So, lmao, the past few nights, there's been some animal screaming outside where I live, which happens to be the middle of nowhere. Shit's creepy, man. Damn thing has been all over the place. Tonight, it was down by the road. Last night, it was out in the field behind my house. The night before that, I think it was in my neighbor's horse's field. Not sure why I felt like mentioning that, other than it was interesting and the animal just happened to be making all those noises while I was writing. And, it makes my imagination go wild and now I kinda wanna write some kind of horror fic. But… I don't know which characters I'd use. But, shit, I'm already thinking up crazy scenarios in my head. And it made it hard to focus on getting this chapter out because I really wanna write some insane horror thing now, especially since the creature is literally screaming and shit RIGHT NOW AS I'M WRITING THIS AUTHOR NOTE! It's making me all tingly and excited. FUCK! Maybe I could write some alternate universe fic with just the Eva pilots lost in some forest or some shit and there's some crazy fucking mutant creature thing after them or some shit! IT WOULD BE SO AWESOME! SOME CRAZY FUCKING DECENT INTO MADNESS AS THE CREATURE CLOSED IN, ERODING EVERYONE'S SANITY! HOLY SHIT! I REALLY WANNA FUCKING WRITE IT! I have goosebumps right now because this fucking animal outside my house sounds so creepy. It's making some really loud raspy high-pitched noise and it's marvelously disturbing. And like… I want to capture that creepiness in writing.

So… don't take this as an official announcement, especially since I've been leaning away from writing two stories at a time. But... maybe, if I get enough positive support from my fans towards the idea, I'd consider writing some kind of horror story. Once again, not totally sure which characters I'd use. But, maybe since most of my fanbase right now are probably Eva fans, maybe I'd use the pilots? Honestly, I have no idea. But, I'm suddenly enthralled at the idea of writing some kind of horror story. And, I'm already thinking up different scenes. Holy shit! WHO KNOWS WHAT THE FUTURE HAS IN STORE!? Maybe, just maybe, I'll just say "fuck it" and I will write two stories at a time.

I also visited my grandmother between writing this chapter and the last. And, she's kinda…. she's a handful with her Alzheimer's. Her head is all over the place, jumping from one thing to the next and back and asking questions she forgot she asked just 30 seconds before. So, it's been a little hard to get around to writing with her the way she is.

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Text Guide

Standard Wording

"Spoken Dialogue/Speech"

'Internal Dialogue/Thoughts'

(Flashbacks)

/

[Slash denotes scene transition for the moment; this may be changed in the future so as to become more visible.]

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Disclaimer: I do not own or profit off of Neon Genesis Evangelion, End Of Evangelion, or the Rebuilds of Evangelion. I do not own Shinji Ikari, Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley Sohryu, or any of the other characters/ideas from the Evangelion intellectual property collective. All licenses remain with the proper license holders. If asked to, I will formally remove this story from the hosting website.

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*Cruel Angel's Thesis and Eva intro starts playing*


Neon Genesis Evangelion

A Journey of Hate, Power, and Love

Chapter 18

A Not So Normal Morning

.

"It's time to wake up, Shinji," a pale young man whispered before he turned his gaze away from the planet in the distance.

The boy ran his slender and soft but skeletal fingers through his moonstone hair. It flowed brilliantly in the airless environment he inhabited, like liquid silver on the horizon.

The boy wondrously observed his environment. The fine white particulate grains of dust that, when paired with the black void of the unimaginable universe beyond, created a beautiful contrast, like watching steam rise into the air when magma and sea water kissed under a stormy morning sky.

"I suppose I am alone. But, I don't feel alone when you're only right across the way, Shinji," the boy said as he glanced over his shoulder and back to Earth, "We're only a world apart."

The boy then turned and looked at the sun. Bright, absolutely. But, not so bright that he felt the need to squint. He was no normal boy though, and unlike most, he could stare for as long as he liked.

The boy took a seat on the white dust beneath his feet and made himself comfortable, the sun illuminating his hair like the silver lining of a cloud.

/

-An Awkward Awakening-

/

Shinji was beginning to regain his consciousness but has so far refused to open his eyes. He wanted to enjoy the warmth of his futon just a bit longer. But, something was…off. It almost felt a little too warm. Understandably though, that did not encourage him to get out of bed. And so, he tried to enjoy the warmth and softness before having to get up for school even if Asuka was going to give him a hard time for not having breakfast ready in a timely manner.

But, Shinji suddenly became very still, even going so far as to hold his breath.

He felt the covers being gently pulled and someone's leg brushing up in between his own.

'Asuka.'

The boy was paralyzed just by thinking her name, but he managed to open his eyes and look over a little to his left.

His heart skipped a beat when he saw that Asuka was indeed next to him, mumbling in her sleep.

'This is going to be really bad,' the boy thought to himself as he gulped and looked blankly at the ceiling above him, trying to think up some way to get out of this situation.

The girl once again mumbled a few incoherent words and shifted under the covers.

Shinji didn't know if he should stay or attempt to leave. Either option was liable to end with the girl beating him.

Shinji was starting to panic. And, he realized that, if he did choose to stay, he was obviously going to be found out. So, as unlikely as it was that he would be able to leave his room without Asuka noticing, he made the decision to try to sneak out without waking her.

But, this task would not prove to be easy.

