Kaguya was worried.

Somewhat surprisingly, the meeting of the six heads around her was not the reason. Not even the renewed attempt by Munakata to arrange an engagement for her. Although it was ironic that he tried to set her up with Zero this time.

No, Kaguya was worried about the upcoming talks. She held her silence, barely not chewing her lips; that would give away her current state. The fact she said so little on people trying to decide her future already garnered Kirihara's attention.

"You seem amenable to this arrangement, Sumeragi-san," Osakabe noted, likely having noticed as well.

Now that she was put on the spot, Kaguya had to say something. She shook her head in a measured way, trying not to look frantic. Now was as good a time as any.

"I am not, Osakabe-san. In fact, I would prefer if we put the matter aside. I received an important petitition earlier that the house needs to discuss."

Munakata's minute frown was wiped away as fast as it appeared; she saw it anyway, not that it surprised her. This was his game she cut short. Kuboin and Yoshino agreed without any issue, though. So did Kirihara, of course. Anything to get her out of the hot seat, even just for a while.

"Please tell us about this petition, Sumeragi-san," Kirihara prompted, a twinge of curiousity in his request. Kaguya inclined her head in turn, well aware that she had to justify bringing it before the house.

"I have been made aware that Zero requests to speak before Kyoto House. He wishes to introduce himself properly and discuss a stratagem of his that requires the house's undivided support."

The way she planned to introduce the subject was altered several times and endlessly rehearsed in her head. This initial pitch did its job in earning the group's attention, but she still needed to walk the tightrope. Asking for all of Kyoto House to support him meant they needed a unanimous decision; all six heads needed to be convinced.

Thankfully, Zero dangling his identity as a lure seemed to work. At least Kirihara clearly suspected something going on, but he held his tongue.

"We learned since that Zero is Britannian," Munakata started thoughtfully. "Can you, who is aware of his identity, confirm that taking this offer is worth our time?"

It was a fair question, though also dangerous to field; she did not want to start this on a hostile note by coming on too strong, but ceding too much ground would weaken her friend's position. Kaguya took a moment to consider her options before nodding.

"I believe so, Munakata-san. Though I must urge the house to tread carefully. While he offers us this as a token of good faith, Zero is not a man to be crossed lightly. I am under no illusion that even the majority in this room will look kindly upon him."

There was some shuffling in response to her warning. Even greater was their curiousity. Kaguya felt mean baiting them like this, but she promised to help. The venerable elders were unused to not knowing things; their curiousity was just as natural as any younger man's. This was about as irresistable as she could make it.

Of the other five heads, she could tell Kirihara studied her in particular. He was not mulling over the proposal so much as her words and actions. Sometimes she wished for the power to read minds, just to know what went on behind his eyes.

After some time of silent contemplation, Osakabe spoke up: "Seeing that he is already aware of our identities, I believe it is about time we are awarded the same courtesy. All present have the experience to judge a situation objectively, and we already know Zero is not Japanese. I am in favour of granting his request."

"The least we can do is hear him out after all the work he did," Munakata added. "In favour."

Kubouin inclined his head as well. "Considering that he is our most prominent piece on the board, it is only prudent to treat him with respect. In favour."

Though it was a positive response, Kaguya almost winced at the wording. She alone was aware Zero made no mere piece; he was the chessmaster. If anything, Kyoto House was about to become a piece on his board. She kept those thoughts to herself, though.

Meanwhile, Kirihara offered a more measured response: "While it comes with risks to invite such a powerful man into these chambers, he has proven his care for the Japanese people and spirit beyond all shadow of doubt. In favour."

With four out of five in agreement, all eyes turned to Yoshino, whose eyes were closed in thought. "In favour," he said simply. No reasoning was given, although Kaguya would have loved to hear his.

"I am in favour as well," she finished as a formality, "which makes the decision unanimous."

Osakabe nodded at her. "Then it is decided. We will receive Zero. As you are our main point of contact with him, please set up a time and date."

This time she could not help her mirthless smile from breaking through. Maybe it was her having the advantage, but she thought they really should know better by now.

"If I may offer a piece of wisdom, Osakabe-san?" Kaguya requested, making the entire group perk up in wonder. "Zero ever has his own plans. He is already here."

Several elders froze in place for just a moment. The rest of them revealed their surprise through perfectly blank expressions. Not one of them had seen this coming.

"You wish to tell us that Zero has already been allowed into the inner sanctum," Munakata asked, slowly and in disbelief. "Without even knowing that we would grant his desire to step before us?"

