Disclaimer: All characters belong to their original creators, i claim nothing over them.
So heres my little Code Geass fiction. Im leaving it as incomplete, because i might add more stories about ol Orenji-kun to this one day. I wrote this a while back, then recently i finished and checked it because i got writers block on something else. So yeah, enjoy.
Heh, this is what? My sixth story? Not that I keep them all on the site now ive deleted two. Still, just four more to go and im at ten!
It was midnight for the City of Luoyang, and inside the Forbidden City's Imperial Palace, in the temporary chambers that had been set aside for her, Her Majesty Queen Nunnally of Britannia lay in her bed and sighed.
Nunnally had been waiting for weeks to visit the United States of China, mostly because she could once again meet up with the shy Tianzi and the responsible but playful Kaguya, two girls she had come to call her friends over the past year since her brother had died and left her as the somewhat reluctant ruler of Britannia. For a long time it had been them visiting her, mostly because Empress Tianzi (who was still Empress in name and almost power despite the government change, due to immense popularity with the population) had become so sick of her own city. But now she had formerly invited them to stay, in an act that on the surface was to strengthen the bonds of their countries but in reality was a sightseeing holiday for a girl who had been just as much under house arrest as Tianzi had been.
It had also been a massive disappointment.
Of course, as long as they stayed inside the forbidden city they could go almost anywhere they wanted without difficulty - but they couldn't go to the city it was built inside, where the true attractions of the capital were. The problem was that the surrounding Luoyang was not like the now rebuilt Capital City Pendragon. It was dense and sprawling and difficult to navigate. Trying to protect such important guests in a place that was in some areas almost lawless was very difficult. Even in a normal situation it simply could not be done without huge fuss, but recently Nunnally had found herself the increasing target of assassination attempts, and suddenly difficult became impossible.
And so for the duration of their stay, all three girls had been essentially restricted to the palace and its surrounding bubble city. Of course Nunnally couldn't blame the people in charge of keeping her safe for doing their jobs, but she could reach a compromise between seeing the city and protecting herself.
The clock on her bedside table told her the time, and her wide blue eyes remained fixed on it, waiting impatiently for it to reach the correct one while she fought away the enemy of sleep.
As a draft made its way through the room the diminutive Queen shivered and pulled the covers closer around herself, making sure to pay special attention to keeping the dead weights that were her legs especially warm, knowing that since they couldn't move themselves they couldn't generate their own heat when they were cold.
The reason for her chill was simple enough, she'd left the door to the balcony open and now the cool breeze swept throughout her temporary royal chamber, a fact made obvious by how the beautifully luxurious silk curtains moved almost rhythmically in the wind.
She didn't notice the wind had brought a visitor with it. Naturally stealthy he made his way over to her, aware he was a few minutes early. He stood to attention with a salute by her bed, and - seeing her facing the other way - coughed politely whilst making sure to look slightly up so he didn't catch a glance of her nightwear.
"Sir Jeremiah!" Nunnally squealed and span in her bed as quickly as she was able, smiling at the very sight of him.
The far taller man bowed deeply at the mention of his name.
"Your Highness," He began raising an eyebrow at her. "If I may, I still think this is a bad idea. You could easily be seen or even harmed. It is reckless and unfitting of my role as your loyal bodyguard."
"And if I ordered you, as your Queen?" Nunnally asked, already aware of the answer. The tiny monarch wished sometimes that it wasn't his duty that made Jeremiah help her, but she knew that was simply who he was. Just as the concept of Death had its manifestation of a skeleton with a scythe, and Father Time was a grey haired long bearded man in a robe, so too was Jeremiah - Orenji-Kun as some called him - loyalty and honour given a handsome human form.
"I would have no choice but to obey Your Highness." Jeremiah replied, not a hint of disapproval in his voice, but the tiniest slither of reproach in his one human eye - something Nunnally didn't miss.
"I don't want to do that." Nunnally admitted, pulling herself into an upright position so she felt like she was talking as an equal instead of a child in her bed. "I don't like making you do things you dislike just because you have to."
Jeremiah sighed, looking away from those deep beautiful blue eyes. He had sworn to protect her, as Empress Marianne's last remaining child, but there was no point if she was unhappy.
"I also dislike the idea of my Queen as upset." He admitted. "Very well. I shall aid Your Majesty in this endeavour."
"You don't need to be so stiff talking to me either Jeremiah!" Nunnally giggled. "I've told you a thousand times."
"I am your bodyguard-" He began.
"It would be inappropriate of me to talk to you in another manner." Nunnally finished, in as near a imitation of the tall cyborg's voice as could be managed by a small teenage girl, before lapsing into giggles again.
"Yes." Jeremiah told her, a half-smile appearing on his lips - none too flattered that he could be copied so well but happy to see his Queen laughing so much. She smiled back at him, before turning back towards the open window and feeling her yearning for the outside re-spark.
"Jeremiah, help me up please." She requested politely. The tall man nodded and started drawing the covers back slightly to expose more of the small pale girl - dressed in her simple but still expensive looking silk nightie.
