Wake Up

Well in between revisiting the age old classic Star Craft and enjoying the pleasure of writing I’ve been working on writing and thus I have a new chapter for you to enjoy. It’s been so much fun working on this and ironically the rough draft of this story was first produced the same day I edited and posted chapter one as well as finished editing the rough version of chapter two. Ah yes… I love writing this story. I wonder how long this story will turn out to be after I am finished. I can’t wait for you guys to catch up to me-- that’ll be so much fun!



Send me a REVIEW IF YOU WANT MORE!!



Please Enjoy!



-Luky



…



Chapter Three



…



Welcome Home



…



…



…



The rhythmic beeping sound was the first thing she became aware of.



It startled her and all of her instincts told her the popping noise was the sound of Leon’s gun fire, and instinctively she tried to turn and to duck away from the fire as he had always instructed her to do. Sometimes she did it too much and he’d get mad, but in the end, she didn’t need to get in the way of his gunfire anyway. If it hadn’t been for her instinctive ducking, she wouldn’t have made it out of there alive.



As she tried to duck now, she felt something jerk her legs into a strange position and she twisted trying to free herself from whatever it was that was containing her. But the “gunshots” seemed… too robotic to be real gunshots even as it rapidly started to increase, faster and faster. It seemed that it was something else as it gradually sped up matching the sharp pace of her stuttered breathing.



She began to panic as her movements become more and more restrained. She struggled to free herself yet the more she struggled the less she was able to move. She opened her mouth to scream but was unable to hear her own voice. She cried out, a very real fear enveloping her heart and terror plumed within her. She grappled at her legs unable to detach them from their restraints.



“Leon! Leon! Help me Leon!!“ she cried, trying to break free from that which held her immobile. Desperation gushed through her as she reached out blindly with her arms to grab at something, anything, that she could ground herself on. She was blind in all this darkness and it made her even more childlike in her terror. But something was terribly wrong and she had to get out of here so she could find out what it was.



“Something’s wrong, Leon! I’m so scared…” she moaned, the awful sound of her voice swelling through her and frightening her more as it changed and distorted in her ear-- a loud, ringing sound rising up to wash out the sound of the pulsing beeping sound. She began to shake, convulsing as she felt her chest seemingly burst into spasms of fire-like pain that ate away at her flesh and made her puke stomach acid all over herself.



She jerked as something touched her on her arm. It wasn‘t like the normal touch she felt when she dreamed-- it wasn‘t strong like Leon‘s touch was when he was trying to comfort her in her sleep-- this touch felt like caution and concern, not strength. She could tell the emotions behind the touch through her pain as if she had recently acquired a third eye that could read the emotions of those it wanted to. The touch sent tendrils of fear and pain through her as she drew away from the contact.



Clutching at her chest she felt it slick with some kind of fluid-- her puke? Or was it blood? She felt another burst of agony as she doubled over, effectively trapped in the darkness. Confusion spilled out from her eyes as tears as she moaned in pain, her eyes beginning to roll into the back of her head as she felt her face suddenly snap to the side-- stinging intensely.



Startled, she screamed and twisted away, her eyes opening widely as she rolled away from the feeling and scurried around in a tangled mess of bed sheets until her backside pressed against the cold steel of the bed rail. She gasped, light flooding her terror filled vision as her eyes took in all her surroundings as she realized where she was. She wasn’t trapped. She wasn’t.



“Ashley, do you know where you are?” said a friendly voice of a pleasant looking woman standing beside what she assumed was her bed. She swept her gaze around the room, her every instinct screaming at her to run-- but run to where? The sound of the rhythmic gun shots was still sounding and she turned, her eyes falling onto the beeping green machine to her right… a heart monitor. Not bullets… no more bullets. She didn’t know if she’d ever be able to hear a bullet shot ever again.



“It okay,” the woman said again, lifting one perfectly manicured hand to the monitor to put it on mute, “it’s just a heart monitor. We were alerted that your heart rate was jumping higher then we should and I was sent in to check on you. Were you dreaming again, Ashley?” she asked, but Ashley wasn’t paying attention yet.



