Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass or the Crooked Man's characters.
And also, someone asked me why didn't just try and beat the Crooked Man, it's because in the game, technically, he's immortal, because he died a long time ago. And I just had to kill Fluffy. He might've lived in the game, but I'm not as merciful. Sad thing is, I did like Fluffy ;-;
Oh crap. Did I say 'Guilbert' instead of 'Guilford' in this story? I seriously hope not. I am going to look back after I finish this.
Cornelia's inhale comes out shaky and disheveled, the same manner as her hair after she repeatedly ran her fingers through the strands. How did this happen?
"I want someone fired, now!" Cornelia scowls at the command from her sister Cassius. After all, Cassius would often pick on Lelouch when they were little, always being a bully about how Lelouch really isn't royalty, as his mother is a commoner. However, Cornelia often looked up to Marianne, so when C.C. called Marianne a 'low-life, greedy, unloving pig', Cornelia's ready to slap the girl across the face with her gloved hand. Where did this woman even come from, and how dare she speak of Lady Marianne? This is the friend of Lady Marianne's son, right? Cornelia highly doubts this woman even knows Lady Marianne, anyways, judging by the repulsive and offensive words she speak against the strong, independent former Empress.
"How did this happen?" Schneizel gapes. The therapist continues to wail, her dry sobs racking her thin shoulders. The blood from the various and multiple gashes and wounds from the boy's body is already seeping into the white cloth spread across the corpse. The first thing that alerted them of a dead body was a crying mother, obviously. Honestly, it slightly scared Cornelia from that sudden, unexpected wail.
Cornelia thumbed through the files neatly shuffled in her arms. All this paperwork, and so little time to sign all these useless reports. Damn Schneziel, dumping all this onto her, claiming how everyone else is currently unavailable, and for Schneziel to be her superior, Cornelia had roughly accepted after making sure to give him a paper cut with his own reports he's suppose to fill. Cornelia's emotions tell her to differ, that Schneziel is just sour about their little spat in the meeting over whether or not to get rid of Lelouch. Of course Cassius automatically claimed that Lelouch is a danger and had to be put down like a wild wolf. Carine just agreed with Nunnally, she didn't seem to concern over this. Cornelia honestly held no grudge against the animated princess, but in Cornelia's opinion, she's very naive and she's not really on the intelligent side. At least Marrybell was willing to side with Euphemia on giving Lelouch a chance. So was Odysseus, and for once, Cornelia's grateful in his oblivious and kindness, and most likely because of his lack of intelligence, he didn't go with Schneizel's complicated explanation of why Lelouch should be sent away. Guinevere however, clearly has a thing against Lelouch as well, and well, Cornelia is slightly ashamed to admit she's probably the only one Cornelia's unwilling to go against.
Schneizel is clearly just miffed over that Cornelia gained more of their siblings approval than he did. Then, a shrill, high-octave pitched caused Cornelia to immediately halt in place, her files tumbling out of her arms as she reach for her sword. However, the cries and sobs of sorrow that follow the startling screech made Cornelia to determine that this is probably just Carine. She followed the source of the nearby sobs, only to walk in on a grieving mother, and a mutilated body of a little boy.
Her siblings obviously interrogated Cornelia for questions, asking if there was anyone else other than the boy and his mother, or very stupid ones like, 'what happened?', when it's clear that Cornelia doesn't have any answer, as she has no more information than they have. "I'm so sorry," Schneizel continues to try and calm the distressed mother. "I assure you that we'll catch your son's killer." Cornelia's mind runs into blanks. The boy's flesh is blemished with random bite marks, that are already bruising on the deceased body, the indentations of the teeth shadowed with black and blue, some still a fading red color, stating the body was living not long ago, probably even mere minutes ago, as there has to be blood for the faint tinge of red around the bite marks. Then, there are strings that peeled off the muscles in the neck, the tissue broken. The killer basically cannibalized the young boy. Chunks of flesh are missing, with the skin surrounding the large wounds flaking. There's a huge rip in the neck, that deepened into a widened crater, where the flesh is scooped out.
Schneizel approaches Cornelia, after leaving the depressed ex-mother. "We have to eliminate the mother," Schneizel murmurs in a low voice.
"What?" Cornelia stammers, snapping her head up furiously at her older brother, meeting his lowered blue eyes. She cannot find a single speck nor reflection of remorse of his words. "What the hell is wrong with you?" Cornelia might be the Warrior Princess, but that's not going to prevent her from killing innocent people. She might've done that before, but that'll remain in the past.
"It's clear that it has to be someone who worked with us that is the executor. Or it's a wild animal. The thing is, if word gets out, then the killer will know if he does work with us."
"That's the worst lie you ever uttered." Cornelia spits her words out harshly.
"We can't ruin our reputation, can we? To have people know we hired cannibals..." Schneizel implores his suggesting conclusion.
"People won't think that! It's obviously a wild animal." Nunnally approaches them, she clearly eavesdropped. The two of them shuffle apart for Nunnally's wheelchair to fit within their little bickering circle.
