It was now approaching sometime during mid-November, more than a month after the Raccoon City disaster that had literally wiped the town off the face of the earth and had supposedly ended the entire scenario. Which was not the case, of course. Already the remaining survivors of all the disasters were speeding to Europe to counter-attack the Umbrella Corporation, although maybe with different motifs. At least most of them had.
Chris Redfield had gone to Europe to investigate the Umbrella Labs, having left Raccoon City only a few days before the entire city was wiped out by a nuclear blast.
Claire Redfield had gone to find Chris – her brother – and, so set was she on her destiny she left two of the other survivors behind her, promising she would return.
Barry Burton had accompanied Chris to Paris, for that was where he went.
The whereabouts were unknown, but she would turn up again.
Jill's escape from the city has also taken her to be with Chris…
Who are the other survivors, the survivors who are the focus of this tale?
Leon S. Kennedy, Sherry Birkin and Rebecca Chambers.
It was a rainy evening. The rain beat down hard on the pines, and the trees themselves were savaged by the wind that roared in from the north. In the small town of Wolverines Creek, approximately one hundred miles north of Raccoon City a small community lived their happy lives, blissfully unaware of the chaos that had taken place in the south in the days between July and October 1998. Leon drove the black sedan down the tarmac mountain road, listening to the sounds of the raindrops plopping on the roof and windshield, occasionally wiping away the raindrops with the windscreen wipers when the layer of water got too dense. He sighed, and slid the steering wheel slightly left as he entered a thick tunnel of trees that waved above him as the wind savaged them. His hands were cold, his feet were almost numb and he was almost soaked to the skin. He was wondering why he was even there. He hadn't been employed for nearly a month and a half now, at least technically speaking. Officially, he was a police officer. At least, if the word Police Officer was defined as a man who was now in the custody of the government with one of the only survivors of the Raccoon disaster – Sherry Birkin. Claire had disappeared a month and a bit ago, and they hadn't parted on the best of terms.
Leon had grown closer to Sherry over the last six weeks after Claire had gone off to find her brother, Chris. He'd felt more like the protector now, and while Claire might have done a better job than he, Sherry didn't mind.
Of course, Claire's decision to disappear had angered Leon – Sherry needs you, he'd said. Claire had argued back, saying that Chris also needed her.
Chris is a grown man, Leon had shot back. He's also the only brother I have, she'd snapped back in reply. In the end, when Leon had heard of the US Government coming to claim them, he'd said that Claire's decision to go would probably be a good idea. Claire had taken that the wrong way, and savaged him with a range of angry insults that ended in him yelling at her 'FINE! JUST GET OUT OF HERE AND LEAVE US ALONE!'
Claire had given him a hard look, but had softened slightly when she said, in a softer voice than before, that she would return.
Sherry had also felt a little bitter at Claire's decision to go and find her brother, but they both felt the same about Claire now – They wanted her back. They wanted to see her again. So far, no word of her had been received. About a day after she'd left, the soldiers had arrived in force, M-16's loaded and ready, soldiers yelling at them to surrender.
The Government, quick to quash any security leaks about the unspeakable crimes of Umbrella Inc. had turned up pretty quickly, and the two of them were soon in Government Custody. To Leon's bemusement, he realised that him and Sherry held all the cards – They were the witnesses, they could speak whenever and to whoever about it, they hadn't actually done anything wrong and it was the government who would have to try and cut the deal…but Leon would have the say.
He'd been asked by a rather nervy looking official what his terms were. Leon had said that the main condition was that Sherry would stay with him. At first, the official had hesitated – but had conceded under threat of Leon 'speaking out'
They had eventually decided that Leon would have a small house in an obscure part of the country with Sherry, and approximately $200,000 for personal use.
Unfortunately, the house would be watched, and patrolled every now and then, and but the guards weren't allowed to stop visitors unless they looked 'suspicious' which Leon defined as nearly everybody.
So it had come to pass that him and Sherry had gone to live in a small house in Wolverines creek, miles from the nearest city, which suited Leon fine. Yet Leon was not intent on staying there forever. He had been wondering when they'd 'disappear' themselves for a while now, and he'd decided that 'not yet' was the answer.
