Chapter Two

Knives in the Dark

Cherry blossoms drifted across Suzaku Kururgi's vision. He looked upon his friend; Lelouch vi Britannia was defiantly glaring at the party of Britannian guards and officials gathered before them. It had only been a few days before that Suzaku had been kneeling in that very same place with Nunnally, witnessing the first fall of the cherry blossom petals. Now, it looked to be the same place he would have to say his goodbyes to her and her brother. Suzaku's father introduced the head of the Britannian entourage as the Prime Minister of the Holy Britannian Empire, Schneizel el Britannia, in addition to being Lelouch's half-brother.

Schneizel's title seemed to fit his Majesty. The man had thick strands of bleach blond hair that hung over his violet eyes, complementing his chiseled face perfectly. His physical features weren't the only tell of his authority; dressed in a uniform of a long white dress coat, interwoven with black and gold linings and a purple vest underneath that complimented his eyes, the man looked every part of his esteemed title.

Extending his hand, Schneizel's lips pressed themselves into a grin. As though sensing some deeper meaning behind it Suzaku's father tensed up. Relaxing, he took the Britannian minister's hand, not wanting to appear weak before his guests. However, Kyoshiro Tohdoh, one of the many Japanese officials present at the exchange, appeared to disapprove of the current arrangement. Kyoshiro had been one of many who Suzaku had heard voice their disapproval of the arrangement to return Lelouch and Nunally back to the Britannians, lamenting that they were vital to ensuring the safety of the Island Nation.

"I'm pleased we could come to an agreement." Schneizel mused.

"If Britannia holds up its side of this deal, Japan looks to continue to pursue a policy of peaceful cooperation with the Britannia Imperial Family." Genbu Kururgi said, though his voice was filled with doubt.

"You have my word, Minister Kururgi." The Britannian minster offered a reassuring smile.

With a nod, Genbu gave the order to his men to turn the siblings over to the Britannians. The exchange was brief; Lelouch pushing his sister forward until they were under the protection of a man cloaked in a long white cape with a golden insignia of the Emperor sprawled out across it. Suzaku knew him instantly; Bismarck Waldstein, the Knight of One, needed no introduction. Bismarck stood like a mountain among men, his broad shoulders made him appear imposing upon everyone around him. His face was rough, and held a hard edge to it, proudly showing the scars of battle he had earned over his years of service to his Emperor, including his left eye which had been sewn shut. Despite this, he was well groomed with his long, dark blue hair flowing behind his ears paired with a well-tended goatee.

Upon being taken into the care of the Britannans, Lelouch was treated to a brief exchange with his elder brother before Bismarck lead him and Nunnally away. Suzaku watched as Nunnally was lifted from her chair by the knight and deposited inside on of the many cars the Britannians had in their convoy. Soon after, Lelouch climbed in to sit with his little sister but not before giving Suzaku one last glance. In that moment, he told Suzaku more than he could with simple words. It was a goodbye but, more than that, it was sign of respect for the friendship they had shared.

Suzaku remained, watching his friends leave until their convoy had long vanished into the distance. Part of him hoped he would see Lelouch again, but, somehow, doubted he ever would. As if sensing his pain, Suzaku felt the strong hand of his father clasp his shoulder. He looked up to see a look of reassurance in his father's eyes.

"They'll be okay, son. Don't let it weigh too much on your mind." His father attempted to sound confident and yet Suzaku sensed the old man wasn't letting onto everything he knew.

"Let's get back." His father decided as he ruffled Suzaku's hair. "Your mother will have made something wonderful for dinner, no doubt."

Suzaku smiled at the thought of his mother's cooking, and the warmth and reassurance she would no doubt bring him. The boy loved his mother more than anyone in the world, she was always able to make him smile, even at his lowest.

The walk up the hill to the Kururgi Estate seemed longer than usual. Suzaku had often found the trip hard on his legs after a long day of play, but the view from the top would always be worth it in the end. The estate had been Suzaku's home for the entirety of his life and one day he hoped to see his own children running up the long dirt path for supper one day. The Estate had been in the Kururgi family for generations, passed though the main branch of his family for generations until it had come to his father, and would one day it would be passed onto him.

