Ashford Academy
Student Council Building
Joseph and Nunnally sat together on the couch in the living room as she checked out his scars from over the years.
"How did you get this one?" Nunnally asked curiously as she felt the bite-mark on Joseph's left arm.
"Lion." Joseph told her proudly, making her gasp in surprise. "Helpful tip. No eat meat lion eating at same time." He instructed.
"Good to know." Nunnally said with a giggle, then she turned sad when she felt the missing half-pinkie. "And what about your pinkie?" She asked with concern.
"Machete." Joseph said simply, making Nunnally arch an eyebrow. "Saw guy, gave weird vibe. Schneizel weird." He elaborated.
"Schneizel was never weird." Nunnally countered cutely.
"Meh." Joseph said, not arguing but not agreeing either. "So, followed him, went to hideout. Turns out kidnapping kids, raping and killing." Joseph said in his storytelling tone.
"Oh God no!" Nunnally said as she covered her mouth in shock.
"Yep! Monster pedo! So confronted with politeness, not wanna scare kids. Walked up and said, 'Mr. Monster Pedo, please stop very instant!'" Joseph recounted like a strict parent, making Nunnally arch an eyebrow up in bewilderment. "Responds with ma-che-tay." He enunciated at the end as he wiggles his half-pinkie in front of Nunnally even though she can't see it. "Told kids, 'Close eyes.' Then took pedo's arm and snapped in half!" He illustrated with his own arms even with Nunnally still not being able to see it. "Then kicked kneecaps backwards. Then ripped dick off and shoved up-"
"Okay! A little too much detail Joe." Lelouch said as he stepped in Sayoko, who was pushing her chair in, as he didn't want Nunnally to have nightmares later from the graphic details of Joseph's story.
"What? Had coming!" Joseph countered with annoyance.
"I'm sure. But now it's time for dinner." Lelouch told him like a parent.
"Come on, Mistress Nunnally." Sayoko said as she went over to help Nunnally into her wheelchair.
"Allow me, Lightning Servant." Joseph interjected politely as picked up Nunnally in a bridal style.
"You know you can call her by her actual name, right?" Lelouch asked with an arched eyebrow.
"Yeah, but 'Lightning Servant' cooler." Joseph argued, making Sayoko chuckle.
At first, she didn't understand why he gave her that spectacular nickname. That is, until Lelouch told her that he was Zero.
Sayoko was shocked at first, but then she understood given Lelouch's background. She was both happy and honored knowing that the one trying to gain the Japanese's freedom back was also the one she swore to protect.
He also told her about this power he acquired called Geass and how the mysterious C.C. was the one who gave it to him. He guiltily admitted using it on her to trick Kallen(who he said was also in the Black Knights) into thinking he wasn't Zero. She quickly forgave him though, after all, she probably would have killed Kallen herself if she laid a finger on Lelouch. That, and as Joseph told her, "Superhero must protect identity!" Lelouch asked her to protect Nunnally, as he knew eventually his role as Zero would eventually take greater priority. She understood, and promised to guard Nunnally with her life.
"Here you go." Joseph said as he settled Nunnally into her wheelchair.
And as soon as she sat down, it was followed by a fart.
A noisy fart.
The trio froze for a second.
Lelouch looked at Nunnally with surprise, as he never heard her pass gas like that before.
Nunnally on her end blushed with an embarrassed red as she herself knew her farts were never that loud.
"Whoa, Nunne! Eat beans? What you feed her, Lightning Servant?" Joseph asked with profound confusion. Sayoko just blinked with surprise, not sure how to respond.
"E-Excuse me! I am so sorry, I don't know why that..." Nunnally tried to explain what just occurred with embarrassment, until she realized she felt something on her bottom.
She pulled it out a small, circular rubber device with an air hole at its end.
"A whoopee cushion?" Lelouch asked in confusion.
It was then Joseph put a smug grin on his face, bent forward towards Nunnally and pointed his finger right on her nose.
"Got ya." He said triumphantly, before going into a fit of laughter.
"J-Joe! That was so mean!" Nunnally said while trying to contain her own laughter, Sayoko herself chuckled along.
"You and your pranks, Joe." Lelouch said as she shook his head in amusement while pulling a chair from the dining table out to sit in.
And when he sat, it was followed by another loud, noisy fart. Shocking him.
"P! U!" Joseph exclaimed with exaggeration as he waved his hand back and forth in front of his nose. "Farting siblings over here!" He said to Sayoko as he pointed at Lelouch and Nunnally.
Nunnally and Sayoko laughed wholeheartedly at that, and then finally Lelouch.
Joseph joined in as he repeatedly squeezed the whoopee cushion from Nunnally's chair.
...
Viceroy Palace
Medical Center
"Well...this is ri-dunk-ulous." Joseph's spirit said with annoyance as he floated next to his body that was currently in medical chamber bed.
His body had a bandage wrapped around the area in the head he got shot. His coat(which had to washed off the blood that splattered on it) was on coat-rack that stood next to him and his walkman sat on a desk next to said coat-rack. They didn't need to put him on a breathing tube though. Surprisingly, he was able to breath just fine without it.
The people currently occupying the room besides him are Cornelia, Euphemia, Schneizel, Guilford, Darlton, and Suzaku.
Euphemia sat next to Joseph's body, holding his hand, her face filled with sadness and her eyes red from crying. Cornelia on her left, with a grim look on her face, prepared for the worst. Suzaku on her right, concerned for Euphemia, not even thinking about leaving her side as she so ordered. Schneizel on the other side of Joseph's bed, looking down at him sadly. Guilford and Darlton both stood at the far end of the room, worried for Joseph's wellbeing.
