First off, I did my best to make the military training realistic while also keeping in humor, character development, and the start of the formation of bonds. I did do my research on what is done during military training (focusing on US Army Boot Camp Training) though.

Second off, about Tara's Geass. I call it an Irregular Geass in that it effects the world itself rather than the mind and has more deadly consequences (like Rolo's Geass freezes time and puts a strain on Rolo's heart if he uses it too much. If this isn't canon, I'm sorry but that's just the way I saw it and I'm sticking to it). It may seem op but it's not. It just looks that way since it's only used in a single chapter, wasn't seen through the user's POV, and hasn't been fully explored (which it will when we get to ARC III, though I will touch on it in ARC II). This was in response to an anonymous review since I couldn't PM them to respond to the statement myself.

Anyway, that's all I can think of right now. I'm pretty sure there's something else that I needed to say here but I can't remember what it is.

Thank you to Blacksword Zero, DYnoJackal19, Shimmering-Sky, PiroWolfxL, Shadow-Shinobi666, David Davtyan, ewertondragon, Miraculous Messiah, HufflepuffKat, davycrockett100, and squeegywing for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are awesome.

I hope that you enjoy this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.

. . .

. . .

January 22, 2016

Sapporo, Hokkaido, Area 11

It was early afternoon and the city of Sapporo was bustling with business. It made trying to get through the crowd all the harder for Tadashi Akiyama and his family. They were currently heading toward a nearby marketplace to pick some groceries. Unlike in other places throughout Area 11, Sapporo actually allowed Elevens to work without having to apply for Honorary Britannian status, though the jobs they got were usually jobs that none of the Britannians wanted. Tadashi's mother was a janitor at a clothing store while his father was a construction worker, though his father was an Honorary Britannian so he, at least, got some better benefits.

At least, that was how he had explained the matter to Tadashi and his little brother Fuyuki when he was trying to convince Tadashi to apply for Honorary Britannian citizenship. Tadashi was considering it, though he didn't know why he wanted to; the only thing that such a status would give him was a chance at getting a job better than most Elevens in Sapporo or join the military. Unfortunately, Tadashi doubted he would make it very far in the latter; not only was he not the most active person—his brother called him lazy—but he also didn't exactly have the patience to go through basic training. He also wasn't entirely sure he wanted to fight for Britannia anyway.

"So what're we getting again?" Fuyuki asked, turning to gaze at his mother. At fifteen, Fuyuki was taller than their mother, something their father always teased his wife about, with her dirty blonde hair, though the brothers shared their eye color.

"I'm thinking just things for dinner for now. We can come back for fruit, breads, and snacks. I don't have much on me," their mother said as they walked past a group of Britannians who glared at them but said nothing.

"I can get some fruit but that's about it. I spent most of my check on the rent," their dad said.

"Can we get cantaloupe?" Tadashi asked. He loved cantaloupe. Actually, he loved all sorts of melons.

"Oh and strawberries?" Fuyuki asked.

"All right," their dad said with a small smile.

They wandered around the marketplace, looking at the various foods that were being sold. The marketplace was crowded and it was rather difficult to get through the crowds. Fuyuki grabbed Tadashi's hand to avoid getting separated as they meandered their way after their parents.

It was then that everything went to hell in a hand basket.

An explosion erupted in the center of the crowd, causing a spray of blood and body parts from those unfortunate enough to be at the heart of the blast. Screams erupted from the crowd and they began surging toward the side streets and alleys that would take them out of the marketplace, unintentionally separating Tadashi and Fuyuki from their parents. However, that was when a series of gunshots could be heard and Tadashi turned toward the source, grabbing Fuyuki, and watching as men and women in green and dark gray military uniforms with rifles or handguns in their hands charged the crowd.

"Tadashi! Fuyuki!"

Tadashi quickly turned toward the sound of his mother's yell and bolted toward her, dragging his little brother behind him. Fuyuki stumbled but kept on running; both of them were pale with fright at the chaos that was surrounding them. Bodies were falling, riddled with bullets, and staining the ground with blood.

Tadashi ducked past an older couple that were bolting for a side alley and finally managed to reach his mother. His mother drew both Tadashi and his brother into her arms and cradled them close.

"Where's Dad?" Fuyuki asked, his voice muffled since his face was pressed into their mother's stomach.

