Well, this chapter is not a battle chapter. Enjoy some of the happier moments of this fic. On with it!

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Misato was ecstatic when the two pilots stepped out of the entry plug in seemingly very good health. Even though they had the smell of LCL, she didn't care. She hugged them both, and appeared to have no plans of letting them go.

Once she finally did let go, Asuka was even more confused than ever. "What was that for? We weren't gone that long!"

"Quite the contrary," interjected Ritsuko. "You two were trapped inside for about six days now."

"Six days?" said a surprised Shinji. "But to us, it only felt like a couple of hours."

Ritsuko thought for a moment and then came up with a theory. "Well, I'll assume that within the EVA, you two were in like another dimension, where time is much slower. That explains why it felt like it was only so short to you two."

"So when can we go home?" asked Asuka.

"You two can go shower and clean up. I just want to make a few examinations to make sure everything is fine."

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Gendo Ikari's Office

Gendo had just heard the news about the pilots' sudden return. "Hmm, so there was nothing we could have done."

"Apparently so," replied Fuyutski. "Those children are amazing. We could never pull off the wonders they continue to shock us with."

Now that Gendo knew his son was fine, he could continue his planning to spend a day with his son, and find out what life for the boy was like. He only hoped it would work. He decided to inquire into other matters. "How is the search for SEELE coming along?"

"Still no sign of them," said Fuyutski.

"I see. And the Black Angels are officially eliminated too. So, the only thing to do is conduct business as normal and wait for the other Black Angels to show up."

Just then, Dr. Akagi had walked into the room. She had just finished giving Shinji and Asuka an examination.

"Dr. Akagi, what is the status of Pilots Ikari and Sohryu?" asked Gendo.

"Apparently, they're just fine. Their health wasn't affected at all by being in the EVA for six days. The only thing they were was hungry." She handed him the medical reports so he could look over them himself.

"Good, you are dismissed," said Gendo. In response, Ritsuko walked out. As she walked out Gendo thought to himself 'Thank you Yui for bringing Shinji back.'

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Misato's Apartment – Just Outside

The two pilots were happy to be at home again. Once Misato opened the door, she seemed surprised for a minute.

"What's wrong Misato?" asked Asuka.

"It's odd. All the others were here when I left not long ago. Even Toji and Elly were here too. But the lights are out and no one is here."

Not knowing what else to think, the trio entered the apartment as they always would, taking off their shoes, then setting about to do whatever activities they wished.

"I need a beer," said Misato as she went towards the kitchen. "Hey Shinji, why don't you make something to eat? It's been so long since you've made something."

"Ok, sure," replied Shinji as he went into the kitchen as well.

To their shock, the lights came on! "SURPRISE!" was the yell they heard next, totally startling the three. There was Zack, Rei, Ivana, Toji, Kensuke, Hikari, and Elly! They were all in the kitchen with a large cake on the table. There was a large banner that said "WELCOME BACK ASUKA AND SHINJI".

"What's going on here?" asked a still somewhat startled Asuka and Shinji.

"We missed you both so much," started Elly.

"So we made this party just for you," said Ivana.

"Because we missed you both so much," said Hikari.

"The Three Stooges just aren't the same without you," said Kensuke. "And Asuka too."

"Yeah, the other boys aren't fun to flirt with," said Elly.

"So what do you think?" asked Zack.

Shinji and Asuka were speechless. Neither of them knew what to say.

Shinji tried to speak up. "Wow. You did all this just for us?"

Zack put in a headlock. "Hey, you're our buddy. And this shows how glad we are to have you two back. Besides, take a look at the top of the cake."

In response, the two looked at the cake. There were two wax figurines on top of the large, rectangular three layer cake. It was figurines of Shinji and Asuka holding hands. Of course, the two were fairly embarrassed.

Asuka looked at Zack with a menacing glare. "You made those? You sicko!"

Zack raised his hands in defense. "Hey, it wasn't me; it was Hikari who made those!"

Asuka turned to Hikari with a look of happiness in her eyes. "Wow Hikari, you were quite the artist! I never knew you were so good."

This compliment on her artwork made Hikari blush. "Aww Asuka, I'm not actually that good. It was actually Elly's idea; she just couldn't do it herself."

Toji took this moment to speak. "So let's eat now, shall we?"

And so, everyone started eating a slice of the chocolate cake. It quickly became a universal agreement that the cake was definitely awesome. That night became a tale of how it was like merged with the EVA, being trapped inside, and their escape.

"So it wasn't as bad as we thought it would be," said Shinji.

Misato had something to say. "By the way Asuka, there were three photos found in Unit 02's entry plug." She showed them to Asuka. "Have any idea where these came from?"

Asuka took a look at the photos. They were the same ones that her and Shinji had taken in the photo booth within the EVA. "No, I've never seen these before," she tried to lie.

Zack quickly snatched the photos out of her hand. "Lemme see!" He looked at the first one with no change in his expression. When he looked at the second photo, he snickered loudly. By now, Asuka's face had gone red and was ready to beat him down. But when Zack looked at the third photo, he was shocked. "What the hell?" he said in English. "This little girl looks like Shinji!"

The third photo was passed around to the others. Each one except Rei had a boggled look of confusion in their eyes. And finally, the picture got around to Elly. "Wow. Is this like some picture of the future? Is this Shinji's child in the future? She looks so cute!"

