The year is 2038 of the imperial calendar, and the borders of the world have been redrawn. In the west, across the no-man's land known as the Atlantic Ocean, lies the beating heart of the Holy Britannian Empire. Since the death of its ninety-eighth emperor at the hands of the usurper, the empire has begun its rapid expansion into foreign territory. There is no peace in a world at war.

Across the sea, the European Union is under siege from all sides. The west holds its age-old nemesis Britannia, to the south the perpetually warring African Hegemony, and the east the Chinese Federation with its antiquated ways and the north holds the wintry abode of the empire of the tsars of Russia.

Though many years have passed since the fall of Area Eleven and the assassination of Charles zi Britannia, there are yet those within and without Britannia that still defy the infamous child-emperor of Britannia.

However, the tides of war do not wait and the stage has changed from the island nation of Japan to a small kingdom nestled between the EU and Russian border. Gallia, a small nation, has long successfully done what Japan could not and used its bountiful stores of Sakuradite to its advantage. Though many have tried in the past, none have successfully conquered the small nation.

With the advent of the new arms race and Japan's occupation, many turn to Gallia as a source for the precious mineral. Some, however, would see this as a chance to invade. On the eighteenth of April in the year 2038, Russian forces breached the citadel at the northern border and waged lightning warfare, driving the Gallian army back towards the capital at Randgriz.

It is in this tale that we see a small nation best a military giant, a tale of camaraderie and friendship, of life and death, and love blossoming amidst the flames of war.

I.E Koller, On the Gallian Front, United Nation Press 2060

"The more things change, the more they stay the same." William Gottwald mused, staring out a window in his classroom. True, he had once nurtured dreams of rebellion against his father's empire, but fate was often a strange mistress. He had not once in his many years since his flight from Japan thought that he'd end up a school teacher.

Now there was an irony if he'd ever heard one, he chuckled, thinking back to his life as Zero in a time long ago with his second-in-command Kaname Ohgi. Maybe there was something about him, but he'd never had the chance to meet the man in person, though he'd heard the man had become quite the successful teacher to foreign students at the university.

"Mitchel, which battle was the decisive loss that drove the British from their home isles?" William, or rather Lelouch asked, rather good-naturedly. Juniper, of course, had been correct in assuming teaching children the folly of war would be good for him.

"The Humiliation, sir." The boy responded.

William mused, though his inner Lelouch winced at the return of a sore spot for many Britannians. "True, the Humiliation of Edinburgh sealed the defeat of the nation that would become Britannia, but what is the event and the battle that changed the course of history."

There he was, Lelouch mused. Suzaku's son, how Chihiro had taken her first pregnancy was still a point of amusement to him. A bright boy, William admitted, but he was nowhere close to being a suitable match for his daughter. There he went again, he chuckled. "Yes, Kururugi?"

"The assassination of Admiral Nelson and the defeat of the British navy at the battle of Trafalgar." Masahiro said. "With the loss of their premiere naval commander, the British defense could not hold against Napoleon's attack, even with their numbers. They'd become too reliant on him to have had any plans in place should he die."

"Damn Brits were stupid to think they didn't need replacements." One of the boys, one Lelouch himself disliked considering his repeated failed attempts to court his daughter, and because he himself was a rather dislikable fellow.

"Not how I would have phrased it, but yes." Lelouch replied. "Admiral Nelson's position as the only person with both charisma and political clout made him a valuable and irreplaceable asset. His second-in-command, Admiral Jacob Hackett, was groomed for the task but was ultimately unsuccessful in holding the line." William replied easily enough.

Before he could continue into the explanation of the effects of the battle, the class breathed a sigh of relief when the bell rang, heralding the end of another history lesson. "Enjoy your weekend but I want two pages on the Battle of Trafalgar and the role Nelson and Hackett played. Research on the French commanders and their roles in the battle. My office is open for the rest of the day and you may inquire at the usual email address."

To himself, Lelouch knew that the future still held great strife, he had destroyed the Sword of Akasha but with VV still in control of the empire and he himself relegated to a position on the sidelines, he knew that too many things were still unknown to make a move.

Taken from his musing by his cellphone ringing, Lelouch flipped it up and frowned at the sight of Leila Malkal's name. It had been years since he'd last heard from her and even then, Lelouch thought, they weren't the most pleasant of circumstances. "Miss Malkal, I'd say it's been too long, but it could be longer before I'd like to talk to you again."