"Looking for you. He lost sight of you when the explosion happened," their mother said as she released them. "C'mon, we need to get out of here. Your father will find us later." She then grabbed them and dragged them behind a food stand, just as a series of bullets came flying in their direction. Pushing them behind the food stand, she peered out around it, chewing on her lower lip, a habit that Tadashi had picked up on.

The onesided firefight stopped and Tadashi peered out around his mother, noting that there was no one left standing.

"Who are they?" Fuyuki asked.

"Terrorists, probably," their mother said.

"I heard something. There are some witnesses left here," one of the terrorists said.

"Remember what the boss said. There can't be any witnesses. We can't afford to have word of what's happened here reach Prince Clovis's ears," another of the terrorists said and boots tapped against the bloodstained ground as the terrorists walked toward them.

Their mother swore and quickly looked around for an escape route, only to find that the alley behind them led to a dead end and there was no cover, aside from the food stand, in sight.

Fuyuki swallowed and Tadashi gritted his teeth, feeling his own fear well up inside him as the two terrorists reached them.

"Ah, it's an Eleven. Guess we don't gotta worry 'bout her and her brats telling Prince Clovis," the first terrorist mused.

"Kill them," the second terrorist said.

"But…"

"The boss wants no witnesses, no matter if they're Eleven or not."

"Yes, sir."

Tadashi quickly put himself in front of his little brother protectively and noticed his mother doing the same to him.

The first terrorist pointed his gun at Tadashi's mother and fired, hitting her between the eyes.

"Mom!" Tadashi and Fuyuki cried at the same time, watching in sadness as their mother's body crumpled in a pool of her own blood.

"Get rid of the kids next," the second terrorist said.

"They're just kids," the first terrorist began.

"Doesn't matter. Get rid of…" The rest of his sentence was lost when two gunshots sounded and Tadashi watched as both terrorists fell with bullet wounds in their heads. He turned toward the source to find his dad running towards them with two Britannian soldiers, who were holstering their guns, running behind him.

They…saved us? Britannians saved us? He thought in confusion as his father reached him and drew both him and his little brother into his arms.

. . .

5

The First Week of Training

April 12, 2016

Barracks, Basic Training Camp

Tadashi was in the middle of a very good dream. He was dreaming that he was surfing on a beach, winking at blushing, giggling gorgeous girls in bikinis and waving at them. The sun beat down on him as he surfed, his grin widening as he caught sight of the large wave that was heading his way. Even if, in real life, he never surfed, in dreams, anything could happen and Tadashi has always wanted to learn how to surf ever since he saw his dad do it while they were visiting relatives in the Chinese Federation six years earlier.

He grinned to himself as he prepared to surf the large wave when, suddenly, his surfboard was yanked from beneath his feet by an invisible force. With a yelp, Tadashi was sent flailing into the water. Only, instead of a splash and the cold water drenching him, Tadashi met the unforgiving stone floor.

"Ow!" Tadashi exclaimed and sitting up, blinking the sleep out of his eyes and looking around for the culprit that had, so rudely, yanked him out of his very pleasant dream. "Okay, who yanked me off my bunk?"

"You did," Kay said dryly. "You literally rolled off your bunk in your sleep."

Tadashi blinked and noticed that he was still wrapped up in his blankets and, now that the sleep was starting to fade from his mind, he realized that he hadn't felt anyone grab him. "Oh," he said.

"That's one way to wake up," Rayne noted as she walked over to join them. She was already dressed in her gray military training uniform. She was followed by a pretty blonde girl with a dancer's body and brown eyes that were eyeing him with disapproval.

"Glad I have your approval," Tadashi said, pushing himself to his feet and rubbing his eyes as he took in everyone around him. Rayne, the new girl, Kay, Suzaku, and Lelouch were already ready for the day whereas Tadashi was still in his pajamas.

"Um, how much time do I have?" he asked.

"Ten minutes," Kay said.

Swearing, Tadashi, after quickly grabbing his uniform from his footlocker, bolted for the bathroom, cursing the fact that he had slept in on his first day of basic training. Nice going, Tadashi. Didn't Dad tell you that being late was a surefire way to get you kicked out, you stupid moron? He thought to himself as he disappeared into the bathroom.

After doing his business, he quickly got changed and splashed some water on his face to wash away the traces of sleep. His hair he would have to leave as is since he really didn't have the time to make it look even somewhat presentable.

