Chapter 2

Five years had past since Britannia waged war and conquered the island nation of Japan. Five years since the only family he cared about had been lost. Five years since he had chosen to live. Lelouch vi Britannia was now Lelouch Lamperouge.

He moved his black queen forward, dealing the finishing blow to his opponent's white king. "Checkmate."

"What!?" exclaimed his opponent, the son of a duke and two-times Ashford Academy Chess Club champion. His Ashford uniform looked freshly pressed and his shoes shined like they had never touched dirt. He'd probably never gone a day without three meals, either. "How-?" He stared at the board as though trying to find some mistake that meant it was really he that had won.

One of the two Ashford students that had accompanied him burst in to loud, belly laughter at his expense. "Ahahaha! Oh man, that commoner creamed you."

The other, a girl with long blonde hair and manicured nails, crossed her arms over her chest. "You suck, Royce." Royce flushed an angry red.

Lelouch carefully kept his face void of any emotion, but he couldn't help but feel satisfaction at the older teen's distress.

"It was a fine match," he said, keeping his voice pleasant but not overly so. "One of the best I've had. It is always a pleasure playing with nobility. You would be surprised how many low borns will resort to accusations of cheating when defeated. More still will refuse to pay the victor their earnings." Lelouch shook his head and donned a carefully constructed frown of disapproval. "No more honor than a petty thief, if you ask me. It is good have an opponent who is above such things."

Royce's face turned redder and Lelouch wondered how he could stand clenching his jaw so tight. It had to hurt. Royce's eyes flicked between the two other Ashford students, who nodded their agreement, before settling on Lelouch again. With obvious effort, the boy composed himself.

"Yes," Royce said stiffly after a drawn out silence. "Of course. A man of noble station must always honor his word." He drew his wallet and placed the money on the table. "As you said, it was a fine match. Perhaps we could have a rematch sometime?"

The thinnest hint of a threat in his tone set Lelouch on edge. Best to burn this bridge now than risk it collapsing under him.

"Thank you, but I don't think that would be possible. Besides, I nearly lost this match. What are my chances of getting lucky twice?" The teen was still glowering as Lelouch collected the cash and left, but he didn't think he'd be tailed this time.

Chess, it turned out, was a lucrative business. Lelouch was a master at the game and there was never a shortage of opponents willing to wager a lot of cash. Of course there had been some challenges involved. Not all of his opponents handled losing all that well. Several had refused to pay up, and more than a few had gotten violent. Those were days he'd actually been grateful for Hibari's training. It would have been easier if he could have passed himself off as someone of higher birth, but there was only so much money they could waste on clothes. And wearing designer labels around the Namimori? He might as well paint a target on his back.

Yet, with all the challenges and risks involved, a single game still got him more money than a weeks worth of honest work would have. And more than mere survival, taking something away from Britannians felt like justice.

It was dark by the time he got back to the apartment. The lights were off and the door was locked, but when he stepped inside the first thing he saw was Hibari's black jacket with the pinned on armband draped over a chair. Lelouch sighed and set his earnings on the table before heading back out the door.

He found the Japanese teen exactly where he thought he would. "Wouldn't they prefer milk?"

Hibari glanced up over his shoulder at him before turning back to pet the little grey kitten. "Milk is bad for cats. It makes them sick."

An image of adult Hibari working in vet's office flashed in his mind.

Lelouch knelt beside the older teen and watched the mother cat and her four young babies lap up the water. "You do know our building has a 'No Pets' policy, right?"

Hibari only grunted in response, but the slightest downturn of his lips told Lelouch how he felt about it. Hibari was weird when it came to animals, and animals were equally weird when it came to Hibari. It was like some kind of gravitational pull. Lelouch was certain Hibari was the only person in the world to actually have a dog follow him home. Unfortunately, neither of them were exactly equipped to handle a pet.

"Just don't get us evicted again. I just got enough to cover our rent and groceries. I think I can stretch it enough to get new clothes. Your jeans are getting holes in them."

