"Speech"

"Radio or calls"

'Thoughts'

The Festival

Lelouch

Standing on a walkway above the main festival grounds, Lelouch glanced around at the last minute preparations, clipboard in hand, some clubs and groups scrambling to finish up their setups. 'We gave them time and they still are scrambling.' The festival was only a few hours from starting and then it would be chaos for him.

Scanning his clipboard, he took in a few breaths before something tapped him on the shoulder from behind. Turning around, expecting some nervous freshman or club president, he was surprised to see Shirley, her green eyes full of determination.

"Lelouch, can we talk? Somewhere else?" He nodded slowly, wondering what had his friend so serious. It had been a slow process of rebuilding, but Shirley and he had recovered a bit of their old friendship, though he would always feel a slight pang of guilt at knowing he killed her father. She led him to behind one of the buildings, looking around. 'Is this about me being Zero?' That was the only reason he could think of for taking them into a private place like this.

She took a deep breath, steadying herself, "It's taken me awhile to get my thoughts together on this, but you deserve to know how I feel about all of the…stuff around you." She threw her arms up in exaggeration, Lelouch cracking a small smile at the gesture.

"I'm sorry you had to be dragged into this. I never wished any of you to be put in danger."

Shirley smiled sadly, "I wish I hadn't learned either. It was so hard to reconcile my image of you against you being a terrorist leader." A tear came to her eye, which she wiped away, "I don't think I will ever fully forgive you for killing my father. But you are my friend and I want you to be happy. I don't think I'll ever fully understand why you are doing this, but it's probably safer if I don't, isn't it?"

Lelouch frowned, taking a breath, "I wish I could go back in time and fix that mistake, warn your father about that. But the past is the past." Words jumbled in his head, and sentimentality sat in his chest, "I wish this could have resolved better, that woman not threatening you. But for what it's worth, you handled it well."

Shirley laughed nervously, "I suppose that other's would take learning their crush was an infamous criminal worse. But your secret is safe with me. I would never want to hurt you or Nunnally."

Lelouch pulled her in for a quick hug, Shirley pressing her face into his collarbone, "Thank you. And you saved my life, which I didn't thank you for. It takes bravery to do that."

Shirley blushed as the hug broke, "I was just saving my friend." Lelouch held back the urge to say most people would run as soon as a gun came out. Shirley took another deep breath, her face a deep frown, "I am going to tell you guys when I know it for sure, but I wanted to tell you my mom was thinking of taking me back to the homeland."

Lelouch looked at her in shock, "You are going back to Britannia?"

Shirley pursed her lips, "I don't know. My mom has been talking to her sister, who has invited her to stay with her and my cousins till we can settle in, if we move. My mom is nervous about Zero and the Black Knights, and feels the homelands would be safer."

Lelouch put a hand on her shoulder, his voice soft, "How do you feel about this?" There was a pang in his heart at the thought of her leaving. She had been a part of the friend group for years, and had good for everyone, even though Milly never let up on her. Imagining her back at the homeland worried him, especially with his long term plans.

Her voice was thick with emotion, "I don't want to leave. I want to be with you guys, but my mom is still grieving and Japan isn't safe right now. I want to be there for her."

Lelouch squeezed her shoulder, "Whatever happens, know that all of us are still your friend. Don't feel bad about being there for your mom." He smiled, "And I have no doubt Milly will be bugging you constantly if you move. Don't tell her about any boy you meet or she might try to set you up."

Shirley laughed, her happy voice music to his ears, "Thank you. It'll be awhile, so I'll enjoy my time here as much as possible." Her eyes softened, "And Lelouch, take care of Kallen. She really cares for you, and the part of me that still longs for you would know exactly what it means to have my heart broken."

Lelouch gave her a warm smile, "I will. Just because you asked."

Shirley's face matched her hair as she lightly smacked his chest, "Do it because you love her! Not me! What I saw in you, I have no idea."

