#muse; claire redfield

[legaciestold]

thread: the prismya incident tuesday, july 25th-friday july 28th, 2006 @everythingheard (leon) also featured in overall incident: @myersbprd, claire, ingrid, mara, & jill

-

tuesday, july 25, 2006 4:45am (stateside local) mild rain, gray morning skies, humid

the screen is eerily blank for multiple seconds, the sounds of clattering items all that's emitted above the gentle static. muttering comes next, a woman's frustration coming through with no visual to accompany it until a silhouette appears, out of focus.

'come on, come on, yes! it worked!'

emits the voice, hushed but triumphant as what can be assumed is keys of what might be an old keyboard by the heavy sounds of it are pressed in the audio. the picture is grainy, as if there's some kind of interference yet it does finally come into focus to display a woman looking at the camera and addressing an agent with a name hunnigan hasn't come across before. the name is typed into a second monitor upon her station though a voice on the phone she's balancing on her shoulder halts her. tells her to wait and watch. the woman on the screen looks a bit worse for wear. there's a small gash on her forehead that looks as if it's scabbed over and the scrubs she wears look wrinkled and disheveled as if they've been worked in a while. it's not what's shocking about the video. hunnigan has seen a lot both in her own field experiences before she'd taken a desk job and in the displays from messages from various agents she aids who are in the field.

she's seen kennedy a hell of a lot worse for example.

what's shocking comes from the words which emit from the woman's lips. she speaks quickly, to the point, an attempt to relay as much information as possible in an efficient manner. hunnigan appreciates it. a final stage of a virus is synthesized and will have enough produced for the final stage of an attack within forty-eight hours. possibly less, most likely less. she's only piecing together what she's been able to hear and catch glimpses of. she's being monitored constantly but one of the other scientists speaks to her as they work, whenever they get the chance to, and he seems to be an ally. the process appears to be faster because of the nature of vampiric materials.

vampiric?!

the camera is shifted, loses focus for a moment when it's lifted and redirected over a blurry file that hunnigan already knows is going to have to get sent for enhancement. she can just barely see the name claire red.field on it though ingrid isn't sure if she actually saw the name clearly or if it's her brain piecing it together by virtue of the fact the woman voices the name a moment later. the camera pans too quickly over a separate video feed, camera on camera distorting the picture with lines-- yet, some can be made out. maybe the worse of it is the sound.

there's screaming. wild, scared, pained.

there's frenzied movement on the screen of the screen. there's what ingrid thinks is a woman attacking a man in scrubs and then her being forced back down and injected with something and she thinks the woman cries something to the effect of 'not again' after some profound swearing in-between. maybe that's really the most shocking part because ingrid has never met redfield but she's seen agent kennedy's file and seen claire's picture in it because the girl and leon had escaped raccoon together and as distorted as the picture may be, ingrid understands in the pit of her stomach what she's seeing is the same woman.

the camera pans back once more to the woman sending it with her rattling off something about redfield having been the key to the virus and a location. about something being wrong. she shouldn't have been able to get to this terminal let alone send this video she's not sure where the guards are but she's uploading the communication now and praying they get it. to please send the bprd or anyone they can. there's a sound, a groan really, which emits somewhere in the room the woman is in and she looks away before turning back and starting to say to 'tell leon...' something... but it's cut off with the transmission going dark and somehow, that's when something else connects in ingrid's mind and she chastises herself for not having realized it sooner. she's seen this woman's picture in leon's file too. it's his cousin that survived the attack on their family when agent kennedy was a child.

okay. ingrid thinks. okay. okay.

the voice on the phone begins speaking again, giving ingrid little time to recover even as she begins opening various windows at her computer station. it reveals more information to her. information about the bureau of paranormal research and defense. of an outbreak in a polish village the year before, about redfield being part of the bprd-- which doesn't exist on paper except as the fbi's special operations division. it tells her mara a kennedy was an informant in a company run by fucking vampires. vampires! it tells her a select few members of the bsaa, valentine and the other redfield have been contacted and are deploying with bprd on route to prismya where there's been some strange reports of attacks in the last twenty-four hours. they'll meet agent kennedy there and she needs to relay all this information to him and get him on a military flight leaving in two hours. it's a lot. it's chaos. but it's a chaos she can handle. she has to. first, however, she needs to finish dialing agent kennedy's number.

she does and takes an unusual step further, tells him he needs to get to headquarters immediately, with no delays. she needs to meet with him in person. and someone needs to meet with him, a bprd agent myers who'd be going on a mission with him, reinforcements already on-route to meet them there. she doesn't tell him why but her vocal pattern shows the seriousness of it. she greets the bprd agent in a room off the corridor of the building where the light always flickers and the work order for it has gone into the abyss of low priorities. when agent kennedy gets there she tells him all she knows, she shows him the video, and she lets the bprd agent tell him the rest of the pertinent information as she goes to gather more information for herself to aid them in the field.

