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Chapter 2: Reunions and Reveals
🕑 Added 2024-10-03 19:51:09 +0000 UTCChapter 2: Reunions and Reveals
In the old world, British royals were commonly laid to rest in Westminster Abbey, but like many things, that had been lost. Since Queen Elizabeth III’s passing, changes have been made to how dead royals are treated, as even after she ruled as empress in the American colonies, no such church existed that could stand to the majesty of Westminster.
So, her solution was that upon her death, she was to be buried on a large plot of land on the east bank of the Delaware, one that wouldn't house just one church or tomb but be something akin to the Valley of the Kings in Ancient Egypt, with each royal laid to rest there adding another gloriously extravagant tomb, with plants and animals from across the ever-expanding empire brought there, turning the site into something akin to a Garden of Eden despite concerns of the clergy.
All 97 emperors were laid to rest there. Even when rulers were overthrown, those who replaced them gave their former sovereign the dignity and honor of laying them to rest with the rest of their previous rulers, often with equally, if not grander, tombs being added to the necropolis in their memory.
It was for that reason that Lelouch watched with vindictive glee as his father was laid to rest in a small church over 350km north of the Imperial necropolis. The service was modest even by commoner standards and televised to show how little he cared for the bastard. He didn't even grant his father the title of emperor on his tombstone; it simply read 'Charles, father of Emperor Lelouch.'
Suzaku called him needlessly spiteful, to which he responded by asking which of them was forced by geass to need someone to pour him water.
But this wasn't the only thing the world was watching him do, as he had been quite busy since he claimed the throne.
“99th Emperor Lelouch, who ascended the throne only 2 weeks ago, was in attendance at the funeral of the former emperor Charles zi Britannia. Since coming to power, he's taken a hard stance against corruption, incompetence, and cronyism. Having broken up numerous plutocratic cliques in major industries such as mining, agriculture, defense, and banking.” A foreign news reporter relayed to their watching audience footage of Lelouch entering a motorcade and leaving his father's humiliation of a funeral.
“He’s also stripped 11 of Britannia’s most powerful noble families of their titles, with many of the former heads having been arrested and awaiting trial on several charges, including bribery, corruption, embezzlement, and murder.” The news report continued, with the footage changing to some of the more recent high-profile arrests, where men and women in high court fashion or corporate suits and ties were led away from their lavish estates or businesses by armed police.
“His crackdowns have also targeted the imperial government as high-ranking officials and ministers from several ministries were arrested on similar charges. Many who have already pleaded guilty and face lengthy prison sentences or the death penalty.” It may have been a purge, but Lelouch was careful to always have credible evidence to stand up to scrutiny.
“Following these acts, by imperial decree, June 18th shall be known as a National holiday.” There, the reporter, a veteran of his field, couldn't help but let out a snort at that shot toward Charles as the day his son and successor claimed to have killed him would not be one of mourning but a national celebration.
But he kept up his professionalism, especially regarding the current topic, and something that didn't just shake up Britannian society, but global politics. “But what has been the most controversial of Emperor Lelouch's actions is that he has declared that discrimination against the numbers shall no longer be national policy. Furthermore-”
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“-In 5 years, the number system shall be abolished, which affects 3 quarters of Britannia's population. The new emperor also decreed that applying for full citizenship shall be made available to all residents and that those who have been honorary Britannian for 6 months or more can claim full citizenship as of next month.” Watching this broadcast from the bridge of the Ikaruga, the Black Knight high command was pensive and unsure of what to make of it, but not even Tamaki interrupted it.
“When asked about this, Odysseus and several other royals supported the new emperor despite his provocative and wide-reaching actions.” With this, there was little debate on how he managed such a feat, as he saw how claimed the thrown in bloodless usurpation. They wondered how long he would keep his siblings and his father's consorts around.
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As this was happening, Lelouch was back in Pendragon, holding a court session. Still, one different from what his father would have had as just a couple dozen people he had personally called for. At his side stood Suzaku in his White cloak, the colors of the Knight of One, while C.C. sat in a smaller chair on his other side.
"Hail, Your Majesty." The nobles, members from just 5 families, bowed their heads to him.
