I thought you’d be orderin’ me around like hired help. Now so far, you’ve been treatin’ me like a fiend, feedin’ me, buyin’ me stuff, showin’ me your place. Hell, you’ve been damn near nice to me.”

El noticed the slight hint of a smile cross Cait’s lips as she spoke. It was small, but it gave away a lot about Cait’s inner personality.

“Now I don’t want to sound ungrateful,” Cait continued, “but your kindness is startin’ to make me wonder. If there’s anythin’ I learned the Combat Zone, it was that nobody does things for other people without expectin’ something in return.”

El understood what Cait was getting at immediately. “You don’t owe me anything, Cait.” She said reassuringly.

“But why?” Cait asked, shocked. In all her life she had never met someone like this.

“Maybe I just appreciate your company.” El answered, feeling slightly frustrated at Cait’s prying. She, however, soon calmed herself and began again. “The things I bought you today were paid with the winnings from our fight. You earned those caps as much as I did.” She said hearteningly.

Cait scoffed indignantly at El’s comment, but, deep down, she was dumbfounded. Why did she not want payment? What was her game in all this?

El appeared to see Cait’s turmoil and attempted to probe the situation. “Why are you so obsessed with debts?” El asked, inquisitively.

This question, however, touched a nerve with Cait. “I really don’t want to talk about it.” She snapped before calming down. “Look, give me some time and I’ll think about some way I can repay you. Deal?’

El sensed that Cait genuinely wanted to help and she smiled. “Alright then. Deal.”

Cait interpreted El’s smile as a victory. Maybe El was someone she could get along with.

El finished her Nuka Cola and got up from her chair, stretching slightly as she adjusted herself. “Unfortunately, Cait, I’m completely shattered. So, I’m going to call it a night. You can take the couch, if you would like.” El then walked to one of the chests of drawers and pulled out a blanket which she handed to Cait. “If your sleeping bag is not enough, you can use this for extra warmth. It might not look it, but that couch is really comfortable.” El gave a friendly smile as Cait took the blanket.

“The wash basin is just in the corner down there.” El said, pointing across to the kitchen area. “Alright, good night. I’ll see you in the morning.” El patted Cait on the shoulder and then departed to her chambers.

As El walked off, Cait managing a brief “good night” before she disappeared.

Cait quickly brushed her teeth and washed her face in the basin before similarly retiring. Brushing her teeth was one of the few habits she insisted on doing. But after seeing El’s teeth, she was glad she did. Once washed, she returned to her couch and crawled inside her unfurled sleeping bag, placing the blanket on top.

A few moments later, the clunk of a heavy switch extinguished the lights and the home was plunged into darkness; the only remaining light coming from the embers of the wood burner.

It was in this darkness that Cait was finally to able process what had happened. Maybe El was someone she could get along with? However, despite this, doubt persistently gnawed at her. It would all depend on how they fared in the Castle tomorrow.

“But, wow! This couch really is comfortable.” Cait thought to herself as sleep began to envelop her.

*EXTRA* 

Just a little extra for all you visual learners out there. I had no idea you could add pictures, so, here is what El looks like. I've done my best at describing her but, sometimes, an image says a thousand words. 

A force to be reckoned with, I think. 

Chapter Text

For the first time in ages, Cait was finally able to get away. In an old shed near the farm Cait sat alone, engrossed in the wonders and adventurers of other worlds.

One day, on one of her secret scavenging trips, Cait had come across an old comic book which she then managed to sneak in under her shirt. If she was ever found out, she would be in big trouble. 

Cait always loved reading comics. They gave her a sense of escapism in a world dominated by hardship and destruction. She couldn’t read any of the words, but, for a young girl such as herself, the faded images of superheroes and vigilantes battling the forces of evil were more than enough to enthral her. Cait stared absorbedly at the images in her hands, hoping beyond hope that she could disappear inside the pages and never return.

Suddenly, a loud thud from the sole of a heavy boot almost sent the door to the shed flying off its hinges. Cait looked up in terror and was immediately blinded as sunlight flooded into the darkened shed. Seconds later, a tall dark shape moved through the doorway and quickly stomped towards Cait’s position.

“There you are, you little rat!” a loud gruff voice shouted as a large hand grabbed Cait by her flaming red hair. Cait screamed in pain as she was unceremoniously dragged outside.  

“Papa, stop it!” Cait wailed pitifully, tears beginning to stream down her face, “You’re hurtin’ me!”  

The tall figure leaned down to look at Cait and saw the open comic book, still clasped in her hand. He snatched it from her and held it at arm’s length. “So, this is what you do all day, lookin’ at pretty pictures?” he said accusingly.  

“It was just a comic book, Papa.” Cait whimpered through floods of tears.  

“What’s a little rat like you need a comic book for?” the figure shouted down to her, brutally throwing the offending comic onto the ground and stamping his boot on it. Cait was then similarly thrown down and left sprawling in the dirt.  

Cait looked around and began to crawl away, desperate to save the comic, and her only source of happiness. As she crawled, the tall figure behind her began to unbuckle his belt and pull it out of the loops of his trousers.

Cait screamed in pain as she was once again pulled up by her hair. “You wanna read comics?” the tall figure asked rhetorically, “Go on then, read!” Cait’s face was then forcibly pushed into the crumpled comic’s muddied pages.

Cait moaned and whimpered incoherently as her face was violently smothered into the comic’s mud-stained pages. She waved her arms and kicked her legs helplessly as she hopelessly tried to escape her father’s tortuous grasp.

Eventually, Cait was released and she panted heavily, trying desperately to catch her breath. Cait’s crying only intensified as she tried to wipe the dirt from her face and eyes.  

The tall figure then began to roll the belt he held around his hand and said menacingly, “This is what happens to little girls who don’t do as they’re told.” He then raised his arm up and brought his full force down onto Cait’s back.

As the belt struck home, Cait let out a deafening scream-

Cait’s eyes flashed open and she shot up from where she slept. She was panting heavily and shivering hysterically. Her eyes quickly darted around her surroundings, anxiously looking for her tormenter in the encompassing darkness.

Eventually, as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she found herself sitting in the living area of El’s home. The entire experience had been a dream all along. Cait hugged her knees to her chest and breathed heavily through her nostrils. She was shaking uncontrollably as she tried desperately not to start crying. These kinds of dreams were an almost nightly occurrence, but Cait never got used to them. Only outside influences helped her to forget.

As her breathing steadily returned to a normal pace, Cait realised that she needed to shoot up. If anything could make her forget, it was Psycho. Cait immediately scurried to the other end of the couch and began fumbling for her bag. It, however, didn’t help that she could barely see anything.

Eventually, her hands found the bag and she attempted to open it. Cait heard several items spill and roll onto the floor. Maybe she had been a bit forceful. Although she couldn’t see, Cait somehow managed to get the bag open and she began to feel inside for her salvation. After a few seconds, she pulled out the syringe and sat back on the couch. Once prepped, Cait jabbed the needle into her arm and allowed the liquid to entre her body.

Relief immediately coursed through her veins and Cait leaned her head back in a movement of release. She sighed heavily as her mind began to forget her nightmares and return to a feeling of equilibrium.

The feeling was short-lived, however, and Cait suddenly started to get a strange feeling in her chest. Cait sat forward and began to cough violently. Trying to stay as quiet as possible, Cait placed her hand over her mouth to mask the sound. The coughing, however, would not cease and only seemed to get worse. As Cait tried to take a breath, she removed her hand from her mouth and, to her shock, saw large spots of blood dotted across her hand. Cait could barely accommodate her shock before the coughing resumed.

Eventually, after several minutes, the coughing began to subside and Cait started to feel the worst had passed. With room to breathe, Cait took her hand away from her mouth and examined what she saw. Plastered across her hand were large droplets of blood intermixed with sputum. Even in the darkness, Cait could see it was blood. This was new to Cait. She had gone through periods of feeling somewhat unwell after taking Psycho, but profuse coughing of blood was unknown to her. What did this mean?

Cait barely had time to contemplate this question before a terrible burning began to erupt in her stomach. Cait groaned in pain as the feeling began to rapidly build. It was like someone had just poured a barrel of accelerant into Cait’s stomach and set it alight. As the feelings intensified, Cait decided that she needed to get outside. Whatever this was, it was not going to be pleasant.

Cait spied the second door to El’s home directly across the room from her and immediately launched herself towards it. As she made her way towards the door, a sudden stabbing shot through her pinkie toe. Cait instantly recognised that she had stubbed her toe on the coffee table and bit her bloodstained hand to keep from screaming. The burning feeling in her stomach, however, was unrelenting and Cait continued to the door. With one turn of the handle Cait was outside in the cold mist of Diamond City.

At this hour, the Diamond City market was dark and empty, with only the stadium spotlight illuminating the streets. Cait, however, had no time to admire the scenery. As Cait leaned forward, her hand propped up against a wall, the burning sensation began to rapidly course up her body.

Cait suddenly started to wretch violently as the burning in her stomach exited her body as vomit. Cait felt like she was vomiting fire as she closed her eyes in intense pain. With every wave of vomiting, the burning feeling deepened throughout Cait’s body. For a brief moment, Cait was able to open her eyes and saw a gross mixture of yellow, black, and red material splashed out on the ground. Cait just wanted the whole experience to end.

Eventually, Cait’s stomach ran out of material to expel and the effects began to subside. Still retching occasionally, Cait took a step back and breathed heavily; trying desperately to understand what had just happened. She looked down at where she had vomited but turned her head away quickly, too ashamed to look.

As she stood in empty streets of the Diamond City market, Cait began to shiver. She looked around nervously to see if anyone had seen what had just happened. To her relief, the streets were quiet. Feeling slightly relieved of her anonymity, Cait stumbled back towards the door to El’s home.

Upon stepping through the door, Cait started to feel incredibly lightheaded. Using every ounce of energy she still had, she stumbled around the coffee table and collapsed unceremoniously on the couch.

Darkness immediately enveloped her, and she fell into a deep and dreamless sleep.

Cait awoke to the fragrant smell of freshly cooked soup. Cait inhaled deeply through her nostrils and sighed contentedly at the smell. As she opened her eyes, she noticed that she was looking up at the ceiling. Cait frowned in confusion; the last thing she remembered was passing out, face first, on the couch. Cait moved her eyes down and found that she was lying on her back with the blanket El had given placed on top of her. A thousand questions suddenly filled Cait’s head as she recounted what had happened the night before. How was she on her back? Had El put the blanket over her? Did El know about the Psycho? Had El heard her last night? Mild panic immediately swept through Cait’s mind as she contemplated what this meant. Was El going to throw her out for being a worthless junkie?

“Good morning!” El’s voice shocked Cait away from her own questions and she looked around to find El standing over her with two steaming bowls of soup in her hands. She was wearing a baggy grey Grognak the Barbarian t-shirt and her vault suit, that was, once again, half tied up around her waist. However, even when she wasn’t properly dressed, El’s hair seemed to look perfectly smooth. What the hell did she do to it?

“Mornin,’” Cait just about managed as she sat up on the couch. She took the bowl of soup from El’s hand and took a deep breath through her nostrils; allowing the delicious smells to wash over her. After her intense coughing and vomiting episode the night before, Cait greeted the soup like a long-lost friend.

Before taking her own spot, El also took two cans of purified water from under her arm and placed one in front of Cait. Conscious of what had happened the night before, Cait took the can apprehensively and downed a long swig to refresh her painfully dry throat.

As El took her own seat, Cait looked across the room to see Dogmeat quietly eating from one of the metal bowls that El would place in front of him.

They both ate in silence; both too focussed on the food in front of them. Cait, especially, needed to replenish the energy lost the night before. She, however, couldn’t work out when in the night her whole vomiting episode happened. “What time is it?” Cait asked, trying to work it out.

“Last time I checked, it was around 8:30 in the morning.” El replied between mouthfuls of soup.

Cait couldn’t tell time but she interpreted that as morning. Maybe she would never find out when her vomiting episode occurred. Cait finished her soup completely none the wiser of her situation. Maybe that was for the best?

El finished her soup shortly after and collected Cait’s similarly empty bowl from the coffee table. “Finish your water and suit up. We have a lot of ground to cover before we get to the Castle.” El said as she started back towards the kitchen.

Cait downed the rest of her water in one large gulp, feeling infinitely more human than when she had woken up, and went to the sink to clean up and brush her teeth. She must have been at the sink for some time because she soon heard the sound of heavy footsteps behind her. Cait turned to find El standing commandingly at the bottom of the steps.

El was a sight to behold. She was wearing her signature vault suit that hugged her body like a tightly fitted glove; but Cait could tell she was dressed for battle. Strapped to her legs were several pieces of mismatched polymer armour. Similarly, across her arms and shoulders were the same type of armour that El bought her the day before. What drew most of Cait’s attention, however, was the chest piece she wore. Strapped to El’s chest was a shining piece of steel plating that seemed to fit her body as well as her vault suit. Cait could see several black scorches and welding marks across the adjoining sheets of metal. Whichever way she acquired it, there was no way that El bought this chest armour from a store.

“Where did you get that armour?” Cait asked out of curiosity.

El looked down at her armour and chuckled. “Oh, this?” she knocked the breastplate with one of her closed fists, “I took this off a raider who thought that he could have some fun with me. However, I had to do some adjustments to make it fit better. When you have a body like mine, hardly anything fits right.”

As El spoke, she descended the final step and walked past Cait towards the coat hooks across the wall. She then took her belt, buckled it around her waist, and strapped the accompanying holster to her leg. To complete her look, El unhooked her overcoat and slipped it over her outfit. Once fully outfitted, El turned to face Cait and looked her up and down. “Follow me.” She commanded, walking back towards the living area.

Cait followed El apprehensively, highly suspecting that she was going to present the incriminating evidence that she was a lying, worthless, junkie. Taking a deep breath, Cait prepared for the worst.

To her immense surprise, however, El turned to her left and began ferreting through the wardrobe propped up against the wall. El soon reappeared from behind the wardrobe door holding a brown waist length leather jacket in her hands. “Here, wear this.” El said, holding the jacket out to Cait, “something to keep you warm. It can be quite cold out there in the morning. It’s too small for me, anyway.”

Feeling enormous relief that she had not yet been discovered, Cait took the jacket and folded it in her arms.

“Try it on.” El commanded, “I can’t give you a jacket that doesn’t fit.”

Cait sheepishly slipped the jacket on, still worried that El knew about the Psycho, and took a step back. It was slightly baggy in the waist, but it fitted perfectly around her chest and shoulders.

El smirked, “You look good. Oh, here, take this as well.” El then looked back inside the wardrobe and pulled out a large grey rucksack. Cait took the bag from El and gave her a look of complete bemusement; why was El giving her a new bag? “I figured that you’d like a new bag, seeing as yours is not really usable anymore.” El said.

Cait immediately turned her head to the couch and, to her shock, found her bag brutally torn open with several of her things spilled out on the floor. Cait’s looked back to El and looked directly into her eyes. One thing that Cait had realised, in the short time that they had been together, was that El seemed able to read her like a book. Cait, on the other hand, found it impossible to read what El was thinking. Cait stood there, waiting for the incoming blow.

“Get your stuff together. We need to get going. There’s a canteen in there so you can have something to drink on long journeys.” El eventually said, turning away from Cait and opening one of the chests of drawers next to the wardrobe.

Cait quietly scuttled over to where her bag lay and quickly tipped its contents into the new bag. She then began scurrying around the sofa looking for her syringe of Psycho. To her relief, she found it wedged between the couch cushions. Cait looked over her shoulder to make sure El wasn’t looking and discreetly threw it into her new bag. She also quietly snatched the bottle of rum from the coffee table to stashed it among her other things. Once filled, Cait quickly fastened it tight and threw it over her shoulders. She then collected her shotgun and baseball bat and turned back to El.

Cait found El standing with, what looked like, a powerful service rifle slung over her shoulder. Cait quickly looked El up and down and was deeply impressed by what she saw. El looked formidable. Cait, however, could not give any of this away; she was still suspicious that she knew about the Psycho.

“Here, have this. I found it in the old Hubris Comics building. As you seem to like melee weapons, I think it will suit you better.” El raised her right hand and presented an enormous double-bladed axe to Cait. It looked a formidable weapon and could probably do some serious damage.

“…thank you.” Cait said, dropping her baseball bat and, apprehensively, taking the axe from El’s hand. The weapon itself was heavy, but Cait felt good to hold something so powerful in her hands. Cait smiled and glanced up, only to find El looking at her seriously again.

“Cait, why aren’t you wearing your armour?” El asked, her face not displaying any emotion.

Cait scrunched her face up in protest, “I don’t want to wear it. It’s uncomfortable.” she whinged.

“I know it’s uncomfortable. This isn’t very comfortable,” El gestured to her own armour, “but you need protection.”

“But I don’t want to wear it!” Cait whined, sounding more and more like a stubborn child.

El gritted her teeth and sighed heavily, deeply frustrated by Cait’s stubbornness. “Alright, fine!” she said, holding her hands up in defeat, “don’t wear your armour.” Not content with losing, however, El then jabbed an accusing finger at Cait, warning, “But if you get injured, you’ll only have yourself to blame.”

“Fine.” Cait responded stubbornly, feeling slightly smug that she had defeated El in an argument.

El ignored Cait’s gloating and quickly pulled on her gloves and sunglasses. “Come on, let’s get going.” she huffed, turning towards the door. Upon reaching the door, El tapped her leg and Dogmeat attentively followed his master.

“Apres vous…” El said after opening the door.

Whilst not understanding what she had said, Cait got what El was meaning and walked out into the cool morning.

Cait walked out into a Diamond City that was covered by a heavy morning fog. With the sun only just creeping above the stadium walls, it was considerably cooler than when they had arrived the day before. Cait was glad to have the leather jacket that El had given her. She was, however, not happy with El’s insistence on telling her what to do. She wasn’t a child, and she wasn’t going to wear something that made her feel like a fridge.

As the door to El’s home was locked behind her, Cait felt a light pat on the shoulder. She turned around to find El placing her keys into one of her overcoat’s inside pockets. “Let’s head out.” she said, still sounding frustrated at Cait’s stubbornness.

Cait adjusted her bag and shotgun on her shoulders and quietly followed El towards the Diamond City exit.    

Despite encountering a few raiders along the Boston waterfront, the journey to the Castle was surprisingly uneventful. El seemed unperturbed by the distance they were having to travel, but Cait was suffering. Whether it was because she was normally incredibly lazy, or if her Psycho addiction was sapping her energy, Cait needed to rest.

Before long, however, as they worked their way down the coastline, they noticed a small group of people gathered outside an abandoned diner. El checked the small screened device she had been using as a map throughout the journey and determined that this was where the Minutemen were encamped.

“Ma’am.” Several of the Minutemen soldiers greeted as El wondered into the camp; a couple of them even doffing their caps to her. Cait, following a few steps behind El, was completely flabbergasted by the entire situation.

El nodded in acknowledgment to the soldiers and began making her way to a silhouetted individual at the other end of the camp. The figure’s back was turned and had one foot propped up on a pile of rubble, as if surveying the scene in front of them.

“Hello there.” El said as she approached the figure from behind.

The silhouetted figure quickly turned around and revealed himself to be a tall, dark skinned, male wearing a heavy navy-blue knee-length coat and similarly coloured tricorne hat. Underneath he wore a pair of tan coloured trousers and brown boots. Clutched in his arms was, what looked like, a rudimentary laser rifle whose power cell looked set to explode with all the red flashes it was emitting. Upon seeing El, he looked reservedly elated by her appearance. “General! It’s good to see you.”

“And you.” El nodded before turning her head towards Cait. “Preston, this is Cait. She’ll be helping us out clear out the Castle. Cait, this is Preston Garvey. He’s the commander of the Minutemen.”

“Discounting the general here.” Preston added, gesturing his hand to El. “But, it’s nice to meet you, Cait. We’re always glad to have extra help on missions like these.”

Cait nodded at Preston’s greeting but was deeply suspicious of his demeanour. “Why did these Minutemen have to be so fucking noble all the time?” Cait thought to herself. Cait also didn’t take kindly to the friendly way Preston and El greeted each other. What ‘favours’ was Preston doing for El, Cait wondered.

Preston turned back to El and gestured his hand towards the imposing building off in the distance. “Well, there it is. Pretty impressive, don’t you think? Its real name is Fort Independence, but the Minutemen always called it the Castle. I hope you can now see why I wanted to take it back.”

El raised her eyebrows in agreement but was conscious of the large gaps on the defensive walls. “It is impressive. But those walls could use some work.”

Preston nodded, understanding El’s reservations, “I’ll admit, it has seen better days. But the Minutemen have never shied away from hard work.”

Cait visibly rolled her eyes at Preston’s comment. Noticing this, El angrily smacked her on the arm with the back of her gloved hand. Cait instinctively flinched and looked over to find El staring at her, a look of palpable irritation plastered across her bespectacled face. Cait just scowled and looked away, not caring what El thought of her.  

Preston continued, “Our main objective is to take the courtyard. That’s where we’ll encounter the most resistance. The wall on this side is the most exposed, but if we circle around, we can attack from the main gate.”

“What are we hangin’ around for? Let’s just go straight in and smoke those lobsters.” a Minuteman voice called from behind El.

“No. If we split up, we can attack from both sides. It will be like smokin’ fish in a barrel.” a female voice called.

“Why don’t we let them come to us? If we set up a firing line here, we can draw them out.” a third Minuteman proposed.

Preston held his hand out to silence any further suggestion. He then looked towards El in expectation. “General, which strategy would you suggest?”

El thought for a few minutes, analysing each suggestion individually. “Let’s not make this overcomplicated. If we do a frontal assault, we can attack with more firepower. That way, they can’t hide away in the Castle when we entre.” As she spoke, El glanced over to Cait and found a devilishly mischievous smirk plastered across her face. She was clearly happy at El’s suggestion.

Preston nodded, “If you say so, General.” He then stood on the pile of rubble behind him and adjusted the laser rifle in his hand. “Alright, people, you heard the General. Let’s move out. Try not to draw their attention until we’re in position.”

It was eerily quiet as El, Cait, and the Minutemen passed through the rubble-filled gap in the Castle’s wall. El, who had removed her gloves and sunglasses, moved steadily into the courtyard with her service rifle primed and ready for whatever appeared before them. Cait similarly crept into the courtyard with her new double-bladed axe ready to strike.  

As the party made it into the courtyard, the Minutemen began to spread out and head towards the various exits that littered the inner walls of the Castle. The courtyard was covered in upturned dirt and hanging moss. Whatever was living here was clearly not taking care of the place.

Suddenly, several of the piles of upturned dirt sprang to life and numerous varieties of mirelurks erupted from the ground. Upon seeing the invading party, they instantly sculled towards them; their pincers ready to snap them all in half. El, Cait, and the Minutemen immediately opened fire to defend themselves.

Before long, every member of the party was embroiled in their own personal battle with the rampaging mirelurks. El, after shooting a softshell mirelurk to pieces with her rifle, and destroying one of their nests, became involved in a battle of strength as another tried to wrestle El’s rife from her grasp. Eventually, El managed to grab her pistol from its holster and land a shot directly into its face. The beast slumped to the ground and El stood back, panting. She then looked over to Cait and found her smashing the blade of her axe onto the legs of a razorclaw mirelurk. With one strike, the creature toppled and was rendered immobile. Cait then brought the axe down onto the animal's shell, shattering it into multiple pieces.

Not far from Cait’s position, El watched Dogmeat dart between the horde of mirelurks and attack the nests that littered the Castle courtyard. With every nest that Dogmeat attacked, freshly hatched mirelurk levee were left slaughtered, and eggshells smashed.

As the courtyard became strewn with the corpses of dead mirelurks, the noise of bullets began to die down. El fired one last shot of her rifle in a mirelurk’s mandibles and, as it fell, silence descended on the Castle. El let out a deep sigh and wiped the sweat and mirelurk blood from her face. She then quickly changed her rifle’s magazine. El looked around the courtyard to find the Minutemen similarly changing their ammunition and wiping the blood and dirt from their weapons and faces.

El’s attention soon focussed on Cait. She was standing with her back against one of the Castle walls. One of her hands remained gripped on her axe, but it was similarly propped up against the wall. What concerned El most, however, was that Cait’s head was bowed low and she was panting heavily. After such an intense battle, Cait looked completely exhausted; more exhausted than the other members of the party. El began making her way over to Cait with the intent of asking if she was alright.

El had just made it to the centre of the courtyard when she felt the ground shake violently, as if an earthquake had just struck. Steadying her feet, El looked across to Cait and their eyes met. Both stared at each other at what was coming next.

Suddenly, a huge explosion was heard from the beyond the Castle’s outer walls. It was unlike any explosion that El had ever heard; more like the sound of a large drill erupting from the under the ground. The explosion was followed by an ungodly roar that reverberated through the passageways of the old fortress.

“Everyone on my position!” Preston called to the Minutemen, readying his rifle in anticipation, “all eyes of the south bastion.”

As the echoes of the roar died away, the loud patter of multiple approaching legs began to fill the courtyard. The sound’s perpetrator soon revealed itself as it came into view from the south side of the Castle. It was a mirelurk queen; a huge abomination of over two hundred years of radioactive mutation and decay. In its path, it sprayed jets of horrible acidic spittle that melted anything it landed on; and in its wake, spawned hordes of new mirelurk hatchlings to feed on any poor soul who happened to get in their mother’s way.

El, Cait, and the Minutemen immediately opened fire; every single one of them trying to empty as many bullets into the beast as possible. But, no matter how many bullets they fired, they could not bring it down. Cait looked over to see one of the Minutemen have the skin of the shoulder burned away by the queen’s acidic spittle. It was then that she made a decision. If bullets weren’t going to bring this beast down, then she would. Cait readied her axe and launched herself at the Mirelurk queen; bringing a heavy blow down onto one of its legs.

El was running low on ammo. She had managed to incapacitate the Mirelurk queen’s acidic spouts, but she had expended a lot of bullets to do it. Soon she would run out completely. She had just clipped in her last magazine when, to her amazement, she saw Cait run at full force towards the Mirelurk queen and plant her axe directly onto one of the queen’s legs. The blade lodged itself deep in the beast’s flesh and its leg went limp. El looked up to see the creature totter precariously under its own weight. Maybe, this would bring it down?

El’s face changed when the queen began to right itself again. In seconds, it was back up to full height and angrier than ever. El looked down and saw Cait trying desperately to wrench her axe from the beast’s leg.

“Cait, look out!” El shouted.

Cait looked across at El, but it was too late. Before El could even attempt to help, the Mirelurk queen swung one of its huge serrated claws and sent Cait flying the courtyard. El watched in horror as Cait flew across the battlefield, smacking violently against the inner wall, and falling limp and motionless on the ground.

“Cait!” El screamed, attempting to run towards her motionless body. She was, however, stopped in her tracks as the Mirelurk queen came between them. It was in this moment, as El watched Cait’s motionless body, that she needed to bring this beast down, and fast.

As the Minutemen continued to open fire on the creature, El looked around frantically for something that would bring it down. Eventually, her eyes fixed upon one of the Minutmen. On his body, he wore a brown leather belt that hung diagonally across his torso; attached to the belt were an assortment of high explosive grenades. Some were pre-war, while others looked handmade. None of that mattered though; this was El’s only chance.

Slinging her rifle over her shoulder, El put her plan in action. “Give me your belt!” she called to the Minuteman, extending her hand out expectantly.

The Minuteman looked away from the sights of his rifle and gazed back at El. “My what?” he asked, completely bemused at what El had just said.

El, not wasting any time, had already reached the Minuteman in question and was now trying to forcibly tug the belt from its buckle. “I said, give me your belt!” she snarled, through gritted teeth this time.

With the belt free, El looped her fingers through every one of the grenade pins she could get hold of and pulled them all simultaneously. She then ran towards the beast and threw the belt as far and high as she could.

Against all odds, the Mirelurk queen caught the belt in one of the mandibles that surrounded its mouth and began to rip the leather apart.

“Everyone, get down!” Preston shouted, diving to the ground and covering his head with his gloved hands. El quickly followed suit and hoped that her plan would work.

Suddenly, a huge explosion rocked the Castle and a hail of Mirelurk blood and entrails rained down across the courtyard. Once the echoes of the explosion had dissipated, and the shower of Mirelurk entrails had stopped, El got up and looked behind at the scene.

As El turned, she saw the burnt, smoking carcass of what was once the Mirelurk queen. Around its face were deep scorch marks where the grenades had burned through the soft skin under Mirelurk’s hard shell. Several huge chucks of the beast’s body were missing and one of its huge claws was hanging lifelessly; it only remaining attached by a few remaining sinews of skin. What shocked El most, however, was the fact that a sizeable chunk of the top of the Mirelurk’s shell had been blown outwards, leaving a gaping hole in its wake. The shells of Mirelurk queens were known to be incredibly thick. Whatever El had thrown at the creature clearly had some force.

El watched the animal apprehensively, wondering what it would do next. If this failed, she didn’t know what she would do. As if in a Mexican standoff, El right hand was firmly gripped to her pistol on her hip.

Eventually, however, the creature let out, what could only be described as, a low moan and its legs buckled. The Mirelurk crashed to the ground and incredible thud, and a heavy cloud of dirt and dust was sent flying in every direction.

El averted her eyes until the dust passed and she surveyed the scene. As the dust around the edges of the courtyard dissipated, El spotted Cait’s body, lying motionless on the cold hard ground.

“Cait!” El shouted, immediately dropping her rifle and running towards Cait’s lifeless body.

As she lay staring at the clear blue sky, her breath becoming increasingly laboured, Cait believed that death was finally approaching. Cait tried to move, but a horrendous pain in her stomach caused her to wince loudly. She just managed to look down at her stomach and saw a deep gash across her corset. She couldn’t see how bad it was, but there seemed to be a steady stream of blood dripping from it.

Cait’s head fell back to the ground and she took a deep laboured breath. It was in this moment that she started to evaluate her life. Despite thinking desperately for something worthy to remember, Cait could think of nothing. Immense sadness suddenly filled Cait’s mind as she realised that she had achieved absolutely nothing in her life. She had gone from a stupid girl, to raiders’ plaything, to cage fighter. And through all of it, she wasted it on an addiction that was slowly eating her from the inside out. And now, this was how it ended; being mauled by a Mirelurk and bleeding out on the cold ground of an old fortress.

But Cait didn’t want to die; that was where her parents were; she didn’t want to go where her parents were. What would they say to her? What would they do to her?

“Cait! Cait, look at me, look at me!” a voice called to her.

Cait followed the voice, turned her head, and saw a dark shape kneeling next to her. With all the energy she could muster, Cait focussed her vision on the shape. Eventually, the shape revealed itself to be El, and Cait began to sob.

“I-I don’t wanna die.” Cait wept. She had not cried in years. But as she readied herself for death, and with El glinting eyes staring at her, Cait couldn’t help herself.

El cupped Cait’s cheek in her hand and turned her head to hers. “You’re not going to die, Cait. Just stay with me.”

El needed to get Cait out of the open. She needed to get somewhere quieter, and away from the battlefield. El looked around and eyed an entrance leading to the interior of the Castle. If she could get Cait in there, then, maybe, she could save her life.

Realising that the only way of getting Cait there was to drag her, El took a deep breath. El tried to reassure Cait, “Cait, listen to me. You’re going to be ok. But I need to get you out of here. I’m sorry, but it’s going to hurt.”  

Cait did not respond, she just continued to sob. “I…I don’t wanna die.” Cait moaned between heavy, sobbing, breaths.

El decided that that was all she was going to get out of Cait. Also, if she didn’t act fast, Cait was going to bleed out in front of her. Adjusting her position, and grabbing hold of the straps of Cait’s rucksack, El began to pull.

Tears streamed down Cait’s face as she let out a pained, ungodly, scream. El winced at the sound, but knew she had to keep going. “I’m sorry, Cait. I’m sorry.” El groaned, using all her strength to drag her companion to shelter. Cait was not desperately tall, or heavy, but dragging the dead weight of Cait’s body was an uphill struggle or El.

Eventually, El managed to get Cait inside, and positioned her in one the alcoves along the Castle’s corridors; removing her rucksack and jacket in the process. She then started frantically unbuttoning Cait’s corset, trying desperately to remain calm. She had done this kind of thing during actual battles; why should this be any different? Despite El’s reserve, however, Cait’s corset wouldn’t unbutton fast enough. Admitting defeat, El reached down to her feet and pulled out a small knife from her shoe. She then sliced the knife down the middle of the leather and wrenched the two halves apart.

The fact that Cait was practically half naked didn’t even factor into El’s mind; El’s primary concern was the wound covering Cait’s stomach. Stretching from the top of Cait’s right hip to just below her left breast was a deep red gash; made by the Mirelurk queen’s claw. To make matters worse, El’s removal of Cait’s corset left no pressure on the wound and it began bleeding profusely. El shuddered as she examined the wound.

El needed to work fast. In an instant, she threw off her rucksack and tipped its contents onto the ground. Among the various items inside was a large green tin that El swiped up and opened; revealing an assortment of first aid items, including Stimpaks, needles, thread, and other necessities. El had found the tin during a highly profitable scavenge, knowing that these items would prove essential in the future. But none of that mattered now.

Immediately, El retrieved one of the Stimpaks and in injected it into Cait’s side. The mechanical hiss of the syringe sent the cool liquid into Cait’s and she shuddered. To El’s delight, the bleeding in Cait’s wound began to stop and El let out a sigh of relief. One Stimpak, however, was not going to be enough. Stimpaks needed to be used sparingly; meaning that El needed to do this the old-fashioned way.

Secondly, El collected the needle and thread in her hands and painstakingly threaded the silk through the needle’s eye. She went into Cait’s bag and pulled out the bottle of rum she had been carrying. El never saw Cait take it, the very fact it was missing from the coffee table that morning gave El all the evidence she needed. Maybe Cait saw this coming? Using as much patience as she had left, El lowered the thread into the bottle and swirled it; ensuring that as much of the thread was covered as possible.

Once sufficiently disinfected, El repositioned herself over Cait’s body and hovered the needle over the top end of Cait’s wound. El then took a deep breath and looked into Cait’s crying eyes, “I’m sorry, Cait, but this is going to sting a bit.”

Cait just sobbed, too caught up in her own turmoil to respond.

Knowing that she would get no other response, El began carefully stitching the wound; keeping as much attention on Cait’s condition as she could. “Just hold on, Cait. Hold on.” El said breathlessly, trying not collapse from exhaustion. “This is why you wear armour.” El said to herself through gritted teeth.  

After what seemed like an age, El finally finished the wound stretching across Cait’s body. Once she had successfully tied off the thread she sighed heavily and leant over Cait’s face. Cait had stopped sobbing, but she was slipping in and out of consciousness. El looked over to the first aid kit and spied the second Stimpak, lying on the ground among the other items. El bit her lip, debating on whether to use it. Stimpaks were not to be squandered, but she wasn’t sure if Cait would pull through on her own.

Eventually, El bowed her head and swiped the Stimpak off the ground. With no certainty that her needlework was any good, El couldn’t take any chances. As El injected the syringe, and the cool clear liquid coursed through Cait’s body, the wound across began to close up around the stitches that El had made. El looked up at Cait and watched her slowly slip into unconsciousness; El then leant her ear to Cait’s chest and felt a low, but steady, heartbeat. A further check of Cait’s nostrils confirmed to El that she was breathing; Cait was going to be okay.

Breathing a heavy sigh of relief, El sat back and leant herself against one of the alcove walls. Once relaxed, El looked down at her hands; they were shaking and covered with blood. El shuddered at the sight, never liking the feel of blood on her hands. After all those years in the military, El could never get used to it. Reaching across to where her bag lay, El collected her water canteen. She then unscrewed the top and poured the water inside onto her bloodied hands.

Once her hands were cleaned sufficiently, El leant her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. Before she could even react, El was sound asleep.     

Chapter Text

Cait awoke staring up at a curved red brick ceiling, feeling like she had the worst hangover in her life. She let out an audible groan as she tried to work out what had happened and where she was. The last thing she remembered was attacking a Mirelurk with an axe. The rest was just a blur.

A low grumble suddenly caught Cait’s attention. Still blinking the sleep away from her eyes, Cait looked over to find El sitting with her back propped up against the wall; her armour chest piece and overcoat lying next to her. Her head was bowed low and she was snoring lightly from under, what looked like, a large tricorne hat that was just covering her eyes. In her hands she held an old and tattered book that was open on her lap.

“El?” Cait croaked, her throat feeling incredibly dry as she spoke.

El let out a low snort and blinked herself awake. She sighed heavily and dopily looked around to where Cait was sleeping. Upon seeing Cait, El smiled and her eyes glinted that hazel colour that always seemed to mesmerize Cait. “Hi Cait, you're finally awake.” El grumbled, wiping the sleep from her eyes. “How are you feeling?”

“A bit shit, if I’m honest.” Cait groaned trying to look around at her surroundings. “What happened? Where am I? Did I get drunk or somethin’?”

“You’re in the Castle, Cait; and, no, you didn’t get drunk. You lost a lot of blood though.” El said, closing her book and taking off her hat.

“I lost what?” Cait asked, feeling more and more confused. Cait then winced in pain as she tried to sit up from where she lay. As Cait rose, she sensed a deeply uncomfortable stabbing pain coming from her stomach and she winced loudly. It was only when she moved that Cait realised that there was a blanket lying on top of her. She had just managed to prop herself up on her hands when the blanket fell and revealed her bare chest. Tightly wrapped around her chest and waist was a roll of white bandages. Cait instinctively tried to cover her exposed chest with the blanket and looked up at El in immense shock.

El immediately knelt next to Cait and cradled the back of her head. “Cait, Cait, it’s alright. It’s alright.” she said, attempting to stop Cait from panicking.

“B-b-but what happened? Where are my clothes?” Cait asked. Cait had always been paranoid about her things going missing.

“Cait, just relax. Your corset is over there. I had to cut open your corset, but I repaired it while you were out cold.” El gestured her head towards the end of Cait’s blanket. Cait looked across to find her corset and rucksack lying at the base of her blanket. El then gradually lowered Cait back onto her pillow.

“Oh, watch out for that.” El moved Cait’s right arm to stop it getting tangled. Cait turned her head to find a clear tube protruding from her arm and leading up to a bag of clear liquid hanging from a one of the blades of Cait’s axe.

“But I want to know what happened?” Cait asked stubbornly, resisting El’s attempts to get her to relax.

El sighed in defeat. The only way she was going to get Cait to relax was to come clean now. “Okay, Cait. Just lie down, and I’ll talk.”

Cait obediently returned to her original position, allowing El to place the blanket back over her. She, however, did not take her off eyes away from El. El then sat back and took a deep breath. “Cait, when you attacked the Mirelurk queen, you got very badly injured. You were trying to pull your axe from its leg, and you got swiped by one of its claws. It left a huge gash across your body and I had to stitch you back up, hence the bandages. Just as I had finished, you passed out.”

It all suddenly made sense to Cait. “How long was I out?” Cait asked, feeling a little embarrassed by the fact that she was gutted by a Mirelurk.

“About a day, or so.” El said. “I had no idea when you would wake up, so I hooked you up on the IV bag.”

El then went into her rucksack and pulled out a stimpak and Cait’s canteen. “Look, Cait, I need to do some work with the Minutemen. You should get some more rest. I’ll leave this for you to have a drink; you’re probably going to be a bit dehydrated with the amount you were crying as I stitched you up. Also, inject this stimpak in about an hour. That should give you some strength.” El smiled as she placed the items down in front of Cait.

Cait needed to say something, but El was already on her feet and heading out to the courtyard.

“El!” Cait just about managed to shout.

El stopped at the doorway and turned around, pulling a friendly smile as she looked at Cait.

“I-I-I-I’m sorry about the armour.” Cait stuttered, not wanting to make eye contact with El.

El’s face hardened and Cait wondered if, maybe, she shouldn’t have said anything. El was still feeling slightly annoyed that she literally had to save Cait’s life because of her stubbornness. However, when she looked at Cait, she could see genuine remorse in her eyes. As El had rarely seen Cait this way, she interpreted that Cait was being honest. Eventually, El’s face softened and she bowed her head and sighed, “It’s alright, Cait. We all make mistakes. Get some rest, and don’t forget the stimpak.” El then turned around and walked out into the courtyard.  

Cait lay back on her pillow, staring at the ceiling, her mind awash with thought about what had happened to her. El had saved her life; she’d dragged her away from the battle, stitched her wounds, and made sure she didn’t die alone, and afraid.

And through all of it, Cait had bared her soul and wept in front of El. Cait had not cried in years, so this was a real surprise for her. El had basically seen right through her. Cait wondered what El would think of her now. Through years of pain and hardship, Cait had built up a persona of being impervious to emotion. What would she do now that that bluff was called?

Cait began to fidget under her blanket, feeling incredibly uneasy about herself. Eventually, her fingers ran over one of the many pop marks that dotted Cait’s arm. Upon feeling the pop marks, Cait’s eyes darted to her bag sitting at the end of where she lay. Using all the energy she had, Cait started moving towards her bag; wincing in pain as her stiches dug into her body.

Swiping her bag from the opposite wall Cait fumbled one-handed through to find the only crutch she truly needed. As her other arm was hooked up to an IV bag, she was conscious to not move it too much, lest she accidentally pulled the drip out. After some blind searching, Cait retrieved her vial of Psycho and prepped it for injection. Positioning it on her left arm, Cait jabbed the needle in and let the black liquid slowly course into her body. Cait sighed heavily as the liquid passed through her veins and she slowly eased herself into a sitting position, wincing as the stiches dig into her skin.

However, much as the day before, the high was short lived and Cait, once again, started to feel desperately unwell. Cait opened her eyes and placed her hand on her stomach, feeling unnaturally queasy all of a sudden. Seconds later, the coughing started and Cait was plunged into another bout of near suffocation. Struggling to breathe, Cait bit into her open hand as her stitches made the coughing pains almost unbearable.

Eventually, the coughing subsided and Cait was finally able to catch her breath. Removing her hand from her mouth, Cait looked down at her open palm to find a grizzly splatter of pure blood covering the inside of her hand. Despite sitting alone in a Castle alcove, Cait looked at her hand with a feeling of intense guilt and embarrassment. “What’s happening to me?’ Cait thought to herself.

Suddenly a terrific pain, made worse by her stitches, erupted inside Cait’s stomach and she agonisingly stifled a yell. Cait knew this would be bad as her stomach growled in agony. Desperately, Cait looked around for somewhere she could go; she couldn’t vomit over her blankets, where El could find it. If El found out, she’d sling her out faster than you’d clear out a Radroach infestation.

There was nowhere Cait could go without being spotted. This place was crawling with Minutemen, and they would likely go straight to El if she was discovered. Admitting defeat, and clutching her aching stomach, Cait rested the back of her head on the wall and closed her eyes. This was how it went; her addiction, once again, destroyed everything she laid her eyes upon.

Then, salvation; as Cait opened her eyes, she noticed a small stone porthole in the Castle wall. If she could get up there, then maybe, she would be safe.

Using all the strength she could muster, Cait hauled herself to her feet, grimacing through the pain of her stomach and stitches. Lacking much dexterity, Cait winced as she accidentally pulled the IV drip out her arm in the process. Once on her feet, Cait attempted to stick her head through the stone porthole. To Cait’s intense relief, the porthole was just big enough to put her head through.

Cait’s head was barely outside the Castle wall before she began to violently wretch. Pretty soon the vomiting began again and Cait was plunged into a whole new layer of pain. Cait moaned and coughed as liquid fire seeped out of her mouth and splattered across the ground in the form of vomit and blood. Throughout it all, Cait was trapped, struggling to move within the small porthole.

Eventually, the burning in Cait’s stomach subsided and the vomited finally stopped. Cait breathed heavily as she pulled her head back into the Castle interior; she retched the entire time. Much like before, Cait suddenly became incredibly lightheaded and her legs gave way. Crashing to the ground, Cait struggled to remain conscious long enough to get back in bed. It was then that she spied the stimpak sitting next to her blanket. Swiping the stimpak, Cait quickly injected herself and sighed heavily as the cool, refreshing, liquid coursed through her aching body.

Moving slowly back to her original position, Cait just managed to get her blanket over her again before her vision began to darken. Within minutes, Cait had passed out cold into a dreamless sleep.

Cait awoke to find El, once again, by her side. This time, however, she was perched on an old wooden chair and deeply engrossed in a book. Cait didn’t know whether it was the same book that El’s was reading the last time Cait saw her; quite frankly, she didn’t care that much. Cait shuffled slightly and felt something sharp lightly prick her skin. Immediately recognising this to be her Psycho, Cait became increasingly paranoid; maybe El hadn’t seen it? She needed to find a way to get it into her bag without El noticing.

After a few moments, El glanced up from her book and smiled. “Cait, you’re awake. How are you feeling?”

Cait tried not to sound too awkward as she shuffled the syringe under her legs. “Okay, I suppose. Stitches hurt though. What you readin’?’ Cait asked in an attempt at small talk.

“Oh, nothing really. Just some Shakespeare. Twelfth Night. Found it in the old General’s quarters.” El closed the book and got up from her chair. “Well, hopefully, that stimpak will have helped your wound heal a bit more.”

El then knelt in front of Cait and began pulling her blanket back. “However, I think it would be best if we changed your bandages.”

The blanket had just been pulled back from Cait’s bandaged breasts when Cait instinctively snatched it from El’s hand. Cait’s actions had the image of an attempt to cover her modestly, but it was mostly of fear that El would find the hidden Psycho.

El flinched slightly at Cait’s reaction. In the time that she had known her, El had never once thought that Cait was concerned about her modesty. This kind of a reaction was new, and frankly, a little odd. El needed to use of her pre-war skills and approach this with tact. “Cait, these bandages are couple of days old now. It’s best that we change them.”

Cait clutched the blanket tightly to her chest, not wanting to make eye contact with El. “They’re fine. I don’t need them changed.” she winged.

El leaned in slightly closer, doing her best to reason with her. “It’s for your own benefit, Cait. Clean bandages will stop you catching an infection.”

“I said I’m fine.” Cait replied stubbornly.

Realising that the carrot wasn’t going to work, El decided that she would need to resort to the stick. “Look, Cait, if you’re so concerned, you can have your back turned to me. That way, I won’t see anything.” El said commandingly, leaning in closely to get Cait’s attention.

This time, Cait’s eyes met El’s and she gave a brief and shaky nod. Moving the blanket carefully to keep the Psycho hidden, Cait slowly positioned herself so she was sitting in front of El. Cait shivered as El ran a cold pair scissors up her back as she sliced the bandages.

As the bandages fell away, El looked on in shock as she was greeted by, what can only be described as, something equivalent to the slashed remains of a canvas. Across her back, in every direction, Cait was peppered with scars. Some was old and healed, others were more recent; each one, however, betrayed a life of pain and hardship. Cait shivered as El ran her hand along Cait’s back, following the scars with her fingers. El knew almost nothing about Cait’s past, but these scars were enough to make her believe that it was not a happy one. El then looked up to see Cait glancing at her out of the corner of her eye. As their eyes met, Cait bowed her head and looked away; as if in shame. El then quickly got back to the task in hand and collected the bandages from her first aid kit.

Before long El had successfully changed Cait’s bandages and she set about packing up the first aid kit. El looked up to find that Cait hadn’t moved; still trying to cover her body with her blanket. Something wasn’t right; Cait was feelingly overly withdrawn. El needed to get to the bottom of this. “Cait, are you alright? I’ve finished your bandages.” El said reassuringly.

“Ur, thanks.” Cait replied, failing to sound convincing.

El put a hand on Cait’s shoulder, attempting to turn her around, “Is something wrong, Cait?”

Sensing El’s insistence, Cait shuffled round so she was facing her; making sure that her Psycho was sufficiently covered. She needed to get El away so she could hide it. She needed to think of something, and fast. “Urr, yeah. It’s just that... it’s…it’s…it’s really cold and lonely here.” Cait tried her best to seem convincing.

“Well, would you like to leave?” El asked.

Cait had to admit, the Castle was a cold and lonely place. Maybe she did want to leave. Eventually, Cait nodded.

El smiled and seemed genuinely happy at Cait’s reply. “I’m glad you said that. I don’t like this place either. It’s cold and damp.” El adjusted herself slightly to be more comfortable, “Look, I’ve been in contact with the Minutemen in Sanctuary and I’ve arranged to go back there to help with the teleporter. You don’t have to, but would you like come with me?”

Cait nodded immediately. She didn’t quite know why she nodded so vigorously; she just wanted to leave with El.

“Alright, get your stuff together and I’ll go and square things with Preston. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve fulfilled my favour. What we’ll do is go back to Diamond City for the night, then tomorrow, we’ll head out to Sanctuary. That sound good?” El had that memorising glint in her hazel eyes as she spoke.

Cait nodded and gave a light smile. Whilst this wasn’t her first priority, she was glad to be leaving this place.

“Good. Get your things together. I’ll settle things with Preston.” El smiled and stood up before collecting her things and making her way back out into the courtyard.

With El out of earshot, Cait immediately swiped her Psycho from under her blanket and threw it into her bag. She then leant her head against the back wall and sighed; she was safe. Cait didn’t like this sleuthing around, but she didn’t know El well enough to know how she would react if her addiction was discovered. Until things changed, she couldn’t take any chances.

But things had changed. El had saved her life. When Cait was lying dead on the cold hard ground, El was prepared to bring down a Mirelurk queen in order to save her. And after all that, she wanted Cait to come with her back to Sanctuary? Maybe El had a right to know something about her; seeing as she had saved her?

Cait shook her head before she could spiral anymore. Struggling to her feet, Cait slowly regained her balance and walked over to where her corset lay. She winced loudly as she painstakingly buttoned up her corset, groaning as the tight leather dug into her stitches.

Once buttoned, Cait collected her bag and shotgun the against the wall and went to collect her axe. It was there that she noticed the IV bag still hooked onto the blade. Cait wondered whether El had noticed it earlier. Taking no chances, Cait quickly unhooked the bag and threw it out the porthole across from her. If there was no evidence, El couldn’t accuse her of anything.

Fully kitted out, Cait walked back out into the sunlit courtyard.

Cait found El in the middle of the Castle courtyard. Her and a group of Minutemen were gathered around a small hut at the bottom of a tall radio tower in the centre of the courtyard. Inside the small hut a single Minutemen sat at a desk, perpetually tuned into the radio. Between choruses of ear bleeding violin music, an animated voice would beam from the radio tower and was heard throughout the Castle. “This is Radio Freedom, the Voice of the Minutemen! All quiet, which is how we like it.” the voice would call out.

Cait scoffed slightly at the announcement, “Radio Freedom, what a joke” Cait thought to herself.  

“…I do hope you understand, Preston.” Cait heard El say to Preston as she approached.

“Well, you have repaid the favour. I, personally, would have preferred that you stay a few days to help us build the cannons. But, if you mind is made up, I can’t force you. Will you go directly to Sanctuary?” Preston asked, feeling slightly saddened at El and Cait’s departure.

“No, not directly. We’ll go back to Diamond City for the night. We’ll then head up to Sanctuary in the morning.” El said, turning to Cait as she approached her.

Preston nodded, “I’ll inform the Minutemen in Sanctuary of your arrival. Thank you for all your help in retaking the Castle and getting us access to the armoury. It will a great help for us. And thanks to you too, Miss Cait. We’ll be sure to call you the next time we need to bring down a Mirelurk Queen.” Preston said jokingly.

Cait gave a small, but toothless smile. She didn’t think he was making fun of her, but Cait felt a little embarrassed at the consequences of what she had done.

“It’s no problem, Preston. I’ll see you around. You can find me in Diamond City or Sanctuary.” El said, putting on her gloves and sunglasses.

Preston nodded to both El and Cait, “Safe travels, General.”

El adjusted her rucksack and slung her rifle over her shoulder. She then turned to Cait and gestured to the large gap in the outer wall, smiling as she did it.

Cait bowed her head to hide a light blush spreading across her face as she followed El out of the Castle.

The Castle was far behind them and they would soon be entering the ruins of downtown Boston again; but Cait was suspicious. Since they left the Castle, El had been walking a particular route which would send them into the Boston Common from the south. That would bring them past somewhere that Cait did not want to see again. She needed to tell El but needed make it convincing.

“El?” Cait croaked inaudibly, her voice completely dry from the journey. After clearing her throat, Cait repeated, “El?”

“Hmm?” El said chirpily, turning her head to look at Cait.

Cait needed to think fast. “C-can we…go a different way?”

El turned around, frowning, and walked towards Cait. “Why, this route is the fastest. Is something wrong, Cait?" she asked, sounding concerned.

Cait lowered her face slightly, trying not to make eye contact.

El looked to argue with Cait until she saw her eyes. As El looked, she could see genuine fear; as if Cait was frightened about something. It was then that she realised what Cait was on about; the route they were walking would take them past the Combat Zone. El’s face softened, “Alright, Cait, we’ll go a different route. Probably a good idea actually. I don’t have much ammo left, and we’re bound to meet some raiders if we go this way. Why don’t we go west instead?”

Cait looked up and bit her bottom lip. She was happy that El understood but didn’t want to show it.

El gave a toothless, but genuinely friendly smile. “Come on, let’s go.” El said walking off west.

Compared to a Mirelurk infested fortress, the bustling streets of Diamond City were almost a welcome relief. As both ladies stepped off the causeway, El let out a deep contently sigh. She clearly seemed glad to be back again.

Cait didn’t care where they were, just as long as far from the Combat Zone as possible. She did admit that, after the Castle, Diamond City had increased somewhat in its charm. However, Cait’s stomach meant that she could not enjoy it much. Whilst on their journey, Cait’s had started to feel her leather corset uncomfortably rubbing against her stitches. At first, Cait just suffered through the pain; but now, as they entered Diamond City, it was near excruciating.

If El had found out, she would have forced Cait to change into the new shirt that she had bought her. However, Cait was still feeling awkward about her new clothes. In Cait’s opinion, pain was a lesser evil than giving El the satisfaction.

As they passed Publick Occurrences they were noticed by Piper who was busy printing whatever new story she had concocted. As they passed, she waved at El, “Why you all geared up, Blue? Found the Institute yet?” she shouted.

El smirked slightly and waved back. “Not today. We just retook the Castle for the Minutemen. The place was crawling with Mirelurks.” El said in a fake sensationalist tone.

Piper beamed with delight and shouted back, “I gotta write a story about that. I’ll be looking for you!”

El chuckled, waved again, and continued walking towards the market.

After a short forage among the market stalls for supplies, El and Cait soon found themselves back at El’s house. Upon entering the living area, Cait allowed her bag to fall from her shoulders and she slumped on the sofa. She was shattered, and her stitches just made it worse. She groaned in pain as her corset rubbed uncomfortably against her skin.

“God, I’m absolutely shattered!” Cait looked up to see El slump down in the wingback chair across from her. She had removed her coat and armour and was back down to her tightly fitting vault suit. Her head was rested in one of her palms and her eyelids were slowly becoming heavier.

Similarly, Dogmeat pattered over to his little alcove and promptly fell into a deep sleep.

Eventually, El shook her head out of sleep and looked up at Cait. “We should take your stitches out. With the amount of Stimpaks and IV you’ve been hooked up with, the wound will be pretty healed by now.” she said, getting up from her seat.

Cait lowered her head and looked to argue. “Why? They’re fine. We can do it tomorrow.”

El was, however, already standing over Cait with her first aid kit in hand. “Just lie back, Cait. It will take minutes. You can use the blanket behind you if you’re worried.”

Realising that El was not going to take no for an answer, Cait threw the blanket around her shoulders and unbuttoned her corset; letting out a low contented breath as her corset loosened. Once she was able to breathe properly again, Cait lay back on the couch and wrapped the blanket around her chest.

For the next few minutes El carefully removed each of the bandages and stitches that snaked along Cait’s body. Cait watched El silently, hissing occasionally as the stitches were removed.

“There, done. You’ll have on hell of a scar, but you’ll live.” El said cheerfully as she packed the scissors away. Her face, however, hardened quickly, “Now, Cait, if it’s not too much trouble, would you please put on that shirt I bought you. You’ve been groaning, hissing, wincing, and wheezing since we left the Castle. Put on that shirt and breathe a little easy.” El said commandingly.

“But I-,” Cait tried to answer back.

El just put her hand up. “I have spoken.” she said unapologetically as she turned away.

Cait scrunched her face in frustration. Not only was El still telling her what to do, but she also knew that Cait had been suffering on their travels. Why was El so damn smart? Accepting defeat, Cait fished her bra and shirt out of her bag and quietly dressed herself.

Whilst trying to adjust her bra, Cait saw El approaching again. She was slipping her overcoat over her shoulders. “That’s better. You look nice. Now, I don’t know about you, but I fancy a drink. Want to come along?” El gave Cait a friendly, but slightly mischievous, smile as she spoke.

The prospect of alcohol was not something that Cait would turn down lightly. “Thought you’d never ask.” Cait said grabbing her jacket to hide her blush.

Much like the Combat Zone, the Dugout Inn was full of the same lowlifes and scum, slowly drinking and mulling their existences away. The appearance of Cait and El, however, was enough to drag some of them out of their stupors. As El strode towards the bar, several of the bar’s locals stared at her lecherously. Despite the gazes, El ignored them and continued walking. Cait, on the other hand, kept her eyes on El’s back as she followed behind.

Once at the bar, El and Cait were greeted by a man whose face was, in Cait’s opinion, either overly friendly, or, lecherous. “Well, if it isn’t my most beautiful customer.” the man said happily to El in an accent that Cait didn’t recognise. He then turned to Cait with the same grin plastered across his face. “And she’s brought a beautiful friend.”

Cait wasn’t in the mood for this, but just passed it off. “Take a hike, bozo.” Cait said, rolling her eyes.

The man behind the bar threw his head back and laughed loudly, deeply impressed by Cait’s response. “Ha! I like you already. I can tell we’re going to be the best of friends.” He then stood back with his arms extended in a friendly embrace. “Now, what can I get you two beautiful ladies? Is this finally the day you order a beer?” he asked El.

El chuckled as she removed her sunglasses. “Not today, Vadim. Just a beer for Cait, and a Nuka Cola for me.”

Vadim smiled and pointed his finger at El. “I’m counting the days till you order a beer.”

“Keep on counting, Vadim.” El smirked as she took a seat on one of the bar stools.

El and Cait took their seats on two bar stools and sat quietly as their drinks arrived. They both took a deep gulp and sighed gladly as the refreshing liquid entered their bodies.

Eventually, El put her drink down and turned to Cait. “You did well at the Castle, Cait. You really made a difference.”

Cait just scoffed as she turned to look to El. She was, however, surprised to find El was smiling at her. “Not as good as you.” Cait replied as she turned back to her beer. Suddenly, something caught her attention and she turned back. “How did you bring down that Mirelurk Queen again?” Cait asked, an enthralled smile across her face.  

“Threw a grenade belt at its face and the dumb crab caught it.” El said with a smirk.

“That’s fuckin' awesome!” Cait said, trying hard to contain her enthusiasm. That was the sort of thing you’d see in comic books. If it was, then El was one badass superhero.

El’s face suddenly turned slightly serious. “Well, I saw you lying on the ground and I just made an impulse decision. I couldn’t just let you bleed out.” El turned her head and Cait saw a look of genuine concern for her welfare.

Cait looked away and tried to concentrate on her beer, but El could read Cait like a book. Cait’s eyes were burning with embarrassment, and her cheeks were bright pink.

El chose not to pursue and returned to her own drink. She took a large sip of her Nuka Cola but let a slightly playful smile cross her lips. She had to admit, when she wasn’t being an obnoxious bitch, Cait did look rather cute when she was embarrassed.

They both drank quietly until Cait heard a peculiar noise coming from behind them. It sounded like someone was shuffling towards them. However, the shuffling seemed overly listless and sluggish. Whoever was behind them was clearly completely wasted. “Well, hello beautiful. Where have you been all my life?” the voice leered drunkenly to Cait and El.

Cait was ready to turn around and knock his lights out. Preparing for battle, Cait began to slowly swivel round in her stool, ready to punch this drunken lowlife in his arrogant face.

She was, however, stopped in her tracks as El’s hand landed forcefully on her arm. Cait looked up to find El giving her an incredibly coquettish smile. As Cait stared, El winked suggestively at her and began to unzip her vault suit. Before Cait knew what was even going on, El’s boobs were almost spilling out of her vault suit and she turned in her seat.

“Well, hey there handsome. Where have you been all my life?” El said suggestively as she crossed her legs and leant forward to expose her highly pronounced cleavage. El’s hazel eyes were flashing that familiar glint that Cait found so unusually mesmerising.

“Lookin’ for you, gorgeous.” The drunk said, clearly staring at El’s boobs.

Playing him right into her hands, El gestured her finger towards him and hunched her shoulders slightly, pressing her boobs together in the process. “Well, why don’t you come over here and find out what you’ve been missing.” El said, flashing her eyelashes.

The drunk staggered forward, his mouth visibly salivating as he approached. He clearly expected to get lucky tonight. His eyes did not once leave El’s exposed boobs.

El’s provocative gesture soon turned into a clenched fist and her face suddenly changed to one of commanding strength. Before Cait knew what had happened, El landed a punch directly into the drunk’s face. The drunk stood in front of them, completely dumbfound. After a few seconds, however, his eyes crossed, and he tumbled backwards onto the floor.  

As he hit the ground, Cait turned to El and saw her pick up her Nuka Cola and down it in one large swig. After slamming the empty bottle onto the bar counter, El looked at Cait. “Drink up. I’m starving.” She said authoritatively.

Following El’s orders instantly, Cait downed her beer and followed El towards the door. She was feeling completely thunderstruck, and, quite honestly, a little aroused.

As El stood at her stove in the kitchen, Cait sat on the living room couch quietly cleaning her shotgun. Each individual piece was carefully laid out in its own place as Cait systematically cleaned them down to a pristine finish. Cait always enjoyed cleaning her shotgun; it allowed her to take her mind off things.

These days, especially, Cait seemed to constantly have a lot on her mind; mostly about El. Ever since the Castle, Cait had been thinking long and hard about this woman with whom she travelled. When Cait had first met El, she was perfectly happy to know nothing about El. She was likewise happy for El to know nothing about herself. The events in the Castle had changed that, however, and Cait was unsure of how long she could keep up that charade.

When Cait had been struck by the Mirelurk Queen, El had seen her with all her defences down. As she lay on the cold ground of the Castle courtyard, the emotional wall that Cait had built up over years of pain and hardship finally broke down. When the wall came down, El had seen Cait weep. In that moment, Cait was not longer a fearsome pit fighter; just a frightened young woman with nothing left to live for. And through all that, El had cleaned her wounds, stitched them up, and done everything in her power make sure she was safe. Nobody had ever done that for Cait.  

With her bluff now played, Cait wondered if El had earned the right to know something about her. Cait just didn’t how El would react. What if she told her that she was weak? What if she laughed at her? What if she threw her out?

“Cait, dinner.” a voice called, stopping Cait’s mind from spiralling any further. Cait looked up to find El standing over her and holding two plates in her hands.

“Oh, urrr, thanks.” Cait stuttered as she, in a matter of seconds, reassembled her shotgun and placed it on the floor.

“Most impressive.” El said she placed one of the plates on the coffee table.

As El took her own seat, Cait examined what was on her plate. Dominating the dish was a large Brahmin steak that appeared to almost cover the entire plate. Dotted across the steak’s surfaces were small droplets of sizzling fat that made Cait’s mouth water. Next to the delectable lump of meat was a pile of equally appetising Instamash and a large piece of corn. The entire spread looked simply delicious.

“Mmmmm, this is fuckin’ delicious.” Cait said between mouthfuls of Brahmin steak.

“Well, I do try.” El chuckled as she tucked into her own meal.

Cait was completely silent as they both dug into their meals. Whilst enjoying her own meal, El had been observing Cait. Despite being distracted by her food, El had, for several hours, supposed that Cait had something on her mind. Ever since they had left the Castle, Cait had been somewhat distant, as if her mind was trying to work something out. The fact that Cait was not a very subtle person made her all the easier to read. El, however, surmised that Cait would not say anything unless she was pushed. Once dinner was finished, El would try to ease Cait out her shell.

Once dinner was finished, El collected the plates and took them back to the kitchen. As she went, Cait fell back on the sofa and savoured the meal she had eaten. That was the best meal she had ever eaten, and she wanted to make sure that experience was imprinted in her memory forever.

El soon returned to her seat and made herself comfortable before probing Cait’s thoughts. “Cait, over the past few hours, I’ve got the feeling that you want to tell me something, but something is holding you back. If something is on my mind, you can tell me. You don’t need to be afraid to tell me things.” El asked, showing genuine concern as she spoke.

Cait looked at El with absolute shock; mainly because El had worked her out so easily. Why was El so perceptive? Cait needed to think quickly of what to say. “Well…yes, I suppose, I think.” After wrestling with her thoughts for a few moments, Cait made her decision. She would divulge El her story and risk everything. “I’ve just been thinking that, even though we’ve been on the road for a while now, you know almost nothin' about me. I was thinkin', maybe, you might like a little about the person you're travellin' with” Cait said, her hands fidgeting.

El sat back in her chair and frowned slightly, her face awash with interest. “I have thought that. It would be nice to know something about you.” she said sincerely.

Cait scoffed slightly. “You say that now. Not sure what you’ll think afterwards.” Cait’s demeanour was sarcastic, but her face betrayed a feeling of unease.

Cait took a deep breath and began. “It all starts with two wastes of humanity I suppose you could call my parents. I’m convinced I was a mistake, because I can’t remember a single day of my life that they treated me like their daughter. I was yelled at and beaten. Everythin' I did was wrong. I was nothin’ but a nuisance in their eyes. The whole time I was tellin’ myself that they had to love me, even if it was just the tiniest bit, because they never kicked me out.” Cait’s voice was already faltering as she spoke. Even she didn’t realise how hard this would be.

El leaned forward marginally in her chair. “It’s alright. You don’t have to carry on if you don’t want to.”

Cait shook her head and shuddered slightly. “It’s okay. I can keep goin'.” Cait then took another deep breath and continued. “Then my eighteenth birthday arrived, and I finally found out why they kept me around. They slapped a shock collar around my neck and sold me to slavers... They didn’t even care enough about me to say goodbye...” Cait’s face became angrier as she tried to process what she was saying. “Eighteen years of sufferin’ through that shite and all I was worth to them was a pocketful of caps.”

El watched and listened to Cait intently. El's face was emotionless as she listened, but underneath she was consumed by a deep sadness. She had known that Cait’s life must have been difficult, but she not fully prepared for this. “My god. I’m…I’m so sorry, Cait.” She said earnestly.

“Thanks.” Cait said, feeling genuinely thankful that El had said that. “But there’s more to the story. It would easy to blame my charmin’ personality on my parents.” Cait then lowered her head in shame. “But they didn’t make me this way, I did... I was with those slavers for five years... Roughest five of my goddamn life. The things they made me do. The way they...they...used me for their amusement... It sickens me to my stomach just thinkin’ about it.” Cait shuddered visibly as she spoke, her eyes already beginning to water; she looked to be on the brink of tears.

Cait just managed to keep it together as she continued. “But I bided my time and learned to use their own methods against them. Stealin’ a few caps out of a sleepin’ man’s pocket is a piece a’ cake…as long as you don’t get greedy.” Cait allowed a tiny smile to cross her lips.

“I can’t even imagine how you survived.” El said, herself trying not to break her steely demeanour.

“That makes two of us.” Cait said. “It took every ounce of patience I had, but after five years I had finally pocketed enough to buy my own way out a’ there... But instead of headin’ off to rebuild the shambles of my life, I gave into my rage and headed home. You can imagine the look on my parent’s faces after I kicked in their door... What you can’t imagine is how they looked after...after...after I emptied my gun into them.” Cait looked away, her face riddled with guilt.

El stared at Cait with a face of utter shock. Nothing could have prepared El for the thought that Cait would commit something as terrible as murdering ones parents. El did not condone murder, her past forbid her to do so. But after hearing what Cait had gone through, El thought otherwise. “You did what you had to do.” El eventually said.

Cait was glad that El had said that, but it wasn’t enough to quench her guilt. “Did I? When I close my eyes, all I can see is their faces twisted with fear. And then my mind starts wonderin’ and I start judgin’ myself. And it’s rippin’ me the fuck apart.” Cait then looked up at El and stared directly into her hazel eyes. “You think I do the shit I do and drink myself drunk because I’m a tough Irish girl? I do so I can forget and move on with my miserable life.”

Cait then returned to fidgeting and sitting uneasily on the sofa. “So, there you have it. The entire flawed package known as Cait stripped bare for your perusal.”

On the outside, El sat emotionless. However, deep down, El pitied Cait. El had come across many desperate people in her life. But nothing as bad as Cait. How could somebody go through all that in their life and still come out fighting? El didn’t know if she could go through that and survive. But listening to Cait’s story made her think, for the first time, that there was hope for anyone. “I’m proud of you, Cait.” El said with a friendly smile.

It was now Cait’s turn to act surprised. After laying everything on the line and telling El her story, the last thing Cait expected was for El to be proud of her. “I knew I was takin’ a chance tellin’ you all this, but I never expect you to say that you were proud of me. I…I think I needed to hear that from you. Thank you.” Cait looked at El and gave her the happiest smile she had ever given since meeting her.

They sat staring at each other for a few moments before El got up from her chair was began walking around the coffee table towards her. Cait’s eyes followed her intently, not knowing what El was going to do. To Cait’s surprise, El sat down next to her and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

Cait would have instinctively flinched away from such a movement; but this was different. Cait needed, and wanted, El’s arm around her. For some reason, it made her feel safe. Against all her instincts, Cait leaned into El’s embrace and rested her head on El’s chest. El then rested her head on top of Cait’s. Cait had to admit, El’s boobs were almost like resting on a really comfortable pillow.

They both sat there for a few moments, both women just savouring the moment. Cait took a deep breath to savour the smell of the woman embracing her. El smelled very similar to the rest of the Commonwealth; a peculiar mix of sweat, dirt, blood, smoke, and body odour. However, there was something about El that made her unique. Whatever it was, Cait could only interpret that as meaning that she was safe.

Eventually, however, El soon raised her head and retracted her arm. Feeling somewhat sad that El had withdrawn her embrace, Cait also returned to her original position.

“Well, seeing as you told me your story, I suppose it’s only fair that I tell you mine.” El finally said.

“It would be nice to know somethin’ about you.” Cait gave a small smile, echoing what El had said earlier in the evening.

El nodded and sat back on the sofa, taking in a deep breath. “I have to say, my story isn’t as, shall we say, unique as yours. But here we go. I’m a vault dweller. I was in Vault 111 for a time. But before that, I had a pretty colourful career. Fresh out of high school, I joined the military and served all around the world. Then I was lawyer, with a family, a house, friends; everything I could ever ask for-.”

“Wait, that don’t make sense. How can you have done all that before you went into a vault?” Cait interrupted. She could have understood that El was a vault dweller. The vault suit certainly gave it away. but all this stuff before that just didn’t make sense. “What the fuck was a lawyer?” Cait thought to herself.

El hesitated for a few minutes; she had expected this kind of response from Cait. Cait wasn’t stupid. “Are you familiar with The Great War, Cait?” El asked apprehensively.

Cait nodded but wasn’t entirely sure she knew the answer. “I think so. Is that why we live in this shithole?”

“Yes, well, that’s the answer. I did all that before the Great War.” El said

Cait put her hands up to interrupt El. “Wait, that would mean-.”

El nodded, “Yes, Cait, I’m over two hundred years old. When my family and I went into Vault 111, we were frozen. I only thawed out a couple of months ago.”

A million thoughts began buzzing around Cait’s head as El said those words. Before the bombs? It didn’t make sense. Nobody except ghouls could have been alive before the bombs. Why would El lie to her like this? “Do you think I’m that stupid?” Cait said, sounding vaguely sarcastic.

The look on El’s face quickly turned to one of frustration. She was clearly offended by what Cait had said. “It’s the truth, Cait.”

Cait wasn’t convinced at all. She’d known enough liars in her time to know when to recognise one. “I don’t believe you.” Cait said unapologetically.

El’s frustration at Cait’s stubbornness was now almost palpable. El could have punched Cait she was so annoyed. “Fine, I’ll prove it!” El yelled. Instantly, El got up from the sofa and stomped towards her rucksack. Violently swiping the bag off the ground, El stuck her hand in and pulled out a small leather pouch. Stomping back and plonking herself on the sofa, El unbuttoned the pouch. Inside, El retrieved a small black and silver box with a strange cylinder jutting out of it. Alongside the box was a collection of faded black and white photographs. El flicked through the photographs and presented one to Cait. “There! Look!” El shouted.

Cait took the photo and closely examined it. It was somewhat faded, but the picture was still quite clear. Dominating the picture were two smiling individuals standing in a background surrounded by cheering crowds and huge celebrations. Cait immediately recognised the central individual as El. She was standing next to a tall man with dark slicked back hair. What drew Cait’s attention, however, was the beaming smile that El had on her face. Cait had seen El smile before, but this was different. This was smile of absolute happiness; as if they had everything they ever wanted in life.

El’s finger pointing at one of the photo’s features shocked Cait back to reality. “That’s a photograph of me and my husband at the three-hundred-year anniversary of the United States in Boston, 2076. Look at the banner; '4^th July 2076'. Satisfied?” El asked, sounding exacerbated.  

Cait looked at the feature and accepted defeat. she couldn’t read any of the words, but El’s presentation of the photo was enough to persuade her. “I’m...I'm sorry.” Cait said in embarrassment.

At Cait’s apology El’s hardened frustrated face softened and she closed her eyes. “It’s...alright, Cait. Part of me didn’t think you would believe me. I just…find it…hard to hear someone call me a liar about what’s happened to me.” El said, wiping away a tear that was building in her eye.

“So, if you had a family before the war, where are they now?” Cait asked, bringing the conversation back to its start point.

El’s face sank as she spoke. “Whilst I was frozen, some people came into the vault and took my baby; Shaun. When my husband tried to resist, one of them shot him. Once I thawed out, I hunted then down; only to find out that my baby Shaun had been taken to the Institute.”

Cait’s mouth went slightly agape. “The Bogeyman of the Commonwealth took your baby?” she asked rhetorically.

El nodded and picked up another photo. This time, the photo had three individuals in it; two adults and a baby. El ran her fingers over the shape of the baby. “That’s why the Minutemen are building this teleporter you’ve heard so much about. I found a renegade Institute Scientist who, after jumping through various hoops, gave me instructions on how to teleport inside the Institute. That’s why we’re heading to Sanctuary tomorrow. I trust the man in charge of construction, but I want to see the progress for myself.”

“That’s a pretty amazin' story.” Cait said unintentionally. Why did she say that?

El, however, chuckled at Cait’s response. “Yes, I suppose it is. When the teleporter is complete, I can find Shaun. When I’ve found him, I’m going to burn the Institute to the fucking ground.”

“Well, when you do, I’m gonna be there with you.” Cait said, trying to sound commanding and reassuring at the same time.

El looked up and smiled. “Thank you, Cait it’s nice to have a friend like you. But I warn you, it will be dangerous.”

“Danger? Ha! I laugh in the face of danger.” Cait replied sarcastically.

El let out a small laugh and placed her hand on Cait’s. Cait’s eyes immediately dropped and she stared intently. El’s hand was on hers, like nothing was amiss. Cait was tense at first, but she eventually relaxed into it and savoured the warm feel of El’s flesh on hers. El's hands were soft; like nothing she had felt before. Only someone born before the bombs could have skin this soft. It all now made sense to Cait. El always looked like she was out of time; her skin was soft, she used words that Cait didn’t understand, she spoke differently with her strange and yet somewhat captivating accent, her skill with a gun was unlike anything Cait had seen. She was like something from another planet, or something out of one of Cait’s comic books.

Cait’s attention soon turned back to pile of photographs that littered the coffee table. “Why do you carry around all this stuff?”

El looked across to the camera and photographs and let out a sigh. “it’s special to me.” El picked up the camera and moved it around in her hands. “I always loved taking photos before the war. I found this camera in Concord; can’t remember where. The photos I found buried in the rubble of my old house. Most of them were ruined, but some survived.”

Cait gently took the camera from her hands and examined it. She had seen these things before, but never understood what they were. “How does it work?” Cait asked.

El’s face immediately lit up. “Well, the process of taking photographs is relatively easy. Unfortunately, it’s a bit late to go through the developing stage.” El took the camera back from Cait and put her eye into the viewfinder. “Hold still and smile.”

Cait’s unintentionally raised the corners of her lips slightly, giving off the impression of a smile. After a few seconds, the camera clicked and El lowered it. “There, all done.” El said enthusiastically.

El then held the camera out to Cait and gave a giddy smile. “Here, take one of me.

Cait took the camera apprehensively, still trying to work out this bizarre hobby that El seemed to enjoy so much. As she took the camera, El shuffled closer to Cait and instructed her how to use it. “Look through the viewfinder here, then, once you found your picture, press this button here.” El then sat back and gave a beaming smile.

Cait looked through the viewfinder and positioned the camera. After several seconds of trying to get as much of El in picture as possible, Cait finally pressed the shutter. The shutter clicked instantly and Cait lowered the camera, having barely any idea of what she had just done.

“There, your first picture.” El then took the camera from Cait’s hands. “Here, let’s take a couple together.” El said, shuffling closer to El.

As El shuffled closer, Cait was acutely aware of how close she was to her. As their bodies touched, Cait’s breath hitched and she glanced uneasily at El. El was blissfully unaware of Cait’s unease as she held the camera out in front of them. Cait’s breath hitched even further when El put her arm around her shoulders again, bringing her in closer.

“Smile.” El said, giving a warm smile while Cait gave a shy toothless one.

The camera clicked twice and El lowered it. “There. Now, you can call yourself a photographer. I would show you developing process, but I don’t think I have all the right materials here.’ El then let out a deep yawn. “It’s also getting quite late and we have another long journey tomorrow.” El said, placing the camera on the coffee table.

El stood up from the sofa and turned to Cait. “Look, I would love to stay up longer, but I really should go to bed.” El placed a hand on Cait’s shoulder and gave a friendly smile. “Goodnight Cait. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Goodnight.” Cait just managed to say as El walked back towards the kitchen.

“Sleep well.” El said from over her shoulder as she made way to the stairs.

Cait quickly washed her face and brushed her teeth before climbing into bed on a sofa. As she settled, and the house lights were turned off, Cait’s mind was awash with thoughts and feelings; happiness, sadness, confusion. Cait thought her head would explode. As she reminisced upon the evening, Cait’s mind centred on one small thing that El had said to her. El had called her a friend. Cait had never had friends before, at least none that didn’t betray her afterwards. But Cait had told El her story, and she didn’t mock her, chastise her, or throw her out; she comforted her. Furthermore, El had then told Cait her own story and showed her pictures of her past family. Nobody had ever done that for Cait. Maybe El was her friend after all.

Blessed with this new information, Cait smiled. “Sleep well, El” Cait whispered out to El as the darkness enveloped her and she fell into a peaceful sleep.

Chapter Text

“Cait, Cait! I know you’re out there! Come out wherever you are!” the gruff voice called.

Cait listened intently at the voice but did everything she could to stay quiet as she hid in the dense undergrowth. This was the second time she had run away from home, and, this time, she was determined to make it. She couldn’t spend another day in that hellhole of a home.

Sensing footsteps approaching, Cait ducked down and placed her hand over her mouth. If heard, or spotted, Cait didn’t know what horrors would be in store for her.

“Cait! Why don’t you come home, and we can talk about this?” the voice called again.

Cait held her breath and kept as still as she possibly could to keep quiet. If she could just stay quiet for a few minutes, she would be free.

Eventually, the footsteps died away into the distance and, for the first time in her life, Cait believed her prayers had been answered. She was free. After the years of abuse and punishments; yellings, beatings, burns, she was free to make her own life. Cait raised her head from the undergrowth and looked around for where her life would take her next. As she scanned the horizon, Cait’s gaze fell on the glittering towers of Boston in the distance. If there was anywhere that Cait could disappear, it would be there.

“There you are, you little rat!” the gruff voice called.  

The sound of the voice sent a shiver down her spin and she turned her head sharply to the voice’s source. As she turned, Cait glanced a large hand out of her peripheral vision that struck her violently around the side of her head. Cait barely had time to react before her vision went black and she plummeted limply to the ground.

Cait awoke to find herself being dragged roughly by her leg along the ground. She was still in a daze from the blow to the head and her vision was blurry. She was also unable to fully open her left eye; it seemed unnaturally swollen from the smack across her face.

However, as her impaired vision slowly began to focus, Cait realised that she was being dragged back home; back to the house of nightmares. She couldn’t go back there. She hated that place. She had to break free and run.

“Let me go!” Cait screamed as she writhed around on the ground, trying desperately to find something to grab onto.

“Shut the fuck up you little rat!” Cait’s father shouted, not even turning around to acknowledge Cait’s protest.

“I said let me go! I hate you!” Cait shouted. With her free leg, Cait began to fiercely kick the hand that was grasped firmly around her other. If she kicked it enough, then, hopefully, he would drop her.

Eventually, Cait’s strategy worked and her father released his grip. “Argh!” he cried as he clutched his beaten hand.

Once free, Cait scrambled on the ground as she tried to find her feet. She only had one chance to run. With all the strength she could muster, Cait bolted from the ground and ran.

But she was too slow. Before she could even get away, Cait was forcibly wrestled to the ground and she screamed loudly. “You little bitch!” her father grunted as he forced Cait into the dirt. Cait then screamed as she was violently pulled up by her hair and brought high enough that she could feel her father’s warm breath on the back of her neck. “I’ll show you what happens to little rats that run away.” he grunted menacingly in Cait’s ear.  

Before she could even comprehend those words, Cait was brutally throwed back down and she struggled to regain her senses. In that moment, a pain greater than anything she had ever known shot through her body as her father brutally stamped his heavy boot onto Cait’s leg.

As she heard the bone crack, and the pain shoot up her leg, Cait let out a bloodcurdling scream. Tears streamed down Cait’s face as she cried and screamed herself hoarse. Before long, Cait was unable to scream anymore and she buried her face in the ground.

Cait then felt the grip of a heavy hand on her shoulder and she was violently shoved onto her back. Her father was standing above her, a look of pure hatred on his face. He then used his same hand to grasp her shirt and pull Cait in close.

“Let’s see you run away now!” she said menacingly, his evil eyes boring into Cait’s soul.

Grunting loudly as she was thrown back to the ground, the last thing Cait saw was a large fist swing down and strike across the other side of her face. Cait's vision immediately went black as her head limply hit the hard ground.

Cait’s eyes flashed open and she shot up from where she slept. Her eyes darted around as she struggled to comprehend what had happened, and where she was. Eventually, Cait realised that she was, once again, safe in El’s home; lying on a comfortable sofa with a warm blanket over her. Trying to regain her breath, and not break down in tears, Cait hugged her knees to her chest and rested her chin on top. She was panting heavily and shivering as a cold sweat ran down her face and body.

As Cait sat, she noticed that the living area was being illuminated by some lights. The lights of the living area were, however, still off. There was also a strange metallic clattering sound coming from the kitchen. It was as if someone was working in the kitchen. Cait turned her head to look behind and, to her surprise, found El standing over the stove; the top half of her vault suit tied round her slender waist. She was lightly humming a tune to herself and she seemed completely oblivious to the fact that Cait was awake.

Cait turned her head back and she tried to comprehend the horrors she had witnessed in the night. Nightmares were an almost nightly occurrence in Cait’s world, but she never got used to them and they never seemed to go away. A cold shiver ran up Cait’s spine as she remembered the excruciating pain of having her leg broken.

Attempting to warm up, Cait rubbed her arms that were wrapped tightly around her legs. As her hands ran over her white porcelain skin, her fingers ran over the many pop marks that dotted her arms. Instantly, Cait realised with a heavy heart that she needed to shoot up. She didn’t want to – her bouts of coughing and vomiting had left her feeling very scared of what it was doing to her - but nothing else allowed her to forget. Cait however, couldn’t take it without El or her dog noticing. She needed to think quickly of a way to sneak outside without being noticed.   

“Good morning, Cait.” a voice called from behind Cait.

Cait immediately darted around to find El standing over her with two plates in her hands. She had a friendly smile across her face, and she looked characteristically amazing for the morning. “Shit!” Cait thought to herself. What was she going to do now?

Upon seeing Cait’s startled reaction, El’s smile dropped and she frowned. Cait didn’t look right; she was hunched up, shivering, sweating profusely, and her eyes looked like they had the fear of God in them. “Cait, are you alright? You’re dripping with sweat.” El said, placing the plates down on the table.

Cait tried franticly to compose herself and put on a brave face. “Yeah, I…I’m fine.” she stuttered.

El was not convinced in the slightest. “Are you sure? You’re shaking. Do you want to talk about-?”

“I’m fine!” Cait snapped, shaking wildly and fidgeting uncontrollably with her hands. She couldn’t make eye contact with El. If she did, El would work out that she was lying; El was certainly smart enough.

Unbeknownst to Cait, El could already tell that she wasn’t fine. El, however, knew when not to push something. “Okay. Okay. I’ll drop it.” El then pointed to one of the plates on the coffee table as she walked around to her chair. “There’s breakfast on the coffee table. Eat up, we have a long journey today.”

Cait glanced to her left and spied the plate of food sitting on the table. It did look very tasty, and, as if by magic, her stomach gave a loud grumble. Maybe eating breakfast would be enough of a distraction from the Psycho.

Apprehensively, Cait manoeuvred her legs out from under her blanket and collected the plate from the table. On the plate in front of her, a hot and sizzling Salisbury Steak sat on top of a perfectly fried omelette. Cait frowned and looked in closer, and, too her surprise, realised that the omelette was made of Mirelurk egg. “Where did you get hold of Mirelurk eggs?” Cait asked, looking across to El.

El looked up from her meal and swallowed a large forkful. “When you were out cold in the Castle, I went to clear out some of the Mirelurk nests that were still dotted about. While I was there, I thought that I would save some.” El said with a slightly smug smile on her face.

Cait devoured her meal in almost records time, humming contently as the delicious food satisfied her hunger. As she placed her plate back on the table, Cait wondered whether there was anything that El couldn’t do; she could fight, talk, walk, flaunt, cook; she could do everything.

However, despite trying to keep her mind distracted, Cait couldn’t shake the irresistible urge to shoot up. Awkwardly, Cait did her best not to fidget too much as she sat quietly. Slowly running her fingers over the pop marks along her arms, Cait was just waiting for an opportunity.

As El finished her own breakfast, she got up from her chair and walked over to the chest of drawers behind. Retrieving a small cloth from the top drawer, El walked back towards Cait and presented it to her. “Here. Wipe yourself down. And get your gear together. We have a long journey today.” She then took Cait’s plate and returned to the kitchen.

Obediently taking the cloth from El’s hand, Cait wiped the sweat away from her face. Cait then stood up and quickly changed back into her leather corset. Groaning slightly as struggled to do up the corset’s buttons, Cait wondered if she had put on weight since meeting El. Clearly, El’s hearty meals were making her fat.

Once changed, Cait heard the patter of feet as El walked up the steps to her quarters. Sensing that the coast was clear, Cait darted to the sink and quickly brushed her teeth. Upon returning to the sofa, Cait knelt down in front of her rucksack and began assembling her gear. As she rummaged through her bag, her hand touched the syringe of Psycho and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Pulling the syringe out of the bag, Cait wondered if this was the opportunity. As El was upstairs, this was probably the only chance she would get. It would only take a few seconds.

“Are you ready, Cait?” El asked, approaching Cait from behind.

Cait immediately threw the Psycho back in her bag and darted around to find El fully packed and geared up. “Shit!” Cait thought to herself. How long had she been contemplating about the Psycho? Now she would have to suffer through the cravings. “Urrr… Yeah. Just…give me a minute.” Cait stuttered, trying to compose herself. Keenly aware of El’s piercing eyes watching her, Cait quickly fastened her bag and collected her gear and jacket from the other end of the sofa. Sheepishly, Cait also collected her armour that had been gathering dust on the ground since El had bought it. “Alright, I’m ready.” Cait said aloofly.

El looked at the armour slung over Cait’s shoulder and smiled. Maybe that near-death experience had taught Cait to listen more often? “Well, if you’re ready, let’s head off.”

El took one step towards the door and stopped. Glancing back at the table, she doubled back on herself and retrieved her camera and photos. “I shouldn’t forget this.” El chuckled as she buttoned the items into the leather pouch and threw them into her bag.

Once packed, El sauntered to the door and gave a small whistle. At this command, Dogmeat, whom had sat quietly in his alcove, leapt up and trotted over to his master’s side. El gave him his head a scratch and he wagged his tail appreciatively. Opening the door, El turned back to Cait, “Come on. Let’s go home.”

Feigning a blushing smile, Cait adjusted items slung over her shoulders and followed El into Diamond City.

As El fastened the various locks on her front doors, Cait looked around at the Diamond City market. At this time of the morning, the numerous stall owners were just opening up for business and the place was still relatively quiet. With so few people around, Diamond City almost looked habitable.

Passing Publick Occurrences, El and Cait saw Nat setting up her wooden box and setting down a large pile of papers ready to hawking. “Hey Nat. Where’s Piper this morning?”

“She headed out early, fishing for a new story to bring McDonough down.” Nat said as she stepped up onto her perch.

“Ha. Why am I not surprised?” El chuckled. “Well, tell her I said hi; and take care of yourself.”

“I could say the same to you.” Nat replied boisterously.  

Her mouth slightly agape, and raising her eyebrows, El jabbed a finger up at Nat. “Watch it, young lady.” El said with a playful smirk.

Diamond City was far behind them and El and Cait had begun their long trek Northwest to Sanctuary. The weather was glorious; bright blue skies and bright sunshine followed their every move. To top it off, a light breeze kept the environment just cool enough to prevent them from suffering from the heat.

Cait, however, was not finding the journey enjoyable at all. Ever since leaving Diamond City, Cait mind had been fixated on Psycho. She had been unable to shoot up the entire morning. El didn’t want to stop and she seemed completely impervious to fatigue. Cait, on the other hand, was already starting to wheeze by the time they crossed the river. By now, she was panting heavily and almost dragging her axe alongside. She needed to stop and get some energy.

The couple had just entered the streets of downtown Lexington when Cait inevitably snapped. She couldn’t take it anymore; she needed to find an excuse to shoot. “Hey El, can we stop for a bit?” Cait blurted out through heavy breaths.

“Urrr, yeah, sure. What do you need? More water? Food?” El asked, turning around and walking towards Cait.

Cait needed to think of something fast. “I…I…I gotta take a piss!” Cait said, a louder than she had anticipated.

El flinched slightly at Cait’s response. She understood the call of nature, but she hadn’t expected Cait to say it so loudly. “Okay. Take your time. We’ve made excellent progress so far. I’ll be right here.” El said, propping herself up onto the bonnet of a rusted abandoned car.

As Cait began walking off to find somewhere quiet, she heard El’s voice behind her. “You can leave your stuff here if you want.” El said.

Cait panicked slightly as she turned around. “No, I want to bring it with me. There might be a…a… I just want to bring it in case there’s urrmm…. a…. a…. because I might need-.” Cait’s mind went completely blank as she stuttered; her eyes looking at the ground as she rambled.

“It’s fine,” El interrupted, “just don’t go too far.”

As Cait shuffled off gingerly, El let out a small snort. Cait seemed to ramble when she was flustered. In an odd way, it made her look quite adorable.

Cait’s sleuthing around went as well as she had expected. Here she was; leaning precariously against the wall of an abandoned building; looking down at the contents of her stomach. On the ground lay the grizzly remains of Cait’s breakfast, intermixed with ever larger droplets of blood.

The coughing and vomiting only seemed to be getting worse. The amount of blood leaving Cait’s body was only increasing. As she stared disgustedly at the consequences of her addiction, Cait wondered how much more of this she could take. With the amount of blood only increasing, Cait wondered if her next fit would be the last. “It’s getting worse.” Cait thought to herself. “How much more of this can I take.

Steadying herself, Cait wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and began working her way back to El. Hopefully, she wouldn’t comment on how long she had taken.

Cait found El where she had left her; sitting on the bonnet of a rusted car. She was lightly rustling Dogmeat’s fur and total oblivious as Cait walked down the dusty street.

As Cait approached, El heard her footsteps and glanced up. “Ah, you’re back. Hope you’re feeling relieved.” El said candidly. El hopped off the car bonnet and smiled at Cait, slightly adjusting her rucksack. “Alright, let’s carry on.” El said as she began walking again.

El had taken one step when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Turning around, El frowned and walked towards Cait. “Are you alright, Cait?” El asked concernedly.

“Urrr, yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Cait stuttered, completely confused about what El was on about.

El gestured to Cait’s face. “You have some blood on your chin.”

Cait’s eyes widened in horror. What was she going to do? All of Cait’s sleuthing had been for nothing. El was going to work it all out soon. She needed to think of something quickly; if anything, to lessen the blow of what was to come. “Th-there was a-a-a feral ghoul in the building that I pissed in. I had to smoke it but must have got some of its blood on her chin.” Cait did her best convincing, but even she didn’t think it was enough.

El wasn’t convinced by Cait’s explanation; ghoul blood didn’t look that fresh. Cait’s eyes also gave away far more than she wanted; they had the look of someone deeply distressed. Whatever Cait had seen, it had been very traumatic. El, however, couldn’t probe Cait about it now; her first priority was reaching Sanctuary. Eventually, El looked away and collected her canteen from her rucksack. “Here, wash yourself down.” She said, handing the canteen to Cait.

Not quite believing that her ploy had worked, Cait took the canteen from El and poured some water on her hand. She then wiped the incriminating blood off her chin and handed the canteen back to El.

Placing the canteen back in her rucksack, El turned back around and continued walking. “Come on. We’re nearly there.” El said as she strode away.

Once again believing that she was safe, Cait sheepishly followed El on the long way home.

As El and Cait crossed the broken bridge over the river, and into Sanctuary, El held her breath. Since thawing out, El had never liked returning here. All it held for her were painful memories of happier times. Looking out at the empty carcasses of two-hundred-year-old houses, El was reminded of when this place was full of people.

“So, this is where you lived?” Cait suddenly asked as they slowly walked along the dust covered road.

“For a time.” El said unemotionally, too swept up in the memory of this place to say anything more.

Sanctuary had barely changed as El and Cait trudged their way up the cracked tarmac road. Houses from a by-gone era sat idly as clouds of dust blew through their empty windows and fractured roofs. Alongside them, other houses that did not withstand the remorseless flow of time lay in ruins. All around them, scorched yellow grass swayed aimlessly in the cool late afternoon breeze.

El looked around as they rounded the curve in the road, observing and reminiscing about the time before the bombs. Looking at the old children’s playground, El thought of all the days that she, Nate, and Shaun would go on family picnics. Tracing the route of the river wall with her eyes, El remembered all the long walks she would take with Nate on sunlit evenings. Watching the rusted chains of the swings blowing in the wind, El thought about all the days she would have spent there with Shaun; days that might never happen. With everything she saw as she walked through her old neighbourhood, El thought of all the things she would never do again with her family.

“Is that supposed to be there?” Cait asked as the road began to straighten again.

Shocked back to reality, El looked to where Cait was staring and she stopped still. Standing before her, like a castle on a hill, was El’s house. It was unmistakably El’s, but something about it was just different; it looked new. El looked on in utter astonishment; the roof was fixed, the walls were repainted, the windows had glass in them, and there seemed to be light coming the house. The last time El had been in Sanctuary, her house had been no different from all the other empty carcasses that lined the street. How could this be?

“El, are you alright?” Cait asked, trying to get El’s attention.

“I…I don’t know. It’s just…that…that’s…my house. But the last time I was here it just looked like all the others. I…I don’t understand.” El said, utterly confused by it all.

“Maybe they know somethin’ about it?” Cait said, gesturing to a group of individuals gathered around a small work area.

El reluctantly turned her gaze away from the house and towards where Cait was gesturing. Across the road, and slightly further along the street, stood a solitary pylon type structure jutting up from the ground. At its base stood a small band of individuals, each of them working feverishly on their allocated tasks.

At the edge of the group, a lone individual with a black quiff in his hair stood examining a collection of creased pieces of paper. On each page there were crude scribblings of diagrams and equations. El immediately recognised the papers as the instructions that Brian Virgil had given her and the individual holding them as Sturges. Upon recognising someone who might know something, El gave a small smile and walked off towards the work area.

As El and Cait approached, Sturges noticed their arrival and turned to face them. “Ma’am, you’re here. Preston sent word from the Castle that you were coming.” he said, giving a charming smile.

“Hi Sturges.” El said, still too confused to process what was going on. “How, how did you do this?” she asked, looking back to her house.

“Oh, don’t thank us for that. Thank that tin can of yours. He’s been beavering away, day and night, on that house. Me and the guys just some of the heavy lifting. You can, however, thank us for this.” Sturges said, turning to the pylon structure behind them.

Sturges lead El and Cait to the work area and showed them the progress that had been made on the teleporter. As they approached, the minutemen crew all turned to greet them. “Ma’am.” almost all of them said simultaneously. El nodded to them and looked at the tower. From what El remembered from the plans given to her by Virgil, the teleporter’s central structure was split into three towers. So far, one was completed, and another was about a third of way finished. It was progress, but not much.

“Building the structure is the easy part so far. The real struggle has been to get all the electrical parts together. I hate to say it, but I don’t think it is going to be finished anytime soon.” Sturges said honestly.

El sighed heavily but understood. “That’s okay, I understand that it is hard work. Also, the instructions I gave you weren’t the easiest to read.

Throughout this entire exchange, Cait had been standing quietly behind El, trying not to fidget too much. Since El had told her a lot more about herself, Cait knew much more about what they were talking about. However, she was still struggling to keep up. As she shifted her weight from one leg to the other, her foot caught the edge of an old tin can; sending it rolling back down the road.

Hearing the sound, El turned to Cait. “Oh, Sturges, this is my friend, Cait. We’ve been travelling together for a while.” El said with a friendly smile.

Sturges gave a charming nod to Cait. “Pleased to meet you, ma’am. Any friend of this lady here is a friend of mine.” He said with a charismatic smile, gesturing to El as he spoke.

Cait remained silent but gave a quick toothless smile and nodded in return. The primary thought flowing through her mind was the fact that El had called her a friend again. Glancing back to El, Cait looked down to hide the brightening redness in her cheeks.

“Why don’t you take a load off and go and check out your house? It’s getting late in the day and it looks like it might rain tonight.” Sturges said to El.

Turning back to her house, and the dark ominous clouds in the distance, El smiled and nodded. “Yeah, that sounds good. Thanks, Sturges.”

Opening the pristine front door, El and Cait seemed to walk back in time. The inside of the house looked almost exactly the way El had left it over two hundred years ago. The living area was the same, the kitchen was the same, the furniture was the same, everything was the same. If El wasn’t so confused about the entire situation, she would have broken down in tears.

As they walked through the narrow hall area, they heard a low hum of an engine approach from the corridor leading to the bathroom and bedrooms. Soon, a round metallic ball with three protruding eye stalks and several robotic tentacles came levitating around the corner. Upon seeing El, the metallic ball’s robotic eyes widened, and he levitated even higher than before. “Good evening, Mum! It is so good to see that you have returned! Please forgive me for seeming forward, but, as you can see, I have made some improvements to the house since your last visit.”

“Hi Codsworth. I…I…I don’t know what to say. It’s…incredible.” El said, completely dumbfounded.

“No words are necessary, Mum. This is not just cosmetic, I have put the house through a complete overhaul. Through some clever trickery, the house is fully hooked up to water and electricity, and a completely new plumbing system has also been installed to ensure perfect domestic hygiene. I also took the liberty of shoring up the foundations of the house and installing proper soundproofing.” Codsworth said in his characteristically chirpy English butler voice.

El then turned to the kitchen area and gestured toward the sink. “You mean that-?”

“Of course, mum. Both hot and cold running water are available to you.” Codsworth interrupted, sounding delighted with himself.

El, however, just couldn’t work it out. “But…how?” she asked.

“Well, using the brilliant intellect of my General Atomics programming, I, with some help from the minutemen outside, was able to hook up the house up to the water and electrical systems of Vault 111. With all that water, electricity, and provisions going unused, I thought that I would utilise it.” Codsworth said.

El looked around, completely bedazzled by everything. For the first time in two hundred years, El believed that she had come home.

“May I get you a drink, Mum? You must be parched after your long journey.” Codsworth enquired, bringing El’s attention back to Earth.

“Yes, thank you, Codsworth.” El said happily. “I’ll have a Nuka Cola if there are any available.”

“Certainly, mum.” Cosdworth said, floating away to the kitchen.

As Cosdsworth floated away, El made her way down the corridor towards the bedrooms. On her way, she peered into the bathroom and was stunned. Nothing could have prepared El for the sight of a fully furnished bathroom in the middle of an post-apocalyptic wasteland. This bathroom, however, was somewhat different; the units were the same, but they were changed around. El raised her eyebrows as she also noticed a bathtub dominating the bathroom’s end wall. El couldn’t remember owning a bathtub before the war. “Hey, Codsworth!” El called. “Where did this bathtub come from?”

“Well, in my humble opinion, no home of tomorrow is complete without a fully functioning bathtub. As one was not in operation at the time of my activation, I decided to adapt the bathroom to suit my ends.” Codsworth called back from the kitchen.

Testing the waters, El walked into the bathroom and approached the toilet. Codsworth made all these grand claims, but El needed to see proof. Looking inside, El was stunned to find that there was water in the bowl. Apprehensively pushing the button, El almost fell over when she saw the toilet flushed in front of her. Accepting that Codsworth was telling the truth, El laughed wildly and quickly exited the bathroom.

Continuing her journey, El soon reached her room and smiled happily; everything was as it was. El slowly walked inside and ran her hand along her bed; humming contentedly as her hand touched the smooth material. Sitting on the bed, El threw all caution to the wind and fell back on the mattress. Closing her eyes, El could have fallen asleep right there on the that mattress. However, as El’s hand ran over what would have been Nate’s side of the bed, she opened her eyes and quickly stood back up. Eyeing the chest of drawers in front of her, El walked over and began opening them up. El let a beaming smile cross her lips as she saw that the drawers were full of clean clothes. It was like nothing had changed in two hundred years.

A thought suddenly crossed El’s mind and she quickly turned to the room across from hers; Shaun’s room. Closing the drawers, El walked across the corridor and stood in the doorway. The room was in darkness, with only the last rays of sunlight illuminating the area. Flicking the light switch, El was shocked to find, save for one solitary lightbulb, the room was completely empty. Slowly walking through the room, El ran her hand along the room’s walls and sighed heavily. Looking at where Shaun’s crib was, El thought of where Shaun might be; if he was safe; if he knew where she was; if he missed her.

Shaking the growing tears away from her eyes, El gathered herself and took a deep breath. Now she was home, she would complete the teleporter, save Shaun, and burn the Institute to the ground.

Looking back to the door, El found Codsowrth levitating in the doorway. “Mum, I just wanted to tell you that your drink is on the counter for you.”

“Thank you, Codsworth.” El said.  

Whilst El made her way through the house, Cait simply stood and gazed around in awe at what she saw. Inhaling deeply through her nose, Cait allowed the sweet smell of a clean and fresh home to flow through her nostrils. Cait thought she had landed on another planet; or disappeared into the pages of her beloved comic books. “So, this was what life was like before the bombs?” Cait wondered to herself.

Turning around, Cait almost jumped out of her skin as she found the robot’s bulbous spherical head levitating next to her. “Holy shit!” Cait shouted. "How the fuck did you get there so fast?”

“Apologies.” Codsworth said politely. “I was just hoping to enquire after your name.”

Owing to her inherent suspicion on synths and robots, Cait wasn’t going to give too much away. “Cait.” she said curtly.

“Pleased to meet you, Miss Cait.” Codswroth bowed one of his eye stalks to imitate a greeting. “May I offer you a drink?”

“I’ll have a beer.” Cait replied unemotionally. The robot seemed to mean well, but Cait wasn’t going to let her guard down for anyone.

“Certainly, Miss Cait.” Codsworth said as he levitated off to the kitchen.

Before long, an ice-cold beer was placed on the kitchen counter and Cait took a seat on one of the bar stools located in front of her. Taking a sip, Cait closed her eyes and moaned in almost orgasmic pleasure as the cold liquid passed down her throat. Cait had drunk thousands of beers in her life. But an ice-cold one was a whole new experience. She could definitely get used to this.

Cait had just taken a second sip when El returned and took a seat next to Cait. Retrieving her Nuka Cola, El took a gulp and let out a moan almost exactly the same as Cait’s. Ice-cold drinks clearly had the same effect on El.

“Codsworth, why is Shaun’s room empty?” El asked as she placed her Nuka Cola back on the counter.

“The general consensus from the minutemen was that you should be in charge of Shaun’s room.” Codsworth said.

Upon hearing this, El smiled and let a small blush cross her cheeks. “That’s, that’s really thoughtful, thank you."

“So, how long do you plan on staying, Mum?” Codsworth asked as he divvied up pots and pans.

“For the foreseeable future, at least. I need to give the guys out there all the help they can get.” El said, taking a large gulp of her Nuka Cola.

“Splendid, Mum. Shall I prepare your room and a meal for tonight?” One of Codsworth’s eye stalks asked.

El smiled, “That sounds wonderful. Thank you, Codsworth.”

As El fraternised with the tin can, Cait frowned. Had she completely forgotten that Cait existed? “Hey, where am I supposed to sleep?” Cait blurted, not caring at all about manners.

El looked at Cait and gave a look of complete embarrassment. She had been so caught up in madness of it all that she had completely forgotten Cait. "Codsworth, do we, by any chance, have a spare bed that Cait can sleep in?” El asked, turning to Codsworth.

“I’m sure that another bed could be acquired if you asked the minutemen outside.” Codsworth replied as he began gathering ingredients for their evening meal.

El nodded. “Okay, I’ll go and talk to them in a bit.” She said, getting up from her stool. Wondering to the stack of shelves next to the front door, El began examining the various items that covered their surface. As her hand ran along the selves, she noticed one item; a framed picture. Collecting it in her hands, El couldn’t work out how she had missed it in her scavenging. It was a picture of her, Nate, and two others, standing in front of a large clocktower. El smiled as she ran her fingers over the surface of the glass plate.

“What’s that picture of?” El looked up to find Cait, once again, standing beside her.

El smiled and moved the picture closer to Cait. “About a year after I married my husband, my parents took us on a holiday to Britain. My mother was British, and I spent a lot of my childhood there; hence why I sound the way I do. So, when my parents moved back here, my mother made it her mission to ensure I never forgot my ancestral homeland. That’s why there’s all these books of British literature on the shelf.” El chuckled, “This was all of us in front of Big Ben.”

Despite having no idea of what any of these places were, Cait examined the picture. She was struck by how happy everyone looked; especially El. “You look really happy.” she said, feeling that she should say something.

“Yes, I suppose I do.” El chuckled.

“Do you know where your parents are now?” Cait asked, probing El a little further. El had told Cait a lot about herself. She had, however, withheld much about her heritage.

“I…I don’t know.” El stuttered, hugging the picture to her chest. In all the time since thawing out, El had never once thought about her parents. Fighting away new waves of tears, El took several deep breaths and closed her eyes.

Cait bowed her head slightly. Maybe she shouldn’t have said anything.

However, composing herself, El exhaled louder and gave a friendly smile as she placed the picture back on the shelf. Turning back around, El frowned as her gaze fell on the television set across the room.

“Hey, Codsworth.” El called. “Does the TV work?”

“Of course, Mum. No terrestrial channels, I’m afraid. But there is a wide selection of video holotapes in the cabinet next to it.” Codsworth replied.

A mischievous smile suddenly crossed El’s lips and she turned to look at Cait. “Cait, how do you fancy watching a movie tonight?”

El had seen this movie hundreds of times. It was the standard format where the Silver Shroud rambled on about truth and justice as he fought his way out of the clutches of evil in a blaze of glory. El wasn’t really paying attention to the movie; her main attention was on Cait.

Cait was the complete opposite of El. As El lounged on the sofa, Cait sat on the floor in front with her legs hugged tightly to her chest; her eyes utterly transfixed on the screen. With every fight, explosion, and bad pun, Cait’s excitement only intensified.

As Cait watched the movie, El observed her intently. El had never seen this before; Cait showing genuine excitement. Cait looked like a giddy child seeing the next instalment of a Saturday matinee. Owing to her past, El surmised that watching a movie was a whole new experience for Cait. Assuming that this was the case, El let a loving smile cross her lips.

Characteristically, the Sliver Shroud defeated the main villain and saved the city from destruction; as was expected. As the credits rolled, El examined Cait once again. Cait’s expression was unchanged; save for her mouth which was slightly agape. “What did you think then?” El eventually asked, a friendly smile plastered across her lips.

“It was awesome!” Cait shouted, her face beaming with excitement. “Did people really do this all the time before the bombs?”

“Well, not all the time.” El laughed. “But going to the movies was always an easy way to escape the world for a couple of hours.”

Cait sat for several more minutes, properly processing El’s words. Escaping the world; how Cait longed to do that. For years, she had dreamt of disappearing into the pages of comic books and never come out. Now, with this television, she finally had the means to do so. Eventually, however, Cait shook herself out of her thoughts and looked up at El. “Can we watch another?” Cait asked, sounding almost childlike.

El looked up at the clock and bit her lip. “Maybe not tonight. It’s quite late now, and we’ve had a really long journey. Perhaps another day?” El said.

Cait nodded, slightly upset that she would have to stay in this world a little longer.

El then stood up from the sofa and placed a friendly hand on Cait’s shoulder. “Well, goodnight Cait. Don’t worry about the lights; Codsworth will turn them off. You know where the bathroom is?”

Cait nodded. “Goodnght.” she said, giving a gracious smile.

As El withdrew to her chambers, Cait hugged her knees to her chest and stared at the now blank television screen. As she stared at her reflection, Cait imagined a world where the bombs had never fell; where the world was lush and happy; where people could disappear into different worlds for periods of time and forget everything. Wherever this world was, Cait wished she was there; with El standing at her side.   

Chapter Text

At last, she was here. After five hateful years of pain and misery, she was finally home. The house was exactly the same as when she had left; run down and rotten to the core. But Cait didn’t care how it looked, her main concern was what was inside.  

In one hand, she held her shotgun; the weapon that would protect her from this day forward. In the other, she held a syringe of Psycho; her new friend that both built her up and knocked her down.

Cait took a deep breath and positioned the syringe at the top of her forearm and pushed the needle in. As the dark psychedelic liquid coursed through her body, Cait sighed contentedly. In the darkest days of her time as a slave, this was the only thing that helped her survive. Today, however, it would help her get the revenge she had been planning for five years.  

As the drugs coursed through her body, an unquenchable feeling of anger built up inside her and she let out a low growl. She was ready to get her revenge.  

Slowly stomping up the dirt path to the house, Cait raised her leg and, with all the strength she had, kicked the front door clean off its hinges. As the door cascaded to the ground, Cait marched inside and readied her shotgun. “I’m home!” Cait said menacingly.

The two individuals in the house looked at Cait in utter shock. Cait’s forceful entry had taken them completely by surprise and they simultaneously stood up from their chairs. “C-Cait?” the male individual said.

“That’s right!” Cait shouted, “I spent five years waitin’ for this moment. Five years of bein’ beaten, shocked, raped, and chained; just waitin’ for the day that I could come back here and give you what you deserved.” Cait did not attempt to hide the hate in her voice. This hatred had been building since she was born.  

The female individual took a step forward with her hands up, attempting to approach Cait, “Cait, why don’t you just put the gun down and we can talk about this.”  

Cait laughed wickedly, but her anger only grew. “You’d love that, wouldn’t you? Drop my gun so you can give me the belt again. Well, I’m done playin’ your games!” she shouted.

The male then gave his signature evil smile that Cait hated so much. “Come on, Cait. You would do anytin’ to your own parents?” she said through that evil smile.

Suddenly, Cait’s father flew backwards as Cait fired off two shogun rounds into his shoulder. As he hit the floor, her mother let out a bloodcurdling scream as she crawled towards him and cradled his head.

With the sound of the gunshots still reverberating in her ears, Cait slowly walked towards them and reloaded her gun. Cait did not even notice that her hands were shaking.

As Cait approached, her parents looked up at her, their faces twisted with uncontrollable fear. Their terrified faces only fuelled Cait’s anger. “No, Cait, please don’t do this!” her mother cried as she cradled Cait’s dying father in her hands, “What do you want?”  

Cait’s eyes widened in stunned loathing. As they both lay before her, the product of their own abuse standing over them, they had the balls to ask what Cait wanted. In eighteen years of pain and misery, never once had they asked her that. How dare they ask it now as death stared at them in the face. “What do I want? What do I want? I want my fuckin’ life back!” Cait screamed as she pulled the trigger again.  

It was all over in a second. With another blast from Cait’s shotgun, the bodies of her parents fell limply and unmoving on the ground. Taking a deep breath, Cait reloaded her shotgun again. Her hands were shaking even more than before. Cait could only interpret that as the drugs wearing off.  

With clearer vision, Cait now walked over to the parent’s corpses and looked down at them. Staring into their unseeing eyes, Cait was struck by how their looks of unbridled fear remained on their faces. It was like Cait’s execution had frozen them in time.

It was then that it all began to sink in. For five years, all she had dreamt about was her revenge. When she was whipped, she dreamt about it. When she was chained in dark and damp cell for weeks on end, she dreamt about it. When her slavers would leave her shock collar on for hours on end, she dreamt about it. When she was being brutally raped for sport, she dreamt about it. But now, as she stood over the bodies, in the silent walls of her old home, Cait felt absolutely nothing.

Tears welled up in her eyes as everything hit home in Cait’s mind and she dropped to her knees, sobbing. She should never have come here. Killing her parents had not ended her pain; it had only brought unyielding waves of guilt. Now, she was truly alone.

Looking down, Cait clutched her shogun tightly and positioned it directly under her chin. With her only dream in life shot down in front of her, Cait knew there was nothing left to live for. “Now, no-one will miss me.” Cait thought to herself as she squeezed the trigger.  

A loud bang erupted underneath Cait’s chin and her vision went black.

Cait gasped loudly as her eyes flashed open and she shot up in her bed. Shaking wildly, Cait panted cripplingly on her bed as tears began welling up in her eyes. Outside, loud rumbles of thunder sent shivers down Cait’s spine and large stabs of lightning flashed in her wet eyes.

Cait hugged her knees to her chest as she processed what had just happened. Nightmares were never easy for Cait; but she had, through years of experience, learned what to expect from them. But this one was different; this was the nightmare; the nightmare that, no matter how much she tried, she could not accustom herself to. Killing her parents had left Cait with an unshakable feeling of guilt that had stayed with her ever since. Every time she remembered that day, feelings of shame and self-loathing ate Cait up until she didn’t even know who she was anymore.  

Cait did not even try to talk herself out of it; she needed to shoot up. But she couldn’t do it here; in El’s house; in her son’s old room. She needed to get outside; weather be damned. Frantically, she reached her trembling hand down from her bed and into her rucksack, pulling out her vial of Psycho. Once she had retrieved her liquid crutch, Cait scrambled off her bed and made for the door.

She had only made it one step when her feet stumbled on something and she fell abruptly to the floor. Groaning as she propped herself up on her hands and knees, Cait looked back to find her boots lying knocked over on the carpet. Normally, Cait would have put in the effort of tying her boots before skulking away to shoot up. But, today, she couldn’t, she needed this fix now.

Sliding the bedroom door open as quietly as she could, Cait skulked down the corridor and through the living area until she reached the front door. However, no matter how many times she tried turning the handle, her hands appeared to slip. Cait’s hands were so covered with perspiration that, no matter how hard she tried, the handle would not budge. Eventually, wrapping her arm around the handle, Cait twisted and the door gave way.

Cait looked out at Sanctuary and her eyes widened in mild fear. The rain was scything down in front of her and the wind howled through the carcases of the empty houses. Cait didn’t want to go out in this weather; in a place that she was still unfamiliar with. But, in order to forget, she had to risk it. Holding her breath, Cait ran out into the night.

As the rain lashed down around her, Cait hid herself behind the house across the road from El’s. She had backed herself up against the outer wall; with just enough exterior roof to shield her from the rain. With the needle prepared, Cait positioned it at the base of her forearm and pushed it inside. With the dark liquid entering her body, Cait sighed and closed her eyes; resting her head against the wall.

But nothing happened. There was no high, no warm feeling of release, there was only nothing. Cait opened her eyes and looked down at her arm, completely bemused. The needle wasn’t broken; it was working fine. Why had it not worked? Deciding that the dose had just been a dud, Cait jabbed the needle in again and, once more, closed her eyes.

But, again, nothing happened and Cait’s mind began to spiral. Why was this this stuff not working? She did everything right. Maybe, after so many years, she had finally developed a resistance to it. What was she going to do now; find a new drug? No, she couldn’t put her body through another addiction; one was bad enough. With panicked tears building up in her eyes, Cait looked down at the syringe in her arm. She didn’t like where this was going; it didn’t seem right; Psycho had always worked. Apprehensively, Cait closed her eyes and injected the needle for an unprecedented third time.

Relief instantly coursed through Cait’s body and she let out a deeply contented sigh. At last, she was safe. She knew the drug would work eventually. Now, the painful memories of her past began to subside, and her mind was left blank.

Suddenly, Cait’s lungs began to burn painfully and she let out a spontaneous gag. Catching her breath, Cait placed her hand over her mouth and felt the taste of blood. Cait immediately knew what was coming; this was not going to be pleasant. Before she could even react, Cait was struck down by a hacking cough that left her completely unable to breathe. With one hand over her mouth, and the other on her burning chest, Cait staggered blindly through the rain towards the old playground.

Eventually, finding support on the wet and rusted frame of the swings, Cait painfully coughed up large mouthfuls of blood and phlegm onto the ground. With every flash of lightning, the wet grass was illuminated a terrifying shade of red. Unable to even breathe, tears streamed down Cait’s face as she coughed up ever larger quantities of blood. “Help!” Cait shouted breathlessly.

As the coughing only seemed to get worse, Cait started to panic. If she didn’t get help, she would die out here. She needed to get back to El’s house, and fast. Pushing herself off the swing frame, Cait turned around and attempted to stagger her way back to El’s house. But, as soon as Cait set off, she found herself in another problem. Through a mixture of the weather, her unfamiliarity with the area, and her debilitating coughing, Cait had gotten herself lost.

With a terrifying sense of panic setting in, Cait began to run anywhere she could. As she cried breathlessly, Cait wondered if she would ever make it back. Cait was so preoccupied with this predicament that she wasn’t looking where she was going.

Suddenly, something on the ground caught the end of Cait's foot and she fell face first on the ground. Crashing unceremoniously into the dirt, a tremendous pain erupted in Cait’s head as it struck a hard object protruding from the earth. Wincing painfully, Cait propped herself up on her hands and knees and, through continued coughing, nursed her aching forehead. Blood began to run down her face as Cait felt a deep cut just above her left eyebrow.

Eventually, Cait coughed up her last mouthful of blood and she was finally able to breathe freely. Panting heavily, Cait sobbed as she tried to contemplate what had just happened. She should never have taken three doses. Why would she do something so stupid? With her breath slowly returning to normal, Cait wiped the blood and rain from her face and she gradually got back to her feet.

Cait had barely made it to her feet when the same burning sensation in her lungs erupted deep in her stomach. Stumbling back to the hands and knees, Cait gritted her teeth as she awaited what was inevitably coming. Pretty soon, as if by déjà vu, the burning sensation ascended Cait’s body and she began to vomit uncontrollably. Using all her strength to stay upright, Cait retched loudly as she expelled a grizzly mixture of digested food, bile, and blood. Cait felt as if her entire body was on fire; every paw on her body seared as the cold rain scolded her burning skin. For what felt like an age, Cait retched and vomited ever greater amounts of bile and blood as she writhed on the ground. “Someone, please help!” Cait shouted breathlessly again, feebly wishing for this night to end.

Finally, in a shocking crescendo of the night’s events, Cait gave one last dying retch before she vomited out a heavy stream of pure blood. Illuminated by flashes of lightning, Cait’s eyes widened as the ground beneath her was stained bright red. In all her years of taking Psycho, she had never experienced this before. With waves of blood staining the ground and her face and body, Cait cried loudly as her body burned.

After, what seemed like, hours of agony, Cait’s stomach ran out of material to expel and the burning started to dissipate. Wheezing through her burning lungs, Cait was trying with all her remaining strength to stay on her hands and knees. But, with every passing second, she could feel herself growing faint.

With her vision darkening around her, Cait’s limbs mercifully gave way and she slumped limply onto the cold, rain soaked, earth. As Cait fell into unconsciousness, the last thing she felt was a warm liquid emanate from her crotch and slowly trickle down between her legs.  

El woke that morning from she believed was the best night sleep she had had in over two-hundred years. Wiping the sleep from her eyes, El dopily looked around her pristine room and let out a happy sigh. It felt so good to wake up in soft clean bed after so long.

Manoeuvring herself to the side of the bed, El collected her PipPad from the bedside table and checked the time; 8:23am. Whilst she would have loved to sleep longer, El felt that she had to get up.

Climbing out of bed, El walked over to the window and peeped through the curtains. To El’s delight, the weather had cleared from the night before and the clouds had parted. The ground was still somewhat damp, but the rising sun was already beginning to dry it out. Suddenly, El wondered if Cait was awake and whether she had enjoyed her time in a proper bed. Maybe, if she was awake, then Codsworth could cook them both a hearty breakfast.

El turned around from the window and headed for the door. Sliding it open, El was surprised to find that the door to Cait’s was also open. As the room had been unoccupied, El had kindly let Cait sleep there; a decision that had deeply embarrassed Cait and made her virtually silent through the entirety of last night’s dinner. Looking into the room, El saw that the covers had been pushed back and the mattress left exposed. Perhaps, Cait was already awake and waiting for El in the living area.

El had just turned to the corridor when something caught her eye. Looking back, El noticed that Cait’s rucksack was open and various items were strewn carelessly on the floor. This was an unusual sight for El. Ever since knowing her, El had noted that Cait was very conscious of keeping her things sealed away in her rucksack. Even if she was in her room, her unfamiliarity with El’s home would have made her very conscious of losing her possessions. Cait was a deeply predictable person for someone as perceptive as El.

Armed with this new suspicion, El made her way down the corridor. Upon entering the living area, she found Codsworth quietly floating through the kitchen, delivering a bowl of food to a highly expectant Dogmeat. Noticing her arrival, Codsworth moved one of his eye stalks in El’s direction. “Good morning, Mum! I hope you slept pleasantly. Might I interest you in some breakfast?” he asked chirpily.

El smiled as her stomach let out a low rumble. She looked around the living area, but Cait was nowhere to be seen. “Yes, I did, thank you Codsworth. Have you seen Cait at all this morning?” El asked.     

“I’m afraid not, Mum. Her door was open when I came out of low power mode.” Codsworth said as he collected different items around the kitchen.

El frowned and scrunched her face in thought. Something didn’t make sense. Whilst Cait was the sort of person who needed space every so often, she would not leave her bag open and unattended before heading out into an unfamiliar place. Unless it was for something urgent. “Okay, well, I’m going to go and see if she is outside somewhere. Would you mind holding off on the breakfast until I get back?” El said as she collected her boots from beside the front door.

“Of course, Mum. I should also say that when I came out of low power mode this morning, I found that the front door had been left slightly ajar. I wonder if that has something to do with this conundrum?” Codsworth asked, sensing concern in El’s thoughts.

Lacing up her boots and throwing her coat on, El thought about Codsworth’s words. Despite it being a stormy night, El had not heard anyone else come into the house. And, even if they did have intruders, Dogmeat probably would have heard them. Something didn’t add up. “Hmm, I don’t know.” With her head now full of answerless questions, El opened the front door and headed outside.

The weather outside had the makings of something glorious. The thunderous clouds that had covered the sky the previous night had cleared away and all that was left was endless blue. With this blue sky, the steadily rising sun warmed El’s skin as she stepped outside. Closing her eyes and inhaling deeply, El basked in the fresh clean air of Sanctuary. If this had been another time, every house would have had happy people playing games and cooking barbecues until it was dark.

Opening them again, however, El only saw dead yellow grass and the gnarled husks of empty houses. Shaking away shadows of the past, El headed off down the road in search of her illusive friend.  

El immediately turned left and headed towards where the Minutemen were camped. Since coming to Sanctuary, the Minutemen crew had established a small encampment in one of the old houses. Whilst it wasn’t on the same level as Codsworth’s work, they had done a pretty good job of making the building habitable.

Upon entering the building, El was simultaneously greeted by the Minutemen crew as they prepared for the day’s work. “Morning guys. Have any of you seen Cait about this morning?” El asked as she greeted the crew.

The crew looked at each other in equal puzzlement. “I’m afraid not, ma’am.” one of the Minutemen said. “Has she gone missing?”

El thought for a few moments, unsure herself about what was going on. “I don’t know. She wasn’t in the house this morning.”

“Would you like us to help you find her?” another of the Minutemen asked.

Despite being heartened by the gesture, El shook her head and held up her hand. “No, please don’t trouble yourselves. I’m probably just overthinking things. Well, I’ll probably see you around at some point.” El said as she turned her exit the camp.

The Minutemen crew simultaneously wished her a farewell and El continued her journey. Turning left again, El walked to the end of the road and peered around the empty houses; there was nothing. At this point, concern was building in El’s mind. Ever since she had met her, whilst she would never admit it, Cait had rarely strayed far from El’s side. So, save for some odd suspicions that El had, it was deeply unusual for Cait to run off like this. El didn’t want to believe her suspicions, but, in this situation, she couldn’t shake them.

Reaching the riverbank, El began walking along the old stone path and reminisced about old times. How many sunlit evenings did El and Nate spend walking along this same path before the bombs? Looking over the wall, El was glad to find nothing but rock and debris from the surrounding area.

As she came closer to the Sanctuary bridge, El’s vision turned to the old playground. Owing the openness of the playground area, El was able to see that there was not much of importance around here. By this point, El was wondering whether she would ever find Cait. Cait was not the sort of person to run off with nothing unless she had something urgent on her mind. None of this made sense.

Suddenly, something in her peripheral vision caught her attention and she turned back towards the playground. Stopping in her tracks, El squinted and could just make out an odd shape in the yellow grass. It didn’t look like the other debris that was strewn about. It looked like an animal.

El slowly walked towards the peculiar shape in the grass; the shape gradually gathering form as she got closer. As she got closer, El was able to make out the shape’s various limbs sprawled out on the ground; it looked like a human body. As these features came into view, worrying thoughts began to cross El’s mind. Whatever they were, she didn’t want to believe them.

It was only when she saw an unruly mop of flaming red hair did El suddenly realise what she was staring at. “Cait?” El asked, her face frowning in disbelief.

“CAIT!” El shouted. Curiosity immediately turned to shock and El rushed to where Cait’s body lay. Once at her side, El quickly rolled Cait onto her back and collected her in her arms. What El saw truly shocked her. Cait was absolutely filthy; every inch of her clothes and body was covered in a grizzly mix of dirt, sweat, blood, and vomit. Slashed down her forehead was also a deep cut that was surrounded by dried blood. Emanating from between Cait’s legs was also a strong smell of urine. Whatever had happened in the night, Cait must have wet herself; she had clearly been out here all night.

Cradling Cait’s head in her arms, El immediately pleaded for her to wake up. “Cait! Oh my God!” El cried as she cupped Cait’s ice cold cheek in her hand. “Come on, Cait. Wake up. Come on, don’t do this. Wake up.”

Cait’s body, however, remained lifeless and El began to panic. “Come on, Cait! You can’t do this! Please don’t leave me here alone. Cait, just wake up, please.” El pleaded, praying that her friend would hear her.

But Cait would not stir; her dirty face remained lifeless as El held her in her arms. With hope fading from El’s mind, she became overwhelmed with feelings of anger. The Commonwealth had taken enough from her already; she couldn’t let it take another. “Come on, Cait, just wake up, for God’s sake! CAIT, WAKE UP!”

Cait’s eyes flashed open and she gasped for breath. Coughing her lungs back into life, El gently patted Cait’s back. El felt tears well up in her eyes as Cait gasped back from the brink; the Commonwealth had failed. With her eyes darting around, Cait began to squirm uncontrollably in El’s arms. “Cait, Cait, it’s me. Calm down. It’s me!” El begged as she tried to calm Cait down.

But Cait would not settle; she was too confused and terrified to understand what was happening. Eventually, El grabbed both sides of Cait’s head to hold her still. “Cait, Cait, look, it’s me. It’s me!” she said, looking deep into Cait’s frantic eyes.

In that instant, Cait’s eyes steadied on El and she began to settle into El’s arms. Placing her hand back on her cheek El returned to cradling Cait’s body. “Cait, what are you doing out here all alone?” El pleaded.

Cait did not respond and remained lying limply in El’s arms. She was shivering violently in El’s arms and stared unseeingly ahead. It was now that El saw the fear, guilt, terror, and embarrassment in Cait’s eyes. They betrayed to El one simple word: help.

El had to get Cait out of here. Cait couldn’t stay out here. Adjusting her hands, El collected Cait in her arms and lifted her up; wrapping one of Cait’s arms around her neck. Despite her body being composed mostly of muscle, Cait was surprisingly light. With Cait secure, El began making her way back home.  

Barely two steps into her frantic journey, El noticed something lying in the dead grass. Looking closer, El saw that it was a syringe of some kind. Realising immediately what it was, El’s face sank and she looked down at Cait. Cait had clearly not seen and remained hunched up and shivering in El’s arms. El had always had her suspicions; but she never wanted to believe them.

Reaching her house, El pushed the front door open with her shoulder and immediately made straight for the bathroom. “Come on, Cait. Let’s clean you up and get you out of these clothes.” El said, trying to remain positive.

Upon reaching the bathroom, El sat Cait’s limp body on the toilet and turned on the taps of the bathtub. Thank Codsworth for installing a bathtub. “Just stay there, okay. I’ll be right back.” El said, kneeling in front of Cait.

