A/n: It's been a while since I've posted a story. Life has gotten in the way of a lot of things, but my muse also abandoned me for quite a while. Anyhoo, I hope you enjoy my new story. Merry Christmas!

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Prologue

December 1998. Rebecca Chambers and Jill Valentine couldn't believe that it had only been a few months since the mansion incident and Raccoon City's destruction. At their friend Barry Burton's suggestion, the two women had decided to move in with each other for safety's sake. In order to hide themselves from Umbrella, the two had moved to New York City and were posing as sisters. But in spite of moving and changing both their appearances and names, the two women never let their guard down. They knew that Albert Wesker, their former captain, was still on the loose with a dangerous virus inside him that gave him incredible powers. They also knew that he had eyes and ears everywhere. Jill and Rebecca had no doubts that their former captain would have no reservations about killing both of them if he got the chance.

It was not an easy life for either woman. Luckily, both got along very well as roommates and "sisters". Jill was naturally protective of the Rebecca, seeing as how Rebecca was only eighteen. However, Rebecca had lost her naïveté during the mansion incident, which made Jill's job a little easier. They also had the added help of Barry, who came and visited them every once in a while as their "father". It was a good arrangement. Barry would bring them news and let them know if Umbrella was doing anything suspicious. However, he was never able to give them news of the thing the two women really worried about. Jill was very worried about Chris Redfield, who had vanished without a word after the mansion incident. Rebecca had admitted to them that she had met Billy Coen and let him go free. Neither woman had admitted their real feelings about the men, but it was blatantly obvious to Barry what they felt. After all, he was married and had kids. But Barry respected Jill and Rebecca's privacy and asked no questions.

The night after Barry left, Rebecca walked into Jill's room and found her crying on her bed. Alarmed, she ran over and pulled Jill into a tight hug. "Are you okay?"

Jill sniffled, and then looked up at Rebecca. "No. I….I just really…" Her voice faded out. Rebecca thought for a minute, and then said, "You just really miss Chris, don't you?"

"Yes," said Jill, "but it goes deeper than that. I never got to tell him something very important. I never got to tell him………that I love him." Rebecca's eyes widened, and a smile spread across her face. "I knew it!" The younger woman said gleefully. "I knew you loved him!"

Jill laughed a little. "I guess it was pretty obvious, wasn't it?"

"Well," said Rebecca thoughtfully, "maybe to other women, yes. To men it probably wasn't as obvious. Men are kinda stupid about love sometimes, you know?" When Jill nodded, Rebecca smiled again and fell silent. Both sat lost in thought for a while. Jill decided to ask Rebecca about something that had been troubling her slightly.

"What about you, Rebecca? I know you think about Billy Coen a lot. Do you have feelings for him, or what?"

Rebecca sat stock still, looking vulnerable. "I'm not sure what I feel for Billy." The eighteen year-old said slowly. "I mean, we went through a nightmarish situation together. I know that…….I trusted him. I didn't have a choice. But…..he trusted me too. I know he did. I think that…….given the chance, I would have liked to have gotten to know him better. But that'll never happen. I told the authorities that he was dead, and I can't let anyone know that he's actually alive. He'd be arrested in a second if anyone in authority found him. I can't let that happen. I won't let that happen!" Rebecca's speech had become very passionate.

The room became silent again. Rebecca sighed deeply. "What a depressing Christmas this is going to be. We're trying to keep ourselves from being killed, and we're both in love with pretty much no hope of happiness in that department."

"Yeah," said Jill sadly. "Oh well, at least we're safe, even if it is just for now. Barry will come visit, and we'll make plans to take out Umbrella. It'll be fine, you'll see." Rebecca smiled slightly, hugged Jill, and headed to her room.

Neither woman could have dreamed how wrong they were about their Christmas.