Chapter 6: Common Ground

"It was something I didn't want to be true… but then again, it's Lelouch." Kallen thought as she sat in the student council room, "But to think… he was in contact with Naoto before everything happened. Why didn't he say anything?"

"Kallen…" the sweet, yet tired voice of Shirley called, "What are we going to do?"

"I can't think about that. With the Kozuki cell lying low for the next two months, I have to put all of my focus into school… and today is no exception."

"Kallen? Are you mad at me?"

The red head smiled at her orange-haired friend, "No. Why would I be?"

"Because… I dragged you into that stupid little bet with Rivalz…"

Two hours earlier…

Kallen and Shirley were sitting in the wood-working shop with a block of wood sitting in front of them. They had just turned in the blueprints for their car, and were now waiting for an instructor to help them with operating one of the carving machines, that's when a familiar blue-haired boy approached them, "Looks like you guys are going to be racing a block of wood in the end, huh?" he taunted with a smile.

"Oh be quiet! You only just got started with your car, so I don't know why you're talking so much trash!" Shirley responded, after all, the boy had been pestering them all morning, though it was probably because-.

"Rivalz, are you still mad about the Cross-Dressers Ball?" Lelouch's voice rang out.

The Prince had hit the nail on the head, and the trio knew it; Rivalz had spent the entire weekend pleading with the President to delete the photos, but she simply responded with "Rules are rules, and even we have to abide by them."

Which was a complete lie, as after Lelouch blackmailed the yearbook club to delete the photos they had of him, Milly was on tight lockdown with any photos acquired during the event, probably because she still had one photo of Lelouch, and she didn't want anyone to touch it.

"You bet I am!" the blue-haired boy responded, "And I'm here for revenge!"

"And how're you going to enact that?" Kallen asked blankly

Rivalz smiled, "Because… I have a wager."

"We're not interested in gambling," Shirley responded defensively

"Oh really? Because I think you'll be interested in the prize…"

Lelouch rose his eyebrow upon hearing those words, "You better not…" he muttered

"Sorry Lelouch, but this is for the greater good," Rivalz thought with a smile, "Whoever comes in first place, will get a favor from the other team!"

"Like a collective favor?" Kallen asked

"Correct, so one favor combined."

The red head put her hand on her chin and thought, "While it would be nice to have another favor over Lelouch, if I lose this… then Lelouch will probably manipulate Rivalz into getting me to waste my favor. All-in-all, I don't really gain anything from this."
"Like I said before, we're not interested in gambling," Shirley affirmed.

"Oh, really? Because from what I heard…"

"I really don't have time for this," Lelouch thought as he walked away, leaving Rivalz to the impossible task of getting Shirley to take a bet, "Naoto has a sister, huh? I have no doubt he probably confided my identity to her, after all, it was a mistake on my part to give him my real name. But, there's nothing I can do about it now. As for Naoto himself, his cell's probably not too happy that the Knightmare they worked so hard to get, is now just a pile of scrap. Then that means, the first order of business, is to procure another… but how?"

"You'd do that!?" Shirley exclaimed

"Oh god. What did Rivalz wager?"

"That's right!" the blue-haired boy's voice rang out, "If you guys finish the race the fastest in our class, then Lelouch and I will stop gambling for a whole month!"

"A month without gambling? I suppose as long as Shirley doesn't find out, I can still sneak out for a game or two."

"But if we finish the fastest, then you two'll have to manage the turkey stall during our shifts at the school festival!" Rivalz added.

"Turkey stall?" Lelouch inquired

"Yep. It's something the Pres wanted to set up in preparation for Thanksgiving."

"But the school festival is next month, and Thanksgiving is in November."

"I know right," Rivalz replied, softening his tone, "I said the same thing, but she just wouldn't budge on the idea, something about seeing you in a turkey costume really got her going."

A big red comically mark appeared on Lelouch's forehead, "She… what?"

"Oops, looks like I said too much…"

Kallen sighed, somehow, the deal had changed, no… maybe this is what Rivalz wanted all along, nonetheless, this bet wasn't something she was a big fan of. Shirley on the other hand… "Kallen, let's do it!"

"What? Why? We gain nothing from this."

"Are you kidding!? If we win this, then Lulu'll stop gambling!"

"For a month. And what if he sneaks out to do it? We have no way of knowing he'll keep his word."

Shirley turned to Lelouch, who said, "I'll keep my word, I promise."

That was a lie.

"Besides, I'd rather not dress up as a turkey, and give Milly valuable photos."

This was the truth.

"Okay then!" the ever gullible Shirley said in a determined tone, "Let's do this, Kallen!"

