A/N: Drat. Was hoping for another muffin. Oh well...

DISCLAIMER: Code Geass and its characters are owned by Sunrise, Inc.

A light wind blew that evening, lightly divesting a cherry tree in full bloom some of the petals from its blossoms. Some of them fell upon a strange pair ― a man and a woman ― as they stared at each other, as if expressing their impatience at the two's staring contest.

The tree was in the garden that belonged to the woman, now wheelchair-bound in her old age. In fact, she turned a hundred today. The man was her guest, one she had been waiting for half of those years, though he appeared to have an age only a few over half of that half. He stood straight, wearing clothes that were in fashion perhaps thirty years prior. Why he would be wearing them wasn't that strange to him, however.

"You're late," she finally declared.

"I lost track of the time," he replied. "Sorry about that."

The woman snorted. "Liar."

He shrugged. "You know me too well. But I do feel bad about it."

She sighed. "Apology accepted. I like the beard. It suits you."

"I thought you'd appreciate it," he explained, "if we looked closer in age."

She laughed then, though with difficulty. Those who knew her could bear witness to her strength of spirit, but were also all too aware that her body could no longer keep up with it. No matter, she got her wish today.

"It's good to see you again, Lelouch."

"Happy birthday, Kallen."

03 - The Grandmother

She really should have known better.

In her hundreth year in this life, she should have gone through enough surprises so she could no longer be surprised. She also should have gone through enough disappointments so she could no longer hope.

But she was a woman who in many occassions had thought all hope was lost only to be proven wrong; enough to look for the silver lining in every dark cloud that came to her late in her long life.

Reaching the age of one hundred years was rare even for this age where sickness and disease were nearly nonexistent. Perhaps it was nature's way of bringing balance in this world, that the children conceived after FLEIJA was first seen in battle were born with a genetic defect, with most dying before they could learn to walk. Life expectancy ― even among the Japanese ― had also lowered to the late 50's for men and early 60's for women. Fertility in women had suffered similarly, with most achieving menopause as early as age 32. As such, the birth of her own granddaughter was considered a miracle in both medical and evolutionary sense.

Family of miracles, that was what they were being called, now. It was, however, not without hard work in their part. Take her daughter, for instance ― her marriage almost never happened in the aftermath of the Great Tokyo Earthquake fifty years ago. Their wedding was scheduled for the day after the disaster, but both had agreed to postpone it in favor of contributing to the relief effort. As with many relationships, the stress from the disaster made emotions run high, and both nearly called it off. Unbelievably, the incident with their guest's... claimants, was what they needed to finally go through with it.

In her mind, though, nothing compared to the miracle standing before her right now.

"I'm sorry I made you wait for so long," he spoke, in perfect Japanese.

"Don't be," she replied, "From what I'm told, the year was never decided."

"Just the same," he countered, "precious time was lost, old friend."

She rolled her eyes, "You just had to say 'old', didn't you?"

He chuckled, then moved closer, bending a knee in front of her wheelchair and extended a hand. "Then let's skip the pleasantries, shall we?"

She took a moment to note the red mark on his palm before reaching for the offered hand. "Yes. Let's."

What you seek will set you apart from the rest of humanity. If you are prepared to face this, you must be willing to grant my one wish. Do you accept the terms of this contract?

I do.

Had she been a decade or two younger than she was now, she would probably be driven insane by the barrage of images that suddenly flooded her mind. Now, with the experiences she earned in her long life, she had the discernment to sort them out, and was able to arrange them in a manner that made sense to her. She pictured herself doing so standing up from her chair, flicking her wrist at each memory as they flew past, towards some direction or another, until finally they were all arranged as in a museum; she only needed to choose which gallery to enter as she pleased.

She was able to trace the path to when Lelouch used his Geass on her, and how he managed to make her believe he wasn't Zero. She traced the path to when he accidentally used it on Euphemia, and she felt the emotions that warred within him until the Black Rebellion. Kaminejima. Babel Tower. The World of C. She already suspected much of what she learned now, and finally knowing the truth firsthand brought her some measure of peace. She traced the path to when he decided on Zero Requiem, to when he died, and to when he woke up to his immortality decades later. She braced herself for what was to come next.

