I do not own anything Eva related. WHY CAN'T I OWN IT? *shakes fist at the heavens* but… the heavens don't care.
The Ties that Bind
Chapter three- Separation Anxiety
Nearly a week had passed since the failed Cross synchronization test. Shinji and Rei both felt in fine health though Reis eyes did widen a bit when she noticed Shinjis right wrist in a cast, and the busted lip with the memory of the fleeting pain she had felt upon awakening.
Three days after they woke the subject had bothered them both so much that they had asked around and actually had managed to get someone to paint the ceiling. After much back and forth discussion and half finished/started sentences that had the painter dizzy they settled on a light blue color. Then they went for a walk around the hospital as the ceiling was being painted.
They frequently walked around the hospital having nothing much else to do since Ritsuko refused to let them go but still had yet to tell them why. It was during one of these walks that Ritsuko found them on a Monday, exactly two weeks after they woke.
"Shinji, Rei," she called as she walked up to them.
"Yes doctor?" they said, again in unison.
Ritsuko quickly covered the surprise she felt as she had become slightly used to their odd quirks in speech. "I have good news for you two. You can go home today. We've finished the tests and it seems that the two of you have been given a clean bill of health."
She turned to Shinji. "Shinji I'm afraid it will be a while before we'll be able to remove your cast. You decided to break some of the worst bones possible and they take a long time to heal. However I will expect you back here in one week to check on your recovery."
"Yes doctor," Shinji said, his voice slightly less emotional than it usually was. The two children spun about and made their way back towards their shared hospital room, with its baby blue ceiling.
Ritsuko watched them as they walked and the evidence of their bond showed in their step. The right foot rose at exactly the same instant and fell to strike the earth in unison followed by the left, so that the sound echoed in such a way as to seem that there was only one person there and not two.
They entered their room and quickly changed into their clothes before turning and leaving the hospital. Once on the street they both turned at the same second and walked down the sidewalk towards Reis apartment building.
Ritsuko watched them from the doorway for a moment before she noticed a presence at her side. Turning she looked back at the puzzled expression of one Major Misato Katsuragi.
"Ritsu? Where's Shinji going?" Misato asked.
"I would imagine he is going to Reis apartment."
"Why?"
"Maybe you should ask him."
"Okay"
~~~~~~~~~~~~
As they entered the apartment Rei went over to lay down on her bed after slipping her shoes off and setting them by the door.
Shinji entered the kitchen and began washing the small pile of dishes there, straightening up the counters and basically going about the normal routine he would have gone through had he gone home that day after the test, in an attempt to slip back into his old patterns.
After several minutes of silence other than the sound of running water Rei raised her head off of the bed and stared at Shinji as if just realizing he was there.
"Ikari-kun, why are you here?" Shinji stopped at the sound of her voice and slowly turned. He looked down at the washcloth in his hand, his face a study of confusion.
"I'm not really sure," he said looking up at Rei who remained silent.
"I guess I'll be going then. Good bye Rei." She declined to answer, merely resting her head back on her pillow and gazed up at the ceiling as Shinji walked to the door.
As the door shut behind him she had a sudden urge to leap out of bed and run after him but she squashed it and rolled over onto her side.
Out on the street Shinji slowly plodded away from the rundown apartment building, every step getting harder and harder.
He felt as if his feet were made of cement and he had an urge to return just to be near Rei moving away from her tore him apart and he couldn't understand why, nor was he entirely positive it was leaving Rei that was affecting him. Finally, he found himself frozen on the sidewalk unable to move forward, yet unwilling to go back.
He stood stock still for nearly ten minutes, beads of sweat standing out on his fore head as he struggled to take another step forwards. Eventually he cracked. Spinning around he began walking briskly back towards Reis apartment, all the while still trying to force his unresponsive body to turn and go back the other way.
Left to his own devices he would most assuredly have walked right back into the apartment building and up to her apartment without once knowing WHY he was so hell bent on being around her.
Fortunately he didn't get the chance. With a squealing of tires a little blue sports car came to a stop right in front of him. He was about to walk around the car to continue on his way when the driver stuck her head out of the window and called out to him, "Hey Shinji, need a lift back home?"
He stopped and slowly turned to the car, and the raven-haired Major that was leaning out of the window.
"Thanks Misato," he said as he slowly, and with much effort sat down in the front seat. As they drove away he looked back through the rear window, staring at the run down building long after it had disappeared from view.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
A silent apartment, quiet footsteps. Misato awoke with a start still not exactly sure what it was that had awoken her. She sat up in bed and slowly surveyed the darkened room for a trace of what had disturbed her sleep.
Glancing at the clock she saw that it was only two-thirty in the morning. Then, she heard it, footsteps, and quiet, gasping, shuddering breath.
Standing, she pulled on a shirt and gently eased her bedroom door open far enough to peer outside. She bit back a startled cry as she found Shinjis face a few inches away from her own. His eyes were glassy and unfocused as he turned and walked away from her without even acknowledging her presence.
With a puzzled look on her face she opened the door all the way and quietly padded down the hall after him. She observed him as he moved and right away she noticed several major differences in his movements.
His steps were slow and jerky, almost as if his legs wanted to carry him one way while his mind was attempting to force them another way. His entire body shuddered violently every few moments and his hands shook as if he were suffering from drug withdrawal symptoms.
"Shinji?" she asked as he stumbled to the balcony door. He didn't answer as he wrenched the door open and he stepped out into the night with Misato close behind him.
He lurched forward hitting the railing hard with both hands and stared out over the city. His gaze flitted from left to right before finally settling somewhere in the middle, staring off at some distant point beyond the reach of Misatos vision.
