And here we are with Chapter 25! Just a reminder in case you've forgotten, there will be no new chapters next week. I'm taking a little break. I might post a Side Story, though, we'll see. But all that's inna future. Let's talk about nao. And perhaps Mao.

Yes, this chapter, at long last, sees the first appearance of Mao. So you can all stop asking me if I've written him out of this timeline or something- seriously, I get that question a lot. All you had to do was be a little patient =P If you think this was too long a wait, imagine how it must be for me- thinking of a plot twist, and then realizing I won't be able to implement it for at least another thirty chapters! Seriously, that has happened. One of the early Season Two major events is burning in my brain, and I cannot wait to write it down somewhere.

Reviews! nanoman79 catches a mistake (d'oh, fixed it now, thanks), and asks if Milly has put together that Lelouch is Zero... and if not, why not? Well, she hasn't, no... and the answer is pretty simple: denial. She's willing to accept that Lelouch is a resistance fighter, but Zero is... I mean, he's freaking legendary. He's changing the whole world. She just can't wrap her head around that idea. Perhaps she has all the evidence she needs, but it's just not clicking in her head, you know? She just knows him so well that she can't comprehend of him being Zero.

Gaff notes that the confrontation style of helping someone face their problem rarely seems to go well, and asks what's up with Nina and Rivalz. Yeah... I've never seen a "you have a problem, man up and face it" discussion go over well, personally. It's the quickest way I've ever found to make someone get defensive, though, and I think we saw that Gaspar acting defensively can be pretty... disruptive. Hard to deal with. Nina is getting her own Side Story in a bit here, actually- she's the next one- and Rivalz? Hrm... well, let's just read this chapter, and see what happens =3

Teucrian notes that it's good to see angry Gaspar again... yeah, he was having his doubts there, but the anger is still a big part of his character. In the next couple of chapters, we're going to be dealing with the Mao Problem, and Mao is going to do a lot to bring Gaspar's anger back up to the surface. He's pretty good at pissing people off, that guy.

Alright, that's enough for now- there's a pretty long author note at the bottom too, after all, with a neat announcement. Enjoy the chapter!

I stepped out of the car after Kaguya Sumeragi, one of the leaders of the Kyoto Group and, as I'd just learned, former officer of the Outer Circle. The car had parked on a large platform, and after a moment, I realized that it was a cargo elevator. My Ebon Council stepped out as well, and then with a jerk, the elevator began to rise.

The wall in front of us was made entirely of glass, and as I stared out over the view, I realized there was something familiar about it. Holy shit, I realized. "...Mount Fuji."

Kaguya smiled at this. "That's right... the greatest mountain in all of Japan, our mighty protector. It has stood guard over our land since the beginning of time, silent and serene."

"Or at least until you decided to drill it for Sakuradite," added Lloyd with a smile. "Now it's a bit of a mess, I think."

The girl paused, clearly biting back a more aggressive rebuttal. "Excavating our national treasure for resources was Britannia's idea, Count Asplund. We would not do that to our own land."

"Since the drilling started a year before the war, that's unlikely, but whatever helps you sleep at night," he shrugged in his carefree, patronizing way.

"It is true," intoned a somber voice as the elevator slowed to a stop. "Our beautiful mountain was a testament to Japan's glory... and then the Britannian Emperor demanded that we allow Britannian companies to drill it. At first, we refused... but pressure mounted, and soon it was clear that Britannia was ready to start a war to secure the mountain. ...We love our mountain, but when it was a choice between our mountain, and our lives... there was no decision at all."

The voice paused. "It was not until a year later, after numerous other irrational threats that we complied with... that Britannia declared war on us anyway, despite our cooperation to their bizarre demands. The requests were just an attempt to goad us into declaring war. Our Fuji... sacrificed in an effort to provoke us. It boils the blood that our natural treasure would mean so little to them."

I stepped off of the large elevator, and into a cavernous room, dimly lit and sparsely populated. Along the sides of the room were four Knightmares- factory stock Sutherlands, it looked like. I would have expected the Kyoto Group to use something more advanced... but I suppose that would draw unnecessary attention. They maintained the appearance of cooperating with Britannia, so if they were to keep customized Frames around, Britannia would start asking questions. It made sense.

At the far end of the room were six suited guards with sunglasses and headsets, flanking a small structure. It looked like... a XXX. The man who had been speaking was obviously the one sitting behind the veil. "Zero, and members of the Ebon Council... the Kyoto Group welcomes you," declared the man.

