Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass. I do own the plot. All songs used belong to their respective artists.
I'm safe.
Up high.
Nothing can touch me,
But why do I feel this party's over? – Sober by Pink
Chapter Four
Suzaku sighed as he slipped out of the castle, carrying Lelouch in his little kennel, as he headed to the address Kaguya and Kallen had given him the day before. It was almost nine and Suzaku had said he was going to go sight-seeing since he had arrived. He had convinced Gino and Anya to stay behind by saying that he just wanted to go for a brief walk around the area, get used to the manors and streets near the castle. He was more than gratefully they'd believed him; he hadn't been able to meet Anya's eye all day and been fighting off nausea all day.
"I guess I'm overreacting but… I don't know. I just wasn't expecting to see that, you know, Lelouch?" He asked curiously. So far, Lelouch had been rather quiet all day, only fussing when Suzaku had put him in his kennel and two separate incidents where Lelouch had broken something and basically killed something else. "Hmm. Is something wrong, little guy?" He asked worriedly.
'Yes, in fact, something is wrong,' Lelouch thought bitterly as he lay in his kennel, 'and it has everything to do with my current predicament. I've been turned into a scientific abortion. Anyone would be annoyed if part of them dictated a move to overthrow the biggest political powerhouse in the world while the other said that chasing a bloody piece of string would be much more amusing!' He had been trying too hard to fight the urges of the cat part of him but it was hard. Earlier, sitting on Suzaku's desk, he saw a black feather pen. He remembered he'd given it to Suzaku shortly after they were reunited at Ashford because the other had admired. But suddenly his arm moved on its own and his paw began batting at it playfully, crouching low and continuing to dish out blows. He rolled over on to his back, still swatting, and ended up knocking the entire glass mug full of writing utensils over the edge. It shattered on the ground in pieces and he peeked over the edge, just watching it for a moment, before his wits returned. He stayed quiet and only mewled his appreciation when Suzaku, who had been taking a shower, stepped in the mess and got a few cuts on his feet.
"Maybe that fish I feed you last night wasn't ready when I fed it to you," Suzaku thought aloud, trying to think of any reason for the shift in behavior. He didn't want Lelouch to get sick because of his incompetence.
'Your brain clearly wasn't ready when your mother gave birth to you but you seem to manage well enough without the missing half,' Lelouch thought snidely, growling softly in his throat. He was really beginning to think that by the time this whole experience was over he'd have developed a terrible fear of the dark and a bad case of claustrophobia. He spent so much time in this damn kennel was pretty sure he had gotten the exact measurements figured out by mere feel alone.
"Well, maybe it wasn't the fish… You haven't thrown up at all and it didn't seem like you had diarrhea when you went to the bathroom earlier," Suzaku said with a sigh, still musing over why the feline boy could be feeling so disgruntled. Though Lelouch had no memories (as far as Suzaku knew, anyway) and the brain of a cat, Lloyd had made sure a few things remained in his head; one was how to use a toilet by himself. Suzaku always left the bathroom door open when Lelouch went in just in case he had some kind of trouble but he seemed fine on his own.
'If my stomach had been upset and I had the urge to do either of those things I would have left the remains in your shoes or bed,' Lelouch thought with a small smirk of pride. That was one attribute of his cat instincts that Lelouch could completely agree with; leaving his presents in random places for the young knight to clean up when he finally stumbled upon them. Lelouch considered these little gestures could be little stepping stones toward what would ultimately be his revenge of epic proportions. What exactly did he plan to do? He was still a little shaky on the concept himself; whether he liked it or not, he loved Suzaku in a way so deep it may as well be a poison that had replaced the blood in his veins, so he couldn't kill him. The fact he'd already used his Geass on the other boy with the command to live was another hindrance since it meant he could not use his power and any physical blow would be easily diverted because of the command and superior physical prowess of Suzaku.
Suzaku blinked and paused as he reached his destination, cheeks flushing as he realized what it was. "My God… They wanted to meet me at a whore house?" He yelped frantically, looking at the paper with the address and then back at the building a few times. Meanwhile, Lelouch was laughing on the inside at the other's distress.
