A small, brick bungalow awaited Cora out in the countryside. Spencer had bought it for Madeline Spencer, Cassandra and Catherine's mother. However, she was out on a cruise, so Cora got the house. Spencer had sat her down first, giving her a tongue lashing on the subjects of interrupting board meetings and taking vacation time.

She had barely noticed. She still felt... numb. She just added a 'Yes, Sir

Spencer' or 'No, Sir Spencer' or 'I'm sorry, Sir Spencer', every time

Spencer paused. Cassandra had shot her sympathetic looks all the while.

Although, when Spencer had finally left her alone, she had darted off on some mysterious errand.

Spencer seemed to accept the fact that she needed a vacation, and she was rushed there with startling speed. No doubt to stop rumours from spreading. UBSC soldiers were not meant to be seen as having a soft side.

So Cora was left, all alone, standing outside a squat brick house that was her new home. Strange, she was used to the Paris facilities now. This just seemed quiet, and boring.

The halls were empty, there was no bustle, and there was no low murmur of discussion. No gunfire, no groans of the undead, just the tick tock of the clock that Madeline Spencer kept in her kitchen. Cora felt herself looking around. How strange, how alien.

Cora was used to Paris? Used to being a soldier? Even after that mission?

It was only then that she began to cry.

vvvvvvv

Birkin strode down the halls, trying to make sure that the bundles of papers and files in his arms did not start falling. Spencer had assigned him to work on the virus injected into that Merandez girl. It had been quite satisfying to watch Alexia grudgingly produce a sample of that

virus.

Something caught and tugged at his sleeve. He turned around to see

Cassandra Spencer, looking at him with narrowed eyes. He blinked. He had never seen her angry, before.

"I know what you're up to." she said, crossing her arms. "With Catherine, and my uncle." And her tone said that she wasn't pleased with it, at all. Birkin didn't understand the fuss. It wasn't like it was affecting her personally. Personal attachments just got in the way of important matters; made people act recklessly and stupidly.

"If you end up hurting Catherine, then..." and she stopped, frowning. She had obviously never had to deal with a situation like this before.

"I'm not trying to hurt Catherine. I'm trying to hurt Spencer." he said.

Cassandra Spencer wasn't usually this blind. She let out a hiss through her teeth.

"Look. I don't agree with what my uncle did. He can be a bit ... short sighted, at times. But there's no need to pull Catherine into this, Birkin!"

She crossed her arms irritably, raising an eyebrow., then took a long deep breath. "Look, I dunno what you did to Catherine to send her into this daze -- she's babbling about you being a great scientist half the time! -- but it needs to stop. Now."

And just like that, she seemed sure that it would stop and that Birkin would apologize. She could be quite arrogant at times, actually.

"No." he said curtly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some work in the lab to do." and he broke free easily from the light grip she had on his sleeve and strode away.

"You're twice her age!" Cassandra growled after him.

"Irrelevant," he sighed. Some people could be so erratic sometimes.

vvvvvvv

Alexia Ashford's ruby lips curled into a sneer as she took a long draw on her wine. Alfred was watching her, concerned. For once, he was not clinging onto her sleeve pathetically. Perhaps taking a short leave had done him some good. Instead, he was lounging in an arrogant way near the fireplace.

"Birkin again." she growled. "That insufferable cretin!"

Alfred's eyes narrowed, and he muttered curses.

"Who does he think he is?" she stood up, kicking her skirts all the way to peer out of the window. "I am Alexia Ashford, The Queen Ant! And if that insolent little boy thinks that he is my equal, then I shall be sure to correct him!"

William Birkin may have been older than Alexia, but that's all he was – a little boy. One who deserved punishment, as well. Her victory had been soured considerably by his interference. His, and that of the Spencers as well.

It had never entered her plans from being separated from the Merandez girl - Alexia needed to see what Birkin had done with that antidote, to see if the damage was irreversible. Or to find someone else to dump the work upon.. Alexia was not cut out for doing simple busy work beneath her.

