Forever Rei- Prologue

All characters, settings, etc. property of Gainax, blah blah blah. You know the deal.

Forever Rei

 Prologue

            As Shinji Ikari knelt there, still reeling from the shock of being asked to pilot Unit 01 and rejecting his father's orders, the sound of a bed being wheeled in echoed throughout the holding bay. Shinji looked up at the origin of the sound and saw a girl being brought in by two nurses. The sight of this unusual girl brought a strange feeling to Shinji, something he had never felt before. He felt as if the girl and he had some kind of instant bond between them, something unbreakable in his mind.

"No, that's preposterous, I just caught a glimpse of her and I don't even know her name or who she even is."  Shinji said to no one in particular. 

He threw away that previous thought, and concentrated on looking at the girl. As the bed was wheeled past him, he discovered that she was quite injured. A bandage was taped to her right eye and her arm and leg were wrapped as if she had suffered major trauma to both. What struck Shinji as most odd about her was the fact that she was albino. Her skin had an almost translucent glow to it and her eyes were the color of a penetrating red. To Shinji's surprise, her hair was a light blue color; which he had never seen before. Once the bed had passed him, he caught a glance at the clipboard that was hanging of the end of the bed. "Rei Ayanami, First Child" it read.

"Ayanami… lovely name." thought Shinji. "I wonder who she is."

            At that precise moment, a tremor from Sachiel's attack shook the NERV facility. Parts of the ceiling crumbled and a large piece of debris was falling directly at where Shinji was still standing. As the piece was about to hit him, the right arm of the Evangelion ripped out of its restraints and a hand prevented the debris from harming Shinji and causing it to fly and hit the glass behind which Gendou Ikari was standing. While everyone stood in shock at what had just occurred, Shinji noticed that Rei was sprawled on the bridge, seemingly having fell from the bed in which she was in. Rushing to her side, he saw that she was obviously hurt. As he held her, she arched her back and let out a scream of pure pain. As Shinji tried to help her, he suddenly realized why she was brought here in the first place. Since he wouldn't pilot the Eva, his father was going to have Rei pilot it in his place. He knew his father was a horrible man, but to have an injured girl pilot that thing made Shinji incredibly angry. He realized he had to overcome his fears and stand up to his cruel father, at least so this girl wouldn't have to suffer.

"I'll do it! I'll pilot the Evangelion!" Shinji cried at his father while still holding Rei up. "Just don't make her do it!". Commander Ikari just stood there and nodded.

"Prepare the Eva for launch!" Captain Katsuragi called to the technicians.

            As the crews scrambled to get the Evangelion ready, Shinji stayed by Rei's side, cradling her in his arms. He had no idea what would happen later on, but he really didn't care. He looked up at the Eva and then back down again at the now-still Rei, he realized that he didn't have to be so alone anymore. He smiled for the first time in years…

Author's Notes: I just did this on a whim, wanting to see if I could somehow start something with a Shinji/Rei angle. If I get positive reviews, I may just continue it. It's going to be very difficult though, since I've never tried anything romantic styled before. Maybe reading Rakna's "The One I Love Is…" again will help me… hmm…