Disclaimer: Evangelion: Neon Genesis is not owned by me, it's owned by GAINAX. This fanfic cannot be distributed without the clear, explicit consent of the author (me). No profit has been made from this piece.
Kaworu stepped into his room and started dressing. Then he glanced casually at the clock. It took him a few seconds to recognize the hands, but when he realized the time, there was no reaction. Kaworu just gave another yawn, then stepped out. He looked on the table; there was burnt toast, eggs soaked in soy sauce, and milk. He took his plate, sat infront of the TV, and started eating. Asuka stepped out a few moments later, but opted to eat her breakfast at the table.
"Geeze... Why is it so sunny today?" Asuka muttered... She glanced idly at the baby blue clock hanging on the wall. It read 9:41.
"Oh, fuck..."
"Mmm?"
"Its more than half past 9."
"Err, so?"
"THAT MEANS WE'RE LATE YOU IDIOT!!!"
"Ahh."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'AHH'?!? WE'RE LATE!!! WE HAVE TO GET GOING!!!" With this sentence, Asuka grabbed Kaworu by the wrist, and proceeded to drag him towards the door in anime-ish style.
"If Misato wanted us to go, she would've woken us." Kaworu replied in his usual calm tone.
Asuka pursed her lips, and took Kaworu's words into consideration.
"Fine." she finally said. You could tell by the look on her face she hated being wrong.
There was an uneasy silence for a few seconds.
"What do you propose we do?" questioned Kaworu.
"We? You can do what you want, but I'm going to mind my own business."
With that, Asuka walked back into her room, and slammed the door behind her. There was a distinct clicking sound from it being locked.
Kaworu turned on the computer that was in his room. A bit outdated, but still good enough for his purposes. It took Kaworu a little less than half a hour to get the software he needed. Then he begun.
"Tracert... Lets see... Totally foreign OS. Great. Passive UDP port scan results... Gah, no responding ports. I'm just glad its still operating using the same protocol..."
Kaworu's eyes scanned down the screen while typing furiously.
"Hmf, time to fire up the old boy..."
Maximum amount of hops achieved. Failure to reach destination.
"Bingo. So there is something behind that IP..."
After awhile, he had successfully executed a buffer overflow, giving him access to the main hardware firewall. Using that as his puppet, he continued his attack. In another 2 hours, he had gained user-level access to the NERV network.
"All tripwires disabled... Lets see where Asuka's personel file is..."
2 words popped out on his console; Access Denied.
"Gah, must be classified files..."
Kaworu started typing again, but suddenly stopped. A sudden pang of conscience ran through him, making him seriously consider what he was really doing.
"Am I invading Asuka's right to privacy by doing this? Have I seriously considered what she will feel when she finds out?"
Kaworu started typing again, but halted.
"I... Can't"
Kaworu exited the console, but not before erasing all his tracks.
"She'll tell me when she's ready."
"Hey Asuka... Wanna go out for lunch?"
Asuka was sitting on her bed, with her arms wrapped around her knees. She looked up when Kaworu spoke.
"No... I'm not hungry." she said with a mournful shake of the head.
"Are you alright?" asked Kaworu. He could tell that she was in a solemn mood.
"Yeah."
It was hard for Kaworu to judge if she really was alright from the tone of her voice; it was neutral, and there was no emotion.
"Well... You can still come along. You don't have to eat."
"..."
"Are you sure you don't want to come?"
"Where are you going?"
"I was hoping you could give me a few suggestions, seeing how I'm new to this area."
Kaworu flashed his most charming smile, hoping that would lure Asuka into going with him. Asuka gave a very slight smile then stood up.
"Lets go, but you're paying."
Moments later, Asuka and Kaworu were sitting inside a Ramen joint. It was a little homey restaurant with only a few people in it. It was lightly decorated with traditional Japanese paintings and crafts. Kaworu ordered Chicken Ramen Bowl, while Asuka opted for a Large Teriyaki Beef Bowl nearly double the amount which Kaworu had bought. By the time Kaworu was half done, Asuka was finished.
"Not hungry, eh?" Kaworu questioned with a wide grin.
"Shut up." Asuka retorted. She tried to maintain a blank face, but failed miserably, succumbing to a wide smile.
It took another 12 minute before Kaworu was finished. It was painfully obvious that he was a slow eater. Asuka, finding herself bored, tried to initiate a conversation.
"Soo... Where are you from?"
"The southern area of Japan. It's somewhere around Nagasaki. You?"
