Nuclearbinds - Another Hammer To Fall ! - Tumblr Blog

a low rumble of thunder hums through the air. catherine swears she can feel the electricity, coiling like a snake, building around them. despite her own unease ( she never much liked storms herself, though they were few and far between in d.c. ), she keeps her expression cheerful.

❝ well, i'm no replacement for your dad, of course, but i'll sit with you, ❞ she says. ❝ you know what, how about a distraction to pass the time? why don't you tell me about yourself, rose? about your family? ❞

She pauses momentarily, glancing at the other woman as she tries to think quickly. Storms always made her so nervous, and while usually Rose was able to quell it, she'd been venturing forth further without the protective stance of her sister to make her feel more at ease.

She frowns a little, looking at the other woman for a moment before drawing in a quiet breath and rubbing the back of her neck.

"I know I know, I just...storms aren't really my favorite thing. Ever since I was a little girl, and normally my father will sit with me until I'm able to sleep properly."

Vulnerable Meme

For those moments when you have your guard down. “My muse” refers to replier. Send…

🎶  to catch my muse singing to themselves

🎼  to catch my muse dancing

☹️  to catch my muse having a mental breakdown/panic attack

😪  to catch my muse up late because they couldn’t sleep

🍸  to catch my muse drinking alone

🚬  to catch my muse taking a smoke break

☠️  to catch my muse after getting injured

🎉  to catch my muse alone outside during a party

✏️  to catch my muse doodling

👁️  to catch my muse looking at themselves in the mirror

🎲 for random/dealer’s choice

practicing coloring this god awful yellow/orange show aka screencaps that have me Thinking

perhaps her quick identification of charlie proves that her maternal instincts remain, somehow ingrained into the scattered version of herself that madison's pieced together.

she freezes, hand falling away from her mouth as she surveys her daughter. she looks so much like james, but catherine can see bits of herself, too.

❝ i — ❞ she begins. her mouth moves but no further explanation comes out. ❝ i suppose you don't. ❞ she finally manages. ❝ but i know you. ❞ out of muscle memory, her right palm grazes her stomach. how many times has she reached down, surprised to find the flesh beneath her hand flat? she wouldn't wish that hollowness upon anyone.

❝ do you remember a woman named madison li? ❞

Similarly, Goodneighbor was a place that captured her interest from the ever instance she set foot in the Commonwealth, rumors of a location with the means to glance into one's memories and with the lack of many, it'd been a opportunity that she couldn't afford to pass by her. Irma and Dr. Amari were helpful in the procedure which turned out to be a success, but Charlie was admittedly struggling with wrapping her head around everything she got back.

The Third Rail was a comfort amidst it all and for that, she was thankful, between the music and the company. She enjoyed sitting and talking with Magnolia and Whitechapel Charlie. But nobody can take the place of the friends she'd made over in the Mojave - or the ones from her birthplace in DC's ruins.

She missed them and sticking around Goodneighbor moping wasn't an option. Sooner or later, Charlie planned to go back home.

It was in the middle of a quick run along to the bar that she heard her name being uttered, not Aries but Charlie, and she couldn't help but turn towards the source, eyes equally widened but with mild confusion.

"Do I know you?" She didn't intend to sound blunt. Catherine's face wasn't one she recognized - as much as James had spoken highly of her over the years, he never had any pictures to show Charlie.

his expression grows thoughtful, dark brows drawing together in concern. the wasteland is so complex. such nuance seldom presented itself in the institute. the scientists saw things as black and white; human and synth; worthy and unworthy.

❝ i'm sure some did die, ❞ he relents quietly. chris tries not to think of it. he hardly knew any of the other synths, sentient or otherwise. the institute never allowed them to socialize. ❝ but there are some things worse than death, aren't there? ❞ he tilts his head, eyes searching nora's. ❝ if the other option was to stay down there forever ... ❞ he trails off. ❝ i'm grateful to be alive, but it's only worthwhile out here. when i get to choose who i am. ❞

at her next question, his posture straightens, his mouth setting stubbornly.

