Tuesday chapter super happy fun time! Man. I actually had a lot of trouble with this chapter, just cause I couldn't hunker down and write. So many awesome things (and also very sucky things) demanding my attention. Ah well, it's done, and the next chapter will be easier. Reviews and stuff time.

First, I want to thank ahwat, Kelenas, and Lord Lelouch for catching mistakes in previous chapters- typos and minor logic holes. I've patched those up, and I appreciate yer help in pointing them out. I'm also going to go back and normalize the font indicators for when someone is Geassed. I've used a couple, and I want to make one that is simple, recognizable, and doesn't get super annoying if you read it for a long time. So from now on, -[this]- is the indicator for someone using their Geass, and -{this}- is the indicator for someone acting under the influence of a Geass. The italics was good, but if it goes for too long, it gets to be a headache, I find. I'll go edit that back into other chapters too.

I have figured out how Armed Resistance's version of Season 1 will end, and man... it's gonna be pretty freakin' awesome. I have got some serious plans. And Season 2 (I will give them names, by the way, it won't really just be season 1 and season 2) will be even more awesome. Lots of good ideas come to you when you're working a long shift in a restaurant and there is absolutely nothing to do. I will try to foreshadow some of it, so that it doesn't seem completely out of left field, so stay alert.

Reviews! Chaos0205 states that while he can appreciate that I'm not doing CCxLulu, it seems like they argue a little too much. I mean... maybe they do? I'm not the best judge of my own work, of course. But really, Lelouch and C.C. are kind of like an old married couple in that regard. The arguments (usually) aren't really that serious, it's just a thing they do. They argue. It's actually because they're close that they argue- they can bicker over little things endlessly. It's just a little ritual that they've gotten used to.

Nanoman79 suggests that Gaspar is most like Lex Luthor, and proposes a very special torture for Mao. The Lex Luthor comparison seems pretty appropriate, and ChaosGriffin also compared him to Rorschach, which I personally like more as a comparison, but that may be just because I think Rorschach is a fantastic character. As far as your torture for Mao... stripping the headphones off kind of reminds me of a webcomic I used to read, the Last Days of Foxhound. Not great art, but very, very well written. Anyway, in one strip, Psycho Mantis, super powerful psychic, is being an asshole, and to get him under control, they rip off his gas mask... which is what lets him filter out people's thoughts. And he immediately seizes up and claws at his face in agony. I'm thinkin' I'm gonna have to use that idea at some point now. Mao is just too satisfying a punching bag for me to pass that up.

ChaosGriffin made the aforementioned Rorschach comparison ("The accumulated filth of all their lies and betrayal will foam up about their waists and all the Britannians and Elevens will look up and shout "Save us!"... and I'll whisper "-[Lelouch vi Britannia commands you... die.]-"), as well as suggesting Gaspar Geass Tamaki. The truth is, Tamaki is a very useful existence for Gaspar. He's not smart, he's not skilled, but he is super, super loyal. The grunts, the ground pounders, the rank and file of the Black Knights really look up to him- he's not that much better than them, but he's been in so many battles, and come out alive. Zero is like this distant figure to them- they can't understand how he thinks, they don't get him. And Karen is way too good for them to ever compare. But Tamaki is just so human that he is a comfort to the others. Naw, I ain't gonna Geass him into a mindless servant. I appreciate the suggestion though.

Rivan9000 points out that it would be pretty stupid for C.C. to kill Gaspar, as he's her best hope for stopping the Empire. Really, though? Stopping the Empire is only one way for her to "win," as it were. If Mao were to get powerful enough, she could just pass the Code on to him. That would relieve her of the burden. She doesn't really care much about the other Codes- she's not riding to their rescue, they can do whatever they want. She just wants to die. And there are a couple of different ways she can achieve that. If Gaspar really ever actually tried to seize control, to make C.C. do whatever he wanted, she wouldn't just tolerate it in the hopes that he would succeed. She would kill him, and move on. She wouldn't enjoy it, as she is slowly growing attached to him, but pushing around beings that are more than a millennium old is really a bad idea =P

And finally, Kelenas noted that the Circle situation is pretty similar to Ghost in the Shell. Yeah, I almost even made Gaspar drop the line "stand alone complex," hahah. I love Ghost in the Shell, and I think the Laughing Man case was a really interesting example of what the human mind can do- take an idea, and warp it so much that it doesn't even resemble the original any more. The Circle, the real Circle (they will have a better name soon, by the way) is based on so little that it really could become anything. In Gaspar's vision of them, they hunted the Imperial Family out of spite, but the real Circle could have very different motivations. Anyway, short answer is, yes, that was my inspiration. Good catch!

