Author's Notes
Regarding the Timeline: I have taken the liberty of placing Tamaki's bistro about 2 years after Lelouch's death rather than immediately after Lelouch's death. Therefore, Villetta sitting at Tamaki's bistro would be having her second child rather than her first, probably about 3 years after Lelouch's death.
About Zero: This is not his scene, but we'll get there eventually.
* * * * *
Whoever claimed that peace was dull was a bona fide liar. When Cornelia li Britannia was not puzzling over the bones allegedly belonging to a particular historical figure, there was real work to be done. Since she had established contacts while fighting against Lelouch with the Japanese, Schneizel had asked her to remain in overseas, to assist the Black Knights and to strengthen post-Lelouch Britannia's relations with Japan and the U.F.N.
Although Cornelia liked the camaraderie that had developed between members of Black Knights and herself during the resistance in Japan, she soon found that dealing with the organization as a whole was an entirely different matter. Her first project as Schneizel's informal ambassador was the inventory.
General Tohdoh, Zero and Cornelia had all agreed with Kaguya Sumeragi that they should conduct an inventory of the equipment and personnel available to the U.F.N from Japanese resistance groups, Britannian army members left in Japan, the Black Knights and foreign resistance groups. As a good-faith demonstration of the peace agreement between Britannia and the U.F.N. the inspections would be carried out jointly.
The former two cohorts were relatively miniscule, so they were quickly assessed in a month.
Cornelia then ended up visiting, hosting and interviewing complete strangers from various overseas Black Knights branches and resistance groups for the next five months thereafter. They found her interest in them to be quaint and entertaining at best. Otherwise, a rather bothersome number of them found her involvement intrusive.
Despite Schneizel's plans for partitioning Britannia into culturally and geographically compatible entities and then joining the U.F.N. those plans were for the distant future. Therefore, some regarded Cornelia as an alien agent instead of an ally. Her involvement in assessing the U.F.N.'s military capabilities raised suspicions that she was really present as a spy or a saboteur rather than an envoy. Never mind that Zero had requested Cornelia's opinions on various essential topics and rewarded her resistance work with membership in the Black Knights.
Cornelia's earlier role as one of Britannia's most formidable soldiers, of course, was also a mark against her. Although Lelouch's reign had brought more death and destruction to the Areas than any of Cornelia's military campaigns, former enemies who had fought her remembered her well. They did not hate her exactly, not the way that everybody now reviled Lelouch. But it seemed most unlikely that she would ever be welcome amongst them.
Much to her surprise, she was greatly relieved when General Tohdoh finally declared the inventory complete because she could then go back to Japan – and stay there instead having to leave again three days later to inspect yet another outpost. In Cornelia's nostalgic recollection, her comrades in Japan understood and accepted her. For the most part, anyway.
Cornelia's return to Japan coincided with the birth of Villetta and Prime Minister Ohgi's baby. Given the blessing of Ohgi, Zero, General Tohdoh, and, of course, Villetta herself, Cornelia took on her next project of substituting for Villetta at the Veterans Assistance Bureau so that the mother could spend more time with her newborn.
The bureau had been growing at a breakneck pace, thanks to the enthusiasm and leadership of Shinichiro Tamaki who had finally realized his dream of being a bureaucrat. His penchant for talking too freely and committing to more projects than anybody could finish, though, left his co-directors, Nagisa Chiba, Villetta and now also Cornelia, scrambling to find materials and means for fulfilling the bureau's many promises.
It was some consolation that Tamaki had restrained himself just enough to limit his pledges to things that people truly could use. But nevertheless, the bureau had their work cut out for them.
Since the post-Lelouch disorganization was settling down, many fighters were being honorably discharged from duty. The return to civilian life meant that they needed help with finding jobs and housing. A large portion of these people had nowhere to go back to because Lelouch had killed their families, destroyed their homes or both.
For the wounded and the disabled, there were obvious immediate and ongoing needs for medical and therapeutic services including prosthetic limbs, wheelchairs, crutches, physical therapy and psychiatric care. Orphans needed access to basic necessities such as food, shelter and schooling, besides the little comforting extras such as toys, books and furnishings. In families where death had reduced the number of breadwinners and caretakers to one, baby-sitting services were necessary.
Besides the immediate requirements, Tamaki had added to the workload by prematurely leaking information about more long-term projects: the stipend being planned for the orphans and widows, discounted business loans and educational assistance. However grateful recipients were for the Veterans Assistance Bureau's help thus far, they could not resist being at least a little bit impatient to learn when these further developments would be implemented.
In addition to being swamped with requests for aid from veterans and their families, the Veterans Assistance Bureau was hectically exchanging information with organizations serving the general population. Since many civilians also needed the same services, the bureau became the focal point where information and resources were gathered, distributed and delivered.
Thus began Cornelia's twelve-hour days making phone calls, writing letters, drawing charts on large marker boards, training volunteers, hoisting boxes, delivering care kits, shaking hands, etc. The work was quite worthwhile, but part of her couldn't help but be grateful when she could go home to Gilbert G.P. Guilford at the end of the day.
