Chapter 9: Refrain
"I really love his speeches," Kaguya says with a smile. "He always manages to make every word convey more than should be possible. I'm glad to be able to listen to them again after so long."
Tohdoh nods. "His speech ability was undoubtedly one of his greatest talents; he always managed to make others have greater confidence in him."
"It was great!" Tamaki gets excited. "We were the stars of the show; everyone was watching us!"
"Yes," Kallen says, remembering all of Lelouch's speeches. "Lelouch really was able to motivate us completely, just with his words."
Nunnally for her part recalls Lelouch's thoughts from the first episode. "Big brother, you really loved being able to talk, didn't you? Being able to say what you believe, what you want, what you really are..."
"Oh, Your Majesty," Jeremiah almost seemed close to tears with emotion. "Your words move me, and to think that there was a time when this speech seemed a horrible thing to me. Oh, please forgive this humble servant, Your Majesty."
Anya pats Jeremiah on the back. "It's okay Jerry, I'm sure Lelouch isn't mad at you."
"Hm, Master Lelouch has surely forgiven you by now," Sayoko also tries to support her partner.
"They know the Demon Emperor is dead, don't they? "Guilford thinks, looking at the trio strangely.
Cornelia thinks about her father's speech about equality. "It's strange, in retrospect, the way Lelouch speaks, it reminds me of our father's own speeches, but... I also feel like there's something different."
Schneizel nods. "There are certainly similarities between the two of them, which shouldn't be a surprise considering we're family, but there are also marked differences."
"It's really interesting to hear it after everything that's happened," Ohgi says. "Being able to hear it now, it makes everything different in perspective."
"The speech also expressed, in itself, the opposite of what Suzaku thought," Gino says. "Showing how they had no faith in the system and how they would seek to punish those who did wrong, regardless of whether they did it outside the law."
"Right, it was the opposite of what Kururugi thought," Chiba says, a small smile appearing on her face. "At least he was able to understand that Britannia was rotten to the core."
Zero simply sighs as he listens to the others' comments. "We ended up doing just what you wished for in the end, didn't we, Lelouch...? Lelouch... are you happy wherever you are?"
"I wish I'd known how good Lelouch was at public speaking," Milly laments, a laugh escaping her mouth. "He would sometimes give a few announcements, but he did it without any motivation. It would have been so much fun to hear one of his speeches at the festivals, even more people could have participated."
Rivalz agrees. "It would have been great, Lelouch was really good at giving speeches."
"Well, that would bring this episode to an end," says Zero, snapping out of his thoughts and looking at Nunnally. "Your Majesty, if you don't mind, do you think you could start the next episode?"
Nunnally nods. "Of course," the young empress starts the new episode, which begins with a summary just like the previous episode.
"It looks like it's going to be the same summary, so I'd better just skip it, I want to see my precious Lancelot again as soon as possible," says Lloyd.
Nunnally smiles slightly at the scientist's eccentricity, but quickly omits the summary.
The black screen shows the title of the episode: "Refrain".
Kallen's good mood immediately disappears when she sees the title of the episode. "Refrain..."
Ohgi looks worriedly at his friend, the Japanese still remembering what happened with her mother.
"I didn't want to hear about that crap again," Tamaki says annoyed.
Ohgi sighs. "That drug was really a problem, it ruined too many people's lives."
"It looks like they finally started cleaning things up at the convention center of the Kawaguchi Lake Hotel," said a man on the television, which was in a very luxurious room. "It's been two weeks since Zero announced his Black Knights, but there's still little information about the man behind the mask," as the anchorman spoke, Kallen was shown lying on her bed, the young teenager wearing only her underwear.
Kallen's face turns completely red at the sight of her state, so much is her embarrassment that for a moment she forgets about the title of the episode. "What the hell?! Why am I always the one to show up like this?! Gino, stop staring!" the redhead quickly gets up to cover the window with her body, but not before giving the blond a death glare.
Gino tries to say something, but before he can utter a single word, Anya covers his eyes and makes him turn his head away.
Ohgi quickly gets up to help Kallen cover the screen as well, averting his gaze as he does so. "Seriously, why do they keep showing this? It's not right."
As had happened during the shower scene, the men turn their heads away from the screen.
"Agh, I don't want to see this," Tamaki says uncomfortably.
"If this keeps happening, I swear I'll beat the crap out of you!" Kallen glares angrily at Zero.
"Eh, well, I," Zero once again doesn't know what to say, the masked man subtly turns to Nunnally, somehow managing to convey to her that he needs her help, even though his face is covered by the mask.
Nunnally noticing Zero's attitude, turns to Kallen. "Kallen, I... I'm sorry!" the wheelchair Empress gives a small bow as she apologizes.
"N-Nunnally," Kallen looks a little surprised at her friend, distracted for a moment. "This isn't your fault; you don't have to..."
"Yes, I do," says Nunnally with a sad expression. "I was the one who wanted to see that, I was the one who asked Zero to see it, it's my fault you have to go through this. I'm really sorry, so please don't blame Zero."
Kallen looks at Nunnally for a few seconds, her expression completely expressionless, until finally a sigh leaves the redhead's mouth. An almost imperceptible smile appears on her face. "Nunnally, I accept your apology. You're right about Zero not being the guilty one, though he's not completely innocent either. I don't like this showing up, I don't like being seen in this state, but I want to keep watching the videos too, even though I know that things are bound to show up that others don't want them to see."
"Kallen..." Nunnally looks at Kallen with an indescribable expression.
"Okay, I'm still not happy, but I want to move on as quickly as possible," Kallen sits back down, so Ohgi does the same. "Let's just keep going."
Nunnally quickly nods and prepares to continue the episode.
Zero let out a sigh of relief, immediately turning to look at Nunnally. A smile appears on the face behind the mask. "Nunnally, you've really grown up."
"They didn't follow their escape route?" asks another presenter.
"After freeing the hostages, they escaped down a railroad track on the other side," Kallen simply listens to the TV presenter, but suddenly she hears a rather loud noise, making the young redhead startle.
Kallen comes out of her room wearing a robe, as she turns her head she can see that the cause of the noise is a chandelier that had fallen, in front of the chandelier stood a worried Japanese woman, the woman was wearing a maid's outfit.
"Well, at least you're wearing a robe now, right?" Gino looks at Kallen, who doesn't answer. "Kallen? Are you all right?"
Kallen still didn't respond to the blond, her gaze was completely fixed on the woman on the screen.
Milly recognizing the woman, puts a hand on Kallen's shoulder, to try to give her some support.
Schneizel for his part only smiles, recognizing the woman. "I see," a small chuckle comes out of the former Prince's mouth. "How interesting."
Ohgi also recognize the woman, frowning slightly at the situation of the woman he considered as a second mother. "Mrs. Kōzuki..."
"Kallen," the woman says. "I-I mean, young lady. Forgive me. I did not wish to wake you."
"Again?" Kallen asks, annoyed.
The woman looks at the stair railing, which is also broken. "I'm sorry. This time the stairs are broken."
"Clean it up right now!" Kallen orders forcefully. "I have to go to school soon!"
Kallen cringes at her tone. "Forgive me, please."
"Tch, you didn't have to talk to her like that," Chiba says, annoyed at Kallen's treatment of the Japanese maid. "Weren't you supposed to want us to be treated with respect?" Kallen simply cringes even more as she listens to Chiba.
"You've been going to school a lot lately," says the woman, smiling. "Did you make any friends?"
"That's none of your business!" Kallen goes back into her room.
Kallen wishes she could be underground, the mortification and shame she feels at having to watch her behavior is too much for her. "Sorry, sorry, sorry."
"Kallen, is something wrong?" Rivalz asks worried. "You've never acted like that before."
Kallen still doesn't answer, so Milly looks at Rivalz. "It's a private matter Rivalz, you shouldn't say anything unless Kallen wants you to."
"But..." Rivalz tries to protest, however, seeing Milly's expression he decides not to. "All right."
Ohgi's frown grows, unable to help but be a little annoyed by Kallen's attitude, even though she had in the past already told him how she had treated her mother and how guilty she felt about it.
The woman is still looking at Kallen with a smile, even after she entered the room. Kallen for her part is leaning against the door, as she watches, clutching her robe tightly. "Just go away, please!" The camera shows the picture of Kallen with her brother and mother, but her mother's face is hidden by a sticker.
"Wait," Gino remembers the picture Ohgi was holding and looks at Kallen. "So your mother is..."
