Chapter 8

Failed Hike – Part II


As Lelouch, Euphemia and Suzaku left, the Student Council waited for them at the same place they met them. Her friends could see that Milly was worried but couldn't understand why. She simply stood, looking in the direction where Lelouch and others went, waiting for her worries to disappear. Maybe they had something that would allow her and her family to survive the storm.

"Prez, do you know who Suzaku was with?" Rivalz was first to ask. "She looks familiar, but I can't wrap my head about where I could've seen her." His words were left in air, as if Milly haven't heard them. "Milly, is everything OK?"

"Huh? Oh, sorry, I was thinking about something. What did you say?"

"Do you know that girl, who was with Suzaku? Her hat was hiding her face in shadows, so I couldn't recognize her."

"Maybe she reminds you of somebody?" Milly asked

"Not really, but I swear I heard her voice somewhere. But I can't remember anybody that looked like this at school. Come on Prez, you got to know her!"

She mimicked her usual cheerful expression as good as she could, playfully placing her finger on her lips, "Can't tell you, it'll ruin the surprise."

"So you do know! Come on, one time, give us a hint!"

"Ha! I can't-"

Before she could reply, a few explosions rang clear a few hundred meters away from them, the place where Lelouch and Suzaku was hidden in smoke and dust. From afar she could see a formation of Sutherlands rapidly driving to them, dust flying from beneath their Landspeeders.

"What had happened there?! Lelouch, I'm coming!" Rivalz ran to help them.

"Oh, look! Knightmares!" Shirley exclaimed. "They must be coming to help!"

"I'm not so sure. Rivalz, return back right now!"

"But why?" He asked. Answer immediately arrived as stray anti-personnel round passed over his head, causing him to duck. Rising away, certain that no more would fly to him at the moment, he ran to his friends. "Oh shit! Why are they firing at us? Aren't they Britannian?"

"Look, they are firing at Suzaku! What is happening?"

"Everybody! With me, now!" Milly took stunned Shirley by her elbow and started to drag her away. "We will hide in those trees! Rivalz, you too will go with us!". He looked as if he wanted to object, but another round barely passing him made him dismiss the thought.


His routine was almost normal. Wake up to work. Have breakfast with newspaper delivered to him, boringly reading through the lines. At this point he came to terms with constant issues appearing in his domain, and not even a sigh escaped his lips. Traitors, rebels, gangs, and worst of all – petty nobles trying to get favors for themselves. Usually, they give up on their attempt on the spot, only receiving a bored and, at the same time, threatening look on his face.

Keeping Empire intact was tiring. Another small rebellion in Area 7, another large company is getting racketeered by another cutthroat noble. Another failure from his brother, resulting in OSI having to clean up resulting mess. V.V. had a strong grip on OSI, yet final word was still in his hands. Good thing that the current director, Sir Shutenko, was loyal to him even after a decade of his service.

V.V. and him weren't at the best terms. Charles was not certain whether his brother was ignorant about his grief over Marianne or if he was that selfish that he ignored his younger brother pain. If anything, it pained him much.

But one day, it would all change. The day he gets his victory in a battle against God.

"Charles! It was a long time we haven't spoke together!" V.V. sat on the opposite side of the table from him, taking a fork and a spoon in his hands. His voice was laced with some ulterior intent, and Charles could already see what was disturbing his brother. All he could do is to play along, at least before he could get his answers and, one day, could avenge his dear wife, who is forced to abandon her body and live in one of his knights.

"Yes, indeed. Do you remember this pasta we have here?"

As V.V. took a first bite, his eyes gleamed with excitement for a brief second, before his emotions could be already hidden behind his imperfect mask. "Oh, I like them. Just like our mother made them. Must say, whenever happened that rare occasion when she cooked, the meals were fantastic. How did you make them?"

"Found a few books from old library of hers. Maybe one day I could speak with her again to perfect them. I relied only on small number of writings she left for herself." He sighed. It was a lie: one day Marianne learned the recipe for them and later taught Charles to make them. A truly bizarre sight for other 107 consorts and all of his court if they ever saw it.