❝ yeah, i do. ❞ who knew when liam and z1-14 would have been able to set them free? and even then, the institute would never stop seeking him out. ❝ maybe there was another way, but you clearly did what you did because you believed it was the right thing. the safe thing! ❞

he doesn't feel good about the bloodshed, would have never been able to kill to gain his own freedom, but that's why hard decisions fall upon people like nora. people who make the difficult sacrifices to protect others.

❝ it doesn't sound like it was an easy choice, either. ❞

nora holsters her pistol to her leg as soon as chris begins to talk, already aware by his tone that he means no harm and that this isn't just some plot to trick her into letting her guard down. of course, there's a part of her that remains wary, but for now he's given her enough to let her trust him. there's nothing more she'd love than to trust everyone she meets right off the bat, but experience has taught her that's not possible in this world. it's something she's sure chris will experience soon.

she listens to his explanation attentively, staying silent as she takes in all the information. he doesn't know if anyone else made it out. got rushed out in the chaos. and he thinks she ... saved him? all of them?

nora's brows furrow deeply, a look that's more irritation than confusion. it's not really targeted at him; it's a product of all the criticism she's faced, all the people telling her she made the wrong decision not to issue the evac when she feels she did the right thing. she's the general, right? it's her job to make the hard decisions, so that's what she did. she wasn't going to risk anyone in the institute hurting anyone else in the commonwealth ever again; they'd caused enough harm and their scientists had only contributed to it. they didn't deserve to live.

the risk was too high. kill the ant's nest, rid the commonwealth of the problem once and for all ... how could she trust that the people who escaped if she issued that evac wouldn't come for her or her settlements later? put her loved ones at risk? take and take and take from her until there was nothing left? no. no loose ends. no second chances. no lying awake at night wondering when or if they might attack.

"i didn't save you," nora responds quickly, sternly. "i chose not to issue an evac and killed countless others before i blew that place up." nora's brows soften somewhat, trying to piece together his opinions in her head. "you could have died if you hadn't gotten out of there in time. maybe some other synths did." it was a chance she had to take to ensure the safety of the commonwealth.

there's a brief pause as nora glances over chris again: she feels somewhat guilty for offloading this onto him, but here's a chance to finally settle on whether her decision was right vs. wrong for good. and, truthfully, over the past few weeks this decision has been tearing her apart. what hurts more is the fact that some of the people she cares about disagree so strongly ...

"do you still think i saved you?"

when did having big guns shoved in his face start feeling like old hat? pushing that thought aside for later, james resists a roll of his eyes, slowly raising his hands to indicate he means no harm.

his leads on shaun grow colder by the day, further convoluted by the institute's silent involvement in his kidnapping.

he would be lying if he said that hasn't made him increasingly desperate.

❝ my name's james. you're lea, right? ❞ god, he hopes this is lea, and that he hasn't instead stumbled upon some wasteland lunatic. ❝ i'm looking for my son. rumor has it you might be able to help me with that. ❞

@nuclearbinds x Nate

Someone's after her; it's no one she recognizes from the Institute and, unless they brought more humans in, it means it's either a synth or someone who has nothing to do with the Institute itself. Tesla cannon ready, just to be safe, she presses the button in her belt that is meant to activate the code that'll confuse the synth and make it go away, and since it does nothing, then human it is. Maybe he's not even after her, but one can never be too safe. "Hands where I can see them or I fry you," she warns, peeking from her temporary house's window. "Who are you?"

@radiaking said: ❛  you didn't hear a word of what i just said, did you?  ❜ - for eden?

she checks a fake watch — leftover habit from years of keeping a pip-boy on her arm. ❝ sure didn't, partner, ❞ she says, giving her wrist a tap with her pointer finger. ❝ i'm off the clock. no one's paying me to listen to anybody. ❞

she takes him in fully, then, blue eyes narrowing.

❝ if you're here about the cowboy ghoul job ... that got filled ages ago. little too niche for two of you, don'tcha think? ❞

trusting her comes as second nature, but not even chris can stop the nervous flicker of his eyes to nora's lowered pistol. it's hardly the first time someone's waved a gun in his face since he made it out, but it still surprises him from her. she's supposed to help.