"The maid," Schneizel ends Gino's thoughts. "Or am I wrong, miss Kōzuki?"
Kallen is silent for a moment, but finally a weary sigh escapes her lips. "No, you're not wrong. My mother is the woman dressed as a maid."
"But why?" Tianzi was confused. "Why would she work as a maid?"
Kallen falls silent again, it's obvious they won't get an answer out of her right now.
"Your Majesty, I think it would be better if we continue watching the episode," said Zero looking at Nunnally. "Miss Kōzuki obviously doesn't feel comfortable, so it would be better to move forward as fast as possible, after all, if Miss Kōzuki feels more comfortable with telling us the circumstances about her mother, she can say it whenever she wants."
Nunnally looks at Kallen for a moment, concern can be seen on the young Empress' face, but she ends up nodding at Zero's words and resumes recording.
"I know it's a charity, but it seems like a waste to give it to the eleven," says a man as the inside of a port warehouse is shown. Inside the warehouse, several boxes are being loaded onto a truck.
"That's why I'm selling it to you, you understand? The population of the eleven could be reduced a bit, if you ask me."
Zero along with other members of the Black Knights run across the rooftops of the warehouses.
"What were you doing?" Rivalz asks.
"We were attacking those who were getting the Refrain into the hands of the Japanese," Ohgi replies.
"I'll transfer the payment to your wife's account," reports the first man in the warehouse.
The Black Knights stand right in front of the warehouse entrance.
"Princess Cornelia is a soldier," says the second man. "This sort of thing doesn't interest her."
Cornelia frowns as she listens to the man. "Anything to do with the area I command interests me, how idiotic of them to believe that I would have allowed them to continue their operations."
Suddenly the lights in the building go out and a large number of gunshots can be heard outside.
"Turn on the light!" commands the second man as he crouches down. "What's going on?"
Quickly the other man turns on the lights, showing to his surprise that Zero and his subordinates were inside the warehouse.
"You're..." The second man can't believe his eyes.
"The Black Knights!" The scene suddenly changed to show Kallen in a classroom, the young redhead stood up and shouted to the surprise of her classmates.
Kallen forgetting about her mother's affair for a moment, can't help but blush in embarrassment at the sight of the screen. "Please, it was already embarrassing for that to happen, but now everyone has to see it?"
"Huh?" Tamaki looks at the screen in confusion. "I don't understand, what happened?"
Rakshata smiles in amusement as she looks at Kallen. "It seems your activities at night left you no time to sleep, did they?"
Kallen simply nods sheepishly, still embarrassed by her actions.
"Kallen, you needn't have put so much effort into our actions as Black Knights," Ohgi says with concern. "Your studies are important, too."
"I know. I was just too excited at the time."
The students begin to laugh at Kallen's action, and Kallen simply blushes in embarrassment at what she had just done.
"That's not like you, snoozing like that in class!" Shirley says after class is over.
Kallen stumbles over her words: "W-well, I was just..."
"Why don't you take some classes with Lelouch?" Rivalz suggests, "He's an expert at falling asleep in class."
Cornelia sighs as she hears another negative trait from Lelouch. "Really, did he fall asleep in class, too?"
"Well, considering he was also staying up nights playing his role as Zero, that's no surprise," Schneizel says with a smile.
"Even so, he shouldn't sleep in class."
Surprised, Kallen turns to Lelouch, who seems to be looking out the window. "Is he "sleeping right now?"
"I don't know what he does every night, but he sleeps in the middle of his classes," Rivalz says as Lelouch's face is shown, making it obvious that he's sleeping.
"A battle against the EU has broken out on the El Alamein front," said Cornelia as she showed in front of Euphemia and several knightmares, who were standing at an army train station. "That means Area 11 can't hold us all the time. We have to deal with the internal issues and make this a safe area. To do that, it's not only a priority to eliminate terrorist groups, but also the abuse of the drug called Refrain. It is a serious problem among the eleven. It caused a great drop in productivity. We have to eliminate the drug route via Kyushu from the Chinese Federation. Do you understand?"
Tianzi cringes as she hears about her nation's connection to the Refrain.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty," Xingke tries to reassure his Empress. "That drug is no longer a concern, and you are not to blame for anything."
"Thank you Xingke," Tianzi gives a smile to her protector.
Euphemia nods. "Yes. Be careful."
"And don't leave the settlement, understood?" Cornelia asks Euphemia again.
"Sister, about the Black Knights..."
"I'll let them walk free a little longer. I owe them that much for saving you," Cornelia smiles, but her smile quickly fades. "But once I return..." Cornelia grabs Euphemia's face affectionately. "When I've cleared this area, I'll give it to you. So don't think about these dangerous things. Okay, Euphy?"
Tamaki frowns. "What do you mean you'll hand over the area to her? Japan isn't a toy you can just hand over to whomever you want! We're not your property!"
"Mr. Tamaki, there's no need to raise your voice!" says Guilford, annoyed by the Japanese man's attitude towards Cornelia.
"It's alright Guilford," Cornelia looks at her knight as she sighs. "My words were disrespectful, both to the Nation of Japan and its inhabitants."
"Your Highness..." Guilford frowns. "You shouldn't have to apologize; you were simply trying to do what you thought was the best course of action at the time."
Cornelia shakes her head. "It doesn't matter, ignorance doesn't give you innocence, I'd be upset myself if they'd said the same about Britannia."
Guilford looks at his Princess, the knight seems to want to say something, but the words die in his mouth before they can come out.
Euphemia's expression is notoriously regretful, while what had happened in the hotel, specifically in the room where Kusakabe was, is shown on the screen.
"Because he was the son of the Emperor of Britannia," Zero says as he draws his gun and points it at Euphemia. Now that I mention it, you're his daughter too, aren't you? But right now..." Zero lowers his gun.
"So that's what happened between the two of them," Lloyd laughs in amusement. "It was certainly an interesting meeting for both of them."
Kallen frowns. "But Lelouch seemed to want to tell Euphemia something else. What could it be?"
"No idea," Ohgi says. "The only thing I can think of is that he wanted to tell her about his identity, but I can't imagine Lelouch would be willing to tell her who he really was."
"But we saw that he even gave her a hint in the previous episode," Rivalz says. "When he told her he hadn't changed."
Tohdoh sighs. "That's the strangest thing, it really doesn't make sense that Lelouch would even be willing to give that kind of hint to anyone, and I can't believe it was some kind of mistake on his part either."
"I guess we'll just have to keep watching," Xingke says. "Hopefully it will become clear in the future."
"When he was talking to me, was there something else Zero meant?" Euphemia reflects on the words Zero said to her in the hotel. "Suzaku, what would you think about that? About what Zero is doing, and about me..."
"Euphy," Zero looks fondly at his Princess. "Did you really value my opinion that much? I don't deserve it, not after everything I've done."
Cornelia for her part frowns as she listens to her sister's thoughts. "Euphy, why didn't you tell me what had happened with Lelouch? Why did you only think about Kururugi?", the former Princess can't help but feel angry towards the Japanese man, even though she knows there's no point in being angry at him.
Kallen appears with a sigh, while leaning against the wall of one of the school's corridors. "Gosh, living a double life is hard."
"I'm really glad I don't have to do that anymore," Kallen smiles. "It's great to be able to act like I really am all the time, without having to lie about being sick."
Milly gives Kallen a hug. "It's a shame I've already graduated; I would have loved to play with you right now."
"M-Milly," Kallen looks nervously at her friend. "Please don't joke now," the redhead's words only make the blonde giggle."
"Come on, Suzaku, hold him back!" Milly's voice is heard from the council room.
"Dammit, Suzaku, stop!" Lelouch's screams can also be heard. "Stop! I order you!"
Kallen upon hearing both students enter the room, in which Lelouch can be seen tied to a chair, while the other members of the Council, with the exception of Nina, surround him, but the strange thing is that each of them is dressed in a cat costume.
Several audience members don't know how to react to the bizarre image of the teens wearing cat costumes while surrounding Lelouch, it was just bizarre, even considering what they had already seen the Council do.
Cornelia clutches the bridge of her nose in exasperation, her expression showing only a mixture of annoyance and resignation. "Really? Is this really happening?"
"You should be getting used to it by now, sister," Schneizel looks at the scene with amusement. "After all, we'll surely see more of them in the future."
"Why were you even doing that?" Guilford asks in confusion.
Milly smiles. "Isn't it obvious? It was in honor of Arthur's arrival, I'm sure he was thrilled that we made a whole festival in his honor."
