A/N: Alright, here it is. I have never written a sequel for one of my stories before so I hope I do the first one justice. I really enjoyed writing "The Beginning of the End" and I love that people enjoyed reading it. This story will focus a bit more on Chris and Leon's relationship and will probably not be as long as the first story, although I may surprise myself.

I feel the need to apologize for getting Sherry's name wrong in the first story and I really appreciate those of my reviewers who told me. I plan on going back and fixing my mistake lol. So thank you! I will also try to fill the plot holes another reviewer pointed out to me. Thank you GleeDWhoFreak I didn't realize my plot bunnies had dropped the ball lol.

This sequel is for all of you who loved my story! I wouldn't have had the drive to write it without all the wonderful reviews, some of which made me cry happy happy tears lol.

Oh and as a warning these first few chapters are not going to be very happy. Leon has some serious shit to deal with and it won't be pretty. I write graphically by nature so brace yourselves.

M RATING/WARNING: This story contains graphic violence, sex between two men, sex between two women, good old zombie horror, and vivid depictions of gore. This story is M/M, SLASH, YAOI, F/F, YURI.

Chapter One

March 30th, 2010 03:30am

Washington DC: Leon Kennedy's loft

Leon screamed into the darkness as he woke thrashing and covered in a cold sweat. He threw himself from his bed and ran to the bathroom where he retched pitifully into the toilet. All that came up was the water he'd drank before bed, but it still burned his throat and made his eyes water. After flushing the disgusting waste and brushing his teeth he walked out onto his balcony and stared out over the city. This had become his routine since leaving the hospital. Normally it wasn't so bad because he had Chris, but the brunette wasn't there tonight. He'd had to go back to work the day before and right now Leon would give anything to have him back.

They hadn't defined the relatively new turn in their relationship yet, but that didn't bother Leon. What did was the fact that he couldn't be alone. Before his stay at the Vermont facility he'd always been fine on his own, even with the nightmares, but now...he couldn't stop shaking. The dream images wouldn't leave his mind. It had started out like a normal dream. He and Chris had been having fun at the beach and then the Regenerators had come and ripped his lover to shreds...then the dream started over.

Leon bit back a choked sob and scrubbed at his face. He was losing his god damn mind and he didn't know how to stop it. Without Chris there to keep him grounded he felt so lost and couldn't think straight. How the hell was he going to pull himself back together if he couldn't even sleep through the night? Part of him hated that he needed Chris there to be able to sleep, but a bigger part of him never wanted to leave the other man's side. He had so many conflicting emotions that he didn't know what to do or even how to feel. Having been on his own since Raccoon City made him unsure of how to ask for help.

When Chris had told him he needed to leave for a few days Leon had said he'd be fine and he'd honestly thought he would be. He never once thought that it was Chris holding the worst of the nightmares at bay until that night when his mind had been overrun by horrific images and memories. What was he going to do now? Chris would be gone for at least a week and Leon wasn't brave enough to ask him to come back sooner. No matter how badly he wanted to. His pride wouldn't let him...nor would the knowledge that by asking Chris to come back he would be leaving the brunette's team a man short. He couldn't do that to them. It would put their lives at risk. He'd never really been part of a team, but he knew how they worked and he knew Chris. The older man was as down to earth as they come, a little hot headed sometimes, but he was the glue that held his team together. Leon didn't want to get in the way of that. He also wanted this chance to try and get by on his own. His pride demanded it.

The blonde let out a harsh bark of laughter. His pride was what had led him down the path that put him in the hands of the men who ran the Vermont Facility. He'd thought he was so smart and covering his tracks, but he'd been proved horribly wrong. Sure he was great at keeping secrets, hell that was in his damn job description, but his abilities were nothing compared to a pharmaceutical conglomerate that was bent on world domination...if that was even what they wanted. Leon wasn't sure anymore. It hurt his brain to try and figure out what these sadistic bastards wanted or why they did what they did. It also wasn't his job to figure them out. His job was just to stop them.

