Hi, guys. It's been a bit of a stressful week, and I got a little behind on my writing. As with last time, I decided to break up the Raoul and E/C sections. So here is a fairly short Raoul-centric vignette. The E/C one should be done within the next week. I would recommend reading this Raoul vignette, though. There is a part that you might find kind of…interesting ;)

Thank you all for the reviews on the last vignette. Thanks to MadLizzy for editing.

Read and Review!!

The Appalachian Mountains hadn't changed a bit from when Raoul had last visited them with Christine. That spring, Raoul took Melanie up to his favorite lodge amidst a thick, green forest. The damp smell of shrubbery floated through the cool air, and the animals had recently come out of hibernation. If he had gone up there by himself, the atmosphere would have seemed lonely. With Melanie, though, the gentle breeze and distant sounds of birds helped to clear his mind.

They dressed in sweats and jeans for most of their visit, and it was nice not to have to worry about appearances for a few days. Melanie wore her hair in a pony tail, and it created a nice poof of brown curls. Ever since he'd graduated college, Raoul had felt the need to stay in business-casual dress while in public, probably due in part to his father's words: Don't let anyone tell you appearances don't matter. Look your best, son, and you'll get farther in life.

Those words were entirely true--which was why Raoul was happy to escape the civilized world for awhile.

They went hiking, canoeing, and sat by the lake just to enjoy the scenery. They'd started to go rock-climbing, but Melanie had decided it wasn't 'her thing,' and he hadn't been thrilled about ascending jagged rocks, anyway. After all he'd been through, why get killed now? While they both liked the outdoors, neither of them was an adrenaline-hungry thrill seeker.

Sometimes they didn't say much to each other. Other times, Raoul would reveal bits and pieces about his life as they walked along muddy trails, including tidbits about his father's involvement in Falcon. The only topic that was off-limits was the relationship between Erik and Christine, mainly because it was confusing and…weird. My old girlfriend is married to the guy that kidnapped us and nearly killed me…okay? At best, Melanie would console him and tell him how terrible that was. At worst, she'd want to call the police. Raoul really didn't want to deal with it.

"Are you having fun?" Melanie asked one evening as they rested in their room. The dark wood of the furniture made the atmosphere seem dim even when the lights were on.

"Yeah," he earnestly replied. "It's good to be here again."

"You still look a little tense."

Raoul chuckled. "After the last few years, it's going to take another year in the mountains to get me completely unwound."

She rested her head on his broad shoulder, snuggling closer as though she were cold. Raoul spoke again after a moment, his voice hesitant. "After we get back home, I…uh…may need to go back to London and settle some things."

"Oh. For how long?"

"Could be a few weeks to a month."

"Oh. Wow…." There was slight disappointment in her voice.

"Want to come?" he asked.

She sat up and turned to face him with wide eyes. "To London? Really?" He nodded, suddenly feeling upbeat. "Yes! I'd love to! I went to Spain once in high school, but that's the only time I've ever been out of the country. I'd love to see England."

"I can't say it'll be fun all the time. I might have to leave for long meetings. But I'm sure we could see some of the city."

"Do whatever you need to do. I'm sure I can keep myself occupied. I love hotels and shopping and everything. But…it might take some time for me to get everything ready to go."

"That's fine. I won't be leaving for a little while. Take your time." Raoul was already arranging a few meetings, including one that was making his stomach turn with anxiety. He blocked it from his mind for the moment, not wanting to ruin the trip.

After returning home, he helped Melanie get her passport renewed and arranged for their airline tickets. He was grateful that she was going; it made the affair easier because London still held a lot of bad memories. At least she was excited about it, calling her friends and telling them where her boyfriend was taking her…promising to buy them souvenirs. It was nice to have someone to make happy again; he missed Christine's appreciative smiles.

Their flight to England, cab ride, and hotel check-in went smoothly. As planned, he spent a lot of time meeting with lawyers and accountants, trying to make sure that the victims were getting their money. Plants had been closed all across the world, and the environmental damages were still being assessed. As of now, it was organized chaos, and Raoul still had a difficult time determining whether all of the suit-and-tie men were being honest with him.

