Veronica considered leaving a note, but the moment the thought crossed her mind, she snorted. No one in the Brotherhood would care if she disappeared; Christine had been gone for weeks, and Elijah had just disappeared into the wastes after Helios. Everyone that was left associated her with the former Elder, and Veronica knew she couldn't take another derisive glance directed her way.

She shoved the rest of her things into a backpack and gave her bedroom one last, wistful look. Leaving behind the Brotherhood to go chasing after Elijah was risky, but Veronica had no other option. The brunette shouldered her bag and nodded to herself, creeping out of her bedroom and toward the bunker's exit.

Vague memories of Elijah discussing potential power sources were Veronica's only guide, but she knew how the man worked, and she knew she was too stubborn to give up so easily.

A few weeks after she left the Brotherhood, Veronica found the first signs of Elijah. Abandoned settlements with broken tech piled in the streets were a guarantee that the old man had been there. With every pile she came across, Veronica's spirits lifted, and she picked up the pace.

It didn't take her long to catch up with her former mentor once she'd caught his trail. Only a few days later, Veronica found herself coming upon Elijah's campground.

Elijah was as paranoid as ever, Veronica realized. The traps he'd set up around his camp would be fatal to anyone that didn't know how to navigate them. She wondered for a moment if she should wait until he wasn't in the middle of fiddling with a particularly fierce looking energy weapon, not wanting to surprise him and get shot.

The glint of a sniper's scope across the valley snapped Veronica out of her thoughts, and her blood went cold with panic. Drawing Elijah's attention would put both him and Veronica herself in danger, and Veronica tried to figure out what to do; she couldn't lose Elijah now, not after coming so far to find him.

She decided to follow her instincts, skirting around Elijah's camp as inconspicuously as she could. Everything in her hoped that she could catch the sniper by surprise and disarm them before anyone got hurt.

Somehow, Veronica made it around to the old building that was the sniper's nest without being noticed, and she was pleased that the door was propped open. She slipped inside, holding her breath as she crept toward the oblivious sniper, who was watching Elijah through their rifle's scope.

Veronica didn't know how much time she had, so as soon as she was close enough, she sprang forward and tackled the sniper away from the window.

The sniper snarled, and the two began a fierce scuffle. Veronica shoved the rifle out of the sniper's hands, only to have an elbow jammed into her gut. She gasped and curled in on herself instinctively, but managed to kick the small sniper away, surprised when the sniper hit the wall with a decidedly feminine grunt.

Veronica did her best to catch her breath before the woman attacked again, hoping that her larger frame would work to her advantage. She shoved the sniper away when the woman tried to pounce on her, scrambling backward to escape the next attack. Her eyes caught a glimpse of a pistol strapped to the woman's leg, and Veronica's heart skipped fearfully.

As soon as she was able, Veronica lunged toward the woman, pinning her to the ground and keeping her hands away from the gun. She lifted her fist to deliver a solid punch, only to have a knee jammed into her ribcage. Veronica was knocked off balance, and the sniper rolled out from underneath her, tackling her to the ground.

They scuffled for a few more minutes, but Veronica found herself pinned and unable to escape. She growled, but a second later, there was a knife pressing against her throat. Veronica froze, the blade sharp and ice cold against her skin. She glared up at the sniper, but her blood ran cold when she realized she recognized the woman on top of her.

There was anger and confusion swirling in Christine's eyes, but she didn't falter, keeping the knife pressed against Veronica's throat.

"Christine?" Veronica whispered, hardly able to believe her eyes.

The sniper paused, the fight for survival fading from her body. Realization flashed across her face and she gasped, pulling away as though she'd been stung. "Veronica? Shit, I'm sorry! I thought you were—did I hurt you?" She scrambled to get off of the scribe, tossing the knife away. All of the ferocity was gone and Christine helped the brunette sit up carefully, concern obvious on her face.

Veronica rubbed at her neck shakily, then shook her head to soothe Christine's worry. "I'm okay."

The sniper's shoulders sagged with relief, and she offered Veronica a smile. "It's good to see you, Veronica. You look great." She studied the brunette for a moment, her eyes growing warm. "I missed you."

Months ago, Veronica would have been tempted to grin and blush, but the seriousness of the situation was too much. She crossed her arms over her chest and fixed Christine with a cool stare. "Why are you trying to kill Elijah?"