Alright! On with the chapter!

I winced as C.C. poked at my bandage. "Doesn't that hurt?" she asked curiously.

I gritted my teeth. "Yes. It does." I flicked her hand away. "So leave it alone."

"My point, Lelouch, is that with you reacting like that at every little bump, you're hardly going to be able to get through a day of school without your injury being obvious. Setting aside the question of explaining how you got a hole in your stomach, which you can probably come up with some excuse for, Karen will recognize your wound right away." She glanced up with a disappointed look on your face. "You usually think of these things. I'm surprised to see you so out of it."

I shook my head. "Who says I haven't thought of it?" I pulled out a little orange plastic jar, and rattled it. "My solution is right here. Geassed a doctor to give me some painkillers."

"What are they?" asked C.C. curiously.

"MS Contin 100mg. At least, that's what the bottle says," I answered with a shrug. "If it's 100mg... well, the drug can't be very powerful. If it were something like morphine, 100mg would hit you like a brick. So I'll take two, and head to school."

"You don't know what they are? I thought you had some medical training."

I shrugged. "They teach us the names of the compounds. This is the name of the company. It's like knowing all about brewing beer, but not knowing what kind of beer Newcastle is. It's just not what they teach." I filled a glass of water and took two tablets.

C.C. watched, and then leaned back, disinterested. "What are you going to do about the Circle?" she asked without looking at me.

I frowned. A good question, actually. I wish I could just take a pill to deal with them, too. Alas, few problems are that simple. And I'd probably get addicted if they were. ...I've stretched that metaphor plenty far enough. "I've got Shirley and most of Yoshitaka's team looking into it. I can't do anything until I learn what they're dealing with."

"How do you plan to find them? Just go around asking people if they're members?" asked C.C. sarcastically. I rolled my eyes.

"Very funny. No. I have a few investigating sister Euphemia's attackers, and the others... well, it's the oldest trick in the book. 'Follow the money.' They don't have a Geass to cover their tracks with, so there will be a trail."

C.C. tilted her head. "You cover your tracks with Geass?" she asked curiously.

I grinned. "Yes indeed. Go to a casino, Geass rich nobles to give me money, and believe that they lost it gambling. The Black Knights have more money than I know what to do with." I shrugged. "Theoretically, one could check with the casino, go through all its records for the day, and compare them to the noble's losses... but that's an immense amount of work, and all it would prove would be that the money didn't go to the casino. It's not traceable."

"Clever," mused C.C. "You use your Geass more imaginatively than most. Though yours has more potential for it than most."

I quirked an eyebrow. "You've seen a lot? I thought you only could have three." It was a lie, to get her talking. I knew for a fact that she could make a new Geass Knight whenever a previous one died, and had probably had dozens through the years. But I didn't know about any of them, and playing dumb seemed the best way to get her to explain.

She smiled, as though she knew exactly why I said it, but answered anyway. "Three at once. Over the years, I have had... many. Very, very many. My first... her Geass was Absolute Comprehension. She was able to... see things from another's perspective, literally. It wasn't really mind control, she didn't choose their actions, and she could still move and whatnot while doing it... but while it was active, her mind could be in her head and someone else's at the same time. Then... it got ugly."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"There is a thing called Geass Runaway... when your powers have developed a lot, you lose the ability to turn them off. There is still, apparently, a way to bring it back under control, a few of my Knights have done it, but I don't know what it is. This girl didn't know how. And so her mind was always in two places at once. And after a while... more than two. It got up to five before she finally killed herself. She couldn't even tell which one of the five she was, she only figured it out when she tried to slit her own throat... and the one of the five that obeyed was the real her."

