AN: Huh, no one thought about Asuka's nightmare involving Shinji as some sort of Species-like monster? PFFT! ;p

Also to engel17white: Muchas gracias. No quería cambiar demasiado el carácter de Gendo que hice en la historia anterior. También quería hacer a Misato más maternal. En cuanto a los súper poderes ... acabo de sacarlo de mi trasero.

13: Merry Christmas

Misato sighed as she drove along the road heading towards NERV HQ, looking in the rear-view mirror at the young couple in the backseat. Rei was clutching Kensuke's hand tightly in hers, looking almost as pale as she used to be. "Please, do not make me do this." She pleaded one last time as they pulled into the parking garage, "I promise that there is nothing wrong with me, Major."

The woman bit her lip, "I know that, Rei, but please, just humor me on this," she said as the girl leaned against the boy, who placed his arm around her shoulders, "I promise, we're just going to have you go through a physical examination, nothing more. No needles, no tests; I just want to make sure you're a healthy young woman. Nothing more."

Rei shivered as the car pulled to a stop, "She will not listen."

Misato's eyes hardened when she heard the fear in the girl's voice, "She will if she knows what's good for her," she said, looking down at the Type-54 Black Star strapped to her shoulder. "I give you my word, Rei, she's never going to hurt you again."

"And...the Commander?" She asked, knowing full well that the Major could do very little against the man.

Misato sighed, "If he tries anything, I'll put a bullet in him," she said without any hesitation, and got out of the car. "Now let's go. Don't forget that Hikari wants to take you Christmas shopping." Rei gave a small smile as she and Kensuke got out of the car.

"If she tries anything," Kensuke said, looking down at the girl by his side, "I'll be there."

"Along with several Section-2 agents," Rei said, timidly clinging to Kensuke, "I do not want to do this."

Kensuke frowned, looking at their caretaker, "Misato, maybe we - "

Misato came around and looked at the two of them sadly, "Rei, sweetie, I know I haven't been the best guardian to you since you've come to live with us," she said, shaking her head, "Honestly, I should've taken you in as soon as I found out you were living on your own in that cesspit of an apartment," she frowned, "And I can only imagine what you've had to go through because of Ritsuko, but I promise, nothing like that will ever happen again. Not while I'm around."

Rei shivered once more, but nodded as Misato took up her left side, Kensuke on the right, and was led into the building.

Ritsuko was waiting for them, and was quite stunned when she saw the young woman she was to examine. Upon seeing the blonde woman, however, Rei shrunk back, attempting to move out the door, but was held fast by Misato, who was glaring at her former friend. "Just a physical, nothing more."

"Of course," Ritsuko said, nodding, and looked back at Rei, "Rei," the girl finally looked at her, "You look...so much like your mother."

Aside from her hair and eyes, Rei was nearly identical to Yui Ayanami in facial features. Where Shinji or Rei got their timidness, she was unsure, but she had a strange feeling that it came from their father. Ritsuko cleared her through, "If you'll step behind the curtain, there, and get into a gown, we can start."

In the next hour, Rei was subjected to simple physical exams, barring any blood work which Misato outright refused to allow due to the girl's inane fear of them. She did, however, let her do a throat swab to perform a DNA test in make sure the girl was fully human now that she had made the transition. Her explanation to the trio was that it was the next best thing to blood work.

"Well," the woman smiled as the girl fixed her clothes back into place, "I'm happy to say that, despite my initial fears, Rei is now a completely healthy young woman."

Kensuke smiled at the girl as she returned to his side with a small smile adorning her features. "Does that mean we can - "

"She needs to undergo a sync-test with Unit-00," the blonde said, making them frown, "I'm sorry, but - "

"The others are able to pilot their Evangelions well enough," Rei protested, "And this was while they were undergoing the change, was it not?"

"It is, Rei, but you forced the change," Ritsuko pointed out, "Hikari was already turning, but you hadn't even begun to change, and forced it upon yourself, so there's no telling how this will effect your piloting skills."

Misato, unfortunately, saw the reasoning in her logic, "All you're going to do is see if she can still sync with Unit-00?"