'leon, be careful.'

she calls out to him as she watches him and the other agent leave for the military base (that transport would get them to europe faster than other means). ingrid, rarely calls him by his first name but this was uncharted territory. this was personal territory, at least for him. almost twelve hours later hunnigan has some communication with the bsaa, redfield and valentine, helps them navigate a nightmare on the ground that they'd flown into. she's not usually involved with the bsaa but this whole mission was.. well, there was a lot of players in the game at once and they all had the same ultimate goals. she had the feeling she'd be patching them all into each other the whole time.

fifteen, almost sixteen hours after leon leaves, when hunnigan gets word from that leon and the bprd agent have gotten separated after they'd gotten to one of the companies' facilities where he thinks the outbreak started (an outbreak that wasn't part of the main plot and shouldn't have happened) and that they'd found indications mara and claire had been moved to some location in the countryside but then leon and myers had gotten separated after a car crash outside a local village she's not surprised so she helps him navigate as far toward the castle facility as her access to sat feeds will allow. somehow, this feels a bit like spain all over again. she certainly thinks the stakes are just as high for her agent in the field. this wasn't the president's daughter but it was his family and his friend and a hell of a lot of innocent people's lives at stake.

wednesday, july 26, 2006 8:13am (prismya local) prismya countryside, mountain valley filled with small villages and an expansive castle complex which used to house the local ruler of the region. has held an increase in activity, construction equipment, and people to the area in recent years. also many disappearances. rainy and dark gray skies, foggy, cloudy, low visibility

she's cold. then she's hot. both make her hurt like a fucking train is chugging through her blood stream and making her want to tear into something but they've taken everything away she could possibly break after she'd managed to turn a part of the bed into something she could stab with. it'd been a blunt edge but she'd still managed with a spirt of strength to impale one of the people that'd come into the room to sedate her with it. her mind is scattered, hair messy and in all directions around her shoulder's when she awakens in a new place. mara's no where in sight but claire is sure she'd seen her. she's positive. she wasn't losing her mind. she wasn't. she'd seen her. she had! metal surfaces are around her, there's a camera too. she attacks it with her bare hands. they come into the room. she can't remember what happened after that. she thinks she drew blood. or they drew her blood? no, she'd hurt one of them. she's sure. the feel of a badge, a key.. she'd hurt him, the man injecting her, but he'd slipped her something. why? she doesn't understand. was he the one mara said was a friend? is she imagining it? but he hurt her. did he have a choice?

wait.. then.. now. then wasn't now. that already happened. key.. badge. her body hurts. she's thirsty but she's not supposed to be. she can't let herself be. remember. remember to fight it. mara had said the longer she does the slower the infection will move through her. she'd said that, back at the other place. where is mara? where is she? her body shifts, rolls over where it'd passed out before. flashes of memories playing at her mind. she tires to piece together her memories. her eyes aren't open but she sees....

there'd been a mission. she can remember that. but then.. so much death. she'd fought. injections.. experiments. she'd fought. she'd screamed. she'd attacked. it hurt. her mind scatters. she remembers a desert. no, that was a long time ago. she remembers a police station. no that was further away. blonde hair.. she remembers a dinner with a child laughing and the surprise on their faces when another person had shown up at their door with pizza from that hole in the wall place she'd taken sherry to and mentioned. it wasn't an every-day thing, the three of them getting to spend time together and so they'd held on to it at the time. a thread, it forms a thread into another string of flashes. a chip. anger... understanding.. an email.

