C.C. climbed quietly to the balcony, gripping the vines and stepping on the gaps on the bricked walls with limbs stretched across like a spider. She pushed herself up, quiet as a mouse, struggling to get to the huge glass doors in the second storey's hall. The heavy bag of clothes she had at her back and the long inconvenient dress lowlanders wear gave her a hard time getting to the second level. Why was she sneaking inside the manor like a thief? Surely, she was about to rob no one of nothing. Instead, she has come back after being sent to an errand in the town. It took her five days to come home - erm, come back, but at least she didn't completely look for freedom by escaping Lelouch's chamber and manor.

Five freaking days of deliberate thinking, she mused, throwing the bag to the floor. It landed with a thud, and then she hopped towards the balcony, her knees hitting the hard stone. It hurt. She wanted to yell in pain, but that would wake everyone and stir further trouble. Lelouch should have lent her a donkey if his stallion wouldn't do, or any animal she could ride home. Perhaps if he did, she could have arrived not later than midnight. And if she didn't arrive at midnight, perhaps she would have the liberty to cry out in pain. All she could do was to caress her knee and nibble her lips to suppress the scream.

Five freaking days of temporary freedom and she went back to her cage. What a dumb bird.

Looking up, she saw the abundant dots of lights embedded on the dark sky. A group of stars looked like a man with broad shoulders, holding up a sword. How calming, it reminded her of the tribe's hunters. The cool morning breeze blew, freezing her bare face and hands. It was bloody warm in the morning and freezing cold when the sun's out.

C.C. remained sitting on that spot, curled on the ground next to the bag of clothes. After all those hours of walking, her body, feet, and legs were screaming for rest. Now that she finally got to sit and stop for a while, her body wanted to sleep. Oh, but not yet. She stood, exhaustion was making her body feel weak. Dragging the bag with her, she silently made her way inside through the glass doors. Wooden floors could be creaky and squeaky with every step, so her steps were careful not to wake anyone. Most of the times her boots would make noise just when she wanted to go unnoticed. This is how fate plays with people when it's bored.

On one hand, here comes the advantage of growing up in the mountains. People of her kind grew up hunting their own food. It needed precision, dexterity, and incognito in order to bring home a bountiful catch. C.C. had it all mastered. Or maybe not. She failed the last requisite horribly. If she truly was able to go unnoticed, why did Jeremiah take her away from the tribe? Why did the young conqueror keep her in his room, kiss her like she was a lover, touch her body as...as she liked it (maybe she really did)? Once again, grumbling under her breath, she only has her parents to blame. If they didn't decide to make love one night two decades ago, maybe she wouldn't have to be a slave today. Her birth was truly at fault here.

Her steps were light and quick. It almost seemed like she was waltzing through the corridors. The dim hallways didn't make it easy to find Lelouch's chambers; she even made a few wrong turns which led her deeper into the opposite wing. She wanted to get over this, so she traced her way back to the first hall where she made the turn and walked through the opposite side. The eerie portraits hanging on walls looked stranger and creepier under the moonlight. The lady tried her best to avoid glancing at them, for even when in broad daylight she disliked their faces. It wasn't like the people on the paintings were ugly. She had this feeling as if their eyes were on her wherever she went. They didn't have colorful paintings like this on the mountains, so she really wasn't used to it.

However if there was one painting she disliked the least, it would be the portrait of a young, extremely alluring man hanging on a wall along the main hall. His corn-silk hair and fair skin almost made him look feminine, but he was a he and he's attractive. It seemed he was Lelouch's ancestor since C.C. thought people were dead if they had fancy portraits. Well, putting them up was for commemoration, so who else would he be? A dead old Prince?

"So much about portraits, I'm almost there," she whispered to herself, her right hand groping the walls. After forty steps, she felt the cold stone wall became smooth and polished. The door. A smile pulled the corner of her lips up as she pushed it ever so slowly, wishing not to make a sound...but it didn't budge an inch. The door was locked inside, of course. After all it was Lelouch's room.

She huffed, dropping the bag next to her feet. There were no other passages that would lead her inside his chamber, nothing that she knew or heard of. It was just this door: the same door where Lelouch's brunet soldier barged in when the pair was trying to seduce each other, the door where Jeremiah pushed her in the time she was brought to Lelouch. This held no good memories, but she stared at with sentiment. Being sulky for a locked door was pointless. Being sulky because she couldn't sleep at the foot of his bed was, yes, reasonable.

