Chapter 2

The First Day / An Eva for you

Sayoko awoke early as she always did. Seeing that it was still dark out, she checked her clock and then proceeded to dress for the day. She quietly slipped out into the hallway. She went directly into the living room and out unto the balcony. She looked quietly towards the east and waited. A noise from behind her startled her. She turned to look and saw a Penguin standing there.

"Ummm, Hello…. I don't think we've met yet. I'm Sayoko Morisato. Who are you?"

I don't know why you all even bother talking to me… You know I can't respond to you so that you'd understand

Sayoko smiled, "What makes you think I don't understand?"

The Penguins beak dropped. What? How?

Sayoko laughed at the Penguin, "There's more to me then you know. So who are you?"

My name is Pen Pen . Now how is it your able to understand me?

"Well……."

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About an Hour and a Half later.

Shinji awoke after having the best night ever. For once, his sleep was not plagued by nightmares. He did however awake with questions. All the questions pointed towards his new roommate.

'What is it about her?' thought Shinji, 'I haven't felt this good since………..ever.'

Shinji got up and got dressed. He then left his room to make breakfast as he always did. The first thing he noticed upon entering the hallway was that Sayoko's door was open and a quick glance inside showed that she was not there. Shinji quietly walked out into the living room. From there he saw Sayoko outside on the balcony facing the rising sun. Pen Pen was also there sitting and staring at Sayoko. Shinji couldn't figure out why so he decided to go outside. As soon as he opened the door, the most beautiful sound he had ever heard filled his ears. He realized that it was Sayoko singing.

(Author's note: Think the Song Belldandy sang at the beginning of AMG the Movie)

Shinji just stood there and lost himself in the song. As soon as it ended, Shinji spoke up.

"That was beautiful."

The sound of his voice caused Sayoko to jump.

"Ohh, I didn't hear you come out."

"You sing wonderfully. Where did you learn that song? I've never heard it before."

Sayoko look towards the ground and her voice got quiet.

"My Aunt taught me it…. She learned it from my Mother. When I sing it…. I feel closer to her."

Shinji realizing that they were moving into a painful topic changed the subject.

"Hey are you hungry? You want some Breakfast?"

"Ok." Sayoko replied with a small smile. "Come on Pen Pen!"

"Wark!" Pen Pen got up, waddled past the 2 children and went into the kitchen.

Shinji got confused.

"Wait a second…. You didn't meet Pen Pen last night. How do you know his name?"

"Oh… He told me. Better hurry…. He really wants his morning beer." That said Sayoko disappeared into the apartment.

'How does she know about THAT?'

The mystery that is Sayoko continued to puzzle Shinji.

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Asuka awoke to the sound of laughter coming from the kitchen.

'What the hell is going on? Whoever it is had better have a good reason for waking me up.'

Asuka moved out of her room and headed towards the kitchen. The sight that greeted her shocked her. Sayoko and Shinji were both in the kitchen making breakfast. They were talking to each other and seemed to be enjoying each other's company. This rocked Asuka to the core. She could only stare at the two. This went on until Sayoko noticed her.

"Oh… Good Morning Asuka." Sayoko said with a slight bow.

Shinji stood ramrod straight, then slowly turned around to face Asuka.

"…..Good Morning Asuka." Shinji said nervously.

"yeah… sure…. guten morgen." mumbled Asuka.

Sayoko perked up at this.

(In German) "I wasn't aware that you spoke German. When did you learn?"

Both Shinji and Asuka stared at Sayoko. Shinji, because he just heard the language he had grown to fear. Asuka, because she just realized she would now have to watch what she said.

(In German) "I was born in Germany, that's why I can speak German."

(Still in German) "Is there anyone else who can speak German?" asked Sayoko.

(German) "Just Kaji and Misato. Why?"

(Back to Japanese) "Just curious." Sayoko smiled then turned and continued to fix breakfast.

Shinji snapped out of his shock and then began to set the table for breakfast. Asuka, her mind reeling from the new information, sat down at the table to digest it.

'Who is this girl?'

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About an hour later.

"Ok Guys. It's time to go." shouted Misato.

Asuka immediately headed towards the door.

"Now you'll see what a great pilot I am." she said as she walked out the door.

Shinji walked past looking like a prisoner being led to his doom.

Sayoko, seeing Shinji, looked at Misato. "How are we getting there?"

"By car of course!" Misato said.

Sayoko paled. 'Oh no…Not again. Kami-sama help me.'

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Sayoko sat quietly in the Pilot's Locker room. Upon arriving Misato had insisted on giving Sayoko a tour of NERV. It was during the tour that Sayoko felt a strange and ancient power coming from deep under the base. As a result, she did not pay attention to the rest of the tour. Not that it mattered. The tour ended with Dr. Akagi helping the lost Misato. Now Sayoko was waiting for her sync test. She had changed into her plug suit, which was white with red highlights and the digits 05 on its chest.