No one said a word, the only words they wanted to hear were the ones that would from the doctor about Joseph's condition. Besides, what could they say right now to make themselves feel better about the situation?
However, for Joseph, he was just annoyed.
Once again, he got knocked into a coma, and had no way of knowing how to wake himself up from this astral projection form.
He tried the meditation, nothing.
He tried to ram himself into his body, bump-kis.
He tried to shout out to the universe and see if that fiery Phoenix would come and wake him up like last time, not even a hummingbird!
Joseph didn't get it! What was he missing?! What was he not doing that he didn't do before?
Was it because the coma was cause by physical actions instead of mental ones this time?
Whatever the case may be, it looked like he and everyone in the room would finally get some answers as the doctor, who did examinations on Joseph the first time he was in a coma, came into the room with a folder in his hand.
Cornelia and Euphemia zoomed over to him, Suzaku and Schneizel not too far behind.
"How is he?!" Cornelia asked sternly.
"Is he...oh God, is he..." Euphemia couldn't even finish the question as she started to tear up again.
"Let me just say right out the gate, the bullet only impacted the dead matter in his brain. He's going to make it." The doctor said.
Euphemia and Cornelia both released a breath of relief they didn't realize they were holding in, Schneizel and Suzaku both smiled as well, Guilford and Darlton were both relieved too.
"Thank goodness." Euphemia said quietly as she grabbed Suzaku's hand, it surprised him but he didn't let go. Schneizel took notice of this.
"Hoo-rah!" Joseph's spirit form cheered.
"Unfortunately, due to the skull fracture and massive blood loss, it'll take some time for his body to heal. Most likely he'll stay in this vegetative state until then." The doctor concluded.
"Hoo-roo..." Joseph cheered dully.
"How long will it be until he wakes up?" Cornelia asked.
"It's hard to say, your Highness. Could be weeks, maybe even months." The doctor told her.
Cornelia could only sigh in frustration, Euphemia looked down sadly while Suzaku tighten his grip around her hand in concern.
Schenizel took a notice at the blood bag that was being transferred into Joseph's body.
"Doctor, may I ask what time of blood is being given to Joseph?" Schneizel asked curiously.
"Type O Negative at the moment, Prime Minister." The doctor stated. This surprised everyone in the room.
"O Negative? Isn't that a universal donor type of blood?" Suzaku asked.
"I had no idea Joseph is Type O." Euphemia said surprised.
"Actually, according to his medical records, his blood type is the rarest of all, AB." The doctor told her.
"The universal blood to the universal receiver. The plot thickens." Schneizel thought with intrigue.
"Doctor, the Viceroy told you made some revelations the last time my brother was in a coma, what revelations were you talking about exactly?" Schneizel asked.
"I think it's best I show you, your highness." The doctor said as he gestured Schneizel to follow him.
"I hope you don't mind." Schneizel said with concern towards his sisters.
"It's alright, Schneizel. We'll keep him company." Euphemia reassured.
Schneizel nodded and followed the doctor out the door.
"Kururugi, give us the room for a moment." Cornelia ordered quietly. Suzaku waited for Euphemia's nod of approval and he did so.
After he left, Cornelia looked at Joseph's body with a stern look for a few moments, before taking a glass from the desk and throwing it into water, making it shatter into pieces.
"Sister!" Euphemia said, shocked by Cornelia's action.
"Princess!" Guilford said as he and Darlton came over in concern.
"Why did you have to go out there, YOU STUPID IDIOT!?" Cornelia shouted at Joseph's unconscious body. "Why couldn't you just, for once, listen to what I say?! Now look at you, you're even worse than before!" She continued to rant. "How many times are you going to put us through this, huh?! How many times do I have to ask MYSELF, 'Is this the day we lose him?!'" She finished as tears started to sprout her eyes, but wiped them away as she didn't want her knights to see her like this.
To which Euphemia came hugged her from behind, calming her down.
"It's okay, Cornelia. Just breathe." Euphemia told her softly.
Joseph's spirit on his end, just looked on sadly and sighed with regret that he made his sisters go through this again.
Cornelia took a deep breath, sat down and grabbed Joseph's hand.
"I was so mad at him back at the base. Before that, the last real conversation we had was me lecturing him about learning his place...the way he looked at me, such anger and contempt." Cornelia said quietly. "Every time this happens, our talks end on a bad note, why do you think that is?" She asked Euphemia.
"Well to be fair, you are pretty stubborn." Euphemia told her bluntly. Cornelia gave her a slight glare at that. "But I think that's where Joseph gets his own stubbornness, a trait he acquired from his big sister." She continued with a cute giggle.
At that, Cornelia couldn't help but chuckle as well. And Joseph's spirit nodded enthusiastically, with both his mother's and his sister's stubbornness combined, he was like a mule with a boulder on its back.
"And of course, he never holds a grudge. Sure he was mad for a bit when his sensei was in jail but he got over it once the execution was intervened by the Black Knights and the 'mysterious' clown that night." Euphemia said cheekily at the end.
"Yeah, real mysterious." Cornelia said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.
"Hmm, strange, why do I now feel like my clown disguise wasn't as good as I thought it was?" Joseph thought to himself in geniune confusion.
"The point is he's still here with us. And when he wakes up, you can give him that lecture that you've been holding in for awhile now." Euphemia said hearty smile, Cornelia couldn't but smirk.
"Thank you, little sister." Cornelia said softly.
"Aww, i love bonding with family." Joseph said happily as he put his arms around Cornelia and Euphemia, or as close as he could considering he would just faze through them if he tried.
