AN: First of all, Happy new year everyone.

Secondly, I'll actually be responding to a few comments, the first regarding OC's, and this is to clarify who they are: Lewis, Casmir, Mr. Burns, Jasper, and Henry are the only OC's in this story. Mario and Maya are actual Code Geass characters from the game Lost Stories, and while Maya's personality is OC, the reason I gave changed it, is because I don't want to just have the same character twice (since Maya and Mario are just different genders of the protagonist). Of course, the plot's not going to focus on them, it's obviously going to focus on Kallen and Lelouch.

Now onto personal response.

DarkDremora: I've seen your past reviews, and I'm glad that you're enjoying the story (especially the Clovis land arc). Also, I've thought about posting this on Ao3, but I don't know the actual process. Once I do figure it out though, I will post this story on there as well.

XxPistolgun: I'm glad to see you've been enjoying the story so far, and yeah, Kallen's going to need a better excuse.

Komod0-Sensei: I'm glad you enjoyed everyone's characterization that chapter. I personally wasn't too certain of it while writing, but it's good to get some confirmation.

Guest(referring to the one talking about the Shirley and Lelouch scene): Thank you, I honestly thought it was poorly written, but I'm glad you thought otherwise.

Herr Mitchell: No, it's not going to be anything like that. I have an image for the ending in my mind, but it could change with time.


Chapter 20: Change

November 21st. 5:00 PM

"Mistress Kallen? Are you okay?" Ms. Kozuki asked the red head as she stumbled through the manors front door.

"I'm fine… it was just a long day at school…" Kallen heaved in and out, continuously rubbing her temple. "It's never been this bad…" she could feel the veins in her head beating loudly from the sudden migraine, "Also… why do you still call me 'Mistress Kallen'? Mrs. Stadtfeld isn't around to reprimand you…"

Ms. Kozuki looked down, "I'm sorry, it's just force of habit… I'll try to change, Kallen."

"You don't have to apologize." the red head replied, "I'm going to take a nap… so I probably won't be having dinner tonight…"

"Oh… okay…"

As soon as she entered her room, Kallen practically collapsed onto her bed. She had never had a migraine this bad. It was almost like a brain freeze with how persistent it was. Slowly, her body sunk into the mattress, and soon, she was asleep.


"Damn it!" the red head sat up upon hearing Lelouch's voice shouting. That's when she realized she was no longer in her room; now, she was in C's world.

Above, an explosion went off as two Knightmare's danced in battle. One was the Shinkiro, who used its absolute defense to block a VARIS shot from the opposing Knightmare, which was colored black and gold.

Inside one of the machines, Lelouch desperately rerouted the absolute defense to his body, as the enemy pilot put away their VARIS, trading it in for two MVS blades that struck the Shinkiro's chest. However, that wasn't all, as the opposing Knightmare did a flip midair, delivering a devastating moon kick, that sent Lelouch hurdling toward the ground.

Kallen quickly ran away as the Shinkiro crashed a few meters away from her, the force knocking her into the air slightly, "Who is that!?" she questioned as the opposing Knightmare dissipated into purple particles, and the pilot descended into the smoke below.

Soon after, Lelouch flew out of the wreckage of his Knightmare, landing next to Kallen as it was set ablaze, "What are you doing here?" he questioned as his aggressor stood over the flames with two swords drawn. In their left hand, they held a katana with the scabbard in their mouth, while in their right, they had a knighting sword, each were held ready for battle.

"Who is that?" Kallen muttered as she tried to get a good look at the man's face, but the flames obstructed her vision.

"Stay out of this, Kallen." they commanded, before hopping off the burning wreckage, causing Lelouch to shudder in fear.

In an instant, the figure vanished, rushing past Kallen with extraordinary speed, swinging his katana down, clashing with the Emperor's sword that Lelouch barely created at the last second, "Need a little help here!" the Prince shouted as he was pushed back. His opponent effortlessly used his knighting sword to pierce through Lelouch's chest, causing him to spit out blood.

That's when Kallen finally jumped in, delivering a strike to the aggressor's back, causing him to stumble forward in pain, "Why!? Why are you still defending him!?"

