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Chapter 7

"Keeping it between us"

(Sam and Dave - Hold on I'm coming)

ACT 1

"Jacob! J! Wait!" Niles hollered after the German shepherd that was walking at the end of the hallway, trying to clearly ignore him.

"Dude!" Niles yelled in frustration, his voice making it heard that he knew exactly that Jacob heard him.

Finally, the lynx cached up on the dog after turning left on the crossways, the dog having to give up his sped-up walking. He turned around, giving a puzzled smile to the lynx-like it was surprising seeing him.

"Oh. Niles. What's up?" Jacob asked, acting like nothing was going on.

"... What the fuck, dude?" Niles asked, shaking his head.

"What? What have I done?" Jacob asked innocently.

"... Just... Cut that Jacob attitude off please and just try to make me understand here." The lynx said in frustration, seeing clearly Jacob's smile going slightly down. He clearly knew what this was about.

"Understaaaannnd... What?" Jacob asked.

"... You might wave it off as being nothing. Maybe Sam didn't see it. Nor Ryan. But I do. I am sure about it on at least some level, and I think you are too. You think it's fair for Tio to not tell? I mean... Just... I paid attention to this for years now and know I am finally sure about it. You slipped. Emotional wise, I'd say."

"... Uuuhh... You okay, Niles?" Jacob asked, now actually feeling genuinely confused as he raised an eyebrow.

"... Question is, are you, J? Just... All this time. I mean to some degree it makes sense... In its own way. But just... I'm... Like the way you looked at him just now-"

"Niles, you are really losing me here. Look, dude. Just try to say where you are going with this because I need to find husker." Jacob shrugged.

Niles looked at Jacob in studying silence for a moment, making Jacob even more confused. The lynx then just gathered breath and said what he thought.

"What you did there... Acting all out of... Well not being your usual joking self. You were serious back there. And you sounded genuinely hurt. It was all over you, and... I think that I am right when I say this... Jacob... I think you like Tio."

Jacob clearly tried to hide his uncomfortable feeling under his poker face, along with looking caught off guard. But he didn't still truly know if he knew what Niles was saying. So, he spoke back with a little spooked tone.

"I... I mean, he is my friend? I... I'm not mad at him anymore, I apologize after class anyway. I just got a bit mad that he didn't show visibly any kind of... You know. Reaction. Like he never does. At least not the way he did when he hung out with me together. I bet he does act different with Dion too when they spend time privately. I just wanted him to at least show that he was sad about the fact that... You know, he can't hang around anymore. He is our friend after all. I just wanted him to at least say or show that he feels the same. It only makes sense, right? To wish someone wouldn't act all the time like a cranky robot that just reads books and talks like... Well, to be Calvin. I'm good dude, I'm good. I'm back to being me, hahaha.... Aaa.. Yeah. It's like... Can we find Dion or something? I want to talk to him and... Yeah..." The dog talked, sweating a bit, talking rather babblingly to convince Niles of something.

Niles took his moment to keep looking at him in silence, before giving out his answer.

"You have been in love with Tio Tampico this whole time and you are too scared to say or even think about it... That is what I think."

Jacob's eyes widened as big as they could, the lynx having sympathetic poker face as he looked like he had just hit the hornets next with one sentence.

The dog started stuttering, trying to get out his words in panic as he finally managed to ramble something in his defense.

"... What... I-"

"Now it makes sense why you always boast about girls around him or tease him about not being as good with girls You are busted, Jacob."

"... Wh- what the... What the fuck? NO?! He is a dude! Where did you come up with something so retarded?!" Jacob asked, the lynx taking a long exhale, clearly not going to let this go by a mile.

"Sometimes when you pay attention enough, you can read people. All that teasing and borderline bullying you have done for Tio all these years. All of it makes sense now. You do that because it's the only way you know how to show affection and how much you like him as a pers-"

"Bruh. Now it is time to stop talking and start walking. I'm serious." Jacob said, clearly not going to talk about this with Niles for a second longer.

The lynx was surprised clearly by the reaction, never in his life seen Jacob threatening someone with violence. And it kind of amused him, despite the delicate and sensitive situation. He just spoke back with a clear and calm tone.

"Or you do what, J? I am your friend; you are not going to hit me. Second, you have seen me fight with Ryan like tons of times. You know how that choice will end for you, and I'm not going to miss Charlie's class because I had to take you to Amir because of the black eye. Just... Talk to me here. I know it's hard to admit to yourself but-"

Jacob suddenly just shoved the lynx at his shoulder, wanting him to stop talking. He moved back a bit and looked at the lynx aggressively, but partly scared as he knew he would lose this fight if it came to that. Niles processed what had happened just now and gave unimpressed look, talking to Jacob.

"Really? Jacob. We are going to talk about this whether you like it or not-"

"Stop being all creepy and talking about all this weird shit then! I'm not fucking gay! I've had girlfriends! I'm done with this discussion! Like... Where did you pull out that kind of guess in the first place? I told you why I acted like... Like I did! I was just angry and frustrated at him for the first time! Isn't that natural to be sometimes angry with your friend?!"

"... Not in your case, no. I've sometimes been really mean to you because you get on my nerves sometimes, and you know it. And not EVEN ONCE, have you snapped at me like you did to Tio just now. And we are not done with this discussion. The way you looked at Tio back there and how you sounded was something way more than anger. It was the callout of anxiety. You let your true feelings and caring for him come through by accident. You know it and I know it."

"Niles, I am not gay! What the hell!? This is not funny!"

"Everything in the world is funny to you, but not this. If you truly didn't feel this way for Tio, you would act like the same old Jacob just now and laugh and make jokes like you have done since we have known each other. No. You are visibly sweating and avoiding to look at me-"

"So, what? You look and sound like a weirdo at this moment? And you don't make any sense, why can't I be angry for one time to someone I just look up to as a friend?!-"

"Someone you love, you mean. You talked to him like it was only you and him there. And it clearly had an effect on Tio. I had never seen him like that. He basically told Jill to fuck off when she came around and kept looking after you, clearly feeling quite strong about what you said. So yeah, dude. Message received, you got him feeling like shit. But you know that he appreciates out friendships towards him even if he doesn't show it. It wasn't truly about you wanting to see him show remorse-"

"You are just reaching now-" Jacob began in frustration but started to feel way too cornered the more Niles talked.

"YOU only wanted him to feel like shit over wanting to be the overseer because him taking that job means that you can't act around him anymore the same way, nor talk to him in the same manner. You WANT him around desperately because you are in love with him-"

"Stop-" Jacob said in agitation.

"Whatever you admit it or not-"

"Well, I won't admit to something I don't feel! The fuck is up with you? You can't just accuse me of being a faggot out here in the middle of the hallway, because I feel some sort of way about Tio leaving our company without even saying anything and burying his face to tasks! I just-"

"You wouldn't have been bothered by the slightest if I would have taken the job instead of Tio," Niles said back in a serious tone.

Jacob now went quiet, clearly not knowing what to answer to this random point.

"I... I mean... I, why would I?! You and I are not that close. Hell, dude, you are always annoyed by things I say or do-"

"You are not close with Tio either and you are teasing him for things he says or thinks half the time, but that is because you want to be more to him than a friend-"

"I AM NOT FUCKING GAY, OKAY! No matter what you think, I do not like boys! SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

The loud yelling must have been heard around a few hallways at least, the dog having reached his limit on such personal pressuring.

Niles stared at the dog, having clearly been startled by the breaking point of Jacob. The dog was huffing, looking aggressive and clearly about to take his leave before Niles spoke after him right away.

"Jacob, look I'm... I'm sorry." Niles began, clearly knowing that he might have pressed too hard.

"Yeah, you should be. I forgive you if you just leave me alone for now and don't talk that weird shit ever again, okay? Damn, this must have been the most stressful morning I've ever had-" Jacob muttered, starting to walk and hearing the lynx follow him right away.

"Wait. J. Come on, don't-" Niles started. Jacob turned around cautiously and shook his head, showing with his paw for Niles to keep his distance.

"Dude, I don't want people to start gathering around here, they recognize my voice. I don't want the shit I just yelled to start circling around like some rumor. Got a reputation to maintain. Now, I'm going to look for Dion and forget that this disturbing conversation ever happened-"

"Jacob, you have to tell Tio sooner or later about how you feel."

Jacob started to boil after hearing that, clearly hurt over the fact that Niles was still on the same course, not giving up. He turned around, walking as close as he could to Niles. The lynx first prepared for a punch in the face, but the dog settled on staring him inches away from his face, talking with low and intimidating tone.

"For the last time, Niles. I. Do not. Have feelings. For that nerd wolf. You think even how stupid it is for you to say something like that to my face or out loud in here? If you start telling everyone that I am a fag, my parents will get to the bottom of it, everyone will start to bully me, and Calvin is going to give me shit and order me for some... Like, I don't fucking know, spending maybe rest of my years praying with your stupid alcoholic father. I just had a girlfriend. Your logic isn't working here. Either you just want to make me angry for fun or you have hit your head somewhere this morning, but I am not homosexual. U got it? Like damn, Niles. Why are you agitating me this morning when you could already see that I was... You know, already a bit fucking off? Giving me a damn spin here. We are done. Now, I need to relax and get back on my good mood, or even Dion starts to ask what is going on with me, and I don't want to be bombed by questions for the rest of the day." Jacob explained, and Niles could see the mix of nervous fear, clearly too scared to talk about any of this for a good reason. And the line about his own father was more than true. Because he knew the same fate waited for himself if anyone found out. But this bothered him. Because he could finally see that after all these years, he wasn't the only one in this vault that felt this way for another guy. And he wasn't going to let that slip. So, he thought and took a risk. A big one. But he felt like he had wanted to say it to someone for years now. Might as well be Jacob. Even as funny as it was. He didn't exactly ever imagine telling this to Jacob of all people.

Jacob expected Niles to finally truly apologize and understand the situation... But the answer he got was something he never expected.

"... Jacob... Ryan is my boyfriend." Niles said quietly with intense eye contact.

"... Come again?" Jacob asked the sudden short confusion.

"... I have been Ryan's boyfriend for years now. I'm... Well... I hate to use that word that you did but... I guess by all the logic it makes me and Ryan fags."

"... You and... Wait... You and Ryan..." Jacob said slowly, trying to wrap his head around if Niles was now just fucking with his head or not.

"... You are the only one in the vault who knows now. There. You now know something that could even in the worst case get me and Ryan banished from the vault. And I trust you to never tell it to anyone because you are our friend. Just... Hear me out now-"

"Wait, you are actually serious?" Jacob asked, clearly hoping that Niles was joking now.

"... As serious as you were talking to Tio back there." Niles said back.

Jacob looked rather disturbed by the seconds, not really knowing what to say, clearly.

"... Jacob-"

"I... I kind of wish that I could rewind back twenty seconds now. I... You are telling me that you, son of a preacher, fuck Ryan Winchester in the butt?"

Niles looked around himself now, realizing that he had indeed chosen a bad place to blurt out his dangerous secret, Jacob looking mindfucked.

Niles was now the one who felt uncomfortable, not expecting such a straightforward question. But it was Jacob after all. He now started to think if he had done a mistake. He spoke with a lower voice awkwardly after clearing his throat, trying not to blush.

