Chapter 3 - Royals, Sandwiches and Rifles

As Caitlyn walked into the tearoom where they had talked yesterday, which apparently served as a living room as well, Lady Margaret Weinberg was already busy. Neither her husband or son were in the room, so they were probably still asleep. Caitlyn had always been someone that did not sleep that long into the next day. Although the sensation of finally waking up in a real bed again had tempted her to stay in for a bit longer, she had still arrived downstairs relatively early. As she walked to the kitchen that was next to the room, lady Weinberg noticed her and turned around.

"Goodmorning, miss Vaelde, I hope you slept well?"

Caitlyn smiled and nodded. "Ah, yes. I haven't slept like this in months, thank you. Are the lords Weinberg still asleep?"

"Gino is, as usual. My husband has went to the vi Brittania's to take care of some things regarding Gino`s enlistment earlier this morning, but he will be back to join us for lunch."

"Wait, Gino's going to enlist?" Caitlyn asked, wondering what someone of noble birth would want to do in a modern-day army.

"Hah, he's been dreaming of becoming a Knightmare pilot for a very long time now. So, when he turns fourteen, he'll be able to enlist for training. It's a bit young, but being a pilot is a good place for a nobleman, and with his ambition he'll make it to the Round if he is any good, and according to his dad, he is..."

There were many things that Caitlyn did not know about the world yet, but she couldn't risk to ask it when it might have been common knowledge. Not without telling them that she was from a completely different world first. While doubting about this, Margaret Weinberg walked over to the table and placed down a basket with bread.

"This is freshly baked, so if you hurry it might also be warm."

"Shouldn't we wait for Gino?" Caitlyn asked.

"Heh, he'll come down when we start our lunch and join us then. It would be really unusual for him to wake up before that." His mother smiled, and with a gesture of her arm, invited Caitlyn to sit down at the table.

…

"Papers please?" The guard at the large entrance gates asked.

As a reply, Lord Weinberg handed over his papers and identification. The guard apparently took his job quite serious and studied the documents thoroughly.

"All right sir, head on through."

"Thank you, please notify her Highness vi Britannia of my arrival."

"Already taken care of, milord. She is awaiting you in the central room."

After replying "Very well." to the guard, Lorenzo Weinberg moved through the gates.

As he entered Aries Villa, he heard the playful screaming of the youngest girl in the house as she ran off the stairs, hands in the air while being chased by a black-haired boy and pink-haired and clad girl. Rushing past him, ever laughing, Nunnally didn't even notice him, nor did her half-sister. The oldest kid of the three did, and Lelouch vi Britannia stopped for a few seconds to address Lorenzo.

"Hello Lorenzo, are you here to speak with my mother?"

"Hello to you as well, Lelouch. And I am, she is in the living room, I take it?"

"Yes, the central living. Now, if you`ll excuse me, I gotta chase after my sister before she reaches the end of the gardens first." And without waiting for a reply, Lelouch ran off after his relatives.

Smiling as he walked on, Lorenzo reached the central room. Given the time, it was no surprise that he smelled tea when he entered. On the table, a filled kettle and a lot of papers in front of her, was empress Marianne Vi Britannia, one of the many empresses and a good friend to the Weinberg family. She looked up as he entered the room, smiled and rose from her chair.

Going through the proper etiquette, Lorenzo Weinberg greeted Marianne, and sat down at the other side of the table.

"So, knightmare training?" Marianne started, smiling at her conversation partner.

"Yes," Lorenzo answered. "It has been his dream ever since he saw the showmatch between you and the Knight of One."

"Yeah, it did quite good as far as recruitment goes. But, I take it that you want me to become his patron?"

"Well, yes. He needs someone of royal blood to get him further than just a knightmare pilot. You know that he is quite talented, his simulation-scores showed that much, so I have no doubt that he will make it high up into the hierarchy, with royal support at least. And since house Weinberg is vowed to the Vi Britannia line, I thought it of common decency to ask you to be his patron."

