Chapter 1: Homecoming

Hello. I hope that you enjoy this sequel to "Resident Evil 4: Real Life Edition." This has been in progress since before RE4:RLE was finished, and is still being written today. If you are here because you read its predecessor, thank you very much for sticking with Nicole and Leon. They appreciate your loyalty and support. So do I. Their adventures have had a place in my heart for several years, and hopefully you've also enjoyed them. This new adventure has been a very, very long time coming. Let's get to it. ~1wingangel

Your heart races as clouds pass by and appear above you. A bright blue sky and golden sunlight decorate the horizon as deep green mountains fade into view. You can't help but smile; this is your first view of the United States of America in three days.

Your short excursion to Spain was hardly a vacation, unless being taken there involuntarily and given an intimate tour of the deeply disturbed backwoods culture is part of some travel experience you don't know about. But you did acquire some unique souvenirs. You have plenty of new scars, namely a long line down your calf muscle, and a pair of shoes that could be easily summarized as "vintage." And of course, there is the necklace… You trace your fingers along the delicate curvatures of each individual pink Spinel that the merchant had carved and then imparted to you. You still can't reason why he simply gave it away. Although crude, it's a lovely necklace. Perhaps he pitied the tiny high school girl who had cheated death against the sickening demons under Osmund Saddler.

Saddler…you certainly don't want to think about the power-hungry cult leader who was solely responsible for your suffering in Spain. You remind yourself that he was obliterated into dust by a rocket-propelled grenade courtesy of your friend and hero, Leon.

Leon Scott Kennedy. You smile at him, although he is fast asleep. Even a few days ago, you would never have imagined that any fictitious character could actually exist. And yet a hero of the Resident Evil franchise is sitting across from you, his fair blonde hair falling over his eyes, very tangible and breathing.

But you poke his arm just to make sure. Yep, he's real. He also snores right through your light taps on his wrist.

You grin and relax back into the plush seat on the private government jet that will very soon land in Washington, D.C. You did almost feel guilty for even entering this clean, modern vehicle while completely covered in dirt and blood. But the soft cushions and endless glasses of water and snacks changed that very quickly. Plus, the stewardess assured you that you and Leon would get showers as long and hot as you wanted, and new clothes would be provided, all paid for by the government. The conveniences of being thrown into a video game with a government agent as the hero….

A light tap on your shoulder startles you. You look up into the smiling face of the brunette stewardess, who is doing a terrible job of concealing immense pity for your condition. "So sorry for startling you, sweetie!" she whispers. Sweetie? Really? "We'll be landing in just fifteen minutes, so please put up your tray and your seat. But I can get you something if you like…"

You think. "Do you have any gum?"

She blinks those thick, fake eyelashes. "Gum? No…I'm afraid not…"

You fold up your tray and hand her your empty plastic cup. "I'm good, then."

She smiles brightly and then turns to Leon across the aisle, and quietly puts up his tray. You watch her as she delicately moves to adjust his seat, leaning in a little too closely to the sleeping muscular, blonde-haired blue-eyed agent.

Leon waves a hand. "I got it."

The stewardess backs away, beaming. "Of course! Can I get you—"

"I'm good." Her shoulders slump. "Thanks."

"Of course." She straightens up and walks briskly to the back of the cabin, that wide smile still plastered on her face. You roll your eyes.

"She's totally into you."

He closes his eyes. "I didn't notice." You see a smirk tug at the corner of his mouth.

You reach over and poke him. "Do you still have gum?"

In one quick movement, he extricates a small box from his pocket and flings it towards you. You snatch it out of the air and flip it open.

"It's empty!"

He sighs, his eyes still closed. "Oops." You sigh, and get more comfortable in your seat. Might as well get in one more nap…

Loud rumbling and shaking pulls you from sleep. A whirring wooden vehicle driven by Illuminados charges towards you, bearing a giant spinning wheel with long drills ready to impale you. With a loud thud, it malfunctions and halts right in front of you, but the drill mechanism launches off of its wheel and flies at you. The crash jolts you awake, and you jerk against your seatbelt and blink in the light flooding the cabin. The jet bounces on the runway as the thrust reversers loudly counteract its speed.

