The House Always Wins [Fallout: New Vegas]

I like Day, she is a great character. You are doing a great job doing a social character instead of the same old gun nut you see in most fallout fics.

This line made me laugh, the double meanings are great.
Glad you like her! And yeah,she was born out of my general annoyance with all the pro-NCR stories and the stories that have the Courier be a hardass gunslinger with no real social skill, and yet they always seem to get the speech checks for the best endings.
Probably outed Mortimer.
She actually hasn't done that yet. Day prefers the Gommoragh and the Tops for the most part, and while the Ultra-Lux is a great, if you aren't anyone important or rich you'll get in, but be given cool welcome.

Requires threadmark~
And an edit! Seriously, learn from me and don't publish your stuff at 2am, it never ends well. I have also added some more diaolge and context to the scene, and more of Day flirting of course. Vulpes is only in his 20s and she pulls all of his levers, so to speak.
 
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Glad you like her! And yeah,she was born out of my general annoyance with all the pro-NCR stories and the stories that have the Courier be a hardass gunslinger with no real social skill, and yet they always seem to get the speech checks for the best endings.

This is the only House fic I could find, so you are providing a valuable service.
 
She actually hasn't done that yet. Day prefers the Gommoragh and the Tops for the most part, and while the Ultra-Lux is a great, if you aren't anyone important or rich you'll get in, but be given cool welcome.

Oh, I was curious about something.

Day prefers Gommorah the most apparently, so I have to ask, what does she feel about the Omertas themselves?
 
Day prefers Gommorah the most apparently, so I have to ask, what does she feel about the Omertas themselves?
Like most groups, there are people she likes and people she dislikes.

She tends to favour the prostitutes and chem-dealers the most, because they fulfill her many vices and the like. But she dislikes the Bosses, figuring them to be more cruel and ruthless than is necessary and she find Chahino to be completely despicable.

Of course that doesn't stop her from giving them her hard earned caps.
 
Like most groups, there are people she likes and people she dislikes.

She tends to favour the prostitutes and chem-dealers the most, because they fulfill her many vices and the like. But she dislikes the Bosses, figuring them to be more cruel and ruthless than is necessary and she find Chahino to be completely despicable.

Of course that doesn't stop her from giving them her hard earned caps.
D'aww. . . so refreshing to see another woman with her priorities straight.
 
D'aww. . . so refreshing to see another woman with her priorities straight.
One thing I've found about female Couriers in fanfiction is that they more often than not suffer from being too... good. They're demure or shy, they keep their tempers pretty even and they don't indulge in the many vices like drugs or sex (only sticking to the occasional bit of drinking.) Where's the foul tempered heavy weapons specialist? Where's the re-formed junkie who is one bad day away from a lethal relapse or the psychopath who is barely restraining herself from just murdering the next person who gives her lip?

Day is a break from the traditional look at female Couriers; she's a hedonist who can manipulate damn near anyone, even a Legionnaire in the right circumstances. She can also be a viscous bitch when she wants to be. It hasn't come up yet so far, because Day's mostly been interacting with people who she likes, she can be cruel when nesseary, or when she's in a bad mood. A person like her, who can home in on the softspots of persons self-esteem, is not someone you want to piss off.
 
One thing I've found about female Couriers in fanfiction is that they more often than not suffer from being too... good. They're demure or shy, they keep their tempers pretty even and they don't indulge in the many vices like drugs or sex (only sticking to the occasional bit of drinking.) Where's the foul tempered heavy weapons specialist? Where's the re-formed junkie who is one bad day away from a lethal relapse or the psychopath who is barely restraining herself from just murdering the next person who gives her lip?