"Mister Gottwald, it's been awhile." Leila replied.

"Four years, three months. If you're keeping track." Lelouch grit out.

"If you're referring to the incident involving Erika Kingsly, I've told you already that it was out of my hands." Lelia spoke carefully.

"So her family is given an empty casket to bury? I apologize, Miss Malkal, but don't insult me. We both know that Erika Kingsly was many things, but a spy for Britannia wasn't one of them and she most certainly didn't die . . . what was your cover story for that one?" William spoke coldly. "Ah, yes. Aiding refugees and preventing a terrorist attack."

He could practically hear her muttering. "That's all I've been given on the matter. I'm calling for another matter, about your daughter."

"Why? So you can turn her into one of your super-soldiers or spies? Miss Malkal, the only reason I bother answering your calls is because our parents were once good business partners. If I find out that you've taken any steps to entering her into your Legion program, yes miss Malkal, I do in fact have my ways of knowing. If anything happens to her, you can be assured that nobody will be able to find the bodies."

"I don't take threats lightly, Gottwald." Leila cautioned.

"Good. It's not a threat. It's a promise. We've given enough for your petty games. I couldn't care less who is reelected or what the politicians think of me. My days as a commander are behind me. Good day." Lelouch said, hanging up.

Sighing, Lelouch shook his head. "Is this really what Celtica feels? Detachment with the knowledge that we'll live no matter what?" The wind's lonely howl his reply, Lelouch started his walk out of the school, he'd had enough of ghosts for one day.

"William, you're home." Juniper greeted, smiling from where she was lounging on a reclining chair, rubbing the swell of her belly. "James and Suzaku should be over for dinner today," she reminded as Lelouch loosened the tie around his neck.

"Excellent, and how are the twins doing?" Lelouch asked.

"Lawrence has been working with Cecile on her project with . . . hyper something. Cyrus has been with Suzaku all day, maybe knightmare training, maybe spending time with Hitomi." Juniper informed, gazing at the sunset. Maybe it was weird, but Lelouch insisted on finding a spot in London, as ironic as it was that former Britannian royalty were allowed to stay within their old seat of power . . . hold up.

"What would Cyrus need to speak with Hitomi with?" Lelouch asked.

Sighing, Juniper shook her head. "For someone who claims to be an expert in wooing the fairer sex, you're quite oblivious when it comes to your family."

"He's too young to be thinking about such things." Lelouch replied.

Juniper let out a laugh at that notion. "The pot calls the kettle black, he wasn't much older than I was when we married."

Lelouch shook his head. "A different time, a different providence." Lelouch dismissed the statement, not mentioning the by-now-normal situation about being married to his half-sister.

"Don't go philosophical on me now. A non-thesaurus husband was getting exciting." Juniper quipped.

"Flirting now?" Lelouch raised an eyebrow, leaning in to peck his wife on the cheek.

"Eww, gross."

"Monica Alice Gottwald, you get down from there this instant!" Juniper ordered in her best royalty tone, the dark-haired eight-year old quickly clambering down from the beam she was hanging from.

Lelouch chuckled, "how's my little knight?" he asked, picking her up from the ledge she was perched on. "Not bothering the good princess now, are we?"

Squealing in anger-turned-embarrassment, Monica squirmed. "Dad! Let go!"

Depositing the child in a chair, Lelouch entered the home and deposited his coat and suitcase near the door. "I'll only be a minute." He called.

Stepping into the shower, Lelouch found himself reminiscing, as he often did without stimulation. He wondered why he was allowed to love. Not that disappearing into nothingness after all humanity became a single consciousness was better to him. He'd changed fate, remade history, and the world already seemed such an alien place, where his knowledge was worthless.

Did anything he do really mean anything? Britannia and the world was still at war, discrimination was still rampant, and all the evils of the world were still as they were. But never would Lelouch regret his wish, would never forget his mistakes. He'd paid. Dearly.

His thoughts drifted back, to all the innocents that ended up dead because of his own pride and arrogance. Was his indifference any better? He was immortal, he would survive whatever holocaust came, would survive until the universe was nothing but an empty husk. Nothing mattered.

Another sigh, Lelouch simply turned off the water. There was nothing he could do to change, always stuck in his rut of control and power. There had to be a solution, but for the life of him, he couldn't find out what it was.