Reaching the top, Suzaku ran ahead inside, leaving his father and the rest of the Japanese entourage behind to their deliberations. Suzaku made sure to stop and remove his shoes before making for the kitchen where his mother was undoubtedly to be found.

Suzaku's entry was met with the heavy aroma of beef stew and freshly baked bread which caused his mouth start to water. Looking over the room Suzaku spotted his mother, just across from the stove were the pot of stew was boiling. She stood at one of the many counters scooping a pan of rice into a large bowl that was to be served at their dinner.

With a smile Suzaku ran over and stood next to his mother as she worked, who, as if expecting him, looked down at him. "You're back," She grinned. "You and your father saw your friends off properly then?" Suzaku nodded, though he still felt a little somber about the whole ordeal. Still, he forced a smile. Lelouch and Nunnally were supposed to be going back home, after all. "I know you really didn't want to see them go, but it's their home." His mother said as if reading his thoughts. "Besides, it's best for them." Suzaku again noted a tension in the voice of one of his parent's voices, like that of his father's earlier, which unsettled him.

Suzaku wanted to ask what her and his father might be worried over; however, he knew he could guess at the answer. Even with furthering peace that the trade of Lelouch and Nunnally would bring there still were high tensions over a possibility of a war with an Imperialistic Britannia who would doubtless be looking to secure the supplies of sakuradite that Japan owned. However, it wasn't just Britannia that was looking eagerly at Japan. It was no secret that the ruling Monarchy of China, the Chinese federation, were interested in obtaining the supply to fund their own Imperialistic ideals.

As much as his parents tried to keep the harsh truths from him while still in his youth, being the son of the Prime Minister of Japan, you would have to be oblivious to not notice what was going on. It wouldn't be long before Japan found itself at war. The question was who would they be at war with.

Letting out a sigh, Suzaku saw his mother's tensions seem to melt away and be replaced with a shining smile. "At any rate, I need you to go set the table and then fetch your father for supper. I believe he has also invited some of his colleagues to join us." Putting on another empty smile Suzaku nodded, leaving to do as his mother bid.

After everything was set out and Suzaku had collected his father, the family sat themselves down for dinner in the company of several prominent representatives of the Japanese government. As expected, the food was excellent and kept most everyone's attention until one of the older men at the table brought up the events of the day. One thing lead to another and soon enough the men had all started debating. While they deliberated, Suzaku's mind drifted to Lelouch and he wondered what he would be doing at that very moment.

Thinking of his friend reminded Suzaku of the few times when Lelouch and he had attempted to skip out on their studies only for his mother to end up catching them in the act. Often enough the pair had escaped her grasp and had made their way deep into the woods, losing themselves to one of their many adventures together. However, eventually dusk would approach, forcing the pair to return home to one of the infamous scoldings of his mother.

One of the few things he disliked about his mother was just how strict she was when it came to the education of the children in her household. It wasn't that Suzaku didn't understand the importance of one's education, he just found it tedious that Lelouch and he had needed invest so much time into studying; after all, it wasn't as though the pair hadn't already completed the typical university student's education. It was something that Suzaku had prided himself on, it had taken him years of hard work to get to where had had with his studies and a few days of adventuring hadn't set him back too far.

"Suzaku." Looking up at the mention of his name, Suzaku looked over to his mother.

"Yes?" Suzaku answered tepidly.

"You've been quiet. Is something the matter?" His mother asked, slightly concerned as she glanced over at the debate raging in the background.

"I'm fine, just tired is all." Suzaku lied.

Upon hearing this, the boy's mother sent a glare over to his father as if she were sending him some unspoken message with her eyes. A moment later Suzaku felt his father touch him on the shoulder gently as he leaned in to speak to him. "Clean up your plate and head to bed. You have studies to attend to in the morning." Nodding, Suzaku rose, collecting his dirty plate. Leaving, Suzaku received a slight smile from his mother just before he disappeared up the stairs for the night.

