Thank you for the reviews!

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

-OoOoOoO-

'

'

(5-6 years ago)

The little girl's eyes popped open as she heard someone shouting from the kitchen. It sounded so clear and loud. And at this hour? She recognized one voice belonged to her mother while the other belonged to someone else she had never heard of before. Or had she?

"What do you mean you're moving?" Screeched her mother.

"It's like what I just explained!" Shouted the man.

"I don't believe you. How could you….How could you do this to me!" Whined the woman. It sounded like she was crying.

A pause as a loud, exasperate sigh was heard. Then the sound of a chair scraping against the floor, coming to a stop after a few seconds.

"Listen-" the man said.

"Don't touch me!" Snapped her mother. Her voice croaked.

A silence.

"You've got to be reasonable here." The man tried again.

This finally aroused the little girl's interest. She quickly pulled off the blanket and skipped quietly towards the door to her bedroom. Then opening the door big enough just for one of her eyes to see, she silently observed what was happening in front of her. Of course unbeknownst to the adults.

Her mother seemed so weak at the moment. Tears were flowing down freely on her pink cheeks as her small arms wrapped tightly around her slender frame. She was sitting in a kitchen chair, facing the living room, and she looked just like a beaten puppy that needed a lot of comforts and protections.

"I said don't touch me!" She shouted again, pushing the man's hands away violently.

"You can't go on like this!" Said the man impatiently. Though his voice was harsh and cold, worry, concern and hurt were evident in his tone.

"Why would you even care? You're going to move away like none of this has ever happened!"

"Look at me! Do you really think I'm that cold? I love you, you know that."

The woman finally looked up from under her long bangs. Her eyes were all red and glassy from all the crying. But when she focused on his face, even more tears spilled out.

"If you…if you love me. Then why didn't you divorce her?" The woman asked. Her voice all hoarse.

The man brought up his right hand to run over his blond hair. A sigh escaped his lips. "You know it isn't possible. We've been through that-"

"No! You're lying! With your status, everything is possible!" The woman screamed again.

But this time, her screams were cut short as the man quickly grabbed her arms and pulled her into an embrace, muffling all her cries and protests.

"Be quiet. You're going to wake her up." He whispered softly into her hair.

As if her mother suddenly remembered that they weren't alone in this house, she immediately stopped shouting. But that didn't mean she also stopped crying.

She slowly and shakily brought up her arms to wrap them around the man's broad shoulder, letting tears drip down onto his white shirt. "Your wife found out?" She asked quietly.

A short hesitation. Then the man answered, "No. But it's safe to end this before things get worse."

Her mother shook her head violently. "I don't understand what you're saying. We could've run away, and start all over again."

"Yes," she continued, sounding pretty much on the verge of hysterical. "We should do that. Let's run away together. We can bring her with us and start a new life-"

"Please be reasonable. I love you, but we just can't do that," said the man as he pressed her small frame further against his. His voice shook a bit.

The woman closed her sky-blue eyes.

The Grand Clock chimed nine at night. And that was the only sound audible in the whole house.

"If I didn't move with my family. My wife will find out about this eventually, and your life will be put in danger. You know full well of the law, so please don't ask me to do the impossible." The man continued in a low voice.

The little girl had to strain her ears to be able to hear what he's saying.

He went on. "But don't worry. I'll be back sometimes to visit you and her. I won't abandon both of you, that's a promise. I shall come back when there's an opportunity so please hang in there-"

"You won't do it, will you?" Asked the woman. She sounded all strong all of sudden, as if she hadn't shed a tear earlier.

"Do what?"

"Give up your status."

The man looked taken aback by her statement. He gently grabbed her shoulder and slowly pushed her away. Then their gazes locked. None of them bothered saying anything to save the uncomfortable silence as they kept staring at each other.

After a few minutes, he replied softly. "It's nothing something I can decide."

"Yes it is," the woman retorted as she pushed his hands away and stood up. Her long, wavy green hair almost touched the ground as she did so. Using one hand to push a few strands of hair away from her eyes, she continued. "I know what the law says, but if your love for me is strong enough, you'd be able to break it."

"Like I said, it's not possible to do that."

"Do you really think I'd wait around for you to come back? Only God knows if you're going to keep your promise."

The chair was pushed back violently, to the point it almost toppled over as the man also stood up, facing the woman.

"How long have we been together?" He asked angrily. "How many times have you seen me break my own promises? Answer me damnit!"

The woman only looked on coldly as she replied. Her voice was no longer weak and shaky. "Those were trivia matters." Then she made a snort as some forgotten memories had made its way back. "How funny. Did you always keep your promises? I believe you should recheck that list." Her tone was full of sarcasm.

