Title: Reunion
Rating: K
Summary: After the Black Rebellion has failed, father and son meet each other again for the first time in over seven years.
Author: RedBlood_Moon: archiveofourown [.org] /users/RedBlood_Moon
When Charles Darwin proposed his Theory of Evolution, which was later appropriated by the philosophy of Social Darwinism, it readily caught on in Britannia. The idea that conflict and competition promoted growth, that those who conquered and subjugated other peoples were justified in doing so, was well-accepted by Britannians. They saw it as the ultimate justification for their struggle to claw back from the brink of extinction and over the decades turn themselves into a world power again, and for their campaign of survival, conquest, and, ultimately, revenge.
Survival of the fittest: the continued existence of organisms which are best adapted to their environment and the extinction of those who are too slow or too weak. That was the fuel on which this empire ran, the fuel that gave them the strength to subdue all other peoples in the world.
As long as the Emperor was strong, so was the nation. If he who led had an iron grip on his subordinates, if he held the hearts and minds of his people in his hands, there was nothing the Emperor couldn't do. Nothing he couldn't achieve.
A philosopher whose name was lost to history once claimed that hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.
Charles zi Britannia was the strongest, most powerful man in the world.
History books told the story of his rise to power, told the tales of assassinations and civil wars, but no written word or whispered conversation could truly express the amount of the pain he had endured to be where he was today. The losses of his loved ones had shaped him, the battles fought hardened him, and promises made pathed the way he walked to this very day.
However, even men like him could love. For all the hardship he had endured, he never quite lost that ability.
There was his brother, who had been the person most precious to him for many decades, the one person he thought he could always count on. They had survived the dangerous time of their youth and came out better for it, together.
And then his brother lied to him, tried and almost succeeded in killing the one person in the world that truly made him happy.
Marianne was the only person who could make him laugh, who could make him put his work aside for the moment and enjoy the present. In face of her initial status as a commoner, she had never put up with his antics, and for some reason he had never found it in himself to punish her.
Marianne the Flash, as terrifying in a dress as in a knightmare; Marianne whom he married because of love rather than duty; Marianne who gave birth to the only children he actually cared for.
There was Lelouch, his son who wouldn't stop crying for days when he was born only to suddenly fall silent when Charley held him for the first time. Lelouch, who grasped concepts and ideas at an unbelievable raste and mastered everything he was told to learn in a matter of days.
Then came Nunally. She was much calmer than her brother, and much easier to handle. Charles had never been comfortable holding children, whether they were his own or not, but holding Nunally was easy. With her, he couldn't do anything wrong; no matter how he held her, no matter if he held still or moved around, she slept peacefully in his arms.
Lelouch and Nunally, his children whom he sent to Japan to keep them away from his brother. Lelouch and Nunally, who survived the invasion of the island nation as mere children, proving that his and Marianne's bloodline was indeed superior to everyone else's. Lelouch and Nunally, who should have been safely living their lives in Area 11 until their parents killed God and ended all lies in the world.
His children, who were now once again within his brother's reach.
"Former 17th successor to the throne, Lelouch vi Britannia. It has been a while, my son."
He kept his voice steady and strong. Even if he could allow himself to be more cordial with him, even if Lelouch would believe him to be sincere, such a thing couldn't happen in front of an Eleven.
"W—why you—"
Lelouch tried to raise his head, but the Eleven pushed him down face-first before he could do any harm.
"I won't let you use your Geass."
His son, unable to do anything else, growled helplessly.
It would be a lie if Charles claimed he wasn't proud of what his son had achieved.
In less than a year, he turned a ragtag group of terrorists into a force capable of fighting Britannia. He even found an ace strong enough to face the Knights of the Round! Student at day; messiah at night; Lelouch had played a dangerous game and almost came out victorious. However, as impressive as his feats were, and awe-inspiring as his bold plans had been, and as genius as he might have played his pawns, in the end, it hadn't been enough.
In the end, he had let his emotions get the better of him. A common mistake to be sure, especially for youths, but a fatal one nonetheless.
Let this be a lesson, my son, he thought. Emotions have no place on a battlefield of any kind.
It was a shame, though. Even after he went so far as to kill Euphemia after using her as scapegoat and a means to rally all the Elevens, proving himself to be truly his son, he still failed.
"Your Majesty, I have a request. Please, sire, allow me to join the Knights of the Round, the twelve strongest knights of the Britannian Empire."
Ah, he thought. So I assume he wants to rise in rank until he can request an area for himself? While certainly clever if that was true, the boy was foolish if he really thought Charles would ever allow another Eleven to rule these islands.
"As a reward for capturing Zero, is that it?"
Lelouch growled again.
"I told you before, Lelouch, that I was going to change this world from the inside."
So I was right. He almost smirked before he stopped himself.
"Even if it means selling out your friends?!"
"That's right."
For all that this Eleven was foolish to a fault, Charles found it in himself to be a little bit impressed. Selling out your friends and family in and on itself wasn't anything special, of course. People have always done so and would continue with it for as long as it took for him and Marianne to kill God. To so freely admit to it, on the other hand, was somewhat more interesting, especially when the person you sold out was right next to you.
Were the person in question anyone but his son, Charles might have actually congratulated the boy.
"Very well, I like the answer you just gave him." Charles rose to his feet. "Now then, as a Knight of the Round, I order you..." At least for now. After all, no one could be allowed to move against his son and go unpunished. Enjoy your time at the top, for it will not last forever. "…cover up Zero's left eye."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
When he looked down on his son, he was surprised that he felt… reluctant. He didn't want to do this, even if he knew that it was the only way. It would be harder to find a convincing story to keep his brother's hand away from Nunally, but Lelouch was easy; making him a useful tool until the time was right to bring him back would offer him all the protection he needed.
Pushing his unwanted emotions aside, he kept his voice hard as he addressed Lelouch.
"My unworthy son who raise the battle of rebellion although he was a prince. Still, there's another way we can make use of you."
"W-what?"
Despite the situation, he found some amusement at the surprise in Lelouch's eyes at the sight of his Geass. So C.C. hasn't told him anything at all, did she? How very much like her. "I will rewrite your memory about being Zero, about the death of your mother, about the very existence of Nunnally."
"It can't be! You have a Geass as well?"
He ignored him. "You'll remember none of it. You'll just be insignificant."
"No, stop! You're stealing what is most precious to me again?! First, my mother and now you're taking Nunnally!"
"Charles zi Britannia engraves into you false memories of a false life!"
Take heart, Lelouch. Once the Ragnarök Connection is finished, you will understand. You will see that this was the best for everyone. And then, one day you will rule as Emperor over a world without lies!