Day is a break from the traditional look at female Couriers; she's a hedonist who can manipulate damn near anyone, even a Legionnaire in the right circumstances. She can also be a viscous bitch when she wants to be. It hasn't come up yet so far, because Day's mostly been interacting with people who she likes, she can be cruel when nesseary, or when she's in a bad mood. A person like her, who can home in on the softspots of persons self-esteem, is not someone you want to piss off.
*Anticipation intensifies* Can't wait to see her tear Caesar's brain to fucking shreds with a single, politely-worded sentence.:evil:
 
A thousand words in. Also, Day is a massive flirt, Vulpes doesn't know how to handle it, at all. I guess the kind of social interaction with women that the Legion supplies might leave them at certain disadvantage...
 
A thousand words in. Also, Day is a massive flirt, Vulpes doesn't know how to handle it, at all. I guess the kind of social interaction with women that the Legion supplies might leave them at certain disadvantage...

It could be worse, they could have sent Antony.

"Someone is showing positive emotions towards me. How do I respond?!"
 
It could be worse, they could have sent Antony.

"Someone is showing positive emotions towards me. How do I respond?!"
That'd actually work better than Vulpes, Anthony is genuinely a pitiably person. He is just another victium of the Legion's war-machine, lashing out in repressed anger and grief at the one target that won't fight back.

Vulpes is honestly a monster, though I prefair to portray him as a human being rather than just an atrocity machine. And as such he thinks he's in the right and that his actions are justified. He has likes and dislikes; fears and he can break his code of conduct at times.

Manipulating Anthony on the other hand is like whacking an abuse victium, just not a nice thing to do. And he is an abuse victium, let that be clear as Day. He doesn't buy into the Legion, in fact if there was anywhere for him to go, I'd bet he'd have at least tried to run. But no, his dogs are dead, his tribe has been scattered and absorbed into the greater Legion and he is broken, like the rest of his peers.

Day might not be nice, but she isn't cruel enough to try and drag him by the nose. And that means that the Day wouldn't have pushed him too hard once she got the skivvy on him, he's a talker as well so that helps.
 
That'd actually work better than Vulpes, Anthony is genuinely a pitiably person. He is just another victium of the Legion's war-machine, lashing out in repressed anger and grief at the one target that won't fight back.

Vulpes is honestly a monster, though I prefair to portray him as a human being rather than just an atrocity machine. And as such he thinks he's in the right and that his actions are justified. He has likes and dislikes; fears and he can break his code of conduct at times.

Manipulating Anthony on the other hand is like whacking an abuse victium, just not a nice thing to do. And he is an abuse victium, let that be clear as Day. He doesn't buy into the Legion, in fact if there was anywhere for him to go, I'd bet he'd have at least tried to run. But no, his dogs are dead, his tribe has been scattered and absorbed into the greater Legion and he is broken, like the rest of his peers.

Day might not be nice, but she isn't cruel enough to try and drag him by the nose. And that means that the Day wouldn't have pushed him too hard once she got the skivvy on him, he's a talker as well so that helps.

The Legion is basically the Cycle of Abuse personified as a nation-state.
 
The Legion is basically the Cycle of Abuse personified as a nation-state.
You're not wrong.


FTFY. The Legion doesn't follow the societal model of the nation-state. It use a far more traditional method of ordering civilization.
In all honesty the Legion is still tribal; despite what Caesar thinks the Legion still acts tribal, with a singular leader who rules through strength of arms and charisma with his chosen flunkies leading in his name, and they still fight like tribals.

Actually that's a good point; the Legion fights best when they aren't acting as a traditional army. After the First Battle for Hoover Damn, the Legion used hit and run raiding tactics and with those tactics they had the NCR, a better trained and equipped force with a large technological edge over the Legion, on the ropes. Forlorn Hope was pushed to the brink, Camp Search-Light was destroyed and Nelson was captured, they razed Nipton to the ground and the NCR's supply-lines damn near buckled under the pressure. Not to mention that the largest base in the region was hamstrung by the Fiends, a group of Raiders who use similar guerrilla tactics as the Legion, and that allowed the Legion to move with much greater freedom than they should have.

