Chapter Text
"Of course, I've kept this place going strong for three years. To most of the kids, that makes me Mayor for Fucking Life. Fine by me, I say."
- Robert Joseph MacCready, Mayor of Little Lamplight. Fallout 3
They relaxed together until the sun sank below the horizon. If their smiles were shy and affection tentative, neither commented. It was enough for now to settle into each other, soothe the blushes, and enjoy the quiet. For a man who hadn't known much affection, Danse discovered he enjoyed the weight of the merc's body lying against his.
Robert turned his face into the soldier's chest. Lucy had always been his touchstone, a shoulder he could lean on. With Danse, it was that and more. Since Lucy, he'd walked alone through a broken landscape littered with pieces of a long-vanquished world.
"We should get back."
Danse shook his head and tightened his arms around Robert. "Not yet."
"Danse!" MacCready sat up suddenly, breaking the soldier's embrace. "What do you think about staying here?"
Danse raised his eyebrows and started to move away. "No. I couldn't."
"Hear me out. You could grow your hair out or shave your head." MacCready shrugged. "Keep your head covered so you're not visible from the air." MacCready placed his fingers over Danse's larger hand, weaving his fingers with the soldier's. "You could change your name. Let's see. I know! Daniel MacCready!"
"I don't understand."
MacCready noticed the blush stain on the soldier's neck. "I'm saying with a different name; in time, no one will remember a man named Danse. Dressed like a farmer or a scaver, no one will recognize you as a soldier in a BOS uniform named Paladin Danse. I bet Deacon would help us with a disguise.
"Only Gage knows I was a BOS soldier," Danse commented slowly.
"Perfect. Think it over. You're the new Overboss. So make the new rules." MacCready cupped his hand over Danse's jaw. "You'll be safe out here, with plenty of cover and work to keep us busy. Danse, don't think for a second that I don't understand how bad you're hurting. I do."
Danse's eyes widened. "You'll stay? With me? No, you'll give up too much of your own life."
"Whatever my life was before, it ended when Lucy died. Then Duncan got sick, and you know the rest."
"Robert, what do you need out of our relationship?"
"To stand with you. That's what I want. I don't want to go back to the way things were before. Going it alone strips away pieces of your soul."
"Robert?"
MacCready noticed the shine of tears in the soldier's eyes. Yeah, he felt like crying, too. He crawled back into Danse's lap and embraced the soldier with the strength of a man who found his bulwark against the lonely, narrow world of the Commonwealth.
Against his cheek, Danse whispered, "I want that too."
"Gage? I'm not the Overboss. I never went through the Gauntlet."
Gage joined David on the bed. "Truth is, shoving you, naked and unarmed, into the Gauntlet was on the table." Gage shrugged and handed David a cup of water. "Look, David. That's all over. Don't think about it."
"I can't help it. Danse and MacCready are in charge. I've lost RJ. Gage, no one wants me here."
"That's true enough."
David swung his legs over the side of the bed. Gage caught him before he fell. "Whoa, cowboy! Where are you going?"
"I have to get out of here. Now. Today. You can't stop me."
Gage lowered David to the bed with a chuckle. "Looks like I am stopping you."
"No, let me go. They broke me. Don't look at me."
Gage placed a tentative arm around David's rounded shoulders. "They hurt your body. They can't touch your spirit."
"My spirit? That's more philosophical than I expected from you."
"Aww, you know what I mean. They hurt you. Give that some time to heal. You're still the courageous, handsome bastard I watched enter Nuka World like he owned the goddamn place." Gage shrugged his shoulders. "Listen, I like you. Reckon I like you a lot. Those Pack idiots worked you over, but you never flinched. Let me take care of you while you heal."
"I was terrified."
"Yeah, but you never let them see it. Never let them break you down--"
"What are you getting at?"
"Listen, your boys, Danse and MacCready, they're making other plans. Let's me and you get out of here. We'll walk until we're ready to stop, wherever it leads us. Reckon that's the most words I've ever said at one time."
"I like your idea. Let's get out of this place. I'm with you."