"He has. At times I wonder if perhaps he is precognitive, for the house granted his request just as he anticipated."

Her quip caused a little chuckle from Kirihara, belatedly followed by Yoshino. The other three held their silence, all somewhere between intrigued and scandalised. By herself, Kaguya was simply glad they did not notice how nervous she felt deep down; knowing what she knew, those two siblings would have forced their way in if they were denied.

"The boldness of youth is certainly a force to be reckoned with," Kirihara joked lightly, then made a gentle motion toward the door. "See them in, Sumeragi-san."

She bowed and stood without another word, striding away with measured steps. Once out of sight however, Kaguya took a moment to rub her aching thighs and calves; sitting seiza style for so long was and remained bothersome, even with ease of practice.

Then, after taking a deep breath, Kaguya left the chambers proper. A pair of guards stood before the side room the siblings waited in; Kaguya told them to leave, but also ordered that none were to enter the inner sanctum while Zero was inside. Her orders were taken with some surprise, but the two men ultimately bowed their heads and trooped off.

Once they were around the corner, Kaguya knocked politely. She waited a moment before entering as well, just in case.

Inside, she found that Lelouch and Nunnally already took off the Zero suits they arrived in. Kaguya imagined that everyone expected C.C. under the second one, which was a fair assumption to make. But it was Nunnally, and she dressed somewhat formally in a cream-coloured blouse and dark pencil skirt. Lelouch wore a button-down shirt and black pants to match his sister; they could be office workers with a little imagination, though their postures were too prim.

Their eyes were on her as soon as she poked her head inside.

"They're ready for you."

While Lelouch simply nodded, Nunnally already walked over to her friend. "Any trouble?" she asked, revealing some of her own worries. Kaguya shook her head in response.

"None at all. The trouble starts now."

Her fatalism earned a little grin from her friend. As if she knew something Kaguya did not.

"Let that be our concern," Lelouch reassured her gently. "Thank you for taking the risk on us, Kaguya."

That faint smile he graced her with did funny things to Kaguya's stomach. Why did he have to be so handsome? She barely managed not to blush and returned the smile, but it was a fight.

"That is what friends are for, no? Though I won't lie, even I hate the idea of what you want to propose."

Nunnally wrapped her into a quick hug as she passed by. "Trust me," she muttered, "nobody hates it more than us."

The corridor remained empty, so she quickly led her guests into the six house's chamber. All heads turned at the sound of their footsteps, studying the two newcomers with interest. Kirihara was notable for turning deathly pale at the sight of them.

Nunnally kept back, letting her brother come forward to take center stage. He bowed toward the seated men.

"I am grateful to receive this chance, venerable elders."

"As am I, venerable elders," Nunnally followed right after with a bow of her own. Even Kaguya could tell that several of them looked at her legs more than her face; the pencil skirt did nothing to hide the exoskeleton encasing them, even if Rakshata reduced it down to mere braces by now.

Bracing herself, Kaguya made a soft motion toward their guests. "If I may introduce Prince Lelouch vi Britannia and Princess Nunnally vi Britannia. Upon a time they came to Japan as hostages, but today they stand before us as allies."

The pair first curtsied and bowed respectively in Britannian fashion, then both bowed once more as the Japanese would. Kaguya had double-checked their etiquette to make sure they would not act subservient before; they were polite, treating the six houses as their equals.

The elders were visibly shocked, though. Wary looks went back and forth between the siblings.

Then Kirihara began to chuckle, cutting off anyone else trying to speak.

"So that is what it was," he guffawed. "The seed planted that day has sprouted. You bear the mask, young man?"

"I do, Kirihara-san," Lelouch confirmed with a faint bow toward the older man. His smile was placid but polite. "Certainly you understand why the masquerade was a necessity until now."

Kirihara huffed again and threw Kaguya an amused look. She knew that he now knew why she acted odd for the last year.

"I understand just fine, but I am curious what plan of yours brought you to us today."

Though he seemed amenable, the rest of Kyoto House was less so. "What exactly is the meaning of this?" Munakata chimed in warily. "Were you aware that Zero was a Britannian prince, Kirihara-san?"

"At most it was an idle fantasy, Munakata-san," Kirihara reasoned, more calmly now. "I urge you and the other houses to remember that this man, no, both of these two are no friends to Britannia."

So saying, he turned back to Lelouch and Nunnally, who waited patiently for them. "I imagine you are already well aware of everyone present, but introductions are only polite."