Dinner events at the Gottwald residence was a simple affair. While it was never said the Gottwald family was poor, the simplest house at the end of a rather lonely road in the middle of the countryside, Lelouch was not one to flaunt wealth. It was the simple things, and rather surprisingly was his wife's agreement.

Naoto's family was first to arrive, the veritable litter of redheads pouring from the van that parked in the driveway. Lelouch still couldn't wrap his head around it, fifteen years Naoto and Marika had been married, something that Lelouch didn't see happening, and six children were the end result.

"They breed like rabbits." Lelouch sighed as the six Stadtfeldt children ran into the house. "You've been busy." Lelouch remarked, earning a glare from Marika and a smack on the shoulder from Naoto.

"You're one to talk." Naoto replied.

"Three, the twins count as one incident."

Marika scoffed as Naoto put a hand around her waist. "He's just jealous."

Shaking her head, Juniper raised an eyebrow. "I have trouble just keeping these three in line, and my baby Thalia is still abroad for her studies."

"She'll be fine, what's the worst that could happen?" Lelouch commented.

Laughing, Naoto grinned. "You've just jinxed it, my friend."

The sound of another car pulling up was enough to distract the gathered people as Suzaku opened the door. "Hey everyone, hope we aren't late . . . Naoto, you really have been busy."

"Alright, enough with the comments already." Naoto grumbled.

Dinner proceeded with a healthy amount of energy, a bit more towards the younger generation as the elders chatted about their lives since their exodus from Japan. "Can't believe it's really been twenty years, guess it just hasn't sunk in yet." Naoto grunted.

"We're old." Lelouch agreed. "How's Kallen been? She didn't show up for dinner."

Naoto shook his head. "She's been fine, getting along well with Weinberg."

"Gino? Last I heard the two couldn't stand each other, what changed?" A pointed glare earned a sheepish look from Lelouch. "Ah, I see. Circumstances."

"Semantics." Marika argued. "Why did you really call us here? There's been no new leads on the Organization, no build-up to war, we're at peace." She sighed.

"Really?" Suzaku asked. "Are we at peace?"

Lelouch shook his head, he really missed the bickering and conversation with these people. "Britannia is still in power, the EU is full of corrupt bigots, the Federation's making a lot of noise and the Russians are stirring up a commotion along the EU-Gallia border." Lelouch offered.

"Gallia. Your daughter's studying there, isn't she?" Chihiro asked.

"Supposed to be really good universities there." Juniper said. "But yes, my baby's there."

Lelouch put an arm around his wife's shoulders. "It'll be alright, June. She's a big girl, she can take care of herself."

At that moment, the television's broadcast, which was a cartoon that the younger children were watching, changed. Much to the annoyance of the kids, but the horror of the parents, it was a news report with the words 'Russian Imperial Army Invades Gallia' as headline. "Fuck." Lelouch put succinctly.

"Fuck indeed." Naoto remarked.

Thalia Gottwald climbed out of the tactical simulator with a smirk on her face. Her opponent, one of Gallia's aristocracy, looking decidedly angry at having lost to both a commoner and a girl. "Same time next week?" Thalia asked sweetly.

"Fuck you, Britannian bitch." The boy snarked.

Randgriz Royal University, while having a good track-record for graduating classes, was also home to some of the most backwards-thinking, bigoted people in the world. Speaking of which, a round, portly man with a hideous moustache by Thalia's standards, waddled up to them. "What's going on here?" he asked.

"General Damon." Thalia saluted. Another fine point, Thalia groused, was that all private and public schools maintained a military education. Commissioned officers in general were considered higher authorities than civilian teachers and there were no female officers in the regular army as far as Thalia recalled.

"Oh, it's just the Britannian." Damon grumbled in his chain-smoker voice. Though it could easily just be the extra fat around his throat causing all that distortion, Thalia smirked to herself. "Well, what's wrong, spit it out."

"She cheated, sir!" the boy replied.

"This is an exam, isn't it? Well, Britannian? What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I didn't cheat, sir." Thalia answered evenly.

"Bullshit. Everyone knows Britannians win by cheating." The boy said.

Sighing, Thalia looked to the general. "Permission to speak freely to my colleague, sir?"

"Hold your tongue, Brit." The general snapped. "So, you think you can cheat your way through an exam, do you?"

