He didn't mean to stare.

He really didn't.

But… he couldn't help himself.

Sitting in Euphemia's office in a chair on the other side of the desk to her, Ciaran was afforded a pleasant view over Tokyo and the Tokyo Bay. At the height of midday, the rays of the sun were dancing across the waters of the bay before hitting the large solar collectors that dotted the large plates that covered the city, which the Briton had found out were anti-earthquake plates designed to resist tremors and to help construction of buildings in the city. Everything was becoming various shades of white and cream in the sunlight. But that wasn't what had his eye.

What he should have had his eyes on was the paperwork that sat in front of him. He knew that it wasn't terribly important paperwork, but it had to be done nonetheless.

It was the hair of the girl sitting diagonally across from him. There wasn't anything wrong with Princess Euphemia's hair. It was perfectly combed, with the hair behind her ears arranged in to two large buns not too overly dissimilar to Princess Leia's hair, while the rest of her straight and long hair reaching practically down to her hips. She didn't seem to see him looking at her hair, focused as she was on her paperwork, which was a good thing as he put undue focus to her hair.

It was lovingly looked after and well groomed, that was clear.

But it was pink.

Bright, salmon pink.

He knew that she was a princess, the Third Princess for that matter. But… that shade of colour was not normal! No-one could be born with that sort of hair colour. Right? It had to be dyed. It had to be.

"Ciaran?" Her sweet voice quickly plucked him out of his thoughts. Quickly shaking his head, he turned his head to look Euphemia head on, and the small blush that was on her cheeks. "Is something wrong? You… you've been staring at me for the past minute or so."

'Oh crap' The young man thought to himself. This wasn't going in the direction he wanted it to go.

"Have I got something on my face?" The young princess asked, reaching a hand up to touch her cheeks before it went up to her hair. "Or-or something in my hair, perhaps?"

Swallowing a lump that had rapidly formed in his throat, Ciaran decided that now was as good as any time to bring it up. True, he had only been in the company of the Princess, her sister and her entourage for two days, but he might as well get it done.

"Princess Euphemia, do you dye your hair?"

It really was the only way he could phrase the question, so it was better to just ask it quickly, like taking off a plaster.

And from the look on the young princess' face, it was entirely the wrong way to go about it. Euphemia's mouth opened wide, along with her eyes, as her blush crept higher up her face.

"H-how… how can you even think to ask that?" She asked, reaching behind her and pulling her hair close before she brought it over her shoulder like some form of blanket. For a second, she looked like a girl half her age. "This IS my natural hair colour."

Ciaran let out a sad sigh. He had known this girl for a few days and he had already gained a soft spot for her.

"I'm sorry, Euphemia." He said softly, unsure whether he should lean forward to comfort her or not. "It's just… in my world… people don't generally go around with hair like yours unless it is dyed. So that's why I asked."

For a few seconds, Euphemia looked at the man across from her, her long hair still held over her shoulder before her look of shock changed to a look of surprise. Which didn't involve a lot except that it looked like she was less likely to cry.

"Really?" She asked in surprise, which earned a nod from Ciaran.

"Yup. My sister had dark brown, almost black hair, but then she started dying it different colours." He said, a wistful smile coming to his face as he thought back on his family. "Last I remember, her hair was a deep purple."

Looking at Euphemia's face, Ciaran saw an interested expression come to her face.

"So, in your world, this sort of hair colour," She entwined a couple of strands of hair between her fingers to emphasise her point. "Is only achieved through dying it? It's not natural?"

A shake of his head was the Briton's reply. "Nope. The only hair colour that comes close naturally is when people have albinism and it's just pure white. In our world, we only have the usual: browns, blacks, blondes, red and gingers. Anything else is artificial."

Nodding her head, Euphemia took in the information, putting a few fingers against her chin in thought. "I guess that makes sense. I mean, you don't have Knightmare Frames or Sakuradite in your world, so I imagine that there would be more things different between our worlds. Hair colour would be one of them."

"Indeed." Ciaran said, happy that the mood had taken a lighter turn before a memory suddenly struck him. "I even wanted to dye my hair red for a while."

That admission got the result that the young man imagined it would, as Euphemia began giggling softly, putting her hands demurely in front of her mouth, exactly as a princess would. But even though the issue had been resolved, there was still an elephant in the room.