Finally, Kallen got a good look at their face, causing her eyes to widen in shock, "It's you… why're you attacking Lelouch!? I thought you guys made up already!"

There was no answer, instead, the sword wielding monster delivered a spinning kick to Kallen's liver, knocking her to the side, However, she didn't get far, as Lelouch caught her before she could. "I was hoping to deal with this quickly, but it seems he's just as strong as before."

"Even now, you've still got your Geass on Kallen! Why can't you just let her rest in peace!? Why can't you just let us all rest in peace!?"

"What's he talking about, Lelouch?" the red head asked as she felt her wound subside.

"I have no idea. Ever since he started chasing me, that's all he's been spouting. And to make things worse, it seems he's got the hang of using his mind to manipulate C's world. Though… all he's been able to make is that Knightmare and two swords." Lelouch explained as the man in question slowly approached. That's when the Prince created a dagger and pistol, handing them over to the red head, "You're the only one here who can possibly match him. While you're fighting him, and I'll try knocking him away. That's when we'll talk."

Kallen nodded, immediately understanding the assignment as she stood up slowly, "I don't know why you're fighting us, but I can't allow you to kill Lelouch."

A tear dripped down her opponent's cheek, and onto the floor, "Even in death… you still are a fool." he readied his weapons, "Don't worry, I'll make sure he can't hurt anyone else."

The two warriors rushed forward, entering a clench with their dagger and katana respectively, then, Kallen shot her opponent in the chest with her gun, causing them to stumble back as their wounds healed slowly, however, the red head wasn't done yet, as she did a backflip, kicking the katana into the air. Her assailant groaned in frustration, before retaliating by attempting to strike down Kallen.

Despite this, the red head easily blocked the strike, and tried to shoot once more, but that's when her opponent grabbed the gun, crushing it with his bare-hands. "Was he always this strong!?" she stumbled back, before looking up. There, the katana spun almost endlessly above them, so she made the obvious move.

First, Kallen threw her dagger at the man, forcing him to narrowly block it. However, that was all a distraction, as the red head jumped higher than she ever jumped before, grabbing the katana midair, bringing it down for a final strike. Her opponent took several steps back, dodging her attack, while simultaneously building space between them, "Where'd Lelouch go?" he muttered while quickly scanning the area. That's when his eyes landed on the Prince, who sent several pieces of rubble at him.

Unfortunately, the unknown assailant easily dispatched the incoming projectiles by cutting them in half. Then, he created the black and gold Knightmare once again, equipping it with the VARIS cannon, setting it at max output. Lelouch saw this, and created the Shinkiro in response, using its absolute defense field to block the incoming shot.

The two Knightmare's eventually flew into the sky, leaving Kallen to watch from below once again, "That things got an air glide-system, does that mean Rakshata made it? But how does he have something like that?"

Just like last time, Lelouch's Knightmare came crashing to the ground, this time, he managed to barely recover seconds before making contact. "This won't work!" he shouted while the Knightmare dissipated into purple particles, "Kallen! You're the only one who can beat him here! I'll give you the Guren, just make sure you beat him."

"Leave it to me!" the red head shouted as the particles reformed into the Guren S.E.I.T.E.N in front of her. As she strapped in, the hum of the Guren's systems coming online gave her a comforting feeling, "I don't know why he chose such an inferior frame, but if it's like this, then it'll end all the same at Tokyo!"

The Guren quickly took off, using its Surger arm to block an incoming VARIS shot that was aimed at Lelouch, "What is that Knightmare!?" her opponent exclaimed as Kallen easily maneuvered behind him, "It's so fast!" he tried to turn around, only for his entire machine to shake, as the red head used her Guren's surger arm to grapple his glide-system.

"This is it!" she shouted as she set her arm to full-power.

However, just as the glide-system began to bubble, it detached from the Knightmare, leaving her opponent's flightless mech to enter a free-fall, "I don't remember Kallen having such a weapon" upon hitting the ground, the unknown assailant was jolted forward, hitting his head on the terminal as his glide-system exploded above, "If I can just get to Lelouch-"

The Guren suddenly appeared in front of him, causing him to instinctively back up, "I knew that Knightmare looked familiar… it's just that the glide-system was throwing me off."

