Suzaku wasn't surprised when he reappeared on the other side of the wall without walking through a doorway or even with any sort of transition. He'd been through this before. Never alone, though…

"C.C.?" He called, lifting his hand to check the communicator in his mask.

It wasn't there. Neither the communicator nor the mask. In fact, everything that marked him as Zero was gone, leaving him dressed in civilian clothes, which was pretty much the same as leaving him naked. He hadn't been anyone but Zero for years, and without the weight of that mask, the drag of that cape, the extra height of those impractical boots, he felt…

(Free) Lost. Without purpose, without meaning. Suzaku Kururugi was dead. He'd died for his sins and to atone for the world he'd helped create (and the way he'd had to create it). Zero was all that was left. To stand here without that insulating persona…

"That's just like you." A low voice snorted. "Dying for a cause you didn't believe in, for a master you hated, protecting a world that reviled you." A shape took form. "And then you became the very thing you hated. Again. How did you justify it this time? Necessity? The greater good? 'It was an accident'?" The shape gained substance. "What do you tell yourself to get to sleep at night?" The substance became fully formed. "Son?"

"Father." Suzaku breathed, his eyes wide and mouth open. "You…"

Genbu laughed. He looked exactly the same as he had the night Suzaku had killed him. He was even wearing the same clothes. At least there were no bloodstains, or at least none that showed up on the austere suit.

…he seemed shorter. Smaller. Less imposing. Suzaku was having trouble maintaining his shock and awe.

His father certainly didn't seem to notice that, though, as he attempted to loom over Suzaku. "You are a coward, Suzaku, and a disgrace. You always were – a crybaby and a wimp and a coward. Your mother's son, despite the fact that she'd died rather than have to face her humiliation. I'd hoped that Toudou would have trained that out of you, but even he failed." Genbu glowered at his son. "You are a disappointment. You were supposed to follow in my footsteps and protect Japan. Instead you betrayed her, time and time again. And for what? To protect your Britannian friends? Your foolish sense of selfish entitlement?" He sneered. "And you even failed to achieve those goals. You ruin everything you touch, Suzaku."

Suzaku swallowed. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting, but it wasn't this. His father had been a quietly imposing man, communicating entire ideas in a single subtle look; using few words to great effect. Suzaku couldn't remember the last time his father had spoken so much to him in a single sitting. The last conversation they'd had, Suzaku had done most of the talking until Genbu told him a child could know nothing of war, then backhanded him. Then the conversation had abruptly ended.

"Nothing to say?" His father demanded. "No passionate arguments, no sobbing pleas?" He grinned cruelly. "Ah, but you're a man of action now aren't you?" A knife clattered to the ground in front of Suzaku. It, like his father, was smaller than he remembered. "Well… act then!"

Suzaku bent down and picked up the dagger, turning it around in his hand. It was clean, at least. Like his father's suit, there was no trace of his father's blood on it. At least not yet.

Genbu's grin turned manic the moment Suzaku picked up the blade. "Once a traitor always a traitor." His hands were in fists, but set off to the sides, leaving his torso exposed, just as it had been on that night…

Suzaku looked at his father, then back at the knife, then at his father. Then he shrugged.

"As far as mindfucks go, this is pretty sad. I spent months with Lelouch and his sense of humour. This? Is just pitiful." He handed the blade properly to his father, hilt first. "You're dead. Go rest."

Genbu took the dagger reflexively, looking somewhat perturbed. "You…"

"I don't have to justify myself anymore, least of all to you," Suzaku said mildly. "Like I said; you're dead. And you had a few good points – I am a crybaby and a wimp, and no matter how much I try to harden myself, that doesn't change. And I have, at one point or another, betrayed every single person on this planet. And several who are no longer alive. But." He smiled. "The world is a better place now, thanks to what Lelouch and I did. Japan is a better place; not only better than Area 11, but better than it was before Britannia's invasion. Better than it was when you were in charge." He shrugged. "I don't ruin everything I touch, that's just silly. This whole thing is just silly. I don't agree with you; I've never agreed with you. And you've never agreed with me. And you're dead. So." I win. He held out his hand. "It wasn't exactly nice to see you again, father, but… yeah. No hard feelings?"

Genbu stared at him, silent and stunned. Then, just as he'd formed, he melted away. Suzaku withdrew his hand, frowning slightly. "Now what?" Given the fact that C.C. had led him here, he was determined to keep an open mind about this place, dead fathers notwithstanding.

The sound of stone grating on stone from behind him alerted Suzaku to the opening of a passage. There weren't many other options, so Suzaku ducked under the short doorway and continued on through the maze, hoping it ended soon. And hoping that the next room gave more of a hint as to what was actually going on.

