Boy In The Scroll

I'm soooo sorry for the wait guys! I just moved! Never mind houses, I moved to an entirely different state! Heck, I'm not even on the same block of land anymore! And I'd promise that the next chapter won't take as long but school just started and I'm still trying to get settled in... so yeah... I'm sorry... On to the story!

Chapter 8: Ghost Zero

"Stop," Lelouch growled menacingly at Tamaki. He could stand up by himself, damn it! This was humiliating! Not only did the prince have to listen to every command, but he was also forced into such a disgraceful position. Never in his entire life did he think he'd be bowing to an idiot like Tamaki! Hell, he practically begged Tamaki to release him from his earlier position. It was embarrassing! "I don't need help," Lelouch bit out as he pulled on the familiar leash. He felt like an animal, someones pet to command and punish at will.

"You look like you need it," Tamaki stated and moved to help Lelouch despite the spirit's protests. "I'm sorry, okay?"

"Whatever-"

"Would you just shut up and listen?!" Tamaki roared and instantly released his grip on Lelouch causing him to fall.

Lelouch glared. The pressure in his jaw was back.

Tamaki raised an eyebrow before realization struck him. "Gah! I'm trying to say sorry! Alright!? So stop giving me that look!... and... you can talk now..."

"Then do me a favor and let me be seen by other people," Lelouch said quietly. He'd already stooped low for someone of his status, so why stop now? Of course he didn't expect Tamaki to hear him, but his life had no future. That much was clear when Tamaki demonstrated his power over Lelouch with just his words. Lelouch grit his teeth as he silently seethed. "I'm going out," he ground out, but just as he was about to leave, Tamaki stopped him. "What the hell do you want?!" Lelouch roared.

Shocked by the increase in sound, Tamaki flinched and instantly looked away. A small part of Lelouch almost regretted yelling at the idiot, but that didn't stop him from glaring. Tamaki took in a shaky breath and shook his head. "I'll see you tomorrow," the Japanese said before walking away.

"Baka," Lelouch snorted as he floated the opposite way. All the while reciting swear words in his head. Unfortunately for him, he didn't know that many as he was sealed at the age of ten and had an over protective mother. So instead he made up his own words and whatever else he'd picked up from Tamaki over the course of the last month. It was pathetic.

Drifting further from camp, Lelouch soon found his anger dissipating at the lack of things to do in the ghetto's. There was nothing to do, and there was certainly no "life-threatening order" from Tamaki. Seriously, that man abused his 'ghost servant.' Go do this, go do that. It was amazing not a single complaint escaped Lelouch's lips. It was almost like he wanted to cook the man's food, and wash the man's underwear! Lelouch scrunched up his face. He always told himself to refuse the next order, but each time he found himself obeying it.

Damn scroll was ruining his life!

He was a prince darn it! Exiled or not, he did not want to wash someones underwear! Nor did he want to be said person's wingman. Lelouch didn't know a single thing about picking up girls!

Lelouch sighed. That man, Tamaki, he was corrupting Lelouch's innocent mind…

At least he understood more of what was happening around him though. Granted he didn't want to listen to Tamaki's orders, but it was the first step to getting his freedom. Or at least he hoped it was.

"I can never catch a break," Lelouch muttered to himself. He slowly lowered himself toward the ground when he reached his destination; a wall.

The wall was made of red bricks and had several of them missing. With the bricks missing, it looked like an earthquake struck, making the wall uneven with a crack running across the length of it. It screamed home of rodents and bugs, making it the perfect place for Lelouch to store things. Not only would it keep his things safe from the weather, but it would also keep nosy human's away.

Reaching into the crevice, Lelouch drew out his helmet and unwrapped it from the rags (he didn't want it to get scratched.) This helmet was possibly his only tangible possession in the world. Sure he had several bandages and some ratty clothes, but that was something he needed if he wanted to interact with people.

Taking the bandages out of the helmet, Lelouch skillfully wrapped them around his head then quickly slipped on his coat and pushed the sun glasses onto his nose. Done with his disguise, Lelouch grabbed a wad of bills -also in his helmet- before wrapping the helmet back into the rags and stuffing it into the wall.