"So… how prevalent are colours such as yours in Britannia?" The Briton asked the princess as she began reaching for her pen on the desk, trying his best to make the question seem as less… strange as it probably was to a Britannian.

Stopping her hand short from the pen, Euphemia turned her head to look at Ciaran as she processed the question.

"Hmm… well, that's a question." She replied, honestly mulling over her response. For a few seconds, she was silent in thought before she answered the question. "Well, in the Royal Family, there is definitely a preponderance for such colours as mine in the li Britannia line. Cornelia, as an example, as her purple hair, and grandmother had hair colour the same as mine too. But it's not too uncommon to see non-royal Britannians to have… well, let's say, 'non-standard' hair colour."

That fact struck Ciaran as odd. To have such strange coloured hair in one portion of population, especially in the royal line, made some sort of sense, but to have it spread all throughout the population, enough for it to be considered normal? That suggested something strange altogether.

A part of him wanted to think of what it could possibly be; a twist of biological fate, a by-product of pollution from something, but it seemed that Ciaran had accidentally gotten Euphemia distracted.

"I mean, it's a big enough thing that Cornelia and I have special hair products just for our hair alone." She said as easily as anyone does when they talk about a simple topic. "And I also remember seeing something about how this isn't just a thing in Britannia either. It occurs in Europe too."

That confused Ciaran even more. A mutation that altered hair colour to such a degree as the hair that both Euphemia and Cornelia sported that wasn't isolated to one location? From what Euphemia said, it seemed to be mainly in the European-based population, but whether that meant the whole of Europe or just Central Europe, he couldn't be sure.

As he was thinking this, a scowl came to his face, as it often did when he was deep in thought. Unfortunately, the young Princess took that look to mean something else.

"You don't believe me?" Euphemia asked, a little bit put off that her explanation hadn't worked.

"What?" Ciaran replied, blinking in confusion. "No, I do. It's just… this is all so strange, that-"

"Would you like a closer look?"

Of all the things he expected to hear, that was not one the young man expected. "Uh… pardon?"

Pushing her work forward slightly, Euphemia reached behind her head and took a hold of her hair before lifting it clear of her shoulders and back. The act clearly showed the back of her head and neck. The only thing Ciaran could do was look at her in confusion, which must have been a funny sight considering that he had one eye covered by a white eye-patch.

That earned a small giggle from Euphemia before she simply nodded her head sideways. "Here. Look. I don't mind."

After hesitating for a few seconds, the young man decided that it would be rude not to take up her offer. Stepping out of his chair, Ciaran slowly and cautiously walked towards the Princess, still unsure about what exactly he was going to do. Since Euphemia was showing him her hair, he decided that the only thing to do was… to use a pun, get to the root of the problem.

He couldn't help the annoyed groan that escaped his lips at that thought.

"Something wrong?" Euphemia asked in concern, turning her head slightly at the noise.

"No, nothing. Just… never mind. It's nothing important." Ciaran replied, waving off the comment. "Although I have to ask; are you absolutely sure this is okay for me to do?"

The nod of the young princess' head set some of her hair waving slightly before she smiled sweetly. "Yes, it's fine."

Walking down the corridor, Cornelia let out an exasperated sigh as she leafed through the latest intelligence report. It was disappointing, to say the least. There was still seemingly no trace of Zero to be found in the Tokyo Settlement and in Area 11, and the lack of progress being made was driving her mad. If something didn't happen, then she'd have to take matters in to her own hands, and soon.

But getting frustrated was not the way to go about things. She needed to calm herself down, and there was one sure fire way to do that.

She had found it on one of her first days in the Palace, built all the way up on the roof. A near perfect replica of Lady Marianne's palace at Aries Villa. Clovis had ordered it constructed not along after he had arrived in Area 11. She really didn't want to know how much money it took out of the budget, or whether he had commissioned it out of his own pocket, but in all honesty, Cornelia didn't mind nor care. It was just perfect.

She remembered the summer days that she spent at the Villa, just sitting and talking with Marianne, while Euphie played with Nunnally and Lelouch, or when either Odysseus, Schneizel or Clovis came to visit the young prince and princess. Even the visits from Nonette didn't ruin the feelings of peace and tranquillity that garden provided.