As sleep enveloped Suzaku, he began to delve into vivid dreams. One, in particular, was Lelouch and himself running on a path in the valley. It wound itself just below his home and lead to the steep hill the pair had often ventured to. Reaching the top first, Suzaku extended his arm to Lelouch, helping him to the top alongside himself. Lelouch smiled as the two looked across the whole of Suzaku's homeland. Suzaku smiled, but was caught off guard when he spotted a flash of green out of the corner of his eye.

There, standing among a group of flowers, was a woman dressed in a black and red kimono, her eyes glittered like gold, drawing attention to the fairer features of her face. Yet, her expression conveyed no emotion to him. There was something about her that peaked Suzaku's interest but at the same time made his hairs run on end at the same time.

"Come on, Suzaku, I promised Nunnally we would get her some of those flowers by the river." Lelouch called to him, already making his way back down the hill.

"You go ahead, I'm going to check something out." Suzaku called back, making for the woman.

Seeing him advance, she turned and started deeper into the woods. Following closely behind, Suzaku pushed his way through the brush as he wondered deeper and deeper into the forest and soon things began to change. As Suzaku delved further the sun seemed to dim, darkness began to encroach in on him and the air became chill until at last he found himself in complete darkness. Growing frightened, Suzaku's eyes darted from side to side, looking for the way he had come, but all he saw was the woman standing in a dimly lit clearing, her eyes burrowing into him.

Something in the back of his mind told him to turn back and find Lelouch, that this didn't seem right. But, in the end, his curiosity won out and he started to sprint toward the woman, but she appeared to be getting farther away, not closer. Pushing harder, Suzaku quickly became frustrated as he felt like he was trying to run through a thick pool of mud. Looking ahead, the boy watched as the woman began to vanish, darkness covering her until she was gone and all that was left was the void of night.

Suzaku, attempting to approach the where she had once stood, felt instead a spark run throughout his body, paralyzing him in place. Panic soon began to leak into his mind as a great whining sound rang out all around him and a great flash of red filled his vision. However, as quickly as they had come, they vanished, and Suzaku opened his eyes to the sight of Lelouch. Only he seemed much older and was draped in what looked like a black uniform bearing the golden insignia of his homeland. With a turn of the head, Lelouch's deep purple eyes meet his, and it was not the friendly gaze he had come to know. They held an edge, a look of pure rage. That's when the flash of the handgun caught Suzaku's eye.

"Lelouch?" Suzaku asked, confused as he watched his friend slowly level the gun on him.

Lelouch opened his mouth as if to speak and, though is lips formed words, not a sound was uttered save for the ringing of the gun shot. Crippled, Suzaku felt his side burn as he collapsed to the dirt floor with a yelp. Gasping for air, Suzaku watched helplessly as his friend slowly approached him, his unheard words still pouring out until was at last towering over him, purple eyes burning into him. Suzaku's eyes widened as Lelouch raised the pistol to his temple and, for the first time, Suzaku could hear what he was saying. "Goodbye then, old friend." Then came the flash of light.

Bolting upright, Suzaku panted, cold sweat dripping from his brow. Looking frantically around his room, it took him a few moments to regain his bearings until finally he realized it had only been a nightmare. Tossing aside his covers Suzaku sat up and took a deep breath, attempting to calm himself. Shaking his head, Suzaku decide to not put too much thought into the seemingly incoherent fantasy his mind had pieced together. However, try as he might, the images stayed with him.

Standing, Suzaku decided what he needed was to get something to drink to help put his mind back to rest. Sliding open his bedroom door Suzaku made his way down the hall before being stopping upon seeing the door to his father's office had been left ajar. Walking over, he peeked his head inside and saw that the window just behind the desk had also been left open.

Suzaku thought this strange. His father was meticulous, especially when it came to the dealings of his personal quarters. Puzzled, Suzaku decided to investigate. Making his way across the room, Suzaku grabbed the window and pulled it shut. But, as he turned back for the hall, he noticed the mess that was his father's desk which quickly rose red flags in his mind.

