A/N: Ok ladies and/or gentlemen, I present to you another update and 'bastard Leon' - he's a bit of a shit in this one. Gotta love him though. Thankyou to all who reviewed and all the other people who read.. cause i know you did.. damn hit counters..

He felt drained by the time he got home from his weekly visit to Jesse. The sun was falling in the sky and the sky was it the bruised stage in between daylight and darkness. There were a few stars scattered over the horizon, tiny white lights winking at him.

Pulling into the drive, Leon rolled his eyes. Bethany was home – that he had no problem with – but her friends were over too. He sat in the car for a moment, not quite ready to face the gaggle of teenage girls. Bethany he would call a young woman, but the others were nowhere near adult. They walked around flaunting themselves in front of him even after he'd made himself perfectly clear that he wasn't interested. One had even gone as far as 'falling' into his lap while he was out on the back deck having his morning smoke.

Leon sneered. Even if he had been interested he wouldn't touch any of them. They were all fifteen and sixteen and touching one of them would mean instant jail time. He took a deep breath and opened the car door, climbing out slowly. He could already hear the giggles and his head started to pound.

Looking across the car, "Bethy have you seen my lighter?" he pat his pockets down, but only felt the crumpled pack of smokes.

One of the girls jumped to her feet and bounded over to him. "You can borrow mine, Leon!"

He didn't even look at her as he snatched it off her and lit his cigarette. "You're too young to smoke." He muttered, "It's disgusting."

She faltered, then her smile returned full force. "No I'm not. I'm sixteen."

He tossed it back at her, slamming his car door and starting toward the porch. "We have a word for girl's like you where I come from."

She followed him, almost tripping over herself to keep up. "What's that?"

He stopped beside Bethany on the steps and turned to look at the girl. "Child." He dead panned. He looked down at Bethany. "You need different friends." He didn't even bother trying to keep his voice down, merely insulted them and went on his way.

It was getting tedious. He loved Angie like a mother and Bethany like a sister, but her friends were really starting to annoy him. She was such a nice girl yet she hung around with the town doorknobs. Sooner or later everyone would get a turn.

Leon was surprised at himself. He hated being unkind to women, yet he had just berated a group of them just because he was in a horrible mood.

"You know what, Leon? You're a prick!" the very same girl called after him, her voice full of false bravado. He stopped walking and shook his head. Did she honestly think he wouldn't do anything? He turned slowly and stalked back toward the now quiet group of girls.

Bethany stood up and put her hand out. "Leon, please.. She didn't mean it!"

He glared down at her until she backed down, which didn't take long and stepped up to the little girl who had called him a prick.

"Do you really think that a grown man would be interested in you? That you've got something to offer him?" He spat, looking her up and down. "You are a child! A fucking child! You live in that superficial little deluded head of yours and you can't even see the world through the shit in your eyes – you are pathetic." He snarled, getting right into her face. He was careful not to touch her as he knew she would have him up on charges at the drop of a hat.

"Are you a virgin? I bet you're a virgin – they tend to live in a similar little fantasy world to yours." He snorted. "You wouldn't know the first thing to do with me if I ever gave in to you. Do you know why, Marissa? Because I'm a man – not one of those punk assed little bastards you go to school with. I would tear you in two." He uttered lowly, languidly leaning back to take a drag of his cigarette. He stared at her blankly for a moment, then shook his head, disgust creeping into his eyes.

"You need to wake up to yourselves. All of you."

He spun on his heel and stomped down the porch.

"He needs to get laid." One of them commented behind his back. Leon's blood ran hot but he kept walking.

"Go home, Elizabeth. Just – all of you go home."

Leon stopped just around the corner to listen to Bethany, wondering how she was going to handle his little outburst.

"Bethany! He just told us off and you're telling us to leave! What the hell is wrong with you?"

Bethany's voice was quiet. "He's a good man and he would never say things like that unless he'd had enough. He told you he wasn't interested in you, Marissa! He turned you down politely the very first time you tried to grope him!"

There was spluttering. "I did not-"

"Yes! Yes you did, Marissa! Now Leon is my big brother and I don't like you all throwing yourselves at him the way you do! Just go home! Please."

There was a lot of angry muttering for a few minutes until finally he could hear the girls' voices getting quieter and fading into the distance. Leon heard the front door slam. He would thank Bethany for defending him later when he was calmer and less likely to rip her head off about the stupidity of being involved with people like them. He growled low in his chest as he strode toward the back deck where he could hear Angeline and Cade playing. He stopped just inside the door and looked out at them. He couldn't be near Cade in this state. His beautiful son would do or say something innocent enough and he would yell at him, Cade would cry, then he would cry and then he'd feel like the worst in the world.

