Disclaimer: see chapter 1.

Folded Wings

By Random1377

Chapter 18

Unit 01 reached the surface of the Geofront just in time to see the angel's paper-like arms unfurl. As Shinji was still preparing for combat, there was no way he could have stopped the onslaught that was to come.

Rei, however… tried.

"Souryu!"

Shinji watched in amazement as Unit 00 entered the scene from the left of his field of vision, colliding with Unit 02 as the angel's arms whipped forward and bringing the red mecha to the ground before the angel's attack could fully connect.

"Unit 00 has lost its power supply," Maya's voice reported, "Unit 02 has sustained damaged as well – left arm has been severed below the elbow."

Before either Unit could rise, the angel followed its physical strike with an energy salvo, catching both of its opponents completely unprepared and sending them flying in opposite directions.

"Unit 02's power supply has been cut off," Maya's voice rang out. "Unit 00 has sustained damage to its right arm and leg – Major, they're getting killed!"

"Shinji, get your ass in gear!" Misato shouted, shaking the Third from his slack-jawed gaping. "Get to position 326, I'm sending a positron rifle – Rei and Asuka will cover until you can get a shot off."

"They will?" Shinji mumbled, more to himself than Misato.

"Here it comes!"

The Evas scattered, moving in three different directions to confuse the angel as Unit 02 and Unit 00 sought out new power supplies and Unit 01 shot off towards the positron rifle.

Nightmare, Shinji thought, throwing Unit 01 to the side as the angel sent a blast of energy his way. If I wasn't so sweaty, I'd think this was a nightmare. Hell, it might still be a dream – Ayanami's usually not that aggressive in a fight…

This thought trailed off as Shinji reminded himself that it had been Rei who had asked him out. Perhaps, he reasoned, his assessment of the girl had been a tad bit off.

"I'm hit!"

Shinji came up short, whirling Unit 01 around just in time to see Unit 02 go down hard, its right leg spurting blood as the lower half went spinning through the air. Unable to follow all three, the angel had decided on the closest… and the closest happened to be Asuka.

"Rei," Shinji cried, thrusting the butterfly controls forward, "back me up!"

"Understood."

"Shinji," Misato shouted, "get to the rifle – don't diso-"

Shinji tuned her out. His mind was already made up.

Like a soldier in an old war movie, Unit 02 dragged itself along the Geofront floor, digging up huge chunks of dirt as the angel serenely hovered over it.

"Oh come on," Asuka shouted, "gimme a break, you pesky- ahh!"

The air was filled with sound as the angel unleashed a point-blank shot into Unit 02's prone form, blasting its right arm into oblivion and searing the paint off of the machine's back, leaving blackened, smoldering metal behind.

"Shinji," Asuka gasped, "Shinji, help me."

Again, it was Rei who arrived first.

"Huh…!"

Grunting with the relayed effort, Rei brought Unit 00 into action, sprinting up to Unit 02 and grabbing it by its remaining hand. Continuing her forward motion, she dragged the red mecha along the ground, desperately trying to buy Unit 01 more time.

She failed.

"REI!"

Shinji cried out in dismay as the angel laid into Unit 00, cutting it off at the knees while simultaneously opening fire with its energy beam and sending the blue mecha spinning gracelessly through the air to land in a messy heap not fifty feet from Unit 01's position.

"00 and 02 are down," Maya needlessly announced, "combat effectiveness is under fifty percent."

The angel swung its giant head ponderously from side to side. Units 00 and 02 were both within its reach, and like a child on Christmas morning, it seemed to be deciding which it wanted to unwrap first.

"Shinji," Asuka called, "get me out of here – I promise I'll be good to you from now on, ok? Just… just get me out of here, please, I don't… I don't want to die here…!"

Unit 01 took a hesitant step forward, its pilot's mind burning with concern as the angel slowly brought its gaze back to Unit 00. It's going for Rei, Shinji thought, it's going to kill her. Asuka… I'm sorry…

Refusing to think any more, Shinji rushed in, positioning Unit 01 between Unit 00 and the angel and drawing his progressive knife at almost the same instant the angel cut loose, catching Unit 01 full in the chest and knocking it back into 00's struggling body.

"No…"

Asuka's whisper rang like a shout in Shinji's ears, making his heart clench in his chest.

"No, not her… it's me… you were supposed to save me!"

Abruptly, Unit 02 forced itself up onto its good leg and sprang at the angel, using the jets built into the machine's shoulders to assist in the jump and pulling the progressive knife from her Unit's shoulder holster even as she fell towards the angel.

"AHH!"

Screaming with rage, Asuka buried Unit 02's progressive knife in the middle of the angel's head, catching it right between the eyes as it turned – almost lazily – from Units 01 and 00. The blow would have been devastating to a human, or any animal in the world… but angels were not animals, and the blank, hollow eyes of the monster facing her showed not so much as a trace of pain as they suddenly glowed an angry, hellish white.

Unit 02 had no way of dodging, taking the shot directly in the gut and falling, in two pieces, to the ground, where it lay silent and still, its fingers still wrapped around the hilt of its shattered knife.

Shinji's mind shut down.