I shuddered. "Sounds like Geass can get pretty... nasty."

"That was after twenty years of having her Geass, Lelouch. You're fine. You'll get yourself killed with this little rebellion of yours long before that."

"So it always takes that long to get that bad?" I asked innocently.

She smiled, and narrowed her eyes. "That would be useful information, wouldn't it?"

"Bitch," I muttered, but my heart wasn't in it. I was more amused than annoyed. Our fighting and bickering was... comforting, in a way. It was familiar. I shook my head, and picked up my bag. "I have to go to school. I'll see you later."

I blinked, and looked around at my surroundings. The flowers of the Imperial Garden were in full bloom, their beauty eternally preserved by my mind. I was sitting at a small white wooden table, in a surprisingly comfortable lawn chair. Across from me was Clovis. And on the table...

At a passing glance, it looked like a chess board, but it was more than that. It was triangular, with three sets of pieces. Two of the sets were black, though they did not seem to be on the same side. The third was white, and it had more pieces than both black sets put together. There were a bunch of pieces I didn't know in addition to the usual pawns, bishops, rooks, knights, queens and kings too.

"So," I said slowly, "I'm guessing I'm asleep again."

Clovis shook his head with a smile. "Sleeping in class, little brother... what will we ever do with you?"

"And I take it this bizarre board is the new heavyhanded metaphor for war?" I noted with disappointment. Clovis sighed.

"It's your head, Lelouch. If the metaphor is heavyhanded, it is because you made it so. Besides, it serves quite well, I think. No metaphor is perfect. They are supposed to simplify a situation to make it easier to understand."

I stared at the board for a while. "Britannia is white," I said after a moment. "I and my Black Knights are one set of black, and the Circle, the real Circle, is the other. Is that correct?"

"Again, it only means what you want it to, little brother," smiled Clovis.

I rolled my eyes. "You're not a ghost, Clovis. You're not an ethereal spirit residing in my mind to help bring me peace. You're a figment of my imagination, a piece of my mind taking the form of my older brother in an attempt to make a connection with me."

"Did I ever claim to be anything else, Lelouch? Now, enough of your grumpiness. Let's get some drinks." He snapped his fingers, and a maid walked in, carrying glasses of champagne on a tray. I recognized her- she was one of the maids in my mother's estate, and she was gunned down when whoever it was attacked my mother. Another dead person. I can't help but notice a trend.

I sipped my champagne. I wasn't really one for alcohol, but the dream version tasted quite nice. "So, Subconscious Mind that Chooses to Manifest as Clovis, why did you bring me here? What do you want to talk about so badly?"

Clovis shook his head. "You were so much more pleasant last time, I must say."

"Last time it hadn't been obvious that you were going to bring me here every time you felt like ranting. So talk. I'll listen if for no other reason than to get out of here."

He frowned, but nodded. "Good enough. Tell me, then- what is your plan for the Circle?"

"I just told C.C., weren't you listening?" I snorted. "My own mind, and it doesn't pay attention to what I say. Next question."

"No. Not 'how are you going to get them.' What are you going to do about them? They are your creation, they are your responsibility. What sort of punishment will you mete out?"

I sipped more champagne, and stared at the board. The black pieces of the Circle were threatening one of the white queens with their offensives. "They are not my responsibility."

He shook his head gently. "You created them!" he said mildly.

"They created themselves. I had one person shout 'For the Circle' as the fired a gun, and released some stupid video claiming responsibility for your- sorry, for Clovis's death. They are the ones who made it into something it's not. Is an artist responsible for someone who sees their painting, and it inspires them to murder someone?"

"There's a pretty big difference between inspiring through art and inspiring through example, Lulu," replied Clovis evenly. "Van Gogh didn't shoot people, or mind control them."

I gritted my teeth. He was right, though I didn't want to admit it. "So what, then? I should burn alongside the Circle for my sins? You should know me better than that."

