{"sf1_id":1509825,"sf2_id":"k1VvAKY1","title":"Love Me As Though There Were No Tomorrow (Chapter 6)","author":"STRONG","words":3454,"posted_at":"2019-11-05T05:23:33.000Z","tags":["Anthro","Cute","Fallout","Human","M/F","Nightstalker","Snekdog","Snuggles","Violence"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1509825-love-me-as-though-there-were-no-tomorrow-chapter-6","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/k1VvAKY1","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/5d/a2/5da22801-2bc3-4981-b8d2-466d5d33204b","description":"After a successful hunt, Boomer and Gracie head off to start there hunt for parts.","content":"Chapter 6: Something Just Like This\n\n\\\u003eLoud foot falls startle you awake, causing you to grab your LMG and Aim towards the noise\n\n\\\u003eAdrenaline courses through your veins as you look down the sights\n\n\\\u003eA few NCR troopers Stop what they are doing to look at you, fear painting their faces\n\n\\\u003e\"Calm down Boomer, Standard drills\" you Hear Major Dhatri's voice to your right\n\n\\\u003eYou look towards it and see him walking towards you\n\n\\\u003e\"Sorry, should have warned you last night, but I suppose we're lucky you don't have a missile launcher or a fat man with those reflexes\"\n\n\\\u003eGracie has woken up as well and cloaked, although you can still feel her weight on you as well as a few trembles\n\n\\\u003eYou sigh and lower your LMG, setting it down carefully\n\n\\\u003e\"Drills? against what?\" you ask as you stretch\n\n\\\u003e\"Anything really, just because we're near the strip doesn't mean we can get complacent\"\n\n\\\u003eYou set a hand on Gracie's cloaked head gently\n\n\\\u003e\"Tell that to the gate guard who can't figure out how to clean his rifle\" you say with a frown\n\n\\\u003eYou had been sleeping so well, but there was no way you were going to fall back to sleep now\n\n\\\u003eToo much adrenaline, too much activity\n\n\\\u003eThe weight of Gracie's head disappears from your lap and you watch a shimmer in the air appear before you\n\n\\\u003eLooks like she's getting dressed\n\n\\\u003eYour mind wanders to her wide hips and....Assets\n\n\\\u003eYou shake you head of these thoughts and stand up\n\n\\\u003eyour armor creaks a bit and so do a few of your joints\n\n\\\u003eThis wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep\n\n\\\u003eConcrete on top of concrete with a bedroll doesn't make the best bed, but it was better that out in the wastes\n\n\\\u003eGracie uncloaks next to you\n\n\\\u003e\"Can we leave here Anon? These guys are too noisy and keep staring at my butt\"\n\n\\\u003eYou had noticed that too\n\n\\\u003eNCR Troopers staring at Gracie, not only because she was an anthro, but because she was \"Extra thicc\"\n\n\\\u003eYou had heard that in passing at some point\n\n\\\u003e\"Yea Gracie, Let's get out of here\" you say as you begin packing up\n\n\\\u003eA quick rumble of your stomach reminds you to eat before hitting the road\n\n\\\u003eWere you above stealing food?\n\n\\\u003eNope.jpg\n\n\\\u003eYou beckon Gracie close with a finger\n\n\\\u003e\"You think you can cloak and grab us some food Gracie?\" you whisper into one of her long ears\n\n\\\u003eShe smirks and disappears from view\n\n\\\u003e\"One sec\" you hear a quiet whisper in your ear\n\n\\\u003eThe shimmer that is Gracie moves quickly, but eventually you lose sight of it\n\n\\\u003eHow that man yesterday was able to track her so well is beyond you\n\n\\\u003eYou continue packing up, no need to stare\n\n\\\u003eGracie said she used to rip-off raiders before she met you so this wasn't too different\n\n\\\u003eThe NCR weren't your friends by any means\n\n\\\u003eThey were a means to an end, a stepping stone\n\n\\\u003eYou finish packing up and lean against the wall, waiting calmly\n\n\\\u003eA tug on your sleeve and a short hiss surprises you\n\n\\\u003e\"I got some food, Lets go, I'm gonna stay cloaked\"\n\n\\\u003eYou nod silently and head towards the gate\n\n\\\u003eSo far so good, no one notices anything odd as you slip out the gates\n\n\\\u003e\"HEY BOOMER!