As Some of you might have guessed, I'm under the compulsion of a Geass-Fic streak.

Do not attempt to undermine it, or FF-sama will be angry.

CC: I feel slighted.

Lelouch: Deal with it, witch, or no pizza.

CC: I'll be good.

Chapter Five: Cornelia and Euphemia.

“Did you see that?!” Rivalz exclaimed, the blue haired schoolboy sounding oddly excited despite the scandal that had just occurred live on international television “That Zero guy’s something else!”

“Do you really think he killed Prince Clovis?” Nina wondered, the xenophobic girl sounding terrified at the very idea as she watched the riot unfold as Lord Jeremiah did everything he could to let the convicts escape, despite the bids of his men to see reason.

“If that’s the case…” Shirley wondered, looking at the screen in abject confusion as the camera zoomed in on Zero holding the rescued Suzaku “why didn’t he just let that ‘Eleven’ take the blame?”

“Oh I can think of a reason why…” Milly noted, her tone suggestive as she hugged herself, a coy smile on her lips “Didn’t you see the way he embraced Kururugi on the bridge? The way he cupped his cheek?” She sighed, twisting as she hugged herself “Ah the lengths one goes to protect their lover…”

“MADAM PRESIDENT!” Shirley yelped, her face blushing as Rivalz turned a sickening shade of green, poor Nina fainting dead away as the secretary tossed his cookies “You have to stop saying thing’s like that!”

In the abandoned warehouse, Lelouch, still wearing his Zero mask, and Suzaku both sneezed, muttering a prayer against evil spirits, as the latter went to turn himself back over to the authorities, though he left on better terms than he had the first time he’d met Zero.

After making their escape, Zero had Ohgi meet up with them at the Shinjuku ghetto, where the other rebels had gathered to congratulate them on their rescue. Some of them, notably Tamaki, were questioning Zero’s methods, whereas others were making suggestions about having Suzaku join up with them.

Zero, surprisingly, informed them that he didn’t rescue the warrant office to make him enlist with them, something that surprised more than a few, most notably Suzaku, before leading the pilot into the back of the ruined warehouse to speak in private.

“Kururugi.” Lelouch called out, pausing the teen in his tracks, lights glinting off the Zero mask on his head “Despite my words back there, I would make it clear that any offer to join me is an open one.” He held his hand out to the brown haired teen “My opponent is the corruption that holds Britannia, not the people it affects, surely you can see the reason in fighting against it?”

“I cannot approve of terrorism.” Suzaku insisted, the honorary Britannian looking back at the man who saved him with a neutral expression “However, if there truly is corruption, then I’ll fight it from within.”

“Then Godspeed, Kururugi Suzaku.” Lelouch offered, smiling sadly at his friends self-sacrificing attitude “But know this, should you ever require my help…”

Suzaku nodded, offering a slight bow to the man, before walking back towards the city, to face both the tribunal, and his peers.

“You sure we should just let him go?” Kallen asked, the redhead coming out of the shadows from where she had been hiding, listening to the coversation “I mean, he might report us to the authorities.”

“There wasn’t enough light for him to discern anyone’s features.” Lelouch, or rather, Zero assured the girl, watching Kururugi go from atop the rubble “And besides, in that get-up he’d be hard placed to identify you.”

“True…” Kallen admitted, looking unconvinced as she slipped out of the chauffeurs jacket to reveal her usual rebel outfit underneath, sighing in relief as she dropped the stuffy uniform to the floor “Man this thing’s stifling…”

“It suited you though.” Zero noted, Kallen looking up at the masked revolutionary in confusion “You look wonderful in a uniform.”

“Q-Quit it!” Kallen stammered, turning her head to the side in embarrassment to hide her glowing flush “I only put it on ‘cause you told me to! Ohgi could’ve-!”

“You were the only one that would have fit in the chauffeurs uniform.” Zero corrected her, nodding towards the white jacket and pants “Clovis was VERY particular that his personal chauffeur be a woman.”

