DIsclaimer: I own nothing
HEres Another chapter. SO far I have finished Part I of this story. I hope you are enjoying it so far.
It'd be nice if you can leave a word about how it is doing so far.
Please enjoy :)
Leon
It was getting dark and so far, they'd been lucky. All the foes they had encountered had been pretty easy to handle, but there was something bugging him. It was about Claire. he'd noticed that something was slightly off with her movements. She'd been oaky earlier, but as the day progressed she had started to slow down and struggle to keep herself on feet; her face had turned pale as well. That made him worry.
"It's becoming dark. We should find a place to rest for the night." he said
"What?" Claire mumbled trying to dissimulate her tiredness.
"You heard me, it's been a long day. We are both tired. We need to keep our strength in order to fight. It'd be stupid and reckless to push ourselves to the limit."
"You are right."
Leon looked her with a raised eyebrow and a look that meant to show his point. Claire was staring at him and, for an instant, he thought the woman was going to complain, but she only tilted her head and chuckled.
"All right Mr. Secret agent. I will follow your lead."
They spent the remaining hours of light searching for a safe place to pass the night. Leon found a small cave partically hiddne between a group of bushes and after making sure it was clear ,they settled inside. The blonde agent made sure to camouflage the entrance with some branches and plants, The blockade was solid enough to hide the entrance and keep anything from coming in, but it has enough clear spots to shoot if necessary.
"So that's what the government teach their agents?" Claire commented playfully as she watched him cover the entrance and he smiled.
"Naturally. It's rule number 4 in how to be an agent 101."he replied in the same playful mood and Claire laughed.
He watched the woman put off her pony tail and comb her auburn locks with her fingers as she rested her head against the cave's wall. This was the first time he saw Claire without her patented pony tail style and he had to admit, that perhaps she should consider wearing it down more often.
Since when do I care how Claire wears her hair?He asked himself surprised.
"Oh, Chris would kill me if he had heard me now." she said abcently, but under the dying light he saw the woman smile slightly.
"How come?" he replied taking a spot in front of her.
"Keep yourself focused. No time for jokes" She muttered in a lower tone trying to mimic her brothers way of speaking then she let out a soft chuckle. "I always told him that sometimes a little humor is what you need to keep yourself going. He can be so serious sometimes..."
"Sounds about right." Leon said resting his chin on his hand "I can't picture him joking around, but may be he should learn to let himself loose a little. You could teach him."
Leon had always wondered how Claire and Chris were so different and yet so alike at the same time. Claire always found a way to lighten the mood with her sarcasm and her well intetioned jokes; her personality made her an approachable person, while Chris...well, Chris was simply intimidating.
"You are one to talk, Mr. I'm agnet down to business Kennedy..."
At her comment, Leon only sighed. More or less, she was right. After so many years working, fighting and watching the world got to hell, he'd bedome reserved and shut in. With all the tragedies he'd witnessed, it was hard to kee his usual outgoing self, but he wasn't the only one who had faced tragedy and had been force to change a little.
"Then I guess I need some lessons, too. What do you say, Redfield? Will you teach me?"
"Just what are you saying?" she chuckled "To tell the truth, sometimes I wished I was like you guys."
Leon frowned at her words as he shook his head.
"You're fine the way you are, Claire. It is enough with one Chris and me in this world, no need for you to add another one into the equation. To tell the truth, it feels like there should be more people like you instead."
"Like me? If there were more people like me, the world would be doomed. I've messed up too many times in so many things... if only you knew, you'll probably understand what I mean." she sighed.
"It sounds to me that you're being too hard on yourself." Leon replied softly.
"And you guys are just too soft on me." Claire snorted bitterly "When I think back of all the things that could have been avoided if I had just been less naive."
Leon took a look of the woman sitting in front of him. Her features were barely visible, but he could perceive the mortified tone in her voice. Of course he should have known that Claire, just like them, had her own inner demons, but he couldn't stop himself from being slightly surprised. In his head, Claire's image had always been of girl filled with optimism and willpower; sometimes he forgot that Claire was only human, and like him, she would feel doubt, fear and pain.
