"You… what!"

Lavie clenched and unclenched her hands into fists. Was this some kind of bad dream that she couldn't wake up from?

"Yes, I kissed him."

Sophia looked up from her hands at each one of them. She was always so strong, so decisive, yet she felt so vulnerable now. It didn't matter. It had to be said. She was serious about Claus and she wanted to make certain they all understood. Al had by now hopped down from her own chair to settle herself in the security of Alistia's lap and comforting embrace. She took great care to keep her goat from braying, not wanting to disrupt the tenuous silence. Sophia continued, wistfully looking off as if she could still see the edges of the memory.

"It all seemed so easy, so natural... like easing into a warm pair of slippers. I understand what you meant, Tatiana. I too, looked into his eyes. I saw every brave, true and honorable characteristic that made up his personality. I just fell into his eyes. I tried to resist, but I couldn't."

Tatiana hadn't chewed on her nails since she was five years old. As part of her upbringing, in anticipation of a brilliant military career, her father broke her of the habit as he taught her the lessons of discipline and focus. This revelation was distressing, however, much more so than she had anticipated, and that old response slipped through as her anxieties manifested. She unconsciously brought a hand to her mouth.

Had Sophia already won his heart? Was this all a ruse, a charade of some kind, spun by the empress to get their guard down? So that now she could announce to them all that Claus was hers? No, that just couldn't be the case. It didn't make any sense. If she wanted to, Sophia could by edict forbid any of them from any contact with him. That would spare them the indignity of having it rubbed in their faces. But to do it this way...

No. It couldn't be that. Not Sophia. That would be too cruel. It was not in her makeup. Tatiana searched her mind for any memories of evidence that Sophia might have the potential for such contemptible behavior.

No. Not Sophia.

Tatiana snatched her hand away from her mouth as she felt her teeth pulling at the nail on her index finger. She was about to ask the question, but Alistia beat her to it.

"Did... did he kiss you back?"

Sophia briefly put her fingers to her lips as she remembered the sublime pressure of her lips against his.

"No. He didn't. I think I caught him off guard, and..."

"And you're telling us this because...?" Lavie was fuming once again.

'I... will... just... kill... Claus... and... shrink... his... head... and I'll mount it on the vanship!'

"Because… I honestly felt that I needed to express to someone the depth of my feelings. They've been bottled up for so long that it's painful. As you may know, my father is dead, but more importantly, my surrogate father, Marius, the one who I considered my true father, is also gone. Although I am Empress, sadly, I don't have any true friends to speak of, and…"

"Liar! I don't believe any of this…"

All eyes turned to the trembling grey-eyed girl. With shaking hands, Lavie first put her place settings in proper order and stood up from her seat and walked around the table to stand in front of Sophia, arms crossed in front of her. Sophia looked up and knitted her brows as she blinked a few times; the look on Lavie's face was unreadable.

"Stand up."

"What?"

"I said, stand up!"

As the others watched wordlessly, the empress complied, the silk of her opulent dress rustling as she stood. In less than the space of a breath, Lavie reached back and slapped Sophia across the face. As the echo of the sound died out, the others in the room gasped audibly. Alvis had both her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide in shock. She felt Alistia's grip tighten around her waist as the navigator's first impulse was to protect her, taken completely by surprise as she was, as they all were, by Lavie's action. Tatiana, loyal soldier, instinctively leapt from her seat to protect her former vice-captain, now sovereign. In an instant, she had Lavie restrained from behind as the van-ship girl screamed at the top of her voice.

"Nobody does that to Claus, do you understand! Nobody! I don't care who you are!"

.

.

.

"Lavie?"

"Lavie? Are you all right?"

When Lavie opened her eyes, she noticed that she was breathing more heavily than normal. She was also chuckling to herself. That chuckle slowly evolved into outright laughter, and the girl actually had to hold her sides to keep them from cramping. The others regarded her with concerned looks on their faces; Sophia had the most concerned expression of all. Lavie could barely look at her as the peals of laughter began anew.

"What's the matter, Lavie? What's so funny?" Alvis was becoming a bit alarmed at the outburst.

"No... nothing. Please..." The slender girl tried to catch her breath.

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry for interrupting. I just had a hysterical thought. That's all."

"Would you care to share it with us?" Sophia asked.

"I don't think it would be wise."

"All right then, do you need some more water?" Sophia raised the pitcher from in front of her and started to stand.

"Umm… no thank you. I'll be alright."

Indeed, it was only a flight of fancy. Merely raising a hand to the monarch was considered grand assault, a crime punishable by death. Lavie could only imagine what torture she would have endured for actually striking her.

But that was under the previous regime. Sophia would have responded differently than her father; it would have been something kept between the two of them. That would be just like her, Lavie thought, always taking the high road.

