: A Blessing In Disguise :
by
- GlazedAndConfused -
DISCLAIMER
Studio GAINAX and Hideaki Anno own Evangelion. I don't; I'm only 'borrowing' the characters...
This fic is inspired by the fact that I have an autistic brother. I don't know if the topic of Shinji having a disability such as autism has been implemented in the Evangelion fanfic world before. But, anyway. This will be following the plot of Evangelion (duh), except with my own deviations in the storyline. I have explored the subject of autism before in one of my other fics, so this should be fairly similar.
Hope you enjoy it. :)
"..."- denotes speech.
"(...)"- denotes whispering.
Italics denote thoughts and Japanese dialogue.
Chapter One : It's Hard To Say Goodbye
"What? You can't just take him from here!" came the shrill voice of a woman, clearly upset.
"I apologise, ma'am. But neither of us have no choice." This time, it was a male voice, trying to reason.
"But I've told you before; this child is severely disabled!"
"This boy is the Third Child. The fate of humanity lies in his hands. He has to pilot our Eva."
"Can't you get somebody else?"
"I'm afraid not. He is the only choice. Besides, these are orders of the commander of NERV."
"Him! Over my dead body! Do you know what that man did? He abandoned his son not too long after the death of his wife! You should know; you ARE his second-in-command!"
"Like I said, this is for the good of humanity. Which would you prefer; life to come to an end at the hands of the Angels, or the world to be rid of them once and for all?"
There was a long pause.
"I can't contend with your argument, Fuyutsuki-san. When do you want him picked up?"
"Tomorrow."
The man named Fuyutsuki was about to turn and leave, when he was stopped by the woman he persuaded. "Wait, Fuyutsuki-san..."
"Hai?"
The woman paused again, trying to find the right words. "Promise... promise me, that Shinji-kun will be taken care of for as long as you intend on keeping him. As I told you before, he has a severe disability which hinders him in life. He needs all the support he can get."
Fuyutsuki smiled. "I promise." He then walked down the hall and through the double doors, the woman's face turning into a frown at the thought of never being able to see the young boy for a long time...
In the year 2015 AD...
"Damn, why did I have to lose him at a time like this!" Misato Katsuragi said in an annoyed tone as she sped through the barren streets of Tokyo-3, a frown on her face. Taking her eye off the road - one of her many habits while at the wheel (not that it made a difference, of course; her driving skills were amongst the worst known to man - and that was even when she did have all eyes on the road) - she looked down at the folders that rested on the passenger seat and looked at the photo clipped onto the top folder. It was a Polaroid picture of a young boy with brown, straight hair and eyes of a matching colour. His face showed little, if any, traces of emotion; his eyes definitely not showing any signs of how he felt at the time the photo was taken. The violet-haired woman smiled; he looked like a good enough child, an obedient one at that.
"Due to the state of emergency that has been issued, all lines are unavailable at this moment in time."
"It's no use." A woman in her late 20s/early 30s with wavy brown hair placed the phone back on the hanger and sighed dejectedly. Reaching into her pocket, she took out a photo of a beautiful woman with long, flowing purple hair in a tanktop and denim shorts. She was bent over suggestively, showing off a good eyeful of her cleavage while flashing the 'V' sign. Pointing at the said anatomy of her body was an arrow drawn on with a black marker, with the label 'Take a look at this!' - complete with a lipstick kiss mark on the bottom left hand corner. She shook her head and smiled. Katsuragi-san seems to be a good person, albeit one who flaunts herself... she thought.
A boy in his early to mid-teens was sitting on a bench on the pavement, rocking back and forth slightly in content. He had chocolate brown hair with matching eyes, and had pale skin with a slim build. His face and eyes showed no traces of emotion; not even so much as happiness or sadness.
In short, he looked to be a real enigma.
"Shinji-kun, Katsuragi-san will be here any moment to pick you up," the woman spoke, her voice as calming and soothing as the scent of lavender. "You be good for her, okay?"
"Yeah." he replied. "Be good for Katsuragi-san."
