damned_institute | NIGHT 50: F21-F30 HALLWAY

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NIGHT 50: F21-F30 HALLWAY

[F23]

Once finished with her dinner Nunnally had reached into her desk drawer in search of her journal, thinking to make some notes while she had nothing more to do than wait for the approach of night (for that was all she had to wait for, certainly-- they wouldn't return again tonight... would they?). Though the journal was there, she found something else that she hadn't expected: a plain silver ring, set with a red stone. It quite willingly distracted from her original purpose and worries, and she drew the ring out instead and turned it over in her hands, curiously examining it for any kind of mark or identifying engraving, but found none.

It seemed a peculiar thing to her, as everything else in the drawers served some kind of known purpose-- pens for writing made sense, as did a notebook for writing in, but what use would a supposed mental patient have for a ring? She tried it on and found that it fit, so apparently it was meant for her, though she'd no idea why. Well. As with all unexpected gifts from a place such as this, perhaps she should be wary of it? Though what a ring could do, she'd no idea.

When the intercom announcement came her curiosity only increased further, but so did her concerns. The last place she'd been the night before? The memory flashed before her eyes all unwilling, and she shuddered lightly before firmly placing the ring on the surface of her desk. Lelouch was sure to stop by her room as soon as he could, and perhaps this would make more sense to him.

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Considering his suspicions about whether or not Suzaku was Suzaku the sudden hug didn't go over very well with Lelouch. If it were one of those monsters, he'd practically just handed it Nunnally on a silver platter, and how could he be so stupid? He should have ordered the knight to stay at least two feet away from her until he could determine for certain whether or not it was truly their childhood friend, not let him do whatever he pleased like that. If it was Suzaku, though, the sight was a heartwarming one. Lelouch was just too concerned for his sister's well-being to appreciate it.

That feeling intensified the instant he saw the familiar red glow in Nunnally's eye, and he quickly made to step forward, uncaring of how Suzaku (did the fact that he hadn't taken the hug as an opportunity to attack mean he was Suzaku, or was it simply that being inside her room afforded Nunnally some sort of special protection?) might react. He just as quickly stopped and moved back again, though, remembering what he had said about her Geass possibly being triggered by people's proximity to her. He didn't want to overwhelm her with his emotions when Suzaku's had to be suffocating enough on their own, but if she couldn't snap herself out of it-- what could he do?

"Nunnally?" he asked gently, fighting every instinct within him that said to rush forward and gather her in his arms. "Are you all right?" That would draw even more attention to the fact that something was wrong, which he didn't particularly like if it meant alerting Suzaku to what had happened, but if she could focus on his voice and come back to herself-- it had seemed to work earlier that day, and he hoped it would work now. It was all he could do, apart from ripping Suzaku away from her. That was beginning to sound like a better and better idea by the second, but again, if he moved closer...

Just as sudden as the happiness came, it disappeared. At first, he didn’t notice the flare. After all he had her wrapped up in his arms and was leaning forward. It was good to know that he could still smile the way he was. After everything that had happened, sometimes he felt like the only smiles he could manage were false ones. The kind of smiles people put on for the sake of others. The one on his face had been a genuine one. It helped soothe the guilt inside of him or at least it did.

“When did—“The second he saw that damned scarlet in her eye, the smile faded from his lips. So did a lot of the color in his face. He looked both pale and shocked. No. No. Not Nunnally. How did this happen? This shouldn’t be possible. Suzaku gaped at the crimson in her eye, his face betrayed some of the horror he was feeling, but his emotions told the whole story. The disbelief and horror he felt was mixed in with a large serving of guilt. If he had arrived sooner, if he had stayed at her side as Zero, then this wouldn’t have happened. Rationality would tell him that there was nothing he could have done to prevent this from happening. In this moment he wasn’t feeling very rational.

Anger began to build upside of him. It started off slowly, kept at bay by the guilt he was feeling. The longer he stared at the sigil, the more intense the anger came. Oh, he would find whoever did this to her. Geasses had already destroyed so many lives. Geasses had already taken so much from Nunnally. He was not going to allow them to take any more from Nunnally. Poor Nunnally, the determination he felt along with all of his other emotions probably hit her like a wall. Which of course would make him feel even guiltier later on and force him to calm himself down, but that was later and not now.

“Who did this to you, the Head Doctor?!”

