A/N: Yo. So I'm new to this fanfiction writing thing. When I found out that P. Clu-Clu was leaving the scene, I thought I'd step in and take over her story. She gave it to me, so now we can thankfully find out how the story ends. She gave me all of the plans she had meant for the story, so I have that, and a few ideas of my own. The first three chapters will be hers, and starting from chapter four and on, that'll be my stuff, so just be on the lookout for that.
Disclaimer: Code Geass isn't mine.
Chapter One: The Bishop, Unexpected
"Good morning, Suzaku."
"Good morning, Lelouch."
With a wide yawn, the brunette blinked his groggy eyes before taking a seat besides his roommate in the spacious dining hall of Ashford Academy. Rubbing his neck, he took a whiff of the delicious aromas of breakfast lazily wafting in the air. Reaching for a slice of toast and a waiting container of sweet marmalade, he asked, "Ready for the day? It'll be our last first day of school after all."
"In regard to secondary education, it is. Not in our entire lifetime though."
"Ha, I guess you're right. I- Uh-oh. Incoming on your 2'o clock. Brace yourself; there are seven of them, each carrying five cases."
True to his warning, a troop of smiling girls rushed up to the two boy's table. Forming a perfect circumference around the large round table, the group curtsied as best as they could (every one of them was holding a stack of lunch boxes after all) before simultaneously chiming, "Good morning, your Highness!"
Smothering the urge to grimace, the center of the simpering congregation's collective attention set his national headlines down and greeted the visitors with a gentle lecture.
"There's no need to address me in such a fashion. I'm not a man of noble, nor royal, birth; I'm like you. A normal high school student. Calling me by 'your highness' is highly unnecessary; it creates a barrier between myself and you, not to mention how it contains the potential to disrupt the school environment. I believe it would be in all of our best interest if you refrained from addressing me in such a way. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Master Lelouch!"
Oh, how he wished to sigh out of exasperation. They never learned.
Never.
Clearing his throat, he decided to let their waywardness pass for the moment and politely asked what it was that they so tightly gripped in their hands (though he knew full well what it was that they were holding).
Clara, the obvious alpha of the flock, eagerly stepped forward. Wasting not even a second, she launched into a detailed and lengthy description of each one of the thirty-five carefully and lovingly packed hand-made lunches.
Suzaku smiled into his scrambled eggs as he glanced at the trapped victim. He was nodding his head occasionally, or asking a question out of courtesy, as the girl rambled on…
And on…
And on…
And on.
It was always a wonder, seeing his friend interact with the members of the (unofficial) Lelouch-vi-Britannia fanclub. He was always so civil and gracious with them, despite muttering under his breath every now and then how they should direct their focus and energies to bigger, better things, such as studying, rather than chasing after him and doing pointless, and often undesired, errands for him.
He was simply too much of a gentleman.
Finishing off his second plate of breakfast, the high schooler glanced all around him, his train of thought moving on from the plight of the raven-haired man.
Where was she? She was going to be late for the entrance ceremony, and he hadn't forgotten what had happened the year before when she had nearly missed it. She had almost burst into tears, miserable with the mere thought of missing the highlight of her first year in the world of secondary education.
Perhaps he should go collect her? Knowing her and her sense of direction, the chances of her getting lost couldn't be entirely ruled out. Hmm… There was still twenty minutes left of the breakfast hour, but… But she had to eat too. Breakfast was the most important meal of the day, and on the first day of school, it was imperative that she eat it. Especially her, with her delicate body and-
"Suzaku!"
"Euphie!"
Flying out of his chair, he nearly tackled his girlfriend to the ground in a warm bear-hug. She giggled as he spun her around. When both of her school uniform loafers were flat on the polished ground, and she had smoothed her black skirt down to its usual length, she beamed at him while saying, "I'm sorry I'm so late. Even though it's been a year, I got a little lost. The campus is so big!"