Christine's face dropped into a frown, and the disappointment at the ruined reunion was clear on her face. "Those are my orders."

"Orders? From where?" The daring tone in Veronica's voice was obvious to both of them.

"I joined the Circle," Christine answered, her eyes flashing with impatience. "Look, they've got an even longer track record on him than we did. He's been hurting people for longer than we ever knew, Vee, and he's doing it on purpose. So don't you dare fight me this time."

Veronica bristled at the accusations against Elijah. It was clear that the conversation would only lead to yet another fight, and Veronica didn't have the patience to deal with that again. She glanced between Christine and the window that looked out over Elijah's camp, deciding what to do. She was just about to yell out a warning to the former Elder when Christine clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Shut up," Christine hissed. She reached over with her free hand and rifled through her bag, presenting Veronica with a holotape. "Read this before you do anything else." The sniper saw the protest in Veronica's eyes and pursed her lips. "Veronica, if you ever trusted me or cared about me at all, you'll read it."

Veronica paused at the request. That Christine could doubt how much Veronica loved her made the scribe ache. After a moment, she nodded her agreement and took the holotape from Christine's hands.

The sniper hesitantly pulled her hand away from Veronica's mouth, relaxing when the brunette remained silent. Christine studied the scribe for a moment before sitting back on her heels.

Veronica's stomach twisted uncertainly as she activated the tape; she had a feeling that what she was about to read would not be easy to swallow. It took her a minute to work up the courage, but then Veronica began scanning through the records. There were scores of reports from a variety of scouts, and Veronica picked one at random.

The scout had been tailing Elijah for a few days when the former Elder had come across a settlement. According to the report, Elijah had promptly set up a device in the middle of the town, then moved to a safe distance. When the device detonated, the fission batteries in Pre-war vehicles had exploded, thoroughly demolishing the budding community. The details of the devastation left Veronica reeling; she remembered Elijah talking about a device to recharge fission batteries, but had never thought the old man would attempt to build one.

The reports somehow managed to get worse from there. Stories of Elijah bursting into junkyards or salvage shops and murdering the shopkeepers to get his hands on their tech filled the tape. The old man would ransack the place, then become disgusted and leave it all a wreck. Different scouts all reported the same sort of behavior in different locations.

The words on the screen painted a picture Veronica never wanted to see. She lowered the holotape and swallowed hard, tears stinging her eyes. The stories went against everything she ever thought of Elijah, but the sheer number of different scouts that had submitted reports only proved that it was real. Her faith in the old man was shaken, and Veronica felt somewhat like she was drowning. "No, he…"

The grim look on Christine's face was all the confirmation Veronica needed. "It's all true," Christine murmured, glancing over her shoulder to keep an eye on Elijah. Something on her face changed and she scowled. "Shit, where'd he—"

"Aha! Found you!" Elijah stepped into the sniper's nest and cried out in victory.

Before either woman could react, there was a bright flash of light and a loud bang.

Christine yelped and went silent, and Veronica pressed herself back against the wall, trying to hide in the shadows.

"Thought you could follow me, girl?" Elijah hissed, slinging his holorifle over his shoulder. His footsteps were slow and ominous as he walked toward Christine.

Veronica blinked furiously to clear the spots from her vision, frozen in horror at the sight that greeted her.

Elijah had crouched down beside Christine's prone form, sneering down at her. He spotted her discarded knife and reached for it, testing the weight of the blade in his hand. "Fool," he spat, pressing the tip of the knife into Christine's cheek, just below her earlobe. He smiled at the sight of blood, dragging the knife down her neck to her shoulder where his energy shot had wounded her. The recon armor split open effortlessly, and Elijah began examining the next place to start another long slash. "Poor, deluded child. Thinking you would be able to kill me. Ha!" He picked up her limp arm, studying her wrist and rolling the cuff of her sleeve back. "Tell me, have you ever heard of the medieval process of drawing and quartering?"

Veronica's stomach turned over and she finally remembered how to move. She lunged forward and tackled Elijah off of Christine just as he began to press the knife to the small woman's wrist. Elijah grunted and rolled away, and Veronica quickly moved between him and Christine, shielding the woman she loved from her old mentor. "Stop it!"

