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Chris isn't thrilled when he finds out that he's being called down to the lab. He's just back from mission, and he's really due some downtime – or at least a proper shower. But he's accosted nearly the second he steps into the building, still grimy and in his gear. Something is urgent.
So Chris sighs, comes to terms with the fact that his job is never done, and heads into the designated lab area. He's not sure if it's better or worse when he finds Piers also dragging himself down after Chris. Good, because Chris won't have to go through this mess alone and Piers is more than welcome company. But bad because it means this is at least a two-person mess.
Jill is at the entrance to the lab, looking grim-faced. Chris would be glad to see her under different circumstances. Ever since her run-in with Wesker, she has taken a more active role in the running of the BSAA rather than being in the field. Chris misses her. He's glad to have Piers at his side and is still friends with Sheva, but Jill is the one who started this road with him and he can't deny that it feels strange to not to be walking with her.
She gives him a kind of hapless shrug when she sees him that says that she didn't want to call him down but she didn't have a choice.
“What's up?” he asks her.
“We've got a 21-year-old version of Leon Kennedy in this lab,” Jill says, blunt to a fault.
“Excuse me?” Piers says, able to get his words together before Chris. That expression is still more articulate than what Chris would have managed 10 minutes from now.
“He was investigating a cell that was experimenting with using the viruses to create some sort of strain that results in permanent youth, immortality, that sort of thing,” Jill says. At least it's not their usual breed of monsters, but Jill's tone is implying that Chris might wish it was.
“Agent Kennedy got hit with some of it and,” she gestures to the room, “now he's 21 again. No memory of the present. Or almost the last 20 years.”
“All right,” Chris says, and he doesn't know if he should be proud of himself or not for being able to handle this so well. What he's hearing is truly shocking, but he's not sure he has a normal reaction to shock anymore. “Why are we here then? This seems like the sort of thing we have researchers for – to reverse this.”
Jill closes her eyes.
“The American government doesn't want us running any tests on Agent Kennedy,” Jill says. Chris can practically see the way she's trying not to grit her teeth. “They want him returned Stateside. But the group he was investigating knows they had some measure of success with him, and they're looking for him, so it's going to be a bit of a chore getting him home in one piece, considering that he's not really him.” She sighs. “And I know this might be unfair, Chris, but he still remembers Claire, so we thought he might be more receptive to you than anyone else. I can get someone else, but we have to keep this as under wraps as possible.”
He's annoyed on her behalf that the United States is risking Leon's safety just because they don't feel like trusting the BSAA. But Chris believes that Jill and everyone else has already argued with them at length, and this is just the way things are going to be.
“No,” Chris says. “We'll handle it.”
Jill nods.
“He thinks he's from Raccoon City,” Jill says, sounding tired. That all seems like a lifetime ago, but Chris is sure that it's digging up unpleasant memories for Jill even if she and Leon never ran into each other during that debacle.
“He looks like he's from Raccoon City too,” Jill says a little abruptly. Chris nods.
“You in?” Chris asks, glancing over at Piers, although he'd be surprised if Piers wasn't. And, sure enough, Piers just nods, so Jill leads them inside.
…
When they step through the door, Chris suddenly gets why Jill had emphasized Leon's looks. Chris hadn't expected to be this thrown off, but--
He had forgotten how devastatingly young 21 actually is. And he had forgotten how Leon had looked a particularly young 21, and that was in no small part because of how earnest and open Leon had been before life had properly gotten a hold of him.
Chris feels old. This is a more tangible measurement of his age than he would prefer.
Beside him, Piers isn't doing a good job of not gaping.
Leon is chatting amicably to the BSAA researcher who is watching over him – even if she's not so much as allowed to take a blood sample.
Leon smiles at the sight of Jill – just for the sake of being friendly, Chris realizes.
“Welcome back, Ms. Valentine,” Leon says, and he stands as she approaches him. Chris has to stop looking at Piers who looks like he's about to swallow his own tongue.
“Agent--” Jill starts to say. Leon is about to interject, but Jill corrects herself before he can speak: “Leon.” (Chris wonders how many times they've gone through that already.)
“Leon,” Jill says again, “this is Chris Redfield, Claire's older brother.”
Leon steps forward, a light smile on his face as if it's his default expression. He offers his hand to Chris.
“Nice to meet you, sir,” Leon says. “It was real good to hear that Claire made it through okay, although I didn't have any doubts. I was the lucky one to find her.” This is like interacting with a ghost for Chris. Although he doesn't think that Leon was quite this open when they met after Raccoon City. So much is going to happen to the boy in front of him.
“It's nice to meet you too, Leon,” Chris says, his voice a little stilted.
“Claire really looks up to you,” Leon says, making it seem like he understands where the admiration stems from. “She was probably the only one running into the city for someone.” He gives a bit of a warm laugh.
“She hasn't changed,” Chris answers, this part a little easier. Their mutual appreciation of Claire apparently transcends time. “More than a handful for everyone around her.”
Leon's smile warms genuinely.
“I bet,” he answers.
He turns his attention to Piers, then.
“And this is Piers Nivans,” Jill says, dutifully introducing him in turn. “He's a sniper who works closely with Chris. They're going to get you home.”
“Nice to meet you,” Leon says, going through the same motions with Piers, offering his hand. Piers nods, but still doesn't seem ready to trust his voice.
“Sorry about this,” Leon says after a moment, looking between the three of them. “This seems like an awful lot of fuss.”
“This is what we do,” Chris says reassuringly on instinct.
“We're going to move the three of you to a safe house for the night,” Jill says. “Chris and Piers will drive you to the rendezvous point with the Americans tomorrow, and they'll escort you and the DSO agents back to D.C.” She pauses. “Do you have any questions?”
Leon shakes his head.
“All right,” she says. “If you need anything, or particularly if you feel strange in anyway, please let Chris or Piers know. They're going to get cleaned up and they'll be back down with you in the hour.”
Leon nods again, agreeable to a fault.
…
When they're back outside the lab, Piers finally finds his voice. He pauses and looks suspiciously at Chris.
“This is a prank, right?” Piers asks. “You got me. Very good, captain.”
Chris snorts.
“I'm flattered you think I could pull off something this elaborate,” Chris answers.
“But,” Piers says, exasperated and obviously still trying to put his experience into words, “he's so... Were you like that when you were younger?”
Chris raises an eyebrow at Piers.
