Our Little Secret is an unmarked quest in Fallout 3.
Brief walkthrough
Directly south of Fairfax Ruins is the small town of Andale. Through dialogue and exploration, one can learn that the inhabitants are cannibals. One may choose to either accept their behavior and keep their secret or reject their behavior and kill the adults of the town.
There is no reward for this quest other than some loot from the buildings, including a copy of Grognak the Barbarian in the Smiths' basement.
Detailed walkthrough
Talk to Old Man Harris, who will warn you to get away from the town. After talking to Harris, head to the abandoned shack or the basement of the Smith household.
- Both doors are very hard difficulty (Lockpick 100). Picking either lock will give you negative Karma.
- It is possible to get the keys by pickpocketing either male adult, Bill Wilson or Jack Smith. Because they are evil, you will not lose Karma.
- There are also keys in Smith and Wilson's houses on the nightstand next to the queen bed. You will lose Karma for stealing them.
- There is a second key in the Wilson's house on top of the radio in the living room. You will also lose Karma for stealing it.
In the basement or shack, the player can look around and discover that "strange meat" really is human flesh.
Upon exiting the area, the player will be confronted by the residents of the town, with the exceptions of Junior, Jenny, and Old Man Harris. Jack Smith will engage the player in conversation and ask if he/she saw anything unusual. If you did not speak with Old Man Harris first, and you used Lockpick to open the door during the day, they will immediately attack you.
There are two speech checks in the dialogue tree. The first speech check option is to tell them that you thought about "getting a snack." Having the Cannibal perk changes this to a guaranteed success. If you choose to initially play coy by not answering straight, you will get another, easier speech check in the form of passive acceptance of their behavior (though this option will cause unintended issues). If you are successful at either speech check, in essence insisting that you did not see anything wrong and agree to keep their secret, the townsfolk will be kind to the player and you will be able to receive a free strange meat pie daily from Linda Smith.
On the other hand, if the player refuses to keep the secret, the residents will become hostile and attempt to murder the player, forcing you to kill them all. Afterwards, the player can proceed to old man Harris' house. He will then tell more of the town's history and will agree to help raise the kids right. He states that only after his wife died did he begin to question all the things that went on in Andale, and that not only was it a town of cannibals, but a town of inbred cannibals.
Notes
- If you do not want the citizens of Andale to be hostile towards you after going into the basement or shed, leave your followers. After Jack Smith confronts you about the secret and you agree with him or promise to keep the secret, your followers will start shooting the cannibals on sight, except for Dogmeat.
- If you are on friendly terms with the cannibals and pick the (easy) lock on Old Man Harris' house, he can be killed without the other residents becoming hostile. His house can then be used for your own needs, though the bed does not work with the Deep Sleep perk.
- When you steal from the Smiths' basement, you lose Karma, although the Smiths have evil Karma.
- Old Man Harris is the only character in Andale that is not a cannibal. He will try to warn you about the acts of the townsfolk, but when you confront them about these accusations, they nervously laugh it off,claiming that the old man is just rambling.
- When you come out of the shack (or basement) and convince them that you're a cannibal, they will mention a man saying he had a kid in Rivet City, which implies that they killed James Hargrave's father.
Bugs
If you non-violently resolve the confrontation by selecting the line "Sure, Jack. No problem at all. I saw nothing." without having the Cannibal perk the four parents will stand with their weapons drawn outside of either the shed or the house with a basement, forever, the kids will disappear, and old man Harris' house is key-locked. Even though they're stuck you will still be able to get a daily strange meat pie from Linda Smith. This appears to happen with any non-violent resolution if old man Harris wasn't spoken to at all.
Arriving at Andale, you may encounter the families already gathered in front of the Smith house with their weapons drawn. Mr Smith confronts the player as if they have already been in the basement. If you choose to fight, you can loot the house and shed key from the corpses without Karma penalty.- After exiting the shed, Jack Smith will engage in dialogue with you, but it will be as if you have already negotiated with him. This means his dialogue options will be "What's wrong with that Harris guy?" etc.
- When talking to the families, you will once have the option to make a remark about Old Man Harris's happiness. However, the statement is spelled "Old Man Harris doesn't seen very happy". This seems to be a spelling mistake.
- When inspecting the Smiths' basement and then leaving the home, the town's adults will be gathered in front of the shed with their weapons drawn, but will talk to the player normally and walk around. Jack Smith will not approach the player, but speaking to him will begin the dialogue about what the player saw in the basement.
- If you fight the parents of Andale, then "The Family" and all of Arefu will permanently turn hostile.
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