Of all the outcomes Sara was expecting, this wasn't one of them. Much to her surprise Maxson took her into his offer, and they were now calmly sitting at his desk, playing cards. She explained the game, and he caught on fast enough. This man just continued to surprise her to say the least. The quiet gave her time to think about all of this however. If she remembered right the mod she added, threw in a few new things. 'Romancing' Maxson, was considered one of the harder ones mixed in. One, you had to follow through the Brotherhood quest line. Raise his affinity for you, but even then, he wouldn't really make a move until after the Institute was dealt with. Still it threw in some options to have small moments were you could talk to the guy, get to know him better. Which would in turn 'appeal' toward the character the player created. Was that was she doing now, it was still so hard to read the man now that it had turned up close and personal. So she decided to talk about her friends, and more on what she used to do on her spare time. It was her, Ty, Alex, Mark, and Nick." Maxson rises his brow at her. "Yeah...I...don't really make a lot of...friends with other girls." She waves her hand as she picks up a card. "They were either really stuck up, or I swear to the heavens themselves all they did was talk about makeup and how cute someone was...." She throws her hand in the air. "Still don't know crap about makeup, never touched the stuff...it's so expensive to...give me something that smells good so I can throw that s**t on, and I'm golden.."
Maxson picks up a card, frowns as gives the table a small tap. He wasn't sure, why he agreed to this, but, oddly, he found he really enjoyed it. It was a game of strategy, reminded him back when he used to play chess. "Anyway, I know it sounds odd, but I always connect better when it came to guys...much more laid back. It was something I could relate to, and they didn't really care about having a chick go along for the ride since I knew how to play the game.." She picks up a card and blinks, were the hell was the black six? She lets out a low grumble. "Moving on, we started in...as teens, I had known Ty since I was about thirteen." She pauses for a bit as she watches Maxson. He glances up as he sits back. "What...?" She wasn't sure what to say. He ends up winning the game, the cheeky b*****d had been holding onto the card she needed. "You...jerk." She takes the cards and starts to shuffle. "Sorry, it's still a bit hard talking about him. That and, well seeing as I'm still a bit new to the Brotherhood, I fear where you stand on...uh...preferences." It was the best way she could describe it. Maxson gives her a hard look, as if he was trying to figure out what she was saying. Then remembers something she told Ingram, and himself, her friend had been gay. "There's no rule against it...or any relationship for that matter. Not that I have any experience with...that." She lowers the deck of cards, for a military force to not ask questions, well it reflected the past military at least. The Brotherhood seemed more open to it however. Still it surprised it just a bit. "For real, so if two guys waltz right in here, saying they were getting hitched, you wouldn't give a crap?"
Once again her way of speaking, caught him of guard. She either stuttered, which came and went, or she slipped into, this. He wasn't sure where it came from, but it seemed natural to her. He finally decides to answer. "No..to put it so bluntly, I wouldn't stop them.." She looked stunned by this but she shakes it off. "Good to know...well as I was saying Ty was the first person I had met like that. Being a kid, the way he put it, made sense. Didn't take long for me to realize that, in all honesty it didn't bother me in the slightest." Which had been completely true. "He was..." She pauses trying to find the best way to put this. "There's just no words, he was the best friend a person could ask for. He was so laid back, funny, stood up for people. He didn't take crap from anyone. But...I knew...saw, most of it, was...a lie.." The man had his own demons to deal with. "Lets just say his parents were less then...happy about what he was." She forgets about the cards as she leans back in her chair. She ends up biting her lip as she tries to explain farther. "See they...had it in their minds that, what he was doing, was by choice and if he...worked hard enough he could change his ways." Maxson was looking at her, confused as she holds up her hand to continue. "Yeah, I know, it's not a 'choice' it just something you feel and you can't really change that. Hell I understood that and respected that. It wasn't like I was going to push Ty into liking girls. You can't change how a person feels and he just wasn't into it." But man did his parents try, the whole, oh you'll go to hell if you continue this path was burned into his mind.
