@ToControlMen reality. “Nn…” She stirs gently, a soft noise as she returns to consciousness. She drowsily reaches out to the other side of the bed to discover it vacant. He’s already awake. Immediately her mind makes the connection between his absence and the delicious aroma. CC rouses —

@ToControlMen herself from the comfortable nest of pillows and blankets, the thick comforter falling from her naked torso to her lap. She stretches her arms above her head to loosen her shoulders and elbows, letting out strained groans. Bleary eyes of gold open, glowing in the refraction —

@ToControlMen of the Caribbean morning. From her spot on the bed she can look out the opened patio to the endless ocean beyond the beach, nothing but waves heard as they lap at the shore. She smiles as she stills for a moment, basking in the peace that eluded her for centuries. Refreshed —

@ToControlMen and awakened, the naked woman vacates her side of the bed and leaves their bedroom, presenting herself at the kitchen door. “I see someone couldn’t sleep in this morning~” Her eyes immediately fall upon him, giving him a lazy look up and down his slender body.

@CodedWitch “Almost done. Just need. . .” The voice of his goddess cutting off any future thought. Head swiveling towards the newly awaken woman. Emerald beauty shining even after just coming from slumber. Lelouch, or L.L. as he goes by to signify their union in marriage, couldn’t look—

@CodedWitch away. Even if he felt a hint of embarrassment in the apron. An emotion uncommon for him, but not one he was immune to. The kitchen slightly messier than he would prefer. Evident of a modest chef. Spills. Unclean dishes. Items scattered along the countertop. Nothing that—

@CodedWitch screamed disaster. Particularly if the smell was anything to go by. Eyes finally breaking away with a low chuckle. Reducing the heat on the stove to low before wiping his hands with his towel. “I should have known I wouldn’t be able to do this without alerting you. Have you—

@CodedWitch ever considered being considerate to those trying to surprise you~?” Teasing words in a loving tone only she could receive. Apron lifted and removed. Laying against the countertop as he approached. Slender arm raising to comb through her emerald hair. Stopping to pass through.—

@CodedWitch Caressing her gentle cheek to prelude his lean down. Warm, loving kiss from her husband. Scent of cinnamon, seasoning, and fruits clear. “Good morning, my love. I take it you slept well?“

@ToControlMen “Mmm, you’re going to have to work a lot harder than that to surprise 𝘮𝘦, darling. I have years of experience on you. A lovely vacation to the tropics and sneaking out of bed before I wake just isn’t enough to fool me for long.” She battles back with her lips brushing his —

@ToControlMen before she relented and gave him his kiss. And before he could pull away to focus on anything else, CC snares him within her arms, deepening their kiss passionately for a few seconds. Then she allowed him an opportunity to escape. “Better than I have in decades. And it seems —

@ToControlMen it was the same for you as well.” No one knew him better than her. No one. Not a one. Others knew Lelouch Lamperouge the Ashford Alum. Lelouch Vi Britannia the disgraced Prince. Zero the Black Rebellion leader. Lelouch the Demon, the universally hated Emperor of Britannia. —

@ToControlMen Only 𝘴𝘩𝘦 knew Lelouch. All of those masks of his and the man that changed them out faster than his socks. So it was no surprise then that she could tell that his was cooking with more passion than ever. Back in Japan, back when they were terrorists and rebellion leaders —

@ToControlMen hiding in plain sight, he had cooked for utility, because it was necessary to keep them fed and ready to move at a moments notice. That old urgency was absent now. Here in paradise he didn’t need to move with purpose. There was no rush to handle such routine things in case —

@ToControlMen the Black Knights were needed. Here she could see he was moving with luxurious slowness, a relaxed pace paid for in blood and his own death. It was something she liked to see. Something she felt he deserved. Forget about what she thought earlier about letting him escape her —

@ToControlMen arm. She tightened her embrace again to keep him held close, giving him a serious look. “What if we never went back? What would you say if I said I want to stay right here forever, living a boring, quiet life where our biggest issue is just figuring out how to enjoy living —

@ToControlMen on a beach in the tropics every day? Where we’re isolated from the rest of the world? Where our mail is delivered by a man on a boat because we’re so far from the nearest village that boating is the fastest mode of transportation? If I said that that is the wish I wanted in —

@ToControlMen exchange for the Geass I once gave you, would you grant it?”