C.C. was tired. Her entire body was aching for a soft comfort only Lelouch's bed could bring. She walked for so long that she began to wonder if this was some kind of punishment for not giving herself voluntarily to him. Being deprived of a good sleep was another punishment, she supposed. The lady wanted to kick the door open, set aside the ruckus it would bring, slump down on his bed, and sleep. All she wanted to have now is sleep. Instead of crying out in her head, she removed her shoes and cape instead.

"Oh, it's you."

C.C. whipped her head to the direction where the familiar voice came from. She hadn't heard that baritone voice which sounded in between innocence and wisdom for sometime. Squinting her eyes enabled her to make out his figure illuminated by the moonlight. He was standing next to the glass wall, a black floral robe draped idly on his shoulder. He didn't even bother putting his arms in its sleeves. The circles under his eyes were saying something, and perhaps the glass of coffee he was nursing was the culprit.

C.C. couldn't see it clearly, but somehow he looked surprised. He sounded like he was not expecting to find her in front his room, too. In all of a sudden, her vision had gone blurry, herself a bit dizzy, with all the ordeal she had gone through today. Lelouch would surely demand an explanation why she was here, or why she didn't come back soon, whichever he preferred asking. Answers for both questions were well-rehearsed in her head, if the man asks for it.

"Indeed, it is me." She flashed him a sneer though she didn't know what is she sneering for.

"I am…stunned," he looked away, unsure of what to say. "Stunned, stunned to see you here. Is there anything you have left you wish to get back?" Lelouch approached the door and unlocked it with his key, gesturing her to come in.

C.C. was a bit confused with what he was saying. It sounded as if she was supposedly gone and never back. Well, she didn't reply to him on the bridge so running away could only mean one thing: she was reclaiming her freedom. Tossing the bag near his wardrobe, she dropped her cape and boots near the bed. She stepped out of her dress as well, running to the foot of his bed dressed in nothing but chemise and drawers. As she slumped to his bed, she heard him sat next to the window, stirring his coffee.

"Good night, Lelouch." She rolled over and met his eyes. The man must be curious and confused; she couldn't be bothered enough to explain, nevertheless. It felt like he would ignore her, but when he smiled and parted his lips, it made her feel at ease.

"Sleep well, C.C. Funny how you never tell me your name."

C.C. scoffed. They kissed and roamed each other's body, and yet he knew not her name. "Indeed, we have messed up the order of how things should be done. Sleep well, sir."

Long strands of hair sprawled across the bed, some stuck to her face and mouth. The curtains were drawn together, preventing the warm sunlight from filling the room with brightness. C.C. was sleeping soundly across the spacious bed by herself, tucked under a thin white blanket. Her dress was pooling around her waist, revealing her flat white stomach. Indifferent with the chirruping of the birds and rustling of the trees and commotion of the house servants, the lady continued to doze off.

It was about seven in the morning and Lelouch was up. He didn't sleep on the bed last night, afraid that there was no point in sleeping next to the lime-haired lady anymore. While he missed his bed, sleeping next to the window didn't make him less comfortable. Fighting over the borders taught him how to sleep anywhere, or sometimes not sleeping at all. He sighed, propping his elbows on the table and nursing his temples.

Lelouch glanced at the lady on his bed. There was no elegance with how she slept, limbs spread across the bed as if she was trying to own all the spaces in there. Her defences were down, unaware that her chemise had rolled up to her waist after tossing around a lot. His eyes studied her from where he was, eyes traveling down to her legs and feet. Much to his surprise, he couldn't take his eyes off from her red soles. Perhaps she had walked all night wearing her uncomfortable shoes with a heavy bag on her back. Was he always this cruel to ladies?

Guilt. What else could be the name of his feeling this moment? At this instant, he wanted to wake her up, offer her a bath, and treat her with anything she wanted to have for coming all the way from the town back to the manor despite choosing her freedom. Lelouch walked to her and pushed away all locks to have a clear view of her face. Indeed, she was graceless, but her beauty was grace itself.

"Wake up, lady." He shook her shoulders gently, but the lady didn't stir. "The sun is out. You have to wake up."

Groaning, she pushed his hand away and hid under the blanket. He smiled, amused with her childish reaction. Well, he should tell her the truth then. "I will be meeting the war council by midday. Jeremiah will attend the meeting later, so you should leave before he arrives."