'Is he serious? Oh Kallen, Kaguya, I knew I could count on you to avenge Zero!' He laughed manically inside, his little body shivering since he could not physically release the noise. A jolt of pain shook through his body and he released a loud, pained cry. 'Damnit! Despite my mostly human figure it appears I am limited in movement to whatever a cat can do; and laughing is not on the list.' He thought as he lay down, mewling pathetically as the pain began to subside.
"I knew your stomach was upset! Well, let's see if we can't hurry this up," Suzaku mumbled before heading over and walking in through the doors. He was stunned briefly by the strong scent of alcohol, sex and cigar smoke but quickly shook it off and looked around for the girls that had summoned him here. A petite looking woman with black hair and blue eyes, clad in an all pink kimono with leaves decorated on it in various hues of green, walked over and smiled at him sweetly.
"May I help you, sir?" She asked before blinking and leaning in a little closer, looking at him with a critical eye. He leaned back on to his heels in hopes of putting more distance between them. "You look very much like Lady Kururugi." She commented. He felt his heart jerk lightly at the mention of his name but forced a smile he hoped wasn't too strained on to his face.
"I've been told I look like my mother by many people, actually," He said gently. The woman suddenly gasped and staggered back, shock in her eyes. There was something else but he wasn't too sure if it was fear or disgust, given she had clearly realized who he was.
"You're Suzaku Kururugi, aren't you?" She exclaimed loudly. Other girls perked up and looked over, a few who were not with men darting over to surround him.
"Oh my God, he has to be! He looks just like Lady Kururugi!" One girl squealed eagerly.
"Plus he's the only Eleven who would dare walk around Pendragon, the Britannian capital, in such fine clothes!" Another chimed in.
"You really are Suzaku Kururugi, who caught Zero and became Knight of Seven! How wonderful!" A third girl joined in excitedly.
"You're simply amazing, an inspiration to all Honorary Britannians! What type of women do you like?" A fourth girl, who somehow ended up latched to his left arm (since the right was holding Lelouch in his kennel) asked in a sensual tone. She had lightly curled black hair and bright brown eyes, her breasts practically popping out of her kimono and on to Suzaku's arm.
During this commotion, Lelouch had taken up to hissing and making other unpleasant noises. 'Back off, bitches! I have first dibs on that piece of one-hundered percent authentic Asian man-meat!' He declared wrathfully on the head. Was he made at Suzaku for everything that had happened? Oh, yes, he was furious; even the devil would be afraid at the amount of rage bubbling in Lelouch little gut. But was Suzaku still Lelouch's property (though it was only in the eyes of the spoiled ex-prince) to do with as he saw fit? That deserved an even bigger and more enraged yes; Lelouch had claimed that boy as his nearly eight years ago and wasn't about to lose his spot as Suzaku's first to a bunch of cheap floozies who wanted a story to tell.
"Is that a kitty cat you have in there?" The first girl asked, looking down toward the kennel. They all stopped and blinked, looking at him with weirded out expressions. "Uh… Why do you have a cat with you?"
'I'm his mobile pussy; you know, so he can get you sluts to back the fuck off,' Lelouch thought, his tone casual and airy. He really hated the fact he couldn't see any of these girls; he would like to be able to reassure himself that he really did have nothing to fear.
"Ladies, what have I said about making faces in response to a man with a fetish?" A voice asked sternly, snapping Suzaku from trying to find a way to explain Lelouch to these strangers. How many times had that voice barked at him for misbehaving? Or soothed him after a terrible nightmare? Or cheered him on when he was participating in a junior league kendo tournament? His eyes widened when he saw his mother, wearing a hakama of white and red with a sword close at hand.
"We're sorry, Lady Kururugi," They all said in unison, bowing before darting off to their previous places. Suzaku stood there, just staring up at his mother, while she looked him up and down.
"You look well," She commented calmly, the stern look still on her face. Suzaku swallowed hard and nodded, a thickness developing in his throat upon sight of his mother. Was he hallucinating? No, those girls had clearly seen her as well. But his mother was supposed to be dead; Tohdoh-Sensei had told him so! "Now come along. We have much to discuss and very little time to do so." She added, turning and heading back up the stairs. He followed quickly, jostling Lelouch and ignoring the hiss he reserved as a chiding.
