AN: I do not own Code Geass

Chapter 38: New Players

January 11th

"How's the video coming along?" Lelouch asked Naoto over the phone as he looked over Ashford Academy's track from a rooftop.

"It's fine… though, I feel like it's really missing that wow factor." the resistance leader responded while walking around a furniture store.

"Wow factor?"

"Yeah. I think we could add something that'll truly sell home the idea that Carine was in the wrong."

"Unfortunately, I don't think we'll be able to do such a thing. For the most part, everyone believes that the Saitama resistance were the bad guys in that conflict. However, there's a good majority that think destroying the Ghetto in its entirety wasn't necessary. Though, that opinion hasn't really caught on with the Britannian public, thanks to Lila passing the bill this morning that'll help rebuild Saitama. So, if we really want to gain major traction from both sides… we'll need some sort of confession from Carine herself." the Prince explained as Villetta spoke with the new transfer student, Alice Lanfranc.

"Sounds like the perfect task for your Geass." Naoto said in a low tone. He took a seat on a recliner, feeling out the cushioning thoroughly. "This one doesn't feel too bad."

"What?"

"Sorry, I was talking about something else. Anyway, about your Geass…"

Lelouch turned to the roof's entrance as he heard it open, only to find his girlfriend, Kallen, approaching him with a raised eyebrow. "Well, the problem with that is I need to get close enough. And unfortunately, to do that, I either need to capture Carine in battle, or get alone with her in a room. Which, I fail to see the latter happening."

"Is the range on your Geass that short?"

"No, it's just that if she's farther away, the chances of someone witnessing me commit such an act are increased"

"I see…"

Kallen leaned against the railing next to her boyfriend as he continued, "With that out of the way. Have you heard of our resistance group's new name? I believe I texted you last night."

"Yeah, I've seen. And, I'll admit, I'm happy that we're going by the moniker 'Black Knights', and not 'Kozuki Resistance. Because, quite frankly, it takes a lot of pressure off my back." Naoto responded while testing out another recliner, "Oh, this one's pretty good too."

"What the hell are you doing?" the Prince finally asked.

"I'm looking for new chairs! If you don't remember, both of my old apartments were destroyed in two separate Britannian raids!"

"If I remember correctly, only in one of those was your apartment actually destroyed."

"That's not the point. I need new chairs, and these two look perfect."

Lelouch sighed at the ridiculousness, "Well, good luck on your chair hunting. Meanwhile, I've got a revolution to run here."

"Oh shut-"

The Prince hung up on the Kozuki and turned to the red head, who tapped her finger impatiently on the railing, "So… what are we going to do now?"

"Well, the first thing on the pecking order is to deal with Alice Lanfranc. As you already know, C.C said she has some sort of Geass, meaning she's been sent here by Eden Vital."

"What about her 'sister' Clara Lanfranc? They transferred at the same time, so they must be working together."

"I was thinking the same thing." Lelouch watched as Alice walked away from Villetta, making note that she was oddly robotic with her movements. "The first chance I get, I should use my Geass on her. Find out why she's here, what her Geass is, and if she's an immediate threat. If the latter turns out to be true, we'll eliminate her on the spot."

"And if not?"

"Well, I'll give her a command that'll make sure she won't be a threat in the future."

"So either way, you'll be dealing with her on the spot?" Kallen asked as she noticed the roof's entrance open.

The Prince paid it no mind, as he thought it was either Mario or Maya given his girlfriend's reactions, so he continued, "Ideally, I want to keep Alice around for as long as possible. If it turns out her presence is an imminent threat to our plans, then I'll find some way to eliminate her permanently. However, if it turns out otherwise, then I won't need to do such a thing."

From behind, someone wrapped their arm around Lelouch's neck, "Oh!? So you think you can just get away with damaging those Knightmare's I loaned you!?" It was Milly.

"Ack- wait… please… let me explain…"

Regardless of his pleas, the blonde continued, "I mean, I know that Knightmare's are supposed to be damaged in battle, but I never thought I'd have to order ENTIRE replacement parts so soon! Do you know how embarrassing that was, especially after I hyped you up so much!?"

"If you know… then why are you choking me?" the Prince asked through struggling breaths.

"This is how I cope!" in the next second, Milly let go, "To be honest, it's not just the Knightmare I'm worried about. I heard what happened in Saitama, with the bombing, and after seeing how Mario and Maya ended up despite being in such advanced frames… I feared the worst for your safety."