Cait’s face remained unchanged, which El could only interpret as a positive. El then ran out of the bathroom and into Cait’s room. She had just collected Cait’s change of clothes in her hands when something sprang to mind; these would not do. Dropping the clothes, El moved onto her room and began opening her chest of drawers. Eventually, El found what she was looking for; a pair of pyjamas. They would probably be a bit big for Cait, but that didn’t matter. On her way out, El also swiped a hairbrush from on top of the drawers.

Returning to the bathroom, El was relieved to find that Cait had not moved. Placing the pyjamas and hairbrush on top of the toilet cistern, El returned her attention to her catatonic friend. “Let’s get you out of these.” El said as she stood Cait up and began unbuttoning her corset.

Before long, Cait’s filthy clothes were lying in a bundle on the floor and Cait was standing completely naked in front of El. El was, however, too worked up to notice. It was only when Cait attempted to cover herself with her hands that El noticed. Upon seeing this, El smiled reassuringly. “Please don’t feel embarrassed, Cait. Let’s just get you in the bath.

Once again collecting Cait’s shivering body in her arms, El lowered her into the bath and set about scrubbing her clean. Upon entering the warm water, Cait flinched away from the heat and attempted to curl further into El’s arms. “Ssh, ssh, Cait. Just relax.” El said attempting to calm her.

Eventually, Cait relaxed and she was successfully immersed in the warm soothing water.. Once the taps had been turned off, El collected several items from the bathroom cabinet and set to work.

For the next half an hour El scrubbed away layers of dirt, sweat, dried blood, and vomit from Cait’s skin until it was once again it’s natural porcelain white. It was now that El saw the full extent of Cait’s scars. El had seen the ones on her back, but she could not have imagined that they would cover her entire body. El, however, could not contemplate this; her first priority was making sure Cait was clean.

With her scared body scrubbed down to a porcelain white finish, El moved onto Cait’s hair. When she had found her, Cait’s greasy hair was matted together with a similar mix of the grizzly things that covered her body. Gently easing her backwards, El lowered the back of Cait’s head under the water and set about washing her hair. Bringing her back, El began working a great handful of shampoo into Cait’s scalp. Lowering her back down, El washed Cait’s hair until it was free of impurities and a flaming fiery red.

The bathwater, by this point, had now turned a ghastly brown colour and El was unable to see the bottom of the bathtub. With nowhere else on Cait’s body to scrub, El picked her out of the bath and stood her on her feet. El then collected a towel and thoroughly dried Cait down.

With Cait now dry, El retrieved the pyjamas from the toilet cistern and dressed Cait. El chuckled slightly as she buttoned the shirt around Cait’s slender body; they were a little baggy. El then sat Cait back down on the toilet and, collecting the hairbrush, proceeded to brush her hair.

It took an age, but, eventually, El managed to brush Cait’s knotted and tangled hair until it was silky smooth. Now that it was brushed, El was able to see Cait’s hair in its natural, slightly wavy, state. El couldn’t stop stroking it as she untangled small knots and tangles that had escaped her grasp. “There. Good as new.” El smiled as she knelt in front of Cait again and tucked some of her fringe behind her ear. El was trying her best to lighten the mood.

As usual, Cait was catatonically unresponsive as she sat on the toilet in her baggy pyjamas. Her look of guilt and embarrassment was unchanging. Bowing her head, El sighed in defeat as she realised that she wasn’t going to get anything out of her. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.” El said, getting back to her feet.

For the final time, El gathered Cait in her arms and carried her to her bedroom. Upon reaching her bed, El lowered Cait down carefully onto the mattress. As soon as Cait landed, she immediately turned onto her side, away from El, and curled herself up in shame. Sighing in emotional exhaustion, El brought the covers over Cait’s body and brought them up to her shoulders. With Cait comfortable, El apprehensively bent over and pressed a small kiss on the side of her forehead. She wasn’t sure whether she should have done it, but it just seemed like the right thing to do. “Get some rest.” El whispered, lightly stroking Cait’s hair.

Turning around, El reached the doorway and slowly slid the door partially shut. El kept her eyes on Cait the entire time.

El sat on the sofa in silence, quietly reading one of the various books from the bookshelf behind her. El always enjoyed reading Shakespeare. Whenever she had a particularly difficult court case to prepare for, reading the speeches of English kings preparing to fight the French at Agincourt always filled her with confidence. Whilst, in this instance, reading King Lear seemed rather applicable, El’s mind was on other things.

As she thought about the day’s events, El couldn’t shake the look on Cait’s face as she washed the impurities away. Cait just looked so helpless; so fragile. What she saw today was Cait with all her defences down; the Cait that felt fear, pain, and remorse; the Cait that had, until today, been crushed under the boot of an unbearable life. El knew that Cait needed help. She had seen it in her eyes as she carried her back to the house. She had clearly needed help for a long time.

El sat for a few moments, wondering how she should handle this; should she intervene? Her natural instinct was yes; but, if she pressed too hard, she might scare Cait away. Cait normally did as she was told if pushed. But she was also stubborn, and this was no simple request. If El pushed too hard, Cait might refuse and suffer even more. El couldn’t let that happen.

Eventually, El made a decision. She would help Cait, but only if she asked. This was a decision that Cait needed to make on her own. El would obviously support her in any way she could, but Cait needed to speak first.

“El?” a voice whispered behind her.

Turning to look behind, El was greeted by Cait standing at the entrance to the corridor. She was standing slightly hunched over to hide the look of acute embarrassment on her face. She looked so small in her set of El’s baggy pyjamas.

“Cait, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” El asked courteously as she closed her book and got up from the sofa.

Cait muttered incoherently as El approached her. She was trying everything in her power to avoid eye contact with El.

El put a hand around Cait’s shoulders. “Come on. Sit down.” she said, leading Cait towards the sofa. Under El’s lead, Cait shuffled forward and plonked herself on the sofa. Noticing that El had taken a seat very close to her, Cait awkwardly shuddered and withdrew further into herself.

With nothing left to lose, Cait knew that she had to say something. “El? Can…can…can we…can we talk?” she stuttered almost inaudibly. She was already on the brink of tears.

“Of course, we can talk.” El said reassuringly. She had expected Cait to ask this.

Cait gave a small smile but looked paralysingly nervous. “Good, because I-I-I need your help. I-I’m sick, and I can’t hide it from you any longer.” Upon glancing up at El, tears started to fall down Cait’s face and panic began to set in. “I wanted to tell you; I really did. But it was just so hard; and, and I-I was just so scared; and, and, and I didn’t know what you would think of me; and I-I-I-.” Cait faltered, looking close to breaking down in front of El.

“Cait, Cait, Cait. Just slow down. Take a deep breath.” El interrupted to stop Cait from spiralling any further.

Cait took several deep, but shaky, breaths as she wiped her eyes. Once she had collected herself, she continued. “Ever since I left home, I’ve been usin’ Psycho. I don’t know why I’m still takin’ it, but I can’t stop. And believe me, I’ve tried.”

El nodded and closed her eyes, “I know.”

Cait’s eyes widened. Part of her had expected this, but it was still a shock to her. “Y-you do?” she stammered.

El nodded, “I’ve known for a while.” Taking Cait’s arm, El turned it over to reveal the many pop marks dotted across her skin. “These marks don’t lie.” she said, gently running her fingers over the incriminating dots.

Cait immediately snatched her arm away and cradled it to her chest. It was hard for her to have her secrets so easily exposed. El then reached to her end of the sofa and opened the drawer of a side table. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, Cait saw El pull out an old dirty syringe and hold it in her hands. It was her Psycho.

Keenly aware that El’s piercing hazel eyes were staring at her, Cait looked away. She was too embarrassed and ashamed to look back. “I-I suppose I better get my stuff together then.” Cait said eventually, her voice awash with melancholy.

Upon hearing this, El frowned, clearly confused. “Cait, why would you say that?”

Cait rubbed her shoulder with her cradled hand, still looking away. “Because I’m a worthless junkie who doesn’t deserve to stay with someone like you.” she said hopelessly.

El’s mouth opened in shock. How could Cait ever think something like that? Placing the Psycho syringe back on the side table, El shuffled forward and put her hands on Cait’s thigh. “Cait look at me.” El commanded, a serious but calming tone in her voice.  

Cait apprehensively turned back and looked into El’s eyes. El stared at Cait and her face softened. This was not the fierce cage fighter whom she had met. This was a frightened girl, robbed of childhood, and who shielded her pain behind a wall of drugs. “I would never throw you out for something like that.” El said, leaning in closer. “Listen to me, Cait. You have nothing to fear as long as you’re with me.”

Seeing the truth in El’s eyes, Cait nodded sincerely. “Okay, I believe you. It’s just that, the Psycho has been makin’ me sick. I’ve been spittin’ blood and I don’t feel right inside. But, I-I suppose I don’t need to tell you all that.” Cait said, eluding to how El had found her that morning. “I need to get this shite out of my system, or I’m gonna end up the way you found me; only dead next time.”

“Just tell me what I can do.” El said intently, her glinting hazel eyes fixed entirely on Cait.

Cait thought for a few moments, clearly trying to think through what she was going to say. “Well, I heard stories of a vault hidden out here; Vault 95. I heard that they filled the place with junkies to poke and prod. Apparently, they had some kind of a machine to clean them up. Maybe that machine could help me.” she said. Cait had heard this story many times among the different dealers from whom she acquired her fixes. However, like every other hopeful story she had heard, Cait doubted whether it was true.

El nodded, already determined on their next course of action. “I’ll get you there.” she said authoritatively.

Cait’s face turned from one of melancholy to surprised gratitude almost instantly. “I-I can’t believe how kind you’re bein’ to me, even when I’m lettin’ you down.” she stammered as a strange warm feeling built up inside her. Cait was unsure what this feeling was, but, for some reason, it made her feel happy.

El shuffled even closer to Cait and put her arm around her shoulder, hugging her closely. Her other hand remained firmly gripped on Cait’s thigh. “You have let no-one down, Cait. You’ve done a very brave thing telling me this, and I’m so proud of you. It can’t have been easy.” El said comfortingly. “What we’ll do is have a quiet night and then set out for the vault tomorrow."

Cait looked up at El in shock. “T-t-tomorrow?” she stuttered.

El nodded, her mind already made up. “Yes, tomorrow. You asked for my help, and I intend to give it.” she said imperiously.

Cait bowed her head and leaned into El’s embrace, resting her head comfortably on her chest. The rising and falling of El’s pronounced chest soothed Cait’s anguished mind. “Thank you.” Cait whispered, her voice awash with thankfulness.

They both sat there for a few minutes, both women just taking in the moment. El gently rubbed Cait’s shoulder and, in response, Cait curled further into El’s warming embrace. Cait had no idea why, but, for some reason, she did not want to leave.

Eventually, El raised her head and looked down at Cait. "Come on, Cait. Why don’t we get you something to eat? You must be starving.”

Right on cue, Cait’s stomach gave a low grumble and she looked up at El. “Th-that sounds really good.” Cait stuttered, trying the resist a smile.

El gave a beaming smile and retracted her arm. Standing up from the sofa, El took Cait’s hands in hers and pulled her to her feet. Leading Cait by the hand, El walked her to the kitchen table and sat her down while she prepared something to eat.

As she slowly walked to the table, Cait could not fight the blushing smile enveloping her lips. Catching one last glimpse of El, Cait believed that, for the first time in her life, she was going to be alright.

Chapter Text

Cait sat at the living room coffee table, carefully checking through her bag to make sure everything was prepared. Today was the day that she could finally rid herself of her addiction. However, before that, she was in for a long journey.

Cait sat alone in the living area, save for Codsworth and Dogmeat, who sat expectantly for his master. Dogmeat was nighen inseparable from El at the best of times, but Cait had yet to gain much affinity with him. Cait’s only memories of dogs were either the guards of her slavers, or the mutated mongrels of the wasteland. It would take a lot to shake those preconceptions. El’s bedroom door, meanwhile, was closed, but Cait could hear movement behind it. El was clearly going through the same process as Cait.

Reaching across to the end of the sofa, Cait collected her brown leather jacket and slipped it over her shoulders. Shivering slightly as she put it on, Cait hugged herself and let out a small contented hum. She loved how warm and comfortable it made her feel. Cait also reached behind her neck and untucked her hair, which had become bunched up under the jacket’s collar. This was something that she was unfamiliar with doing regularly. Ever since El had brushed Cait’s hair, it had become so much more of a hassle to manage; it was either getting stuck in her clothes or flopping down in front of her eyes. Yes, it did make her hair feel really soft, but Cait wondered how on earth El managed.  

“Morning Cait. Are you ready to go?” El’s dulcet tones said from behind Cait.

Cait turned around and stood up from the sofa to find El standing at the entrance to the corridor. She was wearing her freshly washed vault suit that hugged every curve on her body and her custom set of armour that made her look like some kind of superhero from one of Cait’s comics. Buckled around her waist and leg was also her signature ’44 pistol that she carried around like a sacred icon. Cait bit her lip slightly as she secretly marvelled at El’s appearance; she looked incredible.

“Cait?” El said. Cait snapped back to reality to find that El was looking at her, a playful smirk on her lips.

“Urr, yeah, I’m-I’m ready to go.” Cait stammered, trying to seem oblivious to the fact that she had been staring at El.

Cait watched El look her up and down. She had a strange serious look on her face. Cait recognised that El only ever made that face when she had done something wrong. What was it this time? “I don’t think you are.” El said, raising her eyebrows.

Frowning in confused frustration, Cait looked herself up and down and found nothing wrong. “Yeah, I am. What are you on about?” she said stubbornly.

“Where is your armour?” El asked, crossing her arms.

Cait scrunched her face up, already annoyed at where this was going. "I’m not wearin’ it. It’s uncomfortable and rubs on my tits.” Cait whinged, similarly crossing her arms like a petulant child.

Despite her stubbornness, El wasn’t going to be intimidated by Cait’s attitude. Taking two slow steps forward, El straightened her back so she was standing at full height. “I know it’s not very comfortable, Cait. But the place we’re going to is likely to be crawling with raiders. And, I should point out that, the last time you didn’t wear your armour, you got mauled by a Mirelurk. I don’t want to get all the way to Vault 95 and have to dig bullets out of you. Stitching you up was hard enough.” El said with a serious look on her face.

Cait hunched her shoulders forward and huffed indignantly. The fact that El was three or four inches taller than her immediately made her shrink away somewhat. “Fine, I’ll put on your stupid armour!" Cait snapped in defeat. Dropping her arms, Cait stomped around the sofa and towards the corridor. Whilst she hated it when El would treat her like a child, something strange in the back of her mind actually liked it. For some reason, it made her feel safe; believing that El had her best interests at heart.

El moved out of the way to let Cait pass but did not change her posture. If she dropped her guard, Cait wouldn’t do as she was told. She gave a playfully smug smile as Cait passed her and disappeared down the hallway. Cait always looked slightly cute when she was annoyed with her. She kicked up a fuss, but almost always did as she was told.

A few second later, Cait returned to the living area holding the armour under her arms. She then threw her jacket off and attempted to strap on the armour over her shoulders. Cait huffed and groaned to herself as she struggled to buckle the plates to her chest.

Watching Cait, El’s face softened and she dropped her posture. Stepping forward, El gently grabbed Cait’s wrists to stop her struggling. “Hold still. Let me help.” El said softly.

Dropping her wrists, Cait submitted and let El adjust her armour. As El carefully fitted the armour to her chest, Cait awkwardly looked straight ahead. She was highly conscious of how close El was standing to her. Again, Cait got a strange warm feeling when El stood near her. The feeling had started when El comforted her about her Psycho. However, whilst it made her happy, it left her feeling confused and unsure about what to think.

“There. How does it feel?” El said, snapping Cait back to reality.

Cait stood back and shrugged. How did El move in this stuff? She looked up grumpily and found El staring at her, a look of expectation on her face. “It’s great. Never felt better.” she said sarcastically.

“Good. Glad I could be of assistance.” El said happily, returning the sarcasm. When it came to sarcasm, two could play that game.

Cait looked up at El again and stifled a blush. It was then that she noticed something protruding from behind El’s shoulder. It looked like the barrel of a gun. It seemed to be attached to a strap that ran around El’s shoulder. “W-what you got there?” Cait asked, nodding to the gun barrel to distract El from the redness in her cheeks.

El looked to where Cait was looking. “Oh, this?” Taking the gun off her shoulder, El presented Cait with an enormous sniper rifle. This was not just some makeshift pipe rifle; this was a pre-war Brotherhood of Steel level rifle. Fixed on top of the receiver was a scope so large that Cait wondered if, when looking down it, you could the see the other end of the Commonwealth. Looking up the barrel, Cait also found a suppressor that made the rifle almost as tall as her. The weapon looked amazing, and, quite frankly, just so El. “The Minutemen have a small armoury here. As a General, I thought that I would raid it for some gear. If there are raiders in Vault 95, I’m going to play some games with them.” El said with a mischievous smirk on her face.

“Excuse me, Mum?” Codsworth asked as he floated over, interrupting El and Cait’s conversation. “May I ask if you will be taking breakfast this morning?”

“I’m afraid not, Codsworth.” El said, resting the sniper rifle against her leg. “I’d like to get off as early as possible. I’ve packed provisions so we can eat on the way. Happily, my PipPad has access to the old Vault Tec network, so we know that Vault 95 exists.”

“If you insist, Mum. Well, in that case, I wish you a Bon Voyage, and please return safely.” Codsworth said, bowing one of his eye stalks.

“We will. Thank you, Codsworth.” El smiled and nodded. She then turned to Cait with the same look across her face. “You ready?”

Cait retrieved her jacket, gear, and weapons and nodded back. She was ready to go.  

Slipping on her own coat, El patted her leg and Dogmeat ran up to greet his master. Lightly rustling his fur in one hand, El slung her rifle back over her shoulder and turned towards the door, with Cait following close behind.

Both fully kitted out, both women walked out into Sanctuary and started on their long journey to what awaited them in Vault 95.  

The weather in Sanctuary had clouded over from yesterday. However, despite this, the weather was clear, and the horizon was free of fog and mist. The minutemen crew were similarly exiting their camp to begin work. El had kindly informed them of their urgent errand, and that they would return to the teleporter soon. As general of the minutemen, they respected her wishes and wished them well.

They had just reached the middle of the Sanctuary bridge when Cait noticed that El had stopped in her tracks. “El, you alright?” Cait asked, frowning.

El nodded as she turned around. “Yes, everything is fine. Would you mind just coming over here?” she asked, gesturing to a spot on the bridge in front of her.

Apprehensively, Cait shuffled to the spot and looked up at El. What was this all about? “What’d you need?” Cait asked, trying not to sound confused.

El was silent as she slipped her rifle off her shoulder and rested it on one of the bridge’s wooden railings. She then reached into her coat pocket and pulled out an old dirty syringe with two canisters attached and held it in her hands.

Cait immediately recognised it as her Psycho and she looked at her feet. After what had happened to her the day before, she couldn’t look El in the eye when she held that in her hands.

“Cait, look at me.” El said softy, trying to coax Cait out of her shell.

Cait's head remained bowed in embarrassment, her eyes fixed permanently on the ground. El tried again, this time, louder. “Cait, look at me.”

This time, Cait raised her head and stared into El’s hazel eyes. They had that glint in them that Cait found so weirdly mesmerising. Taking a shaky breath, she readied herself for what came next.

“Thank you.” El said, smiling reassuringly. “Now, I want you to do something for me. I want you to take this,” El said as she held the Psycho up at Cait, “and throw it away.”

Cait's eyes widened in astonishment. “W-what?” she stammered.

“I want you to take this drug and throw it in the river.” El repeated.

Fear suddenly gripped Cait’s mind as she stared at both El and the Psycho in her hand. Cait knew she needed to face her fears and kick her addiction. But she hadn’t known that El would want to push her so soon. Staring at the dirty syringe, Cait bit her lip, unsure whether she could actively throw away her only crutch in a lifetime of misery.

Sensing Cait’s dilemma, El gently took Cait’s wrist and placed the syringe in the palm of her hand. “Please, Cait. I know you can do this.” El said, closing Cait’s fingers around the syringe.

Cait held the syringe in her hands; they were shaking uncontrollably. Looking out at the river from the bridge, Cait thought long and hard about what El was asking her to do. For the past eight years, this thing in her hand had been her only support. After years of abuse, pain, misery, and hurt, this drug was the only thing that kept the nightmares at bay. How could she throw that away for a cure that may not even exist?

But then Cait remembered how much this drug had taken from her. How, with every dose she had taken over the past eight years, Cait had felt a little piece of her being chipped away. After so long, Cait felt like a shadow of what she could be. She then remembered what had happened the previous day. Cait could not forget the guilt, shame, and embarrassment she felt when El had found her. She couldn’t put herself, or El, through that again. Maybe, risking everything on this miracle machine would be worth it? With all the thoughts buzzing around her mind, Cait was afraid her head would split open.

Throughout all of this, El silently observed Cait. The look on her face was one of paralysing indecision. Cait clearly wanted to help herself but did not know whether she had the strength to do it. El wanted nothing more than to take the syringe out of Cait’s hand and throw it to the other end of the Commonwealth. But, Cait needed to do this on her own. El knew she was strong enough.

Eventually, however, Cait’s face hardened and her shaking hands gripped hard around the dirty syringe. Observing her face, El could tell that Cait had made her decision. Scrunching her face in anger, Cait held the syringe tight in her right hand and raised it high in the air. Then, letting out a pained yell, Cait threw the syringe as far as she could and watched it disappear into the river.

As the two women watched the syringe disappear beneath the water, El noticed Cait let out several subtle but deeply pained sobs. This decision had clearly been immensely difficult for Cait. El, however, knew that it could only be the right choice.

With this first hurdle crossed, El approached Cait and put her arm around her waist. Cait flinched slightly, but quickly relaxed into El’s embrace. “These are your first steps, Cait. Well done. I’m very proud of you.” El whispered, smiling down at Cait. Cait briefly glanced up at El but continued to stare ahead at the river. The sobbing had stopped, but Cait’s breath was still shaky. For the first time in eight years, Cait would need to rely on her own will to survive.

Eventually, El tapped the side of Cait’s waist, bringing her back to reality. “Come on, Cait. Let’s finish this, once and for all.” El said encouragingly.

Looking up at El, Cait gave an apprehensive, but genuine, toothless smile and nodded her head enthusiastically. El was right, if she could make this first step, then she could go all the way.

Seeing Cait’s smile, El smiled back and placed her sniper rifle back over her shoulder. “Alright then. Let’s go and find this vault.” El said, ushering Cait across the remainder of the bridge.

As both women reached the other side of the river, Cait made one last glance at where she had thrown her Psycho. Taking a deep breath, she turned away from her oldest friend and would face her fears with her newest.

As they reached the top of the ridge, the entrance to Vault 95 appeared to them in the distance. They had originally been approaching the vault from behind, but El surmised that circling around would provide a better view of what they would face.

“Alright, let’s get down. I don’t want us to make a scene.” El said as she crouched down and shrugged her rifle and rucksack off her shoulders. Mimicking his master, Dogmeat lay down and rested his head on his paws.

Cait remained standing next to El and didn’t understand why they needed to be so cautious. “Let’s just charge in and shoot everythin'.” She said feverishly.

El turned and gave Cait a look of reserved dissatisfaction. “Cait, didn’t we have a conversation earlier about digging bullets out of you?” she asked sarcastically.

Remembering the conversation all too well, Cait huffed to herself and crouched down next to El.

Reaching into her rucksack, El took out a small pair of binoculars and peered towards the vault entrance. El’s heart sank somewhat as her fears were confirmed; the place was infested with raiders. They had clearly managed to open the vault's bulkhead door. Through the binoculars, El spied five raiders dotted around the vault entrance. Two raiders were lounging comfortably on deck chairs atop the cave entrance, whilst two others were resting their backs against the cave’s rock face. A fifth raider was patrolling aimlessly in the valley in front of them. “Let’s give them the silent treatment.” El said roguishly as she took her eyes away from the binoculars.

“What you gonna do?” Cait asked quizzically.

“Just sit back and watch.” El said mischievously as she handed the binoculars to Cait.

Shuffling so she was lying on her front, El took her sniper rifle in hand and prepared to dispatch the raiders. She groaned slightly as her front rested on the ground. El had always found lying on her front uncomfortable. Her body certainly did not lend itself very well to it. This time, however, it just seemed worse; her chest and stomach felt slightly more pronounced than before. “Do I need to go on a diet?” El thought to herself. Returning to the matter at hand, El decided that she would just have to suffer through the discomfort.

With her sniper rifle ready, El looked through the scope and eyed her first target. Selecting one of the lounging raiders as her first target, El steadied her breathing and placed her finger on the trigger.

Gently squeezing the trigger, El fired off a shot that flew directly into the side of the first raider’s head. Remaining focussed, El continued peering the scope to observe the impact. To her relief, the second lounging raider was completely oblivious of their comrade sitting limply in his chair. El chuckled slightly; raiders really were stupid.

Quickly focussing her breathing again, El squeezed the trigger and sent off another round that landed directly in the second raider’s right eye. Owing to the surprise, the raider similarly slumped forward in their chair. To El’s surprise, however, they fell forward and rolled off the roof of the cave, landing forcibly on the hard ground beneath.

Noticing the sound of the falling body, the remaining raiders simultaneously turned to where the body had landed. They then turned to the far ridge and began running towards where El and Cait lay, firing aimlessly as they ran. Following their friends, a new fourth raider appeared from within the cave and scrambled into the valley.

Realising that her ploy was played, El looked away from her scope and towards the valley. “And here comes the parade.” She said with a sigh. “Cait, I’m gonna need you now.”

But El received no response from the friend crouched next to her. Turning to look at Cait, El found her friend staring gormlessly at her body, her mind a million miles away from where it needed to be. Looking behind her, El failed to miss the fact that her arse was rather ostentatiously protruding into the air. It was at times like these that El wished her body was completely flat. “Cait?” El repeated, trying to get her attention.

At this, Cait’s mind returned to reality and she looked up at El’s face, completely vacant from everything that had just happened. Sighing in mild frustration, El gestured her finger towards the valley. “When you’re quite finished ogling.” She said mockingly.

Cait’s cheeks turned bright red and she immediately turned her head towards the valley. Looking through El’s binoculars, Cait eyed the four raiders running towards them and readied her shotgun.

“Here, use this instead.” El said. Cait looked over to find El holding out her pistol to her. “I’ll pick them off from a distance, you deal with any that get too close.” El said. Taking the pistol, Cait lay down next to El and readied for battle.

El immediately returned to her rifle and quickly fired off a shot into a raider’s leg. With their leg incapacitated, the raider lost their footing and fell face first into the ground. With one raider down, El instantly fired a second round into the raider behind. Landing in the raider’s stomach, he dropped his pistol and staggered for a few moments before falling on his side. Losing some of her concentration, El fired a third round that only just missed its intended target.  

With that miss, El realised that the raiders were getting too close for her long-range sniping. Peering through her scope, El saw, to her surprise, the same raider she had missed fly backwards as their shoulder exploded before her. Looking to her left, El saw Cait kneeling upright with her smoking pistol pointing directly at the sky. “I forgot to say, that pistol has a tremendous amount of recoil.” El said, deeply impressed.

Cait let out a heavy breath and nodded. Even she was surprised how much the gun recoiled. Noticing something ahead of her, Cait immediately brought the gun back down and fired another shot down into the valley.

Seeing the shot, El looked over the ridge and saw the final raider rolling unceremoniously back down the valley. “Looks like that’s the last of them.” El chuckled as she got to her feet.

Cait similarly got back to her feet and collected her rucksack. “You were awesome with that rifle.” she said to El, completely amazed by her friend’s abilities.

Giving a smug but genuinely friendly smile, El collected her rucksack and slung it over her shoulder. “Thanks. You weren’t so bad yourself. You’re pretty good with that pistol.”

Holding El’s pistol in her hand, Cait pulled a playfully disparaging face and shook her head. “Not really my style.” she said, handing the pistol back to El.

“Fair enough.” El said understandably as she took the pistol back and placed it in its holster. El then looked out towards the empty valley and vault entrance.

“Shall we see if anyone’s home?” Cait asked rhetorically as she gripped her axe tightly in her hands.

“After you, milady.” El said jokingly, gesturing her arm towards the entrance to the vault.

They had just reached the midpoint between the ridge and the cave entrance when El suddenly threw her arm out in front of Cait to stop her. Cait frowned and looked across at El, wondering what was troubling her. El’s face was one of deep thought, as if she was trying to work something out. “What is it?” Cait asked.

“Sssh.” El said sharply, trying to listen out for something. In the distance, El could hear the faint sound of something powering up. It sounded like some kind of generator. Whatever it was, it seemed to get louder as the sound continued.

As they listened, El could just make out a small red light in the distance. It was hard to make out, but it exited the vault entrance like some kind of phantom and was making its way towards them. The light also seemed to be getting brighter as the sound got louder.

El’s eyes widened when she finally heard the invisible mechanical clunk of robotic limbs moving quickly towards them. “Cait, get down!” El shouted as she wrestled Cait to the ground, finally aware of what the mysterious object was.

They just managed to reach the ground when a huge laser beam appeared from thin air and blasted over their heads. As the beam reseeded, and the sound quietened, El looked up from the ground and stared ahead. “Fucking bastards have an assaultron!” El snarled.

As soon as El spoke she heard the mechanical sound again. “Come on, Cait, get up! Get up!” El shouted as she scrambled to her feet.

Following El’s orders, Cait quickly got to her feet and readied her shotgun. She, however, had no time to aim before the assaultron’s newly materialised claws slammed into her stomach, sending her flying backwards.

With Cait down, the assaultron turned on El and forcibly grabbed her sniper rifle. Attempting to resist the robot’s grasp, El soon found herself in a wrestling match as the assaultron tried to prise her weapon off her. El was, however, not strong enough and she was steadily being pushed backwards into the dirt. By this point, Dogmeat began to bite the assultron’s leg, in a vain attempt to pull the robot away. As El tried, with all her strength to push back against the robot, she saw that the assaultron was recharging its facial laser. If she didn’t get free, she would, quite literally, be toast.

Suddenly, El saw a shining axe blade slam into the assaultron’s head, almost severing it cleanly from the body. A second blow smashed the body to pieces, and it clattered limply onto the ground in a pile of junk. Looking up, El saw Cait standing over her, her axe in one hand, and her other extended out to her. “Need a hand?” Cait asked, breathing heavily.

Taking Cait’s hand, El was hauled to her feet and she examined the assaultron’s remains. “Thank you, Cait. It had me pinned.” El said thankfully.

“Don’t mention it. You’d have done the same for me.” Cait said, similarly looking at the sparking remains. She then turned back towards the vault entrance. “now, let’s find this damn machine!” Cait said brusquely.

Slinging her rifle back over her shoulder, El nodded. “Good idea. We should get out of the open.”

As they approached the entrance to the cave, they came across a lone raider crawling back towards a gun that was lying not far from him. El immediately recognised him as the raider whom she had shot in the stomach. He must have crawled back whilst she and Cait were distracted by the assaultron. Retrieving her pistol, El sauntered in front of the raider and kicked the idle gun away from his grasp. Rolling onto his back, the raider put his hands up as El and Cait stood over him. “K-kill me, please.” he begged.

“Okay. But not because you told me to.” El said unemotionally as she raised her pistol and fired a bullet into the raider’s head.

The vault was a hard-fought battle for both El and Cait, but, finally, they reached the entrance to the clean room. Stopping to catch their breath, El slowly wandered towards a door and window situated at the far end of the room.

Looking through the thick glass, El noticed a strange looking chair dominating the space. Its look was hardly prepossessing, but there were several additions that made it seem different. Attached to the armrests and the chair's feet were four manacle-like contraptions that gave El slight cause for concern. A second feature were two sets of wires and tubes that wound their way both behind and in front of the chair. The first set wound their way back towards the far wall of the where the chair was positioned. Beyond that point, they disappeared to somewhere El could not see. The second set ran towards the dividing wall where El stood and towards a terminal located to El's right.  

What drew most of El’s attention, however, were two syringes that were positioned towards the top of the chair. The attached needles looked formidable. Whatever, they did, El wasn’t sure she wanted to be on the receiving end of them. The syringes also appeared to be connected to the first set of wires and tubes. All this evidence led El to the conclusion that this was the fabled machine that Cait had told her about. it did exist after all.

El turned behind her to find that Cait was also looking through the window. She looked very composed, but El could see in her eyes that she was deeply troubled. “Well, we didn’t come all this way for nothing.” El said, trying to make conversation.

Shocked back to reality by El’s voice, Cait fumbled a response. “Oh, urr, yeah, we should get on with it.” she said. She tried to sound genuine, but her fidgeting betrayed her words.

Sensing her unease, El walked toward Cait to probe her concern. “Cait, are you alright?” she asked, frowning.

Cait looked at the ground and continued to fidget. “I’m fine. Let’s just get this done.” Despite her words, Cait did not move.

El could tell that something was wrong with Cait; she was distant and awkward. Normally, El would have let Cait come forward with her problems; as she had done with her addiction. But today, she was going to have to force the issue. She didn’t come all this way, and fight her way through an entire vault, for Cait to have second thoughts. “What’s wrong, Cait?” El asked bluntly.

“Nothin’!” Cait snapped, visibly agitated by El’s probing. “I just…It’s just… that…the answer to all my problems is behind that door. I just don’t know whether I should go through with it.” Cait looked away from El, clearly embarrassed by her indecision.

El had to use all the mental strength she had to keep from losing her temper. She was not going to let this go. “Cait, we came all this way. If you don’t do this, you could die.” El implored, trying to remain calm.

“I know! I know!” Cait shouted, evidently exacerbated by the entire situation. “But there were reasons I took the drugs; to dull the pain. There were so many things I wanted to forget. What if I go through that machine and I don’t like what I see? I…I...just…I…I don’t want them to hurt me anymore. I…I…I…I don’t w-want them t-to h-hurt me anymore. I...I...I...” Cait stuttered as she began to cry.

Despite her frustration, El could do nothing but take her friend in her arms and hug her tightly as she wept. With every sob, Cait gripped onto El for dear life as she wailed into her shoulder. Cait’s energy seemed to completely evaporate as she cried because her legs soon buckled, and she started sliding to the ground. Realising this, El caught Cait tightly and slowly lowered the two of them to the floor.

El positioned herself so that Cait was sitting on her lap, her face permanently buried in her shoulder as she wept. All El could do was gently stroke Cait’s smooth wavy hair and whisper calming noises into her ear. Cait seemed completely lost at sea. El figured that, whilst throwing her drugs away must have been hard, coming face to face with the cure would be far more of a test.

Eventually, Cait’s tears subsided, but she continued to mumble incoherently into El’s shoulder. “I d-don’t want them to hurt m-me anymore. I don’t want them to h-hurt me anymore. I-I don’t want th-them to hurt m-me anymore.” Cait repeated over and over, gripping El as tightly as she could.

“They can’t hurt you anymore, Cait. They’re gone and you’re safe. None of this is your fault.” El said soothingly in Cait’s ear as she stroked her hair.

“I don’t want them to hurt me anymore. I don’t want them to hurt me anymore.” Cait continued to mumble.

El then moved her head so she was staring directly at Cait. it was then she saw into Cait’s tearful eyes. They looked exactly the same as when she had found her that dreadful morning; confused and scared. Despite this, El knew that she needed to force Cait to believe her that this ‘cure’ was a good idea. Holding her tightly, El looked deep into Cait’s eyes. “Cait, listen to me. No one is going to hurt you anymore. And do you know why? Because you’re strong. You are so, so strong. You had the courage to speak about your darkest fears, and here you are, trying to fix it.” El said, speaking directly from the heart.

Cait, however, was not convinced. As far as she was concerned, she was only here because El had found out about her addiction and she had nowhere left to hide. “I’m not as strong as you think.” she said despondently.

“But you are, Cait. Believe me, you are. You have survived so much. Any other person would have faltered long before you. But you survived and proved everyone wrong. Curing yourself will prove to all of your tormentors that you are stronger than they are.” El begged as she placed a hand over Cait’s heart. El, was herself trying to hold back tears of her own.

Cait, however, remained unconvinced and El realised that she was fighting a losing battle. Cait just didn’t have the strength to cure herself on her own. Risking everything, El decided to take a gamble. “Cait, if you can’t do it for yourself, do it for me.” El whispered.

Cait processed El’s words as she stared into her eyes. They were glinting that hazel colour that Cait found so mesmerising. El had done so much for her since their first meeting. How could she let her down like this? That was exactly what her parents and former slavers would expect her to do. She was better than that.

Eventually, Cait nodded and El rested her forehead against hers. “Thank you.” El whispered, allowing a solitary tear to slip down her cheek.

They stayed there for a few moments, both women savouring the moment and processing what had just been said. Eventually, however, El raised her head and started moving to her feet. “Come on, let’s finish this. On your feet, soldier.” El said as she took Cait’s hands.

Cait could not help but let out a chuckle as she got to her feet.

El began making her way to the clean room terminal but Cait caught her and wrapped her in a tight hug. Surprised, El placed her hands around Cait’s head and back and smiled. “Thank you.” Cait whispered, sniffling slightly as she spoke.

El was somewhat shocked by how long Cait stayed locked around her waist, but she didn’t mind. Cait clearly needed this and she was happy to oblige.

Cait then abruptly pulled away and took a deep breath. “Okay. I’m gonna sit in the chair. When you’re ready, go ahead and throw the switch.” Cait then began walking towards the clean room’s door.

At the last minute, El grabbed Cait’s hand and Cait turned back to look at her. “I’ll be right here.” El said reassuringly.

Cait nodded, but her attention was focussed more on that El’s hand was locked together with hers. El, however, soon dropped her hand and began walking towards the operations terminal.

Sensing that the time was now, Cait opened the door and stepped into the clean room.

As she stood at the terminal, El watched Cait entre the clean room and sit gingerly in the chair. When she was as comfortable as was possible, Cait gave El a nod.

Taking a deep breath, El set in motion the purge program and pressed ‘ENTER”.

As soon as she pressed the button, El heard a loud clunk as the clean room’s door slammed shut and locked itself. El hadn’t expected this to happen. Looking through the glass, she saw the chair’s manacles clip tightly around Cait's wrists and ankles. As the manacles clamped shut and the thick needles began to move forward, El saw Cait’s eyes flash with fear and panic. She looked completely helpless.

Pain suddenly erupted in Cait’s neck as the needles penetrated her skin and she let out a bloodcurdling scream. El watched Cait’s spine writhe and contort as the needles bored into her body.

Seeing Cait’s pain, El rushed to the door and pressed the keypad. But nothing happened; the door remained closed. El pressed it again, harder. Again, it remained closed. Frantically, pressing the keypad, El hopelessly attempted to open the door and save Cait. But the door remained unmoved.  

Smacking the door in frustration, El frantically returned to the glass and looked at Cait. Peering through, El watched tears stream down Cait’s face as she screamed loudly. Despite her screams, due to the room’s soundproofing, El could hear nothing from behind the glass.

Realising that nothing else would work, El pulled her pistol from its holster and aimed it at the glass. Pulling the trigger, her first round impacted the glass, but went no further. Grunting angrily, El fired a second round that similarly went nowhere. Before long, El had emptied her gun with nothing to show but some bullet holes. “Piece of shit!” El shouted as she put her pistol back in its holster.    

Returning to the glass, El could do nothing but watch as her friend writhed in pain under the stress of the machine she sat inside. Banging her fist on the cracked glass, El yelled forlornly at Cait, wishing for her to hear.

After several minutes, the tubes attached to the needles began filling with a clear liquid that soon passed into Cait’s neck. As soon as the liquid entered Cait’s body, she began to relax.

Watching from behind the glass, El saw Cait’s eyes grow heavy as she slipped into unconsciousness. She needed to get inside, and fast.

Once the required dose of clear liquid had been administered, the machine’s needles retracted from Cait’s neck and she slumped limply in the chair. The interlocking manacles similarly retracted, freeing Cait from her confinement.

A loud clunk signalled to El that the door was unlocked and rushed to the clean room. Upon entering, El knelt in front of Cait and took her head in her hands. “Cait, Cait? Speak to me.” El said, begging for Cait to respond. Cait, however, remained still. “Come on, Cait. Don’t do this. Come on, give me a sign here. Just one word, please.” El begged. Cait remained unresponsive and sat limply in the chair.

Scrambling into her rucksack, El retrieved a stimpak and quickly jabbed it into Cait’s arm. The clear fluid of the stimpak passed into Cait’s body and El bowed her head in exhaustion.

El needed to get Cait out of here. This place was not safe and Cait was in a bad way. Hooking her arms under her back and knees, El picked Cait up bridal style and began her long journey to the vault exit.

Once they were back outside, El set to work. Whilst carrying Cait out of the vault, El had managed to retrieve some rope from one of the many storage crates littering the corridors. Placing Cait gently down on the ground, El unclipped Cait’s sleeping bag and quickly unfurled it. It didn’t even occur to El that Cait hadn’t even used this sleeping bag once since buying it for her. With the sleeping bag unfurled and unzipped, El slipped Cait inside and zipped the bag back up. El then wrapped the rope around the sleeping bag and tied it around her shoulders. “This is not going to be a comfortable trip back” El thought to herself.

With Cait secure, El prepared for the long journey back. As she took one last look at Vault 95’s cave entrance, El reached into her pocket and retrieved a lighter. Striking it into life, El threw in onto a wet patch of dead grass and a small flame began working its way towards the vault.

Suddenly, a huge explosion rocked the cave’s rock face and the vault entrance was permanently locked under a wall of rock, rubble, and concrete.

With the vault entrance sealed, El set off on her return journey to Sanctuary, dragging an unconscious Cait behind her. Whether or not this machine worked, El made sure that no one ever entered Vault 95 again.      

Chapter Text

Cait’s eyes flickered open to what she considered to be another planet. Adjusting to the light, Cait’s eyes darted around her surroundings, trying to work out where she was. From what she remembered, it looked like her room in El’s house. But, in many ways, it just wasn’t; the colours were so vibrant; the smells were so much more potent; sounds were so much clearer than before. Where was she?

The last thing she remembered was going to Vault 95 to cure her Psycho addiction. Everything after that was blank. If that was the case, how did she get back to El’s house? Adding to her confusion, when attempting to move her limbs, Cait realised that she was lying back in her bed. Running her hands over the bed’s sheets, Cait was shocked at how soft they were. Despite sleeping in this bed before, the sensation was completely new for her. Why did everything she saw, smelt, and touched, feel so much more lifelike?

Among the new vibrant sounds in Cait’s ears was the low rising and falling of someone’s breath. Turning her head, Cait was delighted to see El sitting in a chair across the room from her. Her head was bowed, and her body was slumped slightly forward, indicating to Cait that she was asleep. El was wearing her signature vault suit half undone and a white vest covering up her pronounced chest. On her lap sat an open book and on the floor beside her were a pile of dirty dishes. How long had El been sitting there?       

“E-El?” Cait croaked, her throat feeling very dry as she spoke.

El remained unmoved on her chair.

“El?” Cait asked again, this time louder.

El inhaled sharply and raised her head, wiping the sleep from her eyes. Looking towards the bed, El gave a beaming, but dopey smile as she saw that Cait had awoken. “Cait, you're finally awake.” El said, immediately getting off her chair and moving to sit on the bed next to Cait. “How are you feeling?”

Still attempting to work out everything in her head, Cait did her best at answering. “I…I…I’m not sure. Everythin’ feels so…different; colours, sounds, smells. It’s like nothin’ I can remember.”

“But, do you think the machine worked? What about the cravings?” El asked, leaning in further, her face awash with concern.

Cait thought for a few moments and then her eyes widened in shock. “I…I…I don’t feel anythin’. The cravings, the rush, everythin’, i-it’s gone.” At this realisation, tears started to well up in Cait’s eyes. She couldn’t believe it. “I-it worked. Was I really that far gone?” Cait asked, trying not to break down in tears of joy.

Sensing her friend’s delight, El smiled and placed a hand on Cait’s cheek. “I’m just glad you’re alright. I was worried about you.”

El was going to speak further but was interrupted by the arrival of Codsworth. Floating into the room, his three eyestalks fluttered slightly as he saw that both El and Cait were awake. “Ah, Miss Cait. You’re finally awake. Might I ask if you and Miss Eloise will be partaking in some breakfast this morning?” he said in his characteristically chirpy voice.

“That sounds great, Codsworth. We’ll be out in a bit.” El said, turning to the spherical robot.

“Wonderful, Mum. I shall make preparations. You should know, Miss Cait, that Miss Eloise has hardly left your bedside since your return.” Codsworth said obliviously.

Rolling her eyes and sighing in frustration, El turned her head to Cosdworth and attempted to usher him out of the room. “Yes, thank you, Codsworth. I said we will be out in a bit.” El said, wanting to chastise him for his gossip.

Codsworth moved towards the door, but suddenly veered right to collect the pile of plates next to El’s chair. “And Mum, it is not normally my place, but I must insist that you take a shower. You have not washed, or changed your clothes, in over two days.” Codsworth said as he passed El.

Visibly annoyed by his prying, El, once again, turned her head to face Codsworth. “Yes, thank you, Codsowrth.” she said, insinuating for the robot to leave.

Oblivious to El’s reprimand, Codsworth floated to the doorway and exited down the corridor. At last, El and Cait were left in peace.

El sighed contentedly. At last, they were alone. “Right, now that he’s gone, why don’t we get you-.” El turned her head and was stopped in her words by Cait staring at her, a look of shock on her face. She had clearly been listening to every word of that exchange.

“H-have I really been out for two days?” Cait asked, trying to piece the events of the last few days together.

El’s cheeks went slightly red and she bowed her head slightly. “Yes. Well, if you count the day that we went to Vault 95, it was three days.”

Cait immediately sat up in her bed, wanting to know everything. “B-but how did I get here?” she implored.

To stop her spiralling, El caught Cait and gently lowered her back onto her pillow. “Shh, shh, Cait. Just slow down.” El said as she readjusted the covers over Cait’s restless body. El then took a deep breath and began. “When you came out of the machine in Vault 95, you were completely out cold. I tried to bring you back to consciousness, but you were too far gone. I knew that I to get you somewhere safe. I was so worried about you that the only place I could think of was here. So, I dragged you back here, literally.” El’s eyes looked down slightly. She looked almost embarrassed as she spoke. This was a new emotion for El; Cait had never seen El embarrassed before.

Stunned by El's revelations, Cait immediately moved to open her mouth. She was, however, quickly interrupted by El. “Cait, I’ll talk more over some breakfast. You must be starving.” El placed a hand back on Cait’s cheek and tucked several strands of loose hair behind her ear. “I’ll give you a few minutes.” El then got up from the bed and made her way out of Cait’s room, towards to kitchen.

Cait believed that her head would explode with all the thoughts buzzing around her mind. She couldn’t believe it; she was finally free. For the first time in eight years, she had finally rid herself of the addiction that was slowly eating her alive. So, this what sobriety felt like? Cait had almost forgotten what that felt like. Cait could have cried; she was so happy. And the person beside her the entire way was El.

Cait’s mind was suddenly awash with thoughts of El and everything she had done for her. El had found her after her overdose and comforted her as she bore her soul. El had then put aside all her plans to get Cait the help she needed. When Cait had second thoughts, El was the one who took her in her arms and drove her forward. And when Cait was left unconscious from the procedure, El had literally dragged her to safety and sat by her bedside for two days. It was in this moment that Cait decided El could be only one thing; a superhero. That was what heroes did, wasn’t it?

Pangs of guilt began to enter Cait’s thoughts as she contemplated this phenomenon. El had done so much for her in their time together. Yet, throughout everything, the Castle, her addiction, Vault 95, she had never asked for anything in return. That didn’t sit well with Cait, she just couldn’t accept it.

But as Cait thought, a feeling of hope began to swell inside her. Now that she free, maybe, she could find a way to help repay her debt. Maybe she could help El with the teleporter? El would hopefully be grateful for any help Cait could give.

“Cait, breakfast is ready!” El’s shouting from down the corridor brought Cait back to the real world. Gently manoeuvring her legs out from under the covers, Cait was stunned to find she was, once again, wearing the baggy set of pyjamas that El had given her. “Great.” Cait thought to herself. Now El was letting her wear her clothes.

Accepting that El would probably just let her keep them, Cait sighed and made her way out of her bedroom. Upon entering the living and kitchen area, she was greeted by El sitting at the dining table with Codsworth setting the places. “Cait, come on through.” El beamed with a smile as Cait came into view.

Cait’s cheeks went bright pink as she slowly approached the table. Codsworth then floated over and laid a place mat for her. “Ah, Miss Cait. So glad you could join us. Do have a seat.” he said, pulling a chair out for Cait. Apprehensively, Cait sat down and looked across to a beaming El. She was giving her the happiest smile that Cait had ever seen.

With her cheeks going pink, Cait bowed her head bashfully as Codsworth dished out a healthy portion of Brahmin steak and Mirelurk omelette onto her plate. “Bon appetite, ladies.” Codsworth said, bowing his middle eyestalk.

“Thank you, Codsworth.” El said, looking at the delicious meal in front of her. She then looked up and gestured her hand to Cait’s plate. “Dig in.” she said, smiling.

“Be careful, Cait. If these chemicals aren’t mixed properly, we’re going to end up with bad prints.” El said as she watched.

“I got it. I won’t mess it up.” Cait replied as she tried to concentrate.

El held her hands up in defence. “Alright, I’m just making sure.” she said playfully as Cait carefully poured and mixed the required chemicals. El chuckled slightly as she watched; Cait always pulled an adorably silly face when she was trying to concentrate.

After having breakfast, it was decided that Cait should have a day to regain her strength. To that end, El had suggested that Cait take a shower before her. After everything she had been through, El surmised that Cait deserved to wash first. The shower was absolutely heavenly. After so many years of addiction, the sensation of the warm water made Cait feel like a new woman. Once finished, Cait exited the bathroom and El took her place.

Once they were both washed and dressed, El insisted that she brush Cait’s hair. Much against Cait’s objections, El brushed Cait’s matted hair until it was silky smooth and glowing. Whilst Cait got frustrated at how long it took, she did appreciate how it made her hair feel.

After watching a couple of movies, in which Cait seemed close to wetting himself with excitement, El had suggested they develop the photographs they had taken that evening in El’s house. As that was the day that Cait really got to know El, she accepted the idea happily.

El had chosen the laundry room as the best place to develop the film. It was a bit cramped, which seemed to speed up Cait’s heart rate somewhat, but its lack of windows would ensure better quality prints.

Once the chemical had been properly mixed, El opened the camera and removed the roll of film for development. “Okay, now that that’s all prepared, we need to turn the lights off and switch over to red light. That will stop us getting overexposed photographs.” El said carefully as she flicked the light switch.

As the small cramped room was plunged into darkness, Cait’s breath hitched and her heartbeat increased dramatically. She was now standing in a small dark room with El standing so close to her.

Fumbling slightly along the wall, El eventually found the right switch and ignited a set of Christmas lights that illuminated the room in a red glow. Despite not having a proper red light, these would suffice. Thank Codsworth for finding them. Looking over to Cait, El grew concerned as she saw a nervous look on her face. “Cait?” El asked, frowning slightly.

Returning to reality, Cait looked up at El. She was completely unaware of El’s concern.

“Cait, is everything alright. You look very nervous. We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I just thought that you would enjoy it.” El said, showing genuine worry a she spoke.

“No, I’m fine.” Cait blurted. “i-I want to do this.” Cait gave an awkward toothless smile and turned to look at the developing equipment. Happily, the red light did a good job at masking the blush growing on her cheeks.

The developing process was a long and fiddly process, but El talked Cait through everything. Cait appeared to find it really interesting, but the main focus of her attention was not on the film, but on El. When she was not following El’s instructions, Cait would momentarily glance up at her friend and admire her features; her eyes; her nose; her mouth; her ears; her hair; her neck; her chest; her arms; her hands; the sound of her voice. She was just mesmerising.

“Okay, now we wait for the photo to develop on the paper.” El said, leaning in slightly to observe this key stage of the process. Returning to the matter at hand, Cait similarly leaned closer to watch the paper sink beneath the chemicals.

Slowly, and to Cait’s wide eyed astonishment, two forms started appearing on the submerged paper. As Cait watched intently, features began to give the forms life. Before long, Cait saw her and El’s faces materialise on the paper, as if by magic. It was the picture that El had taken when she had put her arm around Cait’s shoulder, when Cait had started to believe that El was her friend. Cait looked at the picture and her mouth opened slightly; she was staring at an image of herself; as if she was frozen in time.

With the photograph sufficiently developed, El carefully lowered a small pair of tweezers into the chemicals and slowly pulled the picture out. She then pegged it to a line of string that hung across the room. Letting out a contented sigh, El put an arm around Cait’s shoulders and smiled. “There, your first developed photo.” El said, looking between Cait and the hanging photograph. “We can let this one dry while we develop some more.”

Over the next few hours, the line of pegs became filled with newly developed photographs. As El clipped the last one onto the line, she unclipped the first one they had made and presented it to Cait. “Here, take this one. It should be dry enough.” El said, handing Cait the photograph.

Taking the photograph, Cait smiled happily and looked up at El. “T-thank you.” she stuttered. “I’ve never had anythin' like this before.” Cait could not stop looking at the picture in her hands.

El chuckled heartily, deeply touched by Cait’s sentiment. “It’s my pleasure, Cait.” El then groaned slightly and rubbed her eyes. “God, all these hours under red light is making my eyes hurt.” Turning away from Cait, El partially opened the laundry door to allow some natural light inside.

With El’s back turned, Cait examined the other photographs hanging along the line of string. Amongst them, one photograph in particular caught her attention. Cait immediately recognised it as the picture she had taken of El when she had given her the camera. Sensing her chance, Cait silently unhooked the photograph from its pegs and covertly placed it under print that El had given her.

“Ah, some things never change.” El said, rubbing her eyes. Peering out into the hallway, El noticed the dwindling sunlight coming through the windows. She had been so preoccupied with showing Cait photo development, she had completely lost track of time. Inhaling deeply through her nose, El sensed delicious smells emanating from the kitchen. Codsworth must be cooking her and Cait up a delectable meal. Returning to her laundry room, El turned to Cait. “I think it’s getting late. Do you fancy getting something to eat? I think Codsworth is cooking us up a delicious smelling meal.”

Right on cue, Cait’s stomach gave a low rumble. Ever since freeing herself of her addiction, Cait’s appetite had increased exponentially. “Yeah, I’m fuckin’ starvin’.” she said cheerfully.

Opening the door fully, and turning the red lights off, El stood in the corridor and courteously gestured her arm for Cait to exit. “Come on then. Let’s see what Codsworth had cooked up for us.”

Shuffling past El, Cait hugged her new photographs to her chest as she exited the dark cramped laundry room. For the first time in her life, barring comic books, Cait had something in her hands that she could treasure.

That night, Cait lay in bed, unable to sleep. Ever since retiring for the night, Cait had been laid in bed staring at her photographs. She must have been staring at them for hours, but she couldn’t take her eyes away. Every time she looked them over, a new feature would present itself and Cait would stare until it was etched into her memory.

However, whilst she examined both photos, the vast majority of her attention was directed towards El’s portrait. Cait couldn’t help but lose herself in El’s portrait; every feature of her face and body was just enchanting. Cait had never seen anything so beautiful in her life. Ever since El had saved her life twice and freed her of her Psycho addiction, Cait had seen El in a completely new light. Yes, she still saw El as a hot piece of eye candy. But, now, there was something more. Cait didn’t just see El for her body, she saw El as some kind of superhero who saved helpless people without any thought to themselves.   

Even when portrayed as a black and white photo, El’s features appeared to leap out and bewitch Cait. Her glinting hazel eyes that bored into her soul. The lips around her captivating smile that longed to be kissed. Her smooth flowing hair that Cait yearned to run her fingers through. Her large plump breasts that ached to be held and suckled. Cait wanted nothing more than to disappear into the picture and give El the love she so desperately needed.

Cait’s mind suddenly flashed back to something that had happened earlier that day. Whilst El had gone for a shower, Cait had sat on her bed drying her hair. The entrance to her room was partially open, so she could hear the sound of water from behind the bathroom door. It was then that Cait started to wonder what was going on behind that door. What did El look like under her clothes? Were her breasts and arse as juicy in the flesh as they were from within her vault suit; Cait believed that they must be. Did El ever touch herself. If Cait had a body like El’s, she would find any excuse to touch herself. Did El ever think about her when she touched herself? By the time El was done, Cait was rocking back and forth on her bed, a hot bubbling mess, and her underwear completely soaked.

As Cait reminisced about these sensuous thoughts, her left hand began to slowly unbutton her pyjama shirt. Similarly, dropping her photographs, her right slipped under her pyjama bottoms. Cait’s breath hitched as her fingers gently ran over the thick patch of hair between her legs.

With the last of her shirt buttons undone, Cait gently cupped her large plump right breast and pinched its erect nipple between her thumb and forefinger. At almost the same time, Cait’s right forefinger made contact with her clit and she moaned loudly.

As Cait kneaded her breast and aching nipples, and massaged her increasingly engorged clit, ripples of warm pleasure reverberated throughout her body. The pleasure was so much that Cait had to bite her lip to stop from moaning too loudly. That was, however, far easier said than done.

Basking in her pleasure, with every stroke, the pressure inside Cait’s core continued to build.

El sat on her bed with her back resting against the headboard; quietly immersed in the book sitting on her lap. Reading always allowed El to unwind after a long day. After finishing her chapter, El closed the book and placed it on her bedside table. She then closed her eyes and surrendered to her thoughts.

A plethora of thoughts began to run through El’s mind: Sanctuary, The Minutmen, the teleporter, The Institute, Vault 95, Cait…Cait.

El opened her eyes and frowned to herself; why did her mind suddenly fixate on Cait? Turning her head back to her bedside table, El’s eyes fell on two photographs sitting in front of her book. El collected the two photographs and examined them intently.

The first photograph was of El and Cait, that night in Diamond City, when Cait had told El about her past. Looking at the print, El saw her arm lovingly wrapped around Cait’s shoulder. El couldn’t help but smile; the two of them just looked so natural together. Cait looked so shy in the that photo, but, El had to admit, Cait looked extremely adorable when she was shy.

Swapping the photos, El’s inhaled sharply as she beheld the portrait she had taken of Cait when first introducing her to a camera. Despite it being in black and white, El stared into those deep green eyes and thought back to how helpless Cait seemed that evening. El began to think about how far Cait had come in their time together. When they had first met, Cait looked so sad and scared; ready to give up on life. But now, she had faced her fears and proved to every one of her tormenters that she was stronger than them. El couldn’t help but smile at everything Cait had achieved.

As El smiled, her eyes began to drift to some of Cait’s other features; her fiery red hair that appeared to glow in the daylight; her porcelain white cheeks that blushed bright pink when Cait was embarrassed or flustered; her adorable freckles; her bright red lips; her slender neck; her round plump breasts that looked close to bursting out of her tight leather corset. Cait was simply enchanting.

El’s mind suddenly went back to that dreadful morning when she had found Cait soaked in her own blood, vomit, and urine. At the time, her thoughts were on far more important things, but, tonight, she thought back to when she got Cait out of her dirty clothes. Focussing her memory as best she could, El remembered Cait’s supple body: how her breasts tumbled and bounced slightly when she unbuttoned her corset; her perfectly cemetrical arse that hugged every pair of trousers she wore; her perfectly flat stomach; her porcelain white skin; the thick patch of dark red hair that surrounded her vagina. As memories flooded back into her mind, El closed her eyes and she sighed contentedly.

Adjusting her position so she was lying down, El suddenly noticed an odd feeling coming from her chest. Opening her eyes, El looked down to find her nipples were poking through the vest she was wearing; they were as hard as bullets. Sensing another odd feeling, El lowered her hand to her pyjama shorts to find a large damp patch between her legs. As her fingers ran over the damp area her breath hitched, and she moaned contentedly. Biting her finger to stifle her moan, El chuckled playfully as she remembered how good this sensation felt.

Slipping her vest off, El’s large round breasts tumbled down and she cupped them gently in her hands. It felt good to massage her desirable breasts, and her sensitive aching nipples, after so long.

Realising that she needed more, El’s pyjama shorts soon joined her vest and she lay on her bed, completely naked. With nothing holding her back, El’s fingers immediately drifted down to her already wet and engorged clit. Stroking the patch of brown pubic hair between her legs, El bit her lip again to keep from giggling too much. Nate had always liked it when El didn’t shave down there; but that made her incredibly ticklish when he attempted to pleasure her. As her hand reached her clit, El’s hips bucked slightly and she began to move it around in a slow, but deeply pleasurable, circular motion; humming contentedly as she simultaneously pinched her aching nipples.

Hot waves of pleasure ripped through El’s body and she moaned loudly, unable to contain her arousal. Images of Cait’s beautiful body drove her pleasurable strokes further. How El longed to claim those lips for herself and show Cait what true love was. How she dreamed of cupping Cait’s delectable breasts and sucking her nipples until they were red and sore. How she yearned to dive between Cait’s legs and taste the nectar that, she believed, oozed from deep within her sex.

All of these thoughts and feelings only built the pressure inside El’s core and she could tell that she was getting close. El’s breath was becoming faster and heavier; she didn’t know much longer she had. Intensifying her desire, El began pinching her erect nipples harder and she almost yelled with pleasure. She was slightly shocked at how sensitive her nipples were by this point; she wasn’t complaining, but they almost felt a little too sensitive. Returning to the task at hand, El just put it down to her level of arousal.

Suddenly, the damn broke and a tidal wave of pleasure erupted from within her core and quickly engulfed her entire body. Breathing heavily, El’s body shook violently as she rode out her orgasm. She had to use every ounce of her remaining brain power to keep from yelling.   

Cait needed more; whilst rubbing her clit, and massaging her breasts, was enjoyable, it wasn’t giving her enough of the pleasure she needed. Taking a deep breath, Cait moved her hand down passed her engorged clit and slowly slipped her middle finger inside her slick pussy. As she began sliding her finger in and out, Cait’s back twisted and contorted with pleasure. Simultaneously pinching her stiff nipples harder, Cait growled a throaty moan; the pleasure she was feeling was insatiable.   

But it still wasn’t enough, her actions just weren’t sufficient to quench the feelings of desire flowing through her mind. Cait could just imagine everything on El’s body that she yearned to claim as her own; her unirradiated lips; her smooth brown hair; her large full breasts; her juicy arse; her illusive and intoxicating pussy. Cait’s longing for all these things only made her desire worse.

With only one thing left to do, Cait’s ring finger soon joined her other inside her slick pussy. Simultaneously, Cait began to rub the palm of her hand over her swollen clit, moaning incessantly with every stroke. Now, heat started to quickly build inside Cait’s core, and her control started slipping away fast. Thick beads of sweat ran down Cait’s face and her breath was becoming unnaturally fast; the pressure was beginning to boil over.

Suddenly, warmth engulfed Cait’s body and she violently rocked back and forth. Knocking her head back, and panting heavily, Cait’s eyes began to roll behind their sockets as she rode out her orgasm. Cait lay there for several minutes, basking in the slowly diminishing waves of pleasure that reverberated through her body.

Once the last of her orgasm had ebbed away, Cait’s breath returned to normal and she slowly buttoned her pyjamas back up. But something was wrong, despite the waves of pleasure ebbing from her body, there remained an odd tugging sensation in her chest and stomach.

Cait had experienced this feeling before. She had first noticed it when El comforted her about her Psycho addiction. She remembered that the feeling made her happy, but very confused. This feeling was unfamiliar to Cait, it only ever occurred when she was close to, or thinking about El, and it left her unsure of what it meant. Now, however, the tugging feeling had grown so strong that it was almost painful.

With fear and confusion flooding into her mind, Cait closed her eyes and quietly hugged herself. Cait didn’t know what to do; this feeling was so strong and nothing she thought of could shake it. Cait was so confused, and that confusion made her sad.

Normally, Cait would have trampled these feelings under a wall of Psycho. But, now that her addiction was gone, for better or worse, Cait was forced to face these feelings head on. Whilst she was happy to be drug free, nothing prepared her for how strong these sensations would be. Maybe she should tell El about it; maybe she could help her make sense of it? But Cait didn’t know what El would think of her if she did. El would probably think that Cait was being silly; and anyway, Cait’s feelings were coming from El in the first place. So how would telling her make things any better?

With her head ready to split open, Cait sat up quickly and reached down to her backpack, pulling out a bottle of whiskey. Cait had quietly swiped the bottle from El’s liquor cabinet and stealthily placed it in her rucksack. Cait had never seen El drink before, so one bottle of whisky would probably not be missed. Unscrewing the cap, Cait immediately placed her lips around the top and took a long swig. If this didn’t dampen her emotions, Cait didn’t know what would. Before long, Cait had consumed just over a third of the bottle’s contents.

Noticing her eyelids growing heavier, Cait dopily screwed the cap back on the bottle and placed it on the small table next to her bed. Turning onto her side, Cait brought the covers over her and allowed her eyelids to slowly close. As she curled up in bed, she hoped, beyond hope, that her strange feelings surrounding El would go away. In one last action before sleep consumed her, Cait found her two photographs and hugged them tightly to her chest.  

El lay spread out naked on her bed, panting heavily, basking in the warming glow of her orgasm. El had not felt this alive since the bombs fell and she absolutely loved it. As her breath and heart rate returned to a steady beat, El closed her eyes and chuckled happily to herself; feeling like a woman for the first time in over two-hundred years.

Whilst continuing to gently massage her breast, El suddenly felt a strange wet sensation on her right hand. Frowning, El opened her eyes and took her hand off her plump breast. To her surprise, there were odd liquid droplets peppering her fingers. The liquid was mostly clear but had a slightly white colour to it. El was immediately confused at this development. Following her orgasm, El’s left hand had been covered in the slick discharge of her pussy, but her right hand had remained firmly clamped on her breast. Why then were her fingers wet?

Apprehensively, El brought her right hand to her mouth and tasted the liquid. To her surprise, it tasted sweet…very sweet. Looking down, El was stunned to find the same liquid slowly dripping down her nipple and onto her stomach. Curiosity suddenly turned to immense shock as El realised what the mysterious liquid was; it was…milk.

Traumatising images of Shaun and Nate suddenly flooded into El’s mind; thoughts of her life before the bombs; memories of loving Nate; loving Shaun; of caring for him; nursing him. In all her time since thawing out, El had not even considered that, even after two-hundred years of cryostasis, her body would behave like nothing had happened. Even without her baby, she was still a nursing mother.

As El tried to contemplate what she had just done, the feelings of pleasure that had enthralled her supple body instantly turned to ones of guilt and self-loathing. How could she have done something so selfish? Her husband had been murdered, and her infant son stolen away; and here she was, lusting after an abused and vulnerable woman who had simply needed her help. 

Quickly turning her bedside lamp off, El curled herself up on her bed and, in shame, covered her breasts with her arms. Turning onto her side, El began to cry, convinced that the eyes of her dead friends and relatives were watching her in abject disgust.

“I’m s-sorry, Nate.” El whispered, through floods of tears. “I-I’m s-so sorry. I-I didn’t m-mean to. P-p-please forgive me."

But no answer came and El was left alone, naked in the dark, with only her tears. El cried herself to sleep that night, deep down, hating herself.  

Chapter Text

“Could you pass the pliers?” El asked one of the minutemen as she sat at the workbench, her face scrunched up in concentration.

“Yes ma’am.” the minuteman said as he passed the pair of pliers lying just beyond El’s reach.

“Thanks.” El said, smiling slightly before returning to her work.

In the days after her return from Vault 95, El had been working as hard as she could to make progress on the teleporter. Whilst Sturges and some of the minutemen crew were happy with doing the heavy lifting, El sat at a workstation assembling parts and working the multitude of electrics that would be required to power the machine. El, obviously, helped with the construction when she could, but she was far more contented managing the teleporter’s internal operations.

El enjoyed this kind of work. It wasn’t the most glamorous part of the job, but it was necessary and kept her hands, and mind, occupied. Because, when she wasn’t working, El was thinking about a certain redhead whom had just thrown a giant spanner into her life.

A loud metallic clank jolted El away from her concentration and she looked up. At the other end of the workstation, El saw Cait hammering out a large piece of metal. In attempting to find ways of repaying El for her kindness, Cait had enquired about helping with the build. Graciously, Cait had accepted the job of shaping the metal frame for the teleportation pad. As someone well acquainted with the art of using brute force, Cait took to it like a duck to water.

El watched Cait as she stood back from her workbench to wipe her brow. Cait was absolutely soaked with sweat and rays of sunlight beamed off her glimmering skin. Shrugging her shoulders as she exhaled deeply, thick beads of sweat ran down her face and neck towards the glistening cleavage.

Watching Cait intently, El was finding it increasingly difficult to bring her eyes away. Cait had changed so much since their first meeting. Ever since kicking her addiction, Cait stood slightly taller than before, and she had put on weight. She still had a very slender figure, but her face looked slightly fuller than before. Observing all these changes, El could do nothing but reminisce about that night; when Cait had made El feel so happy and alive. How El’s body rippled with the pleasurable thoughts of caressing Cait’s delectable figure.

El almost jumped out of her skin as she heard something clatter onto her workbench. Looking down, El found that, in her gormless ogling, her pair of pliers had slipped from her hands.

“El?” a voice called out from across her workbench. Looking up, El was startled to find Cait standing in front of her, a look of deep concern plastered across her sweaty face.

“Are you okay?” Cait asked. “you were starin’ into space and then you dropped your pliers.”

“Oh, urrr, yes, sorry, I was worlds away.” El stuttered as she looked down and quickly collected her pliers. She was desperately trying to hide the blush spreading across her cheeks.

Owing to their history together, Cait was not convinced by El’s explanation. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look a bit-.”

“I said I’m fine, Cait!” El snapped as she looked back up at Cait..

Standing back slightly, Cait was right to feel insulted. “Alright, fine! Was only tryin’ to be nice.” Cait huffed as she began to turn away.

Immediately Regretting her words, El tried forlornly to retrieve the situation. “C-Cait, I-.” El tried to say. But Cait was already gone and returned to hammering out the piece of metal on her workbench; considerably harder than before.

El bowed her head and closed her eyes, cursing silently under her breath. Scrunching up her face in frustration, El did everything she could to fight off tears. Why did she say that? Why did she have to be so awkward?

El was unsure why she had been so crotchety the past week. Over the past few nights, El’s stomach had been feeling off; a feeling she was quick to put down to indigestion. However, most of the time, El had been too afraid to sleep. Ever since masturbating to images of Cait, El would lay curled up in bed, sobbing as imaginary phantoms of her former friends and relatives judged and scowled at her in disgust. Every time El thought about Cait, the guilt-ridden phantoms of her past would force her to shamefully cover the private parts of her body. El felt like a sinner who was being punished for her infidelities.

Eventually, El couldn’t take anymore and she threw her pliers onto the workbench. Standing up, El began walking aimlessly down the street. She had no idea where she was going, but she just needed to get away and clear her head.

El had just made it passed her house when she heard footsteps approaching quickly behind her. “El, where you goin'?” Cait’s voice called from behind her.

El wasn’t really sure how to answer. “I’m just going…for a walk.” she said without turning around.

“A-Are you comin’ back?” Cait asked worriedly.

El took a deep breath before replying. “Yeah…I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Oh…Okay.” Cait said feebly, bowing her head in embarrassment.

Sensing Cait’s embarrassment, El finally turned around and looked her in the eye. “I, I’m sorry I snapped at you, Cait. That wasn’t fair. I just…haven’t been sleeping well the past few nights.” El then put a hand on Cait’s shoulder and forced herself to smile. “But, don’t worry, I’ll be back in a bit. I just need to clear my head. Keep an eye out.”

Cait lowered her eyes and nodded, understanding El’s troubles all too well. There had been many occasions where Cait needed to go off and clear her head for whatever reason.

Taking her hand off Cait’s shoulder, El turned around and continued wandering aimlessly down the road. There was no plan, she just let her feet and mind drift her away.

Cait watched El walk away aimlessly down the dusty street and her face dropped in sadness. Another chance to talk to El had been shot down. Sighing solemnly to herself, Cait turned back around and made her way back to her workstation.

Cait desperately needed to talk to El, but, for the past week, El had been very distant. Ever since Cait had orgasmed to fantasies of her, El had been acting so awkward around her. She hardly ever looked her in the eye. She never wanted to watch movies with her; and she always seemed to be tired. Most of all, El’s hazel eyes never had that mesmerising glint in them. Cait could only wonder if this was all her fault. Did El know that Cait had masturbated to fantasies of her?

Cait shook her head in a feeble attempt to shake her thoughts as she returned to her workbench.

Resuming her work, Cait tried to concentrate. But, no matter how hard she swung her hammer, she could not shake the thoughts in her head. She needed to tell El something; tell her about her feelings; the strange tugging sensation in her chest and stomach; and whether El felt the same.

But, Cait could not find the courage to speak. What if El didn’t feel the same way? What if it made her angry? What if El said that Cait was being stupid? What if El never came back?

Violently shaking her head again, Cait stepped back from her workbench to keep from spiralling any further. It was then that she observed that everyone was staring at her. “The fuck you all starin’ at?” Cait demanded, a deep scowl on her face.

Noticing that their eyes moved quickly to the workbench behind her, Cait turned to find the piece of metal she had been working bent completely out of shape. Looking back at the onlookers, Cait’s cheeks flashed red with embarrassment. “Piece of shit!” Cait grumbled to herself.

Throwing her hammer onto the bent piece of metal, Cait stormed off behind one of the empty houses; her head bowed and hugging herself to hide her embarrassment. Resting her back against the house’s outer wall, Cait slowly slid down onto the petrified grass and hugged her knees to her chest. Cait wanted to talk to El so much. Whenever Cait had a problem, El was always there to offer advice and support. But, now, El was the problem. With her eyes welling up, Cait buried her face in her knees; her mind ready to explode.

El did not know why she would want to return here. Vault 111 only held memories of pain and loss in El’s mind. But, with all that had happened in the past week, El needed to come here, if anything, to explain herself.

So, here she was, kneeling alone on the cold damp floor, with the frozen corpse of her late husband in front of her. It was incredibly hard for El to look at Nate’s corpse without breaking down in tears. But she needed to remain strong as she said her piece.

“Hi Nate.” El began after taking a deep breath. “I-It’s been a while. Well, two-hundred years to be more precise.” El chuckled to herself in a vain attempt to lighten the mood. But, after looking up at Nate’s motionless corpse, El quickly returned to the matter at hand. “It’s all been a bit of a whirlwind since I thawed out, if I’m honest. This world is unlike anything I could ever imagine. It’s both truly awful, yet full of hope. I also have some friends; at least, I would call them friends…”

Eventually, El sighed; this small talk wasn’t getting her anywhere. Taking a deep breath, El readied herself for what came next. “Nate…I need to say it…I…I…I’ve met someone. I’m not sure what you would make of her, but I think you would like her. She’s very sweet once you get to know her. Her name is Cait. I met her in a cage fight, if you can believe that.” El chuckled at those words; she could almost hear Nate laughing at the silliness of El’s story. Nate always saw the humorous side of El’s escapades.

Eventually, El’s smile dropped; she couldn’t hold back anymore. “I’ve known her for a while now, and she’s…she’s…she’s amazing! She’s fierce, strong, sweet, and…and…pretty. She’s…just…so…pretty. I hardly noticed it at first, but, now, I can’t help but admire her. She has come so far since we met.” El’s waterlogged eyes were now close to breaking and she bowed her head in shame. Although her breasts were covered by her vault suit, El also clasped her hands over them; as if to appear modest. “But, last week, I…I was thinking about her in bed and I…I…I…t-touched myself.”

At those words, El’s immediately spiralled and she began to panic. “P-please believe me, Nate. I-I-I d-didn’t mean to! Please, please forgive me! It’s just that, ever since thawing out, it’s been so…lonely; and Cait just makes me feel so…so…alive! I…I can’t explain it, she just makes me feel so happy, so free, so…loved.” As she spoke, El hugged her arms to her chest, imagining they were Cait’s arms. She longed so much for Cait to hold her tight. “I just…want her so much; but not just her body; I want to hold her, comfort her, care for her, make her happy.”

El needed to stop herself from talking further. If she spoke anymore, El was sure that she would crack under the pressure. El needed to calm down and return to her original problem. “The thing is, Nate, I don’t know what to do. I want to tell her how I feel, but I don’t know whether she feels the same way about me. What if I tell her and I scare her off? Then I’ll truly be alone.” El closed her eyes and let a solitary tear stream down her cheek. “Part of me is also terrified that, if I do tell her, I would be betraying you and Shaun. Yes, you died years ago, but, for me, it only feels like yesterday. But, after everything I've done for Cait, I feel bound to her. Does this make me a bad person; for wanting to…move on?”

Looking back up at Nate’s body, El wanted nothing more than some sage advice that would set her mind at ease. But not reply came and El stared at nothing but an unmoving corpse. At this point, the damn broke and El could not contain herself anymore. “FOR FUCK SAKE, NATE! SAY SOMETHING, ANYTHING! JUST TELL ME WHAT TO DO!”

Tears flowed freely down El’s cheeks and she bowed her head to the floor as she wailed. Despite being alone, El didn’t care if anyone heard her. As she wept, El half expected some divine entity to smite her for her adulterous thoughts. If anyone deserved damnation, it was her. As far as El was concerned, in the relatively short time since thawing out, she had abandoned her husband and son for a vulnerable woman still trying to find her place in the Commonwealth.

But no damnation came and El, once again, found herself alone in this cold, dark vault. El had no idea how long she had been kneeling there, but, eventually, El had no more tears left to cry. Looking up again at Nate’s cold unfeeling body, El’s face hardened and she got to her feet.

Taking a deep but shaky breath, El stood at full height and made her decision. “Nate, I love you. I always have, and I always will. But, you’re gone, and Cait needs me.” Taking another deep breath, El closed her eyes. “And I need her. And if I lose Cait as a result, that is something I will need to face myself.” El knew that, now, there was no turning back.

El began to walk away slowly from the cryochamber, keeping her head high to symbolise her decisiveness. However, after taking a few steps, she looked back at Nate’s cryopod and took a deep breath. “I will find Shaun. I promise you that. And when I find him, I will give you the burial you deserve.” El said commandingly.

With her declaration, El left Vault 111, for the first time in weeks, knowing exactly what she was going to do.

El emerged from Vault 111 and surveyed the landscape in front of her. The sun was, by this point in the day, dwindling low in the sky; signalling that evening was fast approaching. El frowned at what she had been doing. “How long was I down there?” she thought to herself. Realising that it was probably best not to dwell, El turned away and descended the hill back to Sanctuary.

As El reached the teleporter workshop, El looked around the minutemen packing their tools away for the evening. Despite looking around, Cait was nowhere to be seen. “Hey, guys?” El asked slightly shyly. “H-have any of you seen Cait around?”

“She’s in the house, ma’am. I don’t mean to pry, but she seemed to have something on her mind.” one of the minutemen answered.

El nodded and gave a small toothless smile. “Okay, thanks guys. Have a good evening.” Walking towards the house, El wondered what problem Cait could have on her mind.

Upon entering the front door, El was immediately greeted by Cait sitting uneasily on the couch. Turning her head to look at her, Cait stood up instantly and began walking around towards El. “Oh no!” El thought to herself as Cait closed the gap between them. El needed to think of something quick. “H-hi Cait. How are you doing?” El stuttered, not knowing what else to say.

Cait eventually stopped and stood awkwardly in front of El, nervously fidgeting to herself. “Urrr, fine, fine.” Cait stammered, placing her arms behind her back to hide her fidgeting. Normally, Cait would have done that to accentuate her bust. However, today, Cait was also looking around aimlessly at anything other than El; her cheeks bright red. Cait’s nervousness clearly made her look completely innocent and sweet. “I-I was just wondered if…maybe we could…urrr…I-I mean…I-if it’s no trouble… t-that we could maybe…urrrm…you know…I mean, only if you say yes…that we might…urrrm…maybe…urrr…” Cait trailed off as she struggled to find the right words.

El smiled but needed to stop Cait from rambling. Cait always rambled when she was flustered or unsure about something. “Cait, Cait, just relax. Just take a deep breath and find your words.” El said slowly and calmly.

Cat nodded and took several deep breaths. Once calmer, and able to look El in the eye, Cait continued. “C-can, can we talk?” she stammered, shaking slightly as she spoke.

El stepped back slightly, surprised by Cait’s question. “Urrm, y-yes, of course we can. I’m here now if you would like to talk.” El said with a friendly smile, her arms slightly outstretched in a mock embrace.

“No, no, I need…some time…t-to find my words.” Cait stuttered as she shook her head violently. Cait’s eyes soon returned to looking at her feet.  

Understanding her predicament, El nodded. “Alright, Cait. Take your time and find the words you want to say. Look, I’m going to take a shower, but, maybe we can talk later.” she said reassuringly.

Lifting her head, Cait nodded and gave a happy smile. “Yeah, okay. I’ve already had one, b-but I’m sure you c-can have one as well…I-I mean, of course you have one…it’s y-your house…I was j-just tellin’ you that, that…” Cait trailed off again.

Greatly amused by her friend’s bumbling, El chuckled and took a step forward. “Cait, you’re rambling again.” El said amusedly to calm Cait down.

Realising how silly she looked, Cait looked up at El and immediately stopped herself. “Oh, right, sorry.” Cait said, her cheeks now bright pink. Cait was, however, not done, and her vision soon returned to her feet. “T-there was just one thing. W-when you’re done, c-could you…urrrm…b-brush, brush my hair? I-I kinda like how it feels.” Cait said as she quickly tucked a few loose strands behind her ear.

Smiling at how adorable her friend was at this point, El brought her hand under Cait’s chin and raised her head. “Sure.” El said, that mesmerising glint returning to her eyes.

“T-thanks.” Cait stuttered and smiled bashfully before turning around and shuffling off quickly down the corridor to her bedroom.

“Maybe I won’t need to make the first move.” El thought to herself as she watched Cait walk away.

El sat on her bed reading her book, subconsciously waiting for Cait to approach her. Cait had been very quiet the entire evening; she had said nothing whilst El brushed her hair and she had eaten dinner in almost complete silence. Despite El’s door remaining open, she wondered whether Cait would ever appear. It was already getting quite late and El wondered if she had the mental capacity to stay up any longer.

A quiet knock at her door shocked El back to reality and she turned her head to find Cait standing nervously in the doorway. She looked as if she expected El to send her away. She was wearing a dark green button up shirt and a pair of blue denim short shorts that she liked to wear around the house. Cait had found them during their trip to, of all places, Vault 95, but Cait seemed to like them. El always thought that Cait suited green. “Cait!” El said, smiling as she closed her book. “Come in. Close the door and have a seat.” El patted a section of the bed in front of her.

“T-thanks.” Cait stuttered as she closed the door behind her. Climbing tentatively on the bed, Cait was more than ready to make a quick exit if things went south. Much to Cait’s surprise, however, El then shifted so she was sitting cross-legged next to her on the bed.

“So, what do you want to talk about?” El asked with a friendly toothless smile.

Cait immediately began to fidget, very aware of how close together they were. “Urrm, well, a lot of things. But this isn’t easy for me to say. So, I want to get it right.”

“Sure, just take your time.” El said, nodding compassionately.

Sighing heavily, Cait swallowed as she began. “Where do I begin? Did you know I spent three years fightin’ in the Combat Zone?”

“You have mentioned it, yes.” El said as she tilted her head, implying that she was aware.

Cait exhaled sharply through her nose, imitating a chuckle. “Yeah, well, you probably have a good idea of what it was like livin’ there. Three years of gettin’ beaten to hell by a bunch of scumbags. After the fights were over, I’d spit out the blood, stitch my wounds, and a couple of rounds of Psycho to take the edge off.” Cait’s face soon scrunched up in mild anger. “I fuckin’ hated it! I hated the crowds. I hated the other fighters. But, most of all, I hated myself. All I wanted was for one of my opponents to crush the life out of me; the easy way out.”

Eventually, Cait looked down and started playing with the hem of her shirt. El could see that there was something that Cait was trying to hold back from saying. Shuffling closer, Cait’s breath hitched slightly and she continued. “T-there were days when things got really bad; so bad that, well, on the day I met you, I was sittin’ on my shitty excuse for a bed, starin’ down the barrel of my own shotgun. I don’t know why I didn’t pull the trigger. I suppose I was holdin’ out for one piece of humanity in this shithole we call a world.” By this point, despite it being relatively warm in El’s room, Cait was starting to shiver.

El was trying desperately to remain silent as Cait spoke. All she wanted to do was take Cait in her arms and show her the love that she deserved. But El needed to hold back and let Cait speak.

“But now,” Cait continued, “with all the stuff you’ve done for me - pickin’ up my contract, feedin’ me, buyin’ me clothes, savin’ my life in the Castle, curin’ my addiction – that seemed like the answer to those prayers. That’s the first time in my life that I’ve put my faith in someone else, and they didn’t let me down.” Upon glancing at El, Cait’s cheeks went bright red and she looked away. “Fuck. I’m makin’ a mess of this.” Cait whispered.

Noticing Cait’s struggle, El moved her legs and shuffled closer. “You’re doing fine, Cait. just let it all out. Speak your mind.” she said reassuringly.

Cait nodded, desperately trying to hold it together. “Okay. I-I just need to be gettin’ to the point.” As she hunched her shoulders over slightly, Cait continued. “The longer we’ve been spendin’ time together, the more I’ve come to realise what you mean to me. And I don’t just mean you watchin’ my back or sharin’ a drink together, I mean more than that. Before we met, I’d never let my guard down around anyone, I didn’t dare. But, for the first time in my life, I feel I can open up and let you see me for everythin’ I am, for better or worse.”

Seeing this as her chance, El opened her mouth to speak. Cait, however, interpreted this as El setting up to reject her and immediately interjected. “Look, I can’t go back to the way things were before we met. I won’t! But what I need you to do is look me in the eyes and tell me you feel somethin’ too.”

Realising that she had effectively shown her hand, Cait’s mind began to spiral and panic set in. “I-It’s just that, lately, I’ve been gettin’ this weird painful feelin’ in my chest and stomach. I-I don’t know it is. I’ve never had it before. B-but, every time I think of you, I get this tuggin’ feelin' in my chest, and I get all confused ‘cause I don’t know what it is. D-do you get this feelin’ as well? Am I just bein’ stupid?” Cait’s speech was getting faster and faster as she spiralled further.

“I do.” El said bluntly, bringing the speeding train inside Cait’s mind to a grinding halt. El’s face remained unchanged, but, behind her visage, El couldn’t have been happier. Whilst listening to Cait vent her soul, El felt like all her dreams had suddenly come true.

Cait’s eyes widened, completely dumbfounded by El’s declaration. Part of her thought that she had misheard something. “Y-y-you…What?” she stuttered.

El shuffled again so she was as close to Cait as possible and she took her hand. “Cait, I know exactly how you feel. I feel the same about you. And, this painful feeling in chest, I’ve had the same feeling about you. And-.”

“But what is it!” Cait shouted, sounding close to tears. “I don’t know what it is!”

“It’s love, Cait. What you’re feeling is love. I’m in love with you.” Finally, able to speak her mind, El smiled and clutched Cait’s hand tightly.

Cait’s eyes exploded with shock as she processed this information. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing; someone loved her? It couldn’t be true. “W-What? Y-You’re in love with me? I…I…I mean…I didn’t know.” Cait’s cheeks suddenly went as pink as candy floss. “W-Why? Why would you fall in love with a waste of space like me?” Cait asked despondently.

El was herself shocked by Cait’s reaction. Cait was anything but a waste of space. “Because you’re special to me, Cait. You just make me feel so happy. I…I don’t think I could be happier with anybody else.” As El spoke, tears were starting to well up in her eyes.

Despite wanting nothing more than to wrap herself in El’s loving arms, Cait still thought that she was being tricked in some way. After so many years of misery, Cait still couldn’t shake her fears. “I…I don’t know what to say. I’m not supposed to be loved. I’m just a loud, stupid, ex-junkie.” Cait looked down, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

El needed to regain control of the situation. If Cait didn’t accept her feelings, she would never be able to put her past behind her. “Cait, listen to me.” Taking a deep breath, El decided that going all in was her only option. “I’m…I’m going to try something, alright? Please…don’t hit me, okay?’

Cait looked up apprehensively but nodded.

Swallowing audibly, El shuffled ever so slightly closer to Cait and tentatively placed a hand on her cheek. Risking everything, El then leaned forward and gently pressed her lips onto Cait’s.

As their lips touched, Cait’s body trembled and she whimpered slightly in shock. El's kiss was unlike anything Cait had felt before. Her lips are so soft. The emotions behind her kiss were also unlike anything Cait had experienced before. There was no force, only genuine love. As a novice in the ways of love, Cait was almost completely unsure of what to do. However, after a few seconds, she relaxed and closed her eyes.

El could not believe what was happening. After all this time, she was finally kissing Cait; this woman whom had followed her around the Commonwealth; this woman whom had spoken to her about her darkest demons; this woman whom had smashed her way into her life and was here to stay.

After what seemed like an age, El finally withdrew and sat back on the bed. An eerie silence then fell over the room as both women stared at each other. Cait’s face was one of utter disbelief. “How did that feel?” El asked, breaking the silence.

Before El could even react, Cait crashed into her and crushed her lips on hers. El could barely breath as Cait pressed kiss after kiss onto El’s lips. El’s gamble appeared to have paid off.

Immediately reacting to Cait’s frantic kissing, El lifted Cait up and manoeuvred her onto her lap. Cait, instinctively, wrapped her legs around El’s waist and continued to kiss her deeply and run her fingers through El’s soft hair. Similarly, El’s arms were lovingly wrapped around the back of Cait’s slender neck and waist as she brought her as close as she possibly could.

Eventually, both women were forced to pull away as they tried to catch their breath. Panting heavily, El and Cait stared at each other as they both tried to process what had just happened. The silence between them was palpable; both women were clearly waiting to make the next step. Throughout it all El stroked Cait’s soft red hair and tucked rough strands behind her ear.

As her breath slowly returned to normal, Cait’s hand soon began drifting under El’s vest; her fingers running over El’s smooth unirradiated skin. The movement was intimate but betrayed Cait’s ulterior motive; she wanted El’s clothes off. El sensed Cait’s motive and similarly started running her fingers up Cait’s shirt, slowly working upwards as she tagged at its buttons.

But, as she sensed Cait’s desire, El decided that Cait deserved to see her first. Drawing away, El crossed her arms around the hem of her vest and pulled the garment up over her head. Finally, free of their confinement, El’s large mouth-watering breasts tumbled downwards, bouncing slightly as they returned to their original position. Throwing her vest off the bed, El pressed her shoulders together slightly, extenuating her bust, and looked down at Cait half-expectantly.

Cait’s eyes widened and her mouth opened gormlessly. El's breasts were huge. Sitting like two identical pale globes on her chest, El’s breasts were as they had been in Cait's dreams. Cait could only wonder how El was able to find any clothes that would fit her. They also left Cait with even more questions of how Else was able to fight as well as she could. Cait's own breasts were large, but nothing compared to what lay infront of her. Cait's mouth began to salivate as she stared.

Similar to what Cait had dreamt, atop El’s succulent breasts, her erect nipples sat yearning to be pinched and suckled. Cait was slightly intrigued at their colour; they were a little browner than she had anticipated. But Cait didn’t mind one bit.

“You can touch them if you like.” El said with a friendly but incredibly lustful smile. Taking Cait’s hand, El guided it until Cait’s palm rested firmly on her left breast. As soon as contact was made, El’s breath hitched and she stifled a moan.

Following El’s initiative, Cait’s other hand clamped around El’s right breast and began to gently knead its soft milky flesh. As Cait’s hands carrased over her delectable breasts, and sensitive nipples, El’s head arched backwards and she moaned loudly. El was in absolute heaven as this woman she loved hypnotically massaged her breasts. Sharp waves of pleasure then shot through her body as Cait's hands rubbed across El’s erect nipples.

But El was not satisfied with just Cait’s hands. Looking back at Cait, El brought her hands around the back of Cait’s head and firmly pressed it in between her breasts. Moaning loudly as Cait’s lips touched her skin, El arched her head back again and sighed contentedly.

Initially, Cait squirmed slightly as her head was forcibly pressed between El’s breasts. However, within seconds, Cait settled and she began gently kissing the sensitive skin around El’s nipples. El almost yelled as one of her erect nipples was pinched sharply between Cait’s lips. “Yes, Cait. Suck them…” El whispered as small primal moans escaped the back of her throat.  If El didn’t bring the situation under control, she would probably cum right there; her underwear was certainly wet enough.

Pulling away, El looked at Cait in complete amazement. Having Cait massage and suckle her breasts was something that she had only dreamt about. But, now, for the first time since thawing out, her dreams had actually come true. “Wow,” El whispered, “That…that was…incredible.”

“They’re…they’re just so amazin’.” Cait replied, still gently cupping El’s breasts in her hands.

Much against her wishes, El took Cait’s wrists and dislodged them from her breasts. Cait’s eyes remained fixed on El’s breasts as they jiggled slightly from the release of her hands. El chuckled mischievously, marvelling in the control she held over Cait. Then, running her hands up Cait’s shirt, El began undoing its buttons. “I think I need to return the favour.” El said, planting a teasing kiss on Cait’s lips.          

Owing to the ease at which El undid the buttons, Cait quickly shrugged her shirt off and threw it off the bed. She then unclipped her bra, exposing her bare breasts. Bouncing slightly as the material was pulled away, Cait’s pale breasts tumbled downwards and Cait shivered slightly.

Looking down at the woman in her lap, El pulled a face almost a mirror image of Cait’s. Whilst they were not as big as El’s, Cait’s porcelain white breasts were just as tantalising. Two white globes peppered with small, adorable, brown freckles led to a pair of pale pink nipples that stuck out erectly like the dials of a radio. El exhaled sharply as she marvelled at Cait’s beautiful chest.

Aware of El’s own amazing body, Cait hunched her shoulders over and looked down. “Not as good as yours.” Cait said shyly as her breasts pressed together.

Shocked out of her hypnosis El immediately wrapped an arm around Cait's waist and used her other to raise Cait's chin to face her. “Hey,” El said reassuringly, “Size doesn’t always matter. They’re still beautiful.” El then brought her arms back and tentatively cupped her hands around Cait’s milky breasts. Cait let out a growl-like moan as El immediately lowered her head and closed her lips around one of her nipples. Ripples of pleasure pierced Cait’s body when El gently nipped Cait’s right nipple between her teeth and pinched the other between her fingers. Cait had to grip El’s shoulders to keep from squirming too much as El suckled her breasts.

After several intoxicating minutes, El pulled away from Cait’s aching nipples and panted heavily. A loving, but deeply mischievous smile was plastered across El’s face and her eyes were burning a deep hazel that Cait had never seen before. Cait could hardly ever tell what El was thinking, but she could not look away from the burning in El’s eyes.

“God, I love you, Cait.” El eventually said, gently stroking Cait’s cheek.

“I love you too.” Cait replied as she leaned in and kissed El passionately.

As they kissed deeply, El’s hands began moving down Cait’s body until they came to her shorts. Pulling away, El rested her forehead against Cait’s. “I think it’s time we took these clothes off.” El said roguishly as she gently tugged the hem of Cait’s shorts.

Cait could not help but chuckle slightly and she smiled happily.

Almost immediately, El wrapped her arms around Cait’s waist and lifted her up. As Cait’s legs were still firmly locked around El’s waist, keeping hold of her was relatively easy. Placing loving kisses on each other’s lips, El swivelled around and began lowering Cait back onto the bed. As soon as Cait’s back touched the sheets, her legs dislodged, and she lay ready for what came next.

Unhooking her arms from her waist, El rose up and moved her hands down to Cait’s shorts. After undoing the buttons, and lowering the zip, El pulled the shorts down Cait’s legs; carefully hooking her fingers around Cait’s underwear to bring them down simultaneously. Throwing Cait’s shorts onto the floor, El’s breath hitched as Cait slowly opened her legs.

Befalling El was a sight of pure intoxication. Between Cait’s porcelain white legs, like a blooming flower, lay her slick vagina, already dripping wet from El’s previous actions. Surrounding her slick entrance was a thick patch of hair a shade or two darker than the hair on Cait’s head.  Observing El’s hypnotised gaze, Cait’s eyes flashed playfully with lust. “What are you waitin’ for?” she said as her fingers began stroking the thick patch of hair surrounding her pussy.

Reacting immediately, El quickly pulled off her pyjama shorts and knelt before Cait. Both women were now completely naked and staring at each other intensely. Cait found it hard to look at El without her gaze drifting down to the thick patch of brown hair between her legs. As El’s legs were still closed, Cait was unable to see much, but hoped she would soon. She could, however, see the glint of a clear liquid running down El’s left leg. Cait bit her lip in anticipation as she surmised that El was dripping wet.

Suddenly, El crawled over Cait and kissed her deeply on the lips. Cait hummed contentedly as El’s hand ran up her surprisingly muscular leg and gently cupped one side of her arse. Her other hand lay firmly clamped around one of Cait’s succulent breasts, gently kneading its sensitive flesh . El’s mouth then descended and peppered loving kisses around Cait’s slender neck. With every kiss the anticipation in Cait’s body was slowly building. With one hand on her back, Cait’s other hand lovingly, but firmly, raked through El’s hair, willing her to kiss harder and more frequently.

Moving down, El’s lips then reached the gap between Cait’s breasts. However, as El had dedicated much energy to this area already, she soon moved steadily downwards, lovingly tracing the line of Cait's scar with her kisses. As El reached Cait’s flat stomach, Cait tried desperately to keep from laughing too much. Cait was highly conscious of how ticklish her belly was, especially the area around her belly button. Noticing this phenomenon, El glanced up, “Someone’s ticklish.” El said, chuckling to herself.

Cait looked at El bashfully as her already red cheeks went the colour of a freshly boiled lobster. “J-just a little.” Cait said timidly.

Smiling at Cait’s bashfulness, El soon resumed her journey and continued peppering kisses around Cait’s stomach. El’s heart leapt as she heard little laughs and giggles slip out between Cait’s moans of pleasure.

Continuing further, El eventually reached the thick patch of hair surrounding Cait’s pussy. As her lips peppered the strands of hair, El inhaled deeply and took in the scent of her lover. El could smell the arousal emanating from Cait. It was a smell of desire, but there was something else that made it uniquely Cait. El groaned lustfully to herself as she took in the noxiously intoxicating smell.

As El got closer and closer, Cait was trying desperately to hold on. The pressure inside her was now strong, much stronger than when she had masturbated to El. Cait needed to try and calm down. If she came now, the spell would be broken. Steadying her increasingly fast breathing, Cait attempted to regain control of her arousal.

That, however, was easier said than done. In one final teasing move, El descended further and began kissing up the soft flesh of Cait’s inner thigh. With every kiss, the pressure built and intensified and sparks of pleasure shocked Cait’s body. As Cait’s hand continued raking through El’s hair, its grip on her scalp only grew stronger as the pleasure intensified.

Then, suddenly, Cait almost screamed as El drove between her legs and ran her tongue over Cait’s engorged clitoris. Cait’s hips instinctively bucked and shook as new waves of pleasure shot through her body and sent her mind spiralling. If El kept this going, Cait would be done in minutes. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” Cait whispered in quick succession as her spine arched and contorted with pleasure.

Cait’s pussy was utterly intoxicating for El. With every movement of her probing tongue, El could taste the sweet slick essence of Cait’s arousal. As one lick of Cait’s pink folds would lap up one droplet of sweet desire, another would appear and need similar treatment. Cait was simply delicious. To keep Cait’s hips from bucking too much, El hooked her arms under Cait’s legs to hold her down on the bed. This precaution, however, took a lot of energy as Cait, despite her slim figure, was surprisingly muscular.

Cait was losing control, having already worked herself up imagining El pleasuring her, the real thing was sending her dangerously close to the edge. By this point, thick beads of sweat were running down Cait’s forehead. She wanted El to slow down, but, at the same time, didn’t want her to stop. “El, I…I…I d-don’t know h-how much m-more I…I can t-take.” Cait panted through heavy breaths.

El slowly lifted her head from Cait’s pussy, relieving some of the building pressure on Cait’s core. There was a look of concern in El’s eyes as she looked up. “Do you want me to stop?” she asked.

Not wanted this rollercoaster of pleasure to end, Cait shook her head vigorously.

“Very well then.” El said as she returned to her task, gently stroking the soft flesh of Cait’s inner thighs. There was a smug smirk on El’s face and Cait wondered what that meant.

Cait’s bucking hips almost catapulted her off the bed and she let out a breathless scream as, suddenly, El stuck her tongue inside her pussy. “FUCK, EL!” Cait screamed breathlessly as El’s tongue swirled around inside her slick passage, collecting the sweet nectar that it secreted within. Cait’s toes began to curl as the pressure started to boil over.

A hot wave of pleasure then suddenly erupted within her core and enveloped Cait’s entire body. Succumbing to the euphoria, Cait’s body shook violently and her legs clamped tightly around El’s head. Throughout the entire experience, El’s mouth remained firmly locked around Cait’s pussy, sending small extra waves of pleasure through Cait’s enflamed body.

After several intoxicating seconds, the waves of pleasure began to dissipate and Cait’s body settled back on the bed. Cait lightheadedly looked up at the ceiling and seemed ready to pass out. The entire bottom half of her body was completely numb.

Finally detaching from Cait’s delectable pussy, El crawled back up to face Cait and kissed her deeply. The taste of her pussy was still on El’s lips and Cait hummed contentedly. “How was that?” El asked as she pulled her lips away.

Still completely dumbfounded by the intensity of her orgasm, Cait found it difficult to formulate her words. “I…I…I can’t feel my legs.” Cait said dopily.

El gave a friendly, but slightly evil, chuckle as she stroked Cait’s cheek. “You taste so good.” El said, licking her lips.

Cait looked down bashfully and smiled as her cheeks went red. She was trying to contain a slightly childish giggle. Cait’s smile then dropped, “I guess it’s time for me to return the favour.” she said as she attempted to move her numb legs.

Sensing that Cait saw this a repaying a debt, El held her still. “Hey, you don’t have to. I can wait.” El said with a loving smile.

“No, no, I want to. Just…lie back.” Cait said, gently pushing El off her. As much as she appreciated El’s loving concern, she wanted nothing more than to taste El. She had not spent a week dreaming of this moment only to pass out when the chance arose.

El obediently rolled off Cait and lay back next to her. Willing her limbs to move, Cait manoeuvred herself so that she was on top of El. After planting a deep kiss of El’s luscious pre-war lips, Cait descended quickly to the area between El’s legs. Cait wanted nothing more than to copy what El had done along her body. But, El’s pleasure giving had drained almost all her energy. Hopefully, El would understand.

Cait’s mouth visibly salivated as El slowly spread her legs in front of her. Between a thick patch of smooth brown hair was a blooming pink flower that just yearned to be pleasured. As Cait ogled, a small droplet of clear liquid oozed from within El’s slick passage and ran down her perennial. Cait, however, frowned slightly she observed the hair surrounding El’s mouth-watering pussy. The hair was thick but looked more trimmed and managed than Cait’s. Did El trim down there? No wonder El took so long in the shower. Lowering herself onto her stomach, Cait licked her lips as her head disappeared between El’s muscular legs.

As Cait’s nose touched the soft hairs above her clit, El’s eyes widened as a funny feeling ran up her body. “C-Cait, please be careful. I’m-,” El could not finish as she let a childish giggle escape her lips. El closed her legs shut to stifle the feelings.

Cait immediately looked up, concerned that she had upset El in some way. Still trying to contain her laughter, El reassured Cait. “Sorry, Cait. My…my hair is really ticklish down there.” El said as her cheeks went bright red.

Testing this theory, Cait slowly eased El’s legs back open and gently ran her fingers over El’s thick patch of hair. As if by magic, El’s hips bucked and she giggled bashfully. It was now Cait’s turn to give an evil lecherous grin; she could get used to this. Returning to the matter at hand, Cait opened her mouth and made tantalising contact with El’s dripping pussy.  

A deep throaty moan escaped El as Cait’s tongue circled her engorged clit. Clamping her hands around her glistening breasts, El pinched her erect nipples as Cait sent powerful shocks of pleasure snaking through her body. The feel of Cait’s rough tongue on her sensitive pussy was just incredible. Cait was somewhat rougher in her movements than she was, but El did not mind one bit. Just as long as Cait was pleasuring her.

As her tongue probed and lapped its way through her pussy, Cait could not help but marvel at how good El tasted. She was so sweet; so nourishing; so pure; like a shot of sweet rum. This was what a pre-war woman tasted like: absolutely delicious. The lustful smell emanating from El was also inebriating for Cait. A strange mixture of desire, sweat, and something unique to El, sent Cait into an almost hallucinogenic state as she probed the slick folds of El’s pussy.

With Cait’s lovingly rough movements on her pussy, and her own actions on her erect nipples, El was beginning to succumb to her pleasure. Heat was rapidly building in El’s core and large droplets of sweat were falling down her now glistening skin. As every moan escaped her lips, El’s breathing became faster and faster, "Oh, Cait. I’m close. I’m s-so close.” El said breathlessly.

Reacting to this, Cait’s tongue immediately returned to El’s clit and she probed it in long penetrating circles. If El was going to cum, Cait was going to make her cum now. Moaning loudly, El’s spine contorted and her head arched backwards as the pleasure became almost uncontrollable. El had, at best, seconds.

Then, suddenly, the damn broke and a hot wave of desire washed over El’s body. Pinching her nipples roughly between her fingers, El moaned loudly as she rode out the warm waves rippling around her body. As Cait’s mouth remained locked on El’s clit, El herself seemed to have entered Nirvana. Similarly clamping her legs around Cait’s head, El’s body shook wildly and her eyes looked close to rolling behind their sockets.

Eventually, the intensity of El’s orgasm dissipated and her body once again settled on the bed. Taking a hand off her breast, El wiped the sweat from her forehead and tucked several damp strands of hair behind her ear. El’s eyes remained firmly fixed on the ceiling as she tried to regain control of her senses.

Soon, Cait rose up from El’s delicious pussy and crawled up to lie next to El. With her breath returning to a normal pattern, El turned to look at the sly smile on Cait’s lips. “That…was…amazing.” El said dopily.

Cait chuckled to herself as she marvelled at her work. Cait congratulated herself as she was able to turn El, a literal superhero in her mind, into a hot bubbling mess. Even heroes had their weaknesses, it seemed.

El’s eyelids soon began growing heavy as she lay next to Cait. “God, Cait. I would love to keep this going, but you have completely worn me out.” El said, rubbing her eyes.

Cait had to admit, she was herself completely exhausted from the orgasm El had given her. She could do with some sleep as well. “Okay.” Cait said quietly and she slowly began moving out of the bed. Her head, however, was bowed and her face looked solemn

El frowned and quickly put her arm around Cait’s waist. “Cait, where are you going?” she asked, both concerned and confused.

Cait looked away, not wanting to look El in the eye. “B-back to my room.” Cait said timidly.

El’s mouth opened in shock. She didn’t even think about that. Tightening her grip around Cait’s waist, El brought her close. “No, Cait. You’re staying here with me. This is your bed now. You sleep in here with me.” El said, staring deep into Cait’s eyes.    

Immediately wanting to cry because of El’s love, Cait grabbed El’s head and kissed her deeply. Both women could still taste each other on their lips, and it was invigorating. Cait hummed and whimpered slightly as she delighted in El’s loving embrace.

Eventually pulling away, El stroked Cait’s pale cheek and rested her forehead against Cait’s. “Come on. Let’s get some sleep.” El said stroking Cait’s leg.

Cait nodded and began adjusting herself to lie down. Apart from leaving momentarily to switch off the bedside lamp and bring the covers over the two of them, El’s arm did not leave Cait’s waist and her back was soon snuggled up against El's chest. Owing to Cait’s size and needs, El was quite happy being the big spoon. Settling down into a comfortable position, Cait gripped El’s hand wrapped around her waist and squeezed it tight. El returned the favour by planting a loving kiss on the back of Cait’s shoulder. “Goodnight, Cait.” El whispered in Cait’s ear.

Squeezing her hand again, Cait turned her head slightly towards El. “’Night. I…I love you.” she whispered quickly before turning her head back.

El smiled and snuggled as close to Cait as she could. “I love you too.” she whispered, planting another kiss on Cait’s shoulder.

Waiting until Cait’s breath settled into a steady rhythm, El surmised that Cait was sound asleep. As her head rested against her pillow, and sleep quickly enveloped her, El could not contain the happy smile that covered her lips. For the first time in two-hundred years, El had something to love.

Chapter Text

Cait awoke from what part of her thought must have been a dream. There were no nightmares, no aching hearts, and no tears. There was only her and a beautiful woman next to her.

Seeking to confirm beyond any doubt where she was, Cait’s eyes darted around her surroundings. None of this could be true. Cait was supposed to die an inconsequential death somewhere that nobody would care to look. But here she was, lying in a soft warm bed, with El – the most beautiful woman in the Commonwealth – holding her in a loving embrace.

Turning her head slightly to look behind, Cait befell the woman next to her. Sleeping soundly next to her was El, her hero, her pronounced chest steadily rising and falling with her breathing. Cait could not help but marvel at how beautiful El was, even in the morning. There were no puffy lips, no saliva drooling down her mouth, no unkept hair. Cait wished she could look that good even when she was in bed. Looking down, Cait followed El’s left arm as it snaked its way around Cait’s waist until she saw El’s hand intertwined with hers. The grip of El’s soft pre-war skin was firm, but in no way forceful.

As she turned her head back to face ahead, Cait's eyes began to water and she started to sniffle. Wiping her eyes with her free hand, Cait had never felt safer in her entire life. Cait wanted to stay like this forever. God, she better not start crying.

Suddenly, El hummed and shifted her position slightly. “Good morning.” El said affectionately as she leaned her head over Cait’s body.

Wiping her watering eyes, Cait smiled and looked up at El. “M-mornin’.” she said through sharp breaths.

Sensing Cait’s watered eyes, El frowned. “Cait, are you alright?” El asked as she cuddled Cait closer.

“I-I’m okay.” Cait replied, sniffling slightly. “Just…just…hold me.”

El smiled and unclasped her hand from Cait’s and wrapped it as tightly around her waist as she could. As their skin touched, El began peppering small kisses on Cait’s shoulder.

Basking in their shared warmth, both women remained fixed in place. Neither one wanted to leave each other’s embrace.

Eventually, however, Cait felt that she had to say something. As El held her tight, a small feeling of doubt continued to gnaw at Cait’s mind. “So, where…where do we go from here?” Cait asked apprehensively.

“What do you mean?” El replied, visibly confused by Cait’s questioning.

Cait shifted herself so that she was properly facing El. In response, El rolled onto her back so that Cait could rest comfortably on her chest. Running her fingers along the smooth skin of El’s breasts, Cait thought about how best to frame her doubts. “I’ve…I’ve given you everythin’ I have.”

“You have given me everything I could ask for.” El replied as she stroked the back of Cait’s shoulders.

Despite El’s affectionate words, Cait couldn’t accept that as a convincing response. “But, what about my contract?” she asked raising her head to show her concern.

El’s demeanour changed to one of mild frustration. She hated it when Cait brought up the subject of debts or her contract. “Forget your contract, Cait. You don’t work for me anymore, and you don’t owe me anything.”

“But…but… how am I supposed to pay you back for everythin’ you’ve done for me?” Cait continued to ask, her voice getting louder and more pained. El’s answers only deepened the doubt that Cait felt gnawing inside her.

Accepting that her answers were not satisfying Cait, El’s face became serious and she looked deep into her eyes. “Cait, listen to me, I don’t want you to pay me back. You have given me everything I could want. All I wanted was you, and you gave yourself to me; your body; your soul; your heart. Do you understand?”

Cait looked down and nodded, understanding El’s words. They weren’t exactly what Cait wanted to hear, but she could see the truth in them.

Noticing Cait’s unenthusiastic reaction, El decided that a different approach was required. El understood that unconditional love was a concept completely alien to Cait. If Cait was going to believe, El needed to find something that she would understand. “Think about it this way, Cait. I’ve also given you everything I have; my body; my soul; my heart; my love. That gives you considerable power over me as well. If anything, I’ve given you my contract.” El said with a loving smile.

Cait thought deeply about El’s words, unfamiliar with what she was implying. El had given Cait her contract? Cait had never possessed power over someone before. But El was right, she had given Cait her heart. The way that El had loved so deeply the night before was proof enough of that. And then there were all the other things El had done for her. Eventually, Cait raised her head and nodded, giving a shy but beaming smile.

El chuckled to herself and pulled Cait’s body up to kiss her. For the next several seconds, El and Cait lost themselves in their kiss. Their breath didn’t smell excellent, but neither woman cared. They just basked in the joy of their love.

Then suddenly, an odd feeling came over El and she pulled away. Visibly confused by the suddenness of El’s withdrawal, Cait frowned. “What’s wrong?” Cait asked, her face showing concern.

El looked away and exhaled deeply, herself confused by this feeling. “I…I’m not sure. My stomach just feels a bit…a bit…” El exhaled again as she failed to find the right words.

Propping herself up on her elbow, Cait noticed that El had gone very pale. “Are…are you okay?” she asked.

El placed her hand over her stomach and exhaled again. This time however, it was accompanied by a deep groan. “Yeah…yeah…I’m…I’m fine. I think I just…need…to…” Before she could finish her sentence, El quickly manoeuvred herself out of the bed and darted to the bathroom as fast as she could. Upon reaching the bathroom, El got to her knees and promptly emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet.

As she heard El cough and retch from the bathroom, Cait sat up in bed and pulled the sheets over her naked body. She was completely dumbfounded by what had just occurred. One minute, El was fine; the next, she was throwing up? Something didn’t make sense. “What a way to spoil the moment.” Cait thought to herself.  

Cait was getting worried. For the past week, El had barely been able to keep anything down without needing to rush off to the toilet before promptly throwing up. Every time Cait brought it up, El was quick to wave it off. Yes, El was incredibly good at distracting her, but Cait continued to worry.

“Maybe you should see someone. All you’ve been doin’ is throwin’ up.” Cait said as she sat in bed, playing with the hem of her t-shirt.  

“I just took some Rad-X and Radaway, Cait.” El said as she slipped her pyjama vest on and turned to face the bed. “We do live in an irradiated wasteland after all. God you’re pretty.”

Despite blushing and pulling an adorably stupid face, Cait would not be flattered that easily. “Stop dodgin’ the point.” Cait said, crossing her arms.

Sensing Cait’s frustration, El sighed, “Look, it’s probably just a bug or something. I’ve had plenty of bugs before." El took a sip of water from a glass she had placed on her bedside table upon entering the room and then climbed into bed.

Once comfortable, El then leaned over and attempted to steal a kiss from Cait. Cait, however, was quick to reel away. “Eww, get away from me. I ain't kissin’ you, vomit breath.” Cait said, scrunching her face up in mock disgust.

Raising her eyebrows, El’s mouth dropped, completely aghast by Cait’s scolding rejection. “Well, aren’t you a stuck-up bitch?” El said sarcastically.

Riding the ego train her words gave her, Cait gave a smug smile. “I get it from you.”

Completely taken aback by Cait’s arrogance, El scoffed audibly. “Well then, as you have been so rude, I’m going to bed. Good night.” El said as she turned off her light and turned onto her side, facing away from Cait.

El had barely closed her eyes before she felt Cait snuggle up behind her and pepper kisses along the back of her shoulders. Immediately understanding Cait’s intentions, El rolled her eyes and exhaled sharply, “Rude girls don’t get cuddles.” El said commandingly.

“Please….” Cait replied peppering more kisses on El’s back and trying desperately to sound innocent.

Eventually, huffing in defeat, El rolled onto her back. “Fine. Come on then.” She said as she extended her arm to Cait.

Immediately snuggling into El’s embrace, Cait rested her head on El’s chest and hummed contently. El’s curvaceous body was so lovely to cuddle up to at night. El’s declaration about Cait having her contract had also given Cait real confidence about the influence she held over El.

Gently stroking Cait’s back, El kissed the top of Cait’s head. “You’re incorrigible sometimes, you know.” El chuckled.

“What’s that mean?” Cait asked, slightly conscious of how El knew many more words than she did.

“It means you can be a real pain in the arse sometimes.” El said, holding Cait tight and bringing her close.

Cait could not help but blush and she laughed. El was absolutely right. “I love you.” Cait said as she wrapped her arm around El’s waist.

“I love you too.” El smiled as she stroked Cait’s soft, freshly brushed hair. Adjusting herself slightly, El then tapped Cait’s shoulder, bringing her attention back to reality. “Now get some sleep. I’m knackered.” El said, immediately closing her eyes and settling down.

As silence fell over their bedroom, Cait’s eyelids began to grow heavy. With the soft hum of El’s light snoring reverberating in her ears, Cait soon drifted into a pleasant sleep.

El awoke the next morning and almost couldn’t contain her laughter. Sleeping soundly on top of her was Cait, lightly snoring, with a droplet of saliva slowly drooling out of her wide-open mouth. Sexiness was clearly Cait’s first priority when sleeping.

Running her hand up Cait’s back, El began to gently stroke Cait’s unruly hair. During the night, strands of Cait’s hair had started sticking outwards, adding to her unkept sleepy look. Flattening some of the strands down, El then used a piece of bedsheet to wipe the saliva from Cait’s lips. Despite her mouth remaining unflatteringly wide open, Cait looked a little bit more presentable.

Before long, Cait snorted and shifted her position slightly. Wiping the sleep away, Cait slowly opened her eyes and looked up blearily at El. Immediately, upon seeing her, Cait pulled an adorably stupid gurn that squinted her eyes and puffed out her cheeks. “Mornin’” she croaked.

Observing her lover’s morning look, El raised her eyebrows and pulled a playfully inquisitive face. “Good morning. Do you get that look naturally?” El asked sarcastically.

Narrowing her eyes in a feeble attempt at a glare, Cait tried to look insulted. “Fuck you. You wish you could look as good as me in the mornin’.” she said ironically.

El could not help but laugh. More often than not, Cait was groggy in the morning, but it was always nice to play games with her. Ever since confessing to each other, Cait had really let El see her playful side. Whilst she maintained her fighting façade when around other people, when with El, Cait gave off a teasing persona that was, sometimes, almost childlike. As the only person in the Commonwealth who knew her story, El understood why Cait acted that way. Cait only felt safe around El, so El was the only person allowed to see her for what she was underneath the armour.

Suddenly, however, a low rumble from El’s stomach put an end to the laughter and El groaned uncomfortably. Hearing the rumble too, Cait raised her head and looked up at El, her smile dropping in concern. “You…you okay, El?” Cait asked.

“I don’t know...” El said through a long sigh. “I…think…I- Oh god, sorry-.” El could not finish as she placed a hand over her mouth. Before Cait could react, she was almost thrown off the bed as El quickly rolled out and darted to the bathroom.

El barely made it to the bathroom before emptying the contents of her stomach into the toilet. For the next several minutes, El knelt forward, violently retching as she expelled the grisly mix of material from her stomach. Once the vomiting had stopped, and she had finished retching, El stayed staring inside the toilet bowl, trying to catch her breath. “That was rough.” El thought to herself.

Getting back to her feet, El pressed the flusher button and the toilet bowl emptied. As she watched the bowl empty and refill, El wondered why all of this was happening to her. Why had she been throwing up all week? Was it some kind of food poisoning? The effects of radiation? A sickness? El had no idea.

Once the toilet had refilled, El turned away and leant her hands against the sink. If she was going understand what was wrong, El needed to think this through and use some of her lawyer skills. Closing her eyes, El thought about her symptoms; she had been vomiting; her stomach had been feeling off, she couldn’t keep food down, and…and her breasts had been expressing milk. El had not felt like that since-.

Opening her eyes again, a horrifying thought suddenly crossed El’s mind and she looked up into the mirror. El was shocked to see that she was deathly pale. “……No…...Please no….” El whispered, terror creeping across her face.

It couldn’t be true, it just couldn’t. El had been frozen for over two-hundred years, and had only thawed out around three months ago. That just didn’t make sense. And, barring Cait, El had not been with anyone since entering the wasteland.

Unless, a distant memory from El’s pre-war life entered her mind and her heart stopped. It was the day when she and Nate had taken Shaun to the park for the day. El remembered how, that evening, after Shaun was asleep, Nate had cooked her a romantic meal before cuddling up in front of a movie. El bit her lip as she then remembered how the evening ended; with Nate carrying her back to the bedroom for a passionate night alone together.

As the pieces of the puzzle fitted into place, a terrifying realisation dawned on El. Looking into the mirror again, El found that all the blood had gone from her face. it was in that moment that the penny dropped with a horrifying clang; El was…pregnant.

Tears immediately welled up in El’s eyes and her breathing quickened as panic set in. Gripping the edges of the sink as tightly as she could, El tried to contemplate what this meant. What was El going to do? She was meant to be looking for Shaun; how could she bring another child into this world? How could she raise two children here? What was she going to tell Cait?

“El?” a voice called from the doorway. Nearly jumping out of her skin, El turned to find Cait standing in the bathroom doorway, her face paralysed with worry.

Upon seeing El, Cait’s eyes widened and she took a step back, visibly surprised by El’s appearance. El looked like ghost. “Are…are you okay, El? You look like a ghost.” Cait asked after entering the bathroom.

Still trying to process the tsunami of thoughts going through her mind, El tried to find a way of explaining herself to Cait. El had no idea how Cait would take the news. “Cait, I…I…think I know why I’ve been vomiting all this time. I…I…” El said through shaky breaths, “I think I might be p-p-pregnant.”

Cait took a step back from El and stared at her in stunned silence. Her face was almost a mirror image of El’s as they both stood there, silently staring at each other.

Suddenly, however, Cait’s stunned face hardened and her eyes flashed a poisonous feeling of anger and betrayal. Clenching her fists, anger burned in Cait’s face. “You been fuckin’ cheatin’ on me?” Cait spat accusingly.

“Oh god!” El thought to herself, “I need to keep this situation from spiralling.” Taking a step towards Cait, El attempted to speak, “No, Cait, please listen to me. It’s not what you think. I-.”

“You been fuckin’ around behind my back!?” Cait interrupted venomously, her face seething with betrayal.

El’s eyes widened in shock at Cait’s reaction. “N-N-N-No, I haven’t, Cait. Please, just let me explain. It’s not like that-.” Faced with Cait’s spiteful accusations, El was beginning to stutter.

“Who is it!?” Cait shouted, interrupting El again. “Is it one of those Minutemen outside? Is it that fuckin’ Preston guy in the Castle? Is that hack Piper some kind of fuckin' mutant who knocked you up? Hell, is it that fuckin’ synth detective? Who is it!?” Cait was herself becoming more and more frantic.

“I-I-It’s n-none of them. Cait, please, can we just talk about this?” Attempting to retrieve the situation, El took a step forwards and tried to take Cait’s hand.

El nearly jumped as Cait quickly slapped El’s hand away from her. “Get the fuck away from me!” Cait said recoiling away from El.

Still attempting to calm Cait down, El stepped forward again. “Please, Cait. Just let me explain.” El begged as she tried to put her hands on Cait’s shoulders.

“I SAID GET OFF ME, YOU FUCKIN' SLUT!” Cait screamed as she forcibly wrestled El off her.

Uncontrollable pain suddenly erupted around El’s left eye as Cait landed a powerful punch across El’s face. Looking back at Cait, El was too shocked to even react to the pain as she nursed her injured face with her hand.

As they both stood in silence, Cait was visibly stunned by her actions. Looking down at her shaking fist, Cait’s seething demeanour softened slightly. Her face, however, quickly hardened again and she looked back at El, the same venom in her eyes. “Now I know why you were bein’ so nice to me all this time. All you wanted to do was fuck me! You found a hot little piece who could carry your shit and soak up the bullets.” Cait was struggling to hold it together as she railed at El. “Then when her guard was down, you thought you could just fuck and then dump her!”

Normally, El would have stood firm and fought her corner against such accusations. However, her own shock, and Cait’s violence towards her, left El speechless. As Cait railed at her, El lowered her aching head and hunched her shoulders forward in passive submission.

“Well, I’m done! I’m leavin’ and I never wanna see you ever again!” Cait continued, her eyes welling up with tears as she spoke. “And don’t even think about followin’ me. If I ever see you again, I’ll fuckin’ kill you!” Cait shouted as she jabbed a finger at El. Dropping her hand, Cait turned to leave the bathroom.

Sensing this as her last chance to stop Cait from leaving, El made one last attempt to grab her. “No! Cait! Please don’t go!” El shouted as she lunged at Cait, trying to grab her arm.

But Cait was too fast and quickly dodged, sending El tumbling to the floor. El groaned and winced as she hit the floor; the left side of her face still humming from Cait’s punch. As El tried to prop herself up on her hands, she could hear fumbling coming from her bedroom. What was Cait doing?

El had just managed to raise her head when she saw Cait appear at the bathroom doorway, her bag slung over her shoulder and her boots clutched in her hands. Upon looking back at El, Cait let out a pained sob and her face softened. El could see the pain in Cait’s eyes as she stared down at her.

But Cait could not show any weakness now. Taking a deep breath, Cait closed her eyes and walked away down the corridor.

“No! Cait! Please! Come back!” El screamed as she lay spread out on the floor, hoping beyond hope that Cait would turn around.

As El heard the front door open and slam, the damn inside her broke and tears streamed down El’s injured face. Rolling onto her side, El wailed hysterically on the cold hard bathroom floor. Cait, the woman she loved, was gone, gone forever. Now here El was, lying on the bathroom floor, barefoot, pregnant, and completely alone.

Whether it was because of her emotional distress, or ingrained motherly instinct, El rested a hand over her stomach, her mind already conscious of the new life living inside her. As she continued to wail on the bathroom floor, El did not care if anyone heard her.

"Mum, I must insist that you leave this room and have something to eat. You have not moved all day.” Codsworth said as he floated through El bedroom. “And I must also insist that you put some ice on that bruise.”

El did not react as she lay curled up on her bed. Since finally climbing up from the bathroom floor, El had retired to her bed and had not moved since. “Just go away, Codsworth.” El said unemotionally.

“Well, I never, I-I-.” Cosdworth scoffed audibly as he swivelled and moved towards the room’s exit. Despite his displeasure at El’s rudeness, he did kindly close the door behind him.

Now that she was alone once again, El grabbed Cait’s pillow and hugged it tightly to her chest. Inhaling deeply, El could still smell a mild scent of Cait emanating from the material. El hummed at the scent of her former lover and her eyelids began to grow heavy. Pretty soon, through a mixture of Cait’s scent, and the sheer exhaustion of crying so much, El fell into a deep dreamless sleep.

El had no idea how long she had been asleep, but she was eventually awoken by a familiar whimpering and scratching coming from her bedroom door. Begrudgingly, El manoeuvred herself off the bed and walked over to open the door, letting Dogmeat walk through into the bedroom.

Sighing deeply as she sat back down on the bed, El ruffled Dogmeat’s fur as he rested his head on her knee. Dogmeat could clearly sense El’s distress and he looked into El’s eyes, whimpering slightly. “Well, at least I still have you, boy.” El said scratching Dogmeat’s ears. “What am I going to do?”

Despite his whimpering, Dogmeat just stared up at El, completely oblivious to why she was distressed.

Accepting that she wouldn’t get much in the way of advice from a dog, El sighed. “Come on, boy. Let’s go and get you something to eat.” she said, smiling down at Dogmeat.

El stood up and looked out of the window, curious at how much time had passed since she fell asleep. The sun was hanging low in the sky, signalling that it was getting late. Turning away from the window, El then lead Dogmeat to the kitchen and set about filling his bowl with some dogfood.

After placing the full bowl in front of Dogmeat, El perched herself on one of the counter barstools and rested her head in her palm.

“Mum, may I speak my mind?” Codsworth asked as he floated through from the living area.

Already suspicious at where this was going, El closed her eyes and shifted her position slightly. “Yes, what is it, Codsworth?” she asked unenthusiastically.

“I can’t help but assume that some kind of altercation has occurred between you and Miss Cait.” Codsworth enquired.

“I suppose you could say that.” El said glumly, vividly remembering the venom in Cait’s eyes.

Codsworth floated next to El for a few seconds, thinking through what he would say next. “I understand that Miss Cait can be quite, shall we say, volatile at times. But I do not believe that she is beyond the cause of reason.”

El frowned slightly, intrigued at what Codsworth was talking about. “What exactly are you saying?”

“Mum, before the bombs, I never saw you defeated by a court case. Even when a case seemed forlorn, you would not give up. I believe that, if you genuinely try and talk to Miss Cait, she will listen.” Codsworth said, sounding incredibly human for a robot.

El could have laughed at Codsworth’s newfound wisdom, but, instead, she cocked her head in increased interest. “Since when did you become such an expert on sage advice?” El asked sarcastically.

"It is part of my programming to ensure that all residents of this house are happy. I believe that talking to Miss Cait will make you happy.” Codsworth said before floating away towards the kitchen area.

El sat on the barstool and let Codsworth’s words sink in. She couldn’t believe it; she was taking advice from her robot butler; and the advice was right. If El didn’t force the issue, then Cait wouldn’t listen. She needed to find Cait, fast, and before it got dark.

Hopping off the barstool, El strode towards her bedroom and quickly slipped on her vault suit. As she pulled the zip up, El was immediately aware of how tight it had become. How long had she ignored the changes in her body that she had experienced over the past weeks and months? Returning to the matter at hand, El was conscious to leave just enough of her deep cleavage exposed. She then pushed her breasts up to extentuate her bust as much as possible. One thing El was good at was getting Cait’s attention.

When she re-entered the living area, El swiped her boots from beside the front door and quickly laced them up. With her laces tied, and herself suitably attired, El walked through the front door and out into Sanctuary. Even if it was the last thing she did, El was going to win Cait back.

Cait could not stop crying as she repeatedly punched the wall in front of her. With every punch, Cait sobbed uncontrollably and tears streamed down her face. Pretty soon, the wall was peppered with small red dots as Cait’s knuckles oozed droplets of blood. Cait surmised that, if she punched the wall enough times, the feelings inside her head would go away.

The emotions, however, would not leave and Cait soon began to tire. As Cait became more exhausted, her punches became softer and more laboured. With one last laboured punch, Cait’s tired legs buckled and she slid down until she was sitting with her back against the bloodied wall.