Both of them laughed, a happy atmosphere around them. Lelouch looked back at the festival grounds, "I think we should head back. I have no doubt we are needed." Shirley nodded and the two made their way back. 'Well that's one less worry for now. Though when I invade Britannia, I'll have to keep an eye out for where she is.'

Kallen

Everything had been running smoothly for the festival, but then life somehow knew they were having a good time, so of course Kallen had to run into Ohgi and a dark-skinned, silver-haired woman. The military was definitely here and she had to get them out of sight, just in case he was recognized.

Guiding them to the storehouse, Ohgi asking her questions, Kallen wondering who this silver-haired woman was. She didn't look Japanese and she wasn't military. 'When did Ohgi get a girlfriend?'

The voice of her boyfriend rung out in the room, drawing her attention to him, "Kallen, authorized personel only. Could you please get them out of here?" She let out a sigh of relief at seeing him and noticed Lelouch's eyes widened at the sight of Ohgi, narrowing slightly as they then drifted to the silver-haired woman. 'Now what is that about?' Lelouch look slightly nervous, though admittedly was because she was more used to his reads.

Kallen walked up to Lelouch, lightly kissing him on the lips, "Sorry about that. Found an old friend and wanted to give him a tour was all. I'll get them out of here as soon as possible." Kallen caught a slight flash of green hair in a corner, and his nervousness made sense. 'We can't let Ohgi see CC.'

Lelouch smiled at her and nodded, "I'm happy you found an old friend." His expression was definitely a front, something brewing behind that mask of his.

Ohgi looked between the two teenagers, confused, "Kallen, who is this?"

Kallen grabbed Lelouch's arm, pressing against it, "This is my boyfriend, Lelouch Lamperouge." She turned her attention to her boyfriend, "Lelouch, this is Ohgi, one of my brother's old friends."

Lelouch gave them an easy going smile, "It's nice to meet you. How have you-" The door to the storehouse slid open again, and Shirley's voice rang out. Lelouch gestured for Kallen to get Ohgi and his friend out of sight, and the two grunted as Kallen shoved them out of view, Kallen stepping back up close to Lelouch.

"I'm sure we have extra burners in here somewhere." Shirley spoke again as she and Suzaku appeared at the entrance, heads craning to look. Shirley quickly spotted both of them, and waved, "Have you guys seen any burners? Rivalz needs them for the pizza."

Kallen looked around in an exaggerated show, "I haven't seen any over here, but they might on the other side."

Suzaku gave the two a teasing grin, "What are you two doing here all alone? Finding some…private time?"

Kallen and Shirley couldn't help but blush, and Lelouch quickly retorted, "And if we were? You would do the same if a certain princess were here." Suzaku blushed at that, and Kallen couldn't help but silently laugh.

Suzaku then grinned, "You know, you aren't wrong." Suzaku then turned his head, and turned back to Shirley, "I think I spotted the burners. I can get them to Rivalz."

The redhead nodded at Suzaku as he headed to the shelf to get them, and just as Suzaku walked out of the storehouse, Lelouch called out to her, "Shirley, Kallen brought an old friend of hers here and I was wondering if you could escort him and his friend to the festival grounds. I have to talk to Kallen about something festival related."

Shirley nodded, "Sure!" Ohgi and the woman stepped out from behind where they were hiding, and Shirley's eyes widened at the woman. 'Ok, something is definitely up with this? Who is she?' Shirley quickly centered herself and gave the two new strangers a strained smile, "Please follow me. I hope you guys are enjoying the festival!"

The woman smiled, "It's been great, hasn't it Ohgi?"

Ohgi rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah. It's been great." He looked at Kallen, smiling, "It was nice to see you. Check back in later with me?"

Kallen smiled, nodding, "Definitely." With a wave, the two were guided out of the storeroom, leaving Kallen and Lelouch alone. Gesturing her head towards the hidden witch, she called out, "You can come out now. It's safe."

