It's always the little things...
Jul. 28th, 2006 06:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
governmentninjaLeon had been having a rather quiet day thus far. He didn't do much, other than look up places that rent out jetskis and ask for prices, which left him a lot of time to think. Far too much time, honestly.
Currently, between his three sisters, Leon has 11 nieces and nephews, with a 12th on the way. Half of them he hadn't seen in a number of years, and the other half, he's never so much as laid eyes on. There was also probably a legion of brats spawned by his cousins to add to that number. He had never really given it much thought before, but ever since helping Claire babysit Tammie the other day, he had started to wonder what those kids were like right now. The fact that he didn't know, at all, was really eating at him.
Sure, he knew all their names, birthdays, and what not. He still sent out cards for appropriate holidays, but that only does so much. The older ones, who were 10, 9, 8 and 8 might remember him, and maybe hearing from him might mean something. But for the younger kids, most of whom probably can't even read the cards anyway, it's not like they'll care. Their Uncle Leon is just urban legend, or worse, a complete stranger. It's not like he's there to see them grow up, to talk to them, to play with them, to teach them proper choke holds, to cook for them, to babysit them.
He had to wonder how it was he got so utterly sheered off from the rest of his family. He understood why they didn't want him to become a cop, he wasn't the least bit insensitive to their pain. The death of his father hurt him too just as much as it did them. It was really their insistence that he was wrong about what he was doing and should quit that bothered him the most, though. He couldn't understand that.
Being a cop, well, federal agent now, was a dangerous job, yes, but it was an honest job, it was an honorable job. It was also a job Leon was that damn good at. And no matter how much pain it brought him, how much pressure it put him under, he still loved it, and wouldn't quit for anything. Not even for them.
He's not a self-righteous kind of guy, he doesn't care about being right or winning an argument. But don't tell him he's wrong when he knows he's not. He's a rather flexible guy, but he won't bend on that. And they won't bend from their stance. After a few major battles, though, it settled into a cold war.
When it comes to his family, though, he'd settle for a peace agreement. At least some kind of cease fire. Just for them to agree to disagree. They don't like his job? That's cool, just get over it and shut the fuck up about it already. For a moment, he actually thought about shouting that to his mother and the rest of his family (like he'd ever have the nuts to say that to them), then chuckled as he envisioned the next days headlines.
Leon S. Kennedy, "Big Damn Hero", Savagely Beaten to Death By A 67-Year-Old Irish Woman
Tyrants? *Yawn* Ganados? Whatever. His mother when she was ticked off? That was something he sure as hell didn't want to run up against.
Anyhow...
All joking aside, he was still feeling like crap about the whole thing. He didn't talk to Claire about it, because he doesn't talk to Claire about his family. She never pressed him on it, and he couldn't bring himself to say "hey girl with only one living relative, come listen to me bitch about my large family whom I don't talk to because we're too busy being stubborn assholes". There was also no one else in his circle of friends with whom he felt comfortable enough to talk about this.
Still, just trying to ignore it was doing him no good. So maybe it was time he did something about it.
He went outside the beach house, bringing a pen, a pad, and his phone with him. He didn't wander far off, just sat in a chair out back, as he wasn't trying to avoid Claire, per se, but he did want some measure of privacy at the moment. He flipped the phone open and started punching in numbers, then changed his mind and erased it. He started entering a different set of numbers and hit enter.
He put the phone to his ear and waited, and when whomever picked up on the other end, he smiled. "Evenin' Lass." Yeah, Leon had called his sister Erin, and he grinned as he heard her response.
"Yeah, I know you only got that phone a few weeks ago... Tch, I'm Secret Agent Man, remember? ...Oh, shut up, I'm your little brother. It's not that creepy. But if you really want to be weirded out, just give me a minute to pull up your credit card statements from the last few months." He had to bite the inside of his mouth to keep from laughing.
"Oh, too late. I'm staring at them right now. And... hnn... You have a couple of charges here that need some explaining." Actually, he was looking at the ocean under the afternoon sun. And if it was afternoon in Hawaii, it must be late evening back on the east coast.
Finally, after too much awkwardness from the other end of the phone, he started chuckling for a bit. "Relax, I was just kidding. I'm not at work right now, I'm on vacation... No, if I got shot I would be on a desk job. This is an actual, you know, vacation. I do take one occasionally."
He shrugged in response to whatever was asked next, even though that doesn't work well over the phone. "Nah, I'm in Hawaii, just relaxing on the beach with my girlfriend. It's-- ...yes, I said girlfriend." He practically facepalmed right there. He never did tell anyone in his family that he was in a relationship now. It wasn't that he didn't want them to know... he just never talked to them. And given the high-pitched squeeing that came through the receiver, he might have wanted to keep his mouth shut.