I won't even bring up the difference in the quality of their leadership; Lanius might be thug, but he is a far superior tactician to the General 'Wait and See' Oliver.

In summary, the Legion is a far more effective fighting force when they fight like tribal raiders, because they are tribal raiders; their men have experience fighting those kind actions and as such they perform better, the technological difference is not as stark, if anything a it might be in the Legion's favor, their more elite units tend to be better armed than an NCR Trooper. And more importantly, the NCR cannot effectively counter such tactics, they're too big, too spread out and their special forces in different conflicts outside of the Mojave. As I said before, the Fiends are stopping them from properly utilizing their largest base because of their raids.
 
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Chapter 5: Rocket 69
Chapter 5: Rocket 69

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Day was finding, to her personal shame, that Vulpes was a delightful person to spend time with.

He wasn't as erudite as House or as charming as some of her more sophisticated lovers, and he lacked the sad eyes and brooding demeanor that was wrapped around hurt and caring person that was Boone that drew people to the sniper like honey to bloat-fly. Instead he had dangerous feel to him, the way his blue eyes moved about, taking everything in reminded her of predator in action.

It was no wonder he made a great spy.

"…So there I was, surrounded by angry Fiends, whose entire stash of chems I was carrying in my arms I might add, with only a Brotherhood Scribe who was stoned off of her head on cactus juice for back up. According to Veronica the look on my face was, aha, 'utterly priceless'."

Vulpes chuckled along as she told him the story, a grin on his face that, well, couldn't help but be described as wolfish.

"So, my dear lady, how on earth did you escape such a predicament? Even the best of the NCR or Legion would have trouble surviving such a situation, did you use cunning or seduction, or perhaps you were just lucky with your shots?"

She smiled at him, and Day noted with some amusement that he was still capable of blushing.

"I did nothing of the sort; I dropped the drugs and said Skinny, one of the names I'd overhead when I was sneaking about, had paid me to do, said he'd split the loot with me." She took another sip of her Nuka-Cola and was very careful to keep her face neutral as she watched the Frumentarii work out what happened.

"They shot each other." His grin was bigger now, and she couldn't help but return it. "You slipped them a believable little lie and they turned on each other on the drop of a hat. You were both incredibly cunning and extraordinarily fortunate; if they didn't already have suspicions about him, you'd have either shot or raped."

"I know, trust me I know." Still she was grinning as she said it, it was one of her favorite stories to tell for a reason. People loved a lucky devil more often than not.

"Though I do have to ask, what happened afterwards?" he pressed, "Did your plan work in the end?"

She laughed again, and Vulpes once more found himself out of sorts. She really was nothing like the women in the Legion. "No, my dear man, I do believe that I need some secrets. Perhaps at later, if we meet again."

"Hmph, if you're sure." He was actually pouting. It was surprisingly endearing.

Of course the reasons why she wasn't telling was because the end result of that little escapade was far from heroic or worthy of admiration, at least to a Legionnaire.

Taking their stash and getting completely baked in in her Novac flat was something she doubted he'd believe was all that great. All she really remembered was waking up beside Veronica half-naked a week later with most of her food eaten, all of her alcohol gone and the entire stash of chems used up in what was her biggest binge to date.

She'd promised herself that once all of this shit done, and Vegas was safe in House's metaphorical hands, she'd use some of her ridicules pay-check to rent the biggest suit the Gommorah had and enough drugs, alcohol and whores of various flavors to make the last one look positively tame in comparison.

But first she needed to get the next step of House's plan moving.

"So…" She smiled at him again and leaned forward, letting the cut of her dress and gravity do half the work for her. "Is there anything I should know to do when I go to the negotiations? Anything your father specifically likes or hates that I should beware of in case I offend him? He is a rather powerful man, and I'd hate to have our talks soured unduly by something as simple as a forgotten nicety that you boys and girls have across the river."