Horror. Guilt. Concern. Anger. It was enough to overwhelm, to leave her lost in a sea of others' feelings, and she remained frozen in place with only her expression shifting to mirror what she sensed from outside. The sound of her name was a connection, a reminder of who she was, where she was, and she took hold of that with stubborn determination to float above the waves rather than be drowned in them.

It took several long moments, as before, but finally she blinked and the light winked out; Nunnally staggered a step, still uncertain of her balance, but shook her head slightly without looking up. She couldn't look up again, not even to reassure Suzaku that she was all right. Not when what she truly wanted to do was beg his forgiveness for a crime he didn't even know she'd just committed.

"I'm fine," she insisted, forcing a small smile to lighten her tone and hopefully convince them of it. It was unlikely to work, considering who the two of them were, but she still didn't wish to worry them. "It's... nothing."

Preoccupied as he was with watching over Nunnally and waiting for the moment he could finally go to her, Lelouch almost didn't notice Suzaku's reaction. It would have to wait either way, though, because the instant he saw the hated symbol disappear from his sister's eye, he breathed a nearly inaudible sigh of relief and went to her side, gently prying her away from the knight. With a warning look shot in Suzaku's direction and a jerk of his head at the door to indicate that he should shut the damn thing behind them, he guided his sister deeper into the room, hoping to get her seated on the bed so that she could more easily calm down.

"Here," he said, trying a small smile as he very, very subtly (to him) tried to get her to sit. "I think we need a moment after all this excitement, don't you?" Another look in Suzaku's direction, this one clearly aimed at getting him to shut the hell up and behave before he could upset Nunnally any further. Answering that question could wait, too, unless his sister decided to address it herself. "It's all right, Nunnally. I'm here." I won't let anything hurt you. I'll find a way to reverse this, I promise. You don't have to worry about a thing.

For a moment, his hold on her tightened. How could someone do this to Nunnally of all people? She was so gentle at heart and better than both Lelouch and himself. If only he knew that his emotions were taking such a toll on her, he would force himself to calm down sooner. Instead he began to become more intense on the inside as his mind tried to figure out what he could do to help her. There had to be something he could do. Geasses were twisted enough when they were granted back in their world, he could only imagine what they were like if her Geass came from here.

His thoughts were disrupted when he noticed the look Lelouch gave him. That helped calm some of his emotions down and he walked over to the door to quickly close it. "Lelouch is right, taking a moment to relax and calm down is a good idea." The second look was what he needed to start to pull himself back together. Getting upset and causing a scene would only cause more trouble for all of them. The best thing he could do for Nunnally was be strong for her. His emotions started to shift from chaotic ones to more controlled ones. "We're both here." He added in and his gaze began to soften.

Clearly it hadn't worked and they were still quite concerned-- well, of course Suzaku would be, since he hadn't seen the phenomenon before. Nunnally still wasn't accustomed to it herself, in point of fact, so she couldn't expect the others to casually dismiss it. Honestly, though, once it was over most of the trouble was gone; once she was able to think for herself and not another's thoughts it seemed comparatively simpler and left her only the heavy burden the pseudo-Geass laid upon her by its existence.

She allowed herself to be guided to the bed and lowered herself to sit on the edge of the mattress without objection, but she glanced up and managed a small, if more genuine, smile as she moved a hand to rest atop her brother's. "You don't have to worry about me," she insisted gently, with a small shake of her head. "I'm fine, I just... it is good to see you again, Suzaku."

Was that the trigger that caused her Institute-inflicted Geass to become active? Physical contact seemed likely to be a factor, certainly, but it wasn't the only one, since not every time she touched another caused it to happen. An emotional response of her own, then? She made a mental note and told herself to consider it later, for right now she didn't wish to concern Suzaku any more, not after he'd only just arrived.

"It's my job," Lelouch joked lightly, giving her hand a small squeeze. It was much easier to feel better about the situation now that Nunnally had gone along with his attempts to steer her and they were safely ensconced within the privacy of her room, but plenty of worry still lingered. If it happened again, while they were like this-- well, he would simply have to do his best to remain calm himself and hope that Suzaku continued to follow his lead. That seemed to be the most he could do.

"Suzaku was just telling me that he's from closer to your time than mine," he went on to say, stretching the truth only a little to try and keep them on lighter topics-- relatively, anyway. "It's starting to make me wonder if he's always going to end up leaving me behind. He did it when we were kids, too, remember?" He tossed another look at Suzaku. It was a fairly inane thing to be talking about when the knight still had so much catching up to do, but as long as those shadows on Nunnally's face remained, he didn't want to move on just yet. Suzaku's arrival should be celebrated at least a little while longer.