The green-haired woman stood up and looked at the pair, rolling her eyes, "You two are lucky that you actually know each other's identities. Else that might have been really awkward."

Both of the teens sighed and CC just smirked. Lelouch looked at Kallen, "Do you know why Ohgi is here?"

Kallen shook her head, "Not a clue. All I know is he is with that woman, who you seemed to recognize, if my eyes didn't deceive me. And Shirley as well."

"She is certainly someone I don't like. She is related to-" Lelouch's phone went off and with an annoyed grunt, the raven-haired teen answered the call, "Yes Milly?" There was a stream of noise from the other side she couldn't hear, and Lelouch responded, "Ok, I'll be out there. Be there in a few minutes."

He hung up the call and looked at Kallen, "Milly needs me to deal with something. Can you keep an eye on CC for me please?" He pulled out a hat on a shelf and put it on her head, the immortal frowning in annoyance.

"I just want my pizza."

Kallen laughed, "You know Lelouch, this time it's not with your money, so be happy at that."

Lelouch just let out an annoyed grunt, "I thought you were on my side."

Kallen smirked, "I am until it is funny. But I'll make sure she doesn't get into trouble. Hopefully no one here knows about her origins."

As the redhead and green-haired woman made their way back to the festival grounds, Kallen couldn't help but shake her head at the whole scenario. To have all of those things happen at once was a bit much, even for her. 'I can only hope Ohgi is safe. And I never got the chance to ask what was going on with that woman.'

She looked over to CC, who was humming to herself, casually walking as if she wasn't being hunted by Britannia. The witch looked at Kallen, tilting her head, "So how has the sex been? You two are rather loud."

Kallen's just rolled her eyes, "Do you not have anything better to do than spy on us?" Her and Lelouch had not crossed that line yet, but CC apparently though the redhead was loud whenever Lelouch and her made out.

CC pouted, "You are no fun anymore. You and Lelouch don't give me what I want." CC twirled in front of Kallen, a half-smile on her face.

"You are you. I just got used to your antics." CC was a pest when she was bored, especially when Lelouch and Kallen were back at school. And Kallen was still surprised at the amount of pizza the woman ordered. 'How she hasn't gotten fat, I have no idea.' At least Lelouch had the money, otherwise that might be an issue.

CC spun back and poked Kallen's face, the redhead narrowing her eyes. The immortal just gave her a teasing grin, "You know you two remind me of Marianne and Charles."

Kallen's attention was immediately grabbed as she stopped and looked at CC, "What do you mean by that? You knew Lelouch's parents?"

"I met a lot of famous people in my time. Meeting the emperor and his wife was just one in a line of people." Her eyes shined mischievously, "I could have read it in a magazine, or maybe I'm lying and knew them well."

Kallen grumbled, "You aren't going to tell me, are you?"

CC shook her head, "That is a good guess."

Another question popped into Kallen's head, "So if you hypothetically met the emperor and his wife, does that mean you met Lelouch when he was younger?" Her father had been away from the courts, his family in Japan taking up his time, so she had only heard and seen stories on the news. And her father was never that high ranked, so he probably wouldn't have even been granted an audience with the emperor.

"Well if I did, then wouldn't he remember it?" She tapped her chin with a finger, "I don't think I need to say anything. It's more fun to let you ponder that thought."

Kallen resisted the urge to shove the woman, not wanting to draw attention to the pair. The woman was hard to read and was a master at making it hard to tell when she was joking or when she was being serious. And annoyingly, all of the questions CC refused to answer did linger in her mind. An immortal like her had to have met someone important, especially because she was being held prisoner by Britannia. 'Why was she captured by them?'

Kallen rolled the thought in over her mind, but nothing came to mind. She would have to wait for more, if CC was going to be as standoffish as she is. Looking over the festival grounds, everyone happy and enjoying their time, she let out a happy sigh. It was nice to have a moment of peace, especially in the life she led. 'I can only hope nothing ruins this. And that CC stops looking at the giant oven like a little girl in love.'