Curling up and hugging her knees to her chest, Cait attempted to think through what had happened earlier that day. Everything that Cait had taught herself to believe had been proved right. Yet again, someone whom Cait had trusted and opened up to had betrayed her. Cait just couldn’t believe that, even El, the woman she loved so dearly, would deceive her like that.

El had found Cait and had tricked her by feeding and clothing her. Saving Cait’s life in the Castle also helped El in her trickery. Then, when Cait lowered her guard, El threw Cait’s clothes off and had her wicked way with her. All at the same time, El had been secretly fucking around behind Cait’s back; so much so that El had gotten herself knocked up like the slut she was.

So, here Cait was, sitting in an abandoned Red Rocket gas station, homeless, weaponless, and completely alone. In her haste to get away, Cait had not been able to collect all her things; only managing to take the things that she could easily swipe from her bedside table. What Cait had wasn’t going to be enough to survive in the Commonwealth for long. Cait did not care though. The Commonwealth would not miss her.

However, as she sat alone on the floor, Cait could not help but feel guilty about leaving. Whilst it must have all been a trick, El had done so much for her since their first meeting. Even Cait could not fully believe that El would fuck around behind her back. Ever since they met, El and Cait had been nighen inseparable.

And then there was the way that El had loved Cait so affectionately. After curing her addiction, El had nursed Cait back to health and then gave her body and heart to her. Cait shivered slightly as she remembered the feelings that El had ignited inside her body. And, through it all, El had done all that without asking for anything in return.

A paralysing dilemma suddenly erupted in Cait’s mind; maybe she should have stayed and listened to El. El had looked so shocked and scared when Cait railed at her that morning. She looked as if what she was trying to say was the truth. Cait could not easily believe that El would lie to her. Maybe if…if El was pregnant, there must be something more behind it.

Cait shook her head violently, attempting to force the thoughts out of her mind. Cait needed to believe her instincts; El had betrayed her, so she could go fuck herself. Reaching into her barely filled bag, Cait pulled out one thing that she had been able to retrieve, a bottle of whiskey. During Cait’s week of angst about her feelings for El, Cait had steadily worked her way through the bottle. Now, there was roughly a quarter of the liquid left.

Unscrewing the cap, Cait took a long swig and exhaled deeply, sniffling slightly as her tears began to stop. After taking another long swig, Cait looked down and noticed something on the floor. Picking the object up, Cait immediately interpreted it as a photograph. It must have stuck itself to the bottle when Cait packed her bag. Turning the photograph, the right side up, Cait’s breath hitched as she befell a picture of El and her together.

In the picture, El and Cait were both sat on the couch at El’s home in Sanctuary. They were both in their pyjamas and Cait was sitting, cuddled up, on El’s lap, resting her head comfortably on El’s chest. As if like a perfectly fitting puzzle, El's head was resting on top of Cait’s and her right arm was wrapped lovingly around her waist, holding Cait close. Cait, however, could not take her eyes away from the loving smiles both her and El had on their faces. They both booked so happy.

Cait remembered when El had taken the picture. After an evening shower, dinner, and a movie, El and Cait had ended up making out on the couch. Following an intense make-out session, Cait had cuddled up on El’s lap and El had snapped her camera, saving the moment forever. The next day, between bouts of vomiting, El had presented a developed copy of the photograph to Cait.

Letting out a pained sob, Cait’s eyes began darting between the photo in her left hand and the bottle in her right. Paralysed with indecision, Cait scrunched her face up in anger and she violently threw the bottle across the room, yelling loudly as she did so. As the bottle smashed against the opposite wall, Cait hugged the photograph to her chest and closed her eyes, allowing fresh tears to fall down her face.

Cait loved El so much, and now she was gone forever. Finally accepting that life was now completely pointless, Cait rested her head against the wall and wished for the unceremonious death that she deserved.

“CAIT!” a voice called out in the distance.

Immediately, Cait’s eyes flashed open and she listened for the voice again. It seemed to be calling her name.

“CAIT!” the voice called again, this time sounding closer than before.

Listening intently, Cait instantly recognised the voice as El and she scrambled on the floor. If El was coming this way, then Cait did not wish to be seen. Eventually, Cait curled herself up behind the counter and hoped that El would not see her.

Soon, Cait heard footsteps outside the building. “Cait?” El’s voice called, quieter this time as El stepped inside the building.

Instinctively, Cait held her breath as she saw El’s legs pass her as she looked to investigate the gas station’s back office. Cait could see immediately that El was wearing her signature vault suit. Cait could only wonder if El had done that on purpose. El always knew how much that suit drove Cait crazy.

With El’s back turned, Cait sensed this as her only chance to escape before El left the back room. As quietly as she could, Cait scrambled to her feet and made for the doorway. However, Cait was immediately betrayed as the sound of broken glass reverberated throughout the building. Cait winced in abject defeat as she remembered the pieces of broken bottle on the floor.  

Hearing the sound, El frantically exited the back room and saw Cait attempting to flee. It was then that they both stared at each other. Whilst Cait tried to look away, she couldn’t take her eyes off the vault suit wrapped tightly around El’s curvaceous body. The vault suit’s zip was also partially undone which exposed just enough of El’s cleavage to get Cait’s attention. El must have also pushed up her boobs so the soft milky flesh was nearly spilling over the top of the material. Cait knew immediately that El had done that on purpose.

What drew most of Cait’s attention, however, was the large purple bruise surrounding El’s left eye. Cait could not look at it without feeling tremendous guilt at what she had done in her fit of anger. Cait had lived a life of abuse; now she inflicted that abuse of her lover. Maybe Cait was her parent’s daughter after all.

An immense feeling of relief suddenly washed over El as she saw Cait standing in front of her. Smiling happily, El took a step forward. “Cait! Oh, thank god. I’ve been looking everywhere for you. I’m so glad you’re here.” El said, approaching Cait.

Cait, however, stood back and averted her eyes from El. “Get away from me.” Cait said with a pained look on her face. “I…I don’t wanna see you anymore. Just…just leave me alone."

The happiness El felt at seeing Cait again instantly dropped and she knew that she would need to get serious. “Cait, please. Just let me explain.” El begged.

Not wishing to hear El’s begging, Cait jabbed an accusing finger at El. “No! I’m done listenin’ to you! I don’t wanna know how many sluts and scumbags you fucked before me!” Cait spat venomously.

It took all of El’s strength not to break down in tears. “Please, Cait. There’s been no one else, believe me. There’s only been you.” El said frantically, as she clutched her hands together and took another step forward.

But Cait would not listen and she began to turn away from El. “Look, just fuck off, alright!” Cait shouted painfully.

Sensing this as her last chance to save Cait, El had no option but to shout. “Cait! Just listen to me! It’s my husband’s child!” El yelled, her voice fracturing slightly.

Cait stopped in her tracks and remained stock still. Behind her eyes, El could see the anger and pain inside Cait change to a look of guilt and embarrassment. “Why…why should I believe you?” Cait eventually asked.

“Because it’s the truth, Cait.” El pleaded. “Please believe me”

Cait remained absolutely still, her hands clutched to her chest. Cait wanted so much to believe El, but she just couldn’t bring herself to accept it.

Eventually, realising that Cait would not be so easily convinced, El sighed and bowed her head. “I did the math, Cait. I think I’m about fourteen weeks along. I only thawed out three months ago.” El looked back up at Cait and continued. “It’s all made sense to me now, the vomiting, my stomach has been feeling off recently, my clothes have been feeling tight, and my…my breasts have been expressing milk.”

Cait immediately glanced down at El’s delectable breasts, her mind unable to think about anything else but El’s already large breasts filled with milk.

“At first, I thought it was because of Shaun that these changes were happening.” El continued, “But, now, thinking about it, I’ve changed my perspective. I was so traumatized after thawing out, I didn't stop and think about what was going on with my body."

Everything that El said only confused Cait. Cait believed that El was both lying and telling the truth at the same time. With all the conflict inside her head, Cait did not know what to do.

Sensing Cait’s inner turmoil, El tentatively took a step forward. Seeing El walking towards her, Cait instinctively tensed up and she took a shaky breath. “D-d-don’t.” Cait whimpered, stuttering as she spoke. She, however, did not back away from El.

Apprehensively, El took another step towards Cait, her hands open in front of her. El’s face was emotionless as she approached.

“S-s-stop. D-don’t.” Cait stuttered again, shaking her head, her lips quivering as she resisted the urge to cry.

Before long, through slow, calculating steps, El found herself standing directly in front of Cait. As El stood before her, Cait looked straight ahead, unintentionally at El’s cleavage, and trembled violently.

Taking a chance, El gently, but firmly, reached up and took Cait’s wrists and began prizing them away from her chest. Cait whimpered as she tried to resist El’s movements, but it was in vain. Within a few seconds, El had brought Cait’s arms down to her side. At the same time, tears were welling up in Cait’s eyes and she wondered how long she had before the damn broke.

Against all Cait’s trembling resistance, El then wrapped her arms around Cait’s shoulders and pulled into a tight hug. Initially, Cait squirmed and feebly tried to push El away. However, Cait was unable to fight her emotions and she soon hugged El for dear life. As soon as she relaxed, tears streamed down Cait’s face and she wailed despondently into E’s chest.

As Cait cried uncontrollably into her chest, El gently stroked Cait’s soft red hair to calm and sooth her. “Sssh, sssh. It’s alright, Cait. It’s alright.” El whispered in to Cait’s ear.

Eventually, Cait had cried most of her energy away and she began to relax. Loosening her grip slightly, but not releasing her embrace, El looked down at Cait and rested her head on top of hers. “I’m sorry, Cait. I’m so, so sorry. I…I never planned for any of this.” El stuttered as a single tear slid down her cheek.

Still sniffling, Cait raised her head and looked deep into El’s eyes; they had that hazel glint that she loved so much. “W-what do we d-do now?’ Cait asked apprehensively as small sobs escaped her lips.

El looked away and thought about Cait’s question. “I…I…I don’t know. For the first time in two-hundred years, I don’t have a plan. How…how are you supposed to have a baby in this wasteland? How am I supposed to find Shaun whilst pregnant? How-?” El stopped herself from speaking more as she felt her mind begin to spiral.

Composing herself, however, El looked back at Cait and held her tight. “But, whatever happens, I need you with me, Cait. I can’t survive without you. Please…please come home.” El begged as she stroked Cait’s soft wavy hair.

Feeling the soothing warmth from El’s body on hers, Cait knew that she could not survive in the Commonwealth without El. Gripping onto her lover for dear life, Cait closed her eyes and nodded.

Almost immediately, the damn behind El’s eyes broke and tears of joy streamed down El’s face. “Thank you, Cait. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” El smiled as she frantically peppered small affectionate kisses all over Cait’s face.

Steadying El’s body, Cait then leaned up and planted a deep, passionate kiss on El’s lips. Both women hummed contentedly as they lost each other in their kiss. The feel of their lips was completely intoxicating.

Eventually, El pulled away and her face became serious again. “Listen to me, Cait.” El said commandingly as she moved her arm to stroke Cait’s cheek. “Once I get some proper answers, we can sort this out, alright. I promise you that.”

Seeing the truth in El’s glinting hazel eyes, Cait leant up again and placed a small accepting kiss on El’s cheek. Returning to her original height, Cait then gave El a shy but deeply loving smile.

Almost completely overwhelmed with emotion that she had not lost Cait, El lovingly smiled back and rested her head on Cait’s again.

They both stayed standing the for several minutes but, eventually, Cait’s smile slowly dropped into a look of guilt and embarrassment. “I’m…I’m sorry I punched you in the face.” Cait said ashamedly as she looked at the bruise surrounding El’s left eye.

El could not help but laugh at Cait’s apology and she returned to gently stroking Cait’s cheek. “It’s alright, Cait.” El said, planting a kiss on Cait’s forehead. “Just a lovers quarrel.”

Chapter Text

El and Cait sat at the dining table, both eating their breakfast in complete silence. A couple of days had passed since Cait had returned home after running away. However, the many unanswered questions surrounding both women’s future relationship had brought an uneasy atmosphere over El and Cait.

Taking a bite of her Salisbury Steak, El glanced up at her lover. Across the table from her, Cait emotionlessly ate her breakfast. Her eyes were locked firmly on her plate and she sat slumped forward in her chair. She was wearing the dark green pin-striped shirt that she had found in Vault 95 and the jeans that El had bought her in Diamond City. El always liked Cait in that shirt. Not only did Cait look adorably beautiful in dark green, but Cait had worn that shirt the night they had confessed to each other. As a result, that shirt always held a special place in El’s heart.

After a few seconds, Cait glanced up and noticed that El was staring at her. “El, you need somethin’?” she asked, her voice both inquisitive and ever so slightly concerned.

Shocked back to reality by Cait’s question, El had to quickly think of a response. “Oh, urrr, n-nothing. Just that…you…you look…really nice today. I…I always loved that shirt.” El stuttered, giving a friendly smile.

Slightly taken aback by El’s compliment, Cait looked down at her shirt and gave a shy toothless smile, blushing as she did so. Cait was used to El making compliments about her appearance. It helped build the confidence that Cait visibly lacked. However, with everything that had happened in the last few days, Cait struggled to accept El’s praises. Cait loved El more than anything in the world, but El’s news had implanted new doubts in Cait’s mind that no number of compliments could dislodge. Ever since confessing to El, Cait had always seen herself as the centre of El’s attention. Whilst El’s quest to find Shaun lingered in the background, Cait always secretly considered him far away from them and unable to take El away from her. El’s news had thrown that entire scenario into doubt and left Cait terrified of what El would do about their relationship. Would El abandon her? Cait knew these thoughts were selfish, and El would be upset if she ever found out, but Cait could not think of anything else.

Eventually, El finished her meal and wiped her mouth with a napkin. Placing her napkin down, El looked up at Cait. “You ready to go?” she asked, trying to replicate the friendly smile she had given Cait earlier.

Fidgeting with her hands under the table, Cait nodded. “Yeah, I’m packed. Just need a minute to get it from the room.” Cait said as she stood up and shuffled off down the corridor to their bedroom.

With Cait gone, El sat back in her chair and sighed forlornly. Ever since coming home, Cait had not been the same. Whilst she was cordial most of the time, the adorably playful persona that Cait only displayed around El was now back behind emotional walls. Most days, Cait barely spoke to El for any length of time. Cait had also forgone any cuddles and embraces that El offered. Despite still sharing a bed every night, Cait slept facing away from El, with her limbs tightly curled up.

El was, understandably, deeply upset by Cait’s behaviour. At this critical stage of uncertainty in her life, El needed Cait’s love more than ever. El was convinced that Cait still loved her. The very fact that Cait had come home was proof enough of that. However, El also understood that Cait was stubborn and very easily hurt. As far as Cait was concerned, El had betrayed her trust and she would have to work hard to earn it back.

Placing a hand on her stomach, El squeezed her eyes shut and tried desperately not to cry. El was not sure whether she was upset because of Cait, or her hormones playing up. Whatever it was, El hated it. As she sat, a solitary tear escaped her eye and slid down her face. El just wanted Cait back.

El quickly wiped the tear away from her face when she heard footsteps approaching. Standing up, El found Cait with her jacket on and her bag slung over her shoulders. Clutched in her arms was also the armour that El had bought her.

Chuckling slightly, El reached out and gently took the armour off Cait’s hands. “Don’t worry, Cait. We won’t need this today.” El said as she placed the armour pieces on the table.

Walking around Cait, El collected her coat from beside the front door and slipped it on. She then similarly collected her rucksack and slung it over her shoulders. Once suitably attired, El looked back at Cait. “You ready to go?” El asked, gesturing to the door.

Retrieving her shotgun from against the wall, Cait nodded and walked towards the door. As Cait passed, El quickly grabbed her hand and held it close. “It will be alright, Cait. I promise. Just let me get some answers and we can discuss what to do.” El did her best to sound sincere and loving, but serious at the same time.

Cait glanced up at El, acknowledging her promise, and gave another nod before opening the door and stepping out into Sanctuary.

Understanding that she was unlikely to get any other kind of response from Cait, El sighed glumly and walked through the front door. Joining Cait in the middle of the road, El adjusted her rucksack slightly and cleared her throat. “Come on then. Let’s go.” El said as resolutely as she could.

In a painful silence, El and Cait exited Sanctuary and began their journey southward.

Entering Diamond City, El took a deep swig of her canteen and wiped thick beads of sweat from her brow. The weather on their journey had been especially hot and both El and Cait were happy to get under some kind of shade. Stepping off the causeway and into the city, El and Cait walked slowly towards the market.

“Blue!” El and Cait’s attention was suddenly drawn to the sight of Piper waving and striding confidently towards them.

“H-Hey Piper.” El said, still somewhat surprised as Piper wrapped her in a tight friendly hug.

Pulling away, Piper turned her head to Cait and smiled. “Good to see you too, Cait. You’re looking well.” As she was still somewhat unfamiliar with Cait, Piper cautiously did not hug her. Whilst she seemed nice, Piper felt she should get to know Cait more before trying anything else.

Cait lifted the corners of her mouth in acknowledgement but did not speak. She was happier that Piper did not attempt to hug her as well. Whilst Piper was El’s friend, she was not Cait’s, at least not yet.

Turning her head back to El, Piper returned to her chirpy persona. “So, where you been, you big lug? How’s the Commonwealth been treating you? What did you do to your face?” Piper asked, frowning at the bruise around El’s eye.  

Still taken aback by Piper’s characteristic friendliness so soon after arriving, El attempted to answer. “Well, an awful lot if I’m honest, Piper. It’s a bit of a long story though. And I got this during a pretty tough firefight.” She lied, attempting a smile.

Hearing the prospect of a long story, Piper’s face lit up. “Well, why don't you both come in and take a load off. You must be exhausted. I want to hear everything.” She said enthusiastically.

El stood uneasily and bit her lip as she processed Piper’s invitation. “Urrm, well…that sounds great, Piper. But, there’s…kinda something we need to do here.” El said, glancing across to Cait.

Completely understanding her insensitivity, Piper’s smile dropped. “Oh, right. Of course. Sorry, I’m intruding.”

“No, not in the slightest.” El replied, retrieving the situation. “Maybe we could come by later?”

“Yeah, sure.” Piper said, giving a friendly smile. “Just knock when you’re ready. And good luck with whatever you’re doing.”

“Thanks Piper. I’ll see you a bit later.” El said as she gestured herself and Cait towards the market.

“Sure thing.” Piper said with a nod.

Walking into the Diamond City market, El and Cait immediately banked right and entered Doctor Sun’s Mega Surgery Center. Upon seeing them, Doctor Sun turned away from his chemistry station and greeted them. “Good afternoon. How can I treat you today? Wounds? Radiation?”

“Hi Doctor” El greeted back. “None of those today. I’m not sure whether you have the right equipment, but I need an ultrasound scan. I’m…I’m pretty sure that I’m pregnant.”

Doctor Sun thought for a few seconds and then nodded. “Just to be sure, can you tell me any symptoms you might have, and how far along you think you are.”

El’s cheeks went slightly red as she listed off her symptoms. “Well, I’ve been vomiting, my stomach has been feeling off the past few days, and my…my breasts have been expressing milk. If my math is right, I think I’m about fourteen weeks along. I...I also haven't really been able to keep track of my cycle.”

Doctor Sun nodded again. “Alright. I can give you the scan. But the machine is downstairs and, as this is a specialised piece of equipment, I’ll also need a premium. Fifty caps will suffice.”

“Fine.” El replied, willing to pay any price for answers. El then carefully counted out fifty caps and slipped them into her coat pocket. “After the scan.” El said commandingly.

“Very well then.” Doctor Sun said. “Follow me.”

The setting was not what El would have liked; but here she was, lying on a lightly sanitised hospital bed, just under street level. The two-hundred year old ultrasound machine also did not fill El with much confidence as Doctor Sun started it up.

El was lying with the top half of her vault suit down and the bottom half of her vest folded up just under her breasts. Next to her, Cait stood silently, her face both curious and terrified.

“Alright. Let’s see what we’ve got.” Doctor Sun said as he placed the ultrasound device on El’s stomach. El shivered as the cold device ran over her skin and she watched intently as the machine’s screen flickered into life.

After several seconds, Doctor Sun noticed something on the screen and held the device in place. “And, there it is. It looks like your math is pretty much spot on, give or take a week.”

El’s eyes widened, her mouth dropped open, and tears welled up in her eyes as she stared at the flickering screen. In the middle of the monitor, a little life sat peacefully inside her. As she watched the foetus inside her lightly bop up and down, El could not contain her happiness. El could never have imagined anything like this since thawing out. After Nate’s death, El had assumed that her only reminder of him would be her memories. But now, this new life inside her was a living reminder of the husband she had lost so long ago. Completely awash with happiness, El looked up at Cait.

Cait, on the other hand, stared blankly at the screen, her eyes wide with shock. The cause of all her doubts was right in front of her, on that tiny screen. What was she going to do now? Cait had had El all to herself and this, this thing, had stolen her away. Now, if El kept her around, Cait would always have to settle for second best.

Sensing Cait’s shock, and unenthusiastic reaction, El reached out and gently took Cait’s hand.

Jumping at the contact, Cait looked down and saw El smiling lovingly up at her. El looked so happy about everything she heard, but Cait couldn’t bring herself to feel the same way. Eventually, not wishing to seem unsupportive, Cait forced a toothless smile.

“So, would you like to know the baby’s sex?” Doctor Sun asked, returning El and Cait to the matter at hand.

“No, no. I don’t want to know.” El said, quickly turning away from Cait.

“Okay. Well, for the future, you will need to rest up and avoid all kinds of radiation, if possible. Have you been doing any heavy lifting lately?” Doctor Sun asked.

Biting her lip, El contemplated her answer. “Urrm, well, I did drag my girlfriend away from some warzones a couple of times.”

Doctor Sun crossed his arms. “That’s definitely off the table now. Your girlfriend may have to take your place when it comes to the warzones.” He said, looking at Cait.

El nodded. “Of course, Dcotor. We…We have a lot to talk about.” she said, looking up at Cait and holding her hand tightly.

Cait simply looked away and remained silent, already accepting her new role as second best.

Once Doctor Sun had been adequately paid, El and Cait found themselves back at El’s house. After showing Cait her upstairs quarters for the first time, both women quietly unpacked their things.

Eventually, El was fully unpacked and she set about the difficult task of talking through her new reality with Cait. “Cait…I think, maybe, at some point, we should talk about where we go from here.” El said timidly, not wanting to sound too forceful.

Cait immediately looked away and stiffened. She moved her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

Sensing Cait’s insecurity, El walked around the bed and approached her. “Cait, are you alright? You haven’t said anything since we arrived in Diamond City.” El asked, attempting to take Cait’s hand.

Cait quickly moved her hand away and shuddered, trying to speak. “I just…need some time…to…think things through.” she stuttered, not wanting to look El in the eye.

Understanding Cait’s need for space, El nodded and tried to give a friendly smile. “Okay. Well, maybe, we can talk things through later?”

“Fine.” Cait said abruptly, becoming increasingly frustrated with El’s prying and questioning. Cait then started walking away and down the stairs.

“Cait, where are you going?” El asked, confused by Cait’s attitude.

Cait stopped halfway down the stairs but did not turn around. “I’m goin’ to the bar to…to clear my head.” She said glumly.

“O-Oh.” El stuttered, surprised by Cait’s emotionless reply. “I…I was going to take Piper up on her offer earlier.”

This time, Cait turned around, a look of annoyance plastered across her face. “Can’t you just let me fuckin’ have this?” she snapped, her eyes burning with frustration.

El’s eyes widened and she took a step back, shocked by, and slightly fearful of, Cait’s effrontery. “Oh…urrr…okay, sorry.” El stammered, looking down in passive submission.

Tuning back around, Cait reached the bottom of the stairs and made her way to the door, collecting her jacket on the way.

“Cait?” El called to her.

Stopping in her tracks, Cait looked up nonchalantly.

Noticing Cait’s irritated expression, El needed to approach this carefully. “Please…Please don’t drink too much.” El said, sounding almost like a whisper.

Lowering her eyes, and biting her lip, Cait’s face softened slightly as she considered El’s words. Eventually, however, Cait continued walking.

Hearing the door open and shut, El sat down on the bed and sighed heavily. Placing a hand over her stomach, El sat alone, desperately fighting the urge to breakdown in tears.  

Taking a deep breath, El composed herself as she knocked on the front door. After everything that had happened in the last few days, maybe some friendly company would help set El’s mind at ease.

After hearing sounds of muffled fumbling, the door opened to reveal Piper. Seeing El standing outside, Piper gave a beaming smile and opened her arms. “Blue!” she said enthusiastically. “It’s so good to see you. Come in, come in.”

Greatly relieved by Piper’s characteristic friendliness, El smiled happily. “Hey Piper. Thanks for having me.” El said as she stepped through the threshold.

“Oh, don’t mention it. It’s been way too long. Have a seat and take a load off.” Piper said, gesturing to the couch as she closed the door.

El walked through and removed her coat. She couldn’t help but chuckle as she placed it on the end of Piper’s couch. Piper’s home looked exactly the same as it had the last time she was here; cluttered and messy. Piles of papers crowded almost every inch of free space and scribbled notes covered every piece of furniture. Piper obviously didn’t mind whether she had guests or not.

As if she had just been hit by a car, El was suddenly thrown off her steady footing as Nat collided with her. “Blue! You’re here! It’s so good to see you!” Nat called happily as she wrapped her arms around El’s side.

“H-Hey Nat.” El said, still trying to steady herself from Nat’s surprise hug. “How have you been? Taking care of your sister, I hope.”

“Doing my best. Have you been on anymore adventures?” Nat asked as she detached herself from El’s side.

El smirked and raised her eyebrows, imitating a look of deep thought. “Yeah, a few. But mainly grown up adventures.” El said cryptically to heighten Nat’s excitement.

“Tell me, please!” Nat asked, jumping up and down, pleading with El for more information.

“Maybe when you’re older.” Piper said as she walked around and stood next to El. “Now, go on, Nat. Blue and I need to do some grown up girl talk.”

“But I wanna stay. I’m a grown up.” Nat pleaded, her smile dropping.

“Nat…” Piper insisted, crossing her arms.

“Fine.” Nat huffed as she scrunched her face up and stomped away upstairs.

Exhaling contentedly, Piper turned back to El. “Right, now we’re alone, have a seat.” Piper said, gesturing to the couch. “Where’s Cait?”

El’s smile immediately dropped and she fumbled an answer. “She…urrr…couldn’t make it. Not…not feeling herself.” She stuttered unconvincingly.

“Oh…okay.” Piper replied, trying to hide her confusion. “Well, we can still have fun, can’t we?” she continued, attempting to retrieve the situation.

“Sure.” El nodded, her face returning to a modest smile. Taking a seat on the couch, El settled down and crossed her legs.

“Can I get you a drink? I’ve got some Nuka Colas if you would like one.” Piper said as she pulled a variety of different Nuka Cola bottles from one of her kitchen cupboards.

“I would love one. Don’t mind what flavour.” El replied, leaning forward to keep an eye on Piper.

Eventually, Piper returned and placed an open bottle on the table in front of El. She then took a seat on a chair opposite and similarly settled down. “Went for a Nuka Cherry, if that suits.” Piper said, pointing to the bottle.

“You spoil me, Piper.” El chuckled as she collected the bottle and took a long refreshing swig.

“I aim to please.” Piper replied, holding her hands up in a pose of self-congratulation. She soon, however, dropped her hands and sat forward. “So, what have you been doing all this time?" Piper asked, already getting down to business.

El chuckled and similarly sat forward, placing her bottle back on the table. “Well, after returning from the Castle, I made arrangements to return to Sanctuary to help with the teleporter build. So, Cait and I made our way northwards.

“How’s the build been going?” Piper interjected as she pulled a small notepad and pencil from her jacket pocket.

“It’s been going okay, just very slow.” El replied, her smile dropping. “We…we couldn’t stay long because we encountered some problems. The night we arrived, Cait…Cait took an overdose and blacked out outside in the middle of a storm.”

Piper’s eyes widened and her pencil stopped moving. “An overdose?”

El looked down and nodded. “Yes, an overdose. I always had my suspicions. I just didn’t want to believe them. It turned out that Cait was suffering from a Psycho addiction. She…she was too afraid to tell me. When I found her the next morning, she looked so scared. After I cleaned her up, and she fessed up to it, I set about getting her the help she needed.”

Piper’s mouth was almost completely agape by this point. “Where would you go for help like that?” she asked, leaning forward even further.

“When she came forward, Cait told me of a vault that she had heard about, Vault 95, on the edge of the Glowing Sea. Cait had heard that there was a machine that could cure her addiction.” El continued, her hands fidgeting slightly as she remembered that day.

“I had no idea there even was a vault on the edge of the Glowing Sea. I’m assuming you made it.” Piper asked, becoming increasingly enthralled by El’s story.

“Yeah, we made it.” El nodded. “It was a hard battle though. The place was crawling with raiders, but we fought our way through.”

“Did you find the cure?” Piper questioned further.

El nodded again. “We did. Cait did take a lot of convincing, but she eventually did the procedure. Happily, it worked, but it was very painful, and it left Cait unconscious. In my panic, I couldn’t think of anything else to do except drag her back to Sanctuary.”

Piper sat up, frowning in disbelief. “Wait, you dragged Cait back to Sanctuary from the edge of the Glowing Sea?”

El nodded and sighed, herself still amazed at what she had done. After hearing the news from earlier that day, El wondered if she would have made the same decision if she had her time again. “Yeah. It wasn’t easy, but I made it.”

“And, I assume she’s recovered well enough?” Piper asked rhetorically, herself already sure of the answer.

El gave a toothless smile as she remembered how far Cait had come. “She has, and she’s done so, so well.”

“Oh, well, I’m so proud of her. Wish she was here so I could pat her on the back.” Piper said chirpily. “So, what happened after?”

El’s cheeks went red as she thought through what she would say next. “Urrm…well…once Cait recovered sufficiently, we set about working on the build. But…urrr…once again, things ended up distracting us.”

“What things?” Piper asked, frowning again.

El bit her lip and began fidgeting with her hands again. “Urrm, well, in the days after returning from Vault 95, Cait and I started developing feelings for each other. After a few days, and a few sleepless nights, we couldn’t hold back and told each other. Then we…we…well, you know.” El said bashfully.

Piper raised her eyebrows and opened her mouth in total surprise. She was completely astonished by El’s words. “Blue! Oh my god! I’m so happy for you. I hope you treat each other well.” she said, smiling happily.

“Yeah, we…we…” El faltered as all the thoughts and feelings from the previous days flowed into her mind. Suddenly, a pained sob escaped El’s lips and she buried her face in her hands, unable to keep from crying.

Immediately, Piper dropped her notepad and moved to sit next to El. “Hey, hey, Blue, what’s wrong? Where’s the fire?” Piper asked as she placed a hand on El’s shoulder.

“I’m so sorry, Piper. I shouldn’t burden you with my problems. I just couldn’t help it.” El said between sobs, wiping the tears from her eyes.

Piper leaned forward. “But, what’s up? Why are you so upset? You got the girl.” she asked, attempting to add a silver lining to the situation.

El sniffled and nodded. “I did. For a week, at least. But, a couple of days ago, something I never could have imagined happened and ruined everything.”

Piper shuffled closer. “What happened? Did Cait do something? If Cait did something, I want to know.” She said, her voice firm with determination.

El shook her head. “Cait didn’t do anything, well, except this.” she answered, gesturing to the bruise around her eye. “A couple of days ago, I…I…I found out that I’m pregnant. Pregnant with…my…my husband’s child.”

Piper’s mouth dropped open and her eyes widened, looking like El had just slapped her. “Blue…I…I…I don’t know what to say. C-Congratulation, I guess.” she said, unable to find a better answer.

“Thanks, I suppose.” El forced herself to say. “When I told Cait, she thought that I had cheated on her. I tried to tell her, but she wouldn’t listen and we had a huge fight. Then she ran away. I managed to track her down and win her back, but it hasn’t been the same. She barely speaks to me. She never looks me in the eye. We still share a bed, but we always sleep apart. I…I just feel like she’s slowly slipping away.” El said as she wiped her eyes and sniffed.

Piper’s often chirpy face instantly turned into one of a serious investigative journalist. “Have you tried to talk to Cait about this?” she asked.

El nodded, trying to remain composed. “I’ve tried. I tried after my scan with Doctor Sun. But Cait didn’t want to talk. She then walked off to the Dugout. That’s really why she isn’t here.”

Piper thought about El’s words, thinking through what she would say next. “Blue, is Cait stubborn at all?” she asked.

El couldn’t help but chuckle at Piper’s question. “Very.” she replied.

“But, does she do as she’s told in the end?” Piper asked further.

El nodded, curious of where Piper was going with her questioning. “Eventually. If you nag her enough.”

At that response, Piper tapped El’s leg and gave her an accomplished look. “There you go. If you force the issue, she’ll eventually listen to you. If Cait didn’t want to listen, she would have never come back. The fact that she’s still with you is proof enough that she still cares about you.” Piper then gave El a reassuring smile.

Listening to Piper’s words, El completely understood. Piper was absolutely right. Forcing the issue had worked in the past. Why shouldn’t it work now? And, the very fact that Cait was still following her must mean that she still cared. Eventually, El nodded, feeling sure of herself for the first time in days. “Thank you, Piper. I…I really needed this.” El said as she wrapped Piper in a tight hug.

Piper chuckled and returned the hug. “Hey, even the strongest people need help sometimes.”

After several seconds, both women pulled away and returned to their original positions. Almost immediately, however, Piper leaned forward again, a mischievous look in her eyes. “So, pregnant, eh? How far along are you?”

Finally, able to smile, El sat back and relaxed. “About fourteen weeks, give or take.”

“Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?” Piper questioned further.

El shook her head. “I don’t know. I don’t want to know.”

Piper raised her eyebrows and nodded, understanding El completely. Her face, however, turned serious again. “But, how are you? Are you happy?”

“I’m…I’m okay. Still in shock, but okay. I could do without the vomiting though.” El answered, sighing deeply as she placed a hand on her stomach.

Piper smiled but shook her head slowly. “I don’t know how you can do it.”

Raising her eyebrows, El looked back at Piper. “Never had your eye on anyone?” she asked curiously.

Piper chuckled and shook her head again. “The press waits for nothing, and no one.” she said sensationally, holding her hand up in a commanding gesture. “I was thinking though, Piper is a good name for a boy or a girl.”

El laughed properly this time. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.” she said, covering her mouth to contain her laughter.

Piper, however, was not finished. “And think about this for a title, The Oldest Mother in the Commonwealth.” she continued, gesturing her hand from left to right, imagining the title in front of her.

“If you use that title, I will never speak to you again.” El replied seriously, playfully jabbing a finger at Piper.

Both women laughed happily, visibly enjoying their friendly conversation. El, especially, basked in the happy feelings that talking to Piper gave her. With Piper’s added confidence, hopefully, El would have enough courage to talk things through with Cait.

“It’s time for you to leave, Cait.” El said emotionlessly, standing in the doorway of her Sanctuary home, her new baby cradled in her arms.  

Standing on the step outside, Cait pleaded with El to let her back in. “No! El, please don’t throw me out! I love you!” she begged forlornly.

El’s face, however, remained unchanged. “No, Cait. You don’t belong here.”

Tears welled up in Cait’s eyes and she dropped to her knees. “No! Please, El, you…you said that we would be a family.” Cait continued to beg.

El looked down at Cait scornfully. “I did. But you do not belong in this family. You belong out there, with the other scum of the Commonwealth.”

Cait was, by this point, crying pitifully on her knees as she saw the form of a small child appear from behind El and stand at her side. Cait’s eyes widened as she saw that the form had no features to speak of. “Is she leaving, mom?” the childlike form asked.

El looked down at the featureless childlike form and smiled. “Yes, Shaun. She is.” she said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Looking up at El, the formless Shaun, and the baby, Cait suddenly felt herself being dragged away. With nothing to hold onto, Cait was unable to resist the invisible force pulling her away. “EL! PLEASE DON’T GO!” Cait screamed as El’s home become smaller and smaller in her vision.  

“Goodbye, Cait.” Cait heard El’s emotionless voice in the distance.

“EL! NO! PLEASE DON’T LEAVE ME!” Cait screamed hoarsely as El disappeared from view. As Cait stared forward, her surroundings melted away into a blank white. Completely lost and dumbfounded, Cait looked around frantically at her surroundings, desperate to find anything of interest. There was, however, nothing in sight, just blank whiteness.

Suddenly, Cait heard something behind her. Turning around, Cait found herself transported to a grimy office in, what looked like, a raider settlement. In the middle of the room was a large wooden desk with a series of different objects scattered over it. Behind the desk was a large, but tattered, red leather chair. Looking around confusedly, Cait noticed something uncomfortably locked tightly around her neck. Bringing her hands up around the object, Cait was shocked to find her wrists locked inside a set of manacles. Where the hell was she?

Still trying to work everything out, Cait noticed something out of her peripheral vision. Turning to her right, Cait saw a cracked mirror resting against the wall. Walking closer, Cait frowned at what she saw. It was her, but…different. She was skinnier, with no muscle. Her face looked younger, almost adolescent. Her clothes had also changed; she hadn’t worn clothes like these for years. Eventually, as she looked at her teenage reflection, Cait realised the object around her neck was a shock collar.  

Almost instantly, Cait knew exactly where she was. Taking a step back, everything made sense; the manacles, the shock collar, her clothes, her teenage appearance, her surroundings. This was the day her parents had sold her into slavery. “No!” Cait thought to herself. “Not here. Not today.”

The clang of a heavy door shocked Cait out of her thoughts and she whipped around. Standing in front of her was a tall sinister individual dressed in a tattered old suit, with a deep scar running down his face. “So, you’re the fresh meat I’ve heard so much about.” he said with a lecherous grin.  

Already knowing exactly where this memory was going, Cait tried to run. But, no matter how hard she tried, Cait was unable to move. Here Cait was, reliving one of the worst days of her life, unable to fight it.

The individual approached Cait and looked her up and down. “They were right about you. You’re a cute one. We don’t get a lot of redheads around here." he said slyly. Walking around, Cait’s breath hitched and she shivered as he ran his hand up Cait’s slender leg and cup the side of her butt. “Slim, and juicy.” he continued as he groped Cait.

Cait breathed heavily and scrunched her eyes shut as he then ran his groping fingers through her thick red hair and leaned in to smell her neck. Cait could feel his hot breath on the back of her neck, terrified of what he was going to do next. Cait was highly conscious that, despite her abusive upbringing, she was still a virgin. She didn’t want to remember where this memory was going.  

Sensing her distress, Cait’s tormentor walked around so he was standing in front of her. “Sssh. Don’t be afraid. We’re a happy family here.” he said softly, cupping Cait’s chin in his palm and squeezing her cheeks between his thumb and fingers.

Moving his hand off her chin, Cait’s tormentor then proceeded to run his hand down to the top hem of her small t-shirt. Gripping the top hem in his large hand, with one heavy pull, he ripped the garment’s fabric, exposing Cait’s unsupported breasts. Owing to the state of disrepair in Cait’s clothing, the garment virtually disintegrated. Desperately trying to shield her modesty with the garment’s remains, Cait looked down and brought her manacled hands up to cover her exposed breasts.

Suddenly, Cait felt her tormentor's hands grab her forcibly from behind and bring her close. Her tormentor's left hand gripped tightly around her chin, whilst his right hand violently groped the soft white flesh of her breast. “You’ve got an impressive little body, kiddo. We’re gonna like you very much.” Cait’s tormentor leered as he pinched one of Cait’s nipples between his fingers.

Cait whimpered and squirmed violently as she tried to break free. “GET OFF ME!” Cait screamed as she desperately tried to wriggle free. But, no matter how much she writhed, she was unable to move.

“Oh, you like this, don’t you? I bet it’s making you wet.” Cait’s tormentor whispered as his hand dislodged from her breast and began circling around the crotch of her trousers.

Finally, with no other option, Cait made her move. “I SAID GET THE FUCK OFF ME!” Cait screamed as she violently bit down on her tormentor’s left hand.  

Yelling loudly as he loosened his grip, Cait’s tormentor reeled away, clutching his bitten hand. “You fuckin’ bitch!” he yelled. Finally, free from his grasp, Cait swung around and tried to look for an exit. Cait, however, had barely turned around when she saw a large hand come across and brutally swipe her across the face.  

Pain instantly erupted around Cait’s left eye and she brought her manacled hands up to nurse her throbbing skull. Cait’s breath was then completely knocked out of her as her tormentor landed a powerful punch directly into her stomach. Cait wheezed loudly as she bent down and tried to catch her breath.

Cait then suddenly felt her tormentor's hands tightly grip her waist and swing her around, slamming her front first into the desk. As Cait tried to regain her senses, searing pain unexpectedly erupted in her neck and shocked its way through every inch of her body. Cait screamed and her body contorted violently as her shock collar sent out powerful stabbing electrical shocks that burned and paralysed her.  

After several excruciating seconds, the torment ended and Cait slumped forward, limply bent over the desk. Cait felt powerless as she heard her tormentor's heavy footsteps approach behind her. Leaning over her, Cait felt her tormentor's hot breath on the back of her neck again. “Don’t fuckin’ do that again.” he said threateningly.

Pulling away, Cait then felt his hand run down her back and tightly grip the waistband of her trousers. With another heavy pull, similar to her top, the material ripped, exposing Cait’s butt.

The last thing Cait heard was the menacing sound of her tormentor unbuckling his belt. “I think it’s time we broke you in, don’t you think?” he grunted with an evil grin as he forced himself upon Cait.

Cait screamed and yelled pitifully as pain unlike anything she had ever experienced before erupted inside her core and tore its way up her body. With every brutal thrust, tears streamed down Cait’s face and she whimpered pitiably.

Unable to fight, or even move, Cait buried her face in the desk’s surface and cried. With nothing left to do, Cait could only let the torture take its course.

“CAIT?!” a loud but distant voice suddenly called out.

“CAIT!?” El shouted next to Cait as she gently shook her.

Hearing El’s voice, Cait’s eyes flashed open, ready to escape her tormentor’s torturous grasp. “GET OFF ME!” Cait screamed as she shot up and scrambled to the end of the bed.

“Cait, it’s alright. You’re safe. It was a nightmare.” El said, getting to her knees and attempting to look Cait in the eye.

Sitting at the end of the bed, Cait’s eyes darted around her surroundings. To her relief, the room of her dream was gone, and her tormentor was gone. Now, she was back in El’s Diamond City home, the room illuminated by a single bedside lamp. Still traumatised by her nocturnal torment, Cait bowed her head, hugged her knees to her chest, and tried not to break down in tears.

“Cait?” El’s voice shocked Cait back to reality and she glanced up to find El looking across at her. The look on her face was both loving and concerned. Cait wanted nothing more than to climb into El's arms and feel her soothing embrace. But, doing that might imply that she had forgiven El.

Sensing Cait’s dilemma, El shuffled herself so she was sitting with her legs crossed and opened her arms. “Cait, come here.” she said commandingly, but lovingly at the same time.

Cait glanced out of her peripheral vision at El’s loving embrace. She wanted it so much. Eventually, with her mouth quivering, Cait was unable to fight her emotions anymore. In an instant, Cait scrambled across the bed and climbed onto El’s lap. Wrapping her legs around El’s waist, Cait buried her face into the top of El’s chest and wept.

As tears streamed down Cait’s face, staining her vest, El gently rocked Cait back and forth and slowly ran her fingers through Cait’s hair, massaging her scalp. “Ssssh, Cait. it’s alright. You’re safe. They can’t hurt you anymore.” El whispered softly into Cait’s ear.

Cait, however, only cried harder; her body shivering as El held her. She was completely inconsolable and only wrapped her limbs tighter around El’s body, clinging on for dear life. Eventually, El began humming soft soothing tunes into Cait’s ear in an effort to calm her down. At no point did she stop rocking Cait or cease running her fingers through her hair.

This method appeared to calm Cait down and her tears began to mercifully subside. However, despite her tears stopping, Cait remained firmly locked around El’s waist, unwilling to move. El needed to ease Cait off her lap and get to the bottom of this. “Cait, tell me what happened.” El whispered softly into Cait’s ear, attempting to ease Cait out of her shell.

Cait shook her head vigorously and attempted to bury her face further into the top of El’s chest. Her breathing also quickened as residual sobs escaped her lips.

Not willing to let this rest, El tried again. “Cait, if you don’t talk about this, the nightmares won’t go away.” she said, sounding more determined this time.

Reluctantly, Cait slowly lifted her head and looked up into El’s glinting hazel eyes. Seeing the love and trust in them, Cait nodded and loosened her grip on El.

With Cait’s legs unhooked from her body, El shifted herself so she was sitting with her back to the bed’s headboard. Similarly, Cait adjusted herself so she was curled up in El’s embrace, the side of her head resting securely on El’s chest. With Cait comfortable, El probed again. “Alright, Cait, just tell me what happened. But, take your time.” El said softly, gently stoking Cait’s hair.

“P-Please don’t be mad.” Cait said, shivering slightly as she spoke.

“I promise.” El replied.

Cait sniffled before beginning. “I...I dreamed that we were at home, in Sanctuary. You…you were standin’ on the front step and I was outside. You were holdin’ your new...your new baby in your arms. And, you…you…you were tellin’ me to leave.”

El immediately gripped Cait tighter. She didn’t like where this dream was going.

“I…I tried to talk to you, but you wouldn’t listen to me. Then…then your son came walkin’ up behind you and asked if I was leavin’. You said I was.”

El’s mouth dropped open. She couldn’t believe that Cait had dreamt about Shaun. “You saw Shaun?” El interjected.

Cait sniffed and nodded. “I couldn’t see what he looked like, but you said his name. S-Somethin’ then started pullin’ me away from you. I tried to fight it, but nothin’ worked. I…I was screamin’ at you to come back, but you kept gettin’ further away. When I couldn’t see you anymore, all I could see was white.” Cait suddenly curled up further into El’s embrace, not wanting to carry on.

Gently rocking her, El eased Cait back out of her shell. “I said that I wouldn’t get mad.” El said, softly

Sniffling, Cait continued. “When…when I was lookin’ for you, I heard somethin’ behind me. When I turned around, I was in a grimy room in a raider settlement. I looked in a mirror and saw I was eighteen again. My hands were chained, and I had a shock collar on. It was the day my…my parents…s-sold me.”

El rested her head on top of Cait, holding her tight.

“Then the gang leader came in and…and started gropin’ me. I…I’d never done it before, so I tried fightin’ him off. Then he...he...beat me up and threw me on the desk and turned my shock collar on.” Cait shivered as she remembered both the shock collar, and what happened next. “When it stopped, he…he…tore my clothes off and…he…he… It hurt. It…it hurt s-so much.”

As El listened, tears were threatening to fall down her face. El knew far more about Cait’s past than most. But hearing Cait talk about what she had experienced always upset her. El could have cried from hearing what had happened to the woman she loved. “Oh, Cait. I’m so, so sorry.” she said despondently.

Unsure what she meant by her response, Cait started to panic in El’s arms, her mind spiralling with uncertainty. “I…I didn’t wanna do it, honest. But they had me chained, and I…I couldn’t move, and I…I…I was so scared.” Cait looked up at El, terrified that she would throw her off the bed like the rotten piece of meat she was. “Please believe me. I didn’t wanna do it-.”

Cait spiralling mind was completely stopped in its tracks when El grabbed both sides of her head and kissed her deeply. Feeling El’s soft lips on hers, Cait instantly relaxed and settled back into El’s embrace.

Pulling away, El looked deep into Cait’s eyes, her face loving, but serious. “I believe you, Cait. I would never be mad at you because of your past.” she said, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand.

Seeing the trust in El’s enchanting face, Cait scrunched her eyes shut and nodded before she leaned in to steal another kiss. The kiss was short, but it meant the world to Cait. For the first time in days, Cait finally felt safe.

After a few minutes of cuddling in silence, El felt that she had to say something. Ever since talking to Piper, El had been looking for the right opportunity to force the issue of their future on Cait. As Cait spoke about her night terrors, El reached the conclusion that Cait would only feel truly safe if they talked things through now. Cait’s fears of abandonment had sparked these terrors, so forcing the issue of their future was the only way to stop them from coming back. “Cait, I think we need to talk. We have put it off long enough.” El eventually said curtly, attempting to broach the subject.

Upon hearing El’s request, Cait instinctively stiffened and shook her head. “N-No. I don’t…I can’t…I…I…” she stuttered, not able to find the words.

“Cait, if we don’t talk about this, the nightmares won’t go away.” El insisted, not willing to let this go.

Cait sighed heavily at El’s insistence, but reluctantly accepted that El was right. “Why was El so goddamn smart?” Cait thought to herself. Lifting her head, Cait nodded. “Okay…”

Loosening her grip on Cait, El began. “Cait, what are you so afraid of?”

Struggling to find the right words, Cait tried to answer as best she could. “I’m just…scared that…when…when you have your baby, you…you won’t…won’t love me anymore.” she said timidly, too embarrassed to look El in the eye.

Stunned by Cait’s words, El’s reassurance mode went into overdrive. “Cait, I would never stop loving you because of that. Cait, I…I’ve wanted to tell you this the moment I found out I was pregnant, but, urrm, other things got in the way.” El said, referencing their fight in the bathroom. “Cait, after this baby is born, I…I want you to stay with me.”

Cait looked down glumly. “As your bit on the side?” she asked, already accepting that as the answer.

“No, Cait. I…want to you stay…as…as a family. As a…mother.” El replied tentatively to soften the blow.

Cait’s eyes widened as all the blood drained from her face. She looked as if El had just slapped her. After a few seconds, however, Cait shuddered and violently shook her head. “W-What? N-N-No! I…I can’t do that! I can’t raise a kid. I’m…I’m fucked up!” she said despondently.

Steadying Cait shuddering body and taking her hand, El tried to reassure her. “Cait, I know. I know you’ve been through a lot, and that scares you. But you have proved time and time again that you are stronger than your tormentors, and I am so proud of you. That’s why I love you, and that’s why I want you to stay and help me raise this child.” El sniffled as she fought off the tears welling up in her eyes.

Cait, however, wasn’t convinced. “But…But, what if I end up turnin’ into my parents?”

El gripped Cait’s hand tight. “Cait, you are not your parents!” she said authoritatively. “Your parents were scum, and you are so much better than them. Listen to me, Cait, I know you’re scared. I am too. I…I never planned for any of this. But I know you for the person you truly are. That’s why I think you will be a wonderful mother." El thought for a few seconds before continuing. “And…children offer us a chance to be a better than we are. We’re what…they grow beyond.”

Cait sat in El’s lap, attempting to think through El’s words. She had no reason to disbelieve El about what she was saying. El had never lied to her about anything. Why, when El had already had a baby, would this be any different? But, on the other hand, Cait was still terrified of her past haunting her, and, whether, deep inside, she was no different than her tormentors. She couldn’t inflict that on a child.

Seeing Cait’s eyes paralysed with fear and uncertainty, El tried a different approach. “Cait, I have roughly six months before I’m due. Why don’t we use those six months as a warmup period for you? I promise you it will be okay.” El said, her eyes beaming with the hazel glint that Cait found so mesmerising.

After several moments of deep thought and soul searching, Cait nodded. “Okay, I…I believe you. Havin’ some time m-might be good.” She said, both elated and terrified at the same time.

El gave a beaming smile, awash with emotion. “Of course, Cait. I understand. Thank you.” she said, kissing Cait’s forehead. Her face, however, soon hardened again and she looked deep into Cait’s eyes. “But I need you to promise me something, Cait.”

Cait instinctively bit her lip, unsure about what El would ask her.

“I want you to come back to me. When…When you came home, you…you left a lot of you behind, and you haven’t been the same since. If we’re to make this work, I need you with me, all of you.” El said resolutely, clasping Cait’s hand tightly.

Cait sniffled and curled into El’s embrace. “I’m s-sorry.” she said apologetically. “I didn’t mean to. I…I was just scared.”

El nodded and kissed the top of Cait’s head. “I know, Cait. I forgive you.”

As a means of solidifying her apology, Cait raised her head and leaned in to kiss El on the lips. The kiss was long and passionate, similar to the night they had confessed their feelings to each other. Cait felt as if she had finally come home as she rekindled El’s familiar taste. Both women could not have been happier to have each other back in their lives.

Eventually, El and Cait pulled away and stared at each other. In was in this moment that Cait smiled for the first time in days. “I’ve missed kissin’ you.” she said bashfully, her cheeks going red.

El couldn’t help but chuckle. “I’ve missed kissing you.” she replied, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand. “Now, come on. Why don’t we give sleep another go?”

Cait nodded in response and they both set about adjusting themselves for sleep. Before long, El was lying on her back with Cait cuddled up next to her; Cait's head resting peacefully on her chest. El smiled to herself as she watched Cait cuddle up next to her. After those emotional days in the wilderness, Cait was finally back alongside her.

Turning the bedside lamp off and wrapping her arm around the back of Cait’s waist, El gently stoked her side. “Remember, Cait. This child inside me is not just mine, it’s yours as well. You will be a wonderful mother. I promise." El said softly as darkness enveloped them.

As a first step in accepting her new reality, Cait tentatively rested her hand on El’s stomach. In response, El placed her other hand on top of Cait’s and, once more, kissed the top of Cait’s head.

With the march of sleep unrelenting, El and Cait were soon completely sound. Neither woman knew what the future held for them. But, whatever happened, they would face it together.

Chapter Text

Zipping up her vault suit, El strode into the living area and collected her coat from beside the front door.

“Where you goin’?” Cait asked, turning her body to look behind the living room sofa.

“I’m just going out for an hour or two. Personal errand.” El replied cryptically as she slipped her coat over her shoulders.

“Where is this personal errand then?” Cait pried further, an inquisitive smirk spreading across her lips.

El bit her lip, apprehensive about answering. “It’s…It’s at the vault.” she said quietly, her eyes drooping to look at her boots.

Cait’s smile dropped and she shrank away slightly. “Do…Do you need me to come with you?” Cait asked, attempting to sound supportive.

Seeing the thoughtfulness in Cait’s offer, El just chuckled and shook her head. “No, don’t worry, Cait. This is something I would rather do myself.” Taking a step forward, El pulled Cait onto her knees so they were at roughly equal height. Leaning in, El kissed Cait deeply, her lips savouring the taste of her lover.

Cait immediately relaxed and placed her hands on the sides of El’s belly. Gently, she ran hands over the soft material of El’s vault suit. A couple of months had passed since their trip to Diamond City and El’s belly had grown consistently throughout that time. Whilst her belly did sometimes make El feel self-conscious about her body, Cait had taken a liking to it and enjoyed running her hands over it.

Pulling away, El lifted a hand and stroked Cait’s cheek. “I’ll be back in time for dinner.” she eventually said.

Cait nodded and looked down. Upon looking down, Cait’s smile returned and she started to laugh. “I still can’t believe you found one of those stupid vault suits for pregnant women.” Cait said, stoking El’s belly.

Similarly looking down, El also couldn’t help but laugh. One side effect of El’s growth was that her clothes were starting to get too small for her. As El was loathed to give up wearing her vault suit, Codsworth had gone on a search of Vault 111 and, miraculously, found a vault suit designed exclusively for pregnant women. “Thank Codsowrth for finding it. Although, I am still a little confused why pregnancy vault suits were in a vault designed for freezing people. It looks pretty good though, don’t you think?” El said, putting her hands on her hips.

Cait looked El up and down bit her lip. El, as always, looked great. She, however, shuffled closer and gripped the vault suit’s zip. “Just one thing. Show off what you got.” Cait said mischievously as she lowered the zip slightly to expose El’s even more pronounced cleavage.

El sighed playfully and raised her eyebrows at Cait. Alongside her belly, El’s already large breasts had also grown somewhat, extenuating her bust even more than before. Whilst El had gone through this process before, El found that it caused nothing but trouble, especially when she was trying to get Cait to listen to her. “You know what you are, don’t you?” El asked rhetorically, playfully exacerbated by Cait’s behaviour.

Cait had to think for several seconds, trying to remember the word that El used. “In… Incor-… incorrigible?”

“Yep. Incorrigible. A huge pain in the arse.” El confirmed, a smug smile on her face.

Cait scrunched her face up in an adorable gurn and leaned in to steal another kiss from El. El quickly returned the kiss and then turned to front door. “I’ll be back in a little while. I love you.” El said, looking back at Cait as she opened the font door.

“Love you too.” Cait replied, smiling as she leaned over the back of the sofa.

With a beaming smile on her face, El walked through the front door and out into Sanctuary.

The heavy sound of the lift brought El down into Vault 111. Stepping off the platform, El walked up the metal steps towards the vault entrance; the sound of water splashing under her heavy boots as she trudged forward.

As El entered the main foyer of the vault, she couldn’t help but remember the day she had been frozen. How Vault-Tec had tricked her and her family into believing they would be safe when the bombs inevitably fell. How she had to strip off and squeeze herself into a tight-fitting vault suit before being taken any further. Although, given how often El wore hers, she couldn’t moan too much.

Heading into the administration office El couldn’t help but notice the skeletons strewn across the floor. El wondered if they ever questioned what Vault-Tec had asked them to do. How many times had they walked past her frozen body before they themselves succumbed to Vault-Tec’s bloodlust, El thought to herself?

Spying a bright light to her left, El looked up at a locked armoury cabinet jutting out from the wall. Peering through the glass, El spotted an impressive looking gun locked behind a glass shield. There seemed to be a strange cold vapour emanating from it, almost like a liquid nitrogen vapour. El took a step back and smirked. Maybe, when she visited again, she could bring Cait to unlock the door.

Continuing her journey, El wandered past the now rotting corpses of the Radroaches lying on the vault floor. El scrunched her nose at the corpses as she remembered her first encounter with them. El had been so dazed from thawing out and was completely lost to what was happening at the time. She couldn’t have imagined she would, after two-hundred years of cryosleep, have to punch a radioactively oversized bug to death.

Finally, El reached her destination, the cryochamber. Looking around, El remembered the day she was led unwittingly into a two-hundred-year sleep, only to have her life and family destroyed in the process. Remembering that day still left a deep hole in El’s heart that would not be easily healed. It was smaller than before, but still open. Stepping off the steps, El quickly tied the belt of her coat around her waist to cover herself. A little surprise never hurt anybody.

Turning right, El stood in front of a crypod and looked up. As expected, Nate’s lifeless body remained completely unmoved. Maybe this visit would go a little better than the last one, El hoped. “Hey Nate. I’m back. It’s…urr…it’s been a while. I meant to visit earlier, but…other things happened.” El couldn’t stop smiling as she spoke, remembering everything that she had done.

El continued. “So, remember when I talked about the feelings I was having for my friend, Cait? Well, turns out I wasn’t alone. When I got home, we told each other and…and…and…” El stalled as her cheeks went bright red, “Let’s just say we’re together now.” she said blushingly.

Smiling bashfully, El began fidgeting with her hands, conscious of what she was hiding under her coat. “I wish you could meet her, Nate. I think you would really like her. She is rough around the edges, but she’s wonderful underneath.” El’s smile, however, dropped slightly as she remembered Cait’s inner struggles. “Cait is still dealing with a lot, but we’re getting there, slowly.”

El looked up again and received no reaction from her husband’s corpse. Out of a contribution of exhaustion from the extra weight she was carrying, and discomfort of tying her coat so tightly around her waist, El knew she had to move on. “Nate, I would love to talk about Cait more, but that’s not really why I’m here. it’s something more personal.” El’s hand began to fiddle with the knot of her coat belt as she continued. “When you were taken from me all that time ago, I thought that you were truly gone forever.” El then began untying the knot. “Well…urrm…you…urrr…left…a little something behind.” El said, biting her lip as she moved the two halves of her coat away to reveal her round pregnant belly.

Cupping the underside of her belly in her hand, El’s smile returned to her lips. Finally, El was able to tell Nate the news. “It seems that romantic night we had together did have consequences after all.” El said playfully.

El’s hand, gently stroking her belly, however, quickly turned into an accusing finger that she jabbed at Nate’s body. “Now, before you say anything, it’s your fault I’m like this. If you hadn’t got me so horny, I would have reminded you to use protection. You knew full well how ticklish I am down there.” El accused, doing her best to sound commanding.

Eventually, El lowered her finger and placed it back on her belly. Sighing, she knew there was no point in complaining now. “Anyway,” El continued, “I’m about five months along at the moment. My clothes are now getting tight. I’ve had to switch to one of these maternity vault suits.” El immediately began to laugh. “You wouldn’t believe it, but, Codsworth found one of these vault suits here, in Vault 111. What a maternity vault suit is doing in a vault like this is beyond me.” El said between bouts of laughter.

Taking a step forward, El looked down and her smile returned her normal. “Back to it, I suppose. The doctor did ask if I wanted to know the baby’s sex, but I told him that I didn’t want to know. You know how much I liked surprises.” El said, leaning her shoulder against the door of the cyropod. “I could do without the extra weight, the discomfort when sleeping, and the abnormally swollen tits though. Who would have thought my tits could hold so much milk?” El huffed in annoyance as she looked down at her cleavage poking ostentatiously out of her vault suit. “Well, Cait’s not complaining.” El shrugged.

Pretty soon, however, El was struggling to fight off the tears welling up in her eyes. “Oh Nate, you should be here. You should be here for your child.” El sniffed, bowing her head despondently. El just wanted Nate back. Her child deserved to have a father at its side. Nate had helped create this child, he deserved to have a hand in raising it.

But, in that moment, El couldn’t stop think of Cait. Whilst El, in this instance, wished Nate was alive, having him here might be a double-edged sword. If Nate was alive, El might never have met Cait; and if she had, she might never have fallen for her like she did. After everything that had happened between them, El couldn’t imagine her world without Cait. Maybe some things were meant to happen for a reason, El thought.

El quickly shook her head to dispel the thoughts in her head; El loved Cait and that was the end of it. “But, at least, this child will be a reminder of you; and I’ll have Cait with me.” she said, returning to her original conversation. 

Once again, a smile crept across El’s lips. “Yep. Cait is going to be a mother. She…She is very scared, and that’s understandable. But, given how far she has come, I think she will do a wonderful job.” El closed her eyes, allowing a single tear to fall down her cheek. She wasn’t sure whether the tear was happy, or sad, or just her crazy hormones, but she didn’t care.

After a few moments, El opened her eyes and looked around. As usual, nothing could be heard except droplets of water and low hum of the generators. El wondered how long she had been down there. She should probably be getting back. “Nate, I would love to stay longer, but it’s probably getting late. Also, Cait will start wondering where I am.” El said, taking a step back and standing in front of the cyropod. “I promise I’ll visit again, when I’m a bit further along. I might even bring Cait so you can finally meet her.” El smiled happily at the prospect of Cait and Nate meeting.

Finally, El’s smile returned to normal and she prepared to leave. “Anyway, I best be going. I’ll see you again soon. I love you.” In a final gesture, El brought her fingers to her lips and kissed them. she then rested them on her belly before planting them on the glass window of the cryopod. It was a loving gesture and El hoped that, wherever Nate was, he would cherish a kiss from his wife and unborn child.

Bringing her hand back to her side, El turned to her right and headed towards the vault exit.

As the lift reached ground level, El squinted as the sun shone brightly in her eyes. Whilst the sun was, by now, hanging low in the sky, El underground escapade had left her eyes unadjusted to bright light.

Working her way down the hill, El couldn’t help but notice a change in her walking style. Owing to her body shape, El normally strode when she walked. Now, however, the extra weight she carried had turned her strides into something more akin to a waddle. El could do nothing but huff to herself, accepting that a low centre of gravity was just a fact of being five months pregnant.

After a quick stroll up the street, El finally reached home. Opening the front door, Cait, who had been sitting quietly on the sofa, turned around to welcome her. “Hey El!” Cait greeted happily.

“Hey, sweetheart.” El greeted back as she closed the door and removed her coat. As El walked through the living area, she was similarly greeted by Dogmeat who enthusiastically reared up for attention. Easing herself onto her knees, El began rustling Dogmeat’s fur. “Hey boy. You been a good boy for Cait?” El asked as she stroked behind his ears and under his chin.

Dogmeat simply leaned in and licked El’s cheek.

Laughing loudly, El lifted herself back to her feet and allowed Dogmeat to potter off around her legs. It was then that El got a good look at Cait.

Cait, who was now standing in front of her, had clearly gotten herself ready for when El returned. She was wearing the dark green shirt that El loved so much. She had also brushed her hair, so it was smooth and wavy, with her fringe tucked adorably behind her ear. Cait simply looked beautiful. El, however, knew Cait well enough to know that there was more to this. Whilst Cait had begun to take more pride in her appearance lately, she normally did it to help flaunt her looks and body to El. Cait clearly had an agenda. “How’d it go?” Cait eventually asked.

“Really well, actually.” El replied as she approached and put her hands on Cait’s hips. “You’re wearing my favourite shirt. And, oh, what’s this I see?” El asked as she looked down into Cait's shirt to find a lacy maroon coloured bra pushing up her large pale breasts. El had bought that set of underwear for Cait on their last trip to Diamond City. However, unlike the more practical underwear that El bought Cait, this set was purely cosmetic. “You’re wearing that fancy underwear I bought you.” El said with a coquettish smirk.

Cait’s cheeks went bright red. “Thought I’d make myself look nice for when you got back. You like it?” Cait asked, returning her own coquettish smirk.

“I do. I do.” El answered, running her hands up Cait’s slender waist. “You scrub up pretty nice sometimes.”

“Sometimes?” Cait asked, cocking her head to one side and frowning.

“Yeah. Sometimes.” El insisted playfully, her coquettish smirk turning into a smug smile.

Cait chuckled as El leaned in to kiss her deeply. The kiss was long and passionate, both women, humming contentedly as they savoured the feel of each other’s lips. Similar to El, Cait rested her hands on El waist and began stroking her round belly. Both El and Cait appeared to lose themselves as they succumbed to their emotions.

Eventually, El and Cait pulled away and they both stared at each other, wondering whether they should make the next move. Cait certainly would have had no qualms in taking El right there. But that could come later, hopefully. “D-Dinner’s nearly ready.” Cait finally said, returning her and El back down to earth.

El glanced at the table and sighed happily. “Great! I’m so hungry, I could eat a house.” she said jovially.

Both El and Cait laughed loudly as they strolled towards the kitchen table and took their seats.

“Come on! We’re going out!” El exclaimed as the approached the back of the living room sofa, attempting to buckle her gun belt around her expanded waistline.

“We’re what?” Cait asked, turning her head to look at El from behind the sofa.

“We’re going out.” El repeated, finally able to buckle her belt around her waist. “I need to get out of Sanctuary for a while. Just to let off some steam. I can’t take another minute in this house.” El said as she put her hands on her hip and sighed heavily.

Cait gave a mischievous smile and stood up. “Where you wanna go?” she asked.

El breathed heavily through her nostrils as she thought about Cait’s question. “I’m not sure. I kinda just want to kill something.” she replied, a peculiar fire burning in her eyes.

Whilst Cait was open to killing something, she was unfamiliar with such a proposition coming from El. For some reason, El didn’t feel right. “Are you okay, El?” Cait asked, frowning in confusion.

El sighed loudly again and shrugged her shoulders. “I’m fine. My hormones are just going crazy in here. I have so much pent up energy that I can’t put anywhere. I’m both downright restless and really horny at the same time.”

Cait’s eyes widened, completely taken aback by El’s words. She hadn’t expected El to be so vocal about her feelings. Ever since they met, Cait had always seen El as a very calm and reserved individual, who could display passionate episodes of courage and compassion when needed. This new brashness was alien to how Cait imagined El. Cait, however, was happy to go along with it. “Well, I can help with the second thing.” Cait said, smiling coquettishly as she got to her knees and began running her hands up El’s waist.

“Maybe later.” El replied, taking Cait’s hands and removing them from her waist. “Right now, I just want to let off some steam and kill some irradiated animals.”

Cait’s coquettish smile immediately turned devilish. “I’m down for some pest control.” she said, resting her hands on the back of the sofa.

El then leaned in and passionately pushed her lips onto Cait’s. The kiss was long and sloppy, but both women couldn’t get enough. Cait immediately raised her hands off the sofa and wrapped them around the back of El’s neck, bringing her closer. Both El and Cait’s tongues then engaged in a clunky forced tango as they succumbed to each other. Cait had been kissed passionately by El many times before, but this was on another level. El’s behaviour was almost primal.

Suddenly, El pulled away and smiled roguishly. “Come on. Grab your jacket. We’re going hunting.”

With a flourishing final swing, Cait landed her axe directly into the head of a glowing Molerat. As she wrenched the axe out of the fresh carcass, green luminous blood dripping from its blade, Cait wiped the sweat from her brow. Cait had to admit, this idea of getting outside to let off some steam was brilliant. With her breath slowly returning to a normal rhythm, Cait turned to look at El.

The image of El fighting the Molerat infestation was a sight of both extreme hilarity and arousal. Striding through the wreckage of an old scrapyard, El fired a final shot into the Molerat queen. Standing commandingly over the corpse, Cait couldn’t help but smile at how ridiculous El looked with her round pregnant belly poking through the middle of her coat.

Cait, however, was also feeling incredibly aroused at how El looked in that commanding stance. The look of a pregnant El sauntering through a rodent infested scrapyard, blowing their heads off, was unbelievably sexy for Cait.

After looking around for a few seconds, El sighed heavily and placed her pistol back into its holster.

Walking over to El, Cait had a devilishly inquisitive smirk on her face. “So, you satisfy your bloodlust?” she asked, placing a hand on her hip and leaning on her axe handle.

El nodded slowly, but enthusiastically, the glint in her hazel eyes burning with an unusual primal fire. “Yes, I think so. It’s good to get rid of some pent-up energy once in a while.” she said breathlessly.

Cait then yelled as El suddenly wrapped her arm around her waist and levered her off the ground. Standing on her tiptoes, Cait struggled to maintain her balance as El mashed her lips on hers. Like their kiss at home in Sanctuary, this kiss was similarly sloppy and animalistic. Like two mating predators, El and Cait hummed and moaned loudly as their tongues danced a primal tango. The taste of both women was simply intoxicating.

As they kissed, still trying to keep her balance, Cait dropped her axe and wrapped her arm around El’s waist. She then began stroking El’s belly with her other. Cait was loving this new side to El. Is this what pregnancy did to women; turn them into horny goddesses, Cait thought to herself. If so, Cait could certainly get used to this part of her new life.

Eventually, both women pulled away and stopped to catch their breath. “God, I love you!” El exclaimed breathlessly, a loving smile on her face.

Cait smirked shyly. “Love you too.” she replied, her cheeks going red. “You know, all that badass stuff you’ve been doin’ has been makin’ me really wet.” Cait’s eyes were now burning with lust.

El raised her eyebrows and cocked her head to one side. “Oh really? You got a thing for horny pregnant women?” El asked impishly.

“Just this one.” Cait replied, leaning in to steal a quick kiss from El’s lips.

El then brought Cait in close and held her tight. “Well, why don’t I take you home and satisfy you?”

Cait’s fiery green eyes burned with intoxicating intensity. “Okay. But you better get a move on. Or I’m gonna have to rub one out myself.”

“Well, after you, Milady.” El said, placing Cait back down on the ground and gesturing to the scrapyard’s exit.

Collecting her axe, Cait began walking down towards the exit and back to Sanctuary. She, however, nearly jumped out of her skin as she felt El slip her arm around her waist and bring her in close. Smiling happily, and wrapping her own arm around El’s waist, Cait, with the woman she adored, meandered back home.

Whilst the journey back to Sanctuary was long, neither El nor Cait minded. There was still plenty of daylight left and the temperature was pleasant enough to walk slowly. As they meandered back home, El talked endlessly about various things while Cait listened.

El wasn’t sure whether she should stop talking, or not. Whenever they passed a particular point of interest, El would begin talking how it looked before the war; the last time she had seen it; whom she had been with. El just couldn’t stop.

Whilst El rabbited on, Cait quietly listened as they continued walking. Cait was happy to let El talk, she just liked the sound of her voice. Furthermore, Cait was still feeling enthralled by El’s new personality. As a result, she was happy to let El prattle on till they made it home.

Suddenly, as they came through the clearing of some dead trees, Cait stopped and her face dropped as she looked off into the distance.

Realising that Cait had stopped, El turned to her and frowned. “Cait? Are you alright?” she asked, concern in her eyes.

Cait didn’t respond and continued staring ahead.

Clocking where Cait was staring, El turned to look in the same direction, curious of what had caught Cait’s attention. Standing like a castle in the barren landscape, a small dilapidated house lay dormant; its windows broken and its wooden walls falling apart. Surrounding the house were fields of dead and withered crops that blew and rustled aimlessly in the afternoon wind. Slightly apart from the house was a similarly dilapidated shed that stood close to collapsing. The place looked like it had been abandoned for years.

After several moments, Cait began slowly walking towards the dilapidated house, her face emotionless as she trudged forward. Stopping roughly ten metres away, Cait tensed as she dropped her axe to the ground.

Suddenly, Cait frantically reached down to the dirt and retrieved a rock. Yelling loudly, and painfully, Cait then threw it as hard as she could at the abandoned house. As the rock hit the house with a loud thud, Cait immediately grabbed a second and similarly threw it as hard as she could.

Throughout all of this, El stood stock still, too confused to understand what was going on. However, with every rock that Cait threw, El began to understand the place they found themselves in. Cait had told stories of where she had grown up. This must have been the place.

Scrambling in the dirt, Cait grabbed a fifth rock and, letting out a deeply injured yell, lobbed it at the house. This time, however, Cait threw the rock with such force that she lost her footing. Tumbling to the ground, Cait landed on her hands and knees and let out a pained sob. Turning her body so she was sitting, Cait lowered her head and quietly cried.

Watching Cait sob into the ground, El slowly started walking down towards her. Reaching Cait, El eased her pregnant body down so she sat next to Cait, facing in the opposite direction. Shuffling closer, El took Cait’s shoulders and pulled her into a loving embrace. El just let Cait quietly cry into her chest. No words needed to be said, just being there was enough.

The sound of the front door slamming finally brought silence over El’s Sanctuary home. With room to think, El exhaustedly sat herself on the sofa and put her head in her hands. Gently kneading her brow, El massaged away the headache that was threatening to develop.

Ever since their unexpected encounter with Cait’s old family home, Cait had been very irritable and crotchety. This behaviour had built considerable friction between her and El. Every time El tried to ask about Cait’s feelings, Cait would respond with an evasive backlash of attitude.

When it came to arguments, El was excellent at them. A career in law had made it very easy to deflect Cait’s arguments and accusations. However, the ease at which El could argue only enraged Cait even more. Pretty soon, El was trying to defuse something akin to an atomic bomb. Happily, and to the benefit of everyone in the house, Cait had excused herself before El really lost her temper.

Sighing heavily as she sat on the sofa, El heard Codsworth float over to her. “Is everything alright, mum? You look exhausted.” El heard him say.

“Yeah. I’m fine, Codsworth.” El replied, still kneading her brow in exacerbation.

“Forgive me for intruding in this personal quarrel, mum, but I would recommend you leave Miss Cait to her own devices. Eventually, she will come around.” Codsworth continued.

El looked up and shook her head. “No, I should go out and talk to her. If I don’t go to her, she will only get more annoyed. I’ll give her a few minutes though, to calm down.”

“Very good, mum.” Codsworth finished before floating away. He was, however, quickly replaced by Dogmeat who looked into El’s eyes and rested his head on her lap.

With a friendly smile, El began ruffling his fur and scratching behind his ears. “At least you never argue with me.” El said, looking down at Dogmeat.

Dogmeat did not respond and just continued to look up at her. El sat there for a long while, calming herself though stroking Dogmeat’s fur.

Eventually, El looked up at the clock and determined that enough time had passed to go and find Cait. Easing herself up, El walked around the sofa and opened the front door. Walking through, El stepped out into Sanctuary and closed the door behind her.

The weather outside was still warm in the early evening sun. But, as the sun hung low in the sky, a steady breeze kept it just cool enough to be pleasant. El had a good idea of where Cait was. Whenever, Cait needed a quiet place to think, she always went down to the riverbank and sat on the stone wall.

As El entered the remains of the playground, El found who she was looking for. There Cait was, sitting on the riverbank wall, looking out into the distance with her feet dangling off the edge.

El approached as quietly as she could and gently sat herself down on the wall, facing in the opposite direction to Cait. She noticed Cait momentarily glance in her direction before looking away, her face melancholy.

“Thought I might find you here.” El said as she swung her legs around, so they were facing the same direction. Looking over, El noticed something clutched in Cait’s hands. Leaning in slightly, El spied that it was the photograph she had taken of her and Cait that night in Diamond City. It was quite crumpled, but the image was still very clear and vibrant. “I always loved that picture.” El said, referencing the photograph to start the conversation.

Cait looked down at the photograph and stroked the form of El with her thumb. “I like to keep it with me. Reminds me of what I have.” She said, holding the image tight in her hands.

“That’s a lovely thing to do.” El said smiling. As silence fell again, El could see in her eyes that Cait was trying to think through what she was going to say. Looking down, El quietly watched the movement of the river, waiting for Cait to speak.

“I’m sorry.” Cait eventually said, looking up to face El.

El smiled and wrapped an arm around Cait’s waist and allowed her to rest her head of El’s shoulder. “It’s alright, Cait. Tell me what’s bothering you.” she said soothingly.

Cait stiffened slightly but attempted to speak. “I…I’m just…so…fuckin’…angry, all the time. I thought I was over it, but I’m not.” Cait looked completely lost at sea.

“What are you angry about, Cait?” El asked, stroking Cait’s side.

Still somewhat angry with herself, Cait scrunched her face up slightly. “It’s just…when we found where I grew up, all I could think about was the shite I took from my parents. Eighteen fuckin’ years of bein’ beaten and abused and I did nothin’ about it. I let myself believe that, deep down, they really loved me. When I saw the house again, it just made so fuckin’ angry with myself.”

Listening to every word that Cait said, El gave a reassuring look. “I understand that it’s difficult, Cait. I really do. But you don’t need to worry about them anymore. You’re safe.”

Cait nodded but was still unconvinced. “It just…made me worry about what I could do when you have your baby.” she said, looking back down at the picture clutched in her hands.

“Cait, we’ve been over this. I promise you it will be alright. You will be a wonderful mother.” El said, leaning in close, determination in her voice.

Still unconvinced, Cait looked back up at El, her voice more frantic. “But you don’t know that. Or am I just bein’ stupid?”

“Cait, do not call yourself stupid! You are not stupid!” El snapped, raising her voice to stop Cait from spiralling.

Cait shrank away slightly, not expecting El to raise her voice so much. Witnessing this, El’s face softened and she tried a different approach. “Cait, you’re right. I can’t promise that. But remember what I said that night in Diamond City. When I could still just about see my feet.”

Cait bit her lip, her mind trying to remember what El had said to her that night.

Sensing Cait’s difficulty, El helped her along. “I said to you that I know you for the person you truly are. You are not your parents, Cait. I agree that that isn’t a promise as such. But it’s a belief, a belief in you.”

Cait thought for a few moments, trying to believe what El was saying. Eventually, Cait looked up into El’s eyes and saw their trusting hazel glint. “Well…you’ve been right about everythin’ since the day I met you. I’ll believe you if you say so.” Cait said, giving a shy smile.

Smiling, El leaned in and kissed Cait on the forehead. “Thank you, Cait. Now, come on. Let’s go inside and get ready for dinner.”

Right on cue, Cait’s stomach gave a low grumble. “Okay. I am pretty hungry.” she said bashfully.

After dinner, Cait sat on the sofa waiting for El to appear after her shower. Cait didn’t want to insinuate anything, but she was desperate to watch some movies. Codsworth had managed to bring back some new additions to their collection on one of his regular scavenging missions, and Cait was itching to watch them. Escaping into another might help Cait fight her anger.

Eventually, El came around the side of the sofa. Following her shower, she was wearing a pair of maroon coloured pyjama shorts and a dark blue vest pulled somewhat tightly over her swollen chest and belly. Cait could not help but notice El’s nipples poking ostentatiously through her top.

Watching El walk around the furniture, Cait frowned as she walked straight past the sofa and towards the large rectangular wooden box next to the television. Cait knew that one of the box’s cabinets held the video holotape collection. Maybe El would pick out one of the new films. Cait’s eyes widened in anticipation.

El, however, opened a different cabinet compartment and pulled out a different holotape. She then inserted it into a device in the middle of the wooden box. After a few seconds, the room was filled with the soft melodies of music as the device started itself up.

“Be sure it’s true when you say I love you

It’s a sin to tell a lie

Millions of hearts have been broken

Just because these words were spoken…”

Standing up, El turned and walked towards Cait, a friendly smile across her lips. “Dance with me.” El said, holding a hand out to Cait.

Cait’s eyes widened and she reeled away slightly. “What? No.” she said sharply.

“Come on, Cait. Please dance with me.” El asked again, this time with a kind of begging in her voice.

Cait just shook her head. “I don’t dance.”

El lowered her hand and her face changed to one of mischievous innocence. She then clutched her hands under her belly, inadvertently pressing her breasts together. “Cait? Don't you love me?” she asked, feigning innocence.

Cait cursed herself as she looked up at El. El was playing her like a fiddle. Finally relenting, Cait rolled her eyes and reluctantly took El’s hand.

Smiling, El lead Cait to the middle of living area. “So, what do we do?” Cait asked nonchalantly.

El, in response took Cait’s right hand and placed it on her shoulder and clasped her left in her right. She then placed her own left hand on Cait’s waist. “You just position yourself like this, and then just…dance.”

Cait groaned at El’s cryptic answer. “But I can’t dance.” she said frustratedly.

El sighed but did not lose her temper. “Dancing is not something you need to know. You just…do it. Just move your body to the beat, with me.”

They started slow, both women easing their movements into a rhythm. Cait found it especially awkward as she had never danced for the sole purpose of personal enjoyment. Eventually, however, Cait began to relax and, with a good deal of prompting for El, started getting into the feel of the music. Cait couldn’t stop the smile spreading across her lips as they rhythmically moved around the room to the beat of the music. What they were doing was stupid in Cait’s opinion, but for some reason, it made Cait feel free. It gave her the same feeling she got when watching a movie, a feeling of escape. Cait loved it.

Over the next hour, El and Cait danced their way through a good chunk of El’s holotape collection. After a slow beginning with The Ink Spots, El and Cait jazzed out to the tunes of Atom Bomb Baby. After that, they threw all caution to the wind as they danced out to Civilization. Cait especially loved this song and couldn’t stop laughing as her and El swung themselves around the dance-floor.

El loved seeing Cait this happy. After everything, Cait deserved to have some fun. Whilst killing wild animals was fun, El surmised that dancing together would allow Cait to free herself from her thoughts and smile happily again. Judging by how much Cait was laughing, El believed that it must have worked.

Pretty soon, the music had changed back into a slow melody. Whilst The End of the World wasn’t a particularly happy song, its slow pace suited the two perfectly. El and Cait were, by this point, wrapped in each other’s arms, slowly moving in circles around the dance floor. Cait was cuddled up against El, her right hand gently stroking the side of El’s belly and her head rested comfortably on her chest, her eyes closed and smiling happily. El stood in a similar position with her head resting soothingly atop Cait’s. Both women could have stayed there forever.

Ever so slowly, as to not disturb Cait, El gently raised her head to look towards the kitchen. Floating quietly in the kitchen, Codsworth watched them both dance their evening away. in one of his claws was El’s camera. Upon noticing Codsworth, El gave him a small wink and returned to resting her head on Cait’s.

At that gesture, Codsworth placed the camera on the sidetable next to the sofa and withdrew to engage his nightly low power mode.

With Codsworth gone, El and Cait were alone to while away their evening, wrapped in each other’s arms as the music played.

That night, Cait sat in bed waiting for El to arrive. Cait had had a wonderful evening and had almost forgotten her haunting encounter with her past. She was certain that, before long, another memory would come back to haunt her, but she would face that when it came. For now, however, all Cait wanted to do was cuddle up with El and, maybe, if El was in the mood, have some more fun.

After a while, Cait heard the bathroom light flick off and she saw El walk through the doorway, a glass of water in her hand and her PipPad in the other. “Hey sweetheart.” El said happily, closing the door behind her and placing the objects on her bedside table.

“Hey.” Cait replied softly, sitting slightly forward to expose her cleavage through her vest a little more.

El looked across and noticed the look on Cait’s face. it was an adorably loving and innocent toothless smile that never failed to melt El’s heart. However, the way the left corner of her lips was slightly higher than her right betrayed a coquettish undercurrent to Cait’s perceived innocence. El had seen Cait make that smile when she was expecting something. Cait clearly had an agenda. Knowing exactly what Cait wanted, El gave a similar smile and decided to play with Cait before going anywhere else. “What are you staring at?” she asked suggestively.

Cait’s cheeks immediately went bright red as she tried to tease El back. “Just…you….” Cait said, still trying to feign innocence. El was always better at teasing than she was.

At that response, El raised her eyebrows and decided to turn the teasing up a notch. Standing straight, El put her hands on her hips and cocked her head. “You know, Cait, it’s rude to stare at people.” she said, her eyes glinting with mischief.

Cait’s charade immediately crumbled as she stared at El's commanding presence. El looked simply amazing. Her tight nightclothes hugging every one of her curves. Barely supported, El’s swollen breasts, with their erect nipples, looked close to bursting out of her vest as it struggled to keep them sufficiently tethered. Similarly, El’s round pregnant belly stretched the fabric of her vest as far as it could possibly go. Cait also noticed the bottom of El’s vest already beginning to ride up her belly, exposing its smooth underside. Playing right into El’s hands, Cait lowered her head in bashful embarrassment. “I can’t help it if you look that good.”

Cait then stiffened and bit her lip as El climbed onto the bed and began crawling towards her. “You think I look good?” El asked impishly, the end of her nose barely an inch away from Cait’s

“Yeah. Starin’ at you makes me wet.” Cait answered, still trying to tease El back.

El raised her eyebrows again in mock surprise but her smile did not change. “I make you wet, do I?” she asked, pressing her breasts together with her arms.

Cait couldn’t help but look down, such was the hold El had over her. “Just a little.” she answered, completely hypnotised.

El chuckled, marvelling in the control she held over Cait. “Well, I may have to do something about that.” she said, closing the gap and pressing her lips on Cait’s.

The kiss was loving and passionate. Both women exhaled heavily through their nostrils as they rekindled each other’s lips. Cait hummed contentedly and put her hands on the sides of El’s head, holding her close.

Suddenly, El frowned to herself and abruptly pulled away. Looking down, she cursed loudly. “Oh, for fuck sake!” she shouted crawling away from Cait.

“What? What’s up?” Cait asked, her face dropping, immediately thinking she had done something wrong.

“I’m fucking leaking again!” El answered as she got off the bed and stood up.

Cait instantly looked down at El’s chest and saw two circular damp patches around her nipples. Despite trying her best not to, Cait could not stop herself from biting her lip.

Not noticing Cait’s facial expression, El huffed to herself and walked over to her chest of drawers. “The number of fucking tops I’ve been through is getting ridiculous!” El growled. Pulling her top off, El threw it roughly on the floor and opened one of her drawers to find a replacement.

El had just turned around with a new top when she saw Cait standing in front of her. Before she could react, Cait quickly clasped her hands in hers and gently prized the top from El’s grasp. El was immediately confused about what Cait was doing. She had a strange sultry look in her eyes that was hypnotically fixed on the small stream of milk dripping out of El’s nipple. “Cait? What are you doing?” El asked, frowning in confusion.

“Just…follow me.” Cait replied softly.

El reluctantly did as she was told and followed Cait back to bed. As they approached, Cait moved her hands onto El’s shoulders. “Sit down and lie back.” Cait said, trying to push El down onto the bed.

Still confused, El sat on the bed and rested her back against the headboard. Cait then climbed next to her and positioned herself on her knees. “Cait, just tell me what you’re doing.” El asked again, feeling somewhat exacerbated at Cait’s behaviour by this point.

Cait huffed in frustration and rolled her eyes at El’s continued questioning. “Just…shut up and let me help.” Cait said commandingly.

Accepting defeat, El lay back and awaited what Cait was planning to do.

Finally, free of resistance, Cait gently cupped one of El’s swollen breasts in her hands and began massaging it. As Cait’s hand made contact, El immediately hummed, tipped her head back, and closed her eyes. El’s breasts had become even more sensitive since realising she was pregnant. Having Cait massage them sent warm waves of pleasures through her body.

El was then suddenly shocked back to reality as Cait gave El’s breast a gently squeeze. Almost immediately, white droplets of milk oozed out of El’s darkened nipple and ran down her breast. Licking her lips, Cait lowered herself down, clamped her lips arounds El’s erect nipple and began to suckle.

Shocked by what Cait was doing, El’s eyes flashed open and she tried to recoil away. “Cait, no. Stop it. I-.” El’s breath, however, hitched as the feeling of Cait nursing her breast sent a warm pleasurable feeling swirling around her body.

As Cait continued to suckle, El was quickly succumbing to her pleasure. El had felt pleasure at Cait sucking her nipples before. But this pleasure was different. With the plethora of hormones going through her body, and the milk oozing from her breasts, El was feeling a new kind of pleasure. It was almost motherly.

Eventually, El could not hold back any longer and succumbed to her feelings. “Oh, Cait. Come here.” El said breathlessly. In an instant, El collected Cait in her arms and held her close, almost cradling her. Secure in El’s arms, Cait’s lips latched back onto her nipple and she continued to suckle.

Cait had never tasted anything like what El was secreting from her breasts. It was smooth and sweet, like the taste of a candy bar. Cait had drunk milk hundreds of times before. But drinking it directly from the woman she loved and adored made this special, and even more delicious. Furthermore, the deep moans that El was giving off from her suckling was proof enough that El was enjoying what she was doing.

Humming contentedly, El smiled as she looked down at Cait quietly nursing her breast, her eyes closed. El was still struggling to understand why Cait was doing this. Quite frankly, El believed that Cait’s behaviour was ridiculous. However, whether it was her hormones, something about what Cait was doing just felt right. This woman in her arms had never known motherly affection. Not once had Cait’s parents hugged her, kissed her, picked her up when she fell, comforted her when she was scared, nursed her when she was hungry. El was the first and only person in her life to do anything of that nature for Cait. In many ways, she believed, El was the loving mother that Cait never had. What more affectionate way to demonstrate that love than to have Cait literally nurse from her breast. Stroking Cait’s hair softly, El couldn’t stop herself from speaking. “My beautiful, brave girl.” El said soothingly.

Realising what she had just said, El immediately stopped herself from talking anymore. What her and Cait were doing was strange enough for El, being too vocal might give away too much. Returning her lips to a modest smile, El simply held Cait in her arms and stroked her hair.

After a while, El believed that Cait must have drained her breast of milk by now. Adjusting herself slightly, El was quietly encouraging Cait to move so they could, hopefully, have fun another way.

El, however, was stopped in her tracks and she moaned loudly as she felt something stroke the area of her shorts between her legs. Looking down, El saw that Cait had somehow manoeuvred her hand between El’s legs and was now stroking the area of her crotch. “Cait? What was that?” El asked breathlessly.

Detaching herself from El’s nipple, Cait licked her lips and smiled lecherously. “Movin’ onto round two.” she replied, climbing out of El’s embrace and straddling El’s lap.

Noticing Cait’s own nipples poking out of her top, El instantly grabbed the hem of Cait’s vest. “Why are you still dressed?” El asked as she pulled Cait’s top up over her head.

Free of their confinement, Cait’s round pale breasts tumbled downwards and bounced slightly as they returned to their original position. Leaning forward, El then cupped them in her hands and kissed them deeply.

Kicking her head back, Cait moaned loudly and raked her hands through El’s smooth brown hair. She, however, soon pulled El’s face away and looked deep into her eyes. “Lie back.”

El obediently did as she was told and adjusted herself so she was lying on her back. Cait then quickly slipped her shorts off and threw them on the floor. With her eyes burning with lust, Cait licked her fingers and began gently stoking her clit. Moaning loudly, Cait’s hand became drenched with arousal as she stimulated herself.

Returning to the servicing of her lover, Cait removed her fingers from her clit and hooked her hands around the hem of El’s shorts. Slipping them off, Cait similarly threw them on the floor and set to work. Straddling one of El’s muscular thighs, Cait licked her fingers again and positioned them at the entrance of El’s slick vagina. Sliding two of them inside, El let out a whimpering moan and her spine arched with pleasure. Cait then cupped El’s undrained breast in her hand and lowered her lips onto it. In a sensuous crescendo to Cait’s actions, she then lowered herself onto El’s muscular thigh and began gyrating her hips back and forth, stimulating herself.

El was both shocked and amazed at what Cait was doing. With every suck of her nipples, and movement of Cait’s fingers inside her, El couldn’t fight the pleasure washing over her. With sweat glistening off her body, El pinched her free nipple between her fingers and raked her other hand through Cait’s hair. Cait was absolutely insatiable, but El couldn’t get enough.

Cait, similarly, moaned and hummed loudly and she straddled El’s body. As she pleasured El’s pussy and nursed her breast, Cait’s was smearing her slick arousal all over El’s thigh. Every gyration of her hips was building the pressure in her core and bringing her closer and closer to climax.

But Cait needed to keep control. Judging by the intensity of El’s moaning, Cait inferred that she was getting close. Cait needed to slow down. If both women were going to cum, they would cum together. Slowing the movement of her fingers inside El’s vagina, El’s moans began to settle into a gentler rhythm.

Despite relieving some of the pressure from her core, El was starting to get close. The intensity of the feelings swirling through El’s body were too powerful for her to resist. Arching her head back, El closed her eyes. “Oh, Cait. I’m so close. I’m s-so close.” she moaned breathlessly.

Responding immediately, Cait sped up the movement of her fingers, the force of her suckling, and the gyrations of her hips. She herself was getting close and she wanted to share her feelings with El. With her body beginning to shake, Cait could feel the pressure boiling over.

The pressure inside El was, by this point, so powerful that she had to grip the side of her belly to keep from shaking too much. El’s moans had already turned into breathlessly exhales of breath as her pleasure simmered to a boil. “Cait, I…I’m…I’m gonna…gonna…” she said in almost a whisper.

Then, at the last possible moment, Cait detached her lips from El’s nipple and forcibly pressed her lips on El’s. As their lips touched, their damns simultaneously broke and a warm tsunami of pleasure engulfed their bodies. Succumbing to her pleasure, El grabbed the sides of Cait’s head, bringing her close as both their bodies violently shook with euphoria. Cait similarly moaned loudly and breathed heavily through her nostrils as she mashed her lips on El’s and let the pleasure overwhelm her. The entire experience was mind-bending, surpassing even El and Cait’s wildest expectations.

After several minutes riding out the intensity of their orgasms, Cait released her lips from El’s and panted heavily as she looked down at her. El, similarly, struggled to control her breathing as she looked up at Cait, completely dumbfounded by the intensity of her climax. What Cait had done to her was unlike anything she had felt before, certainly for a woman nearly six months pregnant. Part of her was still attempting to process what had just happened.

“What…did…you think…of that?” Cait eventually asked through heavy breaths.

Her mind still racing from the intensity of her orgasm, El found that she couldn’t answer. For the first time in their relationship, Cait had left El virtually speechless. “I’ll…have to…let…you know…in the…morning.” El finally answered, still struggling to control her breathing.

Chuckling happily at how happy she had made her lover feel, Cait rolled onto her side and cuddled up to a still dumbfounded El, resting her head atop El’s shoulder and gently kissing her neck. El had done so much for Cait since their first meeting and Cait was happy to have made El feel so good about herself. Wrapping her arm around El’s torso, Cait pulled her close and held her tight.

With her breathing finally returning to a normal rhythm, El raised her hand to grasp the arm wrapped around her torso. Stroking Cait’s pale skin, El savoured the warm heat emanating from Cait’s body cuddled up next to her. However, noticing something damp on her leg, El raised her head slightly and looked down. Stretching down her muscular thigh, a clear damp strip shone in the illumination of El’s bedside lamp. Cait had clearly made sure that she left her mark on El as she pleasured her. “Look at the mess you made.” El said, raising her leg slightly so that Cait could see.

Cait couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of El’s leg stained with her arousal. “I told you that you make me wet.” she chuckled.

“Clearly.” El laughed as she lowered her leg. “It smells of pussy in here.” she then said, taking a deep breath through her nose.

Similarly taking a breath, Cait just laughed and shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t mind.”

“No. I don’t suppose it does.” El said, breathing slowly and cherishing the closeness of her lover. They stayed that way for a good while; both women locked in their embrace and appreciating their company. What they had just done was special and both El and Cait wanted to keep that moment alive for as long as possible.

However, the march of sleep was unrelenting and El could feel her eyelids growing heavy. Cait had completely drained all her energy and she was struggling to stay awake. Looking down, El saw Cait let out an enormous yawn. Cait was clearly as exhausted as El was. “Come on. Let’s get some sleep. You’ve completely shagged me out, and pregnant women get tired very easily.” El said, softly stroking Cait’s arm.

Stifling another yawn, Cait nodded and adjusted herself slightly. Taking her hand off Cait’s arm, El reached over to turn off the bedside light. Noticing that Cait’s eyes were already shut, El silently pressed a button on her PipPad and flicked the light off. With the room bathed in darkness, El put her hand back on Cait’s arm and let sleep inevitably take her.

El’s PipPad alarm quietly bleeped as she opened her bleary eyes. Reaching across to her bedside table, El pressed the button and turned the alarm off. With the bedroom once again silent, El wiped the sleep from her eyes and sighed heavily. Looking down, El smiled as Cait lay cuddled up next to her, sleeping soundly, her arm still wrapping lovingly around her torso.

Not wishing to wake Cait up, El carefully moved Cait’s arm off her and slowly eased herself out of bed. At El’s sudden movement, Cait murmured slightly and shifted herself. Happily, Cait was unlikely to wake up, given how much of a heavy sleeper she was.

Safe that Cait was still sound asleep, El quietly collected her Pipad and checked the time: 3:30am. Thank the heavens the alarm hadn’t malfunctioned. Standing herself up, El walked over to her chest pf drawers and collected some underwear. Slipping them on, El then retrieved her vault suit and quietly zipped it up to just above the base of her cleavage. El couldn’t help but frown at the ease at which the vault suit zipped up. Cait’s breastfeeding session had clearly relieved some of the pressure on El’s breasts. Once fully zipped up, El quickly adjusted her body’s various assets to ensure maximum comfort.

Now, suitably attired, El crept over to the window and pulled back the curtain. Through a crack in the curtain, El could see that it was still dark outside. Whilst she was safe in the fact that her alarm had worked, she knew she had to be quick.

Walking over to the door, El quietly slid the door open and, slipping through, closed it behind her. Walking through to the living room, El retrieved her boots from beside the front door and quickly laced them up on the sofa. Standing back up, El then walked back to the front door and buckled her gun belt around her hips. Finally, El collected her coat and rucksack and slung them over her shoulders.

Taking a deep breath, El opened the front door and stepped out into Sanctuary. Closing the door quietly behind her, El looked out at the surrounding landscape. Sanctuary in the early hours was a hauntingly quiet place and the breeze brought a ghostly atmosphere to the settlement.

El, however, couldn’t admire the surroundings; she had a job to do. Stepping off the front step, El strode down the road and off into the night.

El backed away slowly from the building, pouring a steady stream of clear liquid from a small drum she held in her hands.

Once she had reached a safe distance, El threw the drum away, reached into her coat pocket, and pulled out a lighter. Striking the flame into life, El took a step back and flicked it out of her hand. As the lighter hit the ground, the stream of clear liquid instantly ignited and worked its way back to the buildings located in the distance.

Within minutes, the house was in flames and lit up the surrounding area in a warm ambient orange glow. El watched silently and emotionlessly as the home that had caused Cait nothing but pain was consumed by the flames. Cupping the underside of her belly, El scowled in disgust at the years of abuse the woman she loved had suffered inside, and outside that house’s walls. Whether or not Cait was here, El was more than happy to see it destroyed.

Suddenly, the house’s roof collapsed and sent a heavy plume of smoke and flame up into the air. With the heavy smell of smoke in her nostrils, El decided that it was time to leave. Collecting her rucksack, El turned away from the smouldering house of horrors and made for home.

Creeping back into the bedroom, El was relieved to find that Cait had not moved. El smiled at how peaceful Cait looked.

As quietly as she could, El slipped her vault suit and underwear off and gently climbed back into bed. Noticing El’s movement, Cait suddenly shifted and murmured to herself again. “W-Where’d you go?” Cait asked dopily as El rested her head back on her pillow.

“Just had to clear something up.” El whispered back.

Cait then cuddled back up to El and hummed to herself. “What was it?” she asked further, her eyes firmly shut.

“Just something personal. Go back to sleep, Cait.” El whispered, her own eyes growing heavy with sleep.

At El’s answer, Cait wrapped her arm around El’s torso and, again, rested her head atop El’s shoulder. Once comfortable, Cait hummed contentedly.

El smiled and gently kissed Cait’s forehead. “I love you.” she said. But Cait was already sound asleep again.

Finally, closing her eyes, El thought about what she had just done. El was already sure that Cait would never want to return to her parent’s house. But, whether she did or not, El had made sure that nothing remained of that shameful monument to Cait’s painful past.                            

Chapter Text

In the late afternoon sun, El lounged back on the sofa quietly reading her book. As the sun shone through the open window, El wiped the sweat from her brow and sighed heavily. It was so hot.

Hearing footsteps behind her, El looked around to find Cait standing next to her; running her fingers through her freshly dried hair. “Hey.” El said, smiling happily. “How are you feeling now?”

“A lot better. I was so fuckin’ hot!” Cait huffed.

El cocked her head and pulled a smug smile. “I told you a cold shower would cool you down.”

“Alright, alright. No need to wave your dick about.” Cait huffed as she stubbornly crossed her arms. “How you feelin’?" she then asked.

El’s smug smile immediately dropped and she sighed in defeat. “Like a fucking whale. That’s how I feel.”

Not knowing how best to respond, Cait remained silent.

Noticing Cait’s silence, El stood up, cocked her head, and put her hands on her hips. “Yes, I completely understand, El. It must be so difficult for you at the moment. Who would have thought being pregnant would put so much strain on your body.” El said sarcastically, clearly irritated by Cait’s silence.

Cait took a step back and frowned, visibly taken aback by El’s sarcasm.

Upon seeing Cait’s reaction, El’s face softened and she moved to put her hands on Cait’s waist. “Sorry Cait. That wasn’t fair. Carrying another person and these two bloated milk sacks just really pisses you off after a while.” she said, nodding down towards her swollen boobs and bump.

Having never experienced any of what El was talking about before, Cait was somewhat at a loss about how to respond. Despite loving El more than anything, Cait still found it difficult to empathise with other people. “W-Well, you’re really pretty.” Cait stuttered in a feeble attempt at empathy.

Knowing Cait far better than anyone else did, El could see that she was trying to be supportive. Smiling, El leaned forward and kissed Cait deeply on the lips. “Thanks, Cait.” El chuckled.

Happy that El was not pissed off with her, Cait continued in her attempts at helping. “Why don’t you have a shower, like I did? You did say a cold shower was a good idea.”

El sighed, “Maybe later. I’ll have one when it gets a bit cooler. At least that way I won’t warm back up too quickly before going to bed. I will go and change my vest though.”

El had just began waddling off towards the corridor when Codsworth came floating over to them. “Hi Codsworth. Can I help you with something?” El asked, looking in his direction.

“Good afternoon, Mum. Before you go to change your attire, I wanted to enquire as to what kind of cake you would like for later this evening?” Codsworth asked.

El frowned in confusion. Why was Codsworth suddenly asking her about cake? “Sorry, Codsworth, I’m not sure I follow.” El said, curious whether, after two-hundred years, Codsworth was beginning to malfunction.

“I was planning on baking a cake for you and Miss Cait as a special dessert this evening. I was going to bake your favourite, Victoria Sponge, if that suits” Codsowrth replied, attempting to clarify.

Despite still being confused by Codsworth’s request, El did welcome the prospect of cake. “That sounds lovely, Codsworth. But, may I ask what the occasion is? Yes, Victoria Sponge is my favourite. But you only ever made cakes for special occasions.”

Codsworth’s central eye stalk rose up slightly in surprise. “Why, Mum, it is to celebrate your birthday.”

El’s eyes widened and she took a step back. What was Codsworth on about? “My…My…What?”

“Your Birthday, Mum.” Codsworth replied, clearly oblivious to El’s confusion.

El squinted her eyes and rubbed her forehead. “Codsworth, it’s…it’s not my birthday.”

“But, Mum, it is August 4^th today. If my memory serves me correctly, that day is marked out as your birthday.” Codsworth replied.

Frowning heavily, El waddled over to the sidetable next to the sofa and retrieved her PipPad. Flicking through the various screens, El’s mouth dropped open slightly. “Oh… S-So it is. I…I’d completely forgotten.

“Is that a yes then, Mum?” Codsworth continued, bringing El back to reality.

El looked at her PipPad screen again, attempting to think this through. How could she have forgotten her own birthday? How old would this make her now, two-hundred-and-something? And, now, everyone she would have celebrated her birthday with was gone. What kind of birthday was that?

But then she thought of Cait. Cait and her unborn child was all she needed; and, anyway, the place could do with a bit of celebration. Looking up, El nodded and smiled. “Yes, that sounds like a wonderful idea, Codsworth. I would love a cake.” She, however, was quick to point a finger in his direction as her face turned serious. “But no candles. I’m not having a party.”

“Certainly, Mum. I shall make preparations.” Codsworth said as she floated away to the kitchen.

Placing her PipPad back on the side table, El looked up at Cait. “Well, I think we’re in for a treat tonight. Two-hundred years without cake is too long.” she said, smiling.

Cait raised the corners of her lips in response but remained silent.

Eventually, El sighed and began looking around aimlessly. “Right, now, what was I doing?” she asked herself, clicking her fingers. “Ah, that’s it, changing into some clothes less soaked with sweat.”

As El quietly waddled off down the corridor, Cait bit her lip and began fidgeting with her fingers. What the hell were El and the tin can talking about? Maybe she should ask El about it later.

“How are you finding the cake, Cait?” El asked as she twisted around to put her plate on the sidetable.

Cait hummed contentedly and gave an adorable toothless smile. “It’s fuckin’ amazin’!” she said happily, her voice muffled through a large moutful of cake she was still chewing.

“Manners, Cait.” El said, raising an eyebrow and pulling a sly smile at Cait’s muffled speech.

Cait swallowed her mouthful and rolled her eyes at El’s reprimand. “Can I have another bit?” she then asked, trying to look at El and not the cake sitting on the kitchen counter.

“Be my guest, Cait. Have as much as you like” El answered as she gestured her head behind her.

Cait smiled devilishly and hopped off the sofa. Shuffling over to the kitchen, Cait cut herself another slice and then returned to sit next to El.

“Crikey, Cait! I thought you said you were getting another slice.” El chuckled as she looked at the hunk of cake sitting on Cait’s plate.

“It tastes so good though.” Cait replied as she positioned herself cross-legged next to El.

El could do nothing but smile and nod in agreement. “It certainly does. I must say, Mutfruit jam is a surprisingly good substitute.”

Pretty soon, a good half of El’s cake was gone; Cait having polished off a good third of it. With one last mouthful of cake, Cait uncrossed her legs and stretched out on the sofa; sighing deeply.

“Had enough?” El asked, taking Cait’s plate from her and placing it on top of hers.

Cait hummed and nodded. “I’m so full.” she said, leaning her head on El’s shoulder.

“Well, I’m hardly surprised, you did eat a good third of an entire cake.” El replied, resting her head atop Cait’s and placing a hand over her swollen belly.

They sat there for a good long while in total silence; both women just quietly letting their food digest. Eventually, however, Cait felt that she had to ask what all this was about. “Why did Codsy want to make you a cake?” she asked.

El inhaled deeply through her nose and lifted her head. “Because it’s my birthday today.” she answered, somewhat confused by Cait’s question.

“But why do you celebrate a birthday?” Cait asked further.

El thought for a few seconds before answering. Explaining birthdays was not as easy as she thought. “It’s just something you do. You celebrate completing another year of life. Sometimes you may have a special birthday if you reach a certain age. If you wanted, you may also have family and friends over for a party and have loads of fun. Sometimes they would bring you presents and gifts.”

Cait listened quietly to El’s every word, imagining such a celebration where she was the centre of attention.

“Did you ever have a birthday celebration?” El probed, noticing that Cait appeared to have drifted off.

Cait shrank away slightly and shook her head. “I…I…I…don’t know when my birthday is.” she stuttered, wiping away a tear that was building in her eye.

Seeing this, El brought Cait close and kissed the top of her head. She had never even thought about Cait not knowing her birthday, let alone never having a birthday celebration. “I’m sorry, Cait. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

Cait sniffed and wiped her eyes again. “It’s okay. You didn’t know.”

El bit her lip, chastising herself for not knowing this about her lover. Of course, it made sense. With what she knew about Cait’s upbringing, there was no way that the scum that were Cait’s parents would celebrate her birthday. Something, however, didn’t add up. “But, Cait, forgive me for asking, weren’t you sold to your slavers on your eighteenth birthday?”

“I was only eighteen ‘cause they said so. How old I really was didn’t mean a shit to them.” Cait answered glumly, with a hint of anger in her voice.

Remembering all too well the nightmare of Cait’s first day as a slave, El desperately wanted to right this wrong. El could not allow Cait to spend the rest of her life thinking that the day she was sold into slavery was her birthday. Looking around, El attempted to think of something. Losing hope, El’s eyes finally fell on her PipPad. Collecting it, El once again, checked the day’s date.

Suddenly, it came to her. Flicking through her PipPad, El smiled in congratulations of her victory. “I have an idea, Cait. We met on January 10^th of this year. That will be your birthday.”

Cait looked up at El and frowned. “What? I don’t need a birthday.” she said glumly.

Knowing how stubborn Cait was, El set about convincing her. “Yes, you do, Cait. with all that you have survived, you deserve the biggest birthday imaginable.” she said, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand.

Seeing the love in El’s hazel eyes, Cait smiled. “You really think so?”

“Would I have said it if I didn’t mean it?” El asked rhetorically.

“T-Thank you.” Cait chuckled as she leaned into kiss El. The kiss the small but deeply loving and passionate. As Cait pulled away, however, she let out a sigh and a deep grown. She didn’t feel good.

Raising an eyebrow, El knew exactly what this meant. “I think someone’s had too much cake.”

Cait sat at the kitchen table, quietly assembling the contents of her bag. She had already checked it twice before, but the activity allowed her to keep her mind occupied. For this trip, she needed to make sure she had everything.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Cait looked up to find El standing at the entrance to the corridor; her special vault suit zipped up tightly around her pregnant body. Cait licked her lips; El was enormous, but still looked amazing.

“Morning again, Cait.” El said with a smile. "Checking your bag again?”

Cait smiled back. “Mornin’. Just wanna make sure I have everythin’.” she replied.

“I’m sure you have everything. I know you keep checking because you’re nervous. It’s going to be fine, Cait.” El reassured as she approached the kitchen table.

Cait scrunched her face up in frustration at El’s perceptiveness. “I’m not nervous.” Cait said stubbornly, looking down. “I…I’m…just… Why do you have to be so fuckin’ smart all the time?”

“Because I know you, Cait.” El smirked.

Cait huffed in defeat and accepted that El was right. Noticing Cait’s face drop, El walked over and took a seat facing her. “What are you nervous about?” El asked, taking Cait’s hand.

Cait glanced over to El and sighed. “It’s…just…that…you said you had six months till you were due. It just seems to have gone really fast.”

El smiled and nodded. “I understand, Cait. It’s perfectly human to be nervous. But you’ve done great these past six months. I can safely say that, when the day arrives, I will be in more than capable hands.” Whilst El was confident in Cait’s abilities to get her to right place on the due date, her words did have the tint of lie in them. El was all too aware that Cait tended to bury her head in the sand when responsibilities crept up on her. When those responsibilities became unavoidable Cait would spiral into panic, resulting in either a tantrum or a mild breakdown of confidence; or both. Despite talking through what was likely to happen on her due date, El determined that she would just have to wait for the day itself before rushing to any conclusions.

Happily, for El, Cait still found her impossible to read and Cait simply nodded back, shivering slightly as she did. “Okay, I believe you.” she said quietly.

Inwardly relieved that her doubts had not been discovered, El got up from her chair and retrieved her coat. Slipping it over her shoulders, El sighed at how ostentatious it made her belly look. Looking up, El was simply greeted by Cait trying her best to contain her laughter. El just huffed and shook her head.

Waddling over to Cait, El pulled her to her feet and cocked her head to one side. “It’s rude to laugh in people’s faces, Cait.” El said, playfully trying to sound serious.

Playing right into El’s hands, Cait’s smirk dropped and she started fidgeting. “But you laugh at me all the time.”

Smiling mischievously, El put her hands on her hips. “I’m pregnant. I can do what I want.”

It was only when Cait looked up at El again that she saw the mischievous glint in her hazel eyes. “That’s not funny.” Cait huffed, crossing her arms.

El walked closer to Cait but her smile only intensified. “It is a little funny.” she chuckled. “You can call me fat if you want.”

At this invitation, Cait smiled and prepared a rebuttal. “Alright. Seein’ as you said so, fatty.”

Now El’s mouth dropped open. “What did you just call me?” she asked, mouth completely agape with shock.

“B-But you said that-.” Cait shuttered, suddenly panicking again. She moved to apologise but again saw the glint in El’s eyes. Realising immediately that El had played her again, Cait smacked El on the shoulder and pouted her lips. “Stop fuckin’ windin’ me up!”

Finally letting her ploy drop, El held her hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright, I’ll stop it.” she said as she put her hands around Cait’s waist. “You’re just very easy to tease.”

“No, I’m not!” Cait retorted stubbornly.

Looking up at El, Cait immediately realised that she had been played again. “Oh, stop fuckin’ teasin’!” Cait blustered.

Snorting loudly, El quickly leaned in and stole a kiss from Cait’s pouting lips.

Trying desperately to contain her smile, Cait bit her lip. “You know what you are?”

“What am I?” El asked back, raising her eyebrows in expectation.

Cait had to think for a couple of seconds to make sure she remembered the word correctly. “Incorrigible.” she said slowly to make sure she pronounced it right.

El could do nothing but laugh. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Cait replied, blushing slightly as she spoke.

El and Cait both kissed, savouring the feel of each other’s lips. It was slow, but extremely loving. Cait, in response, rested her hands on El’s chest and lifted herself onto her tiptoes to be closer to El’s height.

Eventually, El pulled away and peppered a tiny probing kiss on the end of Cait’s nose. “Come on. Grab your jacket. We have a long journey ahead and, unfortunately, I don’t move as fast as I did.” El said, running her hands down Cait’s slender waist.

Cait nodded and turned to retrieve her jacket from the back of her chair. Slipping it over her shoulders, Cait collected her bag and slung it onto her back.

Smiling affectionately, El gently slipped her hands around Cait’s neck and untucked her hair from her jacket collar. With her hair free, El then tucked a few loose strands of fringe behind her ear.

“Do you always have to do that?” Cait asked, patting her hair down.

“I want you to be presentable for the Commonwealth.” El replied.

Cait frowned. “Do you really think anyone cares?”

“I do.” El finished, handing her own bag to Cait. “Hey, can you help me with my bag?”

Nodding, Cait took El’s bag and helped slip it onto her shoulders. Now fully prepared, El turned around and raised her eyebrows. “You ready to go?”

“As I’ll ever be.” Cait replied, nodding to hide her nervousness.

“Come on then.” Let’s go.” El smiled as she took Cait’s hand to lead her to the door.

They had just reached the sofa when El suddenly stopped and unclasped her hand from Cait’s. “El? You okay?” Cait asked.

Without responding, El quickly waddled off down the corridor to the laundry room; leaving Cait frowning and confused.

After a few seconds, El returned clutching a small box wrapped in an old leather case. Cait immediately recognised it as the camera. How could El have forgotten that? “Would you mind?” El asked, handing the camera to Cait and turning around.

Recognising what El was implying, Cait unclasped El’s bag and carefully placed the camera inside. With her bag closed, El turned back around and took Cait’s hand again. “Right. Now, let’s go.”

“One last thing before you go, Mum.” a well-spoken metallic voice called from the kitchen.

El turned around to find Codsworth floating over to them. “Before you go, Mum, I must wish you both a Bon Voyage. I bid you the best of health and I shall make arrangements to have the spare bedroom suitably outfitted for your return.”

“Thank you so much, Codsworth. Next time you see us, they’ll be three of us. I’ll see you when we’re back.” El chuckled. Opening the front door, El turned to face Cait. “We best get going.”

Nervously smiling back, Cait collected her shotgun from beside the front door and followed El out.

Closing the door behind them, El and Cait begun slowly striding down the road towards the bridge; their hands clasped tightly together.

Just as it had been on their last visit, the descent into Diamond City was a welcome relief for both and El and Cait. El especially welcomed the prospect of relaxing after such a journey. As they came to the end of the causeway, Cait was conscious that El was tightly holding onto the railing as she descended. “You alright, El?” Cait asked, stopping to let El catch up.

El nodded and waved off Cait’s concern. “I’m fine. Just exhausted. I could really do with a nap when we get inside.”

“I could do with a drink.” Cait replied as they both stepped off the causeway.

El chuckled, amused by Cait’s characteristic honesty. “You do whatever you want. Just as long as I can-.”

“BLUE!” a voice loudly shouted in front of them.

Immediately, El and Cait looked towards the sound to find Piper almost running towards them, her arms outstretched. “Blue! It’s been months!” Piper exclaimed as she wrapped El in a tight hug.

Returning the hug, El tentatively wrapped her arms around Piper’s back. “Hey Piper. Yeah, it’s been a while.”

Pulling away, Piper looked El up and down. “It damn well has! Wow, Blue, you look…incredible.”

Laughing loudly at Piper’s compliment, El ran a hand over her large belly. “Ha! You mean fat?” she said sarcastically.

“No, really, you look great, Blue!” Piper reassured, gesturing her hands down the length of El’s body.

Heartened by Piper’s compliments, El laughed again. “Thanks Piper. It’s nice to hear that.”

“So, how have you been these past six months? You look ready to pop.” Piper continued, crossing her arms.

El just sighed in response. “Oh, you don’t know the half. Things have been alright, I suppose. Just very boring. The crew building my teleporter wouldn’t let me help whilst I’m pregnant. That didn’t leave me with much to do.”

Piper nodded in agreement. “To be honest, I agree. That’s an important package you’re carrying there.” she said commandingly, nodding towards El’s belly.

Slightly frustrated that Piper didn’t share her feelings, El shrugged her shoulders. “I could have helped with some of it.” she complained, trying her best not to sound like she was whinging.

“No, you couldn’t. You’d only hurt yourself.” Cait blurted out, not wishing to feel left out.

“Cait! Where are my manners?” Piper said, turning to Cait and putting a hand on her shoulder. “How have you been?”

“Fine, fine.” Cait replied, still a little unsure about talking to Piper. “Just makin’ sure this one does as she’s told.” she said, gesturing her head towards El and smirking mischievously.

El’s mouth dropped open at Cait’s comment. “Hey! I am still here, you know.”

Laughing loudly, Piper patted Cait on the shoulder again. “Ha! I like you, Cait. At least someone is telling her what to do.” she said, winking at El. “Look, before you two lovebirds either start fighting, or making out, why don’t you come inside for a drink?”

Despite wanting to take Piper up on her offer, El was too exhausted to stay awake any longer. “I would love to, Piper. But, I’m really tired after our journey. Carrying all this around takes all your energy away.” El said breathlessly, gesturing her hands to her enlarged assets.

Completely understanding, Piper closed her eyes and nodded. “No, you're right. After a journey like that, you need all the rest you can get.”

“Maybe tomorrow though?’ El then enquired.

“Sure, why not.” Piper smiled in response. “Come by and I’ll dust off the Nuka Colas.”

“Brilliant. We’ll see you tomorrow then, Piper.” El said as she and Cait began walking down towards the market.

Piper simply gestured her hand to her forehead in a mock salute. “See you around, Blue.”

It had been an incredibly relaxing evening. After a long nap, El and Cait had enjoyed a meal together. However, El ended up doing most of the work. Despite trying her best to help, Cait wasn’t the best cook. After dinner, El had read a section of her book whilst Cait sat and listened. Cait herself wasn’t really paying much attention to the story; she just listened to El’s voice. Before long, Cait’s eyes were growing heavy and El gotten bored of reading. With their teeth brushed, El and Cait retired to bed.

“How long do you think you have?” Cait asked, listening to El’s steady heartbeat as she rested her head on El’s chest.

El took a deep breath, unsure herself how long she had. “A few days, I think.” she answered, gently stroking her belly.

“You ready?” Cait asked further.

El exhaled deeply. Cait’s questions weren’t exactly the easiest to answer. “I think so. You can only prepare so much for this sort of thing. Are you ready though?"

Cait bit her lip, unsure about her answer. She hadn’t expected El to turn the question on her. El had talked through lots of different aspects of motherhood over the past six months. It wasn’t easy and it took every ounce of El’s patience at times. Cait was not the easiest student. “As I’ll ever be.” Cait eventually replied.

Sensing Cait’s characteristic doubt, El sought to reassure her again. “You’ll be fine.” she said, stroking Cait’s shoulder with her other hand.

Cait nodded but did not say anything.

After a few moments of silence, a thought suddenly crossed El’s mind. She wasn’t sure how Cait would take it, but it couldn’t hurt to try. “Would you ever think about it?” El asked tentatively.

“About what?” Cait looked up, confused about what El was meaning.

“Having kids, yourself?” El clarified.

Understanding exactly what El was implying, Cait tensed up and she took a sharp breath; shaking her head vigorously.

El brought Cait closer. “It’s alright, Cait. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.” she comforted, lightly kissing the top of Cait’s head.

Wiping her eye, Cait composed herself. “After everythin’ that happened to me, I couldn’t do it.”

“I understand, Cait.” El said, stroking Cait’s back.

“Maybe in another life.” Cait added.

El nodded, heartened by Cait’s honesty and bravery about such things. “Well, it doesn’t matter, Cait. You’ll be an incredible mother nonetheless.”

Cait smiled at El’s reassurance. Cait could always believe El’s kind words. “I love you.” she eventually said.

“I love you too.” El replied, moving her hand to gently stroke Cait’s hair.

They lay there in complete silence, both women just whiling away their time together. Neither El nor Cait cared about speaking; they just happily waited for sleep to take them.

“How was that?” Cait asked, leaning forward expectantly as El placed her plate on the coffee table.

“Not bad. Not bad at all. It’s certainly a start.” El replied as she sat back in her chair.

Cait took El’s comment as praise and smiled triumphantly. “Told you I could do it.” she said proudly.

El gestured her head from right to left in thought. Cait did have a point, but she could get cocky very easily. “That’s true. But we have a long journey between eggs and a gourmet meal. However, we all have to start somewhere.”

Happy to accept El’s words as generally praising, Cait stood up to collect ther plates.

“No, no! Sit down.” El called out as she herself stood up and took the dishes. “You cooked. So, I’ll collect the plates.”

“But-!” Cait tried to say.

El just put her hand up, stopping Cait immediately. “I have spoken.”

Cait obediently sat back as El waddled off to the kitchen and waited for her to return. Absentmindedly, she played with the hem of her shirt.

Suddenly, the crashing sound of ceramic breaking on the floor brought Cait back to reality. Looking around, Cait was shocked to see El standing slightly hunched over, leaning against the wall for support. Cait immediately stood up and rushed to El’s side. “El? You alright?”

El let out a heavy breath and looked over at Cait, a look of shock and mild disbelief plastered over her face. “Cait…I…I think my water just broke.”

Cait’s face instantly dropped open and she felt her legs become shaky. “Shite!” was all she could say.

“I can’t do it. The baby can stay there. I don’t care anymore.” El said breathlessly as she lay in the bed beneath Dr Sun’s Medical Centre.

“B-But we’ve been here for hours. You can’t stop now!” Cait stuttered in reply as she stood over El.

El just shook her head and did her best not to break down in tears. “Yes, I can. I don’t care anymore.”

As soon as El’s labour started, Cait’s mind immediately tried to remember what El had taught her. Collecting El’s bag, Cait had slowly led El out of the house and along the street to Dr Sun’s Medical Centre. Normally, Dr Sun would have demanded payment up front. However, after Cait had forcibly grabbed him by the collar and threatened to punch his lights out if he didn’t do the birth now, he was flexible enough to take payment after.

So, here El was, lying on the same bed she had laid on six months ago; in the deep pains of labour. By now, they had been there for hours and El was completely exhausted, leaving only Cait as her sole support; and on the edge of breaking down herself.

“Since when have you given up on anythin’?” Cait demanded, beginning to get frustrated with El’s attitude.

“Now. Today is the day I finally give up. I don’t care.” El answered stubbornly.

Cait was about to shout but was abruptly interrupted by Dr Sun. “Okay, sorry to rain on your white flag parade, but get ready for a contraction.”

El breath quickened as she prepared. When it came, El screamed loudly. “Fucking hell, Cait! JUST FUCKING SAY SOMETHING!”

“What do you want me to say?!” Cait shouted back.

“ANYTHING! JUST FUCKING TALK TO ME! TELL ME STUFF!” El screamed as she finally broke down in tears.

Cait didn’t know what to do. For the first time since they met, El was completely helpless. Whenever Cait was in trouble, El was there to pick her up. Now that the tables were turned, Cait was completely at a loss of what to do. She needed to think of something, and fast. “Y-You’re doin’ well.” She stuttered hopelessly.

“You think?” El sniffed between bouts of tears.

Interpreting El’s response as a positive, Cait continued. “Yeah. You’re…You’re gonna do this. You’re…You’re gonna have this baby and you’ll be a fuckin’ great mother.”

“Really?” El asked again, believing Cait’s encouragement.

Cait was now getting into the role of supporting partner and felt she could go further. “Yeah, you’ll be great. You’ll teach it so many things and it…it will be as smart as you are.”

El chuckled at Cait’s words. “And we’ll find Shaun, won’t we?”

Cait stopped, not expecting El to say that. The topic of Shaun was still a difficult subject for Cait and El struggled to convince Cait otherwise. However, El still needed Cait’s encouragement if she was to get through this. So, Cait was going to have to compromise. “Yeah. We’ll find him. Then we’ll burn the Institute to the fuckin’ ground and bring him home. Then it will be us four, takin' on the Commonwealth, as…a…a…family.”

“And…And we’ll be happy, won’t we?” El panted.

Cait nodded. “Yeah. Happy.”

El took Cait’s hand and looked up at her. “That…That sounds lovely. I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” Cait said as she leaned into kiss the side of El’s sweaty head. “You’re a fuckin’ superhero.” she then whispered into her ear.

El laughed properly at that remark and she gripped Cait’s hand tighter, feeling another contraction coming.

“Alright, on the next contraction, I want you to push.” Dr Sun said, bringing both El and Cait back to the matter at hand.

Emboldened by Cait’s encouragement, El took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay. I’m ready.”

“Now…push.” Dr Sun commanded.

Dr Sun’s Medical Centre immediately became filled with El’s screams as she pushed. Cait stood by her side the entire time, supporting her in any way she could. “And…relax. You’re doing very well, ma’am.” Dr Sun reassured.

El breathed heavily, completely sapped of energy. “This baby better be gorgeous, Cait.” she grunted.

Cait frowned at El’s demand. “I didn’t knock you up.” she retorted.

“Don’t you fucking sass me, Cait!” El spat back. “That’s my job!”

Cait moved to argue but was again interrupted by Dr Sun. “We’re nearly there. I want you to give me another big push…Now…push!”

El pushed and pushed, screaming and yelling through gritted teeth. El had no energy left, but something she couldn’t place was telling her to go on. Cait, on the other hand, was becoming concerned that El was going to crush her hand.

“You’re very close now. Just give me one more push.” Dr Sun commanded.

Digging deep, El pushed with all her waning strength, yelling loudly as she did so. Cait looked at El with an increasing sense of worry. With her strength failing with every push, El appeared to be on the brink of passing out.

And then Cait heard it; the baby’s first cry.

“There we go.” Dr Sun called out. “It’s a girl. Ten fingers and toes, and, judging by the shrieking, a full set of lungs.”

As Dr Sun stood up, cradling the baby in a towel, Cait saw the child for the first time. It was small, pink, screaming its head off, and covered with goo. Cait’s mouth dropped open.

Panting heavily, El smiled and wept with joy as she heard her baby’s cries. “Can…Can I hold her?” she asked, lifting her head and extending her arms.

“Here you go, ma’am. Congratulations to you.” Dr Sun said as he handed the baby to El.

Taking her baby in her arms, El beamed with happiness as she befell her new child. Wiping the goo and fluid from the baby’s head, she examined her. She had her nose, but Nate’s jet-black hair. Leaning forward, El kissed her forehead. “Hey, little one. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

Now cradled in her mother’s arms the baby began to settle until her shrieks finally quietened. With her eyes still closed, she let out a deep yawn.

Looking up at Cait, El saw a look of intense shock on her face. Cait looked both amazed and terrified with her eyes wide and her mouth open. “Would you like to hold her, Cait?” El eventually asked.

Cait immediately stiffened, unsure of how to react. Did she want to hold her?

Sensing Cait’s unease, El attempted to reassure her. “It’s alright, Cait. Just take her like this and… They we go.” she said as she handed the baby to Cait. “Watch her head.”

With shaking hands, Cait took the baby; her heart beating at one hundred beats a minute. Looking down, Cait befell the life form in her arms; its pink skin, tiny fingers and toes, its little nose, its thick black hair. It was…beautiful.

Cait suddenly felt herself smiling. She didn’t know why, she just wanted to. This thing in her arms was just so beautiful. Only something conceived before the bombs could be so beautiful. This was her…daughter.

Seeing Cait’s smile, El reached over and put her hand on Cait’s arm. Looking up, Cait saw El’’s smile and blushed brightly. “Well,” El asked, “what do you think?”

Cait was at a loss for words. How could she describe this thing of beauty in her arms? “She’s…She’s…She’s beautiful.”

Upon hearing Cait’s words, El let out a joyful sob. Just about controlling herself, El tentatively leaned over and stroked the baby’s head. “Meet your new mother, little one.”

