Chapter 17: Resisting or Breaking

In the police station, Nami yawned while looking at the wall clock in her office. When the Angel alarm was lifted, some government and law enforcement were put back at their posts. Even though everyone is instructed to go to the shelters, there were people who took it as opportunities to commit crimes.

'It's only two in the morning…only two,' she thought tiredly. Taking a drink of her coffee, it was cold and bitter. Sighing, she went back to her paperwork. Fifteen minutes, later she drank the rest of her coffee. Not feeling any more awake, she yawned again. Placing the coffee mug on the desk, she stretched.

'Morning work sucks,' the secretary thought.

Releasing from her stretch and feeling sleepy, she rested her head on the desk. Ten minutes went by as her eyes closed briefly. Though fast asleep, she thought she heard a couple of creaks inside and outside her office space. Opening her eyes tiredly and yawning, Nami rested her head on her prompt up right hand.

"I need to…*yawn*…wake up. No chance of that happening," she muttered. Blinking tiredly, she took a sip of her coffee mug forgetting that she drank it all. Warm liquid touched her lips which woke her up slightly.

"Hmm, a little bit bitter…" she started to say looking at the liquid.

Her eyes shot opened from knowing who makes tea. Looking up, her office door was ajar. She slowly looked around her dim lit office with only her desk lamp on. There wasn't anyone around. Blinking, she looked back at her mug curiously.

'I wonder if I'm dreaming…a pretty real one for that matter,' she pondered. Too fixated on the clear-green liquid in her mug, she didn't sense the eyes looking down at her.

Hearing her door creek open, she looked up. A man came in with a green suit. He was rubbing the back of his head and looked lost. Spotting her changed his expression to a shark smile. He started reaching into his inner coat pocket.

"May I help you?" Nami asked looking at the suspicious man.

"In a minute…my…?" he started. His face changed into puzzlement as he didn't find what he was looking for. Nami watched as the man continued digging through various pockets for something. If she wasn't so tired, she would have guessed what he was doing but waited.

'Damn it, where's my stuff!?' the man thought.

Looking back at the secretary, he saw something behind her. The man suddenly froze. There was someone standing behind her half covered in the shadows of the room. But what got his attention were the person's eyes. They seemed to pierce through the dim room and bore at him.

"...?" the secretary stated puzzled. Watching his face turn into fear, he whipped around quickly and ran. The man immediately bashed right into the door side being left open slightly. He fell to the ground unconscious as the sound echoed down a hallway of the police station.

"Uh…okay," Nami said looking slightly confused. Thinking she was still dreaming, she relaxed a little. Drinking her tea, she felt half-awake.

"Ikari does make good tea," she said looking at the mug pleasantly.

"Thank you Miss Blaze," a calm familiar voice came from behind her.

Her eyes snapped open a second time feeling fully awake. Jerking backwards in her seat, her head hit something soft and padded. Her pulse was echoing in her head and felt her nerves shaking a little. Gulping, she slowly moved her head back. Tilting upward to look behind her, there was someone there.

Her eyes widen more when she came face to face with Shinji. He slowly moved his head down so she wouldn't strain too much from the stretch. Stopping, he was near her face. With the desk lamp, it cast small shadows on his face while shining his eye color.

"Greetings Miss Blaze," the male pilot said slowly blinking. "Are you available...at the moment?"

"…" she said. Frightened, she slowly nodded her head.

"May I ask you to find a file for the sir lying over there?" he asked. Seeing him move his hand passed her, he placed something on her desk. Blinking, she moved her head forward slowly. Looking at the ID card and reading, she looked back at the man. Still too unnerved to ask questions, she looked back at the identification card.

"O-Okay."

Five minutes later, Nami found a large criminal record behind the man. With the help of the Third Child, they cuffed him. Shinji picked up the unconscious man and put him in a jail cell. Still feeling awake from his sudden materialization and sneaking in unnoticed, she started the preparations for the claim capture of another criminal. Finishing the documentation, she minimized the windows on her laptop. Looking up, she watched as a figure shuffled from outside her office and came in.

"All paper work is done for that guy. But, I still haven't got my work done," Nami said with a sigh.

