Asuka lay in a hospital bed under heavy guard. Her eyes were open and were staring up blankly at the ceiling. Monitors were hooked up to her and she was being fed intravenously. Since being rescued three days ago she's made no sound and had failed to respond to any stimulus. Though there was no obvious injury she was in a comatose state.

Ritsuko was there along with Maya checking up on her. Ritsuko still had some bandages wrapped around her forehead; she and the others in the control room had been lucky. Buried under steel and concrete it had survived the initial explosion and afterwards the Angel had left, more interested in attacking the geofront than in finishing off the survivors at the test site.

"Amazing," Ritsuko murmured and lit a cigarette.

"Ah, sempai?" Maya said. "You're not supposed to smoke in here."

"It's all right," Ritsuko said waving it off. "I'm sure Asuka won't tell on me." She was busy studying the results of one of the monitors. "Her brain wave patterns don't show any delta waves. Though her body appears unresponsive her mind is incredibly active."

"Then why is she like this?" Maya asked.

"Who knows? While trapped inside EVA 03 she appears to have been mentally submerged with the Angel." Ritsuko looked from the monitor read out to the girl lying in the hospital bed. "She is the only human being to have ever been mentally linked to an extra terrestrial being. Who can even guess how that would affect the human consciousness? Also as she was hooked up to the nerve net she likely experienced being stabbed multiple times and may have even experienced the Angel's death as well. That level of trauma might have been too much for her mind to accept. It's even possible that some part of the Angel's memories or thought patterns merged with her own. Even if she wakes she may not be Asuka any more, she might be part Angel now."

Maya looked at the helpless girl worriedly. "They're not going to terminate her are they?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Ritsuko said stamping out her cigarette. "She is far too valuable a test subject for that."

XXX

"Thank you," Kaworu said as he received his change and took the flowers he'd just paid for. As he exited the hospital gift shop someone was standing outside waiting for him.

"A little something for a girl?"

The silver haired boy nodded his head politely. "Hello Kaji-san what a pleasant surprise to see you here. Are you visiting someone?"

"I came down here to see you actually."

"How kind of you, especially since we are not really that close."

"Oh think nothing of it," Kaji said grandly. "I am very interested in you."

"That's nice," Kaworu replied.

"So just who are the flowers for? Asuka?"

"Shinji-kun, I've heard he hasn't been feeling well and I thought I would try to cheer him up."

"You really have care a lot about Shinji don't you?" Kaji chuckled softly, teasingly. "Some people might even think you are obsessed with him."

"He is a fellow EVA pilot and a good friend. Isn't it only natural that I worry about him?"

"The same could be said of Rei and Asuka, yet you refer to both of them as 'san' the same way you do everyone else. I've noticed that only Shinji gets 'kun' added to his name. Why is that?"

Kaworu shrugged. "No reason really, I just feel more comfortable around him I suppose."

"Is that all?"

An amused glint filled Kaworu's eyes. "What more could there possibly be Kaji-san?"

Kaji looked at him and pursed his lips. "You know you're a very lucky young man," he said deftly changing the subject. "You were scheduled to pilot Unit 03. If you hadn't suddenly some down with food poisoning it would have been you in there rather than Asuka."

"Yes, I suppose I was lucky, though I certainly didn't think so at the time."

"You know it's a funny thing," Kaji said sounding completely nonchalant. "The day you got sick you only ate at one of the base cafeterias, at the wedding reception, and had a sandwich at home. That's right isn't it?"

"You're very well informed," Kaworu noted. "Yes that's right."

"Well the medical staff tested everything in your apartment and found no sign of spoilage. While hundreds of other people ate at the same locations you did and there were no other cases. If you were poisoned at either the cafeteria or the reception there should have been multiple cases. it's almost unheard of for there to be only one in a situation like that."

"Are you suggesting I only pretended to be sick?" Kaworu shook his head. "You can check with Akagi-san or the medical staff. I really was ill, I only just now recovered enough to be released."

"Oh I don't doubt you had food poisoning," Kaji clarified. "I'm just saying the timing was rather convenient."

"You've obviously never had food poisoning. I've been as sick as a dog for the past three days. Why would I do that to myself deliberately?"

"To avoid Asuka's fate."

Kaworu's smile slowly widened on his face. "You're suggesting I knew that Unit 03 was going to be compromised. How could I possibly have known that?" He laughed. "Do I look like an Angel to you?"

"I'm just making an observation."

"You make a great many observations Kaji-san," Kaworu noted. "I wonder if that might get you into trouble some day."

Kaji smiled down at him. "I think I can handle myself with you."