I smiled. That voice... I was right after all. I'd come up with several possibilities as to who could be the leader of the Kyoto Group, based on who had enough power, money, and motivation among the survivors of Prime Minister Kururugi's administration. One of them, though... one of them I had met personally in my time living with the Kururugi family. We'd played chess, on multiple occasions. At first, we were evenly matched- much to his astonishment. Imagine how surprised he was when I quickly learned his tactics, and began to trounce him with regularity.

Is it fate that we find ourselves meeting here once more? "It is an honor, Mr. Chairman," I said, using his title rather than the name that I was not supposed to know.

"You have good manners for a foreigner, Zero," he commented. Clearly, I was supposed to be shocked and alarmed at this insight- how could he possibly know that I wasn't Japanese?- but of course, I was just a little annoyed at the attempt to intimidate me. Any number of individuals could have just told him- Tohdoh came to mind, for one. He paused, taken aback by my lack of reaction. "...Your Black Knights have grown very quickly, haven't they, Zero?" he asked quietly. "You started out with just Naoto Kouzuki's little team, and then absorbed much of Fierce Yamato... and now the survivors of the JLF, in addition to the others you have picked up along the way here and there. A young Britannian girl... two half-bloods, one also a girl, and one a brilliant doctor... a Britannian tv producer... you keep very strange company indeed."

"Does it trouble you, Chairman?" I asked with a touch of amusement. "That I care not where my advisors and officers come from, so long as they are talented? Does it worry you that I would so openly allow foreigners into my inner circle? But as you have noticed yourself, I myself am a foreigner. There is nothing strange about it."

"It is not that you let foreigners in. It is that you do so at a cost to patriotic Japanese men! Shinichiro Tamaki has been with you since the beginning, and yet he is relegated to the status of a mechanic-"

"Specifically, to head of mechanics, under the direct command of my Chief of Science, which anyone here can tell you is more than he deserves given his general carelessness and incompetence." I sighed. "If you're going to pointlessly start arguments with me, Chairman, at least pick ones that make sense. I tire of these games already."

"How dare you?" demanded one of the guards. "No one speaks to the Chairman like tha-"

The shadowy figure, silhouetted by light, waved him into silence. "Your insolence does you no credit, boy," he told me sharply. "Learn to respect your betters."

"I'm sure I would respect my betters, if ever I met one." This was too easy. Our chess games had never been this easy. He was still underestimating me. I took a step forward. "Perhaps you misheard me, Taizou Kirihara. I said I was getting tired of these games."

The reaction was immediate. Both bodyguards instantly produced pistols, and the Knightmares suddenly stepped forward, leveling their guns at me. "You've just signed your death warrant!" barked the overeager guard. "No one may live that knows the Chairman's true name!"

I tensed, ready to spring my plan into action... but it wasn't time yet, as it turned out. "Enough," declared Taizou. "Do not shoot them- we will need to find out how he discovered my name. But for the moment, let us occupy ourselves with another matter. Zero! Take off your mask."

I grinned. "If you'd asked politely, perhaps I would have, but I do not much appreciate demands. I think my mask will remain where it is."

There was a moment of silence, and then Taizou spoke again. "Which of you is named Ohgi?" he asked.

Ohgi stepped forward cautiously. "I am, sir," he answered softly.

"I know of your struggle, Ohgi. You held your group together after the death of your leader. You led them through some tough times. ...You can lead them again. Just reach over, and pull off Zero's mask. We will let you live, we will even give you our full support." Ohgi paused at this, thinking it through in his usual methodical way. "...Don't you want to see his face as well?" asked Taizou.

"...You're assuming, sir, that I haven't already," commented Ohgi carefully.

Taizou paused at this, and then began to laugh. "Oh, well played, Zero! You truly have secured his loyalty- you trusted your Council with the secret of your identity! I must admit, I am impressed. Few have ever outsmarted me. But even out of those few... I've yet to meet one that can outsmart a bullet," he hissed viciously. "You can take off that mask, or we will gun you down- whether you've told us what we want to know or not. This is not a negotiation."

I closed my eyes. "Don't hurt them too badly, okay?" I requested.

There was a moment of confused silence. "...Who are you talking, Zero?" asked Ohgi patiently, but uncertainly.

Suddenly, one of the bodyguards was jerked back into the darkness, and then came tumbling back out, unconscious. I was talking to her, I thought smugly, watching the shadowy figure that had just disposed of the guard. Sayoko hadn't been exaggerating... she really was a ninja.