He was aware, on some level, that he was screaming, and that somewhere, Maya's voice was telling him that Asuka's vital signs were still active… but all he could see was the bisected form of Unit 02, and the bottom half of the entry plug poking out of the upper segment.

And all he could feel was rage, burning, white hot rage, consuming him from the inside out as he attacked the angel with a savagery that Rei would later describe as 'disturbing.' Conscious thought left him, leaving him unable to make rational decisions, until the bloodlust seemed to be eating him alive.

Then, in a flash of blue, everything went dark as his rage became Unit 01's rage, and his actions became Unit 01's actions, and as one, they brutally tore the angel to pieces.

( 0 0 0 )

Time and tide, the old saying goes, wait for no man. Life, Rei found, does go on. Shinji had been absorbed by Unit 01, and his recoverability was uncertain… yet here she was, less than twenty-four hours later, sitting at the kitchen table in Kaji's apartment and doing her homework.

The sounds coming from the bedroom made concentration slightly difficult, but the First did her best to ignore them, reminding herself that she was a guest in this house, and she really had no room to complain what Kaji did with (or to) miss Ibuki.

Kaji had driven this into her head quite thoroughly one day when she had happened to glance up and make eye contact with him as he was taking Maya to the front door.

I didn't even say a word, she mused, setting her pencil down for a moment and resting her chin in her palms. He seems to invite her over only when he knows I'm here – as if he is deliberately trying to anger me.

This thought felt remarkably valid, but Rei did not want to ponder the intricacies of what that could mean, as the ins and outs of having an older man trying to make her jealous were simply unfathomable, so instead she turned her thoughts to the battle. It had been a spectacular display of violence and gore as Unit 01 – Rei refused to believe that Shinji was responsible – ravaged the angel, overpowering its defenses and casting it to the ground where, in a scene worthy of any horror movie, the purple machine began to eat.

After the battle, Asuka had been recovered… and sedated. Rei did not understand what the problem was, but she had overheard Doctor Akagi saying something to the Major about rejection and failure issues. The Second, it seemed, had been hanging by a much thinner psychological thread than anyone would have guessed.

Though Rei wondered if perhaps there was not more there than met the eye.

It is immaterial now, she told herself, Souryu is not allowed visitors at this ti-

Her thoughts were cut off as the door to the apartment was suddenly thrust open. "Major," she whispered, rising to her feet as Misato entered the room like a hurricane – a hurricane set on making landfall in Kaji's room. "Major, I would not-"

"Step aside," Misato mumbled, grasping the doorknob and giving it a quick turn, "I need to see my…"

As the door was opened, Rei was treated to several sights she had not anticipated. The first, considering that her angle gave her an unobstructed view of the bedroom, was firsthand observation of enthusiastic lovemaking techniques. The second, considering that she could still see Misato's profile, was a visual lesson in exactly how fast a person's expression could travel from lustful to stunned to enraged. And the last was the testimonial that it was, in fact, possible to knock a door off of its hinges by slamming it hard enough.

"Son of a bitch."

Rei would never understand how, exactly, Kaji got his boxers on as fast as he did, but before Misato had made the journey back to the front door, he was out of the bedroom, grabbing her hand and blurting, "Wait."

The conversation that followed was more a collection of screamed epithets, desperate backpedaling and deft twisting of semantics, until Rei found that she had entirely lost track of the point Kaji was trying to make.

"Umm… Kaji…?"

All eyes turned to the bedroom door, were Maya stood, confused and uncertain. Her shirt had been buttoned crookedly, and her hair was a sweaty, tangled mess, but her eyes were clear and shining with hurt as she looked from Kaji to Misato and back again, clearly hoping for an explanation that did not involve her being shoved violently out of the picture.

Licking his lips, Kaji opened his mouth, and from the look on his face, even he had no idea what was about to come out. "Sorry, Ibuki," he whispered, tightening his hold on Misato's hand, "I-"

But he did not need to say more than that. Scrubbing at her eyes, Maya hurried out of the apartment, snatching her purse off of the end table and shoving her underclothes into it as she increased her speed and all but ran down the narrow hallway leading up to Kaji's door.

Absently, Rei noticed that the woman had left her uniform jacket behind.

"So, umm," Kaji began, clearing his throat as he carefully released Misato's hand, "here we a-"

Rei's eyes widened slightly as Misato whirled around, swinging hard not with her palm, but with a clenched fist, catching Kaji on the right cheek and slamming him to the ground.

"Fuck you."

In seconds, the purple-haired woman was gone, leaving the apartment eerily quiet and still. Kaji slowly sat up, shaking his head from side to side for a moment before slowly reaching up and pressing two fingers against his cheek.

"Sss!"

He hissed, pulling his hand away and cupping it in front of his mouth to spit into it, his eyes oddly flat and expressionless as he stared at the mingled blood and saliva sitting in his palm.

Rei stood motionless, entirely at a loss for what to do or say. Nothing in her experiences – even kissing another girl and being slapped for it – could have prepared her for the sight she had just witnessed. She was aware that the Major was rather temperamental, but the rage she had exhibited tonight took Rei's breath away.

Had she ever been that passionate about anything?