"Yes."

Rei looked upset, but the woman sighed, "We'll do it at the next scheduled test when all of them are here, no sooner, no later," Misato said, not giving room for any sort of argument. Ritsuko looked as though she wanted to protest, but relented when Misato gave her a look that could curdle milk. "Kensuke," she smiled at the boy, "Go ahead and take Rei back to the car, and wait for me." She said, returning her glare to the blonde, "Ritsuko and I need to have a talk."

"Right," he nodded, turning them toward the door, his arm around her shoulders once again, a possessive gesture, the blonde realized, and left the two women alone.

Misato turned and closed the door, and locked it, turning about and crossing her arms with an absolutely murderous look on her face as she looked at the woman in front of her.

Ritsuko frowned, "If you're going to hit me, then just get it over with."

"I'm well beyond beating the shit out of you, Doctor Akagi," she spat, "the only reason I haven't shot you yet is because you're the only one that knows what the fuck is going on with my kids!"

"Have you noticed anything else?"

Misato scoffed, "Oh, gee, let me think," she said sarcastically, "I saw Shinji catch a fucking ton of concrete that was plummeting toward him and the Commander, and shrug if off like it was just a fifty pound feed sack," she said ticked it off on her fingers, "He and Kensuke healed from wounds that would've killed most adults in a matter of hours, and then I get to watch Asuka lift the front end of my car over her head," she shouted loudly, making the woman wince, "And let's not forget watching Mari lift Shinji's bike over her head, possibly as heavy as two adult men, and do it so easily that Mana tried, but couldn't budge the thing! And Hikari shattered a cinder block like it was a pieces of glass!"

"And then, when they come home, I find out that sweet little Rei has done the unthinkable, and injected herself with that damned drug you made, and looks so amazingly different that I nearly didn't recognize her," she said, "Kensuke gave me the rundown on the entire thing, and told me the poor little thing was puking her guts out for hours, and looked like death warmed over! And yet, that all pales in comparison to the fact that you seemed to have experimented on her way before now, and she's too scared to talk about it!"

Ritsuko grimaced upon hearing her say such things and stepped back as the irate woman advanced on her, her hand dangerously close to her pistol, "So," she said, drawing the sidearm, and pointing it right between her eyes, "You're going to tell me something. Or else I'm going to put one in the most painful spot I can manage without killing you. And then I might just start rubbing salt in it just to hear you scream!"

"Misato, calm down -!" Ritsuko backed up until she bumped into her desk, "You shoot me, and not only will they court martial you, but they'll lock you up in the deepest pits NERV has, and you'll never see those children again!"

Misato placed the barrel of the gun right against her head, "Then talk!" She snapped, "What the fuck is happening to my kids!?"

"I don't know!" Ristuko shouted angrily, "First it was Shinji! I didn't know what was going on with him! His wounds healed faster and faster with each day! He grew stronger than any adult could hope to be in their prime, and I just found out that that might just be the tip of the ice burg!"

"And what does the mean?" Misato asked, and Ritsuko sighed in frustration, shoving the gun away and moved over to her desk.

She tapped a few keys, and brought up what looked like a brain scan, "You see this?" She asked waspishly, "This is a normal human brain, no tampering, no drugs, just a healthy, normal brain." She said, and tapped another set, "And this," she said as another scan came up, "Is Shinji."

Misato leaned over, seeing a fair number of oddities, "These are..."

"Active, enhanced brain waves," Ritsuko said, frowning, "I've checked this dozens of times, and I can't explain it any other way," she said, reaching for her cigarettes, "Shinji has more power than he's letting on, probably because he doesn't know, or he's afraid to say anything about them." She stuck one of the sticks in her mouth and lit up, taking a long drag, "And I have no idea if this is an isolated incident, or if the others will develop something like this as well." She said, swiveling around to face the woman, "You said Asuka lifted the front of your car?" She asked, gaining a nod, "Well, doing that would have crumpled the car, but Asuka managed to do it without harming the car, probably because you warned her not to harm it, that right there is a sign of what's been called, Tactile Telekinesis, a form of psychic power that transfers the telekinetic power of the subject into whatever they're touching, allowing them to move it as if it were weightless."