"Sir, all due respect, there's no way to cheat the system without clearance access from a higher authority." Thalia answered.

"Then is lieutenant Summers lying?" Damon asked.

Thalia sighed inwardly, loaded questions. Loaded questions everywhere. "General. I have a suggestion." A soft voice spoke.

Paling, the general turned, forcing Thalia to her knees as he did so, and bowed. "Princess Cordelia, of course you may suggest whatever is on your mind." Ass kisser, Thalia smirked.

"Let miss Gottwald and lord Summers retake the exam and oversee it yourself." Cordelia remarked.

"B-but she cheated." Summers protested weakly.

"Then you have nothing to fear." Cordelia replied evenly. "You may begin."

Stepping into the sphere, Thalia released a pent up breath. "You can do this," she said to herself.

An automated voice spoke. "I will explain the mission." It said, a three-dimensional rendition of a city appeared on-screen. "Your forces have been tasked to secure a bridgehead, though your forces have been reduced to a single knightmare and conventional infantry. Your opponent's task is to maintain the bridgehead for the allotted time and you are to capture the facility and eliminate as many opposing units as possible."

"Damon." She grumbled, of course he'd choose her to be on the attacking side with every disadvantage.

A brief aerial view of the battlefield registered several things, Summers was given first chance to deploy, and Thalia had seen everything. "Perfect. Damon's even given him extra troops, this might be a challenge." She said, selecting her unit's composition.

"Alright," she said, deactivating her squad's IFF function.

"Gottwald, what are you doing?" Damon's voice over the intercom barked.

"Disguising my squad so they cannot be tracked by enemy electronic surveillance."

"Carry on." Damon grumbled.

Of course she turned off her IFF, Damon's console only saw IFF signatures to begin with. Like clockwork, Summers's IFFs lit up the top half of the screen. "Deploying to capture the bridgehead. Beginning operation." She announced.

A fun fact about this machine, Thalia helped write nearly half of the combat scenarios since nobody had batted an eye at the EU-made tactical training device as she set her snipers to ignite the Sakuradite tanks across the field. She just about heard Summers's panicking from across the field as she directed her troops across the rubble, taking out infantry and knightmares as she went, her own Knightmare providing suppressing fire as they stormed out of her deployment zone.

Coming to the first hurdle, a large bridge, a massive Bamides blocked the way. "So much for faithful rendition." She muttered, sending men under the bridge to have the massive knockoff Knightmare plummet into the river-abyss below.

"That's cheating, Gottwald!" Damon roared.

"It's called using the field to my advantage, sir. You gave us the lecture on it last week." Thalia responded.

"Don't play coy with me."

Another eight signatures appeared as a full platoon of soldiers appeared, armed with machine guns. "Of course, sir." Thalia said, deploying her Knightmare to block the small-arms as its weapon scythed through the defenders with little effort.

Like a chess match, her Knightmare raced about, scything down the disoriented Sutherlands as her infantry reached the bridgehead. With a theatrical bow, the exam scores appeared once more at a perfect A rank as she disembarked from the capsule, giving a theatrical bow to the dumbstruck general and her 'opponent' before turning to the princess with another bow and departing the room.

Hello boys and girls,

I'm baaaaaaaack! Sorry this has taken a long time, ended up replaying the game that's partially the inspiration for this installment (Though for the sake of publicity it will be published here on the main CG page rather than the crossover section) and watching the anime and movies again with a little more research on the spinoffs for any relevant additions. If you're reading this and are confused on what's happening, you're on the wrong fic, check my profile for Fate Reforged before you get onto this fic.

After a lot of debating and a lot more tweaking, Stand and Deliver is finally up and ready to be written. We're mainly going to focus on the mis/adventures of our new protagonist, Thalia Gottwald, who if it isn't obvious already is Lelouch and Juniper's kid. Other characters will be appearing, especially those that didn't get enough screen time during R0, but that'll be saved for the portions of the fic not devoted to Thalia.

As to where this story is going, it should mainly follow the Valkyria Chronicles storyline with hints of what R2 will be about and portions of the time between R0 and R1. Timeskip is around twenty years, so some of the conversations will be catch-ups and flashbacks to get you all up to speed on what's been going on in my head.

Anyway, review and follow the story, I'm always happy to answer questions you guys and girls might have.

Stand and Deliver,

Arilia