2009-01-26 00:18![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
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code_geass
inulovinkit.livejournal.com in code_geassWow, this took a long time. I hate school. T_T
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: LelouchxC.C., SuzaEuphie, (implied) Suzalulu, Kallen/C.C.??? :3
Summary: So, what would have happened if Suzaku had received the Geass in Stage 1 instead of Lelouch? We'd have one messed up story on our hands.
Chapter 1 here.
I heard somewhere that C.C. original name before they decided to call her C.C. was 'Cera'. That's why its her codename here.
His gloved hands gripped the podium, never feeling more out of place. He didn’t do this—he was a soldier, not a politician. There was a million ways this could fail…
“People of Area 11. With the death of Governor-General Euphemia li Britannia—” his voice choked on her name. “A new Governor-General has been appointed by His Majesty in Britannia.”
The speech wasn’t the best, but it would do.
“Therefore, it is with great honor, that I, Kururugi Suzaku, Knight of Seven and son of the late Japanese Prime Minister, Kururugi Genbu, will accept this post of Governor General.”
He could already hear the whispers in the crowd. “Kururugi Suzaku? The one that we thought killed His Highness Prince Clovis?”
“He’s the traitor who captured Zero!”
“The Hero who foiled the Black Rebellion?”
“He’s really the son of Prime Minister Kururugi? I didn’t know he had a son—”
“His existence was kept a secret until after the war, apparently.”
“Huh, I wonder why that is…”
“Doesn’t matter, an Honorary Britannian kid can never be Area 11’s Governor General!”
Years in the military made Suzaku able to keep his face calm despite all the whispers around. He wasn’t cut out for this—but it had to be done.
Yes, this was it. Everything depended on this. This was the only way to achieve Euphie’s dream. He had thrown everything away for this chance, and that was all that mattered anymore.
There was a small beep on the small radio beside him. He was called.
“Yes?” he answered. “…I see. A special assignment? In Area 11? …Oh. For how long? …No, it doesn’t matter. An assignment is an assignment. I accept it. From now on, my brother is Lelouch Lamperouge.”
He was just about to put the phone down when he paused, “Huh? You mean V.V. himself recommended me for this assignment? I wonder why…”
“I’m surprised you were able to call me up like this,” Kallen said as she stood on the Ashford rooftop, looking out over the city. The fires from the Black Rebellion still smoldering though it had been days. “With the Black Knights being rounded up, I’m surprised you managed to stay free.”
“I’m surprised you’re still free as well,” C.C. smirked, leaning against the rail. “You were, after all, one of the more prominent members.”
“But the only people who knew that I am Kallen Statdfeld as well as Kouzuki Karen were people in the Black Knights…and Lelouch. I’m safer here than anywhere else.”
“That’s true. You’re safer than I am. I’m going into hiding after this is over. With Suzaku in charge of Area 11, he’s sure to come after me soon.”
Kallen sighed. “So this is it? We fought the Black Rebellion and lose everything, and we’re expected to surrender and accept this new Governor General just because he was once Japanese? Is that all we are expected to get? With Lelouch gone, it’ll be fifty years or more before we get another chance—”
“Hmm, you think Lelouch is gone already?” C.C. smirked. “You have so little faith in your commander.”
Kallen stared. “What do you mean?”
“What I mean is, Lelouch will be back. Even now, he’s being shipped over to Area 11, I can feel it. Though, he won’t be the same person he was before. It’ll take a little work if you want Zero back again.”
“A little work? What do you mean, C.C.?”
“You’ll understand what I mean when he gets here. He won’t be himself when he returns. But with your help, I think I can bring him back.” C.C. extended her hand towards Kallen. “We both want him back, don’t we? So I propose this contract; I’ll help you get Zero back to the way he was, if you and the remaining Black Knights give me your aid.”
Kallen was skeptical. “So both of us…working together?”
“Is there a problem with that?”
Slowly, Kallen reached out and took C.C.’s hand. “Fine, for the sake of getting Lelouch back, I’ll work with you, C.C.”
“It’s done then.” C.C. looked up at the sky for a moment, thinking of something. “There’s something else, too…if I know Charles, he’s likely to do it…” she sighed, resigning herself. “I guess I have no other choice then.”
“What do you mean—aughhphhh!” Kallen shrieked when C.C. grabbed her and then kissed her. On the lips.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she stammered, bright red, as C.C. pulled away.
“It is a protective seal,” the witch explained, unphased by the kiss. “Just in case Charles gets in his mind to use his geass—it is a way to quickly remove any geass that was placed after the seal was put on. So if he does try to use his geass on everyone, I’ll be able to remove it from you with ease. Though I’ll have to do that again.”
“You…” Kallen muttered, but the paused. “Wait… ‘geass’?”
C.C. sighed, “I really am going to have to explain everything to you, aren’t I?”
“Charles, why did you give Kururugi the position of Governor-General in the first place?” V.V. asked, glaring suspiciously back at the emperor. “You know Kururugi is the one who—”
“I know, Nii-san,” Charles assured him. “But I thought it for the best. Giving him that position assures that we can keep an eye on him. And on his geass.”
“But the one we need to use is Lelouch. Kururugi is an obstacle in that path. We could have just used Lelouch when you had him in custody. Instead, you decided to place him back in Area 11 when he was more use to us here!”
“Don’t get mad, Nii-san, I have my reasons. While your methods work, they’re better left as a last resort. Doing it naturally is best.”
“But Kururugi—”
“Kururugi is the perfect obstacle for him,” Charles snapped. “If Lelouch cannot work past this, then he was no use to us anyway. Have some patience, Nii-san. We’re not in any danger. You do not need to barge in again like you did with Euphemia—”
V.V. paused, “Speaking of Euphemia, Charles, I heard the most interesting rumor the other day…”
“Lelouch were you paying any attention to a thing I said?” Shirley yelled, getting in his face.
He gave a small chuckle. “Sorry, Shirley, I was distracted.”
“Distracted, by what?”
“Oh, you know, thoughts.”
“Jeez, Lelouch, it seems like you’re distracted all the time nowadays,” Rivalz pointed out.
“That’s just how nii-san is,” laughed Rolo. “He’s got a lot of thoughts to think about, right?”
“Yeah, I guess,” Lelouch laughed it off. Though in reality, it wasn’t that he was trapped in his own thoughts. It was everything…everything in this world seemed so boring.
The news was always the same, he skipped half his classes to keep his sanity…even his friends…they all seemed so boring. Everyday, everything seemed so dull.
And he couldn’t help but feel trapped—he knew he was meant for something more, but didn’t have a clue to what it was.
“Anyway, did you watch the news yesterday? Suzaku-kun was on!” Millay said, as she sat down next to them on the Ashford lawn as they ate their lunch.
“Suzaku?” asked Kallen, who also came to sit beside them, looking tired, as usual. “What was he doing?”
“Oh you know, just a few words on the rebuilding of Shinjuku; he’s really trying to make Area 11 a better place for Britannians and Elevens, it seems.”
“Well, you can’t blame him,” Rivalz shrugged. “He was an Eleven once, you know. Though, how did he get to be Governor-General anyway? Aren’t Britannian nobles supposed to—”
“I hear it was some sort of a reward for capturing Zero,” Shirley put in. “Princess Euphemia promoted him to Knight of Seven just before she died, and The Emperor gave him the leadership of Area 11 as his reward once he brought Zero to Britannia.”
“Well, technically as Knight of Seven, he is a Britannian noble, so I guess it makes no difference—”
“Don’t you think it’s interesting, though,” Rivalz piped up, “Whenever you see him at his job, Suzaku just doesn’t look happy. You’d think for a guy who’s dedicated and trying to do all he can, he could at least be happy about it—”
“It’s because he’s not happy,” Lelouch suddenly cut in, looking almost angry. “Though he is the Governor-General, he has to rule Area 11 according to Britannian law. There are harsh restrictions on what he can and can’t do—he can’t even allow any more Japanese to become Honorary Britannians, thanks to the new law after the Black Knights destroyed. He doesn’t want to rule this place as some puppet under Britannia—he wants to be Knight of One so he can rule Area 11 as he chooses and finally have a free and peaceful Japan once and for all.”
Following that outburst, everyone stared. “Nii-san?” Rolo asked, looking a bit afraid.
As if coming to his senses, Lelouch spoke quickly, “Oh that—that was what Suzaku told me he wanted to do last year, before the Black Rebellion and all. So, its natural he wouldn’t be happy as a mere governor-general ruling a puppet state when he could be doing what he wished instead.”
“So, does that mean…you agree with him?” Kallen asked, her eyes just a bit too eager.
Sighing, Lelouch stood up, finished with his lunch. “In some ways…but in others, I don’t—ah!” he gasped when he stood to his full height, pain rushing through his left shoulder.
“Nii-san!” Rolo rushed for him. “Are you all right?”
“Ah—yes, its fine, Rolo,” he assured him, “Just my shoulder, you know…”
“Oh, right…You got shot the night of the Black Rebellion, didn’t you?” Rivalz remembered.
“Yeah,” Lelouch smiled in an attempt to let it go. “I was in the wrong part of the settlement at the wrong time, I guess—and a stray bullet hit me. You should have seen Rolo when he found me in the hospital, though, he looked like he could barely compose himself—”
“Nii-san!” Rolo blushed.
“I remember too,” Millay chuckled. “Shirely was particularly worried when we found out the next day ‘My darling Lulu got shot! What if he’s not going to be okay? How will I survive without—‘ Ow, Shirley, don’t pull my hair!”
Lelouch laughed with the rest of them. “Yes, but I’m fine now, just a little pain every now and then if I stretch the muscle too much, no big deal.”
“Still, don’t strain it too much, Nii-san,” Rolo took him by the arm. “Why don’t you go to the nurse so you can get that numbing cream to rub on it again?”
“Yeah…” he sighed, waving bye to his friends as Rolo practically led him across the campus. His fingers reached over to touch that sore spot on his shoulder, the spot where he had stupidly gotten shot hanging around the ghetto on that night after gambling, and then had to limp to an abandoned building and wait for the battle to be over before calling for help. He would never forget that night—as he huddled to that wall, clutching his phone and panicking when he got no signal, in pain and frightened as he heard the sounds of gunfire and war—
That night, he was scared, he had never been more scared—
And excited.
He didn’t know where that came from, but thinking about that night, he suddenly got a rush, like adrenaline—a feeling of everything coming together, that everything was finally falling into place—a thrill, yes, there had been such a thrill when—when—
He couldn’t remember.
That was odd. He clearly remembered the Black Rebellion—he had a front row seat, after all, though he heard the others had been held hostage at Ashford (though none of them had gotten shot)—as a Britannian living in Area 11, one who didn’t want war and one who had already gotten shot—he should have been scared. But he could still feel that lingering feeling…so why did he feel it?
And when he got shot—
Wait, he couldn’t remember when he got shot. Why was that? Well, it was a stray bullet, after all—if an Eleven had spotted him, he wouldn’t be here to tell the tale—but he didn’t remember that moment, though he could recall the pain afterwards. Was it one of those things where it was too traumatic to remember it? That was possible—the moment he got shot…yes, he got shot when…
And then he felt it, like nothing else he had felt before. A deep, lingering sadness. When he touched that spot on his shoulder, he felt his heart sink deep into his chest, like everything he ever worked for was cast aside and thrown away. He didn’t know why, but it felt so real, so real…like his own heart was trying to tell him something…
That wound on his shoulder…it was just a stray bullet, no one’s fault…yes, but that feeling, that mournful feeling that was like ice all over…the moment he got shot…who did the shooting…why they did it…
Betrayal…no, because someone died…why did they die? Did he…no, he deserved it…he deserved it all…hatred—they hated him—they wanted to kill him—all he wanted was for them to work together and it was all thrown away when he—shot—he was shot—he was betrayed—they threw him away like a wet rag—Hatred. Anger. Despair. That despair…
The shot…he shot him. He shot him despite all they had been through. It was him.
