I don't own Code Geass.

Alright, there's a bit of an explanation behind this one. This is supposed to be an entry into the "Christmas" word prompt challenge on the Emperor x Empress forums (which you should really check out if you haven't already). Obviously, it's a bit late. This is because I completely forgot about it, and was only reminded of it when KiKi Hayashi made her entry several days ago.

Now, here's the sad part: The whole Christmas word prompt thing? Yeah, my idea. I forgot about my own challenge. Shame on me.

However, it's finally here! My very late entry into the Christmas word prompt challenge! My word was "snow."

Enjoy!

Tap tap taptaptap tap taptap taptaptap tap tap tap TAP.

Lelouch finished the first sentence of his report and sighed. Four more pages to go.

Being a straight-A student and rebellion leader at the same time is not an easy task. He cracked his knuckles and gently lay his fingers on the keyboard once again.

Taptaptaptaptap tap tap taptaptap taptap tap tap taptaptaptaptap TAP.

He reread his second sentence. No good. Backspace.

taptaptaptaptaptaptaptap.

He put his hands behind his head and sighed again. Maybe he should just save this for tomorrow, it was getting late.

Tap.

It wasn't even due until Friday, anyway.

Tap tap.

But he had nothing else to do, so he might as well finish it now instead of later.

Taptap tap.

He had always been under the mindset that if he wasn't working, he was wasting time. He was not willing to change that motto any time soon.

TAPTAPTAP TAPTAP TAP!

Lelouch nearly fell out of his chair as a horrifyingly loud sound erupted from his window. He cautiously stood up from his chair to lean over the desk and move the curtain away from the glass.

BANG!

"Augh!" He flinched back from the window and hit his knee hard on a drawer of the desk. "Ow!" He shook off the pain and quickly leaned over the desk to peer through the newly created scratches on his window.

Snow.

It was dark, but he could still easily make out the white blanket of snow that covered everything outside. Piles of the fluffy stuff sat upon benches and tree limbs which sagged under its combined weight. Scattered trails of footprints crisscrossed through the courtyard, slowly being covered up by the freshly falling snowflakes.

One set of footprints was quite new, it seemed, and led out to the center of the courtyard where...

Lelouch sighed for the third time that night.

There, standing in the middle of all that freezing snow, stood a witch. She was dressed only in a jacket which was obviously way too large for her, its sleeves fully covered her fingertips and the rest of it fell far past her knees. Her hair was draped messily over the coat, stuck to it at odd angles with bits of white fluff scattered on top of it. She held a small pile of rocks in her right hand, poised to throw, presumably at his window.

But there was one thing which caught Lelouch's attention the most. She was smiling. Beaming, really, a big goofy grin plastered across her face with shining golden eyes that were forced to squint over her happy red cheeks.

This was surprising. Very, very surprising. Lelouch hardly ever saw C.C. smile, excluding the Cheshire Cat grin she puts on when she is up to something. To see her actually beaming was a completely different matter altogether.

And, he had to admit, she looked pretty cute.

He noticed her mouth move, trying to tell him something. He gestured at her to wait as he unlocked the window and slid it open. He put his hands on the windowsill and leaned outside, ignoring the freezing wind that greeted him.

"Snow, Lelouch!" She yelled as she grinned even wider and hopped up and down a little, crunching a hole in the white beneath her.

He couldn't help but chuckle at her antics. "Yes, C.C., it's snowing. Is this why you were throwing rocks at my window?"

C.C. quickly raised her hands to free them from the sleeves of the coat and bent down, gathering the snow in her hands which Lelouch now noticed were covered by his gloves. She stood up again, mending the fluff in her hands. "Come outside!"

"No, I have work to do." He ignored the exaggerated pout she gave him and began ducking back inside his room when he was suddenly hit by a rather large clump of snow on the top of his head. "Hey!" He leaned back outside and put on the best angry face he could muster.

She was down in the snow again, gathering up another ball to throw at him. He realized this and quickly reacted, ducking back inside and shutting the window just before another clump of snow hit the glass.

SMACK!

Lelouch furrowed his eyebrows and looked through the snow melting on the glass. He could make out C.C.'s blurry outline gesturing for him to come outside.

"What is with her tonight?" He muttered to himself as he stepped away from the window. He stared down at the books and laptop on his desk. He stood there, the gears turning quickly in his head as he decided his next course of action. "That witch," he growled as he opened his closet door and grabbed a spare jacket.

Lelouch walked outside with his hands buried in his front pockets and his head lowered to block the frigid wind. C.C. was facing away from him, blocking his view from whatever she was working on in the snow. He walked over to her side and examined her project.

It was the bottom two thirds of a snowman-in-progress. She was still adding to the snow on the middle section, carefully padding it into a perfect circle.

"How old did you say you were?" He sarcastically asked as he squatted down beside her.

She glanced up at him before continuing her work. "Everyone should be able to have fun once in a while."

Lelouch stared at her, trying to think of a response, but he was at a loss for words. He silently gathered a handful of snow and placed it on the growing white ball.

They worked silently for several minutes, finishing up the snowman's body. C.C. reached inside her oversized coat to pull out the finishing touches, placed them gently on the snowman and stepped back to admire their work.

It wore Zero's cape on its back, which stuck to the curves of its body and was much too long for its stunted height. It also adorned Zero's famous mask, which sat haphazardly upon the snowman's head, leaning slightly up and to the left like a puppy waiting for its master to give it a treat.

It looked ridiculous, which, Lelouch thought with a glance at its creator, is probably exactly how she wanted it to look.

The artist in question clapped her hands and bowed to an invisible audience, clearly quite proud of her work. She was wearing her goofy grin again, which was surprisingly contagious as Lelouch found himself smiling with her (or at her?) as he walked over beside the artist to give her a congratulatory pat on the back.

Before he could do so, however, she grabbed his hand and dragged him to a nearby bench, forcing him to sit down next to her.

"Alright, C.C., I'll bite. Why are you suddenly acting so happy tonight?"

She leaned back against the bench and stretched her legs out in front of her, crossing her feet and staring up at the sky. She took a few moments to respond. "Lelouch, remember our conversation about snow?"

"Yes."

"Do you remember what you said?"

Lelouch felt his cheeks warm against the cold air. "I said I liked the snow, and that I thought it was beautiful," he replied quietly.

C.C. crossed her arms and pulled her chin in close to her chest, staring at the snow beneath her feet. "I guess that's why..."

He stared over at her with a stunned expression. Did such a simple statement really make her this happy? But she wasn't really talking about the snow, was she? And neither was he. He wasn't calling the snow beautiful...

"Are you cold?" He asked suddenly.

She nodded, still staring at her feet.

He scooted over on the bench and wrapped an arm around her as she leaned her head against his chest. Suddenly, the cold wind wasn't bothering him so much. He found himself smiling as he thought about their conversation in Narita. I don't know why snow is white, but I still think snow is beautiful. I don't hate it.

He felt C.C. grab the front of his jacket.

"Lelouch?"

"Hm?"

"...I like you, too."

I would have liked this one to be a bit longer, but there really isn't much I can do to add to it. Still, I like it, and i hope you do, too!

So review and tell me what you think!