“No,” he reassures Piers, even though he's not particularly sure which part Piers is asking about. Chris had always had Claire to protect, and that had never allowed for the same sort of innocent brightness that Leon Kennedy had kicked off his career with.
“It feels almost wrong to know that legendary badass Leon Kennedy was once the boy next door,” Piers confesses.
“He's only about to start being a cop,” Chris says, not sure why he feels the need to explain Leon to Piers. “You know it takes good men to withstand this fight, and you know this fight still wears us down. And when he and I were getting started … we didn't know anything. Everything was a world-ending surprise. There wasn't infrastructure or weapons or people to fight them.” He would never say that the fight is easy now, but the BSAA had been around for Piers Nivans, a global consortium of people who are all fighting together and sharing the same knowledge.
Chris shrugs uncomfortably.
“A few thousands zombies, Tyrants, and Lickers have to change us somehow, you know?” And that's not to touch upon the endless betrayal and learning the real depths of how shitty humankind can be to each other.
“But, yeah,” Chris says after a moment, knowing that he also can't deny the point that Piers is making. “Leon was a real kid. He might kill you when he's back to normal to protect that national secret.” Chris grins. “Or we're at least going to have some real good blackmail material when this is all done.”
“Like his massive crush on you?” Piers shoots back.
Chris rolls his eyes.
“Now you're reaching, Nivans,” Chris responds.
“He blushed when he called you 'sir,'” Piers answers. When Chris doesn't say anything, Piers can't help but laugh a little. It's only recently that he's reached this level of comfort with Chris – China just put them through so much together.
“You really don't see it?” Piers asks, grinning at Chris. “You are getting old if you can't tell when someone's failing to hide a crush.”
“Watch it, kid,” Chris answers dryly. “I seem to remember a lot of blushing from you when you were 21.”
Piers shrugs, nonplussed.
“Well, yes,” he says. “I hero worshipped everyone around here, especially you.” Piers grins cheekily. “How do you think I know the signs?”
“Oh, fuck off and go get cleaned up,” Chris says, rolling his eyes at Piers – who shoots him a very snappy salute and answers, “Yes, sir.”
…
Piers comes back down to the lab once he's showered and isn't weighed down by 50 pounds of gear. He beats Chris back, so when he walks through the doors once again, it's just Leon. Despite his teasing conversation with Chris, he's still struck by how young Leon seems: he'd thought that he'd exaggerated it in his own mind during his moments away.
“Piers,” Leon says, smiling easily, as if they really know each other when, to Leon, they had just been introduced.
For a moment, Piers just doesn't know what to answer with. It doesn't feel natural to answer with “Agent Kennedy,” and, of course, that wasn't how Jill had introduced him. But it still does somehow feel too familiar to just call him Leon. But Piers figures that's probably what this version of Leon would prefer, so he decides to just go with it.
“Leon,” Piers answers amicably, hoping very much that Leon Kennedy isn't going to kill him when he does get back to normal. “You doing okay? Need anything?” He can only imagine how strange this is for him. Piers doesn't know how he would react if he found himself at the wrong age at the wrong time, but Piers at least has the benefit of having grown up during the age of BOWs. He's seen some truly odd things and he's spent the majority of his adult life fighting them. Leon has killed a zombie or two but doesn't even know where they came from and how they were made.
“I'm okay,” Leon reassures him – in a tone that indicates just about everybody has asked him that question since he arrived.
“I am sorry,” he says again. “I can only imagine what you just got back from – and now you have to babysit me instead of going home.”
Piers shrugs. He can't deny that the idea of getting to sleep in his own bed for a solid 8 hours is really appealing.
“This should go smoothly,” Piers answers. “And they'll likely put us in a nice safe house on account of you being an American agent.”
A flicker of something crosses Leon's face that Piers can't exactly explain.
“Do you know me?” Leon says a moment later with shy but serious intensity – Piers gets a glimpse of how that will grow, becoming the focus that Leon will be known for.
Piers hesitates, because he's not entirely sure how to answer.
“We've worked together a few times, yes,” Piers says. He thinks Leon would at least know his name from his affiliation with Chris and the Langshiang incident. He doesn't know, exactly, what else Leon could share, though.
“Probably everyone in our fields know of you, though,” Piers offers. He's not sure if this is the right thing to add, but it's hard to ignore. “A lot of your work has become case studies for training in the BSAA.” Certainly, whatever's been declassified and they all have to practically memorize the Kennedy Report, particularly with the continued interest in las plagas.
Leon's expression goes back to inscrutable – and that's far more familiar to Piers. A mask in the place of actual or uncertain emotion.
“Are Chris and I friends?” Leon asks a moment later, and Piers realizes that Leon is more trying to find solid footing in this time, to get a sense of himself as something other than an American agent who fights BOWs and corporate pharmaceutical companies – a touch point that is utterly outside of Leon's viewpoint of the world. He's searching for who he is, and Piers certainly can't tell him that. He's had drinks with Leon after missions, and they've both been at formal events together co-sponsored by the DSO and the BSAA. Piers doesn't think he's ever heard anything about Leon Kennedy, though, that wasn't associated with the job – he doesn't know where Leon grew up or if he has siblings. He figures that if Leon has a long-term partner or is married, it's a great state secret but it's still kind of a possibility.
“Um,” Piers says ineloquently. Chris has to know Leon better. But even he isn't really clear if their relationship edges out of work and into friendship.
Leon smiles sardonically while Piers fumbles.
“Not close then,” Leon supplies.
“I don't really know?” Piers says, trying to find a way to smooth over his mistake. “I mean, his personal life isn't really my business.” That's true, but he knows that he would easily describe him and Chris as friends now. He doesn't know everything about Chris Redfield's life, but he definitely knows a lot of the day-to-day stuff now – when Chris is worried about Jill or is happy that Claire is coming to visit a certain weekend.
Leon nods, but Piers still feels like he failed in giving Leon the answer he wants. He supposes it's natural to try and look for the connections to this life, and the BSAA isn't really able to give him any answers when it comes to anything beyond fighting BOWs.
“Chris and Claire both care about you a lot,” Piers says, feeling like he's reached the right thing to say. And Leon smiles a little, ducking his head down.
“It's probably weird that even though there's the time gap, he still seems exactly like what I imagined from what Claire told me,” Leon says.
“What?” Pier teases. “Larger-than-life hero?”
“Yeah,” Leon says laughing. “He looks like the sort of face you'd put on a campaign.”
“He's great to work for too,” Piers says, wrinkling his nose.
