A/N: Not exactly an Re; fanfic. Just a slight AU continuation of the original series. You know, if Lelouch lived and stuff. I honestly don't know. This kind of just… happened. And I couldn't stop thinking about it again. So uh… Sorry if it's disjointed and weird and just bleh. It's a writing with no looking back kind of mood. Happy reading. :D

Their Happy Ever After

It was difficult to love someone who couldn't love you back…

Everybody knew that. She knew it all too well after centuries of existing and wandering the earth fruitlessly. Perhaps it would be a stretch to say, but it was fair to point out that she'd seen — not all — but most of it happen again and again. Hell, it happened to her in her early quest for love, and her immortal years trying to find a genuine one.

It was just unfair that when she'd found someone who was capable of showing it, she knew in her heart that they would never deign to cast her — or her feelings — a second thought. Because… who would love a Witch?

If the years of being alive taught her anything, it was that immortality was a curse; a plague. An anomaly in the fabric of humanity. People were meant to live within a set number of years, thus making every moment of life precious, and making every relationship worth treasuring. Ideally, there should be no room for regret, because life is short, but that was also the beauty of human folly and a very human paradox.

It was all about being human…

But she was above that, wasn't she? And unhappily so…

What she would give to live a normal life, and find and offer love the right way. After immortality had claimed her, she couldn't remember every life she'd damaged in her selfish quest. Even the love she had to give them was tepid at best. Because even if there was ingenuity in there, it would always be tainted. There was no changing the fact that she had made contracts with them to pursue a goal she had yet to meet — to claim something she had yet to experience.

He was right to say she was a selfish woman. He wasn't wrong when he accused her of being cruel once.

Because she was… She'd given up her real name for that reason…

CC didn't deserve to be human… She was a selfish, stone-hearted, cruel witch.

Love was the last thing she could deserve. If she ever did in the first place.

So, even if she did acknowledge the fact that she had genuinely fallen in love with him in this ongoing journey between him and her, she would never tell him. Because he deserved someone whole and someone good. Someone who wouldn't bring him back to life for selfish reasons. But she did it anyway… Because he owed her something, and she wasn't going to let that slip. It was the least he could do if he wasn't going to ever return her feelings even after he told her he didn't hate her.

His first love died because of her. He lost friends and family because of her… Because she gave him a power and a curse that would isolate him from everyone else. And even when he accepted, she could have still told him the truth. She could have told him the terms of the contract, but she didn't. And it was all because she was so hell-bent on getting her one of two wishes in her entire existence.

Throughout his Rebellion and his Zero Requiem, she had stayed, and was determined enough to see it through. Because she made him a promise. Because even if he couldn't fulfill her true wish, she still sought hope. Because she loved him then, and even now.

And with every realization that rang stark and true in her tired mind, tears started leaking from unveiled golden eyes. Life was unfair, but why did it have to be so? Why did it have to be her? Couldn't it have chosen someone else?

But perhaps she deserved it because of who and what she was. Every ounce of pain and suffering was hers to bear, and not his. He was far too kind. Overwhelmingly selfless and only wanted the best for the ones he deemed precious. She was never going to be one of them though. She was neither friend nor family. Not even a love interest.

Just an accomplice. Just an ally in his finished quest…

And now that it was through, she didn't understand why she chose to keep hurting herself by staying with him when she knew her company wasn't appreciated. But that was the funny thing about love, wasn't it?

It made you do the most foolish of things, even when your heart was going to suffer brutally in the process. Even if it tore you to shreds. Even if it made ribbons out of your entire being. Such was the beauty and cruelty of love. It made you selfish and selfless at once.

So even if it was clear that he didn't want her, she would stay by his side for as long as he needed her…

Because she loved him, and wanted the best for him — even if it was at the cost of her own happiness.

vVvVv

She was an enigma, and he didn't understand her…

That was why he had lashed out at her on multiple occasions in the past. It was but an emotional tantrum of a boy who didn't know better. She was right to call him as one before, because back then, he really was just a boy with a man's agenda and a personal vendetta to deal with.