"Rise, you have arrived at an opportune time for my Knight of Two, as what I expect is good news." Lelouch smiled as Jeremiah was announced. The man walked in with powerful strides, dressed in an orange cloak, a different shade from what Bradley once called his own.
“Good news I indeed deliver, Your Majesty. It shall please Your Majesty to hear that I lead our forces to victory over the traitorous Earl Rosenkranz and his followers and that the Earl was slain by my blade." His ever-dutiful and dependable knight knelt towards him, though the rest were surprised and intimidated by that statement.
Earl Rosenkranz not only came from a powerful and well-entrenched family but had also served well in Britannia's wars in Africa. He also had a sizeable personal force and managed to rally several weaker families to his cause. But for all that to amount to little more than a two-day trip south from Jeremiah…
"Excellent work, Jeremiah. With that particularly pesky thorn handled, southern Britannia is now firmly under my control.” Lelouch’s smile turned into a smirk, though that was the 3rd Earl who had decided to see him off the throne, but like he had done with lesser lords, he could appoint more.
He turned his attention back to his guests. “It seems that the more titles and lands that belonged to those foolish enough to rebel have been opened up for a new family to take. One that proves itself capable but also loyal. And I believe that your families fit both descriptions."
"Y-you honor us, your majesty, with such words." One of the ladies, nervous at his gaze as he had been tearing through the nobility as of late, with not even the greatest families safe from his wrath, so for them, of such low rank, they knew that there was even less stopping him from having them arrested. Their families stripped of all they had.
“Yes, I do." Lelouch wouldn't pretend otherwise. He did hold their faith in his hands, but he also didn't want to rule through fear alone. So, he turned his gaze back to Jeremiah, pleasant and excusatory.
“Though I must apologize to you, Jeremiah. I've been working you and your forces quite hard, sending you all over the empire to crush noble uprisings and rebellions left and right.” He spoke.
“People fight when you threaten their vested interests.” He and the rest of the room turned towards C.C., the nobles not sure what to make of the woman. As she sat at the emperor's side, an honour that none of Charles's advisors or consorts enjoyed, she didn't dress or act like she cared for any of it.
Jeremiah, long used to how unusual things got with his master, hardly batted an eye as he remained kneeling. "It is a pleasure and honor to vanquish your enemies, Your Majesty. One that my men and I will gladly fulfill.”
“Insightful words, my queen," Lelouch revealed the status of the odd woman like it was of little consequence. Still, their noble guests didn't have time to process the fact that they would have a queen again for the first time in over 100 years, as their ruler turned his gaze to them. “But do you all think of this?”
“Pardon?” One of them, an older man with greying brown hair, asked.
"I'm asking for your opinions. Be honest in your words; no harm shall come to you or your loved ones for anything you say." Lelouch repeated, but despite his assurance, they knew he could revoke it at any time, and nothing could be done about it, so they held their tongues. They also knew that someone had to say something before he reacted poorly to their refusal to meet his demands.
"I believe that your…queen is correct on this, Your Majesty." It wasn't one of the older guests who spoke, but a young woman with clear, piercing blue eyes and an unmistakable French accent, something that marked her as unique among the court. She wasn't the tallest among them, but she carried herself like a giant, her beauty matching that boldness.
"Many families that have taken up the sword in rebellion are old families, deeply rooted in the culture and system that you've made clear you wish to destroy. Even if you hadn't taken the throne through conquest, they would have still chaffed under your rule." She continued, meeting the eyes of the emperor who, for a moment, didn't react, but his eyes widened just a little as he took in her features before his smirk changed into a content smile.
Resting his elbow on his armrest, Lelouch placed his head into his hand, his gaze never leaving the girl or the woman as she spoke. "Interesting. Do you suppose that they wouldn't have chosen this path if I had kept things as they were?"
And unlike so many before her or even the people she had been summoned with, like her family, she didn't shy away from his gaze. She wouldn't be so easily cowed, which only grew his interest and joy. "No, Your Majesty. You may be a legitimate son of Charles with a full claim to the throne, but you're still the son of a commoner. To them, you would have never been worthy of the throne, though I would suspect it's of varying ratios from noble to noble."