"Well, I wish I could stay longer, but I need to figure out who did this to our brother. Guilford! I want a list of all the soldiers that were there that day! Whoever fired that sniper will pay severely!" Cornelia ordered with a stern tone.
"Understood, your highness." Guilford quickly complied, however, he made sure to get to Cornelia's ear level. "However, do you find it concerning that the person Prince Joseph protected was-"
"We'll deal with that later. Right now, I just want to find whoever did this and have them brought to justice." Cornelia told him quietly. "Will you stay with him a bit longer, Euphemia?" She asked.
"Of course." Euphemia said with a small smile, Cornelia nodded.
"Stay with her, Darlton." Cornelia ordered.
"Of course, Viceroy." Darlton saluted.
Cornelia and Guilford took their leave, prompting Suzaku to come back in, who came over to Euphemia's side.
"Give us a moment, Sir Darlton?" Euphemia asked, he nodded and left the room.
Darlton nodded and left the room, leaving just Euphemia, Suzaku, and the floating Joseph in spirit form.
"Suzaku...I hope you know everything I said back at Fukuoka still stands." Euphemia said quietly.
"I know. And I hope you know I don't plan on leaving your side anytime soon. Or his for that manner." Suzaku said as he took Euphemia's hand in his. After everything they laid on him, how could he walk away now? He won't abandon his Princess, not like this, not when she needs him the most.
Joseph looked on at the scene between the two with a huge smile on his face, their mission was a success! Sure it cost him being in a coma again, but that was okay, minor inconvenience.
Euphemia smiled at Suzaku and then looked back at Joseph.
"And just you wait, he came out of it before, he'll come out of it again. I'm sure of it." Euphemia said optimistically.
"I believe it, Euphie." Suzaku agreed.
"And I'm sure he would enjoy some music by now." Euphemia said as he grabbed Joseph's walkman.
"Yeah I would!" Joseph agreed wholeheartedly.
She pressed the play button and they enjoyed some Tom Petty.
...
Ashford Academy
"While details have been scarce, it is only known at the moment that his highness, Prince Joseph, was taken to medical facilities of the Viceroy Palace after the sudden assassination attempt on his life at the Fukuoka Base. It is still unknown why he was there in the first place or what his current condition is. Stay tune for further details later today." A female news anchor reported.
Milly, Rivalz, Shirley, Nina, Lelouch, Nunnally, and Naomi were currently in the Student Council Meeting Room and watching the television news with concerned thoughts on their mind.
Milly and Rivalz were both scared for Joseph, Naomi put a concerned hand on Nunnally's shoulder who in return grasped it with a sad smile. Shirley had her hand on Lelouch's and looked at him with concern as well. He held his lips together a bit tight and had a frazzled look in his eyes, she couldn't blame him, considering he was there when it happened. He and Nunnally held their hands together in a tight grip, afraid to let go of each other.
Nina was probably taking it the worst, as she was shaking controllably, had swollen red eyes from crying, and was starting to hyperventilate.
"Easy Nina, it's going to be okay." Milly told her gently as she gathered her into a hug and rubbed her back, which calmed Nina down a bit, but not by much.
"Will it though? They don't even know if he's alive." Nina said tearfully, ready to cry again.
"Well, we don't know he's not. So, anything's possible, right?" Rivalz tried to say encouragingly.
"We just have to wait for Suzaku to get here, he'll tell us." Lelouch said quietly, his voice emotionally drained. Both Nunnally and Shirley look at him in concern.
"Lelouch..." Nunnally starts to say but then they hear the door slide open.
In that moment, Suzaku entered the room and everyone instantly surrounded him and bombarded him with questions, all talking at the same time.
"Suzaku! Is he okay?!" Shirley asked.
"Is he alive?!" Rivalz asked.
"How bad is it?" Milly asked.
"Is he dead?! Oh God! He's dead isn't he?!" Nina asked frantically.
"Whoa, whoa! He's alive! Let's get that out of the way right now, he's alive and breathing." Suzaku quickly reassured.
Everyone breathed a huge sigh of relief, especially Lelouch, Nunnally, and Nina.
"Why was he in Fukuoka in the first place?" Milly asked.
"It's...a long story." Was all Suzaku could think to say.
"Well at least we know he's alright." Shirley said.
"Not entirely, he is in another coma again. It'll be some time before he's healed completely." Suzaku said sadly.
"Oh God..." Nina said as the tears started to sprout from her eyes again.
"Don't worry, Nina. Joe's always been a fighter, ever since he was born. He'll be up and about in no time." Nunnally said optimistically as she took Nina's hand. Now that she knew her brother was alive, she had no doubt he would make a quick recovery.
Lelouch on the other hand was still quiet.
"Excuse me for a moment." Lelouch said in monotone as he left the room.
"Big brother?" Nunnally called out to him, but he didn't seem to take notice of her.
"I'll go talk to him." Shirley said as she put a reassuring hand on Nunnally's shoulder.
"Want me to go to?" Suzaku asked, concerned for Lelouch as well.
"It's okay." Shirley said with a reassuring smile as she went after Lelouch.
"Well, at least now we can call Kallen with some good news! Do you know when she'll be back from the hospital, Miss Kozuki?" Rivalz asked.
"Hospital?" Naomi said in confusion.
"Yeah, we know she's sick and everything, so you think you could tell her that Joseph's okay?" Rivalz asked.
Suzaku looked at Naomi in concern, knowing what he knows about Kallen, he wonders if he should spill the beans to her. Naomi, on her end, just stood ther thinking for a moment.
