A/N: First and foremost I own no portion of Code Geass. Sorry it took me a few days to put this chapter up, finals and such : / Thank you all for your reviews and comments, I really appreciate the feedback.

Walk it off

Kallen Stadtfeld was looking directly in front of her, the only view allowed by the leather straps that restrained her. In front of her was Zero, holding some kind of remote in his hand. He was offering to trade it for a woman two spaces down from her. *Why would he be trading for some other girl instead of me?* Kallen was confused but clearly Lelouch had a plan, one that she had to trust in at the moment.

The woman in charge of the executions gave the order to release the girl two spaces down. Kallen watched as the freed woman jumped down from the execution block before she left Kallen's field of vision. Her attention was immediately captured by Villeta raising a gun to Zero's face. Kallen was surprised that Zero made no attempt to move or stop the shooter. With a deafening ring, a single bullet shot out of the barrel and pierced Zero's visor. Kallen's eyes widened as she tried to voice a scream but it couldn't be heard through her gag. She couldn't move, even if she wasn't restrained, shock had paralyzed her. Like a nightmare that she couldn't wake from, all she could do was watch as blood seeped out of his mask and onto the execution block.

After some time, the guards walked around and took each of the girls into custody, still in buckles and gags. By the time she was released Kallen could only feel the ache in her heart, knowing that she couldn't thank Lelouch for freeing her, and that he died saving her.

It was after midnight by the time she'd gotten home and had her things returned. All things considered she was let go very quickly, the military must have gotten what they were after. Kallen hung her head as she walked to her room. Sleep sounded wonderful, although she knew it was hopeless, after the night she'd had.

Lelouch started to regain consciousness; he was in a bed, his bed if he wasn't mistaken. Lelouch slowly opened his dreary eyes to find a woman looking over him. A familiar woman. "What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were-"

"Dead? If only.. No Lelouch, I'm here to ensure your safety." C.C. cut in, looking around his room as she stood above him. No longer wearing her white outfit with buckles, she was now wearing a plain button up shirt.

"Who are you? And how do you know my name?" Lelouch asked.

"You may call me C.C. And your identification was in your wallet." She stated calmly, her emerald eyes held so much depth. A depth that was completely lost on her expression, it was like looking at a pane of glass, only with absolute nothingness behind it.

"Wait you went through my wallet?!" Lelouch asked, utterly surprised by her lack of tact.

"I don't see why you're making such a big deal out of it. Not like there was anything in it." C.C. responded, walking over to his personal items she placed on the desk. Lelouch suddenly recognized the shirt she was wearing, it was his. She bent over ever so slightly and it became apparent that she wasn't wearing anything else, as the lower curve of her backside was visible from Lelouch's lowered position.

Lelouch decided to sit up, suddenly realizing that his torso was rather bare. *Oh god, please don't tell me...* quickly he reached a hand beneath his covers to ensure that he was wearing pants. Thankfully he found himself still in his slacks. "Why did you take off my jacket? And is that one of my shirts you're wearing?"

C.C. looked down at the shirt she was wearing. "There was vomit on your jacket. And this shirt was all I could find. Does it offend you?"

"What? No, this is just a lot to take in all at once. Last thing I remember, I was..." Lelouch thought for a moment but his memories were slightly hazed.

"Unconscious, a very reckless move on your part. What if you'd been found there?" C.C. quickly took on a condescending tone.

"That wasn't exactly part of my plan.. Well I suppose I owe you a debt of gratitude. Just as you owe me an explanation." Lelouch looked over at her with an expecting look.

"You don't owe me anything, nor do I owe you anything. All you need to know is that I'm on your side, won't allow any harm to come to you, or that girl." She was walking around picking up random items to examine them. Interested in some things but bored by most.

"That girl? You mean Kallen?" Lelouch asked, still trying to grasp the situation.

"The other girl I gave the power to, if that is her name, then yes. How are you two liking geass so far?" C.C. came back to sit on the bed with Lelouch, her silken legs crossed one over the other. Her scent was a very familiar one, but he couldn't quite place it. Whatever it was it smelled slightly sweet, but organic like rain or flowers. Her overall presence was really quite distracting. The way she just flaunted her body around made it rather difficult to focus on anything other than her for a length of time. That's quite possibly the effect she desired.