❝ i — there was so much going on ... ❞ he trails off. ❝ those of us that were ready to go got rushed out in the chaos. before anything blew up. ❞

in hindsight, the institute's destruction seems almost anti-climatic. a rumble beneath his feet, and it all disappeared to nothing.

❝ i don't know how many, ❞ he admits, shrugging helplessly. ❝ less than twenty, if everyone made it out. once i got my bearings, i ran. ❞

he wrings his hands together, giving her a onceover. she looks different than before; something in her face, her eyes, strikes him as off from the woman he caught glimpses of in the institute.

❝ you saved me. all of us, ❞ he says finally. ❝ i owe you everything for that, so i'll tell you whatever you want, whatever i remember, which means i can tell you that i don't think the others will harm anyone. we just want to be free. ❞

@nuclearbinds said, "i really don't know very much. honest." — fallout sentence starters

nora's fingers itch on the trigger of her pistol but, ultimately, she lowers it. the other has been quite forthcoming about being a synth, and nora isn't here to cause any more harm to his kind as long as chris doesn't mean her any harm. she still isn't sure of that last part, however, so she narrows her eyes, fingers still wrapped around the pistol but no longer aiming it at him.

"how many of you are there?" she asks, wondering how any synths could have made it out alive after the carnage she created in the institute. she gunned everyone she possibly could down, mostly scientists; doctors; synth guards. there'd been no ill-intent towards the innocents, the synths forced into slavery, so there's a small slither of relief that at least one synth managed to escape. maybe they managed to get out after she killed father, even before she blew the institute to high heavens. almost on cue, nora demands, "how did you get out?"

she's happy to help. eager to, in fact. but she's spent hours chemmed up, awake in bed, wondering whether some synths might now hate her after she failed the railroad; god knows other people do. she's not going to take any chances with treachery, not now that she has shaun to think about ... not now they're finally clear of the institute once and for all.

* MAYBE I'LL SAY MAYBE. [ . . . ] sentence starters from interplay entertainment's fallout: a post nuclear role playing game. feel free to change pronouns / tense as necessary.

we've got a problem. a big one.

simply put, we're running out of drinking water.

tough times tan the human hide.

have you been through the mountains west of here ?

you must answer my questions or leave. this is not a matter of choice.

i mean, it is home and all, but it's so boring !

this place gives me the creeps,

little light on funds, huh ?

you're worse off than i am, friend.

i was young, but i do remember that.

i was in bad shape, and . . . well, i passed out.

how the hell should i know ? [ name ] would've known if anybody could.

all i got is clothes and freedom, and the latter's debatable.

that is nightmare city, why the hell you asking about that ?

anything i can do for you ?

get your butt in here and sit down.

you look like you're new here.

my name's not important.

i have come seeking a blessing.

no way, spaghetti face.

i hope for your sake that was an attempt at humor.

attitude ? i'll show you attitude !

i'm not that kind of girl, mister.

well, you might be right. it's gonna cost you, though.

i really don't know very much. honest.

you sound scared.

never cry over spilled milk . . . or damaged goods.

does your brain hurt too ?

evil is when brave people can't be brave anymore.

there's got to be a moral standard somewhere !

don't fret, i keep a straight word.

is there another method we haven't thought about ?

world to ashes, ashes to growth.

you think the rest of us could survive that ?

it's not like i know how to do anything useful.

i know you're trying your best and that means a lot.

my heart bleeds for them.

you are walking death, a plague in human form.

where you step, blood flows like a river.

the world tends toward destruction, so we try to make a difference.

that's kind of two - faced, isn't it ?

luck has nothing to do with it.

i have faith in you.

it's silly of me, i know.

you have a problem with how i do this, you just keep it to yourself, got it ?

this would mean that all my work has been for nothing.

i think i know who the liar is.

you are a villain. you're just denying your inner feelings.

you're lying !

you're denying the facts right in front of you !

i am not here to answer your questions. you are here to answer mine.

there is no hope.

leave now, leave, while you still have hope.

i've made a lot of tough decisions since i took this position. 

you're a hero.

you have to leave.

her brow furrows, frustration etching itself into the faint lines of her forehead. it smooths as quickly as it appears, and catherine slumps in her seat.

