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"Dialogues"

- Thoughts -

"Radio Talk"


Liability Note:

Evangelion, its characters and setting are the property of Hideaki Anno. Any brands, movies and series mentioned in this Fanfic are the property of their creators.


(*)


Chapter 15 - Fall Part 02.

"Okay then, is that all you can remember?" asked Laura professionally.

Shinji at this moment was recovering from the emotions that came with the painful memories, Misato still had her hand on his shoulder to try to give him some comfort, she was trying very hard to hold herself together, she could feel that she was about to explode, Misato wanted to leave the room and hunt Sebastian down.

After a few seconds, Shinji wiped the tears that streamed down his face, he took a few deep breaths and raised his head to speak, his voice still faltering a bit.

"Yes ... I guess so." Shinji spoke as he wiped his face.

Laura nodded and spoke.

"Okay, then I'll close this deposition." Laura spoke as she raised her arm, pressed the button that turned off the camera recording, took the memory card where the testimony was and put it away in her jacket pocket, the room was in an uncomfortable silence, everyone was imagining Shinji's words in their heads.

Laura nodded slowly and spoke.

"Okay, thank you very much Shinji, I know it must have been hard for you to remember these facts, but I assure you it was for a good cause." Laura spoke as she smiled at Shinji.

Shinji tried to smile back, but these memories had drained a lot of energy from him, he was thinking about Laura's words.

"Okay, you guys can go, be in touch again soon." Laura spoke as she stood up and pushed the button that opened the windows again, natural light illuminated Laura's office again.

Misato stood up and looked at Mari and Asuka who were right behind her, they all had a fierce look on their faces, they knew that Shinji had suffered with Sebastian, but hearing their own words about what had happened made their blood boil.

Shinji was still sitting, he had a distant look on his face, it was obvious to all of them that he was stuck in some memory, Misato approached him and gently put her hand on his shoulder, Shinji still had the distant look on his face.

Misato seeing that her touch had no effect, she shook him lightly to get his attention, he continued without responding, the only movement he made was of his breathing, Misato began to worry when she saw that he looked like a statue, Misato began to think that they had gone too far in the statement.

New tears began to run down Shinji's face again.

"Shinji, is everything okay?" Misato spoke as he bent down and looked at Shinji's face.

Seeing that Misato was still with Shinji, Laura turned and looked at the pair, she looked confused but decided not to interfere, Asuka turned and looked at the scene as well, she slowly approached them and stooped down beside Misato, they exchanged a look before Asuka spoke.

"Baka-Shinji?" Asuka asked, Misato could feel that she had a slight hint of concern in her voice, but turned her attention back on Shinji who was trembling slightly now, she could see that he was starting to panic.

Asuka thought and remembered the moment she had with Shinji in the room a few days ago, she slowly raised her hand, placed it on Shinji's cheek and spoke as softly as she could.

"It's okay Shinji." Asuka spoke as calm as she could, she could see that this day was hard for him, he had been in this war for fourteen years, she had seen people traumatized before.

Misato, seeing the scene in front of him, couldn't help but smile softly, but soon turned his attention back to Shinji, Misato seeing that he began to calm down, allowed himself to let out a sigh of relief.

Shinji seemed to have come back from the world in which he was trapped, he looked around, saw Misato's worried look and noticed a hand on his cheek, he realized that the arm came from Asuka, when their eyes met, Asuka quickly withdrew her hand and looked away to hide the blush that appeared on her face, she stood up and went to Mari's side who was smiling.

"Shut your mouth four eyes, if you tell anyone about this I swear I will kill you when you sleep." Asuka spoke threateningly to Mari who kept the smile on her face.

Mari took a deep breath and spoke smiling. "I guarantee nothing princess."

Shinji had recovered enough to speak, but before he had the chance Misato asked, she still kept a wary look on her face.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Misato asked still staring at him.

Shinji sighed and brought a hand to his face, he was still trembling. "Yes ... I'm fine."

Misato nodded and stood up, Shinji slowly stood up as well, they walked to the door together, Laura gave a simple knock and was greeted by the UN soldier.

"Ma'am?" The soldier asked.

"We're going back to the parking lot." Laura replied.

"Yes ma'am." The soldier answered back as he closed the door.

Laura turned and looked at everyone in the room and nodded.

"Let's go." Laura spoke as she opened the door and saw that the four soldiers were already standing by waiting for them.

The group made their way to the parking lot, they took the same route as before, Misato approached Laura and asked.

"Isn't that a bit over the top?" Misato asked curiously, she thought everything Laura had done to ensure safety was a bit much.

Laura looked back, gave a small smile and spoke back.

"You can never be too careful, we are dealing with a powerful person after all." Laura spoke to Misato with a look that knew the reason for exaggerating the safety of a witness.

Misato stared back at her, she understood Laura's fear, after all Shinji had just given his testimony against the current WILLE commander.

When the group arrived in the parking lot, Misato waved for Mari, Shinji and Asuka to get into the car, she turned to Laura and spoke softly to her.

"What now?" Misato spoke thoughtfully.

Laura sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. "Well now leave it to me, I will start the process with him, I will gather more evidence so this case won't last long." Laura spoke looking at Misato.

"And Shinji?" Misato spoke expectantly.

"He's technically still a prisoner." Laura spoke as she looked down, Misato could feel her anxiety begin to rise.

"But with his help in dismantling a scheme and Judge Ayana's coercion confirmed, he has a good chance of getting a good deal." Laura concluded.

Misato could feel a smile wanting to form on her face, but she managed to control herself well, she nodded, and looked confused at Laura, Misato had thought it strange that Laura didn't want to claim custody of Shinji now that she found out he is alive.

"You're not even going to try?" Misato spoke with a raised eyebrow.

"Try what?" Laura asked confused.

"Getting Shinji out of Wunder." Misato spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Laura laughed low and spoke. "That won't be necessary, he's at Wunder, technically he's in confinement."

Misato can't help but smile at this, she realized that Laura's focus was on Sebastian and not on Shinji.

Laura sighed low and spoke wearily. "I have to go now, I'll be in touch for the next interrogation."

"Interrogation?" Misato spoke in confusion.

Laura turned and spoke. "Yes, since the Third and Fourth Impact process will be reopened, we will have to question Shinji about it."

Misato looked at her for a while, she lowered her gaze, Laura noticed this and spoke calmly to reassure Misato.

"I'm sorry Colonel, but unfortunately this will have to be done." Laura spoke calmly.

Misato nodded faintly, she knew that Shinji would have to talk about what happened a few years and months ago, she hoped that he could sort out this whole mess he got himself into and end this matter once and for all. Misato turned around and got into the car, she received looks from everyone, she looked around and nodded as she put the car in motion.

The way back to Wunder passed in silence, Misato was thinking about Shinji's interrogation, she didn't know if he could handle it, but she knew he would have no choice, Mari was thinking about her routine things, Asuka was thinking about the moment she had calmed Shinji down, she looked at him for a moment, and saw that he was looking out the window, she stared at him for a few seconds before looking at the palm of his hand.


Shinji's Improvised Room - Wunder

Four days had passed with Shinji's testimony, he was lying in his bed sleeping soundly, Shinji again was back in Misato's old apartment.

Shinji was dreaming that everyone was at the apartment, Misato had bought pizza for everyone, Kensuke was sitting very focused on trying to pull conversation with Rei, Toji was very blushing talking to Hikari who was holding Pen-Pen, Asuka was talking to Mari, Misato was talking to Kaji as they both drank a beer.

Shinji smiled at the scene, he loved everyone's presence, he would love for this dream to come true, but he was cut off from his thoughts when a voice came up beside him.

"What are you thinking Shinji-Kun?" Kaworu asked in his nonchalant way.

