THIS CHAPTER TRIED TO KILL ME ;A; BEWARE OF TYPOS. AND I CHANGED SCHNEIZER TO SCHNEIZEL JUST TO MAKE YOU GUYS HAPPY. OKAY? OKAY.

Please proceed to the nearest exit.

x.x.x

The Disloyal Order of Sunflowers

this is not some fairytale.

"Hey, C.C.," Lelouch said, turning around as he buttoned up his white shirt. The girl was sprawled on his bed, feet propped up on his pillow and lime green hair hanging off the other end. She tilted her head back, lifting a thin brow in question. "I need you to do something for me."

"Whatever it is, no."

"I need directions to Suzaku's."

C.C. sighed deeply and rolled onto her stomach, crossing her legs at the ankles. "You're not planning on going today, are you?"

Lelouch snorted and flicked his hair out of his collar, turning his attention to his cuffs. "As much pleasure as it gives you to think so, I'm not stupid."

The witch rolled her amber eyes and shifted onto her back once more, staring at the swirled ceiling above.

"...I'm going tomorrow morning and I need you to cover for me until I return."

"...Unh. What time?"

"Ten in the morning until six?"

As much as C.C. liked to whine and complain about Lelouch asking her (ordering her) to do favors for him, she almost always ended up doing them in the end. Unless it came to pizza. At times, Lelouch was sure that not even a rusty chainsaw could get between her and her unconditional love for Pizza Hut and their artery clogging... pizzas. This time, though, the Prince's wish could not be granted.

"Aha, and who's going to cover for Suzaku?" C.C. purred, amber eyes twinkling with something Lelouch couldn't quite place. He resisted the urge to squirm on the spot and turned back to the floor-length mirror. Right. How could he have forgotten that the only reason Suzaku had shown up in the first place last night was all thanks to this witch?

"...Fuck."

"Fuck indeed."

Lelouch scowled unhappily at his reflection and yanked the collar higher. "I'll just ask Sayoko to do it then. I suppose it can't be helped."

The girl only huffed in response, watching as Lelouch glanced himself over in the mirror and fixed the ruby clasp on his chest that held his shirt together. Over that went a white jacket with a navy and gold trim, the tails hanging elegantly behind him. He didn't even know why he was trying so hard to make himself look so... presentable. Born with natural good looks that included a sharp, but delicate pale face, satiny-soft black hair, stunning violet eyes and thin figure, Lelouch would have looked good in duct tape. Or a trash bag. Or even a duct-taped trash bag. But the moment he reminded himself who was going to show up again, his normally dormant nerves kicked in and he found himself fretting over his choice of clothes like a girl. Lelouch vi Britannia, fretting like a girl. Over clothes. Gods above, if Schneizel ever found out... No, wait... he couldn't think like that anymore. He was practically an adult now and Schneizel had no control over him.

"You're wearing that?"

"Well, you're not wearing anything, so shut it." Indeed, the girl had been lying naked on his bed for the past couple of hours or so, just barely covered by the tangle of white sheets around her. She claimed she was too lazy to reach for her clothes and Lelouch was damn well not going to get them for her. "Besides, it's not like I'm going to be moving all that much today, so I don't have to worry about dirtying my clothes. So there."

"Are you nervous?"

"You're annoying."

"Awwww, that's almost adorable."

Lelouch narrowed his violet eyes in a glare, whirling around the scowl at the girl. "What does it matter? He's my friend."

"Yeeeaah," C.C. drawled in agreement, lifting a lock of her hair and holding the ends up to the light. "You two spent barely twenty four hours together. He dragged you to sleep in the dirt and then you played hide and go seek in the morning. Now you see him again ten years later, after having no contact with him, and act like you're in-"

"Shut up," the prince snapped, brushing his sleeves out. A blush was rising to his face, tinting his cheeks and the tips of his ears pink. "I know what I'm doing."

"But not what you're feeling."

"Go away, witch."

"Don't be a fool."