"Um...I'll be sure to tell her." Naomi reassured.
"Give her our regards, we do miss her here." Nunnally said kindly as she grasped Naomi's hand, who smiled in return.
But now she felt something was up.
Why would Kallen tell her that she was going on a trip with some friends and yet tell the Student Council something entirely different. In fact, when Naomi thought about it, she noticed that Kallen would often act more mellow when around the council. There were times she would get angry and raise her voice, but then it would quickly revert back to a more monotone behavior. Naomi assumed she was just more relaxed around her friends, but it seemed more like she was putting on mask of sorts.
"Oh Kallen, what are you hiding?" Naomi thought with concern.
...
Lelouch and Shirley stood out in the hallway.
"Lelouch..." Shirley called out quietly in concern.
A look of anger and regret was on his face as he thought about what happened the other night.
...
(Flashback)
"LOOK OUT!" Joseph shouted as he pushed Lelouch out of the way.
Before Lelouch could even blink, he could see blood and bits of brain squirt out of Joseph's head, who landed with a thud.
For a moment, there was silence. No one moved, as if frozen on the spot, they didn't know what to say or do.
Lelouch looked at his brother, his head a bloody mess and his skin turning paler by the second.
He tried to say Joseph's name, but for some reason he couldn't find voice, like it was whisked away. He wanted to reach out and see if he was okay, to see if his brother was still alive, and yet his body couldn't make itself move.
Suddenly, after what seemed like an eternity, he heard Cornelia shout out, "JOSEPH!" as she practically jumped out of her knightmare. She ran up towards them, and Suzaku himself dropped to his knees as he quickly put his hands to the head wound.
And while Lelouch wanted to do something, he was quickly grabbed by the Gawain and taken away from the base.
(Flashback End)
...
"It's my fault." Lelouch said quietly, Shirley looked at him in surprise.
"What?! No, don't say that! Of course it wasn't!" Shirley tried to reassure.
"I should have gotten a layout of the base, I should have known there would have been a sniper. Damn it! Damn it all!" Lelouch said in fury as slam his fist into the wall again and again.
That is until Shirley embraced him from behind, he slowly calmed down from that.
"That bullet was meant for me...why did he did do that? Why did he let himself take the shot?" Lelouch asked with an empty voice.
"Because he's your brother. He wanted to protect you. That's what family is." Shirley told him softly.
Lelouch soon started to silently weep, gripping Shirley's arm for comfort.
Shirley tighten her grip on Lelouch, having no intention of letting go. Tears of her own sprouted from her eyes as she silently prayed her new older brother would make a quick recovery. After all, that's three times now he saved her from heartbreak.
"And what if he doesn't make it this time?" Lelouch asked, tears running down his eyes.
"He will though. Like Nunnally said, he's a fighter, and he won't give up if it means having more adventures with Captain Zero." Shirley said sweetly.
Lelouch looked at her in surprise then smiled as he wiped his eyes.
"Thank you, Shirley." Lelouch said with newfound ease.
"You're welcome, Lulu." Shirley said with a fond smile.
...
Unknown
"He took the bullet like you said, Lord V.V." The assassin said.
"Of course he did, that inbred was always close to his siblings." V.V. said with a vicious smile on his face. "A shame you couldn't take them both out at the same time, but oh well, one step at a time." He said casually.
"Shall I proceed in finishing the job?" The assassin asked.
Before he could answer, a loud voice caught his attention.
"VICTOR!" Charles screamed in fury as he came into the purple throne room.
"Brother, how nice of you to visit." V.V. said with an overly-pleasant tone in his voice.
The assassin kneeled down started to sing his praises for the Emperor.
"Your majesty, I am humbled to be in your-"
Only to be shot in the head by Charles.
"Well, that was rather rude don't you think? You didn't even let him finish kissing your boot heel." V.V. said casually.
"Do you want to explain to me why you sent a member of the Geass Order to kill Joseph?!" Charles demanded.
"I was doing what you were too careless to do." V.V. explained with annoyance.
"I told you he wasn't a threat!" Charles yelled angrily
"And I keep telling you that there is something off about that boy! And you're always putting it off like it's nothing! I finally did something about it!" V.V. argued intensely
"About what?! The fact that he might dress up as a duck the next time he interferes in a military operation?! He's harmless and it brings unneeded trouble!" Charles seethed.
"(Scoffs)You are unbelievable! You had what? One conversation with that retard when he was child, and all of a sudden he's untouchable?! It's like with Marianne all over again!" V.V. hissed.
Charles' glare intensified at that and was ready to smack the life out of his brother multiple times. However, he took a deep breath and calmed down. His glare did not leave his face though.
"Victor, because of your meddling, an investigation is going to pop open as to who shot a sniper out of the blue from a military base that was taken over by the Chinese Federation. Now I have to make sure it doesn't tie back to either of us, I have to clean up your mess!" Charles explained with intense calmness, refraining himself from saying "again." with the last statement.
"I will not tell you this again. Any affairs in Japan are off-limits unless I say otherwise, understood?" Charles asked with a heated glare in his eyes.
"...Understood." V.V. said with his heated stare. They continued like this for a few moment until Charles glanced at the assassin he shot.
"Have the body transported back to Fukuoka Base." Charles ordered as he walked away, knowing the rest of his day was going to be a headache.
...
Black Knights Base
Joseph's ghost form observed the various Black Knights as they took the news of him being shot in their own ways.
Tohdoh was quiet, he had that look on his face whenever he was in deep thought. It was his way of keeping his emotions in check.