"Oh? Is that genuine concern I hear from the President?" Lelouch replied while rubbing his neck.

"Hey. I might be helping you in the revolution of yours, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm worried about you." she grabbed the red head's arm and pulled her in, "Both of you."

Kallen smiled, "You don't have to. As long as Lelouch is with me and the Guren, nothing will come to harm him."

Milly raised an eyebrow, "oh yeah~ just like in Saitama, you'll come rushing to his aid?" she began groping the girl's sides playfully, "Like a raging lioness~"

"S-stop! I told you that in confidence!"

"And confident you were!" the blonde chased the red head around the roof with her arms outstretched, "Aw, there's no need to be shy. I'm certain Lulu appreciates the gesture."

Lelouch chuckled at the exchange before saying, "We better hurry up to class. The bell's about to ring."

"Oh yeah! And we have to show C.C around, huh?" this made the couple freeze, "Or maybe she already knows her way around Ashford… Ah, who am I kidding? It'll be fun to show her around campus anyway."

"Wait… C.C's going to Ashford?" the Prince asked

"Yeah. Don't you remember?"

"I can't believe I forgot about that!" Lelouch began to sweat profusely, with thousands of scenario's rushing through his mind.

His girlfriend was in a very similar position, "If she gets spotted by those two transfer students. Then we're finished!"

"What's wrong with you guys? Kallen, you agreed to C.C attending Ashford as well, so why are you so surprised?" Milly inquired with her head tilted.

"You… you do know she's supposed to be hiding from the military, right?" Lelouch asked.

"Yeah? That's why she's wearing a disguise."

"Really? I hope it's a good disguise." Kallen muttered.

Alice rubbed the back of her head as she walked to her first class of the day. The grass was completely covered by a thick layer of snow, making for a beautiful, but cold, sight. Eventually, she came across a girl in a wheelchair, who was being bullied by three Ashford Students, "Aw, look at little Nunally! What's wrong? Your wheels can't get through the snow?" one girl kicked the Princess' wheelchair, pushing her chair into the snow.

"Please stop… I just want to get to class…" Nunally pleaded.

"You hear that, girls? Princess Nunally over here wants to get to class!" the lead bully shouted mockingly, "Well guess what? That brother of yours ain't coming to save you this time. Neither is that freak maid."

Alice felt a great bit of rage overcome her, as the sight served as a reminder of her own late sister, who died tragically in a fire some years ago. So, the blonde naturally rushed to the Princess' aid, using her Geass 'the speed', to rip off the bully's skirts within a second, "What, what was that!?" one of the girls shouted while covering their lower half.

"It's so cold…" another muttered.

The blonde glared menacingly at the girls while tossing their skirts into the snow, "How undignifying. You really shouldn't leave the house without skirts on."

However, the lead bully clearly didn't get the memo, and rushed forward, shouting, "Who do you think you are!?"

With a swift kick to her jaw, Alice sent the bully flying into her friends, who scrambled to pick up their leader, shouting, "You'll pay for this!"

The blonde sighed in frustration, "Um… you didn't have to do that…" Nunally stuttered, "I mean, I appreciate you protecting me, but… now you might get in trouble."

"Don't worry about it." Alice responded coldly while walking away.

"Wait!" the Princess shouted, "Could you… help me out of the snow? My wheels can't seem to get any traction…"

The Geass soldier quickly helped the Princess out of her predicament, asking, "If you don't mind me asking, why're your eyes closed?"

"Well… I'm actually blind…"

This came as a shock to the blonde, as she continued her questioning, "Wait… if you're blind, then why are you alone? Shouldn't there be someone helping you get to class?"

"Well… usually Sayoko helps me to class… but today, she was a bit busy, so I decided to go off on my own. After all, I memorized the path to my next class; it's something I've been doing quite reliably before winter break began. Though…"

"Those bullies have thrown you off?"

"Yeah…"

"Then… where's your next class?"

"Room 408."

"Oh… so we have the same class…"

"Really? What's your name?" Nunally asked as her new friend began pushing her.

"My name's Alice Lanfranc. And you're…"

"Nunally Lamprouge."

"It's nice to meet you, Nunally," Alice responded.