"I'm glad you mentioned. Actually, I wanted to speak with you" V.V. leaned a little bit forward, "What's up with all of these sudden liberties you gave to that stupid princess? She's too naïve for her own good. One day she'll inevitably fail, especially if the word my agents got about her plans are true."

"Thanks, but I'm already aware about it. Her experiments are doomed to fail." Charles started to eat, placing fork in his left hand. "Why do you care about her so much? I care not if she succeeds or fails miserably."

"Because she's a liability. A liability for Ragnarok. For me. For you. For our dream. What if the court starts to blame you for all of this and revolts?" V.V. asks, little worry shown in his expression. He was definitely doing something behind his back.

"One wouldn't be surprised. If they dare to threaten our Ragnarok, they will be dealt the same way Emblem of Blood was stopped–" meaning, they were all dispersed and killed, "I actually hope for some forces to try and step in the plan. They haven't figured out the main secret."

"Which is…?"

Charles smiles. "It is not only Euphemia whose hands are not tied."


"Where did they even come from?!" Euphemia hid behind a rock, as another machinegun burst passed over her head. "Lelouch, are they-"

The trio hid behind a bunch of rocks, Suzaku on the right and Euphemia on the left. Lelouch found himself in the centre. There was a lot of space between them, but not too much, allowing Lelouch to speak to her without Suzaku hearing his words. "No, I explicitly told the Black Knights that we won't be against you. They are not foolish enough to disobey my orders." Lelouch frowned. If they weren't from his own army, it left only remnants of JLF, another rebel cell, and… a Britannian Army. And only the latter was capable of mounting an unexpected assault or even had this many Sutherlands in the first place. "We may be having a trouble with authorities."

"I'm the second highest authority in the entire Area! They can't simply try and get rid of us!" She exclaimed. At that moment, a piece of rock she was hiding behind was blown out, pieces of which dug deep into the ground behind her.

"They seem to disagree." Lelouch mused.

"I'm surprised they haven't killed us already," Suzaku thought aloud, "Sutherlands have more than enough firepower to blast this entire place to hell."

"It seems that they want to kill you two personally with their own hands." Lelouch replied. Internally, he was gleaming. 'Conspirators want this assassination to get public, probably they even record the entire thing. They believe themselves to be higher than us, so it would be natural for their leader to take the highest honor of killing us in person, to sway the masses.'

"How are we going to get away from here?" His half-sister asked, as Suzaku kept his gaze at incoming enemy. They would be at their spot in less than a minute.

He turned to his friend. "Suzaku, how far away could our reinforcements be?"

Suzaku frowned. "In half an hour, if they received the signal from panic button. This place is secluded, that's why we chose it."

Lelouch glanced at the Euphemia, taking note of her gray and brown outfit. Suzaku wore similarly painted clothing. This situation was hard to get out of. He tried his hardest not to forget about his friends from Student Council also being in danger. He should get them out and quickly.

Suddenly, an idea sparked in his mind. Lelouch smiled, plan forming in his head, as he reached for his phone in a pocket of his jacket. They could not only flee, but even win, if his friend would do everything he ordered.

"I have an idea. Suzaku, get me my backpack. Let them fight us on our terms"


Kallen was sitting on a log, mindlessly playing with her knife. Frown decorated her face, as her mind was filled with thoughts and worries for the future to come. Trying to help herself out of it, she left the hangar to sit here. She liked to venture outside when she was still a kid, especially with her brother and her mother. They liked to escape from loud Tokyo to the fields and forests near Mt. Fuji, sometimes even driving here, to Kanto Ridge. Air here was clear and thinner, than in the city. Even sound was clearer here.

She could hear Rakshata approach well before her eyes saw her. "I thought you'd be still in the hangar, Rakshata. Doesn't seem like you to leave Gurren."

"Even I need some time outside. Besides, all what is left to do is to fix a few issues with compiled data and then we can prepare to leave."

"That's good to hear." Kallen replied, carving a few doodles on wood.