Shinji turned and looked at Kaworu, he lowered his gaze and spoke sadly. "I wish it was real, I don't even know what's real or not anymore."

Kaworu stared at him for a few seconds. "You know, the real and the imagination can be perceived with the feelings and sensations, you just need to look inside yourself and you will know the difference."

Shinji was thoughtful for a few seconds, the apartment seemed to be frozen, everyone was standing still as if someone had "paused" time, he looked around with a confused look.

Kaworu stared at Shinji's reaction, and smiled at him. "That fake world is not the solution dear Shinji."

"Why not?" Shinji spoke sadly. "I wish I never woke up."

"But it wouldn't be real, a dream world is not right." Kaworu spoke.

"Remember what I said Shinji-kun, give it a chance." Kaworu spoke with the original smile.

Shinji stared at him. "What do you mean by that?"

"I want you to stop doubting, remember Shinji, happiness can be achieved when you have the will to be happy." Kaworu spoke facing Shinji. "But not here, time to wake up Shinji."

Shinji noticed the world start to unravel around him, he felt a weight on his arm, when he opened his eyes he noticed a ball of red hair, he saw that Asuka was using his arm as a pillow and with her fingers intertwined with his hand, Shinji found the scene in front of him strange, but he thought his life was already strange enough to complain, he gently tried to wake Asuka up with his free arm, he shook her a little, Shinji smiled when he heard her mumble.

Asuka slowly raised her head, she was getting annoyed at being woken up, but when she realized that there was no one else in the room, she realized that her plan of not waking Shinji had failed, she rested her forehead against Shinji's arm and sighed.

"Hi Asuka." Shinji spoke sleepily as he stretched out his numb arm.

Asuka was thankful that it was dark because of the blush on her face as she realized that she had slept with her hand in Shinji's.

"Did I wake you up?" Asuka asked awkwardly.

"No, I didn't realize you were here until just now." Shinji spoke as he sat up in bed.

Asuka felt better to see that if the plan hadn't completely failed, she widened her eyes when she saw that Shinji had moved to one side of the bed, opening up a space.

"What are you doing?" Asuka asked sleepily and confused.

Shinji felt himself blushing as he saw what he was doing. "Making some room for you, that chair doesn't look very comfortable."

Asuka's eyes widened at Shinji's action, she hadn't expected this, she was already content to go back to her room, she began to judge whether she should accept Shinji's invitation.

- You know what? Fuck it, I've done this before. - Asuka thought as she got up and started to lie down on the bed.

When Asuka was lying on the bed, she settled back on Shinji's chest, she began to listen to his heartbeat, she couldn't deny that this sound calmed her.

Shinji gently put an arm around Asuka's back, he felt strange for doing this, he didn't know where all the courage for such an act was coming from, but as Asuka didn't complain he settled down.

Again silence reigned in the room, both enjoying the comfort, it didn't take long for them to be in the dream world.


As the days went by, Shinji was sitting in his makeshift room on a chair next to Asuka, Mari, Sakura and Rei. Everyone was talking about random things, telling stories of things they had experienced.

It was lunchtime and Mari had suggested that they go to lunch with Shinji, Asuka denied it at first, but Mari had teased her that she had to share Shinji with everyone, that she couldn't have exclusivity, Asuka blushed strongly at Mari's mention.

Sakura was laughing with the story told by Mari, she took the napkin and wiped her face.

"I never get tired of hearing that story, I remember Ken choked when you told it to us that day." Sakura spoke laughing, she didn't realize that Shinji had stopped eating and looked at her with a confused look.

Mari realized this and looked at Shinji. "What is it Shinji, have you fallen in love?"

Shinji turned his head to Mari, she realized why, Mari thought about Sakura's answer and realized that no one had told Shinji about Toji or Kensuke yet.

"Oh ... You don't know yet?" Mari asked as she took another spoonful of her paste.

"He doesn't know what?" Rei asked in her soft voice, she hadn't spoken yet, but her presence had become good for the group.

Asuka turned and spoke to Rei. "Wonder Girl, she referred to the goofy duo."

Rei looked at her confused, Sakura spoke calmly.

"So, sorry if I didn't tell you, but my brother and Kensuke will be very happy to know that you are alive." Sakura spoke happily, but she didn't understand the look on Shinji's face, he seemed to be in another world.

"Everything okay Shinji?" Sakura asked.

Shinji raised his gaze and spoke. "Toji ... Are they okay?"

Sakura looked at him confused, "Yes, Toji is fine, Kensuke and Hikari too."

Shinji felt a weight come off his shoulders at this, he thought that everyone had died.

"Why did you think otherwise?" Asuka spoke as she sipped her juice.

"When I was at NERV, they gave me a shirt that was Toji's, I thought he was dead." Shinji spoke as he lowered his gaze.

Everyone in the room was silent, they realized that this was the first time they had talked about the time in Shinji's NERV.

"No matter now, you should know that Toji, Kensuke, Hikari and that demon bird are fine." Asuka spoke trying to lighten the mood in the room, not that it got bad, but this was still a touchy subject.

Shinji smiled genuinely at the answer, having his old friends alive and Pen-Pen made Shinji start to smile, all the girls looked at him with a confused expression on their faces, it was the first time since his return where they saw him genuinely laugh and smile, with Shinji's laughter, they all started to laugh as well.

After a few minutes, when everyone had calmed down, Shinji looked at the ground again and whispered. "That's good."

Mari smiled at the scene, she could see that he had taken a huge weight off his back, looked around and made a sign for Sakura to talk about Toji having married Hikari.

"Shinji?" Sakura called out, getting Shinji's attention, she spoke with a smile on her face. "You'll be happy to know that Toji and Hikari are married now."

Shinji smiled for information. "They've always had a chemistry."

Mari smiled mischievously, she turned and looked at Sakura. "And you Sakura, when are you going to stop staring at Kensuke's ass and go attack? "

Sakura blushed strongly, she looked at Mari in shock who only stared at her.

Shinji, Asuka and Rei just froze and looked at Sakura.

"Sakura and the Goofy Nerd?" Asuka spoke dismissively. "What terrible taste in men."

Shinji looked shyly at Sakura who was wanting to stick her head in the nearest hole. Rei couldn't help but smile at the scene in front of him, he was beginning to understand Mari's slang with the books and research he was reading.


Shinji was in his makeshift room, he was thinking about the week he had, the night he spent with Asuka, the lunches he spent with his friends, Shinji started thinking about how he should make up for the effort everyone is putting in for him, his train of thought was cut off by the bedroom door opening, Shinji looked to see who it was and saw it was Misato.

She approached the bed, Shinji sat down and waited.

"Hi Shinji, there are some things I want to talk to you about." Misato spoke, she was clearly uncomfortable with the whole thing.

"Sure." Shinji spoke as he sat up better, he couldn't face Misato for long, he still felt bad for everything he had caused.

Misato sighed and nodded.

"First, you know that with the reopening of the third and fourth impact case, the UN will want to question you about it." Misato spoke observing Shinji's reaction.

Shinji just looked down, he knew he had to explain, he sighed a few times, he remembered the promise he made to himself, he would take responsibility, he nodded.

Misato knew that he would not have another opportunity to talk to Shinji about anything else.

"But that's not what I wanted to talk to you about." Misato spoke as she approached where Shinji was sitting.

Shinji stared at her with a confused look, he was not understanding what would be so difficult for Misato to talk about.

Misato breathed in and sighed a few times before speaking. "Do you remember at your trial? ... When the prosecutor read a statement from me?"

Shinji felt his body freeze, he remembered that day, that was when Misato had called him a monster, he only nodded.

"You called me a monster." Shinji spoke weakly as he stared at the ground.

