No: 3 - Reunion
Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion or any of the characters they are the property of their respective creators. Please be aware that no profit is being made from this work of fan fiction.
The first thing she noticed was the smell, no longer was the air filled with the blood like scent of LCL but instead the fresh crisp air and trace of salt one would expect from a normal sea. Her ears picked up the gentle lapping of the waves and the cries of gulls overhead. A dull rumbling being the only clue to the fact she was not on a beach somewhere. Then she became aware of new sounds, voices…
With each moment they seemed to be drawing closer. She could now begin to make out individual people amongst the chatter. The first one she recognised was clearly male, it took her few moments but she identified it as being that of the first of the three stooges, Toji Suzahara. The next voice was quite different, male once again but this one was raised in excitement, constantly naming things around him all of which seemed to be of a military nature…
Kensuke AidaTwo of the stooges…sea air…the pieces began to fall into place in Asuka's mind. Her memory reached back to a day long ago, the day she had finally reached the waters of Japan, the day the Gaghiel had attacked and the day she had met him…
"Well Shinji?"
The cheerful tones of her former guardian rang in her ears for a moment before she heard his quiet reply
"It's ok, I guess."
She felt her heart skip a beat at the sound of his voice. She snapped her eyes open, and then narrowed them slightly to adjust for the bright sunlight. The metal deck of the aircraft carrier, 'Over the Rainbow' stretched out before her. A group of four figures approaching her, one of them running and chasing an object caught by the wind. In that instant her breath caught in her throat, she saw him standing there, beside the lavender haired major, wearing that same expression she had seen on his face long ago, when they had been on the beach.
For an instant the memories resurfaced and she once again watched as he pulled the trigger, as his lifeless body dropped to the ground, his eyes like two endless hollow pools…shaken by the memory Asuka could hold herself back no longer, she had to touch him, to feel his warmth against her and know this was not a dream…
"Shinji!"
Toji had been chasing after his cap when the wind had caught it. He almost got a hold of it when he was bowled over by a blur of red and yellow and ended up sitting on his behind on the deck. Luckily his arm had snagged the offending article of clothing but unfortunately he had twisted such that he was now sitting on it. He was about to mutter some choice curses when he heard someone shout
"Shinji!"
Unsure who exactly was calling for his friend he turned his attention back towards the others. What he saw made his jaw drop…there was a girl hugging Shinji tightly and…was she kissing him!
In the scant months since he had joined Nerv Shinji had faced many things; a reunion with his estranged father, becoming the pilot of Eva Unit-01, Rei Ayanami, the enigmatic pilot of Unit-00, the Angels. None of this prepared him for what was to happen now. He had been minding his own business, waiting to meet this new Eva pilot Misato had mentioned when someone called out his name.
"Shinji!"
He looked up to see a girl with long flowing red hair wearing a yellow sundress running towards him.
"Who…?"
His words were cut off as the girl closed the distance between them before wrapping her arms around his neck and covering his lips with her own. This was the second time in his life Shinji had been kissed by a girl. However, whereas the last time it had been a simple gesture made with the innocence of youth, this one was charged with desire and a longing Shinji could not comprehend. Why would a girl he had never met before be kissing him like this?
In the meantime Misato, Kensuke and Toji simply stared at the two, unable to believe their eyes. Both boys' thoughts were along the lines of.
'Who's the babe? And why is she kissing Shinji?'
Meanwhile Misato already knew the answer to the first question, however the second was troubling her.
Asuka hasn't met Shinji before, has she?Her thoughts interrupted just then by a familiar voice.
"Hello Katsuragi."
Misato's mind at that moment seemed as if it had undergone a train wreck. All her trains of thought had been derailed by that voice…
"Kaji…what are you doing here?"
She barely bothered to disguise the anger in her words. Her teeth were gritted and her eyes guarded. He was not who she wanted to have to deal with right now, she still had to deal with the rather forward pilot of Unit-02 and the boy she currently had in a lip lock.
Kaji had been expecting that reaction from his former lover. He had been inwardly thrilled when he found out he would have a chance to see her again, yet, his work had to come first, being a spy was a dangerous business and he didn't want to risk getting her involved. He didn't want to lose the only woman he had ever truly loved a second time…
"I'm here as Asuka's guardian. Do you know where she is by any chance?"
