You, Me, and the Devil Makes Three (closed)

[LeoLion98]

He would like to believe that there was some amount of good in him. While he was often motivated by personal gain, he was willing to do things out of the goodness of his heart. It just so happened that money was in the equation most of the time.


He listened to her story and nodded along. Though curious about what happened with the guy, he figured it was none of his business to pry. He also knew about Michelangelo, having seen the shop on his way into the Vault. Never talked to the man, but he knew about him. "That sounds pretty interesting to me. How'd ya get into photography? Haven't heard about many workin' cameras out here."


Shaw liked his job. It meant he could travel, make his own hours, accept and decline what he wanted. He got to meet interesting people too. He never really saw them again, unless they needed him as a bodyguard again, but that was okay with him. Getting close with people... well, it was a little hard for him. He could be friendly, but that was about it. Nothing lasted long.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

It was then she smiled, her shoulders relaxing though she kept her hands firmly in her pockets. If there was one thing Mary liked talking about it was art, photography. She always mused that she was born in the wrong time, that she should have had the chance to live before the War, when art was appreciated.


"They're hard to find, cameras that is, it's why I treat mine better than most people treat their kids."


Not that such a thing was hard to do, seeing as how the kids in Freeside were left to run around without any supervision.


That wasn't her place to judge, however, and she reminded herself of that before continuing.


"Anyway, once when I was pretty small a caravan came by and I'd been saving my caps because they always brought cool things into town, and that's when I saw my camera. It was too big for me then, half rusted and the flash didn't work, but I fell in love and I had to have it. The thing didn't even work," she chuckled, shaking her head, "it took a lot of work, but my dad and I finally got it working. At first I just took silly pictures of my parents and our dog but...after a while there was just something about it."


Her tone had softened, something wistful winding its way into her words as she stared off. "Looking at the world through the lens, it's amazing how beautiful things are, how beautiful everything is if you just look at it right. You'll hear people talk about how ugly this place is, how beauty died out with the war, but it didn't. It changed, sure, but it's still there...and I guess there's something hopeful too that comes with it, that the world still has life, that good things can grow."


And, finally, she looked at him. A faint blush settled in her ears, heat creeping on the back of her neck.


"Sorry I- I really just like talking about photography."

 

[LeoLion98]

He didn't know much about art. Hell, he just barely knew how to read. There hadn't been much time for either growing up, only stolen moments, which were few and far between. There was just too much to do, too much work to try and keep a family of six alive on their own. As the oldest child, he had to do most of the work, so he had even less time than his siblings. But it didn't bother him. He liked what he did and it didn't matter if he knew what was a good shot with camera, just a gun.


He listened to her story, a light smile on his face. It was clear how much she loved that thing and what she could do with it. Sure the whole speech about hope sounded a little cheesy to him, but it was also endearing to hear. True passion was something even Shaw knew was important. And it was kind of missing from the Wasteland. Greed was the primary drive for people nowadays, not something that they believed in or loved. And it was clear that Mary had that.


He laughed. "It's alright. I liked hearing it. There's something about a person when they get to talk about what they love. There's a change, almost, but for the better. You can just see it in them." He looked over at her. "Even if they can go on and on and on," he added with grin.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

A change.


She supposed he might have been right. There was a moment in which she wondered, for a moment longer than she should have, if she'd ever catch that change in Shaw not only with her eye, but with her lens. He was interesting, yes, and as much as he seemed to enjoy chatting with her, now that she was thinking about, she hadn't heard that tone of passion and excitement.


Still, she couldn't help but give a quiet hum in amusement, removing her hand from her pocket to push some hair back out of her face.


"It could be worse, I could ramble for hours upon hours about the chemical compounds in photos and how they interact to create images; but I think I'll save that for when we settle down to camp so you can get a good night's rest."


At the mention of camp, Mary realized they were making good progress and the sun had already crept into the middle of the sky, baring down on them with a scalding heat that blistered and and scarred the earth below them.


She waited a beat before another question escaped her. "So, you've been doing this for a few years right? Do you have a favorite job you've ever done, or any fantastic stories so I can laugh along with and at you?"

