A/N:It seems like this story doesn't get many reviews, but it's good that I have some fans for this. Anyway, expect regular updates on this one...my computer is acting weird for some reason. Any time I try to upload a video to youtube, everything stops working... like uploading a video is SO dangerous...*gasp*. The horror! Computers can be a pain in the ass at times.
"While there's life, there's hope."-Terence [Publius Terentius Afer] Ib. 981
Chapter 7 When we were young
Life, Euphemia li Britannia, thought, could sometimes be very troubling and, in many ways, difficult. The pink-haired girl stood by the screen, as her older sister gave out orders to the many soldiers that were lined up, waiting to do battle on Zero and his Black Knights. The young girl was merely a spectator in this event, as her sister did not wish to have her take part in the battle, and, truthfully, Euphemia was glad that she did not have to partake in it herself. She had a distaste for fighting and battles.
Couldn't they put down their weapons and discuss their problems, instead of engaging in such bloody, pointless wars that ultimately proved nothing, and killed millions of innocent people?
These were other people they were fighting against, with fathers, mothers, sons, daughters...they all lived seemingly ordinary lives until the war came and somehow, they became something not human through what the media and politicians told the common people.
This kind of practice disgusted Euphemia, and she felt that something had to change,sooner or later.
Right now, she was basically an observer, who had to watch the battlefield and, on occasion, give commands, if something happened to Cornelia, but for the most part, she was basically useless in this kind of situation.
She hated sitting here doing nothing and wished she had brought a book. It would have killed time, but Cornelia would obviously disapprove of that, because proper Britannian princesses did not do that, since it was "unladylike" behavior.
"Is it true that Zero's our main target, My Lady?" Cornelia's knight, Gilbert G.P. Guilford, asked politely, staring at Euphie's older sister through his rimmed spectacles.
Euphemia was very fond of him because he was a kind, and gentle man (even though he didn't seem like it at first) and had always been kind towards her and the other royals. He didn't just do it because it was the proper way to act; rather, loyalty seemed to run in his blood, unlike Jeremiah Gottwald, the recently discredited margrave who had been accused of being in league with Zero.
Cornelia, her older sister, nodded gravely and cast a smile Euphemia's way, before turning her attention back to the radar that laid out their plans for the battle. "What we're trying to do here is to lure both Zero and the JLF out front, so we can wipe both off the face of the earth! I want most of my troops to take caution on the battlefield today, especially because Zero is a known strategist and more than likely, he'll try something sneaky. If we underestimate him and his kind, we will get defeated by scum, and we cannot show weakness to terrorists!" She yelled.
"My lady, what about the Lancelot and the ASECC?" An officer asked, but that proved to be a rather foolish question, as Cornelia shot him a piercing look.
"The pilot of the Lancelot is an Eleven, and I-no, we do not need an Eleven engaging in our battle today. I don't care what Schneizel told you; Elevens are not allowed to be involved in our military service and that is final!" Cornelia exclaimed reproachfully.
"Sister-er, Viceroy Cornelia, who is the pilot of the Lancelot?" Euphemia inquired curiously, turning to regard her sister with curious violet eyes.
"I think it's Suzaku Kururugi, the same Eleven that was accused of murdering my brother, Clovis. You know that we will not have him anywhere around you, Sub-Viceroy. You are royalty and he is an Eleven, so we cannot trust him."
'Of course I can trust him...' Euphemia thought desperately, but she bit her tongue and concealed her words. Her mind drifted back to the other one she constantly thought about most: the boy who seemed to haunt her mind no matter what she did or where she went. Why couldn't she get him out of her mind? It wasn't like she would see him here...after all, he wouldn't be a soldier. If he felt the same way she did, then he probably wouldn't be in the war as well.
Kallen yawned as she sat in her Knightmare Frame. It was a hot day on the battlefield, but the inside of the Knightmares were even worse, so it felt like she was in the pits of hell. Beads of sweat trickled down her forehead, as she sat there. She took a swig of her water bottle and sighed deeply.
"Zero, what are you doing? You have a battle to prepare for! After all, this is much better than being stuck at that stupid school with that arrogant jerk Lelouch-"
Her mind stopped as she remembered the events that had happened a few hours ago. The one who called himself Kudo Shinichi had stunned her at the fact that he was such a confident person. She wasn't stunned by his good looks or by his personality, rather it was the fact that he was so...bold when it came to his heritage.