"Did something happen? You are far less enthusiastic than before. Gurren's pilot must not fall to some depression."

"It's just… I don't know how to say it." Kallen finally hid her knife's blade, and placed it on her side. "Zero trusts Britannia, but I can't. What if we were attacked or betrayed at the wedding?"

"Come on, didn't you tell me, that you changed your mind about Euphemia? That she can keep her word and she isn't as powerless as you thought?"

Pilot sighed. "Yeah, I did say that. Cornelia is an entirely different person though. And Suzaku… I simply can't trust them. What if-"

"Now-now, that is Zero's decision. While he is a better judge of a character than me, I don't believe you'd really be in danger." Rakshata spoke to her. Kallen didn't remember when was the last time she was getting a nice non-tech advice from Indian scientist, but it was surely a long time ago. "A few days ago I spoke with Diethard, actually."

"With him? What brought this up?"

Rakshata just shrugged. "I am always interested in what Britannia has to offer in their technologies. Maybe there'd be something I could perfect." She simply couldn't allow to be outdone by Lloyd, that tactless Earl of Pudding. "While I didn't get what I wanted, even we couldn't get to Camelot, I heard a bit about Britannian inner workings. Let's just say that… Breaking this wedding is not in their interests."

"Please continue"

"You know more than me that Britannia hates mixed-race relationships. While nobles feel powerless to stop this wedding, Viceroy and others members of the Royal Family are worried about what does this message signal to the Areas and to the world. Everybody knows Britannia's racial policy, so straying away from it, especially without openly acknowledging it, may be perceived as weakness."

Kallen recognized her drift quickly. "You think Europeans could go to war with Britannia?"

"That is what Britannia itself is expecting. As far as our intelligence knows, Atlantic fleet is preparing to conduct naval exercises near Nova Scotia."

"Does it mean Britannians could leave Japan?" Kallen asked, hoping for the positive answer. "I remember from what we were taught in the academy about history and basics of warfare. They simply can't allow to stretch themselves too thin."

"I'm… not certain. There are rumors that Schneizel does not want to increase spending and resources for the defense of Japan. Interestingly, he did increase research spending."

"So Lancelot, yes?"

"Not quite. Lloyd got himself a few additional millions, but the sum we're talking about is near 2% of annual budget."

That was a stunning sum. Britannian budget was enormous from all the resources on more than 2 continents and more than a billion people Empire controlled. "Wow, that's a lot. Maybe he wants to modernize Imperial Navy in preparation for war?"

"All is possible. All I wanted to say to you, Kallen," Rakshata pressed her hand on pilot's shoulder for a few seconds, before going back to the hangar, "is that you shouldn't worry too much."

"I see." Kallen replied, looking up to the sky. Instantly, a few explosions rang clear, followed by a distant sound of armor moving through the area. "Britannians are here!" she exclaimed, running to the hangar. "What do we do?"

"We are alone here, we can't ask anybody to help!" one of the scientists spoke. "We can't leave quickly, we didn't even started to pack our equipment."

She glanced at Rakshata, who took the hint instantly, throwing a Gurren key into her hands. "There should be still enough power to fight for about 20-30 minutes. We'll prepare to evacuate, while you engage Britannians in combat. Understood?"

"Of course!" Kallen jumped into the cockpit, inputting the key into the system. "I will protect all of you!"


Sutherlands rapidly approached the point marked on the map. Most of their power in the frames was focused on landspinners. They sped up, trying to get to their targets as quickly as possible. After all, could that eleven defeat half a dozen frames without his Lancelot nearby?

"Let the pathetic princess know what hit her. Nobody will be foolish enough to commit her mistake after this. George, are you ready to film?"

"Ready and eager, Sir."

"Great," their leader replied, his eyes focused on the hill. It was too easy for his liking.

Suddenly, with a speed of a flash, a grey silhouette jumped and dashed away from the site. Phantom had something large in his hands, carrying it like a bride. Only after a few seconds he recognized that silhouette was not carrying something, but somebody, wearing a gray outfit and he could catch a glimpse of purple eyes – Royal Family trademark.