After for few moments, the baby began to shift and fuss. Cait’s smile immediately dropped and she panicked, unable of what to do. El instantly reached over to calm her. “Shh…Shh…Don’t worry, Cait. I’ll take her.”

Handing the baby back to El, Cait felt she herself let down by her own ineptitude. “What…What did I do wrong?” Cait asked despondently.

“You did nothing wrong, Cait. Babies fuss, that’s all.” El replied, her hand once again gripping Cait’s arm.

Cait nodded, understanding that she was probably overthinking things. “What shall we call her?” she then asked, hoping to change the subject.

El thought for several moments, looking over her child for a name that suited her. El had thought about names in the past months but had never given the subject any serious consideration. Perhaps she could name her after her mother? But, thinking about it, El’s mother would probably never forgive her for that.

Then El thought of Nate; the husband and father who would never know his daughter. If anyone deserved a legacy, it was him. “…Natasha.” El eventually said.

Hearing the name, Cait leaned in to get a closer look. “Natasha?” Cait thought. The name suited her.

“Meet your new parents, Natasha.” El said, holding Natasha close to Cait.

“She will still be there tomorrow, Cait.” El said as she walked back into the living area.

Looking up to El approaching, Cait blushed slightly. “She’s just so pretty.” she replied, looking back down at Natasha sleeping soundly next to her.

Owing to El’s unexpected labour, the preparations that that El and Cait were intending to make for the baby’s arrival whilst in Diamond City were cut short. With no other option, El had emptied one of her drawers and placed it on the sofa to act as a makeshift cot. After fitting it with enough blankets, Cait had painstakingly laid Natasha inside and had not left her side since.

Smiling, El sat down behind Cait and leaned over her shoulder. “I’m glad you like her.” she said, wrapping her arm around Cait’s waist.

They sat there for a few moments, both silently watching Natasha sleep peacefully in her improvised cot. Eventually, however, El kissed the back of Cait's neck and whispered softly in her ear. “Thank you.”

Turning her head to look behind at El, Cait frowned. “Why?”

“For all your help. For being there for me when I needed you.” El answered.

Cait’s cheeks went red and she chuckled to herself. “Well, you’re welcome.”

Bringing Cait close, El smiled. “I’m sorry I shouted at you.”

Leaning into El’s embrace, Cait laughed quietly. “It’s okay. I’d be pissed if I had to push a baby out of me.”

Kissing Cait on the back of her neck again, El shifted got up from the sofa. “Come on. Let’s get some sleep. I want to cuddle you without a bump getting in the way.”

Cait nodded. “Okay. I’ll…I’ll be up in a minute.”

Kneeling down, El gently stroked Natasha’s head and kissed her forehead. “Goodnight, sweetheart.” El whispered. “I love you and I’ll see you in the morning.” Standing up again, El looked back towards Cait. “I’ll see you upstairs.”

With El withdrawing upstairs to get into bed, Cait was left alone with Natasha again. Now alone, Cait got to her knees and leaned in close to Natasha. “Hey, little one.” Cait began softly. “It’s Cait. Your new…new mom. I just wanted to tell you that…that…”

Cait stalled, unable to complete her sentence. This life in front of her unlike anything she had seen before. It was innocent, clean, and beautiful. It was a fresh start. Cait had spent her life longing for a fresh start. Now, maybe this child would be that chance?

Finding her words, Cait gently clasped Natasha’s tiny hand between her thumb and forefinger and whispered quietly, but commandingly. “I make you a promise, okay. I’m gonna do my best to take care of you. I will make sure no one and nothin' hurts you. I promise you that.”

To Cait’s surprise, Natasha cooed quietly in her sleep and tightly gripped Cait’s finger. Interpreting Natasha’s action as proof that she had heard her, Cait smiled brightly.

Getting back to her feet, Cait similarly bent down and gently kissed Natasha on the forehead. “Love you. I’ll see you in the mornin’” she whispered as she departed. Making her way towards the steps, Cait turned to have one more look at Natasha’s crib. Smiling once more, Cait engrained her new pact into her mind. Cait’s childhood been nothing but misery, pain, and heartache. If it was the last thing she ever did, Cait swore to herself that she would make Natasha’s the happiest it could possibly be.

Chapter Text

Despite wanting nothing more than to make time stand still, it was unrelenting and Cait was forced to open her eyes. Fluttering her eyes open, Cait looked towards a gap in the drawn curtains where the rays of the newly rising sun were shining through. This was the day that Cait knew was coming, but also dreaded. Today was the day that El teleported into the Institute.

Cait couldn’t forget the day when everything she had built with El was thrown into doubt. She and El had just put Natasha to bed and were choosing a movie to watch when the dreaded knock at the door came. El had opened the door and found an incredibly elated Sturges standing on the doorstep. It was then that he gave El the news that the teleporter had been completed.

In order to give Cait time to adjust, El had delayed her departure by a few days. Those days El spent mainly preparing for whatever she may encounter once inside the Institute. Cait did her best to remain calm and supporting, but it was almost impossible.

Then the night before arrived. El had made sure that the night was dedicated entirely to Cait. That included cooking her favourite meal, a cake for dessert, as many movies as she wanted, and, once they had retired to bed, as much attention as El could give her.

Now, however, Cait could do nothing but accept that her time was up. Carefully turning her head to look behind her, Cait befell El sleeping soundly next to her; an arm wrapped lovingly around her naked slender waist. Turning back around, Cait smiled to herself. Maybe, if El stayed asleep, she could keep this going as long as possible.

Suddenly, El groaned and shifted as she wiped the sleep from her freshly open eyes. Tentatively leaning over Cait’s shoulder, El smiled as she saw that Cait was awake. “Morning.” El said softly.

Trying to put a brave face on it, Cait looked up and smiled back. “Mornin’” she replied.

“How did you sleep?” El asked further.

“Pretty good. You wore me out last night.” Cait answered, her cheeks blushing slightly red as she spoke.

El chuckled and stroked the soft flesh of Cait’s stomach, tracing the line of Cait’s scar. “I’m glad I could help.” she said. El then gently planted a kiss on Cait’s temple. “I love you.”

“Love you too.”

Cait immediately shifted and rolled onto her other side, facing El. She then climbed on top of El and tightly wrapped her naked body around El’s. “You’re not goin’ anywhere.” Cait said, resting her head on El’s chest.

El sighed but did not sound annoyed. “You’ll have to let me go eventually.” She said, adjusting the covers so they were still warm.

Cait just shook her head. “No, I don’t. I’m stayin’ like this forever.” Cait then wrapped her limbs even tighter around El’s body.

Accepting defeat, El wrapped her own arms around Cait’s supple body and held her close. “Alright, Cait. We can stay like this for a little while.” she said, leaning in to kiss the top of Cait’s head.

Cait smiled triumphantly; her efforts had worked. They lay there for a good long while in total silence. El slowly stroked Cait’s hair and gently ran her fingers over the faded scars that crisscrossed Cait’s body. Cait shivered slightly, conscious that her scars were a reminder of a past she wanted to forget. But the feel of El’s touch was enough to calm her.

Eventually, however, the faint sound of an infant crying from across the corridor shocked them both out of their dreamworlds. Sighing heavily, El nudged Cait to get her attention. “Come on, Cait. We best get up and have some breakfast. I think somebody is fussing.”

Listening to the muffled fusses from the other room, Cait reluctantly nodded and shifted off El.

Whilst she did not have much of an appetite, Cait quietly ate her breakfast. Opposite her, El slowly made her way through hers. El’s attention, however, was primarily focused on Natasha silently nursing at her breast. Looking over at El, Cait needed to say something; if anything, to stop herself going insane from the silence. “Do you know whether the machine will actually work?” she asked.

El took a forkful of food in her mouth and slowly chewed, thinking through how best to answer. “I don’t, I’m afraid. It’s never been tested. There are lots of things that could go wrong.”

“Like what?” Cait swallowed.

El bit her lip. This wasn’t going to stop Cait from worrying. “Well, a few things. The machine might break down before I can be teleported. I may be teleported to the wrong place. I might be vapourised by the teleporter. Or I might be teleported off the pad and never reappear; becoming just a formless collection of particles floating through the Commonwealth.”

Cait looked down, wishing she had never asked the question. She couldn’t help but worry that this might be the last time she saw El. Against all her strengths, Cait felt her mouth quivering and tears build up in her eyes. She didn’t want El to go.

“Hey, Cait. Can you take Tasha for a bit? I need to get properly dressed." Cait suddenly heard El ask from next to her. Looking up, Cait saw El standing over her, Tasha cooing in her arms.

Nodding, Cait carefully took Tasha and held her close as El walked off down the corridor. “Hey squirt.” Cait said happily, wiping her eyes to compose herself. “Mommy feed you up nice and full? We’re…We’re gonna have loads of fun, aren’t we?” she said, rubbing the end of her nose on Tasha’s.

Tasha just giggled and squeezed the end of Cait’s nose with her small chubby fingers.

Cait scrunched her face up and smiled.

“Systems are operational, ma’am. Corsair frequency is locked in.” Sturges said as she punched innumerable buttons on the teleporter control console.

“Thanks, Sturges. I owe all this to you and your crew.” El replied gratefully.

Sturges chuckled. “Anything to get one up on the Institute.”

El smiled, emboldened by Sturges’ words. It was attitudes like that set her mind at ease. Collecting her beg, El slung it over her shoulders and adjusted the straps for maximum comfort. She then turned towards the loved ones she was leaving behind.

Standing in front of her, fidgeting uncontrollably with her shirt, was Cait. On the face of it, she looked strong and reserved. However, El knew Cait well enough to know that was a front. Judging by the fidgeting, El could tell that Cait was beyond worried. Next to her, in an old buggy that Codsworth had found and lovingly repaired, Tasha lay; her big hazel eyes looking around at the plethora of activity going on around her.

Walking over to Cait and Tasha, El bent down and picked Tasha out of the buggy and held her close. If it were any other situation, El would never leave her four-month-old child and embark on an uncharted course to somewhere she may never return from. This time, however, El needed to do this. The sooner she found Shaun and destroyed the Institute, the safer her, Cait, Shaun, and Tasha would be. “If I had a choice, I wouldn’t leave you like this, Tasha.” El said, trying to hold back tears. “But I need to do this. I need to find your brother and bring him home. Then we will be safe, and a family.”

Oblivious to El’s seriousness, Tasha ran her hand along El’s cheek.

“And Cait is going to take such good care of you. You’re going to have so much fun with her. I…I love you so much.” El struggled to say, kissing Tasha deeply on the forehead.

Tasha simply babbled incoherently and attempted to grab loose strands of El’s hair.

As El carefully lowered Tasha back into her buggy, El could not fight the emotions building up inside her. Stroking Tasha’s thick black hair, El let a few pained sobs escape her lips. “I’ll…I’ll be back as soon as I can.” El then said, just about composing herself as she retracted her hand.

Turning to Cait, El smiled affectionately and slowly extended her arms to her. “Come here.” she said invitingly. At first, Cait tried to resist temptation and keep her reserve. However, El’s invitation was too strong to resist. Instantly, Cait wrapped her arms around El’s body and buried her face to her chest.

They stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity; El gently stroking Cait’s hair and peppering small kisses on her scalp. Hearing muffled sniffling, El frowned and pulled away to find tears falling down Cait’s cheeks. “Hey,” El said softly, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand and wiping a tear away, “no tears, Cait. You’re stronger than that.”

Cait nodded and tried to stay calm. She just didn’t want El to leave. “Please…Please come back.” Cait eventually stuttered.

El rested her forehead on Cait’s and smiled. “I promise.”

Leaning in, El then pressed her lips to Cait’s and kissed her deeply; like she did the night they had confessed their love for each other. Cait, in response, tightly gripped the lapels of El’s coat to bring her in closer. Eventually, both women pulled away to catch their breath. Adjusting themselves, El then wrapped Cait in another tight hug.

Pulling away, El took Cait’s hand and kissed it gently before turning away. As she turned and began walking towards to the teleporter, Cait kept hold of El’s hand for as long as she could.

With her hand finally free of Cait’s grasp, El walked slowly towards the teleporter. Stepping foot onto the teleporter pad, El exhaled heavily; readying herself for whatever came next.

“Ready, Ma’am?” Struges asked, bringing El back to the matter at hand.

Taking a deep breath, El nodded. “Make it so.” She commanded.

With a push of a button and the turn of a dial, the teleporter began to hum and whir as it sparked into life. Surrounding her, jets of steam began to hiss from beneath the pad as the humming got louder. Above her, El saw a large powerful blue beam spark and fizz from the centre of the overhead structure. El swallowed; there was no turning back now.

Standing away from the teleporter, Cait squinted as the beam became too bright to look at. Noticing the faint sound whimpering beside her, Cait saw Tasha beginning to fuss. Picking her up, El held Tasha close; making sure she was facing away from the blinding light.

The teleporter was now seconds away from full power. With the last remaining seconds ticking away, El straight ahead and saw Cait holding Tasha as lovingly and close as she should. As their eyes met, El smiled. “I love you.” she mouthed.

Noticing El’s inaudible declaration, Cait moved to reply. “I love you t-.”

Then, suddenly, the blue beam flashed down from the centre of the overhead structure and onto El’s head. Against all her wishes, Cait was forced to look away and hold Tasha close to her chest. It only lasted a second and Cait immediately looked back towards the pad. But what she saw made her heart sink. There was nothing. El was gone.

The silence that now fell over Sanctuary was then broken by the sound of whimpering as Tasha began to cry. Lightly bobbing her up and down to settle her, Cait rested her cheek on Tasha’s head and held her tightly. Whether she liked it or not, Cait was now on her own.

With Tasha safely in bed, Cait was left with nothing to do. This was unfamiliar territory for Cait. Ever since meeting El, she had never been without entertainment in the evening. Now that El was gone, Cait realised how little she had in terms of personal hobbies. With no other option, Cait had cleaned her shotgun.

The entire process, however, was a pointless exercise. Cait’s shotgun was in perfect condition and required hardly any work. Sighing forlornly, Cait quickly reassembled her shotgun and slumped back in her chair in abject defeat.

Cait’s mind was blank. She just couldn’t think of anything to do. Eventually, stifling a yawn, Cait decided to go to bed. The worry in Cait’s mind had exhausted her mentally and she longed to just switch off for the night.

Creeping down the corridor, Cait entered hers and El’s bedroom and switched on the light. Walking through and sliding the door shut behind her, Cait quickly closed the curtains and began to change into some night clothes.

Cait had just slipped a vest over her naked torso when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Looking in the object’s direction, Cait saw a small piece of paper on the bed. Swiping the piece of paper up into her hand, Cait found one word written in El’s handwriting: Cait.

Looking down, Cait saw a small holotape sitting on the bed. Immediately snatching the holotape, Cait slid the bedroom door open and ran to the living room. Kneeling in front of the holotape player, Cait jammed the tape into the slot and sat back, cross-legged, waiting for the tape to begin.

After a few seconds of static, a slightly muffled, but deeply familiar, voice began to talk. “Hey, Cait.” El’s voice said. “It’s El. If you're listening to this, then I will have been teleported into the unknown. I know this is scary for you. But I want you to know that I believe in you, and you’ll be brilliant. You and Tasha have been the greatest things to have ever happened to me since coming into this world. If it weren’t for you, I don’t know where I would be. Quite honestly, I don’t want to know.”

Cait smiled and closed her eyes, imagining that El was speaking those words whilst cradling her in her arms. El’s voice always calmed Cait when she was anxious.

“Anyway,” El continued, “now that I’m gone, I want to leave you with this message, and to tell you that I love you so very much.”

Cait squeezed her eyes shut even tighter, desperately trying to fight back tears.

“I promise that I will come back, Cait.” El then said. "And when I do, I will take such good care of you; in every sense of those words. I…I love you, sweetheart. My little superhero.”

Cait’s eyes flashed open as El’s voice cut out to static again. El had called her a superhero, she couldn’t have. El was the superhero; Cait was just Cait. Immediately, Cait rewound the tape and listened to it all over again. As the hours passed, Cait didn’t care how many she listened to El’s tape. She just wanted to hear El’s voice for as long as possible.

Mercifully, Cait finally passed out from exhaustion on the floor, the sound of El’s voice reverberating peacefully in her ears.

As one week passed into another, Cait was bored out of her skull and feeling increasingly depressed. There were only so many times you could patrol the perimeter with Tasha wrapped in a makeshift papoose.

That evening, with Tasha finally asleep, Cait had sat down in front of a movie. It was one that she had not seen before and she took her customary place on the floor in front of the sofa. Cait had done this so many times with El. Maybe this would at least give her a semblance of being back with El.

Cait’s attitude to the movie was as it always was, like a giddy child in a theatre. With every explosion, car chase, cheesy line, and heroic finale, Cait’s anticipation only grew.

As the movie reached its inevitable crescendo, and the credits rolled, Cait started gawping at the television screen. “That was fuckin’ awesome!” Cait said loudly as she turned to look behind her.

Cait’s excited smile instantly dropped as she was greeted by an empty sofa. Turning back to the screen, Cait hugged her knees to her chest. She had been so excited by the movie that she had gotten carried away. Burying her face in her knees, Cait just wished things could go back to the way they were.

The sound of a baby cooing and giggling brought Cait out of a dreamless sleep. Groaning as she wiped the sleep from her eyes, Cait listened for the sound. Why could she hear a baby giggling? Listening carefully with her dulled senses, Cait could make out the sound of babbling coming from Tasha’s room. Why was Tasha giggling at this time? She should have been asleep.

Suddenly, the penny dropped and Cait shot up in bed; immediately understanding that something was wrong. Someone must be in Tasha’s room. The question was who?  

Scrambling off the bed, Cait rushed out of the door and ran into Tasha’s room. Standing in front of her was a tall woman in a dark blue vaultsuit wrapped tightly around her curvaceous body, a large 111 emblazoned on its back. The woman was facing away from her but Cait immediately recognised the individual as El.

“El! You’re back!” Cait said, dropping her guard and walking towards El’s turned back. El, however, did not turn around and Cait frowned in confusion. Placing a hand on El’s shoulder, Cait attempted to turn her around. “El, it…it’s me.” Cait smiled as El turned.

Happiness instantly evaporated into horror as El turned to reveal a pair of piercing yellow eyes. These eyes were not the enchanting hazel colour that Cait was used to seeing, these were the eyes of a synth. Cait had seen those eyes before; the detective in Diamond City had them. Cradled in El’s arms, Tasha cooed and babbled happily to herself. Cait immediately began backing away from her, horrified by what she was seeing.

But then, Cait’s eyes fell on Tasha again. Despite being paralysed with fear over what she was seeing, Cait knew she had to get Tasha away. Reaching out, Cait attempted to snatch Tasha away from El’s grasp.

Cait, however, was too slow and El suddenly grabbed Cait by the neck and began to lift her off the ground. Gasping desperately for air, Cait gripped El’s wrist to find her skin peeling away to reveal wiring encased around a metal exoskeleton. What had the Institute done to El?

“El! El! It…It’s me, Cait!” she shouted breathlessly, kicking helplessly at the air. But, no matter how much Cait squirmed, El’s vice like grip only tightened. As her vision darkened around her, Cait saw El’s mouth morph into an evil toothless smile. “Resistance to the Institute is futile.” El then said unemotionally.

With one last gasp, Cait tried to speak. “No!” she wheezed. “El, please don’t-.”

A sudden click from her neck cut Cait off and her vision went black.

Cait inhaled sharply for air as she shot up in bed. Coughing breathlessly as she attempted to regulate her breathing, Cait shivered as cold perspiration ran down her body. Attempting to think through what she had just dreamt, Cait struggled to fight back tears. Normally, when Cait had a nightmare, El was always there to hold her and comfort her. Now, Cait was on her own.

Cait, however, was not able to contemplate the dream for long as she heard the faint sound of crying from the room opposite. “Tasha!” Cait whispered, realising that she might not be safe.

Scrambling off the bed, Cait ran to Tasha’s room and found her crying and squirming in her cot. Collecting Tasha in her arms, Cait gently bobbed her up and down as she attempted to sooth her. “Sssh…ssssh…ssssh. It’s okay. It’s okay. Mommy’s here… sssh…ssssh…” Cait whispered softly into Tasha’s ear.

Sitting on her old bed, Cait eventually managed to rock and sooth Tasha back to sleep. As quietly as she could, Cait then stood up and gently lowered Tasha back into her cot. With Tasha once again safe and sound, Cait was able to breathe a little easier. “S-Sorry I took so long.” Cait whispered, attempting to justify herself. “It w-won’t happen again.”

Slumping back down on the bed, Cait put her head in her hands and quietly cried. Trying her best to stay silent, Cait’s shoulders bobbed up and down as she wept into her hands. Cait just wanted El to come home. Wiping her eyes, Cait just about managed to bring herself under control and looked towards Tasha sleeping peacefully. Making a decision, Cait stood up and returned to her bedroom. Collecting her sheets and both hers and El’s pillows, Cait walked back and laid them out on her old bed. Climbing into bed, Cait tightly wrapped the sheets around her and hugged El’s pillow to her chest.

As sleep crept back on her, Cait reached across and touched the edge of El’s cot. “I’m gonna stay with you, Tasha. Us girls gotta stick together. I love you, and I’ll see you in the mornin’. Goodnight, squirt.” El smiled. Slowly retracting her hand, Cait relaxed and allowed sleep to gradually envelop her. Whilst she remained awake, not once did Tasha leave her sight.

With the flash of a blue and white light, El found herself on the roof of a large building. El was struggling to work out what had happened. A moment ago, she was freeing a group of synths from Bunker Hill when she was beamed away. However, recognising the surrounding skyline, El was able to work out she was atop the CIT ruins.

Noticing footsteps behind her, El instantly swung around and aimed her pistol in their direction. What greeted her, however, was a tall grey-haired man wearing a white lab coat, surveying the scene.

El lowered her gun and placed it back in its holster. She then slowly walked towards him, preparing herself for his inevitable questions. “You know,” he said as El approached, “in all my years, I have never set foot outside the Institute. Not once, since the day they brought me here. I have never had a reason.”

El remained silent, not having anything to say as yet.

“But now, this just confirms the truth I have always known. The Commonwealth is dead. There is no future here. The only hope for humanity lies below.” He said with a rising frustration in his voice.

El lowered her head slightly, sad that she had never seen the world that he was born into. “It wasn’t always like this.” she replied.

"I can only imagine.” he replied, finally turning around. “I’m reminded how fortunate I was spared a life in this wasteland. I know that to you; I was kidnapped from that vault. In truth, the Institute rescued me; both of us, really.”

El frowned at his revelation. “The…The Institute kept me alive too?”

“They did indeed. I was the perfect candidate, an infant with uncorrupted DNA. But the Institute decided that, if something went wrong, if I died, a contingency plan was prudent.”

El took a step back, shocked by what she was hearing. “Wait, it was you who let me out?”

“Yes, it was my decision. Certainly, it was no longer necessary to keep you suspended. I…well, I suppose I wanted to see what would happen; an experiment, of sorts. I had no idea what kind of woman you were, you see. Would the Commonwealth corrupt you, as it has everything else? Would you survive? Most curious of all, would you, after all this time, attempt to find me?”

Whilst her face remained emotionless, deep down, El’s blood was boiling. All this time, through everything, it was all him. He had thawed her out and watched her as she struggled to survive, built her teleporter, and eventually found love and a family. It was all some sick game. “You mean that everything I went through to get here, everything I did to survive, was just some sick experiment?”

“Yes,” she said remorselessly, “and it seems that I was right. But we have more important matters to discuss. I must ask you what you did with those synths.”

Despite feeling nothing but rage, El felt obliged to answer. “I let them go.”

“Why? Why would you do something so…so stupid?” he asked, visibly puzzled and frustrated by El’s answer.

El was only getting angrier. How could Shaun’s first thought go to his precious Institute? “I made a choice, Shaun. The right one. I couldn’t stand by and let the Institute take them away.”

“There is no moral choice here. I trusted you with a simple task. How can I expect you to represent the Institute if this sort of thing continues?” Shaun asked angrily.

El exhaled heavily, exhausted by Shaun’s questioning. “Shaun, I never came here to help the Institute. I came here to find you; to bring you home to your family.”

Shaun’s face did not change. “Then, I suppose, I was right about everything. The Commonwealth has corrupted you as well. I expected as much; befriending militia groups; engaging in the base entertainments of the Commonwealth; bedding the filth of this wasteland.”

El’s eyes widened, horrified by what her own son had just called the woman she loved. He had no right to talk of Cait that way. El, however, needed to hold herself together if she was to convince Shaun to follow her. “But, Shaun, what about your family? What about…your sister?”

Shaun simply rolled his eyes. “Another specimen for the Commonwealth to corrupt.”

El’s mouth dropped open, unable to even speak. Shaun’s own sister was nothing more than a corrupted specimen in his eyes. What had the Institute done to him? This was not the Shaun she imagined. “Shaun, listen to me,” El eventually managed to say, “please come home. We can prove you and the Institute wrong. A family is waiting for you. They’ll love you, and we’ll be happy.”

Shaun just shook his head. “I’m afraid we have nothing left to discuss. You are no longer welcome inside the Institute.”

“No, please, Shaun. Don’t go! We can make this work, I promise-.” El begged, panic beginning to set in.

“Goodbye, Mother.” Shaun cut her off.

With a blue and white beam of light, Shaun vanished; leaving El alone in the silent wasteland.

Struggling to control herself, El dropped to her knees and lowered her head to the ground as she began to cry. After everything she had done to get inside the Institute, it was all for nothing, she had failed. Losing all sense of control, El looked up to the Commonwealth skyline and screamed as loud as she could. She did not care who heard her, El just screamed and screamed.

Eventually, El had screamed herself hoarse and she returned to quietly sobbing alone. It was then that all hope left her mind and she was left with nothing. Whether it was her mind not thinking straight, or something else, El suddenly found herself pulling her pistol from its holster and holding it out in front of her. Slowly, she brought it to her temple and held it as steady as she could. Closing her eyes, El held her breath and pulled the trigger.

The gun clicked but nothing happened. Opening her eyes, El brought the gun down and opened the chamber. Inside were six empty cartridges. El suddenly realised that she had not been able to reload before being teleported away from Bunker Hill.

El immediately began rummaging around her coat pockets for spare ammunition. She had just reached into her left coat pocket when she felt something peculiar in her hand. Pulling it out, El recognised it as a photograph. Examining the photograph, El looked upon a smiling Cait holding a sleeping Tasha in her arms. El remembered snapping the photo not long after Tasha was born. She had then kept it with her when she left for the Institute.

Suddenly, feelings of horror and revulsion flooded El’s mind as she realised what she had just done. In her haze, she had forgotten everyone and everything she had built in a failed attempt at her own life. How could she have done something so selfish?

Looking down, El saw the gun in her hand and immediately threw it on the ground. El then saw her hand trembling uncontrollably. She had noticed this sensation before; it had started after her tour in the military. Now, after two-hundred years, with no therapy, it was becoming evermore noticeable.

As tears welled up in her eyes, El clutched her trembling hand to her chest and hunched herself over in shame. Holding the photograph in front of her, El brought it to her lips and kissed it deeply. “I’m sorry. I’m s-so sorry.” El whispered to herself as the tears streamed down her cheeks. Whatever the reason behind her actions, El hated herself for what she had done.

Cait sat cradling Tasha in her arms, on the brink of tears. Since being fed, Tasha had done nothing but cry. Cait had tried everything in her arsenal to alleviate the situation, but to no avail; Tasha just would not settle.

Gently bobbing Tasha up and down, Cait looked around desperately for something, anything, that could help. But nothing stood out at her. What was she going to do? Where was El?

Seeing no other option, an old memory suddenly crept into her mind. This was something she did when she was able to hide from the misery of her childhood. When she was safe, in a quiet place, away from the noise, she would do this to calm herself down. Maybe it could work with Tasha.

But, Cait had not done this thing in years and she was not certain whether she still had the ability anymore. Years of slavery, fighting, and addiction could have only done damage. Eventually, Cait decided that there was no other option but to try. Sitting up straight, El cleared her throat.

“Be sure it’s true when you say I love you.

It’s a sin to tell a lie.

Millions of hearts have been broken

Just because these words were spoken…”

To Cait’s immense relief and delight, Tasha began to calm and her crying mercifully dissipated. Realising that, beyond her wildest dreams, it was working, Cait continued to gently sing soft melodies into Tasha’s ear.

After repeating the song a few times, Tasha was fast asleep, and the house was finally returned to relative silence. Sighing heavily as she stroked Tasha’s thick black hair, Cait slowly stood up and carried her over to a small cot positioned near the window. Lowering her down, Cait placed Tasha softly on the mattress and slowly backed away; making sure to keep her noise to a minimum.

“You never told me that you could sing.” a voice called from behind her.

Immediately recognising the voice, Cait swung around to meet it. There, standing in the doorway, was El. “El?” Cait asked, her eyes widening.

“Hey, sweetheart.” El replied with a smile.

As fast as lightning, Cait threw all caution to the wind and ran towards El. Vaulting over the sofa, Cait jumped into El’s arms and wrapped her legs tightly around her waist. Cait then similarly wrapped her arms around El’s neck and pressed her lips to hers.

Cait was absolutely insatiable; she just could not stop kissing El. El in return wrapped her arms around Cait’s waist and held her close.

Eventually, Cait was forced to pull away and catch her breath. For several moments Cait and El simply stared at each other, both women processing what they had just done and whether they should go any further. “Where the fuck have you been?” Cait finally asked.

“Here and there.” El replied cryptically.

Cait frowned and dislodged herself from El’s waist. “What does that mean? Did you find the Institute? Why were you gone so long?” Cait asked frantically, not caring that she was essentially blocking El’s path.

Placing her hands on Cait’s waist, El attempted to reassure her. “Cait, I would love to answer all your questions. But I’m absolutely exhausted. Right now, I just want to rest for a bit.”

“But, I wanna know. You’ve been gone for weeks.” Cait whinged, not wanting to take no for an answer.

El sighed. “And I promise you I will tell you everything. I just want to rest first. I had a long journey.”

Reluctantly, Cait accepted defeat and nodded. El then placed a small kiss on Cait’s cheek and smiled. “Thank you. Now, how’s our little girl doing?”

Cait immediately glanced towards the cot near the window. “She’s been fine. I just got her to sleep.”

“I can see.” El replied, raising her eyebrows. “When were you going to tell me you could sing?”

Cait bit her lip and her cheeks went very red. “I haven’t done it in years.”

“Well, you sound beautiful. I hope I can hear it more often.” El replied, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand. “Now, where’s my little girl?” El then said, turning towards the cot.

Walking around the sofa, with Cait close behind, El reached the edge of the cot and peered down at Tasha sleeping soundly. “Hey, Sweetie.” El whispered, reaching down to stroke her cheek. “I’ve missed you.”

Tasha shifted and hummed slightly in her sleep, possibly conscious of another presence around her. Sensing this, El slowly retracted her hand. “I’ll see you when you wake up.” El then whispered.

Turning away from the cot, El shrugged off her coat and threw it down on the sofa arm. She then slumped down on the sofa and sighed deeply. Following suit, Cait herself sat down and snuggled up next to El as much as she could. “I’ve missed you.” she then said, smiling happily.

“I’ve missed you too.” El replied, resting her head on Cait’s shoulder. “It’s so good to be back.”

Cait chuckled. “I’ll say. I was startin’ to get bored. I ain’t cut out for bein’ a single parent.”

Cait waited for a reply but could only hear the steady rise and fall of El’s breathing. Turning her head slightly, Cait found that El was completely sound asleep. Huffing quietly to herself, Cait rested her own head atop El’s and sat back. Whilst she was essentially pinned, at least things were back to the way they were.

With Tasha fed and safely in bed for the night, Cait and El could finally have some time alone together. Cait had especially been wanting to ask El about her trip to the Institute. Whilst El was busy in the bathroom, Cait sat on the bed, quietly fidgeting.

Finally, El arrived from the bathroom and closed the door behind her. Smiling, Cait stood up and cocked her head to one side. “Hey.” she said softly.

“Hey.” El smiled, walking towards Cait and placing her hands on her waist. “You look beautiful.”

Cait looked away bashfully, her cheeks going bright red. She, however, soon regained her composure and set about getting to the bottom of where El had been. “Okay. Now we’re alone, tell me what happened out there.”

El’s loving smile suddenly dropped for a few seconds, a move that caused Cait to frown slightly. Her smile, however, soon returned, as to not arouse too many suspicions. “Can I kiss you first?” El then asked, stroking Cait’s waist.

Cait wasn’t impressed by El’s stalling, but she would indulge this one thing. “Fine. One kiss.” she huffed.

Leaning in, El placed her lips on Cait’s and hummed contentedly. Similarly, Cait hummed happily as she rekindled the feel of El’s lips. This was something that Cait had truly missed.

Pulling away, Cait considered El satisfied and the matter closed. “Okay, you’ve had your kiss. Now tell me-.”

Cait was suddenly cut off by El once again pressing her lips against hers. The kiss was more forced than the last and Cait was somewhat startled by the ferocity of El’s movements. Why was El stalling so much?

As El continued to kiss her with ever increasing intensity, Cait was beginning to get annoyed. Whilst she did love it when El kissed her, she wanted to hear about where El had been before going any further. “El, can we-?” Cait asked as she tried to catch a momentary breath.

Cait was then, once again, cut off as El grabbed both sides of her head and mashed her lips on hers. Cait didn’t know what was going on; why was El acting this way? Why was she being so forceful?

Trying to prize herself away, Cait took El’s hands and, using considerable strength, managed to bring them away from her head. Now free of El’s grip, Cait was able to speak. “Why are you actin’ this way, El?” she asked seriously.

Cait had barely finished her question when El grabbed Cait’s shirt and forcibly ripped it open. As buttons clattered to the ground, Cait desperately tried to cover her modesty; highly conscious that she was not wearing a bra. Looking up, Cait saw not a hint of remorse in El’s face. Whoever this person was, she wasn’t El. “El, what the fuck?” Cait begged.

El did not respond and wrapped her arm around Cait’s waist, holding her in a vice like grip. As Cait tried to wrench herself free, El began to vigorously pinch her exposed nipples and kiss her way down Cait’s neck. “El, stop it. I don’t want to.” Cait beseeched, trying to push El away from her. But El would not stop and only intensified her movements. “El, get off! I don’t want-!” Cait’s breath suddenly hitched as El’s hand slipped inside Cait’s shorts and began to forcefully massage her pussy. Gripping El’s arms, Cait had to fight with all her inner strength to keep from moaning.

Eventually, however, Cait could not take any more and her patience snapped. Cait had to get this person off her. “El, stop. I… GET THE FUCK OFF ME!” Cait shouted. As her survival instincts kicked in, Cait, without thinking, slapped El violently across the face.

Reeling away, El nursed her injured cheek and lowered her head. Covering her exposed breasts, Cait backed away even further when she heard El let out a low snarl. El’s own frustration only grew from Cait’s rebuff. Fine. If Cait wanted to play it rough, she could definitely play rough, El thought to herself.

Looking up, El removed her hand from her cheek and stared at Cait with a look of complete and utter anger and disgust. Cait in response backed away even further from this stranger standing in front of her. This person had El’s form, but underneath was no different to her tormentors. What had the Institute done to El?

Suddenly, however, El’s face softened as she befell Cait standing in front of her. Cait was a mess; her hair was dishevelled; her clothes were ripped open; her shorts were slowly slipping down her legs. What had she done?

Realising that she had done this, to the woman she loved, feelings of self-loathing swept into El’s mind. How could she have done something like that? “Cait, I…I…” El stuttered as she realised that she had behaved no differently to Cait’s tormentors; she had treated Cait like an object.

Covering her mouth, El felt sick at what she had done. “Cait, I…I… Cait, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I…I…” El found that she couldn’t finish as she began to both sob and gag in disgust at herself. Dropping to her knees, El lowered her head in wept in shame. “I’m s-so s-s-sorry, Cait. I didn’t mean to. That…That wasn’t me. Please…Please forgive me. That wasn’t me. That wasn’t me.” El cried, begging for forgiveness.

Cait’s mouth dropped open at what she was seeing; El was kneeling in front of her, completely broken and begging for forgiveness. Slowly, Cait walked towards El and rested her hands on El’s shoulders. El in response gripped Cait’s waist with all her strength and buried her face in Cait’s stomach; weeping inconsolably.

As El held on for dear life, Cait gently stroked her hair and attempted to find a way of calming her down. Searching her memory, Cait remembered how El would take her in her arms and gently rock her back and forth. Lowering herself down, Cait wrapped her legs around El’s waist and pulled her into a tight embrace.

El immediately responded by wrapping her arms around Cait’s neck and resting her forehead on Cait’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Cait. I’m s-so sorry.” El continued to wail as she cried into Cait’s chest.

Using some of El’s own techniques, Cait gently rocked and hummed into El’s ear until, mercifully, her tears began to subside. “Y-You have a lovely voice.” El eventually said through muffled sobs.

Interpreting El’s comment as a sign that she was calm enough to speak, Cait pulled away and kissed El’s cheek. As she gazed into El’s eyes, she saw how terrified they looked. Cait could only wonder if that was how she had looked to El after her overdose. What had happened to El to make her fall so low? “El, why…why did you do that?” Cait then asked.

El looked down again in shame. “I…I don’t know. Please believe me, Cait. That wasn’t me. Please…Please forgive me.” she begged, bringing her arms around from Cait’s neck to grip her shirt.

Cait leaned in and rested her forehead on El’s and stroked her soft hair. “I forgive you.” she whispered.

El immediately gripped the sides of Cait’s head and began to pepper small and affectionate kisses on her face. “Thank you, Cait. Thank you. Thank you. I love you so, so much.” El repeated with every kiss.

Eventually, however, Cait took El’s hands in hers and looked deep into her eyes; a look of seriousness on her face. “But, before I can truly forgive you, I need you to tell me what happened.”

El’s eyes widened, knowing exactly what Cait was referring to. Accepting that there was nowhere left to run, El reluctantly nodded.

Loosening her grip, Cait sat back to let El find her words. Wiping her eyes, El took several shaky breaths before speaking. “W-When I went through the teleporter, I…I…” El trailed off as she suddenly saw the state of Cait’s clothes. “Oh, Cait, your shirt.”

Cait frowned, confused by what El was talking about. “My what?”

“Your shirt.” El replied despondently, taking the material in her hands. “I’ve ruined it. This was your favourite.”

Cait huffed in response, knowing full well that El was deliberately stalling. “El, stop stallin’. It’s only a shirt. Just fuckin’ tell me-.”

“No, no, no, it’s fine. It’s not ruined. I-I-It’s just the buttons have come off. I-I-I can fix that. I have a needle and thread somewhere. I can fix it.” El then began to scramble about, looking through her bedside drawers for some sewing equipment.

“El, just fuckin’ stop!” Cait said through gritted teeth. Grabbing both sides of El’s head, Cait stared deep in her eyes to calm her down. Losing herself in Cait’s enchantingly green eyes, El gradually settled. Again, removing her grip from El’s head, Cait looked down to find that El’s hands were trembling violently. “El, your hands are shakin’.” Cait said, concerned that she had never seen El do this before.

El looked away and clutched her hands together in a futile attempt to stop them shaking. “It’s just something they do.”

“Tell me.” Cait commanded softly, holding El close.

El sighed and closed her eyes. “Back in my old life, when I was in the military, I…I saw a lot of things; things I wanted to forget. When I got back home, I noticed that my hands would sometimes start shaking. It comes and goes. Being…Being with you helps.”

Taking El’s hands in hers, Cait gently kissed them; hoping that such an action would sooth El’s anxiety. “Better?” Cait asked softly.

Attempting a smile, El nodded.

Stroking El’s soft flesh, Cait attempted once again to get the answers she wanted. “El, I’m gonna ask you again. What happened?”

Much calmer this time, El found it far easier to talk. “When I went through the teleporter, it took me to inside the Institute.”

“You mean the machine worked?” Cait interrupted.

El nodded and continued. “Yeah, it worked. It took me inside the Institute. When I got there, I started looking for Shaun.”

“Did you find him?” Cait interrupted again.

El’s face dropped, reminded of what she subsequently discovered. “Yeah… I did.”

Confused about why El looked so sad about this news, Cait probed further. “Well, where is he?”

“He’s…He’s…old.” El replied downheartedly, a solitary tear streaming down her face.

“What?” Cait frowned.

“He’s an old man, Cait.” El answered clearly. “He’s grey. The day they stole him from me was sixty years ago. He’s lived an entire lifetime.”

Cait’s eyes widened at El’s revelation; that would technically make him older than El. “Did you tell him about us?” she asked.

El nodded but her expression did not change. “I did. But he doesn’t care about us, Commonwealth, or coming home. He only cares for the Institute.”

“What did you do then? Why didn’t you come home then?” Cait continued to ask, somewhat selfishly.

“I wanted to. But I wanted to try and change his mind. So, I worked for the Institute. I did their dirty work. I thought that by helping I could convince him to see my point of view. But then, he asked me to track down some rogue synths at Bunker Hill. When I found them, I couldn’t turn them over. They looked so scared. In that moment, I made a decision; I let them go.”

Cait sat quietly stroking El’s trembling hand, listening intently to her every word. She was not going to move until she heard everything.

“As soon as I freed them, I was teleported to the old CIT ruins; where he was waiting for me. When I tried to explain myself to him about what I did, he banished me from the Institute. I tried to talk to him; about you, Tasha, everything. But he just wrote them off as the scum of the Commonwealth. Then he teleported away, leaving me alone.” El bowed her head, not wanting to say anything more. She couldn’t bring herself to tell Cait about her failed suicide attempt. Cait would probably never forgive her for that.

As El finished, Cait tried to remain calm about she had just told her. But what made Cait’s blood boil most was how Shaun had regarded Tasha as Commonwealth scum. How dare he call her daughter something as base as that. “The bastard!” Cait spat, anger building up inside her.

El did not react to Cait’s words and simply looked away. “Two-hundred years in a frozen box, and, when I finally found my son, he mocked his own family.”

Cait found that she could not find an answer for that. How could you find a silver lining for that? “So, what do we do now then?” Cait asked eventually, not knowing what else to ask.

At that question, El’s face hardened with a new determination. “We find another way into the Institute and get Shaun out of there.”

Cait nodded. “Well, I’m comin’ with you this time.”

Not expecting Cait to say that, El shook her head vigorously. “No, Cait, you can’t. It’s too dangerous; and what about Tasha?”

“I eat danger for breakfast, El.” Cait replied loudly. “And Tasha’s comin’ with us. She’s the strongest baby in the Commonwealth.”

El could not help but chuckle at Cait’s remarks. Cait always knew how to cheer El up if the need arose. “You think?” she then asked, stroking the soft flesh of Cait’s leg.

“Yep.” Cait answered, very sure of herself. “She gets it from her mother.”

This time El properly laughed, unable to keep at straight face. Cait also could not help but smile. It made her happy to see El laugh properly again. Once she had calmed down, however, El nodded in acceptance. “Okay. We’ll do that.”

Cait was not finished though and had one last thing to clear up. “But, before we do anythin’, I need you to do somethin’, El.” Cait’s voice was calm, but authoritative.

“Anything, Cait. Anything.” El replied, nodding enthusiastically.

Cait’s face suddenly turned serious. “You hurt me a lot tonight. You treated me like my slavers and my parents did. If we’re to carry on, I want you to promise to never do that again.”

El immediately kissed Cait’s hand and held it close. “I promise, Cait. I’m so sorry. I will never hurt you again. I swear on my life.”

“Alright. I forgive you, for everyhtin’.” Cait replied, resting her forehead on hers.

El squeezed her eyes shut and leant in to place her lips on Cait’s. The kiss was long and slow, but there was no drive to take it any further. Both women simply wanted to stay in each other’s arms and share their collective warmth. “Thank you, Cait. I love you so much.” El eventually said, pulling away.

“I love you too.” Cait replied, pulling El into a tight hug. They sat in their embrace for several minutes, seeing no reason to move. “Even superheroes need help sometimes.” Cait then whispered in El’s ear.

El smiled and pulled away, feeling genuinely happy for the first time in days. “Yeah, I suppose they do.” she chuckled.

“So,” Cait then said, returning them both to the matter at hand, “how do we get inside the Institute?”

El had to think for several moments before answering. “We’re going to need some help…from some old friends.”                   

Chapter Text

As they slowly worked their way along the coast, Cait watched El. Striding down the waterfront, El gently cradled a sleeping Tasha to her chest; wrapped in a tight papoose. Cait huffed quietly at how peaceful Tasha looked cuddled up to El’s chest. “She always sleeps better with you.” she eventually said.

Looking down at Tasha, El chuckled. “She sleeps well on your chest too.”

“But she goes to sleep quicker when she’s on yours.” Cait continued, clearly looking for an argument.

At this point, El looked across at Cait and raised her eyebrows, ready to counter her argument. “I know someone who does the exact same thing.” she said, nodding toward Cait and smiling mischievously.

Goaded by El’s retort, Cait scrunched her face up and narrowed her eyes. “I can’t help it if your tits are so comfy.”

“Hey, I didn’t ask for these!” El snapped, gesturing to her breasts. “They just started growing and wouldn’t stop.”

“Well then, you can’t blame me for wantin’ to sleep on them then.” Cait then said, a huge smug smile plastered across her face.

El frowned, baffled by Cait’s strange, yet not entirely incorrect, logic. “That’s not the point, Cait. It’s-.” By now, El gave up, turned her head away from Cait, and quietly mumbled to herself in frustration.

Watching El mumble, Cait chuckled and smiled at her self-proclaimed victory. El always mumbled to herself when she lost an argument. Nine times out of ten, El would win. But, on the few occasions that she won, Cait couldn’t help but laugh at how much of a sore loser El was.

Hearing Cait’s chuckling, El turned back to her and saw her triumphantly smug smile. El just shook her head and rolled her eyes. “You know the word.” she then said rhetorically.

“Incorrigible?” Cait replied.

El nodded. “Yep. A pain in my arse!”

Cait snorted and looked down, blushing slightly as she brushed a few loose strands of fringe behind her ear.

Cait was not sure how to feel as they approached the Castle. The last time she was here, she had almost died at the hands of a Mierlurk Queen. Whilst, ultimately, the incident did allow her and El to come closer together, she still felt embarrassed that she always seemed to need her life saved.

The Castle had definitely changed a lot since their previous visit. Whilst the gaps in the outer walls were still there, the Minutemen had built several barricades to fill them in.

What drew most of El’s attention, however, were the huge guns positioned on each of the Castle bastions. El had not stayed at the Castle long enough to see the guns fully installed, but she couldn’t wait to see them in action.

“Halt!” a voice called from atop one of the barricades. “State your name and business!”

El immediately halted and put her hands up. “It’s El and Cait. We’re here to see Preston!”

“Advance and be recognised!” the voice called again.

El and Cait stepped forward and into the path of a large spotlight. Looking up, El squinted her eyes as she stared up at the Castle barricade. After a few seconds, the guard lowered the spotlight “Open the barricade! Welcome back, General!”

El lowered her hands and nodded up to the barricade. “It’s good to be back.” she replied.

With a large metallic clunk, a gap slowly opened up and El and Cait walked through.

The inside of the Castle was the biggest surprise for El and Cait. Gone were the endless Mierlurk nests, mounds of dirt, and seaweed. Now, the Castle courtyard was an open space dominated by the huge radio antenna. Most of all, and to both El and Cait’s relief, the horrible smell that accompanied Mierlurks was finally gone.

As El and Cait reached the centre of the courtyard, they were greeted by Preston Garvey exiting the archway leading to the living quarters. “General! It’s good to see you again. It’s been a long time. Good to see you too, Cait. You’ve turned into a bit of a legend around here.”

Cait frowned, but more out of curiosity than annoyance. “A legend? What the hell for?”

“For that stunt you pulled with your axe on the Mierlurk Queen. It’s turned into quite the legend. Everyone here knows it. We even hung one of the claws on the wall of the General’s quarters.”

Cait bit her lip, feeling very uneasy. The Minutemen were talking about how stupid she was.

Conscious of Cait’s anxious look, El attempted to rescue the conversation. “Hey, Preston. It’s good to see you again.”

“We’re glad to have you back. I should also offer my congratulations on your new arrival.” Preston continued, gesturing to the bundle cradled to El’s chest.

El chuckled and looked down to stroke Tasha’s hair. “Thank you. The Minutemen in Sanctuary must have told you. She’s sleeping at the moment, but this is Natasha.” El then turned to show Tasha sleeping peacefully on her chest.

Preston gave a reserved smile and gently stroked Tasha’s thick black hair. “She’s very beautiful, General. I’m happy for you. You must be very proud.”

El nodded and glanced over at Cait. “We both are.”

“Well, you must want to put her to bed. You can have the General’s quarters.” Preston then said, gesturing towards the southeast bastion.

Cait immediately stepped forward. “I can take her. I’ll leave you two to chat.” she said, gently taking Tasha out of her papoose and holding her close.

“Are you sure, Cait?” El asked, slightly concerned at the haste at which Cait which reacted.

Cait simply nodded and gave El a reserved smile. “Where are the General’s quarters?” she then asked, turning to Preston.

“Just go through the archway, turn right, go down to the end, and then turn left.” Preston answered, pointing to the entrance to the living quarters.

Cait nodded to Preston and turned back to El. “I’ll leave you to it.”

“Alright. I’ll see you inside. Love you.” El said reassuringly as she planted a small kiss on Cait’s cheek.

“Love you too.” Cait mumbled in reply before quietly walking off inside the Castle.

Only when Cait was out of earshot did Preston resume his and El’s conversation. “Is she alright, General?”

El exhaled deeply through her nose. “I think she’s just a little cut up about being back here, for want of a better phrase. The fact that people are talking about her fight with the Mierlurk Queen makes her feel awkward.”

Preston nodded, understanding El completely. “I see. She shouldn’t worry. We admire her here for what she did. Only someone as brave as her would do something like attacking a Mierlurk Queen head on. It’s why we hung the claw on the wall; we’re proud of her.”

El could only smile. “That’s what I’ve told her many times. But, unfortunately, she is very stubborn and takes a great deal of convincing. Maybe you could tell her. She might listen to you.”

Preston raised an eyebrow. “Perhaps I will, if I get a chance.”

“Great.” El replied happily. “I think she’ll like that. Now, how are things here? You’ve certainly done a lot of work on the defences.”

“Thank you.” Preston replied gratefully. “Yes, if I do say so myself, the defences are coming along nicely. We still have long way to go, but it’s a start. I hope the sentries didn’t give you too much trouble.”

El simply shook her head. “It’s nothing I haven’t experienced before.”

“Apologies for the added security.” Preston continued. “We’ve had incidents of the potential infiltration in the past few days.”

Curious of this development, El raised her eyebrows. “What kind of infiltration?”

Noticing someone passing by in the distance, Preston gestured to them before replying. “I think it would be best if we discussed this with Commander Shaw.”

Walking across the Castle Courtyard, El was greeted by Commander Ronnie Shaw; standing defensively with her arms crossed as she listened to the day’s updates. El remembered her as being as hard as nails and completely unwavering in her fortitude. She reminded El of her old drill sergeant from her time in the military. The Minutemen were in safe hands with soldiers like her. “General, it’s good to see you again. What can I do for you?” Shaw greeted as she saw El approach.

“Evening Commander. Good to be back. I’m here regarding the Institute.” El replied, immediately feeling like she was back in the military.

“I was just explaining the extra security we had to put in place.” Preston added.

“Ah, yes.” Shaw nodded. “The Institute is the reason we had to put those measures in place. We’ve seen a few of those synth spies snooping around the vicinity. We think they may be planning some kind of an attack.”

El nodded. “I’m not surprised they’re planning an attack. They most likely knew I was coming here.”

“The Minutemen in Sanctuary told us about your trip inside the Institute. That’s great work. Did you find anything that could get more of us inside?” Shaw asked.

“I managed to get a tape of the Institute network.” El answered. “Sturges is currently decrypting it. Hopefully, he’ll uncover some secret entrance that’s right under our noses.”

Shaw then gave a knowing toothless smile. “And you want our help to bring them down?”

“You took the words out of my mouth.” El smiled back.

“Well, in that case”, Preston added, “we best get the defences properly manned for tomorrow. If the Institute know the General is here, I expect the attack will come within days.” Preston then turned to El and placed his hand on her shoulder. “I suggest you get some rest, General.”

“No, Preston. I need to stay and help. This attack is about me. I should at least do my part.” El tried to protest.

Preston, however, did not budge. “I insist, General. Get some rest and we can pick this up in the morning.”

El sighed, accepting defeat. “Alright, I’ll get some sleep. I should probably check on Cait anyway. Goodnight to you both.”

“Goodnight, General.” Preston and Shaw replied in almost perfect unison.

Turning onto her back, Cait stared up at the ceiling and sighed deeply. She had been tossing and turning for hours, unable to sleep. Looking across to the other side of the bed, Cait’s face dropped at how peacefully El slept next to her. How was it that El was able to sleep anywhere?

Sitting up, Cait hugged her knees to her chest and shivered slightly, feeling hugely uncomfortable. Cait didn’t like it here; it was cold and damp. This place also reminded Cait too much of places where she had been locked up during her years as a slave. To add insult to injury, she had almost died here; no amount of El’s comforting and reassurance would stop her feeling embarrassed about that.

Finally accepting that sleep was pointless, Cait gently shifted to the edge of the bed and slipped on her boots. Cait smiled at the ease at which her feet slid into them. El had bought them for her during a stopover in Diamond City and, as a result, Cait’s feet had never been so comfortable.

Standing up, Cait grabbed her jacket and quietly snuck out her the General’s quarter’s. She had almost closed the door when she saw Dogmeat scuttle out to join her. Huffing at the fact she would have to deal with El’s dog as well, Cait hugged her arms to her chest and walked outside.

The Castle courtyard was considerably quieter than it had been when they arrived. The only activity at this hour seemed to be guard changes. Taking a seat at the edge of the courtyard, Cait sat back and allowed herself to clear her head.

“Can’t sleep either, huh?” a voice said approaching her.

Cait turned her head immediately to find Preston standing in front of her, a friendly, but inquisitive look on his face. Wishing that El was here so she didn’t need to speak to someone she didn’t know very well, Cait was at a loss for words. After a few seconds, however, Cait just nodded and looked straight ahead. “I don’t like this place. Reminds me of a place I wanna forget.”

Preston nodded as he took a seat next to Cait. “I know how you feel. I don’t sleep too good here either.”

Cait did not respond, feeling unbearably awkward about one of El’s friends attempting to be friendly with her. Cait hated these kinds of situations.

“The General told me about your feelings for this place.” Preston finally said, attempting to start a conversation by addressing Cait directly.

This got Cait’s attention. “What did she say?” she asked, conscious that her girlfriend was talking about her behind her back.

“All she said was that you feel embarrassed by what you did with the Mierlurk Queen.” Preston answered.

Cait could only scrunch her face up in mild frustration. “Why did El have to say stuff like that?” she mumbled.

Hearing Cait’s mumbling, Preston set about explaining himself. “You should know, Cait, that we tell that story because we find it inspiring. The only way the Minutemen are going to take back the Commonwealth is if we have people who are willing to take risks. You knew the risks of attacking a Mierlurk Queen head on, but you did it anyway. That’s the kind of courage we want to teach everyone in the Minutemen.”

All Cait wanted to do was roll her eyes. These Minutemen were so fucking righteous. “But it was stupid! It didn’t bring the bastard down, and I nearly fuckin’ died!” she spat back, a lot louder than she was expecting.

“I understand that, Cait.” Preston replied calmly. “But the fact that you didn’t is proof enough to us that what you did should be applauded. And anyway, everybody does stupid things in their life; I for one have my fair share. It’s how others remember those things that matters. What you did that day, we remember it as courageous.”

As she listened to Preston, Cait couldn’t understand what she was hearing; people found her inspiring. Cait had never expected anyone she came across to be inspired by her. Cait was supposed to live a life of insignificance.

“Unfortunately, I need to get back to work. The watch can’t wait.” Preston then said, bringing Cait back from her thoughts. “Goodnight, Cait.”

“…Goodnight.” Cait eventually said as Preston walked off across the courtyard.

With Preston gone, Cait was alone with her thoughts again. Now that Preston’s revelations had sunk in, Cait suddenly felt a shy, but happy, smile cross her lips; people actually found her inspiring. That had never happened to her before. The only emotions she believed she elicited from people, apart from El and Tasha, were lust, suspicion, or hatred. The fact that other people found her inspiring made Cait feel something new outside of her relationship with El; it made her feel valued.

Hearing a peculiar whimpering at her feet, Cait looked down to find Dogmeat placing his chin on her knees. Cait immediately frowned, unsure of what to do. Ever since meeting El, Cait had never bonded much with Dogmeat. Dogmeat similarly had never attempted to bond with Cait. Why then was he suddenly asking for attention? “What do you want?” Cait asked firmly, not sure of how best to speak to a dog.

Dogmeat lifted his paw and placed it on the back of Cait’s hand.

Trying to work out what he wanted, Cait apprehensively extended her hand and began to gently rustle Dogmeat’s fur.

Dogmeat tail instantly started wagging as Cait moved onto ruffling behind his ears. Cait was unable to stop smiling, El’s mutt wasn’t so bad after all. “Huh, you really are a good boy.” she said, scratching Dogmeat’s chin.

Dogmeat in response reared up and licked Cait’s cheek. Cait immediately scrunched her face up, trying not to laugh. “Come on. Let’s go back to bed. El will be missin’ us.”

Standing up, Cait lead Dogmeat back inside the Castle and quietly back into the General’s quarters. After watching Dogmeat curl up next to Tasha’s makeshift crib, Cait unlaced her boots, shrugged off her jacket, and climbed back into bed.

As soon as Cait’s head hit the pillow, El immediately rolled over so she was facing her. “Where did you go?” El mumbled, still half asleep.

“Just had to get some air.” Cait whispered.

El then reached out and wrapped her arm around Cait’s waist, bringing her close. “I love you.” she murmured, resting her head on Cait’s chest.

“Love you too.” Cait replied, smiling from the warmth that El was emitting.

As El effortlessly slipped back into sleep, Cait let her eyes slowly close, for the first time, feeling comfortable about where she was.

“Are you sure you’re comfortable about taking her?” El asked, gently bobbing Tasha up and down in her arms.

The female Minuteman private stood up straight with her hands behind her back. “It would be an honour, General.”

After several seconds of thought, El nodded and carefully handed Tasha to the soldier. “Take good care of her.” she said, her voice threatening to break.

“Of course, General.” The Minuteman reassured. “We’ll stay in the tunnels underneath the Castle. It will be safe and, hopefully, quiet down there.”

With Tasha safely in the Minuteman’s arms, El gently stroked her thick black hair and kissed her forehead. “Mommy’s got to take care of some bad guys, alright Tasha? But private…” El looked up at the Minuteman expectantly.

“Davies, Ma’am.” The Minuteman answered, understanding what El was implying.

Nodding, El returned to speaking to Tasha. “Private Davies is going to take care of you.”

Tasha simply babbled and began to fiddle with the lapels of Private Davies’s uniform. El could only smile. Giving one last kiss on Tasha’s forehead, El turned to Cait. “Shall we go?”

Cait nodded and watched El exit into the courtyard. Once El was gone, Cait gently kissed a babbling Tasha on the cheek. “You take good care of her. Understood.” she then said curtly, pointing a finger at Davies.

Davies’ eyes widened slightly and she nodded obediently, a little terrified by Cait’s attitude. “Y-Yes, Ma’am.”

Interpreting Davies’ look of fear as confirmation that she would do her job well, Cait lowered her finger and sheepishly walked out into the courtyard. Spotting El near one of the wall barricades, Cait quietly joined her and the Minutemen who had gathered.

Once the garrison had been fully assembled, Ronnie Shaw stepped forward and turned to face the assembly. “Alright you mooks, I’m sure you’re all aware that we’ve seen those Institute tin cans snooping around outside. We think they’re planning an attack.” Shaw then looked over at El. “Now, the General is going to say some words about why. General?”

El bowed her head and began walking up to where Shaw stood. Turning around, El faced the assembly and began. “Just so everyone is clear, the reason the Institute is going to attack is me. I made it into the Institute and got hold of some highly sensitive information. My contact in Sanctuary is currently decrypting the data; hopefully what’s on there will be of use. But, in the process, I ended up alienating the Institute’s leader and he expelled me, declaring war on me in the process. They won’t rest until I have been stopped. That’s why we’re here. I need your help to bring them down.”

El looked down at Cait and saw her grip her axe tightly in her hands. She clearly looked ready to destroy some synths. At least she was wearing her armour. “That’s all I have to say. I’ll hand you back to Commander Shaw.” El then stepped down and returned to her original place next to Cait.

Stepping back up, Shaw’s already stern face turned serious. “Alright folks. You know your positions. Go go!”

The Minuteman immediately sprang into action and quickly scattered off to their positions, leaving El, Cait, and Dogmeat alone in the courtyard. Turning to Cait, El gave a reserved smile. “Well, we have our positions. I’ll see you on the other side.”

“Urr, yeah. Suppose I will. Good luck.” Cait replied, biting her lip.

Suddenly, El wrapped her arm around Cait’s waist and lifted her up to kiss her deeply. Cait immediately dropped her axe and enclosed her own arms around El’s neck, returning the kiss with equal enthusiasm.

Eventually, El and Cait pulled away, but stayed smiling at each other. “Love you.” Cait eventually said.

“I know.” El replied, smirking mischievously.

Cait raised an eyebrow, seeing through El’s flippant reply immediately. “You’re so corny.”

El’s smirk only intensified. “You love it.” she said, planting a small kiss on the end of Cait’s nose.

Cait scrunched her face up and giggled quietly, not wanting anybody else to hear her. Only El was allowed to hear her giggle. “C-Can you put me down?” she then asked shyly.

El nodded, gently lowered Cait down, and tucked some strands of Cait’s fringe behind her ear.

“Stop it!” Cait said, bowing her head to hide her blush.

El held her hands up, unable to keep from laughing. “Sorry. Force of habit.”

Cait bit her lip to hide her smile. As much as she protested, she did like it when El did that. “W-We should go.” she eventually said, watching the other Minutemen taking their positions.

“Right, yes, we should go. Well, good luck. I’ll see you soon.” El replied, her face turning serious again.

“See you around.” Cait added.

El turned away but stopped to look down at Dogmeat, sitting quietly and expectantly for his next command. “You coming, boy?” she asked, tapping her leg.

Dogmeat deliberated for several seconds then totted over to sit at Cait’s feet. Frowning in curiosity, El looked up an equally surprised Cait. “We’re startin’ to become friends.” Cait finally said, gently rustling Dogmeat’s fur.

El found it almost impossible to contain her joy and she smiled happily. “So proud of you.”

El stood on the barricade, her rifle aimed out towards the surrounding swamp. She and the Minutemen had been on high alert since that morning, waiting for when the Institute inevitably attacked. El wondered how Cait was doing. As she was skilled with a melee weapon, Cait has assigned herself to the Northwest breach in the wall. It was expected that the Institute would go for the still more rudimentary defences of the Northwest wall, so Cait was definitely needed.

Suddenly, El spotted something sculking in the distance. It was difficult to make out much detail, but its piercing yellow eyes betrayed everything. Taking a deep breath, El gripped her rifle tightly to prevent her hands from trembling too much. She had work to do.

Then they came. From the distance, as if rising up from the swamp, a swarm-like squad of robotic skeletal figures came slowly charging towards the Castle. Almost immediately, they began firing aimlessly at the barricade, the blue beams of their laser guns leaving deep black scorches in their wake.

“Alright bozos! Here they come! Light ‘em up!” Ronnie Shaw shouted, pointing towards the approaching horde.

Suddenly, El jumped out of her skin as the deafening sound of the Castle cannons fired an opening salvo. Looking towards the swamp, El watched as several of the approaching synths were obliterated the incoming salvos. In a matter of seconds, robotic body parts, synthetic skin, and circuitry littered the ground.

Yet the synths kept coming and soon they were almost at the walls. Returning her mind to the task at hand, El steadied herself and opened fire.

Cait stood on the Northwest barricade with her axe gripped tightly in hands, watching the Institute synths approaching her position. Cait’s face hardened, ready to smash those tin cans into dust. She did not even flinch as the other Minutemen around her opened fire.

However, no amount of firepower could stop the horde of synths and they were soon storming the barricades. Cait immediately swung into action. Noticing a synth attempting to scale the barricade, Cait swung her axe down smashed it into the synth’s head. The synth instantly fell to the ground and crumpled into a pile of lifeless robotics and circuitry.

Breathing heavily, Cait looked to her right and saw another synth grab a Minuteman by the neck and attempt to pull him over the barricade. Instantaneously, Cait brought her axe down and severed the synth’s arm, freeing the Minuteman. “Thank you, Ma’am.” the Minuteman said, steadying himself.

“Thank me when this is over.” Cait grunted in reply, smashing another in the shoulder and almost slicing it in half. This time, however, Cait swung too hard and her axe embedded itself in the wooden barricade. Attempting to wrench her weapon free, Cait looked away at the wrong time. Hearing the sound of something clamouring over the barricade Cait reached for her shotgun.

It was then that she saw the synth. In the futile attempt to retrieve her axe, the synth had managed to scale the barricade and was aiming its laser rifle at her. Realising that she had mere seconds, Cait pulled out her shotgun and attempted to save herself.

But Cait was too slow. Before she could aim her shotgun, Cait found herself falling to the ground as the synth violently kicked her in the stomach. Still dazed from the impact of the kick, and landing on her back, Cait watched the synth aim his rifle at her and fire.

As the synth pulled the trigger, however, it stumbled as Dogmeat bit into its leg. Losing its footing, as the synth fired, the laser veered off and grazed the edge of Cait’s arm. Sensing her chance, Cait raised her shotgun and fired.

With a loud bang, the synth exploded in half as Cait emptied her shotgun into its stomach. As the synth’s piercing yellow eyes went blank, Cait rolled onto her side side and nursed her stomach; that synth’s kick had some serious force to it.

Cait then looked towards El’s position and her face turned to a look of horror. Infront of her eyes, Cait saw a synth swipe El across her face and knock her down to the ground. Groaning as she pulled herself onto her feet, Cait climbed back onto the barricade, and, with one strong pull, wrenched her axe free. Jumping down from the barricade, Cait then ran to El’s position as fast as she could.

The sound of constant gunfire was deafening El’s ears as she brought down her eight synth since Shaw had ordered the Minutemen to open fire. Despite this, the waves of synths were unrelenting and had almost broken through. Before long, the Institute synths had reached the barricade and were attempting to scale it.

Leaning over the barricade, El aimed down and fried relentlessly into synth’s head, sending it plummeting to the ground. Then, at the worst possible moment, El’s rifle clicked; she was out of ammo. Gritting her teeth, El cursed as she pulled out the empty cartridge and reached into her coat for a replacement. El had just clipped the new magazine into her rifle when she saw another synth scaling the top of the barricade. Almost immediately, El swung around and aimed her rifle towards the intruder.

Before she could aim, however, the synth grabbed the gun barrel and easily wrenched it from her grasp. El then suddenly felt a throbbing pain on the side of her head as the synth smacked the butt of the rifle across the side of her face. As El reeled in pain, her feet slipped off the barricade and she fell backwards onto the ground.

Still dazed from the throbbing pain in her head, and the force of falling to the ground, El groaned as she tried to sit up. It was then that, through her one good eye, El saw the synth jump down from the barricade and walk to towards her. Trying to retrieve the situation, El reached down and pulled her pistol from its holster and aimed it limply at the synth. But, even after firing all eight shots into its body, the synth was undeterred and bearing down on her with its laser rifle primed. Now, El was defenceless.

Then suddenly, before El could react, a bladed metal object came flying over her head and collided with the synth’s body. To El’s wide-eyed amazement, the synth almost shattered on impact and disintegrated into a pile of artificial bones, wires, and synthetic skin. Continuing its journey, the metal object then embedded itself in the Castle barricade. El’s mouth dropped open as she saw that the object in question was Cait’s axe.

Turning around to look behind her, El saw a winded, mud stained, Cait standing roughly six feet away from her. As soon as their eyes met, Cait quickly closed the distance and knelt in front of El. “You alright, El?” Cait panted, gently placed her hand on the fresh bruise around El’s right eye.  

El could only look on in shock. “You…You saved my life, Cait.”

Cait sucked her bottom lip, unable to find an adequate response.

Tears began to well up in El’s eyes and she wrapped her arms around Cait’s neck, kissing her deeply. They kissed for what seemed like an eternity, with both El and Cait oblivious to the battle continuing around them. The sound of gunfire and the cries of soldiers continued to reverberate in their ears, but neither cared. All that mattered was each other.

Eventually, El was forced to pull away and catch her breath. Still panting, she wrapped her arms tighter around Cait’s neck and pulled into a tight embrace. “Th-Thank you.” El said, lightly sobbing into Cait’s shoulder.

“Don’t mention it.” Cait replied.

“I told you it’s alright. Ow!” Cait complained as she sat against one of the Castle’s inner walls.

“It’s a very nasty burn, Cait. I just want to be sure it’s been seen to.” El replied as she gently ran a wet cloth over Cait’s mud-stained arm. After El and Cait had finished kissing in the middle of the battle, El had noticed the bright red burn mark on Cait’s arm; made by the Institute synth’s laser rifle. El had then immediately brought Cait inside and, much against Cait’s protests, insisted on seeing to her wounds.

Wrapping a roll of bandages around Cait’s arm, El sat back and gently stroked Cait’s back. “There. How does that feel?”

Cait looked at the bandage and moved her arm around, getting a good feel of it. El seemed to have done a good job. “Feels good. Thanks.” she answered, giving El a friendly smile.

“You’re welcome, Cait.” El replied, packing her first aid kit away.

Cait’s attention was then suddenly drawn to the bruise around El’s right eye. “How’s your eye?” she asked, tentatively running her fingers across it.

El hissed and recoiled away slightly. “It’s alright. Still throbbing a bit.”

“How’d you get it?” Cait asked further.

El scratched her head, attempting to remember the incident. For the most part, it had all been a blur. “I was trying to reload my rifle when I saw a synth climbing over the barricade. I managed to reload my rifle but was too slow in firing it. Before I could aim, it grabbed my rifle and hit me across the face with it. I’m surprised it didn’t knock me out.”

Whilst she was still concerned about El’s condition, Cait tried to lighten the mood. “They can’t bring you down that easily." she said, smiling.

El chuckled at Cait’s statement. “You think?”

“I know.” Cait continued.

This time, El laughed properly and leaned in to plant a small kiss on Cait’s cheek. Pulling away, El then began brushing loose strands of Cait’s fringe behind her ear.

“Stop it.” Cait grunted, recoiling away and trying forlornly to sound annoyed. No amount of frustration, however, could stop her cheeks going bright red.

Seeing through Cait immediately, El raised her left eyebrow and put on a knowing smile. “Cait, I can tell you enjoy it when I do that.”

Cait remained silent, cursing the ease at which El saw through her. Glancing across and seeing El’s glinting eyes staring knowingly at her, Cait quickly looked away to hide her blush. “What did El do to her?” Cait thought to herself.

El and Cait were suddenly brought back to reality when they heard the sound of gunfire die away and a resounding cheer ring out throughout the Castle. It was soon accompanied by Preston arriving, a serious but confident look on his face. “We did it, General. We drove them back.”

El exhaled deeply, feeling immense relief. “Do you think they will come back?’ she then asked.

“After such an assault, I don’t think so. They’ll most likely be taking stock of their losses.” Preston replied.

El nodded. “I’m guessing we’ll be doing the same then? That was a tough fight.”

“We wait on you, General. If that’s your order.” Preston said commandingly, looking straight at El.

El looked up, unsure how to react. She hadn’t expected the final say to fall to her. El thought for a few minutes before responding, wanting to make sure she made the right decision. “We should wait here until we know how to get into the Institute. We can’t take the fight to the Institute until we know how to get inside.” she finally said.

“Very well, General. I shall tell the men to stand down.” Preston replied as he exited into the Castle courtyard.

Once Preston was gone, El heard the faint sound of crying. It sounded like a baby crying. It was then that El and Cait suddenly remembered Tasha. Rushing off from where they sat, El and Cait followed the cries until, coming around the corner, they were greeted by Private Davies, a crying Tasha in her arms. “I’m so sorry, Ma’am. She was fine until the cannons started firing.”

“Don’t worry. You did a great job. You kept her safe.” El replied reassuringly as she took Tasha in her arms. “Shh, shh, shh.” she soothed, bobbing Tasha up and down.

Hearing her mother’s voice, Tasha mercifully calmed down and El and Cait soon sat back they had been before hearing their daughter’s cries.

“The fates seem to be on your side, General.” A gruff female voice suddenly called out.

El and Cait looked up to find Ronnie Shaw standing before them. “Is there news, commander?” El asked, her ears pricking in acute interest.

Shaw nodded. “You have a message from Sanctuary. They’re on the radio for you.”

El immediately rose, welcoming the prospect of news. Maybe this would be the news she had been waiting for. She, however, was quick to stop as Tasha began to fuss again.

“I’ll take her.” Cait then said, stepping in and taking Tasha in her arms. “You get on the radio.”

El smiled. “Thank you, Cait.”

Reaching the radio, El sat down as Cait, Preston, Shaw, and several other Minutemen gathered around to listen to the much-anticipated news from Sanctuary. “Sturges, are you there?” El asked tentatively, pressing the button of the microphone.

“Hello Ma’am. Glad to hear from you.” Sturges’ static-laden voice answered.

“Likewise. I hear that you have some news for me. Please tell me it’s good.” El continued expectantly.

“Sure do.” Sturges replied. “I managed to crack that Institute tape that you gave me and I’ve found another entrance.”

El closed her eyes and inhaled deeply through her nostrils, trying to contain her elation. At last, things were starting to work themselves out. Composing herself, El pressed the microphone button again. “That’s great news, Sturges. Where is this entrance?”

“Probably best if I tell you in person.” Sturges answered. “I have something else that will allow you to hack into the Institute’s teleporter network. It should allow you to teleport more people inside.”

Exhaling heavily, El accepted that, as usual, another long journey was needed before she could make anymore progress. “I understand. I’ll set of tomorrow. See you then.”

“See you then, Ma’am. Sturges out.” The radio then went static.

Standing up, from her chair, El turned to Preston. “Well, Preston, the fates really are on my side today. We have a way in.”

“It’s great news, General. If you’re heading to Sanctuary, we’ll join you.” Preston replied.

El’s eyes widened, slightly surprised by Preston’s earnestness. “Are you sure, Preston? It seems like a big undertaking.”

Preston, however, only shook his head. “It’s nothing, General. You asked for our help and we intend to give it. Tomorrow, we’ll join you on your way to Sanctuary.”

“What about the Castle?” El then asked, concerned for the Minutemen losing the Castle again so soon after defending it.

“We’ll keep a small garrison her to watch the place. However, I doubt anyone will risk attacking us after today.”

El smiled appreciatively. “Thank you, Preston. I really appreciate your help.”

“It’s nothing, General. The sooner the Institute is gone, the safer the Commonwealth will be.” Preston said, holding his hand out to El.

Chuckling, El grasped Preston’s hand in a firm handshake. With the pact sealed, Shaw, who had been observing El and Preston’s conversation, turned to the assembled Minutemen. “Alright, listen up, soldiers! You fought well today. We scored a great victory over the Institute and we have them on the run. Now, we take the fight to them. the General has a way into the Institute and we’re going to be there with her. Pack your equipment, we move out tomorrow. Understood!?”

“Yes, Commander!” the assembled Minutemen answered resoundingly.

“Good!” Shaw continued. “But first, we achieved a decisive victory today. You all deserve a chance to celebrate. Perkins, go open the whiskey! Tonight, we’re having a victory party!”

At that moment, a booming cheer echoed through the Castle. Tonight was finally a chance to celebrate.

That evening, Cait, El, and the Minutemen had all sat around a large campfire for the victory celebration. Also accompanying the celebration was the Minutemen’s quite considerable supply of food and alcohol.

“What can I get you to drink, General?’ one of the Minutemen asked El.

“Another Nuka Cola, please.” El replied happily, revelling in the good company of the celebration.

At that response, a number of the Minutemen shouted in protest. “Oh, come on, General! You gotta have a proper drink. It’s a celebration!”

El sighed but could not contain a smile. “Sounds great. But no. I need to keep a clear head.”  

“Come on, El. I’ve never seen you drink!” Cait joined in.

Turning to Cait, El’s mouth dropped open. “Don’t you gang up on me as well.” she said, playfully shocked that Cait was not taking her side.

Armed with Cait’s swiping comment, the Minutemen stepped up their game. “Come on, General! Your girl wants you to drink. Now you have to.”

“Plus, I saved your life. You owe me.” Cait added, trying to keep a straight face.

El frowned. How did she get into this situation? Eventually, however, she gave in. “Alright, fine. I’ll have one. One beer.”

Cait smiled at El’s answer. At last, she would finally see El drink.

Cait was struggling to keep a straight face. There was clearly a reason why El didn’t drink. El had barely finished her beer before she was getting tipsy.

“Alright!” one of the Minutemen shouted, getting everyone’s attention. “It’s story time. We’re gonna go around the campfire and get everyone to tell their best story. Funny, awesome, embarrassing, doesn’t matter. Although, embarrassing or funny would be best.”

The surrounding Minutemen immediately cheered, welcoming the prospect of embarrassing stories.

Cait, however, felt a little uneasy. She had plenty of stories, but none of them were funny. What would she do when they came to her?

Eventually, after some funny, and not so funny, stories from the Minutemen, it was El's turn to tell a story. Her mind already suffering from the effects of the alcohol, El had to think a lot harder to find a good story.

“Come on, General! You must be full of great stories!” Preston said, sounding a lot more jovial than El was used to.

After a few moments of deep thought, El struck gold on a great story. “Okay. I have a good story.” El cleared her throat to stop herself giggling. “Back when I was in the military, my medical unit and I were assigned night watch duty. That night, there was a huge thunderstorm blowing through. It was definitely one of the worst guard duties I ever had to do. About 3am, one of my buddies was caught short. To add insult to injury, the rations we were given were terrible. For most of us, it was non-stop pooping.” El was deviating. Alcohol always made her mind wander. “Anyway, my buddy immediately took off his helmet and threw it randomly on the ground. He then squatted down to do his business; insisting that we stood guard around him.”

Within seconds, El had Cait and the Minutemen on the edge of the seats.

“When he was done,” El continued, “to shield himself from the rain, my buddy quickly did his trousers up and put his helmet back on his head, only to find it was full of shit.”

The Minutemen immediately started to laugh but were still a little intrigued. “Wait? You mean-?” one of them asked.

El nodded, knowing exactly what they were meaning. “Yeah, without knowing, he squatted down over his own helmet and filled it with his own shit.”

Everyone around the campfire suddenly roared with laughter. El herself was unable to stop herself from laughing. Looking across at Cait, she saw her giggle in a way that she only ever heard when she touched her in her ticklish parts, most notably her belly button. That reaction was proof enough to El that it was a good story.

Once the laughter had died down, the Minutemen’s attention turned to Cait. “Your turn, Cait!” one of the Minutemen said in good cheer.

Biting her lip, Cait tensed up slightly. She didn’t have any entertaining stories. How was she going to muddle her way through this?

Sensing Cait’s unease, El put her arm around Cait’s waist and tried to coax her out of her shell. “Cait, why don’t you tell us a story about that axe you use?” El prompted.

Hearing El’s prompts, the Minutemen were immediately intrigued. “Yeah, Cait! Tell us about that axe!” some of them said in unison. “You must have done some awesome stuff with it today!”

Cait chuckled, remembering how she had saved El’s life earlier that day. Maybe she could join in after all. “Well, when I was fightin’ the synths today, I saw El had been knocked over by another synth. I tried to run over to help her, but it was too far. I couldn’t think of anythin’ to do, so I threw my axe at it.” Cait waited for the inevitable silence. As far as she was concerned, her story was shit.

The Minutemen, however, were on the edge of their seats. “What happened? Did you get it?” one of them asked.

Shocked that people were finding her story interesting, Cait continued. “I-It shattered in to a million fuckin’ pieces. My axe then stuck itself in a wall.” Cait smiled mischievously.

To Cait’s surprise, her story was met with cheers and applause. Cait didn’t know what to think, people actually found her interesting.

“I propose a toast!” a Minuteman suddenly called. “To Cait! The Grognak of the Commonwealth!”

“To Cait!” the other Minutemen responded in unison, standing up to raise their drinks.

Cait’s eyes widened, unable to think of how to react. At no point in her life had anyone raised a glass to her.

“To Cait.” a voice then said quietly. Turning towards the voice, Cait found El with her drink raised and a loving smile on her face. Unable to stop the blushing smile spreading across her own face, Cait apprehensively raised her drink.

With Cait’s joining in the toast, the Minutemen cheered together and drank. Taking a sip of her whiskey, Cait couldn’t stop smiling. This was what being valued by a group of people felt like.

As she continued to watch El, Cait had a good sense of why El did not drink. El was starting to lose it. No sooner had El finished her beer then she was breaking into the Minutemen’s supply of rum. Now she was losing control.

Cait, on the other hand, had decided to take it easy. Whilst she had indulged in a few drinks that evening, she chose not to get wasted. Watching El was far more enjoyable. “You doin’ alright, El?” Cait asked, making sure that El was still lucid.

Lifting her head from Cait’s shoulder, El smiled coquettishly and leaned forward to expose her cleavage to Cait. “I’m fine. I feel great. You look beautiful.”

Cait snorted, amused by El’s behaviour. Even when El was drunk, Cait found it hard not to look down her cleavage. Cait needed to get El to slow down before things got out of hand. “I think you’ve had too much.” Cait said, raising her eyebrows and crossing her arms.

Attempting to maintain her superiority, El similarly crossed her arms, pressing her breasts together in the process. “I’ve barely had a drink.” she slurred playfully before returning to her devious persona. “But I’d rather have a drink of you.”

Cait scrunched her face up. “Eww, gross.” Clearly, El was a bit of a perv when she was drunk. “Alright, come on. You’re goin’ to bed.” cait then said, standing up and putting her hands on her hips.

“Why don’t you come over here and make me.” El replied softly to sound as enticing as possible. El then tried to wink suggestively, but only succeeded in a dopey blink.

Cait just shook her head. “You’re goin’ to bed, now.” With almost no resistance, Cait bent down, took El’s arm and wrapped it around her shoulders. Cait then hauled El to her feet and began walking her to bed.

“You have really strong arms.” El smiled dopily as Cait lead her across the courtyard.

“Really?” Cait chuckled, keeping the conversation going for El’s sake.

El nodded, running one of her hands over Cait’s shoulders. “Yeah. I like strong women.”

Cait rolled her eyes. The sooner she got El to bed, the better.

Reaching the door to the General’s quarters, Cait and El were greeted by two Minutemen guarding the door. “You alright, Ma’am?” one of them asked, getting up from his chair.

“Yeah, fine. Just get the door. Things been okay?” Cait answered, nodding towards the door.

“No trouble, Ma’am. She’s been quiet all night.” the other Minuteman replied, opening the door for Cait.

“I’m going to make sweet love to my girlfriend.” El said loudly as the Minutemen stood aside to let Cait pass.

Upon hearing El’s words, both Minutemen frowned and took a step back. “General?” one of them asked, visibly surprised by El’s forthrightness.

Cait just sighed. “Don’t mind her. She’s fuckin’ pissed.”

With the door closed behind them, Cait quietly sat El down on the bed and looked her over. Almost immediately, El looked up at Cait and continued her coquettish smile. “What you lookin’ at?” Cait asked, seeing through El’s drunken attempt at a playful attitude.

“Looking at you, beautiful.” El replied, trying not to slur her speech too much.

Cait rolled her eyes. this was getting ridiculous. Cait knew exactly what El wanted, but was not going to give her the satisfaction. El needed to go to bed. Standing El back up, Cait gripped the zip of El’s vault suit and began pulling it down. El, however, quickly slapped Cait’s hands out of the way. “Get your hands off me. If my girlfriend catches us, she’ll beat the crap out of you.”

“What?” Cait frowned, completely mystified. What was El taking about.

“My girlfriend, Cait.” El clarified as coherently as he could. “If she sees you putting your hands on me, she’ll beat you up. Only she is allowed to touch these babies.” El slurred, pressing her breasts together suggestively.

Despite feeling deeply heartened that, even when drunk, El remained loyal to her, Cait was not going to let flattery distract her. “El, I’m Cait.” she said bemusedly.

El narrowed her eyes and leaned in close. Her mouth then suddenly dropped open as if she had just realised something profound. “Cait! Oh my god! How did you get here?”

Cait’s face remained serious but she was incredibly close to laughing this time. “I’ve been here the whole time, you idiot. I’m puttin’ you to bed.”

At that, El stood back and relaxed her posture. “Well, I’m ready. You can do whatever you want to me.”

Cait simply shook her head and set to work. After fending off her drunken advances, Cait finally managed to remove El’s vault suit and underwear. She then, after nearly being smothered by El pressing her boobs in her face, slipped El into some pyjamas and lay her down on the bed. “There, finally done. God, you’re the worst person to change when drunk.” Cait huffed as she looked over a dazed El.

El just smiled dopily back at her. “You’re taking care of me.” she said softly, looking completely spaced out.

“Yeah. You owe me big time.” Cait replied seriously. "Now, you stay there. I’m gonna check on Tasha.”

“Okay.” El whispered back, staring blankly at the stone ceiling.

Walking around the bed, Cait reached the small alcove where Tasha’s makeshift cot had been set up. Inside, Tasha slept peacefully. Next to her, Dogmeat also slept soundly, acting like a silent guardian for their daughter.

Smiling at how beautiful her daughter looked, Cait turned back to the bed and, upon looking at El, put her head in her hands. El was completely passed out and lightly snoring with her mouth wide open. “What a waste of space.” Cait thought to herself.

In the Castle courtyard, Cait threw her rucksack on and then carefully slipped Tasha into her papoose. Gently stroking her hair, Cait stifled a yawn as she looked over at the waste of space accompanying her. Across from her, wearing her thick pair of sunglasses, El silently sorted her bag. Cait couldn’t help but feel slightly annoyed at her girlfriend. The night before had not been peaceful for Cait at all; El had been up three times in the night to throw up. To make sure El didn’t get lost, or fall over, Cait was forced to drag herself out of bed to help her. As a result, Cait had barely slept that night. The final insult was attempting to wake El up when it was time to rise. Unsurprisingly, Cait was not in the friendliest mood that morning.

Once her bag was packed, El turned to Cait and attempted a smile. “You look lovely today, Cait.” she croaked dryly.

Cait simply pouted and shook her head. “Not gonna work.” she replied sarcastically.

Bowing her head, El quietly slung her bag over her shoulders and, collecting her weapons, shuffled over to the assembled Minutemen. Similarly collecting her own weapons, Cait soon joined her.

With the Minutemen assembled, Preston stepped forward and addressed the crowd. “Good morning everyone. I trust you all enjoyed yourselves last night.”

El immediately looked away, an act that made Cait snort quietly to herself.

“Today, we head to Sanctuary. Within the next few days, the Institute should be a thing of the past.”

As the Minutemen cheered in response, El winced and covered one of her ears. Cait snorted again but her pout only intensified.

“Alright, Minutemen! Move out!” Preston commanded, turning towards the Castle’s front gate.

Taking a deep breath, Cait and a terribly hungover El began the long trudge back to Sanctuary.

In the streets of downtown Lexington, El and Cait sat in silence as they ate a snack and rested their tired limbs. They had barely spoken to each other since the Castle.

Cait has spent most of the journey watching El. Whilst she commended El for making it this far without needing a rest, Cait could tell that El felt awful. Instead of striding like she normally did, El had trudged for most of the journey. Instead of looking straight ahead, El had mainly looked at the ground. Instead of rationing her canteen, El had almost drank all of it before they made it through Boston. As the miles racked up, and El’s embarrassment at her own actions became more apparent on her bespectacled face, Cait could only laugh. Now she had finally found something that El could not do, handle her liquor.

“I’m sorry.” El finally said, breaking the endless silence.

Unable to stop herself from laughing, Cait smiled. “It’s okay. We all get drunk sometimes.”

Happy that Cait was not still mad at her, El finally allowed herself to smile. “Yeah, I suppose. I’m just not very good at it.” El said, her voice laden with embarrassment.

“You were out of control last night.” Cait laughed.

With her face red with shame, El put her head in her hands. “What on earth did I do?”

“Not tellin’. At least not yet.” Cait replied smugly.

“I’m never going to live this down, am I?” El groaned.

Smiling mischievously, Cait shook her head. “Nope. I’m rememebrin’ this forever.”

After several minutes of covering her face, El eventually looked up. “Say it.”

“Incorrigible?” Cait answered.

El nodded slowly and chuckled. “Yep.”  

“Hi Sturges. El greeted happily. “I’m here about some information.”

Sturges stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small holotape. “Sure do. I found another entrance near the opening to the sewers under Ticonderoga. Follow those sewers to the entrance and it should take you directly to the Institute teleporter room. When you get there, insert the tape in the console and that will allow you to teleport the Minutemen inside."

Taking the holotape, El smiled and slipped it into her pocket. "Thank you, Sturges. This is great news. We’ll set off tomorrow for Ticonderoga.”

“We’ll be waiting for your signal.” Sturges nodded. “Now, I suggest that you get some rest before you set off. Not to sound rude, but you look like shit.”

Sighing heavily, El closed her eyes. “You’re not the first person to say that to me. Goodnight, Sturges.”

“Goodnight, Ma’am.”

Entering her bedroom, El found Cait slipping on a blue vest for bed. As she shook her hair away from her eyes, Cait noticed El come through the doorway. “Hey.” she said softly, smiling as El entered.

“Hey.” El replied as she closed the door. “You look lovely.”

“Still out for flattery tonight?” Cait then asked sarcastically, raising and eyebrow.

This time, El returned the sarcasm. “Well, yes I am. Am I allowed to kiss you?”

Unable to turn down a kiss from such a beautiful woman, Cait relaxed. “Okay. As long as you’ve washed the smell of hangover out of your mouth.”

El immediately wrapped her arms around Cait’s waist and kissed her deeply. Exhaling contentedly through her nostrils, El hummed as she relished the feel of Cait’s lips. Cait similarly hummed as she savoured the taste of El’s pre-war lips. If this kiss were to go on forever, she would not mind a bit.

Eventually pulling away, El and Cait stared at each other, basking in their shared warmth. “What’s all this about then?” Cait finally asked, hoping that striking up a conversation would lead things further.

Licking her lips, El looked deep into Cait’s eyes, her own eyes glinting Cait’s favourite hazel colour. “We’re going to a very dangerous place tomorrow. Before we go, I want you to know how much I love you. Plus, after all you did for me at the Castle, I think you’ve earned some affection.”

Placing her own hands on El’s waist, Cait shuffled closer and pushed her chest out slightly. “I can get on board with that. What sort of thing did you have in mind?”

Clearing her throat, El raised herself to full height and similarly pushed her chest out. “Well, my girlfriend, Cait, is not going to be back for a while. If you like, I’ll let you massage these babies.” she said deviously as she pressed her boobs together.

Cocking her head to one side, Cait pouted and raised an eyebrow. “Are you rememebrin’ last night?”

“Little bits are coming back to me.” El replied, leaning forward ever so slightly to expose her cleavage.

Glancing down at what awaited her, Cait did not need anymore convincing. “I better get to work then.” she said as she slowly unzipped El’s vault suit.  

Chapter Text

As they approached the riverbank by Ticonderoga, Cait was beginning to wonder where on earth this so-called entrance to the Institute was. They had been following the river for miles and had nothing to show for it. “Are you sure the entrance is here?” she eventually asked El.

Peering over the riverbank wall El slowed down and answered. “If Sturges is right, the entrance should be just… here.” Turning her head to Cait, El pointed straight down. “It must be down there.”

Looking towards the where El was pointing, Cait scrunched her nose up in disgust. El never told her that she would need to swim. “Down there?” she asked sneeringly.

“I’m afraid so.” El replied, bringing Cait out of her thoughts. “It seems we’re going to have to swim through.”

Cait chewed her lip. She really wasn’t sure about this. There was something she had not told El. She had never considered it important until she came face-to-face with where El had pointed. El needed to tell El before it was too late.

“Cait.” El called, once again brining Cait back to reality. “Take one of these waterproof bags. Put your backpack inside. It will keep it dry.”

Cait quietly took the bag and slipped her gear inside. Once she had tied it up, she waited as El similarly slipped her own bag inside another. Once El was finished, she turned back to the edge of the wall and leaned over. “I can’t see any stairs down. I think the only way we’re going to get close is if we jump.”

At that prospect, Cait could not hold back. If she did not speak, she would only regret it. “El, I need to tell you somethin’!” she blurted.

El immediately turned to Cait, a look of deep concern on her face. “What’s wrong, Cait?" she asked, walking towards Cait.

Cait looked down, already feeling embarrassed. El had worked so hard to get here; what would she think? “I… I… I can’t go down there.” she stuttered, glancing towards the river.

Noticing Cait’s stuttering El frowned, confused by her reluctance. “Why not? Cait, we came all this way.”

“But I… I… I can’t swim.” Cait replied, looking at her feet. She hated to tell El this when they were so close.

Upon hearing Cait’s words, her face softened. Yes, they had come this far, but how could she have known the entrance would be underwater. It was not Cait’s fault that she couldn’t swim. Stepping forward, El took Cait’s hand. “Cait, it’s alright. I didn’t know.”

Looking up, Cait tried to salvage the situation. “We can’t stop now. We need to get in somehow.”

El was silent for several moments, clearly trying to think through a solution. “I have an idea. I’ll lead the way and you hold onto me.” she eventually proposed.

“How though?” Cait asked back, her embarrassment quickly turning to panic.

Seeking to bring Cait’s anxiety down, El took both of Cait’s hands and placed them on her waist. “Keep your hands on me and don’t let go.”

After intently watching the river below, Cait eventually looked up at El and nodded.

“Come on then.” El smiled. “Let’s get this over with.” Taking Cait’s hand once again, El lead to Cait to the edge of the wall so they were standing at the edge. Leapfrogging over the wall, El and Cait were soon sitting with their feet dangling over the edge. Now that they were both positioned, El squeezed Cait’s hand tightly to get her attention. “Ready?” she asked.

Breathing heavily, Cait quietly composed herself. Closing her eyes, she finally nodded.

“Alright.” El continued. “On the count of three. One… Two… Three!”

Simultaneously, El and Cait threw themselves off the wall and into the grey water below. As soon as she hit the water, any composure Cait had instantly evaporated and panic set in. The water was freezing. Cait immediately kicked and writhed as she tried desperately to reach the surface.

After several excruciating seconds of panic, Cait felt two hands grip her waist and haul her to the surface. As her head came above the water she gasped as her frozen lungs desperately sucked in air. “Cait, Cait, it’s alright, it’s alright! I’ve got you! Just breathe!” El shouted, holding Cait firmly to stop her writhing.

Safe in El’s grip, holding onto El’s shoulders tightly Cait started to relax. “It… It’s so… S-so cold.” she whispered, shivering violently.

“I know. I know. We’ll be out of it soon. First, we need to get through the entrance.” El looked down, attempting to see through the cloudy water. “Cait, I need you to take a deep breath, alright?”

Steadying her breathing, Cait nodded apprehensively.

“Hold onto me, alright? And keep hold of your bag. If you lose that you won’t be much help.” El continued, Loosening her grip on Cait’s waist slightly.

Preparing herself, Cait nodded again. Her grip on El’s shoulders, however, had not loosened.

“On three… Two… One!” El then commanded, taking a deep breath. Following El’s lead, Cait obediently took a deep breath and lowered herself beneath the water.

As soon she lowered herself under the water, Cait was blind. The water was so murky, she could barely see El in front of her. Struggling to adjust to her surroundings, Cait felt herself being pulled forward as El attempted to navigate her way towards the entrance.

Feeling her way forward, El blindly gripped the entrance to a large sewage pipe. This must be the secret entrance. Sturges did say that the entrance was in the sewers. Landing her feet on the bottom of the sewage pipe, El steadily felt her way along, unable to see anything in front of her.

Wrapped tightly around El’s waist, Cait was beginning to panic. The enclosed environment of the pipe was making Cait claustrophobic. The resulting panic was also making her lose the essential oxygen in her lungs. With her chest burning, Cait began to believe that, if not saved, she would drown.

The sewage pipe seemed to go on forever. All the residual sunlight from the entrance had long since vanished. Now, El was forced to use her blind senses to feel her way through. With the added struggle of having to carry Cait alongside her, El was losing energy. She had been underwater for so long; the lack of oxygen was becoming unbearable.

Then, just as she thought she would drown, a faint red light appeared to El in the distance. Immediately, El began to kick violently, trying to haul herself and Cait through the pipe.

Finally, after what felt like a slow descent into a flooded hell, El felt the edge of the pipe open out into a large square space of brick and concrete. Looking up, El immediately made for the surface. Gasping loudly, El instantly twisted around hauled Cait to the surface.

As she finally reached the surface, Cait inhaled frantically, gasping for air. Coughing her lungs back into life, Cait gripped El’s shoulders tightly to stop herself from slipping back under.

Looking around, El spied a set of brick steps a few metres in front of them. all she needed to do was get Cait there and she would be safe. “It’s just over there, Cait.” El said breathlessly, pointing towards the top of the steps. “Just a few metres more. Come on, Cait. You can do it.”

Seeing the safety of dry land in front of her, Cait threw all caution to the wind and scrambled towards the steps. Following her lead, El swam quickly in the same direction, her arm wrapped around Cait’s back to keep her from sinking. Kicking frantically through the water, Cait was suddenly relieved to feel hard brick beneath her feet. Moving forward, Cait then felt a second, slightly higher, step hit her feet. Before long, Cait was close enough to reach out and grip one of the high steps. Using all the strength she could muster from her frozen muscles, and with a lift up from El, Cait then hauled herself out of the water and crawled onto the ledge. “There. Safe and sound.” El said as she helped lift Cait out of the water.

Once Cait was safely on the ledge, El slipped her protective bag off her shoulder and lifted it out of the water. She then grabbed the high step and pulled herself up onto the ledge.

Now that they were both safely on dry land, El and Cait were finally able to catch their breath. Sitting next to each other on the ledge, El and Cait silently watched the water slowly settle back into a steady flat ripple. Looking across to Cait, El saw that she was shivering uncontrollably. “Cold?” El asked her softly.

Cait nodded and hugged her arms to her chest.

Smiling, El wrapped her arm around Cait’s shoulders and pulled her close. “I’m so proud of you, Cait. You did brilliantly.” she reassured tenderly.

Rubbing her hands across her chest, Cait took a shaky breath. “I hate the water.” she then said quietly.

El leaned in and kissed Cait on the side of her head. “Well, hopefully, that part is over now.” Looking past Cait, spied the next part of their journey. Just behind them was a high red brick wall with a small electronic keypad in its centre. That might be their next step. Maybe the next stage of the secret entrance was behind that. Returning to Cait, El gently squeezed her arm to get her attention. “You sit tight, okay. I’m going to work out where we go from here.”

Cait continued to shiver, but she nonetheless nodded.

Retracting her arm, El stood up and walked towards the number pad. Sturges had told her about this first level of security. Hopefully, the information he had given her was accurate. Taking a deep breath El imputed the code, hoping that it would work. As soon as El imputed the number, a loud clank made her jump and she turned to face it. Leaning over the ledges railing, El’s heart sank as she saw a hatch open to another pipe. Looking down at Cait, El noticed that she had also seen the pipe open. El was going to have to work hard to get Cait back in the water. Tentatively, El took a knee next to Cait and put her hand on her back. “Cait, I’m sorry, but we’re going to have to go back in the water.”

Cait immediately shook her head. “I’m not goin’ back in!” she replied loudly, shivering violently.

“Please, Cait. We need to keep moving. The Minutemen are counting on us. This is our only way into the Institute.”

Cait just looked down. “You can go. I’m not goin’ back in that water.”

El tried not to grit her teeth. “Cait, you wanted to come. You can’t back out now.”

“I know what I fuckin’ said!” Cait spat angrily. “But I’m not goin’ back in!”

El took a sharp breath and chewed her lip, becoming more and more frustrated by Cait’s stubbornness. She understood Cait’s fear of drowning, but she couldn’t back out after all her big words. El would not stand for it. However, shouting never worked in the past with Cait. Cait required an incentive to persuade her. Taking a deep breath, El calmed herself down and leaned in close to Cait. “Your daughter is waiting for you, Cait. The faster we move, the faster you’ll see her again.”

Cait suddenly stopped shivering and El could tell that she had made a decision. If anything would drive Cait forwards it was her family. “Let’s get this over with.” Cait finally said, standing up and collecting her gear.

Giving a triumphant smile, El similarly stood up and collected her gear. Tentatively, El stepped back into the water and shuddered violently. It was so fucking cold. Once she had submerged up to her waist, El turned around and took Cait’s hand. “Remember, hold onto me.” she said, wrapping Cait’s arm around her waist.

Slowly descending the steps, El and Cait were soon back up to their weeks in ice cold water. Using all the strength she had, El hauled herself and Cait over to the pipe entrance. Reaching out, El gripped the edge of the pipe and was able to relieve some of the weight off her shoulders. Whilst her armour did provide good protection, it was so goddamn heavy. Having to pull Cait along as well also did not help at all.

Returning to the matter at hand, El carefully moved her legs around to find something to her rest her feet on. Miraculously, El was just tall enough to rest her tiptoes on the bottom of the pipe. “Cait, I can feel the bottom of the pipe. Just keep a hold of me.”

“Just keep goin!” Cait shouted back breathlessly, her head only just above the waterline.

Cait had a point. Taking small steps to keep her balance, El and Cait slowly made their way through the pipe. Breathing heavily, El groaned loudly as she tried desperately not to collapse from the weight of her gear, armour, Cait’s gear, and Cait herself. If there was no light at the end of the tunnel, El feared that she would sink.

As they continued, El began to feel the water current begin to move with increasing speed. El wasn’t sure that this meant, but it didn’t seem good. Suddenly, as El took another step, she felt her foot slip. Before she could even react, El sank under the water and was carried along by the current. Hanging onto her waist, Cait was similarly dragged under the water and pulled alongside El.

The subterranean torment felt like an age but, within seconds, El found themselves falling. Crashing into another pool of water, El immediately grabbed Cait by the waist and pulled her to the surface.

Gasping for breath, Cait grabbed El’s shoulders and shuddered.

Attempting to keep Cait close, El looked around to find another ledge marking the edge of the sewage tunnel. Using her remaining strength, El reached the edge of the tunnel and attempted to prize Cait off her. “Grab the ledge, Cait!” El shouted breathlessly, pushing Cait towards it.

Seeing the edge of the tunnel in front of her, Cait reached out and pulled herself out of the water. With Cait safely back on dry land, El climbed out and took a seat next to her. “I think that’s the last of the swimming, Cait.” she said, tapping Cait’s leg.

This time, Cait appeared more composed than before the first pipe. “Good. Fuckin’ hate the water!” she shuddered, rubbing her arms in an attempt to warm up.

El gave a reserved smile and moved her arm around Cait’s waist. “Maybe when this is over, I can give you some lessons?”

For the first time since they arrived at the entrance, Cait smiled; amused by El’s suggestion. “Sounds fun. Just as long as I can see you in a bathin’ suit.” she answered mischievously.

Happy that Cait had found her smile again, El chuckled. “Not before I see you in one.” she said, returning the smile.

“Perv.” Cait then said quietly, a slight blush creeping across her pale frozen cheeks.

At this, El raised her eyebrows and gave Cait a very knowing look. “Takes one to know one.” she said sarcastically. Looking around at where the tunnel lead, El then returned both of them to their mission. “Come on. We need to move. Unpack your gear.”

Collecting her waterproof bag, Cait untied it and pulled out her jacket. After patting out some of the creeses, she slipped it over her still damp shoulders and untucked her wet hair from the collar. She then retrieved her shotgun and backpack and loaded two cartridges into the chambers. With her gun loaded, Cait slung both her shotgun and backpack over her shoulders and finally retrieved her axe. Fully fitted out, Cait turned to see El buckling her belt around her waist and slinging her backpack over her shoulders. Once she had loaded her pistol, El looked up at Cait and nodded. “Let’s get moving. Stick to the edge of the tunnel.”

Continuing their journey through the tunnel, El and Cait soon came to a junction. “Where we supposed to go now?” Cait asked, looking over at El.

El looked around, trying to find something that would guide them. “Well, this pipe with the convenient arrows on it looks a lot newer than the others. I think we should follow that.”

With their course set, El and Cait followed the pipeline through endless fowl smelling tunnels, hoping that nothing sinister was lurking around the next corner. Wrinkling her nose, Cait was incredibly disappointed by the Institute so far. If all the Institute had to show for all the rumours was a bunch of stinking sewage tunnels, then Cait didn’t see why El’s son would want to live down here.

Eventually, El and Cait came to a passageway that seemed to have been bored into the rock between two tunnels. Looking ahead, El could see their own tunnel continue towards to dead end. This passageway must be the way forward. “Looks like we’re going down there, Cait.” El said as she stepped up into the passageway.

Cait had just stepped up into the passageway when they both heard a low growl behind them. Readying her axe, Cait turned to find a feral ghoul crawling out of the sewage and staggering to its feet. “El! We got ghouls!” Cait called.

In an instant, the ghoul let out a retching snarl and lunged at Cait. Already poised to receive the blow, Cait swung her axe directly onto the ghoul’s leg. As its leg split away from the rest of its body, the ghoul fell limply into the water, unable to do anything but crawl toward Cait and El. Stepping out of the passageway, Cait walked over to where the crippled ghoul lay and brought her axe down onto its head.

As the stagnant water was slowly stained red, and the ghoul stopped wriggling, Cait wrenched her axe free and stepped away. “Fuckin’ hate these things.” she then said, washing the putrefied blood off her axe.

El moved to reply but was cut off by the sound of multiple retching growls coming from every corner of the tunnel. It soon dawned on El that they were in for a fight. Ghouls hardly ever travelled on their own. Cait’s little execution must have woken the others. Readying her pistol, El walked next to Cait and aimed into the darkness.

They came all at once. Emerging from smaller tunnels, and under pipes, roughly six feral ghouls charged at Cait and El, their skeletal hands reaching out to swipe at them. El immediately opened fire, emptying an opening shot into the ghoul’s shoulder. Stumbling forward, the ghoul fell limply into the water and remained still. Darting to her left, El just managed to dodge as another ghoul and a withered ghoul lunged at her.

Rushing to El’s aid, Cait swung her axe into the ghoul’s neck, almost severing its head from its body. Tumbling to the ground, the withered ghoul’s crumpled into a pile of rotting irradiated flesh.

Over the next few minutes, El and Cait finished off the last ghouls and finally had the chance to breathe. Wiping her brow, Cait sighed deeply. El was right, moving fast did dry her out.

“That seems like the last of them.” El said, reloading her pistol.

“How the fuck do these things get down here?” Cait replied with a question, nudging one of the dead ghouls with her foot.

“No idea. Don’t care either way.” El answered as she stood next to Cait.

Cait could only chuckle. El always said cool, yet goofy stuff when they had been in a fight. “Suppose you’re right.”

“Come on. We need to keep moving.” El then said, patting Cait on her back.

Taking one last look at the ghoul’s body, Cait followed El as they entered the passageway. “Right behind ya.” she said, catching El up.

Compared to the flooded tunnel, the passageway was a welcome relief for El and Cait’s wet feet. Looking ahead, El could just see the end of the passage open out into another tunnel. At least they would get a brief respite from the stinking water.

They had just made it around a bend in the passage when El suddenly heard something and stopped. Coming around the next corner, the hideous, bloated, form of a Putrid Glowing One appeared before them. El immediately backed away as the unnatural abomination of over two-hundred years of radiation exposure and mutation come ambling towards them. Raising her pistol, El readied herself for what was certain to be a hard battle.

Before she could fire, however, Cait ran in front of El and sunk her axe directly into the ghoul’s stomach. Reeling from the force of Cait’s blow, the ghoul gave a choking growl and stooped down to clutch its injured stomach. Wrenching her axe free, Cait, in a characteristic closing flurry, lifted it high above her head and brought it down onto the Glowing One’s neck. This time, Cait swung her axe with such power that, upon impact, the ghoul’s head was severed clean from its body.

As the severed head rolled its way towards her feet, and the lifeless body sank flaccidly to the ground, El lowered her pistol in stunned silence. El had been preparing herself for a fight to the death, and Cait swooped in and finished the job in a matter of seconds. El couldn’t help but feel slightly aroused.

Oblivious to El’s gormless silence, Cait shook her axe to remove some of the irradiated blood and gore that had become stuck to the blade. After washing it off in a nearby pool of irradiated water, Cait finally turned around to find El staring at her. “What?” she asked, getting El’s attention.

Shocked out of her ogling, El fumbled a response. “Uh… nothing. You’re really good with that thing.” she stuttered, gesturing to Cait’s axe.

“What can I say? I’m good with my hands.” Cait replied, a playful smirk creeping across her face.

El chuckled. “You can say that again. Come on. Let’s get going. We must be getting close.” As El passed Cait, she couldn’t stop giving her arse a quick spank.

Not expecting the sudden contact, Cait jumped slightly; a reaction that deeply amused El. “Hey! Quit it, perv!”

“Sorry.” El laughed, flashing Cait a smile. “Your arse is just yearning to be spanked.”

Cait frowned, trying to find a retort. However, El was already walking away. Rolling her eyes, Cait just huffed and continued following El.

Entering the second tunnel, El and Cait resumed their journey, following the Institute pipeline. Coming around the next corner, however, El was elated to finally find something other than endless pipelines. Further down the tunnel, a metal causeway led up from the water level towards a hermetically sealed door.

Walking up and along the causeway, Cait readied her axe for whatever enemy was lurking behind the door. “You think the Institute is behind that door?” she asked.

Cait had barely finished the question when El threw her arm out in front of her and pushed her against the wall. “The fuck you doin’?” Cait called out, trying to wriggle out of El’s grip.

“Sssh!” El replied, attempting to listen through a small gap in the wall.

“What’s goin’ on?!” Cait continued to ask, not caring for her volume.

“Cait, just be quiet! I’m trying to listen!” El whispered loudly through gritted teeth.

Sighing loudly, Cait leant against the wall and stayed quiet, looking around the area nonchalantly.

Now that Cait was quiet, El steadied her breathing and leaned in closer to the gap in the wall. Just within earshot El could hear two voices muttering to each other. One voice was robotic whilst the sounded distinctly feminine in tone. The Institute clearly had different generation synths for various duties.

Peering through the gap in the wall, El could see one of the cruder robotic synths guarding another large pipeline. “What was so important about that pipe that it needed guarding?” El thought to herself. This must be the entrance.

“What d’ya see?” Cait whispered, not wishing to feel left out of El’s clandestine activities.

Retreating from the gap in the wall, El whispered, “Two synths. One I can’t see. The other is guarding another pipe.”

“Wait, there are synths?” We must be gettin’ close.” Cait replied, showing an eagerness that El was slightly surprised by.

El tried to resist a smile. In such a torturous journey, it lifted El’s heart to know that Cait was paying such attention. “Yeah, I think so. Follow my lead. There’s a sealed door with a terminal over there. I need to crack it if we’re to get inside.”

Getting to her knees, El quickly scurried under the gap in the wall and looked back at Cait. Gesturing towards Cait, El encouraged her to follow her lead.

Understanding immediately, Cait similarly got to her knees and scurried over to El’s position. “What now?” Cait then asked as she quietly got to her feet.

“Just hang tight, alright. I need to get this door open.” El answered as she began typing on the door’s terminal. El hated hacking. No matter how much practice she had, El just couldn’t seem to get it right. El could never understand the random word association encryption these terminals always used. Nate was always better with computers than she was. Sighing as she began typing, El would just have to suck it up and hope she got the password right.

It went as well as El had expected it would. Three attempts down and El had nothing to show for it but a locked door. Hovering over another random word, El wished this would be the right one. She couldn’t face being locked out of this terminal when she was so close. Taking a deep breath, El pressed the ‘Enter’ button and hoped that her rudimentary computer skills were up to scratch.

The affirmative bleep of the terminal allowed El to breath a little easier and she was granted access. Maybe her hacking skills weren’t so bad after all. Selecting the option marked ‘Open Security Door’, El jumped aside as the door swung open.

As soon as the door opened, El could hear commotion coming from the corridors ahead. El’s actions had clearly been heard by the synths. “Is someone present?” she heard one of the synths say.

Dropping back down to her knees again, El scurried back over to Cait’s position and readied her pistol. “Okay, Cait. I need you to do something for me.” she said commandingly, her mind firmly fixed on her mission.

“Watcha need?” Cait replied obediently. Normally, Cait would have at least looked to argue about El’s commands. However, seeing the determined look in her yes, Cait did not argue. El was on a mission and she needed to support her.

Nodding, El continued. “As quietly as you can, I need you to creep through that door and route out the patrolling synth. While you do that, I’ll handle the one guarding the pipe. If that is the Institute entrance, it’s not likely to leave its post.

Tightening her hold on her axe, Cait nodded. “I’ll get it done.” she answered, lifting herself to a crouch position and creeping through the open doorway.

Following Cait’s lead, El returned to the gap in the wall and slowly peered through. Just as she assumed, the synth had not left its position. Taking a deep breath, El raised her pistol and fired a round into the synth’s hip. As the bullet hit home, pieces of synthetic covering shattered and the synth fell to the ground, unable to move.

With the synth incapacitated, El heard the distant sound of metal smashing into something. Cait must have found the other synth. El then raised her pistol again, firing a second round into the synth’s head. The synth’s head almost shattered with the force of the bullet and the remains slumped onto the ground, its fingers twitching spasmodically. As El lowered her pistol, Cait entered the room and looked up at El. “You get the other synth?” El asked through the gap.

“Yeah. I smashed it in half.” Cait answered.

“Great job, babe!’ El smiled. “Stay there. I’ll come to you.”

Nodding, Cait smiled back. “I’ll be waitin’.”

Getting to her feet, El walked through to the open door and made her through to Cait. Along the way, El came across the carcass of the synth she sent Cait to deal with. Cait didn’t mince her words. She had sliced the synth clean in half. Cait could certainly be relied upon to destroy synths. Turning left, El entered the pipe room and found Cait leaning against the wall, her axe resting next to her. “Hey, babe.” El said, approaching her.

“Hey.” Cait replied, giving El a cute smile. “Why you started callin’ me babe?”

“I always call you babe.” El said, not sure why Cait was asking this all of a sudden.

“Not you don’t.” Cait continued, looking to argue.

Confused about why Cait was suddenly bringing this up, El shrugged her shoulders. “Would you prefer that I didn’t?”

“N-No. I didn’t say that.” Cait countered, shaking her head. “I was just sayin.”

“Well then,” El continued, “Let’s keep moving then. We’re close. I can feel it.” As El moved away toward the pipe, Cait jumped as El, once again, smacked her arse.

“Geez!” Cait shouted. “Throw you down a sewer and you’re horny as fuck!”

Looking back, El flashed Cait a mischievous smile. “I’m just happy that we’re so close. Hey, come help me with this hatch. I think we can get through here.”

Following El’s orders, Cait made her way over to her position. Bending down, Cait gripped the pipe and hauled it upwards. The hatch gave a great deal of resistance, but, with enough strength, it eventually gave way. The hatch opened up into another large meandering pipe. Much as before, the smell was not at all inviting. Scrunching her nose up, Cait recoiled away from the smell as best she could.

Despite Cait’s reaction, El was not in the mood for waiting. “No point in hanging around. Let’s go.” She said, climbing into the pipe.

Huffing, Cait reluctantly climbed in afterwards. “Great. More stinkin’ pipes.” she sighed glumly.

“It’s not for long, Cait. We’ll be out soon.” El replied.

Shrugging her shoulders, Cait fought back a gag as she inhaled more of the foul-smelling air. “You owe me big time for this.” she huffed as they trudged through the glutinous layer of sewage that coated the bottom of the pipe.

This time El was gracious enough to let out a chuckle at Cait’s whinging. “When this is over, you can have all the cake and sex you want.”

That response peaked Cait’s interest. “I’ll hold you to that.” she said, smirking impishly.

After another march through another seemingly endless tunnel, El and Cait came to a filtration grate that marked a dead end. However, El had already spotted an exit hatch. “Cait, give me a hand.” she called out, attempting to lift the hatch.

Cait immediately rushed to El’s side and began lifting tha hatch. Much to Cait’s disgust, the hatch gave them even more trouble than the previous one. The layer of sewage at the bottom of the pipe appeared to have sealed it even tighter.

Mercifully however, after having to pull away the sewage with their bare hands, El and Cait were able to budge the hatch enough for it to open. Peering through the open pipe, El’s heart lifted as she saw that they had wound up inside the Institute teleporter room. Sturges was right all along. “We’re here, Cait!” El cried, clambering out of the pipe. “I can’t believe we made it!” Turning around, El reached down and offered a hand to Cait. “Here, Cait. Grab on.”

“Thanks.” Cait replied as she took El’s hand and pulled herself out of the sewage pipe. Upon reaching El’s level, Cait slipped her bag off her shoulders and retrieved her canteen. Unscrewing the cap, Cait poured some water onto her hands and set about washing the stinking sewage off. Living with El had given Cait new sense of cleanliness that she never knew she had.

“Good idea, Cait. I hate having dirty hands.” El said, retrieving her own canteen and scrubbing her hands clean.

Once their hands were sufficiently clean, El and Cait returned to the matter at hand. “So, this is the Institute?” Cait asked, looking around with a slight, but increasing, sense of awe.

“Well, one small part of it.” El replied as she made her way to the teleporter terminal. Slipping her hand in her coat pocket, El pulled out the small holotape that Sturges had given her when they returned to Sanctuary. If all went to plan, this tape would hack the Institute network and allow her to teleport the Minutemen inside.

Holding her breath, El inserted the holotape and leaned in close to the terminal screen. Scrolling down the screen’s options, El highlighted the terminal’s newest edition, marked ‘Institute Remote Relay Sequence’. Pressing the entre key, El stepped back and waited.

After a few seconds, a low humming began emanating around the room. As El watched, the humming got louder until several bursts of bright blue light flashed before her eyes. Out of the flash walked Preston Garvey, his face immediately looking around with a sense of wonder. “Wow! That was something else. Guess we’re all still in one piece. So, this is the Institute?” he asked as El came around from the terminal. “They could have stayed down here forever. Why did they need to come and mess with us?”

El wasn’t sure how to answer. All she cared about was finding Shaun and burning the Institute to the ground. “It doesn’t matter.” she eventually responded.

“No, don’t suppose it does.” Preston replied, adjusting his laser rifle in his hands. “Anyway, here we are. There’s no turning back now… you’re going to need this. it’s a Fusion Pulse Charge, once it’s attached to the reactor it can be detonated remotely.” Preston handed El a small square shaped device covered in wires and a large yellow and black radiation symbol emblazoned on the front. It didn’t look all that intimidating when held in her hand. However, El knew well enough that it was the reactor itself that would deliver the killer blow. Carefully, El slipped the device into her bag.

“You get that on the reactor”, Preston continued, “and we can trigger an explosion that’ll destroy everything the Institute has ever built. Just make sure we give the civilians a chance to escape before we blow the place. We’re not here to commit mass murder.” Preston then looked past El towards the myriad of doors and corridors leading into the Institute. “We’d better hurry. They’re going to realise what’s going on before too long.”

El nodded. “I agree. We should move quickly. Is… is she here?” she then asked, a hint of worry in her voice.

“Yes, General. She arrived with Private Davies.” Preston replied, gesturing his head back towards the teleporter. He then walked past El to join Sturges at the teleporter terminal. "Sturges, you’d better get to work on this teleporter of theirs. We need that thing to running as soon as possible. You pull us back as soon as we give the signal. And anyone from the Institute who wants out, you let ‘em go so long as they aren’t shooting at you.”

With Preston gone, El walked among the freshly materialised Minutemen and found Private Davies exiting the teleporter, a very dazed and somewhat fussy Tasha in her arms. “How was she?” El asked as she approached her.

“As good as gold, General.” Davies replied. “A little shaken from the teleporter, but that’s to be expected, I think.”

Taking her into her arms, El gently rocked Tasha to calm her down. “Yes, I can understand that. Go on, join your comrades. I’ll fine from here… Sssh… Sssssh… Sssh… Don’t worry, Tasha. Mommy’s here. it was just a little teleporter.” El then whispered into Tasha’s ear.

As Tasha settled into El’s arms, and the Minutemen departed towards the impending battle with the Institute, El and Cait were left alone. “Hey, spuirt.” Cait said happily, gently taking Tasha’s tiny hand between her thumb and forefinger. “I missed you. We’re gonna keep you safe, alright.”

Upon looking up at Cait, Tasha gave a beaming smile and shook her hand that was entwined with Cait’s. it was a smile that always made Cait’s heart melt. “You sure about this?” Cait then asked, looking back up at El.

El’s face did not fill her with much confidence. The happy reaction at being reunited with Tasha instantly dropped and a fresh uncertainty washed over her. “I… I don’t know. But I have to try.”

“I know that!” Cait continued. “But bringin’ a kid here, our kid, you really think that’s a good idea?”

Whilst she did not appreciate Cait’s questioning when they were so close, she did understand her concern. “I know it’s not a good idea. But I don’t see any other way. I need to do this.”

“Okay.” Cait nodded, accepting that El needed to finish what they started.

Happy that Cait was still willing to follow her, El smiled and kissed her forehead. “Come on, Cait. Let’s go.”

Descending the passageway from the teleporter room, El and Cait took a sharp left and through an open side door. The door took them into what must have been an old and disused section of the Institute. The chipped walls, broken windows, and rusting furniture were clear signs that this area had not been used in years. Cait was not impressed. “Is this really the Institute? It’s shite!” she said with a sneer.

“This is just the early stuff, Cait. We’re not quite there yet.” El replied as they passed the remains of several synths.

Cait, however, did not drop her sneer. They had walked down endless corridors and through countless rooms with nothing to see but blown out lights, cracked paint, and dilapidated ceilings. So much for Scourge of the Commonwealth.

Coming down yet another set of stairs, El and Cait were met by the Minutemen gathered around the entrance to a disused lab. “What’s going on?” El asked as she reached the bottom step.

“This lab is causing us some problems. There’s too many synths and turrets inside.” Preston replied.

The sight of a laser beam flash past her and Cait was enough proof El needed. “Shite!” Cait shouted as the beam impacted the wall next to her as she reached the bottom step.

Immediately, El and Cait ducked behind the entrance, avoiding the sea of laser beams coming towards them. Looking around, El tried to find anything that would get them through. Eventually, El spied a terminal. Peering over the parapet of a broken window, El could see the exposed terminal wires lead through to a closed robot storage unit. Thinking something over in her head, El wondered if accessing that terminal might turn things around.

Scurrying over to the terminal, El set about another round of hacking. Why was it that she could go for days and weeks without needing to use computers, but, once inside the Institute, she was having to use them constantly; and holding a baby in her arms no less.

Happily, however, this hacking went far better than before, and she quickly figured out the bizarre random word. As the screen changed to highlight the available options, El scrolled down to the inviting ‘Activate Prototype’ option and pressed 'Enter'.

Peering through the broken window into the lab, a loud robotic clank ushered in a sentry bot. Reacting immediately, the synths and turrets opened fire on the rogue robot rampaging through the lab, firing endless laser beams into the sentry’s armour.

“What you do?” Cait asked, trying to cover her ears as El dropped down next to her.

Holding Tasha as close as she could, El did her best to shield her from the battle going on around them. “Activated the Sentry bot to deal with the synths.”

“Good thinking, General!” Preston cut in as she reloaded his laser rifle. “Give them a taste of their own medicine.”

The conversation, however, was cut off abruptly by an almighty explosion as the rogue sentry bot went into self-destruct mode. As debris and pieces of burning sentry and synth rained down around them, El gently rocked Tasha as she started to cry. “Ssssh…Sssh…Sssssh… it’s alright. They’re gone. They’re gone. Sssh…Ssssh…” El whispered, bringing Tasha in close.

“Let me take her for a bit, El.” Cait asked, extending her arms to El.

Shaking her head, El tried to stay calm as Tasha continued to cry. “It’s fine. It’s fine.”

“Come on. I can handle it.” Cait continued, attempting to pry Tasha out of El’s arms. “Let’s me take her for a while.”

Letting out a slightly defeated sigh, El carefully handed Tasha over to Cait. “Hey, squirt. Don’t need to cry. Mommy’s here… Sssh… Ssssh.” Humming a soothing tune into her tune, Tasha began to settle down. Planting a small kiss on Tasha’s temple, Cait looked up to find El staring at her, a loving smile on her face. “What?” she asked quietly.  

“Nothing. Just…you’re a really good mother.” El replied. Getting to her feet, El held a hand out to Cait. “Come on. We’re nearly there.”

Sucking her lip from El’s unexpected compliment, Cait took El’s hand and slowly got to her feet, conscious to not disturb Tasha. Walking through the lab, El and Cait were careful to dodge the plethora of synth parts strewn across the floor. El couldn’t help but chuckle as she looked over at the sparking husk of the sentry bot. Using robots to destroy robots, ironic.

As they descended another set of steps, and passed through another series of rooms and corridors, El and Cait reached an open hatch in the floor. “Down here, General. The institute should be just behind this door.” Preston said, looking up at El.

“Okay. We’re right behind you.” El then turned to Cait. “I’ll go down first and then you can lower Tasha down to me.”

Cait nodded and carefully adjusted Tasha in her arms. “Alright. Be careful.”

Dropping down to the edge of the hatch, El jumped through to the lower level and looked up at Cait. “Alright, lower her down.” she called, extending her arms up to Cait.

Lowing herself onto her stomach, Cait stretched out her arms and cautiously lowered Tasha down to El. “I’ve got her. I’ve got her… Weee!” El called out as she took hold of Tasha and brought her down to her level. “Been on a crazy adventure, haven’t we?” El asked, smiling at Tasha.

Grabbing her coat lapel, Tasha big hazel eyes widened, and she gave El a broad smile.

El’s bonding was, however, cut short as Cait similarly jumped down to land next to her. She, however, landed too hard and looked close to falling over. “Whoa, whoa! Steady. Nearly went over there, Cait.” El said as she wrapped an arm around Cait’s waist to steady her.  

“Sorry.” Cait said breathlessly, placing her hand on El’s shoulder for support. “Jumped a bit too far there.”

El chuckled and gave Tasha a small jolt. “Mama Cait jumped a bit too far, didn’t she? Nearly fell over.” she said happily to Tasha.

Looking over at Cait, Tasha’s cheeks went red, and she let out an adorable giggle. Cait just rolled her eyes and pouted her lips. “Yeah, real funny.” she said, gently poking Tasha. “Laugh at mama, why don’t ya. Want me to take her again?”

Handing Tasha back to Cait, El nodded. “Sure.”

With Tasha secure, El and Cait continued through another bunker like passageway until they reached final doorway. Passing through, El and Cait were finally inside the Institute.

Entering close behind El, Cait’s mouth dropped open. Cait had heard endless stories about the Institute, but nothing could have prepared her for what greeted her. Squinting her eyes at the almost blinding overhead lights, Cait looked out at a shining white laboratory covered with brightly coloured plants. Cait couldn’t take her eyes away from the myriad of coloured plants littering the various soil beds that populated the laboratory. Cait had never seen colours so vibrant in her life. “Were these plants from before the war?” Cait thought to herself.

“Cait!” El suddenly called, bringing Cait out of her thoughts. “Come on!”

Running over to El’s position, Cait continued to be bewitched by the plethora of colours and brightness around her. “It’s… It’s…so…clean… And… the colours…” Cait just about managed to say in her gormless ogling.

“I know it is, Cait. But our home in Sanctuary is also clean, and no-one is trying to kill us there.” El replied seriously, her mind set on her task.

Cait did not reply and just followed El through from the bio-lab to the main atrium. Upon entering the atrium, Cait looked up in complete awe at the scale of the place. If this place was as big as it was, how far underground were they? Around them, laser beams and bullets whizzed over their heads as the Minutemen’s battle continued. El and Cait needed to get Tasha out of the battleground. The sound of the gunfire was getting too much for her.

As they stepped over the carcasses of multiple synth bodies strewn about the floor, a jovial southern drawl came on over the Institute PA system. “Hey there, General. Found the reactor…”  Sturges’ voice called out over the static. “Looks like you need to get yourself to Advanced Systems area. Only, well, it’s locked. I can’t override it from here, looks like the command can only come from the Director’s personal terminal. You’re gonna need to get access to it somehow.”

El immediately looked up to the rows of apartment windows ascending the atrium area. This was her chance to both save Shaun and destroy the Institute once and for all. “Where we goin’, El?’ Cait eventually asked, unsure of what El was thinking.

“We need to get up there.” El replied, nodding up towards the apartments above. “Follow me and keep Tasha safe.”

“What you think I’m doin’?” Cait retorted, somewhat sarcastically as El lead them into the central elevator.

Descending to a lower level, Cait followed El along several empty corridors until they came to yet another elevator. Pressing the call button, El stood back to catch her breath as the elevator approached. “How big this place?” Cait asked, gently rocking Tasha to keep her calm.

“Even I don’t know. This is over two-hundred years’ worth of work.” El answered as the elevator doors opened.

The elevator ride up was very quiet. Cait could see in El’s eyes that her mind was close to spiralling. All this time, El’s mind had been set on this moment. Now that she was so close, El could only wonder what would happen now. Would she succeed? Cait wanted to reassure El and tell her that everything would be alright. But her innate cynicism meant that she couldn’t shake her doubt. El had failed once to win her son back; how would trying again work when they could just destroy the Institute now? Cait, however, was smart enough to keep her opinions to herself when she needed to.

After what seemed like an interminably slow elevator ride, the door opened into a small room dominated by what Cait could only describe as a glass cage. Cait frowned at the sight of something as base a cage in a place like this. El had also clocked the glass cage and was quick to look away. She couldn’t forget that day when, upon entering the Institute, she was greeted by a strange child begging for his father. That entire event had been a blur and El wondered what ever happened of that child.

