by Sydnie MacElroy and Jeff Uribe
NRPG -
Here's part two of Jeff's and my collaboration. It stays pretty much on the clean side of PG-13, unless you count innuendo and implication. ;) I'm thinking that the plans that Leo and Zenya make in this post get put off 'til after this case. (Jeff - thoughts? might even work better that way.)
RPG -
Sitting at the dinner table, with candle light and soft music playing, Zenya had found that food was about the last thing on her mind. After a few probing questions, she had gotten Leo talking, first about trivialities and later about his past. She liked listening to his stories, not only for the element of excitement and adventure in them, but also because she knew that it was something he didn't really like to talk about, and yet he was willing to share bits and pieces of it with her. If some of it was censored or sanitized, as she suspected it might be, it didn't matter. Her mind drifted along with his words, filling in any details that might be glossed over and compiling a private dictionary of Leo-speak where phrases such as 'took a bullet' or 'flesh wound' translated into, roughly, 'nearly got killed.'
Eventually, it occurred to her that the candles had burned down more than they ought to have over the course of dinner. Leo's plate had long since been emptied and her own dinner had turned into a cold, congealed mess that would take some work to clean off. She ignored it, waiting for a natural break in the conversation.
When the break came, Leo reached across the table, took her hand and smiled. "Somehow, you managed to get me to do all the talking," he observed.
"Because I like listening to you."
Leo looked at her skeptically, causing Zenya a moment of confusion. "It doesn't scare you," he asked. "Listening to my old stories?"
Zenya raised an eyebrow. "So, telling them to me was a test, was it?"
"Not intentionally, but I guess the effect is the same."
"And you'll never change," Zenya stated. "You'll always be reckless and think that you're invincible." She slipped her hand out of his, got up and started gathering up the dishes. "You scare me, Leo," she added, leaning down to kiss him. "But I sort of like it. I guess it's true that fear is an aphrodisiac."
Leo grinned. "Let me help you with those dishes," he said, starting to reach for what was left on the table.
"No, don't you dare," Zenya warned and winked at him. "Just sit back and be awed by my domestic qualities."
*****
Leo sat back down at the table and watched as Zenya cleared everything away and started on the dishes in the kitchen. This was a bit wierd for him since he had always helped with the cleaning up and putting away of things during his marriage and before. One of the few things his mother had "taught" him to do in case he ended up being a bachelor.
"No son of mine is going to have a sink of dirty dishes when he grows up." Leo could hear his mom say in his mind. "Besides, we women could use the help in the kitchen....." this last was said just a little too loud so that his father could hear it in the living room. And he would always answer her with as manly a grunt as he could muster after dinner, followed by a low chuckle.
Feeling pretty useless at the table, an idea stole over Leo's mind. Getting up softly, Leo gathered the low candles and snuck off to Zenya's bedroom... only to return to the living room a few moments later.
*****
With things more or less squared away in the kitchen, Zenya returned to the living room, where she found Leo on the couch. He had moved their wineglasses to the coffee table, and now sat there, leaning back with his eyes closed. Zenya couldn't help laughing at a picture that came into her mind.
Leo opened his eyes and looked at her without moving. "What?"
Zenya sat down next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. "Nothing. I was just thinking.."
Leo slipped an arm around her. "Go on," he said.
"I just wish you could have known my father. When I came in here and saw you, I got a mental picture of the two of you sitting around, trading war stories and dozing off in easy chairs after dinner while the womenfolk tend to the dishes. He would have liked you. You never had occasion to meet him, did you?"
Leo shook his head. "No. We were there to watch the family and.. prevent anyone from getting to you," he said a bit stiffly. "Not to interact."
Zenya nodded. "He had his faults, but he was a good man, Leo."
Leo frowned. "Sounds to me like you're trying to convince yourself."
"Maybe I am," Zenya said, moving a little closer to him. "I've spent a lot of time blaming him for what happened, because I didn't know who else to blame. Now I know what really happened, and I suppose I've been reevaluating things. Whatever he was involved in, he couldn't have known that it would put his family in jeopardy, too." They were silent for a few moments and then Zenya looked up at him as if she had suddenly made a decision. "I want to ask you something, Leo. I just hope it doesn't sound too.. silly."
"Ask and we'll see," he answered with a grin.
"I'd like you to come with me to Connecticut," Zenya said, not looking at Leo as she spoke. "To the cemetery there. I haven't gone there as often as I should. Part of it was, well, I guess I felt guilty that I was the one to survive. And.." She unconsciously moved her hand to the scar on her neck. "And I never really had a chance to say a proper good-bye."
Leo moved her hand away and touched the scar lightly. "How long were you in the hospital?"
"Six weeks," Zenya answered. She smiled a little at the sound of surprise that came from Leo and she nodded. "It was bad. And it was made worse by the fact that I didn't have much will to survive. By the time I got out, it just seemed like it was too late to grieve. I was wrong, but that's how I felt at the time. Anyway, I just feel like its time to really lay the past to rest. That we should go there together, and then.. and then to Jenn and Andrea's graves, too. To make peace with the past so we can look to the future. Does that make sense?" She took a deep breath and looked at Leo, which she had been avoiding doing since she started speaking, hoping to see understanding in his face.
"That makes perfect sense." Leo said, caressing the side of Zenya's face. "We'll do it, before our next case comes up. If not, then after."
Zenya smiled and leaned forward to kiss Leo once more, only to have Leo move back a bit. With a puzzled look on her face, she saw Leo looking sheepishly at her.
"Sorry... too much wine." Leo grinned a boyish grin. "I need to relieve myself first."
Zenya leaned back and shook her head. "You really know how to turn a woman on, don't you?"
Leo got up and moved towards the bathroom, "well, we'll see in a moment, won't we?" With a mischeivous wink, he disappeared around the corner. Zenya sat back on the couch and laughed to herself. She heard the toilet flush a few moments later and saw Leo return to the couch with a big grin on his face.
"It was that good, huh?" Zenya asked, as she took Leo's proffered hand.
"Ha ha... I've got a surprise for you." Leo said, holding Zenya close in his arms.
Zenya raised an eyebrow at this and said, "Is it a BIG surprise?"
A moment of confusion zipped across Leo's face before he caught on to Zenya's meaning. "Well, you'll just have to see for yourself and be the judge of that." With a swift movement, Leo scooped Zenya up in his arms and started to carry her to her bedroom. As they made their way to the bedroom, Leo began to kiss Zenya with an ardor that surprised even her. Not that she minded in any way, except there was a nagging feeling in the back of her mind about being bumped against the doorway if he didn't pay attention to where he was going. As they crossed the threshold of her bedroom, Zenya saw Leo's surprise and gave off a slight gasp. Somehow, Leo had taken the candles from dinner and arranged it around Zenya's bed and there were rose petals sprinkled on the sheets.
"I love it." Zenya said, turning to Leo as he set her down. "and I love you, Leo."
Leo leaned down and kissed her again. "I love you too, Zenya."
Then, with a smile of her own, Zenya reached for Leo's clothes and told Leo, "But now, I want to see that big surprise of yours..."