“Sexist pig…” Kallen muttered, hoping that wherever the prince was, he was suffering, only to blink as Zero swooped down, touching down before her in a crouch, before rising and placing a hand on her cheek.

“You did very well today, Kallen.” The revolutionary applauded, approval in his tone, Kallen’s shocked features reflecting on his mask “I knew having you with me was the best decision.”

Kallen blushed and looked away, mortified beyond belief, only for Zero to turn, cloak billowing dramatically, and walk off into the night.

“Get your rest, Kallen.” The Revolutionary ordered, vanishing into the shadows like something out of a dream “The battle has only just begun.”

While all this was going on, a battle of a different sort was winding to a close in what remained of the middle-east.

Witch of Britannia and 2nd princess of the empire, Cornelia Li Britannia, nodded in approval as she stood amongst the flaming ruins of the last rebel stronghold, her men having thoroughly disposed of their imitation Knightmare frames.

“Milady,” Andreas Dalton asked, the scarred knight’s respectful features solemn as they appeared over her communicator, the Knight flanking her along with his partner “About our next course of action.”

“Right,” Cornelia muttered, the purple haired princess sighing apologetically at her trusty servant, an small smile on her face as she tilted her head “sorry to have you clean up after my Younger brother.”

“Not at all your highness,” the man assured her reverently, offering a small bow over the monitor, looking up at his lady with reverence and respect “Your duty is clear, and our place is with you.”

“Good to know.” Cornelia admitted, a smile touching her purple lips as she inclined her head at Dalton's sign of loyalty, not that it was ever in question “Do you think Area 11 requires our usual treatment?”

“But of course, Milady.”

Cornelia nodded, a scowl marring her regal features as she recalled the recording from the international broadcast, where her brother’s killer had played them all like fools.

‘I’ll drive you out into the open…Zero!’

“You’re tense.” C.C noted, the immortal witch lying with her breasts pressed against Lelouch’s back as he rested, her cool hands tracing the contours of his spine “Things not going to plan?”

“On the contrary.” Lelouch noted, smiling tiredly as he lay beneath the sheets, naked from the waist up “It’s going exactly according to schedule. Cornelia and her forces should be arriving any day now.”

“Euphemia too.” C.C noted, frowning as Lelouch flinched, her fingers sensing as his back muscles tightened at the mention of his step-sister, who he'd unwillingly murdered in his previous life, to cover up his own mistake “It wasn’t your fault.”

“I won’t make the same mistake twice.” Lelouch vowed, his eyes hardening as he sat up in bed, the former emperor covering his permanent Geass with a scowl as he spoke “Never again.”

C.C nodded, understanding the reason for Lelouch’s discomfort, before sitting up and embracing him from behind “By the way, doesn’t Suzaku enroll here tomorrow?”

“Indeed.” Lelouch noted, his scowl replaced with a smirk as he recalled how the honorary Britannian’s arrival had sparked discomfort with the sheltered Ashford students “I’ll have to remember the cover story.”

“You eye was injured during the Shinjuku incident.” C.C recited, the immortal witch shaking her head with a bemused smile at the sheer...simplicity of it all “Pretty simple for a strategist like you.”

“Sometimes the simple approach is the better one.” Lelouch noted, “Plus, it ties in with the story I told Rivalz and the others earlier.”

Kururugi Suzaku sighed as he walked down the corridors of the prestigious Ashford Academy, a school reserved solely for the ‘privileged’ offspring of Britannia. To his knowledge, he was the first ‘Eleven’ to ever enroll here, and judging from the reactions he was getting from his peers, they weren’t to happy about it.

Of course, being recently acquitted of the charges of murdering a prince did nothing about the scandal itself. Rumors like that tended to stick, regardless of WHAT the media tried.