He received faint nods from both and took that as his cue to take over from Kaguya. With her free to observe, it was quickly apparent that none of the other heads were pleased by this development. Opinion turned even further against the siblings when Lelouch finally got to explaining the plan in broad strokes.

It was not as awful hearing it now; Kaguya still remembered when they first approached her on it. She had a lot of questions, even now she remained divided on the matter.

After his spiel about Britannian values they wanted to exploit, Lelouch moved onto the part most important here: "But success hinges on more than just military power, as this venerable group will know quite well. An industry is required to support it. Hence why we need the six houses' support in this endeavour. Japan once was an industrial powerhouse, with most of her remaining assets now belonging to the six of you. If we could leverage these assets toward our cause, then improvement will not be far off."

There was the crux of the matter; no matter how nice he worded it, Lelouch wanted their companies. Nobody missed it, the dark looks going around were fairly obvious.

Kaguya knew they would not even entertain the notion, so she spoke up to ask the question in their stead: "Assuming we were to accept your proposal, how exactly would this be realised?"

It felt disingenuous to push the matter like this, but she could hardly let her friend down. They deserved a fair chance.

Lelouch turned from the group as a whole to her in particular, that polite smile still in place.

"Of course we understand that this is a big step," he began. "We speak of major companies that were led by the people present or their ancestors for many years, after all. Neither my sister nor I would dare think to just take them away. No, the idea is to change nothing of the internal structures beyond officially putting all six houses under our patronage. While it will provide us with the means to affect change, it will also guard all of you from further exploitation."

His assertation calmed the group somewhat, having assuaged the most important fear. Kaguya still remembered being very cross with the plan's first iteration, which did not include any particular procedure after swallowing up Kyoto House.

To some surprise for her, Kirihara seemed particularly mollified by the clarification. He leaned forward curiously. "I imagine this also requires full disclosure of our relevant activities," he probed. "Seeing that a retainer can not be seen acting against their patron's wishes, or without their knowledge."

Though the words easily came over his tongue, they made Kaguya's spine tingle; she could tell everyone else was unhappy about the mental image of being subordinate like this. Even Kirihara did not like the idea, though if he was the most open.

"That is indeed the case," Lelouch confirmed simply.

While the other four held their silence so far, Osakabe chose that moment to speak up. "This is madness," he said. There was no real heat to his voice, which may just have made it worse. He was plain certain and a little weary.

"Not only that," Kubouin added with a frown, "but it is utterly disrespectful to expect the six houses to bend the knee and become subsidiaries. All we have is your word, and we know what a Britannian's word is worth."

With all eyes on Lelouch, only Kaguya noticed Nunnally bristle. Her brother was perfectly composed, that fake smile still in place.

"Contracts can be written, collateral provided. But all of this necessitates a willingness to cooperate on both sides, Kubouin-san. We are well aware of what we are asking, just like we are aware of what we will ask of the Order of the Black Knights soon. If this body could offer a different solution with greater likelihood of success, we would love to take it."

His response agitated Munakata and Osakabe in particular; likely the reminder that freedom was unattainable through conventional means. Kaguya felt similar, even after several months spent thinking of a better way and coming up blank. It just felt wrong.

That was when Yoshino finally broke his silence, a hint of humour to his voice: "There is always a way, young man. Perhaps not one easily found, but life will often find it in the end."

As expected, he was not on board with this either.

There were a few more questions about details, but it did not matter much what Lelouch explained or how well he maneuvered the situation; the house's leanings were quite clear throughout.

And then Munakata set off the powderkeg.

"You mentioned providing collateral, Prince Lelouch," he began thoughtfully. "If we were to assume we agreed to this scheme of yours and offered everything we possess, would you be willing to do the same? Would you give as your younger sister as a hostage?"

Kaguya twitched in barely suppressed horror. That was not the plan; in fact, this was so far off the plan she expected a bloodbath at the mere suggestion.

She was the only one taken aback, though; the other heads waited patiently for Lelouch's response. Kaguya could tell the smile froze on his face. He did admirably in hiding his feelings, even Kaguya only had an inkling because she knew them both.

Then Nunnally placed a hand on her brother's shoulder. Somehow that brighter smile of hers was more intimidating right now.

She stepped forward to address the house, ever polite: "I am afraid that is the one thing neither of us will accept. We were both hostages once. As this venerable group may recall, no good came of it."

Kaguya exhaled softly. It was a good save, nobody could deny that. Nunnally avoided Munakata's trap, even he acknowledged this with a soft nod. But his expression made clear where his opinion lay.