Misato closed her eyes, she could feel the guilt in her body, the truth was that she couldn't even sleep properly because of this mistake, but hearing Shinji's next sentence left her in shock.

"But that's okay." Shinji spoke still looking at the ground.

Misato was wide-eyed, she didn't think this of Shinji, at this point she shook her head strongly.

"No Shinji, you are not." Misato spoke as he felt tears forming in his eyes.

"Yes I am Misato, you tried to help me but I... " Shinji was speaking, he was also beginning to feel the tears forming in his eyes.

"Stop Shinji!" Misato spoke strongly with tears streaming down her face. "You were trying to save Rei, I don't know why I said that."

Shinji at this moment was looking at Misato.

Misato allowed herself to cry openly. "I was so frustrated with you not coming back from inside EVA, a lot was going on at that time ... I know it's no excuse but ... All that shit going on ... You were lost ... Asuka was in the hospital and I was drunk." Misato spoke looking down at the floor.

An uneasy silence reigned in the room.

"When I was questioned about what happened on the third impact, Ritsuko was saying that it depended on you coming out, and you didn't come out ... Damn Shinji you didn't come out from inside that thing, we didn't know that we know today." Misato stopped to take a breath and wipe his face. "I started comparing you to my father ... He abandoned me and my mother for his job ... I had gotten it into my head that you had abandoned me too and I ended up taking my frustration out on you, talked a lot of shit that I didn't believe."

"You know Shinji, you were one of the best things that ever happened to me Shinji ... You are the closest thing I have to a son ... But look at me, the closest I get to being a mother and I soon do an unforgivable thing ... I abandoned you when you needed me most." Misato spoke as she cried with her head bowed.

Shinji at this moment was looking at Misato's face, he couldn't believe that she saw him as a son, Shinji began to remember the times in the apartment, his thoughts in jail, how much he had a family back then and didn't know how to enjoy the moment.

"But you know what, now you were back ... Finally you had come out from inside the EVA ... You were there, standing on the bridge of the Wunder ... Confused and scared ... And what do I do? Nothing, I act as if you were nothing, a criminal... And when we finally get the chance to talk, I say nothing and just stand there like a prostitute in a spot ... You wanted answers, all I do is threaten to blow your head off." Misato stopped talking to take a breath. "I was so blinded by this war not to see that my most precious possession had returned. "

"But I ended the world, I let you and everyone down." Shinji speaks almost as a whisper.

"Shinji, you never let me down." Misato spoke with red eyes. "And the fourth impact was an accident, you didn't want to do it, you just wanted to fix things ... Who wouldn't have done the same thing you did ... If I woke up in a shitty world and all the people I loved hated me, I don't know what my reaction would be."

"And it was my fault too, it could all be solved with a conversation if I wasn't being such a jerk ... You never would have made the decision to run away ... The first time I thought you were dead, it was because of the collar ... When I saw that the panel showed detonated, I went to my room and cried all night." Misato spoke still crying. "When Mari told me the next day that you were alive ... I almost let off fireworks ... But when that son of a bitch said you killed yourself ... And I was pretty sure it was true... There was even a fucking medical record... It broke me Shinji, it really broke me."

Shinji at this moment was standing looking at Misato, he was in shock at all these words and emotions, he didn't know why, but he was feeling good hearing this, it was good to see that he was so dear to Misato.

Shinji stood up and approached Misato who was crying on the chair in front of him, he cautiously hugged her. Shinji felt Misato hugging him back, she squeezed him tightly while crying.

"I'm sorry." Misato speaks as she cries.

"It's okay Misato, I forgive you." Shinji speaks while crying as well. "And thank you."

Misato, listening to Shinji speak, felt a huge weight come off her shoulders. She cries more into his shoulder.

"But I have to take responsibility, accident or not." Shinji spoke as he hugged Misato.

Misato looked confused at the wall, she was still holding Shinji.

"We will help you Shinji get through this, this time I will not leave you alone."


Wunder

The next morning Misato was taking Shinji to the UN, this was the day chosen for his interrogation about the third and fourth impact, only Misato and Shinji were there this time, Asuka and Mari couldn't go because they had to do synchronization tests and simulations, Ritsuko had made it clear that they had to keep training, this attitude infuriated Mari and Asuka, they wanted to be there for Shinji.

Mari was on her entry plug, she was trying to concentrate but she couldn't, she had a bad feeling, she could swear something would go wrong today, she opened a private channel with Asuka and spoke.

"Princess, that's not right." Mari spoke looking into her plug.

"What was it four eyes?" Asuka replied with false disdain, she didn't like being left out either.

"Something is not right, I have a bad feeling." Mari spoke with genuine concern.

Asuka didn't answer, but she was also getting the feeling that something was wrong.

"Girls, your rates are low today." Maya spoke over the radio to the two.

Asuka huffed and tried to concentrate, Mari was doing the same, but they knew this day would not be productive.


UN

When the pair arrived at the UN, Misato noticed that Laura was again waiting in the parking lot, Misato turned to Shinji and nodded, she again looked at her gun and holstered it in the holster at her waist.

She turned to Shinji and told him to get out when she waved, he nodded and she got out of the car.

"Hi Principal Laura." Misato spoke as she greeted, she looked around and saw that she was with two soldiers instead of four like last time.

"Good to see you again Colonel." Laura spoke as she greeted back.

Misato gave a signal to Shinji who got out of the car and joined the group.

"Shall we?" Laura spoke as she waved.

The way was again in silence, Laura had prepared everything again so as not to have any inconvenience, when the group arrived at the office, Laura turned and looked at Misato and spoke.

"Unfortunately Colonel, you will not be able to participate today." Laura spoke professionally

"What?!" Misato spoke in shock.

"Sorry Colonel ... But don't worry, I'll have him back in a little while." Laura spoke trying to calm Misato down.

Shinji at this moment turned and spoke. "It's okay Misato."

Misato looked at Shinji for a moment and nodded. "I'll be out here, anything just call."

Shinji smiled and nodded, he entered Laura's office. Inside she sat down and again closed the windows for privacy, she set up the camera and spoke.

"OK Shinji, it's going to be like last time, I'm going to ask some questions. " Laura spoke to Shinji who was sitting in front of the camera, he nodded in agreement.

Laura turned on the camera and spoke. "OK Shinji Ikari, you are here today to give your testimony about the events known as the third and fourth impact, any questions before we begin?"

Shinji shook his head.

"OK, tell me about the events prior to what is known as almost Third Impact? "

Shinji adjusted himself in his chair and began to speak. "It was the day I decided to leave NERV, my father had done something and I had rebelled against him, I got an ultimatum and decided to leave."

Misato was outside the room along with the soldiers on guard, she doesn't know how long she was waiting for Shinji, but she wanted this wait to end so she could do something.

Misato didn't realize it, but one person had seen the duo walking down the corridor leading to Laura's room, this person was the soldier named Number One, he had seen Shinji entering the room together with the principal Laura, he widened his eyes at the sight, turned around and started heading towards the exit, he had to warn Sebastian.


Sebastian's Office - WILLE's HQ

"Are you sure?" Sebastian asked with wide eyes.

"Yes sir." Number one spoke quickly.

"Shit ... Shit ... Shit!" Sebastian shouted as he grabbed his gun. "Go to the hangar, start the VTOL and wait for me, I'll get some stuff and head over there."

The soldier nodded and quickly left the place, Sebastian calmly left his office and started heading towards the corridor that connected the UN building, he was going to get some supplies and give a false notice that he was going out for some conference, this notice had to be at the UN, after all he had to look like nothing was wrong.

The walk was of medium length, he was nervous as he walked, all he could think about was the conversation Shinji was having with Laura, Sebastian knew his career at WILLE was lost.


