ARCHIVED.

    “It’s so nice to see a friendly new face around here,” Eve stated politely, watching Jocelyn with a kind but guarded expression. Admittedly, new people in the Institute made her nervous for her own family. The Commonwealth was a difficult place to live, capable of shaping previously normal people into downright monsters. At least, that was how the other scientists seemed to describe it. For a multitude of reasons, though, she was careful not to let her anxieties show, keeping up with her usual, house-wife facade.

       Justain shrugged, unconcerned by Bruce’s reaction to his lack thereof- what did it matter if the girl would survive or not? It was none of their concern.

    “Why do you think she left the Vault? It seems unwise, considering her lack of ability- what do we really know of Vault 101?” Bedwyr was vaguely aware of some sort of history with the vault, but he never bothered to investigate beyond that. “Star Paladin Cross had something to do with it, once… Didn’t she?” He frowned mildly, trying to recall if only so that he might remember should he come face-to-face with the Wanderer.

  “Dunno,” he grumbled, embarrassed by his outburst. How could Bedwyr just brush off the fact that some random had been allowed into the Brotherhood as a Knight? A position that they had been born into and worked their whole lives for? “Three Dog’s always talkin’ about her dad -- she probably left because of that.” 

        “Really?” Amy couldn’t help but laugh at that- The idea of her Aunt Eliana wanting Cleo to be better at fighting… Well, even her dad had his disagreements with her mom over how impulsive and reckless Amelia could be. Of course, she got it from both of them- that and the penchant towards good deeds… “Yea, alright, I’m ready… Though, if you want, I could give you some shooting lessons while we’re out, too. Impress both our parents with one trip.”

     “What the fuck is wrong with you?” Laura didn’t deign to answer the idiotic question; Vanessa could play innocent all she wanted, but it was abundantly clear just how innocent she actually was. “Whatever fucking game you’re playing, it needs to end. I’ll let this slide one time, but if you hurt any of the people in Sanctuary, especially those I care most about, you will regret ever crossing that bridge- along with a hell of a lot of other things, if you’re still alive enough to feel it.” As she spoke, Laura stepped forward, purposefully getting as close to Vanessa as she possibly could without physically touching her- every inch of space between them was a courtesy, and she had none left.

    She was barely awake as the question hit her, taking far too long to actually register what Beth had said as she sat up. The barrage of queries didn’t help at all- her thoughts were already jumbled with sleep, and once the other woman finished speaking and turned to look at Laura, all she could manage was a heavy yawn.      “– Slow down–” Another yawn, then she stretched, savoring the moment of relative peace before another busy day. “What was the first question…?” 

      “Where are we headed today?” Beth repeated, slower this time. She didn’t bother to apologize for the influx of questions. Curiosity was hardly the worst crime one could commit in the wasteland, and Beth couldn’t imagine that Laura would hold it against her. 

    For a few minutes, Amy focused on digging more than her grandmother- after all, it was a very important task. She even took a small amount of time to ponder the question Eve posed, lifting one dirty finger to her lips to give the illusion of deep thought going into her answer.

  “I think… It should be big enough for Ant! I can’t go to China on my own, y’know.” Nodding seriously, Amy glanced over to her dog, rolling around in an abandoned dirt pile not far off. She was still a puppy, so that wouldn’t be too big, really… Though Amy was sure Ant would grow up to be really big after a few years!

       Eve’s gaze followed her granddaughter, one eyebrow raising in amusement as she spotted Ant. “Of course not. You’ll need a companion in your adventure,” she responded as she packed the dirt on the pile more firmly in. For a moment, her heart ached at the thought that Liam had missed out on the hope for such exploration, and that she had been absent for whatever creative ideas had popped in his head at Amy’s age. At least his real mother had been present for those moments.

“Yeah, I thought I had died too in that damn purifier, but I woke up outside and I feel fine and-oh.” His face falls at her confession. “What…what do you mean? You are Catherine. You look just like her, sound like her, everything…” No, this has to be his Catherine. And what did she mean ‘not in the sense he’s hoping for’?

@radborn liked this for a banter !

“Eve! It’s so good to see you- were you looking for Amy? I think she’s just around back… Here, come in.” Stepping back from the door, Laura gestured towards the kitchen, where something seemed to be cooking. 

        Alia was more focused on the surrogate mother figure she’d finally been reunited with to notice the boy’s attention, at least at first. Her limbs ached and she could feel the deep bruises on the bottoms of her feet from the long journey. Coupled with how easily she was bruising, now… It was hard to focus on much. Before Dr. Li left, in truth, she hadn’t even noticed Liam- it was only when he spoke that her attention was drawn away from the floor and to him.           “Oh-” An apology nearly passed her lips, but she caught herself immediately, remembering what Madison had first told her: ‘Be Confident’… As though it was an easy task for her. “Hi… I’m… I’m Alia. Do you… work… here?” 

“Well, then- maybe I’ll just have to squish you, myself…” She smirked slightly, believing she might have found an upper hand- even if it wasn’t necessarily true that she’d squish Josh. “Well, what kind of books are you looking for? We’ve got quite a few, but I also know someone at the library if you want something specific…”