‘Like that Zero guy…’ the pilot muttered, frowning as he recalled the masked, charismatic man that had swooped in, taken the crowd hostage without their knowledge, and claimed responsibility for Clovis’ death before the world ‘What could he have possibly gained from rescuing me?’

That was something that to this minute, bugged the living hell out of Suzaku. He’d never aligned himself with any of the Japanese resistance cells, hell he’d been disowned from his family because of it, so why did this obvious revolutionary rescue him? Was he an emissary from the Kururugi family?

‘One thing’s for certain.’ The liberated pilot noted, a slight blush coming to his cheeks as he recalled his odd encounter the other day ‘I wouldn’t have met Princess Euphemia if it weren’t for him.’

“Lelouch!” a blue haired teen greeted, Suzaku looking up in surprise, his eyes widening at the sight of his childhood friend chatting with said teen, the honorary Britannian’s gaze flicking temporarily to the medical patch over his friend’s eye.

‘Did he get that during the incident with the girl?’ he wondered, a wave of guilt washing over him, recalling how he’d been unable to protect his friend back in the ghetto ‘And that girl…does he know where she-?!’

Lelouch turned, their eyes meeting for a second, warm green gazing into charismatic purple, before the dark haired teen turned, tugging at his collar as he walked out the door.

‘That’s-!’ Suzaku gaped, waiting a few seconds before making his way out of the class, following the clearly marked signs towards the roof, where a smiling Lelouch awaited him.

“It’s been seven years since we used this signal.” Lelouch noted fondly, leaning against the railing, tugging at the collar of his jacket for emphasis, as a solemn faced Suzaku walked up to him “Long time no see.”

“Yeah.” Suzaku agreed with a gentle smile, only to flinch as his eyes flicked of their own accord towards the medical patch on Lelouch’s left eye “Did that…” he began, trailing off, not knowing how best to broach the topic.

“Hmm? Oh…” Lelouch muttered raising a hand to his face “I injured my eye getting out of the ghetto, fortunately the rebels weren’t after civilians and got me out before the fighting went down.”

“The rebels helped you?” Suzaku exclaimed, eyes widening in surprise, as thus far he’d never heard of rebels helping Britannian citizens with anything, except maybe burial detail “They didn’t know about…?”

“I doubt I’d have made it out of there alive if they did.” Lelouch assured him honestly, Suzaku having been one of the select few, outside the Ashfords, to know he was in fact a prince of the empire in this lifetime “They certainly gave Clovis what for.”

“I’m sorry.” Suzaku offered, his face growing solemn once again as he looked upon the deposed prince sadly, unable to imagine what the teen had to be going through right now “I know it must be hard…”

“Not really.” Lelouch muttered, earning a look of surprise from his friend “I told you years ago, I HATE my family and what they’ve become. Clovis was a coward and a bully, high on his rank and prestige and drunk on power.” He looked out over the campus, his gaze lidded “The world’s better off without him.”

“How can you say that? He was your flesh and blood!” Suzaku explained, planting himself before the teen with a look of disbelief, his arms spread wide “You may have had your differences-!”

“They covered up my mother’s MURDER, Suzaku.” Lelouch pointed out, cutting the teen off in mid-rant “Swept it under the carpet with nary a thought. Clovis may not have pulled the trigger, but I’ll bet by life he was in on it.” He sighed dramatically “It’s moot now…how’re your injuries?”

“Huh? Oh!” Suzaku exclaimed, recalling how he’d been shot in the back “It’s nothing,” he assured the teen, “say what you will, Britannian medical science is the best.” His face turned solemn “On the subject, what about the girl?”

“She went with the rebels.” Lelouch informed him, knowing that if Suzaku DID bump into C.C, it’d most likely be in the company of Zero “Apparently they rescued her from some experiment Clovis’ scientists were putting her through.”

