"Speech"

"Radio or calls"

'Thoughts'

Comfort

Kallen

As Kallen stepped out of the Black Knight's truck, her new pilot suit on, she took a breath. It was a tight red jumpsuit, black highlights, and gray additions covering her arms, shoulders and legs. But it also left little to the imagination when it came to her form, her hips and breasts emphasized while in it. On the darkened street was Lelouch in his Zero costume, talking to a buxom Indian woman in a partially unbuttoned shirt, pants that came down to her ankles and a lab coat over that. Two men were behind, clearly following her.

As she approached the her leader and this woman, she asked a question, gesturing towards her new pilot suit, "Excuse me, is this going to improve the interface system?"

The Indian woman grinned at her, "No, it's going to save your life." Kallen's eyes widened at that, wondering what she meant, and Lelouch looked over at her.

"This is Rakshata. She is the engineer who designed and created the Guren." Her eyes were drawn to the Guren behind her, and she caught Tamaki checking her out, who quickly looked away. 'Why does he have to be such a pervert?'

"Gave birth to. I am it's mother." The Indian woman was firm on that point and Kallen couldn't help but chuckle at her. She looked over at Kallen, judging her, "So you are the one piloting my baby?"

Kallen nodded and the woman smirked, "While I'm not happy about the damage that has happened to it, you combat data has been rather…impressive." Rakshata walked up to her, looking Kallen over, "I look forward to working with you guys more."

Her attention then quickly changed to finding the Four Holy Swords, who Kallen felt proud they were working besides. They had been the people that she and the rest of the Black Knights had looked up to the save Japan. The JLF had been the best hope for Japan till Lelouch as Zero showed up. How things had changed. She chuckled to herself, realizing she and the Black Knights are now the people someone like her would look up to, particularly her, even if they didn't know her name.

Lelouch's voice, an electronic filter hiding it, spoke up, a light tilt to his tone, "What are you laughing about?"

She just shrugged her shoulders, "Just coming to the realization we are saving the hero of Japan, the miracle maker, before you obviously."

Lelouch chuckled, "Things can change fast, especially when you have the right person and resources." Lelouch was looking straight at her and she had to admit it was a bit strange to really know the person behind the mask and see them in their costume. Though it was irritating that she couldn't read his expressions anymore. Lelouch was annoyingly good at changing his body language between his different personas.

Now that she knew him, there was…showman like appearance to him as Zero. She had always thought there was a bit of that, but she had been caught up in the show. Now that she could see behind the scenes, there was a skilled actor maintaining the façade of Zero, though he could back up his claims with his skills. It was honestly impressive and now it made sense why he had such a big head at times. She did wish people could see the real Lelouch, the one who was soft and comforted her, who laughed and was open, but in this world, they needed the showman. 'At least he has me.'

A thought from the back of her mind came bull rushing past everything, causing her blush. Since the redhead couldn't see what Lelouch was looking at, her thoughts wondered if he had been…appreciating her as he saw her in her suit. He had previously called her hot and had complimented her. And the suit certainly didn't hide anything. But instead of the usual feeling of disgust or annoyance when she saw men check her out, there was butterflies in her stomach, confusing her. Lelouch certainly wasn't bad on the eyes and he had shown there was a level of love and kindness in him beneath all of that cynicism and disinterest. 'Am I? Falling for him?'

She wanted to instinctively say no, but she knew there was more to this. She had always gone with her gut before, trusting it over her head most of the time. And all of this was pointing to her evolving feelings on Lelouch. A smile came to her face, the thought nearly not as bad sounding as it would have been when she first learned about his identity. 'Still not going to tell him right now. Not only for allowing me to figure out my feelings, but so his head won't get any bigger.'

Kallen could feel the pride pumping through her. They had not only broken into the large prison that had held Tohdoh, the Gekkas that the Holy Swords were using had caused an immense amount of chaos, the Britannian defense forces standing no chance. And the white knightmare that had gotten in the way of their plans before was now surrounded and having to hold off the onslaught of her and the Holy Swords, along with Tohdoh in his new knightmare. While she wanted to put an end to him herself, she would be ok if he went down now to the five knightmares.

She had seen Lelouch studying the combat data in his bedroom, intensely studying all its movements and patterns, and that had apparently paid off, Lelouch being able to predict its responses when attacked. She held in a cry of happiness as Tohdoh came up behind the knightmare, the pilot barely able to partially dodge the piercing blow of the whirring sword, catching the cockpit as the Japanese general sliced the top and rear of it right off, finally revealing the pilot who had been a thorn in their plan. The man who had interfered time after time. It was Suzaku!

The fighting stopped as she, along with everyone else, began to process this revelation. Their enemy was Suzaku. Kallen's jaw tightened. She knew he was in the engineering corps, having spent time with Lelouch, but she had assumed he was in a non-combat roll. Not in a one of a kind knightmare! Suzaku was her friend, but she didn't think he was stupid enough to really want to fight against the people who were trying to free the country from their invaders. 'Though the fact he joined them after Lelouch saved him from execution, after pinning the blame on him for Clovis's assassination, probably wasn't a good sign.' Suzaku had certainly dropped a few more rungs in her book, especially after she learned previously about him killing his father, ending the war against Japan before it really started.

But more worryingly, communication from Lelouch had ceased. The rest of the Holy Swords were calling out for direction, Tohdoh seemingly having a conversation with Suzaku. 'Did they know each other?' She was aware Tohdoh was a military officer before the fall of Japan, so there was a chance he knew the family of the prime minister. But that was secondary to the issue that a lack of commands brought.

Her mind began to worry, the fact the plan was falling apart without Lelouch giving orders. No one knew how to counter the white knightmare besides him. Sure she had fought him, but she had never studied him that closely. And the Holy Swords had none, so Suzaku's skill could easily hold them off. As much as she hated to say it, Suzaku was an amazing pilot. She wanted to called out desperately to Lelouch, but something in the back of her mind came to light, finally making the connection.

But the horrifying realization finally hit her mind. Suzaku was Lelouch's best friend, the one he said he wanted to trust Nunnally with. And he was their enemy. Her heart leapt in her chest, knowing Lelouch probably was not in a good state right now. Calming herself, she called over the radio, knowing right now the last thing he needed was desperation, "Zero, if you can hear me, talk to me in a private channel."

Several seconds passed, Kallen watching the battle begin to turn, her radio crackled, Lelouch's voice, no modulator on it, his voice tight, a sense of betrayal evident, "We are alone Q1. What did you want to say?"

Kallen spoke with urgency, but kept an understanding tone in it, "Lelouch, I know he's your friend and I'm confused and want answers, but right now, they need you. We need you. The plan is falling apart." Already some of the Holy Swords had been disarmed, and worryingly, Suzaku had used four of his Slash Harkens to do it. 'Could it do that the entire time?'

She heard Lelouch's voice, straining but quiet, speak to her, "Thank you, Kallen." She blushed at the tone, enjoying how much he appreciated her. His voice then moved back to publicly broadcasting, a bit more in control, though there was still a rough edge to it, "All units, we are falling back. Our objective has been achieved. Use escape route 3."

Kallen was about to smile when she turned her head to see a fleet of airborne knightmare carriers, quickly stopping that. As much as she wanted to defeat Suzaku right now, they needed to retreat. The Japanese rebels made a quick retreat, smoke covering them as Suzaku was unable to find them. And as they reached a safe spot, all Kallen could worry about was Lelouch. Even under his limited control, she could detect the brewing chaos inside of him. 'I need to help him.'

Lelouch

Lelouch slammed a fist down on his desk, throwing him Zero mask violently into the corner of the office-bedroom combo. 'Why did it have to be him!? He was supposed to be there for Nunnally!' Suzaku was his only hope to keep Nunnally safe if something bad ever happened to him. But now he was an enemy, someone who stood in Lelouch's way to destroy Britannia. This white knightmare had stood in his way time after time, Lelouch happily wanting to kill this pilot, but this changed everything. 'What kind of engineering unit has such an advanced knightmare?'

He growled under his breath, hand on his face as his door slid open, Kallen looking at him with concern. Anger welled in him, not wanting the pity. He looked up at her, that anger in his eyes, but instead of backing down, she just gave him an even look, crossing her arms over her chest, "You aren't going to scare me off, so talk." He wanted to be annoyed at her tone, but right now, a deluge just wanted to come out, and he didn't have the wherewithal to care.

"Suzaku was my friend. He was my friend for years, though it took the war to do that." He laughed bitterly, "When Nunnally and I first met the Prime minister and his family as effective hostages, he would always glare at me, calling me a brit. Then the war came and everything changed. The bombs came and destroyed everything we cared about."

"The war destroyed everything. My father wanted this war, no one able to stop his orders, and Nunnally and I were simply left here to die. Like we meant nothing to him. He even called me worthless and I hadn't even lived before we were sent off after my mother was assassinated."

A growl came from his throat, "Suzaku and I tried to survive as best we could, to keep Nunnally from realizing the full extent of the destruction of the war. The only upside was she was blind, so she didn't have to see anything." He spotted a look of realization in Kallen's eye, but he wasn't sure what that meant, so he continued, "I swore to destroy Britannia and my father. Suzaku heard it and he still joined Britannia. What do I do!?"

