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When Ashley Graham first met Leon Kennedy during the horrible ordeal of being kidnapped by a crazy cult, she had initially assumed the young man was part of a team. That he was the infiltration guy who could quickly get in and get her out without drawing too much attention. That they’d be meeting up with a team of US-STRATCOM agents or Army Rangers or something.
Then he called for extraction and she realized there was no team. There wasn’t even a ride waiting for them. They were very much on their own.
She’d been kidnapped from her university and taken to some Spanish village she couldn’t even name…and her father had sent one guy after her. Not even a John McClane grisly veteran type. Leon had to be less than ten years older than Ashley herself. Hell, he was probably closer to five years older than her. He looked like he should be posing for an Abercrombie & Fitch ad that she and her friends would admire while the Secret Service followed them around a mall somewhere.
Ashley’s stunned confusion quickly morphed into fear, then sorrow, and then anger before she’d had time to process any of those feelings.
How could her dad send just one young, inexperienced agent for her? How could he expect some kid barely older than her to bring her home safely? To even bring himself home safely? Was there a reason he couldn’t send in anyone else? What was going on back home?
But then, Los Illuminados was upon them and Leon went straight into action.
He shot the weird zombie-like cult members in the head with a level of precision Ashley had never seen. He didn’t even flinch when some of them grew new, tentacled heads in their place, but continued the fight as if that wasn’t the freakiest thing he’d ever experienced. He roundhouse kicked the parasite-infected townsfolk who were trying to kill them with axes and chainsaws (like they were in a freaking horror movie) while still holding his weapon at the ready. He stood in front of her, unflinching as he shielded her from any retaliating fire with his own body. He made some kind of herbal poultice and swiftly tended to his wounds before continuing on as if he was fine. He even cracked dorky little jokes that acknowledged how crazy or ridiculous the situation was, which helped Ashley remain calm.
He was magnificent.
Ashley took back every angry, hurtful thought she’d directed at her father after realizing he’d only sent Leon to rescue her. Those feelings were replaced by hope and gratitude as she realized Leon was a full-blown badass who could absolutely rescue her all on his own.
She still recognized that they were in danger, but Leon had a way of making the situation seem more doable. He made her feel like they were going to make it through, no matter how crazy everything got. If nothing else, he assured her that he was going to do everything possible to get her out of the nightmare they’d found themselves in.
Ashley believed him. She believed in him. She truly felt they were in it together, as he claimed. She did her part to help.
She didn’t know anything about guns, so she couldn’t fight that way without making the situation worse. Even if they could spare the time for Leon to teach her to shoot, she’d likely end up wasting their scarce ammo supplies. That was a best-case scenario, she realized. She could injure or even kill one of them with the ricochet she didn’t know how to account for. She definitely wasn’t going to ask for a gun.
Still, she wasn’t useless. She could keep up with Leon when he moved. She could stay behind him and out of his way as he fought for their freedom. She could duck and cover when needed so he didn’t have to worry about her so much when he as in the middle of a firefight. She would hide when he told her to, stay put when he asked her to, and move when he said to. She jumped from high ledges or windows when he said they had to go that route, always confident that Leon would catch her.
And he always did.
When she panicked after coughing up blood and got them separated, he came after her. Despite her earlier concerns about how ricochet worked against the castle’s stone walls, she made sure to lead the cultists that tried to stop her from escaping again into a somewhat open alcove in Leon’s direct line of fire. Then she ducked down, shielded her head, and trusted that Leon wouldn’t hit her. He didn’t.
He guided her to get the keys to her freedom from one of the fallen cult members and waited for her to find him again. Ashley had never had someone show that kind of faith in her. It gave her the courage to throw lanterns at cult members and dodge men hidden in what she’d believed were empty suits of armor. It emboldened her to turn ancient-looking cranks and crawl through dark, creepy spaces. When she made her way back to Leon, she was relieved, but also proud of herself. He’d trusted her to take care of herself, even in such a crazy situation, and she had.
