Chapter 98 ~ Haunting Past

Bored after staying inside her room for a few days, C.C decided to walk around the campus area of Ashford Academy in disguise. 

Her beautiful, long, lime-green hair had been tied into a bun and stuffed into a sun hat that she wore to hide her face not only from the sun, but from others' eyes. 

She wore a white, long-sleeved, lacy shirt with a brown leather corset that hugged her slim waist and cupped her sizable breasts perfectly, and a long checkered skirt. She had also worn a pair of beautiful, white heels and a golden necklace with a diamond-shaped emerald jewel that she normally wouldn't wear. But today was an exception. 

This would be the first time C.C would be wearing the gifts Alexander gave her a few days ago. 

She hesitated wearing such beautiful and heartfelt gifts from Alexander for the longest time, undeserving as she was. But his words finally pushed her into making the decision to wear them. 

I hope you like them, and wear them from time to time.

The gifts she received… They were all things that Alexander had chosen carefully after thinking about her. 

Gifts given to her purely out of his generosity, without any ulterior motives or being compelled by anything. 

Gifts given to her in hopes for her happiness. 

To have received such a thing… There was no way C.C could not wear them. 

So, after a few days of deliberation, she decided to wear them and breathe in some fresh air. 

And for the first time in a long time, she felt like the world had gotten brighter in her eyes. 

She looked up into the sky, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath as she felt the breeze blow past her. 

"What a clear day…"

She began walking around the academy, making sure to take a quiet path and being careful of walking into anyone else during her outing. She was lucky that the one who saw her was Alexander, but she knew such luck won't come to her twice. So, she became extra cautious. 

After a while, however, the comfortable silence and peace she hadn't been able to experience for so long made her daydream about her past. 

She had been running away for so long. Running away from conflicts in this war-torn world. From people in fear of the betrayal and pain they would inevitably cause her. And from life that seemed to love her suffering. 

But now… such things seemed so far away. Although she was still unable to escape conflict, she found herself feeling at peace at last. 

The world, that seemed so bleak before, had now become brighter.

And before she knew it, she found herself standing behind a tree in the courtyard, staring up towards a classroom window from below. 

She couldn't see anyone on the other side due to the light reflecting off it, but she knew which class it was, as she had caught herself staring at the same window recently before realizing it.

Alexander's class. 

C.C dazedly stared at it as a warmth filled her chest. She then looked down and held up the diamon-shaped emerald jewel from her necklace to look at it. The beautiful jewel shimmering so brilliantly under the light of the sun, and she looked back up at the window. 

She couldn't see his figure, but in her mind, she could imagine his handsome visage sitting in class, listening to the lesson seriously just like when he listened to her story. 

And the thought alone was enough to bring a smile to her face. 

Unfortunately, the peace and warmth she had long sought suddenly vanished as a pair of arms slithered around her from the back. 

"Ah… My C.C…! I've finally found you!"

"!!!"

A chill went down her spine as the familiar voice and heavy breathing resounded right beside her ear. 

She instinctively turned around and pushed the man away in fear as cold sweat began dripping down her back. 

And in that moment, her eyes went wide in shock as a wave of memories rushed into her.

"M-Mao…?!"

Her breathings turned ragged as she looked at the tall, silver-haired, lanky figure of Mao, clad in a light blue short jacket with symmetrical gold and blue designs and a chinese linen shirt with maroon sleeves. 

He wore a black and purple headphones, from which C.C could hear her own voice from it when he was hugging her from behind, a pair of golden earrings, and purple sunglasses that covered his eyes, which were both encompassed with geass.

There was a wide grin of pure happiness on his face. But it quickly turned into a frown the moment C.C pushed him away. 

He tilted his head to the side, seemingly unable to understand her actions.

"C.C…? Why did you push me away…? It's me… Mao. Your Mao…"

"S-Stay away!"

Mao froze mid step when he was about to approach her as his mind struggled to comprehend what was happening. 

Why did C.C pushed him away…? The C.C he knew was loving, gentle, and caring. She would've never pushed him away.

And instead of shock, caution, and fear, she would be looking at him with eyes filled with love and affection. 

So why…? Why did she change…? She even told him to stay away…?

"Oh… I see… It's because of them, isn't it…? They changed you…!"

A look of realization appeared on his countenance. Mao looked up towards the window to the class where he knew Lelouch and Alexander were in. And his expression quickly turned from that of confusion and sadness, into a pure, deep seethed anger. 

"What…?"

C.C followed the direction of his gaze, and her eyes immediately widened in shock upon realizing what he meant.

"Lelouch and… Alexander. They're the ones who changed you…!"

"No, Mao-"

"Don't lie to me!!!"

Mao raised his voice. His shout freezing C.C in her place.

"...I've been watching you from afar, my dear C.C. And I've seen it all with my own eyes… you've changed. You've changed after you meet them. Especially Alexander…!"

