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Eye of the Beholder	By : ArchangelM127 Category: +. to F > Code Geass Views: 2907 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Eye of the Beholder

A Code Geass fan fiction story

Written by Archangel

Edited by klv

Chapter 2 – House Call

{Author’s Note: This chapter is dedicated to OtakuKeith, in thanks for his contributions to Will’s development. The music suggestion is The Mystic’s Dream by Loreena McKennitt (which is Will’s theme, if you’re interested).

Enjoy, and please provide feedback! RATE and/or REVIEW, please!}

Keep it together. You can do this.

“Good morning, Miss Nunnally.” The skin on Will’s arms prickled, like it was being blasted with cold air.

“Good morning, William! And how are you today?”

“I’m good, thank you.” There was an odd, bitter taste in Will’s mouth. “Here, I have yesterday’s materials all transcribed. A-and, if I may, I’d like to, um, that is…” Will gulped down a deep breath, then finished in a rush: “Could you please help me study for the big Algebra test?”

Nunnally beamed up at him. Will suddenly understood why deer froze in a car’s headlights. “I’d be happy to!” she chirped. “Which part are you having trouble with?”

“Err… all of it, I guess,” Will heard himself say; his mouth was running on autopilot while he concentrated on breathing regularly. “I heard you’re brilliant at maths, so…” An intense heat began to creep up the back of his neck.

Nunnally’s pale cheeks warmed with a blush of her own. “I don’t know about that, but I’m glad to help you as best I can,” she replied modestly. “Are you free tomorrow afternoon? We can study in my apartment after classes.”

“Uh, I, I mean—is that a good idea? Me being alone with you, I mean? I don’t want to, err, ah…”

“Oh, Sayoko will be there,” Nunnally replied with a giggle and a deeper blush. “And my brother Lelouch will be home later, so it’ll be just fine!”

“Oh, okay. Good. Um, you live in the Student Council building, right?”

“Yes, that’s right! The headmaster is kind enough to let me and my brother live there.”

“That’s good… so, I’ll, er, see you tomorrow afternoon?”

“Yes!” Nunnally’s smile lit up the whole room.

“Alright, I’ll, ah, see you then!” Will bowed reflexively, then managed to turn and walk to his seat. Don’t pass out. Passing out is bad. Just keep walking. Will all but collapsed into his chair, breathing like he’d just run a marathon. His hand shook as he felt in his pocket for the reassuring shape of his sketching pencil.

“Proper good job, mate!” was Nick’s evaluation, delivered with a grin and a playful punch to the shoulder.

“At least you didn’t injure yourself in the process,” Kait chimed in, hugging Nick from behind and giving Will a congratulatory smile.

Nick sighed and rolled his eyes. “You are never going to let me forget that, are you?”

“Not unless you ever do something funnier.”

“What are you two going on about?” Will asked, still somewhat dazed from his adrenaline high.

Kait giggled and nuzzled the top of Nick’s head. “The first time Mister Smooth here asked me out on an honest-to-God date, he was so nervous that he tripped over his own feet!” she explained.

“It was on a very uneven sidewalk,” Nick groaned in rebuttal.

“So,” Kait continued gleefully, “he fell into this hedge, and it took him a full five minutes to get loose!”

“They were thornbushes,” Nick clarified. “Ruined my favorite shirt into the bargain.”

“Well, I thought it was sweet. Nicky was so enchanted with moi that he couldn’t even keep his balance. And I got to play nurse and patch him up when we got home! I never told you this story, Will?”

Will shook his head and chuckled. “I guess by that measure I didn’t do so bad.”

*****

Neither Nick nor Kait had commented on the sense of anticlimax hanging over Will the next day, but all three of them felt it very keenly. After a sleepless night anticipating his tutoring session with Nunnally, Will had arrived to class this morning to find her absent.

Concern and curiosity ate at Will all through class, and thus he found himself asking the English Literature teacher about Nunnally not a minute after the sound of the final bell. It seemed that she was mildly sick, and was expected back to class in a day or two. Will readily agreed to convey the day’s assignments to her.