“Is he why you joined the BSAA?” Leon asks.
“Hell yes,” Piers says, grinning wide. “I was in the U.S. Army before this, and he came and recruited me. Been following him across the globe ever since.”
“That's good, at least,” Leon says. “I bet you need people in this kind of work.”
Chris walks through the door at that point, and Piers is saved from trying to find an answer to that for the lone wolf of their field.
Leon blushes again at the sight of Chris, and Piers grins wickedly. Chris pretends to ignore him.
“Come on,” Chris says instead, gesturing for them to follow him. And they do.
…
It's a bit of a drive to the safe house. It has a cottage-y sort of feel to it that Piers has to admit to taking an immediate shining to – he just appreciates the irony of the three of them staying in a place filled with doilies and the sort of crocheted blankets that Piers associates with grandmothers.
There are two bedrooms, one with a pair of full size beds, and the other with a single bed. Chris takes the single bedroom without consulting them, leaving Piers and Leon to be roommates. Piers doesn't mind.
“I'll take first watch,” Chris says, nodding at the pair of them. “Get some rest.”
Piers isn't going to argue with that. He and Leon retreat to lace-laden bedroom, change into standard BSAA sweatpants, and head to bed.
“You need anything?” Piers asks right before he turns out the light, and Leon Kennedy, age 21, shakes his head no.
…
Piers doesn't know how long he's been asleep, but he knows it's not long enough. He blinks groggily in the dark, trying to figure out what woke him. It doesn't take long for him to hear a second whimper.
He sits up in bed and is just able to make out Leon's form, tensed and practically thrashing in the bed next to him. A nightmare.
Perhaps he should have expected that. Leon had just seen his first zombie. That sort of thing tends to bleed into the subconscious.
Piers debates with himself for half a second, but then gets up and pads across the room to lay a hand on Leon's shoulder.
Leon jerks awake with a loud gasp, looking up at Piers with wide eyes.
“Sorry, sorry,” Leon says immediately. He hasn't even caught his breath.
“It's okay,” Piers says. “We all get 'em.”
He waits a moment, but Leon still looks shaken, so, uncertainly, Piers sits down on the edge of the bed and runs a hand up and down Leon's back. It's something he would never dare to do with the Leon Kennedy he knows. But the Leon Kennedy in front of him is still grappling with the fact that the dead can rise, he has to fight his way through a city of them, and apparently he's one of the few survivors of that carnage.
“Do you,” Piers says, still feeling almost stupid considering this is Leon, “want to talk about it?”
“They don't know what's happening, right?” Leon says, still hiding his face from Piers. “Everything that's human in them is gone by the time they've changed?”
“Yes,” Piers reassures him quietly. “They don't have conscious thought once they've changed.”
“I know I had to,” Leon says, practically in a whisper. “But I can't help but think that they were just people and I killed them. A lot of them. This isn't why I wanted to be a cop. I wanted to protect people. I wanted to help people.”
“You will,” Piers reassures him. “You do. It may not be the way you planned, but you've saved million of people the world over.”
“Do you ever get over killing them?” Leon asks, looking up at Piers with something akin to desperation in his eyes.
“Yes,” Piers admits, and he doesn't know if that's the answer that Leon wants. But it's the truth. “They seem less and less human the more you do it.” Particularly when they stop looking human all together.
Leon leans into Piers abruptly
“Is it okay if I hug you?” Piers asks quietly. He knows that's not something everyone would be comfortable with, but he also remembers the need to be close to other people after a mission when he first started – the way him and other newbies would still gravitate toward each other for a day or so after they were done, taking meals together and just sitting in the common areas, as if the nearness could fend off the horror of what they'd seen.
But Leon nods, so Piers gently leans in and does so. He feels some of the tension bleed out of Leon's body. He wonders who does this for the Leon of the present.
“I just still feel cold,” Leon says, half to himself and half to Piers. “It was raining and I was just freezing--” He cuts himself off, but Piers understands. There were things like that, sensations, that seemed to exist to hook you solely back into the worst of memories. After the underwater lab, some sounds brought Piers right back there: running water and footsteps through water.
“Sorry,” Leon says again, self-deprecatingly this time. “This must seem stupid to you with everything you've seen.”
“No,” Piers reassures him immediately. “I mean, I'd be more worried about someone who doesn't get nightmares after the things we see. I meant it when I said that we all get them. Chris too. If one of us has a bad one and we're staying overnight someplace together, we'll usually just turn on the first sports game we can find, and we watch that together even if we don't know all the rules. We were really into pairs skating for a bit.”
Piers can just see how Leon's mouth edges into a smile. Piers get too bold. His brain tells him to shut up at that point, but he keeps going anyway.
“Right after I joined in the BSAA, the rookies and I would all watch cheesy porn together after we got back from a tough mission,” Piers says. Leon looks up at him, bemused, and it's way too late to stop by then.
“We'd turn the noise off and do like voiceovers,” Piers says. “To be funny, you know?”
Leon makes an incredulous noise.
“It wasn't like--” Piers says, aware that this isn't the sort of memory that easily translates to everyone, “it wasn't like a sexual thing.”
“Oh?” Leon asks, and Piers can sees he's teasing. “All you big BSAA boys just hung out while thinking about cock together but it wasn't sexual?”
Piers barks out a laugh before he can stop himself. There's something delightfully obscene about hearing the word “cock” come from the mouth of the nearly delicate-looking boy in front of him. He can also see that being a comment that the Leon he knows would say very passingly and dryly before anyone exactly knew what he had said.
Leon smiles more earnestly, obviously pleased with getting Piers to laugh.
“Maybe it was only pussy on pussy,” Piers challenges.
“Liar,” Leon says without hesitation. His eyes drop to Piers' mouth.
It's like a physical touch. Heat flashes throughout Piers, and he inhales sharply enough that they both hear it. Leon's eyes move back to Piers, and Piers can practically see the self-doubt and embarrassment that takes over his expression. Leon starts to pull away.
“No, sorry--” Piers fumbles. If this had been a normal situation, and he'd only just met this version of Leon, there would be no problem or hesitation on Piers' part – although this Leon is a little young compared to Piers, which is a situation he never thought he'd be on the other end of.
And Leon actually does pause, watching Piers in the relative dark, all of his vulnerability still shining like a light.
“I don't know if this is something you would want to have happened when you're you again,” Piers admits. Piers is trying to run through the scenario of what will happen when the regular, intimidating, agile badass Leon Kennedy comes back to himself only to find out that he slept with Piers in a moment of uncertainty. He really has no idea how that situation was track.