"Well… I haven't agreed to anything yet…" the girl replied meekly

The orange-haired girl's eyes then dilated, giving a puppy-dog look as she said, "C'mon, Kallen, pretty please…"

In the previous timeline, Shirley never got Lelouch to stop gambling, and the red head knew it broke her heart, so that's why… even if it's just for a month… Kallen will try her best to grant her friend's wish, "Okay, Shirley, let's do it…"

After hearing Kallen's answer, the raven-haired boy turned to Rivalz and asked, "Wait… what were the conditions again?"

Once Rivalz and Shirley shook hands, the boy responded, "Well, you know how the teachers gonna time our cars, right? Well, whoever gets the fastest time in class, will win the bet!"

"Shouldn't it be…" however, Lelouch stopped himself upon realizing it was too late, "Never mind… I just think our chances of winning are lower if we include the rest of the class," the Prince replied while looking at a certain green-haired girl and her partner.

"What would the rest of the class have to do with this?" Rivalz asked with a head tilt

After giving his 'buddy', a pitiful look, Lelouch walked away, while muttering, "You really are an idiot."


After their recollection ended, Shirley continued, "Well… when Rivalz said that… I just…"

"You don't need to explain yourself," Kallen replied, "I know you care about him, that's why I agreed to this. If it gets your precious Lulu out of danger, then I'll gladly help."

A deep blush overcame the orange-haired girl's face, causing her to cover it instinctively, giving Kallen a good chuckle, but then, she asked, "What about you? Do you like Lulu?"

This question caught the red head off-guard; she hadn't expected Shirley to ask such a question, especially now, "What brings that up?"

"The… the dance… how did you get him to dance?"

"Oh, that… well, I simply made a deal, that's all."

"What was the deal? It had to be pretty good for Lulu to take it…"

Kallen rubbed her temple, before changing the subject, "Anyway, if we're going to beat them, we have to improve our car."

After taking the bait, Shirley returned to the paper and said, "Right. But what can we do? We already submitted the design, and there's no way we can come up with another by Friday."

"I mean… we could… but it'll be a pain…"

"Man… if only there was someone who knew cars could help us…" Shirley complained

"That's it!" Kallen shouted, "I think I might know someone!"


"You want me to do… what?" Naoto asked as he reclined in his chair.

"You heard me the first time, help me design a car," Kallen replied while cleaning some dishes in the kitchen of his apartment.

The older Kozuki shook his head, "But… I'm not really a car guy…"

"I thought you liked cars!"

"Yeah, back when I was like… twelve! Things change. What's the car for anyway?"

"Well, we have a project in class where we have to build a wooden car, but there's a catch. You see, my partner entered a bet with another group, and let's just say, we really have to win this, otherwise, we'll be dressed up as turkey's next month."

Naoto let out a loud cackle, before saying, "Now THAT, would be a sight to see. Hey, maybe I could sneak into Ashford and take some pictures."

"Please take this seriously," Kallen replied while pointing a knife at her brother

"Jeez, you don't have to get so mad. Why don't you just build the same car? That way, you can't win or lose."

"That sounds like a good plan… but how would I do that?"

"Steal their design, duh. Could you hand me a beer, by the way?"

Kallen sighed in frustration, before opening the refrigerator, and grabbing the last beer in there, "You're out of beer," she said, tossing it at her brother, causing him to leap out of his chair to catch it.

Naoto watched as his sister left the apartment in a huff, and thought, "Did I say something wrong?"


Nothing of interest happened for the next few days, Kallen and Shirley built their car with help from an instructor, and they gathered outside by a small track prepared by the science teacher on Thursday. Unexpectedly, however, Mr. Burns walked out in a racing suit, he was clearly enjoying this event to the fullest. "Good Morning class!" he announced, "As you can see, this will be the course you'll be racing on." he walked over to a stool which connected three different tracks.

In total, there were three identical tracks, most likely just to save time so that people didn't have to go one by one. Each track started with a drop-off ramp, having the cars gain enough speed to take on the first loop, which almost immediately led into a second one; from there, it was a zigzag that went on four times, until it turned into a straight away to the finish line, which was a box full of foam cubes. "Hey, I know these foam cubes…" Shirley muttered, "Did he take these from the gymnastics club?"

"That I did!" responded Mr. Burns, "Don't worry, I'll return them by the end of the day!"

Kallen glanced at Lelouch, who was holding his car which was painted blue, "Lelouch… why are you so calm about this?" she thought while staring at her red car.

Yesterday…

"Hi, I'm looking for Lelouch," Kallen told the Japanese maid, known as Sayoko, while standing outside the Ashford Clubhouse.

"Ah, you're one of his friends, aren't you? Well, Master Lelouch is currently in his room; I believe he is doing homework right now," the maid responded.