"Yeah, it's serious."SERIOUS BUSINESSHe sat there looking bored for a moment while he listened, then grinned and shook his head. "Would you stop acting like you're in High School? I know it's been a while since the last time I was in a relationship..." Since his first year of college, actually "...but calm down. All that squealing is giving me a headache."
He rolled his eyes a little and tilted his head in a 'yeah, yeah, whatever' fashion. "Fine, I'll tell you all about her, just shut up for a minute. ...Good.
Now, where to begin? "...I told you about that girl I met in Raccoon City? ...Um, no, not her--" Did Leon sound just a wee bit bitter there? "--the other one. ...Yeah, her, Claire.
"Well, about a year ago, maybe, she and I ran into each other again. We starting hanging out and then... uh..." What's a discreet way of saying 'we got fear gassed and slept together? Oh, yeah, there is none. "...one thing sort of led to another, and we started dating. ...Since the end of October."
Leon blinked. That was a good question. "Well, it's not like we talked all that long last time, and a certain other subject came up before I could mention her. That other subject a bit of a conversation killer..." There was a silence between them, punctuating Leon's point, which he just had to point out. "Yeah, see? Told ya."
He let out a sigh. "Anyway, I wanted to ask you something... about the kids. ...How are they?" He nodded and 'mmhmm'ed a bit. "That's good. I'm glad they're safe." He ran a hand through his hair. Why was asking a simple question suddenly so hard. "Could you... tell me about them? Like, what they're like, and what not? I mean, I haven't seen them in so long... I--
"Yeah, I miss them... I miss all you guys. ...yeah, yeah. I know. I know But can we not have that particular conversation right now?" He sighed in relief at the answer. "Thank you."
What followed next was a pleasant hour long talk. Well, mostly listening for Leon, as he was updated on his nieces, nephews, their parents, and a good chunk of his family. He took a good number of notes, so he can remember who was into what stuff, and all of that. It was a bit emotional for him, since there was a constant bitter thought of I should know all of this. I should be there... and I would be there, if only you'd let me., but he kept his feelings in check.
At the end of that, his sister asked him something that made him chuckle a bit. He looked over his shoulder to make sure Claire wasn't around before answering. "Uh, no. I love Claire, but she and I aren't going to start a family any time soon." He chuckled ruefully. "Yeah, I know my birthday's next month. What's your point?" He smirked "Yeah, and those who are pushing forty should not throw stones, especially if they're aiming for us still 20-somethings."
He listened again for another moment, then took another look around to make sure he was still alone. "Well... I don't think a wedding will be soon soon in these parts, but if it happens, then it's definitely not as far off as the maybe kids." He kind of smiled a bit at that thought, but the voice on the phone broke him out of his daydream.
"Hmmm? ...Oh, yeah, I'll let you go." He snerked "Yeah, whatever, cockbite -- assmuncher -- fucktard -- dickholster..." He grinned "What can I say, my girlfriend is a very bad influence on me. 'Swhy I love her.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Love you too.
"Bye."
After he hung up the phone, he continued to sit outside for a while.
((Open-ish scene))
Currently, between his three sisters, Leon has 11 nieces and nephews, with a 12th on the way. Half of them he hadn't seen in a number of years, and the other half, he's never so much as laid eyes on. There was also probably a legion of brats spawned by his cousins to add to that number. He had never really given it much thought before, but ever since helping Claire babysit Tammie the other day, he had started to wonder what those kids were like right now. The fact that he didn't know, at all, was really eating at him.
Sure, he knew all their names, birthdays, and what not. He still sent out cards for appropriate holidays, but that only does so much. The older ones, who were 10, 9, 8 and 8 might remember him, and maybe hearing from him might mean something. But for the younger kids, most of whom probably can't even read the cards anyway, it's not like they'll care. Their Uncle Leon is just urban legend, or worse, a complete stranger. It's not like he's there to see them grow up, to talk to them, to play with them, to teach them proper choke holds, to cook for them, to babysit them.
He had to wonder how it was he got so utterly sheered off from the rest of his family. He understood why they didn't want him to become a cop, he wasn't the least bit insensitive to their pain. The death of his father hurt him too just as much as it did them. It was really their insistence that he was wrong about what he was doing and should quit that bothered him the most, though. He couldn't understand that.
Being a cop, well, federal agent now, was a dangerous job, yes, but it was an honest job, it was an honorable job. It was also a job Leon was that damn good at. And no matter how much pain it brought him, how much pressure it put him under, he still loved it, and wouldn't quit for anything. Not even for them.