Leon is quiet for a moment. Piers expects him to nod, maybe apologize again, and then they'll both go back to bed and pretend this didn't happen in the moment.
Instead, Leon quietly answers, “I think he'd be insulted that you didn't trust me to know what I want.”
Piers doesn't have the words for the way that sentiment blazes through him. It's beyond what he would have expected, and it delights him. His brain stalls in trying to come up with another argument.
“Yeah, okay,” Piers says, licking his lips nervously.
“Yeah?” Leon breathes back, and it's an actual question – he genuinely wants to make sure that this is okay with Piers. And Piers nods.
So Leon closes the distance between them again, rests one hand against Piers' jaw, and leans in to kiss him. Leon's mouth is soft against his, still a press of a question in so many ways. But as soon as that Piers has that bit of contact, he needs more.
He braces a broad hand against the back of Leon's neck and pulls him closer, kissing him with a firm insistence. He nips at Leon's lower lip before licking his way into his mouth, and he can hear the faint, unsteady breath that Leon takes. Leon gives to him and moves his hands down, sliding along Piers' back. Leon presses into the planes of muscles as if reading Piers' body, dragging his hands down and then forward to rest on Piers' hips. He traces the stark lines he finds there.
Piers is already burning up. He wishes he could be embarrassed about this.
He crowds Leon forward onto the bed, and Leon goes back willingly. He sprawls out on the bed, tugging Piers in after him, keeping a hold on his hips. Leon spreads his legs and slots Piers in between them. Leon rolls his hips slowly up against Piers', and Piers forgets how to breathe, let alone kiss.
Piers gapes down at Leon. Leon is flushed but also pleased with himself if the crooked tilt of his mouth is anything to go by.
“Okay?” Leon breathes, and Piers nods stupidly.
Leon continues the rolling motion of his hips then, Piers rapidly hardening from the friction of their dicks pressed together the fabric of their sleeping pants. Piers moans softly, eyes fluttering shut.
He finally starts to catch up with what's happening. He grinds himself down against Leon, delighting in the sound he draws out of him. He runs his hands hungrily down Leon's sides, amazed by how soft his skin is – still utterly scar free. He moves his left hand down to brace Leon's thigh, and he bring his right hand back up. He takes a good handful of Leon's hair (which is just as soft as everyone's always discussed) and mouths at Leon's neck. Leon's pulse flutters beneath his neck.
“Are you warm now?” Piers breathes into Leon's ear, and Leon hiccups out an affirmative noise. He grabs Piers' ass with both hands, pulling Piers more firmly down against him in a way that makes Piers grin.
He scrapes at Leon's neck with his teeth and then relinquishes his hold on that hair only so that he could push their sweatpants down a little. They don't have another change of clothes, after all.
Leon whines on the new skin-on-skin contact, his hips bucking up unevenly.
“There you go,” Piers breathes. He wishes this could last, but he also knows that Leon needs the release more than the tenderness – he needs the rush of connection and closeness with another human being while feeling his own heart hammering away with elation rather than fear.
So Piers kisses Leon again and starts pinching at one of Leon's nipples, unsurprised when Leon moans beneath him at the sensation. Leon's starting to lose that fluid rhythm he had so effortlessly taken Piers apart with.
They rut furiously against each other until Leon seizes up underneath Piers and comes. Piers pulls back just enough so that he can see Leon's face – the way those eyelashes flutter against his reddened cheeks. He bites at his own lip and still can barely contain the noises he's making. Piers comes immediately after, pleasure curling all the way down to his toes.
For a moment, they're just still together. Piers lowers himself down against Leon, resting his head on his chest and listening to the sound of his heart as it begins to slow to a normal beat. Leon gently presses one hand against Piers' back, spanning his shoulder blades as if he still needs to touch as much of Piers as possible.
“You okay?” Piers asks.
And Leon sleepily murmurs yes. When he falls asleep a few minutes later, breathing evenly and calmly, Piers can't bring himself to extract his body from the bed. So, he falls asleep right there with Leon.
…
When he goes to relieve Chris from watch, he feels like Chris has to know. Chris does raise an eyebrow as Piers tries to pretend to be normal with him, but he doesn't press. Mercifully, Chris just heads to bed, leaving Piers to his own thoughts.
And they're swirling thoughts, continuously taking him back to what had played out: he thumbs over each moment again and again, aroused and overwhelmed that he actually just had sex with Leon Kennedy. Yet, he's still deeply concerned that the Leon Kennedy of the present will remember this and decide to kick Piers' ass 20 more years into the future.
It's really hard to focus. He doesn't know if it's good or bad that they're unlikely to have a real threat. A viable risk would keep him more focused at least.
It's almost a relief when Leon wanders out of the bedroom, looking beautifully sleep mussed. Piers tries not to stare, but when Leon smiles a little, Piers realizes he likes the attention.
“Have you eaten?” Leon asks, and Piers shakes his head mutely. Leon heads to the small kitchenette the cottage has and proceeds to make him some eggs and toast.
“How do you take your coffee?” Leon asks.
“Just black,” Piers answers, and Leon shoots him a look that says he's amused by that response, but Piers doesn't know why. Leon brings their breakfast over to Piers, and they sit in amicable silence at the tiny kitchen table. Leon swings those long legs underneath the table, purposefully bumping into Piers, hooking his ankles every now and then.
“Tease,” Piers eventually accuses, reaching down to grab Leon's ankle. And Leon just grins in that self-pleased way that Piers thinks he's going to miss. Leon pushes his chair back and walks over to Piers to drop himself in his lap.
“Would a tease do this?” Leon asks, ghosting a kiss over Piers' mouth.
“Yes,” Piers answers, but he's laughing. Still grinning, Leon leans in to kiss him properly, sucking lazily on Piers' lower lip. Piers shivers and grabs hold of Leon's hips, needing some way to hold onto him. All of his worry evaporates again. There's just a lightness to this Leon that is addictive, and Piers can't help but linger in it as long as he can. It won't last.
Piers shoves a hand down the front of Leon's pants, his fingertips teasing the base of Leon's dick.
“We should head back to the bedroom,” Piers murmurs against Leon's mouth. “Unless you want Chris to walk in on us.”
There's no denying the way that Leon's dick twitches in interest.
“I knew it,” Piers says, triumphant. Leon just laughs, not trying to deny anything, although he's a beautiful shade of red.