Even had he still been a normal Human, Jeremiah would have had next to no trouble lifting the tiny Queen from her bed. As a cybernetically enhanced organism, well, she may as well have been a small bag of sugar or even a balloon for all the difficulty he had.
After a few seconds consideration, he concluded that carrying Nunnally bridal style was the only thing he could do for now, she would surely not be able to hold on herself after all.
The small girl was surprised with his choice, having expected to be given a piggyback instead, but found herself happy all the same. Her arms weren't very strong, and she wouldn't have trusted them to keep her safe in the midst of his acrobatics, but in Jeremiah she had absolute trust.
It wasn't just that he was a cyborg, though she did find that the fact everything he did was perfectly calculated beforehand was a great comfort in any situation. And it wasn't just that he had worked closely and been greatly trusted by her brother. It was because over the past few weeks of his protecting her, she had come to know him well. In a way, he reminded her of a male version of Sayoko - proficient in almost everything, constantly perfectionist and extremely dangerous to anyone but her. His personality was that of a gentleman, a soldier, a bodyguard and a family friend all rolled into one - and there wasn't one aspect of that that would ever allow her to come to harm.
The two arms held her close to him and she found herself wondering how much of them were still Human. She would have to ask him later, for now she settled for putting her head to his chest and trying to see if he had a heartbeat still.
Jeremiah passed onto the balcony and stood at the edge of the railing, looking at the floor at least fifty floors below them - and then the similarly sized building on the other side of the street - judging his jump. Nunnally gulped, and looked away. Suddenly nuzzling close to his chest had less to do with finding his heartbeat and more to do with calming her own. She reminded herself of all the things he could do, his talents and loyalty and his frankly amazing body.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as he stepped off, putting ultimate trust in him to protect her.
For the next fifteen minutes she could not open them again, instead she held them closed so tightly it almost hurt, clinging to the fabric of his shirt and try to take comfort in the unbreakable arms holding her safely. The young girl felt the cool air rushing over her - cutting through her nightie like it was nothing - as he jumped and moved in ways a normal Human could never have. The thing she found most terrifying however was the feeling of her stomach lurching inside her as momentum tried to tear her from his grasp. At one point Nunnally could have sworn that she was in fact loose and falling just a few inches above his hands before he caught her again.
When they finally stopped, she found her knuckles had turned white from how tightly she had been clenching them in his shirt.
"H-How f-far have we come?" Nunnally managed to get out. In response Jeremiah turned and allowed her to see the palace far in the distance. Another pang of admiration shot through her as she realised just how incredible her guard was - he had made it on foot to the edge of the forbidden city's walls from the centre in barely a quarter hour. What's more, he had done it over rooftop whilst carrying someone - forfeiting the use of both his arms.
He turned again, and this time allowed her to view the place she wanted to go. The city of Luoyang sprawled into the horizon in front of her, a hive of lights and activity even this far into the night. It looked a whole lot uglier than the bizarre parasite city she had been confined to, but at the same time it seemed just so much more alive - sounds and shouts and even smells reaching her even from here, perched as they were on the walls of the city's crown jewel.
"Shall we go on Your Majesty?" Jeremiah asked, wishing for permission before he committed this… whatever it was for her. True, there were no rules confining Nunnally to the inner city, but if anyone found out it would definitely turn heads - to say the least. His own competence would be the first thing questioned.
"Y-Yes." She told him - though he frowned at her shaky voice. Concentrating on the tiny bundle in his arms, he realised that he could feel her shaking. Nunnally squeaked as she felt his arms shift beneath her as he held her in only one hand easily, using the other to remove his characteristic coat and lay it on the ground."Jeremiah-san? What are you doing?"
"I did not realise it got this cold at night in Luoyang. You will need to be kept warm if we are to head further into the city." He offered by way of explanation.
"But what about you?" She asked guiltily, not liking the idea of taking someone else's warmth for herself.
"The coat is merely decoration. I could survive temperatures below freezing for many hours." Nunnally smiled as she picked up on the none too well hidden smugness in that sentence.
"You're too kind." Nunnally told him quietly as he lay her down on the thick warm clothing, though she felt a small amount of embarrassment at the position - feeling for all the world like an infant being changed. Nevertheless, the tiny teen girl put her arms into the sleeves and allowed him to wrap it around her, finding it several sizes too large to wear but excellent for use as a blanket.
Jeremiah finished the job, creating a sort of half cocoon for her as her sleeves flapped in the wind.
"Ready to see Luoyang Your Majesty?" The tall bodyguard offered with a smile. She nodded eagerly, happy to see he was warming to the idea.
"Just one thing Jeremiah-san." The undersized and delicate girl leaned up and planted a kiss on the tip of his nose, giggling all the while both at herself and his expression. "Thank you!"
"It's an honour to serve." He replied, seeing her frown and smirking. "Nunnally."
"You finally called me-EEEYAAAAHH!" Nunnally's ecstatic cry was cut off by her terrified scream as he leapt down the humongous wall, down to the city below.
From far below, a very good listener might have heard the pint-sized Queen reprimanding her six foot killer cyborg after she had caught her breath.
"Jeremiah-san! That was very mean!"
Short but sweet. That's how you do it.