"No, it's my fault. I should have escorted you to the dining hall. I'm sorry, Euphie, I'm so-"
"If you two are done apologizing to each other," a voice dryly interrupted, 'I'd like to drop by the student council building before the induction ceremony."
"Good morning, Lelouch!" was the cheerful answer he was given. With a soft smile, the 17 year-old, who had managed to escape the clutches of the hoard of (mad) fangirls, returned her hello.
"Mother is coming today," the elder of the two siblings said. His sister bounded on the balls of her feet excitedly, her eyes dancing, as she chirped, "Oh, I know! I'm so excited for today! So many good things are happening!"
"You have a big day ahead of you. We all do. So make sure to eat breakfast. Do you understand, Euphemia?"
"Of course! The chefs here are so talented; it would be a terrible mistake to skip the meals here. I'm afraid I'm going to gain weight, the food here is so delicious."
"You can gain all the weight you want, Euphie. You'll always be the prettiest girl to me."
She blushed, abashedly studying the leather tongues of her shoes. Lelouch, making an effort not to throttle Suzaku for making his sister so embarrassed, stuffed a hand into a pocket before walking away.
"Hey, where are you going?" called his friend.
"To talk to the vice-president."
"But what if she-"
"There's no reason for that woman to be anywhere but the student council building right now. Isn't that right, Euphemia?"
"She woke up at 6'o clock today to go to the kitchen," squeaked she. "I think she's been eating pizza ever since."
Of course she woke up early today. Out of the 365 days in the year, she woke up this early on this day only because she wanted to gorge on pizza before the three-hour period in which she had to be separated from the infernal, greasy dish until lunchtime.
Of course.
Finally granting himself the sigh he had wished to breathe ever since he had seen the thirty-five lunch boxes (which he had miraculously succeeded in directing towards the kitchen staff of the wealthy Academy), the student council president exited the cavernous community center, bee-lining for the strange woman and her strange penchant for pizza.
The Witch.
His Vice-President.
. . .
"Um… C2?"
"What?"
"Should you… Should you be doing that? Won't Lelou get angry?"
Shirley squirmed in her seat, fidgeting with the edge of her skirt, as she watched the emerald-haired woman take out her fifth pan of pizza out of the oven. Reaching for a steaming hot slice of pepperoni, the occupied girl waved her off.
"Who cares what that scrawny idiot thinks?"
"Lelou isn't an idiot!" she indignantly defended. "He's smart! He's ranked number one out of the entire school academically, and he's a chess grandmaster!"
"Shirley, do you even know what a grandmaster is?"
"U-um… W-well…"
She caught the… The pitying? Was that pity in her eyes? She caught the… The look, whatever look it was, the other was directing towards her, and she reddened.
"I-it doesn't matter whether I know the exact definition of grandmaster or not! What matters is that you think Lelou is stupid. And he's not! In fact, he's smarter than you, C2, so you shouldn't be-"
"Now, that is where you are severely misguided."
"W-what?"
"There are plenty of things that he doesn't know."
"What are you-"
"For instance. Did you know," the witch reached for another slice of pizza, "that he's still a virgin?"
"How… Why… W-why would I know th-that?"
"I don't know," she shrugged. "It just seemed like something you would write down in that little diary you always carry around with you."
"H-have you read my diary?"
"Don't be ridiculous. Do you seriously think that I would go through all of the trouble to steal your diary, when I can just read you like the open book that you are instead?"
Shirley opened her mouth, only to close it, only to open it once again. What… She… She couldn't be read like an open book! She was a closed book, not an open one! Wh… W-what was C.C. talking about? C.C. didn't know anything, did she? Did she? Wait… Wait, had she read her diary? Oh no! Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no! Everything was in there, every one of her secrets, every one of her dreams, her daydreams about Lelou, her thoughts, everything! Oh no, what if she had? Then she'd know everything and it- Oh, this was so embarrassing, it- Oh no, it-
The door to the kitchen opened suddenly, and two pairs of eyes, one amused and the other frantic, swung towards the newcomer to their small group.
"C2."