"Veronica!" Elijah's eyes lit up with surprise, but he blinked and the detached coolness returned to his gaze. "Get out of the way."

"No!" Fear was flooding Veronica's senses, and her hands trembled as she spread her arms. "I'm not going to let you hurt Christine." The stories from the holotape flashed through her mind, and Veronica swallowed. She knew what was probably going to happen, and Veronica wasn't sure she was strong enough to do what needed to be done. "Or anyone else."

Elijah's face immediately snapped into a deep scowl. "You've fallen victim to the propaganda! Think, Veronica," he urged, repeating an old mantra from when he was training her to repair old tech. "Who do you really trust?"

There came a barely-there groan from behind her, just loud enough for Veronica to hear. Christine was alive. Relief washed over Veronica, quickly followed by fierce protectiveness and anger. "I thought it was you," Veronica told the former Elder. "But you took away the people I loved and then abandoned me in a bunker full of people that don't care about me. You talked about helping people and expanding the Brotherhood, but all you did was kill anyone that was in your way."

Elijah watched her evenly, cold fire burning in his eyes.

"But she showed me what it's like to be loved unconditionally. She never tried to hurt anyone, and she went out of her way to make sure the people around her were safe and happy. You didn't do any of that!" The pit of her stomach felt somewhat like quicksand, and Veronica swallowed nervous energy. "I trust Christine," Veronica finished shakily, eyes locked with the man she used to look up to.

Elijah laughed once, the sound ominous. "You were supposed to be different," he told Veronica quietly. "Move. Now."

Veronica shook her head defiantly, determined to protect Christine at any cost. As discreetly as she could manage, she reached for the holster strapped to Christine's leg.

Elijah looked like he might explode and he raised the knife again, pointing it at Veronica. "This is your last chance," he growled.

Veronica was momentarily grateful that Christine had taught her to shoot, and she pulled the pistol into view. She shot the knife out of Elijah's hand, making the Elder yelp in surprise. The brunette tackled him as he reached for his holorifle, shoving the weapon out of his hands. Elijah snarled, and the pair struggled against each other.

Elijah had taught her how to spar, but Veronica had long since surpassed him in strength and skill. She used her youth to her advantage, pinning the old man down. Elijah still had a few tricks up his sleeve, bashing her in the face with his elbow. Veronica's head swam, but she did her best to fend him off. He nearly wrenched the pistol from her grasp, but Veronica dug her knee into his stomach and pulled it free. She squeezed the trigger, and Elijah jerked underneath her. The man clawed at her for a moment, gurgling before going still.

"I'm sorry," Veronica panted, her ears ringing. She crawled off of him and back toward Christine, trying to ignore the bile rising in her throat because of what she'd just done.

Christine's wounds looked horrific, and were oozing blood at an alarming rate. Veronica felt fear worm its way into her gut again and tried to push her emotions away. She checked the slash down Christine's neck, relieved to find that it wasn't terribly deep and had missed the sniper's jugular. The holorifle shot was a different story; it had burned through Christine's recon armor and into her skin, leaving a nasty wound in her shoulder.

Veronica fumbled for her bag, pawing through it until she found some stimpaks. She breathed a "thank you" to her past self for packing them, then set to work injecting them into Christine.

The brunette sat back on her heels and waited, still trying to catch her breath from her fight with Elijah. It only took a few minutes for the wounds to start scabbing over, and Veronica sagged with relief.

It seemed like an eternity had passed when Christine finally stirred, and Veronica moved closer immediately, ignoring the prick of tears in her eyes.

"Hey, Chris," she murmured, cupping Christine's uninjured cheek. "It's okay. You're okay."

An obviously pained wince crossed Christine's face and she struggled to open her eyes. "Shit," she groaned, eyelids fluttering.

"Easy," Veronica coaxed, rubbing small circles on Christine's cheek with her thumb.

Christine's eyes finally opened, and she blinked a few times before focusing on Veronica. "Elijah," she remembered, croaking out the name. She tried to move, but the wounds across her body made her cry out in pain.

"He's dead," Veronica promised, feeling sick all over again as she remembered firing the fatal shot.

Christine managed to look surprised, but then she sagged back into the dirt with another wince. "You're covered in blood," she observed, her eyes flashing with concern.