The Knightmares turned quickly at this (and as they did, another guard was struck by some invisible force, and collapsed), except for one... which promptly fired its Slash Harkens, opened up with its assault rifle, and slashed with its knife, all at once. In an instant, all three of the other Knightmares were down. Then the Knightmare opened its cockpit, and C.C. leapt out. She landed gracefully, and one of the guards took aim at her, and then collapsed with a gasp as something hit him from behind.

I drew the katana at my waist, and began to run toward Taizou, holding it low. Two more guards were suddenly dispatched by the kunoichi's masterful technique, and the one remaining guard raised his gun at me, and was immediately tackled by C.C., who beat nine kinds of hell out of him in the course of a few seconds. With all the guards gone, my ace in the hole, Sayoko, stepped out of the shadows, and I slid to a stop, slashed the curtain down, and held out my sword, the point of my katana nearly touching Taizou's throat. "Your defenses are weak. Your guards are ill-trained. And your surveillance is laughable," I told him with a grin. It had taken maybe twenty seconds, all in all.

"What... just happened...?" he demanded weakly.

"It's really quite simple... Chairman. The oldest of my councillors-" and I nodded at C.C. "-stole one of your Knightmares, and pretended to be one of your pilots. Your security was so weak that she had no trouble stealing it, and no one thought to question her identity- or even react quickly when she suddenly attacked her own allies. In the meantime... the newest councillor slipped past your guards, and then disposed of five of them, using no weapon, in a matter of seconds," I told him, giving an appreciative grin to Sayoko. Then I gave Taizou a long stare. "Don't threaten me again unless you're really prepared to have me as an enemy... Kirihara."

I pressed a button on my belt, and the helmet retracted, and then I pulled off my goggles. "After all... I always did beat you at chess," I told him with a grin.

He froze, his eyes widening in astonishment... and then he began to laugh. It was a laugh that I knew well... it was the same laugh he made seven years ago, when, playing chess against a ten year old prince for the first time, he suddenly lost his queen, and realized what kind of opponent he was really up against. "So... perhaps you took this old man's ideas pretty seriously back then, eh?" he asked with a grin.

I grinned back. We played chess several times a week during my year at the Kururugi's, and we always debated throughout the match. Religion (my Christianity versus his Shinto), politics (we both ended up agreeing that neither one of our countries had a particularly good system), but most of all, philosophy. He was surprisingly Western in his mindset- he believed that wrongs should be avenged, he believed that justice was a fairly meaningless term... and once I stopped to think about it, it was obvious that his beliefs rather heavily affected mine. I was young, and hearing an intelligent, successful man talk about the importance of repaying debts- whether they be of money or blood- made a big impression on me. "Perhaps," I admitted.

"And your councilors all already know?" he asked. I nodded. "Heh. Zero... you will have all the money and equipment you need. You can pull this off... I know it. I wasn't certain that I could trust Zero with the JLF's future, but now that I know who you are, I can think of no better hands. Just promise me one thing..." I raised an eyebrow, and he smiled. "When you've taken back Japan, when you've reclaimed this land... you'll come play another game of chess with me."

"Of course, Mr. Chairman," I answered with a bow. "Sayoko, C.C... I trust you didn't hurt anyone too badly?"

"I avoided doing any lasting damage, sir," nodded Sayoko. "They will be fine again in about an hour."

"Who is she?" asked Ohgi. "I know C.C., of course, but you called this woman the newest member of the Ebon Council."

I nodded. "I apologize- I haven't had time to properly introduce her yet. This is Sayoko Shinizaki... she will be the leader of the new Sierra squad." I paused- they were going to find out sooner or later, and when they did, it was better that it happen because I told them. "She is also the former leader of the Outer Circle."

There was a long pause at this- an aggressive silence, filling the room with overwhelming, indignant quiet- and then Ohgi said, quietly, "Perhaps we should talk about that when we get back." Karen was staring daggers at Sayoko, and Tohsaka looked vaguely uncomfortable herself, but in a very different way.

"It sounds like you have things to discuss... Hitoshi, take them back to Tokyo," ordered Taizou. We climbed into the limo, as I took one last glance at the Kyoto Group's headquarters, I saw Kaguya waving and smiling.

