Hemmm….and thus another chapter begins. Sorry for the lateness, but now is Marco's turn of running into problems, and myself I have a lot of work during school (midterm 4X next week!) to put too much effort into it at any given time (Warcraft3 Defense of the ancient, DX style!) Anyway, before we get to the story….
Hi! This is story is also post on www.Evamade.com, the new and only remaining great EVA forum (that actually still active and talk about EVA!) and Fanfic hosting site. You work will never be flamed senselessly by a group of "Eva insiders" who would declare your work trash just because you were not in their club, because we are often writers that were declared "unfit" by the mainstream EVA writers. Join today! That is [www.evamade.com/forum].
The usual legal disclaimers: I am not trying to be Anno, nor send him to another depression, usurp his personality, steal money from Gainax, or steal any other copyrighted material, or eat your buildings, burn your women, or rape your livestock. Your lawsuit will be rendered ineffective by my absolute lack of money, so lets not waste both of our times. Oh, I am not getting paid doing this either, besides reviews from my readers, and from cheers my lovely E-sister. (^_^)
This chapter was inspired by Ryo Kusanagi's "Chained", ChiRho's "Ikari Doctrine" and the James Bond movie "Tomorrow Never Dies" And of course, with Marco's help, genius, inspiration and ecchiness.
Chapter I lost my track sometime around 15th.
New-Tokyo-3 First Municipal Junior High School
A few days after the trip to the beach...
The old teacher walked calmly on the corridors of the school, ready for another day of lectures about the Second Impact. Boring stuff, definitely. Yet, he was paid to talk about it for hours and hours. If the students would not complain (even because they had stopped paying attention to it long ago...) he would not be the one to. He arrived at his destination, class 2-A, and entered it. As usual, the students who were not at their desks already scrambled to their seats, the old man barely noticed that this time the class rep Hikari was oddly silent as well, and the fact that a certain duo of Eva pilots seemed reluctant to take a seat. After the traditional "rise, bow, seat" routine, he took a few minutes to check his notes after he addressed the class.
"Well, class, today..." – the teacher stopped mid-sentence as he noticed something quite unusual: Shinji Ikari was sharing his desk with one of the German redheads, and by the upset look on the girl's face, a contrast with the more content one on her twin's, he concluded that the girl at Ikari's side was Asuka. The old man raised an eyebrow.
"Mr. Ikari, Ms. Soryu, is there a reason for you two be sharing a desk today? Besides, maybe, trying to prove that the opposite attract?"
That joke made the class erupt in laughter, one not shared by the said couple, as well another one...
The two pilots looked at each other then with a sigh Shinji raised his left hand while Asuka raised her right, letting their teacher see the reason of their strange proximity: there was a pair of shiny stainless steel handcuffs binding their arms together.
More laughter came from the class while the old man just stared at them for a couple of minutes.
"Interesting..." – he said finally after a Gendoque pause. – "...Could someone explain to me the reason of this?"
The couple turned their heads to glare at someone at the teacher's left, so did the rest of the class. Followed their suit, the teacher did the same, to see that the target of their attention was nobody but the class rep, Hikari Horaki, at the moment trying her best to hide behind a book.
"Ms.Horaki ."the sensei asked slowly, enjoying a small yelp from the girl in question as the book flew out her hand, – "Mind to explain this situation?"
Silence fell over the class as everyone turned their attention on the class rep, watching her face turning a crimson shade of red and start poking the tips of her index-fingers. Dum, dum, dum
"W-Well, you see... it's kind of a long story..."
The old man chuckled. Slowly leaned back on his seat, he took his glasses off and started cleaning the lens with a handkerchief.
"We have time, Ms. Horaki. Besides, I'm sure it will be more interesting than the usual lectures."
Hikari: Blush X5
Class: Laughter X25
The Strife Lord: Fell over his seat. X1
"This was not in my scenario..." – she moaned to herself, taking a deep breathe, and begins.
* * * * *
A park on Tokyo-3
The same day the Children went to the beach a few weeks back.
Toji Suzuhara and his girlfriend, the class rep Hikari Horaki were walking together, holding hands. Both were blushing a little and had this silly smile on their faces. How cute.
"It's a nice day..." – Toji said absently, looking at the sky, maybe for the third or fourth time as he trying to rack his mind for a romantic line of some kind. Of course, being him, it is not working.
"Yes, it is..." – replied the girl, also for the third or fourth time.
Ah, young love...
"You know, we should do this more often..." – the boy said, looking at the freckled girl. She giggled, grabbed his arm with both hands and rest her head on his shoulder with a sigh.
"We sure should..." – she replied softly. They continued to walk in silence for some minutes until they found a bench and seated.
"I feel sorry for Kensuke." – Hikari spoke after a long pause. – "He's the only not enjoying the day, grounded in that hospital while we're here and the others on the beach..."
"Well, we are enjoying it but Shinji has the two Devils over him." – the joke replied, eliciting an frown from his girlfriend.
"Don't say such things! I'm sure they are all having a good time! And Tsuka is not that bad to him!"
"Well, true, she's just a bit possessive..." – Toji cringed as he recalled the catfight between Tsuka and that girl, Mana. – "and what about Asuka? The world will end before those two get along."
"Nonsense!" – said Hikari in defense of her friend. – "I'm sure they can be very good friends, they only need more time."
"Eh, they already live in the same place, attend the same class and has the same job." – Toji decided to prove his point. – "They even performed that crazy training program some time ago, can you imagine they being closer than that?"
"Well, maybe that had not been enough..." – the girl thought absently.
"Of course, we could always throw a party, get them drunk, then find a minister and they would wake up married in the morning..." – the boy provided. The class rep glared at him, making him sweatdrop. – "Or maybe not..."
Hikari sighed. – "Anyway, the point is, right now they are having fun, not fighting each other like cat and dog."
"I'd say tiger and mouse..."
"Suzuhara!" – the girl exclaimed. – "And you say you're his friend!"
"Fine, fine!" – the boy raised his hands defensively. – "Why don't we check on them?"
After a few seconds, Hikari nodded and Toji reached for his cell phone, dialed Shinji's number and waited. After several moments, the voice of one of the redheads responded on the other end.
"Hello?"
Toji didn't know which one she was but his thoughtless reply was the same...
"Demon? What are you doing on this line?"
The next second he almost threw the phone away as high volume German curses hit his ear at terminal….EVA like speed. Holding it as far as he could, he motioned a sweat dropping Hikari to pick it up.
"You better talk to her..."
Carefully, Hikari picked the shaking device. Keeping it at a distance so her hearing would not be permanently scarred, she spoke on it.
"Asuka?"
The cursing immediately stopped and a now cheerful voice replied. – "Hikari? It's Tsuka here! What's up? Are you and that moron walking in the park holding hands?" – the redhead giggled while on the other side of the line the freckled girl blushed and Toji's face turned into a familiar shade of green.
"Actually, we are..."
"Ah, how cute!" – Tsuka teased. – "But you didn't call just to say that, did you?
"Not really, we just wanted to know if you guys are having a good time."
"Oh, we sure are, even Ayanami!
"I'm glad to hear that!" – Hikari covered the phone with one hand and looked that her boyfriend. – "I told you!" They are having a good time there!".
The Jock just shrugged. She stuck her tongue at him and turned her attention back to her friend.
"Tell me, Tsuka, how are Shinji and Asuka doing?
"Well, Shinji is kinda sleeping right now..."
"Really? Were you playing games and such?
"Actually, Asuka K.Oed him..."
Hikari's jaw dropped. – "Asuka knocked him out?!" – she repeated out loud. Nearby, Toji started a roaring wave of laughter.
"Yeah, there was an... um, accident... involved Shinji and Asuka's top and she ended up a bit... exposed..."
"Oh, my..."
"He tried to apologize a little later but he startled her and she reacted by reflex..."
"I'm sorry to hear that, Tsuka!"
"Eh, don't worry about that, tomorrow they will be their normal selves again."
"Ah, well, so I see you in the school, then. Tell Asuka I called, ok?"
"No problem. Bye"
"Bye."
Hikari stared at the phone (now glowing low battery) for several seconds before putting it down. – "I don't believe it..."
"I told you." – Toji was still laughing. – "So the First Demon knocked him out? What did he do?"
"An accident, as Tsuka called it, with Asuka's top..."
"Oh, I can picture the rest..." – the image of a topless Asuka danced in front of Toji and almost made him drool. – "I'd like to have seen that..."
Hikari's eyebrow twitched. She raised her right hand and a second later Toji receive his trademark punishment.
"Baka hentai..."
"Ouch, that hurt..." – the boy rubbed the spot on his face where he was hit.
"There must be something we can do about those two." – Hikari said.
"Uh?" – Toji blinked. – "Are you talking about Shinji and Asuka? You just heard what her sister said!"
"She said it was an accident. I still believe they just need more time together." – the girl countered.
"And how do you plan to accomplish this, specially after today?"
Hikari sighed. - "I don't know yet. For now, I'll keep an eye on them. If they work it on their own, good, otherwise we intervene."
"We?" – Toji gulped. – "You are using that 'we' a little too generously".
"Of course, I'll need your help on this." -the girl declared with one hand in the air, – "But let's forget it for now and resume our walk, ok?" – she replied with an smile.
Toji smiled, too. Getting back to his feet, he took her hand again. Soon they left the park and were walking on the streets of Tokyo-3. Eventually, they passed in front a movie theater and stopped to see the posters. One of them had a handsome, long-haired guy with a big gun in one of his hands, running with a gorgeous girl on his side, explosions splashed all over the background. One interesting bit, they were chained to each other.
Hikari raised an eyebrow. – "How kinky... But I wonder if…" – she thought.
Toji noticed her blank stare. – "Is there something wrong?"
The girl blinked and looked at him, smiling. – "No, nothing. It's just an idea I had..."
Toji looked at his girlfriend then back at the posters, wondering what was in her mind. – "Ok..."
In the next few days, which were really uneventful given Tokyo-3's nature, Hikari, as promised, kept an eye on Asuka and Shinji and their mutual behavior, she even asked Tsuka, in a way it didn't raise suspicions. She finally decided to go ahead with her idea; she only needed her reluctant boyfriend to get something...
* * * * *
Class 2-A
Present day, not an hour earlier…
Hikari was the only one in class so far, she had arrived early to meet her boyfriend and talk to him about her plans for the Eva pilots. She didn't wait for long. Toji entered the classroom and was greeted with a kiss on the cheeks. – "So, did you bring them?"
Toji nodded glumly with the fear of impending doom in his eyes, – "Yeah, here they are..." – he took a small box from his bag and opened it, revealing its contents to the girl: a pair of brand-new, sparkling handcuffs.
"Wow, they look really impressive!" – the girl said. – "Where you got them?"
"Well, they were Kensuke's, actually." – the boy explained. – "He bought it on somewhere online that sells military equipment, E-bay, I think. He gave them to me shortly after Rei moved in, something about "not giving her ideas"...