Suzaku—
“Nii-san!”
Lelouch’s violet eyes abruptly sprung open, as he jerked awake. Where was he—oh yes, the Nurse’s office.
“What—?”
“You fainted, Nii-san,” Rolo answered, genuine worry in his eyes. “Was the pain too much for you?”
The pain? What pain? Oh…oh…right… “Yes…” he said, lying back down on the small bed. “I think so…”
“Then you should take these pain killers, and get some rest, Nii-san,” he told him, grabbing a blanket for his brother off a nearby shelf. “I’ll let your teacher know you won’t be coming.”
Lelouch nodded, “Thank you, Rolo,” and, grabbing the blanket, rolled over.
So he had fainted…well, maybe he had hurt himself more than he thought. But, he couldn’t help but shake the feeling that he had been close to something…something important. Like…his own heart was trying to tell him something…
But tell him what?
This wasn’t the first time he felt like this…there had been other weird occurrences as well. It wasn’t just the Black Rebellion. Somehow, when once asked what he thought of the roundup of the Black Knights after the Rebellion, he was able to name practically everyone in that organization when they were caught—though he did read a lot of news, so maybe that was why…
Maybe languages came easily to him, but he never recalled studying Japanese, but even so, he was able to understand a lot of it. He hung out in the ghettos sometimes, when he went gambling, so maybe he had picked up a bit of if there, but his mind told him he shouldn’t be this good with a language when he had never even tried to learn it at all…
And then there were those…feelings that he seemed to get, that he just didn’t understand at all. Though Suzaku had been his best friend for a while, he always seemed awkward around him these days…happy that he would see his friend, but also…somehow, sad about it. So maybe Suzaku wasn’t at school as much as he used to be, but that was no reason for—
And Kallen—something told him that she was hiding something, a deep secret, but for the life of him, he didn’t know what it was.
He felt affection for his little brother, that was true—Rolo was his only family, after all—their parents died in a car crash a few years back, and thankfully, Ashford Academy took them in. But, oddly, he felt the same feeling when he heard someone on the street mention some Princess of Britannia—oh, what was that name? Nunnally? Oh, he didn’t know…but he remembered that odd rush of a feeling—a familial affection—and then a small longing.
There were other times, he felt odd—out of place, awkward around people he should be comfortable around—but for a while, he thought that was just regular feelings people felt from time to time.
But after everything—he didn’t know, it was like—his heart knew something his mind didn’t. And it was desperately trying to tell him in every way possible.
Even if that were true, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t know what this ultimate truth was, so why bother?
Sighing, Lelouch closed his eyes to take a small nap. Whatever it was, it didn’t matter anyway. If he couldn’t remember, it must not be important, right?
“Prepare to die, Kururugi Suzaku!”
There was a whirl of a blue cape as Suzaku turned—just in time to see a lone assassin rushing at him, sharp knife in hand.
He didn’t even think—no, he didn’t remember thinking. One second the man was rushing for him and the next he had restrained the assassin, unharmed.
No, this sort of thing had happened before—Suzaku was used to it by now. And he had a sneaking suspicion of what it was.
Geass…
“Damnit,” the man, a Japanese, as he suspected, cursed. “I’ve failed—At least I would have brought death to you, Traitor Kururugi!”
Suzaku said nothing. Yes, he deserved those remarks. He deserved them 100%. He knew that, but…
He glanced around quickly. He was in a remote part of the Area 11 Government building—he had been walking from the Knightmare hangar to check up on the repairs of the Lancelot after that battle in the EU. No one had seen…
“I can understand why you would want to kill me,” Suzaku told the man held by him. After all, some days he wanted to kill himself… “But tell me, do you have a family here in Area 11?”
“What does it matter!” he spat. “At least I will have been a martyr for Japan’s cause—sacrificing my life for my homeland instead of selling myself and my country like you did!”
He did have a family, Suzaku knew. Probably a wife and perhaps children. And he would throw away his life just for a chance to kill the Traitor to the Japanese…selfish.
“You listen here,” Suzaku glared, forcefully making the man look at him while the geass in his left eye activated. “You shouldn’t throw your life away for a stupid cause! That’s being selfish!”
The red ring around the man’s eyes lit up. And, as usual, his face morphed into a concerned, appalled looking expression. “I…”
“Whatever,” spat Suzaku, lifting the man up and pushing him away. “Get out of here and never let me see you again.”
The man fell hard on the pavement, still looking stunned. With that, Suzaku turned sharply away, not looking back to see if the man was smart enough to escape before the guards found him.
Stupid, selfish man…
Though as Suzaku walked back to his office, he slowly began to notice the dull ache in his left eye.
As he entered the government building, one of the secretaries bowed towards him. “Welcome back, Governor-General,”
“Thanks,” he muttered, not even looking the woman in the eye.
Previous Governors would have met with their advisors, and go over reports in formal meetings, hearing about the daily activities straight from the people that worked on them. But Suzaku was not like that. All messages were sent to him through email where he could read them in the privacy of his office—solitude at last.
Slumping down in his too-large desk, Suzaku wondered why the Emperor had given him this job—Suzaku knew he wasn’t cut out for it, he never was. And after a whole year of service, he still wasn’t completely competent. Sure, he red reports, executed orders to rebuild some of the ghettos, but he could never meet with the people and hear their say like other Governors could.
Both Japanese and Britannians hated him, it was the truth. To the Japanese, he was a traitor that betrayed them to Britannia, and to the Britannians, he was an upstart Eleven that managed to get promoted this high through sheer luck.
He couldn’t deny that. Had he not captured Zero, he would have never been in this position.
Zero…
What had started out as a game just to get Suzaku promoted turned into a nightmare for all of Area 11.
If Suzaku had known back then what would happen—what he was giving his friend leave to do when he agreed to go along with his silly plan—
If only he had a geass that allowed him to go back in time, he could have set things right. Because he allowed his friend to rise to power as Zero, the Hero of the Japanese—everything had ever wanted was destroyed.
But, at that time, he would have never thought that Lelouch would go to such lengths to stay as Zero.
All the Britannians that lost their lives in his schemes…and Euphie—Euphie!
Suzaku could barely think about it without clenching his fists. Euphie didn’t need to die for his plans! She should have never—!
The moment Lelouch decided to pull the trigger, it was all shattered. Their friendship, their truce, everything. In that moment, Suzaku knew that any feelings he had for his former friend were cast aside.
Lelouch had taken everything from him. So he would take everything from Lelouch.
Instead of execution for Zero, the Emperor had decided instead to erase Lelouch’s memories—everything that he held dear—and place him back at Ashford, as a trap for C.C. Once she was caught—
Suzaku flinched, the burning in his left eye feeling worse. What was that anyway? Did he get some sand in his eye or something?
Anyway, once C.C. was caught, what would happen with Lelouch was up for the Emperor to decide. Suzaku didn’t care. Though he had to act Lelouch’s friend in order for it to fit with the memory—he didn’t care. He would never care.
At least, that’s what he would have liked.
It made no sense! Lelouch had destroyed everything—everything! And here he was, getting almost no punishment for it—a murderer allowed to walk free after everything he’s done! He deserved to be hated, he deserved all the pain he got—he deserved it all!
But a slow regret had been coming upon him, ever since that day. Ever since the day he dragged Zero before the Emperor to erase his memories, he knew the weakness in his heart. Though he held Zero still and expressionlessly watched as his the memories were deleted, his hands still shook as he heard Lelouch’s final scream.
Even though it had been a full year, Lelouch still suffered from that bullet wound—the bullet wound he had given him that time in Kamenejima.
Maybe he hadn’t needed to go that far to capture Zero—yes, that and the beating he gave him in the jail cell were perhaps a bit too far. But he had killed Euphie! Surely that meant that—!
He sighed. Though Suzaku wanted to justify his actions, he knew the single truth.
Euphie would have never wanted this.
But…what did it matter! Euphie was dead! Lelouch killed her!
Even so, she would have never wanted this. She had authorized Zero as her knight for her final act…Yes, he knew. Euphie’s wish was that they would all work together, to build a new world…
Still, it was all for naught! If Lelouch hadn’t betrayed his sister, then perhaps everything could have turned out all right—
Maybe…just maybe…
Suzaku sighed. Yes, maybe…that’s all there was. That happy dream had already been shattered.
Damnit! Suzaku practically jumped in his seat as a sharp pain shot through his eye again—a hand clapped over it in a reflex. What the Hell was wrong—!
Removing his hand he looked towards the window, to check his reflection to see if it was bloodshot—
Instead, he ended up nearly yelling in shock.
That thing was staring back at him. The geass! But—he didn’t call it out—no, this couldn’t be—this couldn’t be happening—
What the Hell was going on!
He jumped out of his chair—planning to do something, he wasn’t sure what—when another sharp pain flashed through that eye. Suzaku hissed as the pain brought him to his knees, never feeling pain like that in his life—
And then it was over.
Slowly, he removed his head from his hands, staring back up at his reflection in the large windows.
And now it was gone. The geass—it was no longer there. The only thing that stared back at him was his own green eyes.
Suzaku panted heavily all sorts of thoughts running through his head. What had happened? For a moment, he saw the geass—and that pain, was it because of that? How could this happen, he wasn’t overusing it—today was the first time he had used it in months! How could this—
Then he remembered C.C.’s words from last year. “Your geass is powerful. Be careful how you use it.”
Eyes never leaving his reflection in case that traitorous symbol decided to return, he thought to himself, I have to find C.C., soon.
“It’s nice to see you back, Suzaku, we were worried that you might not come back!”
He laughed it off. “Well, it’s been busy…”
“Too true,” laughed Lelouch. “Still, how many Governors of Area 11 would take time from running the country to come visit us at school?”
“The rebuilding of Shinjuku is ahead of schedule, so I figured I would take a little bit of time off to come visit,” replied Suzaku, trying not to make too big of a deal of it.
In truth, the reconstruction of the Shinjuku ghetto was behind schedule, but that little white lie didn’t matter. In addition to his duties as Governor-General of Area 11, there was also one other duty he had to do—one that he had volunteered for.
“So, Lelouch,” Suzaku asked, turning towards him. “How are things here when I’m gone? Can the Student Council handle without me?”
“We manage,” he said, still with that smile on his face.
“By the way, Suzaku,” Rivalz asked, “Where are those other friends of yours? You know, the people from your job? They sometimes come here, but we haven’t seen them lately.”
“Oh, you mean Gino and Anya? They had to go back to Britannia for official business. They should be back soon.”
Actually, Gino and Anya had gone back to Britannia to visit Nunnally vi Britannia, at her request. Suzaku had been invited too, but he had to decline since he needed to be here to help get the reconstruction of Shinjuku underway.
That, and…
“Well, it’s nice to see that you have some friends there with you,” Lelouch spoke, but while it seemed to be an offhand comment to everyone else, Suzaku knew the truth. After all, how long had he known him.
Though on his face there was a smile, in his eyes, Suzaku could see all.
Yes, how nice it is for you that you found some new friends besides us—besides me—to be with. Isn’t that just ever so nice? In fact, maybe you should spend even more time with them—get to know them better—since you obviously chose them over all of us—over me.
Hmph. Yes, it would be just like Lelouch to think that, the arrogant bastard. In his mind, everything had to be about him; he would never consider that maybe Suzaku had other friends just because he did.
“Oh, and I forgot to ask, Lulu,” Shirley piped up, “How’s your shoulder? You said it was hurting yesterday?”
Suzaku stiffened a moment. Oh.
