"Speech"

"Radio or calls"

'Thoughts'

Year 1

Kallen (1 Month After the SAZ formation)

Kallen stood at the track of the school, watching Lelouch run laps. Surprisingly, Sayoko had done a good job at setting up a routine for her master. It was the summer for the school year, so the campus was empty besides from a select number of kids taking summer classes, which left the couple free to train and fulfill their role in the Black Knights more easily.

Kallen did a lot to stay in shape, but she couldn't have come up with as good a plan as the ninja maid had come up with. Kallen would run it till Sayoko fully recovered from her injuries, then the Japanese woman would take over. 'I'm debating joining it to. It might be worth it if we are preparing for a war.' She had already done her exercising earlier in the day, Lelouch refusing to get up, and was paying for it with the sun beating over him.

But the redhead had to laugh as she watched Lelouch fall on his back, panting as the thin Britannian clearly hated every second of it. She walked over to him with a water bottle in her hand, her boyfriend glaring at her, "I hate you. This is torture. Inhumane."

Kallen just rolled her eyes, "So the man that can mind control people is saying I'm the evil one? Whatever shall I do?" She threw him the water bottle, and he eagerly sprayed it in his mouth, taking a few more deep breaths as he sat up, frowning as she could almost see his body aching.

He grumbled quietly, "Why did I agree to do this again?"

Kallen just smiled as she offered a hand to him, "Because you are a noodle and actually need exercise?" Lelouch just groaned, and she laughed, before smiling warmly at him, "But a physically fit person is more likely to be a better pilot, and if you are right, then you need to be ready."

She could see her boyfriend mull that over in his head, before taking another swig of water, "I hate it when you can point out the logic to me. Why can't you have just been a nice, friendly lover?"

Kallen just pulled him in for a kiss, love filling her expression, "Because if I was just a nice, normal, friendly girl, you would get bored. And like I have told you before, someone has to keep your ego in check."

Lelouch's expression brightened, the same love reflected in his eyes. Kallen couldn't help but blush at that. There was something about him doing that that caused her to smile, but seeing it in his eyes was always good to see, especially after Nunnally was still nowhere to be found.

He sighed as he took a step away from her, "I hope you know that you are going to pay for this when it's my turn."

Kallen just smacked his ass, "Get your skinny ass moving. Two more laps then we work on your core." He began to start running, Kallen picking up the water battle to go fill it up again. They had another hour to go before they finished for the day. Sayoko certainly wasn't going easy on him.

But despite his complaining, as she watched him jog the laps, she couldn't help but smile. He could have fought more against this, or half assed it. But instead, he certainly was putting his all into it. He was panting and sweating, but he was getting better since he started this week. She knew from experience that getting in the shape of a good pilot took time and effort. 'And the benefits are for more than piloting and general fitness I suppose.'

She chuckled at her own joke and drank some water herself. It certainly was a scorcher, and her mind drifted to the future. Lelouch hadn't been specific on his worries about the SAZ or anything else. Britannia seemed to be playing along since the founding of the Zone, but she didn't know how long that would hold. 'When would corruption set in? When would we see the Britannians abuse their separate courts?'

That idea had been discussed among the command of the Black Knight leadership, away from Euphemia and Cornelia. None of them had faith that the people above Euphemia would ever support her, though their suspicions about Euphemia doing all this to undermine them had been mostly soothed.

Kallen herself still didn't support the princess fully, but she had seen how Lelouch had found comfort in his sister whenever they could find time together. She still got a bit jealous at seeing them, but anyone that could bring Lelouch out of the darkness he sometimes sunk into when he was on his own. The people that lived in the SAZ seemed to be happier, though she had to admit she would never fully trust it. Japan could only get its freedom back when they earned it with their own hands.

A helpful princess was nice and all, but blood had been spilled for years to liberate the country from the Darwinist empire that ruled them. That couldn't be wiped away. 'My brother sacrificed his life. I can't just let him down.'

She frowned at the thought of her brother. She hadn't said it to Lelouch, but a part of her was fighting back against Lelouch teaching her to be a better leader. Her brother had always said she would, and she always wanted to be like him, but he had died. And that had only gotten worse after Lelouch pointed out her brother's flaws.