"It's not mine," Veronica said immediately, attempting a smile at the girl she loved.

Christine tried to lift her arm, gasped in pain, then used her other arm to reach up and gently point out a cut along Veronica's hairline.

Veronica was puzzled until she reached up and felt the warm stickiness of blood. "Okay, maybe some of it's mine. It doesn't matter. Are you okay?"

Christine's eyes lingered on the cut for a few moments before she cringed. "Hurts like hell."

"Don't touch it," Veronica interrupted as Christine reached up to feel her own injuries. "The stimpaks are still working. Do you have any Med-X with you?"

Christine nodded slowly, screwing her eyes shut against a wave of pain.

Veronica gave Christine's hand an affectionate squeeze and smiled. "I'll get it. Don't move." She got up and went to Christine's backpack, rifling through it to find the medication. She found a journal and some tins of Cram, then her fingers closed around something small and round. Veronica frowned and pulled it out of the bag, surprised to see a miniature snow globe in her palm.

A lump rose in the brunette's throat as the memory of giving it to Christine washed over her. She'd discovered the tiny globe on one of her excursions with Elijah, and had snuck it into her bag. Christine had been awed by the gift, and it had always had a special place in Christine's room. The fact that Christine had kept the globe with her after her exile meant the world to Veronica, and she blinked away a sudden rush of tears.

Another hiss of pain from Christine reminded the brunette of what she was doing, and Veronica carefully tucked the snow globe away, locating the Med-X and returning to Christine's side. "Got it. Hold still."

She injected the medicine quickly, then took Christine's hand and gave it a squeeze. The sniper returned the gesture with much more intensity as the Med-X began to burn through her veins.

"Mother of Steel," Christine hissed. "I forgot how much that stuff hurts."

"It'll stop in a few minutes," Veronica soothed, rubbing her thumb over Christine's knuckles.

Sure enough, the sniper relaxed after a while, and she gave Veronica a grateful smile. Christine exhaled slowly, then struggled to sit up.

Veronica wrapped an arm around Christine's shoulders, steadying the smaller woman and letting Christine lean against her. Her mind jumped back to the snow globe, and Veronica was overcome with a rush of affection for the woman beside her. As soon as she was sure Christine was steady, Veronica leaned in and captured her mouth in a gentle kiss.

"I'm sorry," the brunette breathed, her voice trembling with emotion. "When you left, I… I said a lot of things I shouldn't have, and… God, Christine, I'm so sorry."

Christine was obviously surprised by the gesture, but she gave Veronica's hand a gentle squeeze. "Me too. There was so much I couldn't say. I just had to take what I could and leave."

A teary smile grew on Veronica's face. "Like the snow globe."

Christine looked somewhat embarrassed, but her eyes were fond as she gazed at Veronica. "Yeah. It's important to me."

Veronica's smile grew, and she snuck another quick kiss, relishing the feeling of Christine's mouth against hers. "Do you think you can walk?"

"I won't know until I try." Christine shifted, then winced. "Help me up?"

Veronica stood and took Christine's hand, guiding the sniper to her feet. Christine swayed dangerously before cringing, but she steadied herself before Veronica could reach out to help.

"It's… I can manage," Christine said after a moment.

The brunette nodded, making sure Christine wasn't about to collapse before she went and gathered both of their bags. She slung them over her shoulders and scooped up Christine's rifle, handing it to her girlfriend. "Let's see if we can find a doctor."

"There's a map in my bag," Christine offered, making her way out of the shack.

Veronica dug it out, following Christine and stepping over Elijah's body. She stopped and bit her lip, then turned and stared at the dead man.

Christine slipped her hand into Veronica's, giving it a gentle squeeze. They were both silent for a long time, and finally the sniper sighed. "I'm proud of you," she murmured. "I know how much he meant to you."

Veronica nodded once, her eyes filling with tears. She swallowed and turned away, studying Christine instead. "He can't hurt anyone anymore," the brunette said, the words bringing her some relief as she focused on Christine's fingers tangled with hers. She'd lost Christine to Elijah once, and Veronica was overwhelmingly glad he hadn't been able to take her away a second time.

Christine smiled and waited quietly until Veronica was ready to leave.