And thus it was that Will found himself on the second floor of the Student Council building, knocking on what he hoped was the right door. Curiously, he wasn’t nearly as nervous as he had been the previous morning. Perhaps it was the knowledge that Nunnally herself wouldn’t be the one to answer the door. And so it proved; the door was answered by an Eleven lady in a maid’s uniform. “Yes?”

“Uh, hi. I’m in Miss Nunnally’s class; I’ve brought her homework,” Will explained, proffering the folder he’d compiled. This must be the Sayoko, the housekeeper Miss Nunnally mentioned.

“I see. Thank you. Please, come in.” The maid stepped smoothly aside, ushering Will inside. “You must be William Abernathy.”

“You know me?” Will moved into the apartment automatically.

“Nunnally mentions you from time to time,” Sayoko replied, favoring Will with a friendly smile. “Thank you for taking the time to help her.”

Despite his best efforts to stay collected, Will couldn’t entirely conceal the way his heart leapt. “You’re welcome,” he stammered. “It’s my pleasure, really.”

“I’m not sure if Mistress Nunnally is asleep at the moment. Please have a seat while I go check.” Sayoko indicated the chairs around the parlor table and vanished into a side hallway.

Will picked a chair and sat without really thinking about it. His head was spinning a little; he hadn’t expected such a friendly welcome, let alone to be invited in. The sudden realization that he might get to talk with Nunnally again so soon hit Will like a rubber chicken to the face, and the familiar sensation of nervousness settled into his stomach.

“Hello. And who might you be?” asked an unfamiliar male voice.

Will started and turned in his seat to see an older boy with messy black hair and a bemused expression on his face. “Ah, I’m just here to see Miss Nunnally,” Will replied without thinking. Oh just perfect, he berated himself a moment later. Best possible way to introduce yourself to Miss Nunnally’s big brother! After all, who else could this be but Lelouch Lamperouge, the one all the high school girls were always giggling about?

Lelouch’s violet eyes flicked briefly from Will’s head to his toes, giving him a rapid but thorough examination. “I see,” he replied after what seemed an eternity to Will. “You must be William.”

“Er, y-yes. You must be Lelouch,” Will stammered.

“Yes. Pleased to meet you.” Lelouch stepped forward and held out his hand.

Will stood and shook hands, managing to look Lelouch in the eye without flinching by a sheer effort of willpower. At first impression Lelouch didn’t seem as intimidating as Will had feared, at least not in and of himself. However, with five younger sisters of his own Will understood all too well that he’d have to prove himself to Lelouch to stand any chance of being Nunnally’s boyfriend, no matter how much she might like him. Is that what I want to be? Will reflected a moment later, Miss Nunnally’s boyfriend? Yes. Yes, I do… if she’ll have me.

*****

Nunnally was caught in a hazy twilight between proper sleep and true wakefulness. Her sore throat ached too much to allow her to fall asleep, but after a sleepless night she was too exhausted to keep awake. That left her in a fitful doze, still aware of the world around her. The quiet noise of her bedroom door opening brought Nunnally back to full wakefulness.

“Hello Sayoko,” she said, recognizing her maid’s step upon the carpet.

“Oh, Mistress Nunnally, you’re awake.” Sayoko stopped at the side of Nunnally’s bed and laid a hand on her forehead to check her temperature. “Your friend William came by to deliver your classwork.”

A thrill of excitement shot down Nunnally’s spine, and she felt the butterflies that always got loose in her stomach when she thought about William. Suddenly her throat didn’t hurt so much. “Is he still here?” she asked Sayoko eagerly, sitting up in bed.

Sayoko smiled and adjusted Nunnally’s pillows to prop her up comfortably. “Yes, he is. Would you like to see him?”

“Yes please,” Nunnally answered, unconsciously running her fingers though her hair to make sure it wasn’t horribly messy. “Thank you, Sayoko!”

“You’re welcome, Mistress Nunnally. I’ll show him in.”

*****

“Mister Abernathy?” Sayoko’s voice broke in on William and Lelouch’s awkward attempt at conversation. “Mistress Nunnally would like to see you.”

“A-alright.” Will nodded respectfully to Lelouch and followed Sayoko down a short hallway to Nunnally’s bedroom. Nunnally’s familiar profile was clearly visible in the evening sunlight; she was sitting up in bed, head cocked slightly to one side as if listening intently. Will realized that was precisely what she was doing as her face turned towards him and Sayoko. “Good afternoon, Miss Nunnally,” Will managed.

