Author's Note: Anddd I'm back. It's been ages since I uploaded a chapter, I know... sadly I don't have a lot of time to think of this fanfic in the army, let alone write it. On the bright side, I still have quite a bit of time to throw in several sentences every now and then. However, the military training is going to ramp up soon, and my already pitiful amount of time to write would further decrease. Which, unfortunately, equates to one chapter being completed every 1-2 months.. if I'm lucky.
Enough about me griping about my new life as a conscripted recruit. This chapter was a huge headache for me to write. I originally intended this to be a lot more dramatic, then I realized it would make a character look extremely OOC... so in favor of keeping the characters, well, in character, I toned it down a little. Had to rewrite this a couple of times. I hope that it would be a satisfactory read nonetheless.
Chapter 20
Dedication
Shirley cupped her slender hands under the running tap, then splashed the cool water on her face in an attempt to clean herself up. She knew that she looked like an absolute mess right now – her peridot green eyes were puffy and her nose was stuffy from sobbing, her black dress was rumpled, and her bright orange locks were the very opposite of tidy. It took her a few hours to finally pick herself up from the floor when she first shut herself in the bedroom, and head to the bathroom to wash up.
The slim adolescent glanced at the mirror in front of her, scrutinizing her own reflection. She no longer looked like the jovial girl, who was exhilarated when invited by a prince, albeit not knowing his status at that time, to stay with him in Britannia for a while, due to their mutual feelings of attraction. Now stood a teenager clad in mourning clothes for her father, murdered by the said prince's enemies due to her affiliation with the royal.
To add insult to the injury, Mary had isolated herself from her daughter, and according to Jeremiah, Lelouch was thinking of ending their relationship as well. Shirley bit down on her lower lip painfully and clenched the sides of the porcelain sink. "How could he think of leaving me alone right now after all this? This is the time I need him the most," Shirley tried not to let resentment engulf her thoughts. It was obvious why Lelouch wished to break up with her. He must have felt responsible for the personal calamities she had suffered, and worried about any future tragedies which may occur to her.
Shirley, of course, understood Lelouch's concerns, but she couldn't bear the thought of losing him as well. Just the mere notion of it made her heart pang. She wouldn't know what to do, or what she'd do if that occurred. Despite her thoughts, she wondered whether her mother had a point – that she shouldn't have gone with Lelouch to Britannia, to begin with. Shirley promptly banished such ideas from her mind. She couldn't turn back now, and she did not wish to do so. If there was anything irrefutable, it was that she loved Lelouch, and would want to stay with him until the end, regardless of the cost.
A sudden, rather-distant sounding knock on the bedroom door caused Shirley to start slightly. She hesitated for a moment, unsure of whether she was ready to face other people yet. A part of her still wanted to shut herself in for a longer period of time. "It's me, Jeremiah," the normally gruff sounding noble called out gently. "May I enter the room, Miss Fenette?"
Shirley paused briefly, then decided that she had to come out sooner or later anyway. "Sure." She exited the bathroom as Jeremiah strode inside the bedroom. His stern gaze softened a little as he studied Shirley from head to toe.
"Are you feeling any better right now?" The Margrave asked cautiously.
"Much," Shirley nodded slowly. "Thank you for your concern, Jeremiah."
"Don't mention it," Jeremiah shrugged. "We're allies, and you mean a lot to my liege. Your well-being is connected to his, in a way."
"Speaking of Lulu, do you know where he is right now?"
"The last I heard, he was in the lounge. Why do you ask?"
"I need to speak to him. I need to know what he's thinking, and what he plans to do."
Jeremiah shifted uncomfortably. "I'm unsure whether His Highness is ready for that yet. And how about you, Miss Fenette? Have you given the situation enough thought?"
"I've reflected on it," Shirley mumbled. She cleared her throat and willed her voice to sound stronger and more confident. "Lulu can't be blamed, and shouldn't be blamed for this, even if he finds himself at fault. And I would continue staying by his side no matter how tough the going gets."
"Your mother could be next, you know," Jeremiah quietly pointed out, carefully observing Shirley for her reaction.
"I'm aware of that. Every single one of us and our relatives are possible targets," Shirley sighed. She recalled the day when she discovered her father's death through seeing his severed head in a box right before her eyes. Bile rose in her throat, and she fought to keep it down before taking a deep breath - her slim frame emanating resolve instead of despair. "Maybe I'm crazy, but I know it's a tough road lined with suffering and that only makes me want to continue. I'm not going to leave Lulu alone."
