"Are you sure about this?"

It was Lelouch who spoke, and Kallen turned her head to face him. "This is your last chance to back out," he went on, though the gravity of the statement wasn't fully supported by his tone. Kallen held out her hand and he took it. Giving his hand a firm squeeze, she replied,

"I am." She then released his hand to properly uncap her pen and sign her name upon the two sheets of paper before her. The first one was for the deed that put Stadtfeld Manor ―purchased by Lelouch weeks ago― under her name. The other would put it back out on the market.

Now, there's only the future.

~.-.=.o.O.o.=.-.~

= Happy Endings =

~.-.=.o.O.o.=.-.~

She woke up in her old bed in her old room. She was home. She was sore. She was happy.

She was alone.

Except for the note on the breakfast tray on the nightstand.

There is nothing more I would like to see than your smile with the morning light, the note went. However, with how well everything up to last night went, I'd rather not push my luck any further and tempt fate. You'll understand when you open your closet. Milly and Shirley will be over to help you get ready. I love you.

Curious about what Lelouch meant, she wrapped the sheets around her naked body and walked, slightly limping, to her closet. She ended up dropping the sheets in awe when he saw wedding dresses in a wide array of designs ―all in her size.

So this was what he meant by 'tempting fate'. She snorted at the thought of Logical Lelouch worrying about wedding superstitions. But that took a backseat when she realized that this was also what he meant by 'not letting go' when he found her.

How presumptuous of you, she spoke to him in her mind, to think I wouldn't say 'no' when you proposed. Though she knew in her heart that she never would.

Near midday, as Lelouch said in his note, Milly and Shirley did arrive to help her get ready, and the entire time they also dedicated to catching up. She had truly regretted not being able to keep in touch with them, so quite a few times she nearly ruined her makeup because of her tears. She had missed them so, and she let them know that much. They exchanged a look, pulled her into a three-way hug, and told her they missed her, too.

The reunited lovers were wed in the manor's gardens at sunset, with their mutual friends, Nunnally, and Lelouch's two brothers as their guests. Neither of Kallen's parents were able to make it on such short notice, so Clovis represented his friend and had been the one to give her away. They exchanged their vows, they dined with their guests, then had their first dance. It was only when Kallen complimented Lelouch's dancing that they realized that this was indeed the first time they danced together. Before long they thanked their guests, excused themselves, went up to the master bedroom, and simply rested. Lelouch had noticed her discomfort while they danced, and decided to allow her body to heal before they tried making love again.

She was the first to wake the next morning. Her sleep had been dreamless still, so Lelouch had the right idea in letting her rest up. She turned in the bed to face him. He looks so peaceful, she thought. Her friend. Her rescuer. Now, her husband, keeper of her heart. She idly thought that today was a Monday (which she had no work or classes), and that her life had changed dramatically over this past weekend:

Spirited away on Friday.

Got engaged on Saturday.

Got married on Sunday.

She sighed. It was time to make a choice. She had overheard some of their guests mentioning that Lelouch had spent his entire fortune to buy the manor back, and that its upkeep was leeching at what savings he had left. While she did appreciate the gesture, she wasn't sure she wanted to keep the manor at all. It had been her home, yes, but she had also felt that giving it up was the best decision her father had made ―it allowed the both of them to grow, to understand what was truly important.

Lelouch slowly came awake, then, and so she prepared to let him see his greatest treasure. She brushed away the hair that obscured his eyes and smiled as he slowly opened them.

He took her hand, kissed it and pressed it against his cheek. With his eyes closed, he gave a contented sigh. Opening them again, he whispered, "I'm not dreaming again, am I?"

"I'm really here, Lelouch." She kissed him for emphasis.

Lelouch hummed, then said, "That's what your dream self always said."

That was probably true, she thought, so she prepared to say something he wouldn't expect. "I want to sell the manor." The shell-shocked look he gave her would have been amusing if she hadn't been serious about it.

"Okay, I'm awake," he conceded. "But something tells me that wasn't a joke."

