A/N: Hey, finally started this up again, though it is a revision. I wanted to make it darker than it was before and after the angelic wars. There will be a blend of the manga and anime giving it a different feel then it might if it went with one or the other. Well sit back and enjoy my revision and tell me if you think its better or worse of then how I originally started it.
Shaky Situation
Chapter 1- This Suffering (Billy Talent)
Ibuki Maya walked along the corridors of the Geo front in her usual uniform, exhausted from having to stay late to finish up a few reports on the Magi system for Ritsuko. Her exhaustion also contributed to the continued sync tests of the pilots of the EVAs nearly four hours ago. So to see the door to one of the changing rooms open and then see Ikari Shinji step out, back in his regular outfit save the white button up shirt, with his head down caring an army issue duffel bag, fully loaded, was definably a surprise.
"Shinji." Her hand flew to her mouth when she realized she had actually said his name, barley above a whisper, to have him turn to see her.
"Ibuki-san," he stated nervously, his feet shifting uncomfortably as if caught in some illegal act. "I would have thought every one had left by now." It was a statement that Maya found herself frowning at. There had been a few reports recently that stated Ikari Shinji had, without success, tried to leave the city with the meager belongings he owned.
"You weren't trying to run away again, where you Ikari-kun." Shinji shifted his feet once again and turned his eye from her gaze. Unconsciously Maya found herself frowning at his movements. She had taken a few classes in human behavior, a requirement if you wished to work with the Magi system, and found him to be showing signs of guilt, depression, and maybe even resentment, if the slight narrowing of his eyes were anything to go by.
"No." His voice was unemotional. She noticed, with slight concern, that he winced when he tried to clench his fist and came to notice the wraps of gauze on both wrist. It was with that observation that she began to, once again, take in his physique. His hair was dull and lifeless, as if he didn't get enough nutrients, and his skin held a pasty white completion, that obviously showed he wasn't going outside much or at least less than usual. His eyes were almost gray, instead of their usual blue, and blood shot which only stood out more with the bags that clearly showed he was barely sleeping. He looked smaller than he probably was as he slouched almost unnoticeable, but enough that people would probably over look him, something, she guessed, he wanted to happen. There was also the matter of the ribs that could just barely be seen through the dark blue shirt tucked into his pants.
"Are you alright Shinji." She used his name in hopes of getting a better response out of the boy. His reaction wasn't exactly something she expected when his eyes snapped to her face for a fraction of a moment before turning around and walking away with a mumbled "Yea," that she barely caught over the sounds of his own feet hitting the tiled floor. With a scowl on her face she rushed in front off him, fully intent on getting better answers out of the boy, only for him to side step her and continue on his way. He didn't get far as Maya quickly took hold of one of his wrists, effectively earning a hiss of breath from Shinji.
"Shinji," she asked, not releasing his hand, "what happened to your wrists?"
"Nothing," he said nervously, "It's just, those new plug suits kind of chafe my wrists." It didn't take a scientist, which she was, to see that he was lying, poorly. All the plug suits were designed the same way and only varied to alleviate sexual differences. If the wrists on the new plug suits did chafe then Asuka, while not totally back to her original self but enough that she still complained about everything, would have been the first to comment on the suits being uncomfortable.
"You're poor at lying, Ikari-kun," she stated while keeping firm hold of him. Shinji gained a panicked look on his face when she said that and, lamely, tried to pull away from her. She did not allow him his freedom however as she kept strong hold of wrist.
"Tell me Ikari-kun or I will be forced to contact both Major Katsuragi-san as well as Commander Ikari-san." She was surprised when, instead of being intimidated, he almost scoffed at her.
"Like my father," he emphasized the word, "would care. If I had cancer, in some form of another, the most he would ask is if I could still pilot while being cured before going on with his day." While Maya wasn't totally shocked by Shinji's depiction of his father she was shocked, however, he had stated it sarcastically, to her no less. What he said next though, brought anger to the forefront of her mind.
"As for Misato, she'll probably yell at me for some undefinable amount of time saying how disappointed in me she is. After that she'll probably get too drunk to remember that she had even talked to me in the first place and I won't hear about it again until Ritsuko, or now you, bring it up again." Ibuki Maya was speechless. For Shinji to blatantly drag Commander Ikari's name through the mud was one thing, but to do the same for Misato was something she could not ignore. The resounding slap of skin on skin echoed through the halls as Maya's right hand stuck fiercely on Shinji's left cheek brought tears to both their eyes.
"I'm appalled Shinji," forgoing formalities, "that you would think so low of Katsuragi-san." That being said she forcefully began to drag him down the halls in the general direction of the exit.
"What are you doing," he asked as he tried desperately to get away, only to wince once more when her hand tightened on his wrist.
