Keeping the Peace

a Code Geass Fanfic by the Grey Company

Code Geass isn't mine, unfortunately

Tokyo Settlement, Japan – Four months after the assassination of Emperor Lelouch:

Kallen sat alone on a park bench near the border of the Tokyo settlement and the former Shinjuku ghetto. It was a Saturday, and as usual, she was frittering away her time going between various malls and shops. She let herself slump, hanging her head down in defeat. Sigh. It's no use. I can't seem to get over it. No matter what I do, my life seems to be empty. I decided to go back to school to give myself a future, but every day just grinds past. Even my visits to my old friends in the black knights seem only routine. What is wrong with me? Am I missing something? Her reverie was broken by the feeling of cloth sweeping over her leg. She looked up to see a gray cloaked man, his face obscured by a white cloth under a wide brimmed straw hat. The outfit seemed more suited to traveling the sunlit countryside than in the relative shadows of the city.

"Kallen Kozuki." The voice was muffled by the cloth over his face, but seemed strangely familiar to her.

"Yeah, that's me. What do you want?"

"I would like to talk to you, someplace more... discreet." The request piqued her interest.

"Alright." Despite her better judgment, she found herself following the masked man. Who is this guy? And why do I feel like I know him from somewhere? Despite her misgivings, She continued to follow him through an ever more winding path into the Shinjuku ghetto. They took a turn at every corner, doubled back, and seemingly went in a circle. Finally, they arrived at their apparent destination, a small alleyway in the nearly finished second sector of the former ghetto. The workers were off duty, and no one was within two blocks, save them.

"Alright, mister, I'm tired of this little chase you've led me on. Let's see who you really are." In a sudden flash, her hand struck out at his hat, pulling it and his cloth off his head. She stepped back in disbelief.

"Well, Miss Kozuki. It has been too long."

"Lelouch..." Kallen began, "but... but, How? Why?"

"I always hated leaving loose ends, and there's still so much yet to do." He smiled at her.

"And besides, I was never truthfully able to give you an answer to your question."

For a few moments she stood stunned. Then, she began to growl, her face contorting with rage. "YOU. LYING. BASTARD!" she punctuated each word with a punch, causing Lelouch to stagger backwards. "YOU PUT ME THROUGH ALL THAT DURING THE REBELLION," She grabbed him by his collar and smashed him against the wall "AND AS EMPEROR," She punched him hard in the gut, causing him to double over, "AND ONLY NOW YOU TELL ME!" She threw him onto the ground, then picked him up again. "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU HAVE THE GUTS TO COME BACK AFTER YOU BROKE MY HEART AND TELL ME THAT YOU WERE LYING!" Lelouch hung limply in her grip. "I... I Can't," Tears began steaming out of her eyes, "Oh, Lelouch." She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, cradling his head in her arms. Weakly at first, she felt him returning the kiss, then stronger, straightening up and taking his weight off Kallen's hands.

Slowly breaking the kiss, she pushed him away from her. He smiled, seemingly unharmed by her previous fusillade. Looking down at his hand she found the blood red mark she had seen seen surrounding his pupil so many times.

"I take it you understand now."

"Yes... I am glad you came back."

"Good. We have a job to do, Q-1" Her old callsign set her on edge, as it had in the past, anticipating another move from her leader. "The current Zero is not the one who killed me."

"WHAT!"

"Small, but not intangible signs from the behavior of the current zero don't match up with my expectations for Suzaku, corresponding with some interesting data I mined out of the system. Of equal significance to this is discovering the whereabouts of Suzaku. I am worried bout him."

"How... When did this happen?"

"He appeared to be doing fine for the first few months as zero, but then something changed. It took me a little bit to notice, but a few things slipped through that were particularly un-suzaku like," he motioned to her to follow him out of the alleyway, redressing the cloth that had hidden his face and once again donning his wide brimmed straw hat. "I did some research and a few other disturbing trends appeared. The paychecks given out by several major government weapons producers well exceed the amount that would be expected given the amount of money being paid by their on-record contracts. A simple mistake revealing otherwise well hidden extra operations. Similarly, many of the reconstruction programs don't appear to be receiving the amount of money they are officially allocated. Thanks to the spy network Diethard set up and seemingly never exposed, I amassed a ton of correlating data that led to the conclusion that someone has plans to start a massive campaign. The only thing that makes sense is a reconquest. The restoration of the Britannian Empire by whoever has taken the guise of Zero, perhaps even more, the creation of a worldwide Britannian Empire." By this time, they were walking through the crowded street.

"Maybe we should continue this talk someplace more secure. My house?"

"That will do fine, Kallen"

Lelouch hung his cloak on the hooks near the door, revealing his old student uniform under it. Kallen led him into the living room, seating him on the sofa before she headed into the kitchen. He took the time to look around. The Kozuki house was a simple apartment, bland in coloration, but allowing in quite a bit of light despite its urban location. The only strange thing was a fire burning in the fireplace in the front of the room, despite it not being particularly cold. Kallen returned from the kitchen with a kettle of water, and hung it on the fireplace.

