Chapter 11
Recovery / The Past Returns
"I said I'm fine Misato. Why do I still have to do all these tests?"
"Shinji, you spent a month inside your Eva, and your Eva 'ate' the Angel. Ritsuko just wants to make sure there are no problems."
Shinji sighed. "Where's Asuka? Where's everyone else?"
Misato smiled slightly before answering. "Awwww does Shinji-kun miss his girlfriend?"
Shinji blushed. "Knock it off. Where are they?"
"They will not be allowed in until they are sure your ok." Misato leaned closer to Shinji. "Don't worry, I'm sure at least one of them will visit you, just keep a mirror handy."
"How is everyone doing?"
"Well Shinji, this entire month has been rough on everyone. Rei and Touji spent 4 days in the infirmary recovering, Asuka has been driving me up the wall worrying about you. But she was able to distract herself by helping Sayoko."
Shinji looked confused. "Wait. 'Helping Sayoko?' Isn't it supposed to work the other way around?"
"Her Aunts have been 'recalled', ordered back upstairs. She is unable to talk to them. Apparently, Asuka got Sayoko to go to Nekomi-2 to try and visit Sayoko's other Aunt. They ended up running into her mother's best friend. Sayoko has been a little better, but, she really misses Skuld."
"What happened?"
"Well…."
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"How long!"
"Another day Asuka." said Sayoko, "Dr. Akagi said one more day."
The children all sat in the living room watching TV. Hikari sat with Touji on the floor. Rei sat on the couch along with Kensuke and Sayoko. Asuka had a recliner all to herself.
"ARGGHHHHH! He's been in there for 2 days now! At least they could let us see him!"
"Its only one more day Asuka. Would you rather have him still stuck in the Eva?" asked Hikari.
"No, its just……"
"We know you missed him." said Touji, "So how are we going to celebrate his return?"
Asuka turned and looked at Touji. "That's strange. I see the stooge, and yet, I hear Misato."
"Pilot Suzuhara is correct. We should celebrate Ikari's return. It will make him feel….happy" said Rei.
"Well, I guess we all agree; Tomorrow night, we celebrate Shinji's return." said Hikari.
"I won't be there."
Everyone stopped and looked at Sayoko.
"What!" asked Asuka.
"I said 'I won't be there.' I have….prior plans." Sayoko stared at the floor. "Excuse me." Sayoko got up and went into her room.
"What's wrong with her?" asked Kensuke.
"I don't know. She hasn't been the same since her Aunts went to H…ehh.. left the country." said Asuka.
"Oh."
Rei stood up. "I will talk to her."
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Sayoko was sitting on her bed, staring at a picture of her parents, when a quiet knock got her attention.
"Yes?"
"May I enter?" came Rei's voice.
"Sure."
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Misato came in through the front door. "I'm home!"
"We're in here!" came Asuka's voice from the living room. Misato entered the living room. Touji, Hikari, Asuka, and Kensuke all sat around with depressed looks on their faces.
"Why the long faces? Shinji comes home tomorrow."
"We know. We were hoping to have a party tomorrow." said Hikari.
"But Sayoko says she won't come." said Asuka.
Misato was surprised. "She WHAT! Why not?"
"She said she had prior plans." said Kensuke. "Do you know what she's talking about?"
"No I have no idea what she's……" Misato stopped talking as an alarm went off in her head. She quickly went to her room. The children looked at each other as the sounds of Misato tearing apart her room drifted up the hallway.
"A-HA!" came Misato's triumphant yell.
She quickly reappeared with a file. She quickly looked thru it until she came to the page she was looking for. As Misato reread the page, her face began to pale.
"Misato? What's wrong?" asked Asuka.
"Tomorrow's the 15th isn't it?"
"Yeah."
'Dammit, how could I forget…' Misato sat down in an empty chair. "I know where she she'll be." She said quietly.
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"Would you like someone to go with you?"
"No Rei, but thanks anyway. I just want to be alone tomorrow." said Sayoko.
"Very well." Rei got up and started to leave.
"Rei."
Rei stopped and turned around. "Yes Sayoko?"
"How are you feeling?"
"I have recovered from my injuries."