A slow, approving smile started spreading on Jeremiah's face. "I'm satisfied with your answer," the nobleman told Shirley. "Honestly, even if you wanted out, it would not be possible given the current situation. His Highness's enemies would still target you regardless of whether you're together with him or not to get under his skin. I'm certain that His Highness is aware of that as well."
"What was the point of asking me whether I wanted to remain with Lulu?" Shirley asked curiously, tilting her head at the Margrave.
"Personally, I do not agree with His Highness holding himself responsible for this fiasco. However, I feel that it's not my place to persuade him. I am his bodyguard. His guardian. Not his confidant." Jeremiah explained patiently. "You, on the hand, should be the one who convinces him otherwise. However, I had to see if you're willing to stand by him first."
"Of course I am."
"Then go find him, Miss Fenette," Jeremiah took a step back before turning on his heel and moving off. "I wish you the best of luck in your endeavor."
Shirley watched Jeremiah slowly disappear from her sight before she finally made her way towards the parlor. It was not far from the bedroom – it was merely located beside the main staircase on the ground floor, and she arrived at her destination in a less than a minute. She stared apprehensively at the shut, mahogany door and raised a lithe hand to knock. She hesitated for a moment. "What if he doesn't respond? Or he tells me to go away?" She had not felt this skittish for months since she confessed her feelings to Lelouch during the spring dance, which seemed like an eternity ago.
Shirley's hand was still frozen in mid-animation before a resolute look dawned on her countenance, dispelling her previous expression of uncertainty. She had to get Lelouch to talk to her. Without further ado, she mustered her courage and quickly rapped her knuckles against the door thrice before calling out softly. "Lulu? Are you there?"
There was no immediate response, and Shirley felt slightly dispirited, but she continued waiting, refusing to let the lack of reaction quench her determination. Half a minute passed, followed by a whole one. She repeated her gesture, knocking three times on the door again. Once more, only silence greeted her actions. Despite her best attempts to remain patient, she was slowly getting restless. "Ready or not, I'm coming in," Shirley announced, a little louder this time. She turned the doorknob downwards and pushed the door open. To her surprise, the sitting room was deserted. The only sign of it being inhabited recently was a half-full bottle of wine and a shattered glass in the far corner of the room.
"Where could he have gotten to…" Shirley scratched the side of her head, eyeing the fragments of glass with trepidation, for it looked as though it was hurled forcefully at the opposite wall, for there was a dark stain of liquid on it. It was a sign that Lelouch was feeling far from calm. Instead of being deterred from seeking him, she turned on her heel and hurried away to search for the prince.
Some time ago…
Lelouch gritted his teeth as he took a seat on one of the couches in the parlor. He could hear Shirley crying outside the main entrance, as the sitting room was close to it. "Nothing's funny! After things have come to this, he's thinking of running away?! Is he really the same man I promised to love and stay by his side, no matter how difficult it is?!" His right hand curled into a fist and he was racked with guilt by the amount of hurt he could detect in Shirley's tone.
The prince desperately wanted to call to her, to hold her in his arms and comfort her, but how could he face her again after the tragedy of her father's murder? He wasn't even sure whether to continue his relationship with her, although he knew that breaking up with her to keep her safe was no longer a realistic option. Oh, he would do it in a heartbeat if it meant that she would be spared from anymore suffering. However, such a course of action was too late to consider. The Sword of Akasha would continue to hound her just to further spite him, and even if those terrorists were vanquished, his other enemies would do the same. She was safest with him, but while he was well aware of that fact, he abhorred the idea of dragging her further into the mire, even if he had no choice but to do so.
"I shouldn't have gotten together with her in the first place," Lelouch thought. He gripped the sides of his hair in frustration. "I ignored what common sense dictated and gave into my emotional and selfish desires, and she paid the price for it. How could I have been so foolish?" His mind went into overdrive as he frantically tried to think of a solution, but after several hours, he failed to come up with any, much to his depression.
