Spanish translation!
(I won't translate things you don't need to know for the story. You can google search it if you're curious.)
Chica = Girl (Nickname)
Lengua Larga Loud Mouth (Insult)
Camarero = Bartender (male)
Claire and Ashley leave for Spain exactly three weeks after their first meeting. It's later than Claire would've liked but it was the soonest they could get out. Between trying to get Ashley out of her father's tight hold and Claire being able to contact some of her pals from Eastern Spain, it took almost the whole three weeks before they could even book a flight.
"I have to say, the flight back from Spain was probably the worst I've ever been on." Ashley says as she readjusts herself in her seat. She's probably not used to the cramped seats or having to sit next to a complete stranger, since she was granted first-class seating before now. "It felt like days before I saw anything recognizable."
"I'll bet." Claire mutters, wanting to give her a response but not really listening too closely. She's a lot more involved in making sure that she has the right address and that they won't have to take an additional flight somewhere else if it ends up being wrong.
Like she hoped, one of her contacts knew of Luis and said he was staying in Albarracín, just north of a city called Valencia. It's a tiny town and there's an additional two hours added onto their travel time just to get between the airport and the town. It isn't bad, all things considered, but she isn't too keen on staying there all day either. It's already in the opposite direction of where Leon was last seen and it will be an even longer bus ride between those two.
"Are you always this stressed before a flight?" Ashley chews her lower lip, her eyes almost judgmental with how she's staring.
Claire shrugs it off, trying not to start fights so early into this whole adventure. "There's just a lot riding on the little information we have. Call me over-prepared, but I don't want anything to get messed up because someone was mistaken." The serious answer isn't what Ashley was looking for, apparently, because the girl leans back in her seat and looks away.
"It was just a joke." She definitely sounds judgmental now and it grates on Claire's nerves a little bit, but she ignores it. They're both anxious for this to work. Leon's been gone for a very long time and despite how hopeful they both were back at the party, things have only gotten more complicated. It feels similar to when Claire was looking for Chris, except this time, Leon is in more immediate danger and could very well die while they're flying over.
For a long time, they just sit in silence. Ashley pulls out some kind of book in another language and Claire distracts herself with the details emailed to her. There wasn't much information on Luis Sera, much to her disappointment. She has no idea who this guy is, what he'd be like or what his history is. For all she knows, he could also be working with Los Illuminados or even Umbrella. It isn't crazy to think that the man who knows all about this parasite could've made the damn thing.
What Claire does have is that Luis has been hiding in the shadows ever since Spain and never visits a city too heavily populated. He's also been noted to be slippery, easily staying out of sight from both the American government and anyone else who could recognize him. Honestly, all of this makes Claire more and more anxious to actually meet him. Will he see two Americans and just hit the road running? Will this end up making a scene that could very well expose both of them too?
"Hey, Claire? Do you think..." Ashely goes quiet again, prompting Claire to turn to her. The tension has defused since the last time they talked and she's able to look at the younger girl without fighting the urge to snap. It would probably come back eventually -when they're on the bus or something- but for now, she's able to give Ashley an honest look.
"What is it?" She prompts, wanting to know what could be bothering Ashley so much. It takes a moment, but then the girl looks up, her wide eyes seeming to look anywhere but her.
"Do you think Leon will forgive me for leaving?"
So, this is what she's so worried about. Claire settles back in her chair and places a hand on the girl's shoulder, adding that stunning Redfield smile on top of it. "I can't imagine Leon holding a grudge against you for doing what he told you to. I wasn't there and can't tell you exactly how he'd react, but will he hate you? No. Never." She says it with confidence. Nothing in her mind could convince her otherwise. Leon isn't one to just hate people. He doesn't hate Ada last Claire checked and she even betrayed him. Hell, Claire hasn't forgiven Ada and she wasn't even there.
"You think so?" Ashley gives her a shy smile now, almost like she can't quite believe it. It's almost like she doesn't know Leon at all. Then again, he was quite a different person in the middle of a crisis than he was just hanging out. She's probably only ever seen the serious Leon that will explode zombie heads without a second thought. She's missing the long nights of watching cheesy childhood movies and eating dinner together every chance they can get.
Those are Claire's favorite parts of him.