She paused in front of a door and opened it, walking in. Suzaku was greeted by Kallen, Kaguya, Cici and a young boy he didn't recognize. The boy looked just like he had as a child but he couldn't think of a name for the boy. He was being held by Kaguya, who was coddling and giggling over him, with a bemused look on his face. "Ah, Suzaku! You're here!" The inky haired girl said happily, turning away from the young look-alike briefly. She then leaned down and pressed her cheek to the young boy's with a giggle. "Isn't he adorable, Suzaku? He looks just like his big brother!"
'My little sister's cuter than your little brother,' Lelouch thought with a huff as he let himself flop back down on his belly against the kennel. Something told him it was going to be a very long discussion and it would be a while before he'd be getting to stretch his legs.
"Wait… What?" Suzaku sputtered indignantly, looking from his cousin to his mother. She was setting her sword down and sitting at the circular table. Though Suzaku didn't know it., the table had been switched out only moments before he arrived. She looked at him calmly.
"I was pregnant when the war broke out. Barely, though, so that's why you didn't know; I wasn't visibly showing," She explained casually. She then chuckled lightly. "But he is indeed your little brother, Suzaku. His name is Lindo."
"Yes?" The little boy chimed in, looking over at his mother over his cousin's arms. He blinked a bit before squirming so that he could better see his mother. "You said my name. Did I do something bad?" He asked worriedly. Rin merely chuckled and shook her head.
"No, you did not. Now why don't you take the secret door and go get yourself something to eat?" She asked gently, reaching over the table and ruffling his hair lightly. He nodded, slipped away from Kaguya, and headed out quietly. After he was gone Rin turned her gentle smile to her older son. "There was a mob out to see me executed shortly after the takeover. They thought I had killed your father due to my relationship with a Britannian woman. The only way to assure you would be safe was to leave you in Tohdoh's care; I was never far away, though. I was always there when you needed a little help, whether you were aware of it or not."
"So it was all my fault again," Suzaku mumbled, shifting his attention downward. Rin growled, picked up her sheathed sword, and delivered a very unkind blow to his head. A large pulsing red bump developed on the back of his head. "What was that for?" He cried out, one hand grabbing the wound as he looked up at his mother.
"Suzaku, this is not your fault! The one at blame for all of this is that contemptible bastard V2!" She snapped, her tone laced in venom. Suzaku blinked a few times, confusion on his face.
"What do you mean? How is this V2's fault?" He asked gently, his hand still rubbing his now aching head. Rin let out a loud huffing noise and crossed her arms over her chest.
"He ruined the treaty of peace that had been decided on between Britannia and Japan," She said. Kallen, Kaguya and Suzaku all stared at her with wide eyes, begging her to continue her explanation. "You see, at my suggestion your father and the Emperor reached an agreement; if Japan decided who would carry on as Emperor after Charles and Japanese citizen was made the Knight of One, we would agree to help Britannia take down the remaining countries on the map that resisted."
"And what did you decide after that?" Kallen asked, completely stunned and intrigued by this news. To think they'd had a treaty of peace that was soiled by the actions of one person? She wanted to know if the choice of who was to succeed was part of the reason.
"We decided on the nineteenth heir to the throne, Prince Lelouch vi Britannia, as the one to succeed Charles," She said calmly.
"What?" Kallen and Suzaku both declared, slamming their hands on the table before standing up. Kaguya gasped quietly.
'What the… But I was exiled! I tossed my claim to the throne aside so why would they pick me?' Lelouch thought in sheer shock. He had never been told of any of this in his whole life; before or after his arrival in Japan.
"Sit down and let her finish," Cici said flatly, glaring at the two standing youths. They glared back but returned to their seats. "If you can keep your heads, you'll understand why I brought each of you here to hear what Rin has to say. Now, you may continue, Rin." She said, dipping her head lightly at her. The other woman nodded as well.
"Empress Marianna, if you didn't know, was born in to the life of a peasant. Due to this, she and I had known each other for quite a few years. She and I fought in the same yanki crew throughout high school until Marianna decided to return to her homeland and serve her country. After that, I cleaned up my act and became the respectable daughter I was always expected to be," She continued gently. She chuckled darkly and sipped from the cup of tea she had in front of her. "Those really were the best days of my life; breaking bones, pulling hair and kicking ass with my best friend. Ah, good times, good times. Anyway, as I was explaining, because of the connection between Marianne and I we saw it fit that her son would be raised with respect toward foreign cultures. And considering little Lelouch was a boy genius, we were even more thrilled; he would be a genius commander as well as a great man for discussing peace treaties."