"Yes, I'm sure he loved it," Rivalz says, smiling. "Maybe we should do it again in the future."
"I'd like to see it!" Tianzi is excited by the suggestion. "I'd like to dress up as a kitten."
Kaguya smiles. "Yeah, that would be fun to do."
"They were... fun," Anya also shows her desire to participate in one of the festivals again.
Sayoko approaches Jeremiah and whispers, "We could all come when Miss C.C. comes back with Master Lelouch, it would be fun, don't you think? We'd just have to put a disguise on them."
"Yes, it would be a good experience for everyone," Jeremiah whispers as he looks fondly at Sayoko and Anya. "His Majesty would surely enjoy being able to see one of the Academy's festivals again."
Villetta sighs as she listens to the young girls' enthusiasm. "I'm really thankful I wasn't still their teacher when this happened, I don't even want to think about what they would have made me wear," the mother-to-be can't help but shiver as she remembers the scandalous outfits she had to wear during her time as a teacher. "Never again."
"They certainly seems to be enjoying themselves, doesn't they? Ohgi looks fondly at the students. "It's good that they could do something like that after having to live through what happened at the hotel."
Villetta looks at her husband's enthusiasm, a small smile appears on her lips. "Yes, it's good that they can make it."
Zero still no one could see it, but he had a smile on his face. "I'm really glad to be able to see these moments again, where everything seemed so easy," the man behind the mask sighed. "Lelouch, I'm sure you too are really happy in those moments, your plan worked out perfectly after all."
"I'm sorry, Lelouch, it's the President's orders," Suzaku says.
He zooms in on Lelouch, who is trying to avoid being made up to look like a cat. "Yeah, like you're not enjoying this at all!"
"Stay still!" Shirley says, trying to put makeup on Lelouch.
Chiba can't let out a snort of amusement. "I can't believe you try to make up the Demon Emperor."
"Of course we'd make him up," Milly says. "Lelouch was the vice president, so it wouldn't make sense for him not to be in the festival."
"I'm sure my big brother enjoyed it in his heart," says Nunnally, happy to see the different costumes of her friends. "It must have been good for him, I'm sure it got him to relax for a while."
Milly smiles. "I hope so, the best part of festivals is knowing that others were able to enjoy them, even more so if we're talking about Lelouch."
"Good morning, nya!" Milly says as she notices Kallen entering the room.
Kallen looks at her classmates in complete confusion. "Good... morning," her words make everyone look at her. "What is this?"
"Didn't we mention it?" Rivalz asks. "It's the welcome home party for Arthur."
"Does he look... funny?" Kallen says, still confused.
Milly smiles. "Well, classes have been postponed, so we might as well have some fun now, right?"
"Classes were postponed? Why?" Ohgi asks.
"Because of what happened at the hotel," Milly replies. "My grandfather decided it would be best to postpone them until things calm down a bit."
"We've got your things ready, Kallen," Shirley says as she points to a rack with several costumes on it. "Look. To make up for all that weird stuff I told you before. Which one do you like?"
"What?" Kallen says in surprise. "Me too?"
Lelouch smiles mischievously. "Kallen doesn't need one," Lelouch's words surprise Kallen. "You're already wearing a mask, right?"
"I'd forgotten that Lelouch said that," Kallen says, grabbing her chin. "I thought he was just teasing me, now I can see I couldn't have been more wrong."
"But why would he say that?" asks Gino. "He's simply jeopardizing his cover and yours as well."
Kallen frowns. "I really don't know, at the time I wasn't really close to Lelouch or Zero, so I don't see why he could have said that to me," the young redhead recalls her relationship with Lelouch. "Lelouch, could you really have been trying to tell me something? If so, then I could..."
Kaguya thinks about the matter. "It's really strange; Lelouch's behavior seems to be a bit contradictory, seeing as how he was worried before about someone finding out about the mask and C.C., but now he's given clues to both Princess Euphemia and Kallen."
"It's certainly a mystery why Lelouch chooses to act in such a way, perhaps we should even make a note of it for later discussion," Xingke opined. "Being able to understand why Lelouch seems to jeopardize his secret identity might end up being useful to us in some way."
"We don't lose anything by doing so," Milly says as she writes down the topic in her notebook.
Kallen is annoyed to hear Lelouch. "You really are a riot, you know that? You should be on television."
"What do you think, Miss TV star?" Rivalz asks, looking at Shirley.
"Yes, she knows," Suzaku seconds.
Shirley looks at both of them in annoyance. "Would you two stop joking about it, it's been so annoying since that happened!" along with Shirley's words, she, Milly and Nina appear surrounded by several students, then pictures of them appear in the hotel on various posters. "They follow us night and day to ask us questions, even in the bathroom! We haven't been able to leave the school for a week!" Finally, the girls are shown in the bathroom still being harassed by several of their classmates and a bunch of reporters outside the Academy.
Tohdoh shakes his head. "They shouldn't do that; they should understand that it was probably an experience they'd rather forget."
"Tch, those kind of people only care about getting what they want," Chiba looks annoyed at the screen. "They don't care how others feel about it."
"They were really annoying," Cornelia says with a frown. "There were also several who tried to get Zero's information from Euphy, not caring that she didn't want to talk about it."
Guilford supports Cornelia. "Yes, several of them were quite insistent."
"I don't see why that means we can't go out either!" Rivalz protests as he looks at Milly.
"That's the price of friendship!" Milly says with a smile. "We may not be born on the same day, but we seek to die together. From Romance of the Three Kingdoms."
Xingke looks at Milly with surprise. "Wow, I didn't expect you to have read the book. Not many people know about it anymore, and even fewer read it."
"It's always fun to read stories from other cultures," Milly says. "Besides, I already had a strong preference for reading, thanks to my time as a Noble."
"It certainly must have been useful," Lloyd laughs. "Nothing better than being able to benefit from our social standing."
"Lloyd!" Cecile scolds her companion. "You really are incorrigible."
"Is that a proposal?" Rivalz asks.
Milly smiles mischievously at him. "It's me saying we'll die together."
"Dude, she's cruel!" says Rivalz. "Don't you think so, Suzaku?"
"I'm glad," Suzaku says with tears in his eyes, which begin to fall, so the young Japanese man covers his face with his hand. "I'm just glad we can be together again."
Cécile's gaze relaxes when she sees Suzaku's state. "Suzaku..."
"It must have been hard for him," Jeremiah says. "For a moment he thought several of his friends had died, and worse, that it was his fault for not saving them. I, too, wept tears of joy at finally being able to join His Majesty."
"Suzaku really cared about us," Milly looks fondly at the Japanese man. "He would never have done anything to hurt us."
Rivalz nods. "Yes, he always tried to protect us when there was danger, he would never do anything bad to us."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Kallen thinks a little annoyed as she remembers the time Suzaku had almost drugged her for information.
Zero ducks his head as he hears how much trust and faith they had about him never doing anything bad to them. The young Japanese man also remembers when he had almost drugged Kallen and also when he had allowed Charles to use his Geass on them. "Stop it, please. I don't deserve those words, I hurt them, I let them be used as tools. Stop it," Zero begins to tremble slightly, something that doesn't go unnoticed by a certain Empress.
"Suzaku," Nunnally thinks worriedly as she sees her protector's trembling. The young girl immediately grabs her old friend's hand, trying to calm him down.
"Nunnally," Zero looks at the young girl for a moment, managing to calm down enough to stop shaking, so he starts holding Nunnally's hand as well. "Thank you, Nunnally."
Lelouch smiles at Suzaku, but Rivalz quickly jumps over Lelouch.
"What's wrong with you?" Rivalz asks. "This place is for fun, right?" Rivalz grabs Suzaku and makes him fall, making everyone laugh at the scene, even Lelouch.
Almost everyone in the audience couldn't help but smile at the scene of the students having fun, it was a good reminder that there were times when being able to enjoy life together was possible.
"But that's what we like about Suzaku," Shirley says.
"Although sometimes we wish he'd slow down a bit," Milly adds.
Suzaku, still on the ground, looks at his classmates. "I'm sorry about that!"
"Do you think it's funny?" asks Rivalz holding Suzaku's cheeks.
Rivalz's words make everyone laugh again.
"That's right, I help save everyone," Kallen thinks as a smile appears on her face.
Kallen smiles just like her TV counterpart. "Yes, I was able to help save them all. I think it was the first time I really thought I felt what it felt like to be a hero."
"It's true, it was partly your doing that we were saved," Milly looks at Kallen. "Thank you, Kallen."