"Oh I'm not the one you need to worry about Kaji-san," Kaworu assured him. "I find you entertaining. There are other people though who don't have my good nature. They're the ones you have to watch out for."

"Is that supposed to be a threat?"

"It's just an observation," Kaworu told him in a friendly way.

XXX

The electronic door slid open and Rei entered dressed in her school uniform.

"I'm back Shinji-kun," she called out.

She waited but here was no response.

She took her shoes off and continued, talking loudly enough for her voice to carry through the entire apartment.

"Everyone at school asked if you were all right and when you were coming back. Fuka-san told everyone he was moving away and that today was his last day, I'm not sure who's going to teach math now. There are rumors the school is going to be closed down. There's nothing official yet though and the teachers haven't said anything."

She waited but there was still no reply.

"Major Katsuragi asked how you were doing. I think she is very worried about you. Her arm is in a cast and she wants you to sign it. The Commander said you could stay out one more day but after that you would have to come in and begin training again. Kaworu has finally been released and he wants the three of us to train as a unit."

She opened the bedroom door and stepped inside. The lights were off and Shinji was curled up on the bed just as he had been when she'd left for school. He was facing the far wall and did not look at her.

"What do you want to eat?" She asked him.

"I'm not hungry," he told her without moving.

"You have to eat Shinji."

He said nothing.

Without comment she climbed onto the bed and curled up next to him. She pressed herself against his back and rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped her slender arms around his chest. He was warm.

They lay there together for awhile in silence. Rei wanted to help him but didn't know what words to say. All she could do was hold him and share her body's warmth with him. It was hard for her to see him like this, to see him in pain and not be able to do anything about it.

Being human was hard. Their bodies were so weak and fragile and seemed made to feel suffering. Physical pains, emotional pains, loneliness, regret… how could they stand it? How did they not go mad from all they had to endure?

She wondered if the best thing she could do for humanity was to rid it of this ability to suffer.

"I did that to her," Shinji suddenly spoke in a bare whisper. "I did that to her."

"She's alive Shinji. She's alive because of what you did." They'd been told Asuka had survived but was in a catatonic state. No one knew if she would fully recover, but NERV was acting on the assumption she would never again pilot.

"I did that to her," he said in a broken voice. "She would have felt it. Every stab, it would have felt like I was stabbing her over and over. I did that to her."

"There was no choice Shinji. We both did what we had to. What happened to Asuka was unfortunate but unavoidable. She was just one more casualty."

At last Shinji rolled over to face her. His eyes were red but there were no more tears. She wondered if had used them all up and just didn't have any left to cry.

"Why did this have to happen to Asuka? She didn't deserve it. Neither did Toji or Kensuke."

"They were casualties of war," Rei told him. "The battles cause death, there's nothing you or I can do to alter that. We can't save everyone Shinji, we can only fight to save what we can."

"What's it all for Rei?" He asked her sounding so lost, so empty. "We have to fight, but why? Even if we win, even if we defeat the Angels what will happen then? Misato told me about the Vatican Treaty. Even while we're fighting for survival people are afraid of us being too strong, different countries are still just looking out for themselves. Will there be peace if we win? Or will there just be more war? I am so tired of this Rei, of fighting and destroying everything. I am so sick of war. If I could, if I had the power, I would put an end to war forever."

Rei nodded her head. "That's a good dream Shinji-kun, and if I could I would make it come true for you."

They were lying on the bed facing each other, their heads resting on a pillow. Slowly, ever so slowly, Rei leaned forward to place a feather soft kiss on his lips.

"Rei…"

"Let me comfort you Shinji-kun," she whispered and gently caressed his face. "Please, let me give you comfort. Let me share my love with you."

She placed another kiss on his lips and felt Shinji return it. His hands cradled her hips as he shifted himself over her, she gladly accepted his weight pressing down upon her. Nothing was as enjoyable as the feel of his body pushing down on hers. When they kissed again, it was with a simmering passion, feelings expressed with slow, gentle need. There was something to be said about enjoying patient, unhurried lovemaking. They took each other's clothes off and slipped into the familiar pattern of sharing each other's soul and emotions in this most basic and physical way. This was their love, their special connection.

"I love you," Shinji said looking down at her with such affection and tenderness that it made her heart ache.

"I love you too Shinji-kun."

XXX

As they made slow leisurely love Rei wondered if this was why humanity was able to survive despite all the hardships. This feeling of love that defeated everything else and made all the pain of life bearable. To be with Shinji forever, to always have this feeling in her heart, for that she knew she could do anything at all.

Even bring humanity to its final end.