Now it was Lelouch's turn to huff and stalk over to the window, pretending like he didn't have any idea as to what the green-haired girl was talking about. In truth, he knew all too well, but it wasn't something he was familiar with. He'd had romantic feelings before for certain people, but none were as strong as the ones he felt around Suzaku... and they only spent one night together so far, not including the one ten years ago. All he knew was that he'd spent the last ten years of his life thinking about the brunet on and off, and the last three thinking about him non-stop. That had to mean something, right...?

So what am I supposed to do then? he thought miserably, pushing open a window at the far end of the room and leaning forward to rest his elbows on the sill. Tomorrow night I'm supposed to choose some fool for a wife, but... just the thought of it is making me shudder. I don't even know how I feel about Suzaku yet.

Well... he'd figure something out. He had to. His brain was wired for such tasks.

x.x.x

By evening, Lelouch was holed up in a private cabin above the theatre that was found in the far West wing of the Britannian Palace, waiting for an opera that was to be performed for his pleasure. Something about fairies and queens... or was that the title. Either way, Lelouch hadn't been paying much attention because not only did he not care for the show (his siblings just wanted to look fancy for the guests), but it was also because his thoughts were too busy spiraling around Suzaku.

The only others keeping him company were Nanaly and two Knights of the Round who were acting as his personal bodyguards for the night. Lelouch wished they did a better job of distracting him from his nerves, but Nanaly only sat quietly beside him, waiting for the performance to start, and Gino had dragged Anya off to get some candy.

As bodyguards, those two are quite counterproductive... Thank God I stationed Rolo outside the door with instructions.

The raven-haired prince jumped slightly when he felt a hand cover his and turned to his sister, not even noticing that she had said something. He swallowed thickly and pulled a deep breath into his lungs, trying to manage a smile. "I'm sorry, Nanaly, what was that?"

The girl cocked her head, her brows knitting together like they usually did when she was worrying about her brother's state of mental health, and nodded to the door behind them. "Lulu, I think your friend is here."

Lelouch frowned slightly and leaned over the armrest of his chair to look at the back of the room (who designed this chamber anyway? If anything happened, he'd be shot in the back of the head like the United State's sixteenth president...) just in time to see Rolo pushing a slightly flustered brunet through the curtains that covered the door. The boy picked himself up with a sheepish grin, looking awkward in a white suit and a gold-trimmed blue cape clinging to his shoulders.

Curious. As an I'm pretending to care but really not early birthday gift from the Emperor, Lelouch had received control of the Knights of the Round as Charles didn't seem to particularly care for them. Lelouch didn't seem to remember this one but the silver band he wore on his right hand looked a little familiar.

"Name," he ordered coolly, making the brunet jump.

The boy smiled a little nervously, his green eyes flicking from the sandy-haired Princess to the Prince sitting beside her. "It's me," he muttered quietly, holding his hands up to show that he meant no harm, "Suzaku."

"Oh." The raven visibly relaxed, his lips curving into a lazy smile. He gestured with his free hand, the one that wasn't threaded with Nanaly's, for Suzaku to come over and take the extra seat beside him, which the boy accepted with a relieved sigh.

"I told you so," Nanaly whispered, leaning in close to pout at her brother.

"So C.C.'s spell doesn't work on you? Of course not... Suzaku, this is my little sister-"

"Nanaly, I know."

Lelouch blinked in surprise, but his smile only widened further when Nanaly extended a hand and Suzaku took it gently, dropping a kiss on her knuckles. Show off. An adorable, cocky show off.

"So did you sleep well?" Suzaku asked, stretching his limbs a little and getting comfortable in the cushioned chair.

"I suppose," Lelouch murmured, regarding Suzaku with a curious glint in his eyes. He blinked and then leaned back, violet orbs sweeping down the brunet's frame. "Hmph. I wondered where the Knight of Seven uniform went. It was gone this morning. I really wish C.C. would tell me these things first."

Suzaku blushed a little and shrugged, self-consciously fixing his cufflinks. "She thought it would be a good idea."

"Good idea? Yes, brilliant. She has quite the sense of humor, the witch, considering you'll be here with me all night long. With two other Knights."

The brunet was instantly frowning, looking even more self-conscious than before. The weight of Lelouch's eyes on him just made it even worse and he fidgeted slightly in his seat.