"Is that…Kururugi?"

"That's fast of him."

"What could he have in his hands?"

"Ha! Look at those fools!" Commander spoke through the radio. "Are they really trying to flee from Sutherlands? Follow me! I'll take care of them."

A chorus of cheerful affirmatives replied. They weren't following their leader as fast as he was pursuing the couple. Finally crossing the valley, commander saw the silhouette again, now jumping like a rabbit to the other side of the ridge, hiding behind trees. He slowed his Sutherland, allowing them to flee from his sight, as he carefully pursued them through the woods. There were only a few places they could run to, the closest being a radio station not far from there. 'Euphemia definitely inherited the worst from Cornelia. Sadly for her, she didn't inherit her brain'

Irritated by the constant greenery slowing him down, he fired his gun, burning the trees before him. He had long lost his subordinates, and he could only hope that his Sutherland could record the same way George would, since he knew nothing about their current location. That was the main reason why he was against turning off their IFF's. It was too taxing on his genius brain to memorize temporary posts of his men without a digital map.

His Sutherland jumped over the hump as he finally got to her. She stood on a small hill, looking down at him. Her face was covered by the palm of her hand, as she herself stood surrounded by white covers, lying on the ground beneath. He rose up his rifle, targeting her in his sights.

He didn't even bother checking his factsphere. He saw the princess before hem, though he couldn't shake a feeling that she was not intent on running. Behind her he saw a few schoolgirls hiding fearfully in the trees. "Only better, now we have witnesses at the ready. ". Was she trying to dance her way out of this by setting this up, or had she already given up? Eager to get this story of national humiliation over with, he turned his recording system on. With a hiss, his hatch opened, and a middle-aged man with a firearm in his hand appeared.

"Now, I've got you, where I…Wait, you're not… Your clothes are different!" He fearfully rose his pistol directly pointing at her head. "You're not Euphemia! Who are you?"

Before he could hear anything, he felt a sharp pain in a back of his head. His world turned black, and he fell to the ground. Last thing he saw was a grey man standing on his Sutherland.


A shadow rose from behind a rock. Apparently, Lelouch's assumption was correct – traitors were too emotional to thread carefully. They feared Cornelia's retribution, but at the same time they wanted to make a show out of it, that could be distributed as a warning to anybody, who wanted to change Britannia. Because of it, nobody bothered to check their impromptu hideout after Suzaku dashed away with a person in his hands to see if anybody was still there.

"He's too smart. At least he would never lose because of it," Shadow looked to her right, where nobody was hiding anymore and only an empty space remaining, "and because of you, Suzaku"

Euphemia could only be grateful to the fate herself for giving her such brother. Moreso she was grateful for their mutual friend, with whom she was certain she'd spend her days together.


Stabilizing himself immediately after making his spinning kick, Suzaku stood over the cockpit of traitor's Sutherland.

"Seriously, Lelouch, such trick could only be done once. I wouldn't even believe in this one had I not known you before." Suzaku joked.

"Once is more than enough. This situation won't repeat either way." Lelouch threw away his impersonating mask, stepping over the white covers, where he hid his firearm. His face was decorated with his trademark smirk, which he reserved for victories and for turning-the-tide situations. "Now, jump into the cockpit, we will have company in a minute."

"On it!" He sat in his chair, looking through controls. He never piloted Sutherland into a battle, but he read enough manuals to get firm control over the machine in a small amount of time.

Lelouch turned away to face a greenery behind him, where he ordered his Ashford friends to hide. "Stay there, don't get distracted."

"See, how the Crossdressing Ball helps people?! That's my student right there!" Milly joked, getting a heartfelt laughter from Rivalz, who was just happy to see his friends surviving this mess.

"Even those soldiers fell for that disguise! Lelouch, you are good at that!"

"Hey, Lelouch!" Suzaku looked from the cockpit of newly-acquired Sutherland. "I see at least 15 Sutherlands coming here in two minutes. Any ideas?"