Misato was sitting in her chair waiting for Shinji to leave, she was bored as were the soldiers, she was wanting to go in and support Shinji, but she knew Laura wouldn't do anything to him, she knew Kaji after all.

Misato was wondering how they met, but before she could start thinking she heard a knock on Laura's door, the soldier opened it and saw that Laura had already finished, she was using the same procedure as before.

Laura opened the door and revealed Shinji a little down, Misato judged that it must have been because he had to remember all the bad memories, but he was better than the first time.

"Everything okay Shinji?" Misato asked worriedly, but she felt relieved when he nodded back and smiled briefly.

The group started to walk to the parking lot again.

Misato was standing next to Laura in front of Shinji, the guards were one in front of the group and the other in the back, they were technically protected. The group stopped in front of the elevator and Laura called out to him.

Inside the elevator, the group was silent as the first time, they were going down to the access to the parking lot.

Shinji was wondering if he had told everything he remembered, he had told all the events that had led up to the third impact, and everything he remembered about the fourth impact, he felt the elevator stop, he looked forward as the doors opened and they went towards the car that was ready, his eyes widened as they turned the corner and noticed the person who was grabbing something from the trunk of a vehicle that was parked.

Everyone stared at Sebastian, he was holding a suitcase on his shoulders, he turned around and saw Shinji standing next to Misato and Laura, the soldiers remained neutral as they didn't know he was a suspect.

Sebastian felt his blood run cold at the sight, he had seen that Shinji should have talked to her by now, he lowered his hand and picked up the gun he had placed inside the trunk.

Misato realized who it was, she quickly reached for her gun, Laura had a similar reaction, she touched the shoulder of the soldier in front of her to warn him of the impending danger.

Time seemed to be slow for Shinji, he could see Misato draw his gun from the holster at his waist, the soldier alerted by Laura turning around preparing his rifle, Shinji could see Sebastian's fierce eyes focused on him.

Sebastian in one quick movement, took the pistol and shot, his first shot hit the soldier who was in front of Laura, he turned the gun quickly and shot in the direction of Shinji, he was holding a bag on his shoulder, after shooting, he ran towards the door. Sebastian was an agile man, he ran fast through the door.

Misato fired back, she got in front of Shinji to give him some protection, The second soldier was on top of Laura and also started firing towards the door where Sebastian had escaped.

Laura, realizing all this, picked up her radio and spoke frantically.

"This is Director Laura Barbosa, I need immediate medical support in parking lot B, we have an injured man! " Laura spoke into her radio. "All security teams, Commander Sebastian Brown has opened fire on a group of people, he is armed and dangerous, I order his immediate arrest." Laura concluded as she pressed the wound on the wounded soldier.

Misato was still looking at where Sebastian had fled to, she was breathing very fast, she looked quickly at Shinji who was right behind her, they could hear the gunshots coming from inside the building, she turned to look at Shinji who had one hand on his chest.

Misato felt her blood freeze at the sight, she quickly put the gun down and went to check on Shinji.

"Shit Shinji!. " Misato spoke as she saw that her blouse had a hole in it, she quickly took it off.

Misato sighed with relief as she saw that the shot had failed to penetrate the bulletproof vest she had Shinji put on before coming to the UN, she raised her head and thanked the heavens for the idea she had when she got up this morning.

Shinji had a scared look on his face, but he seemed to be holding it together very well, they realized that a team had just arrived at the place where Laura was, they promptly made a small security perimeter and the doctor started working on the injured man.

"Everything okay Shinji?" Misato asked worriedly.

Shinji looked at Misato, he was already calmer, his times piloting the EVA 01 had made him have some self-control in high pressure situations.

"Yes, I'm fine ... My chest hurts." Shinji spoke as he put his hand where the bullet hit his vest.

"It will hurt, stopping a bullet is not an easy task." Misato spoke with a small smile on his face.

Laura at this point approached the soldier in charge of the group, she was agitated.

"Did they catch him?" Laura asked hopefully.

The soldier had a finger over his ear listening. "No ma'am, he escaped in a VTOL, the techs are tracking his position, they are sending VTOLS for pursuit and capture."

Laura shook her head; she was annoyed that he had managed to escape.

"Fuck!" Laura shouted muffled in Portuguese, her native language, the men stared at her, they didn't understand what she spoke, but judged it must be a curse. Laura knew that if he managed to cross the border into the red earth they would no longer be able to catch him.

Laura calmed down a little when she saw that the soldier was not badly hurt, the doctor said that he would survive, she approached Misato and Shinji.

Shinji had already put his shirt back on by now, he was still shaking with adrenaline, but he was holding it together very well, he stood next to Misato as Laura approached.

"Are you guys okay?" Laura asked with concern in her eyes.

Misato nodded at her, she looked at Shinji and saw the hole in his shirt, she widened her eyes and was ready to call the doctor when she felt Misato's arm stopping her, she looked shocked at Misato who stopped her from calling the doctor.

"He was wearing a vest, the bullet didn't go through." Misato spoke as he reassured Laura.

Laura felt relieved at the information, but she still nodded to the doctor in the group who approached.

"Ma'am?" The doctor spoke professionally.

"The boy was wearing a vest when he was hit, could you take a look at him?" Laura spoke to the doctor in front of her who nodded.

Shinji felt uncomfortable at the man's proximity, but he knew that Misato was on guard.

"Let's take a look." The doctor spoke as he lifted Shinji's shirt to see the spot where the puncture was, he thought it was strange Shinji had burnt marks in the rib area, but decided to keep the comment to himself, he began to analyze the area where the shot hit, the doctor groped the area for internal damage, Shinji tried to hide a groan of pain as the doctor squeezed lightly.

"You must have cracked a rib, a chest x-ray should confirm it, you'll be fine." The doctor spoke as he stood up and patted Shinji's shoulder lightly. "Take some painkillers for the pain and time will fix it."

Shinji nodded, he was used to living with pain, one more wouldn't be a problem, the doctor nodded back and went back to his group. Misato was standing next to Laura talking about the situation, Laura was listening to the radio looking for some update.


A few minutes ago - UN

Sebastian was walking with accelerated steps, he was looking in all directions for any threat, his head was racing with the whole situation. He raised his arm and looked at the time on the watch on his wrist, every second that passed he had more chances of being arrested.

Sebastian went down the stairs that led to the parking lot, inside his car he had a bag in the trunk that contained money, weapons and some other equipment, he opened the door and started walking towards his car.

Sebastian put his gun on the floor of his car, he began to check if everything was in order, Sebastian removed his shirt and put on a bulletproof vest, properly armored, he began to think about his situation.

- Son of a bitch, I should have killed you back then. - Sebastian thought angrily as he zipped up his shirt again.

Sebastian was about to close the door of his car when he heard the noise of the elevator and people's footsteps approaching, he didn't mind and turned his attention back to the task in front of him.

Sebastian heard the nearest footsteps and out of curiosity turned around and looked behind him, when he realized who the people were, he felt his blood freeze.

- Oh, shit! - Sebastian mentally shouted when he saw Shinji together with Laura, they were surrounded by two soldiers and Colonel Katsuragi.

Sebastian realized that now he had no escape, he looked down and saw the gun on the floor of his car, he quickly thought that he should kill everyone in the room, Sebastian knew that the chances were small, but he had to try.

He quickly took the gun and turned to the group that was already preparing to attack, Sebastian pulled the trigger of his gun on the nearest threat, the soldier who was in front of Director Laura, hitting him in the chest, then he turned his gun towards Shinji, Sebastian had a fierce look on his face, he was determined to kill Shinji.