"I see," the boy stated. Silence went by between them with soft snoring added in the background.

"More tea Miss Blaze?"

"Huh?…oh sure," she stated. Watching him leave, he come back with a pot. Refilling her mug, he placed the container on a counter next to her desk. She moved to sit on the front of her desk. He stood staring at her while lethargically blinking.

"So, how have you been doing?"

"I have been better. I am currently recovering injuries from the Angel attack," he stated calmly.

"…that was only a couple of hours ago…" she said with a raised eyebrow. She then observed Shinji closer and saw many bandages.

"Do they still hurt?" Nami asked. Putting her mug down, the blonde walked over to him.

"They are tender when I walk," he stated watching her move closer to him. She stopped in front of him and bent down to his eye level. Crossing her arms under her chest and analysis him.

"Hmm…head, chest, shoulders, left side of abdomen…and a broken leg?" she asked. Looking at him in hope to see a reaction, none came.

"Dislocated," he corrected calmly.

"I guess I am a little rusty," she stood back up and stretched.

"You were a nurse Miss Blaze?"

"Yeah. I had some training during my college days then a post in Europe before transferring over here…so…what are you going to do now?"

"Go home," he said blinking slowly again. "Is there anything you need Miss Blaze?"

'...' Nami thought then looked at the ceiling. 'He's going to walk home with those injuries? I would say tough guy image but he doesn't emit that. He doesn't even seem bothered by them. I wonder if they do some sick experiment to these children to make them into war machines…'

"..." she said. Looking back at the Third Child, he was still standing with an impassive expression.

'…maybe I've been watching too much TV…'

"Ikari…ehmm, could I waver you into something?" she asked cautiously.

"…" he said blinking slowly. "Go ahead."

"…would it be too much to ask if you just slept on the couch behind you instead of going home?" she asked pointing behind him.

Shinji turned around and looked at the couch next to the door. The size was of an average couch: brownish-wood color, vinyl, and three vacant seats wide enough for one person taller than him to lie on. He turned around.

"May I ask why?"

"Well, walking around with injuries that are severally bandaged will only cause them to bleed open for the distance you will be walking. Assuming that you haven't got any rest since yesterday, your body and mind are a bit weak. You'll be more substitutable to getting more than just open wounds. Of course, this is my nursing intuition talking."

"..." he said with a slow blink. A few moments of silence went by with just staring between the two. As much as Shinji did not want to, his voices were more intense than usual. He was beyond exhausted and his injuries did reopen a bit. He gave in due to their psychedelic babbling that was making his head spin a lot.

"...very well...Is there a place that you prefer I put my things?"

Nami smiled and shook her head seeing him bow. She sat back at the front of her desk and watched him. Turning toward the couch, he removed his bag and sat down. He took out his S-DAT player and put in a different cassette than the black one that was inside. Taking off his shoes, he placed them and his backpack under the left armrest. Lying down on the couch, he stared at the ceiling.

"Do you want a blanket?"

"That is not necessary but thank you Miss Blaze," Shinji said turning his head toward her. Nami smiled a little. She watched him put his ear phones on then closed his eyes. Turning around, she went back to her seat feeling slightly motivated to get work done.

After some time passed, Nami took another nap. What she didn't wake to was the person making sounds on the couch. Knuckles popped from the clenching and unclenching of fists. Sweat dropped profusely down the teenager's body soaking the shirt, pants, and bandages. Through all of it, the pilot was making inaudible screams.

His abdomen thrust up into the air at a spasm rate. Eyes still closed tightly as the music continued to play in his ears. He clenched his fists intensely to almost make them bleed while making one last soundless scream. Reaching the height of the nightmare, his eyes shot open. Staying motionless, he frantically looked around.

'Where…Where…Where is this!?' Shinji thought in panic.

The world around him was a child's crayoned drawing of an office. A child's song was playing in the backroom. Its melody was dark with disordered bells. The counter melody was something with psychedelic effects. Giggles faded in and out from every direction. Objects started changing their shape a little causing a hypnotic effect.