"Then why didn't it happen?" Kallen asked. A piercing glare was sent her way by the amber eyed woman seated beside their story-teller. She flinched and blushed a bit. "Uh, sorry to interrupt…"
"It's quite alright," Rin said calmly. She set her cup back down and sighed lightly. "Charles has an older brother who is an immortal, much like Cici here. Now, V2 has always been filled with bitterness toward the world and wants nothing more than to see it go up in flames. This treaty between Japan and Britannia, as well as the decision to have Prince Lelouch succeed Charles, could mean that he would no longer have a puppet to control in the way he wanted. Though Prince Lelouch was not rather skilled with physical ability, he was sharp as they come and would certainly not be turned into anyone's puppet. That much was clear, even when he was a toddler."
'Damn straight,' Lelouch thought with a little snort. Suzaku seemed to hear this noise and glanced downward before turning his attention back to his mother.
"So V2 did the only thing he could think to do; have Empress Marianne assassinated and make it look like the Japanese were at fault. The treaty was nullified shortly after that, and then Prince Lelouch mouthed off to his father and was sent with his sister to Japan. Because they were the children of a dear friend, I convinced your father to let us take them in. And most of the rest of the story, you all know," Rin said calmly. She then nodded toward Cici.
"What you don't realize, however, is that Marianne is not really dead," She said. She was met by wide eyed stares and paled faces. "You see, I gifted both Rin and Marianne with Geass after meeting them both, though there were years separating the incidents." All eyes shifted toward Rin, who grinned impishly and rubbed the back of her head.
"I have the Geass to move objects at will. Telekinesis, if you will. I rarely use it nowadays, however, because it causes me to lose memories as I use it. I can't remember my childhood until the age of eight from using it too frivolously," She explained calmly.
"Marianne's Geass was the ability to transfer her soul to a different body. Right before she died, Marianne thrust her soul into the body of a young orphan girl she had taken in with the plans to build into Lelouch's future bride. That girl's name is Anya Alstreim," Cici stated calmly. The mention of the name made Suzaku gag, though he kept the bile in the back of his throat.
'Sorry, Mother, but I don't really have a taste for women,' Lelouch thought sourly. He already knew his mother was alive and well; he had realized that last night when he'd made brief eye contact with her. What really bothered him, however, was having to realize he'd basically just seen his parents having sex… Not a pleasant mental image for any teenager.
"We've been planning to take out V2 and Charles for years. Because of that, Marianne revealed herself to Charles as Anya and made it into the Knights of Round. Now she's playing the role of supportive wife and knight to keep him from seeing it when we finally decide to come out and attack," Cici explained calmly. She then glared at Suzaku. "That was why I was watching after Lelouch and why I gave him Geass. It didn't end the way I thought it would but now we just need to track him down and give him back his memories, since I'm almost certain Charles used his Geass on him. So, do you know where he is?" She asked bluntly.
Suzaku swallowed hard and cleared his throat. "Well, actually, I do know where Lelouch is. But I don't think you guys are gonna be too happy to see him," He mumbled nervously.
"What are you talking about? We need him to overthrow Britannia! If he's not dead than we'll be fine with whatever happened to him!" Kallen snapped angrily. Suzaku flinched again and looked off to the side, nervousness building up even more into his stomach. She said that now…
"I'd just like to state right now that I didn't know that they were going to do what they did to him. If I had, I wouldn't have handed him over like I did," He said calmly. Kaguya pouted at him while Kallen glared even more severely. Cici, however, was looking completely calm.
"Suzaku, stop stalling! Now where's Lelouch?" Kallen hissed furiously. He sighed and nodded, picking the kennel up and setting it on the table. "Suzaku, we asked for Lelouch! Not Arthur!"
"Just hold on!" Suzaku growled, turning the kennel so that the door was facing him. He pushed down and pushed it open, smiling weakly at Lelouch. The other blinked lazily and yawned, letting out a croaky sounding meow. Suzaku reached in and pulled him out carefully, holding him to his chest. Lelouch latched on to his shirt immediately, despite the fact one of Suzaku's arms was cradling his rear end and legs against it. "So… Um, yeah… Here he is." He laughed nervously.