Piers grabs Leon more solidly by his hips and manhandles him into the position he wants. He angles the chair so that it's facing the door to Chris' bedroom, and he brings Leon's back to his chest, so that Leon is also facing the door. He uses his legs to spread Leon's and slides his sweats down just a little so that Piers can palm at his erection.
“Is that what you want?” Piers asks teasingly, breathing the words right into Leon's ear. He starts to slowly stroke Leon, thumbing at the head of his cock.
“Do you want big hero Chris Redfield to come out here and see you?” Piers teases. He watches Leon's throat bob, and Leon squirms in his lap, giving him a wonderful amount of friction for his own dick.
“What if I do?” Leon asks, turning his head so he can scrape his teeth along Piers' sharp jawline. “Would that make you jealous?”
“Hell no,” Piers breathes back. He begins to stroke Leon with more purpose, watching the way his eyelashes flutter against his skin.
Behind Chris' closed door, his phone starts ringing. Leon gasps raggedly, and Piers goes all out, twisting his hand roughly up and down.
“Better hurry up,” he encourages in Leon's ear.
“You're the one who'll get in trouble,” Leon answers, gasping. Piers doesn't disagree with that – and some part of his rationale brain knows that it's not likely that Chris would love this situation, especially because it's a strong reflection of Piers' impulsiveness.
And still, Piers doesn't stop.
“Hello?” they can hear Chris say, his voice deep and gravely with sleep. Leon moans, and Piers claps a hand over his mouth. If Chris heard him, there's no immediate way for them to know.
Leon is moving desperately in Piers' lap, bucking his hips up into Piers' touch, his ass bouncing back down against Piers.
They can't hear the nuance of whatever Chris is saying – just the deep burr of his voice. Leon is starting to tighten and arch in Piers' lap. He gives Leon one more stroke, and then Leon is coming, spilling himself into Piers' grasp, and crying into his other hand.
Piers grabs a napkin off the table, wipes his hand on it, and then knocks Leon up with the strength of his thighs. He pulls Leon's sweats back up and drops him down into the chair next to him. Leon still looks mussed and overwhelmed – and a tiny bit flushed – but there's certainly nothing definitively telling when Chris does, indeed, step out of his bedroom. He does pause to look at the two of them.
“Leon made eggs,” Piers supplies. Leon nods, apparently not ready for words yet.
“There's been a change with the rendezvous,” Chris supplies. “We've been told to hold here for the time being.”
“Is everything okay?” Piers asks, immediately switching back into soldier mode.
“Jill doesn't know,” Chris says. “She says her DSO contact was acting strange, but that he wouldn't give her any additional information.”
“Great,” Piers groans. Rarely does an American secret spell something good for them.
“Keep your guard up,” Chris says. He heads into the kitchen to grab himself a cup of coffee, apparently decided that he's up for the day now.
“You okay?” he asks after a moment, glancing at Leon.
“Yes,” Leon says, apparently having regained his voice.
…
The rest of the day drags. None of them are really made for being still like this. They pass the day taking walks outside and playing card games and finding old movies on the television. Chris takes a nap in the late afternoon, but the fun seems to have left with the reminder of a credible danger.
Piers makes them a decent pasta for dinner, and they're back to playing cards again when there's a knock at the door.
Chris is up immediately, gun in hand.
“Keep on him,” Chris instructs Piers, who shifts in front of Leon to block him from the door while Chris goes to answer it. He stands adjacent to it so that his figure can't be seen through the glass, one hand balanced on the knob.
“Who's there?” he asks.
“Captain Redfield, this is DSO Agent Alan Pearson. I'm here with DSO Agent Evelyn Mears. We've been sent to retrieve Agent Kennedy.”
Chris looks down the hallway, making eye contact with Piers. He mouths: Call Jill. Piers keeps one hand on his gun as he grabs the phone with the other.
“You have your badges on you, agents?” Chris asks.
“I'm holding them up to the door's glass right now, Captain,” Pearson answers. “I know this isn't what was discussed, but we were concerned about information leaking regarding Kennedy's extraction. I can get you whatever reassurance you want that we're here to get him home safely. We're all on the same side here.”
Jill picks up on the other end.
“We've got visitors,” Piers says, low and fast. “Saying they're DSO agents here for Leon.”
There's only the barest hint of a pause.
“We haven't been told that,” Jill says. “Proceed with extreme caution. I'll leave it up to you whether the three of you want to go with them, but do not give Leon up by himself.”
“Understood,” Piers says. He puts the phone onto the table, still on, so that Jill will be able to hear some of what is happening in the room.
“Stay behind me,” Piers warns Leon. He looks back toward Chris, and he can see the way that Chris is wavering, already having landed on the same decision as Jill and Piers. It feels good, at least, that they're so effortlessly on the same page without the need to communicate.
Chris unlocks the door and takes a step back.
The man pushes it open and sticks his head in slowly first, holding his hands up.
“We worked together in Egypt about a year ago,” Pearson supplies. Piers realizes that he does recognize the man from that mission. It provides him some relief.
Chris nods, obviously recognizing him as well.
Pearson finishes stepping inside and then holds the door open for the woman behind him.
“This is Agent Mears,” Pearson provides. “She's only recently been promoted into the DSO, so it's unlikely you've worked with her before.”
“Hello gentlemen,” she says, nodding at Chris and then Piers.
The atmosphere loosens a bit more, although neither Chris nor Piers relinquishes their guns.
“You want to tell me why we couldn't have had a word you were coming?” Chris gripes. He gestures for them to head inside, keeping them in front of him and Piers at all times.
Piers looks briefly over at Leon to see how he's dealing with this. He has an open frown on his face, looking entirely at the woman. That expression pulls something at Piers' instincts.
“What is it?” he asks quietly.
“I know her,” Leon says, brow furrowing. Piers is surprised by that. Leon hasn't remembered anybody yet.
“You work--” Piers starts to supply, but Leon cuts him off.
“No,” Leon says. “She was in the lab that I woke up in.” At first, Piers thinks that Mears must have gone in with Leon, but then he remembers, quite clearly, that Leon had been alone on this mission. If Mears was in the lab, she wasn't supposed to be.
Piers raises his handgun and focuses it on her.
“Get back,” he warns her.
“Captain,” Pearson protests, looking to Chris. But Chris is unfaltering in his trust of Piers. He raises his gun as well.
“You heard him,” Chris says. “This isn't happening without proper orders, and it's not happening with you two.”