Looking at the couch, it was morphing into a large mouth with thousands of bloody needles. Leaping off it, he slid to a stop. Standing up carefully while watching the morphing furniture, he heard a menacing cackle behind him. Spinning around, he noticed that he was in front of a desk. Shinji's wild gaze came down to the person sitting behind the desk.

It was a crayoned image of a person. Its mouth was half its face as it grinned at him. Strangely, the image reminded the boy of an older individual that was a scientist. Blinking, he started to hear the company in his head again. The voices started converging around him and whispered in distortion.

"Kill him."

"Shoot him,"

"Butcher him,"

"Slash him,"

"Dismember him,"

"Strangle him!" the last voiced echoed repeatedly.

It filled his ears and mind with images and sounds of strangling people. The Third Child blinked and saw his crayoned drawn hands move from his sides. Appearing in front of him, they began to converge toward the insane crayoned image looking at him. He almost touched its neck and felt a rippling flare inside of him. His veins pulsated with eagerness to repay what that old man gave him long ago.

"What do you want?" a voice echoed.

"...?" Shinji said.

Stopping, he looked to his left seeing multiple dark figures. Each had different personalities though all were grinning at him. Despite them looking relatively the same, they were different based on eye color. Turning to his right, there was a little boy silhouette with blue eye color. Shinji's panic face dropped back to his stoic one, but he was still sweating.

"What are you?"

"I am Shinji Ikari," he said out loud. Calming down, the voices came one after another.

"What is your purpose?"

"Don't listen,"

"What do you want?"

"Only listen to us,"

"Are you happy?"

"We will guide you,"

"My purpose?" he asked looking at the silhouettes. "Live."

Retrieving his arms back to his sides, he stared at the crayoned figure. Slowly, the world around him started to break till everything was surrounded with web cracks. The vision of the crayoned world shattered into the real one. Images and sounds of glass breaking and falling to the ground filled his surroundings. Jumping out of the way, he tried to avoid getting cut by large shards falling.

Looking back to see everything real again, he looked back at the figure at the desk. His eyes widen a little for almost strangling the secretary in her sleep. The figures surrounding Shinji were perplexed by his statement. Normally he would just obey under their will like a puppet to a puppeteer.

"Live? Aren't we selfish?"

"You have lost what you can claim."

"Wants are nothing but greed."

"What is it that you want?" the little boy whispered loudly.

"Something that you cannot give," the male pilot stated quietly. The voices then began to quietly disappear. Turning to the child silhouette, it had a small smile on his face. It looked like him at a much younger age.

"You did…well today…," the little boy stated. There was much static filling the pauses between words. "…are you…well…with…fear?"

"Thank you. My fear is still present but I am adapting," he responded sitting on his knees. He saw the little boy give an evil smile then ran towards him giving him a big hug. Shinji slowly and shaky returned the hug clumsily. He could feel a mixture of joy and evilness radiating from his smaller self.

"You…did it!" said the child before letting go. The male pilot nodded but kept his stoic face. The child looked at the Third Child's arms. They were shaking violently with fists tightened at first then began to calm down.

"What are you going to do now?"

"I will go back to sleep," he stated. Standing up, he turned around and started walking over to the couch.

"Why aren't you going to kill the woman sleeping there?" the child asked. It was already sitting on the couch while kicking his heels against it. Shinji sat on the couch then looked back at Nami.

"I have no reason to."

A menacing giggle came from the child as it vanished. Blinking, something seemed missing. Realizing that his music stopped, he flipped the cassette over and pressed play. He reached for his backpack and grabbed an extra bottle of his skin lotion. Walking to the bathroom, he wiped all the sweat off then applied the lotion.

Returning back to the office, he set the bottle back in his bag. Lying back down on the couch, he looked at the sleeping secretary. It was the first time not killing someone being around him while sleeping. Turing back to the ceiling, he fell asleep. A couple hours later in the morning, Nami finally completed her paperwork.

"Finally finished," she with relief and stretched. Looking back at the person occupying her couch, she smiled. Starting to stare at the boy, she shook her head and stood up.

"Coffee…coffee…coffee," she repeated. Walking out of her office, she could smell that a new pot was made. Coming back with a fresh cup, she sat back down at her desk chair. She took a sip and sighed pleasantly.

'This is actually peaceful,' Nami thought closing her eyes.

