I can't believe how fast I churned out that last chap. Not that anything
super-duper important happens in it.I'm rambling here.
Anyway, in response to your advice, Animefan2017, I'm publishing so quickly
because by the time that next week ends, I'm going to have no internet
access for six weeks. Now, I could string you guys along for reviews, or
just string you along for the screams of agony, but I'm not writing this
for reviews or for sadistic pleasure, strange as that sounds. If you'd read
the rather pointless author's notes from previous chaps, I'm writing to get
this out of my head before I go insane.-er.
I'm not quite sure what happened with the earlier chapters getting mixed up
or whatever, but thanx for tellin' me.
Disclaimer: Neon Genesis and all of its derivatives are property of Hideaki Anno and Gainax.
Fourth Impact Chapter 21: Beginnings of Romance
Misato watched as Takoru and Lilliko ran back and forth across the field, trying to keep track of Takoru's dog. Esca was nothing but a white-gray blur against the grass, bounding back and forth trying to keep away from the dreaded hairbrush.
"I got him!" shouted Lilliko, diving at the dog, but Esca swerved out of the way and Lilliko landed face flat in the grass. She bounced to her feet and was chasing after the dog in half a moment, during which Takoru got similarly treated by his pet.
Adamu lounged in the shade of a tall tree, wondering how his sister managed to derive joy from being so humiliated.
A group of girls wandered over to him, attempting to start a conversation with him. They must have been in a different class, as they didn't know of his status as an Angel. He ignored them. They gathered around him, trying to break through his indifference.
Misato walked over to rescue Adamu, who was about to be overwhelmed by the girls. She sat down next to him and laid her head on his shoulder, smiling sweetly at the girls. They quickly backed off.
"Quite a fanclub you've got there." She said, not bothering to move.
"I don't understand why so many females try and start a relationship with me." he told her. "Mostly through physical means." Her head shot off his shoulder and she smiled in embarrassment.
"If Lilli-kun asks, I was just doing that to get the girls away." She said firmly.
"And if she doesn't ask?" Adamu waited while Misato blushed.
"I was still doing that to get the girls away." Misato replied.
He turned to face her. "Misato, I hate to ask this, but."
"Well, I'd hate to answer, so go ahead." She told him.
"Do you like me?" he forced out. "You know what I mean."
She smiled at him. "What do you think?" she asked. He glared at her.
"I have no clue. At all." He told her. "I know absolutely nothing about other people. I can't even begin to understand my sister, and I've lived with her all of my life."
She shrugged. "Well, if I do like you, then I'll just pretend that I don't to make your sister mad and get back at Takoru-kun. Either way, you'll never know the difference."
"I want an answer." He told her.
"And I want a headrest." She replied. "The difference is, I'm getting what I want." And she put her head back on his shoulder. "Don't you believe that this means anything, though. I'm just sleepy."
He leaned his head back against the tree and stared up at the leaves. How could he ever survive in this world if people like her ran everything?
Dai-syo slowly regained consciousness. The first thing he heard was singing. He snapped open his eyes.
In front of the two beds, dressed in a long white shirt and panties, was Samantha, singing into the television remote. He blinked once, twice, three times, but still there she was. The entire scene was so cliché that he couldn't help but laugh.
She spun to face him. "What?" she demanded. "Do you not like my singing?"
He held down a blush as he saw how low the neckline of her shirt was. "Your singing is exquisite. However, your originality in terms of costume and circumstance could be better."
She glared at him. Then she glanced down at her attire and shrieked. "Stop staring at me!" she spun around and stormed over to her drawers where they kept the clothes that she had spent the previous four days buying.
He waited for her to slip into the bathroom before getting dressed himself. The image of her standing in front of him so scandalously, and scantily, dressed was burned into his eyes.
"What do we do now?" he heard her ask.
"Maybe we should get a map of Tokyo 4." He said. "Then we could at least plan an attack." She stepped out of the bathroom, drying her messy green hair.
"I want a trench coat." She said suddenly. He blinked.
"Why?"