 

[LeoLion98]

Sometimes, he wondered if that even existed in him anymore, passion. All he ever did was sleep, eat, drink, and shoot anymore. None of that truly excited him, not like Mary was about photography. The only thing he could even consider to be within the same vicinity as that was when he got jobs to find things.


He wasn't only a gun for hire. Sometimes people came to him and wanted something found. He liked when he got to do that. It meant he could explore all the nooks and crannies of the wastes. It was like a treasure hunt, almost. He was an adventurer braving the harsh, dangerous wasteland in search of treasure. Those were the jobs he liked best.


"I'll hold you to that. Might finally have a way to fall asleep properly." Without drinking, anyway.


He looked down at her and laughed. "Oh I have plenty, let me see... Well, there was that time I ended up falling into a gorge full of cacti. Wanna hear about that one?"

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Her brow quirked up at that.


"A gorge full of cacti?"


She didn't bother trying to hide the smile that spread across her features.


Shaw seemed like the sort of guy who knew the world too well to make mistakes like that, or, maybe that wasn't a fair assessment considering most people seemed like that compared to her.


"You've hooked me, I have to know how you managed to do that."


Hands slipping out of her pockets, she strolled easily along side him, her long stride allowing her to keep pace without much trouble at all.

 

[LeoLion98]

He smiled. "Just so you know, it wasn't my fault. I was taking one of my employers out to find something they lost. It was a... backpack, I think, full of supplies. We were going to this cave where she said she lost it. Everything was going fine. No animals, no raiders, nothing. So of course, I'm suspicious as hell by that point. Turns out, I was right. The only other thing in there was a group of fiends, armed to the teeth.


"Apparently I had killed one of their scouting parties a wile back and they wanted revenge. They went on for a bit about how I disrespected them and blah, blah, blah. But, no one noticed that they hadn't quite finished clearing out the cave." Shaw leaned over and whispered like he was sharing a secret. "There was a deathclaw.


"So of course I immediately book it. Some fiends stayed to fight it while everyone else chased me. I have no clue where I'm going on that point, but I managed to get out of the cave through an entrance I hadn't used to come in. It ended after five feet, and that was the gorge. I stopped in time, but the ones who managed to keep up with me didn't. We all fell in and had cactus needles in our asses for a week."

 

[Interstellar Bun]

She'd been trying to not giggle through the whole story, something she found particularly hard to do when he whispered to her.


The end of the story had her laughing, her smile wide and head tilted back as the mental image became all too clear. When her laughter finally started to subside, leaving her to occasionally giggle, she looked to Shaw.


"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph that's an amazing story. I would have paid you to tell me about that one alone."


Well, maybe not, but it was better than half the things she heard working behind the bar. Most people came in with stories of losing at the slots more than losing a battle with gravity.


"I guess they weren't so keen on killing you after that? I mean, I imagine falling into a gorge of cacti is a bit of a bonding experience."


One she never wanted to have herself.

 

[LeoLion98]

That had been a very interesting event. Somehow he managed to crawl out and away before the fiends could. Probably because his armor was thicker, but that didn't stop all the needles. The Followers had a field day trying to fix him up when he got to their fort. That was probably more painful than actually falling in. At least he didn't have to strip down completely.


"Well, they definitely haven't tried to come after me since, so maybe they do have a soft spot for me." He looked down at her and nodded. "What about you? Got any interesting stories?"

 

[Interstellar Bun]

"Who knows, maybe they still have an eye are you, just waiting to see if they can push you into another cactus." Her smile widened for a moment before it slipped away, leaving her looking pensive and thoughtful.


Stories.


She worked in a bar, it wasn't like she'd have tales about fist fighting cazadors or taming deathclaws.


"Well," she began, "I actually didn't grow up here, or in Novac for that matter. I'm from around New Reno, originally, and we didn't leave California until my brother joined our little family. By then I'd gotten into enough trouble for my parents to realize that wasn't the best place to raise kids." It was a small giggle that interrupted her words, making her shake her head as her loose curls bounced behind her.