Tamaki was conflicted, Joseph was pretty much a pain in their ass the entire time they known him, always causing trouble for them, and a Britannian Prince no less. And yet now he was lying in a hospital bed for taking a bullet meant for Zero. Perhaps he misjudged the guy.
Rakshata seemed indifferent, but that was just her personality.
Chiba, who Joseph presumed was Tohdoh's girlfriend, didn't seem to care. Clearly she didn't like him, but that was okay, Joseph knew he would get on her good side eventually.
Diethard had a calculating look in his eyes, as if he was waiting for something.
Ohgi seemed more concerned about Kallen, which made sense, considering she was taking it the hardest.
She had a look of anguish on her face. Her mother had called her earlier, but she didn't answer. Honestly, she couldn't find it in her heart to lie right now, not with what was going on.
Joseph was critically wounded from protecting someone. Not just anyone though, it was Zero. Her leader, Japan's beacon of hope. One wrong move, one second too late, and it would all be gone like that. But instead Joseph took upon himself to save him, not even thinking or caring if he were to die himself.
All Kallen could think about was about how she should have been there, how she could have protected Zero, could have protected him. She failed as Zero's Elite Guard and as Joseph's friend.
"Kallen, are you alright?" Ohgi asked, snapping Kallen out of her thoughts.
"I'm fine Ohgi." Kallen said, not really in the mood to talk.
"Talking about it will help." Ohgi said.
"I'm not 5 years old, Ohgi! I don't need to be coddled!" Kallen said angrily.
"You're acting like it's your fault." Rakshata observed, still laying on the couch, smoking her pipe.
"It is, isn't it?! I should have been out there with the Guren! I could have protected Zero! Instead I stayed behind because I was afraid what Suzaku might do, instead Joseph had to perform my duty!" Kallen said with regret and guilt in her voice.
"Why are you so worked up about the prince? If you ask me, one less Britannian Royal to deal with, the better." Chiba said with annoyance.
Kallen gritted her teeth, really getting tired of Chiba's bigotry towards Joseph.
"You say that even after he saved Zero?" Tohdoh asked calmly but with a subtle glare in his eyes that were directed towards Chiba, which unsettled her.
"Yeah! Give the guy a break already!" Tamaki shouted angrily at her. This surprised the group.
"You're defending him Tamaki?" Sugiyama said in disbelief.
"Well, Zero's my best bud. I mean, I rather that pain in the ass just butt out of our business, but I can't deny what happened either. If that moron was willing to take a bullet for our leader, then maybe...he's not so bad after all." Tamaki admitted awkwardly.
The group couldn't help but be impressed by Tamaki's resolve.
"Aw, thanks Tom-Tom!" Joseph's ghost form said happily, glad to make a new friend.
"Quite a moving speech. Perhaps there are some brain cells left in there." Rakshata joked in a mellow tone.
"Hey!" Tamaki barked angrily. "You know, for someone who actually knows the guy, you don't actually don't seem to be worried or not he's dead." He said annoyed.
That last part made Kallen quietly hitch a breath, herself wondering if Joseph would make it through this one.
"Please. We all witnessed the boy use a Sutherland to water-ski around a prison base, I doubt a bullet to the head is going to stop him." Rakshata said casually as she took a puff of smoke.
"You would be right, Rakshata." Zero said, announcing his presence as his enter the base, surprising the Black Knights.
"Zero! You're back!" Kallen said in surprise.
"Sorry, I had to take care of some affairs. I have managed to find out that Joseph has indeed survived the bullet wound. He is, however, in another coma." Zero said professionally.
Kallen gave a silent sigh of relief knowing Joseph was okay. He may be in another coma, but he came out of the last one just fine. She was just happy he was alive.
"The Viceroy has a lot of nerve to try and assassinate you during that whole fiasco. Especially when you were helping her." Inoue said.
"I don't think it was one of her soldiers actually." Zero said, confusing the others.
"What do you mean?" Minami asked.
"Think about it, all the Viceroy's troops were still on the beach when she approached us at the base. When exactly would she have had time to send a sniper? Especially when she had no idea that neither I or Joseph were going to be there?" Zero asked rhetorically.
"You think it may have been one of Sawasaki's troops?" Kallen asked.
"Possible. But again, he had no idea I was going to be there and most of the troops were retreating at the point. When would Sawasaki have the time to call for such an order?" Zero said, trying to figure it out himself.
"Where did you get the intel, anyway?" Asahina asked.
"Diethard. He told me he wanted to show us all something." Zero answered simply, making the group turn to the news reporter in surprise.
"I still have connections to some the medical staff in the Viceroy Palace. They were able to give me some details." Diethard said casually, looking at his watch.
"Why the hell didn't you say something sooner!?" Kallen asked angrily.
"Because, what appears on the news in the next 10 seconds is going to triumph the prince's survival." Diethard with a peculiar grin as he switched on the television.
The screen showed a cartoon of a Sponge that was going on that abruptly cut by a news logo.
"We interrupt your daily program for a special report. News has just reached us that Prince Joseph has survived the assassination attempt and is currently in a coma recovering from his injuries. However, recent discoveries have shown the assassination attempt wasn't on the Prince himself, but rather the masked vigilante Zero!" A news reporter said on the television.
This definitely caught the attention of the Black Knights.
"Diethard, what did you do?" Zero asked suspiciously. Diethard didn't answer, he just kept that grin on his face.
"Rumors had surfaced awhile back that Zero and the Black Knights took part in defeating Atsushi Sawasaki at the Fukuoka Base. We can now say for certain he was there as we have received exclusive footage of that night from an anonymous source." The news reporter continued.
"Footage?" Urabe asked.