Bolting out of the bathroom, Tadashi nearly tripped over his own two feet in his haste to get back to his bunk and get his area somewhat presentable. According to his dad, the Drill Sergeant sometimes did inspections and Tadashi didn't want them to think he wasn't taking this seriously.

Because he was taking this seriously.

It was the only way he could repay the kindness that Britannia had exuded him, his brother, and his father and it was the only way he could avenge the murder of his mother

When those terrorists had attacked that marketplace at Sapporo a few months ago and killed Tadashi's mother, it was because of those two Britannian soldiers with his father that he was still alive. He owed it to them and even said so but the Britannian soldiers had just said that they were doing the right thing.

"Not all Britannians are prejudiced and discriminatory, despite common belief."

"It's our job, as military men, to protect people like you, people who can't protect themselves."

It was those words, along with his desire to avenge his mother, which sealed Tadashi's decision to join the military. He wanted to be like the two Britannian soldiers who saved his and his little brother's lives; he wanted to protect people who couldn't protect themselves.

But, in order to accomplish that goal, he had to make it through basic training and he wasn't doing a very good job of making a good first impression, he realized with a grimace. I've really gotta work on that, he thought.

"So what're we doing first today anyway?" he asked once he finished tidying up his bunk and footlocker to the best with the minute or so he had.

"Classroom instruction," Kay said. "Rules, regulations, that kind of thing."

"Don't forget the physical fitness test," Rayne said.

Lelouch seemed to pale at that. "I thought we got those out of the way before we even started," he said.

"It's necessary in the first week. It probably won't be until the end of the week though," Kay said.

"Speaking of physical fitness tests, just how did you pass yours, Lelouch? Did you finally build up your stamina? 'Cause, last I checked, you had less stamina than a snail," Suzaku teased.

"Shut up, you exercise nut," Lelouch shot back.

Suzaku just chuckled.

"Wait, wait, wait, did you say classroom instruction?" Tadashi asked, recalling that was the first thing Kay had said.

"Yeah, it's necessary to go over rules, regulations and so on," Rayne said. "Oh, by the way, you weren't here but this is my bunkmate Lila Moore."

Tadashi completely forgot about the upcoming classroom instruction portion of basic training as he recalled the pretty girl he had seen when he woke up. "Hello there, pretty lady! I'm Tadashi Akiyama," he said brightly, holding out a hand to Lila.

Lila gazed at him with a cool, expressionless eyes and didn't respond but she did, at least, shake his hand, which he counted as a win in his books.

The group headed toward the entrance with the rest of the crowd of recruits. Tadashi fell back to walk alongside Suzaku, feeling more comfortable around an Honorary Britannian like him, even if he was walking alongside an Imperial Prince.

Tadashi still found it surprising that an Imperial Prince would be there of all places but decided that he didn't care. Lelouch seemed nice enough, didn't look down on Tadashi just because he was an Eleven, and even seemed to be friends with another Eleven so he was all right in Tadashi's books.

"So where do ya come from, Suzaku?" Tadashi asked conversationally.

"Oh, here and there," Suzaku said vaguely, averting his eyes. "What about you?"

"I'm from Sapporo," Tadashi admitted and pushed the memory of the last time he had been in the largest settlement on Hokkaido, maintaining a smile to hide the surge of sadness that he always felt when he thought about his hometown. Especially the memories associated with both it and his mother.

"So do you have any siblings, Suzaku?" Tadashi asked, hoping to keep the conversation alive as they left the barracks and headed toward the mess hall.

"No. You?"

"Yeah, I've got a little brother. The annoying runt's name's Fuyuki," Tadashi said, smiling as he thought about his brother. Fuyuki may not have liked Tadashi's decision to apply to be an Honorary Britannian or his decision to join the military but, when Tadashi had explained his reasoning, Fuyuki had just hugged him and told him to be careful.

"And avenge Mom, Tadashi. Please, avenge her."

I will, little brother, Tadashi thought in determination. Someway, somehow, I will.

. . .

April 13, 2016

Basic Training Camp

It was times like these that Lelouch was grateful that he was a quick learner and a genius at that. There was a reason why he was able to maintain such high grades at Ashford Academy despite constantly slacking off and skipping classes to go gambling with Rivalz. Of course, no one really understood how he did that but Lelouch figured an eidetic memory definitely helped.