"It must be hard to imagine someone as sweet as myself growing up on the tough streets of Reno, but I did pretty well for myself. Maybe even a little too well. Some times, after school was out and while my parents were still at work, I wouldn't go home and I'd just wander around to see what I could find. Right before we moved when I was, oh, nine or so, don't ask me how but I ended up at one of the many poker tables in Reno. The guys were nice enough to let me watch and after a while, I thought, well, this is an easy game so I thought I'd join in." She smiled again, rolling her eyes, "I had ten caps to my name that I got from doing chores and the guys laughed at me when I tried to put them down but I guess they thought they'd get me after one round and I'd leave. Who'd want a kid hanging around, after all?"


It was then she looked at Shaw. The shadow of her hat cut across her features, highlighting her sharp cheekbones and almond eyes that looked a little too mischievous.


"I ended up going home with close to eighty caps that night and to this day my parents have no idea that happened."

 

[LeoLion98]

He shot her a crooked smile. "Then next time I'll make sure to watch where I'm running to."


He watched her as she told her story and was genuinely surprised to hear about her origins. New Reno was a crazy place. He'd only ever heard stories and they were all wild. He met a bounty hunter from there once, and she was a little wild herself. Part of him wanted to see the city for himself, but another told him to stay the hell away.


As soon as he heard "poker tables" he knew this would be an interesting tale. And he was very much right. He laughed when it ended. For some reason, he could easily see that happening to her.


"That is fantastic. Shoulda known you were always a smart girl. What did you end up spending it on?"


His guess was something with cameras or candy.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

"I was nine, what do you think I spent it on?" She teased. "I bought a case of soda that lasted me three months, and a book I still have back at the Vault. It's a book of fairy-tales, pre-war even. Its missing a few pages but," she shrugged a little, "I always liked reading it when I was younger."


As to why she kept it? Well, she was a sentimental person. It was why she took photos in the first place.


The sun was starting to heat up, making the earth below them sizzle and crack. The air in front of them seemed to shimmer and shift. It was then she was glad she had opted for such light weight clothing. She would have been absolutely suffering if she had to wear anything heavier than her cotton blouse.


"But what about you? You've told me some about your professional life and your amazing skills as a human cactus...but what about before that? Where did you grow up?"

 

[LeoLion98]

Soda was close enough to candy, so he was sort of right. "I am so telling your parents when we get there and you're going to get grounded," he said. As someone who grew up with siblings,the phrase came very naturally to him. It was the younger ones who often tried to tattle and get their oldest brother in trouble, though. He often went for "Say Uncle" or blackmail to keep them quiet.


He was used to the heat beating down on him almost perpetually, but that didn't stop him from getting a little too warm. He used the back of his hand to wipe away the sweat that had formed on his brow. Shaw took a quick drink from his flask before he answered her question.


He paused. His past wasn't a place he liked to visit. But he had asked her about hers and she answered easily enough. Then again, she hadn't experienced the same things he did. He would answer, but he wouldn't elaborate too much unless she asked him enough.


"I grew up on a farm just outside of Searchlight with my family. Just me, three younger siblings, and our parents."


There. He hoped that would be enough to satisfy her.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

She couldn't help but laugh at his first response, her head tilting back as she did so.


"Oh come on Shaw, you'd narc on me? And here I thought we had something special."


And there was the flask again. She saw it glint in the light and wondered, if only for a moment, why he had reached for that instead of his water bottle. In heat like this, wouldn't that be more reasonable?


Then again, she supposed water didn't have the same kind of kick.


"Three younger siblings? Gracious I could barely handle my brother some of the times. I couldn't imagine having two more of him."


Well, not when she was younger. But now? She loved him. Time and space had made their relationship easier. Sure they had a substantial age gap, but she couldn't imagine a world in which Luke wasn't around.


They continued walking, making good time until the sun started to dip low on the horizon and the air around them cooled. It was only going to get colder, and as soon as that sun was gone, they wouldn't be able to see a damn thing.


At least, not until their small campfire roared to life. As shadows encroached around them, that little bit of light kept things from seeming too eerie and claustrophobic.


Mary sat near the fire and wasted no time at all in setting up a little bed for herself. She kicked her shoes off, keeping her feet on the bedroll to make sure she didn't get sand everywhere.


"So," she mused, "how much more would I have to pay you to carry me the rest of the way there? My feet are killing me."

 

[LeoLion98]

"They were pretty great, so I guess I got lucky."


His answer seemed to satisfy her, which was good. Answering too many questions about his family might make him finish off his flask. And that had to last him to Novac.