"I... Well, usually he is the one that is... Like, doing the... Stuff to me, but-"

"Yo. Why on earth would you tell me that you and Ryan are a thing?"

"Jacob, you know you can't tell anyone, right? -"

"Charlie would flip and like... Dion doesn't know? -"

"If he would have known, he would have told you already. He is your best friend, right?" Niles asked carefully.

"Yeah... But like... Wow. I never expected that out of Ryan. Every girl here thinks he is the hottest dude there is-"

"YOU CAN'T TELL HIM THAT I TOLD YOU ABOUT US. Nor anyone else-"

"Hell no I'm not going to tell anyone, I don't want you two to get in trouble! But WHY would you tell me all that? Like, I didn't need to know that! Now I can never look Ryan or you the same way-"

"Yes, you can. Because you are just like me and Ryan-"

"FOR THE LAST TIME, NILES, YOU ARE SEEING SOMETHING THAT IS NOT THERE-"

"Because the way you talked to Tio just now was the same way I talk to Ryan when I get angry. And I can notice the signs. I should know the best, right? And I am telling you what I see. And I see that you like Tio the way I like Ryan. And you are scared to death, just like me. So, you try to deny it. But you have someone that knows now. And you should find comfort that it's me who knows, out of all the people." Niles pointed out, trying to make his best case to convince Jacob, but the dog was not having it. The lynx could see the hint of hesitation in Jacob, the dog clearly thinking through what the lynx had just said. He spoke back after a moment with a mocking tone.

"... You are telling me that you because you are gay, you have some gay sensor in your head?"

"... Well, that is very Jacob way to put it but yes-" Niles said, trying to lighten up the conversation even a bit, only to hit a blunt wall right away.

"You are wrong. I like girls. I think about naked girls when I go to sleep-" Jacob said, crossing his arms in agitation.

"Ah, yes. Very convincing." Niles said with eyeroll and sarcastic tone.

"Fuck you, dude. I have banged a girl." Jacob said right back.

"No, you haven't, J. Come on now," Niles said without hesitation with an unimpressed look.

"How on earth would you know?! You just said you are gay. You don't know anything about girls. I think of breasts, when I- OH WHAT THE FUCK ARE WE EVEN TALKING ABOUT?! I don't have to explain myself to you-"

"Yet, here you are. I am not convinced, J."

"You know what? I'm done with this bullshit. See you in class." Jacob said, turning around.

"... Have you ever thought that maybe Tio feels the same way about you?" Niles asked quietly with an emotional tone.

The German shepherd now turned around, his face looking shocked. But he didn't answer. Niles then spoke.

"He might. You never know. Has he ever... Given signs about such? You mocked him earlier for talking different when you two were hanging out together, yet you just said you wished to see more of that person out of him-"

"Dude," Jacob said, giving him the final warning.

"...."

"Stop. Talking to me. I don't want you to ever bring these weird accusations of yours out anymore. Just leave me alone. You can go and be as gay as you want with Ryan... Good for you. But I know how I was raised. And I'm telling you. I like girls. Not boys. And definitely not someone who rather chooses the rest of his life to become the next Calvin. And I bet my left nut that Tio is straight as one can be. You have seen how he hates to be even touched."

"You can deny it all you want... But I know what you truly feel for him."

Jacob shut down, shaking his head in agitation and spoke back, taking whole new ammunition to make sure Niles would stop.

"Wow. Thank you for opening my eyes. I've been blind for so long. Sad that your mom wasn't around to see what a gay detective you turned out to be. She would have been proud if she wasn't dead."

The silence and shock hit Niles right in the face as his mouth opened slightly, Jacob right away noticing it.

Within a few seconds, Niles's eyes got watery, the dog feeling like shit the moment he realized what he had actually just said. He had crossed the line. But he held back on apologizing. There they just stood. And the dog for a moment wondered if Niles would beat him up in return. But the lynx had no intention for that. The whole discussion he just had with him, was clearly his way of trying to help or make sense of him. But Jacob didn't want to be in this situation.

The German shepherd turned around, and just when Niles was about to say something back to him, the dog yelled to someone.

"HUSKER! THERE YOU ARE, DUDE?! Been looking you from everywhere!"

Jacob jogged towards the husky at the end of the hallway, Dion smiling right away when he saw his best friend. Niles ended up not taking one more step, just looking at the situation with a saddened expression. He never knew Jacob was capable of saying something that hurtful. He had verbally smacked two people already this morning into silence. All the lynx felt now was pain and regretted on comforting Jacob without thinking it through first. He might have made a big mistake. He should have just let it be. And in the end... It could have all been his imagination. Maybe Jacob wasn't gay after all. And he had just reached way too much. He wanted to believe that he and Ryan were not the only ones with this weird attribute so desperately, that he might have just damaged his friendship with Jacob forever.

The lynx quickly went back to where he came from, hoping Ryan and Sam would still be in the dining hall... And he sure as hell was not going to talk with Tio about any of this. He had already done too much for one day, in his mind.

ACT 2

(Dusty Springfield - Spooky)

"Good morning boys and girls!" Charlie noted cheerfully as he was sitting on his teachers' desk, leaning on the table and looking at the younglings in front of him, counting with his eye. As usually, Ryan and Niles were absent, assumedly training their fighting.

"Good morning, Charlie!" Everyone cheered back happily, the conversations and the usual hassle continuing right after, as the teacher had not given a sign of silence yet. He was clearly going through in his mind what to teach about today.

Jacob, Tio, Dion and Sam were sitting on their usual seats on the front of the class, Jacob already back into his old self. Hanging out with Dion had made him already calm down and feel better.

As the conversations around created the muffled sound to throw your own voice in without notice, the smiling German shepherd turned to look at Tio and tapped his shoulder, making the wolf's fur spark up from getting startled.

"Hey. Tio. Sorry for the morning thing. I think I just flipped for no reason. You know I can be a retard time to time." The dog said.

Tio turned to slowly and awkwardly look at Jacob silently, saying nothing back to him.

"We cool?" Jacob asked innocently without a hint of aggression.

"... I... Guess? Can you take your paw off my shoulder now?" Tio asked with a bothered look.

"Same old Tio, just the way I like it. Sure." Jacob said, taking his paw off and smirked.

The silence continued, Tio quickly turning his gaze back to Charlie. Sam had noticed the situation, looking at it from the side with interest as he clearly was confused that Jacob was back to his old self that fast. Dion wasn't paying attention really, just scribbling down on a paper and writing something. And by the look that Jill gave to him from the side, it was about her. Dion really wished Jacob, nor Sam would pay attention to what he was doing, or he wouldn't hear the end of it.

Tio had only a moment of peace until Jacob spoke.

"Tiooo..."

"... What?" The wolf asked again, but he wasn't as agitated as normally.

The wolf was clearly more somewhat stressed that the dog was talking to him.

"... Yo, you good?" Jacob asked with a smile, raising an eyebrow.

"... Si." Tio said back quickly, avoiding eye contact.

"... Hey, Tio. You wanna hang out later today? Or you gonna read for the rest of the evening with Dion?" the dog asked.

"... Wh-what?" The wolf now asked with wide eyes, caught off guard.

"You got something else to do? You wanna hang out later? When you still can, you know?" Jacob asked innocently.

"... Wh-why?" Tio asked, and the dog could see that the wolf was clearly blushing.

"I dunno. I thought about loaning that book from you that you told me about. I could be your reading buddy, or you me and Dion could-"

"Stop. Stop... Being friendly. You were a total asshole to me just an hour ago and were yelling to my face in front of everyone. What is up with you? Why would you now want to hang out with me again? You already told everyone that I talked like... And... You said that-... You know what? No. I don't want to spend time later." Tio said with an annoyance.

"... Bruh, I was just... Come on, don't be a pussy about it. I already said I'm sorry."

"..." The wolf didn't answer anymore, not paying attention to Jacob on purpose.

The dog gave amused lazy laugh at the reaction then talking.

"... Fine. Whatever. Be cranky weirdo then." Jacob huffed, rolling his eyes and stopping his smiling.

Tio turned his gaze away from Jacob, but felt really bothered right now, looking Jacob again with a side-eye when he knew Jacob was focusing somewhere else. The dog was now talking with Sam, Tio zoning out and looking at Jacob with a rather sad and confused gaze, slowly turning back to look at Charlie.

Sam slowly whispered to Jacob in the meanwhile.

"J, did Niles find you?"

"... Yeah, we talked briefly... Why?" Jacob asked nervously, maintaining his smile.

"... He came back acting all weird. Barely said a word. Not even to Ryan." Sam explained.

"... Huh. Well, I don't know. He seemed fine talking with me. I just asked why I got mad at Tio. Just told that I was tired and frustrated. Sometimes even I can be like that. You know." Jacob said with a shrug.

"... You are never like that. You got us all freaked out and worried about you. You should have seen Tio after you left... And like... What did you say to Niles?" Sam asked with a doubting tone.

The dog tried to hide the guilt after hearing such things coming even from Sam, knowing that he really might have actually hurt Tio's feelings for real this time. He waved Sam's questions off fast, just having too much to think about.

"Nothing, dude. Sheesh, don't you get all mister questions on me too. I'm good. And I'm sure Niles is fine. Everything is aight. Let's talk about something less boring." Jacob suggested hesitantly.

"... Sure. Uhh... Did you just ask Tio if you two could hang out together? What's up with that? Can I join you guys?... And why did you just ask something like that after how you just acted towards him? Why do you want to hang out with him all of sudden? He doesn't exactly like you. Honestly, J... You can talk to me you know, I am your friend. "

"..." Jacob went quiet, wanting to smack himself in the face, feeling like this morning was just the worst.

And suddenly, the awkward situation was saved the moment Charlie stood up and waved his paws.

"Okay, okay! Everyone simmer down! Time to start the class!" The dog announced happily.

Jacob internally sighed out of pleasure, Sam shifting his attention to Charlie along with everyone else.

The class quieted down, everyone getting ready for Charlie.

The old husky cleared his throat and spoke.

"Today!... We are going to learn about something very... Very serious."

The class got interested immediately as Charlie kept going.

"I guess it was time to arrive on this subject one day... And it's... Long due coming. Not many know this story unless you have arrived from the surface. Even out there... Not everyone knows the story... Of a great war." Charlie finished dramatically.

"... The great... War?" Someone asked in confusion.

"Yes... It is a tale that is thought by some to the next generations, but the older the story gets... The more forgotten it becomes. You see, out there in the Texas ground, some people try to keep history alive and dedicate themselves to it. They write books from scratch. And they write down the things that their parents told them, and their parents before that... And so on. Now, this event is already over two hundred years old. The great war, I mean. And I had the pleasure to soak the information about this event during my lifetime. A famous man from capital wasteland had actually written this book all by himself. And it has been copied and printed around as part of our history."

"... Capital wasteland... Wasn't that... Located at Washington Dc?" Dion asked with interest.

Charlie smiled proudly and nodded at that.

"That's right, my son. Good memory. The book was named 'Dawn of our time, from oil to destruction'. A rather grim and vivid name to give for a book but I guess the man had some character in him."