"This is your disguise?" Lelouch asked their new classmate, Reifu Lamprouge, "And why're you using my last name?"

C.C, who dyed her hair black and wore purple contacts, responded, "Shh. We're not supposed to be talking in class."

"At least the disguise seems to be working…" Kallen thought as she saw Clara's distraught face out of the corner of her eye, "Lelouch, stop talking to Reifu." She pulled her boyfriend back into his seat as the teacher reentered the classroom.

Clara tapped her seatmate, Rivalz, and asked, "Hey, when does this class end?"

"Uh… ah… in like… an hour…"

The pink-haired girl clicked her tongue, "Damn… this is so annoying." as it turns out, she wasn't distraught by Reifu's sudden appearance, instead, she was perturbed by the class itself, "I can't believe I have to go here for 8-hours a day. I don't have to go to this infernal Academy to find C.C. Sure, school sounded fun in briefing, but actually going here is such a drag…"

In truth, Clara was a free spirit who enjoyed her freedom, especially while doing assassination missions. Sure, she'd complete her objective, however, she'd take as many liberties as possible to enjoy herself, whether it be going to a theme park, staying up late playing video games, or even going shopping in a mall. Clara learned to enjoy the little things in life to the fullest, and being tied down like this wasn't doing her any good. "I can feel myself getting split ends already…"

Viceroy Palace.

"Ah, Suzaku. I'm glad you could make it." Lila greeted the Japanese man as he wore a freshly tailored outfit, something that clearly took more than a day to complete.

"I apologize for having to reschedule our meeting. We wanted to make sure my outfit was… appropriate for a meeting with you, Viceroy." Suzaku responded while kneeling before her.

"You really didn't have to do that. I just wanted to speak with you…" the Princess explained while waving her hands dismissively.

The White Knight remembered the day before, when Cecile dragged him to a tailor, telling him he has to dress properly if he wants to make a good impression on the Viceroy. At this expense, he had to meet with Lila a whole day later than requested. And it didn't pay off. "M-my apologies."

Carine rolled her eyes from the newly placed couch in the Viceroy office, "You're going way too easy on this Eleven…"

"Anyway, I just wanted to speak with you about Zero." Suzaku perked up upon hearing the terrorist's name, "What do you think of him?"

"Well… I think he has good intentions, but his methods are unforgivable. He says he wants to change the world, and yet he doesn't bother joining the police, or the military to do so. In my opinion, I think he sees himself above such methods, seeing his existence as 'the one and only solution'."

"I see…" Lila put a hand on her chin, "As you know, Zero was the one who assassinated my brother, and the reason why I called you here, is because… and forgive me if this sounds bad, but he did save you from a court trial that had you as my brother's murderer. So… do you have some sort of connection with the man?"

"Connection? No, it's nothing like that. I guess he just wanted to make his presence known to the world, and saving me was the best way to make that happen." Suzaku replied as Carine lazily laid across the couch.

"Oh… that's a shame." the innocent Princess now had a downtrodden expression, "Do you know anything else about Zero? Anything helps."
"Unfortunately, nothing comes to mind that you already don't know. I'm very sorry, Viceroy."

Lila shook her head, "No, it's not your fault. Anyway, since you're here, I want to give you this." she opened a desk and handed her guest a wooden brown box, "Since you weren't rewarded for your efforts in the skirmish of Shinjuku ghetto, and adding on your stellar performance in Saitama, I thought it'd only be right if I were the one to give you this, Warrant Officer Kururugi."

Suzaku shook as he slowly opened the box, revealing several medals, "I… I humbly accept this gift, your majesty!" he got on one knee and bowed his head.

"Ah! You don't have to be so formal with me!"

Carine rolled her eyes at the sight. She wanted to vomit, "Okay Warrant Officer Kururugi, I think you've disturbed my sister's peace long enough. Now, go back to ASEEC, from what I hear, you've got a new protégé waiting."

After a minute, Suzaku quickly made his way out of the room with his new bounty, "Why were you so mean to him, sister?" Lila asked.

"Lila, please, you must understand that you're the Viceroy." the red-haired Princess began, "And you have a duty to the people. We can't spend time focusing on a singular Eleven who did well in a battle or two. Besides, why did you broadcast his promotion over the news? It would've earned you high marks from the Eleven population."