"Because, all of the good female super-agents wear tight black leather and trench coats. And I'll need a pair of sunglasses."
He rolled his eyes. "You are truly an American." She flashed a smile at him.
"And you haven't watched enough television." She said, waving a finger in front of his face. "We can fix both problems later. Right now I need a trench coat."
They wandered into the streets of Kyoto trying not to stand out too much. Fortunately everyone was too busy to notice them, but Dai-syo was still slightly worried. His companion did stick out like a fire in a water park, and had less common sense than a barrel of alcohol. She did speak flawless Japanese, however, so he depended on her as his own Japanese needed some work.
"And this is yet another museum dedicated to people's bogus theorems about Third Impact." She gestured to a large brick building. "I don't know why they have so many of these, but at least a third of the great minds, those that returned from the sea of LCL in any case, are dedicated to finding out exactly what caused Third Impact."
"And what did, exactly?" he asked her. She smiled.
"Girls, of course. Two and a half, approximately." He frowned, raising an eyebrow in silent question. "Lillith, she's a girl, Ikari Yui, a woman whose husband loved her too much, and Ayanami Rei, a clone/combination of both, whose head still floats next to Tokyo 4. That makes two and a half girls."
He blinked. She nodded confidently. "Girls make the world go round. You boys are only for show." She grabbed his hand and led him down another street.
"And here we have the remains of."
Lilliko dodged another spray and fired back at Adamu. Misato grinned as Lilliko's guard went down for a moment. The redhead took advantage of the opportunity to spray Lilliko until she fell into Takoru, who was sneaking up on her from behind. Lilliko yelped as she slammed into him and they both fell to the ground. Then Adamu turned and grimly hit Misato square in the chest with his water gun.
"It's nice to have you sitting on me when your soaked and all," murmured Takoru to the girl straddling his chest, "but in the interest of not being called a pervert, could you get up?" Lilliko sprang to her feet, wiping herself off. Takoru merely grinned and shot her from behind.
Isya fired at all of them with the garden hose, causing the entire group to gang up on Takoru's sister. But when she started shrieking, Takoru quickly changed sides, Lilliko joining him as Takoru's brother Rakota sided with Adamu and Misato.
Amika popped her head out of the doorway to announce lunch, and the six thoroughly drenched children made their way inside. Hikari made them change as soon as they got in, eliciting some rather perverted comments from her sons about girls in wet clothing. Once dry, the group gathered back outside.
Rei looked over her two children. "I don't understand either, mother." Adamu assured her. "But it was fun." She nodded. Even at the age of thirty she still had a bit of trouble of understanding the human concept of fun. Her husband didn't help, he couldn't understand boredom any more than he could understand hatred.
"Fun?" demanded Lilliko. "That was exhilarating! That was incredible! That was not 'fun.' " Her brother nodded sarcastically, and she pouted at him.
"Food!" the three males of the Suzuhara household had to be batted away from the still cooking barbeque. Asuka was more than willing to do the job, after all, she was the one cooking the frankfurters. (AN: They're frankfurters, not hotdogs. She's from Germany.)
Shinji decided to divert Touji before his wife could hit him any more, while Takoru and Rakota were sent to fetch Esca.
The dog also had to be batted away from the food.
"So," Kaoru peered at Misato. "I've never had a chance to really meet you before." She shrugged.
"We were busy, and you were out examining the Chosen. It couldn't be helped."
"Either way, it's nice to be able to finally talk to Adamu's girlfriend."
"I'm not his girlfriend!" Misato almost shouted. Almost everyone turned to stare at her. Adamu turned away, rolling his eyes. "We're just friends."
"You're his friend, and you're a girl. Therefore you're his girlfriend." Kaoru said.
Misato was on the edge of fuming when Adamu caught up to her. "He doesn't understand." He told her. "My father loves everybody. He's a true Angel. He doesn't quite understand human relationships."
"Not that you do any better." She said sweetly. He shrugged.
"Yes, but I admit it. He doesn't even know that he doesn't understand."