Without missing a beat, Kallen thanked Sayoko and made her way to Lelouch's room, and upon arriving, she swung open the door loudly, startling the boy. Once she was inside, she caught the tail-end of Lelouch minimizing tabs on his computer, causing her to ask, "What was that?"

"Ever heard of knocking?" the boy snapped, ignoring her question.

"Stuff if Lelouch, you know what I'm here for." she said, while slamming a green note on his desk, "What's this supposed to be about?"

"Those are…"

"The blueprints to your car. Why'd you give them to me?"

"A better question is, why're you complaining?" the boy asked calmly.

"Answer my damn question. Are you simply trying to throw this race? Is this whole thing a joke to you? Because it's not to Shirley! She really wants you to quit gambling, and yet, here you are, making one massive joke about all this!"

Lelouch sighed as Kallen pulled up a chair, taking a seat right next to him, "If you must know, neither of us are going to win this bet. It was unintentionally rigged from the beginning."

"What do you mean? Rivalz can't be that smart."

"He's not. That's why I said it's unintentionally rigged."

"But how? The rules state whoever has the fastest time wins the bet, right?"

The Prince chuckled, "Clearly, you're not too bright either."

"Oh please, I've already outsmarted you once, so how can you say I'm stupid?" Kallen asked with a proud grin.

"The only reason you won that was because you held the power."

"A win is a win. Stop being a sore loser and admit defeat."

Lelouch now glared at the red head, and asked, "Why are you here?"

"I already told you-"

"And I've answered that question."

"No you haven't. Why have you given me your blueprints?"

"Because-"

"The real reason." Kallen demanded, cutting the boy off.

Lelouch sighed, and asked, "What do you think?"

Finally, the red head smiled, "Good. Well, I think you don't want to make Shirley sad, so by giving me the blueprints to your design, you think we'll have a good shot at winning. Well, you're mistaken; you see… we're gonna beat you fair and square, our design against yours."

"Once again-"

"You won't win. Well, just watch us."

"Can you leave already!?" Lelouch finally snapped, "Honestly, what was even the point of you coming here?"

"It's to acknowledge your challenge, and raise it."


"Despite what I said yesterday… Lelouch doesn't seem worried, in fact, he seems kind of disappointed…" Kallen thought as she placed her red Camaro on the track, right next to Lelouch's car, "Good luck~" she taunted.

"Good luck," Lelouch responded blandly.

To their left, the timid Nina placed her car on the track, though, this one looked incredibly different from everyone else's, in fact, it was almost like an F1 car with how low it was.

"All right. On the count of three, you will let go of your cars, and then it's off to the races!" Mr. Burns announced

"3"

"Are you gonna go or what?" the teacher asked

"That was the count!?" the students exclaimed

Lelouch, Kallen, and Nina let their cars go upon realizing the race had started.

"And they're off!" announced Mr. Burns, "It looks like Lelouch's car has just now masterfully crossed the loop, but it looks like Kallen's is having trouble gaining enough speed. Uh oh, but it looks like Lelouch is having trouble gaining speed on the zigzags, and here comes Kallen; it looks like she's finally gained enough speed from the loops. This is gonna be a close race!"

It wasn't a close race.

Final Placements:

1st place: Nina Einstein Time: 7.89S

2nd place: Lelouch Lamprouge Time: 9.57S

3rd place: Kallen Stadtfeld Time: 11.78S


"Take that!" Rivalz shouted triumphantly, "Looks like we won the bet!"

Lelouch sighed upon hearing this, and clarified, "Because I feel bad; the bet wasn't actually about a race between us. It was us against the whole class, meaning if one person even finished with a faster time than us…"

Kallen and Shirley tilted their heads in confusion, as Rivalz stuttered, "But… that's not what I said!"

"You said: Whoever finishes the race the fastest in our class, wins the bet, however, that didn't happen," the Prince explained while pointing at Nina, "It was Nina who won the bet, and she doesn't even know about it."

"She wasn't even in on this!"

"That's why I said to not include the whole class!"

"But I didn't!"

"You did!"

Shirley looked down with a sad face, "So… it was pointless all along…"

"Of course… so that's why Lelouch wasn't worried," Kallen thought as she placed a hand on Shirley's shoulder, "He knew the results from the very beginning." she then looked at Nina, "And who could blame him? Nina teamed up with a science club member, who does little experiments like this all the time, so they were basically set up with the best car from the jump."

After seeing Shirley's downtrodden face, Lelouch said, "Listen, Shirley, I know you didn't win the bet, but if it makes you feel better… I'll stop gambling for the next month."

The orange-haired girl looked up with a glowing smile, "Really!?" she exclaimed, "You'll really stop gambling!?"

"For the next month, yes."

"That's good enough for me!" Shirley replied with a smile

Kallen, however, was very suspicious, "Why? Why would Lelouch give up something like that so easily? Does it have something to do with my brother? What are they planning?"