"To be honest… it's really intimidating, don't you think? I mean, what if I trip while handing over the medals? Or what if I'm not tall enough? There's just so much that can go wrong, I'd rather save the embarrassment and hand out the medals in private."

"Aw… it's still so cute how embarrassed you get," Carine began pulling the innocent Princess' cheeks playfully, "It makes me sick how naive you are. Everything you do has to work towards a bigger goal. I hope that after we're done in Area 11, you'll learn that."

"Wait… didn't we have an important meeting today?" Lila asked.

"Yes, we're meeting with the NAC to discuss Saitama's rebuilding project."

"Oh yeah! We better hurry, or else we'll be late!"

ASEEC Headquarters.

"Whoa, look at this guy!" one of the old mechanics shouted while pointing at Suzaku, "I guess it's not 'Private' any more, is it, Warrant Officer?"

"Movin' up in the world, eh? I remember when I was your age-"

"Just let him have his moment, you old buffoon!" a younger mechanic chimed in while pushing the old man out of the way, "Congratulations, Suzaku. Since you're promoted now, that means your pay's increased, right? Does that mean-"

"Hey! You chastise me for ruining his moment, and yet here you are already trying to mooch off him!"

"Please… just calm down…" Suzaku nervously tried to reason with the two, "My promotion's really not that big of a deal. I mean, I'm still the same Suzaku as before."

"Yeah man, but the Viceroy personally gave you those medals, that has to mean something," another mechanic chimed in.

"It probably means she doesn't want to be seen with an Eleven on stage."

"Hey! Don't be like that!"

"What? It's true. I hear she's the one who ordered the destruction of Saitama Ghetto."

"No way, man. You're getting Carine and Lila mixed up."

"Ah, so those kinds of opinions are swirling about the Viceroy. I feel bad for Lila, she's so much like Nunally, I really don't know how she's handling this all. Speaking of which… maybe I should visit them sometime?" Suzaku shook his head as Lloyd's voice cut through his thoughts.

"All right everyone! Get back to work, Suzaku, I have a special someone to meet," from behind the mad scientist, a boy with white hair wearing a pilot suit identical to his own, emerged, "General Bartley has given us a particularly special device to pilot the new variation of the Lancelot, you know, the one we were talking about earlier?"

"Oh, you mean the Club?"

"Yes, that one. I want him to be your wingman while out on the field."

"Wingman? But… I don't need one."

Lloyd shook his head, "We've rewatched the footage of your previous battles, particularly, the ones where you began losing, and in each of them, the common denominator was that you were outnumbered. Thus, Rai's presence will prevent that from happening in the future."

"Oh, I get it." Suzaku extended his hand, "It's nice to meet you, I'm Suzaku Kururugi."

Rai slowly took hold of the Knight's hand and returned the greeting, "It's a pleasure to meet you. I hope that you'll be able to teach me some new tricks in our time together."

"O-okay. No pressure, I guess…" Suzaku scratched his head.

"While we're on that topic, I've prepared both Knightmare's for a sparring match. Suzaku, please evaluate Rai's skills, and instruct him on what to improve on, while simultaneously finding his strong points, that way, we can further optimize the Club to fit his piloting style."

"You've fixed the Lancelot already!? I wasn't gone for that long, was I?"

"Are you doubtin' our skill?" one of the older mechanics called out jokingly.

Rai emotionlessly walked out of the ASEEC hanger, where the Lancelot Club and normal Lancelot were positioned across from each other in a fenced-off arena. "Get in your frames, and once I say go, battle will commence." Lloyd instructed while getting behind a wall of bullet-proof glass that had dozens of monitors to its left, each keeping track of the Knightmare's and pilot's status.

Suzaku settled into his Lancelot, listening to the hum of the Yggdrasil drive turn on, then he unsheathed one MVS blade, causing it to shimmer red upon being fully drawn. Meanwhile, Rai drew two short MVS blades, before combining them to form a dual-bladed MVS lance. "Okay… vibrations are looking good. It seems like assimilation for the MVS lance has been successful. Energy levels are looking high, but that's to be expected, especially with all the new stuff we crammed into this model." Cecile narrated while cycling through numerous screens.

"Alrighty, then whenever you're ready, you may commence battle!" Lloyd announced as the team took cover behind the bulletproof glass.