Having Shinji in his sights, Sebastian pulled the trigger of his gun and started to run towards the corridor, he felt a blow on the side of his chest, but he couldn't stop, he just ran as fast as he could, the sound of gunfire continued until he reached the corridor and ran as fast as he could.

When he was near the area where access to the offices was provided, he slowed his pace to try to disguise his presence, Sebastian was looking in all directions for targets and danger.

- Shit, shit, shit. - Sebastian thought as he walked.

Sebastian listened to the guards' radio, it was Principal Laura's voice, his eyes widened. "This is Principal Laura Barbosa, I need immediate medical support in parking lot B, we have an injured man! " Laura continued. "All security teams, Commander Sebastian Brown has opened fire on a group of people, he is armed and dangerous, I order his immediate arrest. "

The guards looked at the radio where they received the order, they frowned at the information, but nodded, promptly they began to look around.

Sebastian reached for his gun as the guards' eyes tracked him.

"He's in sector D!" One of the guards spoke into his radio, he promptly took out his pistol and pointed it at Sebastian.

"Freeze!" The other shouted as he approached Sebastian.

Sebastian stopped and raised his arms, he was breathing fast and was thinking about how he could escape now.

When the guards approached, he felt his hand grab his and lower it to be properly handcuffed, Sebastian was a trained soldier, he promptly raised his leg and landed a kick right on the knee of the guard, who fell to the ground groaning in pain, the other seeing the situation, moved away to try to get his gun, but Sebastian's fist hit his nose, making him fall to the ground.

Sebastian picked up his gun and saw a group of guards rushing into the room, the people around were starting to panic at the situation, he aimed at the leader and fired two shots, the leader of the group was hit and fell to the ground.

The group stopped and shot back at Sebastian who started to run, he pointed his arm backwards shooting in random directions, again he was running through the corridors as fast as he could, he was thinking of the best way to get to the hangar where Number one was waiting for him.


Number one was waiting for Sebastian when he heard the call over the radio, he took a deep breath and grabbed the assault rifle he had and went to the door to wait for Sebastian and give him cover.

Number one was on the lookout for any threat, he started hearing shots and found some cover to protect himself, he heard the door opening and a person came running in, he realized it was Sebastian who had stopped and leaned on the wall to catch his breath from the run.

"Sir let's go!" Number one shouted for attention, Sebastian looked at him and ran towards him, at this moment a guard entered and pointed his gun at Sebastian.

Number One seeing that his leader was in danger, raised his rifle and promptly shot the attacker, the shot hit his head splattering the poor soldier's brains all over the wall.

Sebastian reached his soldier and they promptly went to the VTOL that was on and waiting.

Number One went immediately to the booth and Sebastian sat down, leaned on the wall, looked at Number One and shouted. "We're leaving now!"

Number one pushed a few buttons and took off with the VTOL, Number one turned and looked at his leader who was holding one side of his body. "Where to sir?"

"Follow the path marked on the GPS." Sebastian ordered as he removed his shirt and vest to analyze his damage, he promptly saw that he had a broken rib from the shot he got from Misato as he started to escape.

"Fucking cow." Growled Sebastian as he injected himself with a small dose of painkiller to deal with the pain.

Sebastian put his shirt back on and went to sit next to Number One in the cockpit. "Full speed ahead!" Sebastian ordered as he sat down.

Number one nodded and accelerated the VTOL as much as possible, they were heading towards the red earth, Sebastian knew they would never be hunted there, so he could buy some time.

Sebastian was thinking, he knew the only place he could go was to NERV to have some chance of survival, but how was he going to deal with Gendo and his idiotic cause as Sebastian thought? But he quickly pushed that thought aside, he had to focus on getting out of WILLE controlled territory first.


Wunder

Mari was coming out of her entry plug, she walked over to Asuka, they both had a thoughtful look on their faces. Before Mari could say anything the alarms began to sound, Maya spoke over the communicator.

"Mari, Asuka ... The UN is under attack, battle status level 2."

Mari and Asuka looked at each other and started running towards the EVAS cages at Wunder.

"I hate being right sometimes." Mari spoke to Asuka.

Asuka was thoughtful, she was worried about the UN being attacked by a Mark.09 guy, she knew that Shinji and Misato were at the UN, Asuka felt adrenaline start to flow through her body.

Mari separated and entered the input plug of unit 08, Asuka was entering the plug of Unit 02, she wasn't fully restored yet, but she could serve as a support, Asuka didn't like the idea of being a support, but she had too much on her mind to think about it.


Rei was with Ritsuko, she was fulfilling her role when they received the call.

Rei felt a tightness in her chest when she received the news that the UN was under attack, she promptly thought of Shinji.

"Let's go Rei!. " Ordered Ritsuko as she got up and headed for the command bridge, Rei promptly followed her.

Ritsuko arrived on Wunder's bridge, even though the ship was stopped, they still had the best sensors to search and locate possible targets, as Unit 01's S2 engine was still stopped, they were using the N2 reactors for their internal power.

"Status?" Ordered Ritsuko to the team below, Rei only stood by her side waiting to receive the orders.

"We are on level 02 alert, it looks like someone shot a group of people at the UN, we have been ordered to track the enemy ship that is moving away towards the red earth." Hyuga spoke typing on his keyboard.

"Shit, if only we could fly we could chase that bastard." Shigeru spoke next to Hyuga who nodded.

After a few minutes of screening, Hyuga spoke up in annoyance.

"Shit, the bastard got away, he's 200 km inside the red earth." Hyuga spoke in annoyance as he pointed to his console.

Ritsuko frowned in annoyance, she knew that Wunder could chase in the red zone, she had the necessary weaponry, but without EVA 01 they could do nothing.

"Shit, turn up the power to maximum, we have to try to locate their possible escape location." Ritsuko ordered, she looked at Rei who was promptly waiting beside her, she realized that she would be of no use on the bridge. "Rei? ... Go to the infirmary ... Help with whatever is needed."

Rei nodded and began to retreat from the bridge, Ritsuko couldn't help but smile as she saw Rei's form disappear.

- She's a fast learner. - Ritsuko thought while still looking at the now empty door, she remembered her double plug project, they now take out four pilots, a perfect match for her project, but she decided to save that thought for later, now she was hunting with the instruments the fugitive.


Misato was still next to Laura, they heard everything over the radio.

"Filho da puta!" Laura cursed low in Portuguese, Misato can't help but smile, she knew she was disguising it by her tone of voice, Laura turned around and spoke to Misato.

"Go back to Wunder colonel, things must be a bit hectic there right now." Laura spoke with a smile on her face.

Misato nodded, the bridge staff should be on level 02 alert now, she nodded to Shinji to follow.

Laura was looking at Shinji and Misato, they promptly got into the car and Misato started to go to Wunder.

Misato was driving, she could still feel the adrenaline in her body, it had been a while since she had been in a shootout like this before, she looked at Shinji who was quiet the whole time, Misato thanked her again for having had the idea to put a vest on Shinji.

"How are you?" Misato asked trying to lighten the mood.

"Well, just a little in pain." Shinji spoke still without lifting his gaze.

Misato nodded. "I know how it is, I've been shot at too, when we get to Wunder I'll have Sakura give you a good look."

Shinji looked up and looked at Misato, he smiled at her, Misato couldn't help but smile back, she was happy that they were starting to adjust again. The walk to Wunder was silent, but not an uncomfortable silence.


Wunder

Misato had arrived at the bridge, no one dared to ask why she was leaving Wunder at intervals, she walked over to Ritsuko who was at her panel, she had a scowl on her face.

"Did you catch him?" Misato asked.

Ritsuko shook her head sharply. "The bastard got away."