"Jesus," Misato staggered away, and sat herself on a gurney, "Just what are we doing to these kids, Ritsu?"

Ritsuko sighed our a large puff of smoke, "I don't know, but it's almost frightening." She said, "The scientist in me thinks that these children will be the next step in the evolution of mankind, but the part of me that's still humans hates the part I played in all of this." She looked at the woman, "Including what I did to Rei."

"And what you did to Hikari?" She asked, glaring once more, "That was totally out of line, and you know it. I'm never letting them be used like that again, no matter what you or the Commander say."

Ristuko nodded sighing again, "My...experimentation...is over." She said, looking back at the computer screen, "You don't need to fear anything from me. All I'll be to them now is their doctor, nothing more...nothing less."

"Remember that," Misato said, pushing off the gurney and heading out of the room, "If you don't, I'll kill you myself."

"Duly noted," the blonde said at the door slammed.

(*)

"Mari, why can't I go with Toji and Hikari?" Sakura whined as the older girl led her through the mall by her hand.

Mari giggled, "Because they're looking for your Christmas gift, Cheri," she said simply, "And you want it to be a surprise, don't you?" Sakura pouted cutely, but nodded. Mari smiled down at the little girl and looked over at the rest of their little group consisting of Asuka, Mana, Misato and Rei.

Aside from the pair of Toji and Hikari, the boys had gone off on their own for their shopping to keep everything a surprise.

"Remember we need to get a tree to decorate," Misato said, smiling at the little girl as well, "This is our first Christmas together, so we have to make it special."

Mana looked at the older woman, "I heard that Hikari's parents are still trying to get her to leave with them," the girl sighed, recalling a rather loud phone call that morning while Misato had driven Rei to NERV HQ, "She invited them to join us for Christmas, though, so it couldn't have been that bad."

Asuka winced, having overheard that little argument with Hikari and her parents, or rather, her mother screeching at her from the other end of the phone. Apparently they still blamed her being selected as a pilot for not being able to leave when they wanted to, their daughter's health aside.

"So what are we getting?" Asuka asked, deciding to change the subject. "We need to get a present for the boys, so - "

The girls broke into conversation on what the boys should get, there being only three of them, two of which were undoubtedly spoken for, while the other was...unofficially claimed. Asuka still adamantly denied her slight attraction to Shinji, even though she had sleepwalked into his room twice more since the Jet Alone incident.

Mari teased her mercilessly on the matter whenever she didn't have nightmares due to Ritsuko's tampering with Hikari, and even then she teased her mildly because she now often had dreams that concerned the young Captain.

"Let's go see about that tree," Mana smiled as she bounced ahead of the group, "Rei, why don't you help me pick out some decorations?"

The girl looked rather startled when Mana suggested it, but nodded, "I have never done such a thing before."

Giggling, Mana took her by the hand and led her away to one of the many stores inside the mall. Asuka frowned as Mari walked off with Sakura in tow while Misato just smiled at the young red-head, "Feeling left out?"

Asuka huffed, "No, I just hope Mari doesn't teach Sakura any bad habits." She said, crossing her arms.

'Yeah, right,' Misato thought smiling at the girl, "You know, I bet I know just what Shinji would appreciate," she said, smiling as she got the girl's attention, "Since he enjoys riding his bike, a jacket would be nice."

"But it's always so hot here," Asuka frowned, tapping her chin in thought, "Though, I guess a thin riding jacket would be alright."

"Or some steel toe boots," Misato pointed out, "come on, we can look around while the others have their fun."

Asuka nodded, smiling slightly, "It-it's not like I want to be- "

"Asuka," the older woman said, placing an arm around her shoulders, "Knock off the strong act, it's me, remember?" She smiled, "Besides, I know you've been having a tough time lately. Whatever you need to talk about, I'll be right here."

Asuka blushed as brightly as her hair, "Okay."