At the sound of the familiar tenor voice, Shirley almost instantaneously straightened up in her chair and smoothed her skirt down. Meanwhile, C.C., who had been lying on her side, continued to chew on slice, after slice, after slice of junk food. The invisible third party of the room watched as her crush stood in front of the other girl and crossed his arms over his chest.
"What is it, boy?" she drawled. She was completely and utterly undeterred by the disapproving frown the raven-haired man was giving her; as a matter of fact, her golden irises were glimmering with the hint of a challenge.
"How many times have I told you not to lie on the counter?"
"How many times will it take for you to get through that dense skull of yours the fact that I don't care whether the rules say I can lie on them or not?"
"You-"
"I would really hate to fight, Lelou," she said scathingly. "After all, it's the beginning of a new year, not to mention your last. It would be terrible if you started off by arguing. And with an underclassman no less. How would your harem react if they saw how much of a short temper their 'darling prince' has?"
Clearly fuming, he replied in a tight voice, "The ceremony begins in ten minutes, and, given our average walking speed as a collective group, it will take an approximate three minutes to travel to the gym. I propose that you get up, wash your hand clean of any and all grease, and attend the even in which your presence is required, unlike last year."
"Last year," she coolly deflected, "was not my fault, and you know it. I don't understand why you have to keep bringing it up. Why are you so stuck in the past, Lelouch?"
"Just get up, witch. We're going to be late."
"Why do you care so much if I'm there?"
"Because you're the vice-president."
"And so?"
"C2, get up before I-"
"Before you what? What are you going to do? What can you do? Pull me up onto my feet? Are you sure you won't die from shortness of breath before you do? We all know how physically underwhelming you are."
He merely shook his head, as if he felt sorry for her, as he took his cell-phone out of his pocket. Curious, she stared at him as he quickly dialed a number. When the other line picked up, he intoned, "Bring him in" before swiftly ending the rather terse phone call.
"Bring who in?"
"C2, I tried my best to be civil with you," he explained. Walking towards the kitchen doors, he pulled out a cutting board from a cabinet. "But I see now that you're the type of individual who's too stubborn to appropriately respond to respect and consideration."
"Lelouch, what are you-"
"I'm sorry that it had to come to this."
Just at that moment, Rivalz burst into the room and handed a lumpy hemp sack to the warlock. Unceremoniously dumping its content onto the cutting board, he removed a sharp, twinkling knife from the wooden knife block and place the tip of the blade right besides…
Cheese-kun's smile.
Sitting up, the witch growled, "You are making a serious mistake right-"
"I'm under the impression that polyester playthings such as these don't rip easily, on account of its target audience being the average age of 5 years old. But under the blade of a kitchen knife, Cheese-kun won't be-"
"Lelouch-"
"Don't make me do this, C2. I know you love him; we don't have to do this. All you-"
"You are one dead-"
"We can all walk away from this room without having to pull any stuffing. It's all up to you."
There was a apprehensive silence, in which both Shirley and Rivalz shivered from the bitter tension permeating the air.
These types of power struggles… It was new. Foreign. Of course, C.C. and Lelouch clashed, as sure as the sun rose every morning. But it was never like this, never on this scale. Never where Cheese-kun was dragged in. Something had obviously happened between the two; Shirley wondered if that something had taken place during the three days in which the pair had come to school in the middle of vacation due to paperwork and business. But what could have possibly happened? Lelou had made it extremely clear that he was going to give all of his attention to his high school studies when they had graduated from junior high. And he was a man of his word.
Perhaps C.C. had actually done something wrong this time?
She and Lelou usually fought because C.C. would often twist his words, or just be plan vague and mystifying. But it was never because she actually did anything wrong; it was usually just her frustrating mischief that sparked the spats between them. Lelou was never more than exasperated with her. But perhaps she had actually done something wrong this time? Made a grave mistake?