@CodedWitch The question was one many would run from. Not because of its complexity, but because of 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. A singular word that scared millions across the globe. Commitment to work. Commitment to ambitions. Commitment to partners. The human species has had issues with—

@CodedWitch committing to anything that was not war, taxes, and bigotry. This was a fundamental law in existence. No one, not even himself, knew this more than the one before him. Man was drunk off of running from commitment. 𝐇𝐞 was beyond man. A demon that walked amongst the sheep.—

@CodedWitch Her question lingering in the air for moments before slender arms undid her own from his neck with a smile. Only after ensuring the stove and kitchen top was fully off. Did his hand take her own. Leading the Witch away from their kitchen towards direction to their patio. —

@CodedWitch No response given initially. Allowing the scenery to speak for him. Waves beating along a shoreline. Smell of palm trees and exotic fruit. A land untouched by the horrors of the mainland. “C.C. There is no man in history that has lived the life I have. From Prince. To student.—

@CodedWitch To rebellion leader. To Emperor. To death. . .And to rebirth.” Violet eyes moving away from the view of the land. Returning back to her in full. Hand brushing against her cheek with the gentleness of a feather. “And finally, to 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐲 married man. C.C. If this quiet—

@CodedWitch and isolated life is what you would seek. You have more than earned your wish. Your journey of lonesome travel has concluded. And my journey concludes by your side and yours alone.” All men, no matter how much they hid it, was scared of some form of commitment. Lelouch Vi—

@CodedWitch Britannia—L.L. He was no ordinary man. If he had to ignite the world and burn it down just for her happiness. He would. Without issues. Without second thought. “Had this been your promise. Had i known then what i know now. I would not have changed anything. Not so long as—

@CodedWitch the outcome remained just this. This moment. This timeline.”

@ToControlMen Hand in hand the naked woman followed her husband out to the sunbathed patio, warmth embracing her skin. But it was still not as warm as his embrace. She looked out upon the blue water and white sands, a cooling breeze playing with her long emerald hair while he spoke. __

@ToControlMen “Thats true. No one has lived quite the life you have. But some have lived lives akin to yours.” She didn’t mean it in some metaphorical way. It wasn’t just words others would say as filler. She was a living history book. The historical figures she had met, the truths and —

@ToControlMen secrets about them that no textbook could tell. All collected experiences on her long, long life journey. It had seemed endless back then. Before she met the man who would become her husband, the one man she just couldn’t abandon when the costs outweighed the benefits. “No, —

@ToControlMen forget my selfishness. You wouldn’t be satisfied with this kind of life, Lelouch. You never were satisfied with a quiet, boring life.” She knew his words were a lie, a sweet lie he told her to placate her childishness. She didn’t hold his falsehood against him. She knew her —

@ToControlMen husband better than that, after all. He is as the kind of man who would always carry the world on his shoulders and that meant he could never slow down. He could only be satisfied and fulfilled when he was fighting for that peaceful world he dreamed of in his youthful days. —

@ToControlMen Now he had a Geass, a Code, and an eternity to see all of his plans to fruition. “Forget I said anything. It wouldn’t be fair of me to ask you to give up everything for this version of life. That’s not the man I fell in love with.”

@CodedWitch There it was. The part of her that he could never truly beat. There had never been an opponent that Lelouch could not defeat. Even his brother, the genius Schneizel, was eventually brought down by the mind of 𝐋𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐕𝐢 𝐁𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐚. But her. . .That dastardly—

@CodedWitch woman. . .She was always just out of reach. Not strategically, sure. But, in a battle of understanding one’s self. In a battle of controlling another’s emotions. She had him in spades. Violet eyes admiring the scenario one final time until the faint laugh could escape the—

@CodedWitch former emperors lips. “How cruel. Even after all these years, you continue to be a devilish Witch, C.C. How dare you ask me an impossible question and then invalidate my response.” He wasn’t mad. She was the one he could never pull the emotion out at. But, her words struck—

@CodedWitch a cord inside of him. “The boring life. . .It is for those who have not stained their hands in blood such as I. But, this life that I have,—“ His hand coming to his chest. Brushing his shirt open to expose the gifted Code once more. “—this life only exist because of 𝐲𝐨𝐮.”—

@CodedWitch It was no secret that Lelouch was fully intending to remain gone. That, was 𝐙𝐞𝐫𝐨 𝐑𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐦. The unification of all against a common threat. And only with the blood of that shared threat, would peace be granted to all. It was only through her that he was alive. As such—