The remaining vestiges of the dream were fading so fast that she was only left feeling hollow, her chest burning oddly and to almost to assure herself that the pain was real she pressed one hand against her heart where it was thundering loudly within her. She tried to shake the fear, the utter horror that was sweeping over her from her dream but she couldn’t immediately shake it off even as he gradually faded to the back of her mind.



She was in a hospital. Her family’s private hospital which she recognized from her private visits she’d made to this exact room during her childhood. She recognized the building and the room. There was a large rectangular window with bullet proof glass that was a two way window to her right. It was specifically designed for people visiting the hospital to avoid any unwanted attention to whatever situation they were facing. It also offered a lovely view on one of the prettiest gardens she’d ever seen.



“Ashley, we are in your family’s private hospital-- do you remember that? We are in your private suite, the one that you’ve loved since you were a little girl. You were here when you broke your arm riding your bike, do you remember that?” she asked. The memories were fading… the dream was fading. The dread was slowly slipping away like a thief in the night; disappearing with what remaining sanity she could claim she had.



She remembered this place… she remembered the room and she vaguely remembered coming here to visit when she was sick and when she had broken her arm. It was starting to relax her and she felt her heart slowly going back to its normal pace as the dream completed disappeared from her memory leaving her feeling oddly silly to be massaging her chest as she was.



She looked dully at the sheets she’d been sleeping with and saw that they had been tangled around her legs while she’d been kicking and trying to free herself from…what? Shamefully she turned towards the women who had spoken to her. She immediately noticed the obscene sized black rimmed glasses that adorned the woman‘s face. They seemed to make her eyes seem larger then they should, and the green pools were wide, and concerned. She seemed friendly but she was still a little frightened, despite her familiar surroundings.



“Ashley?” said the women, whom she could only assume was the doctor judging from her long white coat and clipboard, “My name is Dr. Midori and I am a private psychiatrist on contract with the government to treat higher up officials, such as yourself. Do you remember breaking your arm?” She tried to move her lips to respond but she couldn’t control her incredible shaking. The woman was stepping closer but as she did Ashley couldn’t help but involuntarily jerk away, the IV in her hand snagging on a twisted cable causing her yelp in sudden pain.



“Here, let me help you!” cried the woman who came over quickly and detangled her from the twisted cords. Ashley watched her, her heart rate monitor spiking silently in the background, “You should be careful, that’s bound to be uncomfortable on your hand-- and we don’t want it to hurt you. You’ve already mangled the one we’d put in your other hand…” she finished, straightening her IV. Dimly she looked down to her other hand and saw a jagged wound amidst all the bruising she’d already sustained in Spain.



The doctor sighed, looking a little uncomfortable before turning to the heart monitor behind her. It was the thing in the room that was moving-- even the view of the outside seemed as still as death. She wondered about how she had oddly chosen to describe the beautiful scene outside and decided that it was best to try and focus on the doctor who was so desperately trying to get her attention.



“I’m sorry, you… you surprised me…Doctor… I remember breaking my arm but how did I get here now? Where is Leon?” she said, bowing her head, feeling confused and on edge. Her first thought was of Leon as her eyes dropped to the fashionable hospital gown that was draped thinly over her body. She was naked underneath, she could tell, and from the feel of her body, she’d received some kind of bird bath-- or possibly had bathed herself somehow, but not very well. She certainly didn’t feel clean, but she felt better then she had in…



“What day is it?” she asked, looking up at the doctor who had turned to address her after she had spoken. She looked sympathetic still, if not worried. She knew that she must have seemed deranged… but she felt very foggy-- as if she had just awoken from a deep, deep sleep. She was a still a little uncertain of her surroundings and didn’t know this doctor.



“You have been in America for four days since agent Kennedy brought you home. You’ve been asleep the whole time. You look like you went through a great ordeal while you were gone and if you agree, I‘d like to talk to you about that…” she said and looked at the girl intently, monitoring her response. Ashley simply looked down at the sheets, her fingers playing her checkerboard gown like she always did with her clothing when she was nervous.



“And about Le-- agent Kennedy? Where is he?” she asked, looking up to the doctor and trying to look innocent. All the memories, everything was flooding back into her mind about what had happened. Her burning need for the man, not to mention what she had said to him… everything was rushing around her head and she couldn’t help but blush-- even as she tried to hide the expression.