Hikari looked at him in confusion…then she got it. – "Oh, I see...wow."
Toji looked at her with a worried expression. – "Look, Hikari-san, are you really sure about this? They will be really pissed off about this... and they work for NERV, we may get erased or worse!"
"Don't be so dramatic! –she replied with a wave of her hand. – "I realize we can't keep this for long but if they need to rely on each other unconditionally, even if just for a couple of hours, it will be a learning experience."
Toji sighed. – "I hope you are right..."
Hikari softened her tone, smiling at him. – "Now hide them and be ready, they must arrive soon now..."
Slowly, other students filed in, among them the young Ikari and his fiery roommates. Hikari waited a few minutes then she started calling some of the students to deliver paperwork or cleaning tasks, the last ones were Shinji and Asuka. It was Toji's cue. As the couple listened to what the class rep had to say, he sneaked from behind them, reaching for the handcuffs in his pocket. Tsuka and other students noticed his odd behavior but before anyone could say a thing…
Click.
"What?!"
"Hey!"
Shinji and Asuka looked dumbfounded at their now chained wrists then at Toji. Tsuka and the rest of the students stared at the group in shocked silence.
The Jock, despite all his fears concerning his girlfriend's idea, could not hold himself…
"Got you!" – he shouted happily but his happiness didn't last as two pairs of hands grabbed him by the collar of his jacket. Passed the shock, Asuka AND Shinji now shared an outraged look on their faces as they glared at Toji at point-blank range.
"What the hell is this about?!" – they asked in a quite loud voice. The Jock gulped. Hikari wanted them to work together and it seemed their first teamwork would be skinning her boyfriend alive…
"Hikari! Help, please???"
"Asuka! Shinji! Let him go! It was my idea!" – the freckled girl called.
A collective "WHAT?!" came from everybody in ear range.
"Say again?" – Tsuka asked softly, not believing that her best friend could conceive something like that.
"It was my idea…" - the class rep repeated, looking down blushing.
Silence. Toji landed on his butt as the couple released him. Then laughter, cries and whistles erupted…
"I told you she would snap one day!"
"Way to go, Hikari!"
"Hanging around with Suzuhara could only end on this, how sad…"
"It is always the quiet one…"
"Handcuffs! I wonder what more she has on stock?"
"Well, I heard of long term Class Rep-ing can lead to S&M tendeicies.."
"Living in sin my a…"
"You own me money…"
Hikari, Toji, Shinji and the Asukas sweatdropped. After the other students calmed down, Asuka came face to face with her friend, crossing her arms… or so she tried since it was quite difficult to do that with Shinji in tow…
"All right, spit it out."
"Y-You see," – Hikari started, looking at them apologetically, her usual public speaking fineness deserted under the glare of her best friends. – "You two have been living and working together for a long time but still you are always fighting…"
"Ah, she is saying the demons are always torturing him…" – muttered Toji.
"QUIET, STOOGE!" – two redheads shouted. The jock shrank, even Shinji had an upset look on his face.
"Please, Hikari, go on." – the boy asked.
"Well, I thought if you two had to remained this close and work along, this might help breaking the ice…"
"And you thought that using handcuffs was the best way to accomplish this? – Tsuka chuckled. – "I must give you credit, I never considered this, maybe Misato…"
Asuka and Shinji looked at Tsuka for a moment then back at Hikari. With a smile (and remembering Tsuka intense interest of having a threesome), Asuka stepped forward and placed her hands on Hikari's shoulders.
"Hikari, you are my best friend and I'm sure you just wanted to help…" – the class rep smiled weakly… just before Asuka started shaking her as a rag doll. – "BUT THAT WAS THE MOST F***** UP IDEA YOU EVER HAD!"
"EEEEEPPPPP!!!!!"
Asuka released her and Hikari fell dizzy on her seat. She then turned to Toji.
"Open this thing!"
"What if I refuse?" – the boy dared to say; unhappy with the way his girlfriend was treated. Asuka's eyebrows twitched but before she could do something potentially harmful, do something fatal for that matter, Shinji cut in:
"Toji, we have to perform a series of tests after school. If we don't do well or unable to perform at all, they will want to know the reasons."- The first child added without even blinking, – "And guess who will be blamed?"
Toji paled. He looked at the class rep with a pleading look. She shrugged in defeat.
"This is not working as I imagined…"
Toji said nothing. Standing up, he reached for the handcuffs' key and preceded to open them… or better, he tried…
"C'mon, be faster with that!" – Asuka said annoyance in her voice.
"I'm trying!" – cried the Jock, sweating. – "But it's not giving off!"
Crack.
"Oh, crap…"
Toji had a look on doom on his face (for the fifth time this fic) as he looked at the now broken key on his hand, then at Asuka, then at the keys. The students all stood in silence, as if giving a memorial to the dead…or soon will be dead, some of the girls turned around to avoid looking at the impending violence... Both children were also looking at the broken key, then slowly raised their heads to face the Jock.
"Suzuhara, you are sooooo dead…" - they said it together (amazing, Shinji is growing up isn't he?)
The teacher appeared on the door at this time and Hikari used the opportunity to save her boyfriend, at least for now…
* * * * *
Back to the present…
The teacher and late arriving students listened attentively to Hikari's story. Definitely, it was much better than the usual Second Impact lectures. There were a few minutes of silence after she finished then the old man finally broke the silence.
"Well, Ms. Horaki, I'm sure you had the best of intentions…"
The class rep blushed and bowed slightly.
"…of course, hell is full of them…"
Bonk.
Toji sweat dropped as he watched his girlfriend hit her desk with her forehead.
* * * * *
NERV HQ
So far, it had been a calm day at the command center. With all their tasks up-to-date, the bridge bunnies were enjoying a brief break. Nearby, sub-commander Fuyutsuki calmly reading a novel dated back in late 20th century by a author named Luis Bjurd Macmaster...
Shigeru Aoba was currently humming some classic guitar song when a phone rang on his console. Picking it up promptly, he listened to the person on the other side.
"What?" Say it again..." – Maya and Makoto stopped what they were doing, turned around and looked at him, while Fuyutsuki raised his eyebrows in curosity. – "Are you sure about her identity? Ok, I'll report this to the sub-commander." – he put the phone down and scratched his head.
Raising an eyebrow, the sub-commander approached him. – "What is it, lieutenant?"
The long-haired man looked at his superior, then reported: – "The Section 2 team overseeing the Children at school reported something... quite unusual... It seems that the Second and Third have been handcuffed to each other."
Fuyutsuki's eyes went wide open. – "Handcuffed? Shinji and... Asuka?"
"Yes, sir." – Aoba looked at his companions, both with shocked expressions on their faces.
"Kinky..." – said Maya after some moments.
"Awful..." – Makoto began, shaking his head. – "Who would be evil enough to think of that?"
Suddenly, Gendo's empty chair found itself under the glare of several people...
"Well, it seems to be some kind of prank or challenge from some of their classmates." – Aoba explained.
"I see..." – Fuyutsuki said, trying to repress a chuckle. – "Well, pass this to Dr. Akagi, she may find it interesting in the light of the Children's scheduled sync tests this afternoon."
"Yes, sir!"
* * * * *
What remained of the first period after Hikari finished her tale went quite uneventful, with the chained couple trying to cope with the situation under the occasional glance of their classmates as chains give off click sound each time one of them tried to move. When the bell to the lunch break rang and the students started to leave the classroom, they gave Toji and Hikari a combined death glare then left. The freckled sighed heavily and looked down.
"What have I done?"
Someone patted her on the shoulder; the class Rep looked up to see Tsuka smiling at her.
"Don't worry about it, Hikari, I don't know about your dumb fiancé but they will forgive you eventually."
"You're so carefree about this…"- Hikari replied. – "Are you not upset with me? Shinji is your boyfriend, isn't he?"
"I don't mind to share him with my sister."- the redhead said, but Hikari was long too shocked by the recent events to reply something moralistic, – "Now let's go, there's no point in staying behind all mournful…"
They left the classroom, Hikari went to find Toji while Tsuka looked for Shinji and Asuka, it took her a few minutes to find the chained couple in a quiet spot, eating their lunch and trying to ignore the glances directed to them by the other students who passed by.
"Hey, guys, how are you doing?"
Shinji and Asuka looked at her and sighed.
"I'll survive, I am the best." – was all Asuka said.
"C'mon, it can't be that bad…"
Asuka looked angrily at her "sister" while Shinji deliver his usual mournful look.
"You didn't have to go to the bathroom with baka boy here in tow."
"I didn't find it an amusing experience, either"- countered the boy.
"Ah, as if you would waste a chance to see my panties!"
"I've seen more than that before, remember?"
The duo exchanged lighting bolts through their eyes….well more like Shinji firing with a musket while Asuka had EVA-Grade Cannons.
"Uh, guys, let's calm down, ok?" – Tsuka said with a wave of her hand. – "As soon as we arrive at NERV they will find a way to free you."
"They better… I need both hands free to reduce that Jock into pulp."
"What about Hikari? –Shinji asked. – "She's your best friend, you're not going to do anything to her, will you?"
"I'll think about it." The redhead replied as she took a heroic bite out of the sandwich.
Tsuka laughed while somewhere else said boy and girl shivered…
Second period, and third, and forth, and five, and sixth came and went quickly for the Children and soon they were heading to NERV…
* * * * *
NERV HQ
"Amazing..."
That was Dr. Akagi's first word after the Children arrived at the base and so she could confirm the report Lt. Aoba had given her was not a joke. Being the professional type, she immediately started creating scenarios to use the situation to their benefit (Them as in NERV). And while she could keep a straight face, the same could not be said about the fearless director of operations...
"So, that was Ms. Horaki's idea?" – she asked between giggles. – "I never thought she had that in her."
"Yeah, it was a shock for me as well." – Asuka replied with an tied indignant frown, her fire nearly depleted from the day's adventure. – "Now, can we get rid of these things?" - to make her point she raised her handcuffed hand, obliging Shinji to do the same while the chain jiggled. Nearby, Tsuka just watched with a smile on her face.
Ritsuko picked up her usual clipboard and was reading it – "We'll look at this after the tests."
The Children's eyes, even Tsuka's, went wide open. They looked at each other. – "But how are we supposed to get into our test plugs chained like this?" – Shinji asked.
"That won't be an issue today," – explained the scientist. – "...You and Asuka are to perform the tests together in the same test plug."
"What?!" – Shinji and Asuka almost jumped out of their chairs at that statement. Tsuka looked at them then back at Ritsuko – "What's the purpose of this, Dr. Akagi?"
Misato, regaining a bit of her professional look (which meant she didn't have a beer haze covering her eyes), explained. – "Some months ago, when Unit-02 was being brought to Japan, Shinji and your sister had to fight the sixth angel together. Their combined sync ratio was quite impressive."