Despite her brother's underhanded schemes, Cornelia regularly thanked her lucky stars that Schneizel had successfully gotten her to marry and live with her knight. Schneizel, with his uncanny ability to read people, must have known how much Cornelia would need her husband. If not for him tucking forgotten toiletries into her suitcase and making coffee in the morning, Cornelia might not have survived her new roles.
Their wedding had been the stuff that comedies are made of.
Shortly after Lelouch's cremation, Schneizel had decided to go home with most of the Britannian army for the sake of reestablishing order in the absence of the higher nobility killed at Pendragon. The day before his departure from Japan, Schneizel had called a private meeting with Cornelia and Guilford to inform them of certain unpleasant policy matters:
1. He had no intent to reinstate the royalty because the money formerly used to support them was now needed for post-war reconstruction and foreign aid diplomacy.
2. Because Cornelia was no longer a Princess, she was no longer entitled to a personal knight.
3. Guilford's ongoing need for medical care due to FLEIJA effects rendered his service more economical in Britannia than in Japan where the cost of living was relatively gargantuan to begin with.
4. Schneizel, as Britannia's executive leader and commander-in-chief, would call Guilford back to Britannia….
5. .… Unless Guilford and Cornelia got married. For the sake of morale, it was standard practice in the military to keep spouses stationed as close to each other as was feasible.
After taking an hour to get used to the idea (i.e. Cornelia sputtering furiously at Schneizel and Guilford registering shock until the pair realized that they did, in fact, belong together,) Cornelia and Guilford spent the next 23 hours frantically rounding up a marriage license, a Britannian military chaplain, witnesses and clothing for their wedding.
Thankfully, the tidiness of Lelouch's removal from power had allowed for businesses and local government offices to stay open. The resistance's former spies in the offices were rather amused by the gravity of their ex-colleagues' situation, and they gladly rushed the necessary documents through the pipeline with plenty of tittering and laughter.
While Guilford's formal military uniform was being speedily cleaned as well as altered to accommodate the weight that he'd lost after FLEIJA, he visited a jeweler to examine rings. Minami went along to make sure that the Britannian soldier's blindness would not be used to cheat him on the rings' quality. Thankfully, the nobility's panic sale over being dispossessed had made all jewelry fairly inexpensive.
Villetta and Cornelia dashed all over the remainder of the Tokyo metropolitan area searching for a dress and a pair of shoes. They settled on strappy white sandals with low heels, a plain, white shift of a summer dress and a sheer wrap with blue flowers at the corners. As a wedding gift, Villetta dragged Cornelia to a salon for a haircut and facial.
In the late afternoon the next day, the bride and groom met at the nearest municipal building left standing to sign their marriage license. After the ministrations of Villetta and the hairdresser, the bride had looked so different (even when slightly blurry) that the groom almost didn't recognize her except that she smelled right. Schneizel el Britannia, Kaname Ohgi and Kaguya Sumeragi witnessed the marriage.
The witnesses took the couple to Ashford Academy (temporary U.F.N. headquarters) where they were shocked to find a sizeable crowd of Black Knights, Britannian military and resistance members along with their dates, friends and families gathered on the lawn. Apparently, news of their engagement had traveled rapidly through the grape vine.
The chaplain conducted a quick ceremony before pronouncing Gilbert G.P. Guilford and Cornelia li Britannia man and wife.
So frantic were Guilford and Cornelia in the logistics of getting married that they had completely overlooked that they'd never dated, never mind kissed each other, before. As the groom nervously leaned forward, seriously praying that he wouldn't miss, Cornelia simply grabbed him in a panic and pulled him into a breathtaking lip-lock that earned the applause, cheers and admiration of all.
Schneizel then departed for Britannia while the newlyweds were swept away by their wedding guests to invade the nearest karaoke bar where the party participants of drinking age got drunk out of their minds and sang as many suggestive tunes as could be found on the play lists. Everybody, youngsters included, ate all the snacks available. Afterwards, the party disbanded and stumbled back to wherever they were staying.
Guilford and Cornelia tried to make their way back to the safe house where they had resided during the resistance. However, as both of them were a wee bit wobbly, and the groom couldn't see very well, getting home took some time. Along the route, Cornelia managed to start calling her husband by his given name rather than his surname. He, however, could not resist continuing to call his wife "Princess," so they compromised on having it be more of a pet name than a title. Just after dawn, they found the building, got in and staggered up to what had been Cornelia's room. The exhausted pair collapsed in a heap on her bed and fell asleep.
(Consummation of their union took place later, when they were not plastered or hung over.)
Thinking of her wedding made Cornelia smile. Only Schneizel could possibly have conceived of her doing anything so ridiculous yet so satisfying. Well, maybe Euphemia could have. She would have liked being at the wedding, too.
Gilbert had slipped into married life quite seamlessly as Cornelia's doting and responsible husband. With a large magnifying glass in hand, Gilbert paid the bills, hired cleaners, stocked their pantry and arranged romantic activities when he was not at his numerous medical appointments. Between these tasks, he helped various organizations with translating documents from Japanese to Britannian and vice versa.