"Of course I do," he scolded. "You'd never throw it all away as some kind of 'atonement,' and you're right. Admittedly, I'm part of your own mind, so I'm a bit biased... but that's beside the point. The point is you don't need to die to take responsibility. You could just make sure that you, personally, take the Circle down. Don't just cripple them. Destroy them, just as your carelessness created them."

"You think I didn't intend to?" I demanded.

He threw up his hands. "I know you didn't intend to, Lelouch! I am you! I know your thoughts! And I know that you were strongly considering leaving them alive in a crippled form so that Britannia would have something else to do! And I'm telling you, that's not okay."

I froze. "I know you didn't just give me orders, you little hallucination," I spat.

"That's right, Lelouch, try intimating a part of your own mind. Whatever, I'm done with you." He had thrown away all pretense of behaving like Clovis at this point. "Go back to class, you bore me with your pettiness."

"Lelouch. ...Lelouch!" repeated an irritated voice.

I lifted my head up slowly. "...Yeah...?" I managed, blinking my tired eyes at Rivalz.

My friend gave me a worried look. "You alright? You've been asleep through all of class... and not like your subtle, upright sleep that no one notices. Like, head down on the desk."

"It was a rough night," I grumbled. "I'm fine, don't worry about me." I shook my head. Jesus, I can hardly think. Sleep deprivation must really be catching up with me. Especially if I'm having that damn dream with Clovis again. It actually had been soothing, last time. I suppose that Clovis represents some very specific part of my mind, that I have been neglecting recently. That is why he was disagreeable this time. Or perhaps it's more complicated than that... whatever. Just a dream, no need to worry about it.

The class was milling about, enjoying the brief break. I paused, thinking. The period that just ended... was second period, so I need to get to Dr. Tohsaka's classroom for next period. I stood, and grabbed my books. Rivalz was still giving me a worried look. "Look, Rivalz, I'm fine. Didn't sleep well last night, that's all. Stop with the wounded looks."

He sighed. "Just... take care of yourself, Lelouch. We don't need you falling off the roof again." I nodded, and headed over to my next class.

I stepped into the room, and it was... all but empty, actually. Weird, perhaps I was the first one there. I glanced at my teacher, who was staring back at me. "...Can I help you, Gaspar?" she asked curiously.

I blinked heavily. "I'm... here for class, Dr. Tohsaka," I managed.

She stared at me for a few long moments. "We don't have class today, Lelouch. You've got an assembly this period. Remember?"

I paused. That's right... there is an assembly, isn't there? Some... some junk about a festival, or something, I don't know...

My teacher stood slowly. "Gaspar. Stare straight ahead."

I blinked. "...Okay?" I answered, confused, and complied.

Dr. Tohsaka peered into my eyes, looking long and hard, and then sighed. "Gaspar... what are you on?"

"W-what?" I stammered.

"You took something. What are you on?" she asked patiently.

I blinked. "I... got in a little accident yesterday, and the doctor gave me some painkillers." She gave me a "hurry this along" gesture, and I nodded. "MS Contin 100mg? I took two, figured that would last me the day." I leaned back against the wall. I felt so tired.

My teacher sighed, pressed her forehead into her palm. "You took two hundred milligrams of morphine sulfate?" she repeated, a little incredulous.

I froze. "Morphine?" I gasped. "I thought it was like... Ibuprofen, or Tylenol. I didn't think... what would that do to a body?"

"Hypothetically?" she asked with a roll of her eyes. "It might exhaust the body, and impair the mind to the point where you'd have trouble following a conversation."

"Huh," I noted. I paused. "Wait. You were mocking me there."

She groaned. "Sit down, Gaspar. I'll get you something to clear most of the drug out of your system." I started to complain, but she glared, and I complied. "Day was going to be long enough already without our resident genius overdosing on an opiate like a dumbass," she growled. "I'm surprised you can even stand with all that stuff in your system."

I slumped in my chair. "That was pretty dumb of me, wasn't it, doctor...?" I asked quietly.

My teacher sighed. "You'll live. Now, swallow this," she instructed, handing me a little cup with some pills in it. "It'll neutralize and absorb most of the drug. You'll still get the analgesic effect- pain reduction, that is- but you won't be about to fall over."