"You don't need to convince me, Lorenzo. Even if his skills in a real frame are only a small part of his skills in the sim, he would do just fine there. I've already told you that I would support little Gino`s endeavors in the military. However, I am no longer part of the military. So, while I can support him in name, it would be best for him to bind to a student of mine. She is of royal blood as well, and I cannot imagine a better mentor and idol for Gino than her. I'm afraid that she is not here yet, but I'll take her with me when I take Lelouch and Nunnally to your estate for dinner. If that still stands, that is?"

Lord Weinberg looked surprised for a few seconds, before he remembered that he had invited them a few days ago. "Ah, yes. To be honest, I forgot about that. We had quite an event that occupied us yesterday…"

"I heard rumors of a kidnapping…"

"Yes, it was quite stressful, but it worked out for the better, surprisingly enough."

Marianne vi Britannia gve lord Weinberg a wondering look, waiting for him to continue.

"Well… I do not know how much you've heard."

"Nearly nothing, and I did not research it because I heard you all were alright."

"Yes, well it started with some thief stealing my watch, and Gino chasing after him."

Marianne shook her head. "As hotheaded as always…"

"Indeed. Well, Gino was kidnapped and held hostage for ransom. He was inside a house, and with one of the thugs came back to get me, there were six more guarding his room and house. This was the point where Lady Vaelde showed up."

Marianne rose her hand to interrupt Lorenzo. "Vaelde? I know no nobility of that name… Where is she from?"

"I am getting to that, don't worry. Now, this girl -she is only one year older than Gino- had apparently followed the thief, and by extent Gino, to reclaim my watch. After she witnessed the kidnapping, she was the only person in the entire ghetto that decided to take action. And by the emperor, she did…"

"How do you mean? What did she do for you to be so impressed?"

"Well, Gino was blindfolded, and I haven't asked her for the details yet, but apparently she snuck into the house from the attic, one floor above where Gino was held. From what I heard from Gino, she was able to snipe the three thugs that were guarding him in such speed that they could not even draw their guns. Now, I am not sure if you are aware, but even most of the snipers from the Imperial SF's are not that good at sniping from close range, let alone when they are without clear cover and fire at a speed that doesn't even let their enemies draw a weapon."

"That is quite remarkable indeed. Go on, I want to know the rest of the story."

"Hmm, when I arrived at the house where the rogues kept Gino hostage, Gino was the one to come out of the house, an outdated gun in his hands and this girl a few steps behind him. I executed the last thief then and there, thus concluded the kidnapping. After that I asked the girl what she wanted as a reward, and after returning my watch to me -which I had kinda forgotten about- asked for entrance into the city. Giving her only that would be a disgrace to my honor, so I offered her to stay at the Weinberg Manor for as long as she needed."

"Ah, so I will meet her as well, this evening?" Marianne inquired, a smile on her face.

"I think so, yes."

After this they talked about unimportant things, and half an hour later, Lorenzo Weinberg took his leave and returned home, intending to be home on time for lunch.

…

Caitlyn heard sounds coming from the room next to her, signalling the waking up of Gino Weinberg, heir and only son to lord Lorenzo Weinberg. A swift glance at the clock told her that it was past noon already. She, an early bird herself, wondered how anyone could sleep that long into the day. In her opinion it was extremely inefficient, since it left less time to do things.

Then again, a boy of noble heritage would not really have that much on his hands during a normal day. She wondered if Gino even went to school, or if he just had private teaching. She suspected that the last one was true, since there had be no sign of any schoolbooks or schoolstuff in his room. While she heard the shower pour in the bathroom, Caitlyn shifted in her chair and picked another book from the big pile. Certainly The History of Britannia would prove somewhat useful in understanding the world that she was in right now. As she opened it on the first page and started reading Chapter 1 - In the beginning, she knew that it was probably going to be dull and purely history-focussed. Then again, that was expected from a book that literally had the word history in its title. As she toughened herself into the book, she waited for Gino to finish his shower and to plan the day with him, what remained of it at least.