"Naammiii…" someone spoke tiredly.

Nami looked and saw Rayne come in yawning. She was wearing the naval blue female's police uniform with a black mid-thigh skirt that hugged her thighs. She walked in bare foot and held black heels in her right hand. Nami nearly choked.

"Rayne, why are you wearing the uniform…more precisely why?"

"I…*yawn*…lost a bet with someone. I guessed badly…he wanted me to wear one if I lost and…*yawn*…here I am. Night patrol is tiring."

"I can tell," Nami said. Having a fair idea why the male would want her to wear one, her thoughts were interrupted. The young officer placed her shoes under the right armrest then headed towards the middle of the couch.

"Rayne uh…why not sleep in the lobby today?" she asked a little hesitantly. She watched Rayne look at her with sleepily eyes.

"Oh…did you have an unexpected visitor early in the morning?" Rayne asked as she yawned.

'You wouldn't believe it,' Nami thought with a smirk.

"Well…if you're just going to stand there and smile then I'm taking my morning nap alright?" she said while getting next to the couch.

Nami was going to say something but she just sighed. She watched as Rayne sat down on Shinji's groin area then laid stomach down on the teen. Her head was at the top of his chest. Her legs aligned with his showing there was a good height difference. A thought went through her head. Getting a pen and paper, she grinned.

'This is going to be so good,' Nami thought of black mail.

When Rayne sat down she didn't feel herself sink into the couch but she shrugged it off. When she spread herself out, she was taken by the couch more than usual. Her legs tangle with something that seemed like legs. She laid her head and chest down on something that was soft yet felt firm and pronounced. Letting herself relax, she wanted to know more about the furniture.

"Nami…when did you get a great couch," Rayne cooed.

"Oh, just yesterday. You know, I haven't tried it yet. Why not tell me about," Nami asked smiling and waiting for the juicy stuff to fall into play.

Rayne snuggled in the couch more and felt more comfortable.

"Alright…it feels really nice and snuggly," she said as she explored more areas. Nami made a few notes and hid her laughter. The boy didn't stir or wake up.

"Let's see…it feels toned a little. Strong shoulders…nice arms…firm legs…nice stomach and chest…also a nice butt. You know, if I didn't know any better I would say this would be your unexpected visitor," Rayne said smiling with eyes closed.

Nami wrote down the final note, stopped and looked at the female officer. She had her hands gliding along the boy. Nami had to hold her mouth from bursting out laughing. The male pilot still was asleep.

"The fragrance smells like…hmm…slightly melon and lime," she said smelling the couch again and again taking a liking to it.

"R…R-Really?" Nami said quickly catching her snickering.

She then noticed the watch on his left hand. The orange color face seemed similar to Rayne's eyes. Taking down more notes, she looked back. Rayne was brushing her cheek on Shinji's cheek. The boy was still asleep.

"Nami…I am starting to get jealous of you. This couch is so soft."

"Really, I'll have to try it soon," the secretary said wiping the tears of silent laughter from her eyes.

"Hey, you have built in speakers in this thing. I guess you did use your money wisely from that big bet then."

"Seems so, what's playing on the radio," Nami finished writing down a category.

Rayne moved her ear closer to the music for it was quiet but audible. She thought for a moment of the word that described the music. But even if she didn't know, she like it and went back snuggling her head on the "couch pillow."

"I can't really tell, but music sounds good. Do you know what radio station it's on?"

"Eh, it is probably still on what the factor set it at. I haven't checked," Nami countered. She looked back and saw Rayne's arms on Shinji's chest which he hadn't waken up.

'Must have needed it,' she thought with a smile.

She watched as Rayne tangled her legs more with Shinji's then started to tap on his chest.

'Must be his heart beat…WHAT? It's that slow!' Nami thought in surprise. Doing a quick beats to seconds ratio, his heart beat was that of an athlete.

"Damn, imagine how long he would last in…no…no," she said to herself ridding the thought in her mind.

Drinking her coffee, Nami set her mug down and stared at the two. She pondered about how most guys would react to having a female on top of them while sleeping. But what stuck out was that the boy didn't move and his heart beat was calm…oddly low and calm. The thought of self-control came through her head and jot the idea down. Crossing one leg over the other, she pushed her glasses up a little.