"15?! Buddy, that's too much!" Rivalz worried.

"Suzaku has enough firepower to crush them. We just need to get them distracted." His gaze fell upon unconscious traitor beneath his boots and a small position near the hill. "Suzaku, can you drag him to that place?"

"Eh, sure, I can, why?"

"This will give you a small window before they react. Shoot a few bursts from your main gun, and then engage them quickly in melee. Understood?"

"Yes, sir!"


"Captain, are you sure we are at the right place? I can't find any trace of Colonel or of those race-mixers." One pilot asked. They stood near the valley where Colonel went, again forced to spread over a thin corridor in a column.

"It must be this place, I saw marks from his Landspinners that were leading to this place. But where could he be?..."

"Captain, look! That's our Colonel! Why is he unconscious?"

After a second, his eyes went wide. "He lost his Sutherland. Everybody, be ready for enemy move-" his radio transmission was cut swiftly, as first round from Suzaku's Sutherland hit his enemy directly in the Yggdrasil Drive. His subordinates tried to evade incoming bursts, two of which reached another Sutherland, damaging it enough to trigger automatic ejection. Another burst failed to destroy another frame, only destroying its gun and right arm.

Wasting not a second more than needed, Suzaku jumped into the enemy formation, activating his Slash Harkens at the enemy, disabling a Sutherland. Enemy pilot was too confused and scared to manage to strike back. Suzaku then activated his two stun batons.

"Why you-" words of another pilot came through the radio, but were again cut off by first baton damaging his energy source, causing another auto-eject.

"Surrender, while you can!" Suzaku spoke into the radio, which was still connected to the conspirators' network, going for another enemy frame with his batons. Suddenly, Lelouch's Geass command was activated, making him duck his frame. Confused, he understood what happened – he was getting encircled by the main force of Sutherlands.

"Not so active now, huh?" One spoke up, levelling his rifle against Suzaku. "It's truly sad that we haven't managed to kill you without losing this many frames. Hey, George, could you scan a forest? I think the Princess could be hiding there."

"No, she is not-" Suzaku exclaimed, but George's factosphere already spotted Student Council members there. Britannians felt successful, undamaged frames pointing their weapons at the captured Sutherland. "Hey, I remember that fleur. They're your friends, correct? Maybe if we kill them, you'd say where is she hiding?"

Suzaku on pure emotion launched his Sutherland against George's, tearing apart its limbs. Before he could be shot from the back, however, a bright red flash-like machine appeared on the battlefield, frying one of the Sutherlands from the get-go.

"Kallen? Glad you arrived!"

"Suzaku? Why are you… What is even happening here?" Kallen was visibly confused, looking at the mess that unfolded before she arrived. "We were attacked by a group of somebody."

"They're traitors, trying to get rid of us. Pureblood supporters" Lelouch spoke to her by radio.

"How did you manage to get my communica-" Kallen was about to ask, but remembered what Zero told her. Maybe, as an ally of Black Knights, he got one somehow, but she'd question him about it later. "Either way, what should we do?"

"Eliminate the rest, preferably just destroy their frames and leave them alive. Cornelia isn't forgiving to those, who tried to kill her younger sister."

"Got it!" Kallen rushed forwards, slashing through her opponents like knife through butter. While Suzaku struggled without his Lancelot, Kallen was in her Gurren and could completely utilize her Gurren's technological superiority.

"Lelouch, that red Knightmare… That was Kallen, wasn't she?" Milly asked him. He jumped from his place, completely forgetting she was near him.

"How much did you hear?"

"Most of it"

"She is a Black Knight, yes. I hope you can keep this secret." Lelouch whispered back to her. "I doubt she would endanger Nunnally or Ashfords, just as she didn't kill Rivalz or others."

"But how did you contact her?" Milly wandered, her suspicion rising.

"Found one near Shinjuku, while I was looking for a few things of mine." Lelouch pointed at the radio in his left hand. He effortlessly lied. He did have his radio from Shinjuku, but by stealing it from Kallen. Yet, he decided not to overload her with information.