They were sitting outside as the large-sized car arrived back at the villa, holding Lord Weinberg, two younger kids that Caitlyn did not recognise and another young man that appeared to be a guard of the two. As all four of them exited the car, Gino and Margaret Weinberg rose to greet their guests. From the way they bowed however, Caitlyn could deduct that the two kids would have to be of high rank. The two did not seem to take any heed of the way they were greeted, instead rushed up to them. Where the girl hugged Lady Margaret, the raven haired boy rushed over to Gino to show him something. Caitlyn observed the the scene with what was apparently a startled look, as Lorenzo walked over to her and started introducing the two kids.

"These are Lelouch and Nunnally vi Britannia, son and daughter of empress Marianne vi Britannia. The Weinberg-family has sworn itself to the vi Britannia-line, and thus we know both the children and their mother very well. This," Lord Weinberg pointed to the man that had accompanied the kids, "is lord Jeremiah Gottwald, member of the empress' royal guard and appointed caretaker for both of her kids for this day, because he had the misfortune to be close to us when they expressed their will to tag along to the villa… Lord Gottwald, this is Miss Caitlyn Vaelde. We owe her a great deal for rescuing Gino, but I'm sure you've already read the reports about that."

The man shot Caitlyn a taxating look, nodded once and gave a one-word answer while his glance turned back to his subjects. "Charmed."

"So, a bodyguard that takes his job seriously. That's an unfamiliar sight… Pleased to meet you, lord Gottwald." As a grunt was all that she got as a reply, Caitlyn walked over to Gino and the boy, Lelouch. As she walked away, she could feel the bodyguard`s eyes burning on her back.

"Look Gino. Mother gave me a new toy. It's a miniature of the Ganymede. Look, it can do this." While Lelouch explicitly showed Gino in what stances his new "knightmare" could be put, Caitlyn walked closer. She thought Gino around three of four years older than Lelouch, making the prince around nine or ten years old. Of course, this meant that Gino would be of the perfect age to be idolized by Lelouch, which apparently was the case.

While she studied Lelouch and his younger sister, who was clinging to "Aunt Margaret" while talking about something that Caitlyn could not overhear, she noticed that both were unalike the image that she had of 'royalty'. She guessed that it was not really important to them yet, since they were more kids than royalty right now.

The moment Lelouch noticed her, he pulled his sister to his side and introduced both of them to Caitlyn.

"Hello, milady. My name is Lelouch vi Britannia, and this is my younger sister Nunnally. We're pleased to meet you." Nunnally extended a small hand to Caitlyn, which she shook. They were both raised well, which made Caitlyn wonder how their mother would be.

...

After she told the two kids her name they went inside, where lunch was served. It was nothing extraordinary, and with its sandwiches and drinks, looked like a great lunch. Caitlyn, who noticed that she was in fact quite hungry, dug into the served food, as did the rest.

"Né, Miss Caitlyn, were you the one that my mother spoke of today?"

"Uhm, I do not know that, Lelouch. I hope it was positive?"

"It was something about Gino being rescued by a girl who killed some thugs. Mother was quite impressed. Since you're here now, I took it that you were that girl. Is that right?" Lelouch's eyes were filled with expectation, while Jeremiah Gottwald shot her a different glance than before.

"Uhm, yeah… That was me." Caitlyn replied hesitantly, unsure how to handle a ten year old kid that was asking her if she had killed a couple of men.

"Cool…" Lelouch whispered to himself and Caitlyn could almost see the cogs working in his head, though she did not know why.

Lelouch was just one big ball of excitement. He was with Gino, and someone that was possibly even cooler than Gino, in one room. As usual, Lelouch did not stop asking questions.