When she threw her arms around him once they were reunited, he returned the hug right away. When she apologized for causing all that extra trouble, he assured her that he understood. The guy was simply too good. Ashley had long outgrown fairytales, but it was damned hard not to envision Leon as some kind of paragon hero.
As such, she really hadn’t expected him to accept when she propositioned him once they were making their escape. Still, it had been worth a shot. She’d been too relieved that they were both making it out alive (in one piece and Plaga-free, even) to be embarrassed in the slightest. Not that Leon’s response had been one to suggest she should feel embarrassment or shame. He’d been nice about it.
As they rode off into the open water, the adrenaline wore off. Ashley held onto Leon and wondered if was actually possible to fall asleep on the back of a moving jet-ski. When he suddenly stopped, it took her a moment to figure out that they weren’t all that close to land yet. She figured they’d run out of gas. That kind of sucked, but Leon was with her, Saddler’s torture-island had blown up behind them, and Leon contacted someone or other to let them know they were on their way home. She couldn’t bring herself to be all that worried.
“Out of gas?” She asked as she re-settled against Leon’s back.
“No. I just wanted to run something by you, before we get back.” Leon made sure she was sitting securely again before he turned as much as he comfortably could while straddling the jet-ski.
Ashley sat back a bit so they could at least see each other, even if not that well. She was alert again. She could tell whatever Leon wanted to talk about was serious. “What is it?”
Leon paused for a moment, as though deciding how to say whatever was on his mind. Or maybe deciding how much to say. “I want to leave you being infected by the Plaga out of my report.”
“What?” Ashley was slightly confused. Leon could get into a lot of trouble if anyone found out he did that. Moreover, he seemed to be a very honest man, from what she could tell. For a second, it didn’t make sense that he wanted to lie. She quickly realized there had to be a reason for it.
A good reason.
“Why?”
Leon took a breath. “I can’t give you a lot of details, but I’ve come across viruses that behaved kind of like the Plaga before. I’ve met people who have been cured of them…or managed to still be themselves despite being afflicted. Some people -people with power in our government- don’t like to let them go free to live normal lives afterwards. They feel the government needs to keep an eye on them. I understand the concern, but…”
He shook his head, looking disappointed. He looked out over the water. “Sometimes, people can do some bad things in the name of caution.”
Ashley didn’t want to understand what Leon was saying. Her father was the president. He knew the people who would have the power to do the kinds of things Leon was talking about. He should have known about it. He should have been able to stop it.
But she’d seen too much while they escaped Los Illuminados. She saw what horrible things people were capable of. She also saw that Leon was a genuinely good person. They’d been through too much together for her to doubt him.
She hated it, but she understood.
She nodded so he’d know she got it.
He released a breath of relief. “Thanks, Ashley. As soon as we get back, they’re going to separate us for questioning. Tell them anything else you want, just don’t mention that Los Illuminados infected you. They’ll keep me longer than you, since I need to report back…and since they’ll know I had the Plaga.”
“What?” Ashley grabbed his arm. She didn’t want anything bad to happen to him. “Leon, no! If it's dangerous, then don’t tell them.”
“I have to.” Leon reached across himself to place a comforting hand over hers as he twisted to hold her gaze over his shoulder. “We need to make sure the Plaga didn’t do any long-term damage. We need to find out how to fix it if they did. I was infected not too long after you, as far as I can tell. They can run whatever tests they need on me.”
“But what if they, I dunno, do something to you?” Ashley thought of the way Leon had protected her throughout the whole ordeal with Los Illuminados. If she could protect him now, she would. “Why not tell them I was infected instead? Won’t I have better odds of coming out okay?”
She spoke more firmly as she saw him readying himself to argue, cutting off his protests until she could state her case. “I’m the president’s daughter. I’m well-known at my university. I’m in the public eye. They can’t just make me disappear. Even if they wanted to, my dad would never let them.”
“He might not be able to fight it without giving up his position. Your father is a good president. I don’t want to see him have to make that choice. And…” Leon hesitated. Once again, he looked like he was deciding how much to say.
