[Set me free!-] The One

The One; Now with more dysfunctional yet heroic cowards and drunken twenty-somethings!

Part One: (Shinji) Pain

Strolling slowly to his current home, Shinji watched as Asuka walked with Rei some distancce ahead of him. Asuka had been watching the other girl on and off for a large portion of the day, and had told Shinji, no, in fact she'd ordered Shinji to keep his distance form her. It wasn't as though he'd have encroached on his friend's privacy anyway.

He watched passively as the girl he'd saved not to long before was hit in the abdomen by his newest friend. It took him a second to realise what had happened, but he had soon started moving quickly towards the two, as they stood there alone on the empty street, far from anyone.
He watched on as Rei took the blow and just ignored it, while Asuka took a step back. She was saying something, something too quiet for him to hear, as though he was running, he was still far off.
Then she did something unexpected. She slapped herself around the head, and let herself fall backwards onto the hard ground, laying motionless.
Then her breathing came in jerks and jolts, shaking her body.
Either Rei had suddenly developed psychic powers, or something else strange was going on.

As Shinji arrived at last, Rei had lifted the fallen redhead into sitting position and settled herself next to them on the cold cement of the pavement. When he'd started running, he'd expected to break up a fight when he finally got there. Instead, he just got a single line out of Rei, as she looked over the other pilot on the ground. "Not a word of this to anyone. I do not believe that Soryu would want others to hear of this. Luckily, we are out of sight of most people here." Shinji just stood and watched as Asuka gathered herself. He had no idea what had just happened, what they'd been saying, why Rei would care for anyone, especially somebody who'd hurt her. She hadn't looked after anyone before, but then again he hadn't known her for long.

As Asuka finally started to stand for herself, Shinji turned to her. "What happened?"
An irritated twitch crossed the German's face. "I tripped and fell you idiot! what do you think!"
Shinji looked slightly down from her. "But I... I saw..."
Asuka snarled slightly as steadied herself on the motionless pillar that was Rei, and turned to Shinji. "You saw me trip and fall over. Do you understand, Dummkopf?"
"Yes, I understand... Sorry." He didn't even raise his eyes as he spoke, twisting his head way slightly.
Angrily pushing off of Rei, Asuka gripped and turned Shinji's head so they were face to face, putting her left hand and a fair bit of her weight on his shoulder, making him stumble back a bit. "Don't feel sorry for me, idiot! I don't need your pity!"

As she turned away from him, and tried to stand on her own, Shinji watched her fall back, and Rei quickly catch her before lifting her body up in her arms.
Turning to him, Rei spoke with her unchanging tone. "It may well be best that I look over Soryu's injuries for a short time."
"But she hit you, she-"
Rei cleanly cut through what he was saying. "And I have been trained to sustain high amounts of pain. I am also physically stronger than my appearance suggests. If she is going to hit someone in the near future, it would be best for everyone if that person was me."
Shinji was used to being interrupted, Asuka, for one, was a major offender. Rei, however he didn't expect to be interrupted by. "But-"
Speaking in the same calm, flat voice as always, Rei defied his attempts to speak to her. "Return to the Major's apartment, I will look after Pilot Soryu presently."
Shinji looked at her quizzically. "What? Out here?"
Rei shook her head. "My designated housing is far closer than the Major's apartment."
"But why do you want to help her? She hit you!" Shinji was almost shouting at her now, confused by the whole event.
Despite the situation, he saw half of a smile slip onto Rei's face as she answered. "While I do not care for myself, I do not wish for you, or pilot Soryu, to suffer pain. Now hurry!"
Conceding defeat, Shinji nodded once and ran off, as Rei turned with her burden, and set off at a brisk pace towards her own apartment.

Why would she smile?
She doesn't want us to get hurt?

Part Two: (Asuka) Confusion

"I do not wish to hurt you; I-"
"Just what they told you to do, huh? Don't wound the other Pilots?"
"No, I-"
"I have no such obligations!"
She threw the punch, and then, shortly after, she felt it connect.
"Was that really necessary?"
"No, it- I... I've done it again. Tried to say what I want, only to... No, no."
The self-imposed blow caught her squarely, and then the hard ground came rising up to meet her back.

Shaking herself out of the trance she was in, Asuka spoke to herself quitely. "Ugg, why does it always turn out like that?"
She heard the calm voice of Rei in her buzzing mind. "What turn out like what?"
Sighing, Asuka lulled her head to the side slightly. "Me trying to talk to Shinji. Me trying to talk to you. Me trying to talk to people in general. It's not their fault. It's mine."
"Do not be so quick to blame yourself."
Finally feeling the movement, and looking into scarlet irises which were the wrong way round, Asuka forced the buzz of pain to subside for a bit. "Where am I any... Wait, Rei, that's actually you? I- I mean I..."
She felt herself being gently put down on somewhere soft as she watched Rei speak. "Do not worry, you are safe. You fell over after I helped you up. It was probably just mild concussion from the fall. I brought you back to my apartment to make sure you were all right, however."
Asuka turned to her, as she drew away from the bed slightly. "After I got up?"

"What happened?"
"I tripped and fell you idiot! what do you think!"
"But I... I saw..."
"You saw me trip and fall over. Do you understand, Dummkopf?"
"Yes, I understand... Sorry."
"Don't feel sorry for me, idiot! I don't need your pity!"