"Anything else you can tell me about my couch?"

"Other than it's warm, cozy, and I'm jealous. I don't think so…now let me take a nap," Rayne purred at the last part.

Nami saw her fall asleep and put her notepad on her desk. She got up and left the room to walk around a bit. She passed the Chief's office and popped her head in.

"Morning Chief," Nami said with a slightly cheerful voice.

"…*Yawn*…Mornin'. You seem to be in a good mood. Have somebody over while the rest of us were gone," the Chief smirked at the last part.

"Yup, he is still in my office. Why not come and see him," Nami smirked back.

'What she got up her sleeve…well I guess I could use a good laugh.'

"Lead the way," Ryu said as he yawned. Both made it to her office and the chief looked at the scene.

"I didn't know that you and Rayne were lezbos," he said nonchalantly with a tired face. He turned to Nami who was smirking at him.

"Sorry Chief, haven't given up on men yet. Why not look at the bottom of the human pile."

Ryu looked more awake, "There was more than one?"

He went to the side and knelt down.

"Oh it's that Ikari kid. Well good for…him…" the Chief trailed off and had a look of seriousness on his face.

"Something wrong Chief?" Nami asked seeing him get up and turn toward her.

"We have to get Rayne off him," he whispered quietly. Nami smirked slightly and waited for an explanation.

"One of the officers watched the boy when he came in the first time. When we both shook hands, the officer said his other hand trembled violently like he was going to throw a fist in reaction. It is possible that he has a phobia of being touched by anyone to the point of him attacking the person," the Chief said with a stern whisper voice. Nami then looked worried back at the two still sleeping.

"Chief, that is going to be a major problem. Rayne usually gets violent when someone removes her from her sleeping place. If that happens, she'll walk right back to the original place and sleep again. Plus she knows what you told me."

"Great…this turned into a big shit can this morning," Ryu said looking back at the two. His imagination went off thinking about a blown up station or mass murder and the massive bill in the end.

'Can this get any worse?' he thought crossing his arms across his chest. A foreboding feeling ran down his spine making him flinch. Both spotted an officer outside about to knock which he was motioned in and told to speak quietly.

'Damn it! Shouldn't have thought that…'

"Here are the results about Shinji Ikari that you wanted Chief," the officer whispered. He saluted and walked off. Both went to the desk and pulled out the papers in the large envelope.

"What!? The kid has no history…it's all blank," the Chief spoke in surprise but quieted down.

Both saw a big chuck of Shinji's life gone, blank, nothing. There wasn't even anything blackened out. There was a little bit of information about staying with a family, but the amount was stark. Nami got out a medical file and browse through it. Nothing really stood out much until she came to the mental health.

Yogosami saw the horror look on her face as the medical file dropped from her shaking hands. He read through it and took the same look as her.

"How…how bad is it?" he asked with his nerves shaking visibly and his voice hollow.

"There really is only one type but there are five stages…his on the border line of the first to second stage," she responded trembling a little with fear.

"What would that do to a person with a certain fear of something?" he asked not wanting to look behind him.

"People of this mental disease are unpredictable Chief. Most likely to escape their fear, they can attack to get rid of it," Nami said feeling the same.

They both heard movement behind them and flinched. Slowly turning around, Rayne had flipped over on her back. She was still asleep; however, Shinji's eyes were open. He was staring at them with the corner of his eyes. Both felt the hairs on their neck stand on end.

"Greetings Chief Yogosami...Miss Blaze," Shinji said in a whispering breath.

Both felt a chill go down their spines. Both watched as his eyes slowly shifted toward Rayne which added tension in the air. He sat up slowly with the young officer still leaning on his chest. She made a small movement of snuggling closer. Feeling slightly disturbed, he tried tolerating it.

"Miss Rayne, will you please get off me?" he asked. She didn't move but shifted a little. Shinji saw that she was smiling for one reason or another.

"Could you get off Miss Rayne?" the Third Child asked. His stoic voice started to lower the two's scared levels.

"Mmm…of course I can…but I'm tired…can we do it some other time," Rayne cooed as she shifted to be under his chin.