"And yours are getting too short," Hibari noted, eying the hem of his jeans that were just high enough to see his socks. Lelouch frowned. His clothes weren't that old or worn, but at he'd gone through a growth spurt and at fifteen years old, he no doubt had more growing to do.

"I'll head down to the store after school."

"I'm going with you."

That surprised him. "What? Why?"

"Kensuke lives near there."

Lelouch huffed, "I can handle Kensuke." Kensuke was handsome, popular, athletic, and loud. And he'd made Lelouch a target from the moment the two of them laid eyes on each other. Unfortunately for Kensuke, he wasn't exactly the brightest, and he had a bad habit of hitting on girls that weren't interested.

"I know you can, otouto, but he's been annoying me lately. If I just happened to run into him..." Hibari smiled and scratched the black-spotted, gray kitten behind the ear. His eyes were distant, no doubt imagining all the unpleasant things he could do to the boy.

"Hmph," Hibari said for the seventeenth time. Leouch had been keeping count.

"If all you're going to do is complain, I don't know why you bothered to come."

Hibari responded with another, "Hmph." Eighteenth.

Lelouch just shook his head and went back to trying to bargain with the sour old shop keeper over a pound of rice. Hibari had been disappointing when they hadn't crossed paths with Kensuke at the clothing store. He'd been sulking ever since. Usually Lelouch would be less tolerant of this behavior, but they had each been able to buy a shirt and pants that actually fit them, so they were both in a fairly good mood. Lelouch even had the forethought to bring their old clothes along and managed to knocked the price down by exchanging them. So now they had more to spend on food. That said, Lelouch was still going to haggle over every single thing.

"You expect me to eat this?"

"I stopped expecting things from you a long time ago," Lelouch said, placing the potatoes he'd just bought for much less than the marked price into his bag. "If you don't like it you can find your own meal, but I'm not letting you be in charge shopping again." That had been a mistake. And a terrifying ten minutes he'd never forget.

Hibari muttered something under his breath, but when Lelouch looked up, Hibari was gone. He looked up and down the street, but there was no sign of the Japanese teen. Lelouch cursed, he hadn't meant right now.

He shook his head. Hibari would come back, probably by sneaking up behind him to 'test his reflexes', or maybe he would just go straight home. Either way he would show up eventually. Most likely with some dead plant-eating animal for Lelouch to cook.

He made several successful purchases before one of the vendors started to get annoyed. He decided to call it a day before the man started hurling accusations of swindling at him. Hibari had still not returned. He was leaning against wall of a store, which had been a sushi shop at one time judging by the half painted over hirigana, debating whether or not to wait for him when they arrived.

There was hardly any warning before the police vehicles came barreling in — the blaring sirens having been cranked up just as they came to a halt in front of the marketplace. Officers dressed in full riot gear and armed to the teeth started to file out. The effect was instantaneous and predictable. People panicked. They pushed their way to the apparent safety in nearby buildings. Lelouch ducked down behind some garbage cans near a storefront. It was unlikely they would hassle him, but it was better if they didn't see him.

The police started to pair off into several groups and head into the buildings. Systematically, they grabbed people from inside their homes and businesses and dragged them out into the street.

This was bad. Lelouch had no idea where Hibari had disappeared to. If the Britannians tried to take him… But the Britannian police didn't just round people up indiscriminately. They were after specific people, or at least specific types of people. Lelouch saw business owners and adult men made up most of the people taken. They were after community leaders — the people they believed had the most sway and could make the most trouble. Hibari was just an Eleven teenager to them, Lelouch told himself. So as long as he kept his head down he'd be fine.

A sudden commotion nearby made Lelouch look up. A middle aged Japanese man was being pulled roughly — too roughly given that he wasn't putting up a fight. They threw him to the ground and pulled his arms back behind him in way that looked painful.

"Dad!" shouted a tall Japanese teen running to towards retrained man. Immediately, the two Britannian officers turned their firearms at him and ordered the boy to get back.

