Author's note: It's always a treat to revisit Leon in fanfic land.

Story takes place after RE6.

The Partner Report

Leon yawned. Never-ending typing. He and Helena had written one document after another ever since the two of them returned from China. Collaboration reports were aplenty and tonight's was a doozy. Detailed analysis on pupation rates, decay, and projectiles.

Helena was over at his place and they were wading in hours' worth of research, checklists and visual aids.

"Could we make a section labeled 'most disgusting mutations'?" Leon's eyes were crossing and he rubbed them. He scrolled down the page on his laptop.

"We're almost done the section on the skin growth." Helena stood behind him, writing her own notes. She pointed in the midst of multiple paragraphs. When Leon looked blankly at her, she set aside her notepad on the table Leon worked at and bent down over his shoulder to read.

Leon indicated a lengthy section. "After here about blood?"

"No, that's coagulation." Helena's hands rested on his shoulders.

"Wait, wait, what about the limbs thing I asked about?" Sighing at the frustration that cataloguing and writing was becoming, Leon drummed his fingertips on the table.

"We'll get to it. The topic of blood is more crucial." Helena stared at the screen.

"We can move it around later. It's best to set the facts and make sure they match. Oooh-"

Tension lifted from Leon's neck muscles when Helena unconsciously rubbed. Unaware of what she was doing, she looked down at hearing Leon's groan.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to distract you." She quickly lifted her hands as though she had burned him.

"Distraction, please. My brain has officially gone auto-pilot."

Helena hesitated, and then blessedly continued her relaxing regimen. "Just for a minute. I should get going soon."

"Mmm..." Leon was too engrossed in heaven to catch the last part.

"That means wrapping up the notes we have so we can continue tomorrow."

Now her farewell tone caught his attention. "Huh? What time...?"

He started to reach for his phone, but Helena informed him, "It's a bit past 1."

Damn. It had been 8 o'clock a second ago. Helena moved her warm hands off his shoulders in preparation to leave. She walked over to her tote bag she had tossed on a side table.

With disappointment drowning out reasoning, Leon's words came out impulsively, "Want to stay longer?"

"What?"

"We could order takeout."

The handle of her bag twisted in her fingers. "I couldn't impose."

"There's Chinese food..." Leon musically enticed her. She had a real thing for egg rolls when he got them last week.

And Helena knew he had her. He knew Helena was starving as much as he, but she still pursued resistance in spite of dangling the offer of a favorite food. "Man, Leon what a theme. Chinese food and a China report..."

Leon stepped over to her side with a growing smirk. He touched her arm, trailing a light line to her tightened knuckles on her bag. He brushed her hold aside and slipped the bag to his own hand. He set it back down where it had been. "I'm starving."

"Me too." Helena's dark eyes bore into Leon's and he felt a sort of hunger that wasn't associating with the growling of his empty stomach.

Leon busied himself with dialing his usual restaurant to place their order. An hour later, they were delighting in greasy Chinese noodles, assorted sweet rinds, and of course, Helena's coveted egg rolls. They were soon laughing over silly stories.

"I can't believe you got away from it," Helena was praising Leon on a timely escape from an especially nasty Ganado during his mission to save Ashley Graham years before. His ammo findings hadn't been serendipitous during a dry spell, so he chose an unorthodox weapon.

"Believe it. Smacked that pitchforked freak with an egg before I ran for those bullets."

"So you egged him on, huh?"

Peals of their laughter rang in the living room; Helena's being the louder of the two. Leon couldn't remember when she giggled so much.

He tremendously liked his joyous effect on her, so he kept going with his humorous anecdotes. Some tales were not as funny as others, but Helena didn't seem to care as she let herself double over with laughter.

Leaning on Leon's shoulder, Helena clutched her stomach. Leon had confessed a rather embarrassing incident involving application of green herbs to a sensitive area of his body.

"S-Stop, you're making my stomach burn!" Helena wiped her eyes, calming down.

"Maybe I don't want to stop." Her face, free of brevity and pain unlike their missions together, allured him. Leon couldn't put his arm down when he softly skimmed his palm over her rosy cheek.

Helena grew quiet instantly, her quick breaths filling the silence.

Her warm skin was burning and he wanted so much more of it. Helena leaned slightly into his stroke. She continued inching closer and her lips pressed just as softly on his neck, right on the pumping vein.

Leon drew in a sharp breath at the unexpected, yet pleasant sensation. Her heavier breathing was all that filled his hearing.

Helena shook her head and she pulled back, not meeting his gaze. "Um, I didn't mean-"

Leon sealed his lips on hers. She did too mean what she did.

Helena moaned and he increased the pressure, wetness and heat. Her hands found his chest, pushing lightly as her mouth searched eagerly for his.

She released his mouth long enough to mutter, "Wait, wait, is this real?" Her voice had grown hoarse.

"I'd love to say 'read my lips', but I believe you already are." Leon leaned in capture her mouth again.

Helena's hands on his chest resisted his approach. "But what about Ada?"

He had wondered the same thing lately. He cared for her deeply, but her constant evasiveness in words and body wore him down. He couldn't hang on to hope forever and frankly, after so many years and deceptions, Leon wasn't sure what his hopes were for. That Ada would return to him and stay forever? No, she wasn't the type and he didn't expect her to be.

With Helena's round eyes staring at him, Leon saw struggle etched on her face, fighting her hope for giving in to someone she wanted. The urgency in their short kiss couldn't hide her feelings.

"I can't keep running after someone who won't run back."

"She could return and you two could-"

"It won't happen. We had some chances to start something, but the result is always the same. I'm here and she's elsewhere." The truth hurt, but Leon had known it for a while. "I'm ok with it."

He really was. Leon understood what he wanted. Someone to give in to his feelings and not run.

Helena nodded, accepting his answer with a smile. "All right."

She was the one who reached out for the next kiss.

- THE END -