"I couldn't have asked for a greater gift. And while I don't know about Kallen's thoughts on her power, I'm as thankful for her gift as I am for mine. Together, we can bring this empire to its knees. To repay them, for the cruel injustices they've carried out on me, my sister and my mother." A dark look of resolve and defiance spread across his face as he looked down towards his white knuckled fist.

"So you plan to destroy Britannia? I just knew you'd be an interesting choice." C.C. looked over to Lelouch with a blank look that seemed to be her default expression. "I can only hope that Kallen will live up to your standard."

"I don't think she'll disappoint she's-" Suddenly bits and pieces of memory started coming back to Lelouch. "What time is it?" Lelouch looked over at the clock, it was nearly 2 in the morning. "It's rather late, still.." C.C. could only watch in confusion as he quickly got out of bed and grabbed his phone. Lelouch flipped open his cell and began typing a text message.

Kallen was lying nearly naked in her bed, staring up at the ceiling trying to get some sleep. Tears had dried on her cheeks. Thoughts were rushing through her head, not allowing her any peace of mind. With a grating sound her phone lit up and began to vibrate on her night stand. She didn't take her gaze off the ceiling or change her expression as she reached over and picked it up. She opened the message before looking at is as she pulled it in front of her face.

"Hey Kallen, how was your day?"

*What the hell?* Kallen asked herself, *who could seriously ask such a dumb question? On today of all days.* Kallen scrolled down to see who sent her the message. It was Lelouch. Kallen's heart skipped as she read it over and over again, half expecting it to change. Without another thought she rushed to pull on her undershirt, skirt and shoes.

*It's been fifteen minutes since I sent my text message. Which means that either she is still being held, or the military has her phone... Or she could just be sleeping...* Lelouch let out a heavy sigh. *I'm thinking about this too much...* Lelouch could only tap his temples as he tried to clear his mind.

A light knock came on his door, if he hadn't heard a voice on the other end he would have simply thought he was hallucinating. "Lelouch?"

Lelouch tilted his head to the side for a moment, *that wasn't Sayoko..* He walked over to the door slowly and opened it to find Kallen on the other side, looking up at him with tears welling in her eyes.

Kallen quickly grabbed him and pulled him into a hug, relieved to see that he was still alive. Lelouch was surprised but he didn't deny her, lightly resting his hands on her back. After the initial shock wore off she pulled herself away and slapped him, hard. "How could you do that to me?!" Kallen fumed, her soft watery eyes turned to ice in a flash.

"You must be Kallen." C.C. said, still in Lelouch's bed. She stifled a giggle watching Lelouch get slapped. This was going to be fun indeed.

"Oh, Kallen this is C.C. Weird name, I know." Lelouch motioned to the lime green haired woman.

Kallen reared her head to find the green haired witch in Lelouch's bed, with his shirt on. "What the- How did- Wait a second! What the hell is going on here?!" Kallen demanded, her tone changing drastically in the last sentence. Her hands placed on her hips and her eyes narrowed.

Lelouch reached a hand for her shoulder trying to calm her down. Luckily Nunnally's bedroom was on the other side of the living room. Still, his sister's hearing wasn't something he wanted to test. "I know it's confusing, apparently she's immortal."

Kallen swatted his hand away from her. "Wearing your shirt?!" she glared at Lelouch, suddenly she noticed Lelouch didn't have a shirt on. Kallen's eyes went wide and turned to C.C., "are you naked under there?" Her wrath turned to the witch now.

"Yes." C.C. stated calmly.

Kallen was taken aback at such a simple response. "W-what? That's not a question you just answer!" Clearly Kallen's biggest concern wasn't C.C. dying and coming back to life.

Lelouch saw the connection Kallen had made. "No no no, we didn't do anything like that.. at all." He looked back and forth between the two girls, things were going downhill at a rapid pace. "Kallen, give me a chance. I can explain everything, well most of it." He admitted, biting his lip. "I'm not entirely sure about her yet." He said waving a dismissive hand towards C.C. He saw the time on his clock suddenly reminding him how late it was. "What are you doing here, this late at night?"

"I got your stupid text message!" Kallen huffed trying to calm down. She walked over to the computer chair and looked at his jacket. "Okay, well I understand why you aren't wearing a shirt now." She pushed the jacket off the chair and sat down.