Nunnally’s face lit up with a brilliant smile as if his voice had flipped a switch. “Hello William!” she chirped, her high-pitched voice noticeably raw. “Please come in, sit down.”

“Uh, thank you.” Will couldn’t help smiling back. He saw an armchair already in place at the side of the bed and managed to get to it and sit without tripping over his own feet.

Sayoko pointedly keyed the door to remain open and gave Will a look of maternal admonishment before she silently took her leave.

Listen if you wish, Will thought after Sayoko. I am and shall always remain a gentleman. “I’ve brought your classwork, both yesterday’s and today’s,” Will told Nunnally, his self-confidence momentarily bolstered by his mental vow. He placed the folder in the hand Nunnally held out to him. For the first time, Will noticed just how small her hands were, how slender her fingers. He watched as she set the folder in her lap, opened it, and ran her fingers over the Braille lettering of the top page.

“Today’s homework,” Nunnally noted, “from last period.” Her eyebrows arched in surprise. “What time is it?”

“Huh? Oh,” Will glanced at his watch, “it’s about quarter to four. Why?”

Nunnally frowned, flipping through the next few pages and running her fingers along the headings of each. “You typed all of these up in half an hour? William, you’re incredible!” she concluded brightly, giving him a truly dazzling smile.

“Err, I—not s-so much,” Will stammered. “I’m quite used to typing by now, so it wasn’t a problem at all.”

“Typing?”

Will blinked. “Yes. I don’t do it by hand, Miss Nunnally… not possible, really,” he quickly elaborated, for fear of sounding arrogant. “The school owns a Braille typewriter, and the principal lets me use it to… well.” Wow, that sounded lame.

“Oh, I see!” To Will’s amazement, Nunnally still seemed impressed with him. “You know, William, we speak every day. If you like, you can call me Nana. All my friends do.”

“I—but—I don’t know you well enough for that,” Will explained more honestly than he’d intended.

“That’s easily fixed,” Nunnally replied firmly. “And… I do want to get to know you better,” she added. Her blush was obvious even to the star-struck William. “So please, call me Nana. Or at least just call me Nunnally,” she concluded, rubbing her neck gingerly. Apparently all this talking was taking its toll on her inflamed throat.

“A-all right… Nunnally.” Will conceded, his own blush every bit as deep as hers. “In that case, please call me Will.”

“Alright, Will. So, tell me about yourself.” Nunnally closed the folder and set it carefully on her nightstand, then folded her hands neatly in her lap.

“I… uh… there’s not much to tell. No noteworthy family or anything. Just my painting, and I’m sure you don’t want to hear me prattle on about that.”

“Actually, I would sometime. But let’s start at the beginning. Where are you from? What’s your family like?” Nunnally’s curiosity was unashamed and genuine.

Will shrugged unconsciously. “Well… I was born in the Homeland, near the coast in Oregon province. My father’s company assigned him to help open their satellite office here about a month after Area 11 was declared stable. We moved here later that year. I was seven. I guess I’m really a colonial boy at heart; as best I can remember I’ve always liked it better here in Area 11 than in the Homeland, despite all the problems we have.

“My father is a mid-level analyst for one of the big investment firms in the City,” Will continued, becoming a bit less self-conscious as he tried to assemble a coherent narrative. “He does okay; I mean, we’ve always had enough to eat and all. We’re not at all wealthy, though; raising six children is expensive. I’m the eldest, then there’s Hilary, then Elizabeth, then Sophia and Juliana; they’re twins. Lastly Alexis; she’s almost six now. Mother was a police constable, believe it or not, but she quit to stay home with me when I was born. No living grandparents, and no extended family worth mentioning, but my sisters and I get along very well. I guess that about covers it,” Will concluded. “So how about you, Mi—ah, Nunnally?”

Nunnally giggled a little at Will’s slip of the tongue. “I’m from Pendr—,” she began in turn, only to be interrupted by a coughing fit.

Will came out of his chair without thinking, leaning over the bed and taking Nunnally’s hand in both of his. “Are you alright, Nunnally?” Then the realization of what he’d done caught up with him and he tried to withdraw his hands for fear he’d overstepped his bounds.