But then she paused, as if whatever confidence she had shrunk down significantly, but not even Suzaku could keep his interest off the woman, though it was different reasons than the emperor and his witch who watched the unknown blonde like a hawk, those dark golden eyes of hers piercing in their observational skills.
“Please continue.” Lelouch nodded towards her, whatever image of the emperor he had been presenting softening, replaced with that of a friend who happened to be of a higher station.
More than the unspoken threat, that openness made the woman continue. "But I believe that other families, like my own, see this as a chance to capitalize on the change and ensure that a better ruler remains on the throne as long as possible, if only for personal benefit."
As she admitted, the two she came with, most likely her parents, started sweating bullets at their daughter's admission of why they were there. Undoubtedly, the emperor wouldn't react well to learning that he planned on using him to gain more power and wealth.
But he didn't do that. Instead, Lelouch threw back his head and laughed, surprising all but C.C., who turned towards her contractor, feeling a portion of what he was through their bond before smiling at the situation.
He managed to compose himself again. "You're well-learned. More than that, your insightfulness can only come from experience, experience that also makes you confident to speak such words to me. I want such people, and I can be a rewarding monarch for those people."
“My decision has been made.” Standing from his throne and approaching them, even if he remained on the elevating platform, looking towards them, that joy remained in his eyes, but so too steel to them.
"Kneel, swear loyalty to me and my lineage, and in exchange, you shall be elevated in noble rank; you'll be granted the titles and all that entails from one of the families who have proven to be criminal or traitors." He stated that that was enough for them all to bow. They hadn't known what to expect when they were summoned, but they were glad that they obeyed as it seemed that he would be a different ruler to his father, to all those who came before him.
"We hear and obey your majesty. The house of Breisgau swears itself to you and your lineage; may it reign long and strong." The girl’s parents kneeled, along with her, as she finally bowed her head.
“The same will be true for the house of Gonzaga, who swear itself to you and your lineage; may it reign long and strong."
“As will the house of Sajonia, who swears itself to you and your lineage, may it reign long and strong." Lelouch listened as the rest gave their vows. He knew that cameras recorded it so that they couldn't back out of it later, but there were other matters to attend to.
"Then you are dismissed. I shall decide which titles and lands to grant you later, but I ask that the young Breisgau remain.” He pointed toward the girl, who didn't flinch even as her parents seemed worried for her, but they didn't fight him.
"If…if that is what you desire, then it shall be done, your majesty." They bowed their heads as they turned and left, the door closing behind them, leaving the blonde girl alone with the emperor, his queen, and two knights of round. She didn't feel much fear; only relief and joy seemed to be matched by their young emperor as Lelouch approached her, opening up his arms as he did.
“Must I ask for a hug?” Lelouch asked, to which the girl laughed as she jumped him, wrapping her arms around as he twirled her around, leaving Suzaku stumped at how…friendly Lelouch was being with her.
"I remember you as someone who hated being hugged out of nowhere; you were like a house cat that only wished to be pet when it wanted to be." She replied, laughing at some old memory shared between them as Lelouch playfully rolled his eyes, letting her down. However, she kept her arms around him, arms which had a lot more muscle to them than he expected.
“Come now, I wasn’t that bad.” Lelouch chuckled, to which he smacked his back.
“You’re right, you were worse. And I see that you’re still the same arrogant boy I knew back in Ares villa,” She smirked back at him before her eyes softened as she leaned into him, resting her head on his chest just so she could hear his heartbeat. “It’s good to see you alive, Lelouch.”
Lelouch didn't fight her; in fact, he held her tighter, as he, too, wanted to be sure that she was still here. “And you as well, Leila.” He muttered, his lips laying a kiss atop her head.
“Leila?” The moment passed as Suzaku repeated her name, as he had heard a similar one before, but indeed this wasn't the same person.
Lelouch stepped aside but grasped Leila’s hand to present her to his knights and queen. “Oh yes, allow me to introduce you, two. Suzaku, this is Leila Breisgau. Her father was a friend of Marianne's, not as much as the Ashford, but enough that we were made to play together growing up."