"I'm sorry, I had to make sure that it was something inconspicuous, in case you were still being held captive." Lelouch was floundering. He looked across his room, on his bed was a virtually naked C.C. and on the other side of the room was a very angry Kallen, who coincidentally wasn't wearing a whole lot either, due to the rush she was in while leaving. A scenario where two nearly naked women were in your bedroom sounded like a dream come true, but this wasn't the case, this was more like a living nightmare.

"And what about her?" Kallen asked looking over at C.C.

"She found me unconscious in the street and brought me here, when I woke up she was wearing my shirt." Lelouch shrugged honestly.

"And you expect me to believe that?" Kallen asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

*My god, why do women have to be so damned frustrating!?* Lelouch covered his face with his hand pulling his hair, "is it harder to believe than a woman dying and coming back to life?"

Kallen thought for a moment. "Well no, I suppose not." She couldn't quite understand why she was getting so upset about C.C. being in his bedroom. *It's not like him and I are dating. But still, we were supposed to tell each other everything and trust each other completely. And he rescued me, just me, he went to all that trouble… I thought we had something, even just a spark of something. Didn't we? Or was this all just one sided?* Kallen hung her head, the fight effectively taken out of her.

"I don't know, this situation is pretty incriminating." C.C. shrugged. Hiding the sheer fun she was having behind her dull expression. She hadn't had this kind of fun in ages.

Lelouch glared at C.C. *If I can just get these two away from each other maybe I'd stand a chance..* Lelouch thought to himself. "Kallen let me walk you home, I'll explain along the way."

Kallen was hesitant for a moment but eventually agreed. Lelouch reached into his closet and grabbed a clean jacket. "Don't do anything while I'm gone C.C."

She sighed in response, suddenly bored and fell back into the bed. She wrapped herself in blankets and didn't say another word.

Kallen's crystal blue eyes no longer held daggers for Lelouch, they seemed more sad than anything. *Was it something I said? How did they both go from mad and amused to depressed and bored in the blink of an eye?.. I seriously don't get women…*

Once they were outside in the night air Kallen regained some of her composure. She still had questions for him after all, being sad wasn't going to get her anywhere. "Still waiting…"

"Where should I start?" Lelouch asked in a defeated tone, he just wanted to survive the night.

"What happened at the execution?" Kallen asked, a more serious tone coming over her.

"I assume Zero was shot?" Lelouch asked, walking at a normal pace for him, which was rather slow for Kallen.

"He was, in the head.. Right in front of me." Kallen looked down, not wanting to relive that moment.

"I used my geass on a criminal to take my place. I gave him very specific instructions, clearly the plan worked." Lelouch said, turning his head, trying to look Kallen in the eye.

"What was the plan?" Kallen continued, trying to match his slow pace.

"To have the stand-in exchange a fake detonator for one of the girls, as long as it wasn't you." As Lelouch was talking he started to feel a pang of guilt, although he was unsure why. The crisp night air breezed through his jacket, in the corner of his vision he could see Kallen trying not to shiver. Without a second thought he pulled off his jacket and rested it on her shoulders.

Kallen smiled slightly and accepted it. "But why not me?" Kallen titled her head.

"Because, if he'd chosen you, you wouldn't be able to show your face ever again. Not at home, not at school, anywhere you went you'd be hunted. I couldn't have that, between the rumors at school between us and the witnesses that have seen us talking more recently. If you would have been a suspect, I would have been a suspect. The outcome of this war depends upon our ability to keep our identities a secret."

"You put that much thought into it?" Kallen raised a brow.

"A good leader doesn't know the luxury of stale thoughts." Lelouch responded raising his chin. "So let me ask you a question. Why come straight to my room? You could have called or even just sent a message back."

"I don't know." Kallen looked down and kicked a small rock as she walked. "I guess I just wanted to see it for myself that you were alive."

"I see," Lelouch nodded, tucking his hands in his pockets. "Do you have any other questions for me?"

"What happened to the other girl? The one that was released?" Kallen asked, glancing up to Lelouch.

Lelouch thought for a moment, then like a brick it hit his stomach. That was the guilt he'd felt earlier, it was the innocent blood on his hands. His mind had blocked out the traumatic event until now. Lelouch grabbed his stomach for a moment trying to ease the pain.

"Is something wrong?" Kallen asked, stopping in her tracks.

"Oh it's nothing, I uh get cramps when I walk too much. I'm sure you noticed in gym that I'm no athlete." Lelouch said with a smirk trying to take his mind off the subject.