Shinji slowly and tensely slid the covers down his body but paused in fear when Asuka started pulling the covers back up.

'Well, that's not good,' he thought.

He realized he'd actually ended up pulling the covers off her shoulders and that continuing to pull them down would probably wake her up. So, instead, he decided to throw the covers off of himself and over Asuka.

Miraculously, that had seemed to work and the girl didn't stir anymore.

Now all Shinji had to do was climb over her very carefully and get to the door.

But, though the girl's figure was small, climbing over her seemed more imposing than climbing a mountain. And though Shinji was never much of an outdoorsman, he deduced that he would indeed be more comfortable hiking up a mountain with Kensuke than trying to crawl over Asuka as she slept.

The boy nervously reached his hand over Asuka and rested it in front of her face before also lifting his leg over her lower body.

At this point, Shinji was ominously above Asuka…or rather, she was ominously under him.

'I should have asked her to sleep on the other side of the futon…' Shinji pitifully figured.

He could feel her hot breath blowing onto his fingers which were firmly planted in front of her face. The sensation excited Shinji in an indescribable way. But he thought better of dwelling on it, and instead returned his efforts to trying to remove himself from his futon.

He barely managed to get his other leg and arm over the girl without waking her. The boy finally climbed out of the futon, stood up, and was about to sigh in relief when he felt a small warm hand wrap around his ankle.

"Where are you going? It's cold," Asuka sleepily slurred.

"Gah! Asuka! I- I- I, uh-"

"Would you just shut up and get back in bed?" Asuka asked lazily, her eyes still shut.

'Back… in bed? She's not angry at me? Maybe she had a dream about Kaji and is just confused and thinks I'm him.'

"I can't get back in bed, Asuka. I… um… I have to go to school and cook breakfast."

Asuka opened her eyes and looked up at Shinji, a slight frown on her face.

"Stupid Shinji. Can't you just do as you're told?" she mumbled.

'Okay… so maybe she doesn't think I'm Kaji.'

"I am doing what I'm told, Asuka. Misato says I have to go to school, so I'm going to school."

"Stupid Shinji! You can't just do whatever you're told to do!" Asuka huffed as she threw the covers off and stood up.

Shinji was about to say something in response, but Asuka's contradictory statements had stolen his words from him. So, he just looked back at the girl with his mouth slightly open and his eyes showing mild fear.

Asuka got in Shinji's face and eyed him.

"Well, don't you got anything to say for yourself?"

"I… uh… I'm not sure what you mean?" Shinji asked more than answered.

Asuka looked annoyed and sighed before backing away from the boy a little bit to create a more comfortable conversational distance.

"Look, Shinji. You should just listen to what I say. Okay?"

"Just what you say?"

"Yes. Just what I say," Asuka confirmed.

"But what about Mis-"

"No, no! Just what I say."

"Well, yeah, but what about NER-"

"No!"

"And my fath-"

"Absolutely not!"

"But, Asuka, If I only listen to you-"

Asuka put her finger over Shinji's lips.

"Then you won't have to worry about anything. So, just get back in bed."

"But-"

"BUT WHAT, SHINJI?!" Asuka whispered in a hiss.

"We have to go to school today! And I still have to cook breakfast. And I also have to make lunch for Rei because I know she's not going to bring any lunch for herself!"

Asuka scowled at the boy.

"Hmph, fine then! Get out!"

She began shoving the boy towards the door, and rather effortlessly at that.

"But, Asuka! This is my room!"

"I don't care! It has a warm bed."

"Can't I at least get changed?" Shinji asked as Asuka slid open the door.

"No! You can go make food for Wondergirl since you're so concerned about that… thing."

Asuka shoved the boy out of his own room and then shut the door as quickly as she could. She then ran back to Shinji's bed and threw the covers over her head, trying to rewarm herself.

"Don't you even think about opening that door Shinji!" she shouted as she heard his fingers trying to quietly pry the door back open.

The boy froze before deciding to submit and go to the kitchen.

"Hmph!" Asuka huffed.

'What was that all about?' Asuka wondered, 'Doesn't he want to be in bed with me? Surely he doesn't actually have feelings for that doll.'

Asuka rolled over in the bed, trying to get her arms between her and the mattress so that they would stay warm.

'Not that I have feelings for him or anything. But why would he be so stingy about being in bed with me?'

Asuka sighed, her hot breath warming up the bed a little more.

'What's wrong with me? Why'd I even want to sleep next to an idiot like him? I mean… I'm pretty. I could get another guy. Someone better than stupid Shinji at least… But…can I really though? Can I really get someone better than Shinji?'

Asuka thought back to when she went camping with Toji, Kensuke, Kaji, and everyone else a couple weeks ago. She thought about what Rei had told her when she went to the lake to bathe and had mistakenly come across her.

("Chief Inspection Officer Kaji. He asked me…to be there for you…because he no longer can." Rei said, her back turned on Asuka as she waded through the water of the lake.

Asuka looked surprised and hurt, and then immediately looked down into the water, trying to hide the fact she was upset.

"So, he really is trying to get rid of me.")

Asuka's heart began beating faster and her chest started to hurt. It felt like something was in her throat, keeping her from swallowing.