"That's my girl." Misato gave her a tight squeeze, and the two strolled down the stairs, and made their way toward the men's clothing store.

.

"Thanks for tagging along with me, Shinji," Kensuke sighed as the two boys walked along, "This is hard enough with it being something for a girl, but shopping for Rei makes it doubly hard."

Shinji just rolled his eyes, "You know I'm not much better, right?" He asked, frowning. "What was the plan, anyway?"

Kensuke frowned, "Well, you see, Rei was...she..."

"Spit it out," Shinji sighed, "I'm pretty sure I know what you're trying to say about Rei. I know how to get into whatever files I might want at NERV." He said, not letting on that he already knew much about the former hybrid. "So come on, what were you thinking about?"

Kensuke sighed, his shoulders slumping, "She's been...extra clingy since we came back," he said, "I think she thinks that because she was, well, what she is, that I won't feel the same way about her, or that I'll leave her, or something...so..." He scratched the back of his head, "What I mean to say is..." He began blushing crimson.

Shinji sighed, "You've got my vote," he said, giving the boy a light punch in the shoulder, "Go find a ring."

Kensuke looked at him in shock, "You really mean that?"

"Well, why not?" He asked, shrugging and grinning at his friend, "I've got no right to say who she dates, or who she marries, and neither does my dad for that matter, as much as he might think he does. So yeah, go right ahead."

Kensuke smiled in relief, "Thanks, Shinji," he said, sighing, "You know, I'm actually looking forward to calling you my brother."

Shinji chuckled and slung an arm around his shoulders, "Yeah, yeah, just make sure you pick out the right ring."

"Same goes for you and Asuka!" Kensuke laughed, earning himself a double-noogie.

.

"Don't you think this is a little much?" Hikari asked, frowning at the basket laden with goods, "I-I-I mean, I don't mind it, but -"

Toji smiled at her, "Come on, we deserve it," he said, "You especially after what that crazy doctor did to you."

"Well, that would have happened anyway," Hikari frowned, still feeling a little violated by the ordeal, "But seriously, Toji, this is going a little too far, isn't it?" She looked down into the basket, "I've never seen a doll house this size before, and that model kit you picked out for Kensuke looks really expensive. And then there's the gloves you picked out for Shinji."

"What's wrong with them?" Toji asked, picking up the items in question. "I think they look cool as hell."

"They're made of kevlar," she pointed out, "And they have a metal plate across the back of the hand, and they're fingerless."

Toji bit his lip, and sighed, "Yeah, well, I wanted to get him something practical," he admitted, "And after that whole thing with the terrorist, I thought he could use something like this." He said, and frowned, "You know, instead of a gun, or something?"

Hikari looked at him a little in surprised. "You were really shaken up by that, weren't you?"

Toji nodded, "You've got no idea."

Hikari smiled at him and hugged his arm, "Alright, I'll let it go for now." She said, looking at the rest of his selections. "But did you really need the doll house? Sakura already has one."

"Hm?" Toji looked at her, "I got Sakura one of those little china dolls, the house is for Mari."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, she mentioned that she liked to build them as a hobby back in Paris," Toji shrugged, "This one's a building kit, just like Kensuke's model."

"What did you get Asuka?" Hikari giggled.

Toji cracked a huge grin, "A teddy bear with 'Shinji' stitched into the ribbon."

"Oh, she's gonna get you for that!" Hikari giggled madly, just imagining the look on the girl's face.

Toji just laughed, "It'll be totally worth it."

(*)

"How's construction of the N2 reactors coming along?" Kaji asked casually as he stepped into the Commander's office.

"Very good, in actuality," he said, smirking, "I am forever grateful to you for taking possession of that data before the base was destroyed."

Kaji just chuckled, "Well, what can I say?" He said, scratching the back of his head, "When there's information to be had, I just can't help myself." He smirked, "Speaking of information, I heard that the Production Model for Unit-05 is being transferred over to Japan. You must be pleased with this."

"Indeed," Gendo nodded, "The new Unit along with all the other Evangelions we have will be detrimental to the cause." He said, "And I do believe that Ritsuko is nearly finished developing the Artificial Cores for Unit-0.1 and 0.2."