❝ it used to be much easier, ❞ she says, letting out a humorless laugh. ❝ i had james and project purity, then eliana. i knew where i was needed. ❞ now, her baby is grown, her husband dead and the purifier up and running, all without her interference. ❝ but now, i'm not a wife, or a mother, or even a scientist. ❞

she thinks of madison, tries for the millionth time to reconcile her with the little girl she once knew and the ambitious woman she last recalls, prior to these last few months in the institute.

❝ i hope you won't be too hard on madison, ❞ she adds quietly. ❝ she was lonely, and, well, no one knew her like me, i suppose. ❞ in another life, it might make her chuckle, to think of the stoic dr. li foregoing all rationale to recreate her best friend. ❝ we grew up together, her and i. goodness, i don't know that we were ever apart until -- ❞

she catches herself reminiscing and flashes jamie an apologetic smile.

❝ it sounded as if you and eliana have known each other for some time, too. are you from the capital wasteland? ❞

It's hard for him to deny that this was all feeling INCREDIBLY familiar, especially considering the fact that beyond the simple fact that he had already lived through experience, this had more than a little rippling impact on everyone involved. Her very presence had sent Eliana into a practically catatonic state the moment the came face to face.

HE LISTENS, something he is typically much more sparing with, but as per the special request, he was treating this as what it was. A special edge case in an otherwise largely clear experiment of how to bounce back from the apocalypse.

"It...you, you're complicated for her. Though she never told me much, the information I did gather is something that would take a NORMAL circumstance years to untangle. I want to be clear, you are of no fault in this, and despite how she might act and how...EXTREME her reaction was, she is unlikely to hold any of this against you."

He clears his throat, trying to figure out how to navigate this fully. It's a hard situation to understand, especially considering the fact that she didn't have ANY CHOICE. One could be forgiven for thinking she was right to feel overwhelmed.

"That's different, Dr. Li's mind is brilliant, and despite her flaws I have always respected her for her pragmatism when it came to science. And while she had a lapse in judgment, you're not to blame for that."

BEFORE HE CAN CONTINUE, her response comes. Purpose. It's ironic to him that PURPOSE is what she seeks answers on, when in truth even he couldn't answer that for her. He pauses once again, hands folding before him before he exhales quietly.

"...I'm afraid I can't answer that for you."

@butnobodyhome liked for a starter from catherine!

❝ hm. ❞ catherine tilts her head upwards, wide eyes watching the airship float past. she recognizes the brotherhood insignia, even before they begin declaring themselves. the brotherhood of steel she knew ( the one tainted by madison's disdain for the faction ) never wielded such firepower. ❝ what do you make of that? ❞ she asks, leaning back against the power noodles bar and reaching for her half-finished bottle of nuka cola.

❝ looks and sounds like trouble to me. ❞

DAISY RIDLEY as Helena in The Marsh King's Daughter (2023)

❝ buddy, you are preaching to the choir right now. if i had a nickel for every time i've seen the military trick people into some bullshit in the name of the greater good, ❞ he snorts, upper lip pulling into a snarl. ❝ i'd have plenty of nickels. ❞

his own military service still eats away at him. all those lives lost, and this is what it got them: the same story, played out in different scenery. war never changes and all that nonsense.

he scratches at the stubble on his jaw.

❝ look, i just want them to take the hindenburg junior and get the hell out of the commonwealth. it's not my fault everyone else is out for blood. i'm just their desired weapon. a pawn like everybody else. ❞

he doesn't bother to hide the resentment in his voice. it doesn't escape his notice that every faction is clamoring for him to do their dirty work. not even the minutemen have escaped that entirely.

❝ a guy wakes up, dead wife and missing kid, and suddenly he's savior of the wasteland. standards aren't high out here. ❞

"Rest assured Paladin Danse's temperament is..."

HE TRAILS OFF, trying to figure out how best to phrase it without making him sound like a dog on a leash. Despite everything, the man had been beaten on enough by the circumstances he now faced.

"...a work in progress."