The patriarch of the Breisgau, Bradow, controlled a relatively powerful noble family, but he was one of the few who truly valued merit over birth, which meant that he and Marriane got along just fine. Though they would argue from time to time, as he advocated reforms that would benefit commoners, which ran against what Charles enforced, they never allowed that to make them enemies.
Leila gave him a look. "Don't make it seem like you didn't like spending time with me. Unlike Princess Euphemia or Nunnally, I wasn't trying to get you into a dress for pretend tea parties." He shivered at the reminder. Leila had been someone who preferred playing in the gardens or talking about whatever fantasy or epic she had managed to get her hands on. It was exhausting as, even then, he wasn't the most physically capable, but he enjoyed their time together.
Leila's eyes then went to Suzaku, someone she might not have ever seen in person but had been well aware of his capabilities as a soldier and knightmare pilot. "I already know who he is. I was the commander that he was facing off against in Europe not too long ago." Suzaku frowned at that, as, of course, Lelouch would know the Maid of Orleans. Her wZero unit had been one of the only things that kept him and Euro Britannia from steamrolling Europe, so they had to turn to Schneizel and his poisoned honeyed tongue to turn E.U. states against one another.
“In fact, you look a lot like that Kingsley fellow.” When Leila said that, Lelouch's smile remained, but it tightened as his grip on her hand intensified. At the same time, Suzaku's frown grew more prominent while C.C., having grown accustomed to the tension between the two, didn't react at all. This left Jeremiah and Leila lost as to why Lelouch shot a look towards his 'strongest' knight that made it clear he wanted him to drop dead, a glare that was returned in equal measure.
Rather than repeat that… unsavory part of his time under his father’s control, he put a pin in it for later. “It’s a long story. But what's this I hear about you being an E.U. commander? I knew that your family left for France, but after your parents' deaths, I couldn't find anything about you."
Leila's grip grew tight at that, more so than his own, as she wasn't some delicate flower. Much like him, she had some feelings about her parent's death and the truth of it, which she only learned years later. “I was taken in by the Malcal family, and they…well, they enjoyed their privacy, so I didn’t spend much time in the public eye.” She left out the part where she was engaged to their son, as it had long been broken off, and a part of her wanted Lelouch not to have to think about that. She still remembered what they used to talk about growing up.
"But if we must pick which of us ended up in the unlikely situation, I would say you defeat me on that front, Lelouch. When I heard that you were alive and managed to topple Charles, I thought I was in a dream." She smiled towards him, the tension leaving her body as her hold on him relaxed, much the same as his.
"And to do so with the Knight of 7 that I wished to see defeated and slain so badly, you truly are one filled with surprises." She teased, with Lelouch finding that he enjoyed her accent and the flow and feeling it gave her words.
"Oh, no love is lost between myself and my knight of one. We just can't kill one another." Lelouch admitted that their time in C's world didn't mean they magically forgave one another. Shirley might have asked that of him, but he knew himself, so it would be years before he could think of Suzaku without also plotting ways to kill him.
"But I pray that you'll bite the bullet in the most humiliating way possible," Suzaku added to that, Jeremiah glaring at the white-cloaked Japanese teen for daring to say something like that, but Lelouch merely waved it off.
“And I wish that one of these days, a forest critter like a squirrel severs your jugular.” He retorted almost casually. "But with your parents passing and your exile to Europe, how did you return? I was led to believe that the Breisgau had suffered the same fate as the Ashfords.”
"We did; they were all but ran out of of Pendragon but have managed to fight their way back. The two you saw were my aunt and uncle. When I heard that you were emperor…well, I had to see it for myself, so I got in contact with them and requested that they allow me back." She explained, as that was not the most pleasant phone call, with her aunt furious that she even had the means to get her number.
“And what made you think they wouldn’t turn you in for being a traitor?” C.C. asked, with Leila's gaze turning to the green-haired woman she knew she had met before but still couldn't tell when.
"Well, seeing how you came to power, I figured you wouldn't be so quick to judge. And they also knew that we were friends, so they probably thought they could leverage that to get something from you, which they might have just got." Leila explained, as she could only imagine that her aunt and uncle, who didn't have their own children, must be pretty pleased.
Lelouch hummed. "That they did, though they were acting like I would order them killed for just looking at me wrong; surely I'm not that scary."