"Just believe me on this, okay?" She responds at last. "He's a good guy and would never hold you accountable for the fact that you were innocent and inexperienced." Claire watches the way Ashley turns away, slowly nodding to herself as if to convince herself of that fact. Whoever left this poor girl to let her guilt and shame overtake her for this long should be fired. It's clear that she's been wondering this for a really long time and Claire can't imagine how painful that could be. Ashley lived through this last year wondering if Leon would even forgive her for his supposed death. No one should be left with that kind of weight.
The rest of the flight is quiet, as Claire likes it. They pass a few words amongst themselves here and there, usually nothing too deep or personal. It's nice, honestly. Ashley isn't so bad to just be around and by the time their flight has ended, Claire is beyond ready to get going. She's set up how they'll introduce themselves and what will happen if Luis decides to run for it. She's got everything planned out and all they have to do is take a two-hour bus ride to Albarracín.
But her plans screech to a halt when Ashley loses her bag.
"It was on the plane!" She exclaims, drawing eyes from every direction, but Claire doesn't care either.
"Are you sure?! You didn't leave it in checking, right?!" How could they lose an entire bag on one flight? It was straight from New York to Spain. No in-between exchanges or transports. So how in the hell did they manage to lose Ashley's huge bag?
Claire turns in circles, not sure where to even look at this point. They've lost more than just Ashley's clothes. She has all of their gathered information about Luis and the exact address of one of her contacts in that bag. She has her weapons in there too, as well as some ammo for it. Now, they're left with Claire's handgun, an army knife, and two boxes of ammunition between the two of them. How in the hell are they supposed to save a government agent from cultists with that alone?
"We're doomed." Ashley pulls at her hair, her lip beginning to quiver. "We're completely and utterly fucked right now."
It takes a lot of self-control, but Claire takes a deep breath and regathers herself. "We'll figure this out. The bag is gone, that we can't control, but we still have a bus to catch. Maybe Luis will be extra helpful and lead us something." It's a shot in the dark, but it's all she can do now. If they both break down then they won't get anywhere and Claire isn't ready to give up just yet. Leon still needs them regardless of how they show up.
"I don't know..." Ashley hesitates but Claire doesn't stand for it.
"Get up. We're going to find Luis and get this job done, okay? Besides, you said Leon showed up with less than what we have now, right? If he can go into a rescue mission alone, then we can do it as a team of three." That seems to do the trick, because Ashley's trembling starts to go away and she stands up, wiping her face.
When she speaks again, her voice has a slight waver in it, but it's already more steady than it was seconds ago.
"You're right. We can't give up." The change of emotion gives Claire whiplash but they're moving on quickly, making their way out of the airport and to the bus pick up. The signs are in two languages, thankfully, but they still end up stopping in front of a very confusing sign. Claire suddenly regrets not learning more Spanish.
Much to her surprise, Ashley stops someone in uniform and with shaky pronunciation, she says something in Spanish. It takes the worker a moment to gather what exactly she's asking before they point toward the doors behind them, giving them an accented, "Have a good day."
It takes them all of ten minutes to actually find the bus once they're at the pickup area but once they're both seated and ready to relax for another two hours or so, all tension drains out from them. They've made it this far and now, they only have a little ways to go. Then, they'll search the entire town for Luis Sera and force the man into helping them if it's the last thing they do.
The bus ride feels incredibly short compared to the ten-hour-long flight and it's very welcome to Claire's aching legs. She's able to recheck that her gun case is, in fact, inside of her bag and lets out a satisfied breath as she sits back, rezipping the bag. They're still depending on Luis to have at least something for them to use, but it's better than nothing. At this point, anything is better than nothing. Who knows what they'll be facing once they get to that castle or if they'll even need to battle off zombies. Or Ganados, as Ashley called them.
The thought strikes a question and Claire sits forward enough to draw the girl's attention. "Hey, what exactly do Ganado look like?" It would be helpful to get some kind of knowledge before they head into this. And although Luis could probably tell them all about it, she'd rather know at least the basics before looking to him for information. She knew they could speak and used weapons more often than not -the report detailing the few Ashley saw with a pitchfork, ax, or even a gun at one point.
Ashley blinks a few times but just when Claire starts to wonder if she even heard the question, she starts to answer. "Honestly, there's no real telling sign. They look like normal people until they start attacking you. I don't know much Spanish, but they sounded pretty normal too, besides the yelling. I guess the only thing is that they were always filthy and dressed like historic villagers. The whole place was pretty old, too."