"But damn it did his parents try...they were, lets just say I wasn't the only one dealing with demons." She shakes her head sadly at this. "His mother....was the absolute worst person I had ever met. They only put up with me, because they thought I was bringing their boy back into 'the light' so to speak." She places her hand on her forehead. "They let their fifteen year old son, have a girl over, alone in is room. Gay or not what the hell?" She slams her palm onto the table. "But....anyways we ended up moving out together once we were both eighteen and, it went really well." Took some time to get used to having a roommate, but they made it work. "Now..back to the others, they were...friends we knew in school so we kept in touch and started our own.party when we got into Dungeons and Dragons.." She hangs her head a bit. "It was...the most fun we ever had I think, even in Alex was..." She coughs a bit. "He took the rule of the Bard...way to seriously. He put everything into his charisma...so he could 'charm' his way out of just about everything you can imagine. Hell I think half our game was us shouting at him that you can't solve all your problems but trying to get down and dirty with things you shouldn't be even considering. Like hell that stopped him though...." She sinks into her chair a bit as she runs her hand over her face. She goes quiet for a bit. "Then...one night...I was sound asleep..." Maxson says nothing as her tone shifts. "I got a knock on my door, and two officers...standing there, asking if I knew Ty...." He knits his brows a bit, as she tries to hold back how much this still pained her.
"He had went out that night, on a date....he was so happy...they went to this club...and this....idiot...runs in with a gun, and....Ty saved someone that night...but it costed his..." There was no anger behind her words. "I didn't blame him, it wasn't his fault someone decided to..." She goes quiet again. "God...I thought...this had to be a joke. Some really sick joke and..he would be there, telling me everything was fine. I don't think it hit home until we...buried him. He deserved that much..." Her eyes were watering now. "I wrote his folks a letter, once I knew he was....safe. The last thing I wanted was for them to be there, and ruin it by saying if he had only changed his ways this would had never happened. I wasn't going to let them drag their son into the mud, because they thought what he was, was some great sin...so like Hell I told them..." She digs her nails into the table a bit. "It sounds cold, but I couldn't.....I didn't want that to be my last my last memory of him..." Maxson hadn't said a word as she blinks and places her palm over her right eye. "Sorry..." He slowly shakes his head at this. She hadn't meant to start crying in front of the guy. "He was the closet thing I had to family, after the sh*t we both went through..." She sighs deeply, letting it go. "Sorry for the rant there.." Maxson didn't seem bothered, the calm face he always seemed to have still there. "We all lose people, all things considering, it's only natural to...grieve." It was one of the more basic human emotions a person can feel after all.
Sara nods her hand to this, he had lost people close to him as well. Being raised in the military however had taught him to mask how he felt. "Right." It goes quiet again, the only sound was the rain still as she looks up. It reminded her of the days she would drive in the rain, it was almost the same sound. "Heh, guess somethings don't change do they?" Maxson looks up at this, their card game long forgotten. "I suppose it doesn't..so these friends...the others what happened to them?" Her eyes flutter a bit, surprised he would even ask. "Oh...last I heard, Mark got married, not to sure what happened to Nick or Alex. But after I moved, I lost contact, it was for the best..." It was just to painful to try and keep in touch, so they all went their own ways. Maxson was now tapping his fingers on the table. "So back to this...game, what is a Bard?" She feels herself blush a bit. "Oh I'm sorry, I forget I might know what I'm talking about, you don't.." She felt a bit guilty for it. "Lets see, when you play, you can select what class you want to play. There's the typical fighter, mage, bards, so on so forth. Bards...use music for battle." She holds up her hands to make sure he held of any more questions. "Now, I know, sounds, useless, but if you do it just right....holy hell, who knew harps could be so useful?" This no doubt wasn't really answering his question, and she slowly realizes the hole she she getting in. There was no turning back, but she had to warn him now. "With all due respect, I can..and will, talk your ear off, because damn it, I know far to much for my own good."
Maxson makes no move to stop her. Well, she tried to warn him and she goes full education mode. He doesn't take his eyes off her as she talks. The minute she got onto something she was familiar with, her eyes just lit up as she spoke. It was oddly hypnotic as she explained, everything. She leaves no detail out. How it worked, the math and strategy that went behind it. The different amount of lore, and even the numerous creatures that was a part of it. She leaves nothing out, dragons, mimics, trolls, all of it. How each creature was different and how do deal with most of it. Of course it had it's moments where you ran into something far to strong to deal with. "I heard, the story behind your scar, Deathclaw right?" He gives her a short nod. "Imagine...that, but bigger, has wings, and breaths fire, that's a dragon.." She lets out a small laugh at the look on his face. "Somehow living in the wasteland ain't so bad now..." Maxson leans his head back. "You know, the more you talk, the more your way of speaking changes..." She blinks at this as she rubs the back of her head. "You noticed, I won't lie, I had...no I still have, a bit of a stutter at times." She waves her hand a bit. "It's not as bad as it used to be, but I guess it effected how I hold myself when I speak. Hell your talking to the person that kept calling our breakfast sandwich a ma-muffin..." She shrugs at him as he lets out a low chuckle despite himself. "Which is probably why I swear so much, I try not to, but it's actually a hard habit to break.."
