Flashback

"To Lelouch and Suzaku!"

The bottle of champagne, compressed to its bubbly limits, popped its cork as it was shook, flying across the decorated room as the foam spilled over the glass room. To the sounds of cheers, the first half dozen glasses were filled hurriedly, the first already filled with Lelouch's prefered water as the various participants took up their glasses and drank.

"And to a happy wedding!" cried Milly with a cheeky grin, using her position as the only one without drink in her throat to steal the momentary silence as she placed down the bottle.

As if on cue, both men choked on their drinks, causing uproarious laughter, not least from Nunnally, who had come to appreciate Milly's rather cruel sense of humour in her own perceptive way, in spite of Lelouch's protests that his 15 year old sister remain innocent.

It had several weeks after Suzaku returned from Midway, and exactly a week since the preliminary constitution had been drafted. Up until this point, the two men had been working day and night to get the RPJ up and running, and, once Rivalz and Milly invited the pair and Nunnally over, they accepted with eagerness, though the eagerness was beginning to wear, as they both shook their arms in rejection of Milly's bold statement.

"None of that." Suzaku wheezed, finally regaining some control. "We're not the romantic couple here."

Rivalz, emboldened, responded "At least I was open and asked!", playing along with Milly' game. His request had been successful, as while their status was still uncertain, they had gone out twice together. Suzaku looked indignant, while Lelouch simply sighed and said "I am more than happy being single at this time. I could hardly imagine having to manage a whole thing like that right now."

Nunnally could only agree, as she heard Milly top up Suzaku's drink. The last few weeks had been a mad rush, with an instance like this, resting in the Student Council room, being a real rarity.

Of course, even if things had changed, particularly with Suzaku and Lelouch growing more formal and aloof, though whether this was emotional growth due to stress or them simply being more genuine was open to interpretation, some things remained the same.

Shirley was still fawning over Lelouch, which his new, mysterious and rebellious celebrity factor only brought up to eleven. Nunnally could only wonder how her oblivious brother missed it. Nina was even more muted than usual, and while she disliked making bad assumptions about others, Nunnally could only imagine the whiff of sulphur and ghetto didn't sit well. Rivalz and Milly were in cahoots to hijack the visit, while the two Ministers defended themselves from their friends' lighthearted attacks while getting in some snark edgewise every now and again.

"You'll find someone Suzaku!" Shirley encouraged heartily in her usual way, though Suzaku audibly waved it off. Of course, in the Councils absence and Lelouch's general obliviousness, they hadn't noticed that Suzaku did indeed have someone in mind, and, having talked to Euphemia quite often, knew the feeling was very mutual. They hadn't said as such, but it was widely acknowledged that Nunnally was very perceptive.

Still, she was hardly in a position to play matchmaker, and she didn't want to make Suzaku even more uncomfortable that he already was, so she did not say anything.

Suzaku, after concluding his sip, responded "Thank you Shirley, I would hope the same for you."

Shirley didn't respond, likely preoccupied with rather unfortunate thoughts, as Rivalz spoke up with "Man, you three were hard to get in without a crowd. You're practically urban legends around here."

"It's been great for applications!"

The last comment came from Milly, before Shirley, seeming to remember a concern, asked "So hey, Nunnally, and… Lelouch? Are you guys really royalty? Like, like it says on the news?"

Lelouch simply hummed "Mm hm." in confirmation as he himself drank, a point Nunnally elaborated on with "We had to hide for years after Lelouch angered… the Emperor, and he invaded Japan. With Suzaku, we lived in the Academy. To all intents and purposes, we weren't royalty."

"Furthermore-" Lelouch began, picking up from where Nunnally left off as he finished his water "-we were not exactly the biggest fans of him following this."

"Most people tend to protest with signs and marches."

"Milly, did you dare compare us to most people?"

"Calm, Lelouch, we want to leave without your inflated head forcing us to remove the door frame."

This sent laughter around the room, as Nina, at once curious as to the apparatus of state and seeking reassurance as to her more judgemental side, asked "So what is it you actually did, or do.. Sirs?"

Lelouch, perhaps meanly from Nunnally's perspective, barked out a quick laugh, as he responded, sounding short of breath "Sirs… my Lord, I didn't realise public service could be so taxing. Look at this Suzaku; I'm being addressed formally!"

Alone in his laughter, he eventually subsided and gave a more serious answer with "First, it's still Lelouch. We're still friends, we're still the same, for the most part."

"And Suzaku..."

"Yes, he's still Suzaku. Above me by rank in fact."

"I see… so he's going to be Prime Minister of the new country? The leader, at least for laws."

"That's a way of putting it."