The discussion went better than I had expected. Karen still seemed a little bitter, but for the most part, everyone was able to work out their differences with Sayoko. The fact that she was a squad leader, rather than a Chief, aided in that, of course. She worked for Yoshitaka, and she'd already taken up a hand-picked group of intelligence agents, and gone off into the wilderness to train them. They were skilled, but gathering intelligence wasn't quite the same as the kind of shadowy work that Sierra squad would be doing.

The others thought that her job was going to be special operations, and that wasn't entirely inaccurate, so I did nothing to persuade them otherwise. For all their intelligence, much of the Council was rather... idealistic, and they would be a little distressed knowing that we had a team of assassins.

"Naivete," declared a voice, and I turned. The meeting had just ended, and I was looking at some files, but it seemed that Diethard had stayed behind. "They really believe that she is doing special operations? I suppose that is broadly correct, but... I am astonished at their innocence."

I glanced to make sure the doors were shut, and then sighed. "The Japanese people wouldn't accept a group that uses assassins... apparently. Though personally, I must agree with you- war is more than troop confrontations, and they need to realize this."

Diethard nodded solemnly. "Chief Yoshitaka knows, does he not?" he asked.

"He does, as does Doctor Tohsaka. Once Officer Fenette gets back, I will make her aware as well. I think probably you four are the only ones both high ranking enough and... realistic enough to handle the truth."

"And C.C., surely," said Diethard, raising an eyebrow.

"Naturally. Though she is not in any technical authority position," I agreed.

Diethard pursed his lips. "What is the reason for that, if I may ask? She seems privy to many secrets, would it not be prudent to give her some sort of command?"

I grimaced. "She is smart, and skilled, and has been with me for a long time... but no. She is too... I would say her attitude problem precludes her taking command. She would not wish it, anyway. She prefers to act alone."

"It is strange- she exudes this aura of ancient wisdom, of having seen it all, but she can't be more than thirty, I would think," noted Diethard.

I shook my head. "She's older than you think. I guarantee it." I sighed. "Diethard... sit down." He sank into a chair opposite me. "We have a problem. I have learned who the pilot of the Lancelot is."

"That is a problem?" asked Diethard, mildly puzzled. "I should think that would make it all the more easy to deal with him."

"That's the thing- it's Suzaku Kururugi. After his trial, and all the chaos of that... he's become something of a hero to the Japanese people. A symbol. The sort of thing we would not look good opposing." I rested my chin on my hands, which were folded together on the table.

He spread his arms. "Is this not precisely why we allowed Officer Shinozaki to join, then? Her Sierra squad, once trained, would be perfect to deal with him."

I shook my head. "He has too few enemies. The JLF is... well, it's us now. The Circle is dead- and given that Britannia is responsible for destroying half of it, they know that as well. I'm sure they'll make the announcement through the media very soon. And the only other groups left wouldn't have the resources to assassinate him. It would be obvious that it was us." That, and... I don't want to do it. "Any other suggestions?"

He hrmed. "I take it that a second appeal to him to join us is out of the question." I nodded. "In that case... humiliate him. Engineer a scandal that would make him lose his standing with the public, perhaps even get him court-martialled. Frame him as taking bribes, plant evidence that he's been leaking information to resistance groups, show that he's a Chinese spy... he's one man, and Britannia does not like seeing a Number in such an important position. They will not investigate too deeply- they will be all too happy to see him gone, and to put a new, Britannian pilot in the Lancelot."

I blinked. "I... see. That is how you would do it, then." It was a terrible thing. It would destroy his pride, wreck his reputation... he would be miserable, feeling like he'd failed his duties. For someone like him... it would eat him alive. But... it's better than having to kill him, I thought. "I will think on this. Thank you, Chief Ried."

He bowed. "An honor, Zero." He stood slowly. "I have to leak some information on the Circle's downfall to the press... if we beat Britannia to it, we can control the story." He turned to leave.

"Oh!" I exclaimed, remembering suddenly. "Diethard, do you have any friends or contacts that work at the New York Times?"

He raised an eyebrow. "The Times? A friend of mine is the editor in chief, yes. Why do you ask?"

Excellent! "One of my friends is interested in writing for them, but of course, it's hard to get their attention. If you were able to get them to look at some of her work, I would greatly appreciate it. This is not a mission, or an assignment- this is not coming from Zero." I raised my goggles up onto my forehead. "This is just a request from a friend."

He nodded slowly. "I'll see what I can do... Lelouch."

