And it's up! Why so long? Because I got A's in my grad school classes!...and yes, Bruce Almighty came out today, to. And no, I haven't seen it yet.
…Shinji created the Heaven and Earth…
___________________________________
Back in the classroom, that morning…
Shinji snaps his fingers, wishing for time to stop, and turns to Metatron.
"Who is that?"
"That," the Metatron says, pointing to Ariel, "Is a very bad sign. The Plan has changed and I think we may be in serious, knee deep poop!"
Shinji looks to Ariel, then looks back to Metatron with a shrug.
"Why? She's just another student."
"Student my arse," Metatron says, grabbing Shinji by the shoulders and looking him in the eye, "That is Arael, the 15th Angel. Don't even think you're the same age. She was ancient when Methuselah was born."
Shinji turns to Ariel. He turns back to Metatron. He turns back to Ariel, scratching his head, and then back to the angel.
"Oh," he says, "Well, she keeps herself pretty well for her age, I guess."
"That's the first player in this drama. Or romance, or comedy, or whatever it must be referred to as. Now, enter the second player. Stage right."
In the moment time froze (if such a term applies), two figures appeared on the catwalk that stands at face-level in 02's cage.
"So, this is a Slayer of God," the Morningstar says, "Odd, that they'd term what she was made from and what the other Evangelions were made from as Angels. Were not Adam and Lilith the first humans?"
"We are not here to debate Theology, my son," He-who-was-God responds, "We're making plans. Do you think this one will do?"
"I have no doubt, Father," the Morningstar says, as the Eva's eyes glow for a brief moment, defying now the lays of temporal progression, "I have no doubt at all."
And then, they are gone.
Class got slightly more interesting after time resumed.
Among other things, a giant humanoid lizard began walking around the class, idly stepping on students despite not affecting them in the slightest.
Knowing better than to scream in horror, he turns to Metatron, to find his guide has buried his face in his hands.
"Who…"
"Sandalphon," he groans, "She went and brought Sandalphon as her spirit-helper."
"Um…"
"When a divine being manifests fully in human form, they bring a spirit guide, another divine being, with them. The Lord maintained that since you are now a divine being, and therefore in need of a guide, hence I. Arael is similar…and she chose him."
Shinji nods, pretending once more to pay attention to the class.
"Sandalphon is my twin," Metatron continues, "However…well, you don't technically kill angels. We simply leave the corporeal matter-flesh when we're destroyed, and our spirit, our true essence, returns to Heaven. However, it takes a while for us to be…reminded…of what we truly are."
Sandalphon pitches its head back, and emits a long, cracking gurgle/roar before bending down and biting Rei. She doesn't notice, partly because she is unharmed, but then again, she's Rei.
Shinji shrugs, turning back to the teacher.
"Are any of the others still around?" he whispers.
"Look out the window."
Shinji does so…and sees, in the distance, the lanky, lumbering form of Sachiel splashing around in the ocean. It turns, waves, and goes back to taking a bath off the coast of Japan.
"Sachiel," Metatron says with a laugh, "He never could hold a grudge."
Lunch time comes quickly, and Shinji finds himself sitting alone. With Touji in the hospital, and Kensuke in Tokyo-2, Shinji finds no one to sit with. At least, in his opinion.
That soon changes.
"So," Metatron says, sitting next to Shinji, "Where's your friends?"
"They're not here," Shinji says, closing his eyes at the painful memories, "They left. I don't have any friends here."
"And look how this will change."
Shinji looks up as the tray slams down in front of him. He looks up…and looks into Ariel's blue eyes.
"H-hello."
"Hi," Ariel says, "Mind if I join you two?"
"Hello, Arael," Metatron says, "May I ask exactly why you've taken flesh?"
"Ask Father. He agreed to send me here."
Shinji ignores the two as they begin arguing, opening his bento box and fishing through the contents with his chopsticks.
No one pays special notice to the girl yelling at what appears to be just Shinji. They simply assumed Asuka has a sister.
