Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.
Author Notes: Of course, I apologize for the long, long wait. I have no plans of abandoning the story but life can be hectic. Without any delay, on with the story.
Chapter 9: Of Philosophies
Lelouch vi Britannia was nearly a splitting copy of Lelucia. Except for being a bit taller and older with shorter hair, he physically resembled Lelucia like they were twins.
Suzaku didn't understand how people missed the difference between them.
But then, most of the world didn't even know about the existence of Lelucia and Nunnally. For all they knew, Lelouch vi Britannia was the only child of Marianne vi Britannia. Even if someone who knew Lelucia noticed the similarity they would've have chalked it up to some weird anomaly or coincidence.
"Suzaku Kururugi, isn't it?" The Prince tilted his head, observing the soldier carefully. "Eldest son of ex-prime minister Genbu Kururugi, I presume?"
Suzaku was thankful that the hanger was mostly deserted save for himself, Lloyd, Cecelie along with Lelouch and his Knights. It wasn't like no one knew about his background but to have it stated again and again did get tiring after a while. Especially when it bought up long locked up memories.
He gave a jerky nod. "Yes, My Lord." He could see Lloyd observing the whole scene with a manic grin on his face as Cecelie looked on worriedly. He knew that Lelouch must have already gotten all information about him in a file somewhere.
Which meant that the question was just to catch him off guard.
Suzaku didn't know what Prince Lelouch's thoughts on Honorary Britannians were. Lelucia, in the few times she mentioned Lelouch, had said that he valued people for their skill rather than their background. Seeing as one of his Knights was a Japanese lady, Suzaku believed it quite easily.
"So I am also presuming that you met my sisters during their stay at Kururugi Shrine." The smirk positively radiated amusement and Suzaku froze under the scrutiny.
There was no doubt about who Lelouch was talking about. The thought of denying it crossed his mind but the gleam in Lelouch's eye made him re-think the decision. Many people from the Britannian envoy knew that The Demon's sister stayed at Kururugi Shrine. It is only after the war started that the tracking dropped.
Which meant Lelouch knew exactly how many days they had been staying at the Shrine before the invasion began.
"I didn't interact much with them. We were mostly kept separated." Not a complete lie since his father hadn't been fond of Suzaku hanging out with the princesses. Suzaku not obeying him was another matter altogether.
"So you have no idea what has become of them?" There was no sadness or disappointment in Lelouch's tone and Suzaku felt fission of irritation. The man was supposed to be their older brother. He was the one supposed to protect them and take care of them not abandon them when they needed him the most.
Pursing his lips, he answered, "No, we were separated in the early stages of the war." Suzaku hesitated. "I believe that they were unable to make it through."
Another lie.
Something flashed on Lelouch's face but it was gone before Suzaku could understand what it was. The genial smile was back before Suzaku could even blink. "I see." His tone was cool and reserved, even as he seemed to be contemplating something as he stared at Suzaku.
Glancing at Lloyd from the corner of his eyes, Suzaku was surprised at the intrigued look on the scientist's face.
"Why did you join the military?" The question jerked back his attention to the raven haired Prince as Suzaku gaped in confusion.
"Excuse me, My Lord?" The red haired Knight, Kallen Stadtfeld, smirked at his confusion.
"Why did you join the military?" Lelouch repeated. Suzaku saw the other two knights, Jeremiah and Sayoko, whisper something to Kallen before taking their leave. His gaze trailed after them until they left the hanger before jerking back to the amused looking Prince.
"Because I—" Suzaku stopped. "I wanted to stop the war and bloodshed. I wanted to save people." It was as truthful as he could get. It wasn't entirely untrue. Helping other people had been his main motivation for joining the military and that would never change.
"Joining the army to stop people from dying. How ironic." The smirk on Lelouch's lip irked Suzaku in ways he couldn't understand. It was condescending like he was used to from most of his superiors but it was more unsettling than any glare. For Suzaku, who nearly never got offended or frustrated, it was surprising that a mere smirk from the Demon was riling him up so much.
"If giving up my pride will save people from dying, then I will gladly give it up along with my life." His answer was firm but there was no flicker of surprise on Lelouch's face. On the contrary, he looked like he had been expecting such an answer. Kallen coughed, and Suzaku was sure it was an attempt to stifle a laugh.
He frowned.
"There are different kinds of pride you know. Some people consider lowering yourself to join the enemy means you lack pride. Some people believe that keeping your head held high despite the accusations of traitor from your countrymen is a sign of pride." Lelouch smiled indulgently. Suzaku didn't know how to answer.
He shifted his weight from one foot to another, eager for the little…. session to be over with.
