the best fanfiction you've ever read was written by a woman in her 40s before she made dinner for her kids. it was written by a teenager after school when they should've been studying for a history test. and a barista came up with the idea while they cleaned the espresso machine and busser fact-checked it on their break and the post-doc edited between writing grant proposals and the nurse apologized for typos in the notes after a long shift and behind every drabble and one-shot and multi-chapter fic there is a person with a wonderful and interesting and chaotic life and it is such a privilege that we get to be a part of it because they decided to do this thing we all share, for fun.
Two years after the events of Raccoon City, Leon Kennedy and 3 other USTRATCOM trainees are tasked with investing an abandoned pharmaceutical lab in Puerto Rico. Another day, another dollar. But for one trainee, CJ Velez, this mission is more than just a job; this one is taking her home.
âď¸Leon Kennedy x OC
âď¸Warnings: canon-typical violence, language, TW attempted sexual assault (NOT SEEN, done by an OC), TW suicidal ideation (NOT FOLLOWED THROUGH ON), wump, but there will be a happy ending, sfw otherwise âď¸friends-to-???
âď¸proofread! (my husband would like credit for this lol)
âď¸chapter WC: 2.1k
Part I // Part II // Part III
October 8, 2000
The plane ride into Roosevelt Roads was, thankfully, uneventful. No turbulence, a little package of peanuts, and seats that reclined at least a little ways. Surprisingly, Levi did not attempt to strongarm his way into sitting next to CJ, opting instead to be with Paul. Leon would occasionally glance their way, checking in to make sure they kept their distance. Even before everything with CJ, Leon had never trusted them.
Paul was some governorâs son, the eldest in his family trying to prove himself. What he lacked in intelligence, he made up for with sharpshooting skills (which still somehow were lacking). It didnât take much inferring to know that the only reason he was even training for the Anti-Umbrella team was because of his fatherâs connections.Â
Levi, meanwhile, was a generalâs son from a generational military family. While his fatherâs rank was helpful, it was not what had gotten where he was. He was very capable, accurate with all manner of weapons and a bull in physical combat. He was highly intelligent, top scores on every written test they had to complete and a whizz with computers. But there was something about the way he carried himself that unsettled Leon. He just wasnâtâŚright. He enjoyed all of this too much. The way he seemed to romanticize combat sounded more like he was excited than wary. Leon knew what potentially awaited them; Levi jumped at the chance for that potential.
Leon was pulled from his thoughts by an approaching Captain Crawford. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she was holding a mobile phone. âThat was Major Krauser,â she announced, âHeâs been called in for an emergency in DC, so he will be unable to join us. Heâll be checking in and Iâll be reporting directly to him, but now Iâll be the one in command.â
Her voice was weighed with the concern of needing this mission to go well. Locking down a former Umbrella facility would cement her reputation. And promotion. Having Levi and Paul with her for this would also be a huge benefit, considering the pull both of their fathers had. No matter the cost, Operation: Eagle Eye had to be a success.Â
âI think we can handle this without the Major just fine,â Levi piped up, âThis whole thing seems like small fries compared to what Iâve heard about other Umbrella labs.âÂ
âDonât underestimate anything,â Leon warned, âThatâs how you get killed.â
Levi smirked, âYou know, I gotta ask. How did a pansy-ass like you survive Raccoon City? I heard it was brutal.â
Leon didnât bother with a reply, but shot a swift kick to CJâs ankle when he caught her out of the corner of his eye about to open her mouth. She immediately leaned back but glared at him. He cast a quick glance towards the Captain, then back to her. CJ snorted in acceptance, then sat the rest of the way back and turned towards the airplane window. Paul and Levi snickered, but Leon instead turned his attention to their Captain.Â
âWade, Fletcher,â Crawford warned. The pair straightened up, though were still thoroughly amazed at themselves. âWe touch down in 20 minutes,â she said, âMake sure youâre ready; weâre leaving for Agaudilla right away.â
+++
True to the Captainâs word, the five of them were shuffled straight into two large jeeps. She guided Levi and Paul straight into her ride, very obviously trying to avoid any further conflict. CJ silently thanked whatever god in the universe that had blessed her with that one. Her and Leon hopped in the backseat of the second jeep and buckled in.Â
âDamn,â CJ sighed, âI was really hoping weâd be able to get some food on the base.â She felt a tap at her thigh and looked down to see Leon attempting to slide a granola bar over to her. She laughed and accepted the snack, âNot what I meant, but thank you.â
âOh?â Leon questioned, unwrapping a bar for himself.