"You're right," she admitted, with more conviction than before. It was, after all, not something that was mentioned ―much less discussed― in bed on the morning after your wedding. "I wasn't joking."

He sat up, and she followed suit. The faint look of guilt in her expression right then told Lelouch one reason behind her statement.

"You heard."

"That," she conceded, "and that I'm not really sure I want to live here ―want us to live here. I mean," she paused, gesturing all around her, "what do we do with all these? We both learned to live off what we need, and, let's face it, most of these were bought generations ago. They've been part of my life growing up, yes, but I've grown up so much more after I lost them."

"Don't get me wrong," she quickly added, holding up a hand in front of her, "what you did was sweet, and it did feel good to be back home again."

"'But...'?" he prompted.

"But," she echoed him after a sigh, "they're part of my past now. I think, if I'm going to be the best person I can be... For us to be the best people we can be,"

She grasped both of his hands with both of hers. "We can't let any of these hold us back. Materially, sentimentally, or any other way." She paused, then, waiting for him to share his thoughts on the matter. It was her turn to be surprised this morning, however.

"Beautiful."

She blinked at the remark. "What?"

"The look in your eyes just now." The fire of conviction, he thought. He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "I think I love seeing this side of you best."

"Anyway," she said after blinking a few times, "are you with me?"

He nodded. "As long as you're sure."

She nodded in return. "Let's get it over with, before I change my mind." And so a couple of phone calls, a quick shower (separately, at Lelouch's insistence), and trip to the realtor's office later, Stadtfeld Manor ―and everything in it― was once again up for sale. It would probably be years before they got Lelouch's money back, but at least the cost of its upkeep was no longer his to bear.

"How does it feel?"

"Good," she replied. Indeed, she felt like she finally had control of her life. "So when do I move in with you?"

A pause. "Pardon?"

"Well, I can't stay in the student dorms once they find out I got married," she explained. "Plus the walls there aren't that thick, so if we did get away with it, we can't get away with..." she trailed off with a cough, blushing.

"A-a-about that," he began, then went on to explain that he had given up his flat in order to cover the cost of their wedding. Only his personal effects that were in Clovis' safekeeping were left, having assumed that she would want them to live in the manor.

Newly-wed, penniless, and homeless. Who would've thought?

After sharing a hearty laugh at their predicament, Lelouch suggested that they have an early lunch at a nearby café before driving her back to her dorm. "At least neither of us is jobless," he commented, already pulling out his wallet. "This one's on me."

As Lelouch was about to ask for their bill, the manager approached their table and handed him an envelope with the café's emblem upon it.

"Compliments of the owner, sir."

After exchanging a confused look with Kallen, he opened the envelope. Inside it was a card marked with the same emblem as the envelope (two elegantly stylized C's). He opened it to see a handwritten message, as well as a key taped below it.

L., K.,

I may not be the business genius like S. is, but I do know how to spot a lovesick idiot about to do something stupid (romantic―yes; sweet―undoubtedly; but still stupid) a mile away.

You two know what door this opens. Consider it a wedding gift.

~C.

-.o.O.o.-

The following weekend, Lelouch helped Kallen pack her things, loaded them in the car they rented (they wouldn't fit in the sidecar), and drove straight to what used to be the Junk Room.

Their new home.

In hindsight, the Junk Room had borne witness to their story. How they first came together. How they had supported each other while she had been in hiding. How it had been instrumental in finding each other again and bringing them back together.

They spent the rest of the day renovating the apartment, the needed paints and tools having been bought by Lelouch during the week. They even wore the overalls they had changed into on the night of her rescue as they worked, adding to the nostalgia. Clovis let them keep what furniture that was already in it, so the only furniture in their need-to-buy-now list was a bed, which would be delivered later that afternoon.

While they worked, Lelouch found himself noting how focused and talented Kallen was with handling the roller brush. He had to admit, her technique was more effective than his was, so he kept on watching, hoping to apply it on his share of the walls as well. Perhaps sensing his eyes on her, she turned her head to face him.

"What?"