“You're making a mistake,” Pearson warns.
“Yeah,” Chris says without any concern. “I've been known to do that. He's still not going with you.”
Mears rolls her eyes. And throws a flash grenade.
In the ringing light, Piers clamps down on one of Leon's wrists, keeping hold of him as he waits for his vision and hearing to come back.
Leon is pulled from his grasp before that happens.
Piers stumbles forward, back toward the door. His body is racing with fear and nervous energy, the dampening of his senses only feeding back on that. It's almost impossible to stay calm, even though that's what he's been trained to do in a situation like this.
It feels like actual days before he can see anything again. A pair of red brake lights bob down the driveway.
“Chris!” Piers shouts. Behind him, Chris grabs the keys to the Jeep, and they throw themselves into the car, Chris driving. He floors it, immediately, the car jerking as Chris urges it to keep up with Leon.
Piers steadies himself and then leans out the window to work on shooting the tires of the car. He breathes out and shoots at the rear right tire. He feels a grim sense of satisfaction as he watches it go. The car in front of him fishtail wildly, and as it completes its pendulum swing, one of the back doors opens, and Piers watches, openmouthed, as Leon flings himself out of the car.
“That seems on brand!” Piers shouts to Chris.
“Hold on!” Chris warns. The car in front of them jams on its brakes, and the front of Chris' Jeep collides with it. The car pops and hisses around them as Piers takes stock of himself, realizing that he's fine.
“Go find him,” Chris commands, flinging the driver's side door open so that he can advance on the two people still in the car.
Piers does as he's told and runs into the dark of the night.
“Leon!” he says urgently. He has to be okay. Jumping out of cars has to be nothing for Leon Kennedy, 21 or not.
“I'm here,” a voice calls back, sounding a little wobbly. Piers scrambles through the trees until he finds Leon, still splayed on the ground. His hands are bleeding and it looks like the knees are torn out of his jeans, but other than that, he looks okay.
“Are you all right?” Piers asks. Leon nods.
Piers sighs out a heavy breath. Unable to help himself, and definitely knowing this is not the right time, he kneels so that he can take Leon's face in between both of his hands and kisses him.
“Oh,” Leon says lightly, as if he's still surprised.
Overhead a chopper roars, lights scouring the ground. Backup, no doubt, courtesy of Jill Valentine.
“We're holding here until Chris comes to get us,” Piers decides.
They do, sitting in the dark together, and listen as the BSAA arrives to help Chris. There's a very brief clatter of gunfire during which Leon tenses. Shortly after that, Chris and a medic come to retrieve them and bring them back to the now very brightly lit area where the two cars remain.
Both Pearson and Mears are gone. The medic pulls Leon aside and begins to clean his hands as Chris and Piers move to debrief.
“Pearson was the reason the Americans called off the meeting in the first place,” Jill says, tired, on the phone they hand to Chris and Piers. “They knew there was likely someone within the DSO who was working with the terrorist cell, but they couldn't figure out who, so they just pulled the plug all together without telling us anything. 'Mears' was one of the scientists working on the virus Leon is infected with.” She pauses and adds, “The DSO sends their thanks.” Her tone says everything about what she wants to tell the Americans to do with their thanks.
“They're going to send a team of agents here to get information from Mears and figure out how to cure Leon,” Jill says. “So just hang tight with him.”
“Got it,” Chris says. “We'll talk to you later, Jill.”
Chris' gaze goes automatically to where Leon is chatting amicably with the medic, not showing a single sign of emotional distress of having been kidnapped. Piers looks back from Leon to Chris. He sees an expression on Chris' face that he's never seen before – an emotional vulnerability that comes close to what Piers has seen when Claire is around and in danger. But it's not quite that.
“You like him,” Piers says bluntly.
Chris snorts.
“He's one of my oldest friends,” Chris says. “Sometimes we do get along and like each other. And right now, he needs a little more protection than normal – you may have noticed.”
“You want him,” Piers corrects.
“Everybody wants Leon,” Chris says, somehow sounding dismissive even while confirming Piers' accusation. Piers is blown away by it. When Chris sees Piers' face, he seems to immediately regret his response though. He rolls his eyes.
“We're not having this conversation,” Chris says.
“Too late,” Piers replies. “Why didn't anything happen when you were that age then?”
“Christ, Piers,” Chris says, exacerbated. “I thought he was going to end up with my sister, all right? I was 25, and he was gorgeous, smart, and capable, and I was hoping that he and Claire would get out of this mess and do the two-kids-and-a-dog, apple pie life.”
He pauses, seems about to stop, but then keeps going anyway.
“You keep waxing poetic about how young and innocent Leon over there is,” Chris says. “I've known him since he was that age, and I've watched as our work stripped all of that out of him. And it makes me sad, Piers, and I can't say a damn thing about it or even acknowledge it, because Leon already knows how different he turned out than who he would have been. So, he needs people who don't know or people who will just stand there and ignore it and tell him he's strong and good, because he thinks he lost everything about him that is strong and good. Even though he is still strong and good and saved the world so many times because of it.
“So, yeah, it's been a slap in the face to see him at 21 again and to realize that I missed him. Everything's too late now, though,” Chris says, sounding tired. “They'll cure him and he'll be back to normal, and he'll feel weird about this. That last thing he needs is for me to add anything to that – I'm twice his age now.”
Piers does feel a little bad for pressing.
Even then: “He wants you too,” Piers says quietly. “The age thing is definitely not a problem.”
Chris looks sharply at him.
“We've talked about it?” Piers says, with a shrug that gives away just exactly how and when he and Leon were having this discussion.
“I think this whole time,” Piers says finally, words a little more measured and considering, “he's been looking for who his people are in this time. And I think that's been the hardest part for him – we don't know, and it's probably because he doesn't have any. And maybe I am overstepping, but 21-year-old Leon Kennedy definitely wants you to be one of his people, regardless of what age you are. And who can blame him? If you had woken up at the age of 25 and had just been stepping into this shit, and there had been a gorgeous older Agent Leon Kennedy who could protect you and you know already cared about you in some capacity, wouldn't you want him to take care of you too?”
Chris' face goes faintly red at that last sentiment, and Piers wonders if he just unwittingly gave Chris some sexual fantasy.
“Just get him over to the hotel,” Chris says finally. “I'll finish up here and catch up with you.”
“All right,” Piers relents, figuring there's no point in pressing this any further. He's made the points he's wanted to make, and he knows there isn't much he can do to change Chris' mind now.
