This time let's start right away! ^_^
Enjoy!
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Chapter ten:
SAZ, 4th Month, Week 3, Monday
Lelouch had an emergency meeting with Kaito Akiyama, the man in charge of the border guards. Over the weekend their enemies had taken the next step and they were mostly in time. The two of them where in the strategy room at the gate pouring over the maps.
"So from the movement detected most of the locations they searched out where the ones we classified as highly likely, they are all Category A positions, right?
"Yes."
"And all of them are ones not inhabited and only one is not owned by me. So for the moment we have the advantage."
He looked the map over again. Since the start of the SAZ the buildings right next to the wall have steadily been abandoned. No one wanted to live this near to the SAZ and he had made it his project to buy as many of them as he could. He had created false identities or dummy companies to buy most of them, sadly he hadn't been quick enough in some cases, and approximately 15% of the surrounding buildings were now owned by someone from Britannia and most likely none of them had good intentions towards them.
He had divided them in three categories, from A to C. Category A were the ones with the best spots for a sniper, while Category C meant you needed highly a trained one to do damage.
That had also been the reason why he had demanded that the government building be not situated right next to the border. While the most important offices had bulletproof glass he hadn't wanted to take any chances.
As it wasn't really a secret that he often visited the gate they most likely wanted to attack him first. Maybe even try to take out some guards but he bet his money on himself, which meant that from now on he had to take extra precautions.
All this meant a lot of things. Clearly the job of the guards had gotten decidedly riskier and it showed that their opposition was clearly ready to take everything a step further as nothing they did until now had had even the slightest effect. Either they had approached someone from the military or another group had decided that the SAZ had stood long enough and was beginning to plan the end of it. He would bet his money on the purists in either case.
"I want all of the men working at the gate informed of this development. They will all get a one-way ticket out. Let them decide if they want to quit or want to be reassigned. The border-control in the mountains has less risk as has the night shift."
"They would most likely target you first, Zero-sama."
"I know that. From this point on I will call before I leave my office to ask if there has been any movement. Please inform the others about that too. I will also increase the team watching the surveillance of the area."
"What should we do if they stop spying and bring someone in position?"
"I have that covered already. I have… friends outside who will deal with them."
It was an intricate plan. Some of the buildings he had bought were officially rented to Japanese who wanted to live near the SAZ but not inside while in reality most of them were Black Knights. If someone looked into it they would see a business man who took a chance to make a lot of profit. He had been able to buy everything at a decidedly low price while the rent the Japanese had to pay in order to live near the SAZ was higher than usual. That the money actually went in circles, as he was providing the funds for the rent, was a lot more tricky to hide.
The two of them discussed this further and he noticed that Akiyama was giving him more contemplative looks then was strictly usual. As they wrapped up their meeting he decided to make it easier and addressed the matter first.
"Something on your mind?"
"Well I have meant to ask you this but wasn't sure how to approach the topic but with recent developments I know I shouldn't wait any longer."
He nodded to the other to go on. He had a suspicion were that was leading.
"Do you believe the SAZ will last?"
"Not to be rude, but can I ask what brought this question on?"
"Well a few different things. While it is clear that you do everything in your power to make sure the SAZ is a success and everybody is safe I can't help but think that you're preparing for more. And whatever precautions you have installed, as far fetched as they had seemed in the beginning, are proven necessary the longer this goes on. And of course your comment just now, about friends outside, just made it clearer."
"And if I were preparing for more?"
"Then I want to be a part of it. I want to serve you and by extension the Japanese as best as I can. And I know others who think the same."
Finally, he had been waiting for this. And he was glad that his mask hid the smirk.
"Perfect… Then listen closely."
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At the end of the day the stack with the personal files of all the guards ready to take the next step was satisfyingly high. Copies would go to Tohdoh and he would 'smuggle' the man inside the SAZ for a few days. The surprise on the faces of the newest Black Knights when they met him would surely surpass the one Akiyama had when he explained the intricate network they had built up in- and outside the SAZ. As Tohdoh was viewed as a national hero his presence would certainly help assuring them that they had made the right choice.
As they had the weapon and hand-to-hand combat covered officially, they only needed to train them in Knightmare combat. Tohdoh would oversee the first lessons and after that it would probably fall to some of the Black Knights hidden inside the SAZ who had more experience. He would have to plan the timetable soon, later he would let Akiyama handle it. After they had the basics down he would have to find time to work with them himself, he was long overdue some training but finding the time had proven difficult in the last weeks.