\"\n\n\\\u003eYou scowl and look around\n\n\\\u003eIt's the inept gate guard who can't keep his gun clean\n\n\\\u003e\"What?\" you say annoyed\n\n\\\u003e\"OH uh.. Where's your friend? The cute Anthro?\" he asks looking around\n\n\\\u003e\"She went ahead of me to scout out another bounty, I'm gonna meet her there\" you lie through your teeth to him\n\n\\\u003e\"Oh.. Well put in a good word for me to her, she's a cutie!\"\n\n\\\u003eWhy does that annoy you more than it should?\n\n\\\u003e\"Uh huh yea, can do\" you say as you leave\n\n\\\u003eYou walk and follow the walls of the camp then east as soon as they let you\n\n\\\u003e\"Come on out\" you call to the sands\n\n\\\u003eGracie appears before you with a pleased grin on her muzzle\n\n\\\u003e\"I got some good stuff!\" she touts, handing you 3 MRE's\n\n\\\u003eShe holds an open one, eating the contents with her paws\n\n\\\u003e\"It's good! it says meal on the bag!\"\n\n\\\u003eYou smile\n\n\\\u003eMRE's were great for food, high calorie count; perfect for travels\n\n\\\u003eYou stash 2 and pull open the 3rd\n\n\\\u003ePouches fill it plus a water activated heater\n\n\\\u003eWater is too much of a resource to use to heat the food so you use the plastic spork to eat the \"tort-a-lee-ne\" whatever that was\n\n\\\u003eTastes good regardless\n\n\\\u003e\"Good grab Gracie\" you say in between mouthfuls\n\n\\\u003eYou see her tail wag frantically\n\n\\\u003e\"Thanks Anon! Where are you off to now?\"\n\n\\\u003eYou look at the screen of your pip-boy\n\n\\\u003e\"The Gun Runners will has a silencer for your gun, I'm sure. We're headed there then to vault 11\"\n\n\\\u003eShe smiles and you both walk, eating your MREs\n\n\\\u003eLucky this area is patrolled by the NCR after the battle of Hoover Dam\n\n\\\u003eIt makes travel fast and easy, plus paved and maintained roads help a ton\n\n\\\u003eBefore noon even hits your passing the Sharecropper fields, grabbing the occasional fruit or veggie\n\n\\\u003eThey know you well enough to let you grab a few crops\n\n\\\u003eGracie watches as you point out each crop and explain what they are used for\n\n\\\u003eCorn, Mutfruit, Barrel cactus, and Agave\n\n\\\u003eAs you're explaining how to use honey mesquite pods when you hear loud sniffing\n\n\\\u003e\"Anon! D-do you smell it!? It's.... It's her!\"\n\n\\\u003eHer?\n\n\\\u003eBefore you can ask Gracie runs off shouting back to you\n\n\\\u003e\"She's Here Anon! She's really here!\"\n\n\\\u003eYou don't know what she's talking about but you know you're near the Gun Runners booth\n\n\\\u003eYou run after Gracie, hoping for answers\n\n\\\u003eWhen you finally catch up to her you're out of breath and she's looking around, sniffing wildly\n\n\\\u003e\"I-I smelled her! She was here! Sister was here, I KNOW she was! But where is she!? I was so sure!\"\n\n\\\u003eYou look around with your hands on your knees, panting slightly\n\n\\\u003eNo one is around except the Gun runners Protectrion\n\n\\\u003eYou swear you hear a \"Order confirmed\" from it over Gracie's Sobs\n\n\\\u003e\"Payment accepted\"\n\n\\\u003eNo one is there though\n\n\\\u003eBut that isn't what bothers you\n\n\\\u003eGracie has fallen to her knees, tears pouring from her eyes\n\n\\\u003e\"I-I thought I found her! I know that smell! W-w-w-here is sheeeeee?