So, Piers heads over to collect Leon, who smiles when he sees him, and they load up in a BSAA car to head to the hotel that has been assigned to them.
…
“Well that was invigorating,” Leon says, teasing, once they walk through the door of their hotel room. Piers makes an amused sound.
At first, he was amused that Leon seemed to be handling the whole kidnapping scenario with such a laissez-faire attitude. Now, he can't help but wonder if this was how Leon coped for so long so everyone just assumed that he was okay until it was glaringly obvious that he wasn't – and then it was too late to really do anything.
He has no idea how to begin tackling that. It's not really his place. And telling this Leon that isn't really going to make any difference.
“Yeah, well,” Piers says, “People are shitty in all situations. Zombie apocalypses included.” He pauses and looks over at Leon. “You sure you're okay?” It's something he would have never dared press if the Leon he knew had already said he's fine – he's pretty it's something no one would press.
Leon softens again and smiles faintly.
“Kiss me again?” Leon suggests.
“I can do that,” Piers answers, grinning, because honestly, the idea of getting closer to Leon and feeling that he's okay is pretty reassuring to Piers.
Leon gestures Piers forward, and Piers feels that familiar simmer of heat in his gut. He just loves how Leon is simultaneously so self-assured and shy at the same time. It's the sort of strange confidence that comes with youth.
Piers closes the distance between them. He takes Leon's face into his hands and kisses him slow and filthy, laying worship to that mouth. Leon absolutely melts. He hooks his fingers into Piers' back, and Piers presses closer, just kissing Leon. He sucks and bites at Leon's lower lip, pausing only when they're both breathless. Piers presses his forehead against Leon's and just stays there for an extra minute.
When he pulls away just enough to get a glimpse of Leon, Leon's pupils are blown huge and his mouth is swollen and red. It's a good look on him. His gaze lingers, letting Leon know that he's admiring him as he steps back to begin removing his clothes. He's careful and takes his time with the shirt because of Leon's bandaged hands. He litters Leon's collarbone with kisses as his hands drop down to undo the button and zipper of Leon's jeans.
He drops to his own knees as he pulls those off of Leon, minding Leon's scraped knees. He raises one of Leon's feet after another to pull off the pants, Leon balancing without even thinking about it. He watches Piers with a humid expression.
When Piers has Leon naked, he presses a kiss to the inside of Leon's calf. He can hear the shaky breath that Leon takes. He runs his lips up along Leon's legs, taking his time to bite gently at the inside of Leon's thighs.
“Jesus Chris,” Leon whispers. Piers smirks, gets comfortably onto his own knees, and then slides his mouth around Leon's cock. He takes a handful of each of Leon's hips, listening to the ragged gasp Leon takes. One of his hands goes to Piers' shoulder, the other to the back of his head, although his touch is a little tentative.
Piers sets to work ruining Leon. He runs his tongue along the thick vein running the bottom of his dick, pulling back only to sink back down. Honestly, it doesn't take much to get Leon moaning, his hips twitching forward against Piers. Leon's fingers dig into Piers' scalp.
Piers has half a mind to bring Leon off like this.
But when he's got Leon balancing on the edge, Leon gasps out, “Fuck me, please.” And Piers would be a fool not to obey that.
So, he gets back up, and Leon pulls him flush against him. Leon kisses him with sloppy urgency as he goes about the task of undressing Piers. He drags his fingers down Piers' chest and stomach once his shirt is gone, and Piers sucks in a sharp breath.
They tumble down onto one of the beds, and Leon divests Piers of his pants, leaving them both naked finally.
“Much as I want to fuck you,” Piers says, luxuriating in the feel of Leon's body pressed up against him, so much more skin than he's seen any other time, “I don't think we have everything we need.”
Leon grins at him and then twists to grab his pants again and procures a bottle of lube as if it's nothing. Piers stares, utterly at a loss for when Leon could have picked that up but not about to argue in the face of such a miracle.
“Show me that beautiful ass then,” Piers teases, smacking what he can reach of it.
Leon laughs even as he turns bright red. He dips up to kiss Piers once more before flipping to get on his hands and knees. Piers pulls away, regretting the distance between their bodies even as he's enjoying the view.
He pours the lube over his fingers and then reaches in between Leon's legs. He teases first, running his fingertips just over the furl of muscle before actually penetrating him with a finger. Leon shivers, and Piers watches the motion ripple down his body.
Piers leans in to press a kiss to Leon's shoulder and then runs his mouth up to Leon's ear.
“Beautiful,” Piers whispers again and begins to rock that single finger in and out of Leon. Leon grows a deeper shade of red, but Piers can see that he's smiling.
He works a second finger inside of Leon, and it's not long before Leon has spread his legs a little more and is pressing back into each one of Piers' thrusts. He's making beautifully breathy sounds that make Piers wonder if he could come just like this.
Before either of them get the chance to find out, the door unlocks and opens. Chris is saying something as he walks through, but the noises never become actual words for Piers, who freezes.
“Chris,” he manages to say.
Of course, it's that moment that Leon comes, groaning and grinding himself back against Piers' fingers, spilling himself all over the bed.
And then all three of them are left with the agony of staring at each other, trying to figure out what's going to happen next.
Chris gets his wits about him first. He looks away and shields them from view with a hand.
“Sorry,” he says, trying to sound as if this is you know, just the sort of thing that happens. “I should have knocked.” He moves to step outside of the room and shut the door again.
“Chris,” Piers says again. At the same time, Leon says, “Stay.”
Chris drops his hand and looks at Leon with frank astonishment. Leon looks back at him with stubborn determination, not giving way now that he's voiced what he wants.
Chris wavers there for a moment. And then, slowly, seeming as if he's still not sure he's making the right decision, he steps into the room and shuts the door.
Piers can feel the breath that Leon takes. Everything takes on an edge that Piers doesn't exactly know what to do with. Everything between him and Leon had been playful at heart. Piers pulls back for a moment, and Leon goes up onto his knees, kneeling on the bed, and gesturing for Chris to come to him.
Chris, still seeming almost shy, does, and Leon takes his face in between both hands and kisses him slowly, with an almost sort of reverence. They linger like that, Chris' hands hanging at his sides as if he doesn't yet dare to touch Leon even though he's already stepped over the threshold.
Leon grins faintly when their lips part. He pushes gently on Chris' chest.
“Go sit,” he says, nodding toward the other bed in the room. And Chris does.
“And who told you to stop?” Leon says, turning to look at Piers, his grin turning more wicked.