'stop being like that claire, just send the god damn fucking email.' she'd told herself.

the thread.. mission. facility. he'd slipped her something to escape. she'd gotten out. they'd chased her. a crash. something spilled. screams. zombies but.. different, she thinks. had to find a lift. had to find a way up. a way out. metal turned to stone. corridors. maze. castle? they'd found her. blood. she'd stabbed. she'd stabbed them, not bitten. she hadn't bitten. but they'd stabbed her too, she thinks. maybe? find somewhere to hide. hide first. figure out next step after. there'd been a room. supplies in it. boxes. she remembers boxes.. utah had boxes. rebecca had gotten shot. the boxes had fallen. circle the memories back. boxes in front of her. climb. hide on top. she wants to see her brother. she wants to see leon. to not have how they last saw each other be the last... claire passed out.

it's cold against her skin but her body feels hot. sweaty, clammy. dark veins creep along her arms. she's only wearing a thin tank top type shirt with pants, she should have tried to find something but there hadn't been time. it wasn't as much of a concern as escape. the blood across her top is crusty. how long as she been there? there's no wound... it healed. but she'd been stabbed.. she can't think about it. not yet. not yet. find mara. get a cure. escape. no she couldn't.. mara had said something about them releasing it.. hadn't she? or had she imagined it? claire's clearer now then she was, and yet not fully clear either. it's hard to keep a hold of her thoughts, takes effort. she can do this. she has to do this. there isn't a choice. one step at a time.

there's sound. a scuffle. a grunt. gun shots. something had spilled before.. she remembers it.. kind of, sort of. outbreak. shit. she thinks there'd been one before too. back wherever she'd been but now.. had she caused this one? in her attempt to escape? or had it come with them like it had antarctica from rockfort, along with the personnel? shit. shit. shit. another gun shot. wooden door splinter's below, figures move into the dark room, crash across it like godzilla to a city. someone hits the boxes, they all fall down with her with it. ouch. pain radiates and blood fills her senses. someone's bleeding. she knows it like she knows what air is. in a way that unsettles her. it makes her mind go fuzzy, the veins on her skin burn. there's fighting in the low light, another gun shot. one of them stops moving.

claire reacts.

she lifts herself from the tangle of boxes and launches herself at whoever still stands with a sudden fury and strength she shouldn't have. she feels like it's temporary. it's not going to last and some part of her seems to realize the more she exerts herself the more the infection is going to take root but she has to get away. and to do that she has to stop whoever else is there. so they can't take her away again. so they can't hurt her again. so they can't make her veins feel like they are on fire and her so thirsty. it's all nails and desperate punches when she lands as if she's a wild and wounded animal backed into a corner. hair blocking her face as she attacks. she remembers the feeling of the injections. she remembers the experiments. she's angry, it's taking hold. it's overwhelming her, clouding her mind. she can feel it. but whoever she's fighting is strong. they react too and her arms are suddenly being forced to halt, her struggling wildly until some of her hair that was blocking her vision shifts and she sees eyes. his eyes and now a war is happening within her. something inside wants to fight. wants to hurt. but she. claire. she sees his eyes. she sees them. she knows them. she's crying. it burns her eyes. it's his blood she smells. she wants it. no. no. fucking hell no! she's not lost yet. she won't let herself be. this fucking infection wasn't going to take her. she wouldn't let it. she wouldn't hurt him. why is he there? her mind starts to clear, a little. she stops fighting and fear laces her features.

"l--leon?" this is real. he's real. she can feel him. and yet it almost comes out as a question as if some part of her is suddenly scared she's imagined this whole thing to cope and is still in whatever room they locked her in for their experiments. "i-- i'm sorry! i'm sorry.. i-- couldn't... stop.. i thought you were.. i thought they found me.. i thought they were going to take me back.. oh my god.. did i hurt you?" horror washes over her.

[tearsoftime0086]

😍for the fic ask game!

Thank you so much for sending an ask :)

😍 published lines or a section of a fic that you loved writing?

I have a couple, but the one that first comes to mind is the burnfield scene I put in An Eternal Warpath for You and Me:

“Hey.” Steve tilts her head towards him with gentle fingers. It hurts to see the guilt on her face. “But that’s not how it happened. Things turned out alright. And they’ll keep going well, as long as I have anything to say about it. You’re never getting rid of me.” Claire scoffs, but the faintest trace of a smile flits across her lips. “Do you really have to word it like that?” “It’s the only way I’ll get you to listen.” “Gah; how did I survive fifteen years with you?” she drones, but the brightness in her tone makes it hardly an insult. And to seal the deal, she gives him a quick kiss on his cheek. Steve grins and returns the favor. Claire doesn’t shy away from his fanged kiss; it’s something he doesn’t take for granted. “Well, we must be doing something right.” The flutter in his heart from hearing Claire’s laugh never fades. “I love you so much.”

