Chapter 10: Bonding between two buddies.
"You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with" – Anon.
This time there was no dream to interrupt the remainder of his sleep which lasted till the sky outside had matured into a bright and hopeful blue with the sun shining as brightly as ever. It would be a good day outside today in Tokyo 3 in terms of weather at least.
He woke up and waltzed giddily to the bathroom to shower and brush his teeth, feeling a sense of pride and power he had not felt in many years since being pressed into NERV.
It was a new beginning for Shinji Ikari in every sense of the word.
…
While the ecstatic boy hummed an upbeat tune as warm water soaked his very comfortable body, Asuka and Misato were going about their morning business as usual having shrugged off Shinji's spur of the moment excuse of going to see a friend for the evening like it was pure coincidence.
Lucky for him that they didn't really care much for his company after all.
Misato simply took out a pot of instant noodles and put it in the rundown microwave while Asuka emptied out another box of Stollen cake. Neither of them cared to admit that they did indeed miss their errand boy's superb cooking.
"Forget him" the German had insisted when during a brief moment of lucidity, the purple haired Major asked where Shinji was this morning. "He's probably knocking himself out with whatever dumb friend was stupid enough to let him into their house. Let's not worry about that brat."
A pot of noodles and a can of beer later and Misato had forgotten every bit of her momentary concern for her adoptive son as dizziness came over her once again and she dropped her head to the table, hitting it with a loud crash which shook the room. She would wake up hours later to find her saliva covering the entire table and a skull splitting headache which wouldn't go away for the rest of the day.
One more day where she didn't notice Shinji's absence out of thoughtless apathy. One more day she'd come to regret with every ounce of her being when she finally snapped out of the alcohol induced stupor that she'd lived the majority of her life stuck inside.
Little did Asuka know as she nonchalantly tucked into the expensive German pastry, she had bought using Shinji's salary that her total lack of concern for an innocent young boy would soon come to bite her in the butt. And when her long overdue discipline finally arrived, it would strike the badly-behaved red-haired bully all the harder.
…
"Morning Shinji" Mari chipperly sang as her dearest guest finally made his morning appearance at the breakfast table still in his blue and white pyjamas. "Sleep well?" She was clad in a matching set of green pyjamas knowing that it was unlikely the two of them would be going anywhere today.
"Like a log, Mari. Thanks for asking" He considered briefly telling her about his otherworldly dream he had last night despite his top-quality sleep but upon smelling the delicious sausage egg muffin and maple syrup coated waffles placed upon an expensive china plate, eventually brushed it aside as he sat down to eat another prim and proper aristocratic meal.
Sakura was sitting in another chair beside Mari looking admiringly at him as she chastely and carefully ate her own breakfast taking especial care not to slurp or make chewing noises.
A true mark of the impeccable etiquette of a true butler.
The three friends ate in silence not wanting to spoil the serenity that a blessed meal eaten in the blessed dining hall of the Makinami Mansion was supposed to bring its diners.
Beautiful sunlight shone down upon them as the first and most important meal of the day was finished in solemn contemplation and sincere gratitude to the heavens themselves.
"Well Shinji. What do you want to do today?" Mari inquisitively asked as Sakura once again took the dirty dishes and cutlery to the kitchen to be cleaned.
"This is your first day off. How do you want to spend it?"
"Well how do you want to spend the day?" Shinji shyly replied. Asuka and Misato's constant naggings had worn him down and he'd long surrendered trying to suggest a day's activities in either of their presences. Even on the few paid days off his miserly father gave him he had no choice but to spend it working his back off for his two roommates who worked him very hard.
He would spend the entirety of what was meant to be his holiday wishing an Angel would launch an attack on Tokyo 3 so that he'd have any excuse to get out of the apartment.
Mari seemed to realize his lack of enthusiasm before he even finished the sentence as she lowered her usually excited and bouncy voice a little.
"It's up to you Shinji. This is your day. You've earned this. I don't mind as long as it makes you feel better. So, come on Shinji. Pick an activity already and let's rock and roll. I'm sure whatever you like, I'll like as well."
"I don't really know. This is the first time I've had a day off in my life so I'm really not sure."