The tightness with which Nunnally’s hand gripped his stopped Will from pulling away. She nodded repeatedly through continued coughing, which Will took to mean that she was in fact all right. She certainly didn’t sound it, though. “Just my throat,” she finally managed, her beautiful voice reduced to a hoarse croak.

“Shall I get you some water?”

Nunnally nodded again, smiling appreciatively and giving Will’s hand a thankful squeeze.

Barely had Will started for the door when Sayoko appeared, bearing a tray with glass, a straw, and a pitcher of ice-water. She set the tray on Nunnally’s dresser and merely smiled in response to Will’s thank-you. Then Sayoko withdrew once more, allowing Will to do the honors.

A few sips of water did a world of good for Nunnally’s abused voice. “Ahh. Thank you, Will. And thank you too Sayoko,” she added more loudly, reminding Will of just how sharp her hearing was. “Anyway… as I was saying, my brother Lelouch and I are from Pendragon. My mother… Mommy died when I was six,” Nunnally continued in a rush. Tears began to leak from beneath her always-closed eyelids.

Will moved his chair closer to the bed and laid a hand gently atop Nunnally’s once more. His heart threatened to beat its way out of his chest as she took hold of his hand once more, squeezing it tightly in both of hers. Despite the complete attention he was devoting to every word Nunnally spoke, a small part of Will’s mind found time to remark on how warm her hands were… how soft her skin felt…

“I was hurt at the same time that Mommy died. We were… estranged… from our father after that,” Nunnally went on, picking her words carefully. “The two of us were sent to live here. It was still Japan then, and the family we were placed with was very kind to us. Then came the invasion, and we couldn’t stay there anymore. The Ashfords were close to my mother, and they’ve been kind enough to take us in.

“As for my family, there’s my big brother Lelouch, of course,” Nunnally continued. “We have a very large extended family, I suppose, but we don’t talk to them anymore. Honestly, I’m glad—except for one of my half-sisters. She and I were very close, and I miss her terribly sometimes.” Nunnally sighed wistfully, running her thumbs over Will’s palm.

Will knew intuitively that Nunnally was only telling him half the truth, but to his own surprise he wasn’t bothered by it. From the tone of her voice when she mentioned her family, Will deduced that she had good reason for being so vague. Besides, what right did he have to pry into her private affairs?

As they continued to ask questions of each other, Will found Nunnally easier to talk to than he’d ever dared to imagine. His usual shyness gradually subsided, and the pair chatted away for a little over two hours. Lelouch and Sayoko each put their heads around the doorframe a few times, but seemed satisfied with—or at least accepting of—the situation. In deference to Nunnally’s sore throat Will forced himself to do the majority of the talking; ordinarily he would have preferred things the other way around, being quiet and rather shy by nature.

In time, though, Nunnally began to show signs of fatigue. William concluded the story he was telling her about one of Kaitlyn’s infamous plans and squeezed Nunnally’s hand gently. “If you’d like to go back to sleep, I can leave,” he offered, doing his best to reflect the warmth and concern he felt into his tone of voice.

“No, it’s alright,” Nunnally replied with a tired smile. “I won’t be able to really fall asleep, anyway. My throat hurts too much.”

Will’s gaze alighted on the thick book that rested on Nunnally’s nightstand. He carefully slipped his hands out of hers and picked it up. The book was in Braille, naturally. Will ran his index finger across the cover, mentally transforming the pattern of the embossed dots into letters. “Pride and Prejudice,” he remarked with a soft smile. “I’ve always liked this book. Did you choose it for your English paper too?”

“Yes, I did. But the paper’s due in little more than a week and I’m not even done reading the book yet.” Nunnally sighed quietly. “I can’t seem to concentrate with this silly cold.”

“Would you like me to read it aloud to you? Whenever I had trouble sleeping, my mother used to read to me. I’m happy to do the same for you,” Will offered. He found her bookmark and opened the volume to the indicated page. “You’re at the start of chapter forty-seven, correct?” he asked after running his fingers along the top of the page.”

“Yes, I am. That’s a strange coincidence, you having a copy of the book with you,” Nunnally noted in amusement.

“Uh, I don’t. I’m using your copy here.”