Opening the door at the far end of the room, El and Cait entered a large two-level apartment, seemingly empty of anything personal. Cait could only wonder how, so deep underground, the Institute could run all of these facilities and amenities.

Unlike Cait, El did not stop to admire the décor and made straight for the stairs. Upon reaching the upper level, El turned to find something that made her heart sink. In front of her, in an Institute medical bed, lay her son.

Following close behind El, holding Tasha close, Cait’s mouth dropped open slightly. El was telling the truth; lying on a medical bed was a wizened old man, on the brink of death. Peering over El’s shoulder Cait could see the pained expression on her face. She looked on the brink of tears.

Taking a slow step forward, El took several deep but shaky breaths. She didn’t want to give in but seeing her son in this way had imputed a horrifying sense of doubt in her mind. “I never expected to see you again. Come to see the reactor, have you? We got it working without you.” Shaun said breathlessly as El approached him.

Stopping before his bed, El looked down at what was left of her son. “I’m sorry it’s come to this, Shaun.” she replied, almost a whisper.

“You’re sorry?” Shaun asked further, pure anger in the remains of his voice. “You can’t be that sorry if you are here going through with it. It’s not enough that I lay here dying. Now you plan on what, destroying everything? Tell me then, under what righteous pretence have you justified this atrocity?”

The doubt in El’s mind that had grown upon seeing Shaun only grew with every word that was uttered. “I came here to save you from these people, and to make the Commonwealth a safer place.”

Shaun sighed, clearly resigned to his fate. “I thought as much. Well, it doesn’t matter now, I suppose. You’ll accomplish your mission and ruin humanity’s best hope for the future. My only question now is why you’re standing here? Is it regret, or did you just come to gloat?”

“Shaun, I came back for you. If you help me, fewer people will die.” El answered, her limbs shaking.

Shaun scoffed, almost amused by El’s begging. “Why would I ever consider helping you?”

It took all of El’s resolve to remain calm. But she had to believe that, by offering to help, she could convince Shaun to come with her. “Shaun, if you help me, I promise that I will protect the civilians, to the best of my ability.”

Closing her eyes, Shaun exhaled deeply, reluctantly accepting of El’s offer. “Very well. The terminal behind me, entre access code 9003. That will disable some of the synths. Now go… leave me.”

El’s breath caught in her throat as Shaun turned his face away from her. Gripping the edge of the bed, El felt as though she would faint. Standing a few steps behind her, Cait held Tasha close to her chest, wanting to take El away from this place. If they stayed here any longer, it would only cause El more pain.

Turning to the terminal behind Shaun’s bed, El slowly walked over to it, using anything she could find for support. Reaching the terminal, El punched in the access code and waited for the options screen to appear. As the screen changed, El scrolled down and selected all three of the terminal’s options - the evacuation order, the lockdown override, and the synth shutdown. Once she made a promise, she always kept it.

Closing down the terminal, sirens and flashing lights blared around her as the lockdown protocols were disengaged. It was then that a resolve came over her and her face hardened. If she didn’t try one last time, then she would not be able to live with herself. Turning away from the terminal, El walked over to Cait and pulled the Fusion Pulse Charge out of her bag. “I need you to give me Tasha, Cait.” she commanded, placing the device on a nearby table.

“What?” Cait frowned, holding Tasha tight.

Already extending her arms to take Tasha from Cait’s grasp, El repeated. “I need you to give Tasha to me.”

Cait did not offer too much resistance and Tasha was quickly cradled in in El’s embrace. “What you gonna do?” Cait asked, handing Tasha over.

Kissing Tasha’s temple, El stroked her soft dark hair. “I need to save him, Cait.”

Understanding what El was intending to do, Cait just shook her head. “You don’t know if it will work.” she said despondently.

Closing her eyes, El fought back tears. “I have to believe that it will.” Wiping her eyes with her free hand, El then grabbed the pulse charge and handed it to Cait. “I need you to take this, Cait.”

Cait’s mouth dropped open in shock, looking as if El had just slapped her. “You what?!”

Pushing the device into Cait’s hands, El asked again. For fear of breaking down, El couldn’t look Cait in the eye. “Please, Cait. I need you to finish this for me.”

Cait obediently took the device but did not move. “I’m not leavin’ you! I said I was comin’ with you!”

Finally working up the courage to look at her, El placed a hand on Cait’s cheek. “Please, Cait. I have to do this myself. I need you to go with the Minutemen and fix this device to the reactor… Please…”  

Cait looked deep into El’s eyes and could see they were twisted with fear; fear that, after everything she had done, it could have all been for nothing. If El was to fail, at least Cait could help her achieve the goal of making their family safer. “Okay. I’ll do it. But you better be at that teleporter when I get there.” Cait eventually said, pointing a finger at El.

“Thank you…” El whispered as she leaned in to plant a kiss on Cait’s lips. Closing her eyes, Cait hummed contentedly. Pulling away, El gently stroked Cait’s hair and tucked several strands of hair behind her ear. “I promise.” she whispered softly.

From the gesture, Cait knew immediately that El was telling the truth. Slipping the pulse charge under her arm, Cait slowly backed away from El. “I love you.” she then declared.

“I love you too.” El replied, giving her a broad smile. “Now go. I promise that I’ll be back.”

As Cait turned away and exited the room, El clutched Tasha tightly to her chest and turned to find Shaun staring at her again. “You care deeply for her, don’t you?” he began.  

Looking back at where Cait had just left, El nodded. “I do. I love her.”

Letting out a small scoff, Shaun chuckled. “Always the saint. Standing up for the downtrodden.”

“She is more than you think. She loves her family, our family.” El retorted, nonetheless agreeing with Shaun’s assessment.

“I can see. Her love for that child is to be admired.” Shaun continued. He, however, did not look at Tasha clutched in El’s arms.

El’s mouth dropped open, shocked by Shaun’s almost nonchalant opinion of her lover and their family. “Shaun, this child is your sister. Look at her. Come with me and we will all be there for you.” El then presented Tasha to Shaun, her big hazel eyes looking over at him in wondrous curiosity.

Shaun simply looked up at the ceiling, oblivious to El’s plea.

Losing all sense of hope, El’s doubt turned to anger. “Shaun, look at her! LOOK AT HER!”

Hearing her mothers’ anguished cries, Tasha began to cry. Shaun’s reaction, however, did not change.

As Tasha cried in her arms, El could feel herself wavering as all hope seemed to leave her. Not even a glimpse of his own sister could convince Shaun to come with her. What had become of her son to make him fall so low? Bringing Tasha back to her chest, El gently bobbed her up and down to calm her down. Stroking her soft hair, El’s mouth began to quiver as tears and sobs crept through her stalwart façade. With tears streaming down her face, El gently kissed her crying daughter’s head before looking back up at Shaun. “Y-You’re no son of mine.”

Shivering ever so slightly, Shaun took a deep breath. “Goodbye, mother.” He wheezed, glancing away from El.

Not able to suffer here any longer, El slowly turned around and proceeded to the door, the distressed cries of her daughter reverberating in her ears. Upon reaching the open doorway, she turned back one last time. “Your father would be ashamed of you.” She said through painful sobs.

With that declaration, El turned away and walked through the doorway, never to return.

Cait reached the door to the Advanced Systems just as the lockdown barriers disengaged. It was there that she was joined by the Minutemen. “Cait, where’s the General?” Preston asked as she approached.

“She had somethin’ to do.” Cait answered, forcing open the Advanced Systems door. “I got the bomb though. Come on! We gotta job to do!”

As the door shunted open, Cait and the Minutemen piled into the Advanced Systems area. Almost immediately they were fired upon by the synths assigned to guard the reactor. Cait, however, did not wait and, as the Minutemen engaged the synths, she made for the far door.

“Hold this position!” Preston called to the Minutemen. “You men, follow me and Cait!”

“Sir!” a selection of Minutemen shouted in unison as they followed Preston and Cait towards the reactor room.

The path towards the reactor room was like the route to the secret entrance had been, endless empty tunnels. Dealing with a couple of troublesome turrets along the way, Cait and the Minutemen soon came to the entrance to a large open area dominated by a large drum shaped structure. Snaking around the structure was a series of ascending steel walkways that lead up towards a central window. Behind the window was a flashing blue light. Cait knew immediately that that was the reactor.

No sooner had they arrived when they were fired upon by several synths guarding the reactor. These synths, however, appeared for more disciplined than their counterparts in the sewers. Cait and the Minutemen immediately ducked behind cover.

Peeking over the parapet, Preston tapped Cait on the shoulder. “If we cover you, get up there and plant the device on the reactor!” he shouted over the deafening sound of bullets and laser beams.

Getting to her feet, Cait nodded as she prepared to make run for it.

“Alright, men! Covering fire!” Preston then shouted as she and the Minutemen opened fire on the defending synths. Seeing her chance, Cait broke cover and ran towards the steel walkway, her axe primed and ready to strike.

Cait had just reached the top level when she was met by an armoured synth preparing to fire a rocket launcher at her. Raising her axe, Cait launched herself at the synth and severed its arm clean from its torso. Reeling from the force of the impact, the synth dropped the rocket launcher and struggled to maintain its balance. Sensing her chance to bring it down, Cait raised her axe again for the killer blow.

But, this time, the synth had calculated Cait’s move and instantly caught her axe in its remaining hand. Cait was unable to pull her axe away as the synth slammed it into the steel walkway and, with a single heavy stamp of its foot, sheared the axe head clean off the shaft.

With nothing to defend herself, Cait was then sent flying backwards as the synth violently kicked her in the stomach. Hitting the reactor with considerable force, Cait gasped and groaned as she tried to catch her breath and get back to her feet.

Gasping for breath, Cait was then gripped by the throat and unceremoniously lifted off the ground. Kicking the synth’s shin, Cait writhed in vain to break herself free. Eventually, feeling the synth’s grip on her neck tighten further, Cait remembered the shaft of her broken axe still in her hand. Gritting her teeth, Cait let out a vicious snarl and, with one powerful thrust, jammed the shaft deep into the synth’s neck.

The synth immediately loosened its grip and Cait was able to breathe again. She then began reaching behind her, trying to unsling her shotgun from her shoulder. Just as she had unhooked it, however, the synth tightened its grip again and threw her across to the end of the walkway.

Similar to the synth’s earlier kick to her stomach, Cait hit walkway’s rusted metal railings with such force that they completely snapped off, sending both them and Cait tumbling to the ground below. With lightning-fast reaction, Cait managed to grab the edge of the walkway to stop herself falling. Cait was now hanging off the edge of the reactor walkway, kicking helplessly at the air beneath.

Panting heavily, Cait looked on in terror as her synth opponent began slowly pulling the shaft of her broken axe out of its neck. Still struggling to keep her grip on the walkway, Cait’s eyes darted around her anything she could use to defend herself. She couldn’t lose to a synth when she was so close to her goal.

Eventually, looking ahead, Cait’s eyes fell on her shotgun. It must have slipped from her grasp when she was thrown. Taking a deep breath, Cait hauled herself further up the walkway and threw her hand out to grab it. Unfortunately, the shotgun was just beyond her reach.

Cait’s time was running out. Looking back towards the synth, her eyes widened as she saw it fully wrench the broken axe shaft from its neck and begin stomping towards her. Cait needed to get her shotgun now. Mustering all her strength, Cait yelled as she pulled herself up and threw her hand out to grab it. To Cait’s relief, this time, her fingers just gripped the shotgun’s sling. Gritting her teeth, Cait yanked the firearm towards her until it was close enough for her to grab the stock. Just in time, Cait raised the weapon high and fired it into the synth’s chest.

Upon impact, the top half of the synth instantly exploded as the two cartridges hit home. As the synth’s carcass crumpled to the ground, Cait hauled herself off the edge of the walkway and back to her feet. “Piece ‘o Shit!” Cait grunted as she passed the synth’s mangled remains.

Slipping her bag off her shoulders, Cait reached inside and retrieved the Fusion Pulse Charge. Getting to her knees, Cait then fixed it to the reactor window and flicked the arming switch. There was no turning back now.

Cait immediately collected her bag, shotgun, and the remains of her axe and made her way back to the Minutemen. “Is the device in place, Cait?!” Preston asked as Cait reached them.

Cait nodded. “Yeah. It’s ready. Let’s get out ‘o here!” Cait replied, already running towards the door leading back to the atrium.

Following Cait’s lead, Preston gestured to the Minutemen. “Let’s go, everyone! Follow Cait! Back to the teleporter!” he commanded, ushering the minutemen to Cait’s position.

As she and the Minutemen ran back through the long, abandoned, passages, Cait suddenly thought back to her departure with El. When she had left El in her son’s room, she looked so helpless. She could only hope that El was waiting for her when she reached the teleporter.

Reaching the teleporter room, Cait looked around the Minutemen expectantly. But she couldn’t find El anywhere. Where was she? “Hey! Where the fuck is El?” Cait shouted at one of the Minutemen she had met in the teleporter room.

Visibly shocked by Cait’s angry demand, the Minuteman’s eyes widened. “We haven’t seen her, Ma’am.”

“Well, why didn’t you fuckin’ look for her?!” Cait shouted, pure venom in her voice.

The Minuteman’s eyes widened even further. “I… I…”

Cait only turned away when she heard the elevator doors clunk open. Looking down the corridor, Cait saw El slowly amble out of the elevator, her eyes puffy and her cheeks streaked with tears. In her arms she held Tasha, herself crying into El’s chest. Cait immediately ran to her. “El! You’re back! Where you been?” she asked frantically.

Sniffling as tears continued to fall down her face, El did her best to respond. “H-Hey, Cait. C-Can you take Tasha?”

Cait immediately rushed to El’s side and carefully took Tasha in her arms. “Sure. Hey… Hey… Ssssh… Sssssh… Mama Cait’s here.” she said softly into Tasha’s ear, swaying slightly to sooth her. “Where… Where’s Shaun?” she then asked El, conscious that it was only the three of them.

Closing her eyes, El shuddered as a sob escaped her lips. “He’s… He’s… He’s not coming… I-Is the charge fitted?”

Cait nodded, slightly taken aback that El changed the subject so quickly.

With that, El’s face hardened. “Okay. It’s time to go. We have to get out of here.” El then walked through to join the Minutemen; a truly baffled Cait following close behind her.

El had just entered the teleporter room when she was greeted by Preston. “General! It’s good you’re back. Cait fitted the charge to the reactor, so we’re good to go.” He then turned his attention to Sturges at the terminal. “Sturges, we’re done. Get us the hell out of here!”

Looking up from the terminal, Sturges gave El a strange look. “I would, man. But…this kid showed up. Claims he’s the General’s son.”

El frowned at what Sturges had just said. "What kid?” El thought to herself.

“Please, mom… Don’t leave me here! I want to go with you!” a small childlike voice shouted, approaching her.

El looked down and, with wide eyed shock and terror, took a step back. Standing before her, in a small Institute jumpsuit, was a young boy. Staring up expectantly, he had a look on his face that, for some reason, she recognised. It was a face that Nate would make when he was worried or anxious. The child’s eyes also seemed to freeze El where she stood. They were a deep brown that appeared to bore into her soul. Those were Nate’s eyes. El didn’t know what to do.

Cait similarly stood frozen before this child. Cait had never seen this child before, but, for some reason, he looked familiar. This child, apart from the deep brown eyes, was the spitting image of El. Cait could do nothing but stare.

“W-W-Why did you call me mother?” El eventually asked, finally able to speak.

The child gave a slightly dumbfounded look, confused about why El was asking something so stupid. “What? You’re my mother! Why else would I call you that?”

El couldn’t do anything. The sight of this child had completely fried her brain. Why was he calling her his mother? Her son was dying in a bed far below them, soon to be buried under a mountain of rubble. Something didn’t make sense. “I… I…” El stuttered, the right words trapped in her throat.

El’s stuttering was suddenly cut off as Sturges rose again from his terminal. “Alright were good to go. I’ll send you to the detonation site, then set the relay to shoot the kid here back to the Castle – we’ll get him a change of clothes and look after him. You press that button extra hard when you get there. See you on the other side…”

Preston immediately sprang into action and began ushering El and Cait into the teleporter “Let’s go, General. It’s time to finish this.”

With her mind unable to think, El could do nothing but follow Preston’s orders. She however could not take her gaze away from the child standing in front of her. “Mom, wait, don’t go!” he called, sounding on the verge of tears.

Once inside the teleporter El was finally able to breathe again. What the hell just happened? Who was that child? El’s head felt close to exploding.

As El racked her brain with questions, a blindingly bright light suddenly flashed before her eyes and her vision went completely white. Not once though did the mysterious child leave her sight.

A flashing light zapped El back to reality and she found herself high above the Commonwealth skyline. Looking around, El surmised that she was atop the Mass Fusion building. Around her, El saw Cait, Tasha, Preston, and a selection of Minutemen. But, to El’s unease, there was no sign of the child. For reasons she could not explain, she needed to know where he was. Where was he?

“Whenever you wanna see 'humanity’s best hope for the future’ go up in smoke, just hit that button."

Hearing Preston’s invitation, El looked down to find a device resting atop a rusting oil drum, its service dominated by an enormous red button cover. Of course, she would be the one responsible for destroying the Institute. Looking out at the Commonwealth, El thought about everything she had done to get here; everything she had done to find her son. Could she really bring herself to bury him?

But then she remembered her last encounter with her son; how he had almost mocked her love for Cait and refused to look at his own sister. She then thought of what could happen if she allowed the Institute to survive. El could never protect her family if the Institute continued to operate within the Commonwealth. El could not inflict that on her family. Closing her eyes tight, El slowly flicked the arming switches. Once the device was armed, the red case covering the detonator button opened up. With the device primed, El raised her fist high and punched the button.

Almost immediately, a blinding white light flashed over the Commonwealth skyline and the ground behind the CIT ruins erupted in fiery explosion. In an instant, centuries of earth, dirt, dust, and rubble were thrown up into a huge mushroom cloud that plumed up high into the sky above.

Looking out at the explosion, Cait immediately held Tasha to her chest, shielding her as best she could from the blast. Unsurprisingly, the blast was too much for baby Tasha and her crying only intensified. Rocking her up and down, Cait tried to calm her down. “Shh… Ssssh… Sssh.” She whispered as the blast dissipated into the mushroom cloud.

With the blast fading, El looked out upon what was left of the Institute. There was nothing left to do now. The decisions she had made could never be changed. She would live with these decisions forever.

“Holy shit… that was one hell of a bang, wasn’t it?” Preston finally, bringing El back to the present. “So that’s it. The Institute is destroyed. It’s finally over… You did issue the evacuation order, right? I didn’t notice in all the chaos.”

Turning around to face Preston, El did her best to compose herself. “Yes. We gave e-everyone a chance to get out.” she couldn’t help but think of Shaun as she spoke.

Still fixated on the mission, Preston appeared oblivious to El’s anguish. “Good. I thought so. It was just…watching that explosion…I just hope as many people as possible got out. I hate that we had to do that, but they left us no choice. It was war. But now the war against the Institute is over. The way’s now clear for the Commonwealth to finally come together and build something good for the future. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbows from here on out.”

In a strange way, El had to agree with at least some of what Preston was saying. “True. But they’ll be other threats to the Commonwealth.”

“Definitely. Preston replied. “The Institute was the most insidious threat we’ve ever faced. They kept the Commonwealth divided for centuries. There are plenty of other problems left to deal with. The Minutemen are not going to be out of a job for a long time, as much as might wish it. We deserve to enjoy our victory. But soon enough, it’s going to be time to get back to work.” With a brisk salute, Preston walked off to join the other Minutemen.

El could only look at her feet. Enjoy their victory; what did that mean? Looking up at Cait, El saw her give a friendly smile, clearly concerned by El’s distress. Despite loving Cait more than anything, El could not bring herself to smile back, and her gaze returned to the ground. Letting her feet wander, El slowly ambled towards the inside of the Mass Fusion building. “El?” she heard Cait call from behind her. She however did not turn around.

Descending a series of steps into the nearest surviving floor, El found a small room and slowly walked inside, closing the door behind her. Now that she was alone, El unslung her bag from her shoulders, threw her coat off, unstrapped her armour from her body, and unbuckled her pistol holster. Free of her defences, El leaned her back against the wall and slowly slid down to the floor. As she hit the floor, El buried her face in her knees and cried like she had never cried before.

Weeping into her knees, El thought about everything she had been through to find her son, killing Kellogg, going to the Glowing Sea, saving Cait from a slow agonising death, falling in love, pregnancy and childbirth, and battling through the Institute. It was all for nothing. She had failed. She had made a promise to her murdered husband and had broken it. Only a failure of a wife would break a promise like that. But that was El through and through. As tears streamed down her face and stained her filthy vaultsuit, El believed that all she could do now was accept that she was nothing but a worthless failure.    

Chapter Text

El was completely broken. She had been sitting in the same small backroom of the Mass Fusion Building for hours and had not stopped crying since. El was a failure: everything she had done to find her son was for nothing.

As she wept despondently into her knees, El thought about what had brought her here. She couldn’t forget the day that she had been forcibly woken from a two-hundred-year cryosleep to witness her husband’s murder at the hands of an Institute scumbag. She then looked on helplessly as those same scumbags stole her child away from her.

El then remembered all the hoops she had had to jump through in order to find her son. She had hunted down the man who had murdered her husband, discovered that he was a synth in all but name, travelled across the Commonwealth multiple times, liberated the Castle for the Minutemen, and built a teleporter to get her inside the Institute. Then, at the end of all that, after battling her way through a sewer, and the maze of the Institute, her son had refused to see the light. Shaun, her own son, whom she had not seen in over two-hundred years, had almost mocked her for all she had done and what she had built. No son of hers would have sunk so low to mock his own family.

That was El’s true failure. In those two-hundred years of cryosleep and survival in the wasteland, when the time came, she didn’t recognise her son anymore. What kind of mother wouldn’t recognise her son anymore?

But Shaun wasn’t her son now. A lifetime of Institute indoctrination had changed him beyond recognition. Thinking about it now, no amount of reasoning would have changed his mind.

As her mind mulled over this plethora of thoughts, a terrifyingly profound realisation began to dawn on El. She should never have returned to the Institute. After her first failure, she should have stopped and tried to rebuild her life. Her first rejection by Shaun had been painful enough. How could she have been stupid enough to put herself through that same trauma again? She should have simply accepted the pain and moved on.

At that moment, El opened her eyes in terror as she remembered something more. What was she going to tell Nate? She had made a promise to him when she had thawed out. How could she go back to Sanctuary having failed in her promise? El always kept her promises.

Taking a shaky breath, El glanced over to the pile of her gear lying across the room from her. Immediately, her gaze fell on her pistol. In that instant, her breath hitched. Could she really do it again?

Closing her eyes, and against all her inhibitions, El found herself tentatively reaching for her pistol. Pulling the weapon from its holster, El gripped it unsteadily in her hands. The shaking in her hands had returned and was now almost uncontrollable. As she looked down at her pistol, El opened the chamber to find six unfired rounds inside. This time there would be no hiccups. Squeezing her eyes shut as tears ran down her cheeks, El raised the pistol to her temple. Feeling the cold metal of the gun barrel touch her skin, El held her breath. Nobody would miss a failure like her.

After what felt like hours of torture, Cait had finally managed to stop Tasha from crying. It had all been too much for baby Tasha. Even Cait knew that hers and El’s child should have never been brought into a warzone. As the mushroom cloud over the former Institute was slowly blown away towards the Glowing Sea, Cait left the roof and entered the Mass Fusion Building.

Descending the steps to the next level that was still safe to walk on, Cait looked around for El. However, despite looking through all the open rooms, she was nowhere to be found. After the Institute had been destroyed, Cait had given El a reassuring smile. To her surprise, El had simply looked away and walked inside the Mass Fusion Building. Cait needed to make sure El was alright.

Eventually, Cait gave up her search and approached the group of Minutemen gathered at the far end of the floor. “Hey, Davies!” she called. You know where El is?”

Turning to Cait, Private Davies nodded towards a closed door in a small, secluded corner of the floor. “She’s in that room over there, ma’am. She has been in there for a while.”

Cait looked towards the closed door and chewed her lip. She had a good idea of what El was doing in there. Cait had lost count how many times she had needed to lock herself away and cry. She needed to handle this with care. “Can you take Tasha?” she then asked as she turned back to the Minutemen.

“Of course, ma’am.” Private Davies replied, carefully taking Tasha from Cait’s arms.

With Tasha secure, Cait walked towards the closed door and gently leant her ear against it. Behind it, she could hear shaky breathing. At least El wasn’t crying anymore. Taking a deep breath, Cait pressed the switch on the door and looked inside. “El?”

Cait’s eyes widened in horror and her mouth dropped open when she saw what was inside. There, sitting on the ground in front of her, was El, holding a gun to her head. “EL, NO!" Cait shouted as she lunged at El and tried to grab the pistol.

Using all her strength, Cait wrestled El mercifully to prize the weapon out of her grasp. However, Cait could not fathom the level of resistance she would receive from El. “El, let go!” Cait grunted through gritted teeth.

But El would not let go. As Cait wrestled her, El’s gaze remained fixed on her pistol. “N-No!” El whined as fresh tears began to run down her face.  

Cait needed to get the gun off El. This was not how it would end; Cait had to step up her game. Glancing across to a knocked over desk, Cait noticed a broken picture frame with shards of glass strewn about the floor. Risking everything, Cait gripped El’s closed hand and slammed it down onto the glass.

As soon as her hand cracked on the broken glass, El yelled in pain and mercifully loosened her grip on the pistol. Seeing her chance, Cait immediately kicked the firearm to the other side of the room. “No!” El wailed, reaching out forlornly for her discarded weapon.

“El! Snap out of it!” Cait then yelled as she grabbed both sides of El’s face to hold her still.

El, however, would not look at her. “J-Just let me go!” she whispered loudly.

At this point, Cait snapped and she slapped El hard across the face. “El! Snap the fuck out of it!” she shouted, pinning El to the ground and shaking her violently.

Finally opening her eyes, El looked up at Cait and began to calm down. “C-Cait?” she stuttered, shivering uncontrollably.

Upon seeing the look in El’s eyes, Cait’s face softened. The look in El’s eyes was one of complete and utter despair; the look of someone who had given up on everything. Cait could only wonder how many times she had felt this way. This was far worse than how El had looked after her first return from the Institute. El needed help. “Yeah, El. It’s me.” Cait replied frantically. “What the fuck are you doin’?”

El’s eyes began to dart around as she attempted to answer Cait’s question. She looked so confused. “Cait, I… I…” Suddenly, El winced, attempting to move her hand. “Owww!” she yelled looking down at her right hand.

Noticing El’s vision wander, Cait similarly looked down to find blood running out of several cuts dotted across the back of El’s hand. She hadn’t even thought about the consequences of using broken glass to get El’s pistol of her. “Oh fuck!” Cait exclaimed, getting to her knees. “Just…Just stay still, okay.”

In an instant, Cait pulled El up from the ground so she was sitting with her back against the wall. She then opened El’s backpack and retrieved her first aid kit. Over the next half-hour Cait carefully stitched the deeper of El’s cuts and bandaged up her injured hand. Throughout the entire exercise, Cait could barely look at El. The fact that she had inflicted these cuts – albeit to save El’s life – deeply embarrassed Cait. She had to keep her focus on El’s hands; they were shaking so much. “El, your hands are gettin’ worse.” Cait finally said, finishing off her bandages.

El looked at Cait’s bandages and in vain tried to suppress the shaking in her hands. “I…I c-can’t stop it.”

With El’s wounds sufficiently dealt with, Cait again pressed El on what she had done. “Why did you do that, El?” she demanded, gripping El’s shoulder.

Understanding immediately what Cait was referring to, El bit her lip. She didn’t want to say. “Because… I… I…” she trailed off, looking away and squeezing her eyes shut.

“Why, El? Why would you do somethin’ like that?’ Cait demanded further, not willing to let this rest.

Unable to hide any longer, El snapped. “BECAUSE I FAILED, CAIT!... I FAILED!” El screamed, letting out a sob as she spoke. “Everything I did was for nothing!” Finally breaking, El buried her face in Cait’s chest and wept.

Bringing her arms around El’s shoulders, Cait brought her into a tight hug. “What happened, El?” she asked into her ear.

“I…I tried to convince Shaun to come with me, but he refused. I begged him to follow me. He just turned away.” El answered, gripping Cait for dear life. “I then tried to show him Tasha. He…He…w-wouldn’t look at her. He wouldn’t look at his own sister.”

“But why would you wanna kill yourself?” Cait asked again.

Lifting her head from Cait’s chest, El glanced over at her disregarded weapon. “Because I’m a failure. I couldn’t save my own son!” she sobbed.

Cupping El’s head in her hands, Cait looked deep into her hazel eyes. “You’re not a failure, El!” she implored.

“Yes, I am!” El shouted back, continuing to weep. “I made a promise to my husband, and I failed! I promised that I would save my son! Instead, I murdered him!”

“I killed my own parents, El! Does that make me a terrible person? Or a failure?” Cait snapped back.

El’s sobbing immediately stopped and she glanced around the room. Cait could tell that El was attempting to think through what she had just said. Sensing an opportunity, Cait continued. “When I told you my story, I expected you to call me a murderer. But you didn’t. You told me I did what I had to. I remember it like it was yesterday. You…You showed me that…just cause we done bad stuff, that don’t make us bad people.”

To Cait’s surprise, El’s gaze met hers and they stared deep into each other’s eyes. Believing that her words were sinking in, Cait, with added confidence, kept going. “That guy you left in the Institute wasn’t your son anymore. Just like those people I killed weren’t my parents after they sold me. You did what you had to.”

Despite seeing the logic in Cait’s words, El could still feel something holding her back. “But how can I live with that, Cait?” she begged, paralysed with confusion.

Cait chewed her lip. How was she going to explain herself? “You just…learn to live with it…and be with people who love you. Think about Tasha and me. I still love you.”

El thought long and hard as Cait’s words sank in. In her melancholy, not once had she thought about her other loved ones. Cait and Tasha had given her so much to live for. How could she have abandoned them like that? “Cait, I… I’m sorry. I… I’m so sorry.” she eventually said, bowing her head in shame.

“It’s not your fault, El.” Cait replied, bringing El into another tight hug. “You just gotta learn to move on. It’ll get better.”

“But how?’ El begged, desperate for answers.

Cait sighed, slightly frustrated by El’s incessant need for answers. She was not used to seeing El behave this way. “You just find people who love you. Like I did. They show you that it ain’t all bad.”

Finally, El looked up at Cait and gave a loving toothless smile. Everything that Cait was saying was right. When Cait had told her story, El had not thought any less of her. She had then given Cait something she never thought she could have, something to love. What El had not contemplated was that Cait had given her exactly the same thing. In the end, that was all that mattered. “T-Thank you, Cait. I…I love you so much.” she said, bringing her lips to Cait’s and kissing them deeply.

Pressing her lips against El’s, Cait hummed happily. She loved this woman so much. But Cait now understood that this woman needed as much help as she did. Cait always considered El to be above the sometimes-crippling emotions that she felt. This incident, however, had flipped that thinking on its head. El needed more support than she realised and Cait needed to be there for her. “Love you too.” she whispered, slowly pulling her lips away. “Wanna get outta here?”

Biting her lip, El looked away. “And go where?” she asked absentmindedly.

Cait huffed. Now she understood what El had to deal with when she had a problem. “I don’t know. Somewhere. Why does it matter?”

Looking back at Cait, El could not resist a chuckle. “No, I don’t suppose it does matter… Alright, let’s get out of here.”

“Well, get your shit together.” Cait then said, giving El a slight prod to the chest.

They both got to her feet and collected their respective gear. El quickly strapped her armour and holster back onto her body before slinging her backpack over her shoulders. Turning back to Cait, El was surprised to find her fully outfitted and holding her discarded pistol in her hands. El suddenly felt uneasy.

Taking a few steps towards El, Cait tentatively held it out to her. “Here. This belongs to you.”

Apprehensively, El took the pistol from Cait’s grasp and held in fearfully in her hands. She didn’t know whether she wanted to keep it after what she had almost done. Taking a deep breath, El looked up at Cait and handed the pistol back to her. “You keep it.”

“Why?” Cait asked, visibly confused by El’s actions.

Taking Cait’s hand, El placed the gun in her palm and closed her fingers around it. “Keep it safe, until I can be trusted with it.”

Despite gripping El’s weapon tightly in her hand, Cai was still confused. “But how are you gonna defend yourself?”

El stepped closer to Cait and placed her hands on her hips. “That’s what I have you for.” she said softly.

Cait looked even more confused until she saw the corner if her lips pointing ever so slightly upwards in a cheeky smile. It was then that Cait cocked her head to side and raised her eyebrows. “Why d’you have to be so corny?”

Smiling broadly for the first time in ages, El gently kissed the end of Cait’s nose. “Because I know you love it.”

Cait couldn’t stop the redness growing in her cheeks. Why was El always able to turn her into a simpering idiot. Unslinging her backpack, Cait flicked the safety back on the pistol and threw it inside. “Come on. Let’s get the fuck outta here.” she then said, taking El’s hand and leading her of the room.

Once they were back on the main floor, El and Cait went to find the Minutemen. Where do you think they are?” El asked as they greeted by an empty, abandoned office space.

“Can’t have gone far. They got our baby after all.” Cait replied, noticing an open door to the stairs. Descending the stairs to the level below, El and Cait found the Minutemen gathered around Preston. Amongst them was Private Davies, holding a somewhat baffled Tasha. “Hey, Davies!” Cait called as they approached. “Can I take Tasha?”

Turning to face Cait, Private Davies nodded and gave a nervous smile. “Of course, Ma’am.” she agreed, handing Tasha over to Cait.

“Hey Squirt! You miss me?” Cait asked, holding Tasha close and gently rubbing the end of her nose on hers. Scrunching her face up, Tasha giggled happily.

Standing at Cait’s side, El took Tasha’s tiny hand in her thumb and forefinger. “Hey sweetheart.” she said softly. “You been a good girl?”

Turning her head to El, Tasha’s big hazel eyes widened, and she gave a beaming smile. Seemingly overwhelmed by Tasha’s reaction, El leant in close and kissed her forehead. “I love you so much.” she whispered to her. Slowly pulling away, El gently retracted her hand and approached Preston. “Hi Preston. We’re planning to get out of here. What will you do?” she asked.

“We’re planning to head back to the Castle. We have a lot of work to do if we are to fill the vacuum left by the Institute.” Preston answered.

Glancing back at Cait, El sighed. “Well, I wish you the best of luck with that.” As far as El was concerned, she was done with the Commonwealth.

“You might want to accompany us there, General.” Preston continued. “The kid we picked up when we left the Institute has been asking about you.”

El’s eyes widened suddenly. The kid? She had remembered seeing him when they were escaping the Institute. She could not forget those piercing brown eyes that seemed to paralyse her. El then remembered how he had called her mother, despite knowing that her son was gone. He seemed so alien, yet so familiar. She needed to see him. Turning to Cait, El grabbed her arm tightly and gave her a determined look. “Cait, we have to get to the Castle.”

As they entered the Castle courtyard, El immediately looked around, hoping to spot the kid without appearing too obvious. She didn’t want to look like she was panicking, but she desperately needed to see this child again.

“Ah, Commander!” Preston called as Ronnie Shaw approached them. “I’m sure you’re aware by now that the Institute is a thing of the past.”

“Great work, and thank you for your help, General. We couldn’t have done it without you.” Shaw replied, looking between Preston and El.

Not really listening to Shaw’s praises, El nodded. “It’s not a problem, Commander… I…I was told that there is an…unexpected guest who’s been asking about me.” she asked timidly.

Shaw nodded immediately. “Yes, General. He’s been quite the chatterbox. He’s currently having lunch in the mess. We took the liberty of changing him out of that Institute jumpsuit as well.”

Looking towards the entrance to the Castle interior, El took a deep breath. “Okay, thank you, Commander.” Turning to Cait, El looked at her nervously. “Do you want to come along, Cait?”

Cait shifted uneasily but tried in vain to hide it. “Err…no. You got shit to do. I’ll take Tasha for a nap. I think she needs a change.” she answered, feeling the area around Tasha’s bottom.

Seeing straight through Cait’s emotions, El walked towards her and put her hands on her waist. “If you’re sure, I’ll see you later, alright?” she said, planting a small kiss on Cait’s lips and Tasha’s cheek. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Cait replied reservedly, beginning to walk towards the General’s quarters.

Watching Cait walk away, El sighed. She knew exactly why Cait was uneasy. El had to admit that she felt the same way. But she had to do this. Walking through the Castle interior, El entered the mess, awash with activity. Dominating the area, lines of Minutemen sat on rows of old wooden mess tables, eating their meals and talking all the things that military personnel talked and complained about. El recognised these conversations all too well. Snaking around the edge of the area was a long line of Minutemen waiting for their turn to receive their meals. The entire set up took El straight back to her days in the military. Scanning from left to right, El examined the room to find what she was looking for. Where was he?

Then, as she scanned the room a second time, she saw him. Sitting at the end of one of the mess tables, surrounded by several friendly looking Minutemen, was the child, quietly eating his meal. El’s heartbeat immediately sped up; she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She remembered seeing this child before. He had been in that glass box when she had first entered the Institute. When she tried to talk to him, he began calling out for his father. Why then, when she saw him again, did he call her mother? Taking a deep breath, El slowly began to walk towards him. She was desperately thinking of a way to strike up a conversation. What would she talk about?

To El’s surprise, the child looked up just as she approached, and greeted her with a beaming smile. “Mom! You came back! It’s so good to see you!” he exclaimed, climbing out from his mess table and hugging El’s waist tightly.

Shocked by the kid’s sudden embrace, El threw her hands up in surprise. What should she say? “H-Hey, kid. I-It’s good to see you too. H-Have the Minutemen been nice to you?” El inwardly cursed herself; what a stupid thing to ask.

“Yeah. They’ve been really nice. They told me loads of stories about you. Have you come back for me, Mom?” he replied, looking up at El innocently.

El chewed her lip, not sure how to answer. Why did he keep calling her Mom? “I-I’m sorry, kid, but why do you call me Mom?”

The kid’s smile suddenly dropped, confused by El’s question. “Because you’re my mom. Why else would I call you mom?”

El only felt more confused; she couldn’t understand this kid’s thinking. Her son was dead, and this kid might as well have been a stranger to her. However, something about him was so familiar to her. Getting down on one knee, El looked deep into his big brown eyes. “Kid, what is your name?” she asked tentatively.

The kid frowned, not understanding what El was implying. Why was his mother acting this way? “Shaun.” he answered simply.

El’s eyes widened; this could not be. Shaun was dead. El was unable to speak. Seeing El’s stunned reaction, Shaun’s confusion turned to worry. “Don’t…Don’t you believe me?” he asked as his eyes began to water.

“No, no, no! Of course, I believe you.” El lied, not wanting to see him cry. “I’m just…curious. How…How did you escape the Institute? How did you find me?”

Sniffing away tears that were threatening to fall, Shaun answered. “Father told me to find you.”

“Father?” El interjected, narrowing her eyes.

“Yeah, Father.” Shaun nodded. “When the Minutemen came, Father told me to find my mom, to find you. He gave me this tape to give to you. Only to you.” Digging into his pocket, Shaun retrieved a small holotape and held it out to El.

Glancing down, El slowly took the holotape from Shaun. “I didn’t listen to it, honest.” she heard Shaun say. “No, of course. I believe you…” she reassured. “Listen, why don’t you stay here and finish your lunch before it gets cold. I have a few things to do here, but I’ll come back when you’re done. That sound good?”

Standing up straight, Shaun’s face returned to a smile. “Okay. I’ll wait for you. I love you, Mom.” he said, wrapping El in another tight hug. Not knowing what else to do, El tentatively brought her arms around Shaun’s back and returned the hug. For some reason, his embrace felt so familiar to her.

Pulling away, El patted Shaun on the shoulder and nodded to his food. “Go on, finish up before it gets cold.” Getting back to her feet, El could not resist smiling as Shaun climbed back into his seat. He was a good kid; kind and polite.

“Bye, Mom!” Shaun called as El turned towards the mess exit.

“B-Bye, Shaun. See you soon.” El stuttered, raising her hand slightly in a half wave. Exiting the mess, El immediately went to find somewhere private where she could listen to the holotape. She couldn’t use the General’s quarters as Cait was there, and the tunnels were under guard. Everywhere within the walls was packed with curious Minutemen.

Finally, after some frantic searching, El found a quiet spot outside the gap in the south wall. Sitting up against the stone wall, El unslung her backpack and pulled out her PipPad. Taking slow calculating breaths, El took Shaun’s holotape out of her coat pocket and inserted it into the device.

After a second or two of static, a raspy voice began to speak. “If you are hearing this, then whatever conflicts you and I have endured are over. I have no reason to believe you’ll honour the request I’m about to make, but I feel compelled to try anyway.”

El instantly closed her eyes and gripped her PipPad tighter. “This synth, this…boy. He deserves more. He has been reprogrammed to believe he is your son. It is my hope that you will take him with you. I would only ask that you give him a chance. A chance to be part of whatever future awaits the Commonwealth.”

As the holotape voice cut back to static, El opened her eyes and looked back to the Castle. Shaun had entrusted her with his dying wish. Could she really agree to that after all the pain that he and the Institute had caused her?

But then she thought of the child; he was just a child. He couldn’t be blamed for what the Institute had done to her; he deserved more than that. If Shaun’s last act was an attempt to mend bridges, the least she could do was care for this child, synth or not.

Getting to her feet, El threw her PipPad back in her backpack and slipped it over her shoulders. Slowly, El made her way back into the Castle Courtyard and towards the mess hall. To her surprise, she spotted Shaun exiting the Castle interior just as she passed the radio tower. As she approached, Shaun eyed her and ran over. “Mom, you’re back! I finished eating, so thought I’d look for you. Did you listen to the tape?”

El did not answer and steadily got down on her knees. Silently, she examined the boy’s features. He looked so familiar to her. She could see so much of her father in his face; and his eyes, his eyes she had seen before. They were Nate’s eyes. “Mom?” Shaun asked, not understanding why El was not answering.

Slowly, and to prevent them shaking too much, El gently took Shaun’s hand in hers. As their skin touched, El’s breath hitched; she had felt these hands before. These were Shaun’s hands. Going one step further, El brought her bandaged hand to Shaun’s face. Lightly running her fingers along his cheek, El felt tears building in her eyes. She couldn’t believe how lifelike he was; he was exactly the same as the son she had lost. Finally moving her hand up to his hair, El composure broke. “Oh Shaun!” El cried, wrapping him in a crushing hug. With tears flowing down her cheeks, El held onto Shaun for dear life. She couldn’t leave this child; everything about him was her son. El didn’t care if he was a synth; all that mattered was she had found her son again.

“Mom why are you crying?” she heard Shaun ask. Wiping her eyes, El tried to compose herself. “I…I’m…I’m not crying.” she lied, attempting a smile. “I’m just…so glad I found you.”

“You’re not gonna leave me again, are you?” he then asked.

Cupping his cheeks in her hands, El kissed Shaun deeply on the forehead. “No, no. You’re going to stay with me. You’ll come with me. Would you like that?”

Shaun instantly nodded and gave a beaming smile. “Yes, yes, yes! I wanna go with you! Thank you, Mom! I love you!”

“I love you too, Shaun.” El replied, once again hugging Shaun firmly.

They stayed there for a long while; El was too overwhelmed to move. She hadn’t failed in her quest; she had found her son; she had kept her promise to Nate. “Mom, you’re squeezing too hard!” Shaun suddenly called, trying to push El off him.

“S-Sorry, Shaun.” El said, reluctantly releasing her grip on Shaun. As she stroked his soft light brown hair, a thought suddenly crossed her mind. Smiling, El took Shaun’s hand. “Come with me, Shaun. There are some very special people I would like you to meet.”

Cait sat quietly on the bed in the General’s quarters, sorting some items in her backpack as Tasha slept peacefully. Cait was happy to be alone right now. It gave her time to sort out something she had been working on. There wasn’t much to work on but finding the right opportunity to present it was wracking her brain.

“Cait?” she suddenly heard El behind her. Cait instantly scrabbled the assorted items into her hands and threw them into her backpack. “Hey, El. Tasha’s asleep. I was just-.” Standing up and turning to face El, Cait was cut off as she saw her and the kid holding hands.

They stood there in utter silence until El finally looked down at Shaun. “Shaun, I’d like you to meet someone very special. This is my girlfriend, Cait.” she began, leading him forwards.

Shaun looked up at Cait in amazement. “Wow, you’re Cait? The Minutemen have told me so much about you!”

Cait wasn’t sure how to answer; she didn’t know this kid. Glancing up at El, Cait saw her nod encouragingly. “Err, yeah. I’m Cait.” she stuttered, following El’s hints.

Hoping to lead the conversation further, El continued ushering Cait along. “Hey, Cait. Why don’t you introduce Shaun to Tasha?” she asked rhetorically, giving Cait a slightly coercive look.

Shifting awkwardly on her feet, Cait looked back at Shaun. “Err, sure. She’s sleepin’, but she’s just in that drawer over there.” she said simply, pointing to Tasha’s makeshift cot.

Releasing himself from El’s hand, Shaun ran over to the cot and looked down at a sleeping Tasha. “Wow.” he whispered. “So, this is my sister?”

Joining Shaun at the cots side, El smiled and put her hand on his shoulder. “She sure is. What do you think?”

“She’s so small. But really cute.” Shaun answered, smiling as he watched Tasha sleep.

El ruffled Shaun’s hair. “You’re right there. She’s a cutie.” Glancing up at Cait, El’s smile dropped; Cait was staring at her with a mixture of confusion and irritation on her face. Before El could react, Cait grabbed her arm and pulled her out into the Castle corridor. Closing the door ajar, Cait let go of El’s arm. “You mind tellin’ me what the fuck is goin’ on?”

El sighed awkwardly. “I’m sorry, Cait. I didn’t know how else to tell you.”

Unfortunately for El, Cait was satisfied with her apology. “Answer the fuckin’ question, El! Who’s the kid?!” she demanded loudly.

“Shh, Cait!” El whispered, bringing herself close to Cait and putting a finger on her lips. “Please keep your voice down.” Looking between the General’s quarters and corridor, El hoped that nobody heard them.

Cait huffed, annoyed by El’s attempts to calm her down. “Well, answer the fuckin’ question if you want me to shut up. Who’s the kid?”

Seeing no other way to quieten Cait, El answered. “He’s Shaun.”

“What?” Cait asked, frowning in adject bafflement. Had El gone mad? “But Shaun’s dead.”

El bowed her head and looked at her feet. “I know he is, Cait. He’s…He’s a synth.”

Cait’s mouth dropped open, El had gone mad. “Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me? A synth? You’re bringin’ a synth in here?”  

“He’s harmless, Cait. the Institute is gone. They can’t control him.” El replied, frantically attempting to reason with Cait.

Cait, however, had deeper concerns for El’s wellbeing. Calming herself down, Cait continued. “I get that, El. But he’s not…not your son.”

El shivered coldly, understanding Cait completely as new tears built in her eyes. “I… I know he isn’t my Shaun… But I have to believe that he is... He gave me a holotape, a recording of Shaun, the real Shaun, before he died. The child has been reprogrammed to believe that I’m his mother, and, as his last request, he asked me to care for him.”

As she listened, Cait’s face softened. Hearing El’s story was making her understand why El had done what she had done. “I know my son did terrible things to me, treating me like a science experiment. But he was still my son. The least I can do is grant him this last request.”

Cait fidgeted nervously with her fingers, unsure of whether she could accept this. She understood El wanting to do the right thing by her son. She also knew that the day would eventually come when El’s son was forced on her. Cait just couldn’t be sure if she could live with this kid messing up everything she had built with El, even if she knew this was selfish. “El, you can’t just bring another kid in here and expect me to be a mother to it. It was hard enough gettin’ me to get on board with Tasha.”

“But you still agreed, and you’re as good a mother to her as anyone.” El retorted quickly.

Cait bit her lip, annoyed at how fast El was able to poke holes in her logic. “Cait,” El continued, “I’m not asking you to be his mother. All I ask is that you accept him as part of our family and help me give him a chance. He’s a sweet boy, he deserves to be with people who love him.”

Cait cracked her knuckles, deeply unsettled by El’s request. Could she really love a synth? Her initial instinct was no. This kid was not El’s son, so they would essentially be living a lie. How could El go through the rest of her life convincing herself that this kid was her son?

But then Cait remembered how she had found El earlier that day, a mere trigger-pull from throwing her life away; all because El had convinced herself that she had failed. Cait could not allow El to sink that low again. Maybe, for El’s sake, she could bring herself to accept him. Peeking through the gap in the door, Cait spotted Shaun standing at the end of the bed; he had clearly been watching her and El argue. As she stared, her gaze caught Shaun’s and she looked away hastily. It almost scared her how much he looked like El. Cait had to admit, he did look sweet; and anyway, whilst she was uncomfortable with synths, the whole point of them was to blend in.

Unsure about what Cait’s silence meant, El tried to hurry her along. “Please, Cait. Give him a chance.” she repeated, bringing Cait out of her thoughts.

After what felt like an eternity, with a heavy sigh, Cait reluctantly nodded.

“Thank you, Cait! Thank you. Thank you.” El smiled, pulling Cait into a loving kiss.

“Don’t make me regret it.” Cait replied simply, not sounding enthusiastic about their new arrangement.

Despite Cait’s apprehension at accepting Shaun, El tried to remain positive. “You won’t regret it, Cait. I promise.” she said, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand. “Shall we go back inside?”

Nodding, Cait felt El take her hand and lead her back inside the General’s quarters. “Hey, Shaun.” El greeted a nervous looking Shaun, bringing Cait to her side. “Sorry for walking out like that. Cait and I just needed to talk.”

Shaun looked up at them worriedly. “Don’t…Don’t you want me to come with you?”

“No, no!” El frantically answered, getting on one knee and placing her hands on Shaun’s shoulders. “Cait and I just wanted to welcome you to the family.”

Shaun’s face immediately lit up. “Really? Thank you, Mom!” he exclaimed happily as he hugged El’s tightly. El returned the hug, but Shaun abruptly pulled away and walked over to hug Cait. “Thank you too, Cait!” she said, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Not knowing what to do, Cait patted Shaun’s back. “N-No problem, kid.” she stuttered. Despite her apprehension, Cait found it hard to resist a smile. Shaun’s hug was warm, nothing like what she imagined a synth would feel like. It almost felt human.

As he pulled away, Shaun looked up at Cait with a slightly anxious expression on his face. He appeared to want to ask Cait, something, but was unsure what she would say. “C-Cait, can I ask you something?” he asked quietly.

“Sure. Watcha need?” Cait answered.

Watching Shaun’s gaze shift to a table behind her, Cait turned to find the pieces of her broken axe lying there on display. “Is that your axe? The Minutemen told me you almost brought down a Mierlurk queen with it.”

Cait looked at the remains of her weapon with a hint of sadness. El had given her that weapon and now it was broken. She had placed them there with the hope of the Minutemen repairing them at some point. “What’s left of it. You… You wanna hold it?”

“Yeah, please!” Shaun beamed, running over to the table and examining the pieces.

As Cait walked over to help Shaun hold the heavy axe pieces correctly, El stood by Tasha’s cot and silently watched them. allowing a smile to cross her lips, El hoped this would be the start of something close to a loving relationship. If she could build a family here, she would have achieved all she could ask for.

Taking a final forkful of food in her mouth, El sat back in her seat and happily watched her companions. Across the mess table from her, Cait and Shaun sat side by side, quietly eating their breakfast. Several days had passed since Shaun’s arrival in their lives and, with El’s encouragement, Cait had done her best to be friendly with him. This included doing such things as sitting with him during meals. They were small steps, but Cait knew that she had to start somewhere.

A slight jolt suddenly brought El back to her primary care. Looking down, El carefully cradled Tasha as she nursed at her breast. Despite eating in the Castle mess, they had chosen a spot just outside the main hubbub to give El some privacy. Lovingly stroking Tasha’s soft black hair, El marvelled at how a baby could be so greedy. 

“Hey, El?” she soon heard Cait ask. Looking up, El was met by Cait staring at her. “Yeah, Cait?” she answered.

“You gonna be much longer?’ Cait asked further.

El shook her head. “Shouldn’t be too much longer. Once I’ve finished feeding this greedy little pig.” she replied, giving Tasha a small nudge.

Cait chuckled at Tasha and collected El’s empty plate. “Okay. You done with your plate though?”

“Oh yeah. Thanks, Cait.” El answered appreciatively.

Cait stacked her own plate on top of El’s and manoeuvred her legs out of the table. She then walked around to stand next to Shaun. “You done with your plate, Shaun?’ she enquired, collecting his plate.

“Yeah, I’m done. Thanks, Mom.” Shaun replied.

The sound of several plates clattering on the floor shocked El out of her concentration. Looking up abruptly, El saw Cait watching Shaun, visibly shaking. Around them, the commotion had brought a deathly silence to the mess as all the surrounding Minutemen turned to face them.

After a couple of seconds, El realised what had just happened. Immediately, El tried to bring the situation under control. “Cait, Cait, look at me. It’s alright. Just stay calm. It’s-.”

Cait however had already turned on her heals and stormed out of the mess. “Cait! Cait! Come back! Please come b-!” El called desperately for her to turn around. But Cait was already gone and El sighed in defeat. Looking back at Shaun, El then tried her best to comfort him. “Shaun, Shaun, it’s alright. It’s not your fault.” she insisted.

To El’s distress, her words fell on deaf ears and Shaun similarly ran out the mess hall, leaving El alone with a still nursing Tasha. El bowed her head and closed her eyes. She had to go after them but was in no state to do so.

“Ma’am? Would you like some help clearing this up?” El then heard a voice ask. Opening her eyes, El looked up to find two Minutemen standing before her, willing to help. “Oh, yes please. Thank you so much.” she said approvingly.

Within a few minutes, the broken pieces of ceramic were brushed away and El was once more left in privacy. Eventually, El decided that Tasha had had more than her fill. “Right, you. You’ve had more than enough this morning.” she said, detaching Tasha from her breast, slipping it back into her bra, and zipping up her vaultsuit.

Snatched away from El’s breast, Tasha immediately began to fuss. Getting up from her table, El made her way through the Castle corridors, gently rocking Tasha to calm her down. “I know. I know, it’s not fair.” El said lovingly into Tasha’s ear. “But you’ve had more than enough. It really starts to hurt after a while.”

Given the enclosed nature of the Castle, there were not many places that people could hide. If El was to find either Cait or Shaun, her most promising starting point would be the general’s quarters. Upon entering the general’s quarters, El could hear the sound of sniffling. It was then that she saw Shaun sitting alone on the bed. “Shaun? There you are.”

Jumping slightly, Shaun sniffed and turned to look at El. “H-Hey, Mom.” he said quietly.

Sitting down next to Shaun, El shifted Tasha into her left arm and wrapped her other around his shoulders. “I heard what you said in there. It’s not your fault, alright?”

“I…I didn’t mean to. It…just…slipped out.” Shaun replied.

Planting a small kiss on Shaun’s head, El set about understanding why this incident had happened. “I know you didn’t mean to. But…why did you call Cait mum? Do…Do you see Cait as a mum?”

Shaun chewed his lip, looking afraid to answer. “I-It’s just that…you’re my mom, and Cait’s you’re girlfriend. I thought it would…make sense. I mean…she is nice, sometimes. She can be quiet though.”

It lifted El’s heart to hear Shaun’s innocence. It wasn’t his fault. “That’s very sweet, Shaun. It’s really thoughtful that you think of Cait that way. It’s just that…” El needed to approach this subject carefully. “…Cait finds it hard when she’s called mom. It brings up a lot of difficult things for her.”

Shaun however frowned in confusion at El’s answer. “But she calls herself Mama with Tasha all the time.” he countered.

El was lost for words. She had not expected Shaun to say that so quickly. But he was right, Cait did call herself mama when with Tasha. “It’s… It’s complicated, Shaun. Cait was there when Tasha was born, so she feels a lot more comfortable calling herself that. At the moment, she’s still getting to know you. But remember, this is not your fault. This is something that Cait needs to figure out herself.”

“What do I call her then?” Shaun asked further.

El thought for a moment. “Why don’t…for the time being, we just call her Cait? if you want to see Cait as a mom, then I won’t try to stop you. Just…don’t use the M-word. How does that sound?”

After thinking it over for a few seconds, Shaun nodded and smiled. “Okay. I can do that.” he said happily as she rested his head on El’s shoulder.

Returning Shaun’s hug as best she could with a baby in her arm, El chuckled. Now she just had to find Cait. “Are you alright staying here whilst I find Cait?” she then said, gently stroking his back.    

“Okay. I love you, Mom.” Shaun replied, nodding his head.

“I love you too.” El said, rustling Shaun’s hair and kissing the top of his head. Standing up from the bed, El collected Tasha’s papoose and carefully slipped a still fussing Tasha inside. “Come on, fusspot. Let’s go and find Cait.”

Exiting the general’s quarters, El made straight for the Castle courtyard. Craning her neck, she surveyed the plethora of activity going on around her; new recruits went through their daily training, sentries patrolled the tops of the walls, and Commonwealth expeditions both left from and returned to the Castle. El would be lucky if she found anyone in this.

Then, in a discreet corner of a bastion, out of the sun, Cait sat with her back against the wall and arms wrapped around her legs. Quietly, El walked over to her. “Hey, babe.” she said softly.

Cait’s head darted up when she heard El’s voice. “Oh, err, hey.” she replied shyly, not wanting to make eye contact.

Easing herself down to the ground, El sat next to Cait and watched the activity continuing around them. “You alright?” she eventually asked, turning to face Cait.

Cait sighed and cracked her knuckles nervously, but nonetheless nodded.

El could tell that Cait was stalling about the incident earlier. If they were to sort this out, as in the past, El would have to force the issue. “Shaun and I talked about what happened. It’s all alright, Cait. He didn’t mean to upset you.”

“I know he didn’t. I… I-I just wasn’t expectin’ him to say it. I’ve only known him a few days.” Cait said, trying to justify herself.

El put her arm around Cait’s waist and pulled her close. “I understand that it was a little premature for Shaun to say it like that. But he only said it because he wants to get to know you better.”

“He didn’t have to call me mom though.” Cait answered back, a hint of irritation in her voice.

“I know he didn’t. He just thought that, as we’re together and have Tasha, and I’m his mother, it made sense for him to call you mom. But we talked about it and agreed that we’ll just call you Cait. How does that sound?” El reasoned, stroking Cait’s waist to keep her attention.

Cait shrugged her shoulders but appeared more relaxed with El’s suggestion. El could see that Cait was feeling a little less uneasy now. “Suppose I can live with that.” Cait eventually said, giving a slight smile.

Interpreting Cait’s gesture as a positive response, El leaned in to kiss the side of her head. “Thank you, Cait. Believe me, he likes you. We just need to iron out a few things.”

“It just happened a bit fast.” Cait said quietly, chewing her lip.

“I know. But we’ll have loads of time to sort things out.” El’s words were then suddenly cut off by Tasha beginning to fuss again as she tried to get at El’s vaultsuit. “Oh, give me strength!” she said, exacerbated. “All she’s done this morning is fuss.”

Cait immediately sprang into action. “Let me take her.” she said, carefully taking Tasha out of her papoose. Safe in Cait’s arms, Cait turned Tasha so she was facing her and looked deep into her big hazel eyes. “Hey, squirt. You can’t be suckin’ on Mama’s tits all day. You gotta leave some for me.” she commanded playfully, rubbing her nose against Tasha’s.

Upon seeing Cait, Tasha let out an adorable giggle. Cait could only smile. El however frowned at Cait’s choice of words. “I do question your parenting style sometimes.” she said quizzically.

Cait chuckled and gave a mischievous smile to El. “I gotta give her an attitude somehow. How else is she gonna talk back to you when she gets older?”

El just rolled her eyes and rested her head against the wall, watching the Minutemen work. “Incorrigible.” she sighed.    

“I do hope you understand, Preston.” El said, clutching her hands together.

Preston nodded, not happy with El’s decision, but understanding completely. “Of course, General. I understand your reasons. Is there anything I could do that would convince you to stay?”

El thought about Preston’s questions, but her mind was already made up. “I’m sorry, but no. I have to move on. I have a family to care for; and they must always come first.”

Preston bowed his head and exhaled loudly through his nose. “Well, I can’t force you to stay, General. All I can say is thank you. I don’t know where we would have been without you.”

El chuckled, deeply heartened by Preston’s praise. “If anything, I should thank you. If it weren’t for you and Minutemen, I would have never found the Institute, or my son.”

“Likewise, General. On the Institute part that is.” Preston replied. “Do you know where you’ll go?”

El contemplated Preston’s question. If truth be told, even El wasn’t sure. “If I’m being honest, I don’t know. For the first time in a long time, I don’t have a plan. We’ll probably head to Diamond City for a few days, then think about what we do next.”

“Fair enough. Well, all I can say now is that it has been any honour, General. I’ll let you make your arrangements before I give you a proper farewell.” Preston gave an appreciative smile, holding out his hand to El.

Returning the smile, El shook Preston’s hand. “Thank you too. It’s been an honour for me as well. I’ll see you on my way out.” Releasing Preston’s hand, El turned away and headed for the Castle interior. Entering the general’s quarters, El was greeted by Cait and Shaun packing their respective things. “Hey.” El greeted Cait.

“Hey.” Cait smiled. “Did you do it?”

El nodded. “Yeah, it’s done. I am no longer an active general of the Minutemen.”

“How do you feel?” Cait asked, dropping her backpack on the bed and walking to El’s side.

El wrapped her arms around Cait’s waist and pulled her into a loving hug. “I’m alright. A bit strange though. This is all I’ve known since thawing out.”

“Well, if it cheers you up, I still love you.” Cait reassured, flashing El an adorable smile.

El lost herself in Cait’s smile and stared longingly into her piercing green eyes. “I love you too; and yes, it does cheer me up.” She was so beautiful. Bringing her hand up to stroke Cait’s cheek, El planted a small kiss on her lips. “How are things here?”

Looking towards the bed, Cait moved away from El. “Pretty good. We’ve got most of the stuff. Just a few more things to pack.”

“Good. I’d like us to get out of here as soon as possible. I’m fed up with this damp place.” El said as she approached the opposite side of the bed. collecting her backpack, El set about packing away her things. “Hey, El? Thought you should have this back.” Looking up, El saw Cait holding her pistol out to her.

Upon seeing her weapon again, El became uneasy. “I…I don’t know, Cait. Are you sure?” she asked, gripping the straps of her backpack to prevent her hands from shaking too much.

Cait however extended her arm out further to El. “Yeah, I’m sure. You should have it back.”

Apprehensively, El took the pistol from Cait and slowly moved it around in her hands. She still wasn’t sure if she deserved having it back, but she trusted Cait to make the right decision when needed. If Cait believed that she deserved it, then El could accept that. “Thank you, Cait.” El finally said, placing the pistol inside her backpack.

As she began packing away her assorted belongings, El noticed a small box lurking at the bottom of her backpack. Reaching inside, El carefully pulled out the box and examined it. Glancing up, El breathed a small sigh of relief when she saw Cait deep in concentration. Feeling safe enough to take a risk, El slowly opened the box and befell its contents. El bit her lip when she saw what was inside. Glancing again at Cait, El’s cheeks went red, and she fought back a smile.

Suddenly, Cait looked up and El quickly closed the box and threw it back in her backpack. Noticing El’s sudden movement, Cait frowned. “What was that?” she asked.

El had to think quick. “N-Nothing.” El stuttered unconvincingly.

To El’s relief, Cait simply looked back to her backpack and continued packing. As Cait’s gaze turned away from her, El let out a shaky breath. Her secret was safe.

As they came down the causeway, El felt glad to be back in Diamond City. After everything she and Cait had been through, she was looking forward to sitting back and putting her feet up.

“So, this is Diamond City?” Shaun asked from El’s side.

“It sure is, Shaun. This is where we’ll be staying for a while.” El answered.

Shaun looked around, intrigued by his new surroundings, but not overly enthusiastic. “It smells a bit weird.” he then said, wrinkling his nose up slightly.

Cait could not help but laugh. “You get used to it, kid.” she quipped, flashing him a smile.

Walking through towards the Diamond City market, El reached into her coat pocket to retrieve her house keys. Luckily, she could see that all the padlocks on her front door were still intact.

“Blue!” a deeply familiar voice called to her.

El immediately looked towards the voice to see Piper marching towards them, a determined look on her face. “You really thought you could get away without saying hi?” Piper exclaimed.

“I would do nothing of the sort.” El replied, a playful smirk on her face.

Making sure not to squash Tasha, El extended on her arms to receive Piper’s embrace. “Ahhh! So good to see you again!” Piper said, squeezing El tightly.

El chuckled, feeling even happier to be back with friends and family. “Great to see you too, Piper.”

Pulling away, Piper instantly switched her attention to Tasha. “Now, it’s been too long since I’ve seen this little bundle of joy.” she said, lifting Tasha out of her papoose. “Hey, girl! You remember your aunt Piper? You been taking care of your moms?”

Oblivious to her questions, Tasha just giggled and began to play with Piper’s hair. Attempting to move her hair out of the way, Piper adjusted Tasha in her arms. “Geez, Blue! She’s getting big. What have you been feeding her?’ she asked, bobbing Tasha up and down.

“Too much is what she’s been eating.” El sighed, poking Tasha’s tummy.

“Well, whatever it is, it’s clearly working.” Piper chuckled before turning her attention to Cait. “What am I doing; it’s good to see you too, Cait. You’re looking good. You been keeping this one out of trouble?” she asked, nodding towards El.

Despite her memories of El’s suicidal episode still being fresh in her mind, Cait tried to remain vague and upbeat. “Tryin’ to. Not that she ever listens to me.” she answered impishly, flashing El and Piper a mischievous smile.

Noticing Cait’s smirk, El scrunched her face up in annoyance. “I’m sorry, do you two need some time alone together?” she asked sarcastically.

Piper laughed and patted both El and Cait on the shoulder. “Hahaha! You two are just so cute together!” Suddenly, however, Piper turned serious. “But, Blue, I almost forgot to ask. I saw the explosion near the CIT ruins. Was that you?”

Apprehensively, El nodded. “Y-Yeah. That was us. The Institute is gone.”

Piper’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. “You’re serious?”

El nodded, but quickly wanted to change the subject from what still a difficult topic for her. Suddenly, she remembered Shaun standing at her side. Turning to her son, El brought her hand to Shaun’s back and ushered him forward. “On that subject, Shaun, I’d like you to meet a very good friend of mine. This is Piper. Piper, meet my son, Shaun.”

Piper looked at Shaun with a mixture of surprise and intrigue. El’s son? Could it really be true? Glancing up at El, Piper saw her give a small nod. Taking the hint, Piper reacted appropriately. “Nice to meet you, Shaun.” she greeted.

“Pleased to meet you too, Miss Piper. Mom has told me all about you.” Shaun beamed, holding a hand out to Piper.

Deeply charmed, Piper shook Shaun’s hand. “Miss Piper? Never been called that before, at least not in a nice way.” Dropping Shaun’s hand, Piper returned her attention to El and Cait. “Listen you two, why don’t you come by later for a drink and a catch up. I might even cook something up for you. You must be exhausted after your journey.”

El looked towards Cait who gave her a reserved, but approving nod. “We’d love to.” El answered. “What we’ll do is let Tasha have a nap, then come by later. That agreeable?”

Piper nodded and smiled. “Of course. I’ll get the molerats cooking.” she winked, carefully handing Tasha back to El. “I’ll let you sort her out.”

“Thanks.” El replied as she took Tasha back in her arms. “We’ll talk later.” she then whispered in Piper’s ear.

Keeping El’s secret, Piper stepped back and gave them all a courteous smile, making sure she did not appear too awkward. “See you later, guys.” she then said, turning around to head back to Publick Occurrences.

With Piper gone, El turned back to Cait and handed her the keys to the house. “Hey, Cait? Can you get the door?”

Taking the keys, Cait nodded and set about unlocking the front door. Stepping inside Home Plate, El reached out and flicked the main light switch. As the house was illuminated by several light bulbs, El looked down at Shaun. “Welcome home, Shaun. Now, unfortunately, we don’t have an extra bed at the moment, so you’re going to have to sleep on the couch until we can figure something out. Is that alright?”

“O-Okay, Mom.” Shaun answered somewhat sadly, but nonetheless understanding that El could not prepare for everything.

“Don’t worry, Shaun.” Cait interjected. “That couch is damn comfy.”

Shaun chuckled at Cait’s comment and ran off to explore his new home. With Shaun occupied, El turned to face Cait. “You still alright with this?” she asked softly.

Giving an appreciative smile, Cait nodded. “Sure. I’ll go wherever you go.”

Returning the smile, El leant in to plan a small, loving kiss on Cait’s lips. “Thank you.” she whispered.

As she pulled away, however, the look on Cait’s face turned mischievous again. “Although, we’re gonna have to get some kind of soundproofin’ for our room.”

“Why?” El asked, frowning.

Cait crossed her arms and cocked her head to one side. “Well, I ain’t bein’ quiet while we’re shaggin’, just ‘cause we got kids here. I shag loud. You know that.”

El knew that Cait was playing with her, but she still could never get over when Cait talked like this. “What is wrong with you?” she asked bemusedly.

Cait just shrugged her shoulders. “Just makin’ a point.” Glancing up at El, Cait saw her pulling a face. Knowing exactly what El would likely say next, Cait pointed a finger at her. “Don’t you fuckin’ say it.”

El was awoken the next morning by the repetitive bleeping on her PipPad. Blindly, El leaned over and pressed the relevant button to turn it off. As she rubbed the sleep away from her eyes, El got a proper look at the time: 8:30. Despite it being far later than she had gotten up in the past few days, El sighed and looked up at the ceiling. She could have easily done with another hour.

Turning to her side, El chuckled as she befell her still sleeping lover. Lying next to her, Cait lay with her face buried in her pillow, her fiery mop of red hair splayed out in all directions. It seemed that Cait never changed in the morning. Gently leaning in close, El gave Cait a light shake and softly whispered in her ear. “Cait? It’s time to get up.”

Cait however just let out an irritated groan and attempted to bury her face further into her pillow. El just smiled and flattened several tufts of Cait’s hair. “I’ll give you a few minutes, alright? I’m going to go and get us some breakfast. Try to be up by the time I get back.”

Cait gave another loud, but more muffled groan, which El interpreted as a positive response. Accepting that was most she would get out of her lover at this hour, El rolled over and manoeuvred herself out of bed. As a means of passively encouraging Cait to get up, El did not attempt to stay quiet as she dressed herself. Suitably attired, El headed downstairs. Looking through to the living area, El could still hear Shaun and Tasha’s soft breathing. Given that this was their first proper night’s sleep in a warm home for a while, El mused that they could have a few extra minutes. Returning to the kitchen area, El collected her backpack and headed out.

The Diamond City market was only just starting to open up when El exited the house. This was a prime opportunity for El to snag the best of the day’s pickings. As it was their first proper day in Diamond City, El figured that her family deserved a treat.

After a surprisingly successful foraging trip, in which she spent far more caps than she would have liked, El finally returned home. Stepping inside, El flicked on one of the kitchen lights and set about unpacking the food. As she was unpacking, El could easily make out the sound of muffled snoring coming from hers and Cait’s bedroom. El sighed loudly and rolled her eyes; Cait has clearly gone straight back to sleep once El had left the house. No matter. Once she was finished, she could go upstairs and pull the covers off her.

With the food unpacked, El turned to head back upstairs. Her plan was cut short however when she heard an ear-piercing yell come from outside. Rushing to the door, El opened it and peered through to see several Diamond City security running in the direction of the exit. What was going on?

Initially, El considered ignoring it. As far as she was concerned, she had had her fill of action and she just wanted to spend time raising her new family. But the more she thought, the more something still gnawed at her; a curiosity that she couldn’t shake. Furthermore, the Commonwealth was still reeling from the Institute’s downfall. If rogue elements of the Institute were here, El needed to keep her family safe.

Collecting her backpack again, and fishing her pistol out, El quietly slipped it back into its holster and she rushed to the door. Closing it behind her, El set off to find the source of the commotion. Passing the All Faiths Chapel, El noticed a small crowd gathered near the causeway leading towards the Mayor’s office. As she got closer, El could see Paster Clements on his knees, tending to someone lying on the ground. El immediately recognised the individual on the ground as Danny Sullivan. “Hold on, Sullivan. Just to make God wait a little longer.” Clements pleaded as El approached.

Clutching his wounded stomach, Danny groaned painfully. “You gotta listen. Mayor McDonough. I saw him with one of those Institute synths… Piper was right… He’s one of them…”

A plethora of both loud and hushed voices echoed through the crowd, each providing their own half-baked commentary on Danny’s revelation. Some were shocked and worried, whilst others bordered on hypocritical. El did not care to listen to any of them. They had no way of comprehending what was happening around them.

“You can stop standing around! Someone get a doctor!” Clements eventually shouted, bringing the crowd to their senses.

Seeking to understand what Danny was talking about, El got to her knees and leaned in close. “Danny, tell me what happened.” she said seriously.

Still groaning from the wound in his stomach, Dann did his best to answer. “Two slugs in the gut… Plus the fall from the elevator… I ain’t gonna make it…”

Sensing Danny failing, El instantly dived into her backpack and retrieved a stimpak. “This should keep you going until a doctor arrives.” El said as she injected the stimpak into Danny’s arm.

As the clear soothing liquid entered his body, Danny’s groans became fewer, and colour began to return to his face. “Thank you, Miss. Pardon me if I don’t get up.” Danny winced.

Despite wanting to smile, El kept her reserve. “Just stay where you are, Danny, and tell me what happened.”

Swallowing hard, Danny answered. “I was making my rounds near the Mayor’s office when I heard shouting. Thought he was in trouble at first… Then when I found him, he was with a synth. One of those older ones with the metal parts. Said something about how they can’t do this to him. That’s when they noticed I was there. Got plugged two times before I ran to the elevator… I remember falling… Then it’s kinda hazy…”

To El’s relief, Doctor Sun then arrived, and she was able to step back from Danny’s side. She then turned her gaze up to the mayor’s office. If there were Institute synths in Diamond City, she would need to deal with them.

Ascending the causeway, El made her way to the mayor’s office elevator and pushed the button to take her up. Slowly, the lift hauled her up over Diamond City to the office of the mayor’s personal assistant. As soon as the lift reached the top, El could hear shouting. “I knew it! I knew you were a synth, McDonough!” she could hear Piper shout. Of course, Piper was here.

“Yes, Piper! Congratulations! You’ve won. I hope you break your foot trying to kick that door down.” El then heard a highly amused Mayor McDonough reply from behind his office door. As El approached, she could see a deeply agitated Piper forcibly trying to kick the door to the mayor’s office down.

With one final kick, Piper gave in. “Dammit! It won’t budge!” It was only then that she turned around and noticed El. “Blue? You hear what happened?”

El nodded. “Yeah. Danny told me everything.”

“I knew it! I just knew it!” Piper repeated loudly as she returned her attention to the door. “Hey, Blue. Help me get this door open.”

Examining the metal door closely, El quickly noticed a small wire leading down the wall and into the floor. Following its path, El soon found a strange button switch underneath the desk of McDonough’s assistant. Looking back to the door, El pushed the button.

To Piper’s surprise, the doors immediately swung open and her and El ran inside. “That’s far enough!” McDonough shouted at El and Piper entered.

El stopped and positioned her right hand near her pistol holster. Piper meanwhile was already aiming her 10mm pistol at McDonough. McDonough himself stood a few metres in front of them, a pipe pistol aimed in their direction, his assistant, Geneva, on her knees beside him. “Help me! He’s crazy!” she implored.

“I’m not just going to be discarded and tossed out to the wolves. I’m the mayor, Goddammit!” McDonough shouted over her.

El needed to de-escalate the situation before too many people got hurt. The first thing to do was to get Geneva away from McDonough. “Let the girl go, McDonough!” El demanded, her hand still not yet gripped on her pistol. “I can help you, but not when you’re holding a hostage.”

To El’s surprise, McDonough reluctantly followed her orders. “All …alright. She can go.” Looking down at Geneva, El gestured her head to the open door behind her. Without any hesitation, Geneva scrambled to her feet and skittered out of the office.

“Now,” McDonough commanded as Geneva exited the room, “I’ll tell you what’s going to happen next. I’m walking out of this city. Unharmed. With my dignity intact.”

“You’re not getting off the hook easy, McDonough! You have to answer for what you’ve done!” Piper interjected.

“I’m either walking out of this city a free man or I’m killing as many of you…disgusting, filthy savages as I can.” McDonough continued, not listening to Piper.

El could feel herself losing control of the situation. As McDonough was threatening violence if his terms were not met, her hand was drifting closer to her pistol. She needed to keep him talking. “What are you going to do, McDonough?” she asked.

“I can’t go back to the Institute. I can’t stay here. But I’m a man of…resourcefulness. I’ll make my way.” McDonough answered, sounding more unhinged with every word her spoke. “Just let me go. Hasn’t there been enough bloodshed? Think of poor Mister Sullivan.”

El was not going to stand for this. as long as there were Institute synths, El could not protect her family. McDonough was not getting away with this. “You’re going to stand trial, and these people are going to have justice.” she commanded, tensing her fingers.

McDonough just scoffed. “Trial? Please. You know how these people feel about synths. I won’t be stuck in a prison while they gloat.” With that final declaration, McDonough took aim with his pipe pistol and fired a round at Piper. Owing to the shoddy build of the pipe pistol, however, the round only grazed Piper’s arm.

Reacting immediately, with lightning precision, El pulled her pistol from its holster and unloaded a round into McDonough’s shoulder. Within seconds, he was on the ground, nursing his wound and moaning pitifully.

With her hand covering her grazed arm, Piper ran over to McDonough’s body and began to shake him. After a few long seconds, however, she stopped and stood back up. “He’s dead. Can’t say McDonough didn’t deserve worse, but…” Piper sighed, visibly sad that it had all ended this way. “Without a mayor, the City council will be next in line to pick up the pieces. Let’s hope they do a better job. I don’t know when people are going to be ready for another mayoral election. Not going to be soon, that’s for sure. But at least now, Diamond City will finally have the truth.”

“I’m sure Diamond City will be fine, Piper. It’s been through far worse.” El reasoned, attempting to bring a silver lining to what had just happened.

Piper sighed again, understanding where El was coming from. “I suppose so. Won’t be easy though.”

“But they’ll have you this time.” El added.

Piper laughed, thinking that El was joking. “Ha! You really think they’ll listen to the mouthy journalist? There’s a lot of bad blood, Blue.”

“The mouthy journalist who was just proved right all along. That has to count for something.” Ell countered, raising her eyebrows.

Piper chuckled, deeply heartened by El’s comments. “Thanks, Blue. That means a lot.”

Patting Piper on the shoulder, El smiled. “You’re welcome, Piper.” El however became serious again. “Look, Piper, I need to get back home. They’ll be wondering what on earth has happened.

Piper nodded. “Of course, Blue. You should go. I gotta stay here help clear up this mess.”

“See you around, Piper.” El said as she left. “Make sure you get that arm looked at.”

“Will do. See you around, Blue.” Piper chuckled.

Descending back to street level, El soon returned home. Stepping through the door, El was immediately greeted by Cait, still in her nightwear, holding Tasha in her arm. “El! What the hell is goin’ on?” she demanded.

El told the full story as Cait listened in wide eyed astonishment. The mayor of Diamond City was a synth, and she missed it. “How come I wasn’t there?”

Confused that Cait would ask something so obvious, El frowned. “You were asleep. Snoring, quite loudly, I might add.”

“I don’t fuckin’ snore!” Cait retorted, looking almost offended by El’s accusation.

It was now El’s turn to look shocked, more about the sheer audacity of Cait’s statement. “Really, Cait? You want to go there?”

Cait just shook her head, clearly fed up with the argument. “You’re dodgin’ the point now. What’s gonna happen now you popped a cap in McDonough?’ she asked, genuinely sounding interested.

El shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not sure. Piper said the City council will take over until a new mayor can be found; and who knows how long that will take.”

“But what about you?” Cait asked further. “What are you gonna do about this?’

Not fully understanding what Cait was implying, El did her best to answer. “Nothing. I’m not going to get involved. I don’t want to go looking to get something out of this.”

Cait was not convinced in the slightest by El’s words. She knew El well enough to know that she revelled in this sort of thing. “I think they’ll come lookin’ for you first.” she stated knowingly.

Believing that Cait was reading too much into things, El shook her head. “Not going to happen, Cait. I can promise you that.” she replied commandingly.

“We’ll see.” Cait said simply, knowing exactly how this would pan out.

Not wishing to continue arguing, El said nothing.

About a week had passed since the incident with Mayor McDonough and El had noticed a change in the attitude of the town. Since the event, people appeared more suspicious than before, and quicker to make judgements. Once the mayor had been outed as a synth, nobody was safe. El was keen to keep away from all of it. She was done with Commonwealth politics.

El had just closed the front door of the Diamond City school and was slowly heading home. She had just managed to enrol Shaun in the class and was looking forward to telling him the good news. As she walked, however, she noticed someone standing near the entrance to Fallon’s Basement, watching her out of the corner of his eye. He was dressed the same as pretty much everyone in Diamond City, a mishmash of old raggedy clothes. He had a dark goatee beard and appeared to be reading the latest edition of Publick Occurrences. El was certain that he wanted something.

El’s suspicions were proved correct as she passed him. Pushing off from the wall, he slyly manoeuvred his way between El and home. “Excuse me.” he greeted politely. “Am I to assume you’re the vault dweller?”

Seeing as he was effectively blocking her path home, El reluctantly answered. “I am a vault dweller, yes.” she said cryptically.

“But are you the vault dweller from the Publick Occurrences article? The one who was involved in the McDonough scandal?” he asked further.

Now that he essentially had her story, El was trapped in the conversation. “Yes, I am. What’s it to you?” she asked brusquely.

Despite El’s somewhat rude attitude, the man remained polite. “Pleased to meet you.” he greeted, extending a hand to her. “Name’s Jake. I’ve been looking to talk to you.”

El shook his hand but was not going to be taken in by his games. “Look, let’s cut to the chase here. If it’s mercenary work you’re after, I’m not interested. I’m retired from the Minutemen.”

Jake immediately threw his hands up. “No, no. This is nothing to do with mercenary work. It’s to do with something completely different.” Dropping his hands, he straightened himself and began his proposition. “I work with the town council, scoping out potential candidates for political office. Unfortunately, McDonough’s swift exit had left us without a leader, or the means to organise a mayoral election.”

El could feel her interest steadily increasing. Why was it that, no matter how hard she tried, she always found herself getting sucked back into political gossip? “I know that the town council was left in a bit of a mess, but what does this have to do with me?” she asked.

It was at this point that Jake put his hands behind his back. “Well, that’s what I wanted to ask you. Until we can organise a proper election, the city needs an interim mayor to keep things stable. The council and I have talked it over and we believe that you would be the ideal candidate.”

El’s eyes widened. Mayor of Diamond City? Surely, they were mistaken. El had no experience in politics. Yes, she was a lawyer in a past life, but that didn’t mean she was qualified for public office. “There must be some mistake. There surely must be other, more local candidates than me.” El questioned.

“You distinguished yourself with the McDonough scandal; and your work with the Minutemen in destroying the Institute really helped persuade some of the naysayers in the council. We’re convinced that you will be the best fit.” Jake answered.

El frowned. How did they know it was her who destroyed the Institute? “Who told you about the Institute?” she asked further.

Jake chuckled and held up his copy of Publick Occurrences. “Your friend, Piper, did a good job of telling us about it, both to our faces and in this article.”

El sighed. Of course, Piper was involved. But why was Piper’s opinion suddenly worth its weight in gold? “I thought you people considered Piper a nuisance.” she quipped, narrowing her eyes slightly.

“Some still do. But, as she was right all along about McDonough, her opinion has to count for something now.” Jake replied.

El considered that a good enough answer. It seemed that opinions of journalists didn’t change after two-hundred years. There was however one thing that El still could not understand, why her? “That’s all well and good seeing what I’ve done as a good reason to choose me, but I’m not exactly from here. There are a lot of residents I don’t know, or care for; and what about the people in the tiers? Surely they have their say?”

Jake, however, had an answer for all of El’s questions. “We’re of the opinion that we need a new face in the mayor’s office. Local candidates bring too much intrigue with them. It leaves the people feeling very alienated by the whole system, especially if they turn out to be an Institute synth.”

El listened stoically, understanding Jake’s reasoning completely. It appeared they were of one mind.

“And I shouldn’t worry about the tier residents; they moan about everything. Even if one of their own was elected, they would still moan that their candidate wasn’t doing enough for their interests.” Jake added, glancing up to the tier houses.

Jake made a good case. Despite her reservations, and the promise she had made to not get involved, El could not help but feel convinced by his argument. Maybe she was qualified to be mayor until a proper election could be held. Plus, it would give her something to do in her retirement. She couldn’t spend it doing nothing.

But she still needed to think about it before she agreed to anything. Cait would need to be told, and she would definitely have her own opinion. “I…I need to think about it. My family and I are only just getting settled.”

Jake nodded. “Of course. I understand. Look, the job is yours if you want it. Just come find me when you’ve made a decision.”

With a curt nod, El turned for home. Stopping at the front door, El thought about the conversation she had just had. Mayor of Diamond City; El could not even fathom that, so soon after thawing out, she was first in line for high office. She had a lot to think about. Taking a deep breath, El opened the door and stepped inside.

El had been very quiet the entire evening. Whilst she remained loving and motherly in front of the kids, Cait could tell that something was on her mind. Through months of trial and error, Cait had become more adept at reading El, especially when she was thinking through something. Cait would have to interrogate her in private.

Once the kids were asleep, and they were alone in the privacy of their room, Cait felt safe enough to quiz El. “El, you look like you got somethin’ on your mind. What's goin’ on?”

El chewed her lip, slightly irritated that Cait was getting better at reading her. Sighing deeply, El reluctantly answered. “Today, someone who works with the Diamond City council asked if I wanted to be mayor. They apparently discussed it and believe that I would be the best candidate.”

Ciat’s mouth dropped open slightly. She had expected them to want El to help pick someone to replace McDonough, but not actually be mayor herself. “They…They want you to like...run the city and that?”

El nodded, still with the same look on her face. “I think so. I haven’t agreed to anything yet.”

“Are you gonna take it?” Cait asked further.

“I don’t know.” El mused, looking at the ceiling. “We only just got here. Also, I’ve never held public office before. How am I the right person for it?”

At that point, Cait frowned. What was El talking about? “El, of course you’re the right person.” she said.

El looked at Cait in surprise. She had not expected her to say that. “You…You think I should go for it?”

“Of course, you should.” Cait insisted, wondering why El would ask such a silly question. “El, you’re the smartest person in the fuckin’ Commonwealth! You could do that job with your hands tied behind your back.”

El chuckled, amused by Cait’s compliments. She loved her way with words. “You really think so?” she then asked, giving a toothless smile.

“Yeah, you should. We just got Shaun into school, and we have a place to live. You’ll do great at that job. Plus, if you don’t do somethin’, you’re gonna be so fuckin’ bored. You were the fuckin’ worst when you were pregnant.” Cait argued, showing a level of maturity that deeply surprised El.

“I wasn’t that bad when I was pregnant.” El retorted, looking to argue.

Cait just crossed her arms. “You were climbin’ the fuckin’ walls! Take the job, El. We can sort all the other shit out afterwards.”

El exhaled deeply through her nose, contemplating Cait’s words. Cait’s opinion was far more positive than she had expected. Maybe Cait had a point. One thing that Cait could be counted on was giving El a glowing record. “Thanks, Cait. That really means a lot to me. I’ll…I’ll sleep on it and decide in the morning… Now, come on, let’s get some sleep.”

Manoeuvring themselves accordingly, El was soon lying on her back whilst Cait snuggled up to her side and nestled her head on El’s chest. El’s arm then lovingly wrapped itself around Cait’s waist to hold her close. Flicking the bedside light off, Cait was soon fast asleep.

El’s eyes, however, remained fixed on the ceiling, her mind still contemplating the proposal offered to her. Part of her wanted the job desperately, but the other still wanted to leave the politics of the Commonwealth behind. With no way out of her dilemma, El wondered what Nate would think. He would have told her to do it, the same way that he had told her to pursue her law degree after leaving the military. Maybe, if she took the job, wherever he was, Nate would be proud of her for putting the skills he had encouraged her to learn to good use. El smiled at that idea. What a way to honour the husband who gave her the confidence to dream big.

Eventually, El shook her head, trying to dislodge the plethora of thoughts inside her. If she didn’t clear her head, she would never get to sleep. Steadying her breathing, El looked down at a sleeping Cait and smiled. Then, turning her gaze to the side, El focused on the top drawer of her bedside table. Allowing her smile to turn slightly mischievous, El looked back up at the ceiling and slowly let her eyes close. 

Stepping through the open doors, El, Cait, Piper, Shaun, and Tasha walked into the mayor’s office. “Alright everyone, this is where I’m going to be working.” El said, outstretching her arms as she turned to her companions.

Cait looked around the large room with a strong sense of awe. She knew that the mayor’s office was just another large room in a settlement. But the fact that El would be working here amazed her somewhat.

“Mom, can I go explore?” Shaun asked, looking towards the offices living quarters and back rooms.

“Sure.” El replied with a smile.

At this point, Piper, who was holding Tasha in her arm, put her hand on Shaun’s back and began ushering him towards the corridor. “Come on, Shaun. Let’s leave the two lovebirds and go exploring. I heard one of the terminals in there has Atomic Command on it.”

With Piper’s incentive, Shaun ran off down the corridor, Piper following close behind, leaving El and Cait alone. Now that they were alone, El turned to Cait and took her hand. “Come with me, Cait. I want to show you the best bit.” she said happily, leading Cait to the window near the mayor’s desk.

Following El’s lead, Cait stood at the window and looked out over Diamond City. It felt strange to see it so high up. “This is the view I’m going to have every day.” El said, looking over at her. “And look over there. You can see our house from up here!” she then exclaimed, pointing out at the city below.

Looking to where El was pointing, Cait gave a small smile. She could tell that El was happy with the decision she had made; she just couldn’t work out why it had taken her so long to decide. “It’s a pretty good view.” she finally said, observing their home.

Releasing her grip on Cait’s hand, El removed her coat and carefully placed it on the back of a nearby chair. Stealthily, she slipped her hand into one of the pockets and retrieved something small. Putting her closed hand behind her back, El returned to Cait’s side and took her hand again. Taking a deep breath, El slowly turned to face Cait. “Cait… I…I was wondering if we could talk.”

Turning herself to face El, Cait nodded. “Sure. What d’you need?” she asked.

“Good,” El smiled, “because I’ve got a lot of things to say.” Steadying her breathing, she continued. “I…I wanted to say thank you.”

“What for?” Cait frowned, wondering why El was suddenly talking this way.

“For everything you have done for me.” El answered, gripping Cait’s hand tight. “Cait, when I first came here, I was lost. I was searching the Commonwealth for a son I never thought I would see again, all the while carrying the guilt of allowing my husband to be murdered. I don’t know how I survived; I was so lost.” El had to stop for a few seconds to keep composure.

“But then I met you; this fiery redhead whom I was forced to fight. I’m still not sure why I agreed to take you with me. You certainly didn’t seem like the friendliest person I ever met.” El continued.

Cait immediately glanced down, conscious of how she had been in the past. She hoped that she was changing for the better.

“Then, as I got to know you more, I understood why you acted that way. When you told me your story, all I wanted to do was help you. You just seemed so helpless.” Absentmindedly, El began stroking the back of Cait’s hand with her thumb.

“Why are you talkin’ like this, El?” Cait interjected, still confused at why El was telling her this.

“Please, Cait. I need to say everything.” El answered quickly, taking a shaky breath. “E-Eventually, I came to realise that…my feelings for you ran far deeper that I imagined. I realised that I loved you; and through everything we were put through, you showed me that you are one of the most amazing people I have ever met. I have never met anyone who cares for her loved ones as much as you, Cait.”

By now, Cait was losing patience with El. She needed answers. “El, just tell me what’s goin’ on! Why are you tellin’ me this?”

El sighed forlornly, accepting defeat. After listening to her rambling speech, Cait deserved answers. “Well, it kinda leads into what I’m about to do.” Releasing her grip on Cait’s hand, El got down on one knee. “Cait. Ever since we left the Institute, I have come to realise how much you mean to me. You saved my life and were there to take care of me when I needed it most. I discovered then that I need you in my life if I am to keep going. You give me the strength I need when I am weak.” Taking a final deep breath, El finally brought her arm around from behind her back and opened the box. “Cait, will you marry me?”

Upon seeing what El held in her hands, Cait took a step back and her mouth dropped open. In a small, hinged, box, clutched in El’s hands, was a small ring gold ring with three round diamonds inset into the band. It looked beautiful. Even Cait, whose interest in jewellery was not the strongest, was completely hypnotised. But none of this could be real. El was clearly messing with her. “El, s-stop it.” Cait stuttered, feeling her legs go weak. “G-Get up. Stop messin’ with me like that. I-It’s not funny.”

Worried that Cait did not believe her actions were genuine, El tried frantically to reassure her. “No, no, Cait, please. This is real. I am desperately in love you. That’s why I want to marry you.” El attempted a smile but was on the brink of tears.

Cait’s hands were shaking. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, El actually wanted to marry her. Her of all people. Cait loved this woman so much, but she never imagined that this woman would actually want to marry her. However, Cait needed El as much as she needed her. If she were to spend her life with anyone, it could only be El. After what felt like an eternity, Cait nodded her head.

“I-Is that a yes?” El asked breathlessly, anxiously seeking clarification.

Cait nodded again, more intently this time. “Yeah.” she clarified simply.

“Yes?” El asked again, wanting to be sure.

Cait huffed but could feel tears building in her eyes. “Yes! Fuckin’ hell, yes!” she exclaimed, trying not to smile.

Finally breaking, El smiled and got back to her feet. Wrapping her arms around Cait’s waist, El then levered her off the ground and began spinning her around. “Thank you, Cait! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” El cried through floods of joyful tears.

Similarly allowing tears to fall freely, Cait smiled as El swung her around. “El! El! Put me down! Put me down!” she repeated over and over, beginning to feel dizzy.

Eventually, El relented and dropped Cait back on her feet. “Thank you, Cait! I love you so much! You’re just so perfect.” she whispered loudly, kissing Cait deeply on the lips.

“I love you too.” Cait replied, running her hands slowly up and down El’s waist. “But I’m not perfect.”

With her empty hand, El cupped Cait’s cheek and looked deep into her piercing green eyes. “You’re perfect to me, and that’s all I care about.”

Cait glanced away, blushing an embarrassing shade of pink. How was El always able to do this to her? As she glanced down, however, she noticed the open box in her other hand. “Are you gonna show me this ring then?” she asked, raising her eyebrows expectantly.

El’s eyes widened as she realised that she had completely forgotten about the ring. “Oh shit!” she laughed. “Here. Try it on and see what you think.” Carefully, taking the ring out of its box, El took Cait’s left hand and slipped it onto her finger.

It was only when it was on her finger that everything finally sank in. “Geez, El!” El gasped. “Where the fuck d’you find a ring like this?!”

El smiled mischievously, marvelling at how it fitted so well on Cait’s finger. “I have my ways… How does it feel? Does it fit?”

Cait examined the ring and twisted it around her finger. “It fits fine. Really fine. Why does it fit so well?” she frowned.

“I…may have measured your finger while you were asleep.” El replied, biting her lip with a smile.

Cait sighed but could not resist a smile. “You’re the fuckin’ worst sometimes.” she chuckled, looking over the amazing ring on her finger.

“Shall we go tell the others?” El then asked, bringing Cait back to reality.

Glancing towards the corridor, Cait nodded and gave El a loving hug. Pulling away, Cait wrapped her right arm around El’s waist, rested her left hand on El’s chest to show off the ring, and walked with El to join the others. 

“You still good for tomorrow?” El asked as she slipped a vest over her chest.

“Yeah, course I’m ready.” Cait huffed, sitting on the bed, brushing her hair out. “You’ve asked me that like fifty times already.”

“I just want you to be sure, Cait. This is a big thing we’re doing tomorrow.” El said, trying to justify her question.

“I’m sure, El. A thousand fuckin’ percent sure.” Cait reassured.

El smiled, happy that Cait was so sure about this. El wished that she had had Cait’s level of confidence before she married Nate. As she finished dressing herself for sleep, El collected a square shaped box from under their bed and presented it to Cait. “Here. This is for you.”

Cait looked at the box and then at El. “For me? What for?” she asked, tentatively taking the box.

“Call it an early wedding present.” El answered as she sat down on the bed next to Cait. “Open it.”

Cait removed the lid from the box and her mouth dropped open slightly. Inside was a neatly folded green dress and a small zip up bag. “I wanted you to wear it tomorrow.” El said as Cait slowly took the folded dress out of the box.

Cait had never worn a dress before. At least, she could not remember ever wearing a dress before. Even in her slave days, dresses were normally substituted for skimpy underwear, or nothing but manacles. She wasn’t sure whether she would suit something as fine as this.

“D-Do you like it?” El asked, fidgeting with her hands. “I thought you would like green. You always look good in it.”

Cait was silent as she continued to examine the dress. She did like the colour. “It’s…It’s nice. But I’m not really a dress kinda person.”

“I’ll be the judge of that, Cait.” El replied. “Try it on.”

Reluctantly, Cait stood up and clutched the dress to her chest. “Turn around.” she said to El.

“Cait-?” El tried to ask.

“Turn around.” Cait insisted. “Or I don’t try it on.”

Not wishing to argue, El put her hands up in submission and turned to face the opposite direction. “Okay. Okay. Sorry.” El was sitting with her back to Cait for a worryingly long amount of time. She could hear muffled sounds behind her, but nothing else. “Cait, you alright?” El eventually asked.

Finally, the muffled sounds stopped. “Promise you won’t laugh.” El heard Cait say.

“I promise.” El replied, staring at the wall nonchalantly.

“…Okay… You can look.”

El turned around and her heart stopped. Before her, with the flowing green dress almost illuminating her pale skin, falling to just below her knees, was Cait. The dress fitted her perfectly and really showed of her curvy yet slender figure. Cait looked absolutely beautiful, like she belonged in another time. There was, however, one thing missing. Without saying anything, El got up from the bed and opened her chest of drawers. Digging around for a few seconds, she eventually pulled out a brown leather belt. Walking back over to Cait, El then proceeded to buckle the belt around her waist. Stepping back, El smiled broadly, Cait looked faultless. The belt was the perfect addition to show off her slender figure. “You look amazing, Cait.” she said, completely enchanted.

Cait, however, was not convinced. “I look fuckin’ ridiculous.”

“No, you don’t, Cait. You look beautiful.” Stepping forward, El ran her hands along Cait’s body, examining how well the dress fitted to Cait’s body. “It fits perfectly, and the green goes beautifully with your red hair.”

Cait looked down at the dress and sighed. It felt so strange to wear something like this. She couldn’t be sure whether this was the right thing for her. Already wanting to change the subject, Cait looked back at the small bag that had accompanied the dress. “W-What’s that other stuff?”

“That’s actually a little experiment I’ve had. It’s a makeup bag. I wondered if you wanted to try it out.” El said excitedly.

Makeup was also something completely alien to Cait. Like the dress, Cait wasn’t sure whether she would suit any of it. The prospect of wearing all this was making her very self-conscious of things she had missed out on. It was alright for El as she had lived a whole different life before they met. Cait, on the other hand, had never had the pleasure of the finer things in life. However, Cait didn’t want to disappoint El when she looked so excited. Reluctantly, she nodded, agreeing to keep this going if it made El happy.

Smiling giddily, El lead Cait to the bed and sat her down, making sure that her dress did not get crumpled as she sat. Unzipping the bag, El then pulled out a selection of different products to start off with. “Alright. Stay still and I’ll see what I can do.” El said as she set to work.

After cleansing Cait’s face with a helping of moisturiser, El squirted a dab of foundation on the back of her hand and proceeded to lightly brush it across Cait’s face. Almost immediately, Cait’s skin looked infinitely softer and cleaner. El had a good feelings about this. With the foundation applied, El retrieved a small vial of concealer and dabbed it gently just under Cait’s eyes. Using the same brush, El then lightly worked it into Cait’s skin until it flowed flawlessly into the foundation. As an afterthought, El collected a small amount of concealing powder and, using the brush, blended it into where she had just applied the concealer.

Sitting back momentarily, El smiled at her progress. “We’re getting there, Cait. it’s already looking good though.” she reassured her, returning to her work. With her skin mostly completed, El moved onto Cait’s eyes. Happily, for El, Cait’s eyebrows were already full and did not require too much in the way of filling out. El, however, gently traced the outline of Cait’s eyebrows with a hint of filler to give them a slightly darker, richer tome. Setting the product down, El then collected her brush again and flicked open shade of bronzer to apply just around Cait’s temples. Gently, brushing to just above Cait’s eyebrows, El smiled at how contoured Cait’s face looked now.

Nervously twisting her ring around her finger, Cait sat silently as El worked excitedly. She was very conscious of the number of different things El was applying to her face. Cait was beginning to wonder how women before the bombs got anything done if they were constantly doing this all the time.

Returning to Cait’s eyes, El brought out a tube of mascara and, leaning in close, held the brush just in front of Cait’s eye. “Alright, Cait. What I want you to do is blink, and then slowly open your eyes again.” she told Cait.

Following El’s instructions, Cait slowly blinked her eyes and then gradually opened them again. “Perfect, Cait.” El said approvingly. “Just few more times for both eyes and we can move on.”

Sitting back again, El narrowed her eyes and chewed her lip, wondering if there was anything she missed. Looking down at the pile of items on the bed, El collected a case of highlighter and, collecting her brush, applied a tiny amount to the top of Cait’s cheekbones, down the length of her nose, the very top of her lips, and the areas just below her eyebrows. Cait’s skin now had an almost heavenly glow to it.

Coming to Cait’s lips, El believed that they needed some filling out. Collecting a pencil-like lip liner, El carefully traced the outline of Cait’s lips to give them a fuller, yet still natural shape. Finally, El giddily retrieved a tube of lipstick and, following the same outline of the lip liner, filled out Cait’s lips until they had a natural pinkish glow.

Placing the lipstick back on the pile, El leaned back at marvelled at her work. “There… You look stunning. Hold on! I want to get a picture or two.” Jumping up from the bed, El collected her camera from her bedside table and ushered Cait to stand up. “Come on, Cait. Stand there and I’ll take some pictures.” she commanded happily, almost bouncing with excitement.

None the wiser about how she looked, Cait silently stood up and walked to where El was pointing. Taking several steps back, El brought the viewfinder up to her eye. “Alright, smile!” El then called with a smile.

Bringing her hands together, Cait nervously fidgeted with her fingers. She however did not smile as El clicked the shutter. “Let me get a close up.” El then said as she came closer and clicked the shutter again. “There. Not bad, if do say so myself. Some more for the album.” El said joyfully.

“What’s it look like?” Cait asked quietly, feeling somewhat left out by El’s cheeriness.

Realising how caught up she had become in her own excitement, El’s eyes widened. “Oh god! Sorry, Cait. Come here and I’ll show you.” Leading Cait back to the bed, El threw down her camera and picked out a small mirror from the makeup pile. Flicking the mirror open, El held it in front of Cait. “Here. Have a look.”

Cait stared into the mirror, but another woman stared back at her. Cait was completely frozen; this woman was so unfamiliar to her. This woman’s skin was pale and soft, her eyebrows and eyelashes were big and vibrant, her lips were luscious and full. This was a woman that Cait did not know. This Cait was the one born before the bombs fell, the Cait who grew up in a family who loved her for who she was, the Cait that went to school and got good grades, the Cait who then went onto college and got a good job after, the Cait who actually made something of her life. Whoever this person was, they weren’t Cait.

Before long, Cait was forced to look away. She couldn’t spend another second staring at this strange, better version of herself. It took all of Cait’s strength not to break down in tears.

“Cait, what’s wrong?” El asked, her smile dropping at Cait’s unenthusiastic reaction.

“N-Nothin’.” Cait replied unconvincingly as she wiped her eye.

Not willing to let this go after she had worked so hard, El continued probing. “Tell me what’s wrong, Cait. I tried to get products that were as close to your complexion as I could.”

Cait sighed. “It’s not that. It’s just…none of this is me. You’ve turned me into someone I don’t know. I’m not the person you’re dressin’ and makin’ me up to be.” Cait lowered her gaze, too ashamed to look El in the eye. She didn’t want to see the disappointment on El’s face.

El looked down at the open bag of makeup between them and her heart sank. How could she have done something so thoughtless and stupid. She had desperately wanted to help Cait feel good about herself before their wedding. But, like the fool she was, she had gone about it in completely the wrong way. In trying to build Cait’s confidence, she had turned her someone unrecognisable to her in a mirror. “Cait, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Please believe me, I didn’t want to upset you. I was just having some fun and thought you would like it.” she said frantically, taking Cait’s hands in hers.

“It’s…It’s okay.” Cait sniffed, still looking at the floor.

Immediately, El lifted Cait’s chin and brought her face up to eye level. “Hold still. I can fix this.” she said, collecting a small bottle of makeup remover and a pad.

For the next few minutes, El carefully removed the layers of makeup until Cait was back to her natural look. “There. Good as new. Like it never happened.” El then said, opening the mirror again.

Looking at her familiar face again, Cait made a poor attempt at a smile. “I’m sorry I didn’t make you happy.” she then said glumly, convinced that she had disappointed El.

“You don’t need to be sorry, Cait. It’s my fault. I didn’t think. I got so worked up I didn’t stop and consider you. But it’s over now. Please don’t be sad before our wedding day.” El comforted, stroking Cait’s cheek with her left hand and the dress’s material with her other.

“But, if you can do something for me, please wear this dress tomorrow. You look so beautiful in it and it would make me so happy.” El then asked.

Cait looked at the dress, then into El’s glinting hazel eyes. Yes, the garment was strange to her; but she had to admit it did feel nice to wear, if a little unwieldy. Also, their wedding day was as much El’s day as it was hers. If Cait wanted to make El happy, she could at least give her this courtesy. “Okay. I’ll wear it for you.”

Kissing Cait’s lips deeply, El took Cait’s hands in hers. “Thank you, Cait.” Releasing her hands, El then cupped Cait’s cheeks. “Just remember, Cait. We’re getting married tomorrow.” she told her excitedly with a broad smile.

At those words, Cait suddenly felt butterflies in her tummy. It was all becoming very real for her now. Cait just hoped that she didn’t fuck it up on the big day.

“Dearly beloved!” Paster Clements began. “We are gathered here today, before this congregation, to witness the marriage of Miss Eloise and Miss Cait.”

Cait stood uneasily opposite El at the All Faiths Chapel in her new dress, her heart beating a mile a minute. Everything had led to this; she was actually going to marry El. It took every ounce of her strength to stop herself shaking. All she needed to do was stay calm and not fuck up her lines.

Around them, Piper stood as witness and kept Shaun and Tasha close whilst they watched. They were both smartly dressed and deeply excited by what was unfolding.

Continuing the service, Paster Clements looked at both El and Cait. “Now we will administer the vows.” Cait swallowed hard. This was the part she was worried about.

Clements turned to El. “Will you, Eloise Charlotte de Lancie, take Cait to be your wife; to have and to hold; for richer, for poorer; in sickness and in health; to love and cherish till death do you part?”

El looked deep into Cait’s eyes and smiled. “I will.” she answered bashfully.

“And now your ring.” Clements continued.

Taking her ring in hand, El positioned it at the end of Cait’s finger and took a deep breath. “Cait, with this ring, I promise to be with you till the end of my days. I promise to keep you safe from harm, and to never put anything before you. You are my rock, Cait, and I would be lost without you.” With those words, El slid the ring onto Cait’s finger.

With El’s vows said, Clements turned his attention to Cait. “Will you, Cait, take Eloise Charlotte de Lancie, to be your wife; to have and to hold; for richer, for poorer; in sickness and in health; till death do you part?”

Clearing her throat, Cait answered as coherently as she could. “Y-Yeah. I do. I-I mean, I will.” Cait cursed herself; it was already going wrong.

“And now your ring.” Clements ushered Cait further.

Realising that the attention was still on her, Cait frantically got her ring and positioned it at the tip of El’s finger. “El, with this ring, I promise to love you more than anythin’. I promise to…to…” Cait suddenly trailed off as her mind went completely blank. Cait knew this would happen. Hours of lying awake at night, memorising what she would say, had gone to shit as her nerves got the better of her. “Fuck!” Cait muttered under her breath. 

Stunned silence abruptly fell over the chapel and Cait face went red with embarrassment. “S-Sorry.” Cait said, looking at Clements.

Hearing a loud snort coming from close to her, Cait looked ahead to find El with a broad smile across her face. She looked on the brink of laughter. If El was not embarrassed, then Cait could go all the way. Regaining her composure, Cait resumed her vows in her own fashion. “Look, ditto to everythin’ you said, El. I just…fuckin’ love you…so much.”

Cait was just about to put the ring on El’s finger when she suddenly remembered something she wanted to say. “T-There was just one thing though. I didn’t know when to ask. If you let me, I wanna take your name.”

El’s smile swiftly dropped and a look of surprise crept across her face. “Are you sure you want to do that, Miss Cait?” an equally surprised Clements asked Cait.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Cait nodded.

Finally willing herself to speak, El whispered softly to Cait. “You don’t have to, Cait.”

Cait, however, was determined to do this. “No, I want to. I never had a last name. if I did have one, I don’t remember it… But you let me into your family and I want to be a part of it, in everythin’.”

As Cait finished, El’s smile returned, and she nodded approvingly. With that validation, Cait happily slipped the ring onto El’s finger.

With the vows completed, Clements returned his attention to the congregation as a whole. “Now, by the power vested in me, I pronounce you wife and wife. You may kiss the-.”

Clements was abruptly cut off as El lifted Cait off the ground and kissed her deeply on the lips. Around them, the assembled guests clapped and cheered in applause.

Cait was beyond happy. After a life of nothing but pain, Cait could never have imagined that she would meet someone so perfect. The fact that this person wanted to marry her was also beyond her wildest dreams. For the first time in her life, Cait was part of a family who loved her.

El similarly was beyond exhilarated. After the death of Nate, El had assumed that that she would never love anyone again. But Cait had shown her that, even after heartbreaking trauma, love could still find anyone. Cait was that love personified.

Finally pulling away to catch their breath, El and Cait were both hot bubbling messes. Tears were streaming down their faces and they were breathing heavily. Letting out an adorable giggle that she reserved only for El, Cait grabbed both sides of El’s head and kissed her again. Pulling away again, El smiled and gazed deep into Cait’s enchanting green eyes. Similarly staring into El’s glinting hazel eyes, Cait held her new wife tight. “I love you.” she whispered between shaky breaths.

“I love you too, Cait de Lancie.” El whispered back, resting her forehead on Cait’s.

Blushing like an idiot, Cait closed her eyes and hugged her new wife for dear life. She couldn’t stop smiling. She wasn’t a nobody anymore; she had a family.

“Are you sure you’re alright with this, Piper?” El asked as she tried to adjust both her bag and Tasha in her arms.

“Blue, how many times do I have to say, of course it’s fine! We’re gonna have a great time. Just go on your damn honeymoon.” Piper replied, beginning to sound slightly annoyed by El persistent worry.

“Piper, it’s not a honeymoon.” El tried to argue.

Piper just looked at El like she had just said something incredibly stupid. “Blue, you’re a newly married couple going on a vacation for a couple of days. If that’s not a honeymoon, I don’t know what is… now give me that little bundle of joy you’re carrying.”

El sighed but could not resist a chuckle as Piper took Tasha from her arms. Bobbing her happy Tasha up and down, Piper whispered in her ear. “Are you gonna be a good little journalist for your moms?”

“None of that please, Piper.” El said seriously, crossing her arms.

Piper just laughed. “I’m kidding. Go on. Get out of here and have some fun.”

Finally following Piper’s instructions, El turned to Cait, who had just finished some last-minute sorting of her backpack. “You ready to go?” she asked.

Throwing her backpack over her shoulders, Cait nodded and smiled excitedly. “Super ready.” she answered, a slightly giddy look on her face.

Dropping onto one knee, El then turned her attention to Shaun. “Now, Shaun. I want you to be a good boy for Piper and Nat, okay.” She said seriously.

“I will, Mom. I promise.” Shaun replied earnestly.

“You have all your school stuff?” El asked further.

Shaun nodded, adjusting the strap of a small satchel he carried.

Flattening some creases in his t-shirt, El smiled and pulled Shaun into a tight hug. “Okay. Well, have fun with Piper. Be good, and I’ll see you in a few days. I love you.”

“I love you too, Mom.” Shaun replied, returning the hug.

After several warm moments, El pulled away, kissed Shaun on the top of his head, and got back to her feet. “Come on. Go and say goodbye to Cait.”

Turning to Cait, Shaun gave Cait a firm hug around her waist. “Bye, Cait! Have a great time!” he said happily.

“See you, kid. Don’t do anythin’ I wouldn’t.” Cait replied, returning the hug.

Pulling away, Shaun walked over to Piper’s side and El and Cait each said a goodbye to baby Tasha. “See you in a couple of days, sweetheart. Be good for Piper, okay. I love you.” El told Tasha softly as she kissed her on the cheek.

Tasha giggled and her cheeks went bright pink.

“See you, squirt.” Cait then said, gently rustling Tasha’s hair. “I’ll see you soon, alright. I love you.” Upon seeing Cait, Tasha threw her hand out to her. Cait then lovingly took it in hers and shook it, sending Tasha into giggles again.

Finally releasing Tasha’s hand, Cait looked up at El. “Ready?” El asked.

Cait nodded and took El’s hand in hers. Walking towards the causeway, El and Cait looked back to wave at Piper, Shaun, and Tasha. Now, for a few days at least, they were free of kids and responsibilities. It was just them.

After a leisurely journey through the streets of downtown Boston, El and Cait finally arrived outside Goodneighbor. With all rules in Diamond City, El and Cait wanted to spend their honeymoon somewhere a bit freer and easier. “Great. Finally, here.” Cait said, letting out an exhausted sigh.

Looking over at Cait, El narrows her eyes. “Well, we would have got here a lot quicker if we hadn’t made out in that abandoned building along the way.”

“What can I say? I got horny.” Cait countered with a smug smile.

El rolled her eyes. “You’re always horny. Come on. Let’s get inside.”

As they stepped through the main gate, and walked into the main square, El took a slow, deep breath. The last time she was here, she had witnessed the mayor of Goodneighbor murder someone in from of her. At that time, El had still been relatively fresh in the Commonwealth. So, seeing a murder take place in front of her was a sobering experience. Thankfully, today, the square was quiet.

Passing through the square, El and Cait made their way towards the narrow alley running down alongside the old Boston customs house. Leaning against the wall, however, was a lone individual. His head was bowed, but El could have recognised that leather tricorne and red colonial frockcoat anywhere. In his lipless mouth, he held a lit cigarette from which he periodically blew out a cloud of smoke.

Upon noticing El and Cait approach, he took one last puff, removed the cigarette from his mouth, and flicked it into the street. Straightening himself up, he strolled across to meet them. “Well, well, well. If it ain’t the most beautiful vault dweller in the Commonwealth.” he greeted in his signature husky voice, tipping his cap down slightly.

“Mayor Hancock. Good to see you again.” El greeted back, giving him a cordial nod.

“No, no, no. Not Mayor Hancock. Just Hancock. Last time I checked you were a mayor as well as me.” Hancock insisted, holding his hand up at El. “Now, word is that you’re here on your honeymoon.” he then said with a ghoulish smile.

Unsure how Hancock knew that they were on their honeymoon, El frowned. “Who told you that we were on our honeymoon?”

Hancock stroked his chin and flashed El a cocky smile. “Let’s just say that my little birds are everywhere.”

El twisted her lips. Of course, Hancock had informants in Diamond City.

Turning towards Cait, Hancock raised his non-existent eyebrows in acute interest. “And who is this lovely lady who snagged the best prize in the Commonwealth?”

Stunned by the suave, almost slimy, attitude of Hancock, Cait found her lips slowly creeping up into a smile. “Cait.” she replied simply.

“Well, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ms Cait. You must have some real fire to have scored a prize as fine as this one.” he said, glancing at El. Taking Cait’s hand, Hancock then it to his chin and bowed deeply.

Cait’s smile only grew broader.

Returning to full height, Hancock dropped Cait’s hand and returned to talking to both women collectively. “Now, I would love to stay with you lovely ladies longer, but I have some…urgent business to attend to. Feel free to check into your room.”

“Our room?” El asked, incredibly confused by Hancock’s statement.

“Yeah, your room.” Hancock confirmed. “The Rexford’s best room has been prepared especially for you and your beautiful wife, courtesy of the town of Goodneighbor.”

El’s mouth dropped open. None of this was necessary. “I…I don’t know what to say.” she stuttered.

“All you say is yes, darling. We treat our guests well in our fair city. Much better than Diamond City treats outsiders for sure.” Hancock insisted.

El’s face remained stoic. Of course, Hancock was trying to make a point. However, seeing no reason to argue with this act of charity, El smiled and moved to shake Hancock’s bony hand. “Thank you, Hancock. Thank you so much.”

“It’s my pleasure.” Hancock nodded, shaking El’s hand. “Now, you two have fun. Gotta go. Duty calls.” With a wink, his doffed his cap and sauntered off inside the customs house.

Watching Hancock stroll away, El’s gaze fell on Cait. To her surprise, Cait had a broad and almost flirty smile plastered across her face. El just crossed her arms and waited for her to return to reality.

Finally, Cait clocked that El was staring at her. “What?’ she asked innocently.

“Don’t give me that, Cait.” El retorted. “I saw that smile. You got a thing for ghouls?”

Cait shrugged her shoulders but did not drop her smile. “I don’t… But…you know…if I ever wanted to go ghoul, he’d be the first I’d pick.”

El just rolled her eyes. “Come on. Let’s check in before you flirt with anyone else.”

Lacing up her boots, Cait stood up and looked in the mirror. She wasn’t sure about going out dressed like this. “El, do I really have to wear this?” she asked.

“No, you don’t have to. I just would really like you to wear it. You look so beautiful in it.” El answered with her back to Cait, carefully putting on a pair of earrings.

“But I’m gonna look silly!” Cait protested further, looking herself up and down in mirror.

Turning away from the mirrored hotel dressing table, El stood up and walked over to Cait. “Cait, the only person you need to impress is me. Nobody else matters. You look beautiful.”

In preparing for their honeymoon, El had persuaded Cait to bring her new dress with her. Much to Cait’s annoyance, El was now insisting that she wear it out tonight. “People are gonna look.” Cait then argued, staring up at El.

“Then let them look. People want what they can’t have; and anyway, there isn’t a single person in this town that you couldn’t beat to a pulp.” El reassured her.

Seeing the trust in El’s eyes, Cait chuckled. “Okay. If you say so.”

“That my girl!” El said happily. “Now, it’s your turn. How do I look?” she then asked, stepping away from Cait and placing her hands on her hips.

Cait observed El and her eyes widened. El was an absolute vision. She was wearing a sparkling red mid-thigh length dress that made her look like a star from those movies that she and El liked to watch. Alongside the dress, El’s face was made up and her hair was curled at the ends. Cait had to stop herself from visibly salivating.

Watching Cait’s gormless ogling, El waved a hand. “Cait?”

Shocked out of her dreamworld, Cait looked El up and down again and took a lustful, shuddering breath. “So fuckin’ hot.” she said breathlessly.

El just laughed. “I love your way with words.” she sniggered, resting her hands on Cait’s hips. However, as her gaze fell on Cait’s neck, a thought suddenly occurred to her and she turned away. “Oh shit! I completely forgot!” she exclaimed, collecting her backpack.

“Forgot what?” Cait asked, bemused by El’s cryptic statement.

Retrieving a small, hinged box from her backpack, El returned to Cait and presented it to her. “Just a little something to celebrate our wedding.”

“Our wedding?” Cait asked further, even more confused. “You already got me this dress.”

“This is more personal.” El clarified. “Open it.” she then said with a giddy expectant smile.

Cait opened the box and found a small silver chain leading down to a thick oval shaped pendant. Apart from the natural shine of the silver, there was no other decoration on the necklace. Cait wasn’t sure what to say.

Seeing Cait’s slightly unenthusiastic reaction, El tried to explain herself. “It’s a locket, Cait.” she clarified, taking the locket in her hands and opening it. “You can put photographs inside. Here, look.”

Cait looked inside the locket to find two small photographs on each of the two halves. On the left was a miniature of Shaun holding baby Tasha whilst they were staying in the Castle. On the right was a miniature profile of El. Cait remembered taking that picture that night in Diamond City, when she had first opened up to El. Now she understood why this was personal. El knew how much her family meant to Cait. Now, she could carry her family around wherever she went.

“Do you like it?” El eventually asked, worried that she had messed up her gift.

To El’s surprise, Cait wrapped her in a tight hug. “Yeah. I fuckin’ love it.” she responded happily.

Inwardly cheering, El hugged Cait back and smiled. Her gamble had paid off. “Turn around and I’ll put it around your neck.”

Turning to face the opposite direction, Cait moved her hair out of the way as El took the locket and clasped it around her neck. “There. See what you think.” El then said, pointing towards the dressing table behind her.

Cait walked over to the dressing table and sat herself down in front of the mirror. There she examined the locket around her neck from every possible angle. Cait couldn’t help but marvel at how slender it made her neck look. She suddenly felt really tall.

Standing behind her, El smiled as Cait looked at herself from every angle. What immediately struck her was how Cait now sat up straight, as oppose to her usual slouching position. It made Cait look very demure. “You really suit necklaces, Cait. You should wear them more often. They make you look very elegant.”

Cait chewed her lip; elegant was never a word she had heard to describe herself. Hiding a smile, Cait caught a glimpse of El in the mirror. It was then that she also remembered something important. “Shit!” she cursed, quickly getting up from her chair and rifling through her own backpack.

“Cait, what’s wrong?” El asked, wondering why Cait had changed so suddenly.

Frantically searching through her backpack, Cait becoming more panicked. “I fuckin’ forgot somethin’, like a fuckin’ idiot!”

“Back in Diamond City?” El quizzed further.

“No! I had it here somewhere. It-.” Cait’s face suddenly changed as she pulled out a small cloth bag. “Found it! Here. I was gonna give it to you a while ago, but there was a lot of shit goin’ on.”

“For me?” El frowned, taking the bag from Cait. “Cait, you didn’t have to.”

“It’s not much. it’s just…you done so much for me. I wanted to give you somethin’.” Cait explained, fiddling with the rings on her fingers.

El unlaced the bag and tipped the contents into her hand. What fell out was a thin gold chain with two gold rings hanging from it. Turning the rings over, El was struck by how familiar they looked. She had seen these rings before; she and Nate had worn these rings. “Cait… Are these…?”

Cait nodded. “Thought you might wanna wear them. It’s a shite gift, I know. I-I didn’t know what to do.”

Feeling a sudden rush of emotion, El wiped her eye. “No, Cait. I love them. I…I…It’s really thoughtful of you. Thank you so much.” she said, leaning into kiss Cait lovingly on the lips. Pulling away, El took the necklace in her fingers and unclasped it. “It seems we both have a thing for necklaces.” she chuckled as she clasped it around her neck.

As the necklace settled on El’s neck, the length of the chain became apparent. Almost immediately, the two rings dropped down to become firmly wedged in El’s cleavage. “Oh, I think the chain is a little long. Looks like their stuck in there.” she laughed, looking down her pronounced cleavage.

Cait was silent. Of course, her gift would have something wrong with it. Of course, the chain was too long.

Looking across at Cait, El could see that she looked nervous. “Come here you.” she smiled, opening her arms.

Not wishing to turn down such an invitation, Cait eagerly wrapped herself in El’s embrace. Cait could have stayed there forever; El was just so warm. “It’s really thoughtful of you Cait. I always knew, you know.”

“Knew what?” Cait asked, looking up at El.

“That, deep down, you’re a big softly.” El replied with a flirtatious smile.

Cait immediately scrunched her face up. “I’ll show you soft.” she retorted, playfully bringing a fist up to El’s face.

To Cait’s surprise, El grabbed her fist and pulled and her into a passionate kiss. Cait’s resistance instantly evaporated and she stood on her tiptoes to get as close to El’s lips as she could. “Can I buy you a drink?” El then enquired, pulling away from Cait’s delectable lips.

“You read my mind.” Cait answered, smiling mischievously.

“Well, let me get my shoes and we’ll head out.” Releasing Cait from her grip, El collected a small shoebox and sat down on the bed. Removing the lid, El pulled out a pair of black high heels. With a broad smile, El effortlessly slipped them onto her feet and buckled them around the top of her ankle. It felt so liberating to wear shoes like this again.

“El, you’re gonna break your fuckin’ ankle in those!” Cait exclaimed, her eyes widening at the size of the heels.

Getting back to her feet, El looked down at Cait and laughed. “I’ve had a lot of practice in these kinds of shoes, Cait. Shall we go?” she asked rhetorically, holding a hand out to her.

Despite almost having to crane her neck to look up at El, Cait nodded and happily took her hand.

The Third Rail was just every other watering hole in the Commonwealth, run down and full of scum. El did admit though that it was a slight step up from the Dugout Inn in Diamond City. At least The Third Rail had a live singer.

As they descended the steps and walked through to the bar, Cait felt increasingly uncomfortable in her new dress. Out of the corner of eyes, she could see everyone was staring at them. Cait was used to people staring at her, just never in when she was wearing something like this. “El, everyone’s starin’ at us.” she whispered to El as they approached the bar.

Standing tall, like the goddess she was, El was quick to reassure Cait. “Let them stare, Cait.” she whispered back, slipping her arm around Cait’s waist. “Remember, they want what they can’t have. Just imagine that nobody else is here.”

Cait nodded and took a deep breath. That was all she had to do; just imagine it was only her and El. That was all that mattered.

Before long, El and Cait were greeted by a rusting Mr Handy robot sporting a bowler hat and a British union flag sticker on its spherical body. “Evenin’ ladies. Name’s Whitechapel Charlie. What can I get for you?” the robot said in an almost comical English cockney accent.

It took everything in El’s power not to roll her eyes. Why did General Atomics have to give their ‘male’ service Mr Handys such cartoonish English accents? As the daughter of an English mother, El could never understand it. “Hi. We’ll have a beer and a Nuka Cola.” El eventually replied.

“Scratch that!” Cait interjected. “We’ll get a bottle of rum and a bottle of whiskey.”

“I like your style, lady. Comin’ right up.” Whitechapel Charlie replied before floating away.

With Whitechapel Charlie gone, El looked down at Cait in complete surprise. “Cait, what was that?’

“Its my honeymoon. I wanna enjoy it.” Cait answered, flashing El a smirk.

El suddenly felt a little uneasy. She was well aware of her shaky relationship with alcohol. This could only lead to trouble. “Cait, you know I’m a shit drinker.”

Cait just bit her lip suggestively. “Exactly.” she whispered mischievously.

El chewed her lip but accepted that she would just have to play along for as long as she could.

After a few moments, Whitechapel Charlie returned with two capped bottles and two tumblers in his robotic claws. “Here you go, ladies. Your tab has is on the house for the duration of your stay, courtesy of Mayor Hancock.” he voiced, placing the items on the bar in front of them.

Both El and Cait were completely dumbfounded. Was everything on their honeymoon going to be courtesy of Hancock? Either way, El and Cait weren’t going to turn down a free tab. “Thanks a lot.” El said happily as she and Cait took their respective bottles and tumblers.

Finding a quiet table towards the edge of the main hubbub, El and Cait sat down next to each other and each poured a drink out into their glasses. “Cheers!’ Cait exclaimed, raising her glass of whiskey.

“To us, and to Cait de Lancie!” El toasted in return, clinking Cait’s whiskey with her glass of rum. Initially, El was just going to take a sip. However, as she raised her glass to her lips, El saw Cait knock hers back in one gulp. Not wanting to disappoint her new wife on their honeymoon, El similarly knocked her drink back.

Cait couldn’t stop laughing as El began coughing from the strength of the rum. It tasted great but was way stronger than anything she was used to. This had the potential to be a very short evening. “Laugh away, Cait. You haven’t birthed two kids.” she quipped at Cait, placing her empty glass on the table.

Still laughing to herself, Cait poured her and El another drink and knocked it back easily. Still trying to keep up, El collected her own glass and gulped it back. “You’re gonna kill me at this rate.” El wheezed.

“Gotta start you off somehow.” Cait said smugly.

Placing her empty glass down on the table, El sat back and crossed her legs. “I never asked, Cait. What gave you the idea to take my name?” she asked curiously.

Cait’s cheeks went slightly red. “Urrm… Well…I always wanted to belong somewhere. When you let me into your family, I thought takin’ your name would help me belong.” she answered honestly.

El understood Cait’s desire to belong somewhere but wasn’t sure why that had to mean taking her name. “That’s very noble of you, Cait. But you don’t need my name to belong in our family. You’ve always been a part of our family.”

Cait’s breath hitched upon hearing El say ‘our’ family. It always amazed Cait when she thought about what she had been given by El. Sometimes she had to pinch herself to make sure it wasn’t just another one of the chem fuelled hallucinations that characterised her former life. “I know… I know. I just…like I said at our wedding, I never had a last name. Takin’ your name made me feel like I was part of somethin’.”

El couldn’t help but smile. When they first met, El could never have imagined that Cait would say something so thoughtful and mature. It really was testament to how far Cait had come, and how much more comfortable she was expressing her true feelings. Taking her bottle, El poured another drink and raised a joyful toast. “I’ll drink to that, Cait de Lancie.”

Pouring her own refill, Cait joined in El’s toast and chinked their glasses together. “Cait de Lancie?” Cait thought to herself. It had a nice ring to it.

The evening went almost exactly as El had expected. With a third of her bottle drained, El was beginning to lose her lucidity. Just like at the Castle, El was becoming more flirtatious in her attitude. Cait found the whole thing deeply amusing. “El, you doin’ alright?” she asked, trying not to laugh.

Smiling suggestively at Cait, El shifted her closer. “I’m great, babe.” she answered softly. “I’m just so happy.