“Prince Clovis?” Suzaku exclaimed, the Honorary Britannian and pilot of the experimental Lancelot looking stunned at this unexpected revelation “But…surely he wouldn’t…something like that…”

“Britannia isn’t the nation you think it is, Suzaku.” Lelouch muttered, putting on a jaded expression as he leant against the railing “I know first hand…they’ll do anything to get what they want.” He looked the teen over “Are you still in the military?”

“Yes.” Suzaku admitted, his stance and features firming as he stood straighter, as if challenging his childhood friend to question his decision “I really think I can make a difference from the inside.”

“Be careful.” Lelouch warned him, his visible eye narrowing for emphasis as he looked into his friend's green ones, features dour “you’ve seen how dirty these people play…I don’t want Nunnally to cry again.”

“Nunnally…” Suzaku whispered, the Honorary Britannian recalling the gentle, blinded girl that he and Lelouch had doted on in the past, looking up at her elder brother in concern “How is she?”

“Missing you.” Lelouch admitted, smiling at the green eyed teen as he spoke “C’mon, I think it’d do her good to see you again.”

Euphemia sighed, looking up at the numerous paintings that her late brother, Clovis, had painted during the course of his tenure as Viceroy of Area 11, or Japan she mentally corrected herself.

Unlike most of the royals, Euphemia was an oddity in that she refused to refer to the colonies by their numbers, instead making it a point to refer to them, and the locals, by their original nationality. She believed it was the least she could do to maintain their humanity.

‘Clovis…’ she murmured, sighing sadly as she recalled her pompous, flamboyant, but nonetheless loving elder brother. The Royal family might have their faults, but there was a degree of love and affection between them that spoke of loyalty, at least as far as the princes and princesses were concerned.

The less said about Charles, the emperor, and his distant approach to parenting the better.

Her eyes happened upon one picture in particular, that of the Emperor’s fifth wife, and her two children, her Step-siblings that had been lost during the initial phases of the colonization of Japan. One of the reasons Clovis had transferred here was because he wanted to look for traces of the two, for disgraced or not, blood was blood.

‘And now he’s gone…’ the pink haired princess murmured, a hand going to her heart as she gazed up at the smiling faces of her step-brother and sister, “Lelouch…Nunnally…”

“Arthur…” Lelouch muttered, smirking as he held the struggling cat up by it’s collar, removing his purloined Zero Helmet in the process “I don’t think we need you raising hell like last time.” He shot C.C a look “Why didn’t you try to stop him?”

“I didn’t last time and it worked out alright.” C.C pointed out, smiling around a mouthful of pizza as Zero let the feline go, the cat racing off round the corner “It certainly helped to put Suzaku in everyone’s good graces.”

“I can handle that just fine without embarrassing myself in public.” Lelouch muttered, recalling how the masked feline had led him on a merry chase around campus, forcing him to use his Geass on anyone that grew suspicious “I’ve already arranged for Milly to have a ‘welcoming party’ thrown for him.”

“How’d you arrange that?” C.C asked, quirking an eyebrow as she detected the faint scent of perfume on the air.

“It seems the President really DOES have a thing for eye-patches.” Lelouch chuckled, recalling how he’d left the grinning, flushed woman leaning against a window, fixing her blazer buttons “I suggested a ‘pirate theme’ costume ball and she snapped it up.”

“Planning to run off with a wench or two?” C.C teased, smirking up at the former emperor in coy amusement as she reclined against his sofa, Pizza in hand like a cocktail “Kaguya would certainly approve…”

“She always claimed she had no problems with me being ‘manly’ with other women.” Lelouch snorted, rifling through his closet for his pre-prepared costume “What can be manlier than a pirate?”

“A Toga party?” C.C suggested, smirking as Lelouch gaped at her in shock “Mmm yes…I’d like that…all those limer teenage boys in scantily revealing silk towels...”

“Witch.”