"Damn you!" her opponent raised his VARIS rifle, fully intending on ending things in one shot, however, Kallen extended her surger arm, grabbing the before he could fire. Then, she activated the surger, forcing him to abandon the rifle all together, "That arms got the range of a slash harken now!?"

The red head casually retracted her hand, drawing her MVS fork knife in the process, while her opponent did the same with dual MVS blades. Once again, they charged at each other, this time, as they entered another clench, the sheer power that was emitted from her fork knife easily destroyed her foes MVS blades, "The difference in unit performance… it's too great!"

Kallen effortlessly cut the Knightmare to ribbons, forcing the pilot to eject, but before they could get far, she grabbed the cockpit, "Don't kill him!" Lelouch shouted from below, "I already did that once, and he almost immediately came back!"

"So, what do you want me to do?"

"Throw him really far! But as you're doing it, imagine it as well!"

"What will that do?"

"Your potential in C's world is purely indicative of your imagination, if you just imagine throwing him far, then it'll actually happen."

Kallen sighed, before cocking her hand back, throwing the cockpit into the clouds. That's when the Guren finally dissipated, "What was that all about?" she questioned Lelouch.

"Not bad. The throw could've been better, but it seems you're also getting the hang of C's world," he tried deflecting the topic of the conversation, however, the red head wasn't having it.

"Don't dodge the question!" she demanded

Lelouch clicked his tongue in frustration, "Like I said before, I don't know."

"What about Geass?"

The Prince sighed, "So that's what this is about, huh?"

Kallen now wore a stern look on her face, "Then you know where this conversation is going, right?"

"Can't we just admire the scenery first? We barely escaped with our lives just now." Lelouch desperately tried to squirm his way out of the conversation, but the she wasn't letting him go that easily.

"Was this your doing?"

"No."

"Then why did he think-"

"That's what I want to find out."

His interruption was suspicions; perhaps he was just worried… no, he's not even sweating, "Did you bring me here?"

Lelouch faced Kallen, "No, I didn't." her appearance here was as much of a mystery to her, as it was to the Prince. C's world was still relatively unknown, even to those like C.C, who lived their life

"Then why'd I appear here?"

"Kallen, I'm going to be honest, I don't have the answers to any of your questions." the Prince retorted harshly.

"I thought you were looking into what happened."

"That was before that muscle head started attacking me. Do you know how many times I almost died?"

The red head sighed, "Fine, if you don't have the answer to those questions, then can I ask you some… personal questions?"

This was a situation Lelouch wanted to avoid at all costs. As much as he appreciated Kallens help, he still didn't want to let her know too much on instinct, after all, he was still used to being the cold-callous leader known as Zero. However, if he wanted her cooperation, then he'd have to answer her questions, "Ask away."

"Firstly, did you use your Geass on me?"

With how fast Lelouch answered, it was almost cruel, "Yes."

Kallen felt pain course through her heart, making it hard for her to ask the next question, "W-what was the command? Was it to make me follow you?"

"No. Your will is your own. The Geass command I gave you, was for you to answer my questions right after the battle of Shinjuku. It was when we first met at Ashford."

Truth be told, Kallen didn't really remember what he was talking about, which was probably a sign that he was telling the truth, considering that after using his Geass on someone, a gap appears in their memory. "That's it?" of course, the red head was expecting more, "Why didn't you just tell me that?" she lightly punched his arm.

"It wasn't necessary at the time."

"Of course it wasn't…" Kallen muttered with disdain, "Then what did you mean back on the Ikaruga? Telling me I had to live?"

"It's exactly as it sounds. I wanted you to live your life the way you wanted to live it, not being my pawn, or Schneizel's." the Prince replied effortlessly, "My goal was for everyone to live the life they wanted, in a peaceful world."

"Even if it was at the cost of your life?"

"Correct."