"... What was his name?" Tio asked with interest.

"... I believe the book's cover had a name called Tom Brookly. Yeah, I'm pretty sure that was the name. Some people even told me the man was a ghoul. Horrible fate, but I guess it didn't break his spirit on living nor writing."

"... A what? What's a... Ghoul?" Jill asked with interest.

"Ah... Well... It's not exactly a bedtime story. I think it will be something I most likely will tell about in the future... but not today. Let's get back to the original subject, shall we?" Charlie suggested.

After a few nods, Charlie kept going.

"Now, the book had a tale... That pretty much-printed everything we see before our eyes as a result. Let me ask all of you... Does any of you have any guesses, why are you all living in this vault?" Charlie asked innocently.

First, no one had an answer. Tio slowly raised his paw, Charlie nodding his way. The wolf spoke.

"I would assume it's to keep us out for being exposed to that thing called radiation like you once said."

"That... It is absolutely correct. Although, now the radiation isn't that much of a threat anymore. Sure, there are no go zones out there where radiation is still heavy...-"

"How bad is radiation, exactly? You never talked about that much, mister Winchester." Some otter girl asked.

"... It's... Well. We are, as a matter of fact, getting to it within this subject."

Everyone went quiet, Charlie then taking a quick breath.

"Overall, most of it has faded from the atmosphere by now, I'd think. But yes, Tio. Vault's job was to protect people from radiation... But the next question I am sure none of you have a clear answer to... What was the cause of the radiation?" Charlie asked, knowing that he wouldn't get an answer from the class. He knew that even Calvin wouldn't know. He thought himself that this place was built by god and everyone here was part of his plan as it's children, like some big test. The first data logs made by the first overseer were so old and corrupted that they were not simply viable to read anymore. And the people who first had inhabited the vault most likely had kept the truth of outside history hidden, not wanting to traumatize their future children with harsh truths about the evil of mankind. Or maybe they did pass down what it was like out there to some... Or maybe they didn't. Charlie never knew for sure. He had never brought it up in his everyday conversations.

As the traded gazes and small whispers continued, Charlie took the attention again.

"Now... Do any of you know, what oil is?"

"... Umm... My mom sometimes has her paws covered in it when she is done fixing something down in the maintenance deck." Jacob pointed out.

"It's that black goo, right?" Some dalmatian girl pointed out.

"Yep. That is indeed oil. Now, to us... Well, it would seem just rather casual thing among others. Some would firstly think it's just goo. In the end, why would it be anything else? Just some black substance from nature... But here is the kicker that I had a hard time believing myself when I read that book." Charlie now finished, shaking his head.

Tio and Dion kept looking so focused that Sam snickered a bit in amusement, Tio hissing at him to keep quiet.

"... Before the beginning of the life even in this vault... In the old world, before the radiation... Oil was the most important and most wanted natural resource on the planet."

"... What? That black goo? That sounds stupid." Maurice pointed out from the back, next to Farin who nodded in agreement.

Charlie chuckled at that and nodded.

"I actually agree. It didn't really make sense to me first that much. Why would such a thing be so important to people so long time ago? It's just black goo. But... The more I kept reading Tom's book, the more it started to enlighten me. Turns out, that the oil... Was actually used in more than I could have ever imagined." Charlie explained, leaning against his table and crossing his arms as he started to explain.

"This natural resource that started it all... It was separated in many kinds of variations of use. It could be involved in making food. It could be involved as a lubricant when it came to fixing machinery, like Jacob's mother does. To be also used for medical purposes. To maintain electricity even, and to be used as a heater substance. See, some of the oils are extremely easy to catch a fire when in contact with it. These different kinds of oils have a high carbon and hydrogen content, which makes them an extremely rich substance, right? I haven't thought that much chemistry to all of you but as some of you do know the basics, what I'm saying should make some sense. Now... Petroleum. That... Was one of the main oil's we needed to talk about." Charlie said, starting to move around as he kept going.

Tio whispered in focus.

"This is fascinating. I wish I could write this down."

Jacob rolled eyes to that, looking at Tio with a somewhat longing gaze, not for some reason finding that much interest in this particular subject at least yet.

"This... Petroleum was drilled from the ground and got harvested by us. It was basically large amounts and varieties of dead organisms from the earth. Mostly zooplankton, alga and such. The reason they turned into this black yellowish goo, was due to them being subjected to intense heat and pressure over the years. This goo was so rich that it was used to build roads of concrete. To make petrol gasoline that made the ancient relics that I saw called 'Cars', moving around and transporting people from one place to another. Which sounds... Fascinating to say at least."

"Wait... There were machines that traveled you around? Like those trains you once told about?"

"What is a concrete road?" Farin asked in confusion.

Charlie chuckled, realizing he was maybe going a bit too over everyone's heads. He started answering.

"Yes, there were things called cars that had wheels under them. They could carry people around very fast from place to place without them having to walk themselves. The most of what I saw out there was so rusty, broken and destroyed... That there was no using them anymore." Charlie explained. Even though, he wasn't truly honest.

Farin then spoke.

"And a concrete road?"

"The oil was used to make incredibly hard and smooth roads around the world for the cars to travel smoother and without getting damage from big rocks and such. They say the wheels under the cars were made of a somewhat delicate material called rubber. Without roads, the rubbers would suffer most of the time, and getting new ones was... Well, expensive most likely. I'm not sure." Charlie said with a smile.

"... Huh... Makes sense." Farin mumbled.

"Oil could create all that?" Tio asked in amazement.

"Indeed. Crazy to hear huh? Well... now, as I continue... We are about to arrive to the serious part of the story. So, hold on there." Charlie said.

Everyone paid attention and went quiet as Charlie kept going.

"The book told that every state around the world had oil to some extent. Some more than others... But it was running low, slowly. People kept using it over and over again without realizing that it was going to run out at their pace. But they didn't care. The oil was just too precious for them. And soon, as some places totally ran out of the oil... The people started to argue. About who owns the most... And who should give up theirs? It... Sounds rather unnerving. People had this thing called politics back then that was a big deal. Politics are term... Well, I will put it in the most basic form. It's the richest and most entitled people who consider themselves the wisest and influential, negotiating, talking and controlling things around the world together. It was like thousands of Calvin's around the world, arguing that their vault needed more oil than the other people's vaults." Charlie said with a shrug and a smile, enjoying making the comparison.

"I bet Tio could resolve it. He wants to be a politician after all." Jacob pointed out, Tio feeling the comment unnecessary. But he said nothing. Charlie just smiled at that, not knowing that Jacob was actually trying to annoy the wolf.

"... That sounds... kind of complicated." Sam pointed out.

"Why couldn't they just get along and share it all equally?" Dion asked innocently.

"I... Don't think it could work like that. Maybe it could, maybe not. It's hard to know for sure. But back then, that was not an option."

Charlie was now quiet for a while, clearly feeling a bit heavy to proceed to the next part, but he did anyway.

"The thing proceeded to something called resource wars... And it became something I would by my own words call... Madness."

"Why?" Jill asked.

Charlie scratched the back of his head a bit and just decided not to paint a pretty picture for the people in front of him. He was going to give them a harsh reality.

"The people grew so greedy, that they started to take military actions against each other to fight over the oil... Which means... They started to kill each other."

"... What?! You mean like... Actually murder?" Dion asked in shock.

Charlie gave a slow nod and the disturbed faces started to appear in the class as Charlie kept on.

(Fallout 4 OST - Wandering, The City [Part 3])

"As I said... Madness. They started to pick up guns and use heavy, deadly machinery against each other to resolve their conflict and claim what was theirs. People started dying by... countless numbers. It was... Rather horrible thing to read from the book. People flew in the sky with machines, shooting each other down... But the thing is... It was not the politicians themselves that fought the battle. No. They ordered people, young and grown-ups alike to storm into the battle to kill others and sacrifice their lives for them. While they kept on arguing, negotiating and aggravating the situation. While millions of people kept killing each other by following orders, trying to protect the interests of their homeland." Charlie said, shaking his head and feeling rather disgusted to even think about it. It all sounded like a true definition of insanity to him.

"Oh my god..." Dion said quietly.

"That is horrible!" Jill let out.

Tio and Sam were both looking so much in their thoughts that they didn't clearly know what to say. As did many others.

"I just had to be honest here. The history of our world... Has some truly messed up things in its time. And it only gets worse... But to complete the lesson of the day, it is very important that you all hear it. If some of you feel like what I am telling here is getting too disturbing, you are always free to go. I won't force to listen to this."

"I want to know what else happened," Tio said without hesitation.

"Me too." Some tiger boy said.

It was followed by many accepting nods. No one wanted to leave, even if this intense and scary story was so out of the ordinary to hear from Charlie. But it was one of the most interesting things they had heard in a long time.

"... Alright then." Charlie said proudly, clearing his throat and sitting down on his seat.

The younglings kept waiting without breath as Charlie kept going.

"The conflict got so out of control that people... Started to make these... Devices. Military scientists, the book said. They started to build... Bombs. These things called atomic bombs. They were... the most powerful weapons that men had ever crafted on this earth."

"A-atomic bombs?" Dion asked nervously.

"Atomic bombs were... Well, let's just say. That they would be shot in the air, or carried out by these flying machines. Once they would hit the ground... They would..." Charlie went silent for a while, wondering truly at this moment that how vicious their ancestors could have been to end up doing such choices.

"Let's just say, these bombs were means to an end. People, civilians like us... They were scared. They tried to live their ordinary lives day by day in our homes and cities, only hearing about the war and killing from the news. These... things called televisions... I guess they would be like monitors that we have here in the vault... And newspapers. These two would tell about the conflict. How many people had died were, who surrendered their oil, who threatened to attack, who... Well. And soon people realized... That one day, the war might have come to their doorstep. And how could they protect themselves? There was truly no way, they were not fighters or killers like some of the brave or foolish ones from their family that had gone to fight by orders..."

"Wh... What happened to civilians?" Someone asked nervously, everyone thinking the same pretty much.

Charlie then sighed and gave a small smile.

"The politicians and the military...They did something good for them. Something smart. They knew that if the war or the bombs started dropping down... It would kill all the defenseless civilians fast. So... They built these." Charlie said, spreading his arms.

The silence was followed, few not understand right away.

"... The vaults." Tio said in realization. Even Jacob was now very focused on this story.

"Exactly, Tio. Smart boy. They created the vaults as a backup plan. If the war would come, the civilians could escape in these big vaults, lock themselves in, and wait for the fight to be over. They would stay safe. They would survive. And keep life and civilization alive." Charlie explained with a smile.

"So... If we are here... That means..." Sam began with a nervous tone.

Charlie's smiled faded again as he spoke with a saddened tone.

"The great war... It came. This country called China, that I've told about a few times... It used its nukes without mercy. The US started to shoot them back around the same time, aiming them in China. The whole planet was shaking... The greed for oil had come to its most extreme point. These big bombs traveled a great distance, right here where we live. In America. And they hit the ground."

The classroom was quiet, everyone just feeling grim and depressed, most not just being able to process how evil it all sounded. It just didn't make any sense to them. For all those people to die.

