the power behind a name

Summary: It is a sad, sad day when one realizes they destroyed all of their fellow BL fanfic writers' dreams just by existing. In other words, hi, I'm Princess Lelouch, and between not dying and saving the entire world, I still have to decide whether I want to go for the yuri harem route, or skedaddle with Suzaku and say goodbye to slash...BL lovers, pls have mercy. SI!fem!Lelouch

Disclaimer: Do you really think I'll be writing fanfiction if I owned Code Geass?

Chapter IV: Adoption

I blinked blearily at my two brothers.

Whatever meds Schneizel fed me were finally starting to do its job, because my feverish mind no longer felt as dizzy as it did before. Unfortunately, I felt a different headache making its presence known the moment the older boy had asked me that question.

What I intended to do now? If I had already figured out my future plans, did he think I would have continued to be so distraught?!

...To be honest, there wasn't much I could hope to do. In canon, Lelouch's demands for justice had only resulted in both his and Nunnally's exile. Thus, I obviously didn't have any hopes that Emperor Charles would help us. And now, with mother, Marianne gone...

Frankly, I wondered if this was how Emperor Charles' other children disappeared, one by one. He had over a hundred consorts, and almost each of them had at least one child, but the public was only aware of a few. Did my other half-brothers and sisters die after their mothers were taken out?

Perhaps canon Lelouch's exile had ended up saving him and Nunnally instead of damning them. At least the people in Japan had to keep the two of them alive. There was no one in the imperial family who would do the same here.

In that case, throwing a tantrum in front of my father was the way to go.

Except...I bit my lower lip. Targeted or not, Nunnally would be treated to better medical facilities here than she would in Japan. Could I really make a decision like this in her stead?

I didn't particularly want to lug my fragile sister through a war-zone either...honestly, unless the protagonist's magical halo was helping me, I didn't think I would even be capable of doing that without sending the both of us into an early grave.

"Lulu?"

"Uh," snapping out of my daze, I pursed my lips and struggled to say something that wasn't stupid. "I-I'm not sure yet."

...Way to go, me. That hadn't been a stupid response, but it was quite a useless one.

Then again, pretending to be dumb was also a strategy I could consider employing. After all, I wasn't that fond of spilling all my future plans to my two older brothers. Sure, they acted all worried for Nunnally and I now, but who knew what they would be like by the time the canon plot started. Maybe, like canon, Schneizel and Clovis would have long become my enemies by then.

I steadfastly ignored the way my stomach flipped at the mere thought.

"Lelouch," Schneizel stared at me with narrow eyes. "I'm sure you're already aware of this, so let me be blunt. This will be the end of the vi Britannia line."

"Schneizel!" Clovis hissed, surprisingly speaking against Schneizel for once as I tried to hide a flinch.

What was the purpose of that statement? Sure, it was true, but what did Schneizel gain by saying it out loud?

My second eldest brother could be the number one host of a host club if he desired, with his slippery tongue that could talk him out of any situation. I refused to believe his tact had suddenly left him like this!

"She's past the age for us to coddle her, Clovis," Schneizel snapped before pressing his lips into a tight line. He...was also showing a surprising amount of anger.

Um...did the medicine Schneizel give me have any hallucinatory properties? Why were my two brothers suddenly acting so OOC?

"Yes," I abruptly said as I subtly broke up my brothers' glaring contest. I certainly didn't want to find Clovis dead in a ditch tomorrow for going against Schneizel. "Yes, big brother, I understand Nunna and I are in a very precarious position now that mother...mother is gone."

Pfft, that had got to be the understatement of the year.

Pausing, I felt the corners of my lips tilt upward into a wry smile. "And father is calling off the investigation already, right?"

"How do you know about that?" Clovis blurted out, sounding horribly guilty but curious at the same time.

"Well," I shrugged with practiced, fake nonchalance. "Father has never ordered an investigation for the deaths of the other aunties. I'm surprised he even ordered one for Mother, but I guess even he's wary of being killed in his own home, considering Mother was killed in her palace."

"...You have understood your situation well," Schneizel said, his lips forming a small smirk as Clovis gaped at me in surprise.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I guess it would have been pretty surprising for a young child to understand all of this, but I definitely wasn't a young child so it just made me embarrassed whenever Schneizel praised me. Schneizel was the real prodigy of the family here.

