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Life seemed calmer since the Demon Emperor's death. Suzaku really disliked those stupid reenactments of Lelouch's death.
Either the crowds were too big, or the actors were all idiots. what a lack of respect! Poor Lelouch's memory was being trampled upon, even by the Black Knights.
Worst of all, his lifelong friend ,his first love ,hadn't even been given a proper funeral, let alone a grave. His body was simply stored in a dark, cold, empty room, without any preservation measures.
Suzaku decided he had to take action; stealing Lelouch's remains would be child's play. There were no guards, and everyone would likely assume the body had simply decomposed by now. Yet, by some stroke of luck, the body had remained intact,showing absolutely no signs of decay. Perhaps the gods were on his side.
Besides, why did he steal the remains? "Stealing" felt like the wrong word; of course it wasn't theft -it was a service. He loved him more than anything in the world and simply wanted Lulu to retain his dignity, even in death. He would take better care of him than anyone else could.
The days that followed were long, but having Lelouch by his side made things more bearable. He could talk to him now and then ,thankfully, the windows in his room were tinted. There wasn't much variety to his routine: missions, meetings, Kallen recruiting more and more people, and C.C. rambling on about her life as a witch.
She kept going on about Geass users, the World of C, and Charles's ambition,warning that one had to be careful, that Geass users could be brought back to life, yet noting that some souls remained trapped in the World of C while others often lost their memories. A whole lot of useless nonsense, really.
Wait... why hadn't he thought of this sooner? It was the solution to all his problems! (This is the first time I've used the simple present tense in this story, isn't it?) All he had to do was bring Lelouch back to life. The others would surely object, but he was Zero, after all and who really needed to know?
--- (time skip 🪄🪄🪄🪄)
At last, he and Lulu were reunited. It had been no easy task, calling it arduous would be an understatement.
But that wasn't the main issue.
A major problem remained: what was he going to tell Lelouch? He had told him to wait in his room while he finished up a brief meeting. He would have actually preferred it if Lelouch had lost his memory; but ,thanks to whichever god he had offended ,Lelouch remembered everything from his childhood with Suzu right up to the death of Euphemia.
Lelouch wasn't stupid enough to trust Suzaku blindly, especially given that he was in the midst of a nervous breakdown. Perhaps that would work in Suzaku's favor. Suzaku , like an angel fallen from the sky (even though his heart was currently filled with ill intent) , was there to comfort Lelouch. *His* Lelouch.
They discussed the news reports about the death of the Demon Emperor, who bore a striking resemblance to Lelouch and what Suzaku had been doing while wearing the Zero costume.
Suzaku chose neither to lie to Lelouch nor to tell him the whole truth; perhaps that was the best approach.
In his state of disillusionment, Lulu had chosen to trust Suzu. From what he gathered, people hated him now, and Nunnally seemed to be among them. (Who would have guessed that Suzaku was such a skilled manipulator?)
-
Lelouch’s life wasn't half bad. He was fed, housed,
and safe ? Even if it was Suzaku doing the feeding, which was thoroughly strange . Suzaku kept insisting that Lelouch shouldn't make any sudden movements, that he was still fragile, and that if someone knocked on the door, he had to go hide and stay quiet; that part was even stranger. Above all, Suzaku had become clingier than usual.
-
Suzaku was rather proud of himself. He had managed to bring Lelouch back to life, keep him safe in his room, and make him forget all the hangers-on around them. Even if Lulu was a bit reluctant about holding hands, being fed, and sharing kisses. He was just so shy and cute at the same time. As long as he didn't verbally refuse, it meant he wasn't opposed to it.
----
The other members of the Order of the Black Knights had better things to do than concern themselves with Zero's private life. Even if he had been surprisingly cheerful lately. Usually, after a long, busy day, Zero would return the next morning radiating an aura that clearly warned everyone to stay away. But by some miracle, everyone got the impression that Zero was smiling behind his mask.
----
Today had been a particularly long day. Suzaku walked down the long corridors, eager to go snuggle in Lulu's arms. Maybe it was time to take things to the next level with Lelouch. Even if Lulu would probably squirm and whine if he tried to go further than a kiss or a hug. It was obvious that this was Lelouch's first same-sex relationship... Did Lelouch even realize he was in a relationship? Pfft. What a silly question. Of course he did.
After feeding Lelouch and giving him a nice hot bath, it was time to get down to business. As usual, Lulu complained and even kicked out. Poor Lulu , he was surely too embarrassed; he kept saying they shouldn't do this, that he didn't want to, blah, blah, blah... He had even said he didn't love him! It broke Suzaku's heart. But in his great kindness, he wiped away Lelouch's tears the next day.