Oh, how she wished that C.C. had offended him. Shirley knew that it was evil and hateful to harbor such a thought, but she couldn't help it; even if Lelou didn't like anyone, it didn't mean C.C. didn't see Lelou as anything more than just a third year student who was known as the school's 'darling prince' (among various other titles, such as student council president; but what was the student council president compared to 'darling prince'?). But if she had erred him, then that would take her out of the competition for sure!
And so, the young woman continued to hold her tongue, even going as far as holding Rivalz back by grabbing his wrist, and allowed for the scene to unfold.
"Have you gone mad? Who do you think you are?"
"C2, you-"
"You think that I'll hesitate from reporting you for vandalism, theft, and blackmail? You, Rivalz, and Shirley, all three of you are, are going to pay for-"
"Just get up, and I'll return Cheese-kun to you."
"Unharmed?"
"Completely."
C.C. stared at him with narrow slits smoldering with skepticism and suspicion, until she sat up and hopped off of the counter. Snatching her beloved mascot away from the murderous talons of the idiot, she darkly hissed, "I won't forget this" before shoving past him and storming out.
For someone who had just been threatened with assassination, Lelouch was extremely calm. Sliding the knife back into its slot and putting away the cutting board, he silently brushed non-existential dust off from the granite countertops before nonchalantly asking, "Shall we go then?" and following after the vice-president. Rivalz, shaking his head, mumbled something or other along the lines of "Looks like this school year's going to be a rough one" as he headed out. Shirley stood alone, feeling incredibly disappointed. He hadn't even glanced in her direction, much less say "good morning" to her.
"And I got a haircut just for him too."
Well, she'd fix that.
"Hey, Lelou! Lelou, wait for me!"
And with that, Shirley ran out of the room, determined to make Ashford Academy's 'darling prince' to notice and compliment her on her trim.
. . .
"Good morning, everyone."
Kallen smiled as she appeared backstage with Gino. Almost everyone was here; Rivalz was chatting with Shirley, Suzaku, holding hands with Euphie, was apparently apologizing to Lelouch, who was currently retying C.C.'s pigtails (probably the witch's demands; it was nothing new), for being late, as on the way to the gym, he had had to break up a fight.
"Was it between Code King and Code Queen?" the redhead questioned. The disciplinary officer nodded wearily, and she not unkindly warned him, "It's going to get a lot worse this year, Suzaku, since Code King has to disband after this year since their 'darling prince' is graduating."
"I know…"
"It's okay, Suzaku," sympathetically comforted Euphemia. "I'll help you!"
"Thanks, Euphie, but I couldn't possibly let you do something so dangerous. You know how violent the two clubs can get… Code Princess would kill me if I let you. And I don't want you getting hurt either. Oh, it's okay, Euphie; I'm the one who signed up to be the disciplinary officer. You help me enough already with your words and smiles."
Kallen let out a strangely twisted smile as the two continued to trade sugary compliments in their saccharine bubble of fluff, kittens, and cotton candy. Deciding that she had had witnessed enough doting for one morning, she turned towards Rivalz and Shirley and queried, "Where's Nina?"
"Where indeed is Nina?" questioned Lelouch. Having finished tying C.C.'s hair, he frowned at the student council. "Where is she? The entire council is supposed to be on stage for the ceremony; I won't have a single member missing this year."
Everyone (save for C.C.) glanced at one another, silently praying for someone to speak up.
"Er…"
"Wh-" the raven-haired man began. Much to everyone's relief, the school's deputy headmaster, Odysseus eu Britannia, appeared and asked in his usual ingenuous manner, "It's time for the ceremony to start. All of you are ready, right?"
"Yes, sir!" chorused the group. As they rushed on stage, C.C. said, "Relax. I'm sure Nina will come before it starts."
When he didn't move from his rooted spot, she raised an eyebrow.
"Having the secretary missing is bad enough. If the president weren't to be on stage when the curtain rises, I'd hate to see what'd happen."
"… You're leaving Cheese-kun backstage."
"Over my dead body."
"C-"
"Lighten up, Lelouch. It's only morning, and already you have wrinkles."
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. She had a point.