I frowned as I walked slowly toward the park, holding my umbrella to block the rain. We had finished incorporating the JLF into our ranks... unfortunately, though, they didn't have any officers that were suitable to join the Ebon Council. The only ones that would qualify would be Tohdoh and his Four Holy Swords... and they were, of course, off doing their own thing. It was unfortunate... I wanted them to feel like they had a seat at the table, that they weren't just being taken for granted, but they honestly didn't have any exceptional leaders anymore.

What really troubled me, though, was that I still hadn't heard from Shirley. She was supposed to call me when she got done with her business, and I would meet her in the park to fill her in on how things had gone with the Kyoto Group. She hadn't called, and I was getting worried. I was on my way home, but I decided to take a detour through the park, just in case she was there, and had... forgotten to call, or something. A long shot, but worth taking.

I reached the park's fountain, and quickly scanned the area. I don't see any other umbrellas... I guess no one else is- I thought, and then paused. There was a figure standing under a light... with no umbrella. Shirley. Her orange hair was soaked through, as was her school uniform, and she was standing there, staring at the ground as the water dripped off of her.

I stepped toward her slowly, and held my umbrella over her. "...Shirley?" I asked quietly. "Are you... okay?"

"He's dead." Her voice was quiet, and hopelessly melancholic. "My dad... he's dead, Lelouch."

I took a deep breath. "Oh, Shirley... what happened?"

"He was at Narita... the military had hired him to survey the mountains. They were going to demolish the JLF base, and put their own in once they'd won." They wouldn't have told her that information, it's classified, I realized. She must have Geassed them for answers. "When the order to evacuate came... he just didn't take it seriously. He kept working, thinking that it was no big deal. And... then the landslide hit. ...He died because of my plan. Because of me," she said quietly.

"No," I stated firmly. "This was not your fault, Shirley. It was an accident."

"It was an accident caused by me!" she yelled. "It was caused by my strategy, my plan! My idea that we should blast the water table, and he's dead because of that!"

"Cause and effect isn't that simple, Shirley. I gave the order, Karen detonated the pulse, your father didn't heed the warning, and Britannia's aggression made it necessary." I shook my head. "This is no one's fault. Sometimes, things just happen. Things beyond your control."

"You can't make this better with words, Lelouch!" shouted Shirley angrily. "You can't just... just talk this one away!"

I lowered my head. "I know, Shirley. And I wouldn't want to. Grief is painful... but it's part of being human. I have known my share of grief as well. I have lost loved ones as well."

"I just... I never got to say goodbye. He... we were fighting, and... and I didn't even tell him to have a good trip. Didn't say anything. Just... watched him leave," she cried miserably.

I took a step forward, and hugged her, my umbrella falling to the side, forgotten. "He knew, Shirley. He knew that you loved him. Don't ever doubt that," I told her, holding her tight. "And he loved you too."

Shirley hugged me back, pressing her head against my chest, and we just stayed like that for a moment as she gently wept, letting the pain flow out. Then she slowly raised her head, and stared into my eyes. "Lelouch, I..." she began, her gaze locked with mine. She leaned closer, and I realized she was going to kiss me. My heart thudded. Don't. Don't. This is a bad idea, and you know it. It may have some... positive effects in the short term, but in the long run, it will only make things worse.

If only the knowledge of the mind had more sway over the desires of the body. Her lips were soft, and the kiss was deep, and passionate as Shirley hungrily pressed against me. The rain stopped, and there was just us, pressed against each other, tasting each other's lips.

We broke off suddenly as mocking claps echoed through the park. "Bravo, bravo!" declared a pleased voice. "Comforted the girl, and even got her to comfort you in return! I'd heard you were silver-tongued, Lelouch, but damn."

I narrowed my eyes at the speaker. He was a strangely dressed man in loose blue clothing with long, skin-tight brown gloves and long silver hair. His eyes were covered by a narrow, visor-like pair of sunglasses, and his ears by a pair of headphones. He was grinning in an incredibly satisfied manner, and walking slowly toward us as he clapped theatrically. "And Shirley... knowing that he's interesting in another girl, but guilting him into the kiss anyway, knowing he wouldn't refuse a grieving girl! That's cold."

Shirley took a step away, and I reached into my coat, and produced my butterfly knife. "I don't know who the hell you are, but this is your one chance to walk away before things get ugly," I told him.