This scene means a lot to me because it's my little attempt at giving Claire and Steve some happy closure. It's 2013, they've had their troubles, but despite it all, they're here. And that silly teenage love from 1998 never left :')

(kindly ignore the fact that I am busy writing said troubles for Claire and Steve in a separate WIP XD)

[legaciestold]

@everythingheard

[legaciestold]

sein island incident (aftermath) may 11th, 2011 21:35 (local time) somewhere in russia clear skies, warm, eerily calm night @everythingheard (leon)

claire has little memory of the fishing boat which scoops her out of the ocean, miles away from any island and them not marking their location to aid any authorities in finding where she'd come from.

where moria's body had to be.

she remembers pain. intense and horrific as her body reacted to being moved. that's really the biggest thing she has sensation of before she's lost in the stories of her memories again. she has no idea that it's days before the fisherman get back to any form of civilization that has means to help her beyond managing to get some fluids in her. she remembers, mildly, saying her name when prompted and has no idea that her name given to authorities once they do get to the mainland is what propels such quick action as it trickles through systems and reaches the bsaa and dso alerts. she remembers the pain again, transports, the shaking of a helicopter and then bright lights. barry. she remembers barry. she remembers moria.. she remembers telling him what she'd seen.. what she believed. moria was dead and she remembers doctors telling him they had to take her. she remembers words like critical condition and surgery and remembers grabbing the arm of the doctor with all her remaining strength and warning him a virus was coursing through her.

claire has no idea about the eight days that follow this moment.

about chris getting there and being held back by barry from attempting to charge into the intensive care unit and disrupt their work on her. she has no idea about becca being called in to help analyze her blood and form some kind vaccine for the virus in her. she has no idea they place in her a medically induced coma for days both because they want to prevent the virus from triggering until they can cure it and because she's in such bad shape that it's the best way to let her body start to recover before she can be capable of enduring the shock of her awakening. she has no idea that leon gets there at some point during that time, only told she's missing after he'd completed his mission so he wouldn't get distracted and him searching for any leads he could find in the region they suspected her taken to until word comes she's in transit to a hospital because holy fuck somehow they'd both managed to be hours away from each other and in two very different shitty situations independently. claire is hard pressed to be thankful to the government for many things but she will be thankful later that they hadn't told him when he was on the ground in that war. she wouldn't be the reason he gets taken out because he was distracted. in a twisted way, she's thankful he was in that war though. because it meant he was close to her the whole time, as if the universe couldn't allow them to be so far apart when both their lives were threatened. it meant some part of her sensed his presence at her bedside in that week she was unconscious.

it's on that eighth day, with the moon high in the sky and chris finally having given in for a few hours of shut eye that finds claire suddenly stirring. they'd taken her off the medications which kept her under hours before yet she hadn't awakened yet, them saying it'd happen when her body was ready to. her body is healing quicker than most and rebecca had mused that it was entirely possible it was the byproduct of the antibodies in her blood from before reacting with the new ones and the fact they hadn't cured the virus until a day and a half ago. it means her recovery won't be as long but it doesn't change that claire still looks like she'd been hit by a train. pain radiates through her though she doesn't feel as weak as she had before. her eyes blink open in confusion, monitors starting to beep as her awareness comes to the forefront and she gasps at the way her body hurts.

"what's-- where--" she begins but her voice is dry and her mind isn't catching up to reality just yet. she tries to move, begins trying to claw at the medical equipment attached to her and nearly pulls out her iv in an attempt to get away.

was she back on the island? was she back in the vampire castle?

no no.

she couldn't let them experiment on her. not again.

the reaction is visceral and uncontrolled, memories from prismya flooding back to her because the room and the lights were so much like that lab and she doesn't know what's happening. she struggles painfully because her body is raging against such movements; though her actions aren't in a fearful way as much as a need to survive way. to get out of danger. whatever danger she's in. claire feels hands on her though, hears a voice though the words aren't clear to her in her haze. yet it makes her freeze her attempts.

w a r m t h .

"leon."

her blue-gray eyes refocus, meet his and she breathes out his name as if it's some kind of prayer. as if she hadn't expected to be able to say it again, as if she hadn't expected to see him again. she sinks forward then both in relief and because her body can't keep her sitting up any longer, her face falling into his chest as the monitors start to calm.

"we gotta... stop meeting like this. at least... we... graduated from castles." claire wheezes her words out as reality starts to form around her.

