Chapter 1: Healing

Disclaimer: Sigh, again I do not own Resident Evil or its characters. They belong to the all mighty Capcom! Thanks!

Chris pumped his legs faster, eager to catch up to the screams he was hearing up ahead. He lost Sheva somewhere in the maze. The stone tunnels seemed to go on and on as he turned and ran for the screams. He gripped his gun so hard, his knuckles were turning white.

He recognized the screams. They were Jill's. His heart skipped a beat, leaping into his throat. He tried to cry out her name, but nothing would come from his lungs. He continued to take each turn. The smell of grime and stone hit his nostrils, but soon he was smelling blood. Lots and lots of blood.

He came out into a large, open hall. He skidded to a halt, horror taking over him as he beheld Sheva's dead, bloody body on the ground. The color drained from his face, and he aimed his gun at the man that stood over her mangled corpse.

Albert Wesker grinned evilly at him, stepping over Sheva's body to engage Chris. Chris could still hear Jill screaming, but she was nowhere to be found. He cried out her name, and this time he was able to hear himself.

"What's wrong, Chris?" Wesker asked coolly.

"You bastard! Let her go!"

Chris opened fire. Wesker was a blur as he dodged all the bullets. Within seconds, Chris was grabbed by the throat and lifted off of the ground. Chris dropped his gun, trying to pry at Wesker's gloved fingers. Wesker glared up at Chris. Chris lifted his leg up and kicked Wesker square in the face, knocking off the sunglasses. He saw the flash of the red and gold animalistic eyes, before Wesker started chuckling.

"Are you just going to let her suffer?" he inquired.

"Shut up!" Chris spat, kicking Wesker in the chest. It did nothing to hurt the tyrant.

"You need to wake up, Chris," Wesker seethed, and then chunked him across the room.

As soon as Chris's back hit the stone wall, he came jumping awake, almost falling out of bed. He cursed out loud after realizing it was another nightmare. His sheets were soaked with sweat. Chris sat up, putting his face into his palms.

Damn you, Wesker!

He heard crying. Grunting, Chris leaped out of bed. He exited his room and quickly went down the hall to the next bedroom. He flew into the guestroom to be with Jill. She was sitting up in the bed, her hands covering her face.

"Jesus, Jill! Are you alright?"

She became quiet as soon as she heard his voice. She looked up at him. Her face was stricken with tears and stress. She shook her head at him, trying to fake a smile.

"I'm fine…really."

You don't always have to act so strong. I'm here for you.

Chris sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. Jill had been reinstated as a BSAA agent, but would be off of duty for awhile. After their debriefing in Africa, they returned to the United States. Once in Washington D.C, Chris was able to get Jill into BSAA headquarters to have her looked over.

Rebecca Chambers, who was now one of the high medical doctors there at the BSAA capital, was one who checked her over. Chris heard exactly what he was expecting to hear. Jill would be fine, but it would take a long time to hear from the emotional scars and horrors. Chris had no idea what Wesker did to her, and Jill wasn't talking. But if Chris knew his ex-S.T.A.R.S captain, then he knew they were things that were unspeakable.

Headquarters gave Chris some months off for his own healing. As much as Chris fought that he didn't need it, deep down he knew he did. He was not taking the time off for himself. No, he was taking the time off for Jill.

Chris needed to give Jill time, but he couldn't help but to feel completely useless. He did have to admit that she was slowly coming around, even after almost a month since the Kijuju Incident.

"Same dream again?" he asked softly.

"Yeah…but I'm fine now," she mumbled, looking away. He could see it in her eyes. She was ashamed.

"Okay," Chris nodded. "Can I get you something?"

She shook her head, holding herself. "No, thank you though."

Chris put his hand on her shoulder for a moment, just to reassure her. He then sighed, turning around to head back to his own room. He heard slight movement behind him. He felt Jill grab his hand, and he stopped. Turning around, he faced her now that she was standing.

"Chris…please don't leave."