He bravely waved the fact that he was Japanese for the world to see, and the world saw his bravery as mere audacity, but at least he had the courage to speak up. What did she do, on the other hand? Weak little Kallen Kouzuki was too afraid of what would happen if people found out that she was Japanese that she hid it behind a fake name and fake acting.
Her mind drifted back to the events immediately after he introduced himself to her.
For a few moments, Kallen was stunned. She didn't know what to say that could possibly make a moment like this more exciting and shocking than it already was. Not only had he spoken to her in fluent Japanese, he did so with complete assurance of himself-he never whispered or acted unsure for a second. He was completely confident of himself.
"H-How did you...figure that out?" She stammered in Japanese again, still not believing that this was actually happening. She couldn't be talking to someone in her old language; this had to be a dream...had to be a nightmare of some sort!
He smirked broadly again, and a knowing look came into his piercing blue eyes. "Well...you aren't that good at keeping secrets, are you? I'm more observant than I look."
He was a detective, he said. So, that meant she couldn't be completely friendly with him, because there was a good chance that he would throw her in jail if he learned she was a terrorist. More than likely, he was someone who sympathized with Britannia. A traitor.
"Are you an Honorary Britannian?" She stammered.
"Yes, but only in name. I never completely gave in to them. I didn't give in to them mentally or emotionally, you see. I am still cautious about where my allegiance lies, but I have no true respect for Britannia, a country that enslaves and kills."
Lelouch spoke up then, in English this time. "So, Kallen, what are your views when it comes to terrorism? Did you teach yourself Japanese just so you could go down to the pathetic little Eleven's level? Are you only learning it because you pity them and their suffering, or is it because you still think of yourself as a Britannian noble, that you are vastly superior to them-"
"Lelouch, knock it off," Suzaku growled.
"Lelouch, please, stop it. This is no time for that kind of talk," Shinichi scolded, but Lelouch paid him no mind and continued on.
"So, Miss Stadtfeld, how do you feel about the Japanese? Do you only wish to make others see you as a good person because you pity the little Eleven who stands up for himself, or will you just decide to date him as a publicity stunt? Which choice is it, Kallen?" The demon incarnate asked, his lips curled in a nasty smirk. Kallen was shaking in anger, but clearly he saw that and was amused.
That stupid, sadistic, Britannian bastard! How dare he think such a stupid thing!
"I see that maybe you feel a little uncomfortable being near such scum. It's understandable, seeing as you think all Elevens are filthy beings that need to be-"
SMACK!
Kallen's eyes widened upon seeing Lelouch fall to the ground, a red mark forming on his cheek. He stood up slowly, touching his stinging cheek. "What the hell are you doing, Suzaku? I was only speaking the truth about her. She's the classic Britannian archetype-a person who pities them but is sadly above them and they must stay there-"
WHAM!
Lelouch fell to the ground again. He struggled to get back up and held his nose as red blood spurted out from under his fingers. "What the hell, Suza-" His purple eyes widened as he realized that it wasn't Suzaku, it was...Shinichi.
"Lelouch...knock it off. You don't need to go on about how bad Britannia is any longer. Your tirades have been growing tiresome and I don't need to hear you putting down someone else. You can clearly see that she's not racist, otherwise, she would have never come here and talked to us in the first place. I don't know what's wrong with you lately, but it seems to me like you need to get off your high horse.. She can sit beside us and have lunch with us if she so chooses," Shinichi said calmly; every one of his words were cold and piercing. Yet, he didn't even look the slightest bit angry.
Kallen's blue eyes widened slightly at the fact that this young man had just come to her aid. "Y-You didn't have to...hit him." She stammered, feigning shock.
"Kudo, did you really have to hit Lelouch?" Suzaku asked in shock. "You must be quite strong if you managed to give him a nosebleed."
"I practice a lot in soccer, but not only that, I'm trained in other sports and I know a little bit of karate. Ran taught me, but she's much better at it than I am. This is what I always did in order to keep him in line," Shinichi said, laughing slightly. His face turned serious again.
"Kudo, you fidn't hafta git me. That was stupid and unnecessary," Lelouch mumbled, trying desperately to stop the nosebleed, but failing.
"Come on, what would Angel-san think if she could see you acting like that? I'm sure Nunnally would not be very happy." Shinichi said softly.
Lelouch's eyes widened slightly and he merely pouted."Fine, she can join us. I'm going to the nurse."
"To heal your nose or your bad mood?" Shinichi joked, but Lelouch merely rolled his eyes.