"We must warn you that viewer discretion is advised as the content shown here can be considered disturbing." The news reporter warned before cutting to said footage.
It appeared to be a downward angle of Zero, Suzaku, and Joseph standing together, talking. Lelouch's eyes widen from underneath his mask.
"That's from the Gawain!" Lelouch thought to himself in realization.
"Hey! I'm on TV! Awesome!" Joseph's ghost form said excitedly.
The footage then showed Joseph's turning his head towards the distance before suddenly pushing Zero away and his head suddenly red and whiplashing to the left.
A lot of the Black Knights gasped in shock at that. Kallen physically flinched at the impact and stared wide-eyed at the screen, Tohdoh gritted his teeth and tighten his fists.
"Jesus..." Ohgi said shellshocked. He may have seen plenty of people, some even his own friends, take shots to the head before, but it still stays with you, and here its no exception.
...
Viceroy-Palace
Meanwhile in Cornelia's office.
"Good lord..." Guilford said disturbed.
"Son of a BITCH!" Cornelia screamed in fury as she slammed her fist onto her desk. "Darlton, get to that news station now! I want to know where they got their hands on that footage!" She ordered.
"Yes, your Highness!" Darlton saluted before quickly making his way out he door, he was just thankful Euphemia was at the medical center with Joseph so she didn't have to see this.
...
Ashford Academy
Student Council Building
"Oh God..." Shirley said as she covered her mouth in shock, tears started to sprout from her eyes.
"I-I know you said he took a bullet, but I-I didn't think...Jesus..." Rivalz stuttered as watched the footage.
Milly watched with wide-eyes, also disturbed at the content, not sure what to say.
Suzaku watched agape as he had the watch that horrific moment all over again. Then he noticed the angle the footage was at, and could see it was likely from a knightmare. His shock quickly turned to anger as his hands tighten into fists.
"Zero! How dare you show this! Have you no conscience!" Suzaku thought furiously.
"Where's Nina?" Shirley asked, concerned for her scientist friend.
...
Ashford Academy
Ganymede Hanger
Nina stared at her tiny television as the footage of Joseph's brains splattered over and over on a loop. Her pupils were the sizes of pinpoints at the moment, there was a ringing in her ears and she was having trouble breathing.
"Zero...Zero manipulated my prince...manipulated him into taking that bullet...it's because of him that my prince could...COULD..."
Nina then tightly clutched her hair as heavy tears ran down her face and she WAILED into the heavens above.
...
Black Knights Base
"While it is still unknown why the prince was there in the first place, it's clear where he stands with this ongoing war between Britannia and Zero." The news reporter continued until Diethard turn the TV off with a satisfied smirk on his lips. Soon everybody was looking at him accusingly, Kallen on the other just stood there, processing the whole thing.
"Dude...what the Hell?!" Tamaki shouted incredulously as he felt like this was a new low from the Britannian journalist.
"Call it planting a cherry tree in a field of orchards." Diethard said with a sly tone.
"Diethard, I didn't approve you of using that footage." Zero said calmly.
Though on the inside, Lelouch was seething! It's bad enough he had to witness his brother's near-death situation, now the whole world needed to be an audience?!
"You want us to be the hammer of justice, right? We can't have people thinking about us as cold-blooded killers, I know. So what better way to promote our cause then show the Dimwit Prince himself saving your life?" Diethard asked rhetorically as if the answer was obvious.
To which then he received a hard punch to the face from Kallen. Knocking him on his ass.
"Kallen!" Ohgi said in surprise.
"Damn Kallen." Joseph's spirit also said in surprise.
"You rotten bastard! How dare you use him like that!" Kallen said in fury as she had to be restrained by Ohgi from doing any further damage.
"You can't change the world without getting your hands dirty. Am I wrong? I would think you'd be grateful knowing I finally found a suitable role for him in our group." Diethard said calmly as he stood back up, rubbing the bruise from where Kallen hit him.
"That's it, isn't it? That's all he was to you from the start. Just a marketing ploy you used to further your own agenda in this group. You're despicable and a cur." Tohdoh said as he was ready to lay fists on the news man himself.
"How long do we plan on treading the waters between terrorist and knights of justice? The people are split down the middle regarding their opinion of us and it didn't show any point of moving anytime soon. All I did was simply tip the scale in our direction." Diethard argued.
"By exploiting him through shock imagery?! Even if he is a Britannian Prince, that's low!" Asahina said angrily.
Even if Chiba didn't like the prince, she couldn't help but argee. Especially if Tohdoh was used in such a way.
"Objectivity is a fairy tale. In the end, journalism is a product of the human mind, like everything else. History can act as our enemy and it's time we created some of our own. After today, the Dimwit Prince will have skyrocketed our support like never before!" Diethard said triumphantly.
"Alright! I'm a team player!" Joseph's spirit said enthusiastically, not caring how it became that way.
He was then grabbed by the shirt and pushed to the wall by Kallen.
"That dimwit as you call him, has a family and friends who care about his wellbeing! And now every time they think about him, wondering if he's going to make it, all they're going to see is THAT image of him, brains on the floor, slowly dying!" Kallen ranted and then quickly making her way upstairs.
"Kallen, wait!" Ohgi tried to call to her, only to receive the sound of a slamming door in response.
Joseph looked on in concern for Kallen and floated in her direction to see if she was okay.
Ohgi then turned his attention to Diethard with an angry glare, "You really are a bastard." He said calmly but just as much venom as the rest.
"I will not apologize for giving us good press. Moments like this is when the ends justify the means." Diethard said offhandedly.