He cleared his throat. "Angie?" he called softly.

The middle aged blonde woman turned at the sound of her name and climbed to her feet, leaving Cade to play with his cars on the activity mat for a moment.

"What's the matter, sweetie?"

He trembled with barely concealed rage as he spoke. "I had a slight run in with Bethany's friends – you may get some calls."

Angie rubbed his arm, stunned at the corded feeling of his muscles beneath her hand.

"Alright – are you off again?"

Leon nodded. "Would you mind-"

"Say no more – I'll see you when you get in." she told him gently, ushering him back out of sight before Cade saw him and wanted to go with him. "Be careful now."

He backed away from her, then without a word turned on his heel and went out the front door, his tires screaming as he tore out of their street.

Ruby had been dozing on the front porch in the hammock when a car door slamming started her awake. She jerked and swore loudly, the hammock swinging and pitching her over onto the floor. She groaned, climbing to her knees even as the door to the porch flew open and the frame cracked against the wood paneling.

She blinked rapidly when she saw Leon step into the cool enclosed area, then flinched when he slammed to door closed again.

"RUBY!" he bellowed into the house, not seeing her on the floor just a few feet away.

Ruby went to stand and got her foot caught in her skirt, toppling back to the floor with a thump and a rather profane blaspheme. When she looked up again, Leon was staring at her oddly.

"Why the fuck are you on the floor?"

She rolled her eyes. "Because someone – don't know who – tore into my drive, slammed their door and scared the fuck out of me!" she shouted at him. Her knees stung from landing funny on the wooden porch. Leon's facial expression lost some of it's raw anger and he shifted.

"Sorry." He muttered, reaching out a hand to help her to her feet. "'M shitty."

She fixed him with a mocking, wide eyed look. "No – really?" At his dark look she softened, "What's wrong?" she asked, brushing her knees off. She seemed to always end up on the floor when Leon was in her home.

"Fucking Bethany's friends, that's what!" he started, releasing her arm to start pacing. His fingers fisted in his hair as he walked back and forth furiously, ranting about the self respect of today's teens. Ruby had never seen him so worked up over something. She found herself growing angry with whoever had pushed him to this.

"Leon – I'm one of today's teens." She told him quietly.

He stopped. "What? No you're not – that's bullshit!"

Ruby giggled. "No really, Le – I'm nineteen."

He blinked dumbly. "You are?" he looked toward his toes, visibly counting. "Oh." He mumbled quietly. He suddenly became animated again. "Well I didn't mean you! I meant that little trashy whore who's attached herself to Bethy!"

Ruby moved herself down onto one of the bean bags and arranged her skirts carefully so she could sit with her legs spread out in front of her.

"You know," she pointed out, "Bethy is one of these so called 'today's teens with no self respect' as well."

Leon stomped his foot like a petulant child. "That is beside – the point! Her little friends are whores with low morals and that fucking little whore, Marissa tried to grab my cock!"

Ruby erupted into a fit of shocked laughter. That she hadn't been expecting him to come out with.

Leon scowled at her. "It's not funny." He dead panned. "Ruby – stop laughing at me."

By now she was sprawled backward across the beanbag, her head thrown back howling with laughter. She showed no signs of letting up.

He sighed and trudged over to stand between her legs, then turned and sat with his back to her. Once he tapped her leg her laughter died down fairly quickly. He heard the squeak of her moving and then her hands slipped beneath the neck of his shirt.

"I'm sorry, precious – rant away."

"No," he pouted, "The urge is gone now."

Her long, ringed fingers ran through his hair. "Ok – teenagers, whores, she tried to grab your mighty sword of justice – proceed."

Leon closed his eyes and shook his head. "Mighty sword of.." he sighed, "I really don't know what the hell you're thinking sometimes."

"You'd be very confused if you did!" she impulsively hugged his neck from behind. "Did you know that in Liverpool it's illegal for a woman to be topless in public except if she's working as a clerk in a tropical fish store? I think we should go to Liverpool and buy some tropical fish."

Leon's shoulders shook slightly with silent mirth and Ruby smiled. He was calming down. Angry Leon scared her – even when they were little, or she was little and Leon was seventeen – seeing him angry had been scary for her. He was usually so sweet and gentlemanly that seeing him otherwise disturbed her. Well – he was still sort of a gentleman and he did have his moments.

She pecked his cheek.

"Let's go swimming."

He turned slightly in her embrace, looking back at her. "It's dark, Ruby."

"So?" she hopped up and started inside. "Come on, sugar plum.. Off your booty and come breast stroke with me."

Leon coughed. From now on – he was officially giving up trying to understand her.