The raven-haired adolescent's eyes wandered over to the wine cabinet, which seemed to be enticing him. He slowly rose from the couch and grabbed a bottle before making his way back to the seat, poured himself a glass and downed it in a single gulp. He glanced at the bottle again and helped himself to a second glass. It was most unlike him to drown his problems in alcohol – normally he would approach them logically and effectively deal with them, but this time, he had no acceptable answer to his dilemma. He was aware that the best decision was to stay with Shirley and weather the storm as well as they could, but the thought of seeing her hurt because of her bond with him greatly distressed him.
"If only I could rewind time…" Lelouch mused. He drained his fifth glass of red wine and helped himself to his sixth. He was starting to feel slightly woozy already. He was not much of a drinker, to begin with. "I'm so sorry, Shirley." He shut his eyes and resumed his struggles to come up with a way to fix their predicament.
The royal raised his cup of alcohol again when he paused, the rim of the glass hovering inches away from his mouth. It just suddenly dawned on him that Shirley was currently alone - and hurting when he was supposed to be consoling her. She was all by herself in this world after her father's passing and estrangement from her mother. "And here you are, drinking fine wine, not lifting a finger to help her," a voice in his head mocked him.
"It's not like I don't want to," Lelouch responded angrily, although his sense of self-loathing and shame grew. He tightened his grip on the glass. "I just have no idea what I should do now!"
"You know there's only one thing you can do right now. Stay with her, and destroy those that stand in your way, such as the Sword of Akasha."
"We have nothing on them. No solid trails, clues or leads."
"And just because of that, you're going to give up? They killed your mother and Shirley's father and crippled Nunnally, and you're going to let that slide?"
"... Of course not. They deserve to be annihilated," the dark-haired prince staggered to his feet. He closed his eyes and envisioned his happy childhood with his mother, whom the Sword of Akasha killed just because of her bloodline. Nunnally, who used to be bursting full of energy, being crippled by the assassins as well. Joseph, who had nothing to do with him, save being the father of the girl he was dating, cruelly beheaded in an attack orchestrated by them.
"They would tell you to go on, and not give in to despair. You owe Joseph a promise to protect Shirley and ensure her happiness as well. You cannot afford to be dawdling right now. At the very least, you must eliminate the Sword of Akasha in the name of vengeance for your mother and Nunnally," the voice resumed its admonishment.
"I... yes, you're right," Lelouch agreed. His perturbation slowly faded away, and a sudden burst of clarity flooded his mind. He knew what he had to do now. "I have to obliterate the Sword of Akasha and erase all traces of them from the ends of the earth, for the sake of my mother and Nunnally. And as atonement for bringing Shirley into this as well. That's the only way I can make it up to her. The path will be far from easy, but I shall not shirk from it any longer!" The last vestiges of his previous despondency still pulled at him, urging him to continue drinking. Irked, he hurled the glass away from him, sending the fragile container tumbling through the sky before it smashed into the wall, promptly disintegrating into pieces.
Lelouch stared at the shards of what used to be a wine glass with a hardened look. He resolved to find Shirley. He may find it difficult to look at her in the eye, but he had to face her. Without any further contemplation, he seized the door handle, throwing the door open before embarking on his search for Shirley.
Rolo peered warily over the corner of the wall and heaved a small sigh of vexation when he found that the corridor was empty. He resumed his brisk walk while keeping an eye out for Shirley. He had been feeling uneasy since his master informed him that he sent the head of her father to her. The assassin felt concerned for his sole friend - an irony, as he was the one who slain and decapitated Joseph, albeit unwillingly, and he could no longer keep his mounting worry under wraps any longer. Therefore, he decided to set off to check up on her.
The brown-haired youth was well aware that he was supposed to be searching for the Damocles's key while both Shirley and Lelouch were occupied with the aftermath of Joseph's passing, but he did not care at the moment. He had already scoured the entire house multiple times over the past few days and found nothing. However, instead of reporting his findings to Schneizel, he opted to stay silent until prompted to report it. Rolo had a sinking feeling that the second prince would decide on another course of action, which would easily be much more distasteful than the last. He would rather leave the Prime Minister waiting and spend the extra time with Shirley, just to see whether she was coping with her loss well enough, as he felt dreadful for murdering her father. While he had no intention to confess his deeds to her, he wondered how would she react if she ever learned of the truth.