'I'll have to send Auntie a picture of me in this. It matches her Goddess Outfit.'

Sayoko then reached into her locker and pulled out a chain which she put around her neck. On this chain was her mother's ring.

"Ready to go?"

Sayoko looked up and saw Misato standing in the doorway.

"Yes, Misato."

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Misato and Sayoko entered the control room for the sync test. Through the windows, five plugs sat just above a pool of liquid. Shinji and Asuka were waiting patiently beside a boy about their age.

"Touji Suzuhara, the Fourth Child," Misato said in introduction, "Meet Sayoko Morisato, the Fifth Child."

"Hello." Sayoko said with a slight bow to Touji.

Touji smiled, then looked over at Shinji.

"I like her better then the Devil already."

"QUIT CALLING ME THAT!" Asuka shouted as she charged at Touji, not caring that Shinji was in the way.

"CHILDREN!" Dr. Ritsuko Akagi shouted, "CAN WE PLEASE BE CIVIL FOR THE TEST!"

Asuka crossed her arms and moved back into line, but glared at Touji. Touji made a face back at her, while Shinji sighed.

"Right." Ritsuko said, "Now if Rei would……. There you are."

"Sayoko," Misato began, "This is Rei Ayanami, the First Child."

Sayoko felt something odd before she turned toward the new person to enter the room, a girl about her age with short blue hair and…….. piercing red eyes?

"Alright…" Ritsuko said, "The Sync test begins now. Enter your plugs, sit back and relax."

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Inside Plug 4, Sayoko was trying to get over her first, and unsettling, experience of LCL, as well as her introduction to the First Child. The feeling she had when she had first arrived was nothing compared to the presence of Rei Ayanami. It felt as if Rei was looking right through her.

Inside Plug 0, similar thoughts were running through Rei's head.

'Who is the Fifth? What is this feeling? Is this…….fear?

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"Sempai?"

"Yes Maya?"

"Rei's sync ratio is dropping slightly."

"What?" Ritsuko frowned as she bent over and looked at the monitor. "It's not possible!"

Misato walked over. "What isn't possible?

"Rei's sync is dropping" Ritsuko pressed the intercom. "Rei?"

Yes ma'am?

"Is everything OK?"

Yes ma'am.

"Alright your done now….But I want to see you in my office."

Yes ma'am.

Misato looked at Ritsuko. "What do you think is wrong?"

"I don't know but I intend to find out. Maya, How is the Fifth child doing?"

"She's …… She's holding at 65! How can she do that her first time?"

"65?" Ritsuko repeated, her eyes wide in surprise. "That can't be! Check the Magi…. There must be an error somewhere."

"Magi report probability of error is 0.000000000000000009"

Misato stared at the monitor showing the children. 'Who is this girl?'

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Inside the Plug, Sayoko sat oblivious to everything going on outside, holding the ring tightly in her hand.

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Later, as Shinji, Asuka, and Sayoko left the Pilot Locker rooms, they found Misato waiting for them.

"Ok before we leave for home," she said, "I want to show you 3 something."

Shinji and Sayoko both looked at her curiously. Asuka seemed slightly annoyed.

"What do you want to show us Misato?" Shinji asked.

"This way."

She led them through the hallways and up several escalators to Eva Holding Cage 7. It was dark inside.

"Wow Misato… a dark room… What's next?" remarked Asuka.

With a loud clap of electricity, the lights of the cage came on. There, standing within the pool of coolent, was a Silver and red Eva. It looked remarkably like Eva 3, but with one difference. This Eva had no spot for a power cable.

Shinji and Sayoko stared in awe of the Eva. Asuka was unimpressed.

"What the hell is that?"

Misato turned towards Asuka, "That is Eva 04, Sayoko's Eva."

"What? She gets that ugly thing? How is it going to get power? There's no Socket!"

Misato turned back towards the Eva, "Unit 04 doesn't need a power cable. It's powered by an S2 Engine. Unlike your Evas, Unit 04 can run indefinitely by itself away from base. It is also the only Eva capable of flying on its own."

"No matter what new features they put into an Eva, it still comes down to how well you pilot. And I'm the Best Pilot." Asuka turned and pointed a finger at Sayoko. "And don't you forget it!"

"How can I forget it." said Sayoko, "You don't stop telling us." That said Sayoko walked out of the cage.

"WHAT! I'll get you for that!" Asuka stomped after Sayoko in pursuit.

Shinji and Misato looked at each other.

"You know Shinji-kun," Misato said, placing her arm around his shoulders. "I had reservations about bring another pilot into the house."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Misato replied, "But after that….I think I'm really beginning to like Sayoko. Comon.. Let's make sure she stays alive." With that Misato and Shinji left cage 7, under the watch of the blue eyes of the motionless Eva.