Suzaku slowly moved to the right while keeping his blade forward with both hands, mimicking a knight's stance. On the other hand, Rai kept his lance to his back, holding it with only one hand, spinning it occasionally. Eventually, the Lancelot began moving toward the Club, which subsequently began its advance. "Oh yeah! And the first one to disarm the other is the winner!" the mad scientist added at the last second.

Suzaku began the battle with a swift downward strike, which Rai easily deflected with one end of his lance, before doing a quick spin, and countering in the same motion. Luckily, the Lancelot managed to recover before then, and blocked the strike while running through the Club, sending its knee into the newly developed Knightmare. Rai's cockpit shook as he stumbled back. However, he couldn't stay like that for long, as his opponent was already ready with another attack, which he narrowly parried to the side. Once Suzaku passed, he flipped his sword, and attempted to pierce through the center of his opponent's lance. Despite this surprise attack, the Club managed to back away in time for the strike to barely fall short. That's when he brought the lance up for a strike, attempting to knock Suzaku's blade away, ending the fight, but the White Knight saw this coming, and took a single step back, using it to pivot around the weapon as it grazed his head. Once it passed, Rai spun around, attempting to hit his opponent with a horizontal slash, which failed to land, as Suzaku, simultaneously, hit the silver-haired boy with a moon kick, dodging his attack.

The Club used one arm to stop itself from completely collapsing as the Lancelot landed before it, "Hmm… I didn't know the difference in unit performance would be so… vast…" Lloyd muttered as he observed each Knightmare's status, "Then again, I suppose that's to be expected, as the Club is built primarily from spare parts."

"I can't hit maneuvers like that." Rai shakily stood up as Suzaku kept low to the ground, with his sword on guard. "The difference in skill is as clear as night and day.

"Despite piloting the Club for the first time, he's already got the hang of its weaponry and movement. I can see now why Lloyd has him as my wingman. With enough time, he could become a formidable pilot." the White Knight readied himself as his opponent spun their lance around, readying for a final strike.

At an unspoken moment, both Knightmare's lunged forward, with the Club bringing its lance down for a powerful strike. However, the Lancelot parried the strike, pushing it to the left while simultaneously flipping its sword around, hitting his opponent with the MVS handle. As Rai stumbled forward, he turned around with his lance in a defensive position, narrowly blocking a swift kick Suzaku launched from below. As his Knightmare fell backwards, the silver-haired boy stabbed his lance into the ground, using it like a polearm to correct himself at the last second. Of course, this recovery didn't last long, as the White Knight cut the weapon in half, disarming the Club of its primary weapon.

Despite this, Rai didn't stop, instead, he picked up half of the blade, and clashed with Suzaku once again. Sparks flew as their clash intensified, "Stop!" Cecile called, "Rai, you've been disarmed of your weapon. Stand down."

"Not yet!" the boy shouted, "I still have my sword, I can still fight!" he began pushing the White Knight back, forcing him to drag his feet across the dirt.

"Fine. Then I'm adding a new rule, whoever gets kicked out of the arena first, is the loser." Lloyd announced as the two warriors separated.

"What's with this guy? His stance has completely changed. It's like he's a completely different person…" Suzaku took in a deep breath, focusing only on his opponent, who was now mimicking his stance. Staying low to the ground and on guard.

Unbeknownst to the Japanese man, Rai was a super competitive person, as he was constantly raised in an environment where he would be punished for losing. Beatings, lashings, horrid testing… General Bartley spared no expense to make the boy's life a living hell whenever he failed a simulation level, or failed at meeting the quota for training. And this time was no different in his mind. Rai had to win to survive. That's why he wanted to continue the fight.

In an instant, the silver-haired boy lunged at Suzaku, forcing the Knight to clash blades with him once again, this time, he cut straight through the short MVS blade. However, Rai wasn't done yet, as he grabbed the Lancelot's arm, and began twisting it in a manner where it was forced to release it's MVS. Once the weapon was gone, Suzaku sent a spinning kick into his opponent's side, nearly taking off his own arm in the process.

As the Club was sent flying away, it used both hands to drag across the dirt, stopping itself just before hitting the fence. "I… I can't lose… not yet!" Rai's eyes locked onto Suzaku as he ran toward him. In response, the silver-haired boy took a step forward, and cocked his fist back, fully expecting an exchange of blows between them. Little did he know, Suzaku had different plans.