"Should I tell others? I mean, you did tell me to keep it secret, but maybe…"

"No, that's for their own good." Lelouch looked at Rivalz and Shirley, who still were trying to not be seen by Knightmares. "This day they would remember. Such things scar those, who never seen it. Let us not make their mental state any worse."

Milly wanted to protest, but couldn't find arguments against his words. "Fine, we won't tell them, unless Kallen herself will."

"Sounds fair to me"


Soldiers stood in columns, their faces kept professional and their gaze directed forwards. It wasn't strange that some weren't as blank in their expressions, their faces decorated with scoffs from recent events.

"Your Highness, my men are clearly battle-ready, and if you looked at the simulation results…" Officer was stopped by the Princess, who was visibly disappointed.

"Your troops failed to meet my expectations! They were properly trained to be completely battle effective, but it seems you are too incompetent to keep them at this level!" Her face was furious, and it seemed as if her anger would erupt any second. However, the soldiers were saved by a messenger.

"Princess Cornelia, we received a signal from…" he whispered her what happened on Kanto Ridge.

"Get me my Gloucester! Guilford, with me. Darlton, you will finish the examination!" She gave her orders, almost running to her machine.

Cornelia would not allow any harm done to her sister.


Euphemia was shaken. Instead of getting a nice little vacation with her fiancée, what she got was an assassination attempt, a chaos in the Government Administration, and a lot of headache, with a cherry on top – even more paperwork. After medical checkups were done, she and Suzaku finally left the hospital at the garrison base.

"E-eh, this was such a mess." Euphemia sighed, stretching her arms. "I love that Cornelia tries to still go after me, but this is way too much even for her."

"I'm starting to feel that cleaning it up is the worst punishment the Emperor envisioned for us." Suzaku didn't feel much different from her, though Euphemia did frown at the mention of her father. "It's strange that the doctor so thoroughly treated me. Back when I was an infantryman, they simply glanced over if we had any open wounds. He could've simply looked at me and freed from that inspection. Come on, I haven't even got a few bruises in all that happened!"

"He is a good man, it's just the rest aren't." Princess sighed, sadness obvious in her eyes. "If only the rest of your kind were treated the way we are, there would be no reasons for Japanese to rebel. Britannia and all of her subjects could grow much larger, smarter and advanced if we didn't cling this much to our discrimination policies."

Suzaku bit his tongue, stopping himself from entering a needless debate. If Lelouch said that, he'd argue with how he is wrong for until he'd be stopped by somebody joining in on debate or by start of the lessons. He couldn't do that with Euphie. While Lelouch also was a member of a Royal Family once, Euphy never left it, never threw away her claim. She was familiar far more with it than Lelouch, so her words actually meant something larger than a simple grudge and trauma he begun to associate Lelouch's opinion with.

"Surely if anybody else would voice this concern we could change this-"

"No." Euphemia immediately cut him off. "We can't rely on that. I know that Schneizel doesn't like the system either, but he simply avoids bringing it up. He simply does as he wants, but by using the system to his own benefit."

"Then he must lack power to change. What if he became Emperor?"

Euphemia stopped, thinking about it for a moment. "Schneizel is qualified, but… I don't know, I can't imagine myself supporting his claim to the throne."

"So it falls upon us to change the system, doesn't it…"

"Pretty much."

"But Euphy, it is too dangerous!"

"Even your knighting was. Not even touching the subject of how many nobles dislike our relationship." She tiredly sighed, looking at the Government Administration from afar. "Britannia cannot be changed so easily. In a way, Zero is right to try and do the change himself outside of the system." Euphemia noticed how Suzaku clenched his fists at the mention of masked man. She still couldn't tell him that her brother was behind the mask. Not yet, at least. "Because this system corrupts. You haven't seen Carine or Guinevere, and I'm infinitely glad for that. They are the image of what you can become if you enjoy the life in the system for too long. Maybe… it would be great for us to leave the royal life after we marry."