Misato clasped her hands together, she couldn't believe that Sebastian had managed to escape. She turned to the bridge and spoke for everyone to hear, she nodded to Ritsuko so that her speech could be heard by all of Wunder.

"Listen up everyone, this is Colonel Katsuragi ... A few moments ago today, Commander Sebastian Brown opened fire on a group of people at the UN." Misato stopped as he saw shock reaction on the faces of the people on the bridge, the same was repeated by the faces of the crew.

"The UN knows the reason for his betrayal, but has decided to keep it secret until the investigations are completed ... At the moment the fugitive is out of our reach inside the red earth, we will make every effort to bring him to justice, Colonel Katsuragi out."

Misato turned and looked at Ritsuko's shocked face. Misato signaled for her to go to her office.

"So he tried to kill everyone?" Ritsuko spoke as she closed the door so that she could have privacy, Misato activated the listening device and answered.

"Yes, we were leaving when we ran into him, Shinji had given his statement on Third and Fourth Impact and we were heading to the car to leave ... We ran into the son of a bitch." Misato was talking about what happened, she raised her hands and put them to her face and sighed.

Ritsuko's eyes widened, she would never have imagined that her friend was in the middle of the crossfire.

"He saw us and started shooting, wounded a soldier and ran off ... I think I hit him." Misato spoke with a smile on his face as he spoke the last part of his sentence.

"Wow." Ritsuko spoke as she sat down in her chair.

"Good thing I asked Shinji to put on a bulletproof vest." Misato spoke as she faced her friend who looked at her with a confused look on her face. "After Sebastian shot the soldier, he turned his gun around and shot Shinji ... Right in the chest."

Ritsuko was staring at Misato with an intense look, she nodded and sighed. "Good even ... How is he?"

"In pain, maybe a cracked rib ... I had Sakura take a look at him." Misato spoke as she looked at her computer and looked at the camera image she had in Shinji's room.


Sakura was going to Shinji's room, she had taken an X-ray image of his chest as Misato had ordered.

Shinji was sitting on his bed, he could feel his body shaking with the memories of everything that had passed some hours ago, his mental reverie was broken with the entrance of Sakura, she looked at Shinji with a smile on her face.

"Hi again Shinji, I have good news for you." Sakura spoke as she approached Shinji who stood looking at her expectantly.

"You have a cracked rib." Sakura spoke smiling as she showed the x-ray on her tablet.

"That's great news." Shinji spoke sarcastically, but in a good mood.

Sakura laughed at Shinji's response, she pulled herself together and spoke again. "But also, your ribs are recovering well, you've gained weight and all that good stuff that's great news." Sakura concluded still smiling.

Shinji nodded and spoke with a small smile on his face. "That's good, but it still hurts."

"It will hurt for a while, ribs are boring." Sakura spoke as she approached Shinji and hugged him.

Shinji felt his body freeze, he was not expecting Sakura's hug, when she broke the hug and spoke again. "Good thing you were wearing a vest, now I have to go."

Before she left, Shinji called her again. "Sakura wait!"

She turned around and looked at him.

"How are they? ... Is everyone really okay?" Shinji asked expectantly.

Sakura knew who Shinji was referring to, she smiled at him, Sakura walked over to Shinji's bed, picked up her cell phone, loaded some pictures and handed the device to Shinji.

Shinji took it and looked at the screen, in the picture were Toji, Hikari again holding Pen-Pen, Kensuke and Sakura, he can't help but smile, it was strange to see his older friends, but just the fact that they were well helped him a lot, he gave back Sakura's cell phone and spoke.

"Pen-Pen is fat." Shinji spoke smiling.

Sakura laughed and spoke nodding her head. "Yes, fat, old and grumpy."

Shinji laughed in his bed, Sakura again said that she had to go back to the infirmary and left, Shinji lay down completely and began to think about his life.


Infirmary - Wunder

As Sakura had returned, the alert level had already been removed and everyone started to return to their normal routine, Rei was still in the infirmary, she was trying to maintain a reasonable conversation with Sakura, she was improving a lot in this respect.

"Hi people." Mari spoke cheerfully as she approached Sakura and Rei, Asuka was following her closely, she had her hands in the pocket of her red jacket.

"Hi." Sakura greeted back. "How are you guys doing?"

"Well ... Can we go to your room?" Mari spoke expectantly, she wanted to talk about Misato's speech, they were worried about Shinji.

Sakura looked around and saw that everything was calm, so she could leave for a few minutes, Sakura nodded and stood up.

When the group reached the room, Sakura sat on her bed, she waited until everyone was comfortable and spoke.

"From what the Colonel told me, Commander Sebastian shot her when he saw her and Shinji in the parking lot, Shinji was shot in the chest." Sakura saw the shocked looks on everyone's faces, she spoke before panic and tears started. "But he's fine, Katsuragi made him wear a bullet proof vest, he has a cracked rib, but he's fine, I just saw him. "

The look of relief crossed everyone's face.

"Now what?" Asuka spoke still with her arms crossed over her chest.

Everyone in the room looked at Asuka, no one knew for sure what would happen now that the commander had fallen.


Shinji's makeshift room

Night was falling on Wunder, Shinji was lying staring at the ceiling, he was starting to get annoyed by this, he was getting bored.

The door opened to reveal Asuka.

Shinji sat up in bed and looked at her, he could see the anxiety in her eye.

"Baka ... I heard what happened, how are you?" Asuka asked as she approached the bed and sat down.

"Cracked rib, but okay." Shinji spoke as he sat up and adjusted himself on the bed.

Asuka nodded her head. "You have a talent for attracting bad luck hem?"

Shinji can't help but laugh a little.

Asuka leaned back in her chair, she had been told by Misato that Shinji's retrial will be tomorrow, Asuka offered to warn her, Misato at first refused, but was convinced by Asuka's look, so she asked her to speak nicely.

Asuka took a breath and spoke slowly. "Shinji, Misato asked me to let you know that tomorrow is the day of the retrial."

Shinji could feel the anxiety take over him at this moment, he lowered his gaze to the bed, he felt bad for everything that happened, Shinji was scared, he didn't want to be taken away from Wunder, to be away from everyone he loved.

Asuka noticed his discomfort and spoke up to calm him down a bit, "Hey brat, it's not that much, let's wait and see, by the way you've been through this before."

Shinji lifted his gaze and faced Asuka, he nodded to her, but he can't help but think about tomorrow, he decided to ask her a random thing to think about something else.

"How was your day?" Shinji mentally scolded himself for the stupid question.

Asuka blinked in surprise at the question, but she soon realized that he was trying to change the subject to distract himself.

"It was kind of good, the synchronization test was a bummer as usual." Asuka spoke as she crossed her arms on the chair she was sitting in.

Shinji nodded and had an idea to ask, he knew that Asuka always worried about her synchronization rate more than anything else in life.

"Asuka? ... What is your synchronization rate?" Shinji asked still looking down.

Asuka felt awkward at the question, she saw Shinji's almost desperate effort not to bring up the trial, but she was even enjoying the casual conversation she was having with Shinji, she took a deep breath and spoke proudly.

"It's at 81%, higher than any rate, I'm always breaking records, four eyes is a little behind, I think 78% or something." Asuka spoke with pride, she nodded dismissively at Mari's score, Shinji can't help but smile at seeing Asuka bragging about her sync rate.

"Asuka? ... Can I ask you something?" Shinji spoke as he remembered all the nights Asuka came to sleep in his bed, he was curious to know the real reason.

Asuka at this moment felt her body go rigid, she began to think of an answer and fast, she didn't want to tell Shinji that she missed contact with him, how comfortable she was by his side, that she didn't have nightmares, how much she wanted to say that she lay with him because she loved him.

Asuka bowed her head and spoke the only thing she had the courage to say. "Let's talk about it later."