The table had its drawers thrown open with its contents tossed about. There where an abundance of folders lying open on the desk with their papers thrown all about. Stepping forward Suzaku picked up one of the documents and found it of military origin upon skimming its contents.

Suzaku felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise as he realized that someone, most likely a spy of some nature, had been searching through his father's documents. Just as this occurred to Suzaku, there came the light patter of feet from down hall. Frightened now, Suzaku reached into his father's desk and pulled out the small pistol he was thankful had been left there by whomever had ransacked the room.

Creeping back into the hall, Suzaku held the weapon tightly in his hand, the weapon felt heavy his sweaty grasp. Peering down the corridor, Suzaku saw nothing, but was acutely aware of queer sounds originating from his parent's room. Ever so slowly making his way down the hall, Suzaku could feel his heart beating violently until he had arrived at his parent's door. There was a considerable amount of noise coming from the room as Suzaku hovered his free hand over the handle, afraid to enter. Then the sound stopped, and for a moment Suzaku considered returning the weapon to his father's desk and going back to bed, but knew he would never be able to go to sleep unless he opened this door and put the fear from of his mind. Suzaku could feel his hand shaking rapidly as he reached out, gripped the handle, and slowly slid the door open.

The moment he looked inside Suzaku felt his body become numb as he was overwhelmed with a sickening grief. In front of him was a scene no boy should have to bear witness to; his parents both lying in pools of blood. Just at his feet was his father's limp body, his cold dead stare looking right into his eyes. Then there came a wet cough from his mother, who was laying against the far wall of the room next to an open window. Suzaku's eyes widened as he dashed across the room to his mother's side, quickly sitting beside her. Dropping his father's gun to the ground, the boy began to shake his mother.

"Mom!" Suzaku cried, faintly hoping she was going to be okay.

"S-Suzaku." His mother forced weakly before coughing up a sizable amount of blood.

"Mother, w-what happened!" Suzaku was shaking so badly he struggled to process what was happening. As he looked down at his mother, tears began to cloud his vision.

"S-Suzaku, I-I love." His mother spoke in almost a whisper as she reached up, gasping for just one last moment on Earth in an attempt to try and touch her son, but she never got there. Suzaku, horrified, watched his mother die, her arm falling to her side, her now lifeless eyes still fixed upon him.

"Mom? Mom?! MOM!" Suzaku yelled shaking his mother. "Mom! No, wake up! Please!" Suzaku shouted in vain. Suzaku's breath quickened as he released his mother from his grasp. Just as the image in front of him started to sink in he heard the floorboards shift behind him.

Suzaku's eyes widened as he quickly snatched up his father's gun and turned back, clamping his eyes shut. Pulling the trigger, Suzaku emptied the clip until there were no bullets left in the magazine and a sharp pain in his wrist. Slowly opening his eyes, Suzaku looked down and saw the body of a man dressed completely in black, a mask covering his face. Crawling forward Suzaku pulled back the fabric cover his face showing his features telling instantly that he was of Britannian decent.

A moment later Suzaku could hear a commotion coming from down the hall. Fear ran rampant through his mind, making part of him want to stay there and let them take him, let them kill him, at least then he would be with his mother and father. Just as he was about to take his course of action a voice crept into his mind. "If you're dead, you can't avenge them. Their murderers will get away with what they have done." The boy felt anger fill him, a desire rising to see those who had taken his whole world, his very childhood from him, burn before him. It was all he had to live for now, and he'd be damned if he allowed his families legacy to die so easy, he would be damned before the Kururgi name would suffer such a fate.

Steeling his nerves, Suzaku rose to his feet and made his way over to the open windowsill. Looking back, Suzaku could barely look upon his father, the strong man who lead a nation was now a corpse laying on the ground, his wife only feet away having just died before her only son. It was where his family had died, Suzaku included. He knew that if he ever escaped this place that he would never be the same, his old self was no more, the child was dead and now he was what was left. Giving his mother and father one last goodbye Suzaku leaped into the night air.