Once again, Kallen felt a sharp pain pierce her heart, "What about Nunally? She just wanted to live with you, that's what would've made her happy." At face value, it looked like the red head was worried around the 100th Empress of Britannia. But in truth, this was just to probe Lelouch's reaction. If he rejected his sister's wish, then there's no hope of him accepting her feelings.

After all, Kallen just wanted to live with Lelouch Vi Britannia. Not Lelouch Lamprouge, and not Zero. Though, thanks to travelling back in time, she realized just how many layers there were to him. In truth, she never really understood Lelouch, she only understood Zero. The brave leader that fearlessly led the Black Knights to victory, time and time again.

"I never thought that…" he shook his head, "the promise I made to Nunally a long time ago, was to create a peaceful world." Lelouch clenched his fist, "And that's what I did."

"What about Nunally's feelings!? Are you just going to ignore them?"

"Of course not!" Lelouch snapped, "Do you think I wanted to leave her alone? No… but at that point, I had done too much, killed too many… I couldn't live in that kind of world, especially when my actions would be reflected onto Nunally, whether I liked it or not."

Kallen let out an exasperated sigh. This was still the same Lelouch from before, no matter how much she questioned him on this topic, she would never get a proper answer. Or rather… she wouldn't get the answer she wanted.

"Now… do you have any other questions?" Lelouch asked as the golden clouds slowly passed above.

The red head looked down, and muttered, "I've been talking to your past self recently…"

"Oh? And how has that gone?"

"I don't really know… you could say it's been going well, though… I've lost his trust a couple of times…" Kallen took a deep breath, before asking, "Do you know of a way I can… earn your trust?"

Lelouch laughed, "I can't tell you that. He and I are completely different people, with very different experiences. Sure, I could tell you what not to do to break MY trust, but the past me holds value in other things. For instance, he hasn't killed anyone, received the power of Geass, or become Zero."

"So what you're saying is, you can't help me, right?"

"I told you before. Just live your life normally. You don't need to fight for me anymore."

"But I want to!" Kallen shouted, "Lelouch, I don't think you understand how much of an impact you had on my life!" the Prince, however, remained emotionless, "Before you… I was caught in a tailspin with no direction in my life!" the red head clenched her fist, "After Naoto died… I didn't know what to do… or what I was even fighting for. Maybe I was wishing I would die out there, then perhaps I'd find solace in something." that's when determination filled her eyes, "But that's when you showed up. You gave me hope, no… you filled my entire life with hope! That's why I can't just abandon you, Lelouch."

"But you can, Kallen. You have before, you can do it again." the Prince responded heartlessly, "That day on the Ikaruga, when I said those things… you turned on me. And finally decided to live the life of Kallen Kozuki, the person, not Kallen Kozuki, Zero's faithful knight."

"You're wrong! I forced myself to swallow the fact that you used me… and ever since then, I regretted that day. After your death, those words 'Kallen, you have to live' haunted me. I couldn't tell what was real or not. You said I was like a well-played knight, and that I was very useful, yet you cared enough to push me out of danger, telling me to live." Kallen grabbed Lelouch by the collar, and with tears in her eyes, she asked, no, demanded, "Lelouch, what do I mean to you!?"

The Prince continued to stare at her with those dull, purple eyes, that while simultaneously full of life, looked dead. "If you must know… I love you, Kallen." he casually said, almost like he was just telling another lie.

But it was the truth. Just not the whole one. Lelouch did love Kallen, but it wasn't the same kind of relationship love, not anymore. This Lelouch's mind was tainted, while he did feel love for the girl, it wasn't strong enough to shake him. The question of if it was his past actions that caused this, or if this was always the case, was irrelevant. Lelouch loved Kallen, but he couldn't express it.

And thus, the red head wasn't happy with this answer. He was too far gone.

Her grip on his collar slowly faded, causing him to drop to the floor, "I see… that's the answer I was looking for, and yet…" the tears continued to flow down her cheeks, "I feel nothing…"

The man she loved, reciprocated her feelings, and yet it felt hollow.

"I'm sorry," Lelouch apologized as he got up, "But that's how it is. I can't fight against nature, no matter how hard I try."