That isn't nearly as helpful as Claire hoped, but it's something. "But anyone can get the parasite, right? So isn't that just situational?"
Ashley just shrugs. "I guess so. I don't think we would've suddenly changed into old-timey Spanish people once the Plaga fully grew." She starts chewing her lip again, something Claire hasn't seen her do until today. "I guess it's something else you'll have to ask Luis. I don't know what changed about us when we were overtaken besides the usual symptoms and you have to watch for those anyway."
Right. The tell-tale signs that someone's Plaga has hatched. Coughing blood, darkening veins, passing out, and sometimes hallucinations, if she recalls correctly. All things no one would want to experience, especially with the added parasite on top of it all. The more Claire learns about this, the worse it seems to get. It's more than just some virus, as horrible as those are. It isn't as easily transmitted from what she's heard, but it does things to the human body that seem impossible. Kind of like the G-Virus, in a way. Specific kinds of this parasite go beyond just killing someone and controlling their mind. It turns them into monsters.
Claire decides not to think about that until they make it to Luis. He'll know much more than either of them and it'll make more sense too. Until then, Claire uses her phone to check those emails again for any updates. When she doesn't find any, she searches for bars and pubs around Albarracín. Really, this guy could be anywhere, but something tells her that he's the kind to hang around somewhere he can find himself a drink or two. If he isn't in one of those -and there are a lot of them- then he may be in a hotel somewhere. That would be a bit harder to figure out, with how secure that information can be. No hotel manager is just going to give up the names of their customers.
Once the bus ride ends, the search immediately begins. It's nice to be on their feet for once but the aches those long hours of sitting caused aren't doing them any favors whatsoever. Claire lets out an irritated sigh when they don't find their man in the first or second bar. It's no help that she has no clue what he even looks like other than Ashley's description and it's too vague to really get anything from.
A tall, thin man with wavy hair that used to rest just above his shoulders. He also apparently dresses quite nicely, but that was also a whole year ago and who knows what he looks like now. And Ashley's memory has faded enough that she can't recall if he was clean-shaven or the color of his eyes. At this point, Claire just wishes she had even a blurry photo to go off of. It would be better than looking at everyone with wavy hair and second-guessing if they were on the right track at all.
By the fifth bar, the two of them are so entirely done with looking that they nearly don't go in at all, but Leon still needs them and they need Luis so they go in anyway. Ashley walks in first, looking at each patron lazily and Claire does the same. Everyone has dark hair and more than half of them are wavy on top of that. She's scanned so many faces that she's beginning to see them all blend together in a big mesh of human features. Ashley may not even recognize him by this point. They've looked at too many people for this.
But just as they start to turn back, Claire feels a pull on her jacket sleeve and she looks to see Ashley staring at a further booth table. She turns to the table as well and almost rolls her eyes when she sees a whole group, but the annoyance dies down as she realizes that all but one of those people are women. In the middle of the group of girls is one man, tall and thin with dark wavy hair. He's got angular features and slight stubble along his chin. Claire can see several rings on the hand holding his glass, a cigarette in the other. His white shirt is baggy and almost reminds her of a pirate but the dark vest of it makes it a little less silly.
This is their man. They've finally found him.
Ashley starts walking before Claire can even think. "Luis!" She's talking too loud for a little bar like this and it makes practically everyone turn toward her, but Claire's gotten used to this by now. All four of those women also look up, obviously offended that someone would interrupt whatever he was saying, but their eyes go wide when they see how American Ashley looks. Those wide brown eyes and blonde hair are just as clear signs as a giant red, white and blue flag would be.
Claire sees the fear cross Luis's eyes but he's stuck between two girls on either side and it's enough to almost make her laugh. He's completely trapped. Ashley makes it to him first, her hands slamming down on the table too loudly, but when Claire looks around, she's noticed that most everyone else is ignoring them now. That's a good sign at least. Luis either has a reputation for getting into trouble or people just don't care enough to stick their nose where it doesn't belong.
"Luis!" Ashley repeats once Claire has made it beside her. "We were looking everywhere for you!"
The girls look between Luis and Ashley, their eyes now skeptical. He looks at them too and lets out a nervous laugh. "Ah, I...I wasn't expecting you." Just like Ashley said, his accent is thick but his English is also very good from what little she's heard already. He laughs again and says something to the girls in Spanish, which makes them all frown but they begin getting up slowly, taking their glasses with them. If Claire hadn't run out of patience two hours ago, she would've laughed at the glares they got. If only they knew what kind of trouble they were planning on getting themselves into. She's sure Luis would much rather talk to pretty girls all day than hear what they have to say.