"... Don't worry, Suzaku," Lelouch said after a long pause. He reached out and pressed a hand to the boy's shoulder, pushing him into the back of his chair. "Gino and Anya won't say a word. Besides, no one recognizes you anyway. Alright? Just try to not look too suspicious."

Nanaly giggled softly beside her brother. "You're perfectly safe with us."

Suzaku smiled gratefully and murmured a soft thanks. It would suck if he got kicked out just because it was part of C.C.'s stupid joke. She probably meant well, right? After all, she knew how much Suzaku wanted to be there and even covered for him, so there would be no reason for her to deliberately set him up.

"...Anyway, I hope you enjoy opera, Suzaku."

"...Are you being sarcastic?"

"No? Why would I-oh Gods, you probably won't be able to sit still for hours, will you? Dammit. I knew this was a bad-are you giggling?"

"N-no!" Suzaku gasped out, ducking fast as a pale hand missed the top of his head by mere centimetres.

"Brother actually wanted ballet tonight," Nanaly quipped with a smile, which provoked another snicker from Suzaku, "But brother Schneizel simply insisted on opera-"

"Because he's a damn show-off. This is my birthday."

Suzaku, seeing the opportunity to redeem himself, quickly jumped in, "Yeah, but this is probably better for Nanaly, right? I mean, in a ballet, you just watch, right? But if you're listening to something, it gives you a better chance to imagine something on your own. Kind of like reading a book..."

Lelouch blinked slowly, and even Nanaly turned her head towards the brunet, waves of sandy blonde hair falling over her shoulder. Suzaku flushed brightly, at which point Nanaly let out a soft laugh and said, "Suzaku, you're the sweetest."

Suzaku floundered for some sort of response, eventually settling on folding his arms over his chest and staring intently at the balcony railing while Lelouch chuckled at him.

They spent the next few moments in silence, until the door behind them swung open and sent the curtain over it fluttering.

"We have returned bearing gifts!" came the loud cheer from behind. Suzaku turned around and saw two Knights striding inside, one tall, blond and loud, the second short, quiet, with her pink hair done up in an elegant ponytail. Both of them wore the same white and gold uniform that Suzaku was sporting.

The brunet glanced at Lelouch, but the Prince was looking at the blond Knight with a look of distaste. "...Gino, that's enough popcorn to feed a village."

"If you ask nicely, my Lord, I might share."

Wow. He was a bold one, too.

"Oh, and who's this? Don't tell me we got another new Knight when I wasn't looking!"

"What the hell are you talking about, Gino, you're the newest one."

Suzaku blinked, suddenly finding himself up close and personal with a pair of very bright blue eyes and a pearly white grin.

"It was C.C.'s idea. He's my guest, not a Knight of the Rounds."

"That so?" Gino straightened himself out and walked around the three chairs in the center of the room to the two that were perpendicular to Nanaly's. "Damn, I was kind of hoping to have someone else to talk to beside Anya."

The girl in the second chair didn't even look up from the electronic diary in her left hand, her right digging through a large bag of candy that was sitting on her lap.

"Well, technically, I am a Kn-ow!" Suzaku winced, Lelouch's elbow digging deep into his ribs. He narrowed his green eyes unhappily at the Prince, and was met with a steely gaze. The moment Gino busied himself with trying to get Nanaly to throw popcorn into his mouth, Lelouch leaned in close, until Suzaku could feel the soft brush of his fringe against his cheek.

"If you can call 'Lloyd's Toy' a 'Knight's position," he whispered, voice velvety and teasing.

"...H-hey! I take offense to that," Suzaku hissed back. "...Besides, there's a difference between Toy and Guinea Pig, okay?"

Lelouch rolled his eyes and leaned back, leaving Suzaku just a smidge disappointed. "Maybe I should make you Knight of the Rounds," he mused, voice returning to its normal volume. "The uniform seems to fit you exceptionably well. Perhaps that was C.C.'s intention..."

"Knight of Zero?"