'What if I can't find someone better? If Kaji doesn't want to be with me… then why would anyone else? No one ever talks to me except for Shinji. Everyone always avoids me. Kaji is trying to make me go away. I don't get it. I'm not THAT unlikable. I mean… yeah, I'm… aggressive towards people. But… that's just because I have to make sure they can handle me… And because everyone is just stupid, and they piss me off. So, if they weren't such assholes, I wouldn't have to tell them off. It's their fault for not being on my level of existence. But…why doesn't that make me feel any better?'

"Maybe I should call Kaji…"

Asuka reluctantly crawled out of Shinji's bed. She opened the door, and peeked out, making sure Shinji wasn't around. And when she confirmed he was indeed in the kitchen, she quickly jumped across the hallway, slid open the door to her room, and then reached for her phone after she shut the door.

She looked through the contacts on her phone and found Kaji's number and reluctantly dialed it.

She soon realized though that Kaji wasn't going to pick up as the ringing dragged on.

"Maybe he's just busy and can't get to the phone. Hopefully…"

/

'What was that all about? Why would she want me in bed with her? Especially since she always gets angry at me when I don't have food ready and waiting for her,' Shinji wondered as he worked on cooking breakfast.

Shinji sprinkled some ground red pepper on a couple eggs that he'd been frying for Asuka while leaving Misato's salted only. Of course, Misato liked spicy food occasionally, but he knew that Asuka was much more fond of it and was always demanding that Shinji add some kind of pepper to his cooking.

"OH, GOD DAMN IT!" Shinji heard Misato shout from her room.

Soon enough the woman was barging through the living room and into the kitchen.

"What's wrong, Misato?"

Misato grabbed her hair and began pulling at it after she sat down at the table.

"It's that pig, Kaji! He sent me an email last night while I was sleeping! And it had an audio recording in it!"

"I'm not sure I understand, Misato," Shinji said as he flipped the eggs over, "What's so bad about that?"

"He took advantage of me while I was drunk and recorded my deepest darkest secrets. That's what's wrong with it!"

"Oh…well, maybe you could just have some breakfast. Maybe It'll make you feel better," Shinji said as he kindly offered Misato her eggs, which he'd just finished frying.

"Yeah… Yeah, maybe. I'll need to talk to him about this later. But, you're right. There's nothing I can do about it right now."

Asuka's egg's had also just finished and Shinji lifted them out of the pan and onto a plate, which he then set at Asuka's usual spot at the table.

After that, he immediately set about making Rei's lunch for her, while listening to Misato lament over her encounter with Kaji last night.

"Ugh, it's so bad. He drove me home and everything. Hell, I think I might've even kissed him. I don't remember for sure."

"Kissed who, Misato?" Asuka asked accusingly as she seemingly appeared from out of nowhere.

Asuka scared the living daylights out of Misato. The woman hadn't even noticed she'd walked into the kitchen.

"Oh… um… no one. Just someone I met. You don't know him." Misato assured in an attempt at deflection.

"Hmm…" Asuka wondered, giving Misato's claim due speculation.

Asuka seemed to be mulling over what Misato had told her. And, when she decided she found Misato's words satisfactory, she sat down at the table and began eating her eggs.

"I thought you were staying in bed, Asuka." Shinji said, trying to find out what caused Asuka's change of heart.

"I was. But, then I decided I was going to go to school today because the entire apartment is too frickin' cold because SOMEONE can't just leave the thermostat at 20 degrees Celsius. No, she's gotta go turn it down to zero Kelvin."

"Well, maybe if you'd wear something other than almost see through lingerie…" Misato mumbled.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Asuka shouted

"I said it's good that you're going back to school. You missed a lot of days last week."

Asuka growled.

"Hey, come on you two," Shinji pleaded, "Can't you just eat breakfast in peace?"

Asuka knew that technically, Shinji had addressed her and Misato. But, she couldn't help but feel like Shinji actually just meant her.

"Hmph! Since you're making Wondergirl's lunch, you should make mine too!"

"Wha- Where did that come from? And why?" The boy asked in sudden surprise.

"Because the school food is terrible! And I don't want to eat it. And, if you don't, I'm going to tell Wondergirl about what you did last night."

Shinji figured that Rei probably wouldn't understand or care about the significance of Asuka having slept with him last night, especially since nothing really happened between them. And, it's not like he wanted to fall asleep next to the girl in the first place. But, considering that she was his first and possibly only girlfriend, it wasn't something Shinji really wanted to push his luck with.

Not that he was going to hide the truth from her or anything. But, it would decidedly sound better coming from his mouth and not Asuka's who would more than likely try to twist the truth.

So, Shinji once more submitted to Asuka's whims and began preparing a lunch for her as well.

"Wait! What happened last night? What did you two do?" Misato asked.

"That- That's none of your business!" Asuka shouted defensively and with a blush.

/

-Not to Plan and Unintended-

/

Shinji boredly sat in his class. Used to, he paid attention to his teacher. But, after Asuka had revealed to him the cover up of Second Impact, he had found that, over time, he lost his motivation to learn. Recently, he'd even been skipping out on homework, which he never thought he'd do.

And, even more recently, he'd just found himself daydreaming in some of his classes. Maybe that's why Rei had always been looking out the window in the past; she already knew that everything the school curriculum taught about Second Impact was a lie.

Of course, he wasn't always day dreaming in all his classes. In history today, the teacher was to go over the French Campaign in Egypt and the Levant, led by Napoleon Bonaparte. But, it was unlikely Shinji was going to remember any of it, even if he was trying to pay attention.