“Its feeling much better,” Lelouch said, glancing back at it and lightly touching the spot. “The doctors say it should be healed by now, but you know, the pain will still come and go for a while—right now its fine, though.”
Suzaku wished he would continue to talk about this with Shirley—but he could feel those burning violet eyes turn to him after that. Suzaku sheepishly glanced back at him, giving him what he thought was a sympathetic look, knowing in his mind that there was no way Lelouch could have his memories back—no way he could know—
But those eyes. Even though Lelouch was smiling, his eyes seemed to spark in hidden anger. There was no way he could know. No way he should know—but Suzaku knew somewhere, deep down, even if he couldn’t consciously know it—he knew. Some part of him remembered that incident in the cave.
And some part of Lelouch hated him for it.
Looking away, Suzaku clenched his fist. What was done was done. He had to do it; at the time there was no other choice.
That was what he kept telling himself, anyway.
Though, when he glanced away, he noticed something odd. Kallen was also looking at Lelouch, and instead of her normal, sickly expression, she seemed to be trying to figure something out.
Yes, Suzaku knew Kallen had been in the Black Knights. He had known ever since that night when Lelouch—Zero—had saved him from being blamed for Clovis’s death. But, even though most other Black Knights had been rounded up after the Black Rebellion—Kallen still went free.
And that was because he pitied her.
Most of the Black Knights that were caught were the ones that were actively participating in terrorism when they were caught. Kallen, on the other hand, had laid low and now, she was back at school, and, as far as Suzaku knew, hadn’t participated in terrorism since.
He should have arrested her—it was his duty as a Britannian soldier to do so—but maybe this was a chance for her to turn over a new leaf. Perhaps with the failure of the Black Rebellion, she saw how fruitless it all was and had decided to return to school and cut her ties with the Black Knights forevermore.
And if that was her decision, Suzaku wasn’t going to interfere. Though he did his duty to Britannia—he wanted to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, even if it meant bending the rules just a little bit.
In addition to coming to Ashford to keep an eye on Lelouch—Suzaku also came to watch Kallen. So far, she had not done any suspicious activity—the only person she called from her phone on a regular basis was someone named ‘Cera’, with a number that was registered to the settlement.
So, it seemed that Kallen really had given up terrorism. At least, that’s what Suzaku hoped for.
“Nii-san!” called Rolo as he walked up towards them.
“Oh, Rolo, what is it?” asked Lelouch.
“Miss Viletta wants some help in the Student Council room.”
Lelouch rolled his eyes. “Can’t you do it, Kaichou?”
Millay only laughed. “Sorry, Lelouch, but I think this is more of a Vice Preisdent’s job instead.”
Lelouch sighed. “Fine, I’ll come. See you later,” he waved to them all, after taking off with Rolo.
Suzaku merely sighed. Well, maybe he wasn’t needed here as much as he thought. Rolo and Viletta were watching Lelouch day and night, and both reported directly to him if Lelouch showed any sign of regaining his memories…
Suddenly, a phone rang amidst the silence. Kallen pulled out her own phone from her purse, and flicked it open. “Oh, it’s you, Cera!” she said with a smile. “I was wondering when you’d call today.”
While Kallen was chatting, Suzaku leaned over towards Rivalz, “Who’s this ‘Cera’?”
“A friend of hers,” Rivalz said. “Apparently it’s a friend from Britannia who recently moved here, but since she’s out of school, she doesn’t go to Ashford.”
“Oh…” Hmm…a friend out of school that no one had seen before…that was slightly suspicious. If Kallen needed a way to communicate with the Black Knights without anyone knowing, then the perfect way would be to—
The bell rang above, and all scrambled to pick up the remnants of their lunch and to hurry off back to their classes. However, Kallen, on the phone, was a little slower in picking up her books, and, instead of heading back to class, she wandered over towards the other side of the building to talk.
Very suspicious indeed. Of course, Suzaku would have no choice but to follow. If she was still in contact with the terrorists—
He kept his distance from her, until she stopped to lean against the wall. She spoke in a whisper, and Suzaku knew he’d have to get closer if he wanted to hear properly. But staying out of sight would be a challenge—he was a soldier, not some sort of spy!
Staying close to the wall, shuffled forward, until he was at the very edge of the corner, while she stood on the other side. From that short distance, he could hear her perfectly. Holding his breath, he listened;
“Oh stop it, Cera, I told you I don’t care like that for Lelouch—what? No! Are you crazy? Not Suzaku either! Boys at Ashford are tiring—it much rather meet the university guys you talk about meeting downtown…Are you implying I have a thing for older men? I don’t mean it like that—”
Well, none of that sounded like it was in code, but she had mentioned Lelouch, so he couldn’t be sure—maybe it was a trick just in case someone was listening…
“Oh, and I need to tell you about these pair of shoes I found at the mall the other day! They were these cute red heels, and were half price at that since they were from last year! Imagine that—”
Suzaku winced. Okay, if they were down to talking about shoes, he was fairly certain that this wasn’t some sort of coded call. He’d look up this ‘Cera’s number just to be safe, but he had a feeling it was all for naught. Perhaps Kallen really had turned over a new leaf after all.
Shrinking away, he decided to go back to class, feeling very stupid for following up with that hunch.
After a minute of waiting and hearing the not-so-silent footsteps disappear, a familiar voice asked Kallen over the phone, “Is he gone?”
She checked back over the corner. “Yeah. Finally. I had to make up a story about shoes to get him to go away.”
“Well, it worked, at any rate,” that voice over the phone chuckled.
Kallen’s eyes narrowed. It was always a trying thing talking to her. “Anyway, C.C., it seems like Kururugi’s lackeys are still in Britannia.”
“Good, it’s not much security, but it’s the best we’ll get, I suppose. We’ll have to do it as soon as possible.”
“Already? But—the plans—we don’t have the manpower—!”
“I know, but this is the best chance we have. If we’re going to restore Zero’s memories, we’re going to have to do it now.”
“When?”
“Meet me tonight, at the usual place.”
“Hey, you made it, Suzaku!” Shirley said with a smile as Suzaku came running towards them as they walked through the settlement. He wore his Knight of Seven uniform instead of his school one, and looked a bit winded.
“Sorry, we had some important meetings today. But I managed to sneak away so I could make this.”
“Well, that’s a relief, we were worried you wouldn’t be able to come at all,” Lelouch laughed. While, Kallen, who stood beside him, tried to play along.
Let’s get moving, she thought to herself. Get up past that abandoned building…
“How much time are you going to waste chatting?” Millay chastised them. “Come on, I hear they just opened that new café on the observation deck!”
“Oh come on, Kaichou, don’t tell me you just came along for the food…” Rivalz laughed.
Lelouch picked up his pace to join the group, but Kallen worked her part. “Say, Lelouch, what did you think of that history lesson this afternoon? It seemed like our professor downplayed the importance of the Sakuradite conflict in the war…”
“Well, er…maybe.” Oh, good, distracting him made him slow down. The group was getting farther away from them as they ambled along…yes, that’s what they needed. “Officially the cause of the war was the Sakuradite conflict, but I think it was more of differences and the inability for Britannia and Japan to understand one another…”
Well, at least that proved that Zero was still in there, somewhere. “So…you disagree with what the professor said?”
“I’m not really sure,” he sighed, as if bored.
“Not sure? What do you mean?”
“I mean I’m not really sure about anything anymore…Maybe it was the Sakuradite conflict, or maybe it wasn’t.”
“Lelouch…?”
Exactly…how was he to know what was real and what was fake? He remembered things that never happened to him, knew things he shouldn’t know…was his mind playing tricks on him? Or was it that his mind was the only thing that knew the truth?
“Hey, Lelouch, Kallen! Stop lagging!” Millay called back to them. And if Kallen didn’t know any better, it looked like Shirley and Rolo were giving her slight glares…while Suzaku only looked at the two of them suspiciously.
This wasn’t good—Kallen thought fast. The others just had to finish getting past that building…if she could put a good amount of distance between them, then when the operation began.
“Ah!” she said, letting loose the strap on her bag, letting her books fall to the ground. A pathetic attempt sure, but if she knew Lelouch—
“Here, let me help you with that,” he said, bending down to help pick up her books and pencils.
There we go.
“Thank you,” she said, trying her best not to gag at her attempt. Sure, Shirley would probably glare at her for a bit for using the oldest trick in the book, but, well, what did she know?
“You shouldn’t carry all these books around,” Lelouch smiled back at her—a smile that probably would have made her just a bit happy if not for the stress of the mission. “Don’t you use a locker at Ashford?”
She nodded, “Most of the time, but one of my friends called before we left, so I had no time to put my books away.”
“Then your friend should be more worried about your well being,” he told her. “After all, when you’re too sick to come to school a lot of the time, you should be careful with how many books you carry.”
If it was any other boy, Kallen probably would have suspected he was a bit too nice. But since it was Lelouch…well, before she knew him, he seemed pretty apathetic to the world. But when he could help out someone, he did. Funny…not a quality you would expect for the leader of the army against Britannia.
They passed just in front of the hot dog stand near that closed up office building that was undergoing renovation. As Kallen glanced out of the corner of her eye, she saw the owner of the stand wink at her.
Showtime.
And as they took one step past the large, boarded up doors, she heard the blast of the explosives.
Now!
A large piece of the building came falling right towards them. Kallen pushed both of them right through the (suspiciously unlocked) doors as the debris came crashing down.
“What the—what happened?” Lelouch gasped as he fell down hard on the floor, dumbstruck as he heard the sounds of gunfire from above. “Terrorists?”
Kallen merely surveyed their surroundings. Everything had been planned out the night before, complete with their backup on various roofs around them firing blanks (they were just decoys after all, though they brought real bullets with them for when the Britannian army came with backup). The barricade she and C.C. had constructed with fallen desks and other debris was set in place, for the alibi to come later.
Lelouch shakily rose to his feet. “The others are probably worried—we need to get out of here, Kallen—” He reached inside his pocket, grabbing his cell phone, but wasn’t able to hit any of the buttons before Kallen shot out to twist his wrist, making him drop the phone.
“Don’t even think about it,” she glared, no longer acting the sickly composure she was before.
“Kallen? What are you—?”
“Just listen to me right now. C.C. is coming. She’ll restore your memories. But you’ll have to stay here and be quiet until she gets here.”
“C.C…? My memories? What are you talking about? My memories are fine!”
“Really?” Kallen glared back. “I doubt it. While you’ve been acting the simple schoolboy all year, we’ve had to fight and suffer just to keep our dream alive! You gave us a dream, so don’t think we’re going to let you live in this fantasy land when it’s your responsibility to see it through!”
“I don’t understand…fighting? Wait you’re…You’re one of the terrorists?!” But Kallen…how could she be…Her secret…was that it?
“That’s right. And you’re one of us as well.”
Terrorist? He was a terrorist? No, that couldn’t be…He was Lelouch Lamperouge, wasn’t he? He wasn’t… “You’re lying! You know that’s not—”
“You’re the one that’s lying. You know it’s true—I heard it from C.C. You know in your heart what you are supposed to be, and yet now you’re insisting it’s not true. Think about it! You’re not Lelouch Lamperouge! Your heart knows who you are!”
He thought…he remembered those flashing images…of the Black Knights…of all those dead soldiers…of Zero…of Zero!
Lelouch froze up, almost too horrified to speak. “I’m…no, I can’t be…I am…”
“That’s right.” She took a step forward. “You already know who you are. You are Zero.”