She had always been the ace. The best fighter. She could fight off the best of Britannian forces, but never had a solid grasp of the big picture. She had debated trying to after her brother's death, but she never wanted to overshadow him, take his place. 'If I had figured it out, would he have been mad? Proud?'

Kallen shook her head. Now was not the time to have doubts, not with the situation they were in. Lelouch was going to teach her, and she would just have to adapt. He had faith in her. The world had changed, and she could only prepare for the inevitable future. She could see that Lelouch had finished his laps, bent over with hands on his knees as he panted. She approached him, putting back on a smirk, "Now it's time to work on those muscles."

Lelouch groaned, and she knew he would be made of jelly by the end the workout. But she would give him a little reward to show he was doing good.

Suzaku (2 Months after the SAZ formation)

Suzaku walked up to the roof of the school. He noticed Lelouch seemed to be distant recently, and knew exactly why. Nunnally's disappearance had affected not only Lelouch, but himself and Euphemia as well. His girlfriend had been asking around her family, but no one had seen her. He personally didn't know if they were genuine or hiding things, but there was a missing part of his heart.

And if he was taking it that way, Lelouch would be in a way worse state. His friend was leaning over a railing, looking down on the courtyard of the school. Suzaku was happy Lelouch looked clean and physically fine, but he could tell his friend was brooding over something.

Suzaku walked up to Lelouch, and called out, "Hey, don't think too hard."

Lelouch turned his head to see the knight, a frown deep set on his face, "Hey Suzaku." The knight saddled up next to him, and the terrorist let out a sigh, "Did Euphie or Kallen send you up here?"

Suzaku shook his head, "No. Was just free today and wanted to check in on you. I'm sorry I've been so busy. But as it turns out, I have more responsibility that I expected as Euphie's knight." Suzaku had to basically arrange security as well as organize a few more knights to act as security. He still was the senior knight, but Cornelia was right on having more security. 'Though I'm pretty sure she glares at me when I'm not looking.'

Lelouch laughed, "I could have told you that." But he quickly settled back to a frown, and he gripped the banister hard

Suzaku put a hand on Lelouch's shoulder, "I'm sorry I couldn't have kept Nunnally safe. If I had only been there-"

"No, it's not your fault. I should have been there. I was away getting groceries. You were defending the palace. I have no excuse. Kallen met me on the way back after I hid from the attacks across the settlement and…" Suzaku pursed his lips at Lelouch mentioning Kallen. He didn't want to tell his friend his girlfriend was a Black Knight, but it was getting harder and harder.

Suzaku just smiled at his friend, "Hey man, we'll get her back. Euphemia is contacting anyone that she can in the imperial court. Do you think your father had anything to do with it?"

Lelouch nodded, "It must have been him. He could have known for years we survived and just ignored that for all I know." He slammed his fist down on the banister, "That bastard."

Suzaku gave Lelouch a curious look, "Have you ever thought about revealing yourself to Cornelia? She might have better connections. Have an easier time finding her." Cornelia certainly wasn't exactly kind to him, but he had learned through Euphemia that she held something of a grudge against the Area since three of her siblings died here.

Lelouch shook his head, "I've already compromised my real identity enough." Lelouch gave Suzaku a small smile, "Hey, don't worry about me. I'll figure this out. You just focus on keeping my other sister safe. Let me do the smart things." There was still the very palpable sense of loss coming from his friend, but Suzaku could tell he was done with this conversation. 'It's nice to see his smile.'

Suzaku just grinned, "Alright. But if you need any muscle, you have my help." Suzaku rested on the same banister, looking over the campus. Suzaku noticed his friend looked more fit and a bit stronger, though he still kind of thin. He bumped Lelouch's shoulder, smirking, "What's got you working out? Normally you seem allergic to getting into better shape?"

Lelouch grumbled as he looked down, "Kallen and Sayoko are forcing me to get into better shape. I can't feel my body somedays."