Lost in thought, Rolo gradually grew less aware of his surroundings. He was about to turn around a corner as he reached the end of a corridor when a blur of black and orange slammed into him painfully. There was a yelp of surprise and pain, and the servant-assassin instinctively turned his fall into a roll. He was about to adopt a combat-ready pose when he looked up and instantly recognized the individual he inadvertently crashed into. It was Shirley, still clad in her dark mourning dress. She was rubbing her right shoulder while wincing.
Rolo wasted no time in hastening towards Shirley and extended a hand to help her up. "Sorry about that. Are you alright?"
Shirley glanced upwards, only now noticing the countenance of the young male she had collided with. "Thanks, Rolo," she murmured, grasping his hand. Rolo's expression shifted oddly the moment they clasped hands, but she failed to notice it. "Have you seen Lulu?" Shirley asked abruptly as the servant quickly tugged her to her feet.
"His Highness?" Rolo was slightly surprised by the swift change in topic. "No, I haven't seen him in a while. Why?"
"Oh. Nevermind, then. I must go now," Shirley replied hurriedly and made to dash off.
"Wait!" Rolo called out, causing the redhead to pause in her tracks, with an expression of puzzlement, mixed with slight annoyance, on her face. "Why are you seeking him out so urgently?"
Shirley contemplated telling Rolo that it was nothing, and she wanted nothing more but to continue looking for Lelouch but decided against it. "I need to see him," she finally said, deciding that Rolo was trustworthy. "He has been blaming himself for my father's death, and probably my estrangement from my mother too. She's angry with me for refusing to leave him." She sighed sorrowfully and looked away from her companion. "I was told that he would be in the parlor, but all I found was a half empty bottle of wine and a broken glass. I fear that something happened to him."
Rolo frowned at the peculiarity of Shirley dashing around to look for her partner when she was the one who was bereaved. He was not aware that Shirley's mother was furious at her daughter's choices, and he found that distasteful. "Has it ever occurred to you that he might be looking for you as well? That could be the reason why you have yet to locate him. At this rate, you two might be running around in circles," he inquired. He wasn't sure that was the case, but he could hardly bother. All he hoped for at the moment was that Shirley would stay so that he could talk to her. Plus, if he joined her in her efforts to find Lelouch, his master could hear it due to the bugs placed all over the villa, and he might then doubt his loyalty again.
"Oh," Shirley blinked. She had been so quick to jump to a negative conclusion that she forgot the possibility of the prince attempting to locate her. "I guess there's a chance..." Rolo had a point. Maybe it was best if one of them remained still, otherwise they could be futilely searching for each other, when in truth they were running in circles. It would be almost comical, if not for the severity of the situation.
"Well, His Highness could use the exercise," Rolo said lamely, making a weak attempt at a joke. He was never good at making them in the first place. Shirley smiled feebly. "Could I ask you a question, Shirley?"
"Sure."
"Even now, you still wish to be with His Highness, right?" Rolo waited until Shirley nodded. "Why?" He blurted out. He felt his deeply buried sense of frustration, borne out of his lack of will to kill his only friend when the time comes, spike sharply. "In a way, it's not false that I-, I mean, the Sword of Akasha targeted your father because you were with Lelouch. Which then leads to your mother getting upset, right?" She nodded again, this time cautiously. "I don't get it. Why do you still want to be with him after this fiasco?" Rolo took a deep breath to steady himself after his outburst. "If she actually agreed to leave the royal, perhaps I could do something to ensure her safety. Maybe I can persuade my master that she isn't a necessary target, and have him order the Sword of Akasha not to touch her."
Shirley was startled by the vehemence apparent in Rolo's tone, and the seemingly easy question he asked. The answer was fairly obvious to her - it was because she loved Lelouch. She then recalled that Rolo was raised in an orphanage, and thus he might not be able to understand her current actions. "I know it doesn't sound logical," She began, reminding herself that she had to understand his perspective to come up with the best answer she could give. "But love is power after all."
"Love is power?" Rolo questioned blankly.
"When you love someone, that has incredible power," Shirley elaborated, her voice growing more passionate with every word. "You think about them all day long. You write poetry that rhymes, you feel that you can fly, and you would jump off a waterfall screaming his name. What you would do for that person may seem silly, but that doesn't matter because you want to do it for him." She inhaled to take a deep breath, before glancing up at Rolo. "How about you, Rolo? Haven't you ever felt something like that before?"