I tossed the pills back. "You're a lifesaver, miss," I managed, closing my eyes.

"That's what doctors do, yes," she replied, sounding amused. Suddenly, I felt hands at my side, and flinched, opening my eyes sharply. Dr. Tohsaka glared at me. "What happened to your side, Gaspar? And don't tell me it's nothing, I'm not blind."

I began thinking very quickly, for an excuse. My drug-addled brain just wasn't moving fast enough... "I... assume you know about my gambling?" I asked slowly, still thinking. She nodded. "Well... I had a game yesterday, and the man... was not a good loser." I winced.

Dr. Tohsaka's mouth gaped. "He went at you with a knife?"

I nodded. "Security grabbed him quickly afterward, but... well, I couldn't go in to the hospital, because they'd ask questions... and what was doing technically wasn't legal." The drug was still saturating my system, but the pressure had sobered me up faster than any antidote could.

My teacher sighed, and leaned back, closing her eyes. "And you thought that with what you'd learned, you could take care of it yourself." I nodded. "Well, you could have done a worse job, judging by the state of it... but you still need a better job of it. Your stitches are very messy."

"You try sewing yourself up," I groaned.

"I have," she grinned. "Maybe I'll tell you the story some time. For now, lie back, take your shirt off, and don't move. I'll fix this up."

I sighed, but lowered the back of my chair. There really wasn't much point in arguing with her, as I'd learned some time ago.

She worked away in silence, and whether it was the drug or her skill, I barely felt a thing. Certainly no pain, but if I'd had something else to distract me, I might not have even noticed she was there, sewing away. "Gaspar, can I ask you something?" she said, not looking up from the wound.

"Hmm?"

"If you... if you knew someone could help you, could make something you've always wanted come true... but you knew that you couldn't trust them worth a damn, what would you do?" she asked.

I thought about this for a moment. "I would get something to leverage over them. A secret they can't afford to have revealed, or an asset they couldn't afford to lose... something you could turn against them in a pinch, a disincentive to betrayal. But definitely work with them." The drug was starting to wear off, counteracted by the antidote, and my mind was working properly again.

She frowned in concentration, and leaned closer to the wound. "These stitches are being difficult," she muttered. Then she continued. "Leverage? You would blackmail them?"

"Blackmail is a dirty word for something that's often not dirty at all. Having information that makes you irreplaceable is just good business, that's all. It only becomes real blackmail if you're manipulating them. If you're just protecting yourself, that's fine. Everyone does that sort of thing." Well, not everyone. But suspicious bastards like me do it all the time, certainly. "The only problem is how they will react."

Dr. Tohsaka wiped away some blood. "How so?" she asked without looking up.

"Few people respond well to such pressure. Some will back off, sure, but many people just get stubborn. You come up with a reason, a specific reason, that you cannot be disposed of, they'll work that much harder to find a way around it, just out of spite. People don't like having their options limited. They tend to lash out."

She nodded. "Good, you're all done." I pulled on my uniform, and buttoned it up. "You even got to miss an assembly, lucky you. I'll give your teacher an excuse if it becomes a problem. Now go to lunch. And Gaspar," she called as I reached the door, "thanks for the advice."

"Happy to help, doctor," I nodded. I stepped into the hallway, and immediately bumped into Suzaku.

"Lelouch, where were you? You missed the assembly," asked my old friend, his face troubled.

I glanced away. "Dr. Tohsaka wanted to discuss something with me, it's no big deal. ...Sorry I missed it."

There was a long, awkward silence. I thought again of the argument we'd had in my apartment... where I'd gotten so angry that I nearly attacked him. "Nunnally would have wanted you to live normally," he'd said. Normally, like he was? A soldier in the army that destroyed his family and home? I shook my head. I just... don't understand him. Clovis, Cornelia, even Euphemia to some extent I can understand, but Suzaku... I just can't comprehend what goes on in his mind. What he thinks, what he plans. How he feels.

Suzaku opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, second-guessing himself. Finally, he said, "Lelouch... I had been wanting to talk to you. About all the terrorist activity that's been happening lately."