"Correct." – confirmed the blond woman, looking at the chained couple. – "This series of tests is to check if you can do it under less stressing, laboratory controlled situations."
"Less stressing?" – there was noticeable sarcasm in the Shinji's voice.
"Riiiight..." – Asuka's tone was not much different.
Misato crossed her arms, hardening her face. – "Now, you two are Eva pilots, you've been facing the biggest threats to mankind up to date, don't tell me you can't handle this simple test, you are more professional than that!"
Both kids looked down, feeling guilty, while Ritsuko sneak a glance at her friend from behind her clipboard – "Whoa, she's acting like a Major for once! I wonder how long it will last..." – she thought. Noting Tsuka had raised her hand,– "Yes, Tsuka?"
"Will I have the opportunity to score with Shinji, too?"
Misato tilted her head to one side, raising an eyebrow. – "I thought you already had?" -
Ritsuko's eyes rolled while Shinji and Asuka chose that moment to test the table's resistance (for what other reason would they purposely hit it with their foreheads?). Tsuka's eyes moved around while the other people in the room shrugged.
Choosing to ignore Misato's sexual innuendo, the doctor finally replied the redhead's question. – "Probably, depending on how well today's test go."
"Fine." – Asuka said, standing up along with Shinji – "I'll do it, nobody will say I'm not professional."
"The same here." – Shinji added. Both kids exchanged glares, With resemblance of the most sparkling moments of their combined sync training. They then looked back at Ritsuko.
"Just explain to us..." – the boy began. – "Why must we remain chained?" – completed the girl.
"Your friend's idea is not stripped of merit, it adds an interesting variable into the equation, we'll take the chance and explore it." – the children nodded, not really convinced. – "Now go get changed into you plugsuits."
Misato watched Asuka leave the room, with Shinji in tow, Tsuka close behind – "Interesting variable, uh? If I didn't know you, I'd think you said to let them chained just to watch the sparks fly..."
"It sounds more like you, Misato." – replied the blond, not deviating her eyes from her clipboard. When she finally Look up, she noticed the smirk on her friend's face – "What?"
"I'm just wondering... Isn't it a bit difficult to change clothes while being attached like that?"
* * * * *
The Children quickly discover the same problem as they entered the lockers room and got their suits. Tsuka quickly moved behind the curtains and started changing while Asuka and Shinji stood there, not feeling comfortable.
"So, what now?" – the boy asked, trying to sound indifferent.
"We act professionally, as we said we would." –The German redhead replied. She looked at him – "But you better not keep glaring at my body or try to touch it. Have this in mind and you are safe, Third Child!"
Shinji chuckled. – "Fine, Second! May I suggest we get changed in turns and the one waiting keep his chained hand loose so the other can at least try to use hers?"
"Very well, I go first." – Shinji just chuckled again, looking away and let his left hand loose as he had suggested. Sighing, Asuka started removing her school shirt but soon difficulties arose... – "Danmit!"
"What is it, Asuka?" – Shinji turned his face to look at her and saw what her problem was, she had managed to get her left arm off her shirt but could not do the same with her right handcuffed one. He also immediately realized he would have the same problem when time comes. – "Great..."
A hiss announced that Tsuka was done changing. She walked from behind the curtains to check how her "sister" and boyfriend were doing. – "Hey, guys, what's the matter... oh, I see it..."
Asuka, whose chest was covered only with a white bra (one sight Shinji was desperately trying to ignore...), groaned in frustration. – "This is ridiculous! There's no degree or training that prepares you for that!"
Shinji sighed. – "We'll have to cut our shirts or rip them off, that's the only way."
"Ok, just hold there a minute..." – Tsuka walked out the lockers room and soon returned with a pair of scissors. With precise cuts she helped the couple get rid of their shirts. – "A problem remains, though..."
"What problem?" - asked Shinji. Asuka, who was taking her skirt off, stopped and looked at her "sister".
"You see, you two won't get your plug-suits on above the belt area with those handcuffs on your hands..."
Shinji and Asuka looked at each other. – "Greeeeeat..." – they said it at the same time...it looks like verbally, the first and second child are syncing.
* * * * *
Fortunately for the Children, the head of Project E had a solution in hand, as simple as embarrassing...
"What?! Not only I have to do this test with Ikari in tow, now you want us to go into that plug clad in underwear?!" – Asuka whined. The Children were by the chamber leading to the test site, Tsuka wearing her regular red plug-suit while her "sister" and Shinji had only their plain underwear on. Dr. Akagi, her hands in the pockets of her lab coat, sighed.
"It's either that or going in there naked, Asuka. Which one you prefer?"
The chained couple paled while Tsuka giggled. – "N-Nooo, underwear will do, right Asuka??" – Shinji asked the redhead, in a pleading tone. – "Y-Yeah, sure, no problem at all!" – she replied.
"Good. Now wait here until the plugs are ready for you." – with that said the blond scientist walked out and went to the test control room. Misato, Maya and a couple of other technicians were already there.
"Are they on each others throats already?" – asked the major with a smile.
Ritsuko chuckled. – "Their resistance was expected, the handcuffs and the outfit problem just made it more obvious."
"Do you think this can actually be good for them, sempai?" – asked Maya from nearby computer terminal.
"Shock treatments like this can operate wonders... or be a complete disaster... We must wait and see."
"Not really reassuring, Ritsuko." – pointed the purple haired woman.
"Well, we'll find out soon. Are the test plugs ready, Maya?
"Yes, sempai." – replied the young technician, looking at her console.
"Very well."- Touching a button on her own console, Dr. Akagi opened a channel to the unwilling lab rats below. – "Ok, children, you can now get into the test plugs."
The crew in the control room watched as the door to the test site opened and the Children entered. Tsuka got to her plug and reached for the hatch but before climbing inside she looked back at her companions.
"Now, you two, don't do anything in there I wouldn't." – she said with a wink.
"And what would that be, sister-dear?" – replied Asuka with irony in her voice while Shinji blushed a little.
Laughing, Tsuka disappeared inside her plug and the hatch closed. With a sigh, the other two Children reached for they're own and got inside, the hatch closing behind them.
"Ok, Asuka, you get the seat. Shinji, you stay at her side, make yourself as comfortable as possible. I know this situation is quite demanding but you two must keep your focus on the test, understood?"
"Yes, ma'am." – the two Children replied.
"Good. We'll start soon, just relax now."
Asuka sighed. Extending her arms, she reached for the butterfly controls and grabbed them, her right hand dragging Shinji's left with her. Glancing at the boy, she saw him keeping his eyes on some point away from her.
"What are you looking at?"
"I'm just trying not to look at you, Asuka." – he replied, without turning his head.
She frowned, not liking his answer (but of course!-Editor). – "Are you saying I'm not worth looking at?"
This time Shinji looked at her in the eyes. – "On the contrary," – he answered with a smile. – "... you are." – he turned his head away from her again before continuing. – "But you said me not to glare at you so that's what I'm doing."
Before Asuka could reply, the plug started being filled with LCL. In seconds they were submerged in it and the voice of Dr.Akagi made itself present again by flooding the side speakers.
"It's time, kids. Concentrate on your synchronization, now. We have a lot to do."
"Yes, ma'am." – the three replied.
* * * *
"So, how are they doing?" – asked Misato, after all initial procedures were complete.
"Tsuka's sync ratio is at 70.5% and raising slowly, it's already three points above her last mark." – replied Maya.
"This is not bad at all." – Ritsuko commented. – "What about Shinji and Asuka?"
"Their joint sync ratio is at 67.7% and raising..."
"Well, it seems to be working fine, after all." – Misato sighed in relief.
"Yes... but we better not celebrate prematurely, we have a couple of hours until all tests are complete."
* * * * *
A few hours later...
"Very well, Children, we are done with the tests." – the voice of Dr. Akagi came from the speakers. – "You can go take a shower then come back for the debriefing."
The Children sighed in relief as they left the test plugs. It had been indeed a very long battery of tests and they were exhausted, especially Shinji and Asuka. Dripping LCL, they walked into the lockers room and towards the showers. Tsuka didn't waste time and discharged her plug-underwear then walked into one of the boxes, hitting the shower open, longing to get rid of the bloody smelling liquid. Asuka hesitated for a second then reached the front of her now ruined bra and snapped it out, sighing heavily. Shinji gulped and looked away, as much as he could.
"Uh, same rules as before?" – he asked timidly.
"Yeah..." – was Asuka's tired response.
The two kids removed the rest of their underwear and each went to a shower stall. Keeping their backs to each other, they opened the shower and did their best to get clean while trying to avoid rubbing on each other, not an easy task in the restricted space while Tsuka looked at them and smiled. The elder girl decided not to tease them at this time, then finished showering and left. She was almost finished dressing when the couple entered. They quickly dried off and started dressing, soon realizing they would have to wear the same shirts that were…sliced. With Tsuka's help, they made their best to keep them in place with quick seams and clips then all of them left to the debriefing room.
* * * * *
"Congratulations, all of you." – Dr. Akagi and Misato were smiling broadly. – "Tsuka has the individual top mark right now." – both women looked towards the smiling girl, nodding their approval. – "Shinji and Asuka beat the mark reached during the battle against the angel in more than twelve points. Given the current circumstances, it's excellent."
"Of course, I was there, after all!" – Asuka declared, trying to show some enthusiasm.
"That's great." – Shinji said, also trying to look cheerful. – "So... now can we deal with these handcuffs?
Misato and Ritsuko exchanged a quick glance, not unnoticed to the Children, and looked back at them.
"Actually..." – Misato spoke slowly. – "...we can't."
Shinji and Asuka glared at her then at Ritsuko. Tsuka just raised an eyebrow.
"As I said, you performed very well..." – the scientist said. – "...and we want to know how much influence your current situation had on it. That demands you two to remain like this for some more time."
The chained couple exchanged a glance even quicker than their superiors and looked back at them.
"Fine." The redhead allowed her acceptance slowly creep out her teeth, "How much more time?" She added, an splinter of ice between each word.
The two older women once again looked at each other, with surprise on their faces.
"Are you ok with this?" – asked Misato. – "No complaints?"
"Misato, I'm simply too tired to argue, or rave, or massacre," After an short pause, "No promise tomrrow through."
"Yes, you took your time with these tests." – complemented Shinji.
"Well, then, towards your question, you must complete a twenty-four hours period, after what you will be set free and perform a new battery of tests." – the two Children groaned at that last bit but said nothing.
"So they must remain chained until after school tomorrow."- Tsuka stated.
"Exactly."
"So, if this is settled, we can send them home, right, Ritsuko?"
"Yes, they can be dismissed now."
"Are you staying, Misato?" – Shinji asked as they stood up to leave.
"I have to," – the major replied in disgust. – "there's some paper work to deal with, you guys don't need to wait for me."
The Children nodded and left. About thirty minutes later they were walking on the streets of Tokyo-3. Tsuka looked at Shinji and took his free hand, smiling.