"…!" both Nami and Ryu dropped their jaws on the floor.

'DAMN THE YOUTH THESE DAYS!' he thought then leaned toward the secretary.

"Mark that one down," he whispered to her. She wrote down what Rayne just said then turned back to the couch. Shinji stared at the top of her head, his expression didn't change.

"…I see. Perhaps you could get off me in the conscious world."

"..." Ryu and Nami said. Staring at Shinji, they were trying to keep their chuckling from surfacing. A small smile crept on their faces. His eyes slowly turned to them and they went back to a worry stage.

"Miss Rayne is persistent…isn't she?" he asked. Both nodded their heads.

"I see," he said.

Slowly looking back at the top of her head, he moved his hands slowly. Nami and Ryu watched with heightened observation. His hands and arms start to tremor slightly. The closer he got to the female officer, the boy's limbs shook a little more. Both watched while their hands were on their sidearms hoping they wouldn't have to use them. Blinking, Shinji put his shaking hands on Rayne's sides and lifted her up.

Rayne woke up with a nasty scowl. Looking around a little, she noticed two things. Nami and the Chief were looking serious in her direction with hands on their firearm. She felt lifted up from the couch with very shaky hands at her sides. Looking down, her legs tangled a little with another pair of legs wearing pants.

Confused, the young officer looked back at the two and saw Nami mouthing words of who lifted her. Both saw the female officer pale. Immediately, she was set down. Slowly, she turned toward Shinji who stood up and bowed to her. His arms were trembling violently as his hands were clinched murderously into fists.

"Greetings...Miss Rayne," he said stoically. He walked to the left side of the couch and managed to get his shoes and backpack on. Putting his stuff in his bag, he turned toward the secretary and bowed.

"Thank you for letting me sleep on your couch...it was comfortable. Is there anything I can do for you Miss Blaze?"

Nami looked at the Chief as he looked back. Both relaxed a little despite still seeing his arms tremble. Ryu scratched his head trying to think of something then shrugged to her. She looked back at the male pilot and just shook her head. He bowed again.

"Then until we meet again, good day," he said.

Turning toward the pot on the counter, he grabbed it. His arms were still giving small tremors as he turned around and left the room. An awkward silence came as Nami and Ryu looked at Rayne who looked perplexed. Shortly thereafter, Shinji came back out and knelt in front of the young officer which she recoiled a little. He extended his arms to give her the mug.

"...?" she said. Looking at him then the mug, she slowly grasped the cup and took a sip. It was tea.

"I do not know if being a human couch is something I would enjoy greatly but it was...an interesting experience. Until we meet again…on another couch maybe, good day," Shinji said. Standing and giving a small bow, he left the room with an impassive face.

Rayne choked on the tea and watched him leave. She turned to the two people who were holding their snickers but burst out laughing. All Rayne could do was turn beat red all over and concentrate on her tea. The Chief changed the atmosphere by saying he'll get breakfast and left the two women.

"Nami…" Rayne said looking at the ground.

"Hmm?"

"What happened exactly on the couch?"

"Well come to my desk and I'll fill you in," Nami said as she sat at her desk. Rayne came and rested her cup on the desk, she sat down as well.

"Let's see what you said about my couch…" the secretary said. After repeating the notes, the young officer turn beat red and a few shades deeper.

"Hey…does this mean he doesn't have schizophrenia?"

"..." Nami stated and shook her head. "He has it but he seems to not be bothered by it. It is possible that it didn't act this morning."

Earlier, Nami was curious if something happened when she took both naps. Looking at surveillance cameras of last night, the first nap was him dragging the green suit criminal in. During the second nap, there was evidence of an episode. He almost choked her in her sleep. She was terrified at first, but saw something when he stopped.

It meant that he was either not in control and stopped or was trying to gain control and stopped. Recalling the video again sent gooosebumps down her arms and legs. Rayne sighed and rested her head and arms on the desk. Nami saw a small smile on her face while rolling a pencil back and forth.

"You know…he does make a good pillow."

"I'll take that into consideration on the next couch grouping," Nami giggled.

"..." Rayne groaned and dropped her head on the desk.