That was, of course, if the teacher even got around to history today. It was no mystery that Shinji's teacher was easily sidetracked and often ended up talking about his own life before Second Impact… just like he was now.

"Jeez, does this guy ever stop talking about Second Impact?" Asuka asked in a hushed voice as she leaned over to Shinji.

"Not usually," Shinji responded as he lazily held Rei's hand as she sat in the desk next to him, staring out the window the whole while.

"Guess I'm not missing much on the days I skip. I swear, how is this even considered an education?"

"Just appreciate it, Sohryu! You'll get a free pass for just sitting in the class and doing nothing," Kensuke whispered from behind her.

Asuka looked over her shoulder angrily.

"I don't need a free pass! I've already graduated college! I actually worked for my education!"

"Oh, uh, right, I forgot," Kensuke said as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Why is everything such a big deal to you? Don't you know how to be a happy person?" Toji whispered to Asuka from behind Shinji.

Asuka glared at Toji and growled at him.

"Don't you know how to shut your fucking mouth, Suzuhara?" Asuka spat back.

"Yeah, I do actually. And that's exactly why I don't; because I know I can use it to annoy you when you're being a bitch."

"Well, maybe if everyone wouldn't be such idiots and perverts, then I wouldn't need to be a bitch."

"Alright, class. I suppose it's time for lunch," the teacher said, his throat somewhat raspy from talking nonstop for the past hour and thirty minutes.

"It's about time!" Asuka huffed.

"Haha! Yeah! Thank you, whoever invented lunch time!" Toji shouted as he reached into his backpack and started pulling out all kinds of packaged and wrapped foods.

"Hand it over, Shinji! Now!" Asuka demanded.

"Okay, okay. Hold on. I'm getting it," Shinji said as he pulled out a couple bento boxes from the backpack under his desk.

He handed one over to Asuka, who eagerly snatched it from his hand. And, he then gave the other to Rei.

Asuka opened the bento and examined the contents, making sure that the food was to her liking before eating it. It appeared that there were a few tako sausages, some seaweed salad, onigiri, and…some other stuff she didn't really know the name of. It wasn't exactly what she was hoping for, but at least it didn't look like it tasted bad.

Rei on the other hand, seemed more satisfied with the contents of her lunch, the majority of which were just sliced vegetables with seasoning.

Kensuke opened up a bag of chips and began bartering with Toji for one of the many meal items he'd brought. Though, Kensuke probably wasn't going to have much luck. Toji wasn't one to trade or share his food under most circumstances.

Shortly after everyone began chowing down on their food, Hikari made her way over to the friend group.

"Hey, everyone!" Hikari said with a smile.

"Hey, class rep," Toji said with his mouth full.

"Mister Suzuhara, you shouldn't talk while you're chewing! And how many times do I have to tell you to just call me Hikari!?"

"Sorry, clas- I mean, Hikari!" Toji said again, his mouth still full.

Hikari sighed in exasperation.

"Well, how is everyo- Hmm? Mister Ikari, where's your lunch?" Hikari asked upon noticing that the boy didn't have any food.

"Hmm? Oh, I didn't have time to make one for myself today," Shinji said with an innocent smile.

Asuka looked down at her lunch and realized why the food she'd received hadn't been what she was expecting.

"Stupid Shinji! Are you saying you gave me YOUR lunch?!" Asuka asked accusingly as she spun her head around to face Shinji.

"Um… yeah. I guess!" Shinji said weakly, hoping Asuka wasn't about to get angry.

"Stupid Shinji! You really are stupid!"

"Asuka, that's mean!" Hikari said shyly, though Asuka seemed to not pay her any mind.

"I don't want your lunch! You should take it back!"

"But, you seemed hungry just a minute ago!" Shinji protested.

"And I told you to make one for me! Not to give me yours!"

"See? Look! She's doing it again! She can't just be happy with what she has!" Toji said as he pointed his finger at Asuka for extra emphasis.

Asuka shot another glare at Toji before she got up out of her desk, took a few steps to Shinji's desk, and dropped her lunch on his desk defiantly.

Shinji stared at the bento in confusion before looking up at Asuka who had her arms crossed over her chest.

"I'm not going to eat it! It's yours Asuka," Shinji said, sounding defiant, but also gracious.

"Well, I'm not going to eat it either," Asuka huffed.

"Well, if neither of you are going to eat it…" Toji said as he looked at the food excitedly, drool starting to drip out of his mouth as he slowly reached his hands forward, hoping to grab the box of food.

"Mister Suzuhara!" Hikari scolded the boy, trying to get him to show some restraint.

"Yes Ma'am!" Toji said as he straightened his back and tried to ignore the unclaimed food on Shinji's desk.

"If I may make a suggestion," Hikari began to say with a smile, "If neither of you wish to eat it, maybe you both could share. After all, sharing is caring."

"Yeaaaah, I gueeeess," Asuka said unsurely.

"I mean, if it's okay with Asuka…" Shinji said with just as much uncertainty.

Shinji glance over in Rei's direction to see if she had any protestation. Though, the girl seemed rather uninterested as she carefully picked out pieces of sliced vegetables she wished to eat.

"Open your mouth Shinji!" Asuka demanded.

Shinji looked back at Asuka, and before he realized what was happening, she was stuffing a sausage in his mouth.

