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Story: Yes, it's one of those, Lelouch starts plotting early. There will be some elements from canon but it will be different. And of course, no Geass, that alone changes some things.

Updates: Will be slow. It's another major project and my focus will be on my main story. So… you've been warned.

Pairing: Please don't pressure me about that. There may or may not be pairings. This is a story that concentrates on the plot and with these kind of stories eventual pairings reveal themselves to me during writing.

Beta: I'm contemplating getting a beta for this one. If you're interested in the job write me a PM and we'll see if it would work. ;-)

Chapter: My first chapters seem to have a tendency to be shorter. Nonetheless, ENJOY!

Thanks: To EmperorLelouch7! Thanks for listening to me fretting about this chapter/story!

Word Count: 5.066

Published: 2017-06-08

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Chapter one: The Past, the Present and the Future

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The past, 2009 a.t.b.

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Marianne vi Britannia, 5th imperial consort, was walking through the gardens of the Aries Villa enjoying the view. She was alone, safe for one guard following her at a slight distance. It was at these occasions were she sorely missed being a knight, not having a lot to do.

Not that she didn't love her two children and did everything she could to protect them and raise them well but sometimes she got nostalgic, remembering the fights and battles she had participated in and how much she had loved it. Now she only sparely took the Ganymede out, the last time to chase away one of the other consorts, which always brought a vindictive smile to her face when she remembered it.

This life was sometimes not as easy as a life as a soldier or knight. She would love nothing more than to really get back at all the other wives but had to hold back as it would not be fitting behaviour for an Empress. She did what she could to protect her children from the harsh words of the court but she couldn't always be there and thankfully her reputation was enough to make them cautions.

Not only were they ridiculed because of her own common birth but there was also a lot of jealousy involved. Many knew that her marriage to Charles was more out of love than any other and many called her 'the favourite wife'. That was one reason, another was one of her precious children. Lelouch.

She really loved Lelouch, he was such a bright child. A genius, a prodigy. She had never known how she would fare with children, not being around any before she got pregnant and only ever knowing war and fighting. When Lelouch came she had instantly lost her heart to him, black hair and deep violet eyes he was the perfect embodiment of her and Charles. As the years went by and Lelouch grew, it only became more apparent what a special child he was.

Taking to the teachings of the court without a problem and absorbing the knowledge his tutors taught him like a sponge absorbed water. He was extraordinary and even more so to her. She loved her little girl dearly but Lelouch held a special place in her heart.

He had inherited the deep purple eyecolour of his father, the only one of his children until now and was vastly intelligent. It was the opinion of many that he would be a fairly likely candidate to be named heir when he was grown up and that made him all the more dear to her. Not only was he her first-born but already he was outstanding and seen as a likely candidate for the throne and she was proud. Proud of him and of herself, for giving her husband such a gifted son.

It was that which brought even more contempt from the others. All children were required to take certain lessons and were watched for special talents to further nurture. Lelouchs was most certainly his mind. Being able to retain information fairly easy, an affinity for numbers and already quite accomplished at chess, a game that every imperial child learned. The last time Charles visited, they had played a game and Lelouch was able to last for quite some time against his father and when they were alone he had commented on it to her. Charles too saw how gifted her son was and was clearly proud of him, telling her that only Schneizel had ever been able to last this long against him in a match.

Lelouch was certainly aware of all this and thankfully also enjoyed the game and she saw him often playing against himself and asking whoever came to visit for a match, sometimes even getting the guards to play him, charming child that he was. He was always trying to improve himself.

If she wasn't careful he would spent his days in the library but thankfully Nunnally was always able to get him to play with her and she enjoyed seeing him running around the gardens with her, playing like the child he still was. She wanted him to learn and to get even better but she also wanted him to be able to enjoy life as a child.

Some other wives guarded their children to a ridiculous degree, not allowing them to feel free, making sure they always acted fitting of their station. It was why sweet Euphemia came so often, enjoying being allowed to run around and maybe even get dirty in the grass when they rolled around like the silly kids they were.

After she heard that her mother Victoria li Britannia had scolded her fiercely for getting her dress dirty, she bought some comfortable dresses and the little girl would change clothes the moment she arrived. Whenever she saw the state of the dress after Euphemia left she couldn't help but smile, satisfied in her knowledge that she had done something against one of the other consorts, small as it may be.

