Title: Not Quite a Fairy Tale

Summary: She wasn't a princess to be rescued and he wasn't her white knight. Yet the game still created holes in the blank wall of her prison.

SPOILERS if you haven't watched R2.

Disclaimer: Code Geass isn't mine.

"Princess! Your valiant knight has arrived!"

The voice was loud enough to wake the dead, but Kallen barely twitched as she lay on the narrow, padded board that served as her bed. Maybe if she didn't move he'd lose interest and leave.

"Wake up, oh flickering flame of beauty."

What did he just call her? She struggled not sit up and glare at the offender. She should have slept facing the wall.

"Come now, I didn't come all this way to rescue you to have you ignore me."

She did just that.

"Well, then, shall I give you a kiss to break the curse?"

Kallen would break his nose first. Silently she dared him to try, but he must have sensed the wave of anger she was emitting, as she didn't hear any footsteps approach her bed.

"Really now Princess, you should get up, as carrying you would probably be hazardous to my health. I could throw out my back."

"Are you calling me fat?!" Kallen sat up and glared at the tall blonde man leaning against the open door to her cell. "I'll have you know, you bloody, self-centered Brit –"

"Got ya."

Damn. Inwardly, Kallen cursed herself and resisted the urge to smash her head against the wall. Visibly, she crossed her arms and glared at him. "Your screechy voice did finally manage to piece my dreams." Ooo, good comeback. Really witty. Kallen eyed the wall – it was still in hitting distance.

"You mean the deep and sexy voice of your dashingly handsome knight that has come and rescued you from your nightmare."

Kallen still didn't have a decent reply and feared what would come out of her mouth, so she settled for once again shooting daggers with her eyes. Unfortunately, they didn't seem to be doing any damage. Gino Weinburg, her daily escort and transporter from her cell in the basement to the glass box below the Viceroy's rooms, still stood there, flesh unshredded. Nothing she ever did appeared to have any effect on his mood, or on his habit of flowery speech when addressing her. She was sure he did it just to get under her skin.

"Are you going to come on your own or do you want me to sweep you off your feet first?" he asked, laugher evident in his blue eyes.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," muttered Kallen, standing. She made a half-hearted attempt to brush imaginary wrinkles from the skirt of her yellow dress, more to by time then to look nice. But eventually she made her way over to Gino and allowed him to cuff her and lead her out the door.

"And a good morning to you too, Princess," he said cheerfully.

"Can it, we both know I'm no princess and you should just treat me like every other prisoner. Escort me normally for once, instead of pretending we're in some kind of fairy tale," she snapped.

"But I am a Knight," he said with more than a hint of amusement, "and sometimes it's nicer to think of happier things than of reality."

"I happen to prefer reality, thank you," she said, though the anger from before was gone. It probably wasn't the most rewarding task to have to march her up to Nunnally everyday and she could understand the desire to hide from things. She did, every night when she imagined Lelouch coming for her, though still every morning she was greeted with blue eyes and a flirty grin rather than purple ones and knowing smirk. She was starting to feel the familiar sadness settle over her, when Gino placed a hand on her shoulder, stepped in front of her and leaned down so their faces were level.

"Besides," he said in a soft voice, "few of those in fairy tales are as beautiful as you." Sadness was forgotten as Kallen started to turn as red as her hair. "Or," continued Gino, his grin out in full now, "have rescuers quite as handsome as I."

"Some rescuer you are," she muttered, stepping around him, in an attempt to pretend he hadn't said anything – she'd learn long ago any direct reply would just encourage him. He's just trying to get to me, she reminded herself as she ignored her still flaming face. To her relief, Gino went along with her comment.

"I'm wounded," he exclaimed, keeping one hand on her shoulder as the other flew to his heart. Kallen rolled her eyes at the dramatics, but it didn't seem to dampen his spirits in the least. In fact, her little comment from earlier appeared to have brought his playfulness back out in full force. "I'll have you know that I had to slay a dragon to reach you! Suzaku still doesn't approve of letting you out. Honestly, I thought I'd get singed for a minute."

Kallen felt her lips twitch. "Suzaku's the dragon now, huh? I'd rather pictured him as the evil Queen."

"Nope," replied Gino seriously, "He's definitely the dragon. He can't quite pull off the evening gown look, can he?"

They had almost reached their destination, but Kallen stopped and stared at the man next to her. Her mouth moved silently for a few seconds as the image of Suzaku in a dark, foreboding dress filled her mind, before she broke into a smile and the first real laughter she'd had in a while burst forth from her lips. Gino lasted only a second longer, before joining her in her laughter.

Both of them laughed much harder than the joke probably warranted, but life hadn't been particularly easy lately and Kallen was relieved as the usual strain from the war disappeared momentarily. It would strike her later what an odd pair the two of them must have made – Kallen hands cuffed behind her back, Gino with both hands on her shoulders keeping them standing and each of them laughing hard enough to bring tears to their eyes. But for the moment she could only attempt to shake the tears off her face as Gino wiped his and make the final part of the trip with small bursts of laughter and feeling like a weight had been lifted.

Reaching the glass box with the single chair inside, she turned and gave possible the first real smile she'd had in a while to Gino. He smiled back – another real one, not the usual flirty lift of the lips – and reached forward and ran a gloved thumb over her cheek, clearing away the remains of the tears. Normally she'd have taken this with fire and threats, but this time she didn't even bother to point out he could have just uncuffed her hands now. For once it came with only a feeling of warmth and companionship that remained even as he undid the binding and let her into her cell. As he turned to go, Kallen called out, marking another anomaly for the day.

"Gino!"

He stopped and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Thank you." She didn't say for what, but she knew he got the message. He turned around fully and gave her a flourishing bow.

"I'll be back, as always, my fair Kallen."

She settled down in her chair as he left, for once feeling happy before Nunnally's arrival. She didn't realize that something had changed; even as it occurred to her that it was the first time Gino had ever called her by name. For now, she was just content with the knowledge that there were now two people to shed a little light during her captivity.

A/N: This is the direct result of reading about Cinderella and all those other fairy tales again. But I couldn't quite justify in my mind that Kallen would be in need of rescue in a sort of AU Fairy Tale setting. So this was spawned. In my mind, although I didn't put it in the actually story, it takes place just before Gino shows her the scrapbook. This sort of understanding that happens is what prompts Gino to see her as her, a person on his level, rather than just a hot enemy pilot. Which drives him to try and get her on his side. But anyway, I'll stop babbling and trying to find an excuse for just wanting to Gino and Kallen to play princess and knight and feed my inner fangirl. XD

Anyway, I'd love to hear opinions and thoughts. *hint* review.

RL