Ashley realized he was still protecting her. He was leaving out information because it would be dangerous for her to know. She understood that there were some things he really shouldn’t tell her. After all, there was plenty that her father couldn’t tell her in the name of national security. But he could tell her something. “Tell me.”
Leon’s gaze was slightly distant as he explained. “When I was recruited into STRATCOM…it was made very clear they wanted someone with my skills. They’ve put in a lot of work to help me hone and add to those skills. They aren’t going to be quick to throw all that work away. They might isolate me for a while, but soon enough, they’ll want me back out there more than they’ll want to play it safe.”
Ashley understood, without a doubt, that when Leon talked about his recruitment, he wasn’t talking about flattery or monetary compensation. Not that she would have expected either to work on him, but it was clear by the disappointment in his tone and sorrow in his eyes, that wasn’t what they’d attempted. No, she was quite certain that Leon had been threatened with something. She recalled her first thoughts on the man; about how young he was. Then, she thought of what he could do. What she’d seen him do…and how none of it seemed to be the worse thing he’d ever seen or experienced.
She thought she probably should have realized it before, but clearly, Leon Kennedy had been through something very serious when he was younger. Possibly as young as Ashley was now. Maybe even more so. Whatever it was, he must have shown himself to be a blossoming badass during it. And someone had wanted to make sure he became the badass in full bloom that he was today. Someone who wanted to use those skills.
Someone in the US government.
Someone close to her dad.
Her dad who'd had direct control over the Anti-Umbrella Pursuit and Investigation Team within STRATCOM for the past four years. The team Leon had been recruited to through some kind of threat.
Ashley didn’t want to ask -didn't want to even think it- but she had to.
“My dad…”
“Is a good man.” Leon finished for her, sounding certain. “He’s a good leader. And a smart man. He knows when to make his move. We need to let him do what he needs to, to keep things like what happened to you and all those poor villagers from happening anywhere he can prevent it.”
Ashley released a breath of relief and nodded. She was happy to hear her father was one of the good guys. “Okay.” Concern made its way back into her mind as the relief settled. “So what’s going to happen now?”
Leon’s hand gripped hers. “After they take me away, after they’ve asked you their questions, tell your dad you want some time with him alone.”
His voice was firm, but not commanding or belittling. He was speaking to Ashley as an equal who simply didn’t know something that he did. Not like a kid. Not like a spoiled girl who couldn’t understand. He was treating her with the same respect and camaraderie he’d shown her all along. Ashley appreciated that as she listened.
“Don’t let STRATCOM or Simmons or Benford or any Secret Service stick around. Don't let anyone else beside your parents be there. Tell your dad that you were infected. He won’t do anything to you, but he can keep an eye on what they learn testing me. If they find anything they need to do something about, you guys can decide how to handle it from there. If they don’t-”
He offered her a small grin. “And I don’t think they will-” The grin faded. “Then no one else has to know.” He looked at her questioningly. “Agreed?”
Ashley nodded. “Agreed.”
Leon patted her hand before releasing it. He shifted to steer the jet-ski again. “Then let’s head home. I don’t know about you, but breakfast is starting to sound really good about now.”
Ashley released a quick laugh. More due to the release of tension and Leon’s dorky sense of humor than the actual remark. She held onto him as they sped off toward land once again, hoping they’d both be alright and too tired to put much thought into the ‘what if’s.
When Ashley told her parents about being infected, before they could freak, she also told them all about what Leon had done for her. Then, she all but begged her father to make sure the man was okay. She reminded him that he’d only been infected because he’d been rescuing her all on his own. Her mother firmly agreed that they owed Leon that much and also pointed out that they needed to know any results right away. Her father quickly agreed to keep a close eye on the tests, both to ensure that Ashley was alright and to ensure that Leon wasn’t being misused in any way.
Ashley was relieved, but it didn’t last long. She fell ill shortly after.
She had trouble breathing and felt the most intense thirst she’d ever experienced. She had chills and couldn’t stop shaking, feeling like she was freezing even as her temperature soared. Her vision blurred and her head swam even when she was still. Her muscles twitched and ached. She’d never been so nauseous, even after she’d vomited up what felt like everything she’d ever eaten in her life. She felt like she was dying.