"Then I believe it is time we vote. There is no need to discuss this any further."

"I believe we have not heard everything yet, Munakata-san," she was quick to deflect. "A matter this important should be discussed from all available angles."

For some reason, this caused him to look at her with something akin to gentleness.

"We are all well aware of your connection to the prince and princess by this point, Sumeragi-san. While your desire to aid them is admirable, I believe it is ultimately misplaced. Please temper yourself as we know you can."

His words were like a slap to the face.

Not only did he disregard her counsel out of hand, he even blamed it on her youth all of a sudden. Kaguya was not sure whether to snarl or cry, especially when Kubouin and Osakabe agreed with Munakata.

So they voted. Lelouch and Nunnally were not even asked to leave for the final deliberation, the house just up and ignored them.

It ended just as Kaguya feared, with two in favour and four against. The only one beside her to agree was Kirihara, which still made for a surprise. The other heads seemed to think the same.

"What is your reasoning, Kirihara-san?" Yoshino inquired. "Yours is not the heart of a young maiden after all."

And now he made it about Kaguya being a woman. She was actually angry by this point, thinking back to the conversation she once had about seceding from Kyoto House. Perhaps a schism was near after all.

Her mentor remained calm throughout, though. "I deem this as an opportunity to reach where we could never reach before today," he reasoned. "Having access to Britannian resources and knowledge from the inside appears as a boon that is worth the risk. But I am well aware my opinion is not shared."

"Although there is always another means," Osakabe noted thoughtfully. He glanced to their guests, still present and quiet as they waited for them. "After all, we do have a Britannian prince and princess on our hands."

Kirihara turned to him in response. "What are you suggesting, Osakabe-san?"

The other man glanced between the members of Kyoto House, then motioned for Lelouch and Nunnally. "If memory serves, there was a rather prolonged search for the missing royals after the occupation began. I imagine that a number of concessions can be gained in exchange for their return."

For just a moment Kaguya scowled, but that burst of anger was soon forgotten. Horror settled back in; not that someone would suggest ransoming her friends, but that she knew for a fact Osakabe would not survive the night. She barely managed to look at the pair, whose thoughts were still hidden behind polite expressions. Only Lelouch's slowly unclenching fist told of his inner turmoil.

"That is out of line, Osakabe-san," Kaguya chided sharply. "Not to mention that we will gain precious little by leveraging a pair of exiled royals."

Her rebuke seemed to agitate Osakabe in turn. Kaguya could not care less about taking the proper tone with her elders right now, though.

Unfortunately, she was all but alone again. His suggestions seemed to have set roots. Yoshino chimed in next: "Yet was it not that the death of Prince Clovis caused Britannia to increase security and military presence by several orders of magnitude? I find it hard to believe the emperor would not care for his own."

A snort disrupted their conversation. All eyes flew to Nunnally, who still bore that same smile. Lelouch stepped back, letting his sister take the lead now.

"That particular bit of nonsense aside, Yoshino-san," she said sweetly, "I hope you are aware of what you are suggesting?"

How could someone be menacing by smiling and speaking softly? Nunnally did it with a perfectly calm posture and demeanour, even!

Kaguya shivered, now only waiting for the violence. She already tried to stop this, any more and she would risk shattering the house's unity.

Yoshino looked at Nunnally with wry amusement. The sort one offered to a misbehaving child. He could not tell the threat.

"I am quit aware, princess. Your rudeness aside, I believe you know your own worth."

"Indeed I do," Nunnally agreed with a hum. She said no more, which clearly threw Yoshino off; he may have expected a tantrum or something.

Most of the heads began to clue in that something was very wrong.

"Kaguya-chan," Kirihara said slowly. "In your opinion, what will be their response if we attempted to force this issue?"

She did not want to answer the question. Her friends' eyes were on her now, curious and encouraging more than anything. Kaguya looked back to her mentor, pale and shivering ever so faintly.

"I imagine they will kill us all and take everything."

Munakata and Osakabe reared back in surprise. Yoshino and Kubouin showed surprise as well. Kirihara only nodded his understanding, though.

"So about as expected," he reasoned.

"Oh, not quite."

Now all eyes went to Nunnally, who still smiled that sweet smile of hers. "There are only four people in this room I would kill, at most," she explained kindly. "We have not heard Kubouin-san's and Munakata-san's stances on trying to ransom us yet, have we?

