Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

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"Look, C.C.! A falling star."

The green-haired girl stirred on the bed slightly as she turned toward the big window, narrowing her eyes to clear the remaining sleepiness. "A falling star?" she asked, slowly sitting up.

Lelouch was standing beside the window, holding the curtain so that she could see. He was still dressed in his plain, white T-shirt that he went to sleep with. His soft, black hair was disheveled like he hadn't brushed it, but strangely enough, he was still looking gorgeously handsome, despite the wrinkled shirt and slightly messed-up hair.

C.C. glanced at the clock located on the bedside table and saw it was merely 2:30 in the morning. No wonder he hadn't combed his hair; she thought it was already dawning outside when he woke her up.

"A falling star?" she repeated, now staring at another star joining its falling companion. "You woke me up for that?" A hint of annoyance in her voice, though very slightly.

Lelouch turned toward the dark-bluish sky and said. "It's sad, isn't it? To see a beautiful star fall from the sky."

She narrowed her eyes. He had never spoken like this, not so poetic or philosophical. Ever. At least not that she knew of, but she knew him well enough to know he hardly ever used this kind of speech, unless required to. It was still more like never though.

"I wonder if its friends or family would miss it," he continued, his gaze faraway.

"You're not sleep-talking, are you?" she inquired incredulously, already starting to get up and walking toward him to make sure he's not going to fall due to sleepwalking, sleep-talking. Whatever it was.

When she was about three feet away from him, he slowly swirled around and met her golden orbs. A faraway look was still in his bright violet eyes. "I'm not, C.C.," he said softly.

She narrowed her eyes once more time at him. "Then why are you talking like that?" she queried.

He whipped his head toward the sky beyond again, and when he spoke, she knew the usually stoic, challenging, goal-driven and rational Lelouch was gone, now replaced by someone softer, sadder, lonelier, and unfamiliar to even her. "I was just wondering how it must be to leave forever and no one will remember you, or they might but as a cursed, bad image," he replied to her question.

C.C. knew immediately what he's referring to. The cruel, solitary path that he must take as Zero.

She put her hands behind her back and advanced toward him. Standing beside him, she looked up at the dim sky above, only lighted by the shining white stars that filled its space – limited space that was visible to human eyes only. The infinity beyond that point was a complete mystery. C.C. had often wondered if people would travel the 'mysterious' path of the endless sky once they died. Well, she shouldn't know because death had been erased from her dictionary ever since she inherited the Code.

"Did you just see this by chance or were you staying up all night waiting for it?" asked C.C. as another brilliant star fell from the sky. She also wondered where they went. Did they cease to existence? What happened to them?

"Just by chance," he replied, "I was going to get a glass of water when I noticed the first falling star. I didn't think much about it at first, but then its reality poured over me and I realized that we shared the same destiny." Then he chuckled. A very sad and dry chuckle. "It's weird, isn't it? For me to think that way, that is."

C.C. didn't say anything for a full minute as if calculating her words, as if trying to choose the right ones to fit the moment. Then she spoke quietly, "You're scared, aren't you Lelouch?"

She had expected him to stiffen at the question, but rather he relaxed his shoulders and let out a long sign. "I believe fear isn't one of my options. Even if it were, if I let myself be frightened, the ultimate goal could never be completed, right?"

"You're strong, Lelouch."

"Weren't you, too?" he asked, turning his head slightly to look at her in the dark room with only the lights from the stars as a main source of light. "What do you mean?" she inquired.

"When you found out that you couldn't die, that you're not a human. You were scared, too, weren't you? But you overcame that fear and moved on. That proved that you're a strong woman as well, C.C." Lelouch said, smiling slightly. He spoke those words with such softness that she didn't know he reserved for anyone other than his most beloved sister, Nunnally. And how it strangely warmed her frozen heart and made it dancing ever so slightly against her chest. C.C. had to grip her hands behind her back harder in order to keep the heart from jumping around uncontrollably. She wasn't used to this way of talking of his, especially when it's directed at her, but she guessed she could learn to.

When the heart had calmed a little bit, C.C. turned and smiled encouragingly at him. "Ahh, but I was scared of something else. Just because I couldn't die doesn't mean I wanted to experience all different ways of death that people imposed on me. I was scared of how they'd execute me back then."

"But you overcame it and lived on."

"It's not like I really had an option," she chuckled.

"My point is, you're strong, C.C. You were still a pretty young girl when all that happened."

"And my point is, it's OK to be scared," she stated firmly.

Lelouch made no response as he stared out into the infinity beyond, mind wandering the endlessness and nothingness of where he would be going quite soon.

"It's okay to be scared," he spoke softly at last. "I'll definitely keep that in mind when the time comes." Another small chuckle escaped his thin lips.

Another star fell, and C.C. couldn't help but think that their falling might be shadowing something. Something grave, depressed yet peaceful and serene would snake its way into their lives without warning. Just like those falling stars; they fell without warning.

Before she registered what she's doing, C.C. reached out her hand and intertwined it with his, and to her mild surprise, he didn't flinch and withdraw at the sudden contact.

He was shaking, ever so slightly, she could deduce that much even without seeing his face in the dark room with only the stars as the main source of light. She then looked up and as if on cue, two more bright stars departed.

"Look," C.C. said, pointing toward the sight. "See that?"

Lelouch followed her long, delicate finger and nodded. "Yes, new falling stars."

"See what the difference this time is?"

He frowned, and she continued. "They're not alone, Lelouch. Even though they're falling into endless infinity, they still have companions. You're not alone, Lelouch; I'll be with you till the very end. We'll share the fear together."

Lelouch glanced sideways to stare into her beautiful face with bright golden orbs, as if trying to detect any lies lie within them. But when he found none, other than sincerity, the corner of his lips jerked up into a smirk as his hand squeezed hers tighter. "I know you will."

Outside, the falling had ceased.