When the fire was lit, he settled down in front of it and held his hands out. He may have been warm during the day, but now that it was dark he was cold. The desert was weird like that. One extreme and then the next, on a loop. He supposed that could be a metaphor or poetic or something, but all it meant to him was more shit he had to survive. But that was alright with him. He never understood poetry.


His shoes remained on, and just off of his sleeping roll. He would take them off when he went to sleep. His boots were so well worn on the inside that they were actually comfortable.


After a quick once over, he said in his usual not-so-serious tone and with that smile that never seemed to fade, "Fifty caps. I'm pretty sure I've carried more than your weight in supplies back to and from the Strip before."

 

[Interstellar Bun]

A smile grew on her features when she heard his words, something warm lingering there. Sure some part of him still made her a little nervous, but Shaw was shaping up to be a pretty nice guy. Maybe it was because she was paying him but, hey, whatever worked.


"You'll have to keep an eye on me if a sand storm hits, you know, I might just blow away."


The sky seemed to grow above her as she lay back in her sleeping bag. She wriggled under it, the quilted cloth hiding her from the cold of the night. Crackling, the fire spit sparks into the sky and warmed the foot of her sleeping bag, allowing her to focus on the endless array of stars. She could never get a good photo of them, they were elusive muses that taunted her with their beauty, meant to only be enjoyed for a moment rather than immortalized in a polaroid.


The thought made her smile some, less for the thought itself and more for the fact that, had she said it aloud, Shaw would have laughed at her.


"I'll see you in the morning, Shaw."


And with that, she shut her eyes and allowed herself to drift to sleep.


----


Hands were in her hair.


Pain behind her eyes making her yell in surprise as she was ripped violently from her dreams. Panic consumed her so quickly it felt as though she had fallen right into a nightmare that had haunted her for too long.


"Joseph!" She fought, her hands gripping the hand in her hair, nails digging into the skin. Her vision, blurry with sleep, sharpened as soon as she felt the cold metal of a gun press against the side of her skull.


"Oh lookie here! Looks like we got a fighter this time. How cute." She could hear the smile in the man's voice as the barrel of the gun dug a little farther into her temple. "And it seems like you have experience with these sort of positions, hmm?"


Heart pounding in her ears, vibrating in her chest, she watched as the second man in the duo gave Shaw very much the same treatment. It was still late, or early, she couldn't tell. The fire was out and the sun had yet to rise. The stars were still there. Watching them.


"Experience enough to know I'll walk away alive while you might get a serious case of high speed lead poisoning."


The retort came almost casually, like they were having a normal conversation.


The man behind her snorted at that, seeming to be genuinely amused.

 

[LeoLion98]

"I'll make sure you don't. I'll even add it to my job description."


He laid back too, not intending on sleeping. Someone had to keep watch, after all. He would ignore the fact that his eyelids felt immensely heavy and just watch the stars for now. Instead of focusing on how nice they would look in a picture, he named them in his head. His parents had taught him a fair few constellations so that he could navigate without a map or compass.


If Mary had spoken out loud Shaw most certainly would have laughed. It wouldn't have been mocking, of course, just... amused. He didn't know a whole lot of people that talked like that.


"See ya in the morning," he replied.


Just as he started looking for Orion, his eyes closed and he was out. And that was perhaps the worst mistake he could have made.


----


He was up the moment he heard her shout. He shot up and decked whoever was closest to him, but immediately was put into a choke hold by someone else. He felt a gun against his head - how many times had this happened now? - and he stopped moving.


"We'll be having none of that now."


Shaw ignored the man and looked over at Mary. One of them had her by the hair. He expected her to look scared out of her mind. Instead, she gave a witty retort and looked more like she was ready to kick some serious ass. He had to admit, he was impressed. That didn't stop him from kicking himself though. He fell asleep when he was supposed to be keeping watch.


"Is there a reason we received such a rude awakening?" he asked. "I was having a very wonderful dream too, so I'm hoping it's worth it."

 

[Interstellar Bun]

The familiar tune of Shaw's voice made Mary's eyes flicker over to him. He was in a bad spot too.