He grinned. "Ah, the mighty butterfly knife. Bane of many a foe- Colonel Kusakabe, that prisoner who attacked you at Narita... hey, you even tried it on C.C. and N.N." His expression turned dark. "You shouldn't have tried to hurt C.C. That makes me pretty upset, Lelouch. Or do you prefer Zero these days? Or perhaps Lulu? Or 'Your Highness'?" The grin came back, full of arrogance and certainty.

I took a step back. What the fuck. No one should know about the encounter with N.N. but C.C. and I! Unless he's spoken with N.N... but then how could he have learned about the Colonel? Or Narita? My mind raced, and the man just stood there all the while, still grinning. He knows things he shouldn't. Is he an agent of the EPD? A spy for one of the other world powers? Or... ah, of course. He must be the first Geass Knight... C.C. must have spoken with him.

"Ooooh, so close!" grinned the man. "You got part of that right- but I haven't spoken to C.C. in a while, sadly. Pleasure to meet you... second and third Geass Knights."

"-{Who the hell are you?}-" demanded Shirley, her left eye glowing with a Geass sigil.

"-[Mao, the man gifted with the Geass of Absolute Insight, and C.C.'s first Geass Knight,]-" answered the man. Then he paused, and pulled out an mp3 player, pressing a few buttons. "Whoa there! Didn't expect a sound-based Geass user- shoulda been more careful. I thought your Geass was eye contact based... eye contact and sound? Never heard of a dual medium one before. Interesting."

"-{What do you want ?}-" asked Shirley, her Geass blazing again.

"You know, the great thing is, I don't even have to hear what you're saying, I can just focus on your thoughts. And with my mp3 player up this loud, I can't hear the Geass for it to have an effect on me," noted Mao conversationally. "Now... does one of you want to tell me where C.C. is? ...Pity, neither of you know. Sounds like I can meet her just by keeping you two around, though... so let's have some fun. Just us three."

"Fuck this," I snarled, and I lunged forward, lashing out with my knife. The blade whistled through empty air as Mao dodged perfectly, and I followed up... and he dodged again. I tried two more stabs, then he grabbed my arm, and twisted. There was a crack, and then blinding, white-hot pain. I fell to my knees, my arm dangling at my side.

"Oh, it's just a dislocated shoulder, don't freak out about it," he commented dryly. "Hurts pretty bad though, huh?" He bent down, and picked up the knife. "Now, I want to play a game. To pass the time while we wait, you see. So you two are going to cooperate because- exactly right, Lelouch!" he announced, clapping again. "Because if you don't, I'll cut your throats! You really are a quick thinker!"

"You think reading our minds is all you'll need to beat us in a fight?" demanded Shirley.

Mao blinked. "Well yeah, pretty much. As I demonstrated, I can tell exactly what you're going to do before you do it. Doesn't take a genius to be able to dodge under those conditions." He shrugged with a smile. "Besides... I already got your boy down. You could run for it... but he's not in a condition to do so. So if you try to run for it, I'll... well, you get the idea."

I gritted my teeth. "What do you want to play then?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

He shook his head. "No, no, not you. I'm not interested in you. I'd rather play against Shirley. How about some chess?" he asked, pulling out a board, a speed chess clock, and a little box of pieces. "I'll play white... somehow black seems a little more appropriate for you."

I stared at the board. A game of chess? I don't think Shirley's very good... is there any way I can signal her or something? I frowned. Of course not. Mao can read my mind. He can hear me thinking of this plan already.

"Yep," nodded Mao casually. "So let's have no fuss, shall we? Just a simple game. Though, it wouldn't be any fun if there was no prize, right? So how about this- if you win, I'll let you both go, and leave you alone. If I win... I'm gonna carve up the little prince over there." He grinned, and I realized that it was not just a threat- he really would carry it out to the letter. He was, in fact, completely insane.

"That's... that's not fair at all!" gasped Shirley. "You can read my mind, I can't possibly win!"

"Ah, but Lulu knows what this means. Go ahead and say it out loud- I can read your mind, but she can't. Give her the benefit of your wisdom," grinned the silver-haired boy.

I sighed. "This isn't a match of skill versus skill. This is just to see if you can figure out a way to get around his mind reading before he beats you." But even then, it may not be enough. Even if it does become skill against skill... she might not be good enough to beat him.

"Oh, don't think like that, Lelouch!" complained Mao. "I'm being fair about this! I've never actually played this game before!" He set the board on a small picnic table, and sat down. Shirley sat down hesitantly, and I next to them, watching the game.