As things settled down, Sophia continued.

"As I was about to say, I have attendants and acquaintances from within the court, but I err on the side of caution when it comes to discussing particularly personal matters. Except with the four of you, each of whom I trust with my life, I keep most things to myself. All of this responsibility has been thrust upon me now, and it is sometimes overwhelming. In a way, life was so simple back when I was just a vice-captain. I had a much narrower scope, and I had boundaries with respect to responsibility that made things much easier for me. It probably sounds amazing, and perhaps a bit pathetic, but I had really hoped, as I indicated before, that even after this issue is resolved, we could remain friends. I probably shouldn't be telling you this, but it is a lonely life, sometimes, being a ruler. More often than sometimes, even."

There was a moment of silence as the others pondered her words. Indeed, none of them had given more than a passing thought as to how Sophia's life had manifested beyond the pomp and pageantry of royalty. Life at the top really wasn't all wine and roses, it seemed. Her revelation was quite sobering. Alistia responded first in her unmistakably soft, yet clear voice.

"Sophia, I will be your friend for as long as you consider me so. We have known both great triumph and sorrow together in both leader-subordinate roles as well as on a more personal level. We have again and again lived on a sliver of hope even as we prepared for the worst, for death. You are one of the truest, most caring and giving people I have ever met. Even now, as we've all admitted to being competitors of sorts, you've only done your utmost to create an environment that is nurturing and supportive. There is no way I can ever abandon that. I will be here for you whenever you need me."

"I would have to second that." Tatiana took up where Alistia left off, having resolved to her satisfaction her friend's integrity.

"No matter how this turns out, I too, will remain your loyal friend. I couldn't ask for one better."

She made a point to avoid eye contact with Alistia when she said the last part.

"Thank you for saying that. I'm gratified."

"So, now that you've laid everything out in front of us, what chance do the rest of us really have?" Lavie wanted to trust Sophia, but there was still some niggling thing in the back of her mind that was fighting to get out into the open. She would help it to do so.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean?"

Al did understand. She shifted a bit in Alistia's lap as she looked from Lavie to Sophia, before piping up.

"I think she's trying to say that not only are you very pretty, Sophia, but the way you dress makes it kind of unfair. Except for Claus, I don't like boys. I think they're icky. But if I did, I don't think it would be very much fun to compete against you..."

Al rocked her goat in her arms as she finished, blushing just a bit. Sophia reflected on the girl's comments for a moment.

"Well, Al, let me first say that as far as you are concerned, if your cousins in House Hamilton are any indication, as I recall, in just a few short years, you will be breaking boys' hearts everywhere you go. And you might find to your surprise that they become less and less "icky" as you grow older. As far as my being intimidating, I try to make myself presentable as befits my position, but I certainly don't consider myself anything special. I don't think..."

"Get real, Sophia." Her daydream had now completely faded away, and Lavie got back on track.

"Don't give us any of that crap about you not being attractive, 'cause it just won't fly. And while we're on that subject, are you sure you can't show us any more cleavage? I mean, it's clear you beat us all by miles. Does it make you happy to rub it in our faces? Claus is everything we've said he is, but he's also a man. What chance has he got to resist... those? What chance have we really got? I didn't like this when I first heard of it and I still don't like it!"

Sophia closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Lavie was going down fighting, as the empress knew she would. She actually began to wonder if this was such a good idea. One step forward, two back. Perhaps there might have been another way to resolve this? She would make an attempt at explanation.

"Honestly, I thought you understood the demands and requirements of my position, of any young woman of royal bearing. I would never dress in this fashion of my own volition. Tatiana and Alistia know better than anyone how comfortable I am in my uniform. However, in accepting my role, I have come to realize that there are symbolic as well as subliminal reasons for any young matriarch to promote such a display."

Sophia paused to fan herself; was it becoming warmer all of a sudden? She took another sip of water before continuing.

"Primarily, the citizens need to know that I am healthy and fertile, within child-bearing age. Don't ask me how, because I still don't understand it completely, but by symbolic association, the lands bounded by my rule will also remain healthy and fertile. Secondly, I am... for want of a better term, advertising to select male suitors, none of whom interest me in the slightest, I might add."

She paused as she worked through her mind the least embarrassing way to say the next part. She sighed, as there was just no easy way to say it.

"Also, I must display the potential to nurse through weaning any heirs born to me. That in itself is puzzling, since all children born to royal houses have wet nurses assigned to them, so I would likely feed my child perhaps only once, if at all, and then never again. This is the custom and tradition of our culture, and I can't fight it. Honestly, don't envy me. You wouldn't relish the experience of having to remind some men where your face is when they are speaking to you."