Hearing his name seemed to animate Munakata; he glowered back at her as he snapped: "You dare threaten us after you come to beg for our support?"

"The situation changed when we went from discussing our proposal to your starting to discuss using us as bargaining chips," Lelouch answered, his voice cold as death. "If you wish to lay the blame on someone for this, Munakata-san, you may wish to look to your right."

Kaguya winced, thankfully unnoticed by all. Lelouch was right, but his bluntness and disrespect clearly annoyed the older man. Negotiations broke down completely and everything was horrible. What now? Were they really going to kill four of the six heads?

She could not allow it. If there was a chance to prevent this, Kaguya must find it.

"Certainly there can be a peaceful resolution to this?" she tried desperately, asking Nunnally most of all. She could still secede, maybe Sumeragi Saibatsu alone would be enough to satisfy their plans. At this point Kaguya was all but begging her friend not to do it.

But Nunnally's expression did not change.

Kaguya's hopes died in the cradle. She bowed her head, trying desperately to hold back tears. A rustle of cloth announced movement, then a slender hand cupped her cheek.

When she looked up again, she almost lost herself in Nunnally's eyes. Her friend's smile was tender now, a real one instead of a fake. "Of course there is, my dear friend," she soothed. "Listen well."

She leaned even closer to whisper into Kaguya's ear: "Close your eyes."

Kaguya stared back owlishly while Nunnally leaned back. She wanted to believe that she meant it, even though this was so clearly an excuse. There would be violence the moment she looked away.

But what could she do?

Sniffling weakly, Kaguya did as told and closed her eyes, then covered them with her hands to hide her tears. She listened as Nunnally moved on and whispered to Kirihara as well. It was a cold comfort.

Osakabe's voice sounded loud in the tense silence: "What is the meaning of this? Do you mean to tear through Kyoto House's solidarity?"

"No," Nunnally responded sweetly. "This is how we restore it. Lelouch?"

A drawled "Yes" was his only response. Some rustling followed as the other heads probably turned to him. "The four of you will follow my and Nunnally's every order from hereon out."

His order was absolute, even she could tell. But all the same, it arrested her desperation; Kaguya was completely confused now. What was this about? One could not just make people comply by telling them to.

And yet all four men agreed happily with his demands. Not grudging or scared as if he pointed a gun at them, but with audible delight.

She opened her eyes to look what happened. Lelouch rubbed his forehead for some reason, while the men who were discussing how to ransom him and Nunnally five minutes ago smiled as if Japan were already free. They were alive and well, but it made no sense.

Exchanging a baffled look with Kirihara, she found her mentor just as dumbfounded. He did not even try to hide it.

Their confusion only grew when Lelouch continued: "You will never consider using us as hostages again. Furthermore, you will back our plan to unify Japan's remaining industrial power under our aegis."

And once again he received nothing but agreement. It was surreal to watch.

"I believe the previous vote should be repeated," Nunnally added, still as sweet as before.

The four almost clambered over each other to voice their being in favour. Kaguya could only stare as her friend led them around everything the two needed like dogs on a leash, then ordered them out of the room.

When it was only the siblings, her, and old man Kirihara, Kaguya dared to speak. A single word that encompassed all her feelings on what just happened.

"What?"

She stared at Nunnally in search of explanation. Her friend settled down in one of the empty seats first, Lelouch by her side; they faced the two Japanese, now a little more relaxed than when there were six of them.

"Is this some sort of weapon you developed?" Kirihara guessed. "I can only think of it as mind control, no matter how ridiculous the notion. What is more, you refrained from using it on me. Why is that?"

He did not even ask about Kaguya, they all knew why she was spared whatever this was.

Lelouch inclined his head at the elder, perfectly willing to explain: "Were it up to me, I would have used it on everyone. Nunnally made the call to leave the both of you unaffected, but I understand her reasoning. Despite the madness we came to propose, you both agreed to support us. You were willing to bet everything on us, so it is only fair that we bet everything on you in turn."

He left a pause there, the severity in his tone completely at odds with the words he spoke. Kaguya felt a little lighter, knowing that he meant her and her mentor no harm. But the prospect of what just happened still scared her.

Lelouch thankfully explained that next: "This power you witnessed is the reason we decided to take the gamble. It is known as Geass and manifests as an ability that interacts with the human mind, though the specifics vary per person."

His voice had something soothing to it. She could hardly deny what she witnessed, either. Kaguya slowly regained her composure as her mind reengaged the situation properly; she still left her mentor to cover for her a while longer, though. Kaguya rather searched her best friend's expression. Nunnally shed her previous smile for something more severe to fit the situation.