A sudden urge to call Chris washed over him, bringing Leon to his knees on the cold floor of the balcony. He gasped for air as his chest seized. A panic attack...Jesus he thought he was over these. He hadn't had one for years. Not since coming back from Spain, but the ones he had then were nothing compared to this. His lungs burned from the lack of oxygen as he fought the fear that was taking over, squeezing his chest like a vice. Never before had he felt this afraid. Not when he'd faced those bastards in Spain, nor the monsters at the two facilities he'd been in earlier this year, or all the battles in between and before. There wasn't even anything there to be afraid of. He was alone, safe at home, but his mind refused to believe that. It screamed that there was danger where none was present. White sparks burst in his vision as everything went black.

April 2nd, 2010 02:35pm

BSAA Offices: Richmond, Virginia

Chris was getting worried. He hadn't spoken to Leon in almost four days. His calls were going straight to voicemail. When he'd left for this assignment he'd asked Leon if he was going to be okay. The blonde had nodded and told him he'd be fine. Chris hated the relief he'd felt at the response, but he'd needed to get away. He was struggling with his feelings for the younger man. He really loved Leon, but this was the first time he'd ever been attracted to another guy and it was scaring him a little...no a lot. This was foreign territory for him and to top it all off the man he was in love with was a little unhinged. Leon went from hot to cold in the time it took him to blink and the past two weeks had been emotionally and physically draining.

The one time he had suggested to Leon that he needed to see a psychologist he'd been met with violence. That had been six days ago and Chris still carried the bruises. Both from the fight and the rough sex they'd had afterwords. With each passing day it was becoming more and more clear to him that the man he'd met before going into the Dakota facility and the man that had come out of the Vermont facility were almost completely different. Leon needed serious help and Chris wasn't sure if he was up to the task. He'd never been through anything even close to what his lover had. He'd never been stranded on his own and had to fight tooth and nail to survive. Leon had. On multiple occasions it seemed. First in Raccoon city, then Spain, and now the Vermont facility. Not to mention the subsequent battles in between. All of those experiences were now coming to a head and Chris wasn't sure if Leon would survive.

Facing monsters was easy compared to facing the soul crushing fear PTSD left you with. Chris had had serious problems after coming home from Africa. Problems that he'd dealt with because of the amazing support system he had. Leon didn't have anything like that. All he had was Chris. The brunette stared at his phone and dialed Leon's number...voicemail again. "Damn it." He swore throwing the phone onto the chair next to him. He'd been sitting outside the chief's office waiting for Sheva and Jill for an hour now.

They had come to the BSAA offices in Richmond for yet another debriefing on what happened at the Vermont facility. Chris was tired of going over it again and again. The three of them had gone in to save Leon then destroyed the damn place, end of story. Except that he knew that wasn't what his superiors wanted to know. What they were really looking for was how they'd known Leon was in that particular facility. Chris didn't know all the details himself since it was Claire who had discovered the information. She'd told him it was from an anonymous contact she used from time to time to get dirt on Tricell. Her contact had told her that her description of Leon fit with a man who had been transported to the Vermont facility for testing. They didn't know any more than that, but it was enough for the three BSAA agents who were used to acting on less information. Chris didn't want to bring Claire into this, but if he wanted to get back to Leon anytime soon he was going to have to spill the beans.

03:23pm

Washington DC: Leon's loft

Leon groaned in pain as he opened his eyes. He didn't know how long it had been since he'd blacked out, but his body was stiff from...his eyes widened in shock as he looked around. He was lying on his bathroom floor and there was blood everywhere. He looked down at himself to find that he was naked and there were three long gashes on his left thigh. On the floor surrounding him were shards of broken mirror. He also had a large piece clenched in his fist. "Fuck." He swore, his voice was rough and his throat felt like it was on fire. Slowly he got to his feet and got another shock when he saw what was written, in blood, all over the walls of the bathroom. Help me Help me Help me. Leon almost fell back to the floor, but managed to catch himself on the sink. "Shit just got real." The blonde muttered then set about cleaning up after himself.

He'd had these blackouts before, but he'd never told anyone. Normally he only lost an hour or two, but when he saw that his phone had died he knew that this time was not like the last. After plugging in the device he turned it on and just sat there staring at the date highlighted on the screen. 4/2/2010. Well fuck. He'd been out for almost three days. The phone buzzed. 20 missed calls. "Fuck." Leon took a deep breath and opened his phone. 20 missed calls from Chris Redfield. Leon didn't bother voicing the words running through his head. That one four letter word had become like a mantra rattling around his skull, repeating over and over again. The more he looked around his apartment the louder it got...then he realized that it wasn't just in his head and clenched his jaw shut. I do believe I have lost my god damn mind. He thought and then began to to laugh hysterically.