Additional to that he would have to take great care whenever he decided to go out because of the new threat, he may also would have to use the underground tunnels more. Euphemia and Suzaku had to be warned, even though his sister wasn't one to venture near the border often – her projects were all situated in the other direction – she would have to be careful. He had worked on a map, highlighting the streets with the most danger. He would also ask her to talk with him beforehand so that he may plan the route with her together and maybe even show her some of the secret tunnels. As the danger grew he would have to reveal more and more to her and he hoped she would not hold all of his deceptions against him.
Fortunately they had a scheduled meeting now. Ever since his reveal and everything that came after, they met twice a week as siblings, working on their relationship, getting to know each other again or better. He enjoyed these get-togethers more than he would have thought, that didn't mean that he wouldn't still challenge their views on certain topics. But all in all the three were calmer now when discussing something and more often than not they just shared stories. Though sometimes he would have preferred talking business, some things Euphy had narrated to Suzaku from the time they all played together as children were downright embarrassing. He had of course countered with retelling embarrassing memories of Suzaku which wiped the smile right off the face of his friend.
He would tell the two of the latest developments right at the start so that they may still have time to enjoy their time together after that.
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Suzaku slumped down on his bed. After their meeting with Lelouch he had accompanied Euphy to her home and after checking the security had retired to his own set of rooms.
These meetings were mostly nice and fun and while they were never able to completely forget about work, they concentrated on talking as friends, getting to know each other better and improving their relationships, Euphys idea of course.
Ever since she had sent him to Lelouch for the weekend the atmosphere had been so much lighter and his princess was certainly overly happy that her plan had worked, it had showed in the last weeks as she had nearly been back to her usual happy self.
Of course that didn't last long. As soon as their personal problems seemed to be solved, outside influence once again dampened their newfound happiness.
And he still couldn't understand how his friend could seem to be so indifferent to the fact that he was target number one for all the enemies the SAZ seemed to have.
One of the main reasons why he had finally accepted Lelouch as Zero and all he had done had been one instance on their weekend where he had thought he finally understood his friend. It was when he had watched his sister sleep asking what future she could have in a world ruled by Britannia. He would never say this out loud, knowing Lelouch wouldn't want to know how easily he could still read him, but he had seen the fear deeply hidden in his eyes.
There was a difference between knowing and seeing. He had known that the two were hiding and Lelouch feared being discovered, hence why he hadn't wanted the rest of the school to know about their friendship. But seeing all the preparations Lelouch had made, the escape routes, brought the truth home much more.
The exiled prince had always been a person to concentrate first on the future, on the path ahead. A long buried memory from his childhood had made that clear to him. As a ten year old he had never understood the seemingly ease in which Lelouch had traversed through the destroyed Japan, being surrounded by death and destruction, the lie for Nunnally about the smell had come so easily over his lips as if they were the truth. He hadn't understood why Lelouch seemed to be able to ignore everything around him. As a child it had even seemed like he didn't care about the dead bodies littering the ground around them.
Now that he was older and when he finally examined those long repressed memories, he finally understood what had driven Lelouch. He had concentrated on bringing their group to safety, had even as a child accepted that he couldn't help anyone. Not allowing himself to feel anything and to plough on, focussing only on his goal. It had been this drive that had made their survival possible.
Now that he was older he understood what happened then more. And knowing so much more now he understood the actions of 'Zero' better. He may never fully accept the path Lelouch had taken but knowing what he did about the other and all the arguments he had had with his friend showed more than ever that when Lelouch decided on something, nothing could stop him.
Endangering his life for the future of his sister was something Lelouch was clearly ready to do, it had always been that way. And while he could not fully understand why he took the risk of leaving his precious sister alone he also knew the other well enough that when he thought it was worth it he would even lie to his sister.
And while Lelouchs reasons for fighting may come from the past he was one to focus on the future. It was such a different mentality than the one he had followed in the last years. While he had been stuck on the things that happened Lelouch had worked through them, analysed them probably and went on.
And what good had his path brought him. Not much really. And his arguments with his friend had clearly shown what the other thought about his great goal. But while Lelouch had not hidden his opinion he had also never really condemned him for his choices. Well, not to his face at least. He on the other hand had felt boxed into a corner and had lashed out frequently at his friend sometimes even with things he knew would hurt him. That wasn't to say that Lelouch hadn't lost his temper, the two of them had always been prone to rise the temper of each other but he had to admit that he had lost his own more often. Which had only angered him more as he viewed himself as a calm and acceptable person.