She glanced at where Kaoru was talking to Touji. She glanced back at Adamu. The resemblance was very striking. The only difference really was that Kaoru was smiling, a huge, friendly smile with a hint of mischief. Adamu's expression said that he'd had enough trouble already. "Must be hard, living in that family." She gestured to where Lilliko and Esca had gotten into a tugging match over a meaningless piece of rope.
"It works." He said. "We don't get on each other's nerves because father has no comprehension of the word annoyance, Lilliko is too cheery to be disturbed, and neither mother nor I care enough to get annoyed."
They both looked over to where Rei was talking to Asuka. Asuka kept her gaze on the frankfurters, so she didn't notice the not-quite-regretful looks that Rei shot her way every once in a while. But every time she did that, Rei would then glance over at Kaoru, and her expression would brighten.
Misato glanced at Adamu, who had chosen that exact moment to glance at her. Their eyes met, and they both turned away, embarrassed.
Lilliko brandished the rope in front of Esca, taunting him. He reared up, put his paws on her shoulders and grabbed the rope from her. She squealed as she was pushed backwards, but Takoru caught her. He helped her to her feet and she mumbled a quick, "thank you." to him.
"Bad Esca." He said loudly, but anyone at the right angle would see him winking at the dog. Then to Lilliko he asked, "Are you all right?"
"That dog is a hazard." She told him. Esca just gave her a dog's version of a grin, jiggling the rope in his mouth. "I need something to drink."
She grabbed a can of soda and chugged it down in one gulp. "AAAHHHH!" she shouted. "That's the stuff."
Asuka and Shinji exchanged a glance. "Katsuragi." They said in unison. (AN: When I said that she'd act like Misato Sr., I meant it.)
"I wonder why they're taking so long." Misato said to Adamu.
"The frankfurters?" he asked. She shook her head.
"No, Lillith's Chosen. Why hasn't the next one shown up yet?" he glanced at her, trying to figure out how to phrase his answer.
"Maybe the last time scared them." She nodded, not betraying her still present pain.
"Maybe."
AN: Okay, the ending was a tad depressing, but I needed her to say something meaningful or this entire chapter would have been a complete waste of time plot-wise. Which it pretty much is anyway, but that's not the point. Oh, wait, I introduced Takoru's family! Right. That was good. I think. Maybe. Random quote of the day: "This sentence has cabbage six words. "
-Douglas Hofstadter
Disclaimer: Neon Genesis and all of its derivatives are property of Hideaki Anno and Gainax.
Fourth Impact Chapter 21: Beginnings of Romance
Misato watched as Takoru and Lilliko ran back and forth across the field, trying to keep track of Takoru's dog. Esca was nothing but a white-gray blur against the grass, bounding back and forth trying to keep away from the dreaded hairbrush.
"I got him!" shouted Lilliko, diving at the dog, but Esca swerved out of the way and Lilliko landed face flat in the grass. She bounced to her feet and was chasing after the dog in half a moment, during which Takoru got similarly treated by his pet.
Adamu lounged in the shade of a tall tree, wondering how his sister managed to derive joy from being so humiliated.
A group of girls wandered over to him, attempting to start a conversation with him. They must have been in a different class, as they didn't know of his status as an Angel. He ignored them. They gathered around him, trying to break through his indifference.
Misato walked over to rescue Adamu, who was about to be overwhelmed by the girls. She sat down next to him and laid her head on his shoulder, smiling sweetly at the girls. They quickly backed off.
"Quite a fanclub you've got there." She said, not bothering to move.
"I don't understand why so many females try and start a relationship with me." he told her. "Mostly through physical means." Her head shot off his shoulder and she smiled in embarrassment.
"If Lilli-kun asks, I was just doing that to get the girls away." She said firmly.
"And if she doesn't ask?" Adamu waited while Misato blushed.
"I was still doing that to get the girls away." Misato replied.
He turned to face her. "Misato, I hate to ask this, but."
"Well, I'd hate to answer, so go ahead." She told him.
"Do you like me?" he forced out. "You know what I mean."
She smiled at him. "What do you think?" she asked. He glared at her.
