Disclaimer: I don't own Geass. If I did...there'd probably be less Kallen fanservice and more Lulu fanservice, ahaha. Although FukuJun's voice is kind of fanservice-y in its own right... *cough* Anyway, used without permission and not for profit.
Spoilertastic, by the way. Anyone who hasn't finished R2 who reads this will be heavily spoiled and highly confused. Just a fair warning.
In the End
misaoshiru
Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. The fundamentals of justice, the basis behind capital punishment. Vengeance. Honor. It was a principle that dated back to the Bible itself.
Those who shoot deserve to be shot.
Rolo had killed Shirley. For that, he deserved to pay an equal price. Lelouch had never wavered on that belief.
Until Rolo actually died.
If...if Rolo had died fighting, or if he'd been angry or held a grudge...if Lelouch had taken his revenge with his own hands...maybe it would've felt less hollow. But he was happy to have done something by his own choice, to have protected his false brother. And he was so pleased at realizing Lelouch's "lie" that Lelouch hadn't had the heart to correct him – he owed Rolo that much, at least. Rolo had died peacefully, smiling.
And as Lelouch buried him, he bore a tinge of jealousy.
Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. Lelouch killed Euphie. For that, Suzaku had to – wanted to – kill him. It no longer mattered that they had once been friends. That was years ago – what felt like a lifetime ago. Back when they were both still innocent, or as close to it as they'd ever been.
But they weren't innocent now, neither of them. Both of their hands were stained with blood. And Lelouch had manipulated and killed Euphie – innocent Euphie, who didn't have a malevolent bone in her body, who'd never hurt anyone by her own will, never, whom he'd loved, whose doll-like hand he'd held as it grew cold – he'd killed Euphie, and Euphie's honor, Euphie's innocence, had to be avenged.
Lelouch started to speak, and Suzaku nearly jumped. "Suzaku...tell me, do you intend to kill me?" His voice was soft, unaccusing, the only emotion in it perhaps being a faint curiosity.
He didn't answer, but his hand clenched a little more tightly around the hilt of his sword.
"I see. Give me, hmm...about three months and I'll grant you that wish." Lelouch was smiling, a small, sad smile, and all Suzaku could do was stare.
He was smiling then, too, when he died. It was almost a peaceful death, despite the blood that coated his white, white – white looked wrong on Lelouch; black was always his color – imperial robes.
And it didn't feel like it should have – a hollow victory, empty revenge. After all, in retrospect, it wasn't what Euphie would have wanted. Euphie was too gentle for bloodshed in her name.
In the end, it was simply a young, broken man killing his equally broken friend. Nothing more.
Zero Requiem.
Live.
And as Suzaku comforted Nunnally, after it was all over, he bore a tinge of jealousy.
"An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind."
~Mahatma Gandhi