“Agent Kennedy is currently debriefing his agency about the events that transpired in Spain. You won’t have to worry about sharing your story if you don’t want to. He insisted that you be treated first before anyone was to question you. He was…” she said, eyeing the blush that darkened her cheeks further still, “concerned about your mental health and well being. He persisted until we relented and took you from quarantine. We’ve been monitoring you ever since.”



“When will he be able to leave-- when will I be able to see him?” she asked, clutching at her chest where she felt vulnerable against the harsh cotton cloth. Quarantine? He was concerned about her, that is what the doctor had said and if that was so maybe he did care enough about her. Her side of the story? She’d rather never even think about it again-- but what were they doing with Leon? Debriefing?



“I really must speak with him-- there were so many things I didn‘t get to say!” she cried her mind going blank with desperation. She hadn’t been a moment without Leon where she hadn’t been in danger and as much as she longed to trust this doctor… there were lots of people that were trying to kill her. Not to mention, she wanted to see him. She felt so weak and alone without him.



What would she do if she never saw him again, never said thank you for what he had done for her. What if she never got to apologize for trying to push him into bed with her?



‘I want to thank him for saving me.’ she thought sadly, bowing her head.



The doctor came around the bed and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, lightly patting her so as to not hurt her further. Her wounds, while not too severe needed to be healed. She had several cuts and bruises all over her body, especially on her knees, elbows, shoulder blades. Leon Kennedy had done a hell of a job bringing the kid back-- but she had hairline fractures in her wrists and elbows from light impacts, almost broken limbs.



‘He better be damn proud she came back this good otherwise he’d be in a world of difficulties right now. It’s really a miracle they both made it out alive.’ she thought to herself and despite everything felt a little glimmer of shame as she thought about the poor girl.



“We really shouldn’t be worrying too much about him right now. I’m sure you’ll be seeing him again, so don’t worry. But in lighter news, I have someone here that is incredibly excited to see you now that we have deemed you medically fit. I’m sure you’d just love to see him… Somebody who has been very worried about you and who personally sent agent Kennedy to help you…” she trailed off and looked to the other side of the room.



Ashley’s eyes widened as she turned to look behind her where the doctors eyes had moved, towards the wall where, next to gigantic picture of a daughter sitting on the shoulder of who could only be the little girls father-- and next to it was a door that has just begun to open. The creek of metal hinges was nothing to mute her cry of utter joy as her father stepped forward, tears in his eyes as he rushed over to his daughter, arms outstretched.



“Daddy!” she cried, practically jumping from the bed into her father’s big warm arms. It was as if she had never seen him-- as if she had died and God had given her a second chance-- a chance to see him one more time. She wept against his shoulder as he hugged her as close to him as he could, her blond hair draping across his face and his white hair.



“My little Ash-bear! My darling! My baby” he cried and carried, half dragged, her to the bed, her arms weak with joy and relief around his burly neck. She kept crying even as he kissed her face-- his huge, shaking hands smoothing away her hair from her face. She laughed as she peered into the eyes that were so different then her own and felt her heart take flight with happiness.



“DAAAHHHHHHHDDDDDEEEEEE!” She wailed suddenly, collapsing into a torrent of tears against his bright red sweatshirt.



The president rocked back and forth like a wounded child, holding his daughter and crying tears of joy. He couldn’t stop mumbling…”He brought my baby back to me… he brought her back… Dear God he brought her home…” and they stayed that way for several minutes.



Quietly the doctor realized that they probably would want some private time alone so she slipped out of the door and closed it shut softly behind her, monitoring Ashley’s behavior through a two way mirror the president had only moments before been watching Ashley battling her night terrors.



…



…



…



It hadn’t been easy to carry her out of the water with people rushing up to him trying to ask him what they were doing-- if they needed help-- and of course the sick people who had to take pictures so they could post it online as fast as they could. It was a surprise for the offer, but they soon began to recognize her as the president’s daughter and shouted it out to the others.