[caramialunaestelle]

@outbreaksurvived sent:

"you belong to me, with me, underneath me. consensually, of course." - to Claire from Leon

Reassurances || Accepting

Claire shot the man a smirk. He was rather slick when we wanted to be, a real flirt when he tried. Their years of friendship had grown into something more and Claire was happy to know he thought of her so fondly.

"How poetic," she teased him, leaning forward to move his hair out of his eyes for him. "Where'd you get that line from? It's almost as cheesy as some of your other ones."

She pressed a kiss to his cheek. "I love you too, Leon."

[oathofpromises]

We're a team, right? A family. No matter what happens, that is stronger than what ever they can throw at us.

Featuring:@oathofpromises,@valour-bound,@heavenmcde,@destallo

[legaciestold]

@everythingheard

Chris: Leon isn’t answering his phone Claire: I’ll call Chris: Jill and I have both tried six times each, what makes you thi- Leon: Hello?

[faeryworlds]

@redemptivexheroics | Claire & Leon | plotted starter

It had been a while since the last time she had seen or spoken to Leon to begin with. Claire tried to stay in contact with him and then life got in the way and got busy that she just lost track of to checking in on Leon from time to time. They went through enough at Raccoon City and with her saving Sherry and bring her to safety after her mother had died. It was a few months later and Claire was on her motorcycle driving as she stopped somewhere, taking off her helmet looking around. Once she got off she spotted someone she hadn't seen in months. "Leon?" She first questioned it as she wasn't entirely sure if it was him.

Walking closer to the man that was standing there and she recognised him now. "It is you, it had been a while. How have you been?"

[hctclcalifornia]

i think i’m like halfway through res evil 2 and claire is god’s strongest soldier bc jesus christ she goes Through it in this game and keeps getting back up,,, i love her ur honor

[roseguided]

@peacereflected CONTINUED from here !

𝐈𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐏𝐔𝐑 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 , 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐘 , but everything inside of claire told her that in this moment , despite where they were , she needed some sort of physical contact. it had always been hard to stay away from leon, to not reach out & touch him no matter the level of said contact. she yearned for him in a multitude of ways & tonight had been no different. a house party full of some of their friends , co-workers in some cases too. she’d spent most of the night mingling , laughing , engaging but the feelings never faltered. then, she motioned him with a small nod of her head & disappeared around the corner , down the hall. turning , standing in a carved out cove of the wall with a part of the jutted out wall covering them , claire then feels herself crowded back against the wall. exactly what she wanted. their kiss brings a gentle hum to her lips, happy to return it as she always is. big, blue eyes peer up at her husband as he asks his questions. teeth take her bottom lip between them & hand outstretched to take leon’s. thumb runs over his knuckles as she brings it forward , resting his palm against the skin of her thigh. exposed because of the dress she had decided to wear—steadily , slowly , claire guides leon’s palm higher up her thigh. ❛ does that answer your question ? ❜ asked playfully.

[legaciestold]

@everythingheard

“Cold?” Leon asked. Claire turned away from the window, looking at him. He’d finished with the packs, and was holding one out to her. She took it, nodding in response to his question. “Aren’t you?” He shook his head, grinning. “Thermal underwear. Could have used these in Raccoon…” Claire smiled. “You could have used them? I was running around in a pair of shorts, you at least had your uniform.” “Which was covered with lizard guts before I was halfway through the sewers,” he said, and she was glad to hear him at least try to joke about it. He’s getting better; we both are.

Resident Evil: Underworld, Chapter 6.

[castshed]

take your time with this. it must be very hard on you. / for jill | VULNERABLE CONFESSIONS

" i don't need time. i just need to get back out there. @rescuefield "

[tearsoftime0086]

Uhh warpath epilogue fluff scene that I got inspired to write? Although this might not make the final cut if it's too self-indulgent haha In the end, Leon finally makes it to one of Chris' barbecues.

~

So there he is, standing in the walkway with a six-pack in each hand. Chris greets him in a worn grilling apron, bringing a faint scent of smoke with him.

It suddenly hits Leon how normal everything is.

“Look who decided to show up,” Chris teases.

“Would’ve let you know earlier,” Leon mumbles, looking down at the lawn grass. It’s trimmed and weed-free – any suburban family would be jealous. God, he doesn’t know how to process all this. “But my work schedule’s never consistent. Didn’t want to let you down.”

“You know I’d be okay with that.”

“But I wouldn’t be,” he insists. Not wanting an awkward moment of silence, he quickly adds, “Did you mow the lawn for tonight?”

His head flips up as Chris lets out a loud guffaw. It takes him a while to stop, and he’s still smiling way too much at Leon’s poor attempt at small talk.