"No. I mean how are you 'feeling'? Do you still feel guilty, lying to the commander?"
"I am still sorting out my feelings."
"If you need anyone to talk to, I'm here for you."
"I understand Sayoko."
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"…..so that's where she'll be." finished Misato.
The children sat silently. Even Asuka had lost all her anger. The sound of a door opening drew their attention to the hallway. Rei quietly appeared.
"Is she ok?" asked Asuka.
Rei nodded. "It is late. I will be going. I will come to help get Shinji."
"Yeah it is rather late." said Hikari, "We all should get show sleep."
"Alright, But I expect you all to be here for Shinji tomorrow." said Misato.
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Sayoko lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling and clutching her mother's ring.
'10 years…..Has it really been that long? It feels longer….'
A knock on her door interrupted her thoughts.
"Yes?"
Misato and Asuka entered. Asuka walked over to Sayoko.
"I'm sorry Sayoko. I didn't know."
Sayoko closed her eyes. "Its alright. I really didn't advertise it."
"Do you want someone to go with you?"
"No, I'll be fine. I will come back as soon as I can."
Misato walked over. "We'll hold you to that. Your friends are worried about you."
"Thanks Misato."
"Oh yeah, Shinji wants to see you for some reason."
Sayoko looked at Misato questioningly. "About what?"
"Don't know. You better go see."
"But…..Dr. Akagi won't let me in…" Sayoko started to say until Misato held up her hand.
"I seem to remember that you can come and go as you please without anyone knowing. How else did you get to Nekomi-2 without Section 2 knowing you'd left."
Sayoko looked at Misato. "But…."
"Don't worry. I won't tell if you won't."
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Shinji was laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
'That ceiling is become to familiar. Dammit, I should have had Misato get my SDAT. Oh well, only one more night, and then I'll be home.'
A loud thump and cursing from the bathroom distracted him.
"Stupid….#$#…Why the hell……&#&…" came a muffled female voice.
Shinji sat up. "Who's there?"
The bathroom door opened to reveal Sayoko. She was holding her head which had the beginnings of a nasty bruise.
"Hi Shinji."
"What happened in there?"
Sayoko hid her face in embarrassment. "I tripped coming out of the mirror."
"Oh. So what brings you here?"
Sayoko walked over and sat next to Shinji. She pulled out his SDAT. "I thought you might want this. Also, I am to tell you, quote, 'Baka Shinji! You'd better be ready to come home. The apartment is a mess!'"
Shinji smiled. "Sounds like something Asuka would say."
"Seriously, the apartment IS a mess."
Shinji looked at Sayoko. "What! You expect me to….." Shinji stopped when he saw Sayoko burst into laughter.
"Misato was right. You are fun to tease."
"Nice to know I was missed."
"We did miss you. It's been too quiet around the apartment. Asuka hasn't had anyone to yell at."
"Thanks, I think."
"Well, its late, and you have a big day tomorrow." Sayoko began to head towards the bathroom.
"What do you mean?"
Sayoko turned and looked back at Shinji. "Misato is planning a party."
Shinji groaned. "Oh please no. Not another Misato party."
"If it's any consolation, the idea originated with Touji." Sayoko stepped into the bathroom and leaped into the mirror.
Shinji groaned again. "Why me."
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The next morning, Sayoko got up early. She made a really nice breakfast for Misato and Asuka. And set it out on the table. Pen Pen waddled out. Sayoko saw him.
"You leave this alone. This is for Asuka and Misato."
Like I'd touch the red-heads food. She'd punt me out of the apartment so fast…..
Sayoko just smiled. She then went and grabbed her jacket.
Where are you going?
Sayoko stopped at the door to put on her shoes.
"I need sometime to myself. Later today, I'm going somewhere important to me."
What for?
Sayoko gave a small sigh. "I'm going to visit my parents."
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Several hours later.
Misato opened the front door. "WE'RE BACK!"
Touji, Hikari, and Kensuke smiled as Shinji was brought in by a very happy Asuka. Rei sat quietly by herself. "Welcome Home Shinji!"
Shinji walked in and greeted everyone. He then looked around puzzled.
"Where's Sayoko?"