"And is death the worst thing that could happen to you? Does death mean atonement for sins or is it just a coward's way out?" Lelouch smirked, violet gaze clashing with emerald. "Really makes you think, doesn't it?"
Suzaku stopped fidgeting and stared at Lelouch in barely concealed shock, wondering if Lelouch knew. It couldn't be possible since no one, except Kirihara and a couple of others knew about it. Even then they would never tell anyone else about it. But the way Lelouch was smirking at him, like he knew exactly what was going through Suzaku's mind at that moment, told another story.
"If it's atonement that is needed then wouldn't it be better if one tried to really fight for the reason they committed the sin rather than dying?" Lelouch questioned his gaze probing. Suzaku could feel Lloyd's and Cecelie's curious eyes on him. But his throat felt dry and he couldn't make himself to speak.
Lelouch stared at Suzaku for a few more moments, as if waiting for him to say something before shaking his head. "Saving people is a noble cause. But disguising a death wish behind it is despicable."
Suzaku stood rigid, staring at the person who was spewing out things he would rather not think about. After one last glance around the hanger, Lelouch turned on his heel and began to leave. "Lloyd, Cecelie, I need the reports of-," his voice faded away as Lloyd went behind the prince immediately. Even Cecelie, after a last worried glance directed towards Suzaku, followed Lloyd.
"It is never about the Japanese or Britannians." Kallen spoke up, her arms folded across her chest. Suzaku nearly jumped in surprise. Blinking at the red-head, he wondered how come he hadn't noticed her stay back even though Lelouch left. He must've been more disturbed than he thought. "Or about right or wrong. It is about power and those who wield it. Being Japanese is something you carry in your heart, no matter where you go. That's why people fight. Being a half-blood, I can the appreciate efforts people are making whether or not I agree with them."
Suzaku gaped at the lady, who stared at him coolly. "You are half-Japanese?" After a short pause, "My Lady."
"Indeed I am." Smiling, she started to leave. "There is no right or wrong in the world. No black or white either. There are only different shades of grey and it is something you need to remember. Temporary peace in the era of conflict is not the solution. Sometimes, sacrifices are necessary."
"But a meaningless sacrifice, sacrificing the lives of innocents, is not the way towards peace."
"If someone's sacrifice, creates a better future for their children don't you think they will be ready to die for it?" Kallen questioned, standing in the doorway. "The least anyone can do is protecting their friends and family. Trusting in them even when it seems hard to do so. Not everyone needs to be a hero and care about the whole world." After one last meaningful glance, she left, leaving Suzaku staring after her.
Lelucia stood rigid against the wall, trying to blend in with the spectators. The grounds were crowded enough for her to make her escape without anyone noticing. Even Milly wouldn't call attention to her. Not this time. Not under such circumstances.
"The Prince and his Ace have arrived!" Someone in the crowd squealed and a new energy rippled through the students. There were excited shrieks and a canopy of voices everywhere.
Gritting her teeth, she turned on her heel and marched towards her house. She knew that with all the hype and excitement, no one would try looking for her.
Except—
Suzaku stood leaning against the club house pillar with his face tilted towards the sky. There was stiffness in his posture that gave an indication that he was uncomfortable.
"Suzaku?"
He blinked and turned to look at her, an easy smile unfolding on his face. "Lelucia."
"What's wrong?" She asked, coming up to him. His uniform was neatly pressed and ironed. Lelucia guessed it was a habit instilled from the military. His hair was as messy as ever and Lelucia resisted the urge to try to flatten it down.
"Why would something be wrong? Can't I just come to see you?" Suzaku sounded defensive as he sat on the steps.
Raising an eyebrow, she replied, "Asks the person who claimed that it would be better for others not to find out that we know each other." She sat beside him, enjoying the silence and tranquility of the atmosphere for a moment.
Poking his tongue out at her, he stretched his legs. "Nothing is wrong. I just came to check on you." A pause. "I know that it won't be easy for you to see your brother again." There was no pity in his voice for which she was thankful.
She nodded, looking at the bushes lining the pathway. The area was deserted, just like she preferred it.
"Hey Lulu?" Suzaku called out after a few more minutes of silence. "Why do you support Zero?"
That was enough to jerk her from the mood she was in. "Support Zero?" She asked, wary. She couldn't remember explicitly claiming to support what Zero was doing publicly unlike Rivalz. She had kept her usual blasé demeanor even though the debates that the others engaged in frequently.
"You don't need to say it out loud for me to understand it. When we met in the underground tunnel, you told me that Britannia was the one at fault." He glanced at her. "It's not hard to make a connection."
Lelucia frowned. She couldn't guess when had Suzaku become so good at reading her. Even though it was a guess and quite a harmless one, it was discomforting. "He saved you. Isn't that enough reason for me not to hate him?" She smirked, glancing at the brown haired man.