He also took Melanie to see the tourist attractions, everything from the theatre district to Covent Garden to Buckingham Palace. While there was no doubt that this trip to London was a hundred times better than the last one, an uncomfortable feeling lingered in Raoul's stomach. And it only got worse toward the end of their stay. During their last week in the city, it was time to do what he was dreading the most…but needed to do for closure.

"I'm going to a meeting," he stated one morning as he put on a navy tie. "I'll be gone for most of the day."

"Okay," Melanie replied, glancing up from a tourist brochure. She studied him. "Are you all right? You're kind of pale."

"I'm fine. A little worn out."

"Maybe you should take a nap first." She patted the spot on the bed beside her.

He was glad that he had her to come back to after this meeting. "I'd better get it done. We'll grab dinner when I get back."

"Good luck. And show those lawyers who's boss!"

A choked laugh escaped his throat. "I will…."

It was a decent ride to his final destination. Thick bile gathered in his throat as he stepped out of the cab and walked into the air-conditioned building. He immediately went to the front desk to give them his name and the name of whom he wanted to see. After his identification and visiting order were checked, Raoul was directed toward the visitor center. His footsteps thudded against the spotless linoleum as he walked down the cold corridor. He then sat in a waiting room until his name was called. The occasional grim-faced guard passed by him without a second glance. Raoul could feel his heart pounding, and his hands clenched and unclenched.

Get a grip. Chill.

After about twenty minutes, he was called into the visiting room. A guard patted him down to check for prohibited items; thankfully, Raoul had left everything but his wallet in the car. He slowly sat down in a hard plastic chair at a circular table. Within a few minutes, she was escorted inside.

She sat across the table from him, dressed in a standard grey uniform and appearing much older. Her shoulder-length hair limply fell over one side of her face, streaked with blonde and grey now. He noticed that her breathing was deep…almost raspy. Traces of scar lines peeked out from behind her hair.

The green eyes stared at him with indifference. "Raoul. How are you?" Her voice was slightly muffled but clear enough that he could understand.

Raoul gathered himself together. "Leonie. Hello." He swallowed. "How are they treating you?"

"I'm…left alone. A high profile inmate."

"I see," he murmured. "That's good."

"What have you been doing this past year?" she asked. He couldn't read her tone.

"I've been getting things straightened out." Raoul was subconsciously waiting for something. "There's a lot to manage."

"I can only imagine," she replied. "All that mess to clean up. You must be…exhausted."

"I'm doing well," he evenly replied. "It's all coming together nicely."

"Wonderful."

"Yes. I've been pleased with the results." He momentarily broke eye contact. And the second he let his guard down, she took a shot at him.

"Whatever happened to Christine?" she asked.

He tensed. "She's fine."

"With you?"

"That's not any of your business," he replied.

"I bet I know who she's with. That must keep you up at night."

Raoul's jaw clenched, and he began to realize that he was not going to get what he wanted that day. "That is not your business, and I'm not going to sit here and play games with you."

"Well, why are you here?" Leonie asked, leaning back in the chair. "I was very curious when they said you wanted to visit."

"To put all this behind me," he replied. "And because my father knew you for years; I felt I should check on you."

The visible portion of her mouth twitched upward. "That's…very sweet of you."

He glanced at the table, already feeling exhausted. "Maybe I shouldn't have come. I thought maybe you'd have more to say to me after all this time."

"More to say? What are you looking for, dear? An apology? Fine. I'm sorry that you've ruined your life."

"You're wrong. I'm perfectly fine now that you're no longer interfering."

"Hm."

"Don't you have anything to say to me?" he harshly whispered. "You tried to have me killed."

A short laugh escaped her colorless lips. "I tried to make you the richest, most successful man in the world. I was going to give you everything. And now? You're miserable, thousands of people are out of work, your precious victims aren't seeing a dime, and—"

"They are seeing the money," he snapped. "All of it."