"So today is your day off? Or have you decided to skip out on it?"

Lelouch groaned, "You seem to think I can escape this. Kallen and Sayoko have been pretty good at finding me if I ever try to skip out. And Milly has ratted me out a few times when she spotted me."

Suzaku laughed at his friend's suffering, "You really found the best girl for you, huh? Never thought I'd see the day when you actually workout. I bet she gives you special rewards for doing it."

Lelouch's face turned a bit red, and he fired back at the knight, "Is my sister any different with you?" Suzaku let out a cough as his face went red, a smug grin going to Lelouch's face, "That's what I thought."

"You aren't fair!"

"When did I say I ever was fair?" The two friends then just laughed hard as they let out all the tension, breathing hard by the end. After the two caught their breath, Lelouch gave Suzaku a warm smile, "Hey, I'm sorry I've been so shut off recently. I shouldn't be ignoring my friends."

Suzaku shook his head, "Hey, I've been busy guarding Euphemia. We both have been too busy to really hang out." He beamed as he turned to look at Lelouch, "How about we promise to try to be better at this when we have the time? And maybe I'll join you on a few workouts."

"As if I don't have enough people to upstage me." Lelouch then fake huffed, but smiled at his friend, "I would certainly be up for hanging out more. As long as you don't share too many embarrassing stories with Kallen."

"Hey, I'm good at keeping secrets. I kept yours for years. Though I do have a few fun ones." Lelouch shoved him and Suzaku yelled, annoyed, "Hey, you don't have to be so rough."

Lelouch (6 Month since the SAZ formation)

Lelouch had been invited to Euphemia's private retreat, a small house she had purchased in secret. It had been kept off the book as much as possible. He knew this wasn't uncommon with many Britannian nobles, putting the land under a shell company or a fake name. Lelouch was sitting in the living room with Kallen, Suzaku and Euphemia, Kallen showing them a photo album of the events that had happened so far in the school year, which was just starting. All of the teenagers were in casual wear, having the day for themselves without any distractions.

Euphemia was happily flipping through the book, stopping at an image of Kallen in a poofy dress, and Lelouch in eighteenth century formal wear. The pair were dancing in the ballroom where Lelouch lived. There was a bright smile on his sister's face, and Kallen rolled her eyes, especially when she saw Suzaku in a similar outfit.

She turned to the three students, pouting with a red blush on her face, "Why didn't you three tell me that you guys were going to do this? Especially you, my knight."

Suzaku looked away, "I didn't think about it. Milly basically forced all of us to do it. Kallen was complaining the entire time."

Kallen, attention directed towards her, crossed her arms over her chest, "Milly knows how much I hate dresses and heels. Reminds me too much of when I was younger." Lelouch just smirked as she finished, pulling her close.

"But I remember overhearing that you wouldn't mind doing it to, and I quote 'have Lelouch stare at me.' Or am I wrong?"

Kallen's face went red and she lightly beat his chest, "You just stared at my chest half the time.'

"Well when it's right there…" Kallen tried to pull away, huffing, but he curled his arm around her, pulling her close and kissing her, "I loved seeing you in that dress."

Kallen smiled, unable to gather any anger, her head in his neck as he kissed her forehead. He turned to the other pair, Euphemia's eyes shining as she looked at him and Kallen. Suzaku rolled his eyes, but was clearly smiling. He whispered something in Kallen's ear, and he could see her smile and nod.

Lelouch looked at Euphemia, "If I said I had pictures of Suzaku in a bunny girl outfit, what would you say?"

Euphemia looked between her lover and her brother, a teasing smile growing on it as Suzaku's expression shifted in mortification, "You wouldn't."

Lelouch just smirked and Kallen joined that. He growled under his breath, but Euphemia just gave him puppy eyes, "My knight, you wouldn't deny your princess this, would you?"

Lelouch could see the internal fight all over Suzaku's face, and Kallen laughed quietly, "I wonder if they call each other that in bed?"

Lelouch grunted in response, "Can you please not try to remind me those two are sleeping together? What if I did that with your brother?"