Ashley sits down quickly and Claire joins her, but they don't replace the previously occupied seats. They're opposite to Luis now and the man looks almost small without someone beside him. Claire wonders if he feels cold as well.
"Ashley. What the hell are ya doing here?" His tone has gone from conversational to actually upset. His easy smile is gone, replaced with a grimacing frown. Then, his eyes flick to Claire and he looks scared again. "Don't tell me you spread the good word."
The girl almost looks offended. "No! No, I didn't tell anyone about...well, I told Claire, but that's just because I had to." Luis still doesn't look trusting and honestly, Claire can't blame him. "Luis, we need your help. It's about-"
He suddenly sits back, his expression closed off. "Nope. Not gonna happen, Miss. President's Daughter." He even crosses his arms over his chest, the perfect definition of stubborn. Claire wonders if he's half as stubborn as Chris is on pizza nights. Damn, that boy could fight zombies with a bleeding heart but the moment Claire says she wants some actual toppings on her pizza, he starts throwing a fit.
Ashley crosses her arms too, looking just as stubborn. This is going to be fun. "It's serious! I wouldn't fly across the world and search five different bars just to talk to you for nothing! Come on, Luis."
He shakes his head sharply. "No. I'm done with all that parasite stuff. The cult is gone." He raises the cigarette to his lips and takes a long drag, not even coughing when he puffs it out again. It's almost impressive, but Claire's seen it enough times to just feel upset by it. People in their line of work always seemed to fall into one bad habit or another. Chris smokes, Jill drinks, and Berry gambles every so often. It's all they can do to ease some of the tension caused by these incidents.
"But it's not, Luis! Claire says someone saw the symbol not far from here and that means the Plaga-"
Luis suddenly sits forward, his eyes darting around the bar. "Don't!" He hisses. "Don't say that! I can't..." He lets out a tired sigh as he sits back, a hand running through his hair. "It's been a long year, Chica. Why bring it up now?" The plain show of exhaustion makes Claire's heart pull for him. She knows that feeling well, wanting to just forget, but she knows that only causes more problems. Just like with Raccoon City. If you bury it, then it always comes back. You can't learn anything from a crumbled city with no story behind it.
Ashley seems to feel the same by the way she too sits back, her frown going from angry to sad. "It's Leon." The name alone makes Luis gasp, his eyes filled with sorrow but also surprise. It's the same expression Ashley made back at the party. "Claire says that he's also been seen around here. That he could be alive." There's a long pause between them where Luis's eyes flick between the two girls and Ashley looks down, avoiding both of their gazes. "I wouldn't come all the way out here unless I honestly believed Leon has a chance. Unless I was certain you could help us get him back." She looks up again and the two lock eyes, something unspoken crossing between them.
Then, the connection breaks off and Luis shakes his head. "I'm sorry, but he's gone. I watched the island go under with him on it. That jet ski was the only way off, Senorita. There's just no way."
This is when Claire sits forward and pulls her notebook from her backpack, opening it to that same page that had the writing on it. "Look, Luis. I get that you went through a lot back then and you probably don't want anyone to find out you were even there, but we can't do this without you. Ashley said you were a researcher and know a lot about the Pla- parasite." She corrects. "You know the ins and outs of this thing, right?"
His eyes are hesitant now, like he isn't sure what to make of her. She sits still, waiting for him to finish his evaluation. A long sigh is her signal that he's done. "I used to work with Saddlar." He admitted. "I researched Las Plaga, made improvements and alternations depending on what he wanted. Then, when I tried to get away, they found me out and tied me up. I would've been dead without Leon..." He lets out a bitter laugh, his eyes sad as he looks back at them. "I'm not a very good friend, yeah? Couldn't even return the favor."
Claire shakes her head. "But he could still be out there. He could be in danger somewhere, hoping that someone will come for him. That at least one person he knew will have the courage to search. You can still pay him back, Luis. You can still save him." Claire tries to show just how much she believes in this. That Leon could be and likely is out there somewhere, fighting for his life while they're sitting around a table, wasting their time. It was frustrating, but she also knew that it was hard to even believe what she was saying.