"What are you talking about?" The man growled. His soft golden eyes just now suddenly hardened. If gaze could kill, he was doing an incredibly good job. "I've kept all of them as far as I know, so what you're saying makes no sense at all!"

"Really?" Smirked the woman bitterly. "Don't you remember what you've said six years ago? That you would never abandon us, never leave us alone in the darkness, dear?" Her last word was as sharp as a razor blade, and sounded as much forceful.

Needless to say, the man looked taken aback immediately. He then looked down and suddenly developed an interest in the woodened floor beneath him. The long bangs covering his eyes entirely.

And the little girl understood right away. If he couldn't keep that promise, then how was he able to keep the one he just made with her mother? Comparing those two together, the latter was three-times harder to keep.

He took a deep breath and let it out slowly as if he contemplated the situation. Her mother remained motionless and silent.

Finally, he broke the silence. "Why are you doing this?"

She didn't answer.

"Why are you doing this?" He asked again, pressing each word.

She slowly closed her eyes and heaved a small sigh. "Because I'm tired," she said truthfully.

"I want to settle this once and for all. I don't want to do this behind people's back anymore. I'm tired of running away, of hiding from your family. I-I just want a happy life for our daughter."

"Oh honey," the man said as he took few steps closer. His arms wide open as if he were inviting her to come, but she put her hand up.

"I'm sorry. But it's you who's making things harder than they are." She then looked sideways. Tears sprung to her eyes once again. "Maybe…maybe we should end this." She finished slowly in a croaked voice.

The atmosphere became extraordinarily quiet after that, and the only audible sounds in the whole house were the breathings of three people.

"Isn't that what you want?" She asked sadly, her voice all low and shaky.

The man didn't answer as he, too, looked away. For the first time, the little girl had witnessed a man's pair of sad eyes. They were so depressing and it seemed as though all the liveliness had gone out of them.

Then without warning, he quickly stepped forward and grabbed the slender-figured woman's shoulders, pulling her into a protective and tight embrace, as if he were afraid she's going to vanish into thin air any moment.

She let out a surprised gasp, but was silenced immediately as his moisture lips pressed hungrily on hers. In that moment, there's nothing else for the woman to do, except returning the kiss as passionate as she could. Tears never ceased flowing down her rosy cheeks.

Her arms brought up to wrap around the man's shoulder. The man she had loved so much. The man she'd given up everything for. The man who would soon be walking out of her life, and never return. All of this would be just like a wondrous dream for her – the one she knew she would never be able to have again once she woke up.

As quickly as the kiss started, it came to an abrupt end. His strong hands left her small shoulders before she even realized it. His warm body pulled away from hers before she took notice of it. And just like that, he walked away. The woman behind him stood motionless, soundless.

A small gasp escaped the little girl's lips as she saw him coming closer to her bedroom. She hastily let go of the door and ran back toward her bed, pulling the covers up over her chin, waiting.

The footsteps suddenly came to a halt in front of her door, and she shut her eyes tightly, pretending to be asleep. However, her insides were churning with both excitement and anticipation. Would he open the door so she could see his face clearly for the first time? Would he come bid her good night? Those thoughts were running around widely in her head, refusing to stop.

But everything was not what she had expected at all. The footsteps quickly resumed its pace and soon after that, they were out of earshot as the main door slammed shut.

The little girl lied there, eyes wide open, temporarily not understanding what's going on. From what she'd witnessed tonight, it seemed very likely that this would be the last time she'd ever hear from him, so why didn't he say anything to her? Or rather, let her see his face clearly for the first time?

She shook her head. She did see his face before, when she was very young, as a toddler. But he didn't come to play with her quite often. Only twice a week, and as she got older, the times he frequented would decrease to once a week, or thrice a month. And at such a young age, of course she wouldn't be able to take in his appearances very well. His voice was the only thing she remembered clearly, everything else was just a blur.

That's when she heard someone whimper. A very low sob at first, but then the volume increased and a loud, heartbroken cry was made. Followed after that was a sound of someone sliding slowly to the ground. The miserable cries never ceased.

Her mother had broken down entirely.

So did the little girl. She could feel her cheeks getting hot as tears made their way freely downwards.

They were on their own from now on.

...

(5 months later)

"Mommy! Are you ready yet?" Called the girl as she looked at herself in the mirror and smiled satisfactorily.

They were going to her mother's favorite place today. A place where they didn't get the chance to visit often because of work and busy schedules. But now, her mother had finally gotten some days off, and they both voted to go there, so off they went.

No answers from the woman.

A frown quickly made its way up the girl's face. She gave herself one quick, last look, then turned around and jogged towards her mother's bedroom, humming a childish song she just learned from television.

"Come on mommy. We should get going now or we'll be late."

Still no answer.