Zero. The Masked Murderer. The Traitor to Britannia. The man who rebelled against Britannia. But…Zero was dead…he was dead…
But if Zero was truly dead, wouldn’t Britannia have shown his execution? Let the public know who he was? Britannia was a proud country…if they had really captured Zero, they would have…
“Stop it…it’s not true…I’m not Zero! Stop saying it!” Lelouch lost it, as he grabbed forward to shake the truth out of her—
He never got a chance. The instant he reached for her, Kallen dropped that heavy bookbag and grabbed his arm, twisting him around and holding him tight, knee against his back.
“Ah—” He gasped at the pain.
“Pathetic,” Kallen spat. “You’ve gotten so pathetic over the last year, Zero. When you wake up, you’re going to die of shame.”
No…Zero…I can’t be…
“What, having fun, Kallen?” came that voice Lelouch vaguely recognized.
“Hmph, he’s taking this harder than I thought.”
“Still, I can’t do this if you’re holding him like that. Let him go, Kallen.”
She sighed, “Fine,” and released her grip as Lelouch fell down hard on the dusty floor. He heard footsteps, and as he looked up, he saw her—a woman with long green hair, dressed in a black outfit that was a cross between a dress and a uniform.
She knelt down before him, with a motherly sort of look on her face. “Lelouch…it’s been a year since we last met. And since then, you’ve forgotten everything that you are. Still, don’t you want to know the truth? About who you really are?”
Lelouch scrambled to his knees, glancing back nervously at Kallen. She had said he was Zero…how could he be Zero? It made no sense! But those memories…those memories…
Didn’t he disagree with what Britannia was doing? Didn’t he sympathize with the Japanese?
He was the one who thought that maybe Japan deserved to be in the hands of the Japanese. Maybe…maybe sometimes he even thought the world would be better off without Britannia.
But…did that mean that he was…Was he really…?
“You have to hurry up—” Kallen said, “Soon the reinforcements will arrive and we’ll be caught unless we get this over with.”
“Well, Lelouch?” asked C.C.
Did he really want to know? If he stayed in the dark he could continue this life…but if he learned the truth…perhaps it would lead to something more…
But…at least if he learned the truth, he would have answers. Answers that he had been wanting for a full year.
Knowing he would never be able to turn back or change his mind, he nodded, “Tell me.”
With a small smile, C.C. reached for him, her hands lightly touching his cheeks. “Welcome back, Lelouch,” and, to his shock, she then kissed him.
The room around him faded into nothingness as he was floating…floating along a plane of space and time.
Quick images flashed by him—a girl he once knew, the Emperor, one of the Britannian princesses—a younger looking Suzaku, a blind girl in a wheelchair, the Sakuradite war, that red symbol—no, it was called Geass—it was in Suzaku’s eye—that woman, C.C….
Knightmares fighting…a battle against the Britannian army…
Suzaku pointing a gun at him, in warning…
The geass in his own eye…
The princess Euphemia, no, her name was Euphie…
V.V…
Euphie’s death…
Shirley crying…
The Black Rebellion…
And that pain in his shoulder, where he was shot…Suzaku shot him.
Suzaku shot him because he hated him.
He hated him because he was…
He was Zero.
“At last…I have returned.”
Back in the present, Lelouch shakily got to his feet, still a little woozy from that experience. “Lelouch?” Kallen asked. “Are you…?”
That was when she heard it, that low, sinister chuckle. “Lelouch…?” And then, without warning, he threw his head back in a full blown laugh.
Remembering his shoulder, Lelouch thought to himself, Yes, I must put it all behind me…You are worthless to me now, Suzaku.
“Thinking they could lock me away forever…” he continued to chuckle. “But they should have known me better…Finally, Zero has returned! I have come back to change the world!”
A chill came up Suzaku’s spine as he hung up his phone. No, there was no way the Lancelot could get there in time.
“Let me go in,” Rolo came up, pleading.
“What?”
“I overheard that your knightmare won’t be ready. Let me go in and find Nii-san instead.”
Suzaku shook his head. “That won’t be necessary. Your orders are to watch Lelouch during his daily activities. When the Black Knights are involved, you have to let the army handle it.”
Rolo glared daggers back at him. “I am trained in combat, and it will take your soldiers a while to get in there under this gunfire. Let me go in, using my geass.”
Ah, Suzaku remembered about Rolo’s geass. It seemed that giving these assassins geass was a regular thing wherever he game from. Still, they had worked together for a year, and while Suzaku felt a sort of familiarity to the assassin, he detested his methods.
But there was no denying he was good.
“Fine,” Suzaku sighed. “But your orders are to secure Lelouch and nothing else, do you hear me?”
“Yes, My Lord,” Rolo said to him, and then turned away.
To Suzaku’s eyes, it looked like Rolo vanished into thin air, but he knew that the young assassin had instead used his geass.
Turning his attention back towards the civilians huddling in doorways (why did the Black Knights always do this? Choose to endanger civilian lives in order to get a point ahead?) his thoughts were suddenly cut into as a woman screamed and pointed.
Suzaku turned towards her pointing finger and gasped like everyone else.
Zero.
Zero had appeared before them—standing atop the roof of the building the Black Knights were attacking from. But…it was impossible, wasn’t it? It was impossible that Zero had returned—
Unless Lelouch’s memories had returned.
Without even thinking, Suzaku took off in a run towards the building. He barely heard Millay and the others call for him. Dodging what he thought to be gunfire, Suzaku ran towards the back door of the abandoned office building.
He couldn’t afford to waste time getting caught in a skirmish now. If Lelouch had regained his memories—
Then everything he had tried to do over this past year would have been for nothing.
“Nii-san!” Rolo yelled, as he ran through the building. “Nii-san!”
“Ah, Rolo!” he heard Lelouch answer, coming from the next room.
Without another thought, Rolo ran for them, seeing a large pile of debris in the next room. “Nii-san?”
“Over here!” Lelouch said, gasping as he managed to push aside a heavy looking piece of fallen wood, revealing his face. “We got trapped.”
“Here, let me help!” the boy spoke, hastily helping them move aside the fallen desks and chunks of fallen wood and plaster (thank goodness Rolo was too worried about his brother to see that the debris resembled a fort instead of what parts of a collapsed ceiling would look like) until both were freed.
“Thank you, Rolo,” Lelouch sighed as he rose from where he had been trapped. “But what are you doing here? Outside it’s—”
“I know, Nii-san, but I had to come in and help you! I was worried after that explosion and you—”
“Calm down. Kallen and I are fine, aren’t we?” The sickly-looking Kallen nodded.
“Anyway, let’s get out of here. How are the others?”
“They’re fine, Nii-san, just worried about you.”
“Well, they don’t need to worry about me,” he laughed it off. “I was shot once before—looks like I have a habit of getting caught when the terrorists are attacking, eh?”
Rolo attempted to laugh.
Just as they were about to leave the building, Lelouch stopped. “Oh, Kallen…you have a cut on your cheek,” he said, pointing to a little nick she had gotten when she first pushed him inside. “Let me see that.”
Leaning close to her, he whispered in her ear, “Meet me behind the school tomorrow, during lunch.”
When he pulled back, she nodded, a determined look in her eyes. If Rolo had seen, perhaps he would have thought Lelouch was setting up some sort of date (though he wouldn’t have been happy about that). But that fierce look in her eyes revealed all—it was strictly an order from her commander, to help progress their cause forward.
Zero had indeed returned. And it was now time to get to his work of changing the world.
Suzaku ran through the dusty floors of the abandoned building, going up, up…if Zero was anywhere, it would be near the roof, that he was sure.
Yes, highest floor, Zero should be around here somewhere—
There! A flash of a cape—and without thinking, Suzaku darted forward, grabbing Zero tightly by the arm and pulling his gun on him. “Zero! Surrender everything to me or I’ll shoot!”
“Aren’t you forgetting something?” ‘Zero’ spoke, reaching up and taking off the helmet, and revealing herself to be C.C. “Shooting will do nothing to me, remember?”
“C.C.!” he almost dropped his gun. “What were you doing? Why did you go out there as Zero and—”
“I was only giving the public what they wanted to see,” she explained with a sigh. “Especially since we failed.”
“Failed? What do you—Have you been trying to restore Lelouch’s memories?”
C.C. glared back at him. “Lelouch is my accomplice, and my responsibility. It is also my responsibility to undo what you people did to him.”
Suzaku glared. “Lelouch killed so many people. Removing his memories is a light punishment for him. You have no right to interfere—”
“I don’t care about justice or punishment. Lelouch and I have a contract. I am merely making sure he will uphold his end of the bargain. A bargain, which, you, I notice, turned your back on. Now, will you let me go?”
Suzaku thought a moment. His orders were to capture C.C. but…she had failed. Soon more guards would be put on Lelouch. Maybe if he let her go here… “If you answer all of my questions, I will let you go, but only then if you promise you won’t waste your time going after Lelouch again.”
She smirked back. “I promise.”
That was way too easy, Suzaku knew, and he knew the witch probably intended to break the deal. No matter now, just as long as he got his answers. “First, what do you mean by ‘you failed’?”
She sighed, “That blast wasn’t supposed to trap Lelouch and that other girl in rubble.”
“That ‘other girl’ was Kallen. Is she still in contact with the Black Knights? Are you the one named ‘Cera’?”
C.C. stared at him. “My name is C.C. Calling me by anything else is rude.”
“Fine,” he muttered. C.C. would have to be pretty patient to listen to Kallen talk about shoes anyway.
“Anything else?”
“Lots of things,” he glared, lazily pointing the gun back at her. “First you tell me why on that day you chose to give me the geass. That was what started all this.”
“You wanted power. I gave it to you. There is no other answer.”
“But, why—”
“Next question.”
Why was she calling the shots? “Did Lelouch put a geass on me?”
“He did.” C.C. nodded. “The geass to live.”
“What?”
“He found out, Suzaku. He knows you wanted to die. So he placed a geass on you so you would value your life instead of—”
“Damnit, why?! Why did he think that he could control my life? Why did he—!”
“Why?” she chuckled to herself. “I think it should be rather obvious. He wants you to live.”
Damnit. It was his life! It wasn’t Lelouch’s choice what he did with it! It was his choice! No one else’s!
“One more thing,” he demanded. “Why does my eye hurt?”
That question seemed to catch her off guard. “Your eye?”
“Yes! Yesterday, it was hurting, and the geass—it faded in my eye for a moment, then went away—it’s like—”
C.C. stepped closer, looking into his eye. “It was what I feared,” she sucked in a breath. “Suzaku, your geass is very unstable. Much more unstable than a normal geass user’s. Your geass is evolving at a faster rate than normal.
“Evolving? What? What does that mean—?”
“It means if you use it too much, you won’t be able to turn your geass off!” she glared back at him. “You need to use it wisely, or—!”
“All right, I get it!”
Still, C.C. wasn’t so sure. She had a bad feeling about this before Suzaku’s geass started to show signs of evolving. Even if Suzaku did nothing…he was probably prolonging the inevitable.
Still, she had to wonder, why was his geass so unstable, anyway? If he was meant to get the geass, then it wouldn’t be this unstable if…
She shook her head. Now was not the time to worry about these things. “So, is that it?”
Now he was out of questions. Could he just let her go like that? “One more thing.” Yes, this was necessary…necessary to keep them both out of trouble.
The geass lit up in his eye. “It’s not worth it to go after Lelouch again.”
There was no red ring around her eyes. Yet she still answered, “Yes…that’s probably right…”
And with that, walked off in a sort of daze.
She waited until she was sure he had left in order to break into a run. Funny, she thought she told him geass didn’t work on her. Guess she hadn’t. Oh well…
Still, she needed to get back to her apartment before Lelouch called her to give instructions.
Now that Zero was back, all energy had to be put forth to achieving his goal. Japan had to be liberated—and the sooner the better, before Charles got his hands on Lelouch…
Chapter 10 here.