"That's good to hear," he said, smiling, "But you know I didn't just come here to shoot the breeze about things we both already know."

Gendo nodded once more, "I do." He said, "What have you found?"

Kaji sighed, "Well, to be honest, not that much that we already didn't know," he said, making the man frown, "The man that attacked the base during Jet Alone's activation test was an unknown. What DNA I was able to salvage from the corpse, was indeed a mixture of Angel and Human DNA." He said, confirming his suspicions, "And you also know that it was a hybrid that brought about the destruction of the South Dakota base, along with Unit-07."

"Meaning that someone else has the technology to create a hybrid," Gendo surmised, "And the Rogue?"

"It was stolen directly from Seele's main base," Kaji said, frowning at the man, "That one was a Null-Unit, one that was less advanced and unimportant to the old men, but it certainly wasn't the only one that they had in storage."

"I see," Gendo frowned. "I'll have Ritsuko focus more on the Evangelions, and their weaponry, that way, when the time comes, and another Rogue appears, we will be better prepared."

Kaji nodded, "It won't be long, the way things are, the children will finish the Angels before we finish with the Evas." He said, sighing, "Strange that the Angels haven't shown up again since the last attack at sea." He frowned, "Also, the package I delivered to you...?"

"Is stored away safe from the world." He said, "And now we have both the remains of the First, and Second Angel."

"And if either one were to come into contact with each other, or an Angel, the world shall end in a blazing fire that will purge the Earth of all manner of life, leaving only the primordial sea from which all life crawled from." Kaji quoted, smirking, looking the man in the eyes, "And I can only hope that the hands that bind them now will keep them from those that would see the world burn."

Gendo gave him a hard look, "Do not worry about that," he frowned, narrowing his eyes at the man, "What you should be worrying about is your fractured relationship with the Major."

Kaji looked stricken, "Oh, now that's just hateful, Sir," he said, tilting his head in a hurt manner mockingly, "But then again, at least I still have someone."

"Don't you have a party to go crash?" Gendo said sharply, sounding angry.

"Indeed I do," he said, turning toward the door, pausing, "Keep in mind, though, while I'll support your cause until the Angels are destroyed, I will do whatever it takes to protect those I care about...no matter whom I have to aim my gun at."

Gendo nodded at the veiled threat, "As will I, Kaji, as will I."

(*)

"Loin dans une crèche Pas de berceau pour un lit," Mari sang softly as she and Sakura decorated the Christmas tree in the living room. The girl seemed to be in a happier mood than usual as she and the little girl placed bulbs, tinsel, and ornaments on the branches. It was, of course, a fake tree, but it didn't take the loveliness away from it as the girls fussed over it, as well as the sweetness of their first real holiday together.

Sakura looked up at the girl, "Is that a Christmas song?" She asked.

Mari nodded to her, "It's one of my favorites," she said, "Ma mère used to sing it to me when I was little. It was sort of a lullaby to me."

"Mah...mayer?" Sakura parroted, not understanding her.

"It means 'my mother' in French," Asuka said as she came into the room, a package in hand, and placed it under the tree, and looked up at the taller girl, "You've been in a good mood lately, any special occasion?"

Mari smirked at her, "Come on, Red, it's Christmas time," she said, giggling while Hikari and Toji brought in their gifts to place under the tree. "Do I really need a reason to be happy?"

"She's right," Toji put in, ruffling Sakura's hair as he set the gifts down, "Apart from that snag at the Old Tokyo base, there haven't been any Angel attacks for a few weeks. And there's really no sign of those terrorists anymore. So why not live a little?"

"Is this one mine?" Sakura asked, pointing to the mid-sized gift Hikari placed down. She giggled when Hikari tapped her on the nose, "Hey!"

"No peeking," she said, smiling at the girl as she pouted.