"Do I understand it correctly that this 'Geass' is indeed mind control?" Kirihara pressed.

"Yes. I can implant any one order in the mind of people whose gaze I meet while my Geass is active."

That was terrifying. But it ignited her curiousity at the same time. "Can you tell us more about it?" Kaguya asked slowly. She imagined a scenario where every single freedom fighter possessed a power like this. Was it possible? "Where does this power come from?"

"C.C. is the one who gave us Geass," Nunnally explained readily, "but she won't grant any more. By what she said, she prefers to focus on one contractor. My getting one was already an exception on her end."

Lelouch nodded to his sister, both of them ignoring Kaguya's soft frown. He took over seamlessly.

"That aside, the only unifying theme about Geass is that they can't affect the physical world directly. C.C. is not forthcoming with details, but she confirmed this much. We only have a sample size of two, but our respective powers are nothing alike. I imagine that different people can have the same or a similar power, but this is not a given."

A moment of silence followed as everyone dwelled on what was said. Kaguya continued to calm down, though an undercurrent of worry still remained. How much of what she did recently was her own will?

"May we inquire what the young lady's ability is?" Kirihara asked then, thoughtful as much as curious. Nunnally nodded in response.

"Peace," she said.

Looking back at her friend, Kaguya noticed a crimson gleam in her eye. Leaning closer, she could tell it took a shape not unlike a bird. She could not feel anything different about herself.

"While in the reach of my Geass, no one is able to hurt another. Neither with deeds nor with words. The only exception is myself."

The gleam faded once more while Kaguya thought hard about what she learned. This was fantastical, but she heard and saw proof now. Part of her wanted such a power for herself, but the rest wanted nothing to do with it.

Kirihara's chuckle disrupted her racing thoughts. "Leave it to Britannians to weaponise even peace itself," he joked.

Nunnally blinked at him, then broke into giggles.

"I didn't even consider it from that angle, Kirihara-san. But you're not wrong," she agreed with good humour, then turned to her brother. "With all that said, I think you should immunise them."

Lelouch cast a look back at her, brow creasing a little further. But he nodded, agreeing to something Kaguya was not sure she understood the meaning of.

She looked between the pair. Nunnally seemed almost expectant for some reason.

"What's with that look?"

"See?" she answered. "I told you you won't remember."

Kaguya's gaze wandered from Nunnally to Lelouch, who now bore that same crimson shape gleaming in his eye. A shudder ran down her back and Kaguya unconciously leaned away from him.

"W-What did you make me do?"

Be it her faint tone or her posture, Lelouch heaved the faintest sigh. Then he repeated the same motion he did earlier, rubbing his forehead. Only now Kaguya spotted how he applied a contact lense, putting it on with such ease he must have practiced.

"I ordered both you and Kirihara-san to not reveal anything about our Geass to anyone who isn't already aware," he then explained. "A safety precaution more than anything, but as we explained, it also immunises you. My Geass only works once per person."

"O-Oh. I see."

Her heartbeat slowed down a little. Kaguya felt she should be more wary, but this was Nunnally and Lelouch. She trusted them not to lie about that, not after they already told them so much. It would have been easy for them to just force the matter if they wanted. Even if being unable to remember that part of the conversation bothered Kaguya, she still began to relax.

Nobody died, the plan was agreed on, and more. And after how her contemporaries acted, she could not even find it in herself to be upset on their behalf.

She still had trouble fathoming the extent of these Geass, but she clearly saw their potential. If Lelouch could get close to Britannian nobility, he could get them all under his sway; there was nothing they could do about it. And unlike her contemporaries, Kaguya did not feel a moment's worth of sadness for these people.

A bloodless revolution of Britannian core values no longer seemed impossible, just a major undertaking. It might take years to achieve, but now she knew that it would work in the end.

"How do you plan to proceed?" Kirihara asked curiously. His voice shattered the renewed silence, drawing smiles from both siblings. They were anything but kind.

"Kyoto House's cooperation was the final condition we needed to clear," Lelouch admitted. "We will notify you of our next steps soon."

So saying, he stood. Everyone else followed his lead, then Lelouch shook hands with Kirihara and Kaguya.

"For better or worse, the two of you are our accomplices now. We will drag this world into the future, kicking and screaming if we must."

To Kaguya, those words were the most cynically hopeful she ever heard. Yet she never believed in success more than in this very moment.