Lelouch shrugged. "Just admiring the view."

She stuck her tongue out. "Perv."

"Says the girl who posed in the nude." Paint was flicked his way. He flicked some back. Before it became a full-fledged paint battle, however, the furniture delivery men had arrived with the bed, and work resumed afterward.

By sunset, their work was complete. They congratulated themselves, ordered takeout, had their dinner, and, still in their paint-stained overalls, slumped back on their newly delivered bed, still wrapped in its packaging.

"You decided on where to move this yet?"

"Not yet," Lelouch replied. "Let's wait till the paint dries."

"Good idea," she agreed. Lelouch took that moment to roll so he hovered above her then bent down to give her one languid kiss. She gave a deep, contented sigh when he ended it.

"You smell like paint."

"Ditto."

"You or me first?" she asked.

"You," he replied, knowing she referred to showering. "But let me pee first."

"Okay," he heard her reply just as he got up to walk to the bathroom. He took the overalls off ―revealing the t-shirt and pants underneath― did his business, washed his hands and his face, then exited the bathroom. He found Kallen curled up on the sofa, in the tank top and shorts that she wore under her overalls. Her head rested on her towel, serving as a pillow.

He gave her a light shake to get her attention. When she didn't react at all, he sighed and went to the closet to fetch pillows and blankets for them both. It wouldn't be fair if she was the only one who slept still smelling of paint, after all.

When he picked up the pillows, a wrapped package with Clovis' card caught his eye. Curious, he opened it, and saw that it contained the costumes they had changed into on the night of her rescue. Smiling at the memory of the morning after, he put them back in the closet. There would be plenty of time to re-enact that morning in the coming days.

Today was, after all, just the beginning of a new story yet to be written.

A thought occurred to him, then. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he checked out the hashtag that Rivalz started years ago. As expected, there hadn't been any activity after they parted ways. After spreading a blanket over Kallen's sleeping form and spreading his own on the floor beside her, Lelouch made his first and only contribution to the old hashtag before turning in.

She's home. #saveKallen #KallenSaved

~.-.=.o.O.o.=.-.~

= New Beginnings =

~.-.=.o.O.o.=.-.~

A/N:

Short finale chapter. This was a last minute addition, as I only had 3 chapters planned. But then, after a lot of thought, it was too fairy tale-ey to end with just the guy getting the girl.

(Read: If the posting of each chapter hadn't been paced, this would've been a bonus chapter.)

I decided not to write more detail in the wedding scene, because, well, it was a garden wedding not so different from what we see on TV these days, and I couldn't think up how to make the ceremony itself unique from all others. (That, and it did take me years to write the one in Rotations, after all.)

Huh. This makes three times I made them marry. Let me know which of them you liked best.

So, hope you guys enjoyed. As usual, your feedback is appreciated (what you liked/didn't like, what made you facepalm, what's corny, etc.) so I can take them into consideration in future works. Thanks, and have a nice day!

~ryder77

P.S. I confess I don't really know how hashtags work, so I hope I got it somewhat accurately.

P.P.S.

02 Aug 2018 - fixed some typos spotted when I re-read the whole thing.

Meanwhile...

"What are you doing here, Cornelia?"

Said woman nearly jumped out of her skin at Clovis' inquiry. She clearly wasn't expecting anyone else to be here.

In the room adjacent to what was the Junk Room.

Which turned out to be the successor to said title. She had been moving the boxes stacked against the wall where their peep hole had been.

"I, uh, wanted to check on Lelouch."

"They live in the apartment next door. Why not knock and pay them a proper visit?" He had seen her car in the parking garage on his way to check on the newlyweds himself, to see how they were settling in. It was just his luck when he had some junk to drop off before doing so, and saw Cornelia there.

"I'm not really―," she stuttered. "Actually they just might be―" Kallen's loud moans took that moment to leak into the room. "―busy, at the moment."

Clovis' face met with his palm. His prim and proper sister was the pervert between the two of them. Who would've thought?

He immediately added the fixing of that wall to his to-do list.