A distant roar cut through the quietness of the evening and interrupted their conversation. Leon gripped his handgun, a soft "clanck";with corner of his eye, he saw Claire picking up her rifle. Both exchanged knowing looks as they moved stealthily toward the entrance and peeked through Leon's improvised blockade. The forest was barely lit by the pale light of a waning moon. They saw a group of Plagas carriers wandering aimlessly at few meters from their hideout, but they were far enough for them to be safe. Besides, they weren't the ones he was concerned about, but the owner of that horrible roar they had heard a while ago. He scouted the the place with a frown, so far nothing seemed out of ordinary, but then he saw it.
He didn't know how to describe it, the creature had pale skin that, under the dim moon light, almost seemed to glow silvery. Its body was elongated so that its back formed a curve as it moved in the darkness on its four limbs, Leon noticed the pieces of tissue that hung from its body, especially the bloodied ones that covered its deformed face. If it had eyes, Leon couldn't say where they were. Its face was basically a lump of bloodied meat with no distinguishable features but a big hole filled with sharp yellow fangs, that he could only guess was its mouth. Without warning, the creatures snatched one of the plaga carriers and with hungry roar bit off its head.
Leon watched the creature kill the Plaga carriers . It then, let out another horrible roar and its body began to shake and twist on the ground. To their horror, the pieces of tissue began to peel of and some sort of tumors began to appear on it. After a few minutes, the creature had grown an extra pair of arms and something that looked like spikes potruded from its curved back.
"It's... mutating…?" Claire whispered by his side.
The monster roared, this time time it sounded almost painful. Its grayish body twisted in the ground as more pieces of tissue began to fall revealing the reddened mass underneath. Little by little, it began losing the few patches of skin that it had. By now, the creature looked like giant licker, except for its head, which still held the pieces of tissue hanging. Leon had no idea of what the hell it was, but he knew something, he didn't want to confront it now if he could avoid it.
The pair watched the deformed creature disappear into the darkness and both let out a breath that they had been unconsciously holding. Leon made sure the creature was gone before actually letting his guard down.
"One of your bigger friends, I take…" Leon whispered looking at the red head. He could see the horror reflected in her vibrant aquamarine eyes.
"Not...exactly." she replied "This one is...different."
"We didn't see anything like it during day time, so either we were lucky or our assumption is correct."
"That only come out at night. Talk about nightmares. I am just glad it didn't find us, but I've got the feeling that our luck is not gonna be for long."
"Well face it when the time comes, until then, don't worry about it. I think we are safe for now..." Leon replied moving back to his original spot " How are you feeling?"
"Me?" she said surprised.
"You can't fool me, Claire. You've been struggling since that climb we did."
Claire let down a vague snort and shook her head.
"Told you I didn't like hiking." she replied "I'm okay. My head bothers now and then, especially when I'm tired. You know how concussions work..."
"Yeah, try resting a little. "
"I had my share of sleep yesterday. You must be exhausted though. You're the one who should be taking a nap."
"I work better with less sleep." he half lied.
If Leon was to be honest. He did a much better job when he had five or six hours of sleep, even four; his senses seemed to be more alert; but he knew that his body still needed the rest.
"Liar…" Claire muttered. " Get some sleep idiot."
"Only if I get to use your lap as pillow..:" he joked earning a soft smack on his arm and chuckle from his partner.
" You're such a flirt. Go to sleep, Leon. "
Leon should consider asking Claire to become his permanent partner. His missions would be a lot more bearable with her. Then again, Claire wouldn't become an agent.
"I missed this." he sighed.
"Sleeping in a cave surrounded by bloodthirsty parasites and other horrors, mmm...yeah, I really needed it, too."
Leon smiled. He knew that she couldn't see his smile in the darkness of the cave and he was glad. He probably looked like an idiot. The man laid his head against the wall and closed his eyes as the tiredness began to engulf him.
"I was talking about you. I missed you, Claire." he muttered in an almost inaudible whisper.