Still, that didn't make the classroom instruction any less boring and it was even stricter since they were actively looking out for anyone slacking in the classroom. Lelouch had to force himself to stay awake, despite only having about five hours of sleep the night before, because he knew he couldn't afford to mess up, not when Nunnally's safety was on the line.

He noticed Suzaku was paying rapt attention to the instructor, jotting down notes every now and then but mostly just listening to what the instructor said. Kay was just listening nearby while Tadashi looked like he was sleeping with his eyes open. Lelouch smirked at that; he had perfected the art of sleeping in class without getting caught but Tadashi was doing pretty well.

He wondered just how long it would before he got caught, especially since he could hear a snore leaving his lips every now and then.

Lila and Rayne were seated just behind them, also paying attention to the instructor, taking notes in Lila's case or just listening in Rayne's.

Lelouch may have only known these four people since the day before but they seemed nice enough. He would keep his eye on them though, just in case they showcased something that may prove useful.

The young prince wasn't an idiot, far from it really, and he knew that he couldn't just rely on Schneizel's allies if he wanted to make a name for himself and gain the prestige that he needed to gain in order to prove he was useful to the Emperor. He needed his own set of allies as well.

Especially if he wanted to destroy the Emperor and the Britannian system from within as he had decided was his new course.

He may not hate the Britannian people, and certainly not any of his half-siblings—he could never hate Euphie or Cornelia and especially not Nunnally—but he certainly hated the Social Darwinism that the system of Britannia had been based on. And, naturally, he hated the Emperor.

He cast a sidelong glance at Suzaku. Why did you join, Suzaku? He thought and resolved to ask during lunch.

"Recruit Akiyama! Pay attention!" The instructor stated loudly.

"42!" Tadashi exclaimed, jolting out of his sleep and then blushing in embarrassment when he realized what he just said, and that he had probably pissed off the instructor, though he did receive a few amused smirks from a few of his fellow recruits.

"Forty laps around the building, recruit, now!" the instructor ordered sharply.

"Yes, sir," Tadashi said glumly, got to his feet and left the classroom. Lelouch glanced out the window just in time to see the burnt-orange-haired teen jog past on his first lap.

Later, in the mess hall, Lelouch and Suzaku found a table away from the rest of the recruits. It wasn't that hard; even if the recruits wanted to get close to the recently-returned-to-life prince, they didn't seem too keen about sharing a table with an Honorary Britannian. Thus, they were left alone.

"I wonder how sore Tadashi's gonna be after all those laps coupled with the physical fitness warm-ups we just had to do," Suzaku mused, poking at whatever the hell was on their plates that the cook thought was food.

Lelouch shrugged, sipping at his water and not even bothering on trying the…whatever was on his plate. "Who knows? By the way, Suzaku, can I ask you something?" he said.

"Sure," Suzaku said.

"Why…?"

"Hey! Can we join you?" Rayne's voice said, interrupting Lelouch mid-question and he turned to find Rayne and Lila standing behind him with their trays in their hands.

"I don't mind. What do you say, Lelouch?" Suzaku said, glancing at Lelouch who just sighed and waved a hand toward a few of the empty seats.

Rayne smiled and sat down with Lila sitting just beside her. "What the heck is this stuff supposed to be anyway?" she asked, her smile fading into a grimace as she poked at the slop on her tray.

"It doesn't taste that bad," Suzaku admitted, having already taking a few bites of the slop.

"It better not start moving on its own," Rayne muttered.

"It's food. Food doesn't move on its own," Lila deadpanned, taking a small bite of the slop.

"Yeah, food doesn't. I'm not sure this counts as food."

Suzaku turned to Lelouch as Rayne, reluctantly, ate a few, tiny bites of the slop. "So what'd you want to ask me?" he asked.

"I wanted to ask…" Lelouch was interrupted, again, by Tadashi's familiar voice.

"Hiya, Lelouch, we can join ya, right?" He said, flopping down into a seat next to Lelouch who glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. He noted that Tadashi looked exhausted but was still wearing a bright, cheerful smile on his face.

"Considering you're already sitting down, I suppose," he said dryly.

Kay rolled his eyes as he sat down on Rayne's other side. "We only came to ask because we couldn't find any empty tables," he explained quietly.

"So how do ya think you're gonna do on the fitness test?" Tadashi asked before Lelouch could respond to Kay's words.