He turned to Kallen then, who was still awestruck. "It's okay. He can get carried away sometimes."
"So, what are your views on terrorism?" Kallen asked. The blue-eyed boy stiffened slightly.
"Terrorism, huh? I think it's nice that the Japanese are trying to get their rights back, but I don't think spilling blood and killing innocent people is going to help very much. I think we should try to make peace in a better way than by killing people. I understand where Zero is coming from, but I just don't believe killing and violence are necessary to change things." Shinichi explained, not even noticing Kallen's jaw drop slightly.
"But that's idealistic thinking! It's not all black and white, you know!" Kallen exclaimed.
"People make good choices and bad choices, Stadtfeld-san. The bad ones just have to be put in prison to learn a lesson. Terrorism...is not a simple solution, you know. I suppose war can be used for a good end, but I still dislike it."
Her fists tightened slightly. She had been wrong about him on so many levels! He was really nothing more than a sissy who didn't want to hurt others. That disgusted her! With his talk, he sounded a lot like Suzaku Kururugi! He had the right mindset to join Zero, he just was too...neutral.
"Fighting is essential to change things, Kudo Shinichi, and you will have to learn that the hard way."
"Q1, the enemy is almost ready to start. Are you prepared for this battle?" A familiar, dauntless voice asked over the line. Now Zero, on the other hand...was willing to give up things in order to fight.
Shinichi sat in front of the television in his dormitory, watching the latest case he had solved replay on the screen when suddenly a few kids came in. Some of them were Britannian, and the ringleader was Japanese. All four of them surrounded Shinichi, who raised an eyebrow in skepticism.
"...Really? You're going to beat me up, and THIS is how you do it? You're so typical. I think you guys might be watching one too many movies for your liking. Four against one will never work out, you know..." Shinichi said dryly.
"Curb that arrogant tongue of yours, you filthy Eleven!" A Britannian girl cried. Shinichi recognized her...wasn't she that girl Shirley Fenette's older sister, cousin, or something? He sighed.
"Yeah, don't go thinking you can talk to teachers like that!" A boy yelled. In his hands, he held a stick and a baseball bat. The girl held a cell phone and a soccer ball. The other two, both boys, held hockey sticks and fisticuffs, along with...a newspaper and a soda can.
"Wow...nice arsenal, you guys. What's the worst you can do with a cell phone beside text me and annoy the hell out of me?" Shinichi said, before getting up to his feet. "This is by far the worst gang I have ever seen. Even Fred, Shaggy, Daphne, Velma, Scooby, and Scrappy-doo were better prepared for fighting bad guys!" He chuckled.
A vein mark pulsed on the first boy's head. "You're going to get it big time, you stupid detective!" He charged right at Shinichi with the stick, but Shinichi merely sighed and moved aside. The boy blinked for a few moments, then raced at him with the bat.
"...Ran, help me take care of some trash." Shinichi said calmly.
A blur came out of nowhere and knocked the boy's stick out of his hands and sent him flying backwards. A brown-haired girl with blue eyes stared at the boy angrily. "If you want to hurt Shinichi...I'll kick your ass!" She screamed, and then Ran started her attack and kicked the boy mercilessly until he passed out.
The two boys came behind Shinichi and held him by the shoulder so he couldn't get away. The girl grinned and raised the soccer ball up and threw it at him. Shinichi smirked. He pulled his foot back, and kicked the ball with all his might and sent it flying right into the girl's face, knocking her over. The two boys behind him gulped slightly as Shinichi wrestled his way out of their grasp and turned to face them. "Hi." He said, and then he punted the black-and-white ball at them and they both passed out.
Ran and Shinichi sighed. "Lucky thing you were still here, Ran." Shinichi said.
"Shinichi, you can take care of yourself. Who were those goons, anyway?" Ran asked in curiosity.
"From the looks of it, I'd say they're some of Kururugi Suzaku's classmates and some of my anti-fans who hate me simply for existing. They probably heard about him staying here with me for a while and decided to go on the hunt." Shinichi deduced.
"How is your friend?" Ran asked.
Her friend sighed. "He probably will still have a broken nose for a while. It'll heal, though. I don't think I hit him THAT hard..."
Lelouch rubbed his swollen nose in anger. "Damn you, Kudou..."
"Did your friend beat you up?" C.C. taunted from the back seat of his Knightmare Frame.
"Shut up." He growled.