For a moment, Lelouch seemed confused, staring blankly at Anya. The girl frowned and held out her cellphone, which showed a photo of Suzaku with Lelouch from last night, walking towards the doorway. Oh, right... he'd been wearing that yesterday...

"Oh, yeah! You're the same guy, aren't you?" Gino asked, plucking a piece of popcorn from his hair. "From yesterday. Dude, everyone's been talking about you. Someone said your name was Syaoran?"

Suzaku blinked in surprise and nodded somewhat uncertainly. Lelouch smiled, laughing softly under his breath. "It seems that Empress Tianzi and Kaguya have coined a new name for you," he said quietly, in a tone that meant go along with it. "They've been talking about you nonstop. Especially Kaguya. Looks like I might have some competition."

Suzaku shrugged slowly, tapping his fingers on the armrest that was shared between his and Lelouch's chairs. "Hardly. She's my cousin."

Lelouch nearly fell out of his seat.

"... I should have seen this coming," the Prince mumbled to himself, sliding a hand over his face and rubbing the bridge of his nose slowly. "I'll show Schneizel... he's so childishly jealous sometimes, it's ridiculous."

Suzaku's curiosity had definitely been piqued, but the choice entertainment for the night was beginning and even Gino somehow managed to fall silent. The brunet spent the next two hours trying to figure out an inconspicuous way to hold Lelouch's hand without anyone's notice. He finally gave up and let his hand fall on top of the Prince's, which ensued a silent, but violent game of thumb war.

x.x.x

"Oh maaaaan... my legs are sore," Suzaku groaned, stretching himself out as the lights around them slowly gathered strength and brightened the chamber. He could feel Lelouch's eyes on him and quickly withdrew himself back into the chair with a blush.

Before he had the chance to move, or even think, a set of pale, delicate fingers wrapped themselves around his wrist and pulled gently.

"Gino, Anya, would you mind watching after Nanaly for a moment? I need to speak with Syaoran."

God, he made the name sound so natural.

Suzaku hopped to his feet, as Lelouch was pulling without waiting for him to stand, and followed the Prince out into the hallway. The violet-eyed young boy from before, dressed in black with the royal crest spread over his chest, was still standing guard by the door, paying the two no attention. They went down the hall, the grand, arched windows on the left displaying a clear night sky. It wasn't until the two were out on the balcony that Suzaku finally looked Lelouch in the face and decided that his eyes, deep violet and sparkling from the lights behind the, put the starry sky right to shame.

"Suzaku, are you alright?"

The boy jumped slightly, realizing he'd been caught staring, and averted his eyes to the greenery below. "Y-yeah, of course. Better than ever."

There was a hand on his wrist again, slowly running up the length of his arm and stopping at his shoulders where thin nimble fingers began working mind-numbing circles into the muscles there. Suzaku swallowed loudly. Not fair.

"Su-za-ku... what's on your mind? Tell me."

He never noticed how perfectly cut the hedges were until he forced himself to stare at them for an extended period of time.

"Suzaku."

"...Who's your gardener?" he blurted out suddenly, mentally smacking himself hard in the face. What. Was that?

The same train of thought seemed to be chugging through Lelouch's brain, because the Prince blinked slowly and cocked a confused brow. "... I'm sorry?"

"... I don't even know. Don't ask. I'm sorry." Suzaku grinned sheepishly and pulled a gloved hand through his curls in an attempt to calm his racing heart. Lelouch gave him a questioning look, so Suzaku added, "I guess I'm a little nervous."

"Nervous," Lelouch echoed slowly. His fingers stilled at the base of Suzaku's neck, a small smile tugging at his lips.

He is too cute.

"Am I making you nervous, Suzaku?"

"Um... I guess... you can sort of say that..."

"Is that so? Is that it? You can tell me, you know."

The brunet bit his lower lip, the way Lelouch was watching him with that soft, warm smile making him want to kiss him silly right there on the spot. "Your eyes. They're really pretty. I mean-um. Shit. I'm sorry. That's such a girly thing to say, but-"

Lelouch was laughing.