Mao let out a soft, pained laughter that began to turn into a chuckle that sent chills down her spine. 

"How strange though… I couldn't read their minds… Not only Lelouch… But that Alexander as well… But no matter… I'm sure I can if I get close to them. I won't let anyone get in between you and me."

"Mao! Stop that! What are you say-"

"Don't worry, C.C… When I'm done with them, we'll be together forever, just like before… We can travel the world together… And spend the rest of our lives together…!"

C.C froze mid sentence when she saw a wide grin form on his countenance as he began to laugh. A grin so different from the innocent, pure smile she had seen from him in her memories. 

"Please wait for me, my C.C… I promise you, it won't be long…"

Mao stood before her for a moment, burning her beautiful figure into his mind, and left, leaving C.C alone, standing frozen in shock and disbelief…

--------------------------------X--------------------------------

In the midst of theorizing and coming up with ways to improve upon the new weapon he and Tatsuya were designing for his Excalibur, Yuuji was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt a killing intent directed at him. 

He glanced out towards the window ever so slightly as to not alert his classmates and the teacher. But his eyes widened in shock the moment he saw C.C as well as Mao in the courtyard, facing off each other. 

That bastard…! I didn't expect them to meet right now!!!

Since C.C hadn't been going out often, they didn't have any of Satoru's phantom to guard and shadow C.C. Although he could summon all 40 of his guild members, Satoru had only ever summoned "Ainz", "Peroroncino", and "Nishikienari" to guard their home, the Black Knight's base, and the secret headquarters where the Amaterasu was located in, just in case people accidentally came across it. 

Normally, they would have "Ainz", who was currently guarding their mansion, follow C.C. But since Yuuji and Lelouch were both in the academy, they didn't find it necessary, especially since Yuuji planned on coming over to visit C.C. He even brought his laptop so he could trade while he was relaxing there with her.

But unfortunately, they made a big mistake. 

"Ms. Xavier! Please forgive me. I am feeling a bit under the weather. I shall make my way to the nurse's office!"

"Ah- Alexander, wai-!"

Yuuji didn't wait for his teacher's permission and dashed out of the class, quickly making his way towards the courtyard where he saw C.C and Mao. 

He would've loved to fly there, but even if he could be invisible, he might still hit students or people walking the hallway if he were to go so fast. In the end, he could only run as quickly as he could while still keeping his speed humanly possible. 

And inside his class, silence fell as everyone stared at the still opened door in shock. 

This was the first time they've ever seen Alexander act so… panicked. 

Although no one believed the excuse he gave, anything that could cause him such panic must've been an extreme emergency. 

"A-Ahem! Alright, let's return to our lesson now, class!"

Rivalz, Shirley, and the rest of the class quickly snapped out of their shock and daze and tried to focus back on their lessons. But Lelouch and Karen kept staring at the door in silence. 

Lelouch was worried, knowing that something substantial must've happened to cause Yuuji to act in such a manner. While Karen also couldn't help but felt worry brew in her heart.

What happened to him…?

Meanwhile, Yuuji quickly made his way towards the courtyard. But when he arrived there, he didn't see Mao nor C.C anywhere. 

Dammit… I need to find C.C!

He could care less about Mao right now. His priority was to find C.C. Who knows what would be her state of mind right now after meeting Mao so suddenly. 

He closed his eyes and used his <<Elemental Sight>> to scan through the entire academy. 

He quickly found Mao, who was on his way out of the academy's premises, and ignored him. 

And a few moments later, he found C.C within the Student Government's building, where Lelouch and his little sister stayed. She was on her way up to her room. 

Yuuji quickly turned invisible and made his way towards C.C's location. He sneaked into Lelouch's home, head towards her room, and stood in front of it.

He undid his invisibility and knocked on the door. 

"C.C… It's me… Can you open the door…?"

Only silence was heard for minutes. But after the fifth, the door clicked opened and the light from within the room seeped through the thin opening into the dark, dimly lit hallway. 

The seams grow larger and larger ever so slowly, and after a while, Yuuji could finally see a bit of C.C. 

Her face was pale, but a different kind of pale than her usual beautiful, snowy complexion. She looked… as if she had seen a ghost. 

His heart ached when he saw her in such a state. And he tried his best to pull the words out of his tightened throat.

"C.C… I saw you in the courtyard… With a silver-haired man."

"...It's nothing."

Her entire body flinched as her eyes widened in shock. And after saying that with a clear trembling in her voice, she quickly tried to slam the door shut. 

But Yuuji caught it and held it open.

"You are so bad at lying, C.C… It's definitely something… You look as if you've seen a ghost."

"..."

She averted her face away, away from his gentle eyes and warm assurance. 

"Please… C.C. Tell me what happened… I will do my best to help. Even if I can't, I can at least listen to you… So please."

Her body shook, trembling as if she was basked in snow. And ever so slowly, she looked up at him. Her eyes, glazed over with tears, looked at him as if she was a child who had done something unforgivable. 