"You are probably right, Diethard. Something like this will definitely help bring more support to our cause." Zero said professionally, surprising the others.
"Thank you, Zero." Diethard said with satisfaction.
"But being Knights of Justice, we also cannot forgot to hold ourselves to higher standards." Zero continued, making Diethard lose his smile. "So let me make this perfectly clear for you, you ever pull a stunt like this again without my permission, you'll be finding your role in this organization no longer viable! Am I understood!?" Zero asked with a strict tone, startling some of the other Black Knights a bit. Diethard, on his end, just sighed.
"Yes, Zero. Understood." Diethard said professionally.
Zero didn't say anything else as just stared at Diethard for a moment before turning around and making his way upstairs.
"Damn, I forgot the dude can be scary when he wants to be." Tamaki said, a bit shaken.
...
Zero gently knocked on the door of Kallen's room.
"If it's Tamaki, go fuck yourself! If it's Ohgi, I'm not in the mood!" Kallen said through her door.
"It's me, Kallen. I just wanted to give you something, something that Joseph wanted returned." Zero said gently.
There was a pause, and then the door open revealing a sullen-looking Kallen.
"Come in." Kallen said simply, gesturing for him to enter. Joseph's spirit was also inside, giving Kallen company, even though she couldn't see it
Zero entered and waited for Kallen to close the door as he wanted this to be private. When she did, he reached into his pocket and took out her red headband, surprising Kallen.
"Is...i-is that..." Kallen stuttered.
"Before he was shot, he gave this to me, wanted to make sure you got it back. I would have given it sooner, but due to all the chaos surrounded the near-assassination, it slipped my mind until recently." Zero told her as he handed it back to her.
"Yay! Thanks Lelouch." Joseph's spirit said cheerfully, glad it finally got back to her.
Kallen took the headband and looked at it with trepidation and sadness. She thought about their time on the island, when she used her headband to bandage his wound, when he defended her against Suzaku and supported her role in the Black Knights. She thought about how they stood together on the shore of the beach and how he looked at her with that smile of his, that stupid, adorable, dopey smile.
And before she realized it, she felt tears flow down her cheeks. She wanted to wipe them away, but couldn't find the strength to do so.
"Kallen..." Zero spoke up, not sure what to say.
"Are you Lelouch?" Kallen suddenly asked, surprising Zero and Joseph.
"U-uh, Kallen?" Zero stuttered, not expecting that at all.
"Please...just tell me the truth...are you Lelouch?" Kallen pleaded, her voice barely a whisper.
Lelouch could see in her eyes that after all the chaos, she needed this. Joseph's spirit was just excited that Kallen figured it out.
So with a sigh, Lelouch took his hand to his mask and pulled it off his head.
"Hello, Kallen." Lelouch said with a sad smile as he pulled down his face mask.
Kallen's first reaction was shock, her second was relief, and then her third was regret.
All of which lead her to gripping Lelouch into a tight hug.
"I should have been out there, I should protected you and Joseph! I could have saved you both! He's your brother and now he's almost dead because I didn't do anything!" Kallen cried into his chest.
Lelouch looked at her sadly before returning the hug.
"You really do love him, don't you Kallen." Lelouch thought with a sad smile.
"Awwww. Come here, best bud. It's not your fault." Joseph's spirit said as he went over and pretend hug Lelouch and Kallen.
Then suddenly Kallen pulled away from Lelouch and punched him in the ribcage, making him groan in agony and buckle a bit. He looked at Kallen in confusion.
"That's for not telling me, sooner!" Kallen said, agitated. Lelouch couldn't help but chuckle.
"Yeah, I suppose I had that coming." Lelouch said.
"Give trust, get trust, bro." Joseph said with a thumbs up.
Lelouch then realized something.
"Wait, 'my brother'?" Lelouch parroted. Kallen, realizing the blunder with her words, rubbed the back of her head awkwardly.
"Uh, yeah, about that..." Kallen said awkwardly, not sure where to begin.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on a minute! If Kallen called me his brother, and me being Lelouch's brother while also calling him 'my little bro' =and treating him like he's my actual brother, that must mean..." Joseph calculated to himself, before it finally clicked in his mind with a giant grin on his face.
...
The two of them(three if you count Joseph's spirit) sat across from each other. Kallen on her bed, hugging her legs to her chest, Lelouch in the chair by her desk, and Joseph floating between them with his legs criss-cross.
She told Lelouch how she first got suspicious of Lelouch's identity when the Student Council visited Joseph in his coma the first time around. Milly and Suzaku asked them not to mention him and Nunnally in Cornelia's and Euphemia's presence and that didn't really make sense to her, especially if they hadn't met before. Lelouch on his end was agitated that both Milly and Suzaku could make such a goof like that and would be sure to reprimand them later.
From there, Kallen said she started to pay more attention to Joseph's interactions with him and Nunnally and started to notice he would treat them like Naoto would used to treat her. She explained she finally got her confirmation from Suzaku back on Kamine Island, who gave a little background of Lelouch's past, saying he would 'One day obliterate Britannia!' That was when she started to connect the dots between him and Zero, she remembered that Lelouch always made himself as a guy who wouldn't do anything to change the status quo, but she also knew he didn't agree with Britannia's policy either. She started to do some research and found out about Marianne vi Britannia, her assassination, and the aftermath with her children being exiled to Japan and stay as guests at the Kururugi Shrine. With that, Kallen was able to see Lelouch's reasoning behind becoming Zero, and she couldn't help respect him for that.
Lelouch could only sigh, really wishing he had covered his tracks better. Joseph, was just happy that his best bud was in on it!