She wasn't sure if her sister had already visited the garden, but it seemed like the sort of place the pair could relax in, plus it never hurt to spend some time with her younger sister. So, she headed to Euphemia's office. If the young Mister Forsyth happened to be with her, then… well, she'd think of that when she got there.

It didn't take long for Cornelia to reach her sister's office, closing the pages of the report before she reached the door. Depressing the handle and pushing forward on the door, she called out. "Euphemia? Are you free? I was wondering if you've had a chance to go up to-"

Cornelia's words immediately trailed off at what she saw in front of her. Sitting in her chair was her little sister, a smile on her face as she held her hair up behind her head while standing to her side, his eye still covered in an eyepatch, was Mister Forsyth, who seemed to be in the process of scrutinizing her hair. An act that he quickly abandoned as the young man practically leapt backwards a couple of feet, holding his hands out in a gesture that said, "Don't shoot me".

The Second Princess' eyes narrowed at what was in front of her. "What. Is going on here?"

"It was all completely above board, I assure you, Your Highness." The Briton replied quickly, keeping his hands above his head.

"I was just giving Ciaran here a little lesson about our world." Euphemia said innocently as she put her hair down.

"A lesson?" Cornelia repeated, not sure what she was hearing. "About… hair?"

Both youngsters nodded their heads in agreement, although that did nothing to lessen the older woman's confusion.

"Okay." Cornelia said, as she closed the door behind her before taking a few steps further in to the room. "Let's start from the top. How exactly did this 'lesson' start?"

And so, Euphemia went on to explain what had happened before; how, during the middle of her paperwork, Mister Forsyth had strangely and somewhat rudely asked if Euphemia's hair colour was dyed. That then lead to the pair having a small discussion about the prevalence of the diverse types of hair colours in both his world and their world, which then lead to Euphemia allowing Mister Forsyth to take a closer look at her hair, specifically the roots.

While her explanation was sound, and it could be considered a legitimate question concerning the… concerning the hair, it was still something that a person would let them do if they were close with the person. Not something that someone like Princess Euphemia would do with someone she had known just over a week.

"You two… are quite comfortable around each other, aren't you?" Cornelia said, narrowing her eyes slightly.

Lowering his hands, Mister Forsyth put on his best attempt a disarming smile as he shrugged while Euphemia spoke up.

"I think Ciaran is quite charming, in his own way." The Third Princess said happily, an all too familiar smile on her face as she let her hair fall down her back. "He's polite, but he's not afraid to say what he wants. I think that he's a very good friend."

This admission earned a small smile from Cornelia, which nearly broadened as she looked at the young man's face which had taken a redder shade at her sister's words.

"Your Highness, I think you might be exaggerating a wee bit there…" He said sheepishly, although that didn't stop him from letting a smile cross his face.

In a small part of Cornelia's mind, she did have to agree with her sister. The young Briton had a bluntness about him that she enjoyed hearing, although he had also had the good bearings to still be polite around his superiors. But still; letting him touch Euphie's hair? That was taking it just a bit too far. Yet it did open an interesting avenue of conversation.

"So, coloured hair like mine and Euphemia's are… artificial in your world, I take it, Mr Forsyth?"

The young man nodded his head in response. "Pretty much. Although I did often wonder what I'd be like with red hair."

That revelation got two very similar response from the two princesses; Cornelia let out a quick snort of laughter at the comment, while Euphemia nearly went in to a giggling fit, which she suppressed by covering her mouth.

"I would have liked to have seen that!" The Third Princess said happily, a warm smile on her face as she looked at the second eldest person in the room. Still in her spot, Cornelia couldn't help but nod her head in agreement.

"I would too. But I have to ask: why did you ask my sister?" The Second Princess asked, putting her hands on to her hips and arcing an eyebrow. "Do I scare you that much, Mister Forsyth?"

For a moment, a thoughtful expression crossed the young man's face, obviously thinking hard on what to say to the princess. From his reaction, Cornelia already knew what his answer would be, but still, she wanted to hear it.

Holding up his right hand, the Briton put his forefinger and thumb a few millimetres apart, along with an apologetic look on his face. "Just a little bit."

If she was another person, Cornelia would have either burst in to laughter at the comment or had given the young man a scolding for his words. But instead, all she could do was chuckle at his words.