Between Euphy and Lelouch and everything that had been going on he had had no choice but to open his eyes. Both of them had shown him in their own way that he should move past his former mistakes and concentrate on what he could do for the future. And while he still had troubles fully accepting the path Lelouch had walked and may walk again he had accepted that he should also look on the bigger picture from time to time.
How he would deal with all this in the future he didn't know. There were still conflicting feelings and thoughts coursing through him. But now there were two persons who would accept him no matter what and the least he could do was to offer them the same acceptance.
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SAZ, 4th Month, Week 4, Thursday
Kaito Akiyama had duty at the gate and while he was in charge of all of them and his job contained more paper work, he felt it was important for him to sometimes serve like any other guard.
They had a scheduled delivery of supplies and after he had helped getting it inside and checked he would go back to his desk to rework the schedules. Zero had asked him to organise the hidden training for those who had joined recently in the hidden operation. And hadn't that been a surprise. He wasn't the only one who had come to realise in the last month that their leader took nothing for granted and prepared himself for the worst. But all his suspicion that something more was going on could have never prepared him for the truth. The intricate and detailed plans and hidden support had blown his mind, never would he have thought that one could hide so much from Britannia and the sheer time that probably had gone into planning the hidden routes alone was probably tremendous. He got a headache just thinking about it, never mind planning it.
From the moment he had shown up until now the masked rebellion leader had never taken a path anyone had anticipated. This also included small, seemingly unimportant, details. Like giving the guards a one way ticket out of the border-duty that was now getting more dangerous. Not that many had accepted this chance, they all agreed there was nothing more important than the safety of their people and had already accepted the possibility of their death.
They had the same dedication to their new training schedule. As they had a lot to catch up he and his new teammates tried to train as much as they could in the Knightmare simulators. It had been an honour to all of them when Tohdoh himself had given them the introduction to piloting. After that it had been different Black Knight members who either lived inside the SAZ or came from outside to teach them. Twice now had they even been trained by Zero himself. The last time they had done the simulations that had been developed after the battle in Shinjuku and that had given them an indication how he had been able to go against Britannia with never before seen success. While some of his orders seemed completely irregular, in the end it all played together in an unforeseen end result.
He was brought out of his thoughts by one of the guards watching the road with binoculars.
"Vehicle sighted."
"Sighting confirmed. Known driver. Known number plate. Proceed." The confirmation came over the speaker from the team watching the surveillance in a room further away. There were a lot of hidden cameras in the area around the border.
He pushed a button at the table, speaking into the microphone.
"You are approaching the gate of the SAZ. Please stop at the indicated sign a few meters in front of you and wait there please."
While they had done that probably a thousand times already they never deviated from the protocol. And as the driver of the van was well accustomed to it there were no further problems. A team of four guards ventured out to the vehicle that parked a slight distance away from them. This procedure was threefold.
First they checked if there were obvious explosives on the truck, likely brought on while on the way here. After that the first stop was a storehouse that had reinforced walls, so that in case of an explosion it would hopefully be restricted. Should the bomb be hidden in the supplies it would probably detonate there. After unloading and checking everything it would be further delivered to another storehouse that was equipped for the heavy screening for poison.
He had just gathered his paperwork and decided to make a stop at the second storehouse, checking that everything was ready there, when the ground shook and the sound of an explosion reached his ears. When he turned to look down the street the only thing he registered at first was red, the whole street seemed to be on fire.
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Euphemia had been contained to her office as ordered by her brother for security reasons, even though he had also been asked to stay away he had immediately left and went to the gate. No one had been able to make him see reason and while he was careful on his way there it would be the perfect time for an assassination attempt. He had promised to stay hidden while still being present and directing the teams dealing with the aftermath, as they had detected movement in the nearby buildings but as it was broad daylight and the fire department of Britannia was here too they could not do anything against it.
They had immediately send for help to extinguish the fire even though it happened on Britannia's side, which was a good thing as they had taken exceptionally long to arrive. Sadly it wouldn't have made a difference. All four guards had been right next to the van when the bomb detonated and had no chance of surviving the blast, alongside the driver.
She got regular updates as she stood by the window watching what she could of the proceedings.
Lelouch had already warned her that because of this they would get a lot of political pressure and asked her to be ready to go against her sister. As the Viceroy of Area 11 she had to take Britannias side no matter what and the driver had been Britannian so the possibility of her homeland using this against them was high despite that they were not at fault.
