Chapter One:

A New Begining

Wind blasted by, whipping up petals before letting them rain down and marking the beginning of the end to the season of the cherry blossoms. It was signaling that Summer was fast approaching, yet the cool air of Spring still hung. The ground was wet, soft under foot from the light rain of the previous night, and birds hopped about snatching up the bugs that had been forced to the surface; a feast that they eagerly partook in. The site was one of the truest forms of beauty for a Spring morning in the valley that was home to the Kururugi Estate. Lelouch had often enjoyed his time out on the hillsides as it allowed him space to himself, time to think. It was what he spent most his free time doing; brooding and planning to himself how he could gain his revenge.

Looking out, Lelouch could see all of Tokyo in the distance, a view he was now well accustom to. It had been home to Lelouch for quite some time now and, while he savored the beauty of the property and was grateful for the esteemed grounds that he lived upon, the boy had never forgotten that, in the end, he was only a prisoner to the Kururugi family. His imprisonment was important to the nation in which he resided as it gave both the people, and the Kururugis, security.

The sun had finally peaked over the distant mountains, casting its golden rays upon the tree tops and illuminating the whole of the valley. "Lelouch." Came a hushed voice from behind. Turning, Lelouch looked upon the familiar sight of his younger sister; Nunnally. Seeing her had once brought him nothing but joy, but now that joy had been mixed in with the poison of anger and sadness. In front of him sat his little sister, her form far frailer than it had once been as she now sat limply in a wheelchair that he saw as a permanent cage she would forever be forced to live in; additionally, as if that had not been enough, she had also been robbed of her sight. While all this ailed her, she still managed to smile somehow. For this Lelouch envied her ability to push aside the darkness of the world around her.

"Nunnally thought you might want some company this morning." Lost in his brooding, Lelouch had completely ignored Suzaku, something that he had found was most times impossible. Being the only child of Genbu Kururugi, head of the Kururugi family along with holding the office of the Prime Minister of Japan, and being the only person of his age that Lelouch had extended contact with. In the time his sister and he had been held captive in the nation the two boys had grown relatively close, and Lelouch would even begrudgingly name him as a friend.

"I see that," Lelouch spoke summoning up as much enthusiasm as he could muster. "It's good to see you outside once and a while."

"I heard that the cherry blossoms would be falling today. I wanted to sit and listen to the wind as they were being wiped away. Suzaku even promised to describe them for me!" She chirped happily.

"Yeah, it sure is a site to behold. I'm sure Suzaku will do them justice."

"I don't know about that, it's hard to put to it to words." Suzaku chuckled, ruffling his already messy dark brown hair.

"I'm sure you'll do fine," Nunnally turned to the sound of Suzaku's voice, flashing him an encouraging smile. "Do you want to join us brother?"

Lelouch opened his month as he was about to reject the offer, but was cut off as a deep voice came from the direction of the Kururugi household. "Lelouch." Turning, the boy could see Suzaku's father standing in the middle of the path that led one back. "I need to speak with you. In private." Lelouch was taken aback by this. In his time staying with the Kururugi family, Lelouch had only had two conversations with the man, both being short, unpleasant exchanges, so the request was unexpected.

Resting his hand on his sister's shoulder, Lelouch gave her a light squeeze before being led off by the Prime Minister. A short stroll across the grounds of the estate had the Minister lead him to the garden situated along the East wall of the minister's mansion. Quickly turning on his heel, the minister looked down at Lelouch, his eyes narrow and as distrusting as ever.

"Tell me, boy, what you think of your father."

Lelouch was taken aback by the suddenness of the statement, which put him on guard. Queries about his father were not to be taken lightly, especially given the relation of the two older men. "I'm not sure I understand your meaning." Lelouch replied at last.

Genbu exhaled, his patience seeming to have already run thin. "Tell me of his character, vi Britannia. It is of great importance to me."

"You are dead. You have been dead since the day you were born."

Lelouch felt his eye twitch as he forced himself to recall the memories of the man. "Heartless," Lelouch hissed. "I would say that man is heartless." The boy considered the Minister's eyes to reaffirm his feelings.

Genbu nodded in approval at his assessment, his face seeming to grow weary, as if some long held fear of his had just been confirmed to him. "That will be all, young lord. Return to your sister now."

Turning, Lelouch made his way back down the hill, not sure what he should make of the brief conversation he had held with Suzaku's father. It wasn't odd that the man would want to know about his family; after all, he was the son of his Majesty, the 98th Emperor Charles vi Britannia. But somehow it didn't feel right.

Cursing, Lelouch slowly made his way down the path back to where his little sister sat giggling as Suzaku spoke to her. Lelouch was quietly cursing to himself as he retraced his steps back to his sister. Despite the happy sound Lelouch remained feeling cold, his emotions in turmoil and mind still fixated on his father. "Death. The man deserves death for what he's done to Nunnally!" Lelouch muttered to himself in a low hiss.

"Lelouch, you're back!" Suzaku smiled upon seeing his friend descend the hill from the estate.

"Lelouch, come here!" Nunnally chirped upon hearing the news of her brother's return. Hearing his sister's glee at his return broke a smile on Lelouch's face. Gingerly walking over to stand next to his sister Lelouch allowed his grief to be washed away, if only for the moment.

Authors Note:

Well, there you have it. As promised another Chapter out fairly quick. This was a little more expansion on Lelouch's feelings while in Japan, though it's not to pertain to the story I felt it was a good little start to set up Lelouch in this instace. Also, I'm slapping a a bit of forshadowing for what happens next chapter (you may know what is coming). So Chapter Three is well in the works now and will be out sooner than later, I'm thinking in the next week. I'll get onto replying to reviews now if you don't mind.

Q: It would be cool to see the Knights of the Round play a large roll. They are all so down plays in Code Geass, in fact I find most people don't even know their names.

A: Most of the Knights will play a heavy role in the story, and a lot of them will be expanded upon. A lof of them has interesting backstories that are never really touched on in canon.

Q:Hope to see Hammond and Wood again.

A: Both will be making a return, you can take it to the bank.

Q: Jeremiah Gottwald, I hope he will still have a large part to play.

A: His role will be important to the plot, That was touched on in Chapter One.

Well that's all from me today. Keep it cool!

-AA

Special thanks to BlackFruity

for beta reading and helping edit this chapter