"Well, what are your hobbies? What have you been wanting to do since as far back as you can remember but never gotten to when your work got in the way?
What makes you, you? Let's start from there."
A statement closed the mind. A question opened it and forced the mind to think harder. As much as Mari wished they could have as many of these free days as they liked, the Angels could attack at any time as could SEELE. Gendo Ikari could be evilly plotting in his office right now hatching his next devious ploy on how to double cross his own son.
Whatever project the two of them dedicated this day to could therefore be nothing less than Shinji's grandest desire. Anything else and they had wasted precious time they could never have back while their enemies made their next move.
Today was about Shinji, not her. He needed to give her his full consent before they got started on anything.
The questions had their intended encouraging effect and a nostalgic and wistful beam crossed Shinji's handsome face as he put his finger to his forehead.
"Well. I've always liked to play Video Games. But with Asuka and Misato constantly pestering me for this and that on my days off, I never get to do it. And even if I did have time, we don't even have a computer or a TV for that matter in our apartment anymore."
"What are your favourites?"
"Well…I'm not picky. I would be really happy to play anything as long as it's fun and enjoyable especially if a friend could join me. I guess a good beat em up. I'm not sure."
"A good beat-em you say. Well let's go to my game room and we'll see what I have."
The two pilots reached the snazzy room in question with a hop skip and a jump.
It was black with thick curtains which perfectly blocked the sun from outside allowing for a flawless view of the big plasma TV screen in front of the black sofa even on a sunny day such as this one.
A neatly arranged bookcase stood inconspicuously touching the far wall from the one doorway into the relatively small room.
"What would you say the greatest animated series in all time was to you?" Mari asked as she went towards the bookcase in question which Shinji only now realized was filled with box upon box of discs.
"If you had all the time in the world, what would be the one series you spend all of it watching?"
It took the usually indecisive doormat but a second to formulate a firm and certain reply.
"Fairy Tail" he asserted with more confidence than he had shown in his entire lifetime till now. "No question, no when and no how. Definitely Fairy Tail"
"And what makes it your favourite?" Mari quizzically inquired as she ran her hand delicately across the section of the bookcase marked "F". Her turned back hid the massive Cheshire cat grin he had given her by being the first man of culture to share just one common interest with her.
She just had to hear more in case he really did think alike to her.
"I like the characters." He humbly explained overjoyed that he had found someone somewhere with whom he could discuss his pastimes. "I like the way they respect each other and how they work together as a team. No one gets left behind. No one gets made into the punching bag of the group. (Unlike me when Asuka gets into one of her moods and unlike NERV where everyone only cares about their next paycheque) "
"Is that all?" The brunette's finger settled upon a gilded box whose very spine was decorated with more emblems than a Sports team banner. She begun to carefully pull it from the shelf, brushing away a little of the dust that had settled on it from years of disuse as she did so.
"Some of the architecture in Fairy Tail is really pretty (kind of like your mansion which you were kind enough to let me into. It would have made a really great guildhall for Fairy Tail)."
"There's one more thing, Shinji. I know there is. It's alright, you can tell me. We're friends. I won't judge you.". There was always one more reason avid fans of the franchise liked it so much. And Mari knew the only reason Shinji didn't confidently say it out loud was because of the terrible damage the condescending insults of Asuka, Misato and his father had left on him through years of mistreatment. He needed to know that here in her mansion, his opinions would be given the full weight they were worth.
"Well…" Shinji took a light breath and glanced once more around the room to check that Asuka's balled fist was nowhere in sight. Spilling his final reason for liking what he liked would give him one more reason why he couldn't go back to Asuka or even Rei ever again.
If he didn't get kicked and punched in the face repeatedly, he would get a gigantic wave of hooting laughter designed to damage his psyche in the most mind crushing way possible.
"Don't tell anyone I told you this" Shinji continued still keeping his watchful eye for the terrible fist which even now continued to haunt him miles away from his old apartment. "But, I like the fanservice. Okay? I think the character designs and outfits are nice. Please don't hate me for this."
He expected admonishment. A fist in his face. A threat that he could be arrested on the spot for just saying what he said.
The reply he got instead made his appreciation at meeting Mari in the time he most needed her grow tenfold.