Cassandra Spencer, especially, was turning out to be a nuisance. She was soft, and an idiot, but she had just enough of a glimmer of intelligence to

get in the way. Too stupid to shove aside, too powerful to ignore. Alexia briefly considered having an 'accident' occur. The girl was too nosy by half -- surely it would be accepted that she had met her timely demise at the hands of one of her own experiments. Even if Spencer did have a soft spot for the girl, and even if she was powerful, it had happened to more competent researchers than Cassandra.

Then again, corpses had a way of pointing fingers and giving clues, and not everyone would be lured as easily into her trap as that idiot Alexander had been. She didn't even think of him as her father, anymore. It shamed her to be related to that bungling fool, who had brought heaps of disdain and disrespect onto the honoured Ashford name. And now Cassandra was doing the same to Umbrella.

Suddenly, Alexia was stricken by an idea. She did have an ally, no matter how dubious her trust in him was. Albert Wesker and Alexia Ashford were aiming for a couple of the same goals, and if Wesker could give her some assistance in replacing that senile old man Spencer with the Queen Ant, then she would take it -- not that she would do him any favours, afterwards.

She turned from the window. Alfred's show of self-confidence was still holding up admirably, but he couldn't keep his eyes off of her.

"Alfred." she said, her voice now as cool as snow now that the anger had drained from it. "I want you to perform a task for me."

"Yes?" he asked, perking up slightly.

"I want you to find me a way of contacting Albert Wesker."

Alfred inclined his head.

vvvvvvv

Cassandra felt rather giddy as she rapped on the front door to the small house. She hadn't played hooky since university. Of course, she was rather nervous. Uncle Spencer was death on her not doing her 'proper duties' about Umbrella, both in the labs and now with the added workload of being a soldier.

"Hello?" she called.

The door opened a fraction, and a gray eye peered out for a second before the door was opened all the way. For a moment, all Cassandra could do was blink in surprise. This was the hunched over, dead tired, mourning woman that had left Paris?

Cora's eyes were still dull, but the rest of her face shone. It occurred to

Cassandra that she rarely saw Cora with a smile that wasn't at someone else's expense or a sarcastic one. There was a grin of joy on Cora's face, her dark hair was brushed neatly and braided, and for once, she wasn't wearing dark clothes. She wore a pair of bright blue shorts and a matching t-shirt, as well as a white tweed hat, cocked at a jaunty angle on her head.

"Oh, it's you." Cora breathed in relief. "I thought it was going to be one of my neighbors, again."

Cassandra raised an eyebrow.

"Come in." Cora headed inside the house. Cassandra wiped her feet on the doormat dutifully and then headed inside. Cora bustled about the kitchen with a sense of purpose. It was unnerving.

"Uh, Cora, don't you think you're being a bit perky?" Cassandra said.

"No." Cora shrugged.

"I dunno about you, but if Mom and Catherine were killed, I'd probably kill someone."

"Ah. Well." for a moment, Cora shrugged uncomfortably, and her beam faded. Then she replaced it hesitantly. "Life goes on. So, what are you doing here? I expected you to be working in the labs over a zombie or something."

"I skipped out." Cassandra frowned slightly. "I just hope that kid doesn't escape or something. Last time that happened he ran down the halls in only a dressing gown, screaming bloody murder. Uncle Oswell was pissed. He came down on me like a ton of shit, but I just blamed it on someone else. It was great."

Cora gave a small smile that had no real amusement in it.

"I'm tired of the killing and the deception, Cassandra." she said, a bit gently.

"Oh. It was really cool, though."

"Let's talk about something happy."

"I thought that was happy." Cassandra blinked. She had considered it an amusing event. Earlier, Cora would have laughed about it. Obviously, the

Uranium City mission was beginning to unhinge her. "Um, Cora, you're not planning to return any time soon - are you?"

Cora's hands began to shake, and she dropped one of the glasses that she had been getting from the cupboard.

"Aah, I don't... I don't think I'm quite ready to go back." She said in a voice, high from panic. "I – I still see her face, you know, and I ... I'm not ready to go back."

Her face? Amelia? Or perhaps Alexia? Either way, what had begun as a cheery visit was quickly going downhill.

"I think I better go home." Cassandra said, and then she fled.