Lelouch might have been a spirit, but 'Oliver' (as he liked to call himself when wrapped in bandages) was a chess genius. Lelouch smirked; drunks were always easy to beat.

x~XXX~x

Lelouch grinned from under his bandages. Two hundred, won and pocketed! He was on a roll! And best part was, he didn't need to give his winnings to Tamaki! "Thank you for the match," Lelouch said to the drunk man.

"Alright, my turn!"

"Rivalz?" Lelouch questioned the blue headed bartender. "Shouldn't you be working?"

"Ah, come on don't be like that," Rilvalz joked as he took a seat across from Lelouch. He was already beginning to rearrange the board for a new game. "I'm the one who introduced you to this place."

"And I brought business to it."

"But I'm the one who advertised the chess matches," Rivalz argued.

"Fine, but we're betting for twenty."

"What! That's more than I make each hour!"

"Well if you win, you'll get twenty in less than an hour," Lelouch stated.

"Man, what's up with you and money?" Rivalz complained. "Let's just play for fun. We already know you're going to win. Come on, please Oliver? Please?"

Lelouch groaned, he was useless against that pathetic puppy look. "You're move," Lelouch sighed.

"Yes! Thanks Ollie, you're the best!" Rivalz moved a pawn.

"Ollie?" Lelouch moved his knight.

"Yeah, that's what the prez always refers to you as," Rivalz stated as he moved his bishop. Well at least it didn't sound as girly as Lulu. "She's always talking about you. I think she enjoyed going on that tour." There was a bit of sarcasm in which both boys shared a light laugh.

"I hope you haven't told her I come here to hang out."

"Nope," Rivalz grinned, "I told her you can be found at the casino."

Lelouch hummed thoughtfully, hardly paying attention to the board as chess pieces clicked against it's expensive wood. "I could probably make more money there, than I could here."

"No! You've gotta stay here!" Rivalz pleaded. "Please, Ollie?! My pay's higher since you came here and I even receive bigger tips."

"It was just a thought," Lelouch stated. He looked down at the board, he could have won by now but decided not to. He enjoyed the other's teen's company. It was nice spending time with someone his own age for once.

"Good."

Lelouch shot Rivalz an amused grin. "So tell me about the student council."

Rivalz grinned as he began his tale of the student council. He told Lelouch practically everything that happened within the student council. From Suzaku's cat problem to Milly's over the top festivals.

"Yeah, Nunnally's a pretty good kid," Rivalz nodded, agreeing with Lelouch's past statement. The teen took in a deep breath as if tired from his telling his tale. "It's getting late, buddy," Rivalz said after a while. "I better help the boss close up, see you tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure. My schedule is a little hectic, but I'll stop by if I can," Lelouch said as he helped put the chess board away. "Well, see you," he gave a slight bow before heading out the door.

Sure enough, the sun had already set leaving it's sister in it's place. Lelouch watched the purity of the moon for a while before starting down the road. It took him a while, but eventually he got to the ghetto's and was able to shed his clothes and float the rest of his way to the wall. He needed to put the bandages and coat back.

Setting himself on the ground, Lelouch took out his helmet. He didn't know what possessed him to steal it. At the time it looked like a chess piece, and it still did. However it wasn't of any use to him. The helmet was unlike any he had ever seen before, and it certainly looked odd compared to all the other helmets.

Lelouch stared at the face plate as it reflected his own puzzled look. The helmet had a decent weight to it that wouldn't be entirely uncomfortable, and despite it's lack of weight, it was obvious that it would do well to protect a person's head. It even had a strange switch that allowed for his left eye to be seen. The back was also armored with steel plates that would close around the head. There wasn't a doubt in Lelouch's mind that it was a useful helmet, however how could he possible make some use of this helmet?

He was a spirit and needed no sort of protection. On top of that he wouldn't be riding a bike or race car since he could fly, so really? Why did he steal the helmet to begin with? He didn't need it.

Self consciously, Lelouch looked around before putting the helmet to his face. He could immediately feel the cold steel snap into place behind his head. If the world was dark before, the helmet made it darker. The dark tint certainly wasn't helping right now.