"What about his ideas?" Suzaku pressed on.
Pressing her lips together, she said slowly, "They are revolutionary. They seem far-fetched but I have a feeling that he will be able to carry it out."
"But he is using despicable means to do it." Suzaku pointed out, his body half turned towards hr. She could feel his emerald gaze on the side of her head but refused to meet his gaze instead preferring to stare down the pathway. She was sure that her eyes would showcase all her frustration at his usual thick headedness.
"How is it despicable? Just because people are ready to give up their life for freedom? Is a life without pride and freedom worth living?" The questions spewed from her mouth and she pressed her lips together, ready for Suzaku to argue back.
"Anything that kills people is—" He began but she cut him off.
"There are things worse than death out there Suzaku. There are things that would make death seem peaceful. A better alternative if you may." Lelucia shook her head. "Death isn't the worst thing that can happen to you." She knew that from experience.
She could feel Suzaku's piercing but instead of arguing again like she expected him to, he turned back to face front. She nearly frowned in confusion since Suzaku was usually more adamant about his ideals. Instead, he seemed to have lapsed into some kind of deep thinking.
A few moments of silence passed. "Is that why you hate you brother? Not because he massacred hundreds of people but because he abandoned you."
"You don't abandon the people you consider family, Suzaku. No matter what happens." Lelucia drew her knees closer to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. "I am not talking about blood relatives but the people you actually claim to care about."
"Like your brother."
"Yes. Despite what he has done, I cannot watch him being hurt. But if he ever actively tries to harm Nunnally or yo—anyone I care about, I wouldn't hesitate to take him out." She could imagine Suzaku's reaction well enough and wondered if she had revealed a bit too much.
"I never expected him to turn up here." She admitted, her voice low.
Another moment of silence before—"He landed here yesterday."
"What?" She asked, looking at him.
"He visited the base. I never thought he would come here so I didn't tell you about it since it would only upset you." There was a faraway quality in Suzaku's voice like he was remembering something.
"Did something happen at the base with him?" Jerking out of his daze, he looked at her with wide eyed emerald gaze.
"What?" He asked and she wondered if she imagined the slight panic in his voice.
"Something just feels... off."
Suzaku opened his mouth before hesitating and closing it again. "Of course not. I am just a lowly Number remember? What interaction coul—"
"Suzaku." There was ice in her tine. "Don't you ever, ever refer yourself as a lowly Number again. Joining the military is one thing but dropping your thoughts down to their standards is another."
He continued to stare at her and she met his gaze without flinching. A small smile lit up his face as he shook his head. "You can't go too far from the apple tree."
She blinked, wondering what in the hell was Suzaku going on about. "Apple tree? What do yo—?"
"Nothing really." He stood up on his feet and extended a hand towards her. "Let's go inside and sit with Nunnally. She must be feeling lonely."
Still frowning in confusion, she accepted his hand and got to her feet. With one last glance towards where the festivities were taking place, she went inside.
Naoto stood in the crowd, his arms folded across his chest as he stared at the procession. People all around were cheering yet giving him enough of a wide berth that his feet wasn't being stomped on.
Despite that, he still felt claustrophobic. Wondering if leaving now would be good, he came to a stop when his eyes met Kallen's. Something flashed through her face too quick for him to make out before he leaned towards Lelouch and whispered something. The Demon nodded and Kallen broke away from the group as they continued on towards the building, making her way towards him.
The people around him stared in awe as she approached him and he resisted the urge to scoff in disgust. Instead, he stood stiffly until she came to stand in front of him.
"Naoto." She greeted.
"Big Sister." There was careful monotonous tone in his voice. He used to always call her Kally before she left but now there was no space for those endearments.
Glancing around her, she grimaced a little at the awed looking crowd before nodding towards the path leading to the back grounds. "Let's take a walk, shall we?"
He knew that it was more for privacy sake and he was tempted to deny but the expectant stares made him nod. He began leading the way with her following a few steps behind. Glancing back at her, he frowned at the nostalgic expression that had overtaken her face. It was like she was returning to Ashford Academy than visiting it for the first time.
Which wasn't possible since Ashford Academy hadn't even existed when she was in high school and she never came to Japan after the invasion.
She caught his glance and gave him a smile.
"How have you been, Naoto?" She questioned, the sincere smile still lighting up her face. Despite being older than him, she still looked the same like he last remembered seeing her.
"As fine as one can be as a part of the Noble family." He made sure to keep his voice monotonous. Seeing her shoot him a glance from the corner of his eyes, he inwardly grimaced. While Kallen in the past had hated the Royal family and its connections with a passion, this Kallen was going to be a part of it. He should probably keep his words in check.