The ringing of his phone caused him to sober immediately. Chris Redfield flashed across the front screen of the device he held in his bandaged hand. Taking a deep breath he opened the phone and held it to his ear. "Chris?" His voice came out in a croak.

"Leon!" The older man cried. "Fucking finally, Jesus. Are you okay? You haven't been answering and I..." Chris went quiet. "Leon, are you okay?" The blonde shook his head, belatedly realizing that Chris couldn't see him.

"No." He said aloud a few seconds later.

"I'm on the next flight out, Rookie." Chris's voice was warm and filled with concern. "The chief's done with me so I can be there in an hour okay?"

"I...okay." Leon took a deep breath. "Don't yell at me when you get here."

"Why would I...what happened Leon?"

"I don't..." He squeezed his eyes shut and decided to bite the bullet. "I lost a few days Chris. I blacked out Tuesday night and woke up about an hour ago."

"WHAT?!" Leon had to hold the phone away from his ear or risk being deafened by Chris's shouting. "YOU SAID YOU'D BE FINE!" And that's not even the worst part babe, Leon thought morosely, just wait until you see what I did to myself. He waited for Chris to finish yelling then brought the phone back to his ear.

"Chris, I didn't plan this you know." There was a heavy sigh on the other end of the line.

"I know Leon." His lover said quietly. "I've just been worried out of my fucking mind over here. I thought...never mind. I've got a flight so I will be there in less than an hour...I love you Rookie, hang in there."

"I'll try." Leon replied fighting back tears. "I love you too."

"See you soon." There was a click and Leon was alone again. He wiped his eyes and finished getting dressed then went back into the bathroom. He had already cleaned up all the glass, but the bloody writing on the wall was still there. Leon didn't know how he was going to clean it off the wall paper and he didn't have a lot of time in which to do it.

04:40pm

Washington DC: Leon's loft

Chris used the key Leon had given him to let himself into the loft his partner owned and tossed his bag to the floor. The heavy scent of bleach hit his nostrils as soon as he stepped into the living room. That set off the alarms in his head. There were few things that much bleach was used for and he highly doubted that Leon was making bombs in his apartment. Chris ran to the bathroom door and stared in shock. "Fuck." He heard Leon swear, but Chris couldn't tear his eyes away from the bloody message covering the walls. Help me. What the hell had happened and who's blood...he finally looked at Leon. There was a bandage wrapped around his left hand and blood on his jeans over his left thigh. "Fuck." Leon swore again and threw the pink tinged scrub brush he held back into a bucket filled with pink water. It was then that Chris realized why his lover was swearing. He had been covering up what had happened when he'd walked in. Anger made the brunette's chest burn and he wanted so badly to scream at the man, but he knew that would only hurt Leon. So he took a deep breath then calmly walked into the bathroom and sat on the floor facing his friend.

"Would you have told me about this if I hadn't seen it?" He asked quietly. It took almost a minute, but Leon finally met his eyes.

"I couldn't leave it." He whispered. "It was scaring me." His voice strengthened as he continued. "I knew I had to tell you, but actually seeing it is..." He trailed off with a shudder. Chris's heart softened and he pulled the younger man into his arms.

"Have you had blackouts like this before?" He asked gently.

"After I came back from Spain I had a few, but they only lasted an hour or two...not three days, and I never woke up to..." He gestured at the wall. "The blackouts only lasted a month and I haven't had one in almost nine years. I honestly thought I was going to be fine...I usually am, but..." He trailed off then buried his face in Chris's chest. "I don't think I can do this on my own anymore Chris." His voice was muffled by the brunette's uniform, but every word was understood.

"You aren't alone Leon." Chris tightened his arms and kissed the top of his lover's head. "I'm here for you." He ran his fingers through Leon's hair, smiling as the younger man relaxed against him. "I'll take some time off and we can go to my house in Montana, how does that sound?"

"Good." Leon murmured sleepily. "I can't stand it here...I keep seeing Ada." Chris frowned. "She died on the balcony...I don't think I told you."

"Yeah...no." Chris wrinkled his nose. "Must have slipped your mind." Leon nodded then sighed.

"When can we leave?"