Misato's simply gestured over her shoulder with her thumb. Kaji stepped around to get a glimpse of what she was pointing at and froze in his tracks. Asuka had her arms wrapped around some boy and seemed to be kissing him so hard Kaji couldn't held but wonder if it wouldn't take the jaws of life to pull them apart. He looked at the boy a bit harder, a flicker of recognition flaring in his mind.
Ah! That's Shinji Ikari, the pilot of Unit-01.
For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why the heck Asuka was kissing the boy but as it seemed the lad was fast running out of air he decided to make his presence known.
"So, I see you've already met the Third Child Asuka."
At the sound of his voice Asuka finally broke the kiss and turned to look at him. Shinji had a look like a deer caught in the headlights and did not respond. Kaji noted that although Asuka had stopped kissing the boy she did not remove her arms from around his neck and remained leaning up against him
"Yes, isn't he cute?"
Asuka then sighed softly and began to rest her head against Shinji's chest. Both adults could only watch in awe, neither one knowing what to say. Seeing their chance the two other stooges, who had kept silent all through this, decided to make their presence known once again.
"Oi! Shinji! Why didn't you tell us?"
"Yah! You never said nothin' about having a girlfriend!"
Shinji stared at his two friends with a blank expression.
"But I don't…"
Shinji was cut off for the second time that day when Asuka lifted her head to silence him with a quick kiss. While he was still recovering from the shock she reluctantly unwrapped her arms from around him and tuned to face the two boys.
"Guten morgan! I am Asuka Langley Soryu, pilot of Evangelion Unit-02 and Shinji's girlfriend. I've been in Germany for a while so we haven't seen each other in a few months so if you don't mind we have a lot catching up to do."
Both boys blinked in surprise as their brains frantically tried to process everything that the girl had just told them.
"Erm…ok."
"Thank you."
Asuka turned back to Shinji before taking his hand in hers and beginning to lead him away. As they passed Misato and Kaji the two adults seemed to recover from whatever trance they had been in and called out to the pair.
"Asuka, where are you taking Shinji?"
"To see Unit-02, try to behave while we're gone!"
Both adults flushed slightly at that comment but before they could reply Asuka had disappeared from sight, Shinji being dragged along behind.
It wasn't long before they reached the area where Unit-02 was being held. Asuka had held Shinji's hand all through the short boat trip between the aircraft carrier and the transport vessel and only now released it so he could lift the canvas for her to slip inside. He followed her a moment later and she resumed her firm grip on his hand. For the first time in what seemed like eternity, Asuka was once more face to face with Unit-02. This thing, this beast had first swallowed her mother's soul then it had taken her life. Even in death she had been bound to it…yet, when he had called her back to the world following instrumentality the bond had been severed and she was finally free. Yet, in severing her bond to Eva, a void had been created inside her, one that he had quickly filled. At first she had used him to make the emptiness go away, but as time passed she had come to realise the true nature of their bond. The same bond that had brought her back here to stand beside him now…
Perhaps that was why Unit-01 went berserk. Why it would move even when it was out of power, how it had broken out of the angel that had swallowed it and how it moved even when its pilot could not give it commands. The soul inside it was bound to him…a mother's love protecting her son…she subconsciously squeezed his hand at that thought. In this place he was yet to recall the terrible truth that Unit-01 held…the final expression of a mother's love.
All this time Shinji's had been gazing discreetly at the silent girl. His mind was still in turmoil following the kisses and he could not help but notice how beautiful she was. There was something about her that drew him like a moth to a flame; yet, as with all flames he was afraid to get burned. He felt her grip tighten briefly and couldn't help but wonder what she was thinking. Her gaze seemed to be locked on the red behemoth before them so he turned his attention towards it as well.
For an instant, something flickered in his mind. A blood red sky…a beach…someone calling out his name…a sudden pain in his chest and then…nothing. As the images faded he felt a little light headed and lost his balance. He would have fallen then if it had not been for Asuka's grip on him, sensing him about to fall she had been pulled from her contemplation and had quickly tugged him towards her, ending with him wrapped in her arms. His eyes came back in to focus and he realised her face hung millimetres from his own. For an instant he wondered if she was going to kiss him again, the memory of her soft lips against his own still fresh in his mind…
At that moment alarms began to sound, Asuka quickly broke their embrace, heading back towards the edge of the canvas. As her arms had left him Shinji was shocked to feel a small pang of regret. He felt warmth encircle his hand and a tugging sensation, he looked over to see Asuka had once again taken his hand and was now trying to pull him away.