Kallen just shrugged, "I'm pretty sure he was sleeping with Inoue. So not as much of a bother as you think it would be." The couple watched as Suzaku gave in, Euphemia sweetly kissing him as Suzaku searched through the book, before finding the bunny girl event.

Euphemia squealed when she saw the picture, and looked at Lelouch, "Can I keep it?" His eyes moved to Suzaku, a grin forming on Lelouch's face. 'All is fair in love and war.'

Lelouch just nodded, "Sure. Milly keeps copies of what she calls blackmail material, which I'm pretty sure that picture is." The knight let out a pained sigh, but Lelouch could tell his sister cherished the image. For all of his issues, Suzaku was genuinely good for his sister. And him for her.

Kallen scoffed, "The only reason she had this event was to embarrass me. She wanted to show off the beautiful bodies of the student council. Honestly Shirley was lucky to have left when she did. The only real benefit was at least everyone had to wear it."

Lelouch rubbed her thigh, "You did make a good bunny." Kallen lightly smacked his hand, which he just rolled with, keeping it on her thigh, which she didn't try to push off in any way.

Euphemia looked at the three students, and let out a sigh, "I wish I could be a student like you. Not have to worry about politics or running the government."

Suzaku kissed her forehead, which she closed her eyes and beamed at. The knight spoke softly, "I would love to have you at school, to just relax. You would look very cute in the school uniform." Euphemia giggled and cuddled him, kissing his cheek. He blushed and continued, "But you are helping my people. I couldn't imagine them having the rights they do without you."

Lelouch kept his emotions under control, knowing that wasn't the complete truth. Suzaku wasn't aware of it. Many people had been caught up in the initial fervor of this new seeming freedom, but after six months, that had cooled a bit. People still looked up the princess, bolstered by the Black Knights acting as security, but the reality they were still under Britannian rule had set in.

They had more freedom, the Black Knights ensuring Britannian's didn't mess things up. Lelouch partially selfishly kept things calm to avoid stressing out his sister, though not creating internal issues was key if Britannia ever decided to do something. Also he needed time to rebuild and upgrade his forces.

Suzaku's phone then went off, and he looked at all three of them, "Sorry, Lloyd is calling. I'll be back after it's done." Suzaku walked away, and Euphemia pouted, but smiled as she looked at Lelouch and Kallen.

"Why is Milly always doing these events?"

Kallen looked to Lelouch, who answered for the pair, "Ever since the family took me in, she has always been a troublemaker and wanted to embarrass me in particular. Once she became the head of the student council, she let that power go to her head, though thankfully limited to just that. God knows what she would be like with actual power."

Euphemia just nodded, "That sounds better than dealing with the SAZ. I didn't realize what I would have to really do."

Kallen just hummed, "Well you have Zero, the Black Knights and Jeremiah to help you. You can always lean on them." All three of them gave each other knowing looks, Lelouch craning his head to see if Suzaku could hear them, which he thankfully didn't.

"It certainly is a daunting task, but we are all doing the best we can." Lelouch looked at his sister with confidence. She just gave them a shaky smile and they all heard Suzaku walk back into the room. He shook his head in annoyance.

"Lloyd wanted to tell me that I have another test for the new gear tomorrow. Which I already knew." He sat back down on the chair with Euphemia, who cuddled him immediately, "But at least Cecile got him to stop before he went on and on."

The teen laughed as they fell back into casual talk, questions revolving around school taking precedence. Lelouch smiled as the conversation flowed, happy to relax in this time of growing tension, where he could swear something was going to happen.

Euphemia (11 Months after SAZ Fomation)

Euphemia, dressed in her formal dress, looked at the stack of papers sitting on her desk. She rubbed her head at the sheer amount of work she had to do. While she wasn't completely ignorant of the time it would take to run the SAZ, eleven months in it only got more complex. Complaints from nobles, expansion plans for the growing zone, dealing with the Six Houses. 'Though Kaguya seems to mollified them.'