“Happy about what?” Cait enquired, intrigued by what would come out of El’s mouth next.   

As steadily as she could, El leaned into kiss Cait gently on the cheek. “Happy that I have someone as sexy as you with me.”

Cait playfully rolled her eyes; El was getting pervy again. “You tryin’ your luck tonight?” she asked cheekily.

El was about to respond but became distracted by the Third Rail’s live singer finishing her set. Slowly gliding her way towards the bar, the singer noticed El staring up at her flirtatiously. “What’s the matter, beautiful? Don’t tell me you didn’t enjoy the song?” she asked in a sultry tone, flashing the same flirtatious smile to El.

“I loved the song. It was great.’ El replied, blinking the singer a glint of her hazel eyes. 

Sitting next to El, Cait’s mouth dropped open. What the fuck was El doing? “I think the song wasn’t the only thing you were enjoyin’!” she interjected loudly to get El and the singer’s attention.

“Oh, well, thank you! A girl tries her best.” The singer chuckled, amused by El and Cait’s comments. “Now, there’s something special about you, isn’t there? Don’t tell me. Let me guess. You’ve got the cocky smile of a gambler. I can relate. Lady luck is possibly my second favourite lover. So, what brings two women like you to my part of town?”

“We’re here on our honeymoon.” Cait quickly cut in. Passive aggressively, she then placed her hand on her knee, showing off the two rings on her finger.

Despite noticing Cait’s rings, and the serious tone in her voice, the singer was skilled enough to keep her guise up. “Well, congratulations, you two. I’ll leave you to your honeymoon. Have a fun evening. Hope to see you around sometime.”

“Goodnight.” El said, giving the singer a more genuine smile than before.

Flashing El and Cait a wink, the singer continued her journey and glided back towards the bar. With the singer gone, El looked over to find Cait staring at her, a jealous fire in her eyes. “What?’ El asked, oblivious to the cause Cait’s attitude.

“I saw that!” Cait spat. “I saw you flirtin’ with her. You gonna flirt with everyone on our honeymoon?”

El recoiled away, feeling herself sober up very quickly. “I wasn’t flirting, Cait. I was just saying hello.”

“Didn’t look like it. Looked like you were enjoyin’ yourself.” Cait accused venomously.

El’s mood suddenly hardened, and she prepared a retort. She was not going to take this lying down. “So, flashing looks and smiles at the mayor of Goodneighbor is alright then, is it?”

It was now Cait’s turn to recoil away. “That…That’s not the same. It…I…” in vain, Cait tried to counter El’s point and justify herself. She had just been staring at the mayor, not actively flirting with him. She…she…was doing exactly what El had just done with the singer.

“Cait, are you…jealous?” El eventually asked, watching Cait’s expression change to one of embarrassment.

Cait began to shrink away, gripping the material of her dress. Now that she understood that she was also in the wrong, and El was quizzing her about it, Cait began feeling terrifyingly uncomfortable in her fancy clothes. “N-No, no.” she stuttered, her face going red. “I just…just…” Eventually, Cait shrugged and sighed deeply. “This was meant to be our honeymoon. Our honeymoon. Like you said, just me and you. I didn’t want anyone to ruin it.”

El could tell that Cait was deeply ashamed and embarrassed. “Come here, babe.” she invited, bringing Cait into a tight hug. “I wasn’t trying to ruin tonight. I was just making conversation. I’m sorry if it came off like I was flirting. The alcohol was talking, not me.”

Leaning her head on El’s chest, Cait felt that she should also apologise for earlier in the day. “I’m sorry for doin’ that stuff with the mayor. I was bein’ a stupid idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot, Cait. it’s alright. Everyone does it from time to time. But let’s draw a line under it, okay? This is our honeymoon, alright?” El said, stroking her back as she looked down at her.

Finally letting a smile return, Cait nodded. “Okay.” she sniffed.

Looking towards the two bottles of booze in front of them, El had an idea to bring Cait’s fun side back. “Tell you what, Cait. Why don’t I take you, and these two bottles, back to the room, and I’ll make it up to you?”

Cait’s ears pricked at El’s proposal. Looking up at El, she could see that favourite glint in her hazel eyes. “Make it up to me, how?’ she asked innocently, with a hint of mischief in her voice.

“Well…” El leaned in close and whispered something in Cait’s ear.

Cait immediately frowned and pulled away, thinking she had misheard something. “You want me to what?”

“El, you can’t be fuckin’ serious about this?” El heard Cait say from behind her.

“I just want to see what it looks like on you. It’s way too small for me.” El replied, talking to the wall but periodically turning her head to catch a glimpse of Cait.

“Hey! Quit tryin’ to look, perv!” Cait voice exclaimed, chastising El for her wandering eyes.

El huffed, getting fed up with how long this was taking. “Well, please hurry up if you don’t want me to look.”

For the next few minutes, all El could hear was the sound of fabric rustling as Cait slipped out of her dress and pulled on a new outfit. El could hear Cait mumbling to herself as she picked up each piece of clothing. Cait clearly thought that El was being ridiculous.

Finally, the muffled sounds stopped. “Alright. I’m ready, you weirdo.” El heard Cait say.

“Have you got your axe?” El quizzed further, turning her head slightly in Cait’s direction.

Hearing the metallic scrape of Cait picking her axe off the floor, El interpreted that as a positive response. “Yeah, I’ve got my fuckin’ axe.” she then heard her say.

El turned around and her heart stopped. Standing in front of her, resting her axe on her shoulder, wearing the Grognak the Barbarian costume, was Cait. El was visibly salivating; Cait was pure sexuality. Across her body, the costume’s brown cropped chest piece left Cait’s pale round breasts almost spilling out of the outfit. Her new locket also extenuated Cait’s cleavage more than El even thought possible. Leading down past her toned flat stomach, the skimpy green loin cloth sat awkwardly around Cait’s curved hips; like one pull of the material would send the garment falling down her muscular legs. The Minutemen were right, Cait was the real Grognak.

Watching El stare at her vacuously, Cait awaited her verdict. “Well?” she asked insistently.  

Shocked out of her trance, El felt herself growing very warm inside. “You look…just…so…” El found that she was at a complete loss for words.

Playing into El’s gormless stuttering, Cait curled the corners of her mouth up into a flirtatious smile. “You like what you see?’ she asked, resting her weight on her right foot and bending her left leg slightly.

El felt a shiver crawl up her spine. She needed to remain calm before she lost it. This woman in front of her just looked so delectable. “Hold still! I’ll get my camera!” she then exclaimed, scrambling off the bed and collecting her camera from the bedside table. Peering through the viewfinder, El held her finger over the shutter. “Okay. Smile!” she called.

Maintaining her smile, Cait suggestively raised her eyebrow as El clicked the shutter.

Lowering her camera, El shifted uneasily on her the balls of her feet. She needed to keep her composure. “Turn to the side and I’ll get one from that angle.” she commanded, twizzling her finger around.

Pivoting on her right foot, Cait lowered her axe and turned her head to face El, making sure to keep her expression. Bringing the camera back up to her eye, El smiled as she clicked the shutter again.

Feeling even more ridiculous in this outfit than she did in her dress, Cait placed her free hand on her hip and cocked her head to one side. “Satisfied?’ she asked expectantly.

El was almost shaking by this point. She had to have her before it all got too much. Placing the camera back down on the bedside table, El took a deep breath and marched towards Cait, a lustful fire in her eyes.

Herself ready for El to take her there and then, Cait dropped her axe on the ground and took several small steps back. Wrapping her arms around her waist and just below her arse, El lifted Cait off the floor and began kissing her passionately on the lips. Reacting immediately to keep her hold, Cait wrapped her own legs around El’s waist and mashed her lips on El’s. Raking her fingers through El’s thick brown hair, Cait savoured the delicious taste of sweet rum on her wife’s lips.

Carrying her wife forward, El sat Cait on the dressing table and began to slowly lower her down. Within seconds, Cait was lying on the dressing table with El on top, kissing her incessantly. El was absolutely insatiable; she had to make love to her wife and show how much she loved her. Gripping Cait’s muscular thigh, El then began running her hand up towards what awaited between her legs. Feeling El’s soft hand slowly work its way up towards her crotch, Cait shivered as the heat inside her started to build.

However, when her finger finally made contact with Cait’s crotch, El abruptly stopped, and she pulled her lips away. “Cait, are you…not wearing underwear?” she frowned.

Her breath hitching as El’s thumb grazed her exposed clit, Cait did her best to answer. “No…” she replied, suppressing and ecstasy riddled giggle. “It’s my honeymoon.”

Cait’s response only confused El more. “Wait, so you weren’t wearing any in the bar?”

Cait just shook her head and bit her lip, slowly gyrating her hips to find El’s thumb. To Cait’s surprise, El mashed her lips on hers again and continued to kiss her with increased intensity.

Bringing her hand away from Cait’s already wet vagina, El gripped the bra piece of Cait’s costume and, with one pull, freed Cait’s pale breasts from their confinement. Cupping them softly in her hands, El kissed her way down Cait’s neck and buried her face between them. As El’s lips locked around her pink erect nipples, Cait gasped. Her nipples were so sensitive. “Fuck, El!” she whispered loudly, pressing El’s head deeper into her breasts.

El could not get enough, Cait’s breasts were so incredible. Caressing their soft pale flesh, El locked her lips around one of Cait’s erect nipples and proceeded to suck them. Immediately, Cait’s toes began to curl. The feel of El’s mouth on her nipples was just so intoxicating. Losing herself in ecstasy, Cait moaned loudly.

Suddenly, Cait jumped as El gently pinched her nipple between her teeth. “What the fuck, El?” El gasped breathlessly.

Lifting her head from Cait’s breasts, El sniggered to herself. “I just like sucking your nipples.” she said sultrily.

“You don’t have to bite them though.” Cait said, gripping El’s wrists and they continued to caress the soft milky flesh.

Smirking mischievously, El raised an eyebrow. “Well, what if I pinched them instead?” she asked, squeezing Cait’s nipple between her thumb and forefinger.

Almost on command, Cait yelled a high-pitched moan and her body jolted in shock. “Oh f-f-fuck!” she yelled, her spine arching backwards as the pleasurable feeling rippled through her body. “You…You gonna spend all night on my tits?” she then whispered, encouraging El to keep going.

“Maybe…” El replied, planting one last kiss between Cait’s delectable breasts. Finally releasing them from her grip, El continued her journey and softly kissed her way down Cait’s flat stomach, sending Cait’s into giggles with every kiss. It always lifted Cait’s heart to hear Cait giggle so childishly when she was tickled. It was a gift reserved only for El when they were alone together.

Reaching her destination, El got down on her knees and rested Cait’s toned thighs over her shoulders. With herself positioned comfortably, El moved away the piece of loin cloth covering her prize and she licked her lips. Beneath the material, Cait’s wet delectable pussy lay just waiting to be pleasured, the thick patch of flaming red hair around it just emanating lust. Hooking her arms around Cait’s thighs, El ran her nose through Cait’s wet hair, its intoxicating aroma of lust like a drug. Stroking Cait’s leg, El dived in and tasted her new wife.

As soon as El’s tongue made contact, Cait immediately gripped the dressing table and emitted a breathless moan. “El…Oh fuck, fuck, fuck.” she panted, squeezing her eyes shut. The feel of El’s tongue on her clit was the most amazing thing she had ever felt.

El was in heaven; her tongue just could not get enough of Cait’s pussy. When she licked one section of her slick folds, another soaked area would present itself and need equal attention. El was beginning to lose herself in the scent of her lover; every deep inhale was sending her into a lust fuelled delirium.

Luckily for El’s consciousness, mere minutes into her pleasuring session, Cait was starting to lose control. Cait could not explain it. The sheer cascade of emotions she had felt over the past weeks had built into an excess of arousal that was on the brink of exploding. The fact that El, the woman she loved more than anything, now her wife, was pleasuring her on a vacation purely about celebrating their marriage was too much for Cait to handle. Cait was ready to blow. “El, I…I…can’t…I’m gonna…gonna… Oh, FUCK, EL!”

Suddenly, the fire inside Cait’s core erupted and near boiling waves of pleasure washed over her. Clamping her thighs around El’s head, Cait dug her nails into the dressing table as she rode out her orgasm. As her body shook violently from the intensity of her orgasm, tears began to run down her face. This was a new sensation for Cait. Never had an orgasm been so intense that it brought on tears. With the hot ripples of pleasure slowly dissipating from her flushed body, Cait sobbed in complete euphoria.

Bringing her face away from Cait’s trembling pussy, El got back to her feet and pulled Cait back up to a sitting position. Despite seeing the tears streaming down Cait’s face, she could tell that, by the intensity of the orgasm, they were not sad. “You alright? How did that feel?’ she asked, stroking Cait’s hair.

Chuckling as her cheeks went bright red, Cait leaned to kiss El on the lips. She could taste herself on them. “Amazin’. I…I never cried from an orgasm before, at least not happy tears.” she shivered.

“I’m glad I could make you so good.” El smiled, gently pecking the end of Cait’s nose.

Her body still shaking from the emotions swirling through her body, Cait looked down with a hint of shame in her face. “S-Sorry I came so fast. Y-You got me so horny.” she stuttered.

El immediately raised Cait’s head and stared deep into her eyes. “Cait, sssh. No… We’ll have no shame tonight, okay.” she whispered seriously.

Cait nodded and tried to regain her composure. She couldn’t ruin their honeymoon night like this; she still had to get El undressed. “Why are you still dressed?” she then asked, her expression returning to its mischievous starting point.

Straightening herself to full height, standing between Cait’s splayed legs, El brought her hands behind her back and slowly unzipped the back of her dress. With the glint in her hazel eyes, bringing her hands back, El gripped the top of her dress and gradually pulled it down her body. Cait followed every inch of El’s body as she slowly lowered the dress to the floor.

Finally, with a light tug, the dress fell to the floor and El stepped out of it. Now free of their confinement, El’s enormous full breasts sat waiting to be touched, bouncing slightly as El moved back towards Cait. El smiled at the power her breasts had over her new wife. There was, however, a difference in the way Cait stared at her. After Tasha was born, El had noticed some changes in her body; her breasts were naturally bigger, her arse was bigger, her vaultsuit felt a little tighter. Cait had noticed these changes as well, and this reflected in the way she stared at her. Before El’s pregnancy, Cait stared at her like she was a beautiful, sexy woman. After El’s pregnancy, Cait seemed to stare at her like she was a three-course meal.

Clenching her fists, Cait sat gawking longingly at El’s breasts. She needed them so much. The last rays of El’s post-pregnancy glow meant that El appeared to just ooze sexuality; her full milk laden breasts, with their brown post-natal nipples, just longing to be suckled. Cait desperately wanted them but didn’t know how to ask without sounding needy or childish.

Happily, for Cait, El seemed to understand what Cait wanted. Taking a few steps back, El extended a hand to her. “Come to bed.” she commanded tenderly.

Chewing her lip, Cait remained silent as she attempted to work out what she meant by that. Did this mean El was allowing her to do what she wanted. Watching El expectantly, Cait saw El give an approving nod.

Within seconds, Cait had kicked off her boots, shimmied off her outfit, and taken El’s hand. Leading the way, El climbed onto the bed and sat with her back against the headboard. Cait then climbed into El’s lap so was almost being cradled. Tentatively, Cait looked up at El, silently enquiring whether El was comfortable. With another approving nod from El, Cait lowered her mouth onto one of El’s delectable breasts, clamped her lips around its nipple, and proceeded to suckle.

As Cait began to suckle at her breast, El let out a low moan; the sensation sending small pleasurable ripples around her body with every suck. Smiling lovingly, El looked down at her beautiful wife and stroked her soft red hair. El was still unsure about this fetish of Cait’s, but she understood how experiences in her past could make her behave in this way. Having spent her life starved of every kind of love and affection, El, as her new wife, could at least give her this to make her safe and happy.

For a good long while, El stayed on the bed with Cait silently nursing at her breast. No words needed to be said. All El had to do was hold Cait close and continue stroking her hair. In her arms, Cait sat cradled, her eyes closed as she suckled the sweet, delicious milk from her lover’s breast. Cait had never tasted anything so sweet in her life.

Eventually, Cait appeared to have drained the majority of milk from El’s breast and she reluctantly opened her eyes and detached her lips from her nipple. “Had enough?” El asked, giving Cait a small nudge.

Resting her head on El’s chest, Cait nodded and smiled happily. “Thank you.” she whispered, savouring El’s warmth.

“You done for the night?” El then asked, thinking that Cait was close to falling asleep.

Cait’s head immediately darted up and she opened her eyes wide. “No, no. I wanna keep goin’.”

“You don’t have to, Cait. We have a few days here.” El tried to argue, not wanting Cait to feel like she was being forced.

Cait just shook her head. “No. I…I wanna taste you proper. Just…lie back.”

Following Cait’s orders, El adjusted herself, so she was lying back on the bed. Cait then straddled El’s waist and lowered herself down to kiss her way down to what awaited her. Beginning at El’s neck, Cait slowly kissed her way down between her breasts, down her stomach, and towards her core. Reaching between El’s legs, Cait found that El’s underwear was soaking wet, with a strong smell of arousal emanating from them. Hooking her fingers around them, Cait gracefully pulled them down El’s legs and discarded them on the floor.

Spreading El’s legs, Cait licked her lips at what awaited her. Below a vibrant patch of brown hair, El’s pussy lay dripping for Cait’s attention. Lowering herself onto her stomach, Cait inhaled El’s scent and hummed contently. El smelt so good. Remembering one of her favourite activities, Cait then gently ran her fingers through the patch of hair above El’s pussy. Right on cue, El let out a giggle and attempted to close her legs. “Stop it, Cait.” El laughed playfully. “You know I’m ticklish there.”

“Why don’t you get rid of it then?” Cait asked, continuing to stroke El’s bush.

El had use all her brain power to not laugh. “B-Because, I like it.”

Cait smirked and removed her hand from El’s hair. Cait was done with teasing, now was her time to make her wife happy. Taking a deep breath, Cait gripped El’s thighs and dived between El’s legs.

El immediately gasped as Cait’s rough tongue pummelled her sensitive clit. Whilst it had taken some getting used to at first, El had grown to adore Cait’s rougher take on oral pleasure. Kneading her heaving breasts, El threw her head back and moaned happily as the pressure quickly built inside her. “Oh, yes, Cait. Just like that…” El moaned breathlessly.

Cait hummed happily as she tasted the essence of her lover. El’s pussy was so deliciously wet. The sweet nectar it secreted was like a drug and Cait could not get enough. With every lick, the cycle would continue as Cait found another delectable area that required her attention. The scent emanating from between El’s legs was also intoxicating for Cait. The strength of El’s pheromones was enough to send Cait into hallucinations. If Cait continued like this, she wouldn’t have been surprised if she passed out.

Then, as she pinched her swollen nipple between her fingers, El could feel the pressure inside her boiling over. She had been so caught in Cait’s pleasure that she had lost all control. Gripping the bed as best she could, El gritted her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut. “C-Cait, I… Oh god! I can’t…hold it…any…” El tried to gasp but could not finish.

Like a warm tidal wave, El’s was engulfed in euphoria as she rode out her first orgasm of the evening. Shuddering as violent palpitations jolted her up and down, El could feel her eyes slowly rolling back. The whole experience was enthralling and El smiled deviously as the euphoric heat warmed her glowing body. “Oh, Cait. That was wonderful.” she said breathlessly, her chest rising and falling as the last waves of pleasure ebbed away.

Rising her meet El face to face, Cait kissed her on the lips, and she chuckled. Seeing El this happy always made Cait smile, especially when it was brought on from pleasuring her. “I like tastin’ you.” she said devilishly, their noses literally millimetres apart.

El sighed happily, running her hand up Cait’s thigh. “I do taste nice, if I do say so myself.” she quipped with a smug smirk.

“Come on then!” Cait then called, adjusting herself so she was once again straddling El’s waist. “Your turn next.” The lustful fire in her eyes seemed to have only intensified.

Still recovering from the intensity of her orgasm, El wiped the sweat from her forehead and sighed. “Can you just give me a few minutes, Cait. What you did to me was really intense.”

“You…You don’t have to do anythin’ if you don’t want to.” Cait replied, twisting the rings on her fingers.

Frowning, El dropped her hand. “What do you mean?’ she asked.

Cait, however, was already moving into position. “Just keep lyin’ there.” Getting onto her hands and knees, Cait crawled up El’s body and positioned and herself so she was crouched above El’s face. “I want you to touch me again.” she said, gripping the bed’s headboard for support.

Understanding now what she was implying, El hooked her arms around Cait’s thigh and began to bring her closer. “Don’t suffocate me, alright.” 

Nodding, Cait slowly lowered herself onto El’s face and, oh gods, that felt good. Digging her nails into the wooden headboard, Cait moaned loudly as El licked her way up and down her saturated vagina. With every lick, Cait shivered as heat once again built up in her core. She was determined to last longer this time, but had said that so many times before.

Beneath Cait, El engrossed herself in the delectable folds of Cait’s pussy. Once she had regulated her breathing to account for Cait literally being on top of her, El was able to give the same level of pleasure as she had done earlier. Inhaling Cait’s intoxicating scent through her nostrils, El decided to go one step further and slipped her tongue inside Cait’s pussy.

As soon as El’s tongue entered her pussy, Cait screamed and scraped her nails even deeper into the wooden headboard. “FUCK, EL!” she called, moaning as she spoke. With El’s tongue so far inside her, every tiny movement sent a pleasurable jolt through her body. Cait didn’t care for controlling herself now, she needed to cum.

Removing her right hand from the headboard, Cait brought it down to her pussy and began to roughly knead her clit. Closing her eyes, Cait prepared herself for what was coming. Like a volcanic eruption, Cait shook as ripples of pleasure shot around her body. Beneath her, El continued to work her tongue inside her pussy as Cait’s thighs clamped around her head. Cait could feel herself losing all control.

Such was the intensity of her orgasm that Cait suddenly found herself falling backwards. Landing on the bed, facing up at the ceiling, Cait’s body contorted from the pleasurable waves reverberating around her body. With every jolt of her body, Cait let out a high-pitched moan that she couldn’t control. What had El done to her?

Finally feeling that her energy had returned, El sat up and collected a still shaking Cait in her arms. Holding her close, El rocked her as she rode out the last waves of her orgasm. Soon, Cait’s breathing had returned to normal, and her cheeks were bright red. “That feel good?’ she asked, stroking Cait’s back.

Cait nodded and tried to supress a giggle. “Really fuckin’ good. Didn’t know you were gonna stick your tongue inside me.”

El chuckled. “I like surprises.”

“I know you do. That was a good one.” Cait smiled, resting her forehead on El’s. “My turn now. Tell me what you want me to do.”

Normally, El would have argued that Cait did not have to keep pleasuring her. Cait did not need to keep having to repay her debts, even if they were orgasms. Tonight, however, El had something particular that she wanted done. “I want you to do that thing, Cait.” she answered softly.

“What thing?” Cait asked, having no idea what El was referring to.

“That night, when I was pregnant, you did that thing where you…” El did not finish her sentence, hoping that Cait would understand.

Luckily, Cait knew exactly what El meant. “Okay… Lie back.” she said, gently pushing El down onto her pillow.

As El’s head hit the pillow, Cait straddled her muscular thigh and gripped El’s undrained breast in her hand. Licking her lips, Cait lowered her lips onto El’s breast and proceeded to suckle. At the same time, Cait then lowered herself onto El’s thigh and slipped two fingers into El’s slick pussy. Working both herself and El at the same time, Cait was the master of this position and she watched as El’s expression change.

Feeling Cait’s lips around her nipple, and her fingers probing inside her pussy, El threw her head back and moaned loudly. The last time Cait had done this to her, she had almost cried with pleasure. In the back of her bed, El hoped that, even without the pregnancy hormones, tonight was the night that she broke that barrier. “Yes, Cait… J-Just like that… Oh fuck!” she rasped, basking in her pleasure.

Unbeknownst to El, Cait was already planning on giving El what she wanted. As El had made her weep with pleasure that evening, she was determined to return the favour. Happily, with no baby bump in the way, her job was a lot easier. Gyrating her hips up and down El’s thigh and working her fingers in and out of El’s pussy, Cait was waiting for the right moment to strike.

El was beginning to lose control. The intensity of Cait’s movements on her pussy and breasts were becoming too much. Gripping Cait’s wrist tightly, El tried to speak. “I…I’m…s-so c-c-close, Cait.” she whispered, unable to say anything louder.

Just like before, Cait then abruptly detached herself from El’s breast and mashed her lips on hers. At the same time, her fingers still remained inside El’s pussy. Cupping Cait’s face in her hand, El eagerly awaited what was coming next. However, whilst El could feel herself boiling over, she wasn’t convinced that this was enough to break the fabled barrier.

Then suddenly, and to El’s shock, Cait slipped a third finger into El’s pussy. Instantly, El was consumed by a wave of pleasure so intense that she could feel tears oozing out of her closed eyes. With her lips still mashed against Cait’s, all El could was whimper pitifully as her body shook uncontrollably. El could not believe it, she had broken the barrier.

Finally removing her lips from El’s Cait looked down at her as they caught their breath. “That any good?” she asked, noticing the tears streaming down El’s face.

Sobbing with joy at the intensity of what she had just undergone, El couldn’t stop laughing. “Yes, Cait. It was amazing. I’ve…I’ve never felt anything like that before.” she wept, wiping her eyes with a broad smile across her face.

Resting her chin on El’s sternum, Cait smiled mischievously at her work. Even she couldn’t quite believe that she had brought El to tears of joy from her handiwork. If Cait could make El this happy, then she could hopefully do anything. “Glad you liked it.” Noticing her fingers still soaked with El’s arousal, Cait devilishly liked them clean and hugged Cait tightly.

With her senses sufficiently returned to normal, El sat herself up on the bed and brought Cait in close. “Thank you, Cait. You are a lot of things, but a great shag is near the top of the list.”

Cait chuckled, nestled on El’s breasts. “Thanks. You’re a great shag too.” she replied, curling herself up into El’s embrace.

“Do you think we woke everyone up?” El then asked jokily, looking around their room.

Cait giggled at the prospect of the other hotel guests being kept awake by their shagging. “I don’t care.” she laughed.

El chuckled. She didn’t care either.

They sat there in complete silence wrapped in each other’s shared warmth, neither woman wanting to say anything. No words needed to be said. Looking down at Cait, El smiled at how comfortable her new wife was nestled in her embrace, her left hand prominently displaying the rings she had given her. Squeezing Cait tight, El kissed Cait’s forehead and then rested hers on top.

Cait could have stayed like that forever. El’s body was just so warm and comfortable. However, even after a night of milk and pussy, Cait’s throat was incredibly dry. Raising her head, Cait quietly looked around for her bottle of whiskey. “What you looking for, Cait?’ El asked.

Without answering, Cait reached across and collected her open bottle of whiskey from her bedside table. Taking a long swig, Cait sighed contentedly. “I was gettin’ thirsty.” she replied, clearing her throat.

“That’s not bad idea. I’m pretty thirsty too.” El said, looking for her own bottle. “Where did my bottle go?” she then asked, narrowing her eyes.

“It’s on the dressin’ table over there.” Cait pointed.

Gently easing herself out of bed, El sauntered over to dressing table, her round arse swaying from side to side as she walked, and collected her bottle. As she made her way back to bed, she stopped dead in her tracks. Now finally seeing Cait reclined on the bed in front of her, quietly sipping her whiskey, El could feel the heat returning to her body.

Placing her bottle back on her bedside table, Cait sat herself in a sitting position. “El, you alright?’ she asked, wondering why El had stopped so suddenly.

Before Cait knew what was happening, El raised the bottle of rum to her lips and took four enormous gulps. Cait’s eyes widened as she watched El down the huge swigs of rum. She couldn’t help but feel aroused by it.

Removing the bottle from the lips, El then slammed the it down on her bedside table, pushed Cait back onto the pillows, and climbed on top of her. “El, what are you doin?” Cait gasped as El straddled her.

“Who said I was done for the night.” she answered simply, kissing the bottom of Cait’s neck.

Cait giggled devilishly and then yelled as two of El’s fingers slid into her pussy. Wrapping her arms around El’s neck, Cait kissed her wife on the lips and, feeling the pressure build again, prepared herself for the next round.

Chapter Text

As the public announcement area slowly filled with Diamond City’s residents, Piper quietly stood to the side, wondering whether they would ever appear. Absentmindedly, Piper flicked her pencil between her fingers and prepared her notepad.

Eventually, seeing a shadow approaching, Piper looked up to find El, Cait, Shaun, and Tasha walking towards them. “Blue! You’re finally here. The crowd’s getting restless.”

Attempting to stop Tasha pulling her hair, El chuckled. “I’m sure they could have waited a little longer. It’s only me they’re seeing.”

“And is that not a good reason?” Piper asked, cocking her head to one side and crossing her arms.

El’s cheeks went a little red, clearly a little embarrassed by Piper’s comment. “I…I Wouldn’t know. Is it?”

Piper just laughed. “Of course, it is, Blue! Now get up there, make your damn speech, and give me that little cupcake!” she commanded as she took Tasha into her arms.

Looking up at the stage, El let out a low sigh. Why did she have to do this? After weeks of avid negotiations and organisation, El and the Diamond City council had finally managed to put together a free and fair election. As the sitting mayor, El’s name was automatically entered into contention. In a result that completely surprised her, El was elected almost unanimously; the only naysayers coming from the snotty tier residents. Much to El’s chagrin, the council had then insisted on a public swearing in ceremony. Swallowing hard, El turned to Cait and kissed her on the lips. “I’ll see you in a bit.” she smiled.

Trying not to blush too much in front of so many people, Cait glanced down. She would not admit it, but she was proud of El’s achievements. Even in her days as interim mayor, El appeared to simply revel in leadership roles. It seemed another link in the chain of amazing things her wife could do. “Good luck, babe.” she finally said, smiling up at her happily.

Getting down on one knee, El then put her arm around Shaun’s shoulders. “Now, Shaun, I want you to stay with Cait and Piper while I’m up there, alright?” she asked, pointing towards the stage.

Looking to where El was pointing, Shaun nodded. “Okay, mom. Good luck. I love you.”

“I love you too.” El replied, pulling Shaun into a tight hug. Pulling away, El got back to her feet and patted him on the back. With a final smile to Cait, Piper, and Tasha, El slowly walked off towards the stage.

With El gone, Piper walked up to stand next to Cait. “How you doing, Cait? You keeping okay?” she asked, attempting to strike up a conversation.

“Fine. Fine. Just happy for El and everythin’.” Cait answered, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with having to engage in small talk.

Observing Cait’s discomfort at engaging in small talk, Piper tried her best to keep the conversation going. “Yeah, I have to agree with that. Finally, we have someone in that office with brains… and how are things at home? You ready to move into the mayor’s pad?”

“Things are okay.” Cait answered before shaking her head. “We’re not movin’ into the mayor’s pad. El doesn’t want to. She wants to keep her work away from home.”

Piper raised her eyebrows, almost surprised at Cait’s answer. “Oh…right…”

Noticing Piper’s stunned reaction, Cait glanced over at her. “What? I thought El told you.”

“Now, she didn’t.” Piper said, chewing her lip. “That must be a bit if a squeeze for you if you’re gonna stay in Home Plate.”

“We’re lookin’ to expand the house a bit. We wanna add an extra level to the whole house. Then the kids will get their own rooms.” Cait clarified, fidgeting with the rings on her fingers.

Feeling that Cait had divulged a lot more than she wanted, Piper decided to change the subject. “How are things with you, Shaun?” she asked, looking down at him.

Shaun smiled as he looked up at Piper. “Things are good, thanks Piper.” He replied happily.

“What do you think of your mom being mayor?” Piper enquired further.

“It’s really cool!” Shaun answered giddily. “She keeps saying it’s just a job, but I know she likes it.”

Piper chuckled. It seemed that both her and Shaun knew when El was in denial. “And how things at school?”

“Really good. Math is boring. But everything else is fun.” Shaun answered.

Piper chuckled again, amused by Shaun’s comments about math. That was certainly something she could agree with. Looking ahead to the stage, Piper adjusted Tasha in her arms and whispered in her ear. “Hey, look. It’s starting, Tasha. Look up there. It’s your mom.” she said softly, pointing ahead.

Turing her head toward where Piper was pointing, Tasha put her hand out and waved at El.

Approaching the edge of the stage, El was happy to find Jake waiting for her. So much had happened since that fateful morning where he had offered El the job of interim mayor. Now, she was doing the real thing, with a crushing mandate. “Morning, madam mayor.” he greeted.

“Good morning.” El replied. “Quite the crowd today.”

Looking out towards the assembled crowd, Jake smiled. “It certainly is. Don’t think I’ve seen and inaugural crowd quite like it for a while. You clearly have a lot to offer them.”

El sighed quietly, not fully convinced by Jake’s assessment. It was still difficult for her to understand how she had been elected so overwhelmingly. She had not stood for any policy; just somebody who would get the job done. “Is everything ready?” she eventually asked, returning from her thoughts.

“Yes, ma’am. We wait on you when you’re ready.” Jake answered.

Taking a deep breath, El nodded. “Alright, I’m ready.”

Smiling, Jake began ascending the steps to the stage. “Follow me then, and we will administer the oath.”

Following Jake up the stairs, the crowd began to quieten as she walked to the podium. Upon reaching the podium Jake addressed them. “People of Diamond City, thank you for coming today. We shall administer the oath of office.”

Looking out at the audience, El heart lifted as her gaze fell on Piper pointing towards her, holding a waving Tasha. Next to them, Shaun watched excitedly whilst Cait observed with a reserved, but proud smile on her face. Smiling back, El felt a sudden wave of emotion wash over her. That was her family and friends watching her. All this was for them.

Turning to face El, Jake began the ceremony. “Ma’am, if you would please raise your right hand.

Straightening herself, El obediently raised her right hand.

“Now repeat after me.” Jake continued. “I, Eloise Charlotte de Lancie, do solemnly swear…”

“I, Eloise Charlotte de Lancie, do solemnly swear…” El repeated.  

“That I will faithfully execute the office of Mayor of Diamond City…”

“That I will faithfully execute the office of Mayor of Diamond City…” El repeated further, taking slow calculating breaths.

“And will to the best of my ability…” Jake continued.

“And will to the best of my ability…”

“Preserve, protect, and defend the people of Diamond City…”

Glancing out at the crowd, El swallowed hard. “Preserve, protect, and defend the people of Diamond City.”

With a congratulating smile, Jake nodded to El. “It is done. Congratulation, madam mayor.” he said, extending a hand to her.

Shaking Jake’s hand, El smiled happily. “Thank you… Thank you so much.”

Around them, the assembled crowd erupted in applause as their new mayor was officially sworn in. Gazing out into the throng of people, El smiled as her family and friends cheered and clapped jubilantly. Even Cait’s reserved smile had broadened until it was beaming with happiness. Seeing Cait this overjoyed at what she had achieved was enough to her make her blush.

As the applause slowly died away, Jake stepped away and left El free to approach the podium. Gripping the podium, El stared out at the expectant gathering and pulled the scribbled notes of her speech out of her coat pocket. “Good people of Diamond City. Thank you for coming out today to witness my inauguration as mayor.” She greeted, getting the crowds attention. “I won't bore you with speeches about policy and values. I’m sure you all know that is all used to hide the true reasons why people actively run to office.”

Glancing down at her speech, El twisted her lips. This was turning into a speech she did not want to make, all waffle and no substance. “I will be frank with you all. The Commonwealth may be a lot safer now that the Institute is gone, but that does not mean there won’t be any threats in the future. But, as your mayor, I shall endeavour to spend every day of my term ensuring that you and this city are protected… Thank you…”

As El stepped away from the podium, the crowd once again erupted into a more reserved round of applause. Perhaps they were expecting more of a patriotic kind of speech. None of that mattered to El. This was just a job as far as she was concerned. Collecting her speech notes, El turned and walked off the stage.

Reaching the others, El made straight for Cait and put her arm around her waist. Responding immediately, Cait wrapped El in a tight hug. “Well done, babe.” Cait praised.

“Thanks, Cait.” El smiled, returning the hug.

Pulling away, El was then greeted by Piper and Tasha. “Wow, Blue! That was one hell of a speech. You don’t mince your words.” Piper quipped.

Chuckling at Piper’s comment, El smiled. “Well, I’m no politician. How was Tasha?” she then asked, taking Tasha’s hand.

“Oh, she was good as gold. She’s very proud of her mom. Aren’t you, cupcake?” she replied, bobbing Tasha up and down. Blushing and smiling bashfully, Tasha shook El’s hand.

“What did you think, Shaun?” El then asked Shaun as she put her hand on his shoulder.

“It was great, mom. You were so cool.” Shaun answered. Hugging El tightly.

Patting Shaun on the back, El bent down and kissed the top of his head. “Thanks, Shaun… Now, what would you all say to a drink with your new mayor?”

At that invitation, both Cait and Piper stood to attention. “It’s an aye from me.” Piper responded.

Turning her head to Cait, El saw a slightly mischievous smile across her lips. “Count me in.” Cait answered, chewing her lip.

“Well then, let’s get out of here. Drinks are on me.” El smiled, leading Cait, Piper, Shaun, and Tasha away towards the Dugout Inn. They had just passed Doctor Sun’s surgical centre when El heard a deeply familiar sound coming towards them. Recognising the sound of the bark, El glanced around to find where it was coming from.

Then, looking in the direction of the causeway, El’s mouth dropped open as she saw Dogmeat running towards them. completely dumbfounded by what she was seeing, El dropped to her knees and opened her arms. “Hey boy! What are you doing here? Did you come here all the way from Sanctuary?” El asked joyfully as she hugged and ruffled his fur.

Rearing up, Dogmeat responded by licking El’s face over and over. El could not stop laughing as she got back to her feet. Pattering past El, Dogmeat then reared up to meet Cait. “Hey, mut! Good to see you. You’ve come a long fuckin’ way!” she laughed, stroking Dogmeat’s ears.

Between Cait and Piper, Shaun stood nervously as the huge dog reared up at his parents, demanding attention. Noticing this, El approached him and attempted to usher him forward. “It’s alright, Shaun. He doesn’t bite. This is Dogmeat. He’s my oldest friend in the Commonwealth.” she reassured, trying to set Shaun’s mind at ease.

“Discounting people, obviously.” Piper interjected with a smirk.

Following El’s encouragement, Shaun tentatively reached out to touch Dogmeat’ fur. Pattering towards him, Dogmeat craned his neck to sniff Shaun’s hand. Perhaps it was his scent seeming familiar to El’s, but Dogmeat soon raised his head and began licking Shaun’s face. Shaun could not stop laughing as he stroked and ruffled Dogmeat’s fur. “Hahaha! He’s so cute.” he laughed.

Smiling happily, El put her hand on Shaun’s back and took Cait’s hand in hers. “Come on guys. Those drinks won’t pour themselves.”

As she waited for El to return home from her day at the office, Cait reclined on the sofa and slowly let her eyes close. It seemed that sleeping was the only thing she could do on the days El took Tasha to work with her, besides taking Shaun’s to and from school. She was so fucking bored. “Cait?” she heard a voice ask next to her.

Opening her eyes, Cait saw Shaun standing next to her, a thin bundle of papers in his hands. Blinking her eyes open, Cait sat up. “What’s up?” she asked, clearing her throat.

Glancing down at the sheets of paper in his hands, Shaun slowly brought them out to show Cait. “I just finished my homework and wondered if you could read through it for me?”

Cait’s eyes widened as she stared at the papers in Shaun’s hands. What would she tell him? She could not embarrass both of them by telling him outright, but she also could not lie her way out of this. eventually, Cait took the papers and held them uneasily in her hands.

Sitting down next to Cait, Shaun looked on expectantly for her to give a praising response. “We had to write it about something we love. I wrote mine about my family. I’m going to present it to my class tomorrow.”

Cait stared at the papers, completely befuddled. All she could see were lines of squiggles and weird shapes. She couldn’t make out any of it except what she thought looked like her name on a few lines. “Urrr… Yeah. It’s fine.” she stuttered, attempting to give the papers back to Shaun.

“You didn’t even read it.” Shaun frowned, wondering why Cait had so quickly tried to give the papers back to him.

“Yeah, I did. It’s fine.” Cait replied hastily in a feeble attempt to change the subject.

“No, you didn’t.” Shaun continued to argue. “You barely looked at the first page.”

Cait was getting frustrated. Like an idiot, she had backed herself into a corner and was unable to find a dignified exit. “Look, just wait till El gets home. She can read it for you.” she spat, clenching her fists to keep herself calm.

“But I want you to read it. Don’t… don’t you want to read it?’ Shaun asked, sadness creeping across his face.

Cait chew her lip. There was no way out of this. she would have to say something. “I…I do wanna read it. I just…can’t…”

Shaun frowned again, confused by what Cait had just said. “You can’t…what?”

Cait nervously twisted her wedding ring around her finger, feeling completely embarrassed by the entire situation. Finally, Shaun understood. “You can’t…read?”

Cait just lowered her head in shame.

“But… Why can’t you read? Everyone knows how to read.” Shaun then asked, still not understanding Cait.

Feeling paralytically uncomfortable, Cait rubbed her shoulder. “I just…can’t… I never learned.”

“But did you go to school?” Shaun continued to ask.

Cait was close to panicking. “W-Wasn’t allowed.” she mumbled.

Shaun watched Cait silently, then looked down at his sheets of paper. Having such an enclosed upbringing had left Shaun very much a novice to the ways of the Commonwealth. Never once had he thought that certain people might not have the same opportunities as him. “I’m sorry, Cait.” he finally said apologetically.

“It’s…It’s okay, Shaun. You…You didn’t know.” Cait replied, attempting a feeble smile. It wasn’t his fault.

They stayed there in an awkward silence for what felt like an eternity. Both Cait and Shaun were too embarrassed to know what to say. Clutching his papers to his chest, Shaun wondered how he could make this better. That was what mom was always able to do. Finally, he struck on a brilliant idea. “Why don’t I teach you?” he asked, smiling proudly. This is what mom would do.

Looking up at Shaun, Cait frowned. “What? No, you don’t need to teach me. I don’t need to read. El does all that stuff anyway.”

“But what if I want you to read stuff for me?” Shaun continued to ask, confused about why Cait was refusing his offer.

Cait sighed, beginning to get frustrated by Shaun’s continuous prying. She didn’t need another reason to feel inadequate in this family. “You can get El to read stuff for you. Look, I know you’re just tryin’ to help, but you don’t need to teach me to read. It’s too late for me anyway.” Fidgeting with her rings, Cait lowered her head again.

“Please…” Shaun begged, taking a step forward.

Noticing Shaun come closer, Cait looked up and stared deep into his big brown eyes. Now she found it difficult to say no; he looked so much like El. All he wanted to do was help her and she was throwing it back in his face. Maybe, if it would make him happy, then, maybe, she could indulge it. That was what raising a child involved, wasn’t it? Eventually, after much soul searching, Cait nodded her head. “…Okay…” she whispered.

Shaun’s face immediately lit up. “Really? Thank you, Cait!” he exclaimed joyfully as he hugged Cait.

Retuning the hug as best she could, Cait was not overly enthused. “Just…don’t tell El, okay? I don’t want her to worry.”

“O-Okay.” Shaun replied as he pulled away. “C-Can we start now?”

Sucking her lip, Cait nodded.

Within seconds, Shaun had run off to find a notebook and pencil to start their lesson. Cait could only sit nervously on the sofa. She didn’t want to do this. As far as she was concerned, she was passed the point of no return when it came to learning. What possible difference could this make to her life?

Soon, Shaun returned with a notepad and pencils and sat down next to Cait. “Okay. I’m gonna teach you the letters of the alphabet.” He instructed, beginning to scribble on the paper.

Despite already feeling inadequate for what lay ahead, Cait took a deep breath and began her first lesson.

Cait was getting angry. She had been sitting with Shaun almost every day as he attempted to teach her to read and write. However, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t work it out. Cait couldn’t understand what was wrong. Whatever it was, Shaun’s teaching was not sinking in. But, despite her feelings of anger at her own ineptitude, Cait was trying her best to stay calm. She didn’t want to get angry at Shaun when he was only trying to help her. However, with very spelling mistake and every wrong pronoun, her patience was wearing incredibly thin.

“No, Cait. you’ve used the wrong word. You spelled it T-H-E-R-E. You need to spell it T-H-E-I-R.” Shaun said, pointing at the page on Cait’s lap.

Beginning to tense up, Cait frowned. “Why? It’s the same word.” she questioned.

“I know it is. But you have to write it differently.” Shaun repeated, still not making any sense.

Cait only got angrier. “But, why?”

“It’s cause you’re writing about a person. You spell it like that if it’s a place.” Shaun attempted to clarify, pointing at Cait’s spelling.

In an effort to appear like she understood him, Cait nodded her head and attempted to correct her mistake. Scribbling out the word, Cait slowly rewrote the word the correct way. With every stroke of her pencil, Cait glanced over at her alphabet chart and quietly mouthed the letters to herself as she wrote.

Then, just as she had corrected her mistake, Shaun leaned in and pointed at Cait’s writing. “That’s not how you write an R, silly.” he laughed, trying to make the mistake seem like a joke.

Unable to take it any longer, Cait finally snapped. Yelling loudly, Cait scrunched the notepad up in her hands and hurled it violently across the room. Not satisfied with simply throwing the notepad, Cait stood up and kicked over the coffee table in front of her. "I've had enough of this fuckin' shit!" she shouted.

Terrified by Cait’s sudden change of behaviour, Shaun immediately cowered behind the side of the sofa. Why was Cait acting this way?

Happily, for Shaun, Cait quickly made for the door. Pushing over El’s armchair in the process, Cait wrenched the door open and slammed it behind her.

Once Cait had left, Shaun finally felt safe enough to cry. He couldn’t understand why she had reacted like that. He was only correcting a tiny mistake. Curling himself up against the wall, Shaun buried his face in his knees and sobbed.

“Is there anything else I can do for you, madam mayor?” El heard a voice ask from across the room.

Looking up from her work, El saw Geneva standing in the doorway, a handbag over her shoulder. “No, thank you, Geneva. Feel free to head off. I’ll be leaving soon anyway.” she answered.

“Okay. Well, have a good evening, ma’am.” Geneva smiled before turning away.

“Goodnight, Geneva.” El replied courteously. With Geneva gone, El dropped her pen, removed her glasses, and sat back in her chair. El had always worn glasses for reading in the past. However, she always tried to avoid wearing them if she could help it. Nonetheless, once she had taken up her job as mayor, El had begrudgingly decided to wear them when needed. Turning her head to the side, El looked out at Diamond City; the sun hanging low in the sky. She should probably think about heading home. Shaun and Cait would be wondering where she was.

Hearing a familiar cooing sound next to her, El turned to find Tasha sleeping soundly in her carry seat – a gift from Piper for hers and Cait’s wedding. Having completely exhausted herself in the rudimentary playpen El had set up for her in the office, Tasha was now out for the count. El chuckled to herself. She certainly got her sleeping ability from Cait.

El’s thoughts were then summarily interrupted by the arrival of Dogmeat. Resting his head on El’s lap, he had the look of a dog who wanted to go home. “Hey boy.” El greeted, ruffling his fur. “You want to go home?”

Dogmeat then got up on his hind legs and rested his paws on El’s lap. El could only interpret that as a positive response. “Come on then. Let’s go see the others.” she said, getting up from her chair.

Retrieving Tasha’s carry seat, El and Dogmeat soon exited the office and climbed onto the lift heading down to Diamond City. Pressing the button to descend, El took a deep breath as she surveyed the city. It was a bit monarchical, but it made El laugh to think that she controlled all of this.

Reaching ground level, El descended the causeway and made for home. “Look who’s home, everyone!” She called out as she entered the kitchen. To her surprise, El was met with silence. “Hello? Anyone home?” El frowned. Coming around the corner, El’s mouth dropped open. The living room was a mess; the coffee table and her armchair were knocked over. What on earth had happened?

Running through to the living area, El placed Tasha’s carry seat on the floor and looked around the destruction. Who could have done this? Where were Cait and Shaun?

Suddenly, as she listened, El began to hear the quiet sound of sniffling. Turing around, El slowly walked around to the side of the sofa to find a terrified Shaun huddled in the corner. “Shaun? What are you doing down there? What happened here?” she implored, getting down on her knees.

Glancing up at El, Shaun’s eyes widened with a mixture of fear and relief. He looked as if, despite El’s appearance, something terrifying was still out there. “M-Mom?” he stuttered.

Shocked by Shaun’s reaction, El extended her hand to him. “Shaun, it’s alright. Come out from there.”

Almost instantly, Shaun rushed out from behind the sofa and wrapped his arms around El’s shoulders. “Hey, hey, hey.” El comforted, stroking Shaun’s hair. “It’s okay. You’re safe. Tell me what happened. Where is Cait?”

Shaun pulled away slowly and wiped his eyes. “S-S-She’s gone.” he stuttered.

“Gone? Gone where?” El asked, visibly confused by Shaun’s cryptic answer.

“I…I don’t know. She just…ran away.” Shaun clarified.

“Ran away? Why did she run away, and who did this?” El asked further, looking around to the knocked over furniture.

“C-Cait did. She…She got angry.” Shaun answered timidly, as if he were afraid to say.

El’s eyes widened. Cait had done this? El had to get to the bottom of this. “Shaun, sit down and tell me exactly what happened.” Standing back up, El pulled Shaun to his feet and led him to the sofa. Sitting down, El then put her arm around Shaun’s shoulders and pulled him close. “Alright, Shaun, tell me everything that happened.”

“B-But Cait told me not to tell.” Shaun replied, trying his best to avoid eye contact.

El sighed, annoyed by all this secrecy and subterfuge. How was she supposed to solve this when nobody was talking? “Shaun, if you don’t tell me, how can you expect me to help? You can tell me. I can deal with Cait.” she said seriously, attempting to reassure him.

Shaun chewed his lip and took a deep breath. He had promised Cait not to tell. But how could he say no to his mother when she was trying to keep him safe? “We…We were…d-doing a reading lesson.” He eventually stammered.

El immediately frowned. A reading lesson? “A…what?” she interrupted.

“A reading lesson.” Shaun repeated. “I was giving Cait a reading lesson.”

El’s mouth dropped open. El was aware that Cait could not read. However, upon Cait’s insistence, El had never made it a big deal; Cait was more than happy to let El handle any literary duties whenever they arose. Still, El could never have known that her son would take it upon herself to teach her. “You’re…You’re teaching Cait to read?” she asked, still dumbfounded by Shaun’s revelation.

“Yeah. I wanted her to read some homework for me. But she kept saying no. When I kept asking, she told me she couldn’t read. She looked really sad about it, so I said I would teach her. I thought that was what you would do.” Shaun answered honestly, looking up at El.

El smiled and gave a small chuckle. He was clearly his mother’s son. “But, if you’re teaching her, why did Cait get angry?” she then asked.

Shaun shivered slightly, still shaken by Cait’s outburst. “I…I told her that she made a mistake on her work. When she changed it, she made another mistake. I said that you don’t don’t write it like that, silly. Then she got angry and threw her work over there.” Turning his head away, Shaun pointed to the pile of crumpled papers on the floor. “I hid when she started kicking stuff.” he finished.

Eyeing the crumpled papers, El stood up and collected them off the floor. Sitting back down next to Shaun, El flicked through them. “Shaun, this…this…this is wonderful. You taught her all this?” she asked in amazement.

“I just wanted to do what you do, help people. I didn’t want to make her angry.” Shaun said glumly as he looked at the multitude of mistakes and scribblings out on Cait’s work.

Placing Cait’s papers down on the sofa, El got onto her knees in front of him. “No, Shaun. It’s not your fault. I know you were only trying to help. Cait just finds it hard sometimes when she sees you and Tasha thriving so well. She never had the opportunities that you have had when she was your age.”

“What happened to her?” Shaun then asked in curiosity.

El sighed, unsure of how to answer. “I…I can’t tell you, Shaun. It’s not my story to tell. All I will say is that Cait went through a lot growing up and she is still trying to process what she experienced. The best you can do is be there for her when she needs it. Teaching her to read is a wonderful thing to do.”

“But what if she doesn’t want to?” Shaun then asked.

“Don’t worry about Cait. I’ll talk to her and bring her back around… I should probably go out and find her. She can’t have gone far… Are you alright keeping an eye on Tasha while I find Cait?” El replied, taking Shaun’s hand in hers.

Finally allowing himself to smile, Shaun nodded enthusiastically. “Okay. T-Thank you, mom. I love you.” he said, getting down from the sofa and hugging El closely.

Kissing Shaun’s temple, El whispered softly into his ear. “Just remember, Shaun. None of this is your fault, alight.”

Shaun nodded his head but did not reply. No words needed to be said. Pulling away, El cupped Shaun’s cheek in her hand. “Alright, you stay put and I’ll be back soon.” Standing up, El turned and made for the door. As she stepped through and shut the door behind her, El sighed deeply. This was not going to be easy. El loved Cait more than anything, but she required so much support. It was on days like this that she felt at her wits end.

After several deep breathes, El composed herself and set off in search of Cait. El was pretty sure where Cait would be. Whenever she needed some space, or wanted to get out of the house for a while, Cait always went to the same place. Reaching the edge of the city, El climbed over the barrier and made her way up the steps towards the top of the stands. Walking through the abandoned rows of food and souvenir huts, El made a sharp right and opened a small service door. Once through the door, El ascended a metal ladder to the roof.

As she looked out over the Commonwealth in the late afternoon, El took a deep breath, savouring the clean air above the city. It felt good to breathe air not sullied by the smell of the Diamond City streets.

Closing the roof hatch behind her, El turned to find who she was looking for. There, sitting on an old park bench, was Cait. She was sitting slightly slouched in her seat and was looking out blankly at the Commonwealth beyond. She had clearly been in a glum mood. Quietly, El approached the bench. “Hey, babe.”

Jumping from El’s unexpected arrival, Cait’s head darted around to face her. “Oh, err…h-hey…” she stuttered. By the way she was fidgeting, El could tell that Cait was preparing for a difficult conversation.

“You doing okay?” El enquired, sitting down next to Cait.

“F-Fine.” Cait answered quietly. In vain, Cait tried not to crack her knuckles.

After a few moments of quietly watching the sun slowly fall towards the horizon, El began. “Shaun told me what happened. Cait, why didn’t you tell me you were learning to read?”

Looking down at her feet, Cait rubbed her shoulder uncomfortably. “I didn’t want you to worry.” she replied glumly.

El shook her head, wondering why Cait would think such a thing. “Cait, why on earth would I have worried?”

“I dunno!” Cait snapped, shrugging her shoulders. “You got so much shit goin’ on with your job. I didn’t want to add another thing to it.

El sighed. She understood Cait not wanting to seem like a burden, but something like this could not be kept a secret. “Cait, I know work has been very busy lately, but I would never have worried. If anything, I’m proud of you. It’s wonderful that you’re doing this.”

Cait just slouched in her seat. “It doesn’t matter now. I’m fuckin’ shit at it anyway.” she replied miserably.

“Cait-.” El tried to reassure her.

“I am though!” Cait abruptly cut her off. “I’ve been at it for fuckin’ weeks and can’t do shit! I can barely string a fuckin’ sentence together!”

“Cait, these things take time. You can’t expect to be literate in a matter of weeks.” El cut in, attempting to reason with Cait.

Cait, however, did not take that comment well. “What, so it’s my fault?”

“No, I never said that.” El answered back. “All I’m saying is that you cannot expect to learn this overnight. This is a long process, and…” El knew this comment might not be taken well. “Teaching adults is hard, harder than you think.”   

Cait just crossed her arms and shrugged. “Guess I’m just the stupid one of the family then.”

“Cait, don’t you dare call yourself stupid!” El shouted, unable to stay calm any longer. “You listen to me, Cait, and you listen right now! You are one of the smartest and most incredible people I have ever met, and I never, EVER, want to hear you call yourself stupid again! Do you understand me?!”

Not expecting El to shout at her, Cait cowered away slightly. El immediately regretted her words. Why did she shout like that? El needed to fix this now. “Cait, I… Cait, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to shout. I just…” Eventually, El exhaled, feeling terrible about what she had done. “I get so upset when you talk about yourself like that. You’re not stupid, Cait.”

“It’s… It’s okay.” Cait mumbled, relaxing slightly at El’s apology. She knew that El did not mean to shout. El never liked allowing her emotions get the better of her, so having El snap so quickly was truly a shock to her.

They sat there in silence for what felt like hours. El desperately tried to think of something to say. She needed to think of something to say. She needed a point of reference to prove that Cait was worth more than her inability to read. Finally, El’s gaze fixated upon the rings on Cait’s left hand. Kneeling in front of Cait, El took her hand. “Cait, tell me what these are.” she asked, holding the rings up to Cait.

Not understanding why El was asking something so random, Cait did not answer. “Come on, Cait. This is not a trick. Just tell me.” El insisted, encouraging Cait to answer.

“…Rings…” Cait finally answered quietly, still not understanding El’s questioning.

El smiled, happy that Cait was playing along. “Correct. Now who gave you these rings?” she continued.

Glancing between El and the rings on her finger, Cait tried to follow along. “…Y-You did.”

“Correct. And why did I give you these rings?” El asked further.

Cait wasn’t sure how to answer. El’s questions seemed simple but were incredibly vague. “Because…you…married me?” she answered slowly.

“Yep.” El replied with a smile. “Now, final question. Why did I marry you?”

Cait’s mind went blank. What possible satisfactory answer could she give to El’s question? There were so many reasons why she had married El but was unable to think of reason why El had married her. Eventually, Cait gave up. “Cause I’m a good shag?”

El exhaled deeply through her nose. She had expected a response like this to come eventually. “Cait, I married you because I love you, unconditionally. I didn’t marry you because you’re beautiful, which you are. I didn’t marry you because you’re smart, which you are. I didn’t you for any monetary gain. I married you simply because I love you. Alright?”

Cait was happy for El’s reassurance but did not answer. “Alright?” El repeated, squeezing Cait’s hand.

Shocked out of her thoughts, Cait finally nodded and attempted a smile. What had she done to deserve such a loving wife?

“Good.” El smiled, stroking Cait’s hand. “Now, please indulge me, Cait. Why do you want to learn to read?”

Suddenly, Cait frowned. Why would El ask that after saying that it didn’t matter to her? “I thought you didn’t care.” she asked frostily.

“That’s not what I meant. What I mean is that there must be a reason why you agreed to let Shaun teach you.” El clarified, keeping her cool against Cait’s somewhat icy questioning.

“Because he wouldn’t stop askin’.” Cait answered bluntly.

To Cait’s instant regret, El did not take kindly to that response. She could see the disappointment in El’s eyes. El, however, simply raised her eyebrows and continued. “Cait, I know you well enough to know that is not the only reason. I can tell that there is something more.”

Cait looked at her feet, cursing her attitude and El’s ability to read her so easily. Yes, Cait had originally agreed to stop Shaun from asking about it. But El was right. Once her lessons had started, they had come to mean something else to Cait. “It’s just…that…” Cait sighed, trying to find the right words. “I see Tasha gettin’ bigger and I want her to be proud of me. I want her to see me and think, ‘that’s who I wanna be like. I wanna be like Mama.’ I thought readin’ would do that. You know…make me more of a… a…” Cait began to get frustrated, unable to find the correct word.

“A role model.” El finished for her.

Closing her mouth, Cait shivered slightly and nodded her head.

El’s face slowly turned into a caring smile as she listened to Cait. Hearing Cait say that made El’s heart lift. “Cait, it’s wonderful to hear you say that. But you don’t need to do something like that to prove that you’re a role model. Tasha loves you more than anything. You’re already a role model for her.”

“But I still wanna do somethin’!” Cait answered back, not wholly satisfied by El’s comments. “I’m stuck in that house everyday with nothin’ to do.”

El’s face suddenly turned. There was clearly something else going on here. “Cait, tell me what’s wrong.” she said seriously.

“Nothin’. I’m fine.” Cait replied quickly, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

El, however, was not going to let this slide. “Cait, don’t lie to me. Tell me what’s wrong.”

Cait shrugged her shoulders, feeling terribly discomforted talking about this. She hated being a burden to others. “I just…well…you know…you’re away most days bein’ the mayor and that. I mean, you’re great at it. You know, cause you’re so smart and everythin’-.”

“Cait, you’re rambling.” El interrupted, bringing Cait back to the matter at hand. Cait always rambled when she was uneasy about something.

Nodding sheepishly, Cait cleared her head and returned to her point. “Oh, s-sorry… You know, you’re the mayor and Shaun’s at school most days. That leaves me alone with Tasha. I mean, I love bein’ with her, but then you take her to work some days. When she’s gone, I’m all alone with nothin’ to do.”

El’s heart sank. How could she have looked passed this? How could she have not seen that her wife was unhappy? “Cait, I…I’m sorry. You should have told me that you were unhappy.”

Cait’s cheeks went red with embarrassment. “I didn’t want you to worry.” she said softly, finally cracking her knuckles.

El thought for a few moments, contemplating how best to handle this. “Okay, Cait. Let’s think this through. You say you have nothing to do on the days I have Tasha. Would…Would you like to care for her full time?”

“N-No.” Cait replied quickly, shaking her head vigorously. “I like the days when you have her. Those are my days. I just wanna have somethin’ to do on those days.”

Finally, everything fell into place and El understood completely. “Okay, we’re making progress here. So, you want to job of some kind? For the days you have to yourself?”

Cait shifted, beginning to feel nervous about the prospect of finding a respectable role in Diamond City. All she had ever known as a free woman was fighting. “M-Maybe… But what can I do? All I know is cage fightin’.”

“Yes, well, you’re certainly beyond that now.” El chuckled. “Well, why don’t I help out? I am the mayor after all.”

Cait suddenly tensed, her embarrassment only getting worse. “No, you don’t need to keep helpin’ me.” she protested.

“Cait, I am your wife. I am obliged to help you. I would not be a very good one if I didn’t help you.”

Despite her face going even redder, Cait nonetheless smiled. Reciprocating Cait’s smile, El continued. “How about something in…Diamond City Security? I could talk to the guys there.” she proposed, trying to enthuse Cait.

Cait immediately shook her head, her body tensing at El’s suggestion. “No… Not that. I…I spent five years of my life in cages. I don’t wanna put anyone else in ‘em.”

“That’s…That’s a very noble thing to say, Cait.” El replied compassionately. When they first met, El could never have imagined Cait saying something like that. “Alright, security is off the table. How about…something in…construction? There is no shortage of work there. I could put in a good word for you.” she then proposed, trying her best to keep Cait motivated.  

Cait wanted to sound intrigued at the prospect of an honest job. However, her nerves were already getting the better of her. “Maybe…” she mumbled half-heartedly.

Feeling that she was fighting a losing battle, El let out a heavy sigh. It was in these moments that El wished Cait could just make a decision, or at least appear motivated. She understood Cait’s anxiety about beginning anew in Diamond City, but she could not just sit and wait for something to change. “Tell you what, Cait.” El eventually said, stroking the back of Cait’s hand. “Leave the job thing with me for the time being. I’ll ask around and come up with some options that we can discuss. I am the mayor after all. That’s got to count for something. That sound good?”

Cait gave El a small nod but did not appear at all encouraged about her situation.

Hoping for a better reaction, El tried again, this time more insistent. “That sound good, Cait?”

This time, Cait nodded more willingly and gave a weak smile. “Yeah… T-Thank you.” she muttered quietly, nonetheless grateful.

“It’s no problem.” El smiled before turning serious again. “Now, before we go back home, I need you to promise me a few things.”

Cait’s eyes widened slightly, not liking where this was going. She did, however, give an affirming nod.

“Okay… First, when we get home, I want you to apologise to Shaun. Now, I know-.”

Cait immediately straightened up. “But I-!” she tried to say.

“Cait, let me finish.” El cut her off abruptly, holding a hand up in front of Cait. Sheepishly, Cait settled back down. With Cait docile again, El continued. “I know it sometimes upsets you to see Shaun and Tasha thriving so much. I know they have been given many opportunities that you never had. But Cait, you cannot take those emotions out on them. I will not allow that.”

Feeling the shame build inside her, Cait’s mouth began to quiver. “I w-wasn’t doin’ that!” she begged, trying in vain to justify herself.

El’s face was unchanging. “Cait, you pushed and kicked furniture over. You made Shaun feel unsafe in his own home. Cait, that is completely unacceptable.”

Unable to control herself any longer, Cait finally broke down with a sob. “I…I d-didn’t m-mean t-to, honest. I…just…it…g-got t-too much.” Cait began to panic as her shame became too much for her. “P-Please believe m-me. I didn’t m-mean to. I d-didn’t mean to g-get angry. I d-don’t wanna be angry anymore. I...I d-don't wanna be m-my parents.” she beseeched, tears falling from her eyes. Feeling totally ashamed, Cait put her head in her hands and wept.

“Hey... Shh…shh…shhhh, Cait. Calm down, calm down. No tears, okay. Just breathe...” El cut in softly, attempting to prevent Cait from panicking anymore. Prizing Cait's hands away from her face, El cupped her cheeks gently in her hands. “I know you didn’t. You are not your parents, Cait. I know you love our children, so I need you to promise me to never behave in that way around them again.”

Wiping her eyes with her hand, Cait immediately nodded her head. “I do love ‘em! M-More than anythin’, honest! I promise! I promise! I’ll never do that again, I swear!”

“Good… Good…” El whispered warmly, finally allowing a soothing smile to return to her lips. For a few moments, they just stared at each other; El patiently allowing Cait to settle herself down again. Once she determined that Cait was calm enough, El continued. “Now, secondly, I want you to keep going with the reading and writing.”

“But I can’t do it!” Cait interrupted.

“Yes, you can, Cait! You can!” El reassured loudly. “I know it’s difficult right now. But it will get better, I promise. You are so smart, Cait, and you can prove that. So, please, Cait. Promise me…”

Looking deep into El’s hazel eyes, Cait nodded her head. “Okay… I’ll keep goin’.”

“Thank you, Cait.” El smiled. “Now, finally, I want you to talk to me. if something is bothering you, or upsetting you, come and talk to me.”

Cait sighed, convinced that she would be a burden by agreeing. “I can’t just go runnin’ to you with all my problems.” she protested.

“Cait, remember what I said. I’m your wife. I’m obliged to be there for you…” El replied.

Cait bit her lip, trying to convince herself that this was a good idea. Something, however, was holding her back. “But what if talkin’ to you doesn’t fix it? What if I’m still angry?”

El thought for a few moments before proposing a solution. “Let me find something, or somewhere, where you can put your anger when it gets too much. Agreed?”

Accepting that El was by far her best chance at fixing her problems, Cait nodded and raised her lips in a weak, but appreciative smile. “O-Okay… I’ll do it.” she agreed quietly.

Finally, El’s smile broadened, happy that Cait had come around. “Thank you, Cait. You see, we can always find a solution if we sit down and talk things through… Now, come here. I can tell that you’re desperate for a hug.” she then said, opening her arms.

Cait did not need asking twice. In an instant, Cait got down on her knees and wrapped herself in El’s embrace. They stayed there for what felt like hours, El wanting to comfort Cait as much as possible before they returned. Cait found it hard to keep her composure. El was just so perfect. “I don’t deserve you.” she muttered into El’s chest.

Chuckling, El looked down and kissed Cait’s temple. “I don’t deserve you either; and here we are, happily married... But you are right, you know.”

Cait looked up. "About what?"

"You are an epic shag." El replied, a cheeky smile on her face.

At that moment, Cait could not hold back and she snorted a laugh. El could say some really stupid things sometimes, but she loved her for that. Watching the sun hanging heavy in the sky, El gave Cait a small nudge. “Come on, Cait. Let’s go home. The kids will be wondering where we are.”

Pulling herself and Cait to their feet, El wrapped her arm around Cait’s waist and slowly lead them back home.

Pushing the door open, El held Cait’s hand tightly as they entered the living area. Shaun immediately got up from the floor where he had been playing with Dogmeat and Tasha in her seat. She was laughing happily as Dogmeat sniffed and licked her tiny fingers. “Mom, you’re back!”

“Hey, Shaun.” El answered, bringing Cait around to her side. “I see that Tasha is awake.” she smiled down at a giggling Tasha.

Shaun chucked. “Yeah. She woke up when you left. But Dogmeat kept making her laugh.” Putting his hands behind his back, Shaun momentarily glanced at Cait. As their gazes met, Cait looked away, her face red with embarrassment.

Noticing both Cait and Shaun avoid each other awkwardly, El stepped in. “Come on you two, sit down. You sit on the couch, Shaun, and you sit next to him, Cait." she commanded, gesturing Cait and Shaun to the couch.

Shaun obediently followed El’s instructions and, after some gentle prodding, Cait followed suit and tentatively took a seat. El then got to her knees, facing her wife and son. “Now, Shaun, Cait and I talked about everything that happened and she would like to say a few things.”

Cait stared at El in mild shock. She had not expected El to come to her so quickly. As she watched gormlessly, El smiled and gave her a polite nod. Cait knew now that she would have to face the music. Shifting her body to face Shaun, Cait cleared her throat. “I… I-I’m sorry I got angry at you, Shaun. That… That…” Cait suddenly trailed off as her eyes began to water. Having to apologise was harder than she thought. She loved her family so much and she had shamed herself in front of them. “That wasn’t fair.” she eventually managed to say. “I know you were only tryin’ to help.” Looking down at her feet, Cait wiped her eye and nervously cracked her knuckles.

“I-I’m sorry too.” Shaun replied, shuffling closer to Cait. “I didn’t mean to call you silly. You’re not silly.” As a means of showing her apology. Shaun then wrapped his arms around Cait’s side hugged her closely. “I love you, Cait.”

Allowing herself to smile, Cait hesitantly brought her arms around and returned Shaun’s hug. “L-Love you too.” she stuttered.

After a few moments, Cait and Shaun pulled away from each other. Understanding that, despite what had happened, her family still loved her, Cait felt confident enough to suggest what she had promised. “But…a-about the readin’. I… I’d like to t-try again. I-If you’ll let me.”

Shaun’s face immediately lit up. “O-Okay. D-Do you want to do some now?” he asked gingerly.

Cait peeped over to El and found her smiling proudly at her. As a final push, El gave a small insistent nod of support. Swallowing hard, Cait answered. “S-Sure.” she said with a comforted smile.

“So, are we all friends again?” El then asked, stroking Cait’s and Shaun’s arms to get their attention.

Cait put her arm around Shaun’s waist and smiled gratefully at El. Sniffing away any tears remaining in her eyes, Cait could not hide the relief on her face; she had not messed everything up after all. “Yeah, we’re good.” she replied, bringing Shaun in close. Shaun in return rested his head on Cait’s shoulder.

El smiled before turning to Shaun. “Now, Shaun, Cait and I talked, and I think that she should have more control over these lessons. If she wants a break, or wants of stop the lesson, you do that, okay.”

“Okay, mom. I can do that.” Shaun nodded willingly.

“Good! Now, both of you come here. I want to hug two of my favourite people.” El replied, opening her arms. Almost immediately, both Cait and Shaun wrapped El in a loving embrace. As far as they were concerned, they could not have asked for a more loving wife and mother. Humming contentedly, El eventually pulled away and cupped Cait and Shaun’s cheeks in her hands. “Why don’t I leave you to it and I’ll make us some dinner?”

Cait nodded happily, her cheeks going bright red. “Okay then.” El repeated. “You two get learning.” Getting to her feet, El made her way to the kitchen. Along the way, she removed her coat and hung it on a row of pegs between the kitchen and living area. Once she was safe in the kitchen, however, El finally let her façade drop. Leaning over the stove, with her back turned, El took several deep breathes, fighting back tears of her own. How long could this go on for? She loved Cait more than anything, but her almost constant need for support was sapping all El’s energy and patience. How was she supposed to balance a busy job, raising two children, support her vulnerable wife, and keep her sanity? El could not work it out.

On the brink of tears, El suddenly heard quiet voices behind her. She knew they were Shaun’s and Cait’s voice and instantly turned to listen. Hiding behind the wall that led up to El and Cait’s bedroom, El peeked around the corner and observed them. There, sitting close to each other on the sofa, Shaun talked whilst Cait listened studiously – an open notepad on her lap. It made El smile to see Shaun like this; he sounded just like Nate when he spoke like that.

Cait’s expression also made El smile. She had that almost goofy look on her face whenever she was trying to concentrate on something. She knew Cait was trying her best, but she couldn’t help but laugh whenever she pulled that face. Chuckling under her breath, El allowed a solitary tear to fall down her cheek. Wiping it away, El cleared her throat, straightened herself and returned to the stove.

As she unzipped the top half of her vaultsuit and tied it up around her waist, El prepared dinner for her family, quietly contemplating what could be done to solve both hers and Cait’s problems. Life could not go on like this.

“El, why can’t you just show me?” Cait asked as El lead her along the corridor of the mayor’s quarters, her hands covering Cait’s eyes.

“That would ruin the surprise, Cait, and you know how I feel about surprises.” El replied, slowly ushering Cait forward. “It’s just a bit further.”

Cait groaned as she shuffled forward. Why did El always have to do this? Cait did love it when El surprised her, but she always found the elaborate secrecy tedious. “Can I open them now?” she asked again, taking another few steps.

“Just a little further and…open!” El replied, taking her hands away and stepping back. Flickering her eyes open, Cait looked around the main area of the mayor’s quarters in stunned silence. In one corner of the room sat a mechanical lifting bench with a large cylindrical bar suspended on a bracket above it. Next to the bench, a series of weights lay arranged in size order. Cait was awestruck.

What drew most of Cait’s attention, however, was a large brown leather punching bag hanging from a bracket on the wall. There were several patches holding the material together, but it still looked in reasonable condition. The whole setup was incredible. “You like it?” El finally asked, bringing Cait back to reality.

Cait didn’t know what to say. Was all this for her? “Where’d you get all this stuff?” she asked, running her hand along a row of dumbbells lining the wall next to the punching bag.

“I sent out a couple of search parties to look around the city. Most of this came from that raider camp near Hubris Comics.” El answered, observing Cait with a smile.

Cait was still trying to work everything out. “So, this is all for me? Why?” she queried, getting a feel of the bar.

“It certainly is, Cait. Do you like it?” El confirmed, following a few steps behind. El loved seeing Cait this intrigued.

Turning away from the bench, Cait approached the punching bag and ran her hand along the material. It had a good feel to it. “Why though?” she asked again, not understanding why she was being given all of this.

El sighed quietly. Why could Cait not just accept a gift when it was given to her. “When we talked, I got the impression that you felt caged, with a lot of pent-up stress. I thought that giving you a place to where you can come and let off some steam would be good for you… Do you like it?” she asked for the third time.

Cait turned to face her and El finally saw her smile. “I love it.” she answered, her cheeks bright red. “So, I get to use it whenever I want?”

“Well, within reason.” El chuckled. “I would prefer if you were not here in the small hours, or when we are all at home. But anytime during the day is fine. You can even bring Tasha on the days that you have her. I’m happy to watch her while you work out.”

Cait turned back around and gave the punching bag a light push. All this was hers. She finally had a place to let off stress and anxiety. Suddenly, Cait jumped as she felt El’s arm snake its way around her waist. “Plus…” El whispered softly into her ear. “It would be a shame to let these muscles go to waste.” Kissing her way down her neck, El slowly caressed Cait’s bicep and stroked her toned stomach.

Cait had to use all her reserve to keep from giggling. She was all too aware how ticklish she was there. “What is it with you and my arms?” she asked, shuddering as she resisted the urge to laugh.

“Nothing.” El replied, continuing to stroke Cait’s muscular biceps. “I just like running my hands along them.”

Cait chuckled and hummed contently as El kissed her. Was El trying to lead her on? Cait was certainly up for it if El was. Swivelling around to face El, Cait wrapped her arms around her neck and kissed her fervently. In response, El lifted Cait off the ground and gave a light moan. El loved her so much, she deserved so much better. It was moments like these that El forgot the worry that Cait was causing her.

Finally, El and Cait pulled away to catch their breath. Cait stared deep into El’s glinting hazel eyes, wondering if she should ask. She was ready to take this further. “So…what are we gonna do now?” she inquired breathlessly, trying to sound innocent. Momentarily, she glanced over El’s shoulder to the bench behind them. She hoped that El did not notice.

El, however, did notice Cait’s eyes wander. She knew exactly what Cait wanted. “Unfortunately, Cait, I’m still on duty and need to get back to work.” she said, lowering Cait back to the ground and unlatching her arm from her waist.

Cait looked as if El had just slapped her. “But… But that… That’s not fair.” she stuttered. That was not how it worked.

“What is not fair?” El asked nonchalantly, placing her hands on her hips. El did have to get back to work, but she had also done this to wined Cait up.

Still not noticing El’s mischievous demeanour, Cait only got more annoyed. “You can’t just go gettin’ me all horny and then piss off.” she huffed angrily.

Cait was playing right into El’s hands. “Well, I suggest you take that energy out on that punching bag then.” El replied, nodding to the bag behind Cait.

It was now that Cait finally noticed El’s mischievous smile. “I hate you.” she sulked, crossing her arms. Abruptly turning around, Cait stomped over to the punching bag. Getting into a defensive position, Cait balled her fists and prepared to throw a punch.

“Ah, ah, ah! Not like that, please.” Cait suddenly heard El say. Swinging around, Cait threw her hands up in protest. “What now?” she shouted.

El’s smile had now turned serious, and she pointed to something hanging on the wall across from Cait. “I would like you to wear those, please.”

Looking to where El was pointing, Cait turned to find a pair of red boxing gloves hanging from a peg on the wall. Cait immediately scrunched her face up in revulsion. Had El completely forgotten that she used to be a cage fighter? “You gotta be kiddin’ me, El. I’m not a fuckin’ beginner.”

El, however, was unmoving. “I know that Cait. I should know, I have been on the receiving end of a few of them. But you’re a wife and mother now, and I’m not having you coming home with broken wrists and knuckles.”

Cait’s face mercifully softened. Maybe she could begrudgingly understand that reasoning. “Fine. I’ll wear ‘em.” she huffed quietly, unhooking the gloves from the wall and slipping them over her hands.

“Thank you... Well, in that case, I will leave you to it. I will be just down the hall if you need anything.” El said with a smile. Turning around, El left the living area and slowly made her way back to her office.

“T-Thanks!” Cait called back as El exited the room. Allowing a smile to cross her lips, Cait marvelled at her new playground. All of this was hers. Returning her attention to the punching bag, Cait repositioned herself and, feeling the pent-up energy in her arms, threw a heavy punch. As the glove hit home, Cait felt the impact ripple up her arm. She had almost forgotten how good this felt.

“Ma’am?” a voice asked, bringing El out of her concentration. Looking up from her desk, El saw Geneva standing in the doorway. “Yes, Geneva? What’s up?” El asked attentively.

“Miss Piper Wright is here to see you.” Geneva replied. El immediately sat up and smiled. “Oh well, show her in.” she said happily, getting up from her desk.

Slipping back through the doorway, Geneva was quickly replaced by Piper confidently sauntering into the room. Behind her, Geneva quietly closed the door to give them some privacy. “Blue!” Piper called as she opened her arms.

“Piper!” El replied, similarly opening her arms. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

Lovingly embracing El, Piper smiled happily at being reunited with her friend. “Just thought I’d stop by and see our mayor at work.” she said.

“Oh, so this is purely a professional visit?” El quipped playfully as she pulled away.

“Not at all.” Piper laughed. “But what can you do when your best friend is the mayor?”

“Good point.” El smiled. “Well, this is where the magic happens.” Taking a step back from Piper, El extended her arms to show off the office.

Piper looked around the room with an impressed expression on her face. “It looks good. I see you’ve moved some of the furniture around.”

“Yeah. I wanted to use the space a bit better. Plus, I wanted an area where Tasha can be occupied.” El said, sitting back at her desk.

“I was gonna say, no Tasha today?” Piper then asked, looking towards the small play area in the corner of the room.

“No, not today. She is with Cait today.” El answered.

Taking a seat opposite El’s desk, Piper nodded. “How’s that going for you?”

El sat back in her chair and crossed her legs. “It’s good on the whole. It’s nice to have a break from the child rearing, at least for a few hours.”

“And how is Cait finding it?” Piper asked further.

El chewed her lip for a few seconds. She was pretty sure of the answer but didn’t want to say anything that would land her in hot water at home. “I think Cait loves her time with Tasha. It’s always a joy to see them together.”

Piper smiled at El’s heartfelt comment. “Aww, that’s great. I’m glad she’s happy. I mean…well…Cait is kinda the reason why I came to see you.”

El suddenly raised her eyebrows. “Oh, really, about Cait? What's up with her.” she asked in acute interest.

“Oh, nothing is up with her. I just wondered if she would be interested in something?” Piper enquired.

El sat forward in her chair and rested her arms on the desk. “What did you have in mind?”

Piper thought for a few moments, framing her words as carefully as she could. “Well, remember that profile piece I did on you way back when?”

El chuckled. “Of course, I remember. The Woman out of Time. How could I forget?”

“Exactly!” Piper continued. “I was thinking of doing another one. Since the paper been doing so well after the McDonough scandal, I want to get some more life stories out there. I thought Cait would be a great one to start with.”

El was taken aback. Even she, who supported Cait more than anyone, did not fathom the idea of Cait working with Piper for a newspaper piece. “I…don’t know how to respond to that, Piper. I mean…I think it’s a great idea. I just don’t know whether Cait would agree to it. Cait is extremely private about her past.”

Piper bowed her head, knowing that El would say something like that. “I understand. I thought you might say that. I just…thought it would be a good story.”

“I agree… Things are just a little delicate with Cait at the moment.” El replied, attempting to justify her reasoning.

This peaked Piper’s interest. “Oh…really? Is… Is everything okay at home?”

El suddenly stiffened. “They’re fine… They’re…” El stalled, unable to carry on. Weeks of pent-up stress abruptly came to the boil and El was forced to look away. “I’m sorry…” she whispered, fighting back tears.

In an instant, Piper rose from her seat and rushed to El’s side. “Oh god, Blue. What’s wrong?”

“I’m alright, Piper.” El lied unconvincingly, not meeting Piper’s gaze.

“Blue, you are not alright. Tell me what’s wrong. What’s going on at home?” Piper insisted, kneeling at El’s side.

El sighed and wiped away a single tear. “Things…Things have been hard the last few weeks. There was an incident a couple of weeks ago where…where Cait got angry. Shaun had been giving her a reading lesson-.”

“Wait… Cait can’t read?” Piper interrupted.

El nodded. “She had told me before. But we never made a big deal of it, Cait never wanted to. But, somehow, Shaun managed to convince her to learn with him.”

Piper knelt in complete silence. She had to let El tell the whole story before she said anything further.

“One day, Cait snapped and got angry, claiming she couldn't do it. She didn't hurt Shaun, but she did scare him. Then she ran off.” El placed an elbow on the desk and rested her head on her head. “Once I talked to Shaun, I had to go and find her. When I found Cait, she told me that she couldn’t do it, that there was no point in her carrying on with it.”

El paused for a few moments, feeling deeply depressed by the situation. “I managed to convince her to keep going with it, but she then told me how unhappy she was at home, how alone she felt… I felt so terrible when she told me this… I feel… I feel so stupid.”

“Blue, don’t think like that. You have so much to deal with. You need to think of yourself.” Piper pleaded, taking El’s hand.

El wanted to believe Piper, but a deep need to support her loved ones held her back. “I can’t do that, Piper. I need to support Cait. She…She just needs so much.” El suddenly could not hold herself back any longer and she broke down in tears.

Reacting immediately, Piper brought El into a caring hug. Crying despondently into Piper’s shoulder, El allowed the stress of the past weeks to come to the fore. This had been building for ages. “There, Blue… You have a good cry, alright. Let it all out.” Piper whispered comfortingly in El’s ear, gently stroking her back.

El gradually began to relax in Piper’s arms. It felt so good to finally rid herself of this stress. Pulling away slowly, El wiped her eye and rested her forehead on Piper’s. All she wanted was some warm human intimacy. “Better?” Piper whispered, placing a hand on El’s shoulder.

El nodded and smiled gratefully. “Thank you, Piper… I’ve been at my wits end for days. I didn’t know what to do.”

“Well, tell me what I can do to help. Let me help.” Piper replied insistently.

El just shook her head. “No Piper. I can’t ask you to help. I need to sort this out myself.”

“Blue, no!” Piper asserted, giving El a light shake. “You can’t go on like this. You’re gonna burnout. Let me help you. Tell me something I can do.”

El sighed, thinking of something she could say. She knew that Cait would not thank her for any of this. But she had to think of herself now. She would be of no use to any of her loved ones as a nervous wreck. “There…There was one thing, Piper. Cait…Cait would like a job of some sort…for the days that she isn’t looking after Tasha. I’ve tried looking for options, but it’s been so busy lately and it’s hard to get Cait motivated about it.”

Piper was intrigued. She knew plenty of people in Diamond City who could help. One thing a journalist could do was find things out. “Okay. Well, in that case, I’ll ask some people and see if that changes anything. There are perks of being a journalist after all.”

El looked at her feet, feeling almost embarrassed by Piper’s willingness to help. “Are you sure, Piper? I don’t want to swamp you with my problems.”

“Blue, it’s fine. Friends help each other.” Piper reassured.

El chuckled, feeling a considerable weight lift from her shoulders. “Thank you, Piper. You’re… You’re a wonderful friend.”

Piper looked away and laughed. “Oh, Blue, you’re gonna make me blush.” Her face, however, quickly became serious again. “But, if you could do something for me, Blue, please talk to Cait about the profile piece. I think it would be great for her.”

Agreeing that Piper deserved something for her trouble, El nodded her head. “Alright. I’ll talk to her.”

Piper then gave a broad smile. “Thanks, Blue. Now, get your coat. I’m getting you a drink.”

El’s eyes widened. “Piper, I can’t. I’m still on duty.” she pleaded poorly.

Piper, however, was already on her feet. “You think McDonough was in the office every day? You’re having a drink.”

El sighed but could not hide her smile. “Alright.” she conceded. Getting to her feet, El collected her coat, locked up her desk, and walked with Piper out the door.

Pretending to read her book, El was silent as Cait climbed into bed. This was going to be a difficult conversation. But she had promised Piper to do this in return for her help. Closing her book, El took a deep breath. “Piper came by the office today.” she said, attempting to gage a response.

“Oh yeah? What did she want?” Cait answered, not sounding particularly interested.

El shifted uneasily. “She wanted to tell me about some work she is doing, a new profile piece.”

“What’s a profile piece?” Cait then asked, resting her head on her pillow.

“It’s an article about a person’s life. They interview the person and then write up an article about them.” El clarified.

Moving the covers over her body, Cait closed her eyes and readied herself for sleep. “Who’s she writin’ about?” she asked, not caring.

El was silent for a few moments, preparing herself for what would inevitably come next. “She… She wants to write it about…about you…”

Cait’s eyes immediately opened, and she sat up in bed. “What?! She what?”

“She wants to write an article about you, Cait.” El repeated as calmly as possible.

Cait, however, only grew more confused. There was too much to process. “W-Why though?! I’m not interestin’. What do I have to say? Why’d she tell you anyway? She afraid to ask me?”

“She told me because she wasn’t sure what you would say. She asked if I could discuss it with you before you agreed to anything.” El answered.

“Why would she wanna know anythin’ about me anyway? My life’s been shit.” Cait continued to ask.

El sighed, exacerbated by Cait’s questioning. “She thought that telling your story would be interesting to hear… Plus…I think it would be good for you.”

“I don’t want people to know my story. It’s my life.” Cait sulked, turning her head away and crossing her arms.

This was going as well as she thought it would. Placing her book on her bedside table, El turned to her side, facing Cait. “I know you value your privacy, Cait. But Piper only wants to get to know you more. She thought this would allow that.”

Cait bowed her head and huffed indignantly. “I don’t want some hack tellin’ people what happened to me.”

“Cait, do you really think Piper would do that? You know Piper well enough to know that she would never do that to you. She wants to help you and has only you in mind.”

Cait was silent, contemplating El’s words. She still did not know Piper particularly well, but El was right. For the most part, Piper was nice, and always willing to help with the kids. If she did tell people her story without Cait’s approval, she would have El to answer to. However, this was still her story. Why would anybody want to know about what happened to her? “What… What do I have to do?” she eventually asked, turning her head back in El’s direction.

“All Piper said was to come by Publick Occurrences and she can discuss everything about the piece with you. That way, you can learn everything about what she wants. It’s not an interrogation, Cait, I promise. Piper did one for me when I first came here, and she did a lovely article.”

That pricked Cait’s interest. Piper had also done one of those things for El? “S-She did?” Cait asked, looking up at El.

El smiled, thinking that her words were beginning to sink in. “Yes, she did. I was afraid at first. But it allowed me to get my feelings out when I felt so alone. I think it would be really good for you too.”

Cait did not react and chewed her lip nervously. Could it really be that bad if El had done it? But there was still something she could not understand; why would anyone in the Commonwealth want to know what she had experienced?”

Sensing Cait’s dilemma, El reasoned that there was nothing more she could add. It was Cait’s decision in the end. “Look, you don’t have to decide now, Cait. The choice is entirely yours. If you don’t want to do it, that’s fine. Piper won’t bring it up again. But promise me that you will at least think about it.”

Looking deep into El’s eyes, Cait could tell that she was only trying to help. Maybe talking to Piper would be good for her. Eventually, Cait nodded. “Okay. I’ll think about it…” she said, nervously twisting the rings around her finger.

Cait had no idea why she had agreed to this. She had spent her entire life trying to put her past experiences behind her. How could telling some journalist about it make her feel any better?

However, the more she thought about it, the more El’s words of encouragement appeared to sink in. When Cait had opened up to El for the first time, she had felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders. And hell, she did get a wife out of talking about her problems. Maybe this was a good idea.

So here Cait was, standing outside Piper’s front door, her heart beating a mile a minute. All she had to do was turn around and the whole thing would be forgotten. El probably would not be happy, but Cait was convinced she could talk her around. It was her choice after all. But something was telling her to do this. How could she possibly move on if she did not come to terms with her past? Taking a deep breath, Cait threw caution to the wind and nervously raised her arm. Closing her eyes, Cait quietly rapped on the door.

Cait was shaking now. There was no turning back. A million thoughts suddenly rushed into her mind; maybe she could run away. Piper did not need to know who knocked on the door. All Cait’s thoughts were then brought to a shuddering halt when she heard movement behind the door. She could not back out now. With a heavy clunk of the handle, the door swung open to reveal Piper. “Cait!?” she greeted with a hint of intrigue. “Good to see you!”

Cait clenched and unclenched her fists, unsure of what to say. “H-Hi Piper. E-El said she talked to you.”

Piper smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Oh, she did? About the profile piece?”

Cait nodded, glancing at the floor. “Y-Yeah. About…my story…”

Piper could see how nervous Cait was and slowly dropped her smile. She was going to have to manage this seriously. “Oh, wonderful, Cait. Where are my manners? Come in, come in.” she said, stepping aside from the doorway.

Gingerly, Cait walked into Piper’s home. She chuckled slightly as she looked around at the chaos that characterised Piper’s home; piles of papers covered almost every inch of free space. Every time they visited; Piper would promise to clean it up eventually. Piper was obviously making a long-term promise

“Feel free to have a seat, Cait, and we can have a chat.” Piper then said, gesturing to the sofa to their right as she closed the front door.

Cait sat herself down on the sofa and watched silently as Piper pulled up a chair opposite her. “Alright, Cait. So, I’m sure Blue has already given you some information about this, but I wanted to give you a small explanation before went any further. Is that alright?”

Cait nodded and quietly twisted the rings around her finger. She definitely wanted answers before she did anything.

“Great!” Piper continued. “Well, one kind of article I like to write is what’s called a profile piece. That’s normally about a person and their story. The article could be about something they did, what they believe, what they do, or just a life story.”

As Piper explained the entire process, Cait sat more to attention. “Yeah, El said as much. She… She told me you did one for her.”

“I did.” Piper replied. “I did one for her not long after we first met. She found it very useful. It helped her understand her trauma and made her feel that she wasn’t alone. I know you’ve been under some stress recently, so thought this would be a good way for you to do the same.”

Cait listened attentively and contemplated Piper’s words. There was not a hint of forcefulness in her voice. Maybe she could trust Piper with this. “What do I do then?” she asked, making her decision.

“How it works is, I will ask you some questions about your life and you answer them with as much detail as you feel comfortable with.” Piper answered, crossing her legs.

“W-What if I say somethin’ that I don’t want you to write?” Cait then asked, fearful that Piper would unlock all her darkest secrets.

“Then just say and I’ll scratch it out… Cait, I want you to have full control over what I write. This is your story after all. You have the right to share what you want.” Piper reassured honestly.

Cait thought deeply about what Piper had just told her. Cait would have full control over what she shared. That was her main source of worry. But Piper had thought of everything. She clearly did want to help her. There was, however, one thing bothering her; Cait did not want the people to know her identity, and that it was her story. Diamond City was a close-knit community and people would gossip if they knew. “What if I don’t want people to know it’s my story? If people know it’s me, they’ll talk. I…I don’t want that.” she asked shakily, thinking that this might derail the whole process.

Piper raised her eyebrows but did not seem too surprised by Cait’s request. “Of course, I can anonymise it. What I can do is use a title instead of your name. Do you have a title in mind?”

Cait thought hard but nothing was coming. She could not think of any names that would suit her, barring the name the Minutemen had given her. Sensing Cait’s indecision, Piper stepped in. “How about ‘The Survivor’, or ‘The Fighter’?”

Cait weighed up her options; both did sum her up very well. “Fighter sounds good…” she eventually said with a small smile. She liked that title; El always called her a fighter.

“Okay, great.” Piper said happily as she pulled a small notepad from one of her coat pockets. “Well, with all that sorted, do you wanna get started?”

Cait took a deep breath. It was now or never. “Okay. Let’s do it.” she said, rallying her courage.

Piper then clapped her hands together. “Awesome! You stay right there, and I’ll be back in a minute.” Standing up from her chair, Piper disappeared out of sight and began fumbling through various cupboards in her kitchen. After a few seconds, she returned carrying a thin silver can. “Here… To keep you hydrated.” she said, handing it to Cait.

Taking the can from Piper, Cait saw that it was a can of purified water. “Thanks.” Cait said graciously as she opened it and took a large swig.

Returning to the seat, Piper placed her notepad on her knee and collected a freshly sharpened pencil. “Okay, let’s get this show on the road. Let’s start simple; where were you born, Cait?”

As Piper finished writing up her final notes, Cait wondered how long they had been talking. It had felt so strange for Cait to talk so frankly about her past, but something about it made her feel slightly liberated. It had been an incredibly emotional experience; there were several occasions where Cait had to stop for a few minutes to calm down and compose herself. There was still a great deal of her past which she had yet to come to terms with.

“Alright, I think that should just about it.” Piper finally said before arranging her notes into a neat pile. “That was great work today, Cait. How are you feeling?”

Cait sniffed and wiped her eye, attempting to settle down from the roller-coaster of emotions she had just vented to Piper. “I’m… I’m okay. Just… Just a lot to talk about…”

Piper gave a compassionate smile and sat forward in her chair. “It’s definitely one hell of a story, Cait.”

“It’s all true! I wasn’t lyin’!” Cait spat quickly, thinking that Piper believed she had made it all up.

Piper immediately sat up straight, shocked by Cait’s accusation. “No, no, Cait! I believe you. I was just saying that it’s unlike any story I’ve ever heard.”

“Oh… S-Sorry…” Cait apologised contritely, rubbing her shoulder. “I didn’t…didn’t mean to say that. I don’t like tellin’ people my story ‘cause they might think I’m lyin’.”

“I get it, Cait. I understand completely.” Piper said, giving assurance to Cait. Standing up from her chair, Piper then returned to the kitchen and resumed her search through the cupboards. Cait could hear her unscrew a bottle and pour something into a glass. Returning to the sofa, Piper held a glass of brown liquid in her hand. “Here… I think you’ve earned this.” she smiled kindly, handing the glass to Cait.

“Thanks.” Cait replied, taking the glass. As she took a sip, the soothing taste of the whiskey started to settle her nerves. It was now that Cait was able to smile again. “That feels good.” she sighed contentedly. “So…what happens now? You know…with the story?”

“What I normally do is write up my notes on my trusty terminal. Once that’s done, I can set up the press and get the articles printed.” Piper replied eagerly, pointing to a small terminal across the room from her.

“The press? What’s that? How does it work?” Cait then asked further, genuinely interested in what Piper would do next with her story.

Piper’s eyes widened in surprise. She had not expected Cait to show such an acute interest. “Well, come with me and I’ll show you.” Getting up from her chair, Piper walked over to her terminal and gestured for Cait to follow.

Taking another sip of her whiskey, Cait got up from the sofa and joined Piper. As Piper talked about her work, Cait began to feel a warm sensation in her body. It was not lustful in any way, but it was a sense of safety and belonging. She remembered having this feeling the morning she had first woken up in El’s bed. Cait was beginning to appreciate Piper’s company and what she had done for her. Maybe, having done this piece, she could see Piper as a proper friend in the future.

“Come on, Tasha. Open up. Here it comes…” Cait said encouragingly, holding a spoonful of mashed up food in front of her face.

Almost on command, Tasha opened her mouth wide and allowed Cait to spoon the entire mouthful inside. “Good girl! Keep eatin’ like that and you’ll be as curvy as Mummy.” Cait said, placing the empty bowl on the dining table. Cait chuckled to herself, imagining the inevitable eye-roll that El would give upon hearing what she had just said.

Suddenly, Cait was startled by a knock at the door. Standing up, Cait lifted Tasha out of her seat and slowly headed for the door. “Who’s that, Tasha? Let’s go see.” she asked Tasha rhetorically, bobbing her up and down.

Tasha just babbled happily and looked straight ahead.

As she reached the front door, there came another loud knock. “I’m comin’! I’m comin’!” Cait called loudly. Gripping the door handle, Cait pulled the door forcefully, ready to give whoever was outside some lip for knocking so loud

Cait was, however, moved to silence when she saw who was outside. “Piper?” she said, visibly surprised.

“Hi Cait. How are you doing?” Piper greeted, a friendly smile on her face.

“I’m…I’m good. On baby duty today. D-Do you wanna come in?” Cait answered, putting her hospitality skills to good use.

Piper glanced down at Tasha and smiled broadly. “I can see. Hey gorgeous!” she said happily, stroking Tasha’s check with her finger.

Tasha instantly giggled, but turned away bashfully, her cheeks bright red. Cait chuckled and gave her a little jolt of encouragement. “She ain’t shy. She’s just bein’ a diva… So, you comin’ in or what?”

“I’d love to, Cait. But I’m in a bit of a hurry. I just wanted to swing by and drop this off for you.” Piper answered apologetically, bringing a closed brown envelope from her side.

Cait stared at the envelope and took a deep breath. She didn’t want to assume anything, but part of her knew exactly what this was. “What is it?”

“It’s the article I wrote, Cait.” Piper replied simply.

Cait did not know what to say. Her entire life was in that envelope. She had never wholeheartedly expected Piper to come through with the article. Cait’s story wasn’t the easiest of tales to write. “I…I thought you were gonna just sell it.” she eventually said, willing herself to speak.

Piper glanced down at the envelope in her hands, a caring look in her eyes. “I know how much your story means to you, Cait. When I was writing up, I thought that you should read it before I published it.”

Cait sucked her lip, feeling quite embarrassed by Piper’s thoughtfulness. She had never expected it from a hack like her. “T-Thank you, Piper.” she smiled thankfully, tentatively taking the thick envelope from Piper’s grasp.

Sensing Cait’s unease about seeing her entire life written down on paper, Piper placed her hand on Cait’s. “Make sure you’re in a good place before you read it, okay.” she commanded seriously, concern written over her face.

Cait nodded, comforted by the warmth in Piper’s hand.

“When you’ve read it, come see me and we can decide whether to publish or not. That sound good to you?” Piper then said encouragingly.

Not knowing what else to say, Cait nodded again.

Despite her silent response, Piper smiled at Cait and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Okay… Look, I’ve gotta go, Cait. Take care of yourself, and good luck.”

“T-Thank you, Piper…” Cait replied softly as Piper released her hand and turned away.

Closing the door, Cait walked back slowly through the kitchen to the lving area. Once there, she placed the large brown envelope that Piper had given her on the dining table. Unable to fight her curiosity, she then settled Tasha back into her seat and forcibly opened the envelope.

As soon as the envelope was opened, Cait’s hand began to shake; everything was becoming real now. Taking a seat at the table, Cait slowly pulled the top of the pages out. Focusing in on the title, Cait read aloud, and her finger followed the words. “Th-The…St-Stor-ry…of…a…f-f-figh-ter…fighter.” she read slowly.

As soon as she finished, Cait’s nerves got better of her. Immediately, she quickly shoved the paper back inside the envelope and pushed it away from her. She could not do this now. She wanted El there when she read it. Only then would she feel comfortable enough to face her past.

Once Shaun had been collected from school, the two of them passed the time with some reading practice whilst Tasha sat on Cait’s lap, quietly watching her follow the words. Despite still finding it hard going at times, Cait could start feeling an improvement in her ability. She did not want to tempt fate but she could see herself turning a corner.

Suddenly, the heavy clunk of the of the front door opening and closing shocked Cait out of her concentration. “I’m back!” El’s voice called. “Anyone home?!” Coming around the corner, El smiled happily as she saw her family sitting together on the sofa. “Hey! Everyone’s together I see.” she said, approaching the sofa.

“Mom!” Shaun called, leaping off the sofa. In an instant, he ran over to El and wrapped her in a tight hug.

Returning the hug, El smiled down at Shaun and rubbed the back of his shoulders. “Hey, sweetheart. How was your day?” she greeted.

“It was okay. A bit boring.” Shaun answered, seemingly uninterested.

El frowned. “Boring? It can’t have been that boring.”

“I don’t know. It was okay.” Shaun replied, shrugging his shoulders.

Pulling away, El then put her arm around his shoulder. “Well then, I want you to show me all of this so-called boring work you did today.”

“Do I have to?” Shaun protested glumly.

El just flashed a smug smile. “Well, if it was so boring, then you won’t mind if I had a look, would you?”

Shaun shrugged and began to slowly trudge over to where his schoolbag lay. “Fine…” he huffed.

El’s eyes followed Shaun for a few seconds after he walked away, wondering whether he had picked up that attitude from Cait. Cait sounded almost exactly like that when forced to do something she did not want to.

El was then brought out of her thoughts when she saw Cait and Tasha approaching her. Looking up, El gave Tasha a beaming smile. “Hey sweetheart! Come here, you!” she exclaimed, lifting her out of Cait’s grasp. “You been a good girl for Mama today?” she then asked, glancing at Cait as she lightly tickled Tasha’s tummy.

Tasha giggled uncontrollably and rested her head on El’s chest. El laughed and kissed her on the forehead, stroking her black wavy hair at the same time.

Finally, El’s attention turned to Cait. Snaking and arm around her waist, pulled Cait close. “Hey babe.” she whispered, kissing her lovingly on the lips. “How was your day?” Ever since Cait’s outburst, El had started asking about her day whenever she returned home from the office. It was a small thing, but El figured that it would allow Cait to take pride in what, if anything, she had achieved that day.

“It was alright. Didn’t really do much.” Cait answered, her gaze already drifting over to the thick brown envelope on the dining table. “Piper came by though.”

El raised her eyebrows. “Oh really? What did she want?”

Cait slipped out of El’s embrace and took her hand. Leading her over to the table, Cait looked down at the envelope. “She wanted to drop this off.”

El’s mouth opened slightly, wondering if the envelope contained what she thought it did. “Is that…?”

Cait nodded. “Yeah. It’s Piper’s article about me.”

“Have you opened it?” El asked, noticing the seal was creased.

Cait nodded again. “Just to read the title.”

With her free hand, El opened the envelope and pulled out the first sheet. “’The Story of a Fighter’” El read aloud. El chuckled, admiring Piper’s choice of title. “So, you haven’t read any more of it?”

“No.” Cait shook her head. “I didn’t wanna be on my own when I read it. Piper said I should wait till I’m in a safe space. I…I wondered if you could read it together…”     

Slipping the paper back in the envelope, El put her arm back around Cait’s waist. “Sure… How about, after the kids are asleep, we get into bed and read through it together. That sound good?”

“Yeah. That sounds good.” Cait replied, smiling.

“Alright then…” El finished before noticing Shaun return to her side. “Now then, let’s see what was so boring about this schoolwork, shall we Shaun?”

That night, with the kids asleep, El and Cait had curled themselves up in bed and read Piper’s article. Cait had tried her best to read through some of it, but it was slow going. As a result, El had taken over and read aloud while Cait listened.

Much like her interview, reading the article was a slow and highly emotional endeavour. A heady mixture of past trauma and Piper’s literary prowess had forced them to stop on several occasions to allow the dust to settle. Cait was happier than ever to have El with her whilst they read. She was not sure how she would have coped on her own.

“This story is testament to the inner fighter that resides inside all of us.” El read from Piper’s article. “There may be times where we feel worthless, and without hope. Yet this fighter shows all of us that, with the will to survive, we can defeat whatever may be thrown at us and come back stronger to take on the world. They are an example of whom all of us can look up to...”

As El finished the closing sentence of Piper’s article, an eerie silence fell on El and Cait’s bedroom; both women contemplating what had just been read. Cait was deathly silent, but, deep down, her mind was swimming with emotions. Feelings of anger, sadness, hopelessness, and shame seemed to battle it out inside her head. However, despite this, Cait could also sense a strange feeling of relief grow amongst the plethora of emotions. Cait had never felt this before when thinking about her past; never having had her life laid out to her on paper. But, for reasons Cait could not explain, she began to see herself more clearly than before. It was almost as if, after years of confusion, she finally understood herself and what she had gone through. The sensation was by no means happy, but Cait could at least interpret it as a positive feeling.

Suddenly, Cait was shocked out of her concentration by El shifting away from her to sit on the end of the bed. Cait’s heart sank slightly from the loss of El’s warmth. Was El mad at her? Cait’s heart then sank completely when she heard quiet sobs coming from El.

Part of Cait had expected this kind of a reaction. There had been things referred to in Piper’s article that she had never told El, mostly out of shame. Even now they were married, Cait was at times terrified that El would wake up and see her for the worthless junkie she had been when they first met. “I’m sorry…” she whispered, lowering her head and shuddering.

After a few moments, El turned back to Cait and wiped her eyes. Not knowing what to expect, Cait looked up shyly, her body shivering.

“Come here, you.” El then said, shifting to sit cross-legged and opening her arms.

In an instant, Cait climbed into El’s lap and allowed El to wrap her in a warm, loving embrace. Safe in El’s arms, Cait closed her eyes and rested her head on El’s chest as she was gently rocked back and forth. “My brave girl. My brave, brave girl.” she then heard El say.

Opening her eyes, Cait looked up and El and kissed her yearningly on the lips. “I’m sorry…” she pleaded shyly, as if in shame. “I wanted to tell you everythin’. But I was scared.”

El immediately brought Cait in closer. “No, Cait.” she whispered, cupping Cait’s cheek in her hand. “You don’t need to be sorry. This is your story, Cait. You decide what to tell.”

“I should have told you before. I…I never wanted to do any of it, honest.” Cait continued, pleading for El to understand.

“I know… I know, Cait… You survived, that’s all. I still love you no matter what.” El insisted.

Finally allowing tears to fall, Cait pressed her lips deeply onto El’s and savoured the taste of her adoring wife. “I love you too.” she whispered. “T-Thank you for bein’ with me.”

El smiled and stroked Cait’s soft hair. “Of course, Cait. Whatever you need.” El then looked over to the pile of papers lying on the bed next to them. Collecting them in her hand, El presented them to Cait. “Listen to me, Cait. This is your testament to the Commonwealth. This is proof that you are a fighter, and an example for all of us to look up to. Just like Piper said… You need to keep this safe.”

Tentatively, Cait took the papers and held them close to her chest. “I will. I’ll keep ‘em safe.” she nodded before resting her head on El’s chest again. “Can…Can we stay like this for a bit?” she asked softly.

Smiling lovingly, El collected one of their blankets and wrapped it warmly around their bodies. She then pulled Cait in as close as possible. “Sure. However long you need.” she whispered tenderly.

Safe in the loving cocoon of El’s warmth, Cait listened to the steady beat of El’s heart. As her mouth slowly morphed into a smile, she could feel her mind begin her settle. For the first time in her life, she understood who she was: a fighter.

“Knock, knock?” a voice brought El out of her concentration. Looking up, El was exhilarated to see Piper standing in the office doorway. “Piper! Come in, come in!” she ushered, getting out of her chair.

Strolling into El’s office, Piper opened her arms as El hugged her. “I hope I’m not intruding.” she said, concerned that she was disturbing El from her work.

“Oh, not at all.” El reassured, shrugging it off. “I always have time to talk to friends.”

“Thanks.” Piper smiled, following El back to her desk. “Geneva wasn’t at her desk, so I thought I’d show myself in.”

El nodded her head and waved her hand. “Yes, she is on her lunch break. But, honestly Piper, you don’t need to buzz in with her to see me. You’re a pretty familiar face around here.”

Piper chuckled at El’s statement. “Good to know. But I hope what you just said about me being a familiar face is in a positive light.”

“Well, of course.” El reassured with a playful smile. “So, to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?” she then asked, sitting back down at her desk.

Seating herself facing El, Piper leaned forward in her chair. “Well, I wanted to talk to you about Cait, if that’s alright?”

El raised her eyebrows, not expecting Cait be mentioned so soon. “S-Sure. I was going to ask; how has the article been doing?”

“It’s been selling great.” Piper replied excitedly. “I’m amazed how well it’s been doing. It needed a bit of editing, but I’m so glad Cait agreed to publish.”

El smiled. “I’m glad too. Although, it was some difficult reading in places.”

Piper nodded and sat up straight. “Yeah. That’s why I wanted to do some editing and split it into parts. I thought that people wouldn’t be able to manage the whole thing in one go.”

“I can understand that. I must thank you, Piper. You have been so helpful to us.” El said gratefully.

Piper’s cheeks went slightly red at El’s heartfelt gratitude. “Oh, it’s nothing. I’m glad I could help. How is Cait doing by the way?”

El was silent for a few seconds, forming her answer. “She’s doing better. We have a long way to go, but we’re on the right track. Cait is still processing a lot, but she feels like she understands her life more.”

“That’s great! I’m so proud of her!” Piper cried, overjoyed. “Well, if you’d indulge me, I would love to help out some more.”

Shocked again by Piper’s proposal, El sat back in her chair. “Of course. Fire away.”

“Okay. Well, after Cait and I finished her interview, she wanted to know what I do when getting an article ready to publish. I gave her a basic answer, but she appeared very interested. So, I gave her a brief tour of the place. You know, showed her my terminal, the press; that sort of thing.”

El frowned in curiosity. Where was this going? “Really? She never told me that.”

“Maybe she didn’t think much of it.” Piper wondered, shrugging her shoulders. “Anyway, it all got me thinking. After the McDonough scandal, we’ve really seen the paper’s fortunes change. We’re selling out issues every week. I…I can’t explain it. Maybe people felt bad after calling me a liar for so long.” Piper shifted in her seat, preparing herself. “Unfortunately, with the demand, Nat and I have sometimes been run off our feet and I wondered if Cait wanted to help us out.”

El’s mouth dropped open. Was piper seriously giving Cait a job? “S-Sorry, Piper. Hold up a minute. T-Tell me that again.”

“I wanted to offer Cait a job at the paper.” Piper repeated, clasping her hands together honestly.

El was completely dumbfounded; a job at Publick Occurrences? This was brilliant. Weeks of worry appeared to be at an end. Finally, Cait would have something to call her own. El had to know more. “Piper, this sounds amazing. What kind of job were you thinking of?”

“We really need someone to work the press for us. Nat has the selling side down, and I’ve got the writing part well and good. It’s that bit in between writing and selling that we need help with. I think, with a bit of training, Cait would be a great fit.”

El moved to speak, but Piper was not finished. “I also had some thoughts about her reading. I’ve done a little research and think I’ve found an interesting way she can improve her reading and writing ability.”

El’s curiosity only grew. “Wow, Piper. What were you thinking?” she asked, intrigued.

“It’s a bit hard to explain, but I think I can combine a reading lesson with the work she does. For example, teaching her to read through putting the type together for the press will allow her to do her job, and boost her confidence when learning.” Piper answered as best she could.

Luckily for Piper, El understood completely. “That…That sounds like a great idea…” El was beyond words, she could not believe it. Piper had thought of everything. There was, however, one small thing nagging her. “My only question would be: why are you telling me this first?” she asked candidly.

Piper shifted again in her seat, calculating her answer. “I get the impression that Cait likes to have your approval before she makes a decision. Is that a fair assumption?” she presumed.

El stroked her chin. She did not completely agree with Piper’s assessment, but did see the logic in her thinking. “She…She certainly values my advice when she asks for it.” she replied thoughtfully.

Piper chuckled slightly, amused by El’s feeble attempt to counter what she was sure was a fair assessment. “I thought as much… So, I’d be right in assuming that, if I asked her, she would want to talk to it through with you before agreeing?”

“You…You would be right there.” El conceded reluctantly.

“In that case, I wanted to tell you before asking her so, when she asks for her opinion, you can tell her to take the job.” Piper then said, explaining her reasoning. “I really want her to take the job, Blue. I think she’ll be great.”

El thought hard, tapping her fingers on the desk. “That is very smart thinking, Piper. If she asks, I will definitely tell her to take it.”

“Great!” Piper exclaimed happily, smiling broadly and getting up from her chair. “Well, if it’s alright with you, I’ve got someone to hire.”

Similarly standing up from her chair, El walked around her desk to join Piper. “Of course. Go right ahead. Don’t take no for an answer.”

Piper chuckled and nodded her head. “No worries. I’ll make a good case. You can count on that.” Piper was then squeezed tightly as El brought her into a friendly bug. “Thank you, Piper. You’re a true friend.” she said, holding her snugly. 

Piper laughed bashfully this time. “Blue, stop it. You’re making me blush.” she replied, her face going red.

Pulling away, El patted her on the shoulder and took a step back. “You go get her.” she then smiled, crossing her arms.

“Will do. Thanks a million, Blue.” Piper agreed with a wink before turning to exit the office. After descending back down to street level, she proceeded to Home Plate and lightly wrapped on the front door. Stepping back, Piper put her hands behind her back and prepared herself. Hopefully, Cait would not need much convincing.

Suddenly, with a heavy clunk, the front door swung open to reveal a surprised Cait in the doorway. “Piper? H-How are you?” she asked, her eyes wide.

“Hi Cait. I’m good, thanks. How are you?” Piper replied with a friendly smile.

Cait immediately began fidgeting with the rings on her finger. “I’m okay… E-El’s still in the office if you were wonderin’.”

Bringing her hands around from her back, Piper sought to reassure Cait. “No, Cait. It’s okay. I was actually hoping to speak to you. Can I come in?”

Shifting awkwardly on her feet, Cait nodded and stepped aside. “Oh, y-yeah, sure. Come in.”

“Thanks, Cait.” Piper smiled, stepping inside. As she walked through into the living area, Piper looked around curiously for Tasha; she had not seen her in El’s office. “You on Tasha duty today, Cait?” she asked.

“She’s takin’ a nap.” Cait answered, listening up the stairs to make sure that Tasha was still asleep. “So, what did you want to talk about?”

“I wanted to talk to you about your article.” Piper replied, gesturing to the sofa. “Is it alright if I sit down?”

Cait nodded. “Sure… What about the article? Are people readin’ it?”

“They are, Cait.” Piper answered honestly. “We’ve sold out all the copies so far.”

Cait had to sit down to contain her surprise. “R…Really? P-People are actually readin’ that shit?” she asked, scrunching her face up in complete bafflement.

“You shouldn’t be so surprised, Cait. You’ve read it after all. It’s an amazing story.” Piper reassured, leaving in towards Cait slightly.

Cait was silent for a moment, wondering why on earth anyone would want to read her sob story. Yes, she was glad that Piper had written the article, but she had only agreed to publish because she did not believe anyone would actually read it. Maybe Piper was right. “I suppose.” she said eventually.

“There you go.” Piper responded chirpily, tapping her on the knee. “Anyway, I didn’t actually come here to talk just about the article. I wanted to talk about your job hunt.”

Cait’s face immediately dropped. What inane job options had been found for her this time? “Oh…right…” she said, slouching her shoulders and twisting the rings around her finger.

Despite the sedate reaction, Piper continued. “So, you know when I gave you that small tour of the paper after your interview?” she asked with an expectant smile.

Cait sat up slightly, not expecting Piper to bring that up. “Y-Yeah? I was just wonderin’ what you did.” she replied, attempting to justify herself.

“You seemed very interested in my opinion, Cait; and that got me thinking. Ever since the McDonough incident, we’ve been run off her feet with people buying papers. So, I wondered if you wanted to come work with us at the paper.” Clasping her hands together, Piper now waited for Cait’s response.

Cait recoiled away and her face exploded in shock. What did Piper just say, work at her paper? She could not do that; she could barely read. What use was a barely literate person going to be for a newspaper? “W…What?” she stuttered gormlessly.

“I want you to work with Nat and I at Publick Occurrences.” Piper repeated simply.

Cait tried to speak, but no words came out. She needed to say something to break the awkward silence. She must look so stupid at the moment.

Watching Cait falter blankly, Piper waved her hand. “Cait…? You there?”

Shaking her head out of her trance, Cait finally managed to get some words out. “W-Why?” she stammered, almost shivering from the shock.

“I know you’ve been looking for a job for the days that you’re not looking after Tasha, and you looked really interested about how the papers are written and printed. I think you would be a great person to have on board.” Piper answered sincerely.

Cait, however, still thought there was something more to this. Piper would never offer her such a job without someone else suggesting it. “Did El tell you to say that? Are you just jokin’ about this? if this is a set up, you can fuck off!” raising her voice, Cait stood up from the sofa and pointed towards the door.

Desperate to stop Cait spiralling, Piper also stood up. “Cait, Cait, Cait, it’s not a joke, honest! This is real. I want you to work with me.” she pleaded, giving Cait a friendly, but nervous smile. “And El didn’t set me up; I came to this decision myself. Can you please sit down?”

Reluctantly, Cait plonked herself back on the sofa. Clenching her fists, Cait tried to process Piper’s words. “But… Why? I can’t work at the paper, I can barely fuckin’ read.” she protested.

Taking a seat next to Cait, Piper attempted to reassure her. “Cait, you’re being too hard on yourself. It doesn’t matter if you’re learning to read. We can work with that. Just hear me out, okay.”

After several deep breaths, Cait managed to settle herself down enough to listen. “What…What would I be doin’?” she asked, trying not to show her curiosity.

Without reacting, Piper inwardly cheered. She seemed to be winning the argument. All she had to do was bring it home. “Well, I’m writing the articles and Nat sells them. What I’d like you to do is work the press and help us print the papers.”

Cait was silent as she listened to Piper. She did remember wanting to know how the press worked, and how Piper actually produced her papers. But she was just being curious. She had not asked them with any thought of getting a job out of it.

In order to break the awkward silence, Piper continued her proposal. “And about the reading, I’ve been doing some thinking and I think I’ve found a way to help build your knowledge and work at the same time.”

Frowning to herself, Cait could not help but feel intrigued by Piper’s idea – working and learning – what did that mean? “What sort of thinkin’?” she asked further.

“We’ll…We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Piper replied, not wanting to oversell before Cait agreed. “Right now, I just wanted to know what you’re thinking, about the job that is.”

Cait chewed her lip. Piper’s proposal did sound good, even if she thought herself completely unqualified. She would never get an opportunity like this again. Ever since her interview, her opinion of Piper had really changed. She sounded like she genuinely wanted to help. However, she needed to talk to El before she agreed to anything. Cait could always rely on El to offer some sound advice on what to do. “I…I…gotta talk to El about it, okay. This…This is really big for me and…and I wanna know I’m doin’ the right thing.”

Piper knew that Cait would say that but was smart enough to play an act. “Oh, yeah, sure. No worries. You’re right. This is a big decision. You’d want to talk this over.” Thinking for a second, Piper thought of an easy way Cait could follow through on whatever decision she made. “Look, have a think about it and, if you want the job, come by and we can start you off. When…When does Blue next have Tasha?”

“M-Monday.” Cait replied stoically.

Piper smiled, clapping her hands together. “Okay then. That sounds like a plan. If you want the job, come by the paper on Monday morning. That should give you a few days to decide. If you don’t want it, we never have to speak of it again. That sound good?”

Giving a weak smile, Cait nodded her head.

“Okay. Well, thanks for listening, Cait.” Piper said happily before looking at the clock. “Look, Cait, I’ve gotta make a move. I’ll let you have some time to think, alright?” she asked, getting up from the sofa.

Similarly getting up, Cait gave a confused, but appreciative smile. “O-Okay. T-Thanks for comin’ by.”

Leading her back through the house, Piper opened the front door and turned to pat Cait on the shoulder. “You take of yourself, okay, Cait.” she said, giving Cait a friendly smile.

“You too…” Cait replied as Piper turned and exited the house. Closing the door behind her, Cait finally let her calm go. She could not believe it; a job, a proper job, with nice people. One tiny piece of curiosity had resulted in an opportunity beyond her wildest dreams. Cait’s head felt close to exploding.

Pacing over to the kitchen, Cait snatched a tumbler from one the cupboards and unscrewed a bottle of whiskey that was sitting on the counter. Pouring out a glass, Cait knocked it back in one gulp and shivered as it warmed its way down her throat. Feeling slightly more relaxed than before, Cait leaned against the counter and nervously cracked her knuckles. If she could just talk to El, then maybe she could work this out.

As the family sat around the dinner table, enjoying their food, Cait quietly wondered when best to mention Piper’s visit. She did not have much of an appetite, but she nonetheless tucked into her meal. El’s cooking was unsurprisingly delicious. Even now, Cait was still amazed that her wife appeared to be capable of anything.

Unbeknownst to Cait, El was doing her best not to bring up Piper. If she let slip that Piper had visited her, Cait would instantly deduce that El already knew. For the time being, she just needed to stay quiet and hope Cait would come forward.

Eventually, Cait reasoned that would have to say something. She had been somewhat evasive with the details of her day, and she worried that El would become suspicious before long. One thing that El was excellent at was knowing when Cait was hiding something. Placing her knife and fork down on her plate, Cait sat up in her chair and took a deep breath. “Piper came by the house today.” she began, breaking the silence.

Using her best acting skills, El pretended to sound surprised. “Oh really?” El replied, similarly sitting up in her chair. “What did she want?”

Cait was quiet for a few seconds as she found her words. “She…She wanted to tell me about the article she wrote about me. A-Apparently, it’s sold out.”

“That’s brilliant, Cait.” El exclaimed proudly. “I told you that people would be interested. How do you feel about it?” Despite it not being exactly what she thought Cait would talk about, it was still a worthwhile conversation to have.

“It’s a bit weird. You know, knowin’ that the person people are readin’ about is you.” Cait answered, bowing her head slightly. “But…you know…it’s cool that people care enough to wanna read it.”

“Exactly, Cait.” El added, placing her hand on Cait’s. “You should be very proud of yourself.”

Cait gave a reserved smile, but quickly grew serious again as she readied herself for her big reveal. “She…She also wanted to talk about somethin’ else.”

Continuing her charade, El leaned forward. Maybe this would be what she was expecting.

Taking another deep breath, Cait came clean. “She…She wanted…to offer me a job…at her paper.”

Even though she already knew about this news, it was still a surprise to hear Cait say it. El’s mouth dropped wide open. “Cait, that’s wonderful!” she exclaimed happily, getting up from her chair and bending over to hug Cait tightly.

Sitting across from the table from them, Shaun stood up from his chair and ran around to hug Cait. “Well done, Cait! I knew you could do it!” he praised, resting his head on her shoulder.

Cait’s cheeks went bright pink as she was wrapped in a loving cocoon. “Thanks, Shaun.” she said appreciatively, bringing her arms around to return the hug.

Pulling away, El immediately knelt in front of Cait and took her hand. “So, what did Piper say? I want to hear everything. Spare no detail.”

Calming herself down, Cait cleared her throat. “Well…she said that I looked interested in her press when I had my interview. It was just askin’ questions, but she wants me to work the press and get the papers ready to sell.”

El moved to speak but Cait had not yet finished. “Piper also said she wanted to pick up some of my readin’ and writin’ lessons. She said she somethin’ about workin’ and learnin’, so I can do the job and learn at the same time. I…I think that’s what it was.”

“Cait, that’s amazing!” El said, squeezing Cait’s hand. “What did you say? Did you take it?” she then asked, gripped by Cait’s story.

Cait chewed her lip nervously. “N-No. I…I wanted to ask you about it before I did anythin’. What…What do you think of it?”

El let out a deep breath. This was going to exactly as Piper had predicted. El, however, was not going to give advice. She could already tell that Cait wanted the job. The way she talked about the working and learning idea gave enough assurance to her that Cait was interested. “You don’t need to ask me, Cait. This job has been offered to you. What do you think?” she asked, throwing the question back at Cait.

Cait shifted uncomfortably in her chair, irritated that El had not answered her question. “No, don’t do that, El. I want you to tell me if it’s a good idea.” she protested, sitting forward.

El sighed and bowed her head. She needed Cait to shift this behaviour and think for herself. She would never build her confidence if she continued doing this. Looking up at Cait, El stoically stared at her. “Cait, look into my eyes.”

Cait’s piercing green eyes met El’s mesmerising hazels ones and she waited urgently for what El would say next.

With Cait’s full attention, El spoke her mind. “You want this job, don’t you?”

Cait’s gaze immediately glanced away, giving away Cait’s thoughts. She did want the job. Something about it just felt right. Piper had been so sincere to her when offering the job. If Piper and El thought she could do it, that was all the assurance she needed. Looking back at El, Cait nodded.

At that nod, El’s face softened, and she gave a loving smile. “You see… I knew you wanted it.” she said, stroking the back of Cait’s hand with her thumb.

“I just… I wanted to be sure I was makin’ the right decision.” Cait reasoned, attempting to justify herself.

El nodded, completely understanding Cait’s nervousness. “I know… I know you want to do the right thing, and this is a big leap into the unknown for you. But you should trust your instincts. If it feels right, do it.”

As she listened, Cait could see the enchanting glint in El’s hazel eyes. El was right; she needed to trust her instincts. She knew she wanted this job; she just had to take it. “O-Okay. Yeah, I want it. I really want it.” she eventually said, finally letting her true feelings be known.

Grinning happily, El rose and kissed Cait deeply on the lips. “That’s great. I’m so proud of you. Do you have a start date?”

Feeling infinitely happier about her decision, Cait felt more comfortable answering El’s questions. “P-Piper said to come by the paper on Monday mornin’ if I wanted the job.”

“Okay then… Well, we now have a few days to make you work ready.” El replied enthusiastically, patting Cait’s leg.

Cait immediately tried to slow El down. This was all going very fast. “No. You…You don’t need to help me out. I-It’s just a small job.” she appealed.

El, however, would not take no for an answer. “Cait, what are these on your finger?” she asked rhetorically as she glanced down at Cait’s ring finger.

Seeing the two rings on her finger, Cait knew exactly what El was referring to. El was her wife, so was going to help whether she liked it or not. “Okay.” she accepted graciously, nodding her head.

“Good…” El replied eagerly. “Come Monday, you’ll be the most employable person in the Commonwealth.”

Finally allowing herself to smile properly, Cait chuckled at El’s comment. She loved this woman so much, but she did talk some shit sometimes. However, if that shit made her look good, Cait was more than willing to take it.

Buckling up her backpack, El walked over to the dining table and eyes Shaun finishing his breakfast. “You nearly ready, Shaun?” she asked, placing the backpack on a chair.

Shaun nodded and slowly pushed his plate away from him. “Yeah, I’m ready.” he answered.

“Okay. Well, get your things together. We need to get going soon." El then commanded, collecting Shaun’s empty plate.

As Shaun hopped off his chair and went to assemble his things for school, El walked to the kitchen and placed the plate in the sink. On her way back to the living area, El then called up from the foot of the stairs. “Come on, Cait! Shaun and I are getting ready to go!”

“El, tell me why I have to wear this again!” Cait’s voice called back.

El rolled her eyes. She knew this was coming. “Well, show me first and I will tell you.” she answered, strolling back towards the living area.

After waiting a few moments, El heard footsteps at the top of the stairs. Slowly, the footsteps got louder as Cait trudged down to show her.

El could not have been prouder by what greeted her. Before her, wearing a dark navy-blue pair of trousers and matching blazer, a dark green shirt, and black slip-on ankle high boots, Cait stood grumpily slouching. A few days earlier, El had taken Cait to Fallon’s Basement to buy a new work outfit. Despite her best efforts, El found it difficult to get Cait enthused with clothes shopping. As a result, El had only seen Cait wearing the outfit once before. “You look amazing, Cait. Very professional.” El smiled, gleefully looking her wife up and down.

“I look stupid.” Cait protested, shrugging her shoulders. “I don’t see why I have to wear this. it’s not like I’m runnin’ the city or anythin’.”

“That’s not the point, Cait. It’s about making a good impression. Putting on a nice outfit is an easy way to show that you’re excited and care about the job.” El reasoned, crossing her arms.

Cait, however, was not convinced. “It’s only Piper. Do you really think she’ll care?” she asked sarcastically.

Not in the mood for sarcasm, El was completely unphased. “Yes, I think she will be very grateful. Now, come here and let me sort out your shirt. Have you never tucked in a shirt before?”

Begrudgingly, Cait stepped forward and allowed El to adjust her shirt accordingly. “There… How does that feel?”

Cait twisted her body around and huffed quietly to herself. “I can’t move in this.” she grunted.

“Welcome to the world of work.” El countered, stepping to one side. “Have a look in the mirror and tell me what you think.”

Shuffling over to a mirror hanging on the wall, Cait looked at herself and exhaled deeply. She had to admit, she did like how the outfit slimmed down her waist, especially when the blazer was buttoned up. There was also something about the outfit that made her feel powerful, like those people she saw in old newspaper and magazines she found lying around, or even those complicated lawyer movies that El liked to watch. Maybe she did like the outfit.

