Your feeling of reluctance dissipated like an avalanche, you liked animals some would even say you were an animal friend. So hopefully this would be close enough. “Sure. Can you walk, or do you need me to carry you?” you inquire of the rotund equine.
“Nice upsies? Yus pwease, thank you mistah. Rowwies make mummah su dizzy when need go pwaces.” You ponder what she meant but no sooner had you thought that had the male gotten further into the den and the female had gently turned in place to be nudged out the exit, rotating ever so slowly. You struggled to keep a straight face observing this, it was as adorable as it was nonsensical. “Ok here we go,’ you add leaning over and she reaches up with her arms towards you. Memories of Shaun before the bombs flood your mind, thankfully you had come to peace with his death and weren’t about to live a fake family life with your synth child and had it decommissioned despite the protests of the science team. “Upsie daisy.”
“Fwuffies name am Daisy?” The curious creature inquired staring up at you with expectant eyes.
“Oh uhm, would you like it to be?” The sole survivor added surprised that the entity didn’t already possess a name. It also didn’t particularly fit her coloration but who was he to judge taste when you wore blue spandex.
She clapped her soft hooves in front of her as you cradled her in your arms. “Daisy wub namesie. Thank ‘ou nice mistah.” The soon to be mother added looking down at her partner as if to ask ‘should I?’ but he shook his head slightly as if to respond ‘not yet’. “Can speciaw fwiend have namesie too?”
“I guess I can give him one if you’d like.” You add not certain of the undertone of their silent conversation as you walked uphill. “How about… Hmm, red and gold… Mato, no… Mutfruit, close but no. . . Blood Durum, or Durum for short.” You’d been cut by razorgrain before and you’d seen the red on gold. Oddly It felt like you were naming a farmer turned raider or something but you liked it.
“Duwum wike. Danks.” As you walk up the hill and around the left hand side of the house you approach a metal door in the junk wall. You shift the fluffy in your arms and take out a key from your pocket and unlock the door. You let Durum in first and then step in after him and close the door behind you.
The fluffies stare in awe, while the outside might look messy the inside was very orderly. The street was repaved and smooth, the grass was green and trimmed like the hedges. Sure most of the houses were no pwetty grey stone blockies for the most part but it felt many times safer then outside.
You walk down the street towards the cul-de-sac turn and there was your house. They thought it was pretty with its light blue plastic paneling, white picket fence and red door. So entranced were they that they failed to notice the turrets buttressed like gargoyles on pedestals supported by white stone columns. “That’s where I live if you need me.” You say continuing walking to the slight disappointment of the two as you approach the old tree in the center of the roundabout. You had hollowed out the tree for Dogmeat to serve as a doghouse at one point but it simply served as a tombstone marker now.
You had the institute make some fake leaves for it that you programmed to change color in the correct season and roll up to look like the tree was barren. You could ask for such vanity projects from time to time so long as you pulled your weight.
“You’ll be living here for now.” You add stepping inside the tree and setting down the mother on the old dog bed.
“Huuu…” The mother sighed slightly but her mate quickly comforted her with a whisper and a hug.
“I know it’s no house but it’s an important place to me. My last pet Dogmeat used to sleep there.” You add picking up the faded red food bowl.
“Whewe bawky mun~ er dawgie now?” The empathetic creature added sensing the dog was a friend to this human before them.
“They passed.” You said standing up with a sigh.
“Passed what?” swollen mare replied.
If it were not such a serious moment you probably would have laughed but the grin soon faded. “They’re dead now. Some very mean people wanted to hurt me and knew it was easier to hurt what I cared about then fight me.” You added turning around. “Wha happen to dem?”
“Daddy gave them, how did you say it before? Forever sleepies?” You added with a sigh. “But lets not dwell on that, have you eaten?”
“Speciaw fwiend bwing wots to gwaze but soon mummah need gud nummies for tummy babbehs.” She certainly didn’t look like she’d missed any meals but he would give them the benefit of the doubt.
“Say no more.” You add heading behind the house and through a door in the fence to the farming area. You kept a variety of crops growing to keep maybe ten people fed at a time. What you didn’t eat or can you traded or replanted. You picked a pair of Mutfruit, some Tato’s, a gourd and a few carrots. You proceeded into the house to your cook stove, laid out the cutting board and set to work. You cut the gourd in half and put on a glove to begin mushing the interior flesh. You chopped up some mutfruit and set it aside next to the tomato and carrot slices before coming back.
“I wasn’t sure what you’d like so I brought a few options.” You added sitting on the ground next to the two who sat at attention as they saw you approach their dwelling. Well at least at attention as the mare could given her predicament.
“Lets start with some tato.” You added placing a piece down in opposite ends of the dog bowl for them to sample. The two nibbled for a moment and consumed their slices. “Gud nummies.” They exclaimed.
“Ok, how about some gourd.” You added taking a dollop of mashed flesh for each of them. “Daisy wub.” “Wike tato bettah.” Durum added unimpressed.
You continued through the selection. Daisy got most of the gourd with a little bit tato, a little bit of carrot and some mutfruit after. She said she liked it but it ‘make teefies itchy.’ Must be the acidity so you got out your canteen and used the bowl for water instead so they could wash down their meals. Durum ate a little of the gourd from his half used as the bowl with more tato and carrots and said the mutfruit ‘tickewed’.
They seemed amazed at the purified water, it was likely the first time they’d drunk clean water if they were living by the creek. But that was strange, if they’d subsisted on dirty water for a prolonged period there’s no way their coats would be this nice, this… Artificial.
You excused yourself and returned shortly with an old ball to distract them and a handheld device in the other. “Baww!” Durum added scampering out of the den excitedly. “Durum, heel.” You added in a stern tone. The fluffy looked confused but sat so ‘task failed successfully’?
“Daisy cant run around with the ball so please be nice and pass the ball between yourselves okay? Sharing is caring.”
“Dat so smawt daddeh. Daisy wan pway baww?” The two proceeded to roll the ball between them, Durum chasing the ball and bringing I back when it got bounced too hard. You waved the wand behind their heads while they were distracted. Sure enough, red.
“Synths.” You added with a sigh.
What had the institute unleashed upon the commonwealth while you had secluded yourself? You intended to find out.