"Does anybody else know?" Kallen asked.
"Joseph, as I'm sure you already guessed. As well as Shirley, Sayoko, and C.C." Lelouch answered, surprising Kallen.
"I guess Shirley makes sense, she is your girlfriend." Kallen said cheekily.
"Uh! Well, I-I don't know if I say were at that...stage, yet. We haven't even gone on our second date yet." Lelouch said awkwardly with a blush on his face. "Not really even a first date when I think about it." He thought to himself.
"Uh huh. Keep telling yourself that, Romeo." Kallen teased before turning serious again. "Still, how did Sayoko come to know? And why the Hell did C.C. get to know before me?!" Kallen complained.
Lelouch thought about what his answer should be, he could easily lie about it like he always had. But honestly, Kallen has proven more than enough she can be trustworthy, and as Joseph's saying goes: "Give trust, get trust!"
"That...is a much longer story." Lelouch said.
And so, Lelouch told her about the day he reunited with Joseph
the day he met C.C.
the day he received his Geass
the day he became Zero.
...
Ashford Academy
The student council group, minus Nina, walked down the steps of the Student Council building as school had now ended.
"Man, where the hell has Lelouch been?!" Rivalz asked with irritation. "We had a big test today in History class and I was hoping to cheat off him!" He complained before receiving a smack to the head from Shirley.
"Rivalz! You should know better than that! Try to be a good student for once and just study!" Shirley lectured angrily.
"Why would I do that when I got Lelouch?" Rivalz asked with a teasing smile.
Shirley groaned at his statement while Milly chuckled and Suzaku just shook his head in amusement.
"Thank you, Rivalz." Milly said, confusing the council.
"For what, Prez?" Rivalz asked.
"For just being you. After seeing that footage today, I think we all needed some lightheartedness right now." Milly said with a grateful but sad smile.
The council looked at her sympathetically, especially Shirley. She forgot that out of the people here, Milly has known Joseph the longest, this has probably affected her more than she has let on.
"It's...it's no big deal. I mean, with Joseph not here, who else is going to make us laugh?" Rivalz said, a small blush on his face.
Milly nodded and then Shirley came up and gave her a gentle hug, surprising her.
"Don't worry, Milly. Joseph will be back, breaking all the windows before we know it." Shirley told her encouragingly, surprising Milly but then breaking out into an encouraging smile.
"You're right Shirley, I have no doubt!" Milly said with hopefulness.
"Have you guys talked to Nina about it?" Suzaku asked.
"I tried checking up on her at the lab, but she wasn't there. I called, but she didn't answer. She probably saw the footage." Shirley said sadly.
"Give her some time, we'll all be there when she needs us." Suzaku said encouragingly.
"Agreed. Do give Joseph our regards when you see him again, Suzaku? We all look forward to him coming back." Shirley said, glad to see Suzaku in a better light than before.
"I will." Suzaku said with a smile, and then he noticed some figures in the distance.
When he started to recognize who they were, his eyes widened in shock.
It was Lelouch and Kallen, coming up towards them.
"Hey guys." Kallen said meekly with a small smile and wave.
"KALLEN!" The student council said with surprise and excitement as they ran towards the two.
"You're back!" Shirley said happily as she brought Kallen into a hug, which she gladly returned.
"Hospital finally let you go, huh?" Rivalz said excitedly.
"Y-yeah. I finally felt better after awhile so I decided to come back. I asked Lelouch if he could come pick me up." Kallen said cheerfully in her 'meek' tone.
"It was no trouble." Lelouch said with a smile.
"Kallen...do you know about..." Shirley started to ask awkwardly, not sure how to bring it up.
"I saw the footage. It was horrible to see, but the news report also he said he was alive, and that's what matters. I know he'll be back eventually." Kallen said optimistically.
Milly, not wanting things to become dim again, stirred a knowing grin onto her face.
"So that's where you've been all day, Lelouch? Not planning on two-timing Shirley, are you?" Milly teasingly accused. "Or perhaps...you're trying to get her to join you two in bed! Oh! What will poor Joseph think?!" She said with her devil-grin.
"MILLY!" Lelouch, Shirley, and Kallen said at the same time, their faces red as tomatoes.
Milly laughed wholeheartedly. "Oh! I missed this!" She said delightfully.
While Lelouch and Shirley went off on Milly, it was then Suzaku approached Kallen, a well-meaning smile on his face.
"It's good to have you back, Kallen." Suzaku said happily.
"...Yeah, it's good to be back." Kallen said, knowing he meant it.
Lelouch looked on at the scene with a smile.
"Hope you're here to see this Joe." Lelouch thought pleasantly, and he would be right.
...
To Be Continued...
Sorry this chapter took so long to get out, original content like this makes it harder to churn out sometimes.
Anyway, Joseph is in another coma, now in his astral projection form again. The whole world knows that he protected Zero, basically betraying his country and family, and both Kallen and Sayoko are now aware Lelouch is Zero and has a Geass.
I went back and through about whether or not Kallen should ALSO learn about Lelouch's Geass. But considering his development in this series and the trust he has for Kallen now, it would make sense he would tell her. For Sayoko, I was iffy about her EVEN learning Lelouch's identity as Zero at this moment, but again, his development and trust for Sayoko say otherwise. As for Kallen being convinced to come back, that will be explained next chapter.
Not only that, V.V. was the one behind the attempted assassination! Is he right about Joseph?! Is there something more going on with that dimwit than meets the eye?! And how will Charles clean up this mess that his brother has caused?!
Tune in next time and we'll find out!
Hope you enjoyed and tell me what you think!