"Born in Japan, but raised in Germany. I attended college there before returning here."
"College? At fourteen years old? Quite early, hmm?"
"I guess I'm an early bloomer."
"If you say so."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It's just that... Never mind, its nothing."
"No, tell me."
Kaworu gave a little hesitation before responding.
"Its just that you seem to be in such a rush to grow up... You're brilliant, but you seem so immature at times. It's almost as though you never had a childhood, and are now making up for lost time."
"My childhood... Wasn't pleasant. But that's another story." Asuka said with finality.
Kaworu simply nodded. He finished his lunch in silence, and the silent pair took the bus home.
Misato had to work past her usual time, and returned later than expected. By the time she got home, Kaworu was nearly cooking dinner, while Asuka was setting up the table.
"Oh Kaworu-kun... Thanks. You don't know how much this means to me..."
Kaworu smiled.
"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. You better go and change."
A few moments later, Misato stepped out, wearing red shorts and a white T-shirt with rolled up sleeves. Dinner was already on the table, and Kaworu and Asuka were waiting for Misato. It consisted of rice (No Asian meal is complete without it =p), some stir-fried vegetables, broiled fish, left-over chicken, and miso soup. There was polite conversation during dinner, mostly revolving around school and work.
"So... Kaworu... Met anybody interesting at school yet? You know..." Misato asked with a lewd wink.
"Ahh... Somebody caught my eye." Kaworu answered as he bowed his head a little to hide the smile on his face.
Asuka gave a grin as well. "Who is it?"
"Uh, I'm not saying..."
"C'mon! We can keep a secret!" shouted an eager Asuka. Kaworu could tell from the smile on her face that if he told her, half of the school would know by the end of the week.
"Um, I think I'll keep this confidential for now..."
"Aww, you're no fun!" complained Asuka as she settled back into her chair.
"So, Misato, how's work?" questioned Kaworu, trying to change the subject.
"Same old, same old... Its just lots of boring paperwork..."
"If things got exciting, we'd be in quite a bit of trouble..."
"Hehe, true... I wonder when, if ever, the Angels will stop coming..."
Kaworu gave a small smile, noting the biting irony in what he was going to say.
"Well... You know what they say; 17th time's the charm."
Everybody on the table burst into laughter. Misato, sensing that everybody was in a good mood at this time, took the opportunity to break the news.
"Asuka... I signed you up for psychological counseling... You start Saturday."
Asuka pursed her lips before answering. "First of all, its psychiatric counseling. Psychological means I'll probably have some retard who couldn't complete his degree. Secondly, I don't need any 'psychological counseling', because I'm perfectly fine. There's no problem with me."
"Fine, psychiatric counseling, or whatever the fuck it was. I've already signed you up, you're not going to worm your way out of this. I've read the doctor reports, I know what the Arael did, and I know some of your past. You need help, and you're going to get it. End of story."
"Fine," spat out Asuka, "just don't expect me to cooperate with the half-trained fuckwit."
Asuka quickly wolfed down what remained of her dinner.
"I'm finished."
Asuka retreated to her room, leaving Kaworu and Misato at the dinner table.
"That girl... She's just so stubborn." fumed Misato.
Kaworu gave no response, except to continue eating.
"Thanks for being Asuka's friend, Kaworu."
Kaworu looked up, with a slight and kind smile.
"No, thank her for being my friend."
It was nearly one in the morning. Kaworu decided to slake his thirst before going to bed, and when he passed by Asuka's room, he noticed that there was a little crack in the door. Kaworu peered in, and found Asuka sitting up on the bed, hugging her knees with her crimson hair scattered all over her back. Kaworu gave the door a little tap, which caught Asuka's attention.
"Can I come in?"
"Can you?"
"Er, may I come in?"
"Ok."
Kaworu sat down right next to Asuka who didn't change her pose. Kaworu leaned back, resting on the bed.
"So... What are you thinking?"
"Your puny mortal mind wouldn't comprehend what I'm brooding on." There was a humorous tone attached to her words, but Kaworu understood the gist of it.
"Would the angel mind sharing her thoughts with a mere mortal as myself?" Kaworu said. There was a smile delivered with his words, reflecting upon the irony of him switching roles with Asuka.
"I am hesitant to inflict such irreversible damage upon a person as sweet as you." Asuka replied with a slight smile. The meaning, however, was clear; "Don't try to get into my mind."
"I must thank the goddess for her display of mercy and compassion." Kaworu got up, gave a slight bow, then walked out of the room. He had forgotten his thirst.