Suzaku flushed indignantly and opened his mouth to retort, but a slim finger pressed up against his lips. "Calm down; I'm flattered, really. I usually hear that from nobles trying to suck up to me-"

"But I'm not-"

"Hush, Suzaku. I know. That's what makes it better. Calm down, okay? Gods, you're acting so strangely today. You weren't like this yesterday."

The brunet smiled weakly and took the hand that was on his shoulder and pressed it to his chest, right over his heart. Lelouch stared at the white fabric between his fingers, eyes widening slightly.

"You've no idea what you're doing to me," Suzaku murmured, threading his fingers with Lelouch's. "Hell, even I don't know what you're doing to me."

Lelouch's eyes turned liquid, the rapid beating beneath his fingers surging into his own chest and blooming in the cavity. He wound his fingers into the front of Suzaku's pristine white jacket and pulled the boy into his arms, burying his face into soft auburn curls.

There was so much to talk about, a plethora of things to discuss, but if there was one thing Lelouch was sure of, it was that he wanted Suzaku by his side.

"Four days," he whispered, feeling Suzaku stiffen, and then relax against him. "It's been four days total. You don't know what you're doing to me. I've never been so irrational in my life, and it's never felt so right until now." He leaned back, only so he could press their foreheads together. "Kururugi Suzaku, I'm going to make you my Knight."

Jade orbs widened in shock and Lelouch dipped his head closer, lips barely hovering over Suzaku's and dark lashes brushing against his tanned cheeks until they-

Riiiiiiiiiiing.

Both boys leapt apart as though they had been zapped with a tazer, Suzaku frantically fumbling in his pocket for his cell phone.

Lelouch looked positively livid.

"Sh-shit... sorry, Lelouch..."

"Who is it?"

"I don't know, it says Unknown Caller."

Lelouch snatched the device from Suzaku's fingers and flipped it open, pressing it to his ear. "Hello? ... C.C.? ... Ah. Right. Of course he would. Yes... I'll tell him."

The Prince sighed heavily and ended the call, pushing the phone back into Suzaku's hands. "It seems our night has to be cut short. I think Schneizel suspects something. You have precisely fourteen minutes to get back to the barracks and switch places with C.C. before he arrives."

Suzaku looked like he was ready to have a panic attack. "Fourteen?"

"Don't worry, I'll stall him." Lelouch winked and pressed a kiss to Suzaku's forehead. The boy blushed (much to the Prince's delight) and Lelouch pushed him down the stone steps that led to the gardens. "The wisteria is on the west side of the wall!" he called after him, grinning when Suzaku turned around to wave at him and nearly tripped.

Too cute.

Now that that was over and done with, Lelouch would have about three minutes to find Schneizel and inconspicuously distract him. Then he would just have to convince Anya to delete those pictures off her phone. God forbid his brother saw those.

x.x.x

"That was way too close," Suzaku gasped, finally finding the strength to speak after collapsing onto his couch. C.C. followed closely behind, shutting the front door quietly. Arthur meowed his hello and resumed his nap by the foot of the heater.

When Schneizel had arrived, Suzaku barely had a leg into his flight suit and C.C. was practically naked (though she hardly seemed to care). The brunet pilot just made it into the hangar and zip up seconds before Schneizel stepped in with his escorts, a sickly saccharine smile plastered over his face.

Suzaku was hot and sweaty and he knew he looked it, too, but Cecile only smiled and tossed him a towel and a water bottle as though they had just finished a few test runs, and Lloyd intercepted the blond Prince with a cackling laugh and flailing arms, showing him blueprints for something he called the VARIS rifle.

Needless to say, for a few, fleeting seconds, Suzaku was contemplating marrying the crazy man.

(...Just for a few seconds.)

"Cecile and Lloyd make quite the team," C.C. mused monotonously as she drifted through the living room and to the adjacent kitchenette, pulling the fridge door open and sticking her head inside.

"...Unh. I thought I was going to have a heart attack."

"Well, you didn't," C.C. said, straightening out when she finally found what she wanted. She gently nudged the door shut and made her way back to the couch, perching herself on the armrest by Suzaku's hair with a slice of cold pizza in her hand. "You were lucky that Lelouch found Schneizel before he left, otherwise you-"

"Would have died?"