He's not a self-righteous kind of guy, he doesn't care about being right or winning an argument. But don't tell him he's wrong when he knows he's not. He's a rather flexible guy, but he won't bend on that. And they won't bend from their stance. After a few major battles, though, it settled into a cold war.
When it comes to his family, though, he'd settle for a peace agreement. At least some kind of cease fire. Just for them to agree to disagree. They don't like his job? That's cool, just get over it and shut the fuck up about it already. For a moment, he actually thought about shouting that to his mother and the rest of his family (like he'd ever have the nuts to say that to them), then chuckled as he envisioned the next days headlines.
Tyrants? *Yawn* Ganados? Whatever. His mother when she was ticked off? That was something he sure as hell didn't want to run up against.
Anyhow...
All joking aside, he was still feeling like crap about the whole thing. He didn't talk to Claire about it, because he doesn't talk to Claire about his family. She never pressed him on it, and he couldn't bring himself to say "hey girl with only one living relative, come listen to me bitch about my large family whom I don't talk to because we're too busy being stubborn assholes". There was also no one else in his circle of friends with whom he felt comfortable enough to talk about this.
Still, just trying to ignore it was doing him no good. So maybe it was time he did something about it.
He went outside the beach house, bringing a pen, a pad, and his phone with him. He didn't wander far off, just sat in a chair out back, as he wasn't trying to avoid Claire, per se, but he did want some measure of privacy at the moment. He flipped the phone open and started punching in numbers, then changed his mind and erased it. He started entering a different set of numbers and hit enter.
He put the phone to his ear and waited, and when whomever picked up on the other end, he smiled. "Evenin' Lass." Yeah, Leon had called his sister Erin, and he grinned as he heard her response.
"Yeah, I know you only got that phone a few weeks ago... Tch, I'm Secret Agent Man, remember? ...Oh, shut up, I'm your little brother. It's not that creepy. But if you really want to be weirded out, just give me a minute to pull up your credit card statements from the last few months." He had to bite the inside of his mouth to keep from laughing.
"Oh, too late. I'm staring at them right now. And... hnn... You have a couple of charges here that need some explaining." Actually, he was looking at the ocean under the afternoon sun. And if it was afternoon in Hawaii, it must be late evening back on the east coast.
Finally, after too much awkwardness from the other end of the phone, he started chuckling for a bit. "Relax, I was just kidding. I'm not at work right now, I'm on vacation... No, if I got shot I would be on a desk job. This is an actual, you know, vacation. I do take one occasionally."
He shrugged in response to whatever was asked next, even though that doesn't work well over the phone. "Nah, I'm in Hawaii, just relaxing on the beach with my girlfriend. It's-- ...yes, I said girlfriend." He practically facepalmed right there. He never did tell anyone in his family that he was in a relationship now. It wasn't that he didn't want them to know... he just never talked to them. And given the high-pitched squeeing that came through the receiver, he might have wanted to keep his mouth shut.
"Yeah, it's serious."
He rolled his eyes a little and tilted his head in a 'yeah, yeah, whatever' fashion. "Fine, I'll tell you all about her, just shut up for a minute. ...Good.
Now, where to begin? "...I told you about that girl I met in Raccoon City? ...Um, no, not her--" Did Leon sound just a wee bit bitter there? "--the other one. ...Yeah, her, Claire.
"Well, about a year ago, maybe, she and I ran into each other again. We starting hanging out and then... uh..." What's a discreet way of saying 'we got fear gassed and slept together? Oh, yeah, there is none. "...one thing sort of led to another, and we started dating. ...Since the end of October."
Leon blinked. That was a good question. "Well, it's not like we talked all that long last time, and a certain other subject came up before I could mention her. That other subject a bit of a conversation killer..." There was a silence between them, punctuating Leon's point, which he just had to point out. "Yeah, see? Told ya."
He let out a sigh. "Anyway, I wanted to ask you something... about the kids. ...How are they?" He nodded and 'mmhmm'ed a bit. "That's good. I'm glad they're safe." He ran a hand through his hair. Why was asking a simple question suddenly so hard. "Could you... tell me about them? Like, what they're like, and what not? I mean, I haven't seen them in so long... I--
"Yeah, I miss them... I miss all you guys. ...yeah, yeah. I know. I know But can we not have that particular conversation right now?" He sighed in relief at the answer. "Thank you."
What followed next was a pleasant hour long talk. Well, mostly listening for Leon, as he was updated on his nieces, nephews, their parents, and a good chunk of his family. He took a good number of notes, so he can remember who was into what stuff, and all of that. It was a bit emotional for him, since there was a constant bitter thought of I should know all of this. I should be there... and I would be there, if only you'd let me., but he kept his feelings in check.
