rakuen | (no subject)

Characters: Lelouch and the rest of the Code Geass cast present at dinnertime the first day of Round -1. Except Gino. ~~But he's welcome to crash~~. Sorry Rolo.
Format: Prose
This log is: open
Location: Home Ec room
Summary: Lelouch cooks dinner, and the hungry masses were pleased. Also, some catching up is in order for some Princes, Princesses, Knights, and siblings. Also, Lelouch and Kallen need to talk. There's two threads here, one with Lelouch and Kallen, and the other with the dinner. When the others arrive, Kallen's already there, natch.
Warnings: Either saccharine or angst. Or sacchariny angst. You never can tell with this group.

His cooking just didn't seem right. Sure, the flavors were good, and it wasn't like he'd burned anything. He had lost none of his skill, but something seemed off in his measurements. There was an element of precision that was missing. But he couldn't overcome it. The others wouldn't likely notice, but it was distinctly off-putting. And he just didn't like not being able to overcome this.

There was another problem during the planning stages of this meal. He had wanted to incorporate things he knew everyone enjoyed very much, but he could not remember Nunnally's favorite. He knew what she disliked, which was a very short list, but he could not remember her favorite food. He'd settled on something that ranked highly with her, but it still was not her favorite. Out of all of the possible memories that could have been taken, did it have to be that one? Never had cooking been such an annoying process before.

But he went on with his plans, dressing up the room a bit, and borrowing a large table from another classroom that had a better dining-room feel to it. He pulled together as many resources as he could, eventually creating a table arrangement that would suffice. Five place settings and four chairs would do just fine.

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He'd expected Kallen to show up soon, as he entered the finishing stages of his prep. They definitely had much to discuss.

Kallen's had lost track of how many times her eyes scanned over the letter Lelouch left with on her desk back in the classroom. From beginning to end, every time she read it, she felt a wave of disbelief. He, who was dead, wanted to meet with her. He even made mention of people who Kallen knew had passed on as well. Sometimes she thought she was dreaming and just really really wanted to wake up. But after a while, she began that the dream was a reality.

In debating to go or not go, Kallen showed up late. Fingers light on the handle and the teenager slow opened the door.

Edited 2011-01-17 18:22 (UTC)

He looked over when she entered, then put his eyes back on his work. "Hello, Kallen," he said. He wiped his hands off on a towel. He waited for her reaction to his being alive. That's the only explanation for Nunnally's emotion. He'd died. And Nunnally and Kallen were the only ones that remembered.

"Lelouch..." Her voice was barely above a whisper. Lelouch had missed the first time Kallen got a glimpse of him. She had ran out the room and outside, wanting to just wake up from a really bad nightmare. Her reaction now wasn't as strong, but it was the first time she heard his voice since then.

She stepped inside and pressed her back against the door. "You wanted me to come early, but I'm late. Where is everyone?"

"They're coming," he said. "Whatever it is that you're avoiding me for, I don't remember doing it. Or planning it. Considering the nature of this place, it must have been taken from me. But after speaking with Nunnally, I can extrapolate what happened." But there was no note of apology. He wouldn't apologize for doing what he had to do.

"Avoid--" she cut herself off. "I know you spoke with Nunnally. How exactly did you expect to react to see you again? Or rather, what if she or I died and you come here to see us walking around as if what happened didn't occur?" She hated in this moment in time that her emotions were getting the best of her. "I'm not saying you should apologize for what you did. I wish there was another to achieve our goal... I wished that you and I could have found an alternate route... If you're going to apologize, do it for the after effect. The pain of losing you was almost more than I could handle. You betrayed me but I couldn't ignore you."

Everything she wanted to say if she had given the chance.

"She had died," he replied. "At least, for as far as I can remember. My memory ends not long after Schneizel took control of the Black Knights. After Rolo sacrificed himself for my sake," he told her. No, he understood exactly how Nunnally felt. "Everything I have done was to create peace in our world. I have always considered myself a piece in play."

"She didn't. I can assure you of that," Kallen told him. But when Lelouch admitted all that he knew, she took an automatic step back. That means...

He didn't remember when she told him goodbye.

Kallen turned from him, her face downcast.

He nodded. He looked significantly relieved when she told him that she truly hadn't died. Losing them both on the same day was more than he could probably take. "I'm glad to hear that," he said genuinely. He came around the counter, closer to her. "But there are other things that I consider more important at the moment. Such as the presence of Euphemia. She has no idea what happened at the Special Administrative Zone, and it's best that we keep it that way for now."

"I understand," Kallen replied, but refused to look back up at him. She wouldn't be willing to admit to anyone about who died. She didn't plan on telling Suzaku or anyone else (and now Lelouch considering the point he was taken from) that she had killed him. Maybe to an outside source, but she wouldn't give any names. She did mention to Tsuki that she had watched someone die in front her and taking a life of another with her own hands, but never revealed any names.

If these had to be her deep dark secrets now, then so be it.

But he had something else to address with her. "I understand you're refusing to fight. That doesn't seem like you," he stated. "Doesn't having pieces of your life missing outrage you? Don't you remember when the Empire changed everyone's memories after the first rebellion? Shirley's, Milly's, Rivalz', and my own? The former emperor made everyone forget about Nunnally!" His tone grew hotter as he finally let out some of his frustrations with this school. "And now, we must fight to get them back. It's disgusting. Once again, it's a case of the strong oppressing those weaker than themselves." His anger radiated from him in a way it hadn't in a long time. A certain portion was an act, but most of it was genuine.

Kallen stayed quiet, another trait that wasn't exactly like her at the moment. She would have to tell him too, that her missing memories seemed pretty mundane compared to everyone's major ones, especially Gino. And who exactly were they fighting? No one seemed to have an answer of that. Back home, she knew who she was fighting and kept her faith in a certain someone to overcome them. That certain someone in the end, betrayed her. Kallen knew she had to get past that (again), but it wasn't as easy as it sounded. Betrayed to save her. She rather the option have not even been available at the time.

She knew what happened. Everyone seemed to be in the sing song tune about what happened because they forgot. But they regain those memories by finding out the truth, not to play some stupid game and fight each other.

And of course it didn't seem like her. Kallen believed from the point Lelouch was taken from, she was still a Black Knight. But now, she wasn't a fighter. She wasn't the Kallen he remembered. She was a normal high school student who lived through a war. Nothing more, nothing less. She wasn't the fighter she used to be two months ago. Kallen almost glanced down at herself, feeling Guren's key under her uniform.

Blue eyes finally looked back in his direction. A bit somber in appearance but locked onto the boy. Kallen had a lot of things to question right back at him, but there was just one thing that ranked above all of them.

"Just exactly who are you speaking to me as, Lelouch? Is it you or is it Zero?"

Edited 2011-01-19 18:23 (UTC)