She reached up her small hand to touch the doorknob and opened it. Even before the door was open completely, the strong smell of alcohol hit right at her face, causing her to stop in her tracks as she wrinkled her nose.

Not again, she thought.

"Mommy, you promised not to drink again," she said, stepping into the reeking room.

There, sitting at the work desk was her tired-looking mother. Her usually beautiful, long and curly green hair was now disheveled. She was already dressed in her light-blue dress, which matched her pretty, bright-blue eyes. But even the nice-looking clothes couldn't hide the fact that she was quite stressful and all worn-out.

The girl came forward to stand in front of her mother, who looked up with weary eyes.

"You promised not to drink again," she said again.

The woman looked about her as if she'd forgotten where she was. She then turned her attention back to her daughter. A sad smile crossed her face. "Oh honey, I'm sorry. I haven't been drinking for decades."

"That was last week mom," the girl heaved a small sigh. "Never mind. Do you think you can drive or we can go othe-"

"No," her mom waved at her, cutting off her sentences. "I've only drunk a little. I'm sure I can handle driving. Besides, we can use some fresh air now." She chuckled.

The girl's golden orbs lighted up as she heard that. She quickly grabbed the bottles on the desk and dumped them into the trash can located beside it. A yelp was heard from her mother. "Honey, what are you doing?" She asked, staring at her daughter.

"This is enough alcohol for you," she stated firmly.

"The way you said it, it reminds me of…" her mother trailed off as she looked away, toward the window.

The little girl knew who she was referring to, and she definitely didn't want to bring up that subject. Ever.

"Ok, let's go, mom." She said cheerfully, grabbing her mother's arms and pulling her to her feet.

The woman smiled, bringing up one of her hands to smooth out her hair, and nodded. "Alright."

...

"Oh! It's so beautiful!" Exclaimed the girl with arms wide open as she looked up at the big, old sakura tree.

The last time she'd been here was two years ago, on her fourth birthday, with her mother and father. Those memories were so far away now, and no matter what she did, she could never get back to those old, happy days again.

This time, it was in the autumn season. On no particular occasion.

"Look mommy. The petals are falling! So pretty." Cried the girl in happiness.

She quickly held out her hands and fell in them were the delicate pink and white sakura petals.

A bright smile crept up her childish face.

And for the first time, her mother was smiling too. A genuinely happy smile.

"Ahh. Isn't it beautiful?" And she, too, held out her hands to collect the falling light petals. She felt at peace all of a sudden.

The woman gently picked up one of the pink petals, walked up to her daughter and put it in her hair. She then stepped back and took in the delightful image: A child at an age of 6, with bright golden eyes looking at her, filled with excitement. Her straight green hair flowing behind her with the sakura petal behind her right ear.

"You look beautiful," her mother said after a while. The smile never faltered from her face.

The girl brought up her hands to touch her new 'hair accessory' and laughed. "You could be a hair-dresser mom."

"We'll see about that." Her mother chuckled.

Then they both spent the afternoon under the huge, protective sakura tree. Playing, laughing and talking with each other like there was no tomorrow. It wasn't so often that they would get the chance to have those joyous moments, since her mother was always busy at work; she'd have to leave the house an hour before her daughter woke up, and got home two hours after she already went to bed. Thus, today was a special day. A day where mother and daughter got the chance to tell each other what kinds of activities they did at work and school, and shared cheerful moments.

A very special, joyous day indeed.

When the clock chimed five in the evening, the little girl stood up from their lying spots and said. "Mommy, I'm hungry."

"Hungry? But you just ate two hours ago."

"I know. But somehow I feel like I'm not full. Oh I know! Let's go get some pizza."

Her mother chuckled, "You really have a thing for those flatbreads don't you? When I saw your brightened face at your first try, I knew it immediately."

The girl grinned, baring her white teeth. "You got it mom."

The woman shook her head, laughing as she stood up. "Alright. Lucky for you, there's a new shop near here that just opened up a couple of weeks ago. I think we can go there."

"By car?"

"Hm, I think so. It's not pretty far, but it's best that we drive. It's getting dark anyway."

"Then it settles." Smiled the little girl as she pulled on her mother's arm. "Let's go, mom. I'm starving!"

The woman let out another laugh, and it delighted the girl so much. To find her mother be this joyful everyday was quite a very rare thing. Especially after her father left.

However, as soon as the woman took a step forward, she staggered, and almost fell to the ground had it not been for her daughter catching her. "Mom!" Said the girl in surprise.

The woman clutched at her daughter's small arms as if her life depended on it. She felt dizzy all of a sudden, as though her head kept spinning around nonstop. Her eyes shut tight.

"Mom, are you ok?" Asked the girl worriedly.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Probably from lacking sleep…" she replied wearily.