"So not that fine then." She tilted her head. "I heard that there is a new terrorist in town. Zero was it?"
"Or so he claims." He kept a wary eye on her and she matched his stride. Instead of looking at him, her gaze was on the flowers lining the pathway.
"Very revolutionary ideas. If I hadn't seen him rescue Suzaku Kururugi, I would've pegged him to belong to a mental asylum. Maybe he does belong to one." She commented, her tone light.
"Why? Because he is speaking up for the oppressed?" He asked, his voice tight with barely controlled rage.
"It won't make a lot of difference will it? In the end, he is one of the many people who try to change things only to fail miserably." She shook her head, a smile unfurling on her face. He stopped walking and so did she.
"What makes you think he will fail?" He asked.
"How are you so sure he will succeed?" She countered.
When he kept quiet to get his temper until control, she continued speaking. "You still have a lot to learn Naoto. About the world. Nothing is as simple as it seems."
"You think I don't know that? Just go to the Ghettos and you will see the real Japan rather than the illusion Brittania has created." He snapped his mouth shut as she raised her eyebrow at his tone. His guard went up as he tried to control his anger. He shouldn't forget that she was a Knight of Britannia. She may even turn him in.
"How is Ohgi?" Blinking, he kept quiet for a few moments trying to figure out if this was some kind of mind game. Naoto was genuinely surprised that she actually remembered his childhood friend and was even asking about him. There was no reaction from her side about his outburst and she had completely changed the topic.
"Why do you care?" He couldn't help but ask.
She pressed her lips together as they stood face to face. She was a whole foot shorter than him but equally, or more, intimidating with her icy blue eyes and fierce glare.
"I have always cared."
He snorted. "Yeah, and that's why yo—"
"That's why I left and became part of Lelouch's guard. With this, I have the power to keep you safe."
"What about others? Ohgi, Tamaki and the other Japanese?" He half expected her to correct him in the terms but she stood there silent for a few moments.
"They can take care of themselves." The flippant tone in which she said this made him swallow. While he had come to terms a long time ago with the fact that Kallen was no longer his sister, it was still a hard pill to digest when she admitted it so openly.
"Good to see that all the power hasn't gone to you head." He smiled humorlessly. "It was good to see you again, Big Sister. Maybe we should never meet again." With those parting words, he turned on his heels and stalked away towards the crowd, leaving Kallen to stare after him sadly.
"Prince Lelouch. It's good to have you here." Glancing to the side as he entered the main building, he caught sight of Milly Ashford executing a simple bow. Her lips were stretched into a pleasant smile but he knew her well enough to guess that she was hiding a grimace underneath it.
"Miss Milly." Sayoko stepped forward and bowed in the traditional Japanese style. Milly blinked and shook her head vigorously.
"Sayoko! You don't need to do anything of that sort. You are a knight now." Milly glanced at Lelouch as she said this and he knew that she was expecting him to rebuff Sayoko. The kind of reputation he had built had long since preceded him and he knew that were hundreds of nasty rumors floating around.
"So you all belong to the Student Council?" He asked instead, focusing his attention on the three other people standing behind Milly. They all looked the same as he remembered. He was mildly surprised to see Nina too but she looked the same.
Pursing his lips at the thought of F.L.E.I.J.A, he focused his attention back on the group as a whole. "Yes, this is Shirley Fennete, Rivalz Cardemonte, and Nine Einstein. We have a few more members of the Student Council but they are currently not available." Milly introduced them.
"Oh really? They had no interest in seeing me?" There was a light teasing tone in his voice.
Milly blinked and chuckled. "It isn't like that. Suzaku Kururugi is at the base, Lawrence Statdfeld is—"
"With Kallen, yes." He finished.
"Oh and there is Lel—" Rivalz began, but Milly was quick to cut him off.
"One more girl who is tending to her sick sister so she couldn't make it." Milly shot a sharp glance towards Rivalz as both he and Shirley frowned in confusion.
Turning to face Lelouch, she smiled. "We would take you for a tour if you want."
"It would be a pleasure." Lelouch nodded, grinning when he saw Kallen coming to join them. There was a slight melancholic look on her face but it quickly disappeared when she reached his side. Placing her hand on his elbow, she shot the others a quick smile. "It would be great to see the Academy."
Author Notes: This chapter is the first draft itself without any editing. Hence the choppy scenes and all. I was more in a rush to get an update out than to sit and edit it. The actual story will resume next chapter onwards though even this chapter is pretty important character development vice. Sorry for the abrupt ending.
Thank you for the reviews and I would love to hear your thoughts on where you think this is heading.