Shirley was playing cautiously, logically enough, but Mao's playstyle was quite bold- he was pressuring her, pressing her weaknesses, blocking her advance, and choking her support. It's amazing that he's able to play this well from reading Shirley's mind, I thought. I'm not certain I would be able to play much better than this myse-

"Dammit!" I swore, looking away from the board. He's not reading her mind. He's reading mine. He knows I'm good at chess, and I can't help but think about what I would do in his place as I watch. I didn't even have to look at Mao- I could feel his cocky smile as he read my mind, reading that I knew exactly what he was up to... and that I couldn't do anything about it. It's not that Shirley has to figure out how to beat his mind reading... we both have to. If she beats it, he'll still be able to read me, and win. If I beat it, he'll just read her. We have to make it so that he can't read either of us... and if one of us does figure it out, we can't tell the other, because then he'd hear how we were doing it.

"It's a pretty impressive little mental trap, isn't it, Lelouch?" asked Mao. "I freely admit, I'm kinda proud of it. It's a real... conundrum, is the English word I think."

I couldn't put the game out of my mind, I'd been trying. It wasn't working. As ever, trying not to think of something was only making me think of it all the more. But I had to do something. I started trying to think of every possible move that could be made- E4 to D5, A3 to A6, F1 to E1, and so, so many more. "Oooh, that's a good try, Lelouch! But if I focus just a little, it's easy to see which move you think is the best one." He picked up a piece, and clicked it down on the table. "And not a bad idea, Shirley... you could just start moving completely at random. But while I'm not that good... I'm pretty sure I'd be able to win if you weren't thinking about your moves at all. Feel free to try, though- hey, it's only your love's life on the line, right?"

Suddenly, Mao froze, and turned his head. I followed his gaze- someone had shown up. "Lelouch! Shirley! I didn't expect to see you guys here," exclaimed Rivalz Cardemonde pleasantly. "And Lelouch, watching chess rather than playing? I think this is the first time I've seen that!" he laughed.

"Rivalz... get out of here. Now," I told him quietly. If he gets caught up in this... he won't believe that Mao can read minds. He'll get hurt. Badly.

"Dealer has twenty..." said Mao quietly, staring intently at Rivalz.

"Your arm...!" Rivalz gasped, his eyes widening as he spotted my dislocated shoulder. "Lelouch, what happened to your arm?" Then he narrowed his eyes, and glared at Mao. "Did you do this to him?" he asked quietly.

I turned a horrified gaze to Mao. He pulled out his mp3 player again, and pressed some more buttons. "So what if I did?" he declared cockily. Then, suddenly, he frowned, and then he just looked baffled. "Seventeen... dealer has twenty-three, bust..." he mumbled like a lunatic. Then he shook his head. "What... the... hell?" he managed, staring at Rivalz.

"Step away from Lelouch... now. Or you're going to get hurt," Rivalz announced.

"Rivalz, get out of here! You can't handle this guy!" I shouted desperately.

Mao shook his head. "Seven... eleven... twenty-one... what is wrong with your mind?" he shouted. He stood quickly, knocking over the chess pieces as he bumped the table. "Double down... twenty-two, bust... how... how?" he screamed like a lunatic. "Why can't I read you?"

Then Rivalz lunged forward, and smashed him across the jaw with a fist. Mao flew backward from the blow, and slammed heavily into the ground, dropping my knife. Then Rivalz strode over to the fallen mind reader, grabbed him by the labels, and stared straight into his face. "You shouldn't have hurt my friend," he said quietly. Then he hurled him into the fountain with a splash.

A moment later, Mao burst out of the fountain screaming. "Six of clubs, nineteen, dealer wins!" he roared insanely. "How are you doing this?" he demanded. Rivalz raised a fist, and Mao's eyes widened, and then he turned, and ran for his life.

Rivalz exhaled slowly, and turned back to face us. "Lelouch, Shirley... are you guys okay?"

I let out a long breath myself. "He was holding me hostage... said that he was going to kill me unless Shirley could beat him at chess. He was a lunatic," I uttered truthfully. Obviously, I didn't mention any Geass stuff... but all the rest of that was true enough. I don't like lying to my friends. "...Thank you, Rivalz. You may have saved my life. But... how did you do it?"

He blinked. "Uhm. I hit him." He chuckled. "A pretty traditional method, I thought."

"No, not that, it's..." I began. How can I explain this in a way that he would believe? "He... I don't really get it, but it's like he could read thoughts. He... he watched your face, and your body language, and from that could tell what you were thinking," I invented wildly.

