Prologue: Soft But Estranged

Notes: Sequel to "No Place for No Hero". If you haven't read that, you probably should. :)

Dawn approached and the fluorescent brilliance of New Vegas would soon dim as daylight stretched over the wall encasing the city. The gaudy luminescence that was part and parcel of The Strip would be less of an eyesore as night receded and the casinos began powering down for the day.

All except for the Lucky 38.

Realizing it was pointless to keep the wattage at its highest setting at all hours, Mr. House didn't waste needlessly. He hadn't remained extremely wealthy for the past two and a half centuries by throwing money away unless he knew there was a payoff. But Robert House had still wanted all who gazed upon New Vegas to know who was in control of The Strip. He made sure to make his position clear by leaving the lights of the Lucky 38 on - day or night - allowing it alone to remain at full splendor.

Looking out through the open doorway from the safety of Vault 21, Sarah Weintraub let out a quiet sigh as a pink hue edged over the sky. There was only one reason working graveyard at her hotel-cum-gift shop wasn't a complete drag of the clock and her spirit along with it. She spent a good chunk of those lonely hours looking out at the night sky, her back to the casinos. The bright intrusive lights of the Lucky 38 left her with a headache most times, and while her current view of the sky wasn't clear, the stars sometimes shone through and she was still utterly fascinated by their beauty.

She was still not able to step foot outside, however. On the rare occasions she'd been forced to leave her Vault, fear kept her focused on each step, eyes glued to her feet as she pressed each against the ground. Her attention needed to remain locked there or there was the chance that she would completely unravel. The unfounded paranoia constantly threatened her with visions of getting sucked up into the vastness of the wide-open outside of the vault she had grown up in.

She shuddered and crossed her arms over her torso protectively, stepping back from the open door. The thought never got easier, no matter how much time had passed since she had been forced by Mr. House to become part of the 'surface'. After he ordered the majority of her vault be filled with concrete, she and her brother had fought to retain some of their home intact. But their world had been whittled down to only the topmost layer of the vault that was left untouched.

Momentarily lost in her gloomy thoughts, her posture snapped up when her eyes caught a figure heading towards the NCR Embassy across the road in the early morning light.

Sarah's baby blues widened. There was something in the way the figure walked. The stride was long, each step purposeful and efficient, no energy wasted. There was a sense of wanderlust there, too. It was in the way the figure's head swiveled and took in her surroundings as best she could, never staying in one spot long. It was a she; that was obvious from the height and the build. It was also in the long, dark braid Sarah recognized from afar, even though the clothes were different. The courier had stopped by before, stayed for weeks in her hotel at one point before leaving rather abruptly.

Sarah frowned, hesitating as the other woman paused outside the Embassy gates. She had always been confused by the young woman. She hadn't liked her, couldn't quite put her finger on the why. But exposed to the courier once again, she guessed it could be as simple as how they each earned their living. Traveling from one place to another and sleeping in the wide-open like a wild animal was something Sarah couldn't even contemplate without hyperventilating.

She was tempted to just let her walk on, as troubled by her presence now as she had been the last time. But the courier owed her caps and didn't seem in any hurry to pay up.

There was also the small matter of Sarah's missing lover. Benny hadn't been around, hadn't swung by in the last couple of days, and given that the courier was the only reason Sarah had met Benny in the first place... Her sudden presence had something to do with Benny's absence, she was sure of it.

"Courier Six!" she yelled across the broken street, giving in to her curiosity before the courier walked through the gates ahead. The muted noise wasn't unusual on this end of New Vegas with only Vault 21, her brother's studio and the NCR Embassy as the points of interest. Vault 21 didn't ooze the glitz and glamour the other casinos did but Sarah didn't care - it was perfect as it was in her eyes.

Across the way, the woman turned. After a pause, she began walking towards the light spilling out of Vault 21, steps slower than the brisk pace exhibited earlier. It was then that Sarah noticed the robotic sphere emitting beeps floating near her head, its lights on and a whirring sound getting louder the closer they got.

The courier had definitely been odd when they'd first met but now…

"Hi, it's good to see you again." Sarah's tone was cordial, upbringing taking precedence over her dislike. "I'm hoping you remember that you left behind - oh my, what happened to you?"

It was rude; she was aware of it and if her mother were still alive, she would've cuffed her behind the ears for it as well. But Sarah's eyes were glued to the ugly scar that was on the courier's temple as she finally came within the light. It was bright pink, the scar tissue raised and puckered with jagged edges that spread out. The ends of it traveled into her hairline and Sarah couldn't imagine the pain the wound must've caused as gruesome as it looked on the woman's sun-browned face.

"Occupational hazard," the courier replied with a shrug, pulling her braid over one shoulder before her tone turned curious. "But you were saying...?"

Sarah tore her eyes from the scar and met dark blue eyes. But they remained blank as she studied Sarah in return. Her tone had been casual, almost friendly but there didn't seem to be any recognition there. A stab of irritation lanced through her.

And to think that I kept her abandoned crap safe all this time...