“Well, regicide, you have sent how many nobles to prison or the executioner’s axe. Anyone of high birth would be scared of you.” Leila poked fun at him, to which he bent his body to avoid her finger pocking into his side.
"If I wished to purge the nobility, I would have. Those that have faced my wrath either deserved it or were obstacles that could have avoided it if they didn't give me trouble.”
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Their conversation didn’t remain in the throne room, as there was much they had to speak about to catch up, but Lelouch also wished to tell her everything he had been doing, what he had done and learned. So, they moved to the imperial gardens, a space he had only been to once before he took the throne. It was a trip his mother took him to when he was a child. She had gone off to speak with Charles while he was left in the care of Bismark.
The place hadn't changed since that day, only now he could order those traces of things he knew his father liked to be removed and replaced. But that was later, as instead, he sat in a white gazebo by an artificial lake, one that had green vines and flowers growing on its exterior. He had dismissed both Jeremiah and Suzaku, the latter being more than happy to leave to go off, C.C. teasing him about the time he was spending with Cecile.
Now, it was only the three of them; Lelouch seated next to his queen, who was eating a slice of pizza, while Leila sat opposite to them, starring into her tea, which had grown cold as she tried to absorb everything he had told her over the last 20 or so minutes. He left nothing out, not even something as horrific as the truth about the SAZ massacre, the blonde only stopping herself from jumping over the table to throttle him because she believed it when he said it was an accident, that he never intended for anyone but him to get hurt.
The same couldn’t be said for her desire to put a bullet between Kururugi’s eyes after she learned about how Charles turned Lelouch into a pawn and made the Knight of 7 his handler, a brutal one at that that seemed to enjoy seeing Lelouch in geass induced pain. But then there was so…so much more, and she just had to stew for a moment and collect her thoughts.
“So…what’s your plan then? Why claim the throne?”
Lelouch looked at her, nothing but steel and fire in his eyes. “To do what Euphemia couldn’t…what I stopped her from doing, but on a much wider scale.”
“To change the empire?” Leila asked as she recalled what she knew about the princess she knew in passing and what Lelouch told her about Euphemia's goals with the SAZ.
Lelouch nodded. “Yes, I will destroy the old Britannia. That will never change, but I've already started that through crackdowns, reforms, and arrests of anyone who could represent the old order. I will make Britannia a better place through whatever means I need to. My hands are already stained in both the blood of the guilty and the innocent. I can stomach more of it." He sighed as C.C. laid her head on his shoulder, showing support for the burden he had decided to take on.
He appreciated it, indeed he did, but he suspected that this pressure on his heart would never go along, not as long as he wore the crown. "That's how I will atone…by bringing peace to the world and guarding it for as long as I draw breath." But also, he didn't want it to. He had done many…many terrible things. If this was what he had to do to make up for it, he was getting off easy.
“And you think you can?” Leila pressed him, needing details to see if this was merely ego-talk or just a matter of strength in his convictions.
Lelouch's eyes sharpened even further as he frowned. “I didn’t decide on this because I think I can. I decided on it because I must do it. I’m not a white knight, I’m not some messiah, I’m a devil, but one that will ensure he’s the only evil allowed to exist, the fighting, the suffering, the discrimination, hate, and death, I'll ensure that through my reign, that such are stopped.”
"People typically call demons black or dark, but I think what you're describing is white devil," C.C. added in, making Lelouch frown harder as he lowered a glare towards his witch and queen.
"Please don't say it like that; people already call Kururugi the White Grim Reaper; I'd rather not they start associating us more than strictly necessary.” C.C. retorted that they had already done so since he was the one that made him his Knight of One, the position that was traditionally for both the strongest and the emperor's personal bodyguard.
Listening to this, Leila couldn't help it. She started to laugh, drawing their attention to her. She continued to laugh, free and loud, which Lelouch thought was just beautiful. When she finally controlled herself, she had to wipe a tear from her eye, but her smile was powerful and sincere as gold. “Of all the things to be concerned about, that’s what gets under your skin?”