He smiled weakly at her, nodding. "Okay."

Chris looked off of the back deck out into the green yard. Jill and Karen were busy talking, just like they used to almost ten years before. For once, Jill looked completely relaxed as she focused on Karen as they sat in lawn chairs under the pavilion.

"She looks like she is doing better," Barry said, cooking up some hamburgers.

Chris leaned against the railing of the deck, lowering his head for a moment. "Yeah. But she has a long way to go."

"You both do. Chris, you really need some sleep."

"I get more than she does. But…we both have nightmares."

Barry scowled as he flipped some more burgers. Over the years, Barry was starting to get gray in his red beard. He and Karen were getting older. The girls, Moira and Polly were just about ready for college. It was hard to believe that almost a decade had passed since their normal lives back in Raccoon City.

"You know, I worry about you. You and Jill."

Chris snorted. "I'm fine. It's Jill we have to worry about."

Barry turned and glared at him, pointing the spatula at him. "Don't give me that crap. You have never been the same since Jill's alleged death. You're lucky that Claire was here to take care of you after that. Because Rebecca and I sure as hell wasn't helping. But it's good to see that you have some life in your eyes now that Jill is back and alive."

Chris swallowed hard. Before he could say anything, Moira and Polly came out from the house with refreshments. They also let out the family dog, a female Border Collie named Gypsy. The nineteen and seventeen year old handed over a couple of beers to their father and Chris, and then headed out to join Jill and their mother.

Barry grabbed a bottle opener and popped open his beer. He grabbed Chris's and did his for him. The older man heaved a sigh, watching as his daughters laughed while talking to his wife and Jill.

"Y'know, it never leaves my head…what I did to you guys back in the mansion. It was a horrible thing I did."

Chris shook his head, taking a drink of his beer. "No, Barry. We don't blame you for nothing. Wesker blackmailed you…threatened your family. There's no way you could risk him bluffing."

"And you guys forgave me for that. I am eternally grateful, yet it still stays in the back of mine. I guess what I am trying to say is…some things will just never leave you."

Chris lowered his eyes. "Yeah. Even though Wesker is finally dead, he still haunts us. And I think he always will."

"Don't talk like that, Chris."

"The nightmare I had last night…he killed Sheva. I could hear Jill screaming. Wesker taunted me…told me to wake up. He almost killed me."

"He didn't almost kill you. It was a nightmare. It's not real."

"Yeah, you're right." Chris looked over to Jill, who was petting Gypsy while smiling. "I just hope that Jill will soon come to realize that as well."

He and Barry were quiet for a long moment. Barry finished up the burgers, placing them on a large plate to carry inside. He checked his watch, sighing.

"I tell ya, Rebecca and Billy are always late."

Chris laughed. "I know. I figured Carlos would have been here by now for sure. I mean there is food around."

Barry chuckled, grabbing up the plate of freshly cooked and hot hamburgers. Just as he turned to head inside, the back screen door came open and Rebecca came out. Billy was right behind her. Rebecca grinned upon seeing them.

"Did we make in time?"

"Barely," sighed Barry. "Just when the food is ready."

"And Carlos isn't here yet? I'm surprised," Billy snorted. He received Rebecca's elbow to his ribs. "Ouch!"

Barry walked past them, heading inside. "You two want something to drink?"

"We'll come in a minute, thanks," Rebecca answered. She and Billy came over to Chris. "So? How is she?"

"Doing better today," Chris nodded. He then sighed, flicking his eyes to look over at Jill. "She did have another nightmare last night though."

Rebecca frowned. "Chris, it is going to be a long while before she heals. This is emotional trauma she is suffering from."

Chris shook his head a little more forcefully than he intended. "Yeah, I know. Maybe you should go talk to her. She misses you."

Rebecca nodded. "Kay."

The small, petite woman went down the steps onto the lawn. She headed the short distance over to the pavilion. Billy stayed beside Chris, watching Rebecca go. Chris turned around, leaning against the railing again.