Mention of Jeremiah's name had an effect on her in their previous talks, so it was the only bait he could think of. However, it seemed futile. It made her hid her entire being under the blanket.

"I suppose you wouldn't want to be disturbed." Embarrassed, he walked to the bathroom to wash his face and prepare for the long day ahead of him. The lady could choose what she wanted to do later since her freedom was all hers.

While the young ruler was busy splashing water onto his face, C.C. was scowling under the sheets. What Lelouch just said was irking her first thing in the day. Jeremiah was a big threat to her. Even if it was Lelouch who granted her freedom, the old man would keep his word about her tribe. She knew he would do as what he said, and no doubt with that. Hence, before this handsome aristocrat could inform his war general about her so-thought "freedom," she pushed off the sheets and ran straight to the bathroom.

His lean muscles seemed to glisten under the faint sunlight. C.C. couldn't look away from his half-naked body as he dabbed himself with a damp towel. Lelouch was a young man with looks that could make females turn a second glance. His face had a cold expression that fit his round purple eyes. Possessing a jet black hair made him attractive as well, especially in mornings when he has awaken. And that small waist! Is he a lady or what?

She continued watching him tidy himself up before deciding to clear her throat with a slight cough. "I came back, Lelouch. Don't you ever tell Jeremiah I left."

He whipped his head to her, surprise written all over his face. "Oh, why so?"

"I didn't run away in the first place. You are assuming things. What I asked you was a 'what if' and nothing else. If Jeremiah misunderstood this, he wouldn't hesitate setting my tribe ablaze."

"I can ask Jeremiah to let you off. He'd follow me," the man dismissed, walking to her to wipe the sleep away from her face.

"Oh, he won't," she pushed his hand away. "That man wants me to sleep with you… I should have, days ago. He keeps threatening me."

"Why should you fear? I am this land's -"

"You are. I respect that," she interrupted. "But you are a boy who forgets that your generals lived longer than you. Surely, they hold truths with their threats. I'm afraid that's something you haven't realised yet. If you are wise, you will know that they are the biggest threat once they turn their back to you."

She gulped. Indeed, she was in no place to tell him that but he had to know. His generals would obey him but Jeremiah was a different person. There was confusion on his face proven by his furrowing brows. The man wiped his face and arms with the damp towel, then walked to her. He was towering over her, his handsome amethyst orbs staring down at her.

"Is that so?" his tone and expression were cold, his gaze piercing. "I cannot think of any reason why that old man wants me to get laid. In that case, should I take you right here and now so you can go back to your tribe?"

Her throat felt so dry. He gripped her shoulders and pushed her against the cold wall, his head lowered to meet her eyes in the same level. "Tell me what I should do in exchange of your freedom."

"Do what you want," she said flatly, afraid to show any emotions this moment. "So long as you won't tell Jeremiah about what happened these past days, you can do what you want to me. I am yours to use, rest assured."

She saw it again, the anguish on his face. He hated when she was this submissive. "Tell me your name," he demanded, releasing her arms from his grip.

"I want to be called C.C.," she answered, massaging the parts he gripped. Her eyes were glued on his bare back as he went to the other side of the room.

"That's not a name," was his response, which received a snort from the lady.

"I'm a slave. No point in being friendly and getting to know each other. Good day." C.C. hurriedly left the bathroom to slump back on the bed in hopes that she wouldn't anger him further. Lelouch was fixated with granting her freedom, that, she appreciated. However, thinking that it would be as easy as he thought it would be was a whole new matter. A hard one at that.

Taking his time alone inside the bathroom, he began wondering if he should request Jeremiah to meet him after today's council. Seeing the lady back here relieved him since it meant she was safe after all these days. His priority would be her freedom, nonetheless. He went as far as kissing her goodbye, so it made him feel a tad embarrassed about seeing her again. Why not make this real so he could end this ordeal?

Lelouch shook his head and gave himself a weak slap. Just because he had been this close to a woman for the first time his thoughts had gone disarray. It was so unlike him to lose his focus over something, to think less rationally than he usually would. Thinking about this now made it seem like a well-planned scheme to distract the young man.

Lelouch immediately tore the letter apart after he finished reading it. He was thankful that he read the letter here at his spot in the garden, for he couldn't imagine how the head butler would react if he were to see the aristocrat's beet red face.

It was already lunch time when he had the chance to break away from the war council earlier this morning. While heading to the backdoor exit, the head butler handed him a letter from Suzaku. He was unsure whether he would read it before the butler so he could send an immediate response but he decided against it. When Jeremiah's laughter echoed down the halls, Lelouch wanted to escape.