But she too enforced the time schedule of her children, not allowing them to skip lessons and to try and do well in all of them, not only the ones they liked more. She had more difficulties with Nunnally in that regard but Lelouch wasn't to keen on some things too. He enjoyed the obligatory fencing lessons but anything else that required physical activity he tried to get out of. She had increased his fencing lessons but still tried to get him interested in other things, she wouldn't allow her son to hide himself away with his books.

In this quest to get him interested in other things she had recently taken him with her for a ride in the Ganymede. Ruben Ashford had been quite nice to Lelouch telling him grand stories of the fights of his mother and how well respected she still was for her accomplishments as a knight.

Her boy had been quite thoughtful the next days before coming to her and saying he wanted to learn more about Knightmares and piloting, wanting to be more like her. If it would have been possible she would have loved him even more for saying that. But she had countered him still.

"Lelouch, I am honoured that you say something like that. But never forget, you are your own person. You have talents I have not and should not cast them aside to try to be someone you are not. I will happily teach you more but promise me that you will still do the things you enjoy and do the lessons required of you to the best of your ability. If you do that, I promise to teach you."

He had promised and she had had no further problems to get him to attend his lessons and she was ecstatic with that achievement. She would make sure he had a rounded education. At the moment there were two other children that stood out from the masses.

One was of course Schneizel el Britannia, second son of Charles, but already the more apparent heir than Odysseus. His mother had done the Crown Prince no good, hiding him away and not making sure that he grew up strong, if she had thought that his birth would give him more rights or if she just was a bad Empress in not seeing to his education properly, she didn't know.

Schneizel on the other hand was more like Charles and Lelouch. Intelligent and hard-working and most definitely more like a Prince of Britannia should be. He had taken an interest in politics and was already working his way up and learning the governing of an empire. Additional he too was quite accomplished at chess and Charles had told her that, beside Lelouch, he was the only one of his children that could last some time against him.

The second most likely candidate was Cornelia, who had decided to take the military route. Finishing the Royal Military School with high marks she was now working in her own guard, also wanting to learn from her and took her duties very seriously and was an exceptionally good Knightmare pilot. She held no doubt that Cornelia would go far in the army. She enjoyed teaching her as Cornelia took to these matters easily even if her sometimes star-struck behaviour was bothersome.

That was another reason why she was so glad that Lelouch wanted to learn the fine art of piloting. Even if he had no natural talent for it she would make sure that he became an accomplished pilot nonetheless, skilled enough to at least hold his own against most opponents. If he could hold onto his dedication she was sure that he would do well in a Knightmare. This way he would combine the talents of Schneizel and Cornelia, proving himself better and taking him one step closer to be announced first heir.

A look at the time made her realise that she was nearly late and her musings had taken up quite some time. She hurried up her steps a bit which took her inside the villa and straight towards the library. Jeremiah Gottwald was standing guard and bowed to her before he opened the door for her. She nodded in thanks to him and gave him a small smile before entering.

The high windows gave light to the grand room filled with bookshelves and various seating places scattered around. She went to the back of the room and found her son exactly where she had predicted. He had again forsaken any of the armchairs or settees, sitting himself in the windowsill with some cushions. He looked quite comfortable and she stopped and observed him for a moment.

He had forsaken his jacket and cravat on a nearby chair and was reclining back at the wall while the book was propped up against his legs and she knew that he would occasionally look up and out the window to enjoy the view of the garden before going back to reading, that was why it was his favourite spot to sit in. He also always knew when he was able to do it, well aware when visitors were expected and he had to sit and behave appropriately.

Due to her background as commoner his behaviour was under even more scrutiny than that of his half-siblings and she was glad that he understood that and took care to always follow protocol when not alone or with people that could be trusted.

A reason why she had made sure that most guards where loyal to her first and foremost and would not gossip to others about her children. She knew that if someone unannounced would come to the villa he was quite accomplished in quickly straightening the library and taking up the role of a prince once again.

She walked up to him and he marked the page before looking up to her, a small smile on his lips and love in his eyes. Her precious son.

"Good day, mother."

"Hello son. You should make yourself ready, if you don't leave soon you will be late for your meeting with your brother Schneizel. Jeremiah is waiting outside, he will accompany you for this visit."

"Thank you. I'll make sure to be on time." He entangled himself from his place and put the cushions back to their rightful places.

"Don't forget that Cornelia will bring Euphemia with her when she starts her duty later. You promised to play with her and Nunnally."