"No," Cornelia literally has to force those words out, and she watches as Schneizel smirk at her, obviously sensing her botheration. "Then the situation wouldn't make sense. Why would the animal just leave and abandon their food? And the bites are slightly large, and the teeth mark are human. So unless if an ape that likes to eat humans broke into here, I doubt that it's an animal. Besides, they would track blood everywhere, wild animals wouldn't know about covering their tracks, the area is too clean for an animal to do it. Has to be a creature with a high intelligence IQ." Cornelia begins to list the reasons off her fingers, raising a finger whenever she explains her evidence and claims against why a wild animal attacked this young boy.
"Then who did it? We have major security, nobody could've gotten in without someone knowing, and nobody was found near the ballroom," Nunnally mutters. "Who did it then? The list of suspects should narrow down because from what I heard, the person definitely cannibalized the boy, as the hunks of flesh missing from the body isn't found anywhere, so we suspected the man did just eat the pieces." Nunnally points out.
Schneizel's smirk then falters, into a grimace. "What?" Cornelia hisses, her voice low and threatening. "What's on your mind?" Cornelia questions, ready for whatever Schneizel's ready to throw at them.
She wasn't prepared for this, though.
"This is the work of a madman," at those words, Cornelia has a sinking feeling she has an idea of her brother's next words. He couldn't-
"And there's really one person crazy enough to do this."
Lelouch continues to refuse C.C.'s help. She sighs. If this is what he wants...
No. He's lying. Cornelia continues to debate against Schneizel's words in her head, refusing to believe so. Lelouch cannot be that out of his mind. Without knocking, she enters his room, ready to confirm his innocence. The scene that greets her causes her words to falter, and she swallows them, and they sear her throat, pushing up tears. Lelouch addresses her, unfurling from his fetal position, obviously he's been cradling himself on his bed once more. Patches on his jeans are a darker shade, like cranberry juice that stained his pants.
"Lelouch," Cornelia enters the room slowly. "A body of a dead boy was found." Cornelia continues. "And we want to know if-"
"I did it." Lelouch mumbles, leaving Cornelia dumbfounded, her faith in Lelouch's sanity and humanity dissipating. "I killed the boy."
"Lelouch, you...are you sure?" Cornelia doesn't know why she's still hoping for another answer. She doesn't know why she's even probing or questioning Lelouch's straightforward answer, after all, the last flame of hope was extinguish by Lelouch's words. Lelouch nods. The blood caked pants, the hems of his jeans stiff from the liquid drying within it are clear evidence that he was near somebody's dead body.
There's nothing else for Cornelia to say. Her little brother's a murderer. All the effort to protect him failed. "Why did you kill him?" Cornelia's broken heart desperately tries to glue itself together as she yells out her cracked words. "Wasn't killing Euphemia enough?" Lelouch, who purposefully averting her gaze, now claps eyes with her, and Cornelia only feels a slight tinge of regret. Why does she even bother protecting him anymore? He's a traitor. He killed so many innocent people. What about Euphie?
"I killed him because I was too scared to die." Cornelia's rage lowers to a simmer, trying hard to prevent herself from reaching the boiling point. Let Schneizel throw him away to rot in the cages. See if she cares. "He was hungry, and I was too selfish to allow him to eat me, so he took Fluffy." Okay, the name Fluffy did make Cornelia blinks, her anger that blinded her quickly transforms into confusion. Fluffy? "All of my selfish desires is what led me down this road. How ironic, as allowing him to take my life would also be considered selfish, as I do not deserve death." Cornelia hesitates to continue her rant. Why is he referring to himself in third person? He sounds basically sane right now. Lelouch advances towards her, and Cornelia can feel her hackles rise, and she straightens her spine as he stops in front of her.
"Hey. Cornelia. Thanks for being a good big sister," at those words, Cornelia recoils, her eyes wide at Lelouch's sudden acknowledgement of thanks. Lelouch slowly, by her shoulders, lead her out. Then, he takes a step back, behind the doorframe, waving cheerfully, looking the most happy she seen him in days. Then, the door slams shut so quick, that it nearly smacked Cornelia. Who closed the door?
"Lelouch, open the door, I'm not done talking to you!" Cornelia snarls, her voice harsh. No sullen, drawling response from the other side of the door. Cornelia raps her knuckles against the hard wood, and finally, she pounds her whole fist against it, rattling the whole door. "Lelouch!" Cornelia musters her most demanding tone. Most people would probably obey her orders before reaching this point. Her angry glare usually completes this whole set, but by the time her voice runs hoarse from yelling, she's still glowering at a door.
A squeak attracts Cornelia's attention, and she looks to the side, to see Nunnally rolling down the hallway on her thick set of wheels underneath her plastic electronic chair. "What's wrong? I heard you shouting." Nunnally says, her voice thick with sadness. After Schneizel announced how Lelouch is their one and main suspect, she became very upset. "So did Lelouch kill him?" Cornelia just looks down at the little girl, and her eyes widen, her pupils dilating. "No!" Nunnally shouts, her voice infused with disbelief. Cornelia has to do something before tears start to form. Oh, no, too late.