âI havenât had arroz con gandules in years. Itâs rice and pigeon peas.â she answered, pulling the whole bar from the wrapper and eating half in one bite.
âI donât think Iâve ever heard of a âpigeon peaâ before,â he mused before finishing off his snack.
âWell, then remind me to have you try some before we leave,â she said, turning her attention to the scene just outside the window. Mountains played out in front of them, a combination of shades of green impossible to see in Nebraska. On Leonâs side, the ocean rocked just beyond the cliff. The roads were way too narrow for as fast as their driver had to travel to keep up with the flow of traffic. The air in the cabin of the jeep was humid and salty. For a moment, CJ could remember driving with her parents up and down mountain roads through their neighborhood.
For the first time in years, CJ had a stillness in her soul. One singular word registered in her mind: home. A pothole sharply knocked her back to reality. Home was still on the other side of the island, in her motherâs house. A house she was not allowed to go back to. A house she wasnât sure if she could ever go back to, because going back meant facing her widowed mother and little sister. It meant lying to them more to protect them from the deep, dark secrets of this world. CJ never thought she could feel so lonely in such a familiar place.
The rest of the almost-three hour drive was mostly quiet. CJ couldnât force herself into small talk and Leon seemed to be respectful of that. Surely he, of all people, would understand. He would glance her way on occasion but didnât try to get her to engage, instead opting to answer any questions their driver posed to them. She couldnât help but feel some sense of comfort; she had been alone for so long, having Leonâs company was both unexpected and soothing.
The jeep pulled off on a side road when they neared Aguadilla, trailing up the mountains and into the forest just outside the city. They came to a stop at a simple, ridiculously rectangular building. It was concrete, grey, and about two stories high. A small balcony could be seen on its side, iron railings around the perimeter. There was a small satellite dish hanging off the corner of the railing. CJ and Leon grabbed their belongings, thanked their driver, and disembarked from the vehicle to meet with the rest of their team.Â
âOof, what a shithole,â Paul commented as their drivers pulled away.Â
âThis is our safehouse,â Captain Crawford said, ignoring Paul and moving forward to enter.Â
Approaching the building, a portly man in a tacky, flowery shirt came from the front door and greeted them. âHola! Iâm Pancho. Iâve been expecting you all.â
âGood afternoon,â the Captain answered, then turned to her subordinants, âPancho is ex-special ops. Heâs going to be our guide.â
They made their introductions and Pancho began to guide them inside, politely taking Captain Crawfordâs bag from her to carry. Paul and Levi followed behind. Leon started behind them, but paused when he realized CJ wasnât there. She was looking out into the forest that surrounded them.Â
Something was wrong. She couldnât quite put her finger on it, but something was definitely wrong. The breeze ruffled the trees and kicked up a sweet scent of tropical flowers into the air. CJ took it in, catching a whiff of something else. SomethingâŚsour.
âVelez,â Leon called over to her.Â
âIâm coming,â she answered, slowly turning her back to the forest.
+++
The safehouse was cozy enough. There was a small kitchen and den with a couch. Two desks lined the wall in the den, military computers and radio devices set up on them. Chords ran from the desk all the way up the stairs, presumably connecting to the satellite hanging on the balcony. Upstairs were cots between three separate rooms. A bathroom with a single shower was in between two of the rooms.Â
Pancho served them a hearty meal, bringing in fried pork and mofongo from the nearby city. âThe couch is a pull-out; Iâll be sleeping on that. The ladies can each take a room and you three can take the last room,â he explained, spooning up plates for the team.Â
Leon turned a questioning eye to CJ, never having heard the word âmofongoâ in his life. He had taken to asking her throughout the week about different Spanish words and phrases he had picked up in the operationâs files. But what he saw gave him pause. CJ, while not bouncing up and down, was radiating pure joy while eating the food. She looked like a normal twenty-year-old, and for a moment, Leon forgot where he was. For a moment, the two of them were just coworkers enjoying a meal together. He opted not to ask, and took a bite. Whatever mofongo was made from would remain a mystery for the time being, but Leon decided that he really wanted some more of it before they went back to Nebraska.