Billy nodded at him. "How have you been doing?"

"Good, I guess."

"Rebecca is worried about the two of you."

Chris smiled, slightly laughing. "Yeah, she is such a worrywart sometimes."

Chris was thankful that Billy didn't pry. He actually enjoyed the man's company. Billy had become one of Chris's most trusted allies for years now. It was about four years ago that he found them and Rebecca, after living in hiding as a criminal since Rebecca let him go back almost ten years before. At first, Chris didn't trust Billy, having heard his criminal story, but once Rebecca explained everything, Chris came to understand. Besides, he had never seen Rebecca so happy. Through BSAA, they were able to clear Billy's name, and now he was living with Rebecca, being a part of BSAA just like the rest of them.

Even though they hardly showed it, there was a romantic relationship between Rebecca and Billy now. Chris knew he didn't have to worry about his brotherly instincts kicking in. He knew Billy now to know that he was probably one of the best comrades he had ever worked with. And one of the best things about Billy was that he didn't try and get answers out of anyone. Billy respected everyone's space and secrets.

"I thought Claire was coming in?" Billy asked.

"Yeah, she will be in this weekend. She is taking a month off from Terra Save to help me with Jill."

"I guess that means that everyone is taking off then," Billy chuckled.

"What? You and Rebecca too, huh?"

"And Carlos. I guess Headquarters understands the connection we have with one another. It's really all they have right now. They are going to have their hands full with Kijuju for months."

"Yeah," Chris mumbled.

Barry pushed open the screen door. Chris and Billy noticed that Carlos had finally showed up. Barry nodded his head towards the inside. "Food's ready! Come and get it!"

Claire Redfield couldn't help but to laugh as she looked down into her cell phone. She stopped next to the seating they had available so she could wait for her flight. She slid her luggage down in the seat next to her, and flopped down.

"What's so funny?" Leon asked on the other side. His picture on her cell phone showed him giving her a suspicious look.

"You Mr. Scott Kennedy," Claire answered, slightly shaking her head.

"Well, you are the one who called me."

Claire stuck her tongue out at him. "I need someone to talk to while I wait for my plane!"

"Oh, yeah. You are heading back to the states, huh? Where are you at again?"

"Paris," Claire answered. "I had a conference to attend to for Terra Save. I'm surprised they don't have me down in Africa now cleaning up."

"Same here," Leon grumbled. "I'm stuck in Australia for now."

"You make that sound like a bad thing," Claire sighed.

"Nah, it's not too bad. I have almost got bit by about twenty snakes, highly venomous, but other than that, I am just peachy."

Claire frowned, swallowing. "Leon? Have you had any word on Sherry's whereabouts?"

Leon shook his head on the screen, grimacing. "No. But I'm not giving up, Claire."

"Same here…it's just…what if Wesker was the only way we could get to her? Now he is gone."

"It's good that he is gone. We don't need him to find Sherry," Leon stated seriously.

"You're right…sorry. I hope she is still alive."

"Claire, this isn't like you to be so pessimistic," Leon sighed.

"I know, it's just…Wesker's had her for years! There's no telling what has become of her!"

Claire swallowed back the guilt that had knotted in her throat. She knew that, even though she wanted to find Sherry, she had no leads on her. She needed to just focus on getting back to Washington D.C to help Chris and Jill recover.

"Hey, it's alright. We will get through this. I will tell you what. As soon as I finish up here, I will take off and come see you in D.C. Alright?"

Claire smiled down at him. "Thanks, Leon. I will talk to you later."

Leon nodded. "Okay. Be careful." His screen went black after he hung up. Claire heaved a sigh, slipping the cell phone into her bag. All she could do was wait for her flight to be called. It would be a long fly home, but knew it would be all for the better when she would finally get to see her brother and Jill again. And not only them, but Rebecca, Barry, and the others as well.