Well, this is the beginning of the R2 arc! Hope you enjoyed!
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: LelouchxC.C., SuzaEuphie, (implied) Suzalulu, Kallen/C.C.??? :3
Summary: So, what would have happened if Suzaku had received the Geass in Stage 1 instead of Lelouch? We'd have one messed up story on our hands.
Chapter 1 here.
I heard somewhere that C.C. original name before they decided to call her C.C. was 'Cera'. That's why its her codename here.
His gloved hands gripped the podium, never feeling more out of place. He didn’t do this—he was a soldier, not a politician. There was a million ways this could fail…
“People of Area 11. With the death of Governor-General Euphemia li Britannia—” his voice choked on her name. “A new Governor-General has been appointed by His Majesty in Britannia.”
The speech wasn’t the best, but it would do.
“Therefore, it is with great honor, that I, Kururugi Suzaku, Knight of Seven and son of the late Japanese Prime Minister, Kururugi Genbu, will accept this post of Governor General.”
He could already hear the whispers in the crowd. “Kururugi Suzaku? The one that we thought killed His Highness Prince Clovis?”
“He’s the traitor who captured Zero!”
“The Hero who foiled the Black Rebellion?”
“He’s really the son of Prime Minister Kururugi? I didn’t know he had a son—”
“His existence was kept a secret until after the war, apparently.”
“Huh, I wonder why that is…”
“Doesn’t matter, an Honorary Britannian kid can never be Area 11’s Governor General!”
Years in the military made Suzaku able to keep his face calm despite all the whispers around. He wasn’t cut out for this—but it had to be done.
Yes, this was it. Everything depended on this. This was the only way to achieve Euphie’s dream. He had thrown everything away for this chance, and that was all that mattered anymore.
There was a small beep on the small radio beside him. He was called.
“Yes?” he answered. “…I see. A special assignment? In Area 11? …Oh. For how long? …No, it doesn’t matter. An assignment is an assignment. I accept it. From now on, my brother is Lelouch Lamperouge.”
He was just about to put the phone down when he paused, “Huh? You mean V.V. himself recommended me for this assignment? I wonder why…”
“I’m surprised you were able to call me up like this,” Kallen said as she stood on the Ashford rooftop, looking out over the city. The fires from the Black Rebellion still smoldering though it had been days. “With the Black Knights being rounded up, I’m surprised you managed to stay free.”
“I’m surprised you’re still free as well,” C.C. smirked, leaning against the rail. “You were, after all, one of the more prominent members.”
“But the only people who knew that I am Kallen Statdfeld as well as Kouzuki Karen were people in the Black Knights…and Lelouch. I’m safer here than anywhere else.”
“That’s true. You’re safer than I am. I’m going into hiding after this is over. With Suzaku in charge of Area 11, he’s sure to come after me soon.”
Kallen sighed. “So this is it? We fought the Black Rebellion and lose everything, and we’re expected to surrender and accept this new Governor General just because he was once Japanese? Is that all we are expected to get? With Lelouch gone, it’ll be fifty years or more before we get another chance—”
“Hmm, you think Lelouch is gone already?” C.C. smirked. “You have so little faith in your commander.”
Kallen stared. “What do you mean?”
“What I mean is, Lelouch will be back. Even now, he’s being shipped over to Area 11, I can feel it. Though, he won’t be the same person he was before. It’ll take a little work if you want Zero back again.”
“A little work? What do you mean, C.C.?”
“You’ll understand what I mean when he gets here. He won’t be himself when he returns. But with your help, I think I can bring him back.” C.C. extended her hand towards Kallen. “We both want him back, don’t we? So I propose this contract; I’ll help you get Zero back to the way he was, if you and the remaining Black Knights give me your aid.”
Kallen was skeptical. “So both of us…working together?”
“Is there a problem with that?”
Slowly, Kallen reached out and took C.C.’s hand. “Fine, for the sake of getting Lelouch back, I’ll work with you, C.C.”
“It’s done then.” C.C. looked up at the sky for a moment, thinking of something. “There’s something else, too…if I know Charles, he’s likely to do it…” she sighed, resigning herself. “I guess I have no other choice then.”
“What do you mean—aughhphhh!” Kallen shrieked when C.C. grabbed her and then kissed her. On the lips.
“What do you think you’re doing?” she stammered, bright red, as C.C. pulled away.
“It is a protective seal,” the witch explained, unphased by the kiss. “Just in case Charles gets in his mind to use his geass—it is a way to quickly remove any geass that was placed after the seal was put on. So if he does try to use his geass on everyone, I’ll be able to remove it from you with ease. Though I’ll have to do that again.”
“You…” Kallen muttered, but the paused. “Wait… ‘geass’?”
C.C. sighed, “I really am going to have to explain everything to you, aren’t I?”
“Charles, why did you give Kururugi the position of Governor-General in the first place?” V.V. asked, glaring suspiciously back at the emperor. “You know Kururugi is the one who—”
“I know, Nii-san,” Charles assured him. “But I thought it for the best. Giving him that position assures that we can keep an eye on him. And on his geass.”
“But the one we need to use is Lelouch. Kururugi is an obstacle in that path. We could have just used Lelouch when you had him in custody. Instead, you decided to place him back in Area 11 when he was more use to us here!”
“Don’t get mad, Nii-san, I have my reasons. While your methods work, they’re better left as a last resort. Doing it naturally is best.”
“But Kururugi—”
“Kururugi is the perfect obstacle for him,” Charles snapped. “If Lelouch cannot work past this, then he was no use to us anyway. Have some patience, Nii-san. We’re not in any danger. You do not need to barge in again like you did with Euphemia—”
V.V. paused, “Speaking of Euphemia, Charles, I heard the most interesting rumor the other day…”
“Lelouch were you paying any attention to a thing I said?” Shirley yelled, getting in his face.
He gave a small chuckle. “Sorry, Shirley, I was distracted.”
“Distracted, by what?”
“Oh, you know, thoughts.”
“Jeez, Lelouch, it seems like you’re distracted all the time nowadays,” Rivalz pointed out.
“That’s just how nii-san is,” laughed Rolo. “He’s got a lot of thoughts to think about, right?”
“Yeah, I guess,” Lelouch laughed it off. Though in reality, it wasn’t that he was trapped in his own thoughts. It was everything…everything in this world seemed so boring.
The news was always the same, he skipped half his classes to keep his sanity…even his friends…they all seemed so boring. Everyday, everything seemed so dull.
And he couldn’t help but feel trapped—he knew he was meant for something more, but didn’t have a clue to what it was.
“Anyway, did you watch the news yesterday? Suzaku-kun was on!” Millay said, as she sat down next to them on the Ashford lawn as they ate their lunch.
“Suzaku?” asked Kallen, who also came to sit beside them, looking tired, as usual. “What was he doing?”
“Oh you know, just a few words on the rebuilding of Shinjuku; he’s really trying to make Area 11 a better place for Britannians and Elevens, it seems.”
“Well, you can’t blame him,” Rivalz shrugged. “He was an Eleven once, you know. Though, how did he get to be Governor-General anyway? Aren’t Britannian nobles supposed to—”
“I hear it was some sort of a reward for capturing Zero,” Shirley put in. “Princess Euphemia promoted him to Knight of Seven just before she died, and The Emperor gave him the leadership of Area 11 as his reward once he brought Zero to Britannia.”
“Well, technically as Knight of Seven, he is a Britannian noble, so I guess it makes no difference—”
“Don’t you think it’s interesting, though,” Rivalz piped up, “Whenever you see him at his job, Suzaku just doesn’t look happy. You’d think for a guy who’s dedicated and trying to do all he can, he could at least be happy about it—”
“It’s because he’s not happy,” Lelouch suddenly cut in, looking almost angry. “Though he is the Governor-General, he has to rule Area 11 according to Britannian law. There are harsh restrictions on what he can and can’t do—he can’t even allow any more Japanese to become Honorary Britannians, thanks to the new law after the Black Knights destroyed. He doesn’t want to rule this place as some puppet under Britannia—he wants to be Knight of One so he can rule Area 11 as he chooses and finally have a free and peaceful Japan once and for all.”
Following that outburst, everyone stared. “Nii-san?” Rolo asked, looking a bit afraid.
As if coming to his senses, Lelouch spoke quickly, “Oh that—that was what Suzaku told me he wanted to do last year, before the Black Rebellion and all. So, its natural he wouldn’t be happy as a mere governor-general ruling a puppet state when he could be doing what he wished instead.”
“So, does that mean…you agree with him?” Kallen asked, her eyes just a bit too eager.
Sighing, Lelouch stood up, finished with his lunch. “In some ways…but in others, I don’t—ah!” he gasped when he stood to his full height, pain rushing through his left shoulder.
“Nii-san!” Rolo rushed for him. “Are you all right?”
“Ah—yes, its fine, Rolo,” he assured him, “Just my shoulder, you know…”
“Oh, right…You got shot the night of the Black Rebellion, didn’t you?” Rivalz remembered.
“Yeah,” Lelouch smiled in an attempt to let it go. “I was in the wrong part of the settlement at the wrong time, I guess—and a stray bullet hit me. You should have seen Rolo when he found me in the hospital, though, he looked like he could barely compose himself—”
“Nii-san!” Rolo blushed.
“I remember too,” Millay chuckled. “Shirely was particularly worried when we found out the next day ‘My darling Lulu got shot! What if he’s not going to be okay? How will I survive without—‘ Ow, Shirley, don’t pull my hair!”
Lelouch laughed with the rest of them. “Yes, but I’m fine now, just a little pain every now and then if I stretch the muscle too much, no big deal.”
“Still, don’t strain it too much, Nii-san,” Rolo took him by the arm. “Why don’t you go to the nurse so you can get that numbing cream to rub on it again?”
“Yeah…” he sighed, waving bye to his friends as Rolo practically led him across the campus. His fingers reached over to touch that sore spot on his shoulder, the spot where he had stupidly gotten shot hanging around the ghetto on that night after gambling, and then had to limp to an abandoned building and wait for the battle to be over before calling for help. He would never forget that night—as he huddled to that wall, clutching his phone and panicking when he got no signal, in pain and frightened as he heard the sounds of gunfire and war—
That night, he was scared, he had never been more scared—
And excited.
He didn’t know where that came from, but thinking about that night, he suddenly got a rush, like adrenaline—a feeling of everything coming together, that everything was finally falling into place—a thrill, yes, there had been such a thrill when—when—
He couldn’t remember.
That was odd. He clearly remembered the Black Rebellion—he had a front row seat, after all, though he heard the others had been held hostage at Ashford (though none of them had gotten shot)—as a Britannian living in Area 11, one who didn’t want war and one who had already gotten shot—he should have been scared. But he could still feel that lingering feeling…so why did he feel it?
And when he got shot—
Wait, he couldn’t remember when he got shot. Why was that? Well, it was a stray bullet, after all—if an Eleven had spotted him, he wouldn’t be here to tell the tale—but he didn’t remember that moment, though he could recall the pain afterwards. Was it one of those things where it was too traumatic to remember it? That was possible—the moment he got shot…yes, he got shot when…
And then he felt it, like nothing else he had felt before. A deep, lingering sadness. When he touched that spot on his shoulder, he felt his heart sink deep into his chest, like everything he ever worked for was cast aside and thrown away. He didn’t know why, but it felt so real, so real…like his own heart was trying to tell him something…
That wound on his shoulder…it was just a stray bullet, no one’s fault…yes, but that feeling, that mournful feeling that was like ice all over…the moment he got shot…who did the shooting…why they did it…
Betrayal…no, because someone died…why did they die? Did he…no, he deserved it…he deserved it all…hatred—they hated him—they wanted to kill him—all he wanted was for them to work together and it was all thrown away when he—shot—he was shot—he was betrayed—they threw him away like a wet rag—Hatred. Anger. Despair. That despair…
The shot…he shot him. He shot him despite all they had been through. It was him.