He’d even had to slam his elbow into the face of a reporter who seemed to warp out of a different dimension and appear suddenly on the spot. He didn’t care about the young guy’s nose as he felt it splitter under the force of his blow. The asshole deserved it.



Getting out of there hadn’t been too hard. The agency had dispersed men with cars along the eastern coast to help out with their arrival since they had no idea from which direction they were going to be coming from and so they were already standing by. Complete strangers dove into the crowd and helped lead him towards the waiting vehicles. He had been very careful, pulling Ashley in close to his body so that her hair obscured her face from view.



It didn’t really help though. Since she had been beside her father in several different television debates and fund raisers, she was well known. Somehow he’d managed to miss out on all that fun stuff-- he’d mostly been spending the time training at the Academy and while he was there getting his newest assignment he didn’t think he’d be wading up on the beach with her limp body draped over his arms.



It had pissed him off when they tried to put her in a second car without him. Not like he cared about her at all, ‘not really’ he told himself-- he just didn’t want to jeopardize his mission until she had been delivered straight into the hands of his superior, plus she was a health hazard according to protocol. One man had tried to take her from his arms, which he immediately kicked in the knee, sending him to the ground in an instant. He was technically their superior so he addressed them in a loud, clear voice:



“She rides with me until the mission has been completed.” he had said, addressing the four standing men that had encircled him, “missions orders. You’ve been instructed on policy, let’s get us out of here now!” he barked and promptly put her inside of the car, gently laying her against the dark black leathered interior and immediately hopping in after her.



He hadn’t had the chance to show it, but concern had streaked through him when she fainted. Was she injured still? He reached over to touch her cheek and felt her skin burning to the touch. ‘She must have some kind of fever… could it be an adverse reaction to having the Las Plagas removed?’ he wondered as he lifted her slender wrist in his hand to check her pulse. He didn’t have a watch-- his had broken.



He studied her features, his eyes gazing upon her half parted lips. They were chapped but still beautiful and he wondered what in the world she could possibly be thinking about him. What could possibly make her persist after all the times he’d pushed her away? He couldn’t understand it and it was getting hard-- too hard for him to control himself around her. He’d be glad when this mission was over with and when he could reassigned.



She was so young… but obviously matured in body-- he’d known that. And she had an innocent, and irritating, part of her that simply got to him in ways he refused to understand. His luck with women had always been bad and he wanted no part of this one when he already had lost and continued to be confused by all others.



‘Still…’ he thought, reaching for her, ‘she’s a lot stronger then she is given credit for. I wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for the mission. If it wasn’t for her I wouldn’t have been able to make it out of there on my own.’



His hand reached up to dance his fingers along the line of her throat where her pulse still beat rapidly and he felt a burst of lust as she gasped at his touch. The two agents that were sitting in the car with them gave each other a look at her reaction to his touch but looked away. It seemed that they both respected their privacy and despite their orders, he wasn’t doing her any harm-- and he was their superior regardless.



He felt the lust curl lazily in his gut as he imagined all the things they could have done together. From her actions towards him, he knew they’d be great together and he almost regretted having to say no to her offer… It was too much for her. She was a kid and he was a man-- and she was the president’s daughter which complicated things to a degree that was almost worse then his relationship with Ada.



Scooting closer to her, he pulled her against his shoulder and signaled to one of the men to give him his coat to cover her with and they immediately obliged, shedding the coat and handing it over. Covering her with it he slipped it around her narrow shoulders and tucked a lock of blond hair behind her ear fondly as she seemed to sigh at his touch.



It took almost two hours to reach the facility but they were there faster then he knew it and then they were out of the car again; Ashley slumped in his arms and covered in the black coat. They rushed him towards the entrance and nurses wearing hazmat suits led each of the men, including the other five men that had been exposed to them into a separate hallway lined in several doors.



Quarantine.



He’d have to let Ashley go after all.



He reluctantly placed Ashley in the arms of a hazmat suited man, and watched as he and another, presumably a women carried her into a room. Another followed him into the room directly next to hers. As soon as he entered he began to strip as sanitation spray scorched his skin and seemed to burn him. He hated this part and was grateful he’d only had to do it one other time in his life.