"What am I doing?" Lelouch muttered to himself. He barely noticed his distorted voice. Eyes widened slightly Lelouch loudly said, "well, that's useful." Lelouch chuckled as a childish thought ran across his mind, 'at least with this, Tamaki won't be able to tell it's me under the mask.'

Lelouch sighed as he expertly put a hand to the face of the helmet, making the back plates slide up and release his head. "Zero huh?"

It was an excellent name for a spirit like him and he'd already used the word once. Lelouch smirked, there might be hope for the bodiless spirit yet. Now all he needed was an outfit. He would probably look like some masked weirdo, but if he became a symbol no one would question his strange clothing.

x~XXX~x (A week later)

A light mist spread throughout Tamaki's room as Lelouch woke up. The boy stretched his aching back. For a brief moment he wondered if Tamaki could order the scroll to make a bed for him. Or better yet, transform Lelouch's white prison to something more homey.

Lelouch yawned as he floated through the door and to the living room. He paused above Tamaki's head, eyes wide as he listened to the news.

They were talking about him! Well not, Lelouch the spirit, but Zero! He didn't expect that to happen so fast. He thought it would take at least a month for 'Zero' to become known by the general public! Hell, he didn't even have his costume put together yet!

By the looks of the everyone in the room, Zero had captured everyone's attention. No one new who this man was, only that he always left his calling card everywhere he went. It left the citizen's confused and the authorities baffled. Technically speaking this man was either that good, or he simply shouldn't exist.

Lelouch stared dully at the TV screen as the news quickly changed to the weather forecast. He was possibly the only one not sitting at the edge of his… er, perch in the air. Why would he? He knew who Zero was, it was his alter ego that allowed him to take out some misplaced aggression. Being trapped in parchment could just about make anyone stir crazy. Especially when your 'master' was an idiot named Tamaki. So doing the responsible thing, Lelouch did the only thing a boy like him could do; he made Zero possible.

All six head's leaned forward as the news came on again. The rebels were all curious as to know who this Zero character was. Although they were clearly on the same side, to Lelouch it seemed like they all wanted him to get captured. Such simpletons. Lelouch couldn't help the smirk from reaching his face. They would rather learn who Zero was, than find a way to recruit him. It worked both in his favor and not.

Though, since Lelouch was already in their group, he was recruited… but no one knew that. Not even Tamaki did! Which still shocked Lelouch. All Tamaki had to do was ask if Lelouch knew anything about Zero, and his cover would be blown.

"And how do you intend on capturing this man?" Diethard, the news anchor questioned.

"Increase security, among other things," Jeremiah Gottwald answered as he flippantly ran a hand through his glossy turquoise hair.

"Do you have any clue as to what his goal is?"

"We believe Zero is," Jeremiah paused for a dramatic effect, "a terrorist." Jeremiah looked straight into the camera before scowling and continueing. "However his thievery and spying network is hardly enough to bring down the mighty Britannia. He's merely a road bump we need to conquer. In the end, everything will fall in order."

"I see," Diethard nodded. "Well, thank-"

Someone turned off the TV and Lelouch blinked at the now dark screen.

"Zero has gotten into the most secure buildings," Ohgi sighed, thinking of how little his group compared to just one man. "We need to find out who he is. Ally or not, we need to get him on our side." He already was. "With him we may have a chance. If his accomplishments are anything to go by, he might be able to steal a few Knightmares for us, and even get some cash for our cause." He's also done that… though most of the money has gone to Tamaki's never ending spending. Lelouch sighed, he really needed to give Tamaki some guide lines on how to not be a wasteful spender.

The door creaked open and a red head appeared in the room. "Where should I begin?"

"Shouldn't you be at school?"

"I called in sick," Kallen stated. "So are we going to find this guy or what?"

"We will," Ohgi stated, looking a tad bothered that Kallen skipped school.

"And have you guys started yet?"

"...No…"

Kallen scowled as she took a seat next to Tamaki, forcing Lelouch to move. "Well, we need to start somewhere. Maybe we can ask the other Japanese if they heard about him. Chances are we might even end up talking to Zero himself. If he's causing this much trouble for Britannia he must be Japanese," Kallen reasoned.