After a moment of silence, complete Hell broke loose.
Lelouch ended up ducking under the table, hissing and spitting. 'Dear God these people are insane!' He declared in his head, tail fluffing out and ears pretty much flat against his skull, hidden because his ears and hair were the same black hue.
Kallen had practically jumped over the table while launching herself at Suzaku. When she went to grab him, Lelouch had slipped under the table. "What the hell have you done to him?" She shrieked angrily, shaking the other Japanese individual severely.
Kaguya, on the other hand, was trying to coax Lelouch out from under the table. "Come on out, little Zero! Don't be scared; you're fiancé will take good care of you!" She kept singing happily, her hand a few inches from the hissing hybrid. Rin and Cici had settled for silently sipping their tea and watching the others actions. The door creaked open and Lindo stood there, baffled for a moment, until all eyes turned on him. Tears were rimming his eyes.
"I'm so confused!" He whimpered in a shaky voice.
…
Suzaku sighed lightly as he walked home, carrying the kennel. "We'll head back to Japan and get the Black Knights up to date on what's going on. We'll also see about getting Lelouch back to normal; Rakshata should be able to figure something out," Cici had explained as she pulled out a needle from her bag. Suzaku raised an eyebrow at her, wondering why she was randomly carrying a needle on her person. "I like to be prepared."
'No wonder she spent most of her time with Lelouch,' He thought to himself while she fought to get the little cat boy to sit still and let her take the sample she needed. Why was he fighting? Well, Lelouch let the cat instinct take over; he owed Cici some grief after the large amount she had racked up on that damned Pizza Hut tab of hers. "Here, I've got it." Suzaku sighed, balancing Lelouch up against his chest with one arm and holding the other toward her. He kissed the top of Lelouch's head after he let out a loud yowl of pain when the needle broke his skin. "I know this sucks but it'll help you get back to normal."
'It damn well better help me get back to normal. I won't be able to kick your ass as a two foot tall cat-boy; you could just boot me into the air like a football,' He thought bitterly as he watched the syringe fill up with his blood. He whimpered and meowed loudly, though he wished he didn't. 'I feel so weak like this; my emotions are too hard to rein in with the cat genetics inside of me.' He sighed tiredly, flopping back against Suzaku after they put a little bandage over his puncture wound.
"But if Suzaku's going to help us how is he supposed to get to us? And what about the Lancelot? That thing could definitely help us fight of Britannia," Kallen pointed out calmly as Cici put a plastic case over the tip of the needle and Suzaku lightly stroked Lelouch's back, helping him relax and dose off.
"Lloyd said he was working on upgrading the system and adding some wings so that I can fight in the air. He should be done soon; I'll ask him about it tomorrow and then see if I can take for a test run. Instead I'll just head to Japan and turn off the tracker," He explained calmly. He then blinked a few times and smiled a bit. "I may be able to get another Knight of Round to join me too."
"Who?" Kaguya asked interestedly.
"Gino Weinberg, Knight of Three," Suzaku stated. He glanced over at Lelouch and gave a weak smile. "He said that when they were younger he and Lelouch were friends. Maybe if I tell him what's going he'll agree to help us. His knightmare, the Tristan, can shift between being a knightmare to a jet so he'll have no problem getting to Japan, should he agree to go with us."
"And what will you do if he doesn't agree to help?" Kallen asked flatly, glaring at him. He met her look.
"I don't think I'll need to worry about that. If I let him see what happened to Lelouch he'll agree; he seems like the type of person to find it really wrong. And if he doesn't want to help us than I'll handle it my way," He said calmly. He reached down and stroked Lelouch's uninjured cheek lightly. "I just want Lelouch to be safe."
"We'll head out in the morning then," Rin said, gently tucking Lindo in to bed. He had been completely baffled when he returned and it caused him to weep. After Rin had settled him back down he had fallen asleep. She informed them that he was a rather deep sleeper so they'd be fine to talk. "I have a friend who gets along just as well with the girls who is just as intimidating; she'll take over for me."