"Takeshi! Go back inside," said the man, his voice wavering with fear for his son.

But the teen did not listen to his father. Fists clenched, he turned to the officer in charge. "He hasn't done anything wrong! Why are you doing this?" he demand, heedless of the danger he was putting himself in.

"Impudent Eleven!" The Britannian growled. "Has no one told you to respect your betters?" Lelouch saw the Britannian place a hand on his holster, and his blood froze in his veins. He was going to shoot him! The boy was going to die if someone didn't do something.

"Wait!" the father cried, lurching forward despite the pain it must have caused him. "Please," he begged, "he's just a boy, he doesn't know what he's doing." He turned to his son. "Takeshi, go inside now. Everything will be alright."

The boy locked eyes with his father. He stared at he man, on his knees, arms pulled behind his back, and a bruise beginning to form across his left cheek. The boy swallowed, cast his eyes down and nodded.

"Hmph, smart kid," said the officer, as he removed his hand from the firearm and turned to his subordinates. "Round this lot up," he barked. "I want them in interrogation in an hour."

"Yes, sir."

Lelouch watched them drag the man to his feet. He and roughly a dozen other Japanese men and women were pulled from their families and thrown into the backs of Knight Police vehicles. Hibari, he was relieved to see, was not among them. They were gone as suddenly as they had arrived.

Slowly, people began to move about. Some locating friends and family that remained, others comforting those whose loved ones had been taken. Lelouch rose from his hiding place. He hesitated before entering the former sushi shop, where the man had been apprehended. He knocked twice before pushing the door open.

His eyes took a moment to adjust to the darkness. When they did, he found the boy huddled in the corner, furiously wiping the tears from his cheeks.

"Hello," Lelouch said meekly, trying not to startle the teen.

Despite his efforts the boy still jumped at his voice, then turned to glare at him with watery eyes.

"I know you, don't I?" Lelouch asked, taking slow steps towards him. "You're Yamamoto Takeshi. Namimori's star baseball player."

The teen nodded. "Y-yeah. That's me. Who are you?" Yamamoto asked, and tried to blink away his tears as to see him properly.

"Lelouch Lamperouge. I'm-"

"The Disciplinary Committee President's brother," Yamamoto said automatically.

"Yes," said Lelouch shortly and Yamamoto flinched.

"Sorry."

Lelouch shrugged. He was used to it. "I saw what just happened," he said leaning against the wall before sinking down to sit on the floor. "I'm sorry."

Yamamoto stared at his empty hands. "I don't understand. Dad's got nothing to do with any terrorists. We're Honorary Britannians! He wouldn't risk everything we've got by supporting that. He's innocent. Why would they take him?"

"I don't think they care much about who is or isn't guilty. The police have quotas to fill."

"What are they going to do to him?"

Lelouch looked away. The outlook for Mr. Yamamoto was pretty bleak no matter what happened. "Best case, they'll hold him for a few days. When they can't get anything useful out of him they might let him go." After they have thoroughly interrogated him, Lelouch refrained from mentioning. "But if they think he's involved with something…" he trailed off. He glanced back at the other boy and saw Yamamoto's fists clench.

"They'll execute him."

Hibari arrived home shortly after Lelouch. The two boys exchanged looks, checking each other over for anything odd or out of place, before heading off to bed without a word.

Lelouch stayed awake thinking about Mr. Yamamoto. It wasn't right, what had happened to him. Lelouch wanted to do something – anything – about it, but how? He wasn't strong enough to take on the Knightpolice. If only he had some power that could help him. Wishful thinking wouldn't help anyone, though. With a resigned sigh, Lelouch rolled over and closed his eyes.

Elsewhere, unknown to him, a letter was slipped into a mail box introducing a home tutor.

End.

Plot?

I don't know why I am updating this now. It is 4am and I have so many more pressing things to be working on. I'm just really in a KHR! mood.