At the end of that, his sister asked him something that made him chuckle a bit. He looked over his shoulder to make sure Claire wasn't around before answering. "Uh, no. I love Claire, but she and I aren't going to start a family any time soon." He chuckled ruefully. "Yeah, I know my birthday's next month. What's your point?" He smirked "Yeah, and those who are pushing forty should not throw stones, especially if they're aiming for us still 20-somethings."
He listened again for another moment, then took another look around to make sure he was still alone. "Well... I don't think a wedding will be soon soon in these parts, but if it happens, then it's definitely not as far off as the maybe kids." He kind of smiled a bit at that thought, but the voice on the phone broke him out of his daydream.
"Hmmm? ...Oh, yeah, I'll let you go." He snerked "Yeah, whatever, cockbite -- assmuncher -- fucktard -- dickholster..." He grinned "What can I say, my girlfriend is a very bad influence on me. 'Swhy I love her.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Love you too.
"Bye."
After he hung up the phone, he continued to sit outside for a while.
((Open-ish scene))
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 06:51 am (UTC)"...Fuck..."
"Eh, just wanted to enjoy the sun a bit. It's foggy and terrible in London, and that shit gets old." She shrugs and leans up against the counter.
"What've you been up to? It's been awhile since we've chatted."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 07:30 am (UTC)He doesn't say anything response about London.
"I'm just enjoying my vacation. I needed to take some time off after that trip to Silent Hill. Clear my head out a little.
"Haven't seen you around much recently, though. Keeping busy?"
He headed over to the fridge and pulled out a soda. "Want anything?
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 07:40 am (UTC)Jill runs a hand through her hair. "Silent Hill, huh? Yeowch." She doesn't know all the details, other than it's Not Pleasant and she doesn't ever want to go there.
"And I've been keeping busy, yeah.... this right here is my mini-vacation." Jill tilts her head a bit and peers over at the fridge. "Is there any iced tea in there?"
Hmm, she's managed not to sneeze, amazingly! But she's all sniffly and congested, still. Fucking allergies.
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 07:56 am (UTC)He rummages through the fridge, thankful she didn't want to know more about Silent Hill, and, hey, there is iced tea. He pulls out the pitcher then moves to get her a glass.
"And what has Jill Valentine been up to that she deserves a mini-vacation? Aside from sneezing all over the place..."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 08:11 am (UTC)She smirks at Leon's question and steps aside so he can get to the cabinet the glasses are in. "Relocating, kicking drunks to the curb, dealing with family issues... oh, and I've become a part-time babysitter for a kitten."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 08:39 am (UTC)"Let me ask you something..." He poured her a glass of iced tea and handed it off to her. "Chris, Kevin, Claire... hell, even Wesker. What was everything like before..." He sort of handwaved "...all of this?"
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 09:11 am (UTC)"Thanks." Jill smiles and accepts the iced tea, sipping it. Hmm, needs a bit of lemon. She wanders over to the fridge and finds some lemon slices in a ziplock. Her smile falters a bit at Leon's question, but that's mostly because she's thinking. A grin returns to her lips.
"Back when I first joined up with Raccoon City's police force, I was always the one that got teased about being a rookie, even though I came straight outta Delta." She smirks and squeezes a bit of lemon juice into the tea. "Kevin was an instructor at the academy, and his antics were just as silly as they are now. I only met Claire once, briefly, when she came to visit Chris at the precinct. Wesker was really cold, distant... and damn good at his job, I deeply respected him; saved my ass more than once during the missions Alpha Team was on. He'd never lighten up, though he did come out with us to J's once."
Hokay, that's enough about Wesker. "Chris was... well..." Cue a lovestruck smile. "Horribly shy. He got all flustered and red in the face when I'd talk to him alone, but he'd always show off in front of the rest of the S.T.A.R.S. Always messy, too. You should've seen his desk."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 09:27 am (UTC)He shrugged and sipped his soda. "I always did wonder how I would've fit in there, if I ever had the chance."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 09:52 am (UTC)"I think you would've fit right in. Everyone was really excited to hear about the up and coming recruit at the academy, and were saying you'd make Alpha Team easily."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 08:59 pm (UTC)"I didn't know I was so popular. Guess I still managed to find my way into the STARS crew anyway."
no subject
Date: 2006-07-29 09:15 pm (UTC)"And now you outrank all of us, Mister Government Agent." She pauses, then looks over at Leon again. "You know, I was wondering... about your world. What happened there? What about the alternates of me, and Chris and everyone?"
no subject
Date: 2006-07-30 02:37 am (UTC)"I do have it noted that I should be alerted should any of your names pop up in the system, but thus far, whatever your counterparts have been doing, they've managed to stay off the government's radar."