The woman sighed, smiling down at the boy named Shinji. Being with him filled her with happiness, but at the same time she was sad. She knew that as long as the boy was needed by NERV, she would not be able to see her beloved Shinji again. A tear formed in her eye, rolled down her cheek and dripped off her chin as she thought of this. She had grown too accustomed to the boy's presence to imagine life without looking after him and helping him progress through life. Without having him as a companion.
Without being able to talk to him.
The mere thought of his absence was unbearable to this woman.
Forcing her tears back and stemming the flow, she put the picture back in her pocket and walked over to Shinji, taking a seat next to him. She was about to speak again when the calmness of the humid air was shattered by the loud, almost deafening sounds of a building collapsing; the sounds of large lumps of concrete smashing into the ground below, windows shattering and foundations creaking and eventually snapping into pieces with the impact. Above one of the towering hilltops in the distance, they could see advancing military aircraft, followed by the Third Angel as it began it's rampage through the city. It was the exact image of the stuff of nightmares; the vision of it's black, distorted body, the long and slender limbs, hunchbacked posture and bent beak would not have failed in filling any human being that saw it up close with dread.
After a few moments of looking on in horror, her thoughts of impending doom were interrupted by the piercing screech of tyres followed by the sound of smashing metal. Looking at the car, the driver's door was thrown open.
"Hurry! Get in!" A woman's voice called. The brown-haired woman took the boy by the hand and wasted no time in clambering inside the car, recognising the driver as the woman that was in her picture. No sooner than their seatbelts were tightened, the woman took off at full speed, narrowly missing the rapidly descending foot of the Angel.
"That was lucky; another second and we would have been dead. But we're alright now," the violet-haired woman said cheerfully, removing her shades.
"Thank you," the brown-haired woman. "You are Misato Katsuragi, I presume?"
"Hai," replied the woman named Misato. She looked over her shoulder at the two in the back seats. "And your name is?"
"My name is Yuki Ishida. This is Shinji Ikari."
Misato was about to talk some more to the two before she saw the same fighter jets as before engage in further combat with the Angel. Pulling out her binoculars, she peered through them for a few moments without saying a word, and noticed that the fighter jets had pulled away from the Angel.
"Oh, no!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock.
"What's wrong?" Yuki asked, a concerned tone in her voice.
"They're about to drop an N2 mine!"
Yuki's expression matched that of Misato's upon hearing the news. Instinctively, she threw her arms around Shinji and threw herself on top of him so that they were lying on the back seats. Misato did the same, ducking as low as she could while holding her arms over her head. Nothing less than two seconds later, a bright flash of light appeared in the distant horizon. There was a few seconds of ominous silence with nothing happening during that short time. Then, with unbelievable speed, the shockwave hit. It tore through the land, destroying everything in it's path - from fences and metal railings running along the road to larger trees and power lines, turning them into literally nothing. The ground rumbled for the duration of the entire event, with the skyline looking crimson as far as the eye could see. As quick as the destructive shockwave came, it ended, leaving an all too eerie silence in the air.
Emerging from the car that was now standing on it's side, Misato noticed that it was thrown from it's original location to another one further away, knowing that it was not heavy enough to resist the blast. Looking around, she noticed that what was once land rich with trees and grass was now nothing more than a barren wasteland. The area was now completely stripped of everything that was once on it. Slowly, Yuki emerged from the car and observed the scene before her. Shinji was in the car, curled up into a fetal position; his hands on his ears as he rocked back and forth nervously, making repetitive screeching sounds. The brown-haired assistant placed her hand on Misato's shoulder.
"Pardon me, Katsuragi-san," she said. "I'm just going to see to Shinji. He seems to be shaken up."
"Okay." Misato replied, a smile on her face.
After a few moments, Yuki managed to get Shinji calmed down via the sunroof as Misato watched on with admiration. After Yuki had finished, the violet-haired woman approached her.
"We're going to have to push the car onto all four wheels," she explained. "Could you help me get Shinji out please?"
"Of course." Yuki and Misato walked up to the car and peered down the window of the passenger door at the Third Child, who was looking around warily. Misato opened the passenger door.
"Shinji-kun?" she called. "Can you stand up?"
Slowly but surely, Shinji stood up.
"Okay, lift both of your arms up."