"Thank you," Nina also thanks Kallen with a smile.
Kallen's smile only grows as she listens to her friends. "You're welcome, I'm sure you would have done the same to save me."
The scene changes to show a street, on the walls are pasted several posters announcing that Zero is wanted, dead or alive.
"Since our incredible performance during the kidnapping, the Black Knights have taken the world by storm," Kallen's voice is heard. "As Zero said in his speech, we are the allies of the weak. Terrorists involving civilians, abusive soldiers, greedy corporations, criminal syndicates, and even corrupt politicians. We punished evil that was not judged by the law. We became heroes in the blink of an eye. Our sympathizers increased, and we even got some knightmares. Of course, this was something that people won't admit in public, because..." during Kallen's speech, several civilians are shown watching the news about Zero, workers imitating Zero, several of the operations the Black Knights did, and finally, a boy playing Zero in front of Kallen, until he is stopped by his mother.
Tamaki raises his fist in excitement as he watches the scenes of their operations and hears Kallen's voice. "Of course, we punished everyone who deserved it!"
"Yes, it was really good to be able to help people in need," Ohgi smiles as he remembers those times. "We really felt like we were accomplishing something important."
"Stop playing at being a Black Knight!" commands the mother.
"Why?" asks the boy.
"We must not say anything against Britannia!" said the mother. "We're eleven, remember?"
Kaguya frowns. "It's really horrible to think that we once lived in a world where a child wasn't allowed to play... and all because he was Japanese."
"It was really terrible," Ohgi looks at the boy with pity. "Children should be able to play in the streets without fear of anything, just imagining they're a hero, a dragon, or whatever they want to be, they shouldn't have to be silent just because of where they were born."
"At least we don't have to worry about that anymore," Kaguya says. "Things are looking up, aren't they, Nunnally?"
Nunnally nods. "Yes, now we want to do everything we can so that people can be truly free."
"Because our leader, Zero, had killed Prince Clovis," Kallen's voice is heard again, as Kallen herself looks sadly at the boy being scolded by his mother. "And there are many among us who want to know who he really is. Even myself. But I feel he will disappear if we push him too hard. And without him, I think we would lose all our power," Kallen's words are accompanied by the image of Zero on top of a building, right on the tip of an antenna.
"How the hell did Lelouch get there?" Rivalz asks, completely confused. "I don't think he was physically capable of getting up there, let alone not falling."
Nina frowns. "Was he really there? Maybe it was just a visual metaphor, after all these recordings are supposed to emulate a television show."
"I guess it's a possibility, but we haven't seen anything like that before," Villetta also looks at the screen in confusion.
Chiba for her part ignores the topic of how Lelouch managed to get on the building and instead thinks of something else. "We'd lose all of our power without him..."
"Is something wrong, Chiba?" Tohdoh asks.
"It's nothing General, I just resent the belief that without the Demon Emperor we have no power," Chiba admits. "I understand how that may have been true at first, but it still bothers me to think about it."
Gino looks at Chiba in confusion. "Why?"
"It's probably a matter of pride," says Rakshata, also looking at Chiba with a mischievous smile. "After all, no one likes to think that the victories they achieved were only due to one person and not the whole team, especially considering the fact that they were seeking to liberate Japan and that Lelouch was Britannian. To think that the liberation of Japan itself only happened because of a Britannian man, and not because of the Japanese's own efforts, must be insulting, especially seeing as Lelouch wasn't just any Britannian, but was also part of the Royal Family."
Chiba simply looks at the scientist with a frown for a moment, but finally admits her feelings on the subject, "Yes, that's exactly what bothers me."
The other Japanese also have mixed feelings about the scientist's words, it's true that many of them don't like to think that the liberation of their Nation only happened thanks to Lelouch, but they also can't deny that if Lelouch hadn't risen as Zero, it's very likely that things wouldn't have changed at all.
Lelouch leaves his residence, outside Rivalz is waiting for him in front of his motorcycle.
"You know?" says Rivalz looking at his bike. "I've hardly seen you lately."
"Really?" Lelouch asks, trying to play dumb.
Rivalz's expression darkens. "I'm serious."
"I really didn't understand what was going on with Lelouch," Rivalz says depressed. "Until then we were almost always together, I could never have imagined that he would be working as Zero."
Milly pats Rivalz on the back a few times. "Don't worry, none of us could have imagined it. It's not your fault."
Nina is in the Council room, the young Britannian girl is using her computer as she remembers when Euphemia saved her from the Japanese soldier.
"Are you all right?" Euphemia asks in memory.
Nina stops using the computer for a moment, a small blush appearing on her cheeks as she remembers what happened.
Nina blushes just like her on-screen version, but this time the reason is embarrassment at the fact that everyone saw her blush at the thought of Euphemia. "Oh, no, please don't," the young scientist can't help but shiver as she feels the piercing gaze of a certain former Princess.
Cornelia stares at Nina suspiciously. "That girl, could it be that...?"
The other members of the audience decide not to say anything about what they have just seen, some of them immediately realizing what is happening, and therefore keeping silent out of respect (although Lloyd was about to say something before Cécile stopped him), while the members who did not understand the reason for Nina's blushing, also decide to keep silent when they see the attitude of the others.
"Why did the masses help those who saved Euphemia?" Urabe asks as the screen shows the JLF headquarters, where Tohdoh and his men are arguing.
"Even Kyoto said they would send the Guren Mk-II to the Black Knights," Senba says.
"Those Robin Hood wannabes?" Asahina says mockingly.
Kallen frowns. "Robin Hood's wannabes? We were nothing like that, we just wanted to help the other Japanese, what's wrong with that?"
"Yes!" Tamaki supports Kallen. "We were accomplishing something! You have no right to insult us!"
"We had a right to be upset," Chiba says. "We'd been fighting Britannia for years, and as soon as the Black Knights arrived, almost everyone forgot about us, and they'd even started to stop supporting us financially."
Cornelia looks at Chiba annoyed. "No. You guys had no right to be upset, no matter how long you were fighting, if you didn't manage to get results then there would be no reason to support you, it's not Lelouch's fault that you guys didn't achieve anything for all those years."
"How dare you!" Chiba shouts angrily. "I won't let you say that all the struggles and sacrifices we made during those years were for nothing!"
"But it's true," Jeremiah says. "It was His Majesty who gave the Japanese a chance to reclaim their independence, the JLF was nearly destroyed during the Battle of Narita, and the only reason they survived was because of His Majesty."
Chiba looks like she's about to explode, but is stopped by Tohdoh before she can say anything.
"General" Chiba looks at Tohdoh in disbelief.
Tohdoh simply sighs. "All right, Chiba," Tohdoh turns to look at Cornelia and Jeremiah. "It is true that the Black Knights had made a great number of achievements in a very short period of time, but that does not mean that our own efforts were in vain. I will admit that my subordinates' comments were out of line, and I apologize for them."
"General, you don't have to apologize for anything," Chiba says. "I still don't agree that we should even be excused for what we said, but if anyone should apologize, it would be us, not you, General. We were the ones who said our own opinions about the Black Knights."
Tohdoh smiles slightly at Chiba's attitude. "Thank you, Chiba. You've really grown up."
Chiba can't help but blush at Tohdoh's praise. "I-It was nothing, General."
"They're not part of the resistance!" Chiba opined. "They proved that by killing Lieutenant Colonel Kusakabe!"
Urabe looks at Chiba. "The colonel committed suicide, didn't he?"
"There are also rumors that he didn't try to stop him," Senba looks at his companions and then at Tohdoh. "Whatever, Lieutenant Colonel Tohdoh, we can't leave things like this."
"But Kusakabe was a bastard, willing to let innocents die just because of his stupid idea to remind Britannia that Japan still existed," Kallen says in annoyance.
Tohdoh sighs again. "We didn't know it at the time, we still didn't approve of Kusakabe's actions, but we could never have imagined that he would have acted in such a way just to maintain his ego."
"Yes, if we had known, we wouldn't have minded his death," said Chiba. "What he did was only a disgrace to Japan, a disgrace to the whole nation."
"Mistress Kallen!" Kallen's mother says as the interior of Stadtfeld Manor is shown. "Mistress Kallen!"
Kallen comes down the stairs, only to see Milly in the doorway of her house, standing by the door is also her mother. "Madam President?"
"What were you doing there, Madam President? Rivalz asks.
"I had to deliver something to Kallen," Milly replies, looking at the redhead, who immediately gets sad when she sees her mother on the screen again.