“Sorry, sorry,” Chris says as he catches his breath, “Just… give me a sec.” Leon confusedly watches as he turns around and shouts through the hallway.

“Hey Claire!”

“Yeah?”

“You won!”

A loud stream of expletives. Leon raises a quizzical eyebrow, but Chris just smiles back.

“I told you so, Steve! Now pay up!”

“Who the hell notices a cut lawn?”

“Everyone except you, Steve.”

“Well, not all of us can be so detail-oriented.” Steve pops his head out from the kitchen. “Hey Leon!” he chirps, “Sorry I doubted you!”

“It’s… okay…?” Leon responds slowly. Steve’s already distracted though, turning back to seemingly talk to Claire.

“Alright, so ten bucks, right?”

“Twenty.”

“Shit, you’re detail-oriented too…”

Chris thankfully fills in the blanks for him. “They made a bet on whether you’d say something about the lawn,” he says, shyly rubbing the back of his neck.

“Well, duh,” Leon says, “It obviously looks well taken care of.”

As Chris beams with pride and invites him in, processing normal seems a little easier.

Yeah, he could get used to this.

[legaciestold]

@everythingheard (leon)

[legaciestold]

february 3rd 1999 dc suburbs powdery snow covering the ground but mostly clear skies @everythingheard (chris)

the gentle hum of a television on low echoes through the home, a vhs tape in the player with a further stack of three scooby-doo movies to accompany the one playing on the screen. there's still a few boxes that claire had gotten out of storage in new york from their old house (things from the home they'd lived in with their parents) littering the living room that was finally being put to use. it helped that the house had come furnished, the sellers having apparently chosen not to take everything. she figured that made the whole awkwardness of the situation she'd underwent the last few weeks a little more bearable. it wasn't as if she was a college graduate with a high paying job that could afford to set up a house anymore than she was thrilled that this was how she'd come to own one.

they'd said there wasn't any strings attached other than the fact that they needed to conduct some tests on sherry. they'd pushed her to accept it, that it was the rational thing to do. they needed to make sure the child was healthy and not a carrier of infection. at least they weren't keeping her in a lab. she had to be willing to meet them half-way if she wanted things to go smoothly. if she wanted them to maintain their agreement to let her keep her with her.

claire didn't like the idea of having any government oversight to her life or sherry's yet she was keenly aware that there was no getting out of it.

not if she had wanted to be able to return to the states at all and not if she didn't want to keep a child on the run in some foreign country when they both had enemies out there that'd like to hurt or experiment on the both of them. this way was the safest choice for her but more importantly, sherry. it was logical and it wasn't like the government was doing some huge thing, providing them with this place to live. they had programs for people that needed new lives, to set them up in homes and place them under protection. it was already something in place. and she and sherry didn't require all the things those people did. there was no changing identities. it was just living agreements and some extra security. they didn't have to do it at all, she's keenly aware of that too. they could have taken sherry from her. and even if claire had no fucking idea what she was doing half the time when it came to the reality of her current situation, the day to day of living with a kid, she knew that had to be better than what could have happened.)

still, claire wasn't going to see it as being indebted to the government. she wasn't affiliated with them, didn't want to be. she'd take what they gave her because it made life better for sherry. it only got complicated when she thought about simmons. she didn't overly like the man, even though he'd been fairly kind to her outwardly. it was hard to get a read on him (maybe that was what made her wary, or part of it at least). but he'd been the one to push this whole thing through hadn't he? and that had to stand for something? (how could she know the whole thing was really part of another deal when she hadn't been told that by the person who should have told her?) further it seemed, or at least he implied that he was part of the driving force for the anti-umbrella task force that'd finally cleared the names of the stars fugitives a few weeks ago. they didn't have to run anymore, didn't have to be beholden to trent for information when there was an actual agency investigating and working against the corporation.

somehow, claire didn't think trent would be happy about how things were playing out, the lack of control in it, but she did think, as long as umbrella did go down, he'd ultimately be happy. she knew next to nothing about him but she did know, from the way he spoke and the look on his face in that plane that he was invested in that. umbrella's destruction.

