Title: Forbidden Fruit

Genre: Romance

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: AU-ish. ZeroLulu.

Summary: Why is it that we desire what we cannot have? Why is it that the things in this world which are the most beautiful--the most forbidden--are so alluring? // "Is it bright where you are?"

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass. Information regarding "Forbidden Fruit" was gathered from Wikipedia…so credit to them for that.

Serena:…[shrugs] I associate "Forbidden Fruit" to the ZeroLulu pairing. And this idea would not go away until I finished it. :D

-X-X-X-X-

"A metaphor that describes an object of desire whose appeal is the direct result of the knowledge that it cannot or should not be obtained." -Wikipedia

-X-X-X-X-

The soft iridescent glow that cascaded down to the Earth by the will of the full moon landed gently against pale skin, covering his body in an unearthly blanket of light. Dark strands of silky hair were splayed against white sheets, some falling over closed eyelids, some swaying in the breeze created by his quiet breathing.

Oh, he looked so angelic. So at peace with his surroundings, so content in his little dream world.

Those luscious lips, which were normally pulled into a frown or grimace, were parted slightly in neither a frown nor a smile. Those vibrant eyes, always so full of hidden emotion when opened, were completely relaxed. His whole face was devoid of worry, free from stress. He looked so innocent while he slept, so alluring, so completely unaware.

It was all Zero could do to restrain himself from closing the distance between them, to place a kiss against those soft lips or to run his fingers along that angular jaw line. It was all he could do not to touch him.

But he wanted to. He wanted to so badly.

He wanted to feel the shivers racking through the boy's lithe body as he caressed his bare skin. He wanted to hear the little gasps and moans that would undoubtedly spill from those petal lips as he touched a particularly sensitive spot. He wanted to see those purple diamonds glazed with pleasure that he himself caused.

Unconsciously, a hand drifted downward, briefly brushing against one moonlit cheek. But he hesitated and retracted his hand.

No. He couldn't.

It was wrong to take advantage of this sleeping angel. This being was not meant to be defiled in such an intimate manner. It was neither his place nor his right to take away something so innocent and pure--something that wasn't his.

And yet…he found his hand drifting back to that sleeping face, caressing those beautiful features in the most loving manner possible.

The bridge of his nose, the backs of his eyelids, the skin of his lips, the line of his jaw, the curves of his ears.

The boy below him squirmed a bit at the gentle movements and his eyes scrunched up slightly as those gloved fingers slid against his jaw, but he did not awaken from his slumber.

"Lelouch…" he murmured to the boy below him.

The hand caressing the boy's face began to travel downward, fingers tracing a line from his jaw to his shoulder.

"What is it that you dream about?"

His fingers turned and slid down the length of Lelouch's arm, pausing long enough to switch direction and move to the hem of the boy's shirt.

"Is it bright where you are?"

His hand slid underneath Lelouch's shirt, slowly traveling upward as his fingers traced the many subtle dips and curves along the way.

Lelouch made a tiny groaning noise as his body writhed slightly under those fluttering fingers. He still did not awaken, but Zero could sense that his touches were slowly dragging Lelouch away from whatever bright land he was in.

That made his hand still and made something throb inside his chest.

He did not want this sweet angel to be driven out of his peaceful world just yet. He wanted him to stay for as long as he could. To be happy and content for once, free from the horrors this world wrought, free from all the pain and suffering he endured when awake.

Slowly, hesitantly, his hand retracted and left the warmth of that flawless skin behind.

He took hold of the blanket and pulled it over the boy's shoulders as he quietly rose from the edge of the bed. He gazed down at him, lingering thoughts of his desires--his feelings--swirling in a vast mixture inside his mind.

Slowly, a hand rose, his fingers running over the smooth surface of the mask obscuring his face. A quiet hiss escaped the object as the back lifted and the mask was removed. He leaned down and brushed his lips against that moonlit cheek in a deliberately slow movement, slowly drifting them around to Lelouch's petal lips.

"Be happy for a little while longer." he whispered as his lips briefly touched Lelouch's.

Reluctantly, Zero stood up straight and placed the mask back over his face, once again concealing something he no longer wanted to hide.

He turned, his cape flowing around him as his aura shifted, that commanding presence he held returning as he moved onward to face his enemies once more and left that sleeping angel in his brightly lit paradise.

-X-X-X-X-

Serena: Well, that was something. I would love a review if you can spare the time to write me one. :D