"I have no clue. At all." He told her. "I know absolutely nothing about other people. I can't even begin to understand my sister, and I've lived with her all of my life."
She shrugged. "Well, if I do like you, then I'll just pretend that I don't to make your sister mad and get back at Takoru-kun. Either way, you'll never know the difference."
"I want an answer." He told her.
"And I want a headrest." She replied. "The difference is, I'm getting what I want." And she put her head back on his shoulder. "Don't you believe that this means anything, though. I'm just sleepy."
He leaned his head back against the tree and stared up at the leaves. How could he ever survive in this world if people like her ran everything?
Dai-syo slowly regained consciousness. The first thing he heard was singing. He snapped open his eyes.
In front of the two beds, dressed in a long white shirt and panties, was Samantha, singing into the television remote. He blinked once, twice, three times, but still there she was. The entire scene was so cliché that he couldn't help but laugh.
She spun to face him. "What?" she demanded. "Do you not like my singing?"
He held down a blush as he saw how low the neckline of her shirt was. "Your singing is exquisite. However, your originality in terms of costume and circumstance could be better."
She glared at him. Then she glanced down at her attire and shrieked. "Stop staring at me!" she spun around and stormed over to her drawers where they kept the clothes that she had spent the previous four days buying.
He waited for her to slip into the bathroom before getting dressed himself. The image of her standing in front of him so scandalously, and scantily, dressed was burned into his eyes.
"What do we do now?" he heard her ask.
"Maybe we should get a map of Tokyo 4." He said. "Then we could at least plan an attack." She stepped out of the bathroom, drying her messy green hair.
"I want a trench coat." She said suddenly. He blinked.
"Why?"
"Because, all of the good female super-agents wear tight black leather and trench coats. And I'll need a pair of sunglasses."
He rolled his eyes. "You are truly an American." She flashed a smile at him.
"And you haven't watched enough television." She said, waving a finger in front of his face. "We can fix both problems later. Right now I need a trench coat."
They wandered into the streets of Kyoto trying not to stand out too much. Fortunately everyone was too busy to notice them, but Dai-syo was still slightly worried. His companion did stick out like a fire in a water park, and had less common sense than a barrel of alcohol. She did speak flawless Japanese, however, so he depended on her as his own Japanese needed some work.
"And this is yet another museum dedicated to people's bogus theorems about Third Impact." She gestured to a large brick building. "I don't know why they have so many of these, but at least a third of the great minds, those that returned from the sea of LCL in any case, are dedicated to finding out exactly what caused Third Impact."
"And what did, exactly?" he asked her. She smiled.
"Girls, of course. Two and a half, approximately." He frowned, raising an eyebrow in silent question. "Lillith, she's a girl, Ikari Yui, a woman whose husband loved her too much, and Ayanami Rei, a clone/combination of both, whose head still floats next to Tokyo 4. That makes two and a half girls."
He blinked. She nodded confidently. "Girls make the world go round. You boys are only for show." She grabbed his hand and led him down another street.
"And here we have the remains of."
Lilliko dodged another spray and fired back at Adamu. Misato grinned as Lilliko's guard went down for a moment. The redhead took advantage of the opportunity to spray Lilliko until she fell into Takoru, who was sneaking up on her from behind. Lilliko yelped as she slammed into him and they both fell to the ground. Then Adamu turned and grimly hit Misato square in the chest with his water gun.
"It's nice to have you sitting on me when your soaked and all," murmured Takoru to the girl straddling his chest, "but in the interest of not being called a pervert, could you get up?" Lilliko sprang to her feet, wiping herself off. Takoru merely grinned and shot her from behind.
Isya fired at all of them with the garden hose, causing the entire group to gang up on Takoru's sister. But when she started shrieking, Takoru quickly changed sides, Lilliko joining him as Takoru's brother Rakota sided with Adamu and Misato.
Amika popped her head out of the doorway to announce lunch, and the six thoroughly drenched children made their way inside. Hikari made them change as soon as they got in, eliciting some rather perverted comments from her sons about girls in wet clothing. Once dry, the group gathered back outside.