"Hmm…." He tapped his glass in thought, his eyes flickering downwards for a brief moment. "Well, he knows you don't have our customs, so as long as you stay suitably respectful and deferral you should be fine; he has a surprisingly decent sense of humor and he doesn't mind a few good natured jokes at him or his company, but I'd still be careful not to cross the line there, he has a short temper."

"is that it?" Day asked, worrying her lip. "This is a very important meeting and I probably don't need to tell you the problems that could come up if it goes wrong."

Vulpes sighed, looking more than a bit defeated. "There isn't much really I can tell you, beyond that his bodyguards are very loyal to him personally and are just as twitchy, so do remember to give your weaponry to the seceratry at the entrance."

"Well, thank you anyway, Mr. Fox." Day replied. "Now, sha-"

"Excuse me madam, Sir." Their waiter interrupted, carrying two steam plates and a bottle of pre-war wine. "your meal is here, along with complimentary bottle of wine, California red, 2044."

"Shall we enjoy our meal before we go our separate ways…" Day asked, the scent of the perfectly cooked steak tickling their noses. Not to mention the wine was an exquisite vintage…"Though I will have to refuse the wine, my guest isn't a drinker."

"Yes, I think I shall…" Vulpes agreed, "But leave the wine, one sin isn't going to kill me."

The waiter did so, placing the plates of gorgeous looking food on the table, before he expertly poured the pair a glass of wine each.

"To a fruitful partnership!" Vulpes announced as the waiter left them be, raising glass in a toast.

"To a fruitful partnership!" Day echoed, clinking her glass against his.

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"So… do you think she'll do anything with him?"

Arcade took a long gulp of his beer, mulling over the answer in his head.

He and the sniper were drinking in the lounge, the two men sprawled out on the couch and coffee table as the down bear after beer as the sniper came to terms with the fact that his new flame was a complete and utter man-handler.

"Well, the thing about Day is… well… she's done worse for reasons that in her mind aren't as nearly as important as ensuring New Vegas stays safe." He awkwardly explained, gesturing with his bottle. "If she can use it to her advantage while trying to get information off of him, and since he's Legion I just don't if he'll be receptive, she'd jump on it, err, him."

Boone didn't reply, instead electing to knock back his entire bottle, before he grabbed another and started working on it.

Arcade sighed in defeat, it was becoming clear that the man had a rose-tinted glasses on when it came to Rosemary. He'd never been there when she was younger, when she'd been wild and used her silver tongue and looks to get herself in and out of trouble more often than what was good for her health. Boone wasn't around to see the string of broken hearts she'd left in her wake; Day had actually calmed down a lot, sure he figured that her chem habit would either kill her or enlighten her mind unto a higher plane of existence and that it was a literal miracle that she hadn't picked up some carnal disease but it wasn't nearly as bad as it was.

And then of course there was her stint in the Ultra-Lux. That had been… Odd. To say the least.

Her job as dancer in Gommorah was positively pedestrian in comparison.

"Listen, Craig." He started, but his lecture was cut off as the elevator binged. The familiar groans of Rosemary Day emanating from its depths.

The two of them were off of the couch like lightning. Fear cutting through the dull warmth of the alcohol like a knife.

"I swear to God, if he hurt her." Arcade heard Boone spit under his breath. It was a sentiment he could agree on, and one he'd back up with some family heirlooms of his. Once they were through the door and into the hallway, he nearly ran into Boone's back as he caught sight of the Courier.

There, wobbling as she walked, was one Rosemary Day. To call her a mess would be an understatement; her hair was everywhere, a sharp contrast to how immaculate she usually kept it, and lipstick was smugged and more worryingly there were bite-marks and hickies all along her neck and breasts. If it were not for the massive grin on her face, the two of them would have thought the worst.

"Heh." She chuckled as she awkwardly stepped out of the elevator, "He sang like a bird. I got what we needed and then some."

"Why on earth do you look like a dog used you as chew toy!?" Arcade demanded, as he and Boone made to help steady her.

