Turn 03

By the time Lelouch reached the SIS command center, Rolo and Villetta were already inside.

He found the two in deep conversation, though with hushed tones that made him wonder if the topic was related to him in some way. They seemed to be arguing over something important, and judging by Rolo's deep frown and slight scowl, while Villetta had an exasperated but satisfied expression, it was not hard to guess who was winning the argument. But as he strode casually inside, the two stopped abruptly.

"You're late," Villetta frowned, pursing her lips as the former prince sat beside Rolo.

Lelouch smiled. "Hardly. I didn't specify an exact time, did I?" Then he steepled his fingers in a business-like manner. "Now, I hope you finally have some good news for me, Villetta."

His tone and expression were both serious, and he glanced briefly in expectation at the small folder placed on the table. Ever since he had regained control of the Black Knights and took over the Secret Intelligence Service, he had been exerting both organizations' influences in gathering information regarding Nunnally's whereabouts. Though he knew no one in Britannia would disclose it that easily, he was hoping that SIS' direct connection with the Emperor would help. Unfortunately, it was not the case. And during the past few days, Villetta couldn't provide even a slightest hint of his sister's location.

However, today seemed to be his lucky day.

"Very well," the Britannian agent nodded and slid the folder towards him. "There's your good news."

He caught it in instant, holding his breath while picking it up with trembling fingers. He already had a guess what the files contained, and his excitement nearly made him fumble a bit. Carefully, he opened the folder and came upon a page with a complete information of the Princess of Britannia - including her schedule for the whole month.

"Everything you need to know is in there," Villetta explained. "Location, daily routines, even her flight itenerary for her upcoming trip in here."

Flight itenerary. Lelouch repeated that inside his head as he flipped through the pages. Nunnally was in Britannia for the past year, but now she was going to return to Japan as a Viceroy. What's more, she would arrive in two weeks - more than enough time to formulate a plan to get her. And since Villetta was nice enough to include information about lher escorts, it should be easy for him and the Black Knights to intercept her airship.

"Excellent, Villetta. Excellent." A wide grin split his lips as he browsed through the data with an almost hungry expression. Because of his father and Suzaku, Nunnally was taken away from him forcibly. But now, he will rescue her just as he had promised. And this time, he would not let the Lancelot stop him.

"I hope you're satisfied then."

Lelouch looked up, seeing Villetta staring at him rather coldly. "Of course," he smiled and finally closed the folder. "I am more than satisfied."

The woman sighed, but said nothing in response. "Well, will that be all?" she asked.

"For now, yes," the former prince nodded. He couldn't ask more from Villetta considering the information she had just given, and it might endanger his charade if he had the baroness poke around again. Besides, he doubt if the SIS was privy to anything else other than those partaining to their mission.

Then he frowned, and his thoughts suddenly drifted towards the Eleven girl he had met earlier. There was something about her that he couldn't quite place, a nagging feeling at the back of his mind. He felt... drawn somehow. As if he had already met her before.

"What do you think of the status quo in this school? About the way the Elevens are being discriminated?"

Those words escaped Lelouch's lips before he could even catch himself, prompting him to sigh in irritation. It was said out of instinct, and he almost wanted to punch himself for thinking like that; he may be Zero who wished nothing more than for Japan to be saved and Britannia to burn to the ground, but he was also Lelouch Lamperouge who cared little to the policies of the school as long as it didn't bother him and his plans.

And yet, he couldn't help but feel some sympathy towards the Eleven students who were being bullied on a daily basis. He hadn't really payed much attention to it before, but the incident with that girl seemed to have opened his eyes, if only for a little bit.

Villetta stopped midway from standing up before straigthening and crossing her arms. Lelouch knew he had asked the wrong person - she was Britannian, after all. And it was obvious who she would be siding with.

"You do realize you are asking a Britannian, right?" she rose an eyebrow and paraphrased his thoughts.

"A Britannian who had spent time, and quite possibly a few hours of it in bed, with an Eleven," Lelouch responded with a knowing smirk. Beside him, Rolo grimaced at the abrupt bluntness.