Ashley sits up again, her eyes hardening again. "You're being selfish, Luis. Leon would come for you without a second thought but when you have the chance, you just sit here and mope around? How does that make sense?"
"Ashley." Claire snaps, scared of losing all of their progress with him. But it's already too late. Luis tilts his head up, clearly offended, and crosses his arms again. His eyes are narrowed as he glares down at Ashley specifically, though, Claire doesn't exactly evade that scowl either.
"You're going on a wild goose chase, Lengua Larga." She has no idea what that means, but going off of his tone, it isn't very good. "I'm not gonna run around the South of Spain just to come back empty-handed." He flicks his cigarette, not caring about the ash that falls onto the nice table. "Now get out of here before I call the barkeep."
"Luis, please." Claire pleads, now desperate to get some kind of cooperation with him. "We just want-"
He doesn't even let her finish speaking before he's raising a hand and gestures toward them. "Oye! Camarero, haz que estas chicas se vayan, por favor!" Claire turns to the bar in time to see the bartender glare at them and shout something else in Spanish while gesturing toward the door. Ashley looks ready to fight him on this, but everyone turns to look at them and Claire certainly doesn't feel up to starting any physical fights just yet. She stands up and waves a hand that she hopes sets the bartender at ease as she grabs the back of Ashley's jacket and pulls her up as well. The girl protests, but doesn't put up much of a fight as they both walk out.
"We could've-" Ashley starts, but Claire's already raising her hand.
"That was our one shot, Ashley. Our one shot to get his help. Why did you blow up like that?" She wants to shout but her voice turns out surprisingly calm. Well, not calm, exactly. But it's definitely not as loud as she was hoping for. Honestly, she just sounds like a disappointed Chris and it's irritating to hear from her, but she can't stop it now that it's out.
To her credit, Ashley looks ashamed as they take their stuff to a bench a little ways away from the bar. She sits down heavily and buries her face in her hands. "I don't know. I'm just so frustrated! He was so eager to help us back then and now, he won't even tell us about the Plaga! It's like he's completely changed who he wants to work with. And...he was working with Saddlar too. Why didn't he tell me that before?"
Claire deflates in her own seat. A headache is starting, but she can't leave this alone. Luis did give them some information, even if it isn't what they need. "He was probably scared, Ashley." Claire says after a while. "He didn't want anyone coming after him for what he did and it's obvious he still feels horrible about it now. He probably blames himself for what happened to Leon just as much as you do." And that's the root of the problem, isn't it? That Luis is still holding himself responsible for someone else's death, still feels like he should've done more when no one could've done a single thing. It's a constant loop of misery and Claire wonders if Leon even knows he's got these two so bent out of shape about him. The thought brings a reluctant smile to her face. He's always causing problems, it seems.
They sit outside of the bar for a while, trying to figure out what to do next. Do they just leave the town and head south, or should they take the time to get over some jetlag first? Sleeping sounds like a wonderful idea to her, honestly. Claire is so done with moving around and getting nowhere. She could easily book a hotel for them and they'd get more energy out of it, but the thought of waiting even a day to go for Leon makes her anxious.
Claire opens her mouth, intending to ask Ashley for help in the decision-making, but she stops when she sees a familiar figure walking toward them. She almost doesn't believe it when Luis stops in front of them, hands on his hips and a smile on his face. He looks smug now, so different from how he was in the bar. Ashley looks up too and she gasps at how close he is all of the sudden.
"I thought about it." He starts before they can ask questions. "And...you're right. Leon came for me when I was on death's door, so I should do the same. I'm a real amigo, after all." He says it with a flourish of his wrist and begins pulling out a key. "We can rest up at my hotel, but we should get going before the sunsets. Fighting Ganados isn't too fun when you can't see."
"Yes!" Ashley jumps up, her fists pumping in the air as she does a little dance. It's endearing to watch but Claire's still too exhausted to even attempt something like that. "I knew you'd come around!"
Luis scoffs but he sounds playful as he says, "No thanks to you, Idiota." Claire does laugh at the way Ashley's face falls, clearly understanding what he just called her. She too stands up and now that they're ready, Luis leads the way to whatever hotel he managed to get himself. As they walk, Claire finds herself hoping Leon isn't in immediate danger. They'll be there to save him soon, she promises.
Just hold on, Leon.
Alert: New fighter joined the came!
Also, if any of the paragraph breaks are weird let me know, they sometimes get messed up between editing sites.