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Asuka continued to chase Sayoko down the hall. " COME BACK HERE!"

Sayoko turned, saw how close Asuka was, and then ducked into a nearby restroom.

'Hah. I got you now.' Asuka smiled as she now planned her revenge.

Asuka kicked the bathroom door open. "Alright Fifth Child! There's nowhere else to run! Come out now!"

Asuka's demand was met by silence.

"I said COME OUT!"

The room remained silent.

"Alright! You just made it harder on yourself."

Asuka kicked open the first stall, then the next. She repeated this until she got to the last one.

"Now I got" KICK "….you?" The last stall was empty.

Asuka looked around some more.

'The ceiling vents are to small, there are no windows, she's not in the trash can.'

Asuka walked up to the sink and looked into the mirror.

'Where did she go?' she asked her puzzled reflection.

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Misato and Shinji reached the parking lot. There, waiting in the backseat of the car, was Sayoko.

"Hey! How did you get here so fast? Where's Asuka?" asked Misato.

"It was pretty easy to find." Sayoko then smiled. "I lost Asuka a bit ago."

"Well she'd better hurry up and get out here, I'm hungry."

Asuka entered the parking lot with a puzzled look on her face. She got even more puzzled when she saw Sayoko sitting in the car.

"What? How?"

"Come on Asuka get in." Misato said, "We want to go home."

"Ok Misato."

With everyone in the car, Misato started it up and prepared to back-out of her spot.

"Hey? When did my mirror get knocked out of alignment. I had that set perfectly."

In the backseat, Sayoko turned her face to look out the window as she blushed.

'Opps.'

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Later that night, Sayoko was getting ready for bed when her door was opened with a loud shriek of protest by Asuka. Sayoko turned around just as the German girl entered the room, then slammed the door shut.

"Come in?" Sayoko said.

"I want to know how you did it." Asuka demanded.

"How I did what?" Sayoko asked.

Asuka let out a growl of frustration. "How you got out of that bathroom without me seeing you."

"Why?" Sayoko asked with a slight hint of innocence.

"Arrrrrrrghh. Just tell me how you did it?"

"No."

"What!" Asuka shouted, "Why not?"

Sayoko smiled and raised a finger. "A magician never reveals their secrets."

"Yeah right sure….." Asuka turned to leave, even though she really wasn't satisfied with the answer.

"Asuka?"

Asuka turned back towards Sayoko, who had resumed fixing up her bed.

"What?"

"Why do you treat Shinji like that?" Sayoko asked as she pulled down her sheets.

"WHAT?"? Asuka shouted in surprise, "What do you care how I treat the Baka!" Her eyes then narrowed. "You want him don't you?"

"Yes," Sayoko replied, "I care for him. I think of him as a friend, as well as a co-worker. But nothing more. His heart belongs to another."

"What? What do you mean? What are you talking about? You're just as stupid as Shinji and the stooges!"

"You realize…." Sayoko said softly, "That if you keep treating people that way……… You'll end up alone."

Asuka went quiet. Then her face went deep red as she unleashed her fury upon Sayoko. She stomped right up to the Fifth Child.

"I DON'T NEED ANYBODY! I DON'T!"

Sayoko just looked at Asuka calmly.

"It has been said that if you keep repeating something, you might actually believe it." Sayoko leaned in close to Asuka, her face just inches away from the German's. "I don't think you believe what you just said. Everyone needs somebody at sometime. That is what makes us human."

Blue eyes stared at blue eyes for almost a minute. Asuka blinked, it felt almost like Sayoko had just stared into her soul.

"You hide a lot of pain." Sayoko said softly, "I don't know what has happened to you in your life. Obviously something happened to you in the past to make you who you are today. But if you keep the pain inside, it will eventually cause your downfall."

Asuka looked at the floor. "What do you care?"

"I care because you're a fellow pilot, your one of my roommates, and, I would hope, someday I could be your friend." Sayoko placed a hand on Asuka's shoulder. "That is why I care.

"Nobody cares for me…." Asuka said softly, feeling her anger fade at the Fifth Child's touch.

"You're wrong, and I think you know it. I'm sure that Shinji, Misato, and Hikari all care for you. Now why don't you go get some sleep and think about that."

Sayoko carefully steered Asuka out of her room. Before she closed the door she looked at Asuka.

"Good Night Asuka. Pleasant Dreams."

Sayoko had the door almost closed when she heard.

"You too….. Sayoko."

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Asuka laid down on her bed and thought about what Sayoko had said.

'Why do I treat Shinji like that? He really hasn't done anything to deserve it. Do I really want to be alone? Do they really care about me? Do…. Hey, wait a second? How does Sayoko know about Hikari?'

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Sayoko lay on her bed smiling. She picked up the ring and held it tight in her hand.

"I hope I'm making you proud Momma."

Deep inside NERV, inside the darkened Cage 7, a pair of blue eyes softly glowed.