"You know what Shinji. So do I. I love that show for the exact same reasons you do and I'm so glad you were able to be completely open about the part of the show no one talks about nowadays (censorship and political correctness is overrated in this crap totalitarian world run by monsters anyway)."
She held up an ornate box as she spoke.
…
A box that Shinji would have killed for years ago when the inner child within him had not died yet.
When depression had not overwhelmed his mind. When he believed in Misato and Asuka to be a responsible replacement family who could fill the void his absent mother and uncaring father couldn't. The day he smiled a smile that lasted five seconds before Asuka took his hard-earned meagre stack of notes and used it to buy another plate of overpriced food for her and her friends at the shady German diner unlucky enough to be located just outside their apartment.
Knowing full well that what he was about to do was incredibly immature, the younger Shinji begun to wail and cry like there was no tomorrow. "Well that's great" he had shouted the second he was sure Asuka was out of earshot. "That's just f*cking great. Now what the f*ck am I supposed to do?"
Shinji had promised himself that he would be as friendly as polite to everyone as he could. But there were some situations where Shinji-profanity-checker-exe simply could not stomach without crashing. Situations where all the King's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Shinji back together. Not that "the king" would have cared a whit about him anyway.
He took out the small leaflet that the video game store had been kind enough to hand him advertising all the amazing features the brand new Fairy Tail game to be in store that day would provide. With one flick of his hand, he ripped it in two and threw it into a bin already stuffed full of empty beer cans.
"That's it man. Game over man. GAME OVER! What am I gonna do now? What am I gonna do?"
He cried while burying his face in his palms before emitting a savage scream which would have made Godzilla's cry seem like a gentle kitten's purr. He thrashed around the room roaring in distress.
Asuka's tsundere tendencies had pushed him overboard.
"Fairy Tail will get you Asuka. Fairy tail will send their best mercenaries and take you down Asuka.
You just provoked the fury of Juvia Lockhart and you'll pay in blood for your high treason against the Fairy Tail Guild, Asuka."
By now he was rocking around on his bed laughing shrilly in a maniacal fashion that would have made the Joker cringe in terror. Now he'd never find out if Gray and Juvia tied the knot in the end or not.
He knew that being as popular a franchise as it was, the game would be sold out long before he got his next payroll if he even lived that long.
And if he did survive to be forked his next thin wad of Yen, it would promptly be snatched from his grasp by Asuka to be used in another expensive German meal which would be gone in a few bites.
He knew that she never had it easy either, but was that any excuse for what she was doing to him now?
It was only the sight of the sun going down the sky which jerked the crazed lunatic back to his senses. Two car honks and a menacing set of heavy-footed steps from downstairs later, Shinji had sprung into action throwing hastily but precisely measured ingredients into the cooking pot which he had rapidly placed onto the stove with the gas turned to max.
The Vacuum cleaner was plugged in and Shinji was hurriedly moving it around the apartment even as steam begun to rise from the cooking pot. He had to be ready.
Asuka and Misato liked to get angry at him for poor room service at night mostly. Mostly.
…
"It's… it's." Shinji stammered unable to finish his sentence on account of how magnificent the Game box looked up-close held in the hands of a trustworthy friend and fellow member of his fandom he thought he'd spend his entire lonely lifetime alone in.
"It's the most recent Fairy Tail game I have in my collection." Mari respectfully finished for him, unlocking the box as the boy begun to clutch his breathless chest as she held the equally ornate disk up for him to see it in all its glory. "And I would be honoured to play it with you, Shinji."
"Play" the overzealous fanboy dumbly blurted, the massive surge of excitation severing his brain's connection to his vocal chords. "Play. Play. Play!"
"I'll take that as a yes." Mari said as she placed the disk into the TV's disk slot and a masterfully animated set of cutscenes begun to play showing off the character's in all their glory.
He was so cute when he bumbled about in this way and she knew she had done her job well.
Oh if only Yui had lived long enough to see her son happy as he was now. Shame on Gendo for not treating a good woman better and indirectly orchestrating her demise.
A half hour later and Gray Fullbuster and Juvia Lockhart were battling their way through treacherous landscapes each one worse than the previous.
Countless bad guys fell to the pair's flawless synergy of powerful skills and teamwork.