"You never did answer my question from yesterday either, Lelouch. How did you pass the preliminary tests to get here?" Suzaku asked curiously.

Lelouch didn't respond.

"I'm pretty confident that I'm gonna pass," Suzaku added when it became obvious Lelouch wasn't going to answer him.

"Of course you will, you exercise nut," Lelouch said with a smirk.

Suzaku rolled his eyes at Lelouch. "Real original, Lelouch," he said.

"If it works."

"I think I will too," Rayne said thoughtfully. "It doesn't seem like it'll be that hard."

"Same here," Tadashi said. "But, man, I'm exhausted from those laps I had to run this morning as well as that warm-up."

"That was your own fault. If you had only acted more professional, you wouldn't have been in that predicament," Lila scolded dispassionately.

"It's not like I meant to fall asleep," Tadashi huffed, sulking a little.

Suzaku smiled a little and then glanced at Lelouch. "So what were you gonna ask me?" he asked. "Sorry, I got distracted by the conversation."

"Right, I was going to…" Lelouch was interrupted, yet again, by the appearance of another person. He was starting to become irritated with all these interruptions.

"Excuse me, Your Highness, but may I sit here?" A soft voice said and Lelouch turned toward it to find a tall, broad-shouldered, and muscular young man with short-cropped olive-green hair and hazel eyes.

"Go ahead," Lelouch said, masking his irritation with a bored tone. "And you don't have to call me that. It's just Lelouch." He still wasn't that used to being called 'Your Highness' even after over a month of being addressed like that.

"Thank you, Your Highness," the young man said as he sat down on Tadashi's other side. "I am Dimitri Duncan."

"It's nice to meet you, Dimitri and, seriously, just call me Lelouch," the prince said, and took another sip of his water as the others around him introduced themselves to the newcomer. Dimitri inclined his head to them in greeting.

Lelouch then turned to Suzaku who was watching him questioningly.

"I wanted to ask you…" Lelouch began again.

The bell ending the lunch break rang.

Oh come on!

. . .

April 14, 2016

Outside the Barracks, Basic Training Camp

Suzaku had to admit that the first two days of basic training had gone by pretty quickly and they hadn't really done much, other than going over the main rules and regulations for men and women in the military. Many of those rules and regulations weren't that hard to remember and Suzaku kept them in mind. If he wanted to rise in the ranks and prove to everyone around him that he could do it then he would need to know that information.

He noticed that Lelouch was still a genius and able to quickly learn the rules, though the exercises they did and the warm-ups for the fitness test proved that he still didn't exactly have much stamina. His stamina was less than that of a snail and it hadn't gotten much better; at the very least, the exercises weren't that strenuous yet.

He followed Lelouch as the black-haired prince led him out of the barracks where they could have some privacy to talk. While he was getting along great with Kay, Rayne, Tadashi, and Lila, he suspected that what Lelouch wanted to talk to him about was something that wasn't for just anyone's ears. He wondered if it had to do with what happened six years ago but thinking about six years ago led to him thinking about his father and that was something he didn't want to relive.

He would always carry the guilt of killing his father, of staining his hands with the blood of the man he respected, the man who sired and loved him, on his shoulders, so he didn't want to relive what happened.

Suzaku had only done it because he didn't want any more innocent people to die. The do-or-die resistance that his father was about to call would have led to thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people dying. And, while people still died, Japan's surrender had prevented many more. And he had done it because he knew not all Britannians were bad people; Lelouch and Nunnally were prime examples of that.

Suzaku wondered. If I had never met Lelouch and Nunnally, would I have still killed my father? He thought but pushed the thought out of his mind. What ifs weren't something that he should focus on; he should focus on the present, not on the past.

Even if he was still chasing his own punishment for the death of his father and thought that the military would grant it.

That was one reason why Suzaku had joined the military, though it was a small one compared with his desire to work within the system in order to change it from the inside. His main goal may seem like a large goal but Suzaku had to try.

Once they got out of earshot of the other recruits, Lelouch turned to face Suzaku. "So why did you join the military anyway, Suzaku?" he asked.

Suzaku sighed and leaned against the wall behind him, deciding to just go with the truth, mostly. "Because I don't agree with the system and I think it needs to be changed. I believe that I can change it from within if I work my way up through the ranks," he said.