Asuka giggled a little at the scene. Between Toji, his sister, and Hikari, the trio really did look like a couple of young parents and their child. Shinji and Kensuke had already placed their gifts under the tree, both of them small little packages. Rei had only managed to buy for Kensuke, the others telling her not to concern herself with them, all things considered. Asuka could tell that buying a gift for her boyfriend, and not for the rest of them bothered her slightly, but Mari had stepped in and reassured her that they only needed each other for gifts. To prove a point, she offered her a selection to give to Asuka, which the red-head had immediately shot down. She most certainly did not need a vibrator.

Mana and Misato had nearly gotten themselves kicked out of the mall for laughing so loudly on that account.

"Who did Shinji buy for?" Mana asked as she came in, a few packages of her own in her arms.

Mari smirked, "It says 'Asuka' on the tag."

Asuka turned beet-red at this, having not expected it.

"Ach, halt den mund!" The girl snapped back in German.

Misato came into the living room heading for the kitchen when she saw the majority of the pilots chatting by the tree, and placing their gifts to each other around it, unable to help the smile that came to her face. 'They're finally acting like kids their age should,' she smiled, wondering fleetingly where Shinji was.

Ever since her confrontation with Ritsuko earlier that morning, she had been overly worried about the young man considering what the woman had told her about what was supposedly happening to him. She'd watched him for most of the day to see if anything was off about him, but everything seemed normal.

However, the answer to her question came only a moment later when she heard the unmistakable sound of a cello.

She looked back toward the bottom of the stairs, Shinji's room being the first one on the corner. She wasn't the only one to notice, either. Rei and Kensuke poked their heads out of his room, and the others had all turned in the direction of the beautiful sound.

Mari hummed, smiling. "Mon coeur ira sur." She sighed dreamily, looking at Asuka, "Your favorite tune, Rouge."

If Asuka wasn't red before, she certainly was now as the song hit a high note for a cello. Mana sighed, "He plays beautifully." She smiled, "I wish I had a boy that would play for me like that."

Asuka wanted to say that she should ask him, but she quickly closed her mouth, nearly biting her tongue in the process.

Toji nodded, seeing Hikari closing her eyes to enjoy his playing. "Maybe I should ask for a few lessons?"

"My ears wouldn't survive," Asuka quipped, even though she thought it was sweet of him since she knew it would be for Hikari's sake. She herself was very talented with the violin.

"Is this another Christmas song?" Sakura asked, having never heard the tune before.

Asuka giggled, and picked the girl up in her arms, "No, Liebling, this is a tune from an old movie that some of the older generations liked."

"It's pretty," the little girl said, smiling.

Mari came over and took her from Asuka, humming the tune softly, "Chaque nuit dans mes rêves je te vois je te sens c'est comme ça que je sais que tu vas continuer," she sang softly in French once more. Asuka chuckled, outdone, but wasn't unhappy about it. She knew she had a horrible singing voice, but Mari, on the other hand was wonderful.

As Mari continued to sing, Shinji must have heard her, because his playing soon matched her voice in rhythm.

Rei, as she listened to the music, felt a strange sensation she was still unfamiliar with in her chest. Kensuke smiled and reached up, ghosting a finger across her cheek, startling her as she felt something wet smoothing across her skin at his touch.

Reaching up to her face, she found a small stream of tears leaving her eyes. Not understanding why she would be crying, she looked up at Kensuke with confusion. He shook his head and simply wrapped his arm around her, holding her tightly against his side.

"You're lucky he's fixated on you," Mana commented quietly to Asuka, making the red-head nearly snap at her. Misato giggled at the pair as Asuka blushed again at the implications. She was most likely getting thoroughly tired of the others shipping her and Shinji, much as she thought the two of them were cute together. But she could tell that he was wearing her down. Her behavior showed it. She was either shying away from him, or acting overly aggressive, a sure sign that the proud pilot was attracted to someone.

.

Later that evening, as the others were all in bed, Asuka sat up on the sofa, unable to sleep. The lights and decorations on the Christmas tree flickered and blinked lightly as she stared at them. Christmas wasn't something she celebrated. She hadn't been really allowed. Most of her life was dedicated to becoming an Eva pilot. All of that had been turned upside down since coming to Japan, and meeting Captain Ikari and the rest of the Japanese pilots.