Nina seemed somewhat satisfied with that, seeming to hum to herself as she recalled the various kindnesses Nunnally knew that Suzaku, with his heart of gold, had shown her. The gathering proceeded as such for a while thereon; lighthearted banter, many accidental "Your Majesty"'s and "Sir"'s that seemed to annoy Lelouch far more than Suzaku, and the occasional policy question and demands to the politicians to recount their rebellious exploits, only to be disappointed that most of it consisted of staring at computer screens and getting shot at.

"One could say it was quite the shot in the arm." Suzaku once joked, to many groans.

Still, Lelouch and Suzaku's poor jokes were certainly not the end of the world. In a sense, it was the beginning of one, as Nunnally, though blind, saw the masks her friends and family wear for eight years drop away. They talked and joked as friends, with no secrets, no plots, and only dreams of a bright future with pens rather than guns dictating the agenda.

It was, to Nunnally, a perfect world.

Suzaku looked up through his fringe, waving it away and smiling "Hey, Euphie!"

The former Princess stood opposite his desk and smiled with closed eyes in her cute manner, with a minor wave and a "Hello!"

"Did you bring those files down?"

"Mm hm! Ohgi thanked me and moved right along." she explained, as Suzaku stood up and came around the table, smiling his thanks. Euphemia looked lovely today, with a simple white frilly dress and her trademark smile that always served to relax him.

"Thanks for that, it's been such a pain recently to sort out."

"No problem at all. All good up here?"

"Yeah", he whispered as he drew closer. "Just a little tired. And lonely. Your trip to Britannia took aaages."

Euphemia chuckled, sitting on the side of his desk as he laid a gentle palm over Euphemia's fingers, stretched open over his files. Her skin was as smooth as anything imaginable, contrasting his own uneven skin. His downward eyes looked towards his own fingers, exploring the expanses of her carpals and small knuckles, just bumps if anything, before he retreated, his fingers curling back in a sort of guilt.

His chest became heavy as the guilt reached a more conscious level. He had long come to terms with loving Euphemia, and had been overjoyed to hear that she loved him in turn, but it had hurt them both. It was impossible for them to be in any way public; the Ameliorates were already believed to be too close to Britannia, and for the party leader to want to pursue a relationship with a former Royal Family member would be a bridge too far, not to mention the somewhat unfortunate image of a national leader dating his secretary.

Moreover, their secret relationship did have a few personal implications. Suzaku had been put more than a little on edge whenever he was in polite company and Euphemia was mentioned. Even further, he had been placed in swings between longing from afar and and uncertainty that was accented by his high office. In these intimate moments, he would face thoughts over whether the risks were worth it, concerns over ethics, and a paralysing panic that beat to the same rhythm as his fluttering heart, which was only driven to greater eminence within his chest as Euphemia's now lonely fingers chased his across the desk.

Electing to ignore his concerns, he laced his fingers, phalanges arched upright, with Euphemia's, knitting a union between them as he leant in to kiss her on the cheek.

It was a light brush if anything, but Euphemia, the more forward of the two, took Suzaku's advance for all it was worth, wrapping the base of her free hand on his shoulder, and as he concluded his brief peck she drew closer to embrace him fully, kissing him on his lips.

Not to be taken, Suzaku responded, swinging his arms round her back and welcoming her into them, as their respective passions flared to violent life. They shared a single kiss tight like a secret murder, held so close as if to prevent anyone else from seeking a glimpse.

It took some time for the initial spark to break apart, but the fire was thoroughly lit, as they repeatedly kissed in a variety of fashions and passions for some time, before a rapping noise was heard on the far side of the office door, four taps in all before a shout.

"Suzaku? What are you playing at?"

The pair immediately broke apart, explosive energy spurring them into motion like an atom splitting. Euphemia, rushing to tidy herself as Suzaku rushed back to his desk, called back "Sorry Lelouch, one sec!", to the unmistakeable tones of the Finance Minister. Euphemia raced forward to the door in her energetic fashion, unbolting it and beckoning Lelouch inside, as Suzaku leaned back to his seat, sharing his tiredness with its compliant springs.

Euphemia and Lelouch shared small talk as the latter passed along a budget proposal for his blessing, though when looking down at the paper, it was more for shame than reading the thing. He felt like he'd let his colleagues down, and passed it back. Lelouch apparently had a better handle on things than he did.

Lelouch protested, and Suzaku gave half hearted answers. His mass of energy had gone, and as Lelouch commented "Make sure those things go well. We're all relying on you.", he suddenly felt inadequate to the nth degree. He looked down once again, not having the luxury of hiding in sheets of paper, and could only just manage "Yeah…"

Many thanks to MORTheDivineBeing, MMBrowsing, SuperApplePie, Akuma-Heika, TitanFire999, GTHC, Patjeeson, KingOfHearltess'09, Scarease and LoganaranoTheBritannian for reviewing this arc!