"This is a nice place you have here." Lelouch commented offhandedly.

"It's plenty for my mother and I." She sat down on the couch next to Lelouch and snuggled under his arm. "Now, I suppose you'll want to get on with that little briefing you were giving me." Lelouch chuckled and smiled down at his knight.

"Yes, perhaps I should." He used his free hand to pull a crumpled piece of paper out of his uniform. "This is a list of people who I told Suzaku to reveal his identity to, just in case it would be used against him. You should be able to trust them. Tomorrow, I'd like you to try to meet up with as many of them as possible and inform them of the situation. However, I would only trust Tohdoh and Chiba with the news that I have returned. The others might not take it so well." Unconsciously, Lelouch began stroking Kallen's side. He continued on talking, not noticing her happily contorting face. "I would talk to Tohdoh first, and then put it to the rest as voicing their concerns rather than my own. I want to get into contact with Tohdoh soon. The only way to solve this without destroying Zero's name is to stage a coup d'état and replace this Zero with myself. It will take some planning, as..." He was interrupted by a sudden outburst of giggling. "What's so funny?"

"You're tickling me!" she exclaimed in between fits of laughing.

"Oh, am I? I didn't notice." he said playfully, as he leaned over her and prepared to tickle her even more.

"Stop it!" she said with a smile on her face as she held his arms away from her sides

"I didn't realize you were so ticklish on your sides." By this time he was laughing too, struggling vainly to get out of her grip.

"Time to turn the tide!" She said as she forced his arms to his side and pinned him against the back of the couch. She then proceeded to slide him under her, reversing their positions from before. "Now, let's find out what weaknesses you have, Lelouch!" She dove into him, both of them giggling like little girls.

They heard the door swing open. Immediately, they both fell silent.

"Kallen?" Her mother's voice was confused as ever, "Why are you on all fours like that?"

"Um... Mother..."

"Good afternoon Mrs. Kozuki." Lelouch said as he appeared from behind the couch.

"Lelouch!" Kallen whispered harshly, "What are you planning?"

"Don't worry about it Kallen. Your mother was addicted to Refrain, right?" he whispered back, then to her mother, "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Oh, yes, you too."

"Yes, so?" Kallen whispered to him again

"Overuse of refrain causes a lapse in the memory holding parts of your brain. She probably doesn't remember much from that time that I was Zero, or even emperor."

"Kallen?" Her mother asked in a slightly confused tone, "Who is this man in our house?"

"His name is Lelouch Lamprouge... He's my boyfriend."

The kettle whistled.

"Well, then. I'm sure I could get him some tea at least." Kallen slumped back in relief.

"She usually doesn't come home this early. I wonder what's going on?" Kallen said to Lelouch as her mother took the boiling water into the kitchen.

"We'll have to find out." They waited patiently, sitting in silence. A few minutes later, Mrs. Kozuki emerged from the kitchen with a tray holding three teacups and a teapot. The cups were already filled with tea, and she set one in front of both Lelouch and Kallen. All three took an appreciative sip.

"Now, Kallen, Why was I never told that you had a boyfriend?" Kallen searched for a plausible explanation that wouldn't reveal the true nature of their connection.

"Um.. well, we got together again just a little bit ago... We knew each other from school, and we were kind of warming up to each other during the war. He asked me out just a week before the Black Knights liberated Japan. We got separated shortly afterwords and I didn't think I would see him again. But then he came back and found me."

"Well, it's good that you've found someone at least."

"Yes, mother."

"And you, young man," she pointed at Lelouch, "Don't you dare try anything untoward to my daughter. If I hear of even one little thing, I will do everything in my power to make your life a living hell, you understand me?" The effect she was trying to create was obviously lost on Lelouch, who sat impassively through her little speech.

"Mom, I'm more than capable of handling that myself. You know that." Kallen's mother sighed.

"I know, I know. I just have to look out for you. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I didn't."

"I understand, Mrs. Kozuki. Between you and me, I don't think I could harm you, much less your daughter. My lack of athleticism is rather legendary around our school."

"That's good, then. I'm sure you must be a good person if my Kallen loves you enough to bring you home with her."

"Yes. Yes he most certainly is. Now mother, what brings you home so early? You're usually at work for another three hours." Kallen seemed slightly annoyed and on edge. "Did you get fired again?"

"Oh, no, it was nothing like that. They just closed down the plant. No explanation why, they just told us to go home for the day. I was certainly happy. I was going to call you and ask you to come home and enjoy the extra time with me, but you were already home." Lelouch seemed to perk up a bit, and leaned forward in interest.

"Where do you work, Mrs. Kozuki?"