Feeling slighted, she tried to bottle it up. It had been the right thing to do as a hostess, keeping the belongings of one of her patrons. But she'd be damned if she wasn't going to charge for them. Her tone was less amicable this time. "I was going to ask if you were ready to pick up the stuff you left behind? If you remember, I said there'd be a fee and you paid for that first month, but weeks have passed and-"

"Whoa, wait a minute - I left something here?" The courier's brows had risen and the robot beeped beside her. A small smile spread on her face as her gaze went from the robot to Sarah again, losing the distant look that had overcome her for a moment. "Of course I'll pay the fee. And I'm sorry for the inconvenience. It truly must've slipped my mind."

Sarah was a little mollified, the sheepish look the courier was giving her clearly showing some remorse for her forgetfulness. "Well, it's good that I had some room in storage, otherwise I would have been forced to sell it." Backing away from the front entrance into the interior, the courier and robot followed behind her. "Especially when more stuff arrived after you left."

"More stuff?"

"Yeah, you got a package delivered here along with a letter." Sarah reached for her key ring and unlocked an unobtrusive door near the front desk. Inside was a closet full of vault suits, all of them in differing sizes and shades of blue. On the floor was a green duffel bag and next to it a small crate. A large, loopy scrawl of 'Juniper-Courier Six c/o Vault 21, New Vegas Strip' was written on the wooden surface in greasy black strokes. A letter was lying on top, ivory envelope sealed to the surface with wax.

Sarah had been curious and had debated reading the letter for weeks. She hadn't in the end but she promised herself she would when she gave up on waiting and finally sold the stuff. Maybe now she wouldn't have to force it open. Maybe the courier would open it in front of her if her curiosity won out.

She studied the courier but the other woman's face remained impassive, eyes glued on the items in the storage closet.

"… How much do I owe you?" she finally asked, not tearing her gaze away from her belongings.

"Uh, fifty caps should cover it. Oh, and maybe you could answer a question of mine?" Sarah's tone had gone from slightly disappointed to shy so quickly it almost embarrassed her. Sharp blue eyes met baby blues and Sarah forced herself to ask the question, her face becoming pink. "Have you seen Benny?" She sounded as worried as she felt and tried to pass it off with a smile. "It's just that I usually see him during the week and I haven't seen him since Tuesday… It's not like him. I know you're friends, he would send you messages while you were staying here…"

She hoped she didn't sound desperate. But she didn't let it stop her; this was probably the only way she would find out if Benny had made a run for it. Her uneasiness with leaving her childhood home, even to go out on a date had probably become too much for the Chairman. Not that she blamed him since it was always the reason her relationships didn't last.

But she'd been hoping this one would, especially after he let slip that he was trying to get rid of House one night with too many bottles of the straight vodka he preferred…

"Can't say that I have but if I do, would you like me to pass the word along?"

The courier was studying her with renewed curiosity and Sarah wished she wasn't blushing so obviously. But she forced her embarrassment down, knowing that she wasn't brave enough to venture out to look for him and nodded at the courier in response.

"Alright, I'll do that, uh…?" The courier trailed off uncertainly.

"Sarah."

"Right," the courier nodded before pointing her chin at the closet again. "Mind if I get my junk outta your way?" She reached into her satchel and pulled out a container of Mentats, opening it and starting to count out the rows of caps lined up inside.

"Oh, of course." Sarah took the caps she was handed and backed up as the other woman bent to pick up the envelope, breaking the wax and tearing it off the crate. She was in full view as the courier pulled out the letter inside. Or what Sarah assumed was the letter, the paper was folded to resemble a…

"Is that a… what is that?" Sarah could almost name it, some of the books from the vault library had pictures of them but the word was eluding her.

"... It's a horse," the courier clarified, her tone awed. She held it up to study the careful folds, handwriting on portions of the paper, a rapt look on her face.

Sarah recognized it too, her memory of a zoology book coming back. "That's right! Who's it from?" Her mother would have boxed her for her nosiness too. Sarah was sure of it.

But the courier didn't answer and her gaze had that faraway look again. She carefully put the paper horse in its envelope and slipped it into her duster pocket, kneeling down to loop the duffel bag over a shoulder and grab hold of the small wooden box. Bracing herself on bent legs, she stood up again, grunting with the effort. She re-balanced her stance before she turned to look at Sarah, a sincere look in her eye. "Thanks for keeping my things, Sarah. You have no idea how much you've changed my life today."

Sarah frowned in confusion at the comment but returned the kindness, her manners still honed. "I should thank you as well. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have met Benny."

At that, the courier, winced, expression becoming apologetic. She looked at Sarah for a long moment and Sarah had to wonder again what the woman could be thinking. Her tone was pensive when she finally spoke. "I don't think we ever realize how much we affect other people's lives, huh?"

It was Sarah's turn to stare at her blankly but the courier didn't wait for a response, turning without another word. With the robot trailing her, she left Sarah alone with her thoughts and many more questions that what she started with this morning.

She really didn't like that courier, Sarah finally decided, walking away from the door to rearrange her gift shop, finding some calm in the familiarity of straightening the knick-knacks.