"I just wanted to give you something," Milly says, surprising Kallen.
Kallen's mother looks at her daughter. "Where should I take her? To the living room? Or maybe the..."
"To my room," Kallen says, interrupting her mother.
"As you wish."
Kallen shrinks back in her seat. "Stop it, I don't want to watch this anymore, I don't want to see her act like that, I don't want to see me act like that."
"When I heard you had visitors, I was sure it would be a boy," a female voice is heard from upstairs, where a woman with blonde hair can be seen. "Seeing as you're out all night and skipping school, not to mention your walks in the ghetto. You're lucky your father is in our homeland. You can't help it, it runs in the family, doesn't it?" The blonde woman glares at Kallen's mother with hatred.
Kallen for a moment forgets her own mortification, and her expression changes to one of pure hatred at the sight of the blonde woman. "Fucking bitch!"
"How dare she say that about Kallen and Mrs. Kōzuki!" Ohgi angrily snapped at the blonde woman when he heard her speak ill of both women.
"Who is she?" Gino asks, also annoyed. "She sounds like a..."
"Bitch," Kallen finishes Gino's sentence. "It's because she is, she's a bitch, but she's also my stepmother."
Rivalz looks at Kallen. "Your stepmother!? God, I can't even imagine what it's like to live with her."
"Like a nightmare."
Kallen looks at her stepmother in annoyance. "You're the one enjoying dad's absence, aren't you?"
Kallen and her stepmother glare at each other angrily, but both quickly turn their heads as they hear something break, only to see Kallen's mother standing in front of a broken vase on the floor.
"Oh, my goodness!" says Kallen's mother. "What have I done?"
"D-did she do it on purpose?" Villetta asks.
Kallen looks down. "Yes, she did it on purpose."
"What's your problem?" asks the stepmother, annoyed.
"Excuse me, ma'am, I'm sorry!" Kallen's mother tries to pick up the pieces of the vase.
"Honestly, you're useless!" The stepmother continues to stare at the accident in annoyance. "You're only good for selling your body!"
Kallen can barely contain her fury. "Damn it, I wish I could beat her until she can't take it anymore!" Kallen feels every part of her body begging her to find her stepmother and beat the shit out of her.
"Believe me, you're not the only one," Ohgi also glares angrily at Kallen's stepmother, the Japanese is trembling with anger.
"Kaname, are you all right?" Villetta looks worriedly at her husband. "This isn't like you."
Ohgi seeing his wife's concern tries to calm down. I'm sorry Chigusa, it's just that Kallen's mother had always been very kind, I even considered her as a second mother to me, so hearing her being insulted just makes me..." Ohgi trembles again from anger.
Villetta puts a hand on Ohgi's chest. "It's okay Kaname, I understand," Chigusa hugs Ohgi. "It's normal to be angry in this situation," Villetta's words make Ohgi calm down again.
"Thank you Chigusa, but I'll still try not to get so angry."
Milly and Kallen appear inside Kallen's room, both are sitting in front of a table.
"You have a complicated home life, don't you?" asks Milly kindly.
"What did you want to give me?" Kallen dodges Milly's question.
"My grandfather asked me to give this to you."
Kallen is confused. "The headmaster of the school?"
Milly hands Kallen an envelope. "Your school transcripts from high school. I thought it would be best not to give them to you at school."
Kallen looks at the envelope with concern. "Then you know my secret. I'm a half-breed, half-Britannian, half-eleven."
"A difficult position, no doubt," says Cécile, looking at Kallen with pity, who, feeling the scientist's gaze, can't help but feel a little embarrassed.
Kaguya agrees with Cécile, "Yes, many Japanese would see Kallen as nothing more than another privileged Britannian, while many Britannians would see her as an embarrassment to Britannia, someone who doesn't deserve what she has. Neither world would accept her," Kaguya looks at Ohgi. "It was a fortune that she had you."
"Of course, I would never let anything bad happen to her," Ohgi smiles at Kallen, who smiles back.
"Not being able to fit in anywhere," Nunnally reflects on Kallen's situation. "It reminds me of what happened to my big brother and I in Pendragon, almost no one would accept us because of the belief that our mother didn't deserve to be one of the Empresses because she wasn't Noble by birth. I really should talk to Kallen."
Through the window you can see birds flying through the sky.
Kallen looks at Milly. "That woman you saw just now is my stepmother. My real mother is the idiot maid who knocked over the vase."
"And your father is... the leader of the Stadtfeld family?" asks Milly in confusion.
Kallen looks down. "My mother is very stupid. In the end, they just treat her like a servant. She has no skills whatsoever, and no matter how much she's insulted, she can just laugh like it's nothing. She didn't specifically have to work in this house, did she? Basically, she's just clinging to her former lover!"
Kallen can't help but let out a bitter laugh as she heard herself, for once her thoughts weren't about the shame of her past actions, or how sorry she was for saying those insults to her mother. "What a bad joke, it almost seemed like a god is making fun of me. I say my mother is pathetic for clinging to her former lover, I say she is stupid for stooping so low for a man, but she did it all for me, for her daughter," Kallen recalled the kiss she shared with Lelouch. "Lelouch, if you had reciprocated, even if it had been a lie, I would have followed you to the end of the world, to my death. How ironic that I was wrong to think that my mother would be willing to betray everything to be with the man she loves, only for me to be the one willing to do that in the end."
"Kallen, are you okay?" Rivalz asks worriedly when he hears the redhead's laughter. "I'm sure your mother doesn't blame you for saying that."
Kallen simply laughs again as she listens to Rivalz. "Is not that, I just realized something, something I had tried to ignore for a long time."
The members of Ashford and the Black Knights continue to look at Kallen in concern, unable to understand the reason for Kallen's strange behavior, seeing as she only noticed something. Among the most concerned are Ohgi and Milly, who decide to try to talk to Kallen about it later.
Milly looks at Kallen sadly. "Do you hate your mother?"
"She just depresses me," Kallen replies, pouring some tea.
"Gosh, this talk just got so intense!" Milly looks out the window. "Imagine the wife, the daughter, and the other woman, all living together."
"No, it's not like that," Kallen says. "We can all live here without paying. The situation is not so unbearable."
"Really?" Milly has a faint smile. "Still, while you can take some things, when you pile them on, they eventually break you. Relax. I know I like to know people's secrets, but I'm not interested in telling anyone about this," Milly sips her tea.
Kallen's mother's room is shown, it is extremely small in size, just big enough for a single bed and a cabinet to be placed without blocking any space to walk around. The walls are very dirty and there are several phrases in red and black paint that read: "STAND UP", "IMBECILE" and "WE WILL KILL YOU". Kallen's mother inside her room just stares at the floor.
The sight of the room left many speechless, it was somewhat similar to when they saw the students writing insults on Suzaku's shirt, but much worse. The Japanese in particular could feel their blood boiling through their bodies, especially Ohgi, who looked like he was about to stand up just to punch the television out of sheer rage.
Unlike her compatriots, Kallen didn't frown, didn't feel the desire to break whatever was in front of her. No. The young redhead could do nothing but stare at her mother's room, remembering everything that had happened, finally breaking down. Kallen begins to cry inconsolably, crying like she hadn't since Lelouch's death. "Mommy, Mommy."
Immediately Milly comes over to comfort Kallen, letting the poor thing bury her head in her chest, repeating the same words over and over again as tears stream down her face. Milly begins to whisper words of support to her friend. "It's okay, it's okay, let it out as much as you want."
For a while only Kallen's sobs are heard in the room. Everyone else in the room was simply silent about the scene they were witnessing, though some of the more sensitive people like Tianzi couldn't help but shed tears at the whole situation as well.
Several minutes pass until the whole situation calms down a bit, finally ending when Kallen pulls her head from Milly's chest, though the young girl's eyes are still red from crying.
"Are you feeling better, Kallen?" Milly asks kindly.
Kallen nods, not saying anything for fear that answering will simply make the tears resurface.
"Do you want to continue watching the episode, Miss Kōzuki?" asks Zero politely. "Or would you rather we wait another while?"
"It's okay," Kallen can barely get those words out, her still red eyes staring at the screen. "Not anymore, I promised I wouldn't cry anymore, that I would just move on to the future."
Zero turns to Nunnally, who was looking worriedly at Kallen, but sensing Zero's gaze she decides to continue with the episode, even though part of her didn't want to keep making Kallen watch the episode.