"C.C…"

She looked at him, his countenance and face filled with nothing but worry and care for her. 

She looked down once more, and this time, towards the beautiful, emerald jewel hanging down her neck. The gift she had received from him. 

She nodded, and opened the door for him, letting him inside her room and her heart. 

C.C sat down on her bed, hugging her favorite mascot plushie as Yuuji sat on a chair he had brought towards her. And she began telling him about her relationship with Mao. 

"Mao… was six when I gave him geass…"

The geass to read people's minds. It was an extremely convenient geass to use. As an orphan fending for himself in the large, cruel world, the young Mao used his geass to avoid dangerous people before they could even reach him.

He managed to survive and get out of trouble countless times thanks to it. 

But of course, children would be children, and not knowing the consequence of overusing his power, he used it to take a peek into someone's thoughts in moments of curiosity.

Eventually, his geass matured and became permanently active, causing constant influx of people's thoughts around him to enter his mind, causing him to be unable to stay in society and driving him insane. 

He quickly became an outcast, with the only peace he would ever get be with C.C in a place where no other humans exist. 

As a result of his lack of human contact, he grew to become an extremely childish person, a fact only to be amplified by his insanity. And with C.C being the only one that could give him silence and companion at the same time, he became attached to her. Extremely so. 

Like a child, he would pursue her relentlessly, disregarding her feelings and refusing to accept her lack of love for him. 

And when C.C abandoned him… his world broke. 

"I left him… because he failed to fulfill his part of the… contract."

"Contract…?"

C.C nodded softly, her eyes looking down onto the ground as she held her plush tighter. 

"My wish… He couldn't grant my wish… So I left him. A boy who couldn't fend for himself… and now insane because of the power I gave him. I abandoned him…"

Yuuji let out a soft breath and held his hands together. 

"What do you wish to do with him…?"

He said with the softest, gentlest voice he could muster. 

"...I don't know. I… I don't know."

C.C shook her head. 

"I made him like that… I was the one who gave him that geass… And I was the one who abandoned him… I made him like that…"

"No. You didn't, C.C."

Her eyes widened the moment Yuuji said those words with a firm voice. 

"You may be the one who gave him geass… But what he did with it was his own choice. He was the one who used it. He was the one who let it consume him…"

She looked up at him, and he could see now how much guilt, regret, and pain there were in her beautiful golden eyes. 

"But… But I was still the one who-"

"Did Lelouch lose his mind?"

C.C became silenced by his words.

"You gave him geass as well. But he didn't let it consume him. He's using the gift you gave him to change the world for the better."

She shook her head slowly.

"...But he just got it. The power will also consume him sooner or later."

"Even then… It wouldn't be your fault."

"…"

"Yes… You did selfishly grant them the power of Geass in order to fulfill your wish. But the blame doesn't lie entirely on you. You granted them their wish… What they did with it and the consequences they had to face… isn't yours to blame."

She looked down once more, biting her lips as she tightened her hug on her plushie. 

"But he'll hurt you… He'll try and hurt you and Lelouch!"

"Then let him try."

Her eyes widened. And when she looked up to him, she saw a gentle, assuring smile that washed away all her worries. 

"I will face him head on if that's what he wants. I will never let him harm you, Lelouch, or anybody else."

"..."

She felt her heart tightened and began to thump louder and louder in her chest. 

Why…? Why did she feel relieved…? Why did she felt as if a weight had been lifted from her chest?

Those words were said by a young man she had only met a few days ago. So why…? Why did she felt like she could believe his words…?

Silence fell between the two, before C.C looked up towards Yuuji once again. 

"...Take me with you. This is… he is my problem… I will take care of him…"

Yuuji nodded with a gentle smile.

"Alright. Lelouch and I will be there with you. So don't worry. You can do whatever you wish."

She nodded and hugged her plush tighter, falling back into her brooding silence once more.

Seeing her like this, Yuuji smiled helplessly and brought out his phone.

"How about we order some pizza?"

She nodded.

"Pepperoni and cheese, right?"

She nodded once again.

"Alright. Two large pepperoni and cheese it is."

Yuuji made the order and had it delivered here. And while they're waiting, he began trying his best to converse with the lime green-haired woman. 

She was silent and barely responsive at first. But thankfully, his daily life story with "Ainz", "Silver", and Lelouch was able to pique her interest.

Slowly, she began to ask questions and contributed a few words. And their conversation continued even after their pizza arrived. 

They ate together, and after their first meal together, Yuuji stayed with her, hanging out in her room. 

While she would lay down on her bed, he would be on his laptop, earning tens of thousands of dollars with each stock traded. 

For the rest of the day, they would spend it in each other's presence with C.C occasionally stealing glances at him, watching him silently.

And unbeknownst to her, a smile would grace her countenance whenever she would look at him from her bed.