"... The book said Pennsylvania blew up first, along with a city called New York. The people died by millions within minutes. "

"How can any bomb in the world cause that much destruction?" Tio asked like it couldn't be possible.

"Well, here is where we get to radiation, Tio. See, the reason these bombs were so nasty, was because... It wasn't the blast radius that did all the killing. Sure, it turned people into dust within seconds around the center of the blast... Like they never even existed... But the bomb released this thing called radiation upon detonating. The radiation would spread for great miles... And kill everything in its touch. Not only people. The things you hear in the songs and see in the books. Trees. Birds. Fish. Grass. It made air impossible to breathe. It made water impossible to drink... It just... Simply took the life out of everything." Charlie said, feeling so sad that he had to tell this... But it was time for everyone in his class to learn these more serious stories... Because they were not kids anymore.

"That... Is the most horrible thing I've heard..." Jill said with a sad tone.

"All this over oil sounds like... It's... How could they be so selfish and evil? They could have just tried to live without the oil!" Some girl said from next to Jill.

"Yeah, they were on some psycho shit on that one." Some bulldog stated from the corner.

"Why would they even create such a horrible bomb? Wasn't shooting people with guns bad enough?" Sam asked with a disturbed voice.

"... It sounds like a nightmare..." Tio said quietly.

".... Yeah." Jacob agreed, looking at Tio as he agreed with him. He couldn't find any jokes about something this horrifying.

Charlie nodded to all the answers and exhaled as he kept going.

(Fallout 4 OST - Main Theme)

"Some people from some cities and areas managed to run into vaults like these. So, in a sense, the plan worked. Not just as well as they thought. The preparation time was too little and the attack came too fast without an early warning. Some vaults were left empty, and some were packed full. Some only had a few survivors... Even to this day, not all vaults have been found. And I'll be honest... When I first read this book by Tom... I thought it was bullshit. At least some of it. I didn't believe in vaults. I had never seen one in my own eyes. As in a vault full of civilians that had lived there as a peaceful community since the beginning of bombs falling down... It sounded like one big lie. Until I found this place. Until I found all of you." Charlie explained with a smile.

"So, I guess... Tom's book had some sense to it after all. Since this place here was very real. And it makes me believe that there are other vaults like this. Full of people like you. At least I hope that is true." Charlie said.

"... Wow... that was..." Jacob began.

"... Winchester, why are you telling us this now? Shouldn't like... Our parents know about this as well?" Farin asked.

"... Some of them might know. Some of them might not. I mean, like I said... It's not a beautiful history lesson. So, it would make sense that people wouldn't tell it to their children. But I thought it was time for all of you to know. So... That was the story of the resource wars and the great war. And know you all know how you ended up living here." Charlie said, proud of having such a powerful lesson, it clearly had an impact on everyone.

Tio then proceeded to ask.

"Mr. Charlie... If the radiation killed everything... How did you stay alive out there?"

"Oh, no, silly me. I didn't explain the story quite to the end yet. Thanks for the question, Tio. Paying attention well, as future overseer should." Charlie said proudly, making the wolf smile and wag his tail a but, Jacob noticing it and looking at Tio in silence.

"So... The atomic bombs kept blowing up, but not by so many numbers that everything would be completely destroyed on the ground. Surely, most places were inhabitable, burning and affected by the radiation... But some places were not. Some people found places to hide, besides the vault. Caves... Mountains... Basements... Countless of possible places. The grim thing about radiation is that... When affected by it... You start to... Well, the pain is unimaginable, as Tom describes in his book. It starts to melt your body and deform it. It affects your genes as well and your body. Your mind. Rare survive it without dying within a few weeks or days... But the ones who survived on the ground and didn't hide in time... They became something different... They adapted to the radiation and its terrible effects... And kept going. If you were exposed to radiation... The chances are that you won't be able to make a child. And if you were... It will be born deformed because of the radiation. And nature... It becomes a true struggle because of it. Plants won't grow for a long time. Trees die. Water is so dirty that if you drink it, you get infected with the radiation. And the things we called lesser creatures... Birds and fish... The mutation made some of them... Monsters. Just like they did some men and women. It's... Those atom bombs were literally the reason I've had trouble believing in God." Charlie stated from the bottom of his heart.

The class got quiet. Dion slowly stuttered with a scared voice.

"M-monsters?"

"... That is a subject for some other day, son. For now, ... I think I have already told a bit too much."

"Umm..." Tio began slowly.

Charlie then realized where Tio was about to go with his question, chuckling.

"Right. So... The people who survived the radiation... The kept going. They showed how people can truly have the spirit to stay alive and... Rebuild. They started to slowly come back to the surface after the years when the radiation wasn't that heavy anymore. Sure, nature was gone... But they had to give it some time. Like someone wise I once knew, said... Nature will always win in the end. So... People rebuilt... Started to create communities. Salvage food. Repair broken buildings and places. They started to create life... And within a hundred years... Places started to grow again. Trees started to see life. Plants started to grow... Things started to... Just heal. And the world started to slowly look like it had hope once again. So... That is how I am here, Tio. I guess my long-gone distant parents had survived the great war by some miracle among the other lucky people... And I became a citizen on the surface of Texas ground. Lived there all my life... And ended up in here, eventually." Charlie finished with a smile.

Everyone stared at Charlie in awe, the old husky then smiling as he spoke.

"Now, I am afraid that we are running out of time. But you were all very brave to sit through this lesson. Thank you all... Time to wrap this up."

The class felt the need to start clapping. Few claps after another, the whole class was clapping shortly.

"Thank you. Glad to be here." Charlie chuckled happily.

"Wow... that was one hell of an ending story all the way from talking about oil." Jacob had to admit with an impressed smile.

"Traumatizing story, still... But I'm glad some survived." Sam agreed.

"Sheesh, I'm glad that WE survived," Jacob answered.

"Mhh. This was an amazing story. I wish he would have brought a copy of that book with him." Tio said quietly.

"I just wish that our ancestors could have settled it all peacefully..." Dion said with a sad tone.

The clapping slowly faded as Charlie spoke happily.

"Thank you all. Well, nice that this whole sad and terrible story had a somewhat nice ending. The history is terrible... But what is the main thing, is that we learn from it. And we make sure that it never repeats itself. We need to try to be better... And we need to try to be wiser." The old husky ended, happy to knock the table as he yelled out.

"Alright, lesson time is over! I'll see you all tomorrow for the next subject! Have a good rest of the day all of you!... And sorry for such a grim story. I'll make sure the next one is way happier." Charlie promised, the class starting to wildly discuss among themselves about the great war, slowly emptying out of the class like a flood, Charlie staring after them with a proud smile and checking at the clock at the table. He then sighed by himself as he gave Dion a rub on his head fur on his way out, making him chuckle and escape quickly.

But Dion suddenly turned around after a moment of hesitation, Jacob and the others turning around to wait at the door. The husky spoke in thought.

"I can't believe you never told me that story before."

"... Well, I guess it was finally time. Try not to think about it all too much though. Might give an uneasy rest at night."

"I umm... I think I can manage if I suppress it." Dion said awkwardly, realizing that he had to go to Amir later today. He had already enough nightmares in his head. As horrible as the history lesson of the great war just was, he doubted it would even find space in his bad dreams. They were already full of the ongoing same nightmare.

"Good boy. You go along now and wait for that evening's surprise. Have fun with your friends."

"Thanks, dad... I'll catch you later."

"Yeah. Say hi to your brother for me."

"... Might as well tell him and Niles the story, although I think Jacob will do it before I get the chance." Dion said.

"Hahaha, oh well... Fast eat the slow, I say." Charlie teased.

"Pfft. Okay, dad. See you later. Wait, guys!" Dion hollered after his friends, as they were getting restless on the doorway. Charlie smiled after the sight and saw the bunch disappear shortly on their way.

As Charlie took a few deep breaths, he gathered himself mentally to face Calvin again, knowing it would be one annoying situation to deal with each time. But he had to get it done and over with.

Just as he was about to leave the class, he realized that someone was on the doorway.

It was Sandy. The female raccoon looked at Charlie with an intense gaze, almost as in studying him.

"... Sandy." Charlie said firmly, not really knowing what to think about her confronting him this quick.

"... Mister Winchester." Sandy said right back without a hint of smile.

"... So... You just happened to walk by here?"

"... Maybe." The raccoon said, closing the door with a delicate click of a button.

"... Well, I don't happen to give classes to adults, I'm afraid. I just thought them about the great war." Charlie said, leaning against his steel table.

"Ah. The great war... Doesn't ring any bells." Sandy said with an alluring tone, starting to slowly approach as her paw traveled on the steel desks.

"... Sandy, what are you exactly doing here? You shouldn't be seen talking with me that much in public." Charlie asked with a tired tone, looking at the clock.

"Oh... Might some people get some ideas and go running to my jealous Calvin?" She asked innocently.

"... That would be the case most likely. People talk."

"Like you talked to your buddies this morning?" She asked with a serious tone.

"... I can assure you, I didn't talk about us if that is what you think. Calvin is ready to order his guards to cut off fingers from someone who touches you. And I'd say I rather like my fingers." Charlie assured, playing it all off.

"Mhh. They are fine fingers indeed." Sandy said with a shrug of shoulders and a hint of smile.

"... Sandy, you want to tell me why you are in my classroom?" Charlie asked with a sigh.

"Oh, I don't know... Maybe it's like you said... I just happened to come by." Sandy said innocently, sitting comfortably on one of the front row tables, that happened to be Tio's.

"... Great. Well, don't make it a habit. Talking about Calvin... I have a meeting with your ex-husband within few minutes. So I really need to get going."

"You have an awfully lot of meetings with him lately, don't you, Charlie? You started to like men more? Hmm? Pussy, not a thing for you anymore? Never would have thought." She asked with a playful tone.

"Hmph." Charlie gave as small a sarcastic laugh but still smiled a bit. He then spoke after looking at Sandy for a while and sighed.

"Look, if you don't have anything to say here, Sandy... Then I'm going to take my leave. Last time we spoke, it didn't end on good terms. I said some hurtful things and I apologize for them. But I think it would be best for us to do like you implied. We should just live our own lives. We had a fun run, but you deserve someone who is ready to give you what you desire. It is admirable to want to be a mother, Sandy... But you won't find a husband here." Charlie stated like it was a fact.

"... So serious all the time... I just came by to say hello." Sandy claimed, clearly liking to just hear Charlie talk.

"... Right... Well, it was nice seeing you, Sandy. Excuse me." Charlie said with an eyeroll, starting to walk towards the door.

The moment he was about to pass the raccoon, she grabbed Charlie by the collar of his vault shirt, stopping him. Charlie raised an eyebrow at the action, looking at the raccoon in question. She slowly started letting go of the collar and starting to move her paw down delicately.

It slowly reached firmly where she wanted, making Charlie's eyelids relax down a bit as reaction, the dog looking at the raccoon in more question. She proceeded to slowly unzip her whole suit from the neck, all the way down and slowly lifting her shoulders out of the clothing, revealing herself fully in front of the old dog shamelessly, making Charlie's eyelids relax even more and fill with sudden surprised lust. She then started to run her paw around Charlie's bulge, whispering to him.