She continued following this path a little more leisurely, as if she was walking beside Lelouch for the entirety of it. She was glad when saw C.C. again, doing well, but was saddened when she learned that while her friend finally could die, her soul remained locked within the Code, preventing a rebirth.

Rebirth. If you asked her directly, Kallen would say that she did not believe in such things. However, especially since she first laid eyes on her granddaughter, she slowly came to admit that it could be possible. Later meeting the girl's boyfriend, Rollie, the sense of familiarity was too great to dismiss.

Continuing on the path of Lelouch's quest, she had the mind to not dwell on the morality of some of the choices that Lelouch had to make. Instead, she focused on the mystery that was Geass.

As she watched Lelouch hunt down immortal after immortal, she became more fascinated with every new tidbit of knowledge that came with every Code. She was also surprised that the information she managed to gather on anything related to Geass was more helpful than she had imagined. Her thoughts went back to her husband, who she knew was like C.C.. It was him who encouraged her to put them all in one place, using a method that was older than any hooked-up technology but was easy enough to manage. When the time finally came that they should part and fake his death, she found herself more determined to find a way to end the curse, having already lost two men in her life to Geass.

"I got faith in you, Kiddo." He never stopped calling her that, even after they married. "When the time comes, you'll know what to do. Don't ever lose that big heart of yours."

It was hardly stuff for romance books, but she truly loved the man. He just showed up one day at the hospital she worked at, looking and acting nothing at all like a prince charming. If you asked her, he seemed like a cross between Gino and Tamaki, and doubly more annoying. He had a beard, too; she hated beards. Unexpectedly, he still managed to worm his way into her heart, and they decided to marry in less than half a year since they first met.

Even that nearly ended as quickly as it started.

-.o.O.o.-

"Some lawyer called."

It was barely a week since they returned from their honeymoon trip. Her husband had just returned to their small apartment from an errand.

"...wanted me to come to their office. Something about my father's..." Her mind was still reeling from what the caller told her. A sizable inheritance... Only if she married... Before she turned twenty-five...

"You insisted on the date, right?" She asked him. "The day before my birthday."

"Kallen," he began, but she wasn't listening.

"You knew!"

She couldn't remember much of what she said or did after the accusation; except for that she couldn't decide between clutching her chest or head with the confused mix of thoughts and emotions that were running through her. He wanted the money! Will he kill her now? Lock her up? Declare her insane because of what she told him about Geass when she saw his tattoo?

She felt him grab her, and she was suddenly in another place. The silence and the, blankness, of her surroundings snapped her out of her thoughts enough to collect herself. In the next moment she saw images of herself during the days spent preparing to fight against Lelouch, as well as the feelings of admiration and respect that came with them. Next came sporadic images of time of peace after Lelouch's death, before finally focusing on an overheard conversation between a group of lawyers, apparently thanking her father for their good fortune. And to his daughter! May she remain single for another six months. Then came images of events she was familiar with, but through another set of eyes, and the earlier feelings of admiration slowly turned into affection, until the encounter just moments earlier.

When the images faded, standing just ahead of her was her husband, the tattoo at his left forearm was the only thing that had color in this space. She then became aware of a warmth that seemed to focus on only her. Love, she figured, and it came from him.

"Believe what you're feeling," he spoke, his voice seeming to come from all directions. "Here. Now. There are no lies."

It's true, she thought. Somehow, she knew it was. She was also aware of the same love coming from within her, no matter how she wanted to deny it. Here. Now.

She reached for him.

Returning to reality, she found herself cradled against his chest, both of them on the floor of their now-messy apartment. In her confusion, she must have begun throwing things at him. Seeing blood on his face, she supposed that was indeed the case.

"Just say the word, Kiddo," he whispered when he saw her looking at him, "I'll leave."

"No!"