"Of course. I will be back before that and keep the promise. Like always." He smiled back at her while slipping into his white jacket and arranging the purple cravat. She stepped closer adjusting it herself and stroking through his hair.

"You're a good boy. Now go and have fun."

"I'm not sure about the fun part but I will definitely enjoy my time with Schneizel. Sadly I still haven't been able to beat him at chess but I'm always learning something when playing him and one day I might succeed." They walked towards the door and she couldn't help the pride she was feeling at his calm demeanour when faced with continuous losses against his older brother.

She had more than once witnessed his brother Clovis throwing the chess board through the room in anger of once again being beaten by his younger brother. Even in a private setting this most definitely was not something he should do, especially as she knew that if Lelouch did the same Clovis would not be able to keep it secret and in a short time the whole court would know of it.

Still Clovis came back again and again, not accepting of the fact that his younger sibling could beat him at chess this easily. She didn't know why, if it was the playful banter the two of them exchanged during the match or his inability to accept defeat.

She had used these instances to teach some things to Lelouch.

Trying again and again without preparing better would lead to failure. Clovis spent more time bettering his skills in arts than improving his strategy. Not that that was a bad thing, he should do what he enjoyed the most but without a plan he would never be able to defeat her son.

Keep a calm mind. One of Clovis' biggest issues was that the moment his defeat became clearer he abandoned common sense and let his emotions rule him. She knew from experience that that could cost you your life on the battlefield.

Lelouch had accepted these lessons despite his fondness for his half-brother, seeing for himself the truths of them when playing against him. She wasn't sure how those two were able to accept each other as vastly different as they were.

But Clovis came back regularly despite his many losses. Sometimes just to enjoy the exceptionally beauty of the gardens, sitting with Lelouch while he read and trying to capture the nature around him with paint. In this department at least Clovis far outshone Lelouch who couldn't draw for the life of him, but she didn't mind.

But she should come back to the present and her son that was waiting patiently for an answer.

"I'm sure you will. He has a few more years of experience, don't forget that fact. Remember to stay calm and accept defeat with dignity."

"I will mother. Thank you for your advice."

She stopped him before the door, crouching down to be on eye-level with him.

"I am proud of you my dear, never forget that."

He gave her a brilliant smile full of emotions, reserved only for her and Nunnally before he leant over, kissing her cheek and then turning and leaving the library while settling his face into a calm mask. She heard Jeremiah greeting her son before their footsteps faded away and she rose up again.

She left the room herself and wandered to a different part of the villa, ordering her guard to wait at the door before she entered a set of rooms where no one but herself was allowed to enter at the moment.

She had been asked to take a small girl under her care and teach her but she had not anticipated that it would be this difficult. Anya Alstreim had lost her family some time ago and now was old enough to start her teachings. She didn't know who had raised her since she lost her parents but they had done a poor job of helping her overcome the tragedy that had befallen her.

Anya had been completely overwhelmed by everything when she arrived, scared of her own shadow and quite mistrusting of a helping hand. It was why she never left her set of rooms and she was the only one dealing with her beside a maid that brought her food and cleaned the room.

After weeks of working with her she had finally been able to get somewhere and Anya was now more open with her and also the maid from what she heard. If she continued on this way she would introduce her to her own children, encouraging her to play like a child should with others her age. Now that the girl trusted her and felt more comfortable she was sure she would be able to befriend her children, Nunnallys kindness would surely help Anya along.

She found Anya already preparing their tea and she noted happily that she didn't flinch when she greeted her and got a small but hesitant smile in return.

"Good day to you too, Lady Marianne. How are you this fine day?"

"I am well, thank you for your consideration. I assume you're feeling good also?"

"Yes. I have prepared the tea, hopefully it is more to your taste this time."

"I am sure you did fine. Let's sit down and enjoy your work, alright?

They settled down around the small table, holding the fine porcelain she had gifted to the girl to make her feel more welcome. She watched as Anya poured their tea with steady hands before handing her a cup with a slight bow and taking her own. She nodded back at her before leaning back and raising the cup to her lips, taking a small sip to test the temperature, happy to see that it had cooled off enough to drink. She drank a bit, testing the flavour before nodding again.

"Very well made, I knew you would learn fast."

She got another smile from the girl who seemingly had forgotten her own tea in happiness, she was sure that they were on the right way. Regular praises even for little things had boosted the confidence of the girl and brought her out of her shell.