Suzaku was too stunned to reply. "Leaving everything behind? Euphie, I…I…"

"Oh, here you are!" Cornelia approached them, with Guilford beside her. "Have the doctors said their word?"

Euphy looked at her sister, happy to see her again. If Guilford was here, she was certain no drama would occur. "Yes, sister, I'm fully healthy. Not even a stray"

"And you, Sir Kururugi?" Guilford unexpectedly asked, causing Cornelia to look at her knight, trying to guess why is he so interested in his wellbeing.

"Two bruises, nothing too bad. In a few days even they will be impossible to spot."

"Cornelia, why are you here?" Euphie asked bluntly, causing her to quirk a brow.

"You know me, I can't allow my dear sister to be harmed, and also," Cornelia took her hand, "I'd like for us to have a proper meal together, like sisters."


"How are the preparations on your end?" Euphemia asked, taking a sip of her champagne. They were dining in a small but luxurious room inside the Government Administration. Cornelia felt that it was the most secure spot to have a dinner, since many of the restaurants were owned by nobles who disliked her younger sister.

It was clear how Cornelia felt about this entire deal, but if Euphy still trusted her with protection at such important moment for her, how could she refuse? "It's hard. Not only eleven terrorists, but even nobles are sniffing around, trying to infiltrate my guards. We caught a few spies already, one even claims to be from Europia United."

"From Europia? What is their goal?" Euphemia looked surprised at it. She heard that only Chinese Federation was mustering something to sabotage Britannia, but not E.U.

"Who knows, such agents are not trusted with such knowledge. Paris knows we can get everything from them."

"Oh, have you already decided on your dress?" Euphemia switched the topic to something not as worrying. "You know you must wear something presentable. If you will come to my wedding in your usual military uniform I'll be pissed!"

"I have to, it's my duty to guard you."

"Hmph. Just as usual. Come on, I'll even help out a bit!..."

Suzaku glanced at the sibling's duo, that was eagerly chatting as they waited for the main dish to be brought. "How happy they are, and only to think we were so close to death at that point…"

"Oh, you never were, at least not Her Highness." Guilford spoke to him. "I learned enough about you to assume you could drag her out without even a stray hair falling from her"

Suzaku wandered whether he should say, worried he'd reveal too much. "Actually, we were saved by my old friend, whom we met again on accident. He was smart enough to impersonate Euphemia, while I executed the trap on their leader."

"That friend must always be nearby. Treasure them. Not as much as Princess Euphemia, but close to that." Guilford said. Finally, their food was brought, which was…

"Pizza?"

"Pizza!"

"Pizza?!"

"I'm sorry, but our logistical team…" Waitress started to apologize, suddenly interrupted by Guilford. "Oh, those men will never grow responsible. Last time they supplied us with wrong ammo and we had to delay one operation for a few hours."

"I remember that." Cornelia replied, her lips forming a light smile. "That officer also must remember that. I sent him away to Area 8, where he wouldn't interfere with my plans. Whatever, pizza will suffice."

As they took a piece for themselves, Suzaku concentrated on the food, while the others continued to speak.

"Oh, forgot to ask. Guilford, did we learn from the prisoner who was behind the attack?" Cornelia asked, as she started to cut her slice.

"Not really, but he is at the breaking point. Give our men a bit more time, and we will find out."

"Now-now, sister, don't you think you strayed away from the topic?" Euphemia spoke up, dragging Cornelia's attention to the topic she did not wanted to pursue. "What. Will. You. Wear?"

Suzaku ignored the following discussion, as he wanted to eat so badly after the battle, that it was almost the biggest reason he disliked that long checkup at the doctors. He cut his piece as elegantly as he was taught, though he couldn't see that it was too fast. Guilford looked at him a bit surprised, but later looked back at the debate between the sisters.

He pierced the slice with his fork, lifting it to his mouth. It was a nice slice, like the rest of the pizza. A bit of meat, a few Bavarian sausages, a lot of vegetables and portobello mushrooms. Not as tasty as what he saw back in the Clubhouse where Lelouch lived, but much, much better than whatever they were given in the barracks a few months ago.