Lelouch stared at him like he had grown a second head and Suzaku shifted, defensively thinking that it was a good plan, even if Lelouch didn't seem to agree with him. Then he seemed to gain a thoughtful gleam in his eyes and the surprise faded. Suzaku blinked, wondering just what his friend was thinking about, though the cool smirk that crossed his lips made him shiver just a little.

"It seems we share a similar goal," he mused casually.

Suzaku blinked. "Huh?"

"I want to change the system too," Lelouch said. "I don't agree with it. Nunnally would never fit in a society where the strong devour the weak after all and neither would anyone who wasn't fully Britannian."

"Exactly!" Suzaku said, glad that his friend agreed with him.

Lelouch continued to study him. "Though how do you plan on accomplishing this goal?" he asked.

So Suzaku told him about his decision to become the Knight of One and claim Area 11 as his area so that he could start changing things for his people. When he was finished, Lelouch was silent, his eyes impassive.

"An ambitious goal," he noted.

"I'm sure that if I work with the system and through the ranks then I can do it," Suzaku said. "I don't want to be like those terrorists that are cropping up everywhere."

Lelouch nodded in absent agreement, his eyes taking on a thoughtful look that Suzaku often saw come over his face whenever he was facing a particularly challenging opponent in a chess match at the Kururugi Shrine.

You haven't changed that much, Lelouch, Suzaku thought.

. . .

April 16, 2016

Basic Training Camp

The Physical Fitness Test took place on the sixteenth and Tadashi had to admit he was a bit nervous. He was never good with tests, though that was primarily because he wasn't a good student period. Primary school had been a breeze to get through but the homeschooling that his parents had tried to give him after the invasion had been a nightmare. He always got bored quickly and always did his homework the day, or sometimes when he was feeling particularly lazy, the hour before it was due. It was a miracle that his parents hadn't given up on him, but he supposed that proved that they cared.

At the very least, the physical fitness test wasn't going to be a written test. Those he sucked at. It seemed like it was going to be more physical and, despite being lazy—something that he was slowly changing now that he was in boot camp—Tadashi was confident that he would pass.

The test was consisted of three events that didn't seem like they would be that hard: push-ups, sit-ups and a two-mile run. While Tadashi wasn't looking forward to the push-ups, since he really didn't have that much strength in his arms, he was sure he could still get the designated amount in order to pass.

He did have to wonder about Lelouch though. The prince was so thin that it didn't seem like he had much if any muscles, though he, at least, seemed able to keep up with the warm-ups from the previous days, barely.

The Honorary Britannians went last for all three events, which found Tadashi and Suzaku near the back of the line, watching the Britannians ahead of them. Funny enough, Lelouch ended up going first and, judging by the brief flashing of his eyes, he wasn't happy. Still, he managed to make the minimum number of push-ups necessary in two minutes.

"At least he didn't pass out," Suzaku murmured under his breath but Tadashi heard him and barely contained his snort of amusement.

"You think he would have?" he asked.

"It was possible, though I think it might be more likely during the two-mile run," Suzaku said.

It took the better part of the next two hours before it was Tadashi's turn and he was happy when he walked away with having done fifty push-ups, which was just above the minimum number needed. When he saw that Suzaku had done the maximum number in no time, he was starting to think that Lelouch was right about Suzaku being an exercise nut.

The second event was sit-ups and Tadashi passed those with flying colors and then came the two-mile run.

He found out, during that event, that Kay was fast. He was easily keeping pace with Suzaku at the very head of the group of recruits as they ran and only looked slightly out of breath. Tadashi, himself, was smack in the middle of the bulk of recruits along with Lila and Rayne. Dimitri was a little behind them as was Lelouch, the latter of whom was just barely keeping up with the bulk by the time they completed the first mile.

Suzaku and Kay finished the two-mile in 13:07 and 13:09 minutes respectively while Tadashi was among the majority whose final time was around 14:00 minutes.

"Well, I did better than I thought I would," he commented, drinking a large gulp of water as he stretched in the cool-down area with the rest of the recruits that had arrived. "Though I honestly didn't know you were that fast, Kay."

Kay shrugged nonchalantly, looking faintly embarrassed. "Suzaku finished before me," he said softly.

"By two seconds," Suzaku said.

Lelouch, out of breath and looking about ready to pass out, made his way over to join them. "I…hate…running," he managed to get out as he took the water bottle Suzaku handed him and swallowed a gulp of water.