Ever since she went behind Cornelias back and got the SAZ approved directly from Schneizel their relationship had changed. They called each other regularly and speaking as sisters was as comforting and easy as ever. It was when the topic of their conversation strayed towards work and their respective positions that it became strained and sometimes even heated. She knew her sister was not happy with her project from the start even though she had never said a word against it officially and now that she understood the precarious position she and the SAZ as a whole were in she wasn't angry with Cornelia anymore. Just because she hadn't seen the danger she put herself in didn't mean her sister was as blinded as she was, especially as she understood the workings and policies of their father better.
Britannia was slowly taking an opposing stance on the SAZ. It was slowly but surely becoming clear, at least to them, while the masses stayed oblivious. It was the small things that showed that they stood alone, like not doing anything against Zero's attacker, that they could not do anything to the people attacking them in various forms, letting the demonstrations running wild, not stopping the media which were progressively becoming more disdainful against the SAZ and against her own person. Some of the things that were said or implicated about her made her wish to go back and hide from the harsh truth.
Cornelia was backed into a corner and she would not leave the SAZ just because she had realized it might not be the solution she hoped for. She knew her sister was getting the same reports she did and the more dangerous it got the more Cornelia tried to invite her over for tea, which would likely lead to her not leaving the Viceroy palace again. She understood that her sister tried to get her out of harms way but she would not allow it. The SAZ was her project, her problem so to speak and she would not leave it no matter what. She would not allow them to overrule her again, as she understood that her absence would be used to close the SAZ. It would probably be reported like "Former princess finally come to reason" or "Former princess realizes her mistake and comes back to Britannia" or any combination or deviation of that.
She would not allow it. If the SAZ failed then she wanted to be there until the end. She would not leave the people she wanted to protect alone, she had brought them here promising them peace and she would not run away or allow Britannia to use her to bring an end to it.
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SAZ, 5th Month, Week 1, Tuesday
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CC threw another look towards her contractor and hid another sigh. An hour ago he had nearly fallen asleep on his paperwork so she had forced him to take a nap and volunteered to continue his work. While she despised such boring work there wasn't much she wouldn't do for Lelouch, especially if it would keep him healthy and sane which ultimately benefited her too.
It didn't matter how much they had prepared for everything, the amount of work they were confronted with only increased steadily and Lelouch tried his hardest to stay on top of everything. She often had to sit him down and talk over everything so that he could sort his mind, making sure he attacked every problem from every angle he could come up with and guaranteeing that he wouldn't oversee a smaller problem or an easier solution as he sometimes tended to think too complicated when he had to deal with too much at the same time. The way his mind worked could still surprise her.
Nevertheless the problems were piling up.
Poisoning of their food and mail was still a favourite plan of their enemies. Sometimes the amount increased, sometimes they had a few days without, it was ever changing likely in the hopes of catching them off-guard. Lelouch changed the duties of the members of this team regularly as to avoid routine. While all knew what was at stake and were careful they were only human. Falling into a routine because you always did the same raised the possibilities of mistakes, so they did everything to avoid the human nature of making mistakes. There had been a few close calls but the additional testing circle that had been implemented after the first time took care of that.
The political front against them had also stepped up quite a bit in the last week. While until now they had been able to redirect whatever was thrown at them, the fighting in other areas for an SAZ of their own was slowly getting out of hand. No one outside of them knew that the SAZ was definitely not working as smoothly as it seemed. One could also say that it was still standing only because of the mastermind of one person. The people in other areas were slowly trying to find a safe way of contacting Zero, hoping he would be able to help them which only added to the pressure on her accomplice as he had to treat carefully so that he didn't show his real plans too early.
So other Viceroys were beginning to feel the pressure of the demands of the numbers in their areas. For now they dealt with them on their own, either putting them down or dancing around the issue which indicated that they were waiting for the Fall of the Japanese Zone. It was one thing they could not influence and had to rely on luck. They had to hope that the situation didn't escalate too soon.
The BfB group continued with their political movement, gaining ground steadily. They had brought forth different petitions, ranging from demanding more money as compensation to the closure of the SAZ and everything in between. When they reached the point that they were too troublesome to ignore they were hopefully done with the SAZ on their own terms.
Fortunately all the other small groups that had started to form and were in some way working against them hadn't banded together for now, making it easier to counter them.