"Err…" The assassin paused. He suddenly thought of his master. His brows knitted themselves into a befuddled frown. "So as long as you're doing something irrational for someone… that's love?"
"Well, you must be willing to do it. You wouldn't mind the cost of it to yourself."
"And if you're not, but still are doing something for someone...?"
Shirley furrowed her eyebrows. "Well, that isn't love. You shouldn't be carrying out deeds for someone unwillingly. Otherwise, you'll eventually end up being used. Like a tool."
"A tool," Rolo's mind went back to the conversation he had with his master when he had amnesia. "You have no choice. For all your life, you have served me as my sword. That is your purpose in life... given unto you by me." He was nothing but a pawn, albeit a useful one, in his master's eyes. "What's wrong with that?"
"What's wrong with that?" Shirley repeated, aghast to hear such a response. "Rolo, we're human beings. All of us has the right to freedom and pursue their happiness. Being used is horribly cruel and unfair, and it deprives the person of any hope of finding contentment." She cocked her head to the side, realizing that the conversation had adopted a rather odd turn. "Are you alright, Rolo?"
"I'm fine," Rolo replied hastily. "I should be the one asking you that." He scrutinized the slim female and noticed that, despite her initial restlessness, she looked haggard and worn out. "You don't look so good."
"Me? I'll be alright," Shirley waved Rolo's comment away and eyed him with a strange look on her visage. The servant shifted awkwardly, uncomfortable under her intense gaze but trying to maintain a look of innocence. He was mentally praying for a change in topic or ending of the conversation. He doubted that Schneizel would be pleased once he heard the words he exchanged with Shirley.
Fortunately for Rolo, there was a rapidly growing sound of a set of footsteps. The noise caught the attention of the pair, and they both turned towards the source. A few seconds later, Lelouch burst into view. He was panting heavily, and his steps faltered the moment his eyes rested on Shirley. "Um, I guess I'll see you later. Bye," Rolo said hurriedly as he quickly bolted away from the scene.
Shirley barely registered Rolo retreating to leave her alone with Lelouch. The prince straightened his back, and the couple stared at each other for a long moment. Her peridot green eyes searched the depths of his amethyst orbs and a myriad of emotions reflected back at her. Determination, sorrow, frustration, guilt, anger, shame and remorse. "Lulu..." she murmured as she took several steps forward, stopping just a few feet away from him.
"Shirley..." Lelouch swallowed heavily. He averted his gaze sideways, avoiding eye contact with his girlfriend. The doleful look in her green eyes, which he was so familiar with, only served to remind him of the hurt he had inadvertently inflicted upon her. "I'm sorry."
"For what?" Shirley asked."You have nothing to apologize for. Are you still beating yourself up about it?"
"For avoiding you after the funeral. I should have been with you," Lelouch answered, with a note of self-reproach in his tone. "I won't leave you alone again. I have decided that we're going to stay together."
"R-really?" Shirley could scarcely believe her own ears. She began to feel buoyant, and that the weight of the world was lifted from her shoulders. "T-that's great! Thank you, Lulu." The slender girl moved forward, her arms spread to give the royal an embrace, but he backed away, much to her surprise and disappointment. "What's wrong?"
"That's not the only thing I'm seeking your forgiveness for," Lelouch muttered, still not meeting Shirley's gaze. "Other things include your father's violent passing, estrangement from your mother, and the loss your family has experienced. The trauma, anxiety, and pain you have suffered from not only that but the past attacks as well. And not telling you the potential danger of being together with me when I first invited you to come to Britannia by my side."
"Lulu, you don't have to be apologetic for that-" Shirley tried to say, but the eleventh prince was on a roll.
"I have dragged you into a hellhole, Shirley. Words cannot express how remorseful I am for doing so," Lelouch continued earnestly. "Unfortunately, I can't push you out of it. I can only make it slightly easier to live in. I have made up my mind to finally eradicate the Sword of Akasha once and for all. And that... is the only atonement I can offer you," he finished dramatically and sadly.
"Atonement? You're being absurd," Shirley shook her head adamantly. "I don't blame you for any of this, and so should you! You never intended for this to happen!"
"I should have known that something like this would occur," Lelouch insisted. "In fact, I already thought that asking you to return to Britannia was a bad idea when I first conceived of it. However, I was so enthralled by my eagerness to have you by my side and I ignored rationality dictated - and innocents paid the price for my negligence."