"Okay, fair enough, Mister Forsyth." Dropping her chuckle, she once more affected her regal demeanour. "Now, I do not wish to be rude, but I wish to speak to my sister in private. So, if you please, Mister Forsyth?"

Quickly taking the hint, the young man dropped his hand before nodding his head respectfully. "Of course, Your Highness." Turning to look at Euphemia, he again inclined his head. "I'll see you soon, Your Highness."

"I'll see you soon, Ciaran." The pink-haired princess said, smiling warmly. And with that, the eyepatch wearing young man left the room, politely bowing to both princesses before he quietly closed the door behind him.

When she was certain that the pair was alone, the Second Princess couldn't help but begin laughing fully.

"What's so funny, Cornelia?" Euphemia asked, taken aback by her elder sister's display of mirth.

"Oh, I'm just imaging our young friend with red hair and an eyepatch." She admitted, pinching the bridge of her nose, her eyes closed, as she fought to contain the laughter. "He'd make a good extra in a pirate film."

For a second, the Third Princess processed her sister's words before she too began laughing at the idea, her face going red with laughter. "Do you think he'd have a red beard too?"

That was the last straw as Cornelia let loose a full-blown laugh at the mental image of the Briton dressed as a pirate, eye patch, sword and matching red hair and beard. It was just too funny to ignore.

The sound of the two princesses' laughter filled the air before both came down from their fit of joy.

"Did you come here just to make fun of our friend, Cornelia, or was there something important to tell me?" Euphemia asked, giggling slightly as she wiped a tear away from an eye.

Catching her breath back from her own laughing fit, Cornelia shook her head. "No, no, I didn't. Euphie, did you know that Clovis built a garden on the roof of the Palace?"

A look of confusion crossed the young girls face. "A garden?"

Cornelia nodded her head. "Yes. One the same as the one at Aries Villa."

At the mention of the home of their departed paternal half-siblings old home, Euphemia's face lit up with joy as she put her hands together. "Really? Oh, how wonderful! Can we go up and see it?"

"That's why I came to see you." The purple-haired princess responded, a happy smile on her face. "Let's go."

Without saying a word, Euphemia sprung up from her chair before rushing around the desk and past her older sister towards the door, a large smile on her face. Seeing her younger sister acting so happy about the garden reminded Cornelia of happier times. It brought a smile to her own face.

"Don't you have work to do, Cornelia?" Euphemia asked as she stood by the door.

"I do." The Second Princess replied. "But it's driving me crazy, so I wanted to take a break. And the garden seems like the perfect place to take a break."

"Well, then let's go!" Euphemia called out excitedly, opening the door and standing outside, waiting for her sister.

As she watched her sister, Cornelia let out a low chuckle. Seeing Euphemia smile so sweetly and excitable over something as simple, even if it was a royal one, as a garden, it was just something she wanted to keep a hold on. The coming days or weeks would be written in blood. How much, she didn't know, nor did she really want to imagine, but if she could do much as she could to keep Euphie happy and smiling, then she would do all she could.

Keeping her working with Mister Forsyth seemed to be a good step in the right direction.

AN: Merry Christmas to everyone! Good, that's out of the way.

8 months. 8 months without an update. Oh lord. Yeah, I know I shouldn't apologise for this since all of the reasons for my hiatus are beyond my control, but I am sorry for not putting up a new proper chapter. But work REALLY has been sapping my creative energy. Chapter 30 IS in the works, and it currently stands at 20 pages, but I do want to do more to it since I am heading the story towards something pretty big right, so chapter 30 is going to be quite large.

But, drawing a blank on something like that is a pain. So I have no idea where this omake came from. I must have been staring at Microsoft Word for a good while before the idea popped in to my head and... it kind of went off from there. It's short at 6 pages long, aye, but since it's an omake, that's fine. I have a few more omakes in mind, some humorous, some not so humorous, but to be honest, I'm holding off from carrying on with them until I see what the response to this one is. The placement of it is going to be a bit of a pain, aye, but I don't want to have go through a huge and colossal pain in the arse just to put one 6 page document in the right place.

As for the contents of the omake... yeah, many people in Code Geass have strange hair colours. Simple as, and I can easily imagine that Ciaran would be confused by them. Not much else to say really.

ETA: I just found out that FF isn't including the decimal point in the chapter title for some reason. That's annoying. So it looks like I'll have to change the title, since it could potentially confuse people.