Still unclear were the workings of the purist faction. They had been deceptively calm from the start, maybe because they had lost a lot of standing before the SAZ started or they just wanted to lay low and make a surprise attack. They may attack as a group or some members were already working with one of the others. Getting information on them had proved more difficult than anticipated but important as they had the political power as well as military background.
Some people had also started to try sneaking in through the mountains and at the start they had only needed to scare them away as it were mostly teenagers armed with everything they needed for graffiti. Apparently it had become boring spraying on the wall as they didn't do anything to them and it did not get them any reaction. Now it had evolved into other groups, armed with far more deadly weapons.
For now they knocked them out by hand or by the sleeping gas hidden in the ground or surrounding trees and the likes. The Britannians would wake up back in the settlement, on a bench in a park or somewhere equally safe and unobtrusive.
This kind of attack would surely get more pressing too and soon, even if it would not get them far it would still be the best way to get into the SAZ even if it didn't seem that way for now. Of course that didn't mean that Lelouch hadn't planned for that already and they were still way ahead of their attackers, especially if they continued to be this disorganised.
It was the same with the IT attacks that had started fairly early, nothing they tried was able to breach their security. Not only was Lelouch a good hacker himself, they had a team of the best who had helped him in making their IT impenetrable and more often than not they could turn the attack around.
As dangerous and nerve-wracking all of this was, nothing they were encountering would be able to bring the SAZ down. And she couldn't help the feeling that it would go down in a way they wouldn't want to. It was a fine line they were all walking on, both sides trying to end the SAZ in a way that benefited them the most so everyone was moving with extreme caution.
She looked again at the sleeping form of her accomplice and wondered if he would be able to handle whatever would be thrown at them and also hoping she would be able to protect him so that he may be there when everything ended. He was target number one, without Zero the SAZ would crumble fast. Even if Euphemia would be able to stop the Japanese from revolting in the case of his death it would likely still mean the end of the Zone. She would never say it out loud, but Lelouch was the one holding everything together, without him this would have never worked the way it did. The princess had taken on something which had been way over her abilities and the only reason she was glad that the little airhead was finally opening her eyes was that it made things easier for her contractor.
She had recently discovered that Lelouch was writing down plans for times far in the future in case he died and had even prepared speeches for Euphemia and high-ranking Black Knights members and the likes. She was sure that he was also starting to bring his sister more into the hidden plans so that she would be prepared should something happen to him. Lelouch was very thorough when he planned everything and even though she was impressed with his newfound diligence she was also feeling more scared than she was accustomed to.
But she was also way more invested than she was used to. She always tried everything to get her wish granted but she had always made sure to maintain a certain distance. The longer everything was going on the more she got drawn in. After so many centuries she had thought that she had seen everything but Lelouch was still able to surprise her, even after all their time together, even though she understood him so well he could still pull something she hadn't anticipated. The fact alone that he had listened to her after the announcement and allowed her to help him work through his anger and let her help him overcome his own faults had amazed her as he wasn't the kind of man to seek and accept help, believing that he knew everything. And he continued to surprise her in small ways and she knew she was becoming attached to him in some way.
For the longest time she had merely existed but now he was slowly making her live again. And she wasn't sure what to think about that but she still felt that he may be her best chance to finally lose her code, so she would stay. And whatever may come she would make sure they both could deal with it.
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SAZ, 5th Month, Week 1, Wednesday
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Milly was standing in front of the student council building where the two hiding royals lived and she was hesitating to knock or to burst in like she sometimes did.
Nunnally had invited her for tea and while that wasn't exactly uncommon she had a feeling that this wouldn't be their usual gossiping session. Normally these meetings were planned for a day when Lelouch came home early so that they also could spend time together, just the three of them. But Nunnally had let it slip that she didn't expect her brother back until late and that was when she had gotten a foreboding feeling.
Everyone knew that there was something going on with the 'Prince of Ashford' as he couldn't exactly hide that he was attending school even less over the last months and naturally it had gotten out that he had started taking his exams a year early. And this time she had not had a hand in the gossip in any way, understanding that this was something important to the exiled prince and she hadn't teased him about it too much, or at least only in the security of the Student Council.
She had taken him aside asking him why he suddenly felt the need to prepare for an eventual escape, worrying that he had gotten more paranoid or that he had gotten information that they may be watched or something like that. While she knew that her grandfather and later Lelouch himself had taken great care in ensuring that they stayed safely hidden she wasn't a naive little girl anymore and knew that there was always a risk.