"Hey, Asuka, take his hand as well."
Asuka looked at her, frowning. – "Why this, now?"
"Doing this will hide the handcuffs thus preventing people to look at you two as they are doing right now." – explained the "older" redhead. – "Besides, it's cute, Shinji and his two girlfriends."
"I'm not his girlfriend..." – Asuka replied between her teeth. But seeing people were indeed looking at them suspiciously, she ended up taking his hand as well.
"Tell us, Tsuka." – the girl looked at Shinji. – "How did you manage this situation? I mean..."
"I understood." – the girl replied. – "Actually, this never happened to us."
"It didn't?" – Asuka seemed surprised. – "What would cause this divergence? I mean, Hikari doing something that twisted..."
Tsuka looked down and a shadow seemed to cover her face.
"I guess she and Toji simply didn't have the chance, like they did now..."
The way she said that made the other two stop in their tracks.
"What you mean? – asked a pale Asuka. – "You don't mean they..." – Shinji was equally white.
"No, no!" – Tsuka raised a hand. – "It's not like that!" – she closed her eyes and sighed.- "Things were... different. Please, don't ask me for details. I didn't give it a damn at the time but now... it's painful."
Shinji and Asuka looked at each other (they were getting good at that...). While Tsuka had told them many things it was clear she had omitted the darkest bits... and this seemed to be one of them...
"Ok..." – Asuka said as they resumed walking. Then trying to get her "sister" up again. – "But once things are different here, we can take revenge on them, right?"
Tsuka forced a smile – "Of course, Asuka."
"Uhmmm..." – both headheads looked at Shinji who had an unusual smirk on his face.
"What's it, Third Child?
"I just remembered something about our first meeting..."
* * * * *
The Children arrived at their home, they were greeted by Pen-Pen who had this "What the…" look upon seeing Shinji and Asuka handcuffed. Tsuka quickly went to the bedroom to get changed. Shinji and Asuka, however, after some discussion and yet another embarrassing visit to the bathroom, decided they didn't want to ruin more pieces of wardrobe just now. Shinji went to the kitchen to start fixing dinner, dragging Asuka with him. She wanted to take a nap before dinner but given the circumstances she had little say on the matter, the German beauty even helped him around to get it done faster. During dinner, none of the Children were very talkative, the chained couple thinking about their forced closeness, Tsuka wondering about the differences between the current events and what she remembered. Some time later, after having saved some food for Misato, they gathered to discuss the sleeping arrangements.
"It's simple, in fact." – Tsuka stated. – "I'll take Shinji's room for tonight while you two get the bigger one."
"What, you don't want to join us?" – Asuka commented with just a bit of sarcasm.
Tsuka grinned. – "I'll show up if I feel lonely…"
"Oh, joy…" – Shinji thought. With Asuka in tow, he went to his room to retrieve his pajamas and blankets, Tsuka soon arrived with her own stuff.
"Enjoy the night, you two." – she said with a wink after giving her boyfriend a goodnight kiss on the lips.
"I don't know why she insists in thinking I'd want to do something with a baka like you."- Asuka muttered as they walked into their bedroom and closed the door.
"She's just teasing you, Asuka, don't take her seriously." – the boy replied.
"Right, right…"
Applying the same rules as before, they got changed into their pajamas, Asuka found a night-gown that tied on her shoulders so she had no problems with it. Shinji, not wanting to spoil a shirt, decided to sleep only with his shorts on. Asuka frowned a bit but said nothing. They got to their futons and pulled the blankets over them.
"Remember to keep your hands off me, Third Child. And no hentai fantasies about me or my sister!"
"I'd never thought about that, Asuka." – replied the boy coyly. Asuka raised an eyebrow.
"You don't know what you're missing…" – she muttered quietly. But Shinji actually caught it.
"What does she mean?" – he thought.
Soon, they were both sleeping.
* * * * *
*cue to baka-eerrr Dreamscape*
[Marco, this was not in the plans]-Strife Lord
Shinji was back to the test plug at NERV HQ. The First child was not chained anymore and actually had his plug-suit on. But it was of little comfort as he was now sharing the restricted space with not one but two redheads. He had the seat, with a smiling Asuka on his left and an upset one on his right. He gulped nervously.
"Ok, kids, we are about to start the tests, just relax in there." – came the voice of Dr.Akagi.
"Take your time, Doctor." – said Tsuka, all smiles towards Shinji. He gulped again while Asuka said nothing, just staring away of them.
Suddenly, all lights went black to be replaced a few seconds ago by the red emergency ones.
"What happened??" – asked a tense Shinji.
"Nothing serious, guys." – came Misato's voice. – "There was a system failure, the test must be suspended."
"So, we can leave?" – asked Asuka.
"Sorry but we can't get the test-plug open as well, you'll have to wait in there for some time, maybe a few hours…" – Maya replied.
"Few hours?! And what are we supposed to do to pass the time ?!"
"I'm sure you can think of something…" – Misato's voice said, full of malice. – "See you later, guys."
"Misato! Wait!" – Shinji called out but the communication was cut.
"Well, well, my baka Shinji…" – Tsuka spoke sensually as her fingers worked fast on him. Shinji paled as he looked at her predatory face. – "It seems you have nowhere to run this time…" – she bent towards him.
"T-Tsuka, this is not a good idea, or good time..." – the boy was sweating hard but no one could say that since they were immersed on LCL. – "They could get us out at any time… and Asuka is here as well and…" – he looked at redhead at his right and paled even more, Asuka had the same look of rapture on her face and was too bending towards him.
"Asuka?!"
"What's the matter, Shinji?" – both redheads said at the same time, at the same tone. Shinji's eyes went wide open. He looked from one Asuka to another, panic (and some other things) growing bigger and bigger…
"Why are you two acting like this?!"
"Why not, Shinji?" – both girls spoke, smiling widely. – "We are the same and one person." – they bent towards him even more. – "And… we… want… you…"
* * * * *
Shinji woke up with a startle, feeling something pressing on his chest. – "A dream… it was just a dream…" – he thought. – "Boy, so much for no hentai fantasies…" – The boy opened his eyes and was rewarded with the sight of Asuka on top of him. He tensed immediately but made no move, not wanting to wake her up (and probably be beaten for "taking advantage on her"...). – "She must have rolled over on her sleep..." – the boy thought, looking at her now peaceful face. – "Who would think she can be so fiery?" – Shinji considered his options. Wake her up now or wait for the sunrise? After some consideration, he decided that it would be better to face her attacks after some sleep. As if agreeing with him, Asuka moved, muttering unintelligible words and making herself more comfortable on him like a kitten with fresh laundry, which Shinji blush under the body contact. – "No more hentai fantasies, no more hentai fantasies, no more hentai fantasies..."- he chanted in silence. To his surprise, the boy noticed that her chained hand was now holding firmly his. Looking again at her face, he smiled. Using his free hand, he did his best to cover both of them with the scattered blankets. With a final sigh, he closed his eyes and let sleep take over him again, the next day would probably be hard, in one way or another...
* * * * *
Angel attack-This scene, due to my workload and grand scale plans for it (vs. Angel of light), is currently on the backburner until I finish with my mid-terms.
* * * * *
Summer nights in Tokyo-3 are beautiful, as far as beauty can go in a city designed for war. The air is moderately cool (as with the climate change due 2rd impact), lights emitted from a thousand hours illuminate the sky, even the industrial tang generated by the massive generators that kept the city powered and its defenses up, smelled pleasantly this evening.
After walking eight hours on its streets, the one who created the personality of Shosuro Furuyari welcome the sight of his modest home. A duplex, really, shared with a man who likely worked as a Yakuza. Furuyari never really cared. He was in his late 50s, on the verge of retirement with one-foot limp, and since he was no more than a humble civil servant, it was not his job to fight organized crime. So what if he receives a few friendly smiles or handshakes that comes with a gift or two? And if that hand felt a little odd from a person with a missing joint or two on the right little finger, Furuyari was careful notice. In Japanese society, with it is stressed belief of respectful courtesy, what you do not know for certain, you do not know at all.
A small garden ran along the front of the duplex, and as Mr. Furuyari open the gate, a young girl in her mid-teens opened the door of the house. She had dark brown hair and strikingly beautiful black eyes, a flawless skin, with a quiet and serene complexion of a traditionally ideal Japanese girl. She wore a beautiful one-piece greenish-yellow summer dress, with a golden ribbon fluttering around her neck by the cool summer breeze. As her eyes met his, the girl bowed, with her skirt flittering along.
"Reika." The older man mouthed her name, after a long pause, "How are you, dear niece?"
"As well as I can be, dear uncle, it must be a long day for you. Come, I have made your favorite dinner." She quietly sang in reply. Without another word, the two entered the house and Furuyari closed the door behind him.
"Rieka," the old guard asked his "niece", "have your Report card came in?"
"Ah, yes," the girl fished out a sheet of paper and handed to him then went off working on cooking the salmon dinner. Ignoring the glowering description by her sensei, he went down to the last page, a blank note one designed for parents or guardians to write any notice back to the assorted teachers. A small Haiku is scribbled on the bottom.
The drunkard met his end,
His drinking friends,
All vanished without a trace.
Carefully closed the note and placed it within his uniform, Shosuro Furuyari stood up: "Mishma," addressing her with her first name to signify he receives the message, " It has been a long and hot day, let me take a shower first before dinner."
"Hai." She answered without turning around, poking the salmon with a chopstick.
As the civil patrol guard closed the panel that separates the bathroom, he reaches forward for the switch that turns on the hot water, but then paused as he stared his own image in the mirror. Within seconds, the doddering uncle with tired dull eyes of a person who lived through the second Impact, to the sharp ones that belong to man whose sole motive in life is to prevent the third one.
Without seconds, he discarded the contact lenses that kept his eyes brown, revealing a pair of memorizing blue ones. He then reached out and removed the cosmetically applied sagging bag of flesh under his eyes, and the fake wrinkles on his forehead. Discarding his uniform, he removed the bag he wore in front of his chest as disguised mid-age belly fat, revealing highly toned muscle from a decade of training. He then turned around and open a cabinet by the shower, inside it had a .45 Glock, two spare clips of ammo, a knife with an ivory-handle, and a trench coat, sneakers with matching black jeans. After a quick change of costume, the new person washed his hair, then applied some gel to his hair to get a retro-look of one of those newer generation rebels. Shinji Ikari is reborn, again as a bad ass college kid from hell. Staring into the mirror, Shinji/Simon/Gerald wondered what would his current, younger version look like if he also wore the identical outfit, or rather, what would Misato or Asuka think if they see the current "him" wearing something like that. Now there is something interesting to plan…
With a chuckle, Shinji Ikari (the senior?) banished the fun thoughts, the message has been clear, Kaji has gathering the survivors together with new weapons, and NERV/SEELE believe they have thwarted the "unknown terrorists" for good.