"But your understanding does make things easier to discuss," Schneizel said with a hint of approval in his tone. I willed the blush on my cheeks away before adopting a serious countenance. "Big brother, what are you talking about?"

Instead of answering, the eldest in the room handed me some papers. Feeling a bit baffled, I took a look at them...and then felt myself choke.

"A-Adoption?" I squeaked before giving my brother a look of bafflement. What the f*ck was my brother up to now?!

Big bro, you just only turned nineteen! Aren't you a bit too young to be saddled with two kids so soon?

"My mother has already agreed," Schneizel began calmly as he ignored Clovis' bug-eyed stare. Reaching over, my second eldest brother pulled me into yet another hug before murmuring, "Is there a need for you to look so surprised? What were you expecting to happen?"

"...Not this," I responded honestly.

"Hm?" Schneizel sounded amused. "Don't tell me you thought you would be staying with Nunnally in the Aries Villa by yourself?"

...Actually, that was exactly what I had been expecting. In the very least, I had never expected the el Britannia family to adopt us, even if Schneizel's mother had been awfully close with Marianne.

"H-Hey, wait!" Clovis started complaining the moment he finally snapped out of his daze. "You can actually do something like this?"

"Yes," Schneizel responded coolly. "We're not your only option either, Lelouch. I believe Cornelia has already brought her request to her elders as well. And from what I can tell, Odysseus and Guinevere will follow."

...Well, Odysseus was definitely not a wise choice. Even if I was fond of my eldest brother, Lady Anticlea had been at odds with Marianne. It was way too risky to be adopted by a woman who had wanted Nunnally and I dead probably even before we were born.

Guinevere wasn't an option either. I didn't have anything against my eldest sister, but she was closest to Carine, who really got onto my nerves. Or well, both she and Nunnally got on my nerves with the way they fought like a cat and a dog. If I had to live through their fights everyday, I think I would go deaf.

That basically left Schneizel and Cornelia.

...Honestly, against my better judgment, I would rather go with Schneizel. He was the one who practically 'raised' me (not that I needed a lot of raising), and I was closer to him compared to Cornelia.

However, Nunnally was definitely closer to Cornelia and Euphemia. The two of them loved her as if she was their full-blooded little sister. Cornelia was also pretty honest, and nothing like two-faced Schneizel.

In addition...

I peered up at Schneizel. I didn't know why, but I sometimes felt as if Schneizel disliked Nunnally. He had no patience at all for my younger sister, and I wondered if this was the real reason his mother never had another child.

...Then again, I could be overthinking it. After all, Schneizel was always patient when he dealt with me, and Nunnally was a brat most of the time.

"There's no need to decide now," Schneizel suddenly spoke up. He helped me lie down and then tucked me into my blankets. "You should be feeling the effects of the medicine soon, so sleeping now would be wise."

"...Of course," I agreed slowly. I wasn't sure if I could fall asleep now, drugged or not. Schneizel really gave me a lot to think about.

"I'll come and visit you again later, Lulu," Clovis said, still looking a bit put out. As for me, I could only thank my stars that Clovis was still underage. Getting adopted by Clovis of all people would have been hilarious.

"Oh, wait," I called out before tugging on Schneizel's jacket. "Brother, can you find Jeremiah for me?"

Schneizel blinked. "Jeremiah?"

"Sir Jeremiah Gottwald," I amended. "He's the guard who has been taking care of me since...since the incident."

"Gottwald?" Schneizel's eyes narrowed before he flashed me a bright smile. "Don't worry, little sister, I'll send him over when I find him."

...I had absolutely no idea why Schneizel smiled his get-ready-to-die-bitches smile, but I squirmed away from him just in case. Clovis was also inching away from him before he gave me an awkward wave and escaped out of the door.

"Sleep well, sister," Schneizel said before standing up. Blinking twice, I yawned before rolling over to my side.

"Thank you for visiting me, brother."

I wasn't sure if it was because of the medicine, but I did end up falling into a pleasant, dreamless sleep.

AN: I feel like this was a pretty boring chapter, was I the only one? Anyway, there's a lot more silent readers than I thought! Thank you for following, favouriting, and reviewing, everyone, and please continue to do so! I guess I'm different from other authors in the sense that even those 'pls update' reviews encourage me lol, since otherwise I don't know if anyone is actually reading and enjoying it enough to want another chapter. In any case, I hope you enjoyed this and see you next time!