Kallen chuckled for a moment, "yeah I don't know how I finished before you. I walked the entire mile, and you- well you actually tried..." She did her best not to put him down, but it wasn't easy.

*She doesn't need to know about that, it will only cause trouble.* "I'm not sure what happened to the girl that night, I was only concerned with your safety." Lelouch had become very good at lying as of recently, the only person he couldn't bring himself to lie to was his sister. She just had a way of seeing straight through him.

"Lelouch, thank you. For saving me, I honestly wasn't sure if you were going to come." Kallen looked away from Lelouch, not wanting him to see the vulnerability in her eyes. They were approaching the Stadtfeld estate, the wind had calmed some.

"Of course I did. You're my Q-1, I'll always come for you.. Still don't make a habit of it." Lelouch sported a playful smirk.

"Right," Kallen smiled sincerely. *Q-1 huh? That's why he saved me. Kallen has no tactical value, but Q-1 does..* Kallen had also become quite well at hiding her feelings when necessary.

They arrived at the gates of the Stadtfeld estate, waiting outside for a moment. There was a strange tension between the two of them, it was undeniable. Kallen stood in waiting, for something, anything from him. Moments that seemed like minutes dragged by, neither of them sure what to do. All they could do was avert their eyes from one another, an awkward state that neither enjoyed. After what seemed like an eternity she caved, anything he did now wouldn't hold meaning anyway. "Well, here's your jacket. Thanks again." Kallen said handing over his jacket.

"You're welcome, I'll see you tomorrow in school?" Lelouch asked, not realizing what time it was.

"Considering I'll have to be up in three hours? Maybe." Kallen sighed, trying to figure out how the conversation became so casual all of the sudden. It just didn't make sense to her. "Night…" Kallen turned around and walked in through the Stadtfeld gates, not looking back.

"Good night," Lelouch said with an unseen wave. He turned to start walking home through the cold night air. He pulled on his jacket; it was warm from Kallens body heat, it also faintly smelled of strawberries. Despite the jacket and lack of wind, somehow it seemed colder on the walk back. Perhaps it was because he realized just what he had done earlier that night, it wasn't a welcomed feeling. Still at least now he'd managed to keep it in check, as long as it didn't affect his appearance he'd learn to live with the burden.

When he arrived home C.C. was still in his bed, although she didn't appear to be sleeping. "You're back, did you have a nice walk?" She asked, not turning to look at him.

"I remember everything now, that innocent girl I killed, with these hands." Lelouch looked down at his hands, as if they had blood permanently stained on them.

"Yes I saw that, it's not uncommon for the innocent to be killed in war. But if you let that one death affect you this greatly then you will most likely die as well." C.C. said with a hint of disappointment. "If you turn back now-"

"I won't turn back, I can't. If I did, the lives lost will have been for nothing, I won't allow that to happen." Lelouch walked over to his closet hanging up the jacket he was wearing. He looked back in C.C.'s direction, "it did affect me, just as it would anyone else. However, I'm coming to terms with it. Nothing will stand between me and my revenge, Britannia will fall." Lelouch said with indifference. He walked over to his chess board and placed his hand on the black king piece, rolling it between his thumb and middle finger. "It would appear that in my deal with the devil, I'm destined to lose my soul.. So be it."

Cornelia walked down the ramp leading out of her transport. Her eyes were sharp as needles. She was the first one out, not one to wait for an escort. Euphenia and the rest of the passengers slowly made their way out of the transport behind her. A number of high ranking soldiers were waiting to welcome the new viceroy on one knee. "Greetings your highness. It's an honor to have you here."

Cornelia didn't stop where they knelt, forcing them to get up quickly to follow her. "The death of my brother is what brought me here Captain, it wasn't an honor, it was a mistake. A sloppy, incompitent mistake; one that will be dealt with soon enough."

"Of course your highness, I meant no-"

"I want a squad mobilized and ready for orders within 12 hours. We're going after Zero's militia. They still have our Knightmares, a disgrace I intend to rectify."

A/N: Okay, another chapter in the books. This one was meant to be a bit shorter than the others. I wanted to set up a few things while literally trying to 'walk off' the innocent killed in the previous chapter, gotta have some fun every now and again : ) Usually at Lelouch's expense but whatever xD Again sorry it took me a few days to post this, I was partially absorbed in an AMV I made. The link to which is in my profile if you'd care to check it out : ) As always, I would treasure a review from you : )