"It is time to get to work." Shinji mouthed out to his mirror image as he pulled out a pair of blood-red sunglasses across his eyes.
t.b.c
Hi! This is story is also post on www.Evamade.com, the new and only remaining great EVA forum (that actually still active and talk about EVA!) and Fanfic hosting site. You work will never be flamed senselessly by a group of "Eva insiders" who would declare your work trash just because you were not in their club, because we are often writers that were declared "unfit" by the mainstream EVA writers. Join today! That is [www.evamade.com/forum].
The usual legal disclaimers: I am not trying to be Anno, nor send him to another depression, usurp his personality, steal money from Gainax, or steal any other copyrighted material, or eat your buildings, burn your women, or rape your livestock. Your lawsuit will be rendered ineffective by my absolute lack of money, so lets not waste both of our times. Oh, I am not getting paid doing this either, besides reviews from my readers, and from cheers my lovely E-sister. (^_^)
This chapter was inspired by Ryo Kusanagi's "Chained", ChiRho's "Ikari Doctrine" and the James Bond movie "Tomorrow Never Dies" And of course, with Marco's help, genius, inspiration and ecchiness.
Chapter I lost my track sometime around 15th.
New-Tokyo-3 First Municipal Junior High School
A few days after the trip to the beach...
The old teacher walked calmly on the corridors of the school, ready for another day of lectures about the Second Impact. Boring stuff, definitely. Yet, he was paid to talk about it for hours and hours. If the students would not complain (even because they had stopped paying attention to it long ago...) he would not be the one to. He arrived at his destination, class 2-A, and entered it. As usual, the students who were not at their desks already scrambled to their seats, the old man barely noticed that this time the class rep Hikari was oddly silent as well, and the fact that a certain duo of Eva pilots seemed reluctant to take a seat. After the traditional "rise, bow, seat" routine, he took a few minutes to check his notes after he addressed the class.
"Well, class, today..." – the teacher stopped mid-sentence as he noticed something quite unusual: Shinji Ikari was sharing his desk with one of the German redheads, and by the upset look on the girl's face, a contrast with the more content one on her twin's, he concluded that the girl at Ikari's side was Asuka. The old man raised an eyebrow.
"Mr. Ikari, Ms. Soryu, is there a reason for you two be sharing a desk today? Besides, maybe, trying to prove that the opposite attract?"
That joke made the class erupt in laughter, one not shared by the said couple, as well another one...
The two pilots looked at each other then with a sigh Shinji raised his left hand while Asuka raised her right, letting their teacher see the reason of their strange proximity: there was a pair of shiny stainless steel handcuffs binding their arms together.
More laughter came from the class while the old man just stared at them for a couple of minutes.
"Interesting..." – he said finally after a Gendoque pause. – "...Could someone explain to me the reason of this?"
The couple turned their heads to glare at someone at the teacher's left, so did the rest of the class. Followed their suit, the teacher did the same, to see that the target of their attention was nobody but the class rep, Hikari Horaki, at the moment trying her best to hide behind a book.
"Ms.Horaki ."the sensei asked slowly, enjoying a small yelp from the girl in question as the book flew out her hand, – "Mind to explain this situation?"
Silence fell over the class as everyone turned their attention on the class rep, watching her face turning a crimson shade of red and start poking the tips of her index-fingers. Dum, dum, dum
"W-Well, you see... it's kind of a long story..."
The old man chuckled. Slowly leaned back on his seat, he took his glasses off and started cleaning the lens with a handkerchief.
"We have time, Ms. Horaki. Besides, I'm sure it will be more interesting than the usual lectures."
Hikari: Blush X5
Class: Laughter X25
The Strife Lord: Fell over his seat. X1
"This was not in my scenario..." – she moaned to herself, taking a deep breathe, and begins.
* * * * *
A park on Tokyo-3
The same day the Children went to the beach a few weeks back.
Toji Suzuhara and his girlfriend, the class rep Hikari Horaki were walking together, holding hands. Both were blushing a little and had this silly smile on their faces. How cute.
"It's a nice day..." – Toji said absently, looking at the sky, maybe for the third or fourth time as he trying to rack his mind for a romantic line of some kind. Of course, being him, it is not working.
"Yes, it is..." – replied the girl, also for the third or fourth time.
Ah, young love...
"You know, we should do this more often..." – the boy said, looking at the freckled girl. She giggled, grabbed his arm with both hands and rest her head on his shoulder with a sigh.
"We sure should..." – she replied softly. They continued to walk in silence for some minutes until they found a bench and seated.
"I feel sorry for Kensuke." – Hikari spoke after a long pause. – "He's the only not enjoying the day, grounded in that hospital while we're here and the others on the beach..."
"Well, we are enjoying it but Shinji has the two Devils over him." – the joke replied, eliciting an frown from his girlfriend.
"Don't say such things! I'm sure they are all having a good time! And Tsuka is not that bad to him!"
"Well, true, she's just a bit possessive..." – Toji cringed as he recalled the catfight between Tsuka and that girl, Mana. – "and what about Asuka? The world will end before those two get along."
"Nonsense!" – said Hikari in defense of her friend. – "I'm sure they can be very good friends, they only need more time."
"Eh, they already live in the same place, attend the same class and has the same job." – Toji decided to prove his point. – "They even performed that crazy training program some time ago, can you imagine they being closer than that?"
"Well, maybe that had not been enough..." – the girl thought absently.
"Of course, we could always throw a party, get them drunk, then find a minister and they would wake up married in the morning..." – the boy provided. The class rep glared at him, making him sweatdrop. – "Or maybe not..."
Hikari sighed. – "Anyway, the point is, right now they are having fun, not fighting each other like cat and dog."
"I'd say tiger and mouse..."
"Suzuhara!" – the girl exclaimed. – "And you say you're his friend!"
"Fine, fine!" – the boy raised his hands defensively. – "Why don't we check on them?"
After a few seconds, Hikari nodded and Toji reached for his cell phone, dialed Shinji's number and waited. After several moments, the voice of one of the redheads responded on the other end.
"Hello?"
Toji didn't know which one she was but his thoughtless reply was the same...
"Demon? What are you doing on this line?"
The next second he almost threw the phone away as high volume German curses hit his ear at terminal….EVA like speed. Holding it as far as he could, he motioned a sweat dropping Hikari to pick it up.
"You better talk to her..."
Carefully, Hikari picked the shaking device. Keeping it at a distance so her hearing would not be permanently scarred, she spoke on it.
"Asuka?"
The cursing immediately stopped and a now cheerful voice replied. – "Hikari? It's Tsuka here! What's up? Are you and that moron walking in the park holding hands?" – the redhead giggled while on the other side of the line the freckled girl blushed and Toji's face turned into a familiar shade of green.
"Actually, we are..."
"Ah, how cute!" – Tsuka teased. – "But you didn't call just to say that, did you?
"Not really, we just wanted to know if you guys are having a good time."
"Oh, we sure are, even Ayanami!
"I'm glad to hear that!" – Hikari covered the phone with one hand and looked that her boyfriend. – "I told you!" They are having a good time there!".
The Jock just shrugged. She stuck her tongue at him and turned her attention back to her friend.
"Tell me, Tsuka, how are Shinji and Asuka doing?
"Well, Shinji is kinda sleeping right now..."
"Really? Were you playing games and such?
"Actually, Asuka K.Oed him..."
Hikari's jaw dropped. – "Asuka knocked him out?!" – she repeated out loud. Nearby, Toji started a roaring wave of laughter.
"Yeah, there was an... um, accident... involved Shinji and Asuka's top and she ended up a bit... exposed..."
"Oh, my..."
"He tried to apologize a little later but he startled her and she reacted by reflex..."
"I'm sorry to hear that, Tsuka!"
"Eh, don't worry about that, tomorrow they will be their normal selves again."
"Ah, well, so I see you in the school, then. Tell Asuka I called, ok?"
"No problem. Bye"
"Bye."
Hikari stared at the phone (now glowing low battery) for several seconds before putting it down. – "I don't believe it..."
"I told you." – Toji was still laughing. – "So the First Demon knocked him out? What did he do?"
"An accident, as Tsuka called it, with Asuka's top..."
"Oh, I can picture the rest..." – the image of a topless Asuka danced in front of Toji and almost made him drool. – "I'd like to have seen that..."
Hikari's eyebrow twitched. She raised her right hand and a second later Toji receive his trademark punishment.
"Baka hentai..."
"Ouch, that hurt..." – the boy rubbed the spot on his face where he was hit.
"There must be something we can do about those two." – Hikari said.
"Uh?" – Toji blinked. – "Are you talking about Shinji and Asuka? You just heard what her sister said!"
"She said it was an accident. I still believe they just need more time together." – the girl countered.
"And how do you plan to accomplish this, specially after today?"
Hikari sighed. - "I don't know yet. For now, I'll keep an eye on them. If they work it on their own, good, otherwise we intervene."
"We?" – Toji gulped. – "You are using that 'we' a little too generously".
"Of course, I'll need your help on this." -the girl declared with one hand in the air, – "But let's forget it for now and resume our walk, ok?" – she replied with an smile.
Toji smiled, too. Getting back to his feet, he took her hand again. Soon they left the park and were walking on the streets of Tokyo-3. Eventually, they passed in front a movie theater and stopped to see the posters. One of them had a handsome, long-haired guy with a big gun in one of his hands, running with a gorgeous girl on his side, explosions splashed all over the background. One interesting bit, they were chained to each other.
Hikari raised an eyebrow. – "How kinky... But I wonder if…" – she thought.
Toji noticed her blank stare. – "Is there something wrong?"
The girl blinked and looked at him, smiling. – "No, nothing. It's just an idea I had..."
Toji looked at his girlfriend then back at the posters, wondering what was in her mind. – "Ok..."
In the next few days, which were really uneventful given Tokyo-3's nature, Hikari, as promised, kept an eye on Asuka and Shinji and their mutual behavior, she even asked Tsuka, in a way it didn't raise suspicions. She finally decided to go ahead with her idea; she only needed her reluctant boyfriend to get something...
* * * * *
Class 2-A
Present day, not an hour earlier…
Hikari was the only one in class so far, she had arrived early to meet her boyfriend and talk to him about her plans for the Eva pilots. She didn't wait for long. Toji entered the classroom and was greeted with a kiss on the cheeks. – "So, did you bring them?"
Toji nodded glumly with the fear of impending doom in his eyes, – "Yeah, here they are..." – he took a small box from his bag and opened it, revealing its contents to the girl: a pair of brand-new, sparkling handcuffs.
"Wow, they look really impressive!" – the girl said. – "Where you got them?"
"Well, they were Kensuke's, actually." – the boy explained. – "He bought it on somewhere online that sells military equipment, E-bay, I think. He gave them to me shortly after Rei moved in, something about "not giving her ideas"...
Hikari looked at him in confusion…then she got it. – "Oh, I see...wow."
