DISCLAIMER: I do not own Neon Genesis Evangelion or its associated properties. All copyrights belong to their respective owners.

"Professor! Professor Fuyutsuki"

Doctor Kouzou Fuyutsuki wasn't accustomed to being called out to when walking the grounds of Kyoto University. But he knew the voice he heard, and the faces of the two young students approaching him - Yoshi Misawa and Hiroshi Kawada.

"Oh, it's you two," exclaimed Kouzou nonchalantly. The tall, thin, stern-faced man suspected their reason for addressing him, and wasn't keen on it, but it wasn't in his nature to be discourteous to those under his tutelage.

"You wanna join us for some beer in Kamogawa?" asked Yoshi, confirming Kouzou's fears regarding their purpose. It wasn't that he disliked the boys, nor that he didn't appreciate them seeking out his company socially. It was simply the fact that he wasn't prone to socialize, preferring to bury himself in his work. And he saw such work being interrupted by something as frivolous as drinking.

"Again?" Kouzou replied, politely venting his annoyance at his research being interrupted by Yoshi's invitation. Sensing that their invitation was about to be declined, and seeking to thwart this, Hiroshi piped up: "Ryoko and the others are saying that they'll go if you go." Yoshi followed up: "Our professor was also saying that you should show up once in a while."

Within himself, Kouzou sighed. Though reluctant to go, he didn't want to be the reason why others hadn't gone out to enjoy themselves. He also felt it would be churlish to decline the invitation that his students had sought him out to offer. Furthermore, the fact that his own peers were noticing his disinterest in the university's social life meant that he was getting negative attention from them.

This was something he didn't want to attract, so placating them was probably in his best interests. Having thought this through, Kouzou replied:

"Sure, all right."

"It's good to go out and have a drink every so often," opined Doctor Nobuhiko Taue, Kouzou's mustachioed colleague from the biosciences department.

Taue was seated to Kouzou's left in the establishment overlooking Kamogawa, where beers and food were being consumed by faculty and students alike.

"Yes, Sir," replied Kouzou, though without any genuine conviction. He didn't begrudge anyone the right to enjoy themselves, but he himself did not enjoy such settings.

That hadn't always been true: in his younger years he'd caroused with the best of them - and suffered for it in terms of hangovers and wasted days that could've been productively used on his true passion: metaphysical biology, the science of the soul, the discipline he taught and researched.

It was this sense of waste, the time spent idly drinking or engaged in pointless conversations that fed Kouzou's reluctance to socialize. But he knew it was futile to air such a view, a futility that was underlined by Taue's next remark:

"You excel at your work, but you don't take socializing seriously and that's not good."

This was kindly advice in its way, and Kouzou knew it. Taue was telling him that his academic work was well-regarded, but he still had to 'play the game' - networking, greasing palms, and all the other charming aspects of politicking that prevail in academia as in every other walk of life. It was a game that Kouzou found distasteful, finding it robbed researchers of time that could be spent more productively on their key role - research.

But Taue was simply pointing out the cold, hard truth; in life, one has to work with people, and that means having to socialize with them too in order to enhance one's relationships with them. It mattered little how sincere this was; what mattered was cultivating allies who can aid one's career. Researchers are no more immune to this than politicians, businessmen, entertainers, athletes or anyone else.

"I'm sure you're right," Kouzou replied, appreciating the truth of what Taue was saying while still finding it barely palatable - and yet demonstrating that same truth by keeping his displeasure well-concealed.

"By the way, Fuyutsuki," Taue went on, confirming he hadn't detected Kouzou's displeasure, "there's a bio-engineering student who submitted an interesting paper." This caught Kouzou's attention; at least they could discuss something relevant to work. "The student's name is Ikari. Do you know her?"

"Ikari?" Kouzou replied with a hint of curiosity in his voice. "No, I don't."

"I told her about you and she said she was interested in meeting you." Taue continued, simultaneously using his chopsticks to pick apart his meal. "She'll probably contact you eventually, so take care of things, will you?"

Two things occurred to Kouzou. First, the invite that Yoshi and Hiroshi had offered to him was clearly instigated by Taue. And all for the express purpose of giving him advance notice that this student Ikari wanted to meet with him. Yoshi had effectively said as much when he said "Our professor was also saying that you should show up once in a while."

Second, whatever research interests Ikari had could break new ground. After all, while the sciences are largely interdisciplinary, bio-engineering and metaphysical biology are not disciplines that have often intersected in the course of Kouzou's own research career.

But it was 1999, and mankind stood on the verge of a new millennium with new possibilities. Perhaps this Ikari, a bio-engineer who was seeking out a professor of metaphysical biology, could contribute just such a possibility. It was certainly worth looking into.

Concealing his sense of intrigue, Kouzou gave Taue his answer:

"Ikari, was it? All right."

To be continued...

Author's notes: I've added a little more detail here to give more flavor to the text. Any feedback is welcome.

Minor geography note: Kamogawa is a river that is located in Kyoto Prefecture, and has restaurants along its banks. As Fuyutsuki is a professor at Kyoto University, it is likely that he went to a venue located there rather than to the city of Kamogawa in Chibi Prefecture, which is roughly 6h 20m to travel to from Kyoto by car - if you take the fastest route!

jellodude, thanks for your comment. I agree, Fuyutsuki is an excellent character. And surprisingly an overlooked one. Hopefully my effort here will go some way towards rectifying that.

poBBpC, there is more on the way. In fact, the second chapter is already available.