In spite of the words coming from her mouth, Sophia was starting to turn a deeper shade of pink by this time for another reason, because Lavie had actually hit the nail on the head with her comment. Recalling the time she and Claus were alone in her room on board the Sylvana, she again felt the thrill of desire and embarrassment as she pushed the edge of the envelope then. She had grasped him with her hands on his shoulders, effectively trapping him, her anterior assets moving in such proximity to his face that he could have reached up and...

'Claus... why didn't you...'

No.

Claus was a complete gentleman, as he had always been. It was just one more thing that endeared him to her. She recalled fighting the impulse to smother him then, almost overwhelmed as she was to embrace and kiss him. She narrowly defeated that impulse, however, and instead reached over to clutch her uniform.

"It's good to be back."

Claus was mute. And he looked as if his mind was far away.

"Well, Claus, I... won't be completely back in action until I am in uniform..."

Claus was in reality still feeling the effects of her dazzling display. He had been slightly mesmerized, and his cheeks had taken on a reddish hue.

"... which means I'll have to change into it..."

"M... Miss Sophia..?"

He still hadn't picked up on her meaning, staring blankly at her.

"...which means I'll have to get undressed..."

"Eh?"

It was finally dawning on him.

'Oh Claus, you are so adorable. Were I another kind of woman, you would not escape from this room, because I would... I would...'

Sophia toyed with the idea of saying to him exactly what she wanted to say, but eventually relented to propriety. The words she finally settled on were much more difficult to say than she thought they would be.

"... which means you'll have to leave now..."

"Oh!"

Claus' face turned scarlet in record time as he bolted up from his seat and almost knocked her down, dashing for the door.

"M...Miss Sophia... I'm sorry... I'm sorry."

He opened and shut the door before she could even reply.

"So am I, Claus. If only things were different..."

'No.'

Sophia thought as she remembered; some things were better left tucked away. Besides which, poor Lavie would probably require medical attention if she found that out.

A/N: We're not finished yet. Thanks to all you wonderful readers.

hailey0176: Here is "more". Thanks.

Michael: Thanks for your comment.

Tsuka-pon: Thanks, and we haven't finished exploring.

roguehobbit: You can see what Lavie really wanted to do! This is getting harder to write. I don't really want to hurt anyone, because they're all great characters, but there is only one Claus. Thanks.

Black Robed One: Thank you. Sophia now wonders if she did the right thing! Alistia is a very wonderful character, a very giving and loyal person (she's actually almost too good), so I want to make sure she comes across well. Remember, she was bleeding from a head wound in one episode, but was never concerned for herself, only Tatiana. If true love has many dimensions and knows no gender, then I believe she could love Claus as deeply as she does (did?)Tatiana.

BJ-Blatzkowitz-reborn: Almost had to make another chapter just for your name (just kidding - I've been watching Super Milk Chan and I'm picking up all kinds of bad habits from that show). Thanks. Here's hoping for Last Exile II, or something.

Eva-Freak015: That was a lot, here is some more. And there is more to come. Thanks for your comments.

LollipopsAreTears: I agree. What the writers did to Dio, after all they put him through, and never even giving us the closure of having him say goodbye, was simply awful. He lost his glib arrogance and we saw the purity of his true self before he was taken against his will. An otaku pal used to call Dakki from Houshin Engi (Soul Hunter) the most evil bitch in anime. Now, that title is reserved for Maestro DelPhine. I know it's a cultural thing, but I can't see anyone doing that even to a brother they hated.

Lavie is a deep, complex character; I like her (not as much as Alistia, sorry), and I'll see if she can grow just a bit as other truths reveal themselves.

Alrasha: I took some liberty with Alistia's emotions because I believe she would eventually close the door on the unrequited feelings she had and try to start anew. No one can keep hanging on forever. Tatiana was either completely clueless (as I depict in my fic) or totally ignored the signals she received. I believe that eventually Tatiana would have understood Alistia's feelings, as Claus' influence has made her more empathetic than she had been. But that would mean a few more episodes for LE (the lost episodes? where do I vote!). Thank you for your comments.

cynical chaos: Yes, plenty of emotion, and they're not even PMSing (just kidding)! Lavie is not through yet. She won't go down easily. But you'll just have to wait and see, heh. And any EVA fans please read his wonderful introspections on this site.

Saiyuki-Lvr: Lavie will be shouting quite a bit more as this winds down. Except for a physical relationship, I think she and Claus were more like husband and wife than brother and sister. I think she thought so too. Tatiana hurt her. Claus hurt her. She buried those feelings but they keep trying to escape. We'll see. Thanks.

lvmj: Thanks. Sophia is not off the hook just yet. I'm tempted to say her misery is just beginning, but I'll let the next chap speak for itself.

Nikkler: She wanted to kill her, and she still might do it when she goes to bed tonight and dreams of it.

Everybody else reading: That's right, I am the President. Just kidding!

Arrigato!

W.