"So, why are you here?" Ariel asks.
"Standing orders from the Boss are to look out for the kid and help him with his powers," Metatron responds, "With some…add-ons."
"Such as?"
Metatron coughs, grinning ever so slightly.
"His final orders before sending me to Shinji were…'get the kid to loosen up.'"
"The Lord said that."
"Yes."
"You're kidding."
"I am not, Arael. His standing orders are to get the kid to stop acting so damn glum."
"And why would I want that?"
The two angels start, turning to Shinji as he finally speaks up. His face is creased with irritation, his eyes clenched shut.
"Just stop, alright?" he asks, "Just…stop."
He closes his bento box, picking it up and walking away. For a moment, Ariel and Metatron sit, staring at the seat he occupied.
"Going to be a difficult task," Ariel says, picking at her food, "I'm up for the challenge."
School ends for the day, and the three pilots find themselves at the NERV headquarters. After the typical run-around and instructions, the three children were suited up, deposited into their entry plugs, and the routine of the Sync tests began anew.
In the past, he found these things annoying. Tonight, considering his new position, his spirit guide, and the girl who apparently came as part of the package, Shinji finds the sync tests to be a little piece of solitary bliss.
"Shinji?"
He half-opens his right eye, staring at the image window that shows Misato's face.
"You still awake?"
"Um…I thi-…yeah," he says, "Is it over?"
"Yep. We're retrieving you now. Everything alright?"
"Yeah," he lies, "Everything's fine."
"Oh, you know she can see right through that."
Shinji starts, to see the head of Metatron phasing in through the outer wall of the Entry Plug.
"Nice place," Metatron continues, "Do you like living in tomato soup or is the rent good?"
As a benefit of her heritage, Rei knows that something is wrong with Shinji. She can not tell exactly what, but she can sense it. She can sense the difference in his…presence, and the odd shape that seems to follow him wherever it goes.
She can not see what it is exactly, but it seems to be connected to the new student in their class. When she was yelling at Shinji, she could see she was yelling at something to his side…and she could sense the reactions from the shape.
The shape could be a danger to the Scenario. The Commander would not be pleased. But he would have Shinji harmed.
She will deal with this herself.
"Well, your scores seem to be holding steady," Ritsuko says, the three Children seated in front of her, "Shinji, you're holding at your last rate. Good, considering the past month. Rei, Asuka, I don't see any changes. You're dismissed."
Rei pays no attention to Sohryu, barely hearing the girl grumble about her abysmal scores, instead walking after Shinji.
She enters the woman's lockers as Shinji enters the men's, changing with methodical precision, tuning out Pilot Sohryu. She leaves moments before Asuka, giving her the leeway to avoid the pilot and use the cell phone with no one listening in.
"Commander," she says, "There is a new student. She has been spending time around Pilot Ikari. Shall I observe her? May I interfere? Am I allowed to eliminate her if she becomes to close? Sync scores are remaining steady. Yes, Shinji's scores are the same. Thank you, Commander. Yes. Good bye."
She stops, turning her head as Shinji absently walks by her, lost in thought.
"Shinji."
He jumps, broken from his reverie, looking to his right as if questioning the odd shape accompanying him.
"Rei," he says, "Can I help you?"
"Yes. I need you to walk me home."
This will give me time to observe. I must see if this new thing is a threat to h…to the plan.
"Can't someone…"
The question dies on Shinji's lips as she stares at him. Despite her exterior coldness, he has developed an uncanny knack for reading her…and knowing when not to question her.
"Alright," he says, "So…what happened when I was…away?"
"I'm surprised you got your own apartment so quickly," Metatron says, sitting in the typically sparse chair as he watches Ariel unpack, "And in Katsuragi's apartment building, to. Is there some plan I should be aware of?"
The girl chuckles as she finishes putting away her clothes, pulling out another duffle bag from the duffle she was emptying.