Almost trembling, Kallen's mother opens her cabinet with a key, to show that inside are several bottles and a contraption for making injections.
The sight of the drugs almost makes Kallen start sobbing again, but the young Japanese girl manages to stop herself from doing so by biting her lip as hard as she can, almost hard enough for it to start bleeding. "It's okay, mommy's okay now, mommy's okay now."
The others in the room cringe at the sight of the drugs, knowing full well what is going on. Many look back at Kallen, in case Kallen reacts to something that can be shown.
Zero for his part seeing the drugs can only remember when he had almost drugged Kallen to get information out of him, the man behind the mask has to use every fiber of his being to keep from vomiting. "That's why, that's why she reacted in that way," Zero for a moment can't forget remembering his beloved Euphemia. "Kallen, sorry. Euphy, sorry. You deserved a better knight, one who would do no wrong, one who could protect you."
"Crying, like before," says Lelouch reading a magazine next to Suzaku in the Council room. "What a shame!"
"Call it my honest side," says Suzaku playing on the floor with Arthur, though the cat quickly ends up biting his hand.
Lelouch looks at Suzaku. "Well, it was good that everyone was saved. Thanks to the Black Knights."
Suzaku frowns. "If they wanted to catch criminals, they should have joined the police. Why don't they do that?"
Some people let out sighs at the change of scenes, relieved that they finally don't have to see everything surrounding Kallen and her mother. So relieved are they that even those who find Suzaku's words ridiculous ignore them for once.
"Maybe because they don't think the police can do it," Lelouch replies, looking back down at his magazine.
"Maybe the police aren't effective now, but they can change it from the inside," Suzaku turns to look at Lelouch.
"And in that process of change, you will end up entangled by all kinds of restrictions."
Tamaki snorts. Suzaku's words annoy the Japanese man too much. "Yeah right, like we can do that."
"Kururugi really seems to think he's living in a fairy tale," Chiba frowns. "They would never have let one of us be able to change things."
"You don't know that," Cécile protests. "There was nothing wrong with what Suzaku wanted."
"Yes," Rivalz supports Cécile. "Suzaku simply wanted to help in his own way."
Chiba looks at the scientist and the student angrily. "That's easy for you to say, you never had to live through what we went through."
Cécile wants to rebut the Japanese woman, but Lloyd stops her, giving her a look that conveys that it's not worth arguing about.
"They can only say that after they've tried to do it!" Suzaku protests. "As long as you don't, everything you say will be arrogant!"
"Arrogant?" Lelouch asks, looking at Suzaku out of the corner of his eye.
"And what constitutes the evil in his eyes?" Suzaku asks. "What standards are they using? It's just selfish self-satisfaction!"
Chiba slams her seat, tired of Suzaku's words. "Is he even listening to himself? Literally all he's done is judge our actions by his own morals! How can anyone be so damn hypocritical!"
"It's quite... deplorable," Tohdoh doesn't say those words in anger, more than anything else he seems simply resigned and disappointed.
"Master," Tohdoh's words and tone hurt Zero more than Zero thought possible. "I really am, aren't I? Even Lelouch said so, we're both hypocrites."
The door to the room opens giving way to Shirley, surprising Suzaku.
"Is it just the two of you?" Shirley asks.
Suzaku stands up. "Well, I have to get back to the base. See you, Shirley."
"See you," Shirley said a bit confused. Lelouch just keeps looking at Suzaku until he disappears.
Shirley closes the door and starts walking towards Lelouch with a focused expression as she looks at the floor. "Lulu! I was wondering..." Shirley looks up, a blush can be seen on her cheeks. "If you have the time, maybe we can..."
"He said he had to get back to base," Lelouch says to himself, interrupting Shirley, whom he didn't seem to have heard. The young former Prince frowns. "Going back... implying that's where he thinks he belongs."
Milly shakes her head. "Oh, Lelouch..."
"Big brother," Nunnally looks worriedly at Lelouch.
"Lelouch...", Zero thinks as he looks at his old friend. "It really bothered you, didn't it? I wonder how come I didn't notice it until it was too late."
Chiba frowns. "He didn't have to be so rude to the girl," Chiba can't help but feel a little bad about the way Lelouch ignored Shirley. "She didn't deserve that."
"Refrain?" Kallen says in a shopping mall, the redhead on the phone.
"It's a narcotic," Ohgi says into the phone. "Specifically, it makes you feel like you're going back in time."
"It sounds like a bestseller, especially among the Japanese."
"Everyone is nostalgic for the time before Britannia occupied Japan," Ohgi says, making Kallen tense up. "It's a drug specifically aimed at the Japanese. We can't ignore it. We must act as soon as the burai are established again."
"We're getting more supplies. I hear there are many who want to join," says Kallen while Ohgi's location is displayed on the screen. "The Black Knights are popular, aren't they?"
Ohgi looked at the photo where he, Kallen and Naoto were standing. "Well, we are knights of justice. I'll contact you when the ammunition arrives."
Kallen hangs up the phone, but she hears voices.
"Come on, eleven! Say something!"
Kallen turns to observe a Japanese man being harassed by several Britannians, near the group is a small hotdog stand, which was being manned by the Japanese man.
"Imbeciles!" Tamaki glared at the Britannians.
"How much you want to bet he didn't do anything to deserve that?" Anya asks.
Chiba snorts. "Please, it's obvious they're just doing it because they think it's funny."
"Come on, apologize!" says one of the Britannians as he pushes the Japanese man to the ground with his foot. "Apologize!"
"Head down is what the eleven do best, isn't it?" asks another Britannian sarcastically. The people around the group simply look away and try to act as if nothing is happening.
"Eleven..." Kallen looks at the scene with a frown, and then starts to approach the group, but before she can do anything she is stopped by Lelouch, who holds her by the shoulder. "Lelouch!"
"No, there's five of them. You wouldn't stand a chance at all," Lelouch says.
Tamaki laughs. "Kallen could have easily kicked those idiots' asses in a minute."
"Lelouch probably knew, after all, he saw her manage to hit a bee," says Cornelia. "He just stopped her from blowing her cover."
"Not to mention the trouble the man would be in later," Sayoko adds. "He'd probably never be able to work there again."
Kallen nods. "Yes, Lelouch stopping me really was the best thing for everyone."
Kallen looks at Lelouch angrily. "So, should I just ignore them?"
"Look closely at the eleven being beaten," Lelouch says, turning to look at the eleven being harassed, causing Kallen to do the same. "Suppose we help him and he manages to win. Starting tomorrow, he won't be able to sell anything here anymore. He's decided to be a slave to the Britannian on his own. That's the price of working in the settlement."
Ohgi sighs. "Sadly, it was the truth, we did indeed have to stoop to being slaves if we wanted to be able to work there."
"Tch, they just liked to humiliate us," Tamaki says in annoyance.
"Still..." Kallen tries to protest.
"Do you have a problem?" asks one of the Britannians who was bothering the Japanese, he and his group approach Lelouch and Kallen. "Do you feel sorry for that eleven?"
"You don't want to join him, do you?" asks another man, who for some reason has his jacket on backwards, aggressively.
"No way," Lelouch says as he closes his eyes, only to open them with the Geass activated just as the Britannians are in front of him. "But you're tired of beating up elevens now, aren't you?"
"Yeah, this sucks," says one being controlled by the Geass as he starts to leave with his companions.
Rakshata smiles in amusement. "And now use the Geass to stop them from bothering the vendor."
"I guess it's the best use for it," Ohgi says with satisfaction. "It avoids a fight and doesn't hurt anyone."
"But it's still mind control," Lloyd grins mischievously. "Shouldn't it still be bad, according to you?"
Xingke sighs. "That's the problem, isn't it? How exactly should we judge Geass? Can we only say it's evil when it's used to steal or kill? Will it always be evil no matter what the reason?"
"It's a tool," Rakshata says, smoking her pipe. "I don't see why we should treat the Geass any differently than we treat a knightmare or a weapon, it all depends on the person using it and their reason for using it."
"You can't compare them," Guilford protests. "Geass takes away a person's independence, and there's no way to defend yourself."
Tohdoh looks at the ground. "It's really not worth continuing this debate, it's just like Xingke said, we all have our own opinions on the matter. It would be best if we just move on."
"They get bored easily, don't they?" says Lelouch, playing dumb.
Kallen quickly approaches the Japanese man, who was kneeling on the ground. "Are you all right?"
The Japanese man looks up and is surprised to see Kallen's uniform. "A Britannian student! What can I get you? How about a Californian hotdog?"
