C.C.



'C.C (シー・ツー, Shī Tsū?, pronounced C2) is one of the central characters in the Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion anime series by Sunrise. Her seiyuu is Yukana while she is voiced by Kate Higgins in the English dub. C.C. is not her real name; she involuntarily reveals her real name to Lelouch in her sleep, but it is muted so the viewer cannot hear it.

In the 29th Anime Grand Prix, she was awarded 3rd place.

Character description
C.C. is apparently immortal, healing from any wound (implied to include beheading) with enough time. She also doesn't age. Apart from her immortality, C.C. has the ability to bestow people with the power of Geass, which manifests differently in each person but generally carries the ability to affect the minds of those it is used on in some way. A Geass sigil appears on her forehead whenever she manifests this power, and she has a similar scar on her left breast. It is hinted that many more like her exist, as shown in her memories of many children with similar sigils, and she suggests that the power has precipitated bloody conflicts in the past. Her powers caught the interest of Britannia, who imprisoned her for experimentation purposes.

In the first season finale, C.C. triggers a trap set by V.V., causing herself and Lelouch to be submerged in a shock image sequence similar to the one she used on Suzaku. Through this, Lelouch sees memories of her past, including repeated "deaths". One shows C.C. attempting to escape from a World War I-esque battlefield, only to be shot in the forehead. Further memories show her being persecuted as a witch and suffering various forms of torture and/or execution throughout history and various time periods, including burning at the stake, guillotining, and the iron maiden. This would suggest a minimum lifespan of at least six centuries. In a special feature included in the series' fifth DVD, she and Lelouch discuss Washington's Rebellion, during which she speaks of participants such as George Washington and Benjamin Franklin as if she had been close friends with both. In the past, she appears to have observed Suzaku and Lelouch when they were both children, having even interacted with Lelouch at one point, though he doesn't remember their meeting.

Her individual experiences have led C.C. to become a detached and lonely individual, with little care for even those she has entered into contracts with. She tells Lelouch that she has been alive so long that she can no longer remember who loves her and who hates her. Due to her nature and history, she has been lonely as long as she can remember. Lelouch replies, "You're not alone. We are partners. If you are a witch, then I'll become a warlock." Lelouch is possibly the first person that has ever truly cared for her and it appears that she reciprocates at least some of these feelings, as she unexpectedly kisses him after their memories are shared.

When left alone, she has sometimes spoken to a previously unknown person through means unknown, which, in episode 23, was revealed to be Marianne, Lelouch's deceased mother, although in episode 19 it appears that she is talking to V.V. as well. According to the DVD Magazine 02, she is talking to more than one person when she seems to be talking to herself.

C.C. also has a somewhat obsessive penchant for pizza, especially Pizza Hut's (which sponsors Code Geass in Japan); she constantly orders pizzas to Lelouch's house using his credit card, much to his chagrin. This is often used for comedic effect. Her love for pizza is so strong that she is willing to risk herself being captured, twice exposing herself to get a piece of a giant pizza being made by the Student Council (which is ruined both times); both Lelouch and Kallen sometimes refer her as "Pizza Girl". In addition to this she is an avid collector of Cheeze-kun related merchandises and is often seen hugging a Cheeze-kun plush doll.

First season
C.C. is introduced in the first episode, where she emerges from a fake gas capsule seized by Japanese rebels. She saves Lelouch Lamperouge from the Britannian soldiers trying to recapture her, taking the shot intended for him. To keep the soldiers from simply shooting again, she grants him the power of Geass, which she calls the "power of the king", on the condition that he grant her greatest wish. Lelouch accepts and is granted the power to control people's actions. Since she appears to have died following this, he leaves her body behind.

She unexpectedly reappears in the fifth episode, casually folding origami with Nunnally. From this point on she passively oversees Lelouch's missions as Zero, wanting to keep him alive so he can fulfill his contract, often going as far as wearing his clothes and impersonating him when situations become life-threatening.