"Shinji," she tried again. He made no response to her words, nor did he seem to notice as she stepped up to the railing next to him. Momentarily at a bit of a loss for words Misato just stood there as he gazed out across the quiet city.
"… can… her," Shinji mumbled so quietly that Misato couldn't hear a few of the words spoken.
"What?" she asked.
"I… I can feel… her," he said. He turned to face her and for the span of a few seconds his eyes seemed to focus on her, and he gazed into her eyes before he slumped to the floor of the balcony, unconscious.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ritsuko yawned as she bent over Shinji's still form, peeling back one eyelid to shine a small penlight into his eye.
"What the hell happened to him Ritsuko?" a very agitated Major Katsuragi inquired. After waking Asuka and moving Shinji onto the couch she had frantically called the blond doctor and informed her of what had happened.
"Looks like he went into shock and passed out," Ritsuko said as she stifled another yawn.
"Why would he go into shock?"
"I'm not entirely sure," Ritsuko said evasively. "From what you described it seems to me that it was almost like withdrawal symptoms. His body became acclimated to a foreign substance, then dependent on it. Now his body is suddenly without that substance and it overloaded so to speak."
"So you're telling us that this moron has been doing drugs?" Asuka asked from the kitchen table. The redhead was still upset about being forced from her sleep at three in the morning.
"Not exactly Asuka. He is not doing any kind of drugs, but the reaction he had is similar." Ritsuko put away the light and stood up. "I really have to be going now. Make sure he goes to school tomorrow Misato. He should be fine by morning and chances are he won't even remember any of this."
"All right Ritsu," Misato said as she walked her to the door. "G'night." The door hissed shut behind her and Misato went back into the kitchen.
There was a moment's silence before, "Misato?"
"Yeah?"
"If it's not drugs, then what is his body suddenly lacking that could cause this?"
"I'm not sure Asuka," Misato began. "But I have a sneaking suspicion that Ritsuko knows full well what it is."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
At frequent intervals the streetlights lit up the interior of the car as it moved through the silent city streets. Ritsuko slowed the vehicle as she approached a particularly run down part of the city.
Driving slowly she eventually pulled to a stop in front a dilapidated apartment building. Stepping from the car she sighed as she gazed up at the old building before reaching into the car for her bag.
She paused at the stairs leading up to the apartments as a cool breeze blew across her cheek. At night all the noise from the construction in the area was quite noticeably absent casting an eerie silence over the dark streets. She quickly turned and made her way up the four flight of stairs required and entered apartment 401 without bothering to knock.
"Just as I thought," she muttered as she saw the naked form lying on the floor not far from the entrance. Rei had passed out face down on the floor about half way down the hallway between the front door and her bed. "This is going to be a long night," Ritsuko sighed as she opened her black medical bag.
She withdrew a small packet of smelling salts and gathered the blue haired pilot into her arms, pulling her to a semi sitting position. Breaking open the packet she gently held it beneath the girls nose until she jerked awake
Reis' eyes slowly fluttered open and focused on the doctor after a few minutes.
"Doctor Akagi?" she asked.
"Yes Rei."
"Why am I..?" There was a pause before Ritsuko frowned.
"What is it?"
"Why am I..?" Again she stopped speaking mid-sentence.
Silence reigned in the small apartment for sometime Ritsuko finally spoke. "It seems that you passed out Rei. Section 2 called me and I came right over," she lied. Ritsuko moved to get her legs under her and tightened around the small girls' body. "Come on, let's get you to bed Rei. You have school tomorrow you know."
"Yes Dr. Akagi." If Ritsuko had been paying closer attention, she might have noticed the slightly disappointed tone to the girls' voice.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"She stopped speaking in mid-sentence?" Gendo asked of the blond doctor.
"Yes sir. She said 'Why am I…' and then stopped," Ritsuko said. "It is my belief that she seemed to be waiting for Shinji to finish the rest of the sentence though she does not appear to be aware that she stopped speaking at all."
"Proceed with your report doctor."
"I got her into bed and she was asleep within a few minutes."
"And prior to that you had been to Major Katsuragis' apartment?"
"Yes sir. Major Katsuragi called me at about 2:45 this morning in a bit of a panic. It seems Shinji had been behaving oddly during the night. He was wandering around the apartment and that woke Misato. He then collapsed at approximately 2:35 this morning."
"Do you believe that Rei's and the Third's collapses had any connection?"
"Yes sir. I believe that their minds are dependent upon one another's presence. Separating the two of them will only cause them undue harm."
"Noted Doctor." Gendo glanced at the digital clock set in his desk. "I believe you shift is to begin soon Doctor. Dismissed"
Ritsuko hesitated for a moment. "Sir?"
"Yes?"
"Am I to continue concealing any direct proof or knowledge of the link from Rei and Shinji?"
"Yes you are. I believe Miss Katsuragi is also unaware of their link?"
"Yes sir."
"See that it remains that way."
"Yes sir." She turned and left.
Fuyutski spoke up from his place behind the younger man. "Why do you insist on hiding this from them?"
"I am interested to see how it affects them."
"You intend to see if they find their way to each other before they kill themselves?"
"Something to that effect."
"Shinji is very important to your scenario. Aren't you at all worried about what this might do to him?"
"He is my son. He's stronger then even he knows." All the elderly Professor could do was gaze dumbfounded at his former pupil, and pray, for two innocent Children.
End
Woohoo. Got that one done. CHAPTER THREE IS UP! YES. Uh ahem Sorry about that. So what will happen when Rei and Shinji wake? When will they learn of their link? When will I own Evangelion? Stick around. You just might learn the answers.