"Seeing as Katsuragi-san has not been showing the best guardianship skills, you will being staying with me from now on so that you can once again function at the normal human level. I will inform Katsuragi-san over the telephone that I've taken it upon myself to take you into my care and will submit a full form of the change to Akagi-sempai in the morning." He did not say anything to this, she guessed that he was speechless, and simply allowed her to drag him to a near by elevator were they waited for it to arrive. When it did she quickly pulled Shinji in and pressed the button that would take them up to the car garage and eventually her apartment.
It had been an uncomfortable half an hour ride to Maya's apartment and an even worse elevator ride to the sixth floor before he was, once again, drug to a door with the number 216 posted to the door. Maya's hand worked around in her pocket for her keys and opened the door. Inside was a small entry way were they removed their shoes and Shinji was told to drop his bag before he was pulled into the main area of the building. All the walls were a soft beige and the carpet a light blue. An entertainment system with a moderate television was pressed to the wall on the left while a dark blue love seat was similarly pressed to the wall on the right. A glass coffee table sat in front of the small sofa. They continued on and as they turned left into the hall Shinji caught sight of the kitchen that was made up of white linoleum, stained wood cupboards, a small open bar that separated the kitchen from the living room and the appliances spaced evenly along the counter. The hall had three doors, two on the right and one on the left, all closed. Maya led him to the closest on the right, opened the door and turned on the light to reveal a rather large bathroom. It was all colored to the brown tile on the floor and had a glass walk in shower on the right, which could have held five people if socially acceptable, a Jacuzzi tub that stretched from the left wall to the glass of the shower on the right, a toilet in front of that, and a long expanse of counter space with a simple sink set in the center, a wall sized mirror hung over that.
"Sit on the counter," Maya stated as she hunched down and began to search through the cabinets underneath the counter after she had locked the door. Shinji, seeing as he would probably just be forced to later decided to get it over with and hopped up to sit. When Maya came back up she brought with her a large enough supply of medical accessories that she could have healed most thing that could have gone wrong with the body and set them down on the counter beside him. He took note of the rolls of gauze, rubbing alcohol, skin cream, cotton balls and swabs, and aspirin.
"Now," she started as she took hold of his arm gently but firmly, "hold still." Shinji didn't watch as she slowly began to take off the gauze on his left had instead he stared at the wall to his right trying, without success, to act as if it was all what usually happened to him.
When the gauze fell away from his wrists Maya had to stifle a gasp as well as resist the urge to slap him. There, on his wrist, lay a tirade of cuts. She gripped his arm tighter as she looked them over. Most of the cuts were healed over but you could still see were a blade had been pressed to the skin while one or two, further apart, looked relatively recent, but there in the center of it all was one that could easily seen was brand new and slowly welling blood. She felt tears pricking at her eyes as she stretched out her free hand for cotton balls and the rubbing alcohol. Shinji winced as the soaked cotton ran across his skin leaving him with a burning sensation running up his arm. Gauze was quick to cover all the cuts before Maya moved on to his other arm which was finished in quick succession. Maya stood staring at Shinji's face, which would still not meet hers and gently placed both her hands on his cheeks and softly turned his head to face hers. Still his eyes would not meet hers and with a sad smile, tears in her eyes, she pressed her forehead against his. Shinji's eyes snapped to her brown tearful ones that stared pleading at his own bloodshot blue.
"Shinji... please don't do this. Things can get better. You... just need to let people in." Maya's voice cracked and she moved her thumbs gently across his cheeks in a comforting movement. Unconsciously Shinji found himself wishing she would continue to do so. His wishes were dashed when she pulled back a little placed a kiss softly on his forehead and then moved her hands to pull gently on his own and bringing him slowly to the living room of the apartment. She set him down on the love seat before going over to a phone that hung on the wall to call up Misato Katsuragi. As Shinji sat there on the couch he slowly moved his hand up to run it gently across his cheek, hoping to recall some of the warmth that had been in Maya's touch.
A/N: So what do you think. Definitely different from the first time. I just started thinking it over and realized I could do some much more with this if it wasn't his choice to stay with Maya. It's after the angelic wars, like I stated before, and the JSSDF didn't attack. I didn't include that, partially because I haven't seen the movies, and partially because I NERV to still be running. Both characters will ultimately be out of character but for those of you wondering about Shinji now just think about it. He just killed Kaworu (I think that's how you spell his name), a boy who said he loved him. Asuka has just come out of an almost vegetable state and he now knows that Rei isn't really much of a human. As for Maya, she's been watching Shinji the longest seeing as he was the easiest to get along with and the fact that she was probably uncomfortable with Rei and we don't see much of what her personality is through most of the anime. I've read summaries of the manga so don't kill me for getting some things wrong. May the blessings of Rei Ayanami be upon you.