"So we expect you to catch up with us within the next two or three days, Suzaku," Cici stated to him sternly. He nodded calmly. "When you get close enough to Japan to receive radio signals turn your communicator back on and we'll have Kallen signal for you with the Guren from our base. Try to make sure you show up at night; less people will notice a giant flying knightmare in the dark of the night. And if you don't show up in three days we'll assume you've betrayed and you'll be our enemy; whether you head to Japan to help or not." Her tone was stern and her eyes were narrowed to dangerous slits.
"I understand," He said calmly. He got Lelouch situated in his kennel, stunned to see that the other had fallen asleep while pressed against the young Japanese man. He had then headed out, dreading the thought of how things would go with Gino.
Lelouch had slept with a smug grin on his lips, knowing that he had basically stolen one of his father's best knights, and was now gunning for a second one.
But God does it feel so good,
Cause I got him where I want him now. – Misery Business by Paramore
…
Suzaku had expected Gino's reaction to the truth to be bad; he hadn't expected to get decked in the face, though. He groaned and rubbed his cheek as the blonde hovered over him, eyes clenched shut in rage and fists trembling. "So then… Anya's basically possessed? And Lelouch was never dead at all?" He snapped. Suzaku pushed himself up on to his feet, ignoring the task of blood and the feel of liquid trailing toward his chin.
"I guess that's one way to explain it," He said with a small sigh. He wiped his mouth with his wrist, fighting back a wince, and wasn't surprised when it came back red. He dropped it back to his side. "So where do you stand?"
"I'll help you. But only to help Anya get free of the spirit possessing her and because Lelouch and I were close," He said with a small sigh, flopping down on the edge of his bed. He set his head in his hands. "I knew that the politics of Britannia were a little sketchy but I never thought…" He trailed in a tired tone of voice. Suzaku realized that he'd ever seen Gino as anything other than perky and wondered if the other was tuckered out from letting down his front.
"None of us did, really. So tomorrow night we'll head out bright and early, okay?" He asked delicately. Suzaku didn't want to derail Gino any further but he also didn't want Gino's inability to cope getting in the way of their plan. He wanted to get Lelouch back to normal and help him take his rightful place as Emperor as soon as possible.
"Yeah. I'll get some things ready tonight," He said softly. Suzaku nodded and headed to the door, then paused when he heard the other chuckle. He turned and found Gino grinning like he normally did. "It's kind of exciting for me, you know? I've never gone against what my parents planned for me before. It's like going on an adventure or something!"
"Yeah, it kind of is, isn't it?" He asked with a small smile. Suzaku was a little annoyed that Gino was responding this way, almost turning the plans to rebel into a game for him, but decided to let it go. If this was Gino's way to cope he wasn't going to take it away from him.
As he headed back to his room and looked at the two lying cats on his bed, Arthur lightly curled by Lelouch's head and licking his ears affectionately while the darker one slept, Suzaku himself was wondering how he was going to sleep with his fear of plans going awry and concern for Lelouch's safety weighing heavily on his mind.
End
Bonus Story: Bath Time for Lulu
The only reason he could think of for this terrible punishment was the fact that Lelouch had pretended to be asleep when Suzaku left for his training just because he didn't want to get stuffed in that damned kennel again. He then stretched out on the bed looking for something to do. He glanced over and noted a new plant in a plastic pot resting on Suzaku's desk. It had only been there a few days (a gift from one of the other Knights of Round, is memory served) and Lelouch's cat-like instinct dictated that since Arthur (who was much lazier than he seemed, given how often he would attack the young Japanese pilot) wouldn't be going after the common house plant any time soon. So Lelouch's cat-like side got the better of him and decided that he would be the one to kill the accursed plant. Why did Kitty Lulu feel the need to destroy the plant? He wasn't too sure but there was a principle of some sort behind it.
He hopped on to the desk chair and then on to desk, his sights set on the photosynthesizing creature a few feet away. He walked over and began batting at the little leaves that decorated the top. As he swatted at it, some part of Lelouch realized that it was a banzai tree. This information, however, was decidedly not interesting enough to save the plant from his assault so he continued, nudging it closer and closer to the edge. Much like the pencil mug earlier, the tree fell down with a dull thud and Lelouch looked down at it over the ledge. His tail flicked from here and there before he inched a little closer and jumped off. After a moment of pondering, he decided that he wanted to play in the dirt and with the tree still so he set to making quite the beautiful mess on the floor.
