A/N: Updating - thankyou to those who reviewed the last chapter, you guys rock. On with the update!

Leon looked up at the night sky, only a mere twenty minutes earlier littered with stars. Now they were blanketed in a thick layer of clouds. The moon barely peeked through but it somehow managed, it's muted glow bathing the beach in just enough light to see. The waves roared further out from the beach in the deeper water.

"Leon! Back in the water!"

He shook his head. "Statistically night time is the most likely time for you to get eaten by a shark," he shook his hair, droplets of water flying, "Im not getting back in there."

He could see Ruby standing thigh deep in the surf, her white skin glowing.

"Statistically – you're a moron. Now get back in here and save me from the pointy toothed fish!"

Leon grumbled. "Slap you with a fish more like.." As he waded back out to her he felt the first droplets of rain starting to fall.

Ruby watched him walk toward her, her fingers dragging through the water. He had a look on his face that signified him being deep in thought, maybe even slightly troubled. She waited until he was closer to her, the rain falling heavier now, and took his hand.

"You alright?"

He nodded mutely. Ruby could tell he was lying. He had been off since they had arrived on the beach half an hour earlier. At first he wasn't even going to get in the water but after some gentle coaxing and not so gentle shoving, he was laying drenched on the shore. He'd thrown her in for that.

"Come on," she said, tugging on his hand, "back to shore."

Leon shook his head. "You just-" he sighed. "Fine."

They were quiet as they walked the distance back to shore, the only sounds being the roar of the waves and the patter of the rain falling against the water's surface.

Once they were in shallow water, only to their ankles, Ruby took Leon's other hand.

"Come and dance with me, Leon."

He looked at their hands, stumbling forward clumsily when she tugged on his arms. "I can't dance." He watched her feet as she walked ahead of him, their fingers entwined. With every step they would sink into the damp sand and the tiny silver bells on her anklets would jingle quietly.

She looked back at him over her shoulder, the jade and silver chandelier earrings she wore sparkling in the muted moonlight.

"Doesn't matter, precious. Just dance." Her fingers tightened in his as she pulled him closer, her arm slipping around his waist.

He looked down to where the surf broke around their feet, white water rushing up and splashing their calves.

"Letty would love this. I should-" he stopped himself and looked up. Ruby was smiling sadly at him.

Her thumbs brushed his cheeks. "It's ok to talk about her, Leon."

He gulped down the air his body felt like it so desperately needed. Pain swelled in his chest, choking him.

"She liked lilies." He said softly, not game enough to speak anything above a near whisper. "- and she was beautiful." The last came out as a choked whimper. "She made things hurt less."

Ruby raised herself onto her tip toes in the wet sand and pressed a light, comforting kiss on his lips.

Leon's eyes closed tightly at the feel of her full lips against his, the guilt from kissing another woman, someone who wasn't Letty fighting it's way to the surface. Despite this, he bent a little lower and caught her mouth in another kiss before she had moved too far away. Tears leaked from his closed eyes.

He sighed into her mouth, shaking as she slowly pulled away from him. For a moment he was expecting to see dark brown eyes staring up at him, then when he saw her green eyes reality came crashing down.

This time he didn't bother stopping it. The sobs that racked his body brought him to his knees, the ocean water swelling up around him.

"I wanted a baby," he cried, rocking back and forth, "-it's all my fault."

Ruby moved around to kneel beside him, sheltering him from the worst of the waves' impact as they rolled into shore. She fought her own tears as she wrapped her arms around him, resting her cheek against the top of his head.

"It wasn't your fault," she held him tightly, "It wasn't. You couldn't have known this would happen."

As Leon continued to sob in her arms Ruby kept repeating her efforts to comfort him. She knew that nothing she said would make him feel better or take away his pain but she had to try. Leon was her friend and she couldn't just sit there and say nothing, she had to try.

His voice was hoarse and muffled against her chest, but she clearly heard his words.

"If I hadn't have pushed for a baby she wouldn't have died."

The hammock swung ever so slightly in the breeze, the rain hammering down outside. Ruby watched the downpour through the shade cloth that enclosed the front porch, her hand absently stroking Leon's head where it lay against her chest. His breathing was deep and relaxed in sleep, his exhaustion wiping him out completely.

It had taken him a good half hour to calm down enough to get up on the beach and another ten minutes to make the short walk home. Then once they'd gotten back to the house he had just stood in the middle of the room, lost. She had gone inside and gotten some towels and blankets then come back out, helped him dry off and wrapped him up snugly. He'd then practically crawled into the hammock with her and proceeded to cry a little more. Not a lot was said during that whole time, just the occasional proclamation of guilt and some whispered soothing nothings. When it came to explicit details on what happened, she was still in the dark.

Ruby hated feeling so helpless. Leon was a mess inside and there was little to nothing she could do for him. Her fingers worked through the slightly tangled pale brown strands, gently tracing down the back of his neck to smooth across his shoulders. Leon made a quiet sound, like a sigh, and pushed his head closer to her heart. She hugged him as well as she could in the position they were in, her leg shifting to drape over the back of his thigh. She wriggled her toes, trying to rid herself of the pins and needles weighing down her foot from Leon's weight laying on it.

A crash of thunder sent vibrations through the ground and lightning lit up the inky black sky, illuminating the thick storm clouds overhead. Ruby grimaced. They wouldn't stay dry where they were for long if the wind picked up. The shade cloth stopped the rain for the most part but once that wind shifted it would turn the front porch into a wind tunnel.

It was with a heavy, regretful sigh that she shook Leon.

He didn't stir the first time she called his name, nor the second, but when she said it the third time a little firmer, his brown creased.

She shook him again. "Leon – wake up."

He jerked awake, his eyes wide and terrified. His hands went straight to her stomach, almost in a daze and he whimpered. They slid over the flat surface for a moment then stilled.

Ruby watched him blink a few times, then his eyes rose to meet hers.

"You're not Letty.." he whispered softly, almost too quiet for her to catch.

"No, sweetie," she stroked his head, "-I'm not."

Leon looked at her silently, his mouth trying to say something but nothing came out. Ruby decided to take the opportunity while he was awake and sat up, forcing him up with her.

"Come on, Le – Inside. The storm's picking up out here and we'll get sick."

He mutely nodded, climbing out of the hammock and adjusting the blanket around his shoulders.

"Do you want me to sleep on the couch?" he asked her softly, looking at the floor.

Ruby rubbed his back gently as she guided him inside. "You can sleep with me if you want to." She locked the front door and started down the hall toward her room, not waiting to see what he had decided on.

She was already curled up in the centre of her bed, almost asleep when she heard the door creak open and the muted sound of a blanket falling on the floor. Her eyes still closed, she felt a cool blast of air on her legs as the blankets lifted then the brush of Leon's leg sliding in beside her. She rolled onto her back and held her arm out. She instantly had an armful of Leon, his face buried in her neck. Her hand came up to tangle in his hair.

"You ok, precious?"

His head shook against her, his tears hot against her neck. "It hurts."

Ruby sighed and held him closer, just waiting for the tears to taper off and for him to drop off to sleep. He sniffled, nuzzling closer a little. "..Ruby?"

"Yeah?" Her closed eyes shot open when she felt his lips drag across her throat, surprised. Her eyes fluttered closed when he did it again. His tears still fell against her skin.

"Make it go away," he pleaded through tears, "- make it stop hurting."

She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, pressed so close to her side, tears streaking his face. Her fingers wiped the salty moisture away and she drew him into her arms.

"Alright Le," she felt his knee slide between her thighs, his weight settle on top of her, "- anything to make you feel better."