She actually had the nerve to roll her eyes at him as they helped her. An annoyed look crossing her face, but it didn't last. She was feeling far too victorious to let something like Arcade's mothering bother her.

"Because the Legion doesn't get reciprocal sex." She answered. "They screw for their own satisfaction or to make more of themselves and they don't care if their partner enjoys their time together or not." She answered.

"He hurt you…" Boone stated, eyeing the bites on her neck. His voice was its usual tone, but there was something in it that told anyone with a hint of empathy that he was angrier than a Deathclaw.

Day but rolled her eyes at the man, he was such a sweet heart. But god could he be naive "Its fine." She said, "I've had worse happen to me before, a little bit of rough sex isn't going to bother me at all. Besides, I milked the man for all he was worth, turns out he likes pillow talk. I got the skivvy on the layout of the camp and the know on the movers and shakers as well." She looked far to proud of herself for his own peace of mind, Arcade thought to himself, and Boone wasn't taking this well as it was, the man probably couldn't take any post-coitus boasting from her, even if it was well deserved.

It was rather well known that the Legion doesn't break, their fanaticism and utter loyalty to Caesar was well known, but Arcade guessed that somethings worked better than torture.

"Still you shouldn't have had to do that. It isn't right." He snapped, glaring at her. "You shouldn't be forced to sleep with men just to further House's pipe-dream agenda!"

She laughed musically, and once more Boone had trouble remembering to be angry. Day slipped out of his and Arcade's grip, limping to her room, still laughing as the two men stared after her.

"So, Day got fucked."

The pair turned around to see Cass, in her jammies with a cup of steaming coffee in hand. Casually, she took out a hip flash and added a healthy dose of whisky.

"Yeah, by the Legion creep, right?" Cass asked, eyeing the two of them. The pair only nodded in response.

"Hmph, girl is a fucking freak is all I've got to say." She commented, taking a sip of her coffee. "She definitely enjoyed that little romp, she's got that happy fucking look all over her face."

"She did to get information for the next mission, not because she wanted get touched by that fucking Legion bastard." Boone was livid now, his face colouring red as he glared at the red-head that anyone with a lick of sense would be intimidated.

Cass ignored him and took another sip of her drink. "Yeah, right. Listen army boy, if Day didn't want him between her legs then he wouldn't have managed to. She'd have gotten the info outta him another way. That bitch has always put her neck on the line, even when common fucking sense says otherwise, it's a goddamned nasty habit of her and that girl fucking that Legion prick for the thrill of it doesn't surprise me in the slightest."

Chugging the last dregs out of her cup and Cass made her way back to bed. Leaving Boone and Arcade to stand awkwardly in the hallway.

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I've got to say, I like how Day is... basically the complete antithesis of every other Courier I've ever read. It's pretty damn hilarious.

Like this?
Of course the reasons why she wasn't telling was because the end result of that little escapade was far from heroic or worthy of admiration, at least to a Legionnaire.

Taking their stash and getting completely baked in in her Novac flat was something she doubted he'd all that great. All she really remembered was waking up beside Veronica half-naked a week later with most of her food eaten, all of her alcohol gone and the entire stash of chems used up in what was her biggest binge to date.

She'd promised herself that once all of this shit done, and Vegas was safe in House's metaphorical hands, she'd use some of her ridicules pay-check to rent the biggest suit the Gommorah had and enough drugs, alcohol and whores of various flavours to make the last one look positively tame in comparison.
I've never seen a single FO:NV story with that kind of character and it's really fun to read, because of it.

Also, you really need to get a proof-reader (or 'beta' as people insist on calling it). You've got a lot of errors and missing words in there.
 
Ah, fucking people for information. It's honestly a little scary how many people don't know how to filter their pillow talk. *reminisces fondly* Good times.:ogles:
 
But seriously, this "relationship" between Boone and Day seems incredibly unhealthy for Boone.

I don't think he quite comprehends that his replacement goldfish is a whole different, quite hedonistic, animal.
 
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