Just a Friend, a Comrade, and Nothing More

They were stood on the outskirts of what was left of Raccoon City; an entire city of 100,000 people simply wiped out in a matter of seconds. The government certainly weren't taking any risks when they dropped a nuclear missile on it.

Leon, Claire, and Sherry had barely made it out with their lives – or their sanity – intact, and now they just stood side by side staring at the warm, orange glow above the former city, not knowing what to do next. This was the first time in what felt like an eternity that they weren't running from some form of monster, now was the time for the shock and reality of everything that had happened to kick in. Sherry shifted and buried her head into Claire's side.

"My mommy and daddy are dead, aren't they?" Unshed tears sparkled in the little girls deep blue eyes.

Neither Leon, nor Claire knew how to answer her question; however they suspected that Sherry already knew and just wanted confirmation. Claire gave the girl a sympathetic look and nodded her head slowly.

"I'm sorry, Sherry."

The young blonde immediately began to sob, and Claire knelt down to pull her into a tight hug and rubbed her back soothingly.

"There, there. It's all going to be okay. Your mommy and daddy loved you very much."

Leon silently watched the scene unfold, and feelings of sorrow and anger began to overcome him.

"Hey, it's up to us to take out Umbrella." He said with determination in his voice.

Claire offered him a small smile from where she was kneeling, and nodded her head slightly.

"Let's get out of here, we need to find a place to sleep and recompose ourselves, we're gonna have a tough fight on our hands", suggested Leon.

Claire bit her lip and felt a guilty feeling settle in the pit of her stomach. "Leon, there's something I-"

"Let's just find a place to crash first, anything else can wait until later." He cut in.

Leon walked over to Claire and Sherry and wrapped his good arm around Claire's shoulder, guiding them both down the train tracks towards the next town. Claire sighed in defeat and gave Leon another small nod, allowing her head to fall onto his shoulder for support as they walked.


The walk to the next town didn't take as long as expected, and understandably there were a lot of people bustling about as the news filtered through about the disaster in nearby Raccoon City.
Leon, Claire, and Sherry found themselves in a small motel on the outskirts. It was away from prying eyes as their blood stained, disheveled appearance, and Leon's now defunct RPD uniform would almost definitely attract unwanted attention. The middle-aged lady at the reception desk looked too shocked at their appearance to ask any questions and quickly showed them to their room.

It was cosy - a bit dated but cosy nonetheless - and it was completely zombie free which had to be a bonus. There was a double bed in the main room with a television set on top of a chest of draws, and a bathroom directly adjoining, there was also another small adjoining room with a single bed and radio.

"I'll take the single, you and Sherry can take the double." Leon offered with a smile.

Claire didn't have a chance to respond before Sherry collapsed in an exhausted heap onto the bed, without removing her clothes or shoes.

"Poor kid, she can barely function. No child should have to face the kinds of horrors she has, she must be in a state of shock", Claire whispered with a worried look on her young face.

"No adult should have to face those kinds of horrors either, I still can't believe what actually happened; it all seems so surreal. How are you holding up?" Leon sounded concerned.

"Me? I'm fine, really. I'm just glad we got Sherry out safely." She hoped she sounded convincing, the last thing any of them needed was Claire breaking down, and she worried that if she started crying she may never be able to stop.

Leon wasn't convinced. "Why don't you go take the first shower? Get yourself cleaned up and I'm sure you'll feel a bit better."

"Are you sure? I mean, I don't mind going second, I bet you want to get your wound cleaned and re-dressed." Claire asked.

"I've gone this long with it covered in all sorts of grime, I'm sure I can wait another half hour." Leon chuckled.

Claire returned the smile and made for the bathroom, "I won't be long."

Leon just waved his hand dismissively and sat on the end of the double bed, turning the TV on with the remote and he began to skip through the channels.

"…Viral outbreak is one of the theories behind the horrific disaster that occurred late last night in Raccoon City… A catastrophic nuclear power plant meltdown is being blamed for the deaths of 100, 000 people in Raccoon City… It is reported that there are no survivors of the shocking terrorist attack on Raccoon City. Umbrella has dispatched hundreds of its military troops and scientists to help solve the case, more news on this to come …"

Leon turned the TV off in frustration, so many excuses were being battered about when in actual fact it was all Umbrella's doing, and now they were swooping in trying to play the good guy. Leon sighed deeply and cringed when he ran his hands through his matted hair, realizing that he desperately needed a shower.


