Disclaimer: Nilie does not own Pizza Hut. KiKi does not own Biglobe. Neither owns Lelouch….(pause)….. (collective crying)
Laundry Day
That morning, C.C. woke up feeling particularly kind. The maid was off for the day, the Lamperouge siblings were out of the house and the sun was shining brightly. Perfect weather for pizza…
Coincidentally it was also the perfect weather for washing.
So laundry basket in one hand and breakfast pizza in the other, our grey witch started to gather up all her clothes and all that of Lelouch's for a brilliant wash-a-thon.
Meanwhile, our handsome Lelouch was yet again busy trying to skip gym class, for he believed that having the brains was enough to help him overcome whatever obstacle he might encounter in life thus rendering brawn merely completely gratuitous in his schedule.
Besides, he knew for a fact, that his lanky and skinny form appealed to his fangirls and he highly doubted the attention would be the same if he'd been as muscular as a weight-lifter.
"Lelouch Lamperouge!" Miss Viletta Nu shouted from behind him and he deftly dodged around a group of giggling girls.
"You have gym class this period and you are not skipping it this time!" the gym teacher roared as she took a shortcut through the gardens to catch up to him.
Lelouch watched in horror as the female teacher ran and jumped over multiple hedges like an Olympic track runner over hurdles.
Run. Jump. Run. Jump. Run. Jump.
Seeing her gaining on him and at an impossible speed, the Britannian prince swore quietly and bolted down the path even faster. Of course Lady Luck, being what she was, wasn't on his side today, or perhaps she'd been scared away by the demon gym teacher chasing after him or--
Trip--!
--SPLASH!!
Lelouch spluttered as he resurfaced and spat out a mouthful of fountain water. How in Britannia had he managed to trip and fall into the fountain? Was it not twelve steps to the left? Was it not…
"Lelouch Lamperouge!" Viletta Nu said angrily crossing her arms in front of her for an annoyed stance. "You have gym…"
"Miss Nu, I'm wet." He stated with slight aggravation as he tried to pull his sprawled limbs into a more dignified position. "I'm cold."
He carefully climbed out of the fountain and started wringing the water from his hair. "I am starting to smell like stagnant water."
He peeled off his black jacket, wrung it and shook it. "And I have no clothes to change into."
Pause.
"I hereby request to be excused from gym class to change into suitable clothing."
Viletta rolled her golden eyes. "You can change into your gym clothes."
Lelouch smirked at the ploy to get into the changing rooms and through it the gym. "Unfortunately, Miss Nu, I came to school today with full intention not to attend gym class and so I must apologise but I do not have my gym clothes with me."
Viletta glared at him for a full second before sighing in exasperation. "Lelouch, you are never going to gain any muscle on your body if you keep skipping gym class like this."
"Apologies miss." Lelouch said with a slight inclination of his head before he shivered and sneeze loudly.
The gym teacher finally gave in and sighed, "You are excused."
And that is how our favourite hero managed to skip gym class yet again and return to his lovely warm home situated near the school.
Only to find his entire wardrobe dripping wet and hanging on washing lines all over the back garden.
"C.C.!" He shouted angrily as he ran up to the nearest wet shirt in shock.
"Aa, you're home early." The girl noted as she reappeared still dressing nothing but her nightshirt over her underwear and carrying a basket full of his undergarments. "The weather is nice, so I thought I'd do my washing and yours as well… why are you wet?"
He stared at her incredulously then marched back into the house. Curious, C.C. dropped her basket and followed him in – snagging another pizza slice from its box as she passed by.
The dark-haired young man stormed into his room and glared at the empty wardrobes.
"What about my drawers?" he asked, violet eyes blazing. C.C. blinked, nibbled on a pepperoni and pointed out the window to the washing lines.
"All my shirts?" Point.
"Everything?" Point.
"There's something called a tumble dryer in this house, why are you not using it?"
"Sayako, the maid, left a note saying it's broken and needs fixing."
Lelouch fumed and the girl was convinced he would burst a blood vessel or something as his eyes grew colder and harder. "I need to go back to class. Is there anything that's not washed yet?"
"No." was her reply as she licked the last traces of pizza from her fingertips.
"Why do you do this to me?"
C.C. shrugged and joked, "You look nicer without clothes anyway."
She turned to stare at him, ready for the barking, shouting and general angry remarks he would throw at her.
A staring contest ensued instead.
Minutes passed.
And he backed down.
…
…
Wait a minute. He'd backed down?
C.C. blinked in surprise as she watched the boy's eyes dim and his form slump before he trudged past her to the hallway and slammed the bathroom door shut behind him.
Was something wrong with him?
She had just finished hanging up the rest of the laundry when he finally came out of the bathroom in a bathrobe and an unclipped pair of trousers from the washing line.
C.C. watched as he moved methodically through the house, extracting the iron, waiting for it to heat up and then finally starting the process of ironing the wet garment dry.
Not a word. Not even an eye contact.
"Are you still mad at me?" she asked as her gold eyes followed the iron across the trouser legs. Quietly, she stepped behind him and asked again over his shoulder, her hair falling to one side as she turned her head in order to try and see his eyes.
He kept his face averted and did not answer.
He ignored her and focused solely on the ironing.
"Why are you not saying anything?" she tried again.
Ignore her and she'll go away. Ignore her and she'll go away. He repeated in his head like a mantra.
She frowned, closed the pizza box, frowned deeper and then left the room. He sighed in relief and did not stop his ironing.
When he finished, he folded the pair of trousers to one side, propped the iron up and prepared to fetch the rest of his clothes that needed drying.
"Here." C.C. said as she rounded the corner wearing Nunnally's bathrobe that was far too small for her and shoved a stack of folded clothing into his face.
"I thought you said…" he started but was smothered as she literally shoved the clothes into his face this time.
"These are from the first batch washed and have been out all morning. The weather's nice so they should be dry enough." She said and moved to the phone with his credit card in hand.
"The shirt…" he tried again once he got the clothes off his face but she cut him off again.
"The one I was wearing just there. I can't find a jacket that's dry though so you'll have to go to class without one. Now shut up. I'm ordering pizza." C.C. rattled off as she dialled the numbers of Pizza Hut.
Lelouch stared at her before shaking his head as a small, inevitable smile started to grace his features. He checked his watch and decided that he could still make it to physics if he moved quickly.
When he returned home from class at the end of the day, he found the witch legs sprawled across his bed and mending one of his shirts.
"You're a clumsy idiot." Was the first thing out of her lips when he came in. "There's so many rips and tears on your clothes."
He was silent and she threw the fixed shirt to a pile on her right and extracted another ripped one from her left. "Are you still angry? Boys, they're high and mighty when it comes to fighting and so petty when it comes to little stuff. And…"
She stopped when she felt his hand on top of her head and looked up at him curiously.
He ruffled her hair before gracing her with a beautiful smile. "Shall I treat you to pizza?"
She stared at him for a bit before narrowing her eyes and returning to her sewing.
Now it was Lelouch's turn to wonder if the girl was angry.
He removed his hand from her head. "Delivery?"
No answer.
"Eating out then." He suggested as he picked up his coat.
He watched satisfied as C.C allowed the corners of her lips to lift, dropped the shirt aside and looped her arm through his. "I want a Pizza Hut. Bring some cash – you owe me big time, making me do all that laundry."
"After enlightenment, the laundry." -- Josh Billings. - or vice versae.
END
First collab-fic between Nilie (the star) and KiKi Hayashi. More to come in the future.
All forms of feedback welcome.
Nilie & KiKi