It's All Over But The Crying (A Fallout Fanfiction)

Part 1: Don't Ask Any Questions

Maxine's POV

I rest my head on my palm, staring down at the giant map laying on the council table. There's is a red X drawn in the corner to the north-east with the title Children of Atom Morons. The Railroad and Minutemen HQ are also labelled. My eyes fixate on the one to the far west, the one labelled in a deep, dark red, Nuka World Raiders.

"Sentinel?" 

I look up to see Elder Maxson. "Sir?"

"You seem...perturbed, is something wrong, Sentinel?" He asks.

"No, no...Just, there's a lot on our hands you know, Sir?" 

"Cut the formalities, just call me Arthur." He says smiling.

"Yes, of course, Arthur," I mumble. "There's just a lot we have to work with."

"There's is always a price for peace." He says.

"Yes," I say not really knowing how it's relevant. "Of course"

I catch something in the doorway and look up past Elder Maxson to see Paladin Danse signalling me to follow him. I get up from my chair. "Elder-um-Arthur, if you'll excuse me."

"You may be dismissed, Maxine." He says, his eyes still on the map, thinking.

I exit the room and close the door behind me, walking over to my quarters. I pass several Initiates and catch the eye of Sentinel Jackson.

"Well, what you up to, Sentinel Maxine." He says, rather close to me than my liking.

"Sentinel Jackson, pleasure, but I'm needed elsewhere." I respond, not looking at him.

"Aw, I thought maybe you and I could get to know each other better...perhaps in your quarters?" He teases.

"Never going to happen," I say, walking off.

"Sure, Miss Hard to get." He says with a wink.

"What a dick," I mumble.

I finally make it to my quarters, opening it and quickly closing it behind me, sliding the lock. I turn around to see Danse laying on the bed propped up against the wall, I lay down next to him. "Danse, is something wrong?"

"No, it's just..." He sighs. "You've seem stressed, more usual than so."

"There's just a lot going on in the upper ranks, you should be updated on what's going one," I say slightly annoyed.

"I'm a synth, it's going to take a while for people to get used to me." He explains.

"They already were and then I went and fucked everything up." I bury my face in my hands. "I wish I never gave Proctor Ingram that tape."

"We needed it to plan a major assault on the Institue, and because of me we didn't have to wipe out the Railroad-"

"That's another thing," I lean back against the wall. "We're still planning to wipe them out...I'm not surprised you weren't told, you are what you are after all."

"Heh, that's not what I was thinking about though...I'm mean, like the Raiders and C.o.A." He says. "Their new threats, you know?"

I tense at the word raider. "I wouldn't necessarily call them new threats."

"Hmph, I guess not." He says looking up at the ceiling. "Though the Raiders are another story, I've never heard about them before, I also might guess, Nuka-World is filled with resources that would help our cause."

"You could only imagine," I say nodding off.

"I can now can I?" he says moving over me, one hand behind my ear and the other on my side.

"What are you doing?" I laugh as he buries his nose in my neck.

"Come on, I know it, you know it. You deserve a break." He says, kissing my collar.

"Danse, you know I can't-" I take a deep breath in and gently push him off of me. "I have so much work to do. You know when this is all over, you and I will look at the sunrise together on top  of Mass fusion, a beer in your hands and mine in the other."

"I see you've been thinking about this for a while." He smiles.

"Oh Danse, It's the only thing that keeps me going somedays." I smile.

Danse falls over to the side, slightly disappointed. "I'm busy too, I guess. Papers won't sort themselves."

"Are you kidding me?" I yell. "They're having you sort out damn papers?"

"I'm just kidding, I just have a field report to file. Then I'll be back on the ground doing supply runs." He smiles.

"Good," I say pulling one of the straps of my shirt back over my shoulder. "I actually need to get going myself."

"Oh, might I ask what the job is, Sentinel?" He says.

"Just a supply run," I say, grabbing the Strigidale courser uniform from my closet (It's a mod, search it up if you're curious).

"You know you only wear that thing on certain supply runs," He says getting up from the bed. "And on all the supply runs you do I can never see them on the Job Lists?"

I get caught off guard by the observation as I pull the suit over my arms. "And?"

"Are you hiding something from me?" He asks. "You know I don't care if you're going out to see our Railroad friends, right?"

"Yeah, the Railroad," I say. "Not everyone feels the same way about them you know."

I put on my overcoat and attach my gauss rifle to my holster, sliding it across my back. I grab a Nuka Cola off my desk, the logo facing the wall.  "I've gotta go, make sure the place doesn't fall apart."

I kiss Danse on the way out, and I have the feeling he knows I'm not sneaking off to the Railroad. maybe he saw the note attached to the side of the Nuka-Cola I grabbed on the way out:

Don't get yourself killed out there boss.

I don't know why I didn't throw out the note and I kinda regret not doing it. I guess I didn't think Danse would be in my quarters this time of day. I climb up the ladder out of the hull of the Prydwen, and exit onto the deck. I get into the Vertibird, hand the pilot a bag full of caps. "Take me to the Nuka World Transit Center, don't ask any questions."

Dear Lovely Readers, 

Another day, another Fanfiction. I bet you didn't see that coming. Anyways I don't own any fallout characters or concepts except my own, all rights reserved to Todd Howard and Bethesda. Updates will be every Sunday or the 16th of every month (depending on how long the part is or if I skipped, oops). Anyways, leave your thoughts in the comments and vote if you thought it was worthy of one. I hope you have a lovely day (or night)!

Also, thank you @fallout_geek_ for inspiring my lazy ass to finally write this damn thing instead of putting it to the side.

-Mama Jay