"There was no way you could have foreseen this! As smart as you are, you're not perfect and I don't expect you to be," Shirley countered. She was glad to hear that Lelouch had decided against ending the relationship, but she was far from satisfied with his reasons for doing so. It was apparent that he was haunted by his misplaced sense of guilt, and it may eventually consume him. "Please don't blame yourself anymore. I believe that you already tried your best to protect us. Whatever happens is out of your control."
"It could have been," Lelouch responded bitterly. "I could have saved you and your family a great deal of tragedy if I had not acted on my emotions like some idiotic prepubescent boy."
"Lulu... I know that you feel accountable for what has happened. That you have pulled me down with you, without letting me know the risks," Shirley said slowly but firmly. Her voice took on a more emotional tone. "And now, after two attacks on us and my father's death... I say that I'm aware of the danger now, and even if you had told me about the possible perils I could encounter back then when we were on the roof of Ashford Academy, I would still choose to be with you. Right now... I'm prepared for the worst, even if I lose everything." Her eyes became awash with tears again, as she pictured future tragedies. Her mother could be the next target. Lelouch could die, and she as well. However, she remained unshakeable in her resolution.
"You would?" The royal seemed rather surprised. He then snorted and shook his head. "You're being silly, Shirley."
"Maybe I am," Shirley laughed humourlessly. "But that doesn't change my feelings for you, Lulu. Nothing would change it. You're a victim as well. I won't let you go on alone." A sad smile formed on her lips. "I would walk together with you with a smile till the end, regardless how much it would end up hurting me one day."
"..." Lelouch opened his mouth to reply, but no words came out. He shifted his gaze away from Shirley again, with a tormented look on his face, clearly having trouble with absolving himself of guilt.
"So don't blame yourself anymore, alright?" Shirley pleaded, sensing the conflict within Lelouch. "Like I said just now, even if I had known about the danger of going with you, I would not hesitate to go with you. Whatever happens is my choice. I'll never blame you." She slowly stepped towards him again, and this time, he did not shrink back. Shirley wrapped her arms around Lelouch's torso, and he stiffened visibly.
Silence reigned for a long moment, which only stretched on as the seconds ticked by. Lelouch let out a heavy, prolonged sigh and finally his lanky frame relaxed. He hesitated, but his reluctance eventually crumbled and he hugged Shirley back, who started crying in relief. The accumulated stress and anxiety inside her evaporated once he held her in his arms. "Why?" Lelouch asked hoarsely. "How could you still want to be with me after everything?"
"Because I love you, Lulu," Shirley whispered fervently, looking up at her lover. They stared into each other's eyes, and the couple found themselves slowly, but inexorably, inching closer towards each other. Their lips met - their minds going blank as they kissed, and they allowed themselves forget about the world around them for what felt like perpetuity to them.
A few days later...
"You asked for me, Your Highness?" Jeremiah inquired as he stepped into the command center of the villa. Occupying the room was Lelouch and Shirley – the former dressed in a formal black-and-white suit, while the latter was simply clad in a blue T-shirt and shorts, with her hair tied into twin tails. Both of them were unsmiling, and there was an air of sobriety. The normally bustling room was rather quiet – the various computer screens and electronics were deactivated, which is an indication that the prince's paranoia has extended to doubting the integrity of their servers, and the silence of the room only served to fuel the tense atmosphere.
"Close the door behind you, Margrave Gottwald," Lelouch replied. "And feel free to check whether this room is truly completely free of bugs. Once done, I shall begin."
"Yes, Your Highness," Jeremiah hastened to obey his orders. His curiosity was piqued, as this meeting was clearly meant to be a crucial one. It took the cyborg a short time to complete his task, and soon he stood attentively in front of the pair."
"I've already told Shirley this, but I have yet to get into the details," Lelouch began, sharing a glance with the female beside him. It has been three days since their reconciliation, and while there was still a slight tinge of awkwardness whenever they were together, the couple strove to proceed as normally as they could. "I would normally get Darlton in this as well, but it's best for only three of us to be here, since we were together since the very start." He paused for a while for dramatic effect before announcing. "We're going to make a move on the Sword of Akasha, Margrave Gottwald."
Jeremiah started, and his eyes widened in astonishment. "We have a lead on them?"