"I'm happy that I decided to follow my heart on this. It means that I didn't need this after all.” She said as she reached into her ear, where she had an ear-ring and removed it before doing the same for a button that had been on the rim of her sleeveless dress, one Lelouch noted and nothing more because it was placed right on her rather…plump bosom.
“Why did you remove pieces of your clothing?” Lelouch asked her, but she smiled in turn as he picked up the piece, and now that he was looking at it closer, it…wait a second.
She saw that he figured it out. "They're not clothing; they're a microphone and camera made by some of my friends from the now defunct wZero unit, a mic, and cameras that have been transmitting to everyone I've seen and heard since I walked into the throne room." Lelouch wisely decided to think about what that meant later as he groaned into his hand while C.C. merely raised an eyebrow.
“You were wearing a wire?”
“Not technically, as there are no exposed wires. I wasn’t comfortable with it, but well…” Lelouch gave her a look that was unamused with her wordplay, but he still listened. “I needed to be sure that you were the same boy I once knew, and while that’s far from true. You’re not the monster I feared that you would be.” He nearly laughed at that, as he had just admitted that he was a monster, but one that she could work with.
"Then you wouldn't mind me handing it over to my security services to ensure that something like this doesn't happen again, as I prefer that unknown third parties don't find means to leak government secrets? " he asked, holding out the two things, which she handed over to him. It was a shame he couldn't have Lloyd look at this, as it wasn't his field, and that man made it clear as day how little interest he had in anything besides his field.
"But where are your…friends, then?" He didn't quite know how to refer to them since, by Leila's admission, they were once her subordinates. Then they left the E.U. military and started traveling with Romani for the last eight months.
"They're hidden in the city. I helped smuggle them a couple of days ago. In fact, why don't you speak with them? They've been listening and watching everything thus far." Leila just casually dropped them as he blinked. How the hell did she smuggle known enemy combatants into his capital?
But she didn't seem to be lying, and despite his typical reaction, he believed her when she said that. So when he was handed her phone, already on the line with whoever was on the other side, he was half expecting them to pop up from the shrubbery.
"Afternoon, to whom am I speaking?" He asked, getting an amused laugh on the other hand.
“Oh, I win the bet then. Names Yukiya Naruse, and I thought you'd be an arrogant prick, as Leila described you earlier. But it seems you have some manners.” The faceless, at least to him, person replied with little if any respect for his title, which actually bought him some favor with the young emperor.
“Charmed, do you happen to make a habit of hacking into things, or listening to things that you shouldn’t.” Something told him that the person on the other end was a troublemaker; he sounded much too much like C.C.
“You read me like a book. I'm a rather curious, competitive soul, and if I see a security system, I just can't help myself, so I'll at least try to break it." He had to speak with the chief of his cyber security and see if they couldn't reinforce whatever measures they had in place. Something he had already done once Schneizel vanished along with the FLIEJA.
He opened his mouth to ask him if he had tried to break into the palace system or something else he should be worried about, but the person he was talking to got into a discussion with someone else, most likely one of Leila's other friends though he couldn't pick up too much about the conversation, only that it was in Japanese.
“Oh, right-right, I'm not the only one here. As boss lady said, we got our entire group into town. By the way, you need to overhaul security as it was laughable easy. I nearly planted a bomb filled with whipped cream just to prove-” Whatever he was going to say, which would have indeed given Lelouch reason to worry, was cut when someone grabbed the phone.
He and Lelouch ignored the 'Hey' in the background and got back on track. “Ignore him. We ensured that he doesn't have easy access to explosives.” Looking at Leila, she smiled but nodded.
“And who might you be?”
“Hyuga Akito. I've been with Leila the longest of the pilots…well, former pilots here.” Cycling through the list of names Leila had given him and his unwanted memories of Kingsley, he managed to recall a face that matched that name, one of the few pilots on the planet that could actually keep up with Suzaku even when in a comparatively lower spec machine.
"I see; well, I hope you were pleased with your brother's demise then. I don't recall him much, but he was quite the bastard." For some, such a statement would have been nearly comedically offensive. Still, with people like them, it was a depressing reality.
“Your majesty, you don’t know the half of it. But I do have a question for you.” Akito stated.
“Speak.”