"I locked the door. I don't want to fight or argue. Just forget all that for now. What I need from you, Charlie... I'll promise when you are close that I swallow it all down, just the way you love it. We don't want to make a mess around here, right? Girl has to hide the evidence of such a... Dangerous act." She winked.

The old dog felt his serious gaze shift into a turned on and wicked smile as he huffed a bit, feeling the pressure in his pants growing the more Sandy was eagerly fondling him. He started to run his finger along her neck all the way down her chest as he spoke.

"I don't have time for foreplay, as much as I enjoy eating you out," Charlie admitted.

"Well... I guess we skip that then. You got places to go." Sandy said with a small hint of sadness.

"... Yeah, let's do this quick." Charlie said with an apologizing tone.

"Like it ever lasts more than like ten minutes," Sandy said back with eyeroll and bit her lip as Charlie started to rip his clothing down eagerly.

"Funny." The dog huffed back.

ACT 3

(The Ink Spots - We'll Meet Again)

The tune was playing from an old vinyl player inside Calvin Marston's office, the weasel sitting on his chair and reading a book. On the table, he had a bottle of scotch, along with a glass that was half empty. He flipped the page of his dark green-covered book, humming to the song that was playing.

He swished his tail, taking the glass in his paw and focused on some paragraphs before taking a sip. The moment he was about to bring the glass towards his muzzle, the intercom spoke from the wall.

"Calvin... Charlie Winchester is here to see you." Elliot's voice informed from the other side of the door.

The visible annoyance hit Calvin in the face like a wave, the weasel shutting his eyes down and speaking loudly so the voice would be heard by the intercom.

"What does he want?" Calvin asked, leaning the back of his neck against his big chair, exhaling in frustration.

After a brief silence, the intercom line opened again.

"He says it's a personal matter, Calvin."

"... Very fucking specific as always." Calvin muttered with a sarcastic tone, taking a spin with his chair and hearing the intercom speak.

"Sir?"

"Yes, yes. Send him in here." Calvin gave up.

The weasel kicked his feet on the table, seeing as the metal door in the other end of the room lifted up, the old brown-furred husky walking in right away.

The door closed after him, Charlie stopping halfway of the room to look at the vinyl player.

"The ink spots. Huh."

"..." Calvin didn't answer, looking at the dog with his usual annoyed expression, drinking down the scotch from his glass.

Charlie looked like he was memorizing something, looking at the vinyl player as he listened to the tune. He then spoke in a mysterious tone.

"... I once had a friend who loved this band."

"... You had friends?" Calvin asked tiredly, not caring about Charlie's company at all right now. The old dog ignored the attitude, walking a few steps towards the vinyl player and looked at it dreamily.

The weasel just lifted an eyebrow in confusion, following Charlie carefully. The old husky then spoke quietly after a while, hearing the song end.

"..." Charlie just stood there, having zoned out on his memories and forgetting briefly where he was. The weasel finally spoke to break the silence.

"... Can you get on with whatever you were here for? I'm busy."

Charlie slowly woke up from his memories, shifting his gaze at the weasel and the bottle on his table.

"... Isn't it a bit too early to be drinking?" Charlie asked.

"Fuck you," Calvin said bluntly like he didn't care.

"... Well, aren't you in a good mood, Calvin." Charlie said with an amused expression.

"... How do you even dare to show your face in here after what you did?" Calvin asked in agitation.

"... What I did... Was the right thing to do, and you know it."

"The right thing?! You fucking piece of shit! It was not your call to choose the overseer! NILES was the only blood relative for me besides Randal! And that boy finally had a chance to be someone great, and you took it from me! You and your fucking ego. If your students had not been in that room when I! -" Calvin stopped, having stood up in slightly drunk agitation, just bringing his whole nights stored hate out on the dog.

Charlie didn't even flinch, just taking a deep inhale and exhale, placing his arms behind his back as he spoke innocently.

"You... Would have done what?"

"... What?" Calvin asked in an annoyance.

"What would have you done? I'm asking out of interest. I never really knew how you truly intended to proceed, if you would have decided to take action." Charlie asked genuinely.

"... Are you really asking me that?" Calvin asked with an intense gaze.

"... Yes. Since it's just us two here, and you know I don't exactly spread rumors or tell about our discussions, nor do you... Humor me. Tell me, what you would have done if it was just me in that classroom?"

The weasel slowly calmed down, showing the same aggression and disgust still in his face as he slowly sat back down on his seat, calming down his breathing. He took his eyes off the dog and spoke quietly.

"I would have taken Xavier's gun, and shot you in the face. I wanted to."

"..." Charlie went quiet, clearly somewhat surprised that Calvin had balls to say such a thing, but it most likely was due to the alcohol. He had clearly had about two glasses, not enough to make him drunk, but enough to make him say what he felt.

"... You think that it would have been fitting judgment over me convincing to everyone that Tio Tampico would be a better choice than Niles, who clearly doesn't want to be you or do your job?" Charlie asked like it was clearly quite an overreaction.

"I've wanted you dead for a long time. Since the fucking day, you came into my vault... I wanted you gunned down. But you managed to talk yourself out of the situation... And once again use kids to your advantage. But I saw what I still see now. You are dangerous. Trouble. You are a bad influence. You are unpredictable. And you are vile from the land of unknow that we didn't need to know ANYTHING ABOUT. You just came in here and... You should be dead." Calvin said, finally looking at Charlie now in the eye with nothing but hate in his eyes.

Charlie didn't answer right away, looking at Calvin back with a rather sad look, clearly seeing Calvin as rather pathetic, but also feeling somewhat surprised that Calvin truly despised him to this extent. During his lifetime he only knew one man who hated him this much... And he hated him back just as worse.

"... I'm sorry you feel that way."

"Sorry... You are not sorry about anything, Charlie. You never have been. You enjoy rebelling me like you get off from it. Looking at me with that fucking face like you are better than me each time you walk into my office." Calvin muttered, taking the bottle from the table.

"... I always wondered... What kind of man would have there been waiting for me the day the vault opened... If your sister had lived." Charlie said with genuine sympathy.

The weasel clearly felt very strongly about what Charlie had just said, looking at the dog with intense eye contact.

"Don't fucking talk about her. You don't EVER mention Lilly to me."

"... My intention was not to insult, and you know that. I'm sure that she was a very good-hearted person. But for what I heard from everyone during my years in here... You were not always filled with hate like you are each time you talk to me." Charlie said with a genuine tone.

Calvin was quiet, breathing a bit faster but relaxed after a while as he spoke calmly.

"... That was a long time ago." He said, opening the bottle lid.

"... I've lost people as well. It's not hard for me to relate." Charlie said back quietly.

"... Pfft. Great. This is the last thing I want with Charlie Winchester. Bonding over the sorrows. Okay. Fine. Who have you ever lost out there in the great unknown?" The weasel asked in amusement like he couldn't give less as he placed the glass to get ready for pouring.

"... You know what? Maybe some other time." Charlie sighed, changing his mind. He sure as hell was not going to tell his life story to Calvin Marston out of all the people. Especially if he had to speak truly.

"Hmm... So... Can you finally tell me why you are here? I'd like to continue reading this book."

"What book is that? I might have read it." Charlie asked with an interest.

The weasel turned his face in frustration at the husky, not saying anything. He was clearly tired and wanted Charlie to fuck off.

"Fine. You want me to give you a slow version or just blurt out what I want?" Charlie asked with a smile that annoyed the weasel right away.

"The quicker I get you the fuck out of my sight, the better. I don't want anything to do with you after what you already took from me. You are lucky to be so popular, otherwise, I would just order my guards to-"

"Yeah, yeah. I got it. You want me dead. But it won't happen during your lifetime, Calvin. I'm too smart for you, and you are not a killer. You can either grow up some character and try to tolerate me more day by day or stay as a cranky old self, it doesn't matter. As long as I am best friend with about half of your guards and liked by these people, you can't sweep my body under a rug and say I met some accident. Now, if you are done with your tipsy threats, I would like to talk about something. You okay to proceed or do you want to drink some more during ten in the morning?"

"... You got some fucking nerve; I give you that." Calvin said, wanting to throw the bottle at Charlie's face.

"... How about we calm down and talk like civilized men here, hm?" Charlie said with a hint of warning in his tone, not liking the way Calvin looked at him.

"... Just get on with it already." Calvin sighed, composing himself.

"Alright, so. I am going to need to borrow a gun from the armory. Just only for this evening... Maybe for a few other nights too. Depends. And I will, of course, return it where it belongs, so don't worry."

Calvin processed what he had heard for a while, studying Charlie with a sudden peek of interest as he started to pour down his drink into the glass.

"You need a gun."

"Correct. And some clips to go with it as well. Considering that you guys have not used these weapons pretty much ever and the ammunition crates just lay around there, I might as well put them to use. I would use my own but I only have one clip and you guys don't have that caliber ammunition lying around... So..." Charlie explained.

"... And what. Use. Is that?" Calvin asked, making sure Charlie knew that this was not going to be an easy request.

"I'm going to teach my son to shoot," Charlie said out proudly.

"... Come again?"

"I'm going to teach my boy how to handle a firearm," Charlie said out with a shrug of shoulders.

Calvin stared at Charlie with a rather nervous and annoyed look, trying to read the situation and the request. Charlie was just casually smiling like his request was not in any way out of ordinary.

"This your plan? Hm? You first take my nephew's birthright, insult my authority? Now you want to teach these kids into being some brainwashed child soldiers so you can... What? Take over the power in the vault and get rid of people who oppose you? Has that been your long-time plan all along?" the weasel asked, half-serious.

Charlie kept a straight face and couldn't hold it anymore after a while.

He started to laugh, blocking his eyes as he shook his head, the reaction only agitating Calvin.

"Oh, you find that funny, huh?"

"Calvin... Wait... Let me, haahhha... Oh wow... That..." Charlie had to collect himself after a while as he stopped his chuckling, rubbing his face and staring at the rather disturbed and cautious looking weasel.

"Must be one hell of a book you are reading lately. No. I am not planning on such colorful ideas. Nor any takeovers. What would be the point? I dislike you only because you are a cunt. But I do not hate you, Calvin. I don't have enough energy in my soul to really hate anyone. Well... There is one person. But still, I have never hurt anyone. So I wouldn't try to waste my time on harming you. Let alone have you killed by... Youth soldiers? Look...-"

"You and Amir's father kept coming to this office giving this same shit to me for years! You think I want to change my mind now?! We are not teaching kids to shoot or fight, no matter the reason! And we are NOT opening that vault door! No one leaves this place, haven't you understood me already?!-"

"Calvin. I'm not talking about training others. Just my son. And I'm not talking about leading a crusade out of this vault to the wasteland either. I have given up on all that. You have won on that front. Besides, I doubt many would even want to leave this place, even if they knew that food and water is not gonna last forever. That is not what I am here to talk about. I'm just talking about training my son to shoot. No one else. And you know that I don't tell things in my class that would overstep our mutual understanding. Alright?" Charlie presented with a genuine tone.

"How can I believe anything you say after things you have caused? It would only make sense that you want to take over." Calvin claimed.