"If you're not well, we don't have to go to Pizza Hut."

Her mother looked up at her, and her eyes showed something akin to gratitude. "I'm sorry, honey. Maybe next time."

The little girl nodded knowingly. "It's ok, mom. Come on, I'll help you get to the car."

"Thank you, darling." Whispered her mother. Her voice sounded all weak, as if the life were being sucked out of her very slowly.

No longer being able to hold it in, the girl asked the question that was always wandering in her mind. "Why are you staying single like this?"

"Hm?"

"You've got a lot of men following you. They all wished for us to start over with them; they wanted you to be happy, but you drove them all away. Why mom? Why?"

A silence, and the girl felt like crying. She could feel tears springing to her eyes, ready to spill out.

"You know honey," her mother began, "love is the strangest thing. Once you have your heart stolen, it's impossible to get it back and move on."

"But he doesn't care for us," she was on the verge of screaming, the knowledge that she was in the park with so many people was temporarily forgotten. "He hasn't come back ever since. He abandoned us. He made you suffer!" She finally broke down to tears. "And I don't want you to be hurt anymore."

A warm hand touched her soft skin, wiping the stubborn tears away. "That's the pain I knew I would be facing when I agreed to date your father. But darling, love is sometimes very hard to understand. Once your heart wants something, you have no choice but to follow it."

"But mom-"

"You will understand that one day, when you grow up and be a pretty, intelligent young lady. You will know when love strikes." Her mother said softly. A small smile crossed her gentle face.

"Mom…" Tears kept streaming down the little girl's rosy cheeks. She didn't understand what her mother's saying.

"Look, our car is here," her mom said, pulling herself away from her daughter slowly. She then unlocked the doors and gestured for her to get in.

"Now, now. Don't cry. You're a big girl now, remember?" Her mother asked teasingly, using her handkerchief to wipe the tears away. "A mature person never cries as much over trivia matters."

"I-I'm not crying." The girl retorted as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hands, turning away from her mother.

"That's my girl," smirked the woman.

She turned on the engine and pulled the car out of the parking lot.

But before she drove home, she turned to her daughter and touched her wet face with her right hand. "Remember this baby. If love didn't go the way you wished for it to in the future, always keep this in mind: Past is past. Nothing can be changed or undone, so rather than spending your time on worrying about it, learn from your mistakes and live happily. Don't be like me, ok? Promise?" She then held out her pinkie, smiling slightly.

The girl stared at it for a few moments. The advice seemed sort of meaningless to her, because she could hardly understand its true meaning, but she took it deep within the corridor of memories in her mind, and wound her own pinkie with her mother's. "Promise," she said, nodded.

The smile on the woman's face widened. "That's my girl."

...

"Who's survived?"

"A little girl, seemingly six years old."

"How about the drivers?"

"Both of them are dead. One was a male truck driver, and the other was a middle-aged woman."

"A bug and a truck collide?"

"Yes."

"I'm surprised that there's someone surviving. These collides are the toughest."

"Me too. What a miracle that the girl was totally unharmed. However, her mother's body tore up pretty badly. Looks like she used it to cover her daughter's at the last minute."

"Where is she now?"

"Over there. By the emergencies truck."

Footsteps approaching.

"Hey little girl, how are you feeling?"

"…."

"Listen. I know it must be very tough on you, and it's best if you let it all out. Have you cried yet? You don't look like you did."

"…."

"Holding it in would be worse, trust me. So please let me help you."

"…."

"It's alright if you don't want to talk now. We will have plenty of time at the hospital when you're recovering. Remember I will always be there for yo-"

"I want to go home."

A pause.

"I-I'm sorry?"

"I'm fine, can't you see? I'm not hurt at all, and I want to go home."

"But who will you be staying with? Where's your father?"

"I don't have one."

Another pause.

"No relatives?"

"No."

"Alright, please at least tell me your name."

When the girl looked up, her golden eyes were too cold for a six-year-old that it practically made the police officer take a step back involuntarily. "I'm C.C."

And that when she realized something: None of her parents bothered saying goodbyes to her before they left her all alone in the darkness.

A/N: I don't know about you, but I felt like crying when writing this chapter T.T This is the first time I've ever written something like this, it's soo sad. When I was halfway, I was about to give up and turn this to another less depressed direction, but then it wouldn't explain quite clearly as to why C.C. became cold and had this deep hatred for the aristocrats. So I had no choice but to continue it.

Alright, enough of my babblings, to the point: Lelouch will make an appearance in the next chapter again, and only TWO more chapters to go before this is over! Thank you those who have supported this story and hope you guys will see it to the end. Like always, thanks for reading and of course reviews will be loved so much :)