“Who said you were in charge?” Piers asks, amused that Leon has so effortlessly taken control of the room and, particularly, Chris, who is the most natural leader Piers has ever met in his life.
“Do you have any complaints?” Leon asks with a raised eyebrow. Piers doesn't, not really. Still, he grabs at Leon and pulls him forward so that they collide again. Leon laughs and goes down with Piers, but then instantly tries to pin Piers, as if to prove he is in charge. They tussle for a bit, the bed not really allowing for the sort of movement they're both capable of.
And Piers suspects that Leon lets him pin him. He ends up in between Leon's legs, both of Leon's wrists over his head in one of Piers' hands. Leon tilts his hips forward as if in offering. Obediently, Piers slips his dick between Leon's legs, but only lets the head catch on Leon's rim without sliding in. He teases like that for a few seconds, thrusting in between Leon's cheeks without ever penetrating him.
Leon looks up with him, eyebrow still raised – telling Piers that Leon can win this game if he wants to. Piers doesn't doubt it. But he's not in the mood to truly tease. He can feel the bandages on Leon's knees on the side of his hips, and, mostly, Piers just wants.
So, he slows and sinks himself properly into Leon, watching as Leon's mouth drops open and his eyes close for an instant. He allows himself to be lost in the sensation, and something like pride burns in Piers' chest at seeing the expression that he caused.
Leon adjusts himself, wrapping his legs fully around Piers' hips, allowing Piers to sink in a little deeper. Piers groans faintly.
They're still together like that for a moment, simply connected to each other. And it allows Piers a moment of heartache, because the boy under him isn't made to last. Piers is already missing him and he's not even gone.
The thought evaporates almost as soon as it arrives. Leon starts rocking his hips, and Piers is pulled back into the urgent heat of his body. He doesn't want to take his time with this, and he doubts that Leon does either. So, Piers just grabs onto his hips, pulls almost all the way out, and then pushes back in. The action punches a noise out of Leon that is positively sinful.
They both start moving then – a race as they work to undo each other, Piers punching his hips forward with everything he has and Leon pushing right into everyone of his thrusts, giving as good as he's getting. He grins savagely at Piers. Piers laughs and gives up some of his leverage to lean in and kiss Leon, their teeth clacking together.
Leon's breathless when Piers pulls away, clearly beginning to lose some of his upper hand. He starts to make fucked-out little noises, closing his eyes and biting at his lower lip as his dick hardens in between them again.
Piers wishes he could last to see Leon tip over again while he's inside him, but it's too much – he's been too hooked into everything Leon has done, and he's practically drunk on him now. His thrusts become uneven and after a few more, Piers groans raggedly and comes. Leon shivers underneath him, the heels of his feet digging into Piers' ass.
It takes everything in him not to just collapse on top of Leon.
Leon kisses him slowly, instead, like he's teaching Piers how to breathe again. Piers melts against him and just when he least expects it, Leon flips them – clearly just to prove that he can. Piers laughs into Leon's mouth, and Leon draws back and looks pleased with himself, his hair an absolute mess.
He pulls off of Piers, and Piers watches him go with interest. Moving more gracefully than should be allowed, Leon moves off the bed and heads over to where Chris is seated. He's red-faced and still seems a little awkward about this whole thing. Piers can't exactly blame him.
Leon is at ease with the situation, though, easily opening up to them both in a way that makes Piers ache again.
Leon loops his arms around Chris' shoulders and leans in to kiss him slowly, and this time, Chris puts his hands on Leon's hips. His fingers massage gently at the skin there, and Leon shifts subtly underneath the touch.
Leon says something, low and teasing, and Piers doesn't catch it, but whatever he says spurs Chris on. Chris reaches up to grip the back of Leon's neck and pull him more forcefully down, kissing him as if he's afraid he'll disappear now. Leon laughs, delighted, into the kiss.
He reaches down and undoes Chris' jeans, leaving him otherwise clothed, and then straddles his lap. Piers simply admires the view, that pert ass on display once again. Leon grinds down against Chris, and Chris groans, failing to stifle the sound. Leon's mouth is flush against Chris' ear and Piers can only imagine what Leon is saying to him, because, somehow, the red on Chris' face grows redder.
Chris nods to Leon, and Leon shifts, bringing himself up onto his knees for a moment. And then he lowers himself slowly, impaling himself on Chris' dick. Chris groans and Leon rolls his shoulders with pleasure until he bottoms out. Chris' hands return to Leon's hips, grip so tight that Leon will certainly have bruises on his hips tomorrow.
Leon rolls his hips a few times before Chris takes over: he keeps a hold on Leon and starts to fuck upward, driving Leon sharply upward with each thrust. Leon makes a low keening noise and buries his face into Chris' neck, simply holding on.
Leon gets louder the longer they go, the sound of skin on skin an almost obscene underlying sound. When Leon is close to coming, Chris slows, just grinding into him. He grabs Leon gently by the back of his head and angles him so that Chris can be the one to whisper in his ear this time. Piers, again, has no idea what's being said, but Leon bites his lip and nods, looking almost as if he's in pain from the amount of pleasure he's in.
Chris pauses for a breath after he's spoken and then jerks his hips up hard, and Leon comes, practically sobbing in Chris' lap. Chris follows immediately afterward, moaning and trying to stifle himself by biting down on Leon's shoulder.
They remain tangled together until their breathing slows, and then Leon rights himself back and looks back over at Piers.
“Looks like we need a clean bed now,” he says.
…
It takes the DSO and the BSAA a week to figure out a cure.
Piers can't deny that he's a little sad as they drive Leon back to headquarters. It's probably been the easiest – and definitely the most fun – assignment he's ever had. He feels guilty, though, because he knows that Leon deserves to be Leon again. He just wonders if Leon is going to remember any of this – and if that's good or not. He wants him to. And he's also still scared that Leon is going to be pissed as hell.
But there's nothing to be done for it now, so Piers and Chris obediently bring Leon in and down to the lab. They walk him to the door, delivering him in one piece, safe and sound. The entirety of what they were expected to do.
Leon pauses at the door, looking back at them. He reads Piers' expression correctly, even if Piers has been told he's still too easy to read when it comes to his emotion.
“Don't worry,” Leon says. “I'm coming back.”
He looks back to Chris, smiles something softer, and then walks through.
…
Chris holds him close and in his ear, he whispers: “No matter what age you are, we're here for you, Leon. We care about you.”