Rivalz raised his eyebrows. "Whoa, really? That's nuts... I'd heard you could tell a lot from body language, but... well, that explains his mumbling, anyway."

"It does? It sounded like... he was talking about cards or something," mused Shirley.

Rivalz rubbed his head. "It's... a thing I do. A psychiatrist once told me that it was really bizarre, that she'd never heard of anyone doing this... but I kinda... play games with myself." I gave him a blank look, and he sighed. "Well, look. It's like this. Most of the time, I'm not doing anything super interesting, right? When I was growing up, I didn't have a lot of stuff to do. So I ended up learning to entertain myself... and now it's kind of force of habit. I'm always doing it. Even when I'm thinking about other stuff."

"I don't really get it, Rivalz," I told him patiently.

"Well, it's like this. At any given time, I'm doing two things in my head. I'm thinking about... oh, school, or friends, or whatever... and I'm also playing a game. Maybe poker, maybe checkers, maybe just rock-paper-scissors. But I'm just always doing it, I barely even think about the fact that I'm doing it. Just there, I was playing blackjack... and if this guy can read your body language and stuff, I guess he was picking up the blackjack?" He shook his head. "I dunno, this is all over my head anyway. I've never heard of anyone actually reading your mind like that. It's weird... but he definitely seemed to be getting the game." He smiled. "He even got the scores right, actually. Eh, there are always things in the world you're not gonna understand. This will make a good story, and that's all there is to it, right?'

Holy shit, I thought. Multitasking is an essential human skill, and often described as doing two things at once... but it isn't really. At its best, multitasking is switching between two tasks so rapidly that you give the illusion of thinking of them both at once. Your mind can't actually think two thoughts simultaneously, it's just not capable of it. Except apparently... Rivalz's brain was. He thought all his normal thoughts on one channel, and on a second channel, just had a nonstop stream of entertainment. And when Mao tried to read his mind, he couldn't get both channels. He couldn't read Rivalz's thoughts, he just kept picking up the card game.

I shook my head. "Rivalz... you are one in a million," I told him frankly. "Perhaps more than that."

He beamed. "How about I give two a ride home?"

I grabbed my arm, and in one wrenching tug, I jerked it back into place with a cracking sound. "Gaaaah... okay, that hurt," I gasped. "If you would, Rivalz, that would be great."

Mao would be back... very soon, I was certain. But for the moment, he was bested... by the most unlikely of individuals at that. Dealer has twenty-one...

This is the midway point for Season One, which will (obviously) be fifty chapters long. That's the plan, anyway. It could, theoretically, go longer. It could go shorter, but that seems incredibly unlikely- there is so much stuff that I still want to do that I cannot imagine that it would only be what I've written so far, once over again. Seeing as it is the midway point, as well as my one hundred and fifty thousand words mark, I thought I'd celebrate by letting you guys in on a little secret- Season One is going to have two endings.

The first ending is, of course, going to set things up for Season Two, going to be awesome, and going to put Gaspar in a pretty intense situation. I think it's going to be a great ending. But... well, you know how Death Note's first season was incredible, and then the second season was just kinda meh, and spoiled the whole thing? (If you disagree there, then I guess there's not much we can do about that, but I and a lot of others felt that way about Death Note) Well, the fact is, I'm going to be changing a lot with Season Two. I mean a lot. It will not be R2 reimagined. It will be something else entirely. And regardless of how good it is... lots of people will not like it, simply because it will diverge so far from the anime, and they will not like that.

Hopefully, most people will still read and enjoy it, but I can understand the people who will want it not to go there. To not break out into an entirely new plotline. And that's why the second ending will exist. The second ending will be written for the Side Stories, and it will be just as valid as the first. You will be able to pick whichever of the two endings you prefer- if you pick ending one, then you can continue on to Season Two. If you pick ending two... you can just stop there, content. And obviously you could just read both for the hell of it.

The main difference between ending one and ending two will be that ending two will wrap everything up. It will not leave room for Season Two, it will bring the whole struggle to a conclusion. No "to be continued." So if you're not feeling Season Two? If you're not into it? You can just go back to the good old days of Season One, and end with ending two.

Like I say, though, all of this is mostly just for people who hate change. How does that saying go? "Change: scaring people since forever."

Review, question, comment, all that jazz... and I'll see you in a week and a half, approximately.