\"\n\n\\\u003eShe breaks down crying\n\n\\\u003eFor the first time in a longer time than you remember, you feel your own heart ache\n\n\\\u003eNot since your Grandfather died, since you left Nellis\n\n\\\u003eYou don't know what she's talking about, you smell nothing\n\n\\\u003eBut seeing the usual happy-go-lucky, clingy Gracie reduced to tears\n\n\\\u003eThat breaks your heart, more than you ever thought it would\n\n\\\u003eYou Wrap your arms around the Crying Nightstalker, pulling her closer than you ever have before\n\n\\\u003e\"It's ok Gracie, it's ok... I don't.. I'm here\"\n\n\\\u003eHow do you comfort someone when you don't even understand why she's crying?\n\n\\\u003eYou try your best, you guess\n\n\\\u003eShe sobs into your shoulder, hugging you tight\n\n\\\u003e\"I-I-I Wanted to meet her Anon! I know her smell! But s-s-she's not here!\"\n\n\\\u003e\"I'm sorry Gracie, I'm here though, I'll always be here\"\n\n\\\u003eAre you willing to make that promise now?\n\n\\\u003eFeeling her tears soak through your armor, tell you yes, you are\n\n\\\u003eYou've felt this same sadness\n\n\\\u003eOn those lonely nights when you realized you can't ever return home, when it hit you harder than normal\n\n\\\u003eBoth of you are kneeling, in front of a booth and protectrion\n\n\\\u003eAs you try so hard to console her, you feel something\n\n\\\u003eWind? A dust devil? Sand?\n\n\\\u003eIt gently wraps itself around you both\n\n\\\u003eYou don't know or care though\n\n\\\u003eAll you care about is her, making her feel better\n\n\\\u003e\"I'll be watching\"\n\n\\\u003eA voice you don't recognize, as faint as the wind blowing grains of sand\n\n\\\u003eSo faint it might be the sand\n\n\\\u003eYou feel Gracie's ears twitch against your cheek\n\n\\\u003eWhat was bothering her, you might never know, but you don't care\n\n\\\u003eAll you know is the tears and the sadness\n\n\\\u003e\"It's Ok Gracie, it's ok, we'll find her\" you tell her, pushing her hood down and running your hands down the scales on her head\n\n\\\u003eThe only audience you have for this spectacle is a robot, what do you care!?\n\n\\\u003eShe needs you now\n\n\\\u003eYou feel her cries slow and a few hiccups\n\n\\\u003e\"I've got you, I've got you, it's ok\" you coo, rubbing gently\n\n\\\u003eBefore long you feel her pull you in closer, her tail wrapped around you as far as it can\n\n\\\u003e\"Thanks Anon\" you her her murmur\n\n\\\u003eYou pull away slightly\n\n\\\u003eThe tears fall slower from her eyes\n\n\\\u003eSlow enough for you to wipe away with your thumbs\n\n\\\u003e\"I've got you, Gracie, I've got you\"\n\n\\\u003eHer mismatched eyes look at you; blue and yellow, round and slitted, looking into your own boring normal eyes\n\n\\\u003eYou manage a pained smile\n\n\\\u003eYou might not know what she's talking about, but you know what she's going through\n\n\\\u003eAnd you can try to help make her feel better\n\n\\\u003eA few hiccups and sobs later, Gracie is still wrapped around you, albeit a little less tightly\n\n\\\u003e\"T-thanks Anon, I thought I smelled one of my older sisters\"\n\n\\\u003eOlder sisters?\n\n\\\u003eYou had enough trouble dealing with one Snekderp\n\n\\\u003eBut that's not on your mind now\n\n\\\u003eYou stand with her in your arms\n\n\\\u003e\"We'll find her someday Gracie, I promise\"\n\n\\\u003eIt's a promise you aren't sure you'll be able to keep, but one you'll still make\n\n\\\u003eShe runs her forked tongue across your cheek\n\n\\\u003e\"Thanks Anon....I'll find you soon ZX-13\"\n\n\\\u003eWhat does that mean?\n\n\\\u003eDoesn't matter\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\n\n\\\u003eYou hold Gracie's paw and lead her to the Gun Runners booth\n\n\\\u003e\"Lets see if we can find you a silencer or something\"\n\n\\\u003eShe holds your arm as you sell the Fiends weapons you picked up as well as unusable ammo for you\n\n\\\u003eAs well you sell all the chems you found from the fiends that Gracie picked up\n\n\\\u003eFuck Chems and fuck people who made them\n\n\\\u003eFinally you can start looking at their wares\n\n\\\u003eNo silencers but there is a 10mm SMG that is silenced\n\n\\\u003e\"Sleepytyme\" it's called\n\n\\\u003e\"Gracie want to trade your Gun for a silenced one? I'll cover the caps for the extra\"\n\n\\\u003eShe puts a pad to her chin and thinks a moment\n\n\\\u003e\"It'll make bad guys not be able to hear my shots?