"You seem to be doing fine now..." His voice remained even as she sits back. She jolts and shifts to the side a bit. "You're the boss, so I gotta hold some face right?" He takes note of the way she moved, he continues to watch her. "I'm the leader of a military force..." "Still makes you the boss, in my book I guess. It's what I'm used to, you gotta remember I'm not military, I was a cook before I decided to hell with it and strike out on my own once again." Maxson seems to take a moment to go over this. He wasn't sure what to think now, this woman was a strange mystery. But he had to admit, it wasn't like she was showing him any disrespect. She knew how to follow orders, it just her view on things was different from the others. He was the man in charge, sure, but in her view point that didn't mean she treated him differently from the norm. If nothing else she was still just as laid back as she was when she was with anyone. "So you always got along with your formal...bosses?" She tilts her head at that. "Oh I tried, I mean I had some managers that, just made your day worse. But for the most part I worked well with others. It just made sense though, because in that kind of environment, you have to work together." Maxson sits up, suddenly she made a lot more sense to him. "So I got used to it, I'll do whatever you want, but I also know it's important to work as a team. Especially when your fighting, it pays to know the person with you is watching your back." He slowly rises as he turns to her. "That...makes sense, the way we work is no different from what you are used to..just less hassle from civilians." She rolls her eyes at this. "Trust me, doesn't matter what kind of job you have, people are still going to try and stand up to you and try to convince you, your wrong..."
Her eyes glance at him, starting from the top, to the bottom. "Though I imagine all you'd have to do is glare at them and they would back down. I couldn't intimidate anyone if I wanted to, but gosh darn it I'll do down fighting anyways.." She throws her fist into the air. "And no it has nothing to do with the scar, you just got that look you know?" She was honest to a fault after all. Maxson just seems to smirk at this as she leans back, moving carefully still. "That doesn't help either." He barks out a laugh. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind, you certainly gave me enough to think about..." "I...have?" He turns and she couldn't help but stand the moment he came around to her side. "You have...a different side of dedication I haven't seen before. You're loyal, but not to a fault, and that sort of mind set can be useful.." She wasn't sure if he was talking to her anymore as he seems to pace, then stops, turning back to her. "When this storm passes, what do you plan to do?" She shuffles a bit at his sudden change. But she doesn't miss a beat. "Well we still have to make the control console, now that we have that scanner I'll be able to put the whole thing together. The only thing left to do is build the molecular beam emitter and generate enough power to get it all working. So..um, I guess we might have to borrow some of the generators, or try and build one big enough to power all of it, because it's going to suck up a lot of power to get it all working..." She could swear, for just a split second she could almost see the small pop up box that told the player when someone started to admire you, just from the look on his face. He quickly hides it however.
"And that, right there, proves you're Brotherhood." Maxson takes a step closer as she quickly sees they were now eye to eye. It almost seemed like he wanted to say more, but he had no idea where to go from here. "I can make sure we have the power we need for this to work..how long do you think it will take to build both the console and the emitter?" She wasn't to sure, and she didn't want to take a guess either. "A few days...at best, from what I've seen of the prints it might take some time to make the emitter because of it's size. But I already have Paladin Danse and Knight Thomson to help, but I'm not going to lie I have no idea how long it'll take. So I wont sit here and make any promises I can't keep..." This, only seemed to work into her favor more. "Honesty goes a long way, I can appreciate that." He was still standing, a bit close, but after a minute he takes a small step back. "Once this is done, I want you to be there to help Ingram start building Liberty Prime.." Her eyes go wide at this, but had to remind herself that she shouldn't know what that was. "Don't worry, I'll explain when the time comes, for now I'm keeping this as..silent as possible, last thing I want is for the Institute to catch wind of this, and rain hell on our base to stop us." She just slowly nods at this, happy he took her look as more of one as confused, then surprise. "Yes sir." That makes him pause as he rises his hand just slightly. "Arthur..." It takes her a minute, but she slowly seems to catch on. "Arthur." He keeps his hand rises as he points at her. "This...does not leave this room, you understand?" "Got it boss." He narrows his eyes at her as she lets out a nervous laugh. "Sorry sorry, point made...I get it, image and all that, you can have the whole crew get buddy buddy with ya." It was a silent deal, but wherever it would lead, she was going to just continue on.