Cornelia, on the other hand, was not at all pleased with how she was doing as Gilbert's wife. She, in contrast, had barely been home between their dates. Globetrotting on behalf of Schneizel and the U.F.N. and then working late nights at the Veterans Assistance Bureau kept her busy and away.
It was no longer odd that she would come home to find a fond note on the kitchen table, sushi or a sandwich in the fridge and her husband sound asleep. The circumstances were a far cry from her adult expectations of marriage, and an even farther thing from whatever girlish notions of romance she had ever entertained.
In a rare, less self-assured moment, Cornelia had asked her husband, "Gilbert, do you ever regret marrying me?"
To which he replied, "No, Princess. Where did that idea come from?"
"We're away from each other so much," she said. "It's not exactly most people's idea of domestic bliss."
"Absence makes the heart grow fonder when you can look forward to meeting again," Gilbert answered. He added, "I wish you wouldn't be so tired when you come home, though."
"Hmm?" Cornelia felt mildly offended by that remark. Of course, she was often tired. If Gilbert were doing her job, he'd be exhausted, too. How dare he expect her to not be worn-out?
"What I mean is, I think a vacation would do you good."
"There's too much work to do," Cornelia responded peevishly.
"Even Knightmare frames need their energy replenished," he replied.
"Excuse me?" Cornelia scowled at being compared to a robot.
Her husband smiled at her. "But fortunately, you are Cornelia --" He kissed her. "—and you are invincible." Another kiss. "Edible, too."
"Since when, do you jest at my expense, Sir Knight?" Cornelia inquired in the haughtiest tone that she could manage.
"If my Princess dislikes her knight's attempt at humor, it is her right to punish him as she sees fit," Gilbert said mildly.
"Does this mean you'll be getting the dry cleaning?"
He frowned in disappointment. "Well, that wasn't what I meant, but if it makes you happy–"
"Oh, hush. You please me greatly already." Cornelia proceeded to have her way with him.
Gilbert did have a good point, however. She had not taken any substantial rests since Clovis died, and sooner or later it would show. The days were melting into each other already.
When Villetta's child turned one, she decided to come back to work and let the nursery workers at the bureau watch him. She took Cornelia out to lunch supposedly so that they could go over the details of returning the Veterans Assistance Bureau co-director job but mostly so that they could catch up with each other's news.
"You're lucky to be coming back now after the insanity," Cornelia told Villetta over the shabu shabu. "It's finally settling down."
"Yes, Kaname tells me that Tamaki's leaving to open some kind of a restaurant," said Villetta.
"So, that's why he was so keen on the business loan program…. Too bad, I'd be a little afraid to eat there considering how he's done at the bureau," Cornelia joked.
Villetta laughed. "I'm sure he'll do well. Minami and Sugiyama are going to help him out."
"But who will help them?" Cornelia appended.
"It won't be so terrible," Villetta replied. "You and Chiba did great working with him."
"Yes, well…. Thank goodness most of the protocols are in place now."
"So how's Guilford doing?" the former baroness inquired of the former princess.
"He's…. He reads Braille much faster now, but the doctors don't know what to do about the aches and pains he sometimes gets…. It makes me worry."
Villetta sighed sympathetically. "That's unfortunate."
"But otherwise, he's quite alright. In fact, he takes care of most of the chores."
"Really?" Villetta said with envy. "You know, Kaname can't do laundry to save his life! Not that I mind; we can pay to have it done for us now. But he tried once, and I had to replace all of my underwear."
"Hmm…." Cornelia mused. "Sounds like he did it on purpose."
Villetta frowned. "I liked those panties."
Cornelia laughed. "So, when are you and the Prime Minister going to get married?"
"Probably sometime in June next year," said Villetta. "But we're not sure yet. It's rather difficult to plan a giant wedding when there's an entire country to rebuild. Unfortunately, it's not really fitting for the Prime Minister of Japan and his mistress to simply elope. You and Guilford were lucky to get the wedding over with before the work piled up."
"Yes," said Cornelia, "It looked like an awful idea at the time, but it's all turned out so well."
"Speaking of marriage and Guilford, when are you two going on honeymoon?" Villetta asked. "He's well enough to travel, right?"
"I suppose so. We…. haven't discussed it much. I've been so busy here--" Cornelia quickly backtracked: "Not that I'm blaming you…."
"Not at all. You did us a huge favor. We can't thank you enough," Villetta said comfortingly. "You do look like you could use a break, though. You've gotten thinner, too. Is Guilford feeding you enough?"
Cornelia glared at Villetta.
"Back to business then.…" Villetta changed the subject.
The rest of lunch was spent on discussing topics that Cornelia found far more pleasant such as fundraising for the widows and orphans' stipend, finding a bigger building for the Veterans Assistance Bureau and when to toilet train the Japanese Prime Minister's son.
Later that evening, Cornelia applied for a one-year leave-of-absence for herself and her husband.