"Maybe in your mind, but no, Calvin. I do not have an interest in being the overseer. I'm satisfied to be just a teacher here. Look. What is done, is done. Tio will be a student of yours and you have to accept it. It's for the best. Let Niles live his life his way and pursue his dreams-"

"Which is what? Not honoring his family name? Not trying to even become a preacher like his father instead, now that he can't be the overseer? Not having any goals or directions at all? Just fighting with metal sticks all his life and turn out to become a target of bullying by the men of his age because he grew into a slow-minded boy with fantasies of being a knight-"

"Not if he beats them up with the metal sticks. He is rather good at handling that thing. You should go to see sometimes how talented he can be with his so-called useless hobby." Charlie pointed out with a smirk.

"Very fucking innovative way to look at it. Thank you. You opened my eyes to opportunities."

"Good. Now. Back to that discussion we had. We kinda derailed here-"

"Why do you want to teach your fox son to shoot?" Calvin asked like it made no sense.

"Oh, I'm not teaching Ryan. I'm teaching Dion." Charlie said.

"... Dion. Right. Then WHY are you teaching Dion to shoot with a gun?"

"Because he is a man soon. It's time for him to learn this kind of stuff. You know, father and son things. I promised I will teach something cool to him, so this would be it. Might as well learn it now."

Calvin stayed quiet, lifting an eyebrow as he repeated.

"Something cool."

"Well, I mean, out of the ordinary. You know. To spice things up. However, you want to take it." Charlie said with a chuckle.

"... You think that teaching your own son how to use a deadly weapon is considered a fun affair? And why would he need to learn such a thing?" Calvin asked, tapping his full glass and not drinking it as he was too focused on making sense of this discussion.

Charlie then began explaining.

"Out there where I come from, it's a custom that-"

"Out there where you come from," Calvin said right away, sounding disturbed.

"Yes, the Texas wasteland would be the name. I think it should be common knowledge in here now. So, up there we teach our youth to use weapons around the time they reach the age of thirteen, for their own protection."

"What. The. Fuck." Calvin repeated like Charlie was just bullshitting now.

"... I can see that it sounds a bit disturbing thought to you-"

"Yeah. And most likely to anyone in here. You say that out there you teach kids to shoot guns? For what fucking reason? That is not mentally healthy." Calvin argued.

"... As I said. For their own protection." Charlie nodded.

"... From what, exactly?" Calvin asked.

"... More than a few things... But mostly... Bad people... Among other bad things." Charlie said with a serious tone.

"... Ah. You mean people like you?" Calvin questioned, clearly seeing the jab annoy Charlie a bit.

For a moment the dog thought about giving harsh truths to the weasel but held back as he knew he was just wasting time now.

"..." Charlie was quiet for a while, tapping the table in piano motion as he continued.

"You don't want to hear a storytime about life out there, trust me, you don't. Might shatter your fragile mind till you crawl into a sniveling ball. So, how about I just cut this down to the point. I want to teach my son to shoot and I'd like to have your permission on the matter."

"..." Calvin was now instead quiet for a while, contemplating. The snarky comment was most likely being Charlie just trying to scare him. He himself didn't know anything truly about life on the outside, nor he really wanted to. But it gave an advantage for Charlie to make up any bullshit story he wanted as justification to his behavior or actions to some extent. Calvin once again repeated in frustration.

"And what do you imagine to get out of it? Why do you want to make him someone capable of shooting? There are no threat situations here or bad people around wanting to hurt him or such. So, what is the goal here?"

"... I think he needs a hobby. I'm trying this one out. Since Tio is now going to spend less time with him, and Jacob might end up getting a girlfriend some of these days since he is a charming youngster... Dion might not end up having that many people to hang out with anymore beside Sam if things go how they go. Ryan and Niles spend their time training. So, he might need something else to focus on during his free time. Might as well be this. You guys have ammo to spare for the training for years. If he dislikes the idea of doing it, I let it be. IF he likes it, then he can proceed. Under my supervising of course, and I always return the gun where it belongs.

"... One learns to fight with sticks and one learns to shoot guns, what kind of a parent are you?" Calvin asked like Charlie was just touched in the head despite his reasoning.

Charlie clearly now got agitated by the words, giving Calvin a warning looks along with head tilt.

"... I am willing to die and kill for my sons. That should already tell you something. If you were a father yourself, only then would you have the right to judge me on the matter on an ethical level."

Calvin squeezed his glass and spoke back in disgust.

"... And you wonder why I hate you to death. I bet you find much amusement knowing that I can't be a father no matter how I tried. You think I didn't want to have kids?"

"... No. I don't find it funny, to be honest. I do feel sorry for you." Charlie said with a serious tone.

"I don't need your pity." Calvin hissed.

"Well, I'm offering it anyway. I'm sure you would have been an average dad-" Charlie began with a sarcastic tone.

Calvin made an eyeroll and spoke in agitation.

"Oh, shut the fuck up. I don't need to listen to this shit pouring out of your muzzle for a minute longer. Fine, you borrow the gun and teach your son to shoot up bad people. What does it matter anyway at this point what I think? Within a year, I will be a citizen and you have won. And I have to spend the rest of my years trying to get Sandy back. Congratulations. Now, fuck off from my office." Calvin said, taking the glass and downing it with one sip, looking away from Charlie in hateful spirit.

The old dog gave an amused smile, shrugging his shoulders as he turned around, about to take his leave. He kept going for a few steps with a self-pleased smile, ready to go on about his day until he stopped walking. He then slowly turned around and spoke.

"Oh, Calvin. One more thing."

"... There is always one more thing with you." Calvin sighed, grabbing the bottle again in frustration as he didn't even bother to look at Charlie.

The dog cleared his throat and spoke.

"It's about Tio Tampico."

"..." Calvin didn't even bother to answer, almost like wishing Charlie was already gone and he was hearing things.

"... I want you to be kind to him."

"... What?" Calvin asked in annoyance, still not looking at Charlie.

The dog took a few steps towards Calvin's table, then speaking.

"His training begins the next week, I'm correct? Well, I happen to know Tio very well... And he is a serious person. Kind of like you. If you give it a chance, he will learn quickly. Just be patient and most of all KIND with him... And you will shape him good into your position. He can be quiet but very observant. And he doesn't necessarily talk much-"

"So, is he like what? Autistic or something?" Calvin asked with a mocking tone, ignoring everything else as he opened the bottle again.

"... No." Charlie said, now looking visibly annoyed as the weasel was not taking this seriously.

"Whatever. You done?"

"... Only if you promise to be kind and patient with him, Calvin. I need to hear it. I know how you can be." Charlie stated.

"Oh, look at you, all mushy and caring. I'll treat the spic the way I want. You might have outplayed Niles out of the position but that fucking Mexican kid will wish he hadn't taken the job. He will learn it at some point that this work is not all roses..."

"... What?" Charlie asked.

"I don't like wolves... Especially Mexican wolves..." Calvin muttered as he opened the bottle loudly again. The alcohol clearly stared to have it's effect on him a bit.

Charlie winched in disgust and spoke.

"Wow. Your spiciest and racist comments are such a beautiful trait. What the hell is wrong with you to be born with that attitude? What did Mexicans or wolves ever do to you?"

"Santino Tampico's father was a thief around here before he passed away... Stole my sister's jewelry once. My father had the guards breaking his fingers with batons for that. Common knowledge among the oldest residents. And he was always an asshole to me before. Hermandez was his name, but I'm sure Santino has told only good things about him to you... And Santino is just a weirdo who smiles too much. I don't really feel any enjoyment on the matter that now I have to get to know his son now."

"... Well, however, you may feel. Tio is not a thief nor an asshole. And Santino is a good man. Now... I want you to even try but aside this idea of yours of getting back to me by being mean to Tio. Just... Give him a chance. He will be a good leader. He loves reading like you. And he is wise-"

"Like I could give a fuck, Winchester. Your request has been noted. Get the fuck out." Calvin muttered, about to pour another shot.

"... Give me that and listen," Charlie said.

Before the weasel could pour, Charlie quickly leaped nimbly to catch the bottle right out of Calvin's paw, making the weasel stare at him in question, almost having jumped a bit. He took a moment to process what had just happened, Charlie rolling the cork of the bottle back as he spoke.

"Just promise me that you will be kind to him."

"... Winchester, do you have a fucking death wish? I will order Elliot to fetch a gun and shoot you in the knee for your disrespect. So... You really want to try my patience?" The weasel asked with the anger coming back to him, the smile having died from his face.

"I've heard many people ask that during my lifetime. Now. Just say that you will be kind to him." Charlie said.

"And you'll do... What? Huh? He is my student now and I'll treat him with the way I see fit..."

"Come on, Calvin. You are just being petty to me now. Tio is innocent." Charlie stated in an annoyance.

"Petty... You could have at least chosen a female." The weasel muttered in annoyance, looking at the bottle he needed in aggression.

"... Why does gender matter?"

"Because at least that way you could have made this less painful for me. I wouldn't have maybe even been angry if I'd have a pair of tits and fine ass to look at all day." Calvin said without shame.

"... Those girls are from seventeen to twenty-two years old. Are you okay up there? Or is it the drink that is talking?" Charlie asked in a frustration of this conversation going nowhere.

"What? You taking the holy road and claiming you have never wanted to fuck one of those fine-looking girls at your class? I would definitely try... Especially that Jill girl... Damn... Body like a temple... Unlike her fat mother... She must have eaten like half the rations here. Have you seen her?"

"Jesus Christ, Calvin. Get a grip. What would Sandy think if he heard you talking like that? You are drunk in the middle of the day, talking about molesting teenage girls." Charlie said, looking at the weasel in disgust. Calvin just innocently spread his arms in surrender, stating his answer.

"Well, frankly, we are not married anymore. Besides, they are not teens. A girl over eighteen isn't a teen. I've always wanted a much younger wife. -"

"Thank you for that mental image. Now. Make a promise to be kind to Tio, or you won't get this bottle back. I have places to go." Charlie said in frustration, not wanting to hear any more of this perverted rambling out of the weasel.

"Winchester... before this wolf comes and replaces me in a foreseeable future... I run this kingdom. You... Are all my subjects. And you all do as I say. I will treat this Tio the way I want... And I'll try to be on my best behavior... Only if he is."

"... He will be."

"So you have said. We will see, shall we? Now... The bottle." The weasel said, giving out his paw.

"..." Charlie looked at the agitated weasel for a moment, then handing out the bottle slowly back into his grasp.

Just as Charlie was about to leave after intense staring competition, the intercom line opened.

"Calvin. Randal is here to see you, as requested."

"... Send him in. We are done here anyway." Calvin said without taking his eyes off the husky for a moment in challenge.

Charlie shook his head, turning around and starting to walk away as the door opened in front of him.

When it did, it revealed tired and scruffy looking older grey lynx, looking right at him. The eyes were subtly filled with hate, the husky looking right back emotionlessly. This was Niles's father. And the preacher man of the vault fifty-five.

"... Winchester." The lynx said quietly.

"... Hovan." Charlie repeated with a nod as he passed the lynx on the doorway.

After passing by, the husky started to walk down the stairs after giving a nod at Elliot guarding the door, not getting one back in return. The lynx staring right at the back of the husky's head on his way down the stairs, starting to walk into the room only after the husky was gone.