"Hey, now! You can't just handfeed Rei's man like that!" Toji shouted angrily as Asuka shoved more food into Shinji's mouth.

"Yeah? Says who?" Asuka growled, though a slight smile seemed to have appeared on her face all the same.

"Says Rei!" Toji retorted aggressively as he pointed in Rei's direction.

Rei looked up from her meal and simply blinked before returning her attention back to her food.

"Oh, yeah?" Asuka said with a smug look as she taunted Toji.

"Er, uh. I mean… Says Shinji!" Toji corrected himself.

"Nice try, but he can't say anything right now," Asuka said as she shoved yet more food into the boy's mouth.

"Okay then! Says me!" Toji argued as he shoved his thumb into his chest, gesturing to himself.

"Well, I think what I say overrides what you say. I do live with him after all," Asuka cooed as he she gazed cooley at Toji with her cold blue eyes.

"So, what?! That's Rei's man! You can't just manhandle him like that! That's her job!"

"I'm not manhandling him!" Asuka said in an offended tone, "It takes a woman's touch, you see? Besides, I can do whatever I want, you dumb jock! And you can't stop me! Neither can Stupid Shinji! Or Wondergirl for that matter!"

"Yeah, but-"

"It is quite alright," said the quiet voice of Rei.

"Huh?" Toji questioned as he glanced at the girl.

"What?" Asuka asked as she leaned around Shinji and looked at Rei curiously.

"It is alright. I have no quarrel with Shinji being fed," Rei repeated herself.

"Wha- I mean, see? Of course she doesn't mind!" Asuka said snidely.

Rei then leaned over and kissed Shinji on his cheek.

"Ooooookay. Nevermind. I'm grossed out now. I'm not hungry. Shinji, you can have the rest," Asuka said as she sat back down at her desk.

Suddenly, Rei got up out of her seat and squeezed between a few desks so that she could stand in the aisle between Shinji and Asuka's seating arrangement.

Rei… looked at Asuka. The redhead couldn't exactly tell what kind of expression the girl was wearing or whether she was upset or happy. But, Asuka did know that she felt unnerved with Rei's eyes fixated on her.

"What's your problem, Wondergirl!? You mad I quit doing your job for you?"

"Cease your stubbornness," Rei said quickly before she seemingly hit Asuka in the face.

"What… just happened?" Kensuke asked, unsure what he'd just seen with how quickly Rei had moved.

"What is going on?" Hikari also asked, not entirely sure what she'd just seen.

"Why are these Eva pilots so weird? Do they have to pass some weirdness exam before they can become a pilot?" Toji mumbled.

"What!? What was that, Wondergirl? Did- Did you just put something in my mouth!?" Asuka said as her speech was seemingly obstructed by a piece of food.

"Yes," Rei said, like this was some kind of normal routine for her, "Now eat."

Asuka chewed on and swallowed the piece of food Rei had forced into her mouth and found it actually wasn't that bad.

"What… is this? Should I even ask? I tastes okay, but I don't even know what it was."

"I cannot say." Rei blankly stated.

"What does that mean?!"

"It means…I cannot say. It is… a surprise."

"Oh god, I don't think I wanna know."

"See, I told you! They're absolute weirdos!" Toji said again, trying to hammer his statement home.

/

"Do you always have to bring your stupid espionage spy stuff EVERYWHERE YOU GODDAMN GO?!" Misato shouted at Kaji.

"Hey, maybe the experience will help you learn to guard your secrets a little closer."

It was lunch time at NERV and a few of the employees has gone down to the wreck room to eat and participate in what few playful activities were available. Of course, Kaji, Misato, Ritsuko, and the three NERV techs were all sharing a table, some more willingly than others.

"I swear! Are you wearing a mic right now?! YOU BETTER NOT BE?!"

Before Kaji had time to answer though, Misato was already unbuttoning his shirt and looking for any peculiar devices that might be attached to his body.

"Whoa, Misato, I don't know if this is really the place to be getting undressed." Kaji half teased.

"SHUT UP!"

"What's going on with those two?" Makoto whispered into Maya's ear?

"I dunno. I'll have to ask Rits- I mean, Doctor Akagi." Maya whispered back.

"Okay, Misato. THAT'S starting to get a little personal!" Kaji once again teased.

Maya leaned over into Ritsuko's ear and asked her what exactly was going on between the two Officers.

"It's… complicated," Ritsuko whispered back.

Maya then whispered back to Makoto.

"She says it's complicated."

"Ah, I see."

Of course, Makoto then leaned over to Shigeru, probably telling him the same thing Maya had just revealed. And, soon enough, a look of realization dawned on Shigeru's face as well.

"Misato, uh, maybe you should calm down.," Ritsuko halfheartedly suggested, "Ignoring your… frivolous past with him, that is the Chief Inspection Officer you're tearing the clothes off of. I'm sure that he's probably required to carry around a recording device in some manner."

"Yeah! But, probably not on off duty hours!" Misato whined.

"Mmm, you never know. This is NERV we're talking about," Ritsuko responded with a slight shrug.

"Grah! Kaji! Where are you hiding it!? I know you're wearing a mic!"

"You're, right! I am. And, you're not authorized to know where I keep it," Kaji responded with a sly smirk.

Misato squinted her eyes and glared at the man.

"Misato, stop it. You're acting like a child!" Ritsuko berated.