"Maybe." C.C. chuckled darkly and Suzaku didn't like it one bit. "Good thing Schneizel adores Lelouch, though. It's too bad that on the inside, he's just a spoiled, jealous brat."

Suzaku blinked and lifted his head from the cushions, propping himself up on his elbows. "... You know, personally, I've called Schneizel many things throughout the years, but brat hasn't made the vocab list even once."

C.C. rolled her shoulders in a delicate shrug, strands of lime green tumbling over her chest. She had clothed herself before they left Lloyd's lab, returning to her previous white outfit with the black belt buckles and boots. "He cares for the people that work for him, for people that are loyal to him, and he loves his siblings. But, he's not afraid to be cold to whomever he doesn't like. It's not that he doesn't like you because you're Japanese, it's because you snatched Lelouch's pretty heart away from him. Schneizel doesn't like having things taken away from him." The witch laughed softly, but the sound died down when she realized her little monologue had done nothing to uplift Suzaku's mood. The brunet was simply staring up at her with a troubled look in his eyes, even though his face was carefully emotionless. She sighed. Damn. Three days and the boy was already growing on her. Poor thing.

She knew if she heaved an annoyed sigh and asked him to spill it, it would give her no answer. She finished off the last off her pizza and licked her fingertips clean, settling her clean hand in Suzaku's curls. The boy sighed softly, his eyes falling shut.

"There's something on your mind." It wasn't a question.

Suzaku didn't waste any time. "Everything is happening too fast," he murmured, leaning a little more into C.C.'s hand as soon as she began to knead absent circles into his skull. "And... and I'm scared. When you think about it, Lelouch and I have only known each other for a short period of time, and I have feelings for him and... and I think he feels something towards me, but what if it just ends up to be nothing? He wants to make me his Knight, C.C. What if he does, and then later on, he ends up not wanting me anymore?" He shook his head and lifted his hands, dropping his forehead into his palms. "This... is not some fairytale."

"No, it's not," C.C. agreed quietly. "This is reality. And the reality is that you know how you feel and Lelouch knows how he feels. And it's up to the both of you to take that risk. I know it's not the greatest advice, but just think about what you want, and then ask him what he wants. He's smart. He knows the consequences of the decisions he makes. And if he still wants you, then... you know your answer."

"...C.C., that's terrible advice."

The witch laughed quietly and ruffled Suzaku's hair once before pulling her hand away. "Don't get yourself worked up. That will only cloud your mind and make things worse. Go to sleep."

Suzaku groaned softly and folded his arms, dropping his forehead on top of them. C.C. unraveled herself from the armrest and padded into Suzaku's bedroom, returning with the blanket and draping it over the teen's lean frame.

Lelouch would probably go into shock if he saw C.C. act like this. But Lelouch wasn't there, so that was okay.

Hell, even the brunet looked up at her in shock. The witch only gave him a look and Suzaku dropped back down, watching as she pulled her springy wand from out of her sleeve. She waved it over him once and then tapped his forehead with the plastic star on the end.

"You will sleep peacefully tonight," she murmured, leaning down to smooth his bangs back.

Suzaku blinked tiredly, lashes fluttering over his jade eyes. His breath began to even out, the world turning fuzzy at the edges.

"Everything will be alright."

x.x.x

Phew! finally managed to crank this bad boy out.

It's too bad serani and I never finished this stupid roleplay XD We stopped about midway through this chapter, when Su was like "MUST. HOLD. HAND. HNNG D:" So now, I have NO idea what I want to happen next. I mean, we had the third day planned out, and I know what I want to happen first, and then the masquerade blah blah blah.. and then, after that, no idea.

Should Lu Knight him? Schneizel find out?

How about you guys (YES, YOU GAIS) toss out some ideas. I may or may not use any, or I might even combine some! TIME TO MAKE THIS FIC INTERACTIVE LOL.

I LOVE ANYONE WHO IS STILL READING THIS P.O.S.

P.S. yes. I really am going to milk this 'Syaoran' thing until I can't milk it anymore ;D plz review!