Rei looked over her two children. "I don't understand either, mother." Adamu assured her. "But it was fun." She nodded. Even at the age of thirty she still had a bit of trouble of understanding the human concept of fun. Her husband didn't help, he couldn't understand boredom any more than he could understand hatred.
"Fun?" demanded Lilliko. "That was exhilarating! That was incredible! That was not 'fun.' " Her brother nodded sarcastically, and she pouted at him.
"Food!" the three males of the Suzuhara household had to be batted away from the still cooking barbeque. Asuka was more than willing to do the job, after all, she was the one cooking the frankfurters. (AN: They're frankfurters, not hotdogs. She's from Germany.)
Shinji decided to divert Touji before his wife could hit him any more, while Takoru and Rakota were sent to fetch Esca.
The dog also had to be batted away from the food.
"So," Kaoru peered at Misato. "I've never had a chance to really meet you before." She shrugged.
"We were busy, and you were out examining the Chosen. It couldn't be helped."
"Either way, it's nice to be able to finally talk to Adamu's girlfriend."
"I'm not his girlfriend!" Misato almost shouted. Almost everyone turned to stare at her. Adamu turned away, rolling his eyes. "We're just friends."
"You're his friend, and you're a girl. Therefore you're his girlfriend." Kaoru said.
Misato was on the edge of fuming when Adamu caught up to her. "He doesn't understand." He told her. "My father loves everybody. He's a true Angel. He doesn't quite understand human relationships."
"Not that you do any better." She said sweetly. He shrugged.
"Yes, but I admit it. He doesn't even know that he doesn't understand."
She glanced at where Kaoru was talking to Touji. She glanced back at Adamu. The resemblance was very striking. The only difference really was that Kaoru was smiling, a huge, friendly smile with a hint of mischief. Adamu's expression said that he'd had enough trouble already. "Must be hard, living in that family." She gestured to where Lilliko and Esca had gotten into a tugging match over a meaningless piece of rope.
"It works." He said. "We don't get on each other's nerves because father has no comprehension of the word annoyance, Lilliko is too cheery to be disturbed, and neither mother nor I care enough to get annoyed."
They both looked over to where Rei was talking to Asuka. Asuka kept her gaze on the frankfurters, so she didn't notice the not-quite-regretful looks that Rei shot her way every once in a while. But every time she did that, Rei would then glance over at Kaoru, and her expression would brighten.
Misato glanced at Adamu, who had chosen that exact moment to glance at her. Their eyes met, and they both turned away, embarrassed.
Lilliko brandished the rope in front of Esca, taunting him. He reared up, put his paws on her shoulders and grabbed the rope from her. She squealed as she was pushed backwards, but Takoru caught her. He helped her to her feet and she mumbled a quick, "thank you." to him.
"Bad Esca." He said loudly, but anyone at the right angle would see him winking at the dog. Then to Lilliko he asked, "Are you all right?"
"That dog is a hazard." She told him. Esca just gave her a dog's version of a grin, jiggling the rope in his mouth. "I need something to drink."
She grabbed a can of soda and chugged it down in one gulp. "AAAHHHH!" she shouted. "That's the stuff."
Asuka and Shinji exchanged a glance. "Katsuragi." They said in unison. (AN: When I said that she'd act like Misato Sr., I meant it.)
"I wonder why they're taking so long." Misato said to Adamu.
"The frankfurters?" he asked. She shook her head.
"No, Lillith's Chosen. Why hasn't the next one shown up yet?" he glanced at her, trying to figure out how to phrase his answer.
"Maybe the last time scared them." She nodded, not betraying her still present pain.
"Maybe."
AN: Okay, the ending was a tad depressing, but I needed her to say something meaningful or this entire chapter would have been a complete waste of time plot-wise. Which it pretty much is anyway, but that's not the point. Oh, wait, I introduced Takoru's family! Right. That was good. I think. Maybe. Random quote of the day: "This sentence has cabbage six words. "
-Douglas Hofstadter