Later that day…

Lelouch was currently looking over some files that were sent to him, his door was locked as he learned something valuable from Kallen the other day about privacy. As he cycled through multiple images, he picked up his phone, and dialed a number, which was soon picked up after the second ring, "Did you see it?"

The boy scrolled through the images once again and replied, "Yeah. It's pretty good… if you were trying to get your entire cell killed. What are you honestly thinking? It says here, after acquiring a Knightmare, you were going to storm a Britannian chemical factory, and steal a dangerous bioweapon."

Naoto leaned back in his recliner and said, "Well, the plan is only loosely outlined; it's intentionally done that way because I suspected I would die before I got to executing it."

Lelouch chuckled, "How morbid. And to think you were complaining earlier about me taking precautions for your death."

"Yeah, yeah. My original objective with this plan was to destroy a refrain lab, that way, there'll be less of that damned drug on the street," the Kozuki responded while looking through a site on his laptop.

"How noble. But now that you don't have a Knightmare, what're you going to do?"

"I thought that's why you called? Didn't you clear up your schedule so you could go searching with me?"

The exiled Prince leaned back, "Well… I did clear up my schedule… but…"

"Going into the Ghetto's isn't your expertise?"

"Correct."

"Don't worry!" Naoto shouted, "As long as you're with me, no one'll bother you!"

"It's not the people I'm concerned about." Lelouch responded, "Isn't the Ghetto supposed to be under strict military surveillance now?"

The resistance leader peered out his window as a couple of Britannian soldiers patrolled the streets, "Yeah. So what are we going to do?"

"Let's stick to the black market for now. Someone has to be selling a Glasgow on there; it doesn't matter the price, as long as it's real, and operable."

Naoto sat on his recliner, his tone now turning serious, "By the way… I know I said I wasn't interested in your personal life… but, as you know, I've been cooped up in my room for a few days now, and I couldn't help but search up a few names here and there…" the line went silent for a bit, before he continued, "Are you… in any relation to Lelouch Vi Britannia?"

Lelouch's eyes narrowed, he knew he got too carried away with telling Naoto his real name, but he couldn't help it; he got caught up in the moment, and it was costly, "Why would you think that?" he asked

"It's just… you two look really similar…" Naoto responded while looking at a picture of the Prince in an article titled 'Prince Lelouch Vi Britannia and Princess Nunally Vi Britannia pronounced dead after the grueling second pacific war'

Lelouch's response here was important. If he lied here, and Naoto found out, it could cost him the alliance, but if he told the truth… what then? "If I said yes, how would you react?"

He then heard the resistance leader let out a breath, "If you hypothetically said yes, I'd say I wouldn't care. You're an enemy of Britannia, I saw it in your eyes. The hate you carry, it's real. You said you'd help me free Japan, and I sincerely believe that. Who you are doesn't matter to me, as long as you're… a friend to the Japanese people, then I'll happily stand by your side against Britannia."

A powerful response, as expected of the only resistance leader who understands what it means to go to war with Britannia. Now the question is: How will Lelouch respond?

"It hurts. To be revealed like this…" he thought, "But… Naoto isn't the type of person who speaks with malice… I mean true malice. He wears his heart on his sleeve, and it shows in how he carries himself. This plan to steal a chemical weapon, if successful, would be a glove slap to Britannia's face, showing that the Japanese people were still alive, and would fight to the bitter end."

Lelouch had to choose his next words carefully, "Yes. I am Lelouch Vi Britannia, and so long as they're willing, I'm ready to fight alongside the Japanese against Britannia."

Naoto let out a tense sigh, "So… it's true…"

"Will you tell anyone?"

"That you're a Prince? No. They wouldn't take the news of my informant being a former Prince of Britannia lightly. Until you're ready, no one will hear about your Princely title, not even my sister." Lelouch let out a sigh of relief, until Naoto finished his sentence, "But… I may have already told her your first name… but I swear, I haven't told her anything else!"

The Prince chuckled, "So… your sisters just as annoying as mine, huh?"

"Your sister's still alive?"

"For better or worse. She's still crippled and blind, but her smiles still as bright as the day we left Britannia."

The resistance leader chuckled, "Someday… you're gonna have to tell me that story, about how you left Britannia. And I mean the real story."

"Perhaps… someday…"

Silence overcame the two boy. Despite being born into two completely different families, despite having two very different upbringings, they managed to find common ground.

"Speaking of which… you have a bunch of sisters, right?" asked Naoto
"Most I care not to remember, why?"

"Well… and bear with me here. How can you tell if your sister's a psychopath?"

"What?"


AN: A bit of a slower chapter as this is mainly set up for things to come.