“What do you intend to do with Leila?” His tone didn't shift all that much, but Lelouch would have been a fool if he wasn't able to tell; there was an edge to it, a lethality that was a fusion of experience killing men for less as a soldier and the passion that came when defending something precious. Lelouch could respect a man like that, though he still felt amused by the unsaid threat to his life from the Ghost of Hannibal.
"You don't need to worry. I don't intend to do her any harm or force her to do anything she doesn't want to do. If she wishes to leave and return with you back to Europe, she'll have my blessing." Leila's eyes widened a little. Did she think he would force her to stay? Insanity.
He didn't know that she didn't react that way because she thought he would force her to leave but because she wanted to stay. "Well, there was something I was after. Should I confirm that you were doing this for the right reasons, I would ask for an advisory role. The E.U. might still exist as a shadow of its former self, and while you're doing good for everyone."
"You believe you can help me better manage things in Britannia's holdings in Africa and Europe? I was thinking of ways to reform the viceroy position and how it would interact with nobles. You could give my rule legitimacy in Europe to help promote cooperation." Lelouch finished her statement, as that would be opportune, exceptionally so as he needed people like that. Unlike many others, he could trust and depend on her to handle things without him needing to micromanage.
C.C. rolled her eyes at the two's conversation and decided to cut through the fat to get to the meat of things, something that she was sure even that blockhead Suzaku had seen. "She could do all that and more if you two stopped dancing around the bush and made her your 2nd queen. That also comes with many benefits, which I currently enjoy, and while you're not a pizza person like me, you might like how you two would be able to go at it like rabbi-!"
“C.C. please remember that we’re not alone in this conversation.” Lelouch’s glare toward her was much stronger than before, though it wasn't nearly as intimidating as he and Leila were as red as tomatoes. Leila's mouth opened and closed as she tried to speak but only let out increasingly high-pitched peeps, her mind trying and succeeding in imagining that picture that C.C. painted.
“Oh, don’t stop on our account.” Yukiya got back on the call, sounding like he was barely holding it together, with other people already laughing on the line.
“Yeah, this is comedy gold. Oh, I didn’t think that the man who killed old Charlie would be able to blush like that.” Another said before laughing even harder.
“Don’t pretend like you didn’t want this, Lulu.” C.C. only threw fuel onto the fire as Lelouch let out a loud, exhausted groan as, by God, he loved C.C. He really did, but she really made his life such a pain just for the fun of it.
“Lulu? Oh God, that’s hilarious!” Of course, they had heard that a nickname he had used quite a bit of blackmailing and threatening at Ashford to ensure only those on the council used was now known to people he had just started speaking to.
“Wait, does that mean he was already planning on asking her out?” Leila went utterly silent as steam might have shot out her ears at that, as Lelouch just placed his head onto his folded arms. He thought he had escaped this with Milly. He was a fool.
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Hello, and we're back with the second chapter, which is great for a specific person who's reading this 2 weeks before most. We managed to get a lot done in the last chapter, as when I think about it, it was strange that when both Lelouch and Suzaku were in C's world and seemingly about to kill each other,…nothing happened. Charles claimed to have spoken to Clovis while in there, so you would imagine that someone close to either would have made themselves known if only to watch them do it since they had A LOT of enemies.
In fact, if the Requiem never came to be, I could have seen that being the only time Lelouch met Naoto, who probably either starts or ends their first and only meeting by punching Lelouch in the face and leaving the reason vague enough that he doesn't know why, but we the audience understand as him being pissed that this dude can't give his sister a straight answer on what he feels for her. But while I can talk about that, there's a chapter to read(or read if this was posted at the bottom if you're reading this on the place that shall not be named). So yeah, enjoy.
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And with that, Leila entered the story. And before you ask, yes, her past was changed, and so was Lelouch's, which made it so they knew each other as kids. I also changed up Lelouch's reforms as, while good for the most part, as he's not planning to… die, he's moving things slower to give himself the time to work things out. That said, you gotta love having absolute power as the emperor, as it means that even then, he can bull rush things and not need to worry about the law or checks and balances. Is that what an authoritarian would think? Yes, but Lelouch IS an authoritarian, the kind of strong man strong men say they are, the solution to problems.