"How old are you, miss Caitlyn? Can I see your weapon? Did you ever drive in a knightmare? What is the range of your gun? Where are you from? How-"

Gino chuckled. "Easy Lelouch. You won't get any answers from anyone if you do not give them time to reply. So, one question at a time."

Lelouch nodded thoughtfully, figuring out what question he would pick to ask first. His fascination for guns gained the overhand, and Lelouch asked if he could see her gun.

"Uhm, yeah sure. But don't you think that this Gottwald would flip if he saw me near you with a gun?"

Lelouch smiled and shook his head. "No, I think he trusts you enough. He was quite impressed by the story that my mother told him. He just act like this because… Well, because he acts like this."

Somewhat reassured, Caitlyn walked up the stairs to fetch the rifle from her room. It was next to her bedside, now retracted so that it was only a fourth of its normal length. She expanded it to its original length, and after taking the bullets out she leaned the rifle on her shoulder.

...

She looks amazing, Gino couldn't help but wonder as Caitlyn descended from the stairs. He had something for girls with guns, he decided. Lelouch, even while he was still only ten years old, was irritably sharp, and noticed the awed expression on Gino`s face. With a smug smile he nudged his elbow in Gino`s chest, who came to himself and noticed the smile of the young boy at the same moment. Lelouch turned his attention to the rifle, who was placed on the table by a slightly blushing Caitlyn. Lelouch extended a hand, remembered his manners just before he touched the gun and looked up at Caitlyn questioningly.

"Go ahead Lelouch. It's not activated at the moment, so it won't fire by accident or something."

Gino studied the gun and asked: "Activated? Why would you need to activate a gun before it can be used?"

"Well, it was property of the Vaelde-family. I'll tell you more about my family later. For now, let's say that they are involved in weapons and their production. We called the material and technology used for our guns Hextech. It is… Hmm, it's hard to explain what it is exactly. It has more options than normal steel and titanium, but is not always as strong. It is great for when you need to use electronics, and provides some kind of rechargeable battery at the same time. Uhm… It needs to be updated someday though, it was produced several years ago, and it needs to be brought up-to-date with the current weapon-developments. Which is, by the way Gino, something I had planned to ask you. I would like to visit some decent weapon developer or gunsmith in the future. Do you know any?"

Lelouch replied before Gino could. "You could talk to Ruben!"

"Ruben?" Caitlyn asked, the name not ringing a bell.

"Heh, I was about to suggest the same Lelouch. Ruben Ashford, head of the Ashford-family. They are in charge of most of the new defense-material that the empire uses. They were the ones who designed the first knightmare that was used in combat, piloted by Lelouch's mother, Marianne vi Britannia. By then known as Marianne Lamperouge. Ruben is a great guy, and I'm quite sure that he would be interested in your rifle, and its options. The Ashford-facility is also big enough to spend time and machinery on updating a gun as yours, even when it is an ordinary request. As I said, they are probably quite interested in your weapon themselves. If you want I can arrange a meeting?"

"It can wait for a bit," Caitlyn replied. "I don't really think I'll leave this luxury anytime too soon."

Lelouch pointed back to the rifle, making that the subject of their talks again. While Caitlyn went through the possibilities and attachments one by one, and Lelouch kept asking questions, none of them noticed the passing of the time.

Another chapter done, and on schedule as well!

This was a bit of a filler chapter, as was the case with the last one. It takes some time to set the stage, but I hope it will be good.
A New Reality is next on the list. (finally)

Also, partly thanks to this story, I managed to break my viewer-record that dated from december, which made me quite happy. I get happy from all the messages, fav's and follows that I find in my mailbox every so often, keep doing that!

On a sidenote: I am leaving on holiday this sunday, and will stay away for around 10 days. I have Wi-fi, but no laptop...
I will try to write another full chapter tomorrow, but I cannot promiss much.

With that said, I'm getting dinner.

-Alsodef (31/7/2015)