"Does this mean Asuka is gonna one day bear Shinji's child?" said Zack aloud. This resulted in three bops on the head for the Canadian. One from Ivana, Misato, and Asuka.

"Lucky you Shinji," said Toji.

"At least we know Shinji will get some one of these days!" said Kensuke.

Poor thing to say on both of their parts. Hikari gave them both a simultaneous whack on the heads. "You two should be ashamed of yourselves and your dirty thoughts!"

Now Zack, Toji, and Kensuke bowed their heads in shame, and in pain, while everyone else shared a heartfelt laugh.

Rei then remembered something. "Shinji and Asuka. I… made this for you," she finally said. She then produced something in a gold picture frame. Shinji and Asuka looked at it with awe. It was a sketching done of the both of them.

"Wow Rei, this is amazing," said Shinji.

"This is good Wondergirl," said Asuka. "What inspired you to be an artist in six days?"

"I do not know," the albino replied. "I just felt like I wanted to draw a picture because I knew the two of you would like it."

"Thanks Rei," said Shinji.

"We can hang it up in the apartment," said Misato. "It's a fabulous picture."

Once everyone had their share of cake, they prepared to go home. Shinji and Asuka thanked the others greatly and they left. Now the only people left were Shinji, Asuka, Rei, Zack, and Ivana.

Suddenly the phone rang. Zack went to answer. "Hello." A pause while Zack listens. "Yeah, he's right here. Star of the moment too." Another pause. "Whoa easy man! I'll put him on." He gives the phone to Shinji. "It's your father Shinji."

Shinji was surprised to get a phone call from his father of all people. But then again, Gendo had been slowly changing, and for the better too.

"Hello," said Shinji.

"How are you son?" Gendo asked.

"Good I guess."

"How is Yui?"

Shinji was surprised for a minute that Gendo knew he had seen his mother. But he then figured the Supreme Commander would simply assume he had seen his mother since she was absorbed in Unit 01 and so had he. "She's as well as one could be, being inside Unit 01 and all."

"I see." Gendo then changed the subject. "Are you busy tomorrow?"

"No. Why?"

Gendo was silent for a few seconds. "I haven't exactly been much of a father to you. I wish to try and make up for lost time. I propose we spend the day together tomorrow, so we can get to know each other like we should have. Are you up for this?"

Shinji nearly choked on his own breath from the proposition his father had made. His father had ruined the last ten years of his life, and he was apparently trying to make amends. Shinji also knew deep in his heart that everyone did deserve redemption at the same time. Even if his father was an asshole, he should also have his chance at redemption. "Alright Father. If you want to, it's fine with me."

"Good. I'll come by your place at 11:30 tomorrow morning. Goodbye." Gendo then hung up.

Now Asuka was curious. "So what did the Bastard King at NERV want?"

"He wanted to get to know me better. He wanted to hang out with me for the day tomorrow," replied Shinji.

Misato accidentally spat out her beer in shock. "Are you serious? That asshole wants to spend a day with you Shinji? The boy he deliberately abandoned?"

"Well yeah, that's what he said," replied Shinji. "He said he'd be coming by at 11:30 tomorrow morning."

"Wow," said Zack. "I thought Mr. High and Mighty would never soil his shoes by setting foot in this ghetto. Maybe the pressure of the Black Angels got to him."

This got everyone laughing.

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NERV HQ – Gendo Ikari's Office

Gendo Ikari's plan was going to according to plan. It was a simple to easy to do plan. Maybe. A day with the son he has treated like a monkey wrench for years. Now he would have the chance to start making up for that. He sent Fuyutski a memo telling him he would be in charge for the day tomorrow.

Now what would he do with his son for tomorrow? They would start with an old fashioned game of 10-pin bowling. Then they could go to a ramen cart for lunch. Then they could just walk around and talk about things in life that intrigued them. Once that was done, Gendo would probably take his son to a bar, and tell him about his life before he met Yui. A part of him hoped he would somehow get into a fight like he used to. A smile crept to his face when he thought about all the guys he beat up in the past.

Yes, that would be the set plan for tomorrow. He then got up from his desk and planned to go home for the night to retire.

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Misato's Apartment

It was late and everyone was getting ready to retire for the night. Shinji and Asuka were getting ready for bed. To Asuka's surprise, Casanova (Zack) hadn't leaked to Hikari that she was sharing a bed with Shinji. Hikari always said that was living in sin. But Asuka would never let it go farther than that. And she doubted that Shinji wouldn't make it that far before passing out.

Shinji was getting ready for bed as well. He had finished brushing his teeth and was on his way to bed. He saw Asuka there waiting for him. "Ready for bed?" he asked.

"Certainly. It's been six days since we slept in a bed."

Shinji then crawled in next to her. Asuka then wrapped her arms around him. "Wow, I've forgotten how warm you are."

"Same here. Good night Asuka."

"Good night Shinjikins," she replied. She then gave him a goodnight kiss and slowly drifted off to the world of slumber.

A/N: Okay, I know this was a short chapter, but I couldn't think of much else to do at the time. According to the time I see here, it's 1:40am right now. So you can see I'm tired. This chapter will spill over into the next chapter. Tomorrow is the chapter some of you have been expecting! The Father-son day for Shinji and Gendo. Will it go over well? Or will it be a disaster! The only way to know, is to find out when the next update comes! Until then, be cool!