"Come on baka! There's no time!"
"Asuka, what…?"
"An angel is attacking the fleet, we have to get ready."
Slightly confused, Shinji allowed himself to be dragged over to the edge of the holding area. He lifted the canvas so Asuka could get out and as she did so he was greeted by a most unexpected view.
"…Red…"
He flushed slightly before quickly following Asuka out, hoping that she had not noticed his slight hesitation after the impromptu show she had given him. Once they were both out she picked up a bag that had been sitting at the edge and led Shinji through a door and into a nearby stairwell.
Asuka couldn't quite keep a smile from her face. She had heard Shinji's almost whispered comment. Whereas once she would have screamed at him and called him a pervert, now it simply worked towards her cause. The greater his attraction to her the easier it would be…
Once they were both out of sight she put the bag down and opened it before beginning to rummage through its contents. She pulled out her plug suit and began to change. Meanwhile Shinji stood behind her wondering what was going on.
"Um…Asuka? What are you doing?"
"Baka. What does it look like I'm doing? I'm getting changed of course."
"B…but I'm right here!"
"So? Unlike some people I'm perfectly happy with my body."
He spluttered a bit before looking away. Part of her desperately wished that he had kept his eyes on her; yet, she knew he was too shy to do so. Sighing she finished putting on her plug suit, he did not look around till he heard the telltale rush of air and the suit moulded to her form. Now, as she turned her attentions back to the blushing boy in front of her.
"Good. Now it's your turn."
His eyes widened.
"My what?"
"You don't think I'm letting you into my Eva dressed like that do you?"
"What?"
"You weren't going to let me go out there all alone where you?"
Shinji looked down at his feet feeling rather ashamed.
"No! I…um…"
Asuka allowed a predatory grin to spread across her face.
"Good."
Shinji looked up at her.
"But what am I supposed to wear?"
Asuka continued to grin and simply held up the spare plug suit. Shinji went pale at the sight of it.
"B-but that's a female plug suit!"
"Look at it this way Shinji. It's this or naked. Your choice."
If possible, his eyes widened further before he grabbed the plug suit from out if her hand and ran down the stairs out of her sight to change. It took all of Asuka's self control not to follow him. Although in her mind she could remember seeing him naked many times, the last of which had only been a day ago for her, in this time it had never happened. This was an unprecedented opportunity for her, she was being offered a chance to see him before Third Impact and the numerous horrors of the Angels had taken their toll. She began to inch closer and closer to the corner, being careful to make no noise that might alert her pray…unfortunately as she finally reached the bottom Shinji emerged blushing heavily. She had missed her chance for now but still there would be plenty of others…
Meanwhile on the bridge Misato was attempting to take control of the situation.
"I am fully aware that this fleet is under your command admiral. However, due to the Angel attacking. You are now under Nerv's authority and that means that you will take orders from me. Is that understood?"
The old admiral simply stood there, dumbstruck.
"I'll take your silence as agreement."
That dealt with she turned her attention to the three guys behind her, all of which who were staring in disbelief.
"Kaji, I want you to take these two and get them out of here. This is no place for civilians and I don't have anyone else I can trust to get them to safety."
"But Misato!"
Both boys were silenced by the look she gave them.
"Go. Now."
"Yes ma'am!"
All three hastily exited the bridge and headed towards the chopper waiting for them on the foredeck. Once they were safely away Misato turned her attention back to the situation at hand.
"Ok, first priority is to secure the pilots. Where are the Second and Third Children?"
"Here."
A voice replied from the radio as a huge figure rose from one of the transport ships off to the left, a huge canvas tarpaulin wrapped around it in a crude imitation of a cloak.
Meanwhile, inside the entry plug of Unit-02, Shinji was feeling rather uncomfortable. When they had first, entered Asuka had told him to sit in the chair. Once he was settled, she stepped inside and seated herself in his lap, her back towards him facing the controls.
"Since you have longer arms you can just reach around me."
Shinji was about to object when he realised Asuka was ignoring him, she was busy switching the interface language to Japanese. Sighing in defeat he experimentally tried to reach his arms around Asuka to the controls. It was in doing so that he made a rather embarrassing discovery…because the controls had been set up for Asuka's smaller frame, in order to reach them he had to bend in his arms slightly. Now, usually it would not be a problem but Asuka was rather well... endowed for a girl of her age and this meant that his arms kept brushing against the undersides of her breasts.
