Disclaimer: Same as Chapter 1.
Chapter 27: Galatians
Asuka awoke to find herself in a warm bed. After blinking a few times, to ensure she wasn't dreaming, she pulled herself into a sitting position, only to grasp her forehead and lay back down.
My head...
She suddenly realized that she was burning hot, despite being covered in cold sweat. The girl groaned miserably to herself as she continued to lay in bed, too tired to move.
"Ah, good. You're awake."
A gentle, almost lyrical voice floated into the small bedroom as its owner followed. Kaworu was holding a tray with a pot of hot tea, steam drifting lazily from the spout. Upon seeing the boy, Asuka's blank, fatigued face grew furious and she prepared to jump out of bed and finish what she had started, but the throbbing in her temples instantly put any thought of moving at bay. Kaworu chuckled lightly.
"It's probably not a good idea for you to move too much-- I imagine you must feel quite disoriented right now."
The redhead resisted the urge to yell at Kaworu for stating the painfully obvious, but for some reason she simply whispered,
"...Where am I?"
"Oh... You fainted in the street, so I brought you to my apartment," the boy said with an innocent smile as he poured a cup of the hot liquid and handed it to her. She accepted it hesitantly, then stared at the tea with a look of barely-concealed suspicion. Noting Asuka's expression, he arched an eyebrow and asked her what was wrong.
"...This isn't drugged, is it?"
At her remark, Kaworu let out a hearty laugh, not realizing that she was being completely serious.
"Of course not! What kind of silly question is that?" Asuka was quickly losing her temper.
"It's NOT a 'silly question'-- I don't even know you! How do I know you haven't already tried to have your way with me, you pervert?"
"...That's twice you've called me that. What is a 'pervert'?" he asked seriously. She stared at him, at a complete loss for words.
Great. He's either acting stupid or he's just retarded. Why'd I have to be helped by someone like this?
"Just...nevermind!" Asuka decided to throw caution to the wind and lifted the cup to her lips, tired of trying to speak to her host. Finding that it was untainted (and also very tasty as well), she continued to drink, careful not to burn her tongue. She at first didn't notice that Kaworu was continuing to calmly stare at her with a smile on his face, but as soon as she caught him in her peripheral vision, she turned angry eyes in his direction. "What the hell are YOU looking at!"
"Nothing in particular," the wiry young man answered honestly. "I was only wondering why you were out in such bad weather." Asuka's face softened slightly, but her furious anger had merely turned to annoyed confusion. When she said nothing, Kaworu decided to elaborate. "...You live with the Major and Shinji, correct? There's no reason that you should have been outside with carrying clothing in a traveling bag with you." Of course, he knew exactly why she had that bag with her, but a display of concern would be the most effective way to gain the Second's trust. Asuka only glanced away from him, her eyes focused on the bed she was still laying on and her voice only just above a whisper.
"...What do you care?" Kaworu sighed internally, but he didn't betray his frustration with Asuka's cold demeanor on his face.
"Miss Sorhyu, I fail to understand why you are acting this way towards me. I have done nothing but offer you my help..."
"...And what?" Asuka growled dangerously, the change in behavior startling Kaworu. "I have to benice to you, is that it? Don't bother holding your breath, because the only thing you're getting from me is-- OW! GODDAMNIT!" She had gotten so agitated that the hand holding her teacup had jerked suddenly, spilling the hot liquid onto her left hand. She cringed at the heat, massaging the now bright-red part of her skin in an effort to alleviate the unpleasant sensation. She had been so focused on cursing the burn in both German AND Japanese that she practically jumped out of her skin when Kaworu reached over and pulled her left hand closer to him.
"W-WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU--" Kaworu managed to silence her with a single gentle look as his eyes locked with hers. It was an intensity that frightened her slightly, but also brought on a different emotion that confused her.
"...I am attending to your injury. Things like this should not be left alone, after all." He took some antiseptic out of a small First-Aid kit (he'd gone to the kitchen to retrieve it while Asuka was preoccupied with her cursing) and began to dab the area of the burn with a cotton swab. Asuka was about to tell him to 'piss off, I can take care of it myself,' but she sighed instead, reluctantly allowing him to touch her. As Kaworu continued to silently treat the small injury, she was surprised by the softness of his hands. Even though this was the last position she wanted to ever be seen in-- the great Asuka Langley Sorhyu pathetically being given help by the very person who had taken away her reason for being-- she somehow felt a strange, but undeniable, sense of security, as well as a slight pang of disappointment when he had finished and put her now-bandaged hand back onto the bed. "Now then...I believe you were telling me something?" Kaworu said with a smile as he turned his attention back to his guest.