The young ruler buried his face on his palms, feeling the heat of his face radiating. What did he just read? Why did Suzaku have to tell him that he finally did it with a woman?

"The more embarrassing thing in here is that he sounded like he's enamoured with the lady he slept with! I have never heard him talk about a lady that way!" Lelouch crumpled the tattered paper and hid it in his pocket.

He sat there for a good few minutes, cheeks warm and red. His eyes were staring blankly ahead of him, wondering about Suzaku's journey in graduating from his virginity. It didn't help that his friend sounded like a love-sick puppy in his letters.

'So intimacy has different effects on people, huh?' Lelouch sighed, his shoulders sagging. The wind blew his thoughts away, and he was reminded when did Suzaku get hold of a free time to sleep with a woman when he is guarding Lelouch's cousin.

"How dare he-!" Back to his rational thoughts, Lelouch stood and ran back to the manor, meaning to ask the butler a short response to Suzaku's letter.

Perhaps the rage regarding Suzaku's "negligence of duty" had already subsided, so he decided to come back to the council.

His steps were quiet, not wanting to alert the generals of his presence for he wanted to see if they were still discussing things after he left.

The hallways were clean and shiny; the walls were decorated with tapestries of the army in his command. There also hung portraits of a few of his family members, including his rival and older brother, Schneizel. Lelouch glanced ever so briefly at his brother's image, unhappy to see it there.

But family is family, they say. No matter how much he wanted to, he could never take it out from there.

The aristocrat continued to walk, this time his pace was quicker. The noon was over and the attendants probably served the lunch of his guests. Perhaps his lunch was served in the room as well, and that C.C. was taking the liberty to eat his share of food.

A smile lit up his face as he imagined the lime-haired beauty gobbling up the lunch. She was always lacking grace when it was just the two of them; and she ever tries so hard to sound polite to him. Not really fitting her image, but he appreciated her efforts.

Lelouch chuckled, remembering her attempts to act like she was from the lowlands. He was already thinking of dropping by his room to check on her, before he would spend the entire afternoon with the old men of the council.

That was his plan. However, when he heard Jeremiah's faint laughter a few corridors from where he stood, he had to change his route.

The wooden floor was a bit slippery here, perhaps someone focused on polishing this area. It was too shiny as well that it could reflect images of the people walking on it.

And since it was wooden, if he wasn't so careful in walking, his footfalls would echo all over the place. Jeremiah would find him instead.

C.C. was leaning against the wall,a mop stands next to her. She was dressed with a maid's uniform again, much to Lelouch's chagrin. Based on her expressions, she wasn't enjoying the confrontation between her and the old man.

"So you really took days off from here, eh? You are quite pampered, aren't you?" Jeremiah laughed.

C.C. shrugged his comment off, couldn't be arsed to repeat that it wasn't a day off, it was an errand. And being the blunt person she was, asked, "Are you here to ask if I have slept with him yet?"

"Oh. You're sharp, dear."

"Let's say that is the only thing you bother asking, lecherous old man. Also, no. I apologize."

Jeremiah smiled and paced close to her, his eyes squinting as if to examine her face. "You are not that appealing to Lelouch then? Should I burn your tribe as promised?"

"I can assure you that he doesn't like men. I will not disclose our intimate matters in detail, but that's it. I cannot force a man to sleep with me, when he is all concerned in granting my freedom." She held the mop and prompted to leave him, "I don't understand why you are insisting this so much. But please, spare my tribe. They have nothing to do in here."

"I told you, you are not one to negotiate in here, lady. Your only task as a 'gift' to Lelouch is to keep him company and be a good woman. Sleep with him, that's all."

Jeremiah walked away first, not wanting C.C. to have the dramatic walkout. She was left there standing, clutching the mop close to her chest. It was back to top again, her tribe was in danger.

Lelouch remained hiding behind a wall away from where the two spoke. He heard it clear and well, Jeremiah was forcing her to sleep with him. He didn't understand his intentions either, but it must be serious given the urgency of his order and threat to C.C.

Is this a plot to stir scandals to ruin his reputation? Lelouch could not fathom it yet, so he decided to think of it sometime. However, this forever changed his opinion of Jeremiah, his loyal general.

Was he really a loyal general?