"Randal... Come in. I have some bad news concerning your son. In case you haven't heard." Calvin yelped from the other side of the room, the lynx closing the door right after him.

ACT 4

The evening had arrived, and Charlie was ready for his poker night to be followed, along with Sandy's request to swing by her place for a midnight of intimacy after the guys night... But before that, Charlie had to keep his promise to his son. So, he indeed borrowed a gun. And had planned a nice little place for Dion all on his own to practice his possible future hobby.

"You ready for the surprise, Dion? You hyped?" Charlie asked with a chuckle as he was guiding his son, walking behind him down the stairs and holding his shoulders.

"Dad, what is this? Why are we all the way down here?" Dion asked, laughing and not getting where on earth they were going.

"This... Is the deepest level of the vault. Floor 5. This particular area is for supplies, rations, along with other countless things. You have never been here, have you?" Charlie asked.

"I don't think so... It's really dark in here. I hate dark..." Dion said, clearly a bit worried.

"Well, don't worry. I'll put the lights on the moment you are getting the surprise." Charlie assured.

"... Getting... As in, object?"

"... Observant huh? Well, just a few more steps and we have made it."

The huskies both walked down a few more steps on a rather narrow and dim tunnel, the temperature feeling a bit colder in here. They both were feeling some fur bristling, as there was slightly some wind going around the area. The whole vault's air filtration system was located here, so it made sense for there to be more than a few huge fans. Reasons that younglings were not allowed at this level for their own safety. Among the possible temptations to steal something important.

"Dad... I feel like I'm going to stumble at this rate. I can't see a thing."

"Juuust a little more." Charlie chuckled.

After making a quick left turn, being practically surrounded by wooden and metallic crates, they both arrived at a slightly open, yet linear area. Dion had a slightly hard time to understand what was going on, just giving nervous gazes at his father, wishing that he would now shed some light into whatever this surprise could be.

Charlie suddenly stopped, them finally arriving in the corner of the huge room, the old husky clicking the panel on the wall.

The lights slowly came on, only pretty much-sharing light around the part of the room they were in, while the rest of the hall like room stayed dimmer. And the moment Dion could observe his surroundings, he saw a somewhat odd set of objects around him.

There was a feet long wall made out of wooden boxes in front of him. The left side of him also had twice as higher wall, piled by metallic boxes of different items. They were neatly lined for a couple of meters till they would hit the wall further away. And by the end of that wall, Dion could notice something out of ordinary. It was three big boxes turned by their side up, having random objects on top of them. Along with some paper drawings glued to the wall by tape. They were located rather far, about seven meters away from them.

Dion had no idea what to really make of it but whatever the reasons for these objects being like this was, someone had gone through some effort do have them so. Charlie smiled casually and looked at Dion, the young husky looking observant as he was confused. He then turned to slowly look at his smiling father, asking the question that lingered in his mind.

"Dad... What is all this?"

"This? A rather clumsy setting to some degree, but I guess it has to do for now. I may improve it in a better time." Charlie assured with a chuckle.

"... Ooookay? I mean as in... Why are all these boxes scattered like this?" Dion asked without a hint of understanding.

"... Today, I'm going to teach you something. Now, I want you to have an open mind and not be afraid. The surprise I'm giving you here is... Well, I know it may alarm you first. But know, I have nothing but best intentions behind it. I want you to just give it a chance and listen to what I have to say." Charlie stated, laying his hand on Dion's shoulder.

"... Sure, dad. That sounds... Rather serious?"

"Well, it is. But it doesn't mean it can't be fun." Charlie winked.

"... Alright. I'm ready. I trust you." Dion said, puffing his chest out.

"... There we go. Now... I'm going to show you something."

Dion nodded with slightly still uncertain expression, feeling excited as he felt a bit nervous. He really had no idea what to expect. Until it was right in front of him.

Charlie took out a metallic object from the nearby crate after a moment, Dion's eyes following in curiosity. Until Charlie showed what he was visibly carrying in his paw, making the young husky flinch a bit.

"Dad! Where on earth did you get that from?!" He asked worriedly.

Charlie knew the reaction was pretty much coming, chuckling as he spoke.

"Don't worry. I didn't steal it. Calvin gave me permission to take it from the armory. And the guards know I have it." Charlie smiled.

"... Why did you ask for a... Gun?" Dion asked, feeling slightly less worried now that he knew Charlie had not stolen it but was still just as confused.

"... Because my surprise to you is, that I'm going to teach you how to use it today, Dion." Charlie said with a serious tone, smiling as he gave the gun a spin in his hand.

"... Wait, huh? Teach me?" Dion asked like he was now just hearing things.

"That's correct, son. I think it's time you learn how to use a firearm. You are almost twenty years old soon. Consider this the father-son ritual of a kind. A late one and most likely the last remaining one left to teach. Now, I know you are not scared or show interest in such things... But I think it will be a rather interesting experience. You might even like it." Charlie assured, ruffling up the fur on top of Dion's head. Normally, it made him smile and shoo him away, but he was just staring at the object rather scared, not really knowing what to say as he rubbed his shoulder.

"Not really what I expected as a surprise. Not by a mile." Dion admitted quietly.

"I can clearly see that. And I'm sorry. But son... Sometimes you have to learn a different kind of things. This is one of them. Whatever it's cool or not, you have to find out. Like I said... You might like it."

"... Dad, I don't know..." Dion said with an uncomfortable tone.

"But I do. Listen... All I ask is that you give it a chance." Charlie winked.

"... I just don't really see the point? You know, using a... Firearm. Those things are dangerous."

"They are. I'm not going to sugar coat it, Dion. This thing right here is a deadly piece of metal. But... Once you learn how to handle it... It becomes much clearer to you. You adapt to it and the way it works. I will guide you through using it, step by step. I'm going to give you a small lesson, and I know you are good at following details." Charlie assured, about to begin his speech.

"Dad. Even looking at that thing is making me feel uneasy. And you know I am super clumsy. What if I end up shooting wrong and something-"?

"Hey. Dion. I will be right here for you to guide you thru it all. You will do fine. You always have trusted me. I won't let you down now either. Okay? You got this." The old husky said, smiling and handing out the object on an open paw towards his son.

The nervous-looking boy kept looking at his smiling dad for a while, hesitating and staring at the object. He then asked nervously.

"You sure it's not going to explode or something when I take it?"

"Hahaha... Son, it has no magazine or bullets in it and the safety is on. Meaning it's not in a functional state in any way. Just get the feeling of it first." Charlie encouraged.

The husky slowly reached for the object, clumsily taking it in his grasp. He managed to get his paw around the grip of the metal, slowly running his fingers around it and aiming it at the ground with a limp hand.

"It's... Kinda heavy."

"... Well, that particular model is unnecessarily heavy, especially compared to my personal handgun. Too much extra metal in my taste and rather ugly design but I guess they saw some of these adjustments necessary for the goal of getting one-millimeter higher caliber to be shot."

"... I... I did not understand." Dion said genuinely, all this information being a bit new to him.

Charlie chuckled at his own stupidity for a moment, taking the easier and simpler approach of explaining.

"Alright, let me start again. This... right here, is a standard model called 10mm handgun. I sold a few of those when I was a trader. They were to some extent a bit common. Never personally cared for them in my own use."

"Why is it called... Ten-"

"Oh, they I guess they didn't have a lot of imagination when it came to factory names for these things. Around in Texas wasteland, these were called by slang term of Tenbois. Due to the caliber number. The reason the name of the gun was named 10mm handgun, was... Well, because it shot ten caliber bullets, instead of nine-millimeter ones, like most of the handguns did. Well, if you don't count in the revolvers and some other- I mean, the calibers are not that important. We can get into those later."

"Nono, I'm... Trying to follow. What is a caliber?" Dion asked innocently while clumsily but warily waving the gun around.

Charlie smiled and continued.

"Well, caliber is the size of the bullet. Some guns have higher caliber design, meaning that they shoot bigger, more destructive bullets. My personal handgun is shooting nine's when this is shooting tens. The bigger the bullet, usually smaller the clip size as well, due to bullets taking more room and adding more weight."

"... I... guess that makes sense." Dion said with a slow nod, observing the gun with now raising a peak of interest.

Charlie gave a pleased smile, glad that his smart boy was following after all as he kept going.

There are different varieties of guns. There are handguns, which are made for the use of one hand, unless they are very high caliber ones, requiring two hands. Revolvers usually do, especially magnum models."

"Revolvers?"

"They are exactly like handguns, but with older manufacturing and the way of mechanism. They always hold a standard of six bullets, no matter the caliber, and the magazine... Well, drum as they call it, spins a bit to the side each time bullet is fired. They are very reliable, but rather difficult to load, in a case of tricky situations."

"... Tricky situations? What did you guys exactly need all these guns for on the surface?" Dion asked innocently, not understanding.

Charlie realized once more that he had almost driven the conversation to a rather dark area, knowing his son wouldn't be ready with his fragile childlike mind to realize the outside world was nothing but an endless warzone of misery. So, he just had to do what he always did best especially when it came to things about the surface. Lie.

"To hunt mole rats. I mean... They could bite if they get close and it might hurt bad. So, you know. Better not miss if you use a revolver."

"... Right." Dion said, slightly looking like he still wanted to ask something until Charlie quickly continued.

"There are also different types of firing mechanisms. Semi-auto, bolt, and automatic. The one you have now, and basically every handgun, is a semi-automatic. Meaning that one press of this... Little button here called trigger, releases one bullet per one press, until you run out of ammunition from the clip. A fully automatic weapon can fire multiple bullets in a row, emptying the whole clip rather fast, if you just hold the trigger back for a long time. Bolt action guns shoot one big bullet at once, needing a firm and concentrated reload to fire another big bullet... Does all this sound too complicated?"

"... N-no. I think I got it. I wish I could write this all down somewhere. Tio might find all this interesting."

"Well, he has lots of other stuff to learn soon so I wouldn't count on it. But yeah. There are handguns, revolvers, shotguns, SMG's, rifles, assault rifles, carbines, sniper rifles, energy weapons-"

"Wowowow!" Dion started as he tried to keep up.

"Hmm?" Charlie hummed in question.

"Why do you guys need all those kinds of guns to hunt down molerats to eat? What's the point? I mean... What was the point of making all of those things? Wouldn't just one-gun type be enough? You know, this?" Dion asked on confusion, waving the handgun a bit.

"... It's... hard to explain. There are other things to hunt as well as molerats. Bigger things. And bigger things need bigger guns. Remember, these weapons were created long before our time, Dion. You can't expect me to have answers to questions that no one can really answer. People just made these... And they will be here long after we are gone as well." Charlie said like it was a fact.

"... Sorry... I just... Yeah, I mean... I guess it does make sense. But it just all sounds a bit... Overly done? I don't know... And what bigger things exactly? All you have ever told about was rad scorpions or molerats. And how do you know about so many guns? I mean I know you were a trader but... You know A LOT. Did you hunt... A Lot of bigger things than molerats? You never have told me about such." Dion muttered, just trying to make sense of all this.