"Of course, if you'd like to search for it, you're welcome to do so in more… private surroundings," Kaji said with a wink.

Maya was heard letting out a little yelp before she hid her face behind the clipboard she was always seen carrying around.

"Haha, yeah! Right," Misato said sarcastically, "But no. I have better things to do. So, I'll just have to make sure I don't trust you anymore."

"Oh, you wound me! I'll have you know that many a maid would kill and die for the chance to see what hides behind these curtains we call clothes," Kaji said just as sarcastically if not more so than Misato had managed.

"Oh, my!" Ritsuko said with just the slightest of blushes.

"It's so lewd," Maya whispered in a whiney voice.

"Yeah, I've heard that line before. Not falling for it. I have work to do!" Misato said as she went back to her paperwork, which seemed to be so never ending that it was predetermined to cut into her lunch break every single day of the week.

"Oh, poor Misato!" Kaji cried out dramatically, "How doth your heart cry out for more than pen and paper. Crave you salve to soothe the ache?"

"Yeah, well, unlike some people, I have work to do and can't spend all day pretending I'm a government agent," Misato said dismissively.

"Misato… you are a government agent!" Ritsuko corrected her.

"You're not HELPING, Ritsuko!" Misato snapped.

"And yet, you may want to heed her words," Kaji once again dramatically forewarned, "You're becoming more like her every day. Look at all this paperwork you've let into your life; a workaholic, just like poor Ritsuko. Don't you remember back in college when we used to never do our assignments!"

"Don't compare me to her! She may be a workaholic, but I'm an alcoholic. She could never keep her alcohol down until she was older."

"Hey!" Ritsuko interjected.

"Yeah, but she's been working on her tolerance. She might even be able to match up to you now, Misato," Kaji said with a wink.

"Hey! Don't compare me to her! At least I actually have a handle on my life!" Ritsuko said defensively.

"Haha, women. Always so vain. Why is that? You'll never hear a real man complain if a woman chooses not to wear make up for a day. But, she'll get shit from other women if she goes out in public."

"Hey, come on now, Kaji. Don't act like men don't judge other men based on their looks too."

"Oh, I'm sure they do. But, I've never seen them judge each other with the same vitriol as a woman judging another woman."

'In fact, I can only imagine how poorly Asuka is getting along with Pilot Ayanami,' Kaji thought to himself as his eyes narrowed.

/

-In Order to Assist-

/

The final school bell just sounded and as soon as it had, hundreds of kids immediately flooded out of the class rooms and into the halls, all in a hurry to get home or go on after school dates.

Though, perhaps out of everyone, the least rushed of them all were Shinji and Rei. The couple firmly and confidently held hands, being the last two to leave their classroom.

As the two students filed out into the chaotic entropy of the hallway, they heard remarks from other students who observed them holding hands.

"Hey! Look! It's true! They really are together!"

"I guess it only makes sense for an Eva Pilot to date another Eva Pilot."

"I wonder if anyone has tried to ask out that Sohryu girl yet!"

Shinji was embarrassed by the attention he and Rei were getting. But, at the same time, it wasn't so bad.

"Oh mein Gott! Are you two holding hands AGAIN!" Asuka shouted from a little further down the hallway, "That's it! I'm going. You make me sick!"

Rei simply blinked as Asuka turned her back on the both of them and disappeared into the crowd, while Shinji had a slightly more worried look.

Though, in the end, all he could do was shrug helplessly.

He felt Rei's eyes on him. He turned to face her and she quickly kissed him before saying what seemed to be on her mind.

"Shinji, can we talk?"

"Yeah, of course!"

"Follow me."

/

Rei had led Shinji to a recreational area above the school building. It was a partially cloudy day and the sun was beginning to set, leaving the sky filled with many different colors.

It was slightly windy, and a breeze blew between the two children. And after the wind had died, Rei spoke.

"I attempted to speak with Pilot Sohryu last night over the telephone… I wanted to help her, like we said we would…"

There were no words that could come to Shinji's lips as he remained silent and listened to Rei, knowing that this probably wasn't going to be a happy story.

"She was… less than pleased. I think… she hates me."

Shinji breathed in a for a second.

"Sometimes I think she hates me too. But…there was something that happened last night."

"Something that… happened?" Rei questioned.

Shinji wrapped his fingers around Rei's and squeezed her hand gently.

"She came into my room and… she… she slept in my bed with me."

"That seems… unlike Pilot Sohryu…"

"I thought so too. I don't really know what's been going on with her. It's like one day, she just hates everyone. And then other days, she's…kind of decent, like today… and last night."

"I am unsure of how to describe such actions. But, Doctor Akagi has told me of mental diseases that cause people to act… strangely… like Pilot Sohryu. Perhaps… I could ask Doctor Akagi her thoughts."

"Yeah… maybe that would be a good idea. Because… I just don't know what to do. I don't know how to act around her or if I'm doing something wrong."

"It is okay, Shinji. We will find the answer together. We will help her."

Rei then leaned into Shinji and kissed him on the lips.

After they broke the kiss, Shinji looked into her red eyes, which looked more orange in the light of the sunset, and then smiled.

"Do you want me to walk you home tonight, Rei?"

"No. I'm going to see your father tonight. I understand that… he is… difficult with you."

"Oh… I see," Shinji mumbled as he looked downwards.