"Britannian Royal Armaments, facility 11-3. It's the preeminent knightmare ammunition factory in all of Japan."

"I see..." Lelouch crossed his legs and folded his hands, contemplating the possible implications. Kallen decided to continue the conversation.

"Well, its good you got off work. Are they still paying you the full day's wage?"

"I hope so. I do recall them saying they would, but who knows with these corporate types."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I have the unfortunate pleasure of knowing several students that are stamped for that kind of work. It's really sad that they get lined up for it so early."

"Yes. What can you do though?"

"I don't know."

They settled into a comfortable silence, Lelouch still deep in thought, Kallen contentedly leaning on him and sipping on her tea, her mother smiling at the two of them. Ah, if only this time could last forever. Kallen thought, as Lelouch absentmindedly put his arm around her shoulders. Ten minutes passed like this, but to her it seemed like hours, just sitting there happily snuggled up against her love, finally returning her feelings after all this time. Finally, Lelouch broke the silence.

"Mrs. Kozuki, I'd like to ask you a favor."

"Sure, dear. I'd be happy to help you."

"Could you let me stay here for awhile? I was evicted from my apartment on very short notice. Apparently there were plans to convert it into some sort of office or something that no one was told of. So I'm sort of at loose ends. Would that be alright with you?" Kallen's face lit up.

"Please, Mother?" she asked in her cutest voice, "I promise we'll be good."

"Oh, alright dear. I don't suppose it could be that bad."

"Excellent. Now, I should probably go get my bags. I left them with a friend, but they're not too far from here. Kallen, could you come help me?"

"Sure, Lelouch."

As they left, Lelouch donned his hat and cloak, making sure his face was totally obscured. Kallen considered taking his hand, but thought better of it, seeing as they were already rather conspicuous and didn't need any more unwanted attention. Lelouch began talking the minute they hit the sidewalk.

"I've considered the possibilities about the factory's random closure. The worst case scenario is that the factory is serving as a secret holding place for knightmares, and that they are being readied for battle this very moment. As there isn't much we could do about it at this point, I put this out of my mind. Aside from simple maintenance issues, the most probable explanation is that the early closing of the arms factory is due to the organization of a large and secret arms shipment. If the shipment is large enough to warrant three extra hours preparing it, then it means that whoever it is going to has a lot of new knightmares they need armed. Which means that the troop buildup, in this area at least, has hit critical mass."

"So we're going to have to act quickly. Otherwise they'll spring on us and reestablish the empire before we can get to them."

"Exactly. One thing doesn't make sense though. The spy network hasn't noticed an increase in devicers or support personnel in the army. Nor have they noticed a decrease of able but retired devicers in the populace. Which leads me to wonder, where is he getting enough manpower to pilot all these machines?"

"Maybe he's taking people directly from the academy... but even then, they wouldn't be nearly enough to serve him on a global scale. Where is he getting the money to pay for all this anyway?

"I don't know..." he paused a moment in contemplation. "Kallen, could you talk to Todoh tonight?"

"Not a chance. Todoh always takes off on Saturdays to spend time with Chiba. No one has been able to find him on those days yet, and trust me, we've tried."

"Hmmm... In that case, I'm going to need you to do a few things for me. When you go to see Tohdoh tomorrow, I'd like you to ask him for the locations of super secure safe houses with few guards or inmates. If Suzaku is being held in a place we know about, he'll be in one of those. In addition, if you could get his phone number for me, or at least give him mine, I would very much appreciate it. Also, could you tell him to hide the Guren and his Zangetsu? I would rather they not fall into enemy hands if we can't get to them." Kallen chuckled.

"What am I now, your errand girl?" She asked, with more affection than anything.

"Of course. You know I can't show my face in public. Which reminds me, do you still have your Zero outfit from our fun little expedition at the SAZ?"

"I do. I kept it in my closet as a reminder of you through all our different homes during the war. Fortunately, I didn't have time to destroy it when you turned emperor." Lelouch snickered at that last comment.

"That's good. I'm sure I'll find a way to adjust it to my fit, for the moment. If you don't mind, of course."

"It's okay. I don't think I'll be wearing it again."

"Good." Lelouch stopped and looked around. "I think we're going to need a taxi."

"Now you tell me. There was one just when we left!"

"I wasn't paying attention."

"Of course not."

The two spent the next five minutes waiting for a taxi to come by until finally one arrived. The trip to Lelouch's hiding place and back was uneventful, spent in silence to avoid arousing the driver's suspicion. When they arrived back at Kallen's house, a little note stuck out of the door.

Gone shopping. Be home around eight.

"That gives us plenty of time alone, doesn't it?" Lelouch injected a curiously sly tone into his voice. Kallen blushed as she unlocked the door.

"So it does."

Review if you have something to say, even if it's just hate comments.

Hopefully chapter two will be up by the new year, or maybe even earlier. Who can say?