Great plan! Except he was already here, and on their side. And need he mention that he's not Japanese?

"I don't know. What if the authorities find out?" Ohgi pointed out. "It'll attract attention."

"What else can we do?" Kallen questioned with a challenging raise of her eyebrow. "How about I look for this guy, and if I get caught I won't say anything about you guys. Besides, I'm a Britannian and as far as they're concerned all Britannian's are perfect."

"I don't know," Ohgi said reluctantly and all the others nodded in agreement.

"Hey Tamaki," Lelouch said, already getting tired of the conversation. "I just got more cash. Where do you want me to put it?"

"You did?" Tamaki looked like a little kid on Christmas day as he asked this.

"Yeah. It should be enough for some new supplies," Lelouch nodded.

"Great!" Tamaki jumped up while waving to his comrades. "I just remembered I needed to meet someone," he said as a way of explanation as he weaved through the furniture and toward the door. Once he was outside, he spread out his fingers and slammed his hand on the air. "Give it here! How much do you have this time?" he questioned with a wolflike grin.

Lelouch thought on it while he passed the wad to Tamaki. "About three thousand."

"Thanks man," Tamaki said as he casually thumbed at the bills. "By the way keep an eye out for that Zero guy. Ohgi and the other's wanna recruit him."

"Sure," Lelouch said. It felt like he was lying through his teeth, but at least the blasted scroll wasn't forcing him to tell Tamaki the truth. That would ruin his whole plan! "I'm going out again." Lelouch gave Tamaki a knowing look, silently telling him that he'd get more cash.

Tamaki shrugged as he pocketed the cash and headed back into the building. Lelouch watched as the door slammed shut with a creak and a cloud of dust. "Camp" was no place for his scroll to be. The place was infested with rodents and bugs! What if one of those lowlifes touched his scroll!? Lelouch mentally sighed, with how much money he was giving Tamaki, the man should have enough money to purchase a two story house on the Britannian's side. Of course Tamaki was a shameless spender so that was never going to happen. Then again, Lelouch had enough saved up to buy something that would house all seven rebels with a room or two to spare.

Wrapping himself in the bandages and slipping on his coat and glasses, Lelouch proceeded to 'walk' back to the city. He had a scheduled chess match at the bar and needed to take care of that before he could do anything else. If he won this match he'd get a few more pounds which would only add up if he finished the game quickly enough.

Before he knew it, Lelouch had already arrived at the bar. Rivaltz was there as well, serving a drink to Lelouch's opponent.

"Can I get you anything else, sir?" Rivaltz asked the noble nervously.

"No," the dark skinned man said. He waved Rivaltz away with his jeweled fingers as if he wasn't worth his time.

Lelouch grinned. If he won the other man would pay more than what they were betting just to ensure that Lelouch would keep his mouth shut. It was these types of men that Lelouch enjoyed playing against. They always payed up due to pride.

"Shall we begin?" Lelouch asked as he took a seat across from the man.

"Your move boy."

x~XXX~x

"Way to go, Ollie!" Rivaltz shouted as he hit Lelouch over the back. "You had me worried for a moment there, sacrificing your queen and all."

"A wins a win," Lelouch stated. Ducking out of Rivaltz hold, he moved to put the chess board away.

The silence was only broken by the tapping of chess pieces. Sliding the board into a wooden container, Lelouch looked up at Rivaltz when an idea struck him. "Hey, I was wondering where I could buy a cheap house from. Do you have any ideas?"

"A house? Don't you already have an apartment?" Rivaltz asked.

"I do," Lelouch lied. "But I want something bigger."

Rivaltz hummed thoughtfully as he struck a typical pose. "Good luck trying to find a house in Area Eleven that's not near the ghetto's. A lot of Britannian's moved hear after the war so there's hardly any land left and there's really only apartments. If you wanted something cheap I'd suggest asking the prez. She could probably get you hooked up... but then you'd have to live on campus," Rivaltz said. His eye brows knitted as he continued to think. "Um... what if..." Suddenly Rivaltz grinned and snapped his fingers. "I've got it! Prince Clovis just moved here with his own landcruisers and since there are still a few older models from the war, I believe they'll be selling most of them. I'm guessing 50k for one."