Undead, bandits, massive crystal golems and even the legendary dragons twice the size of a house were no match for the duo.
A gigantic packet of flavoured popcorn and Nacho's complete with dips were brought into the room and the players were now stuffing themselves full of snacks as they eagerly awaited the next level to load with bated breath. They were not going anywhere until Fairy Tail was safe from its enemies.
The final boss. They had reached the final boss.
"I think this is where we've lost. I've never beaten this one over the several times I've played this." Mari nervously chimed as Juvia readied a ball of water nonetheless.
"Don't say that, Mari. There are two of us now. Let's work together and this time we can do it."
Shinji confidently encouraged raising a fist to the sky as the boss finished the last lines of it's overly drawn out speech.
"Now that's more like it." The British girl silently remarked to herself as she quickly readjusted her glasses which had nearly slipped off. "That's the kind of spirit that's going to get us to victory over NERV and SEELE. Get in there Shinji. Get in there."
It was neither a beast nor mysterious warlord which crested the two Fairy Tail members sword held high, red hair flying in the wind.
It was a magical mirror construct of Erza Scarlet created by the mysterious evil force as a last ditch resort against the heroes. With the power to change weapons and tactics at the snap of a finger just like the real Erza, this would be no cakewalk.
"A redhead?" Shinji could not help but sarcastically sneer. "You think I can't deal with an angry redhead. Well game, I deal with one every miserable day of my life. What's one more to me?"
"You hear that Asuka. Shinji's not afraid of you. Not anymore" Mari satisfactorily commented to herself. That meant one less handicap for the hero who was Earth's last hope.
The fight begun. Dark Erza was fast and merciless. Shinji and Mari were left completely on the defensive as the incredibly unforgiving AI bombarded them with some of the most terrifying attacks they had ever seen. And they had dealt with enough Angels to give them enough nightmares to last a lifetime.
"You call that a hit?" Shinji laughed as one of Dark Erza's strikes collided with Gray, draining nine tenths of his full life bar despite him being clad in full armour. A gust of wind would knock him dead at this point.
"Asuka hit me harder than that when she wasn't happy with me."
"Now it's my turn. Take this." A devastating spear of ice struck Dark Erza full in the chest, draining a measly dot from her life bar.
"No need to be afraid of not getting a promotion Asuka. As punishment for assaulting a fellow pilot and as the son of the chief of NERV, I hereby declare you…FIRED!" The boy crowed as the onscreen Gray threw barrage after barrage of icy missiles at the boss.
"Your days of using me as a punching bag are over Asuka. Because now I have true friends who appreciate me for who I am."
Mari blushed a little at these words.
Dark Erza stood over the stunned and immobile Gray to deliver a final killing blow, grinning evilly. All the attacks he had thrown her way had not quite been enough to disable such a mighty foe.
A flash of the screen later and she had no emotion at all as an impeccably timed Water Nebula fired by his faithful teammate struck the monster square in the back causing a massive explosion as dark sparks flew everywhere.
Juvia Lockhart stood smiling proudly as the last remains of the dark clone were scattered to the winds.
Gray returned the smile as he took her in his arms.
But the biggest smiles that day came from the two pilots of NERV who were proudly connecting their fists with each other and clapping each other in the shoulder as they didn't even bother to watch the ending scenes they had completed an entire game to earn the rights to see. Each was looking at the other with a level of respect that even Gendo could never hope to attain from his company even on his better days.
This would be just the first of their many victories together as a dynamic duo.
Today a virtual warlord lay defeated, no match for their combined might. Tomorrow it would be NERV itself wearing defeat at their hands. SEELE's defeat would be just another small step after that.
The rest of the day was almost equally as pleasant. Shinji and Mari went to the swimming pool near Mari's mansion, one of the few fitness companies which could still afford enough purified water to allow those who could afford its prices to remain fit and relaxed.
It was not necessary to describe the sheer force Shinji had no choice but to apply to his nose to prevent the massive flood of blood building inside it from leaking out as Mari came along him in her dark blue swimsuit. It was a good kind of nosebleed however.
And as embarrassing as it was for him to then run to the bathroom and to use up the entire roll of toilet paper to wipe away the sheer volume of red before running back nearly slipping in the process, he could not help but wish it to happen again.