The hazmat suited government official spoke to him as he was showered and cleaned with the steaming watery solution which he knew was so much more then water. He reluctantly wondered how Ashley was doing, or if she was even aware of what was going on. He secretly prayed she didn’t wake up during the process, he was certain it would give her quite the fright.



“Agent Kennedy you are scheduled a debriefing at 14:00 hours via a wireless communication device that you will find within your quarantine room. You’ve been informed of the procedures?”



“Yes yes… I know. What are they doing with Ashl-- the president’s daughter?” he asked, turning shamelessly towards the person and addressing them with intensity. He had to yell over the sound of the spray and his voice already hurt from lack of water. Just as he started to speak the spray shut off and he was ushered into a new room where he walked in alone and the door shut behind him.



Circulated air in the room was blasted against his body drying him quickly. The warm air didn’t do anything to ease his thirst but he was intent on hearing their response. From behind two feet of bullet proof glass the sound of miniature speakers imbedded in the walls echoed as the person said, “She will be detained as normal. We cannot risk infection of the Las Plagas. Excellent work Agent Kennedy… this will all be over soon.” and turned to leave.



He watched the retreating back of the hazmat suited man until he could no longer see him. Then he turned, his hair blowing against his face rapidly until the winds turned off. Stepping into the third and final room he saw a the familiar white tiles of the cell he’d been confined in for three months the last time he’d been in quarantine. They were all the same it seemed-- nothing had changed in the six years since he’d been in one of these.



‘I wonder what they are going to do with Ashley’, he thought as he walked over to the makeshift bed where a fresh pair of scrubs were sitting as well as a fresh pair of underwear. He dressed and then sat on his bed. His mind wondered to his future briefing. He knew that it wouldn’t be too soon-- there was too much clearance for something like that. He had to wait at least 24 hours for the order to be issued, and security clearance to see the “infested” granted for his superiors.



It was going to be a long time in this little prison without any company. The last time he’d been here he had volunteered, not even realizing that it wasn’t a volunteering type of event-- he just had gone in quietly. Now after years of training he was more aware of what precautions the government wanted to take when it came to the country-- and the President.



“Protect the president’s daughter huh? Whatever…” he said as he leaned back against the bed remembering the first time he had been told what he was supposed to do. Protect the president’s daughter-- basically follow her wherever she went, be it the mall, the school, or porn store-- he had to follow her there. He’d been okay with that, but the idea of spending 24 hours a day watching the girl was enough. He’d been given help in the late evenings so he could have the time to himself.



He was eager for the mission despite the idea of having to protect her from dangerous, horny college boys or stopping her from suffocating on her own puke at a party-- he’d expected it to be simple and rewarding. Who knew, he might even like having to spend the entire time with the girl. He hadn’t thought about protecting another woman until this point-- obviously doing so had been a dangerous mistake.



But he’d had that picture of her from the start and it had served him as reminder, even before he met her. It seemed to say to him; “Look at me… I have a life and it means something to people-- it means something to live and I need you to help me.” It just so happened he needed to protect her more then he knew. Who would have thought things would have turned out like this?



Eyeing the ceiling again he realized he was quiet tired and he knew he’d have hours to wait until they came to him. It had been a long time over in Spain and the ride on the Jet Ski hadn’t been easy so he closed his eyes trying to hide from the light-- to rest. But the light showed through his closed eyes making his vision swim in a sea of red so he placed an arm over his eyes to make the light go to black, as he was accustomed to.



Within minutes he felt drowsy… and soon after, he fell asleep.



…



…



…



It looks like I’ve established Leon as the typical asshole with a pinch of nice guy in him in the way I’ve described him as being a creature of lust towards Ashley but let’s think of this realistically. Leon’s attention as far as romantically is divided between two woman and we all know he has to luck with woman so it isn’t entirely impossible to fathom that his initial reaction to Ashley would be physically. The nice guy is there too, and we’ll be developing more emotions while everything is going on. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I loved it. Daddy is important too so keep in touch about their separation since it is important. Ah… it is so nice to be setting the groundwork for the plot so earlier on…



REVIEW for more if you WANT it.



Edit: 7/3/2008



-Luky