Suzaku—
“Nii-san!”
Lelouch’s violet eyes abruptly sprung open, as he jerked awake. Where was he—oh yes, the Nurse’s office.
“What—?”
“You fainted, Nii-san,” Rolo answered, genuine worry in his eyes. “Was the pain too much for you?”
The pain? What pain? Oh…oh…right… “Yes…” he said, lying back down on the small bed. “I think so…”
“Then you should take these pain killers, and get some rest, Nii-san,” he told him, grabbing a blanket for his brother off a nearby shelf. “I’ll let your teacher know you won’t be coming.”
Lelouch nodded, “Thank you, Rolo,” and, grabbing the blanket, rolled over.
So he had fainted…well, maybe he had hurt himself more than he thought. But, he couldn’t help but shake the feeling that he had been close to something…something important. Like…his own heart was trying to tell him something…
But tell him what?
This wasn’t the first time he felt like this…there had been other weird occurrences as well. It wasn’t just the Black Rebellion. Somehow, when once asked what he thought of the roundup of the Black Knights after the Rebellion, he was able to name practically everyone in that organization when they were caught—though he did read a lot of news, so maybe that was why…
Maybe languages came easily to him, but he never recalled studying Japanese, but even so, he was able to understand a lot of it. He hung out in the ghettos sometimes, when he went gambling, so maybe he had picked up a bit of if there, but his mind told him he shouldn’t be this good with a language when he had never even tried to learn it at all…
And then there were those…feelings that he seemed to get, that he just didn’t understand at all. Though Suzaku had been his best friend for a while, he always seemed awkward around him these days…happy that he would see his friend, but also…somehow, sad about it. So maybe Suzaku wasn’t at school as much as he used to be, but that was no reason for—
And Kallen—something told him that she was hiding something, a deep secret, but for the life of him, he didn’t know what it was.
He felt affection for his little brother, that was true—Rolo was his only family, after all—their parents died in a car crash a few years back, and thankfully, Ashford Academy took them in. But, oddly, he felt the same feeling when he heard someone on the street mention some Princess of Britannia—oh, what was that name? Nunnally? Oh, he didn’t know…but he remembered that odd rush of a feeling—a familial affection—and then a small longing.
There were other times, he felt odd—out of place, awkward around people he should be comfortable around—but for a while, he thought that was just regular feelings people felt from time to time.
But after everything—he didn’t know, it was like—his heart knew something his mind didn’t. And it was desperately trying to tell him in every way possible.
Even if that were true, there was nothing he could do about it. He didn’t know what this ultimate truth was, so why bother?
Sighing, Lelouch closed his eyes to take a small nap. Whatever it was, it didn’t matter anyway. If he couldn’t remember, it must not be important, right?
“Prepare to die, Kururugi Suzaku!”
There was a whirl of a blue cape as Suzaku turned—just in time to see a lone assassin rushing at him, sharp knife in hand.
He didn’t even think—no, he didn’t remember thinking. One second the man was rushing for him and the next he had restrained the assassin, unharmed.
No, this sort of thing had happened before—Suzaku was used to it by now. And he had a sneaking suspicion of what it was.
Geass…
“Damnit,” the man, a Japanese, as he suspected, cursed. “I’ve failed—At least I would have brought death to you, Traitor Kururugi!”
Suzaku said nothing. Yes, he deserved those remarks. He deserved them 100%. He knew that, but…
He glanced around quickly. He was in a remote part of the Area 11 Government building—he had been walking from the Knightmare hangar to check up on the repairs of the Lancelot after that battle in the EU. No one had seen…
“I can understand why you would want to kill me,” Suzaku told the man held by him. After all, some days he wanted to kill himself… “But tell me, do you have a family here in Area 11?”
“What does it matter!” he spat. “At least I will have been a martyr for Japan’s cause—sacrificing my life for my homeland instead of selling myself and my country like you did!”
He did have a family, Suzaku knew. Probably a wife and perhaps children. And he would throw away his life just for a chance to kill the Traitor to the Japanese…selfish.
“You listen here,” Suzaku glared, forcefully making the man look at him while the geass in his left eye activated. “You shouldn’t throw your life away for a stupid cause! That’s being selfish!”
The red ring around the man’s eyes lit up. And, as usual, his face morphed into a concerned, appalled looking expression. “I…”
“Whatever,” spat Suzaku, lifting the man up and pushing him away. “Get out of here and never let me see you again.”
The man fell hard on the pavement, still looking stunned. With that, Suzaku turned sharply away, not looking back to see if the man was smart enough to escape before the guards found him.
Stupid, selfish man…
Though as Suzaku walked back to his office, he slowly began to notice the dull ache in his left eye.
As he entered the government building, one of the secretaries bowed towards him. “Welcome back, Governor-General,”
“Thanks,” he muttered, not even looking the woman in the eye.
Previous Governors would have met with their advisors, and go over reports in formal meetings, hearing about the daily activities straight from the people that worked on them. But Suzaku was not like that. All messages were sent to him through email where he could read them in the privacy of his office—solitude at last.
Slumping down in his too-large desk, Suzaku wondered why the Emperor had given him this job—Suzaku knew he wasn’t cut out for it, he never was. And after a whole year of service, he still wasn’t completely competent. Sure, he red reports, executed orders to rebuild some of the ghettos, but he could never meet with the people and hear their say like other Governors could.
Both Japanese and Britannians hated him, it was the truth. To the Japanese, he was a traitor that betrayed them to Britannia, and to the Britannians, he was an upstart Eleven that managed to get promoted this high through sheer luck.
He couldn’t deny that. Had he not captured Zero, he would have never been in this position.
Zero…
What had started out as a game just to get Suzaku promoted turned into a nightmare for all of Area 11.
If Suzaku had known back then what would happen—what he was giving his friend leave to do when he agreed to go along with his silly plan—
If only he had a geass that allowed him to go back in time, he could have set things right. Because he allowed his friend to rise to power as Zero, the Hero of the Japanese—everything had ever wanted was destroyed.
But, at that time, he would have never thought that Lelouch would go to such lengths to stay as Zero.
All the Britannians that lost their lives in his schemes…and Euphie—Euphie!
Suzaku could barely think about it without clenching his fists. Euphie didn’t need to die for his plans! She should have never—!
The moment Lelouch decided to pull the trigger, it was all shattered. Their friendship, their truce, everything. In that moment, Suzaku knew that any feelings he had for his former friend were cast aside.
Lelouch had taken everything from him. So he would take everything from Lelouch.
Instead of execution for Zero, the Emperor had decided instead to erase Lelouch’s memories—everything that he held dear—and place him back at Ashford, as a trap for C.C. Once she was caught—
Suzaku flinched, the burning in his left eye feeling worse. What was that anyway? Did he get some sand in his eye or something?
Anyway, once C.C. was caught, what would happen with Lelouch was up for the Emperor to decide. Suzaku didn’t care. Though he had to act Lelouch’s friend in order for it to fit with the memory—he didn’t care. He would never care.
At least, that’s what he would have liked.
It made no sense! Lelouch had destroyed everything—everything! And here he was, getting almost no punishment for it—a murderer allowed to walk free after everything he’s done! He deserved to be hated, he deserved all the pain he got—he deserved it all!
But a slow regret had been coming upon him, ever since that day. Ever since the day he dragged Zero before the Emperor to erase his memories, he knew the weakness in his heart. Though he held Zero still and expressionlessly watched as his the memories were deleted, his hands still shook as he heard Lelouch’s final scream.
Even though it had been a full year, Lelouch still suffered from that bullet wound—the bullet wound he had given him that time in Kamenejima.
Maybe he hadn’t needed to go that far to capture Zero—yes, that and the beating he gave him in the jail cell were perhaps a bit too far. But he had killed Euphie! Surely that meant that—!
He sighed. Though Suzaku wanted to justify his actions, he knew the single truth.
Euphie would have never wanted this.
But…what did it matter! Euphie was dead! Lelouch killed her!
Even so, she would have never wanted this. She had authorized Zero as her knight for her final act…Yes, he knew. Euphie’s wish was that they would all work together, to build a new world…
Still, it was all for naught! If Lelouch hadn’t betrayed his sister, then perhaps everything could have turned out all right—
Maybe…just maybe…
Suzaku sighed. Yes, maybe…that’s all there was. That happy dream had already been shattered.
Damnit! Suzaku practically jumped in his seat as a sharp pain shot through his eye again—a hand clapped over it in a reflex. What the Hell was wrong—!
Removing his hand he looked towards the window, to check his reflection to see if it was bloodshot—
Instead, he ended up nearly yelling in shock.
That thing was staring back at him. The geass! But—he didn’t call it out—no, this couldn’t be—this couldn’t be happening—
What the Hell was going on!
He jumped out of his chair—planning to do something, he wasn’t sure what—when another sharp pain flashed through that eye. Suzaku hissed as the pain brought him to his knees, never feeling pain like that in his life—
And then it was over.
Slowly, he removed his head from his hands, staring back up at his reflection in the large windows.
And now it was gone. The geass—it was no longer there. The only thing that stared back at him was his own green eyes.
Suzaku panted heavily all sorts of thoughts running through his head. What had happened? For a moment, he saw the geass—and that pain, was it because of that? How could this happen, he wasn’t overusing it—today was the first time he had used it in months! How could this—
Then he remembered C.C.’s words from last year. “Your geass is powerful. Be careful how you use it.”
Eyes never leaving his reflection in case that traitorous symbol decided to return, he thought to himself, I have to find C.C., soon.
“It’s nice to see you back, Suzaku, we were worried that you might not come back!”
He laughed it off. “Well, it’s been busy…”
“Too true,” laughed Lelouch. “Still, how many Governors of Area 11 would take time from running the country to come visit us at school?”
“The rebuilding of Shinjuku is ahead of schedule, so I figured I would take a little bit of time off to come visit,” replied Suzaku, trying not to make too big of a deal of it.
In truth, the reconstruction of the Shinjuku ghetto was behind schedule, but that little white lie didn’t matter. In addition to his duties as Governor-General of Area 11, there was also one other duty he had to do—one that he had volunteered for.
“So, Lelouch,” Suzaku asked, turning towards him. “How are things here when I’m gone? Can the Student Council handle without me?”
“We manage,” he said, still with that smile on his face.
“By the way, Suzaku,” Rivalz asked, “Where are those other friends of yours? You know, the people from your job? They sometimes come here, but we haven’t seen them lately.”
“Oh, you mean Gino and Anya? They had to go back to Britannia for official business. They should be back soon.”
Actually, Gino and Anya had gone back to Britannia to visit Nunnally vi Britannia, at her request. Suzaku had been invited too, but he had to decline since he needed to be here to help get the reconstruction of Shinjuku underway.
That, and…
“Well, it’s nice to see that you have some friends there with you,” Lelouch spoke, but while it seemed to be an offhand comment to everyone else, Suzaku knew the truth. After all, how long had he known him.
Though on his face there was a smile, in his eyes, Suzaku could see all.
Yes, how nice it is for you that you found some new friends besides us—besides me—to be with. Isn’t that just ever so nice? In fact, maybe you should spend even more time with them—get to know them better—since you obviously chose them over all of us—over me.
Hmph. Yes, it would be just like Lelouch to think that, the arrogant bastard. In his mind, everything had to be about him; he would never consider that maybe Suzaku had other friends just because he did.
“Oh, and I forgot to ask, Lulu,” Shirley piped up, “How’s your shoulder? You said it was hurting yesterday?”
Suzaku stiffened a moment. Oh.