"No, not really," Lelouch shook his head. "What I have in mind is a rather risky plan. You might call it a gamble, but if all goes well, which I'm confident of, we'll have one high-ranking member of the Sword of Akasha in our custody."
Shirley and Jeremiah exchanged looks before reverting their sole attention on the dark-haired royal. "Go ahead, Your Highness. We're listening," Jeremiah urged, scarcely containing his eagerness. He longed to strike back at the organization which murdered Marianne and threatened his liege, and now such an opportunity had surfaced.
"We have no idea who is involved, so my plan is that we're luring them out in the open so we can capture them. And the bait is none other than ourselves."
"What do you mean, Your Highness?" Jeremiah questioned, his keenness replaced by disbelief. "Are you saying that we're going to make them attack us?"
"Correct," Lelouch saw no point in trying to mince words. "We're going to dangle ourselves as bait so that they can finally stop hiding and fight us."
"How are you doing to make them do that, Lulu?" Shirley spoke up. Both Lelouch and Jeremiah turned to look at her, and she suddenly felt uncomfortable under the gazes of the obviously much more experienced and knowledgeable prince and noble. "I mean… they haven't been attacking us directly since some time, and the last time they did, they were defeated quite handily by you."
"Miss Fenette has a point," Jeremiah acknowledged. "How exactly do you plan to tempt them, when they have been continuously thwarted by you whenever you faced them directly? Firstly, the failed assassination attempt by Mao, and secondly their unsuccessful siege of the villa."
"Not to worry. I shall tweak the conditions to make it a little more enticing for them," Lelouch smirked. "They will see us leaving the villa, without being accompanied by any other guards or military equipment. Once they notice that we're nearly defenceless, they're sure to come in an attempt to bite us."
"What?!" Jeremiah nearly shouted, completely forgetting who he was addressing in his incredulity. Shirley did not react as strongly as him, but she wore an expression of worry. "Your Highness, while I'm certain that they would take the bait, we can hardly fight back if we're that outnumbered. With all due respect... It's plain suicide!"
"Calm down, Jeremiah," Lelouch grumbled, wincing after his bodyguard raised his voice. "I know it sound foolish, but trust me. I do not have a death wish. I'll come up with something to ensure that we'll get out alive, safe and sound with all our limbs intact."
"Your Highness, I must say, although I usually trust your abilities and judgement, I am far from fond of such a dangerous maneuver-"
"We'll proceed with it," Lelouch's tone brooked no argument, silencing the protesting Margrave, leaving the noble to wonder if Lelouch could be feeling so desperate to take the Sword of Akasha out that he has resorted to precarious and excessively daring plans to achieve his goal. "I have absolute confidence that we will succeed. Any other objections?"
Jeremiah was still unconvinced and rather torn – between his sworn loyalty to Marianne's son and how ludicrous the plan sounded to him, but he did not disapprove. "None, Your Highness!"
"Shirley?" Lelouch asked softly, peering right into his girlfriend's green eyes.
For a fleeting split-second, Shirley thought she glimpsed a glimmer of what seemed like remorse in the adolescent prince's amethyst orbs as they surveyed her – perhaps a remnant of his belief that he was accountable for the tribulations she had underwent during her time with him. Shirley gave her boyfriend a heartening smile and shook her head, her twin orange tails swaying about. "I won't object. I have complete faith in you."
Lelouch returned the smile – albeit half-heartedly, then his facial muscles grew taut and his angular visage hardened. "Let's do this. It's high time we struck back at them. The beginning of the end of the Sword of Akasha begins now.
Author's Note: And that wraps it up. I initially wanted Lelouch to be much more inclined towards the idea of breaking up for the sake of drama, but then I realized that he should know it's too late. Plus he isn't a milksop anyway... thus, in favor of keeping him in character, I scrapped that idea, even if that means rewriting half of this chapter. Oh well.
Putting that aside, I hope you guys found this an enjoyable, if not, decent read. And yes, I can promise a lot more action for the next chapter, but it would take a month at least before I'm finished composing it because of my military training. I apologize for the long gap in between chapters but... it can't be helped. Let me know what you guys think anyway. Is there any noticeable change in things, for example, writing style, vocabulary, etc? I'm curious... because I haven't been writing regularly in a long time. I apologize for taking this long to come up with this chapter. Cheers!