"Alright. But you're still leaving Cheese-kun back-"
She walked out from behind the wings of the stage, tightly holding the infernal plushie to her chest.
… He supposed that there was nothing he could do about that either.
… Women.
. . .
"Oh, Lelouch darling! The speech you delivered today! Simply superb; you can't imagine the number of mothers who came to me afterwards, complimenting me on how well-raised you are. Excellent work, my love."
"Thank you, Mother," replied her son. She smiled before turning to her other child.
"Oh, and Nunnally sweetheart, you look absolutely adorable in your new uniform. How do you like it?"
"It feels different, but I don't mind. Different doesn't always mean bad."
"No, it doesn't, dear. Oh, how charming you look! Alas, it only reminds me of how old I'm getting. Now that you're a high school student… I feel as if I'll be surrounded by grandchildren in the next blink of an eye."
"Oh, Mother! You're not old, you're still beautiful! You'll always be beautiful. Don't worry."
"Such a sweet child… But Nunnally?"
"Yes, Mother?"
"Where's Euphie?"
Truly, where was her daughter? Marianne hadn't seen her since she had left home for to move into Ashford for the school year, and that had been three days ago. Already she had forgotten about her dear old mother, and-
"Euphie-nee-sama is with Suzaku."
"Oh, Suzaku? I must absolutely meet him. Can you show me which one of the dashing gentleman in the crowd your sister's boyfriend is? I've heard so much about him, I'd like to finally meet him."
As the young girl graciously pointed out just who Suzaku Kururugi was, nearby Gino was nearly flattened by Rivalz.
"Guess what?" he nearly screamed. Gino, always one to be excited easily, half-shouted over the din of the mass of students and parents, "What?"
"Milly is here!"
"Really? Are you going to ask her out?"
"W-what? Don't be- Why would I do that?"
"Why would you do what?"
Cheeks flushing a dark shade of red, the blue-haired lad whipped around to take in the sight of the curious smirk of his love. Sidling closer to him, she hooked her arm around his neck in an arm-lock as she teased, "What new secrets do you have for me to find out, Rivalz? You can tell Aunty Milly; I promise not to tell most of everyone who personally knows you."
"U-um…"
"Gino! It's been such a long time! How's it going with Kallen?"
"Hi! It's great," cheerfully replied the younger man. Immediately releasing Rivalz, the former student council president began chatting with her fellow blonde. Rivalz, sighing (it had been nice being so close to Milly, and it devastated him how short-lived his moment in heaven had been), moved to join in on the conversation, when someone stumbled into him.
"Hey!"
"S-sorry, Rivalz," a soft voice said. Eyes widening, he realized who had run into him. Grabbing them by their small shoulders, he gently shook her as he demanded, "Where were you, Nina? Lelouch nearly lost his head 'cause you weren't at the induction ceremony!"
"I-I had to do something for the Headmaster."
"The Headmaster? What did he want?"
"W-well… Well, Rivalz…"
"What is it, Nina?"
"Well… I have an announcement to make to the student council."
"An announcement?"
She nodded her head slowly, and he blinked at her. What could Nina have to say to everyone? Was she moving? Dropping out? There had been rumors of her receiving an offer from the Dallas Research Institute to join In Vogue, some prestigious research team far out of Rivalz's mental map of the world (which really only consisted of his home and family, Ashford Academy, and Milly Ashford).
That must be it!
She was leaving!
Nina was leaving, she was moving away, deserting him and their friends, she was-
"Nina!"
Frightened by his sudden outburst, she stuttered, "W-what is it, Rivalz?"
"Don't tell me you're moving to that Dallin Institute-thing, whatever it's called! Nina! You can't leave us! The school year just started!"
"R-Rivalz, sh. You're making everyone stare."
"Nina!"
"Rivalz, what do you think you're doing?"
Frantic and wild-eyed, the teenager took the reproachful president by the shoulders and violently shook him.
"Lelouch, Nina is leaving us!"