The question of Nature vs Nurture was a question that many have debated over the years. Was Lelouch born to be like this? Or was it his collective experiences that created the Demon Emperor?

Right now, the answer to that question was obvious to Kallen as her form dissipated slowly, leaving the Demon Emperor alone to wander C's world. Once she completely vanished, Lelouch turned to the south, where a green light shone radiantly, "Kallen, I'm sorry I couldn't provide an answer that would satisfy you. Perhaps that could change in the future, but right now, I need to find the answers to my questions first." he muttered while walking toward the light.


The red head awoke to the blinding sun piercing through her windows, disturbing her slumber ever gently, "Who opened them?" she sat up, only to find a force tugging on her left hand. She turned, only to see Lelouch sitting in a chair, holding her hand.

"I came to get you." the Prince explained, "But when I got to your room, you were… moving a lot. Almost like you were having a Knightmare. Your mother didn't want to wake you," he looked at their conjoined hands, "So she told me that if I held your hand, you'd calm down, since that's what she did when you were younger."

"D-did it work?" Kallen asked while slowly increasing her grip.

"Like a charm."

The red head smiled, "Yes, Lelouch can change. Just by seeing how he's treating me now, proves that. I can't let my guard down, not even for a second."

"Kallen? Are you okay?" Lelouch asked as he felt her hand tighten around his.

In the past two weeks, Kallen made considerable strides with her and the boy's relationship. However, she never felt like it was enough, but after meeting the original Lelouch again, she realized just how far she had come, and she wouldn't allow that progress to be destroyed.

"Having second thoughts?" the Prince changed his question.

"No. I'm fine." the red head responded, "Now, get out. I have to get changed."

Lelouch left the room without protest, meeting face-to-face with Ms. Kozuki, who was waiting outside, "You're not dressed for school," she commented.

The Prince was indeed not dressed for school, instead, he had on a red jacket with a black undershirt and gray trousers. Though, the maid had already seen the boys attire, and thus already knew he wasn't dressed for school. No, her comment was a question hidden behind a statment. "Should I just tell her we're not going to school? It would probably be for the best, after all, we'll just look like two teenagers going out on a… date…" Lelouch mentally shook his head before replying, "Kallen and I are going to the mall today."

"But what about school?"

"Um… well… we were just-"

Before Lelouch could finish his sentence, Ms. Kozuki interrupted him, "You know… I was young once too. I see the way you look at my daughter, Mr. Lamprouge; it's actually the same way I looked at her father a long time ago. However, there's one thing I'd like to ask of you; can please take care of Kallen? I know she's strong on the outside, but she can be hurt just as easily as anyone else."

Of course, the Prince didn't understand the hidden meaning behind her question, and instead took everything at face value, "Don't worry, I'll take care of Kallen."

Ms. Kozuki smiled, clearly misunderstanding what Lelouch meant by that statement. That's when the red head in question exited her room, dressed in her rebel uniform, with sleeves that covered her shoulders, "Oh… um… how long have you been here, mom?"

"Kallen, may I speak with you privately?" her mother asked with a hint of seriousness, something Kallen had never heard from her before, "Lelouch, you can wait at the front door."

Ms. Kozuki and Kallen re-entered the latter's room, closing the door behind them, before starting their conversation, "Listen, I want to talk about you and Lelouch," she started the conversation off strong, "And I know it's not my place to say anything about your relationship, but I just want to give you some motherly advice." the immediate pressure Kallen was feeling caused her to squirm as her face lit up bright red. "I want you to finish school before you start anything serious with him. That's not to say you can't have 'fun', I just don't want you to end up hurt, okay?"

Upon hearing those implications, mount Kallen finally bursts, "W-we aren't going to be doing anything like that!" she retorted with a flustered expression.

This did nothing to help her case. "Kallen, I know I can't control you. Just… promise me you won't do anything you'll regret, okay?"

They exited the red head's room, heading toward the manors entrance, where Lelouch was waiting patiently. Luckily, Kallen's red face subsided by then.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked as she joined his side.