Lelouch was so lost in his playing that he didn't realize how much time had passed and that Suzaku was opening the door, hoping to walk in to a clean room he could relax in until they left to figure out what Kaguya and Kallen had wanted to meet up to discuss. Arthur perked up lightly, ears twitching, before he looked over at the other. "Hey, cut it out," He said evenly. Due to Lelouch's cat-like features, he was in tuned with the ability to communicate with Arthur. Their conversations mostly consisted of Arthur telling Lelouch to calm down and stop acting up.
Lelouch perked up, tree in mouth, just as the door opened and the curly topped brunette walked in. When he spotted the soil and leaf covered creature seated on the floor he paused, dropping the water bottle he'd been holding. 'Good thing you had the cap on or else you'd have another mess to clean up,' Lelouch mused to himself before he set the tree down and mewled softly.
"Oh, Lelouch, why did you have to do this?" He groaned lowly, smacking his forehead and letting his hand slide down. Lelouch mewled again, in a happy note, and walked over, rubbing his dirt-coated self against Suzaku's leg.
'Because it's fun to piss you off and I can actually get away with it, of course,' He thought proudly after looking upon his handiwork again. There was a large circle of soil so dark it almost looked black next to the desk. It looked as if a jar of black ink had been knocked over and then scattered with white bits of ripped paper, since there were little white rocks in the soil. In the center laid the tree, its roots reaching out like many little arms trying to grab at anything for help. A few were bent from Lelouch's flurry of blows while almost all the leaves had been ripped off. The ones that remained had little holes in them from his teeth and claws.
Suzaku released a heavy sigh before leaving the room again and returning with a small hand-held vacuum. He knelt by the mess and set to work, noting how both Lelouch and Arthur hissed vehemently at the buzzing contraption, and afterward tossed the murdered tree into the garbage can in his room. He then looked back over at Lelouch and sighed. "You're so dirty. And you probably haven't had a bath in months," He said as he walked over, picking the small figure up.
'Well, I'll give you that,' Lelouch thought bitterly. He remembered how the weeks in that cell had been terrible; the medicine that altered his body had made him violently ill and he'd lost weight from an inability to hold food or drink down, he had developed a terrible fever, and he had thought for a while that he was going to die from the terrible migraines. Because Lloyd was more interested in watching him, Lelouch hadn't really been given rights to use the shower or to change his clothes. Aside from three months ago, when his body had changed and he'd become pint-sized, and he'd been stuck in the small outfit he was currently wearing he hadn't had a change of attire. 'I could stand to enjoy a bath and clean clothes, though I doubt you have anything that'll fit.'
"Ugh! You smell terrible!" Suzaku yelped after giving Lelouch a little sniff. He growled in response and Suzaku headed over to his wardrobe, carrying Lelouch with one arm. "Look, I'm sorry to be so blunt but you need a bath." Suzaku should have seen what was going to happen after he said that world, considering he basically had two cats in his room.
Arthur let out a loud hiss and darted under the young knight's bed, the thoughts of water and bubbles extremely unpleasant in his mind. Lelouch's cat side had taken charge again and was squirming furiously, digging his claws into Suzaku's shoulders as he tried to climb over him. Suzaku struggled to get a hold of Lelouch and caught him just as the other was preparing to jump free by using his shoulder as a launch pad. 'Damnit all!' Lelouch thought angrily as Suzaku's hands held on to his sides.
"Nice try, Lelouch," He said calmly. He tucked the other under one of his arms and pulled a large white night shirt from his wardrobe. He then headed into his bathroom with Lelouch and shut the door calmly behind him. He set Lelouch down while setting the shirt on the counter and started to fill up the tub with warm water. "I'll have you clothes tossed in my hamper and have a maid take them for washing. Until then you'll just have to deal with that oversized shirt." He explained as he turned off the water, the tub filled well enough, and then snatched Lelouch up. As he tried to unzip the back the other struggled and squirmed frantically. "What is your problem? I know that cats don't like water but isn't there at least a little bit of your human side left that wants to get nice and clean?" He asked with a small growl, tightening his hold on the other again.