"I am the Angel of Light," she says, "But I am not my predecessor. I'm just here to observe."
Metatron simples folds his hands in front of him, forming a bridge under his nose as he leans forward.
"The other Angels do not take well to this, do they?"
"…no. Tabris is on the verge of open rebellion. He doesn't have the grounding mortality will give him."
"And the others?"
"The others vary from indifference to practically cheering the boy on. But they will follow Tabris. He is the last and the leader. He is good when he must convince."
Metatron mumbles an acknowledgement, looking past her. As reluctant as he is to admit it, he is becoming concerned with the designated Deity.
"Shinji's not like the others who the Lord tested," he says, "He's…how do I put it?"
"Reluctant?"
"Yes. He asked for my approval before wishing for a little vengeance on his father. He doesn't revel in the power like all the others did."
Ariel nods, pulling a small radio out of the duffle and placing it on the dresser.
"He's had power like that," she responds, "Those monsters, especially his. They're shadows of us, shadows of the Mother. Why would he revel in the power when he knows where it leads to?"
Metatron nods, grunting an acknowledgement…and smirks, raising an eyebrow as his gaze bores into Ariel.
"Why, is that genuine concern I hear?"
And thankfully, due to him being intangible, the radio thrown at him has no effect.
It has been something Shinji has wanted to do ever since he first learned of it. His first mistake, and his most damning in his eyes.
He came to the decision on his way home from Rei's apartment. He didn't pay attention to her, not like he usually would. He didn't really talk, he didn't try conversation. He knew she was curious. On some level, he knew that she could sense what he had become. He just wished she could just…out and say it.
"I wish she wasn't so cold," he says, "I wish she could just express her feelings."
He hospital doors open with a wave of his hand. Visiting hours are long since past, but it doesn't matter to him. On a subconscious level, he knows he's tapping into a further state of the power.
He knows these doors are opening by His will alone, not by sensors. He knows that the cameras will not report his presence, because He has willed them not to. He doesn't know it consciously, but that isn't on his mind now.
What's on his mind now is the person lying in the bed in front of him.
Sighing heavily, he sits in the chair by her bed. The chair that for the past month has been without use, its normal occupant now residing in a room not far off from this one, no longer able to leave his bed.
He knows the story. Her name is Mari Suzuhara. She had black hair, green eyes, and is just under 9 years old. In his first sortie in Evangelion 01, Shinji, inexperienced and out of control, brought a building down on her. Most of her bones were broken. Her internal organs were damaged. Her spine was almost severed, and it is believed she will be in her teens before she can even walk again, even with the NERV doctors working on her.
There, he thinks, There's that guilt again. What I could have done if I was in control…
But now it is different. Now he has control.
"But do you?"
He looks up, to find the Metatron once more with him.
"Have you ever heard of Lazarus, Shinji," Metatron asks, "Lazarus was a dead man. A friend of Jesus Christ, who the Savior revived from the dead. But in wishing that he would not die, he cursed Lazarus to forever walk the Earth."
"Why are you telling me this?"
Metatron shakes his head, clasping his hands behind him.
"The power you wield takes you almost brutally literal. Do you wish for perfect health? Then the girl will not age, stuck in the perfect form of a nine year old for the rest of her days. Do you wish to reverse the action to absolve yourself of guilt? How do you do so, by using your knowledge of what is now and endangering us all by tampering with time? A large part of this is not just fixing wrongs. It is acceptance. It is putting aside the past, and accepting the future. What do you, then? What is your wish?"
Shinji closes his eyes, taking deep, shuddering breaths. He could just turn back time, or wish for an ideal scenario where Mari was healed, her brother never had to pilot a possessed Eva, and all else was right with the world.
Sensing the decision, Metatron leaves. And sighing, Shinji extends his hand, holding it over the girl's prone form.
The water in the glass next to her bed parts. Outside, the cicadas stop chirping. And Shinji Ikari makes his peace with one aspect of his past.
"I wish you were healed."