“But mine’s in Braille.”

“I can read it… er, well enough to manage, I think.”

Nunnally’s beaming smile brought all of Will’s nervousness rushing back. “I thought you were sighted,” she noted with a giggle.

“Of course I am,” Will replied in astonishment. “I wouldn’t be much of a painter if I couldn’t see.”

Nunnally blushed yet again, feeling very foolish. “Oh my, you’re quite right! How silly of me,” she laughed. “But then where did you learn Braille?”

“I’ve picked it up gradually since the beginning of the school year,” Will answered modestly. “Double-checking what I type for you and that sort of thing.” There was a moment of awkward silence. “Um, shall I read to you?” Will asked again. That tiny piece in the back of his mind expressed astonishment at his own boldness.

“Alright,” Nunnally replied, her voice very quiet as she lay back and settled herself to try to fall asleep. Or to be more comfortable, at least. Will’s offer to read to her was very sweet, but it brought back faint memories of Mommy, reading Beatrix Potter and Winnie-the-Pooh to her and Lelouch at bedtime. Recalling that made Nunnally’s heart ache in a quite literal way. Thankfully, she had lots of experience in putting her past aside.

Will found the first line with his fingertip and began to read: “‘I have been thinking it over again, Elizabeth,’ said her uncle as they drove from the town; and really, upon serious consideration, I am much more inclined than I was to judge as your eldest sister does of the matter…’”

He really does have a wonderful voice, Nunnally thought as she nestled into her pillow. It’s so nice just talking to him! Who’d have thought that he had so many younger sisters? It must be wonderful, having a close, normal family like that…

With that thought, Nunnally drifted peacefully into the realm of Morpheus.

*****

{More Author’s Note: I hope you had as much fun reading this chapter as I did writing it! Hopefully its length compensates somewhat for the several updates I’ve recently missed.

It’s interesting to write for Will; I have to constantly remind myself that he’s not a hero. Not that he’s a wuss, of course (he’s actually quite brave when push comes to shove), but he’s just not the heroic type.

For the first scene, I dipped heavily into my own high school memories, particularly for the physical sensations Will experiences. Pretty girls are extremely intimidating, especially for guys who aren’t used to talking to them. So to all you ladies out there, if a normally coherent guy gets all out of sorts when he converses with you, take it as a compliment. ;)

For reference, a brief physical description of Will: Britannian, 5’7” (still growing), brown eyes, light brown hair, extremely slim. Boyishly handsome. His fingers are long and almost femininely slender. Since I know someone’s going to ask, I picked Oregon as his original home as a minor homage to one of my ex-girlfriends, who I remember very fondly. Given what I learned of the Oregonian temperament from her, it seems a fitting origin point for young Mr. Abernathy. His sisters’ names are borrowed from various ex-girlfriends, friends, and co-workers of mine. All they have in common is that they felt Britannian, but not conspicuously upper-class.

To the best of my memory, we never see what the Ashford middle school boys’ uniform looks like. It’s possible that they wear the same uniform as the high school boys, but given that the girls’ uniform differs between middle and high school (we see Nunnally wearing hers now and then, remember), it follows that the boys’ uniforms would differ as well. I picture the middle school boys’ uniform as follows: white dress shirt, navy blue tie, lighter blue blazer, tan slacks, black socks, black dress shoes. If there is an on-screen or in-manga appearance of the canonical uniform, please let me know! ^^

I’m aware that strictly speaking, Nunnally’s nickname should be written “Nunna.” However, I just can’t stand that spelling from a purely aesthetic perspective. (Yes, written words have aesthetics, at least in my strange little world. Don’t ask me to explain; it’s a writer thing.) Consequently, I’m going to spell it “Nana.”

If you didn’t know, in Britain “the City” with a capital C refers to London’s financial district, and by extension to the British banking and investment industries.

Morpheus is the Greek god of dreams. I hope you folks will forgive me the occasional highbrow reference now and again.

As I said at the beginning, Will’s theme is The Mystic’s Dream by Loreena McKennitt. For those of you who are wondering, Nunnally’s theme (in this story, at least) is Firework by Katy Perry.

Readers: Mikey

See you next week! Same Angel time, same Angel channel!}
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Eye of the Beholder