After a moment, the brunette directed her attention to the map, glancing at the sun to figure out which direction they were facing. "There's a Followers outpost… that way." She compared the distance to the little scale and a half-grin appeared on her face. "It's only a few miles. It shouldn't take long." She gave Christine's hand a squeeze and they took off across the desert.

The wasteland was quiet and lonely, but that was more than okay with the pair; Christine was hardly in condition for combat. Pain sapped her energy quickly, and the walk that should have taken a few hours took most of the day.

The sun was setting when Veronica finally spotted the Followers flag flying in the distance. "Almost there, Chris," she urged gently. "We can make it."

Christine stopped walking, her face twisting with pain. "I'll wait here," she offered after a few moments. "You can run ahead and get someone."

Veronica bit her lip and glanced between her girlfriend and the outpost. Without another word, she scooped Christine up and murmured an apology for the hiss of pain that came from the sniper, then took off.

A few of the Followers came running when they heard her calling for help, and Christine was lifted out of Veronica's arms and whisked away to the doctor. The brunette followed for as long as she could, but eventually a few of the Followers led her to their mess tent.

She was given a plate of food and a bottle of sarsaparilla, though she didn't eat much. Veronica pushed her food around on the plate and worried about Christine.

It felt like an alarmingly short yet eternally long amount of time had passed before a doctor finally ducked into the mess tent. The woman walked over and sat down beside Veronica, grinning.

"She's going to be just fine," the doctor said, patting Veronica on the shoulder when the brunette slumped with relief. "She'll have a few scars for the rest of her life, but there's no permanent damage. The shot to her shoulder was like nothing I'd ever seen before, but it shouldn't affect her once it heals."

Veronica exhaled in a rush and resisted the urge to hug the doctor. "Can I see her?"

The doctor nodded and gave her directions, mentioning that she should take some food for Christine. Veronica grabbed her plate and headed out, quickly making her way across the compound.

She ducked into the tent and scanned it for Christine, her shoulders sagging with relief when she spotted her girlfriend on a cot in the corner. The sniper was awake and looked over at the intrusion, grinning when she saw Veronica.

The brunette hurried over, dropping onto the little stool at Christine's bedside. "Hi, Gorgeous."

"Hey yourself." Christine's slash wound was covered in a thick white salve, and a bandage was wrapped across her shoulder, but she was coherent and alive.

"The doctor said you'd be fine," Veronica said, less worried after seeing Christine alive in front of her. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah. They've got some powerful painkillers in me," Christine nodded toward the IV in her arm. "You remember that time there was an earthquake back in the Core region? I feel kinda like that, but all over."

The brunette bit her lip, not sure if that was reason to worry. "Should I get someone?"

Christine smiled lazily. "Nah. Just the medicine, it's fine." She looked down at the plate in Veronica's lap and chuckled. "What, dinner and a show? Don't think I'm very good entertainment right now, Vee."

Veronica snorted, but chose not to tease the sniper. "Are you hungry? I can feed you." She scooped up a spoonful of the Instamash on her plate and held it out to the smaller woman. "C'mon, here comes the vertibird…"

Christine laughed and propped herself up on her elbow. "God, I missed you, Veronica."

The brunette grinned and helped Christine eat about half of what was on the plate. Veronica finished off what was left, her appetite having returned after seeing Christine alive and well.

The sniper fell back against her pillows with a grunt and smiled up at the canvas tent, her eyes hazy. "I'm exhausted. Or the medicine is making me sleepy. I don't care."

Veronica set the plate aside and chuckled. "Take a nap," she murmured, reaching over to take Christine's hand. "I'll be here."

Christine's eyelids fell closed and she hummed agreeably, her fingers squeezing Veronica's before she drifted off to sleep.

Veronica stayed there, studying her girlfriend until her eyelids grew heavy. Memories of killing Elijah began to fill her mind, but the brunette did her best to push them away. She could drown herself in guilt in the morning; right now, all that mattered was that Christine was okay.

=====:=====

The pair stayed at the Followers outpost for a few days until Christine was fully healed. Veronica didn't have the caps to pay the doctor, so she helped out by repairing the camp's radio and other bits of tech around the compound.

Once the debt was repaid, the women took off, with Christine leading Veronica back to the Circle of Steel's headquarters. They talked for hours, having the freedom to discuss whatever they wanted for the first time in their lives.