She feared this as much as the others and while also for the same reason she also didn't want to lose her friend and she knew that he would probably vanish totally from her life. Not because he wanted or because he didn't like her, should they be discovered and had to flee somewhere else Lelouch would not stay in contact simply for safety reasons. And not only for their own safety but also for the safety of the Ashfords. Even knowing that it still hurt. And it also hurt because she couldn't help him. They had always known that it would end sometime and she feared that this time was drawing near. And fast. And sooner than she thought. She wasn't ready but she probably never would be.
She jerked herself out of her sad thoughts before plastering her usual smile onto her face and readying for what was to come, she knocked.
When Sayoko, who had opened the door lead her not outside but into the living room the feeling of foreboding increased. When the weather was as nice as today Nunnally always wanted to sit outside for their tea.
While they drank their first cup they stayed with safe topics and exchanged the latest gossip but she couldn't fully relax but enjoyed the time nonetheless. Now that she thought that the end was coming in big steps she cherished every minute she could spend with the siblings. The ones with Lelouch even more, not because she loved him more, but because he hardly ever had time nowadays.
When she refilled their cups the atmosphere changed, while Nunnally was still smiling at her like always she also got a determined air around her, visible through the straightening of her shoulders.
"I invited you not only for our usual gossip. I want to talk with you about my brother."
God, she had feared this. "I thought as much. You know that you can talk to me about everything and I will keep it secret, but you also have to understand that I have made promises to Lelouch and want to keep them."
She got a sad smile from the girl she also viewed as a little sister.
"I know that. The two of you have always been good friends and for the longest time you were the only one beside me he opened up to. I understand that he wants to protect me and that he has always hid a lot of things from me, especially about our departure from Pendragon and what happened during the invasion. I'm mostly glad that I can't clearly remember parts of it.
But now… Something is going on. He's hiding something big from me, I know that and while it hurts that he is doing it, I kind of understand. But I can't stand the thought that he is taking this burden upon himself all alone. I'm not a child anymore and I want to help him but I don't know how to make him see that. I feel his guilt about hiding this from me, but he is stubborn and would never tell me. And whatever is going on is big. I can feel his tiredness, how anxious he is about it and I want to help him. I want t be there for him like he has been for me all my life!"
Wow, seemed like she had really worked herself up about this in the last weeks. It had been a long time since she had heard such an outburst from the sweet girl. And while she understood it, she also knew that she wouldn't be of much help. Lelouch was nothing but stubborn. She had her suspicions and they scared her. She had gone to her grandfather and he had forbidden her to mention it to anyone or to approach Lelouch about it. But now Nunnally was clearly ready to demand answers from her brother and was trying to get her help in gaining them.
Before she could formulate an answer the other girl started speaking again, but this time in a softer, almost pleading, voice.
"He is so stressed out and I know that he hates lying to me, even though he is more evading the truth than outright lying. He has always done that. I know that it's his way of protecting me while not telling the truth and even though I have been angry with him about that in the past I have come to accept it. But now it's on a whole new level. I want to ease this burden he has taken upon himself and I think it may help him if he wouldn't have to hide from me. Please help me Milly!"
This was so much worse than what she had anticipated. She understood Lelouch on a level not many did while also knowing that she would never fully understand him, there were just some parts of his life he would never tell her, to protect her. She understood that and had accepted it a long time ago, with the help of her grandfather. And now it seemed like she would do the same for Nunnally.
She rearranged her chair so that she sat closer to the wheelchair and took both of Nunnallys hands, squeezing them tightly, gaining and giving strength in the process. She knew what she had to do.
"Nunnally. I love you like my sister and I love Lelouch like a brother. I would do a lot for you, you know that. But what you're asking me, I can't do. No please, let me finish." The other girl had started to draw her hand from her grip and seemed ready to argue.
"I will tell you a bit of the things Lelouch has never talked about, he won't be happy but it's important for you to know. It will help you understand him better and why he does things the way he is.
But first you have to promise me something. Promise me that you want pester him, don't ask him more questions about what I'm about to tell you. Whatever is going on you have to understand that he is most likely doing them for you. You may not like it but you are his reason for living. If it weren't for you he wouldn't be who is now.
Whatever may happen, whatever you may think about what I'm about to tell you, you can't treat him differently. Promise me that you will continue to trust in him and be the one person on this world that gives him the strength to go on!"