It was not like being punched in the nose at all. Which was the treatment he would have gotten if Asuka took Mari's place at the pool today.
Mari beat every swimmer in the pool by several smooth strokes, moving through the water like a bolt of lightning. It really was as if she was hydrodynamically designed.
Shinji now knew not to underestimate the athletic skills of those in need of ocular assistance.
They went for a walk after that, browsing the streets for the simple purpose of browsing.
It was here that Shinji was able to ask a few further questions of his newest teammate who had despite her novelty become his dearest companion.
He told her his favourite instrument was the Cello to discover in return that hers was the war drums followed by the war horn as a close second.
His preferred dance was the foxtrot. Hers was the blades dance, the ancient dancing stance used by skilled swordsmen and by extension skilled swordswomen in the past to dodge through the maelstrom of battle with ease without suffering so much as a scratch.
She was 17 this year, just less than three years older than his fourteen and a bit.
"Although a lot of people say I don't act my age so it really doesn't mean anything." She added.
"And a lot of people call me the immature, whiny brat" Shinji joked inciting a giggle from them both.
"So, what's your country England like?" was his next question. It must have been quite a nice place to have citizens as nice as Mari be from it.
The answer he got was perhaps the one sad spot in the otherwise very uplifting conversation.
"It's a totalitarian hellhole." She bluntly replied, a touch of tranquil fury belied only by her astounding composure in even this angry moment "Ever since NERV came, a lot of my country's wealth was pulled out. The taxes NERV charges there are even worse than here. Now NERV just uses it to suck out every last penny it can like a vampire. The only nice buildings there are where NERV has its headquarters. Everywhere else is just slums and shantytowns or ruins of old buildings before NERV took over which will soon fall into rubble."
"It can't be that bad." Shinji protested intending to sooth Mari before she got any sadder with the delicate topic he now really regretted throwing her way. He now wanted nothing less than to slap his own mouth for his unintended insensitivity.
"It is Shinji. It really is. What England and America did to Africa during the slave trade, Japan or rather NERV is now doing to England. There are cholera outbreaks everywhere. The people are starving. No one talks to each other anymore and no one wants to be friends unless there's money involved and even then, they stab each other in the back the second they can get away with it. I barely got clear of my country myself."
"What do you mean?"
"NERV nearly killed me. I had to fight teeth and nail to get away from that forsaken land and get here. I was very lucky to escape alive. If you've seen half of what I went through to get here…" she shook her head in sad remembrance. "Perhaps it's best you haven't. I've seen things I hope no one will ever have to see. Been through hardships I hope no one will have to go through. "
Shinji knew from the sullen and serious frown on his girlfriend's face that it was now or never. For him it was speak now or forever hold his peace. He considered the latter option at first seeing how painful Mari's memories clearly were for her but if there was just one lesson, he had learned during the short time he had spent with her it was to be honest.
To question everything and everyone and that sweeping a problem under the carpet only made the problem grow worse with time.
He needed to ask the million-dollar question right here and now. As much to show he really cared for her as to get to the bottom of another mystery he'd never have the chance to solve again.
He cleared his throat and stood up straight looking her softly in the eyes.
"Please. Tell me what happened."
Mari's soft eyes looked back into Shinji's. They resembled rainclouds close to bursting, but her voice was still clear and unbroken.
"Do you really want to know, Shinji? Once you know, you won't be able to not know. You'll have to live with the whole truth about me and what I've had to do. You might not like what you hear."
"I'm ready for it. I care about you Mari. You're the first true friend I've had in my life. And while it's true that I might not like what I hear, I won't just betray a friend. And keeping it inside you is going to do you more harm than good. So please, tell me. I'll understand." He put his hand on her trembling arm as he said this, letting his warmth and empathy spread to her.
A tear rolled down Mari's cheeks as it was her turn to clear her throat.
A single tear of gratitude in its purest form.
He had been the first person she had ever met to ask her the question not even Sakura had asked.
He was the first evangelist in her life caring enough to care.
Thanks once again to StraightedgeEpyon and Fictionelement777 and James Birdsong and Darkscythe Drake for all your kind reviews and support.
Love you guys.