More lies.
Another person she'd have to apologise to.
She started to laugh hysterically. "It really is my fault, isn't it? I'm just a worthless doll, no better than even you! And there I go again, more lies, more pain, more apologies I'm never going to make! Ha, this really is the life!"
"You do not know what you are saying, you probably still have concussion."
Looking up at the stationary figure, Asuka started ranting angrily once more. "I know damned well what I am saying! For the first damn time, I know what I'm saying!"
Disappointed red eyes scowled down at her. "Please, don't say so."
"I know what I'm saying, I know what I'm saying, I know what I'm saying! What I mentally bludgeoned myself with before was true! What I know deep down about how I fight others so that I don't see my own failings through theirs is true!"
The scowl deepened. "No. You are not worthless. You are not a failure."
"I'm worthless, I'm worthless, I'm worthless, I'm worthless, I'm worthless, I'm-"
Rei took a step closer. "Please stop it."
"Make me! I'm worthless, I'm worthless, I'm-"
Asuka opened her eyes, and saw the red irises surrounding pupils that were starring into her own. Breaking away from Rei's stare, Asuka tilted her head to one side.
"I'm dreaming again, aren't I?"
Pulling back, the blue haired girl replied. "I believe that there is a common term that would suit this situation; You wish."
"What!? This is real? Then why did you do that? You looked like you were going to kiss me! Or stab me..."
"You challenged me to make you stop devaluing yourself. I believe that I have succeeded." Rei stopped for a second to smile warmly. "Now get some rest, the Major will be arriving for you soon, but resting, even for this short time, will help your mind and body heal."

Turning back around, and lying back down, Asuka felt the soft throbbing in her skull that was lulling her back to sleep.

Part Three: (Rei) Aftermath

She calmly watched the sleeping form of Asuka, after her... Incident, Rei looked on her marginally differently.
Remembering that Asuka had called herself a liar, and said how she couldn't speak to others, Rei thought back. Herself; with no past interactions with Humans, with no Humanity of her own. The Third Child; ineffectual, and with a long-running resentment of his father, the commander of NERV. And then Soyru herself. It might have just been the concussion, and before that she might have just felt guilty about what she'd said and done before, but there seemed to be something deeper. Rei sighed, put the thoughts and implications aside, and sat down on the edge of her bed, waiting patiently for Misato to arrive and pick Asuka up.

After sitting like this for some time, she turned and looked over the sleeping form of Asuka. Her eyes caught slightly on something. Rei turned to stand up. This would not do. This would not do at all.

Part Four: (Misato) Fear

Upon arrival and knocking on the door-like bit of , she was greeted by Rei opening the decrepit thing that passed for her front door, and an irate German girl shouting at her and lounging in someone else's bed. "Just give me the freaking painkillers and let me stay here! I'm too tired and unsteady to get up."
"Aww." Misato started. "But what about poor Rei?" Pouting, she turned to look to the first pilot for support in her jibe at Asuka. But as she took a few pills out and Rei went to fetch a glass of water, it was clear that none was forthcoming.
"She knew there was every chance of that when she carried me here." The German said to her, impatiently waiting out the last few seconds before the end of her pain.
Re-appearing from the small kitchen area, Rei nodded, placing the glass down beside Asuka, who greedily took it and the pills up. "However, I could carry you back, by foot if needed..."
After rapid swallowing the pills and downing a quarter of the glass of water, Asuka sat up and replied. "Yeah, but it's not going to happen. And surely it's safer if I'm not moved?"
"I suppose." Misato interjected, as Rei picked up the glass before turning and speaking to Asuka. "And I don't mind you sleeping there Asuka. Are you done with this?"
Asuka nodded, but Misato put her pout back on, turning it on Rei, as she walked out of the room. "But where will you sleep?"
She was greeted by a level voice from the kitchen, and the short sound of water rushing down a drain. "I do not mind loosing sleep for a friend. I will probably find somewhere to sleep here anyway."
Satisfied enough by that answer to not be worried, Misato turn on Asuka. "But how did this really happen?"
"I was walking home, talking to the doll there, when I tripped, fell down and knocked my head. Then Shinji, the nice guy that he is, if a bit dim, rushed over to help me. I thought I was fine, but when I got up I fell right back down. That's it. All of it. End of story."
Misato looked at strangely. "That's just what Shinji said. Well, in different words. Now then Rei, what happened? And I want the truth now."
"Do you order me to tell the truth?"
Misato nodded, missing the deadly glare from Asuka. "I do, as much as I can order you when I'm off duty, and you aren't one of my charges."
Rei nodded slightly. "It was as Asuka said. When she fell down, I caught her, but she was unconscious before she started to fall. I picked her up and moved as quickly as I could here."
Missing Asuka relaxing slightly, Misato continued questioning Rei."You carried her here? Alone? She might not weigh all that much, but I doubt that you carried her here alone."
A slow, simple shake of the head lead into Rei's reply. "Do you require a demonstration?"
"I don't think that lifting Asuka when she's like that would be healthy for her Rei." The purple-haired woman said in a concerned tone.
"I was referring to lifting you, Major."
Misato laughed softly. "I'm a lot heavier than Asuka here, you know. You won't be able to- Woah, woah, put me down, you've made your point!"
Dusting herself off after her short stint airborne, and glancing angrily at Asuka, who was sniggering non-too-subtly, Misato walked towards the front door, turning back to the two girls to say goodbye. "I'll see if I can get Ritsuko or one of the other technicians to take a look at you in the morning, all right Asuka? Until then, rest up. I'll leave Rei with some spare painkillers in the entranceway. All right? See you tomorrow."
Rei nodded. "Until then I shall look after her."
Asuka shouted out from where she was lying to Misato. "I though she was a doll, but it turns out she's really a nurse. Who knew? Anyway, whatever Misato, I'll just relax here with my caretaker for the night."

Misato smiled past Rei at her for a second, before leaving.

The front door closed quietly, and soon afterwards the sound of footsteps descending concrete stairs followed. After that, silence.