It is at this point that it might be wise to point out the differences between the male and female plug suits. Whilst the female version has room in the chest, designed to cater to a woman's figure, The male version has space provided lower down to make room for a man's…bits. This meant that if a male pilot were, for some reason, to be forced to wear a female plug suit, he would be in some discomfort due to the restricted space down below. Now under normal circumstances this wouldn't be too big a problem, but if the pilot were to become, say, aroused, then the problem would become very, very noticeable.
Shinji was quickly finding this out the hard way as Asuka kept shifting around in his lap. Each movement caused her backside to brush up against his groin, the friction causing an age-old reaction to stir in his loins. Blood was flowing south and he was fast becoming very aware of the confines of the borrowed suit.
"Uh…Asuka? Could you stop moving around? It's making me…uncomfortable."
Asuka suppressed a smile. She knew exactly what way he was 'uncomfortable'. On one hand she wanted to continue as it might make him more receptive to her later advances if he was a little frustrated. However, on the other hand he might not be able to do anything if the confines of the suit damaged it. Finally deciding to play it safe she stop wriggling and turned her attention to the task at hand. As she opened a communications channel a familiar voice came across.
"Where are the Second and Third Children?"
"Here."
Asuka replied as she moved Unit-02 into a standing position, the canvas tarpaulin getting wrapped around Unit-02 as it moved upwards.
"Where's Shinji?"
"Here, Misato."
"Where…? Wait! You're in Unit-02 as well! Give me a visual!"
They both heard Misato call out to someone before her face appeared in a comm. window. By the look on her face she was far from pleased.
As soon as Misato had heard they were in the plug together she had gotten a sinking feeling. It was confirmed when the visual appeared and she saw Asuka sitting in the lap of a heavily blushing Shinji.
"What the hell were you thinking? The B-Type equipment is not suitable for underwater use! If you get knocked into the water, you'll be helpless!"
Asuka gave no response to Misato's statement and instead kept her attention on jumping Unit-02 from ship to ship until she finally landed on the deck of the Over the Rainbow. She reached down and attached the power cable before turning her attention back to a now fuming Misato.
"Don't worry, Shinji and I can handle it!"
That said she closed the comm. window much to Misato's protest. Asuka flicked a switch and Unit-02 tore away the canvas before unsheathing its progressive knife.
"Ok Shinji, when the Angel surfaces we will have a few seconds to take out the core. I will try and hit it while you keep us upright, ok?"
"Uh, ok."
Nodding Asuka readied herself.
"Come and get it Angel!"
As if in response to Asuka's request, the Angel leapt from the water, it's jaws wide open looking to catch Unit-02 in its gaping maw…
"Now!"
In a flash Asuka had brought up Unit-02's arm and hurled the knife right down the Angel's throat. It struck dead into the core, piercing it and causing it to crack and glow. The Angel went into spasm mid air before flopping into the water. A moment later an underwater explosion rocked the whole ship, and the Angel was no more. Asuka let go of the controls before spinning round to hug Shinji. Startled, he pulled the controls and Eva Unit-02 lost its balance and landed face up on the deck. Meanwhile, inside the pilots were in a similar position. Shinji lying face up with Asuka on top of him. He was a bit dazed and as he stared up into Asuka's deep blue eyes an idle thought crossed his mind.
I could get used to this.
Two hours later they had pulled into Tokyo-3 harbour. Luckily Shinji had found a shower and had switch back to his original clothes. Asuka however decided to remain in her plug suit. As they disembarked, they were greeted by a couple of familiar faces.
"Shinji!"
"Hey Shin-man!"
His two friends ran over to them.
"So Shinji, what happened back there?"
Kensuke asked eagerly.
"Well…"
For the third time that day, Asuka kissing him cut off Shinji mid sentence.
"We used my Unit-02 and beat the angel. Didn't we Shin-chan?"
"Shin-CHAN!"
Both boys exclaimed.
"Well…I…uh…you see…"
Shinji had begun to back away.
"I'm going to take a shower. Have fun Shin-chan, I'll see you later…"
She leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. As she walked away Toji dashed forwards and caught Shinji in a headlock as he and Kensuke began to interrogate their unlucky friend.
"What did she mean, later?"
Chapter preread by That Other Guy