Against her will, Asuka felt warmth radiating from her face as she looked at the pale boy. She physically attempted to shake the image of his smile from her mind's eye and speak.
"Well, I...uh..." Her voice trailed off as she racked her brain, unable to remember why she had been so angry.
God, what the hell's wrong with me? I've never even SEEN this kid, but... I feel like I've known him forever...
"Umm...Thanks...I guess..." she said with a degree of proud reluctance. Kaworu only continued to favor her with a gentle smile, which deepened her blush and caused her to look away again.
The familiar hiss of the mechanical front door pulled Shinji and Rei's attention away from the dinner they were enjoying. A sigh preceded the form of Misato as she walked through the threshold to the kitchen and smiled a greeting at the two children at the table.
"Oh...Hi, Misato." Shinji said with what was barely-concealed disappointment. It didn't escape the sharp older woman, though, and she narrowed her eyes at the boy.
"Hey, what kind of 'hello' is that? I don't work these shifts just so I can come home to a bunch of gloomy kids, you know."
"Uh, sorry..." Shinji started, but Misato cut him off with a wave and a smile.
"I'm just kidding, Shinji." She suddenly realized that there was a familiar voice that was noticeably absent from such an easy opportunity to berate Shinji's overly apologetic nature. "...Hey, where's Asuka?"
"...Asuka has been absent since before Shinji and I returned from the market," Rei quietly answered. Misato's brow furrowed slightly in response as she looked out the window at the dark sky.
That's odd... she never misses dinner.
"...Well, it's probably nothing," Misato assured them. "Probably just at a friend's house."
Shinji nodded in agreement, but his sullen expression made his worry apparent. His air of brooding, combined with Rei's stoicism, put cracks in the rock of Misato's certainty. By the time she had finished up the leftovers from dinner she was beginning to get worried.
Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to check in with Section 2.
She walked to her room, on the precedent of getting changed, and once there picked up the phone near her unmade futon and dialed a few numbers. After a few seconds the dial tone stopped, and Misato knew they were listening.
"This is Major Katsuragi. I'm calling in regards to the current location of the Second Child." A voice, clearly altered for the sake of security, responded.
"...The Second Child is currently inside the residence of Kaworu Nagisa, Fifth Child."
How Misato was able to keep from dropping the phone in surprise was only due to her ability to maintain her composure in emergency situations, one of the many reasons she was ultimately selected for the position of Chief Strategic Officer. Instead she stood there in a state of utter speechlessness.
"...Major Katsuragi?" the voice on the opposite end of the line said tentatively, uncertain that she was still there. Misato quickly pulled herself together.
"...I want you to put both children on the highest priority observation level. Also, I'd like a report of all activity preceding this call given to me by tomorrow. Ifanything out of the ordinary happens, I want to be contacted immediately. Understood?" The voice assented and then hung up. Misato, still reeling from the information, slowly put the reciever down a few minutes later. She changed out of her NERV attire, letting it lay carelessly on the ground as she grabbed a tank top and pair of flannel sleep bottoms, her mind distant.
"...Well, I just talked to Hikari on the phone," she said with a smile to Shinji, seated on the couch with Rei. "...Asuka's staying over there tonight." Shinji let out a sigh, and even Rei looked somewhat relieved. As Misato headed to the kitchen to grab a beer, she thought about her three charges, one of whom could be in danger at this very moment.
Asuka... Just be careful.
A/N: Okay, to answer what everyone is probably thinking-- Asuka and Kaworu aren't going to hook up...well, not in the basic sense of the term. I did want her to have the kind of relationship with him that Shinji had with Kaworu in the series, which (in my opinion) was one more of deep trust and friendship than physical love. Since this Shinji doesn't like Kaworu and has chosen to remain close to Rei as opposed to abandoning her, Asuka has reached rock-bottom instead of him, and thus it makes her more vulnerable to Kaworu's snake-in-the-grass friendliness. Anyway, see you all next chapter! Getting ever nearer to the climax...