Claire was undressing herself when she noticed how filthy her clothes actually were, she decided to place them in the sink in hot, soapy water to soak, and she would scrub them when she got out of the shower. With that in mind she stepped into the shower cubicle and turned on the hot water. She didn't anticipate how good it would feel to have the hot water cascading down her back, massaging her aching muscles in the process and she had to suppress a moan. She proceeded to scrub herself clean and washed her hair too, watching the blood and grime flow down the drain.
Claire had never been a fan of cheap motel shampoo in the past, however right now it felt like the best thing in the world. A fruity smell filled the bathroom, drowning out the stench of her filthy clothes. She suddenly became aware of the time and remembered Leon was waiting to use the bathroom too, so she reluctantly turned the shower off and stepped out, wrapping herself in a soft cream towel.

Leon was delicately removing Sherry's shoes from her feet when Claire opened the bathroom door. She smiled at how considerate he was being towards the girl.

"Don't worry about waking her, if her snoring is anything to go by then I think she's out for the count." She chuckled.

Leon laughed too whilst discarding Sherry's shoes near the entrance door, suddenly becoming aware that Claire was wearing nothing but a bath towel and her hair was down.

"So, uh… Are you all finished in the bathroom? He asked nervously, looking anywhere but directly at Claire.

"Yeah, I've just washed my clothes out too, they don't smell great but it's an improvement." Claire answered, apparently unaware of how uncomfortable Leon felt as she walked past him to place her clothes on the radiator.

Leon nodded his head silently and made for the bathroom. "I might be a while whilst I redress this wound. Help yourself to the fridge and mini bar if you're hungry." And he shut the door behind him.

Claire shrugged her shoulders and sat down on the bed, contemplating eating but then realizing she really didn't have an appetite after the night she'd had.

Leon shut the door behind him and leaned against it, closing his eyes. An image of Claire popped into his head, her hair wet and droplets of water dripping down her collarbone. He hadn't noticed how feminine she looked until now, and he was kicking himself for allowing himself to. She was a friend, a comrade, and nothing more.
He distracted himself from those kinds of thoughts by starting to remove his tattered police uniform; he dumped the clothing into the sink and began filling it up with hot, soapy water and leaving them to soak just like Claire had. Once they were taken care of he slowly proceeded to peel away the bloody bandages wrapped around his shoulder, wincing in the process as he noticed the bandage had stuck to his wound. He decided ripping it off like a band aid would be the best policy and whipped it off…

"FUCK, THAT HURTS!" He yelled.

"Leon?! Are you okay?!" Claire immediately shouted through the door.

Leon winced again and bit his lip, trying to compose himself. "Yup, just fine. No problems here." He lied.

"Do you need any help?" Concern was obvious in her tone of voice.

"Uhh…" Leon looked down at his naked form sat on the edge of the toilet seat, and decided against it. "No, I think I'll be fine. I'll let you know if I need anything. Thanks anyway."

Leon glanced at his shoulder, noticing it had started seeping blood again and rolled his eyes. He stood up and entered the shower cubicle, testing the temperature of the water before placing his wounded shoulder underneath the shower head. Who knew gunshot wounds would hurt so much he thought idly to himself, as he watched the blood drain away.
Leon began to clean every inch of his body; taking extra care around his bullet wound, soon though the pressure of the water began to make his wound ache so he decided that would do for the time being. He turned off the water and stepped out of the cubicle, grabbing a towel to wrap around his waist. He started to rummage around in the small cabinet above the sink, looking for a first aid box when there was a small knock on the bathroom door.

"Yeah?" He replied.

"Are you definitely sure you don't need any help, Leon? I really don't mind." It was Claire again. She was persistent, that's for sure.

Leon took another look at his bullet wound and saw it was still seeping blood, he tried to look at the exit wound on the back of his shoulder but realized he could barely see it. Leon sighed; he was going to have to accept some help.

"Okay, I could do with some help please. Come on, in."

Claire poked her head around the door, offering Leon a sweet smile before entering the bathroom and closing the door quietly behind her. She stood silently, with her hair still down, dressed only in her bath towel, waiting for Leon to give her permission to inspect his wound. Leon suddenly became aware that he was also only dressed in a bath towel from the waist downwards, and he began to blush.