I froze. Speak very carefully here, Lelouch, or there could be trouble... "What do you mean, Suzaku?" I asked.

My friend looked away. "I just... I know you think you're well hidden, but I found you. They might as well."

My heart skipped a bit. "I found you?" He knows. He's figured out that I'm Zero. He must have followed me. And now he's trying to protect me? From the Army? "Let them come. They won't like what they find," I answered coldly. My eyes were narrowed, and my face grim. "I'm surprised you haven't told them yourself, Sergeant."

Suzaku blinked. "...Why would I tell them anything, Lelouch?" he asked, sounding genuinely confused.

I paused. "...Uhm. What are you talking about, exactly?"

"The Circle... you're a member of the Imperial Family, even if you're estranged. They might come after you too, and I thought you should seek out military protection," he answered, still looking baffled. "...Why, what were you talking about?"

"It's nothing," I replied shortly. "I... should have know you better. I'm sorry."

Suzaku stared at me for a few long moments. "...Will you tell me what it was, Lelouch?"

I gritted my teeth. I hated lying to Suzaku. "I... thought you were talking about my anti-government opinions. I thought you were saying that the Army might come after me if I didn't keep quiet."

My friend didn't answer immediately. "Yes," he said finally, "you should have known me better than that." I looked at the ground, not willing to meet his eyes. "Do you really think that the Britannian Army would kill you for spreading anti-government sentiment?"

"Seeing as I know for a fact that they've killed others for less, yes," I snapped. My friend looked sad again, and I rubbed my forehead. "Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you... and for doubting you. I just... I'm tired, and I'm sore. Not in a great mood. Could we talk later?"

"Sure, Lelouch. Take as much time as you need." I nodded at him gratefully, and turned to leave, and then paused.

"I just don't get you," I said quietly. Suzaku glanced away, and I shook my head. "I'll see you later, Suzaku."

I sighed. It had been a long day at school, and the last thing I wanted to do was do more talking. But this... this was a special case. This would be one conversation that, though important, I was bound to enjoy.

"Zero, he's here," declared Chief Yoshitaka, stepping into the room. "And he... didn't come alone. I made it clear, but he was very insistent."

I waved my hand. "It's fine. Send him and his companion in." Yoshitaka nodded, and stepped back out. I glanced about. Tea had been prepared, and biscuits. Apparently, one of the former resistance members, Kento Sugiyama, was a pretty good cook. He'd even prepared dessert, at my special request. I just hoped it was to my guests liking.

The door slid open. "Ah, you've come," I stated with a smile. "Welcome, Earl, and honored guest," I said with a nod to the woman at his side.

Earl Lloyd Asplund looked about with a carefree smile on his face, taking everything in. His gaze wandered across the table, and he exclaimed, "Oooo, tea!" and pounced forward, grabbing a cup. His companion, a serious-looking woman with purplish-blue hair, gave him a distressed look as he did so, but did not say anything. The Earl sank into a chair, sipped his tea, and sighed in satisfaction before looking up at me. "Do you want some tea, Zero? It's very good."

I couldn't help but grin. Offering me my own tea... "I think I will have some, yes. Would you like a cup, ma'am?" I asked the woman as I poured my own cup.

She hesitated. "I don't think-" she began nervously.

"Oh, relax, Cecile! It really is very good tea," Lloyd told her earnestly.

I perked up slighly at the name. "My word, Cecile Croomy? One of the research heads of the Lancelot project? I didn't recognize you, my apologies. It is a rare honor." I bowed, and offered a hand.

Cecile began to reach for it, blushing, and then hesitated. "I... don't know if it's right to be shaking hands with the enemy," she managed. Lloyd rolled his eyes, and turned his attention back to his tea.

I shook my head. "I'm not your enemy, ma'am. You're a scientist. A civilian. You may be working for the military at the moment, but you are no soldier- not really. I mean that in the nicest possible way, of course," I added, raising a hand. "I am sure you have the skill and discipline of one. From what I understand, you'd need it, to remain patient with the good earl."