Lelouch

Of all the things he never expected, seeing Euphemia at the festival had not been one of them. Her showing up with Nunnally had worried him for a second, but after the trio had settled down on the stairs, he couldn't help but find it relaxing. Right now he was Lelouch Lamperouge, not Zero. 'Though her disguise does need work. The pink hair is kind of obvious.'

Euphemia laughed as she looked out over the crowd watching Suzaku working on the giant pizza, "You know Lelouch, when you said your girlfriend was a spitfire, I didn't expect her to be so hostile."

Lelouch shrugged, smiling warmly, "She can have a hot temper, but she really is a wonderful girl." Lelouch did not expect her to be so hostile to Euphemia on Kamine Island, but from Kallen's perspective, Euphemia was the enemy, so it made sense for her to act that way.

Euphemia looked at his face, nodding, "If she gets you smiling like that, then I'm happy." She then gave him a teasing grin, "You didn't say that she was rather…gifted when we talked. I can see plenty of guys being jealous of you."

Lelouch blushed and looked away from his half-sister, fixing his collar as he spoke in an embarrassed tone, "She would probably kill me if I spoke about her like that to someone else."

Nunnally laughed at that, "He's right. She is very temperamental. But I'm happy she is able to keep him from being stupid. And to actually have fun." Nunnally gave him a loving smile and Lelouch couldn't help but sigh and smile.

Euphemia hid her lips as she laughed, "Lelouch can certainly be stupid, can't he?" Lelouch pouted, annoyed at her comment, but a part of him still smiled.

To have him, Nunnally and Euphemia hanging out like this brought back memories of Aries Villa. When they were just children and didn't have a care in the world. The world had torn that idealized past away, thrown them all to the wolves of politics. But he shook his head, pushing back the thoughts of the past, wanting to stay in the here and now.

Euphemia put a hand on his shoulder, "I'm happy you and Nunnally are safe, and that you are friends with Suzaku." She looked wistfully into the sky, "I don't want to see people be unhappy ever again."

Lelouch turned away from her, not able to accept her vision of reality. His voice was grim, "We aren't going to be able to see each other after this."

"That's not true. I found a solution for everything." He turned to look at her, eyes wide as wondered what she was talking about. He was about to say something when a stiff breeze blew the hat off her head, revealing her to everyone.

Euphemia reached out to grab her hat, but it was already out of arms reach, and calls that Princess Euphemia was here was echoing through the crowd, Rivalz voice adding to the cacophony. Euphemia looked at Lelouch as he grabbed the handles on Nunnally's wheelchair, "Lelouch, take Nunnally away!"

"Sorry to leave you on your own at a time like this!" He moved as fast as he could, watching from his peripheral vision as the crowd swarmed in around her, though security agents beat them to it, forming a protective perimeter. When he felt that his sister was safe in the observation and control booth, he stopped and turned to face where Euphemia was, hoping she would be ok. 'And what did she mean by saying she had a solution to everything?'

'Euphemia! Euphemia! EUPHEMIA!' In his room, finally able to get out of the chaos of the Euphemia situation, rage swirled like an angry storm in his mind. His sister, in one move, had put him in check. He was getting closer to uniting Japan, and Euphemia had thrown a wrench into that. And it was all over the news, so there was no way he could react to this.

He slammed a hand down on his desk, his hand a tight fist as he sat down at his chair. 'What do I do? I cannot let her plan stand as it is! She is just giving the people a nice bubble to pretend they can live in peace!' The threat of Britannian force was still on the table and there is no way this would overturn the racist and imperialist ideals of his father.

His door opened and with a growl, he called out the person entering, "Go away!" He was greeted by the blue eyes of his girlfriend, crossing her arms over her ample chest as she gave him an unimpressed look.

"You know most people would consider that rude, especially to their girlfriend or boyfriend." She closed the door behind her, giving him an even look, a burning fuse behind her eyes, "But you are lucky I actually get why you are mad. God knows what you would do without that."

