Extra 10
"You can come on in."
Rachael nodded obediently as she stepped through the door, glad they had adjusted the clearances. The cooler air of the room felt good against her skin, and the dimmed lights allowed her to open her eye much wider, able to appreciate the room much better.
The room was very spacious, with very little in the way of furniture. The main feature was the bed-like couch beside the end of a piano. The latter was occupied by a younger woman, who smiled patiently at Rachael. Casually, she tossed her hazel locks to the side, blowing slightly to get them out of the way of her face. "Why not take a seat?"
Rachael obliged, sliding onto the couch. Her skin slid across the surface easily, and she took a moment to get comfortable. The woman waited patiently as Rachael took her time, struggling to sit upright under her own power. Eventually, she managed to get her muscles to work together, preventing her from slouching.
"I'm ready…"
"Alright then. Why don't we chat for a moment first, just get things working. I heard you had a trip recently?"
"Yes...we went to the BSAA HQ. They wanted to see us."
"Why was that, or are you allowed to tell me that?"
"Sorry…" Rachael apologized quietly.
"It's alright. It's not my job anyway. How did it go?"
"It was alright...I didn't talk much with the others...there was an old...acquaintance of mine there."
"Did you get to talk with her much?"
"A little. Circumstances were...unique…"
"Hello again Rachael," Jill greeted, leaning against a table. Rachael silently observed the woman, taking in her appearance. Last time the two had met, Rachael had only been able to get a sense of the woman's forme, but not her features.
There were a few differences she could note. The most glaring was the change in uniform. Compared to her tactical gear, the skin tight suit was a drastic change, but Rachael just assumed it had a reason. The most noticeable thing for her though was the change in the way Jill moved. She had felt strong, but now Rachael could sense something more.
Something like her.
Rachael's eye narrowed slightly at the feeling, brushing it aside. Jill had been up to her eyes in the virus, but been inoculated. Realizing she had failed to say anything, she shifted slightly. "Hello."
"How have you been?" Jill inquired, her voice intentionally neutral.
"A bit better. My eye works now…" Rachael explained, motioning to her good eye for emphasis. Jill nodded, seemingly disconcerted by the fact that she was actually being observed. "I never realized this is how you looked?"
"I didn't," Jill replied with a hint of bitterness in her voice. "The suspension caused my hair to bleach, and my skin to lighten."
"I wouldn't have been able to tell you," Rachael pointed out. "You still look the same to my senses. Just a little...something else."
"Yeah...about that," Jill started with a sigh. "It's probably the t-abyss virus."
"You were infected before, and I never sensed it," Rachael noted with confusion.
"The suspension didn't just change my appearance. It reactivated the viruses briefly. Now I've got them in my antibodies."
Rachael was silent for a moment as she processed the information. "I see...did they change anything?"
"We're not sure about everything, but it made me stronger, and toxic to infected individuals."
"Toxic?"
"If I shook your hand, it would hurt," Jill explained with a small laugh.
"I think I will decline to test that...it could be worse though."
"The man who killed my team kidnapped me and made it seem like I was dead for three years before using my anti-bodies to make another virus? How could it be worse?"
"You could look like me," Rachael stated flatly. "When the virus activated in you, you got the strength and agility. I have those too, but I paid for it in this...I was never as strong as all of you."
Jill went silent, her expression unreadable as she looked to the side as if thinking. "I'm sorry. That was rude of me. I didn't think-"
"It's alright. What happened was terrible," Rachael assured. "We just have to keep going. Some good came of it; you're stronger now, and Wesker is dead."
"That's true," Jill admitted quietly. The two were silent for a moment, before Jill spoke again. "Come on. Enough gloom. I just got back from being dead. I've got a lot of stuff to catch up on. Wanna come with?"
"I noticed you didn't say bad."
"It wasn't...just odd."
"I would say most of the things around here are odd," the woman countered with a smile. "Your speech has gotten much better."
Rachael said nothing, inclining her head instead. "What is the plan for today?"
"We'll start with warm ups as usual, assuming you're feeling up to it."
"I think that will work," Rachael agreed, rolling her neck as she focused on her muscles. The woman nodded, laying her hands on the piano. Gently, she played a note, holding it for a moment. Rachael turned herself reflexively towards the piano, her eye unfocusing as she listened.
Soon enough, a sound arose form her throat, wavering to match the pitch. Focusing all her energy on her neck and chest, Rachael willed her airway to be clear enough to sustain the note. As her muscles warmed to the position, the sound rose in volume, finally becoming audible to others.
Rachael reached the limit of her breath, and her throat shifted back to its previous arrangement, strangling the note with a choking noise. Rachael frowned at both the discomfort and the horrid noise it had produced.
"Very good. I think you held that one longer this time," her instructor complimented. "This is why we are warming up."