From the beginning until the end of his journey, he had sacrificed many — spilled rivers of blood, and became the most hated of heroes. By all accounts, he had every right to hate her for bestowing a power and a curse unto him in his most vulnerable moment — in the instance when he couldn't say 'no.' But that very same moment in time saved him and changed his life — for the better and for the worse.

Her 'gift' to him was a double-edged sword…

In the end, when he had lost everyone — even his greatest loves — and had only her left, he couldn't find it in himself to resent her. How could he? When he had seen so much of the precious dreamer underneath all that stoic personality. Yes, she was selfish and cruel to a point, during his Rebellion, but weren't they all? Everyone had their fair share of mistakes. She was still human by all means, despite her immortality, and humans were subject to errors.

She lived a life different from theirs. And she had been suffering. Wasn't it human nature to seek an end to all things that brought pain? Wasn't that why he began his rebellion in the first place? Why should she suffer resentment for only wanting a shred of happiness. Her methods were unorthodox, and though they could never be excused, he understood why she did it — to a point.

It was all about finding happiness and love in a world that gave her none from the moment she was born.

So how could he hate her, when she was simply another embodiment of a wish by mankind? How could he hate her when she was yet another victim of the world's cruelty?

When he lay dying, she crossed his mind along with so many others, and a part of him sincerely wished that he had had the chance to grant her one true wish. And when she brought him back to life for another purpose, he couldn't even find it in him to hate her after all that time. It was waking up to a realization that he now had a chance to do what he couldn't then.

Their journey together had never been easy. It was rough, and always, there were problems to solve. And secretly, he admired her for pulling them both out in the thickest of problems. He was also thankful to her for taking care of him and his then useless body. She did so much for him, and it made his heart ache, knowing this girl was just as precious as the ones he'd lost. She was, in all reality, all he had to live for now.

This, he thought as he watched the wind play with her green hair — a color so bizarre and so enthralling. A color that reminded him of the freshness of Spring. A part of him wanted to call for her attention, so they could resume their travels. And yet the other just wanted to stay back and watch her stare at the gorgeous scenery the far off mountains made.

"CC…"

She turned to acknowledge him, and he saw the same sad and impassive eyes he had been seeing for the past few weeks. She was always distant… Always cold… And yet, so very lonely. It was that way ever since their journey began, and though he wouldn't have thought to question it before, he was beginning to now.

"Even after all this time… Do you not resent me, Lelouch?"

Her question was met with a wall of silence. But honestly, was she expecting anything less? And what else was she to do but take his silence as a form of agreement? She'd asked him this question before — when they were aboard the Avalon and about to venture out and join the raging battlefield. He told her he didn't hate her then, and though a part of her had relished in that, she soon realized that it was his answer before she went on and ruined his Zero Requiem.

Come to think of it, she shouldn't have asked… She'd rather believe the lie over the obvious truth. Because… Because it would—

"We've been through this before, haven't we?"

He'd closed the distance between them and he was now standing next to her, gauging her carefully with those purple irises she knew all too well. To her surprise, he responded with a tender smile — one that was reminiscent of how he used to smile for his precious little sister. She looked away, refusing to meet his gaze and what that smile could possibly mean.

"I don't hate you, C****."

At the sound of her real name, she turned and faced him. Closer than he had been, he slowly took one of her limp hands and held them firmly. They were quiet for a few short moments, letting the howl of the mountain winds fill the sudden and uneasy silence. It was a period where all she did was stare at their hands; even as he slowly began to intertwine their fingers together.

He laughed softly to himself, and it earned him her attention. "It's funny that you'd ask something like that."

She frowned immediately and made to pull away, but his grip became firmer as he took the chance to step a little bit closer.

"It's a bit amusing, because… The truth is…" He glanced at her shyly, reverting back to the teenaged boy he'd been four years ago, as he spoke slowly. "I think you've always known…that I care about you." She bit her lip as he sighed deeply. "That I've grown…to love you."

She looked away, tears stinging the corners of her eyes. He was a liar. It was just another lie. Just another fabrication, so she wouldn't leave, because he needed her for now. It wasn't as if she would leave in the first place. She'd already resolved to stay with him until he didn't want her around anymore.