She smiled at this. "You're not far wrong there..." she admitted, glancing helplessly at Lloyd, who was now attacking the biscuits with enthusiam. "And I suppose I'm not really a soldier, either, but that doesn't change the fact that it doesn't feel right... meeting a... a terrorist like this."

"To be fair, he's not a terrorist," said Lloyd through a mouthful of biscuit. "Terrorism is the systematic use of terror as a means of coercion, and he hasn't tried any scare tactics. He's more of a resistance fighter. In historical terms, anyway." He shrugged, as though it didn't make much of a difference in the long run. "So, Zero, what did you want to talk about?"

"Straight to the point. I'd heard you didn't care too much for ceremony and such, Earl, and I like that."

"Lloyd is fine, Earl is annoying," he stated dismissively. "So you've been spying on me, then?"

The question was a test. "Why, of course," I answered, raising an eyebrow. "I'd have to be crazy not to, given your skills and your position."

Lloyd practically glowed at this. "You see, Cecile? I told you. Told you he was like me. We think alike. Though he seems a little more political, whereas I am more scientific." He shook his head. "You are going to offer me a job, right?"

I nodded solemnly. "Yes indeed. Double your current funding, and we can get you more if that proves not to be enough." I had considered just Geassing him to work for me, but... well, having Shirley twist my mind with her Geass had left quite the impression, really. If they said no, I would Geass them... but I wanted to avoid it, if possible. It was one thing to Geass someone to follow a command. It was another to Geass them to live the rest of their life as your puppet. It... didn't sit right with me.

"I haven't told you what my funding is yet," he noted with a grin.

"You're right. Doesn't really seem relevant, though- I can double it, no matter what it is."

He laughed at this, pleased. "I'll still run out of money, just you see... but I'm afraid it's not as simple as just saying yes, of course." His smile faded, and for a moment, he actually looked somewhat serious. "I don't really care about Britannia, but there are some considerations. Good devicers aren't a matter of money, really. If you don't have them, you don't have them."

Devicers? Ah, yes, his odd way of referring to pilots. "If it's devicers you're after... well, you are the foremost authority on Knightmare design. Lloyd. That test you designed to determine pilot skill, the Anselm Exam, has quietly been adopted by a great many groups. Out of curiosity, I ran the Black Knights' resident ace through it." I tossed a folder onto the table. "The results."

Lloyd opened it, stared at the first page, and then began to giggle wildly. "Oooh, that will do nicely!" he declared as the giggles died down. "Ohhhh, that is wonderful. Her name is... Quebec? Cruel parents," he noted with a grin.

"Alas, it's a codename. If you want to meet her, that could be arranged," I told him with a smile.

He shrugged. "Don't have much time, now. Maybe next time."

Cecile looked at him sharply. "Next time?" she demanded.

Lloyd shrugged. "I'm sold. When do I start?"

"No!" Cecile's voice had lost its nervousness, and was now actually angry. "No. You have obligations, Lloyd. Like it or not, you signed a contract, and you can't just run off. I won't let you!"

He gave me a helpless look. "I guess I'll have to work things out with Cecile first. Tell you what, give us a little time to consider it. We'll get back to you."

"I'm not even sure why you'd want this lunatic," Cecile muttered to me darkly.

Lloyd burst out laughing again. "Because we're two of a kind, Cecile!" he stated matter-of-factly. "He may be crazy in a different way, but just look in his eyes! He's as mad as I am!" She paused, and stared into my eyes for a moment, and then looked away, shivering.

Crazy in a different way... yes indeed, Earl. "Take all the time you need. Think it over. I'll keep in touch." I flicked on my communicator. "Chief Yoshitaka, could you show our guests out?"

As they turned to go, Lloyd suddenly looked back at me. "Refrain," he told me. "The Circle gets its funding from Refrain, the drug. Follow the drug, you'll find the Circle."

"Thank you." I stared at him, and our eyes met. I saw, just for a moment, the hurt behind his madness. He wasn't naturally crazy. Something horrible had happened, had driven him to grief, and then to madness. Some trauma had made him partially insane.

That made two of us.