So wrapped up in herself, Cait failed to notice El approach from behind and snake her arms around her waist. “I for one think you look very sexy dressed up like this.” she whispered in Cait’s ear.

Cait’s cheeks began to turn and embarrassing shade of red. “Really?” she asked, watching El in the mirror.

“Yeah.” El continued. “It makes you look powerful, and you know how I feel about strong women.” El then began to gently kiss Cait’s neck.

Cait immediately snapped her out of it. “Alright. Quit it, perv.” she commanded, turning her head to El.

“Okay, okay. I’ll stop.” El laughed before undoing Cait’s top button and opening her collar slightly. “Just one thing, undo your top button. You’re not working in a library.”

Cait just rolled her eyes. El would find any excuse to look down her cleavage.

Unwrapping her arms from Cait’s waist, El returned to the dining table to Shaun playing with Tasha, his schoolbag fully packed next to him. “Shaun, how do you think Cait looks?”

Looking up at Cait, Shaun gave an adorable smile. “She looks beautiful.”

“There you go, Cait. You look beautiful.” El added, smiling mischievously as she put her arm around his shoulders.

Cait fully blushed this time and she bashfully brushed some loose strands of fringe behind her ear. “T-Thanks, Shaun.” she chuckled.

Looking over at the clock, El then removed her arms and went to collect her coat from a hook in the hallway. “Come on, Shaun, time to get your things. We don’t want you to be late for school.”

“Yes, mom.” Shaun replied obediently, getting his satchel together.

After slipping her coat on, El collected her backpack and slung it over her shoulders. She then picked Tasha out of her chair and held her close. “Alright everyone, time to say goodbye. Say goodbye to Cait before we go, Shaun.” she said, adjusting Tasha and adjusting her backpack slightly.

“Bye Cait!” Shaun exclaimed, lovingly hugging Cait’s waist. “Have a great day. You’re gonna be amazing!”

Cait chuckled and returned the hug. “Thanks, Shaun. You have a good day too.”

As Shaun pulled away, Cait was then greeted by El and Tasha. “See you later, squirt. Have a great day with mom. I love you.” Cait said, kissing Tasha on the cheek.

Giggling and babbling, Tasha threw her hand out to Cait, who shook it gently.

Cait then looked up at El. With her free arm, El pulled Cait into a warm hug. “You have a wonderful day, alright, Cait.” she said softly. Pulling away, El then planted a loving kiss on Cait’s lips. “You’re going to be brilliant. You’ll see.” she whispered.

Cait nodded and saw the mesmerising glint in El’s eyes. “I want to hear everything when you’re finished.” El then said, stroking Cait’s cheek. "I love you.”

“I love you too.” Cait replied, again brushing loose strands of fringe behind her ear. “Don’t leave it too late before heading over, okay.” El added as she brought her arm back to her side.

“I-I won’t.” Cait agreed, nervously twisting her rings around her finger.

El smiled. “Okay. We better go.” With that, El turned to lead Shaun outside. Opening the front door, El, Tasha, and Shaun looked back one last time. “Wave goodbye.” El said, ushering everyone to wave their hands at Cait. She herself waved her hand with an enchanting smile on her lips.

Blushing like an idiot, Cait raised her hand to wave back, smiling bashfully. Once they had all finished, El, Shaun, and Tasha stepped out into Diamond City, closing the door behind them.

Now she was alone in the house. Cait sat herself down on the sofa and quietly waited. There was little point in doing much else apart from memorise everything El had told her: what to ask, what not to ask, be nice, don’t answer back unless you must, and remember to thank Piper for the opportunity. Cait knew El was just trying to help, but it seemed like a long list. Piper would probably not even care.

Finally, looking over at the clock, Cait realised that she should probably get going. Standing up, she walked over to the coat rack and collect her jacket. Slipping it over her shoulders, she then retrieved her own backpack and headed for the door. Stepping outside, Cait closed the door behind her and engaged its multiple padlocks. Throwing the keys into her bag, Cait began her short, but deeply nerve racking journey to her new workplace.

Arriving at Publick Occurrences, Cait stood at the front door and took a deep breath. This was it; it was what she wanted. Straightening herself up, Cait chewed her lip and gently knocked on the door.

As usual, there came the unmistakable muffled sound of movement coming from inside. Cait scoffed quietly to herself. Clearly, Piper lived in a state of constant chaos. Soon, however, Cait heard footsteps approach and the door swung open. “Cait!” a happily surprised Piper shouted. “So good to see you!”

“H-Hi Piper.” Cait replied nervously, shifting on the balls of her feet. “I’m…I’m here about the job you offered. I…I really want it.”

Piper could not hide her glee. “You do? Oh, that’s great! Come in, Cait! Come in, come in!” she ushered actively, stepping aside to let Cait entre.

Stepping gingerly through the doorway, Cait was followed closely by an almost giddy Piper. “Feel free to throw your stuff anywhere. Nat, come and say hi to Cait!” she called upstairs.

Within seconds, Cait was greeted by Piper’s younger sister, Nat. it always amazed how alike Piper and her sister were. They might as well have been twins in Cait’s mind. “Hi Cait.” Nat welcomed with a friendly smile. “Welcome to the team.”

“T-Thanks.” Cait stuttered, not knowing what else to say.

Following Piper’s invitation, Cait then removed her bag and jacket and placed them next to Piper’s sofa. As Cait turned back. Piper got a full look at Cait’s outfit. “Wow, Cait!” she marvelled. “You look great!”

Cait immediately felt self-conscious. Was Piper just saying that to be nice? “It…It’s not too much, is it? Am I overdressed?”

Piper looked Cait and down and just shook her head. “Absolutely not. You look great. Very professional.” Piper reassured her. “If anything, you put us to shame. I need to take a leaf out of your fashion book.”

Cait attempted a smile, feeling slightly embarrassed. El was really the one to thank for the outfit. “El got it for me.” she said honestly.

“Of course, she did.” Piper chuckled in reply. “I thought as much. Either way, you’re a knockout.”

Her face going bright red, Cait felt a bit more relaxed. It was then that she remembered what El had told her. Clearing her throat, Cait said her piece. “I…I also wanted to say; t-thank you for this opportunity, Piper. I-I really appreciate it and I won’t let you down.”

To Cait’s worry, Piper did not react. Cait immediately began to panic. Why did she say that? Why did El tell her to say that?

Suddenly, Piper’s emotionless face turned into a goofy smile. “Did Blue tell you to say that?” she asked, giving Cait a knowing look.

Cait was so confused that she was unable to reply. She was convinced that she had talked herself into a corner. Luckily for Cait, Piper could see her confusion and decided to break the tension. “She’s a character, ain’t she?” she laughed. “Well, we’re grateful to have you. You’re gonna do great.” Piper then patted Cait supportively on the shoulder.

Relieved that she had not ruined everything before she even started. Cait gave a gracious smile.

“Well, now you’re here, Cait, we’ll give you a better tour of the place and then get started on your contract. That sound good?” Piper then asked, putting her hands on her hips.

Ready to get started, Cait nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah. That sounds great.”

“Awesome! Well, follow me and we’ll get you started.” Piper replied encouragingly, leading a nervously excited Cait towards her new job.

“And that’s how the press work. You with me so far?” Piper asked expectantly.

“I…I think so.” Cait answered, attempting to memorise everything that Piper had told her.

Noticing the quizzical look on Cait’s face, Piper put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Cait. We can keep going over it.” she then looked over at the clock. “Wow! Is that the time? Cait, what are your plans for lunch?”

Cait was not completely sure about her lunch plans. “I don’t know. I…I might get somethin’ from home.”

Piper just shook her head. “No, you’re not. Come on. Let me take you out.” she smiled.

Cait instantly started fidgeting. “N-No, it’s okay. You don’t need to do that. I can just get somethin’ at home.” she replied nervously.

Piper, however, would not take no for an answer. “Cait, come on. It’s your first day. You deserve a treat. We all do.”

Cait chewed her lip and thought about Piper’s proposal. She did not really think she had worked enough to warrant a treat. However, if Piper was offering, she would never turn down a free meal. “O-Okay, I’ll go out for lunch.” she agreed shyly.

“Good answer.” Piper joked. “Grab your jacket and we’ll head out.”

Taking a seat at the Takahashi noodle bar, Cait removed her jacket and placed it on her lap while Piper ordered for them. As the day warmed up throughout the morning, Cait had decided to forgo her blazer and just wear her green shirt and leather jacket.

Similarly taking her seat between Cait and Nat, Piper looked over and raised her eyebrows. “You better watch out, Cait. I might have to steal that shirt.” she quipped.

Looking down at her shirt, Cait chuckled. “It’ll make no difference if you did, most of my shirts are this colour.”

Intrigued, Piper frowned. “Really? You like wearing dark green?”

“El likes me wearin’ it. She…” Cait paused, wondering whether she should divulge what she was going to say. “She says it suits my hair and eyes.” she decided to say, concluding that it could not hurt to say.

Piper smiled, heartened by Cait’s comment. Her and El were a cute couple. “She’s not wrong. You two are adorable.”

Cait lowered her head, her face going red with embarrassment. However, she could feel a smile creeping across her face. Luckily for Cait, Piper then became distracted by the arrival of their food. “Bon appetite, guys.” Piper then exclaimed to Cait and Nat, collecting her chopsticks. Licking her lips, Cait took her chopsticks and happily dug into her noodles.

They ate in relative silence, all three women too interested in their food to strike up a conversation. Cait, however, wanted to ask Piper something. All this time, El had treated Piper almost like a family member. Cait was fine with this, but she always wondered something. Placing her chopsticks in her noodle bowl, Cait cleared her throat. “Piper, I was wonderin’ if I could ask you somethin’?” she asked, swivelling to face Piper.

Swallowing a mouthful of noodles, Piper wiped her mouth. “Mm, sure. Ask away, Cait.” she replied affirmatively.

“How did you and El meet?” Cait enquired.

Piper sat back in her stool and thought about Cait’s question. It was a long time ago, but she remembered the day vividly. “That takes me back… It was about the millionth time McDonough had kicked me out and I was stuck at the front gate, shouting down the intercom. Apparently, Danny Sullivan had 'orders'.” she said, gesturing her fingers in air quotes. “Anyway, while I was shouting, I saw a strange woman in a vaultsuit walking towards me. That was Blue.”

Cait was slightly disappointed by Piper’s story. She had expected something more dramatic. Even when she met El, it was after she had the crap beaten out of her. “Is that it? You met in the street?”

“I know it’s not very glamourous, Cait.” Piper justified. “But it was a pretty hard time for Blue. It was pretty lucky that she met me then.”

“Really?” Cait wondered curiously. El had never told her that.

Piper nodded. “Yeah. She hadn’t been out of that vault all that long and she looked very lost. Once I was allowed back inside Diamond City, I helped her get settled. I also wrote her story and got the word out about her search. You know, introduced to Valentine, and so on.”

Cait was surprised. Why had El never told her this? “Why would you do all that for someone you just met?” she then asked.

“I don’t know, really. Talking to an attractive vault dweller seemed like an interesting thing to do. She was the knockout story I was looking for. It was only after I got to know her that I started getting feelings.” Piper answered, shrugging her shoulders as if her words were of no consequence.

Cait leaned forward in her stool and raised an eyebrow. “Feelings?’ she quizzed.

Piper’s face suddenly went very red, and she shifted uncomfortably. “Oh…w-well…I…I mean…I’d…be lying if I said that…I…that I never…had feelings for her. Not that I do have feelings for her. You know, she’s a beautiful...s-strong, attractive woman… But she’s with you, and that’s great. You’re meant for each other… Whoa! Is it hot today?” she rambled embarrassingly, looking away and pretending to fan herself.

“It’s okay, Piper. I’m just messin’ with you.” Cait laughed, slapping Piper on the back. “But you’re right. She is someone worth knowin’.”

Regaining some of her composure, Piper similarly laughed in agreement. “I’ll drink to that.” she said, picking up her bottle of Nuka Cola and raising it to Cait.

Collecting her own Nuka Nola, Cait chinked it against Piper’s. “Cheers.” she smiled, a strong feeling of inclusion coming across her.

“There you go, Cait. Your first printed article. The first of many.” Piper praised, handing Cait a piece of paper.

Tentatively taking the paper, Cait bit her lip. This was her work. It was only one page, and required a lot of input from Piper, but it was hers. She had actually made something. “It’s just one page.” she said modestly.

“As I said, Cait, the first of many… You did good today.” Piper reassured, patting Cait’s shoulder.

Cait’s lips creeped up into a smile. “Thanks. Yeah…first of many.” She repeated, nodding acceptingly.

“That’s the spirit, Cait.” Piper acclaimed, taking the paper from Cait and placing it on a pile next to her terminal. “I think we’ve accomplished a lot today. Feel free to take the rest of the day off.”

Cait stared at Piper in complete bafflement. “Really? But…But the day’s not done yet.”

“I know. But you did good today. You deserve it. Go and disturb Blue.” Piper insisted with a friendly grin.

Not wanting to turn down a couple of hours off, Cait eventually nodded. “O-Okay. Thanks, Piper.” she said favourably. “I’ll go wind-up El.”

“Go for it. I’ll see you back here Wednesday.” Piper then said, walking with Cait to her bag and jackets. Collecting her bag, blazer, and jacket, Cait slung the bag over her shoulder and folded her blazer and jacket over her arm. “Yep. I’ll be there.” Cait replied willingly. Throwing caution to the wind, she then wrapped Piper in a warm hug. “Thank you, Piper. This has been great.”

Surprised by Cait’s sudden embrace, Piper chortled heartily. “It’s no problem, Cait. We’re glad to have you.” she said, stroking Cait’s back.

Pulling away, Cait sheepishly collected herself and opened the front door. Stepping through, Cait turned back to Piper. “See you Wednesday.” she called, waving happily, but not trying to appear too overjoyed.

“You have a good evening, Cait.” Piper smiled back, winking at her.

Closing the door behind her, Cait lowered her waving hand. Now free of work, Cait looked up at the upper tiers of Diamond City and grinned joyfully. The day had gone so well. She had to tell El about it. Adjusting her bag slightly, Cait proceeded to saunter towards the elevator.

“Bye, Cait.” she heard a voice say as she began walking. Turning her head towards the voice, Cait saw Nat standing on her small podium, a pile of papers under her arm. Waving, Cait smiled. “See ya, kid.”

Once Cait was a few steps away from Publick Occurrences, the adrenaline hit her, and she broke into a run. She just had to find El and talk about her day. Like a giddy child running to tell their parents about their first day of school, Cait ran to the elevator and punched the button to head up to El’s office. Pacing up and down, Cait anxiously wished the elevator would move faster. This could not wait.

Finally, the elevator reached its destination and Cait ran to El’s office. Completely ignoring Geneva, Cait pushed open the metal doors wide open and blundered into El’s office. “El! El! I done it! I done my first day!” she shouted eagerly, running to El’s desk.

Shocked out of her concentration, El jumped in her seat and looked up. “Cait?” she said, startled. “You’re here early.”

“Yeah. Piper said I could go early. So, I thought I’d come see you and tell you about it.” Cait replied eagerly, almost bouncing with excitement.

El had to bring this speeding train under control. Standing up from her chair, El rushed to Cait’s side and put her hands on her waist. “Cait, Cait, Cait. Slow down. You’re going a million miles a minute.”

“Is everything alright, Ma’am?” El heard Geneva ask from the doorway.

El nodded approvingly. “Yes, everything is fine, Geneva. Thank you. Would you mind closing the door?”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Geneva nodded, closing the doors.

With Geneva gone, El lead Cait to a sofa by the window. “Come on, Cait. Sit down and tell me all about today.”

For the next twenty minutes, El happily listened as Cait talked and talked about everything that had happened that day. She had barely come up for air since she had started talking. El could not help but smile as Cait rabbited on; she had never seen her this enthused since their wedding. “…And then Piper said she’d take me out for lunch…” Cait then said, bringing El back to reality.

“Piper took you out for lunch?” El interrupted, frowning in curiosity.

Cait chewed her lip and flashed a bashful smile. “Yeah… Just for noodles…”

El scoffed and shook her head. “Geez, I’m clearly in the wrong game. Do you want to switch jobs?” she asked jokily.

Cait scrunched her nose up, pretending to think about her response. “Nah. I’m good.”

“Worth a try…” El shrugged before turning serious. “But did you say everything I told you to?”

Cait nodded but laughed a bit at the question. “Yeah, I did… Piper could tell that you told me to say that stuff.”

El, however, was unphased. “Either way, it’s good you said it. It shows that you are a willing candidate. And did you ask everything I suggested?”

Cait sat up straight and nodded. “Yeah. I got it all down in my contract.” she answered.

“Ah, a contract!” El exclaimed, clapping her hands together. “Can I see it?”

Fervently digging into her backpack, Cait pulled out a couple of folded pieces of paper. “Here. I signed it and everythin’.”

Whilst El slipped on her glasses and read through the contract, Cait quietly watched her. She hoped she had done a good job making sure everything they had discussed was included. Finally, El gave an affirming nod. “This looks good.” she approved, handing the contract back to Cait.

Taking the contract back from El, Cait went bright red. She felt so proud of herself. Negotiating an entire contract without El’s input. Now she had the confidence to raise another issue with El. This had been nagging her since they met, but El had always talked her way out of it. This time, however, Cait believed she had a much stronger case. Clearing her throat, Cait began. “I did wanna ask though. Now that I’m workin’, and earnin’ a crust, I want to start payin’ my way. You know, doin’ my bit and that?”

El sighed and closed her eyes. “Cait, we’ve been over this. You don’t need to do that.”

“But I want to.” Cait pleaded, feeling completely let down by El’s refusal. “I should be payin’ my share of the rent.”

El’s face, unfortunately for Cait, did not change. “That’s out of the question, Cait. You are not paying me rent. End of discussion.” El said uncompromisingly.

Cait almost felt betrayed by El’s refusal to listen to her. Why was she not even letting her talk about it? What gave her the right to do that? El always said they should talk about things. Feeling the anger building inside her, Cait finally snapped. “NO!” Cait shouted, slamming her fists down on her knees.

El recoiled away from Cait’s outburst, visibly shocked. She had not expected Cait to react so angrily. “Cait-.” she attempted to reason with her.

“NO!” Cait repeated furiously. “You’re not bein’ fair!”

In vain, El tried to calm Cait down. “Cait, just listen to me-.”

“No, you listen!” Cait interjected, jabbing an accusing finger at El. “Ever since we met, you’ve bought everythin’ for me. You have any idea how shit that makes me feel!? I ain’t one of those stupid housewives in those stupid fuckin’ comedies you force me to watch! I’m my own person; you married me just as much as I married you. So, if I wanna pay my way in this marriage, I should be allowed to!” Cait then bowed her head, shaking with rage.

El was deathly silent as Cait railed at her. She had no idea felt this way. How could she have been so blind. All she wanted was for Cait to understand that kindness did not require repayment. “Cait…I…I thought you liked those movies...” she eventually said, unable to think of anything else to say.  

Cait sighed, trying to suppress the hint of a laugh. Trust El to lighten the mood when she was venting. “They’re…They’re alright. They’re just… They’re not very funny.”

El chortled quietly. Cait had a point; comedy clearly did not age well after two-hundred years. “I’m sorry, Cait. I’m really sorry.” El then said, putting her arm around Cait’s waist. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you. All I’ve wanted to do is show you that you don’t have to feel the need to contribute. You don’t need to worry about debts anymore.”

“I know that. You’ve told me that millions of times. But that was then, and we’re married now. That means you listen to me and let me do my bit.” Cait replied, raising her voice and clenching her fists in frustration.

Sensing Cait’s pent-up anger, El reached across and took Cait’s hand. “You’re right, Cait. I should have listened to you. So, let’s talk about it now.” she said, opening the conversation for Cait’s input.

At El’s invitation, Cait immediately jumped in. “I just wanna do my bit and pay my way. I have a job now, so I should be payin’ my share of the rent.”

El was quiet for a few moments as she thought about what to say. If she simply voiced her opinion, they would get nowhere. They needed to find a compromise. “Okay, Cait. I understand. The problem is, I don’t want you to pay me rent-.”

“But that’s not fair!” Cait cried, interrupting El. “I live in that house as well.”

“Yes, you do.” El cut in calmly. “But as my wife, not my tenant.”

Cait looked down, feeling utterly defeated. She loved El so much but felt completely inadequate when debating with her. El was just so much faster and smarter than her. “What do we do then?” she then asked despondently.

Neither woman spoke for a while. Cait had already resigned herself to defeat, whilst El attempted to think up a solution. What could be done to keep both happy? Finally, El came up with an idea she believed, with some careful encouragement, Cait could accept. “Alright, Cait. I have an idea. So, hear me out on this, okay… As I said, I don’t want you to pay me rent. I can’t accept rent from my wife. We make more than enough on my salary alone to cover our costs and live quite comfortably. Plus, we have my general’s pension from the Minutemen that Preston insists on paying me. Quite frankly, Cait, we’re doing fine.”

“But that-!” Cait tried to argue.

“Cait, let me finish. Let me finish.” El cut her off.

Sheepishly, Cait hunched herself over and sucked her lips.

Now that Cait was calm, El continued. “But, what about this, Cait? if there is anything that we may need or want for our daily living; whether it be food, things for the kids, or treats and gifts for special occasions, all you need to do is say the word and I will step back and let you handle it. That way, you can contribute to our living and have sole control over your money… How does that idea sound?”

Mumbling quietly to herself, Cait contemplated El’s idea. It was not everything she wanted, but it was at least something. Cait’s only worry was whether El could keep to that plan. “S-So I just say, and you’ll…let me do it?” she asked slowly, making sure she had understood it correctly.

“Exactly. And if you want to buy something that is a bit out of your price range, just tell me and we can work out a way to split the cost. What do you think of that?” El continued, hoping to sweeten the pot.

Cait did not reply immediately, too wrapped in her own thoughts. “You…You promise?” she eventually asked apprehensively.

“From the bottom of my heart.” El replied honestly, placing her hand over her heart.

Looking deep into El’s eyes, Cait saw the trusting glint that proved to her that she meant that promise. “Okay… I-I’ll do it.” she eventually agreed.

“Shake on it?” El then asked, holding out her hand.

Grateful that they been able to solve their differences, Cait willingly shook El’s hand. It was now that she allowed herself to smile again.

Bringing Cait in close, El’s ran her hand up and down her waist. “You see… We can always reach agreement if we talk.”

Resting her head on El’s shoulder, Cait sighed happily. “I know… T-Thanks for listenin’ to me.”

“No problem, babe.” El replied, kissing the top of Cait’s head. Looking around the office, El’s gaze eventually fell on the ticking clock. “Geez, look at the time. I said I would collect Shaun from school today.” she cursed herself, gently kneading her brow.

Cait instantly lifted her head from El’s shoulder. “I’ll get him. I’ve got the time after all.” she said, helpfully.

“Thank you, Cait. That is very helpful of you.” El replied graciously. She however, then remembered something else in her mental itinerary. “Urgh. I need to get some food for dinner as well.” she cursed herself.

“I’ll do that as well.” Cait answered eagerly.

“Oh no, Cait. You don’t have to do that. I can-.” El tried to say.

“But you said if I told you…” Cait cut in.

At that moment, the penny dropped and El understood. “Oh, right. Sorry, Cait. Yes, of course.” she said apologetically, raising her hands defensively.

“Good… Thanks for lettin’ me do this.” Cait replied courteously, collecting her bag, blazer, and jacket. “I better get goin’.”

“Give me a hug before you go.” El then invited, opening her arms.

Not wishing to turn down a hug from her wife, Cait wrapped herself in El’s arms and exhaled contentedly. Now she could feel as though she was doing her bit. Pulling away, El then cupped Cait’s cheeks in her hands. “I’m so proud of you.” she said lovingly.

Cait’s face went bright red with embarrassment. She needed to go before she actively blushed. “I-I better go…”

“Go on then.” El laughed, kissing Cait on the lips. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Cait replied bashfully, gathering her things and heading for the exit. With Cait gone, El slowly made her way back to her desk and sat down. Letting out a contented sigh, El closed her eyes. Finally, Cait appeared to be on a good path; she had a job and income of her own. Hopefully, that would mean the tension that had existed at home would be relieved for now.

“Ma’am? Sorry to disturb you.” a voice said from across the room.

El opened her eyes to see Geneva standing in the office doorway. “Yeah, Geneva. How can I help?” she replied, clearing her throat.

“Mayor Hancock of Goodneighbor is on the radio, ma’am. He would like to speak to you.” Geneva answered.

El sighed forlornly. What did he want this time? It better not be about that again. “Alright, I’ll take it in here. Thanks, Geneva.”

“Ma’am.” Geneva answered affirmatively, closing the door and returning her desk.

Swivelling her chair around, El stood up and walked towards a ham radio located in front of the office’s panoramic window. Powering up the console, El turned the radio to the Goodneighbor frequency and spoke into the microphone. “Mayor Hancock? You there?” she asked nonchalantly.

After a few seconds on static, the husky voice of Goodneighbor’s mayor answered through the radio speakers. “Ah! If it ain’t the most beautiful mayor in the Commonwealth.”

El shook her head and rolled her eyes. This guy never stopped. “Good to speak to you again.” El continued, ignoring Hancock’s comment about her looks.

“Likewise. It’s always a joy to hear your dulcet voice.” Hancock’s voice said sultrily. “Forgive me, but have you given my proposal any more thought?”

El could only laugh. She knew he would bring this up again. “Mayor Hancock, I have told you many times before, the answer is no. I am already married, quite happily I might add.” El answered seriously with a sly smile on her face.

“You’re breaking an old ghouls’ heart.” Hancock pleaded hopelessly.

“I’m afraid I am very much taken… Now, what can I do for you, Hancock?” El then asked, bringing the conversation back to the matter at hand

As Hancock’s husky voice began speaking, El looked out at Diamond City. Narrowing her eyes slightly, she smiled as she spied Cait and Shaun walking through the Diamond City market, Cait’s arm wrapped warmly around Shaun’s shoulder as she was presumably talking about her day. It lifted El’s heart to see her wife and son so close and happy together. She loved them so much. Yes, she missed her life before the bombs fell. Yes, her new family came with years of emotional baggage. But moments like these made El grateful than ever for what she had.              

Chapter Text

Cait stood in front of the abandoned theatre, wondering whether this was a good idea. When she had left this place all that time ago, she had vowed to herself to never come back. This place held nothing but bad memories for her. Three years of fighting, with nothing but a debilitating addiction for support, had left deep scars that were only now beginning to heal.

But in recent times, something in Cait’s mind was telling her to come back here. So much had happened to her since she had left this place; she had kicked her addiction, she had fallen in love and got married to the sexiest and most amazing woman in the Commonwealth. That union had then given her a family that she loved more than anything. She had a job that respected her, and that she loved. Recently, she had also become an honorary Captain of the Minutemen – Cait had almost fainted when she received the news, and the rank entitled her to a small pension for her service. Cait was not the same person as she had been back then. She was better now, and she had worked tirelessly to come to terms with her past.

So here Cait was, standing before the doors of the Combat Zone. She knew that she didn’t have to do this, but she wanted to. It had been Tommy in the first place who had suggested that Cait travel with El and clean herself up. The suggestion was more akin to being thrown out, but Cait still believed she was obliged to show him the results of his suggestions. Before she could put this chapter of her life behind her, she had to do this.

Stepping through the front door, Cait entered the foyer and was unsurprised to hear cheers from the auditorium doors beyond. Looking to her left, Cait saw the familiar collection of ‘rulebreakers’ tied up in the old ticket office. Tommy clearly had not changed any of his rules since she left.

Approaching the auditorium doors, Cait gripped the handle tightly; she could do this. Opening the door, Cait slowly walked through and down towards the stage. Around her, the same assortment of lowlife scum cheered and howled as two fighters punched and smashed at each other in a cage in front of them. Cait silently leant against a post and crossed her arms as she watched the fight.

To the right of the stage, Cait watched a familiar ghoul stand before a microphone, narrating the fight. Cait waited patiently for him to notice her. Eventually, as he scanned the room, Tommy was cut off mid-sentence when he spotted Cait watching him. Regaining his composure, he returned to his microphone and continued his commentary.

The fight finished much like every cage fight she had seen, with one exhausted fighter delivering just enough of a blow to send their opponent tumbling to the floor. With the winner declared, a cheer erupted throughout the theatre and several attendees rushed off to collect their winnings from their various bets and wagers.

Once he had finished his commentary, Tommy gave Cait another glance, and leaned into his microphone. “We’re gonna take a little break, so go get yourselves a drink and don’t go anywhere.” With that, he stepped away and descended the steps into the audience seating area.

Seeing Tommy approach her, Cait pushed off from the post and waited for him stop. For a few moments they stared at each other, wondering what to say. “Tommy.” Cait eventually greeted, clearing her throat.

“Cait…” Tommy replied, nodding to her. “Didn’t think I’d see you here again.”

“Well, thought I’d come and surprise you.” Cait shrugged, giving off the impression of a smile.

Tommy looked Cait up and down and gave a more heartened smile. “Huh… Well, you look good. Do you wanna go somewhere quiet and talk.”

Cait glanced over to the door to Tommy’s office and nodded her head. “Sure. Why not.” Following Tommy into his office, Cait took a seat at his desk. “Still the same scumbags comin’ here I see.” she then observed.

“Yeah. There’s still a few comin’ and goin’. But since those Minutemen took down the Institute, the raiders have been runnin’ scared.” Tommy replied, sitting back in his chair.

Cait chuckled quietly to herself; should she say something about being part of the Minutemen and helping to destroy the Institute? “Can only be a good thing. Those raiders took the piss.” she said, not entirely interested in the Combat Zone’s fortunes.

“Just as long as they spend.” Tommy said. At that moment, he bent down to open a door in the front of his desk. Reaching inside, he retrieved two glasses and a bottle of whiskey. Pouring out two glasses, he slid one across to Cait. “But enough about me. What about you, little bird? What’s been goin’ on with you?”

Cait blinked suddenly but resisted the urge to clench her fists. She was still working on trying to control her anger. “I told you to quit callin’ me that!” she snapped.

Tommy just chuckled. “I can see some of you hasn’t changed. But, come on. How you been? You still with that fancy talkin’ limey broad?”

Fancy talking limey broad; that was an interesting way to describe El. “Yeah, I’m still with her.” Cait answered.

“Didn’t get shot of her after she beat your arse then? Well, what have you been doin’ with her all this time?”

Cait had to fight urge to laugh at herself. She had been doing a great many things with El. “Travelled around the Commonwealth a lot. She got me fixed.” she eventually replied.

Tommy sat forward slightly, clearly surprised by Cait’s revelation. “So, you’re clean?!”

“Yeah, I’m clean.” Cait confessed. “There was a vault in the Glowin’ Sea that had a machine that could help me. El took me there to clean me up. Haven’t needed ‘em since.”

“So, El’s her name, huh? I wish she were here. I’d want to shake her hand.” Tommy smiled a ghoulish grin as he took a sip of whiskey. “What are you doin’ now?”  

Following Tommy’s lead, Cait took a sip of her own whiskey. “We live in Diamond City. I work at a newspaper called Publick Occurrences, and El runs the city.”

“Wait, hold up.” Tommy cut in. “This El is the Mayor of Diamond City I’ve been hearin’ so much about? People comin’ and goin’ to Diamond City keep talkin’ about her. They love her over there.”

Cait nodded and gave a small blush. “Yeah, that’s her. She probably wouldn’t agree that everyone loves her, but she is great at bein’ mayor.” El would disagree with what Cait was saying about her being great at her job. But Cait didn’t care; El was amazing, and that was the end of it.

“So, you’re livin’ with the mayor. You must get on with each other then.” Tommy then said, running a skeletal finger over his glass.

Cait snorted, visibly amused by Tommy’s comment. “We kinda need to. We’d be a shit couple if we didn’t.”

Tommy raised an eyebrow. “A couple?” he probed.

With her secret practically given away, Cait slowly brought her left hand up to present the two rings on her finger. “Yeah. We’re urr…together now.”

“So, little Cait got hitched to the Mayor of Diamond City. You’re movin’ up in the world.” Tommy marvelled, sitting back with a self-satisfied smirk on his face.

Despite blushing like an idiot, Cait tried to act defensive. “She asked me.” she retorted. “We got kids too.”

“Kids? Geez, you have been busy.” Tommy laughed.

“They’re El’s kids.” El clarified. “She was pregnant when we met but didn’t know about it. I help take care of ‘em.” Opening her bag, Cait pulled out a small leather wallet. Flicking through its contents, Cait retrieved a photograph with slightly frayed edges and corners. It was a group photo that Piper had taken of the whole family at hers and El’s wedding. Somewhat apprehensively she presented the photograph to Tommy.

Examining the photograph, Tommy gave a heartened smile, as if he were proud of all that Cait had achieved. “Sweet kids… So, she lets you look after ‘em for her?”

“They’re my kids too!” Cait retorted, thinking Tommy was questioning her ability to care for her children. “Well…I’m Tasha’s, the baby’s, mama. Shaun is a bit more complicated, but they’re still my kids.”

“Hey, I ain’t assumin’ nothin’, little bird. I’m just curious. You look very happy.” he answered, handing the photograph back to Cait.

“I am. I love ‘em. I love all of ‘em.” Cait said, taking the photograph and putting it back in her wallet. Clearing her throat, Cait collected her whiskey glass and knocked back its contents in one gulp. “I should be gettin’ back.”

“So soon?” Tommy asked, surprised by Cait’s sudden move to leave.

Cait nodded and collected her bag from the floor. “Yeah. Shaun will be knockin’ out of school soon and I said I’d go get him.” Cait was well aware that Shaun didn’t leave school for another couple of hours, but she had to come up with an excuse that would not be questioned.

“Ah, sure. I get it. Parenting never stops.” Tommy replied, getting to his feet. “Well, I’ll walk you out.”

Silently, Cait walked with Tommy back into the main arena and towards the door. Cait was stoic but she was happy to be leaving. Reaching the door, Tommy turned to her and offered a skeletal hand. “Well, for what it’s worth, it was good seein’ you again, Cait. You’re lookin’ great. Maybe I’ll see you around sometime?”

“Maybe.” Cait answered simply as she shook Tommy’s hand.

Understanding well enough was Cait’s unenthusiastic reaction meant, Tommy decided not to press any further. “Take care of that wife of yours. You don’t find someone like that every day of the week; and the family too.”

“I will. See you around, Tommy.” Dropping her hand, Cait opened the door and left the Combat Zone.

It was a lonely walk back as Cait entered the gateway to Diamond City. Cait was just glad to be back in familiar territory. Coming down the causeway, she banked right and ascended to the elevator up to El’s office. Upon reaching the higher level, Cait was greeted by Geneva. “Afternoon, Cait.” she greeted formally.

“Hey.” Cait greeted back. “Is she in there?”

Geneva nodded. “She is. Gon on in.”

“Thanks.” Cait replied, curling her lips ever so slightly into a smile. As El was her wife, Cait had always assumed that she could visit at any time. This had gone against Geneva’s policy of having visitors check in before entering the mayor’s office. Cait had not taken this well, and, as a result, El decided that, unless given explicit instructions, Geneva should allow her to visit whenever she wanted without having to check in. El had, however, made Cait apologise to Geneva for her behaviour surrounding the incident.

Heading inside, Cait was instantly comforted by the sight of her wife. Sitting at her desk, El peered over paperwork as she wrote studiously. She appeared to be a world away. “El?” Cait said softly.

Looking up abruptly, El smiled and got to her feet. Removing her glasses, she walked around to embrace Cait. “Hey, babe.” She greeted, wrapping her arms tightly around Cait’s waist. “How was it?”

“It was okay.” Cait mumbled as she rested her head on El’s chest.

Eyeing the sofa across the room, El began to usher Cait towards it. “Come on, Cait. Let’s sit down, take a load off.” she said, helping to slip Cait’s bag off her shoulders.

Reaching the sofa, El sat herself down and patted the seat next to her. Cait, however, completely ignored El’s prompt and climbed into her lap. Surprised by Cait’s movement, El sat back to give them more space and comfort. “Hey…” she whispered, bringing Cait close. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Cait answered, resting her head on El’s chest.

“Do you want to talk about it?” El asked further.

Cait shook her head. “No. Not yet. Can…can we just sit like this for a bit?”

“Sure. Whatever you need.” El reassured, kissing the top of Cait’s head.

As El began to gently stroke her hair and massage her scalp, Cait slowly let her eyes close. Today had not been easy; returning to a place that held such painful memories had left her feeling alone and empty. However, now she was safe in the warmth of the one she loved most; she could finally close that chapter of her life for good.

“Hey, Cait. Are you nearly done with the new editions?” Piper asked as she moved a pile of newspapers off her terminal desk.

Pulling the press leaver, Cait watched the platen pan press down over the paper holder. No matter how many times she did it, Cait always found this part of the process immensely satisfying. “Yeah… Just finishin’ the last one.” she answered.

“Great! Now they’re done, this afternoon, we can get them properly numbered and ready for sale.” Piper said gratefully.

“No problem.” Cait replied approvingly. Looking at the clock, Cait could see that it was getting close to one o’clock. The morning had gone so quickly, she should probably think about breaking for lunch.

Suddenly, there came a loud knock at the door. Cait ignored it and continued her work whilst Piper went to answer the door. “Blue! Great to see you! Come in, come in!” she heard Piper exclaim. Immediately, Cait glanced up from her work. Had she heard that correctly? El was here? “Hey Piper. Good to see you too.” she then heard a deeply familiar voice respond.

Instantly, Cait turned and ran through to find El standing before her, a babbling Tasha in her arms. As soon she saw her, Cait looked her wife up and down. El was wearing a pair of high waisted grey trousers, a white shroud shirt, her customary grey overcoat, and a pair of cream-coloured high heels. Her now long flowing hair, dyed black, fell loosely down the front of her left shoulder. She looked amazing and, to Cait at least, every inch a leader. “El!” Cait cried happily, wrapping her in a hug. “The fuck are you doin’ here?”

“I thought that I would come visit my wife at work and see how my loyal subjects are.” she said playfully, flashing a wink at Piper.

“Oh, it that right? You just thought you’d swing by and keep tabs on the press?” Piper replied, only too happy to play along.

“Only if the press is intentionally spreading misinformation.” El continued, smirking mischievously. “If you’re open and transparent, we should have no problems.”

“Yeah, we’re transparent.” Piper retorted, crossing her arms and giving El a similar smirk. “The real question is whether the mayor’s office has anything to hide.”  

By now, Cait had lost patience with El and Piper’s war of words. El clearly hadn’t come here to playfully argue with Piper. “Hey! Can both of you either shut up or just fuck already. Geez, El! I’m startin’ to think you married the wrong woman.”

El immediately moved to remedy the situation. “Sorry, babe. I was just playing around.” she said apologetically, planting a kiss on Cait’s cheek.

The kiss was enough to satisfy Cait and she fought back a blush. “So, what are you doin’ here?”

“Yeah, Blue. To what do we owe this pleasure?” Piper added.

El adjusted Tasha slightly and slipped her arm around Cait’s waist. “Well, I had a little bit of free time today and wondered whether my wife wanted to go out for a surprise lunch, considering that her boss is always doing it.”

Cait’s eyes widened: lunch with El? Would Piper be alright with her going out with El when she had work to do? Apprehensively, she turned to Piper. “Would that be okay, Piper? I…I got all the new editions done-.” Suddenly, she stopped herself as she realised that was not entirely true. “Well…urrm…more or less.”

Piper just laughed. “What, you kidding? Of course, you can go.”

“I…I can make the time up later if you need me to.” Cait tried to say as a means of not intentionally shirking her responsibilities.

Piper chuckled, heartened by Cait’s willingness to make sure her duties were done. “Cait, don’t worry about it. Go with El and have a great time.”

“Thanks, Piper.” Cait said gratefully as she collected her jacket.

“One question though, is Tasha going with you?” Piper then enquired.

“Can’t leave her in the office unfortunately. And Dogmeat can only do so much.” El answered.

At that, Piper stepped forward. “Tell you what. How about you go out for lunch, and I’ll keep an eye on that cupcake.” she said, taking Tasha in her arms.

“Piper, are you sure? You don’t have to take her.” El protested.

Piper, however, was unfazed. “Of course. You go have a good time and I’ll make a journalist out of my favourite little person in the world.”

Happy that her and Cait would now have some free time together, El smiled thankfully. “You’re too kind to us, Piper. Thank you so much.”

“Don’t mention it.” Piper reassured. “Now, get outta here and enjoy yourselves.

“Will do.” El said, turning to Cait. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah.” Cait nodded enthusiastically, taking El’s hand.

“Right then. Onwards.” El then said, opening the door.

“I want her back in one piece, Blue.” Piper demanded jokingly as they stepped outside.

El laughed. “Don’t worry, Piper. I bring her back safe and sound. You have nothing to worry about.” Closing the door behind them, El and Cait walked out into Diamond City. “So, where we goin’ then? Gonna take me for some noodles or somethin’?” Cait asked, look up at El expectantly.

“Noodles, ha!” El exclaimed jovially. “That’s no meal for the wife of the mayor of Diamond City. Today, I’m treating you as befits you station.”

Cait always became bashful when El talked in that way. “W-Where you takin’ me then?” she asked, chewing her lip and squeezing El’s hand between both of hers.

El gave a smirk and nodded her head upwards. “I thought I would take you there.”

Cait looked to where El was nodding, and her smile dropped slightly. El was definitely playing with her this time. “Surely, this is a piss take.” she said, observing the Colonial Taphouse balcony.

“It’s not a piss take, Cait; and don’t call me Shirley.” El replied.

Cait, however, frowned in confusion. Why did El just say that. It didn’t make any sense. “What?” she asked.

El just chuckled to herself. “Don’t worry, Cait. Just a silly old joke. But yes, I’m serious. I’m taking you there.”

“B-But that’s where all the fancy snobs go.” Cait tried to protest.

“So?” El responded simply.

Cait glanced away, trying to find an argument. “They…They won’t let us in. They fuckin’ hate you up there.”

El just shrugged. “I’m sure they do. But I’m the mayor, and I will eat where I please. That extends to my wife as well. Now, come on. I’m starving.”

Still looking up towards the restaurant balcony, Cait followed El up the causeway towards the upper stands. Approaching the white picketed fence entrance, they were met by a rusting Mr Handy looking down at something. “Good afternoon. A table for two, please.” El greeted politely.

The Mr Handy did not look up and made a noise akin to a frustrated sigh. “Another one from below wanting to eat here? You would probably prefer the Dugout Inn.”

“Excuse me?” El said slowly to accentuate her displeasure.

Finally, the robot raised it eyestalks and moved back slightly in surprise. “Oh, urr… Madam Mayor. Apologies, I didn’t know it was you.” He mumbled contritely.

Despite his attitude, El was prepared to let the incident slide. After all, it was just programming. “No offence taken.” she lied, remaining serious. “A table for two, if available.” Looking around the outside seating, El could see plenty of tables. There was no way he could send them away now.

After hovering silently for a few seconds, he used one of his robotic claws to open the gate entrance. “Right this way.” he grumbled.

As they were led to their table, both El and Cait were aware of the eyes on them. Glancing in her direction, Cait wondered what El was thinking. El’s face, however, was unchanging and she ignored them. There were three of them watching; El was well aware of all of them, and their activities in Diamond City. All three had had McDonough in their pocket and had done everything to ensure that their privileged positions were not disrupted by El’s election. Much to their chagrin, El had not been taken in by any of their tricks and, as a result, she had made few friends amongst them.

Upon reaching their table, Cait suddenly felt El’s hands attempt to remove her jacket. “What you doin’?” she snapped, jerking away.

“Just relax.” El replied, resting her hands gently on Cait’s shoulders.

Relaxing, Cait let El remove her jacket and she watched her hang it on the back of a chair. El then pulled the chair out from the table and looked at Cait expectantly. Having seen this done in plenty of El’s pre-war films, Cait understood exactly what to do. Clasping her hands together, Cait sat herself down demurely and allowed El to push her chair up to the table.

El had just reached her own seat at the table when they heard a voice from the group of upper tier residents watching them. “This place is going to the dogs if they let that kind of rabble in here.” the voice scoffed.

Cait immediately, scowled at them and moved to get up from her chair. Just as she was about to rise, however, she was promptly shoved back down by El placing her hand on her shoulder. “Don’t…” El whispered sharply. “I can handle them.”

“Let me at ‘em.” Cait whispered back through gritted teeth.

“Please, Cait. I can deal with them.” El pleaded again, not removing her hand.

Grunting indignantly, Cait sat herself back down and clenched her fists. Removing her hand from Cait’s shoulder, El turned to face their hecklers. “Is there a problem, Ms Codman?”

The hecklers appeared to be spoiling for a fight and they all stood up to face El. “No problem, ma’am.” Ann Codman replied. “Only that, given your deliberate affiliation with the…” she then sneered down at Cait, “…people down below, you would find eating with them more to your liking.”

Happily, Cait did not see Ann Codman’s sneering glance. El, however, was seething; no one talked to her, or her wife, like that. She had to remain calm though and deal with this professionally. An angry outburst was exactly the response they wanted. “The last I checked, Ms Codman, this restaurant was open to everyone.” she observed coolly.

At that point, Ann Codman’s husband, Clarence, spoke up. “But there is a dangerous president if everyone moved beyond their station. They must know their place if peace and order is to be maintained.”

El narrowed her eyes; these snobs never stopped. “That sounds an awful lot like something the Institute would say.” she replied with the smallest hint of a smirk on her lips. If they were going to goad her into a response, she would happily goad them back.

To El’s delight, her comment got under her hecklers skin. Finally, the cowardly Malcolm Latimer plucked up the courage to speak. “That is an outrageous slander! We are not the Institute! You… You could be an Institute spy for all we know. We’ve seen you with that synth detective. A few votes from the city’s poor does not make you invincible.” he shouted, attempting to point an accusing finger at El.

This was going better than El ever expected. As a lawyer, she ate people like this for breakfast. Adjusting herself, El stood with a commanding posture. Now standing at full height, in her heels, she towered over her adversaries. “How is your son, Nelson, Mr Latimer?” she asked politely, faking a smile.

Malcolm Latimer was somewhat taken aback by El’s question, and he lowered his finger. Clearing his throat, he straightened himself up. Despite his stance, however, El was still an inch or two taller than him. “He is doing well. He’s a fine young man and a credit to the Latimer name.” he replied proudly.

“Is that so?” El replied, pretending to agree. “His record says otherwise.”

Malcolm Latimer blinked, betraying his stalwart demeanour. “What…What are you insinuating?” he stuttered nervously.

“Nothing at all.” El answered, feigning innocence. “Only that, if some of Nelson’s activities became public, they could do serious damage to the Latimer name.”

“This is scandalous blackmail!” Clarence Codman spoke up.

Turning her head towards him, her shining hazel eyes immediately made him quiver slightly. “And Mr Codman, the city is very grateful for the goods and services that you and your family provide. However, particular contributions made by you to my predecessor leave many unanswered questions about your real intentions. I would be very careful before you make unsubstantiated accusations.”

“How dare you!” Ann Codman shouted. “The Codmans put Diamond City on the map! That rabble down there would be less than nothing without us. You may have swindled your way into office with that libellous slanderer, Piper Wright, but we know people, people of great influence.”

“I am sure you do.” El replied calmly, knowing she had them on the ropes. “But I know people as well, and I have mandate from the people. I don’t think they would take kindly to blatantly disregarding their voting rights.”

The hecklers were by now moved to complete silence. Whatever game they were hoping to play had clearly backfired. It was time to send them away and get back to treating her wife. “Now, if you would be so kind as to return to your table and let me have lunch with my wife.”

Attempting to maintain a modicum of respectability, Ann Codman raised her chin to El. “There will be no need. We were leaving anyway. Good day, Madam Mayor.” she said curtly, turning abruptly for the exit.

“Ms Codman. Mr Codman.” El replied politely as Clarence quickly hurried to join his wife. Malcolm Latimer was now alone in his battle of words with El. Smirking broadly, El turned attention to sending him away. Keeping her commanding posture, El glanced across to Malcolm Latimer and stared down at him. As soon as their gazes met, Latimer instantly crumbled and he sculked away to reclaim his table. El could not help but scoff; cowards were all the same.

Watching the entre drama unfold was Cait. Normally, she would have joined in to hurl abuse at those snotty jerks. This time, however, she was completely entranced by El talking them down. El was absolutely amazing to watch. Cait had watched hours of El’s boring lawyer films but had never seen her actually doing the real thing. El just oozed power; her posture was nothing short of commanding; her gaze made you want to cower away; her voice was calm and clear, as if every word she spoke made you feel stupid. El must have been an amazing lawyer. Cait had to resit the urge to bite her lip.

Once Malcolm Latimer had sculked back to his table, El finally let her façade drop and she exhaled deeply. This was supposed to be a fun date with her wife, and she was already in an argument. Removing her coat, she hung it on the back of her chair and sat down opposite Cait. “Sorry about that, Cait. They shouldn’t say things like that.” she said apologetically.

“It’s alright, El. I’m used to people sayin’ shit like that.” Cait replied matter-of-factly. Smiling up at El, she hoped that would cheer her up.

Despite Cait’s smile lifting her heart somewhat, she couldn’t bring herself to smile back. Reaching across the table, she took Cait’s hand. “That doesn’t make it right though. This was supposed to be fun.”

“El, it’s alright.” Cait insisted. “You scared ‘em off anyway. We can still have fun.”

Forcing herself to smile, El nodded. “Y-Yeah, we can. What looks good?” she then said, sitting back in her chair, crossing her legs, and perusing her menu.

Following suit, Cait quietly read through her menu, using her finger she slowly followed the words and mouthed them to herself. However, no matter how hard she tried, she could not get the image of badass El out of her head. Glancing up at El, Cait chewed her lip and smirked to herself. “Although…” she began, leaning forward, “you were so fuckin’ sexy talkin’ back to those jerks.

Looking up from her menu, and removing her glasses, El uncrossed her legs and leant forward over the table. Her gaze made Cait shiver with anticipation. “Really?” she asked softly. “You like it when I’m…assertive?”

Cait tried to answer but was completely hypnotised by an unimpeded view of El’s cleavage. El had definitely done that on purpose. “Y-Yeah. It’s really hot… Y-You know, if…if you wanted, you could use that with me.”

El raised an eyebrow and tilted her head to one side. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind, babe.”

Cait swallowed, not sure of what to do or say. El was driving her crazy. “E-El, you’re b-bein’ a bit distractin’ with your…your…” she stuttered, desperately trying not to make it obvious that she was staring at El’s chest.

Sensing Cait’s sweet torture, El took Cait’s hand and pouted her lips suggestively. “Aww, Cait. Poor baby. Am I distracting you?” she asked playfully.

By now, Cait could not take it anymore. If she didn’t stop this, she would be nothing but a hot mess. “El, please.” she begged, closing her now shaking legs.

“Okay, okay. I’ll stop.” El finally relented as she let go of Cait’s hand and sat back in her chair. “I love you.” she then teased.

“L-Love you too.” Cait managed to say, attempting to use her menu to distract herself.

After receiving a passive aggressive beratement from Wellingham for apparently sending his customers away, El and Cait ordered their meals. Taking a risk on a bottle of wine, El unscrewed the bottle and poured out two glasses. Almost immediately, Cait picked up her glass to take a large gulp. “Whoa, Cait. Not so fast. Let it breathe.” she suddenly said, stopping her.

“Why?” Cait frowned. “I’m thirsty.”

“You need to let it breathe for a few minutes though. It will taste better.” El insisted.

Cait rolled her eyes and put her glass back on the table. “Fine. I’ll leave it.” she said, sitting back in her chair. After a few moments of silence, Cait shrugged her shoulders. “So, what do we do now?”

“What do you mean?” El asked, an inquisitive smile on her face.

“I mean, what do we do now we’re here?” Cait asked again.

El scratched her head and crossed her legs again. “Well, we relax and enjoy each other’s company, and…well…talk to each other.”

“About what?”

El sighed. “I don’t know, anything. How was taking Shaun to school this morning?” she then asked, attempting to kickstart a conversation.

Sitting straight in her chair, Cait set about answering. “He was fine. I still don’t get how he is always so excited goin’ there.”

“Because learning is fun, Cait.” El replied.

Cait scrunched her face up, completely unconvinced. “Is it? Doin’ that five days a week. I’d get so fuckin’ bored.”

El, however, was equally unconvinced by Cait’s statement. “I doubt that to be honest, Cait. I think you would have really enjoyed school is you were given the chance to go. Your learning to read is proof that, I think.”

“Geez, you’re just makin’ shit up now.” Cait scoffed.

“I’m serious, Cait.” El maintained.

Cait was silent for a few moments as she contemplated El’s words. Quite frankly, she didn’t believe a word of them. But she was curious enough to hear what El had to say. “Alright,” she began, with a smug smile on her face, “if you think you know everythin’, what do you think I would have been like if I went to school?”

El rested her chin in her hand and glanced away in thought. She knew Cait was expecting her to say that she would have been a trailblazer who never obeyed the rules, and who spent more time in detention than class. That would certainly be the case for the old Cait. But El knew the real Cait, the Cait that only revealed herself when she felt comfortable enough to express herself. “I think you would have been the quiet type; the smart one who knows the answer but is not confident enough to put her hand up for fear of getting the question wrong. You’d be incredibly loyal to your friends, as you already are, and you’d get really good grades.” 

Cait’s mouth dropped open slightly, unsure of what to say. Where on earth had El pulled that from? Did she know Cait at all? “You’re bullshittin’ me. You made me borin’.”

“It’s not boring. They’re the most interesting kinds of people.” El argued, attempting to make Cait understand.

Cait gave a confused sneer. “What’s interestin’ about bein’ like that?”

“Loads, Cait.” El answered. “In my experience, people who aren’t, as you claim, ‘boring’ are deeply unimpressive people.”

Cait shrugged, trying to figure out how she could be how El imagined her. “I…I don’t believe you. I think you’re bullshittin’ me.”

“Alright, Cait. Seeing as you’re such an expert, tell me how you think I was at school.” El eventually proposed, reclining back in her chair with her glass of wine and a smug smirk on her face.

Taking a large gulp of wine, Cait sucked her lip at El intently. She had a pretty good idea of what El was like in school: a confident and sexy badass who didn’t take any shit from anyone. “I think you had everyone eatin’ out of your fuckin’ hand. I bet everyone wanted to be friend, and you had all the guys chasin’ after you. Ooh, and you aced every test ‘cause you’re smart as fuck.”

El chuckled and took a sip of wine; how was she going to respond to this?” “I’m afraid, Cait, you couldn’t be further from the truth.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Cait sighed frustratedly. “You’re a borin’ square too?”

Despite feeling somewhat offended by Cait’s comment, she could see the humour in it. “There’s nothing boring about that, Cait.”

“But…But that doesn’t make any sense. You’re…You’re always so confident.” Cait reasoned, attempting to navigate El’s revelation.

El swirled her wine around in its glass thoughtfully, her face growing sad. “That’s all show and learned behaviour, Cait. I wasn’t like that growing up.”

Noticing El’s smile slip, Cait understood this was a difficult topic for her to discuss. “What…What were you like then?”

El sighed and placed her glass on the table. She had not talked about her childhood in years; there were still unprocessed emotions that she had yet to come to terms with. “I was born here, but I had a very transient existence growing up. My dad was in the military, so my mum and I had to move around a lot. We lived around different military bases in England. We did have my mum’s family for support, but I never lived in a place long enough to call it home.” El was quiet for several moments, remembering the many long car journeys that characterised another move. “It’s one of the reasons why I like to read so much; reading gave me an escape from the fact that I had no friends and was always moving.”

“Did…Did you try to make friends?” Cait asked, attempting to understand this new information. Why had she never asked El about this?

El nodded and took a sip of wine. “I did, and I made friends quite easily. But then I would have to move, and we’d lose touch. There are only so many phone numbers you can remember before it just gets tedious. Eventually, I decided to just focus on my studying; that way I could get the grades I needed to escape somewhere.”

Looking up, El was shocked to see Cait staring at her intently, a sad look on her face. El cursed herself; she was ruining their date again. “I’m sorry, Cait. I’m spoiling everything again. I’ll stop.”

“No, I don’t want you to stop.” Cait pleaded. She was desperate for El to continue.

“El shook her head, trying again to shift the topic of conversation. “No, Cait. This isn’t what I planned for this date. Let’s talk about something else.”

“No, I wanna know.” Cait insisted. “You…You never told me any of this. Please tell me… I wanna know.”

Hearing the trust in Cait’s voice, El reluctantly nodded and continued. “Okay… Well, that was basically my life until I was about eleven. But then my dad’s service was up, and we moved back here to Boston.”

“Did that make you happy?” Cait asked timidly, conscious that El was finding this hard to talk about.

El glanced away slightly, considering Cait’s question. “In a way, I suppose. I was happy to finally settle down. But I felt a bit of a stranger. Yes, on my dad’s side this is my homeland, and I was born here, but I had spent my entire life in my other homeland. It made me feel like an outsider when we came back.”

“Did you make any friends though?” Cait asked further.

El nodded. “Yeah, a few. That was definitely a nice feeling. But my interests and background still made me a target for the ‘popular’ crowd.” she said. “I was bullied a great deal.”

“You were bullied?” Cait questioned snappishly, sitting up straight in her chair.

El, however, grimaced, debating her choice of words. “Well, bullied is a strong word. I would say more like teased. You know, they’d tease me about my glasses; they’d call me a nerd because I liked books; they’d make fun of my accent.”

Cait frowned. “Your accent? How did they make fun of your accent?”

“They’d get me to say certain words and phrases. They’d speak to me like a Mr Handy butler. Apparently, it was funny to them.” El answered matter-of-factly.

“Why is that funny?” Cait wondered, even more confused. As someone whose own accent was not exactly local, she could not understand why someone would find that funny.

“Your guess is as good as mine, Cait.” El sighed, shrugged her shoulders.

Cait stared at El, feeling sad on her behalf. She wished she had known this earlier in their relationship. It would have allowed her to understand El more. Reaching across the table, Cait lightly took El’s hand. “I’m sorry.” she said sincerely.

El smiled at Cait, heartened by the sincerity in her voice. “It is what it is, Cait.” She however chuckled quietly to herself, thinking about what happened next. “But…then I hit puberty and, suddenly, the popular crowd found it more difficult to tease me.”

Cait could not help but laugh a little. She could imagine El strutting around, making all the popular arseholes jealous with her amazing rack and arse. “Yeah, I bet. I bet they were super pissed about your amazin’ rack.”

El smirked in agreement. “They definitely were jealous about that. All their push-up bras looked tiny compared to what I was packing. So, they had to settle for calling me a boring nerd from then on… It did make it awkward though when some of them in the football team tried to hook up with me for prom.”

“Did you say yes?” Cait asked.

El scoffed. “Absolutely not! I wasn’t interested in those kinds of people. They couldn’t string a single sentence together if they tried. They could play football, but not much else.”

“Did you go with anyone then?”

El scoffed again and laughed. “No! I went with my friends. I wasn’t interested in boys, or girls for that matter.”

Cait had to hide her confusion. Having watched so many of El’s pre-war films, she assumed that was just how people behaved. Cait had convinced herself that El was just like the actors in those films, albeit a bit more realistic and infinitely sexier. So, having El tell her that she was a quiet, bookish nerd, not interested in boys or girls, was a confusing revelation. “Do…Do you think we would have been friends at school?” she eventually asked, not knowing what else to ask.

“Well, I am quite a bit older than you, Cait.” El answered, not wholly understanding the question.

Cait rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I know that.” she sighed, resisting a laugh. It did make her laugh sometimes to think that she was married to a much older woman. “I mean…you know…if we did go to school together, would we have been friends?”

El twisted her lips in thought as she weighed up her answer. “Yes, I think we would have been. I see a lot of me in you when I was that age.”

Cait’s cheeks went slightly red, and she looked down embarrassingly. That was all she wanted to know. Returning to their original conversation, Cait continued her discovery of El’s past. “So, why did you join the military if you liked readin’ so much?”

“Urrm, good question.” El said thoughtfully. “I suppose I joined for the escape. I had spent so much of my childhood moving around, maybe some of that stuck with me. Plus, my dad also served, and I wanted to do something that he would be proud of. So, I joined as a field medic.”

“Did you see much action?”

El looked down and nodded, chewing her lip awkwardly. “Yeah, a bit… Being a frontline medic means you see the ugly side of war an awful lot.” Glancing back up at Cait, El noticed that she was staring at her right hand. Following Cait’s gaze, El looked down at her right hand. To her shock, it was trembling. Immediately, El clenched her fist and brought it under the table. “But I did meet Nate there. So, it couldn’t have been all bad.” she then said, hoping to fill the awkward silence.

Understanding that El was trying to draw attention away from her troubles, Cait tried something else. “What was Nate like?”

El was quiet for a few moments as she tried to control her trembling hand. She did however smile at Cait’s question. Cait had never asked about Nate before. “He was always funny and could calm you down no matter how stressed you were. You would have liked him, and he would have liked you, I think.”

“He would have liked me?” Cait asked.

El nodded. “Yes, I think so. He would have liked your sense of humour and your smile. He would have loved to watch films with you as well.”

Cait began to blush slightly at mention of her smile. Why did El always do that to her? Fortunately for her, they were interrupted by the arrival of Wellingham, carrying two plates. Gazing down at her plate, Cait’s mouth watered at the sight of a sizzling Brahmin steak and a side of corn. “Bon appetite, Cait!” she heard El say as she tucked into her own steak.

Cutting herself a piece, Cait put it in her mouth and almost moaned with pleasure; it tasted amazing. Slowly swallowing a piece of her own, El smiled. “How is it?” she asked.

“Mmmm, so fuckin’ good! Not as good as yours though.” Cait answered through a mouthful of food.

El raised an eyebrow. “Manners, Cait.” she said seriously.

Cait rolled her eyes and quickly chewed her food before swallowing. “Why d’you always say that when I’m eatin’?”

“It’s bad manners to talk with your mouthful, Cait.” El repeated.

“Says who?”

“Says me for a start.” El asserted seriously but not forcefully.

Cait shivered slightly and fought the urge to bite her lip. El was being assertive again. “Fine. I won’t talk with my mouthful next time.” she conceded, glancing down El’s cleavage and licking her lips.

Following Cait’s gaze, El’s smirk only intensified. “See that you do.” she winked suggestively.

They ate in relative silence, both women too engrossed in their food to talk. El, however, continued to think of something to say. Finally, she remembered a conversation she had had several days ago. “I had a radio call from Sturges in Sanctuary a few days ago.” she began.

Swallowing a mouthful of steak, Cait looked up eagerly. “Oh yeah? What’s that old greaser doin’ now?”

“He told me that people are starting to settle in Sanctuary. Apparently, he and the Minutemen set up a radio beacon telling people they can come and settle there.” El answered.

“How many people they got?”

“A few so far.” El said. “It’s a slow process, but they have to start somewhere.”

“Who’s leadin’ ‘em then? Havin’ people just move in like that ain’t exactly a recipe for fun.” Cait asked further.

El nodded, agreeing with Cait’s logic. “You’re right. Sturges and the Minutemen are kind of running it. But they want someone better to do the job permanently. They…They actually asked me if I wanted to do it.”

Cait’s eyes widened; El as leader of a new Sanctuary? “What did you say?” she asked inquisitively.

El rested her chin in her hand, as if she were still debating the question in her head. “I…I told him that I am indisposed at the moment but would definitely consider it for the future.” Glancing across at Cait, El was surprised to see her shoulders slump a little, as if she were disappointed by her answer. “Cait, are you alright?”

Cait immediately straightened up, attempting to deflect El’s question. “Err, yeah. I’m fine.” she stuttered.

“Cait, are…are you happy here?” El probed, not convinced by Cait’s answer.

Nodding intently, Cait tried to defend herself. “Yeah, yeah. I’m happy here. You know, we both got jobs here, and…and the school’s here for Shaun. We’ve just redone the house, so we’re doin’ good, I think.” Cait smiled at El but could see in her eyes that she was not fully convinced. Accepting that her answer was wholly honest, Cait sighed. “I mean, I was happy in Sanctuary; just you and me, and then Tasha. It was quiet and safe out there. It…It felt like a real home.”

“I know how you feel, Cait.” El smiled compassionately. “I’ve thought a lot about going back to Sanctuary; get away from everything and raise the kids. It definitely did feel like a home… But you’re right, we have everything we need here for the time being. You know…it’s an option for the future.”

Attempting to put a brave face on El’s judgement, Cait nodded and smiled. “Y-Yeah. You’re right. Sanctuary ain’t goin’ anywhere.”

Before long, Cait’s plate was empty, and she sat back with a contented smile on her face. “Enjoy that?” she heard El ask. Humming deeply, Cait nodded her head. “So fuckin’ good! Not as good as yours, but really fuckin’ good.”

El chuckled and took a sip of her wine glass. “Is someone trying to get lucky tonight?” she asked alluringly, raising an eyebrow.

Cait felt her cheeks go red and she chewed her lip. “I don’t know. See what happens, I guess.”

Placing her glass on the table, El put a hand in her coat pocket and pulled out a small sack, maintaining eye contact with Cait the entire time. After counting out the requisite number of caps, they were scooped up by Wellingham in record time. “Come on, let’s get you back to work. Piper will be wondering why she’s paying you.” she then said, draining the remains of her wine.

Getting up from her chair, El walked around to Cait and helped slip her jacket over shoulders. Walking down the causeway, El and Cait were soon back outside Publick Occurrences. “Well, here we are again.” El said, squeezing Cait’s hand.

“Yeah. I had a really good time. Thank you for takin’ me out.” Cait replied, planting a loving kiss on El’s cheek.

El scrunched her face in a goofy smile and began walking Cait towards the door. She however stopped after taking one step. “Oh, Cait. I forgot; I need to pick something up from home.” she tried to say.

Cait frowned, slightly confused. “O-Okay. I mean, I can go back to work, and you can get Tasha on your way back.”

El just shook her head. “Oh no, Cait. Please come with me. It will mean you can spend more time together.” Smiling at Cait and taking her hand, El winked enticingly.

Such was the control that El held over her heart, Cait was unable to refuse an offer like that. “O-Okay. Seein’ as you put it like that.”

“Alright. Let’s go.”

Arriving at Home Plate, El released Cait’s hand and took out her keys. Opening the door to the living area, El ushered Cait inside. Stepping through the threshold, Cait looked around expectantly. “So, what do you need to get?” she asked nonchalantly.

Before Cait could react, she was gripped hand around her arms and pressed firmly against the wall. She then whimpered as she felt El mash her lips on hers. What the hell was El doing? Pulling away, Cait stared at El in complete amazement; El had her completely pinned against the wall. Cait wasn’t sure whether to mention it, but she was getting really turned on by the whole thing. “El, what…what you doin’?” she gasped, her mind too warped to think of anything else to ask.

El just grinned. “Being assertive.”

“That was fun.” Cait panted, resting her head on El’s shoulder.

El chuckled and took a sip of her glass of rum. “Yeah, it was. You weren’t joking about talking with your mouthful.” she said, placing the glass on her naked thigh.

Cait’s cheeks went bright red, and she sniggered childishly. “You know what I’m like. If I say I’m doin’ somethin’, I’m doin’ it.”

El smiled and intertwined her hand with Cait’s. El never smoked, but this felt like the perfect moment to light up a cigarette. For the time being, however, the rum would more than suffice. “I had a good time this afternoon.”

“Me too.” Cait replied, raising her head to look at El. “We should do this more often.”

El raised an eyebrow. “What? You mean have sex? We do that plenty.”

“I mean havin’ lunch together.” Cait corrected, rolling her eyes.

Completely flustered, El forced down a laugh and rested her head against the back of the sofa. “Oh right. Yes. Lunch is fun. We should definitely do that more often.” Looking back at Cait, El then frowned as she saw the look on her face. “Wait, you didn’t mean just the lunch thing, did you?”

Cait smiled and bit her lip suggestively. “I don’t know. Shit happens. Look where we are now.”

This time, El laughed and leaned into kiss Cait lovingly on the lips. “God, I love you. You’re so amazing.” she said, resting her forehead on Cait’s.

“I love you too.” Cait replied. Sipping her whiskey, Cait nestled her head at the base of El’s neck. Listening to the slow rising and falling of El’s chest, Cait closed her eyes and hummed contently. She could have stayed like this forever; like they used to back in Sanctuary.

Suddenly, El looked over at the clock and her eyes widened slightly. How long has they been eating and shagging? Piper was going to kill her. “Cait, I think we need to get you back to work, or Piper will have my guts.”

Begrudgingly, Cait opened her eyes and similarly looked at the clock. Immediately, she leapt off the sofa. “Fuck! I gotta get back there!” she cried, frantically collecting her clothes and attempting to dress herself. “Why did you have to bring me back here to fuck?”

Standing up, El knocked back her glass and placed it on the coffee table before dressing herself. “Hey, you fucked me too.” she retorted, collecting her own clothes.

“Only as payback for what you did. Nobody fucks me without payback.” Cait argued as she agitatedly buttoned up her shirt. Sitting back down on the sofa, Cait pulled on her boots and quickly tied her laces. Hopefully, her libido would not mean she lost her job.

El could only laugh as she sorted out her hair in front of the mirror. “I’ll be sure to remember that next time.” Turning around, she slipped on her shoes and picked up her coat.

Once she had finally dressed herself again, Cait rushed to pick her jacket off the floor. “How do I look? Piper won’t notice, will she?” she asked nervously, ironing out the creases of her shirt with her hands.

“You look fine, Cait; and she won’t notice.” El answered with a smile as she looked Cait up and down. “Come on. Let’s get you back to work.”

Exiting Home Plate, El and Cait quickly rounded the corner towards the Public Occurrences. Walking through the front door, they were met by Piper with a jokingly surprised look on her face. “Oh, so the worker finally returns!” she exclaimed sarcastically.

“I’m so sorry, Piper.” Cait beseeched, throwing off her jacket. “I can make the time up, I promise.”

Stepping forward, El decided that she should take the heat for this. “Sorry, Piper. It’s my fault, really. Time sort of ran away with us.” Glancing over at Cait, she flashed her a wink.

“Alright. Well, seeing as you’ll take the blame, I’ll let you off.” Piper conceded to El. “But you can’t just come by and steal my employees away from me all the time.”

Accepting Piper’s reprimand, El nodded contritely. “Of course. Consider myself told… Now, hand over the toddler. I need to get back to my own job.”

Once Tasha had changed hands, El kissed Cait on the cheek. “I’ve got to go. I’ll see you at home. Are you still okay with collecting Shaun today?”

“Yeah, I can go get him; and I’ll see you at home too. Love you.” Cait replied, going a step further and kissing El on the lips.

“Love you too.” El smiled. “See you around, Piper.” she then nodded as she turned for the door.

“You too.” Piper said as El stepped through the front door and closed it behind her. Once El was out of the building, Piper looked back at Cait with a cheerful smile. “So, all things aside, Cait. Did you have a good time?”

“Urr, yeah. It was fun.” Cait replied, nervously resisting an embarrassed smirk.

Piper gave a heartened smile and patted Cait on the arm. “Aww, that’s great. Glad you enjoyed yourself.” Suddenly, however, Piper’s face changed, as if she was about to deliver bad news. “Oh, and Cait… You… might wanna fix your shirt.”

Instantly, Cait looked down and was mortified to find that, in her haste to get dressed, she had buttoned up her shirt unevenly. Totally embarrassed, Cait’s face went bright red.

Unable to hold back any longer, Piper completely broke down in laughter. “Oh Cait!” she wheezed through fits of giggles. “You should see the look on your face.” Piper clearly knew exactly what her and El had been up to.

Choking down her laughter, she then rested her hand on Cait’s shoulder. “Well, for what’s it’s worth, Cait. I’m glad you had a good time.” Patting Cait’s shoulder, she smiled again. “I’ll let you get back to work.” Turning around, Piper walked back to her terminal, quietly tittering to herself.

Ruching back to her workstation, Cait turned her back and quickly evened out the buttons on her shirt. The entire time she quietly muttered obscenities to herself. How could she have been allowed to go back to work looking like this? El had told her she looked fine. She was going to kill El once they were both home.

Taking a deep breath, El squatted down and gripped the bar tightly. She knew these exercises were good if she was to build muscle, but she couldn’t deny that deadlifting took the energy out of you.

Ever since settling in Diamond City and taking up her job as mayor, El had become increasingly concerned that she had put on weight. Two children in quick succession, biologically, and a sedentary lifestyle was not a recipe for good health. The rum and Nuka Colas were starting to show and El’s normally slenderer waist. Cait always said she didn’t mind and that it just gave her more to love. But El definitely minded.

So, as she had procured and entire gym setup for Cait, El had decided to spend and hour or two every other workday exercising and shifting some of her unwanted pounds.

Steadying her breathing, and positioning her knees and heals correctly, El pushed off the ground and pulled the weighted bar up to her hips. Letting out a heavy exhale, El dropped the bar back to the ground and shook off her arms.

As she looked at herself in the large mirror hanging across the wall, El noticed a figure lurking near the entrance. She was leaning against the wall and her arms were crossed. Despite being half-shielded from the light, El knew only one person who would be back here. “You know, it’s rude to eavesdrop on people.” she spoke into the mirror.

“Didn’t wanna spoil the show.” the figure replied playfully. “And I was gettin’ the best view.” Stepping forward, the figure revealed themselves as Cait, sporting a pair of incredibly short shorts and a cropped tank top, exposing her flat toned stomach.

Turning to face her wife, El looked her up and down and gave a roguish smirk. “Did you take a day off from wearing clothes today?” she enquired.

Cait looked down at herself and put her hand on her hip. “Hey, I get sweaty when I workout. I wanna know what the fuck you’re doin’ here.”

“What, the mayor of Diamond City can’t use the gym that she herself got for her wife?” El retorted, flipping the question back on Cait.

Cait rolled her eyes and sighed. “You know what I mean. Why you workin’ out?”

El self-consciously ran her hand over her stomach. “Well…I’ve been feeling very sluggish lately and my clothes are feeling a bit tight. So, I thought I would get back into exercise and shake the unwanted pounds. You know, lose some of the fat.”

“You’re not fat.” Cait said disapprovingly. “You don’t need to do that stuff to make me love you. You’re always fuckin’ sexy.”

El chuckled and looked away to hide her blush. “That’s really sweet, Cait. Thank you. But I still want to do this, just to make me feel a bit better about myself.”

Cait chewed her lip and reluctantly nodded, understanding El’s logic. “Okay… If it’ll make you feel better.” she said. Stepping in front of the mirror, she then posed confidently to show off her abs. “So, you wanna get a set of these, huh? You know, they’re not as good as you think they are.”

“Hey!” El retorted, shoving Cait slightly. “Don’t give me that shit. You never miss an opportunity to flash your muscles at me. And, anyway, back in my military days, it had a pretty impressive set of abs.”

That statement peaked Cait’s interest. “Oh yeah? Would love to have seen that.”

“There’s definitely a picture out there somewhere. If it actually survived, of course.” El replied, stroking her chin.

Cait crossed her arms, flashed a coy smile, and raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I’m findin’ that picture and I’m keepin’ it. Then, I’m gonna rub one out every time I look at it.”

El could only scrunch her face up in mild revulsion. She didn’t really need to hear that. “Gross, Cait.”

“Hey, try and stop me. I’m findin’ that picture.” Cait insisted, flicking her fringe away from her eyes. “So, you workin’ out, or what?”

“Yes, I am. So, if you’ll excuse me.” El nodded before turning around to resume her workout. Squatting down, El gripped the bar and took a deep breath. Tensing her abs, she pushed off the ground and lifted the bar to her hips. Dropping the bar, El looked into the mirror to find Cait had not moved and had the same coy smile on her face. “You going to stand there all day or are you actually going to workout yourself?” she asked Cait’s reflection.

“Maybe.” Cait replied coquettishly. “Just admirin’ the view.”

El pursed her lips. “Incorrigible.” she sighed, bending down for another deadlift. “Although…you could work me out instead?” she then heard Cait say.

Seemingly distracted, El released her grip on the bar and stood back up. “I suggest you get back to your own exercises and stop distracting me.” she said scoldingly.

“Fine. Suit yourself.” Cait huffed, pretending to sound insulted. Turning around, she sauntered off toward the squat rack, swaying her arse from side to side with every step.

Watching all this from the mirror, El twisted her pursed lips. Cait was definitely trying to lead her on. No matter how hard she tried, she could not take her eyes off Cait’s shorts, they barely covered her arse. Reaching the rack, Cait then jumped up to grab the top handles and proceeded to begin a set of wide pull ups. To add to El’s distraction – with every rep – Cait emitted an almost orgasmic grunt that filled the room with sound.

El was now unable to concentrate. She could not take her eyes off Cait’s body. Under her cropped vest, El could see every muscle of Cait’s arms, shoulders, and back rippling as she hauled herself up. Switching to look at herself in the mirror, El sighed in frustration. It seemed that her workout would have to wait. Turning on her heals, El marched over to Cait.

Hearing heavy footsteps behind her, Cait smirked and dropped down from the rack. Swinging around to face El, Cait yelled as she was picked up and pressed up against the wall. Cait then moaned happily as El pressed her lips to hers and kissed her passionately.

Wrapping her legs around El’s waist, Cait undid El’s ponytail and ran her fingers through her long flowing hair. Pulling away, Cait shivered as she stared into El’s eyes. “So, what do we do now then?” El eventually asked.

Cait licked her lips and lightly tugged as the staps of El’s bra. Glancing downwards, Cait tried to appear innocent. “Well…I’ve always wanted to be fucked over the mayor’s desk.” she said softly. Flicking some loose strands of her fringe away from her eyes, she flashed El her own smouldering gaze.

El raised an eyebrow and tilted her head to one side. “Oh really? You like being pleasured by powerful people?” she asked.

“Just this one.” Cait answered, leaning into whisper in El’s ear. “I want you to have me over that big desk of yours.” she propositioned.

El smiled and began to slowly walk them back to her office, Cait safely wrapped in her arms. “We might be able to arrange something.”

“One pile of fresh new editions right here.” Cait exclaimed happily as she stepped out of Publick Occurrences, a heavy bundle of newly printed newspapers under her arm.

“Ah ha!” Piper clapped her hands together before taking the papers from Cait. “Thanks, Cait! Now, we’re in business. Nat, time to get selling.”

“No problem.” Cait replied with a smile. Absentmindedly, she brushed strands of her fringe behind her ear. It made her feel like such an idiot, but she loved receiving praise like that. Attempting to spare Piper and Nat further blushes, Cait turned back towards the door. She definitely had some more work to do.

“Well, well, well! If it ain’t little Cait.”. she suddenly heard a voice exclaim behind her. Cait froze as a paralysing shiver ran up her spine. She recognised that voice; how was he still in the Commonwealth? Slowly, Cait turned towards the voice. Seeing the figure standing before her made Cait’s blood run cold. It was Stratton.

Cait could not even react to the person in front of her. She had spent years trying to put him out of her mind. Why the hell then was he here now? He still had that stupid smug face that she now hated so much.

“What? Can’t remember your old friend, Stratton?” he then asked, twisting his head at Cait’s unenthusiastic reaction.

Cait looked away but just managed to will herself to speak. “Oh, urr, yeah. Long time.”

“It certainly has. So, you’re living in Diamond City now? You’re moving up in the world.” he continued.

Cait clenched and unclenched her fists, attempting to remain calm. “Yeah, suppose it does.” she muttered. “What are you doin’ here? Thought you’d be runnin’ with some raider gang.”

Stratton smirked and shrugged his shoulders. “Ha! Nah, I left that game a good long while ago. I’m a new man now. Just bought a house here in Diamond City.”

Cait shuddered; now he was living here. Could this situation get any worse?

Fortunately for Cait, Piper could see that she was feeling uncomfortable, and she stepped in. “Hello, sir.” she greeted politely. “We’re not quite open yet. Can I help you with something?”

“Oh, no. don’t need anything.” Stratton replied, shaking his head with that same smirk. “Was just passing through and saw Cait come outside.”

“Oh, you know Cait?” Piper pretended to sound surprised in order to not sound rude.

“Know Cait? We go way back. We were good friends at the Combat Zone.”

Piper glanced over at Cait and could see that she was shaking. “Oh, really? Well, Cait, I hate to pull rank, but I think you have work to do.” she said curtly.

Cait looked across at Piper and was relieved to see her give a reassuring wink. She could tell that Piper was trying to help her out. “Urr, right. Yeah. I gotta get back to work.”

“Okay, no biggy.” Stratton accepted, putting his hands up defensively. “Boss is pulling rank, I get it. I’ll leave you to it. Maybe we could catch up sometime, reminisce about old times.”

Cait chewed her lip, just wishing for this entire thing to end. “Urrr, yeah. Sure. Whatever.” she muttered to the ground.

“Alright. I’ll see you around then.” With that, he meandered off towards the Diamond City market.

Once Stratton was safely out of earshot, Piper put her hand on Cait’s shoulder. “Hey, Cait? You good?”

Cait nodded but did not look back at Piper. “Yeah, I’m fine. T-Thank you for gettin’ him away.”

“No problem.” Piper replied. “Do you wanna talk about it at all? You know, friendly chat?”

Cait immediately shook her head. “No, I’m okay. I don’t need to talk about it.” she answered quickly.

“Are you sure? You’re shaking-.” Piper tried to say.

“I said I don’t wanna talk about it, okay!” Cait snapped, jolting herself out of Piper’s grip.

Flinching away from Cait’s outburst, Piper took a step backwards. “Okay, okay. Sorry, Cait. I didn’t mean to pry.”

Cait squeezed her eyes shut, cursing herself. Sheepishly, she turned and looked apologetically at Piper. “I-I’m sorry, Piper. I didn’t mean to shout like that.”

Piper gave a reassuring smile and put her hand gently back on Cait’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Cait. No need to apologise. But I’m here if need to talk to someone.”

“T-Thanks.” Cait replied, giving a weak smile. “I…I gotta get back to work, like you said.” Shifting away, Cait shuffled off through the front door of Publick Occurrences.

Looking back towards the Diamond City market, Piper watched for any sign of their unexpected visitor. Fortunately, he was nowhere to be seen. Piper could only wonder about what his relationship with Cait had entailed. Knowing Cait’s story, and how she had reacted upon seeing him, it could not have been good. Taking a deep breath, Piper got back to what she had been doing previously. She however made a mental note to scope out where he was living; what he was doing here; and why?

Piper was getting worried. Ever since their unexpected encounter outside Publick Occurrences, Cait had not been the same. Whilst she remained professional, whenever they ventured outside, she always appeared to be looking over her shoulder. Cait tried to be discreet, but Piper did not miss anything.

El needed to be told about this. Whoever this Stratton was, he was clearly causing Cait a great deal of unease. The only problem was doing it without Cait noticing. Piper considered herself excellent at snooping, but Cait was surprisingly observant.

Glancing up from her terminal, Piper could that Cait was concentrating intently on some reading practice. If there was an opportunity to get away, it was now or never. “Say, Cait. I just need to pop to the market. Just remembered something I need to get. Do you want anything?” she enquired, getting up from her desk.

“No, I’m good, thanks.” Cait answered, taking the end of the pencil she was chewing out of her mouth.

“Alright. Do you mind holding the fort till I’m back?” Piper then asked.

Cait nodded but did not look up from her pages. “Sure.” she replied simply.

“Okey dokey. Back in a bit.” Stepping through the front door, Piper immediately made for El’s office. Ascending the elevator, Piper walked into the waiting area and approached Geneva’s desk. “Hey, Geneva. Is Blue there? I kinda need to see her about something.”

“She should be in the gym in the back. Go right in.” Geneva replied politely.

“Thanks a lot.” Piper smiled, proceeding towards the door. Stepping through, Piper walked down the corridor and entered El’s gym area. Her eyes then widened as she saw El in the middle of the some pull ups. “Blue!” What the…”

Dropping down from the bars, El swung around to meet her. “Oh, Piper! Sorry, I didn’t hear you come in. How can I help?” she greeted, panting as she wiped some sweat from her brow.

“I’m more amazed at what you’re doing. When did you decide to start working out?”

El looked down and gave her stomach a rub. “About a month ago. I’ve been trying to lose some of this baby fat I’ve been accumulating.”

“Be quiet, Blue! There’s no baby fat there! You always look great.” Piper chastised. “Speaking of which; is Tasha about?”

“She’s just through there.” El replied, nodding towards a door open slightly ajar. “She’s having a nap. Who would have thought that a two-year-old would have so much energy?”

Piper smirked. “I know who she gets it from. She giving you run around?”

“You don’t know the half, Piper.” El sighed. “But enough about that. What brings you here?”

Piper’s smile dropped and she shifted uneasily on the balls of her feet. This conversation could land her in deep trouble. However, she needed to think of what could happen if she remained silent. “I wasn’t sure if I should come, I couldn’t stop thinking about it… I’m worried about Cait.”

El immediately stood to attention. “Worried? Oh, God! Is she okay? Has she done something wrong?” she asked frantically.

“Oh, no. She’s not in trouble. She’s great, as always.” Piper reassured quickly. “It’s more…more…” Eventually, Piper sighed, unable to find the right words. This needed more explanation than she originally expected. “It’s a bit of a long story.”

“Come, Piper. Please sit down and tell me everything.” El insisted, leading Piper towards a sofa in the centre of the room. Sitting themselves down, El sat forward and looked at Piper intently. “Tell me everything.” she said.

Piper shifted herself slightly and began. “Well, it happened a few days ago. We were just setting up for the day; Cait was bringing out the morning editions for Nat and me. It was a pretty standard morning. But then this guy showed up, saying that he knew Cait back in the Combat Zone. I think the name was Stratton.”

El chewed her lip, deep in thought but also deeply uneasy. The Combat Zone only spelt trouble in her mind. Anyone from there was not worth knowing. She however could not place the name; Cait never mentioned Stratton. That being said, Cait never talked about people she knew from the Combat Zone. “The name doesn’t ring a bell, I’m afraid.” she said despondently.

“No, not with me either. Cait never mentioned any names when I interviewed her.” Piper added, equally as frustrated as El.

“Did he say at all why he was in Diamond City?” El then asked, getting back to the matter at hand.

“Not at the time.” Piper answered. “He said he just set up here. I did some digging though and found out he’s bought that Institute guy’s old house.”

“Kellogg?” El blurted.

Piper nodded. “Yeah, I know. It seems the bad ones always wanna live in that house. I also found out he’s working with the maintenance crew. Probably taking advantage of the amount of work that needs doing.”

El ignored what could easily have been construed as a dig about the amount of work that still needed to be done to make sure Diamond City was safe and secure. Piper still would not let go of the fact a hole in the outer wall was covered over with a bookcase. “Maybe, I’ll pay a visit to the maintenance crew and ask around.” she thought aloud. “But what about Cait? How did she react to seeing him?”

Piper was quiet for a few moments, remembering the fear in Cait’s eyes. “She tried look like she wasn’t fazed about seeing him again. But I could see she was afraid. Whatever happened between them must have left Cait scarred in some way. I tried to talk to her once I managed to send him away, but she just snapped at me.”

El covered her mouth with her hand, took a deep breath through her nose, and glanced away thoughtfully. Why, after everything they had been through, did people want to wreck what her and Cait had worked so hard to build. She needed answers from Cait if she was to fully understand this. “Thank you for telling me this, Piper; and thank you for looking out for Cait.”

“Just trying to keep her safe, Blue.” Piper replied gratefully.

“And I really appreciate it, Piper.” El smiled. “I’ll talk to Cait tonight and get some answers from her. She won’t withhold information from me.”

Piper’s smile faltered slightly. “Then what do I tell Cait? If you ask her about it, she’ll know I blabbed.” she asked.

“I will make her promise not to take any of this out on you. If I find out she has, I will not be impressed.” El answered seriously.

Piper appeared a little uneasy about El’s resolution. “Blue, are you sure about that? I don’t want to be held responsible if it doesn’t go well.”

“No, Piper. I’m serious.” El continued, unperturbed. “Cait will listen to me.”

Piper nodded, reluctantly accepting El’s plan of action. “Okay. Thanks for that. I’d hate to be responsible for a falling out between us.”

“Don’t worry, Piper. You have nothing to worry about. You have my word on that.” El reassured. “We’ll keep her safe.”

Piper chuckled, her smile returning. “Hmph. Well, if there’s anyone I can trust, it’s you… I should probably be getting back, otherwise your wife will wonder where I’ve gone.”

“I’ll walk you out.” El replied. Getting up from the sofa, El walked with Piper back down the corridor towards the door. “Thanks again for coming, Piper; and thanks again for looking out for Cait.” she then said, wrapping Piper in a tight hug.

“Just part of the job, Blue.” Piper replied matter-of-factly, returning El’s hug. “I’ll see you around.” Pulling away, Piper opened the office door and stepped through.

Closing the door behind Piper, El walked through her office and collected a half-full glass of water from her desk. Taking a large gulp, she walked over to the window and stared out over her domain. Somewhere out there was an undesirable; someone who wanted to harm her family. Whoever they were, and whatever they did, El was going to find out.

Walking through to their bedroom, El let out a low sigh and closed the door. Turning from the mirror, Cait smiled up at her. “Finally got her to sleep?” she asked, brushing her hair.

El sighed again but nonetheless nodded. “Yeah, took me long enough though. I swear she’s getting worse. All she wants to do is run around.”

“Just let her run around. She’ll get tired eventually.” Cait argued, brushing out a particularly knotted strand of hair.

“I think she’s the first human being of whom that won’t work.” El said, shaking her head. “And anyway, I need to sleep too.”

Sitting herself on the bed behind their dressing table, El looked at Cait through the mirror. It was time for answers. “Cait, I…I was wondering whether we could talk.”

“Urr, sure. What do you wanna talk about?” Cait replied, looking at El expectantly through the mirror.

El was silent for a few moments as she considered what to say, and how she expected Cait would react. “I heard that you met someone at work a few days ago.” she eventually enquired.

Cait immediately stopped brushing her hair and her face dropped. How did she know? Watching Cait’s face intently, reading her reaction, El continued. “I was told that someone from the Combat Zone-.”

El was abruptly cut off as Cait threw her hairbrush on the dressing table and stood up from her chair. “Piper told you, didn’t she?” she accused, angrily pacing the room.

“Yes, she did. But she only-.” El attempted to say, trying to remain calm in the face of Cait’s display.

“I fuckin’ knew it!” Cait shouted, raking her fingers through her hair. “Everyone here goes behind my fuckin’ back! I can’t even keep anythin’ to myself! Piper couldn’t even fuckin’ ask me about it! She just had to go and tell you! Why can’t she just keep her fuckin’ nose out of other people’s shit!?”

By now, El determined that she had to intervene. Not only was Cait sounding increasingly unreasonable, but she was also dangerously at risk of waking the kids. Getting up from the end of the bed, El put her hands around Cait’s waist and held her close. “Cait, Cait, please. Just calm down and let me explain, okay.” she spoke softly. “Piper only told me because she’s worried about you.”

“Why couldn’t she just talk to me then? Why’d she have to go spreadin’ it around?” Cait demanded, shaking with frustration as El held her.

“She told me that you shrugged her off when she tried to ask you about it.” El retorted.

Cait could only look away, hating how her frustrations had been so easily picked apart. Why did she always shoot herself in the foot like that? Sensing Cait’s inner turmoil, El attempted to soften her enquiry. If she was too forceful, Cait would only withdraw further. “Cait, I know that this is difficult for you. But you know that you can always talk to me. I want you to be able to talk to me; like we said on the roof, remember.” she reassured softly, trying to catch Cait’s eye.

Cait looked back at El, and her face mercifully softened. She remembered that conversation all too well. It was etched into her memory. Exhaling deeply, she nodded.

El did not smile but her face was caring. This was where she needed Cait to be; Cait would only talk once she knew she could trust whoever she was speaking to. El knew that even she had to earn that trust. Stroking Cait’s waist, El continued. “Cait, who is he? You can tell me.”

Cait tried to speak but could not bring herself to. Shifting uncomfortably on the balls of her feet, she awkwardly chewed her lip. Loosening her grip on Cait’s waist, El began to lead her towards their bed. “Cait, come to bed.”

Leading her across the room, El pulled back the covers and let Cait climb into bed. El then climbed in next to her, pulled the covers over themselves, and held Cait close. Now that Cait was comfortable, El tried again. “Cait, let’s try again. Just you and me, remember… Who did you meet a few days ago?”

Resting her head on El’s shoulder, Cait felt safe enough to answer. “He…He was a guy I knew from the Combat Zone… His name is Stratton.” The mere mention of his name made Cait shiver. “He was part of the raider gang that took over the Combat Zone… But he was different from the others; he looked out for me; he was nice to me; he…he’d talk about how he’d take me away from it all.”

El knew immediately that that was not the whole story. If there was one thing the Combat Zone did not attract – except Cait – it was good people. “What happened?” she whispered. Part of her did not want to know.

“One…one night, he wanted us to jump in the sack together. But I said no. I told him that I wasn’t in the mood, and we had a big fight. I went to leave the room we were in but found all his raider buddies standin’ outside. I tried to push past ‘em, but they just shoved me back into the room…. All of ‘em then beat me real bad and…and…had their own fun with me… Stratton watched the whole thing and said I’d think twice before walkin’ out on him.” Cait curled herself up further into El’s embrace, feeling almost ashamed by what had happened to her. “I was sore for weeks after it, but I still had to go out and fight every day. I had to keep that record goin’.”

El rested her head on Cait’s and closed her eyes, on the brink of tears. “I’m so sorry, Cait. I’m so sorry…. Was he…was he there the day we met?”

“No.” Cait answered quickly, shaking her head. “After what happened, Tommy put his foot down about how the raiders should be treatin’ the fighters. Only good fuckin’ thing he ever did. Stratton wasn’t high enough in the peckin’ order to back himself up… He left pretty soon after.”

“Why did you not talk about him in your interview with Piper?” El asked further.

Cait swallowed and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. “I…I was scared that, if I said his name, people might know it was me; and I was tryin’ to forget him.”

“He won’t hurt you anymore, Cait. You have my word on that.” El reassured, not a hint of doubt in her voice.

Cait, however, did not take that statement well and darted up to look El dead in the eyes. “No, please don’t get involved, El. Please don’t! This is somethin’ I gotta fix myself.”

“Cait, this man hurt you and is still out there. Who knows what he’s still capable of?” El argued, unwilling to sit back and do nothing.

The fire in Cait’s eyes quickly returned and she began to tremble again. Why did everyone insist on her holding their hand; she could handle herself. “I know what he can do! But I don’t need everyone always watchin’ my back! I can take care of myself!”

“I’m not saying you can’t, Cait. Just try to understand-.” El attempted to reason with her.

“No, please! Quit it with makin’ me understand!” Cait shouted, cutting El off mid-sentence. “He’s mine to deal with! Don’t go after him, please!”

“Alright, alright!” El eventually conceded, simply wishing for this argument to end. “I won’t go after him! But Cait, I am the mayor. I can’t promise that our paths won’t cross… Is that enough?”

Breathing heavily, Cait closed her eyes and bowed her head. She needed to calm herself down. Sensing Cait’s pent up anger, El gently stroked the back of her clenched fists. Slowly opening her eyes, Cait looked up into El’s soothing hazel gaze. How could be mad at this woman she loved so much? Throwing her arms around El’s neck, Cait hugged her for dear life. “I’m sorry.” she muffled into El’s shoulder.

“It’s alright. It’s okay. I’m here.” El replied, holding Cait tightly. “I’m not mad, Cait… But is it alright? What I promised?”

Cait nodded, her face still partially buried in El’s shoulder. “Thank you, Cait.” El then said.

Remaining silent for a few moments, El reluctantly broached the assurance that she had made to Piper. This, however, could derail the entire conversation. “But, if you can do one more thing for me, I want you to promise me not to take any of this out on Piper.”

Cait immediately pulled back, her face almost seething with betrayal. How was that fair? “But that ain’t fair! She’s the one who fuckin’ blabbed about this shit!” she yelled.

“I know she did; but only to keep you safe.” El retorted. “Cait, if we go after our friends, what are we left with? We have nothing is what. Piper loves you dearly, and only wants you to be happy and safe.”

Cait stared down grumpily at the bedsheets beneath them, feeling deeply conflicted. To her, Piper was being a gossiping hack who was betraying their friendship. But, like El said, she had only done to keep her safe. Cait hated admitting it sometimes, but El was right. Begrudgingly, she nodded. “Alright, I won’t bring it up. I’ll swallow my fuckin’ pride.” she agreed, her voice almost a whisper. By now, Cait just wanted this entire shitty episode to end, and she pretended to stifle a yawn. “I’m sorry... I’m just tired.”

Finally allowing herself to smile, El nodded in agreement. “Of course. Your right. It’s been a long day for both of us. Let’s get some sleep.” Reaching behind her, El then switched off her bedside lamp and plunged the room into near darkness. Turning back around, through the darkness, El’s was disheartened to find Cait curled up in her covers, facing away from her. Accepting that it was to be a lonely night, El settled herself down and looked up at the ceiling. Bringing the covers close around shoulders, El slowly let her eyes close.

El’s eyes had been closed for only a few minutes when she felt the heel of Cait’s foot gently brush against her leg. Opening her eyes, El glanced over at Cait, calculating what this meant. After watching Cait lie motionless for a minute or so, El closed her eyes and returned to her original position.

Moments later, El got the answer she was looking for. Shifting herself, Cait’s arse brushed against El’s side. El now knew exactly what Cait wanted, and what she was trying to do. Opening her eyes, El rolled onto her side and put her arm around Cait’s waist, taking her hand. “You know I love you.” she whispered, squeezing Cait’s hand tightly.

“I know.” Cait whispered back, nestling herself closer to El. “I’m sorry that I get angry… I just-.”

“Cait, just stop, okay. It’s alright.” El’s voice cut in. her tone was serious but in no way forceful. “Just rest, okay. I’m right here. I love you.”

Exhaling slowly, Cait lowered her head into her pillow and let her body relax. “O-Okay…” she whispered. “I love you too.” As she felt El gently plant a kiss on the back of her neck, Cait allowed her eyes to shut, and she drifted into sleep.

“Here you are, Abbot. Two cans of Hardware Town’s finest green paint.” El exclaimed happily, placing two dirty cans of paint down on the ground.

“You’re a lifesaver, madam mayor!” the heavily moustachioed caretaker, Abbot, replied thankfully, looking down at the paint cans. “I think I need to pay you some extra for the trouble.”

El just waved him away. “Oh, forget about it. Just don’t ask to go back there anytime soon. Whoever was running that place sent one of their lackies out to entice me in.”

Abbot looked up, a shocked expression on his face. “Oh, well you definitely deserve the extra. Please take this. I won’t take no for an answer.” she said, handing El a small pouch.

Conceding her position with a nod, El accepted the pouch of caps and slipped in into her pocket. “Your generosity is deeply appreciated, Abbot.”

Abbot doffed his hard hat to El and turned to face his group of workers sitting at a nearby picnic table. “Alright, you lazy sons of bitches, up on your arses and get painting that wall!” he commanded, clapping his hands together.

As the various crew members got up from the table and meandered towards the paint cans, El gaze was drawn to one particular individual. He was the last person remaining at the picnic table, absentmindedly spinning the point of a combat knife around its wooden surface. Whether it was her instinct, or the act itself, something about him didn’t feel right to El.

Eventually, the individual pulled the knifepoint out of the table and slipped it into a small sheath on his belt. Getting up from his seat, he began to move towards his colleagues. However, just as he passed El, his gaze met hers and he flashed an inviting smile. “You must be the mayor.” he greeted in a husky voice. “I’ve been wanting to meet you for some time. Word is that you’re quite the celebrity around here… The name’s Stratton.” he then extended a hand to her.

El’s blood ran cold. This was the man, the source of so much misfortune. And here he was, extending a hand to her. Part of her wanted to end it right, to take that knife of his and thrust it deep into his gut. That would be the easiest way to fix this. But she had promised Cait not to go after him, at least not yet. Swallowing her pride, El raised her hand and returned the gesture. “Yes, I’m the mayor. Nice to meet you.” she said curtly. She might be diplomatic, but El drew the line at being friendly.

“Good to meet you too.” he replied, dropping his hand. “You’re married to my friend, Cait, I heard. That true?” he then enquired, crossing his arms and leaning back on the balls of his feet.

El pursed her lips slightly, already becoming frustrated by his attempts at friendliness. “Yes, we’re married. You two know each other?” she probed, feigning ignorance.

“Know each other? Ha! We go way back to the Combat Zone, her and me. Nigh on inseparable we were.” he answered, a glorified smile plastered across his face. “I was actually going to ask; would it be above board if Cait and I met up one evening; catch up about old times?”

El’s gaze flicked down to Stratton’s knife and she clenched her fist. Was he seriously trying to play her? Whatever he was trying to do, El was not going to give him the satisfaction. “With all due respect, Stratton, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“What?” Stratton asked, trying to hide the fact that he felt gravely insulted. “You’d stop two old friends from seeing each other?”

El twisted her mouth in a vicious sneer. Where did this man find the audacity? “I know your history with Cait, and you’re not to see her.” she said doggedly.

Stratton raised his eyebrows, pretending to appear intrigued by El’s refusal. El however could see in his eyes that she was getting under his skin. Straightening himself, Stratton cleared her throat. “Well, with all due respect to you, madam mayor, as a free woman, I don’t think it’s your prerogative to decide who she can talk to.”

El’s patience immediately snapped. Unclenching her fists, she grabbed him by the lapels of his jacket and pulled him towards her. Her eyes burning with resentment, her face was barely a few inches from his. “You listen here, you piece if shit.” she growled through gritted teeth. “I know your game, so don’t even try to play me. I know everything I need to know about you, and the only reason that you are still in Diamond City is because I am allowing it. So, you stay away from Cait, and the rest of my family. I am understood?”

Stratton groaned but managed to maintain his composure despite El’s vice like grip on him. “Loud and clear…madam mayor.” he answered almost nonchalantly, staring at her dead in the eyes.

Breathing heavily through her nostrils, El tightened her now trembling fists around Stratton’s jacket. She could end this so quickly. But then she remembered her promise to Cait; she had sworn not to go after him. Reluctantly, and feeling sick to her stomach, she released her grip and shoved Stratton away.

As Stratton stumbled away, glancing behind one last time to shoot El a scowl, El looked down at her left hand; it was trembling violently. Through increasingly shaky breathes, she managed to bring her breathing under control. Once she was calmer, her hand began to settle. It was only when she looked back that El realised that all of Abbot’s crew were staring at her. Feeling both embarrassed and exposed, El was quickly overcame by an overwhelming wave of anger. “What are you all standing around for? Get back to work!” she snapped; her voice riddled with rage.

Almost instantly, the crew members turned away and busily scuttled back to their work. Now that her audience was gone, El beat a hasty retreat. Marching back to her office, she slammed the door behind her and slumped into her chair. Kneading her brow with her fingers, El thought about how close she could have been to finishing him; how she wanted to stick that knife into his stomach and gut him in the street. She would have done it, and it would have been so immensely satisfying.

Suddenly, however, El’s thoughts caught up with her and she realised what she was doing. Snapping out of her trance, El sat forward and looked down again at her left hand; it was shaking again. El chewed her lip, feeling more and more at a loss of what to do, or what to think. How could she keep a promise when she wanted to break it so much?

Finally, El gave up and, with a frustrated grunt, slammed her trembling fist down on her desk. Reaching down, she opened one of her desk drawers and retrieved a bottle of rum and a tumbler. Pouring herself a large measure, El picked up the glass and knocked it back in one gulp. As the sharp liquid scolded its way down her throat, El sighed heavily, threw the tumbler down on the table, and put her head in her hands. Only one question was on her mind as she sat in silence: what the hell was wrong with her?

Cait was fretting about nothing. All she had to do was follow the instructions she had laid out for herself, and it would all be fine. It just felt like a lot of responsibility for one person to handle.

Over the previous weeks, Cait had noticed that El had been under a great deal of stress. Whilst she always maintained a strong façade in front of the kids, and in performing her more private wifely duties, Cait had learned to spot when El was under pressure.

Cait was hoping to change that, or at least give her a night off from it. Tonight was their wedding anniversary, and Cait had a plan. After talking it through with Piper – who had kindly agreed to take the kids for the night – she had been given a recipe that was, supposedly, guaranteed to be a winner. Depending on how well Cait could follow a recipe, and how well El could follow instructions, the evening would go off without a hitch.

Walking through to the kitchen. Cait listed off the required ingredients in her head; she was sure that she had everything. Earlier that day, Cait had gone to the market to get everything. El had attempted to contribute something to the extra expense, but Cait had insisted.

Suddenly, a thought flashed into Cait’s mind, something she had not initially thought of. If this was going to be their anniversary, Cait was determined that El got tipsy. Walking back through to the living area, Cait opened a wooden cabinet and pulled out an almost empty bottle. “Fuck!” Cait thought to herself. Why was the rum always gone? If the evening was to go how she wanted, this would not do.

Rushing back towards the kitchen, Cait grabbed her jacket and slipped it over shoulders; this would only take a minute. Just as she reached the door, she heard Dogmeat look up from his bed and let out a small whine. “I won’t be long.” she smiled down at him. “Hold the fort, will you, boy?”

Dogmeat gave a small nod and gave a huff that Cait interpreted as a positive response. Stepping through the doorway, Cait locked it behind her, threw her key into the inside pocket, and hurried off to find what she needed. She would be back in minutes.

El was so exhausted. For weeks now, she had been working non-stop; attempting to use it as a distraction from the worried swirling in her mind. Ever since her encounter with Stratton, El had been on guard, and using as much time as she could spare honing her strength. Almost every afternoon, she had taken herself off to the back gym and taken her pent-up frustrations on the punching bag. If she ever saw him again, she would make sure to give him several punches, or worse.

All of this exertion, coupled with her work, however, was catching up with her and she was beginning to faulter. Dropping her pen, El rested her head in the palm of her hand and kneaded her brow.

But El could not think about this. Tonight was her and Cait’s anniversary and everything was in Cait’s hands. El had to stay conscious long enough to last the evening. Cait would be so disappointed if she came home almost falling asleep.

Turning her head, El looked out at the dark night beyond, illuminated only the by a few lights. It was not late in any sense of the word, but the nights were certainly drawing in. there was also a sharp chill in the air; the wood burner and shared bodily warmth would definitely be needed tonight, El mused.

Looking away from the window, El stared at the clock on the other side of the room, and she sighed heavily. As part of the evening, Cait had given her a specific time to be home by. It was getting close to that time now; El should probably think about closing up and heading home.

However, she still had some time to kill. Maybe she could close her eyes for a minutes and recoup some of her lost energy. El had been the master of this in her past as a highflying lawyer; whenever a difficult case was draining her energy, closing her eyes and switching her brain off for a few moments had always allowed her a brief recharge. Why could it not work now?

Slipping off her glasses, El leaned herself over her desk and rested her head onto her arms. All she needed was a few minutes of mental emptiness; that way she would be recharged enough to spend a romantic night with her beautiful and loving wife. Closing her eyes, El’s breathing slowed and her mind slid into sleep.

Cait rushed into the Dugout Inn and made straight for the bar. If there was anywhere in Diamond still open that sold alcohol, it was here. Reaching the bar, Cait was greeted by the ever-jovial Vadim. “Aha!” he exclaimed happily opening his arms upon seeing her. “One of my favourite, and most beautiful, customers. Come for a drink!”

Cait found it hard not to smile at his warm welcome. He was definitely one of Diamond City’s friendliest faces. He had also earned a place in her good books for that stunt he pulled sorting out DJ Travis, and finally getting him laid. Now, Diamond City Radio was not such a chore to listen to; albeit slightly cringey when Travis began speaking in that strange greaser voice he had developed since. “I can’t stay, I’m afraid.” she replied apologetically. “I just came by because I forgot somethin’. I need some rum.”

Vadim twisted his head in surprise, intrigued by Cait’s request. “Rum? I always had you down as a whiskey drinker.”

“I drink whatever you give me.” Cait joked. “But it ain’t for me. It’s for El.”

Vadim’s eyes lit up with excitement. “You mean to tell me that beautiful wife of yours actually drinks?”

Cait nodded and could not resist a childish smile. “She sure does, and she’s damn funny when she’s drunk.”

“Hahaha!” Vadim laughed, throwing his head back in reckless abandon. “Well, in that case, you deserve the best.” Turning around, Vadim walked to the shelves behind the bar and collected a bottle of amber liquid. Returning to face Cait, he placed the bottle on the counter and slid it towards her. “This will definitely get her drunk, and that’s a Vadim guarantee.”

“Thanks. That’s part of the plan. How much do I owe you?” Cait asked, unzipping her jacket pocket.

“It’s on the house.” Vadim answered with a rosy-faced smile.

Cait was slightly taken aback by Vadim’s gesture, having always been suspicious of charity. However, she had learned from El to accept gifts and help when they were offered. “Oh? Err, thanks.” she said, reaching for the bottle.

She was just about to take it when Vadim abruptly pulled the bottle back towards him. “On one condition: that you bring your beautiful wife here soon and get her drunk. I’m still counting the days till I can see it for myself.”

Cait stiffened at Vadim’s abrupt motion, but immediately relaxed when she heard his proviso. “Deal.” she accepted with a mischievous smile.

With that, Vadim slid the bottle back to Cait and released his grip. “You two have fun.”

Collecting the bottle, Cait gave an approving nod and turned to leave. Stepping back through the doorway, Cait made straight for home. Banking left, she quickly walked down the street, clutching the bottle of rum under her arm. Absentmindedly, she looked up at the mayor’s office window; the lights were still on. Maybe El was getting herself ready?

“And what’s a sweet little thing like you doing out on a night like this?” a voice asked casually from the darkness.

Cait froze where she stood; she knew that voice. Glancing to her left, she saw a lone figure emerge, a lit cigarette in his mouth. It was Stratton. Cait just bowed her head and continued walking. “Leave me alone.” she mumbled.

“Hey, where’s the fire, sweet cheeks?” Stratton wondered, stepping out into the street and attempting to catch her up. “Not in mood to talk, little bird?”

Cait flared her nostrils, still hating that name. “Don’t fuckin’ call me that. And no, I don’t wanna talk to you.”

Despite her rebuttal, Stratton persisted. “Come on, Cait. We’ve barely talked in years. Aren’t you pleased to see your old pal?”

“No, I’m not.” Cait retorted. “The last time we saw each other, you left me to rot with all your raider buddies.”

Stratton just chuckled and turned to face her, making Cait square her shoulders in a defensive posture. “You know that was just fun between pals.” he jibed.

Cait shivered and clenched her free fist. How could he say what they did to her was just fun? “Fun? Fuck you, Stratton! You don’t know a fuckin’ thing!” continuing to walk, she shoved her way past him and clutched the bottle of rum even tighter in her hand. “Just fuck off, Stratton, and don’t come near me again.”

Cait had barely made it a few metres away when she heard heavy footsteps behind her. “Oh, you ain’t changed a bit, you little tease.” she heard him say. In an effort to catch her, he grabbed Cait’s jacket collar.

Feeling herself being pulled backwards, Cait immediately threw off her jacket. Dropping her bottle on the ground, Cait shrugged her shoulder until her jacket slipped off.

With every move Cait made, however, Stratton persistence only grew more frustrated. Throwing her jacket down on the ground, Stratton grabbed at her and shoved her back to where he could block her path. “Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” she asked menacingly. “You’re not getting away from me this time.”

Thinking quickly, Cait rushed for the first thing she could find to defend herself. Grabbing her discarded bottle of rum by its neck, she smashed it against a nearby wall. As Stratton attempted to grab her again, Cait lunged forward and swiped at him with the broken bottle. To Cait’s delight, the sharp glass struck across his face, leaving a deep gash.

Immediately, Stratton grunted loudly and recoiled away. “Argh, my face! You little bitch!” he cried, nursing his cheek.

With a brief respite, Cait attempted to find a new route to safety. She could not get home, or to El’s office, as Stratton was still blocking her path. Her only option was to run back to the Dugout. If she made it there, Vadim would listen to her, and Stratton would not even think of pursuing her. Turning on her heels, she began running back they way she came.

“Get back here, you junkie slut!” she heard behind her as she rushed away. Suddenly, Cait was struck by a powerful force that knocked her off her feet. She was then shoved off the main street and against the concrete barrier that separated the stands from the old baseball pitch. “I know you missed me deep down. Let’s show you what you’ve been missing.” Stratton grunted, pulling open the buttons of Cait’s shirt.

Seeing no other option, Cait had to fight him off her. “Get the fuck off me!” she yelled, knocking her head and smacking it against his face.

Stratton instantly backed away and cradled his now bleeding nose. Swinging around, Cait balled her fists and threw a powerful punch at his face. Cait was about to land a second punch when Stratton abruptly dodged and threw his own punch, landing it directly into Cait’s stomach.

Gasping for breath, Cait hunched over and clutched her stomach. “You wanna play rough, huh? I’ll show you rough.” Stratton threatened, taking his other hand away from his bleeding nose. Smiling a wicked grin, he threw another punch to her stomach.

Coughing breathlessly from the force of the punch, Cait dropped to her knees, trying desperately to shout out. But no sound came out. “You remember doing it rough, don’t you? Just like we used to in bed.” he teased. He then launched a powerful kick to her abdomen, sending her down to the ground. As the kick hit home, his boot collided with her left forearm which Cait had been using to protect her injured stomach. Cait then suddenly heard a loud crack and felt a stabbing pain shoot up her left arm. In vain, she tried to crawl away one handed.

“Oh, you’re not going anywhere, kiddo.” Stratton declared, throwing another kick on Cait’s abdomen. Getting down on one knee, her rolled Cait over he put his hand over her mouth. Ominously, he leaned in close. “Shall we see if you’re still as tight as you used to be?” he whispered, moving to unbuckle her belt with his free hand.

Cait instantly began to writhe and trash the limbs she still had control over. It was, however, useless as Stratton’s strength was enough to hold her down. Seeing not other option, she bit down on his hand.

Much like her previous actions, Stratton yelled and recoiled away, getting back to his feet. Coughing the life back into her lungs, Cait tried to scream for El; for Piper; for Valentine; for Dogmeat; for Vadim; for anyone to hear. Her cried, however, escaped her lips as nothing more than wheezing croaks.

Sucking his bitten hand between his lips, Stratton let out a vicious snarl. “So, that’s the way you wanna play it, huh?” he quipped. “Looks like I’m gonna need to soften you up for our reunion.”

After receiving the heavy stamp of Stratton’s boot to her stomach, Cait coughed and wheezed out the last shreds of air from her lungs. Then, with a final punch to the face, her vision went dark, and she slumped on the ground.

Dogmeat’s ears suddenly pricked up and he raised his head from his bed. He had heard something strange outside. The sound was faint, but instantly familiar. Something did not feel right.

Getting up from his bed, Dogmeat quietly pattered across the floor, listening again for the familiar sound. It was difficult to pinpoint exactly where the sound was coming from, but he recognised who was making it.

Suddenly, Dogmeat’s head darted upwards, and he let out a loud bark. Something was gravely wrong, he knew it. Immediately, he ran to the door and reared up onto his hind legs, willing for it to open. But Cait had locked it earlier and it would not budge.

Getting back down on all fours, Dogmeat ran through to the kitchen and attempted to pen the other door. Grasping the handle in his jaw, he twisted and growled in a vain effort to pull the door open. Releasing the unmoving door handle, Dogmeat barked again, wishing for someone to hear him.

Running back into the living area, he howled and barked again and again. He knew something was wrong; someone he loved was in danger. He had to help.

But no response came from his cried for help, and he let out an anguished whine. Pattering over to the door, he got down on his belly and continued to cry out. One of his pack was in serious trouble but there was nothing he could do to help them.

Piper slowly paced the living area of her house, every so often looking at the clock. What was taking them so long? As part of their arrangement, it was agreed that, following their anniversary night, Cait would come along in the morning to collect Tasha and take Shaun to school. However, as the clock continued to tick, Cait had yet to show.

This behaviour was unusual for Cait, at least to Piper it was. Ever since working with her, Cait had never been late, and always showed up raring to go. Having her be late was strange.

Eventually, Piper had to accept that Cait was not coming. She was, however, quick to put it down to post anniversary fatigue, or a hangover. “Well, Shaun, it looks like Cait must have slept in this morning.” she guessed, approaching the sofa where Shaun sat.

Shaun looked up at Piper with a somewhat deflated look on his face. “Who’s gonna take me to school then?” he asked.

“Don’t worry, Shaun. I’ll take you to school.” Pipers answered. “Get your things together and we’ll head down together.”

As Shaun leapt up from the sofa to collect his things, Piper approached Nat, putting morsels of food into Tasha’s small hands for her to eat. “I’ll just be gone a few minutes, Nat. can I leave Tasha with you for a bit?” she asked.

“Yeah, no problem, sis.” Nat replied, smiling up at Piper.

“I will just lock the door while I’m gone though. Just to be safe. Don’t open it for anyone.” Piper reasoned, taking into account the rise in certain unsavoury characters snooping around the city. Returning to the living area, she was greeted by a fully packed Shaun, ready to get to school. “Alright, let’s get you to school.” she proposed enthusiastically.

Locking the door behind her, Piper safely deposited Shaun at school and began her short journey home. As she looked around the city, however, she noticed in the distance that the mayoral office lights were still on. Despite the lights being faint in the early morning light, they were unmistakably lit. Piper frowned to herself; something did not make sense to her. If El and Cait were hungover, or had overslept, why then was El in her office? Furthermore, if El was working, and Cait was still in bed, then she would have altered the plans accordingly. El was always that kind of person.

Taking her eyes away from El’s office window, her gaze fell on Home Plate. If Cait was on her own with a hangover, maybe she should just check to see if she was okay. Perhaps Cait could also give more of an explanation of why she had not shown up this morning.

Approaching the door to Home Plate, Piper turned the handle, only to find it locked. Frowning to herself, Piper became even more confused. If Cait was inside, then why had El locked the door on her way out?”

Slipping her hand into one of her jacket pockets, Piper retrieved a small key. Since settling permanently in Diamond City, El had seen fit to give Piper a set of keys in case of emergencies. Normally, she would not entre unannounced; but there were too many unanswered questions. Plus, she had too much curiosity for her own good. Unlocking the door, Piper eased it open slightly and peered inside. “Hello? Cait, you there?” Piper called inside.

To Piper’s surprise, the lights in Home Plate’s kitchen were all on. Stepping into the house, she closed the door behind her and examined the seemingly empty home. To add to Piper’s confusion, and steadily increasing worry, all the ingredients she had listed out to Cait for her self-styled winning meal were laid out across the counter, ready for preparation. Hoping that this was simply a case of El and Cait skipping straight to conjugal activities without the romantic meal, Piper tried calling again. “Cait? Blue? Is anyone home? If you’re upstairs and naked, please tell me!”

Piper was just about to start making her way upstairs when she heard the loud patter of feet coming towards her. Turning in their direction, Piper’s eyes widened as she Dogmeat approach her. “Hey boy!” she greeted as Dogmeat jumped up at her and began barking.

Piper was struggling to control Dogmeat; he would not stop barking and rearing up at her. She could however tell by his tone that something was wrong. Maybe he could offer more of an explanation. “Easy, boy. Easy.” she calmed, getting down on one knee and stroking his fur. “What’s wrong, boy? Where’s Cait? Do you know where she went?”

Dogmeat immediately gave an affirmative bark and run around to the door from where she had entered. Getting back to her feet, Piper’s gaze followed him as he began clawing at the door. Looking back at Piper, he barked again; commanding her to follow him.

Springing into actions, Piper opened the door and let Dogmeat out into Diamond City. As soon as he stepped outside, Dogmeat craned his neck upwards, attempting to smell something. Standing close to him, Piper quietly called out words of encouragement. “That’s it, boy. Get the scent. Where do we need to go?” she asked.

Following Piper’s encouragement, Dogmeat continued prowling the area around Home Plate, methodically sniffing for any hint of Cait’s whereabouts. Leading Piper past Choice Chops, Dogmeat abruptly sped off down the street; he had spotted something. Looking back at Piper, he gave a commanding bark.

Running over to Dogmeat, Piper reached down to collect what he had found. Flattening out the object, Piper shocked to discover that it was, not just a leather jacket, but Cait’s leather jacket. It was unmistakably Cait’s; she had seen her wear it so many times. Rifling through the various pockets, Piper pulled out a set of keys and a handful of caps. Piper was now beginning to seriously worry; why was Cait’s jacket out here in the street with its contents still inside?

Hearing something crack under her feet, Piper looked down to find shards of broken glass strewn about the ground. Couching down, Piper’s gaze fell upon the neck of a broken bottle; the base of it appeared to be covered with dried droplets of blood. Whatever happened had involved a struggle.

Suddenly, something caught Dogmeat’s nose, and he darted off towards the Dugout Inn. Quickly getting back to her feet, Piper tired to keep up as he disappeared between two houses, barking and whining wildly. Descending into the narrow alley, Piper’s heart stopped as she was greeted by a pale body lying in the dirt, a body crowned with an unruly mop of deep red hair.

“Cait!” Piper cried in utter disbelief. “Cait! Oh God, Cait!” Rushing to her side, Piper had tears in her eyes as she took Cait in her arms. Cait was a mess; bruises peppered her face and body, with a large and almost black one covering her swollen left arm. Cait’s clothes were also pulled open, with her trousers and underwear bunched up around her ankles. Cradling Cait’s bruised unconscious body in her arms, Piper tried desperately to wake her up. “Cait, wake up. Come on, you can do it. Come on, wake up!” she pleaded.

But Cait would not wake, her skin ice cold to the touch. Piper had to get help. Panicking at Cait’s situation, she looked around frantically for any semblance of help. “Someone help, please!” she called out.

It was all for nothing, nobody would hear her back here, and nobody would be walking here this early. Piper would need to get help herself. Grimacing painfully to herself at the prospect of having to leave Cait in this condition, Piper knew this was her only option.

Gently settling Cait down on the ground, Piper collected her discarded leather jacket and folded it under her head. She then proceeded to pull up Cait’s underwear and trousers, thus covering her exposed modesty from the elements. “I’m gonna get some help, Cait. I’ll be right back.” she assured Cait’s unconscious body. She then turned her head to Dogmeat. “You keep her safe, alright boy.” she commanded. Dogmeat gave an affirmative nod and nestled himself next to Cait, resting his head on her chest.

Piper had never run faster in her life, clearing the Diamond City market in record time. There was only one person she knew, and trusted enough, that could help. Reaching Nick Valentine’s Detective Agency, Piper blundered straight through the front door, completely out of breath.

Sitting behind her desk, poor Ellie Perkins almost jumped out of her skin upon seeing Piper burst in. “Piper?” she greeted, a startled look on her face.

“I need to see Nick, Ellie! I need to speak with him now!” Piper panted, completely ignoring Ellie’s shocked greeting.

Despite her insistence, Ellie had learned to stand her ground when people like Piper came issuing demands. “Piper, we are not open yet. Come back later and Nick will see you.” she replied calmly.

“Ellie, please! This has nothing to do with a story. I need to see Nick now! I need his help!” Piper continued urgently, not willing to back down.

Finally, Piper heard a familiar approach her from behind. “Piper, what could possibly be so urgent that you need to visit this early?” the gruff voice quipped.

 Turning around, Piper breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of Nick Valentine. “Nick, I need you help. It’s Cait, Blue’s wife. She’s in trouble. I…I think she’s been attacked.”

Even behind Valentine’s lifeless yellow eyes, Piper could tell that he was shocked. “Attacked? By whom?” he asked.

“I…I don’t know.” Piper hesitated, her mind already beginning to speculate. “She was supposed to come by this morning but didn’t show up. I only found her because Blue’s dog led me to her.”

Valentine narrowed his eyes. “Well, where’s the mayor in all this?” he asked further.

“I haven’t seen her. The lights are on in her office, but none of this makes sense. They were supposed to spend the night together.” Piper answered frantically, still trying to make sense of it all.

“Okay. Well, this can’t wait. Lead the way, Piper.” Valentine spurred into action, reaching for the door handle. Marching Valentine back through Diamond City, they were quickly back beside Cait’s unconscious body. “Dear God.” Valentine muttered upon seeing her. “Who could have done this?” Getting down on his knees, he put a robotic hand to Cait’s cheek.

“I had to cover her body, Nick. I couldn’t leave her the way I found her.” Piper beseeched, attempting to justify initial actions.

Valentine nodded. “I understand. You did the right thing, Piper.”

“We have to get her out of here, Nick. She can’t stay here.” Piper then said, taking Cait’s lifeless hand.

Valentine nodded again in agreement. “I agree. Got get Dr Sun.”

As Piper quickly ran off to fetch the doctor, Nick looked down at Cait and sighed despondently. Who could have down something like this, inside Diamond City? “Just hang in there, Cait. It will be alright.” he comforted. Whoever was to blame, retribution would surely find them soon.

“Blue, Blue, wake up! Wake up!” a voice called out, disturbing El from her slumber. Groaning irritably, her eyes flickered open, and she raised her head from her desk. Looking through bleary eyes, El could just make out Piper standing before her. “Piper?” she croaked.

“Blue, you’ve gotta get up!” Piper pleaded, coming around the desk to try to shake her into consciousness. “Something’s happened!”

El rubbed her eyes, trying to make sense of what was happening in her muddled brain. “What…What time is it?” she asked, her eyes attempting to adjust to the light.

Piper ignored El’s question and continued shaking her. “Blue, forget that! This is important! You need to come with me!”

El begrudgingly shook her head, clearing away the sleep from her eyes. How long had she been asleep? Looking towards the door, however, she saw something that made her heart sink. Walking through to her office, Nick Valentine carried a pale body in his arms; a body she recognised instantly. “C-Cait?” she said in disbelief, her lips already beginning to quiver.

As Nick gently laid her down on the sofa across the room from her desk, El rushed to Cait’s side and knelt next to her. “No, no, no, no.” she cried. “Not her. Not my Cait. Not my babe. Not my sweetheart.” Tears were already streaming down her face as she took Cait’s hand and stroked her unkept hair. El was inconsolable as she knelt before Cait’s lifeless body. Who could have done this? Why had she not been there; she was supposed to have been there. This was all her fault.

Eventually, El felt hands gently but firmly attempt to pull her away. “Blue, come on. We can’t leave her like this. We need to let Dr Sun examine her.” Piper said, trying to pull El to the feet.

“No, no! I can’t leave her!” El wailed, trying to resist Piper’s actions. She would never leave her wife’s side.

Piper looked despondently at Valentine, at an absolute loss of what to do. How could she drag El away from her own wife? Catching her gaze, Valentine nodded; giving her permission to go further. Wrapping her arms around El’s waist, Piper reluctantly began wrenching El away. “She’ll be okay, Blue. Come on. We can’t stay here.” she said softly, attempting to soften the blow of what was a heart wrenching scene.

“No, no! I can’t leave her!” El cried, gripping Cait’s hand even tighter. It was hopeless, however, and she was brutally dragged away down the corridor by Piper. “Let me go, Piper! Let me go!” she protested loudly, struggling to break free of Piper’s grasp.

But Piper’s hold was too strong and El felt too weak to resist. Before long, Piper had dragged El back to the mayor’s quarters and had wrapped her in a tight hug. “It’s alright, Blue. It will be alright.” Piper whispered soothingly into El’s ear.

Finally giving up in her attempts to push herself away, El gave up and buried her face in Piper’s shoulder. “It’s my fault. It’s my fault.” she mumbled over and over.

“It’s not your fault, Blue. It’s not your fault.” Piper tried to reassure, holding El close. There was however little more she could say, what happened to Cait had cut her deep as well. She loved Cait like a sister, and someone had tried to take her away.

After what felt like an age, El was calm enough for Piper to loosen her grip. They were then joined by Dr Sun and Nick Valentine. “El.” Piper prompted, patting El’s shoulder lightly.

El lifted her head from Piper’s shoulder and looked towards Dr Sun and Valentine. Instantly, she rushed to greet the doctor. “H-How is she?” she asked worriedly.

“She’s stable but has suffered a great deal of trauma. I think it would be best if she were brought to my surgery. She-.” Dr Sun answered.

El just shook her head and cut him off mid-sentence. “No, she stays here.” she snapped. With every breath, El could feel the anger build inside her. “Just make her well.”

“Madam mayor, all of my equipment is there, and I have a business to run. I can’t drop everything for one just one patient, no matter their relations.” Dr Sun replied.

“Whatever caps you need, I will pay them. Just get her well!” El said loudly, not willing to back down.

“Blue, are you sure about that? If Cait goes to his surgery, he can-.” Piper stepped forward, wishing to reason with El.

“I SAID SHE STAYS HERE!” El shouted, turning her head to flash Piper a venomous stare. Shocked by El’s rebuke, Piper lowered her gaze and took a step back. Returning her attention back to Dr Sun, El breathed slowly to calm herself down. She also made sure her now trembling right hand was hidden behind her back. “What are they extent of her injuries, Doctor?” she asked calmly.

Dr Sun took deep breath, knowing that this information would not be pleasant. “Her injuries are extensive. She has a broken left arm which will need to be reset, she has several cracked ribs, caused by what can only be a physical assault, there is significant trauma around the abdomen-.” Suddenly, he paused, hesitant to carry on.

If looks could kill, El would be considered a murderer. As every one of Cait’s injuries was listed out to El, she dug her nails deeper and deeper into her hands. What was Dr Sun not telling her? “Continue…” she said sternly.

Swallowing hard, Dr Sun continued. “Inside and around her sexual organs and anus, there appeared to be traces of semen.”

El closed her eyes and had to resist the urge to retch; she felt visibly sick. “T-Thank you, Doctor.” she managed to say. “What…What can be done now?”

“She will need to be moved to a more suitable environment.” Dr Sun answered. “Is there a bed that can be used for treatment?”

El looked around and nodded to a door along the corridor. “There is a bedroom through there.”

Doctor Sun nodded. “Very well. I will return to my surgery to collect the necessary equipment. I will then arrange for the patient to be moved to that bedroom for treatment.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” El tried to sound appreciative, despite everything. “I won’t detain you any longer.”

As Dr Sun quickly withdrew and walked out of the mayor’s quarters, El followed him back to her office and knelt by Cait’s side again. Leaning into kiss her forehead, El fought back new tears. “I’m so sorry, my love. I’m so sorry.” she whispered, stroking Cait’s ice cold cheek.