When C.C.'s existence is revealed to the Black Knights, she gains considerable unofficial standing, as she is seen by other members to be one of Zero's closest advisors, if not his top advisor. However, her willful attitude and lack of an official posting annoys some veteran members and causes confusion as to her role within the Black Knights. At one point, Tamaki goes so far as to accuse her of being a member only because she's Zero's lover, a claim which she coldly denies. When the Black Knights gain possession of the Knightmare Frame Gawain, she becomes its pilot while Lelouch operates the weapons.

In the season finale, she uses the Gawain to battle Jeremiah Gottwald's Siegfried so Lelouch can save his sister. She drags both it and herself to the ocean floor to end the battle while narrating that the spark of Lelouch's actions was the core of human motivation: the desire for just a small amount of happiness. According to Yukana in a conference memo, C.C. was crushed by the water pressure, but managed to come to the surface; it is stated that it was too gruesome to show on TV.

Second season
At the start of the second season, C.C. appears to be commanding the Black Knights. She and the rest of the surviving Black Knights initiate an operation to unlock Zero's memory that was sealed away by the Emperor of Britannia. Despite the Intelligence Agency having followed Lelouch in anticipation of that exact outcome, she is successful in restoring his memories. She takes up her old position following this.

In episode 11, she is revealed to have formerly led the Geass Directorate, a secret organization that studies and produces Geass users. V.V. succeeded C.C. as the leader, and relocated the headquarters to somewhere in the Chinese Federation. Lelouch leaves her to find its exact location down while he returns to Japan. After pinpointing the location of the Geass Directorate, Lelouch orders C.C. to lead the attack against it. Some of the scientists recognize C.C. and beg her to save them, but they are killed before she can answer. She also reluctantly kills V.V.'s direct subordinates when they attempt to escape by bullet train in order to bury the existence of Geass.

Her past is revealed to Lelouch after he is transported to the Sword of Akasha to face the Emperor. She also reveals that he would have become immortal had he granted her wish, which is to die, and spares him by offering her life to the Emperor. Lelouch refuses to let her die unhappy and rescues her, but she loses her memories of Geass and reverts to her personality as it was before she came under the contract that ultimately bestowed immortality upon her. Following her memory loss, C.C. remains in Lelouch's quarters, believing him to be her master. When Lelouch's identity is revealed to the Black Knights and Rolo is forced to take him to safety, C.C. is left behind. Afterward, Marianne, through Anya, restored her memory.

Abilities
When in close proximity to another person, C.C can afflict them with a hallucinatory experience of chaotic and ominous images, pertaining in part to the memories of the target involved; the content varies with the afflicted. Physical contact, either direct or via a Knightmare Frame, may facilitate the process. Suzaku is shown images of his father (whom he murdered) as well as parts of C.C.'s memories, driving him into a panic. In another instance, Anya is shown images of Lelouch's childhood, causing her to freeze in wonder until contact was severed. It tends to activate involuntarily at various points, such as when Lelouch's Geass becomes permanently active.

Apart from psychic abilities, C.C. is a capable leader, able to rescue Lelouch from Britannian traps, and handle firearms with some proficiency. She is also an accomplished Knightmare pilot, able to pilot both standard Knightmare Frames as well as copilot the Gawain with Lelouch.

Geass
Before becoming immortal, C.C.'s Geass, as contracted with a nun during apparently medieval times, granted her the power "to be loved," which allowed her to make anyone around her love her. She originally started with a Geass symbol in her left eye, but as she matured, she eventually developed another in her right, and inferredly became unable to control it, causing everyone to love her. After she became bored by the tranced society around her, the nun who had bound the Geass contract to her shifted her immortality into C.C., as signified by the Geass sigil on her forehead and similar scar under her left breast. The nun died in the process, and as part of the exchange, C.C. became immune to the effects of Geass while losing her original.