You take a deep breath to calm yourself after your small nightmare. A warm hand pats your shoulder, and you look into Leon's smiling face. "Hey. We're home."

You smile back. "We're home…" You grin, and look out of the window at a glittering metropolitan skyline. According to the monitor in front of you, it is 9:53 A.M. on a Tuesday. A beautiful, sunny Tuesday in America.

The intercom beeps, and the pilot's voice crackles over the speakers. "Good morning folks, it is approximately 9:54 A.M. as we land here in Arlington, Virginia, and it looks to be a beautiful clear day and about sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit. We will be taxied immediately to our private terminal where you will get cleaned up and examined for any medical needs, and then you're all set to meet your families. So sit back, relax, and welcome home." You grin and enjoy watching the bustling, non-violent and bloodless activity of the airport as the jet slowly approaches a terminal that is separate from the rest of the airport. Your grin fades when you see a large number of sleek black vehicles swarmed around the building. You really don't want to deal with government business; you just want to take a shower and go home.

Leon frowns. "Looks like I'll be busy for a while." He looks at you. "You don't have to worry about that, you can just get cleaned up and go home. I'll make sure you avoid the press."

The press? Here to see you? You suppose that your sudden international kidnapping might have aroused the news. You sigh. I just want peace and quiet… and my bed…

The seatbelt light turns off, and the stewardess walks smartly down the aisle. "You're free to go!" she exclaims cheerily. "There is personnel waiting to assist you just outside of the gate. You have a great day!" She smiles pointedly at Leon, who nods politely.

You stand and stretch, yawning contentedly. You are so close to going home…! And you are so far away from Spain, and anything to do with Las Plagas or Umbrella thugs. You smile at Leon. "Come on, Leon!" He stands, rolls his shoulders, and follows you down the aisle and to the exit.

"Bye bye!" The stewardess waves daintily, flashing those artificially pearly whites. She does know that you're fresh out of a horrific, deadly experience in Spain, right?

The tunnel leading to the gate smells like new carpet and metal. You can just barely detect the hint of fresh summer air flowing in through the cracks. You relish the scents of modernity and technology.

Voices can be heard ahead. A clamor of subdued, serious tones and excited murmuring. You begin to feel nervous. You approach a bend near the end of the tunnel when you feel that familiar hand on your wrist. Leon's touch instantly sends a wave of calm over you, and you stop and look at him.

"Hey." His blue eyes are soft. Leon looks at you, looks all over you, as though imprinting your image into his mind. Finally, he sighs. "Are you ready?"

You move your wrist to take his hand in yours. You smile up at him. "…I'm ready. I'm ready… to live."

He squeezes your hand. "I'm gonna miss you, Nicole."

Immediately tears flood your vision. "I'll miss you too, Leon…!" Before you start sobbing, you wrap your arms around Leon in a fierce hug. You press your cheek against his firm chest, absorbing his warmth and security one last time, deeply inhaling that smell of gunpowder and dirt and Leon. A few tears escape your determined effort not to cry, and you sniff back a sob as Leon rubs your back.

You feel a small pressure on the top of your head. A kiss. Leon breathes into your hair. "Dry those tears," he murmurs. "You're going home. You're going home, and you'll be safe and happy."

You nod into his shirt. Then you take a deep breath, collect yourself, and step back, keeping your head down to quickly wipe away any more tears. You manage another smile. "Let's go home."

Hand in hand, you walk around the bend, and into a quaint, contemporary terminal where a cluster of serious-looking men stands waiting. All but one are dressed in casual business clothing, and they look glad to see Leon, and congratulate him and immediately discuss government protocol. His hand slips from yours, and your sense of security falls away. Leon's eyes meet yours for a brief instant before he is absorbed in a circle of government agents.

And just like that, your time with Leon Kennedy is over.

You look to your right to see a man in a suit smiling down at you. "Welcome back, Nicole," he says warmly. You smile politely. "I'm Anthony and I'll take you to where you can clean up and be examined by a doctor." His hair, black and cut into a sharp, militaristic buzz cut, contrasts with his kind brown eyes. "If you'll follow me…"

You look back for Leon, but the space where he had stood is now empty. You can't believe that he will no longer be a part of your life. You keep staring at that blank stretch of carpet where you had just seen him. Your fingers open and close around empty air.