Wesker groaned, his eyes fluttering open. Pain engulfed his body, but he managed to lift his head and look around. It took a moment for his eyes to focus, but then he was able to realize that he was lying down by a rocky beach. He forced himself to his feet, slightly stumbling as he stood himself up straight. He looked down at his body. He hardly had any clothing. Only ragged remains of pants and boots remained. He had no wounds on him, even though he felt some pain. The rest of his body was covered with a black oily substance. As he looked all around him on the ground, the oil was all over as well.

He looked up, staring straight up into the side of a mountainous volcano. He had no memory of how he got here or what had happened. In fact, as he registered what he did know, he realized he hardly knew anything. He could not remember anything of his past save for a few names, faces, and a few blurry occasions.

What the hell happened to me?

He started to walk along the shore. It felt weird as he moved. For some reason, he felt slow. He blamed the massive headache that was plaguing his head. Out in the distance, he saw boats speeding this way. At first, he felt relieved. It could be help. He put his hands above his eyes to shield them from the sun. He couldn't make out what the boats read. Just before he was going to start waving them down, something cold and dark slithered into his chest, almost knocking him off of his feet. Wesker bent over, coughing hard. Something was telling him to hide. He gave one last look at the oncoming fleet of boats, and then went off to hide amongst the rocks.

He needed to get off of this island. He didn't understand why he needed to hide from the people on the boats. He did know, however, that he was going to have to sneak by them and steal one of the boats. Wesker tried thinking really hard of a place or person he knew. The only name he came up with was Chris Redfield. Whatever it was that was controlling him, liked that name. Whether it was instinct or some kind of subconscious, Wesker knew that the only way he was going to go forward and try to remember what happened, was through this Chris Redfield.

Rebecca took it easy when she checked over Jill. She checked the older woman's heartbeat, her pulse rate, and her blood pressure. She checked for fever and a few other things, all while Chris was on the phone. Jill just sat there letting Rebecca do her thing.

Billy, Carlos, Barry, and his family all watched on quietly as they finished eating. Chris was talking on his cell phone to his partner he had in Africa, Sheva Alomar. They all listened intently to Chris's conversation, since it was on the topic of Kijuju. Sheva must have been getting to a part that Chris wanted everyone to hear, because he brought his cell phone over to the table and put it on speakerphone.

"There still isn't any body count, but the government is estimating it around the hundreds of thousands. The cleanup is going well, but it is going to be a very long time, over a year for sure."

"How are you and Josh holding up?" Chris asked.

"We are doing fine, thanks. Considering everything, I'm sure we are going to be very busy down here for awhile. No break for us."

"You make sure you and Josh take a break if it comes down to it," Chris said. Sheva laughed on the other side. "That sounds like what I told you, doesn't it? Oh, I forgot to tell you though…Wesker's body was never found. The team sent over to the volcano two weeks ago didn't find anything."

Everyone saw Jill cringe at the mention of Wesker's name. Chris glared down at the phone, could feel the tension in the room just by the statement of Wesker's name. "Well, there better not be a body. That lava should have melted him into nothing."

"Yeah, you are right about that. Well, I better go. Josh and I have to head back to Johannesburg to get more supplies. I will talk to you later, Chris. Take care, and Jill, I hope you do too."

"Thanks, Sheva," Jill murmured, smiling.

"Yeah, we'll talk to you later, Sheva, thanks. Keep us up to date, alright?"

"Sure."

Chris hung up his cell phone, releasing a deep sigh. He sat down by Jill, taking a moment to rub her shoulders. Jill leaned her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes. Rebecca gave Chris a thumbs up to show that Jill was just fine, then moved over to sit next to Billy.

"We are going to have to have another get together like this when Claire makes it back in," Barry chuckled.

"I know, I haven't seen her in a long while. I'm sure the girls would enjoy seeing her again," Karen replied, nodding at her husband.

Chris laughed. "Yeah, you know her. If we don't do it, then she will do it for us. You know how she loves movie nights."

Barry nodded. "I remember her eating so much popcorn that I thought she was going to pop like one."

"She definitely loves popcorn," Chris sighed, shaking his head.