"Yeah, let's go…"

However, the Prince didn't budge, instead, he turned to Ms. Kozuki, "By the way, I was wondering if you'd like to join me and my sister for Thanksgiving this week. We'd certainly like the company."

At first, Ms Kozuki was taken aback, after all, no one had asked her such a question in so long. She was always looked down upon with disdain for being an Eleven, she forgot what such a common courtesy, like asking someone over for dinner, felt like. "Um… if Kallen's going to be there… then I'd love to."

Lelouch smiled, "That's good. I'll tell Nunally and Sayoko that we'll be having extra guests. Have a good day."


November 22nd, 10:00 AM

"Lelouch, Kallen, it's good to see you again," Naoto greeted the two as they got off the train at Shinjuku station

"I'm assuming you have everything prepared?" the Prince questioned as the older Kozuki took them into the ghetto, passing by multiple refrain addicts along the way.

"Almost, though, the special 'thing' you asked for was rather difficult to acquire." they rounded a corner, finding Tamaki and Ohgi leaning against a destroyed brick wall. They were staring at Mario, who was wearing a blue masquerade mask.

"What's in the bag, Kallen?" Ohgi questioned as the red head held a green convenience store bag.

"Just a little something that I thought would help us today." she replied while pulling out a pair of sunglasses, putting them on in the process.

"I still don't know how that's going to help anyone," Lelouch sighed while watching Kallen sift through her bag for other items.

"Who's this joker?" Tamaki asked, flicking the Prince's forehead, "And why do you two have the same mask?" he pointed at Mario, who stared back innocently.

Though, it wasn't exactly true, as Lelouch had on a black mask. "Why do I feel like I've seen this guy before?" Ohgi added while inspecting the boy from top to bottom.

"Well, he's my informant," Naoto finally chimed in, "As you can see, he's very particular about his identity. So, under no circumstances, will you question who he is, or what he's doing here. All you have to know, is he's an enemy of Britannia."

"Then what about that guy?" Tamaki pointed at Mario once again.

"He's my subordinate." Lelouch answered, "The same rules should apply to him too."

While neither Tamaki nor Oghi had a good memory, the latter's was still good enough to recognize Lelouch, though, it wasn't much. "I swear… I've seen this guy before…" memories of Clovis land flooded through his mind, "What was that guy's name?"

"Focus up." Naoto gathered everyone's attention, "We've got an hour before they get here. Until then, we'll go over the plan in detail."

Lelouch noticed a long black case off to the side, and approached it. He checked the contents and smiled, "B1, get over here." he ordered, to which Mario obediently followed, "Set up in that building, make sure you have a clear shot of the warehouse."

In response, Mario silently nodded, before picking up the case, heading off toward a tall, destroyed building. "Sure, it's the same spot where Naoto and I stole the Glasgow, but that doesn't change the fact that this place has a lot of perks. For one, the roof is mostly collapsed due to the scuffle from before; there's also plenty of cover as the catwalks also came down with the roof, so when things eventually turn sour, we'll have places to hide." Lelouch scanned the inside of the warehouse carefully, when the sudden glint of a rifle scope caught his eye. "You're in position already? Good… because you're a pivotal piece in this game we're playing."

Are you ready to kill for you sister?

That question rung throughout the Disel's mind as he stared at Lelouch through the scope of his sniper rifle, "At first… I thought of it as just a silly question which was easy to answer. But now that I'm actually here… holding this rifle in my hands…" a drop of sweat dripped down his forehead, "I'm actually starting to get nervous." however, a quick image of his sister being petrified by fear erased all hesitation, "No… this is something I have to do… she's all I've got left… I can't allow her to suffer the same fate as our parents…"

"The stage is set," Lelouch watched as Naoto briefed Ohgi and Tamaki on what to do, while Kallen strapped a few syringes by her ankles, "Now, it's their move."


AN: I think now, it should be a bit more obvious who the person chasing Lelouch is now, though, if you don't know who it is now, don't worry about it. They'll be revealed the next time we enter C's world. Until then, I would like to see some guesses as to who it is.

Also, we should be fully diving into Code R in this arc, and perhaps we'll even have C.C make her first on-screen apperance. Or is it on-word?

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.