"You're still naïve. You think that the world is suddenly pure because I'm in here? The minute that my company collapsed, all the greasiest lawyers and con artists went after that money. And the uneducated, impoverished masses won't know what hit them."

"Why are you such a horrible person?" he asked, trying to keep her words from placing a thread of doubt in his mind.

"I'm a practical person," she replied. Leonie frowned, appearing genuinely bothered and discouraged for a moment. "Only at the end, I let my emotions get the better of me."

"Thank God for that."

"God had nothing to do with it; our yellow-eyed Devil was responsible."

Raoul shook his head. He would get no words of regret from her; it was time to leave. "Enjoy your life here," he muttered, preparing to stand.

"I will. All one or two years of it."

Raoul started. "You're here a lot longer than that."

She laughed, an unpleasant grinding sound. "No, dear. I'm actually dying. Isn't that funny? It was diagnosed two weeks ago. A nasty little lump on…well, you know. And I don't really plan on fighting it. What's the point, right? I've lived my life."

Maybe he shouldn't have said it, but the words came out anyway. "I'm sorry."

"You really are," she replied. "You'll spend the rest of your life being sorry. Just like your father."

Raoul left after that, unable to stop a single angry tear from trailing down his cheek as he was escorted back to the front of the building. Before climbing in the cab, he took several deep breaths to calm himself down. The ride back to the hotel slightly relaxed him, but the evidence of his distress was still present on his face.

"What happened to you?" Melanie asked as he walked in the door. "You look…really tired."

That probably meant he looked awful. "Nothing happened." Raoul removed his tie and tossed it to the side.

"Come on. Tell me. Was it a really crazy lawyer?"

He sighed. "I visited Leonie in prison."

"You did what? Why?"

"I don't know. But my God, she was still a bi—a horrible person."

"What did you want from her?"

"I…really don't know." Raoul rubbed both hands over his face and sat down on the bed. "I shouldn't have gone. It was a stupid waste of time." He paused and then added, "She's dying of cancer."

"Oh. Wow. That's…I don't know…." He must have really looked drained because Melanie then said, "I'll order room service for dinner." After making the call, she sat beside him on the edge of the bed.

Raoul stared at the turquoise carpet in thought. As much as he hated to admit it, Leonie was right about something; it was impossible to rid the world of wrongness. It would be an endless fight with enough ups and downs to drive someone insane. And he didn't want to spend the rest of his life being…sorry. None of this was his fault, anyway.

He spoke, wanting to put his thoughts into words. "For a little while, I was thinking about going to law school and fighting all this…corruption. It seemed like my mission or something. You know what? I don't want to. Maybe it's not noble or…whatever, but I want to get away from this. After this stuff with Falcon is over, I'm done."

"I don't blame you," she replied. "I wouldn't want to be around this all the time."

"You don't see it as giving up?"

"No! From what I understand, your dad messed up—not you. Don't make yourself miserable."

"Yeah. You're right. Maybe I'll start my own small company. One that's not evil. It could sell sports or outdoors equipment or…anything."

"That sounds fun," she agreed. "I could ask my grandma how she started her store."

"Great. I'll have to think about it for awhile." His mind was swirling with new ideas and possibilities, but he also didn't want to lose her in the process of his reinvention. In other words, he didn't want to freak her out. "You're okay with it, right? I don't want to mess up your plans."

"I don't really have any big plans yet. Maybe to put my degree to use, but that's about it."

"As long as you're okay."

"I'm fine," she replied. "Hey, I'm in London right now!"

"Great!" They both awkwardly laughed at their random burst of excitement.

Leonie was dying. Somewhere down the hall, an infant was wailing. And Raoul and Melanie sat on the bed watching television until room service knocked on the door with two plates of steak and potatoes, along with two slices of lemon meringue pie. Life went on without excuses or apologies.

Maybe he couldn't save the world, but he could live in it.