regardless, the claire of a few months ago should be sitting in class right now, maybe doing an analysis of the apology in that philosophy-literature fusion course she'd been taking not juggling a hot pan of almost burnt cookies that needed to cool, placing the pan on top of a box instead of a counter because she didn't have pot holders yet and mentally glaring over the back of the couch and mentally trying to deduce which box might contain the ones her mom knit. as if the boxes could talk and tell her. none of them had been labeled; half of them would end up in another storage unit once gone through. even so, it's still a functional living space and it's certainly better than the crappy motels and random safe houses that had been claire, leon, and the other's lives since the end of october. it was also nice that there hadn't been any car chases with gun fire or kidnappings to secret zombie infected islands lately either. this is all knew territory. god, she was still basically a teenager herself even if she was of legal age.

what the fuck was she doing?

but she'd made her choice. chris had taught her that there was always a choice and claire had agreed to this. to raising a kid. to protecting the kid who she'd gotten so close to in the months since raccoon. sherry trusted her, trusted leon too but leon wasn't there with them. not any more. (she wasn't going to do there, not right now. he'd made choices too. ones she didn't quite understand. but ones she had to accept. he wasn't with them but he wasn't out of their lives either.) and claire could admit she was willing to do whatever she had to do to protect the girl. she cared about her. that had to be enough. it certainly seemed to be for sherry who'd already accidently called her mom a few days ago. now if they were on the subject of weird, that about nailed it. but claire also figured, maybe that's what sherry needed to be able to begin to deal with everything she'd endured and everything she was trying to sort in her young mind.

the birkin's had rarely spent real time with their daughter. sherry's father had turned into a monster before her eyes. her mother had seemed more concerned at times with tracking william in those tunnels than making sure her daughter was safe and cured of the virus. sure, annette had provided the cure in the end, thus saving sherry, but that didn't change the weight of how things had appeared to sherry. then claire (and leon) had come along and spent almost every day with her except for that week they'd had to smuggle her to europe and utah had gone down. they'd hugged her and held her hand after nightmares and come up with little stories to put her to bed with. they'd functioned as parents to her for months. in a real way. in a committed kind of way. it hadn't been anything of what claire had thought her nineteen going on twenty year-old life would be but it was what the universe had decided to deal her. it was the choice she made.

there could only be forward momentum now.

speaking of, the pan of cookies nearly spills forward off the box, claire focusing on preventing disaster as the door bell rings and sherry goes sprinting from the couch toward the front door, the anxiety that rises in claire upon seeing it leaving the cookies teetering on the edge of the box she'd attempted to bump to set right on her way after the girl. yes, they were expecting chris. that, however, did not mean it was chris at the door and every fiber of claire's being was still on hyper-alert, unable to shake the last few months from her cells yet. watch for people following you. always check corners. always be around of your surroundings. don't open the door unless you know exactly who's out there. simmons had assured her they'd be safe. that this community had security-- people couldn't just come up to the houses, it was a gated community--, that they had a state of the art alarm system. it's doesn't stop sherry's name from leaving her lips with a slight edge, her unable to get to the door before sherry's opened it wide.

it takes a moment for everything to register. there's no threat even though as blue-gray eyes meet those of her brother's she knows he can see all the emotions playing across her face. the worry, the fear and then the relief as she lets out a deep breath. "sherry, you know what we talked about. we don't open the door unless we know who's outside. and you don't open the door for anyone. i do." claire's words emit gently as she kneels down on one knee to get level with sherry. it comes out more calm than she feels too and careful not to be scolding, just informative. then she turns her attention to the man standing in the doorway. it was nice to see him out in the open, not traveling in shadows to keep hidden with the rest of their little resistance.

"hey bro." claire states with a smile, her heart finally finding a steady rhythm again. that's when the pan of cookies clatters to the floor behind them and claire lets her head drop down for a moment with a heavy sigh. "and there goes all that hard work."

stance is brought back to normal as claire reaches her full height, sherry letting out a small giggle as if this isn't the first time this has happened in the last few days. "she's good at making the cookies. not so good at keeping them edible."

really sherry? really? claire shakes her head at sherry's comment.

"i still have one i saved from the last batch though. it didn't touch the ground, i promise! i'll get it for you uncle chris! you can have it as a present since i haven't seen you in.. a month?" sherry's not entirely sure how long has passed but she doesn't give anyone time to answer her before she's darting away from them. apparently she's saved the cookie somewhere not immediately seen and claire considers unless the kid got a hold of a baggie, the cookie isn't going to actually be safely edible at this point. then claire pauses, realizing what sherry had said.

uncle chris. that was.. new.

that's not what she called him back in paris when they'd met, though, like sherry's slip with her, she thinks it makes sense with the new dynamics between them.