Cait’s silence was enough to break El’s sanity. Looking down to Cait’s neck, El realised that her locket was missing. El had remembered Cait putting it on the previous morning; Cait only ever took it off when getting into bed. There was no way that she would have lost it. El’s face then hardened when she saw that Cait’s rings were also missing. Stroking Cait’s hand gently, El got back to her feet. “Piper, where are Shaun and Tasha?” she asked coldly, not turning to look at her.

Still hurt by El’s earlier rebuke, Piper was quiet and reserved in her answer. “S-She’s with Nat. I locked the door and told her not answer it for anybody. A-And Shaun’s at school.” she said meekly.

El breathed a small sigh of relief, but her face did not change. “Nick, I want you to go to the school and tell them to lockdown until they hear otherwise.”

Valentine was silent for a few moments, unsure of what El was planning. “Madam Mayor, what do you intend to-?”

“Just do it now! That’s an order!” she shouted, bowing her head and squaring her shoulders.

Moved to silence, Valentine sheepishly retreated and left her office. With Valentine gone, El finally turned to face a meek and almost terrified Piper. “Take care of Cait while I’m gone, Piper.” she said.

Piper’s eyes widened with worry. “M-Me? Blue, what are you gonna do?”

El’s eyes burned with a venom she had not felt in years. “What I should have done weeks ago.” Before Piper could even react, El marched out of her office, her mind made up. From here on, there was no return for her.

Stepping into the fast elevator in the lobby, El punched the descend button and clenched her fists. She was going to show first-hand what happened to those who came between her and her family. Within seconds, the elevator dinged, and the doors shunted open into the old ticket and concession stands. Marching through, and down the causeway, El was soon heading towards the Diamond City market; there she stopped and scanned the area, observing the many residents and venders setting up for the day. “STRATTON!” she yelled loudly, not caring who heard her.

Instantly, the market crowds simultaneously turned to stare at her, all of them bemused by their mayor’s behaviour. Ignoring their prying eyes, El called out again for her adversary. “STRATTON!” she shouted, screaming at the top of her lungs.

As she scanned the Diamond City market again, El could see that everyone was staring at her; all except one. Fixing her gaze, she spied a single individual sat at the Power Noodles stand which his back to her. His lack of reaction alone was enough to convince her of his identity. Charging towards the stand, she knocked away the bowl of noodles placed in front of him.

Showing no reaction whatsoever, the individual dropped his chopsticks on the counter and looked up at her nonchalantly. “I was eating that.” he protested, as if El’s action were a mild inconvenience to him.

Unable to control herself, El grabbed him by his jacket and threw him to the ground. Then, using her newly developed strength, she hauled him up to eye level with her. “I know what you did, Stratton.” she growled through gritted teeth, her face barely an inch from his. Despite her rage, El was able to take solace in the deep gash across his face, the purple bruise around his left eye, and now broken nose. At least Cait had manged to deal some damage before she was overpowered.

“Madam mayor, I don’t know what you’re implying. But-.” Stratton began to reply.

“Don’t play games with me, scum!” El barked her anger only growing. “You attacked and raped my wife!”

Stratton, however, continued his charade and shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know anything about an attack.”

“Test me! Test me one more time and I’ll show you what I’m capable of!” El threatened, shaking him roughly.

Finally, Stratton gave up the act and he chuckled. “Oh, that? How could I forget? That was no attack. Cait wanted me to do it. She always liked it when things got rough. She was gagging for it, you know. She’s a real beggar when she wants it. You should know, back in the Combat Zone, I don’t think there was a single guy in that place she didn’t fuck. Just as long as she got her fixes.”

“You’re lying! You don’t know a thing about her.” El bared her teeth in a vicious snarl; she wanted so much to snap his neck. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t rip you apart?”

Stratton just smirked and her. “What can I say? I was doing her a favour. She’s wasted on you. She’s been yearning for the feel of a real man, and not fancy talking dyke like you.” Chuckling again, her decided to push El further. “You know, you might dress her up nice and teach her your fancy words; and you might think you get her juices going with that big old rack of yours, that juicy arse, and that hoity toity limey accent. But strip away that pretty coat of paint and you’ll see that, just under the surface, she’s still the same worthless junkie whore that she always was.”  

El was by now visibly shaking, her mind ready to snap with hatred and a longing for revenge. Momentarily, she glanced down and noticed something protruding from Stratton’s belt. Instantly, she recognised it as the combat knife he had swivelled around the picnic table with Abbot’s crew. Looking back up, El gave one last glare before making her move. Reaching down, she wrenched the blade from its holster and drove it deep into Stratton’s stomach.

The moment the blade pierced his body, the smirk that so infuriated El was wiped from his face. What replaced it was a pained grimace as El sank the blade in deeper. Raising his now shaking hands, Stratton wrapped them around El’s neck and attempted to forcefully crush the life out her.

Gasping for breath as her neck was forcibly squeezed, El wrenched the knife from Stratton’s body and stuck it in again, and again, and again, and again. With every thrust of the knife, Stratton’s grip around her neck mercifully loosened as the life drained from his face. Slowly, his body began to slide down towards the ground.

With one last thrust of the knife, Stratton release his grip on El’s neck and he slumped to the ground. Staring down at his now lifeless body, El panted heavily, her hand shaking violently. He was gone; he was gone for good. He would terrorise Cait no longer.

However, the longer she started at his bloodied corpse, the more the rage continued to build inside her. This man had caused her and Cait so much pain, but his suffering had been so infuriatingly brief. How could a few thrusts of a knife satisfy El’s desire for revenge?

Giving into her anger, something in El’s mind snapped and she lost all control. Lunging forward, El straddled Stratton’s unmoving corpse, repeatedly bringing the knife down onto his face. El screamed wildly and tears streamed down her face as she relentlessly pummelled his skull with the blade. Unable to control herself, El desperately tried to eke out a modicum of satisfaction from Stratton’s murder.

Before long, El’s arms were getting tired, and her drives became more laboured. El however would not stop her unceasing assault, such was the scale of her hatred. Then, in a momentary lapse of concentration, the blade missed and broke on the hard ground beneath.

The breaking of the blade only seemed to anger El more. Throwing the blade handle away, and letting out another primal yell, El balled her fists and began to remorselessly pound Stratton’s face into submission. With every punch, blood splattered over El’s face, and she let out a heart-breaking combination of a grunt and a sob. Nothing she was doing was sating her need for satisfaction. She was desperate to feel some sense of relief after ridding the Commonwealth of such a low life. But no satisfaction came and El was left with only one feeling: nothing.

Mercifully, El had expelled all her energy. Throwing one last useless punch, El let her arms drop and she slumped away from the body. Stratton’s body was now nothing more than an unrecognisable mass of flesh; any feature that might have identified him was now completely defaced. Upon looking at the lifeless mound of flesh, El’s stomach turned, and she let out a shaky breath. 

Slowly getting to her feet, El glared at the now terrified onlookers. Not wanting to show any sign of weakness after realising what she had done, El pointed to Stratton’s body. “IF ANY OF YOU SO MUCH AS THINK OF HARMING MY FAMILY, YOU WILL BE NEXT!” she screamed, her gaze burning with venom.

The crowd did not respond, leading El to assume that fear of her alone would ensure their compliance. Letting out an exhausted sigh, she took one last look at her victim. “Take his body out of the city! Leave it for the wasteland!” she ordered to no one in particular. Storming away from the scene of her crime, she made for the only place she knew where she would be able to think, home.

Blundering through the front door, El panted frantically as she stumbled through her home. What had she done? El could not explain it, something had made her lose all control. Meandering into the living area, El caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and took a step back.

The reflection that greeted El made her want to vomit; her face was completely splattered with blood. Looking down at her hands, El then recoiled in horror as she saw them covered in a grizzly mix of blood of dirt. How could she have done something so brutal?

Suddenly, El began to wretch from the sheer revulsion at what she had done. Clutching her stomach, El promptly coughed and vomited onto the floor. Once El had expelled everything from her stomach, she fell backwards and slid down the wall to the floor. Through shaky breathes, El stared down at her bloodied hands; they were trembling worse than ever before. What kind of a freak had she become?

Even the heavy clunk of the door could not bring El out of her catatonic trance. Was this the Diamond City Security coming to arrest her? “Blue!? Blue, you here!?” a voice called out.

Rushing through the kitchen, Piper searched urgently for El. She had heard that something had happened in the streets after El had marched off. Whatever it was, she had to have been involved. “Blue!?” she called again.

Coming around the corner, Piper gasped and almost yelled at what greeted her. El was absolutely covered in blood, and she was trembling like a leaf. What on earth had she done? “B-Blue? Oh my god, Blue!” she cried, rushing to El’s side. “What happened to you?”

Continuing to stare at her bloodied, trembling hands, El answered in a haggard whisper. “I…I-I killed him. I-I hunted him down and killed him.”

“Who, Blue? Who did you kill?” Piper asked.

El twisted her lips, willing herself to say the name. “S-Stratton. I killed Stratton… I took his knife and stuck it into his gut, over and over. I…I couldn’t stop.” Despite her answering Piper’s question, she would not bring her eyes away from her hands.

Piper’s eyes widened in terror as she listened to this strange person in front of her. This was not the friend she had found outside of Diamond City all those years ago; this was not the caring wife and mother whose family adored her; nor was this the dutiful mayor who worked tirelessly for the betterment of the community. How could El have sunk so low? Piper had to find a way of bringing El back. “Blue, listen to me, alright. This is not you. None of this is you. You are loving person with a family who adores you.” she said, leaning in close to El.

“N-No, Piper.” El replied, her eyes still fixed unblinkingly on her hands. “Y-You don’t know what’s going on inside…inside my head.”

Piper had to bring El back to a sense of normality. Seeing the blood covering El’s face and body, she reasoned that cleaning her up would be the logical starting point. “Blue, stay there, okay. I’ll be right back.” she said, getting to her feet.

Rushing to the kitchen, Piper quickly filled up a basin of water and, after rifling through several drawers, retrieved a cloth. Returning to El’s side, Piper set about wiping away the blood and dirt from her face and body. It was only when she began cleaning away the blood that Piper realised how badly El’s hands were shaking. Even in the early days of their relationship, Piper knew that El’s hands trembled at times of great stress; but she had never seen it this bad. “Blue, your…your hands. I’ve…I’ve never seen them this bad.”

“I…I c-can’t stop them. T-They’ve only got worse.” El replied, trying in vain to stop them shaking.

Piper immediately began cleaning the blood away. If there was one thing that would help, it would be making sure El’s hands were unsoiled. One thing that Piper knew about El was her liking for cleanliness.

Before long, El’s hands were free of blood, and they slowly began to settle down. Similarly, Piper had also wiped away the dried blood from El’s face and was now scrubbing her vomit off the floor. Once finished, Piper returned to El and put her hand on her shoulder. “There, all cleaned up.” she said reassuringly.

Despite her hands now resting still on her laps, El sat motionless on the floor, her face glum. Piper’s next task was getting El out of her bloodied vaultsuit. “Come on, Blue. Let’s get you changed out of that.” she said, moving to drape El’s arm over her shoulders.

Hauling El to her feet, Piper guided her up the stairs and into the main bedroom. Sitting her down on the bed, Piper went to a chest of drawers and pulled out a fresh set of clothes – she hoped that they were El’s and not Cait’s. Returning to El, Piper got to her knees and unlaced El’s boots. Slipping them off, she again pulled El to her feet and unzipped her vaultsuit. Carefully removing the garment from her body, she crouched down to lift El’s feet and legs out of it. Despite now being completely naked, barring her underwear, El did not even attempt to cover herself.

Piper was quick to get El covered again. Placing El’s feet into a fresh pair of trousers, Piper pulled them up her legs and buttoned them around her waist. She then wrapped El in a shirt and buttoned it over her chest. Once El was reasonably dressed, Piper smiled to herself. “There, good as new.” she declared.

El did not reply and simply slumped back down on the bed, her face unchanging. Sighing quietly to herself, Piper folded up El’s vaultsuit and placed it on the bed – she would wash it later. Sitting down next to her, Piper took El’s hand. “Blue, talk to me.” she whispered.

El took a shaky breath but resisted the urge to break down in tears. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me, Piper. When I saw Cait lying there, something in my head just…snapped. I couldn’t control it. I just couldn’t stop myself.” El suddenly shivered, remembering the moment she butchered Stratton in the street.

“Blue, listen to me. Whatever you think you are, that’s not you. You are a good person, you hear me? Yes, you may have done a bad thing; and bad things have happened to you, as with all of us. But that does not make you bad. You understand?” Piper said, squeezing El’s hand.

El just closed her eyes and bowed her head. “I don’t know, Piper. I don’t know what I am anymore.”

Piper’s mouth dropped open slight, heartbroken by what El was saying. El had so much to live for. “Blue, you know who you are. You’re the wife of Cait and mother to Shaun and Natasha; you’re the mayor of Diamond City; you’re a general of the Minutemen; you freed us from the Institute; you’re-.”

Piper was suddenly cut off by the sound of the front door being busted open and the sound of heavy boots entering the house. “She’s got to be in here. Search the place.” the lead voice ordered.

Within a few seconds, El and Piper heard the heavy footsteps ascend the stairs. Bursting into the bedroom, they were greeted by Danny Sullivan and a group of Diamond City Security, a pair of handcuffs in his hand. Piper immediately rose and stood her ground, blocking their path. “What’s the meaning of this!?” she demanded.

“Piper, it’s best that you move out of the way. We have orders.” Danny tried to reason with her.

Piper however would not be kowtowed. “The hell I will! Where’s your warrant!?” she remonstrated, crossing her arms defensively.

Danny kneaded his brow from behind his baseball mask, already exacerbated by the whole situation. “Piper, she butchered a guy in the street. That seems enough of a warrant to me. Don’t try to fight this.”

Piper just laughed. “So, you don’t have one. Typical Diamond City Security, rule through intimidation. Well, I’m not moving till I see a warrant.”

“It’s alright, Piper. Let them pass.” a quiet voice said behind her. Swinging around, Piper was horrified to see El stepping forward with her forearms outstretched in front of her. Watching El surrender herself to him, Danny approached with the cuffs ready. “Blue, no! Don’t do this! You can’t!” Piper protested, attempting to put herself between them.

“Piper, stay back.” El said resolutely, stepping around Piper. “This has to be done.”

Reluctantly, Piper followed El’s order and stepped back. Danny then walked forward and shackled the handcuffs around El’s wrists. Glancing up at El, Danny almost looked ashamed. “I’m sorry, ma’am. But orders are orders.” he said sadly.

El nodded and lowered her handcuffs hands. “I understand… Lead the way.” she replied, resigned to her fate. With no encouragement, El walked out of the bedroom, surrounded by Diamond City Security officers. In the background, she could hear Piper calling for her. “Blue, I’ll come find you, okay! We’ll fix this!” Piper called from behind her. El did not respond and obediently followed her captors down the stairs. Whatever happened from here on, El knew exactly what she was now: a criminal.

Chapter Text

Piper stormed into the Diamond City Security HQ, determined to see El. Almost immediately, however, she was blocked by the Diamond City Security goons. “I’m here to see my friend.” she declared, standing defensively.

“Piper, that’s not possible. Don’t make this hard on yourself.” one of the goons replied, attempting to block her path.

Piper however was not going to be intimidated. Crossing her arms, she stood her ground. “I’m not going anywhere. Either you let me see her, or you reap the consequences.”

The guard scoffed, almost amused by Piper’s threat. “Consequences? Ha! What could you possibly do to us?” he laughed.

“Oh, I don’t know.” Piper scoffed back. “A lot of people read my newspaper now. It would be a shame if the good name of Diamond City Security were tarnished.”

Both adversaries stood facing each other for several seconds, each eyeing each other up. Piper was not going to back down this time. Eventually, the goon’s gaze wavered, and he exhaled. “Fine.” he conceded simply.

Piper allowed herself a small smile but otherwise kept her composure. “Lead the way.” she said, dropping her defensive posture. Following the goon, Piper was soon inside the main prison block. There, in one of the cells, curled up on a bench, was El. “Make it quick.” the goon concluded, trudging away.

Looking up at the individuals approaching, El leapt off the bench and rushed to the bars. “Piper!” she said, reaching through to take her hand.

“Hey, Blue.” Piper replied, squeezing El’s hand tightly. “How are you?”

El glanced behind at her cell. “I’ve been better. I spent my career keeping people out of these cages, and now I’m the one who’s ended up in one.”

“You’ll be out of there soon, Blue. I promise.” Piper reassured. “We’ll set you free and you’ll be back with your family.”

El did not appear convinced by Piper’s encouragement. Part of her thought she deserved to be in here. “How…How’s Cait?” she eventually asked, wishing to change the subject.

“S-She’s okay. Doctor Sun has had her moved to the bedroom. He’s reset her arm into a cast and hooked her up to an IV, so she’s stable. Unconscious, but stable.”

El gave a distressed sigh but did appear slightly relieved by Piper’s update. At least Cait was safe. She just wished she could be there for her. “And the kids? How are the kids?” she then asked.

“They’re…They’re alright. I’ll take care of them for you, at least until you’re out.” Piper answered reservedly. “Shaun is really upset though.”

El’s eyes widened. “Upset? Does he know?”

Piper bowed her way, feeling almost embarrassed. “I…I had to tell him. I’m sorry, Blue. He was asking questions about what had happened, and why you and Cait weren’t around. I…I didn’t know what to say.”

“No, no, Piper. It’s alright. I understand why you did it. I know that can’t have been easy.” El reasoned, understanding that something like this could not be kept a secret for long. “How did her take it?”

“He’s really worried about you and Cait. I took him to see her after she was moved and he left her a card, wishing her a fast recovery. He asked to see you too, but-.”

“No! Piper don’t let him see me like this. Please.” El pleaded.

Piper was quick to alleviate El’s worries. “Blue, it’s okay. I didn’t agree to anything. I won’t bring him here… But what do I tell him?”

El chewed her lip for a few moments, wondering what to say. “Tell him…Tell him…that he shouldn’t come because I love him, and I want him to take care of Cait while I’m gone. Can you do that for me?”

“Of course. He’ll take good care of her.” Piper nodded, smiling before turning serious again. “Blue, I should tell you. Your little stunt has not gone unnoticed. The Codmans and the Latimers have pounced and convened the council. They’re gonna put you on trial.”

“Trial?” El exclaimed in terror. “But everyone saw me do it. I’m already guilty. I’ll never get out of here.” Almost immediately, El’s mouth began to quiver at the prospect of never seeing her family again.

“That’s not a forgone conclusion, Blue.” Piper encouraged. “We can fight this, and we’ll get you out of here.”

El however was not convinced. “How, Piper? The witnesses alone will send me down. And you know how much influence the Codmans and Latimers have here. They’ll buy whatever jury is put together.”

“Blue, you’re being too cynical. You have plenty of supporters, and people who read the paper will get your side of the story. We just need to lean on certain parts of it to emphasize your innocence.” Piper argued, already establishing a strategy.

El frowned, still unconvinced by Piper’s train of thought. “Certain parts of the story? Piper, this isn’t writing a newspaper. This is serious.”

“Blue, journalism and law are hardly dissimilar. Whatever way you spin it, we’ll need to twist facts. If it sets you free, we use it. Alright?” Piper answered back.

Bowing her head, El sighed and accepted that Piper was right. As much as she disagreed with her crude comparison, she could see the logic in Piper’s argument. “I…I suppose you’re right.” she conceded. “So, what’s the next step?”

“Our next step is getting you some representation for the trial?” Piper answered.

El frowned again. “Representation? Why should I need representation? I was a lawyer. I can represent myself.” she argued.

Piper just shook her head. “Blue, that’s not a good idea. That Codman lady is leading the attack.”

El scoffed, wanting to laugh at Piper’s sense of caution. “Her? Come on, Piper. I could eat her for breakfast.”

“Maybe.” Piper shrugged. “But the tier residents’ blood is up and you’re not in the right frame of mind to defend yourself. You’re getting representation.”

In the end, El sighed and accepted defeat. She wasn’t in the right frame of mind to conduct her own defence. “Alright, Piper. You’re the boss… So, who did you have in mind?”

Piper twisted her lips, considering El’s question. “I’m not sure yet. We need someone trustworthy, and-.” At that moment, the security goon who had shown Piper in returned. “Time’s up. Out…”

Looking back at El, Piper realised she would have to wrap this up quickly. “Look, Blue. I’ll ask around and find someone to take your case. And I’ll take care of Cait and the kids. I’ll come by and visit tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Piper.” El said, kissing her hand as it was wrenched away from her. “Thank you. Thank you.” El had barely brought her lips to Piper’s hand before she was pulled away by the security goon.

“I’ll come back, Blue!" Piper called to her as she was led away. “We’ll fix this, alright!”

As her cell was once again plunged into silence, El quietly sat herself back down on her bench and kneaded her brow. How low had she fallen? She had gone from mayor to a soon to be condemned criminal in the space of a couple of days, for a crime that everyone in Diamond City had seen her commit. There was no way she would get out of this.

“Hey?” a voice asked. “Looks like you could do with a friend.”

Turning her head to the voice, El inwardly grumbled. Now the inmate in the next cell was trying to be her friend. El was not in the mood for this, or the leering look on his face. “Fuck off.” she replied, turning her head away.

“Come on.” the fellow convict tried again. “We all need friends in here.”

At that moment, El reached over to grab her metal drinking cup and threw it at him. “I said fuck off!” she snapped.

The drinking cup ricocheted off the bars and the fellow convict backed away. “Fuckin’ bitch.” he mumbled, turning away from her.

With her cell once again silent, El put her head in her hands and tried not to cry. How could she have been so stupid? Her pent-up rage had got the better of her and her loved ones would pay the price. She did not care what happened from here on, she just wanted to see her family again.

“Piper, I can’t do it. I’m sorry. I’m no lawyer. I don’t know the first thing about leading a defence.” Nick Valentine protested, shaking his head.

“Nick, please!” Piper begged. “You’re the only one who can do this. You owe so much to Blue. We all do.”

Nick sighed and scratched his temple. “But, Piper, I’m a detective. I’m not a lawyer. I can’t defend the mayor, no matter how much she’s done for us. As much as I hate to say it, it’s an open and shut case.”

Piper gritted her teeth and balled her fists. Why was everyone simply giving up on El? “Listen here, Nick!” Piper snapped, pointing an accusing finger at him. “I don’t care if it’s open and shut. Have you forgotten everything she’s done for us? She wouldn’t even think twice about helping us if we were in her position. Have you forgotten how she saved you from Skinny Malone in Vault 114? I know you’re not a lawyer, but you’re the best damn detective in the Commonwealth. If anyone can find something that can set Blue free, it’s you. So, please, Nick. Take the case.”

Nick looked at his feet and sighed again. Piper was speaking the truth about everything; Eloise de Lancie would drop everything to help those she cared about. “Geez, Piper. You drive a hard bargain… Alright, I’ll do it.” he reluctantly conceded.

“Thank you, Nick!” Piper said joyfully, rushing to Nick’s side. “You have no idea how much this will mean to her. What do you need me to do?”

“Right now, I need you to control the narrative. You’re our friend in the press. And keep El company as much as you can.”

Piper nodded. “Understood. Let’s free the mayor.”

The heavy bang of a gavel brought silence over the Diamond City public announcement area. “Order!” the voice of the judge boomed over the now silent audience. “In the case of The People of Diamond City vs Eloise Charlotte de Lancie, Mayor of Diamond City, this court is now session.”

Looking up at the podium, El took a deep breath. Never had she looked up a judge from this seat before. Oh, how the mighty had fallen, El thought to herself. She could only hope that, whatever the final judgement, the judge would be lenient.

“Ms de Lancie, you stand accused of the crimes of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, behaviour unbecoming of an elected official, and causing a public disturbance. How do you plead?” the judge asked, staring down at El and her defence team.

Acting as her defence, Nick Valentine stood up and looked toward the judge. “My client pleads not guilty, your Honour.”

El immediately shivered. After much persuasion, El had reluctantly agreed to entre a ‘not guilty’ plea. She however felt sick about agreeing to it. As far as she was concerned, she was guilty. Closing her eyes, she swallowed.

“Very well.” the judge acknowledged. “The Counsel for the Prosecution, you may proceed with your opening statement.”

Reacting immediately, a smug Ann Codman stood and approached the judge’s podium. If El were in a happier mood, she would have laughed. Since when was she a lawyer? She could not lead a law case if it bit her on the arse. Turning to face the public gallery, Ann Codman flashed El a smug smile; she was enjoying this. El narrowed her eyes. If she were a defence lawyer in any other case, she would eat her alive.

“Your Honour; ladies and gentlemen of the jury; people of Diamond City; what happened here in our fair city, in the full light of day, was a callous murder. Our elected mayor disregarded the very laws upon which she swore to uphold and murdered an innocent man who had done nothing to offend her. Whilst I believe that she is guilty beyond any doubt, I shall endeavour to prove to this court that our city does not look kindly on murderers. Thank you, your Honour.” Flashing El another smirk, Codman returned to her seat.

El could only scowl at her. She knew exactly the game Codman was playing. She was playing exclusively to the crowd. Controlling her breathing and her trembling hands as best she could, El cracked her knuckles awkwardly.

Switching his gaze to the defence bench, the judge gestured to Nick. “Counsel for the defence, your opening statement?”

Stubbing out his cigarette, Nick stood up and shuffled some loose papers. Clearing his throat, he began. “Your Honour; ladies and gentlemen of the jury; what you have heard from the counsel for the prosecution is a fair assessment of the events that transpired in our streets. However, like every story, nothing can be taken at face value. The case I bring forward today will prove that, rather than a pre-meditated murder, my client was driven to commit her actions by a predator who sought to destroy her loving family and cause her untold harm for his own amusement. Our laws do not condone murder, but, with your indulgence, I will shed much needed light on a complex series of events that will exonerate my client. Thank you, Your Honour.” Concluding his statement, Nick returned to his seat.

As Nick sat himself down again, he gave El the impression of a smile and took her hand. Resisting the urge to cry, El smiled back. Given the circumstances, it was a good speech. El just wished Piper was her too. She knew Piper had enough on her plate caring for Cait and the kids, but she wished she were here.

“Counsel for the prosecution, call your first witness.” the judge called to the prosecution bench.

Rising to the call, Ann Codman addressed the judge. “I call caretaker Abbot.

Looking up, El’s mouth dropped open slightly. What would Abbot have to contribute? Scanning the court space, she spotted Abbot gingerly make his way towards the witness box. On his way, he glanced nervously at El, as if he did not want to do this. Sitting himself down in the witness box, he was ushered to raise his right hand. “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?” he was asked.

Nervously, Abbot nodded his head. “Y-Yes.” he answered.

Approaching the witness box, Ann Codman put her hands behind her back. “Mr Abbot, you are the Diamond City caretaker, are you not?” she asked rhetorically.

“I am.” Abbot replied timidly.

“And you had previously employed the victim, known as Stratton, as a member of your work crew, did you not?” Codman asked further.

“I-I did.” he answered, shooting El another nervous glance.

Turning to face the audience, Ann Codman continued. “Please, regale to the court the events that you witnessed between the victim and the defendant.”

“The…The Mayor-.” Abbot began.

“Please address her as the defendant, Mr Abbot.” Codman cut in, smirking smugly at El.

Abbot’s eyes widened and he quickly corrected himself. “T-The defendant had just finished a job for me, getting some paint for the walls. I ordered my crew to start working, but the guy, Stratton, started talking to the defendant.”

“And what did they discuss?” Codman probed.

“I…I’m not sure. I wasn’t close enough to hear what they said.” Abbot replied.

Codman sneered slightly, perhaps frustrated that Abbot’s response was not what she wanted. “Continue…” she commanded.

“S-Something happened in their conversation and the defendant grabbed Stratton by his jacket to bring him in close to her.” Abbot continued.

At that, Codman turned back to him. “You think she meant to threaten him?”

Again, Abbot shot a sad glance at El. “Her…Her attitude did not look very friendly. She then shoved him away and yelled at all of us to get back to work.”

“Hmph.” Codman coffed. “An agitated mayor threatening workers. Not very professional behaviour. It almost appears that the defendant had disagreements with the victim prior to the incident. A motive to murder, certainly.”

“Objection, your Honour!” Nick called, rising to his feet. “This is conjecture on the part of the prosecution!”

The judge scratched his chin. “Sustained. The counsel for the prosecution will continue questioning the witness.” he replied.

“No need.” Codman replied. “No further questions.”

As Codman returned to her seat, El felt her stomach turn. She should never have acted so rashly that day. If she had known her actions would be used against her in such a way, she would never have done something so stupid.

“Counsel for the defence, do you wish to question the witness?” the judge then asked, looking toward Nick.

“I do, your Honour.” Standing up, Nick approached the witness box. “Mr Abbot, when did the victim come to your attention?”

Abbot was quiet for a few moments as she attempted to remember. “It must have been a month or so ago. He came to me offering his services in the construction crews. I snapped at the chance. We always need help maintaining the city.”

“And did he, at any time, mention his past; or where he came from?” Nick asked further.

Abbot sighed uncomfortably. “No, he didn’t. he was very quiet about his past.”

Happily, for El’s defence, Nick’s face betrayed no emotion. “Did you know that he was a raider?” he then enquired, crossing his arms.

“Your Honour, I must object!” Ann Codman protested. “There is no evidence to support the defence counsel’s statement. Now he is speaking in conjecture.”

Realising that there was no further line of questioning he could pursue with Abbot, Nick conceded. Whilst there was nothing his statement could prove, at least he had planted the thought in the jurors’ minds. “No further question, your Honour.” he sighed. Returning to his seat next to El, he looked over at her. “We’ll get ‘em, kiddo.” he reassured.

El wanted to believe him but could not bring herself to. “How? I’ve nothing to defend myself with. The only person who knows about Stratton’s past is Cait.” she whispered back.

“We’ll find something. Somebody knows something about this Stratton, and we’ll find it.” Nick said, taking El’s hand.

Ell attempted a smile but was not hopeful. Her own stupidity had doomed her. She wished that Cait was here to help her. Her testimony would set the record straight.

As calmly and emotionlessly as she could, El sat down in the witness box and took a deep breath. In an effort to put across her version of events, El had decided that she would take the stand herself. If anything would explain El’s reasoning, it would be her testimony.

Glancing across at the defence bench, El saw Nick shift uncomfortably on his seat. He and Piper had not been enthusiastic about her taking the stand. As far as they were concerned, she was still too emotional about the Stratton’s attack on Cait to survive questioning. El argument, however, had won out and she was determined to set the record straight. Raising her right hand, she was approached by the court clerk. “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?” they asked.

“I do.” El replied quietly, doing everything in her power to prevent her hand from shaking.

Standing up from her chair, Ann Codman sauntered towards El, a smug smile on her face. El’s face was unmoving; any kind of emotional outburst would only giver Codman ammunition. “Ms de Lancie, please provide to the jury, and the court, your rendition of events pertaining to the crime of which you are accused.” she asked.

El had to resist the urge to laugh. How many words did Codman need to fit into one sentence in order to sound convincing? “I had been working late in my office, trying to get some things done before heading home. My wife and I were going to celebrate our wedding anniversary that night.” El bowed her head and clutched her now trembling hand in her lap. “But I was so tired that I fell asleep at my desk. When I was woken up, I found out that my wife had been sexually assaulted.”

“My condolences, Ms de Lancie.” Codman said. “Our thoughts go out to your wife, and we wish her a speedy recovery.”

El’s nostrils flared slightly. Ann Codman could not care less about Cait. She however had to stay calm and continue. “Thank you.” she forced herself to say.

Despite her consolation, Codman immediately leapt back into her questioning. “So, in your anger, you hunted down an innocent man of whom you had previously quarrelled and gutted him in the street.” she accused.

“Objection, your Honour!” Nick interrupted. “This is pure conjecture.”

“Sustained.” the judge replied.

“Yes, I had a disagreement with him, but only because her tried to go after my wife. I warned him to stay away from her. But he still went after her the night she was assaulted.” El answered, unable to stand for such an accusation.  

“A very exciting story, Ms de Lancie. Do you have evidence to support that claim? As far as I see, we only have your testimony to go by.” she asked coldly but looking as if she was enjoying it.

El took a shaking breath, unable to answer Codman’s question. There was no evidence. Like an idiot, she had ordered Stratton’s body to be dumped outside the city. “…No.” she conceded. “I just know he did it. I know he assaulted my wife.”

“You just…know? Well, consider us convinced of your innocence Ms de Lancie.” Codman chuckled sarcastically. “Unfortunately, with no evidence to support your claim, I do not think the jury, and the good people of Diamond City can accept that. No further question, your Honour.” Raising her chin to El, Codman turned her back and returned to her seat.

As Ann Codman walked away from her, El tried not to breakdown in tears. It was only now that she realised what a stupid idea this had been. If anything, it had made her situation worse. Looking towards Nick, she saw his face betray a sense of worry. Feeling totally ashamed of herself, El bowed her head and cradled her shaking hand. If one thing was certain, it was that she would likely be going away for a long time.

“I’m so sorry, Nick. I should have listened to you.” El pleaded from behind the bars of her cell. “I thought I would be able to help. But I only made it worse.”

“It’s alright, kid. You didn’t know how that Codman lady would treat you. What matters now is damage control.” Nick replied as he tried to keep El on topic.

El chewed her lip, already feeling defeat. “How is any damage control going to help me?”

“We need to refocus the story again. Codman has had her fun. Now, we need to focus on Stratton’s past and prove that he was the one who assaulted Cait.” Piper added, attempting to reassure El. “What you said about the night before you killed Stratton was good. You showed how much you love Cait, that’s good. Once we prove that he assaulted her, that will better explain your actions.”

“But how do we do that? I destroyed any evidence there might be when I had his body dumped outside the city.” El questioned.

Nick scratched his chin, considering El’s answer. How could they prove Stratton’s guilt? “I’ll ask where they dumped the body. There might be some remains left. If there’s anything, I’ll take a sample and bring to the Science Center for analysis. If Doctor Sun took samples from Cait’s body, then we’ll get a match… We also need to find solid that links Stratton to Cait’s assault. Is there anything of Cait’s that was missing when we found her?”

Suddenly, something in El’s mind clicked. “Yes, I do! She…She has her wedding rings and a locket. She only takes them off when she sleeps. When…When we found her, they were missing. He must have taken them.”

“Bingo!” Piper exclaimed. We’ve got a lead!”

“Not so fast, Piper.” Nick said, bringing Piper back down to earth. “We don’t know whether he had them on him. He could have fenced them for all we know.”

At that moment, Piper saw El’s face drop. Whilst she understood his hesitance, they could not write off the possibility. “We still need to try, Nick.” she scolded. Returning to El, Piper put their plan into action. “Alright, Blue. We have a plan. Nick and I will scope out Stratton’s home and see if Cait’s things are there. If we find them, we can then prove to that court that he attacked Cait.”

“And if it doesn’t work?” El replied despondently. She had by now resigned herself to her guilt. “If you find nothing, what are my chances?”

Piper and Nick were, unfortunately for El, silent for a moment too long and she broke down in a sob. “Oh, Piper. I’ll never see them again.” she wept.

“Don’t say that, Blue.” Piper said, reaching into the cell and taking El’s hand. “We’re going to find the evidence that frees you, and you’re going to see them again. I promise.”

Wiping away her tears, El forced herself into a weak smile. “O-Okay. I’ll believe you. I’m sorry, Piper. I’m…I’m just so scared. I just want to see them again.”

“You will, Blue. We’re gonna fix this. We’ll find the evidence and prove that you acted to protect Cait.” Piper assured, squeezing El’s hand.

Hearing Piper’s optimistic assurances was enough to make El’s smile broader. For the first time in days, she was able to feel happy about her prospects. If this paid off, she could see Cait and her kids again, and apologise for everything she had done.

“I don’t like this sleuthing around in the dark, Piper. I don’t want to end up in prison too.” Nick whispered nervously as he stubbed out a cigarette.

“We’ll be fine, Nick. You need to lighten up.” Piper laughed. “Sleuthing in the dark is a journalist’s bread and butter. I’m surprised a detective like you would turn his nose up at sleuthing.”

Nick chuckled. “Ha! I always wanted to stand above the dark side of detective work. But, you know, first time for everything. So, how exactly are we getting into this house? Last time I checked, guards were posted outside the front door.”

“Yeah, the Codmans are really trying to fuck us over bribing DC Security to guard the place.” Piper quipped rolling her eyes.

“You don’t know that, Piper.” Nick argued, attempting to reign her in.

Piper just scoffed. “Tell me I’m wrong. Blue goes on trial, Ann Codman is the prosecutor, and DC Security just happen to be guarding the home of the victim. If that’s not a coincidence, I don’t know what is.”

“Piper, we’re getting off track here. How are you getting us in there?” Nick finally said, getting back to the task at hand.

“Don’t worry, Nick. I got it covered.” Piper answered with a mischievous smile. “Follow me.” Leading Nick through Diamond City under the cover of darkness, they were soon close to the causeway leading to Stratton’s home.

Looking up at the houses above, Nick wondered where they would go from there. “Alright, Piper. I’m waiting on that plan.” he said expectantly.

Piper’s smile had not changed, and she responded by digging into a backpack she was carrying. Chuckling to herself, she pulled out two modified baseballs. Nick looked quizzical. “Piper, are those?” he asked, already sure of what they were.

“You’re goddamn right, Nick.” Piper replied with a menacing smile on her face.

Nick looked uneasily at the baseball grenades Piper held in her hands. “Piper, I know what you’re gonna do, but I don’t want to get arrested for vandalism.”

“Urgh, save it for the lawyers, Nick.” Piper grumbled. Pulling both the pins, she then threw them randomly into the air. After a few seconds, two explosions rocked the neighbourhood, and the city was quickly filled with angry shouting residents.

Hearing the loud shouts of various angry residents having it out with each other, Nick turned back to Piper. “And how was that going to help us?”

Piper however did not answer and simply continued staring at the guards. “And there we…go.” she finally said. Right on cue, the guards abandoned their posts to investigate the mysterious explosions. “Coast is clear. Let’s go before they get wise.”

Scurrying up the causeway, they were soon both outside Stratton’s home. Slipping her hand into her coat pocket, Piper then pulled out a bobby pin and screwdriver. “Keep an eye out, Nick. This won’t take long.”

As Nick stood behind her, keeping watch in case the guards showed signs of returning, Piper knelt in front of the door and fed the bobby pin and screwdriver into the lock. Carefully twisting the screwdriver around the lock, Piper gently bit her tongue as she groped for the sweet spot. This would have been so much easier if it was not dark.

Finally, the lock clicked, and Piper cheered. “Aha! We’re in. come on, let’s go evidence hunting.” she exclaimed, standing up and wrenching the door open.

“Good work, Piper.” Nick replied, following her through the doorway. Once inside, Piper flicked on the light switch and looked around the place. The place didn’t look too different from when her and El searched it for evidence of Kellogg. The most visible difference was that the electronically powered fake wall had been removed. “Let’s not hang around here.” Nick then said. “You take that side, Piper. I’ll take that side.”

“Sure thing. I’ll shout if I find anything.” Piper replied. Immediately, she began opening drawers and cabinets and rifled through their contents, attempting to feel for anything metallic. However, despite looking everywhere, nothing of note was in the house.

Then, just as she was doubling back on herself for another search, a floorboard creaked and shunted slightly under her foot. Looking down, Piper frowned at the offending plank of wood; unlike the others, there were no nails holding it down. It appeared that someone had removed them. What was so important about this floorboard that it did not need to be nailed down?

Removing her foot, Piper knelt down and lifted up the loose floorboard. Staring into the open gap, Piper squinted at the sight of something vaguely shiny; it looked like a tin box of some kind. Reaching inside, she lifted the tin out and brushed off a very light covering of dust. “Nick, I’ve got something.”

Placing the tin box on a table, Piper prized it open and began looking through the contents. The tin was full of jewellery, gold teeth, bars of precious metals, and bottlecaps. “Looks like we’ve got a hoarder here. I mean…he won’t miss any of this.” Piper quipped, holding a gold bar in her hand.

“Piper, now’s not the time.” Nick replied seriously. “Are the rings and the locket in there?”

Returning to her search, Piper’s gaze finally fixed on exactly what she was looking for; she could recognise those rings anywhere. She then spotted Cait’s locket amongst the assorted jewellery. “Here. This is it.” she said, picking out the rings and locket.

“You sure?” Nick queried, wanting to be sure if they were going to present them as evidence.

Piper nodded. “One hundred percent. You see their initials engraved on the inside of the band.” she observed, holding the inside of the wedding ring up to Nick’s eyes. “And this is definitely Cait’s locket; she always wears it. It has pictures of El and the kids inside.” she continued, opening the locket. To her relief, the pictures were still intact.

“Good work.” Nick praised reservedly. “Pack up that stuff and let’s get out of here. That distraction you cooked up must have worn off by now.”

Following Nick’s orders, Piper gave Cait’s jewellery to him and took the tin box back to where she found it. Glancing back at Nick in case he was looking, she quietly slipped a couple of the gold and silver bars into her pocket. Stratton would not miss them if a few of his things went missing. Come to think of it, after everything he had done, he deserved to have these taken.

Placing the loose floorboard back over the gap, Piper and Nick quickly made their exit from the building and locked the door behind them. Sneaking back through Diamond City, they were soon safe back in Valentine’s detective agency. “Damn, I love midnight break ins. We’ve done it! This is what we need to free Blue!” Piper exclaimed once they were safe inside.

“Let’s hope so.” Nick replied in agreement. “Hey, why don’t you head home and get some sleep.”

“Are you sure, Nick? I can stay and help if you want.” Piper asked, attempting to stifle a yawn.

“Go home and get some sleep, Piper.” Nick insisted with a caring smile. “You’re burning the candle at both ends; you’re running the paper and looking after the mayor and her family. You deserve some time to rest. Don’t worry about me.”

Piper sighed but had to accept that she was tired. “Okay… You’re right, I’ve been doing a lot lately. Sleep has definitely taken a back seat. I’ll leave you to it.”

Leading Piper to the door, Nick patted her caringly on the back. “Well, for what it’s worth, we make quite a team. Goodnight, Piper, and sweet dreams.”

Opening the door and stepping outside, Piper gave Nick a friendly smile and chuckled. “We sure do. Goodnight, Nick.” she agreed, slowly walking off into the night.

Closing the door behind Piper, Nick sat down at his cluttered desk and placed Cait’s jewellery in front of him. Despite this being conclusive proof that Stratton was involved in Cait’s attack, something in his gut believed it would not be enough. Ann Codman would inevitably claim the evidence was circumstantial, or that Stratton had simply bought them from the real attacker. He needed to find something, or someone, who could prove Stratton’s intent.

Scanning his desk, Nick gaze fell upon something poking out from a pile of papers. Gently easing the papers out, Nick realised it was an edition of Piper’s article on Cait. Outside of El and Piper, Nick was the only other person in Diamond City who knew the article was about Cait. Maybe, there was something in here that could help? Quietly reading through the article to refresh his memory, he suddenly sat up in his chair and jabbed his robotic finger at the paper. That was going to prove his argument and justify El’s actions. There was no guarantee of success, but even Nick had to admit that their options were limited. Tomorrow morning, Nick would be going on a journey.

Inhaling deeply, Nick Valentine took a puff of his cigarette as he looked ahead. El and Cait were right about this place; it did not look salubrious. But El’s freedom was on the line, he had to come here.

Stubbing out his cigarette on the ground, Nick walked towards the front door of the Combat Zone. Stepping through, he looked around the ruin of the old foyer. It was exactly how Cait had described, run down and sad. From behind the door in front of him, he could hear loud cheering. Nick could only wonder what raiders would make of a synth turning up.

Entering the main atrium, Nick walked down the aisle towards the stage. Standing to the right of a large fighting cage that dominated the stage, a lone ghoul narrated on a fight taking place.

As he talked into his microphone, he spotted Nick lighting up another cigarette and slowly exhale a puff of smoke. What was a synth doing here?

Once the fight was concluded, the ghoul stepped down from the stage and approached Nick. “We don’t get a lot of synths here.” he observed.

“That’s a lot coming from a ghoul.” Nick quipped in reply, taking a puff of his cigarette. “Tommy Lonegan, I presume?”

Tommy scoffed. “Got a smartarse here, I see. Yeah, I’m Tommy. Who wants to know?”

“Nick Valentine.” Nick answered. “I’m a detective from Diamond City. I was wondering if I could ask you some questions.”

Tommy’s bloodshot eyes widened slightly. “A detective? Whatever it is, you’ve got the wrong guy. I run a tight business here and everything is above board.” he protested, putting his hands up defensively.

“It’s not that.” Nick reassured. Whilst he was not about to believe Tommy’s statements on running a fine business, he was not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. “I need your help with something.”

Tommy lowered his hands and he relaxed. “My help, huh? Let’s talk in my office.” he said, ushering Tommy towards a back room to his left. Following him into his office, Nick was soon opposite Tommy at his desk. “So, what do you need my help with?” he then asked.

“I need you to testify in a court case. A friend of mine is on trial and I think you’re the only one who can help her.” Nick replied, puffing on his cigarette.

“Her?” Tommy frowned before sitting forward. “Wait…you don’t mean… Is it Cait? Is Cait on trial? What’s she done?”

Nick shook his head. “No, it’s not Cait who’s on trial. Although…she is involved. It’s her wife, the mayor, who’s on trial.”

“The mayor, huh?” Tommy said. “El, Cait said her name was. So, what’s she on trial for?”

Nick took a deep breath before responding. “I don’t know how else to say this, but Cait was attacked.”

Tommy immediately sat up. “Attacked?” he gasped. “By who?”

“A guy named Stratton. You might have heard of him.” Nick answered.

“Yeah. I know of him. Real piece of work.” Tommy said sadly. “So, he came back to haunt her, right?”

Nick nodded. “Yeah. He beat her pretty bad. She’s still unconscious, and under guard by one of my friends.”

“Good… Keep her safe.” Tommy added. “So, what’s that got to do with El?”

“That’s why I’m here.” Nick answered. “When we found Cait’s body, El lost control and killed him. Now she’s on trial for murder. We have proof that Stratton attacked her, but I need someone to prove his intent. I thought that, seeing as you knew of him when he was a raider, a few words from you would help her case.”

Tommy was silent for several moments as he sat back in his chair. His silence was such that Nick became worried that this trip was for nothing. If that were the case, he was not sure how else he could conclusively argue El’s defence. Finally, Tommy sat forward. “So, what do you need me to say?”

Despite feeling relieved at Tommy’s agreement, Nick had to keep his synthetic reserve. “I need you to prove to the jury that Stratton had intent at attack Cait. I know they had a relationship when she lived here. Your testimony would be the missing link to understanding why El did what she did.”

“…Alright.” Tommy replied simply. “I’ll do it. When do you need me?”

“The trial resumes tomorrow. If you could testify then?” Nick answered.

Tommy nodded in agreement. “Deal… I’ll go to Diamond City tomorrow.”

“Thank you, Mr Lonegan.” Nick said sincerely. “You have no idea what this will to the mayor.” Nick then sighed and got up from his chair. “I better get back there. I have a case to work on. I can see myself out.”

“Sure thing.” Tommy said to Nick, but not looking at them.

Nick was about to leave when a thought sprang to mind. “Just one more thing.” he enquired, turning back to Tommy. “Why would you agree to help me on this? You didn’t need much convincing.”

Tommy did not answer immediately and was quiet for a few moments. Eventually, however, he answered. “I’ve a soft spot for that little bird, Cait. That broad did me a real solid takin’ her away from this place, and takin’ care of her. Someone like that deserves all the help she needs.”

With Tommy’s answer mulling inside his robotic brain, Nick turned to leave, the slightest inkling of a smile on his face.

The heavy sound of the judge’s gavel brought the court session to order. “Mr Valentine,” the judge ushered, “you have new evidence to admit to the case?”

“I do, your honour.” “Nick answered, rising from his seat.

The judge then gestured to the floor. “Well, then proceed.”

Walking out into the open area in front of the judge’s podium, Nick cleared his throat. “Your Honour; Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury; I have new evidence that I would like to present, evidence that will categorically prove the reasons behind my client’s actions.

Turning to face the jurors, Nick’s gaze glanced at Ann Codman. To his delight, she had a look of slight unease plastered over her face, as if Nick was about to reveal something that would derail her entire way of life. Hoping that his revelation would do just that, he put his hand into his pocket and pulled out his evidence. “I hold here in my hand a ring and a locket that were worn by my client’s wife on the night she was attacked. We know this because the band matches the wedding ring that my client is wearing today.” To prove his point, Nick held the rings and the locket up to jury.

Looking up at Nick, El nervously cracked her knuckles. She remembered giving Cait that locket on their honeymoon; Cait had not taken it off since. Now, seeing it again, El wanted to snatch it away and hold it close.

“These items, your honour, were found in hidden away inside the victim’s former residence, and DNA samples collecting from them are a genetic match to samples taken from the victim’s remains. This is categorical proof that the so-called victim of this murder was responsible for the brutal attack on my client’s wife and, rather than callously murdering an innocent man in cold blood, my client’s actions were purely a reaction to a ruthless assault by a vicious predator.”

“Objection, your Honour!” Ann Codman exclaimed, getting to her feet. “How are we to know that this so-called evidence came from the victim? It could have been fenced to one of the city’s vendors, or from the defendant’s home. The victim’s residence has been under lock and key since the incident.”

“Yes…it has been under lock and key.” Nick confirmed. “But the fact remains that these items were found there, and I have witnesses who will attest to that fact.”

Sensing an opportunity, Codman scoffed. “Is the court to believe that the counsel for the defence broke into a private dwelling to acquire apparent evidence to vilify the victim?” she asked rhetorically.

“Ah, yes, Ms Codman.” Nick replied, springing his trap. “A house that belonged to the victim just happened to be closed to investigation after the incident. I believed that, in the pursuit of my duties of defending my client, an examination of the victim’s residence was pertinent to the case. I am sure that, as a lawyer in this case, you would wish that all due process be followed?”

El had to resist the urge to smile; Nick had pulled a masterstroke. Without accusing her, he had outed her attempts to sabotage his defence. That house was not guarded by coincidence, those guards had been paid to stand there.

Pursing her lips, Codman glared at Nick, her eyes attempting to burn through his skin. To agree with him would force her to climb down and climbing down would potentially open her up to questions of foul play. Noticing her dilemma, the judge was mildly amused and decided to help her along. “Ms Codman, do you have anything to add to your objection?”

Looking between the judge and Nick, Codman had no option but to back down. “No, your Honour.” she answered simply. Her pride shattered, she slumped back into her seat.

El took a deep breath through her nostrils, feeling better than she had ever felt since the trial began. Seeing Ann Codman shrink away like that was absolutely exhilarating. Maybe there was a way out of this yet.

Removing his gaze from Codman, the judge’s eyes fell on Nick again. “Mr Valentine, is that all you wish to present to the court?”

“No, your Honour.” Nick replied. “I would like to call a new witness.”

Putting his hands behind his back, Nick addressed the public. “I call my new witness, Tommy Lonegan.”

El’s eyes instantly widened; Nick had never spoken of this. Looking around, she saw a lone ghoul in a tattered suit walk through the public gallery towards the witness box. As he stepped up onto the court podium, he turned to flash a small smile to El. El swallowed hard; what was Nick’s plan with this?

Seating himself in the witness box, Tommy raised his right hand before the judge. “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?” he was asked.

“I do.” Tommy answered. Lowering his hand, he adjusted himself in his chair.

Slowly approaching the witness box, Nick began his questioning. “Mr Lonegan, thank you again for agreeing to be a witness in this case. I believe you have information regarding the victim that you would like to present.” he probed.

Tommy nodded. “I do.”

“Well then, proceed, Mr Lonegan.” Nick gestured for him to begin.

Clearing his throat, Tommy began. “Back before she met your client, her wife used to work for me in the Combat Zone as a cage fighter. She was the best fighter I had. A few years back, the place got taken over by raiders. The victim was part of the gang, and they started seein’ each other.”

“You mean to say they began a relationship?” Nick clarified.

“Yeah. They were pretty close. I think he looked out for her a bit; got her the best food, stood up for her, that sort of thing.” Tommy answered.

Nick nodded, pretending to be hearing this for the first time. “How long did this relationship go on for?”

“About half a year, I’d say. One day, he wanted her and him to jump in the sack, but he didn’t count on her sayin’ no.”

Nick turned to face Tommy. “She refused to have sexual intercourse with him?” he asked, clarifying again for the sake of the jury.

“If you wanna put it like that, then yeah.” Tommy agreed. “When she tried to leave the place, she was attacked by him and his gang.”

“I see. An innocent woman being attacked for exercising her own independence? A shocking story, Mr Lonegan.” Nick mused. Turning back to the jury, Nick continued. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, here we have a vicious predator who not only attacked my client’s wife but had cause to from a previous attack. My client, based on what you have heard today, was only acting in retaliation to an attack that left an innocent loved one fighting for her life. This was an horrific murder, yes. But I ask you to see the reasons why client acted the way she did. If such a thing happened to someone you loved, tell me that you would not react in the same way… No further questions, your Honour.” Nodding respectfully to Tommy, Nick returned to his seat.

“Counsel for the prosecution, do you have any questions for the witness?” the judge asked from the podium.

Standing up from her chair, Ann Codman approached Tommy in the witness box. “Mr Lonegan, where did you acquire the information that you have just recounted to the court?”

“The defendant’s wife told me. As her boss, it was kind of my business to know that sort of thing.” Tommy answered, immediately not taking a liking to Codman.

“And after this attack, did you take any actions against the attacker, or help the victim in any way?” Codman asked further.

Tommy narrows his eyes slightly, wondering what she was insinuating. “I made it clear to those raider fuckers that my fighters ain’t their fuckin’ playthings. Stratton was just a grunt, so he couldn’t exactly stand up to me. I gave Cait a couple of days to rest, but she had to get back in ring.”

“You mean to tell us that you took no action against the perpetrator and forced the victim to fight after she was attacked?” Codman then accused.

Tommy kept his calm but fought the urge to glare at her. “I made it clear to the raiders that the fighters weren’t playthings. There wasn’t much else I could do beyond that. And I gave Cait as much time as I could until the caps stopped flowin’. Look, I ain’t no saint, lady. I’m just an old ghoul with a business to run.”

“Of course.” Codman agreed curtly. “I only wonder about the reliability and sincerity of your testimony, given the lack of action you took after this alleged attack. Did the radiation affect your ability to feel empathy, perhaps?”

Tommy’s bloodshot eyes flared, and he was about to rise and shoot back at Codman. Nick, however, saved the situation and rose first. “Objection!” he exclaimed. “The counsel for the prosecution is using prejudice to justify her argument. This should not be admissible in a court of law.”

“Agreed.” The judge said, looking towards Codman. “If you cannot question the witness without resorting to such language, I will hold you in contempt of the court.”

Happily for Nick and El, Codman backed down, believing that she had planted a seed amongst the jury. “No need, your Honour. No further questions.”

As Codman returned to her seat, Tommy looked over at Nick who gave an appreciative nod. “Mr Lonegan, thank you of providing your testimony. You are free to go.”

El could only smile at Tommy. He had done brilliantly; every word was the truth and identical to Cait had said. It was horrible to hear, but it had to be in order to prove their case.

Leaning over to El, Nick whispered in her ear. “I think this has given us a chance.” 

A sharp pain in her side made Cait groan and she was forced to open her eyes. Flicking them open, she blearily looked dopily at her surroundings. Where was she?

Attempting to make better sense of where she was, Cait began to shift herself out of bed. However, as soon as she moved, a sharp pain shot through her ribs and left arm. The pain was so bad that she was forced to lie back in bed. Looking down, she was shocked to find her left arm sealed up in a cast and her torso wrapped up in bandages. Why was she here, and what had happened to her?

Continuing to look around, Cait noticed that the door to her room was slightly ajar. “H-Hello?” she croaked, her mouth feeling incredibly dry. Nobody came, however, and she tried again. “Hello? Is anyone there?”

Suddenly, there came the sound of movement from beyond the door and Piper soon entered the room. “Cait, you’re awake!” she said, rushing to her bedside. “How are you feeling?”

Cait groaned again as another pain shot through her body. “T-Thirsty. I’m thirsty.” she answered hoarsely.

Piper instantly reached for a glass of water sitting on a bedside table. “Here. Drink this.” she said, handing the glass to Cait.

Taking the glass in her right hand, Cait downed the water in a series of large gulps. She then exhaled deeply as the cool liquid cleared her dry throat. “Where… Where am I? H-How did I get here?” she then asked, still trying to work everything out.

“You’re in the Mayor’s quarters and…” Piper suddenly stopped talking. She almost looked confused. “Cait…you don’t remember anything?”

Cait glanced away and tried to remember. She remembered buying groceries for an anniversary dinner with El. The rest however was just a strange blur. “I…I don’t know. What…What happened? How did I get like this? Where’s El.” Cait suddenly began to worry. Why was El not here?

Piper’s face dropped and she looked down awkwardly at Cait’s bedsheets. Eventually, she looked back up and gently took Cait’s hand. “Cait…this may be difficult for you to hear… But…something’s happened?”

As the court galleries slowly quietened down, the judge called for silence. “The court is now in session.” he exclaimed. “The prosecution and defence have presented their cases to the jury. The court will now hear closing statements. Counsel for the Prosecution, you may proceed.”

Rising to her feet with an aura of entitlement, Ann Codman ignored El and turned to face the judge and jury. “Your Honour; Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury; I will be frank here; this case was a cold-blooded murder. You have heard the story of an elected official who hunted down a resident of this city and butchered him in the street. The counsel for the defence has painted a colourful picture of the defendant’s thought process, and it is to be admired. But I beseech you to judge the defendant purely by the crime of which they have been accused. The facts speak for themselves, your Honour. You must pronounce her guilty.”

As Codman turned away and returned to her seat, the judge moved his gaze to Nick. “Counsel for the Defence, your closing statement?” he enquired.

Clearing his throat, Nick looked at El and reached over to squeeze her hand. As his artificial flesh touched hers, El immediately felt better. Nick had been a brilliant lawyer.

Releasing El’s hand, Nick got to his feet and addressed the jury. “Your Honour; Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury; you have received a thorough account of the crime of which my client has been accused. I will not attempt to argue that my client is innocent of this crime. But I would implore you to consider the reasons behind her actions. Yes, my client murdered a man in broad daylight, but only after he assaulted her wife; a woman of whom he had abused and assaulted in the past. Think long and hard about that fact and tell the court that you would not react in the same way. I would ask you to look deep within your souls and consider my client’s actions as if you were in her position...”

Returning to his seat next to El, with the court moved to complete silence, Nick greeted her with a reserved smile. “What did you think?” he whispered.

El nodded and smiled back. “It was brilliant.” she answered.

“The closing statements have been made.” the judge then called, interrupting Nick and El’s conversation. “The jury will now retire to consider their verdict. Security, please remand the defendant into your custody until the jury had returned.”

Following the judge’s orders, a member of Diamond City Security approached the defence bench and locked El’s wrists into a pair of handcuffs. Quietly, she was led off to her cell to await the jury’s verdict. There was nothing more to be done. If there was God up there, her fate was in their hands.

Nick and El sat silently in her cell, neither of them wanting to speak. Both of them were exhausted. El had no idea how long the jury had been deliberating; there was no way of telling the time. Eventually, El felt that she had to say something. “What if it’s a guilty verdict? What’s the plan then?” she asked.

“I’m hoping that isn’t the case.” Nick answered bluntly.

El closed her eyes and considered her question again. “I know you’re not. But…if it is, what is the plan?”

“We appeal.” Nick replied simply. "Keep the fight going.”

“Do you think the judge will allow that?” El asked further.

Nick lightly shrugged her shoulders. “Maybe. Hopefully, he saw the merits of our case and will allow us to get more evidence.”

El twisted her lips, feeling unconvinced by Nick’s argument. “Do the Diamond City courts even have an appeal process?”

“Couldn’t hurt to try.” Nick answered matter-of-factly.

El and Nick were then interrupted by the arrival of a Diamond City guard. “Hey, Madam Mayor. You got a visitor.” he said, banging his truncheon on the bars.

Looking up, El’s heart lifted at the sight of Piper. Getting up from her bench, El rushed to the bars. “Piper! You came!” she exclaimed.

To El’s relief, the guard unlocked the cell and allowed Piper inside. “Hey, Blue. How are you doing?” she greeted, wrapping El in a tight hug.

“I’m okay. Just happy to see you.” El replied, burying her face in Piper’s shoulder. “How are the kids?”

“They’re alright. Nat’s keeping an eye on them.” Piper reassured. “They want to see you though.”

Pulling away, El bowed her head. “I want to see them too. Just not right now. And how is Cait?”

Piper grimaced slightly and placed her around El’s waist. “Blue, you might want to sit down.” Leading El across her cell, Piper sat herself down and took her hand. “I thought that you should know… Cait’s awake.”

El gasped and her eyes widened in amazement. “She is? Oh my God! Is she alright?”

“Yeah. She’s okay. She’s trying to remember what happened. But it’s not easy… I’m sorry, but I had to tell her everything. I thought it would help jog her memory.”

El chewed her lip worriedly. “How…How did she take it?”

“She…She…She was very quiet. She hasn’t spoken much since.” Piper said awkwardly.

El sighed forlornly, feeling like another pillar of her life was collapsing around her. Suddenly, she jumped at the sound of the Diamond City guard hitting his truncheon on the bars. “Hey! Madam Mayor! Look alive, the jury’s back.”

El’s heart sank even further. The jury must have only been gone a few hours. That could only bode ill for her defence. Sensing El’s hopelessness, Nick put his hand on her shoulder. “Look, kiddo. Whatever happens, it doesn’t matter. We can appeal and get a more lenient sentence.”

“And I’ll keep looking after Cait and the kids, Blue. It’s going to be okay.” Piper also said, squeezing El’s hand tightly.

Taking a deep breath, El nodded and tried to remain upbeat. “Thank you, both of you. You’ve both been amazing, and I don’t know where I would be if I didn’t have you with me.” she said sincerely.

“Well, you’d probably still be outside Diamond City.” Piper quipped, attempting to lighten the mood.

Despite everything, El choked up a laugh. “Yeah. I suppose so. I’ll give you that one.” Feeling slightly better, she walked over to her cell door. Opening the cell door, the Diamond City guard locked El’s wrists in handcuffs. “Right this way.” he ushered, leading El by the arm towards the exit.

Jerking her arms away, El fixed the guard with a stare. “If you don’t mind. I can make my own way.” she scolded, walking independently to the exit.

Closely escorted by several guards, El walked out of Diamond City Security and towards the public announcement area. There, the gallery was packed to the brim with Diamond City’s residents, all talking nondescriptly. El could only wonder at the size of the assembled crowd. Even in her most high profile of cases, El had never seen a crowd that large. It was as if everyone in Diamond City had come to witness the verdict.

Slowly walking through the gallery, El was keenly aware of the many eyes watching her. Standing tall, she ignored them all and kept her gaze on her seat. Reaching her chair, she extended her arms for a guard opposite her to unlock her handcuffs. Once they were freed, she gently stroked her wrists and sat herself down.

Glancing behind her, she spied Piper forcing herself into a free space amongst the public, her notebook in hand. Seconds later, El was joined by Nick, sitting rigidly in his chair and staring blankly ahead. El could only wonder what he was thinking.

Suddenly, a resounding voice boomed across the rudimentary courtroom. “All rise!” the voice called as the judge arrived and made his way to his podium. “The People vs Eloise de Lancie, Mayor of Diamond City.”

All rising to their feet, the court watched silently as the judge sat themselves down. Simultaneously returning to their seats, they waited with bated breath. “The defendant will please rise.” he ordered.

Clenching her trembling fist, El and Nick rose from their chairs. The judge then addressed the jury. “Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict?”

“We have, your Honour.” the lead juror answered, getting to their feet.

“Very well.” the judge continued. “As to the first charge, murder. How do you find the defendant, guilty or not guilty?”

Glancing momentarily at El, the lead juror swallowed hard. The silence was agonising and El was forced to close her eyes. Her heart was pounding with anticipation. “Not guilty.” the juror eventually answered.

El’s eyes shot open as the courtroom erupted in into a sea of shouts and chatter. El had to have been dreaming. How could she be not guilty?

“Order!” the judge exclaimed, banging his gavel. Once the court was quiet, he returned to the jury. “As to the second charge, conspiracy to commit murder? Guilty or not guilty?”

“Not guilty.” the juror answered.

El was shaking but could do nothing but look at her feet. None of this could be true. She was guilty; why did they declare her innocent?

“As to the third charge, abuse of power?”

“Not guilty.”

“The fourth charge, behaviour unbecoming of an elected official?”

The lead juror was quiet for a few moments. “Guilty.” they replied.

El looked up, her mouth starting to quiver. She had only been found guilty of a lesser charge; or at least a lesser charge compared to murder. Maybe she had underestimated the level of support she had in Diamond City.

“Finally, the last charge, causing a public disturbance?” the judge concluded.

“Guilty.” the juror replied.

By now, the court was wash with talk and whispers. El herself was completely catatonic and had to place her hand on the table to support herself. Suddenly, she felt Nick’s metallic hand on her arm. Looking over, she tried to talk to him. “Nick, I…I…I don’t…”

“Relax, kiddo. You did great. You’re not going to jail.” Nick reassured.

“Order in the court!” the judge called out, bringing the courtroom back to silence. “Very well. The jury is discharged. Thank you for your service. Based on the verdicts, I shall tailor a judgement to suit the lesser verdicts of guilty. Madam Mayor, when you resume your duties, you shall work one month without pay. You shall also receive a full censure from the Diamond City Council. I trust that you will use this formal warning to correct your conduct and restore the standards of the office to which you serve.”

Straightening herself, El nodded in acceptance.

“There be no further business before the court, I hereby declare this session adjourned.” the judge then resolved, banging his gavel for the final time. With that, he rose to his feet and descended the podium.

Mercifully, El’s legs caved, and she slumped in her chair, fighting the urge to cry. She was not going to jail after all. She would see her family again. Sniffing back tears, El closed her eyes and bowed her head.

“Hey, kiddo. You did great. Are you alright?” Nick asked, crouching down to El’s level.

El nodded, trying desperately to keep calm. “Yeah. I’m fine. I…”

“Blue” Blue!” El suddenly heard Piper exclaim. Opening her eyes, El saw her friend rushing to her. At sight of Piper, El finally broke and rushed to embrace her. “Piper!” she cried, wrapping Piper in a tight hug and bursting into tears.

“You did it, Blue. I knew you could do it.” Piper said soothingly, stroking El’s back.

“I’m not going to jail. I’ll see them again.” El wept happily, tears streaming down her face.

“Yeah. You will, Blue. You’ll see them soon.” Piper continued, pulling back from El’s hug to look her in the eye. “Go and see Cait, Blue.”

All of a sudden, El was reluctant to act, as if her trial had conditioned her against acting independently. “I…I…” she stuttered.

Sensing El’s indecision, Piper repeated herself. “Go on…” she ushered.

Looking up at the mayor’s quarters, high above them, El nodded. “Olay… Thank you, Nick. Thank you, Piper.” she said, leaning in to kiss Piper on the cheek.

As soon as she turned to leave the court, El noticed Ann Codman scowling at her. El could feel the anger build inside her again; she wanted to break her neck so much. But El had to resist the urge. It would not help her case to commit another murder after being found innocent. Swallowing her pride, El turned away and rushed of to see her wife.

Navigating her way through the crowds of Diamond City residents, El had just forced herself through before she was blocked by a deeply apologetic Abbot, attempting to get her attention. “Madam Mayor, I’m so sorry.” he said.

“Abbot, I can’t talk now.” El protested, trying to get past him.

About however would not move. “I just wanted to say that I never wanted to testify against you. P-People came to me, said they knew people. If I didn’t testify, they said-.”

“Abbot, it’s fine. It’s all over.” El said forgivingly. “Look, Abbot, I have to go.” Stepping past Abbot, El broke into a run, reaching the causeway leading to the exit in and stepped inside. Anxiously pacing the small elevator, El was both elated and terrified at the prospect of seeing her wife again.

Finally, the elevator dinged, and the doors shunted open. Rushing through the doors to the mayor’s office, El made a banked left and made for Cait’s room. Blundering through the door, she ran straight for the bed. “Cait! Cait! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! This is all my fault? I’m so sorry!”

Nearly jumping out of her skin, Cait tried to sit up. “E-El?” she croaked. “What are you doin’ here? Y-You’re on trial.”

“I was found innocent, Cait. I can’t believe it. They found me innocent. We can go home. All of us.” El replied, giving an emotional smile as she placed a hand of Cait’s cheek.

To El’s despair, Cait did not lean into El’s hand, and she just stared at her. “You killed him.” she said.

El’s smile fell, and she withdrew her hand. “I…I… Yes, I did. But…” she stuttered.

“I told you not to go after him.” Cait interrupted.

El’s hand began to tremble and rested it on her lap. “C-Cait, he attacked you. I…I was protecting you.”

“But I told you not to!” Cait continued, louder and angrier this time.

El was at a loss for words. Why was Cait angry at her for ridding the Commonwealth of such a vicious predator? “C-Cait, I…”

Cait just rolled onto her side facing away from El, fighting a painful wince as she did so. Making sure that her cast rested comfortably on her side, Cait curled herself up under her covers and stared blankly ahead.

Feeling totally destroyed, El bowed her head and resisted a fresh round of tears. This was not the reunion she dreamed off. Cait hated her for what she had done. Her apologies were useless. “I’m sorry.” she whispered, closing her eyes.

Flicking her eyes open, Cait awoke to find herself in her room in the mayor’s quarters. Groaning uncomfortably as her arm rubbed against its cast, she wished she could have it removed.

Something however did not seem right. Why was she still in this room? She had moved out of there and returned home.

“Well, well, well, I finally have you again.” a voice suddenly said from the corner of the room.

Looking toward the sound of the voice, Cait was horrified to come face to face with her worst nightmare. It was Stratton. Why was he here, he was dead? Immediately, Cait scrambled to get up from the bed, flighting the pain that inevitably shot through her arm and ribs.

“Oh, you’re not getting away this time.” Stratton said, rushing to the bed and holding Cait down.

Hopelessly, Cait fought against his grip, kicking and writhing wildly. “Get off!” she cried.

“I’ve got you now.” Stratton leered. Suddenly a long serpent like tongue protruded from his open mouth and began to lick around Cait’s face, leaving a disgusting trail of mucus like saliva with every slobbering lick.

Cait immediately pulled her face away from the disgusting proboscis and tried to writhe out of his grip. But Cait was too weak to fight. Owing to her left arm being incapacitated, Stratton had a free hand to continue his torture. Gripping Cait’s top, he tugged hard and tore it clean from her body. Stratton’s long groping tongue then proceeded to caress Cait’s exposed breasts.

“Get off me!” Cait screamed, wishing for his torment to end. Why was this dead man still haunting her?

Finally, Stratton’s tongue retreated, and he leaned in to whisper in Cait’s ear. “Let’s pick up where we left off.” he said gruffly. Moving his hand downwards, he menacingly slipped it into her pyjama trousers.

“No! No! Get off! No!” Cait screamed pitifully as Stratton’s hand slipped under her clothes and his tongue slithered out of his mouth.

Cait gasped for breath as she shot up in bed, dripping with a cold sweat. “Get away!” she cried, fighting to free herself from the confinement of her covers.

Shocked out of her own sleep, El was quick to try and comfort her. “Cait, it’s alright! It’s alright! You’re safe!” she said soothingly, placing her hands on her waist to settle her.

Looking around, Cait’s panting slowed as she found herself back in their bedroom at Home Plate. It had just been a dream. Letting out a shuddering breath, Cait curled herself up on the bed and shivered. The dreams were coming back.

Apprehensively, El moved her hand up to rest it on Cait’s shoulder. “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked.

“No.” Cait replied quickly, flinching away from El’s touch and perching herself on the edge of the bed.

Slowly lowering her hand, bowed her head glumly. “You know I’m here if you want to talk about it.” she, glancing up timidly.

“I know.” Cait replied, wrapping her right arm tightly around her body. She wanted to hug El so much but had to fight her urges. El had betrayed her trust in going after Stratton as far as Cait was concerned. She was also angry about the trial, and the trauma that she put the kids through. How could El have been so stupid?

Looking to her bedside drawers, Cait reached over and opened the bottom, pulling out a bottle and a glass. Whilst most of their alcohol remained downstairs, Cait, by force of habit, always kept her own personal stash close by. Unscrewing the bottle, she poured out a large measure and knocked it back in one gulp.

Watching the entire thing, El sat silently and disapprovingly. She knew about Cait’s secret stashes, much to Cait’s chagrin. But drinking to sleep more easily was not healthy. “Cait, drinking to forget is not a healthy way to deal with nightmares.”

Feeling the sharp liquid course its way down her throat, Cait let out a small shiver. “It calms me down. Just let me have this.” she said, her back to El.

As she watched Cait pour herself another drink, El looked away in despair. Cait had come so far since they met, but now she appeared to be sinking back into her habits of quick, yet self-destructive, fixes.

El could only blame herself.

El sat on the bed, blearily watching Cait drown her sorrows. A week had passed since Cait’s dreams had returned, and her drinking was only getting worse. Cait had now abandoned the glass and was now drinking straight from the bottle, easily getting through a bottle every couple of nights.

Cait’s drinking was also starting to impact their daily life. She would always wake up groggy and begin the day hungover. She would then be tired and grumpy until it was time to sleep again. The vicious cycle would then begin again, with Cait drinking herself into a dreamless slumber and waking up hungover.

“You need to stop this, Cait. You can’t drink away your troubles.” El said seriously, watching Cait gulp down ever greater mouthfuls of whiskey.

Taking the bottle away from her lips, Cait sighed glumly. “I told you, it calms me down. I can’t sleep without it.” she slurred.

Cait had said that every night since the drinking started and El had had enough. After curing her of one addiction, El would be damned before she sank into another one. Getting out of bed, El marched around to Cait’s side of the bed and grabbed the bottle out of Cait’s hand. “No more. You’ve had enough.” she said.

“No! Give that back!” Cait protested, reaching out to take the bottle back from El.

“You’ve had enough, Cait. You can’t go on like this.” El insisted, holding the bottle further away from her.

Feeling her only solace slipping away from her, Cait lunged forward to grab the bottle. “No! I need it!” she begged, gripping it sluggishly.

“Cait, let go!” El argued, trying to wrench the bottle away from Cait again.

What ensued was a struggle in which an incapacitated Cait sluggishly tried to steal back her bottle of whiskey from El. However, given the lack of strength in any of her limbs, she could not pull it away. "Cait, please stop it!” El pleaded, desperately trying to stop Cait fighting her.

“Just give it back!” Cait shouted, continuing to struggle. Finally, mustering all her strength, Cait managed to yank the bottle hard enough for it to slip from El’s grasp. The bottle, however, fell to the floor and rolled past El foot, spilling its contents as it rolled away.

Cait now realised that, if she was to get to the remains of her whiskey, she would have to go through El. Her only option now was to open a fresh bottle. Turning around, Cait stumbled back to bed and towards her set of drawers. Knowing exactly what Cait was doing, El followed her and attempted to place herself between them. “Cait, don’t go back in there.” she ordered.

Reacting immediately, Cait gripped the drawer handle and held it firm, preventing El from opening it. “No! Don’t look in there!” she pleaded.

El however would not be cowed and, batting away Cait’s hand, wrenched open the drawer. What greeted her made El’s heart stop. There, amongst the various bottles of alcohol, caps, sweets, and other assorted bits of junk, was a syringe of Psycho.

El’s eyes immediately burned with anger as she stood back and glared at Cait. “What is that?” she demanded venomously.

Cait looked away, too scared to answer. She knew exactly what it was.

Not satisfied with Cait’s silence, El demanded again. “Cait, what is that?!” she shouted.

Cait closed her eyes, the shame building inside her. In all their years of a relationship and marriage, Cait had never witnessed El this angry with her. “It’s…It’s not what it looks like.” she attempted to justify herself.

El did not believe a single syllable of Cait’s answer and her face twisted into a scowl. Was Cait trying to take her for a fool? In an instant, she bent down and snatched the Psycho from the drawer. She would deal with this personally.

As she turned away from her, Cait grabbed El’s arm, trying to stop whatever she was going to do. “El, no! Please! It ain’t what it looks like. Please, stop!” she cried, her voice beginning to break.

Jerking her arm out of Cait’s grip, El looked around for something she could use to dispose of the Psycho. There, leaning against a chest of drawers was Cait’s old baseball bat, the weapon she had ditched after El had gifted her Grognak’s axe. Walking over, El picked up the bat and threw the syringe on the floor.

Cait’s eyes widened in horror, and she tried to put herself between El and the syringe. “El’s please stop it! It’s not what you think! Just listen to me!” she shouted, close to screaming.

“Get out of the way, Cait!” El ordered, shoving Cait aside. Raising the bat high, El brought it down hard and smashed the syringe.

“No! Please, stop!” Cait cried as El smashed the syringe in front of her. Breaking down in tears, Cait slumped on the bed and wept despondently. Why did El not listen to her?

Turning her attention to Cait, El could not contain her anger. “You bring that filth into my house?! After everything I did for you!” she shouted, leaning in close to Cait.

“El, I…” Cait tried to speak, desperate for El to listen to her. “I-It’s not…”

“The battles I fought, the time I spent getting you clean! And now you lie to me by bringing that filth into my house, with my children!” El interrupted, her face barely a few inches from Cait’s.

As soon a El mentioned the children, Cait’s had to resist the urge to fight back. She would have never harmed the children. She would die before they came to harm. Slowly, she balled her fist. “N-No. I-It’s not… I didn’t…” she stuttered, her sadness boiling over into anger.

But El would not stop, and she only shouted louder. “I endured setbacks for you! I nursed you back to health after Vault 95! I gave you everything and this is how you repay me?!”

Unable to take anymore, Cait snapped. El’s mention of debts was enough to send her over the edge. El had spent years reassuring her that she owed nothing in their relationship. So, to have El threw that back at her felt like the ultimate betrayal. “I HATE YOU!” she screamed, throwing a punch at El’s face.

El instantly recoiled away and nursed her now injured cheek, dropping the baseball bat to the floor. Suddenly, as if she had been knocked out of a trance, El’s thoughts caught up with her and she looked down at Cait in terror. What had she done?

Similarly, Cait stared back with a look of horror on her face. She never wanted to punch El. Glancing down, she saw her clenched fist trembling.

“Mom?” a voice asked.

In that instant, both El and Cait’s eyes widened in abject horror. They knew that voice. Simultaneously, Cait and El turned their hands to find Shaun standing in their bedroom doorway. From the upstairs landing, they could also hear the sound of Tasha crying.

El and Cait were too horrified to say anything. Glancing back to look at each other, they saw the shame mirrored on their faces. How could they have been so stupid? In their struggle, they had completely forgotten about the children.

Eventually, El’s brain forced itself into action, and she went to comfort Shaun. “Shaun, what are you doing up so late?” she said, tyring to usher him out of their room.

“Mom, why are you and Cait fighting?” Shaun asked as El lead him away.

Once El and Shaun were out of sight, Cait began to panic. Shaun had seen her and El fighting. This was the stuff of her nightmares; she had behaved as if she were her parents. Rushing back to her bedside chest of drawers, Cait pulled out another bottle of whiskey and brought it straight to her lips.

Gulping down huge mouthfuls of whiskey, Cait was determined to forget the feeling of shame and self-loathing inside her. She had beaten her wife in front of their children, proving once and for all that she was her parent’s daughter. If she just drank enough, maybe she could wash the shame away.

Once El had managed, through sheer force of will, to get Tasha back to sleep, she crept across the landing of Home Plate to Shaun’s room. There she found him sitting on his bed, hugging his knees, with a look of dejection on his face. Attempting a caring smile, El sat down on the bed and tried to console him. “Hey, Shaun.” she said softly. “I’m so sorry you had to hear that.”

“Why are you and Cait fighting?” Shaun demanded, his voice riddled with a sense of betrayal.

In vain, El tried to explain herself. “We…We weren’t fighting. We just-.”

“You were shouting at each other. You had Cait’s baseball bat, and she hit you. That’s fighting!” Shaun cut her off, staring angrily at El.

El opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out. There was no arguing her way out of this. Not with her son. It was her trial all over again. “Shaun, it’s not like that, okay. Just hear me out.”

“No! Why can’t you just love each other? It’s what you married her for!” Shaun shouted, not believing El’s attempts at evasion. Rolling onto his side, he curled up in his bed and faced away from El.

Destroyed by Shaun’s rejection, El was close to breaking down in tears. “Shaun, I…” she tried to say.

But Shaun would not listen and El bowed her head in shame. Slowly getting up from the bed, El helpfully brought Shaun’s covers over his body. “I’m sorry.” she whispered, her voice almost imperceptible.

Closing the door to Shaun’s room behind her, El stood outside and fought the urge to cry. Everything wad going wrong; her life appeared to be coming apart around her, and it was all her fault. She had to try fixing this. The first step was apologising to Cait and begging for forgiveness.

Crossing the landing, El tentatively pushed open the door to their bedroom to find Cait slumped on the bed, completely passed out with a bottle in her hand. It was a pitiful sight and El let out a despairing sigh.

Approaching the bed, all El could do was make sure Cait was safe. Prizing the bottle away from Cait’s grip, El screwed the top back on and then moved Cait into the recovery position. Bringing the covers over her body, El leaned in close and planted a small kiss on Cait’s temple.

Looking over to the other side of the bed, El made a heart-breaking decision; she could not sleep here, such was the shame she felt for how she had treated her family.

Exiting their bedroom, El made her way down the stairs and into the living area. There she collected her sleeping bag from where her backpack lay and unfurled it on the couch. Slipping into it, El curled herself and, away from prying eyes and ears, finally let her tears fall. Whispering into the darkness, El prayed that she could be forgiven. “I’m so sorry, baby… I’m so sorry.”

“Blue? Blue?” a voice asked softly, gently shaking El out of her dreamless sleep.

Blinking her eyes open, El groaned as she raised her head to find Piper standing across the desk from her. “P-Piper?” she said hoarsely, rubbing sleep from her eyes. “What time is it?”

“It’s early afternoon, Blue. I showed myself in and you were sound asleep.” Piper answered before recoiling away slightly. “Gosh, Blue. What happened? You look dreadful.”

Knowing that Piper was referring to the fresh bruise on her left cheek, El looked away. “It’s nothing, Piper. Don’t worry about it.” she said.

“Doesn’t look like nothing.” Piper argued, walking around to El’s side of the desk. “What happened, Blue?”

El would not look at Piper, so ashamed she was of everything she had done. “Please, Piper. Don’t you go after me as well. Don’t make this any worse than it already is.”

“Worse than it already is?” Piper questioned. “What’s making it worse? What’s going on, Blue?”

Looking up at Piper, El could not hold back her tears. Letting out a despondent sob, El put her head in her hands and wept. “Piper, it’s been awful. I hate it all. I hate everything. I don’t think I can keep going.”

Piper immediately got on her knees and hugged El. “What’s awful, Blue? Please just tell me.” she pleaded.

“Everything, Piper. Everything is coming apart. They all hate me.” El wept inconsolably. “It’s all my fault.”

“Blue, tell me what happened.” Piper commanded, cupping El’s cheeks in her hands.

Bringing her hands away from her face, El wiped away her tears. “Cait…Cait and I had a fight last night… She’s been having nightmares again, but is…is using booze to deal with it… I tried talking to her, but she hasn’t talked to me since the trial… Last…Last night, I lost it and tired to take her booze away from her. She had a secret stash that she was trying to stop me getting into. When…When I looked inside, there…there…” El closed her eyes, remembering that shameful night. “There was a syringe of Psycho inside.”

Piper’s mouth dropped open. “Psycho? You mean that she’s relapsed?”

“I…I don’t know. I wasn’t thinking straight, and I lost all control. I took the syringe and smashed it in front of her.” El answered.

“Blue, why did you do that? Did you at least try to talk to her?” Piper asked, disappointed with El’s behaviour.

El shook her head and looked down timidly. “I don’t know why? All I could see was Cait betraying me. Then Cait hit me, and I realised what I had done.” Glancing back to Piper, El was unable to work out she was thinking. It was sympathetic, but also deeply disappointed. “Then, we discovered that the kids had heard everything, and Shaun saw us.”

Piper sighed, feeling completely torn between her love For El and her love for Cait. “Blue, how could you and Cait get to that point? You and her were inseparable.”

“I wish we were again, Piper. I wish that more than anything. But all this is my fault.”

Piper closed her eyes. “Blue, you can’t still be feeling guilty about the trial. You were found innocent.” she insisted.

“But I still did it, Piper, and Cait hasn’t talked to me since! It’s almost like she wishes Stratton were still alive.” El continued, letting her consciousness run free.

“Blue, don’t say that!” Piper cut in, Bringing El’s face mere inches from hers. “You know that’s not true, and Cait knows that too. What you did was right, and jury said so. Don’t ever call yourself guilty.”

As Piper held her close, El could feel the stress and worry slip away. After weeks of feeling alone, it felt wonderful to be held so close. That was all El wanted, for someone to hold her tight and tell her that everything would be alright. Tentatively, she brought her hand up to rest atop Piper’s, taking in the feel of her skin; it was soft and warm. Losing herself in the feeling of Piper’s touch, El closed her eyes. “You always know what to say, Piper. I don’t know where I would be without you.”

Then, in a moment of pure basic primal instinct, El leaned forward to press her lips to Piper’s.

The second their lips touched, Piper pulled away, a look of shock and mild horror on her face. Opening her eyes, El suddenly realised what she had done. “Piper, I…I…” she stuttered.

“Blue, no. No, that is not okay.” Piper whispered seriously.

El tried to speak but was too embarrassed to say anything. What was she thinking, to take advantage of Piper like that? “P-Piper, I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to use you like that. P-Please forgive me.” she eventually managed to say, apologising profusely.

Piper’s face softened and she took several deep breaths. She knew that El did not mean act the way she did, and she understood the heartache that El was feeling. But she was not a woman to be taken advantage of, even from someone she loved. “Blue, listen to me, okay.” Piper began calmly. “You are very special to me, and I love you very deeply. I…I…” Suddenly, Piper stopped, as if she were flighting something deep inside her. Closing her eyes, she allowed a single tear to fall down her cheek. “I won’t deny that, if…if things had been different, you…you would have made me the happiest woman in the Commonwealth, and I would have loved your children like they were my own.”

“You…You do already, Piper. I know you love them.” El pleaded, taking her hand.

Blinking away any tears that were threatening to fall, Piper found her resolve and put on a brave face. “I do love them… But it would have been different for me.” Piper’s face then hardened. “But I know that can’t happen. Blue, you have a wife who I love like a sister, and a family who need you… I know things are difficult, but I know that Cait loves you, and believes you did the right thing… I know you feel alone and unloved right now, but I can’t be what you want me to be. I won’t do that, to you or Cait.”

Hugging her arms to her chest, El nodded contritely. “I know, Piper. I’m so sorry. I should never have used you like that… I feel so stupid.” she said despondently.

“Don’t say that, Blue.” Piper replied, giving the essence of a reassuring smile. “Come here.” she then said invitingly, wrapping El in a warm hug.

Squeezing Piper tightly, El soaked in the warmth of her best friend. She should never have taken advantage of her like that. That was not fair. El could only hope that her actions did not destroy their friendship. “It’ll be okay, Blue. I promise.” Piper whispered into El’s ear.

Eventually, El and Piper pulled away; remaining however in complete silence. El for her part, felt so much better for Piper’s company. But she could see in Piper’s eyes that she wanted to leave. This meeting had clearly been emotionally draining for her; Piper had confessed to feelings she had long tried to bury. There had been days when she had struggled to reconcile her love for El as a friend, and as the lover she would never have. Cait was similarly her other little sister whom she loved dearly and the woman who had stolen away the person she loved more than anyone else. Even as she clapped on their wedding day, a jealous dream lurked in the back Piper's mind; a dream that it was her in Cait's place. As much as she tried to purge the nocturnal fantasies of El holding her close as she made love to her, they never fully went away. She needed some time on her own to process this cascade of emotion. She could not however willingly leave El in her state. “Would you like me to stay?” she asked softly.

Sensing that Piper wanted to leave, El shook her head. She had inflicted more than enough on her for today. “No. You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.” El replied shyly.

“Will you be okay?” Piper then asked, wanting to be sure before she left.

El nodded unconvincingly. “I’ll be fine.”

Piper knew that El was not being truthful, but she could not stay here any longer. “Alright, if you’re sure. Remember, I’m always around if you need someone to talk to.” she said, not wishing to sound unthoughtful.

El however was heartened by Piper’s reassurance, and she gave a weak smile. “Thank you… I… You’re… I love you, Piper.” she confessed, bowing her head in penance.

Piper did not reply and only sucked her bottom lip. Like a dagger through the heart, she fought the urge to climb into El’s lap and kiss her like she had longed to do. Sinking the dagger even deeper, she leaned in close and planted a small kiss on El’s right cheek. “Take care of yourself, Blue.” she said tenderly. Getting back to her feet, Piper then quickly exited the office, hugging herself closely.

Sitting silently in her chair, El was too emotionally exhausted to cry. Part of her wanted to curl up on the floor and die. As far as El was concerned, death would be a kindness. Looking around her dank office, she felt the emptiness in her heart. There was nothing to do, and nobody to comfort her. She was totally alone.

Cait sat alone on the sofa in Home Plate, attempting to use a book to distract herself. No amount of reading practise however could shift the shame and self-hatred she felt for herself.

Deep down, Cait felt like her life was imploding around her; El now hated her and would likely throw her out before long. Then she would never see her, or the children, again. It was all her fault. She should never have been angry at El for killing Stratton, El was only trying to protect her.

Closing her eyes, Cait grimaced in irritation. She hated Stratton more than anyone in the Commonwealth besides her parents, but he still took care of her in the Combat Zone. When the raiders took over, he was the only one who looked out for her. In all her life, until she met El, nobody had been so caring to a waste of space junkie like her.

But then she remembered the way he left her, beaten and gang raped by his raider buddies, all because she said no to sleeping with him one night. He was supposed to take care of her; why did he turn on her like that? And why would he hunt her down again?

Eventually, Cait shook her head angrily and snapped her book shut. All this thinking was driving her insane. Looking over to the far wall, Cait eyed the series of bottles that made up her and El’s liquor cabinet. All she needed to do was fix herself a drink and she could forget it for at least a few hours.

Through sheer force of will, however, Cait resisted the urge. Cait had not touched a drop since the incident, so ashamed she was of herself from that night. El was right, she had replaced one addiction with another.

The Psycho though, El did not know the whole story. But El would never believe whatever Cait said to justify herself. As far as El was concerned, Cait might as well be a lying junkie who would never change. She might as well take off her wedding ring now.

“Cait?” a voice suddenly asked, jolting Cait out of her thoughts. Turning her head, Cait’s eyes widened at sight of Shaun, a look of complete worry on his face. “Shaun, hey… What’s…What’s up?” she greeted apprehensively.

Shaun chewed his lip and took a step closer to Cait. “I’m worried about Mom… She’s always sad, and she never wants to talk to me.”

As Shaun voiced his fears, Cait could feel her eyes welling up. She felt exactly the same way. The morning after that night had been horrific. El and Cait could barely look at each other as they all sat around the table at breakfast. Since then, they had barely spoken. Glancing up to the top a nearby wardrobe, Cait spotted El’s pillow and sleeping bag. El’s efforts at hiding it had clearly been useless.

Looking back at Shaun, Cait let her tears go and she opened her right arm to him. “Come here.” she invited.

Sitting down next to her, Shaun wrapped himself in Cait’s embrace. “It’ll be okay, Shaun. We’ll be okay.” Cait said caringly, holding him close like he was the most precious thing in her life. “Your mum’s gonna fix this, cause she’s the strongest woman in the Commonwealth… You’ll see. It’s all gonna be fine.”

As Shaun rested his head on her shoulder, Cait looked around the place that she and El had called home for the past two years. When they first moved here permanently, this house had been full of promise, promise of a fresh start. Indeed, she and El had invested in that promise by extending the house to include a full second level. Now, however, Cait could only see guilt and shame. Deep down, she wanted to go home, to the only place she had ever felt truly safe.

El sat alone in her office, absentmindedly twirling her pen around her fingers. She had no idea how long she had been staring off into space, but she could not have cared less. Nothing in her life brought her joy anymore.

Ever since the trial, the days appeared to simply blur together into a continuous series of horrible things. Cait hated her, Shaun hated her, and she had embarrassed herself in taking advantage of Piper. It was all horrible.

Looking around her office, El let out an exhausted sigh; she hated this place; she hated this city; she hated her job; she hated herself. Ever since taking up her position, her family had suffered. Years of late nights, heavy workloads, and busy schedules had done nothing but diminish her time with Cait and her kids.

It was one of the reasons why Cait made such a show of their wedding anniversary. An evening together would make up for all the time they had lost. If El had just stayed awake, it would have been.

All that was in the past now. The entire dynamic had changed. It would not be long before the tier residents leveraged the Diamond City council to have her removed. Then, with no job, she would be left to clear up the shambles that would before long be her family. It was only a matter of time.

Finally, El’s gaze returned to her desk, and she glanced over to a set of framed pictures. There were three of them: one of her, Cait, and the kids on their wedding day; the photo that she had snapped of her and Cait in their pyjamas after a make-out session; and the portrait she had taken of Cait the night they had both first opened up to each other. El could only smile as she remembered snapping that photograph.

Picking up the picture of her and Cait together in their pyjamas, El stared at the two smiling faces; they both looked so happy. That was when they were truly happy, in Sanctuary, away from the chaos of the Commonwealth, safe from those who would do them harm. Just her, Cait, and eventually the kids.

Placing the picture back on her desk, El sat back in her chair and stared blankly ahead. What good was staying here? Before long, she would be ousted, and her family would likely breakdown with it. El could not let that happen. If it were the last good thing she did, she would stop one of those eventualities from happening.

Getting up from her chair, emboldened by a fresh determination, El sought out the one person who could help. Exiting her office, she descended the elevator and made straight for Publick Occurrences. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door and took a couple of steps back.

After a few seconds, the door opened and Piper appeared before her. As soon as she saw El, Piper’s face dropped and recoiled slightly in surprise. “Blue?” she greeted.

“Hi Piper.” El greeted awkwardly, finding it difficult to look her in the eye. “I hope I’m not intruding.”

“No. Not at all.” Piper replied, closing the front door behind her. “How…How are you doing?”

El shuffled on the balls of her feet. “I’m…I’m doing better.” she lied unconvincingly. The heavy bags under her eyes were enough of a giveaway. “I was just wondering if you could help me with something.”

“Of course. What do you need?” Piper answered approvingly.

“I need you to get the word out about something.” El said. “I want to make a public announcement tomorrow morning, 9 o’clock. Perhaps you could put a flyer together and place it on the notice board?”

Piper nodded in agreement but was also somewhat confused. “Sure. No problem. C-Can I ask what the announcement is for? It would be good for people to know what they’re hearing about.”

“I…I can’t say, Piper. I’m sorry.” El answered apologetically. “I just need everyone in the public announcement area tomorrow. Can you do that for me?”

“You know I will.” Piper agreed with a caring smile.

“Thank you, Piper.” El said gratefully before shifting again. “I best get back to it.” She then said, beginning to turn away.

Surprised, Piper took a step forward. “Are you sure, Blue? Why…Why don’t you stay, for a drink at least?”

El just shook her head and did not look back at Piper. “No. I’m sorry, but I can’t. I…I need to prepare.” Before Piper could respond further, El walked away and back towards the causeway.

Returning to her office, El sat back down at her desk and retrieved a bottle and glass from one of its drawers. Pouring out a small measure, she took a sip and placed the glass on the desk in front of her. As the soothing liquid burned its way down her throat, El collected a blank sheet of paper, picked up her pen, and began writing. Now that she was determined on her course of action, the words came fast. This announcement would be quick.

Despite her nervousness, Piper felt a sense of pride as she looked out across the public announcement area. The entire area was packed. Much like El’s trial, everyone in Diamond City had come, all talking in anticipation of this big announcement. Piper hared their sentiments. What could be so important that El had to inform the entire city?

Suddenly, upon hearing somebody shout and point towards the market, Piper and the assembled crowd looked over to see El and Cait walk towards the assembly area. They walked separately, with Tasha being held close to Cait. As they approached, Piper shuffled over to meet them. “El! Glad you’re here. The crowd is getting restless. They want to know what you’ve dragged them here for.” she greeted.

“Thanks for doing this, Piper.” El greeted back, looking up to the podium. Turning back to Cait, she gave her a weak smile. “I’ll be right back, okay.”

Cait did not answer but gave an acknowledging nod, adjusting a dopey Tasha in her arms.

Taking a deep breath, El walked through the expectant crowd and ascended the podium. She was keenly aware of the eyes on her as she stood before them. Slipping her hand into her inside coat pocket, El pulled out a folded sheet of paper. As she flattened the paper down on the lectern, the crowd slowly quietened.

Without looking at them, El addressed the crowd. “Good morning, everyone. Thank you for coming out here today. I meet you here to address you in light of recent events. You will be well aware of charges that were brought against me, and the subsequent investigations. Whilst the verdicts of these investigations ruled largely in my favour, they have nonetheless encouraged me to re-evaluate how my actions reflect on the high standards this city expects from its elected officials.”

El suddenly stopped, looking her scribbled notes up and down. She was probably losing the crowd with her long sentences. She needed to speed this up. Clearing her throat, she continued. “Through careful consideration, I have come to the conclusion that I am unable to govern this is city according to the oath I swore to you all.”

Pausing again, she fixed her gaze on Cait and Tasha, the people who this was all for. They would not suffer any longer because of her failures. “To that end, effective immediately, I hereby resign my position as Mayor of Diamond City.”

As soon as El said those words, the crowds erupted into shouts and cries ranging from bemused and inquisitive to sad and anguished. El ignored them and continued. “I have every confidence that the city council will select a suitable replacement in due course. It has been an honour to serve you all. Thank you…”

Without taking any questions, El folded up her speech, slipped it back into her pocket, and stepped off the podium.

Fighting her way through the frenzied crowd, El made straight for Cait and Piper. Drowning out Piper’s frantic questions, she put her hand on Cait’s waist. “Get Shaun out of school and start packing. We’re leaving.” she said softly.

Completely shocked by El’s announcement, Cait’s immediately nodded. “I’ll see you at home soon.” El then said before turning on her heals and walking away towards the exit causeway.

Entering her office, El collected and old cardboard box and tipped out its contents onto the floor. She then proceeded to empty her desk, placing various personal items inside. She was so focused on her task that she failed to notice Piper entre. “Blue! What was that?” she prevaricated frantically.

“I’m making a choice, Piper.” El answered, finally noticing her.

Piper just stood there, too confused to think. None of this made sense to her. “But… You can’t just resign. The city needs-.” she tried to argue.

“The city will survive, Piper. It was here before I thawed out and it will be here long after I’m gone.” El interrupted, continuing to pack her things.

Despite El’s rebuff, Piper continued to argue. “I…I get that, Blue. But you’re the mayor we need. You knew what you were doing. You were good at it.”

El reluctantly stopped and bowed her head. “You’re right. I put my life into this job, and my family suffered as a result.” Raising her head, El took slow calculating breaths. “You don’t understand, Piper. I was supposed to be there that night. I was meant to be there for Cait. But I wasn’t. I fell asleep…”

Fighting away shameful tears, El remembered her failure. “I swore a vow to protect my wife, and I failed. That’s something I will have to live with for the rest of my life… So, if I have to choose between my family and this city, my family must come first… The best I can do now is take them away from here and rebuild our lives.”

Piper now realised that she could not win. Forlornly, she sighed and accepted defeat. “I… No, you’re right. I understand. I know I can’t stop you.” she conceded. “Where…Where will you go?”

Despite already knowing the answer to Piper’s question, El considered it for a few moments. “Sanctuary. People have begun to settle there again. That is where Cait and I were happiest.”

Piper nodded acceptingly, saddened but nonetheless happy in El’s determination. “Are you sure you’ve thought this through?” she then asked, wanting to be sure that El knew what she was doing.

“No.” El replied simply, placing her framed pictures in the cardboard box. “But being Mayor of Diamond City was not part of my plan either. Why should this be any different?”

Piper nodded again, accepting that nothing would change El’s mind. “That’s…That’s true… Let me help then. Please let me help. It’s the least I can do.” she said, stepping forward.

Looking over to Piper, El allowed herself a smile. “Thank you, Piper.” she said gratefully. “Anything personal, just put it in the box.”

Closing the buckles of her backpack, El made one last scan of Home Plate. Almost everything personal was outside and packed away into crates. They would not be returning permanently.

Slipping her backpack over her shoulders, she collected her keys from the dining table and made for the door. Stepping through and closing it behind her, she engaged the locks and dropped them into her coat pocket.

Giving Home Plate one last look from the outside, El turned to face Cait, Shaun, and Tasha, each one packed up with all their possessions. “Alright, I think that’s everything. Let’s get going.” she said to her family, attempting to sound upbeat.

Cait nodded but did not answer. Despite her silence, however, Cait was struggling to hide her joy. Ever since that night, she hated Diamond City. She wanted to go home. When El had resigned as mayor and announced to them that they were going back to Sanctuary, Cait wanted to breakdown in tears and hug her for dear life.

Taking Tasha’s hand, they walked away towards the causeway, ignoring the few spectators who had gathered to watch their former mayor depart. El was not in the mood for farewells. She also made a point of ignoring the selection of tier residents watching her from the Colonial Taphouse balcony. They did not deserve the satisfaction.

“Will there be a school in Sanctuary, Mom?” Shaun asked from El’s side. Whilst he accepted El’s decision to move, he had been sad that it meant having to leave school.

“Not at the moment, Shaun.” El answered honestly. “But people are settling there now. If needs be, we can build one.”

Reaching the top of the causeway, they walked through the tunnel and into the old foyer. There they were met by Piper, Nat, and Valentine. “Hey, Blue.” Piper greeted, immediately walking towards her. “Have you got everything?”

“Yes. Everything is packed.” El answered. “I’ve arranged for a caravan to bring the heavier stuff. So, there isn’t much more to do. Do you have your keys?”

“Yes, yes. Won’t let anyone steal the place, Blue.” Piper replied jokingly. For a few moments, they stood awkwardly before El worked forward and hugged her. “Thank you for everything, Piper.” El whispered, holding her close.

“Don’t be a stranger, Blue.” Piper said, sniffling tears away.

Pulling away, El gave Piper a smile. “We’ll visit. I promise. And…if you ever need a break, come and stay with us in Sanctuary. We’d love to have you.”

“I’d like that.” Piper said graciously.

El then looked over to Nat and patted her on the shoulder. She had grown so such since they first met. “You look after your sister, Nat. Make sure she stays out of trouble.” she said.

Nat laughed and nodded. “I will, ma’am.”

Finally, El came to Valentine. As she approached, he extended a hand to her. “Best of luck, ma’am. This city won’t be same without you.”

El glanced at his extended hand but ignored it, opting for a hug instead. After everything he had done for her, he deserved more than just a handshake. Tentatively, he brought his arms up to embrace her. “You did good, kiddo.” he said softly.

“Thank you, Nick, for saving my life. I wouldn’t be here if not for you.” El said, pulling away from their hug.

Following suit, Cait approached Piper and immediately wrapped her right arm around her waist. Piper responded by holding Cait close and kissing her on the forehead. Unable to fight it, tears began to fall down Cait’s cheeks. “Hey. Don’t cry, Cait. We’ll see each other again.” Piper reassured.

“I know… I just…” Cait wiped her eyes. “T-Thank you for lettin’ me work for you. It was the best job I ever had.”

Piper smiled and cupped Cait’s cheek. “You did a wonderful job, Cait. Don’t give up on it, alright.”

“I-I won’t. I promise.” Cait agreed, stepping back and turning to Nat. Wiping away the last of her tears, she smiled at Nat. “See you around, Nat. Sorry I called you a brat when we first met.” she said apologetically.

Nat just laughed and gave Cait a loving hug. “It’s okay, Cait. I was a bit of a brat. Still am, to be honest.” she joked.

Cait chuckled and gently pulled away before approaching Valentine. As she was still somewhat unfamiliar with him, she did not attempt a hug. Instead, she extended a hand.

As Cait had not shaken his hand the first time they met, Nick was deeply touched by her gesture. “Best of luck to you, Cait.” he complimented, shaking her hand.

Whilst it was strange feeling Nick’s cold metallic flesh on hers, Cait could feel the warmness in his gesture. “Thanks for lookin’ out for me after…after that night.” she said thankfully.

“Don’t mention it, kid.” Nick replied. “You’ve got a good heart. Don’t ever lose it.”

Cait chewed her lip, resisting the urge to blush. Releasing his hand, Cait joined El by the gate.

Once Piper, Nat, and Valentine said their goodbyes – Piper’s goodbye being deeply emotional – El, Cait, and the family were ready to go. Tentatively, El put her arms around Cait’s waist. “You ready?” she asked.

Looking up at El, Cait nodded. “Yeah…Let’s go home.” she replied.

Taking a first step outside the Diamond City boundary, they began their long journey to seek sanctuary.

Cait could not have been happier to see the outline of pre-war houses as they crossed the bridge to Sanctuary. It had been a long and slow journey and she was desperate to see her home again.

As they came around the bend in the street, however, both Cait and El stopped dead in their tracks. Something about El’s home had changed; it was bigger, longer. “Did…Did the house always look like that?” Cait asked, thinking that she might have misremembered something.

“…No…” El replied, equally confused. “I don’t remember it being as long.”

“Huh… At least I ain’t goin’ crazy then.” Cait said, relieved that she wasn’t going mad.

To their relief, they were soon greeted by a familiar greaser walking up the road to meet them. “Sturges! It’s so good to see you.” El greeted extending a hand to him.

“Good to see you too, Ma’am. Been a long couple of years. Glad you’re back in Sanctuary.” Sturges greeted back, eagerly shaking El’s hand. “Geez! This one has grown a bit since I last saw her.” he then observed, stroking the cheek of a sleeping Tasha, held tightly in El’s arm.

“She certainly has.” El said, looking down at her sleeping daughter. “She’s had a long day.”

Sturges then moved to greet Shaun. “Hey, little man. You probably don’t remember me, but I was with your mom when we got you out of the Institute.” he said, introducing himself.

“I remember you.” Shaun replied with a somewhat tired smile. “Good to see you again, Mr Sturges.”

“Mr Sturges? Oh no. Mr Sturges is my father.” Sturges laughed, patting Shaun on the shoulder. He then turned to Cait. “Cait, it’s great to see you too. What d’you do to your arm?”

“Long story.” Cait answered, shrugging off Sturges’ question. “Good seein’ you again, Sturges. You should change that oil.” she quipped, nodding to his greased hair.

Sturges laughed before El stepped forward. “Sturges, why didn’t you tell me the house had been altered when we spoke on the radio?”

“What would be the fun in that?” Sturges joked. “That Mr Handy of yours can’t be stopped. You should check it out. Take a load off after your journey.”

“Yes, I think I will, and get this one to bed.” El smiled, turning to the front door.

“One thing, though.” Sturges cut in. “Have you given the offer any thought? You know, leading the town? These people need a leader.” he said, nodding towards the end of the road.

Looking in the direction of Sturges’ gesture, El spotted several fabricated huts built around the turning circle. Some of the empty house shells in that section were also in the process of being filled in. Dominating the skyline was a tall pylon that El determined was the radio beacon they had set up to attract new settlers.

Despite being deeply intrigued by the progress that had been made so far, and the potential that Sanctuary had as a settlement, El was too tired and emotionally exhausted to indulge it. “I…I…Can we discuss this later, Sturges? We’re all very tired.”

Sturges immediately nodded contritely. “You’re right. Sorry, Ma’am.” he said understandably. “Well, in that case, I’ll bid you good night.”

“Goodnight, Sturges.” El smiled. Walking up the path, El stepped through the front door to be greeted by an ecstatic Codsworth.

“Oh, Mum! How wonderful it is to see you again! It has been too long!” he exclaimed emotionally. “And my word! Little Tasha has grown so much.”

“Hello, Codsworth. Lovely to see you too.” El replied. “Yes, she’s grown a great deal. You’ve caught her on one of her rare bouts of sleep.”

As El spoke, one of Codsworth’s eye stalks caught a glimpse of Cait and Shaun. “Ah, Miss Cait! How wonderful to see you! But you are injured! Oh, please come through. You must be exhausted.”

“Hey, Codzy.” Cait greeted. “Yeah, I could do with a sit down.”

“And…Master Shaun?” Codsowrth then said, utter disbelief in his voice. “I cannot believe it. The last time I saw you, it was…” Codsworth suddenly choked up as if he were about to burst into tears. “Oh, please forgive me. It has been so long since this home has been complete.”

Shaun chewed his lip awkwardly, unsure of how to react to this emotional British robot. “Shaun, you won’t remember him, but this is Codsworth. He’s been running this house for over two-hundred years.” El said, stepping in to break the awkward silence.

Remembering his manners, Shaun responded to El’s prompt. “Nice to meet you, Codsworth.” he said politely.

“Say, Shaun? Why don’t you go to your room and unpack your things?” El then suggested, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“My room?” Shaun asked, not even considering the idea if him having his own room.

“Splendid idea, Mum!” Codsworth exclaimed approvingly. “Master Shaun, you shall find your room down the hall, second door on the right.”

As Shaun walked off down the hallway, looking around in awe of where he was, El decided to probe Codsworth about the house. “So, Codsworth. I see you have made some changes to the house.” she observed.

“Why, yes, Mum. Codsworth answered enthusiastically. “With your growing family, I believed that additions were in order to ensure this remains the House of Tomorrow. To that end, I have added a bedroom for young Tasha, a guest bedroom for visitors, or any other unexpected arrivals that may pop up, and a home office for yourself. The master bedroom can now be found at the end of the hallway, on the left.”

“It sounds wonderful, Codsworth.” El said gratefully. “Speaking of bedrooms, I should probably get this one to bed.” she suggested to herself, looking down at a seemingly comatose Tasha in her arms.

“I’ll take her.” Codsworth said suddenly, approaching El with her right arm extended.

Once Tasha was safely in Cait’s embrace and down the hall, El unslung her backpack and slumped down on the sofa. After such a long journey, it was liberating to rest her legs. “Mum, will you be having dinner tonight?” Codsworth asked as El sat back on the sofa.

“That would be lovely, Codsworth.” El answered thankfully. “Nothing extensive. It’s getting quite late.”

“Very good, Mum. I shall see what I can rustle up.” Codsworth concluded, floating away to the kitchen to fix up some dinner.

Now alone with her thoughts, El unlaced her boots. Kicking them off, she then stretched herself out on the sofa. Already, she could feel some of the stress begin to leave her body. Finally, closing her eyes, she was where she wanted to be. All she had to do now was rebuild her family.

Cait sat nervously perched on the bed as El sat in front of their dressing table mirror, quietly brushing out her long flowing hair. After a small dinner, El had decided to shower and giver her hair a much needed wash. Once all the kids were asleep, she had set about brushing her tangled hair.

Cait, on the other hand, had not washed or changed yet, attempting to find an opportunity to talk to El instead. If she could just find a way to start a conversation, then maybe she could apologise for everything and hopefully be forgiven. “I love your hair that length. Makes you look so pretty.” she spoke to El’s reflection.

“Thank you.” El replied with a smile, looking at Cait through the mirror. She herself was yearning to have conversation with Cait.

Cait cursed herself. This soft approach was not going to work. She would need to be direct. “El, I…I was wonderin’ if we could talk.” she enquired nervously.

Placing her hairbrush on the dressing table, El swivelled around to face Cait. “Sure, Cait. Of course, we can talk.” she said invitingly.

“Good. Cause I’ve been wantin’ to get this off my chest.” Cait took a deep breath, finding her words. “I…I wanna say that I’m sorry.”

El immediately knelt before Cait, confused by what she was saying. “Sorry? No, Cait. What do you have to apologise for?”

Cait closed her eyes and shivered. Why could El not see that she needed to apologise? “For everythin’, El! I’m sorry for the way I acted after I woke up. I…I’ve just been so confused after that night…with him.”

El shuffled closer and took Cait’s right hand. “Tell me.” she said softly, offering herself to Cait.

Letting out a deep breath, Cait confessed. “All I can think about is what he did to me; how bad he and his scumbag friends beat me. I hate him so much… But he also looked out for me in the Combat Zone. I couldn’t work it out. All part of me could think was that he still loved me.”

“Cait, he didn’t love you.” El insisted. “Yes, he looked out for you when it suited him. But, when you said no, he showed his true colours.”

Cait could only nod in agreement. “Yeah… I get that now. He only wanted me because I was a hot piece who couldn’t say no to him… I was angry cause it’s taken me so long to see it. I took it all out on you, and that weren’t right. I shouldn’t have got angry at you.”

“It’s alright, Cait. I understand how you felt.” El said soothingly. “But you don’t need to be angry anymore. He’s gone, and we’re far away.”

While she was calmed by her El’s words, Cait still could not shake the shame inside her. “I did such bad things to you. I…I hit you… If…If you don’t want to be married anymore-.”

El’s face instantly hardened and she brought herself inches away from Cait’s face. “No, Cait! Don’t you ever say that again. I never stopped loving you and I don’t intend to start now. You are my wife, and I will always love you.”

Allowing tears to fall, Cait squeezed El’s hand. “I love you as well.”

Now that Cait was sufficiently convinced that she would not be thrown out, it was El’s turn to confess. “But, if anyone should apologise, it’s me.”

“You don’t need to apologise, El. This is all my fault.” Cait tried to argue.

El just shook her head. “No, Cait! I need to apologise. I should have listened to you that night, with the Psycho.”

“I never took it!” Cait cut in, desperately trying to explain herself. “Please believe me, El. I never took it. I was just…just so scared. Every night, all I could see was him, touchin’ me, gropin’ me.” Remembering her nightly terrors, a shiver ran up her spine.

Cupping Cait’s tear stained cheeks in her hands, El pressed their lips together. Cait was shaking as she reacquainted her lips with El’s. She had missed kissing them so much. Slowly pulling away, El stared into Cait’s eyes. “I believe you, Cait. I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you… I was so angry with myself. So angry that I didn’t think to talk to you.”

“It’s okay, El.” Cait replied. “You don’t need to say sorry.”

El vigorously shook her head. “No, Cait. I have to. I was so angry with myself because I wasn’t there for you that night…with him. I was supposed to be there, and I wasn’t. I’ll never forgive myself for that.”

“I forgive you.” Cait said, resting her forehead on El’s.

Looking up into Cait’s piercing green eyes, El could not hold back. Letting tears fall freely, she pulled back and opened her arms invitingly. “Come here.”

Not needing to be asked twice, Cait climbed down from the bed and into El’s lap. Wrapping her legs around El’s waist, she buried her face in the base of her neck and hugged her wife for dear life.

They stayed there for what felt like hours, both crying as they rekindled each other. After being apart for so long, nothing would drive them away again. Slowly pulling back, El stroked away loose strands of Cait’s hair that had flopped down in front of her eyes. “Listen to me, Cait. We have a chance here. We can build something of our own her in Sanctuary; just you, me, and the kids. What about that, eh?”

Sniffing away tears, Cait wiped her eyes with her right hand. “I’d like that a lot.” she answered quietly.

“Alright then. It’s settled… We can do this, Cait.” El then said encouragingly. She however slowly became serious again. “But, if there is something you can do for me, Cait?”

“Anythin’, El. Anythin’” Cait responded. “If it’ll make it all better.”

El nodded but remained silent for a few moments, wondering how best to phrase her request. “Cait…your drinking…” she began.

Cait instantly chewed her lip and shuddered. Regardless, El continued. “Cait, it was too much. I know how hard it was for you. But using drink to forget was not healthy.”

“I know… I know…” Cait accepted. “I didn’t know what to do. I was a fuckin’ mess. The dreams, they-.” Cait suddenly stopped as she vigorously shook the thoughts of her dreams out of her head. “But…But I’ll never drink again. I promise. I promise. I’ll never drink again.”

El however was quick to reign her in. “Cait, Cait. Slow down. I don’t want you to stop drinking. I like it when you have a drink. Just…maybe cut back. No more drinking to forget, okay.” “Okay… I can do that. I promise.” Cait nodded intently.

At Cait’s agreement, El’s face softened. “Thank you, Cait. Now come here. I want to hug you again.”

Resisting a smile, Cait wrapped herself in El’s embrace. She only wished that she had the use of both her arms. She hated being in this stupid cast.”

Holding her wife close, El suddenly felt Cait tremble. Pulling back, El frowned in concern. “Cait, are you alright? You’re trembling… Are you cold?” she asked, stroking Cait’s cheek.

Shivering almost on command, Cait rubbed her shoulder with her free hand. “A…A little...” she mumbled.

El then remembered that Cait had not changed or washed since they left Diamond City. A bath and a change of clothes would do her the world of good. “Come with me.” she said, manoeuvring herself and Cait to their feet.

“W-Where we goin’?” Cait wondered as she was shifted off El’s lap.

“Just come with me.” El continued, helping Cait to her feet. Leading Cait out of their bedroom, they crept down the hallway towards the bathroom. Flicking on the light, El locked the door behind them and turned on the bathtub taps. With the bath slowly filling, El set about undressing Cait. “Come on, Cait. Let’s get you out of these sweaty clothes.” she ushered.

Carefully removing her clothes, making sure to avoid nudging her cast too much, El took Cait’s hand and helped her into the warm bath. El then knelt next to the bath and soothingly washed Cait down, using a bath sponge to clean away the sweat and dust from their journey. “How’s that, Cait?” El asked caringly.

Looking up at El, Cait could not help but smile. “Better…” she answered, blushing from the warmth of the water. It felt so good to immerse herself in warm water after so long. Two years of living in Diamond City had made her miss the luxuries of Sanctuary.

There was however something missing. Now that she and El had rekindled their relationship, Cait wanted to be as close to her as possible. Using her cast-bound arm, resting dry on the edge of the bathtub, she lightly stroked El’s hand gripping the edge.

Looking down at Cait’s hand, El frowned. “Cait, are you alright?” she asked.

Cait did not answer and simply glanced down at the bathwater below. El let out a small sigh. She knew what Cait wanted. “Cait, you know I’ve already showered."

Cait however continued to stare at El, her emerald eyes boring into her soul. Admitting defeat, El was unable to fight Cait’s gaze and she rolled her eyes playfully.

Standing up, El collected her freshly brushed hair and pulled it up above her head, locking it under a hair claw she had taken from a nearby cabinet. She then silently undressed herself, making sure that Cait was watching the entire process.

From her bathtub, Cait watched the El undress in wide eyed salivation. She had seen El naked hundreds of times, but she always turned into a gawping idiot whenever she saw her undress.

Now completely naked, El approached the bath and stepped in behind Cait. Making room, Cait shifted to the other side of the bath. Once she was comfortable, however, El then brought Cait up so she was lying on top of her, El’s left arm wrapped lovingly around Cait’s waist.

Safe in her arms, Cait gradually let her eyes close as El continued to wash her down. She could so easily have fallen asleep; she was so comfortable.

Eventually, El had run out of areas of Cait’s body to wash, and the water was beginning to go cold. They needed to get out before they started shivering. Looking down, El smiled as she found Cait’s eyes closed and her breathing slow. Cait was obviously nearly asleep. Not wishing to disturb her too much, El gently nudged her. “Cait?” she whispered. “I think it’s time to get out.”

Snorting herself awake, Cait opened her eyes. “Okay…” she groaned.

For a few moments, El waited expectantly for Cait to move. Cait however remained still and dopey. “Cait, urrm, I can’t get out if you don’t move.” she prodded.

“Oh, sorry.” Cait said quickly, shifting so that El could get out. Standing up, El let the water out and then helped Cait out of the bath.

Collecting two towels from one of the bathroom shelves, El and Cait dried themselves off and then wrapped them around their respective bodies. Whilst she had already been wearing a set of pyjamas, El wanted to make sure Cait was properly seen to before dressing herself.

Leading Cait back to their bedroom, El locked the door and went into Cait’s chest of drawers for a set of pyjamas. Collecting the required garments, she turned back to Cait and unfolded them. “Let’s get you changed, Cait.”

El had just unfolded the nightwear when she felt Cait touch her waist. “Cait, come on. Let’s get you dressed.” El tried to insist.

Cait however continued and brought herself close to El. “No, just…listen to me.” she said quietly. “After…After that night…with him…I missed you… I missed you so much. I want you to hold me again…t-touch me again.” Bringing her hand away from El’s waist, she undid her towel and let it fall to the ground.

El’s mouth dropped open, mesmerised by Cait’s body. El wanted desperately to show her the love she deserved but was conscious of the recent trauma she had gone through. “Cait, I… You don’t need to do that. If you need more time…to recover, I mean-.”

“Please…” Cait cut her off, almost begging and looking yearningly into El’s eyes.

Slowly, El brought her arms around Cait’s slender waist and leaned into kiss Cait passionately on the lips. Humming contently as El pressed her lips to hers, Cait raised her hand to undo El’s towel and unclip her hair, letting both fall freely. Running her hand along El’s defined abs, Cait shuddered at the feel of her warm, smooth skin.

Now both completely naked, El lifted up Cait’s supple form off the floor and carried her to the bed. Just as she was lowered onto her back, however, she tensed up. “N-Nothin’ rough, alright.” she said nervously.

El nodded and gently lowered Cait onto the bed. With Cait comfortable, El climbed on top of her and kissed her again on the lips. Taking slow deliberate breaths, she slowly and silently kissed her way down Cait’s body.

As El’s lips descended lower and lower down her body, Cait felt the heat start to simmer deep inside her. She was beginning to feel whole again.

Cait’s body shook, and her chest heaved, as she rode out her orgasm. As she said, there was no roughness, just pure unbridled pleasure. Cait wanted to cry with happiness but mercifully fought against the urge.

As her breathing steadily returned to normal, El slowly crawled up from between Cait’s legs to face her. “How was that? Not too rough?” she asked, stroking Cait’s flushed cheek.

Craning her neck upwards to kiss El’s lips, Cait nodded with a grateful smile. “It was amazin’." She could still taste herself on El’s lips. “Do you want me to…?”

El just shook her head. “No, Cait. Don’t worry. I can wait. When you’re fully recovered, okay….” she reassured. “I’ll look forward to it.”

Cait blushed and allowed herself to laugh a little. “Okay… It’ll be the best shag you ever had.” she joked.

“I’m sure it will be.” El smiled, rolling onto her back and letting Cait snuggled up to her. There they laid in silence, listening to each other’s slow breathing.

After a while, however, a thought occurred to El that she wanted to probe Cait about. El had learned that Cait was always at her most open when they were curled up in bed together, even more so after a bout of lovemaking. “So, Cait, did you have any thoughts about what you might want to do here? This is our fresh start. You can do anything.”

Cait sucked her lip thoughtfully, a reaction that slightly surprised El. Whilst she was at her most open when snuggled up with El, Cait did sometimes need coaxing before giving an answer to such searching questions. Perhaps she had been considering the question herself. “Urrrm… Well…I…I was thinkin’ about the stuff Piper said about my readin’… I was thinkin’ of maybe settin’ up my own newspaper here. I loved workin’ with Piper at Publick Occurrences. I wanna make my own.”

El smiled, absolutely heartened by Cait’s answer. “That sounds like a great idea, Cait. You should definitely do it; and I can help with any equipment you might need, or anything you need me to read over.” she said encouragingly.

“Thanks… I really wanna do this. You know, workin’ for myself and not other people. I’m done with that.” Cait said, invigorated by El’s support. She had a good feeling about this. “What about you? Have you thought about what Sturges said?” she then asked, flipping the question back on El.

El sighed, trying to put the question out of her mind. “Cait, we just got here. I’m not in the mood for another leadership role. Plus, I left my last leadership job in disgrace.”

Cait raised her head and turned to stare at El. “No, you didn’t! You left ‘cause you wanted to. You saw how that crowd reacted when you resigned. They were sad. You did a great job there, El. Don’t ever talk shit about yourself like that. You need to take that job Sturges offered and build this town for us.”

El looked away and groaned under the pressure. After Diamond City, El had considered herself done with public service. She did not need Cait forcing her into a position that she was unsure about. “Cait, please. Can this just wait a bit? We just got here.”

Cait only shook her head and her face hardened. “No! You got to ask me what I wanted to do here. That means I’m allowed to ask you.” she shot back. “You’re the only person who can make this town a good place to live. You were here before everythin’, and you know how to lead. So, I don’t care what you think. Take the job.”

Remaining completely silent, El considered Cait’s words. How did Cait become so bossy? As far as El was concerned, she was done with politics and leadership. Two years of slogging away at ultimately meaningless tasks for an apathetic, or hostile, population had done nothing but leave her disillusioned.

But Sanctuary was not Diamond City. There were no hierarchies and intrigues, at least not yet. This was new town, full of potential and protected by the Minutemen. Maybe she could lead this place. Furthermore, El’s number one priority now was making sure that Cait and her family were happy. If this made Cait happy, then it was the right thing to do. Looking back at Cait, El made her decision and nodded her head. “Alright, Cait. I’ll talk to Sturges tomorrow.” she conceded.

“Good.” Cait said, happy that El was following her orders. Her face, however, remained hard and intense. “But I’ve got some conditions.” she continued.

El’s swallowed. “O-Oh, right. Of course, Cait. Name them.”

Cait took a deep breath, preparing herself for a verbal battle. “When you were mayor of Diamond City, you were workin’ too hard. Sometimes, I didn’t know if you were comin’ home or not. But when you were home, you were always tired. You kept tyrin’ to hide it, but I could see. You were burnin’ out… If you take this job, unless you tell me, I want you home every night. You, me, and the kids, home every night, okay?”

Pummelled by Cait’s demands, like being told off by the school principal, El maintained a straight face. Cait was right, the job of Diamond City mayor had been taking too much from her. As a result, Cait and her family had suffered. El’s resignation had ultimately served as a means of reclaiming her life. “You drive a hard bargain, Cait.” El replied, attempting to lighten the mood.

Unfortunately for El, Cait’s did not take her response well and her face remained unchanged. “Not funny, El. I’m serious.”

Lowering her gaze, El’s cheeks went red with embarrassment. “Sorry, Cait.” she said contritely. “Alright. I accept. Anything you want, I swear.”

“Shake on it?” Cait asked, presenting her right hand.

El looked down at Cait’s hand but decided on a different way. Cupping Cait’s cheek, she leaned in and kissed Cait lovingly on the lips. Pulling away, El stroked Cait’s cheek. “Is that enough?” she asked.

Not expecting El to swear their pact in such a way, Cait was at a loss for words. Instead, she could only nod.

Glad that they had resolved their differences, El smiled broadly. She then chuckled as Cait tried in vain to stifle a yawn. It was about time they went to bed. “Come on, Cait. We’ve both had a long day. Let’s get some sleep.”

Nodding in agreement, Cait turned onto her side, making sure that her cast was not being rested on. Switching off her bedside light, El then snuggled herself up to Cait and wrapped an arm around her waist. “Are you comfortable, Cait?” El asked, glancing over Cait’s shoulder.

“Yeah. I’m comfy.” Cait answered, bringing her body close to El's.

Placing her head back on her pillow, El planted a gentle kiss on the back of Cait’s neck. “Goodnight, Cait.” she whispered.

“Goodnight.” Cait replied, pushing herself even closer to El’s body. Something about sleeping naked with El made her feel so safe. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” El whispered, letting her eyes slowly shut.

Allowing herself to sink into sleep, Cait could only smile. After everything she and her loved ones had been through, she was back where she wanted to be. This was their fresh start, a place where she and El could raise their family and build a life for them, free from the intrigues of the Commonwealth. This was the life she wanted, the life she had yearned for after that night. She was finally home.

Chapter Text

Humming warmly to herself, Cait slowly opened her eyes. Looking around the room, she thought she had woken up in the past. She remembered waking up like this the morning after confessing her love for El. It was a heavenly feeling; Cait was warm, naked, and nestled up against the woman she loved.

Cait never wanted to leave. Sanctuary was the only place she wanted to call home. It was the only place she felt safe.

Suddenly, Cait felt El’s body shift and lean over her shoulder. ‘Hey. You awake?’ she whispered.

Looking up at her wife, Cait nodded. ‘Yeah. I’m awake.’

‘How are you feeling?’ El continued, gently stroking Cait’s waist.

‘I’m okay.’ Cait replied, shivering slightly at El’s soft touch. ‘Just pissed about this cast.’

‘It’ll be off soon. Give it some time. You just need to rest up and recover.’ El reassured. ‘How did you sleep? Any nightmares?’

Cait shook her head. ‘No. Not tonight. Slept okay for once. I…I’m just…scared to sleep now.’

El held her wife close and lovingly kissed the back of her neck. ‘It will get better, Cait. I promise you it will. You’re safe and far away from them now. They can’t hurt you.’

Cait rolled onto her back so as to better see her wife, wincing slightly as she moved her encased arm. ‘Try not to move it so much, Cait.’ El said, shifting to make room.

‘I wanna look at you, dumbass.’ Cait grunted, now on her back with her head turned to face El. ‘I can put up with a bit of pain.’

‘I just want to make sure you’re comfortable. I’m playing catchup.’ El said, her arm around Cait’s waist.

‘Don’t say things like that, El.’ Cait chastised, a sadness in her eyes. ‘We all done shit to each other. I don’t wanna think about that ever again.’

El scolded herself inwardly. Cait was right; dwelling one the past was not going to help them. ‘You’re right, Cait. I’m…I’m sorry.’ Leaning in, El kissed Cait lovingly on the lips, as if to show her apology.

Cait whimpered faintly as their lips met. No matter how many times they kissed, Cait never tired of the feel of those lips. The fact that they had just turned over a new leaf made the kiss all the more loaded with emotion.

Raising her right hand, Cait cupped El’s face to hold her in place. She was not about to lose these lips anytime soon. Nevertheless, Cait needed more. Removing her hand from El’s face, she brought it down to rest upon El’s waist. With gentle but deliberate force, she then took hold of El’s hand and moved it down passed her hips to between her legs.