Everyone got quiet. Rei spoke up.
"She wanted to be here, however, she had a prior engagement to go to….much like you did several months ago when you met your father."
Shinji realized what she meant. "Oh."
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Approx 4pm
Sayoko moved quietly into a clearing. Even though 10 years had passed, the violence of the impact was still noticeable. Trees lay where they fell, even the outlines of the crater could be seen. Sayoko walked towards the monument that had been erected.
'Dedicated to the passengers and crew of flight 303. They flew into eternity at this spot August 15th, 2004'
A list of the passengers and crew followed. Sayoko brought her hand up to 2 names.
'Keiichi and Belldandy Morisato'
Sayoko walked up and placed flowers she had gotten earlier near their names.
"Hello Father, Mother. Skuld and I planned to do this together, but Grandpa recalled her. She and Urd have made up, mostly. I was even able to talk to Urd. I saw Aunt Sayoko a few weeks ago in Nekomi-2. She is doing well. She's going to try and help me find Aunt Megumi. I've made a bunch of friends here, and they know I'm a goddess, but they don't mind." Sayoko started to tear-up. " I miss you so much Poppa, Momma. I wish you didn't have to go. Skuld has tried, but it's not the same. I feel alone, my friends try, but they aren't family. I…." Sayoko fell to the ground crying. She tensed up when someone placed an arm around her. A voice spoke gently into her ear.
"Your not alone anymore Sayoko."
Sayoko turned to see the face of ……..
"AUNT MEGUMI!" Megumi fell backwards as the 14 year-old goddess grabbed her in a giant hug. Megumi returned the hug as Sayoko cried into her shoulder.
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"This isn't as fun as I thought it'd be." mumbled Asuka.
"What do you mean? Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves." said Shinji.
Asuka pointed at a drunken Misato, who currently was passed out on the floor. "THAT is what I mean. The party is only an hour old and she's already passed out."
Before Shinji could reply, the door bell rang. Shinji got up to answer it. Upon opening it he found Kaji, Ritsuko, and Maya outside.
"Shinji. Misato invited us to your welcome home party."
"Come in. Misato didn't say you were coming."
"Where is the beautiful Major?"
Shinji pointed to the body laying on the floor. Ritsuko just groaned. "Again? This is reminding me too much of college."
Kaji leaned against the wall. "Ah yes. College. I miss those days."
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"Why? Why did you leave?"
"Sayoko…forgive me…I never meant to leave you like that. I was upset, at Urd, at Skuld, even Kami-sama, but I can't really blame them. Urd and Skuld had no control over what happened. Your mother was right, I should have believed Kami-sama knew what he was doing. I was just upset, and they…they were just there."
"I forgive you Auntie. But, how did you know I'd be here?"
Megumi smiled. "I've been coming here every year, hoping you'd come by. I was starting to give up on ever having the chance to see you when I ran into Sayoko. When she said you lived here, I….knew today was the day."
Sayoko smiled and hugged her Aunt again. "So what do we do now?"
"I don't know. I hadn't thought that far ahead."
"Where are you staying?"
"There's a hotel in Tokyo-3 that I've been staying at. Its near enough that it only takes an hour to get out here. But the food is terrible."
Sayoko started to get a smile on her face. "Feel like a party?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I'm staying with some great people in Tokyo-3, one of them just got out of the hospital. They were going to celebrate his return. I promised I'd try and catch the end of the party."
Megumi looked at her watch. "Well, we'd better hurry. It's starting to get late. Com'on, my ride is on the main road.
When Sayoko and Megumi reached the main road, Sayoko saw something she'd never thought she see again.
"That's……that's……."
Parked at the side of the road was a BMW Motorcycle, with a sidecar attached.
"Yep." said Megumi with a big smile. "It's your father's bike. I've kept it in good shape. I just feel, closer to him." Megumi reached into the sidecar and produced a red helmet. She handed it to Sayoko. "Here, put this on."
As soon as Sayoko touched the helmet, she felt the same warm feeling she felt when she held her mother's ring. "My Mom wore this, didn't she?" asked Sayoko.
"Yes, she did. Why?"