“Its feeling much better,” Lelouch said, glancing back at it and lightly touching the spot. “The doctors say it should be healed by now, but you know, the pain will still come and go for a while—right now its fine, though.”
Suzaku wished he would continue to talk about this with Shirley—but he could feel those burning violet eyes turn to him after that. Suzaku sheepishly glanced back at him, giving him what he thought was a sympathetic look, knowing in his mind that there was no way Lelouch could have his memories back—no way he could know—
But those eyes. Even though Lelouch was smiling, his eyes seemed to spark in hidden anger. There was no way he could know. No way he should know—but Suzaku knew somewhere, deep down, even if he couldn’t consciously know it—he knew. Some part of him remembered that incident in the cave.
And some part of Lelouch hated him for it.
Looking away, Suzaku clenched his fist. What was done was done. He had to do it; at the time there was no other choice.
That was what he kept telling himself, anyway.
Though, when he glanced away, he noticed something odd. Kallen was also looking at Lelouch, and instead of her normal, sickly expression, she seemed to be trying to figure something out.
Yes, Suzaku knew Kallen had been in the Black Knights. He had known ever since that night when Lelouch—Zero—had saved him from being blamed for Clovis’s death. But, even though most other Black Knights had been rounded up after the Black Rebellion—Kallen still went free.
And that was because he pitied her.
Most of the Black Knights that were caught were the ones that were actively participating in terrorism when they were caught. Kallen, on the other hand, had laid low and now, she was back at school, and, as far as Suzaku knew, hadn’t participated in terrorism since.
He should have arrested her—it was his duty as a Britannian soldier to do so—but maybe this was a chance for her to turn over a new leaf. Perhaps with the failure of the Black Rebellion, she saw how fruitless it all was and had decided to return to school and cut her ties with the Black Knights forevermore.
And if that was her decision, Suzaku wasn’t going to interfere. Though he did his duty to Britannia—he wanted to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, even if it meant bending the rules just a little bit.
In addition to coming to Ashford to keep an eye on Lelouch—Suzaku also came to watch Kallen. So far, she had not done any suspicious activity—the only person she called from her phone on a regular basis was someone named ‘Cera’, with a number that was registered to the settlement.
So, it seemed that Kallen really had given up terrorism. At least, that’s what Suzaku hoped for.
“Nii-san!” called Rolo as he walked up towards them.
“Oh, Rolo, what is it?” asked Lelouch.
“Miss Viletta wants some help in the Student Council room.”
Lelouch rolled his eyes. “Can’t you do it, Kaichou?”
Millay only laughed. “Sorry, Lelouch, but I think this is more of a Vice Preisdent’s job instead.”
Lelouch sighed. “Fine, I’ll come. See you later,” he waved to them all, after taking off with Rolo.
Suzaku merely sighed. Well, maybe he wasn’t needed here as much as he thought. Rolo and Viletta were watching Lelouch day and night, and both reported directly to him if Lelouch showed any sign of regaining his memories…
Suddenly, a phone rang amidst the silence. Kallen pulled out her own phone from her purse, and flicked it open. “Oh, it’s you, Cera!” she said with a smile. “I was wondering when you’d call today.”
While Kallen was chatting, Suzaku leaned over towards Rivalz, “Who’s this ‘Cera’?”
“A friend of hers,” Rivalz said. “Apparently it’s a friend from Britannia who recently moved here, but since she’s out of school, she doesn’t go to Ashford.”
“Oh…” Hmm…a friend out of school that no one had seen before…that was slightly suspicious. If Kallen needed a way to communicate with the Black Knights without anyone knowing, then the perfect way would be to—
The bell rang above, and all scrambled to pick up the remnants of their lunch and to hurry off back to their classes. However, Kallen, on the phone, was a little slower in picking up her books, and, instead of heading back to class, she wandered over towards the other side of the building to talk.
Very suspicious indeed. Of course, Suzaku would have no choice but to follow. If she was still in contact with the terrorists—
He kept his distance from her, until she stopped to lean against the wall. She spoke in a whisper, and Suzaku knew he’d have to get closer if he wanted to hear properly. But staying out of sight would be a challenge—he was a soldier, not some sort of spy!
Staying close to the wall, shuffled forward, until he was at the very edge of the corner, while she stood on the other side. From that short distance, he could hear her perfectly. Holding his breath, he listened;
“Oh stop it, Cera, I told you I don’t care like that for Lelouch—what? No! Are you crazy? Not Suzaku either! Boys at Ashford are tiring—it much rather meet the university guys you talk about meeting downtown…Are you implying I have a thing for older men? I don’t mean it like that—”
Well, none of that sounded like it was in code, but she had mentioned Lelouch, so he couldn’t be sure—maybe it was a trick just in case someone was listening…
“Oh, and I need to tell you about these pair of shoes I found at the mall the other day! They were these cute red heels, and were half price at that since they were from last year! Imagine that—”
Suzaku winced. Okay, if they were down to talking about shoes, he was fairly certain that this wasn’t some sort of coded call. He’d look up this ‘Cera’s number just to be safe, but he had a feeling it was all for naught. Perhaps Kallen really had turned over a new leaf after all.
Shrinking away, he decided to go back to class, feeling very stupid for following up with that hunch.
After a minute of waiting and hearing the not-so-silent footsteps disappear, a familiar voice asked Kallen over the phone, “Is he gone?”
She checked back over the corner. “Yeah. Finally. I had to make up a story about shoes to get him to go away.”
“Well, it worked, at any rate,” that voice over the phone chuckled.
Kallen’s eyes narrowed. It was always a trying thing talking to her. “Anyway, C.C., it seems like Kururugi’s lackeys are still in Britannia.”
“Good, it’s not much security, but it’s the best we’ll get, I suppose. We’ll have to do it as soon as possible.”
“Already? But—the plans—we don’t have the manpower—!”
“I know, but this is the best chance we have. If we’re going to restore Zero’s memories, we’re going to have to do it now.”
“When?”
“Meet me tonight, at the usual place.”
“Hey, you made it, Suzaku!” Shirley said with a smile as Suzaku came running towards them as they walked through the settlement. He wore his Knight of Seven uniform instead of his school one, and looked a bit winded.
“Sorry, we had some important meetings today. But I managed to sneak away so I could make this.”
“Well, that’s a relief, we were worried you wouldn’t be able to come at all,” Lelouch laughed. While, Kallen, who stood beside him, tried to play along.
Let’s get moving, she thought to herself. Get up past that abandoned building…
“How much time are you going to waste chatting?” Millay chastised them. “Come on, I hear they just opened that new café on the observation deck!”
“Oh come on, Kaichou, don’t tell me you just came along for the food…” Rivalz laughed.
Lelouch picked up his pace to join the group, but Kallen worked her part. “Say, Lelouch, what did you think of that history lesson this afternoon? It seemed like our professor downplayed the importance of the Sakuradite conflict in the war…”
“Well, er…maybe.” Oh, good, distracting him made him slow down. The group was getting farther away from them as they ambled along…yes, that’s what they needed. “Officially the cause of the war was the Sakuradite conflict, but I think it was more of differences and the inability for Britannia and Japan to understand one another…”
Well, at least that proved that Zero was still in there, somewhere. “So…you disagree with what the professor said?”
“I’m not really sure,” he sighed, as if bored.
“Not sure? What do you mean?”
“I mean I’m not really sure about anything anymore…Maybe it was the Sakuradite conflict, or maybe it wasn’t.”
“Lelouch…?”
Exactly…how was he to know what was real and what was fake? He remembered things that never happened to him, knew things he shouldn’t know…was his mind playing tricks on him? Or was it that his mind was the only thing that knew the truth?
“Hey, Lelouch, Kallen! Stop lagging!” Millay called back to them. And if Kallen didn’t know any better, it looked like Shirley and Rolo were giving her slight glares…while Suzaku only looked at the two of them suspiciously.
This wasn’t good—Kallen thought fast. The others just had to finish getting past that building…if she could put a good amount of distance between them, then when the operation began.
“Ah!” she said, letting loose the strap on her bag, letting her books fall to the ground. A pathetic attempt sure, but if she knew Lelouch—
“Here, let me help you with that,” he said, bending down to help pick up her books and pencils.
There we go.
“Thank you,” she said, trying her best not to gag at her attempt. Sure, Shirley would probably glare at her for a bit for using the oldest trick in the book, but, well, what did she know?
“You shouldn’t carry all these books around,” Lelouch smiled back at her—a smile that probably would have made her just a bit happy if not for the stress of the mission. “Don’t you use a locker at Ashford?”
She nodded, “Most of the time, but one of my friends called before we left, so I had no time to put my books away.”
“Then your friend should be more worried about your well being,” he told her. “After all, when you’re too sick to come to school a lot of the time, you should be careful with how many books you carry.”
If it was any other boy, Kallen probably would have suspected he was a bit too nice. But since it was Lelouch…well, before she knew him, he seemed pretty apathetic to the world. But when he could help out someone, he did. Funny…not a quality you would expect for the leader of the army against Britannia.
They passed just in front of the hot dog stand near that closed up office building that was undergoing renovation. As Kallen glanced out of the corner of her eye, she saw the owner of the stand wink at her.
Showtime.
And as they took one step past the large, boarded up doors, she heard the blast of the explosives.
Now!
A large piece of the building came falling right towards them. Kallen pushed both of them right through the (suspiciously unlocked) doors as the debris came crashing down.
“What the—what happened?” Lelouch gasped as he fell down hard on the floor, dumbstruck as he heard the sounds of gunfire from above. “Terrorists?”
Kallen merely surveyed their surroundings. Everything had been planned out the night before, complete with their backup on various roofs around them firing blanks (they were just decoys after all, though they brought real bullets with them for when the Britannian army came with backup). The barricade she and C.C. had constructed with fallen desks and other debris was set in place, for the alibi to come later.
Lelouch shakily rose to his feet. “The others are probably worried—we need to get out of here, Kallen—” He reached inside his pocket, grabbing his cell phone, but wasn’t able to hit any of the buttons before Kallen shot out to twist his wrist, making him drop the phone.
“Don’t even think about it,” she glared, no longer acting the sickly composure she was before.
“Kallen? What are you—?”
“Just listen to me right now. C.C. is coming. She’ll restore your memories. But you’ll have to stay here and be quiet until she gets here.”
“C.C…? My memories? What are you talking about? My memories are fine!”
“Really?” Kallen glared back. “I doubt it. While you’ve been acting the simple schoolboy all year, we’ve had to fight and suffer just to keep our dream alive! You gave us a dream, so don’t think we’re going to let you live in this fantasy land when it’s your responsibility to see it through!”
“I don’t understand…fighting? Wait you’re…You’re one of the terrorists?!” But Kallen…how could she be…Her secret…was that it?
“That’s right. And you’re one of us as well.”
Terrorist? He was a terrorist? No, that couldn’t be…He was Lelouch Lamperouge, wasn’t he? He wasn’t… “You’re lying! You know that’s not—”
“You’re the one that’s lying. You know it’s true—I heard it from C.C. You know in your heart what you are supposed to be, and yet now you’re insisting it’s not true. Think about it! You’re not Lelouch Lamperouge! Your heart knows who you are!”
He thought…he remembered those flashing images…of the Black Knights…of all those dead soldiers…of Zero…of Zero!
Lelouch froze up, almost too horrified to speak. “I’m…no, I can’t be…I am…”
“That’s right.” She took a step forward. “You already know who you are. You are Zero.”