"I don't know yet," Cornelia blurts out. She doesn't need Nunnally to know her brother is batshit crazy and most likely the murder of a young boy. Not to mention he's possibly cannibalistic. Cornelia's stomach twists at that thought, along with her aching heart. "He won't open the door!" Cornelia grumbles.
"Why don't you just open the door?" Cornelia snorts at her little sister's recommendation. Did she think that she didn't try that already?
"I already tried that," Cornelia grumbles dryly, biting her bottom lip, probably scraping off her layer of rich, purple lipstick while at it. To prove her claim, Cornelia grabs onto the doorknob, and begins to jiggle it, when suddenly, the doorknob jerks to the left. "Wha-" Cornelia gasps, only to compose herself, recovering from her shock. "I swear it was locked earlier," Cornelia mutters, dignified, glaring at the silver knob as though it done her wrong. She hears a light chuckle from Nunnally below her, and Cornelia bites her inner cheek to prevent a scowl from surfacing upon her face. She opens the door, and once again, it hits Nunnally's wheelchair, and a sigh emits from both of them. Then, the harsh smell stings the inside of her nostrils, and Cornelia immediately takes in the scene, alerted by the metallic smell. Nausea starts to bubble in her stomach, her eyes wide. Holy-
"Wait, I'm going to move back so that you can open the door all the way, I want to see Lelouch too," Nunnally chirps, her bubbly tone causing Cornelia to focus. She cannot let Nunnally see this.
The unnaturally wide grin that seems too big for Lelouch's angled, sunken in face seems to sneer at Cornelia.
"Uh, Nunnally, why don't I speak with Lelouch for a moment, okay?" Cornelia whispers hoarsely. How is she planning to speak with a dead body? It's only been around five minutes and...
Lelouch's body is splayed out, his blood splattering across his cream-colored carpet. His eyes, glassy and pitless, seem to clap with her gaze, and Cornelia stiffens at the dull orchid orbs that lay in his eye socket, void of any sense. There's no way Lelouch could've done this to himself. No way. His head is facing in her direction, his hair matted down across his face from blood. Yet...his body is jerked in an entirely different direction. He broke his neck. Cornelia cannot find a more gruesome death. However...visibly across his bare arms not covered from his short black sleeves, have multiple bite marks. Across his shoulder, tearing through his thin black t-shirt, is a huge hole, revealing a bone. How horrifying she's still able to see it from this angle, even though the body is technically behind the head itself. A pool of blood inhabits the large gap where a chunk of flesh has disappeared, nowhere to be seen. The pool of blood that gathers there dumps out across the carpet, once again, ruining the pale rug.
"Cornelia? Why aren't you and Lelouch talking?" Nunnally asks.
"I...Nunnally," Cornelia regains her senses, before shutting the doors behind her, yet she can still feel those damn eyes staring at her. "I can assure you, that there's no way that Lelouch is the killer." She almost feels guilty at the look of pleasure that causes Nunnally's visage to beam in delight, unknowing that the evidence for that is her brother's dead body. "And Lelouch even has a big smile!" Cornelia is going to use her sweet time wisely, before the timer ticks down to zero, and she has to bear to sorrow of her lost and the cries of her younger sister. Then...there's going to be the other siblings. She inwardly snarls at the thought of Cassius' reaction. Judging by her sister's attitude and personality towards Lelouch, she'll probably be unsuccessfully fighting off a smile.
Kallen's heart is still racing. They did end up finding Fluffy's torn body. She sighs, turning to her mirror in the basement, observing her body for any stains of blood she missed, or anything that'd peg her as suspicious. She tucks a strand of her strawberry-pink hair behind her ear, now paranoid that any disheveled part of her will make it seem like she's just been through something intense, even though it's the smallest thing like a crinkle in her shirt. She hopes that C.C. is helping Lelouch out, preventing him from being found out. At least dispose of his jeans at the least.
Then, her hands freeze in midair, as a grinning face appears over her shoulder. Her eyes stay focused on the mirror, blinking rapidly to see if it's just a recollection from the previous events. Oh. Something changed. His gnarled hands poise around her neck.
Her scream could've shattered the mirror in front of her, which would've been quite delightful, as then she wouldn't see the reflection of the leering face.
Suicide is how they labeled the deceased, former 99th prince, leaving the world, along with his grieving siblings, how the supposedly immortal Demon King died.
And Cornelia, once again, for the second time that day, cannot answer the questions the others bombard her with.
She feels like she's using those three words way too much today.
"I don't know." She answers truthfully.
I feel like this chapter sucked.
If you have any ideas or suggestions on what I should do, like edit it, please say! Because I am totally stuck on a writer's block. I want Lelouch to live. But at the same time, this seems like the most reasonable ending. I don't know. I guess I wanted to leave this story out on an open end, I don't really like to tie up loose ends, I like people to continue on with this.
If you want, you can continue this story and create your own ending.