Kallen grimaced, wondering once again why she’d allowed herself to be roped into this as she marched around, dressed up like some sort of ‘Black Kat’ wannabe, feeling distinctly out of place with her ruffled shirt, breeches and jauntily posed tri-point hat. Bad enough the shirt had apparently been tailored to fit, but the fact the breeches hugged her hips made her REALLY insecure. Just how had the Council President gotten a hold of her measurements?

“Hello, Kallen.” A familiar voice greeted, the redhead whipping round to gape at the sight of Lelouch, decked out in an outfit that looked like something out of a swashbuckler movie. He even had a novelty parrot on his shoulder “You look great.”

“T-thanks…” Kallen stammered, trying VERY hard not to look at the vice-president’s shirt, which was open at the collar, giving her a pretty good look at his oh-so tasty neckline “What’s with the parrot?”

“Oh, Nunnally thought it was cute.” Lelouch admitted with a chuckle, tickling under the thing’s beak, Kallen’s eyes widening as she realized it was moving “It belongs to the drama society though, so I have to give it back.”

“Rawk! Pieces of eight!” the feathery automaton squawked, it’s voice a passable recording, but not much else “Rawk! Gimme me booty! PEEWEE!”

“Cheeky little thing…” Milly noted with approval, the class president sauntering up in a bodice blouse and leggings that drew everyone’s stares, straight or otherwise “Good going First-Mate Lelouch.”

“Couldn’t let you down, could I Cap'n?” the patch-sporting vice-president smiled, causing the Ashford air to flush slightly as he offered her a saucy wink “This part WAS my suggestion after all.”

“Lelouch!” Rivalz greeted, swooping in on the gathering, dressed in a ‘Sinbad’ motif, complete with red bandanna over his head and a scimitar tucked into his waist-sash “Great party! This is so much better than the cross-dresser’s ball!”

“The WHAT?!” Kallen stammered, the redhead looking around at the assembled group in alarm, wondering, or perhaps it was more accurate to say praying, that she’d somehow heard the secretary wrong.

“It was kind of fun actually.” Shirley admitted, walking up to the group in a ruffled coat and breeches, looking embarrassed even as she said it, "they guys all wore ball gowns and stuff from old movies and the girls wore tuxes.

“Lelouch was the bell of the ball.” Milly teased, winking suggestively at her long-time friend and vice president as Kallen gaped at him in astonishment “Why he looked absolutely perfect in that gown we made for him.”

“I’d rather not say.” Lelouch chuckled, winking coyly at the flushing Kallen, before turning his attention to Milly and Shirley “Though YOU two cleaned up nicely, I don’t think I’ve seen anyone look so desirable in a pair of pants before.”

Shirley stammered something incomprehensible, while the Milly smirked, the shameless Ashford giving her friend a stage bow, while the orangette leant on a startled Nina, the bespectacled girl decked out like a cabin boy.

“Lelouch!” Nunnally greeted, the blind angel rolling up to themin her mpotoized chair, decked out in a lovely gown that reminded a fair few of Keira Knightly’s character “Look who I found!”

“Suzaku! Glad you could make it.” Lelouch greeted, the elder Lamperouge smiling at the nervous brunette, who was fidgeting with the collar of his Royal Navy uniform, looking disticnly uncomfortable “You look good.”

“I think there’s something in the jacket.” Suzaku muttered, the Honorary Britannian fidgeting nervously as he tried to adjust the collar of his ruffled shirt without wrinkling it “It keeps hitching up in the back.”

“Sorry,” Milly offered, though truth be told she didn't sounding very apologetic at all, if anything she looked like she planned this “You and Lelouch looked about the same size, I didn’t think your shoulders would be broader.”

“It’s not like you to make mistakes, madam president.” Lelouch opined, filing away the comment for later use, as he’d always been a little jealous of Suzaku’s superior physical condition, smiling coyly up at the confused blonde “And are you saying I’m…deficient? Why I might have to have a few words with you about that.”