OoO-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-OoO

Lelouch's jaw dropped as the room he found himself in slowly lit up from an unseen light source. It was more as if the darkness was gradually withdrawing (respectfully) than the light encroaching. The first impressions Lelouch got were vague and non-specific, but as the details became clearer, he took a few unconscious steps forward and gaped at the room in which he found himself.

He'd grown up in the Ares Villa, surrounded by opulence and ostentatious wealth, but these past few months at the Kururugi shrine had made more of an impact that he'd expected. The warm richness of the room, a mixture of comfort and tasteful elegance, felt alien to him now. Impressive, yes, but the high ceiling, the wide windows, the looming furniture… none of it felt like 'home'. He was more used to the shabby rusticness of the Kururugi's shack, where he shared a single room with Nunnally…

Nunnally. Was she okay? Lelouch had left her alone, intending only to dash out to fetch Suzaku, but now that he'd clearly been transported somewhere else, what would happen to her? "Nunnally?"

No answer. Lelouch backed up into a smooth wall, with no sign of the door he must have come through. He was trapped and alone and… "Nunnally!"

"Yes?"

Lelouch's head snapped around towards that curious voice. It didn't really sound like Nunnally, but…

"…Nunnally?"

The young woman in the wheelchair had his father's hair and his mother's eyes (he never thought he'd see those open again…) but her expression was purely Nunnally, a mingled look of surprise and love. "Lelouch? You… you look just how I remembered…"

"You're old!" Lelouch blurted out.

Nunnally laughed, seeming just as amazed as Lelouch was. "Yes, I suppose I must seem that way. This is… how is this possible?"

Lelouch wasn't even sure what 'this' was, but this woman; with her long wavy hair and elegant dress and affectionate expression; she must be Nunnally. But… "You can see." Lelouch took a tentative step forward. "And you're really old." Nunnally laughed again and her eyes danced with love and amusement. "You're so pretty. Prettier than Euphie, even."

All the humour drained out of Nunnally's face, but leaving it still warm and soft with affection. "That… that's sweet." She reached out a hand and Lelouch, well trained already in the habits of the blind, took it; despite the fact that she could clearly see. "How old are you, Lelouch?"

"I'm ten years old," Lelouch answered. "How old are you?" His eyes widened and his free hand covered his mouth in horror. "Oh, sorry… I'm not supposed to ask ladies that…" A pause and a curious expression came over his face. "But… you're not really a lady, are you? You're Nunnally."

"I am." Nunnally nodded. "I'm twenty four years old and I… I miss you, Lelouch." Her voice nearly broke at the end of that.

Lelouch immediately rushed to soothe her. "It's okay. I'm here." He looked at her, with complete sincerity. "I'll never leave you, Nunnally. I promise I'll always be with you. No matter what."

Nunnally smiled and shook her head. "You can't promise that, Lelouch. Not with all you have yet to do." She smiled and drew her young older brother in for a hug. "You were born for greatness. The man who can destroy worlds and build them anew. And someone like me… I can't stop you. And even after everything… after everything, I'm not sure I would if I could."

"I don't understand," Lelouch admitted grudgingly. He hated not knowing things, hated it when there was important information he didn't have. But this was Nunnally, his little Nunnally. It was okay to admit that to her. She was the only person he would never lie to, the only person he'd never hide from. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that…" Nunnally searched for the right words. "You did it. You and Suzaku. You truly made the world a better place. I miss you, Lelouch, and I will always love you, but what you did may have been the only way to save the world. We have peace now, and cooperation; something inconceivable in our father's time. And everything you promised me came true – Japan is free, the old corrupt Britannia is completely changed, Euphie… the only people who remember Euphie are those who loved her. You did everything you said you would. And you refused to let anyone else pay the price." She released Lelouch and smiled at him, her face tear streaked. "You gave me the world I wanted, a better world, and I'm so proud of you, Lelouch."

Lelouch stared up at her, before gingerly reaching out and touching her cheek. "Don't cry, Nunnally. I love you. And I'd do anything to make you happy."

The sound of hinges creaking drew both their attention to a new doorway, opening into a dark hall. Nunnally smiled weakly and gave Lelouch one more quick embrace, kissing his cheek, before pushing him towards the door. "You have to go now."

Lelouch looked at her uncertainly. He knew he had to leave, felt it in an indescribable way, but… "You'll be okay?"

"I'll be fine. Be brave Lelouch. I love you."

Lelouch nodded. "I love you too." He backed out of the room, keeping Nunnally in his sight for as long as possible, before the stone shifted again, hiding her from view.