Rei immediately put her finger under his chin though and lifted his gaze back up.

"Shinji? Would you like to be closer with your father?"

Shinji's eyes widened in surprise.

"I… don't really know. I mean… It would be nice. He's the only family I have in this city. And, it would be nice if… maybe he and I could get along."

Rei smiled at him with a rather larger smile than she usually smiled.

"Good."

/

"Ugh, Kaji, why won't you pick up?" Asuka whined pitifully in an alleyway.

She speed dialed his number again, and as expected, there was no response.

"VERDAMMT! Why are you ignoring me? WHY DO YOU HATE ME?"

For probably the seventh time in five minutes, she called Kaji again, only to be answered by his voicemail.

"Hey, it's Kaji! I'm obviously not near my phone right now because I'm probably in a super important meeting that's critical for the survival of our planet or I just forgot to unmute my phone. Feel free to leave a message if you want."

"He never mutes his phone," Asuka mumbled.

Another voice, this time an automated one, spoke to Asuka.

"If you would like to leave a message, please press one."

"God damn everything," Asuka growled as she furiously pressed one.

"Please leave a message after the tone."

The phone a made an elongated beeping sound and then began recording.

At first Asuka, couldn't say anything. She thought she was prepared to, but when the tone ended, she couldn't find her words.

She breathed uneasily and then whimpered, "Kaji?"

She waited, but of course there was no answer.

"Kaji, why won't you talk to me? You've… been talking to me less and less over the past months and now you won't even pick up… Why? Why won't you pick up? I just… I just want to talk… Please. I thought you were my friend. I thought you cared about me. And now you won't say anything. Please. PLEASE, DON'T GO. PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME! WHY DO YOU HATE ME?! WHAT DID I DO WRONG?! I'VE ONLY EVER TRIED TO MAKE YOU HAPPY! Please… Please, just fucking talk to me, please."

Asuka was trying very hard not to cry. But, she knew that if she said anything else, she wouldn't be able to control herself. So, she quit talking.

"If you are satisfied with your message, press one," the automated voice of the phone said.

For a moment, Asuka held her thumb over the one button. But, she hesitated.

'I sound… so clingy and pathetic,' she realized as she stared at the phone.

Eventually, she decided not to send the message.

"I'll… I'll just find some other way to get Kaji's attention..."

/

"My, my, Rei. You certainly have been finding your way into my office more often these past few days," Ritsuko said as she cleaned off some medical equipment with her back towards Rei.

"Yes, Ma'am. I have questions…"

"About?"

"Illnesses."

"Well, what kinds?" Ritsuko asked in a prompting manner.

"Mental."

Ritsuko stopped cleaning her equipment and looked at Rei with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you feeling okay, Rei?"

"Not me, Ma'am. Pilot Sohryu."

Ritsuko took a seat in a chair across from Rei.

"Ah…yes. She… is definitely suffering from something, probably insecurity spurred on by something deeper. But, I haven't examined her very closely. So, I couldn't give a proper diagnosis. And, with how hard it is to get her to do her synch tests, I can't imagine how difficult it would be to get her in for an examination. So, I've mostly just let her be."

"Shinji and I wish to help her."

"Help her how?" Ritsuko asked suspiciously.

"I am not sure."

Ritsuko sighed. Sometimes Rei could be… too blunt.

"Okay, Rei. Listen. I might have a way I could help you. Shinji does most of the cooking at Misato's place, right?"

"I believe so."

"Rei, promise me that you won't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you. It's illegal, so you can't tell anyone."

Rei thought for a second, and then nodded silently.

"If Shinji does most of the cooking, he should be able to slip medicine into his cooking, Lithium is what I had in mind. It's generally a mood stabilizer, and from what I've gathered of Asuka's behavior, she probably suffers from manic depression. Once again though, I wouldn't know unless I could examine her more closely. Back to the medicine though. That course of action is not safe. Shinji would preferably have to find a way to serve it specifically to Asuka. On top of that, I don't know how competent Shinji is at measuring out dosages of medication. But he would have to be able to do it because the therapeutic level of lithium is relatively close to the toxic potency. So, I don't recommend doing this. However, if you can talk to him about it and get back to me, I will consider helping you if you can show me you'd be able to pull it off. Because, as unprofessional as this offer is, that girl is not sane. And, I know that she would fight like hell to avoid taking medication despite how much she probably needs it..."

"I… understand. I will talk to Shinji about it."

/

Some time later, at Rei's Apartment...

Rei stared at the music box Gendo had given her last night. It sat on the same table as his broken glasses. Staring at the little trinkets filled Rei's head with so many thoughts as she rested in her bed. The poor girl always had trouble falling asleep.

But, perhaps if she called Shinji, she could at least get something off her mind.

The girl reached out for phone which resided on another table next to her bed. The screen illuminated her face in the dark as she searched for Shinji's number.

/

Shinji's phone rang right as he was about to begin cooking dinner. He reached into his pocket, pulled the phone out and saw it was Rei.

The boy started heading to his room before accepting the call. It was already hard enough to hear Rei's voice when he was right next to her. And, when she called him…well, it wasn't any easier. So hopefully, it would be easier to hear the girl in his room where Asuka wasn't watching the television.

"Hey, Rei. Is everything alright?" Shinji asked as he entered his room, shut the door, and sat down on his bed.