Charlie thought for a while what to say but couldn't really deny that he felt a bit frustrated on how observant Dion was, seeing all the loopholes in his talk. He then took a deep inhale and spoke.

"Dion... When the time comes... I can tell you about all of those things in more detail. I promise." Charlie said with a serious tone.

"But..."

"Dion. I am your father. And I need you to obey me on this one. Let's focus on what I'm trying to teach here, okay? I love you. But right now... Let's take one step at the time. I think I've done too much talking and too little actual instructing here. Let's just get this thing going, okay?" Charlie asked with a warm smile patiently, giving Dion a rather commanding nod.

The young husky looked at his father with a rather surprised look, not expecting him to respond this way. But he knew when his father meant business, and he clearly had places to go. So, the best he could do now was to just do as he was told. He then answered quietly.

"... Okay, dad."

"Alright then. Now... Come over here please, closer to these crates." Charlie instructed, walking over to the small barricade he had made in front of the shooting range.

Dion followed slowly after, walking beside the older husky and looked at him for guidance.

"Now, look at the bottom of that gun. See that the magazine is missing? Well, here is one. This is the thing I told you about. The metallic slide that holds the bullets in it. Here. Take a hold of this." Charlie said, handing out the metal slide over.

Dion carefully took the object in his paw, looking at it and then giving a gaze at the bottom of the grip of his gun.

"So, I just... Umm..."

"Make sure that your finger is not on that trigger press when you slide it in. Just slowly push it all the way inside until you hear a click and it won't move in anymore. Simple." Charlie stated.

Dion slowly started to adjust the clip, almost butting it upside down first.

"Haha.. Dion, turn it the other way around." Charlie pointed out with a smile.

"S-sorry.." Dion started to mutter in embarrassment, adjusting the clip other way around and putting it against the empty hole. He started to slowly shove it in, realizing it started to go in just like Charlie guided. And within a few seconds of careful pushing with nervous fingers, the click was heard.

"I... I think I did it." Dion said with a slight, unsure smile.

"That you did. Now, the gun is loaded. Good work. The next step is to slide back the gun's top frame all the way back until you hear the other kind of click. This might require a bit more strength from paw to do. Just grab the whole upper part with your paw, and pull back. Remember, the finger off the trigger."

"O-okay..." Dion said quietly, doing as was told. He pulled back hard, giving resistance to another way by holding the grip hard. He kept pulling, not managing to do it right the first time. Charlie just chuckled, nodding Dion to keep going. Within second try, he pulled slightly harder at the upper part of the gun, now managing to make it move back. The husky asked in confusion.

"M- more back?"

"Just a bit, until it gives the snapping sound of metal. Then you can completely release your paw from it." Charlie said.

"Hnn.." Dion said, taking a sort of a quick pull, and the sound came out, Dion quickly releasing his paw like he was told.

"Aaaand there we go. Now you got one bullet loaded inside the gun chamber, and the others are ready to go from the magazine as well. Good! You are now holding a loaded gun." Charlie said proudly.

"Scary," Dion added with a nervous tone.

"It doesn't need to be, not when I'm here to guide you through it. Now... Place your elbows on these crates. Spread your shoulders wide, and hold the gun with both paws now." Charlie guided.

The even more nervous husky boy now slowly turned around and laid his elbows slowly on the crates, not really getting what Charlie completely meant.

"Like this." Charlie chuckled, showing Dion the form while demonstrating with a finger gun in his hands.

Dion gave a hint of smile, placing himself the same way and holding the gun with sweaty paws now, aiming it at the other end of the room where the targets were.

"Good. Let's... This shoulder a bit more here... And have your feet so that the other is in front of the other. A bit like this. Straighten your back..." Charlie kept telling, coming behind Dion to fix his position. The husky muttered and let his father adjust him to the best possible form, trying to keep it cool.

"That's... Pretty good. You can always work on your posture the more you feel like what is a bit more natural. Now... We are almost there. The second last step is safety. You click this small button here... On opposite position." Charlie guided, pointing at the small metallic pin on the side with his finger.

"... Got it." Dion said quietly and moved it carefully up instead of down.

"Now... We are pretty much there. All there is left to do... It is for you to press the trigger to shoot the bullet. You slowly put your finger in front of the trigger... And pull your finger back. The gun might kick some and tremble your paws, but you get used to it over time. Take careful aim at anything over there... And carefully pull the trigger back." Charlie explained, clearly seeing the anxiety on Dion's face as the young husky was getting scared. He knew this was going to be the step that causes the blast, and he had never seen or heard a gun being fired before in his life. He only had read about it in books.

"Take a deep inhale... And try to relax. Focus on your target. And pull." Charlie quietly said with collected focus.

Dion quickly inhaled, holding his breath in. Slowly but unsurely, he started to move his finger back... As his arms started to shake. He clearly didn't like this... And he just waited when-

BLAM!

The husky's fur sparked up, Charlie not even flinching from the sound as a small muzzle flash appeared, the bullet hitting the wall on the other side, missing everything and giving slight echoing sound of colliding metal, scaring the shit out of Dion.

The husky had his eyes closed, slowly peeking them open. His fingers were still tightly pressing the trigger back, too nervous to let go. His arms trembled as he slowly started to peek at what had happened. The gun was slightly giving smoke from the barrel. He opened his eyes fully, looking at Charlie in hesitation, then back at the shooting range and tried to make sense of what just happened.

"I-I'm so sorry! It just... I didn't almost have to pull at all and it just went off, and I wasn't ready-! -"

"Dion... You silly pup. It went well! You managed to do exactly how I instructed!" Charlie said, shaking his head and laughing with encouraging tone, tapping Dion's shoulder.

Dion hesitated but gave relieved smile after that as he was wondering what to say at that. He then slowly muttered.

"I... I think I didn't hit anything." Dion said with embarrassment

"Doesn't matter." Charlie chuckled.

"... It... The sound was so loud that it scared me. Are all guns this loud?" Dion asked, rather bothered and shaking his head almost imagining he had done some damage to his hearing.

"... This is most likely one of the guns that give the least sound, to be honest, Dion." Charlie told with an honest and apologizing tone.

Dion gave a rather concerned look at that with wide eyes and spoke quietly.

"Oh geez... I really don't like the sound. It... It also kicked back like you said... I thought I lost my hold from it for a second." Dion admitted.

"Only if you are scared of the gun, it will slip or even hurt your paw. But we are here to learn. And you did very well for a first-timer. You are good at following instructions, Dion. Like always. Now... you can finally let that trigger back. Your fingers must be getting numb by now from all that pulling. Relax, youngster." Charlie said with a smile.

Dion slowly let his fingers relax, rather scared that the gun might go off again or something. But it didn't. He then gave an unsure look at Charlie, the old husky looking at the range and pointing with his finger.

"See that can on top of that closest crate right there? It's about four meters away. Try to aim at that and take your time." Charlie instructed.

"O-okay... I... I hope I hit it." Dion muttered awkwardly.

"Don't matter if you don't. We have plenty of ammunition to spare. Just take a deep inhale... And try again."

Dion gave a small nod, focusing his gaze at the can and spreading his legs a bit and straightening his back again.

"try aiming down the sights instead of free fire," Charlie noted.

"... Huh?"

"Put your face closed to the back of the gun, close one eye, and look at the slide on top of the gun. It should give you better lining and guidance of where the bullet is going to go."

"... I... I'll try."

"That's the main thing here." Charlie winked.

Within a few seconds, the husky poked his tongue out and tried to aim with one eye down the sight.

He pressed the trigger back with slightly more concentration this time.

BLAM!

The sound still made him flinch and close his eyes... And but this time the bullet hit the crate that was holding the can on top. The bullet went through and most likely staid inside the box. Dion gave a nervous look at Charlie, the older husky just smiling.

"Again."

...

BLAM!

The gun went off again, hurting Dion's arm slightly because of the kickback, the bullet hitting the corner of the box and making small pieces of wood fly a bit as result, the husky muttering.

"I'm so bad at this..."

"No one is a natural, Dion. You have all the time in the world. Again." Charlie said with a smile.

"Mmhmm.." Dion muttered in anxiety, trying to aim at the can again.

BLAM!

The can didn't even move an inch, the bullet hitting something on the other end of the room, making Dion look at Charlie with a sad look as he spoke.

"I... This loudness really hurts my ears and this thing just..."

"Dion..." Charlie then said in wonder, looking down at the shooting range and scratching the back of his head.

"Wh-what?" Dion asked in confusion.

The husky lowered his eyelids to see at the distance and then spoke.

"... Did you try to aim at the can or something else?"

"Th... The can? I said I'm bad at-"

"Son... You just... I'll be damned. Either you are natural after all or one lucky son of a gun." Charlie chuckled in surprise, wondering the odds.

"Huh?" Dion asked, not understanding at all.

Charlie then pointed his finger at the paper plate that was glued to the wall, about seven meters from their location. Dion was looking at the paper pieces, that Charlie had painted some circles into.

As Dion stared at the paper targets, he realized what had happened.

He had hit about two inches away from the center of the target, cousins some serious damage to the paper.

He turned to look at Charlie with wide eyes, speaking with surprised as well as an honest tone.

"I... Wasn't aiming for that."

"... Dion... Again." Charlie said with a sudden excited smile, winking at the young husky.

"... "Dion didn't answer, just giving small and awkward smile as he hesitated, inhaling air again, aiming at down the sight and squeezing the trigger again.

BLAM!

The bullet this time only hitbox further down. Dion didn't this time look at his father but poked his tongue out again and pressed the trigger.

BLAM!

And this time, the can popped on the ground from the top of the crate.

Charlie gave a proud smile and the husky looked at what he had done with slightly open mouth.

"I-I... I did it!"

"You sure did! All about the focus and peace of mind. It seems even if you have a lot of practice on your aim, you are rather lucky!"

"Sh-should I try again?" Dion asked innocently, actually sounding a bit excited now.

"You bet! Keep going!" Charlie said with a smile.

"This is really difficult though... "Dion admitted, poking his tongue out again.

"Don't worry. Once you at least get the grip on basics, next time I will teach you about VATS."

"... What on earth is..." Dion began as he pressed the trigger.

BLAM!

He hit the box at the left, making a hole in it and missing the can on top of it.

"A Vats?... Eesh, my paw is getting sore." Dion said quietly, letting go of the gun momentarily to shake his paws, feeling slight tremble in them.

Charlie chuckled and spoke.

"It's a rather incredibly helpful mechanism on your pip-boy, believe it or not. But that is a thing to learn next time. Keep going. Again." Charlie encouraged.

"... Okay... And hey, dad." Dion began with an apologizing tone.

"... Hmm?"

"As scary and difficult this is... I... I guess it is rather fun. In some way." Dion said, giving up.

Charlie laughed at that nodding in agreement.

"Told you so! Now, aim down the sights and try to get another can down! You got this, Dionski!" Charlie said with a wink, ruffling the fur on top of Dion's head again.

"Dad!" Dion laughed, shooing his father's paw away as he took the gun carefully again on his grip from top of the crate and aiming again with other eye closed, preparing for the loud sound.

Charlie just looked at his son proudly and thought.

Damn... Emily would be so proud right now.

THE END