"Is this about the girl from the hallway?" he leaned in and whispered.

However, his pseudo-brother didn't answer, keeping his eyes fixed on Villetta instead. The glare he was receiving could have put Kallen's into shame, and he was quite enjoying how the woman struggled to keep her composure. It seemed he had been right in his previous assumption; Villetta still has feelings for Ohgi.

For a moment, the baroness was silent. Lelouch wondered briefly if she would even answer the question, and he was ready to dismiss it instead. Until at last, Villetta regained her bearings and replied in a soft voice.

"Do you really want to know?"

"I'm merely curious," the former prince said. "After all, you'r-"

"I don't really see anything wrong with what the Britannians are doing... but I don't see anything right with what is happening with the Elevens either."

Her answer took Lelouch by surprise, and his eyebrows shot upwards. She may not have actually sided with the Japanese students, but neither did she condemn them as well. It was a far cry from what she would have answered if she was still in the Purist Faction, which made him thought if her time with Ohgi had influenced her somehow. Perhaps, her views had changed when he had met the Eleven, and it carried over even after she had regained her memories.

"Are you surprised?" Villetta said with a slightly amused expression.

Lelouch shrugged. "Not really. I just didn't expect you to be quite... fair."

"Am I?" Villetta started to head for the door. "Well, I can't exactly play favourites, can I?" She glanced at him from her shoulders and smiled. "After all, I'm still a teacher."

The last word seemed to echo within him even after Villetta left, and he suddenly found himself wincing as a sharp pain assaulted his skull. For a moment, his vision blurred and his surroundings spun. And as he clutched his head in agony, he thought he saw the folder in front of him shifted like a phantom into another image.

A school roll book.

It quickly vanished, however, as if he had simply imagined it. And he was soon back to the present. When he looked around in confusion, he saw Rolo gazing at him worriedly.

"Nii-san, are you okay? You've suddenly turned pale a minute ago."

Lelouch tried to open his mouth to speak, but couldn't find the strength to work his muscle. Whatever happened to him... well, he didn't even know what that was all about. It seemed that Villetta's words triggered something, and his reacted immediately. But as to why, or even what prompted him to experience a headache, he had no idea. Perhaps it was a remnant of his father's memory alterations? He should ask C.C. about it later.

"I'm alright," he muttered. It was not really a lie, but not quite the truth either; he still felt dizzy... and confused. "Rolo, could you please leave me for a moment? I just need to talk with someone."

"Are you sure, Nii-san?" Rolo asked, still worried. "You're still quite pale."

"Yeah, I'm fine," Lelouch waved his hand dismissively and straightened up as if nothing had happened. "I'll be alright in a minute," he smiled reassuringly.

For a moment, his fake little brother stared at him in concern. Then Rolo sighed, "If you say so."

He stood up, but Lelouch grabbed his right hand and thrusted the folder to him. "Take this back to my room, will you?"

Rolo blinked once, then glanced down at the folder with a blank expression. "Yes, Nii-san," he nodded obediently and took it before finally heading outside the hallway.

As soon as he was gone, Lelouch slumped in his chair in exhaustion. He suddenly felt very weak even though he had not done much physical activities during the day, and his head throbbed slightly in pain. Furthermore, the nagging feeling at the back of his mind had seemingly grown stronger, gnawing at his subconsciousness almost like a parasite. And whatever it was, only C.C. could help him understand.

Rubbing his temples, Lelouch took put his phone and sent a coded message to his confidante. But as he waited for her to respond, his thoughts went back to that image he had seen.

Was it just him, or did he somehow remembered using one such roll book?

Another really short chapter, but I felt like I should post this as a tribute to the release of Assassination Classroom's final episode.

I'll post the next one with the next three days, and it will be much longer. For now, sorry for such a short progress in the story. I will, however, be rewriting this very soon and compiling the chapters. Probably ine one large prologue. Hence, no chapter titles in the meantime.

Please Read & Review!

Until next time!