He drove the Sedan into the main street of Wolverine's Creek, and around the corner towards the outskirts. The main street was dismally ordinary – A general store, a gas station, a few shops and a local bar where local folk revelled in telling wild stories that were about as substantial as mist. He'd remembered the first and only time he'd gone in there, he'd told his story – and had practically been jeered out of the bar for making it up, which was ironic because his was the only story that was actually true.
Their house was separate from the rest, in fact it was nearly a mile from the nearest house – which was fine. The locals were hardly friendly, and the few children that were there were about as mentally empowered as root vegetables – and that was Sherry's opinion.
He drove on, past the last houses of the few roads in the town and went on for a few minutes before pulling into the drive of the small house Sherry and him shared. He stopped the engine, put the brake on, and ran to the trunk of the car, removing a few large bags before running to the door, opening it after a fumbling of keys, and jumping thankfully inside. As he closed the door, he heard Sherry shout
"LEON!"
She ran to him and practically cut off the circulation in his waist as she squeezed. He blushed, he was touched by this reaction of Sherry's, and in response, hugged her back, patting her head as he hugged.
"I'm back" he said softly.
It was warm, and very cosy in the house, and Sherry led him into the front room, where he lit a fire in the fireplace. As the fire began to burn, he took off his jacket, and hung it above the fireplace so it would dry. He removed his shoes and socks, and allowed his feet to warm up by the fire. Sherry snuggled beside him.
"How was the trip?" she said.
"Fine. Got a little wet though"
She smiled.
"It's just as well you did – Come back I mean – I've wanted some pizza for ages"
Another speciality of the town was its complete inefficiency at almost anything. Leon now knew the routine, he would go into the general store, ask for something, and if they had it, he'd have to wait for about fifteen minutes as the man at the counter eyed him suspiciously while searching for the goods he needed. If he didn't have the goods Leon wanted, he'd either click with his tongue, whistle or draw in a breath, which was usually followed by either 'Well…' 'Oh Dear' or 'Wish I could, but…'
And a further ten minutes would be spent explaining to Leon why he couldn't get hold of the goods, which was either because 'The Pennsylvania express is slow today' or there had been some kind of horrific accident that meant the new stock was lost somehow.
Which was why Leon only ever went there in case of real emergencies. Usually he went out of town, which usually required a forty-five minute drive into the nearest larger town and buy something from the supermarket. And there were never any spaces so it took fifteen minutes to walk to and from the place.
It had been raining hard nearly all day, and it had been raining hard. Sherry liked Pizza, and so did he. The local shop didn't sell pizza, so he'd bought enough to last them three weeks. He had also got them enough food to last a good couple of weeks, leaving a while before they had to drive out of town, or walk down to the local store.
"How's it been?" Leon asked.
"Okay. It's a little boring during power cuts, we can't watch TV, play games or anything"
"You're right" Leon said, and sank backwards into sofa, Sherry still snuggled up beside him. Just as he felt that there was some kind of balance to his precarious existence, something came along and ruined it all. Which was precisely what was about to happen.
As Leon began to feel sleepy, the doorbell rang loudly.
"I'll get it" Leon said, softly, and walked off towards the front door.
Sherry watched him go.
She sighed as she found her gaze wandering up his body, seeing every part of his body at a full alert.
It wasn't just the physical qualities of Leon that Sherry loved – it was everything else about him, right from his sense of humour that practically suffocated her she laughed so hard, to his sweet and protective personality that left him as a shoulder to lean on.
She sighed.
She was only twelve, but she felt a connection with him. She wanted him more than a shoulder to lean on…it was unnatural for a girl for her age, but for the first time she wanted to be with a man forever.
'Of course it's not love' she kept telling herself 'Love's like it is in the movies – Isn't it?'
An inner voice told her that this was absolute swamp gas, and tried to give her a blow-by-blow account of when the physical symptoms showed. Such as the fact she felt her spine tingle whenever he put his hand on her, the fact she savoured every single scent from his body, the fact that even his voice could soothe her when she was agitated or upset. Was it love? She really wasn't sure. She felt a great deal of love for him, like a brother…or a dad, even…but somehow, she couldn't see him as those kinds of figures exactly…he was more of an idol, a protector…another word flashed in her mind that she felt physically embarrassed at thinking – Lover. He was twenty-five or something like that, grow up Sherry! She told herself. But somehow, she felt like their destinies were permanently linked.