When she looked down at her cup again her vision began to swim and she was suddenly feeling light headed. She couldn't hold the tea up any longer as her arms felt heavy. The porcelain was taken out of her hand and when she looked up she was met with an emotionless expression by the same girl who had shyly smiled at her just seconds ago.

She fell back against the back of the couch, reclining back and felt as though her muscles had turned non-existent.

Before her eyes closed she saw not a child but the hard and cold gaze of a killer, drawing out a small dagger. No longer a lone child in need of help but a ruthless assassin that had played her well. In her drug-induced state she had the out of place thought that she should applaud the one behind this scheme before her last thought went to Nunnally who was in her rooms getting a lesson in History and she hoped she would be safe. Safe from this girl who had played with her and tricked her.

She lost her awareness at the same moment she felt cold steel touching her neck and send a last prayer out for her children.

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The present, March 2017 a.t.b.

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Lelouch vi Britannia, currently known as Lelouch Lamperouge was gazing calmly at his current opponent and didn't react to the ridicule aimed his way for his age.

"You invited me to this match. If you don't want to play now that you know my age just say so."

The noble sneered at him, not believing that his associates had recommended this mere boy for a chess match, he should throw him out for his insolence alone! But it would be bad manners to do so after he himself had been the one to give out the invitation and with that thought he moved his first pawn. After all, the money was already on the table and it should be a quick win.

Unknown to him, his opponent was thinking along the same lines.

Lelouch was getting tired of playing against all these arrogant nobles that proved not even the tiniest challenge to him. He played them nonetheless, they payed well and he dearly loved to unburden them of some of their cash and to then use it against them. He could feel Rivalz leaning forward in anticipation of his next move, knowing him well enough by now to recognise the smirk for what it meant. He so enjoyed messing with their heads too.

"You're playing the king? Are you really this foolish boy?" The noble sneered at the smirking teen facing him. What a bad tactic and he had been holding out quite well until now.

"If the king doesn't lead, how can he expect his subordinates to follow?"

The noble scoffed back at that. Youths these days had the most bizarre conceptions about life and no idea how the world really worked. He made his move, trying to end the game quickly to get rid of the insolent brat.

Lelouch had to contain a chuckle, really, they all reacted the same way and he always proved them wrong.

Not ten minutes later he announced 'checkmate', satisfied with the dumbfounded expression before standing up and wandering around the room leisurely, observing the various knick-knacks that were proudly displayed.

"Seems like I have proven myself proficient enough despite my age." He turned around enough to look at the now angry noble. He really should try to keep a better grasp on his emotions, he was far to easy to read. He gazed back down at the obscure sculpture he was standing in front of.

"Don't touch anything boy, lest you break it. These are even more expensive than what we played for."

Despite the warning he gingerly picked it up, turning it this way and the other way, trying to make sense of it, ignoring the sharp intake of breath he could hear from behind him.

"A most interesting piece. I always like to observe the things people display at their home. One can learn a lot about the person owning it if you know what to look for."

He calmly put it back in place the way it was, but with a small addition before moving to the next piece. After examining that one too he turned back and faced the noble once again, leaning back and folding his arms in front of him.

"You should pay up. We young people have to get back to school after all."

Already ten minutes later the two of them were on their way again, to the next match before they had to be back at school. While they were driving towards their next location he checked his phone, he had a new message.

"Did you get a call?"

"No, just a message."

"From Shirley? Has she discovered our absence and is scolding you again for gambling?"

"No. It was nothing of importance."

Not to Rivalz at least. He gazed down at the small screen again, hiding a smile at the message there.

'Running'

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"Whoa! You can't win this, Lelouch."

"We will see. This should be finished in ten minutes."

"Tz, the arrogance of the young nowadays. You have only twenty seconds per move, can you deal with that?"

"Of course, let's settle this then."

Lelouch smiled at the aristocrat before moving the king piece, gaining the same reaction as always. He enjoyed this match quite a bit more as it proved far more challenging due to the tight spot he had to manoeuvre himself out of first. Nevertheless he managed to win in time, enjoying once again the reaction he got. His opponent was so shocked when he announced checkmate that he completely forgot his decorum. Really, nowadays no one was able to keep their wits together.

Rivals whistled at his friend while they were walking back to their ride.

"Well, that was a new record! Congratulations!"

"Aristocrats and nobles are fairly easy to play against when one knows how their average mindset works."

"Still, their pride always makes them pay up nicely."

Before Lelouch could answer they were interrupted by a public announcement and they silently watched it.