Nunnally was looking at her with clear sock and horror written in her face, while she may have known it deep down, she was sure that no one had ever told her so clearly how important she was to her brother. She gave the smaller hands another squeeze.
"I promise… Of course, I promise! Lelouch is everything to me and I would do anything for him."
She gave a sad smile and while Nunnally may not see it she knew that she could feel it. She had to take a deep breath, calming herself. She was about to talk about things Lelouch had never shown anyone. And she only knew most of it because she had been right in the middle of it.
"I will not tell you the details, because it is not my place, but the situation that lead to your exile hurt and damaged Lelouch pretty badly. You were thrown out of Pendragon and suddenly Lelouch was alone with you, the only family he had left and he had no idea how to care for you. And he also didn't trust anyone with you. You have to understand that he has never told me that but I know that's what he must have felt then.
From what I have gathered he had a hard time adjusting and trusting anyone he met when you were sent here but he was able to bury his feelings of mistrust for your sake and even started to enjoy your stay in Japan. That's what I gathered from the stories you told me, because Lelouch has never talked about it.
He never talked about it because the invasion from Britannia brought him right back to the start. After you lost your mother, your home and you your sight and legs he had a hard time coming to terms with everything. But you were there. You needed him so he pulled himself together and took care of you and started to trust the people around you to a degree. Because you were there he had to start healing the wounds the exile and everything it entailed left on him.
The invasion destroyed that again, taking away the next thing he held dear. And again it was you that enabled him to pull through. He had only one goal, to bring you to safety, to protect you!
I don't know what happened during the invasion. Lelouch never said anything about it to me. But my grandfather forced him to talk about it after his nightmares got out of hand after you arrived here.
Nunnally, how much do you remember of the time shorty after you arrived at our door?"
It was painstakingly clear that the younger girl had a hard time processing everything and she was glad that she evaded so much. Nunnally did know her brother better than most and may just need someone telling it to her to make her realise what she had always subconsciously known.
"Not… much. Mostly that you kept me company because Lelouch was ill and sleeping a lot. And that we would sit beside his bed and talk."
"I hate that I have to tell you this...but Lelouch wasn't just sleeping, he was in a coma for the first two days and only after that did he really sleep so much."
Nunnally drew in shocked breath, a look of complete horror on her face ans she was suddenly grasping her hands really tight.
"I… I had no idea… what happened to him?"
"The invasion happened. I have no idea how he was able to get the both of you to us without being discovered and without real injuries. But he is Lelouch, our resident genius and he would always find a way to keep you safe" That got her the smile she was aiming for and while it was small and a little strained it eased the tension a bit.
"From what I understand he was totally exhausted and starved. I guess whatever food he was able to find on your way to us he gave most of it to you which made him collapse when you arrived. That's just how he is so please don't feel guilty about it. He did it gladly and would not want you to beat yourself up about it!" These feelings were easily readable in Nunnallys face but she knew that this was part of the reason why he hid so much from her. He had taken the life and safety of his sister very seriously and wouldn't want her to feel bad about it.
"But he pulled through, like always. We took care of you for him while he recovered and he made us promise to not tell you how bad it was for a while. He didn't want you to worry and that is still important to him so please, don't worry about things that are long in the past."
It was easy to say but she would never forget certain situations. Especially not their arrival.
It was shortly before dawn when they knocked. Lelouch, dirty and small, had carried a sleeping Nunnally on his back. He had pleaded with her grandfather to hide them for a few days, mentioning the alliance they had with their mother and to at least help them for the next days. Ruben Ashford had taken one look at the barely hidden fear in the eyes of a child and promised them at least a few days but also that he was sure he may be able to find a long-term solution.
After Lelouch had deposited Nunnally in a bed he had smiled at her tenderly and thanked her grandfather in a small voice before closing his eyes and toppling over.
She had been so scared. Not understanding what was going on, why they couldn't bring him to a hospital, why she wasn't allowed to tell anyone that they were there. And after a talk from her grandfather she had done the same as Lelouch. She had pulled herself together for Nunnallys sake while freaking out and crying herself to sleep when she was alone at night.
They hadn't known if Lelouch would wake again, whatever happened to them had clearly taken its toll on him. She would never forget the picture he had made, standing there in front of their house. She hadn't clearly understood it as a child but even then she had known that something horrible had happened.
The months after that hadn't been exactly easy and she didn't even think about the invasion and the take-over and everything that had entailed.