"It will be good to see her again," Jill said, looking up into Chris's eyes.

Claire was relieved to get off the flight of horrors. The massive airport in Washington D.C was crowded with people coming in and going out. After a thirteen hour flight, Claire was ready to go home. She didn't live far from Chris's house in the suburbs. Claire lived at an apartment complex just at the edge of the city.

She went to the luggage drop off, and received her things. As she was heading out, she spotted Chris and Jill coming her way. Claire grinned upon seeing them. She waved her hand out. She dropped her luggage in time for Chris to grab her up in a hug and spin her around.

"Little sister!"

Claire laughed. "You are such a goof! Put me down! It's good to see you too, Chris!" She gave him a small kiss on the cheek after he put her down.

Claire looked over at Jill. She felt pain in her heart seeing Jill. Though Jill looked fine on the outside, Claire could tell that Jill was still very troubled on the inside. She reached her hands out, wrapping them around her brother's best friend and partner and gave her a hug. Jill smiled, returning the hug.

"Oh, Jill! It's so good to see you again!"

"Yeah, you too. You look great!" Jill said, pulling back. "You definitely have grown up, haven't you?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about. I think it was my brother who has grown up finally."

"Hey!"

The girls giggled. Chris glared playfully at his sister. He then grabbed her luggage and they went on their way. Claire was happy once they got out of the crowded, crazy airport outside into the cool, sunny day. It was good to be home. It really was.

"You don't mind swinging me home real quick, do ya Chris?"

"No problem, sis! After you get settled, then we can go over to Barry's. Everyone has been waiting to see you."

"That sounds wonderful!" Claire sighed, relieved.

It was good to see Claire settle in at Chris's house. She had her motorcycle so she could run home or wherever. Chris knew, however, that his little sister would spin most of her time here as usual. Claire got bored easily, and Chris knew that she wanted to be there helping them recover.

She had only been here for two days, but already Chris could feel the relief flood through him just from her presence. The others were glad to see her as well. It felt good to have everyone here. Everyone close. Especially with spring kicking in. To Chris, it felt as if things were finally starting to head in the right direction…slowly.

Even now, he watched as Claire and Jill were laughing as they mixed up some hair dye. Jill's hair was starting to turn back to brunette at the roots, but Jill felt as if she needed to dye her hair back to normal. The blonde was strange to him on her, and so Chris could only agree. Anything for her to help heal. It was hard enough for Jill, considering what she went through, but she also lost everything. She no longer had a house or a vehicle, thanks to her supposed death. Chris and the other divided up Jill's personal belongings, like pictures and some trinkets. However, Chris knew that they were going to have to go shopping some more for her. They had already gone to the mall a few times for clothes.

His cell phone started going off. Chuckling and leaving the girls to their business, Chris ran to the kitchen to scoop it up from the table. He answered the call, knowing that it was BSAA Headquarters that was calling.

"Chris Redfield speaking."

"Chris?"

Chris scowled. It was Dustin Shane, one of the original twelve founders of the BSAA along with Chris, Jill, Rebecca, and Barry. Dustin was a good ally, not much older than Chris himself, but Dustin answered directly to Wentworth Miller, who was in complete control of the BSAA. Wentworth Miller was a man that Chris absolutely respected, and it was because of him that BSAA was a big success. The reason why Chris scowled was because Dustin sounded upset.

"Dustin? What's going on?"

"I'm telling you right now, you need to get over to Headquarters ASAP."

Chris felt this cold nick to his heart, like something bad was happening. He swallowed hard. "Why? What happened?"

"I am unallowed to say over the phone, but it is urgent. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT bring Jill here, understand? Come alone. I have already called Barry as well."

Dustin hung up on him. Chris was now feeling anxiety take over. It was unlike Dustin to just hang up, and it was really unlike Dustin to sound so urgent. Chris was even more confused on why he couldn't bring Jill. The first thing that came to mind was Wesker. Maybe they had found his body and didn't want Jill to see him. But why be so upset over that? Chris's mind raced, and then he remembered he needed to get going.