Toji looked at her with a worried expression. – "Look, Hikari-san, are you really sure about this? They will be really pissed off about this... and they work for NERV, we may get erased or worse!"
"Don't be so dramatic! –she replied with a wave of her hand. – "I realize we can't keep this for long but if they need to rely on each other unconditionally, even if just for a couple of hours, it will be a learning experience."
Toji sighed. – "I hope you are right..."
Hikari softened her tone, smiling at him. – "Now hide them and be ready, they must arrive soon now..."
Slowly, other students filed in, among them the young Ikari and his fiery roommates. Hikari waited a few minutes then she started calling some of the students to deliver paperwork or cleaning tasks, the last ones were Shinji and Asuka. It was Toji's cue. As the couple listened to what the class rep had to say, he sneaked from behind them, reaching for the handcuffs in his pocket. Tsuka and other students noticed his odd behavior but before anyone could say a thing…
Click.
"What?!"
"Hey!"
Shinji and Asuka looked dumbfounded at their now chained wrists then at Toji. Tsuka and the rest of the students stared at the group in shocked silence.
The Jock, despite all his fears concerning his girlfriend's idea, could not hold himself…
"Got you!" – he shouted happily but his happiness didn't last as two pairs of hands grabbed him by the collar of his jacket. Passed the shock, Asuka AND Shinji now shared an outraged look on their faces as they glared at Toji at point-blank range.
"What the hell is this about?!" – they asked in a quite loud voice. The Jock gulped. Hikari wanted them to work together and it seemed their first teamwork would be skinning her boyfriend alive…
"Hikari! Help, please???"
"Asuka! Shinji! Let him go! It was my idea!" – the freckled girl called.
A collective "WHAT?!" came from everybody in ear range.
"Say again?" – Tsuka asked softly, not believing that her best friend could conceive something like that.
"It was my idea…" - the class rep repeated, looking down blushing.
Silence. Toji landed on his butt as the couple released him. Then laughter, cries and whistles erupted…
"I told you she would snap one day!"
"Way to go, Hikari!"
"Hanging around with Suzuhara could only end on this, how sad…"
"It is always the quiet one…"
"Handcuffs! I wonder what more she has on stock?"
"Well, I heard of long term Class Rep-ing can lead to S&M tendeicies.."
"Living in sin my a…"
"You own me money…"
Hikari, Toji, Shinji and the Asukas sweatdropped. After the other students calmed down, Asuka came face to face with her friend, crossing her arms… or so she tried since it was quite difficult to do that with Shinji in tow…
"All right, spit it out."
"Y-You see," – Hikari started, looking at them apologetically, her usual public speaking fineness deserted under the glare of her best friends. – "You two have been living and working together for a long time but still you are always fighting…"
"Ah, she is saying the demons are always torturing him…" – muttered Toji.
"QUIET, STOOGE!" – two redheads shouted. The jock shrank, even Shinji had an upset look on his face.
"Please, Hikari, go on." – the boy asked.
"Well, I thought if you two had to remained this close and work along, this might help breaking the ice…"
"And you thought that using handcuffs was the best way to accomplish this? – Tsuka chuckled. – "I must give you credit, I never considered this, maybe Misato…"
Asuka and Shinji looked at Tsuka for a moment then back at Hikari. With a smile (and remembering Tsuka intense interest of having a threesome), Asuka stepped forward and placed her hands on Hikari's shoulders.
"Hikari, you are my best friend and I'm sure you just wanted to help…" – the class rep smiled weakly… just before Asuka started shaking her as a rag doll. – "BUT THAT WAS THE MOST F***** UP IDEA YOU EVER HAD!"
"EEEEEPPPPP!!!!!"
Asuka released her and Hikari fell dizzy on her seat. She then turned to Toji.
"Open this thing!"
"What if I refuse?" – the boy dared to say; unhappy with the way his girlfriend was treated. Asuka's eyebrows twitched but before she could do something potentially harmful, do something fatal for that matter, Shinji cut in:
"Toji, we have to perform a series of tests after school. If we don't do well or unable to perform at all, they will want to know the reasons."- The first child added without even blinking, – "And guess who will be blamed?"
Toji paled. He looked at the class rep with a pleading look. She shrugged in defeat.
"This is not working as I imagined…"
Toji said nothing. Standing up, he reached for the handcuffs' key and preceded to open them… or better, he tried…
"C'mon, be faster with that!" – Asuka said annoyance in her voice.
"I'm trying!" – cried the Jock, sweating. – "But it's not giving off!"
Crack.
"Oh, crap…"
Toji had a look on doom on his face (for the fifth time this fic) as he looked at the now broken key on his hand, then at Asuka, then at the keys. The students all stood in silence, as if giving a memorial to the dead…or soon will be dead, some of the girls turned around to avoid looking at the impending violence... Both children were also looking at the broken key, then slowly raised their heads to face the Jock.
"Suzuhara, you are sooooo dead…" - they said it together (amazing, Shinji is growing up isn't he?)
The teacher appeared on the door at this time and Hikari used the opportunity to save her boyfriend, at least for now…
* * * * *
Back to the present…
The teacher and late arriving students listened attentively to Hikari's story. Definitely, it was much better than the usual Second Impact lectures. There were a few minutes of silence after she finished then the old man finally broke the silence.
"Well, Ms. Horaki, I'm sure you had the best of intentions…"
The class rep blushed and bowed slightly.
"…of course, hell is full of them…"
Bonk.
Toji sweat dropped as he watched his girlfriend hit her desk with her forehead.
* * * * *
NERV HQ
So far, it had been a calm day at the command center. With all their tasks up-to-date, the bridge bunnies were enjoying a brief break. Nearby, sub-commander Fuyutsuki calmly reading a novel dated back in late 20th century by a author named Luis Bjurd Macmaster...
Shigeru Aoba was currently humming some classic guitar song when a phone rang on his console. Picking it up promptly, he listened to the person on the other side.
"What?" Say it again..." – Maya and Makoto stopped what they were doing, turned around and looked at him, while Fuyutsuki raised his eyebrows in curosity. – "Are you sure about her identity? Ok, I'll report this to the sub-commander." – he put the phone down and scratched his head.
Raising an eyebrow, the sub-commander approached him. – "What is it, lieutenant?"
The long-haired man looked at his superior, then reported: – "The Section 2 team overseeing the Children at school reported something... quite unusual... It seems that the Second and Third have been handcuffed to each other."
Fuyutsuki's eyes went wide open. – "Handcuffed? Shinji and... Asuka?"
"Yes, sir." – Aoba looked at his companions, both with shocked expressions on their faces.
"Kinky..." – said Maya after some moments.
"Awful..." – Makoto began, shaking his head. – "Who would be evil enough to think of that?"
Suddenly, Gendo's empty chair found itself under the glare of several people...
"Well, it seems to be some kind of prank or challenge from some of their classmates." – Aoba explained.
"I see..." – Fuyutsuki said, trying to repress a chuckle. – "Well, pass this to Dr. Akagi, she may find it interesting in the light of the Children's scheduled sync tests this afternoon."
"Yes, sir!"
* * * * *
What remained of the first period after Hikari finished her tale went quite uneventful, with the chained couple trying to cope with the situation under the occasional glance of their classmates as chains give off click sound each time one of them tried to move. When the bell to the lunch break rang and the students started to leave the classroom, they gave Toji and Hikari a combined death glare then left. The freckled sighed heavily and looked down.
"What have I done?"
Someone patted her on the shoulder; the class Rep looked up to see Tsuka smiling at her.
"Don't worry about it, Hikari, I don't know about your dumb fiancé but they will forgive you eventually."
"You're so carefree about this…"- Hikari replied. – "Are you not upset with me? Shinji is your boyfriend, isn't he?"
"I don't mind to share him with my sister."- the redhead said, but Hikari was long too shocked by the recent events to reply something moralistic, – "Now let's go, there's no point in staying behind all mournful…"
They left the classroom, Hikari went to find Toji while Tsuka looked for Shinji and Asuka, it took her a few minutes to find the chained couple in a quiet spot, eating their lunch and trying to ignore the glances directed to them by the other students who passed by.
"Hey, guys, how are you doing?"
Shinji and Asuka looked at her and sighed.
"I'll survive, I am the best." – was all Asuka said.
"C'mon, it can't be that bad…"
Asuka looked angrily at her "sister" while Shinji deliver his usual mournful look.
"You didn't have to go to the bathroom with baka boy here in tow."
"I didn't find it an amusing experience, either"- countered the boy.
"Ah, as if you would waste a chance to see my panties!"
"I've seen more than that before, remember?"
The duo exchanged lighting bolts through their eyes….well more like Shinji firing with a musket while Asuka had EVA-Grade Cannons.
"Uh, guys, let's calm down, ok?" – Tsuka said with a wave of her hand. – "As soon as we arrive at NERV they will find a way to free you."
"They better… I need both hands free to reduce that Jock into pulp."
"What about Hikari? –Shinji asked. – "She's your best friend, you're not going to do anything to her, will you?"
"I'll think about it." The redhead replied as she took a heroic bite out of the sandwich.
Tsuka laughed while somewhere else said boy and girl shivered…
Second period, and third, and forth, and five, and sixth came and went quickly for the Children and soon they were heading to NERV…
* * * * *
NERV HQ
"Amazing..."
That was Dr. Akagi's first word after the Children arrived at the base and so she could confirm the report Lt. Aoba had given her was not a joke. Being the professional type, she immediately started creating scenarios to use the situation to their benefit (Them as in NERV). And while she could keep a straight face, the same could not be said about the fearless director of operations...
"So, that was Ms. Horaki's idea?" – she asked between giggles. – "I never thought she had that in her."
"Yeah, it was a shock for me as well." – Asuka replied with an tied indignant frown, her fire nearly depleted from the day's adventure. – "Now, can we get rid of these things?" - to make her point she raised her handcuffed hand, obliging Shinji to do the same while the chain jiggled. Nearby, Tsuka just watched with a smile on her face.
Ritsuko picked up her usual clipboard and was reading it – "We'll look at this after the tests."
The Children's eyes, even Tsuka's, went wide open. They looked at each other. – "But how are we supposed to get into our test plugs chained like this?" – Shinji asked.
"That won't be an issue today," – explained the scientist. – "...You and Asuka are to perform the tests together in the same test plug."
"What?!" – Shinji and Asuka almost jumped out of their chairs at that statement. Tsuka looked at them then back at Ritsuko – "What's the purpose of this, Dr. Akagi?"
Misato, regaining a bit of her professional look (which meant she didn't have a beer haze covering her eyes), explained. – "Some months ago, when Unit-02 was being brought to Japan, Shinji and your sister had to fight the sixth angel together. Their combined sync ratio was quite impressive."
"Correct." – confirmed the blond woman, looking at the chained couple. – "This series of tests is to check if you can do it under less stressing, laboratory controlled situations."