Once the Lancelot got close, the Club unleashed its fist, fully intending to strike its face, but at the last second, his opponent ducked, wrapping its arms around the newly formed Knightmare, and hitting it with a suplex. Putting Rai out of the arena.

"As to be expected, Suzaku won." Lloyd commented as Cecile and numerous mechanics rushed to the scene, where the Lancelot now stood proud over its opponent as they rolled over.

"Are you okay!?" the White Knight shouted while getting out of his Knightmare. As soon as he saw Rai's face exit the Club, he continued, "I know I shouldn't've used such a risky move like that, especially since it was just a sparring match, but I was afraid you wouldn't stop unless I hit you with a big move."

"It's fine." the silver-haired boy responded, "I deserved that for acting so recklessly."

"Still, that was impressive. Especially for someone who never piloted such a frame before," a mechanic added.

"Yeah. Hell, if my eyes don't deceive me, I think I see some sweat forming on the Warrant Officer's face." one of the younger mechanics teased.

"I mean… he did put up a pretty good fight…" Suzaku said while rubbing the back of his head.

"Hey, if you continue to fight like that, you'll be better than Suzaku one day!" an older mechanic shouted jokingly.

"Yeah. It's about time we got someone who can keep up with that boy's recklessness." another added.

This caused the boy in question to ask in a worried tone, "W-wait… I'm not that reckless, am I?"

One of the older mechanics put his arm around Suzaku and said, "You're still too green to be asking questions like that. C'mon, let's celebrate our newest member!"

"And the drinks are on the warrant officer!"

"What did I say about making Suzaku pay for everything?" a mechanic smacked his colleague on the head playfully.

Rai was taken aback by the sight. He had never seen such a warm reception before, especially after he lost. It was always so cold and sterile. But this… this was different, "Y-you aren't mad?" he found himself accidentally asking.

The mechanics, Suzaku, and Cecile looked at the boy with curious expressions, "What do you mean? Of course not." the indigo-haired girl responded, "Why would we be mad?"

"Because… I lost…"

"Kid, everyone loses once in a while. That's what makes you grow as a human being," one of the mechanics said, "The important thing is that you dust yourself off, and get back on that horse. Never give up. I mean, look at Suzaku, this guy's lost both of the battles he's been in, and yet here he is, giving you lessons on how to be a better pilot."

"Hey!" Suzaku shouted, "I was outnumbered both times!"

"That's not the point. Anyway, he hasn't let those losses get him down, instead, he's improved so much after each battle, studying the movements of that ace he fought, alongside those two other Knightmare. In short, don't beat yourself up about this loss."

Rai looked at his feet, and said, "O-okay." The group wasn't convinced by his response. So, they all picked him up, and began carrying him to town. "Wh-what are you doing!?" he exclaimed.

"We're going to celebrate, duh."

"You should just play along. These guys are relentless once they put their minds to something." Suzaku whispered as the group kept walking while chanting 'party' repeatedly.

Lloyd looked over both Knightmare's with a prideful look, "Well, I can't say Bartley didn't deliver when he said he'd give me a capable devicer. Though, given that boy's reaction to losing, I can only imagine what happened to him while in the General's care. Regardless, it's nice to have someone Suzaku can actually train with. After all, those simulations were growing dull anyway." the mad scientist sighed, "Alright guys. It's time to bring the Lancelot's in for-" he did a double-take, and noticed everyone was gone, "Wait… but who's going to bring the Knightmare's into the bay?" the answer was obvious, "Honestly, how could they force their poor boss to work hard while they go out to party?"

Ashford Academy Student Council Room

"A vacation?" Kallen wondered as Milly stood with her hands on her hips, "Didn't we just come back from winter break? Why so soon?"

The blonde shook her head with a smile, "Oh Kallen, you should take breaks while you can. Anyway, I was thinking we could take a girl's trip to Lake Kawaguchi."

"Oh! That sounds wonderful! I hear Lake Kawaguchi's beautiful this time of year, especially with all the snow!" Shirley chimed in with a gleeful grin.

The red head, on the other hand, had flashbacks of the hotel jacking, making for a not so pleasant memory, up until the reveal of the Black Knight's, "A-are there going to be any Eleven's there? I heard on the news that those resistance groups are super violent and unpredictable," Nina added in a quiet tone.