Her parents told her that the same thing was happening to Leon. That the doctors said the decimated remains of the Plaga had entered his bloodstream and his body was fighting it out like a poison. Hers was very likely doing the same. Her father had them closely monitoring Leon’s condition and they’d use anything they learned to help her. And Leon. Her father promised.
Then she’d been too weak and disorientated to understand his words or pay any mind to the passing of time. Her parents quarantined her at home, claiming she was recovering from the kidnapping in privacy to any who asked after her. Her mother never seemed to leave the room, as she was always there whenever Ashley was lucid enough to take note of her surroundings. An IV was attached to her at some point, feeding her nutrients and keeping her hydrated. She had no memory of it being put in though.
The most severe symptoms lasted for what she was told was only a couple of days. She was still ill for a couple more days, but she didn’t feel like she was dying anymore. She was glad she was home at least. She always awoke to her mother stroking her hair or her father reading files or the like at her bedside. She always felt safe and as comfortable as possible and she didn’t have to deal with too many people throughout the ordeal. She could only imagine how much worse it must have been for Leon, locked in some sterile room with a bunch of strangers monitoring him.
When she recovered, she was happy to learn that Leon had likewise pulled through the unexpected reaction. Her father always spoke of Leon calmly but with great respect. Her mother quietly informed her that it had hit Leon a little harder, due to the other injuries he’d sustained and lack of sleep having weakened his body. She assured Ashley that he was alright and was expected to make a full recovery from everything. A couple days later, her father reported that he was on his feet and undergoing some physical therapy in addition to the tests the doctors were still performing. The reports continued to show a truly impressive recovery and no ill-effect from the Plaga.
It was still weeks before she was informed that Leon was being allowed to return home. Her father hadn’t given her any details regarding what was happening to him during that time, only that they needed to know what the Plaga might have done to him and, more importantly, to her. He gave her an apologetic look as he told her it was better she not know.
She hadn’t expected to hear from Leon again after that. He’d gone through hell, both with the cult and the scientists afterwards. She wouldn’t blame him for wanting to avoid her as much as his job allowed.
Instead, he’d asked her father to give her his contact information. He passed along a message, saying that he knew what it was like to go through that kind of hell at her age. He knew how hard it could be to process everything. He knew how much easier it was if you had someone who’d gone through it, too. Someone you could talk to about it.
He wanted Ashley to know she could talk to him if she needed it.
He always answered the call when she did, unless he was on an assignment that made it dangerous to do so. Then, he always called her back once it was safe. He wouldn’t tell her information he wasn’t allowed to, but he’d talk about Los Illuminados, the Plaga, Luis, and listen to anything she had to say. He never invalidated her feelings or thoughts, but he didn’t baby her either.
It helped.
Just as much as the therapist she started seeing right after recovering from the worst of the physical symptoms. More than the support and encouragement her friends tried to offer. More than the well-wishes of seemingly everyone in the nation. More than her parents’ instance that she not talk about it to anyone else for her own safety. That it was better if she didn’t know what was going on with bioweapons and evil cults.
Ashley didn’t want to not know anymore. She wanted to find out more about these bioweapons and bioterrorists. She wanted to find some way to help.
She changed her major. Got duel degrees in political science and sociology. She got involved in politics. She got involved in the discussion when BOWs came up. She became a force to be reckoned with.
Eventually, she joined Congress, first as a Representative and later, a Senator, so she could help more.
She was happy to look up after she was sworn in to the US Senate to see that Leon was there. He was watching quietly from the back, where he could keep an eye on everyone, the way he usually did. If it weren’t for the way his blond hair and blue eyes caught the light, he would have been blending in pretty well.
She made it a point to smile directly at him. The smile and nod she got back were small but held the pride and respect of someone who still saw her as an equal. Once again, his faith in her emboldened her and gave her courage.
She wouldn’t be fighting the same way he was, just as she hadn’t against Los Illuminados, but she would be behind him, just as she’d been then.
Only now, she could offer a little more than faith and fist pumps.