Glancing at him, making sure he hadn't already been injured, that was the only thing that made the anger in her eyes flicker away, if only for a moment. Her grip on the man's wrist tightened, keeping a sharp hold on it as she allowed herself to sway when he tugged at her hair, moving along with it so the subtle amounts of pain he intended to inflict never came. That part, she thought, was psychological. Whomever these two were, they'd preyed on people before.


It was the man who held a gun to Shaw who spoke.


"Don't worry, you'll get to dream for a long while after this." The smile on his gaunt features was audible and thick. "Here's what's going to happen, kids, so listen up. My associate here 'n I are going to take all your things and if you're really good, we'll leave you tied up out here so you can burn together in the sun. If you try anythin' funny, anythin' at all, we'll blow your fuckin' brains out."


"You know, that's really not a good idea."


Silence.


"What did you say?" It was the man who had her who spoke once more, leaning in so she could feel his sticky breath on her cheek.


"Did I stutter? I said that's not a good idea. Of course I'd be more surprised if you actually came up with a good idea, seeing as how you'd need another brain to even be considered a half-wit."


Her hair was released, her hands slipped away from their grip on his wrist, and in one smooth motion the gun cracked against her temple. Pain exploded from behind her eye. Her head hit the ground and she only had a moment to blink and gather her thoughts before the man was yelling, swearing at her. Whatever she said had, without a doubt, hit a sore spot of his.


The gun cocked and suddenly, she wasn't there anymore. She was in the apartment. Elbows aching from hitting the tile. The monster loomed over her, hand up, fist ready to find its home on her cheek again.


Her legs, long and thin, darted out like a snake strike. Her toes touched and she yanked, pulling the man's ankle out from under him and the gun fired into the sky, the blast making her ears ring.


The man who held a gun to Shaw loosened his grip and turned to face the commotion.

 

[LeoLion98]

He saw her look at him, saw concern on her face briefly replace the anger. He nodded slightly and her features once again became hostile.


He had a witty retort on the tip of his tongue ready to go, but it died as soon as he hear Mary speak. Damn. She was way feistier than he originally gave her credit for. Either she just so happened to be like this naturally when confronted, or she had been in situations like this before and knew how to adapt.


The second he saw the man loosen his grip, he knew what was going to happen. Before he could shout, the gun slammed into her head and she went down. But she was done. Her legs shot out and tripped her captor up and he fell. His gun went off. The man holding him made the mistake of turning.


Shaw shot his arm up to the one with the gun and shoved it away from him and pried the other off of his neck. He spun around, swinging his fist with the turn. It landed squarely in the man's nose with a sickening crunch. Blood dripped down his face and Shaw's fist.


The merc quickly grabbed the gun that had been pointed at his head and pointed it at the man who had had Mary. "Here's what's going to happen, kids, so listen up. You're going to get the hell out of here and leave us alone, or else..." He looked at the gun in his hand and smirked. "Well, I think you get the picture."


He wanted to go over to Mary and make sure she was okay, but he had to get these guys away from here first. Then he could check on her.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

Everything that happened after Mary yanked the man's feet out from under him was a blur. She could vaguely hear the sounds of Shaw's scuffle over the blood rushing in her ringing ears,and when he spoke, she figured he had a hand on the situation. Bracing one hand on the rough, hard dirt below her, Mary sat up slowly.


Her stomach churned, nausea almost making her lay back down as her vision seemed to darken slightly. Blood had dripped into her eye as it followed the high slopes and contours of her cheeks. Shutting the eye to prevent any actual damage, she watched Shaw as he held the others at gunpoint.


Well, he'd at least earned his keep.


The man who had been holding Mary at gun point seemed to be on the verge of doing something very stupid before he saw Shaw's easy smirk. He scowled, hands curling into tight, white knuckled fists. There was a moment in which he made eye contact with his friend before he slowly stood, as to not alarm Shaw.


"If we ever run into you assholes again you're dead, you hear me? Dead."


He jerked his head, motioning for his friend to follow, and the two would be killers vanished into the night.

 

[LeoLion98]

He saw his companion sit up out of the corner of his eye and felt some relief. At least she was able to do that much. But, he saw red and knew she was bleeding. Not as good. He let that fuel his anger and make his smile and the look in his eyes more dangerous. Intimidation worked wonders.


