The Family

From Fallout - Wiki on Neoseeker

The Family

Race	Human
Leader	Vance
Location	Meresti Station
Appearances	Fallout 3
Related Quests	Blood Ties

The Family are a cult of cannibals who believe themselves to be a type of Vampire. They are located in the Meresti Station which can be accessed through the Meresti Trainyard or a secret tunnel from the Northwest Seneca Station. As their leader Vance will explain, they don't believe they can transform into bats and fly away like traditional Vampires, but they do believe that they need to feast on blood in order to survive. When you arrive outside their base you'll be stopped by Vance's bodyguard Robert, in order you gain access you'll need to do one of the following:

Pay him 100 caps
Pass a Speech check
Show him Lucy's Letter for Ian (If you started the Blood Ties quest from Lucy in Megaton)
Having the Cannibal perk.

Despite their beliefs they're not hostile towards you when you enter the station, in fact they're rather polite. However, they had been raiding the nearby settlement of Arefu to the point where the Arefu residents were afraid to leave their homes. Evan King will send you to The Family's hideout after Mr. and Mrs. West are found dead in their house with their son Ian missing, "The Family" has been written in blood on the walls. You will find Ian in the Meresti Station with The Family and you'll find out that he was the one who killed his parents and The Family took the blame to protect him, Ian joined The Family believing that he was also a cannibal.

After completing the Blood Ties quest, you can make a deal with Vance. The deal is that The Family will protect the town of Arefu instead of raiding it, in exchange Arefu will donate Blood Packs to The Family in order to stop them feeding on humans. If both parties agree, Alan will be sent to Arefu as protection.