"That's a lot..."

"Pft," Rivaltz snorted and bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. "You could probably buy five of them if you wanted to! Man, Ollie, it's like you only make money to save it. You need to spend a little."

Lelouch huffed teasingly. "I know, I know," he said as he shook his head in mock shame. Smirking up at Rivaltz, Lelouch stood to put the chess board away. "Thanks for your help Rivaltz." Lelouch slipped the board onto a shelf. "I'll be sure to check it out."

"No problem," Rivaltz said with his usual wide smile. "See you later, buddy."

Lelouch just nodded back at him before leaving the bar with his pockets full.

Almost as soon as he left the bar, Lelouch's thoughts were consumed by his alter ego. He, Zero, had so much to do and work on before he could set about accomplishing his true goal. First off he needed a costume, troops, knightmares, transportation, weapons, money... Lelouch groaned, Tamaki was spending all of his hard earned (stolen) money! Even if Lelouch was a spirit, he couldn't go about doing half those things without the money! Sure he could steal it, but when it came down to the troops, he couldn't just kidnap them! And what were the chances of anyone listening to someone they couldn't even see? Zero! That's right, he had zero chances of getting the army that he needed! The costume... Lelouch really needed a costume to go with his helmet.

Shaking his head, Lelouch came to a stop at a large warehouse. It was where Clovis kept all the knightmares, so Lelouch guessed that he also kept the landcruisers here as well.

"Hey! What are you doing here?"

"I was hoping to buy a landcruiser," Lelouch said as he turned around to see a large, bald man. Lelouch immediately recognized him as Bartley.

The bald man raised an eye brow as he eyed Lelouch. He was obviously bothered by Lelouch's appearance. "What's under those bandages?"

"Burns," Lelouch stated with ease. "I would show them to you, but I'm afraid it would hurt a lot if it touched the contaminated air."

"...I see," Bartley said with an untrusting tone. "I'll get the papers. You may pick the landcruiser you want. They're in the north extension."

"Thank you, sir," Lelouch bowed.

A minute later, Bartley came back with several documents in his hand. "Have you picked one?"

"I would like this one," Lelouch said.

Both males were standing on an overhanging walkway that gave them easy access to the roof tops of the landcruisers. Lelouch pointed to one of the average sized vehicles. Compared to all the other cruisers, it was obvious that this one was one of the older models, as the metal was much denser and it had dents and scratches. However Lelouch wasn't looking for something that looked brand new. He wanted something that was large and at the same time easy to transport and move around. Not only that, but as it was one of the older models, he would be able to make a few changes to make it look different. It was only an added bonus that this cruiser would fit perfectly in the rebel's base.

"I'll get the keys," Bartley muttered after a while. "In the mean time fill this out, and I'll need your ID."

"Here," Lelouch handed him a fake ID as he took the clip board.

By the time Bartley came back, Lelouch had already filled out the paper work with fake information. If anybody tried to track him down they would be led in circles before they learned that the information was outdated information of Lelouch's siblings. Lelouch needed to hold back a snicker as he handed the documents back to the bald man. "Thank you," Lelouch said. "I'll be going now." He snatched the keys from the man and passed him a wad of bills. Without a second thought, jumped onto the roof of the cruiser and slid down it's side before entering the vehicle.

Sighing in relief, Lelouch moved into the control room. There he found several loose pieces of paper and pen. Shrugging to himself, he quickly snatched them up and wrote.

Ohgi, I've heard a lot about your group and I agree that your fight for equality is a just' one. Allow me to present you with this landcruiser. There are no ties attached but I would suggest getting it a new paint job and taking off it's outer armor.

Your ally, Zero

A/N: Everyone has had a bad day when they're swearing in their head, and sometimes those words don't entirely make sense. Or someone refuses to swear so instead they say another word. So I'm curious, what words do you guys use in place of swear words? I usually use the word "banana" since I'm allergic to them, or I would say "monkey"... I'm not entirely sure why I use the word 'monkey' as a replacment swear word, I just do...

Again, sorry for the wait! ^^;