She also felt as if she wasn't whole when Leon wasn't around. Claire had been nice, and she missed her greatly…But…
Oh Leon…she
sighed I love you…so much…you don't understand how I feel…
"Uh…" Leon walked in through the door, holding a slip of notepaper in his hand, looking confused.
"What's up?" she asked, always worried when Leon was either looking worried or just plain confused.
"Do you remember Rebecca?" Leon asked.
Sherry frowned. She was always ready to make Leon feel as if he was talking to a mature adult…perhaps he'd like her more if…
"Vaguely, didn't we meet her once? At one of those strategy meeting-thingies?"
When they had their 'strategy meetings' it was basically just an excuse for Leon, Chris and Barry to argue, and for Rebecca to occasionally nod and feed in some input.
Ah, yes. Rebecca. Rebecca she had to say, was not one of the most mature people she'd ever met. She may have been a bio-chemist, but she was essentially still a teenager, even if she was eighteen. When she wasn't inputting useful chemical and virus related information, she was reading magazines and giggling inanely at those articles about people with impotency problems. Rebecca was, she found it grudging to admit, nice, but Rebecca spoke to her as if she was the most mature person on the surface of the earth and that Sherry was just a 'little girl', which of course was untrue.
While Sherry knew that she was little, she was not (in maturity definition anyway) a little girl. She was twelve, and while the worst of adolescence was yet to hit her – She felt a whole lot wiser having seen Raccoon City, and even wiser feeling the way she did about Leon.
Leon…So sweet…so handsome…
She was shocked at herself thinking this. Oh my god, she told herself, you really are getting obsessed.
"I got a call from Barry. He says that apparently where Rebecca's living is too dangerous at the moment, so it would be best if she stayed here"
Sherry felt as if she'd just been delivered a physical blow. She almost choked, as if somebody had told her she was going to die. Rebecca….staying here?
Her mind raced. She tried to remember anything else about Rebecca. She didn't like the idea of another woman staying with them, let alone a girl only a few years separated from Leon. Sherry suddenly felt very defensive. She didn't want any girl moving in with them at the moment, and, she was surprised to learn, she didn't want Claire there either. She knew Leon had one hell of a crush on her, and somehow she just didn't want the hassle of Claire being there – Sherry liked it the way it was.
She suddenly remembered Rebecca and her reactions to Leon. Giggling at EVERYTHING he said, regardless of whether or not he was trying to be funny, and giving him one of those sad girly smiles whenever he gave her a reassuring smile…Oh god, it was nigh on pathetic, it was like a dog longing for its masters leg. Why couldn't it be just her and Leon? She enjoyed life as it was!
She clenched her fist.
"So…is she
actually coming?"
"It says she'll be here later
tonight – Barry asked, so I said Okay. You see, I wasn't sure what you'd say,
but I'm sure you don't mind do you?"
"Uh…no"
Sherry didn't know what to say, she was practically catatonic. Surely Leon's joking? She can't be staying…
"For how…long?" she croaked.
"A couple of months" Leon replied.
A COUPLE OF MONTHS?!
Sherry was almost dizzy.
"A…couple of months…?" she gasped.
Leon looked at her oddly.
"You don't sound too pleased" he said.
Sherry suddenly found her mouth moving and her vocal chords making speech without her saying so.
"No, I'm not!" she found herself saying "We're doing fine as we are, aren't we?"
To her minds surprise, she jumped up and threw herself against him, squeezing him hard "Call and say she can't stay…please?" she pleaded.
Leon shook his head, softly.
"That's kind of rude Sherry – Don't worry about it, I'm sure you'll get on just fine – after all, it's only a few months"
Somehow, Sherry felt as if she was in the Coliseum and the name of her next opponent had been announced: Rebecca.
If Rebecca was here and there didn't appear to be a problem, she wouldn't mind. But if she was here and she was going to drool over him…then a state of war would be declared.