Lelouch barley held back his sneer. Osaka again. Those were really becoming bothersome, involving innocents more often than not and never accomplishing anything, true terrorists and a true annoyance. The only thing they were good for was gaining attention and drawing it away from the real deal. But if they continued like that, the other Japanese living there would suffer for the idiocy of a few. He would have to keep a closer eye on them during the next days.

When the broadcast ended Rivalz followed his friend over to his bike and couldn't stop himself from asking, "You're not going to do it?"

"What good would it do these people if we hold a moment of silence or if we spill tears for them. They are dead, they won't care and it won't bring them back."

Rivalz was surprised that Lelouch was letting his darker side show. He had spent enough time with him to know that there was more to him than he showed on campus, proven when he ruthlessly defeated his opponents. It had taken him a long time to get this level of trust from the other and he kept it secret. Lelouch was a great friend who had always been there for him and never judged him.

"That's quite harsh."

"But the truth."

Lelouch knew enough about death to know that no words or moments of silence would help anyone. Also, why would he follow a request to only pray for the eight Britannians that died, fully ignoring the 51 'others' that had also lost their lives. Britannia's hypocrisy at its finest...

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"Really! One moment he speaks harsh truths, the next he tries to play hero, helping people he doesn't even know! He should wait for the ambulance or..."

That was all Lelouch heard of Rivalz grumblings. Really, while they were not really at fault they had still been a factor that made the truck crash. Common people were also only standing around gawking and gossiping, disgusting.

"Hey! Can you hear me?!"

Lelouch inspected the truck, it didn't seem overly damaged but he wasn't getting an answer which could mean that the driver was hurt or even unconscious. Looking around he was glad to find a ladder and climbed up.

"Hey! Are you alright?"

He leant inside, hoping someone would hear him and answer when the truck suddenly drove backwards and he lost his balance, barely managing to make sure he didn't injure himself when he landed.

That didn't look too good for him. Especially when he heard shooting and the Britannian military calling for surrender and a fair hearing at court. Sure, as if anyone would believe that. But that meant that these were most likely terrorists and he wondered who would do such a large scale attack. The truck only contained a strange capsule, no food or other supplies that were usually stolen to then be given to the suffering Japanese in the ghettos.

When he detected movement from the front he quickly moved into the shadows behind the capsule, not wanting to be seen. He was quite surprised to see a young girl walking past him, probably around his age, even more so because she seemed familiar. His surprise turned to shock when she got into a Knightmare and left the truck to give the driver time to escape. They were quite well organised for an unknown group, but he was concerned with her comment about a massacre. What were they up to?

He would have to be careful how to move, a cell like this could prove useful in the future and he would prefer to stay as far away from Britannia's military as possible. But they were clearly driving towards one of the ghettos nearby through the old subway tunnels and he would stand out quite clearly there. He would have to move carefully and judge the situation when they arrived where ever they were heading.

He barely managed to avoid being thrown around inside the truck when it suddenly shook quite badly. An accident perhaps? It stayed calm for a few moments and then the side door suddenly opened and he moved into the shadows beside the door, not knowing what would await outside it was better to first try getting a better picture. He didn't hear much from outside, leading him to believe that this really was not a planned stop and hopefully no one was around.

He heard the running steps the moment he decided to risk a glance outside and had just enough time to dodge a kick aimed at his head, rolling to the side and back into the shadows.

"A Britannian soldier?"

He saw it coming but allowed the soldier to grasp him and press him down to the floor.

-Do not show your abilities if you don't have to. What your opponent doesn't know he can't prepare to fight-

He readied himself. Seemed like he would have to deal with the military instead of trying to not be seen by the inhabitants of the ghetto on his way out.

"Stop the mindless killing! And stealing poison gas on top of that! Even if you try to talk yourself out of that, your presence here..."

Okay, that was enough, he had no intention to hear any more than that. He aimed a slow kick at the soldier and as expected the move was met by the other jumping back a distance and settling into a fighting stance, this allowed him to get back up. Really, what was going on here? Poison gas?

"Condemning others for stealing poison gas while working for the ones who had made it in the first place? What hypocrisy is that?"

He made a quick check of himself before walking further towards the soldier.

"You have a problem with mindless killing!? Then you should fight against Britannia!"

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The future

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"I am Lelouch vi Britannia! I was believed dead but I am very much alive. I have managed to hide all these years…." "….and I hereby stake my claim to the throne and to be declared first heir!"

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