C.C.'s sigh distracted the young man from his musings and arousing suspicions towards Jeremiah. Instead, he peeked from behind the wall and watched the sassy highlander to sit on the floor, arms around her knees. For once she was showing a weak side of her, a personality totally different when she is with him.

Lelouch remained still, eyes glued on her. There were no sounds or movements coming from C.C, she was just hugging her legs and burying her face on her knees. The young aristocrat remained rooted in his spot, waiting for her to blurt out her disappointments or complaints about this life.

But none were spoken. The lady was still for one good moment, until she decided to stretch her limbs and yawn. Her eyes were considerably shiny, teary and glum, but the tone of her voice betrayed the loneliness mirrored by her eyes.

"Well, I guess I will sleep with him tonight." She stood, stretching a little more, before picking up the mop to leave. "That's better than losing my tribe after all."

A sad smile spread on Lelouch's face as he turned his back. How folly this lady, he thought. Beautiful and clever, but bound by fetters to submit to a fate she never deserved.

It was his turn to introspect about these weird events… Jeremiah's intentions were still vague; however, it should make sense soon enough.

His legs brought him back to the main hall and he found himself resuming the meeting.

Confronting the man directly wasn't a good tactic, but here Lelouch was, waiting for Jeremiah to explain himself.

The two men were sitting quietly in Lelouch's study. It was evening already, the darkness of the sky painted the window black. Some servant had set the hearth ablaze. It was the only sound that filled the study, the crackling of the fire.

Shadows were casted across the room. Some flickered on the faces of the gentlemen; Lelouch looked fierce, and Jeremiah seemed enjoying.

"For what reason do you think it serves?"

"I can't think of any. Why will I ask you here, Jeremiah? I have overhead you and C.C. earlier." Slouch rested his face on his knuckles, the smirk spreading on his lips. "While she is certainly a nice gift, I don't understand why the rush."

Jeremiah laughed. "Only to help you relieve from your frustrations. Don't you find her lovely?"

"A reason I won't believe. If anything, I never felt frustrated at all until you brought her to my door. Also, yes. She's very lovely, someone you'd like to see next to you when you wake up. So tell me the reason why."

The fire crackled louder this time. The chunks of woods were broken down to smaller slabs, red and hot. Lights flickered more, making the emotions in Lelouch's eyes more serious and vivid than what Jeremiah had ever seen before.

The way the old man thinned his lips into a line showed he wouldn't tell Lelouch anything. His cold piercing gaze neutralized the fierce calculating glare Lelouch had.

He stood, his hands making a soft thud on the chair's armrests as he pushed himself up. "I suggest you sleep with her every night and fill her up. You need a child, Lelouch. Your older brother is coming for you."

Jeremiah left Lelouch and the fire crackling beside him.

Lelouch's knuckles almost turned white as he clenched his fists. So the bastard was actually planning something against him. His gaze shifted to the dancing flames, and things were now finally enlightened.

His footsteps echoed across the halls. The servants ran away to clear his path, some had their head stooped afraid to see him angered. Indeed, it all needed the mention of his brother plotting some nasty antics against him to trigger his ruthlessness. Why he was feared by people was a mask he built to show his brother he wouldn't back down.

Lelouch was what his older brother called a bastard, a child born out of a wedlock. A mistake after a night of pleasure with a noble woman.

Schneizel never stopped reminding the young Lelouch how he would grow up unwanted and incompetent - which all these helped Lelouch to be who he was now today. Who would have thought that after Schneizel's study abroad, he was back to toy Lelouch's life again?

The door slammed open, surprising the lady sitting by the window. She was wearing one of the new dresses he bought; it was a pastel yellow gown adorned with frills here and there, complimenting her amber eyes.

His face showed he had no time to coax the lady with sweet words. Walking straight to her, she was yanked from the window and carried in his arms. Lelouch kept walking until they were on the hallway… until he was walking down the stairs and all eyes were on them.

C.C. couldn't hide her surprise as he paraded her in front of the house servants. For sure some of them recognized her.

The butler was asked to take the stallion out.

They were standing by the main door, waiting for the butler. She was afraid it wasn't time yet to ask why he seemed mad and why he suddenly showed her to everyone. She didn't ask a thing. But when the butler came with the same horse Lelouch used to take her to the brook, she heard him tell the butler:

"My wife and I wouldn't stay the night. Keep the manor safe."

She gawked at him in awe. Given no time to ask anything, she found herself seated before him and they were sprinting away from his manor.