They were...strong. Stronger than she was. She had only been in one fight, thus far, but she could easily see it. At least when she looked at her team Captain. The physical mutations aside, he was calm, cool, collected, and downright frightening when he was angry at someone. And she hated seeing him angry...especially when she was the cause of some of it. And yet...

'...I like him...' she admitted forlornly, bringing her knees to her chest as she sighed. 'He's kind to me when I'm such a bitch all the time,' she thought, 'He cooks German food for me to make me feel at home,' she blushed harder than she had all day given all of the teasing, 'And I feel...so, so safe in his arms!' She thought back to the night when she had wandered into his room and all but cuddled with him all night. 'I won't say it...not out loud, at least...' she smiled slightly.

If Shinji was seriously courting her, then the ball was in his court. That meant she was going to make him work for her heart...because she couldn't afford to let it go so easily.

"Ein penny für deine gedanken," said a voice behind her. Her shoulders tensed as she recognized his voice, and wondered how he'd managed to move so silently as to sneak up on her.

Asuka didn't let it show, however, and turned to him with a slightly surprised look, "Since when do you speak German?"

"I've been teaching myself for a little while, actually," Shinji admitted bashfully as she scratched the back of his head, "How was it?"

"Horrible, of course," she smirked, seeing his face fall slightly, but gave him a slightly warm smile a moment later, "But you get an A for effort."

Shinji chuckled and came around to sit next to her, not so close that either of them would feel uncomfortable, but close enough that she had to fight down a blush, and hope he didn't notice it. "Can't you sleep?"

She shook her head, "Christmas morning jitters, I guess." She lied, shrugging, "That...and I keep thinking about what's happening to us."

"You mean because we're changing?" Shinji sighed, shaking his head, "I...kind'a know how you feel...this is all so strange."

"Strange is the fact that Kensuke and Rei are now an official couple, Ikari," she pointed out, "This? This is just plain crazy. I mean I lifted a car! Me!" She gestured to herself. She was thin and wiry, not at all built like a lifter, and yet she had managed with her tiny frame to lift a car...without even trying.

Shinji frowned, shaking his head, "Don't..." she looked over at him, curious, "don't freak out, alright?"

Asuka cocked her head to the side, wondering what he was talking about when he raised his hand toward the pile of presents around the tree. She watched for a moment, about to ask what he was trying to do, until she noticed that the little package with her name on it started rising from the floor, and floated right toward her. Stunned, she could only hold out her hands as it landed gently in her grasp. Blinking rapidly as she looked from the tree to the gift, and to Shinji, she barely, just barely, managed not to freak out.

"D-did you just -?!" Asuka sputtered as Shinji chuckled quietly.

"Oh, if you could only see your face right now." He shook his head, smiling at her, "But yeah...I've been able to do that for a while now...I thought it was just me." He looked at her, frowning, "But it's not just me...not anymore."

Asuka set the present aside for the moment, looking at him worriedly, "Shinji...what else can you do?"

"Besides run faster than any person alive, lift incredible weights, and...do what I just did?" He asked, shaking his head, "I don't know, and I'm not sure I want to find out." He said truthfully, thankful that most of the powers he had were stripped and sealed away inside Abraham. "After this happened, I felt like I was living in a glass box, and just one little misstep would shatter it...I had to keep it secret, and learn how to control it before I hurt someone I...cared about."

'Just care?' She thought. Still, she could understand his reluctance to say anything. Especially since their resident Frankenstein had experimented on one of them...two, she corrected herself when she remembered Rei's experience.

"Why show me, then?" Asuka found herself asking, "Aren't you afraid I'll tell Misato?"

Shinji smiled at her, making her heart beat faster, "You might, but I trust you enough to tell you a little about myself other than my parental issues."

"Ah, I'm sorry about that," She said, sighing, "About calling you a daddy's boy, I mean...I never really apologized for that."

Shinji outright laughed at her, much to her ire, "Who are you, and what have you done with my Asuka?"

"Your Asuka?" She grumbled.