\" she asks, looking at the Gun\n\n\\\u003eYou nod \"yea that's the idea\"\n\n\\\u003e\"Ok! I'll keep it safe!\"\n\n\\\u003eYou give her the gun then buy some ammo for you and her to use\n\n\\\u003e\"Alright Gracie, time to move on to Vault 11\"\n\n\\\u003eHer sadness seems gone as she bounces along next to you\n\n\\\u003e\"Ok! I can't wait to see what humans used to live like during the war\"\n\n\\\u003eYou check your pip-boy, luckily the brotherhood had told you where vault 11 was\n\n\\\u003eSouth from where you are now, but north of Helios 1\n\n\\\u003eThere are roads there for the most part anyway\n\n\\\u003eThe walk with Gracie is quick and peaceful, her telling you about the Big MT\n\n\\\u003eShe wandered it for years, gathering food, learning how to hack computers\n\n\\\u003eShe told you of plant men, weather control and a mini deathclaw\n\n\\\u003eYou told her of your travels\n\n\\\u003eHow you went to vault 34 where your people were from\n\n\\\u003eTold her your run ins with the Legion, how you decimated Cottonwood cove\n\n\\\u003eAll the while she stayed right next to you, her paws occasionally gripping at your sleeve to point out various plants\n\n\\\u003eSome of them were edible, some were poisonous, a few were just tumbleweeds\n\n\\\u003eYou point out a group of Bighorners, and she jumps for joy\n\n\\\u003e\"OH! Lemme get one Anon! This'll be great!\"\n\n\\\u003eBefore you can say anything she disappears\n\n\\\u003eYou watch her shimmer move around\n\n\\\u003eGotta admit having a partner that can go nearly invisible is really handy\n\n\\\u003eYou hear a few silenced shots and the bighorner bull collapses with a loud \"MAHHHHH\"\n\n\\\u003eUnfortunately the rest of the herd scampers\n\n\\\u003eGracie uncloaks, leaning against the body with one paw and a huge smile on her muzzle\n\n\\\u003e\"I got the biggest one!\" she boasts\n\n\\\u003eYou smile\n\n\\\u003e\"You sure did, I can already taste the Steaks we'll have tonight!\" you say\n\n\\\u003eAfter about 10 minute of carving you have enough steak to last for a while, plus a big pelt\n\n\\\u003eCould be useful\n\n\\\u003eYou start walking again, and motion for Gracie to follow you\n\n\\\u003e\"Why are we going to Vault 11, Anon?\" Gracie asks as she reloads her gun\n\n\\\u003eShe should have done that as soon as she was done shooting the bighorner but you let it slide\n\n\\\u003e\"There is supposedly a Robobrain there, we need it's treads to build the Treadnaut\"\n\n\\\u003eYou still had you mind set on building that, it was a better goal than wandering aimlessly\n\n\\\u003e\"Do you really think we can get it built? It would be nice not have to walk everywhere\" Gracie says as she kicks up a bit of sand\n\n\\\u003eYou nod, \"I'm sure we can, together I'm sure of it\"\n\n\\\u003eShe grips your arm, a smile covering her Muzzle\n\n\\\u003e\"I'm glad you found me in that Cave Anon\"\n\n\\\u003eYou put an arm around her waist as you walk\n\n\\\u003e\"So am I Gracie\"\n\n\\\u003eThe sand beneath your boot crunches as you walk onto the dry lakebed in front of the Vault\n\n\\\u003eHow were people supposed to get to this vault before the war?\n\n\\\u003eIts set on the edge of a lake, hidden in a cave\n\n\\\u003eHigh rollers only maybe?\n\n\\\u003eLeave the rest of the population scrambling and dead?