It's the best he can say. However when he continues speaking, the mention of the Brotherhood, there's something of a bit of frustration that hits him. Jamie had SOME of the same thoughts, but he had the full picture, JAMES DID NOT.

"I will see to it that his ramblings stay to himself, but to be clear; this is but ONE instance of the Brotherhood, it does not reflect on the whole organization. Despite the actions of the collective, there are plenty of people within it who are deserving of mercy."

her lips part, but kate can't speak. shaun looks at her, indignant and scared, and it reminds her so much of james that it simply knocks the wind out of her.

even as the stranger approaches and speaks, she can't tear her gaze away. her hand lifts, as if to touch the glass again, but shaun ... the synth ... only scrambles further away.

❝ why? ❞ she finally forces out, her voice trembling. tears prick at her eyes, then trail down her cheeks. weeks of work and travel, of sleepless nights, of shoving down her grief because her baby needs her, and this is it? a synth boy in a clinical, white room, locked away like an animal in a zoo?

finally, she turns her head to the woman. something stirs in her gut, a sense of familiarity she can't quite place.

❝ who are you? and where is my baby? ❞

@nuclearbinds - for Kate from my Lea

"It's just a copy. A synth." Her mother, her real living mother, has actually managed to reach the Institute, drawn there by the little con the Institute played involving Kellogg and that synth; clearly she hasn't realized that the fake Shaun stayed in Diamond City more than a decade ago, if she thinks the copy might be her current kid. And even if she's forced herself to not think of a possible reunion, she can't help but wonder if her mother can look at the boy's features and recognize the similarities between them. "I'm sorry, you weren't supposed to see that... You also weren't supposed to be able to reach us..." She's frustrated, because the last thing she wanted was to trap her surviving parent there just when she was about to escape. She's not even ready to face her. Too much of a hassle. "That is what your child looked like years ago, under Kellogg's care. It's been a while."

thinking about the time i picked off a decent chunk of the brotherhood with a sniper rifle while doing a james playthrough, so i told myself i was just sticking to his canon skillset, when the reality is that i'm very bad at videogames and kept getting murdered on sight any other way

WHAT DO YOU MEAN ? a collection of various questions that can be asked. feel free to change around anything that needs to be !!

" what do you mean ? "

" oh, so now you can tell me ? "

" are you asleep ? "

" do you hate me or something ? "

" can i help you with that ? "

" is that blood ? "

" where did you find this ? "

" do you remember how it used to be ? "

" do you miss me ? "

" can you turn out the light ? "

" did you have a nightmare ? "

" will i always be second best ? "

" why do you love me ? "

" did you apologize ? "

" do you want more rest ? "

" are you okay ? "

" are you going to finish that ? "

" where are you going ? "

" is that smoke ? "

" didn't you quit drinking ? "

" does your mother know ? "

" are we going to be parents ? "

" how do i look ? "

" can i hold you ? "

" is that a puppy ? "

" can i kiss you ? "

" where did that scar come from ? "

" can you hear my voice ? "

" will you shut up for a second ? "

" are you satisfied ? "

" where are you ? "

" where the hell did you go ? "

" why do i smell smoke ? "

" did you try to make me dinner ? "

" will you go out with me ? "

" will you go on a date with me ? "

" will you marry me ? "

" could you please kiss me goodnight ? "

" are you kidding me right now ? "

" did you shut the door on your way out ? "

" can you see me ? "

" did you get a picture of it ? "

random little details about chris:

he loves fixing things and, in all verses, is a wiz with technology and general manual labor (think plumbing, carpentry, etc.).

his favorite possession is the bits and pieces of a record player that he fully intends to make usable some day. bringing him parts or records for it will make you his best friend instantaneously.

loves all animals, but is particularly fond of cats.

can be dense at times, despite having a high emotional intelligence. sarcasm sometimes goes over his head, and he might not always realize when someone is being mean to him.

