Chapter Text
Everything hurts.
Leon groans as he opens his eyes. He’s in a hospital room and quite possibly the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen is sitting in a chair in the corner. She smiles thinly when she sees Leon looking at her.
“You’re awake,” she says flatly, like she’s not sitting in his hospital room.
“Uh, yeah.” Leon’s throat is dry, and he knows he doesn’t know the woman, though she seems vaguely familiar.
“Here,” the woman is suddenly at his bedside, pressing a cup with a lid on it into his hand. “Drink this.”
“What is it?”
“It’ll make you feel better,” the woman promises.
She hadn’t answered his question, but for some reason, he trusts her. He drinks from the cup. The liquid inside is strange- thick and tasting like metal. He forces himself to swallow.
“What the hell was that?” he asks the woman.
“Blood.” she says simply.
“Blood?” Leon repeats. “You’re kidding.”
The woman shakes her head. “There’s no easy way to say this. You’re a vampire, Leon Kennedy.”
Leon doesn’t bother asking how she’d known his name. Instead, he laughs until the pain in his side becomes too much to handle.
“You’re insane,” he tells her.
“I’m not,” the woman says seriously, and maybe a little offended.
“Let me guess- you’re a vampire too,” Leon says sarcastically.
The woman nods. “My name is Ada Wong. I’m the one who turned you.”
“If- if I’m a vampire, what am I doing in the hospital?”
“You were hit by a car,” Ada says flatly. “Don’t you remember?”
Leon tries to remember, but it gives him a headache. He shakes his head. Ada sighs.
“You should get some rest,” she says.
“I’m not drinking blood.”
“You have to, eventually. It’s ethically sourced.”
“Don’t care.”
“Just go to sleep,” Ada snaps.
When Leon wakes up again, there’s a little girl sitting on Ada’s lap.
“Celeste, do you have something you want to say to Mr. Kennedy?” Ada asks her.
The little girl shakes her head, burying her face in Ada’s neck.
“Yes, you do,” Ada says, “Go on.”
She puts the little girl on the floor.
She takes a few steps forward and says, “I’m sorry you got hit by a car, Mr. Kedenny.”
“Kennedy,” Ada corrects.
The girl runs back to her.
She lifts the girl back into her lap and says, “This is Celeste, my daughter. She’s the reason you were hit by a car.”
Leon can’t help thinking that seems kinda harsh, but Celeste doesn’t seem to mind. He also can’t help thinking that Celeste seems too regal a name for a little kid.
“That’s why I turned you,” Ada says. “You would’ve died otherwise.”
“So it’s gratitude?” Leon asks.
“No.” Ada shakes her head. “More like guilt. Celeste would’ve been fine, but you…”
She sighs.
“Oh. Thanks, I guess,” Leon says, though he still doesn’t really believe that he’s a vampire.
“I’m bored,” Celeste whines.
Ada shushes her. Celeste pouts and then turns into a bat and yeah, okay, that seals it, they’re vampires.
“Celeste,” Ada says sternly, like this happens all the time. Which it probably does.
“So,” Leon says, feeling strangely calm. “Vampires, huh?”
The next few days are more or less the same. Leon sleeps a lot, and Ada and Celeste are there every time he wakes up. He’s mortified to learn that the reason Ada’s always in his room is because she claimed to be his wife . Leon tries to acclimate to drinking blood, but it tastes weird and makes him feel tingly and almost… horny? He really wants to ask Ada about it, but Celeste’s always around so he can’t.
It’s the last day of his stay when the storm arrives.
“Why didn’t you tell me you got married ?” demands Claire Redfield, his foster sister and best friend.
“Hi, Claire,” Leon says.
“And you have a kid ?” Claire gapes at Ada and Celeste. “Wait, no, that’s not possible.”
“We should get going,” Ada says, and Leon can tell she’s uncomfortable. “I’ll see you at home.
She picks up Celeste and quickly leaves the room, leaving Leon stuck answering Claire’s million questions about their alleged marriage.
“She sure left in a hurry,” Claire notes.
“She’s just tired,” Leon says, maybe a bit too defensively, and he’s not sure why. “She’s barely slept the last few days.”
He has no idea if that’s actually true or not. She’s always been awake when Leon was. Do vampires even need to sleep?
“I wanted to meet your wife.” Claire pouts.
“I’m sure you will eventually,” Leon sighs.
“Tell me everything ,” Claire demands.
“There’s not much to tell.” Leon shrugs, hoping she doesn’t ask anything he can’t answer.
“Not much to tell?” Claire repeats incredulously. “You got married !”
“It was, uh- it was a green card marriage,” Leon blurts out. It’s the first thing he thinks of. “She’s from Canada and she needed a green card, so- yeah.”
“Oh.” Claire deflates. “That’s boring.”
“And illegal,” Leon adds. “So you can’t tell anyone. Actually, don’t tell anyone I’m married, either. It’s not- y’know.”
Claire pouts. “I can’t believe you got married and didn’t tell me .”
“Sorry.” Leon can’t help but feel guilty for lying to her. “It just kinda… happened.”
It’s not technically a lie. Technically his and Ada’s marriage had just happened. It doesn’t make him feel any better.
“Anyway, mind taking me home?” he asks, changing the subject.
“‘Course,” Claire says. “Even though you’re an asshole .”
Leon sighs.