Lelouch narrowed his eyes at her, anger coursing through him making it hard to control himself, "You would be pissed if you knew exactly what my sister did."

Kallen moved over to sit on a free space on his desk, looking down at him, an undercurrent of enmity in her voice, "You mean giving my people a false hope? To believe the empire would let them keep their identity? That they can be free of the empire's racism? No, I get it, very intimately." She leaned down to look at her boyfriend closer, "I dislike your pretty pink sister, but she is your sister. So I wanted to know what you were going to do about this."

His words and tone reflected his mind as he spoke, "She is going to ruin everything! After all that I have done! She and Suzaku are the two biggest thorns in my side, and now I can't even act! Not with looking like the bad guy!"

He stood up and began to pace the room, continuing, "They need to be removed. They can't stand in our way, not if it threatens the existence of the Black Knights." A fire lit in his eye, and thoughts of how to remove his sister, to destroy what they stood for. A dark laugh came out of him, and his thoughts rushed.

But a hand on his shoulder brought him back to reality, Kallen's eyes meeting his as she frowned disapprovingly, "Lelouch, whatever is going through your mind, you need to calm down." Her touch was calm and while there was some anger, what filled her eyes most was concern. She placed a hand on his cheek, pursing her lips, "We need you to think rationally. I need you to think rationally. Would you want to kill your sister? Your best friend?"

He took harsh breaths, trying to maintain his anger, but the combination of her look and words broke the barrier of his raging emotions, his rash thoughts becoming guilt as he realized he was thinking of hurting and killing the people close to him. A weight crashed down on him, and Kallen had to guide him onto the bed, sitting down on the edge, resting his head on her lap.

He took deep breaths as the anger rushed out of him fully, regretting that he almost let those rash thoughts get ahold of him. He shuddered at the comfort his girlfriend gave him, and he was more happy than ever he had revealed his identity to her those months ago. The warmth of her thighs filled him with happiness, carefully trying not to look down where he shouldn't look.

The redhead's soft voice calmed him even more, her blue eyes looking down at him lovingly, "We need a plan, but I need you in the right state. You are the most cunning and intelligent person I know, and more than ever we need you."

"Thank you, my queen." She blushed cutely at that, but didn't look away from him. He took a deep breath, and he reflected on his options. His sister was idealistic and that would clash with the official policies of Britannia. This was her dream and for anyone who knew Britannian politics, a pipedream. 'But to announce it meant she had some support. Cornelia would never agree, so who?' He pondered the options, the list narrowing as he mentally crossed out people, coming to only one conclusion. 'Schneizel. Of course he would back her. What is his game?'

His brother never played his hand early, so him backing her meant something. There was always more than one goal in all of his major political decisions. 'Was he trying to trap me? To put me in a catch-22?' This certainly would make any action of his much harder. Either he gave in, destroying the Black Knights or kept fighting, looking like he stood in the way of a future for the Japanese. Even if it was a false gift. 'My father would never stand for this, not in the long term. Is that what Schneizel is counting on?'

A rogue thought entered his mind, one he would never have contemplated before. 'The Black Knights wouldn't like this. Hell I don't think Kallen would be the biggest fan either.'

He was knocked out of his thoughts by a light smack to the head, looking up at Kallen's curious face and obvious assets. He blushed as she caught him checking out her chest, her smirking for a split second, but went back to an even look, "So what is your plan?"

Lelouch nodded at her, sitting up from her lap, "I have a rough idea, but I need to think it over for a bit. Do you mind being a sounding board?"

"It's good to see you not being stupid." She gave him a smile and pecked him on the lips, "Of course. If I didn't do it, who would?"

Author Note

And the drama starts! We hit the event where things begin to change, so I hope you are ready for that! More Kalulu supporting each other, being a good couple.

Thank you for reading and please review and comment! I'll see you guys next time!