Christine didn't bring up Elijah, and when Veronica finally did, the sniper mostly listened. She offered gentle words of reassurance, never trying to start a fight. Her quiet acceptance and love bolstered Veronica, and the brunette worked through her grief without letting it cripple her.

When they made camp for the night, Christine would work on her mission report, writing down the details of Elijah's demise. She'd listen to Veronica talk and run her fingers through the brunette's hair when Veronica used her lap as a pillow, keeping a watchful eye on the wasteland.

Veronica relished the time spent with her girlfriend; she had never been so free to express her feelings for the sniper, and being able to walk along and wind her fingers through Christine's without worry felt overwhelmingly right.

It took a little over a week to reach the Circle of Steel bunker, and when they did, Christine entered a passcode into the door and beckoned for Veronica to follow. Veronica stayed close to the sniper, marveling at the labyrinthian bunker.

Christine led her through the winding corridors, greeting patrolling guards and saluting her superiors. She promised to make introductions later, making a sharp turn and almost losing Veronica.

"Over here," the sniper called, hiding a laugh at the embarrassment on Veronica's face. "Gotta submit my mission report. The elders are all waiting. C'mon, it's just past this corner."

The brunette nodded, wondering if anyone actually knew the layout of the bunker or if everyone was perpetually lost. She followed Christine, coming to a stop when they entered a large room.

A group of old Circle officers were sitting around a podium, their faces impassive as they muttered amongst themselves. None of them seemed to have noticed the two women enter, though Veronica was sure they were used to guards wandering in and out of the room.

"This won't take too long," Christine promised, offering the brunette a smile. "Just wait over here, and I'll get this over with."

Veronica grinned and leaned against the wall, though her stomach twisted nervously at the intimidating sight of the Circle council.

Christine pulled her report out of her bag and headed up to the central platform, saluting and waiting for acknowledgment.

The elders exchanged surprised glances at Christine's presence, a few of them smiling at the young woman. The senior member stood and fixed Christine with an expectant look. "Royce, report."

Christine dropped her salute and began talking. She detailed her chase of the former Brotherhood Elder, handing over her written log of events. "Elijah is dead, sir, and I've brought my girlfriend to join the Circle, since she helped bring him down."

"Girlfriend?" the Elder repeated.

Christine nodded, her head held high. She didn't squirm in the silence that fell, standing tall and proud.

Veronica held her breath, afraid of the backlash she knew was coming.

The Circle officers were stony-faced, disdain evident in their eyes. It was the same expression Elijah had worn when he exiled Christine from the Brotherhood, and both of the girls knew exactly what was about to happen. Before they could say anything, Christine exhaled and pulled her holotags over her head.

"I quit," she said simply, holding out the tags to the Elder.

The silver-haired man looked completely taken aback, staring at Christine like she'd grown a second head.

The sniper stood firm, waiting for him to take the holotags. When he didn't, she dropped them at his feet and turned, heading for the door. She caught Veronica's hand as she strode past, guiding her to the door.

"Royce, think about what you're giving up."

Christine paused and looked over her shoulder. "I'm not giving anything up. I am in love with this woman," she explained, "and I'm not going to hide it because some Codex says to. I'm not losing her again, sir." She glanced at the brunette and smiled slightly. "I quit," she said again. "C'mon, Vee."

Veronica followed Christine out of the room, tears stinging in her eyes because of her girlfriend's speech. "Christine…"

"I'm not going to hide anymore, Vee. I love you and I want to be able to show it." Christine slowed and offered the brunette a smile. "We'll go somewhere else, you and me, and do whatever we want."

Words wouldn't come, so Veronica just grabbed the sniper up in a kiss.

Christine looked dazed when they broke apart, but a goofy grin grew on her face a second later. "I guess that means you're okay with that."

Veronica laughed and dried her eyes, letting Christine lead her out of the bunker. The sun was still high overhead, burning down on the wasteland that stretched out before them.

The pair stared out at the desert expanse for a few minutes, then Christine wound her fingers through Veronica's and offered the brunette a grin. "Where to, beautiful?"

Veronica's ears turned pink and she scoffed, tugging Christine away from the bunker and off into the wasteland. Neither of them were quite sure where they were going or where they'd end up, but they had each other and that was all that mattered.