The instructor played a slightly higher note, and Rachael tried again, feeling her false palette open easier this time. As she breathed in, she could feel the air in her true lungs, making her feel strangely warm. Holding the note was not just a matter of the right mouth position, but also controlling the myriad of additional muscles in her body. If she slouched too much, her body would bend out of shape, making the sound foul. If the false palette flipped back into place, she would choke for a moment, which was all it took.
The worry she had flooded her body, making her shake slightly. She cut the note off early, leaning forward on one hand to allow herself some time to recover. Her instructor paused the note, looking over at her. "You okay?"
"Just having a bit of trouble."
"Take as long as you need."
Rachael nodded her thanks as she breathed slowly, trying to control her anxiety. She found it odd sometimes; she could go into combat fearlessly, but the thought of messing up here terrified her. She felt the same fear every time she was around people. She had to constantly be in control. One wrong step, and an arm reaching out to stop herself could well decapitate someone.
Closing her eye, she thought about how much progress she had made. These lessons were proof of that. Not too long ago and the fear of any kind of communication with someone she hadn't known for a while would have reduced her speech to one word responses.
When the lessons had first started, she had barely been able to do anything more than talk to the woman, let alone sing at all. Her first attempts were gurgling hisses, or choking warbles; both of which made her reticent to try again. But she had been coaxed into trying again. And again. And again.
Until finally one day she had managed to get the sound out the way she wanted. It was only for a moment before surprise caused her to lose form, but it had been a moment she remembered clearly. Her excitement had been tempered, unsure of if she could do it again, but as her instructor worked with her, it was becoming easier. There were times she had a bad day, but they usually passed quickly.
"I'm ready to try again," Rachael confirmed, straightening herself up. Her instructor nodded again, playing a note. Rachael matched it again, feeling her confidence bolster. Her instructor stepped down a note and Rachael followed, briefly struggling as she tried to control herself.
Before Rachael knew it, they had somehow worked themselves up to a basic tune, her instructor humming support atop the piano notes. She allowed more time for breathe gaps, but kept the pace going smoothly. Rachael's mouth twisted into a smile as they reached the end of the song. Rachael let out the breath she was sustaining, laying down as light-headedness overtook her. Her instructor sat back with a proud smile, letting her take a break.
"I think that was pretty good. First time all the way through," her instructor noted. Rachael nodded weakly as she lay on the couch. Her smile only widened as she realized she doubted she could have even done the whole song as well as she had back when she was human. By no means had she been a singer, and yet here she was.
She couldn't help but laugh at the mental image of herself on a stage, singing in front of people. The very idea was laughably impossible; there was no way she would be able to do that. But she wouldn't mind singing in front of friends. Maybe. She hadn't given the thought much time, but it didn't seem horrible.
Sitting up, she wished she could interact with them more. Her inability to see had been a huge barrier, as moving around the base took time, and details were lost on her. She could barely discuss the weather by how it felt. Even after that had remedied itself, she had troubles speaking, and she wasn't cleared to go on missions like the others. Despite being the only people who could understand her, she felt like she had closed herself off from them.
Snapping back to the present, Rachael sat up slowly, careful to avoid a rush of blood. Previously idle thoughts seemed to take on more weight as she thought about them. Slowly, she turned to her instructor. "Hey...could you help me with something?"
Admittedly, after one had died once, there was little that could be compared with that level of fear, but that didn't mean that the fear wasn't having a physical effect on Rachael's body.
The piano had been moved to the living room, with Rachael sitting next to it. As she waited, her anxiety made her fears run wild. She was all too conscious of her posture, and the presence of some of the facility crew, who were hanging around with curious expressions. She had to admit she had kind of invited it upon herself, but there was no turning back now.
As if confirming her thought, the other three arrived, each with slightly differing reactions. Sherry's eyes immediately widened and she broke into a smile, seeming to understand what was going on. Leon meanwhile was his restrained self, though a smile had ghosted onto his face. Finally, Manuela sported a gentle smile, understanding exactly what was going on. She guided the other two to the couch, seeming to know what to do.
Rachael waited for them to settle in before taking a breath. "Thank you for coming...I hate to bother you, but I wanted to share something."
Turning to her instructor, she nodded. With a smile, she began playing the song Rachael had chosen. Nervously, Rachael paced her breathing, ready for her first note. Swallowing her fear, she began to sing.
"Alas, my love, you do me wrong,
To cast me off discourteously,
And I have loved you oh so long
Delighting in your company.
Greensleeves was all my joy…"
Another short one, but I like the general tone. I decided to cut it off mid song since A) song fics are a little over done and are not my cup of tea, and B) it was more about Rachael getting to the point of singing than the actual song.
That said, I recommend you listen to the song. In case you did not know it, it is called "Greensleeves."
As a final note, I am actually planning on moving onto some more plot relevant stuff next week. I have the opening chapters of a couple of fics, one focusing a little on Moira after Rev2, and one based on Marhawa Desire. While both will be completed prior to the events of RE6, one may take precedent over the other based on reception. So if you like one more than the other, do show some love and support. With that said, see you next week!