"Huh?" Kallen looks surprised at the Japanese man, who looks up and notices Lelouch.
"Is this your boyfriend?" asks the vendor, looking at Lelouch. "I'd be happy to make him something too! I have ice cream, if you want it," Kallen looks at the vendor and can't believe what she's witnessing.
Kallen feels a small blush appear on her face as she listens to the salesman mistake Lelouch for her boyfriend. "Really? It was simply a mistake; I shouldn't have to blush about it."
"Ah Kallen, it looks like you and Lelouch have been mistaken for a couple," Milly jokes. "Maybe it's because of how cute you two look together."
"M-madam President," Kallen stumbles over her words, the blush on her face only growing deeper as she hears Milly's words.
"In some ways, Area 11 is better off compared to old Japan," said Lelouch as he and Kallen were shown sitting on a bench in the park. "When they were brought to the Britannian colonization areas, their economic and military affairs became more stable. They can even get citizenship if they follow the proper legal procedures, they can become Honorary Britannian citizens, can't they? Beyond that, it's just a matter of pride. Well, I can understand why they value that sentiment."
"¿And? Kallen asks, drawing Lelouch's attention. "Knowing all that, what does Lelouch Lamperouge think about it? What do you want to do?"
"Nothing, really."
Gino snorts in amusement. "Well, that's not a lie at all."
Kallen looks at Lelouch. "You look smart, you know, but you don't use your brain. Shirley always complains about that. She says you're so smart, but you never put any effort into anything."
"That's why I don't do anything," Lelouch replies. "Even that eleven we saw earlier would understand. He can live a better life if he bows to the Britannians."
Kallen, listening to Lelouch, remembers her mother, so she ends up slapping the teenager. "You think you're so cool, don't you? You're just playing the critic while you watch the world out of the corner of your eye," Kallen turns away from Lelouch. "I was an idiot to expect anything more from you. I thought you were better than this!"
"Oops, that came out wrong," says Rivalz.
"Yes, yes it did," Kallen sighs. "That was really the moment, wasn't it? Where I was unable to even imagine Lelouch as Zero, that's why I..." Kallen's eyes darken as she remembers everything that had happened with Lelouch on Kamine Island.
Lelouch simply watches her go as he touches where she slapped him.
Kallen's mother is shown back in her room, she opens her cabinet again, showing that now all the bottles are either broken or completely empty. Kallen's mother has an expression of pure horror.
Seeing her mother so desperate for the drug doesn't improve Kallen's mood at all, the redhead averts her gaze not wanting to see her mother act like this. "It's over, she's happy now."
"About what happened with Naranja," Villetta says, appearing on the screen next to Jeremiah in a bar, Jeremiah gets upset when he hears his nickname, something Villetta notices. "I'm sorry I brought it up, is it true you can't remember anything from when Suzaku Kururugi was taken from us?"
"I don't expect you to believe me," Jeremiah says with his eyes closed.
Villetta looked at Jeremiah. "No, it's just that during the Shinjuku incident, I had a mental gap too."
"Didn't you talk about it before?" Nina asks. "I would have expected you to talk about it as soon as possible."
Villetta sighs. "We had several problems in those days, we didn't really have a moment where we could just talk about it."
"It was all too chaotic," Jeremiah adds. "At that time we were on the verge of complete ruin, we focused all our attention on how to improve the situation for ourselves."
"What?" Jeremiah says in confusion.
"When I came to my senses, my Sutherland had been stolen," Villetta says, looking away. "But just before that mental gap, I remember meeting a boy wearing a school uniform."
Jeremiah's expression turns with obvious seriousness. "Do you think that student did it?"
"I can't remember his face, but it might be worth looking into."
Cornelia frowns. "And you never thought to inform us about your research?"
"U-uh, well," Villetta stutters as she meets Cornelia's gaze. "We didn't think they'd take us seriously until we brought conclusive evidence, and at worst, they might have accused us of something else to further ruin our reputation."
"Still, your duty as soldiers always takes precedence," Guilford says. "If we'd known what you remembered, we could have caught Lelouch much sooner."
Villetta swallows her own saliva. "I know, but we weren't thinking about that at the time."
"What the hell is that Zero thinking?" Tamaki says outside a warehouse at night along with other members of the Black Knights. "After all that talk of dethroning Britannia, now all we do is help the cops!"
"But it doesn't feel bad when people thank us," says Ohgi.
"Yes, we are heroes on the internet," Sugiyama seconds.
Kallen looks down at the ground depressed as she stands on top of a knightmare. "We're doing the right thing, aren't we?"
"Kallen..." Ohgi looks at Kallen worriedly.
Ohgi in the room also looks at Kallen. "So it was your argument with Lelouch that affected you at that moment."
"Yes," Kallen replies. "What he said to me was bothering me."
"There's Zero's signal!" Tamaki said as he saw a blinking green light on the other side of the warehouse.
"How did he get in?" Sugiyama asks.
Tamaki frowns. "How many tricks does this guy have up his sleeve?"
Inside the warehouse several people are packing and organizing several boxes containing bottles of Refrain.
"Did you finish packing the things for Nagoya?" asks a man inside the warehouse.
"It's so nice and safe inside the settlement, isn't it?" says a second man.
Suddenly several shots come out of one of the warehouse doors, causing the workers to start fleeing, though some are hit by bullets. The Black Knights break through the door and enter the warehouse.
"The Black Knights have arrived!" Tamaki announces with a smile as he fires again.
Several of the workers grab weapons and begin to defend themselves. "Intruders!"
Kallen enters with her knightmare, scaring everyone inside the warehouse.
"A knightmare!" says one of the workers.
"No!" shouts another completely frightened worker.
"Are you kidding me?" says the third worker as he and his companions begin to flee.
"These knightmares are incredible," Kallen says, moving forward. "Even one of them is nearly unstoppable!"
Kallen smiles in amusement at her past self's words. "And who would have thought that everything would be so much more complicated in the future?"
"Hm, it's a good thing you had my Guren," Rakshata says with a smile. "I doubt even you would have been able to defeat the Lancelot with a simple Burai."
"Yes, it was fortunate to be able to use the Guren."
Kallen keeps moving forward, destroying another door to the warehouse, which to her surprise leads her to a completely dark room, where several people are behaving erratically.
The people inside the room are moving strangely and everyone is talking as if they are having the time of their lives.
The scene of all those Japanese acting in such a way in the dark is bizarre to everyone in the room, even those who had already been present at that moment.
Tohdoh shakes his head. "It really is a disgrace."
"Though an inevitable one," Lloyd says. "With all that's happened to them, it's no surprise that many would prefer to escape into their memories, especially when doing so allows them to forget all they've lost."
Cornelia can't help but lower her gaze as she listens to the scientist's words, remembering how she had felt her world fall apart when she learned about Euphemia's death. "Would I have done the same thing too; would I have been able to use Refrain just so I could forget about Euphy's death? Ironic, my desire to clear Euphy's name by avenging his death might have been what in a way allowed me to continue living in the present."
"Refrain..." says Kallen as she understands the reason why they were acting that way. Kallen's expression turns to sadness as she sees her compatriots under the effect of the drug.
Milly's words ring inside Kallen's head, "When you pile them on, they eventually break you."
Kallen frowns. "That's right, that's why I..."
"Watch out! It's dangerous to run like that!"
Kallen's expression changes completely as she recognizes the voice, only to finally notice that, among the drugged Japanese, her mother was also there. "Mom?"
Kallen closes her eyes not wanting to see her mother in that state again.
Kallen's mother is walking in front of the knightmare, deep in her memories, until at one point she stumbles, so Kallen reflexively holds her up with his knightmare so she doesn't fall.
"I'm serious Naoto!" says Mrs. Kōzuki, still not seeing the situation she is really in. "You have to take care of Kallen!"
Tears begin to well up in Kallen's eyes again. "Mom... Big brother..."
Milly quickly gets back into position to comfort Kallen, prepared in case her friend breaks down again from what she sees on the screen.
Ohgi looks down as well. "Naoto, why did you have to leave," Ohgi holds back his tears, refusing to cry over Naoto's death in front of Kallen. "I must be strong, for Kallen's sake."
Kallen closes her eyes not wanting to see her mother in such a state. "How weak are you? You gave in to Britannia, to a man, and now drugs?" Kallen's eyes widen slightly. "My brother is dead! That's enough!"
Out of nowhere the right arm of Kallen's knightmare explodes, completely surprising the redhead, who upon turning to see the reason why her right arm exploded, manages to see an enemy knightmare.