"I can't defend you in a red-ish dress! I will not be a clown!"

"So choose another color, or add something to the design that makes it more natural! What there is to think about?..."

He tried to bite the slice, bringing it to his lips. As he blinked, he was surprised to see that the slice and his hand, which held the slice on the fork, was further from him than before he even took the slice to bite. Stunned, he tried to again, keeping his eyes open until his lips briefly touched the slice. Immediately his eyes closed shut for the briefest of moments, and when he opened them again, he was stunned that his hand was stretched far enough to reach Guilford's plate.

Only then he noticed how quiet it became. He turned his head, meeting curious looks from Cornelia and her knight, and a worried from Euphemia. "What…are you doing?" Second Princess asked him. "You were looking at this slice for two minutes, and you were mumbling something under your breath, as a curse."

"Maybe he sees something that I don't." Guilford stood for his defense. "But that's an ordinary slice. Or maybe you forgot how should you eat in regards to our etiquette?"

"What…was I saying?" Suzaku spoke, barely making the air move.

"What were you saying…" Cornelia tried to remember. "Something not in our language, that's for certain. You…udo…kunai? I don't speak… well, your language, I don't know what that means."

Euphemia looked at Suzaku for a brief second, before taking away food from her sister and from her knight. "Have anybody taken a bit from their slices or did eat one completely?" Guilford looked confused at this, but Cornelia seemed to take a hint and switched to her usual stance. "No, I didn't have the time. I don't remember that Guilford ate as well."

"My apologies, Princesses, but what is happening?" Guilford asked pleadingly. Euphemia responded first. "What Suzaku was mumbling was in Japanese. Yūdokuna. This pizza is poisoned."

Silence filled the room, broken only by Suzaku dropping his fork directly at Guilford's plate. The knight looked closer to the piece, inspecting it thoroughly.

"Strychnine. Seems to be mixed with something. I remember reading about it before our campaign in Egypt…"

Cornelia clapped her hands, reaching for her gun, just in case they would be attacked. "Great. Now we should also bring food tasters for the wedding, or even more of them to our day-to-day lives."

Suzaku hesitantly asked, still in shock from what had just transpired. "Could it be that…the Black Knights were behind this?"

"Doubtful about it." Guilford kept turning the fork with the slice on it. "Area Eleven is not known for this poisonous mixture. They'd go for something easier to make and deliver. At least, that's what I think."

"And it also isn't in his interest." Euphemia added, causing Cornelia to glance at her with curiosity. "This would go completely against him. Also, there's no drama, no appearances from him. He always makes a show from what he does."

"I have to cut short this deep analysis of yours, Euphy, but what is really important is…" Cornelia's eyes sparked with fury, as she went to the doors out of the room "…that we can no longer ensure your complete safety until we deal with the conspiracy. I always knew it would be a risk for you, but you didn't listen!"

"I'd never be safe, as long as I am a Princess, you yourself told me that!"

Cornelia sighed, but remained furious nonetheless. "True, but now the danger is higher than ever before. The wedding is in two weeks, correct?" Guilford nodded, also preparing to leave. "I'll increase the security. And about what we spoke earlier, Euphy, about-"

"Your Highness!" Soldier knocked on the doors. "What is it?" she asked."We successfully questioned the prisoner! Colonel Arley is behind the attack!"

"Prepare our special team! We must waste not a second!" Cornelia yelled, she and Guilford leaving for their Gloucester's.


"I never hoped that this would change so much of our lives, Suzaku. Not this much, not this badly." Euphemia spoke sorrowfully. "Only being this high in the hierarchy saved us. I… won't back down. We will change the system and create the world where everybody could be happy, but… could we survive it intact, unchanged and not broken by this?"

"I…"

"There is a certain somebody I must visit at Ashford Academy tomorrow. With you."


A/N: Next two chapters will be somewhere in February.

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33 favs. Thank you, each and everybody who favourited it.

Dealing with writer's block. Dearest apologies.