Shinji nodded, "Yeah, the one that's always bossy on the outside, and gets all shy when she's caught unaware, but never apologizes."

Shy? Her? Who the hell was he trying to kid? "I am not shy, if you hadn't noticed, I let my opinion be known to everyone whether they like it or not."

Shinji chuckled, "Yeah, but that's just on the outside," he smiled at her, "You talk in your sleep, you know?"

She did know, and she did not want to know what he had heard, a point driven home by the angry blush that rose to her cheeks rivaling her Unit-02. "And just what have you been listening to me say?"

Shinji had an odd look on his face, half-smile, half-frown, "Did you and Mari seriously make out on the ship?"

"WAH!?"

Shinji burst out laughing while Asuka lobbed a pillow at him. "That wasn't my idea! She jumped me!"

"Sure she did," Shinji snickered. Asuka growled and started walloping him with the pillow she'd thrown. "Okay, okay, I get it! Mari's bad, Asuka's good, right?"

Asuka sat back with a "hmph", crossing her arms, refusing to look at him, "And don't you forget it!"

Shinji shook his head, still chuckling. "It's no wonder she teases you so much," she glared at him from the corner of her eye, "You're too cute some times."

"Not cute, fierce," she turned herself away from him completely.

Shinji smiled, leaning his head back against the couch. "You talk a lot about Germany," he said, noting that she'd perked up. "You miss the colors of the leaves. The cool weather. Your favorite places to visit when you got a day off."

"Who wouldn't miss their home when they're thousands of miles away?" She asked with a huff, turning herself around partially.

"Someone like me, I guess," he admitted, still staring up, "Before Dad called me here, I just lived with an instructor that he assigned to take care of me." He shook his head, "He didn't like me all that much, and pretty much ignored me all the time, and left me to fend for myself."

"Jeez, your dad's a jerk." Asuka frowned; no wonder he didn't care all that much for the man. She admitted that she didn't either. There was something seriously creepy about him.

"Welcome to my world," he said with a wave of his hands, "If I hadn't met all of you, and come to live here, I probably wouldn't care where I lived as long as I had a roof over my head, and food. Still wouldn't have been a home, though."

"And this is?" Asuka asked, smiling at little.

Shinji sat up, returning the smile, "Yeah, I think so." He said, picking up Asuka's gift, "It's passed midnight...wanna open it?"

"Can I?" She asked, looking a little perplexed. "I thought this was more of a family thing?"

"It is," he smiled as she accepted it, "but are we part of the same little family, now?"

Asuka blushed a little, and started opening the small package. Under the wrapping paper was a simple square box with a "W" pressed into the lid. Her eyes widened as she opened it. It was a bracelet. A simple, golden wheat-link bracelet. "This is...Shinji, this is a Wellendorf!" She gasped, "These cost a fortune! I can't - "

She turned her gaze back to the young man sitting beside her...who was now right next to her, that strange glow in his eyes once more. "Sh-Shinji...?"

"Merry Christmas, Asuka."

Before she could respond, he dipped his head, and brushed his lips lightly against her own. It was meant to be a brief kiss, but the moment their lips touched that idea when flying out the window.

The bracelet dropped from her hands to the floor.

Asuka's mouth opened unconsciously as she gasped, allowing him deepen the contact. He stayed stock still for a moment, waiting for her reaction. He wasn't disappointed when her felt her hands sliding up his chest, and around his neck. She then leaned into the kiss, a soft moan escaping her as his hands went to her hips, tugging her against him.

It was so much better than he remembered during the first time around. She tasted just as sweet as her remembered her being, and she didn't have a hold of his nose this time, but...

'...air...' They broke apart a moment later, neither one of them knowing how long they had been like that, both breathing heavily. Catching his breath, he smiled down at her.

She looked as though she wanted to say something, but smiled and shook her head before leaning it against his chest. "Fröhliche Weihnachten, Liebbling."

AN: Finally got this out! Sorry it's so late for the special chapter. BUT! I hope it's as good as the other one...and I don't think I need to tell you guys, but Mayumi's coming up, soon...but maybe things will change?

Please Review if you like the chapter.