Suzaku watched over the two of them and wished there was more he could do for them, but it was nice seeing the two getting along like this again. The last time he saw Nunnally, she had called the two of them her enemies and Lelouch was questioning if he could carry on. Did she know that he was going to become Zero? Everyone else thought he was dead, but he wasn’t so certain if he could hide that from Nunnally. Not that it mattered all that much at the moment, there were more pressing issues to deal with.

Those thoughts were stored away for now and he focused on the conversation once more. As odd as it sounded, he needed to get used to talking about coming from different timelines. At Lelouch’s comment, he sighed a little bit and a ghost of a smile found its way on his face. “Hey, I never meant to leave you behind. I’d be lightly jogging, thinking you were right behind me, and then I’d look over my shoulder and see that you were 50 feet or so behind me. Nunnally and I had enough time to get in a couple of games while we waited for you to catch up.”

As a distraction Lelouch's comment certainly worked, as it drew Nunnally from worrying about the Geass and onto wondering about Suzaku himself. Closer to her time? When he'd been here before he remembered more than Lelouch did, but he was still far behind on the events that she knew. Did he... how close to her time was he? How much did he know?

It wasn't something she could come out and ask, of course (do you remember pretending to die in battle so you could take up Zero's mask? was about as tactful as she could imagine, and that not very much) so for now she just hoped he would say something. Or at least drop enough hints that she would know, perhaps.

Nunnally blinked up at Suzaku at his comment, her own expression lightening slightly in response. "It never took that long," she insisted in her brother's defense. "Maybe he was just looking at the scenery so he could tell me about it after he'd caught up."

It wasn't much of a defense at all, come to that, but Lelouch gave his sister a grateful smile anyway, then arched a brow and looked back to Suzaku. "That's right, Suzaku. It never took that long. What, did you just get distracted by something shiny and lose track of time? It wouldn't surprise me."

Further comments would have to wait, though, because Lelouch (and Nunnally's) radios chose then to switch on. The interruption both was and wasn't welcome; Lelouch had been needing to conduct something more in the way of research into those portal rings and the events of last night anyway, but for it to happen now, when things finally seemed to be calming down between the three of them... well, he supposed he should be used to the poor sense of timing of both their captors and those who supposedly opposed them.

He listened closely as the the man on the radio-- Mark?-- spoke, carefully filing away the new information as it came. Again, those rings-- he would need to get his hands on one as quickly as possible, but how to do that when they would likely be in higher demand than ever after this announcement-- he might have the reputation necessary to secure one now, but he just as easily might not. That left...

He was in the middle of exploring this vein of thought when the radios abruptly cut off, and scowling to himself, he took out his and gave it a hard look. The evidence strongly suggested that some outside force had blocked the transmission before Mark could reveal any truly important details, but if this was some game of the institute's... well, there wasn't much they could do now apart from analyze what they had already been given.

Suzaku blinked and looked down at the radio, listening to it until it was cut off. Judging by Lelouch's reaction, this was something to keep tabs on. There was so much about this place that he didn't know, but by tomorrow he'd probably have a better idea. He'd ask questions, read the notes, and do a little bit more exploring. He wondered how his roommate was doing. Hopefully he didn't venture out on his own.

Before he could get another word in, just like the radios the intercom suddenly the intercom started up. He wasn't sure who the person on the other end was, but it didn't take him long to decide that he didn't like who it was. Though he would take the person's voice any day over what followed. The loud screech made him cover up his ears and he winced in pain. "Gah!" For a second he was convinced that his ears were going to start bleeding, it had been so loud.

When it finally died out, he looked over to the two of them. "Are you two okay? What was that?"

Edited 2010-07-27 03:39 (UTC)

The rings? Oh! In the excitement she'd almost forgotten about the ring she'd found, but the voice over the radio reminded her. Nunnally opened her mouth to say something about it, but paused to listen instead when the intercom switched on. If the Head Doctor was so interested in opposing the man on the radio, then perhaps it was worth listening to him? It was an intriguing thought, and probably something Lelouch had considered, but before she could ask the intercom announcement turned into a piercing whine.

Nunnally automatically lifted hands to ears, but it seemed to do little or nothing to muffle the unusually painful noise. Fortunately it didn't last too long, but she kept her hands in place for a moment longer just in case before lowering them again with a grimace and slight shake of her head. That didn't seem like the sort of microphone feedback that she'd ever heard before, did it?

