Fallout 3 - Beautiful Stranger

Chapter 14 Part 1

The 'decent chow' turned out to be some kind of meat ground up and boiled in a stew. Patience picked at the food in the bowl while Valrie and Gia both wolfed it down like they hadn't eaten in days. Gia even got herself a second helping and ate that as fast as she had the first bowl. Patience, herself, found herself too distracted. The last few hours had thrown up a number of things to think about, not least of which turned on who, exactly, Vincent was.

The canteen, situated on the second floor of the GNR building, had rows of tables and chairs and a hatch through to the kitchen area where Brotherhood soldiers wandered in to get their daily rations. Each and every one of the soldiers sat at least a table length away from the three women, pretending not to stare at the new arrivals and whispering among themselves.

Kowalski and Bitterman remained standing, still ensconced in their black Brotherhood power armour, weapons at the ready and not saying a thing to any of the three, even when asked direct questions. Patience didn't know if they were prisoners or guests. Nothing she saw indicated either way. For certain, they weren't trusted, but neither did she feel any animosity.

"I still don't fucking trust him." Valrie brought Patience out of her reverie, pulling Patience's bowl of stew towards her and digging a lazy spoon into it. "So, he's with the Brotherhood of Steel, or tied to them. He still works for that weasel faced fucker, Moriarty. You can't tell me he hasn't been doing what Moriarty has told him to, up to and including killing people. I know. That's how fucking Moriarty works,"

"I don't know. Does it matter?" Patience glanced over to the other tables and all the soldiers' eyes slipped away. "It doesn't change anything. I don't know these people. I don't know what they stand for. All I know is, I still have to get to Vault-Tec HQ. Everything else is someone else's problem."

"Now you're fucking getting it!" Valrie stuck a thumb out towards the other people eating. "These fuckers aren't the worst in the Wasteland, but they have their own agenda. Not our problem."

"I'm going to steal one of their power armours." Gia, her head down, giving a mournful look into her empty bowl, didn't notice the sudden whipcrack turn of several soldiers' heads at her words. "Then I can be a hero, like you."

"Watch what you're saying, Gia. I don't think these people will understand your sense of humour." She said that loud enough for everyone to hear, hoping they would think Gia was joking, rather than serious, as Patience thought the girl was. "And besides, I'm not a hero."

"That's not what I've heard." This man, planting himself down in the seat beside Patience, didn't look like a soldier. A thick, sleeveless jacket covered a white sweater. A grey beanie hat lolled upon his head and a pair of round, dark sunglasses adorned his eyes. An easy going smile framed by a well trimmed beard and a hand held out to shake. "I'm Three Dog and I've heard a lot about you, Sister."

"Well, Valrie has been exaggerating things." Patience shook Three Dog's hand.

"Valrie! Hey, nice to finally meet you!" Three Dog leaned behind Patience to shake Valrie's hand. "Thanks for all the news you send my way. If I had station merchandise, you'd get the whole damned lot."

"No problem. Just doing my bit for the Good Fight." Patience couldn't be certain, but she thought she caught a slight blush on Valrie's face.

"I'm Gia. I'm a big fan. A big fan!" Gia reached over the table, grabbing Three Dog's hand and pumping it with both of hers. "Oh, god! I'm so excited, I think I just peed a little."

"It's nice to meet you too, Gia." Three Dog laughed and then returned his attention to Patience. "You know, I thought you'd be taller."

"I get that a lot." Patience felt embarrassed at the attention. "I must be a disappointment after the crap Valrie's been feeding you."

"On the contrary. It just makes your story that more relatable." Taking out a pack of cigarettes, Three Dog offered them around, lighting everyone else's before his own. He leaned back in the chair, resting his arm on the table. "You're big news and you've made a name for yourself beyond this little group of yours. I've been getting reports from Girdershade to Megaton and right here in the Downtown ruins. You can't stop the signal."

"Like I said, exaggerated." Patience took a deep draw of her cigarette, released it and glared at Valrie. Valrie grinned and shrugged.

"You saved Sierra from raiders."

"I caught them by surprise."

"Stared down a horde of Super Mutants."

"Something else was going on there. That wasn't my doing."

"Killed two Super Mutants by yourself and saved four people from god know's what horror."

"More luck than anything and I almost died."

"Got your friends out of the Metro tunnels, safe and sound, through dozens of feral ghouls."

"That was a group effort."

Three Dog paused, rocking the chair back onto two legs. He watched Patience through a cloud of smoke and the dark lenses of his sunglasses, studying her. Patience still didn't like the attention. She looked anywhere but at Three Dog, or Valrie, or Gia, but saw other people in the room staring at her. Their expressions had changed from thinly veiled animosity to interest.

"You really don't see it, do you?" Three Dog dropped the chair back onto four legs and leaned in towards Patience, resting his elbows on his knees. "You really believe that bull you just told me. I've never known a more modest, self-effacing bullshit artist in my life. Hell, even the Lone Wanderer knew what they were. But you, you don't even know what you are."

"She's a big damn hero is what she is." Gia stared at her, admiration in her eyes.

Valrie had that look on her face. The one that said she was going to say something honest, whether you liked it or not. The canteen prickled with silence as everyone watched her. It was too much. She jumped up, sending her chair crashing behind her.

"I'm not. I'm not a hero. I'm not here to right wrongs or help people. I just want to find out who I am, where I came from and why I was found dying in the Wasteland. This, all of this, this is the real bullshit. I'm no-one. I'm not better than anyone. I'm not worse than anyone. I'm just ... just ..." She needed to get out of there. There was a door to the bathroom at the other end of the canteen and she barged her way through the Brotherhood soldiers, slamming the door after her.

"Well, she's better at throwing a fucking hissy-fit than anyone else. That's for fucking certain." Valrie took another draw from her cigarette and winked at Three Dog.