"Yes. I am fine."

"Well, what did you want to talk about then?"

"I have something to…tell you tomorrow. Could we… meet in private?"

"Um, yeah, sure I guess. But, what's wrong with just telling me now?"

"I can't tell you over the phone."

Shinji's heart began pounding as his mind went wild with ideas.

"Oh, okay. Well. I guess, if you wanted, we could… meet on the roof of the school again."

"That would be fine. Goodnight, Shinji."

"Goodnight Rei!"

He then hung up the phone and set it on his bed, wondering about Rei's words.

'What could she mean by that? Why can't she tell me over the phone? Is it… maybe, illegal?'

He rested his chin on his hands.

'Maybe it is illegal. But, Rei doesn't seem like the kind of person to do illegal things. Unless…'

Shinji doubted himself for a moment, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

'Unless she… wants to have sex.'

Adrenaline suddenly shot through Shinji at the thought and he started to become erect.

'No. She… she couldn't mean that. But…'

Shinji looked down at his pants.

'But what if she does?'

Images began flashing through his head portraying all kinds of scenarios. And, before long, he found himself unzipping his pants.

'I shouldn't be doing this. There's no way that she actually meant she wanted to have sex.'

But, at this point, Shinji couldn't help himself. He wrapped his hands around himself and began stroking. He started out slowly, but quickly found himself speeding up. He still had to cook dinner tonight. And, it wouldn't do him any favors if he took too long.

Soon enough, precum started to ooze out of him and he could feel it dripping down him and getting smeared around he continued to stroke himself faster.

He could feel that he wasn't going to last very long and that his dick was starting to pulse. In response he tightened his grip and more precum began to be squeezed out, forming strands that hung from his head as drops of it fell to the floor.

He tried to keep his breathing quiet but stopping himself from moaning was all he could really do as he grabbed the bed sheets under his palm.

"Rei, hehuh, Rei!" the boy quietly gasped.

He could feel it now. There wasn't any turning back. He let go of the covers and moved his now free hand in front of his dick, trying to make sure he would get anything on the floor.

"Shinji! Would you get out here? Dinner isn't going to cook itself!" Asuka shouted, obviously sounding irritated.

Suddenly, fear shot through Shinji. He could hear foot steps approaching his door rapidly.

"What are you doing in there? Are you still talking on the phone? I bet it's fucking Wondergirl, isn't it?" Asuka said in a disgusted tone as she put her fingers on the door and began sliding it open.

"Auh, Asuka, no! Just-"

But, time suddenly seemed to slow down as Asuka opened the door and walked into his room right as Shinji began orgasming.

And she watched as strand after strand of cum shot out of his dick and onto his hand and wrist. Somehow, she just couldn't force herself to look away. It was mesmerizing and terrify at the same time, seeing the cum overshoot Shinji's hand and land only an inch away from her bare feet.

Finally, Shinji stopped orgasming, and he looked into Asuka's wide eyes.

At first, she didn't make eye contact with him. She was still captivated or enslaved at the sight of Shinji's penis. But eventually, she slowly raised her eyes and met Shinji's. And once again, she found herself unable to look away for better or worse.

"What… the hell… are you doing?"

.


*Eva credits roll and Fly Me to the Moon plays*

.

"Sooooooo... That probably didn't end like everyone expected...

*Misato taps fingers on microphone awkwardly*

Anyways, next chapter is... Um...well... It's probably gonna start out just as awkwardly as this one ended if I'm being honest. But that's not a problem, right? But, hehe, that aside. Um...there's going to be more um... well, there's going to be more of me being needlessly angry at Kaji."

*Kaji knocks on recording booth door from outside*

"I heard that, Misato."

"GO AWAY, KAJI!"

"You're starting to sound like Asuka!"

"QUIT COMPARING ME TO OTHER WOMEN!"

"Jealous?"

"SHUT UP!"

"Fine, be that way. I know you love me anyways"

"Now that that's taken care of, where were we? Oh, yes, Shinji and Rei plan to assassinate Asuka with the help of Ritsuko. KIDDING! Assassinate was supposed to say medicate. And, uh... You know what? This entire chapter preview is... absurd. Just absurd. I'm not doing this. Especially with the way next chapter starts out. You'll just have to see it for yourself in the next chapter of Neon Genesis Evangelion: A Journey of Hate, Power, and Love; The Name of The Sin.

So, stay tuned. Oh, and, there's definitely going to be fanservice next chapter. Count on it.

.

So... I don't honestly have a lot to say about this chapter... Except for "wow." Because that jumped from Shinji and Asuka sleeping together at the beginning to Asuka watching him jizz everywhere at the end. But, for anyone who's paid attention to how I write chapters, I like to try to open them and close them on a similar thematical note, though not always.

But, anyhow I did figure I'd mention, for anyone who bothered to read the author's note at the beginning of the chapter and was curious as to what the animal I heard was, that it was a red fox. They mate during the winter time, and it's winter time here in the U.S. and the weird sounds it was making was actually the female fox's mating call, called a "Vixen call." Pretty interesting shit. I'd totally recommend going on YouTube and listening to some videos of them.

Update: Alright, I've been working on the next chapter for a couple days now. Hopefully, I can get it out before the end of the month. Next month is going to be a little busy for me. So, I'm not sure if I'll be able to get a chapter out in march, but I'm going to try.