It looked like Suzaku had found it just as unpleasant as she had; she glanced up at him and nodded, offering a smile that she hoped was reassuring. "I don't know what that was," she said, wrinkling her nose as she glanced over toward her brother again. "I haven't heard anything like it."

Like Suzaku and Nunnally, Lelouch was quick to begin listening to the intercom next, but he was just as quick to regret it. His attentiveness to every sound emerging from the damnable thing, while undoubtedly not making him quite as sensitive to the eventual noise as Nunnally was, nonetheless made hearing it painful in a way he found just as hard to consider ordinary. The radio in his hand fell to the bed as he clapped his hand to his ears in unison with the others, and-- was it his imagination, or did the barriers do little to block out the sound at all?

As the sound died away, however, he was far less concerned with trying to figure out the underlying nature of it as he was with checking up on Nunnally. Again, it had to have sounded especially dreadful to her, but as he watched, she gave Suzaku a smile and overall seemed remarkably composed for what had just happened. She must have been starting to get used to this place. Lelouch wished it were otherwise, but...

He dragged himself from his thoughts again and sought out her hand again, giving it another squeeze. "I haven't, either. It must be something new." New and most likely dangerous, given the trouble just putting it into play had caused the patients (the unmistakable sound of typing before it went into effect-- another program?), but he couldn't feel any ill effects just yet. "If either of you notice anything out of the ordinary about yourselves, each other, or your environment, let me know," he said to them, frowning to himself. "That program could have done anything."

Suzaku wished Nunnally’s smile could offer him more reassurance, but he knew her well enough to know that even if she was suffering, she would smile to try and make him worry. Not that he was any better. He would do the same thing with Euphie. That thought triggered something in his mind, urging him to draw a conclusion, but his head was still ringing. He’d have to come back and revisit that thought later.

“Mm.” He turned around to study the door. Outside he couldn’t hear anything or feel the ground vibrating in any way. For now, this area was still safe but he wondered how long that would last. “They can affect us through…” He didn’t finish his words. While he was in this place, he needed to suspend some of his hold on reality. The fact that he suddenly and inexplicably found himself here was proof that anything could happen.

“It’s hard to believe a place like this exists.” He shook his head for a moment, but quickly cast his doubts away. He turned around and took another step between the two, but he didn’t move directly over to them. Another look was given towards the door. If something had happened and some of the monsters were on the prowl, he wanted to be between the creature and the two of them. There wasn’t much information he could offer to be useful, but he could protect them. No, he would protect them from any dangers that might be lurking.

"I don't feel any different," Nunnally replied, her free hand involuntarily lifting toward her right eye as she considered it; she realized what she was doing before completing the gesture and lowered her hand back to her lap again. Nothing had happened there, not since Suzaku's arrival. Nor was there anything else about either of her companions, though she'd be certain to pay attention just in case. If whatever he'd done pleased the Head Doctor, then it likely wouldn't be good for his captives.

She hesitated for a silent moment, then brightened as a thought occurred to her. "Oh! I almost forgot," she began, hoping that the others wouldn't mind an interruption. They couldn't simply sit there and wait for something to happen, though, not and stay at all positive, and she'd just remembered what she was going to tell Lelouch earlier before the multitude of distractions. "I found one of the rings they mentioned, earlier. It was in my desk drawer."

And was still sitting on her desk, beside her dinner tray, Nunnally noted as she half-turned toward it. "He said that only one person would get one, so -- am I the only one?" She turned back toward her brother with a questioning look. How did they calculate who was in which "group" for distribution of the rings? Perhaps her group was herself and Renamon, and Lelouch and his helpers were another? Though... if the rings took them to the last place they'd been the night before, all of them had been in the same place. So perhaps not.

"They can affect us through anything," Lelouch said softly in response to Suzaku, then gave him a slight shake of the head to indicate we'll talk about that later. There were still some things he didn't want Nunnally to know if he could help it, even if that particular program...

He forced those thoughts away and focused on his sister again, unable to keep a smile from appearing on his face at both the news and in reflex to the fact that it was Nunnally speaking. Some things never changed. "Really?" he asked, pleased and doing nothing at all to hide it. "I'm glad. I was worried I'd have to barter with one of the other patients to get a hold of one, and yes, I think you might be. I searched my desk, but I didn't come up with anything." Apart from the gun that had already been there, but he thought he'd keep that to himself too for now. Suzaku would need to know later, but Nunnally...