"You hate exercise period, Lelouch," Suzaku said.

"Not…everyone can…be an…exercise nut," Lelouch muttered, taking a couple of deep breaths when he wasn't drinking his water.

"Hey, at least ya passed. Good job!" Tadashi said brightly, slapping Lelouch on the back in congratulations.

Lelouch coughed and Tadashi winced. "Whoops. Didn't realize you were drinking, sorry, Lelouch," he said.

Lelouch waved away the apology as he finished coughing and focused on getting his breath back.

"You should treat His Highness with more respect," Dimitri, who had arrived some time before Lelouch, stated firmly, glaring at Tadashi.

"I said sorry, yeesh," the burnt-orange-haired boy said with a huff and turned to Lelouch. "We're good, right?"

Lelouch smiled a little and nodded.

. . .

April 17, 2016

Mess Hall, Basic Training Camp

It was the last day of the first week and Lelouch was seated at a table in the mess hall during breakfast with Suzaku and the others that he had met over the course of the last week. Poking at the slop that was on his plate, he looked up when his name was called.

"You've got mail, vi Britannia," the mail carrier said, handing Lelouch a letter that had a small package tied to it.

Thanking the carrier, Lelouch immediately removed and opened the letter. It was the first one he had received from his little sister since he arrived at the camp.

Dear Big Brother,

I'm sorry that I haven't written since you left but I've been busy with homework, schoolwork, working with the student council, and the like. We just had the annual spring festival and Milly had the entire student council working overtime to get everything ready in time and I offered to help to speed along the process.

I hope you're doing all right, Big Brother, and I miss you. I know it's only been a week but I can't wait until basic training is over and you can come home.

Everyone says hi and they're looking forward to when you come home as well.

Things are going good for me. Everyone is still treating me the same and I'm glad for that. I really didn't want everyone to start treating me differently just because they now know I'm a princess.

Clovis has been visiting a lot too. He even painted a new painting with me and the student council in front of the clubhouse. It's on display in the meeting room and, as usual, it's amazing. I really think that Clovis could become a famous artist if he wanted to.

Well, I'd better end this letter now. I sent along something that I'm sure you'll remember, though I changed the picture.

I love you, Big Brother.

Nunnally

With the letter was a small wrapped package in the shape of a square. Putting down the letter, Lelouch unwrapped the package, smiling a little when he recognized the origami frame, though the picture was a recent one of him and Nunnally during Nunnally's birthday the year before. The frame, with another picture in it, was the present that Nunnally had, with Suzaku's help, made for him for his tenth birthday. He had left it behind at the academy mostly because he didn't think about grabbing it.

"Remember this, Suzaku?" he asked, holding out the picture frame.

Suzaku glanced at it and nodded. "Yeah, I helped Nunnally make it," he said and smiled a little. "And I think that was when we decided to give each other a chance."

"Better late than never," Lelouch said dryly.

Suzaku chuckled. "So how's she doing?" he asked as Lelouch put the picture frame down and folded the letter up before putting it back in its envelope, half-aware of Tadashi leaning over to look at the picture.

"She's doing fine, just been busy, which was why she hasn't written until now," Lelouch said.

"Man, your sister really is hot," Tadashi said with a whistle.

Lelouch's face turned cold as he gave a vicious death glare to the burnt-orange-haired boy next to him.

Tadashi let out a little eep and bolted to the other side of the table.

Kay facepalmed. "Idiot," he murmured.

"I did warn him," Suzaku said with a sigh.

. . .

A/n what do you think?

Blaze: like I've already said, the rest of this arc focuses not so much on the military training but rather on the bonds created between characters and the development of characters, no matter if they're OC or canon

Bakura: and that's why it probably doesn't seem realistic

Blaze: basically speaking, it's a rather humorous take on military training since it starts getting darker starting in ARC II

Bakura: yeah, yeah, anyway, what else do you have to say?

Blaze: I'm sure there was something else but I can't seem to remember whatever

Bakura: tch, you'd forget your own head if it wasn't attached

Blaze: I would protest but you're probably right

Lelouch: so are we going to be getting more on Tara soon? I've been meaning to ask about that power of hers

Blaze: her power and the consequences linked with it are explored in later chapters

Lelouch: oh okay

Blaze: I hope that you enjoy this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated