A/N: Alrighty, first and foremost I own no portion of this series, but if you do PM, well talk ;) Next Thank You for all the reviews, as a reward you will be forever immortalized in my work :D Thanks goes out to: Edwiddlem, S7K, Worker72, Srgnt Drew, angelicaxp, Darth Lelouch, KillerSpoon13, Fig-San, Snakeboy33, Sky Zephyrus and Kalulu22. Thank you all for reading, I hope to keep you entertained for a while longer : )
Appearances
It was only a day after the assassination and yet no change was evident as of yet.
*Do they really think they can hide Clovis' death from the public?* Lelouch thought to himself entering the lush courtyard of Ashford Academy.
It was spring, everything had only just begun to bloom. The scent of fresh cut grass and newly formed flowers engulfed the area. The scent was only broken by the wave of body sprays and expensive perfumes when groups of girls passed by him. Most were eyeing him and giggling with their friends.
*Strange how all the guys envy me for the looks I get from the female student body. When in all honesty I envy them, why can't I just be left the hell alone? Having all eyes constantly focused on me makes it difficult to keep up appearances.*
A hearty slap to the back that stung slightly brought him out of his thoughts. He knew that gesture, it was Rivalz.
"Hey buddy, just wanted to swing by and ask, where the hell you were two days ago!" Rivalz shouted, he was clearly upset, but somehow he still held his joking demeanor. Or maybe that's just the way he's wired.
"Oh sorry about that," Lelouch brought a hand up to the back of his head and smiled trying to play it off and change the subject as soon as possible. "You finish the homework?"
"When do I ever finish homework Lelouch?" Rivalz laughed and then his face turned serious if only for a moment. "But seriously, you're not getting out of this one. I had to walk my bike to school, I was an hour late! And then I had to walk it to a shop after school."
"Maybe you could use that for your excuse," Lelouch chuckled sympathetically to his friend as he saw Milly and Shirley quickly approaching.
"Hey you think that'd work?.. Maybe if I-" Rivalz was cut short by the overly excited Milly, the student council prez.
"Lulu! Hey is that you? We missed you yesterday." Milly yelled as she approached with a smile that seemed to influence her entire face.
*How many cups of coffee does she have to drink in an hour to maintain herself?* Lelouch wondered, amazed at her endless well of energy. *I should switch her to decaf some day.* Lelouch chuckled to himself.
Shirley followed close behind, butterflies in her stomach. As was the default emotion whenever she was around Lelouch. She could always come up with the words to say at night in her diary. So then why were they always so hard to retrieve when she was face to face with his him. His deep violet eyes gazing into hers, it was as he could paralyzed her with just a glance. She wasn't sure how to feel about this, she never felt like this with any other boy. That worried her, but the power he held in such a simple gesture made her feel safe around him.
"Yeah it was a bit of a complicated situation, no big deal though. I can fill you guys in later," Lelouch said noticing that everyone was starting to make their way into the building. He began to make his way towards the doors as well, the boredom of class sounded delightful to the prying eyes and ears of the student council. "Looks like classes are starting, I should get going. Don't want to be late two days in a row, right Rivalz?" Lelouch looked over his shoulder with a grin to his friend who was flushed red with anger.
"You just wait Lelouch! I'll find some way to get you back!" Rivalz shouted. He had to come up with some kind of scheme, but how was he supposed to outsmart Lelouch? We're talking about a guy who could beat Rivalz in chess with his eyes closed. That was mostly because Rivalz attention span was so short that he gave up a few moves in. But it was a valid argument none the less.
Lelouch lightly pushed his way through the crowded halls of the Academy; it was the largest school in the nation after all. Large enough that he actually had his own portion of the school to call his own, thanks to the Ashford family. They let him and his sister stay in a wing, in an attempt to keep his identity a secret. It also helped him take care of his dear sister Nunnally and keep her out of harm's way. Luckily his 'home' was far enough out of the way that it wasn't accessible to the normal students.
Lelouch arrived in his first class with a few minutes to spare, there were only a few students in the room already. Most were gathered around a red headed student, *hmm it's been a while since that desk was-* Lelouchs' thoughts stopped abruptly, realizing who the student was. His eyes widened and his books nearly fell from his now loosened grip. *This couldn't be, is school where I recognized her from? She'd been absent for so many classes due to her illness, or so I was told. It appears she hasn't noticed me yet.* Lelouch paused for a moment. *No this can't be avoided, I just have to make this as casual as possible.*
"Hey Kallen, it's good to see you back in class." Lelouch waved with a phony smile on his face. He was a great liar, but in his life, happiness was slightly foreign to him. He was by no means depressed but he found little to be truly happy about. He still had plenty of things to live for, Nunnally being first and foremost.
Kallen turned around to see Lelouch, who looked rather strained. *You have got to be kidding me,* Kallen wore an awkward smile on her face and tried to manage a wave. "Thanks, it's good to be back."
The girls around Kallen were in an uproar, all of them trying to whisper to Kallen. In order to be heard over the others whispering, their voices continued to rise until it was a full voiced conversation about Lelouch, a mere ten feet from him. Kallen blushed as she tried to hide her face behind her book, *please god, just let the bell ring.* Kallen pleaded in her mind. Lelouch sunk back into his desk, how was it that everything involving girls always back fired on him?
The rest of the students entered the class room as the bell rung, everyone taking their seats. The professor peeked his slightly bald head out over his name plate. No one had noticed that he was in the class room until he stood but it seemed he wasn't paying any attention to them prior to the bell, so it made little difference.
Eyeing all of the students, he had the strangest air about him. It was like he was a prison guard, gazing upon the inmates on death row. He twisted the brown hairs on his chin with his fat thumb and index finger as he held that smug look on his face, eyes narrowed as he took attendance. He arched a bushy brow as his vision rested on Kallen. "Glad you could be with us today Ms. Stadtfeld." His voice was grim and heavy. "Will you be gracing us for the remainder of the semester, or should I hold onto your mailing address?"
"Uhm-Well, I'll do my best to make it in sir." Kallen said uncomfortably, shifting in her chair. She clenched her fist under her desk, *gah how I hate this. If only I didn't need to keep up this stupid appearance as a sickly school girl. I'd deck him straight in his jaw, ass hole...*
"I'm sure," The Professor laughed to himself. "Now then class we'll be covering the history of our great Britannia today. We'll discuss how it was founded, and how we rose to the super power that we are today. Are there any questions on the homework? Great." The teacher went on turning to face the board. Clearly he was very adamant about the subject, as he was lost in his thoughts, busy with his drawings and diagrams at the moment.
Lelouch quickly pulled out a piece of paper and scribbled on it, looking up intermittently to ensure the professor hadn't turned around yet. Luckily, it was Rivalz who was sitting in front of him. "Rivalz, pass this to Kallen," he whispered trying to be casual.
"Hmm?" Rivalz asked peeking back over his shoulder seeing Lelouch hold a note up. *A note for Kallen, jeese Lelouch is ambitious. Even for him she'll be a tough one... Wait! This is perfect, that's how I can get back at Lelouch.* Rivalz snickered to himself and took the note. He held it in his hand, biting his lip to stop himself from laughing aloud.
Lelouch could hear Rivalz holding back a laugh. *What in the world is he going on about now?* Lelouch asked himself, arching his left brow.
"Excuse me professor Reisdorph?" Rivalz called out raising the hand that held the note.
*Rivalz you fool! What the hell are you doing?* Lelouch panicked, his heart quickened, his stomach felt like it suddenly hit a wall. *What can I do? I don't have eye contact with Rivalz. Damn you!*
"What is it?" the professor turned around disappointed it was Rivalz that asked. "What's that you have in your-"
Lelouch quickly got out of his chair. "I-it's nothing sir, p-please continue." Lelouch managed to get out, his face still full of fear except for his eye shining with the power of his geass.
"Very well," the professor stated turning back around to look at his diagrams. "Now where were we? AHA!" He was once again lost in his material. How he could get so ecstatic about the most insignificant details of Britannia was astounding.
Lelouch snatched the note from Rivalz hand, who was still confused as to what just happened. Lelouch had nearly everyone's attention now as he walked up to Kallens' desk with his head bowed in defeat and dropped the note off himself. Those two steps felt like miles, never before had he been so embarrassed. He turned around and walked back to his desk, hands in his pockets. The class gasped seeing such a bold move, Shirleys' eyes were ablaze with jealousy. Back at his desk he dropped his head into his hands, wishing the school would just burst into flame and get it over with.
Kallen, surprised as anyone else looked around and held the note close to her. The paper was torn but folded very neatly and his penmanship was fantastic, she never knew a man could write so delicately. Despite their efforts even the students closest to Kallen were unable to make out what the note said.
"And then!.." The professor roared dragging the marker with such weight, as if he was swinging a sword. It pulled him off balance a little since his stocky frame couldn't reach from one end to the other. The marker made a thick line from one side of the board to the other. He was making the best explosion sounds he could, imitating some great battle. He laughed with gusto as he continued, mostly talking to himself at this point.
The note read, "Meet me on the roof Kallen, directly after class. We need to talk. Take the west stairs so we aren't followed. Also, to avoid this method in the future, here is my cell phone number: 555-442-8675."
The bell was about to ring as the teacher wheeled around on the back of his heel. "Rivalz! What does all of this tell us?" The professor asked slightly out of breath from his dramatic lesson. He was looking at Rivalz with an expecting glare; his eyes were narrowed beneath his furrowed brow, his jaw clenched and his podgy arms placed on his wide hips. Clearly he'd never done this in front of a mirror.
Rivalz was a deer in headlights. He hadn't heard a single word of the discussion. "All hail Britannia?" Rivalz guessed, his eyes squinted with an uneasy smile on his face. He felt like he was in the electric chair, just waiting for the switch to be thrown.
"Exactly!" The professor cheered. Beads of sweat were rolling down his plump face. He raised his glorified marker into the sky, and then to the Britannian flag as the bell pierced the silence that had the class averting their gaze from the professor, slightly embarrassed for him. Everyone stood up and grabbed their things and made their way out of the class.
"Sheesh, it's incredible how Professor Reisdorph gets sucked into his work." Rivalz stated stretching his hands back behind his head.
"What I find incredible is how you still manage to fail that class." Lelouch laughed aloud. After they walked out the door Kallen and Lelouch didn't say a word to each other. She went left and he went right along with Rivalz and closely followed by Shirley.
"So what was the deal with that note?" Rivalz asked, reaching an arm around Lelouchs' shoulder. "Did you ask her out?"
"ASK HER OUT!?" Shirley screamed in the middle of the hallway drawing all attention on them for a moment. All she could do was try to laugh it off awkwardly as the students went back to what they were doing.
"Don't jump to conclusions," Lelouch played it off perfectly with his silver tongue. "I was just trying to tell her not to worry about Professor Reisdorph. After all, he's come down on each of us pretty hard at least once. That's why I didn't want him to see the note, Rivalz." Lelouch ended with a harsh tone and daggers in his eyes, staring directly at his friend.
"Hmm, I guess that makes sense." Shirley said, looking up with a finger to her lips as she nodded.
"Oh heh, my bad. I was just trying to get back at you for the other day you know?" Rivalz said with a big smile, hoping his friend would go easy on him.
"Don't worry about it," Lelouch smiled. "We even? After all, that was pretty embarrassing."
"Sure buddy," Rivalz smiled back and gave him a light punch to the shoulder.
"Don't you both have Chem lab right now?" Lelouch asked, pretending to be concerned.
"Oh yea! We gotta get going," Rivalz exclaimed as he grabbed Shirley by the wrist, dragging her off. Lelouch could hear her shouting at Rivalz from down the hall, followed by a familiar pained yelp.
*Perfect, now no one will suspect a thing.* Lelouch smirked to himself as he took the east set of stairs leading up to the roof. Taking steady strides up the stairs, he ran his hand through his thick dark hair as he opened the door and stepped outside. It was slightly windy out, just enough of a breeze to blow strands their hair. In the shadows it was cold, but in the sunlight it felt only slightly discomforting. The view was breath taking, you could look out over all of the Ashford Academy if you wanted, and the courtyard looked particularly beautiful from this height.
Kallen was waiting for him rather impatiently tapping her shoe on the ground, her hands balled into fists. "Took you long enough, I was beginning to think you were putting me up to some kind of prank or something." Her cerulean eyes aimed to pierce through him like paper, her glare was undeniable. She no longer hid behind her 'illness', now she resumed the persona of the Red Lotus. Lelouch had watched her single handedly destroy 6 Knightmare frames, and she had her sights set on him.
However, Lelouch no longer needed to hide himself either. His voice no longer held the care or compassion it once did. It was the voice of a stern, yet charismatic leader, "Calm down, I had to lose everyone. After that incident in class-"
"Yea, what was that about? You couldn't think of any other way to get my attention? Cause I think it would have been more subtle if you just yelled from across the room!" Kallen fumed, angered that he had put her in such an embarrassing situation.
"I thought it would be safe handing the note to Rivalz. Clearly my faith was misplaced and I did the best I could." Lelouch said trying to calm her down. "You don't have class at the moment do you?" He asked as he walked over to sit against the four foot wall that encircled the roof.
Kallen shook her head, "no, I'm off for a while." She began to calm down. Staring at her feet she was unsure what to do or what to say.
"Good, as am I. What all have you learned of your geass?" Lelouch prodded, motioning for her to come and sit next to him against the cool concrete wall.
"Are you sure it's safe to discuss that here?" Kallen asked motioning towards the closed door. "What if someone comes up here?"
"That's what my geass is for, I can command anyone to do whatever I want. All I have to do is tell them to forget what they heard and return inside." Lelouch stated confidently, his body language softened as if to try to convince her he wouldn't bite.
Kallen bit her lip for a moment, judging if she felt comfortable enough to sit in such close proximity to him. She decided to compromise and sat against the wall a few feet away. She looked up to the nearly clear sky and sighed, "Well I know I can control peoples' emotions to some extent. I'm still trying to figure out all the rules to it though."
"I thought as much," Lelouch said raising a hand to his strong jaw line, drawing a V down to his chin. "Clearly you do not need direct eye contact as I do, otherwise Jeremiah wouldn't have been affected. However, this brings up a new question. Why was the other soldier not affected? Did you know anything special about Jeremiah before hand?" Lelouch asked letting all of his thoughts have a voice as he curled his hand from his jaw to the right side of his face.
"No, I'd never even heard of the guy before that fight." Kallen thought back, trying to ensure that her answer was an honest one.
"Well then, we are clearly dealing with one of two parameters. Either you have a limited range from your focal point that is extraordinarily small, or you need the targets name." Lelouch deduced, tapping the right side of his temple with his middle finger.
"His name?" Kallen asked, slightly confused.
"Yes, if you recall, Jeremiah shouted his name on an open channel mere moments before he fled. In a state of panic, you unleashed your geass hoping for the best. Clearly it worked; I have no doubt about that. As for the other time you used your geass, or at least I assume you did, as I couldn't see your face. It was when you told your comrades to trust you. It seemed the effect wasn't unanimous. But seeing as how we have no way of knowing who was standing where, that situation doesn't help us much. Even if we did know, we'd still have no idea how many of them would have accepted simply because it was an order." Lelouch pondered for a moment. "There is one sure way to find out," he said springing up and striding over to the door, "I'll return shortly Kallen."
With no more than a click of the shutting door he was gone. Kallen was at a loss for words. She blinked a few times trying to figure out exactly what he had in mind. But before she could think of anything, he returned with a younger male following him. He was a bit shorter than Lelouch with brown hair and some freckles that span across his face. His eyes were dull, the tell tale sign of Lelouchs' geass.
"Kallen, do you know him?" Lelouch asked quickly.
"No, I've never seen him before," Kallen responded eyeing the kid up and down.
"Perfect, he will be our tester for our geass powers. You'll be first, use your geass on the both of us." Lelouch told her with his confident smirk.
"What? I mean what should I do?" Kallen asked unsure of what emotion she should use.
"I don't care, as long as it's noticeable quickly. I would ask however, that you be prepared to use your geass again to stop us. I'd prefer not to have my emotions tampered with permanently." Lelouch said completely oblivious to the effect he was currently under.
"Understood," Kallen said preparing herself. A pang of guilt hit her for a moment realizing what she had done to him. She lowered her head, somewhat unsure of herself. *He has no idea that he's under my influence...*
"Kallen this isn't difficult, just command us to be afraid of you, or hate you, really anything will-"
"Fear me," Kallen said cutting him off. The power of the King embodied her for merely a moment and shot at Lelouch, invading his mind and ripping into him with undeniable power.
Lelouch fell to the ground then gazed up at Kallen in horror. His eyes wide, he tried to voice a scream but could only gasp for breath. His eyes were sporadic, looking around for a way he could escape from her. The younger student remained standing unaffected by the geass.
"Stop," Kallen commanded, seeing the effect on Lelouch was not a pretty site. The geass filled her once more, but just as quickly as the power built, it died. *What? What's going on here?* "Cancel, desist, quit!" Kallen shouted, starting to panic.
Lelouch let out a shriek of terror hearing Kallen scream at him, tears streaming down his face. He had to get away from her regardless of cost. He spotted the ledge of the roof and started running for it, as if he was a small child running to his house, afraid of the dark.
Kallen reached out and tried to restrain him but he flailed frantically, breaking free of her grasp. Her heart was pounding, it was all she could hear, it was threatening to break her ribs. As he neared the wall Kallen reached towards him, "trust me!"
Lelouch suddenly stopped, caught aback by the position he was in. He felt a slight warmness on his cheeks as he reached up to discover that they were tears. "Did you make me ball my eyes out Kallen?" He laughed as he turned around seeing the desperate look on her face.
Kallen took a moment attempting to catch her breath, "no... That was fear." She sighed heavily with relief, collapsing on the ground for a moment.
Lelouch nodded his head and took note of the position of the younger boy. "And it seems he was unaffected." Lelouch motioned towards the stoic student.
"Yes... can you... give me a minute?.. That was kind of rattling." Kallen said, still trying to catch her breath.
"How so, did your geass take a physical toll on you?" Lelouch asked still confused, taking a step towards her.
"No. You nearly committed suicide." Kallen said sitting up now, finally beginning to calm down.
"Well everything is fine now, right? Don't worry about it, now we know you need a name for your geass." Lelouch walked over to her, extending his hand to her.
She accepted his hand and stood, "there's something else." Kallen said feeling a bit ashamed of herself.
"What's that?" Lelouch asked, he could see the distress in her face, the guilt in her eyes. She seemed truly sorry.
"I can't stop it, my geass. Once it's controlling you, I have no way of stopping it."
Lelouch took this in for a moment, looking at the ground. *Perhaps it wasn't the best idea to use me..* Lelouch scolded himself. "So then, what effect am I under at the moment?"
"Trust," Kallen looked down, she couldn't stand to look into his deep amethyst eyes any longer.
"By far the least bothersome, after all I trusted you before correct?" Lelouch didn't seem bothered at all by his current status.
"About that, I kind of used it on you yesterday... in the Sutherland." Kallen admitted still unable to look up and see the expression on his face.
"Well, I can't say that I'm pleased but no harm came from it.." Lelouch responded automatically. Suddenly felt unsure of himself, now that he knew he was under the effect of her geass how could he trust his own judgment. What mistakes could he have already made? What mistakes would he make in the future with his thoughts not being his own?
*There's no sense in being upset at Kallen, even if she hadn't used her geass on me prior to today, I would be in the same situation currently. There has to be a way out of this, could I cancel her geass with mine? Perhaps, but I can't afford to take more chances using myself as the experiment?*
Lelouch looked over to the kid still under his control, "tell me your name." Lelouch said rather coldly.
"Nicholas," the student said equally as cold.
"Kallen use your geass on him, nothing serious, it's just a test. I would suggest using trust on him, that seems to be the least harmful if it is to be permanent." Lelouch said never breaking his gaze on Nicholas.
Kallen nodded looking up at Nicholas, "Trust me."
Nicholas' eyes blinked to life, "huh where am I? How did I get up here? Who are you?" He asked to Lelouch.
"Don't worry about him Nicholas, everything's okay. You should go back downstairs though, you probably have class." Kallen said in a comforting tone. Without a word Nicholas did as was suggested and entered back into the school. The wind picked up some, blowing strands of hair in front of Kallens face, occasionally whipping it to the side in the momentary gusts.
It seemed like a veil was lifted from Lelouchs' eyes, *I can't believe she used geass on me! Did she think I wasn't going to cooperate with her? Wait a minute.. That means.. my thoughts, they're my own... But how? I haven't used geass on myself yet. There must be another limit to her power, perhaps she can only effect a certain number of people.* "Kallen, I propose a deal." Lelouch said calmly.
Kallen finally returned his gaze, his eyes seemed different. Even though the wind blew his hair across his face, the intent held within was perfectly visible. They were fierce, not angry, but powerful, like a beast waiting for its time. "What is it?" Kallen asked, not sure how to feel about the look in his eyes.
"I can tell you right now, that I'm no longer under the control of your geass. Clearly there must be a kind of limit to the number of people you can control before they drop off. I propose a pact from me to you, I will never use my geass on you, in return, I ask the same of you. If we are to be allies in this, it must be built on real trust, not geass. I need my thoughts and emotions to be my own, without them I will surely fail." Lelouch said, the fierceness slowly fading from his violet eyes.
"That sounds fair, I'm sorry that I used it on you in the first place. I don't know why-"
"None of that matters now, we simply need to move on. There are many tasks at hand and we have much preparation to do." Lelouch reached out his right hand towards Kallen and she accepted it. "It is a deal then." Lelouch nodded shaking her hand firmly. *That worked out nicely, I'd hate to have to waste my trump card so soon.* The wind began to pick up, the trees danced and succumbed to the power of its' gusts. "Perhaps we should get inside, I know of a place where we can have some privacy." Lelouch spoke over the wind, guiding her back into the school.
The school halls were bustling with students, crowded as it was it felt like a mosh pit trying to move any direction with certainty. "How do you expect to find anywhere peaceful at this time?" Kallen shouted trying to be heard over the roar of the students.
"Follow me," Lelouch grabbed her arm and attempted to pull her across the hallway, they were met by a wall of bodies all trying to move in one of two directions. As soon as he entered Lelouch was nearly trampled only saved by Kallen holding onto him. The door to his wing was just across the hall, if only he could reach it. *Okay, clearly I'm not the trailblazer of the team.*
Determined to cross, Kallen pushed her way through the crowd, dragging Lelouch to the other side. As she neared the other side she felt something or someone grab her backside. "Hey! Someone just grabbed by butt!" Kallen clenched her fist and reared around, trying to discover the culprit but it was futile, in the mass of people it was impossible to pick out just one suspect.
"Don't worry about it, happens to me all the time." Lelouch pleaded with her to continue as he was being tossed around. Upon reaching the other side she raised her hand connected to Lelouch, trying to assess the damage. He appeared to be bruised in a few places, his cheek being one of them.
"Whew, at least we're in the clear." Lelouch sighed as the crowd began to thin.
"What are you talking about we only made it across the hall." Kallen said, looking for another opening.
"Yeah that's where we're going." Lelouch said as he pulled out an intricate silver key to the door in front of them.
"What? You have access to that part of the school?" Kallen asked astonished, "I thought that section was only for the Ashford Family."
"Yeah, they're really nice," Lelouch smiled as he opened the door quickly, pulled Kallen in after him, and quickly shut the door which locked automatically. "I'll explain everything in a moment." Lelouch said still holding Kallens' hand as he strode down the glamorous halls of the Ashford Wing. Incredible paintings decorated the walls. The rugs the walked on were very plush, their feet sinking in with every step. They passed door after door until Lelouch finally stopped at a door marked Lamprouge. He pulled out another key and inserted it into the lock, "after you." He said opening the door for her.
Suddenly Kallen felt somewhat underdressed as she walked through the set of rooms given to Lelouch and Nunnally. Kallen noticed that Lelouch had that sophisticated air about him, with the care he took to his hair and clothes, always neat and clean. Although she never imagined it was to this extent! They entered the main living room where Nunnally was sitting at the table trying to master origami.
"Lelouch, your home," Nunnally smiled. She paused as she heard another set of footsteps along with his. "Who's your friend?" Although she was blind, Nunnally was far from helpless. Her hearing was a second to none. Several times had Lelouch thought he could sneak something past his little sister, for better or for worse, but to no avail.
"Nunnally this is Kallen. Kallen this is my dear sister Nunnally." Lelouch said, hoping his sister would approve. After all she had the probability of being around him quite a bit for an extended period of time. Nunnally extended her hand towards Lelouch and Kallen.
Kallen grasped it lightly, "it's a pleasure to meet you. You have a very caring older brother." Kallen smiled, until she realized that it held no value.
"Thank you very much," Nunnally smiled as she studied her hand for a moment. Her hand was soft but strong, her nails were bare but she felt warm and comforting. Clearly a good influence on Lelouch, Nunnally looked in Lelouchs' direction and nodded ever so slightly. "Well I'm sure you both have things to do, I've got to get back to my birds." Nunnally smiled as she returned to her work.
"Alright, just let me know if you need anything okay Nunnally?" Lelouch said reaching down to give his sister a hug.
"Oh please, don't worry yourself, Sayoko is around here somewhere. I'll be fine." Nunnally said as she reached for her origami paper once more.
Lelouch and Kallen continued towards his room, he let her in first. Kallen looked around, it was very well kept and clean. *Although I suppose it's more likely that someone else keeps it clean for him by the looks of this place.* It was nicer then her place, perhaps not by much, but that was still saying a lot.
After all, Kallens' father made enough money to support her god awful step mother. If you wished to entertain her for merely ten minutes you had to be loaded. Kallens' eyes stopped when she realized the only problem with the current scenario, no chairs, and one bed.
Lelouch sat at the foot of the bed and invited her to sit with him. Kallen hesitated for a moment, unsure of how quick things were going between the two of them. After all in the past few days she'd already had an awful lot of firsts with him, first boy to see in his boxers, other than those stupid models for men's' underwear. First to see her in her underwear, now he's the first boy she's been alone with in a bedroom...
Kallens discomfort became more evident as the seconds ticked by, "I can get you a chair from the other room if you'd like," Lelouch explained looking over at Kallen, who was still hesitant. "Do I make you feel uneasy?" He asked tilting his head to the side.
"Hmm? Oh, well I'm just weary of people I don't know. Sorry, this is all just going a bit fast for me."
"Say no more," Lelouch stood up and exited the room to get a chair from the living room.
Kallen looked around trying to take everything in. *He doesn't seem like a bad guy, and he hasn't done anything for me to distrust him. If anything, I'm the one that shouldn't be trusted.. How can he seem so innocent, and yet so cold at the same time. The way he was able to simply kill Clovis, without so much as a second thought. I understand he needed to be removed, but shouldn't it have been harder for him? It's one thing when you're in a knightmare, which takes the immorality out of killing. At least they're given the chance to escape...* Kallen clenched her teeth. *Toughen up Kozuki, this is war. There's no room to be wallowing over the dead.* Kallen thought, a stern determination on her face.
Lelouch was in the bathroom cleaning bits of vomit off his mouth. It seemed that killing was something he was going to have to get used to. *Strange that it didn't hit me until just now, perhaps my mind repressed it..* Clovis was far from his last target, if discovered he would be shown no mercy. *It's kill or be killed now, the die have been cast.* Lelouch looked directly into his own eyes in the mirror. They were glossed with hatred and filled with sorrow beneath that, his weakness. He could never show it to his comrades, *if they see anything but a stalwart leader they could falter, they could stray from me, it's a chance of failure, a chance I'm not willing to take. I will have to be cold and unwavering. Many more will die in this war, their blood will be on my hands. Sacrifices must be made. Absolutely nothing can stand in my way..* Lelouch placed his hand over his reflection in frustration and suddenly an idea came to him. "Zero."
Kallen was intent to look around and see what she could find out about Lelouch, but refrained from moving. *Everything in here seems so clean, so empty. The only thing with any character is that chess board with the pieces set up, ready to battle. Other than that, there isn't much of anything in this room that says anything about him at all. But when you look at him, everything about him says something. From way he holds his head, the gestures with his hands, the way he speaks, everything... Maybe that's what this room says about him, this isn't his home. Nothing here is his, all of this is just a mask...*
Lelouch entered the room carrying a chair, "sorry about the wait, I had to use the restroom." He set the chair down lightly and moved towards his bed. He sat down and rested one leg on the other.
"Thank you," Kallen smiled and accepted, the chair was comfortable for its size. It was made of wood, save the plush cushions on the seat and back.
"Never worry to ask something of me Kallen. I need you to trust me, just as you need me to trust you. Above all else we need to support each other." Lelouch extended the length of his body to reach out and grab two pieces from the chess board. "Just as a Queen is lost without the King; without the Queen, the King is doomed to failure." Lelouch said heavily as he held out the black queen piece in his left hand.
"I understand but-" Kallen began.
"Earlier you said you know nothing about me, just as I know nothing about you. But I'm going to share my secrets and strategies with you and you alone. I won't hide a single thing from you Kallen, not all of it will be easy to hear, but it will be honest. After all, trust is better to be built, rather than placed." Lelouch said tilting his head slightly towards hers waiting for a response as he twirled the king piece in his right hand.
*Is he serious? He's going to just tell me all of his deep dark secrets? How much blind faith can you put in a person?... But what about his results? Killing Clovis was no small task... Clearly we have the same goal in mind. Besides, it's past the point of no return now. We both have enough information on the other to get them killed...*
"I suppose you're right. We already know more than enough about each other. If either of us had any bad intentions, there would be no need to press further. Alright Lelouch, I trust you." Kallen said as she picked up the black queen.
A/N Whew, that one took me a while lol. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it : ) As always I would treasure a review, anything that you have to say helps.