But the raven-haired man merely slid his hands off of his shoulders and turned his attention towards Nina.
"Is this true?"
"I have something important to say to the student council."
"Is it urgent?"
She nodded, and he sighed.
"Rivalz, calm down. Nina, could you please gather the rest of the council? I have another matter to tend to; I'll join you as soon as I've finished."
She nodded again before scurrying away. Rivalz, refusing to even try and compose himself, shouted after the retreating figure, "Hey! Didn't you hear me? I said that Nina is leaving!"
"She's not leaving, Rivalz. Get a hold of yourself and help Nina."
"Nin-"
"Rivalz."
"… Yes, sir."
Slumping, Rivalz trudged back into the crowd; no one ever took him seriously. Darn them all. He'd show them this year, just how seriously Rivalz Cardemonde should be taken.
This year wouldn't be like last year, or the year before that, or the year before that.
This year would be different.
He'd make sure of that.
. . .
"Nunnally."
"Onii-sama! Your induction ceremony address was beautiful! A lot of my classmates were impressed; they can't wait to meet their new student council president."
"I'm glad you liked it. I wrote it with you in mind. But Nunnally?"
"Yes, Onii-sama?"
"Do you have everything? Do you know where your homeroom is? The school campus is one of the biggest in the nation, and a majority of the incoming students get lost during the first two weeks of the school year. Do you want me to find an upperclassman to guide you throughout the day?"
"I'm okay," she giggled. "I have my friends. Rolo is talented at finding his way around places, and I'm in the same class as him. You don't have to be worried about me, Onii-sama!"
At the mention of the boy, her protective older brother's eyes narrowed.
"Rolo? Lamperouge? The one who-"
"Saved me during last year's school field trip? Oh, Onii-sama, he's so kind, and- And I love him so much, I… I…"
Realizing how awkward her slip of the tongue was making her brother feel, Nunnally blushed as she hurriedly tried to correct her mistake.
"A-as a friend. I still love you the most, Onii-sama."
"Just be careful of him, Nunnally. You never know what others truly want from you until it's too late. Especially when you're as beautiful as you are. I don't want you getting-"
"Nunna… Oh."
At the sight of Lelouch vi Britannia, Rolo nearly tripped over himself in an attempt to stop rushing towards his friend. Flustered, he fiddled with his horn-rimmed glasses, taking them off, wiping the lenses off, and then putting them on again, before mumbling, "U-um, hello."
"Rolo," stiffly replied the raven-haired man. He looked down his nose at the boy whom his sister apparently loved (though she had claimed that it was only platonic, it was always better to be safe than sorry).
"U-um… I thought your speech was very eloquent, sir."
Lelouch merely stared at him; the first year was clearly intimidated and uncomfortable, as he shifted his weight back and forth, and his hands twitched, as if they were begging to clean his glasses again, but still didn't walk away.
Nunnally, noticing, asked sweetly, "What is it, Rolo?"
"We, uh… It's time to go to our homerooms. Kaguya sent me to find you; she said that she wanted to go back together."
"Oh! Okay. Um, Onii-sama, I have to go to class. But I promise I'll come eat lunch with you and Euphie-nee-sama today."
Giving him a peck on the cheek, she smiled and waved at him before grabbing Rolo's wrist and running off, her two braids bouncing on her shoulders.
"Don't forget what I told you, Nunnally!" he reminded her.
"I won't! Come on, Rolo. I don't want to be late!"
As he watched his sister vanish behind the doors of the Academy, Lelouch made a mental note to find out more about this Rolo Lamperouge whom his sister thought was so kind. In fact, while he was at it, he should investigate every single person in her class, including her teachers.
No one was going to hurt Nunnally.
No one.
. . .
"What is that you wish to announce, Nina?"
Eight pairs of eyes swiveled from the president, who was seated at the head of the long table, to the opposite end where the timid secretary stood. Shrinking back from all of the attention, she quietly said, "Well… Do you remember how we discussed the possibility of an exchange student program last year?"