Sayoko smiled as she sat in the sidecar. "I can feel her."
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The party at Misato's was still in full swing. Touji and Kensuke were getting advice on women from Kaji, Hikari was talking to Maya and Ritsuko. Shinji , Asuka and Rei were talking, actually, Asuka talked about Rei and how she should wear something other then a school uniform. Shinji was paying attention to the conversation, and helping a groggy, drunk Misato to wake up. The sound of the front door opening caused everyone to look towards the entryway.
"I'M HOME!" came Sayoko's voice. "And I brought someone."
Asuka looked at Shinji. "Who did she bring?" Shinji shrugged his shoulders.
Sayoko appeared around the corner with a woman in her late thirties. The woman had a smile on her face, but it could not compete with the smile on Sayoko's.
"Everyone," said Sayoko, "I want you to meet someone. This is my Aunt, Megumi Morisato."
'So that's why she's so happy' thought Asuka.
"Hey That's great!" Misato somehow had gotten back onto her feet, "More reason to party!" That said, Misato downed another beer in one gulp. Megumi watched Misato in shock, then turned to Sayoko.
"Who is that?"
Sayoko sighed "Unfortunately, she's currently my guardian."
"She reminds me of Urd."
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The party went on till late. Kensuke, Hikari and Touji left , followed a little bit later by Maya and Ritsuko. Kaji stayed to help move Misato. Asuka, Shinji and Rei began to clean up. Megumi and Sayoko walked out to where the motorcycle was parked. Megumi climbed on then turned to Sayoko.
"He's my address. I expect you to write and tell how your doing. Remember, you can drop by anytime" Megumi then smiled, "My mirror is always open."
Sayoko took the address and returned the smile. "I expect you to write too. And yes I will drop by."
Megumi grabbed Sayoko in a hug. "I missed you kiddo."
"I missed you too Auntie."
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A little while later.
"Well that was fun." said Sayoko.
"Says you. You didn't clean up after Misato lost it." said Asuka.
"I did not think it was that bad." said Rei.
Asuka glared at Rei. "Come back after Misato's done that 8 or 10 times, then tell me it wasn't that bad."
"At least it no longer smells like beer in here." said Shinji.
Kaji popped his head into the living room from the kitchen.
"Sayoko, can I see you a second."
"Sure Kaji"
Shinji, Asuka and Rei watched as Sayoko went into the kitchen.
"What do you think that is about?" asked Shinji.
"I don't know. But I intend to." said Asuka.
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"Sayoko, besides those people who attacked you, Shinji and Asuka, have you done anything that people might have taken notice to?"
"No Kaji. I don't think so. Auntie Skuld always told me to be careful before I used my powers. I really haven't used my powers until that night."
Kaji thought a second. "What about when you go through mirrors?"
"That doesn't require much power. From what Misato said, the only time I was detected was that night at the park. The other times were my Aunts, and my Eva."
"Your Eva?"
"Yeah, that was weird. According to my Aunts, the power signature was exactly the same as my mother's."
Kaji mumbled quietly to himself, "Your mother hmm. Sayoko, I want you to be very careful. Some powerful people are looking for information on you."
Sayoko looked at Kaji stunned. "Why?"
"I don't know, but apparently they know enough to investigate you further, so be careful."
"I will Kaji." Sayoko began to walk back to the living room. As soon as she reached the doorway though, a surprise met her. Asuka and Shinji had been on the floor around the corner trying to listen in. They looked up at Sayoko, and turned a deep shade of red.
"Ummm, Hi there." said Shinji. Asuka just waved.
"And what do you think your doing?" asked Sayoko.
"Ahhh, Shinji lost his earphones. We're looking for them."
Sayoko gave Shinji and Asuka a slight glare. "You know, as a goddess, I know when someone is telling the truth, and when someone is lying."
Asuka and Shinji turned an even deeper shade of red.
"you…you can?"
"Yes."
Asuka grabbed Shinji and hauled him off down the hallway. "Com'on, I think I just remembered where they are."
Sayoko just watched and smiled before heading towards her room.
Kaji stood and watched from the kitchen.
'Don't worry Sayoko. No one will harm you or find out your secret, I will see to it.'