‘Lelouch’s really changed over the years.’ Was Suzaku’s only thought, as he watched the formerly sheltered boy flirt with the older teen.

Unbeknownst to Suzaku, two pairs of eyes were watching the obvious act of flirting with hints of anger and jealousy, part of them wanting to stop it, the rest wishing it was THEM the surprisingly bold teen was chatting up.

“Sister.” Euphemia greeted, the pink haired princess smiling gently as her elder sister walked towards her, flanked by her knights, her spiked, shell-like mantle adorning her shoulders like a crown “How was the trip?”

“Uneventful.” Cornelia shrugged, the elder princess smiling at the pinkette as they drew closer, coming to a halt with a mock-serious frown “And I thought I told you to refer to me as Viceroy while we’re in public.”

“Sorry.” Euphemia giggled, knowing that her sister wasn’t used to acts of affection in front of her men. Even Dalton, her most trusted Knight, had never seen the ‘Witch of Britannia’ let her guard down fully.

“In any case, we won’t have time to reminisce for a while.” Cornelia explained, her eyes turning hard as she glared out at the city behind them “I’m going to be busy dragging Zero out from hiding!”

Euphemia winced, one part of her, the part that hurt from losing Clovis, fully supporting her sisters desire to bring his killer to justice. The other, the part that hated violence regardless of the results and needs, wishing that there was a better way to go about things.

‘Zero…’ she murmured, recalling the masked vigilante that had sparked such an upheaval in her family, as no one had ever dared oppose Britannia in such a fashion ‘What are you trying to achieve?’

And so the Goddess of Victory and the Princess of Peace arrive on the scene.

How will Lelouch approach the situation, armed with his memories of the future, and the tragedies that await?

Will the Massacre Princess rise again? Or has the Demon Emperor yet another hand to play?

Tune in next time to find out.

You-All-Knew-This-Was-coming-OMAKE

Kallen grimaced, wondering once again why she’d allowed herself to be roped into this as she marched around, dressed up like some sort of ‘Black Kat’ wannabe, feeling distinctly out of place with her ruffled shirt, breeches and jauntily posed tri-point hat. Bad enough the shirt had apparently been tailored to fit, but the fact the breeches hugged her hips made her REALLY insecure. Just how had the Council President gotten a hold of her measurements?

Of course, that paled in comparison to the sheer lengths to which the Student council had gone to make this 'Pirate Theme' welcome party go off without a hitch.

Addmittedly, she'd thought the giant, rennovated galleon that the Class President had chartered for the occasion was badass, almost regal with it's dark, oaken hull and sails, like a deposed queen. And the waiters were something else, they'd even coloured their teeth and dirtied themselves up to give them that scurvy, weeks without bathing look, though that weird one that kept losing his glass eye had been kind of disturbing, Kallen actually having to pluck the thin out of her drink once.

"Kallen!" a voice called out, the Redhead looking over the side, her eyes bulging out of her head as she espied Lelouch, dressed up in an outfit from a swashbuckler movie, riding up to the ship with Nunnally atop a pair of sea turtles, the girl giggling as she dipped her toes in the water "Want a ride?"

"Did someone spike the punch?" the redhead muttered, looking suspiciously at her tankard, they'd even used authentic tin ones instead of glasses, before shooting a suspicious glare towards the bald waiter that had greeted her as 'poppet' when she'd handed in her inviation, the man trying to look innocent as he tucked a bottle of rum he'd been pouring into the punch behind his back, the 'Captain' of the chartered vessel, who'd been camping out in front of it, pausing in his quaffing of the drink to step subtly in front of the bowl, as if to shield it from the redhead.

R&R or Kallen will burn the rum!

Jack: FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! WHY ALWAYS THE RUM!

No watered down alcoholic beverages were harmed in the making of the omake.

Jack: Oh thank god...

Unless you don't review.

Jack:...(Finger motions...like a bird...)Right...I'll get on that...(Scarpers)