Their worry had mostly been focussed on the two royals they were now hiding. Years later, her grandfather had told her why he had decided to keep them close and not hide them somewhere else like they could have done. As Lelouch had clearly been more touched by everything that had happened, Ruben had kept a closer eye on the boy, especially after they discovered that he suffered from regular nightmares, in a time where sleep was important for his recovery. And more than once he had stumbled upon him staring out a window with dead eyes and the first time he had seen this look on a child not much younger than his own granddaughter he had known that he couldn't just stand by, that he wanted to help in more ways than just hiding them.
When she had gone to her grandfather telling him she wanted to help Lelouch smile again he had never been prouder. He explained things to her so she understood the situation better, never more than she could handle as a child but still more than was appropriate for her age. Because the scene she had stumbled in had been different than the one her grandfather saw but telling nonetheless. They had met for a chess match and she had been late and when she got to the room they had decided to meet in, she had seen Lelouch standing a few feet away from the table with the chess set, staring hatefully at it. It had been such a deep hatred that she had gotten scared momentarily.
After she got over her fear she had decided that she wanted to bring his smile back, whatever it took. And she had done it since then. She had done everything she could to bring the boy back she remembered from Pendragon even for just a moment. And she succeeded more often than not.
But she also knew that Lelouch would never be the same again, she may have subconsciously realised that even then, maybe that was what scared her more than the look on his face. She didn't know and she didn't really care. She helped bring him back, piece by piece. And while Lelouch would always carry this darkness with him she had at least showed him that he could still find happiness in small ways every day. She had helped safe him from himself and now she had to trust in him, that he knew what he was doing and still remembered that there was more to life than darkness.
A hand on her cheek pulled her out of her thoughts and she had to smile at the concerned look on Nunnallys face. Hopefully she would never lose her compassion. Lelouch may repress it most of the time but he too still had it in him, he just didn't show it as clearly and that was another reason why Nunnally was so important to the exiled prince.
And now she had to make sure that she would continue to be the light that kept Lelouchs darkness at bay. Whatever was going on, the last thing Lelouch needed know was his sister deciding to ask questions he was not ready for. She would help Nunnally realise that now was not the time and that she had to continue to trust her brother and that he knew what he was doing and that he was doing it for her and that he needed her support now more than ever. She would have to be patient for a while longer and give Lelouch more time. That was probably the last thing she could do for her dearest friend, a friend she thought of as a brother. And most likely she would lose him soon because she felt that his time here was coming to an end and he knew that and was preparing for it.
As her last gift she would tell Nunnally enough so that she would give him the time he needed because she had learned early that Lelouch would do things his way and the best way to help him with whatever he had taken on, was to trust him, be there for him and support him silently until he came to you. Nunnally would help her brother the most if she just continued to be there for him, so that he could continue to draw strength from her presence. Whatever he was up to, and she had her suspicions, he was doing it because he thought it was the right path and to ensure Nunnallys safety and future.
.
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So now for the A/N:
About Updates: As the end of the year draws near, some people get crazy ideas and work has gotten incredible hectic. Work is piling up and there is no end in sight. By the time I come home I'm exhausted and my brain very nearly dead, thus no writing possible. Most likely the next chapter will come around Christmas but I can't promise anything, especially as chapter 11 will have a cliffhanger (if everything goes as planned) and I will post it only when I have the majority of 12 written so as not to keep you waiting too long.
Kallen: As so many asked after her (and I too miss her dearly!) I thought about a way to bring her back a little earlier than planned. I was able to come up with a good solution but was not able to work it into this chapter, so if everything works the way I want it she should finally be back next chapter.
Euphemia/Suzaku: Because 'Zathol' asked. I leave it up to your imagination if the two get together, I can't decide on it and I definitely won't write it. Canon Euphy/Suzaku is too much for me to handle as they are already hard to swallow on their own. Even though I have come to like my Euphy I'm still unable to write them.
Thanks: As usual I thank every new Favorite/Follow. I really appreciate it and getting a notification that there are still people discovering my story makes my day, especially in the last weeks.
Reviews: You guys are absolutely awesome! I think the last chapter got the most reviews up to date. And I can't tell you how much I love every last one of them, all of you help keep me motivated and I can't thank you all enough! I reread them if I need a kick to sit down and write ;-D
Soooo thanks for reading! ;-D
(And I'm going to sleep now and it's only 9 o'clock – I feel old… But I'm up since 6.30 and worked for 10 hours so I at least have a good excuse)