\n\n\\\u003eYou had no clue how the rest of the world fared\n\n\\\u003eMaybe the US was devastated and the rest of the world survived\n\n\\\u003eLeave a whole continent as a memorial to a war, believing everyone was dead\n\n\\\u003eMeanwhile they could be in space, traveling the stars\n\n\\\u003eThe thought doesn't bring you any comfort as you walk through the vault door, left permanently open\n\n\\\u003eClose quarters\n\n\\\u003eShotgun time\n\n\\\u003eYou pull out your riot shotgun and begin walking through the vault\n\n\\\u003e\"Be ready Gracie, no idea what's in here\"\n\n\\\u003eThe sound of fluttering wings tells you that you aren't alone\n\n\\\u003eA few flashes of green in your peripherals\n\n\\\u003eYou turn and fire your gun, earning a loud squeak of surprise followed by a dull thud as Gracie hits the floor behind you\n\n\\\u003eShe's playing dead, you could clearly see you hit a Giant mantis with your buckshot\n\n\\\u003e\"Get up Gracie, its ok, we got more food now\"\n\n\\\u003eHer blue eye peeks open at you\n\n\\\u003e\"What is THAT Anon?!\" she says as you pull the legs off the mantises body\n\n\\\u003e\"Giant praying mantis, good with salt and butter\" you say holding up the legs\n\n\\\u003eThey were actually quite good to eat\n\n\\\u003eYou help Gracie to her feet\n\n\\\u003ePaws? footpaws?\n\n\\\u003eIt's hard to tell what to call them\n\n\\\u003e\"Stay on your toes Gracie, those bugs might be small but they swarm and can overwhelm you if you aren't ready\"\n\n\\\u003eGracie draws her SMG and follows behind you\n\n\\\u003eThe vault is like a maze, everything looks the same\n\n\\\u003eBut there are bodies; skeletons holding guns and other makeshift weapons\n\n\\\u003eMore than once you had to stop Gracie from walking under a grenade bouquet\n\n\\\u003eJesus fuck, what happened here?\n\n\\\u003ePosters line the walls for elections, for a new overseer\n\n\\\u003ePeople; no not people anymore, barricaded into rooms\n\n\\\u003eStarved to death from the looks of it\n\n\\\u003eAll the while you walk through, killing Giant mantises and giant rats\n\n\\\u003eWhat happened here? this was supposed to be a place where humanity survived\n\n\\\u003eInstead you find more bodies that you can believe\n\n\\\u003eGracie holds your arm with one paw, her SMG with the other as you walk room to room\n\n\\\u003eEventually you find the Overseer's office and a still working computer\n\n\\\u003eCue Gracie, who forgets her fear for a moment\n\n\\\u003e\"OH! I'm good at computers one sec!\"\n\n\\\u003eShe rushes to the desk and begins tapping away at the computer, muttering to herself while you stand with your shotgun ready\n\n\\\u003eHer tapping gets faster and faster while you grow more and more impatient\n\n\\\u003eFuck this computer, you were ready to shoot it\n\n\\\u003e\"Got it!\"\n\n\\\u003eA tunnel opens as she hits a button on the computer\n\n\\\u003eYou're actually impressed, you thought she was bluffing about the computer thing\n\n\\\u003eShotgun raised, you go down the tunnel\n\n\\\u003eAt the end is a room and a projector and a chair\n\n\\\u003eGracie Immediately sits in the chair, much to your annoyance\n\n\\\u003eA slideshow starts, talking about life and one's role in it\n\n\\\u003eYou frown as you watch an listen to the voice drone on\n\n\\\u003eThis gives you a terrible feeling so you put away your shotgun and draw out your LMG\n\n\\\u003eToo much talk of life and death\n\n\\\u003e\"Close your eyes now and imagine what joys await you in the next life - the afterlife. Can you see them? Good.\" the voice over says\n\n\\\u003eAs it finishes you hear whirring behind the walls\n\n\\\u003e\"GRACIE GET DOWN!