Shinji did as he was told. Yuki and Misato gently grabbed an arm each and hoisted the Third Child carefully out of the car so as not to tip it onto all fours while he was still in the car. After getting him out, Yuki moved him so he wasn't anywhere near the car when her and Misato would attempt to
"One... two... three... PUSH!"
Yuki and Misato leant against the car and shoved with all their strength in order to get the car back on it's wheels. Eventually, the car slowly tipped and landed on all fours with a loud crash. Observing the car, Misato noticed that it had several dents and scratches all over the bodywork. She placed a hand on the back of her head, sheepishly.
"Ah well..." she muttered. "It'll have to do." She turned to Yuki and Shinji, smiling. "Well, let's go."
With that, all three got in the car and closed the doors, with Misato starting the engine and speeding off.
"Don't worry about it," Misato said, speaking into the phone fixed between the driver's seat as she drove down a winding hillside road. "I told you, the Third Child's safety is top priority." Pause. "Could you get a car train ready to pick us up? The express one." Another pause. "Okay. I did volunteer to pick him up, so I'm responsible for getting him there." Yet again, a pause. "Okay, bye." She placed the phone back down on the hook and turned to look at Shinji and Yuki who were in the passenger seats at the back. Shinji was rocking back and forth, humming a tune to himself while looking out the window, fidgeting with his hands. Yuki was looking on with concern as Misato took her eyes - yet again - off the road.
"He's really quiet, isn't he, Ishida-san?"
"Hai," Yuki nodded, turning to look at Shinji. "He's never been much of a talkative person."
"So there isn't much of a chance of a conversation, I take it?"
"Not unless you talk to him about things he likes. Yet, even then he's never spoken that much."
"I see."
The rest of the journey was spent in silence, bar Misato's whistling.
After a short while, they reached themassive complexthat was NERV headquarters. Stepping inside, Yuki and Shinji both looked around, equallycurious about their surroundings.They reached the barriers with the swipe slots for the ID cards. Misato stopped Yuki before she was about to proceed any further.
"I'm sorry, Ishida-san. But this is where your journey ends."
Yuki looked downcast. "...I understand."
Misato placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "He will be okay, I promise. Would you like to spend a moment or two with him? Just to say goodbye?"
The brown-haired woman smiled slightly and nodded, tears forming in her eyes. She walked over to Shinji and placed two hands on his shoulders. "Well... this is where we say goodbye," she spoke, her voice wavering, "...Shinji-kun."
"Yeah," replied the Third Child.
Yuki smiled at his innocence and naivety. "I just want you to know that... I may not be with you in person, but I will be with you in here," she continued, pointing at his chest. "And you will be in mine. I have really liked being able to look after you, Shinji-kun. And I'm..." The tears in her eyes started to fall uncontrollable, her body heaving with every sob. "...I'm really going to miss you." She wrapped her arms around him tentatively, yet lovingly. The Third Child did not seem to object, as he reciprocated the embrace with the same amount of gentleness.
Time passed slowly between the two, as Yuki just wanted to stay in that position for as long as she could, with Shinji in her arms. After a few moments more, she let go very hesitantly, her cheeks streaked with tears.
"You b-be good for Katsuragi-san, okay?" she said, offering a sad smile.
"Yeah."
She leant over and put her hands on his shoulders again, giving him a gentle kiss on the forehead.
"You better get going."
Shinji, taking one last glance at the woman who was his long-time carer, walked over to Misato who was waiting by the elevator. She could only watch in tears as the elevator slowly - and painfully - made it's decent. As it disappeared out of sight, along with Shinji and Misato, she whispered three words.
Goodbye, Shinji-kun
END CHAPTER ONE
AUTHOR'S NOTES
The first chapter of my second Evangelion fic is up. The second will be up in the coming week or two. :)
If there is anything you feel is unrealistic in the sense that I am portraying Shinji as an autistic savant in this fic, let me know - you can get my email address in my profile. I know the idea seems very unrealistic, but bearEpisode 1 in mind, when Gendo would have resorted to using Rei - who was literally covered in head to toe in bandages - to pilot her Eva hadShinji refused to pilot altogether.If he would have commanded her to pilot the Eva knowing fully well she was badly injured, he may well do the same to Shinji if he were afflicted by an injury or disbility of any sort.
Feedback of all kinds is welcome.