He quirked a brow as the man considered his options. For a moment, Shaw thought he might actually try something. Luckily for him, he made the right decision and gave up.


"Yeah, yeah, yeah, just get," he said, sounding bored with their threats. In fact, he was. This was not the first time his life had been threatened for getting the best of an attacker.


The moment he was sure they were out of sight, he dove to the ground next to Mary. Any hint of the facade he had a moment ago was gone.


"You're bleeding," he said, not even bothering to ask if she was alright because it was clear she was not.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

He moved too close to her too quickly and Mary could feel her muscles snap to attention, tensing as she braced herself to be hit again. There was a moment in which her movement paused, hand hovering above her backpack as she glanced at Shaw. It seemed like, right then, trying to remind herself that he wasn't about to raise a hand to her wasn't going to help.


She let out a shaking breath from between her teeth and scooted a little away so she could reach her backpack easier.


"Yeah, getting hit with a pistol might have something to do with that."


There was a small cracking sound that set her nerves back on edge as she twisted the top of her water bottle off. Tilting her head back, she opened her bloody eye and flushed both it and the wound clean. With the blood gone, the gash was easier to see. It didn't look too bad, ideally she'd probably need a few stitches, but things weren't exactly ideal out there.


It was already starting to swell with a dark bruise.


"Head wounds bleed a lot though, even the minor ones." She hoped, if nothing else, maybe that would make him feel a little better. "Could you grab me a cotton square and some medical tape? The bleeding might start again if I move my head."


And from the angle she had it tilted, she couldn't exactly see what she might or might not be grabbing.

 

[LeoLion98]

He saw her pause when he moved closer. Was it in surprise about the fact that he actually cared? Or was she scared because of what just happened? Her aggressive attitude could have just been a cover for what she was really feeling. Despite the numerous times it had happened to him (or maybe he should say because of how many times it had happened to him), Shaw knew it was impossible not to be at least a little scared about the fact that someone is pointing a gun at your head.


He watched her pour water on her wound and he felt a little better about the situation. It wasn't as bad as he thought. Even though he knew that head wounds bled a lot, seeing that much blood still concerned him.


"Look at that. You're a badass and a medic," he said, defaulting to humor. It was mostly for his own sake. You either laugh or you cry, and Shaw always went with laughter.


He reached into her bag, moving a little more slowly than he normally would. Should she still be jumpy from the ambush, he didn't want to make things worse by moving too fact just out of the corner of her eye. He grabbed what she requested and turned back to her.


"Want me to do it?" It was the least he could do for letting this happen.

 

[Interstellar Bun]

A laugh escaped her, something sharp and short, the film of anger and agitation covering what would have been a genuine sound otherwise. She was still too wound up for her own good, too ready to fight or run.


"It's fine, you already scared off two killers, I couldn't ask you to bandage my wound too."


With that, she took the pad and tape and set to work. A sting jolted down her face and neck as she pressed the cotton against the wound. With only one hand and her teeth, she managed to rip off parts of the tape and, feeling around her features only for a moment, get the cotton firmly attached to her skin. It was a rough job, but it was just meant to stop the bleeding, to hold everything together - her peace of mind included.


Sitting up, there was a moment in which she let her eyes shut. Even then, she didn't look peaceful. Not with the way her hands had rolled in to fists around the thing of tape, or how her slim shoulders seemed like they were made out of rigid glass. It wasn't raw, fresh fear that was painted in her form as adrenaline rushed away, it was experience, one that left her skin feeling like it was covered in the bruises of memories.


Then, she sighed and looked at Shaw, the moment of guarded vulnerability passing as quickly as it came.


"Did you hurt your hand when you punched that guy? Seeing as how I'm a badass medic now, I thought I might ask."

 

[LeoLion98]

He wouldn't push her to let him help and watched as she bandaged her wound. Part of him wanted to make a joke about how her mom would probably kill him for letting her daughter's pretty face get messed up, but he held his tongue for once.


His eyebrows scrunched together as he watched her, worried. She was wound as tight as a spring, but seemed to relax a moment later. Or least pretend that she was.


He looked down at his hand, which still had nose blood on it. He was a little sore, but other than that he was fine.


"I don't think so, I've broken plenty of noses before... Are you okay, though?"