ORIGINALLY WRITTEN: April 2024
NOTES: A gift for Tumblr user floodl8 as part of falloutfandomeventhub 's Celebradiation Gift Exchange event, which celebrated the release of the Fallout TV Series!
East Coast summers were a lot different than they'd used to be—and much different from the controlled, homeostatic environment of Vault 101. While there had been enough years between that fateful day in October 2077 and now for the extreme fluctuations to plateau, there was still something warmer about the summers. Something stifling. Enough for many of Megaton's residents to keep indoors best they could, while remaining true to their routines. The world didn't stop then; there was no reason for it to stop now.
Moira was one of those individuals who found themselves wandering around the rickety walkways to the town, yelping softly when her exposed arm brushed against the scorching railing. Pouty lips grew more prominent as she rubbed at the pinkened flesh, nose scrunching as the pain subsided quick as it'd appeared. Vibrant red hair was tied back into a neat ponytail, same as it always was, though almost tighter to ensure no loose strands found themselves on her neck. Her jumpsuit was unzipped, the upper portion tied and tucked around her waist to expose freckled shoulders to the unrelenting sun. She stepped away from the railing to avoid repeating her fate, only to find herself nearly bumping into—
"Oh! Hey there Maya!" Her pout quickly turned into a beaming smile. One that almost competed with the great star in the sky. "How are things? Any new and exciting projects on the docket?"
In a world that seemed against Maya every step of the way, Moira was one of the few out there who made it feel a little more like home. Sure, there was Butch who had accompanied her out into the unforgiving wastes with that same passionate—or perhaps naive—spark in his eyes. And sure, there was Charon, who had initially joined Maya's adventures out of obligation, but found himself oddly curious about her. But that was different. They'd come willingly, traversed outside the rusted metal walls with her and faced the cruel, cruel world head on. But Moira? Moira stayed put. Stayed cozy and waited to see that familiar blue suit and nearly-fiery hair bobbing and weaving through the day crowd. Eagerly awaited the trio's shopping trips to hear all about the wild shenanigans they'd found themselves involved with. It was comforting.
It was homely.
Maya couldn't help the smile that crept up on her heat-exhausted features, nor the spark that'd ignited in her brown eyes.
"Well, after you gave me that new energy cell, I figured out what was wrong with the Protectron. Turns out the area around the contacts was shot, so I tinkered with it a bit and got it to stick. Still, better to make sure it was juiced up."
"That's just great! Say—I was just headin' back to my shop, I found something else you might like. C'mon!"
Before Maya could speak, Moira had already turned heel and happily skipped along, idly chatting about this and that as if the other were already in tow. For a moment, she talked to herself, but Maya was quick to join by her side. Anything to get out of this miserable heat. Plus, the extra company was nice! With Butch doing… whatever it was Butch found himself up to, and Charon wandering up to Moriarty's Saloon to pick up on any potential leads, it was lonely back at the humble little abode sat atop its creaking stilts. Besides, the prospect of getting a new toy couldn't help but make the inventor feel a little giddy. She'd seen enough of Maya's projects, both complete and otherwise, to know just what to fish around the stockroom for. Today was no different, as upon entering the general store, Moira gave a perky little 'just a second!' as she dipped behind the desk and sifted through some boxes. Now where was it…
Was this?—Nope, that wasn't right. Nor was the dulled knife felt her knuckle scrape against. Ouch! Was that rusted? Oh, she hoped it wasn't. That would sure be a pain to deal with, and would mean a trip to see Doc Church. Now that was a scary thought. One that made Moira almost instinctively pop her head over the counter to glance around and ensure he didn't manifest before her. He had a habit of that, or perhaps it was known she was the town klutz. Either way, she beamed when she saw Maya patiently waiting. That's right, she was looking for…
"Here it is! Sorry about the wait, haven't exactly cleaned through the new stock yet. With more people coming in and out of the town now that that Vault of yours opened up, it's just so hard to keep up! Anyway—" A slender hand coyly waved about a mess of wires. Nestled beneath it all was a sturdy processor, reinforced and clearly meant for a bot much bigger than either were used to working on.
Maya tilted her head. "What is that from?"
"Oh… I don't know exactly." Moira set it down on the counter, eagerly watching as the Vault Dweller found herself taking it to examine closely. "The fella who brought it in said it was some RobCo processor widget."
"RobCo? There's a factory somewhere nearby, right?"
"Bingo! Anyway, he said that supposedly, if you connect it to the factory's mainframe, you get access to an army of robots! Can you imagine?" Moira laughed enthusiastically, pitch bordering squealing, as she imagined the possibilities. They could turn the factory into its own settlement, or bring this robot army back to Megaton to help bolster protection, or—
"Or get yourself killed."
The voice that'd interjected was raspy; signature. There was only one person in this little town that spoke so succinctly and with a perpetual air of annoyance. Though, in reality, it was only slightly so. Almost half so—He just wanted things to be quick, simple, and painless as possible. Charon folded his arms as he remained by the shop's exit, shaking his head and nodding to Maya. She beamed back at him.
"Tell everyone about that processor?"
Moira tilted her head. "Hm… Nope, just Maya. And now you. And then of course the shop guard here saw the whole transaction—"
"Alright, I get it. Factory's bad news. People go in, nobody comes out. It's dangerous."
"Aw, come on Charon—" Maya set the processor down on the counter and stepped over, rocking on her feet as she thought it over. Yeah, it may have been dangerous, but… "We've dealt with a lot worse than a couple of robots! Besides, all those buildings have deactivation terminals! We go in there, you and Butch cover while I dip to deactivate each level, and we can get to the mainframe easy."
The ghoul's eyes narrowed, arms folding across his chest. He hated to admit it, but she did have a solid plan. Even if it meant it was his ass getting burnt to (even more of) a crisp by the bots' weapons. "… Fine. Get the piece and go find Butch. Or don't. I'll be back home when you're ready."
"Sweet!" Happy arms threw themselves over the man's physique, pulling him into an enthused hug as he'd raised his own in surprise. He grumbled under his breath and reached to lightly pat her back, a subtle smile forming on his worn features. It wasn't much, but it was enough.
Enough for Moira to see and excitedly shimmy her shoulders as she bit back the urge to comment on her little lovebirds in the making.
Was it an adventure he wanted to partake in? Not particularly. But was it one that he'd go on without question? Well, he had his questions, but he kept them to himself if it meant making sure Maya was safe… and seeing her happy. Poor girl needed it now more than ever; it was what she deserved, and even he found it in his calloused heart to admit that.