A/N: Hey, guys! I have not written fanfics for a long time and I am trying to get back into it.
Anyway, this story is set in between R1 and R2, where instead of having Lelouch being sent to Euro-Britannia as Julius Kingsley, he was sent to Area 11 instead as Lelouch vi Britannia.
Area 11
Viceroy's Palace
The Viceroy's Palace was abuzz when the news that the Emperor had sent a member of the Imperial family to Area 11. The arrival of a Britannian prince was rather sudden and this had created a rather chaotic situation in the palace's premise as members of the media began to swarm the area, hoping to catch a glimpse of the mysterious royalty.
Duke Calares stood at the palace's front door, waiting for the arrival of the prince. As the newly appointed Viceroy of Area 11, this was his first time receiving a royalty to his residence. Ever since the defeat of the Black Knights last year, not a single royalty had bothered with Area 11. Everything was peaceful and quiet until this morning when his men rushed into his office with that announcement. The Britannian military who totally looked unprepared marched into the palace, forcing the media to move aside.
Lord Soresi, the Britannian General of Area 11 forced his way among the swarm of journalists towards Duke Calares. In his white Britannian uniform, the man gave the viceroy a salute and immediately whispered to the latter's ears. "Bad news" Lord Soresi said. He eyed his surroundings, making sure nobody had heard him except Duke Calares.
"What is it?" Duke Calares asked.
"It's the Hound of Britannia. He's the Eleventh Prince of the House of vi Britannia" Lord Soresi whispered.
Duke Calares frowned. "vi Britannia? I thought that bloodline ended with that commoner whore!" he exclaimed. As far as he know, the children of Marianne vi Britannia, the commoner who tainted the royal bloodline were killed in the attack of Area 11 years ago.
"Well, it turns out the son, Lelouch vi Britannia survived and was taken back into the royal household a year ago." Lord Soresi groaned. "And the Purist Faction is not happy about this" he continued.
A loud commotion ended the two's conversation. A black car with the Imperial Family emblem arrived at the doorsteps of the palace. Straightening his tie, Duke Calares along with Lord Soresi marched closer towards the car, taking a deep breath as they waited for the door to open.
The driver, who is a sandy-haired young man with dark blue eyes came down and rushed to the passenger's door. He opened the door and a figure stepped out. The air sudden grew cold and the figure revealed himself. He was dressed in a black Britannian military uniform, a huge contrast to Lord Soresi's all-white uniform. He had a rather elaborate eye-patch on his left eye, two purple crystals hanging at the end and another one hanging just right beneath his eyepatch. His right violet eyes stared straight at Duke Calares and a few photographer whose cameras were flashing at him.
"How irritating" he said. As soon as he spoke, the crowd began to push nearer, bombarding him with questions. The army quickly formed a human barrier, forcing them to stay far from the restricted area.
"Your Highness" Duke Calares bowed.
"You must be the Viceroy. I was expecting a grander entrance. An entrance fitting for the only man who will seal Britannia's hold of Area 11." Lelouch said.
His statement caused Lord Soresi to twitch. It was a remark that challenged their authority as the leaders of Area 11.
That damn half-blood…Lord Soresi whispered. He eyed at Duke Calares who seemed to remain unfazed over the bold statement.
"Apologies, Your Highness. As your arrival was rather sudden, we were not expecting to be in your grace." Duke Calares immediately interjected. Lelouch sighed. "Understandable. Let's get into business, shall we? As Area 11's Military Advisor, I need all details regarding the Area's military." he said and made his way pass the Viceroy into the palace, ignoring the questions posed by the journalists. The sandy-haired driver followed the prince from behind.
As soon as the prince had disappeared from sight, Lord Soresi laughed. "My, my. How rude. As expected of a half-blood. I heard his mother too was a pretty tough creature to deal with eh?"
"Whatever it is, his presence here spells bad news for us. You know what that means, Lord Soresi?"
Duke Calares's words immediately silence the man.
Unknown to them, a certain green haired woman was watching them keenly. She immediately walked away from the crowd and pulled out her phone. "It's me. Yes, that is definitely Lelouch".
Meanwhile in Ashford Academy
Area 11
It's been a year since Lelouch disappeared and the Black Knights disbanded. Life had been boring for Kallen. Her father, Baron Stadtfeld had returned back to Area 11 and Kallen no longer had the freedom to sneak into the ghettos at night and joined the resistance. Ohgi and the others had joined the Japanese Liberation Front and since then, they had been fighting against the Britannian military. Kallen could only watch from afar as she returned back as Kallen Stadtfeld, the prim and proper noblewoman who is constantly ill.
She could still remember the moment she discovered that Zero was Lelouch. That was definitely one of the shocking moments of her life. To know that the person whom she had been fighting along with was no other than the useless good for nothing classmate. She didn't understand why she was extremely traumatised by that fact. Come to think of it, the idea of Lelouch being Zero was not that bad. But it could be because she was conflicted with her admiration of Zero and her annoyance/hatred towards Lelouch. It was a complex relationship.