Falling onto a rose bush, Suzaku groaned in pain as hundreds of thorns bit into his flesh. But it had taken most of the impact from his fall, allowing him the chance of escape. Making his run from the house, Suzaku sprinted down the hill, his feet began to bleed as the naked skin grazed over the exposed rocks upon the hillside. Eventually one of Suzaku's feet caught a root protruding from the ground, sending him tumbling down the hillside and violently into the brush below. His body was limp the entire way down, rolling until his fall had been put to a stop upon slamming into a dead tree.

The impact of the hard trunk on his side caused the air in Suzaku's lungs to be forced out all at once. Gasping, Suzaku leaned forward, attempting to regain his breath, but found it hard as he was almost positive he had broken at least one rib. Panting hard, Suzaku at last had found his wind and was becoming somewhat aware of the growing orange light illuminating the night sky, originating from where his family's estate would be.

Looking back up the hill Suzaku saw the flames starting to rise as the building slowly became enveloped in fire and smoke. Standing, Suzaku felt his arms and feet sting from the cuts he had received during his tumble, not to mention the pain in his side from the impact he had suffered. On the verge of having yet another breakdown, Suzaku watched his home start to crumble before his eyes. However, Suzaku hadn't been given much time to absorb the deviation as the sound hear of men starting down the hillside grasped his attention.

Scrabbling, Suzaku started to run, sprinting for the dense woods below his now burning home. His survival instincts were now beginning to take over as he made his way into the darkness of the forest, adrenalin keeping his mind off the pain in his side. Quickly looking over his shoulder Suzaku would see the white glow of flashlights as his pursuers tore after him.

For how long Suzaku ran, he didn't know, but eventually he felt his feet give out at last when he had cut his left foot on a jagged rock. Falling forward, Suzaku landed face first into a ditch, plowing his face into the dirt and foliage of the forest floor opening new cuts across his skin.

Laying there, helpless, Suzaku felt his eyes start to fill with tears; he was afraid to die. Now spent, Suzaku was frightened and tired and had condemned himself, deciding that this was to be his grave, where this nightmare would end. Suzaku held his breath as he saw one of the men walk just past the ditch he laid in. Closing his eye Suzaku waited for death, praying it would be quick and without pain. But it never came.

Pealing open his eyes, Suzaku lifted his head and saw that the glowing lights were now far past him. By some miracle, he had gone unnoticed. Letting out the breath he had been holding Suzaku allowed his head to fall back to the ground, and that was where he stayed, praying for dawn.

The night had seemed endless. Every sound was an unseen killer in Suzaku's head. When dawn had at last broke, Suzaku finally crawled out of the ditch and hobbled his way to the edge of the woods. Looking up the hill of his family's estate Suzaku found that it was void of life. At the top, he could still see the smoldering remains of his home. Tired and broken, Suzaku Kururgi turned from his home and collapsed, but not to the dirt, instead he fell into someone's arms. Looking up Suzaku saw the brief flash of a pair of golden eyes looking down on him before he at last faded into a restless slumber.

Authors Note:

Sorry that this took so long, this one was a lot of work. For those of you who read the original version, this chapter may seem a litter familiar. You will, however, note a plethora of changes to the writing and some additional content. This is the "Canon" telling to AH: Darkness. Personally, I think it's much better than the original SP. Now onto answering review "questions".

Q: I hope you don't go too evil with this story. I hate that people use such things simply because its an easy plot device. Nothing every truly worth while, was ever easy.

A: I have no such intention. While there may be an evil vibe from character they will be shown to have their own motives for what they do. No one in Darkness is just looking for power for power sake.

Q: Great to see that the story is back! Although the first two chaoter seem to be too short. Hopefully the next chapter will be longer.

A: Chapter lengths will vary, however, I will tend to try and keep them above 2K. The first two were pushed around the same time, so I was counting them as a package, so that's the only time I will drop a 1K chapters here.

Special thanks to BlackFruity

for beta reading and helping edit this chapter