"i guess. that's kind of what you are now. to her at least. or how she sees it. it's still weird but not weird weird right?" she's not entirely sure she's making sense. she doesn't dwell on it. "get in here and give me a hug. we're letting all the cold air in and the government isn't going to pay the bills forever. i've been job searching even if it still feels.. like such a mundane thing after.. well, everything." the implication is clear though it shouldn't really be a surprise after everything's that happened in the last few months. claire wasn't planning to go back to college and part of her felt sad about that but she was okay with the choices she'd made and she was confident she could be successful without it.

she was a redfield after all.

[caramialunaestelle]

♡ your claire and my leon

Shipping Quiz || Accepting!

Leon && Claire

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙰𝚂𝙺𝙴𝙳 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙾𝚄𝚃 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃? - Claire. Then Leon. Then Claire. Then Leon... Then Leon again... Etc. lol

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚆𝙴𝙽𝚃 𝙸𝙽 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃 𝙺𝙸𝚂𝚂? - Probably Claire when they were young. Leon when they got older.

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙶𝙸𝚅𝙴𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙾𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝙽𝙸𝙲𝙺𝙽𝙰𝙼𝙴𝚂? - They both do. Leon calls her Red and he calls him Rookie.

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙲𝙾𝙾𝙺𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙼𝙴𝙰𝙻𝚂? - Claire likes cooking.

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙷𝙰𝚂 𝙱𝙴𝚃𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝚃𝙰𝚂𝚃𝙴 𝙸𝙽 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙸𝙲? - Claire will argue that her taste is far superior.

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙷𝙾𝙶𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙱𝙴𝙳? - Leon

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚆𝙰𝙺𝙴𝚂 𝚄𝙿 𝙵𝙸𝚁𝚂𝚃? - Leon gets called into work at all hours so him lol

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙴𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙲𝙾𝙵𝙵𝙴𝙴? - Claire

𝚆𝙷𝙾'𝚂 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙱𝙸𝙶 𝚂𝙿𝙾𝙾𝙽? - Leon

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚂𝚃𝙰𝚈𝚂 𝚄𝙿 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙻𝙰𝚃𝙴𝚂𝚃? - Leon

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚁𝙴𝙰𝙲𝙷𝙴𝚂 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝚆𝙷𝙾'𝚂 𝙷𝙰𝙽𝙳? - Leon

𝚆𝙷𝙾'𝚂 𝙰 𝙵𝙰𝙽 𝙾𝙵 𝙿𝙳𝙰? - Leon

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝚂𝙽𝙾𝚁𝙴𝚂? - CLAIRE LMAO

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙶𝙴𝚃𝚂 𝙰𝙽𝙽𝙾𝚈𝙴𝙳 𝙼𝙾𝚁𝙴 𝙴𝙰𝚂𝙸𝙻𝚈? - Claire

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙸𝙽𝙸𝚃𝙸𝙰𝚃𝙴𝚂 𝚂𝙴𝚇? - Leon

𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙰𝚂𝙺𝚂 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙵𝙾𝚁 𝚃𝙷𝙴𝙸𝚁 𝙷𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙸𝙽 𝙼𝙰𝚁𝚁𝙸𝙰𝙶𝙴? - I don't see these two actually getting married lol. Maybe in a courthouse or a Vegas wedding lmao, but that's a mutual decision and neither of them actually asks the other. They just decide to do it randomly.

𝙼𝚈 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴'𝚂 𝙵𝙰𝚅𝙾𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙴 𝙼𝙴𝙼𝙾𝚁𝚈 𝙾𝙵 𝚈𝙾𝚄𝚁𝚂: - Escaping Raccoon City together.

𝙰 𝚁𝙴𝙶𝚁𝙴𝚃 𝙼𝚈 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴 𝙷𝙰𝚂 𝚁𝙴𝙶𝙰𝚁𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝚈𝙾𝚄𝚁𝚂: - Not taking him up on his offer for dinner.

𝙸𝙵 𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚈 𝙲𝙾𝚄𝙻𝙳 𝙲𝙷𝙰𝙽𝙶𝙴 𝙾𝙽𝙴 𝚃𝙷𝙸𝙽𝙶: - Nothing.

𝚃𝙷𝙴𝙸𝚁 𝙻𝙾𝚅𝙴 𝙻𝙰𝙽𝙶𝚄𝙰𝙶𝙴𝚂 𝙰𝙲𝙲𝙾𝚁𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝚃𝙾 𝙼𝚈 𝙼𝚄𝚂𝙴: - Physical Touch and Quality Time