For a year, she regretted her choice. She should not have left Lelouch with Suzaku. Perhaps if she had saved him, the Black Knights would not be disbanded and she would probably still in the resistance.
"Kallen!" a voice broke her train of thoughts. Kallen turned around and noticed Shirley Fennette running towards her.
"What is it Shirley?" she asked, trying her best to speak as soft as possible, which was her Britannian persona. Although it has been a year, it was still challenging for Kallen to switch back to her frail, damsel in distress persona.
"It's Lelouch! He's on TV!" Shirley exclaimed as she grabbed Kallen's wrist and immediately dragged her to the Student Council Room. When they arrived there, the members of the student council, Milly Ashford, Rivals Cardemonde and Nina Einstein were already there, their eyes fixed on the TV screen.
"What are you talking about-LELOUCH?" Kallen almost screamed. There he was on TV, staring straight at the camera with his violet eyes. She pushed herself closer to the TV, not believing what she had seen.
"Look! Even Kallen who dated Lelouch doesn't know that he's actually a Prince!" Rivalz pointed out which earned him a nudge at his shoulder by Milly. She pointed at Shirley who suddenly seemed down at the mention of Lelouch dating Kallen.
"We never dated, Rivalz." Kallen snapped.
"Fine, fine. But damn, he just disappeared for a year and then re-appear again from nowhere, and now he's a military advisor for Area 11! I seriously can't believe this!" Rivalz said. Nina nodded at his words. Indeed, that was true. Lelouch Lamperouge, a normal student from Ashford Academy disappeared without a trace a year ago. The Ashford family had tried to trace his whereabouts but failed at each attempt. There was even a rumour that Lelouch was dead which definitely broke many hearts in the academy. And now, he was back again in Area 11 becoming somehow an important person to the empire.
Just then, Kallen's phone vibrated. It was an unidentified number. Kallen immediately excused herself and headed as far as possible from them. "Hello?" she asked cautiously. Ever since she quit the resistance, she has grown more cautious of her surroundings. If anyone were to know she was a resistance fighter, she would definitely be in trouble. Also, this was because the Purist Faction and the newly appointed Duke Calares had launched the operation to apprehend all members of the public, Britannian or Eleven who have links to the resistance.
"It's me. That's definitely Lelouch." From the voice, it was C.C. Before Kallen could ask further, the call ended. She tried dialing back the number but it was no longer reachable.
"So, I am not seeing things. Lelouch is back." Unknowingly, tears began to roll down her cheeks. Something about seeing Lelouch alive again made her heart fluttered.
Another call came in. This time it was from her father. She quickly answered the call. "Return home now. We have been invited to the Viceroy's Palace. I suppose you have seen the news? The Eleventh Prince of Britannia is in Area 11. As nobles, we are required to attend the prince's welcoming banquet" Baron Stadtfeld spoke quickly on the phone.
"Yes, Father."
"And you know what this means right? Don't let anyone know of that"
Kallen paused. It had been a long time since anyone reminded her of her ancestry. Perhaps she had been extremely good at hiding it that no one actually realises that she was half-Britannian. Or maybe it was because she had not attending a Britannian nobility event for a long time that she had totally forgotten to not let her guard down regarding her identity. Her father's reminder certainly reminded her of those days she was forced to forget her Japanese identity by her step mother.
"Kallen?"
"I understand, Baron Stadtfeld."
That surprised Baron Stadtfeld. It was definitely peculiar to have his own daughter referring him by his formal title. Before he could reply, the call had already ended.
"Ah Kallen! Was that from your father?" Milly suddenly appeared. She hugged Kallen from behind and was about to molest her when Kallen immediately slipped away much to Milly's surprise.
"What do you want, Milly?" Kallen hissed, forgetting that she was supposed to act as the frail, sickly Kallen Stadtfeld.
"Ara,ara. How feisty. Did the news of Lulu brought out your inner fire?" Milly teased which earned her a glare from Kallen. "Well, as you know we are both from the nobility. Was just wondering whether will you be going for tonight's banquet. I was told you don't really fancy attending these kind of stuffs, eh?" Milly asked.
"It's my duty as the heir of the Stadtfeld family to attend and-" she hesitated. Milly eyed at the red head, anticipating her following words. Kallen blushed and gave a light cough. "And…I wanna meet Lelouch too."
That response caused Milly to grin. But before she could teased Kallen, Kallen immediately interjected. "That's Lelouch right? He's still Lelouch, isn't he?" she asked and the tone of the conversation took a sudden dip.
The usually bubbly Milly was suprisingly quiet. She looked away, sighing. "I hope so. Who knows. My grandfather used to say that people who returned from the Mainland, especially from Pendragon are never the same again. Well, let's hope that's not true." Milly said, a pained expression was plastered on her face. Without saying further, she headed back towards the Student Council room, leaving Kallen alone in the hallway.
Reviews are always welcomed! Thanks for reading.