"A knightcop!?" Kallen shouts in disbelief, then starts to run away while still protecting her mother.
"Isn't it a police unit?" Sugiyama asks, entering the room along with Zero and the other Black Knights.
Ohgi looks at his partner. "Do they work with them? Tamaki!"
"I don't know!" Tamaki says. "When I looked through things, I was sure that..."
"Dirty crooks," Zero interrupts with disgust.
"And I said they should just join the police. I really was an idiot, an idiot who only hurt those I swore to protect," Zero thinks as a bitter laugh leaves his lips, though his expression turns serious in a moment. "Lelouch, Euphy, I need to see what happened, I need to see what happened."
Cornelia spits at the sight of the knightcop. "Detestable. I hope he got what he deserved."
"Yes, he did," Ohgi says with satisfaction.
For her part, Kallen was still running away from knightmare while dodging her shots. Kallen's mother was miraculously still being held by the arm that still worked, managing not to fall even with all the movement.
"You're in the way!" Kallen says, annoyed that she can't defend herself by holding her mother, but for some reason she can't bring herself to throw her away. "Why? I don't want you, but... I don't want you!" Kallen lifts her mother up as her knightmare is finally knocked down by a shot, causing it to fall to the ground. Kallen opening his eyes sees that his mother is lying on the ground, still alive.
"Kallen..." Mrs. Kōzuki whispers with little strength. "Naoto..."
The knightcop keeps shooting at Kallen's knightmare, which can only distress inside the knightmare.
Zero and the others get to where the knightcop and Kallen are.
"Against a knightmare...", Lelouch thinks worriedly as his face is shown against a green background.
Schneizel looks at the scene intrigued. "There's that green background again, I wonder if it has some deeper meaning," Schneizel smiles as he realizes something. "If these recordings are trying to emulate a television show, then most likely...", Schneizel lets out a small chuckle, a chuckle that doesn't go unnoticed by Cornelia.
"Did you notice anything?" Cornelia asks.
"We could say that, but I think I'd better keep it to myself until we get back to discussing what we've seen."
Cornelia looks suspiciously at her half-brother, but decides not to say more, realizing it would only be a waste of time.
The knightcop finally finishes shooting Kallen, only to end up approaching her.
Kallen, for her part, looks up to see her mother. "Run..." Kallen's mother simply turns in her daughter's direction, causing Kallen to become upset. "Run, you idiot!"
"I'm here for you," Mrs. Kōzuki says, starting to get up. I'll always be here if you need me, Kallen.
"Mom," Kallen looks at her mother with glassy eyes. "Thank you, thank you so much for always being there for me, thank you so much mom."
"She really is a very good mother," Nunnally thinks, looking at the scene with a smile, though for a moment that smile disappears. "Mom, you would have done the same thing too, wouldn't you?"
Milly looks at Kallen's mother as well, though her expression doesn't show her characteristic happiness. "A mother who would do anything to help her daughter, it must be really nice to have something like that," the blonde can't help but remember her own mother, who was willing to compromise her even when she didn't want it, just to bring the Ashford family back to nobility. "You really do have a great mother, Kallen."
Kallen, listening to her mother, remembers how she acted as a maid. "That's why... That's why you stayed working in that house? That's why? Idiot..." Tears appear in Kallen's eyes.
The knightcop for his part is about to hit Kallen with his dagger, but Kallen manages to stop him before he can.
"I was the real idiot," Kallen says, then uses her slash harken to be dragged into one of the giant shelves in the room, successfully destroying the knightcop's cockpit and thus destroying his pilot.
"Kallen!" shouts Ohgi as he approaches his friend along with the rest of the Black Knights, except for Zero, being the only one who doesn't approach.
Kallen upon recovering from the experience, immediately looks at her mother, who is still sitting in the same place she was originally sitting.
"I'm so happy for you, Kallen," says her mother, caught up in her memories. "Now you can be Britannian. Now no one can hurt you. You can use the phone and even travel."
"That was his mother..." Lelouch thinks sadly.
C.C. for some reason stood on one of the inner beams of the room, the green-haired immortal looks at the scene with a solemn expression. "Fake tears cause pain to others. A fake smile causes pain to yourself."
"Now that I see it, this must have hit Lelouch pretty hard," Nina says. "Considering what happened to his own mother."
Nunnally is saddened to hear Nina, "Big brother, you always sought to find out what happened to mom, but..." Nunnally for some reason feels a slight headache as she remembers Marianne. "I don't understand, I think I can see that you found out that what happened, but at the same time I don't. I don't understand."
"Lelouch, did what happened to my mother really affect you that much?" thinks Kallen, a small smile of gratitude appearing on her face. "Thank you Lelouch, thank you for giving me the chance to be able to save my mother."
"It's an aftereffect of the drug," says a nurse as the scene changes to show a hospital room, where Kallen is lying next to her mother, who is lying on one of the beds in the room. "She can't talk much. She'll recover eventually, but she'll need time."
"She did recover, didn't she?" asks Gino.
Kallen smiles. "Yes, she's in perfect health now."
Kallen looks at her mother. "Mother, your sentence is... 20 years," Kallen's expression changes to one of sadness, but quickly turns to one of pure determination. "Just wait! I'm trying to change everything by the time you come back! I'll create a world where you and I can live a normal life together. Then please..."
Kallen looks like she's about to cry, but suddenly sees her mother put her hand over hers.
"Hold on..." Kallen's mother says those words faintly, surprising Kallen completely. "Hold on, Kallen, my child."
Kallen looks at her mother, as a hopeful smile appears on her face. "I will!" Kallen grabs her mother's hand as she begins to cry. "I'll do my best!"
"And you did Kallen, I'm sure she's proud of you," Ohgi says looking at Kallen fondly.
Tamaki nods. "Yes, she's probably very happy."
"I hope so," Kallen remembers her mother. The young redhead smiles as she remembers how things had gotten better. "I'm sure she's happy."
"It was a little strange, though, wasn't it?" Lloyd asks. "These videos were supposed to show us the truth about His Majesty, Suzaku and C.C., but they hardly appeared in the whole episode."
"It's certainly strange, though C.C.'s words about giving a fake smile are also strange," Kaguya says. "It does match what happened with Kallen's mother, but it also seems like she's experienced it firsthand."
"It's rather peculiar, especially talking about C.C.," Xingke thinks about it. "I really can't imagine C.C. pretending to be happy in order to fool someone else, it doesn't seem like her."
Tohdoh nods. "Yes, she never acted that way."
Schneizel smiles. "It's certainly curious, at least now we know that it's possible for an episode to focus on neither of them, and instead focus on one of us."
"It looks like it," Zero says. "Well, Your Majesty, what do you say we take a break after the next episode? It might also be useful for us to discuss what we've seen so far."
"I think that would be best," Nunnally agrees with Zero. "Then we should continue," Nunnally uses the controller to start the tenth episode.
And we continue with another chapter of the translation. Honestly when translating it I couldn't help remembering the times in my youth when I made my mother cry, and god it feels horrible to remember that, although it helped me a bit to put myself more in Kallen's shoes, even though her situation is obviously something much more serious.
The text below is the original chapter notes.
Here's the ninth episode. Sadly I couldn't manage to post it on Sunday, but at least I'm almost completely sure that the next chapter will be out this Sunday, I hope you enjoy it.
This chapter was a bit weird to write, mostly due to the fact that being a Kallen-centric episode, I didn't have much for the audience to argue with, and mostly it was Kallen getting sad about her mother's situation, so I'm sorry if this chapter felt a bit repetitive. The next chapter should be much better.
Kallen's thoughts on the irony of how she believed her mother would be willing to give up everything to be with the man she fell in love with, only to realize that she herself is guilty of it, is based on Kallen's poem, where she herself admits that if Lelouch had kissed her back, she would have followed him, even if it had been a lie.
I hope you don't think I hate Suzaku, I just find it hard to write him being somewhat right that you can change the system from within, as it may be possible in some of our nations, but in Britannia sadly it was a losing battle from the start, It doesn't help that almost no one in the audience likes Suzaku, only the Ashford members, Cecile, Lloyd and Nunally have mostly positive feelings towards Suzaku, almost everyone else has conflicting feelings towards him, or hates him, although we all know that no one will ever hate Suzaku more than Suzaku himself.
Well, I hope to see you in the next chapter, then another interlude should follow.
Don't forget to leave your reviews, they always help to improve this story.