The SAZ had expanded by hundreds of thousands of people, necessitating more land for people. More apartment building were being built to help contain that. She was lucky that Jeremiah and Lelouch seemed to handle a good chunk of the paperwork, the Black Knights trying their best. Yet she got constant complaints from nobility that refused to call the people there Japanese. Even her own advisors were opposed to it.

She took a deep breath as she remembered she would have Suzaku to go back to after all this. 'He's been my rock through all of this.' While they had to be careful, she had learned to become more careful hiding her boyfriend and lover, though she hadn't been able to stop the rumors. Her sister suspected it most likely, but she hadn't said anything about it.

As she signed a document dealing with sakuradite, there was a knock on the door and Suzaku's voice echoed through it, "Your sister is here to talk."

Euphemia smiled as the purple-haired viceroy entered the room, looking as regal as ever. Cornelia gave her a smile, before an even look took over. Euphemia stood up, and walked towards her sister, pulling her into a warm hug. The pink-haired princess rested her head on Cornelia's shoulder, before the pair broke the hug, "Cornelia! I though you said you would be busy today!"

Cornelia cleared her throat, "Well with the reduction of terrorism in the sector, I have been forced to deal with all the boot lickers and corruption, as usual." Euphemia's chuckles left her unbidden, the young woman trying to silence them as her sister gave her the stink eye, "You tell me you haven't seen them in that…project of yours."

The contempt was barely hidden, and Euphemia couldn't help but feel a hole in her chest every time her sister talked down the SAZ. 'I know it's a long shot, but she's my sister!' Cornelia just frowned, but Euphemia could see she didn't fully regret her words.

Euphemia nodded as she pulled out a chair for her sister, hiding her turmoil with a smile, "Please sit down." The princess went back around her desk, sitting down as Cornelia sat down, "So, what did you come to tell me? Or is this more casual?"

Cornelia scanned her sister's desk, "I'm sorry if I interrupted you. Were you busy?"

"Nothing super needed at the moment. I have time."

Cornelia breathed out of her nose, "Schniezel recently sent me a message from father. I've been reassigned to the homeland."

Euphemia raised a hand to her lips, "After you did good work here? Why are you being reassigned?"

"From what I have been told, it seems father is gathering an invasion force. So logically he's putting me in charge."

Euphemia frowned as she looked down at her desk, "But why you? Can't brother lead the invasion? I need you here."

Cornelia put her hand over Euphemia's, her voice softer, "It's our responsibility as royalty. We do what we are asked to do. And I trust that you will be a good viceroy. For all of my doubts, people do seem to like you. And you managed to undermine Zero without firing a shot. I can never claim to have done that."

Euphemia blushed, hearing the pride in her sister's voice. 'Though probably because of the Zero thing.' Her frown shifted to a shaky smile, "When do you have to leave?"

"Three months. I will make sure to train you then best I can, though I will say keep your boot on the neck of the corrupt bureaucrats. They will take a mile if you give them an inch."

Euphemia just nodded, "It's just the first time we'll be separated like this."

Cornelia just smiled, "You becoming the woman I knew you could be. You may have made mistakes, but you have learned. And I'm certain Jeremiah can take over the SAZ for you."

The pink-haired princess pulled her hand away and leaned back in her chair, "Please don't die. I don't know what I would do without you."

Cornelia just smirked, "I'm the Witch of Britannia. The Goddess of Victory. It will take more than a simple war to kill me." She stood up and gave her sister one last smile, "Just send me good times and I will start teaching you."

Euphemia nodded, watching her sister leave, "I love you."

"I love you too." Cornelia spoke in a warm tone as she left the office. Euphemia looked down at her hands. 'Can I do this? Can I rely on myself and Zero to maintain peace?' She wasn't naïve enough to deny Zero was an important factor to keeping terrorism down. But the way the nobles complained would probably get worse, especially without Cornelia around.

She looked back at the forms and sighed, getting back to work as she knew this would take a while.

Author Note

And here we have chapter 1! We have two more years of time skips before we get to the proper plot. This will be a different plot to R2, though some elements will be used, and I plan on building up my chapters so I can post regularly. I know you guys liked the first story, and this one will have less focus on romance and more on the plot. But I'll see you guys next time!