It was the truth. She already lost her father to society, her brother to violence, and Lelouch to his own schemes. She had the choice this time around, and she'd rather die before losing another man she loved.

"Please. Stay."

-.o.O.o.-

With her inheritance, they built the Earl Stadtfeld Memorial Hospital near the outskirts of Tokyo, and bought back the ancestral home in Izu, where her mother grew up. When the time came that it would be difficult to explain his continuing youth, her husband asked her for a boat, which was only ever used to stage his death.

Josephine came into her life not long after. The only survivor of a car crash that claimed the lives of her parents, she was an angry child who wanted to make their killer suffer. Kallen took her under her wing, seeing a bit of herself in the girl. It took ten years before the girl finally called her "Mother", and decided to give up on her quest for revenge.

Kallen briefly took a detour from the current path, to look back at how events played out for Lelouch when he first woke up after his death. When he was wheeled in ― heavily bandaged and strapped to a stretcher ― to where she worked on other injured victims of the quake, she had recognized him instantly, though he didn't seem to know her. When she figured he wasn't faking the amnesia (recalling C.C. in a similar situation long ago), she thought it best to keep him close while he recovered, and he had became a part of her family. She felt glad when she learned that he had been happy to have been part of it during those few short weeks.

Returning to the earlier path, she learned that the last immortal he had faced was her husband, who also turned out to be the most ancient of the seven. A former Templar Knight (among other occupations), he had been the last to attempt to rid the world of Geass, but failed. Dismayed by his failure, he had hidden himself away from all human contact. When he felt the ripple that was created when Lelouch foiled the Ragnarok Connection in the World of C, he decided to investigate. With his new identity, he joined the Black Knights as a foot soldier, where he first noticed Kallen. After Zero Requiem, he sensed that seven Codes were active again, and had set the stage, through her, to give Lelouch what he needed to succeed.

Which led Lelouch back to her doorstep, and hopefully, the end of his story.

Opening her eyes to the place within their minds, she declared,

"That's all I wanted."

Lelouch's image smiled, "And that's all I wanted to hear. You have granted my wish."

Suddenly, the blank expanse around them exploded in color and sound. Momentarily disoriented, she looked around to seek its source. She was surprised that it was Lelouch.

No, she corrected herself, not Lelouch himself, but the marks of the Code that covered his body. The souls who were cursed by immortality finally finding their release exploded in laughter and song, expressing their gratitude as they circled the pair before leaving to disappear somewhere above them.

One soul with a familiar face approached her, affectionate and giggling. It took her a moment to recognize C.C., because Kallen had never seen her so happy. They clasped hands, sharing in their joy, before the former immortal left to join the others. A moment later another soul approached her, bringing with it a strong sense of love. She felt her own soul resonate with it, as it always did so many times, so long ago. Recognizing her husband, she reached out with both arms and they embraced.

"You did great, Kiddo."

"I missed you, old man. So much," If she were able to shed tears in this plane, she thought, she probably would.

With great reluctance, they parted, all too aware of the need to answer a long-overdue call.

"I'll see you when you get there," he declared, pointing his thumb upwards behind him.

She nodded, "I'll see you soon."

After a final parting wave to her husband, Kallen found herself back in her garden, still holding Lelouch's hand. He, on the other hand, stared blankly ahead, apparently still in a trance. She turned the hand she was holding, and noted that the mark that was there moments ago had disappeared. Reaching out, she cupped his face with her hands, and guided it to rest on her lap.

"You poor man," she whispered as she ran her hand through his hair. "Fighting, all alone, for so long. For all of us."

She bent down, willingly ignoring her back's protests, to plant a kiss to his temple. "But it's alright, now. It's over. You're nearly home."

A/N: Had a tough time with this chapter. Hope it turned out okay. Yes, I'm still loving writing about my favorite ship, and exploring possibilities with them. I went with the theory that came out shortly after R2 ended that Kallen studied to become a doctor.

Just so you guys know, the last chapter of this story will be posted on Kallen's birthday.

As always, feedback is appreciated.

~ryder77