Dinner was filled with plenty of jabbering between Paul and Levi. Pancho and Crawford jumped in, the latter surprising everyone with a more laid back demeanor than usual. In the midst of the revelry, Leon noticed CJ quietly take her plate to the trash and stealthily cut into the den. He casually rose, grabbing two water bottles from the mini-fidge behind him and following her. He found the den empty, so he went upstairs. She had her bag and walked to the left-most room that housed the balcony and satellite, claiming it as her own.Â
Leon cautiously made his way to her doorway. He had no intent of bothering her if she wanted to be alone, but she had been off since they had entered the safehouse. Maybe she just needed some space, but the way he had caught her shoulders tensing when they stepped out of the jeep had him...concerned. When she was staring into the trees, her eyes were shifting around, searching for something that he couldnât see. He had an inkling that whatever it was had some impact on this mission.
He peaked in the room, expecting to see her settling in. Inside the room were two beds with a simple pillow and blanket on each. CJ had slung her bag onto the bed on the right-hand side, but was not resting like Leon had assumed sheâd be. Instead, she was out on the balcony, standing at the railing. She was turned to the forest, following the slope of the mountains further into the green. The sun was almost set, giving off a dusty pink hue. Stars were beginning to blink in and the wind whipped clouds along the skyline.
âHey,â he called out softly, not wanting to surprise her.
She remained calm, seemingly expecting him to be there, âHey.â
Leon approached, handing one of the water bottles in her direction. âEverything okay?âÂ
âThanks,â she accepted the water without turning her attention from the forest. She blinked a few times, as if trying to focus. âThereâs somethingâŚâ she trailed off.
âWhatâs wrong?â
âI donât know what it is, but something feels off,â she said, taking a drink.Â
âI dunno, feels real peaceful to me. Especially with all that noise downstairs,â he cracked. CJ almost laughed.Â
âI mean it,â she said, âSomething justâwait,â she froze, turning to face him, âYouâre rightâŚitâs quiet.â
âYes. Peaceful.â
âNo, no, smartass, itâs quiet. Itâs not supposed to be quiet.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âThere are these little frogs all over the forestââ
âFrogs?â
âYes, little tiny frogs called coquis. They sing at night. They should be chirping right now.â
Leon paused for a second, trying to listen, âI donât hear anything.â
âExactlyââ
The two startled and turned their attention in the direction of a screech that pierced through the evening, hands automatically reaching for their handguns at their sides. The sound vibrated through the balcony, rattling the windows behind them. A series of chitters and squeaks followed as a group of bats emerged from the trees and took off towards the east, further into the forest.Â
âThat did not sound like a frog,â Leon quipped, hesitant to ease away from his weapon.
CJ shot him a look, taken aback by his audacity to make a wisecrack after whatever the hell was lurking around that forest had decided to make its presence known.Â
Leon smirked at her expression and found himself tickled with how she reacted to his little joke. He straightened himself out, then seriously asked, âWere those bats?â
âThey were,â she answered, ignoring his amusement, âThereâs a lot of different species here. But that first soundâŚIâve never heard anything like that before.âÂ
âIâm wondering if Eagle Eye Labs had closer connections to Umbrella than they wanted the government to know about.â
CJ sighed, âYou know they always do.â
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
hello! i hope you're enjoying this so far! i did wanna say that i'm trying to keep this as accurate as possible as far as the spanish and puerto rico goes, so fire off if you have any questions. (my family is from there, hence the inspiration for cj's character!)
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