"You're lying…" She tried forcing a mischievous smile, but the mask failed, and all she accomplished was a slight grimace. "Why would you?" Her hand slipped away as she turned her back on him again. "Don't feed me lies, Lelouch. After I cursed you; after I doomed you to a life of isolation — acknowledged and unwanted by no one. You said so yourself…" She glanced at him over her shoulder to see a strange expression on his face. "I'm a cruel and selfish woman. All I do is bring pain and misery wherever I go." A bitter laugh punctuated her words — a contrast to the silent tears that rolled down her fair cheek. "I'm honestly surprised you haven't sent me away yet."

His heart ached… Those were the only words he could use to describe the sudden pain that lanced through him when she spoke. Because she was telling the truth. He had called her cruel and selfish once. He'd told her how he couldn't understand why any man would want her or look twice at her. And he hadn't realized how much his past actions — no matter that they happened years ago — had damaged and caused her pain. The point of the matter was that he had hurt her.

And who was to say he wasn't hurting her now?

She thought of him as a liar… He had lied, and had deceived the world for a good cause. Even when he promised Nunnally he would never lie to her, he did anyway. He'd made promises and broken them. He was such a pathetic excuse for a human being — so imperfect, jaded, and unbelievably tarnished. And yet, if there was one truth he was sure of, he knew he had never lied to her — not to his Witch.

In years of turmoil, she had been his night light — barely acknowledged, but always there.

CC flinched in surprise, but didn't protest when she felt his arms slowly wind around and across her shoulders, his hands — one over the other — dangling lightly above her beating heart.

"Do you not believe that I love you?" The embrace tightened slightly as he nuzzled her hair and buried his face into the crook of her neck; voice but a gentle whisper in her ear. "I came back because I made you a promise. And I'd be damned if I break it. I fulfilled everyone's wish for peace, no matter how fragile it is. If I could give the world something to look forward to, then why wouldn't I provide a better future for the one who gave me the power to do the impossible?"

The tears flowed faster now, as she hung her head. Every word that left his lips destroyed her — broke her walls down brick by solid brick until she was left standing alone in the middle of the rubble; no barrier between her stormy feelings and his anguished confessions.

He lifted his head from where it was nestled between her neck and shoulder. His arm had drifted south and wrapped around her waist securely, while his other hand aided in turning her body slightly so she could clearly see his face — and the unshed tears glistening in his own eyes.

"Don't you understand, C****? I fought to come back, because I love you." She trembled in his arms as he lovingly traced the thin river that continued to pour from her bullion eyes. "I've hurt people, and I've lost them. And even if I know I deserve to die to atone for every sin, I can't help but feel I betrayed one precious soul for the lives of others." He pressed his forehead to hers, nuzzling her face when he continued his whispered confession against her lips. "You were my only regret when I lay dying, my love. If they get their wish, then why can't you?"

"I don't deserve one." She quietly sobbed in a tiny voice, silently relishing the way he stroked her hair. Her own hands drifted to his shoulder blades, fisting the back of his shirt.

He shook his head; eyes half-lidded as he laid a poignant kiss on her tear-stained cheek. "Don't say you don't deserve it. Because everyone deserves a chance at love. You deserve to be happy, my Witch. So, let me fulfill your wish. I want to see you smile for the rest of your days, not just in death."

"Lelouch…"

He kissed her other cheek. "C***, I love you." A kiss at the tip of her nose. "I love you so much, and I swear that you won't go another day without being reminded of how much you mean to me."

The last of the wall came crumbling around them both, and she waited with bated breath as he slowly leaned even closer to kiss her lips. And when they touched, she accepted his token of affection — reveled in it, and returned it in full. She was deaf to the world; deaf to the ugly voice inside her head, because his truth and his confession was all that mattered in this moment. It was what anchored her to reality and sent her flying. His words and his profession were her new sanctuary — a little piece of heaven in a centuries' worth of hell.

They slowly parted, but just barely. His thumb stroked her bottom lip gently as he gave her that smile again. This time, she returned his gesture despite the leftover tears in her eyes. And he watched with fascination and awe as the Witch finally smiled in what felt like forever.

"Thank you, Lelouch." She reached up and cupped his face, slowly bringing it closer to hers again. "I love you." She kissed the base of his neck, where his Code was. "I love you." A kiss on his forehead.

"I love you…"