\" you call to her as walls lower revealing several RoboBrains\n\n\\\u003eYou open fire while moving constantly, dodging lasers while Gracie disappears, adding more bullets to the walls of lead your firing\n\n\\\u003eIn the end you stand panting, a laser shot has burned through your left arms armor, leaving a bad burn to the bone\n\n\\\u003eAs well a bullet from an automated turret has hit your thigh, making it hard to maintain your balance\n\n\\\u003eGracie uncloaks near you, looking at the robots\n\n\\\u003e\"We got them! I knew we coul-\"\n\n\\\u003eHer words are cut off when she turns to you and her eyes go wide\n\n\\\u003e\"A-Anon are you ok?\"\n\n\\\u003eYou attempt to wave away your concern with your left hand but find it unresponsive\n\n\\\u003e\"I could use a bit of help Gracie\" you choke out through the pain\n\n\\\u003eShe walks to you as you slump against one of the robobrains\n\n\\\u003eYour left arm falls uselessly as you attempt to use your pip-boy\n\n\\\u003e\"Hold my left arm up, I need a few super stimpaks\"\n\n\\\u003eShe hesitantly grabs your hand and forearm\n\n\\\u003ePain washes over you as she holds it up for you to see\n\n\\\u003ePut on a brave face, she doesn't need to see you in pain\n\n\\\u003eYou ignore the searing pain and use your right arm to get a super stimpak and a regular one\n\n\\\u003e\"Use this on my leg\" you say handing her the normal stimpak\n\n\\\u003eFeels like the bullet fractured your bone\n\n\\\u003eA quick look at your status on the pip-boy confirms that\n\n\\\u003eShe looks confused, looking at the wound and the stimpak\n\n\\\u003e\"What do I do Anon?\"\n\n\\\u003e\"Stab it in the hole and inject it all\"\n\n\\\u003eYou grit your teeth as she stabs it in\n\n\\\u003eAlmost instantly you feel whatever is in those things working\n\n\\\u003eWith your good arm you stab the super stimpak into your arm and squeeze the liquid in, the burned flesh peels away quickly and new, scarred skin forms\n\n\\\u003eThe scar would fade in time\n\n\\\u003eMaybe\n\n\\\u003eIt takes a moment for the pain to subside and for you to stand back up on your own\n\n\\\u003e\"Good job Gracie, we got them\" you say with a smile\n\n\\\u003eShe stares at your arm and leg; worry painting her muzzle\n\n\\\u003e\"Is that normal Anon? Do you always get hurt?\"\n\n\\\u003eYou sigh\n\n\\\u003e\"Gracie, you've seen my body, you know the answer to that\"\n\n\\\u003eYour body is covered in bullet wounds and burns from lasers\n\n\\\u003eShe looks at her own body\n\n\\\u003e\"Will that happen to me too?\"\n\n\\\u003e\"If you use the Invisibility intelligently, no it won't\"\n\n\\\u003eYou've already begun working on grabbing the tread system off the nearest robobrain\n\n\\\u003eGracie sniffing you intensely jerks you away from your work, you turn to her and see her flustered, paws covering her face\n\n\\\u003e\"I-uh Anon, I-\"\n\n\\\u003eYou move closer to her, worried\n\n\\\u003e\"Gracie, what's up? Were you hit?\"\n\n\\\u003eYou attempt to get closer to her only to have her back away from you\n\n\\\u003eI- uh- I need to go!\"\n\n\\\u003eWith that she runs out of the room, leaving you dumbfounded\n\n\\\u003eYou can't run quite yet, so you follow her at a much slower pace\n\n\\\u003e\"GRACIE?!\" you call out after her\n\n\\\u003eAs you emerge from the tunnel you hear bones rattling and then a door Shutting and locking\n\n\\\u003e\"I need to be in here for a while Anon! Please don't try to come in!\"\n\n\\\u003e\"What's going on Gracie?!\" you call through the door\n\n\\\u003e\"I'll tell you later! Just please trust me!\"\n\n\\\u003eYou frown and lean against the wall nearby\n\n\\\u003e\"Promise you're ok?\"\n\n\\\u003e\"I-I'll be fine Anon\"\n\n\\\u003eYou sigh and head back to the robobrains\n\n\\\u003eGuess you're gonna be here a while.","series":{"name":"Love Me As Though There Were No Tomorrow","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1505037-love-me-as-though-there-were-no-tomorrow-chapter-5.json","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/1527434-love-me-as-though-there-were-no-tomorrow-chapter-7.json"}}