He was left in silence, the speech draining. It had been so long since he had discussed the past with anyone that hadn't been there. He leaned back in his chair, taking in deep breaths. Kallen stood near the door before she began to approach, a frown on her face, but her eyes showing she had things she wanted to ask. She sat down on his desk, studying him. It was unnerving, but her next words caught her by surprise, "You are Lelouch vi Britannia, aren't you? You and Nunnally are the vi Britannia siblings that became a rallying cry in the war." 'She must have remembered that from the history books.' Sometimes he forgot how intelligent she was.

Her blue eyes did not contain any judgement, just curiosity, along with a hint of sadness at his story. Lelouch looked at her, failing to half-smile, a frown coming to his face, "You must hate me, huh? Being part of the royal family that took over your country? I wouldn't judge you if you did." Self-loathing filled him. He always hated being a part of the royal family by blood since his father abandoned them and here was someone he was growing to care for seeing her enemy in front of her. The son of the emperor who stole her country and messed up her family.

But instead of anger, he felt a soft hand on his cheek, Kallen's eyes full of sympathy, "No. I see Lelouch. I wish you didn't have to see all of that. See the destruction of the war so up close." She took his hand and he followed her as she guided him onto the couch, sitting him down next to her, her voice soft as he held his hand, "Now I see why you are so passionate, so focused. I had wondered why just a lesser nobles son wanted to destroy the country."

Kallen laughed a little, "And I even idolized your mom, Marianne, in at least some aspects."

Lelouch looked at her, confused in more than one way at the direction this whole conversation was going, "But she was Britannian?"

Kallen rolled her eyes, "Yes, I do dislike Britannia and its people, but she was an amazingly skilled pilot. One of the knights of the round. She was one of the reasons I wanted to become an ace. I wanted to be like her, fighting for my country on the frontlines, though back then I was only a little girl."

A small smile peaked out of Lelouch, temporarily pushing back the emotional turmoil in him, "Well I think you could measure up to her. She was an amazing pilot, and so are you." She blushed, intertwining their fingers, squeezing them in silent thanks. Lelouch's head fell onto her shoulder, the intensity of the storm in him dropping. It wasn't gone, but had calmed down enough for him to get his head on straight. Kallen's reaction had not been what he expected, and the facts he comforted her created a ball of nervousness inside him, causing him to blush lightly.

He let out a heavy sigh, his voice tense, "Suzaku was going to protect Nunnally. I need her safe from my family. How can I keep fighting now that she's not safe?"

Kallen's voice was filled with restrained passion, "I'm sorry it turned out this way. I don't know how to react either, but both of us chose this path. We can't back down now, not after so much success." She turned his head to look at her, her eyes burning with determination, "You told me at the warehouse that we will have blood on our hands no matter what."

"But that was before I found out-"

She put her free hand on his shoulder, "This is bigger than you, than us. This is for Japan and for the world. No one else can do it." Her voice was then filled with affection, "And you have me. You have my loyalty. I am your sword to face the world. I will never abandon you. If need be, I will protect Nunnally for you. But you can't die or stop. Not for her, not for me and not for your friends."

Lelouch's chest filled with hope and warmth, the girl in front of him smiling as she squeezed their linked hands. He couldn't fight the soft smile that came to his face, or the fluttering butterflies in his stomach. His eyes were drawn to her eyes and lips, the kindness on her face causing his face to heat up. All he could say was, "Thank you, Kallen." Her cheeks matched his, and he was shocked for a second time when she kissed his cheek, leaving his mouth agape.

There was affection and devotion in that kiss, unlike all the fake ones they had done before. His heart fluttered and he couldn't help but come to a realization hitting his mind. 'I think I'm falling for her.' It was like a ten ton weight had hit him. She had been by his side for the last several weeks, supporting him when she could. He could trust her with his secrets. She could get him to laugh or smile, like when they were in her room. He had seen her upset and wanted to comfort her when she did. And last but not least, he found her attractive in personality and physically. 'She was his queen.' Not just his Q1, but beyond that.

His mind stumbled for answers. He wouldn't lie to himself and pretend he didn't have feelings. That would be insulting to both of them. But what did he do? They had a setup, which was working nicely, but this was another complication. Would this create issues? Did she feel the same? 'So many questions.'

A teasing voice interrupted his musings, "So, were you checking me out in my pilot suit?" Lelouch's head shot up from her shoulder, looking away from her, not wanting to answer. Hearty laughter was the response to his reaction, which only caused him to have to resist smiling. 'Oh god, I'm screwed.'

Author Note

And that's chapter 5. More developments and Kallen knows the truth about his past. I felt it was appropriate she would know about Lelouch and Nunnally's "deaths" as it would probably be in the history books. And now they get close! And thank you guys for the favorites and likes! This story has been growing way faster than I thought.

I hope you enjoyed and once again I love reviews and comments! See you guys next week!

P.S. To DarkDremora- Thank you for the long review! Stuff like that will never be annoying and please keep doing it!