"…you didn't lock the door, did you."

Rei blinked at the sudden statement. Kaji's tone indicated that this was not a question, but Rei still shook her head.

"Son of a bitch that hurt," Kaji muttered, rising to his feet and walking calmly into the kitchen to tear a paper towel off of the roll. "I should have seen that coming."

"The… major striking you?" Rei wondered.

Kaji waved the hand not occupied with wiping the blood out of his mouth. "Nof," he murmured through the paper towel, "ge'ing caud."

"May I ask you something?"

Tossing the paper towel in the garbage, Kaji mumbled, "Could I stop you?"

"Why do you say 'getting caught'?" Rei asked slowly. "It was my understanding that you were not exclusively dating either Major Katsuragi or Miss Ibuki," she paused for a moment, gathering the right words. "Why then, were they so upset?"

Shrugging, Kaji gave a simple reply.

"Perception."

"Perception?"

"Yeah," the man nodded, "perception. I never said I was dating either one of them exclusively… but I never said I wasn't, either, so they both perceived that I was just with them."

Rei considered this. "Then… it would be their own mistake for believing that without validation, wouldn't it?" she ventured carefully.

"Do you tell everyone you want to date that there are other people you're chasing too?"

"There is a difference," Rei began, "since I am not officially dating any of them as of yet, there is no rea-"

"Ah, the double-standard rears its ugly head," Kaji cut in dryly. "Withholding information is the same as lying." He shook his head. "You're a lot more like me than I thought, Miss Ayanami… you just have to learn not to try bullshiting a bullshitter."

"I do not follow."

Kaji folded his arms. "You're trying to convince me that it's ok for you to keep the fact that you're seeing other people from the people that you're seeing, giving them the impression, by extension, that you're seeing only them."

Pursing her lips, Rei chewed on this complicated sentence. "But it is not the same," she finally replied, "because I am not making love to any of the people I am attracted to."

With a snort, Kaji countered, "So if you were screwing them, you'd tell them 'hey, can you hurry up? I've got another date in a half hour'?"

"No," Rei shook her head, trying to keep up with all the ideas coming at her, "that would be… inappropri-"

"But not as inappropriate as being up front with someone and letting them know you're not interested in just them," Kaji cut in. "Does Shinji know that you're fooling around with Hikari?"

Rei fell silent.

"…and there you have it."

"It is immaterial," Rei pointed out quickly. "There is nothing between Hikari and I."

"But if there was," Kaji insisted, "would you run up to Shinji and tell him? Hm?"

More silence.

"This isn't getting us anywhere."

Kaji reached into the freezer, pushing a few items aside before pulling out a bag of frozen peas.

Rei stared at them. "I did not know you had those," she observed. "Are you… hungry?"

"Oh they're not to eat," Kaji said, slamming the freezer door closed, "I keep them around for this."

So saying, he pressed the bag against his face, sighing in relief as the cold plastic soothed his pain somewhat.

"Now this," he said, pointing to the bag with his free hand, "and that," he pointed to his liquor cabinet, "are the perfect one-two for anything that ails you. If you'll excuse me, now, I have an appointment with inebriation."

Rei watched in silence as the man went over to the cabinet and pulled out a rocks tumbler and a bottle of bourbon. Instead of pouring himself a glass, however, Kaji took the entire bottle and began walking towards his room.

"Mister Kaji?"

"Hmm?"

"About Miss Ibuki and Major Katsuragi," Rei began, "what will you do now?"

Kaji shot her an incredulous look. "Were you just sleepwalking for that whole conversation, or something?" he wondered. "It's over, Rei… what could I do now that would have any effect on this situation, hmm? They both hate me, and they both have very good reason to hate me… how could I turn this around?"

Rei considered this for a moment before thoughtfully answering, "I suppose you might try talking to them and explaining your-"

Kaji's bitter laugh cut her off as effectively as if he had backhanded her.

"God," he marveled, shaking his head as he continued towards his room, "you really are stupid."

Rei felt her cheeks growing hot.

"But they will both be so unhappy now."

"Happiness is the accumulation of little things," Kaji said quietly, pausing just outside of his room, "relationships… are little things, Miss Ayanami. They come… they go. Treat them like that, and you'll never be afraid of losing anything as long as you live."

As he stepped through the doorway, Rei softly whispered, "That is how I have been taught to treat them my whole life… and it has not brought me happiness."

Kaji frowned… but offered no further comments as he closed his door and got down to the serious business of drinking his cares away.

Slowly, Rei undressed, leaving her clothes where they fell and climbing into bed. For some time, she considered all that had been said, going back over what she knew of Maya and Misato's behavior before, during, and after their time with Kaji. In her analyses, she determined several commonalities… but only one that she had not yet managed to try for herself.

Closing her eyes, the First decided that this conclusion bore some more consideration, though in the back of her mind, she was already formulating potential scenarios and anticipating probable reactions.

When she finally fell asleep, much later than usual, her path was already laid out. All that remained was to wait for the ideal time to move forward and try to seize the happiness she perceived the other women to possess.

Perhaps, she mused as she drifted off, she could succeed where they had failed.

To be concluded…