Shinji nodded, he also wanted to know why, he also couldn't deny that spending nights with Asuka made him get a good night's sleep, that it relaxed him, that the guilt eased a bit to the point where he didn't have nightmares, but he realized that this must be a sensitive subject for Asuka, so he decided to wait until she was ready.

"Baka? ... It'll be okay tomorrow." Asuka spoke as she looked at Shinji.

Shinji wanted to believe her words, but he knew that the people who would judge him again hated him, he certainly wouldn't sleep tonight, he felt a little courage in suggesting something to Asuka.

"You ... Can you spend the night here?" Shinji asked as he felt his body trembling with anxiety.

Asuka looked at him a little in shock at Shinji's request, she was also looking forward to the trial, but she never expected that Shinji would ask her to stay, it was always her who took the initiative, Asuka can't help but smile internally at Shinji's courage, Asuka looked at her watch and saw that it was already close to midnight, she sighed and stood up.

Shinji still didn't know Asuka's answer, he stared at her form getting up from the chair, he began to feel his heart racing, Shinji began to regret asking, he could have sworn she would start calling him a pervert and beat him.

Asuka approached the bed with a neutral and strong look at him, she knew he must think she would cuss him out or something, Asuka can't help but enjoy the moment. "Aren't you going to make room?"

Shinji at this moment looked at her, who undid her pose and started laughing low, Shinji can't help but be a little relieved, he went to the side of the bed, opened the covers and saw Asuka sitting up and adjusting herself next to him, they were silent for a while.

Shinji at this moment stretched out his arm and turned off the light, but both were still wide awake, Asuka was looking at the ceiling, she remembered the day they went to get Shinji in space, she wondered why he hadn't come back sooner.

"Baka-Shinji?" Asuka asked looking up.

Shinji opened his eyes and replied calmly, he no longer cared for the nicknames, he knew that Asuka would never stop calling him that, but he couldn't help but like it a little.

"Yes Asuka." Shinji spoke as he looked up at the ceiling.

Asuka took a breath and asked. "Why didn't you come back before?"

Shinji was a little confused, "From NERV?"

Asuka snorted at the answer, but she also wanted the reason he had run away a few months ago, but she would ask later.

"No Baka, from space, why did you never come back from inside your EVA?" Asuka asked.

Shinji was staring at the ceiling, he didn't know why, he barely remembered that time, he remembered few things about it, he remembered flashes, a woman, memories and someone calling his name for help.

"I don't know ... I really don't know." Shinji answered honestly.

Asuka felt herself getting irritated by the answer, but before she could say anything, she heard Shinji speak again.

"Everything is still very cloudy, I remember seeing a woman, a grown woman, some flashes of memories and a person asking for help." Shinji spoke calmly.

Asuka's eyes widened, she remembered asking Shinji for help when she was trying to capture him in space, she felt her cheeks blush at the memory, she was thankful the lights were off so Shinji wouldn't see, but she can't help but smile at seeing that Shinji had heard her, Asuka turned away and spoke.

"Good night brat." Asuka spoke without malice to Shinji.

Shinji was looking at the ceiling, he was still thinking about the moment of his capture, he was wondering if the voice he heard was Asuka's, but he had other things on his mind.

"Good night Asuka." Shinji spoke as he closed his eyes to sleep.

Even with all the things going on, he was able to sleep, just having Asuka along with him calmed him down, the same with Asuka.


The next morning Misato woke up, she sat on her bed and began to reflect on the day, she knew it would be a stressful day, she got up and put on her uniform, when she was all set, she looked in the mirror and sighed.

Misato was on her way to Shinji's room when she heard footsteps, she automatically activated her alertness, she started looking around to see who this person was, Misato realized that the footsteps were coming from behind, she quickly turned around and saw Mari approaching.

"Hi Colonel." Mari spoke cheerfully as she saw Misato.

Misato relaxed at the sight of Mari, but she looked around and was looking for Asuka, she knew Asuka would not be left out.

Mari realized this and immediately spoke up. "The princess is not with me, she didn't come in the room yesterday." Mari spoke as she saw Misato's confused look and spoke with a mischievous look. "She must be with her cub."

Misato couldn't help but laugh, she made her way back to the makeshift room, she tried to keep a straight face, but couldn't, she reached the door, Mari wanted to open it and catch them both in the act, but Misato wouldn't let her, they went to the back room to take a peek, they saw that they were already awake, but Shinji was shirtless and waiting for Asuka to finish closing the hole from the gunshot he took.

When the women were facing the door again, Misato couldn't help but see the mischievous look on Mari's face, she was preparing herself for what was coming next, Misato sighed and swiped the card that opened the door, when the door opened, Asuka and Shinji looked at Misato and Mari who walked in with a smile on their face, Mari was making a great effort to keep up.

Asuka and Shinji looked at each other confused, but Asuka soon realized that Shinji was shirtless and she was holding his shirt, she put two and two together and realized what that implied, she blushed heavily and spoke.

"It's not what you guys are thinking." Asuka spoke red.

"So what is Asuka?" Misato spoke mischievously.

"I'm closing the hole in his shirt! " Asuka shouted in shame.

Shinji at this point was also heavily flushed.

"Ok, ok ... We have to leave in 5 minutes ... Do you want that moment to 'finish'?" Misato spoke with a suggestive smile.

Asuka huffed and turned her concentration back to her shirt, she was wanting to run out of the room, she finished fixing her shirt and tossed it to Shinji who put it on.

Misato seeing that the moment had passed, looked at Shinji and sighed, she approached him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's going to be okay." Misato spoke to calm Shinji who only nodded.

Misato nodded, she looked at Mari and Asuka who were arguing just behind her, nodding again. "Then let's go."

The group went to the loading area where there was a vehicle already waiting for her, the group got into the car and started to go to the UN, the way was silent, everyone was in their own worlds.

Laura was already waiting for the group, she was again with a strong guard around her, she didn't want to make the mistake of being caught by surprise again, she breathed in as she saw Misato's car enter the parking lot.

When the car stopped, Misato looked at everyone, but before they got out they heard Shinji's voice.

"Guys." Shinji spoke, anxiety could be seen in his voice, they all stopped to look at him.

"I ... I ... I just wanted to say thank you." Shinji spoke without raising his gaze, they all looked at him with a confused look, Mari was the first to ask.

"For what puppy?"

"For everything, in case I never see you guys again, I just wanted to say thank you for everything." Shinji spoke as he felt tears begin to form in his eyes.

All the women in the car smiled at Shinji, Misato reached out and held one of Shinji's hands and smiled at him, Mari hugged him and gave him a kiss on his cheek and spoke. "Don't worry, everything will be fine, but I accept your gratitude."

Asuka said nothing and only looked down.

"Come on guys." Misato spoke as she let go of Shinji's hand and got out of the car, when everyone was outside, Laura approached the group and spoke quietly.

"The trial will take place following the principles of the Nuremberg trial, for any possibility that this trial will not be legitimate." Laura spoke with conviction.

"Come on, everything is already prepared." Laura spoke to the group that began to follow her.

When they reached the venue, Laura turned and spoke. "This trial will have no audience, Shinji will stay here until the time he is called in." Laura noticed the look on everyone's face, especially Shinji's. "Sorry folks, but this is the procedure."

The place spoken by Laura was simple, inside the place there was a room with four UN guards, two would be outside and two inside, the room was simple but elegant, it had a leather sofa and a small table with a glass with water to be served to the occupant.

"Then I'll take them to the press area." Laura spoke trying to lighten the mood that had settled in the room.

Shinji started walking to enter, he was clearly shaking, but was interrupted by Asuka, she was trying to keep calm, but millions of possibilities were in her head, she was thinking about Shinji's thanks in the car, what if she would never see him again? , She couldn't wait any longer, Asuka raised her head and spoke.