"It was accepted? Why was I not notified of this any sooner?"
"There was a mix-up."
At the mention of 'mix-up', creases instantaneously appeared on Lelouch's forehead, and he demanded, "What happened?"
"Some of the paperwork wasn't filled out correct- Not ours. Ours was fine. But some of the paperwork wasn't filled out correctly, and so, we just found out today that we are hosting two exchange students from Beijing No. 4 High School."
"When are they arriving?" questioned C.C. Though the idea for a foreign exchange student program hadn't been her idea, or even one she advocated, she was curious. As was the rest of the student council.
Here, she fell silent all of a sudden, as if she knew that the answer would provoke a frown and was reluctant to be at the receiving end of such a reaction.
"Nina. Please tell us," gently coaxed Euphemia.
"… Today," she mumbled.
"What?"
"T… Today. They're coming today. They're probably being escorted to the student council building as we speak."
At her words, Shirley, Gino, and Rivalz bolted out of their seats to plaster their faces against the windows. Lelouch merely put his head in his hands with a heavy sigh; they were only three hours in on the school year, and already, it was a chaotic and unorganized mess.
As Kallen and Suzaku tried to reign in the three inquisitive members, the raven-haired man tiredly asked, "Are the two exchange students form the pool of candidates I selected?"
"… One of them is."
"One of them? Why is it only one?"
"Um, well, it seems like the Beijing School pulled a few strings. But Lelouch?"
"What is it?"
"There's something you need to know about the one who wasn't in the candidate pool. The Beijing School is sending him here to Ashford for remediation; he was held back a year because he-"
There was a knock on the door, and the room promptly fell silent as its inhabitants turned into ice statues. Before anyone could recollect themselves, the door slid open and a tall man whom they recognized as Li Xingke, the ESOL teacher, strode in.
"Mr. vi Britannia, these are the two exchange students from the Beijing No. 4 High School that will be enrolled here at Ashford Academy for the 2018-2019 school year. This," he gestured towards the young girl who was timidly standing in his shadow, "is first year student, Lihua Jiang, and this is-"
"Year two, Mao Qing. Treat me like a king since I'm a Qing!"
The teenager, with his dark sunglasses and silvery hair, cackled at his terrible joke as if it were the funniest thing he had ever heard in his life, completely oblivious to the somewhat awkward atmosphere that was spreading throughout the room to reach even its farthest corners.
Xingke, clearly unruffled, continued on as if he had already decided to ignore the strange behavior and mannerisms of the foreigner, and picked up from where he had been interrupted.
"It was the specific request of Beijing No. 4 that the two students are made honorary members of the student council so that they are able to experience the full and complete Britannian high school experience. Thus, they will be your responsibility. I know Miss Einstein already has access to their individual files, but if there are any questions or issues, notify either myself or Headmaster Ashford. Understood?"
"Yes, sir," they chorused.
With a curt nod and a terse, "I leave the two in your capable hands," the adult exited the room. When the door close behind him, it was dead silent, until their gracious leader rose from his seat and said, "I'm Lelouch vi Britannia, a third year student and the student council president. It's a pleasure to-"
"Year two, Mao Qing. Treat me like a king since I'm a Qing!"
His unsettling barking attacked the student council's ears once again, and most of them winced or flinched, completely unused to such manic laughter. Lihua, the other exchange student, was obviously uneasy and uncomfortable with the older boy and slightly shifted away from him so as to put more space in between her and the source of her anxiety. When he suddenly gasped, she let out a squeak before hurriedly stepping out of the way to avoid being flattened by him.
Mao, his black eyes wide, immediately stopped shaking with mirth and rushed up to Lelouch.
No, not to Lelouch.
To C.C.
Kneeling by the emerald-haired woman, he took her hand with both of his own and looked up into her mildly surprised eyes. He was motionless for five intense seconds before he promptly (much to everyone's aghast shock) said, "You. I like you. You're beautiful, just like a queen should be. Just like my queen should be. Will you be the queen to my king?"