"Relax. Kawaguchi is a Britannian tourist hotspot, there's no way any terrorist groups are going to attack it." Milly added while glancing at Kallen for a second.

Unbeknownst to her, Shirley did the same, "Kallen… I hope you and Lelouch are starting to dissociate from terrorism. While I have no idea your situations, I feel like you two shouldn't be risking your lives to achieve such goals. Nothing is. Life is too valuable."

"So, what do you think, girls? Who's in?" the President asked with a confident smile.

"Me!" the orange-haired girl shouted.

"I'm going if Kally's going!" Maya chimed in, startling the girls.

"Ah- where did you come from!?" Kallen exclaimed

"Nothing's been going on in the computer science club for the past few days. So, I'm hanging out with you guys."

C.C entered the room with a yawn, "Man. Today's been so exhausting."

"Ah, C.C. Or should I say, Reifu?" Shirley greeted Pizza girl, "How's your day been?"

"As I said before, exhausting." the green-haired girl sat at the table, "Everyone's been asking about my name, and how it's 'so exotic'. Then, I had a line of girls asking about what Lelouch likes and such, just because I'm 'his sister'."

"It's odd, because Lelouch never mentioned you before-"

"That's due to the fact that she's been adopted into the Lamprouge family." Milly answered for the green-haired girl, "You see, after speaking with C.C, she told me about her family situation, and how she was abandoned at birth. So, I took it upon myself to adopt her into the Lamprouge family."

"Can you even do that?" Kallen questioned with a blank stare.

"And the name Reifu… that came from where?" Shirley asked, ignoring the red head's question.

"It was the name of one of my friends at the orphanage. So, I adopted it as my own." C.C responded.

"I see. How tragic."

"That's why we have to make her feel like she belongs, by using that name. Meaning, we can't call her C.C from now on, understand?"

"I totally understand!" Of course, while others would continue questioning, Shirley relented, as she was a sucker for heartbreaking stories, where she would feel nothing but pity for the victim, regardless of the situation and how they got there.

"Now that we got that out of the way, are you coming with us to Lake Kawaguchi, Reifu?" Milly asked with a devious smile.

"I would actually enjoy that. So yes."

"That's great!" the blonde grabbed Nina's arm, "And you'll be joining us too, right?"

With no means of rejecting the boisterous president, the introverted genius instantly relented, "Y-yes."

"What about you, Kally?" Maya asked, "You'll be going with us, right?"

Despite the reminder of what happened last time, Kallen agreed, with her reason being, "What are the chances of the same thing happening again? We're months away from the hotel jacking, and the JLF should be working on retaliating against Britannia for Saitama Ghetto. Not capturing a hotel full of hostages."

Of course, the red head knew there was no guarantee of this being true, so she would have to take numerous precautions to ensure the safety of her friends. With that being said, she would still try and enjoy the day to the best of her abilities, while simultaneously keeping one eye open while sleeping.

Somewhere in the mountains near Narita…

"Kusakabe, we've got our hands on the experimental Raiko, now all we need to do is transport it to Lake Kawaguchi." a JLF soldier reported to the General as he sat on a Japanese-style floor mat.

"Excellent. If things go according to plan, that budget seminar should be happening this Saturday. So, we must have everything prepared by then. Understood?" Kusakabe asked his loyal soldier, who saluted in return. "And remember, don't tell the other's about this. They wouldn't understand." the man looked at several pictures of high-class Britannian officials that laid before him, "This Saturday, we'll strike a major blow against Britannia, and show them that Japan is not dead. Long live Japan!"

His cry was closely followed by four other like minded soldiers, "Long live Japan!"

AN: Reifu is C.C's name in the Code Geass spin-off series 'Renya of the Darkness'. Personally, I've never read it, and this is the only information I'll be taking out of it (since it's on her wiki), as I need a name for C.C as she attends Ashford. I honestly don't like how I wrote C.C attending Ashford, I know I could've done better, but I just hit a wall regarding her attendance, especially with Clara and Alice also being here.

While we're talking about her, I'm giving Clara a laid back personality when it comes to actually completing her missions, as I think it'll be a nice dynamic for her and Rolo later on.

While we're on the topic of new characters, I have a confession: I don't like Rai. He's a boring, poor copy of Lelouch, and I just fail to find him interesting. Even so, while writing him, I'll try my best to keep my personal bias from tainting his character.