You determinedly remind yourself that it's time to move on, and finally go home. You follow Anthony, who walks briskly, and you blink back more tears. You glance down to see that your old shoes are tracking Spanish dirt onto the green carpet. Come to think of it, your feet ache from being crammed within these tight, grimy shoes. You slow down almost to a stop. "Anthony…?"

He glances back, then stops when he sees that you've fallen behind. "Yes?"

You smile sheepishly. "Can I…can I take off my shoes?"

He smiles bemusedly. "It's a free country."

You grin. Yes, it is! And you love it. The disgusting shoes are off faster than a Plaga can pop out of—well, you take them off really quickly. And leave them in a trashcan in the terminal. To die and rot.

Stupid shoes.

You cheerily follow Anthony after that, firmly ignoring your feet, which have marks from being confined in those old shoes and which look and probably smell awful. T-minus mere minutes until I'm in a shower….

"Down here," Anthony announces, interrupting your reveries of warm water and soap bubbles, "we have set up facilities and a clinic for you, so in just a moment you'll be able to get yourself clean." He directs you down a service stairwell, and you descend into an open concrete-floored basement that spans the length of the terminal. To your right is a makeshift shower, a plastic facility not unlike a portable toilet in outward appearance, but much larger, completely white, and sealed with a curtain instead of a flimsy door. Directly across from it is a small area enclosed completely by curtains.

Anthony smiles at you. "Your shower is right here, you can just step up inside and deposit your clothes in a bin, enjoy a hot shower, and leave the bin inside. We'll dispose of your old clothes." He gestures to the curtained area. "You can get dressed in there after your shower. Your family provided a set of clothes. You'll be able to meet them after you're all checked out. Sound good?"

You almost cry. Your family is here! You get to wear familiar clothes and be with your family again… Your smile falters for a moment. There is one other thing on your mind… "Will I get to see Leon again?"

Anthony glances at the floor. "Well, um, we can't be sure how long his decontamination will take, and the usual government protocol…"

You look him square in the eye. "I won't leave without saying goodbye to Leon."

Anthony looks back at you, a mysterious mixture of emotion in his eyes. Finally, he sighs. "I'll see what I can do." You smile, and Anthony smiles lightly back at you. "All right," he gestures to the shower, "shout if you need anything." He crosses to the opposite side of the dressing chamber and out of view.

You take a deep breath, calming your excited nerves about getting out of these filthy, ruined clothes and washing all of the grime away. Then you pull back the thick plastic curtain and step into the large, portable shower. It is bright, clean, and quiet. The aforementioned bin is a large plastic tub set on a bench that extends the length of the shower. You peel off every disgusting layer of clothes and throw them into the bin, gingerly placing your necklace on top, and snap the lid shut. Then you turn the hot water knob, and instantly warm water streams over you. It is the most amazing feeling in the world.

You stand in the water for a long while, savoring the relaxing warmth and the steam that is building up in the shower. Filth slides off of you in waves. Then, you get to work with the lengthy task of scrubbing every inch of your body clean with generic white soap. You scrub vigorously until your skin glows pink. Even the backs of your ears are spotless. Then you squeeze a handful of green shampoo onto your palm –overkill, yes, but you hardly care—and massage it into your scalp and every lock of hair. You lather it in until your head is a mass of foam and bubbles, and then you slowly rinse it out. Soon, only water runs into the drain, clean, clear water. You are spotless and fresh, and you feel much lighter and relaxed. You leisurely shave until you are flawlessly smooth, and then you stand in the hot water for a very long time. Absolute bliss….

You finally turn off the water and look around for a towel. The bench, you notice, has a lip on the edge of the seat that sticks out, so you lift it and half of the bench seat rises to reveal a compartment inside. There is a stack of several fluffy white towels. You grab one and slowly dry yourself. To your delight, a large robe is folded in among the towels. You wrap your body in cozy warmth and step out onto the concrete floor.

"How was your shower?" Anthony appears from around the dressing chamber.

You sigh contentedly. "Amazing. Probably the best shower of my life."

Anthony smiles. "Good." And smashes an elbow into the back of your head.

Lights crackle behind your eyes as that familiar sinking feeling washes over you, and then you collapse into darkness.