"Chris? What's going on?" came Claire's voice.

Chris snapped back to reality. Claire and Jill had just entered into the kitchen. Jill had her hair up in a net for the hair dye. They looked puzzled and almost worried. Jill seemed to stare right into his soul.

"What's wrong? You are white."

Chris shook his head at Jill's tone. "It's nothing. There's something up at HQ. Barry and I got called there. I will be right back, okay?"

"I'll come," Jill nodded.

"Oh, me too! I haven't seen Wentworth in awhile!" Claire stated.

Chris put his hands up, again shaking his head. "No, no. They specifically said only Barry and me. I will tell you all about it when I return. For now, how about you two just relax?"

Chris sped the black Dodge Charger through traffic to get to BSAA Headquarters as soon as possible. He pulled into the large parking spot, noticing Barry's green Nissan Armada. He parked his car and got out, heading straight for the main entrance. He found Barry waiting for him in the main hall, and together they went up stairs. Headquarters was a very large building made up of three sections.

They found Dustin waiting impatiently outside Wentworth's office. The shorter man practically paced before them, dirty blonde hair a mess and blue eyes troubled. Again, Chris felt this knot hit his lungs. Something major was up, and the dark foreboding he could feel made him sick to his stomach.

"You two follow me," Dustin rasped, and turned on heel.

Barry and Chris exchanged looks. Barry was worried as well. They followed on behind Dustin, both getting extremely tense. Dustin led them all the way to section where they dealt with criminals. Here, it was similar to a police station where they questioned suspects to bioterrorism and talked directly with the Pentagon and the President. They stopped right outside of a steel door that led into an interrogation room. Over on the left about ten feet was another door that led into the neighboring room behind the mirror.

Dustin took a deep breath, and knocked twice on the door. A moment later, it opened and Wentworth stepped out. He closed the door right behind him before Chris could peek in. Wentworth was a man in his early fifties. He had graying brown hair, and sharp gray eyes. An ex-director of the FBI, he now ran the BSAA and helped Chris and the others find the group. Wentworth had the money and the brawn to keep BSAA going, and Chris felt this good enough to let him handle the major business while Chris retired himself into the field as an agent so he could fight and protect.

"Wentworth, what is going on?" Chris asked, narrowing his eyes.

"You do not want to go in there, Chris," Wentworth sighed. "But you have to. Don't do anything stupid. Barry, please come with me. Dustin, stay with Chris."

"Yes sir," Dustin nodded.

Barry gave one last look to Chris, and then followed on behind Wentworth. Chris now felt like vomiting. He stared at Dustin. Dustin wouldn't look him in the eye. His comrade nodded to the door. Chris put his hand on the doorknob, hoping to God this was supposed to be some kind of joke.

It took all of his will just to pull open the door, entering into the interrogation room with Dustin right behind him. Chris stopped dead in his tracks, his face turning white with horror. For a moment, he couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't function. All he could do was stare in horror in front of him.

There, sitting at the table with his hands behind his head and leaning back, was none other than Albert Wesker smiling up at him with sunglasses gleaming from the overhead fluorescent lights.

A/N: Okay so I re-uploaded this chapter so I could change my previous Author's Note as well as to start fixing the sections that ruined. For newcomers to this story, I used to use three astrixes to section off parts of the story. Well, in the middle of the fic, decided not to recognize the astrixes, so that automatically deleted all my borders throughout every chapter of every fic I had up. I will eventually fix this, but for now, I will just fix this one chapter. I am sorry for that, and it still really annoys me! For a certain unanonymous reviewer (shackledtotheplanet) if you would please read this over because you obviously don't understand a dream sequence. Sheva does not die in any chapter of mine..sigh. And I think I would know Resident Evil 5 well enough, considering I beat it more than you have. Anyways, thanks for everything to my loyal friends and reviewers, and to newcomers of this fic, please enjoy! :)