"Shinji!" Asuka spoke as she approached Shinji, he stopped and turned around, he was clearly anxious. Shinji didn't say anything, but his look said everything Asuka wanted to know.

Asuka stopped a few inches away from Shinji, she raised her hand and held Shinji's hand, she was taking courage to do what she had in mind, with her free hand, Asuka took it to Shinji's cheek and caressed it, Shinji couldn't deny the comfort she was giving him, but he didn't expect that she would drag her hand to the back of his neck and pull him.

Shinji was confused, but when Asuka's lips met his, all his worries disappeared.

Everyone in the room was wide-eyed at the scene in front of them, no one expected Asuka to kiss Shinji, Mari was smiling from ear to ear, Misato couldn't help but smile at the scene in front of her, Laura was looking a little shocked, but allowed herself to smile.

When Asuka broke the kiss, she leaned her forehead against Shinji's forehead and whispered for him to hear. "Don't worry Baka, everything will work out.", she can feel Shinji's nod, she let go of him and he turned to go inside the room, once inside, he sat down and touched her lips, Shinji smiled as he remembered the moment he had spent, he even forgot where he was and what he was going to do.

Asuka turned around and with a flushed face and looked into the eyes of all the women present, they were all smiling at her, Asuka wanted to run out, but her pride would not allow it, she decided to handle the situation in the way she knew how.

"What?" Asuka spoke with fake annoyance.

"Nothing." Mari spoke with a mischievous smile on her face.

"Not at all." Misato spoke smiling, she was thinking how much she wishes she had taken a picture for later.

"Come on, the trial is about to start." Laura spoke as she broke the women's trance.

When they arrived at the press room, it was above the hall, from there you could see and hear everything that was happening, there were some reporters waiting to broadcast the news that would come next, Asuka, Mari, Misato and Laura sat down and waited for the trial to begin.


Shinji was sitting in the room, he could feel the anxiety start to return, his attention was broken when a man entered the room, Shinji could recognize him, it was the same defender he had defended in the first trial.

"Hello Shinji." The man spoke as he approached. "Just stay calm and answer the questions seriously, make NERV look guilty and everything will be fine."

Shinji nodded.

A UN guard came in and signaled for them to come in.


Misato and everyone else felt tense when they saw Shinji entering, the sound of cameras taking pictures began to echo through the place.


Shinji sat down in the place designated for him, he took a deep breath and looked up where he saw the people he loved, Mari threw a thumb up and smiled.

"Everyone stand up." A man spoke with a firm voice, when everyone was standing, a group with four people entered, all were in uniforms from different countries, all were generals, from the US, Russia, Britain and France.

When the group sat down, everyone in the room sat down, they took some sheets of paper, and the United States General spoke. "I declare the session open."

"We are here to judge the actions of Shinji Ikari and his role in the so-called Third and Fourth Impact, The Defendant is charged with Mass Murder and crimes against humanity, how does he plead?" Russian General spoke up.

Shinji stood up and spoke. "Innocent."

The four generals nodded their heads. "Shinji Ikari please come forward." French General spoke up.

Shinji got up and went to the place where everything would start, he sat down on the chair and waited for the questions to start.

The prosecutor stood up and began to speak.

As the hours went by, Shinji stood his ground, he answered all the questions as best he could, the prosecution was trying to make Shinji look like he wanted to do such acts, they were using the same strategy they did before.

The defense was trying to prove that Shinji was a mere pawn in the hands of Gendo and SEELE, that he had no knowledge of the real capabilities of an EVA and had no way of predicting the events that came, but when the questions came in the events of the Near Fourth Impact, the defense was having a hard time getting the case to stand in Shinji's favor.

Again defense and prosecution were debating strongly about the events, causing the Four Generals to constantly intervene to maintain order.

Five hours of trial had already passed, but everyone didn't seem the least bit tired, a lot was at stake now.

When all the evidence, for and against Shinji was put on the table, the United States General was ready to close for them to deliberate on everything, but before he did he was stopped by the Russian General with a question that caused all eyes to go to Shinji.

"Mr. Ikari, you claimed that you were desperate to fix everything on the almost fourth impact, that you wanted to reverse your mistake, were those really your intentions when you flew an EVA again?" The Russian General asked, he held a look that could pierce an iron bar, he was studying Shinji for any sign.

Shinji took a breath and spoke. "Yes sir, when Kaworu told me that we could fix things, I was so desperate that I didn't think straight, I just wanted to fix things, reverse the mistake I had made." Shinji spoke as he lowered his gaze in guilt.

"Does the defendant wish to have a last word?" The French General spoke up.

Shinji still stood and spoke. "Yes ... I know I cannot reverse the chaos and destruction I caused, I know I cannot bring back the lives that were lost when I tried to save a friend, but I would like to be given another chance so that I can help, help in the best way I can, I am not running away from responsibility, this burden I will carry with me until the end of my days, but I am asking for another chance, to prove that I am not a monster like my father."

The four generals nodded, the US representative closed and everyone left to deliberate the case and return with a verdict.

Mari, Asuka and Misato were nodding their heads at Shinji's words, he had really grown up, he was no longer running away or taking away his responsibility, he was facing it like a man.

Shinji went back to the room, he was getting queasy with anxiety, but he was doing a good job of keeping everything in order, after a few hours of waiting, the guard called them again.

Shinji could feel the tension in the air, this was the time they were going to decide their future, everyone in the room was looking on with anxiety and anticipation, Misato was swinging her leg in anxiety, Mari was wide eyed and looking at Shinji and Asuka was clenching her hands to control herself, the only one who seemed calm was Laura.

"All rise for the reading of the sentence." The general of Great Britain spoke firmly.

When everyone was standing, the general began to read.

"Shinji Ikari, after many hours of debate and re-reading, we reaffirm that you remain innocent of the charge of Murder a mass known as third Impact, but your actions in the known almost fourth impact cannot be ignored, you are found guilty."

Everyone's heart squeezed when the general spoke these final words, they were looking forward to the punishment that would be given to Shinji.

"But as we have been informed of your help in dismantling a treasonous scheme within the high echelon of WILLE and the UN's assent, along with your last word, your sentence is 7 years of service in WILLE aboard the battleship Wunder." General spoke raising his gaze to Shinji who was trying to digest the sentence.

"I declare this case closed." The US General slammed the gavel symbolizing the end of the trial.

Everyone in the room couldn't believe it, Misato let out a sigh of relief to see that he would be aboard Wunder serving by her side again, Asuka and Mari were clearly relieved at the sentence, again Laura was calm as the wind beside him, she had a smile on her face.

When everyone left, they met up with Shinji, he was clearly relieved, this sentence didn't seem too heavy, Mari ran up and hugged him happily.

"The puppy is going to stay with us!" Mari spoke happily as she held Shinji like a stuffed animal.

Shinji could feel his ribs complaining from the tightness, but he was still in shock that he had gotten out of this whole mess.

"Easy Mari let him breathe." Misato spoke as she released Shinji from Mari's deadly grip.

Misato looked at Shinji with a look of pure happiness on her face, she would have him back by her side now.

Asuka was standing next to Misato, she looked at Shinji and spoke with a smile.

"Welcome to the team."


Author's Notes: Please review, your critiques (Good or bad) are very important to me, you know that I take a lot into consideration what is said and it also gives me strength to continue this translation project, of course the translation will have problems, but hopefully it will be at satisfactory levels.

Don't forget to also like the Facebook page, search for "Calborghete" and locate a picture of Shinji and Asuka, on this page I will post updates and it will also be easier for you to contact me.

Well, see you next time.