"May I have it? Even if we don't figure out how to reset the location, getting back to that store should be useful." Worried as he'd been at the time, he'd still taken in just enough of his surroundings to realize that they were in one of the stores he'd visited the previous week. Having access to all of those electronics, even for one night only, could prove invaluable.

Suzaku hated all of this waited. He wanted to know now so he could be more proactive, but there were times when patients was key. Once the evening passed, Lelouch and him were going to have a long talk. Partially about what went on here and partially about what was to come once they escaped. Though for now, learning more about this place was his key objective.

It still marveled Suzaku to think that if Nunnally wanted, she could get up and show them them what it was she was talking about. She'd be able to find it without having to touch everything on the desk, pick it up, and use her legs to move herself over to the two of them. If only Britannia had found a way to do this, rather than the people at this institute.

"What was he talking about anyways? I caught that he was talking about portals and a ring..." But it still didn't make a ton of sense to him. It sounded like the ring let whoever owned it transport themselves in some way. Which wasn't that far of a stretch for him, since Britannia had some pretty impressive technology. "If it let you leave this place, I'm sure everyone would be gone for now. Is it limited to the building?"

Since she was looking at Lelouch at that moment Nunnally noticed his silent response to Suzaku, but she didn't comment on it; if he didn't wish to speak about something she had to wonder why, but she could inquire later. She didn't like the idea of Lelouch keeping things from her, even if she understood why and appreciated the sentiment -- any information she had about this place could be potentially useful, no matter how upsetting it might be. Suppose he'd decided to withhold information about the experiments performed at night? That was certainly something she'd needed to know.

Still, though, there was no reason not to let him have the ring. Nunnally didn't particularly want to visit that place again without reason, but it was entirely possible that he had not only a reason but a plan. She hesitated for only a moment before nodding slightly and pushing to her feet, giving her brother's hand a light squeeze before she released it. Perhaps she could have asked Suzaku to get the ring for her, since he was already standing, but... she liked the fact that she was capable of getting it herself. Even such a small task was a delight, simply because she could perform it unaided.

"Perhaps the man on the radio will return and explain how to reset it, as well?" It took only a moment to pick up the ring from the desk and return, and she held out the ring for Lelouch to take. "I suppose it would be much faster and safer to use that ring to get there than trying to walk there at night, but it seems rather dangerous as well." From what she'd heard, at least.

It had to be frustrating for Suzaku to arrive when he did (and Lelouch was becoming increasingly certain that this was Suzaku, unless of course the monster somehow became dormant while inside patient rooms... no, it had to be Suzaku), what with everything that had been happening over the past twenty-four hours or so, and after a short glance at Nunnally, he finally decided to take pity on him and explain at least a little more of what was going on.

"Last night, the doors were functioning as portals, sending those who traveled through them to random locations throughout the institute, the surrounding area, and the nearby town. Some people, myself included, were sent to places that strongly resembled our home worlds." Another glance at Nunnally, if only because he had neglected to inform her of this part. He'd been too busy worrying over what her Geass had been doing to get to it, unfortunately. "I found myself in Ashford Academy, but as I said, it seemed to be only a facsimile. The campus was completely empty, and you know how loud it usually is."

He took the ring from Nunnally next, giving her a soft smile as thanks. "He should," he said to her, absentmindedly fiddling with his radio at the reminder, "or at the very least, he'll try." He had his doubts about whether or not it would succeed with whatever program the Head Doctor had initiated, but they would see. "And it will be faster, but you're right about it being dangerous. Doyleton isn't very hospitable at night."

“This place really is something else.”

He wanted to see more of it, experience all of these things for himself to gain better insight. If the doors could turn into portals and take people to places that resembled their home worlds, who knows what else could happen. Again, however, he needed to learn more before he went anywhere. So far the institute seemed pretty peaceful, but it was a big place. For all he knew there could be a monster or a deranged nurse attacking someone, somewhere else.

He was grateful for the information that Lelouch shared with him. The explanation helped him understand some of the other things that were being said, but he still didn’t have a full picture. He wished he could contribute something more useful to the conversation, but it was better to just let the other two sort things out. If something came to mind he could always chime in, until then however, the best thing for him to do was listen. He studied the ring as it was passed over to Lelouch. If people at the institute could understand how the rings worked, they’d gain a very valuable tool.

The part about Lelouch visiting an imitation Ashford was news to Nunnally, and surprising news at that. Was that why it had taken so long for her to find him? If the possible locations included not only rooms in the Institute and buildings in town, but the entirety of the school where she'd lived for so long....

