Code after Geass (Introduction)

A dirt road stretched miles without end on the hills of a clean countryside. From a distance, there was nothing but one path and green scenery. The even trotting of horses and rolling wheels echoed around the empty landscape. C.C. lain calmingly at the back of the cart, wearing an elegant dress that resembled the ones worn a century earlier. She faced the clear blue sky with a smile and began, "I said Geass was the power of the king which would condemn you to a life of solitude." She looked back without moving an inch and continued, "Hmph, I think that is not quite correct. Right, Lelouch?"

"Hmph," the cart driver responded, "Geass was just an accursed symbol. Those who carry it were forever blamed for corrupting the natural flow of life, of existence, even time. Deep inside them lays a cold heart of shame and despair. Isn't that right C.C.?"

"Perhaps your interpretation is more correct," C.C. said with a smile.

"I don't know about that but there is only one absolute truth in this world," Lelouch replied.

"And what is that?"

"The greatest pain in life is to lose everybody around you."

"How unfortunate, I have lived that way for the past five hundred years."

"Do not despair C.C. As long as I am here, you won't ever be lonely."

"I am glad I've met you dear. This new world you created is something absolutely marvellous!"

"Please C.C.; I am not Lelouch vi Britannia. He is dead; a figure of history remembered by all to be the short-reigned tyrant."

"Call me Cecilia from now on. Only then will I promise to love you. Our contract is broken remember?"

She is right, the contract is no more. With Lelouch vi Britannia, who represented all the world's hatred has been erased off the Earth, the world is now a better place. Now in this post-war era, my future will be with her. C.C., I mean, Cecilia will no longer be in solitude as long as I am with her. I promised her that we will live a simple life together.

"What contract? Lelouch Lamperouge didn't form a pact with a witch?"

"If you are not Lelouch vi Britannia anymore, then neither am I C.C. So don't call me a witch! I am a woman now; I am your woman."

Lelouch was startled by her last remark, "Did you just say?"

"Uh-huh, you heard me."

"Well, I see somebody is honest."

"Is it wrong that I see myself that way?"

"I didn't say it was wrong. But it was strange coming out of you."

"There you go again, treating me like when I was C.C.!"

"Alright, alright, you win!"

"It's not about winning! It's about my heart."

There was an awkward silence between the two.

"Lelouch," C.C. started.

Lelouch returned, "Yes Cecilia?"

"Where exactly is this house you speak of?"

"Why it's here in the countryside! I bought before the Zero Requiem."

"You just have to be different, do you?"

Lelouch chuckled and replied, "The world would be boring if everybody followed one conduct. By the way, that Code-Sealing trick you taught me was genius! I forgot to thank you."

"Since the day you first thanked me, you have thanked me enough. Don't mention it my love."

"That was the day I learned your name was Cecilia."

"I remembered it crystal clear. It was quite romantic actually, although the atmosphere in that cave wasn't."

"Ha-ha, I never thought you had fallen for me since then!"

"I wasn't completely! That was just the beginning of our romance."

"Cecilia, Cecilia, you act so cute sometimes! It's just adorable."

C.C.'s face was flushed with embarrassment when those words slipped out of Lelouch's lips. She threw her doll and bag to Lelouch's right.

"Whoa, are you getting mad after a little tease from me," Lelouch asked in a jovial manner, "Come on, you tease me all the time!"

C.C. placed the pink paper crane Lelouch folded for her on his straw hat and climbed down to his side. Lelouch took off his hat and placed the paper crane in it. He spoke with a gentle tone, "Well, are you mad at me?" She hugged his arm and said, "No, I just needed some company."

C.C., I mean Cecilia, UGH this is frustrating! Cecilia, like all people, changes by the times. As humanity progress, society evolve, technology improve. She has progressed and her personality has evolved. No longer is she a prisoner of the empire or a prisoner of her own heart. She is free from the shackles of oppression and free to express her true feelings. It turns out; the real Cecilia was sort of like the time she lost her memory. She is cute and selfless, unlike her cold demeanour before. I think I am beginning to enjoy this! There is still a playful spirit inside her and now she can finally let it out.

"We're almost there Cecilia. Can you see that big house," Lelouch pointed at the horizon.

"I see it," C.C. exclaimed, "My, it looks wonderful!" The house looked like a villa.

"I know. It only costs fifty thousand pounds in this obscure place," Lelouch told her.

"I am just happy for the two of us. Let us live a merry life dearest Lelouch," she said.

Lelouch halted the cart at the front door. He tied a string to a wooden stake by the door and placed a boulder in front of the left hind wheel. "I am sick and tired of living in big cities. It is so cramped and insecure," Lelouch complained.

"So that was why you bought a house here in the open," C.C. asked.

"Partially, I use to live in the palaces of Britannia, where the cold metropolitan atmosphere was non-existent. Also, I just wanted a fresh start, a change in style."

"This place looks even more beautiful up close!"

"Go figure, this house was a built by a wealthy merchant over a century ago as a summer home. The place was last renovated when they sold it to the person I bought it from."

C.C. opened the door and walked in. She gasped at the spaciousness and beautifully decorated walls and ceilings. "This place is lovely," she exclaimed as she spun in circles by the entrance. "Oh the splendid windows and spiral staircase," she exclaimed wondrously as she climbed up the stairwell. Lelouch followed her upstairs after moving her items in. By the time he arrived, C.C. was indulging herself on the wide balcony facing the sun. Lelouch stepped through the glass door and wrapped his right arm around her shoulder. "Did I mention we get this spacious pasture to ourselves," he said.

C.C.'s face lit like a bright candle on a festive day, "Really? All this," she exclaimed.

"I am glad you like it," he said with a smile.

"I can't express my feelings… it's so serene around here and alone with you…I," she stuttered.

"Cecilia, I will stay with you for eternity," he said as he inched his face closer to hers.

C.C. pressed her lips tenderly against his and closed her eyes. Tears rolled down her firm complexion for she was soulfully moved by his passion. "Lelouch, my true wish is to love and be loved. I love you and I am being loved by you," C.C. confessed, "Isn't this just gorgeous?"

"I love you as you desire, just how you like it," Lelouch answered her heart. They stood intimately in each other's arms, in their own privacy, without any observers but the warm afternoon sun.

Her personality completely transformed. She was a lonely witch who spoke monotonously when we first met. I liberated all her woes and she is now as vibrant as Nature herself; full of joy and vivacity. I'm glad to be with her under this blissful field, this euphoric time. Let's just say, I fell for Cecilia at first sight.

"For once Geass united the world. Most importantly, Geass united the two of us." (Lelouch Lamperouge)

"Lelouch let me be with you—always."

(C.C.)