'I don't want you touching all over me when I'm the size of a four year old and naked! Now let me go, you stupid pervert!' Lelouch hissed in his head. If he was in complete control he'd be blushing so severely he'd be the envy of any apples or tomatoes in all of Britannia. He and Suzaku had never even had a hardcore make-out session; no way was he going to let Suzaku touch his naked body, whether it was to clean it up of not!
Suzaku growled and grabbed Lelouch's wrists in one hand, hoisting them up into the air, and then undid the zipper. He release Lelouch's hands one at a time, getting that sleeve off, before he would quickly shove that hand back into his grasp. After that he pushed the white straight jacket down Lelouch's hips and was stunned to see that the other had been stuck in commando all this time. "Geez, did Lloyd just not want to have to buy you some underwear or something?" He asked aloud with a sigh, shaking his head. He didn't even want to let the thought that Lloyd had done things to the young Britannian plague his mind.
'Stop staring you bloody sicko!' Lelouch hissed inside while his body struggled to get away again. He was answered by Suzaku keeping one hand on his wrists and the other wrapping around his waist as he stood, walking closer to the filled tub. He then set him in carefully, a rumbling growl coming from Lelouch despite the soothing warmth of the water.
"Isn't that better?" He asked gently, releasing Lelouch's wrists. He was relieved when the other let him limps drop into the water instead of trying to make a hasty retreat from the tub. He cupped some water in his hands and trickled it on Lelouch's head, wetting his hair and ears. A louder rumbling growl was his answer. "This is much better, isn't it?" He asked again.
'Like having lemon juice squeezed over an uncovered wound that was recently stitched with thread made of pure salt,' Lelouch thought bitter. He didn't care that his analogy was an over exaggeration (as well as an impossibility) because it was how he felt. His pride was severely wounded over having to be taken care of by the very person that had put him in this situation. He fell silent, however, as Suzaku began to scrub in the shampoo. It smelt strongly like watermelon. 'Of course; you grew out of grape and moved on to watermelon. Learned that when you stayed over to watch movies on our third date.' He thought calmly.
Lelouch had always prided himself on being logical, clever and vengeful but he had spent a lot of his time (mostly while he was mutilating his innocent victim once called the banzai tree) of the day contemplating what he would do. He recognized that no matter what happened he could not kill Suzaku; he was a murderer, yes, but he hadn't wanted to kill Euphemia and he would be unable to kill Suzaku for multiple reasons. One reason was his current form; cats normally don't go around strangling their owners with their tails at night. And even if he got free of this shape he still had a few other problems. The next was the fact he'd given Suzaku the Geass order to live; as long as the Geass was cast on him he would be unable to allow himself to die. Another was that Lelouch didn't have any allies here; yes, Kaguya and Kallen had shown up to give Suzaku a summons notice but Kallen was one of the reasons things had ended up this way and he doubted that Kaguya would still be willing to help when she was told that Zero was actually the arrogant prince she'd met a few times as a child; Lelouch had not been fond of Suzaku's nosy cousin, to say the least. And the last reason, though Lelouch didn't want to admit that it was a reason, was simply that he loved Suzaku far too much to be his executioner. He was loathe to admit it but it was the truth and even now, as the other rinsed the shampoo out, he couldn't help but want to be near him. "Stupid prick," He said flatly. Though, in his current state, it came out sounding, to Suzaku the human, like a little "Mreow meow."
"You feel a lot better now, don't you? I knew a bath would be good for you," He mused before getting a bath sponge and set to cleaning Lelouch's little body. And again, Lelouch found himself scornful to admit that he did like getting pampered by the younger male. He tried his best to remain calm and relaxed, but poor Lelouch was a seventeen-year teenage boy trapped in the body of a four year old with a mind stuck between hostile takeover and equally hostile plant assassination.
Later that day, when Lloyd came by to read the first batch of reports Suzaku had written, loud cackles of laughter could be heard after a blushing Suzaku asked bashfully, "So… Does it make sense for him to get aroused when I give him a bath?"
End
Ah, Lelouch… What a wit you have and how I love to make you suffer for it. So this chapter is the first of the ones that will follow the plot. Next chapter will be filled with some action (since I'm no good at action) and a lot of Lelouch-Cici conversation. Why? Because I need to get some comic relief and their banter should do the trick. So now for the questions!