finds children/babies adorable but also lives in abject horror about how small and breakable they seem

he is a big ol' romantic and a huge sucker for pre-war dating culture, like giving flowers and going on dates

loves to read and will read anything. random instruction manuals included

yes, he is a grown man. yes, he will hit you with Puppy Dog Eyes, regardless

a weirdly good pickpocket, but he will only do it if prompted and for good reason

goodneighbor draws her in like a moth to flame; it promises a place for misfits, and heaven help her, catherine certainly feels like a misfit these days. a faint guilt gnaws at her, though it's been a couple weeks, now, since she left madison and escaped the institute.

the railroad told her of a place called the memory den, suggested she go there to have her memory wiped and start a new life, free of the bonds of the institute and the real catherine's life before it.

tempting as it is, she can't go through with it, can't erase what little identity she has. she passes the business right by.

it's when she's looking for a semi-friendly face to act as a guide that a shock of red hair, not entirely unlike her own, catches her eye.

she turns, eyes widening. she knows that face, once saw it through the static of the gene projector.

her girl. her baby girl.

❝ charlie? ❞ she blurts out the name before she can help herself. her fingers rise to her mouth, as if she can usher the name back between her lips. / @arcanumsolitude

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

@bldrdsh said: ❛  i didn't think you'd care so much.  ❜ from jamie @ james

❝ well, you know what they say about assumptions. ❞

he quirks a brow, expression guarded as he assesses jamie. maybe he doesn't totally blame him for thinking the worst. he can't say the wasteland brings out the best in him.

❝ danse and i might not be best buddies. ❞ an understatement. everything to do with the brotherhood makes his skin crawl. ❝ but i don't want the guy dead, for christ's sake. both of you are welcome here. anytime. for any reason. i just hope he checks all the brotherhood bullshit at the door. ❞

crossing his arms, his mouth twists into an uncertain frown. ❝ selling your soul to folks like that ... it doesn't end well. ever. ❞

@bldrdsh said: ❛ do you think we're gonna survive this? ❜ dorothy @ catherine

❝ yes, yes! of course, ❞ she says, reaching out to lay a reassuring hand on the young woman's forearm. ❝ this storm will pass us right by. we'll be fine. ❞ she gives her arm a gentle squeeze before releasing it, walking a few steps away to peer out into the street. any creature or human with any sense has stowed away like them, leaving an eerie silence and a rapidly darkening sky in their wake.

❝ don't worry your pretty little head, sweetheart, ❞ catherine continues, turning on her heel to go back to dorothy. ❝ you'll be home and safe with your family soon enough. ❞

humanity was almost extinguished, their spirits becoming part of the background radiation that blanketed the earth. independent fallout multimuse, featuring various original and canon characters. 21+. written by sky. / site.

@bldrdsh said: ❛ this day feels like it's never gonna end. ❜ penelope @ june

❝ all in a day's work, though, right? ❞ she says, forcing an exhausted smile. she takes a moment to lean against a barely standing fencepost, checking her weight against it before she relaxes completely. ❝ i haven't had a day like this in ages. in a way, it's kind of nice, being there for people again. ❞

june's smile brightens, more genuine this time as she gains a second ( or is it a third or fourth? ) wind. her hands fall against her thighs as she straightens back up. ❝ i think we've pretty well cleared this place, though. bye-bye raiders! ❞

she juts a thumb at a house down the street. ❝ i saw a few books and things i want to take back with us before the elements get them entirely. mind helping me carry them? ❞

@bldrdsh said: “Let’s get you some food.” from marshal @ either kate or james :]

hands on her hips, kate lets her head hang, chin near bumping her chest as takes in a shaky breath. she should have left this to the minutemen. sanctuary hills had only been her home for a short time when the bombs fell, but that doesn't change a damn thing, because, here she is, turning her neighbors' lives to scrap, all while pretending her own home, dilapidated as it is, doesn't even exist.

she gives another glance from beneath her lashes at the family photo that elicted the reaction in the first place. she can't even remember the names of the smiling faces peering at her through broken glass and two centuries of dust.

all those people ... and not a soul to remember who they were.

marshall's voice startles her, and she stands ramrod straight. she hurriedly swipes away a few stray tears she hadn't known escaped her.

❝ lunch already? ❞ she asks with a weak smile. ❝ i was just finished here, anyway. ❞