Zero. The Masked Murderer. The Traitor to Britannia. The man who rebelled against Britannia. But…Zero was dead…he was dead…
But if Zero was truly dead, wouldn’t Britannia have shown his execution? Let the public know who he was? Britannia was a proud country…if they had really captured Zero, they would have…
“Stop it…it’s not true…I’m not Zero! Stop saying it!” Lelouch lost it, as he grabbed forward to shake the truth out of her—
He never got a chance. The instant he reached for her, Kallen dropped that heavy bookbag and grabbed his arm, twisting him around and holding him tight, knee against his back.
“Ah—” He gasped at the pain.
“Pathetic,” Kallen spat. “You’ve gotten so pathetic over the last year, Zero. When you wake up, you’re going to die of shame.”
No…Zero…I can’t be…
“What, having fun, Kallen?” came that voice Lelouch vaguely recognized.
“Hmph, he’s taking this harder than I thought.”
“Still, I can’t do this if you’re holding him like that. Let him go, Kallen.”
She sighed, “Fine,” and released her grip as Lelouch fell down hard on the dusty floor. He heard footsteps, and as he looked up, he saw her—a woman with long green hair, dressed in a black outfit that was a cross between a dress and a uniform.
She knelt down before him, with a motherly sort of look on her face. “Lelouch…it’s been a year since we last met. And since then, you’ve forgotten everything that you are. Still, don’t you want to know the truth? About who you really are?”
Lelouch scrambled to his knees, glancing back nervously at Kallen. She had said he was Zero…how could he be Zero? It made no sense! But those memories…those memories…
Didn’t he disagree with what Britannia was doing? Didn’t he sympathize with the Japanese?
He was the one who thought that maybe Japan deserved to be in the hands of the Japanese. Maybe…maybe sometimes he even thought the world would be better off without Britannia.
But…did that mean that he was…Was he really…?
“You have to hurry up—” Kallen said, “Soon the reinforcements will arrive and we’ll be caught unless we get this over with.”
“Well, Lelouch?” asked C.C.
Did he really want to know? If he stayed in the dark he could continue this life…but if he learned the truth…perhaps it would lead to something more…
But…at least if he learned the truth, he would have answers. Answers that he had been wanting for a full year.
Knowing he would never be able to turn back or change his mind, he nodded, “Tell me.”
With a small smile, C.C. reached for him, her hands lightly touching his cheeks. “Welcome back, Lelouch,” and, to his shock, she then kissed him.
The room around him faded into nothingness as he was floating…floating along a plane of space and time.
Quick images flashed by him—a girl he once knew, the Emperor, one of the Britannian princesses—a younger looking Suzaku, a blind girl in a wheelchair, the Sakuradite war, that red symbol—no, it was called Geass—it was in Suzaku’s eye—that woman, C.C….
Knightmares fighting…a battle against the Britannian army…
Suzaku pointing a gun at him, in warning…
The geass in his own eye…
The princess Euphemia, no, her name was Euphie…
V.V…
Euphie’s death…
Shirley crying…
The Black Rebellion…
And that pain in his shoulder, where he was shot…Suzaku shot him.
Suzaku shot him because he hated him.
He hated him because he was…
He was Zero.
“At last…I have returned.”
Back in the present, Lelouch shakily got to his feet, still a little woozy from that experience. “Lelouch?” Kallen asked. “Are you…?”
That was when she heard it, that low, sinister chuckle. “Lelouch…?” And then, without warning, he threw his head back in a full blown laugh.
Remembering his shoulder, Lelouch thought to himself, Yes, I must put it all behind me…You are worthless to me now, Suzaku.
“Thinking they could lock me away forever…” he continued to chuckle. “But they should have known me better…Finally, Zero has returned! I have come back to change the world!”
A chill came up Suzaku’s spine as he hung up his phone. No, there was no way the Lancelot could get there in time.
“Let me go in,” Rolo came up, pleading.
“What?”
“I overheard that your knightmare won’t be ready. Let me go in and find Nii-san instead.”
Suzaku shook his head. “That won’t be necessary. Your orders are to watch Lelouch during his daily activities. When the Black Knights are involved, you have to let the army handle it.”
Rolo glared daggers back at him. “I am trained in combat, and it will take your soldiers a while to get in there under this gunfire. Let me go in, using my geass.”
Ah, Suzaku remembered about Rolo’s geass. It seemed that giving these assassins geass was a regular thing wherever he game from. Still, they had worked together for a year, and while Suzaku felt a sort of familiarity to the assassin, he detested his methods.
But there was no denying he was good.
“Fine,” Suzaku sighed. “But your orders are to secure Lelouch and nothing else, do you hear me?”
“Yes, My Lord,” Rolo said to him, and then turned away.
To Suzaku’s eyes, it looked like Rolo vanished into thin air, but he knew that the young assassin had instead used his geass.
Turning his attention back towards the civilians huddling in doorways (why did the Black Knights always do this? Choose to endanger civilian lives in order to get a point ahead?) his thoughts were suddenly cut into as a woman screamed and pointed.
Suzaku turned towards her pointing finger and gasped like everyone else.
Zero.
Zero had appeared before them—standing atop the roof of the building the Black Knights were attacking from. But…it was impossible, wasn’t it? It was impossible that Zero had returned—
Unless Lelouch’s memories had returned.
Without even thinking, Suzaku took off in a run towards the building. He barely heard Millay and the others call for him. Dodging what he thought to be gunfire, Suzaku ran towards the back door of the abandoned office building.
He couldn’t afford to waste time getting caught in a skirmish now. If Lelouch had regained his memories—
Then everything he had tried to do over this past year would have been for nothing.
“Nii-san!” Rolo yelled, as he ran through the building. “Nii-san!”
“Ah, Rolo!” he heard Lelouch answer, coming from the next room.
Without another thought, Rolo ran for them, seeing a large pile of debris in the next room. “Nii-san?”
“Over here!” Lelouch said, gasping as he managed to push aside a heavy looking piece of fallen wood, revealing his face. “We got trapped.”
“Here, let me help!” the boy spoke, hastily helping them move aside the fallen desks and chunks of fallen wood and plaster (thank goodness Rolo was too worried about his brother to see that the debris resembled a fort instead of what parts of a collapsed ceiling would look like) until both were freed.
“Thank you, Rolo,” Lelouch sighed as he rose from where he had been trapped. “But what are you doing here? Outside it’s—”
“I know, Nii-san, but I had to come in and help you! I was worried after that explosion and you—”
“Calm down. Kallen and I are fine, aren’t we?” The sickly-looking Kallen nodded.
“Anyway, let’s get out of here. How are the others?”
“They’re fine, Nii-san, just worried about you.”
“Well, they don’t need to worry about me,” he laughed it off. “I was shot once before—looks like I have a habit of getting caught when the terrorists are attacking, eh?”
Rolo attempted to laugh.
Just as they were about to leave the building, Lelouch stopped. “Oh, Kallen…you have a cut on your cheek,” he said, pointing to a little nick she had gotten when she first pushed him inside. “Let me see that.”
Leaning close to her, he whispered in her ear, “Meet me behind the school tomorrow, during lunch.”
When he pulled back, she nodded, a determined look in her eyes. If Rolo had seen, perhaps he would have thought Lelouch was setting up some sort of date (though he wouldn’t have been happy about that). But that fierce look in her eyes revealed all—it was strictly an order from her commander, to help progress their cause forward.
Zero had indeed returned. And it was now time to get to his work of changing the world.
Suzaku ran through the dusty floors of the abandoned building, going up, up…if Zero was anywhere, it would be near the roof, that he was sure.
Yes, highest floor, Zero should be around here somewhere—
There! A flash of a cape—and without thinking, Suzaku darted forward, grabbing Zero tightly by the arm and pulling his gun on him. “Zero! Surrender everything to me or I’ll shoot!”
“Aren’t you forgetting something?” ‘Zero’ spoke, reaching up and taking off the helmet, and revealing herself to be C.C. “Shooting will do nothing to me, remember?”
“C.C.!” he almost dropped his gun. “What were you doing? Why did you go out there as Zero and—”
“I was only giving the public what they wanted to see,” she explained with a sigh. “Especially since we failed.”
“Failed? What do you—Have you been trying to restore Lelouch’s memories?”
C.C. glared back at him. “Lelouch is my accomplice, and my responsibility. It is also my responsibility to undo what you people did to him.”
Suzaku glared. “Lelouch killed so many people. Removing his memories is a light punishment for him. You have no right to interfere—”
“I don’t care about justice or punishment. Lelouch and I have a contract. I am merely making sure he will uphold his end of the bargain. A bargain, which, you, I notice, turned your back on. Now, will you let me go?”
Suzaku thought a moment. His orders were to capture C.C. but…she had failed. Soon more guards would be put on Lelouch. Maybe if he let her go here… “If you answer all of my questions, I will let you go, but only then if you promise you won’t waste your time going after Lelouch again.”
She smirked back. “I promise.”
That was way too easy, Suzaku knew, and he knew the witch probably intended to break the deal. No matter now, just as long as he got his answers. “First, what do you mean by ‘you failed’?”
She sighed, “That blast wasn’t supposed to trap Lelouch and that other girl in rubble.”
“That ‘other girl’ was Kallen. Is she still in contact with the Black Knights? Are you the one named ‘Cera’?”
C.C. stared at him. “My name is C.C. Calling me by anything else is rude.”
“Fine,” he muttered. C.C. would have to be pretty patient to listen to Kallen talk about shoes anyway.
“Anything else?”
“Lots of things,” he glared, lazily pointing the gun back at her. “First you tell me why on that day you chose to give me the geass. That was what started all this.”
“You wanted power. I gave it to you. There is no other answer.”
“But, why—”
“Next question.”
Why was she calling the shots? “Did Lelouch put a geass on me?”
“He did.” C.C. nodded. “The geass to live.”
“What?”
“He found out, Suzaku. He knows you wanted to die. So he placed a geass on you so you would value your life instead of—”
“Damnit, why?! Why did he think that he could control my life? Why did he—!”
“Why?” she chuckled to herself. “I think it should be rather obvious. He wants you to live.”
Damnit. It was his life! It wasn’t Lelouch’s choice what he did with it! It was his choice! No one else’s!
“One more thing,” he demanded. “Why does my eye hurt?”
That question seemed to catch her off guard. “Your eye?”
“Yes! Yesterday, it was hurting, and the geass—it faded in my eye for a moment, then went away—it’s like—”
C.C. stepped closer, looking into his eye. “It was what I feared,” she sucked in a breath. “Suzaku, your geass is very unstable. Much more unstable than a normal geass user’s. Your geass is evolving at a faster rate than normal.
“Evolving? What? What does that mean—?”
“It means if you use it too much, you won’t be able to turn your geass off!” she glared back at him. “You need to use it wisely, or—!”
“All right, I get it!”
Still, C.C. wasn’t so sure. She had a bad feeling about this before Suzaku’s geass started to show signs of evolving. Even if Suzaku did nothing…he was probably prolonging the inevitable.
Still, she had to wonder, why was his geass so unstable, anyway? If he was meant to get the geass, then it wouldn’t be this unstable if…
She shook her head. Now was not the time to worry about these things. “So, is that it?”
Now he was out of questions. Could he just let her go like that? “One more thing.” Yes, this was necessary…necessary to keep them both out of trouble.
The geass lit up in his eye. “It’s not worth it to go after Lelouch again.”
There was no red ring around her eyes. Yet she still answered, “Yes…that’s probably right…”
And with that, walked off in a sort of daze.
She waited until she was sure he had left in order to break into a run. Funny, she thought she told him geass didn’t work on her. Guess she hadn’t. Oh well…
Still, she needed to get back to her apartment before Lelouch called her to give instructions.
Now that Zero was back, all energy had to be put forth to achieving his goal. Japan had to be liberated—and the sooner the better, before Charles got his hands on Lelouch…
Chapter 10 here.
Well, this is the beginning of the R2 arc! Hope you enjoyed!
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