"Less stressing?" – there was noticeable sarcasm in the Shinji's voice.
"Riiiight..." – Asuka's tone was not much different.
Misato crossed her arms, hardening her face. – "Now, you two are Eva pilots, you've been facing the biggest threats to mankind up to date, don't tell me you can't handle this simple test, you are more professional than that!"
Both kids looked down, feeling guilty, while Ritsuko sneak a glance at her friend from behind her clipboard – "Whoa, she's acting like a Major for once! I wonder how long it will last..." – she thought. Noting Tsuka had raised her hand,– "Yes, Tsuka?"
"Will I have the opportunity to score with Shinji, too?"
Misato tilted her head to one side, raising an eyebrow. – "I thought you already had?" -
Ritsuko's eyes rolled while Shinji and Asuka chose that moment to test the table's resistance (for what other reason would they purposely hit it with their foreheads?). Tsuka's eyes moved around while the other people in the room shrugged.
Choosing to ignore Misato's sexual innuendo, the doctor finally replied the redhead's question. – "Probably, depending on how well today's test go."
"Fine." – Asuka said, standing up along with Shinji – "I'll do it, nobody will say I'm not professional."
"The same here." – Shinji added. Both kids exchanged glares, With resemblance of the most sparkling moments of their combined sync training. They then looked back at Ritsuko.
"Just explain to us..." – the boy began. – "Why must we remain chained?" – completed the girl.
"Your friend's idea is not stripped of merit, it adds an interesting variable into the equation, we'll take the chance and explore it." – the children nodded, not really convinced. – "Now go get changed into you plugsuits."
Misato watched Asuka leave the room, with Shinji in tow, Tsuka close behind – "Interesting variable, uh? If I didn't know you, I'd think you said to let them chained just to watch the sparks fly..."
"It sounds more like you, Misato." – replied the blond, not deviating her eyes from her clipboard. When she finally Look up, she noticed the smirk on her friend's face – "What?"
"I'm just wondering... Isn't it a bit difficult to change clothes while being attached like that?"
* * * * *
The Children quickly discover the same problem as they entered the lockers room and got their suits. Tsuka quickly moved behind the curtains and started changing while Asuka and Shinji stood there, not feeling comfortable.
"So, what now?" – the boy asked, trying to sound indifferent.
"We act professionally, as we said we would." –The German redhead replied. She looked at him – "But you better not keep glaring at my body or try to touch it. Have this in mind and you are safe, Third Child!"
Shinji chuckled. – "Fine, Second! May I suggest we get changed in turns and the one waiting keep his chained hand loose so the other can at least try to use hers?"
"Very well, I go first." – Shinji just chuckled again, looking away and let his left hand loose as he had suggested. Sighing, Asuka started removing her school shirt but soon difficulties arose... – "Danmit!"
"What is it, Asuka?" – Shinji turned his face to look at her and saw what her problem was, she had managed to get her left arm off her shirt but could not do the same with her right handcuffed one. He also immediately realized he would have the same problem when time comes. – "Great..."
A hiss announced that Tsuka was done changing. She walked from behind the curtains to check how her "sister" and boyfriend were doing. – "Hey, guys, what's the matter... oh, I see it..."
Asuka, whose chest was covered only with a white bra (one sight Shinji was desperately trying to ignore...), groaned in frustration. – "This is ridiculous! There's no degree or training that prepares you for that!"
Shinji sighed. – "We'll have to cut our shirts or rip them off, that's the only way."
"Ok, just hold there a minute..." – Tsuka walked out the lockers room and soon returned with a pair of scissors. With precise cuts she helped the couple get rid of their shirts. – "A problem remains, though..."
"What problem?" - asked Shinji. Asuka, who was taking her skirt off, stopped and looked at her "sister".
"You see, you two won't get your plug-suits on above the belt area with those handcuffs on your hands..."
Shinji and Asuka looked at each other. – "Greeeeeat..." – they said it at the same time...it looks like verbally, the first and second child are syncing.
* * * * *
Fortunately for the Children, the head of Project E had a solution in hand, as simple as embarrassing...
"What?! Not only I have to do this test with Ikari in tow, now you want us to go into that plug clad in underwear?!" – Asuka whined. The Children were by the chamber leading to the test site, Tsuka wearing her regular red plug-suit while her "sister" and Shinji had only their plain underwear on. Dr. Akagi, her hands in the pockets of her lab coat, sighed.
"It's either that or going in there naked, Asuka. Which one you prefer?"
The chained couple paled while Tsuka giggled. – "N-Nooo, underwear will do, right Asuka??" – Shinji asked the redhead, in a pleading tone. – "Y-Yeah, sure, no problem at all!" – she replied.
"Good. Now wait here until the plugs are ready for you." – with that said the blond scientist walked out and went to the test control room. Misato, Maya and a couple of other technicians were already there.
"Are they on each others throats already?" – asked the major with a smile.
Ritsuko chuckled. – "Their resistance was expected, the handcuffs and the outfit problem just made it more obvious."
"Do you think this can actually be good for them, sempai?" – asked Maya from nearby computer terminal.
"Shock treatments like this can operate wonders... or be a complete disaster... We must wait and see."
"Not really reassuring, Ritsuko." – pointed the purple haired woman.
"Well, we'll find out soon. Are the test plugs ready, Maya?
"Yes, sempai." – replied the young technician, looking at her console.
"Very well."- Touching a button on her own console, Dr. Akagi opened a channel to the unwilling lab rats below. – "Ok, children, you can now get into the test plugs."
The crew in the control room watched as the door to the test site opened and the Children entered. Tsuka got to her plug and reached for the hatch but before climbing inside she looked back at her companions.
"Now, you two, don't do anything in there I wouldn't." – she said with a wink.
"And what would that be, sister-dear?" – replied Asuka with irony in her voice while Shinji blushed a little.
Laughing, Tsuka disappeared inside her plug and the hatch closed. With a sigh, the other two Children reached for they're own and got inside, the hatch closing behind them.
"Ok, Asuka, you get the seat. Shinji, you stay at her side, make yourself as comfortable as possible. I know this situation is quite demanding but you two must keep your focus on the test, understood?"
"Yes, ma'am." – the two Children replied.
"Good. We'll start soon, just relax now."
Asuka sighed. Extending her arms, she reached for the butterfly controls and grabbed them, her right hand dragging Shinji's left with her. Glancing at the boy, she saw him keeping his eyes on some point away from her.
"What are you looking at?"
"I'm just trying not to look at you, Asuka." – he replied, without turning his head.
She frowned, not liking his answer (but of course!-Editor). – "Are you saying I'm not worth looking at?"
This time Shinji looked at her in the eyes. – "On the contrary," – he answered with a smile. – "... you are." – he turned his head away from her again before continuing. – "But you said me not to glare at you so that's what I'm doing."
Before Asuka could reply, the plug started being filled with LCL. In seconds they were submerged in it and the voice of Dr.Akagi made itself present again by flooding the side speakers.
"It's time, kids. Concentrate on your synchronization, now. We have a lot to do."
"Yes, ma'am." – the three replied.
* * * *
"So, how are they doing?" – asked Misato, after all initial procedures were complete.
"Tsuka's sync ratio is at 70.5% and raising slowly, it's already three points above her last mark." – replied Maya.
"This is not bad at all." – Ritsuko commented. – "What about Shinji and Asuka?"
"Their joint sync ratio is at 67.7% and raising..."
"Well, it seems to be working fine, after all." – Misato sighed in relief.
"Yes... but we better not celebrate prematurely, we have a couple of hours until all tests are complete."
* * * * *
A few hours later...
"Very well, Children, we are done with the tests." – the voice of Dr. Akagi came from the speakers. – "You can go take a shower then come back for the debriefing."
The Children sighed in relief as they left the test plugs. It had been indeed a very long battery of tests and they were exhausted, especially Shinji and Asuka. Dripping LCL, they walked into the lockers room and towards the showers. Tsuka didn't waste time and discharged her plug-underwear then walked into one of the boxes, hitting the shower open, longing to get rid of the bloody smelling liquid. Asuka hesitated for a second then reached the front of her now ruined bra and snapped it out, sighing heavily. Shinji gulped and looked away, as much as he could.
"Uh, same rules as before?" – he asked timidly.
"Yeah..." – was Asuka's tired response.
The two kids removed the rest of their underwear and each went to a shower stall. Keeping their backs to each other, they opened the shower and did their best to get clean while trying to avoid rubbing on each other, not an easy task in the restricted space while Tsuka looked at them and smiled. The elder girl decided not to tease them at this time, then finished showering and left. She was almost finished dressing when the couple entered. They quickly dried off and started dressing, soon realizing they would have to wear the same shirts that were…sliced. With Tsuka's help, they made their best to keep them in place with quick seams and clips then all of them left to the debriefing room.
* * * * *
"Congratulations, all of you." – Dr. Akagi and Misato were smiling broadly. – "Tsuka has the individual top mark right now." – both women looked towards the smiling girl, nodding their approval. – "Shinji and Asuka beat the mark reached during the battle against the angel in more than twelve points. Given the current circumstances, it's excellent."
"Of course, I was there, after all!" – Asuka declared, trying to show some enthusiasm.
"That's great." – Shinji said, also trying to look cheerful. – "So... now can we deal with these handcuffs?
Misato and Ritsuko exchanged a quick glance, not unnoticed to the Children, and looked back at them.
"Actually..." – Misato spoke slowly. – "...we can't."
Shinji and Asuka glared at her then at Ritsuko. Tsuka just raised an eyebrow.
"As I said, you performed very well..." – the scientist said. – "...and we want to know how much influence your current situation had on it. That demands you two to remain like this for some more time."
The chained couple exchanged a glance even quicker than their superiors and looked back at them.
"Fine." The redhead allowed her acceptance slowly creep out her teeth, "How much more time?" She added, an splinter of ice between each word.
The two older women once again looked at each other, with surprise on their faces.
"Are you ok with this?" – asked Misato. – "No complaints?"
"Misato, I'm simply too tired to argue, or rave, or massacre," After an short pause, "No promise tomrrow through."
"Yes, you took your time with these tests." – complemented Shinji.
"Well, then, towards your question, you must complete a twenty-four hours period, after what you will be set free and perform a new battery of tests." – the two Children groaned at that last bit but said nothing.
"So they must remain chained until after school tomorrow."- Tsuka stated.
"Exactly."
"So, if this is settled, we can send them home, right, Ritsuko?"
"Yes, they can be dismissed now."
"Are you staying, Misato?" – Shinji asked as they stood up to leave.
"I have to," – the major replied in disgust. – "there's some paper work to deal with, you guys don't need to wait for me."
The Children nodded and left. About thirty minutes later they were walking on the streets of Tokyo-3. Tsuka looked at Shinji and took his free hand, smiling.
"Hey, Asuka, take his hand as well."
Asuka looked at her, frowning. – "Why this, now?"