She shook her head slightly to dismiss that thought. That was a possible explanation for why the doctor had specified locations on "this world" in his intercom announcement earlier; it was something that had puzzled her but she'd dismissed it as simply another example of the man being needlessly cryptic. Perhaps more of what she thought cryptic was significant, after all? It was something to consider, certainly.

"You don't plan to go alone, then, do you?" Nunnally asked in a clearly worried tone, as she lowered herself to sit on the bed next to her brother again. She glanced from him to Suzaku again with a small smile, including him in the question. It was fortunate that he'd arrived when he had and could help, but... it wouldn't stop her from being concerned about either one of them.

"Of course not." The brief, panicked moments he'd spent in that grocer alone and running from zombies before Suzaku had come to his aid had left more than enough of an impression that Lelouch was more than confident of his answer. It was nice being able to deny to his sister that he was planning anything overly dangerous and be telling the complete truth.

"Besides, we've just gotten our pack mule back." He sent the knight a faintly mocking smile, falling into old habits for Nunnally's benefit. It was just as much for his own, but he could easily ignore that. "He'll be coming along, too." Deciding things for Suzaku like that was hardly fair, but as it seemed only natural for Lelouch to bring the person he trusted most into that sort of area...

"Don't worry, Nunnally. I don't intend to head back there until I've planned everything out-- including how to get back in one piece."

Suzaku didn’t seem the least bit put off when Lelouch made a decision for him. After all, he was the Knight of Zero. Even if he had been planning to bring an end to Lelouch’s reign, it hadn’t happened. Until then, he was Lelouch’s knight and would go where he goes. Plus, this was a way for him to be useful. Right now all he could offer was his presence and in his mind, that wasn’t much of a comfort.

“Lucky me, already being put to good use.” A small, amused smile found its way on his face. No matter how dangerous this place turned out to be, he felt confident knowing that Lelouch was beside him. The two of them had taken over the world together. If they could do that, then they could take over an institute together.

“We’ll be careful and you know what Lelouch is like. He won’t be satisfied until he’s come up with every possible scenario that he can think of. And then he'll find a way to add onto that.” He teased Lelouch good-naturedly. “Is there anything else that can be done on the mean time?” Try as he might, the anxiousness was nagging him. If there was anything he could do, even a quick patrol of the hallway, he was up for it.

It was almost like they'd gone back to their time together at Ashford, a time when they could sit together in friendly camaraderie and she could listen to the two boys and their friendly banter. Almost. So much had happened since then that sometimes it felt like another life, and moments like these left her momentarily lost between then and now.

As she smiled at Suzaku in response to his comment Nunnally's smile turned briefly wistful and a little sad; she wished so much that it could be real, that they could be together like this again at home, though even if Lelouch found a way to keep his promise it still seemed uncertain. It lasted only a moment though, for she realized quickly and smoothed her expression out again with a shake of her head. "I'm glad you're here to help, Suzaku," she replied, before turning back to Lelouch again. "Will your other friends be willing to come along as well?"

She hadn't caught the names of the two men with him the night before, given that they'd been occupied with other matters. If they could help, though, if there were four of them exploring town rather than just two, it would make her feel a little less concerned. If only a little.

"There's nothing wrong with being prepared," Lelouch replied, fully aware that he was being teased but not minding all that much. It really was just to be prepared, and besides, Nunnally seemed to be... almost enjoying herself. "Just because you like to rush headlong into things doesn't mean everyone else does, Suzaku. Some people lack the thick skull necessary to deal with the inevitable crash."

Both the knight's and his sister's question gave him pause, however. Suzaku's was easy to answer, of course, but Nunnally's... "In the meantime, you can work on associating yourself with the way the institute is run. Luckily, I have something in my possession that will help." He brought out his journal, flipping it open to the copy of Edgeworth's primer he had written out on his very first day. "Most of these topics are ones I've covered already, but there are several I have not. Read them and let me know if you have any questions." It was quicker than having him spell it all out, at least, and with the added benefit of the primer having some mention of the experiments patients underwent, he wouldn't have to broach the topic out loud where it might upset Nunnally.

That solution meant Lelouch had ample opportunity to try and tell his sister about why his "friends" might not be able to join them, however. It would be easy to omit certain relevant details and keep her from realizing the exact nature of their "friendship," of course, but... "I can always ask, but I'm uncertain about whether or not they'll accept. They may not be interested." ... That sort of worked, but he supposed he'd see whether or not she accepted the (really very basic) response.

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