"Doing this will hide the handcuffs thus preventing people to look at you two as they are doing right now." – explained the "older" redhead. – "Besides, it's cute, Shinji and his two girlfriends."
"I'm not his girlfriend..." – Asuka replied between her teeth. But seeing people were indeed looking at them suspiciously, she ended up taking his hand as well.
"Tell us, Tsuka." – the girl looked at Shinji. – "How did you manage this situation? I mean..."
"I understood." – the girl replied. – "Actually, this never happened to us."
"It didn't?" – Asuka seemed surprised. – "What would cause this divergence? I mean, Hikari doing something that twisted..."
Tsuka looked down and a shadow seemed to cover her face.
"I guess she and Toji simply didn't have the chance, like they did now..."
The way she said that made the other two stop in their tracks.
"What you mean? – asked a pale Asuka. – "You don't mean they..." – Shinji was equally white.
"No, no!" – Tsuka raised a hand. – "It's not like that!" – she closed her eyes and sighed.- "Things were... different. Please, don't ask me for details. I didn't give it a damn at the time but now... it's painful."
Shinji and Asuka looked at each other (they were getting good at that...). While Tsuka had told them many things it was clear she had omitted the darkest bits... and this seemed to be one of them...
"Ok..." – Asuka said as they resumed walking. Then trying to get her "sister" up again. – "But once things are different here, we can take revenge on them, right?"
Tsuka forced a smile – "Of course, Asuka."
"Uhmmm..." – both headheads looked at Shinji who had an unusual smirk on his face.
"What's it, Third Child?
"I just remembered something about our first meeting..."
* * * * *
The Children arrived at their home, they were greeted by Pen-Pen who had this "What the…" look upon seeing Shinji and Asuka handcuffed. Tsuka quickly went to the bedroom to get changed. Shinji and Asuka, however, after some discussion and yet another embarrassing visit to the bathroom, decided they didn't want to ruin more pieces of wardrobe just now. Shinji went to the kitchen to start fixing dinner, dragging Asuka with him. She wanted to take a nap before dinner but given the circumstances she had little say on the matter, the German beauty even helped him around to get it done faster. During dinner, none of the Children were very talkative, the chained couple thinking about their forced closeness, Tsuka wondering about the differences between the current events and what she remembered. Some time later, after having saved some food for Misato, they gathered to discuss the sleeping arrangements.
"It's simple, in fact." – Tsuka stated. – "I'll take Shinji's room for tonight while you two get the bigger one."
"What, you don't want to join us?" – Asuka commented with just a bit of sarcasm.
Tsuka grinned. – "I'll show up if I feel lonely…"
"Oh, joy…" – Shinji thought. With Asuka in tow, he went to his room to retrieve his pajamas and blankets, Tsuka soon arrived with her own stuff.
"Enjoy the night, you two." – she said with a wink after giving her boyfriend a goodnight kiss on the lips.
"I don't know why she insists in thinking I'd want to do something with a baka like you."- Asuka muttered as they walked into their bedroom and closed the door.
"She's just teasing you, Asuka, don't take her seriously." – the boy replied.
"Right, right…"
Applying the same rules as before, they got changed into their pajamas, Asuka found a night-gown that tied on her shoulders so she had no problems with it. Shinji, not wanting to spoil a shirt, decided to sleep only with his shorts on. Asuka frowned a bit but said nothing. They got to their futons and pulled the blankets over them.
"Remember to keep your hands off me, Third Child. And no hentai fantasies about me or my sister!"
"I'd never thought about that, Asuka." – replied the boy coyly. Asuka raised an eyebrow.
"You don't know what you're missing…" – she muttered quietly. But Shinji actually caught it.
"What does she mean?" – he thought.
Soon, they were both sleeping.
* * * * *
*cue to baka-eerrr Dreamscape*
[Marco, this was not in the plans]-Strife Lord
Shinji was back to the test plug at NERV HQ. The First child was not chained anymore and actually had his plug-suit on. But it was of little comfort as he was now sharing the restricted space with not one but two redheads. He had the seat, with a smiling Asuka on his left and an upset one on his right. He gulped nervously.
"Ok, kids, we are about to start the tests, just relax in there." – came the voice of Dr.Akagi.
"Take your time, Doctor." – said Tsuka, all smiles towards Shinji. He gulped again while Asuka said nothing, just staring away of them.
Suddenly, all lights went black to be replaced a few seconds ago by the red emergency ones.
"What happened??" – asked a tense Shinji.
"Nothing serious, guys." – came Misato's voice. – "There was a system failure, the test must be suspended."
"So, we can leave?" – asked Asuka.
"Sorry but we can't get the test-plug open as well, you'll have to wait in there for some time, maybe a few hours…" – Maya replied.
"Few hours?! And what are we supposed to do to pass the time ?!"
"I'm sure you can think of something…" – Misato's voice said, full of malice. – "See you later, guys."
"Misato! Wait!" – Shinji called out but the communication was cut.
"Well, well, my baka Shinji…" – Tsuka spoke sensually as her fingers worked fast on him. Shinji paled as he looked at her predatory face. – "It seems you have nowhere to run this time…" – she bent towards him.
"T-Tsuka, this is not a good idea, or good time..." – the boy was sweating hard but no one could say that since they were immersed on LCL. – "They could get us out at any time… and Asuka is here as well and…" – he looked at redhead at his right and paled even more, Asuka had the same look of rapture on her face and was too bending towards him.
"Asuka?!"
"What's the matter, Shinji?" – both redheads said at the same time, at the same tone. Shinji's eyes went wide open. He looked from one Asuka to another, panic (and some other things) growing bigger and bigger…
"Why are you two acting like this?!"
"Why not, Shinji?" – both girls spoke, smiling widely. – "We are the same and one person." – they bent towards him even more. – "And… we… want… you…"
* * * * *
Shinji woke up with a startle, feeling something pressing on his chest. – "A dream… it was just a dream…" – he thought. – "Boy, so much for no hentai fantasies…" – The boy opened his eyes and was rewarded with the sight of Asuka on top of him. He tensed immediately but made no move, not wanting to wake her up (and probably be beaten for "taking advantage on her"...). – "She must have rolled over on her sleep..." – the boy thought, looking at her now peaceful face. – "Who would think she can be so fiery?" – Shinji considered his options. Wake her up now or wait for the sunrise? After some consideration, he decided that it would be better to face her attacks after some sleep. As if agreeing with him, Asuka moved, muttering unintelligible words and making herself more comfortable on him like a kitten with fresh laundry, which Shinji blush under the body contact. – "No more hentai fantasies, no more hentai fantasies, no more hentai fantasies..."- he chanted in silence. To his surprise, the boy noticed that her chained hand was now holding firmly his. Looking again at her face, he smiled. Using his free hand, he did his best to cover both of them with the scattered blankets. With a final sigh, he closed his eyes and let sleep take over him again, the next day would probably be hard, in one way or another...
* * * * *
Angel attack-This scene, due to my workload and grand scale plans for it (vs. Angel of light), is currently on the backburner until I finish with my mid-terms.
* * * * *
Summer nights in Tokyo-3 are beautiful, as far as beauty can go in a city designed for war. The air is moderately cool (as with the climate change due 2rd impact), lights emitted from a thousand hours illuminate the sky, even the industrial tang generated by the massive generators that kept the city powered and its defenses up, smelled pleasantly this evening.
After walking eight hours on its streets, the one who created the personality of Shosuro Furuyari welcome the sight of his modest home. A duplex, really, shared with a man who likely worked as a Yakuza. Furuyari never really cared. He was in his late 50s, on the verge of retirement with one-foot limp, and since he was no more than a humble civil servant, it was not his job to fight organized crime. So what if he receives a few friendly smiles or handshakes that comes with a gift or two? And if that hand felt a little odd from a person with a missing joint or two on the right little finger, Furuyari was careful notice. In Japanese society, with it is stressed belief of respectful courtesy, what you do not know for certain, you do not know at all.
A small garden ran along the front of the duplex, and as Mr. Furuyari open the gate, a young girl in her mid-teens opened the door of the house. She had dark brown hair and strikingly beautiful black eyes, a flawless skin, with a quiet and serene complexion of a traditionally ideal Japanese girl. She wore a beautiful one-piece greenish-yellow summer dress, with a golden ribbon fluttering around her neck by the cool summer breeze. As her eyes met his, the girl bowed, with her skirt flittering along.
"Reika." The older man mouthed her name, after a long pause, "How are you, dear niece?"
"As well as I can be, dear uncle, it must be a long day for you. Come, I have made your favorite dinner." She quietly sang in reply. Without another word, the two entered the house and Furuyari closed the door behind him.
"Rieka," the old guard asked his "niece", "have your Report card came in?"
"Ah, yes," the girl fished out a sheet of paper and handed to him then went off working on cooking the salmon dinner. Ignoring the glowering description by her sensei, he went down to the last page, a blank note one designed for parents or guardians to write any notice back to the assorted teachers. A small Haiku is scribbled on the bottom.
The drunkard met his end,
His drinking friends,
All vanished without a trace.
Carefully closed the note and placed it within his uniform, Shosuro Furuyari stood up: "Mishma," addressing her with her first name to signify he receives the message, " It has been a long and hot day, let me take a shower first before dinner."
"Hai." She answered without turning around, poking the salmon with a chopstick.
As the civil patrol guard closed the panel that separates the bathroom, he reaches forward for the switch that turns on the hot water, but then paused as he stared his own image in the mirror. Within seconds, the doddering uncle with tired dull eyes of a person who lived through the second Impact, to the sharp ones that belong to man whose sole motive in life is to prevent the third one.
Without seconds, he discarded the contact lenses that kept his eyes brown, revealing a pair of memorizing blue ones. He then reached out and removed the cosmetically applied sagging bag of flesh under his eyes, and the fake wrinkles on his forehead. Discarding his uniform, he removed the bag he wore in front of his chest as disguised mid-age belly fat, revealing highly toned muscle from a decade of training. He then turned around and open a cabinet by the shower, inside it had a .45 Glock, two spare clips of ammo, a knife with an ivory-handle, and a trench coat, sneakers with matching black jeans. After a quick change of costume, the new person washed his hair, then applied some gel to his hair to get a retro-look of one of those newer generation rebels. Shinji Ikari is reborn, again as a bad ass college kid from hell. Staring into the mirror, Shinji/Simon/Gerald wondered what would his current, younger version look like if he also wore the identical outfit, or rather, what would Misato or Asuka think if they see the current "him" wearing something like that. Now there is something interesting to plan…
With a chuckle, Shinji Ikari (the senior?) banished the fun thoughts, the message has been clear, Kaji has gathering the survivors together with new weapons, and NERV/SEELE believe they have thwarted the "unknown terrorists" for good.
"It is time to get to work." Shinji mouthed out to his mirror image as he pulled out a pair of blood-red sunglasses across his eyes.
t.b.c
